Development of Theory and Practice of Program Resource Management
One of the issues that are often in the focus of discussions at various circles experts are related to the field of security and innovation. According to some authors the development is security and no security without development. Experts in innovation, in turn, try to classify the phenomenon in which are willing to accept the existence of evolutionary, radical and systemic innovation. Discussion on both topics can be carried in the field of resource management and this will not be a mistake because of two facts. Firstly the limited amount of resources is always a reason to think about the efficiency of their management. At stake efficiency means degree of suitability for implementation of certain tasks and achieving certain goals. Secondly, issues of innovative development of approaches to resource management are extremely important and never lose relevance. All of the above should convince the readers of the correctness of the choice of theme or object of study.
Decision making in the department of defense
Abstract In the early 1960s, program budgeting, systems analysis, and cost effectiveness were terms that infuriated some admirals and generals. Today modern management tools apply the principles of rational decision making to a continuous cycle of military objectives, programs, and assumptions. As a result, the scope and quality of information provided the Secretary of Defense have improved. The DOD planning-programming-budgeting system (which the author helped to design and install) has shifted decision making from the tracks of incrementalism and traditional wisdom. The content of debate has improved, and the lines of division are clear. The resulting decisions provide inputs for the President's deliberation and formulate the policy program.
The utility of uric acid assay in dogs as an indicator of functional hepatic mass.
Uric acid was used as a test for liver disease before the advent of enzymology. Three old studies criticised uric acid as a test of liver function. Uric acid, as an end-product of purine metabolism in the liver, deserved re-evaluation as a liver function test. Serum totalbile acids are widely accepted as the most reliable liver function test. This study compared the ability of serum uric acid concentration to assess liver function with that of serum pre-prandial bile acids in dogs. In addition, due to the renal excretion of uric acid the 2 assays were also compared in a renal disease group. Using a control group of healthy dogs, a group of dogs with congenital vascular liver disease, a group of dogs with non-vascular parenchymal liver diseases and a renal disease group, the ability of uric acid and pre-prandial bile acids was compared to detect reduced functional hepatic mass overall and in the vascular or parenchymal liver disease groups separately. Sensitivities, specificities and predictive value parameters were calculated for each test. The medians of uric acid concentration did not differ significantly between any of the groups, whereas pre-prandial bile acids medians were significantly higher in the liver disease groups compared with the normal and renal disease group of dogs. The sensitivity of uric acid in detecting liver disease overall was 65% while the specificity of uric acid in detecting liver disease overall was 59%. The sensitivity and specificity of uric acid in detecting congenital vascular liver disease was 68% and 59%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of uric acid in detecting parenchymal liver disease was 63% and 60%, respectively. The overall positive and negative predictive values for uric acid in detecting liver disease were poor and the data in this study indicated uric acid to be an unreliable test of liver function. In dogs suffering from renal compromise serum uric acid concentrations may increase into the abnormal range due to its renal route of excretion.