A web-based high-performance multicriteria decision support system for medical diagnosis

Multicriteria decision making (MCDM) methods can be powerful aids for evaluating patients' medical information in medical diagnostic systems. Technique ordered preference by similarity to the ideal solution (TOPSIS) is one of the more widely used MCDM methods in decision support systems. For the purpose of this work, the TOPSIS method is modified into a more suitable form and used for the implementation of a web-based medical diagnostic system. In our modified TOPSIS method, we have utilized fuzzy logic so that users can more accurately describe their symptoms. The data given to the modified TOPSIS method are often massive in proportions and may take a considerable amount of time to generate a ranking of alternatives. TOPSIS lends itself to parallel computation because it is virtually a combination of matrix computations. Therefore, computer parallelism is implemented so that a large amount of input data can be handled simultaneously, hence decreasing overall execution time. In addition, to make our MCDM system more accessible, we have designed our system to be web based. The web-based medical diagnosis system includes a dynamically generated web-based user interface, while the parallel implementation of the modified TOPSIS component, in conjunction with the Common Gateway Interface, forms the back end of the system. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Int Syst 22: 1083–1099, 2007.     

Social support and prognosis in patients at increased psychosocial risk recovering from myocardial infarction.

Objective: To compare the impact of network support and different types of perceived functional support on all-cause mortality or nonfatal reinfarction for patients with a recent acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Design: Participants were recruited from the Enhancing Recovery in Coronary Heart Disease (ENRICHD) trial; 2,481 AMI patients with depression or low social support were randomized to a cognitive-behavioral intervention or to a usual care control group. Data collection for certain measures of social support was limited: 2,466 participants completed the ENRICHD Social Support Inventory; 2,457 completed the Perceived Social Support Scale; 1,296 completed the Social Network Questionnaire; and 707 completed the Interpersonal Support and Evaluation List, Tangible Support subscale. Patients also completed the Beck Depression Inventory and were followed for up to 4.5 years. Main Outcome Measure: Time to death or nonfatal reinfarction. Results: Over the follow-up period, 599 patients (24%) died or had a nonfatal AMI. Survival models controlling age, sex, race, socioeconomic status, smoking, antidepressant use, and a composite measure of increased risk revealed that higher levels of perceived social support were associated with improved outcome for patients without elevated depression but not for patients with high levels of depression. Neither perceived tangible support nor network support were associated with more frequent adverse events. Conclusion: AMI patients should be assessed for multiple dimensions of perceived functional support and depression to identify those at increased psychosocial risk who may benefit from treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Acoustic startle and prepulse inhibition in 40 inbred strains of mice.

A high-throughput phenotype screening protocol was used to measure the acoustic startle response (ASR) and prepulse inhibition (PPI) in mice. ASRs were evoked by noise bursts; prepulses for PPI were 70 dB sound pressure level tones of 4, 12, and 20 kHz. Forty inbred strains of mice were tested (in most cases using 10 males and 10 females of each strain). The data on both the ASR and PPI had high internal and test-retest reliability and showed large differences among inbred strains, indicative of strong genetic influences. Previously obtained measures of hearing sensitivity in the same inbred strains were not significantly correlated with ASR or PPI measures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moral Implications of Globalization and Identity.

Comments on the article by J. Arnett (see record 2002-18352-003) regarding the psychology of globalization. The author touches on the moral implications of globalization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The optimal level of fuzz: case studies in a methodology for psychological research

Cognitive science research is hard to conduct, because researchers must take phenomena from the world and turn them into laboratory tasks for which a reasonable level of experimental control can be achieved. Consequently, research necessarily makes tradeoffs between internal validity (experimental control) and external validity (the degree to which a task represents behaviour outside of the lab). Researchers are thus seeking the best possible trade-off between these constraints, which we refer to as the optimal level of fuzz. We present two principles for finding the optimal level of fuzz, in research, and then illustrate these principles using research from motivation, individual differences and cognitive neuroscience.     

Characterization by Dynamic Thermal Methods of Some Bis-Azopolyethers with Flexible Spacer

Summary  The work presents the characterization by dynamic thermal methods of some bis-azopolyethers with flexible spacer. A MOM-Budapest derivatograph was used for the thermal analysis that enables the simultaneous registration of the thermogravimetric curve (TG), of the derivative thermogravimetric curve (DTG) and of the differential thermal analysis (DTA). The registrations were made in air a static conditions, at different heating rates (5, 10, 15, 20K/min) by keeping constant the other operational parameters in order to obtain comparable data. The study led to some conclusions about the structure - thermostability - degradation mechanism. The thermostability is determined by the presence of the azo groups, but it may be modified, depending on the nature and the relevance of the co-monomer. The mechanism of the thermal degradation is complex, by successive reactions, the fragmentation of the chain being influenced by the chemical structure and the heating rate.     

Advanced distillation curve measurements for corrosive fluids: Application to two crude oils

We have recently introduced several important improvements in the measurement of distillation curves for complex fluids. The modifications include a composition-explicit data channel for each distillate fraction (for both qualitative and quantitative analysis) and corrosivity assessment of each distillate fraction. The composition-explicit information is achieved with a new sampling approach that allows precise qualitative as well as quantitative analyses of each fraction, on the fly. We have applied the new method to a variety of fluids, including simple n-alkanes, rocket propellant, gasoline, jet fuels, and a hydrocarbon fluid made corrosive with dissolved hydrogen sulfide. In the current contribution, we present the application of the advanced distillation curve method to two samples of crude oil. A primary motivation behind the work is to precisely measure the distillation curves of these oils using our advanced distillation apparatus; these low uncertainty measurements of true thermodynamic state points can be used for equation of state development and differentiation of crude oil samples. Then, the information content of each distillation was extended much further by use of the composition-explicit data channel: gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), infrared spectrophotometry (IR), gas chromatography with sulfur chemiluminescence detection (GC–SCD), and the copper strip corrosion test (CSCT) were used for each distillate volume fraction sampled. Consequently, for each volume fraction of crude oil distillate sampled, we can address the composition, quantitate the total sulfur content, and measure the corrosivity.     

Supported Alumina Members by an in-Situ Sol–Gel Method

Alumina membranes were prepared using a sol–gel process. Thin gel layers were grown onto porous alumina support tubes by using the permeation of water through the tube to control the rate of hydrolysis. Optimum coating conditions were found to be an ASB to 2-propanol volume ratio of 1:25, coating times between 10 and 15 s, and partial drying times between 2.5 and 3 min, depending on whether the water was flowing in the tube or stored in the tube. The coatings remained crack-free and adherent when fired to 800°C.     

From statistical associations to causation: What developmentalists can learn from instrumental variables techniques coupled with experimental data.

In this article, the authors aim to make accessible the careful application of a method called instrumental variables (IV). Under the right analytic conditions, IV is one promising strategy for answering questions about the causal nature of associations and, in so doing, can advance developmental theory. The authors build on prior work combining the analytic approach of IV with the strengths of random assignment design, whether the experiment is conducted in the lab setting or in the "real world." The approach is detailed through an empirical example about the effects of maternal education on children's cognitive and school outcomes. With IV techniques, the authors address whether maternal education is causally related to children's cognitive development or whether the observed associations reflect some other characteristic related to parenting, income, or personality. The IV estimates show that maternal education has a positive effect on the cognitive test scores of children entering school. The authors conclude by discussing opportunities for applying these same techniques to address other questions of critical relevance to developmental science. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)