bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
TH‐C‐352‐02: From Licensing to QA, How to Implement HDR Brachytherapy Into Your Clinic
Authors: Prisciandaro J 
Published: July 2008

Brachytherapy has been utilized as a modality for treating cancer since shortly after the discovery of radium by Madame Curie in the early 1900's. Although radium was the workhorse for brachytherapy treatments in the first half of the 21st century, alternative sources began to emerge in the 1950's as mechanisms to produce radioactive isotopes were discovered. Cesium‐137, and a number of other low dose rate (LDR) sources were soon utilized clinically. However, it was not until the 1980's that high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy emerged as a possible alterative to LDR treatments. Although HDR had the advantage of delivering dose in a shorter time frame, there were several concerns regarding this transition, such as the radiological response of HDR versus LDR treatments, and staff safety. Prior to the era of HDR units, most sources were loaded manually resulting in occupational dose to staff participating in LDR procedures. However, before HDR programs could be utilized clinically, alternatives for manual loading were necessary as the resulting exposure to staff would be prohibitively high. In response, remote afterloading HDR units emerged, allowing sources to be delivered to patients remotely. However, along with this advancement in technology came increasing regulatory and quality assurance requirements.Although there are a number of similarities between LDR and HDR treatments, there are substantial differences in the clinical implementations of these treatment programs. During this presentation, we will discuss relevant federal regulatory requirements, NRC licensing, AAPM recommendations and task group reports, available HDR equipment, and logistical planning in order to develop a successful HDR program.Educational Objectives:1. Discuss the necessary steps to prepare for the clinical implementation of a HDR brachytherapy program.a. NRC licensingb. Equipment purchasec. Room design and shieldingd. Acceptance testing and commissioninge. Quality assurance2. Discuss logistics for HDR workflow.
Forest disturbance frequency and patch structure from pre-European settlement to present in the Mixed Forest Province of Minnesota, USA
Authors: White M. A. , Host G. E. 
Published: July 2008

We used General Land Office survey data (1860–1890) and interpreted aerial photography from the 1930s, 1970s, and 1990s to quantify forest disturbance frequency and spatial patterns for four time periods in the Mixed Forest Province of Minnesota. The study region included eight subsections within the Mixed Forest Province of Minnesota’s Ecological Classification System. Presettlement disturbance and spatial pattern estimates varied across the eight subsections indicating a strong relationship to soil and landform characteristics. Land surveyors primarily recorded higher severity disturbances that resulted in significant tree mortality. The 1900–1940 era was characterized by a short-term increase in fire frequency that was relatively uniform across the study region, in contrast to the variability of the presettlement (1860–1890) landscape. In the postsettlement period (1940–1995), timber harvest replaced fire as the dominant disturbance factor. Similar management practices among subsections created similar harvest rates throughout the study region. These management practices imposed a more homogeneous pattern dominated by small (10–25 ha) patches. Management practices now have a greater influence than natural processes in the generation of landscape pattern in the Mixed Forest Province of Minnesota. Information on presettlement forest conditions and subsequent changes can be used by land managers to restore spatial pattern variability in managed forest landscapes.
Diagnostic tools to evaluate the foliar nutrition and growth of hybrid poplars
Authors: Lteif Arlette , Whalen Joann K. , Bradley Robert L. , Camiré Claude 
Published: July 2008

This 2-year study examined the effect of fertilizers on tree growth and foliar nutrition in a Populus trichocarpa Torr. & A. Gray × Populus deltoides Bartr. ex Marsh. plantation located in southwestern Québec. The treatments included a control that did not receive N or P fertilizer, inorganic NP fertilizers, organic fertilizers applied at 65–70 kg N·ha–1, and organic fertilizers applied at 130–140 kg N·ha–1. Fertilized trees were taller and had larger diameters than control trees. Three methods were used to diagnose limiting nutrients and nutrient imbalances, and compare the nutrient supply from different fertilizer sources. The critical value approach and the compositional nutrient diagnosis methods found below-optimum N and P concentrations, sufficient K and Mg concentrations, and an excessive Ca concentration in foliage. Vector analysis compared the N nutrition in foliage from fertilized trees and the control trees. The compositional nutrient diagnosis r2(nutrient imbalance index) was negatively correlated with annual tree growth in height (r = –0.46, P < 0.05) and diameter (r = –0.59, P < 0.05), meaning that trees with a greater nutrient imbalance grew less in height and diameter than trees with balanced foliar nutrition. Of these diagnostic methods, compositional nutrient diagnosis holds promise for identifying nutrient limitations and predicting growth responses to fertilization in hybrid poplar plantations.
