3,530 research outputs found
Space tug propulsion system failure mode, effects and criticality analysis
For purposes of the study, the propulsion system was considered as consisting of the following: (1) main engine system, (2) auxiliary propulsion system, (3) pneumatic system, (4) hydrogen feed, fill, drain and vent system, (5) oxygen feed, fill, drain and vent system, and (6) helium reentry purge system. Each component was critically examined to identify possible failure modes and the subsequent effect on mission success. Each space tug mission consists of three phases: launch to separation from shuttle, separation to redocking, and redocking to landing. The analysis considered the results of failure of a component during each phase of the mission. After the failure modes of each component were tabulated, those components whose failure would result in possible or certain loss of mission or inability to return the Tug to ground were identified as critical components and a criticality number determined for each. The criticality number of a component denotes the number of mission failures in one million missions due to the loss of that component. A total of 68 components were identified as critical with criticality numbers ranging from 1 to 2990
Employability Skills and Trends in the Outdoor Power and Equipment Industry
The Power, Structural and Technical Systems (PST) Career Pathway is one of eight within the Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources Career Cluster; this pathway provides the curriculum that includes outdoor power equipment content. The perceived workforce readiness and skills needed in this pathway and related future trends were analyzed for entry-level jobs within the outdoor power equipment industry. The respondents expressed concern with being able to find qualified entry-level employees. Respondents indicated that the major skill categories of interpersonal skills, communication skills, computer skills, character skills, technical competency, and their corresponding subskills, were important for entry-level employment. The respondents indicated shop experience and general work experience are important for career success, which are experiences that take place through school-based agricultural education. The areas with greatest impact on the future of the industry were equipment technology advancements, urbanization, environmental laws/policies, and the growth of technical education at the secondary and post-secondary level. Secondary agricultural educators and outdoor power equipment dealers should explore developing internships and other partnerships in order to better prepare students for entry-level positions within the outdoor power equipment industry
Hearing and Vision Screening in Pediatric Primary Care and the Sharing of Results with Early Care and Education Programs
This study explores the extent to which pediatric primary care (PPC) providers share hearing and vision screening results with early care and education (ECE) programs and report being unable to assess hearing and vision among pre-kindergarten children. Reports of hearing and vision screening are assessed to explore whether national support for early hearing detection and intervention has similarly promoted vision screening in PPC. We evaluated the reporting of hearing and vision screening data from 4,119 Early Childhood Health Assessment records, which were obtained from licensed ECE programs in Connecticut. Records were stratified by age group into younger or older per national recommendations for screening type by age. Overall, most PCC providers shared screening results with ECE programs. However, rates of sharing results and inability to assess hearing and vision were lower among younger compared to older children (
Spatial variation and temporal trends of testicular cancer in Great Britain
Increases in testicular cancer incidence have been reported in several countries over a long period. Geographical variability has also been reported in some studies. We have investigated temporal trends and spatial variation of testicular cancer at ages 20–49 in Britain. Temporal trends in testicular cancer incidence were examined, 1974 to 1991 and in mortality, 1981–1997. Spatial variation in incidence was analysed across electoral wards, 1975 to 1991. We used Poisson regression to examine for regional and socio-economic effects and Bayesian mapping techniques to analyse small-area spatial variability. Incidence increased from 6.5 to 11.1 per 100 000 in men at ages 20–34, and from 5.6 to 9.7 per 100 000 in men at ages 35–49, while mortality declined by 50% in both age groups. Risks of testicular cancer varied across regional cancer registries, ranging from 0.79 (95% CI: 0.73–0.84) to 1.32 (95% CI: 1.25–1.38), and was higher in the most affluent compared with the most deprived areas. Analyses within 2 regions (one predominantly urban, the other predominantly rural) did not indicate any localized geographical clustering. The increasing incidence contrasted with a decreasing mortality over time in Great Britain, similar to that found in other countries. The higher risk in more affluent areas is not consistent with findings on social class at the individual level. The absence of any marked geographical variability at small area scale argues against a geographically varying environmental factor operating strongly in the aetiology of testicular cancer. © 2001 Cancer Research Campaign http://www.bjcancer.co
Utility of body and otolith morphometry to discriminate cryptic juveniles of two sympatric red snappers (Perciformes: Lutjanidae)
The sympatric red snappers, Lutjanus erythropterus and Lutjanus malabaricus, are highly valued by commercial and recreational fishers along the tropical northern coasts of Australia and throughout their distribution. Studies on the life history and ecology of these congeners are confounded by difficulties in distinguishing the cryptic juveniles of each species (i.e., < 200 mm total length). This study aimed to validate a robust and cost-effective method to discriminate these juveniles using body and/or otolith morphometric data in a multivariate analysis. Juvenile samples were collected from the northwest (n = 71) and northeast (n = 19) coasts of Australia, and species identification was confirmed using DNA barcoding. The most parsimonious multivariate models achieved accurate species prediction rates of 98.8%, which consisted of just three body variables (dorsal fin length, the distance from the snout to the anterior edge of the eye, and either jaw length or distance from the snout to the preoperculum). The high level of discrimination for these cryptic juveniles highlights the robustness of this morphometric approach. The slightly lower rate of discrimination using otolith morphology (84.9%) was associated with greater regional variation in L. malabaricus between the northwest and northeast coasts. Slight variations in otolith shape are typically used to determine stock structure, which highlights the potential need to collect samples over a broader area of a species geographic range when using an otolith morphometric discrimination model. The method outlined in this study could be applied to distinguish other cryptic congeneric fish species, including from archived otolith collections. Moreover, this method has the potential to be utilized in assessing species compositions using body measurements from in situ stereo-video
Public Health England: Social prescribing approaches for migrants: call for evidence
This submission is built on Social Prescribing (SP) and Migration research conducted through a co-production design (two roundtables). The aim of the coproduction roundtables was to identify barriers and facilitators of health service access and satisfaction among migrants, and recommendations for using SP with migrant populations.
