Evaluation of sUAS Education and Training Tools

The wide distribution and demographic composition of students seeking small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS) education presents a need to fully understand the capabilities, limitations, and dependencies of effective training tools. Concepts, practices, and technologies associated with modeling and simulation, immersive gaming, augmented and mixed-reality, and remote operation have demonstrated efficacy to support engaged student learning and objective satisfaction. Identification and comparison of key attributes critical to an aviation educational framework, such as competency-based training, enables educational designers to identify those tools with the highest potential to support successful learning. A series of factors, such as system performance, regulatory compliance, environmental conditions, technological familiarity, and personal experience, require consideration in the selection, optimization, and application of such tools. Embry-Riddle and the Sinclair College National UAS Training and Certification Center have overseen the development, launch, and sustainment of respective sUAS education programs. Effectiveness of these programs is dependent on continuous evaluation of tools, specific to educational settings. A relevant example was the assessment of popular multirotor sUAS conducted by ERAU-W, which led to publication of the “Small Unmanned Aircraft System Consumer Guide” and selection of the Parrot BeBop 2 platform to support sUAS operations curricula. The intent of this work is to present critical considerations, including influencing factors and dependencies, associated with the selection and adoption of technological tools best supporting sUAS education. Background details; emerging approaches, models, and technologies; and examples of past tool evaluation, inclusive of assessment criteria and observations, are discussed. Finally, a series of reflective remarks, including recommendations, relating to evaluation, adaptation, and incorporation of future tools supporting sUAS education are presented

Refining tumor-associated aneuploidy through ‘genomic recoding’ of recurrent DNA copy number aberrations in 150 canine non-Hodgkin lymphomas

Identification of the genomic regions most intimately associated with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) pathogenesis is confounded by the genetic heterogeneity of human populations. We hypothesize that the restricted genetic variation of purebred dogs, combined with the contrasting architecture of the human and canine karyotypes, will increase the penetrance of fundamental NHL-associated chromosomal aberrations in both species. We surveyed non-random aneuploidy in 150 canine NHL cases, revealing limited genomic instability compared to their human counterparts and no evidence for CDKN2A/B deletion in canine B-cell NHL. ‘Genomic recoding’ of canine NHL data into a ‘virtual human’ chromosome format showed remarkably few regions of copy number aberration (CNA) shared between both species; restricted to regions of dog chromosomes 13 and 31, and human chromosomes 8 and 21. Our data suggest that gene discovery in NHL may be enhanced through comparative studies exploiting the less complex association between CNAs and tumor pathogenesis in canine patients

Quark-gluon vertex in general kinematics

The original publication can be found at www.springerlink.com Submitted to Cornell University’s online archive www.arXiv.org in 2007 by Jon-Ivar Skullerud. Post-print sourced from www.arxiv.org.We compute the quark–gluon vertex in quenched lattice QCD in the Landau gauge, using an off-shell mean-field O(a)-improved fermion action. The Dirac-vector part of the vertex is computed for arbitrary kinematics. We find a substantial infrared enhancement of the interaction strength regardless of the kinematics.Ayse Kizilersu, Derek B. Leinweber, Jon-Ivar Skullerud and Anthony G. William

