Document ID: EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0033-0139
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2003-04-14T04:00Z

Glossary
Exposure
Factors
Handbook
Page
August
1997
G­
1
GLOSSARY
Absorption
fraction
(
percent
absorbed)
­
The
relative
Boneless
equivalent
­
Weights
of
meat
(
pork,
veal,
beef)
amount
of
a
substance
that
penetrates
through
a
barrier
into
and
poultry,
excluding
all
bones,
but
including
separable
fat
the
body,
reported
as
a
unitless
fraction.
sold
on
retail
cuts
of
red
meat.

Accuracy
­
The
measure
of
the
correctness
of
data,
as
given
Carcass
weight
­
Weight
of
the
chilled
hanging
carcass,
by
the
difference
between
the
measured
value
and
the
true
which
includes
the
kidney
and
attached
internal
fat
(
kidney,
or
standard
value.
pelvic,
and
heart
fat),
excludes
the
skin,
head,
feet,
and
Activity
pattern
(
time
use)
data
­
Information
on
activities
in
which
various
individuals
engage,
length
of
time
spent
performing
various
activities,
locations
in
which
individuals
spend
time
and
length
of
time
spent
by
individuals
within
Chronic
intake
­
The
long
term
period
over
which
a
those
various
environments.
substance
crosses
the
outer
boundary
of
an
organism
Air
exchange
rate
­
Rate
of
air
leakage
through
windows,
doorways,
intakes
and
exhausts,
and
"
adventitious
Comparability
­
The
ability
to
describe
likenesses
and
openings"
(
i.
e.,
cracks
and
seams)
that
combine
to
form
the
differences
in
the
quality
and
relevance
of
two
or
more
data
leakage
configuration
of
the
building
envelope
plus
natural
sets.
and
mechanical
ventilation.

Ambient
­
The
conditions
surrounding
a
person,
sampling
consumed
per
person
in
a
population
composed
only
of
location,
etc.
individuals
who
ate
the
food
item
of
interest
during
a
Analytical
uncertainty
propagation
­
Examines
how
uncertainty
in
individual
parameters
affects
the
overall
Contaminant
concentration
­
Contaminant
concentration
uncertainty
of
the
exposure
assessment.
The
uncertainties
is
the
concentration
of
the
contaminant
in
the
medium
(
air,
associated
with
various
parameters
may
propagate
through
food,
soil,
etc.)
contacting
the
body
and
has
units
of
a
model
very
differently,
even
if
they
have
approximately
mass/
volume
or
mass/
mass.
the
same
uncertainty.
Since
uncertainty
propagation
is
a
function
of
both
the
data
and
the
model
structure,
this
procedure
evaluates
both
input
variances
and
model
sensitivity.

As
consumed
intake
rates
­
Intake
rates
that
are
based
on
the
weight
of
the
food
in
the
form
that
it
is
consumed.

Average
daily
dose
­
Dose
rate
averaged
over
a
pathway­
thermophoresis.
specific
period
of
exposure
expressed
as
a
daily
dose
on
a
per­
unit­
body­
weight
basis.
The
ADD
is
used
for
exposure
to
chemicals
with
non­
carcinogenic
non­
chronic
effects.
The
ADD
is
usually
expressed
in
terms
of
mg/
kg­
day
or
other
mass/
mass­
time
units.

Best
Tracer
Method
(
BTM)
­
Method
for
estimating
soil
ingestion
that
allows
for
the
selection
of
the
most
recoverable
tracer
for
a
particular
subject
or
group
of
subjects.
Selection
of
the
best
tracer
is
made
on
the
basis
of
the
food/
soil
(
F/
S)
ratio.
unattached
internal
organs.
The
pork
carcass
weight
includes
the
skin
and
feet
but
excludes
the
kidney
and
attached
internal
fat.

without
passing
an
absorption
barrier.

Consumer­
only
intake
rate
­
The
average
quantity
of
food
specified
period.

