Digital Commons Network^™

Are People Getting Crazier?, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Terrorism, murder, suicide, drunken driving, addictive gambling, pornography, and religiously inspired violence all provide plenty of evidence that behavioral and emotional problems that are ultimately destructive to self and others are often at the root of so many global, national, and local crises. All these troubles in the world prompt several basic and fundamental questions.

Hemets – Human Error Modeling For Error Tolerant Systems, Michael E. Fotta, Shawn Nicholson, Michael D. Byrne

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2007

HEMETS simulates a human operator interacting with a prototype user interface for a proposed system design. HEMETS is built upon a Human Error Modeling Architecture (HEMA) – extension of ACT-R. A subsystem, HEMA System Interface (HEMA SI), has also been developed to enable the real time translation of user interface information into a cognitive model readable form. HEMETS will enable designers to foresee the human error consequences of a design and take steps to eliminate, reduce or recover from those errors.

The Effects Of Multimodal Collaboration Technology On Subjective Workload Profiles Of Tactical Air Battle Management Teams, Victor S. Finomore, Benjamin A. Knott, W. Todd Nelson, Scott M. Galster, Robert S. Bolia

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2007

A tactical air battle management task required a team of two weapons directors, two strike operators, and a tanker operator to communicate with each other in order to coordinate offensive and defensive air attacks, and aerial refuelling. This study compared the impact of two types of communication modalities (Voice or Picture Chat) and the number of enemy targets (4 or 6) on team performance and perceived team workload. Three subjective workload scales were evaluated in their ability to characterize task difficulty, communication demands, and demands of the different team roles. The results are discussed with respects to the descriptive and …

Cooperative Perception In Multisensor Environment: The Case Of The Tigre Helicopter, Dr Sylvain Hourlier, Pr Corinne Roumes

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2007

How do Tigre pilots build a coherent situation awareness (SA) of the night world through their multiple sensors (IR and I2)? These bring numerous opportunities for pilots to misunderstand each other because of field of view (FOV), wavelength spectrum and point of view differences. After a brief review of the literature on how operators build an SA of the world, we present the field project developed to analyze the impact of sensor commonality and diversity. Realistic situations are recorded to witness how Tigre pilots "create" a mental model of the situation and develop a collaborative strategy. Crew co-construction of sense …

An Overview Of The Tanker Airlift Control Center, Laura G. Militello, Patrick J. Vincent, Jesse A. Gaydon, Stephanie D. Swindler

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2007

The Tanker Airlift Control Center (TACC) plans, schedules, and tracks tanker, airlift, and aeromedical evacuation aircraft worldwide. This paper presents an overview of the TACC, presenting a snapshot of a constantly evolving, dynamic organization. Based on information gathered via interviews and observations conducted intermittently over a 12-month period, we present key characteristics of the TACC, TACC personnel, the organizational structure, and primary external collaborators.

Their Bugs Are Worse Than Their Bite: Emerging Infectious Disease And The Human-Animal Interface, Michael Greger

State of the Animals 2007

In the twenty-five years since that announcement, what we now know as AIDS has killed 20 million people (National AIDS Trust 2005). Where did the AIDS virus— and other emerging diseases, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Ebola, mad cow— come from?

Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (Epr) In Medical Dosimetry, David A. Schauer, Akinori Iwasaki, Alexander A. Romanyukha, Harold M. Swartz, Sandro Onori

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

This paper describes the fundamentals of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and its application to retrospective measurements of clinically significant doses of ionizing radiation. X-band is the most widely used in EPR dosimetry because it represents a good compromise between sensitivity, sample size and water content in the sample. Higher frequency bands (e.g., W and Q) provide higher sensitivity, but they are also greatly influenced by water content. L and S bands can be used for EPR measurements in samples with high water content but they are less sensitive than X-band. Quality control for therapeutic radiation facilities using X-band EPR spectrometry …

Update - January 2007, Loma Linda University Center For Christian Bioethics

Update

In this issue:

-- Stem Cells, Embryos, and Ethics: Is There a Way Forward?
-- Editorial
-- 2006 Contributor's Convocation "Present Day Health Care: Collaborate or Close the Door"

Collaboration Technologies And The Supervisory Control Of Ucavs In Tactical C2: Effects On Performance And Workload, Gregory J. Funke, April M. Bennett, W. Todd Nelson, Scott M. Galster

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2007

The present study was an initial attempt to characterize team performance, workload, and situational awareness associated with two types of UCAV control schemes coupled with several collaboration technologies. Six people participated in a simulated suppression of enemy air defense (SEAD) mission, which required cooperation between all participants in order to meet mission objectives. UCAVs were controlled by UCAV operators and supervised by air battle managers (ABMs) or controlled directly by ABMs. Participants could communicate verbally, through instant messages, and on some trials, using a virtual whiteboard. Results of the experiment indicated that team performance was negatively impacted by direct UCAV …

Governing Catastrophes: Security, Health And Humanitarian Assistance, David P. Fidler

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Recent catastrophes, and predictions of an increasing potential for more, have stimulated thinking about the best policy responses to these threats. This article explores how security concepts influence catastrophe governance. The article considers how globalization affects thinking about catastrophes and describes ways in which catastrophes have been conceptualized as governance challenges, such as the human rights approach to the provision of health and humanitarian assistance. The article explains how health and humanitarian assistance experienced ‘‘securitization’’ in the post-cold war period, a development that challenges rights-based strategies and creates complex and controversial implications for the prevention, protection and response functions of …

Protease Dysregulation: Role In Neutrophilic Inflammation In Cystic Fibrosis, Amit Gaggar

All ETDs from UAB

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a lethal disorder characterized by abnormal epithelial ion transport; this disorder is characterized by an ongoing airway remodeling and neutrophilic inflammation. Much of the airway remodeling is due to activation of a group of enzymes known as proteases; human neutrophil elastase (HNE) is a prominent protease found in the CF airway. While specific cytokines/chemokines are well-known for their role in the inflammation seen in CF, it is unknown how the protease-rich environment in CF lung disease influences airway inflammation. Recently, our group has characterized a novel collagen-derived fragment, proline-glycine-proline (PGP), which causes neutrophil influx through mechanisms …

Information Governance: A Model For Security In Medical Practice, Patricia Williams

Research outputs pre 2011

Information governance is becoming an important aspect of organisational accountability. In consideration that information is an integral asset of most organisations, the protection of this asset will increasingly rely on organisational capabilities in security. In the medical arena this information is primarily sensitive patient-based information'. Previous research has shown that application of security measures is a low priority for primary care medical practice and that awareness of the risks are seriously underestimated. Consequently, information security governance will be a key issue for medical practice in the future. Information security governance is a relatively new term ,and there is little existing …

Brucella Melitensis: The Evaluation Of A Putative Hemagglutinin Gene's Effect On Virulence In The Caprine Model, Quinesha Laticia Perry

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Brucella melitensis is a facultative intracellular bacterial pathogen that causes abortions in goats and sheep and Malta fever in humans. The zoonotic disease brucellosis causes severe economic losses in the Mediterranean region and parts of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. With the completion of the genomic sequences of B. abortus 2308 and B. melitensis 16M, no classical virulence factors were found; and the chromosomes were virtually identical. However, in B. melitensis, a putative hemagglutinin gene was identified which is absent in B. abortus. The possibility of the hemagglutinin gene being a potential virulence factor was evaluated via gene replacement/deletion in …

Full Issue, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

An Art Therapy Intervention To Help Military Children Cope With Parental Deployment, Eleanor Kai Lampell

EVMS School of Health Professions Theses & Dissertations

Research regarding military children and their ability to cope with parental deployment is extensive. However, research dealing with art therapy and military children is limited. The purpose of this study was to explore the benefits of participating in group art therapy interventions for military children with a parent currently on deployment. Five group art therapy sessions were conducted with two military children with a parent currently in stage two of parental deployment. It was hypothesized that through participating in group art therapy, military children with a parent who is currently deployed would have a reduction of problematic behaviors in a …

