- Table View
- List View
An Introduction to Rehabilitation Engineering (ISSN)
by Hisaichi Ohnabe Douglas A. Hobson Rory A. CooperThis resource focuses on the principles, modeling, standards, devices, and technologies of rehabilitation engineering and assistive technology. It describes numerous design models and processes, including participatory action design and service delivery models. The book also discusses the components of devices such as cushions, wheelchairs, prostheses, orthoses, hearing aids, and TTYs. The contributors assess industry standards and explore innovative technology aids, such as sensors, robot-assisted therapy, and speech recognition software. The text contains a set of learning objectives and study questions in each chapter as well as a list of definitions at the end of the book.
Human Genetics: Concepts and Applications
by Ricki LewisHuman Genetics: Concepts and Applications embraces the broadening of human genetics from an academic and medical discipline to an informational science that can be highly personal, yet have a societal impact. By coming to know genetic backgrounds, people can control their environments in healthier ways. Genetic knowledge is, therefore, both informative and empowering.
Tiny But Mighty: Kitten Lady's Guide to Saving the Most Vulnerable Felines
by Hannah Shaw*A New York Times Bestseller* #1 National BestsellerIndie BestsellerFrom Kitten Lady, the professional kitten rescuer, humane educator, animal advocate, and owner of the popular Instagram @kittenxlady comes the definitive book on saving the most vulnerable—and adorable—feline population: newborn kittens.Hannah Shaw, better known as Kitten Lady, has dedicated her life to saving the tiniest felines, but one doesn't have to be a professional kitten rescuer to change—and save—lives. In Tiny but Mighty, Hannah not only outlines the dangers newborn kittens face and how she combats them, but how you can help every step of the way, from fighting feline overpopulation on the streets to fostering unweaned kittens, from combating illness to combating compassion fatigue, from finding a vet to finding the purrfect forever home. Filled with information on animal welfare, instructional guides, and personal rescue stories of kittens like Chloe, Tidbit, Hank, and Badger—not to mention hundreds of adorable kitten photos—Tiny but Mighty is the must-have kitten book for cat lovers, current-and-future rescuers, foster parents, activists, and advocates.
Dermatologische Reaktionen bei onkologischen Therapien: Präventive und therapeutische Strategien in der Pflege
by Irène Bachmann-Mettler Cornelia Kern Fürer Harald TitzerMenschen mit Hautveränderungen kompetent und interprofessionell pflegen und behandeln!Dieses Buch richtet sich an Pflegefachpersonen, die in ihrem klinischen Praxisfeld Menschen mit einer Krebserkrankung betreuen, beraten und begleiten. Es bietet umfassendes Fachwissen und konkrete Handlungsempfehlungen für eine kompetente Versorgung von dermatologischen Reaktionen. Denn Veränderungen an Haut, Schleimhaut, Haaren und Nägeln treten unter antineoplastischer Behandlung, sowie unter Radiotherapie in sehr unterschiedlichen Variationen auf. Sie sind bedeutsam, da sie medizinische und psychosoziale Folgen haben. Werden sie nicht adäquat behandelt, haben sie einen negativen Einfluss auf die Therapieakzeptanz und die Lebensqualität der PatientInnen. Die erfahrenen Autorinnen und Autoren zeigen, mit welchen Konzepten und Arzneimitteln Sie die Erkrankten individuell und effektiv unterstützen können.Erweitern Sie Ihre Fachkompetenz im Bereich Onkologie, Radio-Onkologie oder im Wundmanagement!
Measles and Related Morbilliviruses: Methods and Protocols (Methods in Molecular Biology #2808)
by Dzwokai Z. Ma Christian K. PfallerThis volume covers the latest protocols used to study the molecular biology of morbilliviruses, including cell entry, replication, and virus-host interactions. The chapters in this book also cover methods for studying morbillivirus infection through the use of novel tissue culture and in vivo models; analyzing the biological implications of infection by using primary tissues isolated from infected animals; and exploring diagnostic tools to evaluate humoral immunity against human-pathogenic measles virus (MeV). Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls.Cutting-edge and comprehensive, Measles and Related Morbilliviruses: Methods and Protocols is a valuable resource for researchers studying MeV,and will be useful to researchers studying other members of Paramyxoviridae and Mononegavirales.