Creel
Census
­
Approach
used
by
fishery
managers
to
obtain
harvest
data
collected
onsite
from
single
anglers
or
from
larger­
scale
commercial
type
operations.

Deposition
­
The
removal
of
airborne
substances
to
available
surfaces
that
occurs
as
a
result
of
gravitational
settling
and
diffusion,
as
well
as
electrophoresis
and
Diary
study
­
Survey
in
which
individuals
are
asked
to
record
food
intake,
activities,
or
other
factors
in
a
diary
which
is
later
used
to
evaluate
exposure
factors
associated
with
specific
populations.

Distribution
­
A
set
of
values
derived
from
a
specific
population
or
set
of
measurements
that
represents
the
range
and
array
of
data
for
the
factor
being
studied.
Glossary
Page
Exposure
Factors
Handbook
G­
2
August
1997
Dose
­
The
amount
of
a
substance
available
for
interaction
Exposure
route
­
The
way
a
chemical
pollutant
enters
an
with
metabolic
processes
or
biologically
significant
organism
after
contact,
e.
g.,
by
ingestion,
inhalation,
or
receptors
after
crossing
the
outer
boundary
of
an
organism.
dermal
absorption.
The
potential
dose
is
the
amount
ingested,
inhaled,
or
applied
to
the
skin.
The
applied
dose
is
the
amount
of
a
substance
presented
to
an
absorption
barrier
and
available
for
absorption
(
although
not
necessarily
having
yet
crossed
the
outer
boundary
of
the
organism).
The
absorbed
dose
is
the
amount
crossing
a
specific
absorption
barrier
(
e.
g.,
the
exchange
boundaries
of
skin,
lung,
and
digestive
tract)
through
uptake
processes.
Internal
dose
is
a
more
general
term
denoting
the
amount
absorbed
without
respect
to
specific
absorption
barriers
or
exchange
boundaries.
The
amount
of
a
chemical
available
for
interaction
by
any
particular
organ
or
cell
is
termed
the
delivered
dose
for
that
organ
or
cell.

Dose­
response
relationship
­
The
resulting
biological
responses
in
an
organ
or
organism
expressed
as
a
function
of
a
series
of
doses.

Dressed
weight
­
The
portion
of
the
harvest
brought
into
kitchens
for
use,
including
bones
for
particular
species.

Dry
weight
intake
rates
­
Intake
rates
that
are
based
on
the
weight
of
the
food
consumed
after
the
moisture
content
has
been
removed.

Employer
tenure
­
The
length
of
time
a
worker
has
been
with
the
same
employer.

Exposed
foods
­
Those
foods
that
are
grown
above
ground
and
are
likely
to
be
contaminated
by
pollutants
deposited
on
surfaces
that
are
eaten.

Exposure
duration
­
Total
time
an
individual
is
exposed
to
the
chemical
being
evaluated.

Exposure
Assessment
­
The
determination
or
estimation
(
qualitative
or
quantitative)
of
the
magnitude,
frequency,
or
duration,
and
route
or
exposure.

Exposure
concentration
­
The
concentration
of
a
chemical
in
its
transport
or
carrier
medium
at
the
point
of
contact.

Exposure
pathway
­
The
physical
course
a
chemical
takes
from
the
source
to
the
organism
exposed.
Exposure
scenario
­
A
set
of
facts,
assumptions,
and
interferences
about
how
exposure
takes
place
that
aids
the
exposure
assessor
in
evaluating
estimating,
or
quantifying
exposures.

Exposure
­
Contact
of
a
chemical,
physical,
or
biological
agent
with
the
outer
boundary
of
an
organism.
Exposure
is
quantified
as
the
concentration
of
the
agent
in
the
medium
in
contact
integrated
over
the
time
duration
of
the
contact.

Exposure
duration
­
Length
of
time
over
which
contact
with
the
contaminant
lasts.