Effects Of War Stressors And Life Events On Gulf War Veterans With Cfs Symptoms, Kieran K. Dhillon

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The present study examines the association of life stressors and the period when they occur, with the development of CFS symptoms in Gulf War veterans. From data collected from Gulf War Health Registry veterans, 113 met CFS criteria and 441 were controls. After hierarchical linear analysis, negative life stressors: wounded, traumatic war experience, frequent battle experiences, demotion, and unable to work within 2 years of returning from the Gulf predicted CFS symptoms; and positive life stressors of buying a house more than 2 years of returning was protective against CFS symptoms (all significant at p < .05). The findings are consistent with psycho social etiological hypotheses for CFS and are useful in developing programs for veterans returning from war.

Forecasting Mental Health Care Cost For Oif And Oef Veterans, Phil Andrew L. Bernal

Theses and Dissertations

The war in Iraq has been the longest sustained ground combat that the US military has engaged since the Vietnam War. With the ongoing battle against the global war on terrorism, many military personnel will be deployed to hostile areas in support of these operations. The effects of multiple deployment and combat engagement on the mental health of military personnel have been extensively studied. The impacts of mental illnesses, such as PTSD, are tied to longer period in the combat zone. Meeting the psychiatric needs of these veterans will be costly: rehabilitation, retraining, post combat counseling, long-term medical treatment, and …

A Coprological View Of Ancestral Pueblo Cannibalism, Karl Reinhard

Karl Reinhard Publications

As the object of my scientific study, I’ve chosen coprolites. It’s not a common choice, but to a paleonutritionist and archaeoparasitologist, a coprolite—a sample of ancient feces preserved by mineralization or simple drying—is a scientific bonanza. Analysis of coprolites can shed light on both the nutrition of and parasites found in prehistoric cultures. Dietary reconstructions from the analysis of coprolites can inform us about, for example, the origins of modern Native American diabetes. With regard to parasitology; coprolites hold information about the ancient emergence and spread of human infectious disease. Most sensational, however, is the recent role of coprolite analysis …

Pnes: Neuropsychological Impairments & Psychological Symptomatology, Adriana Macias

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The present study utilized a standardized neuropsychological evaluation and self report measures to compare 52 female patients, 18 years of age and older with a video-electroencephalogram (V-EEG) confirmed diagnosis of psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES) (n₁=29) to a group of left temporal lobe epilepsy (L-TLE) demographically matched patients (n₂=23). In an attempt to overcome methodological confounds of previously reported studies, participants were chosen based on stringent exclusion criteria, which barred mixed etiologies. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible differences in neuropsychological functioning, mood, and personality characteristics between individuals with PNES and those with L-TLE. …

Surgical Infection Society Guidelines For Vaccination After Traumatic Injury, Thomas R. Howdieshell, Daithi Heffernan, Joseph T. Dipiro

Publications from the Office of the Dean

Background: Recommendations for vaccination of injured patients against infection are evolving. Newly-recognized infections, safety considerations, changing epidemiology, and redefinition of patient groups at risk are factors that may influence vaccine development priorities and recommendations for immunization. However, recommendations must often be formulated based on incomplete data, forcing reliance on expert opinion to address some crucial questions. These guidelines provide evidence-based recommendations for the prevention or treatment of infectious morbidity and mortality after traumatic injury, such as soft tissue wounds, human or animal bites, or after splenectomy.

Methods: A panel of experts conducted a thorough review of published literature, …

Contagious Discourse: Germs, Mass Media, And The Shaping Of Reality, Amy Richardson Ballagh

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Over the past two decades, mass media coverage of certain infectious diseases has become more abundant. News reports of many of these contagious illnesses invoke fear in many people, such as Ebola and pandemic influenza; multidrug-resistant strains of infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis; and agents of biological warfare, a concern that is now at the forefront with many Americans due to the most recent act of bioterrorism on American soil following the events of September 11th. This dissertation focuses on the American public's perception of infectious diseases, particularly as portrayed in the cultural science curriculum. I examine the cyclic nature …