Veterinary Care of Farm Rabbits: A Complete Practice Guide to Rabbit Medicine and Production
by João Simões José M. MonteiroThis holistic guide brings rabbit production science and medicine together. It considers the full spectrum of commercial rabbit husbandry, including intensive, semi-intensive, and organic systems for meat, fur and leather. Drawn from an international authorship, the book addresses practical and fundamental topics. In comprehensive sections, readers will find easy-to-read chapters on:• rabbit breeds, anatomy essentials and lagomorph physiology• rabbit production with details on animal facilities and farm design, international trading, rabbit meat processing and biosafety, including a vivid appendix on meat inspection• rabbit herd and health management, considering latest findings in welfare and behavior, preventive medicine, antimicrobial resistance and demedication to necropsy and specimen collection• significant rabbit diseases, covering encephalitozoonosis cuniculi, rabbit enteropathies, and many more• complete veterinary treatment, supplemented by reference ranges and interpretation of hematological and biochemical valuesBesides an increasing keeping of pet rabbits, the animals are gaining interest for sustainable food production, leading to a rise in farming in various parts of the world. In this context, the present guide provides valuable contributions for consulting veterinarians and students, industry professionals, breeders and technicians, as well as for experts from the small and companion animal sector.The relevance of rabbit farming from the viewpoints of greenhouse gas reduction and sustainable use of ecological resources (use of local feed) also creates useful links for readers interested in the sustainable development goals SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
Concepts in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and Drug Development (Interdisciplinary Biotechnological Advances)
by Amritesh Chandra Shukla Sankhadip Bose Mirza R. Baig Sabyasachi BanerjeeThis book provides comprehensive coverage of the development of new pharmaceuticals and the enhancement of existing ones. It offers a comprehensive understanding of pharmaceutical biotechnology, including its underlying principles and practical applications from an industrial standpoint. While introducing the roles and applications of biotechnology in drug design and development, the book describes how developments in other fields, like genomics, proteomics, and high-throughput screening, have facilitated the discovery of novel therapeutic targets and drug development methods. It included concepts that are essential to biotechnology and apply to protein therapies. The book provides a thorough overview of the ways in which biotechnology influences drug development, production, and regulation, and is a valuable resource for those seeking to enhance their understanding in this area. This book is designed to support educators in their teaching efforts and offers a reader-friendly exploration of the various stages involved in developing new pharmaceuticals through biotechnology. This book is a valuable resource for individuals in various academic and professional careers, including undergraduates, graduates, pharmaceutical scientists, clinicians, and academic researchers. It provides convenient access to current practices in pharmaceutical biotechnology, making it particularly useful for those working in the interdisciplinary field of biochemistry, pharmacology, biopharmaceutics, and biotechnology. This book's concise and impartial content structure may also benefit corporate researchers.
Aesthetic Procedures: Nurse Practitioner's Guide to Cosmetic Dermatology
by Beth HaneyThis second edition is a resource that offers guidance to advanced practice providers who are experienced or novice aesthetic practitioners and would like to improve their aesthetic practice and enhance patient safety and satisfaction. This new book reviews skin structure and anatomy, what happens as facial structures age, the effects of aging coupled with environmental exposures, pharmacology of medications used in aesthetics, light-based device properties, patient selection, danger zones, complications, new treatments, and benefits of treatments. In addition, it includes suggestions on how to communicate with patients to achieve successful outcomes. Aesthetic Procedures: Nurse Practitioner's Guide to Cosmetic Dermatology provides practitioners a one-source resource to attain more in-depth learning about cosmetic dermatology. Although there are several texts on individual aspects of aesthetic medicine, there is no all-inclusive book for advanced practice providers. This book also affords the primary care practitioner the opportunity to add minimally invasive cosmetic dermatology procedures to their practice and perform the treatments safely, efficiently and effectively while avoiding common mistakes and minimizing complication risks. Education and hands-on practice and training are paramount in creating a safe patient environment and as more clinicians turn to aesthetics to augment their practice, this book will be a valuable resource for practitioners all over the world.
