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Selected AbstractsRobust Maintenance Policies for Markovian Systems under Model UncertaintyCOMPUTER-AIDED CIVIL AND INFRASTRUCTURE ENGINEERING, Issue 3 2006Kenneth D. Kuhn Many sources of error, some difficult to quantify, can limit the ability of asset management systems to accurately predict how built systems will deteriorate. This article introduces the use of robust optimization to deal with epistemic uncertainty. The Hurwicz criterion is employed to ensure management policies are never "too conservative." An efficient solution algorithm is developed to solve robust counterparts of the asset management problem. A case study demonstrates how the consideration of uncertainty alters optimal management policies and shows how the proposed approach may reduce maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R) expenditures. [source] Demystifying Online Genetic DatabasesNURSING & HEALTH SCIENCES, Issue 2 2006Carolyn Driscoll There has been an explosion of genetic information and keeping current can be difficult. Traditional methods for obtaining information may be obsolete. Many sources for genetic information are now found on the internet although they may be confusing to navigate and interpret. The purpose of this presentation is to outline commonly used genetic databases, and demonstrate how they may be accessed and used to interpret genetic data. The mission of the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), a resource for molecular biology information, is to develop new information technologies to support understanding of molecular and genetic processes related to health and disease. NCBI services include PubMed, Nucleotide, and the BLAST algorithm for sequence comparison. In this presentation, several genetic databases will be explored. Each database will be defined, the available genetic information described, database access demonstrated, and website information displayed. This presentation will provide education related to several genetic databases as a means of facilitating and promoting access to this information by a larger audience of nurses and health care providers involved with genetic health care. [source] 1343: Internet tools for writing betterACTA OPHTHALMOLOGICA, Issue 2010BE DAMATO Purpose Many sources of information are freely available on the Internet to help authors write English more fluently. Methods This presentation will highlight useful online sources of information for aspiring scientific authors. Results The number of websites on English grammar is growing from year to year. These should be of great value to scientific authors. Conclusion Time invested in visiting websites on grammar and scientific writing should expedite the publication of research. [source] The academic environment: the students' perspectiveEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF DENTAL EDUCATION, Issue 2008K. Divaris (nci) Abstract Dental education is regarded as a complex, demanding and often stressful pedagogical procedure. Undergraduates, while enrolled in programmes of 4,6 years duration, are required to attain a unique and diverse collection of competences. Despite the major differences in educational systems, philosophies, methods and resources available worldwide, dental students' views regarding their education appear to be relatively convergent. This paper summarizes dental students' standpoint of their studies, showcases their experiences in different educational settings and discusses the characteristics of a positive academic environment. It is a consensus opinion that the ,students' perspective' should be taken into consideration in all discussions and decisions regarding dental education. Moreover, it is suggested that the set of recommendations proposed can improve students' quality of life and well-being, enhance their total educational experience and positively influence their future careers as oral health physicians. The ,ideal' academic environment may be defined as one that best prepares students for their future professional life and contributes towards their personal development, psychosomatic and social well-being. A number of diverse factors significantly influence the way students perceive and experience their education. These range from ,class size', ,leisure time' and ,assessment procedures' to ,relations with peers and faculty', ,ethical climate' and ,extra-curricular opportunities'. Research has revealed that stress symptoms, including psychological and psychosomatic manifestations, are prevalent among dental students. Apparently some stressors are inherent in dental studies. Nevertheless, suggested strategies and preventive interventions can reduce or eliminate many sources of stress and appropriate support services should be readily available. A key point for the Working Group has been the discrimination between ,teaching' and ,learning'. It is suggested that the educational content should be made available to students through a variety of methods, because individual learning styles and preferences vary considerably. Regardless of the educational philosophy adopted, students should be placed at the centre of the process. Moreover, it is critical that