Advancing imaging technologies for patients with spinal pain : with a focus on whiplash injury

Background: Radiological observations of soft-tissue changes that may relate to clinical symptoms in patients with traumatic and non-traumatic spinal disorders are highly controversial. Studies are often of poor quality and findings are inconsistent. A plethora of evidence suggests some pathoanatomical findings from traditional imaging applications are common in asymptomatic participants across the life span, which further questions the diagnostic, prognostic, and theranostic value of traditional imaging. Although we do not dispute the limited evidence for the clinical importance of most imaging findings, we contend that the disparate findings across studies may in part be due to limitations in the approaches used in assessment and analysis of imaging findings. Purpose: This clinical commentary aimed to (1) briefly detail available imaging guidelines, (2) detail research-based evidence around the clinical use of findings from advanced, but available, imaging applications (eg, fat and water magnetic resonance imaging and magnetization transfer imaging), and (3) introduce how evolving imaging technologies may improve our mechanistic understanding of pain and disability, leading to improved treatments and outcomes. Study Design/Setting: A non-systematic review of the literature is carried out. Methods: A narrative summary (including studies from the authors' own work in whiplash injuries) of the available literature is provided. Results: An emerging body of evidence suggests that the combination of existing imaging sequences or the use of developing imaging technologies in tandem with a good clinical assessment of modifiable risk factors may provide important diagnostic information toward the exploration and development of more informed and effective treatment options for some patients with traumatic neck pain. Conclusions: Advancing imaging technologies may help to explain the seemingly disconnected spectrum of biopsychosocial signs and symptoms of traumatic neck pain

THE U.S. DAIRY INDUSTRY

Agribusiness,

Remote functionalisation via sodium alkylamidozincate intermediates : access to unusual fluorenone and pyridyl ketone reactivity patterns

Treating fluorenone or 2-benzoylpyridine with the sodium zincate [(TMEDA)center dot Na(mu-Bu-t)(mu-TMP)Zn(Bu-t)] in hexane solution, gives efficient Bu-t addition across the respective organic substrate in a highly unusual 1,6-fashion, producing isolable organometallic intermediates which can be quenched and aerobically oxidised to give 3-tert-butyl-9H-fluoren-9-one and 2-benzoyl-5-tert-butylpyridine respectively

Airborne Measurements of Gravity Wave Breaking at the Tropopause

2000 FLORIDA AVE NW, WASHINGTON, DC, 2000

Continuous multi-step synthesis by extrusion - telescoping solvent-free reactions for greater efficiency

YesChemical manufacturing typically requires more than one step, involving multiple batch processes, which makes synthesis at scale laborious and wasteful. Herein, we demonstrate that several reactions can be telescoped into a single continuous process and/or be carried out as a continuous multi-component reaction (MCR), by twin screw extrusion (TSE), in the complete absence of solvent.EPSRC (EP/L019655/1)

Manually defining regions of interest when quantifying paravertebral muscles fatty infiltration from axial magnetic resonance imaging : a proposed method for the lumbar spine with anatomical cross-reference

Background: There is increasing interest in paravertebral muscle composition as a potential prognostic and diagnostic element in lumbar spine health. As a consequence, it is becoming popular to use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine muscle volume and fatty infiltration in lumbar paravertebral muscles to assess both age-related change and their clinical relevance in low back pain (LBP). A variety of imaging methods exist for both measuring key variables (fat, muscle) and for defining regions of interest, making pooled comparisons between studies difficult and rendering post-production analysis of MRIs confusing. We therefore propose and define a method as an option for use as a standardized MRI procedure for measuring lumbar paravertebral muscle composition, and to stimulate discussion towards establishing consensus for the analysis of skeletal muscle composition amongst clinician researchers. Method: In this descriptive methodological study we explain our method by providing an examination of regional lumbar morphology, followed by a detailed description of the proposed technique. Identification of paravertebral muscles and vertebral anatomy includes axial E12 sheet-plastinates from cadaveric material, combined with a series of axial MRIs that encompass sequencing commonly used for investigations of muscle quality (fat-water DIXON, T1-, and T2-weighted) to illustrate regional morphology; these images are shown for L1 and L4 levels to highlight differences in regional morphology. The method for defining regions of interest (ROI) for multifidus (MF), and erector spinae (ES) is then described. Results: Our method for defining ROIs for lumbar paravertebral muscles on axial MRIs is outlined and discussed in relation to existing literature. The method provides a foundation for standardising the quantification of muscle quality that particularly centres on examining fatty infiltration and composition. We provide recommendations relating to imaging parameters that should additionally inform a priori decisions when planning studies examining lumbar muscle tissues with MRI. Conclusions: We intend this method to provide a platform towards developing and delivering meaningful comparisons between MRI data on lumbar paravertebral muscle quality