The Response of the ITCZ to Extratropical Thermal Forcing: Idealized Slab-Ocean Experiments with a GCM
Authors: Kang Sarah M. , Held Isaac M. , Frierson Dargan M. W. , Zhao Ming 
Published: July 2008

Abstract
Using a comprehensive atmospheric GCM coupled to a slab mixed layer ocean, experiments are performed to study the mechanism by which displacements of the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) are forced from the extratropics. The northern extratropics are cooled and the southern extratropics are warmed by an imposed cross-equatorial flux beneath the mixed layer, forcing a southward shift in the ITCZ. The ITCZ displacement can be understood in terms of the degree of compensation between the imposed oceanic flux and the resulting response in the atmospheric energy transport in the tropics. The magnitude of the ITCZ displacement is very sensitive to a parameter in the convection scheme that limits the entrainment into convective plumes. The change in the convection scheme affects the extratropical–tropical interactions in the model primarily by modifying the cloud response. The results raise the possibility that the response of tropical precipitation to extratropical thermal forcing, important for a variety of problems in climate dynamics (such as the response of the tropics to the Northern Hemisphere ice sheets during glacial maxima or to variations in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation), may be strongly dependent on cloud feedback. The model configuration described here is suggested as a useful benchmark helping to quantify extratropical–tropical interactions in atmospheric models.
Improving Ocean Model Initialization for Coupled Tropical Cyclone Forecast Models Using GODAE Nowcasts
Authors: Halliwell G. R. , Shay L. K. , Jacob S. D. , Smedstad O. M. , Uhlhorn E. W. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract
To simulate tropical cyclone (TC) intensification, coupled ocean–atmosphere prediction models must realistically reproduce the magnitude and pattern of storm-forced sea surface temperature (SST) cooling. The potential for the ocean to support intensification depends on the thermal energy available to the storm, which in turn depends on both the temperature and thickness of the upper-ocean warm layer. The ocean heat content (OHC) is used as an index of this potential. Large differences in available thermal energy associated with energetic boundary currents and ocean eddies require their accurate initialization in ocean models. Two generations of the experimental U.S. Navy ocean nowcast–forecast system based on the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) are evaluated for this purpose in the NW Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico prior to Hurricanes Isidore and Lili (2002), Ivan (2004), and Katrina (2005). Evaluations are conducted by comparison to in situ measurements, the navy’s three-dimensional Modular Ocean Data Assimilation System (MODAS) temperature and salinity analyses, microwave satellite SST, and fields of OHC and 26°C isotherm depth derived from satellite altimetry. Both nowcast–forecast systems represent the position of important oceanographic features with reasonable accuracy. Initial fields provided by the first-generation product had a large upper-ocean cold bias because the nowcast was initialized from a biased older-model run. SST response in a free-running Isidore simulation is improved by using initial and boundary fields with reduced cold bias generated from a HYCOM nowcast that relaxed model fields to MODAS analyses. A new climatological initialization procedure used for the second-generation nowcast system tended to reduce the cold bias, but the nowcast still could not adequately reproduce anomalously warm conditions present before all storms within the first few months following nowcast initialization. The initial cold biases in both nowcast products tended to decrease with time. A realistic free-running HYCOM simulation of the ocean response to Ivan illustrates the critical importance of correctly initializing both warm-core rings and cold-core eddies to correctly simulate the magnitude and pattern of SST cooling.
