2,676 research outputs found
Assessing the exposure risk and impacts of pharmaceuticals in the environment on individuals and ecosystems
No full textCopyright @ 2013 The authors. Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.The use of human and veterinary pharmaceuticals is increasing. Over the past decade, there has been a proliferation of research into potential environmental impacts of pharmaceuticals in the environment. A Royal Society-supported seminar brought together experts from diverse scientific fields to discuss the risks posed by pharmaceuticals to wildlife. Recent analytical advances have revealed that pharmaceuticals are entering habitats via water, sewage, manure and animal carcases, and dispersing through food chains. Pharmaceuticals are designed to alter physiology at low doses and so can be particularly potent contaminants. The near extinction of Asian vultures following exposure to diclofenac is the key example where exposure to a pharmaceutical caused a population-level impact on non-target wildlife. However, more subtle changes to behaviour and physiology are rarely studied and poorly understood. Grand challenges for the future include developing more realistic exposure assessments for wildlife, assessing the impacts of mixtures of pharmaceuticals in combination with other environmental stressors and estimating the risks from pharmaceutical manufacturing and usage in developing countries. We concluded that an integration of diverse approaches is required to predict 'unexpected' risks; specifically, ecologically relevant, often long-term and non-lethal, consequences of pharmaceuticals in the environment for wildlife and ecosystems
arcaravaggi/GI_mice_seabirds: Impacts of mice on Gough Island seabirds: Code & Data Archive
No full text<p>Data and R scripts relating to the methods described in Caravaggi A, Cuthbert RJ, Ryan PG, Cooper J, Bond A. The impacts of introduced house mice on the breeding success of nesting seabirds on Gough Island.</p>
Impacts of mice on Gough Island seabirds: Code & Data Archive
No full text<p>Data and R scripts relating to the methods described in Caravaggi A, Cuthbert RJ, Ryan PG, Cooper J, Bond A. The impacts of introduced house mice on the breeding success of nesting seabirds on Gough Island.</p>
<p>GitHub archive: https://github.com/arcaravaggi/GI_mice_seabirds</p>
Reformulating the rj-McMC Algorithm for 3D Inversion of Passive Seismic Data for Near-Surface Characterization
No full textGeophysical subsurface characterization techniques could, due to their non-invasive nature, play a crucial role in the design and subsequent construction of infrastructure in urban & industrial environ- ments. Geo-data specialist company Fugro sees potential in upgrading their current ambient-seismic- noise-tomography workflow, to make use of state-of-the-art inversion schemes with the main goal of increasing the quality and accuracy of the initial-site characterization delivered to clients. In this thesis I explore the feasibility of utilizing the reverse-jump Markov chain Monte Carlo (rj-McMC) algorithm for the inversion of ambient seismic noise for characterization in urban & industrial environments. Specif- ically, testing the potential of scaling down this inversion algorithm to fit in a small scale, near-surface framework. To achieve this, I first carried out analyses to evaluate the appropriate Rayleigh wave frequency range, after which realistic noise hyperparameters, suited for this reduced scale problem, were obtained. Because of the potential exploitation of in-situ borehole measurements, I reformulated the Bayesian prior within the rj-McMC algorithm to implement these constraining shear wave velocity values appropriately. I conducted extensive synthetic experiments to gain insight into the behavior of this adapted algorithm, from which it was concluded that the inherent dynamic discretization partially prevents these constraints from being implemented to their full extent. Nevertheless, promising results lead me to conclude that the use of the rj-McMC algorithm for application in near-surface urban & industrial environments is feasible.Applied Geophysics | IDEA Leagu
Clowns, Fools, and Killers: An Exploration of Horror, Comedy, and Madness Through the Roles of Murderer 2 and Sir Richard Ratcliffe in William Shakespeare\u27s Richard III
No full textThis document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Arts with a Concentration in Musical Theatre. It is a detailed account of author RJ Magee’s artistic and scholarly process in creating the roles of Murderer 2 and Sir Richard Ratcliffe in William Shakespeare’s Richard III. The production was performed as part of Minnesota State University, Mankato’s mainstage season in October of 2022. In five chapters, this thesis chronicles the actor’s process: a preproduction analysis, a historical and critical perspective, a rehearsal and performance journal, a post-production analysis, and a process development analysis. Appendices and works cited are included
SAS Macros for Analysis of Unreplicated 2^k and 2^k-p Designs with a Possible Outlier
No full textMany techniques have been proposed for judging the significance of effects in unreplicated 2^k and 2^k-p designs. However, relatively few methods have been proposed for analyzing unreplicated designs with possible outliers. Outliers can be a major impediment to valid interpretation of data from unreplicated designs. This paper presents SAS macros which automate a manual method for detecting an outlier and performing an analysis of data from an unreplicated 2^k or 2^k-p design when an outlier is present. This method was originally suggested by Cuthbert Daniel and is based on the normal or half normal plot of effects. This automated version was shown in simulation studies to perform better than other procedures proposed to do the same thing.
