Technical Perfection Research Articles

Stress among dentists in Yemen

Abstract Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the stress level among Yemeni dentists and to evaluate their stress manifestations and stress management. Materials and methods: Nearly 368 dentists were given a self-administered questionnaire and 119 returned the filled questionnaire form. A questionnaire was composed of four sections including, demographic information, professional practice characteristics, work stress factors and response of dentist to stress as well as methods to deal with stress. 56 females and 63 males were incorporated, 83.2% of them were general dental practitioners. The descriptive data were analyzed and Chi-square, t -test and F tests were used for statistical significance ( P Results: The response rate was 32.3%. Of the whole, 71.4% of them were aged less than 30 years, 73.1% have experience less than 5 years. Among stressors, those related to dental procedure have highest mean scores (SD) of stress 2.93 (1.46). The most prevalent factors that contribute to stress were uncooperative patients (72.3%), amount of work (too much, too little) (60.5%) and constant drive for technical perfection (54.6%). Stress was reflected in dentists by many signs among them are musculoskeletal fatigue in 63% and nervousness in 57.1%. Praying and reading the Quran was reported by over two thirds (70.6%) of the participants to manage stress. Conclusions: Dentistry is a stressful profession in Yemen. Lack of experience, low income, uncooperative patients, and dental procedure-related factors were the main significant factors that caused stress. Political instability in the country and the lack of laws governing the dental profession in addition to conservative nature of the community may be considered as sources of stress.

Construction techniques in nineteenth-century Greece and their impact on today's restoration projects

Nineteenth-century architecture is characterised by its emphasis on form. That was particularly intense in Greece, due to the strong ideological context. According to this, the newly independent State should reconnect with the glorious past of classical antiquity. As a result, the resemblance of new buildings to classical models was more important than technical perfection. That conviction often counterbalanced the absence of the latest achievements in construction techniques that had taken place since the Industrial Revolution, since their introduction in Greece was slow, due to financial problems, but also due to the country's geographical isolation from the industrialised countries. The above particularities can be testified not only through field observation, but are also documented by archival sources. This results in buildings with important construction deficiencies, which pose major problems in their restoration. This essay gives examples of related nineteenth-century documents and of today's restoration projects that had to deal with those problems.

Ground of tactical and technical descriptions for development of perspective standards and subsequent modernization of the domestic armoured troop-carriers

The estimation of level of technical perfection of the best modern standards of the armoured troop-carriers is conducted by the wheeled formula 8×8, which grounds of tactical and technical descriptions for modernization and development of perspective standards. The comparative analysis of level of technical perfection testifies that the domestic armoured troop-carriers of BTR-4 «Rook» and BTR-3Е1 occupy a leading place among perspective standards which are in a mass production and on the armed armies of front-rank countries of the world.

