The TSIS-1 Hybrid Solar Reference Spectrum.

We present a new solar irradiance reference spectrum representative of solar minimum conditions between solar cycles 24 and 25. The Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor-1 (TSIS-1) Hybrid Solar Reference Spectrum (HSRS) is developed by applying a modified spectral ratio method to normalize very high spectral resolution solar line data to the absolute irradiance scale of the TSIS-1 Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM) and the CubeSat Compact SIM (CSIM). The high spectral resolution solar line data are the Air Force Geophysical Laboratory ultraviolet solar irradiance balloon observations, the ground-based Quality Assurance of Spectral Ultraviolet Measurements In Europe Fourier transform spectrometer solar irradiance observations, the Kitt Peak National Observatory solar transmittance atlas, and the semi-empirical Solar Pseudo-Transmittance Spectrum atlas. The TSIS-1 HSRS spans 202-2730 nm at 0.01 to ∼0.001 nm spectral resolution with uncertainties of 0.3% between 460 and 2365 nm and 1.3% at wavelengths outside that range.

Isoprene emissions in Africa inferred from OMI observations of formaldehyde columns.

We use 2005-2009 satellite observations of formaldehyde (HCHO) columns from the OMI instrument to infer biogenic isoprene emissions at monthly 1 × 1° resolution over the African continent. Our work includes new approaches to remove biomass burning influences using OMI absorbing aerosol optical depth data (to account for transport of fire plumes) and anthropogenic influences using AATSR satellite data for persistent small-flame fires (gas flaring). The resulting biogenic HCHO columns (ΩHCHO) from OMI follow closely the distribution of vegetation patterns in Africa. We infer isoprene emission (E ISOP) from the local sensitivity S = ΔΩHCHO / ΔE ISOP derived with the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model using two alternate isoprene oxidation mechanisms, and verify the validity of this approach using AMMA aircraft observations over West Africa and a longitudinal transect across central Africa. Displacement error (smearing) is diagnosed by anomalously high values of S and the corresponding data are removed. We find significant sensitivity of S to NOx under low-NOx conditions that we fit to a linear function of tropospheric column NO2. We estimate a 40% error in our inferred isoprene emissions under high-NOx conditions and 40-90% under low-NOx conditions. Our results suggest that isoprene emission from the central African rainforest is much lower than estimated by the state-of-the-science MEGAN inventory.

The impact of local surface changes in Borneo on atmospheric composition at wider spatial scales: coastal processes, land-use change and air quality.

We present results from the OP3 campaign in Sabah during 2008 that allow us to study the impact of local emission changes over Borneo on atmospheric composition at the regional and wider scale. OP3 constituent data provide an important constraint on model performance. Treatment of boundary layer processes is highlighted as an important area of model uncertainty. Model studies of land-use change confirm earlier work, indicating that further changes to intensive oil palm agriculture in South East Asia, and the tropics in general, could have important impacts on air quality, with the biggest factor being the concomitant changes in NO(x) emissions. With the model scenarios used here, local increases in ozone of around 50 per cent could occur. We also report measurements of short-lived brominated compounds around Sabah suggesting that oceanic (and, especially, coastal) emission sources dominate locally. The concentration of bromine in short-lived halocarbons measured at the surface during OP3 amounted to about 7 ppt, setting an upper limit on the amount of these species that can reach the lower stratosphere.

A statewide quality improvement collaborative to reduce neonatal central line-associated blood stream infections.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to reduce central line-associated blood stream infections (CLABSIs) among 13 collaborating regional neonatal intensive care units by 25%. We tested the hypothesis that change could be attributed to the quality improvement collaborative by testing for 'special cause' variation. STUDY DESIGN: Our prevention project included five features: (1) leadership commitment, (2) potentially best practices, (3) collaborative processes, (4) audit and feedback tools and (5) quality improvement techniques. Baseline (1 January 2006 to 30 August 2006) data were compared with the intervention (1 September 2006 to 30 June 2007) and post-intervention (1 July 2007 to 30 December 2007) periods and analyzed using statistical process control (SPC) methods. RESULT: We detected special cause variation, suggesting that the collaborative was associated with reduced infection rates, from 4.32 to 3.22 per 1000 line days (a 25% decrease) when comparing the baseline with the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: The collaborative's process was associated with fewer infections. SPC suggested that systematic changes occurred. The remaining challenges include sustaining or even further reducing the infection rate.

The impact of customer focus on program participation rates in the Virginia WIC Program (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children).

It has been shown in the for-profit sector (business, service, and manufacturing) that the success of an organization depends on its ability to satisfy customer requirements while eliminating waste and reducing costs. The purpose of this article was to examine the impact of current practices in customer focus on program participation rates in the Virginia WIC Program. The results of this study showed that the use of customer-focused strategies was correlated to program participation rates in the WIC Program. The mean data showed that teamwork and accessibility were at unsatisfactory levels in Virginia.

The effect of employee job satisfaction on program participation rates in the Virginia WIC Program (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children).