An Efficient and Accurate Method for Computing the Wet-Bulb Temperature along Pseudoadiabats
Authors: Davies-Jones Robert 
Published: July 2008

AbstractA new technique for computing the wet-bulb potential temperature of a parcel and its temperature after pseudoadiabatic ascent or descent to a new pressure level is presented. It is based on inverting Bolton’s most accurate formula for equivalent potential temperature θE to obtain the adiabatic wet-bulb temperature Tw on a given pseudoadiabat at a given pressure by an iterative technique. It is found that Tw is a linear function of equivalent temperature raised to the −1/κd (i.e., −3.504) power, where κd is the Poisson constant for dry air, in a significant region of a thermodynamic diagram. Consequently, Bolton’s formula is raised to the −1/κd power prior to the solving. A good “initial-guess” formula for Tw is devised. In the pressure range 100 ≤ p ≤ 1050 mb, this guess is within 0.34 K of the converged solution for wet-bulb potential temperatures θw ≤ 40°C. Just one iteration reduces this relative error to less than 0.002 K for −20° ≤ θw ≤ 40°C. The upper bound on the overall error in the computed Tw after one iteration is 0.2 K owing to an inherent uncertainty in Bolton’s formula. With a few changes, the method also works for finding the temperature on water- or ice-saturation reversible adiabats.The new technique is far more accurate and efficient than the Wobus method, which, although little known, is widely used in a software package. It is shown that, although the Wobus function, on which the Wobus method is based, is supposedly only a function of temperature, it has in fact a slight pressure dependence, which results in errors of up to 1.2 K in the temperature of a lifted parcel. This intrinsic inaccuracy makes the Wobus method far inferior to a new algorithm presented herein.
Weighted Position and Motion Vector Consensus of Tropical Cyclone Track Prediction in the Western North Pacific
Authors: Elsberry Russell L. , Hughes James R. , Boothe Mark A. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract
Two approaches are developed and tested to improve the unweighted position consensus for 96-, 108-, and 120-h tropical cyclone track guidance in the western North Pacific. A weighted position guidance technique uses a weighting factor for each model that is inversely proportional to how far the 60-, 66-, and 72-h positions of that model are from the corresponding positions of the 11-member position consensus. The weighted position consensus of 96-, 108-, and 120-h track errors for a sample of 24 storms during the 2006 season are consistently smaller than for the unweighted position consensus.
In the second approach, a weighted motion vector consensus is developed that uses the same weighting factors as in the weighted position consensus, except that the weights are applied to 12-h motion vectors between 84 and 120 h. This weighted motion vector consensus has substantially smaller errors than the unweighted position consensus, and results in smoother tracks when one or more of the model tracks drops out of the consensus. It is proposed that the weighted motion vector consensus would provide improved guidance for the 96-, 108-, and 120-h tropical cyclone track forecasts.
Sensitivity of the PBL and Precipitation in 12-Day Simulations of Warm-Season Convection Using Different Land Surface Models and Soil Wetness Conditions
Authors: Trier S. B. , Chen F. , Manning K. W. , LeMone M. A. , Davis C. A. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract
A coupled land surface–atmospheric model that permits grid-resolved deep convection is used to examine linkages between land surface conditions, the planetary boundary layer (PBL), and precipitation during a 12-day warm-season period over the central United States. The period of study (9–21 June 2002) coincided with an extensive dry soil moisture anomaly over the western United States and adjacent high plains and wetter-than-normal soil conditions over parts of the Midwest. A range of possible atmospheric responses to soil wetness is diagnosed from a set of simulations that use land surface models (LSMs) of varying sophistication and initial land surface conditions of varying resolution and specificity to the period of study.
