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Collaborative Assessment: Middle School Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Parkison, Paul T.
Utilizing a participant observer research model, a case study of the efficacy of a collaborative assessment methodology within a middle school social studies class was conducted. A review of existing research revealed that students' perceptions of assessment, evaluation, and accountability influence their intrinsic motivation to learn. A…
Case study examples using self-assessment.
Garstecki, D; Hutton, C L; Nerbonne, M A; Newman, C W; Smoski, W J
The following case studies demonstrate the application of self-assessment techniques. The selection of procedures reported here is not meant to imply necessarily that these procedures are more or less effective or more widely used than other available self-assessment tests, but rather to illustrate the various purposes for which self-assessment tools may be employed. Case 1 illustrates the contribution of data obtained from the Hearing Performance Inventory (Giolas, Owens, Lamb, & Shubert, 1979) in the management and counseling of a severely hearing impaired adult. Case 2 involves the use of the Hearing Problem Inventory developed by Hutton in Atlanta (HPI-A, Hutton, 1987). Application of the Self-Assessment of Communication (SAC) and Significant Other Assessment of Communication (SOAC) (Schow and Nerbonne, 1982) is shown in Case 3, whereas Case 4 demonstrates the usefulness of the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly (HHIE, Ventry and Weinstein, 1982). Both the SAC/SOAC and HHIE batteries involve problem cases associated with hearing aid fitting and assessment of benefit. The final illustration (Case 5) is a report on the Children's Auditory Processing Performance Scale (CHAPPS), a new questionnaire developed by Smoski, Brunt, and Tannahill/ISHA (1987) for assessing parent's judgment of children's listening abilities (Appendix). The versatility of self-assessment applications across a broad assortment of impairment levels, age groups, and clinical settings is demonstrated in these cases. Hopefully the reader will see more clearly the application and value of these and other non-audiometric techniques and will be motivated to increase the use of self-assessment tools in the individual work setting. PMID:2269415
Assessing Vocal Performances Using Analytical Assessment: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gynnild, Vidar
This study investigated ways to improve the appraisal of vocal performances within a national academy of music. Since a criterion-based assessment framework had already been adopted, the conceptual foundation of an assessment rubric was used as a guide in an action research project. The group of teachers involved wanted to explore thinking…
Unmasking Cleckley's psychopath: assessing historical case studies.
DeShong, Hilary L; Helle, Ashley C; Mullins-Sweatt, Stephanie N
The current study investigated original case descriptions of psychopathy (Cleckley, 1941) in relation to current conceptualizations and general personality traits. Attorneys, forensic psychologists and clinical faculty members completed ratings of psychopathy and personality after reading vignettes based on Cleckley's descriptions of a psychopath. The results suggest that professionals' ratings are consistent with current conceptualizations of psychopathy. Furthermore, the five-factor model (FFM) personality traits of the vignettes aligned with the current literature on the FFM and psychopathy (i.e. low neuroticism, conscientiousness and agreeableness). The results further supported that a general trait model, like the FFM, may be well suited to describe the underlying personality traits of psychopathy. Gender differences were also examined. PMID:26931520
Practical Education through Risk Assessment Case Studies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Tokai, Akihiro
Although, the staff for assessing environmental risk of chemicals is required in individual units of industrial sectors, there are very few systemic academic curriculums on risk assessment of chemicals in Japanese institutions of higher education. In order to meet such a social needs, Osaka University opened a limited-period program of environmental risk management for both students and working people in 2005. The author describes the contribution of his experience in offering a course on environmental risk assessment of chemicals as a part of the program. The course afforded students a kind of practical training for risk assessment. This paper also involves what to do for strengthening the education activity of risk assessment.
Making Room for Formative Assessment Processes: A Multiple Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McEntarffer, Robert E.
This qualitative instrumental multiple case study (Stake, 2005) explored how teachers made room for formative assessment processes in their classrooms, and how thinking about assessment changed during those formative assessment experiences. Data were gathered from six teachers over three months and included teacher interviews, student interviews,…
Ecological risk assessments for watersheds: Lessons learned from case studies
Marcy, S.K.M.
The USEPA Office of Water and Risk Assessment Forum are co-sponsoring the development of watershed level ecological risk assessments in Big Darby Creek, OH, Clinch River, VA, Middle Platte River Wetlands, NE, Snake River, ID, and Waquoit Bay Estuary, MA. The case studies are testing the Agency`s Framework for Ecological Risk Assessment at a watershed scale for multiple stressors. During case study development much has been learned about how to apply and modify the principles in the Framework to landscape scale risk assessments. Insights include how to select appropriate assessment endpoints to drive the risk assessment, how to effectively increase involvement by risk management teams, and provide decision opportunities for managers throughout development. The case studies demonstrate diverse ways to conduct watershed risk assessments, and illustrate the importance of multiple risk hypotheses in conceptual models addressing the combined and relative risk of chemical, physical and biological stressors. Issues the case studies highlight include the need for a process to determine when watershed risk assessments are appropriate and at what level of complexity they should be performed, how to increase the use of the ecological risk assessments in management decision-making and how to determine the best risk reduction strategy. An update on the watershed case studies will be provided and the insights and issues stated above, discussed.
Nanotechnology is expected to present both benefits and risks to human health and the environment. The assessment of risks related to nanotechnology requires information on the potential for exposure to, and adverse effects of, nanomaterials and their by-products. To help ensure...
Assessing Biofuel Crop Invasiveness: A Case Study
Buddenhagen, Christopher Evan; Chimera, Charles; Clifford, Patti
Background There is widespread interest in biofuel crops as a solution to the world's energy needs, particularly in light of concerns over greenhouse-gas emissions. Despite reservations about their adverse environmental impacts, no attempt has been made to quantify actual, relative or potential invasiveness of terrestrial biofuel crops at an appropriate regional or international scale, and their planting continues to be largely unregulated. Methodology/Principal Findings Using a widely accepted weed risk assessment system, we analyzed a comprehensive list of regionally suitable biofuel crops to show that seventy percent have a high risk of becoming invasive versus one-quarter of non-biofuel plant species and are two to four times more likely to establish wild populations locally or be invasive in Hawaii or in other locations with a similar climate. Conclusions/Significance Because of climatic and ecological similarities, predictions of biofuel crop invasiveness in Hawaii are applicable to other vulnerable island and subtropical ecosystems worldwide. We demonstrate the utility of an accessible and scientifically proven risk assessment protocol that allows users to predict if introduced species will become invasive in their region of interest. Other evidence supports the contention that propagule pressure created by extensive plantings will exacerbate invasions, a scenario expected with large-scale biofuel crop cultivation. Proactive measures, such as risk assessments, should be employed to predict invasion risks, which could then be mitigated via implementation of appropriate planting policies and adoption of the "polluter-pays" principle. PMID:19384412
Visual air quality assessment: Denver case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mumpower, Jeryl; Middleton, Paulette; Dennis, Robin L.; Stewart, Thomas R.; Veirs, Val
Studies of visual air quality in the Denver metropolitan region during summer 1979 and winter 1979-1980 are described and results reported. The major objective of the studies was to investigate relationships among four types of variables important to urban visual air quality: (1) individuals' judgements of overall visual air quality; (2) perceptual cues used in making judgments of visual air quality; (3) measurable physical characteristics of the visual environment and (4) concentrations of visibility-reducing pollutants and their precursors. During August 1979 and mid-December 1979 to January 1980, simultaneous measurements of observational and environmental data were made daily at various locations throughout the metropolitan area. Observational data included ratings of overall air quality and related perceptual cues (e.g., distance, clarity, color, border) by multiple observers. Environmental data included routine hourly pollutant and meteorological measurements from several fixed locations within the city, as well as aerosol light scattering and absorption measures from one location. Statistical analyses indicated that (1) multiple perceptual cues are required to explain variation in judgments of overall visual air quality and (2) routine measurements of the physical environment appear to be inadequate predictors of either judgments of overall visual air quality or related perceptual cues.
Dialogic Process and Psychological Assessment: A Case Study.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Korn, Carol; Trachtman, Gilbert M.
Proposes collaborative model involving teachers, parents, and school personnel as partners with psychologists in assessment, with dialog as its central organizing principle. A case study illustrates the assessment process as furthering understanding and promoting change in children's lives rather than as an exercise in sorting and categorizing.…
Simulations: A Case Study of City & Guilds' Newest Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Stone, Andrew; Dearing, Mike
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present a case study of City & Guilds' development of simulation-based assessments for its ICT user qualification. These simulations are authentic scenario-based replicas of word processing and spreadsheet software, which present a series of tasks that the test-taker completes as if they were using actual…
Planning Intervention Using Dynamic Assessments: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hasson, Natalie; Dodd, Barbara
Dynamic assessments (DA) of language have been shown to be a useful addition to the battery of tests used to diagnose language impairments in children, and to evaluate their skills. The current article explores the value of the information gained from a DA in planning intervention for a child with language impairment. A single case study was used…
Benefit-cost assessment programs: Costa Rica case study
Clark, A.L. ); Trocki, L.K. )
An assessment of mineral potential, in terms of types and numbers of deposits, approximate location and associated tonnage and grades, is a valuable input to a nation's economic planning and mineral policy development. This study provides a methodology for applying benefit-cost analysis to mineral resource assessment programs, both to determine the cost effectiveness of resource assessments and to ascertain future benefits to the nation. In a case study of Costa Rica, the benefit-cost ratio of a resource assessment program was computed to be a minimum of 4:1 ($10.6 million to $2.5 million), not including the economic benefits accuring from the creation of 800 mining sector and 1,200 support services jobs. The benefit-cost ratio would be considerably higher if presently proposed revisions of mineral policy were implemented and benefits could be defined for Costa Rica.
Development Impact Assessment (DIA) Case Study. South Africa
Cox, Sadie; Nawaz, Kathleen; Sandor, Debra
This case study reviews South Africa's experience in considering the impacts of climate change action on development goals, focusing on the South African energy sector and development impact assessments (DIAs) that have and could be used to influence energy policy or inform the selection of energy activities. It includes a review of assessments—conducted by government ministries, technical partners, and academic institutes and non-governmental organizations (NGOs)—that consider employment, health, and water implications of possible energy sector actions, as well as multi-criteria impact assessments.
Approaches to Children's Exposure Assessment: Case Study with Diethylhexylphthalate (DEHP).
Ginsberg, Gary; Ginsberg, Justine; Foos, Brenda
Children's exposure assessment is a key input into epidemiology studies, risk assessment and source apportionment. The goals of this article are to describe a methodology for children's exposure assessment that can be used for these purposes and to apply the methodology to source apportionment for the case study chemical, diethylhexylphthalate (DEHP). A key feature is the comparison of total (aggregate) exposure calculated via a pathways approach to that derived from a biomonitoring approach. The 4-step methodology and its results for DEHP are: (1) Prioritization of life stages and exposure pathways, with pregnancy, breast-fed infants, and toddlers the focus of the case study and pathways selected that are relevant to these groups; (2) Estimation of pathway-specific exposures by life stage wherein diet was found to be the largest contributor for pregnant women, breast milk and mouthing behavior for the nursing infant and diet, house dust, and mouthing for toddlers; (3) Comparison of aggregate exposure by pathways vs biomonitoring-based approaches wherein good concordance was found for toddlers and pregnant women providing confidence in the exposure assessment; (4) Source apportionment in which DEHP presence in foods, children's products, consumer products and the built environment are discussed with respect to early life mouthing, house dust and dietary exposure. A potential fifth step of the method involves the calculation of exposure doses for risk assessment which is described but outside the scope for the current case study. In summary, the methodology has been used to synthesize the available information to identify key sources of early life exposure to DEHP. PMID:27376320
Using Case Studies to Assess the Impact of Modeling Workshops
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Saul, Jeff; O'Brien, G.; Kramer, L.
The Center for High Energy Physics Research, Education, and Outreach (CHEPREO) has been running Hestenes-style Physics Modeling workshops for High School math and science teachers for the past four summers. Workshop assessment and evaluation found participants substantially improve teacher content knowledge as measured in both pre/post and post only nationally-normed tests such as FCI, TUG-K, and MBT. This year we are extending our assessment to see how teachers are using what they learn in the workshop(s) in their classrooms. This study uses both standard pre/post assessments and classroom observations. The classroom observations use a protocol similar to RTOP. In this paper, we will report on preliminary results from case studies of three physics teachers who attended their first modeling workshop in Summer 2006. Each of these three teachers will be observed during multiple site visits.
Supporting nanomaterial risk assessment by case studies of nano-titanium dioxide using comprehensive environmental assessment
Here we describe a comprehensive environmental assessment (CEA) approach for two case studies of nano-titanium dioxide (nano-TiO2) in real world applications: water treatment and sunscreen. CEA combines a product life cycle framework with the risk assessment paradigm.
Integrated assessment in the Mediterranean: the CIRCE case studies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Goodess, C. M.; Agnew, M. D.; Hemming, D.; Giannakopoulos, C.
The heterogeneous nature of the Mediterranean environment, combined with a wide diversity of economic, social and cultural identities, make this region particularly amenable to integrated research on climate change impacts, vulnerabilities, and adaptive response. Within the framework of the EU FP7 CIRCE project, eleven case-study locations were selected to reflect three generic environments (urban, rural and coastal), to quantify current and future climate change and to assess the potential consequences to human communities and ecosystems at the regional to local scale. The case studies (Athens, Beirut, Alexandria, Tuscany, Apulia, Tel Hadya, Judean Foothills, Gulf of Valencia, Gulf of Oran, Gulf of Gabes, West Nile Delta) were chosen to reflect the east-west and north-south contrasts across the Mediterranean, using common selection criteria. A rigorous common framework, referred to as the CIRCE Case studies Integrating Framework was developed to facilitate a structured and systematic basis for identifying and selecting indicators. Within this framework, climate dynamics is viewed as a key driver of changes in social and biogeophysical systems and is modulated by the inherent dynamics of these systems. The top-down, indicator-based approach was complemented by a bottom-up approach involving local and regional stakeholders. A participatory level of involvement was aimed for, with stakeholder dialogue on an informal basis throughout the project, culminating in a series of more formal regional stakeholder workshops. Identification and construction of physical and socio-economic indicators was the most challenging and time-consuming aspect of the case-study work. A detailed set of selection criteria was defined and the process of reviewing and refining indicators was iterative. Nonetheless, a number of data and methodological challenges were encountered. Despite these issues, indicator linkages diagrams provided a useful preparatory stage for structuring the integrated
Environmental assessments in the US: A case study
Doesburg, J.M.
The 1990's is the decade of international environmental activism. The concerns and issues that are the basis of this activism are now extremely important to business. Numerous environmental issue will affect business decisions, and a keen awareness of the implications of those issues may make the difference financial success or ruin. Environmental assessments have become the tool to help business cope with an important environmental concern. This talk is focused on environmental assessments as they are practiced in the United States. Environmental activism has been a factor in business decisions since the passage of the Clean Air Act in 1963. This paper will discuss the current standards of practice in the US, the needs for assessments at industrial facilities, and a case study from a US industrial facility. More than 750,000 commercial real estate transactions take place in the US each year. Each of these transactions has a potential liability for the buyer and lender as a result of environmental impairment caused by hazardous materials located in buildings on sites, in the soil, or in the groundwater. Persons who knowingly or unknowingly acquire environmentally impaired property or who lend the money to purchase that property are liable for the cost of cleanup.
Risk assessment under FQPA: case study with chlorpyrifos.
Clevelan, C B; Oliver, G R; Chen, B; Mattsson, J
Key science policies have had significant impact on the evolving implementation of the Food Quality and Protection Act (FQPA) (PL 104-170, 1996) by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The impact offour of these policies will be examined using the risk assessment for chlorpyrifos as a case study. These policies are selection of a regulatory endpoint, use of animal data without consideration of human data for setting the reference dose, a 10 FQPA safety factor and use of the 99.9 percentile of modeled consumer exposure in the acute dietary assessment. Each of these policy decisions had individual impact that was then compounded as cumulative impact on the revised risk assessment for chlorpyrifos conducted by the US EPA in 2000 [Federal Register Notice 65(159) (2000) 49982]. But embedded within each science policy, there are assumptions which may be too conservative and which together have resulted in a very large multiplicative reduction in the allowable exposure limits for chlorpyrifos in the US. These new exposure limits are quite different from other regulatory standards around the world. There is third party opposition to many of these policies and many believe the understanding of the relationship between exposure and what is known about human and animal responses to chlorpyrifos has been clouded. These changes in policy insert a new level of conservatism into the scientific statement of risk and create confusion that threatens to weaken the credibility of the regulatory process. PMID:11770891
Three Reflections on Assessing Safety Training Needs: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Sleezer, Catherine M.; Kelsey, Kathleen D.; Wood, Thomas E.
Needs assessment plays an important role in training and human performance improvement efforts, but the literature contains little research on this topic. This study extended previous research on the Performance Analysis for Training (PAT) model of needs assessment by examining its implementation to determine environmental and occupational health…
Perceptions of Assessment in Elementary Physical Education: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
James, Alisa R.; Griffin, Linda L.; France, Thaddeus
The purpose of the study was twofold: (a) to examine a teacher's perceptions of attempting to implement assessments aligned with the NASPE standards and (b) to examine students' perceptions of assessment in physical education. Participants were 46 4th grade students and their physical education teacher. Data were collected through a Likert-scale…
76 FR 71341 - BASINS and WEPP Climate Assessment Tools: Case Study Guide to Potential Applications
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
... Climate Assessment Tools (CAT): Case Study Guide to Potential Applications (EPA/600/R-11/123A). EPA also... Assessment Tool (BASINS CAT) and the Water Erosion Prediction Project Climate Assessment Tool (WEPPCAT),...
Principals' Performance Assessment: Empirical Evidence from an Israeli Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gaziel, Haim
Despite the current interest in many countries in assessing the principal's performance, stemming from the greater attention to educational reform and accountability, the empirical study of principal's appraisal has been slow to develop. This article was designed to fill partially this gap. Data was collected by semi-structured interviews of eight…
Environmental impact assessment as a complement of life cycle assessment. Case study: Upgrading of biogas.
Morero, Betzabet; Rodriguez, María B; Campanella, Enrique A
This work presents a comparison between an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and a life cycle assessment (LCA) using a case study: upgrading of biogas. The upgrading of biogas is studied using three solvents: water, physical solvent and amine. The EIA follows the requirements of the legislation of Santa Fe Province (Argentina), and the LCA follows ISO 14040. The LCA results showed that water produces a minor impact in most of the considered categories whereas the high impact in the process with amines is the result of its high energy consumptions. The positive results obtained in the EIA (mainly associated with the cultural and socioeconomic components) make the project feasible and all the negative impacts can be mitigated by preventive and remedial measures. From the strengths and weaknesses of each tool, it is inferred that the EIA is a procedure that can complement the LCA. PMID:25971645
Climate Change Vulnerability Assessments: Four Case Studies of Water Utility Practices (2011 Final)
EPA is releasing the final report titled, Climate Change Vulnerability Assessments: Four Case Studies of Water Utility Practices. This report was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment's Global Climate Research Staff in the Office of Research and Developmen...
Case Studies in Making Assessment Efficient While Developing Student Professionalism and Managing Transition
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Rossiter, J. A.
It is known that assessment drives learning and hence a good assessment design is key to effective student development. This paper gives some case studies in effective assessment strategies within engineering. The main contribution is to demonstrate how one can simultaneously meet a number of requirements with individual assessments and therefore…
How to scientifically assess a restoration project: a case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Alvarez de Buergo, M.; Fort, R.; Freire, D. M.; Lopez-Arce, P.; Vazquez-Calvo, C.
Commonly, it is said that there is lack of communication among scientists, conservators, restorers, project managers and architects. But sometimes this communication flows, and we can find enormous benefits from and for all the participating agents. This is the case we present in this work, in which technical agents in charge of the restoration of a building, asked for some scientific advice to perform the restoration of a heritage building. The results were successful and fantastic for both of them, in terms of one part asking for consultation and the other answering to the demands and resolving real problems. This is the case of a marvellous Renaissance building (Medinaceli Dukes palace, 15th-16th centuries) in the central area of Spain (Cogolludo, Guadalajara). Focused on the restoration project, we were asked for consultancy on how to solve matters like the assessment of the already fixed in project cleaning method for the stone façades, the efficacy and durability methods for some conservation products to be applied, the presence or not of a patina on the stone; the viability of using some restoration mortars, and the origin of some efflorescences that came out just after placed in the building a restoration rendering mortar. Responses to these matters were answered by performing tests both in the lab and on site in the building. The efficiency and effects on stone of the blasting cleaning method was assessed by first analysing the nature and thickness of the surface deposits to be removed (SEM-EDS analyses); secondly, roughness and colour measurements were performed, and thirdly, SEM-EDS analyses were carried out again to determine whether the cleaning method was able to remove part of the surface deposits, completely, or even part of the stone substrate. Some conservation products were tested on stone specimens, both their efficacy and their durability, concluding that it was better not to apply any of them. A patina was found on the stone façade under SEM
A Phenomenological Case Study: Teacher Bias Effects on Early Education Assessments
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Reynolds, Rebecca Jeannine
This qualitative phenomenological case study explored the lived experiences of a purposive sample of 20 current and past early education teachers who have experience in assessing children through observational assessment. The purpose of this study was to determine if bias affects the documentation of observational assessment and the implementation…
An interactive case study assessment. Nursing care of the cancer patient with compromised immunity: practicum cases.
O'Neill, P N; Adsit, K I; Volker, D
This demonstration will present an interactive videodisc (IVD) case study assessment of nursing care of the immunocompromised cancer patient. This module is the third part of a series of instructional IVD programs entitled Nursing Care of the Cancer Patient with Compromised Immunity. The series has been developed to provide education for fourth year nursing students, experienced nurses new to the field of oncology nursing, and for continuing education. The series has been developed to run on an InfoWindow platform and can also run on an M-Motion system. The demonstration will cover the rationale, treatment, content, and instructional strategies used in the module. The technology including the development platform and authoring environment will also be presented. PMID:1807768
Guidelines for Multicultural Assessment: An Asian Indian American Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Braun, Frances K.; Fine, Emily S.; Greif, Dan C.; Devenny, Jean M.
Accurate assessment of ethnic minority clients is often hindered by clinician bias and lack of culturally sensitive instruments. Multicultural guidelines can enhance clinician awareness and sensitivity in conducting assessments with diverse populations. These guidelines are illustrated using an Asian Indian American character from Lahiri's (2008)…
Case study applications of the BASINS climate assessment tool (CAT)
This EPA report will illustrate the application of different climate assessment capabilities within EPA's BASINS modeling system for assessing a range of potential questions about the effects of climate change on streamflow and water quality in different watershed settings and us...
Assessment at the Boundaries: Service Learning as Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Shay, Suellen
This article explores the value systems which inform assessment practices in higher education, specifically how particular forms of knowledge valued in the curriculum shape and constrain assessment practices. The data for this article is drawn from two courses which participated in a service learning research and development project at the…
Case study: Automated utilities damage assessment (AUDA) system
Salavani, R.; Laventure, G.C.; Smith, M.D.
A demonstration program of an automated utility damage assessment system (AUDA) at a United States Air Force facility (USAF) is described. The AUDA is designed to assess damage, in an efficient manner, to military equipment or utilities, such as electrical equipment, potable and waste water, HVAC systems, petroleum, oil and lubricants, and natural gas.
Wetlands in the ecological risk assessment process: A case study
Saban, L.B.
In the past few years, the ecological risk assessment (ERA) process as outlined in the EPA document Framework for Ecological Risk Assessment has been successfully used to assess risk to birds, mammals, aquatic organisms, plants, and to a limited extent, reptiles and amphibians, but has only recently been applied to wetlands. Due to the unique role that wetlands play in the environment as sources and sinks for nutrients, sediment retention, high productivity, habitat transition zones, aquifer recharge, high diversity and richness of biota, and aesthetic value, it is important to consider the entire wetland system in the ERA process. Because nearly sixty percent of Superfund sites are located in or near wetlands, a comprehensive approach is proposed to evaluate potential risks to flora and fauna in these wetland environments. Using the delineation and functional assessment techniques developed by wetland scientists, an estuarine wetland in western Washington was evaluated within the scope of ERA`S. The ERA was applied to the wetland using functional assessments as an integral part of the problem formulation phase of the risk assessment process. Applying the ERA process to wetlands enhances the functional assessment process and helps to define critical elements to evaluate within wetland systems. The results of this risk assessment help to define patches within a landscape that are potentially at risk and how to prioritize remedial actions.
External Assessment: A California Case Study in Innovative Program Evaluation.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Jones, Alan H.; LoPresti, Peter L.
A history is presented of the External Assessment Pilot Project of California's Commission on Teacher Preparation and Licensing. Carried out from 1974 to 1979, the project assessed teacher education programs at California higher education institutions. After giving the background of the project, including the creation of the commission, the…
Recent Extremes in European Climate: Assessment, Case Studies and Impacts
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yiou, P.; Vautard, R.; D'Andrea, F.; Cattiaux, J.; Naveau, P.; Ciais, P.; Garnier, E.
During the last centuries and up to the present decade, extreme climate events have certainly had larger economic impacts than any trend of temperature in Europe. In addition to an intrinsic scientific interest, their study is thus essential for society. One of the challenges of their investigation is that, depending on their definition, extreme climate events potentially have a behavior that is not connected to the secular temperature trend in a simple fashion. This presentation will review the statistical assessments of extremes in Europe, focusing on surface temperature, precipitation, and their connections with large-scale features of the atmospheric circulation. In particular, the questions of modeling their severity and frequency will be discussed in the first part of the presentation. I will then give two kinds of examples of European climate extremes: summer heatwaves and droughts, and winter warm waves. The mechanisms leading to such phenomena will be explored, and I will examine some of the impacts on the biosphere that were recently observed. In order to provide a long term perspective of those events, examples of historical droughts in France will be presented and connected with proxy records of temperature. It appears that the mechanisms that are favored for present-day climate might still have been valid during the past centuries. To conclude, new challenges for dynamical and statistical modeling will be explored.
Mixture risk assessment: a case study of Monsanto experiences.
Nair, R S; Dudek, B R; Grothe, D R; Johannsen, F R; Lamb, I C; Martens, M A; Sherman, J H; Stevens, M W
Monsanto employs several pragmatic approaches for evaluating the toxicity of mixtures. These approaches are similar to those recommended by many national and international agencies. When conducting hazard and risk assessments, priority is always given to using data collected directly on the mixture of concern. To provide an example of the first tier of evaluation, actual data on acute respiratory irritation studies on mixtures were evaluated to determine whether the principle of additivity was applicable to the mixture evaluated. If actual data on the mixture are unavailable, extrapolation across similar mixtures is considered. Because many formulations are quite similar in composition, the toxicity data from one mixture can be extended to a closely related mixture in a scientifically justifiable manner. An example of a family of products where such extrapolations have been made is presented to exemplify this second approach. Lastly, if data on similar mixtures are unavailable, data on component fractions are used to predict the toxicity of the mixture. In this third approach, process knowledge and scientific judgement are used to determine how the known toxicological properties of the individual fractions affect toxicity of the mixture. Three examples of plant effluents where toxicological data on fractions were used to predict the toxicity of the mixture are discussed. The results of the analysis are used to discuss the predictive value of each of the above mentioned toxicological approaches for evaluating chemical mixtures. PMID:9119327
Exploring Assessment and Accountability for Children's Learning: A Case Study of a Hong Kong Preschool
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chan, Sing Pui; Wong, Siu Man
Research Findings: Assessment and accountability have been given prominent attention in the field of education in recent decades. Educators have been debating what assessment is, how it is practiced in school, and how it is used for accountability purposes. A case study was conducted of the assessment practices in a Hong Kong preschool to…
Comprehensive Environmental Assessment and U.S. EPA Nanomaterial Case Studies
These case studies are not completed risk assessments but are structured around an approach known as comprehensive environmental assessment (CEA), which combines a product life cycle framework with the risk assessment paradigm (Davis, J.M., J. Nanosci. Nanotech. 7:402-9, 2007). ...
Continuous Curriculum Assessment and Improvement: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hill, Art
Many factors, including reduced teaching resources, higher student-to-teacher ratios, evolving teaching technologies, and increased emphasis on success skills, have made it necessary for many teaching faculties to become more deliberate about continuous curriculum assessment and improvement. An example is the evolution of food science education…
Cultural Shifts, Multimodal Representations, and Assessment Practices: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Curwood, Jen Scott
Multimodal texts involve the presence, absence, and co-occurrence of alphabetic text with visual, audio, tactile, gestural, and spatial representations. This article explores how teachers' evaluation of students' multimodal work can be understood in terms of cognition and culture. When teachers apply a paradigm of assessment rooted in print-based…
Assessment of Institutional Strategic Goal Realization: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Holwick, Jana W.
Strategic planning is a common tool utilized at colleges and universities to assist in achieving institutional goals. Leaders in higher education have taken best practices from corporate management and adapted them in an effort to develop comprehensive approaches to institutional planning, assessment and accountability. Various models for planning…
Needs Assessment Among Diverse Groups: A Case Study.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pooler, Anne E.; Toner, James F.
A Teacher Corps project to deliver staff development services focused on five educational settings: a correctional youth center, a high school, a junior high school, a youth group home consortium, and a college of education. It was felt that comparing the results of needs assessments conducted at each facility would enable useful analyses of…
Institutional Assessment of Student Information Literacy Ability: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chan, Christopher
With increasing interest in the assessment of learning outcomes in higher education, stakeholders are demanding concrete evidence of student learning. This applies no less to information literacy outcomes, which have been adopted by many colleges and universities around the world. This article describes the experience of a university library in…
Multi-disciplinary competence assessment: a case study in consensus and culture.
Landry, L Y
The case of May Redwing, an American Indian woman assessed for competence is examined in detail. The case highlights the interconnections between the cultures of medicine and law and notes the importance of criteria of competence assessment, but also underscores the necessity of attention to the patient's cultural background in a multi-disciplinary competence assessment team process. Three interrelated areas of inquiry are explored: (1) Can we expect a morally and politically justifiable assessment of competence from a multi-disciplinary approach? (2) What pitfalls threaten a multi-disciplinary approach? and (3) How are the patient's cultural background and values relevant to a proper assessment of competence? These questions are investigated in the context of analyzing and evaluating a particularly difficult case. Although focused on a specific case, the study is instructive and cautionary for any group undertaking the challenges of multi-disciplinary competence assessment. PMID:10616320
An approach for integrating toxicogenomic data in risk assessment: The dibutyl phthalate case study
Euling, Susan Y.; Thompson, Chad M.; Chiu, Weihsueh A.; Benson, Robert
An approach for evaluating and integrating genomic data in chemical risk assessment was developed based on the lessons learned from performing a case study for the chemical dibutyl phthalate. A case study prototype approach was first developed in accordance with EPA guidance and recommendations of the scientific community. Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) was selected for the case study exercise. The scoping phase of the dibutyl phthalate case study was conducted by considering the available DBP genomic data, taken together with the entire data set, for whether they could inform various risk assessment aspects, such as toxicodynamics, toxicokinetics, and dose–response. A description of weighing the available dibutyl phthalate data set for utility in risk assessment provides an example for considering genomic data for future chemical assessments. As a result of conducting the scoping process, two questions—Do the DBP toxicogenomic data inform 1) the mechanisms or modes of action?, and 2) the interspecies differences in toxicodynamics?—were selected to focus the case study exercise. Principles of the general approach include considering the genomics data in conjunction with all other data to determine their ability to inform the various qualitative and/or quantitative aspects of risk assessment, and evaluating the relationship between the available genomic and toxicity outcome data with respect to study comparability and phenotypic anchoring. Based on experience from the DBP case study, recommendations and a general approach for integrating genomic data in chemical assessment were developed to advance the broader effort to utilize 21st century data in risk assessment. - Highlights: • Performed DBP case study for integrating genomic data in risk assessment • Present approach for considering genomic data in chemical risk assessment • Present recommendations for use of genomic data in chemical risk assessment.
Elements of impact assessment: a case study with cyber attacks
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yang, Shanchieh Jay; Holsopple, Jared; Liu, Daniel
Extensive discussions have taken place in recent year regarding impact assessment - what is it and how can we do it? It is especially intriguing in this modern era where non-traditional warfare has caused either information overload or limited understanding of adversary doctrines. This work provides a methodical discussion of key elements for the broad definition of impact assessment (IA). The discussion will start with a process flow involving components related to IA. Two key functional components, impact estimation and threat projection, are compared and illustrated in detail. These details include a discussion of when to model red and blue knowledge. Algorithmic approaches will be discussed, augmented with lessons learned from our IA development for cyber situation awareness. This paper aims at providing the community with a systematic understanding of IA and its open issues with specific examples.
Nationwide desert highway assessment: a case study in China.
Mao, Xuesong; Wang, Fuchun; Wang, Binggang
The natural environment affects the construction of desert highways. Conversely, highway construction affects the natural environment and puts the ecological environment at a disadvantage. To satisfy the variety and hierarchy of desert highway construction and discover the spatio-temporal distribution of the natural environment and its effect on highway construction engineering, an assessment of the natural regional divisions of desert highways in China is carried out for the first time. Based on the general principles and method for the natural region division, the principles, method and index system for desert highway assessment is put forward by combining the desert highway construction features and the azonal differentiation law. The index system combines the dominant indicator and four auxiliary indicators. The dominant indicator is defined by the desert's comprehensive state index and the auxiliary indicators include the sand dune height, the blown sand strength, the vegetation coverage ratio and the annual average temperature difference. First the region is divided according to the dominant indicator. Then the region boundaries are amended according to the four auxiliary indicators. Finally the natural region division map for desert highway assessment is presented. The Chinese desert highways can be divided into three sections: the east medium effect region, the middle medium-severe effect region, and the west slight-medium effect region. The natural region division map effectively paves the way for the route planning, design, construction, maintenance and ongoing management of desert highways, and further helps environmental protection. PMID:21845155
Nationwide Desert Highway Assessment: A Case Study in China
Mao, Xuesong; Wang, Fuchun; Wang, Binggang
The natural environment affects the construction of desert highways. Conversely, highway construction affects the natural environment and puts the ecological environment at a disadvantage. To satisfy the variety and hierarchy of desert highway construction and discover the spatio-temporal distribution of the natural environment and its effect on highway construction engineering, an assessment of the natural regional divisions of desert highways in China is carried out for the first time. Based on the general principles and method for the natural region division, the principles, method and index system for desert highway assessment is put forward by combining the desert highway construction features and the azonal differentiation law. The index system combines the dominant indicator and four auxiliary indicators. The dominant indicator is defined by the desert's comprehensive state index and the auxiliary indicators include the sand dune height, the blown sand strength, the vegetation coverage ratio and the annual average temperature difference. First the region is divided according to the dominant indicator. Then the region boundaries are amended according to the four auxiliary indicators. Finally the natural region division map for desert highway assessment is presented. The Chinese desert highways can be divided into three sections: the east medium effect region, the middle medium-severe effect region, and the west slight-medium effect region. The natural region division map effectively paves the way for the route planning, design, construction, maintenance and ongoing management of desert highways, and further helps environmental protection. PMID:21845155
Review of Chinese Environmental Risk Assessment Regulations and Case Studies
Meng, Xiaojie; Zhang, Yan; Zhao, Yuchao; Lou, In Chio; Gao, Jixi
Environmental risk assessment is an essential step in the development of solutions for pollution problems and new environmental regulations. An assessment system for environmental risks has been developed in China in recent decades. However, many of the Chinese technical guidelines, standards, and regulations were directly adapted from those of developed countries, and were not based on the Chinese environmental and socioeconomic context. Although existing environmental regulations for pollutants are usually obtained by extrapolations from high-dose toxicological data to low-dose scenarios using linear-non-threshold (LNT) models, toxicologists have argued that J-shaped or inverse J-shaped curves may dominate the dose–response relationships for environmental pollutants at low doses because low exposures stimulate biological protective mechanisms that are ineffective at higher doses. The costs of regulations based on LNT and J-shaped models could therefore be dramatically different. Since economic factors strongly affect the decision-making process, particularly for developing countries, it is time to strengthen basic research to provide more scientific support for Chinese environmental regulations. In this paper, we summarize current Chinese environmental policies and standards and the application of environmental risk assessment in China, and recommend a more scientific approach to the development of Chinese regulations. PMID:22740787
State-Based Case Studies of Assessment Initiatives in Undergraduate Education: Chronology of Critical Points.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Boyer, Carol M.; Ewell, Peter T.
The Education Commission of the States (ECS) together with the American Association for Higher Education recently conducted five case studies of state-based approaches to assessment in undergraduate education in Colorado, Missouri, New Jersey, South Dakota, and Virginia. The case studies, in turn, are part of the Missouri Governor John Ashcroft's…
Case Study of the Influences on Alternate Assessment Outcomes for Students with Disabilities
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Karvonen, Meagan; Flowers, Claudia; Browder, Diane M.; Wakeman, Shawnee Y.; Algozzine, Bob
The purpose of this year-long, collective case study was to investigate what influences contributed to alternate assessment outcomes for students with significant disabilities. This study of seven students and teachers in two school districts revealed seven main factors that contributed to students' scores on the state's alternate assessment,…
Assessment of public vs private MSW management: a case study.
Massoud, M A; El-Fadel, M; Abdel Malak, A
Public-private partnerships in urban environmental services have witnessed increased interest in recent years primarily to reform the weak performance of the public sector, reduce cost, improve efficiency, and ensure environmental protection. In this context, successful public-private partnerships require a thorough analysis of opportunities, a deliberate attention to process details, and a continuous examination of services to determine whether they are more effectively performed by the private sector. A comparative assessment of municipal solid waste collection services in the two largest cities in Lebanon where until recently municipal solid waste collection is private in one and public in the other is conducted. While quality of municipal solid waste collection improved, due to private sector participation, the corresponding cost did not, due to monopoly and an inadequate organizational plan defining a proper division of responsibilities between the private and the public sector. PMID:12927148
Case Study: Testing with Case Studies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Herreid, Clyde Freeman
This column provides original articles on innovations in case study teaching, assessment of the method, as well as case studies with teaching notes. This month's issue discusses using case studies to test for knowledge or lessons learned.
Assessing Developmental Students' Number Sense: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ali, Parveen
The data for this study were gathered from an assignment consisting of 10 number sense related mathematics problems completed in an algebra course at developmental level. The results of the study suggest that a majority of developmental mathematics students use routine algorithmic procedures rather than mathematical reasoning to solve problems.…
Case study of ecological risk assessment at an Alaska airport
Peterson, J.A.; Foster, T.L.; Zieber, P.A.
An ecological risk assessment was conducted for 10 sites at a remote location that has unique biological resources. Chemicals of concern included petroleum, metals, polychlorinated biphenyls, and dioxins and furans. Risks to 23 species of mammals and birds were evaluated by using toxicity reference values and a hazard quotient approach analogous to the US Environmental Protection Agency`s (USEPA`s) approach for evaluating noncarcinogenic human health effects. Risks to fish and aquatic invertebrates were evaluated using risk-based concentrations for water analogous to the USEPA`s water quality criteria. Risks to plants were evaluated using risk-based concentrations for soil. Toxicity reference values and risk-based concentrations were developed by applying uncertainty factors to the highest quality toxicity data available in the literature. Intake rates for wildlife were obtained from the USEPA`s wildlife exposure factors handbook, or were estimated using allometric equations. The sizes of wildlife home ranges were compared with the size of each site to determine species- and site-specific exposure frequencies. Indicator chemicals were selected to represent the chemical and toxicological characteristics of petroleum fractions. The species most often at risk were found to be fish and aquatic invertebrates, as well as small-bodied, ground-dwelling or ground-feeding wildlife.
Geothermal reservoir assessment case study: Northern Dixie Valley, Nevada
Denton, J.M.; Bell, E.J.; Jodry, R.L.
Two 1500 foot temperature gradient holes and two deep exploratory wells were drilled and tested. Hydrologic-hydrochemical, shallow temperature survey, structural-tectonic, petrologic alteration, and solid-sample geochemistry studies were completed. Eighteen miles of high resolution reflection seismic data were gathered over the area. The study indicates that a geothermal regime with temperatures greater than 400/sup 0/F may exist at a depth of approximately 7500' to 10,000' over an area more than ten miles in length.
Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes: Case Study of a Program Assessment.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wintner, Allan J.; And Others
A study of graduates of the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine from 1972-78 is described. Data identified: distribution of practices, general v specialization, solo v multiple or group practices, residency training and advanced education, faculty positions, publications and research, hospital affiliations, and community activities.…
Genesis Solar Wind Collector Cleaning Assessment: 60366 Sample Case Study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Goreva, Y. S.; Gonzalez, C. P.; Kuhlman, K. R.; Burnett, D. S.; Woolum, D.; Jurewicz, A. J.; Allton, J. H.; Rodriguez, M. C.; Burkett, P. J.
In order to recognize, localize, characterize and remove particle and thin film surface contamination, a small subset of Genesis mission collector fragments are being subjected to extensive study via various techniques [1-5]. Here we present preliminary results for sample 60336, a Czochralski silicon (Si-CZ) based wafer from the bulk array (B/C).
SEASAT economic assessment. Volume 7: Marine transporation case study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
The studies conducted of the potential use of SEASAT ocean condition data and resulting forecasts by dry cargo ships and tankers reached the following conclusions. The SEASAT ocean condition data and resulting forecasts could be usefully employed to route ships around storms, thereby resulting in reduced adverse weather damage, time loss and the related operating costs, and occasional catastrophic losses. These benefits are incremental benefits beyond those which present and future conventional ship routing procedures can supply. The values of the benefits are listed.
Designing and Developing a Programme-Focused Assessment Strategy: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Brunton, James; Brown, Mark; Costello, Eamon; Walsh, Elaine
This case study describes the process that the Humanities Programme Team, in Dublin City University's Open Education Unit, has undertaken with regard to developing a systematic, programme-focused assessment strategy. It charts the development of an Assessment Matrix that facilitated the enhancement of programme coherence in the context of a…
Formality and Informality in the Summative Assessment of Motor Vehicle Apprentices: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Colley, Helen; Jarvis, Janis
This article explores the interaction of formal and informal attributes of competence-based assessment. Specifically, it presents evidence from a small qualitative case study of summative assessment practices for competence-based qualifications within apprenticeships in the motor industry in England. The data are analysed through applying an…
Changes and Possibilities: A Case Study of Nova Scotia Classroom Assessment Policies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Van Zoost, Steven
Although numerous writers have identified a different set of skills needed for employment in New Times, little analytic attention has been paid to how educational assessment policies contribute to envisioning such future citizens. This case study illustrates how Nova Scotia classroom assessment policy for Grades 7-9 English classes envisions young…
Assessment of Sediment Measurements in Lake Michigan as a Case Study: Implications for Monitoring and Modeling
Lake Michigan, the sixth largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area, was utilized as a water body for assessment within a case study. Field data collected at 116 sediment sampling sites throughout the lake in an intensive monitoring effort were utilized for assessment ...
BASINS and WEPP Climate Assessment Tools (CAT): Case Study Guide to Potential Applications (External Review Draft)
This draft report supports application of two recently developed water modeling tools, the BASINS and WEPP climate assessment tools. The report presents a series of short case studies designed to illustrate the capabilities of these tools for conducting scenario based assessments...
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ritter, Lois A., Ed.; Sue, Valerie M., Ed.
This article presents two case studies using online surveys for evaluation. The authors begin with an example of a needs assessment survey designed to measure the amount of help new students at a university require in their first year. They then discuss the follow-up survey conducted by the same university to measure the effectiveness of the…
Assessing Spatial Data Quality of Participatory GIS Studies: a Case Study in Cape Town
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Musungu, K.
Participatory GIS (PGIS) has been prescribed by scholars who sought to find a means to enable more equitable access to GIS data, diversifying the types of knowledge captured by a GIS and re-engineering GIS software. The popularity of PGIS is evident in the various studies and contexts in which it has been utilised. These include studies in risk assessment, land administration, resource management, crime mapping and urban design to mention but a few. Despite the popularity of PGIS as a body of research, little has been done in the analysis of the quality of PGIS information. The study investigated the use of data quality criteria commonly used in traditional GIS systems and shows that it is possible to apply the criteria used in traditional GIS to PGIS. It provides a starting point for PGIS studies to assess the quality of the product. Notably, this a reflective exercise on one case study, but the methodologies used in this study have been replicated in many others undertaken by Community Based Organisations as well as Non-Governmental Organisations. Therefore the findings are relevant to such projects.
Learning to Assess in the Academic Workplace: Case Study in the Natural Sciences
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Jawitz, J.
A study into how academics learn to assess student performance affirms the significance of context in understanding learning in the academic workplace. The study involved three case studies in academic departments with significant differences in the teaching, research and professional dimensions of academic life. This article reports on the…
Chronic hepatitis C--assessment in civil law: a case study.
Santos, Bruno Miguel; Sousa, Paula; Mena, Filomena; Costa, Graça Santos; Corte-Real, Francisco; Vieira, Duarte Nuno
This article describes the case of a 58-year-old man who asked for an assessment of physical damage of a civil nature, having been diagnosed with chronic hepatitis C for which he blamed a blood transfusion, supposedly contaminated with hepatitis C virus (HCV). After studying the documentary information, a number of presuppositions were drawn up with a view to determining the causal nexus, but this could not be proved. The assessment of situations like this is not common in civil law. This article is intended to add to the body of information on the forensic assessment of similar cases. PMID:20129431
Gart, Natalie; Zamora, Irina; Williams, Marian E
Therapeutic Assessment (TA; S.E. Finn & M.E. Tonsager, 1997; J.D. Smith, 2010) is a collaborative, semistructured model that encourages self-discovery and meaning-making through the use of assessment as an intervention approach. This model shares core strategies with infant mental health assessment, including close collaboration with parents and caregivers, active participation of the family, a focus on developing new family stories and increasing parents' understanding of their child, and reducing isolation and increasing hope through the assessment process. The intersection of these two theoretical approaches is explored, using case studies of three infants/young children and their families to illustrate the application of TA to infant mental health. The case of an 18-month-old girl whose parents fear that she has bipolar disorder illustrates the core principles of the TA model, highlighting the use of assessment intervention sessions and the clinical approach to preparing assessment feedback. The second case follows an infant with a rare genetic syndrome from ages 2 to 24 months, focusing on the assessor-parent relationship and the importance of a developmental perspective. Finally, assessment of a 3-year-old boy illustrates the development and use of a fable as a tool to provide feedback to a young child about assessment findings and recommendations. PMID:27333488
Advanced Risk Reduction Tool (ARRT) Special Case Study Report: Science and Engineering Technical Assessments (SETA) Program
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Kirsch, Paul J.; Hayes, Jane; Zelinski, Lillian
This special case study report presents the Science and Engineering Technical Assessments (SETA) team's findings for exploring the correlation between the underlying models of Advanced Risk Reduction Tool (ARRT) relative to how it identifies, estimates, and integrates Independent Verification & Validation (IV&V) activities. The special case study was conducted under the provisions of SETA Contract Task Order (CTO) 15 and the approved technical approach documented in the CTO-15 Modification #1 Task Project Plan.
"Why do I get in trouble so much?": a family therapeutic assessment case study.
Smith, Justin D; Handler, Leonard
Recent case studies have demonstrated the potential benefits of Finn's Therapeutic Assessment (TA) model with families (e.g., Handler, 2007; Tharinger, Finn, Wilkinson, & Schaber, 2007). This case study of a 6-year-old girl and her family follows the Therapeutic Assessment (TA) model, focusing on the specified goals of each session and how those goals were accomplished. In this article, we illustrate the flexibility afforded by the TA model to tailor an appropriate intervention for a specific family and also show that extensive experience with the TA model is not necessary for this approach to yield clinically significant results. PMID:19365760
A case study on constructive assessment of bids to a call for tender.
Brender, Jytte; Schou-Christensen, Jens; McNair, Peter
A case study based on constructive assessment methodology is taking place at the purchase of a Laboratory Information System. The present report describes the strategy and approach for the selection process, together with some results and lessons learned, while a parallel paper presents the tools applied. PMID:15460749
A case study assessing the utility of this approach was performed for bisphenol A (BPA). BPA, a component of polycarbonate plastics, epoxy resins, and polyester resins, was selected because it is a high production volume chemical; data have been identified for both vertebrate an...
Assessing Student Learning through Guided Inquiry: A Case Study of a Beginning Teacher
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
d'Souza, Lisa A.
A case study of a beginning teacher in an urban high school, conducted over five years including one preservice year and the first four years of teaching, describes how the teacher came to understand and amend her assessment practices through guided questioning of student work. The protocol poses questions to engage teachers in discussions about…
Basins and Wepp Climate Assessment Tools (Cat): Case Study Guide to Potential Applications (Final Report)
Assessment Tool: Case Study Final report"> This final report supports application of two recently developed...
HEFCE's People Management Self-Assessment Tool: Ticking Boxes or Adding Value? A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McDonald, Claire
This article examines one specific organisational development tool in depth and uses a case study to investigate whether using the tool is more than a tick-box exercise and really can add value and help organisations to develop and improve. The People Management Self-Assessment Tool (SAT) is used to examine higher education institutions' (HEIs)…
Case Study: Optimality Theory and the Assessment and Treatment of Phonological Disorders.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Barlow, Jessica A.
A case study of a 3-year-old with a phonological disorder is used to demonstrate the application of optimality theory to the assessment and treatment. A tutorial of the theory is provided and then several prototypical error patterns evident in the child's productions are analyzed within the framework. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)
Assessment and Treatment of Stereotypic Vocalizations in a Taiwanese Adolescent with Autism: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wu, Ya-Ping; Mirenda, Pat; Wang, Hwa-Pey; Chen, Ming-Chung
This case study describes the processes of functional analysis and modality assessment that were utilized to design a communication intervention for an adolescent with autism who engaged in loud and disruptive vocalizations for most of the school day. The functional analysis suggested that the vocalizations served both tangible and escape…
Chair Report Consultancy Meeting on Nuclear Security Assessment Methodologies (NUSAM) Transport Case Study Working Group
Shull, Doug
The purpose of the consultancy assignment was to (i) apply the NUSAM assessment methods to hypothetical transport security table top exercise (TTX) analyses and (ii) document its results to working materials of NUSAM case study on transport. A number of working group observations, using the results of TTX methodologies, are noted in the report.
Measuring Primary Students' Graph Interpretation Skills via a Performance Assessment: A Case Study in Instrument Development
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Peterman, Karen; Cranston, Kayla A.; Pryor, Marie; Kermish-Allen, Ruth
This case study was conducted within the context of a place-based education project that was implemented with primary school students in the USA. The authors and participating teachers created a performance assessment of standards-aligned tasks to examine 6-10-year-old students' graph interpretation skills as part of an exploratory research…
Assessment and Treatment of Tic Behavior: A Review and Case Study.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pray, Bruce, Jr.; And Others
A discussion of the classification, differential diagnosis, etiology, assessment, and treatment of tic disorders is presented. A case study is included in which a school psychologist utilized behavioral consultation to assist a 9-year-old girl's parent and teacher in implementing a habit reversal program. (Author/LMO)
The Quality of Assessments: Case-Studies in the National Certificate. Practitioner MiniPaper 9.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Black, Harry; And Others
The Scottish Vocational Education Council's National Certificate has its origins in the Scottish Education Department's (SED's) decision to rationalize the provision of certification for non-advanced further education in Scotland under one body. This report presents case studies of assessments of students performed by colleges in Scotland, based…
Protecting Health Using an Environmental Impact Assessment: A Case Study of San Francisco Land Use Decisionmaking
Bhatia, Rajiv
Laws and regulations for an environmental impact assessment enable a health impact assessment whenever physical changes in the environment may significantly affect health. In this case study, I describe 2 instances in which a local public health agency used the procedural requirements for an environmental impact assessment to account for societal-level health determinants that are not traditionally evaluated in land-use decisions. These examples show that a public health critique can contribute both to the scope of analysis in an environmental impact assessment and to substantive changes in land-use decisions. I have evaluated this health appraisal approach as a form of a health impact assessment and will make recommendations for law, research, and practice that support its technical, cultural, and political feasibility. PMID:17267726
Functional Assessment of the Vanderbilt Multigrasp Myoelectric Hand: A Continuing Case Study
Dalley, Skyler A.; Bennett, Daniel A.; Goldfarb, Michael
This paper presents a case study involving the functional assessment of the Vanderbilt Multigrasp (VMG) hand prosthesis on a single transradial amputee subject. In particular, a transradial amputee subject performed the Southampton Hand Assessment Procedure (SHAP) using the hand prosthesis and multigrasp myoelectric controller in a series of experimental sessions occurring over a multi-week time span. The subject's index of function (IoF) improved with each session, although essentially plateaued after the fourth session, resulting in a IoF score of 87, which compares favorably to SHAP scores published in previous studies. PMID:25571412
A Case Study of Teacher Personal Practice Assessment Theories and Complexities of Implementing Formative Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Box, Cathy; Skoog, Gerald; Dabbs, Jennifer M.
The value and effectiveness of formative assessment in the classroom has gained an increasing amount of attention during the past decade, especially since the publication of seminal work by Black and Wiliam titled "Assessment and Classroom Learning." Since that time, there has been a renewed interest in describing and evaluating teacher…
Considerations for Equating Alternate Assessments: Two Case Studies of Alternate Assessments Based on Alternate Achievement Standards
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wyse, Adam E.; Dean, Vincent J.; Viger, Steven G.; Vansickle, Timothy R.
The development of alternate assessments for students with disabilities plays a pivotal role in state and national accountability systems. An important assumption in the use of alternate assessments in these accountability systems is that scores are comparable on different test forms across diverse groups of students over time. The use of test…
A rapid usability assessment methodology to support the choice of clinical information systems: a case study.
Beuscart-Zéphir, M C; Watbled, L; Carpentier, A M; Degroisse, M; Alao, O
We present here an adapted methodology integrating usability engineering and early evaluation procedures to support the choice of a Clinical Information System in the context of a standard Call for Tender. We illustrate the application of this methodology with a case study. We integrated a standard 'contextual task and activity analysis' into the choice process and then drew up usability recommendations for the choice of an application. We organized a one-week on-site exhibition and test for each candidate company. During the test sessions, we performed a rapid usability assessment. The final choice of the application is strongly and positively influenced by the results of the usability assessment. PMID:12463784
Approaches to Children's Exposure Assessment: Case Study with Diethylhexylphthalate (DEHP)
Ginsberg, Gary; Ginsberg, Justine; Foos, Brenda
Children's exposure assessment is a key input into epidemiology studies, risk assessment and source apportionment. The goals of this article are to describe a methodology for children's exposure assessment that can be used for these purposes and to apply the methodology to source apportionment for the case study chemical, diethylhexylphthalate (DEHP). A key feature is the comparison of total (aggregate) exposure calculated via a pathways approach to that derived from a biomonitoring approach. The 4-step methodology and its results for DEHP are: (1) Prioritization of life stages and exposure pathways, with pregnancy, breast-fed infants, and toddlers the focus of the case study and pathways selected that are relevant to these groups; (2) Estimation of pathway-specific exposures by life stage wherein diet was found to be the largest contributor for pregnant women, breast milk and mouthing behavior for the nursing infant and diet, house dust, and mouthing for toddlers; (3) Comparison of aggregate exposure by pathways vs biomonitoring-based approaches wherein good concordance was found for toddlers and pregnant women providing confidence in the exposure assessment; (4) Source apportionment in which DEHP presence in foods, children's products, consumer products and the built environment are discussed with respect to early life mouthing, house dust and dietary exposure. A potential fifth step of the method involves the calculation of exposure doses for risk assessment which is described but outside the scope for the current case study. In summary, the methodology has been used to synthesize the available information to identify key sources of early life exposure to DEHP. PMID:27376320
Case Study: Writing a Journal Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Prud'homme-Genereux, Annie
This column provides original articles on innovations in case study teaching, assessment of the method, as well as case studies with teaching notes. This month's issue describes incorporating a journal article into the classroom by first converting it into a case study.
Written reflection and drawing as assessment: A case study of a Navajo elementary science classroom
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Becker, Madeline
The purpose of the study was to assess if science learning could be determined by using written reflection and drawings in a science classroom of 5 th-grade Navajo students. The significance of this study was the understanding of the culture, assessments and learning of Navajo students. I studied a classroom on the Navajo reservation wherein 26 members of the class took part in science instruction complemented by using writing and drawing which were used as their assessments. The perceptions of the 8 students who were interviewed represent the case. In the study I profiled the 8 participants. Their culture, language, and views on assessment and learning were documented by their words. Their responses described their learning experiences. Assessments were seen as frustrating and limiting expression of what was known and damaging when not contributed to learning. Students explained that drawing enabled them to remember along with provoking vocabulary development. Student cultural knowledge was documented as valuable background experience contributing to learning within the classroom. Students viewed science as needing to be useful in their culture. Finally, they were also very candid that their teachers must first get to know them for meaningful learning to begin. Learning for students was reinforced through writing and drawing the lesson's activities. Further concept development was assisted utilizing metacognition and creative problem solving techniques of elaboration and fluency applied to the writing and drawings. Based on the findings of this study, recommendations were made for use of holistic means of assessing Navajo children in science where preferred learning styles along with cultural background need to be included in assessment protocols. Using new and better assessment techniques can directly impact how students document their learning as well as reveal how they acquire new knowledge.
Measuring Primary Students' Graph Interpretation Skills Via a Performance Assessment: A case study in instrument development
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Peterman, Karen; Cranston, Kayla A.; Pryor, Marie; Kermish-Allen, Ruth
This case study was conducted within the context of a place-based education project that was implemented with primary school students in the USA. The authors and participating teachers created a performance assessment of standards-aligned tasks to examine 6-10-year-old students' graph interpretation skills as part of an exploratory research project. Fifty-five students participated in a performance assessment interview at the beginning and end of a place-based investigation. Two forms of the assessment were created and counterbalanced within class at pre and post. In situ scoring was conducted such that responses were scored as correct versus incorrect during the assessment's administration. Criterion validity analysis demonstrated an age-level progression in student scores. Tests of discriminant validity showed that the instrument detected variability in interpretation skills across each of three graph types (line, bar, dot plot). Convergent validity was established by correlating in situ scores with those from the Graph Interpretation Scoring Rubric. Students' proficiency with interpreting different types of graphs matched expectations based on age and the standards-based progression of graphs across primary school grades. The assessment tasks were also effective at detecting pre-post gains in students' interpretation of line graphs and dot plots after the place-based project. The results of the case study are discussed in relation to the common challenges associated with performance assessment. Implications are presented in relation to the need for authentic and performance-based instructional and assessment tasks to respond to the Common Core State Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards.
Incorporating formative assessment and science content into elementary science methods---A case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Brower, Derek John
Just as elementary students enter the science classroom with prior knowledge and experiences, so do preservice elementary teachers who enter the science methods classroom. Elementary science methods instructors recognize the challenges associated with preparing teachers for the science classroom. Two of these challenges include overcoming limited science content understanding and a low science teaching efficacy. Based upon research in science misconceptions, conceptual change theory, formative assessment, and science teaching efficacy, this design experiment explored the use of formative assessment in an authentic learning environment to address some of these challenges. As a case study, the goal was to identify two specific topics in science which the preservice teachers did not understand and to model consistent use of formative assessment to guide instruction in those science topics for six weeks. The research questions for this study sought to explore the design of the class while also exploring students' understanding of the science content and their understanding of formative assessment. One specific question was whether the formative data could differentiate between deeply held student misconceptions in science and incomplete science understanding. In addition, data was collected to measure changes in science teaching efficacy as well as preservice teachers' desire to use formative assessment in their own future classrooms. Based upon student interviews and a final content quiz, the participants in this study did show improved science content understanding in the areas of plant food/energy and plate tectonics. The course design implemented a variety of formative assessment tools including formative assessment probes, student science notebooks, student concept maps, a non-graded quiz, and more. The STEBI-B survey identified improved science teaching efficacy among the participants. Student final essays indicated improved understanding of formative assessment
Case study for model validation : assessing a model for thermal decomposition of polyurethane foam.
Dowding, Kevin J.; Leslie, Ian H.; Hobbs, Michael L.; Rutherford, Brian Milne; Hills, Richard Guy; Pilch, Martin M.
A case study is reported to document the details of a validation process to assess the accuracy of a mathematical model to represent experiments involving thermal decomposition of polyurethane foam. The focus of the report is to work through a validation process. The process addresses the following activities. The intended application of mathematical model is discussed to better understand the pertinent parameter space. The parameter space of the validation experiments is mapped to the application parameter space. The mathematical models, computer code to solve the models and its (code) verification are presented. Experimental data from two activities are used to validate mathematical models. The first experiment assesses the chemistry model alone and the second experiment assesses the model of coupled chemistry, conduction, and enclosure radiation. The model results of both experimental activities are summarized and uncertainty of the model to represent each experimental activity is estimated. The comparison between the experiment data and model results is quantified with various metrics. After addressing these activities, an assessment of the process for the case study is given. Weaknesses in the process are discussed and lessons learned are summarized.
Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers: A Case Study for Using Biomonitoring Data to Address Risk Assessment Questions
Birnbaum, Linda S.; Cohen Hubal, Elaine A.
The use of biomonitoring data holds promise for characterizing exposure and informing risk assessment. Biomonitoring data have been used successfully to track population trends, identify susceptible populations, and provide indications of emerging environmental health issues. However, there remain challenges associated with interpreting biomonitoring data for risk assessment. An international biomonitoring workshop was convened in September 2004 to explore the use of biomonitoring data in the context of risk assessment. Six compounds were examined as case studies for this workshop, including polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). The PBDE case study was developed to provide an example of a persistent compound for which relatively few data are available for human exposure, biomonitoring, and health outcomes. PBDEs are used in hard plastics, electronics, textiles, and polyurethane foam products. The congener pattern downstream of production facilities often resembles the commercial mixture. However, because these compounds persist in the environment and in biota, the patterns of congeners evolve. PBDEs partition into body lipids, and direct measurement of bromodiphenyl ether congeners in biologic specimens provides a good marker of exposure. Data indicate significant variability (> 100-fold range) in lipid-adjusted levels for PBDEs in the general population. It is hypothesized that both exposure and pharmacokinetics may play a role in observed congener profiles. Significant gaps in our ability to interpret PBDE biomonitoring data to address public health and risk assessment questions include limited knowledge of environmental fate and transport of PBDE congeners, limited population-based data for adults, and lack of data for potentially vulnerable populations such as children. PMID:17107866
Simulation for team training and assessment: case studies of online training with virtual worlds.
LeRoy Heinrichs, William; Youngblood, Patricia; Harter, Phillip M; Dev, Parvati
Individuals in clinical training programs concerned with critical medical care must learn to manage clinical cases effectively as a member of a team. However, practice on live patients is often unpredictable and frequently repetitive. The widely substituted alternative for real patients-high-fidelity, manikin-based simulators (human patient simulator)-are expensive and require trainees to be in the same place at the same time, whereas online computer-based simulations, or virtual worlds, allow simultaneous participation from different locations. Here we present three virtual world studies for team training and assessment in acute-care medicine: (1) training emergency department (ED) teams to manage individual trauma cases; (2) prehospital and in-hospital disaster preparedness training; (3) training ED and hospital staff to manage mass casualties after chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive incidents. The research team created realistic virtual victims of trauma (6 cases), nerve toxin exposure (10 cases), and blast trauma (10 cases); the latter two groups were supported by rules-based, pathophysiologic models of asphyxia and hypovolemia. Evaluation of these virtual world simulation exercises shows that trainees find them to be adequately realistic to "suspend disbelief," and they quickly learn to use Internet voice communication and user interface to navigate their online character/avatar to work effectively in a critical care team. Our findings demonstrate that these virtual ED environments fulfill their promise of providing repeated practice opportunities in dispersed locations with uncommon, life-threatening trauma cases in a safe, reproducible, flexible setting. PMID:18188640
Overview of EPA's Approach to Developing Prospective Case Studies Technical Workshop: Case Studies to Assess Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing on Drinking Water Resources
One component of the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) study of the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources is prospective case studies, which are being conducted to more fully understand and assess if and how site specific hydrau...
Integrating risk assessment and life cycle assessment: a case study of insulation.
Nishioka, Yurika; Levy, Jonathan I; Norris, Gregory A; Wilson, Andrew; Hofstetter, Patrick; Spengler, John D
Increasing residential insulation can decrease energy consumption and provide public health benefits, given changes in emissions from fuel combustion, but also has cost implications and ancillary risks and benefits. Risk assessment or life cycle assessment can be used to calculate the net impacts and determine whether more stringent energy codes or other conservation policies would be warranted, but few analyses have combined the critical elements of both methodologies In this article, we present the first portion of a combined analysis, with the goal of estimating the net public health impacts of increasing residential insulation for new housing from current practice to the latest International Energy Conservation Code (IECC 2000). We model state-by-state residential energy savings and evaluate particulate matter less than 2.5 microm in diameter (PM2.5), NOx, and SO2 emission reductions. We use past dispersion modeling results to estimate reductions in exposure, and we apply concentration-response functions for premature mortality and selected morbidity outcomes using current epidemiological knowledge of effects of PM2.5 (primary and secondary). We find that an insulation policy shift would save 3 x 10(14) British thermal units or BTU (3 x 10(17) J) over a 10-year period, resulting in reduced emissions of 1,000 tons of PM2.5, 30,000 tons of NOx, and 40,000 tons of SO2. These emission reductions yield an estimated 60 fewer fatalities during this period, with the geographic distribution of health benefits differing from the distribution of energy savings because of differences in energy sources, population patterns, and meteorology. We discuss the methodology to be used to integrate life cycle calculations, which can ultimately yield estimates that can be compared with costs to determine the influence of external costs on benefit-cost calculations. PMID:12442994
The assessment and management of pain in an orthopaedic out-patient setting: A case study.
Hall, Gillian; Gregory, Julie
The management of pain is an important aspect of an orthopaedic nurse's role. The aim of this paper is to use an individual case study to demonstrate the role of an out-patient orthopaedic nurse in the identification, assessment and management of pain. This paper describes how pain was identified and managed for a patient in the orthopaedic outpatient department, highlighting that pain and its management are not isolated to the in-patient setting. The case study illustrates the importance of recognising pain and taking into account the numerous factors that can influence pain perception. The assessment of an individual patient's pain led to obtaining help from the Acute Pain Team which led to improvement in the patient's pain management and quality of life. The nursing team reflected and discussed the issues identified by this case study which led to changes in practice being introduced. This has resulted in an increased knowledge of and confidence in pain management within the nursing team and development and improvement of pain management practice within the orthopaedic out-patient department. PMID:26711709
Social impact assessment and public participation in China: A case study of land requisition in Guangzhou
Tang Bosin Wong Siuwai Lau, Milton Chi-hong
This study examines the current prospects for and obstacles facing the implementation of social impact assessment (SIA) and participatory planning in the People's Republic of China. During the past two decades, rapid urbanisation and the conversion of rural land for urban development have led to numerous social conflicts and tensions between the Chinese government and its people. SIA and public participation in development decisions have received increasing attention from the Chinese authorities as possible ways to tackle the problem. Based on a Guangzhou case study, this paper argues that the assessment and mitigation of adverse impacts on the community from urban development have been carried out with different objectives, core values and principles when compared with those in Western societies. It concludes that the poor prospects of SIA and collaborative planning in China lie not only in the weak framework for environmental legislation, but also in all institutions concerning state-society relations, the socialist governing ideology and traditional Chinese culture.
[Landscape character assessment framework in rural area: A case study in Qiaokou, Chang-sha, China].
Zhang, Qian; Liu, Wen-ping; Yu, Zhen-rong
Based on the concept and methods of landscape character assessment (LCA) in England, this paper applied a complete process of landscape character assessment with a case study in Qiaokou Town, which is located in a typical southern paddy fields area in Changsha City. We drew the landscape character map of Qiaokou Town through desk classification and field survey, identified and compared the key characters of each character area, and proposed suggestions on the improvement and stewardship of landscape characters. The results showed that Qiaokou could be divided into 2 landscape character types and 7 landscape character areas with the main differences in cropland and vegetation pattern as well as aesthetic characters. The case study indicated that LCA could be a critical tool to identify the characteristics in rural area, and provide helpful guidance to protect, restore and maintain the unique culture and characters of rural landscape, which is useful for targeted rural landscape development. In the future, we suggested that the assessment on the effects of landscape construction measures on the ecosystem services should be incorporated in LCA research as well. PMID:26571675
Linking Assessment to Decision Making in Water Resources Planning - Decision Making Frameworks and Case Study Evaluations
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Broman, D.; Gangopadhyay, S.; Simes, J.
Climate assessments have become an accepted and commonly used component of long term water management and planning. There is substantial variation in the methods used in these assessments; however, managers and decision-makers have come to value their utility to identify future system limitations, and to evaluate future alternatives to ensure satisfactory system performance. A new set of decision-making frameworks have been proposed, including robust decision making (RDM), and decision scaling, that directly address the deep uncertainties found in both future climate, and non-climatic factors. Promising results have been obtained using these new frameworks, offering a more comprehensive understanding of future conditions leading to failures, and identification of measures to address these failures. Data and resource constraints have limited the use of these frameworks within the Bureau of Reclamation. We present here a modified framework that captures the strengths of previously proposed methods while using a suite of analysis tool that allow for a 'rapid climate assessment' to be performed. A scalable approach has been taken where more complex tools can be used if project resources allow. This 'rapid assessment' is demonstrated through two case studies on the Santa Ana and Colorado Rivers where previous climate assessments have been completed. Planning-level measures are used to compare how decision making is affected when using this new decision making framework.
Economic assessment of managing processionary moth in pine forests: a case-study in Portugal.
Gatto, Paola; Zocca, Alessia; Battisti, Andrea; Barrento, Maria João; Branco, Manuela; Paiva, Maria Rosa
This paper assesses the private and social profitability of current strategies for managing processionary moth (Thaumetopoea pityocampa) in Portuguese pine forests, looking at economic and environmental costs and benefits. Costs include the expenses for forest treatment and the social costs of threats to human health (dermatitis amongst others); benefits are assessed in terms of both revenue and social benefits such as carbon fixation and recreation. The evaluation was done using Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) as an analytical framework. While this tool is currently applied to forest and environmental assessment and specific applications to pest management strategies are to be found in agricultural economics, rather few attempts have been made in the field of forest pest management. In order to assess and compare with--without options, a case-study was analysed for the Setúbal Peninsula, south of Lisbon, an area where extensive stands of maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) grow. The exercise has shown that CBA can be a valuable tool for assessing the economic and social profitability of pest management. The results demonstrate that the loss of revenues in the no-management option is not sufficient to make pest management profitable for private forest owners in the short-term. Conversely, a social profit is gained as pest management minimizes health risks for humans and avoids possible recreational losses. PMID:18336989
Quantifying uncertainty in health impact assessment: a case-study example on indoor housing ventilation.
Mesa-Frias, Marco; Chalabi, Zaid; Foss, Anna M
Quantitative health impact assessment (HIA) is increasingly being used to assess the health impacts attributable to an environmental policy or intervention. As a consequence, there is a need to assess uncertainties in the assessments because of the uncertainty in the HIA models. In this paper, a framework is developed to quantify the uncertainty in the health impacts of environmental interventions and is applied to evaluate the impacts of poor housing ventilation. The paper describes the development of the framework through three steps: (i) selecting the relevant exposure metric and quantifying the evidence of potential health effects of the exposure; (ii) estimating the size of the population affected by the exposure and selecting the associated outcome measure; (iii) quantifying the health impact and its uncertainty. The framework introduces a novel application for the propagation of uncertainty in HIA, based on fuzzy set theory. Fuzzy sets are used to propagate parametric uncertainty in a non-probabilistic space and are applied to calculate the uncertainty in the morbidity burdens associated with three indoor ventilation exposure scenarios: poor, fair and adequate. The case-study example demonstrates how the framework can be used in practice, to quantify the uncertainty in health impact assessment where there is insufficient information to carry out a probabilistic uncertainty analysis. PMID:24189198
Environmental risk assessment for the serotonin re-uptake inhibitor fluoxetine: Case study using the European risk assessment framework.
Oakes, Ken D; Coors, Anja; Escher, Beate I; Fenner, Kathrin; Garric, Jeanne; Gust, Marion; Knacker, Thomas; Küster, Anette; Kussatz, Carola; Metcalfe, Chris D; Monteiro, Sara; Moon, Thomas W; Mennigen, Jan A; Parrott, Joanne; Péry, Alexandre R R; Ramil, Maria; Roennefahrt, Ines; Tarazona, José V; Sánchez-Argüello, Paloma; Ternes, Thomas A; Trudeau, Vance L; Boucard, Tatiana; Van Der Kraak, Glen J; Servos, Mark R
The serotonin re-uptake inhibitor fluoxetine was selected for an environmental risk assessment, using the most recent European guideline (EMEA 2006) within the European Union (EU)-funded Environmental Risk Assessment of Pharmaceuticals (ERAPharm) project due to its environmental persistence, acute toxicity to nontarget organisms, and unique pharmacokinetics associated with a readily ionizable compound. As a widely prescribed psychotropic drug, fluoxetine is frequently detected in surface waters adjacent to urban areas because municipal wastewater effluents are the primary route of entry to aquatic environments. In Phase I of the assessment, the initial predicted environmental concentration of fluoxetine in surface water (initial PEC(SW)) reached or exceeded the action limit of 10 ng/L, when using both a default market penetration factor and prescription data for Sweden, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Consequently, a Phase II risk assessment was conducted in which green algae were identified as the most sensitive species with a NOEC of <0.6 microg/L. From this value, a predicted no effect concentration for surface waters (PNEC(SW)) of 0.012 microg/L was derived. The PEC/PNEC ratio was above the trigger value of 1 in worst-case exposure scenarios indicating a potential risk to the aquatic compartment. Similarly, risks of fluoxetine for sediment-dwelling organisms could not be excluded. No risk assessment was conducted for the terrestrial compartment due to a lack of data on effects of fluoxetine on soil organisms. The need for a separate risk assessment for the main metabolite of fluoxetine, norfluoxetine, was not conducted because of a lack of fate and effect studies. Based on published data, fluoxetine and norfluoxetine appeared to have a low to moderate bioaccumulation potential, which should be confirmed in formal studies according to OECD guidelines. Exposure assessments for fluoxetine according to the current framework rely heavily on K(OC) and K(OW) values
Scenario-neutral Food Security Risk Assessment: A livestock Heat Stress Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Broman, D.; Rajagopalan, B.; Hopson, T. M.
Food security risk assessments can provide decision-makers with actionable information to identify critical system limitations, and alternatives to mitigate the impacts of future conditions. The majority of current risk assessments have been scenario-led and results are limited by the scenarios - selected future states of the world's climate system and socioeconomic factors. A generic scenario-neutral framework for food security risk assessments is presented here that uses plausible states of the world without initially assigning likelihoods. Measures of system vulnerabilities are identified and system risk is assessed for these states. This framework has benefited greatly by research in the water and natural resource fields to adapt their planning to provide better risk assessments. To illustrate the utility of this framework we develop a case study using livestock heat stress risk within the pastoral system of West Africa. Heat stress can have a major impact not only on livestock owners, but on the greater food production system, decreasing livestock growth, milk production, and reproduction, and in severe cases, death. A heat stress index calculated from daily weather is used as a vulnerability measure and is computed from historic daily weather data at several locations in the study region. To generate plausible states, a stochastic weather generator is developed to generate synthetic weather sequences at each location, consistent with the seasonal climate. A spatial model of monthly and seasonal heat stress provide projections of current and future livestock heat stress measures across the study region, and can incorporate in seasonal climate and other external covariates. These models, when linked with empirical thresholds of heat stress risk for specific breeds offer decision-makers with actionable information for use in near-term warning systems as well as for future planning. Future assessment can indicate under which states livestock are at greatest risk
A clinical case study of the use of ecological momentary assessment in obsessive compulsive disorder
Tilley, P. J. Matt; Rees, Clare S.
Accurate assessment of obsessions and compulsions is a crucial step in treatment planning for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). In this clinical case study, we sought to determine if the use of Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) could provide additional symptom information beyond that captured during standard assessment of OCD. We studied three adults diagnosed with OCD and compared the number and types of obsessions and compulsions captured using the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) compared to EMA. Following completion of the Y-BOCS interview, participants then recorded their OCD symptoms into a digital voice recorder across a 12-h period in reply to randomly sent mobile phone SMS prompts. The EMA approach yielded a lower number of symptoms of obsessions and compulsions than the Y-BOCS but produced additional types of obsessions and compulsions not previously identified by the Y-BOCS. We conclude that the EMA-OCD procedure may represent a worthy addition to the suite of assessment tools used when working with clients who have OCD. Further research with larger samples is required to strengthen this conclusion. PMID:24860521
Assessment of a questionnaire for breast cancer case-control studies.
Strumylaite, Loreta; Kregzdyte, Rima; Rugyte, Danguole Ceslava; Bogusevicius, Algirdas; Mechonosina, Kristina
The aim of the present study was to assess criterion validity and external reliability of a questionnaire on risk factors for breast cancer. Materials and Methods. Women with breast cancer diagnosis (the cases) (N=40) and matched individuals without cancer (the controls) (N=40) were asked to fill in a questionnaire twice: on a day of admission to hospital (Q1) and on a day before discharge (Q2), with a time interval of 4-6 days. The questionnaire included questions (N=150) on demographic and socioeconomic factors, diseases in the past, family history of cancer, woman's health, smoking, alcohol use, diet, physical activity, and work environment. Criterion validity of the questionnaire Q2 relative to reference questionnaire Q1 was assessed with the Spearman correlation coefficient (SCC); external reliability of the questionnaire was measured in terms of the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 16. Results. The responses to most of the questions on socioeconomic factors, family history on cancer, female health, lifestyle risk factors (smoking, alcohol use, physical activity) correlated substantially in both the cases and the controls with SCC and ICC>0.7 (p<0.01). Statistically non significant relationships defined only between the responses on amount of beer the cases drank at the ages up to 25 years and 26-35 years as well as time of use of estrogen and estrogens-progestin during menopause by the cases. Moderate and substantial SCC and ICC were determined for different food items. Only the response of the cases on veal consumption did not correlate significantly. Conclusions. The questionnaire on breast cancer risk factors is valid and reliable for most of the questions included. PMID:23803031
Therapeutic Assessment of Complex Trauma: A Single-Case Time-Series Study
Tarocchi, Anna; Aschieri, Filippo; Fantini, Francesca; Smith, Justin D.
The cumulative effect of repeated traumatic experiences in early childhood incrementally increases the risk of adjustment problems later in life. Surviving traumatic environments can lead to the development of an interrelated constellation of emotional and interpersonal symptoms termed complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD). Effective treatment of trauma begins with a multimethod psychological assessment and requires the use of several evidence-based therapeutic processes, including establishing a safe therapeutic environment, reprocessing the trauma, constructing a new narrative, and managing emotional dysregulation. Therapeutic Assessment (TA) is a semistructured, brief intervention that uses psychological testing to promote positive change. The case study of Kelly, a middle-aged woman with a history of repeated interpersonal trauma, illustrates delivery of the TA model for CPTSD. Results of this single-case time-series experiment indicate statistically significant symptom improvement as a result of participating in TA. We discuss the implications of these findings for assessing and treating trauma-related concerns, such as CPTSD. PMID:24159267
Comparative Case Study as Social Impact Assessment: Possibilities and Limitations for Anticipating Social Change in the Far North
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Asselin, Jodie; Parkins, John R.
Social impact assessment (SIA) is increasingly an accepted component of environmental impact assessment and project evaluation throughout North America. Tools and methodologies utilized to conduct such assessments vary greatly and continue to evolve with time and experience. This paper follows the evolution of case study methods in social impact…
Physiologically Based Toxicokinetic Modelling as a Tool to Support Risk Assessment: Three Case Studies
Mielke, Hans; Gundert-Remy, Ursula
In this contribution we present three case studies of physiologically based toxicokinetic (PBTK) modelling in regulatory risk assessment. (1) Age-dependent lower enzyme expression in the newborn leads to bisphenol A (BPA) blood levels which are near the levels of the tolerated daily intake (TDI) at the oral exposure as calculated by EFSA. (2) Dermal exposure of BPA by receipts, car park tickets, and so forth, contribute to the exposure towards BPA. However, at the present levels of dermal exposure there is no risk for the adult. (3) Dermal exposure towards coumarin via cosmetic products leads to external exposures of two-fold the TDI. PBTK modeling helped to identify liver peak concentration as the metric for liver toxicity. After dermal exposure of twice the TDI, the liver peak concentration was lower than that present after oral exposure with the TDI dose. In the presented cases, PBTK modeling was useful to reach scientifically sound regulatory decisions. PMID:22649449
Transcriptomic resources for environmental risk assessment: a case study in the Venice lagoon.
Milan, M; Pauletto, M; Boffo, L; Carrer, C; Sorrentino, F; Ferrari, G; Pavan, L; Patarnello, T; Bargelloni, L
The development of new resources to evaluate the environmental status is becoming increasingly important representing a key challenge for ocean and coastal management. Recently, the employment of transcriptomics in aquatic toxicology has led to increasing initiatives proposing to integrate eco-toxicogenomics in the evaluation of marine ecosystem health. However, several technical issues need to be addressed before introducing genomics as a reliable tool in regulatory ecotoxicology. The Venice lagoon constitutes an excellent case, in which the assessment of environmental risks derived from the nearby industrial activities represents a crucial task. In this context, the potential role of genomics to assist environmental monitoring was investigated through the definition of reliable gene expression markers associated to chemical contamination in Manila clams, and their subsequent employment for the classification of Venice lagoon areas. Overall, the present study addresses key issues to evaluate the future outlooks of genomics in the environmental monitoring and risk assessment. PMID:25514060
Risk assessment of oil and gas well drilling activities in Iran - a case study: human factors.
Amir-Heidari, Payam; Farahani, Hadi; Ebrahemzadih, Mehrzad
Oil and gas well drilling activities are associated with numerous hazards which have the potential to cause injury or harm for people, property and the environment. These hazards are also a threat for the reputation of drilling companies. To prevent accidents and undesired events in drilling operations it is essential to identify, evaluate, assess and control the attendant risks. In this work, a structured methodology is proposed for risk assessment of drilling activities. A case study is performed to identify, analyze and assess the risks arising from human factors in one of the on shore drilling sites in southern Iran. A total of 17 major hazards were identified and analyzed using the proposed methodology. The results showed that the residual risks of 100% of these hazards were in the acceptable or transitional zone, and their levels were expected to be lowered further by proper controls. This structured methodology may also be used in other drilling sites and companies for assessing the risks. PMID:26333832
Cumulative risk assessment lessons learned: a review of case studies and issue papers.
Gallagher, Sarah S; Rice, Glenn E; Scarano, Louis J; Teuschler, Linda K; Bollweg, George; Martin, Lawrence
Cumulative risk assessments (CRAs) examine potential risks posed by exposure to multiple and sometimes disparate environmental stressors. CRAs are more resource intensive than single chemical assessments, and pose additional challenges and sources of uncertainty. CRAs may examine the impact of several factors on risk, including exposure magnitude and timing, chemical mixture composition, as well as physical, biological, or psychosocial stressors. CRAs are meant to increase the relevance of risk assessments, providing decision makers with information based on real world exposure scenarios that improve the characterization of actual risks and hazards. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has evaluated a number of CRAs, performed by or commissioned for the Agency, to seek insight into CRA concepts, methods, and lessons learned. In this article, ten case studies and five issue papers on key CRA topics are examined and a set of lessons learned are identified for CRA implementation. The lessons address the iterative nature of CRAs, importance of considering vulnerability, need for stakeholder engagement, value of a tiered approach, new methods to assess multiroute exposures to chemical mixtures, and the impact of geographical scale on approach and purpose. PMID:25462315
Assessment of facilities management process capability: a NHS facilities case study.
Amaratunga, Dilanthi; Haigh, Richard; Sarshar, Marjan; Baldry, David
Describes a process to assess facilities management (FM) process capabilities: the structured process improvement for construction environments--facilities management (SPICE FM) approach. The SPICE FM framework is a method that FM organizations can use to monitor continuously and subsequently improve their performance. The SPICE FM framework is being tested in a series of case studies to ensure that its outputs are appropriate to the FM sector and of value in the real world. Documents the outcomes of a study undertaken at a facilities directorate of a healthcare NHS trust, in searching its applicability within the NHS. Further describes the study methodology and the key activities undertaken and reviews the key communication and management processes that are in place to support the implementation of the strategic FM objectives within the specific NHS facilities directorate. PMID:12500653
Liquefaction Potential Assessment Of Silty And Silty-Sand Deposits: A Case Study
Lo Presti, Diego C. F.; Squeglia, Nunziante
The paper shows a case study concerning the liquefaction potential assessment of deposits which mainly consist of non plastic silts and sands (FC>35 %,I{sub p}<10%, CF negligible). The site under study has been characterized by means of in situ tests (CPTU, SPT and DPSH), boreholes and laboratory tests on undisturbed and remolded samples. More specifically, classification tests, cyclic undrained stress-controlled triaxial tests and resonant column tests have been performed. Liquefaction susceptibility has been evaluated by means of several procedures prescribed by codes or available in technical literature. The evaluation of liquefaction potential has been carried out by means of three different procedure based on in situ and laboratory tests.
Nomographic representation of logistic regression models: a case study using patient self-assessment data.
Dreiseitl, Stephan; Harbauer, Alexandra; Binder, Michael; Kittler, Harald
Logistic regression models are widely used in medicine, but difficult to apply without the aid of electronic devices. In this paper, we present a novel approach to represent logistic regression models as nomograms that can be evaluated by simple line drawings. As a case study, we show how data obtained from a questionnaire-based patient self-assessment study on the risks of developing melanoma can be used to first identify a subset of significant covariates, build a logistic regression model, and finally transform the model to a graphical format. The advantage of the nomogram is that it can easily be mass-produced, distributed and evaluated, while providing the same information as the logistic regression model it represents. PMID:16198997
Emergy-based urban ecosystem health assessment: A case study of Baotou, China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Liu, G. Y.; Yang, Z. F.; Chen, B.; Zhang, Y.; Zhang, L. X.; Zhao, Y. W.; Jiang, M. M.
Ecosystem health has been a hot topic of ecosystem management research for years. Considering the urban area as a complex ecosystem consisted of natural, societal and economic entities, urban ecosystem health assessment is necessary to be conducted for the scientific management and proper ecological restoration. Combining with the ecosystem service function of the urban ecosystem, theoretical framework and methodology of the urban ecosystem health assessment based on emergy are proposed and the temporal variation of the health level of the city are also outlined in this paper. Following the principle of ecosystem health assessment, four major factors, including vigor (V), organizational structure (O), resilience (R) and function maintenance (F), are integrated to construct a novel emergy-based urban ecosystem health index (EUEHI). Based on the EUEHI and comparing with those of five other typical Chinese cities, the case study of Baotou city shows that its urban ecosystem health level is steadily arising despite the year 2001 as a turning point. Due to the emphasis on the resource structure adjustment and utilization efficiency, Baotou has obtained a better organizational structure and service function for the total urban ecosystem.
A case study of risk assessment in contaminated site remediation in China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ye, S.; Guo, J.; Wu, J.; Wang, J.; Chien, C.; Stahl, R.; Mack, E.; Grosso, N.
A field site in Nanjing, China was selected for a case study of risk assessment in contaminated site remediation. This site is about 100m long and 100m wide. A chemical plant (1999-2010) at the site manufactured optical brightener PF, 2-Amino-4-methylphenol and 2-Nitro-4-methylphenol, totally three products. Soil and groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for PPL 126 (126 pollutants in the 'Priority Pollutants List' issued by US EPA). Values of the Dutch Standards were used as the screening criteria for soil and ground water. Low levels of ethylbenezene, chlorobenzene, 1,3-dichlorobenzene and 1,4- dichlorobenzene were detected in one soil sample. Concentrations above Dutch Target Value (DTV) of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, chlorobenzene, 1,2-dichlorobenzene, 1,3-dichlorobenzene, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, and/or 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene, phenol, and/or 2,4-dichlorophenol were exhibited in two groundwater samples. The ground water was especially highly impacted by bichlorobenzenes and trichlorobenzenes. The maximum concentration of impacts was 7.3 mg/L of 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene in groundwater which was 730 times higher than Dutch Intervention Values (DIV). Risk of soil and groundwater at this site was assessed according to the guidelines issued by Chinese MEP and US EPA, respectively. Finally, remedy techniques were selected according to the result of risk assessment and the characteristics of hydrogeology conditions and contaminants.
Do expert assessments converge? An exploratory case study of evaluating and managing a blood supply risk
Background Examining professional assessments of a blood product recall/withdrawal and its implications for risk and public health, the paper introduces ideas about perceptions of minimal risk and its management. It also describes the context of publicly funded blood transfusion in Canada and the withdrawal event that is the basis of this study. Methods Interviews with 45 experts from administration, medicine, blood supply, laboratory services and risk assessment took place using a multi-level sampling framework in the aftermath of the recall. These experts either directly dealt with the withdrawal or were involved in the management of the blood supply at the national level. Data from these interviews were coded in NVivo for analysis and interpretation. Analytically, data were interpreted to derive typifications to relate interview responses to risk management heuristics. Results While all those interviewed agreed on the importance of patient safety, differences in the ways in which the risk was contextualized and explicated were discerned. Risk was seen in terms of patient safety, liability or precaution. These different risk logics are illustrated by selected quotations. Conclusions Expert assessments did not fully converge and it is possible that these different risk logics and discourses may affect the risk management process more generally, although not necessarily in a negative way. Patient safety is not to be compromised but management of blood risk in publicly funded systems may vary. We suggest ways of managing blood risk using formal and safety case approaches. PMID:21864330
Head Tilt Posturography to Enhance Balance Control Assessment for Astronauts: A Case Study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Hwang, E. Y.; Paloski, W. H.
For many years, we have used a standard clinical computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) protocol to assess recovery of integrated sensory-motor function in astronauts returning from space flight. The most reliable indications of postflight crew performance capabilities have been obtained from the sensory organization tests (SOTs) within the CDP protocol, particularly SOTs 5 (eyes closed, surface support sway referenced) and 6 (eyes open, surface support and visual surround sway referenced), which are sensitive to changes in availability and/or utilization of vestibular cues. We have observed, however, that some astronauts exhibiting visible signs of incomplete sensory-motor recovery are able to score within clinical norms on standard SOTs 5 and 6 trials, perhaps as a result of cognitive strategies driven by their naturally competitive natures. To improve the sensitivity of the CDP protocol for assessing recovery of integrated sensory-motor function and fitness to return to duties and/or activities of daily living, we have introduced pitch plane head tilt SOT trials to our protocol. In a preliminary study of 5 short duration (11day missions) astronauts, we showed that they were unable to maintain balance on landing day when performing dynamic head tilt trials, despite scoring within the clinically normal range on the standard SOT trials. The present case report illustrates the advantages of including head tilt trials for assessing sensory-motor recovery in long duration crewmembers.
Understanding Classroom Assessment in Dilemmatic Spaces: Case Studies of Singaporean Music Teachers' Conceptions of Classroom Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Leong, Wei Shin
With the articulation of new "Holistic and Balanced Assessment" initiatives in Singaporean schools, a new standard of conceptualising and enacting classroom assessment is expected of Singaporean teachers. This paper draws on findings from a study of the diversity of classroom assessment "concourse", representing the variations…
The Stateville penitentiary malaria experiments: a case study in retrospective ethical assessment.
Miller, Franklin G
During World War II, malaria research was conducted in prisons. A notable example was the experiments at Stateville Penitentiary in Illinois, in which prisoner-subjects were infected with malaria for the purpose of testing the safety and efficacy of novel anti-malaria drugs. Over time, commentators have shifted from viewing the malaria research at Stateville as a model of ethical clinical research to seeing the experiments as paradigmatic of abusive human experimentation. This essay undertakes a retrospective ethical assessment of the Stateville malaria research during the 1940s in light of basic ethical principles and the Nuremberg Code, as well as contemporary malaria research. In addition to its historical interest, this case study provides a rich context for addressing basic issues of research ethics, including the voluntariness of consent, the justification of risks, and the exploitation of vulnerable subjects. PMID:24769747
Numerical optimization - An assessment of its role in transport aircraft aerodynamic design through a case study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lores, M. E.; Smith, P. R.; Large, R. A.
An efficient transonic wing design procedure based upon numerical optimization together with three-dimensional transonic methods has been developed and used to design an advanced transport wing. The method development included an examination of the use of both full potential and extended small disturbance analysis codes and demonstrated that the former formulation was more reliable. In either case, the design procedure is economical and easy to use. Design verification in a unique semi-span test arrangement demonstrated that the design method produced a wing which satisfied the study design requirements. However, aeroelastic deformation of the wing occurred during the wind tunnel test. The computational methods used in the design procedure were employed to assess the effect of the aeroelastic deformation. The paper concludes with an evaluation of the design procedure and recommendation for its improvement.
Assessment of Hydrologic Response to Variable Precipitation Forcing: Russian River Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cifelli, R.; Hsu, C.; Johnson, L. E.
NOAA Hydrometeorology Testbed (HMT) activities in California have involved deployment of advanced sensor networks to better track atmospheric river (AR) dynamics and inland penetration of high water vapor air masses. Numerical weather prediction models and decision support tools have been developed to provide forecasters a better basis for forecasting heavy precipitation and consequent flooding. The HMT also involves a joint project with California Department of Water Resources (CA-DWR) and the Scripps Institute for Oceanography (SIO) as part of CA-DWR's Enhanced Flood Response and Emergency Preparedness (EFREP) program. The HMT activities have included development and calibration of a distributed hydrologic model, the NWS Office of Hydrologic Development's (OHD) Research Distributed Hydrologic Model (RDHM), to prototype the distributed approach for flood and other water resources applications. HMT has applied RDHM to the Russian-Napa watersheds for research assessment of gap-filling weather radars for precipitation and hydrologic forecasting and for establishing a prototype to inform both the NWS Monterey Forecast Office and the California Nevada River Forecast Center (CNRFC) of RDHM capabilities. In this presentation, a variety of precipitation forcings generated with and without gap filling radar and rain gauge data are used as input to RDHM to assess the hydrologic response for selected case study events. Both the precipitation forcing and hydrologic model are run at different spatial and temporal resolution in order to examine the sensitivity of runoff to the precipitation inputs. Based on the timing of the events and the variations of spatial and temporal resolution, the parameters which dominate the hydrologic response are identified. The assessment is implemented at two USGS stations (Ukiah near Russian River and Austin Creek near Cazadero) that are minimally influenced by managed flows and objective evaluation can thus be derived. The results are assessed
Delayed geochemical hazard: a tool for risk assessment of heavy metal polluted sites and case study.
Zheng, Mingxia; Feng, Liu; He, Juanni; Chen, Ming; Zhang, Jiawen; Zhang, Minying; Wang, Jing
A concept of delayed geochemical hazard (DGH) was proposed instead of chemical time bomb to represent an ecological and environmental hazard caused by sudden reactivation and release of long-term accumulated pollutants in soil/sediment system due to the change of physicochemical conditions or the decrease of environmental capacity. A DGH model was also established to provide a quantitative tool to assess and predict potential environmental risk caused by heavy metals and especially its dynamic evolutions. A case study of DGH was carried out for a mercury-polluted area in southern China. Results of soil column experiment showed that DGH was directly resulted from the transformation and release of pollutant from the releasable species to the active ones through a mechanism of chain reaction. The most possible chain reaction was summarized as HgE+C+F+O+R→HgE+C+F+O→HgE+C+F→HgE+C→HgE. Although 8.3% of the studied area with the total releasable content of mercury (TRCPHg) exceeded the DGH critical point value of 16.667mg/kg, with the possibility of DGH burst, the area was classified as low-risk of DGH. This confirmed that DGH model could contribute to the risk assessment and early warning of soil/sediment pollution. PMID:25661167
Case studies of geophysical imaging for road foundation design on soft soils and embankment risk assessment
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Whiteley, Robert J.; Kelly, Richard B.; Stewart, Simon B.
Population growth along the coast of eastern Australia has increased demand for new and upgraded transport infrastructure within intervening coastal floodplains and steeper hinterland areas. This has created additional challenges for road foundation design. The floodplain areas in this region are underlain by considerable thicknesses of recently deposited alluvial and clayey marine sediments. If characterisation of these deposits is inadequate they can increase road construction costs and affect long-term road stability and serviceability. Case studies from a major coastal highway upgrade demonstrate how combining surface wave seismic and electrical geophysical imaging with conventional geotechnical testing enhances characterisation of these very soft and soft soils. The geophysical results also provide initial foundation design parameters such as void ratio and pre-consolidation pressure. A further significant risk issue for roads is potential embankment instability. This can occur during new road construction or when upgrades of existing embankments are required. Assessing the causes of instability of existing steeper embankments with drilling and probing is often difficult and costly due to access and safety problems. In these situations combinations of electrical, ground penetrating radar and P-wave seismic imaging technologies can rapidly provide information on the likely conditions below both the roadway and embankment. Case studies show the application of these technologies on two unstable road embankments. It is concluded that the application of both geophysical imaging and geotechnical testing is a cost-effective enhancement for site characterisation of soft soils and for risk assessment of potentially unstable embankments. This approach overcomes many of the current limitations of conventional methods of site investigation that provide point location data only. The incorporation of geophysics into a well crafted site investigation allows concentration on
Application of beryllium antibodies in risk assessment and health surveillance: two case studies.
Clarke, S M; Thurlow, S M; Hilmas, D E
This paper demonstrates that current standards used by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to establish an area free from potential beryllium contamination may be inadequate. Using the Beryllium Antibody Assay, it was shown that workers exposed to former beryllium work areas, thought to be sanitized and to meet OSHA standards, experienced statistically significant rises in blood beryllium antibody titers. This finding raises the question of whether the equipment currently required to protect workers in beryllium-laden environments is sufficient. The project mission of decommissioning/decontaminating the former nuclear weapons plant at Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site (RFETS), instituted in 1992, has necessitated development of new technology directed toward safe and responsible cleanup. Challenges have been posed not only by the need to dispose of radioactive and chemical waste, but also by the problem of cleaning up hazardous metals such as the element beryllium. Beryllium was used extensively in research and the manufacture of nuclear weapons components at Rocky Flats for over 40 years. Since inhalation of this element can induce chronic beryllium disease (Eisenbud and Lisson, 1983), an antibody assay was developed to screen workers for internal exposure to beryllium. Exposure is indicated by a titer of antibodies greater than two standard deviations above a normal population control (defined as the mean titer of pooled samples from 51 individuals with no known exposure to beryllium) and a p-value of < 0.05. This paper describes two new applications for the assay: risk assessment and health surveillance. Case study 1 involves a team of three workers who cleaned a beryllium plenum and whose beryllium antibody titers provided a quantitative assessment of their exposure. Case study 2 describes the use of the antibody assay to determine the probable manner in which one worker was exposed to beryllium while performing his duties as an
Can Teaching Be Evaluated through Reflection on Student Performance in Continuous Assessment? A Case Study of Practical Engineering Modules
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McNabola, Aonghus; O'Farrell, Ciara
Research and practice is presented on the use of student assessments as part of reflective practice to evaluate teaching. Case studies are presented in the delivery of Engineering modules across a number of years at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Both student performance in continuous assessment and student feedback on assessments…
Assessing and Mapping Drought Vulnerability in Agricultural Systems - A case Study for Slovenia
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Slejko, M.; Gregorič, G.; Bergant, K.; Stanič, S.
Drought is a recurrent meteorological phenomenon. During recent years there is a rising concern about the increasing frequency of droughts and the ecological, economic and social aspects of their impact, especially because of the possible correlations between droughts and climate change. In the past decade there were four severe agricultural droughts on the territory of Slovenia, which resulted in the damage of most of non-irrigated crops and considerable economic loss. To minimize the impact of such phenomena it is necessary to conduct a drought vulnerability assessment, which could help developing mitigation and adaptation strategies. Development of drought adaptation strategies is one of the core tasks of the Drought Management Centre for South-eastern Europe (DMCSEE). As a part of DMCSEE activities, we started with the pilot project for drought vulnerability assessment for Gori\\vska region in the western part of Slovenia in 2008 with the objective to identify principal impacts of drought and to develop a methodology for drought vulnerability assessment in agriculture. In 2009, we extended the vulnerability assessment area from our pilot region to the entire area of Slovenia. The significance of drought impact on agriculture was evaluated on a five-grade scale based on a number of criteria, which were used according to the availability of the data. We have used the available digital data for soil water-holding capacity, slope, solar radiation, land use and irrigation infrastructure. Vulnerability distributions were arranged according to administrative units - Graphical Units of Agricultural Land (GERK). In the present study, the evaluation grades were assigned subjectively, however, we are introducing objective tools and models to improve the evaluation. In the case of the assessment of the vulnerability of land use for certain types of crops in a specific GERK, we are using an irrigation scheduling model IRRFIB, which estimates water consumption by crops
On-line Meteorology-Chemistry/Aerosols Modelling and Integration for Risk Assessment: Case Studies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Bostanbekov, Kairat; Mahura, Alexander; Nuterman, Roman; Nurseitov, Daniyar; Zakarin, Edige; Baklanov, Alexander
On regional level, and especially in areas with potential diverse sources of industrial pollutants, the risk assessment of impact on environment and population is critically important. During normal operations, the risk is minimal. However, during accidental situations, the risk is increased due to releases of harmful pollutants into different environments such as water, soil, and atmosphere where it is following processes of continuous transformation and transport. In this study, the Enviro-HIRLAM (Environment High Resolution Limited Area Model) was adapted and employed for assessment of scenarios with accidental and continuous emissions of sulphur dioxide (SO2) for selected case studies during January of 2010. The following scenarios were considered: (i) control reference run; (ii) accidental release (due to short-term 1 day fire at oil storage facility) occurred at city of Atyrau (Kazakhstan) near the northern part of the Caspian Sea; and (iii) doubling of original continuous emissions from three locations of metallurgical enterprises on the Kola Peninsula (Russia). The implemented aerosol microphysics module M7 uses 5 types - sulphates, sea salt, dust, black and organic carbon; as well as distributed in 7 size modes. Removal processes of aerosols include gravitational settling and wet deposition. As the Enviro-HIRLAM model is the on-line integrated model, both meteorological and chemical processes are simultaneously modelled at each time step. The modelled spatio-temporal variations for meteorological and chemical patterns are analyzed for both European and Kazakhstan regions domains. The results of evaluation of sulphur dioxide concentration and deposition on main populated cities, selected regions, countries are presented employing GIS tools. As outcome, the results of Enviro-HIRLAM modelling for accidental release near the Caspian Sea are integrated into the RANDOM (Risk Assessment of Nature Detriment due to Oil spill Migration) system.
Health impact assessment in multinationals: A case study of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group
Birley, Martin . E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Health impact assessment is part of the risk management process of multinational corporations/companies. Sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS, and the 'paradox of plenty' are used as examples of the challenges they face. The 'business case' for impact assessment is explained. The policies, procedures, standards, and activities used by Shell to manage such risks are described. An approach to capacity building and competency development is presented that applies to both company staff and external contractors.
What University Students Think about Assessment: A Case Study from Italy
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Pastore, Serafina; Pentassuglia, Monica
Nowadays, assessment is widely recognized as a key element in higher education systems. Current studies are moving towards the revision of traditional modalities of testing, the individuation of alternative forms of assessment, and, above all, the analysis of conceptions that teachers and students have about assessment. The present research is…
Post-Disaster Damage Assessment using Remotely Sensed Data for Post Disaster Needs Assessments: Pakistan and Nigeria case studies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Saito, Keiko; Lemoine, Guido; Dell'Oro, Luca; Pedersen, Wendi; Nunez-Gomez, Ariel; Dalmasso, Simone; Balbo, Simone; Louvrier, Christophe; Caravaggi, Ivano; de Groeve, Tom; Slayback, Dan; Policelli, Frederick; Brakenridge, Bob; Rashid, Kashif; Gad, Sawsan; Arshad, Raja; Wielinga, Doekle; Parvez, Ayaz; Khan, Haris
Since the launch of high-resolution optical satellites in 1999, remote sensing has increasingly been used in the context of post-disaster damage assessments worldwide. In the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster, particularly when extensive geographical areas are affected, it is often difficult to determine the extent and magnitude of disaster impacts. The Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) has been leading efforts to utilise remote sensing techniques during disasters, starting with the 2010 Haiti earthquake. However, remote sensing has mostly been applied to extensive flood events in the context of developing Post-Disaster Needs Assessments (PDNAs). Given that worldwide, floods were the most frequent type of natural disasters between 2000 and 2011, affecting 106 million people in 2011 alone (EM-DAT) , there is clearly significant potential for on-going use of remote sensing techniques. Two case studies will be introduced here, the 2010 Pakistan flood and the 2012 Nigeria flood. The typical approach is to map the maximum cumulative inundation extent, then overlay this hazard information with available exposure datasets. The PDNA methodology itself is applied to a maximum of 15 sectors, of which remote sensing is most useful for housing, agriculture, transportation. Environment and irrigation could be included but these sectors were not covered in these events. The maximum cumulative flood extent is determined using remotely sensed data led by in-country agencies together with international organizations. To enhance this process, GFDRR hosted a SPRINT event in 2012 to tailor daily flood maps derived from MODIS imagery by NASA Goddard's Office of Applied Sciences to this purpose. To estimate the (direct) damage, exposure data for each sector is required. Initially global datasets are used, but these may be supplemented by national level datasets to revise damage estimates, depending on availability. Remote sensed estimates of direct
Assessing Incremental Value of Biomarkers with Multi-phase Nested case-control Studies
Zhou, Qian M.; Zheng, Yingye; Chibnik, Lori B.; Karlson, Elizabeth W.; Cai, Tianxi
Summary Accurate risk prediction models are needed to identify different risk groups for individualized prevention and treatment strategies. In the Nurses' Health Study, to examine the effects of several biomarkers and genetic markers on the risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a three-phase nested case-control (NCC) design was conducted, in which two sequential NCC subcohorts were formed with one nested within the other, and one set of new markers measured on each of the subcohorts. One objective of the study is to evaluate clinical values of novel biomarkers in improving upon existing risk models because of potential cost associated with assaying biomarkers. In this paper, we develop robust statistical procedures for constructing risk prediction models for RA and estimating the incremental value (IncV) of new markers based on three-phase NCC studies. Our method also takes into account possible time-varying effects of biomarkers in risk modeling, which allows us to more robustly assess the biomarker utility and address the question of whether a marker is better suited for short-term or long-term risk prediction. The proposed procedures are shown to perform well in finite samples via simulation studies. PMID:26195245
Risk assessment of feline tooth resorption: a Portuguese clinical case control study.
Mestrinho, Lisa A; Runhau, Jens; Bragança, Mauro; Niza, Maria M R E
Tooth resorption (TR) is one of the most common dental diseases in cats. Determination of risk factors has not yet been fully assessed and, to the best knowledge of the authors, this disease has never been studied in Portuguese cats. The objective of this case-control study was to determine type and distribution of TR lesions, evaluate risk factors, and establish relationships between variables in this disease. The study included data from 71 cats admitted for general anesthesia for various reasons. The cats were randomly selected. The inclusion criteria were availability of clinical history and owner permission. Cats with known oral disease were not excluded from the study. All cats received ultrasonic scaling and polishing of the teeth, a thorough oral examination, and full-mouth radiographs. A strong statistical relation was found between age and TR. The age group of 10 to 15-years showed an increased risk of 6.56 times for TR occurrence compared with the group 0 to 4-years of age. Presence of gingivitis in all index levels was related to an increased risk for TR. No relation was found between age or gingivitis index and lesion type. Mandibular third premolar and molar teeth were most commonly affected by TR, especially for type 1 lesions. Canine teeth were statistically more likely to have type 2 lesions. The trend for the canine teeth to be more affected with type 2 lesions needs further verification. PMID:24006716
Assessing reproductive behavior important to fisheries management: a case study with red drum, Sciaenops ocellatus.
Lowerre-barbieri, Susan K; Burnsed, Sarah L Walters; Bickford, Joel W
Spawning site selection and reproductive timing affect stock productivity and structure in marine fishes but are poorly understood. Traditionally, stock assessments measure reproductive potential as spawning stock biomass or egg production and do not include other aspects of reproductive behavior. Red drum make an excellent case study to assess these other aspects, as (1) they are highly fecund, pelagic spawners, like most exploited marine fishes; (2) their life cycle is delineated between nursery (estuarine) and adult (coastal and offshore) habitat; and (3) they are managed at these two spatial scales. This study was conducted from August 2012 to December 2013 and integrates data from multiple methods and spatial scales. Aerial surveys were used for large-scale monitoring of aggregations off two known estuarine nursery areas, Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor, Florida, USA. Capture-based sampling in Tampa Bay coastal (n = 2581) and estuarine waters (n = 158) was used to assess reproductive state and to confirm coastal spawning. To assess spatial dynamics, we acoustically tagged two population components in the Tampa Bay system, subadults from the estuary (n = 20) and adults from the coastal spawning site (n = 60). Behavioral plasticity was seen in subadult recruitment to coastal habitat, with some subadults maturing and recruiting before or during the spawning season and others (14 of 20 acoustically tagged fish) recruiting at the end of the 2012 spawning season. Both adults and recruited subadults (n = 29) were consequently detected in the Charlotte Harbor array, 132 km to the south. Spawning-site fidelity to the Tampa Bay spawning site occurred at both the population and individual scales. Aggregations consistently occurred in Tampa Bay coastal waters during the spawning season, and approximately two-thirds of tagged adults returned in the 2013 spawning season. A similar proportion of subadults returned to the Tampa Bay spawning site, exhibiting natal homing
Assessing pasture quality and degradation status using hyperspectral imaging: a case study from western Tibet
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lehnert, Lukas W.; Meyer, Hanna; Meyer, Nele; Reudenbach, Christoph; Bendix, Jörg
Alpine grasslands on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) are suffering from pasture degradation induced by over-grazing, climate change and improper livestock management. Meanwhile, the status of pastures is largely unknown especially in poor accessible western parts on the TP. The aim of this case study was to assess the suitability of hyperspectral imaging to predict quality and amount of forage on the western TP. Therefore, 18 ground- based hyperspectral images taken along two transects on a winter pasture were used to estimate leaf chlorophyll content, photosynthetic-active vegetation cover (PV) and proportion of grasses. For calibration and validation purposes, chlorophyll content of 20 grass plants was measured in situ. From the images reference spectra of grass and non-grass species were collected. PV was assessed from similarity of images to mean vegetation spectra using spectral angle mapper and threshold classifications. A set of 48 previously published hyperspectral vegetation indices (VI) was used as predictors to estimate chlorophyll content and to discriminate grass and non-grass pixels. Separation into grass and non-grass species was performed using partial least squares (PLS) discriminant analysis and chlorophyll content was estimated with PLS regression. The accuracy of the models was assessed with leave-one-out cross validation and normalised root mean square errors (nRMSE) for chlorophyll and contingency matrices for grass classification and total PV separation. Highest error rates were observed for discrimination between vegetated and non-vegetated parts (Overall accuracy = 0.85), whilst accuracies of grass and non grass separation (Overall accuracy = 0.98) and chlorophyll estimation were higher (nRMSE = 10.7).
The uncertainty cascade in flood risk assessment under changing climatic conditions - the Biala Tarnowska case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Doroszkiewicz, Joanna; Romanowicz, Renata
Uncertainty in the results of the hydraulic model is not only associated with the limitations of that model and the shortcomings of data. An important factor that has a major impact on the uncertainty of the flood risk assessment in a changing climate conditions is associated with the uncertainty of future climate scenarios (IPCC WG I, 2013). Future climate projections provided by global climate models are used to generate future runoff required as an input to hydraulic models applied in the derivation of flood risk maps. Biala Tarnowska catchment, situated in southern Poland is used as a case study. Future discharges at the input to a hydraulic model are obtained using the HBV model and climate projections obtained from the EUROCORDEX project. The study describes a cascade of uncertainty related to different stages of the process of derivation of flood risk maps under changing climate conditions. In this context it takes into account the uncertainty of future climate projections, an uncertainty of flow routing model, the propagation of that uncertainty through the hydraulic model, and finally, the uncertainty related to the derivation of flood risk maps. One of the aims of this study is an assessment of a relative impact of different sources of uncertainty on the uncertainty of flood risk maps. Due to the complexity of the process, an assessment of total uncertainty of maps of inundation probability might be very computer time consuming. As a way forward we present an application of a hydraulic model simulator based on a nonlinear transfer function model for the chosen locations along the river reach. The transfer function model parameters are estimated based on the simulations of the hydraulic model at each of the model cross-section. The study shows that the application of the simulator substantially reduces the computer requirements related to the derivation of flood risk maps under future climatic conditions. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the
Extrinsic Motivation for Large-Scale Assessments: A Case Study of a Student Achievement Program at One Urban High School
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Emmett, Joshua; McGee, Dean
The purpose of this case study was to discover the critical attributes of a student achievement program, known as "Think Gold," implemented at one urban comprehensive high school as part of the improvement process. Student achievement on state assessments improved during the period under study. The study draws upon perspectives on motivation as a…
Life Cycle Assessment of mechanical biological pre-treatment of Municipal Solid Waste: a case study.
Beylot, Antoine; Vaxelaire, Stéphane; Zdanevitch, Isabelle; Auvinet, Nicolas; Villeneuve, Jacques
The environmental performance of mechanical biological pre-treatment (MBT) of Municipal Solid Waste is quantified using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), considering one of the 57 French plants currently in operation as a case study. The inventory is mostly based on plant-specific data, extrapolated from on-site measurements regarding mechanical and biological operations (including anaerobic digestion and composting of digestate). The combined treatment of 46,929 tonnes of residual Municipal Solid Waste and 12,158 tonnes of source-sorted biowaste (as treated in 2010 at the plant) generates 24,550 tonnes CO2-eq as an impact on climate change, 69,943kg SO2-eq on terrestrial acidification and 19,929kg NMVOC-eq on photochemical oxidant formation, in a life-cycle perspective. On the contrary MBT induces environmental benefits in terms of fossil resource depletion, human toxicity (carcinogenic) and ecotoxicity. The results firstly highlight the relatively large contribution of some pollutants, such as CH4, emitted at the plant and yet sometimes neglected in the LCA of waste MBT. Moreover this study identifies 4 plant-specific operation conditions which drive the environmental impact potentials induced by MBT: the conditions of degradation of the fermentable fraction, the collection of gaseous flows emitted from biological operations, the abatement of collected pollutants and NOx emissions from biogas combustion. Finally the results underline the relatively large influence of the operations downstream the plant (in particular residuals incineration) on the environmental performance of waste MBT. PMID:25708404
Environmental impact assessment including indirect effects--a case study using input-output analysis
Lenzen, Manfred; Murray, Shauna A.; Korte, Britta; Dey, Christopher J
Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a process covered by several international standards, dictating that as many environmental aspects as possible should be identified in a project appraisal. While the ISO 14011 standard stipulates a broad-ranging study, off-site, indirect impacts are not specifically required for an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The reasons for this may relate to the perceived difficulty of measuring off-site impacts, or the assumption that these are a relatively insignificant component of the total impact. In this work, we describe a method that uses input-output analysis to calculate the indirect effects of a development proposal in terms of several indicator variables. The results of our case study of a Second Sydney Airport show that the total impacts are considerably higher than the on-site impacts for the indicators land disturbance, greenhouse gas emissions, water use, emissions of NO{sub x} and SO{sub 2}, and employment. We conclude that employing input-output analysis enhances conventional EIA, as it allows for national and international effects to be taken into account in the decision-making process.
Development and application of the SSD approach in scientific case studies for ecological risk assessment.
Del Signore, Anastasia; Hendriks, A Jan; Lenders, H J Rob; Leuven, Rob S E W; Breure, A M
Species sensitivity distributions (SSDs) are used in ecological risk assessment for extrapolation of the results of toxicity tests with single species to a toxicity threshold considered protective of ecosystem structure and functioning. The attention to and importance of the SSD approach has increased in scientific and regulatory communities since the 1990s. Discussion and criticism have been triggered on the concept of the approach as well as its technical aspects (e.g., distribution type, number of toxicity endpoints). Various questions remain unanswered, especially with regard to different endpoints, statistical methods, and protectiveness of threshold levels, for example. In the present literature review (covering the period 2002-2013), case studies are explored in which the SSD approach was applied, as well as how endpoint types, species choice, and data availability affect SSDs. How statistical methods may be used to construct reliable SSDs and whether the lower 5th percentile hazard concentrations (HC5s) from a generic SSD can be protective for a specific local community are also investigated. It is shown that estimated protective concentrations were determined by taxonomic groups rather than the statistical method used to construct the distribution. Based on comparisons between semifield and laboratory-based SSDs, the output from a laboratory SSD was protective of semifield communities in the majority of studies. Environ Toxicol Chem 2016;35:2149-2161. © 2016 SETAC. PMID:27144499
Non-destructive assessment of Hot Mix Asphalt density with a Step Frequency Radar - Case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fauchard, Cyrille; Beaucamp, Bruno
The density of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) layers is a key parameter for assessing newly paved roads. It allows the quality control and ensures the time performance of the road layers. The standard methods for measuring the in-place HMA density are destructive and based on cores testing. Knowing the specific gravity of the HMA (data provided by builder), the bulk density can be determined in the laboratory either by weighting cores methods or by measuring the absorption ratio of gamma rays through road samples. Non destructive (ND) methods are highly needed in order to gain time and to avoid the strong constraints due to the nuclear gauges use. The Step Frequency Radar (SFR) is an electromagnetic method based on wave propagation in matter, similar in its principle to the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR). It can use wide band and higher frequencies than GPR, allowing a thinner spatial resolution, but with a lower speed of acquisition. It is used in the present work as a tool providing the dielectric constant of HMA. Recent results in the laboratory have shown that the density can be relied on HMA dielectric constant with the use of a dielectric model (Complex Refractive Index model, or CRI model) taking into account the volume concentration and the dielectric constant of each HMA component. In this approach, the knowledge of the rock dielectric constant that composes the main part of HMA is required. If not, the in-place measurements can be calibrated according to one or more core drillings and the previous approach is still available. The main objective of this paper is to apply the methodology developed in the laboratory on a new HMA layer (case study located on A13 highway, nearby the city of Cagny, Normandie, France) for assessing the HMA density. The SFR system is composed of a vector network analyser sweeping a large frequency band [1.4 GHz - 20 GHz] and an ultra wide band antenna placed above the HMA surface. The whole system is pc-controlled and embedded in a
International Comparative Studies in Education: Descriptions of Selected Large-Scale Assessments and Case Studies.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
National Academy of Sciences - National Research Council, Washington, DC. Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education.
Since its inception in 1988, the Board on International Comparative Studies in Education (BICSE) has monitored U.S. participation in those cross national comparative studies in education that are funded by its sponsors, the National Science Foundation and the National Center for Education Statistics. This set of international study descriptions…
From Seismic Scenarios to Earthquake Risk Assessment: A Case Study for Iquique, Chile.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Aguirre, P.; Fortuno, C.; Martin, J. C. D. L. L.; Vasquez, J.
Iquique is a strategic city and economic center in northern Chile, and is located in a large seismic gap where a megathrust earthquake and tsunami is expected. Although it was hit by a Mw 8.2 earthquake on April 1st 2014, which caused moderate damage, geophysical evidence still suggests that there is potential for a larger event, so a thorough risk assessment is key to understand the physical, social, and economic effects of such potential event, and devise appropriate mitigation plans. Hence, Iquique has been selected as a prime study case for the implementation of a risk assessment platform in Chile. Our study integrates research on three main elements of risk calculations: hazard evaluation, exposure model, and physical vulnerabilities. To characterize the hazard field, a set of synthetic seismic scenarios have been developed based on plate interlocking and the residual slip potential that results from subtracting the slip occurred during the April 1st 2014 rupture fault mechanism, obtained using InSAR+GPS inversion. Additional scenarios were developed based of the fault rupture model of the Maule 2010 Mw 8.8 earthquake and on the local plate locking models in northern Chile. These rupture models define a collection of possible realizations of earthquake geometries parameterized in terms of critical variables like slip magnitude, rise time, mean propagation velocity, directivity, and other, which are propagated to obtain a hazard map for Iquique (e.g. PGA, PGV, PDG). Furthermore, a large body of public and local data was used to construct a detailed exposure model for Iquique, including aggregated building count, demographics, essential facilities, and lifelines. This model together with the PGA maps for the April 1st 2014 earthquake are used to calibrate HAZUS outputs against observed damage, and adjust the fragility curves of physical systems according to more detailed analyses of typical Chilean building types and their structural properties, plus historical
The use of biomonitoring data in exposure and human health risk assessment: benzene case study
Angerer, Juergen; Boogaard, Peter J.; Hughes, Michael F.; O'Lone, Raegan B.; Robison, Steven H.; Robert Schnatter, A.
