An Inverse Source Location Algorithm for Radiation Portal Monitor Applications

Radiation portal monitors are being deployed at border crossings throughout the world to prevent the smuggling of nuclear and radiological materials; however, a tension exists between security and the free-flow of commerce. Delays at ports-of-entry have major economic implications, so it is imperative to minimize portal monitor screening time. We have developed an algorithm to locate a radioactive source using a distributed array of detectors, specifically for use at border crossings. To locate the source, we formulated an optimization problem where the objective function describes the least-squares difference between the actual and predicted detector measurements. The predicted measurements are calculated by solving the 3-D deterministic neutron transport equation given an estimated source position. The source position is updated using the steepest descent method, where the gradient of the objective function with respect to the source position is calculated using adjoint transport calculations. If the objective function is smaller than a predetermined convergence criterion, then the source position has been identified. To test the algorithm, we first verified that the 3-D forward transport solver was working correctly by comparing to the code PARTISN (Parallel Time-Dependent SN). Then, we developed a baseline scenario to represent a typical border crossing. Test cases were run for various source positions within each vehicle and convergence criteria, which showed that the algorithm performed well in situations where we have perfect knowledge of parameters such as the material properties of the vehicles. We also ran a sensitivity analysis to determine how uncertainty in various parameters-the optical thickness of the vehicles, the fill level in the gas tank, the physical size of the vehicles, and the detector efficiencies-affects the results. We found that algorithm is most sensitive to the optical thickness of the vehicles. Finally, we tested the simplifying assumption of one energy group by using measurements obtained from MCNPX (Monte Carlo N-Particle Extended). These results showed that the one-energy-group assumption will not be sufficient if the code is deployed in a real-world scenario. While this work describes the application of the algorithm to a land border crossing, it has potential for use in a wide array of nuclear security problems

Women and urban environments, volume 1 : feminist analysis of urban spaces

vii, 58 p. : ill

The Iowa Homemaker vol.41, no.2

Tips Add Ease In Traveling, Karen Williams, page 4 May Is Raining Roses, Marilynn Bratten, page 6 “Instant” Palace Is Rare, Sharon Sherman, page 8 Flowers Range from Gardenias to New Glamellias, Anne Collison, page 10 Bells Ring at ISU, Jo Ann Fridley, page 11 Duo Drape Gowns, Anne Miller, Gail Wallen, page 12 Look at Latest, Karen Nielsen, page 1

Prioritization and Planning to Improve Urban Tree Health in the Chicago Region

The Chicago Region Trees Initiative (CRTI) has collected one of the largest data sets on urban forestry in the United States. This data informs where and how CRTI prioritizes its work and capacity building. This data has been incorporated into interactive online resources that communities and neighborhoods can access to help decision makers, landowners, and managers understand where and what to plant, the value of the urban forest, impacts of woody invasive species, heat island challenges, and where opportunities exist for oak ecosystem enhancement. This data helps CRTI and its partners to prioritize action

Cross Sector Partnerships – Development of the Chicago Region Trees Initiative

The Chicago Region Trees Initiative (CRTI) is a partnership of more than 200 organizations across the seven county Chicago metro region. The CRTI believes that trees are critical to our quality of life, and its mission is to ensure that trees are more healthy, abundant, diverse, and equitably distributed to provide needed benefits to all people and communities in the Chicago region. Our key goals are to inspire people to value trees, increase the Chicago region’s tree canopy, reduce threats to trees, and enhance oak ecosystems. The CRTI has built upon the work and programs of others, and the experience of partners to shape the urban forest in the Chicago region by 2050

Structuring communication relationships for interprofessional teamwork (SCRIPT): a cluster randomized controlled trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Despite a burgeoning interest in using interprofessional approaches to promote effective collaboration in health care, systematic reviews find scant evidence of benefit. This protocol describes the first cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) to design and evaluate an intervention intended to improve interprofessional collaborative communication and patient-centred care.</p> <p>Objectives</p> <p>The objective is to evaluate the effects of a four-component, hospital-based staff communication protocol designed to promote collaborative communication between healthcare professionals and enhance patient-centred care.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study is a multi-centre mixed-methods cluster randomized controlled trial involving twenty clinical teaching teams (CTTs) in general internal medicine (GIM) divisions of five Toronto tertiary-care hospitals. CTTs will be randomly assigned either to receive an intervention designed to improve interprofessional collaborative communication, or to continue usual communication practices.</p> <p>Non-participant naturalistic observation, shadowing, and semi-structured, qualitative interviews were conducted to explore existing patterns of interprofessional collaboration in the CTTs, and to support intervention development. Interviews and shadowing will continue during intervention delivery in order to document interactions between the intervention settings and adopters, and changes in interprofessional communication.</p> <p>The primary outcome is the rate of unplanned hospital readmission. Secondary outcomes are length of stay (LOS); adherence to evidence-based prescription drug therapy; patients' satisfaction with care; self-report surveys of CTT staff perceptions of interprofessional collaboration; and frequency of calls to paging devices. Outcomes will be compared on an intention-to-treat basis using adjustment methods appropriate for data from a cluster randomized design.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Pre-intervention qualitative analysis revealed that a substantial amount of interprofessional interaction lacks key core elements of collaborative communication such as self-introduction, description of professional role, and solicitation of other professional perspectives. Incorporating these findings, a four-component intervention was designed with a goal of creating a culture of communication in which the fundamentals of collaboration become a routine part of interprofessional interactions during unstructured work periods on GIM wards.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>Registered with National Institutes of Health as NCT00466297.</p

Recommendations for high-priority research on cancer-related fatigue in children and adults.

