Award Data

THE LONG-TERM OBJECTIVE IS THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NUTRITIONAL ASSESSMENT TOOL FOR ETHNIC POPULATIONS, UTILIZING COMPUTER AND CD-ROM TECHNOLOGY. THE SYSTEM WILL IMPROVE UPON CONVENTIONAL DIETARY ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY, ASSEMBLE NUTRIENT COMPOSITION DATA FOR ETTNIC FOODS, AND ELIMINATE LANGUAGE BARRIERS. RESPONDENTS SELF-REPORT DIRECTLY TO THE COMPUTER IN AN UNINTIMIDATING, ENJOYABLE MANNER, INCREASIN ...

THE EEG HAS BEEN MEASURED FOR OVER 60 YEARS, BUT ITS FULL CAPABILITY AS A BRAIN IMAGING MODALITY HAS NOT YET BEEN REALIZED. ALTHOUGH IT HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED THAT THERE IS A VAST AMOUNT OF UNTAPPED SPATIAL INFORMATION IN SCALP-RECORDED EEGS, THE INCONVENIENCE OF ATTACHING MANY ELECTRRODES IS A MAJOR HINDRANCE TO ROUTINELY COLLECTING THIS INFORMATION. WE WILL DETERMINE THE FEASIBLITY OF EXTENDING O ...

THIS PROJECT WILL DEVELOP A USER- FRIENDLY PERSONAL MONITOR OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY WHICH WOULD PROVIDE FEEDBACK TO THE INDIVIDUAL RELEVANT FOR THE NATURAL ACTIVITY LEVELS SUPPORTING WEIGHT CONTROL OR CARDIAC FITNESS. WEIGHT CONTROL IS A MAJOR HEALTH PROBLEM IN THE UNITED STATES. STUDIES INDICATE THAT AFTER WEIGHT LOSS A MOST IMPORTANT BEHAVIOR CHANGE TO SUPPORT CONTINUED WEIGHT CONTROL IS INCREASING ...

A JUNE 1991 ESTIMATE SHOWS THAT MAGNITUDE OF THE AMERICAN AIDS CRISIS TO BE 115,984 DEAD, 182,834 SUFFERING WITH AIDS, AND 1 MILLION HIV POSITIVE (CDC). INTRAVENOUS (IV) DRUG USERS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS MAJOR VECTORS FOR THE SPREAD OF AIDS IN THE GENERAL POPULATION BECAUSE OF SHARING AND RE-USE OF HYPODERMIC NEEDLES. WITH NO VACCINE IN SIGHT AND RE-EDUCATION LONG AND SOMETIMES INEFFECTIVE, A TEC ...

INTERVENTIONAL CARDIOLOGY DEPENDS ON THE ACCURATE ASSESSMENT OF THE SEVERITY OF STENOSES, THEIR GEOMETRY AND SPATIAL ORIENTATION. CURRENT THERAPEUTIC DECISIONS ARE BASED UPON INFORMATION GATHERED FROM X-RAY SYSTEMS THAT HAVE NOT CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY IN OVER TWO DECADES. STANDARD X-RAY IMAGES ARE NOT SUPPLYING THE ANGIOGRAPHER WITH SUFFICIENT INFORMATION NEEDED TO MAKE THERAPEUTIC DECISIONS. COMPU ...

WE EILL DEVELOP A WIRELESS DIGITAL POLYGRAPH LINK WITH SOPHISTICATED DIGITAL ERROR CORRECTION, WHICH WILL PROTECT TRANSMITTED PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASUREMENT SIGNALS FROM NOISE DEGRADATION AND FROM DROPOUTS CAUSED BY SUBJECTS MOVING AROUND WHILE THEY ARE BEING MONITORED. WE WILL ADD THE WIRELESS DIGITAL LINK TO A MINIATURE, BATTERY-OPERATED 16-CHANNEL MICROPROCESSOR-BASED DIGITAL POLYGRAPH PREVIOUSLY DE ...

COCAINE ABUSE CONTINUES TO BE A CRITICAL PROBLEM IN THE UNITED STATES AND THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT NEED TO DEVELOP AND DISSEMINATE EFFECTIVE TREATMENT APPROACHES TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM. KOBA HAS DEVELOPED A MANUAL, ENTITLED "LIVING IN BALANCE" (LIB), WHICH IS THE BASIS FOR AN 12-MODULE INTENSIVE BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL GROUP TREATMENT PROGRAM FOR COCAINE ABUSE. LIB IS DIRECTED PRIMARILY TOWARD THE NUMEROUS ...

RECENT INVESTIGATIONS INDICATE THAT DIPEPTIDES MAY HAVE SEVERAL ADVANTAGES OVER FREE AMINO ACIDS AS THE NITROGEN SOURCE IN THERAPEUTIC ENTERAL AND PARENTERAL NUTRITION. IF THE USE OF SYNTHETIC DIPEPTIDES IS TO BE INVESTITAGED COMPLETELY AND ULTIMATELY INCORPORATED INTO MEDICAL PRACTICE, IT IS NECESSARY TO HAVE A COST-EFFECTIVE METHOD FOR SYNTHESIZING SPECIFIC DIPEPTIDES. HOWEVER, AVAILABLE PEPTIDE ...

WE WILL BEGIN DEVELOPMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE COMPUTER SOFTWARE PACKAGE FOR THE MANAGEMENT, SIMULATION, AND ANALYSIS USING GIBBS SAMPLING, OF PEDIGREE DATA. TO THIS END, PEDIGREE DATA MANAGEMENT AND SIMULATION COMPONENTS OF THE PACKAGE WILL BE DEVELOPED AND TESTED. CURRENTLY AVAILABLE GIBBS SAMPLING METHODS OF ANALYSIS WILL BE ASSESSED, AND EXTENSIONS WILL BE EVALUATED AS TO THEIR FEASIBILITY FOR I ...

RELIABLE AND VALID ESTIMATES OF THE PREVALENCE OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE ARE CRUCIAL TO EFFECTIVE POLICY DEVELOPMENT, PREVENTION, AND EVALUATION IN SCHOOLS AND IN THE WORKPLACE. NUMEROUS METHODS FOR DERIVING THESE ESTIMATES HAVE BEEN TRIED, BUT ALL HAVE SIGNIFICANT FLAWS: UNDER-REPORTING, OBTRUSIVENESS, EXPENSE, ETC. PRIOR RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT THE ITEM COUNT/PAIRED LIST (IC/PL) METHOD CAN BE ADAPTED TO ...