A framework of "Common Criteria" (i.e. a series of questions) has been developed to inform the use and evaluation of biomonitoring data in the context of human exposure and risk assessment. The data-rich chemical benzene was selected for use in a case study to assess whether refinement of the Common Criteria framework was necessary, and to gain additional perspective on approaches for integrating biomonitoring data into a risk-based context. The available data for benzene satisfied most of the Common Criteria and allowed for a risk-based evaluation of the benzene biomonitoring data. In general, biomarker (blood benzene, urinary benzene and urinary S-phenylmercapturic acid) central tendency (i.e. mean, median and geometric mean) concentrations for non-smokers are at or below the predicted blood or urine concentrations that would correspond to exposure at the US Environmental Protection Agency reference concentration (30 µg/m3), but greater than blood or urine concentrations relating to the air concentration at the 1 × 10−5 excess cancer risk (2.9 µg/m3). Smokers clearly have higher levels of benzene exposure, and biomarker levels of benzene for non-smokers are generally consistent with ambient air monitoring results. While some biomarkers of benzene are specific indicators of exposure, the interpretation of benzene biomonitoring levels in a health-risk context are complicated by issues associated with short half-lives and gaps in knowledge regarding the relationship between the biomarkers and subsequent toxic effects. PMID:23346981
Training Needs Assessment in the Botswana Public Service: A Case Study of Five State Sector Ministries
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Balisi, Shadreck
Using qualitative methods, this study analysed the process of training needs assessment in the Botswana public service, with special focus on five state sector ministries. It is evident from the research findings that there is little and an unsystematic approach to the needs assessment prior to training. The research further revealed that the…
Synchronous Computer-Mediated Dynamic Assessment: A Case Study of L2 Spanish Past Narration
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Darhower, Mark Anthony
In this study, dynamic assessment is employed to help understand the developmental processes of two university Spanish learners as they produce a series of past narrations in a synchronous computer mediated environment. The assessments were conducted in six weekly one-hour chat sessions about various scenes of a Spanish language film. The analysis…
Capacity Building as a Tool for Assessing Training and Development Activity: An Indian Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Krishnaveni, R.; Sripirabaa, B.
In recognition of its increasing importance, many organizations make periodic assessments of their training and development activity. The objective of the present study was to extend the concept of capacity building to the assessment of training and development activity in an automobile component manufacturing organization, using a developed and…
Values as a Bridge between Sustainability and Institutional Assessment: A Case Study from BOKU University
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ribeiro, Maria Miguel; Hoover, Elona; Burford, Gemma; Buchebner, Julia; Lindenthal, Thomas
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to illustrate that values-focused assessment can provide a useful lens for integrating sustainability and institutional performance assessment in universities. Design/methodology/approach: This study applies a values elicitation methodology for indicator development, through thematic analysis of…
Effective Use of Peer Assessment in a Graduate Level Writing Assignment: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Landry, Ashley; Jacobs, Shoshanah; Newton, Genevieve
At the undergraduate level, considerable evidence exists to support the use of peer assessment, but there is less research at the graduate level. In the present study, we investigated student perception of the peer assessment experience and the ability of graduate students to provide feedback that is comparable to the instructor and that is…
A Case Study Objectively Assessing Female Physical Activity Levels within the National Curriculum for Physical Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hobbs, Matthew; Daly-Smith, Andrew; Morley, David; McKenna, James
The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of the National Curriculum for Physical Education (NCPE) lesson themes and contexts on the profile of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Fifteen, Year 9 Physical Education (PE) lessons were assessed within the lesson themes of Outwitting Opponents (OO) (delivered through field hockey…
Information Literacy and Communication Research: A Case Study on Interdisciplinary Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Natalle, Elizabeth J.; Crowe, Kathryn M.
This report offers an interdisciplinary approach for conducting assessment on learning outcomes in undergraduate communication research skills where information literacy is embedded in the expected outcome. A Communication Studies department and the University Library piloted a two-year program to develop strategies for coordinated assessment that…
Assessing Long-Term Effects of Inquiry-Based Learning: A Case Study from College Mathematics
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kogan, Marina; Laursen, Sandra L.
As student-centered approaches to teaching and learning are more widely applied, researchers must assess the outcomes of these interventions across a range of courses and institutions. As an example of such assessment, this study examined the impact of inquiry-based learning (IBL) in college mathematics on undergraduates' subsequent grades…
Accounting for uncertainty factors in biodiversity impact assessment: lessons from a case study
Geneletti, D.; Beinat, E.; Chung, C.F.; Fabbri, A.G.; Scholten, H.J
For an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to effectively contribute to decision-making, it must include one crucial step: the estimation of the uncertainty factors affecting the impact evaluation and of their effect on the evaluation results. Knowledge of the uncertainties better orients the strategy of the decision-makers and underlines the most critical data or methodological steps of the procedure. Accounting for uncertainty factors is particularly relevant when dealing with ecological impacts, whose forecasts are typically affected by a high degree of simplification. By means of a case study dealing with the evaluation of road alternatives, this paper explores and discusses the main uncertainties that are related to the typical stages of a biodiversity impact assessment: uncertainty in the data that are used, in the methodologies that are applied, and in the value judgments provided by the experts. Subsequently, the effects of such uncertainty factors are tracked back to the result of the evaluation, i.e., to the relative performance of the project alternatives under consideration. This allows to test the sensitivity of the results, and consequently to provide a more informative ranking of the alternatives. The papers concludes by discussing the added-value for decision-making provided by uncertainty analysis within EIA.
Ecotoxicogenomics to support ecological risk assessment: a case study with bisphenol A in fish.
Villeneuve, Daniel L; Garcia-Reyero, Natàlia; Escalon, B Lynn; Jensen, Kathleen M; Cavallin, Jenna E; Makynen, Elizabeth A; Durhan, Elizabeth J; Kahl, Michael D; Thomas, Linnea M; Perkins, Edward J; Ankley, Gerald T
Effects of bisphenol A (BPA) on ovarian transcript profiles as well as targeted end points with endocrine/reproductive relevance were examined in two fish species, fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) and zebrafish (Danio rerio), exposed in parallel using matched experimental designs. Four days of waterborne exposure to 10 μg BPA/L caused significant vitellogenin induction in both species. However, zebrafish were less sensitive to effects on hepatic gene expression and steroid production than fathead minnow and the magnitude of vitellogenin induction was more modest (i.e., 3-fold compared to 13,000-fold in fathead minnow). The concentration-response at the ovarian transcriptome level was nonmonotonic and violated assumptions that underlie proposed methods for estimating hazard thresholds from transcriptomic results. However, the nonmonotonic profile was consistent among species and there were nominal similarities in the functions associated with the differentially expressed genes, suggesting potential activation of common pathway perturbation motifs in both species. Overall, the results provide an effective case study for considering the potential application of ecotoxicogenomics to ecological risk assessments and provide novel comparative data regarding effects of BPA in fish. PMID:21786754
A case study for assessing uncertainty in local-scale regulatory air quality modeling applications
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sax, Todd; Isakov, Vlad
In this paper, we expand upon established uncertainty analysis techniques to demonstrate a general method for assessing variability and uncertainty in Gaussian air pollutant dispersion modeling systems. To illustrate this method, we estimated variability and uncertainty in predicted hexavalent chromium concentrations generated by welding operations at a shipbuilding and repair facility in California. Using Monte Carlo statistical techniques, we propagated uncertainty across both ISCST3 and AERMOD, and estimated the contribution of variability and uncertainty from four model components: emissions, spatial and temporal allocation of emissions, model parameters, and meteorology. Our results indicated the 95% confidence interval uncertainty at each receptor spanned an order of magnitude. From a practical perspective uncertainty is most important at receptors with highest predicted concentrations. In this case study, emissions were the primary source of uncertainty. However, Gaussian models are also sensitive to location of emission releases, meteorology, and model parameters. Simplified modeling approaches may lead to errors in pollutant concentration estimates, especially in close proximity to emissions sources where predicted concentrations are highest.
Impacts of inorganic fluorides on terrestrial ecosystems: An ecological risk assessment case study
Kent, R.A.; Schneider, U.A.; Pawlisz, A.V.
In 1994, the national environmental assessment under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act concluded that concentrations of inorganic fluorides near industrial sources in Canada may cause long-term adverse effects in sensitive terrestrial plant and wildlife species. This case study examines the accumulation of inorganic fluorides in vegetation and subsequent effects on a sensitive herbivore species, the white tail deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on Cornwall Island, Ontario, near an aluminum smelting facility, Using environmental concentration data for air, water and food (vegetation), a Monte Carlo simulation was used to estimate the probability that multimedia exposure of inorganic fluorides exceeded known effects thresholds of skeletal and dental fluorosis in deer, and in turn quantify the magnitude of that risk. With daily intakes ranging from 2--324 {micro}g/deer/day, it was estimated that exposure to fluorides exceeds the daily intake threshold for fluorosis (55 {micro}g/deer/day) in 12% of the deer population. Seasonal differences in exposure and subsequent risk were noted. These results are also supported by additional field data on domestic cattle from the Cornwall Island area where effects (e.g., excessive teeth wear, delayed eruption of permanent teeth, osteosclerosis, osteonecrosis) have been reported and linked to high levels of fluorides in air, water, and forage. It is estimated that at least 10% of the deer from the Cornwall Island area may be subject to debilitating skeletal and dental fluorosis as a result of fluoride emissions from the adjacent aluminum smelter.
A European model and case studies for aggregate exposure assessment of pesticides.
Kennedy, Marc C; Glass, C Richard; Bokkers, Bas; Hart, Andy D M; Hamey, Paul Y; Kruisselbrink, Johannes W; de Boer, Waldo J; van der Voet, Hilko; Garthwaite, David G; van Klaveren, Jacob D
Exposures to plant protection products (PPPs) are assessed using risk analysis methods to protect public health. Traditionally, single sources, such as food or individual occupational sources, have been addressed. In reality, individuals can be exposed simultaneously to multiple sources. Improved regulation therefore requires the development of new tools for estimating the population distribution of exposures aggregated within an individual. A new aggregate model is described, which allows individual users to include as much, or as little, information as is available or relevant for their particular scenario. Depending on the inputs provided by the user, the outputs can range from simple deterministic values through to probabilistic analyses including characterisations of variability and uncertainty. Exposures can be calculated for multiple compounds, routes and sources of exposure. The aggregate model links to the cumulative dietary exposure model developed in parallel and is implemented in the web-based software tool MCRA. Case studies are presented to illustrate the potential of this model, with inputs drawn from existing European data sources and models. These cover exposures to UK arable spray operators, Italian vineyard spray operators, Netherlands users of a consumer spray and UK bystanders/residents. The model could also be adapted to handle non-PPP compounds. PMID:25280924
Formative Postgraduate Assessment: A Comparative Case Study Using a University in the USA and One in South Africa
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Friedrich-Nel, Hesta; Mac Kinnon, Joyce
The purpose of this study was to investigate formative postgraduate assessment from an international perspective while acknowledging the two countries' differing cultures and environments. Using a case study approach, data were collected from research supervisors of postgraduate work at a university in the United States (USA) and a university in…
Program Outcomes Assessment in Higher Education Hospitality Management Programs: A Qualitative Comparative Case Study of Learning Cultures
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hughes, John George
The purpose of this qualitative, comparative case study was to determine the extent to which learning and improvement cultures were perceived to be linked to the traditional and non-traditional accreditation and Program Outcomes Assessment paradigms in use in two university hospitality programs. The findings of this study revealed that the…
Integrative fuzzy hierarchical model for river health assessment: A case study of Yong River in Ningbo City, China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zhao, Y. W.; Yang, Z. F.
Due to the increasingly serious ecological degradation of river systems, the river health research has attracted more and more attention of the researchers and decision-makers. This paper aims to integrate the fuzzy assessment method with analytic hierarchy process to establish the integrative fuzzy hierarchical assessment model, thus combing qualitative analysis and quantitative assessment and overcoming the disadvantages of subjectivity of the previous evaluation methods. The results show that the proposed assessment method is able to reveal how the river system is disturbed by human activities. Finally, the integrative fuzzy hierarchical method is validated and applied to the case study of Yong River in Ningbo City, China.
Case study for the assessment of the biogeophysical effects of a potential afforestation in Europe
Background A regional-scale sensitivity study has been carried out to investigate the climatic effects of forest cover change in Europe. Applying REMO (regional climate model of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology), the projected temperature and precipitation tendencies have been analysed for summer, based on the results of the A2 IPCC-SRES emission scenario simulation. For the end of the 21st century it has been studied, whether the assumed forest cover increase could reduce the effects of the greenhouse gas concentration change. Results Based on the simulation results, biogeophysical effects of the hypothetic potential afforestation may lead to cooler and moister conditions during summer in most parts of the temperate zone. The largest relative effects of forest cover increase can be expected in northern Germany, Poland and Ukraine, which is 15–20% of the climate change signal for temperature and more than 50% for precipitation. In northern Germany and France, potential afforestation may enhance the effects of emission change, resulting in more severe heavy precipitation events. The probability of dry days and warm temperature extremes would decrease. Conclusions Large contiguous forest blocks can have distinctive biogeophysical effect on the climate on regional and local scale. In certain regions of the temperate zone, climate change signal due to greenhouse gas emission can be reduced by afforestation due to the dominant evaporative cooling effect during summer. Results of this case study with a hypothetical land cover change can contribute to the assessment of the role of forests in adapting to climate change. Thus they can build an important basis of the future forest policy. PMID:23369380
Assessing the Oxidative Capacity of the Atmosphere: MCMA-2003 as a Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sheehy, P. M.; Volkamer, R. M.; Velasco, E.; Alexander, M.; Jobson, T.; Lamb, B.; Molina, L. T.
The current understanding of oxidative capacity is assessed in the polluted atmosphere, using the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) as a case study. Measurements from the MCMA-2003 field campaign are used to constrain a photochemical box model in order to study the impact of primary HOx} radical production and ROx} radical cycling on photochemical ozone and the oxidation of VOCs that is relevant for secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. Time-resolved HOx} (OH and HO2) radical fluxes were experimentally quantified from the photolysis of nitrous acid (HONO), formaldehyde (HCHO), ozone (O3), acetaldehyde (CCHO), glyoxal (CHOCHO) and the reaction of alkenes with O3. The Master Chemical Mechanism (MCMv3.1), constrained for these primary HOx} radical fluxes and radical sinks (103 VOC, NO, NO2, CO, and SO2), is used to calculate primary HOx} radical fluxes from other closed shell molecules, i.e. that form as VOC oxidation products. HCHO is found to be the most important source, dominating the overall HOx} radical flux shortly after sunrise. HOx} radical production from HCHO is matched only by O3 photolysis during "high O3" days (and HONO in the early morning); photolysis of secondary products is estimated to contribute some 30% to primary HOx} radical fluxes at noontime. MCMv3.1 is used to identify the VOC precursors of photochemical HCHO. Noontime concentrations of HONO reached 120 ppt on some days, indicating a substantial source of daytime HONO is operative in Mexico City. HONO formation is separated into dark-, daytime- and photo-stationary steady state (PSS) sources. MCMv3.1 is also used to predict OH, HO2, RO2, and RO concentrations (in sum termed ROx}). Measured and modeled concentrations are compared for the following case studies: HOx}-unconstrained, OH-constrained, HO2-constrained, HOx}-constrained. For the HOx}-unconstrained case, a significant under-prediction of OH and HO2 radicals is observed in the early morning. This "missing reactivity" is highest
Assessment the performance of classification methods in water quality studies, A case study in Karaj River.
Sakizadeh, Mohamad
To show the performance of classification methods in water quality studies, linear discriminant, and Naïve Bayesian classification methods were applied at nine sampling stations with respect to four parameters including COD, nitrite, nitrate, and total coliforms (selected from ten water quality variables) in Karaj River, Iran. To fulfill the goals of this study, the sampling stations were first separated into two groups using cluster analysis. Rural wastewater was the main source of pollution in the first group, whereas the quality of water in the second group has been degraded mainly by organic and agricultural pollution. In order to have an independent group against which the performance of other classification methods is considered, three cross-validation methods including twofold, leave-one-out, and holdout methods were utilized to retain an independent test set. The results of cross-validation for the linear discriminant analysis show that, except for the leave-one-out method with 11.1 % misclassification error, the overall performance has been the same as that of the training data set. Therefore, it has outperformed compared with that of Naïve Bayesian classification method. However, even though in situations where the correlation coefficient among the parameters is low, the latest method can offer the same performance as that of linear discriminant analysis as well. A sensitivity analysis was implemented using ten water quality variables (pH, COD, EC, TDA, turbidity, nitrate, nitrite, sulfate, TC, and FC) to find the most important variables in the classification of Karaj River showing that turbidity, next to COD, pH, nitrate, and sulfate, have had the most contribution in this field. PMID:26275762
Archaeology, historical site risk assessment and monitoring by UAV: approaches and case studies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pecci, Antonio; Masini, Nicola
multiple overlapping images. The usefulness of UAV-based investigations has been given by its integrability with other methods of remote sensing including geophysics, optical and SAR satellite remote sensing. The presentation deals with the methodological approaches and the results in three historical sites for different applications such as: 1) archaeological site discovery, 2) the study and observation of archaeological looting and 3) the 3d reconstruction of building and sites. In the case 1) UAV has been used for the creation of orthophotos and digital elevantion models (DEMs) as well as the identification of archaeological marks and microrelief, as proxy indicators of the presence of archaeological buried remains. The obtained information have been compared and integrated with those provided by georadar and geomagnetic prospections. The investigated site is a medieval settlement, including a benedectine monastery, dated to 12-15th century. It is San Pietro a Cellaria, located in the territory of Calvello, in Basilicata (Southern Italy). The multisensor integrated approach allowed to identify several features referable to buried structures of the monastery (Leucci et al. 2015; Roubis et al. 2015). In the case 2) UAVs have been used for the identification and analysis of traces of grave robbers, in the territory of Anzi (Basilicata). Since the end of the 18th century to the first half of the 20th century, hundreds of tombs of the Archaic, Lucan and Roman age have been destroyed and stolen. The case 3) is related to the ceremonial centre of Pachacamac in Peru, which was investigated for several years by the international mission ITACA (Italian scientific mission for heritage Conservation and Archaeogeophysics) of IBAM/IMAA CNR of Potenza (Italy) (Lasaponara et al. 2016b). For more than 2,000 years, Pachacamac was one of the main centers of religious cult keeping this role unchanged in different historical periods and for different cultures such as Chavin, Lima, Huari
Examining Gender Differences in Written Assessment Tasks in Biology: A Case Study of Evolutionary Explanations.
Federer, Meghan Rector; Nehm, Ross H; Pearl, Dennis K
Understanding sources of performance bias in science assessment provides important insights into whether science curricula and/or assessments are valid representations of student abilities. Research investigating assessment bias due to factors such as instrument structure, participant characteristics, and item types are well documented across a variety of disciplines. However, the relationships among these factors are unclear for tasks evaluating understanding through performance on scientific practices, such as explanation. Using item-response theory (Rasch analysis), we evaluated differences in performance by gender on a constructed-response (CR) assessment about natural selection (ACORNS). Three isomorphic item strands of the instrument were administered to a sample of undergraduate biology majors and nonmajors (Group 1: n = 662 [female = 51.6%]; G2: n = 184 [female = 55.9%]; G3: n = 642 [female = 55.1%]). Overall, our results identify relationships between item features and performance by gender; however, the effect is small in the majority of cases, suggesting that males and females tend to incorporate similar concepts into their CR explanations. These results highlight the importance of examining gender effects on performance in written assessment tasks in biology. PMID:26865642
Examining Gender Differences in Written Assessment Tasks in Biology: A Case Study of Evolutionary Explanations
Federer, Meghan Rector; Nehm, Ross H.; Pearl, Dennis K.
Understanding sources of performance bias in science assessment provides important insights into whether science curricula and/or assessments are valid representations of student abilities. Research investigating assessment bias due to factors such as instrument structure, participant characteristics, and item types are well documented across a variety of disciplines. However, the relationships among these factors are unclear for tasks evaluating understanding through performance on scientific practices, such as explanation. Using item-response theory (Rasch analysis), we evaluated differences in performance by gender on a constructed-response (CR) assessment about natural selection (ACORNS). Three isomorphic item strands of the instrument were administered to a sample of undergraduate biology majors and nonmajors (Group 1: n = 662 [female = 51.6%]; G2: n = 184 [female = 55.9%]; G3: n = 642 [female = 55.1%]). Overall, our results identify relationships between item features and performance by gender; however, the effect is small in the majority of cases, suggesting that males and females tend to incorporate similar concepts into their CR explanations. These results highlight the importance of examining gender effects on performance in written assessment tasks in biology. PMID:26865642
Climate change vulnerability assessments as catalysts for social learning: four case studies in south-eastern Australia
Preston, Benjamin L
Technical assessments of vulnerability and/or risk are increasingly being undertaken to assess the impacts of climate change. Underlying this is the belief that they will bring clarity to questions regarding the scale of institutional investments required, plausible adaptation policies and measures, and the timing of their implementation. Despite the perceived importance of technical assessments in 'evidence-based' decision environments, assessments cannot be undertaken independent of values and politics, nor are they capable of eliminating the uncertainty that clouds decision-making on climate adaptation As such, assessments can trigger as many questions as they answer, leaving practitioners and stakeholders to question their value. This paper explores the value of vulnerability/risk assessments in climate change adaptation planning processes as a catalyst for learning in four case studies in Southeastern Australia. Data were collected using qualitative interviews with stakeholders involved in the assessments and analysed using a social learning framework. This analysis revealed that detailed and tangible strategies or actions often do not emerge directly from technical assessments. However, it also revealed that the assessments became important platforms for social learning. In providing these platforms, assessments present opportunities to question initial assumptions, explore multiple framings of an issue, generate new information, and galvanise support for collective actions. This study highlights the need for more explicit recognition and understanding of the important role social learning plays in climate change vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning more broadly.
Handling the Dilemma of Self-Determination and Dementia: A Study of Case Managers' Discursive Strategies in Assessment Meetings.
Österholm, Johannes H; Taghizadeh Larsson, Annika; Olaison, Anna
In assessment meetings concerning care services for people with dementia, Swedish case managers face a dilemma. On the one hand, according to the law, the right to self-determination of every adult citizen must be respected, but on the other hand cognitive disabilities make it difficult to fulfill obligations of being a full-fledged citizen. In this article, we examine 15 assessment meetings to identify discursive strategies used by case managers to handle this dilemma. We also examine how these affect the participation of persons with dementia, and indicate implications of our study for social work practice and research. PMID:26207822
A Case Study of Student Assessment Programs in a College of Business Administration at a Southern HBCU
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bell Haynes, Janel Elizabeth
The purpose of this mixed method sequential explanatory case study was to describe the relationship of a student outcomes assessment program, as measured by the Peregrine Academic Leveling Course, (ALC), to the academic performance, determined by scores on the Peregrine Common Professional Component (CPC) examination, of students enrolled during…
Creating a Safe Space: A Case Study of Complex Trauma and a Call for Proactive Comprehensive Psychoeducational Assessments and Reviews
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mainwaring, Debra J.
This article advocates for proactive, dynamic and comprehensive psycho-educational assessments for children and young people who have a history of complex trauma, because of its known effects on development and learning. A case study is shared of a young woman with a history of complex trauma because of exposure to parental neglect, multiple…
Environmental Impact Assessment: Teaching the Principles and Practices by Means of a Role-Playing Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Crittenden, Barry D.; England, Richard
The principles and practices of environmental impact assessment are best taught to chemical engineering undergraduate students by means of a role-playing case study. Many suitable examples are available from public sources. The planning appeal process has been selected so as to introduce an adversarial style involving cross-examination on…
Contradictions in the Practices of Training for and Assessment of Competency: A Case Study from the Maritime Domain
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Emad, Gholamreza; Roth, Wolff Michael
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to highlight the contradictions in the current maritime education and training system (MET), which is based on competency-based education, training and assessment, and to theorize the failure to make the training useful. Design/methodology/approach: A case study of education and training in the international…
EPA has released a report entitled, A Cross-Species Mode of Action Information Assessment: A Case Study of Bisphenol A [EPA/600/R-50/044F] (PDF, 98pp, 2 MB, Design-Grounded Assessment: A Framework and a Case Study of Web 2.0 Practices in Higher Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ching, Yu-Hui; Hsu, Yu-Chang
This paper synthesis's three theoretical perspectives, including sociocultural theory, distributed cognition, and situated cognition, into a framework to guide the design and assessment of Web 2.0 practices in higher education. In addition, this paper presents a case study of Web 2.0 practices. Thirty-seven online graduate students participated in…
Quality Assessment for Placement Centres: A Case Study of the University of Barcelona's Faculty of Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Freixa Niella, Montse; Vilà Baños, Ruth; Rubio Hurtado, M. José
The aim of this research was to identify the factors that could be used for quality assessments of the placement centres used by the University of Barcelona's Faculty of Education. To achieve this, a multiple case study method (bachelor's degrees in Education, Social Education and Social Work) was used, which was based on a survey…
A Case Study of Staff and Student Satisfaction with Assessment Feedback at a Small Specialised Higher Education Institution
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Maggs, Lindsey A.
Feedback has been a major area of dissatisfaction according to the UK National Student Survey in recent years, despite general acceptance of its importance. A feedback strategy was implemented in October 2009 at a small specialised higher education institution (HEI). A case study was carried out to assess how satisfied staff and students are with…
Emerging Theoretical Models of Reading through Authentic Assessments among Preservice Teachers: Two Case Studies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Oboler, Eileen S.; Gupta, Abha
This two-part study examines the emerging understanding of the reading process among preservice teachers (PTs), enrolled in a teacher preparation course on diagnostic reading. The study focuses on the use of reading assessment tools to understand the process of reading, while using reading inventories for diagnostic as well as pedagogical…
Vulnerability and Risk Assessment of Extreme Weather Events- A Case Study from Bangladesh
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fakhruddin, S.; Mukand, M. S.; Kawasaki, A.; Webster, P. J.
Assessment of hazard, vulnerability and risk of extreme weather are essential in order to inform and implement appropriate adaptation/prevention/mitigation strategies. Due to complex nature and uncertainties in future climate change predictions, it is not feasible to detail assessment of vulnerability at detailed scales for potential hazard and risk. Though different approaches and methods exist for running hazard, vulnerability and risk assessment, but still difficult to address all physical science, engineering, and social science research. In this study, we try to discuss on the human vulnerability and risk assessment approaches, tools and techniques of natural hazard due to extreme weather events (i.e. floods, cyclone). We analyzed different approaches and methods of vulnerability and risk assessment for flood hazard based on medium (1-10 days) and seasonal (1-3 months) ensembles probabilistic forecasts. The multiple weather ensembles (EPS) forecasts of European Center for Medium Range Forecasts (ECMWF) and downscaled Community Climate System Model Version 3 (CCSM3) forecasts data were used to set up hydrological model. Due to high uncertainty in forecasts information, results summarized that data and inherent low resolutions of the information are major constrains for details comprehensive assessment. Risk and vulnerability rises to be based on multi-scale and cross-scale analyses, considering resilience dimensions and provide innovative tools for understanding, assessing and communicating probabilistic information to the users for decision making. The sectoral responses were developed with possible impacts scenarios based on uncertainty ranges to choose the most robust solution.
Assessing the benefits of OHER (Office of Health and Environmental Research) research: Three case studies
Nesse, R.J.; Callaway, J.M.; Englin, J.E.; Klan, M.S.; Nicholls, A.K.; Serot, D.E.
This research was undertaken to estimate the societal benefits and costs of selected past research performed for the Office of Health and Environmental Research (OHER) of the US Department of Energy (DOE). Three case studies of representative OHER and DOE research were performed. One of these, the acid rain case study, includes research conducted elsewhere in DOE. The other two cases were the OHER marine research program and the development of high-purity germanium that is used in radiation detectors. The acid rain case study looked at the research benefits and costs of furnace sorbent injection and duct injection, technologies that might reduce acid deposition precursors. Both appear to show benefits in excess of costs. We examined in detail one of the OHER marine research program's accomplishments - the increase in environmental information used by the Outer Continental Shelf leasing program to manage bidding for off-shore oil drilling. The results of an econometric model show that environmental information of the type supported by OHER is unequivocally linked to government and industry leasing decisions. The germanium case study indicated that the benefits of germanium radiation detectors were significant.
Waste management health risk assessment: A case study of a solid waste landfill in South Italy
Davoli, E.; Fattore, E.; Paiano, V.; Colombo, A.; Palmiotto, M.; Rossi, A.N.; Il Grande, M.; Fanelli, R.
An integrated risk assessment study has been performed in an area within 5 km from a landfill that accepts non hazardous waste. The risk assessment was based on measured emissions and maximum chronic population exposure, for both children and adults, to contaminated air, some foods and soil. The toxic effects assessed were limited to the main known carcinogenic compounds emitted from landfills coming both from landfill gas torch combustion (e.g., dioxins, furans and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, PAHs) and from diffusive emissions (vinyl chloride monomer, VCM). Risk assessment has been performed both for carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic effects. Results indicate that cancer and non-cancer effects risk (hazard index, HI) are largely below the values accepted from the main international agencies (e.g., WHO, US EPA) and national legislation ( and ).
NSF-PARCS: A Case Study in Proxy Climate Syntheses for the CCSP Assessment
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Duvall, M.; Kaufman, D.; MacDonald, G.
The research agenda of the NSF-funded Paleoenvironmental Arctic Sciences (PARCS) program has focused recently on high-resolution records that provide quantifiable estimates of past climates. Syntheses of this research are planned to meet the needs of both the research community and the US Climate Change Science Program. PARCS provides a case study into how proxy climate data generated by a group of collaborating scientists have input into a broader assessment. PARCS was founded in 1999 as an NSF initiative straddling the Arctic System Science (ARCSS) and the Earth System History (ESH) programs to foster a wide range of research on paleoenvironmental change in the Arctic. In March 2001, the PARCS scientific community met to focus its research agenda with the goal of more directly contributing to global-change assessments by providing high-resolution, quantified estimates of past climate. The result was the science plan, "Modes of Arctic Climate Variability and Warmth," an area of research interest under the ESH Program. The plan identified a suite of deliverables that mesh with products now identified by the 2003 CCSP. PARCS has organized workshops addressing this suite of deliverables on the subjects of warm Arctic scenarios (the last interglacial and the Holocene thermal maximum) and variability in Arctic summer temperatures (annual to decadal scale resolution) to review and assemble proxy climate data in preparation for peer-reviewed summaries and for broader dissemination of data syntheses. The goal is to generate data related to these specific themes, and to integrate these data with records currently being produced by other groups nationally and internationally. The data will be assembled, analyzed, and presented as part of a searchable geo-referenced database. PARCS' vehicle for presenting these syntheses beyond peer-reviewed publication is a web-enabled database. The database is being assembled by a PARCS-dedicated data manager whose duties include creation
Effect of continuous assessment on learning outcomes on two chemical engineering courses: case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Tuunila, R.; Pulkkinen, M.
In this paper, the effect of continuous assessment on the learning outcomes of two chemical engineering courses is studied over a several-year period. Average grades and passing percentages of courses after the final examination are reported and also student feedback on the courses is collected. The results indicate significantly better learning results after the adoption of continuous assessment in the courses. Also student feedback suggests higher quality in teaching after the adoption of more activating teaching methods which compel students to study effectively throughout the course.
Archaeology, historical site risk assessment and monitoring by UAV: approaches and case studies
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Pecci, Antonio; Masini, Nicola
, Ychma and Inca. A test site has been selected to assess the capability of SAR satellite data for the identification of earthen archaeological features. UAV surveys have been performed to provide a very detail DEM enabling us to analyze and interpret the radar signal backscattering behaviour of archaeological microrelief and structures. In all the three applications UAV proved to be an effective, user-friendly, less time consuming, flexible tool for a number of applications and aims ranging from from the site detection to the risk evaluation of archaeological interest areas. References Lasaponara R., Masini N. 2012. Remote Sensing in Archaeology: From Visual Data Interpretation to Digital Data Manipulation, In: Lasaponara R., Masini N. (Eds) 2012, Satellite Remote Sensing: a new tool for Archaeology, Springer, Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, ISBN 978-90-481-8800-0, pp. 3-16, doi : 10.1007/978-90-481-8801-7_1. Lasaponara R., Masini N. 2013, Satellite Synthetic Aperture Radar in Archaeology and Cultural Landscape: An Overview. Archaeological Prospection, 20, 71-78, doi: 10.1002/arp.1452 Lasaponara R., Leucci G., Masini N., Persico R., Scardozzi G. 2016a. Towards an operative use of remote sensing for exploring the past using satellite data: The case study of Hierapolis (Turkey), Remote sensing of Environment, 174 (2016) : 148-164, doi:10.1016/j.rse.2015.12.016 Lasaponara R., Masini N., Pecci A., Perciante F., Pozzi Escot D., Rizzo E., Scavone M., Sileo M. 2016b, Qualitative evaluation of COSMO SkyMed in the detection of earthen archaeological remains: the case of Pachamacac (Peru)", Journal of Cultural heritage, 2016, in press. Leucci G., Masini N., Rizzo E., Capozzoli L., De Martino G. et al., Integrated Archaeogeophysical Approach for the Study of a Medieval Monastic Settlement in Basilicata, Open Archaeology 2015; 1: 236-246, doi: 10.1515/opar-2015-0014. F. Neitzel, J. Klonowski, Mobile 3d mapping with a low-cost UAV system, Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf
Assessing the operational life of flexible printed boards intended for continuous flexing applications : a case study.
Beck, David Franklin
Through the vehicle of a case study, this paper describes in detail how the guidance found in the suite of IPC (Association Connecting Electronics Industries) publications can be applied to develop a high level of design assurance that flexible printed boards intended for continuous flexing applications will satisfy specified lifetime requirements.
Assessing Online Collaboration among Language Teachers: A Cross-Institutional Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Arnold, Nike; Ducate, Lara; Lomicka, Lara; Lord, Gillian
This paper focuses on computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) among foreign language (FL) graduate students from three universities, who worked together to create a wiki. In order to investigate the nature of CSCL among participants, this qualitative case study used the Curtis and Lawson framework (2001) to conduct a content analysis of…
Assessment of Chinese Students' Experience with Foreign Faculty: A Case Study from a Chinese University
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ho, Raymond
This article compares Chinese students' responses to local Chinese versus American professors, and the effectiveness of the professors' respective teaching techniques. A case study made at a single university in China, which had a joint academic program with the United States, found that Chinese students preferred local Chinese professors to…
Assessment Considerations in the Evaluation of Second-Language Learners: A Case Study.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Schiff-Myers, Naomi B.; And Others
This article presents the case study of a child who was classified as communication disabled but seemed to have suffered from language loss or arrested development of the primary language (Spanish) before attaining full competence in English. The child experienced a temporary delay of development in both languages but eventually mastered English.…
Assessing a Problem-based Learning Approach to An Introductory Instructional Design Course: A Case Study.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dabbagh, Nada H.; Jonassen, David H.; Yueh, Hsui-Ping; Samouilova, Marina
This case study examines the application of problem-based learning to the teaching of introductory instructional design (ISD). Suggests that ISD is a dynamic process of problem understanding and problem solution and that ISD instruction should therefore focus more on the problem attributes and not on the generality of the systems approach model.…
Prior Learning Assessment: A Case Study of Acceptance of Innovation and Change.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wolfson, Gloria Krupnick
This project investigated the acceptance of innovation and change as it related to a specific education change of prior learning assessment (PLA) at the University College of the Fraser Valley (UCFV) in British Columbia, Canada. The study explored the barriers that existed against students who wanted to have experiential and workplace learning…
Effect of Continuous Assessment on Learning Outcomes on Two Chemical Engineering Courses: Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Tuunila, R.; Pulkkinen, M.
In this paper, the effect of continuous assessment on the learning outcomes of two chemical engineering courses is studied over a several-year period. Average grades and passing percentages of courses after the final examination are reported and also student feedback on the courses is collected. The results indicate significantly better learning…
Preferences for Deep-Surface Learning: A Vocational Education Case Study Using a Multimedia Assessment Activity
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hamm, Simon; Robertson, Ian
This research tests the proposition that the integration of a multimedia assessment activity into a Diploma of Events Management program promotes a deep learning approach. Firstly, learners' preferences for deep or surface learning were evaluated using the revised two-factor Study Process Questionnaire. Secondly, after completion of an assessment…
Initiating Self-Assessment Strategies in Novice Physiotherapy Students: A Method Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Young, Catherine
Student self- and peer-assessment strategies ideally are instigated early in programmes for health professionals. This study presents an innovative method of stimulating critical evaluation of clinical skills learned in the practical class setting for first year physiotherapy students. Twice in the semester (beginning and end) students assessed…
Individualizing Elementary General Music Instruction: Case Studies of Assessment and Differentiation
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Salvador, Karen
Elementary general music teachers typically teach hundreds of students every week. Each child has individual learning needs due to a variety of factors, such as prior experiences with music, music aptitude, learning style, and personality. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore ways that experienced teachers used assessments to…
Case Studies in NASA High-Technology Risk Assessment and Management
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Lambright, W. Henry
This study discusses the approach of NASA managers in the assessment of risk in three critical decisions: the Apollo 8 decision to orbit the Moon in 1968, the servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope in 1993, and the privitization of the Space Shuttle in the latter 1990s.
Seismic Vulnerability Assessment for Massive Structure: Case Study for Sofia City
Paskaleva, Ivanka; Koleva, Gergana; Vaccari, Franco; Panza, Giuliano F.
An advanced modeling technique, which allows us to compute realistic synthetic seismograms, is used to create a database of synthetic accelerograms in a set of selected sites located within Sofia urban area. The accelerograms can be used for the assessment of the local site response, represented in terms of Response Spectra Ratio (RSR). The result of this study, i.e. time histories, response spectra and other ground motion parameters, can be used for different earthquake engineering analyses. Finally, with the help of 3D finite elements modeling, the building structural performance is assessed.
Flood disaster risk assessment of rural housings--a case study of Kouqian Town in China.
Zhang, Qi; Zhang, Jiquan; Jiang, Liupeng; Liu, Xingpeng; Tong, Zhijun
Floods are a devastating kind of natural disaster. About half of the population in China lives in rural areas. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the flood disaster risk of rural housings. The results are valuable for guiding the rescue and relief goods layout. In this study, we take the severe flood disaster that happened at Kouqian Town in Jilin, China in 2010 as an example to build an risk assessment system for flood disaster on rural housings. Based on the theory of natural disaster risk formation and "3S" technology (remote sensing, geography information systems and global positioning systems), taking the rural housing as the bearing body, we assess the flood disaster risk from three aspects: hazard, exposure and vulnerability. The hazard presented as the flood submerging range and depth. The exposure presented as the values of the housing and the property in it. The vulnerability presented as the relationship between the losses caused by flood and flood depth. We validate the model by the field survey after the flood disaster. The risk assessment results highly coincide with the field survey losses. This model can be used to assess the risk of other flood events in this area. PMID:24705363
Flood Disaster Risk Assessment of Rural Housings — A Case Study of Kouqian Town in China
Zhang, Qi; Zhang, Jiquan; Jiang, Liupeng; Liu, Xingpeng; Tong, Zhijun
Floods are a devastating kind of natural disaster. About half of the population in China lives in rural areas. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the flood disaster risk of rural housings. The results are valuable for guiding the rescue and relief goods layout. In this study, we take the severe flood disaster that happened at Kouqian Town in Jilin, China in 2010 as an example to build an risk assessment system for flood disaster on rural housings. Based on the theory of natural disaster risk formation and "3S" technology (remote sensing, geography information systems and global positioning systems), taking the rural housing as the bearing body, we assess the flood disaster risk from three aspects: hazard, exposure and vulnerability. The hazard presented as the flood submerging range and depth. The exposure presented as the values of the housing and the property in it. The vulnerability presented as the relationship between the losses caused by flood and flood depth. We validate the model by the field survey after the flood disaster. The risk assessment results highly coincide with the field survey losses. This model can be used to assess the risk of other flood events in this area. PMID:24705363
The case study approach allows in-depth, multi-faceted explorations of complex issues in their real-life settings. The value of the case study approach is well recognised in the fields of business, law and policy, but somewhat less so in health services research. Based on our experiences of conducting several health-related case studies, we reflect on the different types of case study design, the specific research questions this approach can help answer, the data sources that tend to be used, and the particular advantages and disadvantages of employing this methodological approach. The paper concludes with key pointers to aid those designing and appraising proposals for conducting case study research, and a checklist to help readers assess the quality of case study reports. PMID:21707982
Assessment of drought impacts on vegetation health: a case study in Kedah
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Othman, M.; Ash'aari, Z. H.; Muharam, F. M.; Sulaiman, W. N. A.; Hamisan, H.; Mohamad, N. D.; Othman, N. H.
Prolonged drought in the early of 2014 has caused Malaysia to experience water supply shortage which directly affects both health and growth of vegetation. Thus this study aims to assess the risk vegetation areas that were impacted during 2014's drought by integrating the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and Normalized Differentiation Vegetation Index (NDVI) methods. These two methods were able to assess the risk areas for the vegetation by measuring its health and classifying them according to its severity while considering the rainfall reduction at the specific time and location. The results obtained from this study shows that the central and north west of Kedah was vulnerable to the occurrence of drought. Kedah was more impacted by the dry event during the northeast monsoon. This study is significant as a fundamental input for further research and as an alternative approach by the application of space technology.
Assessment of Regional Sustainability Based on Modified Ecological Footprint: A Case Study of Suzhou, China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yang, Haizhen; Li, Aimei; Ye, Tian
Ecological Footprint (EF) is an effective method to measure quantitatively sustainable development. However original EF analysis of sustainability at the regional scale provides easily misinterpreted information, which could not reflect truly the pressure of the regional population on the local ecosystem due to the regional import and export. A regional ecosystem could support the local population consumption entirely depending on import, while shift the ecological pressure to other regions and the local ecosystems is thus well preserved. To assess sustainability of a region exactly, two concepts of the consumptive EF and productive EF were put forward. As we acknowledged that original EF only measures human demand for biological goods and services, and does not capture other aspects of social or economic sustainability. Therefore, to assess comprehensively regional sustainability, we attempted to combine several social indicators including unit GDP (Gross Domestic Product) EF, integrated development satisfaction, comprehensive pressure index with the indicator of EF. Also the application to a municipal was discussed. The time series of EF of study area were accounted and the sustainable development status were assessed from 1993 to 2002. Based on the result of EF analysis and the realities of study area, the feasibility of amendments proposed were assessed. Results showed that the amendments proposed were reasonable and feasible, and the resized model could better evaluate the sustainability of a region.
Using exit surveys to assess counterproductive work behaviors: a case study.
Pecker, Gabriela; Fine, Saul
Counterproductive work behaviors are notoriously difficult to measure in applied settings. As a result, many organizations are unable to reliably evaluate the frequency and antecedents of these behaviors. Exit surveys provide a unique opportunity for measuring potentially sensitive organizational issues but have yet to be widely adopted for measuring counterproductive work behaviors. The present paper describes a case study in which an exit survey was designed to study counterproductive work behaviors in a large telecommunications company. The results of this study suggest that a similar methodology may be beneficial for other organizations looking to better understand and manage these potentially damaging behaviors. PMID:25650640
Assessing the benefits of design for recycling for plastics inelectronics: A case study of computer enclosures
Masanet, Eric; Horvath, Arpad
With the emergence of extended producer responsibilityregulations for electronic devices, it is becoming increasingly importantfor electronics manufacturers to apply design for recycling (DFR) methodsin the design of plastic enclosures. This paper presents an analyticalframework for quantifying the environmental and economic benefits of DFRfor plastic computer enclosures during the design process, usingstraightforward metrics that can be aligned with corporate environmentaland financial performance goals. The analytical framework is demonstratedvia a case study of a generic desktop computer enclosure design, which isrecycled using a typical US "take-back" system for plastics from wasteelectronics. The case study illustrates how the analytical framework canbe used by the enclosure designer to quantify the environmental andeconomic benefits of two important DFR strategies: choosing high-valueresins and minimizing enclosure disassembly time. Uncertainty analysis isperformed to quantify the uncertainty surrounding economic conditions inthe future when the enclosure is ultimately recycled.
SEASAT economic assessment. Volume 3: Offshore oil and natural gas industry case study and generalization
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
The economic benefits of improved ocean condition, weather and ice forecasts by SEASAT satellites to the exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas in the offshore regions are considered. The results of case studies which investigate the effects of forecast accuracy on offshore operations in the North Sea, the Celtic Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico are reported. A methodology for generalizing the results to other geographic regions of offshore oil and natural gas exploration and development is described.
Earthquake Damage Assessment Using Objective Image Segmentation: A Case Study of 2010 Haiti Earthquake
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Oommen, Thomas; Rebbapragada, Umaa; Cerminaro, Daniel
In this study, we perform a case study on imagery from the Haiti earthquake that evaluates a novel object-based approach for characterizing earthquake induced surface effects of liquefaction against a traditional pixel based change technique. Our technique, which combines object-oriented change detection with discriminant/categorical functions, shows the power of distinguishing earthquake-induced surface effects from changes in buildings using the object properties concavity, convexity, orthogonality and rectangularity. Our results suggest that object-based analysis holds promise in automatically extracting earthquake-induced damages from high-resolution aerial/satellite imagery.
Conceptual modeling for identification of worst case conditions in environmental risk assessment of nanomaterials using nZVI and C60 as case studies.
Grieger, Khara D; Hansen, Steffen F; Sørensen, Peter B; Baun, Anders
Conducting environmental risk assessment of engineered nanomaterials has been an extremely challenging endeavor thus far. Moreover, recent findings from the nano-risk scientific community indicate that it is unlikely that many of these challenges will be easily resolved in the near future, especially given the vast variety and complexity of nanomaterials and their applications. As an approach to help optimize environmental risk assessments of nanomaterials, we apply the Worst-Case Definition (WCD) model to identify best estimates for worst-case conditions of environmental risks of two case studies which use engineered nanoparticles, namely nZVI in soil and groundwater remediation and C(60) in an engine oil lubricant. Results generated from this analysis may ultimately help prioritize research areas for environmental risk assessments of nZVI and C(60) in these applications as well as demonstrate the use of worst-case conditions to optimize future research efforts for other nanomaterials. Through the application of the WCD model, we find that the most probable worst-case conditions for both case studies include i) active uptake mechanisms, ii) accumulation in organisms, iii) ecotoxicological response mechanisms such as reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and cell membrane damage or disruption, iv) surface properties of nZVI and C(60), and v) acute exposure tolerance of organisms. Additional estimates of worst-case conditions for C(60) also include the physical location of C(60) in the environment from surface run-off, cellular exposure routes for heterotrophic organisms, and the presence of light to amplify adverse effects. Based on results of this analysis, we recommend the prioritization of research for the selected applications within the following areas: organism active uptake ability of nZVI and C(60) and ecotoxicological response end-points and response mechanisms including ROS production and cell membrane damage, full nanomaterial characterization taking
A case study for assessment of microbial community dynamics in genetically modified Bt cotton crop fields.
Kapur, Manisha; Bhatia, Ranjana; Pandey, Gunjan; Pandey, Janmejay; Paul, Debarati; Jain, Rakesh K
Bt cotton was the first genetically modified crop approved for use in India. However, only a few studies have been conducted to assess the feasibility of its commercial application. Bt cotton is genetically modified to express a proteinaceous endotoxin (Cry) encoded by cry gene of Bacillus thuringiensis that has specific insecticidal activity against bollworms. Therefore, the amount of pesticides used for growing Bt cotton is postulated to be considerably low as compared to their non-Bt counterparts. Alternatively, it is also speculated that application of a genetically modified crop may alter the bio-geochemical balance of the agriculture field(s). Microbial community composition and dynamics is an important descriptor for assessment of such alterations. In the present study, we have assessed the culturable and non-culturable microbial diversities in Bt cotton and non-Bt cotton soils to determine the ecological consequences of application of Bt cotton. The analyses of microbial community structures indicated that cropping of Bt cotton did not adversely affect the diversity of the microbial communities. PMID:20098990
Seismic hazard assessment of the cultural heritage sites: A case study in Cappadocia (Turkey)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Seyrek, Evren; Orhan, Ahmet; Dinçer, İsmail
Turkey is one of the most seismically active regions in the world. Major earthquakes with the potential of threatening life and property occur frequently here. In the last decade, over 50,000 residents lost their lives, commonly as a result of building failures in seismic events. The Cappadocia region is one of the most important touristic sites in Turkey. At the same time, the region has been included to the Word Heritage List by UNESCO at 1985 due to its natural, historical and cultural values. The region is undesirably affected by several environmental conditions, which are subjected in many previous studies. But, there are limited studies about the seismic evaluation of the region. Some of the important historical and cultural heritage sites are: Goreme Open Air Museum, Uchisar Castle, Ortahisar Castle, Derinkuyu Underground City and Ihlara Valley. According to seismic hazard zonation map published by the Ministry of Reconstruction and Settlement these heritage sites fall in Zone III, Zone IV and Zone V. This map show peak ground acceleration or 10 percent probability of exceedance in 50 years for bedrock. In this connection, seismic hazard assessment of these heritage sites has to be evaluated. In this study, seismic hazard calculations are performed both deterministic and probabilistic approaches with local site conditions. A catalog of historical and instrumental earthquakes is prepared and used in this study. The seismic sources have been identified for seismic hazard assessment based on geological, seismological and geophysical information. Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) at bed rock level is calculated for different seismic sources using available attenuation relationship formula applicable to Turkey. The result of the present study reveals that the seismic hazard at these sites is closely matching with the Seismic Zonation map published by the Ministry of Reconstruction and Settlement. Keywords: Seismic Hazard Assessment, Probabilistic Approach
Assessing the Feasibility of a Virtual Tumor Board Program: A Case Study
Shea, Christopher M.; Teal, Randall; Haynes-Maslow, Lindsey; McIntyre, Molly; Weiner, Bryan J.; Wheeler, Stephanie B.; Jacobs, Sara R.; Mayer, Deborah K.; Young, Michael D.; Shea, Thomas C.
Executive Summary Multidisciplinary tumor boards involve various providers (e.g., oncology physicians, nurses) in patient care. Although many Community Hospitals have local tumor boards that review all types of cases, many providers, particularly in rural areas and smaller institutions, still lack access to tumor boards specializing in a particular type of cancer (e.g., breast, gastrointestinal, hematologic). Videoconferencing technology can connect providers across geographic locations and institutions; however, virtual tumor board (VTB) programs using this technology are uncommon. In this study, we evaluated the feasibility of a new VTB program at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, which connects community-based clinicians to UNC tumor boards. We used an embedded case study design with UNC VTB as the overarching case, comprised of multiple tumor boards representing different cancer types, each with individual clinician participants (our primary unit of analysis). Methods included observations, interviews, and surveys. Our findings suggest that participants were generally satisfied with the VTB. Cases presented at VTB were appropriate, sufficient information was available for discussion, and technology problems were not common. UNC clinicians viewed the VTB as a service to patients and colleagues and an opportunity for clinical trial recruitment. Community-based clinicians presenting at VTB valued the discussion, even if it simply confirmed their original treatment plan or did not yield consensus recommendations. However, barriers to participation for community-based clinicians included timing of the VTB and lack of reimbursement. To maximize benefits of the VTB, barriers to participation should be addressed, scheduling and preparation processes optimized, and appropriate measures for evaluating impact identified. PMID:24988672
Science, law, and Hudson River power plants: A case study in environmental impact assessment
Barnthouse, L.W.; Klauda, R.J.; Vaughan, D.S.; Kendall, R.L.
Between 1963 and 1980, the Hudson River estuary was the focus of one of the most ambitious environmental research and assessment programs ever performed. The studies supported a series of US federal proceedings involving licenses and discharge permits for two controversial electric power generating facilities: the Cornwall pumped storage facility, and units 2 and 3 of the Indian Point nuclear generating station. Both facilities were to draw large volumes of water from a region of the Hudson used as spawning and nursery habitat by several fish species, including the striped bass. Fishermen and conservationists feared that a major fraction of the striped bass eggs and larvae in the Hudson would be entrained with the pumped water and killed. Additional fish would be killed on trash screens at the intakes. Scientists were asked to aid the utility companies and regulatory agencies in determining the biological importance of entrainment and impingement. This monograph contains both technical papers that present research results and synthesis papers that summarize and interpret the results. The intent was to: (1) summarize the scientific issues and approaches; (2) present the significant results of the Hudson River biological studies; (3) describe the role of the studies in the decision-making process; (4) evaluate the successes and failures of the studies; and (5) present recommendations for future estuarine impact assessments. Separate abstracts are processed for 22 papers for inclusion in the appropriate data bases.
Assessing individual sow risk factors for coliform mastitis: a case-control study.
Gerjets, Imke; Traulsen, Imke; Reiners, Kerstin; Kemper, Nicole
In order to investigate sow-specific risk factors associated with coliform mastitis, a case-control study was performed over the course of 28 months. Data of three farms were collected under production conditions. Sows suffering from coliform mastitis after farrowing served as cases, and healthy half- or full-sib sows from the same farm served as controls. Individual sow characteristics and the seasonal influence were analysed by conditional logistic regression. The final multivariate model identified four risk factors: the risk of suffering from coliform mastitis increased with a higher number of piglets born alive and stillborn piglets. Gilts had an increased risk for the disease, and birth intervention was also associated with a higher prevalence of mastitis. Birth induction and season had no significant influence on the occurrence of coliform mastitis. The time during and soon after farrowing is a very sensitive period in pig production demanding great attention by the farmer. With respect to the economic losses, monitoring of potentially endangered sows as well as detailed documentation and selection of disease cases are of particular importance when coping with coliform mastitis. PMID:21570140
Erosion risk analysis by GIS in environmental impact assessments: a case study--Seyhan Köprü Dam construction.
Sahin, S; Kurum, E
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a systematically constructed procedure whereby environmental impacts caused by proposed projects are examined. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are crucially efficient tools for impact assessment and their use is likely to dramatically increase in the near future. GIS have been applied to a wide range of different impact assessment projects and dams among them have been taken as the case work in this article. EIA Regulation in force in Turkey requires the analysis of steering natural processes that can be adversely affected by the proposed project, particularly in the section of the analysis of the areas with higher landscape value. At this point, the true potential value of GIS lies in its ability to analyze spatial data with accuracy. This study is an attempt to analyze by GIS the areas with higher landscape value in the impact assessment of dam constructions in the case of Seyhan-Köprü Hydroelectric Dam project proposal. A method needs to be defined before the overlapping step by GIS to analyze the areas with higher landscape value. In the case of Seyhan-Köprü Hydroelectric Dam project proposal of the present work, considering the geological conditions and the steep slopes of the area and the type of the project, the most important natural process is erosion. Therefore, the areas of higher erosion risk were considered as the Areas with Higher Landscape Value from the conservation demands points of view. PMID:12448403
Qualitative assessment of methane emission inventory from municipal solid waste disposal sites: a case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kumar, Sunil; Mondal, A. N.; Gaikwad, S. A.; Devotta, Sukumar; Singh, R. N.
In developing countries like India, urban solid waste (SW) generation is increasing enormously and most of the SWs are disposed off by land filling in low-lying areas, resulting into generation of large quantities of biogas. Methane, the major constituent gas is known to cause global warming due to green house gas (GHG) effect. There is a need to study the ever-increasing contribution of SW to the global GHG effect. To assess the impacts, estimation of GHG emission is must and to avoid misguidance by these emission-data, qualitative assessment of the estimated GHG is a must. In this paper, methane emission is estimated for a particular landfill site, using default methodology and modified triangular methodology. Total methane generation is same for both theoretical methodologies, but the modified triangular method has an upper hand as it provides a time-dependent emission profile that reflects the true pattern of the degradation process. To check the quality of calculated emission-data, extensive sampling is carried out for different seasons in a year. Field results show a different trend as compared to theoretical results, this compels for logical thinking. Each methane emission-data is backed up by the uncertainty associated with it, this further strengthens the quality check of these data. Uncertainty calculation is done using Monte Carlo simulation technique, recommended in IPCC Guideline. In the due course of qualitative assessment of methane emission-data, many site-specific sensitive parameters are discovered and are briefly discussed in this paper.
Drought vulnerability assessment for the agriculture: a case study for the west part of Slovenia
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Slejko, M.; Gregorič, G.; Bergant, K.
One of the main aspects of drought adaptation and planning is the assessment of vulnerability. Since agriculture is the primary sector affected by drought and is directly dependent on water availability, we have started with a pilot project in an important agricultural area in the west part of Slovenia. The project is a part of the activities of the Drought Management Centre for Southeastern Europe - DMCSEE. Drought in this area often results in significant economic, environmental, and social impacts. The significance of the impacts of drought on the agricultural sector is assessed taking into account the severity of the drought (magnitude and duration of the drought episode) and the vulnerability of the agricultural system. For that purpose we have developed a general method which can be used as a preliminary tool for assessing drought vulnerability in agriculture and that could be applied on the entire Southeastern Europe region. The approach was based on impact assessment and vulnerability model supported by geographic information system (GIS) software. We found out that factors influencing drought vulnerability were numerous, and the model application might depend on data availability. We have used appropriate and available digital data layers for climate, pedology, solar radiation, land use, irrigation infrastructure and other factors. The final product is a categorical map of agricultural drought vulnerability for the study area, which synthesizes a variety of data and serves as an indicator of areas deserving a detailed drought risk evaluation. It could aid regional decision makers in identifying appropriate mitigation and adaptation actions before the next drought event, lessen impacts of that event and allow sustainable development of the sector.
Direct assessment of multiple testing correction in case-control association studies with related individuals.
Wang, Zuoheng
Genome-wide association studies typically test large numbers of genetic variants in association with trait values. It is well known that linkage disequilibrium (LD) between nearby markers tends to introduce correlation among association tests. Failure to properly adjust for multiple comparisons can lead to false-positive results or missing true-positive signals. The Bonferroni correction is generally conservative in the presence of LD. The permutation procedure, although has been widely employed to adjust for correlated tests, is not applicable when related individuals are included in case-control samples. With related individuals, the dependence among relatives' genotypes can also contribute to the correlation between tests. We present a new method P(norm) to correct for multiple hypothesis testing in case-control association studies in which some individuals are related. The adjustment with P(norm) simultaneously accounts for two sources of correlations of the test statistics: (1) LD among genetic markers (2) dependence among genotypes across related individuals. Using simulated data based on the International HapMap Project, we demonstrate that it has better control of type I error and is more powerful than some of the recently developed methods. We apply the method to a genome-wide association study of alcoholism in the GAW 14 COGA data set and detect genome-wide significant association. PMID:21181898
Assessing embodied interpersonal emotion regulation in somatic symptom disorders: a case study.
Okur Güney, Zeynep; Sattel, Heribert; Cardone, Daniela; Merla, Arcangelo
The aim of the present study was to examine the intra- and interpersonal emotion regulation of patients with somatic symptom disorders (SSDs) during interactions with significant others (i.e., romantic partners). We presented two case couples for analysis. The first couple consisted of a patient with SSD and his healthy partner, whereas the second couple consisted of two healthy partners. The couples underwent an interpersonal experiment that involved baseline, anger and relaxation tasks. During each task, partners' cutaneous facial temperature, heart rate and skin conductance levels were measured simultaneously. Participants' trait-emotion regulation, state-affect reports for self and other, and attachment styles were also examined. The experimental phases were successful in creating variations in physiological processes and affective experience. As expected, emotion regulation difficulties predicted higher increase in the course of temperature at each phase. Besides, the patient showed restricted awareness and reflection to emotions despite his higher autonomic activity compared to healthy controls. Both partners of the first couple revealed limited ability in understanding the other's emotions, whereas the second couple performed relatively better in that domain. The temperature variations between the patient and his partner were significantly correlated while the correlations of temperature changes between the second couple were negligible except anger task. The study supported the merits of an embodied interpersonal approach in clinical studies. The tentative results of the cases were discussed in the light of findings in emotion regulation and attachment research. PMID:25713544
Assessing risk factors of sporadic Campylobacter infection: a case-control study in Arizona.