they are encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning. Other improvements suggested include increased formative assessment and self-assessment opportunities, reflective portfolios, collaborative learning, familiarization with and increased implementation of information and communication technology applications, early clinical exposure, greater emphasis on qualitative criteria in clinical education, community placements, and other extracurricular experiences such as international exchanges and awareness of minority and global health issues. The establishment of a global network in dental education is firmly supported but to be effective it will need active student representation and involvement. [source] Effect of spatial variability of cross-correlated soil properties on bearing capacity of strip footingINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL AND ANALYTICAL METHODS IN GEOMECHANICS, Issue 1 2010Sung Eun Cho Abstract Geotechnical engineering problems are characterized by many sources of uncertainty. Some of these sources are connected to the uncertainties of soil properties involved in the analysis. In this paper, a numerical procedure for a probabilistic analysis that considers the spatial variability of cross-correlated soil properties is presented and applied to study the bearing capacity of spatially random soil with different autocorrelation distances in the vertical and horizontal directions. The approach integrates a commercial finite difference method and random field theory into the framework of a probabilistic analysis. Two-dimensional cross-correlated non-Gaussian random fields are generated based on a Karhunen,Loève expansion in a manner consistent with a specified marginal distribution function, an autocorrelation function, and cross-correlation coefficients. A Monte Carlo simulation is then used to determine the statistical response based on the random fields. A series of analyses was performed to study the effects of uncertainty due to the spatial heterogeneity on the bearing capacity of a rough strip footing. The simulations provide insight into the application of uncertainty treatment to geotechnical problems and show the importance of the spatial variability of soil properties with regard to the outcome of a probabilistic assessment. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Traffic flow continuum modeling by hypersingular boundary integral equationsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING, Issue 1 2010Luis M. Romero Abstract The quantity of data necessary in order to study traffic in dense urban areas through a traffic network, and the large volume of information that is provided as a result, causes managerial difficulties for the said model. A study of this kind is expensive and complex, with many sources of error connected to each step carried out. A simplification like the continuous medium is a reasonable approximation and, for certain dimensions of the actual problem, may be an alternative to be kept in mind. The hypotheses of the continuous model introduce errors comparable to those associated with geometric inaccuracies in the transport network, with the grouping of hundreds of streets in one same type of link and therefore having the same functional characteristics, with the centralization of all journey departure points and destinations in discrete centroids and with the uncertainty produced by a huge origin/destination matrix that is quickly phased out, etc. In the course of this work, a new model for characterizing traffic in dense network cities as a continuous medium, the diffusion,advection model, is put forward. The model is approached by means of the boundary element method, which has the fundamental characteristic of only requiring the contour of the problem to be discretized, thereby reducing the complexity and need for information into one order versus other more widespread methods, such as finite differences and the finite element method. On the other hand, the boundary elements method tends to give a more complex mathematical formulation. In order to validate the proposed technique, three examples in their fullest form are resolved with a known analytic solution. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Perspective: Reconsidering the Effects of Antiresorptive Therapies in Reducing Osteoporotic FractureJOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 12 2001C. H. Chesnut III Abstract Concepts of what constitutes osteoporosis have evolved from the single criterion of low bone mass to a more inclusive consideration of bone strength, based on both quantity and quality. The evidence driving this shift is drawn from many sources. For example, recent studies of bone geometry have shown what engineers have always known: material properties and structural strength are inseparable. Genetic factors also argue against a one-dimensional (1D) view of osteoporosis. Large-scale family studies present a strong case for genetic influences on bone mass and predisposition to fracture. The contribution of aging to fracture risk has long been known, but we are only now beginning to understand what happens to bone remodeling and microstructure in an aging skeleton. The