The forensic analysis of soil by FTIR with multivariate analysis

Over the past few years more and more studies have been carried out in an attempt to utilize chemical profiles of soil using a wide variety of analytical methods. The value of soil as evidence rests with its prevalence at crime scenes and its transferability between the scene and the criminal. This can be of value for comparison if the scene of crime is known, but could also be so in the identification of a scene. The main basis for the comparison of sites to determine provenance is that soils vary from one place to another. The aim of this work is to find simple methods to identify soil provenance based on FTIR and multivariate analysi

Models and Methods for Merge-In-Transit Operations

We develop integer programming formulations and solution methods for addressing operational issues in merge-in-transit distribution systems. The models account for various complex problem features including the integration of inventory and transportation decisions, the dynamic and multimodal components of the application, and the non-convex piecewise linear structure of the cost functions. To accurately model the cost functions, we introduce disaggregation techniques that allow us to derive a hierarchy of linear programming relaxations. To solve these relaxations, we propose a cutting-plane procedure that combines constraint and variable generation with rounding and branch-and-bound heuristics. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach on a large set of test problems with instances with up to almost 500,000 integer variables derived from actual data from the computer industry. Key words : Merge-in-transit distribution systems, logistics, transportation, integer programming, disaggregation, cutting-plane method

A Comparison of Mixed-Integer Programming Models for Non-Convex Piecewise Linear Cost Minimization Problems

We study a generic minimization problem with separable non-convex piecewise linear costs, showing that the linear programming (LP) relaxation of three textbook mixed integer programming formulations each approximates the cost function by its lower convex envelope. We also show a relationship between this result and classical Lagrangian duality theory

Olentangy River amphitheater proposal

Course Code: ENR 2367This paper details the proposal of the construction of an amphitheater along the Olentangy River near the new College of Food, Agriculture, and Environmental Science (CFAES) campus at The Ohio State University. A comprehensive analysis of the amphitheater’s potential use, design, maintenance, funding, and environmental impact are explored. Benefits and drawbacks of the project are also investigated from the perspective of the CFAES, OSU, students and staff, as well as the greater Columbus community.Academic Major: Computer Science and EngineeringAcademic Major: Environmental ScienceAcademic Major: Forestry, Fisheries, and Wildlif

Georgia College & State University Nursing Program

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the Georgia College & State University (GC&SU) Nursing Program, a non-experimental, survey research study was conducted by senior nursing students in the Nursing Research class. The survey evaluated the teaching and learning strategies used in the program, the students\u27 perceptions of preparedness for nursing after graduation, and the students\u27 perceptions of the strengths and weaknesses of the GC&SU nursing curriculum. Each participant signed an informed consent form. Forty-five out of a possible 142 nursing students responded to the survey. A statistical analysis of the responses was conducted and comparisons of answers were analyzed across the different nursing cohorts. Implications and recommendations for changes for the GC&SU Nursing Program were stated. As demand for registered nurses continues to increase, nursing programs in the United States are rising to meet this need by educating clinically proficient nurses. GC&SU nursing program graduates approximately 80 nursing students per year. In May 2003, 94% of the nursing graduates passed the licensure exam, helping fill the need in healthcare settings. Nursing faculty realize that they must prepare nurses who are adept at performing essential nursing skills including assessment, safe medication administration, nursing care for ill clients and health teaching

Does home oxygen therapy (HOT) in addition to standard care reduce disease severity and improve symptoms in people with chronic heart failure? A randomised trial of home oxygen therapy for patients with chronic heart failure

Background: Home oxygen therapy (HOT) is commonly used for patients with severe chronic heart failure(CHF) who have intractable breathlessness. There is no trial evidence to support its use.Objectives: To detect whether or not there was a quality-of-life benefit from HOT given as long-termoxygen therapy (LTOT) for at least 15 hours per day in the home, including overnight hours, comparedwith best medical therapy (BMT) in patients with severely symptomatic CHF.Design: A pragmatic, two-arm, randomised controlled trial recruiting patients with severe CHF. It includeda linked qualitative substudy to assess the views of patients using home oxygen, and a free-standingsubstudy to assess the haemodynamic effects of acute oxygen administration.Setting: Heart failure outpatient clinics in hospital or the community, in a range of urban andrural settings.Participants: Patients had to have heart failure from any aetiology, New York Heart Association (NYHA)class III/IV symptoms, at least moderate left ventricular systolic dysfunction, and be receiving maximallytolerated medical management. Patients were excluded if they had had a cardiac resynchronisation therapydevice implanted within the past 3 months, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease fulfilling the criteria forLTOT or malignant disease that would impair survival or were using a device or medication that wouldimpede their ability to use LTOT.Interventions: Patients received BMT and were randomised (unblinded) to open-label LTOT, prescribed for15 hours per day including overnight hours, or no oxygen therapy.Main outcome measures: The primary end point was quality of life as measured by the Minnesota Livingwith Heart Failure (MLwHF) questionnaire score at 6 months. Secondary outcomes included assessing theeffect of LTOT on patient symptoms and disease severity, and assessing its acceptability to patientsand carers.Results: Between April 2012 and February 2014, 114 patients were randomised to receive either LTOT orBMT. The mean age was 72.3 years [standard deviation (SD) 11.3 years] and 70% were male. Ischaemicheart disease was the cause of heart failure in 84%; 95% were in NYHA class III; the mean left ventricularejection fraction was 27.8%; and the median N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic hormone was 2203 ng/l.The primary analysis used a covariance pattern mixed model which included patients only if they provided datafor all baseline covariates adjusted for in the model and outcome data for at least one post-randomisationtime point (n = 102: intervention, n = 51; control, n = 51). There was no difference in the MLwHF questionnairescore at 6 months between the two arms [at baseline the mean score was 54.0 (SD 18.4) for LTOT and54.0 (SD 17.9) for BMT; at 6 months the mean score was 48.1 (SD 18.5) for LTOT and 49.0 (SD 20.2) forBMT; adjusted mean difference –0.10, 95% confidence interval (CI) –6.88 to 6.69; p = 0.98]. At 3 months,the adjusted mean MLwHF questionnaire score was lower in the LTOT group (–5.47, 95% CI –10.54 to–0.41; p = 0.03) and breathlessness scores improved, although the effect did not persist to 6 months.There was no effect of LTOT on any secondary measure. There was a greater number of deaths in the BMTarm (n = 12 vs. n = 6). Adherence was poor, with only 11% of patients reporting using the oxygenas prescribed.Conclusions: Although the study was significantly underpowered, HOT prescribed for 15 hours per dayand subsequently used for a mean of 5.4 hours per day has no impact on quality of life as measured bythe MLwHF questionnaire score at 6 months. Suggestions for future research include (1) a trial of patientswith severe heart failure randomised to have emergency oxygen supply in the house, supplied by cylindersrather than an oxygen concentrator, powered to detect a reduction in admissions to hospital, and (2) astudy of bed-bound patients with heart failure who are in the last few weeks of life, powered to detectchanges in symptom severity.Trial registration: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN60260702.Funding: This project was funded by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment programme and will bepublished in full in Health Technology Assessment; Vol. 19, No. 75. See the NIHR Journals Library websitefor further project information