Pogreba-Brown, K; Baker, A; Ernst, K; Stewart, J; Harris, R B; Weiss, J
Case-control studies of sporadic Campylobacter infections have predominately been conducted in non-Hispanic populations. In Arizona, rates of campylobacteriosis have been historically higher than the national average, with particularly high rates in Hispanics. In 2010, health departments and a state university collaborated to conduct a statewide case-control study to determine whether risk factors differ in an ethnically diverse region of the United States. Statistically significant risk factors in the final multivariate model were: eating cantaloupe [odds ratio (OR) 7·64], handling raw poultry (OR 4·88) and eating queso fresco (OR 7·11). In addition, compared to non-Hispanic/non-travellers, the highest risk group were Hispanic/non-travellers (OR 7·27), and Hispanic/travellers (OR 5·87, not significant). Results of this study suggest Hispanics have higher odds of disease, probably due to differential exposures. In addition to common risk factors, consumption of cantaloupe was identified as a significant risk factor. These results will inform public health officials of the varying risk factors for Campylobacter in this region. PMID:26828241
Assessing embodied interpersonal emotion regulation in somatic symptom disorders: a case study
Okur Güney, Zeynep; Sattel, Heribert; Cardone, Daniela; Merla, Arcangelo
The aim of the present study was to examine the intra- and interpersonal emotion regulation of patients with somatic symptom disorders (SSDs) during interactions with significant others (i.e., romantic partners). We presented two case couples for analysis. The first couple consisted of a patient with SSD and his healthy partner, whereas the second couple consisted of two healthy partners. The couples underwent an interpersonal experiment that involved baseline, anger and relaxation tasks. During each task, partners' cutaneous facial temperature, heart rate and skin conductance levels were measured simultaneously. Participants' trait-emotion regulation, state-affect reports for self and other, and attachment styles were also examined. The experimental phases were successful in creating variations in physiological processes and affective experience. As expected, emotion regulation difficulties predicted higher increase in the course of temperature at each phase. Besides, the patient showed restricted awareness and reflection to emotions despite his higher autonomic activity compared to healthy controls. Both partners of the first couple revealed limited ability in understanding the other's emotions, whereas the second couple performed relatively better in that domain. The temperature variations between the patient and his partner were significantly correlated while the correlations of temperature changes between the second couple were negligible except anger task. The study supported the merits of an embodied interpersonal approach in clinical studies. The tentative results of the cases were discussed in the light of findings in emotion regulation and attachment research. PMID:25713544
Project Photofly: New 3d Modeling Online Web Service (case Studies and Assessments)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Abate, D.; Furini, G.; Migliori, S.; Pierattini, S.
During summer 2010, Autodesk has released a still ongoing project called Project Photofly, freely downloadable from AutodeskLab web site until August 1 2011. Project Photofly based on computer-vision and photogrammetric principles, exploiting the power of cloud computing, is a web service able to convert collections of photographs into 3D models. Aim of our research was to evaluate the Project Photofly, through different case studies, for 3D modeling of cultural heritage monuments and objects, mostly to identify for which goals and objects it is suitable. The automatic approach will be mainly analyzed.
Social network analysis as a method of assessing medical-center culture; three case studies
Lurie, Stephen; Fogg, Thomas; Dozier, Ann
Purpose: To describe the basic concepts of social network analysis (SNA), and introduce some applications of this technique in assessing aspects of institutional culture. Methods: We applied SNA to 3 settings; team function in the intensive-care unit, interdisciplinary composition of advisory committees for federal career development awardees, and relationships between Key Function directors at an institution-wide Clinical Translational Sciences Institute. Findings: In the ICU setting, SNA provides interpretable summaries of aspects of clinical team functioning. When applied to membership on mentorship committees, it allows for summary descriptions of the degree of interdisciplinarity of various clinical departments. Finally, when applied to relationships among leaders of an institution-wide research it highlights potential areas of problems in relationships among academic departments. In all cases, data collection is relatively rapid, thereby allowing for the possibility of frequent repeated analyses over time. Conclusions: SNA provides a useful and standardized set of tools for measuring important aspects of team function, interdisciplinarity, and organizational culture that may otherwise be difficult to measure in an objective way. PMID:19638768
Improving biodiversity assessment of anuran amphibians using DNA barcoding of tadpoles. Case studies from Southeast Asia.
Grosjean, Stéphane; Ohler, Annemarie; Chuaynkern, Yodchaiy; Cruaud, Corinne; Hassanin, Alexandre
Amphibian populations are dramatically declining, while their inventory is far from being achieved. Tadpoles are usually overlooked from biodiversity survey, whereas their consideration will optimize species counts and knowledge of their ecological and developmental requirements is essential in conservation planning. Two mitochondrial markers, 16S (397 new sequences obtained) and COI (343 new sequences obtained), are used to test DNA barcoding on a set of larval and adult Asian amphibians represented by 83 recognized species from 65 sites. The advantages and drawbacks of each marker are assessed, COI barcoding being advocated for global DNA barcoding, whereas 16S suits for taxonomically or geographically restricted DNA barcoding. About half of the collected tadpoles were badly identified or incompletely named in the field. All tadpole sequences (except one case of probable introgressive hybridization) were correctly assigned to their respective species. Finally six clusters of tadpole sequences without conspecific adults were revealed, stressing the importance of collecting and taking into account tadpoles in biodiversity survey and conservation planning. PMID:25936275
A Case Study of Students' Perceptions of Peer Assessment in Hong Kong
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mok, Jane
Since 2001, the Education Bureau (EDB) in Hong Kong has been promoting a shift from traditional assessment of learning to assessment for learning, where classroom-based assessment is linked to teaching and learning, with students taking an active role in the assessment process. In particular, secondary school students are encouraged to assess…
Life cycle assessment of municipal solid waste management methods: Ankara case study.
Ozeler, D; Yetiş, U; Demirer, G N
Different solid waste management system scenarios were developed and compared for the Municipal Solid Waste Management System of Ankara by using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The solid waste management methods considered in the scenarios were collection and transportation of wastes, source reduction, Material Recovery Facility (MRF)/Transfer Stations (TS), incineration, anaerobic digestion and landfilling. The goal of the study was to determine the most environmentally friendly option of MSWM system for Ankara. The functional unit of the study was the amount of solid waste generated in the system area of concern, which are the districts of Ankara. The life cycle inventory analysis was carried out by IWM Model-1. The inputs and outputs of each management stage were defined and the inventory emissions calculated by the model were classified in to impact categories; non-renewable energy sources exhausting potential, final solid waste as hazardous and non-hazardous, global warming, acidification, eutrophication and human toxicity. The impacts were quantified with the weighing factors of each category to develop the environmental profiles of each scenario. In most of the categories, Source Reduction Scenario was found to be the most feasible management method, except the global warming category. The lowest contribution to GWP was calculated for the anaerobic digestion process. In the interpretation and improvement assessment stage, the results were further evaluated and recommendations were made to improve the current solid waste management system of Ankara. PMID:16310852
Assessing the home fire safety of urban older adults: a case study.
Twyman, Stephanie; Fahey, Erin; Lehna, Carlee
Older adults are at a higher risk for fatal house fire injury due to decreased mobility, chronic illness, and lack of smoke alarms. The purpose of this illustrative case study is to describe the home fire safety (HFS) status of an urban older adult who participated in a large study funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). During a home visit with the participant, HFS data were collected from documents, observation, physical artifacts, reflective logs, and interviews. Numerous HFS hazards were identified including non-working smoke alarms, inadequate number and inappropriate placement of smoke alarms, lack of carbon monoxide (CO) alarms, inability to identify a home fire escape plan, hot water heater temperature set too high, and cooking hazards. Identification of HFS risk factors will assist in the development of educational materials that can be tailored to the older adult population to decrease their risk of fire-related injuries and death. PMID:25362758
Application of the Bulgarian emergency response system in case of nuclear accident in environmental assessment study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Syrakov, Dimiter; Veleva, Blagorodka; Georgievs, Emilia; Prodanova, Maria; Slavov, Kiril; Kolarova, Maria
The development of the Bulgarian Emergency Response System (BERS) for short term forecast in case of accidental radioactive releases to the atmosphere has been started in the mid 1990's [1]. BERS comprises of two main parts - operational and accidental, for two regions 'Europe' and 'Northern Hemisphere'. The operational part runs automatically since 2001 using the 72 hours meteorological forecast from DWD Global model, resolution in space of 1.5o and in time - 12 hours. For specified Nuclear power plants (NPPs), 3 days trajectories are calculated and presented on NIMH's specialized Web-site (http://info.meteo.bg/ews/). The accidental part is applied when radioactive releases are reported or in case of emergency exercises. BERS is based on numerical weather forecast information and long-range dispersion model accounting for the transport, dispersion, and radioactive transformations of pollutants. The core of the accidental part of the system is the Eulerian 3D dispersion model EMAP calculating concentration and deposition fields [2]. The system is upgraded with a 'dose calculation module' for estimation of the prognostic dose fields of 31 important radioactive gaseous and aerosol pollutants. The prognostic doses significant for the early stage of a nuclear accident are calculated as follows: the effective doses from external irradiation (air submersion + ground shinning); effective dose from inhalation; summarized effective dose and absorbed thyroid dose [3]. The output is given as 12, 24, 36, 48, 60 and 72 hours prognostic dose fields according the updated meteorology. The BERS was upgraded to simulate the dispersion of nuclear materials from Fukushima NPP [4], and results were presented in NIMH web-site. In addition BERS took part in the respective ENSEMBLE exercises to model 131I and 137Cs in Fukushima source term. In case of governmental request for expertise BERS was applied for environmental impact assessment of hypothetical accidental transboundary
Assessing Species Habitat Using Google Street View: A Case Study of Cliff-Nesting Vultures
Olea, Pedro P.; Mateo-Tomás, Patricia
The assessment of a species' habitat is a crucial issue in ecology and conservation. While the collection of habitat data has been boosted by the availability of remote sensing technologies, certain habitat types have yet to be collected through costly, on-ground surveys, limiting study over large areas. Cliffs are ecosystems that provide habitat for a rich biodiversity, especially raptors. Because of their principally vertical structure, however, cliffs are not easy to study by remote sensing technologies, posing a challenge for many researches and managers working with cliff-related biodiversity. We explore the feasibility of Google Street View, a freely available on-line tool, to remotely identify and assess the nesting habitat of two cliff-nesting vultures (the griffon vulture and the globally endangered Egyptian vulture) in northwestern Spain. Two main usefulness of Google Street View to ecologists and conservation biologists were evaluated: i) remotely identifying a species' potential habitat and ii) extracting fine-scale habitat information. Google Street View imagery covered 49% (1,907 km) of the roads of our study area (7,000 km2). The potential visibility covered by on-ground surveys was significantly greater (mean: 97.4%) than that of Google Street View (48.1%). However, incorporating Google Street View to the vulture's habitat survey would save, on average, 36% in time and 49.5% in funds with respect to the on-ground survey only. The ability of Google Street View to identify cliffs (overall accuracy = 100%) outperformed the classification maps derived from digital elevation models (DEMs) (62–95%). Nonetheless, high-performance DEM maps may be useful to compensate Google Street View coverage limitations. Through Google Street View we could examine 66% of the vultures' nesting-cliffs existing in the study area (n = 148): 64% from griffon vultures and 65% from Egyptian vultures. It also allowed us the extraction of fine-scale features of
Assessing species habitat using Google Street View: a case study of cliff-nesting vultures.
Olea, Pedro P; Mateo-Tomás, Patricia
The assessment of a species' habitat is a crucial issue in ecology and conservation. While the collection of habitat data has been boosted by the availability of remote sensing technologies, certain habitat types have yet to be collected through costly, on-ground surveys, limiting study over large areas. Cliffs are ecosystems that provide habitat for a rich biodiversity, especially raptors. Because of their principally vertical structure, however, cliffs are not easy to study by remote sensing technologies, posing a challenge for many researches and managers working with cliff-related biodiversity. We explore the feasibility of Google Street View, a freely available on-line tool, to remotely identify and assess the nesting habitat of two cliff-nesting vultures (the griffon vulture and the globally endangered Egyptian vulture) in northwestern Spain. Two main usefulness of Google Street View to ecologists and conservation biologists were evaluated: i) remotely identifying a species' potential habitat and ii) extracting fine-scale habitat information. Google Street View imagery covered 49% (1,907 km) of the roads of our study area (7,000 km²). The potential visibility covered by on-ground surveys was significantly greater (mean: 97.4%) than that of Google Street View (48.1%). However, incorporating Google Street View to the vulture's habitat survey would save, on average, 36% in time and 49.5% in funds with respect to the on-ground survey only. The ability of Google Street View to identify cliffs (overall accuracy = 100%) outperformed the classification maps derived from digital elevation models (DEMs) (62-95%). Nonetheless, high-performance DEM maps may be useful to compensate Google Street View coverage limitations. Through Google Street View we could examine 66% of the vultures' nesting-cliffs existing in the study area (n = 148): 64% from griffon vultures and 65% from Egyptian vultures. It also allowed us the extraction of fine-scale features of cliffs
Environmental assessment on electrokinetic remediation of multimetal-contaminated site: a case study.
Kim, Do-Hyung; Yoo, Jong-Chan; Hwang, Bo-Ram; Yang, Jung-Seok; Baek, Kitae
In this study, an environmental assessment on an electrokinetic (EK) system for the remediation of a multimetal-contaminated real site was conducted using a green and sustainable remediation (GSR) tool. The entire EK process was classified into major four phases consisting of remedial investigations (RIs), remedial action construction (RAC), remedial action operation (RAO), and long-term monitoring (LTM) for environmental assessment. The environmental footprints, including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, total energy used, air emissions of criteria pollutants, such as NOx, SOx, and PM10, and water consumption, were calculated, and the relative contribution in each phase was analyzed in the environmental assessment. In the RAC phase, the relative contribution of the GHG emissions, total energy used, and PM10 emissions were 77.3, 67.6, and 70.4%, respectively, which were higher than those of the other phases because the material consumption and equipment used for system construction were high. In the RAO phase, the relative contributions of water consumption and NOx and SOx emissions were 94.7, 85.2, and 91.0%, respectively, which were higher than those of the other phases, because the water and electricity consumption required for system operation was high. In the RIs and LTM phases, the environmental footprints were negligible because the material and energy consumption was less. In conclusion, the consumable materials and electrical energy consumption might be very important for GSR in the EK remediation process, because the production of consumable materials and electrical energy consumption highly affects the GHG emissions, total energy used, and air emissions such as NOx and SOx. PMID:24515871
Combining Learning and Assessment in Assessment-Based Gaming Environments: A Case Study from a New York City School
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Zapata-Rivera, Diego; VanWinkle, Waverely; Doyle, Bryan; Buteux, Alyssa; Bauer, Malcolm
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to propose and demonstrate an evidence-based scenario design framework for assessment-based computer games. Design/methodology/approach: The evidence-based scenario design framework is presented and demonstrated by using BELLA, a new assessment-based gaming environment aimed at supporting student learning of…
Assessing shelf aggregate environmental compatibility and suitability for beach nourishment: a case study for Tuscany (Italy).
Bigongiari, Nicola; Cipriani, Luigi E; Pranzini, Enzo; Renzi, Monia; Vitale, Giovanni
Beach nourishment practices are a key aspect in coastal management plans for stakeholders and communities. Stemming from a concrete case-study (Tuscany), this research analyzes: (i) principal problems of current law regulating dredging, (ii) gaps in technical guidelines, (iii) advantages of integrated approaches to the decision-making process, (iv) possible applicable nourishment options and their costs and benefits. Our results show that sand compatibility is driven mainly by grain-size stability due to the occurrence of lower pollution levels in off-shore deposits than in threatened beaches, thus current laws and guidelines should be improved to fill the evident gap in the evaluation process and to include a more complete approach to data evaluation and an integrated approach to ecotoxicity evaluation, which is relevant in cases of geochemical anomalies. The cost-benefit analysis performed indicates that only dredging intended to manage more than 1 million m(3) of aggregates would represent a real advantage for local communities. PMID:25684591
Integrative Indicator for Assessing the Alert Levels of Algal Bloom in Lakes: Lake Taihu as a Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Li, Qinqin; Hu, Weiping; Zhai, Shuhua
Algal blooms have recently become one of the most serious environmental problems in eutrophic freshwater ecosystems worldwide. Although many observation and simulation approaches have been applied to predict algal blooms, few studies have addressed the alert levels of algal blooms using integrative indicators in a large lake with multiple service function and significant horizontal heterogeneity. This study developed an integrative indicator assessment system (IIAS) to rank the alert level of algal blooms. In the IIAS, algal biomass, area percentage, distance from drinking water intake points, distance from scenic zones and duration of algal bloom were used as indicators to calculate a comprehensive alert level, which was classified into five grades (Vigilance, Low, Moderate, High, and Severe). Lake Taihu was taken as a case study to assess the comprehensive alert level of algal blooms in 2007 and 2010. The comprehensive alert level showed obvious spatial-temporal patterns, with an acceptable accuracy in Lake Taihu. The comprehensive alert levels were relatively higher in typical phytoplankton subzones than typical hydrophytes subzones and are more sensitive to weight factor in the northern and western subzones where high biomass usually occurs. Case study showed a very good application of the proposed comprehensive alert level assessment methodology, which can be adjusted to predict the degree of hazard of algal blooms in multi-service function large lakes to help the government and decision makers to act to prevent the disaster from algal bloom spreading.
Integrative Indicator for Assessing the Alert Levels of Algal Bloom in Lakes: Lake Taihu as a Case Study.
Li, Qinqin; Hu, Weiping; Zhai, Shuhua
Algal blooms have recently become one of the most serious environmental problems in eutrophic freshwater ecosystems worldwide. Although many observation and simulation approaches have been applied to predict algal blooms, few studies have addressed the alert levels of algal blooms using integrative indicators in a large lake with multiple service function and significant horizontal heterogeneity. This study developed an integrative indicator assessment system (IIAS) to rank the alert level of algal blooms. In the IIAS, algal biomass, area percentage, distance from drinking water intake points, distance from scenic zones and duration of algal bloom were used as indicators to calculate a comprehensive alert level, which was classified into five grades (Vigilance, Low, Moderate, High, and Severe). Lake Taihu was taken as a case study to assess the comprehensive alert level of algal blooms in 2007 and 2010. The comprehensive alert level showed obvious spatial-temporal patterns, with an acceptable accuracy in Lake Taihu. The comprehensive alert levels were relatively higher in typical phytoplankton subzones than typical hydrophytes subzones and are more sensitive to weight factor in the northern and western subzones where high biomass usually occurs. Case study showed a very good application of the proposed comprehensive alert level assessment methodology, which can be adjusted to predict the degree of hazard of algal blooms in multi-service function large lakes to help the government and decision makers to act to prevent the disaster from algal bloom spreading. PMID:26296739
Assessment of Urban Vegetation using Remote Sensing Data: a Case Study in Seoul, Korea
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kim, H.; Kim, J.; Yeom, J.; Kim, Y.
Vegetation in the city has various positive effects on the entire urban ecosystem: it reduces CO2 and air temperature, improves air quality, helps to maintain the water balance of natural ground, decreases surface overflow during floods, and provides food source as well as living space for diverse wildlife. Urban green areas also have a social and educational role, e.g. for recreational activity, positive experience in a natural environment, and perception of seasonal changes. In addition, citizens can find a balance between urban green and built up spaces. However, the very high intensity of land use in urban areas changes the local urban ecosystem to a large degree and leads to enormous stress for the urban vegetation. In this study, we aim to develop a method for assessing effects of urban vegetation on ecosystem function using remote sensing technology. We use multispectral RapidEye satellite and LiDAR data for the classification of urban vegetation types in metropolitan area Seoul and test different kinds of vegetation indices focusing on the red edge of RapidEye data to assess the stress degree of the vegetation.
Development of stressor-response models for an ecological risk assessment case study
Nacci, D.E.; Munns, W.R.; Cayula, S.; Serbst, J.; Johnston, R.K.; Walker, H.A.
An estuarine ecological risk assessment for the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (Kittery, ME) is being conducted following the US EPA`s Framework for Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA). As part of the Analysis phase of the ERA, laboratory studies were conducted to develop stressor-response models for lead, the primary contaminant of concern. Thirty-day exposures to adult sea urchins, Arbacia punctulata, occurred via food or suspended sediment. Exposure media were amended with lead sulfate to 10--100 or 100--300 times uncontaminated levels for the Feeding or Sediment Experiments, respectively. The sea urchin experimental model was selected because it permitted the measurement of biological endpoints with significance at the population level (e.g., adult survival and reproduction success), including those used in standard marine bioassays (i.e., fertilization and larval development). Feeding Experiment treatments produced few effects. Sediment Experiment treatments resulted in reductions in survival, growth and reproductive output of exposed adults and were directly toxic to early lifestages. However, in uncontaminated sea water, gametes from Sediment Experiment adults fertilized and completed larval development normally. Data from these experimental systems will be used to produce models relating lead exposure to specific biological responses and, ultimately, ecological risk.
Environmental assessment of recycled printing and writing paper: a case study in China.
Hong, Jinglan; Li, Xiangzhi
A life cycle assessment was conducted using IMPACT2002+ to estimate the environmental impact of producing printing and writing paper, which is entirely made with wastepaper. To confirm and add credibility to the study, uncertainty analysis was conducted using Taylor series expansion. Printing and writing paper produced from wood pulp was assessed for comparison. Compared with the wood pulp contained scenario, printing and writing paper made from wastepaper represented environmental benefit on non-carcinogens, respiratory inorganics, global warming, and non-renewable energy categories. In both scenarios, the technologies significantly contribute to the potential impacts of non-carcinogens, respiratory inorganics, terrestrial ecotoxicity, global warming, and non-renewable energy. The influence of the technologies on the way other categories affect the environment was negligible. Improved efficiency in electricity consumption, decreased transport distance from raw material buyers to suppliers, and change in the end-life treatment of solid waste from landfill to incineration are the key factors in reducing the overall environmental impact. PMID:22040712
Validating the Octave Allegro Information Systems Risk Assessment Methodology: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Keating, Corland G.
An information system (IS) risk assessment is an important part of any successful security management strategy. Risk assessments help organizations to identify mission-critical IS assets and prioritize risk mitigation efforts. Many risk assessment methodologies, however, are complex and can only be completed successfully by highly qualified and…
A Model for Higher Education Policy Review: The Case Study of an Assessment Policy
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Harvey, Marina; Kosman, Bronwyn
The development of a standards-based assessment policy represented a significant cultural shift in assessment practice at one university. Concurrently, the implementation of a policy framework represented a significant procedural shift in policy development and review. The assessment policy was the first policy scheduled to be reviewed through the…
Assessing Institutional Support for Service-Learning: A Case Study of Organizational Sensemaking
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chadwick, Scott A.; Pawlowski, Donna R.
This paper provides an example of how institutional service-learning assessment data can be used to drive organizational change. Furco's (1999) self-assessment rubric for the institutionalization of service-learning in higher education is used in modified form as the instrument through which organizational-level assessments were made. The process…
Examining Gender Differences in Written Assessment Tasks in Biology: A Case Study of Evolutionary Explanations
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Federer, Meghan Rector; Nehm, Ross H.; Pearl, Dennis K.
Understanding sources of performance bias in science assessment provides important insights into whether science curricula and/or assessments are valid representations of student abilities. Research investigating assessment bias due to factors such as instrument structure, participant characteristics, and item types are well documented across a…
Developing Learning Objectives and Assessment Plans at a Variety of Institutions: Examples and Case Studies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Towns, Marcy H.
Across the United States many chemistry departments are engaged in developing assessment plans. New guidelines from the American Chemical Society (ACS) Committee on Professional Training request a department's latest self-assessment and a plan for acting on the recommendations. This manuscript describes assessment practices at institutions ranging…
Using personal and fictional documents to assess psychosocial development: a case study of Vera Brittain's generativity.
Peterson, B E; Stewart, A J
Adult diaries and novels written by the British feminist and pacifist Vera Brittain (1893-1970) were content analyzed for Eriksonian themes of identity, intimacy, and generativity. Brittain's concerns with identity and intimacy decreased over time, while her generative concerns increased, suggesting that she expressed the issue of generativity vs. stagnation in her mid-life diaries and fiction. The large number of identity themes relative to both intimacy and generativity provokes speculations about Brittain's personality, the characteristics of writers, the influence of gender, the impact of society, and the possibility that the crisis of identity vs. role confusion involves the last major structural change in personality development. This archival case study is consistent with Erikson's notion of a sequence of concerns with psychosocial issues, although directions for theoretical revision and elaboration are discussed. PMID:2242244
Assessment of Supply Chain Energy Efficiency Potentials: A U.S. Case Study
Masanet, Eric; Kramer, Klaas Jan; Homan, Gregory; Brown, Richard; Worrell, Ernst
This paper summarizes a modeling framework that characterizes the key underlying technologies and processes that contribute to the supply chain energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a variety of goods and services purchased by U.S. consumers. The framework couples an input-output supply chain modeling approach with"bottom-up" fuel end use models for individual IO sectors. This fuel end use modeling detail allows energy and policy analysts to better understand the underlying technologies and processes contributing to the supply chain energy and GHG"footprints" of goods and services. To illustrate the policy-relevance of thisapproach, a case study was conducted to estimate achievable household GHG footprint reductions associated with the adoption of best practice energy-efficient supply chain technologies.
Cortical auditory evoked potentials in the assessment of auditory neuropathy: two case studies.
Pearce, Wendy; Golding, Maryanne; Dillon, Harvey
Infants with auditory neuropathy and possible hearing impairment are being identified at very young ages through the implementation of hearing screening programs. The diagnosis is commonly based on evidence of normal cochlear function but abnormal brainstem function. This lack of normal brainstem function is highly problematic when prescribing amplification in young infants because prescriptive formulae require the input of hearing thresholds that are normally estimated from auditory brainstem responses to tonal stimuli. Without this information, there is great uncertainty surrounding the final fitting. Cortical auditory evoked potentials may, however, still be evident and reliably recorded to speech stimuli presented at conversational levels. The case studies of two infants are presented that demonstrate how these higher order electrophysiological responses may be utilized in the audiological management of some infants with auditory neuropathy. PMID:17715648
Assessment of Supply Chain Energy Efficiency Potentials: A U.S. Case Study
Masanet, Eric; Kramer, Klaas Jan; Homan, Gregory; Brown, Richard; Worrell, Ernst
This paper summarizes a modeling framework that characterizes the key underlying technologies and processes that contribute to the supply chain energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of a variety of goods and services purchased by U.S. consumers. The framework couples an input-output supply chain modeling approach with"bottom-up" fuel end use models for individual IO sectors. This fuel end use modeling detail allows energy and policy analysts to better understand the underlying technologies and processes contributing to the supply chain energy and GHG"footprints" of goods and services. To illustrate the policy-relevance of this approach, a case study was conducted to estimate achievable household GHG footprint reductions associated with the adoption of best practice energy-efficient supply chain technologies.
Rockfall hazard assessment by using terrestrial laser scanning. A case study in Funchal (Madeira)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nguyen, Hieu Trung; Fernandez-Steeger, Tomas; Domingos, Rodriguez; Wiatr, Thomas; Azzam, Rafig
simulations. By implantation of the high resolution scans of the TLS into the local DEM, an improvement close to a solely high-resolution digital elevation model (HRDEM) can be achieved. The rockfall hazard assessment starts by comparison of time-shifted datasets and with additional automatic jointing analysis. Based on this data 3-D displacements and associated kinematical failure mechanism can be identified. Using on this information, it becomes possible to determine specific parameters for numerical rockfall simulations like average block sizes, shape or potential sources. Including additional data like surface roughness the results of numerical rockfall simulations allow to classify different areas of hazard based on run-out distances, frequency of impacts and related kinetic energy. The analysis shows that rockfall favourable occurs in areas where notches and undercuts, due to the lesser erosionresistence of pyroclatics or tuff layers, appear. In case of a rockfall the typical blocks have a cylindrical shape, a volume of 1 m3 and are able to hit the entire area. The results can help to provide useful information for civil protection and engineering countermeasures. Repeated TLS scans on the same area will continue the observation and the progress of instability and mass movement occurrence.
The added value of water footprint assessment for national water policy: a case study for Morocco.
Schyns, Joep F; Hoekstra, Arjen Y
A Water Footprint Assessment is carried out for Morocco, mapping the water footprint of different activities at river basin and monthly scale, distinguishing between surface- and groundwater. The paper aims to demonstrate the added value of detailed analysis of the human water footprint within a country and thorough assessment of the virtual water flows leaving and entering a country for formulating national water policy. Green, blue and grey water footprint estimates and virtual water flows are mainly derived from a previous grid-based (5 × 5 arc minute) global study for the period 1996-2005. These estimates are placed in the context of monthly natural runoff and waste assimilation capacity per river basin derived from Moroccan data sources. The study finds that: (i) evaporation from storage reservoirs is the second largest form of blue water consumption in Morocco, after irrigated crop production; (ii) Morocco's water and land resources are mainly used to produce relatively low-value (in US$/m3 and US$/ha) crops such as cereals, olives and almonds; (iii) most of the virtual water export from Morocco relates to the export of products with a relatively low economic water productivity (in US$/m3); (iv) blue water scarcity on a monthly scale is severe in all river basins and pressure on groundwater resources by abstractions and nitrate pollution is considerable in most basins; (v) the estimated potential water savings by partial relocation of crops to basins where they consume less water and by reducing water footprints of crops down to benchmark levels are significant compared to demand reducing and supply increasing measures considered in Morocco's national water strategy. PMID:24919194
Personal Metabolism (PM) coupled with Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) model: Danish Case Study.
Kalbar, Pradip P; Birkved, Morten; Kabins, Simon; Nygaard, Simon Elsborg
Sustainable and informed resource consumption is the key to make everyday living sustainable for entire populations. An intelligent and strategic way of addressing the challenges related with sustainable development of the everyday living of consumers is to identify consumption-determined hotspots in terms of environmental and health burdens, as well as resource consumptions. Analyzing consumer life styles in terms of consumption patterns in order to identify hotspots is hence the focus of this study. This is achieved by taking into account the entire value chain of the commodities consumed in the context of environmental and human health burdens, as well as resource consumptions. A systematic commodity consumption, commodity disposal, and life style survey of 1281 persons living in urbanized Danish areas was conducted. The findings of the survey showed new impact dimensions in terms of Personal Metabolism (PM) patterns of residents living in urbanized areas of Denmark. Extending the PM analysis with Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) provided a clear picture of the per capita environmental and human health burdens, as well as resource consumptions, and the exact origin hereof. A generic PM-LCA Model for all the 1281 persons was set-up in Gabi 6. The assessment results obtained applying the model on all 1281 personal consumption scenarios yielded the 1281 Personal Impact Profiles (PIPs). Consumption of food and energy (electricity and thermal energy) proved to be the primary impact sources of PM, followed by transport. The PIPs further revealed that behavioral factors (e.g. different diets, use of cars, household size) affect the profiles. Hence, behavioral changes are one means out of many that humanity will most likely have to rely on during the sustainable development process. The results of this study will help the Danish and other comparable populations to identify and prioritize the steps towards reducing their environmental, human health, and resource consumption
The Added Value of Water Footprint Assessment for National Water Policy: A Case Study for Morocco
Schyns, Joep F.; Hoekstra, Arjen Y.
A Water Footprint Assessment is carried out for Morocco, mapping the water footprint of different activities at river basin and monthly scale, distinguishing between surface- and groundwater. The paper aims to demonstrate the added value of detailed analysis of the human water footprint within a country and thorough assessment of the virtual water flows leaving and entering a country for formulating national water policy. Green, blue and grey water footprint estimates and virtual water flows are mainly derived from a previous grid-based (5×5 arc minute) global study for the period 1996–2005. These estimates are placed in the context of monthly natural runoff and waste assimilation capacity per river basin derived from Moroccan data sources. The study finds that: (i) evaporation from storage reservoirs is the second largest form of blue water consumption in Morocco, after irrigated crop production; (ii) Morocco's water and land resources are mainly used to produce relatively low-value (in US$/m3 and US$/ha) crops such as cereals, olives and almonds; (iii) most of the virtual water export from Morocco relates to the export of products with a relatively low economic water productivity (in US$/m3); (iv) blue water scarcity on a monthly scale is severe in all river basins and pressure on groundwater resources by abstractions and nitrate pollution is considerable in most basins; (v) the estimated potential water savings by partial relocation of crops to basins where they consume less water and by reducing water footprints of crops down to benchmark levels are significant compared to demand reducing and supply increasing measures considered in Morocco's national water strategy. PMID:24919194
Assessing the regional ecological security: methodology and a case study for the western Jilin Province, China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Li, Xiaoyan; Xue, Linfu; Wang, Xikui
Ecological security can be investigated in both broad sense and narrow sense. Because of the wide area and regional discrepancy in influencing factors and ecological background, the investigation on regional environment hasn't been done systematically. Assessment on regional security in fragile region is important content of sustainable development. The western Jilin Province lines in the semi-arid agro-pastoral interweaving belt (APIB),within which agriculture and animal husbandry interplay or frequently alternate with each other. Study on the regional ecological security of this region offer the scientific support for protecting the regional environment and sustainability. This article set up the Pressure-State-Response model according to the interaction between human and environmental system, and assessed the ecological safety degree in the western part of Jilin Province in year 2000, using compound model and Grid method based on GIS and RS. The Ecological Security Index (ESI) was calculated by multilayer synthesis with liner weighting function method, which divided the area into the following five different conditions: highly damaged, moderately damaged, early stages of damage, relative safely, and safety, regarding change of environmental key point as the threshold value that varied under the stress of human activity. The results show that eco-environment in study area is at medial level. The early stage of damage and relative safely level occupies the largest area proportion accounting for 68.61%. Furthermore, the condition in the eastern part is better than that of the western part and the most serious degradation is found in the middle part of the study area. When talking about the ten counties in the region, highly damaged area accounts for a very small percentage. The county that has the widest area of relatively secured area is Qian'an, and that of the smallest is Da'an. The areas of highly damaged area in Tongyu, Zhenlai and Da'an have exceeded 10% and
Assessing the performance of SIA in the EIA context: A case study of South Africa
Pisani, Jacobus A. du . E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com; Sandham, Luke A.
This article, a theoretical perspective based on a literature study, is a critical evaluation of SIA as part of the EIA process in South Africa against the background of international guidelines and best practices. It includes sections on the historical background of the development of SIA in South Africa, the legal status and requirements of SIA in the country, and a critical evaluation of SIA regulation in South Africa. The conclusion reached in the article is that the persistent problems of SIA practice, experienced in other parts of the world, are also evident in South Africa. Apart from institutional, financial and professional constraints, there are also serious problems associated with approach and methods. This conclusion confirms the findings of empirical studies that SIA in South Africa is neglected, that the practice of SIA in South Africa is not yet on a sound footing, and that it does not receive the professional attention it deserves in a country beset by enormous social challenges. To conclude the article recommendations are made to improve the level of SIA practice in South Africa, and the possible significance of this national case study for international practice is indicated.
Assessment of Vitamin K2 Levels in Osteoporotic Patients: A Case Control Study
Noori, Akram; Lashkari, Mahin; Oveisi, Sonia; Khah, Mohamad Reza Khair; Zargar, Ali
Objective: The aim of this study was to measure the level of Vitamin K2 (Vit K2) in osteoporotic patients and individuals with normal bone density as controls. Materials and Methods: This case-control study was done in Outpatient Department of Rheumatology at Qazvin Boo-ali Sina Hospital in 2013. Participants were 50 patients with osteoporotic densitometry measured by DEXA (T score≤ -2.5) who were matched with 48 persons in control group with normal bone density (T score> -1). The level of Vit K2 in samples was measured using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Data were analyzed by Mann-Whitney U test and Chi-square test. Results: The level of Vit K2 in patients with osteoporosis was not significantly different from the control group ( Median: 75.95 vs. 71.35 nmol/L, respectively; P-value: 0.709). The authors determined cut-offs 75 percentile of vitamin K2 in all participants that was 85 nmol/L and percentages of persons in two groups were similar. Conclusion: Although Vit K2 level in patients with osteoporosis was not significantly different from the control group, further studies are necessary to confirm the association of osteoporosis and Vit K2. PMID:25363106
Reconstruction assessment of historical land use: A case study in the Kamo River basin, Kyoto, Japan
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Luo, Pingping; Takara, Kaoru; Apip; He, Bin; Nover, Daniel
Reconstruction assessment of historical land use can be useful for understanding historical conditions and the impact of long-term land-use change. This study establishes a new method to estimate historical land use based on a set of basic rules generated from the comparison of present land-use and historical documents. This method has been formalized in the paleo-land-use reconstruction (PLUR) program, allowing users to quickly reconstruct historical land use using historical information. The 1843, 1902 and 1927 historical land use conditions were generated using the PLUR model for the Kamo River basin (KRB). Our results show that between 1902 and 1976, three golf courses (Ohara Public course, Kamigamo course and Funayama course) replaced forest land in the KRB. As a result of agricultural development, the area occupied by paddy fields in 1843 was 2.48 km2 less than that in 1902. Urban areas increased from 1843 to 1976, mainly reflecting declining coverage of paddy fields after 1902. The approach presented in this study can be used to support land-use change analyses and reconstruction of paleo-hydrology. This study also provides a discussion of the major drivers of land use change.
Drought risk assessments of water resources systems under climate change: a case study in Southern Taiwan
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yang, T. C.; Chen, C.; Kuo, C. M.; Tseng, H. W.; Yu, P. S.
This study aims at assessing the impact of climate change on drought risk in a water resources system in Southern Taiwan by integrating the weather generator, hydrological model and simulation model of reservoir operation. Three composite indices with multi-aspect measurements of reservoir performance (i.e. reliability, resilience and vulnerability) were compared by their monotonic behaviors to find a suitable one for the study area. The suitable performance index was then validated by the historical drought events and proven to have the capability of being a drought risk index in the study area. The downscaling results under A1B emission scenario from seven general circulation models were used in this work. The projected results show that the average monthly mean inflows during the dry season tend to decrease from the baseline period (1980-1999) to the future period (2020-2039); the average monthly mean inflows during the wet season may increase/decrease in the future. Based on the drought risk index, the analysis results for public and agricultural water uses show that the occurrence frequency of drought may increase and the severity of drought may be more serious during the future period than during the baseline period, which makes a big challenge on water supply and allocation for the authorities of reservoir in Southern Taiwan.
Using Dust Assessment Technology to Leverage Mine Site Manager-Worker Communication and Health Behavior: A Longitudinal Case Study
Haas, Emily J.; Cecala, Andrew B.; Hoebbel, Cassandra L.
Research continues to investigate barriers to managing occupational health and safety behaviors among the workforce. Recent literature argues that (1) there is a lack of consistent, multilevel communication and application of health and safety practices, and (2) social scientific methods are absent when determining how to manage injury prevention in the workplace. In response, the current study developed and tested a multilevel intervention case study at two industrial mineral mines to help managers and workers communicate about and reduce respirable silica dust exposures at their mine sites. A dust assessment technology, the Helmet-CAM, was used to identify and encourage communication about potential problem areas and tasks on site that contributed to elevated exposures. The intervention involved pre- and post-assessment field visits, four weeks apart that included multiple forms of data collection from workers and managers. Results revealed that mine management can utilize dust assessment technology as a risk communication tool to prompt and communicate about healthier behaviors with their workforce. Additionally, when workers were debriefed with the Helmet-CAM data through the device software, the dust exposure data can help improve the knowledge and awareness of workers, empowering them to change subtle behaviors that could reduce future elevated exposures to respirable silica dust. This case study demonstrates that incorporating social scientific methods into the application of health and safety management strategies, such as behavioral modification and technology integration, can leverage managers' communication practices with workers, subsequently improving health and safety behaviors. PMID:26807445
Use of genomic data in risk assessment case study: II. Evaluation of the dibutyl phthalate toxicogenomic data set
Euling, Susan Y.; White, Lori D.; Kim, Andrea S.; Sen, Banalata; Wilson, Vickie S.; Keshava, Channa; Keshava, Nagalakshmi; Hester, Susan; Ovacik, Meric A.; Ierapetritou, Marianthi G.; Androulakis, Ioannis P.; Gaido, Kevin W.
An evaluation of the toxicogenomic data set for dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and male reproductive developmental effects was performed as part of a larger case study to test an approach for incorporating genomic data in risk assessment. The DBP toxicogenomic data set is composed of nine in vivo studies from the published literature that exposed rats to DBP during gestation and evaluated gene expression changes in testes or Wolffian ducts of male fetuses. The exercise focused on qualitative evaluation, based on a lack of available dose–response data, of the DBP toxicogenomic data set to postulate modes and mechanisms of action for the male reproductive developmental outcomes, which occur in the lower dose range. A weight-of-evidence evaluation was performed on the eight DBP toxicogenomic studies of the rat testis at the gene and pathway levels. The results showed relatively strong evidence of DBP-induced downregulation of genes in the steroidogenesis pathway and lipid/sterol/cholesterol transport pathway as well as effects on immediate early gene/growth/differentiation, transcription, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor signaling and apoptosis pathways in the testis. Since two established modes of action (MOAs), reduced fetal testicular testosterone production and Insl3 gene expression, explain some but not all of the testis effects observed in rats after in utero DBP exposure, other MOAs are likely to be operative. A reanalysis of one DBP microarray study identified additional pathways within cell signaling, metabolism, hormone, disease, and cell adhesion biological processes. These putative new pathways may be associated with DBP effects on the testes that are currently unexplained. This case study on DBP identified data gaps and research needs for the use of toxicogenomic data in risk assessment. Furthermore, this study demonstrated an approach for evaluating toxicogenomic data in human health risk assessment that could be applied to future chemicals
Validating workplace performance assessments in health sciences students: a case study from speech pathology.
McAllister, Sue; Lincoln, Michelle; Ferguson, Allison; McAllister, Lindy
Valid assessment of health science students' ability to perform in the real world of workplace practice is critical for promoting quality learning and ultimately certifying students as fit to enter the world of professional practice. Current practice in performance assessment in the health sciences field has been hampered by multiple issues regarding assessment content and process. Evidence for the validity of scores derived from assessment tools are usually evaluated against traditional validity categories with reliability evidence privileged over validity, resulting in the paradoxical effect of compromising the assessment validity and learning processes the assessments seek to promote. Furthermore, the dominant statistical approaches used to validate scores from these assessments fall under the umbrella of classical test theory approaches. This paper reports on the successful national development and validation of measures derived from an assessment of Australian speech pathology students' performance in the workplace. Validation of these measures considered each of Messick's interrelated validity evidence categories and included using evidence generated through Rasch analyses to support score interpretation and related action. This research demonstrated that it is possible to develop an assessment of real, complex, work based performance of speech pathology students, that generates valid measures without compromising the learning processes the assessment seeks to promote. The process described provides a model for other health professional education programs to trial. PMID:24064577
Needs assessment for reducing pesticide risk: a case study with farmers in Vietnam.
Phung, Dung Tri; Connell, Des; Miller, Greg; Rutherford, Shannon; Chu, Cordia
The objective of this study was to identify the needs for and solutions to pesticide risk reduction for farmers in Vietnam, using a comprehensive needs assessment model applied for evaluating community needs and policy development. Four kinds of needs were evaluated using qualitative research methods. A comparative analysis of pesticide regulations was used to identify comparative needs. In-depth interviews with authorities and experts were conducted to identify normative needs. Observations on farmer's practice were used to identify expressed needs, and focus group discussions among farmers were implemented to identify felt needs. The needs for pesticide regulations obtained from comparative analysis and experts include enhancement of pesticide legislation; multisectoral involvement in pesticide regulations; improvement of capacity for sectors involving in pesticide regulations; risk-benefit guidance for pesticide registration; reforms of pesticide regulations relating to the restriction, cancellation, suspension, transport, storage, and disposal of pesticides; and the development of occupational hygiene and safety policy and programs for agricultural activities. The expressed needs based on field observations comprise improvement in knowledge and behavior of farmers about pesticide safety with specific areas, and supports in safety facilities and personal protective equipment. The key request from farmers include needs about technical training for occupational safety and hygiene of pesticide application, and support for safety facilities for pesticide application and protective equipment. The results of comprehensive needs assessment were useful in the development of a range of strategies in legislative improvement, workplace and personal hygiene, information and training, and medical surveillance and pesticide poisoning first aids for pesticide risk reduction for Vietnamese farmers. PMID:24125044
Spatial assessment of monitoring network in coastal waters: a case study of Kuwait Bay.
Al-Mutairi, Nawaf; AbaHussain, Asma; El-Battay, Ali
Spatial analyses of water-quality-monitoring networks in coastal waters are important because pollution sources vary temporally and spatially. This study was conducted to evaluate the spatial distribution of the water-quality-monitoring network of Kuwait Bay using both geostatistical and multivariate techniques. Three years of monthly data collected from six existing monitoring stations covering Kuwait Bay between 2009 and 2011 were employed in conjunction with data collected from 20 field sampling sites. Field sampling locations were selected based on a stratified random sampling scheme oriented by an existing classification map of Kuwait Bay. Two water quality datasets obtained from different networks were compared by cluster analysis applied to the Water Quality Index (WQI) and other water quality parameters, after which the Kriging method was used to generate distribution maps of water quality for spatial assessment. Cluster analysis showed that the current monitoring network does not represent water quality patterns in Kuwait Bay. Specifically, the distribution maps revealed that the existing monitoring network is inadequate for heavily polluted areas such as Sulaibikhat Bay and the northern portion of Kuwait Bay. Accordingly, the monitoring system in Kuwait Bay must be revised or redesigned. The geostatistical approach and cluster analysis employed in this study will be useful for evaluating future proposed modifications to the monitoring stations network in Kuwait Bay. PMID:26362877
Water quality assessment of aquatic ecosystems using ecological criteria – case study in Bulgaria
Damyanova, Sonya; Ivanova, Iliana; Ignatova, Nadka
Four aquatic ecosystems (two rivers and two dams) situated in the western part of Bulgaria were investigated over a three years' period. The River Egulya and Petrohan dam are situated in mountainous regions at about 1000 m altitude, and are not influenced by any anthropogenic sources. Petrohan dam is a site for long-term ecosystem research as a part of Bulgarian long-term ecological research network. The other two systems belong to populated industrial areas. The River Martinovska flows through a region with former long-term mining activity, while Ogosta dam is near a battery production factory. Both the geochemical and geographical ecosystems' conditions are different, and their social usage as well. Ogosta dam water is used for irrigation and Petrohan dam for electric supply. The ecosystem sensitivity to heavy metals was evaluated by a critical load approach. Two criteria were used for risk assessment: critical load exceedance and microbial toxicity test. All studied ecosystems were more sensitive to cadmium than to lead deposition. The potential risk of Cd damage is higher for Petrohan dam and the River Egulya, where critical load exceedance was calculated for two years. Pseudomonas putida growth inhibition test detected a lack of toxicity for all studied ecosystems at the time of investigation with the exception of the low water September sample of the River Martinovska. The fast bacterial test is very suitable for a regular measurement of water toxicity because of its simplicity, lack of sophisticated equipment and clear results. PMID:26019591
A case study using the PrOACT-URL and BRAT frameworks for structured benefit risk assessment.
Nixon, Richard; Dierig, Christoph; Mt-Isa, Shahrul; Stöckert, Isabelle; Tong, Thaison; Kuhls, Silvia; Hodgson, Gemma; Pears, John; Waddingham, Ed; Hockley, Kimberley; Thomson, Andrew
While benefit-risk assessment is a key component of the drug development and maintenance process, it is often described in a narrative. In contrast, structured benefit-risk assessment builds on established ideas from decision analysis and comprises a qualitative framework and quantitative methodology. We compare two such frameworks, applying multi-criteria decision-analysis (MCDA) within the PrOACT-URL framework and weighted net clinical benefit (wNCB), within the BRAT framework. These are applied to a case study of natalizumab for the treatment of relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis. We focus on the practical considerations of applying these methods and give recommendations for visual presentation of results. In the case study, we found structured benefit-risk analysis to be a useful tool for structuring, quantifying, and communicating the relative benefit and safety profiles of drugs in a transparent, rational and consistent way. The two frameworks were similar. MCDA is a generic and flexible methodology that can be used to perform a structured benefit-risk in any common context. wNCB is a special case of MCDA and is shown to be equivalent to an extension of the number needed to treat (NNT) principle. It is simpler to apply and understand than MCDA and can be applied when all outcomes are measured on a binary scale. PMID:25619173
Flood hazard and flood risk assessment using a time series of satellite images: a case study in Namibia.
Skakun, Sergii; Kussul, Nataliia; Shelestov, Andrii; Kussul, Olga
In this article, the use of time series of satellite imagery to flood hazard mapping and flood risk assessment is presented. Flooded areas are extracted from satellite images for the flood-prone territory, and a maximum flood extent image for each flood event is produced. These maps are further fused to determine relative frequency of inundation (RFI). The study shows that RFI values and relative water depth exhibit the same probabilistic distribution, which is confirmed by Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. The produced RFI map can be used as a flood hazard map, especially in cases when flood modeling is complicated by lack of available data and high uncertainties. The derived RFI map is further used for flood risk assessment. Efficiency of the presented approach is demonstrated for the Katima Mulilo region (Namibia). A time series of Landsat-5/7 satellite images acquired from 1989 to 2012 is processed to derive RFI map using the presented approach. The following direct damage categories are considered in the study for flood risk assessment: dwelling units, roads, health facilities, and schools. The produced flood risk map shows that the risk is distributed uniformly all over the region. The cities and villages with the highest risk are identified. The proposed approach has minimum data requirements, and RFI maps can be generated rapidly to assist rescuers and decisionmakers in case of emergencies. On the other hand, limitations include: strong dependence on the available data sets, and limitations in simulations with extrapolated water depth values. PMID:24372226
Assessing community readiness for overweight and obesity prevention in pre-adolescent girls: a case study
Background Childhood overweight and obesity is a global public health concern. For girls in particular, being overweight or obese during pre-adolescence (aged 7–11 years) has intergenerational implications for both the mother and her future offspring. In the United Kingdom (UK) there is increasing interest in community targeted interventions but less is known about how to tailor these approaches to the needs of the community. This study applied the Community Readiness Model (CRM), for the first time in the UK, to demonstrate its applicability in designing tailored interventions. Methods Community readiness assessment was conducted using semi-structured key informant interviews. The community's key informants were identified through focus groups with pre-adolescent girls. The interviews addressed the community's efforts; community knowledge of the efforts; leadership; community climate; community knowledge of the issue and resources available to support the issue. Interviews were conducted until the point of theoretical saturation and questions were asked separately regarding physical activity (PA) and healthy eating and drinking (HED) behaviours. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and were firstly analysed thematically and then scored using the assessment guidelines produced by the CRM authors. Results Readiness in this community was higher for PA than for HED behaviours. The lowest scores related to the community's 'resources' and the 'community knowledge of the issue'; affirming these two issues as the most appropriate initial targets for intervention. In terms of resources, there is also a need for resources to support the development of HED efforts beyond the school. Investment in greater physical education training for primary school teachers was also identified as an intervention priority. To address the community's knowledge of the issue, raising the awareness of the prevalence of pre-adolescent girls' health behaviours is a
ALOS DEM quality assessment in a rugged topography, A Lebanese watershed as a case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Abdallah, Chadi; El Hage, Mohamad; Termos, Samah; Abboud, Mohammad
Deriving the morphometric descriptors of the Earth's surface from satellite images is a continuing application in remote sensing, which has been distinctly pushed with the increasing availability of DEMs at different scales, specifically those derived from high to very high-resolution stereoscopic and triscopic image data. The extraction of the morphometric descriptors is affected by the errors of the DEM. This study presents a procedure for assessing the quality of ALOS DEM in terms of position and morphometric indices. It involves evaluating the impact of the production parameters on the altimetric accuracy through checking height differences between Ground Control Points (GCP) and the corresponding DEM points, on the planimetric accuracy by comparing extracted drainage lines with topographic maps, and on the morphometric indices by comparing profiles extracted from the DEM with those measured on the field. A twenty set of triplet-stereo imagery from the PRISM instrument on the ALOS satellite has been processed to acquire a 5 m DEM covering the whole Lebanese territories. The Lebanese topography is characterized by its ruggedness with two parallel mountainous chains embedding a depression (The Bekaa Valley). The DEM was extracted via PCI Geomatica 2013. Each of the images required 15 GCPs and around 50 tie points. Field measurements was carried out using differential GPS (Trimble GeoXH6000, ProXRT receiver and the LaserACE 1000 Rangefinder) on Al Awali watershed (482 km2, about 5% of the Lebanese terrain). 3545 GPS points were collected at all ranges of elevation specifying the Lebanese terrain diversity, ranging from cliffy, to steep and gently undulating terrain along with narrow and wide flood plains and including predetermined profiles. Moreover, definite points such as road intersections and river beds were also measured in order to assess the extracted streams from the DEM. ArcGIS 10.1 was also utilized to extract the drainage network. Preliminary results
Assessment of post-operative pain in cats: a case study on veterinary students of Universiti Putra Malaysia.
Lim, Mei Yan; Chen, Hui Cheng; Omar, Mohamed Ariff
The ability to assess and control pain is listed as one of the desired Day One competencies among veterinary graduates. As such, a study was conducted to examine the current status and effectiveness of a video-based training module on the attitude toward and knowledge of pain assessment in cats among fourth- and final-year veterinary students of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in January of 2013. A total of 92 students participated in this study, resulting in a response rate of 60.1%. Upon completion of a pre-training survey, the respondents undertook an interactive video-based presentation, followed by a post-training survey. The majority of the students (96.7%) agreed on the importance of pain management. Before the training, many (76.1%) disagreed that they had received adequate training, while 53.3% were not confident in their pain-recognition skills. After training, their knowledge and confidence in pain assessment increased. Responses to the survey were not associated with differences in gender, level of study, or field of interest. Students were found to have mistaken some physiologic parameters as good pain indicators after ovariohysterectomy. Their assessment of three standardized video cases revealed that they could recognize prominent signs of pain but failed to identify changes in behavior that were more subtle. Refinement to the training module is required to address the above deficiencies. PMID:24589865
Quality Assessment of a Blended Studies Course in the Context of Open Learning Ideas: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Allan, Audrone; Lukoseviciute-Noreikiene, Ilona
This paper analyses problems of course evaluation in the frame work of open learning. It introduces the process of quality assessment of one specific blended learning course. The centre of research is an individual student. From his perspective, an attempt is being made to look at the course as an opening to new study possibilities. In addition,…
Developing an Information Literacy Assessment Rubric: A Case Study of Collaboration, Process, and Outcomes
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gola, Christina H.; Ke, Irene; Creelman, Kerry M.; Vaillancourt, Shawn P.
A team of four librarians at the University of Houston (UH) Libraries partnered with the UH Office of Institutional Effectiveness and its Director of Assessment and Accreditation Services for General Education to conduct a campus-wide, exploratory assessment of undergraduate information literacy skills. The project evaluated a selection of…
Assessment challenges in competency-based education: A case study in health professions education.
Fitzgerald, James T; Burkhardt, John C; Kasten, Steven J; Mullan, Patricia B; Santen, Sally A; Sheets, Kent J; Tsai, Antonius; Vasquez, John A; Gruppen, Larry D
There is a growing demand for health sciences faculty with formal training in education. Addressing this need, the University of Michigan Medical School created a Master in Health Professions Education (UM-MHPE). The UM-MHPE is a competency-based education (CBE) program targeting professionals. The program is individualized and adaptive to the learner's situation using personal mentoring. Critical to CBE is an assessment process that accurately and reliably determines a learner's competence in educational domains. The program's assessment method has two principal components: an independent assessment committee and a learner repository. Learners submit evidence of competence that is evaluated by three independent assessors. The assessments are presented to an Assessment Committee who determines whether the submission provides evidence of competence. The learner receives feedback on the submission and, if needed, the actions needed to reach competency. During the program's first year, six learners presented 10 submissions for review. Assessing learners in a competency-based program has created challenges; setting standards that are not readily quantifiable is difficult. However, we argue it is a more genuine form of assessment and that this process could be adapted for use within most competency-based formats. While our approach is demanding, we document practical learning outcomes that assess competence. PMID:26052881
The Role of Leadership and Culture in Creating Meaningful Assessment: A Mixed Methods Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Guetterman, Timothy C.; Mitchell, Nancy
With increased demands for institutional accountability and improved student learning, involvement in assessment has become a fundamental role of higher education faculty (Rhodes, 2010). However, faculty members and administrators often question whether assessment efforts do indeed improve student learning (Hutchings, 2010). This mixed methods…
Chapter 11: Monitoring and Assessment of Wetlands: Concepts, Case Studies, and Lessons Learned
Monitoring and assessment (M&A) have long been considered critical components of any resource management program where there is a need to evaluate progress and performance over time. Understanding the origins of current monitoring and assessment strategies and techniques for wetl...
Using Mobile Technologies for Assessment and Learning in Practice Settings: Outcomes of Five Case Studies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dearnley, Christine; Taylor, Jill; Hennessy, Scott; Parks, Maria; Coates, Catherine; Haigh, Jackie; Fairhall, John; Riley, Kevin; Dransfield, Mark
This article presents the outcomes of the Mobile Technologies Pilot Project for the Assessment and Learning in Practice Settings (ALPS) Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL). ALPS is a partnership of five Higher Education Institutions (HEI) that aims to develop and improve assessment, and thereby learning, in practice settings for…
Case Study: One Institution's Application of a Multiple Methods Assessment Framework
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Gustafson, Jacqueline N.; Daniels, Jessica R.; Smulski, Rachel J.
Program assessment has been a topic of significance in higher education over the last decade. Initially, program assessment was implemented in response to concerns over the quality of college graduates' education and increasing competiveness in the job market for American college graduates. Recently, higher education institutions have been…
The Role of Essay Tests Assessment in e-Learning: A Japanese Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Nakayama, Minoru; Yamamoto, Hiroh; Santiago, Rowena
e-Learning has some restrictions on how learning performance is assessed. Online testing is usually in the form of multiple-choice questions, without any essay type of learning assessment. Major reasons for employing multiple-choice tasks in e-learning include ease of implementation and ease of managing learner's responses. To address this…
Design Decisions in Developing Learning Trajectories-Based Assessments in Mathematics: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Penuel, William R.; Confrey, Jere; Maloney, Alan; Rupp, André A.
This article analyzes the design decisions of a team developing diagnostic assessments for a learning trajectory focused on rational number reasoning. The analysis focuses on the design rationale for key decisions about how to develop the cognitive assessments and related validity arguments within a fluid state and national policy context. The…
Case Study of Accreditation Reaffirmation with Emphasis on Assessment-Related Ambiguities
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Schmadeka, Wayne
At the urging of the U.S. Department of Education, regional accrediting organizations have, during the last few years, placed much greater emphasis on implementation of assessment as a requirement for accreditation. The battle to control the terms of assessment and ambiguity surrounding those terms impacts the 3,000 colleges that are subject to…
Measuring Learning in Serious Games: A Case Study with Structural Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wouters, Pieter; van der Spek, Erik D.; van Oostendorp, Herre
The effectiveness of serious games is often measured with verbal assessment. As an alternative we propose Pathfinder structural assessment (defined as measuring the learners' knowledge organization and compare this with a referent structure) which comprises three steps: knowledge elicitation, knowledge representation and knowledge evaluation. We…
Case Study of Accreditation Reaffirmation with Emphasis on Survival-Focused Prioritization for Program Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Schmadeka, Wayne
At the urging of the U.S. Department of Education, regional accrediting organizations have, during the last few years, placed much greater emphasis on implementation of assessment as a requirement for accreditation. Assessment serves two important purposes: institutional survival and improvement of student achievement. Of these two, survival is…
Gambling in the Iranian-American Community and an Assessment of Motives: A Case Study
Siani, Aaron; Campos, Michael D.; Rosenthal, Richard J.; Fong, Timothy W.
Nearly half a million United States residents identify themselves as being of Iranian origin, and many in this population are of high socioeconomic status. Although games of chance have been a notable part of Iranian culture for thousands of years, there is almost no research exploring gambling in this population. The objective of this case study is to explore gambling pathology, gambling behavior, and gambling motives among Iranian-Americans using a convenience sample (N=182) at a September 2010 Iranian festival in Southern California. Of this sample, 20% (n=37) and 7% (n=13) screened positive for problem and pathological gambling, respectively. According to the Gambling Motives Questionnaire, enhancement was the preferred motive for gambling ("because you like the feeling, because it's exciting, to get a high feeling, because it's fun, because it makes you feel good"). Pathological gamblers showed a considerable difference in subscale scores between enhancement and either coping or social motives, and problem gamblers showed a considerable difference between enhancement and coping motives. Possible explanations for the higher prevalence of gambling disorders in this sample are discussed. Our results support the notion that underlying cultural factors play a role in the development of gambling disorders. PMID:23814531
A case study for assessment of consistency between ASME Section III and XI rules
Zhao, Y.; Wilkowski, G.