recognition that osteoporosis is far more complex than previously thought suggests that factors in addition to bone mineral density (BMD) may be useful for evaluating bone fragility and therapeutic effectiveness. Although assessment of BMD is noninvasive and widely available, the degree of increase in BMD alone fails to account for the broader effectiveness of antiresorptive agents in reducing the risk of fractures related to osteoporosis. Indeed, the very multiplicity of factors that determine fracture risk implies that response to therapy may be equally complex. Studies of response to antiresorptive agents and the cellular processes they induce are at best preliminary at this time. Although new technologies have been applied to studying bone microarchitecture, their invasive nature limits wide use. New methods are needed to provide insight into the causes and effects of bone fragility. The definition of osteoporosis, meanwhile, must still be considered a work in progress. [source] Patients' knowledge and perceptions of the side-effects of OTC medicationJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 4 2002L. Hughes BPharm PhD MRPharmS Summary Objective:, To investigate the knowledge of patients with regard to the side-effects of over-the-counter medicines. Method:, This took the form of ethnographic interviews and focus groups. Results:, Patients generally had poor knowledge of the potential side-effects of their medication. However, this appeared not to affect their ability to identify adverse drug reactions (ADRs). A number of the patients had experienced ADRs, and they identified a medicine as the cause because of the timing or unexpected nature of the symptom. The patients obtained information about medicines from many sources, including health care professionals, friends and family. Despite wide availability, patient information leaflets were rarely used by the patients. The leaflets were usually only read if the medicine was new or if a side-effect was experienced. Negative views of the leaflets included poor design and long lists of side-effects. Conclusion:, Accurate information and advice from health care professionals could serve to reassure patients and to ensure they are well informed about the medicines they take. [source] Forecasting plant migration rates: managing uncertainty for risk assessmentJOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2003S. I. Higgins Summary 1Anthropogenic changes in the global climate are shifting the potential ranges of many plant species. 2Changing climates will allow some species the opportunity to expand their range, others may experience a contraction in their potential range, while the current and future ranges of some species may not overlap. Our capacity to generalize about the threat these range shifts pose to plant diversity is limited by many sources of uncertainty. 3In this paper we summarize sources of uncertainty for migration forecasts and suggest a research protocol for making forecasts in the context of uncertainty. [source] Internet Survey of Nutrition Claim KnowledgeJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE EDUCATION, Issue 2 2005Mary E. Camire ABSTRACT: Consumer interest in healthy foods has spurred approval of several health claims for foods and dietary supplements. Although undergraduate and graduate food science curricula address food laws and regulations, nutrition claims may not be fully addressed. We posted a survey on the Internet for 2 mo for food industry professionals and others interested in taking the survey to assess their understanding of laws and regulations pertaining to nutrition labeling for foods and dietary supplements. The purpose of this survey was to measure knowledge in this area so that our university and others could reevaluate their curricula to provide student and lifelong learners with appropriate information about this important topic. Respondents were asked to indicate whether displayed claims were health claims, structure-function claims, or not approved for use on food labels. Respondents (N= 136) indicated that they gained information about nutrition claims from many sources. Although respondents correctly identified approved health claims and claims that are not approved for foods, some confusion about nutrition claims may exist because not all respondents correctly identified claims in the appropriate category. Issues in educating food scientists include keeping food labeling information current and defining complex topics such as structure-function claims. The findings of this pilot study have been used to incorporate lectures about health claims in courses in addition to the food law class at the Univ. of Maine. [source] Dispersal and phylogeography of the agamid lizard Amphibolurus nobbi in fragmented and continuous habitatMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2005D. A. DRISCOLL Abstract Approximately 90% of native vegetation has been cleared for agriculture in central New South Wales, Australia. Habitat loss has reduced and fragmented populations of the agamid lizard Amphibolurus nobbi. We compared genetic structure of populations of this species in an unmodified landscape with those from small nature reserves and linear