Die Wissenschaft vom Leben nach dem Tod
by Alexander Moreira-Almeida Marianna de Costa Humberto Schubert CoelhoDieses Buch untersucht die besten verfügbaren empirischen Beweise für eine der schwierigsten und allgegenwärtigsten Fragen in allen Zeitaltern, Kulturen und Religionen: das Überleben des menschlichen Bewusstseins nach dem Tod. Es beginnt mit einem kontextuellen Überblick über den Glauben an ein persönliches Überleben und widerlegt fehlgeleitete historische und erkenntnistheoretische Argumente gegen die Vorstellung eines Überlebens nach dem Tod (z. B. irrational, rein religiös, wissenschaftlich unmöglich, von der Neurowissenschaft als falsch erwiesen). Das Buch gibt einen Überblick über die wissenschaftlichen Beweise für das Fortleben des menschlichen Bewusstseins nach dem Tod und konzentriert sich dabei auf Studien über Medialität, Nahtoderfahrungen, außerkörperliche Erfahrungen und Reinkarnation.Zu den behandelten Themen gehören:Der Glaube an ein Leben nach dem Tod in der heutigen Welt sowie in der Geschichte der Religionen und der Philosophie.Die wichtigsten fehlgeleiteten Argumente und Vorurteile gegen die wissenschaftliche Erforschung des Überlebens nach dem Tod.Was sind empirische Beweise für ein Überleben nach dem Tod?Die wichtigsten alternativen Erklärungshypothesen für das Überleben nach dem Tod.Die wichtigsten kulturellen Hindernisse für eine faire Untersuchung der verfügbaren Beweise für das Weiterleben des Bewusstseins nach dem Tod.Science of Life After Death ist ein unverzichtbares Hilfsmittel für Forscher, Professoren und Doktoranden sowie für Kliniker, Therapeuten und andere Fachleute in den Bereichen Entwicklungs- und klinische Psychologie, Spiritualität, Religions- und Bewusstseinsforschung, Psychiatrie, Neurowissenschaft/Neurologie, Phänomenologie/Philosophie, Komplementär- und Alternativmedizin und allen damit verbundenen Disziplinen.
Forensic Firearms in Criminal Trials: Legal, Investigative, and Scientific Aspects
by J. K. SinhaOver the last two‑plus decades, the scientific validity of the principles that underpin identifying a firearm from recovered fired ammunition has been a core issue for the admissibility of expert evidence in criminal trials in the United States. The issues that dominated the determinative points, as they related to the scientific and technological analysis, centered around the following: the validity of uniqueness of firearms, subjective methodology, the potential rate of error, unknown statistical certainty and unsatisfactory proficiency tests. These issues have essentially become the legal requirement for admissibility of experts’ opinion on the linkage of firearms with fired ammunition, an important forensic opinion that connects the crime with the perpetrator through the weapon of offence.In Forensic Firearms in Criminal Trials: Legal, Investigative, and Scientific Aspects, internationally renowned forensic firearm expert Dr J. K. Sinha provides demonstrative explanations and helpful clarifications using simple illustrative examples from scientific casework and everyday life. The goals are to: Prove the scientific validity of the uniqueness of identifying features of firearms Identify the statistical threshold to qualify and determine a corresponding match Debunk the misconception of subjective methodology and the potential rate of error thereof in experts’ decision making and opinions Clarify the prevailing perception of similar, dissimilar and insufficient marks and consequential interpretation With certain non‑technical readers in mind as well, the book provides a basic understanding of the general make‑up of firearms and ammunition, the evidentiary values of commonly used firearms, fired empties, fired bullets and pellets, and scientific investigative leads that result from visual and physical evidence. Chapters cover related topics such as proficiency tests, identifying competent experts, admitted firing, and reliable and testable methodology. The book also reviews the admissibility of expert evidence in India and explains the proviso of admissibility of ballistic expert report in criminal trials. Throughout, the author emphasizes the need for requisite forensic knowledge by the investigator and aided by a competent expert for effective scientific investigation of gunfire crimes such as would aid in the proper presentation of scientific evidence at criminal trial for a successful outcome.