UA68/8/2 Clarence Carter Oral History

Oral history interview of Clarence Carter conducted by James Bennett and Crawford Crowe regarding Carter\u27s service in U.S. Army in New Mexico in 1916. Carter talks about his time in John Pershing\u27s unit chasing Pancho Villa

Crew-Centered Operations: What HAL 9000 Should Have Been

To date, manned space flight has maintained the locus of control for the mission on the ground. Mission control performs tasks such as activity planning, system health management, resource allocation, and astronaut health monitoring. Future exploration missions require the locus of control to shift to on-board due light speed constraints and potential loss of communication. The lunar campaign must begin to utilize a shared control approach to validate and understand the limitations of the technology allowing astronauts to oversee and direct aspects of operation that require timely decision making. Crew-centered Operations require a system-level approach that integrates multiple technologies together to allow a crew-prime concept of operations. This paper will provide an overview of the driving mission requirements, highlighting the limitations of existing approaches to mission operations and identifying the critical technologies necessary to enable a crew-centered mode of operations. The paper will focus on the requirements, trade spaces, and concepts for fulfillment of this capability. The paper will provide a broad overview of relevant technologies including: Activity Planning and Scheduling; System Monitoring; Repair and Recovery; Crew Work Practices

Timing and Interstellar Scattering of Thirty-five Distant Pulsars Discovered in the PALFA Survey

We have made extensive observations of 35 distant slow (non-recycled) pulsars discovered in the ongoing Arecibo PALFA pulsar survey. Timing observations of these pulsars over several years at Arecibo Observatory and Jodrell Bank Observatory have yielded high-precision positions and measurements of rotation properties. Despite being a relatively distant population, these pulsars have properties that mirror those of the previously known pulsar population. Many of the sources exhibit timing noise, and one underwent a small glitch. We have used multifrequency data to measure the interstellar scattering properties of these pulsars. We find scattering to be higher than predicted along some lines of sight, particularly in the Cygnus region. Finally, we present XMM-Newton and Chandra observations of the youngest and most energetic of the pulsars, J1856+0245, which has previously been associated with the GeV-TeV pulsar wind nebula HESS J1857+026

Evaluation of simulated O-3 production efficiency during the KORUS-AQ campaign: Implications for anthropogenic NOx emissions in Korea

We examine O3 production and its sensitivity to precursor gases and boundary layer mixing in Korea by using a 3-D global chemistry transport model and extensive observations during the KORea-US cooperative Air Quality field study in Korea, which occurred in May–June 2016. During the campaign, observed aromatic species onboard the NASA DC-8 aircraft, especially toluene, showed high mixing ratios of up to 10 ppbv, emphasizing the importance of aromatic chemistry in O3 production. To examine the role of VOCs and NOx in O3 chemistry, we first implement a detailed aromatic chemistry scheme in the model, which reduces the normalized mean bias of simulated O3 mixing ratios from –26% to –13%. Aromatic chemistry also increases the average net O3 production in Korea by 37%. Corrections of daytime PBL heights, which are overestimated in the model compared to lidar observations, increase the net O3 production rate by ~10%. In addition, increasing NOx emissions by 50% in the model shows best performance in reproducing O3 production characteristics, which implies that NOx emissions are underestimated in the current emissions inventory. Sensitivity tests show that a 30% decrease in anthropogenic NOx emissions in Korea increases the O3 production efficiency throughout the country, making rural regions ~2 times more efficient in producing O3 per NOx consumed. Simulated O3 levels overall decrease in the peninsula except for urban and other industrial areas, with the largest increase (~6 ppbv) in the Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA). However, with simultaneous reductions in both NOx and VOCs emissions by 30%, O3 decreases in most of the country, including the SMA. This implies the importance of concurrent emission reductions for both NOx and VOCs in order to effectively reduce O3 levels in Korea