Temporal Spatial-Keyword Top-k publish/subscribe

Massive amount of data that are geo-tagged and associated with text information are being generated at an unprecedented scale. These geo-textual data cover a wide range of topics. Users are interested in receiving up-to-date tweets such that their locations are close to a user specified location and their texts are interesting to users. For example, a user may want to be updated with tweets near her home on the topic “food poisoning vomiting.” We consider the Temporal Spatial-Keyword Top-k Subscription (TaSK) query. Given a TaSK query, we continuously maintain up-to-date top-k most relevant results over a stream of geo-textual objects (e.g., geo-tagged Tweets) for the query. The TaSK query takes into account text relevance, spatial proximity, and recency of geo-textual objects in evaluating its relevance with a geo-textual object. We propose a novel solution to efficiently process a large number of TaSK queries over a stream of geotextual objects. We evaluate the efficiency of our approach on two real-world datasets and the experimental results show that our solution is able to achieve a reduction of the processing time by 70-80% compared with two baselines.

SOPS: A System for Efficient Processing of Spatial-Keyword Publish/Subscribe

Massive amount of data that are geo-tagged and associated with text information are being generated at an unprecedented scale. These geo-textual data cover a wide range of topics. Users are interested in receiving up-to-date geo-textual objects (e.g., geo-tagged Tweets) such that their locations meet users’ need and their texts are interesting to users. For example, a user may want to be updated with tweets near her home on the topic “dengue fever headache.” In this demonstration, we present SOPS, the Spatial-Keyword Publish/Subscribe System, that is capable of efficiently processing spatial keyword continuous queries. SOPS supports two types of queries: (1) Boolean Range Continuous (BRC) query that can be used to subscribe the geo-textual objects satisfying a boolean keyword expression and falling in a specified spatial region; (2) Temporal Spatial-Keyword Top-k Continuous (TaSK) query that continuously maintains up-to-date top-k most relevant results over a stream of geo-textual objects. SOPS enables users to formulate their queries and view the real-time results over a stream of geotextual objects by browser-based user interfaces. On the server side, we propose solutions to efficiently processing a large number of BRC queries (tens of millions) and TaSK queries over a stream of geo-textual objects.

Determination of the molar extinction coefficient for the ferric reducing/antioxidant power assay

The FRAP reagent contains 2,4,6-tris(2-pyridyl)-s-triazine, which forms a blue-violet complex ion in the presence of ferrous ions. Although the FRAP (ferric reducing/antioxidant power) assay is popular and has been in use for many years, the correct molar extinction coefficient of this complex ion under FRAP assay conditions has never been published, casting doubt on the validity of previous calibrations. A previously reported value of 19.800 is an underestimate. We determined that the molar extinction coefficient was 21,140. The value of the molar extinction coefficient was also shown to depend on the type of assay and was found to be 22,230 under iron assay conditions, in good agreement with published data. Redox titration indicated that the ferrous sulfate heptahydrate calibrator recommended by Benzie and Strain, the FRAP assay inventors, is prone to efflorescence and, therefore, is unreliable. Ferrous ammonium sulfate hexahydrate in dilute sulfuric acid was a more stable alternative. Few authors publish their calibration data, and this makes comparative analyses impossible. A critical examination of the limited number of examples of calibration data in the published literature reveals only that Benzie and Strain obtained a satisfactory calibration using their method. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Completeness and timeliness: Cancer registries could/should improve their performance

Cancer registries must provide complete and reliable incidence information with the shortest possible delay for use in studies such as comparability, clustering, cancer in the elderly and adequacy of cancer surveillance. Methods of varying complexity are available to registries for monitoring completeness and timeliness. We wished to know which methods are currently in use among cancer registries, and to compare the results of our findings to those of a survey carried out in 2006.

Methods
In the framework of the EUROCOURSE project, and to prepare cancer registries for participation in the ERA-net scheme, we launched a survey on the methods used to assess completeness, and also on the timeliness and methods of dissemination of results by registries. We sent the questionnaire to all general registries (GCRs) and specialised registries (SCRs) active in Europe and within the European Network of Cancer Registries (ENCR).

Results
With a response rate of 66% among GCRs and 59% among SCRs, we obtained data for analysis from 116 registries with a population coverage of ∼280 million. The most common methods used were comparison of trends (79%) and mortality/incidence ratios (more than 60%). More complex methods were used less commonly: capture–recapture by 30%, flow method by 18% and death certificate notification (DCN) methods with the Ajiki formula by 9%.

The median latency for completion of ascertainment of incidence was 18 months. Additional time required for dissemination was of the order of 3–6 months, depending on the method: print or electronic. One fifth (21%) did not publish results for their own registry but only as a contribution to larger national or international data repositories and publications; this introduced a further delay in the availability of data.

Conclusions
Cancer registries should improve the practice of measuring their completeness regularly and should move from traditional to more quantitative methods. This could also have implications in the timeliness of data publication.

