Thesis (Doctor of Medicine)--Oxford University, 1890. / "Printed and published at the expense of the University, as a mark of distinction, in conformity with the statutes." Includes 1 folded leaf displaying "symographs taken with Marey's instrument." Includes bibliographical references and index.

The goal of this study is to improve seasonal tornado outbreak forecasting by creating a statistical model that forecasts tornado outbreak frequency in the US using teleconnection indices as predictors. For this study, a tornado outbreak is defined as more than 6 tornado reports associated with a single synoptic system and an event N15 rating index of 0.5 or higher. The tornado outbreak season is confined to all months after February for a given calendar year. Monthly teleconnection indices are derived from a rotated principal component analysis (RPCA) of the geopotential height fields. Various regression techniques were trained with a sample of monthly teleconnection indices, tested on new data, and optimized to achieve the highest predictive skill. The outcome of this study could potentially allow forecasters the ability to predict tornado outbreak potential on a climatological scale with months of lead-time, allowing for better preparation strategies for tornado outbreak seasons.

There are many factors that affect international agricultural trade. One of them is international transportation costs. Another important factor is non-tariff barriers such as sanitary and phytosanitary regulations caused by animal disease outbreaks. The main purpose of this dissertation was to analyze how these factors interfere in the international agricultural trade by examining three cases. In Chapter II, a spatial price equilibrium model of the international cotton sector was utilized to evaluate the effects of the Panama Canal expansion (PCE) on the world cotton industry. Three scenarios were evaluated by reducing ocean freight rates from U.S. Gulf and Atlantic ports to Asian destinations. All scenarios suggested that cotton exports from U.S. Gulf and Atlantic ports would considerably increase. On the other hand, the West Coast ports decreased its participation in total U.S. cotton exports. Overall, total U.S. cotton exports were expected to increase due to the PCE. By using the same model which was used in Chapter II, the third chapter analyzes port improvements in Brazil. By March of 2012, the port of Salvador is expected to have undergone relevant improvements. As a result, the port of Salvador is expected to attract ocean shipping companies which are willing to export directly to Asian importing markets. Scenarios with different reductions in cotton export cost for this port were examined. In general, results indicated a shift in Brazil cotton export flows from the port of Santos to the port of Salvador as well as an increase in exports and producer revenues for the country. Finally, in Chapter IV, the impacts of the 2005 FMD outbreak on the Brazilian meat market was examined. The imposition of an import ban by Russia on Brazilian meat exports was also investigated. By using time series methods, it was found that the outbreak along with the import ban caused a temporary negative price shock to the Brazilian meat market. Export pork and export chicken prices were found to not fully recover after the removal of the import ban by Russia. On the other hand, the export beef price was indicated to undergo a complete recovery.

After two outbreaks of salmonellosis that were linked to the consumption of almonds in 2001 and 2004, scientific community and industry have encouraged the study of pathogen inactivation kinetics in almonds. However, these studies often have overlooked the increase of water resulting from the inoculation of almonds. This increase of free water may result in data that may be overestimating the final outcome of treatments applied to pasteurize almonds in industrial settings. Therefore, in 2011 a study of almonds was performed at Texas A&M University to determine whether there was a need for Aw restoration. In this study, the effect of accelerated drying on the reduction of Salmonella on almonds was investigated, Salmonella Entritidis PT 30 isolated from one of the outbreaks linked to almonds, and Salmonella Typhimurium LT2 were used. For irradiation, the effect of vacuum packaging and air packaging on the sensitivity of Salmonella to e- beam irradiation was evaluated for both accelerated drying and conventional drying. The D value for Salmonella Entritidis PT 30 when treated with blanching at 88°C with accelerated drying was 10.7± 0.1 s, and 12.8 ± 0.3 s with conventional drying. When subjected to oil roasting at 127˚C, the D values were 10.5 ± 0.1 s with accelerated drying, and 10.2 ± 0.2 s with conventional drying. For irradiation treatments, the D10 value for vacuum packaged almonds was 0.35 ± 0.02 kGy with accelerated drying, and 0.38 ± 0.04 kGy with conventional drying. When irradiated in the presence of air, the D10 value of Salmonella was 0.26±0.04 kGy for almonds with accelerated drying, and 0.29 ± 0.03 kGy conventional drying. In conclusion, the accelerated drying process resulted in greater reduction in Salmonella on almonds in comparison to conventional drying when subjected to blanching but no differences were found for oil roasting (P > 0.05). For e-beam irradiation the D_10 values were significantly greater (P < 0.05) for vacuum with accelerated drying than for Air almonds with accelerated drying. This indicates that if a process applied in the industry were to be developed based on challenge studies when conventional drying was achieved, the almonds might likely be subjected to a treatment that is stronger than necessary to achieve pasteurization.

