Device evaluation, which is an essential skill set for the respiratory therapist, ranges from comparing manufacturer's specifications to comprehensive device testing, either with patients or on the bench. Good device evaluations help guide decisions about device selection, procedure development, and risk and failure analysis. Poor evaluations cost time and money and fail to return value. Manufa...

ophthalmic equipment, including surgical instruments and diagnostic devices, can be compared to the maintenance of a motor vehicle, something many of us understand well. If you had a car, would you drive it until the fuel runs out or until a tyre punctures, and then abandon it to buy a new car? Of course not. However, many eye care units purchase (or receive as a donation) expensive and delicat...

Voting machine failures stood front and center in the recount of the 2000 presidential election vote in Florida. The election dispute between George Bush and Al Gore exposed problems in the absentee and registration systems, in the management of polling places, and even in the definition of a vote in Florida’s law. However, a single image captured the heart of the election controversy: Judge Ro...

The soldier is the Army’s most deployed combat system and the most essential weapon in the Army’s arsenal. Program Executive Office (PEO) soldier was activated in October 2001 to equip the soldier as a system through centralized development, acquisition, fielding and sustainment of virtually everything the soldier wears or carries. The mission of PEO Soldier is to ensure that soldiers are letha...

Mechanical ventilation systems for controlling conditions in individual zones can move a constant or variable supply of conditioned air to handle all or some of the heating and cooling loads. They are classified as all-air, air-water, and all-water systems. All-air systems include single-duct, dual-duct and multizone. The systems can be designed to operate at Constant Air Volume (CAV) or Variab...

In January 2014, the Nagoya Proton Th erapy Center became the fi rst clinic in Japan to treat patients using proton spot scanning. Th e new system operates alongside two existing treatment rooms that started treating patients in February 2013 and use a passive scattering system. Th is means that the Nagoya Proton Th erapy Center now has three treatment rooms, two with rotating gantries and one ...