Computer-based support for clinical decision making

Although computers are now commonly used for financial purposes in hospitals and physicians' offices, most physicians do not routinely use them in patient care. And in hospitals where laboratory data are provided on computer terminals, the displays are often difficult to use and programs that offer assistance in interpreting the data are usually unavailable. We have developed decision support programs that are widely used with the clinical computing system at our hospital. This paper describes the programs and how the clinicians use them.     

Production of rice husks composites with Acacia mimosa tannin-based resin

Rice husks are amongst the typical agricultural residues, which are easily available in huge amounts. They have been considered as raw material for composites panels’ production. However, the major hindrance in rice husks utilization for composite manufacture lies in the lack of direct interaction with most adhesive binders to form the anticipated interfacial bonds. Rice husks are highly siliceous and have poor resistance to alkaline and acidic conditions. Manufacture of rice husks composites panels having good interface bond is difficult and largely dependent on a proper understanding of the interaction between the husks and the binder. This paper presents and discusses results on the production of composites boards from a mixture of rice husks and wattle (Acacia mimosa) tannin based resin. The experimental results have shown that the ‘as received rice husks’ when blended with alkali-catalyzed tannin resin do not result in optimum composite panel properties. However, it was found that a slight physical modification of the rice husk particles by hammer-milling resulted in drastic improvements in the interfacial bond strength and stiffness of the composites panels from 0.041 MPa to 0.200 MPa and 1039 MPa to 1527 MPa, respectively.     

Electro-migration of nitrate in sandy soil

Migration of nitrate to groundwater has become a serious threat in many agricultural areas. This paper presents the results of experimental laboratory tests studying the nitrate gradient developed in response to an electrical potential. Two systems were tested; the first had no flow (closed system) and the second had flow opposite to the direction of the electrical current. A solution of sodium nitrate in sandy soil was used in both systems. The tests showed that the electro-kinetic process effectively concentrated and retained nitrate close to the anode. The movement of NO(3)(-) through the soil column was significantly influenced by the development of a pH gradient. Statistical analysis was performed to determine best-fit equations relating the nitrate gradient to the electrical input and pH gradient. A simple one-dimensional finite difference model was used to predict the pH gradient developed during the electro-kinetic process. The experimental measurements closely agreed with the predicted spatial and temporal distribution of the nitrate gradient for both closed and open system configurations.     

Multicriteria Analysis in an Irrigation District in Mexico

The Alto Rio Lerma Irrigation District, located in the state of Guanajuato in Mexico, is an agricultural area whose sustainability depends partially upon groundwater withdrawal for crop irrigation. Because of high pumping demands and current land-management practices, groundwater levels have declined severely, resulting in aquifer overdraft. In order to analyze economic, environmental, and water use problems in this region, 12 potential cropping patterns were generated for different groundwater withdrawals using linear programming. Then, simulation of the agricultural system was performed using GLEAMS to estimate the amounts of water, nitrate, and pesticides in both runoff and percolation for each cropping pattern. Pumping costs and an aquifer exploitation coefficient account for the economic and environmental impacts of aquifer overdraft. Finally, the Range of Value Method (multicriteria method) was applied to rank and identify the best cropping pattern. The results show the best alternative for effectively balancing environmental with economic considerations was the farming practice, consisting of land leveling, growing vegetables such as red tomato, and controlled groundwater withdrawals to preserve aquifer sustainability.     

Estimating crop yields and production by integrating the FAO Crop Specific Water Balance model with real-time satellite data and ground-based ancillary data

An operational crop yield model was developed by introducing realtime satellite imagery into a Geographical Information System (GIS) and the Crop Specific Water Balance (CSWB) model of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Input databases were developed with three different resolutions; agro-ecological zone (AEZ) polygons, 7.6 km and 1.1 km pixels; from archived satellite data commonly used by Early Warning Systems (EWS) to simulate maize yield and production in Kenya from 1989 to 1997. Simulated production results from the GIS-based CSWB model were compared to historical maize production reports from two Government of Kenya (GoK) agencies. The coefficients of determination (r ²) between the model and GoK district reports ranged from 0.86 to 0.89. The results indicated the 7.6 km pixel-by-pixel analysis was the most favorable method due to the Rainfall Estimate (RFE) input data having the same resolution. The GIS-based CSWB model developed by this study could also be easily expanded for use in other countries, extended for other crops, and improved in the future as satellite technologies improve.     

Exploring Newtonian mechanics in a conceptually-integrated digital game: Comparison of learning and affective outcomes for students in Taiwan and the United States

This study investigates the potential of a digital game that overlays popular game-play mechanics with formal physics representations and terminology to support explicit learning and exploration of Newtonian mechanics. The analysis compares test data, survey data, and observational data collected during implementations in Taiwan and the United States with students in grades 7–9. Results demonstrate learning on some core disciplinary measures and high levels of learner engagement, indicating the potential benefits of this genre of conceptually-integrated games, but also suggesting that further research and development will be needed to more fully harness this potential. Encouragingly, striking similarities were observed across the two countries in terms of learning and engagement, suggesting that this genre of learning games may prove suitable for engaging students in active exploration of core science concepts across multiple countries.     

Simple methods for routine screening and quantitative estimation of oxalate content of tropical grasses

A thin-layer chromatographic method is described for the semi-quantitative detection of oxalate in tropical grasses. The method allows the processing of large numbers of samples and should be sufficiently accurate for most screening requirements. High specificity and sensitivity for oxalate is achieved with simple laboratory equipment, but strict quantitation requires the use of a gas chromatograph. It is suggested that a consideration of the oxalate content of tropical forage grasses is essential in comparisons of apparent digestibilities between species and between treatments.