The submission focuses on four key topics which are discussed in detail within the main body of this submission below:
-A holistic approach to the health needs of migrant populations
-Barriers to health service access, satisfaction with healthcare and implications for SP
-Unique challenges for SP delivery
-Strategies to improve service access and migrant satisfaction with service
Metatarsophalangeal joint pain in psoriatic arthritis: a cross-sectional study
Methods. Thirty-four consecutive patients with PsA (mean age 45.3 years, 65% female, mean disease duration 9.9 years) and 22 control participants (mean age 37.9 years, 64% female) underwent clinical and US examination to determine the presence of pain, swelling, synovitis, erosions, effusions and submetatarsal bursae at the MTP joints. Mean barefoot peak plantar pressures were determined at each MTP joint. Levels of pain, US-determined pathology and peak pressures were compared between groups. Binary logistic regression was used to identify demographic, clinical examination-derived, US-derived and plantar pressure predictors of pain at the MTP joints in the PsA group.
Results. The presence of pain, deformity, synovitis, erosions (P &lt; 0.001) and submetatarsal bursae and peak plantar pressure at MTP 3 (P &lt; 0.05) were significantly higher in the PsA group. MTP joint pain in PsA was independently predicted by high BMI, female gender and the presence of joint subluxation, synovitis and erosion.
Conclusion. These results suggest local inflammatory and structural factors, together with systemic factors (gender, BMI), are predominantly responsible for painful MTP joints in PsA, with no clear role for plantar pressure characteristics
Palynofacies classification of the depositional elements of confined turbidite systems : Examples from the Gres d'Annot, SE France
Acknowledgements We thank BG Brasil for financial support for this project and permission to publish. BG Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell. McArthur is grateful to the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) for the scholarship 049/2012. The Agência Nacional do Petróleo (ANP) are thanked for supporting this project. Massimo Zecchin is thanked for handling this paper and Roberto Tinterri is thanked for his constructive review, in addition to an anonymous reviewer.Peer reviewedPostprin
Double deletion of Panx1 and Panx3 affects skin and bone but not hearing
Pannexins (Panxs), large-pore channel forming glycoproteins, are expressed in a wide variety of tissues including the skin, bone, and cochlea. To date, the use of single knock-out mouse models of both Panx1 and Panx3 have demonstrated their roles in skin development, bone formation, and auditory phenotypes. Due to sequence homology between Panx1 and Panx3, when one Panx is ablated from germline, the other may be upregulated in a compensatory mechanism to maintain tissue homeostasis and function. To evaluate the roles of Panx1 and Panx3 in the skin, bone, and cochlea, we created the first Panx1/Panx3 double knock-out mouse model (dKO). These mice had smaller litters and reduced body weight compared to wildtype controls. The dKO dorsal skin had decreased epidermal and dermal area as well as decreased hypodermal area in neonatal but not in older mice. In addition, mouse skull shape and size were altered, and long bone length was decreased in neonatal dKO mice. Finally, auditory tests revealed that dKO mice did not exhibit hearing loss and were even slightly protected against noise-induced hearing damage at mid-frequency regions. Taken together, our findings suggest that Panx1 and Panx3 are important at early stages of development in the skin and bone but may be redundant in the auditory system. Key messages Panx double KO mice had smaller litters and reduced body weight. dKO skin had decreased epidermal and dermal area in neonatal mice. Skull shape and size changed plus long bone length decreased in neonatal dKO mice. dKO had no hearing loss and were slightly protected against noise-induced damage
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