Charting a New Aesthetics for History: 3D, Scenarios, and the Future of the Historian’s Craft

Innovations in computing are presenting historians with access to new forms of expression with the potential to enhance scholars’ capacities and to support novel methods for analysis, expression, and teaching. Computer-generated form can change the way we generate, appropriate, and disseminate content. If these benefits are to be realized, however, the discipline must make room for a new domain of practice-based research. The practices we have for knowledge generation were devised in association with print technology, and historians must now acquire and develop practices that can inform our use of digital forms of representation, as well as the platforms that sustain them. Les innovations informatiques donnent aux historiens l’accès à de nouvelles formes d’expression et offrent la possibilité d’accroître les capacités des universitaires et de favoriser l’émergence de nouvelles méthodes d’analyse, d’expression et d’enseignement. L’ordinateur peut changer notre façon de générer, de nous approprier et de diffuser le contenu. Pour récolter de tels fruits, la discipline doit toutefois faire place à un nouveau domaine de la recherche fondée sur la pratique. Nos pratiques de génération du savoir sont fonction de la technologie de l’imprimé, et les historiens doivent maintenant acquérir et développer des pratiques qui pourront nous aider à maîtriser les formes numériques de la représentation de même que les plateformes qui leur servent d’assise

Take a Stab at It! Percutaneous drainage via normal variant sternal foramen

Our patient was an 81 year-old female with a history of multiple esophageal dilations with a large distal esophageal perforation, status post fully covered metal stent placement. CT Thorax showed a mediastinal fluid collection exerting mass effect on the right heart, incidental note was made of a sternal foramen (Panel 1, arrow). Interventional Radiology was consulted for drainage. Utilizing Seldinger technique, a 5-Fr introducer (Panel 2) followed by a 10-Fr catheter was placed through the sternal foramen and into the mediastinal fluid collection. The fluid collection was aspirated with resolution of mass effect on the heart. (Panel 3, catheter traversing the sternal foramen after aspiration of the collection. Distal portion of the catheter is out of the image plane). A sternal foramen is a developmental variant that is present in approximately 5% of the population and results from incomplete fusion of the sternal ossification centers. In this case it allowed safe percutaneous drainage of the mediastinal fluid collection, avoiding risk of injury to the internal mammary vessels or intervening lung parenchyma which could have occurred with a parasternal approach. (Figures/panels will be submitted with final submission)https://scholarlycommons.henryford.com/merf2020caserpt/1061/thumbnail.jp

Historians and Technology / Les historiens et la technologie

Historians for the most part tend to resist generalizations, save for one, that historians don’t like generalizations. That point being conceded, I’m going to offer another one: historians don’t like computers much either. There are all sorts of reasons, some historical, some cultural, for why this is so. But the fundamental reason, I think, rests on the mental map most of us have when we think about computation. Put simply, it lies on the periphery of the fundamental tasks – be they in research and analysis, or teaching and communication – that we identify with being historians. Most of us have nothing against computing, per se. It just isn’t relevant to what many of us conceive to be the proper tasks of scholars who deem themselves to be humanists

A counterfactual study of the Charge of the Light Brigade

We use a mathematical model to perform a counterfactual study of the 1854 Charge of the Light Brigade. We first calibrate the model with historical data so that it reproduces the actual charge’s outcome. We then adjust the model to see how that outcome might have changed if the Heavy Brigade had joined the charge, and/or if the charge had targeted the Russian forces on the heights instead of those in the valley. The results suggest that all of the counterfactual attacks would have led to heavier British casualties. However, a charge by both brigades along the valley might plausibly have yielded a British victory

ResearchFanshawe Magazine Issue 8

https://first.fanshawec.ca/researchfanshawemag/1007/thumbnail.jp

StructureMorph: Creating Scholarly 3D Models for a Convergent, Digital Publishing Environment

Background:  The StructureMorph project rests on the premise that future publishing platforms will converge multiple applications, such as geographic information systems (GIS) and game engines, and multiple paradigms of computing, such as desktop computing and high-performance computing. Convergent platforms will also present design challenges for scholars.Analysis:  In this contribution, one response to these challenges is presented: the Complex Object. Complex Objects are 4D models that alter their shape and surface appearance in response to user interaction, and changes in world time. They also to mimic the behaviours of 2D polygons as configured in geographic information systems, graphically linking attribute data with spatial locales.Conclusion and implications:  This article discusses the concept of the Complex Object and describes the software and workflow devised to support its creation

Accessing 3D Data

The issue of access and discoverability is not simply a matter of permissions and availability. To identify, locate, retrieve, and reuse 3D materials requires consideration of a multiplicity of content types, as well as community and financial investment to resolve challenges related to usability, interoperability, sustainability, and equity. This chapter will cover modes, audiences, assets and decision points, technology requirements, and limitations impacting access, as well as providing recommendations for next steps