Radiation-induced root surface caries restored with glass-ionomer cement placed in conventional and ART cavity preparations: Results at two years
No full textThe document attached has been archived with permission from the Australian Dental Association (8th Jan 2008). An external link to the publisher’s copy is included.Background: There are no published studies comparing the clinical performances of more-viscous glass-ionomer cement (GIC) restorations when placed using conventional and atraumatic restorative treatment (ART) cavity preparation methods to restore root surface caries. Methods: One dentist used encapsulated Fuji IX GP and Ketac-Molar to restore 72 conventional and 74 ART cavity preparations for 15 patients who had received cervicofacial radiation therapy. Two assessors evaluated the restorations at six, 12, and 24 months for retention, marginal defects and surface wear, and recurrent caries. Results: After two years, the cumulative restoration successes were 65.2 per cent for the conventional and 66.2 per cent for the ART cavity preparations, without statistical or clinical significance (P>0.50). Restoration dislodgement accounted for 82.8 per cent and marginal defects for 17.2 per cent of all failures. There were no instances of unsatisfactory restoration wear or recurrent caries observed. Teeth with three or more restored cervical surfaces accounted for 79.3 per cent of all failures (P<0.0001). Conclusions: For root surface caries restored with GIC, the use of hand instruments only with the ART method was an equally effective alternative to conventional rotary instrumentation for cavity preparation. Larger restorations had higher failures, usually from dislodgement.JY Hu, XC Chen, YQ Li, RJ Smales and KH Yi
Paediatric use of melatonin (Author reply to D. J. Kennaway).
No full textComment on
Paediatric use of melatonin. [Eur J Paediatr Neurol. 2015]
Current role of melatonin in pediatric neurology: clinical recommendations. [Eur J Paediatr Neurol. 2015
Platelet-rich plasma and macular hole surgery: A clue to their mode of action and the influence of anti-platelet agents
No full text\ua9 The Author(s) 2022. Purpose: To present a case of refractory full-thickness macular hole (FTMH), in which autologous platelet-rich plasma (aPRP) was used on two consecutive occasions, and associated with successful closure only after complete cessation of anti-platelet therapy. Methods: Interventional case report. Results: A 63-year-old male with Alport syndrome underwent pars plana vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane peeling and gas for a large FTMH. The patient was on systemic anti-platelet agents for coronary disease. Post-operatively, the FTMH remained open and repeated surgery, augmented with aPRP, was performed. Although a thick pre-retinal coagulum was evident on optical coherence tomography on day one post-surgery, the second surgery failed. Ultimately, successful aPRP-augmented surgical closure of the FTMH was achieved only after complete cessation of systemic anti-platelet agents. Conclusion: Appropriate management of anti-platelet therapy may be relevant when planning aPRP use, though further large-scale studies are needed to assess the precise effect of anti-platelet therapy on the efficacy of aPRP, and to confirm the potential role of aPRP in patients with Alport syndrome
Needle deflection in thermal ablation procedures of liver tumors: a CT image analysis
No full textIntroduction: Accurate needle placement is crucial in image-guided needle interventions. A targeting error may be introduced due to undesired needle deflection upon insertion through tissue, caused by e.g. patient breathing, tissue heterogeneity, or asymmetric needle tip geometries. This paper aims to quantify needle deflection in thermal ablation procedures of liver tumors by means of a CT image analysis. Methods: Needle selection was done by using all clinical CT data that were made during thermal ablation procedures of the liver, ranging from 2008-2016, in the Erasmus MC, the Netherlands. The 3D needle shape was reconstructed for all selected insertions using manual segmentation. Subsequently, a straight line was computed between the entry point of the needle into the body and the needle tip. The maximal perpendicular distance between this straight line and the actual needle was used to calculate needle deflection. Results: In total, 365 needles were included in the analysis ranging from 14G to 17G in diameter. Average needle insertion depth was 95mm (range: 32 mm – 182 mm). Needle deflection was on average 1.3 mm (range: 0.0 mm – 6.5 mm). 54% of the needles (n=196) had a needle deflection of more than one millimeter, whereas 7% of the needles (n=25) showed a large needle deflection of more than three millimeters. Conclusions: Needle deflection in interventional radiology occurs in more than half of the needle insertions. Therefore, deflection should be taken into account when performing procedures and when defining design requirements for novel needles. Further, needle insertion models need to be developed that account for needle deflection.Medical Instruments & Bio-Inspired Technolog
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