Adjunctive rifampicin for Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (ARREST): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia is a common cause of severe community-acquired and hospital-acquired infection worldwide. We tested the hypothesis that adjunctive rifampicin would reduce bacteriologically confirmed treatment failure or disease recurrence, or death, by enhancing early S aureus killing, sterilising infected foci and blood faster, and reducing risks of dissemination and metastatic infection. METHODS: In this multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, adults (≥18 years) with S aureus bacteraemia who had received ≤96 h of active antibiotic therapy were recruited from 29 UK hospitals. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) via a computer-generated sequential randomisation list to receive 2 weeks of adjunctive rifampicin (600 mg or 900 mg per day according to weight, oral or intravenous) versus identical placebo, together with standard antibiotic therapy. Randomisation was stratified by centre. Patients, investigators, and those caring for the patients were masked to group allocation. The primary outcome was time to bacteriologically confirmed treatment failure or disease recurrence, or death (all-cause), from randomisation to 12 weeks, adjudicated by an independent review committee masked to the treatment. Analysis was intention to treat. This trial was registered, number ISRCTN37666216, and is closed to new participants. FINDINGS: Between Dec 10, 2012, and Oct 25, 2016, 758 eligible participants were randomly assigned: 370 to rifampicin and 388 to placebo. 485 (64%) participants had community-acquired S aureus infections, and 132 (17%) had nosocomial S aureus infections. 47 (6%) had meticillin-resistant infections. 301 (40%) participants had an initial deep infection focus. Standard antibiotics were given for 29 (IQR 18-45) days; 619 (82%) participants received flucloxacillin. By week 12, 62 (17%) of participants who received rifampicin versus 71 (18%) who received placebo experienced treatment failure or disease recurrence, or died (absolute risk difference -1·4%, 95% CI -7·0 to 4·3; hazard ratio 0·96, 0·68-1·35, p=0·81). From randomisation to 12 weeks, no evidence of differences in serious (p=0·17) or grade 3-4 (p=0·36) adverse events were observed; however, 63 (17%) participants in the rifampicin group versus 39 (10%) in the placebo group had antibiotic or trial drug-modifying adverse events (p=0·004), and 24 (6%) versus six (2%) had drug interactions (p=0·0005). INTERPRETATION: Adjunctive rifampicin provided no overall benefit over standard antibiotic therapy in adults with S aureus bacteraemia. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment

Flow and transport modeling of a heterogeneous field site contaminated with dense chlorinated solvent waste

Fluid flow and contaminant transport at a heterogeneous field site with an extensive vadose zone are modeled to study the impact of the presence of dense non-aqueous phase liquids upon ground water remediation. Results of aqueous phase mass balances using measured data indicate the existence of a continuing source of trichloroethylene to ground water during remediation. Overall mass balances indicate that ground water extraction has removed a small fraction of total subsurface trichloroethylene in 5 years. The rate of mass transfer of trichloroethylene entering the aquifer as a function of time and location is calculated using system performance data and results of a simulated remediation in which all sources to the ground water are removed. The resulting expressions are evaluated by comparing to results of mass transfer models. The results indicate that the existing ground water extraction system alone must operate for thousands of years to achieve remediation goals

Food and nutrition security trends and challenges in the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna (GBM) delta

The population of the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna (GBM) delta is highly vulnerable to food insecurity and malnutrition due to the specific environmental, climatic and human development factors affecting agricultural production and fisheries. To better understand the impacts of climate and environmental change on food security and nutrition in this delta, this study combines spatially explicit data from the 2007 and 2011 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) with a standard satellite remotely sensed vegetation greenness index (Normalised Difference Vegetation Index, NDVI), used as a proxy for rice production. The strength of association between NDVI and child nutrition in this tropical mega-delta were tested, showing correlations between two widely used indicators of child malnutrition; stunting and wasting, and deviations from a 10 year mean NDVI (anomalies) for rice crop growing seasons – regarded as critical to individual children’s early lives. For children surveyed in 2007 we found that the likelihood of being stunted decreased with increased NDVI as a measure of food production. Similarly, for children surveyed in 2011, the likelihood of being wasted reduced with increased NDVI. However, regression results for stunting in 2011 and wasting in 2007 were not statistically significant. Our findings suggest that NDVI can be regarded as indicative of climatic variability and periods of low food production but is only partly successful as an indicator of climate related impacts on child nutrition in the GBM delta. Furthermore, our study highlights some of the uncertainties and challenges with linking environmental indicators such as the NDVI with household survey data across spatial and temporal scales

Food and nutrition security trends and challenges in the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna (GBM) delta