Pr. - Lyceum zu Dillingen. / Includes bibliographical references.

Veterinary activities at VPI between 1872 and 1959 established the Blacksburg institution as the center of Virginia's veterinary education long before the opening of the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 1980. This thesis traces the lineage of VPI's veterinary medicine program back to the inception of the institution, locates VPI's contribution to veterinary medicine within the State of Virginia and nationally, and puts all these developments within the general historical context of the role of land-grant agricultural colleges in the development of veterinary medicine. The organization of veterinary activities of the state of Virginia took the form of a veterinary complex, its four main components of education, research, dissemination of veterinary knowledge, and prevention and control of livestock disease located in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries on the VPI campus in Blacksburg. This complex--taken as a whole--functioned as the primary actor in the veterinary network in Virginia--along with other veterinary institutions and offices that existed off- campus. The neglected history of early veterinary research and education in Virginia is important, because it clearly establishes these early veterinary activities at VPI as laying the groundwork for the establishment of the VMRCVM in 1980 and it shows why the VMRCVM was established at VPI (now referred to as Virginia Tech). / Master of Science

Este estudo tem por objetivo analisar quantitativa e qualitativamente os fatores classificados como relevantes para o desencadeamento dos surtos toxinfectivos alimentares, bem como a descrição detalhada do preparo do alimento suspeito em linha de produção, em surtos alimentares encerrados entre 2001 e 2010 no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, registrados pelo fiscal sanitário executor da vistoria. Constituíram-se material de estudo os arquivos manuscritos de investigações consideradas concluídas no período entre 2001 e 2010, disponibilizados pela Divisão de Vigilância Epidemiológica / DVE, Programa de Vigilância Epidemiológica das Doenças Transmitidas pelos Alimentos do Centro Estadual de Vigilância em Saúde / CEVS, da Secretaria Estadual de Saúde do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul / SESRS. As informações foram organizadas quantitativamente em tabelas de frequências absoluta e relativa simples e enfocadas qualitativamente segundo técnica de análise de conteúdo. Relacionados aos conteúdos manifestos nos surtos foram desvelados fatores subjacentes de natureza educacional, como desconhecimento e desmotivação, na ordem de 58,3%, bem como fatores de natureza tecnológica (12,5%), ideológica (8,33%), econômico-financeira (8,33%), ambiental-logística (4,17%) e ambiental-estrutural (8,33%). Ressalta-se a importância e a complexidade das investigações de surtos alimentares destaca-se a necessidade de avaliação dos instrumentos de registro de dados sanitários e epidemiológicos adequando-os à realidade local e global; sugere-se aos gestores públicos em Vigilância de Alimentos investimento na formação de recursos humanos, com ênfase aos fiscais sanitários, protagonistas executores das vistorias. / This study aimed to analyze quantitatively and qualitatively the factors classified as relevant in the outbreak toxinfectivos foods, as well as a detailed description of the suspect food preparation in the production line, in food outbreaks concluded from 2001 to 2010 in Rio Grande do Sul State, done by sanitarian officials responsible for the visits. The material of the study was constituted by the investigation of manuscript files concluded from 2001 to 2010, made available by the Epidemiological Vigilance Division (DVE) from the Program of Epidemiologic Vigilance of Diseases Transmitted by Food from the State Center of Health Vigilance (CEVS) part of the State Health Secretary of Rio Grande do Sul (SESRS). The information was organized quantitatively in tables of absolute and simple relative frequencies and focused qualitatively based on the analyses of content approach.Related to the contents verified in the outbreaks manifestation, some subjacent factors were revealed: the most significant was of educational nature considering acknowledge and demotivation (58,3%), of technological nature (12,5%), of ideological nature (8,33%), of financial nature (8,33%), logistic environment (4,17%) and structural environment (8,33%).It is highlighted the importance and complexity of outbreak investigations on toxi-infective food; it is made necessary an evaluation of the registration instruments of sanitarian and epidemiologic data, considering the local and global realities; it is suggested as well to the public government of Food Vigilance, more investments on the human resource formation, mainly to the sanitarian officials, as they are the protagonists responsible for the sanitarian vigilance visits.