Editorial

I might be wrong, but for the next decade or so I don't foresee any revolution or major change of paradigm. Instead, I expect further technical sophistication, both of our research and applications. More of the same thus, but introduced at a much faster speed and higher level of complexity. Am I happy with this? Yes and no. I'm certainly supportive of technical perfection and will keep trying to contribute to it. But the real danger exists in the neglect of our conceptual basis [emphasis added]. I'm sometimes shocked by the blind applications of techniques I see. The NCME annual meetings have definitely shown a trend toward more papers with minor technical tweaks. The same holds for our journal articles. If you ask their authors for a motivation, you hardly get an answer. Some of our research areas, I believe, would definitely benefit from a conceptual cleanup. We need technical progress to find solutions to practical problems. But each good solution begins with a correct conceptualization. I have had the same reaction at many recent NCME conferences when it appears to me that some of my fellow psychometricians see themselves as little more than glorified “test technicians.” A test technician knows exactly how to apply textbook recipes for the purpose of maximizing information functions, estimating linking constants and conducting DIF analyses. We need people who can do these things, to be sure. But I worry that we do not have enough psychometricians who are capable of also wearing the hat of an “assessment engineer” (a term I am borrowing from Ric Luecht). For an assessment engineer, the front-end design of an assessment is just as important as the back-end analysis of item response data. In fact, without clarity about the aims of the front-end design, the back-end analysis will often be misguided. Being a capable engineer means that you can see the big picture about the intended interpretations and uses of an assessment system. It means being able to specify claims and assertions about test scores and their transformations that are testable falsifiable via empirical analysis. Yet it is impossible to be more than a technician if you are incapable of being meta-cognitive about why you have decided to apply a technical solution to a given testing problem in the first place. The conceptual basis for psychometric research is not something that can easily be picked up while reading chapters in a textbook as a graduate student and then stored away for future reference. Indeed, there is no book out there that will give you straightforward answers to the questions above, because lurking below the surface of these questions are some fundamental disagreements about psychometrics and educational measurement. I don't find that troubling at all; what worries me is that possibility that a preponderance of psychometricians in the NCME community think that these disagreements have all been settled. An even greater worry is that there are many who are unaware that the disagreements exist at all. In looking forward to the 100 year anniversary of NCME in 2038 it is important that we take the time to appreciate that many of the psychometric issues that seem so new (e.g., assessments for the “next generation”) are, at heart, variants of the same basic issues that NCME members have been debating for decades. The computers have gotten faster, the software more sophisticated, and theories of learning are more elaborate, but in the end we're all still trying to figure out the best way to characterize and draw inferences about the interaction between an assessor and assessee, a student and a test item, an observed score and a latent variable. And those who refuse to learn from the lessons of the past are doomed to repeat it. I liken the cover of this issue to an episode of the TV show called “What Not to Wear.” The top panel recreates the way that I often see state-level trend data displayed when I participate in technical advisory committee meetings. (Data come from a real state, but let's keep it anonymous.) These grouped bar plots are intended to convey two things: aggregate trends in reading proficiency and differences in these trends among white and Hispanic students. I much prefer the use of a line plot to communicate this information, as shown in the bottom panel of the cover graphic. Do you agree? Let me know: [email protected]. Of course, even if you put lipstick on a pig, it's still a pig: the plots show little evidence that successive cohorts of white or Hispanic 10th grade students are showing signs of improvement in reading, and the gap between the two groups has shown little signs of narrowing.

Leni Riefenstahl und Susan Sontag: Gibt es im Sport eine faschistische Ästhetik?

Abstract Susan Sontag, in a famous essay called “Fascinating Fascism”, first published in 1974, argues that Leni Riefenstahl, who by that time had made a conspicuous come-back as a photographer in the U.S., had always and would always adhere to fascist aesthetics. This essay seeks to demonstrate that as early as 1936, when Riefenstahl began to work on her film Olympia (1938), she had already discarded fascist aesthetics and replaced it by a yearning for what Dreyfus and Kelly, in their important 2011 study, All Things Shining, would call the secular transcendence attaching to sports events that involve top athletes. Since Riefenstahl wanted, and actually managed, to capture such moments of secular transcendence during the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin through her technical perfection as a film director, she had already implicitly begun to enter on a career which - if we allow for David Foster Wallace’s belief that top athletes fascinate Americans by appealing to their twin obsessions with competitive superiority and hard data - would eventually resemble a typically American career, whereas Sontag’s philosophical attitude remained firmly rooted in European thought until her death in 2004. The careers of these two famous women therefore call for a reconsideration of what we tend to regard as the primary importance of the immediate historico-cultural context of a person’s life.

Part Two: Against the Motion. Completion Angiography is Unnecessary Following Carotid Endarterectomy

Part Two: Against the Motion. Completion Angiography is Unnecessary Following Carotid Endarterectomy