The population of the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna (GBM) delta is highly vulnerable to food insecurity and malnutrition due to the specific environmental, climatic and human development factors affecting agricultural production and fisheries. To better understand the impacts of climate and environmental change on food security and nutrition in this delta, this study combines spatially explicit data from the 2007 and 2011 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) with a standard satellite remotely sensed vegetation greenness index (Normalised Difference Vegetation Index, NDVI), used as a proxy for rice production. The strength of association between NDVI and child nutrition in this tropical mega-delta were tested, showing correlations between two widely used indicators of child malnutrition; stunting and wasting, and deviations from a 10 year mean NDVI (anomalies) for rice crop growing seasons – regarded as critical to individual children’s early lives. For children surveyed in 2007 we found that the likelihood of being stunted decreased with increased NDVI as a measure of food production. Similarly, for children surveyed in 2011, the likelihood of being wasted reduced with increased NDVI. However, regression results for stunting in 2011 and wasting in 2007 were not statistically significant. Our findings suggest that NDVI can be regarded as indicative of climatic variability and periods of low food production but is only partly successful as an indicator of climate related impacts on child nutrition in the GBM delta. Furthermore, our study highlights some of the uncertainties and challenges with linking environmental indicators such as the NDVI with household survey data across spatial and temporal scales

An Analysis of Transcriptomic Burden Identifies Biological Progression Roadmaps for Hematological Malignancies and Solid Tumors

Biological paths of tumor progression are difficult to predict without time-series data. Using median shift and abacus transformation in the analysis of RNA sequencing data sets, natural patient stratifications were found based on their transcriptomic burden (TcB). Using gene-behavior analysis, TcB groups were evaluated further to discover biological courses of tumor progression. We found that solid tumors and hematological malignancies (n = 4179) share conserved biological patterns, and biological network complexity decreases at increasing TcB levels. An analysis of gene expression datasets including pediatric leukemia patients revealed TcB patterns with biological directionality and survival implications. A prospective interventional study with PI3K targeted therapy in canine lymphomas proved that directional biological responses are dynamic. To conclude, TcB-enriched biological mechanisms detected the existence of biological trajectories within tumors. Using this prognostic informative novel informatics method, which can be applied to tumor transcriptomes and progressive diseases inspires the design of progression-specific therapeutic approaches

A supervised exercise intervention fails to improve subjective and objective sleep measures among older adults with and without HIV

Background Chronic sleep disruption can have significant negative health effects and prior studies suggest that people with HIV (PWH) have disproportionately higher rates of sleep problems. Methods We evaluated baseline sleep of sedentary, older adults (50–75 years) with (n = 28) and without HIV (n = 29) recruited into a 24-week exercise study. Subjective sleep quality was assessed with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI); objective sleep parameters were assessed using wrist-worn actigraphy. Regression models were used to investigate changes in outcomes. Results Fifty-seven participants completed the intervention. At baseline, PWH had significantly lower sleep efficiency (88.7 [95% CI 86, 91]%) compared to controls (91.8 [95% CI 91, 93]%; p = 0.02); other sleep measures indicated poorer sleep among PWH but did not reach statistical significance (p ≥ 0.12). Overall, sleep outcomes did not significantly change with the exercise intervention (all p > 0.05). In adjusted analyses, PWH demonstrated a decrease in total sleep time (–22.1 [–43.7, –0.05] p = 0.045) and sleep efficiency (–1.3 [–2.5, –.01], p = 0.03) during the 24 weeks of exercise; these differences were attenuated and no longer significant after adjusting for exercise intensity. At the completion of the intervention, compared to controls, PWH had significantly poorer sleep by PSQI score (2.2 [0.6, 3.8]; p = 0.006) and sleep efficiency (–2.8 [–5.4,–0.2]%; p = 0.04). Conclusions In this study, sleep disturbance was more prevalent in sedentary older PWH compared to uninfected controls. An exercise intervention had minimal effect on sleep impairments among PWH nor controls. Among older adults, interventions beyond cardiovascular and resistance exercise may be needed to significantly alter subjective and objective sleep outcomes