A case study was conducted to evaluate how the current ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel (B and PV) Code Section XI nuclear piping flaw evaluation rules are affected by the design stress changes in increasing the allowable stress with the B and PV Code Section III piping design rules. A piping model was developed for this purpose from a realistic nuclear piping referred to as BM3 that has been used widely for developing or evaluating the nuclear piping design rules. The piping system was modified so that all the conditions required by the 1995 Section III rules are met. Seismic excitations and internal pressure were increased to reach the maximum allowable stresses under the Section III rules including the effects of pressure, deadweight, seismic inertia, seismic anchor motion, and thermal expansion. The stresses thus calculated elastically using a finite element analysis were then combined using the Section XI rules to evaluate whether the maximum stress ratios for flaw acceptance are exceeded that are allowed by Section XI IWB-3514 for the workmanship standard flaw sizes corresponding to current nondestructive examination capability at butt weld areas. Quantitative results were provided for discussions.
Supervised extensions of chemography approaches: case studies of chemical liabilities assessment
Chemical liabilities, such as adverse effects and toxicity, play a significant role in modern drug discovery process. In silico assessment of chemical liabilities is an important step aimed to reduce costs and animal testing by complementing or replacing in vitro and in vivo experiments. Herein, we propose an approach combining several classification and chemography methods to be able to predict chemical liabilities and to interpret obtained results in the context of impact of structural changes of compounds on their pharmacological profile. To our knowledge for the first time, the supervised extension of Generative Topographic Mapping is proposed as an effective new chemography method. New approach for mapping new data using supervised Isomap without re-building models from the scratch has been proposed. Two approaches for estimation of model's applicability domain are used in our study to our knowledge for the first time in chemoinformatics. The structural alerts responsible for the negative characteristics of pharmacological profile of chemical compounds has been found as a result of model interpretation. PMID:24868246
Assessment of water quality: a case study of the Seybouse River (North East of Algeria)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Guettaf, M.; Maoui, A.; Ihdene, Z.
The assessment of water quality has been carried out to determine the concentrations of different ions present in the surface waters. The Seybouse River constitutes a dump of industrial and domestic rejections which contribute to the degradation of water quality. A total of 48 surface water samples were collected from different stations. The first objective of this study is the use of water quality index (WQI) to evaluate the state of the water in this river. The second aim is to calculate the parameters of the quality of water destined for irrigation such as sodium adsorption ratio , sodium percentage, and residual sodium carbonate. A high mineralization and high concentration of major chemical elements and nutrients indicate inevitably a high value of WQI index. The mean value of electrical conductivity is about 945.25 µs/cm in the station 2 (Bouhamdane) and exceeds 1,400 µs/cm in station 12 of Nador. The concentration of sulfates is above 250 mg/l in the stations 8 (Zimba) and 11 (Helia). A concentration of orthophosphate over 2 mg/l was observed in the station 11. The comparison of the obtained and the WHO standards indicates a before using it use in agricultural purposes.
Supervised extensions of chemography approaches: case studies of chemical liabilities assessment.
Ovchinnikova, Svetlana I; Bykov, Arseniy A; Tsivadze, Aslan Yu; Dyachkov, Evgeny P; Kireeva, Natalia V
Chemical liabilities, such as adverse effects and toxicity, play a significant role in modern drug discovery process. In silico assessment of chemical liabilities is an important step aimed to reduce costs and animal testing by complementing or replacing in vitro and in vivo experiments. Herein, we propose an approach combining several classification and chemography methods to be able to predict chemical liabilities and to interpret obtained results in the context of impact of structural changes of compounds on their pharmacological profile. To our knowledge for the first time, the supervised extension of Generative Topographic Mapping is proposed as an effective new chemography method. New approach for mapping new data using supervised Isomap without re-building models from the scratch has been proposed. Two approaches for estimation of model's applicability domain are used in our study to our knowledge for the first time in chemoinformatics. The structural alerts responsible for the negative characteristics of pharmacological profile of chemical compounds has been found as a result of model interpretation. PMID:24868246
Towards generalised reference condition models for environmental assessment: a case study on rivers in Atlantic Canada.
Armanini, D G; Monk, W A; Carter, L; Cote, D; Baird, D J
Evaluation of the ecological status of river sites in Canada is supported by building models using the reference condition approach. However, geography, data scarcity and inter-operability constraints have frustrated attempts to monitor national-scale status and trends. This issue is particularly true in Atlantic Canada, where no ecological assessment system is currently available. Here, we present a reference condition model based on the River Invertebrate Prediction and Classification System approach with regional-scale applicability. To achieve this, we used biological monitoring data collected from wadeable streams across Atlantic Canada together with freely available, nationally consistent geographic information system (GIS) environmental data layers. For the first time, we demonstrated that it is possible to use data generated from different studies, even when collected using different sampling methods, to generate a robust predictive model. This model was successfully generated and tested using GIS-based rather than local habitat variables and showed improved performance when compared to a null model. In addition, ecological quality ratio data derived from the model responded to observed stressors in a test dataset. Implications for future large-scale implementation of river biomonitoring using a standardised approach with global application are presented. PMID:23250724
Human Health Risk Assessment due to Global Warming – A Case Study of the Gulf Countries
Husain, Tahir; Chaudhary, Junaid Rafi
Accelerated global warming is predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climatic Change (IPCC) due to increasing anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The climate changes are anticipated to have a long-term impact on human health, marine and terrestrial ecosystems, water resources and vegetation. Due to rising sea levels, low lying coastal regions will be flooded, farmlands will be threatened and scarcity of fresh water resources will be aggravated. This will in turn cause increased human suffering in different parts of the world. Spread of disease vectors will contribute towards high mortality, along with the heat related deaths. Arid and hot climatic regions will face devastating effects risking survival of the fragile plant species, wild animals, and other desert ecosystems. The paper presents future changes in temperature, precipitation and humidity and their direct and indirect potential impacts on human health in the coastal regions of the Gulf countries including Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain. The analysis is based on the long-term changes in the values of temperature, precipitation and humidity as predicted by the global climatic simulation models under different scenarios of GHG emission levels. Monthly data on temperature, precipitation, and humidity were retrieved from IPCC databases for longitude 41.25°E to 61.875°E and latitude 9.278°N to 27.833°N. Using an average of 1970 to 2000 values as baseline, the changes in the humidity, temperature and precipitation were predicted for the period 2020 to 2050 and 2070 to 2099. Based on epidemiological studies on various diseases associated with the change in temperature, humidity and precipitation in arid and hot regions, empirical models were developed to assess human health risk in the Gulf region to predict elevated levels of diseases and mortality rates under different emission scenarios as developed by the IPCC. The preliminary assessment indicates increased mortality rates
Human health risk assessment due to global warming--a case study of the Gulf countries.
Husain, Tahir; Chaudhary, Junaid Rafi
Accelerated global warming is predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climatic Change (IPCC) due to increasing anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The climate changes are anticipated to have a long-term impact on human health, marine and terrestrial ecosystems, water resources and vegetation. Due to rising sea levels, low lying coastal regions will be flooded, farmlands will be threatened and scarcity of fresh water resources will be aggravated. This will in turn cause increased human suffering in different parts of the world. Spread of disease vectors will contribute towards high mortality, along with the heat related deaths. Arid and hot climatic regions will face devastating effects risking survival of the fragile plant species, wild animals, and other desert ecosystems. The paper presents future changes in temperature, precipitation and humidity and their direct and indirect potential impacts on human health in the coastal regions of the Gulf countries including Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain. The analysis is based on the long-term changes in the values of temperature, precipitation and humidity as predicted by the global climatic simulation models under different scenarios of GHG emission levels. Monthly data on temperature, precipitation, and humidity were retrieved from IPCC databases for longitude 41.25 degrees E to 61.875 degrees E and latitude 9.278 degrees N to 27.833 degrees N. Using an average of 1970 to 2000 values as baseline, the changes in the humidity, temperature and precipitation were predicted for the period 2020 to 2050 and 2070 to 2099. Based on epidemiological studies on various diseases associated with the change in temperature, humidity and precipitation in arid and hot regions, empirical models were developed to assess human health risk in the Gulf region to predict elevated levels of diseases and mortality rates under different emission scenarios as developed by the IPCC.The preliminary assessment indicates
Integrated Earthquake Risk Assessment in the Kathmandu Valley - A Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Schaper, Julia; Anhorn, Johannes; Khazai, Bijan; Nüsser, Marcus
Rapid urban growth is a process which can be observed in cities worldwide. Managing these growing urban areas has become a major challenge for both governing bodies and citizens. Situated not only in a highly earthquake and landslide-prone area, but comprising also the cultural and political capital of Nepal, the fast expanding Kathmandu Valley in the Himalayan region is of particular interest. Vulnerability assessment has been an important tool for spatial planning in this already densely populated area. The magnitude 8.4 earthquake of Bihar in 1934 cost 8600 Nepalis their lives, destroyed 20% of the Kathmandu building stock and heavily damaged another 40%. Since then, Kathmandu has grown into a hub with over a million inhabitants. Rapid infrastructure and population growth aggravate the vulnerability conditions, particularly in the core area of Metropolitan Kathmandu. We propose an integrative framework for vulnerability and risk in Kathmandu Valley. In order to move towards a more systemic and integrated approach, we focus on interactions between natural hazards, physically engineered systems and society. High resolution satellite images are used to identify structural vulnerability of the building stock within the study area. Using object-based image analysis, the spatial dynamics of urban growth are assessed and validated using field data. Complementing this is the analysis of socio-economic attributes gained from databases and field surveys. An indicator-based vulnerability and resilience index will be operationalized using multi-attribute value theory and statistical methods such as principal component analysis. The results allow for a socio-economic comparison of places and their relative potential for harm and loss. The objective in this task is to better understand the interactions between nature and society, engineered systems and built environments through the development of an interdisciplinary framework on systemic seismic risk and vulnerability. Data
Assessment of Urban Plantation Climate-Regulating Function based on Remote Sensing Data (Case Study Moscow)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sandlerskiy, Robert
A variety of active surfaces in combination with various building levels forms a specific urban mode of atmospheric turbulence. The spatial combination of green plantings, asphalt and building defines a temperature and wind mode, and creates various air circulation systems. Influence of spatial structure and buildings height on a wind mode of urban territories is full enough studied in town-planning. Assessment of the input to formation of urban climate of surfaces with various heat capacity and, vegetation is not developed. This assessment can be based on the multispectral remote sensing data which contain information on energetic surface condition. Multispectral data development make possible a calculation of the basic energetic characteristics of surfaces: input and absorption of solar energy, energy consumption on evapotranspiration, thermal scattering and accumulation, a heat flux and temperature of surface. This technique gives a possibility to estimate a thermal mode of surface at various spatial scales. In world practice urban landscapes condition estimation based on remote data (Urban Remote Sensing) is underdeveloped, and focused, mainly, on temperature and heat flux estimation. For energetic characteristics estimation for Moscow territory we use Landsat 5 TM and 7 ETM + remote sensing data for three terms in the vegetational season: May (26/05/2003), July (21/07/2003), August (17/08/2007), with the spatial resolution 30х30 m for 6 channels in a short-wave range and 60х60 m - for the thermal channel. Mean values of calculated temperatures have been compared to daily temperatures on a municipal meteorological station. The calculated energetic characteristics have been analyzed to estimate independent factors which determine their spatial variation. Basing on the estimated factors we classify surface, and allocate surface types with a various temperature and energetic mode. Next we calculate mean values of energetic characteristics to each type. Type
Integrated assessment of urban vulnerability and resilience. Case study: Targu Ocna town, Romania
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Grozavu, Adrian; Bănică, Alexandru
Vulnerability assessment frequently emphasizes the internal fragility of a system in relation to a given hazard, when compared to similar systems or to a reference standard. This internal fragility, either biophysical or structural, may affect the ability to predict, to prepare for and cope with or to recover from the manifestation of a risk phenomenon. Thus, the vulnerability is highly related to resilience and adaptability. There is no single methodology for vulnerability and resilience analysis, their assessment can only be made by identifying and integrating indicators which are compatible with the analysis level and the geographic, economic and social features of a certain area. An integrated model of evaluating vulnerability and resilience capacity is being proposed in this paper for Targu Ocna, a small mining settlement in the Eastern Carpathians of Romania, that became in the last years a tourist town and acts within the surrounding territory as a dynamic local pole. Methodologically, the following steps and operations were considered: identifying potential hazards, identifying elements at risk, identifying proper indicators and integrating them in order to evaluate the general vulnerability and resilience. The inventory of elements at risk (the number of people potentially affected, residential or other functionalities buildings, roads and other infrastructure elements etc.) was made based on General Urban Plan, topographic maps (scale 1:5000), ortophotos from 2003 and 2008 and field mapping and researches. Further on, several vulnerability indicators were identified and included within the analytical approach: dependency ratio, income, quality of the habitat and technical urban facilities, environment quality showing differentiated sensitivity. Issues such as preparedness and preventive measures (priority areas within the risk prevention plans), coping ability (networks' geometry and connectivity, emergency utilities and services accessibility) and the
Assessment of bio-physical drought hazards. A case study of Karkheh River basin in Iran
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kamali, Bahareh; Abbaspour, Karim; Houshmand Kouchi, Delaram; Yang, Hong
Iran has been affected by frequent droughts. Climate change is expected to intensify the situation in the future. Extreme drought events have had serious impacts on hydrological and agricultural sector. Thus, identification of bio-physical drought hazard is critically important for formulating effective adaptive measures to improve water and food security. This study aims to investigate temporal and spatial pattern of drought hazards in meteorological, hydrological, and agricultural (inclusively biophysical) sectors in the Karkheh River Basin of Iran in the historical and future climate change context. To do so, drought hazard indices were built based on the severity and frequency of standardized precipitation index (SPI), standardized runoff index (SRI), and standardized soil moisture index (SSMI), which represent the three aspects of drought hazards. Variables required for calculating these indices were obtained from SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model constructed for the basin. The model was calibrated based on monthly runoff using the Sequential Uncertainty Fitting (SUFI-2) algorithm in SWAT-CUP. Based on the climate variability and drought analysis, three drought hazard classes, namely low, medium and high, were defined. This help identify how agricultural and hydrological sectors are related to meteorological droughts. Additionally, the bio-physical drivers of drought hazards were identified for each class. Comparing the results during historic and future scenarios revealed that the frequency of high- severity hazards will increase, whereas the same is not predicted for the area with medium hazard intensity. Inferred from findings of this study, the combined application of the SWAT model with bio-physical drought hazard concept helps better understanding of climate risks to water and food security. The developed approach is replicable at different scales to provide a robust planning tool for policy makers.
Environmental assessment of alternative municipal solid waste management strategies. A Spanish case study.
Bovea, M D; Ibáñez-Forés, V; Gallardo, A; Colomer-Mendoza, F J
The aim of this study is to compare, from an environmental point of view, different alternatives for the management of municipal solid waste generated in the town of Castellón de la Plana (Spain). This town currently produces 207 ton of waste per day and the waste management system employed today involves the collection of paper/cardboard, glass and light packaging from materials banks and of rest waste at street-side containers. The proposed alternative scenarios were based on a combination of the following elements: selective collection targets to be accomplished by the year 2015 as specified in the Spanish National Waste Plan (assuming they are reached to an extent of 50% and 100%), different collection models implemented nationally, and diverse treatments of both the separated biodegradable fraction and the rest waste to be disposed of on landfills. This resulted in 24 scenarios, whose environmental behaviour was studied by applying the life cycle assessment methodology. In accordance with the ISO 14040-44 (2006) standard, an inventory model was developed for the following stages of the waste management life cycle: pre-collection (bags and containers), collection, transport, pre-treatment (waste separation) and treatment/disposal (recycling, composting, biogasification+composting, landfill with/without energy recovery). Environmental indicators were obtained for different impact categories, which made it possible to identify the key variables in the waste management system and the scenario that offers the best environmental behaviour. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was used to test some of the assumptions made in the initial life cycle inventory model. PMID:20381331
Comparison of flood hazard assessments on desert piedmonts and playas: A case study in Ivanpah Valley, Nevada
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Robins, Colin R.; Buck, Brenda J.; Williams, Amanda J.; Morton, Janice L.; House, P. Kyle; Howell, Michael S.; Yonovitz, Maureen L.
Accurate and realistic characterizations of flood hazards on desert piedmonts and playas are increasingly important given the rapid urbanization of arid regions. Flood behavior in arid fluvial systems differs greatly from that of the perennial rivers upon which most conventional flood hazard assessment methods are based. Additionally, hazard assessments may vary widely between studies or even contradict other maps. This study's chief objective was to compare and evaluate landscape interpretation and hazard assessment between types of maps depicting assessments of flood risk in Ivanpah Valley, NV, as a case study. As a secondary goal, we explain likely causes of discrepancy between data sets to ameliorate confusion for map users. Four maps, including three different flood hazard assessments of Ivanpah Valley, NV, were compared: (i) a regulatory map prepared by FEMA, (ii) a soil survey map prepared by NRCS, (iii) a surficial geologic map, and (iv) a flood hazard map derived from the surficial geologic map, both of which were prepared by NBMG. GIS comparisons revealed that only 3.4% (33.9 km 2) of Ivanpah Valley was found to lie within a FEMA floodplain, while the geologic flood hazard map indicated that ~ 44% of Ivanpah Valley runs some risk of flooding (Fig. 2D). Due to differences in mapping methodology and scale, NRCS data could not be quantitatively compared, and other comparisons were complicated by differences in flood hazard class criteria and terminology between maps. Owing to its scale and scope of attribute data, the surficial geologic map provides the most useful information on flood hazards for land-use planning. This research has implications for future soil geomorphic mapping and flood risk mitigation on desert piedmonts and playas. The Ivanpah Valley study area also includes the location of a planned new international airport, thus this study has immediate implications for urban development and land-use planning near Las Vegas, NV.
Use of genomic data in risk assessment case study: II. Evaluation of the dibutyl phthalate toxicogenomic data set.
Euling, Susan Y; White, Lori D; Kim, Andrea S; Sen, Banalata; Wilson, Vickie S; Keshava, Channa; Keshava, Nagalakshmi; Hester, Susan; Ovacik, Meric A; Ierapetritou, Marianthi G; Androulakis, Ioannis P; Gaido, Kevin W
An evaluation of the toxicogenomic data set for dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and male reproductive developmental effects was performed as part of a larger case study to test an approach for incorporating genomic data in risk assessment. The DBP toxicogenomic data set is composed of nine in vivo studies from the published literature that exposed rats to DBP during gestation and evaluated gene expression changes in testes or Wolffian ducts of male fetuses. The exercise focused on qualitative evaluation, based on a lack of available dose-response data, of the DBP toxicogenomic data set to postulate modes and mechanisms of action for the male reproductive developmental outcomes, which occur in the lower dose range. A weight-of-evidence evaluation was performed on the eight DBP toxicogenomic studies of the rat testis at the gene and pathway levels. The results showed relatively strong evidence of DBP-induced downregulation of genes in the steroidogenesis pathway and lipid/sterol/cholesterol transport pathway as well as effects on immediate early gene/growth/differentiation, transcription, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor signaling and apoptosis pathways in the testis. Since two established modes of action (MOAs), reduced fetal testicular testosterone production and Insl3 gene expression, explain some but not all of the testis effects observed in rats after in utero DBP exposure, other MOAs are likely to be operative. A reanalysis of one DBP microarray study identified additional pathways within cell signaling, metabolism, hormone, disease, and cell adhesion biological processes. These putative new pathways may be associated with DBP effects on the testes that are currently unexplained. This case study on DBP identified data gaps and research needs for the use of toxicogenomic data in risk assessment. Furthermore, this study demonstrated an approach for evaluating toxicogenomic data in human health risk assessment that could be applied to future chemicals. PMID
A Case Study about the Use of E-Portfolio Assessment for Secondary Students with and without Disabilities in an Inclusive Classroom
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ferrer-Montes, Janette
This single case study examined how one inner city high school math teacher used e-portfolio assessment in an inclusive classroom setting. Specifically, it describes the teacher's perceptions and use of e-portfolio assessment, and its relationships to curricular content, as well as how the relationships among e-portfolio assessment,…
Incorporating Tsunami Projections to Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessments -A Case Study for Midway Atoll-
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gica, E.; Reynolds, M.
Recent global models predict a rise of approximately one meter in global sea level by 2100, with potentially larger increases in areas of the Pacific Ocean. If current climate change trends continue, low-lying islands across the globe may become inundated over the next century, placing island biodiversity at risk. Adding to the risk of inundation due to sea level rise is the occurrence of cyclones and tsunamis. This combined trend will affect the low-lying islands of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and it is therefore important to assess its impact since these islands are critical habitats to many endangered endemic species and support the largest tropical seabird rookery in the world. The 11 March 2011 Tohoku (Mw=8.8) earthquake-tsunami affected the habitat of many endangered endemic species in Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge because all three islands (Sand, Eastern and Spit) were inundated by tsunami waves. At present sea level, some tsunamis from certain source regions would not affect Midway Atoll. For example, the previous earthquake-tsunamis such as the 15 November 2006 Kuril (Mw=8.1) and 13 February 2007 Kuril (Mw=7.9) were not significant enough to affect Midway Atoll. But at higher sea levels, tsunamis with similar characteristics could pose a threat to such terrestrial habitats and wildlife. To visualize projected impacts to vegetation composition, wildlife habitat, and wildlife populations, we explored and analyzed inundation vulnerability for a range of possible sea level rise and tsunami scenarios at Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. Studying the combined threat of tsunamis and sea level rise can provide more accurate and comprehensive assessments of the vulnerability of the unique natural resources on low-lying islands. A passive sea level rise model was used to determine how much inundation will occur at different sea level rise values for the three islands of Midway Atoll and each scenario was coupled with NOAA Center for Tsunami
Flood Risk Assessment as a Part of Integrated Flood and Drought Analysis. Case Study: Southern Thailand
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Prabnakorn, Saowanit; Suryadi, Fransiscus X.; de Fraiture, Charlotte
Flood and drought are two main meteorological catastrophes that have created adverse consequences to more than 80% of total casualties universally, 50% by flood and 31% by drought. Those natural hazards have the tendency of increasing frequency and degree of severity and it is expected that climate change will exacerbate their occurrences and impacts. In addition, growing population and society interference are the other key factors that pressure on and exacerbate the adverse impacts. Consequently, nowadays, the loss from any disasters becomes less and less acceptable bringing about more people's consciousness on mitigation measures and management strategies and policies. In general, due to the difference in their inherent characteristics and time occurrences flood and drought mitigation and protection have been separately implemented, managed, and supervised by different group of authorities. Therefore, the objective of this research is to develop an integrated mitigation measure or a management policy able to surmount both problems to acceptable levels and is conveniently monitored by the same group of civil servants which will be economical in both short- and long-term. As aforementioned of the distinction of fundamental peculiarities and occurrence, the assessment processes of floods and droughts are separately performed using their own specific techniques. In the first part of the research flood risk assessment is focused in order to delineate the flood prone area. The study area is a river plain in southern Thailand where flooding is influenced by monsoon and depression. The work is mainly concentrated on physically-based computational modeling and an assortment of tools was applied for: data completion, areal rainfall interpolation, statistical distribution, rainfall-runoff analysis and flow model simulation. The outcome from the simulation can be concluded that the flood prone areas susceptible to inundation are along the riparian areas, particularly at the
Assessing the environmental justice consequences of flood risk: a case study in Miami, Florida
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Montgomery, Marilyn C.; Chakraborty, Jayajit
Recent environmental justice (EJ) research has emphasized the need to analyze social inequities in the distribution of natural hazards such as hurricanes and floods, and examine intra-ethnic diversity in patterns of EJ. This study contributes to the emerging EJ scholarship on exposure to flooding and ethnic heterogeneity by analyzing the racial/ethnic and socioeconomic characteristics of the population residing within coastal and inland flood risk zones in the Miami Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), Florida—one of the most ethnically diverse MSAs in the U.S. and one of the most hurricane-prone areas in the world. We examine coastal and inland flood zones separately because of differences in amenities such as water views and beach access. Instead of treating the Hispanic population as a homogenous group, we disaggregate the Hispanic category into relevant country-of-origin subgroups. Inequities in flood risk exposure are statistically analyzed using socio-demographic variables derived from the 2010 U.S. Census and 2007-2011 American Community Survey estimates, and 100-year flood risk zones from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Social vulnerability is represented with two neighborhood deprivation indices called economic insecurity and instability. We also analyze the presence of seasonal/vacation homes and proximity to public beach access sites as water-related amenity variables. Logistic regression modeling is utilized to estimate the odds of neighborhood-level exposure to coastal and inland 100-year flood risks. Results indicate that neighborhoods with greater percentages of non-Hispanic Blacks, Hispanics, and Hispanic subgroups of Colombians and Puerto Ricans are exposed to inland flood risks in areas without water-related amenities, while Mexicans are inequitably exposed to coastal flood risks. Our findings demonstrate the importance of treating coastal and inland flood risks separately while controlling for water-related amenities, and
High Resolution Tsunami Vulnerability Assessment for Coastal Utilities; Case Studies in the Sea of Marmara
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yalciner, A. C.; Aytore, B.; Cankaya, C.; Guler, H. G.; Suzen, L.; Zaytsev, A.; Arikawa, T.; Takashi, T.
Resilience of coastal utilities against earthquakes and tsunamis have major importance for efficient and proper rescue and recovery operations soon after disasters. Istanbul as a mega city have long coastline and strongly interact with Marmara sea with its dense coastal utilization. Yenikapi region and Haydarpasa port are two of major coastal utilities. Haydarpasa port has critical components such as the main transportation hub at Asian side of megacity Istanbul, cargo and container stock areas, ro-ro handling operations and passenger terminals. Yenikapi area serves different coastal activities and marine passenger transportation in the Marmara sea. High resolution GIS database of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) is analyzed and detaled bathymetry and topography database is developed considering vulnerability of the near shore structures and buildings. Two different tsunami numerical models i) NAMIDANCE code (2-Dimensional, depth averaged shallow water model with dispersion hybrid model) and ii) STOC-CADMAS System (Quasi 3-Dimensional in large domains and 3-Dimensional in small domains hybrid model) are used in nested domain in simulations. In this study the accurate vulnerability assessments of these coastal utilities are performed by utilizing high performance computing technology with high resolution bathymetry and topography data for Haydarpasa and Yenikapi regions based on accurate GIS data. The results of computed 2D and 3D numerical models and also the achievements by high performance Computing systems are evaluated. As the result, the computed tsunami parameters inside the coastal utilities are compared and discussed to clarify the benefits of using high resolution data and using the 2D and 3D numerical models.
Undisclosed chemicals--implications for risk assessment: a case study from the mining industry.
Singh, Khareen; Oates, Christopher; Plant, Jane; Voulvoulis, Nikolaos
Many of the chemicals used in industry can be hazardous to human health and the environment, and some formulations can have undisclosed ingredients and hazards, increasing the uncertainty of the risks posed by their use. The need for a better understanding of the extent of undisclosed information in chemicals arose from collecting data on the hazards and exposures of chemicals used in typical mining operations (copper, platinum and coal). Four main categories of undisclosed chemicals were defined (incomplete disclosure; chemicals with unspecific identities; relative quantities of ingredients not stated; and trade secret ingredients) by reviewing material safety data sheet (MSDS) omissions in previous studies. A significant number of chemicals (20% of 957 different chemicals) across the three sites had a range of undisclosed information, with majority of the chemicals (39%) having unspecific identities. The majority of undisclosed information was found in commercially available motor oils followed by cleaning products and mechanical maintenance products, as opposed to reagents critical to the main mining processes. All three types of chemicals had trade secrets, unspecific chemical identities and incomplete disclosures. These types of undisclosed information pose a hindrance to a full understanding of the hazards, which is made worse when combined with additional MSDS omissions such as acute toxicity endpoints (LD50) and/or acute aquatic toxicity endpoints (LC50), as well as inadequate hazard classifications of ingredients. The communication of the hazard information in the MSDSs varied according to the chemical type, the manufacturer and the regulations governing the MSDSs. Undisclosed information can undermine occupational health protection, compromise the safety of workers in industry, hinder risk assessment procedures and cause uncertainty about future health. It comes down to the duty of care that industries have towards their employees. With a wide range of
Assessment of Ultracamd Performance in AN Arid Environment - Case Study in Libya
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gneeniss, A. S.; Mills, J. P.; Miller, P. E.
Large format digital aerial cameras are now in widespread commercial operation. Despite the advantages of the new cameras over their traditional film counterparts, systematic image errors have been observed in all existing large format digital cameras. Organizations such as the USGS and EuroSDR have therefore focused efforts on calibration, validation and certification of digital camera systems. However, to-date, few studies have assessed the effects of extreme temperature and humidity variations on these camera systems, and the potential for self-calibration in this respect. This research addresses these issues through investigation of the UltraCamD, with test data acquired over a range of climatic zones in Libya. This presentation will report the preliminary results of self-calibration using a bundle block adjustment for an UltraCamD system, based upon aerial data acquired for two test sites during a single field campaign. The datasets were flown at two different flying heights and incorporate differing block geometries. A SOCET SET (v5.4.1) digital photogrammetric workstation was used to triangulate the imagery with investigation of different tie point densities. Following this, a self-calibrating bundle block adjustment was performed using the BLUH software provided by the University of Hannover. Initial testing investigated the influence of tie point density and different coordinate systems and datums on the bundle adjustment results. Further testing was then performed within BLUH in order to determine the optimal set of additional parameters, compensating for systematic image errors and impact upon object space coordinates of independent check points and ground control points.
Integrated GIS/AHP-based flood disaster risk assessment and zonation: a case study of Henan Province, China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Li, Junling; Chen, Huailiang; Liu, Zhongyang; Zou, Chunhui
In this paper, according to the flood risk-influencing hazard of disaster-formatire factors, the stability of hazard-pregnant environment and the vulnerability of hazard bearing body, the indexes of precipitation, runoff, river, terrain, population and economy are considered. Taking, Henan Province as the focus area, and county as the administrative unit, both the hazard assessment map and the vulnerability assessment map of the flood disaster are acquired based on GIS and AHP integrated method. Finally, the comprehensive hazard evaluating map of the flood disaster was drawn. The case study shows that the GIS-based category model is effective in flood risk zonation. Therefore the paper has a certain theoretical and practical significance.
Assessing potential spatial accessibility of health services in rural China: a case study of Donghai county
Introduction There is a great health services disparity between urban and rural areas in China. The percentage of people who are unable to access health services due to long travel times increases. This paper takes Donghai County as the study unit to analyse areas with physician shortages and characteristics of the potential spatial accessibility of health services. We analyse how the unequal health services resources distribution and the New Cooperative Medical Scheme affect the potential spatial accessibility of health services in Donghai County. We also give some advice on how to alleviate the unequal spatial accessibility of health services in areas that are more remote and isolated. Methods The shortest traffic times of from hospitals to villages are calculated with an O-D matrix of GIS extension model. This paper applies an enhanced two-step floating catchment area (E2SFCA) method to study the spatial accessibility of health services and to determine areas with physician shortages in Donghai County. The sensitivity of the E2SFCA for assessing variation in the spatial accessibility of health services is checked using different impedance coefficient valuesa. Geostatistical Analyst model and spatial analyst method is used to analyse the spatial pattern and the edge effect of potential spatial accessibility of health services. Results The results show that 69% of villages have access to lower potential spatial accessibility of health services than the average for Donghai County, and 79% of the village scores are lower than the average for Jiangsu Province. The potential spatial accessibility of health services diminishes greatly from the centre of the county to outlying areas. Using a smaller impedance coefficient leads to greater disparity among the villages. The spatial accessibility of health services is greater along highway in the county. Conclusions Most of villages are in underserved health services areas. An unequal distribution of health service
A case study of behavioral assessment and treatment of insect phobia.
Jones, K M; Friman, P C
We assessed the academic performance of a 14-year-old boy with insect phobia in the context of feared stimuli. The dependent measure was math calculation rate across three conditions that varied therapist statements about the presence of crickets and the actual presence of live crickets. Subsequent treatment consisted of graduated exposure and contingent rewards for math problem completion. Assessment results indicated that the boy's performance was consistently low in the presence of live crickets but not when he was spuriously informed that crickets were present (the primary referral concern). Treatment results indicated no effect from exposure alone and a dramatic effect when exposure was combined with contingent rewards. PMID:10201105
High Resolution Tsunami Modeling and Assessment of Harbor Resilience; Case Study in Istanbul
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cevdet Yalciner, Ahmet; Aytore, Betul; Gokhan Guler, Hasan; Kanoglu, Utku; Duzgun, Sebnem; Zaytsev, Andrey; Arikawa, Taro; Tomita, Takashi; Ozer Sozdinler, Ceren; Necmioglu, Ocal; Meral Ozel, Nurcan
Ports and harbors are the major vulnerable coastal structures under tsunami attack. Resilient harbors against tsunami impacts are essential for proper, efficient and successful rescue operations and reduction of the loss of life and property by tsunami disasters. There are several critical coastal structures as such in the Marmara Sea. Haydarpasa and Yenikapi ports are located in the Marmara Sea coast of Istanbul. These two ports are selected as the sites of numerical experiments to test their resilience under tsunami impact. Cargo, container and ro-ro handlings, and short/long distance passenger transfers are the common services in both ports. Haydarpasa port has two breakwaters with the length of three kilometers in total. Yenikapi port has one kilometer long breakwater. The accurate resilience analysis needs high resolution tsunami modeling and careful assessment of the site. Therefore, building data with accurate coordinates of their foot prints and elevations are obtained. The high resolution bathymetry and topography database with less than 5m grid size is developed for modeling. The metadata of the several types of structures and infrastructure of the ports and environs are processed. Different resistances for the structures/buildings/infrastructures are controlled by assigning different friction coefficients in a friction matrix. Two different tsunami conditions - high expected and moderate expected - are selected for numerical modeling. The hybrid tsunami simulation and visualization codes NAMI DANCE, STOC-CADMAS System are utilized to solve all necessary tsunami parameters and obtain the spatial and temporal distributions of flow depth, current velocity, inundation distance and maximum water level in the study domain. Finally, the computed critical values of tsunami parameters are evaluated and structural performance of the port components are discussed in regard to a better resilience. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Support by EU 603839 ASTARTE Project, UDAP-Ç-12
Climate change impact and adaptation research requires integrated assessment and farming systems analysis: a case study in the Netherlands
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Reidsma, Pytrik; Wolf, Joost; Kanellopoulos, Argyris; Schaap, Ben F.; Mandryk, Maryia; Verhagen, Jan; van Ittersum, Martin K.
Rather than on crop modelling only, climate change impact assessments in agriculture need to be based on integrated assessment and farming systems analysis, and account for adaptation at different levels. With a case study for Flevoland, the Netherlands, we illustrate that (1) crop models cannot account for all relevant climate change impacts and adaptation options, and (2) changes in technology, policy and prices have had and are likely to have larger impacts on farms than climate change. While crop modelling indicates positive impacts of climate change on yields of major crops in 2050, a semi-quantitative and participatory method assessing impacts of extreme events shows that there are nevertheless several climate risks. A range of adaptation measures are, however, available to reduce possible negative effects at crop level. In addition, at farm level farmers can change cropping patterns, and adjust inputs and outputs. Also farm structural change will influence impacts and adaptation. While the 5th IPCC report is more negative regarding impacts of climate change on agriculture compared to the previous report, also for temperate regions, our results show that when putting climate change in context of other drivers, and when explicitly accounting for adaptation at crop and farm level, impacts may be less negative in some regions and opportunities are revealed. These results refer to a temperate region, but an integrated assessment may also change perspectives on climate change for other parts of the world.
A watershed-based method for environmental vulnerability assessment with a case study of the Mid-Atlantic region
Tran, Liem T.; O'Neill, Robert V.; Smith, Elizabeth R.
The paper presents a method for environmental vulnerability assessment with a case study of the Mid-Atlantic region. The method is based on the concept of 'self-/peer-appraisal' of a watershed in term of vulnerability. The self-/peer-appraisal process is facilitated by two separate linear optimization programs. The analysis provided insights on the environmental conditions, in general, and the relative vulnerability pattern, in particular, of the Mid-Atlantic region. The suggested method offers a simple but effective and objective way to perform a regional environmental vulnerability assessment. Consequently the method can be used in various steps in environmental assessment and planning. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We present a method for regional environmental vulnerability assessment. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer It is based on the self-/peer-appraisal concept in term of vulnerability. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The analysis is facilitated by two separate linear optimization programs. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The method provides insights on the regional relative vulnerability pattern.
Gambling in the Iranian-American Community and an Assessment of Motives: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Parhami, Iman; Siani, Aaron; Campos, Michael D.; Rosenthal, Richard J.; Fong, Timothy W.
Nearly half a million United States residents identify themselves as being of Iranian origin, and many in this population are of high socioeconomic status. Although games of chance have been a notable part of Iranian culture for thousands of years, there is almost no research exploring gambling in this population. The objective of this case study…
An Evaluative Assessment of Two CrossRoads Alternative Schools Program Sites in Georgia (Case Study).
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Karlin, Shary L.; Harnish, Dorothy
This report describes an exploratory evaluative assessment of the first year of 2 alternative public schools for 117 chronically disruptive, committed, and/or non-attending students (grades 6-12) in Georgia. The CrossRoads program is intended to provide students with the social services, individualized instruction, and/or transitions to other…
Using Common Formative Assessments to Promote Student Achievement: A Case Study of Practice, Leadership, and Culture
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wall, Patricia T. C.
It is the moral responsibility of educators to work diligently to provide every student with rich, challenging coursework in efforts to prepare them for post high school careers and education. The use of common formative assessments provides teachers with the valuable, timely information they need to make instructional decisions that will better…
Child Protection Assessment in Humanitarian Emergencies: Case Studies from Georgia, Gaza, Haiti and Yemen
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ager, Alastair; Blake, Courtney; Stark, Lindsay; Daniel, Tsufit
Objectives: The paper reviews the experiences of conducting child protection assessments across four humanitarian emergencies where violence and insecurity, directly or indirectly, posed a major threat to children. We seek to identify common themes emerging from these experiences and propose ways to guide the planning and implementation of…
Elderly African Immigrants in Minnesota: A Case Study of Needs Assessment in Eight Cities
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Darboe, Kebba; Ahmed, Lul S.
Needs assessment is the process of identifying the gap between a target population's needs and its services. If a gap exists, a program can be designed to effectively respond to those needs. This article explores the needs of elderly African immigrants in Minnesota through the use of qualitative interviews. A convenience sampling was used to…
The Use of Biomonitoring Data in Exposure and Human Health Risk Assessment: BENZENE CASE STUDY.
HESI Biomonitoring Technical Committee A framework of "Common Criteria" (i.e., a series of questions) has been developed to inform the use and evaluation of biomonitoring data in the context of human exposure and risk assessment (Albertini et al., 2006). The data-rich chemical b...
Institutional Assessment in Colleges with Multiple Programmatic Accreditations: A Multiple Case Research Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Longenecker, Penni A.
Many colleges maintain multiple programmatic accreditations in addition to regional accreditation. Both programmatic and regional accrediting organizations require assessment of student learning and program/institutional effectiveness. This suggests that as the number of accreditations maintained by a college or university increases, the emphasis…
Assessment of BSBA Students' Conversancy in Current Business Issues: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hogan, Eileen A.; Maskulka, Therese A.; Kaminski, Kathleen A.
In 2008, the faculty of the College of Business at Kutztown University developed a set of five learning goals for its BSBA program. In fall, 2011, the college's Assurance of Learning Committee began to pursue the assessment of the last of these goals: "BSBA graduates will be conversant in current business issues, including ethics, social…
Diagnostic Assessment and Treatment of Reading Difficulties: A Case Study of Dyslexia
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Oviedo, Paula Outon; Gonzalez, Rebeca Abal
Dyslexia is a specific learning disability in reading and writing, which requires adequate early intervention to prevent future school failure. We describe the diagnostic assessment of a 7-year-old boy labelled "dyslexic", the evaluation of his family, social, medical, developmental, and academic status as a preliminary for the design and…
Eliciting and Assessing Reflective Practice: A Case Study in Web 2.0 Technologies
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Parkes, Kelly A.; Kajder, Sara
This paper focuses on the role of multimodal technologies in facilitating reflective processes and the subsequent assessment of reflectivity for students in pre-professional programs. Reflective practice has been established as a critical tool for developing identity in and on practice. This paper will focus firstly on reviewing salient literature…
This document reports on a program of research to investigate the integration of ecological risk assessment (ERA) and economics, with an emphasis on the watershed as the scale for analysis. In 1993, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency initiated watershed ERA (W-ERA) in five...
Assessing Information Literacy: A Case Study of Primary 5 Students in Hong Kong
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Chu, Samuel Kai Wah
This paper reports an exploratory investigation of the information-literacy levels of primary 5 students in Hong Kong. Factors such as gender and reading ability were also examined. Primary 5 students from four local schools completed a fourteen-item information-literacy assessment (ILA), which was adopted and modified from questions on the…
Motivations for and Barriers to the Implementation of Diagnostic Assessment Practices--A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Turner, Monica; VanderHeide, Katie; Fynewever, Herb; Shavelson, Richard J.
Given the importance of diagnostic assessment as a well-substantiated pedagogical strategy for use at various educational levels from kindergarten to the undergraduate level, we must consider its lack of implementation in the classroom. The implementation gap is especially severe at the tertiary level, with chemistry and other STEM (science,…
Assessing the 24/5 Library: A Case Study in Data and Perspectives
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Johnson, Ken; McCallister, Kelly
The 24-hour/5-days-per-week (24/5) model at Belk Library & Information Commons has experienced multiple changes since first implemented in 2006. First the library started small, then expanded, then reduced, and finally expanded again. This article tells the story of a library's 24/5 evolution within the assessment cycle framework, describes…
Using Functional Behavioral Assessment Data to Infer Learning Histories and Guide Interventions: A Consultation Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Parker, Megan; Skinner, Christopher; Booher, Joshua
A teacher requested behavioral consultation services to address a first-grade student's disruptive behavior. Functional behavior assessment (FBA) suggested the behavior was being reinforced by "negative" teacher attention (e.g., reprimands, redirections, response cost). Based on this analysis, the teacher and consultant posited that this student…
Over the past decade there has been a dramatic increase in the recognition and public health concern for children as a potentially susceptible population for exposure to environmental agents. The recently convened workshop to develop a framework for assessing the risks to childr...
Site characterization to support risk assessment of contaminated ground-water- some case studies
In the USA, "risk assessment" generally refers to an evaluation of the impact of a known concentration of a hazardous material in ground water on human health or environmental quality. This presentation is different. It deals with the impact of a spill or release of hazardous m...
Authentic Assessment in Physical Education: A Case Study of Game Sense Pedagogy
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Georgakis, Steve; Wilson, Rachel; Evans, John Robert
The use and promotion of the term authentic assessment (AA) in the literature and among physical education (PE) practitioners is widespread. However, the meaning and application of this concept are misunderstood, in education generally, in its application to PE, and in its application to specific pedagogical approaches within PE, such as Game…
Creativity-Based Assessment and Neural Understandings: A Discussion and Case Study Analysis
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Penaluna, Andrew; Coates, Jackie; Penaluna, Kathryn
Purpose: Enabling entrepreneurial creativity is a key aim of UK Government; however, there is a dearth of constructively aligned models of teaching and assessment. This paper aims to introduce design-based pedagogies and to highlight cognitive approaches that develop innovative mindsets; it seeks to indicate their propensity for adoption in…
Building Dams in Jordan, Assessing Teachers in England: A Case Study in Edu-Business
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mahony, Pat; Hextall, Ian; Menter, Ian
This paper describes, in the context of one highly circumscribed element of English educational policy, namely, "Threshold assessment," the ways in which the boundaries between the public and the private have become increasingly porous and blurred. In this context, some consequences and implications of private sector involvement in public…
Human biomonitoring is an effective tool in assessing exposure to hundreds of chemicals. Too often, however, biomarkers such as parent or metabolite concentrations in blood or urine are reported without information on doses associated with the biomarkers and implications for hum...
Risk assessment and stakeholder perceptions in novel biological control agent release: YST as a case study
Technology Transfer Automated Retrieval System (TEKTRAN)
The objectives of risk assessment are to learn about whether a candidate agent would be safe to use in the environment where release is planned, and to present such information in a clear, understandable format to regulators, stakeholders, and the public. Plant pathogens evaluated for biological co...
Assessing Extension Program Impact: Case Study of a Water Quality Program.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Bauder, J. W.
Montana State University conducted a voluntary, private well water test program (n=3400) to direct public attention to water quality education. Eighty-four percent of the respondents to an impact assessment questionnaire indicated that the program was moderately to very effective. Other results involved user awareness and understanding, and…
Adoption of Technological Innovations: A Case Study of the ASSESS Website
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Brooks, Sarah; Brown, Shane; Davis, Denny; LeBeau, Jennifer
In engineering education, assessment instruments are often developed to evaluate programs and projects. Unfortunately, these innovations are not always adopted by intended audiences. Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations (DI) Theory provides a framework to analyze characteristics of an innovation that will affect adoption. The Appraisal System for…
Safety distance assessment of industrial toxic releases based on frequency and consequence: a case study in Shanghai, China.
Yu, Q; Zhang, Y; Wang, X; Ma, W C; Chen, L M
A case study on the safety distance assessment of a chemical industry park in Shanghai, China, is presented in this paper. Toxic releases were taken into consideration. A safety criterion based on frequency and consequence of major hazard accidents was set up for consequence analysis. The exposure limits for the accidents with the frequency of more than 10(-4), 10(-5)-10(-4) and 10(-6)-10(-5) per year were mortalities of 1% (or SLOT), 50% (SLOD) and 75% (twice of SLOD) respectively. Accidents with the frequency of less than 10(-6) per year were considered incredible and ignored in the consequence analysis. Taking the safety distance of all the hazard installations in a chemical plant into consideration, the results based on the new criterion were almost smaller than those based on LC50 or SLOD. The combination of the consequence and risk based results indicated that the hazard installations in two of the chemical plants may be dangerous to the protection targets and measurements had to be taken to reduce the risk. The case study showed that taking account of the frequency of occurrence in the consequence analysis would give more feasible safety distances for major hazard accidents and the results were more comparable to those calculated by risk assessment. PMID:19345011
Human and ecological risk assessment of a crop protection chemical: a case study with the azole fungicide epoxiconazole.
Chambers, Janice E; Greim, Helmut; Kendall, Ronald J; Segner, Helmut; Sharpe, Richard M; Van Der Kraak, Glen
Conventional risk assessments for crop protection chemicals compare the potential for causing toxicity (hazard identification) to anticipated exposure. New regulatory approaches have been proposed that would exclude exposure assessment and just focus on hazard identification based on endocrine disruption. This review comprises a critical analysis of hazard, focusing on the relative sensitivity of endocrine and non-endocrine endpoints, using a class of crop protection chemicals, the azole fungicides. These were selected because they are widely used on important crops (e.g. grains) and thereby can contact target and non-target plants and enter the food chain of humans and wildlife. Inhibition of lanosterol 14α-demethylase (CYP51) mediates the antifungal effect. Inhibition of other CYPs, such as aromatase (CYP19), can lead to numerous toxicological effects, which are also evident from high dose human exposures to therapeutic azoles. Because of its widespread use and substantial database, epoxiconazole was selected as a representative azole fungicide. Our critical analysis concluded that anticipated human exposure to epoxiconazole would yield a margin of safety of at least three orders of magnitude for reproductive effects observed in laboratory rodent studies that are postulated to be endocrine-driven (i.e. fetal resorptions). The most sensitive ecological species is the aquatic plant Lemna (duckweed), for which the margin of safety is less protective than for human health. For humans and wildlife, endocrine disruption is not the most sensitive endpoint. It is concluded that conventional risk assessment, considering anticipated exposure levels, will be protective of both human and ecological health. Although the toxic mechanisms of other azole compounds may be similar, large differences in potency will require a case-by-case risk assessment. PMID:24274332
Assessing the Quality of Care for Pneumonia in Integrated Community Case Management: A Cross-Sectional Mixed Methods Study
Sinyangwe, Chomba; Graham, Kirstie; Nicholas, Sarala; King, Rebecca; Mukupa, Samuel; Källander, Karin; Counihan, Helen; Montague, Mark; Tibenderana, James; Hamade, Prudence
Background Pneumonia is the leading infectious cause of mortality in children under five worldwide. Community-level interventions, such as integrated community case management, have great potential to reduce the burden of pneumonia, as well as other diseases, especially in remote populations. However, there are still questions as to whether community health workers (CHW) are able to accurately assess symptoms of pneumonia and prescribe appropriate treatment. This research addresses limitations of previous studies using innovative methodology to assess the accuracy of respiratory rate measurement by CHWs and provides new evidence on the quality of care given for children with symptoms of pneumonia. It is one of few that assesses CHW performance in their usual setting, with independent re-examination by experts, following a considerable period of time post-training of CHWs. Methods In this cross-sectional mixed methods study, 1,497 CHW consultations, conducted by 90 CHWs in two districts of Luapula province, Zambia, were directly observed, with measurement of respiratory rate for children with suspected pneumonia recorded by video. Using the video footage, a retrospective reference standard assessment of respiratory rate was conducted by experts. Counts taken by CHWs were compared against the reference standard and appropriateness of the treatment prescribed by CHWs was assessed. To supplement observational findings, three focus group discussions and nine in depth interviews with CHWs were conducted. Results and Conclusion The findings support existing literature that CHWs are capable of measuring respiratory rates and providing appropriate treatment, with 81% and 78% agreement, respectively, between CHWs and experts. Accuracy in diagnosis could be strengthened through further training and the development of improved diagnostic tools appropriate for resource-poor settings. PMID:27011331
Automatic assessment of the motor state of the Parkinson's disease patient--a case study
This paper presents a novel methodology in which the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) data processed with a rule-based decision algorithm is used to predict the state of the Parkinson's Disease patients. The research was carried out to investigate whether the advancement of the Parkinson's Disease can be automatically assessed. For this purpose, past and current UPDRS data from 47 subjects were examined. The results show that, among other classifiers, the rough set-based decision algorithm turned out to be most suitable for such automatic assessment. Virtual slides The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1563339375633634. PMID:22340508
Integrated System Dynamics Modelling for water scarcity assessment: case study of the Kairouan region.
Sušnik, Janez; Vamvakeridou-Lyroudia, Lydia S; Savić, Dragan A; Kapelan, Zoran
A System Dynamics Model (SDM) assessing water scarcity and potential impacts of socio-economic policies in a complex hydrological system is developed. The model, simulating water resources deriving from numerous catchment sources and demand from four sectors (domestic, industrial, agricultural, external pumping), contains multiple feedback loops and sub-models. The SDM is applied to the Merguellil catchment, Tunisia; the first time such an integrated model has been developed for the water scarce Kairouan region. The application represents an early step in filling a critical research gap. The focus of this paper is to a) assess the applicability of SDM for assessment of the evolution of a water-scarce catchment and b) to analyse the current and future behaviour of the catchment to evaluate water scarcity, focusing on understanding trends to inform policy. Baseline results indicate aquifer over-exploitation, agreeing with observed trends. If current policy and social behaviour continue, serious aquifer depletion is possible in the not too distant future, with implications for the economy and environment. This is unlikely to occur because policies preventing depletion will be implemented. Sensitivity tests were carried out to show which parameters most impacted aquifer behaviour. Results show non-linear model behaviour. Some tests showed negligible change in behaviour. Others showed unrealistic exponential changes in demand, revenue and aquifer water volume. Policy-realistic parameters giving the greatest positive impact on model behaviour were those controlling per-capita domestic water demand and the pumped volume to coastal cities. All potentially beneficial policy options should be considered, giving the best opportunity for preservation of Kairouan aquifer water quantity/quality, ecologically important habitats and the agricultural socio-economic driver of regional development. SDM is a useful tool for assessing the potential impacts of possible policy measures
Is peer review useful in assessing research proposals in Indigenous health? A case study
Street, Jackie; Baum, Fran; Anderson, Ian PS
Background There has been considerable examination and critique of traditional (academic) peer review processes in quality assessment of grant applications. At the same time, the use of traditional research processes in Indigenous research has been questioned. Many grant funding organisations have changed the composition of their peer review panels to reflect these concerns but the question remains do these reforms go far enough? In this project we asked people working in areas associated with Aboriginal health research in a number of capacities, their views on the use of peer review in assessing Indigenous research proposals. Methods In semi-structured interviews we asked 18 individuals associated with an Australian Indigenous research funding organisation to reflect on their experience with peer review in quality assessment of grant applications. We also invited input from a steering group drawn from a variety of organisations involved in Aboriginal research throughout Australia and directly consulted with three Aboriginal-controlled health organisations. Results There was consensus amongst all participants that traditional academic peer review is inappropriate for quality assessment in Indigenous research. Many expressed the view that using a competitive grant review system in Aboriginal health was counterintuitive, since good research transfer is based on effective collaboration. The consensus within the group favoured a system which built research in a collaborative manner incorporating a variety of different stakeholders in the process. In this system, one-off peer review was still seen as valuable in the form of a "critical friend" who provided advice as to how to improve the research proposal. Conclusion Peer review in the traditional mould should be recognised as inappropriate in Aboriginal research. Building research projects relevant to policy and practice in Indigenous health may require a shift to a new way of selecting, funding and conducting research
Off-site toxic consequence assessment: a simplified modeling procedure and case study.
Guarnaccia, Joe; Hoppe, Tom
An assessment of off-site exposure from spills/releases of toxic chemicals can be conducted by compiling site-specific operational, geographic, demographic, and meteorological data and by using screening-level public-domain modeling tools (e.g., RMP Comp, ALOHA and DEGADIS). In general, the analysis is confined to the following: event-based simulations (allow for the use of known, constant, atmospheric conditions), known receptor distances (on the order of miles or less), short time scale for the distances considered (order of 10's of minutes or less), gently sloping rough terrain, dense and neutrally buoyant gas dispersion, known chemical inventory and infrastructure (used to define source-term), and known toxic endpoint (defines significance). While screening-level models are relatively simple to use, care must be taken to ensure that the results are meaningful. This approach allows one to assess risk from catastrophic release (e.g., via terrorism), or plausible release scenarios (related to standard operating procedures and industry standards). In addition, given receptor distance and toxic endpoint, the model can be used to predict the critical spill volume to realize significant off-site risk. This information can then be used to assess site storage and operation parameters and to determine the most economical and effective risk reduction measures to be applied. PMID:18053643
Incorporating natural hazard assessments into municipal master-plans; case-studies from Israel
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Katz, Oded
The active Dead Sea Rift (DSR) runs along the length of Israel, making the entire state susceptible to earthquake-related hazards. Current building codes generally acknowledge seismic hazards and direct engineers towards earthquake-resistant structures. However, hazard mapping on a scale fit for municipal/governmental planning is subject to local initiative and is currently not mandatory as seems necessary. In the following, a few cases of seismic-hazard evaluation made by the Geological Survey of Israel are presented, emphasizing the reasons for their initiation and the way results were incorporated (or not). The first case is a seismic hazard qualitative micro-zonation invited by the municipality of Jerusalem as part of a new master plan. This work resulted in maps (1:50,000; GIS format) identifying areas prone to (1) amplification of seismic shaking due to site characteristics (outcrops of soft rocks or steep topography) and (2) sites with earthquake induced landslide (EILS) hazard. Results were validated using reports from the 1927, M=6.2 earthquake that originated along the DSR about 30km east of Jerusalem. Although the hazard maps were accepted by municipal authorities, practical use by geotechnical engineers working within the frame of the new master-plan was not significant. The main reason for that is apparently a difference of opinion between the city-engineers responsible for implementing the new master-plan and the geologists responsible of the hazard evaluation. The second case involves evaluation of EILS hazard for two towns located further north along the DSR, Zefat and Tiberias. Both were heavily damaged more than once by strong earthquakes in past centuries. Work was carried out as part of a governmental seismic-hazard reduction program. The results include maps (1:10,000 scales) of sites with high EILS hazard identified within city limits. Maps (in GIS format) were sent to city engineers with reports explaining the methods and results. As far as
Probabilistic Impact Assessment of Domestic Rainwater Harvesting in Urban Slums: West Africa Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Cowden, J. R.; Watkins, D. W.; Mihelcic, J. R.; Fry, L. M.
Urban populations now exceed rural populations worldwide, creating unique challenges in providing basic services, especially in developing countries where informal or illegal settlements grow in peri-urban areas. West Africa is an acute example of the problems created by rapid urban growth, with high levels of urban poverty and low water and sanitation access rates. Although considerable effort has been made in providing improved water access and urban services to slum communities, research indicates that clean water access rates are not keeping up with urbanization rates in several areas of the world and that rapidly growing slum communities are beginning to overwhelm many prior water improvements projects. In the face of these challenges, domestic rainwater harvesting is proposed as a technologically appropriate and economically viable option for enhancing water supplies to urban slum households. However, assessing the reliability, potential health impacts, and overall cost-effectiveness of these systems on a regional level is difficult for several reasons. First, long daily rainfall records are not readily available in much of the developing world, including many regions of sub-Saharan Africa. Second, significant uncertainties exist in the relevant cost, water use, and health data. Third, to estimate the potential future impacts at the regional scale, various global change scenarios should be investigated. Finally, in addition to these technical challenges, there is also a need to develop relatively simple and transparent assessment methods for informing policy makers. A procedure is presented for assessment of domestic rainwater harvesting systems using a combination of scenario, sensitivity, and trade-off analyses. Using data from West Africa, simple stochastic weather models are developed to generate rainfall sequences for the region, which are then used to estimate the reliability of providing a range of per capita water supplies. Next, a procedure is
This draft report is a description of an approach to evaluate genomic data for use in risk assessment and a case study to illustrate the approach. The dibutyl phthalate (DBP) case study example focuses on male reproductive developmental effects and the qualitative application of...
A methodology for risk assessment of municipal infrastructure due to climate change: a case study of London, Ontario
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Bowering, E.; Peck, A.; Simonovic, S.
Natural hazards are increasing in severity as a consequence of climate change. These hazards affect all aspects of municipal infrastructure. Thus a region must adapt its policies and procedures to mitigate the increasing risk to its infrastructure. The purpose of this study is to develop and test a methodology for engineering assessment of risk to municipal infrastructure due to climate change. Proposed methodology includes climate, hydrologic and hydraulic modeling as input for engineering risk assessment. Climate analysis uses Weather Generator as a tool to combine Global Circulation Models (GCMs) with regional historical data to output plausible climate scenarios. The present study focuses on flooding and temperature extremes which are relevant to the region under consideration. Hydrologic analysis uses the climate scenarios as input to the HEC-HMS model to determine streamflows. These streamflows are input to the HEC-RAS and GeoHEC-RAS as part of the hydraulic analysis to generate floodplain maps in a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) environment. The engineering risk assessment comprises of both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Water elevations and municipal infrastructure maps are combined using GIS to determine flood inundation levels. These loads are used in combination with infrastructure capacities to evaluate quantitative risk indices. Fuzzy set theory is used to address uncertainties associated with subjective criteria in qualitative analysis. This is accomplished by using membership functions to model ambiguity in various impact data interpretation. These membership functions are created through interviews held with experts in the fields of transportation, water supply and distribution, wastewater management and critical infrastructure management. Membership functions are used in qualitative fuzzy risk assessment. Quantitative and qualitative analysis are combined into risk indices which are spatially represented in GIS as risk maps for each
Long-Term Assessment of an Innovative Mangrove Rehabilitation Project: Case Study on Carey Island, Malaysia
Motamedi, Shervin; Hashim, Roslan; Zakaria, Rozainah; Song, Ki-Il; Sofawi, Bakrin
Wave energy and storm surges threaten coastal ecology and nearshore infrastructures. Although coastal structures are conventionally constructed to dampen the wave energy, they introduce tremendous damage to the ecology of the coast. To minimize environmental impact, ecofriendly coastal protection schemes should be introduced. In this paper, we discuss an example of an innovative mangrove rehabilitation attempt to restore the endangered mangroves on Carey Island, Malaysia. A submerged detached breakwater system was constructed to dampen the energy of wave and trap the sediments behind the structure. Further, a large number of mangrove seedlings were planted using different techniques. Further, we assess the possibility of success for a future mangrove rehabilitation project at the site in the context of sedimentology, bathymetry, and hydrogeochemistry. The assessment showed an increase in the amount of silt and clay, and the seabed was noticeably elevated. The nutrient concentration, the pH value, and the salinity index demonstrate that the site is conducive in establishing mangrove seedlings. As a result, we conclude that the site is now ready for attempts to rehabilitate the lost mangrove forest. PMID:25097894
Hydrochemical assessment of water quality for irrigation: a case study of the Medjerda River in Tunisia
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Etteieb, Selma; Cherif, Semia; Tarhouni, Jamila
In order to characterize, classify and evaluate the suitability of Medjerda River water for irrigation, a hydrochemical assessment was conducted. It accounts for 80 % of the total Tunisian surface water. In this paper, hydrographical methods and PHREEQC geochemical program were used to characterize water quality of Medjerda River, whereas its suitability for irrigation was determined in accordance with its electrical conductivity (EC), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and sodium concentrations. It was established that the water samples were undersaturated with calcite, dolomite, aragonite, anhydrite, gypsum and halite except in one water sample which is supersaturated with carbonate minerals. The quality assessment of Medjerda River for irrigation purposes showed that some points belonged to the excellent-to-good and good-to-permissible irrigation water categories, while the remaining ones were classified as doubtful to unsuitable for irrigation making the river water use limited to plants with high salt tolerance. Moreover, based on FAO guidelines, almost all water samples may cause immediate salinity to gradual increasing problem but no soil infiltration problems except for two sampling points. However, immediate development or possible increasing of severe toxicity problems may be caused by the continuous use of this water for irrigation due to troublesome concentrations of chloride and sodium.
