Natural microorganisms’ effect on the growth of Lasthenia californica in post‐fire soil

The effect of microorganisms in post‐fire soil on the growth of lasthenia californica was studied by comparing growth in natural soil versus autoclaved soil. It was hypothesized that the seeds from the natural soil would have more growth because the microorganisms have a symbiotic relationship with the plants. Seeds were grown in similar conditions in both autoclaved and natural soil. After 44 days, the plants were uprooted and split into shoots and roots. Shoots and roots were then biomassed. The natural soil had a total shoot biomass of 3.031g and a total root biomass of 89.554g, while the autoclaved soil had a total shoot biomass of 1.731g and a total root biomass of 21.4492g. The results were consistent with the hypothesis showing that microorganisms do have an effect on the growth of lasthenia californica. This is valuable information for any post‐fire recovery. If the fire was hot enough to kill the microorganisms, it might be more conducive to lasthenia californica growth to add microorganisms back to the soil

VALIDATION OF THE WIMS/PANTHER EMBEDDED SUPERCELL METHOD

The WIMS/PANTHER Embedded Supercell Method (ESM) provides a significant improvement in prediction accuracy for radial power distributions for PWR reactors compared to the standard “two-step” approach, without the need for a significant increase in computational resource. Recent papers at PHYSOR conferences have outlined the details of the method and demonstrated its operation, and the accuracy improvements possible, by means of benchmarking calculations. This paper applies the method to a 4-loop PWR in the U.K, and three PWRs (3-loop and 2-loop) in Belgium. Comparisons are made against measured data from the start-of-cycle physics testing performed for each cycle, and power-shape measurements collected during the cycle using a conventional “two-step” nodal reactor solution, and with the ESM. All results will be presented with the JEF2.2 nuclear data library, for ease of comparison between the methods and previously reported results, although the effects of more modern evaluations will be commented upon. The benchmark calculations referred to above studied a challenging MOX/UO2 benchmark core akin to an SMR. The four reactors studied here include conventional UO2 only core designs and cycles with UO2/MOX mixed cores. A variety of boron-and gadolinium-based burnable absorbers are also present. The data is used to show that the method both operates successfully for real reactor problems, and delivers improvements in the prediction accuracy of measured parameters

VALIDATION OF THE WIMS/PANTHER EMBEDDED SUPERCELL METHOD

The WIMS/PANTHER Embedded Supercell Method (ESM) provides a significant improvement in prediction accuracy for radial power distributions for PWR reactors compared to the standard “two-step” approach, without the need for a significant increase in computational resource. Recent papers at PHYSOR conferences have outlined the details of the method and demonstrated its operation, and the accuracy improvements possible, by means of benchmarking calculations. This paper applies the method to a 4-loop PWR in the U.K, and three PWRs (3-loop and 2-loop) in Belgium. Comparisons are made against measured data from the start-of-cycle physics testing performed for each cycle, and power-shape measurements collected during the cycle using a conventional “two-step” nodal reactor solution, and with the ESM. All results will be presented with the JEF2.2 nuclear data library, for ease of comparison between the methods and previously reported results, although the effects of more modern evaluations will be commented upon. The benchmark calculations referred to above studied a challenging MOX/UO2 benchmark core akin to an SMR. The four reactors studied here include conventional UO2 only core designs and cycles with UO2/MOX mixed cores. A variety of boron-and gadolinium-based burnable absorbers are also present. The data is used to show that the method both operates successfully for real reactor problems, and delivers improvements in the prediction accuracy of measured parameters

The Value Adults Place on Child Health and Functional Status

OBJECTIVES: By summarizing the value adults place on child health and functional status, this study provides a new quantitative tool that enhances our understanding of the benefits of new health technologies and illustrates the potential contributions of existing datasets for comparative effectiveness research in pediatrics. METHODS: Respondents, ages 18 and older, were recruited from a nationally representative panel between August 2012 and February 2013 to complete an online survey. The survey included a series of paired comparisons that asked respondents to choose between child health and functional status outcomes, which were described using the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, a 14-item descriptive system of child health outcomes. Using respondent choices regarding an unnamed 7- or 10-year-old child, generalized linear model analyses estimated the value of child health and functional status on a quality-adjusted life year scale. RESULTS: Across the domains of health and functional status, repeated or chronic physical pain, feeling anxious or depressed, and behavioral problems (such as acting out, fighting, bullying, or arguing) were most valuable, as indicated by adult respondents’ preference of other health problems to avoid outcomes along these domains. DISCUSSION: These findings may inform comparative effectiveness research, health technology assessments, clinical practice guidelines, and public resource allocation decisions by enhancing understanding of the value adults place on health and functional status of children. Improved measurement of public priorities can promote national child health by drawing attention to what adults value most and complementing conventional measures of public health surveillance

Collaborative experience between scientific software projects using Agile Scrum development

Developing sustainable software for the scientific community requires expertise in software engineering and domain science. This can be challenging due to the unique needs of scientific software, the insufficient resources for software engineering practices in the scientific community, and the complexity of developing for evolving scientific contexts. While open-source software can partially address these concerns, it can introduce complicating dependencies and delay development. These issues can be reduced if scientists and software developers collaborate. We present a case study wherein scientists from the SuperNova Early Warning System collaborated with software developers from the Scalable Cyberinfrastructure for Multi-Messenger Astrophysics project. The collaboration addressed the difficulties of open-source software development, but presented additional risks to each team. For the scientists, there was a concern of relying on external systems and lacking control in the development process. For the developers, there was a risk in supporting a user-group while maintaining core development. These issues were mitigated by creating a second Agile Scrum framework in parallel with the developers' ongoing Agile Scrum process. This Agile collaboration promoted communication, ensured that the scientists had an active role in development, and allowed the developers to evaluate and implement the scientists' software requirements. The collaboration provided benefits for each group: the scientists actuated their development by using an existing platform, and the developers utilized the scientists' use-case to improve their systems. This case study suggests that scientists and software developers can avoid scientific computing issues by collaborating and that Agile Scrum methods can address emergent concerns