From TEM to TME

L eroy and colleagues 1 report their exceptional achievement in providing for a patient with rectal neoplasia an oncologically packaged TME entirely via a pure natural orifice (transanal, transrectal) approach. While the ultimate pathology proved benign (and so meaning that a more conventional intraluminal microsurgical/endoscopic resection would also have conferred a cure in this particular instance), Leroy and colleagues have studiously developed an operative strategy whose realization is more than just a potential additional niche in our therapeutic armamentarium for midto low-rectal tumors. Their implicit separation of the mesorectal excision component from the mesocolic lymphadenectomy inherent to the standard transabdominal operation (whatever the access) may also portend an era of stratified resective extent for colorectal cancer individualized by preoperative staging and molecular profiling. While clearly considerably extra effort is still required by the surgical team to optimize procedure standardization and patient selection criteria, the PROGRESSS technique reported by Leroy and colleagues in itself manifests a direct clinical end point of much cumulative work, experience, and expertise by the authors in collaboration and indeed collegiate competition with their peers around the world including dedicated developmental travail in allied, complimentary, evolutionary access procedures such as miniport, reduced port, and singleaccess laparoscopy as well as TEM/TEO. Rather than rely on the “future technological advances” much beloved as a concluding statement by many NOTES idealists, no experimental or prototype instrumentation was needed for this procedure’s performance and while principled (and perhaps prejudiced) TEM and TME advocates may critique the operation from their own specific perspectives, sound ethical, surgical, and oncological principles have been applied. Above all, this accomplishment should focus all our attention on surgical technical perfection and specialization to further drill down into specifications of operative precision for the presenting pathology.

Part One: For the Motion. Completion Angiography Should be Used Routinely Following Carotid Endarterectomy

Part One: For the Motion. Completion Angiography Should be Used Routinely Following Carotid Endarterectomy

Photogenic Flies—A review of Chyb and Gompel's Atlas of Drosophila Morphology: Wild-type and Classical Mutants

Photogenic Flies—A review of Chyb and Gompel's Atlas of Drosophila Morphology: Wild-type and Classical Mutants

Stained glass painting during the second half of the 20th century in Latvia, its tendency development in nowadays

Stained glass painting during the second half of the 20th century in Latvia, its tendency development in nowadays. The stained glass panel ranks among the most interesting fields of monumental decorative art. In Soviet glass art history Latvian stained glass artists occupy the foremost places in this technique. The classical stained glass technique was combined with painting and sandblasting elements, which were incorporated into geometric monumental compositions. Latvian stained glass artists still followed classical stained glass traditions. The use of painting on glass declined. The dynamism of the composition was achieved through lead calm line rhythms. The other innovation in Latvian stained glass was introduced by many glass artists who used float glass in their stained glass panels in the middle of the 1960s. The first Latvian stained glass exhibition was held in 1971 and represented new glass technical perfection and creative imagination with the works of Latvian stained glass artists. In various publications, books, magazines and newspapers in Latvia, statements may be found on the theory of arts and significance of decorative art. In this area, surveys on development of glass painting in Latvia have been made by T. Grasis and I. Audere. Area of stained glass painting has not been sufficiently explored and systemized. The purpose and the task of this paper shall be preparing of a historical review on trends in the development of stained glass painting in the area of decorative arts in Latvia during the second half of 20th century and nowadays. Analysis of visual expression of the stained glass from the perspective of monumental painting. To explore contribution and significance of stained glass artists of the enterprise Māksla (1945) in the development of the area of stained glass painting. To assess tuition methods in the Department of Glass Arts of the Art Academy in the context of development of the Latvian decorative arts (stained glass painting). Methods of the paper are cultural, comparative and structural. The outcomes of the paper actualize significance of the glass painting from the perspective of modern arts.

Modeling the evaluation of scientific developments effectiveness in agriculture

Object of research in this paper are the organizational and economic relations arising in the course of creation, development, an assessment of efficiency and advance of scientific development in agriculture. A research objective is economic-mathematical modeling of an assessment of efficiency of scientific achievements. Researches were based on synthesis of scientific development and the analysis of the actual materials on a studied subject with use of statistical, economic-mathematical, sociological, abstract and logic, monographic, comparative methods of research. The author’s technique of an assessment of efficiency of development in system of advance of scientific achievements in agriculture is presented. On the basis of generalization of results of a sociological method of research the correlation and regression model of dependence of a mark assessment of scientific and technical achievements from the main economic indicators of their development was constructed. The technique of an assessment of efficiency of scientific development on groups of criteria (level of technical perfection, efficiency, costs of development, degree of readiness of development, safety level) is approved and is used in practical activities of plane «Meliorator» at competitive selection of scientific production for development in agricultural production.