General
population
­
The
total
of
individuals
inhabiting
an
area
or
making
up
a
whole
group.

Geometric
mean
­
The
nth
root
of
the
product
of
n
values.

Homegrown/
home
produced
foods
­
Fruits
and
vegetables
produced
by
home
gardeners,
meat
and
dairy
products
derived
form
consumer­
raised
livestock,
game
meat,
and
home
caught
fish.

Inhaled
dose
­
The
amount
of
an
inhaled
substance
that
is
available
for
interaction
with
metabolic
processes
or
biologically
significant
receptors
after
crossing
the
outer
boundary
of
an
organism.

Insensible
water
loss
­
Evaporative
water
losses
that
occur
during
breastfeeding.
Corrections
are
made
to
account
for
insensible
water
loss
when
estimating
breast
milk
intake
using
the
test
weighing
method.

Intake
­
The
process
by
which
a
substance
crosses
the
outer
boundary
of
an
organism
without
passing
an
absorption
barrier
(
e.
g.,
through
ingestion
or
inhalation).

Intake
rate
­
Rate
of
inhalation,
ingestion,
and
dermal
contact
depending
on
the
route
of
exposure.
For
ingestion,
the
intake
rate
is
simply
the
amount
of
food
containing
the
contaminant
of
interest
that
an
individual
ingests
during
some
specific
time
period
(
units
of
mass/
time).
For
inhalation,
the
intake
rate
is
the
rate
at
which
contaminated
air
is
inhaled.
Factors
that
affect
dermal
exposure
are
the
amount
of
material
that
comes
into
contact
with
the
skin,
and
the
rate
at
which
the
contaminant
is
absorbed.
Glossary
Exposure
Factors
Handbook
Page
August
1997
G­
3
Internal
dose
­
The
amount
of
a
substance
penetrating
Occupational
tenure
­
The
cumulative
number
of
years
a
across
absorption
barriers
(
the
exchange
boundaries)
of
an
person
worked
in
his
or
her
current
occupation,
regardless
organism,
via
either
physical
or
biological
processes
of
number
of
employers,
interruptions
in
employment,
or
(
synonymous
with
absorbed
dose).
time
spent
in
other
occupations.

Interzonal
airflows
­
Transport
of
air
through
doorways,
ductwork,
and
service
chaseways
that
interconnect
rooms
or
zones
within
a
building.

Lifetime
average
daily
dose
­
Dose
rate
averaged
over
a
lifetime.
The
LADD
is
used
for
compounds
with
carcinogenic
or
chronic
effects.
The
LADD
is
usually
expressed
in
terms
of
mg/
kg­
day
or
other
mass/
mass­
time
units.
Pica
­
Deliberate
ingestion
of
non­
nutritive
substances
such
Limiting
Tracer
Method
(
LTM)
­
Method
for
evaluating
soil
ingestion
that
Population
mobility
­
An
indicator
of
the
frequency
at
assumes
that
the
maximum
amount
of
soil
ingested
which
individuals
move
from
one
residential
location
to
corresponds
with
the
lowest
estimate
from
various
tracer
another.
elements.

Local
circulation
­
Convective
and
adjective
air
circulation
material
ingested,
air
breathed,
or
bulk
material
applied
to
and
mixing
within
a
room
or
within
a
zone.
the
skin.

Mass­
balance/
tracer
techniques
­
Method
for
evaluating
Precision
­
A
measure
of
the
reproducibility
of
a
measured
soil
intake
that
accounts
for
both
inputs
and
outputs
of
value
under
a
given
set
of
circumstances.
tracer
elements.
Tracers
in
soil,
food,
medicine
and
other
ingested
items
as
well
as
in
feces
and
urine
are
accounted
for.

Median
value
­
The
value
in
a
measurement
data
set
such
juices,
and
other
preparation
losses
which
include
losses
that
half
the
measured
values
are
greater
and
half
are
less.
from
paring
or
coring.

