196,016 research outputs found
Strategies for the early diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction using biochemical markers
We evaluated different diagnostic strategies for the early diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction, combining sensitivity and specificity of different markers evaluated singly and using combination testing in parallel and serial modes. Myoglobin, cardiac troponin I (TnI), creatine kinase (CK), and CK-MB mass were tested in blood samples from 26 patients with acute myocardial infarction collected at admission (T0; mean = 3.3 hours from the onset of chest pain) and 3 and 6 hours later. The comparison group was made up of 70 patients with renal failure, skeletal muscle diseases, stable angina, unstable angina, and chest pain of nonischemic origin. Single tests showed different sensitivities in relation to the different release kinetics; myoglobin was the most sensitive (69% at T0) although less specific (46%), and TnI showed the highest specificity (90%) and a sensitivity of 54%. Combination testing in a parallel mode using myoglobin and TnI or CK-MB had the same sensitivity and specificity as myoglobin tested singly. The best combination in a serial mode is myoglobin and TnI (at T0 sensitivity, 54%; specificity, 98%), as confirmed by the analysis of the positive predictive value, the negative predictive value, and the accuracy evaluated as a function of different disease prevalences
On the impact of rainfall patterns on the hydrologic response
We study the influence exerted by space-time rainfall patterns on the hydrologic
response to determine the scales for which the spatial heterogeneity of rainfall may play a
significant role in shaping the hydrographs generated in basins of varying characteristics.
We perform numerical experiments using models based on the geomorphological
theory of the hydrologic response, in which the spatial resolution of the input rainfall
fields is coarse grained from 100 m to 50 km. The variation in the resulting hydrographs
shows that rainfall spatial variability does not significantly influence the flood response for
basin areas up to about 3500 km2 in the cases considered, provided that the rainfall
volume at each time interval is preserved. We then search for the physical interpretation of
these results using the Jensen-Shannon divergence measure to characterize differences in
travel time distributions sampled by real and idealized disk-shaped rainfall patterns of
different size. Because the total residence time of a water parcel is often controlled by the
travel time within hillslopes, we find that when typical hillslope size is smaller than
the characteristic size of rainfall structures (say, a correlation length of rainfall intensity),
the rainfall pattern effectively samples all possible residence times and the response of the
catchment does not depend on the specific rainfall pattern. In larger basins (say,
typically larger than 103 km2) the travel time in the channels is expected to be an important
part of the total residence time. In this case the response of a catchment will also be
controlled by the specifics of the spatial distribution of rainfall
Dr. Duane M. Jackson, Morehouse College, July 2011
This video is a conversation with Dr. Duane M. Jackson. Dr. Jackson talks about his paper, "Recall and the Serial Position Effect: The Role of Primacy and Recency on Accounting Students' Performance." Jackie Daniel, AUC Woodruff Library, is the interviewer
"Reflections on the subject of Emigration from Europe with a view to Settlement in the United States" By M. Carey.
"Reflections on the subject of Emigration from Europe with a view to Settlement in the United States: containing bried sketches of the moral and political character of those states.
By M. Carey, member of the American philosophical, and of the American Antiquarian Society, and author of The Olive Branch, Cindiciae Hibernicae, essays on banking, on political economy, and on internal improvement.
To which are now added the English editor's comments on the subject; together with Important Advice to Emigrants, and Cautions Against Impositions Practiced in the Outports
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Dr. Glendon Swarthout
Hosted by Roger M. Busfield, MSU Assistant Professor of Speech and Theater, Meet the Author is designed to introduce a general audience to a contemporary author and their work through in-depth interviews. This episode features a conversation between Dr. Glendon Swarthout, prolific author and English professor at MSU, and assistant professors Sam S. Baskett and Theodore B. Strandness
Simulation of thermal plant optimization and hydraulic aspects of thermal distribution loops for large campuses
Following an introduction, the author describes Texas A&M University and its utilities system. After that, the author presents how to construct simulation models for chilled water and heating hot water distribution systems. The simulation model was used in a $2.3 million Ross Street chilled water pipe replacement project at Texas A&M University. A second project conducted at the University of Texas at San Antonio was used as an example to demonstrate how to identify and design an optimal distribution system by using a simulation model. The author found that the minor losses of these closed loop thermal distribution systems are significantly higher than potable water distribution systems. In the second part of the report, the author presents the latest development of software called the Plant Optimization Program, which can simulate cogeneration plant operation, estimate its operation cost and provide optimized operation suggestions. The author also developed detailed simulation models for a gas turbine and heat recovery steam generator and identified significant potential savings. Finally, the author also used a steam turbine as an example to present a multi-regression method on constructing simulation models by using basic statistics and optimization algorithms. This report presents a survey of the author??s working experience at the Energy Systems Laboratory (ESL) at Texas A&M University during the period of January 2002 through March 2004. The purpose of the above work was to allow the author to become familiar with the practice of engineering. The result is that the author knows how to complete a project from start to finish and understands how both technical and nontechnical aspects of a project need to be considered in order to ensure a quality deliverable and bring a project to successful completion. This report concludes that the objectives of the internship were successfully accomplished and that the requirements for the degree of Degree of Engineering have been satisfied
Intern experience at CH���M Hill, Inc.: an internship report
Includes author's vita"Submitted to the College of Engineering of Texas A&M University in partial
fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Engineering."Includes bibliographical referencesA review of the author's internship experience with CH���M HILL, Inc.
during the period September 1975 through May 1976 is presented. During this nine month
internship the author worked as an Engineer II in the Industrial Processes discipline of this
large consulting engineering firm... The author's prime responsibility was as one of three
lead design engineers on the design of a large wastewater treatment facility for a pulp mill
in Hoquiam, Washington owned by ITT Rayonier Inc. The work generally consisted of the design
of individual treatment units and associated piping and pumping. The purpose of the project
was to provide wastewater treatment capabilities that would satisfy the effluent limitations
(standards) imposed upon the mill by the State of Washington Department of Ecology and the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The author's assignment also entailed necessary
interaction with the project manager and other CH���M HILL design engineers and support staff
members, the client's representatives, and representatives of two other consulting engineering
firms working on the project. Thus, the internship position at CH���M HILL provided considerable
experience coordinating the author's work with the work of other engineers, guiding the design
and administrative efforts of a support staff, and interacting regularly with the client and
other consulting firms. This broad exposure to a variety of engineering and organizational
problems provided a valuable educational experience
Transition to turbulence in a qblique shock-wave/boundary-layer interaction at M=15
Direct numerical simulations are carried out for different forcing techniques to trigger transition during the interaction between an oblique shock-wave and a laminar boundary-layer at M = 1.5. Three forcing methods are used: a) forcing of oblique unstable modes, whose shape and behaviour are determined by the local linear stability theory, b) broadband free-stream acoustic disturbances, and c) a cold plasma flow control device. While the oblique-mode breakdown is dominant for low-amplitude forcing, long streaky structures drive the transition process in a high-amplitude disturbance environment. LES are also performed on the experimental setup by the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (ITAM) from Novosibirsk State University with cold plasma actuation. As well as the disturbance type, the effect of Reynolds number and forcing amplitude will be investigated
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