Long-term assessment of an innovative mangrove rehabilitation project: case study on Carey Island, Malaysia.
Motamedi, Shervin; Hashim, Roslan; Zakaria, Rozainah; Song, Ki-Il; Sofawi, Bakrin
Wave energy and storm surges threaten coastal ecology and nearshore infrastructures. Although coastal structures are conventionally constructed to dampen the wave energy, they introduce tremendous damage to the ecology of the coast. To minimize environmental impact, ecofriendly coastal protection schemes should be introduced. In this paper, we discuss an example of an innovative mangrove rehabilitation attempt to restore the endangered mangroves on Carey Island, Malaysia. A submerged detached breakwater system was constructed to dampen the energy of wave and trap the sediments behind the structure. Further, a large number of mangrove seedlings were planted using different techniques. Further, we assess the possibility of success for a future mangrove rehabilitation project at the site in the context of sedimentology, bathymetry, and hydrogeochemistry. The assessment showed an increase in the amount of silt and clay, and the seabed was noticeably elevated. The nutrient concentration, the pH value, and the salinity index demonstrate that the site is conducive in establishing mangrove seedlings. As a result, we conclude that the site is now ready for attempts to rehabilitate the lost mangrove forest. PMID:25097894
Site contamination health risk assessment case study involving tenant relocation from a former gasworks site.
Turczynowicz, Len; Fitzgerald, D James; Nitschke, Monika; Mangas, Sam; McLean, Angela
An Adelaide suburban public-housing residential site with 16 apartments was investigated after complaints of odor in some yard areas. A distinct 0.5-m layer of dark, odorous (tarry), contaminant material, which in some areas had been covered with plastic sheeting, was subsequently found beneath the topsoil across most of the site. This material appeared to extend beneath the apartments. Analysis indicated high levels of cyanide and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), consistent with gasworks waste. Historical investigation revealed that the site was originally owned by a gas company and that a large gasometer (gas-storage tank) existed in one corner of the site. This finding of significant soil contamination precipitated a decision by the health and housing authorities to notify tenants immediately and to plan for their relocation. In addition to tending to the consequent personal disruption and logistical difficulties this posed, a detailed risk assessment process was developed. Urine samples were collected before and after relocation and analyzed for 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP), a biomarker for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure. In addition, samples of tap water, indoor and outdoor air, indoor and ceiling dust, carpets, and soil from tillage areas were analyzed for PAHs. Data indicated a low health risk associated with tenancy on the site. This report presents details of the health risk assessment process undertaken and discusses vindicative reasons for tenant relocation. PMID:17763082
Alternative "global warming" metrics in life cycle assessment: a case study with existing transportation data.
Peters, Glen P; Aamaas, Borgar; T Lund, Marianne; Solli, Christian; Fuglestvedt, Jan S
The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) impact category "global warming" compares emissions of long-lived greenhouse gases (LLGHGs) using Global Warming Potential (GWP) with a 100-year time-horizon as specified in the Kyoto Protocol. Two weaknesses of this approach are (1) the exclusion of short-lived climate forcers (SLCFs) and biophysical factors despite their established importance, and (2) the use of a particular emission metric (GWP) with a choice of specific time-horizons (20, 100, and 500 years). The GWP and the three time-horizons were based on an illustrative example with value judgments and vague interpretations. Here we illustrate, using LCA data of the transportation sector, the importance of SLCFs relative to LLGHGs, different emission metrics, and different treatments of time. We find that both the inclusion of SLCFs and the choice of emission metric can alter results and thereby change mitigation priorities. The explicit inclusion of time, both for emissions and impacts, can remove value-laden assumptions and provide additional information for impact assessments. We believe that our results show that a debate is needed in the LCA community on the impact category "global warming" covering which emissions to include, the emission metric(s) to use, and the treatment of time. PMID:21936535
Assessing active faulting by hydrogeological modeling and superconducting gravimetry: A case study for Hsinchu Fault, Taiwan
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lien, Tzuyi; Cheng, Ching-Chung; Hwang, Cheinway; Crossley, David
We develop a new hydrology and gravimetry-based method to assess whether or not a local fault may be active. We take advantage of an existing superconducting gravimeter (SG) station and a comprehensive groundwater network in Hsinchu to apply the method to the Hsinchu Fault (HF) across the Hsinchu Science Park, whose industrial output accounts for 10% of Taiwan's gross domestic product. The HF is suspected to pose seismic hazards to the park, but its existence and structure are not clear. The a priori geometry of the HF is translated into boundary conditions imposed in the hydrodynamic model. By varying the fault's location, depth, and including a secondary wrench fault, we construct five hydrodynamic models to estimate groundwater variations, which are evaluated by comparing groundwater levels and SG observations. The results reveal that the HF contains a low hydraulic conductivity core and significantly impacts groundwater flows in the aquifers. Imposing the fault boundary conditions leads to about 63-77% reduction in the differences between modeled and observed values (both water level and gravity). The test with fault depth shows that the HF's most recent slip occurred in the beginning of Holocene, supplying a necessary (but not sufficient) condition that the HF is currently active. A portable SG can act as a virtual borehole well for model assessment at critical locations of a suspected active fault.
[Comprehensive Risk Assessment of Soil Heavy Metals Based on Monte Carlo Simulation and Case Study].
Yang, Yang; Dai, Dan; Cai, Yi-min; Chen, Wei-ping; Hou, Yu; Yang, Feng
Based on the stochastic. theory, the Monte Carlo simulation was introduced in ecological risk assessment and health risk assessment. Together with the multi-statistical technique, the proposed models were used for risk analysis in the Bin-Chang Coal Chemical industry park. The results showed that high levels of Cd, Co, and Cr were found in the area with long time mining. The comprehensive single index and comprehensive risk index showed that the ecological risk of soil metals fell into the poor level, with probabilities of 53.2% and 55.6%, respectively. The health risk caused by hand to mouth ingestion was significantly greater than that by dermal exposure, and Cr was of prime concern for pollution control. Children were taking a major health risk. Their non-cancer risks were maintained at a high level, and 5.0-fold higher than adults under hand to mouth ingestion, and 8.2-fold higher than adults under dermal exposure. The cancer risk for children under these two exposure ways were both above the safety standard suggested by USEPA. PMID:26911013
Assessing antibiotic sorption in soil: a literature review and new case studies on sulfonamides and macrolides
The increased use of veterinary antibiotics in modern agriculture for therapeutic uses and growth promotion has raised concern regarding the environmental impacts of antibiotic residues in soil and water. The mobility and transport of antibiotics in the environment depends on their sorption behavior, which is typically predicted by extrapolating from an experimentally determined soil-water distribution coefficient (Kd). Accurate determination of Kd values is important in order to better predict the environmental fate of antibiotics. In this paper, we examine different analytical approaches in assessing Kd of two major classes of veterinary antibiotics (sulfonamides and macrolides) and compare the existing literature data with experimental data obtained in our laboratory. While environmental parameters such as soil pH and organic matter content are the most significant factors that affect the sorption of antibiotics in soil, it is important to consider the concentrations used, the analytical method employed, and the transformations that can occur when determining Kd values. Application of solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry can facilitate accurate determination of Kd at environmentally relevant concentrations. Because the bioavailability of antibiotics in soil depends on their sorption behavior, it is important to examine current practices in assessing their mobility in soil. PMID:24438473
A Swiss case-control study to assess Neospora caninum-associated bovine abortions by PCR, histopathology and serology.
Sager, H; Fischer, I; Furrer, K; Strasser, M; Waldvogel, A; Boerlin, P; Audigé, L; Gottstein, B
Neospora caninum is one of the most frequent infectious organisms causing abortion in cattle worldwide. The present case-control study was designed to assess the importance of bovine neosporosis for causing abortion in Swiss cattle and to identify selected risk factors. Infection was primarily diagnosed by a N. caninum-specific PCR and serology, complemented with histopathology and immunohistochemistry. A total of 113 case and 113 corresponding control-farms were studied for 1.5 year. During this time period, 242 abortions were reported and referred for bacteriological, virological, parasitological and pathohistological examinations. N. caninum was detected by PCR in the brains of 21% of all aborted fetuses. Microscopic lesions indicative for cerebral protozoa infection were detected in 84% of PCR-positive fetal brains. Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) was demonstrated in 7% of the cases, and bacterial infections were detected in 4% of the abortions. One or more N. caninum-abortions occurred in 20% of the herds (41 case-farms and 3 control-farms). Serological examination of aborting mother cows revealed a significantly higher percentage of N. caninum-seropositive animals (44%) in comparison to the prevalence in a randomly selected population (12%). However, in eight cases (4% of all investigated abortions) seronegative cows aborted N. caninum PCR-positive fetuses, and in 50 cases the fetus remained negative although the respective mother cow was N. caninum-seropositive. Repetitive serological investigations (at a 3-12 months interval) of 3551 cows from case- and control-farms showed a decrease of the overall N. caninum-seroprevalence from 17 to 12%. Ninety out of 3008 seronegative animals were converted to N. caninum-seropositivity. Conversely, 212 out of 543 initially seropositive animals became seronegative for their second serum sample. The obtained data underlined the importance of N. caninum as a causative agent for abortion in Swiss cattle. Furthermore, PCR
A methodological framework to assess the socio-economic impact of underground quarries: A case study from Belgian Limburg.
Sergeant, A; Poesen, J; Duchateau, P; Vranken, L
This study developed a methodology to assess the socio-economic impact of the presence and collapse of underground limestone quarries. For this we rely on case study evidence from Riemst, a village located in Eastern Belgium and use both secondary and primary data sources. A sinkhole inventory as well as data about the prevention costs provided by the municipality was used. To estimate the recreational values of the quarries, visitor data was obtained from the tourist office of Riemst. Next, two surveys were conducted among inhabitants and four real estate agents and one notary. The direct and indirect damages were assessed using respectively the repair cost and production and real estate value losses. The total yearly direct and indirect damage equals €415000 (±€85000) and more than half of it can be attributed to the depreciation of real estate (€230000). The quarries have recreational, cultural-historical and ecological values and thus generate societal benefits. The yearly recreational value was at least €613000 in 2012 values. The ecological and cultural-historical values augment to €180000 per year (in 2012 values). Further, our study indicates that the gains from filling up the quarries below the houses located above an underground limestone quarry outweigh the costs in the case study area. The net gain from filling up the underground quarry ranges €38700 to €101700 per house. This is only the lower bound of the net gain from filling up these underground quarries since preventive filling makes future collapses less likely so that future direct repair costs will be most likely smaller. PMID:26439649
The KULTURisk Regional Risk Assessment methodology for water-related natural hazards - Part 2: Application to the Zurich case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ronco, P.; Bullo, M.; Torresan, S.; Critto, A.; Olschewski, R.; Zappa, M.; Marcomini, A.
The main objective of the paper is the application of the KULTURisk Regional Risk Assessment (KR-RRA) methodology, presented in the companion paper (Part 1, Ronco et al., 2014), to the Sihl River valley, in Switzerland. Through a tuning process of the methodology to the site-specific context and features, flood related risks have been assessed for different receptors lying on the Sihl River valley including the city of Zurich, which represents a typical case of river flooding in urban area. After characterizing the peculiarities of the specific case study, risk maps have been developed under a 300 years return period scenario (selected as baseline) for six identified relevant targets, exposed to flood risk in the Sihl valley, namely: people, economic activities (including buildings, infrastructures and agriculture), natural and semi-natural systems and cultural heritage. Finally, the total risk index map, which allows to identify and rank areas and hotspots at risk by means of Multi Criteria Decision Analysis tools, has been produced to visualize the spatial pattern of flood risk within the area of study. By means of a tailored participative approach, the total risk maps supplement the consideration of technical experts with the (essential) point of view of the relevant stakeholders for the appraisal of the specific scores and weights related to the receptor-relative risks. The total risk maps obtained for the Sihl River case study are associated with the lower classes of risk. In general, higher relative risks are concentrated in the deeply urbanized area within and around the Zurich city centre and areas that rely just behind to the Sihl River course. Here, forecasted injuries and potential fatalities are mainly due to high population density and high presence of old (vulnerable) people; inundated buildings are mainly classified as continuous and discontinuous urban fabric; flooded roads, pathways and railways, the majority of them referring to the Zurich main
Spatiotemporal air pollution exposure assessment for a Canadian population-based lung cancer case-control study
Background Few epidemiological studies of air pollution have used residential histories to develop long-term retrospective exposure estimates for multiple ambient air pollutants and vehicle and industrial emissions. We present such an exposure assessment for a Canadian population-based lung cancer case-control study of 8353 individuals using self-reported residential histories from 1975 to 1994. We also examine the implications of disregarding and/or improperly accounting for residential mobility in long-term exposure assessments. Methods National spatial surfaces of ambient air pollution were compiled from recent satellite-based estimates (for PM2.5 and NO2) and a chemical transport model (for O3). The surfaces were adjusted with historical annual air pollution monitoring data, using either spatiotemporal interpolation or linear regression. Model evaluation was conducted using an independent ten percent subset of monitoring data per year. Proximity to major roads, incorporating a temporal weighting factor based on Canadian mobile-source emission estimates, was used to estimate exposure to vehicle emissions. A comprehensive inventory of geocoded industries was used to estimate proximity to major and minor industrial emissions. Results Calibration of the national PM2.5 surface using annual spatiotemporal interpolation predicted historical PM2.5 measurement data best (R2 = 0.51), while linear regression incorporating the national surfaces, a time-trend and population density best predicted historical concentrations of NO2 (R2 = 0.38) and O3 (R2 = 0.56). Applying the models to study participants residential histories between 1975 and 1994 resulted in mean PM2.5, NO2 and O3 exposures of 11.3 μg/m3 (SD = 2.6), 17.7 ppb (4.1), and 26.4 ppb (3.4) respectively. On average, individuals lived within 300 m of a highway for 2.9 years (15% of exposure-years) and within 3 km of a major industrial emitter for 6.4 years (32% of exposure-years). Approximately 50% of individuals
Hydrodynamic simulation of river Yamuna for riverbed assessment: a case study of Delhi region.
Vijay, Ritesh; Sargoankar, Aabha; Gupta, Apurba
A well known river hydrodynamic model RiverCAD has been used to simulate and visualize flood scenarios for different designated flood flows under complex riverbed geometry with several man made structures like bridges and barrages. The model applied successfully for the stretch of 23 km in the Yamuna floodplain of Delhi region from Wazirabad barrage in the upstream to Okhla barrage. Flood flows for various return periods namely once in 10, 25, 50 and 100 years were estimated based on recorded flow data for the period of 1963 to 2003 using standard flood frequency analysis techniques. The simulation results were compared and the model was calibrated with water surface elevation records of the previous floods at various barrage and bridge locations. Simulation results enabled prediction of maximum water levels, submergence scenarios and land availability under different designated flood flows for riverbed assessment, development and management. PMID:17131082
Risk assessment and water safety plan: case study in Beijing, China.
Ye, Bixiong; Chen, Yuansheng; Li, Yonghua; Li, Hairong; Yang, Linsheng; Wang, Wuyi
Two typical rural water utilities in Beijing, China were chosen to describe the principles and applications of water safety plans (WSP), to provide a methodological guide for the actual application and improve the quality of rural drinking water quality, and to establish an appropriate method for WSP applied in rural water supply. Hazards and hazardous events were identified and risk assessment was conducted for rural water supply systems. A total of 13 and 12 operational limits were defined for two utilities, respectively. The main risk factors that affect the water safety were identified in water sources, water processes, water disinfection systems and water utility management. The main control measures were strengthening the water source protection, monitoring the water treatment processes, establishing emergency mechanisms, improving chemical input and operating system management. WSP can be feasibly applied to the management of a rural water supply. PMID:26042982
A PRA case study of extended long term decay heat removal for shutdown risk assessment
Roglans, J.; Ragland, W.A.; Hill, D.J.
A Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) of the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II), a Department of Energy (DOE) Category A research reactor, has recently been completed at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The results of this PRA have shown that the decay heat removal system for EBR-II is extremely robust and reliable. In addition, the methodology used demonstrates how the actions of other systems not normally used for actions of other systems not normally used for decay heat removal can be used to expand the mission time of the decay heat removal system and further increase its reliability. The methodology may also be extended to account for the impact of non-safety systems in enhancing the reliability of other dedicated safety systems.
A PRA case study of extended long term decay heat removal for shutdown risk assessment
Roglans, J.; Ragland, W.A.; Hill, D.J.
A Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) of the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II), a Department of Energy (DOE) Category A research reactor, has recently been completed at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The results of this PRA have shown that the decay heat removal system for EBR-II is extremely robust and reliable. In addition, the methodology used demonstrates how the actions of other systems not normally used for actions of other systems not normally used for decay heat removal can be used to expand the mission time of the decay heat removal system and further increase its reliability. The methodology may also be extended to account for the impact of non-safety systems in enhancing the reliability of other dedicated safety systems.
Hydroclimatic Teleconnections in the American Cordillera: Case Studies and Considerations for Future Assessment
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Valdes, J. B.; Canon, J. E.
Understanding the trends and low frequency oscillation modes of hydrologic variables such as precipitation and storage volumes in lakes and snow peaks along the American Cordillera is an aim of enormous relevance for the adequate management of its water reserves. Many hydroclimatic patterns affecting the cordillera are teleconnected in turn to quasi periodic changes in sea surface temperatures on the Pacific Ocean such as ENSO and the PDO. The spatiotemporal influence of these teleconnections was quantified by applying Principal Components (PC) and Multichannel Singular Spectrum Analysis (MSSA) techniques to two cases that exhibit different climatic regimes: the seasonal and annual variability of precipitation over the Colorado River Basin (CRB) in North America, and the seasonal fluctuations of storage at the Tota Lake in the Colombian Andes. The coupled impact of the PDO-ENSO signals on the annual precipitation series of the CRB indicates the presence of a trend and two oscillation modes around five and 15 years that explain a significant fraction of its variance. Common enhancement phases between the three signals also favor the occurrence of regionalized droughts and wet years in the basin. The Tota lake exhibits in turn a continuous decline in its mean annual levels and a delayed ENSO-related response in which pronounced drops occur during severe El Nino episodes. The two cases mentioned exemplify the situation faced by many water bodies in the cordillera, especially under the current projections of global climate change. Addressing the expected hydrologic changes in a coordinate manner will help improving the monitoring, modeling and forecasting skills necessary to make better informed decisions about the use and protection of these resources.
Meeting Indigenous peoples' objectives in environmental flow assessments: Case studies from an Australian multi-jurisdictional water sharing initiative
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jackson, Sue; Pollino, Carmel; Maclean, Kirsten; Bark, Rosalind; Moggridge, Bradley
The multi-dimensional relationships that Indigenous peoples have with water are only recently gaining recognition in water policy and management activities. Although Australian water policy stipulates that the native title interests of Indigenous peoples and their social, cultural and spiritual objectives be included in water plans, improved rates of Indigenous access to water have been slow to eventuate, particularly in those regions where the water resource is fully developed or allocated. Experimentation in techniques and approaches to both identify and determine Indigenous water requirements will be needed if environmental assessment processes and water sharing plans are to explicitly account for Indigenous water values. Drawing on two multidisciplinary case studies conducted in Australia's Murray-Darling Basin, we engage Indigenous communities to (i) understand their values and explore the application of methods to derive water requirements to meet those values; (ii) assess the impact of alternative water planning scenarios designed to address over-allocation to irrigation; and (iii) define additional volumes of water and potential works needed to meet identified Indigenous requirements. We provide a framework where Indigenous values can be identified and certain water needs quantified and advance a methodology to integrate Indigenous social, cultural and environmental objectives into environmental flow assessments.
An alert system for triggering different levels of coastal management urgency: Tunisia case study using rapid environmental assessment data.
Price, A R G; Jaoui, K; Pearson, M P; Jeudy de Grissac, A
Rapid environmental assessment (REA) involves scoring abundances of ecosystems/species groups and magnitude of pressures, concurrently, using the same logarithmic (0-6) assessment scale. We demonstrate the utility of REA data for an alert system identifying different levels of coastal management concern. Thresholds set for abundances/magnitudes, when crossed, trigger proposed responses. Kerkennah, Tunisia, our case study, has significant natural assets (e.g. exceptional seagrass and invertebrate abundances), subjected to varying levels of disturbance and management concern. Using REA thresholds set, fishing, green algae/eutrophication and oil occurred at 'low' levels (scores 0-1): management not (currently) necessary. Construction and wood litter prevailed at 'moderate' levels (scores 2-4): management alerted for (further) monitoring. Solid waste densities were 'high' (scores 5-6): management alerted for action; quantities of rubbish were substantial (20-200 items m⁻¹ beach) but not unprecedented. REA is considered a robust methodology and complementary to other rapid assessment techniques, environmental frameworks and indicators of ecosystem condition. PMID:24512758
Reliability of an expert rating procedure for retrospective assessment of occupational exposures in community-based case-control studies.
Siemiatycki, J; Fritschi, L; Nadon, L; Gérin, M
The most daunting problem in community-based studies of occupational cancer is retrospective exposure assessment. To avoid the error involved in using job title as the exposure variable or self-report of exposure, our team developed an approach based on expert judgment applied to job descriptions obtained by interviewers. A population-based case-control study of cancer and occupation was carried out in Montreal between 1979 and 1986, and over 4,000 job histories were assessed by our team of experts. The job histories of these subjects were evaluated, by consensus, by a team of chemist/hygienists for evidence of exposure to a list of 294 workplace chemicals. In order to evaluate the reliability of this exposure assessment procedure, four years after the rating was completed, we selected 50 job histories at random and had two members of the expert team carry out the same type of coding, blind to the original ratings for these jobs. For 25 job histories, comprising 94 distinct jobs, the pair worked as a consensus panel; for the other 25, comprising 92 distinct jobs, they worked independently. Statistical comparisons were made between the new ratings and the old. Among those rated by consensus, the marginal distribution of exposure prevalence was almost identical between old and new. The weighted kappa for agreement was 0.80. Among items for which both ratings agreed that there had been exposure, there was good agreement on the frequency, concentration, and route of contact. When the two raters worked independently, the levels of agreement between them and between each of them and the original rating was good (kappas around 0.70), though not as high as when they worked together. It is concluded that high levels of reliability are attainable for retrospective exposure assessment by experts. PMID:9055950
Development of a Methodology for Selecting Criteria and Indicators of Sustainable Forest Management: A Case Study on Participatory Assessment
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mendoza, Guillermo A.; Prabhu, Ravi
This paper describes an application of multiple criteria analysis (MCA) in assessing criteria and indicators adapted for a particular forest management unit. The methods include: ranking, rating, and pairwise comparisons. These methods were used in a participatory decision-making environment where a team representing various stakeholders and professionals used their expert opinions and judgements in assessing different criteria and indicators (C&I) on the one hand, and how suitable and applicable they are to a forest management unit on the other. A forest concession located in Kalimantan, Indonesia, was used as the site for the case study. Results from the study show that the multicriteria methods are effective tools that can be used as structured decision aids to evaluate, prioritize, and select sets of C&I for a particular forest management unit. Ranking and rating approaches can be used as a screening tool to develop an initial list of C&I. Pairwise comparison, on the other hand, can be used as a finer filter to further reduce the list. In addition to using these three MCA methods, the study also examines two commonly used group decision-making techniques, the Delphi method and the nominal group technique. Feedback received from the participants indicates that the methods are transparent, easy to implement, and provide a convenient environment for participatory decision-making.
The Tale of Three Campuses: A Case Study in Outdoor Campus Assessment
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Eckert, Erica L.
In a study for APPA's Center for Facilities Research (CFaR), Cain and Reynolds (2006a; 2006b) linked the quality of campus facilities and the attractiveness of campus to college choice among their study's participants but also noted that facilities may not always be the primary motivation. Further, the physical campus environment can impact…
Assessing and Managing the Risks of Fuel Compounds: Ethanol Case Study
Layton, D.W.; Rice, D.W.
We have implemented a suite of chemical transport and fate models that provide diagnostic information about the behavior of ethanol (denoted EtOH) and other fuel-related chemicals released to the environment. Our principal focus is on the impacts to water resources, as this has been one of the key issues facing the introduction of new fuels and additives. We present analyses comparing the transport and fate of EtOH, methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), and 2,2,4 trimethyl pentane (TMP) for the following cases (1) discharges to stratified lakes, subsurface release in a surficial soil, (3) cross-media transfer from air to ground water, and (4) fate in a regional landscape. These compounds have significantly different properties that directly influence their behavior in the environment. EtOH, for example, has a low Henry's law constant, which means that it preferentially partitions to the water phase instead of air. An advantageous characteristic of EtOH is its rapid biodegradation rate in water; unlike MTBE or TMP, which degrade slowly. As a consequence, EtOH does not pose a significant risk to water resources. Preliminary health-protective limits for EtOH in drinking water suggest that routine releases to the environment will not result in levels that threaten human health.
[Jealousy between siblings in early childhood. Nursing assessment based on a case study].
Puig-Plana, María Pilar
Childhood jealousy, when a little brother or sister is born, has always been a subject treated within the family environment. Parent's attitude in their interaction with their offspring may increase the response of the jealous child. The emotional expressions of the jealous child may lead to behaviour changes, that may occasionally put the physical integrity of the newborn at risk, since it is the most vulnerable in the family group. In view of the above mentioned, a case of a three-year-old child living with his parents and his nine-month-old sister, is presented. The child shows characteristic behaviour changes of jealousy, such as, rebelliousness, aggressiveness and hyperactivity. The brother's psychomotor discomfort leads to a proneness to accidents for the baby girl and the obvious parental concern. For these reasons nursing intervention in the family group was proposed, based on the theoretical Virginia Henderson Needs Model. The actions will come from the older brother and parents. The aim of the nursing intervention is to lead the behaviour changes in order to re-establish a safe and healthy family environment. PMID:20580586
Life cycle assessment of energy from waste via anaerobic digestion: a UK case study.
Evangelisti, Sara; Lettieri, Paola; Borello, Domenico; Clift, Roland
Particularly in the UK, there is potential for use of large-scale anaerobic digestion (AD) plants to treat food waste, possibly along with other organic wastes, to produce biogas. This paper presents the results of a life cycle assessment to compare the environmental impacts of AD with energy and organic fertiliser production against two alternative approaches: incineration with energy production by CHP and landfill with electricity production. In particular the paper investigates the dependency of the results on some specific assumptions and key process parameters. The input Life Cycle Inventory data are specific to the Greater London area, UK. Anaerobic digestion emerges as the best treatment option in terms of total CO2 and total SO2 saved, when energy and organic fertiliser substitute non-renewable electricity, heat and inorganic fertiliser. For photochemical ozone and nutrient enrichment potentials, AD is the second option while incineration is shown to be the most environmentally friendly solution. The robustness of the model is investigated with a sensitivity analysis. The most critical assumption concerns the quantity and quality of the energy substituted by the biogas production. Two key issues affect the development and deployment of future anaerobic digestion plants: maximising the electricity produced by the CHP unit fuelled by biogas and to defining the future energy scenario in which the plant will be embedded. PMID:24112851
Compositional analysis and pollution impact assessment: A case study in the Gulfs of Naples and Salerno
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Menghan, Wang; Stefano, Albanese; Annamaria, Lima; Claudia, Cannatelli; Antonio, Cosenza; Wanjun, Lu; Marco, Sacchi; Angela, Doherty; Benedetto, De Vivo
This paper presents the results of an environmental geochemical investigation of the Gulfs of Naples and Salerno, near the Campania plain (Southern Italy). Surface marine sediment samples were collected during three field campaigns: 96 from the Gulfs of Naples and Salerno (NaSa); 123 from the Bagnoli site coastal area (BaSi); and 11 from the ports around the Gulf of Naples (PoNa). Elemental concentrations were determined and their interpolated distribution maps were compiled. Three geochemical sources (or processes) were determined associating elemental distribution with the results obtained from a R-mode factor analysis: 1) geogenic, 2) water kinetics and 3) anthropogenic. The results are presented as raw data single element distributions of eight potential toxic elements (PTEs) (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Pb, Ni and Zn) in the forms of raw data and additive log-ratio transformed data. The latter showed advantages in revealing the actual distribution patterns. Geochemical background reference values of PTEs were determined from the median value of local background reference values. Based on these values, pollution impact analysis was carried out to both BaSi and PoNa samples, indicating most of BaSi and PoNa sediments were affected by moderate to strong Pb, Zn, Cd and Hg pollution. An ecological risk assessment was subsequently carried out on the entire database, pointing a toxic risk ranking in the order Pb > As > Ni > Cd > Hg > Cr.
Life cycle assessment of the waste hierarchy--a Danish case study on waste paper.
Schmidt, Jannick H; Holm, Peter; Merrild, Anne; Christensen, Per
The waste hierarchy is being widely discussed these days, not only by cost-benefit analysts, but a growing number of life cycle assessments (LCA) have also begun to question it. In this article, we investigate the handling of waste paper in Denmark and compare the present situation with scenarios of more waste being recycled, incinerated or consigned to landfill. The investigations are made in accordance with ISO 14040-43 and based on the newly launched methodology of consequential LCA and following the recent guidelines of the European Centre on Waste and Material Flows. The LCA concerns the Danish consumption of paper in 1999, totalling 1.2 million tons. The results of the investigation indicate that the waste hierarchy is reliable; from an environmental point of view recycling of paper is better than incineration and landfilling. For incineration, the reason for the advantage of landfilling mainly comes from the substitution of fossil fuels, when incinerators provide heat and electricity. For recycling, the advantage is related to the saved wood resources, which can be used for generating energy from wood, i.e., from renewable fuel which does not contribute to global warming. PMID:17112716
Potential of Satellite SAR Interferometry for Assessment of Risk of Landslides - case study of Angren, Uzbekistan
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lazecký, Milan; Bláha, Pavel; Dobeš, Pavel
Angren region (Uzbekistan) is rich for mineral resources. Coal mining activities on the surface have caused largescale (over 100 m3) landslides - some of them seriously endanger an important highway connecting Tashkent with an agricultural area of Fergana - or encroach into a water reservoir. Slow creeping movements of the slope deformations are hard to detect by regular watch of the national landslide service. An application of satellite SAR interferometry in this region proved its potential to detect and monitor slope deformation processes - slight movements were detected well, field inspection has confirmed the detection. A project involving this technique together with other remote sensing technologies (i.e. laser scanning) has been proposed and accepted within the framework of NATO: Science for Peace and Security programme in the end of 2012. In the scope of the project, relevant Uzbek institutions should achieve an appropriate knowledge and skills for independent research using these modern remote sensing technologies for landslide risk mapping and assessment. Early results of the project related to landslides in Angren are presented on the connected poster. Keywords: InSAR, landslides, risk, Uzbekistan, mining.
Assessment of the effectiveness of protected areas management in Iran: case study in Khojir National Park.
Kolahi, Mahdi; Sakai, Tetsuro; Moriya, Kazuyuki; Makhdoum, Majid F; Koyama, Lina
The requirement to assess the management effectiveness (ME) in protected areas (PAs) is increasing around the world to help improve management and accountability. An evaluation of ME for Khojir National Park (KNP), one of the Iran's oldest PAs, was conducted using a multi-method approach that consisted of structured interviews, open interviews, and site visits. This was the first ME evaluation in Iran. The structured interview was based on the management effectiveness tracking tool methodology. KNP received an average score of 43 %, which is lower than the global average, illustrating that its general management was in the low-intermediate level. The indices of legal status, resource inventory, planning for land and water use, regulations, and objectives received the highest average scores, whereas education and awareness, community co-management, regular work plan, boundary demarcation, visitor facilities, budget sources, staff training, protection systems, and management plan received the lowest ones. The management system of KNP was generally established, but many problems of the management still need to be resolved. To improve ME, some countermeasures should be taken, such as increasing funding, strengthening capacity building, planning, and adaptive management, and implementing community participation. PMID:23665757
Assessment of the Effectiveness of Protected Areas Management in Iran: Case Study in Khojir National Park
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kolahi, Mahdi; Sakai, Tetsuro; Moriya, Kazuyuki; Makhdoum, Majid F.; Koyama, Lina
The requirement to assess the management effectiveness (ME) in protected areas (PAs) is increasing around the world to help improve management and accountability. An evaluation of ME for Khojir National Park (KNP), one of the Iran's oldest PAs, was conducted using a multi-method approach that consisted of structured interviews, open interviews, and site visits. This was the first ME evaluation in Iran. The structured interview was based on the management effectiveness tracking tool methodology. KNP received an average score of 43 %, which is lower than the global average, illustrating that its general management was in the low-intermediate level. The indices of legal status, resource inventory, planning for land and water use, regulations, and objectives received the highest average scores, whereas education and awareness, community co-management, regular work plan, boundary demarcation, visitor facilities, budget sources, staff training, protection systems, and management plan received the lowest ones. The management system of KNP was generally established, but many problems of the management still need to be resolved. To improve ME, some countermeasures should be taken, such as increasing funding, strengthening capacity building, planning, and adaptive management, and implementing community participation.
Vegetation recovery patterns assessment at landslides caused by catastrophic earthquake: a case study in central Taiwan.
Chou, Wen-Chieh; Lin, Wen-Tzu; Lin, Chao-Yuan
The catastrophic earthquake, 7.3 on the Richter scale, occurred on September 21, 1999 in Central Taiwan. Much of standing vegetation on slopes was eliminated and massive, scattered landslides were induced at the Jou-Jou Mountain area of the Wu-Chi basin in Nantou County. We evaluated three methods for assessing landslide hazard and vegetation recovery conditions. (1) Self-organizing map (SOM) neural network coupled with fuzzy technique was used to quickly extract the landslide. (2) The NDVI-based vegetation recovery index derived from multi-temporal SPOT satellite images was used to evaluate vegetation recovery rate in the denudation sites. (3) The spatial distribution index (SDI) based on land-cover topographic location was employed to analyze vegetation recovery patterns, including the invading, surviving and mixed patterns at the Jou-Jou Mountain area. On September 27, 1999, there were 849.20 ha of landslide area extracted using the self-organizing map and fuzzy technique combined model. After six years of natural vegetation succession, the landslide has gradually restored, and vegetation recovery rate reached up to 86%. On-site observation shows that many native pioneer plants have invaded onto the denudation sites even if disturbed by several typhoons. Two native surviving plants, Arundo formosana Hack and Pinus taiwanensis Hayata, play a vital role in natural vegetation succession in this area, especially for the sites on ridgeline and steep slopes. PMID:18528771
Assessing the ecological security of the Tibetan plateau: methodology and a case study for Lhaze County.
Zhao, Yan-Zhi; Zou, Xue-Yong; Cheng, Hong; Jia, Hai-Kun; Wu, Yong-Qiu; Wang, Gui-Yong; Zhang, Chun-Lai; Gao, Shang-Yu
A system for assessing the ecological security of Lhaze County in China's Tibetan Autonomous Region was developed using a pressure-state-response model and the analytic hierarchy process. We then used this model to comprehensively evaluate the status of ecological security in Lhaze County. Our results showed that the ecological environment in Lhaze County has deteriorated from an 'early stages of damage status' in the 1980s to 'moderately damaged status' today. This deterioration has become a major barrier to local economic development and social advancement. Natural and social aspects related to the population explosion, resource exploitation, and climate change that led to this ecological deterioration are discussed. Furthermore, we have suggested proposals for improving the ecological environment that include controlling population growth and enhancing the system of laws that protect the environment, upgrading 3 882.6 ha of low-yield farmland, planting 2 425.8, 548.8, and 1 207.4 ha of shelter belts for farmland protection, soil and water conservation, and fuelwood, respectively, and seeding 2 358.1 ha of artificial grassland. In the meantime, we propose strengthening the controls that limit soil and water loss, and optimizing industrial sectors that aspire to achieve high-efficiency, ecologically responsible agriculture. PMID:16338056
Case study of microarthropod communities to assess soil quality in different managed vineyards
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Gagnarli, E.; Goggioli, D.; Tarchi, F.; Guidi, S.; Nannelli, R.; Vignozzi, N.; Valboa, G.; Lottero, M. R.; Corino, L.; Simoni, S.
Land use influences the abundance and diversity of soil arthropods. The evaluation of the impact of different management strategies on soil quality is increasingly sought, and the determination of community structures of edaphic fauna can represent an efficient tool. In the area of Langhe (Piedmont, Italy), eight vineyards characterized for physical and chemical properties (soil texture, soil pH, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, calcium carbonate) were selected. We evaluated the effect of two types of crop management, organic and integrated pest management (IPM), on abundance and biodiversity of microarthropods living at the soil surface. Soil sampling was carried out in winter 2011 and spring 2012. All specimens were counted and determined up to the order level. The biodiversity analysis was performed using ecological indexes (taxa richness, dominance, Shannon-Wiener, Buzas and Gibson's evenness, Margalef, equitability, Berger-Parker), and the biological soil quality was assessed with the BSQ-ar index. The mesofauna abundance was affected by both the type of management and sampling time. On the whole, a higher abundance was in organic vineyards (N = 1981) than in IPM ones (N = 1062). The analysis performed by ecological indexes showed quite a high level of biodiversity in this environment, particularly in May 2012. Furthermore, the BSQ-ar values registered were similar to those obtained in preserved soils.
Assessing the Impact of Free Primary Education Using Retrospective and Prospective Data: Lessons from the Nairobi Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ngware, Moses Waithanji; Oketch, Moses; Ezeh, Alex Chika; Mutisya, Maurice; Ejakait, Charles Epari
This paper describes the design and methodology used to assess the impact of free primary education (FPE) policy in Nairobi, Kenya. The key outcome of the study was to assess the impact of FPE on schooling outcomes among the urban poor. The study assesses the impact of FPE by examining how two non-comparable groups responded to the introduction of…
Conducting a FERC environmental assessment: a case study and recommendations from the Terror Lake Project
Olive, S.W.; Lamb, B.L.
This paper is an account of the process that evolved during acquisition of the license to operate the Terror Lake hydroelectric power project under the auspices of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The Commission is responsible for granting these licenses under the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 792 et seq.). This act provides, in part, that FERC may condition a license to protect the public interest. The public interest in these cases has come to include both instream and terrestrial values. The Terror River is located on Kodiak Island in Alaska. The river is within the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge; it supports excellent runs of several species of Pacific Salmon which are both commercially important and a prime source of nutrition for the Kodiak brown bear. The river is also a prime resource for generating electric power. One major concern in the negotiations was the impact of land disturbance and management practices on brown bear habitat - i.e., protection of the brown bear. Maintenance of the bears' habitat is the main purpose of the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge. But, like many other projects, resolving the instream flow issue was of major importance in the issuance of the FERC license. This paper discusses the fish and wildlife questions, but concentrates on instream uses and how protection of these uses was decided. With this as a focus, the paper explains the FERC process, gives a history of the Terror Lake Project, and, ultimately, makes recommendations for improved management of controversies within the context of the FERC licensing procedures. 65 references.
Assessing the Cost of an Invasive Forest Pathogen: A Case Study with Oak Wilt
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Haight, Robert G.; Homans, Frances R.; Horie, Tetsuya; Mehta, Shefali V.; Smith, David J.; Venette, Robert C.
Economic assessment of damage caused by invasive alien species provides useful information to consider when determining whether management programs should be established, modified, or discontinued. We estimate the baseline economic damage from an invasive alien pathogen, Ceratocystis fagacearum, a fungus that causes oak wilt, which is a significant disease of oaks ( Quercus spp.) in the central United States. We focus on Anoka County, Minnesota, a 1,156 km2 mostly urban county in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan region. We develop a landscape-level model of oak wilt spread that accounts for underground and overland pathogen transmission. We predict the economic damage of tree mortality from oak wilt spread in the absence of management during the period 2007-2016. Our metric of economic damage is removal cost, which is one component of the total economic loss from tree mortality. We estimate that Anoka County has 5.92 million oak trees and 885 active oak wilt pockets covering 5.47 km2 in 2007. The likelihood that landowners remove infected oaks varies by land use and ranges from 86% on developed land to 57% on forest land. Over the next decade, depending on the rates of oak wilt pocket establishment and expansion, 76-266 thousand trees will be infected with discounted removal cost of 18-60 million. Although our predictions of removal costs are substantial, they are lower bounds on the total economic loss from tree mortality because we do not estimate economic losses from reduced services and increased hazards. Our predictions suggest that there are significant economic benefits, in terms of damage reduction, from preventing new pocket establishment or slowing the radial growth of existing pockets.
Phylodynamic Inference and Model Assessment with Approximate Bayesian Computation: Influenza as a Case Study
Ratmann, Oliver; Donker, Gé; Meijer, Adam; Fraser, Christophe; Koelle, Katia
A key priority in infectious disease research is to understand the ecological and evolutionary drivers of viral diseases from data on disease incidence as well as viral genetic and antigenic variation. We propose using a simulation-based, Bayesian method known as Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) to fit and assess phylodynamic models that simulate pathogen evolution and ecology against summaries of these data. We illustrate the versatility of the method by analyzing two spatial models describing the phylodynamics of interpandemic human influenza virus subtype A(H3N2). The first model captures antigenic drift phenomenologically with continuously waning immunity, and the second epochal evolution model describes the replacement of major, relatively long-lived antigenic clusters. Combining features of long-term surveillance data from the Netherlands with features of influenza A (H3N2) hemagglutinin gene sequences sampled in northern Europe, key phylodynamic parameters can be estimated with ABC. Goodness-of-fit analyses reveal that the irregularity in interannual incidence and H3N2's ladder-like hemagglutinin phylogeny are quantitatively only reproduced under the epochal evolution model within a spatial context. However, the concomitant incidence dynamics result in a very large reproductive number and are not consistent with empirical estimates of H3N2's population level attack rate. These results demonstrate that the interactions between the evolutionary and ecological processes impose multiple quantitative constraints on the phylodynamic trajectories of influenza A(H3N2), so that sequence and surveillance data can be used synergistically. ABC, one of several data synthesis approaches, can easily interface a broad class of phylodynamic models with various types of data but requires careful calibration of the summaries and tolerance parameters. PMID:23300420
Genotoxicity assessment in smokeless tobacco users: a case-control study.
Chandirasekar, R; Suresh, K; Sasikala, K; Kumar, B Lakshman; Venkatesan, R; Ganesh, G Karthik; Jacob, Raichel
India has a long history of tobacco, which includes chewing tobacco and smoking tobacco in various forms. Initially, the smokeless tobacco chewing habit was seen among the majority of the farmers who cultivated tobacco; but in recent years, smokeless tobacco is available in many forms and is cheaper as well and hence it is widely being used among literate and illiterate people. The subjects of our study are living in hilly regions of Yerkaud in Salem district, South India. Most of the inhabitants of our study area are illiterate and more particularly they are unaware of the health effects due to tobacco use. Recent epidemiological reports have strongly indicated the association of cancer risk with usage of smokeless tobacco. The prime aim of our study is to evaluate the genotoxic effects of tobacco use by analysing the cytogenetic end points such as chromosome aberrations in peripheral blood and micronucleus in peripheral blood and buccal cells. About 85 smokeless tobacco users were enrolled for the study and same numbers of age- and sex-matched nontobacco users were also enrolled to serve as controls. The result of our study revealed that tobacco users displayed varied levels of elevated chromosomal damage and micronucleated cells than nontobacco users. The variation in the extent of genetic damage was dependent on the duration of the tobacco use. In conclusion, this study might be helpful in creating awareness on the hazards of the smokeless tobacco products among the global population as a whole for those who chose such products as a cheap alternative to tobacco smoke. PMID:22317826
Statistical Assessment of Precipitation Products: Case studies over Africa, Australia, and the Himalayas
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Forootan, Ehsan; Khandu, Khandu; Awange, Joseph; Fereria, Vagner; Anyah, Richard
Accurate and reliable spatial and temporal representation of precipitation variability is essential for water resource management as well as for understanding of various global (and regional) hydrological responses. The growing number of high-resolution precipitation products in the past decade requires a more rigorous evaluation process to understand their skills and limitations over different parts of the world. Using advanced statistical techniques of (complex) empirical orthogonal functions (EOF) and three-cornered-hat (TCH) methods, various monthly precipitation products derived from satellite-based measurements and global reanalyses over different climatic and topographic regimes such as Africa (2003-2010), Australia (1981-2014), the Himalayan region of Bhutan (1998-2012) were evaluated. The products were also assessed for their possible biases in terms of probability distribution and also in the spectral domain. The results indicated that while the precipitation products generally agreed reasonably well with gauge-based rainfall observations, their accuracies were widely different over the three regions. All the satellite-based products (CMORPH, CHIRP, TRMM) underestimated monsoon rain over the Himalayas, while some of them (CMORPH, GSMaP_MVK) systematically overestimated convective rainfall over central regions of the African rain-belt. Satellite-based CHIRP and the MERRA reanalysis product provided consistent long-term rainfall variability and change over Australia for the period 1981-2014 while the gauge-adjusted TRMM product (3B43 v7) was found to be more consistent with gauge observations over the Himalayas (e.g., Bhutan). Over the African continent, both conventional statistical measures (biases and root-mean-square-errors) and TCH method revealed PERSIANN to be more accurate than TRMM and other regional precipitation products such as ARC (version 2) and TAMSAT. Seasonal biases were still apparent in satellite-based/reanalysis precipitation estimates
Assessing the Accuracy of a Child's Account of Sexual Abuse: A Case Study.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Orbach, Yael; Lamb, Michael E.
This study examined the accuracy of a 13-year-old girl's account of a sexually abusive incident. Information given by the victim was compared with an audiotaped record. Over 50% of information reported by the victim was corroborated by the audio record and 64% was confirmed by more than one source. (Author/CR)
Assessing Opinions in Community Leadership Networks to Address Health Inequalities: A Case Study from Project IMPACT
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
McCauley, M. P.; Ramanadhan, S.; Viswanath, K.
This study demonstrates a novel approach that those engaged in promoting social change in health can use to analyze community power, mobilize it and enhance community capacity to reduce health inequalities. We used community reconnaissance methods to select and interview 33 participants from six leadership sectors in "Milltown", the New…
A Study of E-Readiness Assessment: The Case of Three Universities in Nigeria
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Eweni, Samuel O.
This study investigated the readiness of three higher educational institutions in Nigeria in their attempt to introduce and maintain technology-driven services to students, faculty, and support staff. The prerequisites for participation in the digital, networked economy include the affordable ICT, reliable electric supply, reliable and up-to-date…
Assessment of the Research Learning Needs of University of Saskatchewan Librarians: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Schrader, Alvin M.; Shiri, Ali; Williamson, Vicki
As academic librarians with faculty status increasingly embrace research engagement as a core value and requirement, one of the little-studied questions is the extent to which they possess the requisite knowledge and skills to conduct high-quality research and scholarship and what further learning needs they might have within the organizational…
Assessment of PM2.5 concentrations on Human Health: A case study of Delhi, India
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Goyal, P.; Mishra, D.
Connection of air quality with human health is well established in the literature. However the associated health risks due to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration is not well known in India, while the assigned mean threshold values are 60 μg/m3 for 24-hour period and 40 μg/m3 for annual period. Both are considered safe concentration limits regarding human health effects. However, the daily and annually concentrations of PM2.5 were observed more than three times of NAAQS in the present study for a year. This study relates the incessant exposure to significant levels of PM2.5 to deleterious health effects, such as heart and lung diseases. The relation between environmental air quality and human health has been studied through different parameters e.g., hazard quotient (HQ), lifetime incremental cancer risk (LICR), and individual risk for different groups of ages in Delhi, the capital city of India. These analysis lead to additional insights into health disparities and may suggest that more rigorous strategies. This may be application to other urban areas across the nation. In this study, we propose to quantify such impacts through estimation of different health risk factors.
Assessing National Stereotypes in Language Attitude Studies: The Case of Class-Consciousness in Denmark.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Ladegaard, Hans J.
Describes a Danish language-attitude study, arguing that views presented in the literature often differ from people's private uncensored stereotypes. Surveys of people from four regions in Denmark investigated their attitudes after listening to voices with seven different regional dialects. Results indicated that people assigned social-class…
Nutritional and safety assessments of foods and feeds nutritionally improved through biotechnology: lysine maize as a case study.
Glenn, Kevin C
During the last decade, the area of biotech crops modified for agronomic input traits (e.g., herbicide tolerance and insect protection) has increased to 90 million halyear, grown by over 8 million farmers in a total of 17 countries. As adoption of these improved agronomic trait biotech crops has grown, so has interest in biotech crops that have improved nutritional characteristics for use as feed and food. A previous publication by the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) reported on the principles and concepts proposed for the nutritional and safety assessments of foods and feeds nutritionally improved through biotechnology. In this paper, the guidelines and principles recommended in the earlier publication are discussed relative to a specific case study, Lysine maize. Lysine maize is a feed ingredient with enhanced nutritional characteristics for poultry and swine and provides an alternative to the need for addition of supplemental lysine to some diets for these animals. The 2004 Task Force of the ILSI has also applied the concepts from that report to 4 other case studies: sweet potato enriched in provitamin A (2 examples, one using biotechnology and one using conventional breeding); Golden Rice 2; double-embryo maize; and ASP-1 enhanced protein sweet potato. PMID:17955996
Quantification of urban metabolism through coupling with the life cycle assessment framework: concept development and case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Goldstein, Benjamin; Birkved, Morten; Quitzau, Maj-Britt; Hauschild, Michael
Cities now consume resources and produce waste in amounts that are incommensurate with the populations they contain. Quantifying and benchmarking the environmental impacts of cities is essential if urbanization of the world's growing population is to occur sustainably. Urban metabolism (UM) is a promising assessment form in that it provides the annual sum material and energy inputs, and the resultant emissions of the emergent infrastructural needs of a city's sociotechnical subsystems. By fusing UM and life cycle assessment (UM-LCA) this study advances the ability to quantify environmental impacts of cities by modeling pressures embedded in the flows upstream (entering) and downstream (leaving) of the actual urban systems studied, and by introducing an advanced suite of indicators. Applied to five global cities, the developed UM-LCA model provided enhanced quantification of mass and energy flows through cities over earlier UM methods. The hybrid model approach also enabled the dominant sources of a city's different environmental footprints to be identified, making UM-LCA a novel and potentially powerful tool for policy makers in developing and monitoring urban development policies. Combining outputs with socioeconomic data hinted at how these forces influenced the footprints of the case cities, with wealthier ones more associated with personal consumption related impacts and poorer ones more affected by local burdens from archaic infrastructure.
A Hazard Assessment and Proposed Risk Index for Art, Architecture, Archive and Artifact Protection: Case Studies for Assorted International Museums
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kirk, Clara J.
This study proposes a hazard/risk index for environmental, technological, and social hazards that may threaten a museum or other place of cultural storage and accession. This index can be utilized and implemented to measure the risk at the locations of these storage facilities in relationship to their geologic, geographic, environmental, and social settings. A model case study of the 1966 flood of the Arno River and its impact on the city of Florence and the Uffizi Gallery was used as the index focus. From this focus an additional eleven museums and their related risk were assessed. Each index addressed a diverse range of hazards based on past frequency and magnitude. It was found that locations nearest a hazard had exceptionally high levels of risk, however more distant locations could have influences that would increase their risk to levels similar to those locations near the hazard. Locations not normally associated with a given natural hazard can be susceptible should the right conditions be met and this research identified, complied and assessed those factions found to influence natural hazard risk at these research sites.
Sustainability assessment and comparison of waste management systems: The Cities of Sofia and Niš case studies.
Milutinović, Biljana; Stefanović, Gordana; Kyoseva, Vanya; Yordanova, Dilyana; Dombalov, Ivan
Sustainability assessment of a waste management system is a very complex problem for numerous reasons. Firstly, it is a problem of environmental assessment, economic viability and social acceptability, and also a choice of the most practical waste treatment technique, taking into account all the specific areas in which a waste management system is implemented. For these reasons, among others, it is very important to benchmark, cooperate and exchange experiences in areas with similar characteristics. In this study, a comparison of waste management scenarios in the Cities of Niš and Sofia was performed. Based on the amount and composition of municipal solid waste, and taking into account local specifics (economic conditions, social acceptance, etc.), different scenarios were developed: landfilling without energy recovery, landfilling with energy recovery, mechanical-biological treatment, anaerobic digestion with biogas utilization and incineration with energy recovery. Scenario ranking was done using multi-criteria analysis and 12 indicators were chosen as the criteria. The obtained results show that the most sustainable scenario in both case studies is the mechanical-biological treatment (recycling, composting and Refuse Derived Fuel production). Having in mind that this scenario is the current waste management system in Sofia, these results can help decision-makers in the City of Niš in choosing a successful and sustainable waste management system. PMID:27357562
Assessment of temporal hydrologic anomalies coupled with drought impact for a transboundary river flow regime: The Diyala watershed case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Al-Faraj, Furat A. M.; Scholz, Miklas
Recent increases in human activities in shared river basins have unquestionably raised concerns about potential hydrological impacts, especially impacts of dams and large-scale water withdrawal schemes in the highlands. Anthropogenic pressures twinned with drought impacts have exacerbated water management challenges. This article assesses the cumulative consequences of upstream anthropogenic pressures and drought spells on temporal river flow regimes for the downstream country. The size and complexity of problems confronting transboundary river watersheds makes it necessary to use a representative example basin to study the problems and potential solutions. The Diyala (Sīrvān) river basin, which shares dozens of transboundary watersheds between Iraq and Iran, has been selected as a representative case study. A subset of the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA) was utilised and climate variability was considered in assessing the combined effect of various forms of upstream human-river regulations and climatic conditions on natural flow regimes in the downstream state. Findings indicated that the anthropogenic river-regulation coupled with the impact of drought periods have noticeably modified the natural flow paradigm. The yearly average runoffs, which are no longer available for the downstream country, have soared to very high levels, particularly over the last fifteen years. More adverse impacts were detected in the non-rainy season. Findings reveal also that damming and considerable water diversion to large-scale irrigation projects in the upstream state are the main regulations affecting the management of shared water resources in the downstream country.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Sand Mining from the Small Catchment Rivers in the Southwestern Coast of India: A Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sreebha, Sreedharan; Padmalal, Damodaran
In the past few decades, the demand for construction grade sand is increasing in many parts of the world due to rapid economic development and subsequent growth of building activities. This, in many of the occasions, has resulted in indiscriminate mining of sand from instream and floodplain areas leading to severe damages to the river basin environment. The case is rather alarming in the small catchment rivers like those draining the southwestern coast of India due to limited sand resources in their alluvial reaches. Moreover, lack of adequate information on the environmental impact of river sand mining is a major lacuna challenging regulatory efforts in many developing countries. Therefore, a scientific assessment is a pre-requisite in formulating management strategies in the sand mining-hit areas. In this context, a study has been made as a case to address the environmental impact of sand mining from the instream and floodplain areas of three important rivers in the southwestern coast of India namely the Chalakudy, Periyar and Muvattupuzha rivers, whose lowlands host one of the fast developing urban-cum-industrial centre, the Kochi city. The study reveals that an amount of 11.527 million ty-1 of sand (8.764 million ty-1 of instream sand and 2.763 million ty-1 of floodplain sand) is being mined from the midland and lowland reaches of these rivers for construction of buildings and other infrastructural facilities in Kochi city and its satellite townships. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) carried out as a part of this investigation shows that the activities associated with mining and processing of sands have not only affected the health of the river ecosystems but also degraded its overbank areas to a large extent. Considering the degree of degradation caused by sand mining from these rivers, no mining scenario may be opted in the deeper zones of the river channels. Also, a set of suggestions are made for the overall improvement of the rivers and its
Life cycle assessment of municipal solid waste management with regard to greenhouse gas emissions: case study of Tianjin, China.
Zhao, Wei; van der Voet, Ester; Zhang, Yufeng; Huppes, Gjalt
The environmental impacts of municipal solid waste (MSW) management have been highlighted in China, due to the continually increasing amount of MSW being generated and the limited capacity of waste treatment facilities. Of particular interest is greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation, aided by the Kyoto Mechanisms. China is an important case study for this global issue; however, an analysis of the entire life cycle of MSW management on GHG emissions is not available for China. This study evaluates the current and possible patterns of MSW management with regard to GHG emissions, using life cycle assessment (LCA), based on the Tianjin case. We assess the baseline scenario, reflecting the existing MSW management system, as well as a set of alternative scenarios, five exploring waste treatment technology innovations and one exploring integrated MSW management, to quantitatively predict potentials of GHG mitigation for Tianjin. Additionally, a sensitivity analysis is used to investigate the influence of landfill gas (LFG) collection efficiency, recycling rate and methodological choice, especially allocation, on the outcomes. The results show GHG emissions from Tianjin's MSW management system amount to 467.34 Mg CO2 eq. per year, based on the treatment of MSW collected in the central districts in 2006, and the key issue is LFG released. The integrated MSW management scenario, combining different improvement options, shows the highest GHG mitigation potential. Given the limited financial support and the current waste management practice in Tianjin, LFG utilization scenario would be the preferred choice. The sensitivity analysis of recycling rate shows an approximately linear relation of inverse proportion between recycling rate and total GHG emissions. Kitchen waste composting makes a considerable contribution to total GHG emissions reduction. Allocation choices result in differences in total quantitative outcomes, but preference orders and contributions analysis are found to be
Groundwater Potential Assessment Using Geographic Information Systems and Ahp Method (case Study: Baft City, Kerman, Iran)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zeinolabedini, M.; Esmaeily, A.
The purpose of the present study is to use Geographical Information Systems (GISs) for determining the best areas having ground water potential in Baft city. To achieve this objective, parameters such as precipitation, slope, fault, vegetation, land cover and lithology were used. Regarding different weight of these parameters effect, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used. After developing informational layers in GIS and weighing each of them, a model was developed. The final map of ground waters potential was calculated through the above-mentioned model. Through applying our developed model four areas having high, average, low potential and without required potential distinguished. Results of this research indicated that 0.74, 41.23 and 45.63 percent of the area had high, average and low potential, respectively. Moreover, 12.38% of this area had no potential. Obtained results can be useful in management plans of ground water resources and preventing excessive exploitation.
Assessing quality of urban underground spaces by coupling 3D geological models: The case study of Foshan city, South China
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hou, Weisheng; Yang, Liang; Deng, Dongcheng; Ye, Jing; Clarke, Keith; Yang, Zhijun; Zhuang, Wenming; Liu, Jianxiong; Huang, Jichun
Urban underground spaces (UUS), especially those containing natural resources that have not yet been utilized, have been recognized as important for future sustainable development in large cities. One of the key steps in city planning is to estimate the quality of urban underground space resources, since they are major determinants of suitable land use. Yet geological constraints are rarely taken into consideration in urban planning, nor are the uncertainties in the quality of the available assessments. Based on Fuzzy Set theory and the analytic hierarchy process, a 3D stepwise process for the quality assessment of geotechnical properties of natural resources in UUS is presented. The process includes an index system for construction factors; area partitioning; the extraction of geological attributes; the creation of a relative membership grade matrix; the evaluation of subject and destination layers; and indeterminacy analysis. A 3D geological model of the study area was introduced into the process that extracted geological attributes as constraints. This 3D geological model was coupled with borehole data for Foshan City, Guangdong province, South China, and the indeterminacies caused by the cell size and the geological strata constraints were analyzed. The results of the case study show that (1) a relatively correct result can be obtained if the cell size is near to the average sampling distance of the boreholes; (2) the constraints of the 3D geological model have a major role in establishing the UUS quality level and distribution, especially at the boundaries of the geological bodies; and (3) the assessment result is impacted by an interaction between the cell resolution and the geological model used.