Handbook of Texture Analysis: AI-Based Medical Imaging Applications
by Jasjit S. Suri Ayman El-Baz Mohammed GhazalThe major goals of texture research in computer vision are to understand, model, and process texture and, ultimately, to simulate the human visual learning process using computer technologies. In the last decade, artificial intelligence has been revolutionized by machine learning and big data approaches, outperforming human prediction on a wide range of problems. In particular, deep learning convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are particularly well suited to texture analysis. This volume presents important branches of texture analysis methods which find a proper application in AI-based medical image analysis. This book: Discusses first-order, second-order statistical methods, local binary pattern (LBP) methods, and filter bank-based methods Covers spatial frequency-based methods, Fourier analysis, Markov random fields, Gabor filters, and Hough transformation Describes advanced textural methods based on DL as well as BD and advanced applications of texture to medial image segmentation Is aimed at researchers, academics, and advanced students in biomedical engineering, image analysis, cognitive science, and computer science and engineering This is an essential reference for those looking to advance their understanding in this applied and emergent field.
Mistake Proofing for Lean Healthcare (Lean Tools for Healthcare Series)
by Samuel Carlson Maura MayThe principles of mistake proofing, long used to eliminate errors and defects across a range of industries, are now being applied in healthcare organizations around the world to help ensure patient safety, improve services, and eliminate waste.Mistake Proofing for Lean Healthcare is based on the definitive mistake-proofing philosophy and system developed by Shigeo Shingo. This reader-friendly book introduces the main concepts and benefits of mistake proofing in healthcare and highlights common reasons that errors and defects occur. It also explains how to catch errors before they become defects, using the concept of source inspection, so you can ensure quality before a process is performed instead of afterward. When systematically used, the mistake-proofing approach explained in this book will help you:Create safer, more reliable, and more effective healthcare services for both patients and staffEstablish a culture in which mistakes and the conditions that cause them are readily surfaced so they can be correctedLay the foundation for processes that flow smoothly, without disruptionEliminate rework, waste, and the need for extra resources and suppliesPresenting real-world healthcare examples, the book shows different types of mistake-proofing devices and methods (poka-yoke) that provide feedback quickly and automatically to prevent errors and defects.The book is part of the Lean Healthcare Series and is designed for individual or group learning. Each chapter includes reflection questions to facilitate understanding and stimulate discussion and action.
Fundamentals of Clinical Psychopharmacology
by Peter Whelan Peter Lydyard Michael FangerThis book provides up-to-date, evidence-based and unbiased information about psychopharmacology. It spans the range of the discipline, from mode of action and side effects of drugs to meta-analyses of clinical trials. This latest edition is fully updated and provides the key facts about currently used psychotropic drugs, set in the context of the neuroscience of the disorders they treat. It also includes a new chapter on the principles of psychiatric prescribing. Key references are provided at the end of each chapter along with suggestions for further reading.
Healthcare Operations Management
by John R. Olson Daniel B. McLaughlin Luv SharmaToday's challenging healthcare landscape—with its complex web of reimbursement systems, workforce challenges, and governmental regulations—requires a platform for addressing issues and trends. Savvy healthcare managers know how to integrate and deploy strategies to produce significant operational improvements and increase effectiveness throughout an entire healthcare enterprise. Healthcare Operations Management explores the core principles of effective organizational operations and explains how they can be used to tackle healthcare-specific challenges, such as gaps in quality of care. Through an integrated approach, the authors provide a basic understanding of operations management and share strategies for applying advanced process improvement programs, tools, and techniques in healthcare.
Current Procedural Terminology, HCPCS, and Procedural Coding for Professionals and Physicians
by Kimberly HueyThis textbook provides basic training and practice in the application of procedural codes from the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) and the Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS). CPT is published by the American Medical Association (AMA). Updated annually on January 1, CPT is a proprietary terminology created and maintained by the AMA. Its purpose is to provide a uniform language for describing and reporting the professional services performed by physicians. HCPCS is maintained by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Its purpose is to provide a system for reporting the medical services received by Medicare beneficiaries. HCPCS is made up of two parts: Level I is composed entirely of the current version of CPT; HCPCS Level II provides codes to represent medical services that are not covered by the CPT system, such as medical supplies and services performed by healthcare professionals who are not physicians.
