Book reviews: On commodifying intangibles

Book reviews of: 1) James Boyle, Shamans, Software, and Spleens: Law and the Construction of the Information Society. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1996. Pp. xvi, 270. $35.00 (cloth),$15.95 (paper). 2) Margaret Jane Radin, Contested Commodities. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1996. Pp. xiv, 279. $35.00

The evidence for automated grading in diabetic retinopathy screening

Peer reviewedPostprin

On the Photometric Accuracy of RHESSI Imaging and Spectrosocopy

We compare the photometric accuracy of spectra and images in flares observed with the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI)}spacecraft. We test the accuracy of the photometry by comparing the photon fluxes obtained in different energy ranges from the spectral-fitting software SPEX with those fluxes contained in the images reconstructed with the Clean, MEM, MEM-Vis, Pixon, and Forward-fit algorithms. We quantify also the background fluxes, the fidelity of source geometries, and spatial spectra reconstructed with the five image reconstruction algorithms. We investigate the effects of grid selection, pixel size, field-of-view, and time intervals on the quality of image reconstruction. The detailed parameters and statistics are provided in an accompanying CD-ROM and web page. We find that Forward-fit, Pixon, and Clean have a robust convergence behavior and a photometric accuracy in the order of a few percents, while MEM does not converge optimally for large degrees of freedom (for large field-of-views and/or small pixel sizes), and MEM-Vis suffers in the case of time-variable sources. This comparative study documents the current status of the RHESSI spectral and imaging software, one year after launch.Comment: 2 Figures, full version on http://www.lmsal.com/~aschwand/eprints/2003_photo/index.htm

Relationship initiation between universities and industry: best practice model

Poster only

Bayesian Methods in the Search for MH370

Probability theor

The burden and impact of vertigo: findings from the REVERT patient registry

Objective: Despite the high prevalence of vertigo globally and an acknowledged, but under-reported, effect on an individual's wellbeing, few studies have evaluated the burden on healthcare systems and society. This study was aimed to quantitatively determine the impact of vertigo on healthcare resource use and work productivity. Methods: The economic burden of vertigo was assessed through a multi-country, non interventional, observational registry of vertigo patients: the Registry to Evaluate the Burden of Disease in Vertigo. Patients included were those with a new diagnosis of Meniere's disease, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, other vertigo of peripheral vestibular origin, or peripheral vestibular vertigo of unknown origin. Results: A total of 4,294 patients at 618 centers in 13 countries were included during the registry. Of the 4,105 patients analyzed, only half were in employment. Among this working patient population, 69.8% had reduced their workload, 63.3% had lost working days, and 4.6% had changed and 5.7% had quit their jobs, due to vertigo symptoms. Use of healthcare services among patients was high. In the 3 months preceding Visit 1, patients used emergency services 0.4 +/- 0.9 times, primary care consultations 1.6 +/- 1.8 times, and specialist consultations 1.4 +/- 2.0 times (all mean +/- SD). A mean of 2.0 +/- 5.4 days/patient was also spent in hospital due to vertigo. Conclusion: In addition to the negative impact on the patient from a humanistic perspective, vertigo has considerable impact on work productivity and healthcare resource use

Worryin\u27 Blues / music by Phil Spitalny and Lee Stubby Gordon; words by Gus Kahn

Cover: caricature of a crying African American female face; Publisher: Sam Fox Pub. Co. (Cleveland)https://egrove.olemiss.edu/sharris_d/1058/thumbnail.jp