Reconceptualization of information technology flexibility for supply chain management: an empirical study

IT flexibility is an increasingly important factor in today's dynamic business environment. However, earlier research lacks 1) an integrated framework that corresponds to diverse processes for supply chain management and 2) an explanation of how IT flexibility affects firms’ performance in the supply chain context. To fill these gaps, our study theorised a research model by integrating disparate streams of IT flexibility research with three types of IT flexibility, namely, operational, transactional, and strategic, and tested both the direct and indirect effects of the three IT flexibility types on firm performance. Our theoretical model uses an extended resource-based view to highlight the role of IT flexibility in managing interdependent firm relationships in supply chains. Using a partial least squares approach to structured equation modelling analysis on 162 questionnaires from supply chain practitioners, we found two significant relationships: (1) transactional IT flexibility affects operational IT flexibility, and (2) operational IT flexibility affects strategic IT flexibility. Transactional IT flexibility also affects strategic IT flexibility, thus playing a pivotal role in the effectiveness of the other two flexibility types. In addition, it was identified that transactional and operational flexibilities affect firm performance indirectly, via process integration capability, while strategic flexibility directly affects firm performance. By classifying diverse IT flexibility attributes into three types, a comprehensive and explicit concept of IT flexibility in inter-organisational relationships is attained, which allows practitioners to target key resource investments to realise the full potential of IT in the supply chain

Opportunities to enhance pollinator biodiversity in solar parks

Renewable power capacity is increasing globally in response to energy decarbonisation, with solar photovoltaic (PV) projected to be the dominant renewable. A significant proportion of solar PV is deployed as ground-mounted solar parks with potential implications for the hosting ecosystem. Given their relatively rapid introduction, the impacts on land use and the local environment are poorly understood. However, if deployed and managed strategically, solar parks could offer unique opportunities to enhance the local environment and benefit biodiversity, with implications for ecosystem components such as pollinators. With a focus on north-west Europe, we systematically review the available evidence on how land management practices relevant to solar parks can enhance pollinator biodiversity. We assessed 185 articles for the quantity and agreement of evidence for 27 management interventions and assigned a confidence score to each finding. We show that a range of interventions applied to solar parks could increase their ability to enhance pollinator biodiversity. We then use our assessment to synthesise ten evidence-based recommendations on how to improve solar park management for pollinators by providing foraging and reproductive resources, undergoing considered management practices, increasing landscape heterogeneity and connectivity and providing microclimatic variation. Ensuring beneficial management of rapidly growing solar parks contributes to their wider environmental sustainability, with positive implications for both pollinator conservation and the energy sector in general

Long-term Oxygen Treatment in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Recommendations for Future Research: An NHLBI Workshop Report

Long-term oxygen treatment (LTOT) prolongs life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and severe resting hypoxemia. Although this benefit is proven by clinical trials, scientific research has not provided definitive guidance regarding who should receive LTOT and how it should be delivered. Deficiencies in knowledge and in current research activity related to LTOT are especially striking in comparison to the importance of LTOT in the management of COPD and the associated costs. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, in collaboration with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, convened a working group to discuss research on LTOT. Participants in this meeting identified specific areas in which further investigation would likely lead to improvements in the care of patients with COPD or reductions in the cost of their care. The group recommended four clinical trials in subjects with COPD: (1) efficacy of ambulatory O2 supplementation in subjects who experience oxyhemoglobin desaturation during physical activity but are not severely hypoxemic at rest; (2) efficacy of LTOT in subjects with severe COPD and only moderate hypoxemia; (3) efficacy of nocturnal O2 supplementation in subjects who show episodic desaturation during sleep that is not attributable to obstructive sleep apnea; and (4) effectiveness of an activity-dependent prescription for O2 flow rate that is based on clinical tests performed at rest, during exercise, and during sleep