Ethical decision making and psychologists' attitudes toward training in ethics.

Discusses the inadequacy of old, and the lack of new guidelines for the protection of the rights of individuals in psychological treatment. A questionnaire containing vignettes of clinical and research situations that required decision-making processes was completed by 113 members of the Division of Clinical Psychology of the American Psychological Association. Data suggest that there is inconsistency in decision making. Suggestions for improving the decision-making process and enhancing consistency are presented. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Comparison of Spawning,Harvested, and Die-Off Rainbow Smelt, Osmerus Mordax, in Eastern Lake Erie

Rainbow smelt were collected in the area of Long Point, Lake Erie from 1) a commercial trawler, 2) spawning runs in streams, and 3) die-offs along beaches. The parasite Glugea hertwigi was found to have no effects on the fecundity or condition of smelt. However, infested smelt grew more slowly than uninfested ones. The percentage of infested smelt in die-offs was not significantly higher than in the spawning stock, suggesting that the parasite was not the primary cause of the mortality. Growth, maximum age, and fecundity of smelt in the samples were lower than in most other smelt populations for which data are available. Since there are no data available for Lake Erie smelt prior to or during the development of the fishery, it is not possible to assess if the observed population structure is the result of exploitation. Sex ratio changes suggest that spawning smelt may remix with the harvested stock gradually throughout the summer.     

Investing in energy conservation: Are homeowners passing up high yields?

Energy conservation is examined as an investment option for homeowners. Conservation technologies produce monetary benefits through reduced fuel costs. Calculations suggest that many conservation measures have rates of return significantly higher than alternative investments in stocks, bonds, and real estate, yet the level of conservation activity is inconsistent with these high yields. Several barriers exist which inhibit investments in conservation; it is perceived as risky and the cost of obtaining reliable information is high. Public policies to encourage conservation should focus on reducing the risk of purchasing energy saving devices by improving the accuracy of energy savings estimates.     

Prevalence of high-risk egg-preparation practices in restaurants that prepare breakfast egg entrées: an EHS-Net study

Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis (SE) is a common cause of foodborne illness in the United States. Foods prepared with raw shell eggs have often been associated with SE outbreaks. The federal government published the Egg Safety Action Plan in December 1999 that called for reduction of egg-preparation practices that may contribute to the survival and proliferation of SE. In seven states, an interview and brief site evaluation of 153 restaurants that prepare eggs during all hours of operation was conducted by the Environmental Health Specialists Network to determine the prevalence of such practices. Fifty-four percent (83 of 153) of restaurants pooled raw shell eggs not intended for immediate service. These pooled eggs were held a median of 4 h for scrambled eggs, 5.5 h for omelets, and 6 h for pancakes and French toast. Nearly 26% (39 of 152) of restaurants reported storing eggs at room temperature, and 5% (7 of 152) stored eggs on ice or in cold-water baths before cooking. Generally, eggs were cooked to 72 to 83 degrees C, which is above the recommended final cook temperature of 63 to 68 degrees C. Employees reported sanitizing utensils used to prepare eggs less than once every 4 h in 42% (57 of 136) of restaurants. Several areas were identified in which further emphasis might reduce egg-associated SE infections in accordance with Healthy People 2010 goals.     

A new method for defining and managing process alarms and for correcting process operation when an alarm occurs

A new mathematical treatment of alarms that considers them as multi-variable interactions between process variables has provided the first-ever method to calculate values for alarm limits. This has resulted in substantial reductions in false alarms and hence in alarm annunciation rates in field trials. It has also unified alarm management, process control and product quality control into a single mathematical framework so that operations improvement and hence economic benefits are obtained at the same time as increased process safety. Additionally, an algorithm has been developed that advises what changes should be made to Manipulable process variables to clear an alarm. The multi-variable Best Operating Zone at the heart of the method is derived from existing historical data using equation-free methods. It does not require a first-principles process model or an expensive series of process identification experiments. Integral with the method is a new format Process Operator Display that uses only existing variables to fully describe the multi-variable operating space. This combination of features makes it an affordable and maintainable solution for small plants and single items of equipment as well as for the largest plants. In many cases, it also provides the justification for the investments about to be made or already made in process historian systems. Field Trials have been and are being conducted at IneosChlor and Mallinckrodt Chemicals, both in the UK, of the new geometric process control (GPC) method for improving the quality of both process operations and product by providing Process Alarms and Alerts of much high quality than ever before. The paper describes the methods used, including a simple visual method for Alarm Rationalisation that quickly delivers large sets of Consistent Alarm Limits, and the extension to full Alert Management with highlights from the Field Trials to indicate the overall effectiveness of the method in practice.     

The effect of forearm support on musculoskeletal discomfort during call centre work

Using a computer keyboard with the forearms unsupported has been proposed as a causal factor for neck/shoulder and arm/hand diagnoses. Recent laboratory and field studies have demonstrated that forearm support might be preferable to working in the traditional "floating" posture. The aim of this study was to determine whether providing forearm support when using a normal computer workstation would decrease musculoskeletal discomfort in intensive computer users in a call centre. A randomised controlled study (n = 59), of 6 weeks duration was conducted. Thirty participants (Group 1) were allocated to forearm support using the desk surface with the remainder (Group 2) acting as a control group. At 6 weeks, the control group was also set up with forearm support. Both groups were then monitored for another 6 weeks. Questionnaires were used at 1, 6 and 12 weeks to obtain information about discomfort, workstation setup, working posture and comfort. Nine participants (Group 1 n = 6, Group 2 n = 3) withdrew within a week of commencing forearm support either due to discomfort or difficulty in maintaining the posture. At 6 weeks, the group using forearm support generated significantly fewer reports of discomfort in the neck and back, although the difference between the groups was not statistically significant. At 12 weeks, there were fewer reports of neck, back and wrist discomfort when preintervention discomfort was compared with post intervention discomfort. These findings indicate that for the majority of users, forearm support may be preferable to the "floating" posture implicit in current guidelines for computer workstation setup.     

Learning as an objective within a structured risk management decision process

Social learning through adaptive management holds the promise of providing the basis for better risk management over time. Yet the experience with fostering social learning through adaptive management initiatives has been mixed and would benefit from practical guidance for better implementation. This paper outlines a straightforward heuristic for fostering improved risk management decisions: specifying learning for current and future decisions as one of several explicit objectives for the decision at hand, drawing on notions of applied decision analysis. In keeping with recent guidance from two important U.S. advisory commissions, the paper first outlines a view of risk management as a policy-analytic decision process involving stakeholders. Then it develops the concept of the value of learning, which broadens the more familiar notion of the value of information. After that, the concepts and steps needed to treat learning as an explicit objective in a policy decision are reviewed. The next section outlines the advantages of viewing learning as an objective, including potential benefits from the viewpoint of stakeholders, the institutions involved, and for the decision process itself. A case-study example concerning water use forfisheries and hydroelectric power in British Columbia, Canada is presented to illustrate the development of learning as an objective in an applied risk-management context.     

Extraction of cesium ions from aqueous solutions using calix[4]arene-bis(tert-octylbenzo-crown-6) in ionic liquids

Solvent extraction of cesium ions from aqueous solution to hydrophobic ionic liquids without the introduction of an organophilic anion in the aqueous phase was demonstrated using calix[4]arene-bis(tert-octylbenzo-crown-6) (BOBCalixC6) as an extractant. The selectivity of this extraction process toward cesium ions and the use of a sacrificial cation exchanger (NaBPh(4)) to control loss of imidazolium cation to the aqueous solutions by ion exchange have been investigated.