Stability of coagulation assays performed in plasma from citrated whole blood transported at ambient temperature

Many preanalytical variables affect the results of coagulation assays. A possible way to control some of them would be to accept blood specimens shipped in the original collection tube. The aim of our study was to investigate the stability of coagulation assays in citrated whole blood transported at ambient temperature for up to two days after specimen collection. Blood samples from 59 patients who attended our haematology outpatient ward for thrombophilia screening were transported at ambient temperature (outdoor during the day, indoor overnight) for following periods of time: <1 hour, 4-6, 8-12, 24-28 and 48-52 hours prior to centrifugation and plasma-freezing. The following coagulation tests were performed: PT, aPTT, fibrinogen, FII:C, FV:C, FVII:C, FVIII:C, FIX:C, FX:C, FXI:C, VWF:RCo, VWF:Ag, AT, PC activity, total and free PS antigen, modified APC-sensitivity-ratio, thrombin-antithrombin-complex and D-dimer. Clinically significant changes, defined as a percentage change of more than 10% from the initial value, were observed for FV:C, FVIII:C and total PS antigen starting at 24-28 hours, and for PT, aPTT and FVII:C at 48-52 hours. No statistically significant differences were seen for fibrinogen, antithrombin, or thrombin-antithrombin complexes (Friedman repeated measures analysis of variance). The present data suggest that the use of whole blood samples transported at ambient temperature may be an acceptable means of delivering specimens for coagulation analysis. With the exception of factor V and VIII coagulant activity, and total PS antigen all investigated parameters can be measured 24-28 hours after specimen collection without observing clinically relevant changes.

Approach to carbon dioxide capture and storage at ambient conditions

Carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage experiments were conducted at ambient conditions in varying weight % sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) solutions. Experiments were conducted to determine the optimal amount of Na2CO3 in solution for CO2 absorption. It was concluded that a 2% Na2CO3 solution, by weight, was the most efficient solution. The 2% Na2CO3 solution is able to absorb 0.5 g CO2/g Na2CO3. These results led to studies to determine how the gas bubble size affected carbon dioxide absorption in the solution. Studies were conducted using ASTM porosity gas diffusers to vary the bubble size. Gas diffusers with porosities of fine, medium, and extra coarse were used. Results found that the medium porosity gas diffuser was the most efficient at absorbing CO2 at 50%. Variation in the bubble size concluded that absorption of carbon dioxide into the sodium carbonate solution does depend on the bubble size, thus is mass transfer limited. Once the capture stage was optimized (amount of Na2CO3 in solution and bubble size), the next step was to determine if carbon dioxide could be stored as a calcium carbonate mineral using calcium rich industrial waste and if the sodium carbonate solution could be simultaneously regenerated. Studies of CO2 sequestration at ambient conditions have shown that it is possible to permanently sequester CO2 in the form of calcium carbonate using a calcium rich industrial waste. Studies have also shown that it is possible to regenerate a fraction of the sodium carbonate solution.

Characterization of water-soluble organic compounds in ambient aerosol using ultrahigh-resolution elctrospray ionization fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry.

Atmospheric aerosol water-soluble organic compounds (WSOC) exist in a complex mixture of thousands of organic compounds which may have a significant influence on the climate-relevant properties of the atmospheric aerosol. To understand the potential influences, the ambient aerosol was collected at a nonurban mountainous site near Steamboat Springs, CO. The WSOC fraction was analyzed using positive and negative electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. Approximately 2400 and 4000 molecular formulas were identified from the detected positive and negative ions, respectively. The formulas contained carbon (C), hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), nitrogen (N), and sulfur (S) atoms over the mass range of 100-800 Da in both ionization modes. The number range of double bond equivalents (DBE), the mean O:C, H:C, and oxidation state of carbon for the positive ions were 0 – 18, 0.25 ± 0.15, 1.39 ± 0.29, and -0.89 ± 0.23, respectively. Comparatively, the negative ion values were 0 – 14, 0.53 ± 0.20, 1.48 ± 0.30, and -0.41 ± 0.45, respectively. Overall, the positive ion molecular formulas were less oxygenated than negative ions as seen with the lower O:C and OSc values. Molecular formulas of the positive ions classified as aliphatic, olefinic, and aromatic compound classes based on the aromaticity index values. Aliphatic compounds were the CHNO and CHO formulas that had mean DBE values of about 5 and 3, respectively. However, a majority of the CHOS, CHNOS, and CHS formulas were defined as olefinic compounds and had mean DBE values of about 12, 13, and 10, respectively. Overall, more than half of the assigned molecular formulas contained sulfur and were olefinic to aromatic compounds with a DBE range of 7-18. Source of the unsaturated sulfur containing compounds is currently unknown. Several nitrogen containing compounds were in common with the field and laboratory studies of the biomass burning aerosol and aged secondary organic aerosol products of the limonene ozonolysis.

Integrating structured and unstructured data in a business-intelligence-system

The recent liberalization of the German energy market has forced the energy industry to develop and install new information systems to support agents on the energy trading floors in their analytical tasks. Besides classical approaches of building a data warehouse giving insight into the time series to understand market and pricing mechanisms, it is crucial to provide a variety of external data from the web. Weather information as well as political news or market rumors are relevant to give the appropriate interpretation to the variables of a volatile energy market. Starting from a multidimensional data model and a collection of buy and sell transactions a data warehouse is built that gives analytical support to the agents. Following the idea of web farming we harvest the web, match the external information sources after a filtering and evaluation process to the data warehouse objects, and present this qualified information on a user interface where market values are correlated with those external sources over the time axis.

International cooperation in ambient computing education

Funded by the US-EU Atlantis Program, the International Cooperation in Ambient Computing Education Project is establishing an international knowledge-building community for developing a broader computer science curriculum aimed at preparing students for real-world problems in a multidisciplinary, global world. The project is collaboration among Troy University (USA), University of Sunderland (UK), FernUniversität in Hagen (Germany), Universidade do Algarve (Portugal), University of Arkansas at Little Rock (USA) and San Diego State University (USA). The curriculum will include aspects of social science, cognitive science, human-computer interaction, organizational studies, global studies, and particular application areas as well as core computer science subjects. Programs offered at partner institutions will form trajectories through the curriculum. A degree will be defined in terms of combinations of trajectories which will satisfy degree requirements set by accreditation organizations. This is expected to lead to joint- or dual-degree programs among the partner institutions in the future. This paper describes the goals and activities of the project and discusses implementation issues.