Glossary of Terms

Use the quick index below or scroll to find a term that is referenced within CEDR. Letters that are underlined in the quick index indicated terms present for that letter.

Quick Index:

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

A

Analytic Data File Set

A collection of static files containing the data upon which a researcher directly bases a study's reported findings.

Analytic File

A single data file containing data upon which a researcher directly bases a study's reported findings.

Authorized CEDR User

An individual who has submitted the Sign Up form and received notification from DOE that authorization has been approved.

C

CEDR

Comprehensive Epidemiologic Data Resource. The CEDR Program is managed by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Domestic & International Health Studies (EHSS-13).

CER

Center for Epidemiologic Research at the Oak Ridge Institute for Research and Education.

Ci

The abbreviation for curie. The curie is a unit of measure used to describe the amount of radioactivity in material. One curie is that amount of radioactive material in which 37 billion (3.7x1010) atoms are transformed per second. Fractions of a curie may be shown as nanocuries (nCi) or picocuries (pCi).

CI

Confidence interval.

Classic Radiation File Sets

Historically important data file sets relating to health effects.

CNS

Central nervous system.

Code Set

Any set of values used in a variable in a data file and intended to serve as a translation table or to interpret a controlled set of symbols into a natural language, such as English, is considered a code set. Such sets of value pairs (code and interpretation of code) are installed in CEDR as Structured Documentation rather than as another data file.

Cohort

Any designated group of persons who are followed or traced over a period of time. For example, a cohort may be defined as all white males working at a specific facility during a specific period of time.

cpm

Counts per minute.

D

Data File

Rectangular fixed-width file where rows are records and columns are variables.

Data File Set

A collection of logically related files. CEDR contains two types of data file sets: analytic and working.

Diagnosis Rate

The number of new, reported health events observed among DOE workers per thousand DOE workers at risk during a given period of time.

DOE

U.S. Department of Energy.

dpm

Disintegrations per minute.

DS86

The dosimetry system that was developed in the early 1980s and used to refine the estimate of radiation doses received by the atomic bomb survivors in Japan.

E

Environmental Dose Reconstruction

In efforts to assess the health impacts of DOE operations on off-site communities, DOE has funded a number of lengthy studies commonly referred to as historical, off-site dose reconstructions. Dose reconstructions are usually complex, multidisciplinary studies that consist of several major steps, including cumulative estimates of the amounts of materials the site has released to the environment, determination of the fate of those materials in the environment, and an estimate of the exposure of individuals to those materials.

F

Facility

A specific DOE plant such as the X-10 facility at the Oak Ridge Site.

H

Hanford

A DOE site in Richland, Washington.

I

IARC

International Agency for Research on Cancer.

ICD Codes

The International Classification of Diseases diagnostic codes. Standardized codes used to classify morbidity and mortality information for statistical purposes. Various versions are used throughout CEDR Data File Sets. ICD codes are defined by the World Health Organization.

K

K-25

Previously a gaseous diffusion facility at the Oak Ridge Site that is currently being decommissioned.

L

LANL

Los Alamos National Laboratory located in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

LBNL

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, operated for DOE by the University of California.

M

Millisievert (mSv)

A millisievert equals 0.001 sievert. Please refer to sievert and rem.

MPBB

Maximum permissible body burden.

N

NIOSH

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

O

ORAU

Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. ORAU is the operating contractor of ORISE.

ORISE

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

ORNL

Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Also known as X-10 facility.

P

Po

Polonium.

PNNL

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, operated for DOE by Battelle in Richland, Washington.

ppm

Parts per million.

Primary User

An authorized CEDR user who is assigned a CEDR account and may be the direct recipient of CEDR data.

Pu

Plutonium.

R

rem

A measure of radiation dose related to biological effect. Fractions of a rem may be shown as millirem or centirem. Also, 1 rem equals 1 centisievert (cSv), and 100 rem equals 1 sievert (Sv).

S

sievert (Sv)

A unit of radiation dose equal to the dose delivered by a point source of 1 milligram of radium enclosed in a platinum container with walls 1/2-millimeter thick to a sample at a distance of 1 centimeter over a period of 1 hour. 1 sievert = 100 rem.

Site

A geographical area on which one or more major DOE facilities or plants are located. For example, the Oak Ridge Site includes the X10, Y12, and K25 facilities. A site is sometimes referred to as a reservation.

SMR

Standardized mortality ratio.

SSA

Social Security Administration.

Structured Documentation

Documentation that describes CEDR Data Files is organized hierarchically:

Definition	Hierarchy Description
Data File Set level documentation is an overview File level documentation describes a Data File Variable level documentation describes a variable Code level documentation describes code sets	(one for data file set) (one for each data file in a data file set) (one for each variable in a data file) (one for each coded variable)

Additionally, CEDR structured documentation consists of a Death Summary arranged by ICD code group for each analytic data file set.

T

TLD

Thermoluminescent dosimeter used to assess exposure to radiation.

U

U

Uranium

V

Variable

A specific field or data element in a file.

W

Working Data File Set

Defined in CEDR as a collection of dynamic files that contains the data from which a researcher selects variables to analyze and forms an initial analytic data file set. The data in working data file sets may be gathered from a variety of sources and contain the least refined form of data in CEDR.

Working File

Defined in CEDR as a file that contains the data from which a researcher selects variables to analyze and forms an initial analytic data file set. The data in working files may be gathered from a variety of sources and contain the least refined form of data in CEDR.

X

X10

Alternate name for Oak Ridge National Laboratory located at the Oak Ridge Site.

Y

Y12

A weapons production facility at the Oak Ridge Site.