Neck Loading In High Performance Combat Pilots During Aerial Combat Manoeuvres And Specific Neck Strengthening Exercises, Kevin J. Netto

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Background: Neck pain and injury is a common occurrence in high performance combat pilots (HPCP) around the world. The cause of this has been attributed to exposure to the unavoidable high mechanical loading related to the neck being positioned in non-neutral head postures whilst being exposed to moderate to high +Gz levels. Specific neck conditioning exercises have been proposed as being a possible method to decrease the incidence of neck pain and injury in this population. However, there has been sparsely published research examining the suitability of selected exercises for HPCP who participate in regular aerial combat manoeuvres (ACM).

Preparing Medical Directors For The Genomics Age, Miriam Reisman

Population Health Matters (Formerly Health Policy Newsletter)

No abstract available.

Vital Signs, Fall 2005, Boonshoft School Of Medicine

Vital Signs

A twenty-eight page newsletter created by the Boonshoft School of Medicine to document the current affairs of the school. This issue includes a variety of feature articles, faculty profiles, class notes, and more.

Suicidal Bus Bombing Of French Nationals In Pakistan: Physical Injuries And Management Of Survivors, Hasnain Zafar, Rifat Rehmani, Tabish Chawla, Masood Umer, Mohsin-E-Azam

Department of Surgery Docs

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Suicidal bombing is particularly devastating and an increasingly common form of terrorist violence. In this paper, we present an epidemiologic description of the physical injuries of patients who survived the suicidal bombing attack in the context of the limited medical resources of a developing nation.

METHODS:

The management of individual patients was reviewed from a preprinted trauma form. Information on the nature of injuries, operative management and hospital course was recorded and data analyzed using the Trauma Registry.

RESULTS:

Twelve survivors out of 36 bomb blast victims brought to the Aga Khan University Hospital were transferred from primary …

Com Outlook Summer 2005, College Of Osteopathic Medicine

COM Outlook

No abstract provided.

Osler And The Infected Letter, Charles T. Ambrose

Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics Faculty Publications

The spread of infectious agents through the mail has concerned public health officials for 5 centuries. The dissemination of anthrax spores in the US mail in 2001 was a recent example. In 1901, two medical journals reported outbreaks of smallpox presumably introduced by letters contaminated with variola viruses. The stability and infectivity of the smallpox virus are reviewed from both a historical (anecdotal) perspective and modern virologic studies. Bubonic plague was the contagious disease that led to quarantines as early as the 14th century in port cities in southern Europe. Later, smallpox, cholera, typhus, and yellow fever were recognized as …

Tularemia: Emergence/Re-Emergence, Jeannine M. Petersen, Martin E. Schriefer

Zoonotics and Wildlife Disease: Publications

Francisella tularensis is a gram-negative coccobacillus and the etiologic agent of the zoonotic disease tularemia. First described in 1911 in Tulare County, California, it has since been reported throughout the Northern Hemisphere, with natural infections reported among an unusually wide range of vertebrates and invertebrates. In recent years, tularemia has emerged in new geographic locations, populations, and settings. This review will serve to highlight mechanisms contributing to the recent emergence of tularemia as well as a repertoire of diagnostic tools useful for detecting and diagnosing disease.

Flight Physician - March, 2005, Civil Aviation Medical Association

Browse all Civil Aviation Medical Association Newsletters

A twenty page newsletter of the Civil Aviation Medical Association. The newsletter provided news about civil aviation medicine and information related to the organization.

An Analysis Of Biometric Technology As An Enabler To Information Assurance, Darren A. Deschaine

Theses and Dissertations

The use of and dependence on, Information technology (IT) has grown tremendously in the last two decades. Still, some believe the United States is only in the infancy of this growth. This explosive growth has opened the door to capabilities that were only dreamed of in the past. As easy as it is to see how advantageous this technology is, it also is clear that with its advantages come distinct responsibilities and new problems that must be addressed. For instance, the minute one begins using information processing systems, the world of information assurance (IA) becomes far more complex. As a …