A Path to Implement Precision Child Health Cardiovascular Medicine.

Congenital heart defects (CHDs) affect approximately 1% of live births and are a major source of childhood morbidity and mortality even in countries with advanced healthcare systems. Along with phenotypic heterogeneity, the underlying etiology of CHDs is multifactorial, involving genetic, epigenetic, and/or environmental contributors. Clear dissection of the underlying mechanism is a powerful step to establish individualized therapies. However, the majority of CHDs are yet to be clearly diagnosed for the underlying genetic and environmental factors, and even less with effective therapies. Although the survival rate for CHDs is steadily improving, there is still a significant unmet need for refining diagnostic precision and establishing targeted therapies to optimize life quality and to minimize future complications. In particular, proper identification of disease associated genetic variants in humans has been challenging, and this greatly impedes our ability to delineate gene-environment interactions that contribute to the pathogenesis of CHDs. Implementing a systematic multileveled approach can establish a continuum from phenotypic characterization in the clinic to molecular dissection using combined next-generation sequencing platforms and validation studies in suitable models at the bench. Key elements necessary to advance the field are: first, proper delineation of the phenotypic spectrum of CHDs; second, defining the molecular genotype/phenotype by combining whole-exome sequencing and transcriptome analysis; third, integration of phenotypic, genotypic, and molecular datasets to identify molecular network contributing to CHDs; fourth, generation of relevant disease models and multileveled experimental investigations. In order to achieve all these goals, access to high-quality biological specimens from well-defined patient cohorts is a crucial step. Therefore, establishing a CHD BioCore is an essential infrastructure and a critical step on the path toward precision child health cardiovascular medicine

Wide Area Search and Engagement Simulation Validation

As unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) increase in capability, the ability to refuel them in the air is becoming more critical. Aerial refueling will extend the range, shorten the response times, and extend loiter time of UAVs. Executing aerial refueling autonomously will reduce the command and control, logistics, and training efforts associated with fielding UAV systems. Currently, the Air Force Research Lab is researching the various technologies required to conduct automated aerial refueling (AAR). One of the required technologies is the ability to autonomously rendezvous with the tanker. The goal of this research is to determine the control required to fly an optimum rendezvous using numerical optimization and to design a controller that will approximate that control. Two problems were examined. The first problem is for the receiver to rendezvous in minimum time, with a known tanker path. The second problem is for the receiver to rendezvous at a specified time with a known tanker path. For the first problem, the simulated controller results will be compared to the calculated optimal control

The flight robotics laboratory

The Flight Robotics Laboratory of the Marshall Space Flight Center is described in detail. This facility, containing an eight degree of freedom manipulator, precision air bearing floor, teleoperated motion base, reconfigurable operator's console, and VAX 11/750 computer system, provides simulation capability to study human/system interactions of remote systems. The facility hardware, software and subsequent integration of these components into a real time man-in-the-loop simulation for the evaluation of spacecraft contact proximity and dynamics are described

Modelling systems that integrate programming language and environment mechanisms

Once we relax the assumption that it must be possible to specify programs solely in terms of text and enter them in isolation from other tools, the range of possible program development mechanisms is significantly increased. Thus, in the light of advances in the field of integrated software development environments and in view of the wider availability of suitable workstations, we should reconsider the way we perceive (and, hence design) programming languages. This paper describes on-going work aimed at exploring the role of the programming language in the context of modern software development environments. The work is currently focused on two fronts: the development of a formalism for describing both a programming language and associated environment mechanisms, and the design of environment mechanisms that support software maintenance and reuse, complementing those traditionally provided by programming languages. This paper focuses on work in the first of these two areas

Dynamic Matrix Factorization with Priors on Unknown Values

Advanced and effective collaborative filtering methods based on explicit feedback assume that unknown ratings do not follow the same model as the observed ones (\emph{not missing at random}). In this work, we build on this assumption, and introduce a novel dynamic matrix factorization framework that allows to set an explicit prior on unknown values. When new ratings, users, or items enter the system, we can update the factorization in time independent of the size of data (number of users, items and ratings). Hence, we can quickly recommend items even to very recent users. We test our methods on three large datasets, including two very sparse ones, in static and dynamic conditions. In each case, we outrank state-of-the-art matrix factorization methods that do not use a prior on unknown ratings.Comment: in the Proceedings of 21st ACM SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining 201