Is infant exposure to antiretroviral drugs during breastfeeding quantitatively important? A systematic review and meta-analysis of pharmacokinetic studies

Objectives The objectives of this study were to summarize antiretroviral drug concentrations in breast milk (BM) and exposure of breast-fed infants. Methods This was a systematic review of pharmacokinetic studies of HIV-positive women taking antiretrovirals that measured drugs in BM. The quality of pharmacokinetic and laboratory methods was assessed using pre-defined criteria. Pooled ratios and 95% CIs were calculated using the generalized inverse variance method and heterogeneity was estimated by the I2 statistic. PubMed Central, SCOPUS and LactMed databases were searched. No date or language restrictions were applied. Searches were conducted up to 10 November 2014. Clinical relevance was estimated by comparing ingested dose with the recommended therapeutic dose for each drug. Results Twenty-four studies were included. There was substantial variability in the clinical and laboratory methods used and in reported results. Relative to maternal plasma (MP), NRTIs accumulate in BM, with BM : MP ratios (95% CI estimates) from 0.89 to 1.21 (14 studies, 1159 paired BM and MP samples). NNRTI estimates were from 0.71 to 0.94 (17 studies, 965 paired samples) and PI estimates were from 0.17 to 0.21 (8 studies, 477 paired samples). Relative to the recommended paediatric doses, a breast-fed infant may ingest 8.4% (95% CI 1.9–15.0), 12.5% (95% CI 2.6–22.3) and 1.1% (95% CI 0–3.6) of lamivudine, nevirapine and efavirenz, respectively, via BM. Conclusions Transfer to untreated infants appears quantitatively important for some NRTIs and NNRTIs. The pharmacokinetic methods varied widely and we propose standards for the design, analysis and reporting of future pharmacokinetic studies of drug transfer during breastfeeding

A systematic review of interventions to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour following bariatric surgery.

BACKGROUND: Bariatric surgery promotes weight loss and improves co-morbid conditions, with patients who are more physically active having better outcomes. However, levels of physical activity and sedentary behaviour often remain unchanged following surgery. OBJECTIVES: To identify interventions and components thereof that are able to facilitate changes in physical activity and sedentary behaviour. ELIGIBILITY: Physical activity and/or sedentary behaviour must have been measured, pre and post intervention, in patients who have undergone bariatric surgery. STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHODS: : Four databases were searched with key-words. Two researchers conducted paper screening, data extraction and risk-of-bias assessment. RESULTS: Twelve studies were included; eleven were randomised. Two were delivered presurgery and ten postsurgery; five found positive effect. Moderate to vigorous physical activity increased in three studies, two of which also found a significant increase in step count. The fourth found a significant increase in strenuous activity and the fifth a significant increase in metabolic equivalent of task/day and reduced time spent watching television. LIMITATIONS: Meta-analysis could not be conducted due to heterogeneity of outcomes and the tools used. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS OF KEY FINDINGS: This review has identified interventions and components thereof that were able to provoke positive effect. However, intervention and control conditions were not always well described particularly in terms of behaviour change techniques and the rationale for their use. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION NUMBER: PROSPERO (CRD42019121372

Amoxicillin is associated with a lower risk of further antibiotic prescriptions for lower respiratory tract infections in primary care - A database analysis spanning over 30 years.

Antibiotic prescriptions for lower respiratory tract infections occur commonly in primary care but there is uncertainty about the most effective initial treatment strategy. Both increasing antimicrobial resistance and awareness of preventable harm from medicines make resolving this uncertainty a priority. Pragmatic, real-life epidemiological investigations are needed to inform future interventional studies. In this cross-sectional database study we analysed antibiotic prescriptions for non-pneumonic, lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) in primary care as captured in the Optimum Care Database from 1984 to 2017. The primary outcome was a second antibiotic prescription for a LRTI code within 14 days of index prescription, the secondary outcome further antibiotic prescription for any indication. Only individuals without chronic respiratory diseases were included. We conducted univariable analysis to identify factors associated with repeat prescriptions and generate hypotheses for forthcoming projects. We analysed 367,188 index prescriptions for LRTI. Amoxicillin was the commonest used index drug (65.1%). In 6% a second antibiotic course coded for a further LRTI was prescribed (11.2% without this coding restriction). Further antibiotic prescriptions for LRTI were significantly associated with older age, previous smoking, seven day index courses and not using amoxicillin initially. The largest effect size was seen when amoxicillin was not used as index drug (odds ratio (OR) 1.15, p < 0.001). This would support current prescribing practice for amoxicillin as index drug in those without respiratory disease. Prospective studies are needed to explore the observed differences