A Spanish View of Modernist Poetry in American Periodicals (1925)

A Spanish View of Modernist Poetry in American Periodicals (1925)

Two Poems by B.A. St. Andrews

Two Poems by B.A. St. Andrews

The History and Evolution of Balloon-occluded Retrograde Transvenous Obliteration (BRTO): From the United States to Japan and Back

The concept of obliterating varices that complicate portal hypertension dates back to the 1970s, but its minimally invasive clinical utilization was probably lost with the advent of the transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS). The conception of retrograde obliteration of a gastrorenal shunt via the left renal vein was reported by Olson et al from the University of Indiana. However, the definition, development, technical perfection, and clinical implementation of the balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration (BRTO) occurred in Japan (by Kanagawa et al and others). The BRTO-procedure is currently undergoing a renaissance in the United States particularly for patients who are not TIPS candidates.

Digital Analysis and Visualization of Swimming Motion

Competitive swimming is a demanding sport that requires rigorous training to achieve technical perfection. Research on computer simulations of flow have improved our understanding of how thrust and drag can be optimized for better performance. However, for a swimmer translating this information to technical improvement can be difficult. In this paper, we present an analysis and visualization framework for swimming motion that uses virtual reality to display 3-dimensional models of swimmers. The system allows users to digitize their motions from video sequences, create personalized virtual representations by morphing prototypical polygonal models, visualizing motion characteristics and comparing their motions to other competitors stored in a library. The use of virtual reality alleviates many problems associated by the current video-based visualization methods for analyzing swimming motion

Miltifactor structure of technical perfection indices of movements and aesthetic qualities of their manifestation

Miltifactor structure of technical perfection indices of movements and aesthetic qualities of their manifestation

The evolution of anatomical illustration and wax modelling in Italy from the 16th to early 19th centuries

Although the contribution to anatomical illustration by Vesalius and his followers has received much attention, less credit has been given to Veslingius and particularly Fabricius. By 1600, Fabricius had amassed more than 300 paintings that together made the Tabulae Pictae, a great atlas of anatomy that was highly admired by his contemporaries. Many of his new observations were incorporated into subsequent books, including those by Casserius, Spighelius, Harvey and Veslingius. Also of importance were the Tabulae by Eustachius (1552), which, although only published in 1714, greatly influenced anatomical wax modelling. In 1742, Pope Benedict XIV established a Museum of Anatomy in Bologna, entrusting to Ercole Lelli the creation of several anatomical preparations in wax. Felice Fontana realised that the production of a large number of models by the casting method would make cadaveric specimens superfluous for anatomical teaching and in 1771 he asked the Grand Duke to fund a wax-modelling workshop in Florence as part of the Natural History Museum, later known as La Specola. Fontana engaged Giuseppe Ferrini as his first modeller and then the 19-year-old Clemente Susini who, by his death in 1814, had superintended the production of, or personally made, more than 2000 models. In 1780, the Austrian Emperor Joseph II visited La Specola and ordered a great number of models for his Josephinum museum; these were made by Fontana with the help of Clemente Susini and supervised by the anatomist Paolo Mascagni. It is, however, in Cagliari that some of Susini's greatest waxes are to be found. These were made when he was free of Fontana's influence and were based on dissections made by Francesco Antonio Boi (University of Cagliari). Their distinctive anatomical features include the emphasis given to nerves and the absence of lymphatics in the brain, a mistake made on earlier waxes. The refined technical perfection of the anatomical details demonstrates the closeness of the cooperation between Susini and Boi, whereas the expressiveness of the faces and the harmony of colours make the models of Cagliari masterpieces of figurative art.