The Way We Really Are: Coming To Terms With America's Changing Families
by Stephanie CoontzStephanie Coontz, the author of The Way We Never Were, now turns her attention to the mythology that surrounds today's family--the demonizing of "untraditional" family forms and marriage and parenting issues. She argues that while it's not crazy to miss the more hopeful economic trends of the 1950s and 1960s, few would want to go back to the gender roles and race relations of those years. Mothers are going to remain in the workforce, family diversity is here to stay, and the nuclear family can no longer handle all the responsibilities of elder care and childrearing.Coontz gives a balanced account of how these changes affect families, both positively and negatively, but she rejects the notion that the new diversity is a sentence of doom. Every family has distinctive resources and special vulnerabilities, and there are ways to help each one build on its strengths and minimize its weaknesses.The book provides a meticulously researched, balanced account showing why a historically informed perspective on family life can be as much help to people in sorting through family issues as going into therapy--and much more help than listening to today's political debates.
A Single Light: A Thriller (The Line Between #2)
by Tosca LeeIn this gripping, high-octane sequel to The Line Between, which New York Times bestselling author Alex Kava calls &“everything you want in a thriller,&” cult escapee Wynter Roth and ex-soldier Chase Miller emerge from their bunker to find a country ravaged by disease.Six months after vanishing into an underground silo with sixty-one others, Wynter and Chase emerge to an altered world. There is no sign of Noah and the rest of the group that was supposed to greet them when they surfaced—the same people Wynter was counting on to help her locate the antibiotics her gravely ill friend, Julie, needs. As the clock ticks down on Julie&’s life, Wynter and Chase embark on a desperate search for medicine and answers. But what they find is not a nation on the cusp of recovery but one decimated by disease. What happened while they were underground? With food and water in limited supply and their own survival in question, Chase and Wynter must venture further and further from the silo. They come face-to-face with a radically changed society, where communities scrabble to survive under rogue leaders and cities are war zones. As hope fades by the hour and Wynter learns the terrible truth of the last six months, she is called upon again to help save a nation she no longer recognizes—a place so chaotic she&’s no longer sure it can even survive. With Tosca Lee&’s signature &“beautifully written and deeply unnerving&” (Jonathan Maberry, New York Times bestselling author) prose, A Single Light is a breathless thriller of nonstop suspense.
Hybrid Warfare 2.2: Where Biothreats Meet Irregular Operations and Cyber Warriors in the 21st Century (Advanced Sciences and Technologies for Security Applications)
by Manousos E. KambourisThe concept of Hybrid Warfare has gained prominence in recent decades. It is a novel terminology, but the concept is detectable since antiquity: Ancient Chinese, Ancient Greeks and the Jews of Exodus were all well familiar, so well to have let us know. Similarly, bioagents have been used malevolently since always. What is novel is that these two, in the present context, are not only interfacing smoothly, but in an enhanced context: The Hybrid Warfare, which has now enriched its portfolio, from actions of provocation, insurgency, economic warfare, special operations, proxy warfare and social destabilization to the Residual domain, the cyberspace, while the conventional, 3D space expands. Now the Space and the Deep are included in the topography of the friction zone. In this, the bio- factor becomes not only relevant but also an amplifier: using the technology malevolently, all the advances made to combat disease may be used to cause, further, or perplex and complicate disease. Improved or totally novel or even alien germs may replace explosives in bombs, shells or suicidal /kamimaze drones and taint bullets and fragments. Microrobots may deliver cancer cells to targeted individuals to foster cancer, or specific supergerms for an infection to rage unchallenged. And what happens if the mechanism of these cancers and infections is intentionally provided with an Abort signal? Global extortions would become probable, not just possible. Far from Science Fiction, this dystopia becomes more probable by the day. The Artificial Intelligence simply makes it easier to occur. Technology allows manipulation and intervention in levels and extends only imagined in the Past, but the application of these capabilities is clearly of dual use, with the destructive potential leveraged by the complexity of the social and state structure. Within this book, we explore the “How” (occasionally the “What” also) in some of these instances. From cyber terrorists to aggressive bioindustrialists and “democratized” ballistic and cruise missile technology, it could be coined as "The Book of Modern Mayhem”.
