5153 research outputs found
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Challenging the Concept that Scientific Based Research and Randomized Controlled Trials are the ‘Gold Standard’ Alternative Paradigms and Mixed Methodologies
No full textThis paper address three controversial issues related to mixed methods research and policy. First, ‘Scientific Based Research’ promoted by “NCLB” reinforces diametrically opposed paradigmatic views and research methodologies. As policy, NCLB prioritizes specific methodologies prescribing what counts as scientific evidence. Second, from a critical stance, federal policies shape and control decisions that funding agencies make regarding methodologies (RCT-gold Standard). Third, top down policies are currently framed in postpositivist ontological and epistemological conceptions and should include constructivist, critical, transformative and emancipatory paradigms supporting alternative methodologies (Christ, 2014). This paper challenges current practices of prioritizing specific research methodologies used to evaluate interventions. As an alternative, logical purpose statements and research questions should be the standard used to guide decisions about appropriate methodologies and procedures
PCRA
No full textRaf Santaella's poster on potential facility use for the Pelham Community Association (PCRA)
Political Corruption as a Crime Against Humanity
No full textDave Benjamin's poster on political corruption and how it relates to crimes against humanity
Influence of Light Intensity and Light Duration on Plant Growth
No full textMichael Martinez, Andres N. Gomez, and Qianiqan Liu's poster on the influence of light intensity and light duration on plant growth
SKINCure: An Innovative Smart Phone-Based Application to Assist in Melanoma Early Detection and Prevention
No full textMelanoma spreads through metastasis, and therefore it has been proven to be very fatal. Statistical evidence has revealed that the majority of deaths resulting from skin cancer are as a result of melanoma. Further investigations have shown that the survival rates in patients depend on the stage of the infection; early detection and intervention of melanoma implicates higher chances of cure. Clinical diagnosis and prognosis of melanoma is challenging since the processes are prone to misdiagnosis and inaccuracies due to doctors’ subjectivity. This paper proposes an innovative and fully functional smart-phone based application to assist in melanoma early detection and prevention. The application has two major components; the first component is a real-time alert to help users prevent skin burn caused by sunlight; a novel equation to compute the time for skin to burn is thereby introduced. The second component is an automated image analysis module which contains image acquisition, hair detection and exclusion, lesion segmentation, feature extraction, and classification. The proposed system exploits PH2 Dermoscopy image database from Pedro Hispano Hospital for development and testing purposes. The image database contains a total of 200 dermoscopy images of lesions, including normal, atypical, and melanoma cases. The experimental results show that the proposed system is efficient, achieving classification of the normal, atypical and melanoma images with accuracy of 96.3%, 95.7% and 97.5%, respectively
The performance evaluation of a grid-tied microgrid with hydrogen storage and a hydrogen fuel cell stack
No full textIn a heat-power system, the use of distribute energy generation and storage will improve system’s efficiency, reliability, and emission. This work is focused on the comprehensive performance evaluation of a grid-tied microgrid, which consists of a PV system, a hydrogen fuel cell stack, a PEM electrolyzer, and a hydrogen tank. The performance indexes of this microgrid are compared with one without energy storage or a fuel cell stack. As a result, the environment effect and the service quality in the first system is higher than those in the second one. But they both have the same overall performance index
The Growth of Arabidopsis thaliana Facilitated by Microbe Interaction
No full textBessie Abrego, Kayla Simmons, and William Omdahl's poster on the presence of
microorganisms will facilitate the germination and growth of Arabidopsis thaliana
How Design Management Make Mobile Devices Better
No full textThere will be over 7.3 billion cell phones on Earth by the end of 2014. That is a number that is higher than our global population, and it doesn’t account for tablets or Google glasses or smart watches. What many of us still do not realize is that these devices contain a multitude of toxic materials which, combined with a short lifecycle, pose a very significant threat to our environment. While these devices have evolved in many ways through creative thinking and business skill, their toxicity has not received equal attention. A short-term solution is to extend the functional life of every cell phone to reduce the actual toxic impact of each. What can be done to double the functional lifespan given our current technological conditions? Through various technological advances in recent human history we have gone from wired to wireless with elements such as radio, broadcast TV, cell phones, chargers, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Each of these devices has adjusted our lifestyles one value at a time. However, in hindsight, we have realized that while even the Swiss Army Knife has the capacity to cut bread and drive screws, we typically find it more rational to separate the two for common use. If we could bring that same logic to mobile device operation, we could imagine entirely new possibilities. Mobile cloud computing is among the best solutions to the problem
Dove Soap for Poverty in India
No full textDesign Objectives: Design a low cost product, of an existing Unilever personal care brand, for a specific region, while addressing: The environment in which the product will be sold. Direct relation of the product to the region. “Green design. Goal: Design a new Dove low cost product that successfully fits within the current range of Dove products, as well as connecting directly to India
Najaf: A Historical Center of Power & Economy: 1500 - 1920
No full textMost scholarly focus on Najaf has centered on its religious significance in Shi‘i Islam or on its political roles throughout its history. This study is the first to analyze the role of economics on political and religious institutions during the period 1500-1920