Microenvironment
­
The
combination
of
activities
and
Probabilistic
uncertainty
analysis
­
Technique
that
assigns
locations
that
yield
potential
exposure.
a
probability
density
function
to
each
input
parameter,
then
Moisture
content
­
The
portion
of
foods
made
up
by
water.
The
percent
water
is
needed
for
converting
food
intake
rates
and
residue
concentrations
between
whole
weight
and
dry
weight
values.

Monte
Carlo
technique
­
A
repeated
random
sampling
from
the
distribution
of
values
for
each
of
the
parameters
in
a
generic
(
exposure
or
dose)
equation
to
derive
an
estimate
of
the
distribution
of
(
exposures
or
doses
in)
the
population.
Random
samples
­
Samples
selected
from
a
statistical
Occupational
mobility
­
An
indicator
of
the
frequency
at
which
workers
change
from
one
occupation
to
another.
Pathway
­
The
physical
course
a
chemical
or
pollutant
takes
from
the
source
to
the
organism
exposed.

Per
capita
intake
rate
­
The
average
quantity
of
food
consumed
per
person
in
a
population
composed
of
both
individuals
who
ate
the
food
during
a
specified
time
period
and
those
that
did
not.

as
soil.

Potential
dose
­
The
amount
of
a
chemical
contained
in
Preparation
losses
­
Net
cooking
losses,
which
include
dripping
and
volatile
losses,
post
cooking
losses,
which
involve
losses
from
cutting,
bones,
excess
fat,
scraps
and
randomly
selects
values
from
each
of
the
distributions
and
inserts
them
into
the
exposure
equation.
Repeated
calculations
produce
a
distribution
of
predicted
values,
reflecting
the
combined
impact
of
variability
in
each
input
to
the
calculation.
Monte
Carlo
is
a
common
type
of
probabilistic
Uncertainty
analysis.

Protected
foods
­
Those
foods
that
have
outer
protective
coatings
that
are
typically
removed
before
consumption.

population
such
that
each
sample
has
an
equal
probability
of
being
selected.

Range
­
The
difference
between
the
largest
and
smallest
values
in
a
measurement
data
set.
Glossary
Page
Exposure
Factors
Handbook
G­
4
August
1997
Recreational/
sport
fishermen
­
Individuals
who
catch
fish
Sensitivity
analysis
­
Process
of
changing
one
variable
as
part
of
a
sporting
or
recreational
activity
and
not
for
the
while
leaving
the
others
constant
to
determine
its
effect
on
purpose
of
providing
a
primary
source
of
food
for
the
output.
This
procedure
fixes
each
uncertain
quantity
at
themselves
or
for
their
families.
its
credible
lower
and
upper
bounds
(
holding
all
others
at
Representativeness
­
The
degree
to
which
a
sample
is,
or
samples
are,
characteristic
of
the
whole
medium,
exposure,
or
dose
for
which
the
samples
are
being
used
to
make
inferences.

Residential
volume
­
The
volume
(
m
)
of
the
structure
in
3
which
an
individual
resides
and
may
be
exposed
to
airborne
contaminants.

Residential
occupancy
period
­
The
time
(
years)
between
a
person
moving
into
a
residence
and
the
time
the
person
moves
out
or
dies.

Resource
utilization
­
For
any
quantity
Y
that
is
consumed
by
individuals
in
a
population,
the
percentiles
of
the
"
resource
utilization
distribution"
of
Y
can
be
formally
defined
as
follows:
Y
(
R)
is
the
pth
percentile
of
the
Test
weighing
­
A
method
for
estimating
breast
milk
intake
p
resource
utilization
distribution
if
p
percent
of
the
overall
over
a
24­
hour
period
in
which
the
infant
is
weighed
before
consumption
of
Y
in
the
population
is
done
by
individuals
and
after
each
feeding
without
changing
its
clothing.
The
with
consumption
below
Y
(
R)
and
100­
p
percent
is
done
sum
of
the
difference
between
the
measured
weights
over
p
by
individuals
with
consumption
above
Y
(
R).
the
24­
hour
period
is
assumed
to
be
equivalent
to
the
p
Retail
weight
equivalent
­
Weight
of
food
as
sold
through
retail
foodstores;
therefore,
conversion
factors
are
used
to
Total
tapwater
­
Water
consumed
directly
from
the
tap
as
correct
carcass
weight
to
retail
weight
to
account
for
a
beverage
or
used
in
the
preparation
of
foods
and
trimming,
shrinkage,
or
loss
of
meat
and
chicken
at
retail
beverages
(
i.
e.,
coffee,
tea,
frozen
juices,
soups,
etc.).
outlets.