Removable Partial Dentures: A Practitioners’ Manual
by Olcay ŞakarThis clinical guide, now in an extensively revised second edition, describes the latest developments in planning, materials, and techniques for successful fabrication of removable partial dentures (RPDs). The fabrication of conventional and digital RPDs are demonstrated in a simple and easy-to-understand format, with the aid of numerous color figures and video clips with scientific support on each page. Care has been taken to provide reliable guidance on all aspects of clinical practice relating to RPDs. Readers will find information on decision-making regarding treatment options, clasp-retained RPDs and esthetic solutions, attachments and double crown systems in RPDs, implant-assisted RPDs, maintenance and post-insertion problems for all types of RPDs, the role of RPDs in the management of temporomandibular disorders and the treatment of maxillofacial defects, the re-establishment of occlusal vertical dimension and maximal intercuspation, the rules for disinfection in prosthodontic practice.
Advances in Revision Total Knee Arthroplasty
by E. Carlos Rodríguez-MerchánThis book offers a comprehensive guide to revision total knee arthroplasty, a complex surgical procedure with increasing numbers due to the aging world's population. Covering both septic and aseptic prosthetic failure, it presents an updated overview of available surgical techniques – from one or two-stage revision for periprosthetic joint infection to robot-assisted total joint arthroplasty. Moreover, the authors explore the current role and future potentialities of artificial intelligence. This volume offers the reader state-of-the-art information aiming to illuminate contentious topics in the field.
Microfluidics in Pharmaceutical Sciences: Formulation, Drug Delivery, Screening, and Diagnostics (AAPS Introductions in the Pharmaceutical Sciences #14)
by Dimitrios A. Lamprou Edward WeaverThe book covers the basics of microfluidics, current applications in areas such as formulation, drug delivery, drug screening and development, monitoring and diagnostics, and case studies from a teaching perspective to undergraduate and postgraduate students, allowing application of the content in a flipped classroom. Multiple choice questions are included at the end of each chapter. All chapter authors are pioneers and world leaders. This is an ideal book for students, researchers, and industry professionals working on microfluidics in the pharmaceutical sciences.
Congenital Spine Malformations: Clinical and Surgical Aspects
by Hashim Talib Hashim Khaled Fares AlAliThis book offers a clinical and surgical overview on congenital spine malformations, which are abnormalities that occur during fetal development, leading to structural issues in the spine. The fetal spine begins to develop shortly after conception and continues to grow throughout pregnancy. This book covers the various congenital spine malformations, their aetiologies and development, diagnosis and management. Since many of these disorders are rare, they do not have a final cure and their management is important - their consequences on the physical, psychological and developmental condition of the patient are massive. This book is of interest to orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, and pediatric specialists - the team who take care of the surgical management of congenital spine malformations.
Congenital Brain Malformations: Clinical and Surgical Aspects
by Hashim Talib Hashim Khaled Fares AlAliThis book offers a clinical and surgical overview on congenital brain malformations, which are abnormalities that occur during fetal development, leading to brain defects and disorders. The fetal brain begins to develop shortly after conception and continues to grow throughout pregnancy. This book covers the various congenital brain malformations, their aetiologies and development, diagnosis and management including possible surgical interventions and details of these procedures. Since many of these disorders are rare, they do not have a final cure and their management is important - their consequences on the physical, psychological and developmental condition of the patient are great. This book is of interest to pediatric surgeons and neurologists.
Writing and Managing SOPs for GCP
by Susanne ProkschaThis book discusses managing SOPs for GCP from conception to retirement. It recommends approaches that have a direct impact on improving SOP and regulatory compliance. Throughout the text, the book provides a user's point of view to keep topics focused on the practical aspects of SOPs and SOP management.
Six Sigma in the Pharmaceutical Industry: Understanding, Reducing, and Controlling Variation in Pharmaceuticals and Biologics
by Brian K. Nunnally John S. McConnellSix Sigma in the Pharmaceutical Industry is the first book to introduce the fundamentals of Six Sigma, examine control chart theory and practice, and explain the concept of variation management and reduction applied specifically to the pharmaceutical industry. The first half lays out a conceptual framework for understanding variation, while the second half introduces control chart theory and practice. Using case studies and statistics, the book illustrates the concepts and explains their application to actual workplace improvements. Providing the basis for a complete operating philosophy, this book focuses on core concepts and their implementation to improve the existing products and processes in the pharmaceutical industry.