Absolute Magnitudes of Pan-STARRS PS1 Asteroids

Absolute magnitude (H) of an asteroid is a fundamental parameter describing the size and the apparent brightness of the body. Because of its surface shape, properties and changing illumination, the brightness changes with the geometry and is described by the phase function governed by the slope parameter (G). Although many years have been spent on detailed observations of individual asteroids to provide H and G, vast majority of minor planets have H based on assumed G and due to the input photometry from multiple sources the errors of these values are unknown. We compute H of ~ 180 000 and G of few thousands asteroids observed with the Pan-STARRS PS1 telescope in well defined photometric systems. The mean photometric error is 0.04 mag. Because on average there are only 7 detections per asteroid in our sample, we employed a Monte Carlo (MC) technique to generate clones simulating all possible rotation periods, amplitudes and colors of detected asteroids. Known asteroid colors were taken from the SDSS database. We used debiased spin and amplitude distributions dependent on size, spectral class distributions of asteroids dependent on semi-major axis and starting values of G from previous works. H and G (G12 respectively) were derived by phase functions by Bowell et al. (1989) and Muinonen et al. (2010). We confirmed that there is a positive systematic offset between H based on PS1 asteroids and Minor Planet Center database up to -0.3 mag peaking at 14. Similar offset was first mentioned in the analysis of SDSS asteroids and was believed to be solved by weighting and normalizing magnitudes by observatory codes. MC shows that there is only a negligible difference between Bowell's and Muinonen's solution of H. However, Muinonen's phase function provides smaller errors on H. We also derived G and G12 for thousands of asteroids. For known spectral classes, slope parameters agree with the previous work in general, however, the standard deviation of G in our sample is twice as larger, most likely due to sparse phase curve sampling. In the near future we plan to complete the H and G determination for all PS1 asteroids (500,000) and publish H and G values online. This work was supported by NASA grant No. NNX12AR65G.

Discussion and debate: Reflections on Pleistocene Island Occupation

Editorial Note: Within a 48-hour period during January 2014, the JMA co-editors received two papers—those of Curtis Runnels and Thomas P. Leppard printed above—that, quite fortuitously, each addressed the topic of Mediterranean island colonization by archaic hominins, albeit from radically different perspectives. Neither author was aware of the other’s paper, nor has either article subsequently been revised to take account of the other. Realizing the widespread current interest in this subject and the possibility for productive debate prompted by such variant approaches, we commissioned three sets of comments and invited Runnels and Leppard to respond. We are pleased to publish this discussion around questions of great importance for our understanding of the earliest insular prehistory of the Mediterranean, and with significant implications reaching well beyond it.

Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology 27.2 (2014) 255-278

Core outcome sets and trial registries

Some reasons for registering trials might be considered as self-serving, such as satisfying the requirements of a journal in which the researchers wish to publish their eventual findings or publicising the trial to boost recruitment. Registry entries also help others, including systematic reviewers, to know about ongoing or unpublished studies and contribute to reducing research waste by making it clear what studies are ongoing. Other sources of research waste include inconsistency in outcome measurement across trials in the same area, missing data on important outcomes from some trials, and selective reporting of outcomes. One way to reduce this waste is through the use of core outcome sets: standardised sets of outcomes for research in specific areas of health and social care. These do not restrict the outcomes that will be measured, but provide the minimum to include if a trial is to be of the most use to potential users. We propose that trial registries, such as ISRCTN, encourage researchers to note their use of a core outcome set in their entry. This will help people searching for trials and those worried about selective reporting in closed trials. Trial registries can facilitate these efforts to make new trials as useful as possible and reduce waste. The outcomes section in the entry could prompt the researcher to consider using a core outcome set and facilitate the specification of that core outcome set and its component outcomes through linking to the original core outcome set. In doing this, registries will contribute to the global effort to ensure that trials answer important uncertainties, can be brought together in systematic reviews, and better serve their ultimate aim of improving health and well-being through improving health and social care.

Developing an information booklet to meet the needs of intensive care patients and relatives

Changes in the economic climate and the delivery of health care require that pre-operative information programmes are effective and efficiently implemented. In order to be effective the pre-operative programme must meet the information needs of intensive care unit (ICU) patients and their relatives. Efficiency can be achieved through a structured pre-operative programme which provides a framework for teaching. The need to develop an ICU information booklet in a large teaching hospital in Northern Ireland has become essential to provide relevant information and improve the quality of service for patients and relatives, as set out in the White Paper, ‘Working for Patients’, (DoH, 1989). The first step in establishing a patient education programme was to ascertain patients' and relatives' informational needs. A ‘needs assessment’ identified the pre-operative information needs of ICU patients and their relatives (McGaughey, 1994) and the findings were used to plan and publish an information booklet. The ICU booklet provides a structure for pre-operative visits to ensure that patients and relatives information needs are met.