remnants in farming areas. We ask: Is there evidence for reduced dispersal and population fragmentation among farm populations? Using 2008 bp mtDNA sequences and allozyme electrophoresis, we found that small populations in farming areas had as much genetic variation as populations in nature reserves. Application of nested clade analysis (NCA) indicated isolation-by-distance effects among populations from uncleared areas, but not among populations within farming locations. The genetic evidence therefore implied a high level of migration in the cleared landscapes. High dispersal after fragmentation may have resulted from either a burst of movement at the time of land clearing with dragons from many sources finding refuge in a few remnants, or from ongoing rapid dispersal through unsuitable habitat. A phylogeny based on mtDNA revealed that A. nobbi populations in the study area are deeply divided into two reciprocally monophyletic groups. Although we did not sample the entire species range, one of these evolutionarily significant units was only detected in remnant vegetation in the agricultural landscape. Therefore, a substantial subclade of this species may be vulnerable to extinction. Our findings emphasize that local populations of widespread species can harbour important intraspecific genetic diversity, supporting the case for maintaining widespread species throughout production landscapes. [source] The radio source counts at 15 GHz and their implications for cm-wave CMB imagingMONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, Issue 1 2001Angela C. Taylor We use the preliminary results of a new survey of radio sources made using the Ryle Telescope at 15.2 GHz, to estimate the impact of foreground sources on cm-wave cosmic microwave background (CMB) images. This is the highest frequency survey that is relevant to the issue of radio source contamination in CMB experiments. The differential source count of the 66 sources found in 63 deg2 is , from ,20 to ,500 mJy. Extrapolating this to 34 GHz (where many cm-wave CMB experiments operate) gives an estimated temperature contribution of sources in a CMB image, with a beam corresponding to multipole . A means of source subtraction is evidently necessary, otherwise the signal-to-noise ratio in CMB images will be limited to 4 or 5, becoming worse at higher resolution. We compare the population of sources observed in this new survey to that predicted by extrapolation from lower frequency surveys, finding that source flux densities, and indeed the existence of many sources, cannot be determined by extrapolation. [source] Identifying best practices and skills for workforce development in data curationPROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY (ELECTRONIC), Issue 1 2007P. Bryan Heidorn The nature of science and scholarship is being transformed by the ability to collect and integrate vast quantities of information. Some sciences such as ecology and environmental science are inherently integrative, requiring the combination of many types of information from many sources in order to answer more complex questions than has been previously possible. This new information and the information management tools designed to deal with this volume of data will help us make informed decisions that will impact human health and prosperity. To enable this cross-scale, interdisciplinary integration for the coming generations of scholars, data must be managed to facilitate interoperability, preservation, and sharing. This panel will explore best practices in data curation and models of education for new data curation professionals. [source] Down that Wrong Road: Discretion in Decisions to Detain Asylum Seekers Arriving at UK PortsTHE HOWARD JOURNAL OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE, Issue 3 2003Leanne Weber The discretionary power to detain asylum seekers on arrival in the UK has been described by one human rights organisation as ,extraordinary and largely unrestrained' (Amnesty International 1996). Although decisions made by immigration officers can lead to long periods in prison or in prison-like conditions, these actions are considered to be administrative and are therefore not subject to the legal constraints that apply to criminal justice agencies. This article traces the many sources of discretion in the use of Immigration Act detention, using an analytical framework developed by Schneider (1992). Discretion is found to originate from the vague and permissive nature of detention guidelines (rule-failure discretion), the priority given to operational considerations at ports (rule-binding discretion) and the failure to resolve conflicts between policy objectives (rule-compromise discretion). [source] Spirit possession, power, and the absent presence of Islam: re-viewing Les maîtres fous,THE JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL ANTHROPOLOGICAL INSTITUTE, Issue 4 2006Paul Henley In the history of ethnographic documentary, the late Jean Rouch's film Les maîtres fous is widely regarded as initiating a new phase in the development of the genre. It concerns the hauka spirit-possession cult of Songhay-Zerma migrants from the middle Niger river who had come to work in Accra, then the