An assessment of landscape changes in Mediterranean region. A case study of Algarve, southern Portugal.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fernandez, Helena; Martins, Fernando; Valín, Maria Isabel; Moreno, Ângela; Pedras, Celestina
Currently, the application of remote sensing techniques is a key factor for the planning and land management to ensure a sustainable development of the regions. Algarve, the most southern region of Portugal is characterized by its Mediterranean climate. This climate is described by irregular precipitation throughout the year with drought during summer months. The regional climate has a profound influence on its particular vegetation and wildlife turning it in a unique habitat for many species. Since the 1970s, increases in tourism have greatly affected the coastal region. This has led to great landscape pressure and urban growth, resulting in population increases due to local economic prosperity. Across Algarve, in recent decades, lawns areas have grown dramatically. Landscape water use has increased mainly because homeowners seldom pay the 'true' cost of water. Continued expansion of water supply is not, therefore, a viable management option in the future, particularly given the anticipated increase in the frequency and severity of droughts in Portugal. There's a need to change the perception of landscape relative to water consumption. Algarve needs a sustainable, 'demand-led' approach to water resource management, focusing on conserving water and using it more efficiently. The water resources available in the Algarve are limited, and decisions regarding sustainability must consider the environment. The aim of this study is to apply the remote sensing techniques to analyse the landscape changes in three municipalities of Algarve (Portugal): Albufeira, Loulé and Faro. The three Landsat images, from April 9th 1973 (Landsat1), March 23th 1989 (Landsat5) and April 26th 2013 (Landsat8) were used. The images were classified based on the radiometric information and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). These range of dates of the Landsat images used allowed for the differentiation between classes of the landscape. Land use and water resources are closely
Multivariate erosion risk assessment of lateritic badlands of Birbhum (West Bengal, India): A case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ghosh, Sandipan; Bhattacharya, Kamala
Each geomorphic hazard involves a degree of risk which incorporates quantification of the probability that a hazard will be harmful. At present, the categorization of sub-watersheds into erosion risk is considered as the fundamental step to conserve the soil loss. Development of badlands over the laterites of Birbhum district is an indicative of excessive soil loss in the monsoonal wet-dry type of climate. Slope erosion and channel erosion have generated huge amount of sediment from the small watersheds during intense monsoonal rainfall (June-September). The adjoining areas of Rampurhat I Block, Birbhum (West Bengal) and Shikaripara Block, Dumka (Jharkhand) have lost the lateritic soil cover at a rate of 20-40 ton/ha/year (Sarkar et al. 2005). In order to estimate the progressive removal of soil particles from the gully-catchments of the above-mentioned area, different morphometric parameters, soil parameters, hydrologic parameters and empirical models are employed. Side by side, the study is carried out to categorize the gully-catchments into different magnitude of erosion risk using several multivariate statistical techniques.
Assessing the Potential of Hybrid HPC Systems for Scientific Applications: a case study
Chavarría-Miranda, Daniel; Marquez, Andres
We have conducted a detailed study to understand the potential of hybrid CPU/FPGA High-Performance Computers for improving the performance of scientific applications. In particular, we have focused on an application in proteomics (Polygraph ), which is representative of many types of computational analysis applications in the life sciences: it focuses on extracting useful information from a large body of experimentally collected data (identifying observed peptide spectra collected from a mass spectrometer against a well-known protein database). Our preliminary analysis of Polygraph found that more than half (> 51%) of the computation was spent in three routines. We have implemented an FPGA version of the most computationally-intensive routine on a Cray XD-1 system, and measured the overall speedup achieved in comparison to an optimized software version of the routine running on the Cray XD-1's native Opteron processors. We have achieved computational speedups of up to 9.16. When we include data movement costs, the overall speedups is reduced to 1.78. We discuss the design and implementation strategies that led to these results, as well as advantages and limitations we found on the Cray XD-1 platform. We also address the advantages and limitations of current development environments, as well as discuss relevant issues we found in our experience as hybrid CPU/FPGA programming model "users".
Assessment of environmental impact on air quality by cement industry and mitigating measures: a case study.
Kabir, G; Madugu, A I
In this study, environmental impact on air quality was evaluated for a typical Cement Industry in Nigeria. The air pollutants in the atmosphere around the cement plant and neighbouring settlements were determined using appropriate sampling techniques. Atmospheric dust and CO2 were prevalent pollutants during the sampling period; their concentrations were recorded to be in the range of 249-3,745 mg/m3 and 2,440-2,600 mg/m3, respectively. Besides atmospheric dust and CO2, the air pollutants such as NOx, SOx and CO were in trace concentrations, below the safe limits approved by FEPA that are 0.0062-0.093 mg/m3 NOx, 0.026 mg/m3 SOx and 114.3 mg/m3 CO, respectively. Some cost-effective mitigating measures were recommended that include the utilisation of readily available and low-cost pozzolans material to produce blended cement, not only could energy efficiency be improved, but carbon dioxide emission could also be minimised during clinker production; and the installation of an advance high-pressure grinding rolls (clinker-roller-press process) to maximise energy efficiency to above what is obtainable from the traditional ball mills and to minimise CO2 emission from the power plant. PMID:19067202
Satellite assessment of sea spray aerosol productivity: Southern Ocean case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Witek, Marcin L.; Diner, David J.; Garay, Michael J.
Despite many years of observations by multiple sensors, there is still substantial ambiguity regarding aerosol optical depths (AOD) over remote oceans, in particular, over the pristine Southern Ocean. Passive satellite retrievals (e.g., Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)) and global aerosol transport models show a distinct AOD maximum around the 60°S latitude band. Sun photometer measurements performed by the Maritime Aerosol Network (MAN), on the other hand, indicate no increased AODs over the Southern Ocean. In this study elevated Southern Ocean AODs are examined from the modeling perspective. The primary aerosol component over the Southern Ocean is sea spray aerosol (SSA). Multiple simulations of SSA concentrations and optical depths are carried out using a single modeling framework, the Navy Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System (NAAPS) model. Several SSA emission functions are examined, including recently proposed formulations with sea surface temperature corrections. The differences between NAAPS simulations are primarily due to different SSA emission formulations. The results are compared against satellite-derived AODs from the MISR and MODIS instruments. MISR and MODIS AOD retrievals are further filtered to eliminate retrievals potentially affected by cloud contamination and cloud adjacency effects. The results indicate a very large impact of SSA emission parameterization on the simulated AODs. For some scenarios, the Southern Ocean AOD maximum almost completely disappears. Further MISR and MODIS AOD quality screening substantially improves model/satellite agreement. Based on these comparisons, an optimal SSA emission function for global aerosol transport models is recommended.
Sinkhole risk assessment by ERT: The case study of Sirino Lake (Basilicata, Italy)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Giampaolo, V.; Capozzoli, L.; Grimaldi, S.; Rizzo, E.
The presence of natural or artificial lakes and reservoirs that can drain because of natural phenomena can generate catastrophic events affecting urban and agricultural areas next to the source area. Therefore, geophysical prospecting techniques have been applied in the study of Sirino Lake, which, during the last century, was affected by the sudden opening of small sinkholes, resulting in the almost total draining of the lake and in the sudden increase of water flow rates of distal springs. Two electrical resistivity tomographies (ERTs) were carried out across the lake, using electrode arrays located on land and across the water body. Self-potential (SP) data were acquired around the lake shore and the surrounding area. The geophysical prospecting contributed significant data toward explaining the unique hydrogeological characteristics of the lake. Integration of geophysical, geological, hydrogeological, and geomorphological data allowed us to estimate the thickness of the lacustrine deposits beneath the lake, to describe the main patterns of the subsurface fluid flows in the area, and to identify possible water escape routes causing the piping phenomena.
Landslide risk assessment for individual buildings. A case study from the Prahova Subcarpathians, ROMANIA
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Armaş, I.
The aim of this study is to quantify the landslide risk for individual buildings using spatial data in a GIS environment. To document the efficiency of the method, a landslide prone area along Prahova Subcarpathian Valley was chosen, where landslide hazard interacts with human settlement and activities. The bivariate landslide susceptibility index (LSI) was used to calculate the spatial probability of landslides occurrence. LSI is a bivariate statistical approach that compares the spatial distribution of landslides with each individual factor that is being considered. The Landslide Susceptibility Index map was produced by numerically adding the weighted thematic maps for slope gradient and aspect, watertable, soil texture, lithology, built environment and land use. The values obtained were in good agreement with the field observations. Validation curves were obtained using the random-split strategy for two combinations of variables: (a) all seven variables and (b) three variables which showed highest individual success rates with respect to landslides occurrences (slope gradient, watertable and land use). The principal pre-disposing factors were found to be slope steepness and groundwater table. Vulnerability was established as the degree of loss to individual buildings resulting from a potential damaging landslide with a given return period in an area. Risk was calculated by multiplying the spatial probability of landslides by the vulnerability for each building and summing up the losses for a 10 years return period.
Assessing the quality of written information provision for surgical procedures: a case study in oesophagectomy
Blencowe, N S; Strong, S; McNair, A G K; Howes, N; Elliot, J; Avery, K N; Blazeby, J M
Objective To examine the content and quality of written information provided by surgical centres for patients undergoing oesophagectomy for cancer. Design Cross-sectional study of the content of National Health Service (NHS) patient information leaflets (PILs) about oesophageal cancer surgery, using a modified framework approach. Data sources Written information leaflets from 41 of 43 cancer centres undertaking surgery for oesophageal cancer in England and Wales (response rate 95.3%). Eligibility criteria All English language versions of PILs about oesophagectomy. Results 32 different PILs were identified, of which 2 were generic tools (Macmillan 'understanding cancer of the gullet' and EIDO 'oesophagectomy'). Although most PILs focused on describing in-hospital adverse events, information varied widely and was often misleading. Just 1 leaflet described survival benefits of surgery and 2 mentioned the possibility of disease recurrence. Conclusions Written information provided for patients by NHS cancer centres undertaking oesophagectomy is inconsistent and incomplete. It is recommended that surgeons work together with patients to agree on standards of information provision of relevance to all stakeholders' needs. PMID:26459487
Groundwater quality assessment using geoelectrical and geochemical approaches: case study of Abi area, southeastern Nigeria
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ebong, Ebong D.; Akpan, Anthony E.; Emeka, Chimezie N.; Urang, Job G.
The electrical resistivity technique which involved the Schlumberger depth sounding method and geochemical analyses of water samples collected from boreholes was used to investigate the suitability of groundwater aquifers in Abi for drinking and irrigation purposes. Fifty randomly located electrical resistivity data were collected, modeled, and interpreted after calibration with lithologic logs. Ten borehole water samples were collected and analysed to determine anion, cation concentrations and some physical and chemical parameters, such as water colour, temperature, total dissolved solids, and electrical conductivity. The results show that the lithostratigraphy of the study area is composed of sands, sandstones (fractured, consolidated and loosed), siltstones, shales (compacted and fractured) of the Asu River Group, Eze-Aku Formation which comprises the aquifer units, and the Nkporo Shale Formation. The aquifer conduits are known to be rich in silicate minerals, and the groundwater samples in some locations show a significant amount of Ca2+, Mg2+, and Na+. These cations balanced the consumption of H+ during the hydrolytic alteration of silicate minerals. The geochemical analysis of groundwater samples revealed dominant calcium-magnesium-carbonate-bicarbonate water facies. Irrigation water quality parameters, such as sodium absorption ratio, percentage of sodium, and permeability index, were calculated based on the physico-chemical analyses. The groundwater quality was observed to be influenced by the interaction of some geologic processes but was classified to be good to excellent, indicating its suitability for domestic and irrigation purposes.
Assessing survival in a multi-population system: a case study on bat populations.
Papadatou, Eleni; Ibáñez, Carlos; Pradel, Roger; Juste, Javier; Gimenez, Olivier
In long-lived animals, adult survival is among the most important determinants of population dynamics. Although it may show considerable variation both in time and among populations and sites, a single survival estimate per species is often used in comparative evolutionary studies or in conservation management to identify threatened populations. We estimated adult survival of the isabelline serotine bat Eptesicus isabellinus using capture-recapture data collected on six maternity colonies scattered over a large area (distance 8-103 km) during periods varying from 8 to 26 years. We modelled temporal and inter-colony variations as random effects in a Bayesian framework and estimated mean annual adult survival of females on two scales and a single survival value across all colonies. On a coarse scale, we grouped colonies according to two different habitat types and investigated the effect on survival. A difference in adult survival was detected between the two habitat types [posterior mean of annual survival probability 0.71; 95% credible interval (CI) 0.51-0.86 vs. 0.60; 0.28-0.89], but it was not statistically supported. On a fine scale, survival of the six colonies ranged between 0.58 (95% CI 0.23-0.92) and 0.81 (0.73-0.88), with variation between only two colonies being statistically supported. Overall survival was 0.72 (95% CI 0.57-0.93) with important inter-colony variability (on a logit scale 0.98; 95% CI 0.00-8.16). Survival varied temporally in a random fashion across colonies. Our results show that inference based solely on single colonies should be treated with caution and that a representative unbiased estimate of survival for any species should ideally be based on multiple populations. PMID:20852896
Genesis Solar Wind Collector Cleaning Assessment: Update on 60336 Sample Case Study
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
Goreva, Y. S.; Allums, K. K.; Gonzalez, C. P.; Jurewicz, A. J.; Burnett, D. S.; Allton, J. H.; Kuhlman, K. R.; Woolum, D.
To maximize the scientific return of Genesis Solar Wind return mission it is necessary to characterize and remove a crash-derived particle and thin film surface contamination. A small subset of Genesis mission collector fragments are being subjected to extensive study via various techniques. Here we present an update on the sample 60336, a Czochralski silicon (Si-CZ) based wafer from the bulk array (B/C). This sample has undergone multiple cleaning steps (see the table below): UPW spin wash, aggressive chemical cleanings (including aqua regia, hot xylene and RCA1), as well as optical and chemical (EDS, ToF-SIMS) imaging. Contamination appeared on the surface of 60336 after the initial 2007 UPW cleaning. Aqua regia and hot xylene treatment (8/13/2013) did little to remove contaminants. The sample was UPW cleaned for the third time and imaged (9/16/13). The UPW removed the dark stains that were visible on the sample. However, some features, like "the Flounder" (a large, 100 micron feature in Fig. 1b) appeared largely intact, resisting all previous cleaning efforts. These features were likely from mobilized adhesive, derived from the Post-It notes used to stabilize samples for transport from Utah after the hard landing. To remove this contamination, an RCA step 1 organic cleaning (RCA1) was employed. Although we are still uncertain on the nature of the Flounder and why it is resistant to UPW and aqua regia/hot xylene treatment, we have found RCA1 to be suitable for its removal. It is likely that the glue from sticky pads used during collector recovery may have been a source for resistant organic contamination [9]; however [8] shows that UPW reaction with crash-derived organic contamination does not make particle removal more difficult.
Application of transport timescales to coastal environmental assessment: a case study.
Shi, Huabin; Yu, Xiping
A numerical model based on the random walk particle tracking technique is developed to simulate the transport of the contaminants discharged into the coastal area of Guangxi, China from rivers. The model couples a 1D river flow module and a 2D coastal circulation module. Two transport timescales, i.e., the age and the arrival time, are introduced to characterize the contaminant transport process. The age is the time for a particle taken to enter the domain of interest after it left the place where the age is initially set to zero. The arrival time, on the other hand, is the age of the particle arriving at a particular place most quickly after release. It is useful for emergency responses to such an accident as toxic substance leakage. By the numerical model, the age and the arrival time under various conditions in the coastal area of Guangxi, China are studied in details. The age distribution and the arrival time of particles at a specific location are shown to closely rely on the coastal hydrodynamic environment in addition to the distance of the location from the source where particles are released. Particles released at spring tide and at ebb tide are found to spread more quickly than those released at neap tide and at flood tide, respectively. A large carrying discharge of river reduces the ages of the contaminants from the river concerned when transported to a place within the coastal area, while it has less influence on the arrival time, particularly in a place along the coast. PMID:24080326
Sustainability evaluation of pasteurized milk production with a life cycle assessment approach: An Iranian case study.
Rafiee, Shahin; Khoshnevisan, Benyamin; Mohammadi, Issa; Aghbashlo, Mortaza; Mousazadeh, Hossein; Clark, Sean
Agro-food systems play a significant role in the economies of all nations due to energy use and the resulting environmental consequences. The sustainability of these systems is determined by a multitude of interacting economic, social and environmental factors. Dairy production presents a relevant example of the sustainability trade-offs that occur within such systems. On the one hand, dairy production constitutes an important part of the human diet, but it is also responsible for significant emissions of potent greenhouse gases and other pollutants. In this study, the environmental aspects of pasteurized milk production in Iran were investigated using a life-cycle approach. Three sub-systems, namely feed production, dairy farm and dairy factory, were taken into account to determine how and where Iranian pasteurized milk production might be made more environmentally friendly and energy efficient. The results clearly demonstrate that the feed production stage was the hot spot in pasteurized milk production in terms of energy consumption, environmental burdens and economic costs. The largest share of the total production costs belonged to animal feeds (43%), which were part of the feed production stage. The largest consumers of energy in the production of raw milk were alfalfa (30.3%), concentrate (24%), straw (17.8%) and maize (10.9%) for cows, followed by diesel fuel (6.6%) and electricity (5.6%). The global warming potential for the production of 1000kg of raw milk at the dairy-farm gate was estimated at 457kg CO2,eq. Thus, more than 69% of the total impact at the milk-processing gate resulted from the previous two sub-systems (feed production and dairy farm), with the feed-production stage accounting for the largest fractions of the environmental burdens. PMID:27110976
The assessment of water use and reuse through reported data: A US case study.
Wiener, Maria J; Jafvert, Chad T; Nies, Loring F
Increasing demands for freshwater make it necessary to find innovative ways to extend the life of our water resources, and to manage them in a sustainable way. Indirect water reuse plays a role in meeting freshwater demands but there is limited documentation of it. There is a need to analyze its current status for water resources planning and conservation, and for understanding how it potentially impacts human health. However, the fact that data are archived in discrete uncoordinated databases by different state and federal entities, limits the capacity to complete holistic analysis of critical resources at large watershed scales. Humans alter the water cycle for food production, manufacturing, energy production, provision of potable water and recreation. Ecosystems services are affected at watershed scales but there are also global scale impacts from greenhouse gas emissions enabled by access to cooling, processing and irrigation water. To better document these issues and to demonstrate the utility of such an analysis, we studied the Wabash River Watershed located in the U.S. Midwest. Data for water extraction, use, discharge, and river flow were collected, curated and reorganized in order to characterize the water use and reuse within the basin. Indirect water reuse was estimated by comparing treated wastewater discharges with stream flows at selected points within the watershed. Results show that during the low flow months of July-October, wastewater discharges into the Wabash River basin contributed 82 to 121% of the stream flow, demonstrating that the level of water use and unplanned reuse is significant. These results suggest that intentional water reuse for consumptive purposes such as landscape or agricultural irrigation could have substantial ecological impacts by diminishing stream flow during vulnerable low flow periods. PMID:26363391
Flood frequency analysis with uncertainty estimation and its application for hazard assessment - a case study in the Mekong Delta
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nguyen Viet, Dung; Apel, Heiko; Merz, Bruno; Bárdossy, András
In many flood-prone regions on earth, the nature of the floods calls for a multivariate approach as analyzing flood frequency, which provides a basic for a sound flood hazard and risk assessment. That is because the flood severity is determined not only by the peak flood discharge as usually considered but also by other aspects such as the volume and even the hydrograph shape of the flood. However, the multivariate flood frequency analysis taking into account its associated uncertainty sources has rarely been studied. The Mekong Delta is one of the largest and most densely populated deltas on Earth. It witnesses annual large scale inundations which are associated to the SE-Asian monsoons. These floods are the basis for the livelihoods of the population of the Delta, but they are also the major hazard. This hazard has, however, not been studied within the frame of a probabilistic flood hazard analysis. Thus this study focuses on the identification of a suitable statistical model for the estimation of flood frequencies considering two important flood aspects peak Q and volume V and exemplifies its applicability for a sound flood hazard assessment for the case study in the Mekong Delta. A copula-based bivariate statistical model with bootstrapping-based uncertainty estimation is, hence, developed for a flood frequency analysis of peak flow and volume. The analysis reveals that even with the available - in a hydrological context - quite long data series (e.g. 88 years in the Mekong Delta), large uncertainties are associated to the bivariate quantiles (Q, V), even for rather frequent events. The main uncertainty source is the sampling uncertainty, thus a direct consequence of the limited length of the data series. However, we still advocate for applying the proposed bivariate frequency method for flood frequency estimation in the Mekong Delta because a) it reflects the essential aspects of floods in this region, b) the uncertainties are inherent for every multivariate
Using Plant Clinic Registers to Assess the Quality of Diagnoses and Advice Given to Farmers: A Case Study from Uganda
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Danielsen, Solveig; Boa, Eric; Mafabi, Moses; Mutebi, Emmanuel; Reeder, Robert; Kabeere, Flavia; Karyeija, Robert
Purpose: This study developed a framework for quality assessment of diagnoses and advice given at plant clinics. Design/methodology/approach: Clinic registers from five plant clinics in Uganda (2006-2010) were used to develop quality assessment protocols for diagnoses and advice given by plant doctors. Assessment of quality of diagnoses was based…
An Examination of Using Self-, Peer-, and Teacher-Assessment in Higher Education: A Case Study in Teacher Education
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kiliç, Didem
This study focuses on the process of implementing self-, peer- and teacher-assessment in teacher education in order to examine the ways of applying these assessment practices and specifically aims at finding out the level of agreement among pre-service teachers' self-, peer- and teacher-assessments of presentation performances. Pre-service…
Shallow water submarine hydrothermal activity - A case study in the assessment of ocean acidification and fertilization
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zhang, J.; Yoshida, K.; Hagiwara, T.; Nagao, K.; Kusakabe, M.; Wang, B.; Chen, C. A.
Most natural Shallow Water submarine Hydrothermal activates (SWH) along coastlines are related to hydrothermal eruptions involving heating of groundwater with the volcanic gas. These SWHs supply nutrients such as phosphorus and micro nutrients like iron to the euphotic zone, contributing to the overall natural fertility and primary productivity of coastal waters. However, SWHs also have a negative effect, dispersing toxic materials such as mercury and arsenic, and affecting the acidification of the surrounding waters. In this study, we evaluate the impact of "iron supply" and "ocean acidification" on the primary production in a coastal marine environment, at a SWH area discovered off Gueshandao Island, northeast Taiwan. In the past three years, expeditions were conducted and observations made around this SWH site. Divers, small boats and a research vessel (R/V OR1, Ocean University National Taiwan) were used to survey successively larger areas around the site. Some of the results obtained are as follows. Hydrothermal vents are located in a hilly terrain rich with hot spring water with gas erupting intermittently. There are two types of vents, roughly divided by color, yellow hot spring water with higher temperature >110 degC ejected from sulfur chimneys of various sizes, and colorless water with lower temperature ~80 degC ejected directly from the crevices of the andesitic bedrock. Natural sulfur solidifying in the mouth of a small chimney was captured by a video camera, and explosions were also observed at intervals of a few minutes. Sediment, sand and particles of sulfur were deposited on the sides to a radius of about 50 m condensing around the chimney. The bottom type changes from sand/particles to outcrop/rock away from the vents. Moreover, gas samples were collected from the vents; the ratios of gas concentrations (N2/Ar) and isotopic composition of noble gas (3He/4He) suggest that these volcanic gases are mantle-derived. Hydrothermal fluid with high p
Case Study: Case Studies and the Flipped Classroom
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Herreid, Clyde Freeman; Schiller, Nancy A.
This column provides original articles on innovations in case study teaching, assessment of the method, as well as case studies with teaching notes. This month's issue discusses the positive and negative aspects of the "flipped classroom." In the flipped classroom model, what is normally done in class and what is normally done as…
KULTURisk regional risk assessment methodology for water-related natural hazards - Part 2: Application to the Zurich case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ronco, P.; Bullo, M.; Torresan, S.; Critto, A.; Olschewski, R.; Zappa, M.; Marcomini, A.
The aim of this paper is the application of the KULTURisk regional risk assessment (KR-RRA) methodology, presented in the companion paper (Part 1, Ronco et al., 2014), to the Sihl River basin, in northern Switzerland. Flood-related risks have been assessed for different receptors lying on the Sihl River valley including Zurich, which represents a typical case of river flooding in an urban area, by calibrating the methodology to the site-specific context and features. Risk maps and statistics have been developed using a 300-year return period scenario for six relevant targets exposed to flood risk: people; economic activities: buildings, infrastructure and agriculture; natural and semi-natural systems; and cultural heritage. Finally, the total risk index map has been produced to visualize the spatial pattern of flood risk within the target area and, therefore, to identify and rank areas and hotspots at risk by means of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) tools. Through a tailored participatory approach, risk maps supplement the consideration of technical experts with the (essential) point of view of relevant stakeholders for the appraisal of the specific scores weighting for the different receptor-relative risks. The total risk maps obtained for the Sihl River case study are associated with the lower classes of risk. In general, higher (relative) risk scores are spatially concentrated in the deeply urbanized city centre and areas that lie just above to river course. Here, predicted injuries and potential fatalities are mainly due to high population density and to the presence of vulnerable people; flooded buildings are mainly classified as continuous and discontinuous urban fabric; flooded roads, pathways and railways, most of them in regards to the Zurich central station (Hauptbahnhof) are at high risk of inundation, causing severe indirect damage. Moreover, the risk pattern for agriculture, natural and semi-natural systems and cultural heritage is relatively
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Herreid, Clyde Freeman
This chapter describes the history of case study teaching, types of cases, and experimental data supporting their effectiveness. It also describes a model for comparing the efficacy of the various case study methods. (Contains 1 figure.)
A Case Study on a Trial Site in Western Austria to Assess Benefits of Railway Lineside Vegetation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Hoerbinger, Stephan; Obriejetan, Michael
Lineside vegetation along railways can provide a wide range of ecosystem services and benefits. At the same time, there are several specific demands on the vegetation systems ensuring maintenance of highest standards of safety and operational performance. As a first step of the study, these demands on lineside vegetation but also their potentials for both rail specific internal and external benefits were summarized. For further analyses a case study was performed. A trial site, located in Austriás western federal state of Vorarlberg, was selected. The overall trial corridor was 22 km long and offered a large diversity in geomorphology, embankment types and surrounding land cover. A GIS-based classification of location types was conducted by using available open source geodata. Additionally, images, taken every fifty meters by a camera, mounted on a locomotive, supported the classification process. Following parameter were assessed: type of the track body, geomorphology, site conditions, technical facilities and surrounding land cover. Along railway infrastructure facilities, ecosystem services, provided by the lineside vegetation, are closely associated with improvement of the stability and resilience of embankments and cuttings. At the same time, specific criteria that must be fulfilled at every location type. These are safety and technical issues, such as keeping the railway clearance profile, economical issues respectively avoiding additional maintenance costs by strong plant growth. Supplementary ecosystem services are strongly related to the position in the landscape and the surrounding land cover. Along urban structures, that can be noise- or sight protection, provided by the lineside vegetation. On location types along agricultural land, lineside vegetation can provide ecological corridors or enhance the landscape structure. In this context, ecosystem services were derived to the previously assigned location types. The result of the case study is a GIS
Life Cycle Assessment Projection of Photovoltaic Cells: A Case Study on Energy Demand of Quantum Wire Based Photovoltaic Technology Research
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Mukherjee, Shilpi
With increasing clean-energy demand, photovoltaic (PV) technologies have gained attention as potential long-term alternative to fossil fuel energy. However, PV research and manufacture still utilize fossil fuel-powered grid electricity. With continuous enhancement of solar conversion efficiency, it is imperative to assess whether overall life cycle efficiency is also being enhanced. Many new-material PV technologies are still in their research phase, and life cycle analyses of these technologies have not yet been performed. For best results, grid dependency must be minimized for PV research, and this can be accomplished by an analytical instrument called Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). LCA is the study of environmental impacts of a product throughout its life cycle. While there are some non-recoverable costs of research, energy is precious, and the PV research community should be aware of its energy consumption. LCA can help identify options for energy conservation through process optimization. A case study was conducted on the energy demand of a test-bed emerging PV technology using life cycle assessment methodology. The test-bed system chosen for this study was a new-material PV cell. The objective was to quantify the total energy demand for the research phase of the test-bed solar cell's life cycle. The objective was accomplished by collecting primary data on energy consumption for each process in the development of this solar cell. It was found that 937 kWh of energy was consumed for performing research on a single sample of the solar cell. For comparison, this energy consumption is 83% of Arkansas's average monthly residential electricity consumption. Life cycle inventory analysis showed that heating, ventilation, and air conditioning consumed the bulk of the energy of research. It is to be noted that the processes studied as part of the solar cell test-bed system are representative of a research process only. Life cycle thinking can identify energy hot-spots and
Reanalysis of the DEMS Nested Case-Control Study of Lung Cancer and Diesel Exhaust: Suitability for Quantitative Risk Assessment
Crump, Kenny S; Van Landingham, Cynthia; Moolgavkar, Suresh H; McClellan, Roger
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in 2012 upgraded its hazard characterization of diesel engine exhaust (DEE) to "carcinogenic to humans." The Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study (DEMS) cohort and nested case-control studies of lung cancer mortality in eight U.S. nonmetal mines were influential in IARC's determination. We conducted a reanalysis of the DEMS case-control data to evaluate its suitability for quantitative risk assessment (QRA). Our reanalysis used conditional logistic regression and adjusted for cigarette smoking in a manner similar to the original DEMS analysis. However, we included additional estimates of DEE exposure and adjustment for radon exposure. In addition to applying three DEE exposure estimates developed by DEMS, we applied six alternative estimates. Without adjusting for radon, our results were similar to those in the original DEMS analysis: all but one of the nine DEE exposure estimates showed evidence of an association between DEE exposure and lung cancer mortality, with trend slopes differing only by about a factor of two. When exposure to radon was adjusted, the evidence for a DEE effect was greatly diminished, but was still present in some analyses that utilized the three original DEMS DEE exposure estimates. A DEE effect was not observed when the six alternative DEE exposure estimates were utilized and radon was adjusted. No consistent evidence of a DEE effect was found among miners who worked only underground. This article highlights some issues that should be addressed in any use of the DEMS data in developing a QRA for DEE. PMID:25857246
Including the urban heat island in spatial heat health risk assessment strategies: a case study for Birmingham, UK
Background Heatwaves present a significant health risk and the hazard is likely to escalate with the increased future temperatures presently predicted by climate change models. The impact of heatwaves is often felt strongest in towns and cities where populations are concentrated and where the climate is often unintentionally modified to produce an urban heat island effect; where urban areas can be significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas. The purpose of this interdisciplinary study is to integrate remotely sensed urban heat island data alongside commercial social segmentation data via a spatial risk assessment methodology in order to highlight potential heat health risk areas and build the foundations for a climate change risk assessment. This paper uses the city of Birmingham, UK as a case study area. Results When looking at vulnerable sections of the population, the analysis identifies a concentration of "very high" risk areas within the city centre, and a number of pockets of "high risk" areas scattered throughout the conurbation. Further analysis looks at household level data which yields a complicated picture with a considerable range of vulnerabilities at a neighbourhood scale. Conclusions The results illustrate that a concentration of "very high" risk people live within the urban heat island, and this should be taken into account by urban planners and city centre environmental managers when considering climate change adaptation strategies or heatwave alert schemes. The methodology has been designed to be transparent and to make use of powerful and readily available datasets so that it can be easily replicated in other urban areas. PMID:21682872
Basic Exploratory Research versus Guideline-Compliant Studies Used for Hazard Evaluation and Risk Assessment: Bisphenol A as a Case Study
Tyl, Rochelle W.
Background Myers et al. [Environ Health Perspect 117:309–315 (2009)] argued that Good Laboratory Practices (GLPs) cannot be used as a criterion for selecting data for risk assessment, using bisphenol A (BPA) as a case study. They did not discuss the role(s) of guideline-compliant studies versus basic/exploratory research studies, and they criticized both GLPs and guideline-compliant studies and their roles in formal hazard evaluation and risk assessment. They also specifically criticized our published guideline-compliant dietary studies on BPA in rats and mice and 17β-estradiol (E2) in mice. Objectives As the study director/first author of the criticized E2 and BPA studies, I discuss the uses of basic research versus guideline-compliant studies, how testing guidelines are developed and revised, how new end points are validated, and the role of GLPs. I also provide an overview of the BPA guideline-compliant and exploratory research animal studies and describe BPA pharmacokinetics in rats and humans. I present responses to specific criticisms by Myers et al. Discussion and conclusions Weight-of-evidence evaluations have consistently concluded that low-level BPA oral exposures do not adversely affect human developmental or reproductive health, and I encourage increased validation efforts for "new" end points for inclusion in guideline studies, as well as performance of robust long-term studies to follow early effects (observed in small exploratory studies) to any adverse consequences. PMID:20049112
Sequence- and Structure-Based Functional Annotation and Assessment of Metabolic Transporters in Aspergillus oryzae: A Representative Case Study
Raethong, Nachon; Wong-ekkabut, Jirasak; Laoteng, Kobkul; Vongsangnak, Wanwipa
Aspergillus oryzae is widely used for the industrial production of enzymes. In A. oryzae metabolism, transporters appear to play crucial roles in controlling the flux of molecules for energy generation, nutrients delivery, and waste elimination in the cell. While the A. oryzae genome sequence is available, transporter annotation remains limited and thus the connectivity of metabolic networks is incomplete. In this study, we developed a metabolic annotation strategy to understand the relationship between the sequence, structure, and function for annotation of A. oryzae metabolic transporters. Sequence-based analysis with manual curation showed that 58 genes of 12,096 total genes in the A. oryzae genome encoded metabolic transporters. Under consensus integrative databases, 55 unambiguous metabolic transporter genes were distributed into channels and pores (7 genes), electrochemical potential-driven transporters (33 genes), and primary active transporters (15 genes). To reveal the transporter functional role, a combination of homology modeling and molecular dynamics simulation was implemented to assess the relationship between sequence to structure and structure to function. As in the energy metabolism of A. oryzae, the H+-ATPase encoded by the AO090005000842 gene was selected as a representative case study of multilevel linkage annotation. Our developed strategy can be used for enhancing metabolic network reconstruction. PMID:27274991
The contribution of geophysical techniques to site characterisation and liquefaction risk assessment: Case study of Nafplion City, Greece
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Karastathis, V. K.; Karmis, P.; Novikova, T.; Roumelioti, Z.; Gerolymatou, E.; Papanastassiou, D.; Liakopoulos, S.; Tsombos, P.; Papadopoulos, G. A.
We present an example of how geophysical methodologies can considerably contribute to seismic and liquefaction risk assessment in an area where urban development is planned. The inspection for possible hidden faults by geophysical methods is particularly critical, since such a possibility could practically hinder the town planning in this area. However, even if no primary threats exist within the area, the response of the foundation soil to various scenarios of historical earthquakes, which have affected the place in the past, must be examined. The geophysical methodologies could also assist this analysis, contributing with the calculation of the amplification of the seismic motion from the bedrock up to the surface. The investigation area of Nafplion, Greece, was suspected to have high liquefaction potential since the foundation soil consists of loose sandy silt with a very shallow aquifer. The implementation of gravity and seismic methods considerably aided the investigation for possible seismic faults. Special emphasis was given to seismic depth migration and particularly to the construction of valid velocity models, in order to precisely calculate the dip characteristics of the structures. Shallow seismic techniques were also applied to provide the near-surface velocity structure, which is a prerequisite for assessing the liquefaction risk. In particular, our case study provides an example of how seismic methods (seismic reflection, seismic refraction, seismic modelling, MASW, multichannel analysis of microtremors and crosshole investigations) when combined with geotechnical borehole testing, enhance the reliability of their output and allow the coverage of wide areas in a cost-effective way in comparison to standard borehole tests. Data and information provided by the application of the geophysical methods were subsequently incorporated in the liquefaction risk assessment at several selected sites within the study area. Factors of safety against liquefaction
Comprehensive Environmental Assessment Applied to Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Flame-Retardant Coatings in Upholstery Textiles: A Case Study Presenting Priority Research Gaps for Future Risk Assessments (Final Report)
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Scale issues in the assessment of ecological impacts using a GIS-based habitat model - A case study for the Stockholm region
Gontier, Mikael . E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) provide two interlinked platforms for the assessment of impacts on biodiversity caused by human developments. Although it might be too early to draw conclusions on the efficiency of SEA to assess such impacts, a number of persistent problems have been identified in the case of EIA. Some of these shortcomings concern the lack of proper prediction and impact quantification, and the inadequate/insufficient assessment of cumulative effects. A number of problems are related to the scale(s) at which the assessment is performed. SEA may provide a more adequate framework than EIA to discuss scale-related issues (i.e. cumulative impacts) but it also requires the use of adapted tools. This paper presents a case study where a GIS-based habitat model for the lesser spotted woodpecker is tested, validated and applied to a planning scenario in the Stockholm region in Sweden. The results show that the method adopted offers great prospects to contribute to a better assessment of biodiversity-related impacts. Even though some limitations remain in the form of data requirement and interpretation of the results, the model produced continuous, quantified predictions over the study area and provided a relevant basis for the assessment of cumulative effects. Furthermore, this paper discusses potential conflicts between different scales involved in the assessment - related to administrative boundaries, ecological processes, data availability, the method adopted to perform the assessment and temporal aspects.
Life cycle assessment as an analytical tool in strategic environmental assessment. Lessons learned from a case study on municipal energy planning in Sweden
Bjoerklund, Anna
Life cycle assessment (LCA) is explored as an analytical tool in strategic environmental assessment (SEA), illustrated by case where a previously developed SEA process was applied to municipal energy planning in Sweden. The process integrated decision-making tools for scenario planning, public participation and environmental assessment. This article describes the use of LCA for environmental assessment in this context, with focus on methodology and practical experiences. While LCA provides a systematic framework for the environmental assessment and a wider systems perspective than what is required in SEA, LCA cannot address all aspects of environmental impact required, and therefore needs to be complemented by other tools. The integration of LCA with tools for public participation and scenario planning posed certain methodological challenges, but provided an innovative approach to designing the scope of the environmental assessment and defining and assessing alternatives. - Research highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer LCA was explored as analytical tool in an SEA process of municipal energy planning. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The process also integrated LCA with scenario planning and public participation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Benefits of using LCA were a systematic framework and wider systems perspective. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Integration of tools required some methodological challenges to be solved. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer This proved an innovative approach to define alternatives and scope of assessment.
The Self-Assessment Process and Impacts on the Health Information Management Program Performance: A Case Study.
Spohn, Renae
This study examined how health information management (HIM) educational programs can use the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Model (MBNQAM) educational criteria to meet the self-assessment requirement for Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM) accreditation. An existing instrument, Quantum Performance Group's Organizational Assessment Survey authored by Dr. Mark Blazey, was used in this study. The instrument was designed to self-assess the entire organization. Results of the study demonstrate how the MBNQAM can be used to successfully self-assess HIM programs. This research adds to the body of literature surrounding the application of the MBNQAM for HIM programs and provides new information to deans, administrators, and educators that may be useful, as an added component, when self-assessing HIM programs. The results of this study will help to establish a foundation for HIM programs to strengthen the self-assessment process, providing a strong starting point for strategic planning prioritization for HIM program improvement initiatives. The improved process will help in maturing the HIM program while fulfilling accreditation requirements for self-assessment. As additional HIM programs formalize the self-assessment process, benchmarking opportunities with other HIM programs will be created. PMID:26755899
The Self-Assessment Process and Impacts on the Health Information Management Program Performance: A Case Study
Spohn, Renae
This study examined how health information management (HIM) educational programs can use the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Model (MBNQAM) educational criteria to meet the self-assessment requirement for Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM) accreditation. An existing instrument, Quantum Performance Group's Organizational Assessment Survey authored by Dr. Mark Blazey, was used in this study. The instrument was designed to self-assess the entire organization. Results of the study demonstrate how the MBNQAM can be used to successfully self-assess HIM programs. This research adds to the body of literature surrounding the application of the MBNQAM for HIM programs and provides new information to deans, administrators, and educators that may be useful, as an added component, when self-assessing HIM programs. The results of this study will help to establish a foundation for HIM programs to strengthen the self-assessment process, providing a strong starting point for strategic planning prioritization for HIM program improvement initiatives. The improved process will help in maturing the HIM program while fulfilling accreditation requirements for self-assessment. As additional HIM programs formalize the self-assessment process, benchmarking opportunities with other HIM programs will be created. PMID:26755899
Intellectually Gifted Students with Possible Characteristics of ASD: A Multiple Case Study of Psycho-Educational Assessment Practices
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Burger-Veltmeijer, Agnes E. J.; Minnaert, Alexander E. M. G.; Van den Bosch, Els J.
The Strengths and Weaknesses Heuristic (S&W Heuristic) was constructed in order to reduce biased assessments of students with (suspicion of) Intellectual Giftedness in co-occurrence with Autism Spectrum Disorder (IG + ASD) and to establish a well-founded interconnection between assessment data and intervention indications. The current study is…
The decision, implementation and assessment of a credit-bearing activity class by faculty in residence: A case study.
Callahan, Janet; Harrison, Geoff; Humphrey, Michael; Sielaff, Cala; Wintrow, Melissa
This case study reports on a programmatic decision to require a credit-bearing course that was made by Faculty in Residence (FIR), including its implementation and results over a two-year period from 2010-2012. The focus is on FIR and on the impact of their decision upon the students enrolled in their Living Learning Communities (LLCs). The credit-bearing course was a Kinesiology Activities class taken by all seven LLCs at Boise State University. Anonymous feedback from students was obtained via end of semester surveys; results were used to improve the course. Survey feedback was analyzed to assess the value students perceived to have gained from the course. The majority of students reported gaining value from the class. Students noted that it positively affected their time management/personal accountability, that it decreased their stress level and that it increased their awareness of the Recreational Center offerings. Some students were critical of the course, reporting little to no value or even resentment about the course requirement. The decision, implementation and improvements of the course required faculty leadership and full participation of all LLCs; perceptions of the FIR in terms of the effects of adding the required course on their LLC are reported. PMID:26519021
An assessment of patient education and self-management in diabetes disease management--two case studies.
Fitzner, Karen; Greenwood, Deborah; Payne, Hildegarde; Thomson, John; Vukovljak, Lana; McCulloch, Amber; Specker, James E
Diabetes affects 7.8% of Americans, nearly 24 million people, and costs $174 billion yearly. People with diabetes benefit from self-management; disease management (DM) programs are effective in managing populations with diabetes. Little has been published on the intersection of diabetes education and DM. Our hypothesis was that diabetes educators and their interventions integrate well with DM and effectively support providers' care delivery. A literature review was conducted for papers published within the past 3 years and identified using the search terms "diabetes educator" and "disease management." Those that primarily addressed community health workers or the primary care/community setting were excluded. Two case studies were conducted to augment the literature. Ten of 30 manuscripts identified in the literature review were applicable and indicate that techniques and interventions based on cognitive theories and behavioral change can be effective when coupled with diabetes DM. Better diabetes self-management through diabetes education encourages participation in DM programs and adherence to recommended care in programs offered by DM organizations or those that are provider based. Improved health outcomes and reduced cost can be achieved by blending diabetes education and DM. Diabetes educators are a critical part of the management team and, with their arsenal of goal setting and behavior change techniques, are an essential component for the success of diabetes DM programs. Additional research needs to be undertaken to identify effective ways to integrate diabetes educators and education into DM and to assess clinical, behavioral, and economic outcomes arising from such programs. PMID:19108648
Assessing intrinsic values of a lecture-free high school science education for collegiate science work: A case study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Dorais, Christopher James
This case study examined the efficacy of the individualized instruction teaching methodology as it was applied within high school science classes. Also examined was how individualized instruction at the high school level prepared students to do collegiate science level work.
Postcranial skeletal pneumaticity: a case study in the use of quantitative microCT to assess vertebral structure in birds.
Fajardo, R J; Hernandez, E; O'Connor, P M
Limb elements in birds have been characterized as exhibiting a reduction in trabecular bone, thinner cortices and decreased bending strength when pneumatized, yet it is unclear if these characteristics generalize to the axial skeleton. Thin section techniques, the traditional gold standard for bone structure studies, have most commonly been applied to the study of avian bone. This destructive technique, however, makes it subsequently impossible to use the same samples in experimental testing systems that allow researchers to correlate structure with the mechanical properties of the bone. Micro-computed tomography (microCT), a non-destructive X-ray imaging technique, can be used to assess the effect of pneumatization on vertebral cortical and trabecular bone through virtual extraction and structural quantification of each tissue type. We conducted a preliminary investigation of the application of microCT methods to the study of cortical and trabecular bone structure in a small sample of pneumatic and apneumatic thoracic vertebrae. The sample consisted of two similar-sized anatids, Aix sponsa (n = 7) and Oxyura jamaicensis (n = 5). Volumes of interest were created that contoured (outlined) the boundaries of the ventral cortical bone shell, the trabecular compartment and the whole centrum (cortical bone + trabecular bone), and allowed independent structural analysis of each volume of interest. Results indicated that bone volume fraction of the whole centrum was significantly higher in the apneumatic O. jamaicensis than in the pneumatized A. sponsa (A. sponsa = 36%, O. jamaicensis = 48%, P < 0.05). In contrast, trabecular bone volume fraction was similar between the two species. The ventral cortical bone shell was approximately 23% thinner (P < 0.05) in A. sponsa (0.133 mm) compared with apneumatic O. jamaicensis (0.172 mm). This case study demonstrates that microCT is a powerful non-destructive imaging technique that may be applied to the three-dimensional study of
Postcranial skeletal pneumaticity: a case study in the use of quantitative microCT to assess vertebral structure in birds
Fajardo, R J; Hernandez, E; O'Connor, P M
Limb elements in birds have been characterized as exhibiting a reduction in trabecular bone, thinner cortices and decreased bending strength when pneumatized, yet it is unclear if these characteristics generalize to the axial skeleton. Thin section techniques, the traditional gold standard for bone structure studies, have most commonly been applied to the study of avian bone. This destructive technique, however, makes it subsequently impossible to use the same samples in experimental testing systems that allow researchers to correlate structure with the mechanical properties of the bone. Micro-computed tomography (µCT), a non-destructive X-ray imaging technique, can be used to assess the effect of pneumatization on vertebral cortical and trabecular bone through virtual extraction and structural quantification of each tissue type. We conducted a preliminary investigation of the application of µCT methods to the study of cortical and trabecular bone structure in a small sample of pneumatic and apneumatic thoracic vertebrae. The sample consisted of two similar-sized anatids, Aix sponsa (n = 7) and Oxyura jamaicensis (n = 5). Volumes of interest were created that contoured (outlined) the boundaries of the ventral cortical bone shell, the trabecular compartment and the whole centrum (cortical bone + trabecular bone), and allowed independent structural analysis of each volume of interest. Results indicated that bone volume fraction of the whole centrum was significantly higher in the apneumatic O. jamaicensis than in the pneumatized A. sponsa (A. sponsa = 36%, O. jamaicensis = 48%, P < 0.05). In contrast, trabecular bone volume fraction was similar between the two species. The ventral cortical bone shell was approximately 23% thinner (P < 0.05) in A. sponsa (0.133 mm) compared with apneumatic O. jamaicensis (0.172 mm). This case study demonstrates that µCT is a powerful non-destructive imaging technique that may be applied to the three-dimensional study of avian bone
Multi-way analysis for decadal pollution trends assessment: the Guadalquivir River estuary as a case study.
López-López, José A; Mendiguchía, Carolina; García-Vargas, Manuel; Moreno, Carlos
Alongside history, human activities have contributed to the deployment of environmental quality. In particular, during the last decades the problem of water preservation has gained increasing attention. Statistical analysis is essential to analyze environmental data and to identify trends of pollutants over space and time. Usually applied techniques for data treatment are based on the organization of data in a two-way array, missing some shades on pollutants distribution. This fact supports the use of multi-way techniques, which allow the analysis of the results through different directions at the same time. For Three Modes Principal Components Analysis (3MPCA) a principal components analysis is conducted using three modes and a "core" matrix that allows assessing their interactions. In the case of environmental studies, it offers information about the spatial-temporal evolution of pollutants in a certain water body. The Guadalquivir River estuary has been used as a model system. It is a representative human influenced system, where different pollution inputs have been characterized. In this study, decadal evolution of pollutants has been discussed, to evaluate among others the effects of EU legislation on river water quality. The aim of this work is the establishment of the evolution, during the last decade, of nutrients and metals ultra-traces distribution in an estuary affected by anthropic activities. As examples, Pb and PO4(3-) show a trend to decrease their weight on water pollution, total suspended solids (TSS) behavior is related with massive rain events, and the rising of new technologies appears as a source of emerging pollutants as Co in urban-industrial areas. PMID:24997899
Retrospective benzene exposure assessment for a multi-center case-cohort study of benzene-exposed workers in China.
Portengen, Lützen; Linet, Martha S; Li, Gui-Lan; Lan, Qing; Dores, Graça M; Ji, Bu-Tian; Hayes, Richard B; Yin, Song-Nian; Rothman, Nathaniel; Vermeulen, Roel
Quality of exposure assessment has been shown to be related to the ability to detect risk of lymphohematopoietic disorders in epidemiological investigations of benzene, especially at low levels of exposure. We set out to build a statistical model for reconstructing exposure levels for 2898 subjects from 501 factories that were part of a nested case-cohort study within the NCI-CAPM cohort of more than 110,000 workers. We used a hierarchical model to allow for clustering of measurements by factory, workshop, job, and date. To calibrate the model we used historical routine monitoring data. Measurements below the limit of detection were accommodated by constructing a censored data likelihood. Potential non-linear and industry-specific time-trends and predictor effects were incorporated using regression splines and random effects. A partial validation of predicted exposures in 2004/2005 was performed through comparison with full-shift measurements from an exposure survey in facilities that were still open. Median cumulative exposure to benzene at age 50 for subjects that ever held an exposed job (n=1175) was 509 mg/m(3) years. Direct comparison of model estimates with measured full-shift personal exposure in the 2004/2005 survey showed moderate correlation and a potential downward bias at low (<1 mg/m(3)) exposure estimates. The modeling framework enabled us to deal with the data complexities generally found in studies using historical exposure data in a comprehensive way and we therefore expect to be able to investigate effects at relatively low exposure levels. PMID:26264985
Case study on the utility of hepatic global gene expression profiling in the risk assessment of the carcinogen furan
Jackson, Anna Francina; Williams, Andrew; Recio, Leslie; Waters, Michael D.; Lambert, Iain B.; Yauk, Carole L.
Furan is a chemical hepatocarcinogen in mice and rats. Its previously postulated cancer mode of action (MOA) is chronic cytotoxicity followed by sustained regenerative proliferation; however, its molecular basis is unknown. To this end, we conducted toxicogenomic analysis of B3C6F1 mouse livers following three week exposures to non-carcinogenic (0, 1, 2 mg/kg bw) or carcinogenic (4 and 8 mg/kg bw) doses of furan. We saw enrichment for pathways responsible for cytotoxicity: stress-activated protein kinase (SAPK) and death receptor (DR5 and TNF-alpha) signaling, and proliferation: extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) and TNF-alpha. We also noted the involvement of NF-kappaB and c-Jun in response to furan, which are genes that are known to be required for liver regeneration. Furan metabolism by CYP2E1 produces cis-2-butene-1,4-dial (BDA), which is required for ensuing cytotoxicity and oxidative stress. NRF2 is a master regulator of gene expression during oxidative stress and we suggest that chronic NFR2 activity and chronic inflammation may represent critical transition events between the adaptive (regeneration) and adverse (cancer) outcomes. Another objective of this study was to demonstrate the applicability of toxicogenomics data in quantitative risk assessment. We modeled benchmark doses for our transcriptional data and previously published cancer data, and observed consistency between the two. Margin of exposure values for both transcriptional and cancer endpoints were also similar. In conclusion, using furan as a case study we have demonstrated the value of toxicogenomics data in elucidating dose-dependent MOA transitions and in quantitative risk assessment. - Highlights: • Global gene expression changes in furan-exposed mouse livers were analyzed. • A molecular mode of action for furan-induced hepatocarcinogenesis is proposed. • Key pathways include NRF2, SAPK, ERK and death receptor signaling. • Important roles for TNF-alpha, c-Jun, and NF
Case Studies Behavior Modification.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wark, David M.
The case histories of five students enrolled in a university course in how to study are reported. The students ranged in age from 18 to 35, included two males and three females, and varied in school experience from no college in one case and some college in two cases to college degrees in two cases. Students were initially taught to chart their…
Reshaping teacher thinking, planning and practice using embedded assessment: Case studies of three middle school science teachers
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jeranyama, Letina Ngwenya
At the dawn of the 21st century the science education community is seeking ways of improving science education to produce a scientific literate citizenry. They have put forth new goals. Teachers are key to all efforts to improve schools, that without their full participation, any move to reform education nor matter how well intentioned is doomed to failure. The changes in the goals of science education imply that teachers have to change the way they teach science. Some scholars have suggested that one way to help teachers attain the reform goals is by using embedded assessment. Embedded assessment is defined as a cyclical and ongoing process whereby teachers gather data about students' understanding as they teach, they analyze the data formally or informally and use the analysis to plan or adjust teaching immediately, for the next hour, day, topic, unit or year. The next day's activities also include embedded assessment and so the cycle repeats itself. This study investigates how teachers make sense of embedded assessment, how embedded assessment looks in practice, how it influences teachers and their classroom environments and the challenges teachers face as they use embedded assessment. Three middle school science teachers were involved in the study. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions, participant observations and professional development conversations. Data were analyzed using the qualitative method of constant comparative analysis. The findings indicate that teachers passed through different stages in conceptualizing embedded assessment. This conceptualization influenced the way embedded assessment looked in the classroom. Embedded assessment took many forms and shapes in the teachers' classrooms. Embedded assessment influenced the teachers' perspectives about the curriculum, students, teaching, assessment, planning and reflection in ways that enabled the teachers to be investigators of their students' understanding
Assessment of site conditions for disposal of low- and intermediate-level radioactive wastes: a case study in southern China.
Yi, Shuping; Ma, Haiyi; Zheng, Chunmiao; Zhu, Xiaobin; Wang, Hua'an; Li, Xueshan; Hu, Xueling; Qin, Jianbo
Near surface disposal of low- and intermediate-level radioactive wastes (LILW) requires evaluating the field conditions of the candidate site. However, assessment of the site conditions may be challenging due to the limited prior knowledge of some remote sites, and various multi-disciplinary data requirements at any given site. These situations arise in China as in the rest of the industrialized world, particularly since a regional strategy for LILW disposal has been implemented to protect humans and the environment. This paper presents a demonstration of the site assessment process through a case study focusing mainly on the geologic, hydrogeologic and geochemical characteristics of the candidate site. A joint on-site and laboratory investigation, supplemented by numerical modeling, was implemented in this assessment. Results indicate that no fault is present in the site area, although there are some minor joints and fractures, primarily showing a north-south trend. Most of the joints are filled with quartz deposits and would thus function hydraulically as impervious barriers. Investigation of local hydrologic boundaries has shown that the candidate site represents an essentially isolated hydrogeologic unit, and that little or no groundwater flow occurs across its boundaries on the north or east, or across the hilly areas to the south. Groundwater in the site area is recharged by precipitation and discharges primarily by evapo-transpiration and surface flow through a narrow outlet to the west. Groundwater flows slowly from the hilly area to the foot of the hills and discharges mainly into the inner brooks and marshes. Some groundwater circulates in deeper granite in a slower manner. The vadose zone in the site was investigated specially for their significant capability for restraining the transport of radionuclides. Results indicate that the vadose zone is up to 38m in thickness and is made up of alluvial clay soils and very highly weathered granite. The vadose
Bayesian inference and assessment for rare-event bycatch in marine fisheries: a drift gillnet fishery case study.
Martin, Summer L; Stohs, Stephen M; Moore, Jeffrey E
Fisheries bycatch is a global threat to marine megafauna. Environmental laws require bycatch assessment for protected species, but this is difficult when bycatch is rare. Low bycatch rates, combined with low observer coverage, may lead to biased, imprecise estimates when using standard ratio estimators. Bayesian model-based approaches incorporate uncertainty, produce less volatile estimates, and enable probabilistic evaluation of estimates relative to management thresholds. Here, we demonstrate a pragmatic decision-making process that uses Bayesian model-based inferences to estimate the probability of exceeding management thresholds for bycatch in fisheries with < 100% observer coverage. Using the California drift gillnet fishery as a case study, we (1) model rates of rare-event bycatch and mortality using Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo estimation methods and 20 years of observer data; (2) predict unobserved counts of bycatch and mortality; (3) infer expected annual mortality; (4) determine probabilities of mortality exceeding regulatory thresholds; and (5) classify the fishery as having low, medium, or high bycatch impact using those probabilities. We focused on leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). Candidate models included Poisson or zero-inflated Poisson likelihood, fishing effort, and a bycatch rate that varied with area, time, or regulatory regime. Regulatory regime had the strongest effect on leatherback bycatch, with the highest levels occurring prior to a regulatory change. Area had the strongest effect on humpback bycatch. Cumulative bycatch estimates for the 20-year period were 104-242 leatherbacks (52-153 deaths) and 6-50 humpbacks (0-21 deaths). The probability of exceeding a regulatory threshold under the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act (Potential Biological Removal, PBR) of 0.113 humpback deaths was 0.58, warranting a "medium bycatch impact" classification of the fishery. No PBR thresholds
Assessing potential human health hazards and benefits from subtherapeutic antibiotics in the United States: tetracyclines as a case study.
Cox, Louis Anthony Tony; Popken, Douglas A
Many scientists, activists, regulators, and politicians have expressed urgent concern that using antibiotics in food animals selects for resistant strains of bacteria that harm human health and bring nearer a "postantibiotic era" of multidrug resistant "super-bugs." Proposed political solutions, such as the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act (PAMTA), would ban entire classes of subtherapeutic antibiotics (STAs) now used for disease prevention and growth promotion in food animals. The proposed bans are not driven by formal quantitative risk assessment (QRA), but by a perceived need for immediate action to prevent potential catastrophe. Similar fears led to STA phase-outs in Europe a decade ago. However, QRA and empirical data indicate that continued use of STAs in the United States has not harmed human health, and bans in Europe have not helped human health. The fears motivating PAMTA contrast with QRA estimates of vanishingly small risks. As a case study, examining specific tetracycline uses and resistance patterns suggests that there is no significant human health hazard from continued use of tetracycline in food animals. Simple hypothetical calculations suggest an unobservably small risk (between 0 and 1.75E-11 excess lifetime risk of a tetracycline-resistant infection), based on the long history of tetracycline use in the United States without resistance-related treatment failures. QRAs for other STA uses in food animals also find that human health risks are vanishingly small. Whether such QRA calculations will guide risk management policy for animal antibiotics in the United States remains to be seen. PMID:20136749
Mining hidden knowledge for drug safety assessment: topic modeling of LiverTox as a case study
Background Given the significant impact on public health and drug development, drug safety has been a focal point and research emphasis across multiple disciplines in addition to scientific investigation, including consumer advocates, drug developers and regulators. Such a concern and effort has led numerous databases with drug safety information available in the public domain and the majority of them contain substantial textual data. Text mining offers an opportunity to leverage the hidden knowledge within these textual data for the enhanced understanding of drug safety and thus improving public health. Methods In this proof-of-concept study, topic modeling, an unsupervised text mining approach, was performed on the LiverTox database developed by National Institutes of Health (NIH). The LiverTox structured one document per drug that contains multiple sections summarizing clinical information on drug-induced liver injury (DILI). We hypothesized that these documents might contain specific textual patterns that could be used to address key DILI issues. We placed the study on drug-induced acute liver failure (ALF) which was a severe form of DILI with limited treatment options. Results After topic modeling of the "Hepatotoxicity" sections of the LiverTox across 478 drug documents, we identified a hidden topic relevant to Hy's law that was a widely-accepted rule incriminating drugs with high risk of causing ALF in humans. Using this topic, a total of 127 drugs were further implicated, 77 of which had clear ALF relevant terms in the "Outcome and management" sections of the LiverTox. For the rest of 50 drugs, evidence supporting risk of ALF was found for 42 drugs from other public databases. Conclusion In this case study, the knowledge buried in the textual data was extracted for identification of drugs with potential of causing ALF by applying topic modeling to the LiverTox database. The knowledge further guided identification of drugs with the similar potential and most
Using the Online Environment in Assessment for Learning: A Case-Study of a Web-Based Course in Primary Care
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Russell, Jill; Elton, Lewis; Swinglehurst, Deborah; Greenhalgh, Trisha
The development of e-learning has opened up new opportunities for innovation in assessment practices in higher education. This descriptive case study draws upon staff and student experiences of teaching and learning on a web-based Masters programme in primary health care to explore how specific features of the online environment can be exploited…
Using screening level environmental life cycle assessment to aid decision making: A case study of a college annual report
Purpose – In this study we compare the life cycle environmental impacts of the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering and Applied Sciences' current printed annual report to a version distributed via the Internet. This case study demonstrates how a screening level life cy...