Este estudo tem por objetivo analisar quantitativa e qualitativamente os fatores classificados como relevantes para o desencadeamento dos surtos toxinfectivos alimentares, bem como a descrição detalhada do preparo do alimento suspeito em linha de produção, em surtos alimentares encerrados entre 2001 e 2010 no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, registrados pelo fiscal sanitário executor da vistoria. Constituíram-se material de estudo os arquivos manuscritos de investigações consideradas concluídas no período entre 2001 e 2010, disponibilizados pela Divisão de Vigilância Epidemiológica / DVE, Programa de Vigilância Epidemiológica das Doenças Transmitidas pelos Alimentos do Centro Estadual de Vigilância em Saúde / CEVS, da Secretaria Estadual de Saúde do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul / SESRS. As informações foram organizadas quantitativamente em tabelas de frequências absoluta e relativa simples e enfocadas qualitativamente segundo técnica de análise de conteúdo. Relacionados aos conteúdos manifestos nos surtos foram desvelados fatores subjacentes de natureza educacional, como desconhecimento e desmotivação, na ordem de 58,3%, bem como fatores de natureza tecnológica (12,5%), ideológica (8,33%), econômico-financeira (8,33%), ambiental-logística (4,17%) e ambiental-estrutural (8,33%). Ressalta-se a importância e a complexidade das investigações de surtos alimentares destaca-se a necessidade de avaliação dos instrumentos de registro de dados sanitários e epidemiológicos adequando-os à realidade local e global; sugere-se aos gestores públicos em Vigilância de Alimentos investimento na formação de recursos humanos, com ênfase aos fiscais sanitários, protagonistas executores das vistorias. / This study aimed to analyze quantitatively and qualitatively the factors classified as relevant in the outbreak toxinfectivos foods, as well as a detailed description of the suspect food preparation in the production line, in food outbreaks concluded from 2001 to 2010 in Rio Grande do Sul State, done by sanitarian officials responsible for the visits. The material of the study was constituted by the investigation of manuscript files concluded from 2001 to 2010, made available by the Epidemiological Vigilance Division (DVE) from the Program of Epidemiologic Vigilance of Diseases Transmitted by Food from the State Center of Health Vigilance (CEVS) part of the State Health Secretary of Rio Grande do Sul (SESRS). The information was organized quantitatively in tables of absolute and simple relative frequencies and focused qualitatively based on the analyses of content approach.Related to the contents verified in the outbreaks manifestation, some subjacent factors were revealed: the most significant was of educational nature considering acknowledge and demotivation (58,3%), of technological nature (12,5%), of ideological nature (8,33%), of financial nature (8,33%), logistic environment (4,17%) and structural environment (8,33%).It is highlighted the importance and complexity of outbreak investigations on toxi-infective food; it is made necessary an evaluation of the registration instruments of sanitarian and epidemiologic data, considering the local and global realities; it is suggested as well to the public government of Food Vigilance, more investments on the human resource formation, mainly to the sanitarian officials, as they are the protagonists responsible for the sanitarian vigilance visits.