capital of the British colony of the Gold Coast, West Africa. When released in 1955, the film was both banned by the colonial authorities and simultaneously denounced by African intellectuals and leading French anthropologists. Since then it has gone through a progressive rehabilitation and today, some fifty years on, it is hailed in many sources as a remarkable counter-hegemonic representation of European colonialism in Africa. This article proposes a re-interpretation of Les maîtres fous, arguing that in order to defend the film against criticism, its counter-hegemonic features have been over-emphasized, thereby obscuring its continuity with other forms of Songhay-Zerma religious belief and practice. The article concludes with some brief reflections on the place of film in anthropology. [source] The ERA-40 re-analysisTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 612 2005S. M. Uppala Abstract ERA-40 is a re-analysis of meteorological observations from September 1957 to August 2002 produced by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) in collaboration with many institutions. The observing system changed considerably over this re-analysis period, with assimilable data provided by a succession of satellite-borne instruments from the 1970s onwards, supplemented by increasing numbers of observations from aircraft, ocean-buoys and other surface platforms, but with a declining number of radiosonde ascents since the late 1980s. The observations used in ERA-40 were accumulated from many sources. The first part of this paper describes the data acquisition and the principal changes in data type and coverage over the period. It also describes the data assimilation system used for ERA-40. This benefited from many of the changes introduced into operational forecasting since the mid-1990s, when the systems used for the 15-year ECMWF re-analysis (ERA-15) and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction/National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) re-analysis were implemented. Several of the improvements are discussed. General aspects of the production of the analyses are also summarized. A number of results indicative of the overall performance of the data assimilation system, and implicitly of the observing system, are presented and discussed. The comparison of background (short-range) forecasts and analyses with observations, the consistency of the global mass budget, the magnitude of differences between analysis and background fields and the accuracy of medium-range forecasts run from the ERA-40 analyses are illustrated. Several results demonstrate the marked improvement that was made to the observing system for the southern hemisphere in the 1970s, particularly towards the end of the decade. In contrast, the synoptic quality of the analysis for the northern hemisphere is sufficient to provide forecasts that remain skilful well into the medium range for all years. Two particular problems are also examined: excessive precipitation over tropical oceans and a too strong Brewer-Dobson circulation, both of which are pronounced in later years. Several other aspects of the quality of the re-analyses revealed by monitoring and validation studies are summarized. Expectations that the ,second-generation' ERA-40 re-analysis would provide products that are better than those from the firstgeneration ERA-15 and NCEP/NCAR re-analyses are found to have been met in most cases. © Royal Meteorological Society, 2005. The contributions of N. A. Rayner and R. W. Saunders are Crown copyright. [source] The X-ray source population of the Andromeda galaxy M 31,ASTRONOMISCHE NACHRICHTEN, Issue 2 2008W. Pietsch Abstract First studies of the X-ray source population of M 31 were performed with the Einstein Observatory and ROSAT. High resolution Chandra Observatory images not only spatially resolved the center area but also supernova remnants (SNRs) in the galaxy. Source catalogues of restricted areas were presented with high astrometric accuracy. Also luminosity function studies and studies of individual sources based on Chandra and XMM-Newton observations led to a better knowledge of the X-ray source population. An XMM-Newton source catalog based on archival observations revealed more than 850 sources down to a 0.2,4.5 keV luminosity of 1035 erg s,1. EPIC hardness ratios as well as informations from earlier X-ray, optical, and radio catalogues were used to distinguish between different source classes (SNRs, supersoft sources (SSSs), X-ray binaries (XRBs), globular cluster sources within M 31, and foreground stars and objects in the background). However, many sources could only be classified as "hard". These sources may either be XRBs or Crab-like SNRs in M 31 or background sources. Two of the globular cluster sources could be identified as low mass XRBs with a neutron star as compact object as they showed type I X-ray bursts. Many of the SSSs were identified as optical novae. Inspired by these results an XMM-Newton survey of the entire D25 disk of M 31 and a dedicated program to monitor X-ray counterparts of optical novae in M 31 was started. We discuss implications for further nearby galaxy studies. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||