Analisis Kebijakan E-procurement Di Pemerintah Provinsi Gorontalo Menggunakan Metode Technology Acceptance Model Dan End User Computing Satisfaction

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui keberhasilan implementasi e-procurement di Provinsi Gorontalo dengan menggunakan Metode Model Akselerasi Teknologi (TAM dari Davis) dan Kepuasan Pengguna Akhir (EUCS dari Doll dan Torkzadeh). Evaluasi difokuskan pada komponen inti dalam keberhasilan implementasi e-procurement yaitu kualitas informasi, kualitas sistem, kualitas layanan, kepuasan pengguna, penggunaan sistem, dan manfaat bersih. Pengaruh dan hubungan antar komponen ini diuji dengan menggunakan metode kuantitatif dengan analisis pemodelan persamaan struktural (SEM) dengan menggunakan AMOS. Instrumen yang digunakan untuk mengukur dimensi yang mempengaruhi keberhasilan pelaksanaan e-procurement adalah kuesioner yang dekat dari persepsi pengguna dengan menggunakan skala Likert 1 sampai 5. Ada sebanyak 187 sampel yang kembali diantara 225 sampel e-procurement. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa kualitas informasi berpengaruh signifikan terhadap penggunaan sistem dan kepuasan pengguna. kemudahan penggunaan, isi, keakuratan, format, kemudahan, ketepatan waktu memiliki pengaruh positif kepuasan kepuasan pengguna yang signifikan. Dalam penelitian ini review terhadap analisa teknikal juga dilakukan dengan membandingkan keberhasilan implementasi e-procurement dari persepsi pengguna terhadap kondisi aktual implementasi teknis e-procurement

The variant western corn rootworm in Iowa

Corn producers in eastern Iowa should expect to see changes in corn rootworm behavior. The variant of the western corn rootworm has now been confirmed in eight Iowa counties. Their presence may influence corn producer management decisions, especially in corn rotated with soybeans

When should you be concerned about adult corn rootworm feeding on your corn?

Last week, we were asked when a grower should be concerned about adult corn rootworms feeding on the silks of their corn. The importance of beetle feeding on corn silks is variable and there is not a definitive treatment threshold. The variability is the result of the environmental conditions and the maturity of the corn in relation to surrounding fields. During the 1970s, Purdue University conducted a study to try to identify a treatment threshold for adult rootworm feeding. The resulting threshold was 5 to 15 adult rootworms per plant

The cereal leaf beetle in Iowa oats: Research and education program for biological control and sustainable management practices

The cereal leaf beetle, (Oulema melanopusj, a serious insect pest of small grains, including oats, was detected in the eastern half of Iowa in the early 1990s. Iowa\u27s five leading counties for oat production are located in northeastern Iowa, and field surveys were conducted in this area to document Entomology the levels of cereal leaf beetle infestations, potential impact on production, and the presence of natural enemies. Findings showed that current cereal leaf beetle numbers are too low to cause economic damage and no compelling need exists to establish a management program aimed against this particular pes

Black Cutworm Thresholds: What has Changed with the Price of Corn and New Control Methods?

Black cutworm traps across Iowa have been capturing migrating moths for several weeks. Pheromone traps are valuable tools in integrated pest management, but they have limitations. The traps only tell you that the insects are in your area; they do not report in which fields the insects have laid their eggs. Where moths lay their eggs will be influenced by environmental and agronomic factors such as weed cover, tillage, the date the crop is planted and previous crop residue, etc. The bottom line is that once adult black cutworms are forecast to be in your area, you must scout your fields to determine if there are larvae present and if they are “cutting” your corn plants. If there is sufficient cutting then controls should be applied