Over the past decades, some scientific progress has been made in understanding and treating cancer-related fatigue (CRF). However, three major problems have limited further progress: lack of agreement about measurement, inadequate understanding of the underlying biology, and problems in the conduct of clinical trials for CRF. This commentary reports the recommendations of a National Cancer Institute Clinical Trials Planning Meeting and an ongoing National Cancer Institute working group to address these problems so that high-priority research and clinical trials can be conducted to advance the science of CRF and its treatment. Recommendations to address measurement issues included revising the current case definition to reflect more rigorous criteria, adopting the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System fatigue scales as standard measures of CRF, and linking legacy measures to the scales. With regard to the biology of CRF, the group identified the need for longitudinal research to examine biobehavioral mechanisms underlying CRF and testing mechanistic hypotheses within the context of intervention research. To address clinical trial issues, recommendations included using only placebo-controlled trial designs. setting eligibility to minimize sample heterogeneity or enable subgroup analysis, establishing a CRF severity threshold for participation in clinical trials, conducting dissemination trials of efficacious interventions (such as exercise), and combining nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic interventions to exploit the potential synergy between these approaches. Accomplishing these goals has the potential to advance the science of CRF and improve the clinical management of this troubling symptom

The Lantern Vol. 34, No. 1, December 1967

• il se fait tard • il pleut • For GM • A Fragile Fragment • Epic in Stereo • Kisskraft • The Critical Marquis • Sea Flame • Belladonna • Haiku • Symphony • Ziegfortenblat • It\u27s One of Those Nights • Contentment • Short-sighted and Mildly Unbelievable • Society\u27s Children • Crowded Mirrors • Child in Bright Colors • The Long-range Accident • The Ultimate Machine • They Live in a Crowded Area • Beastiary • Nocturne • I am Like a Candle • Two A.M. and After • Question Times Ten • College Blues • Poem at Midnight • Love Chaos-Style • Once Knew a Homespun Nanny • He Who Argues • Dying by the Water • Is This Prose • The Subintellectual • Untitled Series • Sunset Skirmish • Lyrics of the Field • That Day When I See • Haiku • When the Shadows Stopped • Luz-Maria • Prayerhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/lantern/1092/thumbnail.jp

Wealth Building in Rural America: Programs, Policies, Research

Wealth Building in Rural America: Programs, Policies, Researc

Magnitude, Distribution, and Estimated Level of Underreporting of Acute Gastroenteritis in Jamaica

Jamaica is the third largest island in the Caribbean. The epidemiology of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is important to Jamaica, particularly in the areas of health, tourism, and because of the potential impact on the local workforce and the economy. Data collected by the National Surveillance Unit on the prevalence of AGE transmitted by food are not accurate. To determine the true magnitude, risk factors, and the extent of underreporting of AGE in Jamaica, we conducted a cross-sectional, population-based retrospective survey during the periods of 21 February\u20137 March and 14-27 June 2009, corresponding to high- and low-AGE season respectively. Of the total 1,920 persons selected randomly by a multistage cluster-sampling process, 1,264 responded (response rate 65.8%). Trained interviewers administered a standardized, validated questionnaire during face-to-face interviews. The overall prevalence of self-reported AGE was 4.0% (95% CI 2.9-5.1) at a rate of 0.5 episodes/per person-year. The highest monthly prevalence of AGE (14.6%) was found among the 1-4 year(s) age-group and the lowest (2.1%) among the 25-44 years age-group. Of the 18 cases (36%) who sought medical care, 11% were hospitalized, 33% were treated with antibiotics, and 66.7% received oral rehydration fluids. Only 2 cases who sought medical care reportedly submitted stool specimens. The mean duration of diarrhoea was 3.1 days, which resulted in a mean loss of 4 productive days, with over half of the cases requiring someone to care for them. The burden of syndromic AGE for 2009 was extrapolated to be 122,711 cases, showing an underreporting factor of 58.9. For every laboratory-confirmed AGE case, it was estimated that 383 more cases were occurring in the population. This research confirms that the prevalence of AGE is underreported in Jamaica and not being adequately detected by the current surveillance system. The components of the integrated surveillance system for AGE in Jamaica, particularly the laboratory aspect, need to be strengthened