Results suggest that the choice of LSM [Noah or the less sophisticated simple slab soil model (SLAB)] significantly influences the diurnal cycle of near-surface potential temperature and water vapor mixing ratio. The initial soil wetness also has a major impact on these thermodynamic variables, particularly during and immediately following the most intense phase of daytime surface heating. The soil wetness influences the daytime PBL evolution through both local and upstream surface evaporation and sensible heat fluxes, and through differences in the mesoscale vertical circulation that develops in response to horizontal gradients of the latter. Resulting differences in late afternoon PBL moist static energy and stability near the PBL top are associated with differences in subsequent late afternoon and evening precipitation in locations where the initial soil wetness differs among simulations. In contrast to the initial soil wetness, soil moisture evolution has negligible effects on the mean regional-scale thermodynamic conditions and precipitation during the 12-day period.
Stepwise Onset of Monsoon Weather Observed in the Nepal Himalaya
Authors: Ueno K. , Toyotsu K. , Bertolani L. , Tartari G. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractMountain weather changes in the Nepal Himalaya were intensively examined during the 2003 monsoon onset using in situ datasets, observed by multiple automatic weather stations (AWS) distributed across the Coordinated Enhanced Observing Period (CEOP) Himalaya reference site at locations with significant differences in altitude. Onset of monsoon rainfall characterized as nighttime precipitation was initiated simultaneously at all stations with the occurrence and migration of a monsoon depression in the north of the Bay of Bengal. Satellite infrared images detected evident suppression of diurnal cloud development after the onset. About two weeks prior to the onset, the mountain weather abruptly changed such that the daytime valley wind at lower elevations weakened associated with morning clouds and the nighttime southerly wind began at upper elevations. The timing corresponded with the weakening of the westerly wind over the Himalaya due to the northward shift of the upper subtropical jet stream. The time lag between the precipitation onset and the change in the mountain weather was confirmed by 9 yr of in situ AWS data. The mechanism of nighttime southerly winds at high elevations is also discussed in relation to large-scale monsoon flow and local circulation.
Probabilistic Forecast Calibration Using ECMWF and GFS Ensemble Reforecasts. Part II: Precipitation
Authors: Hamill Thomas M. , Hagedorn Renate , Whitaker Jeffrey S. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract
As a companion to Part I, which discussed the calibration of probabilistic 2-m temperature forecasts using large training datasets, Part II discusses the calibration of probabilistic forecasts of 12-hourly precipitation amounts. Again, large ensemble reforecast datasets from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and the Global Forecast System (GFS) were used for testing and calibration. North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) 12-hourly precipitation analysis data were used for verification and training. Logistic regression was used to perform the calibration, with power-transformed ensemble means and spreads as predictors. Forecasts were produced and validated for every NARR grid point in the conterminous United States (CONUS). Training sample sizes were increased by including data from 10 nearby grid points with similar analyzed climatologies. “Raw” probabilistic forecasts from each system were considered, in which probabilities were set according to ensemble relative frequency. Calibrated forecasts were also considered based on three amounts of training data: the last 30 days of forecasts (available for 2005 only), weekly reforecasts during 1982–2001, and daily reforecasts during 1979–2003 (GFS only).
Several main results were found. (i) Raw probabilistic forecasts from the ensemble prediction systems’ relative frequency possessed little or negative skill when skill was computed with a version of the Brier skill score (BSS) that does not award skill solely on the basis of differences in climatological probabilities among samples. ECMWF raw forecasts had larger skills than GFS raw forecasts. (ii) After calibration with weekly reforecasts, ECMWF forecasts were much improved in reliability and were moderately skillful. Similarly, GFS-calibrated forecasts were much more reliable, albeit somewhat less skillful. Nonetheless, GFS-calibrated forecasts were much more skillful than ECMWF raw forecasts. (iii) The last 30 days of training data produced calibrated forecasts of light-precipitation events that were nearly as skillful as those with weekly reforecast data. However, for higher precipitation thresholds, calibrated forecasts using the weekly reforecast datasets were much more skillful, indicating the importance of large sample size for the calibration of unusual and rare events. (iv) Training with daily GFS reforecast data provided calibrated forecasts with a skill only slightly improved relative to that from the weekly data.