Use of genomic data in risk assessment case study: I. Evaluation of the dibutyl phthalate male reproductive development toxicity data set
Makris, Susan L.; Euling, Susan Y.; Gray, L. Earl; Benson, Robert; Foster, Paul M.D.
A case study was conducted, using dibutyl phthalate (DBP), to explore an approach to using toxicogenomic data in risk assessment. The toxicity and toxicogenomic data sets relative to DBP-related male reproductive developmental outcomes were considered conjointly to derive information about mode and mechanism of action. In this manuscript, we describe the case study evaluation of the toxicological database for DBP, focusing on identifying the full spectrum of male reproductive developmental effects. The data were assessed to 1) evaluate low dose and low incidence findings and 2) identify male reproductive toxicity endpoints without well-established modes of action (MOAs). These efforts led to the characterization of data gaps and research needs for the toxicity and toxicogenomic studies in a risk assessment context. Further, the identification of endpoints with unexplained MOAs in the toxicity data set was useful in the subsequent evaluation of the mechanistic information that the toxicogenomic data set evaluation could provide. The extensive analysis of the toxicology data set within the MOA context provided a resource of information for DBP in attempts to hypothesize MOAs (for endpoints without a well-established MOA) and to phenotypically anchor toxicogenomic and other mechanistic data both to toxicity endpoints and to available toxicogenomic data. This case study serves as an example of the steps that can be taken to develop a toxicological data source for a risk assessment, both in general and especially for risk assessments that include toxicogenomic data.
Studying a population undergoing nutrition transition: a practical case study of dietary assessment in urban South African adolescents
Zingoni, Chiedza; Norris, Shane A.; Griffiths, Paula L.; Cameron, Noël
The South African Medical Research Council food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and protocol was used to determine food intake in 83 adolescents from the Birth To Twenty study. The FFQ was piloted on a small group (n=8). Specific problems which resulted in overestimation of energy intake were identified. The protocol was modified and administered to the remainder of the adolescents and their caregivers. Reasonable energy intakes were obtained, and time spent completing the FFQ was reduced. The modified protocol was more successful in determining habitual food intake although it would benefit from validation against other dietary intake techniques. PMID:20852725
Applicability of the CompMech trout model to hydropower impact assessment. A case study of high-priority environmental issues at Pacific Gas and Electric: Final report
Railsback, S.F.; Yeoman, E.H.
The primary purpose of the CompMech trout program is the improved assessment of instream flow needs, but its applicability to assessment of other important aquatic environmental issues was examined using Pacific Gas and Electric`s hydroelectric system as a case study. High-priority aquatic issues for PG&E hydrogen were identified by examining the characteristics of the hydro projects and trends in environmental regulation of hydro. The CompMech trout program is expected to develop improved assessment methods for a number of high-priority issues, although CompMech models would require adaptation to address some issues.
Fully exploitation of SBAS-DInSAR deformation time series for assessing structural damage: the case study of Rome, Italy
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Bonano, Manuela; Arangio, Stefania; Calò, Fabiana; Di Mauro, Maria; Marsella, Maria; Manunta, Michele
those situations where a quick analysis of a large number of buildings is needed. Finally, such an integrated method is valuable to carry out accurate back-analyses on the conditions of the investigated buildings over time and, in some cases, also predictive studies to estimate their future structural conditions. References Arangio, S., Calò, F., Di Mauro, M., Bonano, M., Marsella, M., Manunta, M, 2013, An application of the SBAS-DInSAR technique for the assessment of structural damage in the city of Rome (Italy), Structure and Infrastructure Engineering: Maintenance, Management, Life-Cycle Design and Performance, DOI: 10.1080/15732479.2013.833949 Bonano, M. Manunta, M. Marsella, and R. Lanari, 2012, Long-term ERS/ENVISAT deformation time-series generation at full spatial resolution via the extended SBAS technique, Int. J. Remote Sens., 33, 15, pp. 4756-4783, doi:10.1080/01431161.2011.638340. Finno R.J., Voss F.T., Rossow E., Blackburn J.T., 2005, Evaluating damage potential in building affected by excavations, Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, 1199-1210. Lanari, R., Mora, O., Manunta, M., Mallorquí, J.J., Berardino, P., Sansosti E., 2004, A small baseline approach for investigating deformations on full resolution differential SAR interferograms, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 42, 1377-1386.
Nutritional and safety assessment of foods and feeds nutritionally improved through biotechnology--case studies by the International Food Biotechnology Committee of ILSI.
Glenn, Kevin C
During the last two decades, the public and private sectors have made substantial research progress internationally toward improving the nutritional value of a wide range of food and feed crops. Nevertheless, significant numbers of people still suffer from the effects of undernutrition. As newly developed crops with nutritionally improved traits come closer to being available to producers and consumers, scientifically sound and efficient processes are needed to assess the safety and nutritional quality of these crops. In 2004, a Task Force of international scientific experts, convened by the International Food Biotechnology Committee (IFBiC) of ILSI, published recommendations for the safety and nutritional assessment of foods and feeds nutritionally improved through modern biotechnology (J. Food Science, 2004, 69:CRH62-CRH68). The comparative safety assessment process is a basic principle in this publication and is the starting point, not the conclusion, of the analysis. Significant differences in composition are expected to be observed in the case of nutritionally enhanced crops and must be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The Golden Rice 2 case study will be presented as an example of a food crop nutritionally enhanced through the application of modern biotechnology (i.e., recombinant DNA techniques) to illustrate how the 2004 recommendations provide a robust paradigm for the safety assessment of "real world" examples of improved nutrition crops. PMID:18296343
Assessing the magnitude of recent compositional changes in marine ecosystems: a conservation paleobiology case study from the Persian Gulf
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Albano, Paolo G.; Tomašových, Adam; Stachowitsch, Michael; Zuschin, Martin
Nearly every modern marine ecosystem has experienced major changes due to anthropogenic stressors such as habitat modification, pollution, overexploitation and climate change. However, our knowledge of ecosystem dynamics in a historical time-frame (decades to few centuries) is restricted by the lack of direct, recorded human observations: properly designed ecological surveys have been conducted for comparatively short durations in the last few decades only, and in merely a few localities, poorly representative of large-scale phenomena. A unique but under-exploited source of information is hidden in death assemblages (DAs), the taxonomically identifiable, dead or discarded organic remains in a seabed. Due to the slow degradation of hard skeletal parts such as shells in the sea, DAs represent archives that accumulate information on species composition and community states over time and are inert to recent changes. Assessing the degree in compositional and ecological similarity between living (LAs) and death assemblages can be used to reconstruct the degree of recent community disturbances. Previous studies have shown that live-dead (LD) agreement tends to be poorer in anthropogenically disturbed settings, because LAs respond faster than DAs to pressures, thus increasing the LD disagreement in composition. As a complementary approach, age dating of shells (using radiocarbon calibrated amino acid racemization) allows identifying the timing of ecosystem change. These approaches help recognize community shifts in time, overcoming the lack of direct observation. As a case study, we present the results of applying these techniques to the impacts of oil platforms on the benthic assemblages in the Persian (Arabian) Gulf. This semi-enclosed basin originated 12,500 years ago and currently hosts the highest concentration of infrastructures for oil and gas extraction in the world. Moreover, it has been affected by major oil spills. Contaminants show a weak gradient within each
Dynamic assessment of existing soft catenary systems using modal analysis to explore higher train velocities: a case study of a Norwegian contact line system
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Rønnquist, Anders; Nåvik, Petter
Significant advances made on the rolling stock have considerably increased the possibility of higher speeds in existing railways. Thus, it is important to explore higher speeds and potential limiting factors of existing soft catenary systems. The present paper investigates procedures to assess the dynamic behaviour of these systems using response sampling and modal analysis. The assessment evaluates and quantifies dynamic response along the section. To verify the approach, a case study is conducted and the following assessment methods are used: lengthwise track correlation estimating dynamic predictability, power spectral density estimations before and after passage and short-time Fourier transforms and spectrograms. The combination provides detailed information on the dynamic behaviour. The first part introduces necessary considerations for suggested modal analysis. The second part describes an existing Norwegian section. The case study is conducted using a finite element model including a straight and a given section between Oslo-Trondheim, providing detailed evaluations and system limitation detections.
Empirical Assessment of Shareholder Incentive Mechanisms Designs under Aggressive Savings Goals: Case Study of a Kansas"Super-Utility"
Cappers, Peter; Goldman, Charles
Achieving significant reductions in retail electric sales is becoming a priority for policymakers in many states and is echoed at the federal level with the introduction of legislation to establish a national energy efficiency resource standard. Yet, as the National Action Plan on Energy Efficiency (NAPEE) pointed out, many utilities continue to shy away from seriously expanding their energy efficiency program offerings because they claim there is insufficient profit motivation, or even a financial disincentive, when compared to supply-side investments. In response to an information request from the Kansas Corporation Commission staff, we conducted a financial analysis to assess the utility business case in Kansas for pursuing more aggressive energy efficiency that complies with recent state legislation. Kansas' utilities are vertically integrated and don't face retail competition. With historically low retail rates and modest experience with energy efficiency, the achievement of rapid and substantial sales reductions from energy efficiency will require a viable utility business model. Using a conglomerate of the three largest utilities in Kansas, we quantitatively illustrate the tradeoff between ratepayer and shareholder interests when a 1percent reduction in incremental sales is achieved through energy efficiency both with and without the impact of future carbon regulation. We then assess if the utility can be compensated in a manner that produces a sufficient business case but leaves an adequate amount of net resource benefits for ratepayers at a cost that is not overly burdensome. Finally, we show how several common shareholder incentive mechanisms would be designed to achieve this balance.
Assessing Intrinsic Values of a Lecture-Free High School Science Education for Collegiate Science Work: A Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dorais, Christopher James
This case study examined the efficacy of the individualized instruction teaching methodology as it was applied within high school science classes. Also examined was how individualized instruction at the high school level prepared students to do collegiate science level work. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the…
Assessment of Professional Development by Teachers and Administrators: An Examination of the Literature in the Context of One Case Study
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Hinds, Marjorie J.; Berger, Marie Josee
The focus of this article is teacher professional development. The article examines literature related to teacher professional development and methods of measuring its impact. In order to ground the discussion, the article focuses on a case study that captures the perspectives of Ontario secondary school teachers and their administrators as they…
Low-Wind and Other Microclimatic Factors in Near-road Black Carbon Variability: A Case Study and Assessment Implications
Airborne black carbon from urban traffic is a climate forcing agent and has been associated with health risk to near-road populations. In this paper, we describe a case study of black carbon concentration and compositional variability at and near a traffic-laden multi-lane highw...
SEASAT economic assessment. Volume 4: Ocean mining case study and generalization. [economic benefits of SEASAT satellites for mineral exploration
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
The results of a study of the weather sensitive features of near shore and deep water ocean mining industries are described. Problems with the evaluation of economic benefits for the deep water ocean mining industry are attributed to the relative immaturity and highly proprietary nature of the industry. Case studies on the gold industry, diamond industry, tin industry and sand and gravel industry are cited.
A pharmacoeconomic approach to assessing the costs and benefits of air quality interventions that improve health: a case study
Lomas, James; Schmitt, Laetitia; Jones, Sally; McGeorge, Maureen; Bates, Elizabeth; Holland, Mike; Cooper, Duncan; Crowther, Richard; Ashmore, Mike; Rojas-Rueda, David; Weatherly, Helen; Richardson, Gerry; Bojke, Laura
Objective This paper explores the use of pharmacoeconomic methods of valuation to health impacts resulting from exposure to poor air quality. In using such methods, interventions that reduce exposure to poor air quality can be directly compared, in terms of value for money (or cost-effectiveness), with competing demands for finite resources, including other public health interventions. Design Using results estimated as part of a health impact assessment regarding a West Yorkshire Low Emission Zone strategy, this paper quantifies cost-saving and health-improving implications of transport policy through its impact on air quality. Data source Estimates of health-related quality of life and the National Health Service (NHS)/Personal Social Services (PSS) costs for identified health events were based on data from Leeds and Bradford using peer-reviewed publications or Office for National Statistics releases. Population Inhabitants of the area within the outer ring roads of Leeds and Bradford. Main outcomes measures NHS and PSS costs and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). Results Averting an all-cause mortality death generates 8.4 QALYs. Each coronary event avoided saves £28 000 in NHS/PSS costs and generates 1.1 QALYs. For every fewer case of childhood asthma, there will be NHS/PSS cost saving of £3000 and a health benefit of 0.9 QALYs. A single term, low birthweight birth avoided saves £2000 in NHS/PSS costs. Preventing a preterm birth saves £24 000 in NHS/PSS costs and generates 1.3 QALYs. A scenario modelled in the West Yorkshire Low Emission Zone Feasibility Study, where pre-EURO 4 buses and HGVs are upgraded to EURO 6 by 2016 generates an annual benefit of £2.08 million and a one-off benefit of £3.3 million compared with a net present value cost of implementation of £6.3 million. Conclusions Interventions to improve air quality and health should be evaluated and where improvement of population health is the primary objective, cost-effectiveness analysis
The (Limited) Use of Local-Level Assessment System: A Case Study of the Head Start National Reporting System and On-Going Child Assessments in a Local Program
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Kallemeyn, Leanne M.; DeStefano, Lizanne
Using concepts from the evaluation literature, this case study describes the instrumental, conceptual, and political influence of the Head Start National Reporting System (NRS) and on-going child assessments in a local Head Start program. This study found that a local program intentionally aimed to limit the influence of the NRS. The NRS validated…
Farmer responses to multiple stresses in the face of global change: Assessing five case studies to enhance adaptation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nicholas, K. A.; Feola, G.; Lerner, A. M.; Jain, M.; Montefrio, M.
The global challenge of sustaining agricultural livelihoods and yields in the face of growing populations and increasing climate change is the topic of intense research. The role of on-the-ground decision-making by individual farmers actually producing food, fuel, and fiber is often studied in individual cases to determine its environmental, economic, and social effects. However, there are few efforts to link across studies in a way that provides opportunities to better understand empirical farmer behavior, design effective policies, and be able to aggregate from case studies to a broader scale. Here we synthesize existing literature to identify four general factors affecting farmer decision-making: local technical and socio-cultural contexts; actors and institutions involved in decision-making; multiple stressors at broader scales; and the temporal gradient of decision-making. We use these factors to compare five cases that illustrate agricultural decision-making and its impacts: cotton and castor farming in Gujarat, India; swidden cultivation of upland rice in the Philippines; potato cultivation in Andean Colombia; winegrowing in Northern California; and maize production in peri-urban central Mexico. These cases span a geographic and economic range of production systems, but we find that we are able to make valid comparisons and draw lessons common across all cases by using the four factors as an organizing principle. We also find that our understanding of why farmers make the decisions they do changes if we neglect to examine even one of the four general factors guiding decision-making. This suggests that these four factors are important to understanding farmer decision-making, and can be used to guide the design and interpretation of future studies, as well as be the subject of further research in and of themselves to promote an agricultural system that is resilient to climate and other global environmental changes.
Sensitivity of probabilistic risk assessment results to alternative model structures. A case study of municipal waste incineration
Cullen, A.C. |
In this analysis, human health risk due to exposure to municipal waste incinerator emissions is assessed as an example of the application of probabilistic techniques (e.g., Monte Carlo or Latin Hypercube simulations). Incinerator risk assessments are characterized by the dominance of indirect exposure, thus this analysis focuses on exposure via the ingestion of locally grown foods. In addition, since exposure to 2,3,7,8-TCDD drives most incinerator risk assessments, this compound is the subject of the illustrative calculations. An important part of probabilistic risk assessment is determining the relative influence of the input parameters on the magnitude of the variance in the output distribution. This constitutes an important step toward prioritizing data needs for additional research. In this analysis, a sequential structural decomposition of the relationships between the input variables is used to partition the variance in the output (i.e., risk) to identify the most influential contributors to overall variance among them. For comparison, the partitioning of variance is repeated, using techniques of multivariate regression. In summary, this study considers the degree to which results of a probabilistic assessment are contingent on critical model assumptions about the representation of deposition velocity. 50 refs., 7 figs., 5 tabs.
Assessing the Economic Cost of Landslide Damage in Low-Relief Regions: Case Study Evidence from the Flemish Ardennes (Belgium)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Vranken, L.; Van Turnhout, P.; Van Den Eeckhaut, M.; Vandekerckhove, L.; Vantilt, G.; Poesen, J.
Several regions around the globe are at risk to incur damage from landslides. These landslides cause significant structural and functional damage to public and private buildings and infrastructure. Numerous studies investigated how natural factors and human activities control the (re-)activation of landslides. However, few studies have concentrated on a quantitative estimate of the overall damage caused by landslides at a regional scale. This study therefore starts with a quantitative economic assessment of the direct and indirect damage caused by landslides in the Flemish Ardennes (Belgium), a low-relief region (area=ca. 700 km2) susceptible to landslides. Based on focus interviews as well as on semi-structured interviews with homeowners, civil servants (e.g. from the technical services from the various towns), or with the owners and providers of lifelines such as electricity and sewage, we have quantitatively estimated the direct and indirect damage induced by landsliding and this for a 10 to 30 year period (depending on the type of infrastructure or buildings). Economic damage to public infrastructure and buildings was estimated for the entire region, while for private damage 10 cases with severe to small damage were quantified. For example, in the last 10 year, costs of road repair augmented to 814 560 €. Costs to repair damaged roads that have not yet been repaired, were estimated at 669 318 €. In the past 30 years, costs of measures to prevent road damage augmented to at least 14 872 380 €. More than 90% of this budget for preventive measures was spent 30 years ago, when an important freeway was damaged and had to be repaired. These preventive measures (building a grout wall and improving the drainage system) were effective as no further damage has been reported until present. To repair and prevent damage to waterworks and sewage systems, expenditures amounted to 551 044 € and this for the last 30 years. In the past 10 years, a new railway line
Assessment of potential impacts of municipal solid waste treatment alternatives by using life cycle approach: a case study in Vietnam.
Thanh, Nguyen Phuc; Matsui, Yasuhiro
In Vietnam, most of municipal solid waste (MSW) is disposed of at open dumping and landfill sites, and the methane gas from waste is the un-ignorable source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. It is indispensable to explore the possibility for GHG mitigation in MSW management. The objective of this study was to estimate alternative waste treatment practices towards the GHG emission mitigation, energy consumption and generation, reduction of landfill volume, and various benefits for proposing the appropriate selection by scenario analyses for representative Vietnam's cities. Impacts were calculated by utilizing life cycle assessment (LCA) method. A literature review survey on the current applicability of LCA database for assessing impacts from waste sector in developing countries, especially for Vietnam, was carried out. This study assessed the contribution of alternative solid waste treatment practices. The result showed that, except investment and operation costs, incineration with energy recovery seems the suitable alternative for treating waste from representative cities of Vietnam according to reduction of GHG emission and waste burden to landfill sites and energy recovery and generation. Besides, MSW composition was identified as an important factor directly influencing to impacts as well as other products and benefits of waste treatment alternatives. Reliable data on waste composition are indispensable for assessing to choose, improve, or plan the waste treatment practices towards sustainable development. PMID:23475528
Assessing Nonchemical factors in Cumulative Risk Assessment (CRA): A Case Study of the Association between Lower Heart Rate Variability and Particulate Matter
There has been increased interest in the integration of chemicals (e.g. particulate matter, lead) and nonchemicals (e.g., genetics, gender, lifestyle) in cumulative risk assessment (CRA). Because few toxicological or epidemiological studies on these complex mixtures have been con...
Using formative assessment despite the constraints of high stakes testing and limited resources: A case study of chemistry teachers in Anglophone Cameroon
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Akom, George Viche
Formative assessment, as a strategy used to improve student learning, encounters several obstacles in its implementation. This study explores changes in teachers' views and practices as they are introduced to formative assessment in a high stakes testing and limited resource environment. The study examines the extent to which teachers use the technique of formative assessment to engage students in authentic learning even while not sacrificing high test scores on summative assessments. A case study methodology was employed to address the research topic. Science teachers in the West African country of Cameroon were engaged in a process of lesson planning and implementation to collaboratively build lessons with large amounts of formative assessment. Qualitative data from written surveys, group discussions, classroom and workshop observations, and from teacher reflections reveal the extent to which lesson fidelity is preserved from views to planning to implementation. The findings revealed that though the teachers possess knowledge of a variety of assessment methods they do not systematically use these methods to collect information which could help in improving student learning. Oral questioning remained the dominant method of student assessment. The study also showed that the teachers made minimal to big changes depending on the particular aspect of formative assessment being considered. For aspects which needed just behavioral adaptations, the changes were significant but for those which needed acquisition of more pedagogic knowledge and skills the changes were minimal. In terms of constraints in the practice of formative assessment, the teachers cited large class size and lack of teaching materials as common ones. When provided with the opportunity to acquire teaching materials, however, they did not effectively utilize the opportunity. The study revealed a need for the acquisition of inquiry skills by the teachers which can serve as a platform for the
Software tools for using a personal computer as a timer device to assess human kinematic performance: a case study.
Iñesta, J M; Izquierdo, E; Sarti, M A
Frequently, the assessment of the physical condition of a sportsman depends on the evaluation of different tests, based on biomechanical performance. The data acquisition in these tests is usually hand made, because its automatization is difficult. But when movements are constrained by means of their specific nature, simple tools can be used to achieve that data acquisition. In this paper, a simple and inexpensive system is described to make use of the timing capabilities of a personal computer (PC) to use it as a timer, with applications in biomechanics and sport training. The data acquisition method is based on a PC that, using a specific programming dealing with event timing, gets signals through the printer port, from a receptor device that detects cuts in an infrared cell beam. Low level procedures are provided that can be used in higher level algorithmic designs, problem dependent, to build specific systems. The case of the evaluation of the Wingate Anaerobic Test is discussed. PMID:8529356
Environmental Impact Assessment of reservoir construction: new perspectives for restoration economy, and development: the Belo Monte Power Plant case study.
Tundisi, J G; Matsumura-Tundisi, T; Tundisi, J E M
The Environmental Impact Assessment of reservoir construction can be viewed as a new strategic perspective for the economic development of a region. Based on the principles of a watershed approach a interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary systemic view including biogeophysiographical, economic and socio environmental studies the new vision of a EIA provides a basic substratum for the restoration economy and an advanced model for the true development much well ahead of the modernization aspects of the project of a reservoir construction. PMID:26691071
Modelling of occupational respirable crystalline silica exposure for quantitative exposure assessment in community-based case-control studies.
Peters, Susan; Vermeulen, Roel; Portengen, Lützen; Olsson, Ann; Kendzia, Benjamin; Vincent, Raymond; Savary, Barbara; Lavoué, Jérôme; Cavallo, Domenico; Cattaneo, Andrea; Mirabelli, Dario; Plato, Nils; Fevotte, Joelle; Pesch, Beate; Brüning, Thomas; Straif, Kurt; Kromhout, Hans
We describe an empirical model for exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) to create a quantitative job-exposure matrix (JEM) for community-based studies. Personal measurements of exposure to RCS from Europe and Canada were obtained for exposure modelling. A mixed-effects model was elaborated, with region/country and job titles as random effect terms. The fixed effect terms included year of measurement, measurement strategy (representative or worst-case), sampling duration (minutes) and a priori exposure intensity rating for each job from an independently developed JEM (none, low, high). 23,640 personal RCS exposure measurements, covering a time period from 1976 to 2009, were available for modelling. The model indicated an overall downward time trend in RCS exposure levels of -6% per year. Exposure levels were higher in the UK and Canada, and lower in Northern Europe and Germany. Worst-case sampling was associated with higher reported exposure levels and an increase in sampling duration was associated with lower reported exposure levels. Highest predicted RCS exposure levels in the reference year (1998) were for chimney bricklayers (geometric mean 0.11 mg m(-3)), monument carvers and other stone cutters and carvers (0.10 mg m(-3)). The resulting model enables us to predict time-, job-, and region/country-specific exposure levels of RCS. These predictions will be used in the SYNERGY study, an ongoing pooled multinational community-based case-control study on lung cancer. PMID:22001827
Debout, Christophe
The qualitative case study is a research method which enables a complex phenomenon to be explored through the identification of different factors interacting with each other. The case observed is a real situation. In the field of nursing science, it may be a clinical decision-making process. The study thereby enables the patient or health professional experience to be conceptualised. PMID:27338694
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
State Educational Technology Directors Association, 2012
The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) published a series of case studies from 28 states to showcase examples of how ARRA EETT ("American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Enhancing Education Through Technology") grant funds have impacted teaching and learning. SETDA collected data for the case studies through a variety…
The assessment of risk factors for the Central/East African Genotype of chikungunya virus infections in the state of Kelantan: a case control study in Malaysia
Background The aims of the study were to assess the risk factors in relation to cross border activities, exposure to mosquito bite and preventive measures taken. An outbreak of chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infection in Malaysia has been reported in Klang, Selangor (1998) and Bagan Panchor, Perak (2006). In 2009, CHIKV infection re-emerged in some states in Malaysia. It raises the possibilities that re-emergence is part of the epidemics in neighbouring countries or the disease is endemic in Malaysia. For this reason, A community-based case control study was carried out in the state of Kelantan. Methods Prospective case finding was performed from June to December 2009. Those who presented with signs and symptoms of CHIKV infection were investigated. We designed a case control study to assess the risk factors. Assessment consisted of answering questions, undergoing a medical examination, and being tested for the presence of IgM antibodies to CHIKV. Descriptive epidemiological studies were conducted by reviewing both the national surveillance and laboratory data. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to determine risk factors contributing to the illness. Cases were determined by positive to RT-PCR or serological for antibodies by IgM. CHIKV specificity was confirmed by DNA sequencing. Results There were 129 suspected cases and 176 controls. Among suspected cases, 54.4% were diagnosed to have CHIKV infection. Among the controls, 30.1% were found to be positive to serology for antibodies [IgM, 14.2% and IgG, 15.9%]. For analytic study and based on laboratory case definition, 95 were considered as cases and 123 as controls. Those who were positive to IgG were excluded. CHIKV infection affected all ages and mostly between 50–59 years old. Staying together in the same house with infected patients and working as rubber tappers were at a higher risk of infection. The usage of Mosquito coil insecticide had shown to be a significant protective factor. Most
Methodology for natural and antropical hazars'assessment regarding land instability phenomena-case studies in Romania
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Maftei, R.-M.; Ciurean, R.; Scutelnicu, I.; Cristea, P.; Manj, V.; Rusu, E.; Grigorescu, A.; Avram, O.; Cristian, C.
Methodology for natural and antropical hazards' assessment regarding land instability phenomena-case studies in Romania Raluca Maftei, Roxana Ciurean, Ionut Scutelnicu, Paul Cristea, Valeriu Manj, Emil Rusu, Andrei Grigorescu, Ovidiu Avram, Cristina Cristian (1) (1) Geological Institute of Romania, Bucharest, Romania This paper is seeking to launch and to integrate data acquiring and processing technologies, technologies that are subordinated to geological and geophysical techniques, for the evaluation of land properties and of the state of land degradation in areas where natural and antropical hazards related to shallow layers' dynamics are probable. Since evaluating and diminishing land degradation process due to landslides ( took as in its extensive meaning) demand data regarding physical and geological characteristics of the lithologic complexes implied, the project has as a main objective to increase the possibility for the principal geophysical methods of shallow land layers' resolute investigation ( seismometry, electrometry). In Romania, in 2001, law 575 was adopted: ''Law regarding the approval of the Plan for the national territory fitting out- Section V- Natural risk areas''. It mentions that a Romania "Landslides Risk Map" should be edited. In these circumstances, in order to establish the potential and the probability for an area to be affected by soil instability phenomenon ( caused by natural or antropical factors), according to the COM 232/2006, Chapter 2, Section 1, Article 6, the first step that has to be made is to identify and classify risk areas from the studied region. The region will than be verified every 10 years and the measure taking program will than be made public and revised every 5 years. Areas affected by landslides can loose the following functions ( COM 232/2006, chapter 1, article 1): Soil functions Bio-mass production Accumulation, filtering and transforming Biodiversity Physical and cultural environment Raw materials Carbon
Self-Assessment of Adherence to Medication: A Case Study in Campania Region Community-Dwelling Population
Menditto, Enrica; Guerriero, Francesca; Orlando, Valentina; Crola, Catherine; Di Somma, Carolina; Illario, Maddalena; Morisky, Donald E.; Colao, Annamaria
Objectives. The aim of the study was to assess self-reported medication adherence measure in patients selected during a health education and health promotion focused event held in the Campania region. The study also assessed sociodemographic determinants of adherence. Methods. An interviewer assisted survey was conducted to assess adherence using the Italian version of the 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS-8). Participants older than 18 years were interviewed by pharmacists while waiting for free-medical checkup. Results. A total of 312 participants were interviewed during the Health Campus event. A total of 187 (59.9%) had low adherence to medications. Pearson's bivariate correlation showed positive association between the MMAS-8 score and gender, educational level and smoking (P < 0.05). A multivariable analysis showed that the level of education and smoking were independent predictors of adherence. Individuals with an average level of education (odds ratio (OR), 2.21, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.08–4.52) and nonsmoker (odds ratio (OR) 1.87, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.04–3.35) were found to be more adherent to medication than those with a lower level of education and smoking. Conclusion. The analysis showed very low prescription adherence levels in the interviewed population. The level of education was a relevant predictor associated with that result. PMID:26346487
Benefits of clean development mechanism application on the life cycle assessment perspective: a case study in the palm oil industry.
Chuen, Onn Chiu; Yusoff, Sumiani
This study performed an assessment on the beneficial of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) application on waste treatment system in a local palm oil industry in Malaysia. Life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted to assess the environmental impacts of the greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction from the CDM application. Calculations on the emission reduction used the methodology based on AM002 (Avoided Wastewater and On-site Energy Use Emissions in the Industrial Sector) Version 4 published by United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). The results from the studies showed that the introduction of CDM in the palm oil mill through conversion of the captured biogas from palm oil mill effluent (POME) treatment into power generation were able to reduce approximate 0.12 tonnes CO2 equivalent concentration (tCO2e) emission and 30 kW x hr power generation per 1 tonne of fresh fruit bunch processed. Thus, the application of CDM methodology on palm oil mill wastewater treatment was able to reduce up to 1/4 of the overall environment impact generated in palm oil mill. PMID:22482288
Assessment of quality and relevance of curricula development in health training institutions: a case study of Kenya.
Mumbo, Hazel M; Kinaro, Joyce W
The World Health Organization lists Kenya among African countries experiencing health workforce crisis catalysed through immigration, underproduction, inconsistent quality of production and unequal distribution. Strengthening health training institutions to increase production of high-quality health workers is acknowledged as a measure to mitigate the crisis.IntraHealth International's USAID-funded FUNZOKenya Project (2012-2017) undertook an assessment to identify the bottlenecks to increasing the number and quality of pre-service graduates in Kenya. The assessment, a cross-sectional descriptive study, collected data through structured respondent interviews among faculty, students in health training institutions, key informants and desk review. The assessment purposively selected 14 institutions from 18 institutions identified for initial collaboration with the project towards strengthening health workforce training. The statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) application helped analyse quantitative data and quotes used to illustrate perceptions on the quality of curricula.The findings revealed major gaps in quality and adequacy of curricula in the training institutions. A national standard framework to guide curricula review process is lacking. Further, curricula did not adequately prepare students for clinical placement, as most failed to directly respond to national health needs. The study recommended reviews of curricula to ensure their responsiveness to emerging issues in the health sector, the formation of curriculum committees to review curricula, development of official curricula review standards and an integrated mechanism to disseminate policies and guidelines. PMID:26268602
How can sludge dewatering devices be assessed? Development of a new DSS and its application to real case studies.
Bertanza, Giorgio; Papa, Matteo; Canato, Matteo; Collivignarelli, Maria Cristina; Pedrazzani, Roberta
A key issue in biological Waste Water Treatment Plants (WWTPs) operation is represented by the sludge management. Mechanical dewatering is a crucial stage for sludge volume reduction; though, being a costly operation, its optimization is required. We developed an original experimental methodology to evaluate the technical (dewatering efficiency) and financial (total treatment costs) performance of dewatering devices, which might be used as a DSS (Decision Support System) for WWTP managers. This tool was then applied to two real case studies for comparing, respectively, three industrial size centrifuges, and two different operation modes of the same machine (fixed installation vs. outsourcing service). In both the cases, the best option was identified, based jointly on economic and (site-specific) technical evaluations. PMID:24603031
Assessment of the Distribution of Toxic Release Inventory Facilities in Metropolitan Charleston: An Environmental Justice Case Study
Fraser-Rahim, Herb; Williams, Edith; Zhang, Hongmei; Rice, LaShanta; Svendsen, Erik; Abara, Winston
Objectives. We assessed spatial disparities in the distribution of Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) facilities in Charleston, SC. Methods. We used spatial methods and regression to assess burden disparities in the study area at the block and census-tract levels by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES). Results. Results revealed an inverse relationship between distance to TRI facilities and race/ethnicity and SES at the block and census-tract levels. Results of regression analyses showed a positive association between presence of TRI facilities and high percentage non-White and a negative association between number of TRI facilities and high SES. Conclusions. There are burden disparities in the distribution of TRI facilities in Charleston at the block and census-tract level by race/ethnicity and SES. Additional research is needed to understand cumulative risk in the region. PMID:22897529
Health Risk Assessment for Uranium in Groundwater - An Integrated Case Study Based on Hydrogeological Characterization and Dose Calculation
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Franklin, M. R.; Veiga, L. H.; Py, D. A., Jr.; Fernandes, H. M.
The uranium mining and milling facilities of Caetité (URA) is the only active uranium production center in Brazil. Operations take place at a very sensitive semi-arid region in the country where water resources are very scarce. Therefore, any contamination of the existing water bodies may trigger critical consequences to local communities because their sustainability is closely related to the availability of the groundwater resources. Due to the existence of several uranium anomalies in the region, groundwater can present radionuclide concentrations above the world average. The radiological risk associated to the ingestion of these waters have been questioned by members of the local communities, NGO's and even regulatory bodies that suspected that the observed levels of radionuclide concentrations (specially Unat) could be related to the uranium mining and milling operations. Regardless the origin of these concentrations the fear that undesired health effects were taking place (e.g. increase in cancer incidence) remain despite the fact that no evidence - based on epidemiological studies - is available. This paper intends to present the connections between the local hydrogeology and the radiological characterization of groundwater in the neighboring areas of the uranium production center to understand the implications to the human health risk due to the ingestion of groundwater. The risk assessment was performed, taking into account the radiological and the toxicological risks. Samples from 12 wells have been collected and determinations of Unat, Thnat, 226Ra, 228Ra and 210Pb were performed. The radiation-related risks were estimated for adults and children by the calculation of the annual effective doses. The potential non-carcinogenic effects due to the ingestion of uranium were evaluated by the estimation of the hazard index (HI). Monte Carlo simulations were used to calculate the uncertainty associated with these estimates, i.e. the 95% confidence interval
Using Peatland Archives to Assess Climate Forcing of Holocene Vegetational Changes: Case Studies From the Great Lakes Region
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jackson, S. T.; Booth, R. K.; Andersen, J.; Hotchkiss, S.; Huang, Y.; Lesser, M.; Minckley, T.; Nichols, J.; Pendall, E.; Reeves, K.; Taylor, M.
A dilemma has long confronted paleoecologists: pollen data are required to assess past vegetational changes, and at the same time pollen data serve as a primary source of paleoclimate inference. Paleoecologists have had to use the same data sets to infer past climate changes and the ecological responses to those changes. The emergence of independent paleoclimate proxies and archives is providing relief from this dilemma. Peatland archives are especially effective at providing independent paleoclimatic records, owing to their sensitivity to climate variation, their subcentennial to subdecadal temporal precision, and the multiplicity of available proxies. Pollen records can be obtained from the same stratigraphic levels as paleoclimate proxies, and peatland records can also be compared with lake-based pollen and macrofossil records at regional scales. Peatland records of mid- to late Holocene climate change and variability, together with pollen and macrofossil records from peatlands and lakes in the Great Lakes region of North America, resolve some long-standing questions and controversies concerning the causation of vegetational changes in the region. We present three case studies where peatlands have played a pivotal role. 1. Hemlock populations plummeted across eastern North America 5400 yr BP. The extent, rapidity, and synchrony of the event suggested that it resulted from a widespread pathogen outbreak, similar to the early 20th Century chestnut blight in the same region. However, some have argued for climate as a primary mechanism. Paleohydrological records from a kettle bog in northeastern Lower Michigan indicate an abrupt decline in water-table depth 5400 yr BP that persisted for the next 2500 years, coincident with the hemlock decline. Pathogens may have played a proximal role, but an abrupt climate shift was the ultimate driver of the hemlock decline. 2. Holocene expansions of yellow birch and beech in their northwestern ranges were episodic, alternating
Understanding the challenges to the implementation of assessment reform in science classrooms: A case study of science teachers' conceptions and practices of assessment
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Aydeniz, Mehmet
The purpose of this study is to understand the professional and structural, political and cultural factors that present challenges to the implementation of assessment reform in science classrooms. An analysis of recent science education literature and national science education reform documents suggests that change in schools is a complex process that does not happen overnight and is subject to the influence of many professional and structural attributes (Berliner, 2006; Brooks, 2005; Cuban, 1990; Duschl, 1990; Gess-Newsome, Southerland, Johnston & Woodbury, 2003; Southerland & Hutner, in press; Tyack & Cuban, 1995). Structural components include school culture; bell schedule, administration policies and mandates, standards, curriculum and accountability measures. Professional components involve teachers' epistemic views of science, their pedagogical conceptions and their conceptions of assessment along with knowledge necessary to translate these conceptions into practice (Barnett & Hodson, 2001; Gess-Newsome & Lederman, 1999; Gess-Newsome et al., 2003; Mortimer & Scott, 2003; Shulman, 1986). Education literature suggests both of these components, professional and structural components, shape how teaching takes place, thus, what students learn in science classrooms (Brickhouse, 2006; Duschl, 1990; Gallagher, 2006; Gess-Newsome & Lederman, 1999; Gess-Newsome et al., 2003; Southerland & Hutner, in press). Assessment plays a significant role in efforts to bring about improvements in the educational system (Brickhouse, 2006; Davis, Genc & Aydeniz, in press; NAS, 2006; NRC, 2001; 2005; Southerland & Hutner, in press). Assessment serves multiple purposes. Assessment can be used to support learning (Abell & Volkmann, 2006; Bell & Cowie, 2001; Black & William, 1998; Brookhart, 2006; Davis et al., in press; Klassen, 2006; Shepard, 2000), to monitor the effectiveness of a particular curriculum (NAS, 2006; NRC, 2005), to evaluate the quality and effectiveness of instruction
Hazard and risk assessment of a nanoparticulate cerium oxide-based diesel fuel additive - a case study.
Park, Barry; Donaldson, Kenneth; Duffin, Rodger; Tran, Lang; Kelly, Frank; Mudway, Ian; Morin, Jean-Paul; Guest, Robert; Jenkinson, Peter; Samaras, Zissis; Giannouli, Myrsini; Kouridis, Haris; Martin, Patricia
Envirox is a scientifically and commercially proven diesel fuel combustion catalyst based on nanoparticulate cerium oxide and has been demonstrated to reduce fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions (CO(2)), and particulate emissions when added to diesel at levels of 5 mg/L. Studies have confirmed the adverse effects of particulates on respiratory and cardiac health, and while the use of Envirox contributes to a reduction in the particulate content in the air, it is necessary to demonstrate that the addition of Envirox does not alter the intrinsic toxicity of particles emitted in the exhaust. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety in use of Envirox by addressing the classical risk paradigm. Hazard assessment has been addressed by examining a range of in vitro cell and cell-free endpoints to assess the toxicity of cerium oxide nanoparticles as well as particulates emitted from engines using Envirox. Exposure assessment has taken data from modeling studies and from airborne monitoring sites in London and Newcastle adjacent to routes where vehicles using Envirox passed. Data have demonstrated that for the exposure levels measured, the estimated internal dose for a referential human in a chronic exposure situation is much lower than the no-observed-effect level (NOEL) in the in vitro toxicity studies. Exposure to nano-size cerium oxide as a result of the addition of Envirox to diesel fuel at the current levels of exposure in ambient air is therefore unlikely to lead to pulmonary oxidative stress and inflammation, which are the precursors for respiratory and cardiac health problems. PMID:18444008
Feasibility of Genome-Wide Screening for Biosafety Assessment of Probiotics: A Case Study of Lactobacillus helveticus MTCC 5463.
Senan, S; Prajapati, J B; Joshi, C G
Recent years have witnessed an explosion in genome sequencing of probiotic strains for accurate identification and characterization. Regulatory bodies are emphasizing on the need for performing phase I safety studies for probiotics. The main hypothesis of this study was to explore the feasibility of using genome databases for safety screening of strains. In this study, we attempted to develop a framework for the safety assessment of a potential probiotic strain, Lactobacillus helveticus MTCC 5463 based on genome mining for genes associated with antibiotic resistance, production of harmful metabolites, and virulence. The sequencing of MTCC 5463 was performed using GS-FLX Titanium reagents. Genes coding for antibiotic resistance and virulence were identified using Antibiotic Resistance Genes Database and Virulence Factors Database. Results indicated that MTCC 5463 carried antibiotic resistance genes associated with beta-lactam and fluoroquinolone. There is no threat of transfer of these genes to host gut commensals because the genes are not plasmid encoded. The presence of genes for adhesion, biofilm, surface proteins, and stress-related proteins provides robustness to the strain. The presence of hemolysin gene in the genome revealed a theoretical risk of virulence. The results of in silico analysis complemented the in vitro studies and human clinical trials, confirming the safety of the probiotic strain. We propose that the safety assessment of probiotic strains administered live at high doses using a genome-wide screening could be an effective and time-saving tool for identifying prognostic biomarkers of biosafety. PMID:26223907
Indicator-based model to assess vulnerability to landslides in urban areas. Case study of Husi city (Eastern Romania)
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Grozavu, Adrian; Ciprian Margarint, Mihai; Catalin Stanga, Iulian
In the last three or four decades, vulnerability evolved from physical fragility meanings to a more complex concept, being a key element of risk assessment. In landslide risk assessment, there are a large series of studies regarding landslide hazard, but far fewer researches focusing on vulnerability measurement. Furthermore, there is still no unitary understanding on the methodological framework, neither any internationally agreed standard for landslide vulnerability measurements. The omnipresent common element is the existence of elements at risk, but while some approaches are limited to exposure, other focus on the degree of losses (human injuries, material damages and monetary losses, structural dysfunctions etc.). These losses are differently assessed using both absolute and relative values on qualitative or quantitative scales and they are differently integrated to provide a final vulnerability value. This study aims to assess vulnerability to landslides at local level using an indicator-based model applied to urban areas and tested for Husi town (Eastern Romania). The study region is characterized by permeable and impermeable alternating sedimentary rocks, monoclinal geological structure and hilly relief with impressive cuestas, continental temperate climate, and precipitation of about 500 mm/year, rising to 700 m and even more in some rainy years. The town is a middle size one (25000 inhabitants) and it had an ascending evolution in the last centuries, followed by an increasing human pressure on lands. Methodologically, the first step was to assess the landslide susceptibility and to identify in this way those regions within which any asset would be exposed to landslide hazards. Landslide susceptibility was assessed using the logistic regression approach, taking into account several quantitative and qualitative factors (elements of geology, morphometry, rainfall, land use etc.). The spatial background consisted in the Digital Elevation Model and all derived
Evaluating a multi-criteria model for hazard assessment in urban design. The Porto Marghera case study
Luria, Paolo; Aspinall, Peter A
The aim of this paper is to describe a new approach to major industrial hazard assessment, which has been recently studied by the authors in conjunction with the Italian Environmental Protection Agency ('ARPAV'). The real opportunity for developing a different approach arose from the need of the Italian EPA to provide the Venice Port Authority with an appropriate estimation of major industrial hazards in Porto Marghera, an industrial estate near Venice (Italy). However, the standard model, the quantitative risk analysis (QRA), only provided a list of individual quantitative risk values, related to single locations. The experimental model is based on a multi-criteria approach--the Analytic Hierarchy Process--which introduces the use of expert opinions, complementary skills and expertise from different disciplines in conjunction with quantitative traditional analysis. This permitted the generation of quantitative data on risk assessment from a series of qualitative assessments, on the present situation and on three other future scenarios, and use of this information as indirect quantitative measures, which could be aggregated for obtaining the global risk rate. This approach is in line with the main concepts proposed by the last European directive on Major Hazard Accidents, which recommends increasing the participation of operators, taking the other players into account and, moreover, paying more attention to the concepts of 'urban control', 'subjective risk' (risk perception) and intangible factors (factors not directly quantifiable)
Applicability of Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) in occupational heat stress assessment: a case study in brick industries
VATANI, Javad; GOLBABAEI, Farideh; DEHGHAN, Somayeh Farhang; YOUSEFI, Azam
The present study aimed to investigate the applicability of Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) as an innovative and science-based index in public health researches, in occupational heat stress assessment. All indoor and outdoor workers (200 people) of Brick industries of Shahroud, Iran participated in the research. First, the environmental variables such as air temperature, wet-bulb temperature, globe temperature, air velocity and relative humidity were measured; then UTCI and WBGT (wet-bulb globe temperature) indices were calculated. Simultaneously, physiological parameters including systolic and diastolic blood pressure, oral temperature, skin temperature, tympanic temperature and heart rate of workers were measured. UTCI and WBGT indices were 34.2 ± 2°C, 21.8 ± 1.8°C in the outdoor environments and 38.1 ± 4.4°C, 24.7 ± 3.3°C at the indoor environments, respectively. There were the weak inverse relationships between UTCI and WBGT indices at the outdoor environments and physiological responses such as systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure. However, there were no similar results for indoor environments. The significant relationships were found between UTCI and WBGT at both indoor and outdoor environments. Both UTCI and WBGT indices are suitable for assessing the occupational heat stress. Although, UTCI index seems more appropriate for heat stress assessment in the environments with low humidity and air velocity. PMID:26320731
Development of relative risk model for regional groundwater risk assessment: a case study in the lower Liaohe River Plain, China.
Li, Xianbo; Zuo, Rui; Teng, Yanguo; Wang, Jinsheng; Wang, Bin
Increasing pressure on water supply worldwide, especially in arid areas, has resulted in groundwater overexploitation and contamination, and subsequent deterioration of the groundwater quality and threats to public health. Environmental risk assessment of regional groundwater is an important tool for groundwater protection. This study presents a new approach for assessing the environmental risk assessment of regional groundwater. It was carried out with a relative risk model (RRM) coupled with a series of indices, such as a groundwater vulnerability index, which includes receptor analysis, risk source analysis, risk exposure and hazard analysis, risk characterization, and management of groundwater. The risk map is a product of the probability of environmental contamination and impact. The reliability of the RRM was verified using Monte Carlo analysis. This approach was applied to the lower Liaohe River Plain (LLRP), northeastern China, which covers 23604 km2. A spatial analysis tool within GIS which was used to interpolate and manipulate the data to develop environmental risk maps of regional groundwater, divided the level of risk from high to low into five ranks (V, IV, III, II, I). The results indicate that areas of relative risk rank (RRR) V cover 2324 km2, covering 9.8% of the area; RRR IV covers 3986 km2, accounting for 16.9% of the area. It is a new and appropriate method for regional groundwater resource management and land use planning, and is a rapid and effective tool for improving strategic decision making to protect groundwater and reduce environmental risk. PMID:26020518
Development of Relative Risk Model for Regional Groundwater Risk Assessment: A Case Study in the Lower Liaohe River Plain, China
Li, Xianbo; Zuo, Rui; Teng, Yanguo; Wang, Jinsheng; Wang, Bin
Increasing pressure on water supply worldwide, especially in arid areas, has resulted in groundwater overexploitation and contamination, and subsequent deterioration of the groundwater quality and threats to public health. Environmental risk assessment of regional groundwater is an important tool for groundwater protection. This study presents a new approach for assessing the environmental risk assessment of regional groundwater. It was carried out with a relative risk model (RRM) coupled with a series of indices, such as a groundwater vulnerability index, which includes receptor analysis, risk source analysis, risk exposure and hazard analysis, risk characterization, and management of groundwater. The risk map is a product of the probability of environmental contamination and impact. The reliability of the RRM was verified using Monte Carlo analysis. This approach was applied to the lower Liaohe River Plain (LLRP), northeastern China, which covers 23604 km2. A spatial analysis tool within GIS which was used to interpolate and manipulate the data to develop environmental risk maps of regional groundwater, divided the level of risk from high to low into five ranks (V, IV, III, II, I). The results indicate that areas of relative risk rank (RRR) V cover 2324 km2, covering 9.8% of the area; RRR IV covers 3986 km2, accounting for 16.9% of the area. It is a new and appropriate method for regional groundwater resource management and land use planning, and is a rapid and effective tool for improving strategic decision making to protect groundwater and reduce environmental risk. PMID:26020518
Life cycle assessment of TV sets in China: A case study of the impacts of CRT monitors
Song Qingbin; Wang Zhishi; Li Jinhui; Zeng Xianlai
Along with the rapid increase in both production and use of TV sets in China, there is an increasing awareness of the environmental impacts related to the accelerating mass production, electricity use, and waste management of these sets. This paper aims to describe the application of life cycle assessment (LCA) to investigate the environmental performance of Chinese TV sets. An assessment of the TV set device (focusing on the Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitor) was carried out using a detailed modular LCA based on the international standards of the ISO 14040 series. The LCA was constructed using SimaPro software version 7.2 and expressed with the Eco-indicator' 99 life cycle impact assessment method. For a sensitivity analysis of the overall LCA results, the CML method was used in order to estimate the influence of the choice of the assessment method on the results. Life cycle inventory information was compiled by Ecoinvent 2.2 databases, combined with literature and field investigations on the current Chinese situation. The established LCA study shows that the use stage of such devices has the highest environmental impact, followed by the manufacturing stage. In the manufacturing stage, the CRT and the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) are those components contributing the most environmental impacts. During the use phase, the environmental impacts are due entirely to the methods of electricity generation used to run them, since no other aspects were taken into account for this phase. The final processing step-the end-of-life stage-can lead to a clear environmental benefit when the TV sets are processed through the formal dismantling enterprises in China.
Positional Accuracy Assessment of the Openstreetmap Buildings Layer Through Automatic Homologous Pairs Detection: the Method and a Case Study
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Brovelli, M. A.; Minghini, M.; Molinari, M. E.; Zamboni, G.
OpenStreetMap (OSM) is currently the largest openly licensed collection of geospatial data. Being OSM increasingly exploited in a variety of applications, research has placed great attention on the assessment of its quality. This work focuses on assessing the quality of OSM buildings. While most of the studies available in literature are limited to the evaluation of OSM building completeness, this work proposes an original approach to assess the positional accuracy of OSM buildings based on comparison with a reference dataset. The comparison relies on a quasi-automated detection of homologous pairs on the two datasets. Based on the homologous pairs found, warping algorithms like e.g. affine transformations and multi-resolution splines can be applied to the OSM buildings to generate a new version having an optimal local match to the reference layer. A quality assessment of the OSM buildings of Milan Municipality (Northern Italy), having an area of about 180 km2, is then presented. After computing some measures of completeness, the algorithm based on homologous points is run using the building layer of the official vector cartography of Milan Municipality as the reference dataset. Approximately 100000 homologous points are found, which show a systematic translation of about 0.4 m on both the X and Y directions and a mean distance of about 0.8 m between the datasets. Besides its efficiency and high degree of automation, the algorithm generates a warped version of OSM buildings which, having by definition a closest match to the reference buildings, can be eventually integrated in the OSM database.
Health risk assessment of heavy metals and bacterial contamination in drinking water sources: a case study of Malakand Agency, Pakistan.
Nawab, Javed; Khan, Sardar; Ali, Sharafat; Sher, Hassan; Rahman, Ziaur; Khan, Kifayatullah; Tang, Jianfeng; Ahmad, Aziz
Human beings are frequently exposed to pathogens and heavy metals through ingestion of contaminated drinking water throughout the world particularly in developing countries. The present study aimed to assess the quality of water used for drinking purposes in Malakand Agency, Pakistan. Water samples were collected from different sources (dug wells, bore wells, tube wells, springs, and hand pumps) and analyzed for different physico-chemical parameters and bacterial pathogens (fecal coliform bacteria) using standard methods, while heavy metals were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS-PEA-700). In the study area, 70 % of water sources were contaminated with F. coliform representing high bacterial contamination. The heavy metals, such as Cd (29 and 8 %), Ni (16 and 78 %), and Cr (7 %), exceeded their respective safe limits of WHO (2006) and Pak-EPA (2008), respectively, in water sources, while Pb (9 %) only exceeded from WHO safe limit. The risk assessment tools such as daily intake of metals (DIMs) and health risk indexes (HRIs) were used for health risk estimation and were observed in the order of Ni > Cr > Mn > Pb > Cd and Cd > Ni > Pb > Mn > Cr, respectively. The HRI values of heavy metals for both children and adults were <1, showing lack of potential health risk to the local inhabitants of the study area. PMID:27075311
Validation of the species sensitivity distribution in retrospective risk assessment of herbicides at the river basin scale-the Scheldt river basin case study.
Jesenska, Sona; Nemethova, Sabina; Blaha, Ludek
Species sensitivity distribution (SSD) is commonly used in prospective risk assessment to derive predicted no-effect concentrations, toxicity exposure ratios, and environmental quality standards for individual chemicals such as pesticides. The application of SSD in the retrospective risk assessment of chemical mixtures at the river basin scale (i.e., the estimation of "multiple substance potentially affected fractions" [msPAFs]) has been suggested, but detailed critical assessment of such an application is missing. The present study investigated the impact of different data validation approaches in a retrospective model case study focused on seven herbicides monitored at the Scheldt river basin (Belgium) between 1998 and 2009. The study demonstrated the successful application of the SSD approach. Relatively high impacts of herbicides on aquatic primary producers were predicted. Often, up to 40 % of the primary producer communities were affected, as predicted by chronic msPAF, and in some cases, the predicted impacts were even more pronounced. The risks posed by the studied herbicides decreased during the 1998-2009 period, along with decreasing concentrations of highly toxic pesticides such as simazine or isoproturon. Various data validation approaches (the removal of duplicate values and outliers, the testing of different exposure durations and purities of studied herbicides, etc.) substantially affected SSD at the level of individual studied compounds. However, the time-consuming validation procedures had only a minor impact on the outcomes of the retrospective risk assessment of herbicide mixtures at the river basin scale. Selection of the appropriate taxonomic group for SSD calculation and selection of the species-specific endpoint (i.e., the most sensitive or average value per species) were the most critical steps affecting the final risk values predicted. The present validation study provides a methodological basis for the practical use of SSD in the
Designing and assessing a sustainable networked delivery (SND) system: hybrid business-to-consumer book delivery case study.
Kim, Junbeum; Xu, Ming; Kahhat, Ramzy; Allenby, Braden; Williams, Eric
We attempted to design and assess an example of a sustainable networked delivery (SND) system: a hybrid business-to-consumer book delivery system. This system is intended to reduce costs, achieve significant reductions in energy consumption, and reduce environmental emissions of critical local pollutants and greenhouse gases. The energy consumption and concomitant emissions of this delivery system compared with existing alternative delivery systems were estimated. We found that regarding energy consumption, an emerging hybrid delivery system which is a sustainable networked delivery system (SND) would consume 47 and 7 times less than the traditional networked delivery system (TND) and e-commerce networked delivery system (END). Regarding concomitant emissions, in the case of CO2, the SND system produced 32 and 7 times fewer emissions than the TND and END systems. Also the SND system offer meaningful economic benefit such as the costs of delivery and packaging, to the online retailer, grocery, and consumer. Our research results show that the SND system has a lot of possibilities to save local transportation energy consumption and delivery costs, and reduce environmental emissions in delivery system. PMID:19209604
Health risk assessment of air emissions from a municipal solid waste incineration plant--a case study.
Cangialosi, Federico; Intini, Gianluca; Liberti, Lorenzo; Notarnicola, Michele; Stellacci, Paolo
A health risk assessment of long-term emissions of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic air pollutants has been carried out for the municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) of the city of Taranto, Italy. Ground level air concentrations and soil deposition of carcinogenic (Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-Dioxins/Furans and Cd) and non-carcinogenic (Pb and Hg) pollutants have been estimated using a well documented atmospheric dispersion model. Health risk values for air inhalation, dermal contact, soil and food ingestion have been calculated based on a combination of these concentrations and a matrix of environmental exposure factors. Exposure of the surrounding population has been addressed for different release scenarios based on four pollutants, four exposure pathways and two receptor groups (children and adults). Spatial risk distribution and cancer excess cases projected from plant emissions have been compared with background mortality records. Estimated results based on the MSWI emissions show: (1) individual risks well below maximum acceptable levels, (2) very small incremental cancer risk compared with background level. PMID:17611096
Rapid Biodiversity Assessment and Monitoring Method for Highly Diverse Benthic Communities: A Case Study of Mediterranean Coralligenous Outcrops
Kipson, Silvija; Fourt, Maïa; Teixidó, Núria; Cebrian, Emma; Casas, Edgar; Ballesteros, Enric; Zabala, Mikel; Garrabou, Joaquim
Increasing anthropogenic pressures urge enhanced knowledge and understanding of the current state of marine biodiversity. This baseline information is pivotal to explore present trends, detect future modifications and propose adequate management actions for marine ecosystems. Coralligenous outcrops are a highly diverse and structurally complex deep-water habitat faced with major threats in the Mediterranean Sea. Despite its ecological, aesthetic and economic value, coralligenous biodiversity patterns are still poorly understood. There is currently no single sampling method that has been demonstrated to be sufficiently representative to ensure adequate community assessment and monitoring in this habitat. Therefore, we propose a rapid non-destructive protocol for biodiversity assessment and monitoring of coralligenous outcrops providing good estimates of its structure and species composition, based on photographic sampling and the determination of presence/absence of macrobenthic species. We used an extensive photographic survey, covering several spatial scales (100s of m to 100s of km) within the NW Mediterranean and including 2 different coralligenous assemblages: Paramuricea clavata (PCA) and Corallium rubrum assemblage (CRA). This approach allowed us to determine the minimal sampling area for each assemblage (5000 cm2 for PCA and 2500 cm2 for CRA). In addition, we conclude that 3 replicates provide an optimal sampling effort in order to maximize the species number and to assess the main biodiversity patterns of studied assemblages in variability studies requiring replicates. We contend that the proposed sampling approach provides a valuable tool for management and conservation planning, monitoring and research programs focused on coralligenous outcrops, potentially also applicable in other benthic ecosystems. PMID:22073264
Combined Statistical Analysis Method Assessing Fast Versus Slow Movement Training in a Patient With Cerebellar Stroke: A Single-Case Study
Kimberley, Teresa J.; Durfee, William K.; Dressler, Brittany L.; Steil, Carie; Carey, James R.
Background Gold standards of data analysis for single-case research do not currently exist. Objective The purpose of this study was to determine whether a combined statistical analysis method is more effective in assessing movement training effects in a patient with cerebellar stroke. Design A crossover single-case research design was conducted. Methods The patient was a 69-year-old man with a chronic cerebellar infarct who received two 5-week phases of finger tracking training at different movement rates. Changes were measured with the Box and Block Test, the Jebsen-Taylor test, the finger extension force test, and the corticospinal excitability test. Both visual analysis and statistical tests (including split-middle line method, t test, confidence interval, and effect size) were used to assess potential intervention effects. Results The results of the t tests were highly consistent with the confidence interval tests, but less consistent with the split-middle line method. Most results produced medium to large effect sizes. Limitations The possibility of an incomplete washout effect was a confounding factor in the current analyses. Conclusions The combined statistical analysis method may assist researchers in assessing intervention effects in single-case stroke rehabilitation studies. PMID:23329559
Case Study: The Chemistry of Cocaine
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Dewprashad, Brahmadeo
This column provides original articles on innovations in case study teaching, assessment of the method, as well as case studies with teaching notes. This month's case study focuses on the chemistry of cocaine to teach a number of core concepts in organic chemistry. It also requires that students read and analyze an original research paper on…
The presentation provides information taken from the arsenic demonstration program projects that have treatment systems removing multiply contaminants from drinking water. The case studies sited in the presentation consist of projects that have arsenic along with either nitrate, ...
Peuan Mit is a Lao organization working to address the needs of children and youth living and working on the streets. This case study outlines how a trusted and strong relationship with local police provides mutual benefit. PMID:22769869