Precision radiotherapy: A guide to commissioning IMRT and IGRT

AbstractCommissioning radiotherapy is becoming increasingly challenging. Technical developments may result in better clinical outcomes but come at a cost. Radiotherapy services in the UK are often operating at or near capacity with no slack in the system. A balance between technical perfection and reasonable cost of service provision has to be struck. Eighty per cent of UK radiotherapy departments are now equipped to deliver precision treatments which conform precisely to the shape of the tumour in the individual patient. The benefits are an increase in the cure rate and a reduction in long-term side effects due to the unnecessary irradiation of normal tissues. The delivery of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) with image guidance (IGRT) takes more staff time and is therefore more costly than conventional radiotherapy. Such precision is normal practice in Europe and North America but has only been partially implemented in the UK. This paper provides commissioners with a guide to the technology and it...

Analysis of efficient application of various ways of compulsory dispersed of participants at orienteering

Problems of application of a compulsory ways of participants dispersing at orienteering competitions by running are considered. It is established, that the most effective way of sportsmen dispersing on cross-country and marathon distances at set direction is "butterfly". As a result of the analysis of the data obtained practical recommendations on application of the given way of dispersing for the purpose of raising technical perfection for competitive distances are formulated.

Teaching and learning in abdominal wall surgery: where are we going?

Surgery of the abdominal wall has rapidly evolved and has undergone a great transformation over the last 15 years. We have encountered several techniques and rigid principles, in which all surgeons were forced to confront, to patterns absolutely unforeseeable resulting from the development of several new procedures to which many surgeons have made personal variations. We must remember that, up to the early 1990s, for hernia repairs, there were the Bassini, the Shouldice and the Postemsky repairs, and, regarding prosthetic repair, only some skilled surgeons used Rives and Stoppa procedures in selected cases. As for ventral hernias, direct suture plastic was the prevailing procedure, reserving the use of prosthesis for particular selected cases. Since the mid 1990s, the wide diVusion and use of the prosthesis, with both anterior or posterior approaches, open or laparoscopic, with several kinds of prosthetic material, shaped in the most diVering manners, with the use of the most diVering Wxation devices, led us to a total anarchy in this Weld in which it is very diYcult to have clear ideas. Some years ago, I organised an international congress in Naples named “Anarchy in inguinal hernia repair” comparing, during a very interesting live session, all of the prosthetic procedures for inguinal hernias, starting from Lichtenstein repair. Anarchy meant, and means today, desiring to be in the limelight, inventing a new step of a procedure, a modiWcation of an existing surgical technique, often irrelevant to the outcome, proposing it as technical perfection, without the possibility of showing its value with long-term results. Abdominal wall surgery today has many solutions because we can perform anterior or posterior techniques, with open or laparoscopic approaches. What made a strong impression on me and urged me to write this article, was, during the recent EHS Congress well organised in Seville by our friend Salvador Morales Conde, assisting operations for inguinal and ventral hernias or to lecture, with the most diVering and varied proposal of solutions using diVerent meshes, and, above all, the proposal of laparoscopic repair also for giant ventral hernias. I don’t want to question the validity of the speakers or the scientiWc aspects of the project, but if I put myself in young surgeons’ or residents’ places who were there to understand and learn what to do in the presence of an inguinal or ventral hernia, in their place, I would have been more disoriented than when I arrived, with more confused ideas. Anarchy today has become more evident, in the absence of a scientiWc committee, of prospective randomised trials and consensus conferences; for all of these reasons, it’s easy to propose innovations, but it’s diYcult to understand why, how and with what purposes it is proposed. In my experience, I have always been used to having a few clear ideas. Among the few clear ideas, above all, to learn and understand a surgical technique, and to Wt it to the single cases, and also thanks to the teaching of my surgical guide Rives, they have led me with this philosophy with which I cannot today unfortunately face. I get disconcerted when, during a congress, I assist to hundreds of diVerent proposals and each one goes his own way without realising what is useful for the patients and for the scientiWc community. In fact, where there is anarchy, there is no didactic aim; only focussing one’s objectives on the rationality of a technique and on its transmissibility is it possible to teach and to send a message. In this anarchy, a prominent role is that of the companies, which, like a cat that bites its tail, stimulate the F. Corcione (&) · D. Cuccurullo UOC General and Laparoscopic Surgery, A.O. Monaldi Hospital, Naples, Italy e-mail: francesco.corcione@ospedalemonaldi.it