Edema and Leg Volume: Methods of Assessment
Authors: Guex J.J. , Perrin Michel 
Published: July 2008

Various techniques may be used to assess leg edema. The value of these investigations has been discussed in depth in the consensus statement made in Vaux de Cernay in 1997 and supported by Servier Research Group. These techniques can be classified into three groups: • The most simple is leg circumference measurement, which can be assessed by a tape measure, or more rigorously with a Leg-O-Meter. This device is a cheap and repro ducible method that has been validated and that takes into account the height at which the circumference has been measured. However, circumference measurement is not always correlated with leg (including foot) volume measurement. • The second group of techniques assess leg volume. The most simple method is water displacement volumetry, which has been validated in terms of reproducibility. Several other devices have been used: optoelectronic methods, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging (high resolution), dual X-ray absorptiometry. These methods are expensive and not all of them have been validated, but these might be the future investigations of choice. (continued on next page) • Some other investigations assess immediate variations in volume such as water displacement using dynamic foot volumetry, rheoplethysmography, strain gauge plethysmography, and air plethysmography. The assessment made by these methods (using postural, dynamic, or compressive maneuvers) is more an assessment of the venomuscular pump and/or venous outflow than volume assessment. In conclusion, edema, an early and frequent sign of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), can be precisely measured by several methods. This measurement can be considered one of the most objective ways of assessing treatment efficacy in CVI-associated edema.
RELIEF Study: First Consolidated European Data
Authors: Jantet Georges 
Published: July 2008

The RELIEF study (Reflux assEssment and quaLity of lIfe improvement with micronized Flavonoids in chronic venous insufficiency [CVI]) is a prospective, controlled, multi center, international study performed in patients with or without venous reflux. This study was conducted between March 1997 and December 1998 in 23 countries worldwide with the participation of more than 10,000 patients suffering from CVI. The European countries, the subject of this report, were represented by the Czech and Slovak Republics, Hungary, Poland, Russia, and Spain. The principal aims of the study were: 1. To validate the first quality-of-life scale specific to chronic venous insufficiency (CIVIQ) in different languages and to assess the evolution of quality of life in patients suffering from CVI, with or without venous reflux, treated with micronized purified flavonoid fraction (MPFF*) (1,000 mg/day) 2. To collect international epidemiologic data on venous reflux assessed with pocket Doppler and photoplethysmography 3. To assess the evolution of symptoms and signs with a specific emphasis on edema through validated Leg-O-Meter measurement (heaviness, pain, cramps, sensation of swelling, edema) in patients suffering from CVI and treated with MPFF, 1,000 mg/day, during 6 months. The first country-by-country statistical analysis and the European consolidated analysis are now available. The CIVIQ questionnaires adapted to each participating country have been validated with highly significant validity and reproducibility (p < 0.0001). All dimen sions have demonstrated a highly significant and evolving improvement during the study. The results show several interesting findings concerning the epidemiologic data and, of these, two were particularly interesting: • More than 50% of patients suffering from CVI (class 0 to 4 of the CEAP classification) were reflux-free, which means that they were suffering from functional CVI. • Patient distribution between the different classes of the CEAP classification changed in a statistically significant manner after 6 months' treatment with MPFF; the number of patients in the more severe classes decreased to the benefit of the less severe classes. Symptoms such as pain, leg heaviness, sensation of swelling, and cramps were signifi cantly improved (p=0.0001). This was associated with a significant decrease in edema, when present, measured by leg circumferences with the Leg-O-Meter (p=0.0001). In conclusion, the European results of the RELIEF study showed the perfect validity and reproducibility of CIVIQ questionnaire adaptations, and the positive progression of quality-of-life scores on MPFF treatment. This progression was paralleled by clinical improvement of patients reflected not only by assessment of CVI symptoms and signs but also by evolution of the CEAP classification.