Route
­
The
way
a
chemical
or
pollutant
enters
an
organism
including
tapwater,
milk,
soft
drinks,
alcoholic
beverages,
after
contact,
e.
g.,
by
ingestion,
inhalation,
or
dermal
and
water
intrinsic
to
purchased
foods.
absorption.

Sample
­
A
small
part
of
something
designed
to
show
the
nature
or
quality
of
the
whole.
Exposure­
related
measurements
are
usually
samples
of
environmental
or
ambient
media,
exposures
of
a
small
subset
of
a
population
for
a
short
time,
or
biological
samples,
all
for
the
purpose
of
inferring
the
nature
and
quality
of
parameters
important
to
evaluating
exposure.

Screening­
level
assessments
­
Typically
examine
exposures
that
would
fall
on
or
beyond
the
high
end
of
the
expected
exposure
distribution.
their
nominal
values,
such
as
medians)
and
computes
the
results
of
each
combination
of
values.
The
results
help
to
identify
the
variables
that
have
the
greatest
effect
on
exposure
estimates
and
help
focus
further
informationgathering
efforts.

Serving
sizes
­
The
quantities
of
individual
foods
consumed
per
eating
occasion.
These
estimates
may
be
useful
for
assessing
acute
exposures.

Soil
adherence
­
The
quantity
of
soil
that
adheres
to
the
skin
and
from
which
chemical
contaminants
are
available
for
uptake
at
the
skin
surface.

Subsistence
fishermen
­
Individuals
who
consume
fresh
caught
fish
as
a
major
source
of
food.

amount
of
breast
milk
consumed
daily.

Total
fluid
intake
­
Consumption
of
all
types
of
fluids
Tracer­
element
studies
­
Soil
ingestion
studies
that
use
trace
elements
found
in
soil
and
poorly
metabolized
in
the
human
gut
as
indicators
of
soil
intake.

Uncertainty
­
Uncertainty
represents
a
lack
of
knowledge
about
factors
affecting
exposure
or
risk
and
can
lead
to
inaccurate
or
biased
estimates
of
exposure.
The
types
of
uncertainty
include:
scenario,
parameter,
and
model.

Upper
percentile
­
Values
at
the
upper
end
of
the
distribution
of
values
for
a
particular
set
of
data.

Uptake
­
The
process
by
which
a
substance
crosses
an
absorption
barrier
and
is
absorbed
into
the
body.
Glossary
Exposure
Factors
Handbook
Page
August
1997
G­
5
Variability
­
Variability
arises
from
true
heterogeneity
across
people,
places
or
time
and
can
affect
the
precision
of
exposure
estimates
and
the
degree
to
which
they
can
be
generalized.
The
types
of
variability
include:
spatial,
temporal,
and
inter­
individual.

Ventilation
rate
(
VR)
­
Alternative
term
for
inhalation
rate
or
breathing
rate.
Usually
measured
as
minute
volume,
i.
e.
volume
(
liters)
of
air
exhaled
per
minute.

Volume
of
exhaled
air
(
V
)
­
Product
of
the
number
of
E
respiratory
cycles
in
a
minute
and
the
volume
of
air
respired
during
each
respiratory
cycle
(
tidal
volume,
V
).
T