Many researchers have shown a link between employee job satisfaction and customer satisfaction in the private sector. Customer satisfaction is the end result of whether the particular service and/or a product meet the customer's needs. The purpose of this research project was to assess the level of employee job satisfaction in the Virginia WIC Program and to determine whether a correlation exists between the level of employee job satisfaction and program participation rates. The results of this study showed that high levels of employee job satisfaction were positively correlated to high program participation rates in the Virginia WIC Program.

Report of the ADEA president's task force on the Surgeon General's report on oral health. American Dental Education Association.

In response to the first-ever Surgeon General's report on oral health, released on May 25, 2000, ADEA President Rowland A. Hutchinson, D.D.S., M.S., appointed a task force to study the report from the perspective of dental education. The task force was charged with making recommendations to the ADEA Board of Directors as to the Association's message to members and the general public, the Association's role in addressing oral health disparities, the legislative and policy implications of the report, and areas of collaboration between ADEA and others in the dental and health professions. The task force reviewed the report and made five recommendations, including increasing public awareness of the report's messages, promoting collaborative activities with a goal of improving America's oral health, and providing leadership in the drive to promote the incorporation of new science in dental education. The task force also identified numerous ADEA initiatives that address issues related to the Surgeon General's report.

Ring effect studies: Rayleigh scattering, including molecular parameters for rotational Raman scattering, and the Fraunhofer spectrum.

Improved parameters for the description of Rayleigh scattering in air and for the detailed rotational Raman scattering component for scattering by O(2) and N(2) are presented for the wavelength range 200-1000 nm. These parameters enable more accurate calculations to be made of bulk molecular scattering and of the Ring effect for a variety of atmospheric radiative transfer and constituent retrieval applications. A solar reference spectrum with accurate absolute vacuum wavelength calibration, suitable for convolution with the rotational Raman spectrum for Ring effect calculations, has been produced at 0.01-nm resolution from several sources. It is convolved with the rotational Raman spectra of O(2) and N(2) to produce an atmospheric Ring effect source spectrum.

The effect of ambulation on post-myelography headache in patients injected with metrizamide.

This study was conducted to determine whether prescribed ambulation in post-myelography patients injected with metrizamide would significantly decrease the incidence of post-myelography headache. Eighty patients undergoing metrizamide lumbar myelography were assigned to two groups of 40 patients each. The control group was restricted to complete bedrest for the immediate 24-hour period following myelography. The experimental group participated in a prescribed regimen of ambulation every four hours following myelography. Data were collected during the immediate 24 hours post-myelography. Subjects were assessed as to the presence or absence of headache at four-hour intervals during data collection. At the end of the 24-hour period post-myelography, the Visual Analogue Pain Intensity Scale was administered to subjects with documented subjective complaints of headache pain. The nonambulatory group had a 62.5% incidence of headache while the ambulatory group revealed only a 42.5% incidence of post-myelography headache. The z test was used to test the first research hypothesis that there would be a higher incidence of post-myelography headache in the nonambulatory group than in the ambulatory group. The calculated z = 1.79, p less than .05; therefore, it was possible to conclude that the number of nonambulatory patients with headache was significantly higher than the number of ambulatory patients with headache. The second research hypothesis, that the severity of post-myelography headache would be greater in the nonambulatory group than in the ambulatory group, was tested using the Student's t test. The calculated t = .6492, p greater than .05. The subjects' self-perception of the severity of headache was not significantly different in the nonambulatory than in the ambulatory subjects.

Stratospheric hydroperoxyl measurements.

The hydroperoxyl radical (HO(2)) plays a key role in stratospheric chemistry through the HOx catalytic cycle of ozone destruction. Earlier measurements of stratospheric HO(2) have given mixed results; some measured mixing ratios greatly exceed theoretical predictions. Measurements of HO(2) have now been made with a balloon-borne farinfrared spectrometer. The measured daytime profile is in excellent agreement with theory up to 40 kilometers; above this level the measurements exceed theory by 30 percent, perhaps because of underprediction of ozone at these altitudes. The nighttime HO(2) profile is strongly depressed with respect to the daytime profile, in general agreement with theory.

Effect of blood sampling site on measurements of bilirubin-albumin binding.

Significant arterio-venous concentration gradients in metabolites such as lactate could result in sampling site differences in bilirubin binding measurements. Therefore, total bilirubin and apparent unbound bilirubin concentrations were determined on paired capillary and arterial serum samples from ten neonates with hyaline membrane disease. There were no significant arterial versus capillary differences in bilirubin binding in these infants. However, a small, statistically significant but clinically irrelevant, difference in total bilirubin concentration was found. Consistent blood sampling sites should be used for laboratory tests where arterial, venous, and capillary results differ or could conceivably differ.

Dens evaginatus: a case report.

A case of bilateral dens evaginatus is presented. The difficulty of clinical diagnosis and the limited value of pulp testing in cases of dens evaginatus are discussed.