A fuzzy analytic network process for multi-criteria evaluation of contaminated site remedial countermeasures.

The Analytic Network Process (ANP) has been proposed to incorporate interdependence and feedback effect in the prioritization of remedial countermeasures using a hierarchical network decision model, but this approach seems to be incapable of capturing the vagueness and fuzziness during value judgment elicitation. The aim of this paper is to present an evaluation method using a fuzzy ANP (FANP) approach to address this shortcoming. Triangular fuzzy numbers (TFN) and their degree of fuzziness are used in the semantic scale as human judgment expressed in natural language is most often vague and fuzzy. The method employs the alpha-cuts, interval arithmetic and optimism index to transform the fuzzy comparative judgment matrix into set of crisp matrices, and then calculates the desired priorities using the eigenvector method. A numerical example, which was drawn from a real-life case study of an uncontrolled landfill in Japan, is presented to demonstrate the process. Results from the sensitivity analysis describe how the fuzziness in judgment could affect the solution robustness of the prioritization method. The proposed FANP approach therefore could effectively deal with the uncertain judgment inherent in the decision making process and derive the meaningful priorities explicitly from a complex decision structure in the evaluation of contaminated site remedial countermeasures.

Evaluation of remedial countermeasures using the analytic network process.

The aim of this paper is to present an evaluation method to aid decision makers in the prioritization and selection of appropriate countermeasures at the planning stage of site remediation. We introduced a hierarchical network (hiernet) decision structure and applied the Analytic Network Process (ANP) supermatrix approach to measure the relative desirability of the remedial alternatives using the decision maker's value judgment as input. A simplified illustrative example is presented to elucidate the process, as it is being applied to evaluate the feasible remedial countermeasures of a contaminated site caused by uncontrolled landfill. Four decision models derived from the generalized hiernet were examined to describe the effect of hierarchic functional dependence, inner dependence and feedback cycle on the derivation of the priority weights. The ANP could provide a more flexible analytical framework to break down one's judgment through a more elaborate structure in a systematic way to understand the complexity of the decision problem. The proposed method therefore may not only aid in selecting the best alternative but also may help to facilitate communication to understand why an alternative is preferred over the other alternatives through the analysis of the derived weights and its underlying decision structure.

Transgenic apple (Malus x domestica) shoot showing low browning potential.

Transgenic apple shoots were prepared from leaf disks by using Agrobacterium tumefaciens carrying the kanamycin (KM) resistance gene and antisense polyphenol oxidase (PPO) DNA. Four transgenic apple lines that grew on the medium containing 50 microgram/mL KM were obtained. They contained the KM resistance gene and grew stably on the medium for >3 years. Two transgenic shoot lines containing antisense PPO DNA in which PPO activity was repressed showed a lower browning potential than a control shoot.

[Experimental study with radiofrequency-induced thermal arterial occlusion].

A preliminary experiment on arterial occlusion using radiofrequency energy was performed. A surgitron FFPF was used as a radiofrequency power generator, and a Tracker 18 catheter was used as a probe insulator. A 10 mm length of the guide wire protruding from the tip of catheter was used as the radiofrequency probe. To examine the safety of this procedure within the vessels, the following experiments were performed. A 2.5 mm diameter dimple at the surface of a sausage was filled with human blood. We inserted various lengths of non-insulated guide wire into the dimple and supplied radiofrequency power. We then measured the time until air bubbles appeared in the dimple. With a 10 mm length of non-insulated guide wire, this took over 30 sec. Animal experiments were carried out in 17 canine arteries. The diameter of these arteries ranged from 1.3 to 3.7 mm. Before the procedure, angiograms were taken using a 5 F catheter from the right femoral artery. A tracker 18 catheter and guide wire were inserted to the target position co-axially. The guide wire was attached to the radiofrequency generator. The tip of the guide wire functioned as the convergence point of an electrically conducting induced current. Treatment was performed by supplying radiofrequency power of various durations.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[A case of mediastinal neurinoma originating from right intrathoracic vagal nerve].

A 34-year-old woman was admitted with an abnormal shadow on a chest X-ray film. Under a preoperative diagnosis of benign bronchogenic cyst, operation was carried out and the tumor was found to be originating from the right main vagal nerve in the mid-superior mediastinum. The vagal nerve was transected to remove the tumor. Pathological diagnosis was a neurinoma. Postoperative complication was chylothorax which was successfully treated with thoracic drainage and intravenous hyperalimentation.