Este estudo tem por objetivo analisar quantitativa e qualitativamente os fatores classificados como relevantes para o desencadeamento dos surtos toxinfectivos alimentares, bem como a descrição detalhada do preparo do alimento suspeito em linha de produção, em surtos alimentares encerrados entre 2001 e 2010 no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, registrados pelo fiscal sanitário executor da vistoria. Constituíram-se material de estudo os arquivos manuscritos de investigações consideradas concluídas no período entre 2001 e 2010, disponibilizados pela Divisão de Vigilância Epidemiológica / DVE, Programa de Vigilância Epidemiológica das Doenças Transmitidas pelos Alimentos do Centro Estadual de Vigilância em Saúde / CEVS, da Secretaria Estadual de Saúde do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul / SESRS. As informações foram organizadas quantitativamente em tabelas de frequências absoluta e relativa simples e enfocadas qualitativamente segundo técnica de análise de conteúdo. Relacionados aos conteúdos manifestos nos surtos foram desvelados fatores subjacentes de natureza educacional, como desconhecimento e desmotivação, na ordem de 58,3%, bem como fatores de natureza tecnológica (12,5%), ideológica (8,33%), econômico-financeira (8,33%), ambiental-logística (4,17%) e ambiental-estrutural (8,33%). Ressalta-se a importância e a complexidade das investigações de surtos alimentares destaca-se a necessidade de avaliação dos instrumentos de registro de dados sanitários e epidemiológicos adequando-os à realidade local e global; sugere-se aos gestores públicos em Vigilância de Alimentos investimento na formação de recursos humanos, com ênfase aos fiscais sanitários, protagonistas executores das vistorias. / This study aimed to analyze quantitatively and qualitatively the factors classified as relevant in the outbreak toxinfectivos foods, as well as a detailed description of the suspect food preparation in the production line, in food outbreaks concluded from 2001 to 2010 in Rio Grande do Sul State, done by sanitarian officials responsible for the visits. The material of the study was constituted by the investigation of manuscript files concluded from 2001 to 2010, made available by the Epidemiological Vigilance Division (DVE) from the Program of Epidemiologic Vigilance of Diseases Transmitted by Food from the State Center of Health Vigilance (CEVS) part of the State Health Secretary of Rio Grande do Sul (SESRS). The information was organized quantitatively in tables of absolute and simple relative frequencies and focused qualitatively based on the analyses of content approach.Related to the contents verified in the outbreaks manifestation, some subjacent factors were revealed: the most significant was of educational nature considering acknowledge and demotivation (58,3%), of technological nature (12,5%), of ideological nature (8,33%), of financial nature (8,33%), logistic environment (4,17%) and structural environment (8,33%).It is highlighted the importance and complexity of outbreak investigations on toxi-infective food; it is made necessary an evaluation of the registration instruments of sanitarian and epidemiologic data, considering the local and global realities; it is suggested as well to the public government of Food Vigilance, more investments on the human resource formation, mainly to the sanitarian officials, as they are the protagonists responsible for the sanitarian vigilance visits.

Recent events have thrown the spotlight on infectious disease outbreak response. We developed a data-driven method, EpiGro, which can be applied to cumulative case reports to estimate the order of magnitude of the duration, peak and ultimate size of an ongoing outbreak. It is based on a surprisingly simple mathematical property of many epidemiological data sets, does not require knowledge or estimation of disease transmission parameters, is robust to noise and to small data sets, and runs quickly due to its mathematical simplicity. Using data from historic and ongoing epidemics, we present the model. We also provide modeling considerations that justify this approach and discuss its limitations. In the absence of other information or in conjunction with other models, EpiGro may be useful to public health responders. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.