Averages of shifted convolutions of d3(n)d_3(n)

We investigate the first and second moments of shifted convolutions of the generalised divisor function $d_3(n)$.Comment: 22 page

Characterization of transport and magnetic properties in thin film La(0.67)(Ca(x)Sr(1-x))(0.33)MnO(3) mixtures

We have grown thin films of (100) oriented La_{0.67}(Ca_{x}Sr_{1-x})_{0.33}MnO_{3} on (100) NdGaO_{3} substrates by off-axis sputtering. We have looked at the changes in the resistivity and magnetoresistance of the samples as the Ca/Sr ratio was varied. We find that as the calcium fraction is decreased, the lattice match to the substrate decreases, and the films become more disordered, as observed in transport measurements and the variation in Curie and peak resistance temperatures. We find a correlation between the temperature independent and T^2 terms to the low temperature resistivity. The room temperature magnetoresistance exhibits a maximum as the peak temperature is increased by the substitution of Sr for Ca, and a change in the field dependence to the resistivity at room temperature is observed.Comment: 5 pages, 6 eps figures, to be published in Journal of Applied Physic

The Bristol ‘OA500 study’: progression and impact of the disease after 8 years

AbstractObjective To study the natural history of peripheral joint osteoarthritis (OA) and assess its impact over eight years in a prospective study of 500 patients.Methods 500 consecutive patients with peripheral joint OA were recruited from a hospital-based rheumatology clinic. All were invited for review 3 and 8 years after entry. Joint sites involved, pain severity, change in index joints, global change in the condition, use of medication, surgery and walking aids were all recorded at each visit, and after eight years disability was assessed by the health assessment questionnaire (HAQ) and anxiety and depression by the Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HAD).Results At eight-year review, 349 patients were seen: 90% of those remaining alive. Outcome was heterogeneous. Sixty patients (17.2%) reported worsening in all three subjective parameters (pain, index joint and global change) compared with 22 (6.3%) who improved in all three parameters. Using this definition of worsening or improvement, strong baseline predictors of clinical outcome did not emerge. For further description, the group was split according to the index joint sites involved at entry to the study, there being 111 with knee OA alone, 87 with hand and knee OA, 72 with hand disease alone, and 29 with hip disease alone. Forty-four percent of those with lone hand disease at entry had acquired significant knee or hip OA 8 years later. The mean HAQ and HAD scores at 8 years were high, especially in those with knee disease, indicating significant disability as a result of the disease. Those with knee or knee and hand disease had the worst outcome in all parameters recorded. The data showed a general decrease in use of NSAIDs over the eight years, but an increase in utilization of analgesics, surgery (especially for hip disease) and walking aids.Conclusions Patients with peripheral joint OA of sufficient severity to lead to hospital referral have a heterogeneous, but generally bad outcome over 8 years, the disease resulting in high levels of physical disability, anxiety and depression, with a high level of utilization of healthcare resources, including joint replacement, drugs and walking aids. The results were consistent with previous suggestions that peripheral joint OA in older people is characterized by the slow acquisition of new joint sites. Progression and outcome may depend on a complex set of psychosocial factors, as well as biological ones

A Scalable Distributed Approach to Mobile Robot Vision

This paper documents our progress during the first year of work on our original proposal entitled 'A Scalable Distributed Approach to Mobile Robot Vision'. We are pursuing a strategy for real-time visual identification and tracking of complex objects which does not rely on specialized image-processing hardware. In this system perceptual schemas represent objects as a graph of primitive features. Distributed software agents identify and track these features, using variable-geometry image subwindows of limited size. Active control of imaging parameters and selective processing makes simultaneous real-time tracking of many primitive features tractable. Perceptual schemas operate independently from the tracking of primitive features, so that real-time tracking of a set of image features is not hurt by latency in recognition of the object that those features make up. The architecture allows semantically significant features to be tracked with limited expenditure of computational resources, and allows the visual computation to be distributed across a network of processors. Early experiments are described which demonstrate the usefulness of this formulation, followed by a brief overview of our more recent progress (after the first year)

The atomic structure of large-angle grain boundaries Σ5\Sigma 5 and Σ13\Sigma 13 in YBa2Cu3O7−δ{\rm YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-\delta}} and their transport properties

We present the results of a computer simulation of the atomic structures of large-angle symmetrical tilt grain boundaries (GBs) $\Sigma 5$ (misorientation angles \q{36.87}{^{\circ}} and \q{53.13}{^{\circ}}), $\Sigma 13$ (misorientation angles \q{22.62}{^{\circ}} and \q{67.38}{^{\circ}}). The critical strain level $\epsilon_{crit}$ criterion (phenomenological criterion) of Chisholm and Pennycook is applied to the computer simulation data to estimate the thickness of the nonsuperconducting layer ${\rm h_n}$ enveloping the grain boundaries. The ${\rm h_n}$ is estimated also by a bond-valence-sum analysis. We propose that the phenomenological criterion is caused by the change of the bond lengths and valence of atoms in the GB structure on the atomic level. The macro- and micro- approaches become consistent if the $\epsilon_{crit}$ is greater than in earlier papers. It is predicted that the symmetrical tilt GB $\Sigma5$ \theta = \q{53.13}{^{\circ}} should demonstrate a largest critical current across the boundary.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figure

Characteristics and outcomes of culture-negative prosthetic joint infections from the Prosthetic Joint Infection in Australia and New Zealand Observational (PIANO) cohort study

Introduction: Culture-negative (CN) prosthetic joint infections (PJIs) account for approximately 10 % of all PJIs and present significant challenges for clinicians. We aimed to explore the significance of CN PJIs within a large prospective cohort study, comparing their characteristics and outcomes with culture-positive (CP) cases. Methods: The Prosthetic joint Infection in Australia and New Zealand Observational (PIANO) study is a prospective, multicentre observational cohort study that was conducted at 27 hospitals between 2014 and 2017. We compared baseline characteristics and outcomes of all patients with CN PJI from the PIANO cohort with those of CP cases. We report on PJI diagnostic criteria in the CN cohort and apply internationally recognized PJI diagnostic guidelines to determine optimal CN PJI detection methods. Results: Of the 650 patients with 24-month outcome data available, 55 (8.5 %) were CN and 595 were CP. Compared with the CP cohort, CN patients were more likely to be female (32 (58.2 %) vs. 245 (41.2 %); p = 0.016), involve the shoulder joint (5 (9.1 %) vs. 16 (2.7 %); p = 0.026), and have a lower mean C-reactive protein (142 mg L−1 vs. 187 mg L−1; p = 0.016). Overall, outcomes were superior in CN patients, with culture negativity an independent predictor of treatment success at 24 months (adjusted odds ratio, aOR, of 3.78 and 95 %CI of 1.65–8.67). Suboptimal diagnostic sampling was common in both cohorts, with CN PJI case detection enhanced using the Infectious Diseases Society of America PJI diagnostic guidelines. Conclusions: Current PJI diagnostic guidelines vary substantially in their ability to detect CN PJI, with comprehensive diagnostic sampling necessary to achieve diagnostic certainty. Definitive surgical management strategies should be determined by careful assessment of infection type, rather than by culture status alone

Organisation and ordering of 1D porphyrin polymers synthesised by on-surface Glaser coupling

One-dimensional polymer chains consisting of π-conjugated porphyrin units are formed via Glaser coupling on a Ag(111) surface. Scanning probe microscopy reveals the covalent structure of the products and their ordering. The conformational flexibility within the chains is investigated via a comparision of room temperature and cryogenic measurements

Doctors and nurses subjective predictions of 6-month outcome compared to actual 6-month outcome for adult patients with spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) in neurocritical care: An observational study.

Acute spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage is a devastating form of stroke. Prognostication after ICH may be influenced by clinicians' subjective opinions. To evaluate subjective predictions of 6-month outcome by clinicians' for ICH patients in a neurocritical care using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and compare these to actual 6-month outcome. We included clinicians' predictions of 6-month outcome in the first 48 h for 52 adults with ICH and compared to actual 6-month outcome using descriptive statistics and multilevel binomial logistic regression. 35/52 patients (66%) had a poor 6-month outcome (mRS 4-6); 19/52 (36%) had died. 324 predictions were included. For good (mRS 0-3) versus poor (mRS 4-6), outcome, accuracy of predictions was 68% and exact agreement 29%. mRS 6 and mRS 4 received the most correct predictions. Comparing job roles, predictions of death were underestimated, by doctors (12%) and nurses (13%) compared with actual mortality (36%). Predictions of vital status showed no significant difference between doctors and nurses: OR = 1.24 {CI; 0.50-3.05}; (  = 0.64) or good versus poor outcome: OR = 1.65 {CI; 0.98-2.79}; (  = 0.06). When predicted and actual 6-month outcome were compared, job role did not significantly relate to correct predictions of good versus poor outcome: OR = 1.13 {CI;0.67-1.90}; (  = 0.65) or for vital status: OR = 1.11 {CI; 0.47-2.61};  = 0.81). Early prognostication is challenging. Doctors and nurses were most likely to correctly predict poor outcome but tended to err on the side of optimism for mortality, suggesting an absence of clinical nihilism in relation to ICH. [Abstract copyright: © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

The neuropsychology needs of a hyper-acute stroke unit

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Guidelines recommend routine assessment and management of mood and cognition after stroke, but little is known about the value or feasibility of providing neuropsychology input during the hyper-acute period. We aimed to identify and describe the extent and nature of neuropsychological needs and to investigate the feasibility of providing direct neuropsychology input within a hyper-acute setting. METHODS: Over a 7-month period, Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) members of a central London Hyper-Acute Stroke Unit (HASU) identified stroke patients who they believed would benefit from neuropsychology input, and categorised the nature of neuropsychology intervention required. We examined the demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients identified and the type of intervention required. RESULTS: 23% of patients (101/448) were identified as requiring neuropsychology input. Patients deemed to require input were younger, more likely to be male and more functionally disabled than those not requiring input. Cognitive assessment was the main identified need (93%) followed by mood (29%) and family support (9%). 30% of patients required two types of intervention. During a pilot of neuropsychology provision, 17 patients were seen; 15 completed a full cognitive assessment. All patients assessed presented with cognitive impairment despite three being deemed cognitively intact (> standardised cut-off) using a cognitive screening tool. CONCLUSION: We showed that direct neuropsychology input on a HASU is necessary for complex and varied interventions involving cognition, mood and family support. Furthermore, input is feasible and useful in detecting cognitive impairment not revealed by screening instruments