Extra-articular synovial chondromatosis of the ankle: Unusual case with radiologic-pathologic correlation.

Extra-articular synovial chondromatosis is a rare entity in the foot and ankle. We present a case of a 49-year-old female who presented for evaluation of a palpable concern following trauma; which was found to represent synovial chondromatosis. This case demonstrates the multimodality imaging findings, including ultrasound and MRI, with histopathologic correlation

The Optimization of Flux Trajectories for the Adiabatic Controlled-Z Gate on Split-Tunable Transmons

In a system of two tunable-frequency qubits, it is well-known that adiabatic tuning into strong coupling-interaction regions between the qubit subspace and the rest of the Hilbert space can be used to generate an effective controlled Z rotation. We address the problem of determining a preferable adiabatic trajectory along which to tune the qubit frequency, and apply this to the flux-tunable transmon model. The especially minimally anharmonic nature of these quantum processors makes them good candidates for qubit control using non-computational states, as long as higher-level leakage is properly addressed. While the statement of this method has occurred multiple times in literature, there has been little discussion of which trajectories may be used. We present a generalized method for optimizing parameterized families of possible flux trajectories and provide examples of use on five test families of one and two parameters.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures; will be published in AIP Advance

Human-carnivore coexistence and the responses of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) to anthropogenic activity in Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania

Human-wildlife coexistence requires rigorous, interdisciplinary evidence that promotes effective conservation and management actions. Such evidence-based approaches are conducive to coexistence between local communities and conflict-prone wildlife, such as large carnivores. Yet, little is known about the best path to gaining local community acceptance of large carnivore management strategies, the effects of anthropogenic activity on the persistence of large carnivores, and the way large carnivores interact with Threatened wildlife and local communities. This dissertation focuses on the applied ecology and conservation of large carnivores in Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), Tanzania, a multi-use protected area where the local Maasai community lives alongside wildlife. The three objectives of this dissertation are to: (i) identify the best predictors of the acceptance of large carnivore management strategies by local community members, (ii) assess the effects of anthropogenic activity on large carnivore fitness and physiology, and (iii) understand how large carnivores interact with Threatened wildlife and local communities in multi-use protected areas. I use an interdisciplinary approach by combining socio-psychological data from the Maasai community with long-term data on the diet, fitness, and physiology of free-ranging spotted hyenas in the NCA. In Chapter 2, I show that emotions towards and the cultural importance of large carnivores (spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta), lions (Panthera leo), and leopards (Panthera pardus)) are much stronger predictors of the acceptance of large carnivore management strategies than livestock depredation is. I also show that depredation by large carnivores is a much smaller source of livestock death than disease and drought are. I demonstrate that spotted hyenas are viewed less positively than both lions and leopards are, though invasive strategies are not accepted for all three species. The results demonstrate that conservation practitioners may focus too much on livestock depredation as the main impediment to coexistence; rather, they may need to target the respectful fostering of positive emotions through community engagement, while accounting for how different species are viewed. In Chapter 3, I investigate the effect of diurnal pastoralism on fitness and physiology in the Ngorongoro Crater spotted hyena population over a 24-year period by exploiting a natural experiment: two of the Crater’s eight spotted hyena clans were exposed to the pastoralism, while the other six were not. By directly measuring the effects of pastoralism on fitness and physiology, I quantify how an anthropogenic activity affects highly conservation-relevant traits. I found no detectable difference in juvenile recruitment (fitness) nor allostatic load (physiology) between the exposed and unexposed clans, indicating that the pastoralism had no major deleterious effect on the spotted hyenas. These results suggest that exposure to anthropogenic activity may be compatible with the persistence of group-living large carnivores, if spatiotemporal overlap between the species’ key behaviors and the activity is limited. Finally, in Chapter 4, I use fecal DNA metabarcoding to show that the Ngorongoro Crater spotted hyena population does not regularly consume the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), a Critically Endangered species. I also show that spotted hyenas at least occasionally leave the Crater to forage, based on detections of both Maasai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) and domestic animals. Furthermore, I found a positive association between spotted hyena age and the propensity to consume domestic animals, which has implications for conflict mitigation. This dissertation sheds light on (i) the most important variables to target when seeking to gain local acceptance for large carnivore management strategies, (ii) the effects of anthropogenic activity on the fitness and physiology of large carnivores, and (iii) how large carnivores interact with Threatened wildlife and local communities in multi-use protected areas. Altogether, this dissertation is expected to provide valuable knowledge for the optimization of evidence-based large carnivore conservation and human-carnivore coexistence.Die Koexistenz von Menschen und Wildtieren erfordert gezielte, interdisziplinäre Evidenz, um effektive Schutz- und Bewirtschaftungsmaßnahmen zu etablieren. Solche evidenzbasierten Ansätze sind von zentraler Bedeutung um die Koexistenz zwischen lokalen Gemeinschaften und zu Konflikten neigenden Wildtieren, wie z. B. Großraubtieren zu verbessern. Es ist jedoch nur wenig darüber bekannt, wie die Akzeptanz der lokalen Bevölkerung für Strategien zur Bewirtschaftung von Großraubtieren am besten erreicht werden kann, welche Auswirkungen anthropogene Aktivitäten auf den Fortbestand von Großraubtieren haben und wie Großraubtiere mit bedrohten Arten und lokalen Gemeinschaften interagieren. Diese Dissertation konzentriert sich auf die angewandte Ökologie und den Schutz Großraubtiere in der Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), Tansania, eine vielseitig genutzte Landschaft, in dem die lokalen Gemeinschaften von Massai-Hirten neben Wildtieren lebt. Die drei Hauptziele der Dissertation beschäftigen sich mit: (i) der Identifizierung der besten Prädiktoren für die Akzeptanz verschiedener Managementstrategien für Großraubtiere bei Mitgliedern der lokalen Gemeinschaft, (ii) der Bestimmung des Einflusses tageszeitlicher Weidehaltung auf die Fortpflanzungserfolg und Physiologie in Gruppen lebenden Großraubtiere, (iii) verstehen wie Großraubtiere mit bedrohten Arten und lokalen Gemeinschaften in vielseitig genutzten Landschaften interagieren. In dieser Dissertation verwende ich einen interdisziplinären Ansatz, indem ich sozio-psychologische Daten der Massai-Gemeinschaft mit Langzeitdaten über die Ernährung, Fortpflanzungserfolg und Physiologie von Tüpfelhyänen aus einer freilebenden Population in der NCA kombiniere. In Kapitel 2 zeige ich, dass die Emotionen gegenüber und die kulturelle Bedeutung von Großraubtieren (Tüpfelhyänen, Löwen (Panthera leo) und Leoparden (Panthera pardus)) weitaus mehr Einfluss auf die Akzeptanz von Managementmaßnahmen für Großraubtiere haben als es die Gefährdung von Viehbeständen hat. Ich zeige auch, dass die Verluste durch Großraubtiere eine deutlich seltenere Ursache für den Tod von Nutztieren sind als Krankheiten und Dürre. Insgesamt wurden Tüpfelhyänen weniger positiv bewertet als Löwen und Leoparden, obwohl invasive Strategien bei allen drei Arten abgelehnt wurde. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich Naturschützer möglicherweise zu sehr auf die Viehtötung als Haupthindernis für die Koexistenz konzentrieren; stattdessen wäre es möglicherweise besser sich auf eine respektvolle Stärkung positiver Emotionen durch das Engagement der Gemeinschaft zu konzentrieren und dabei zu berücksichtigen, wie die verschiedenen Arten von der lokalen Gemeinschaft angesehen werden. In Kapitel 3 untersuche ich die Auswirkungen der Tagesweidehaltung auf die Rekrutierung von Jungtieren und die allostatische Belastung der Tupfelhyänenpopulation im Ngorongoro-Krater über einen Zeitraum von 24 Jahren, indem ich ein natürliches Experiment nutze: zwei der acht Tupfelhyänen Clans im Krater waren der Weidehaltung ausgesetzt, die anderen sechs nicht. Durch die direkte Messung der Auswirkungen der Weidewirtschaft auf den Fortpflanzungserfolg und die physiologischen Merkmale quantifiziere ich, wie sich eine anthropogene Aktivität auf äußerst naturschutzrelevante Eigenschaften der Tupfelhyänen auswirkt. Ich konnte keinen nachweisbaren Unterschied bei der Rekrutierung von Jungtieren (Fitness) oder der allostatischen Belastung (Physiologie) zwischen den exponierten und den nicht exponierten Clans feststellen. Dies deutet darauf hin, dass die Weidewirtschaft keine wesentlichen nachteiligen Auswirkungen auf die Tüpfelhyänen hatte. Diese Ergebnisse lassen darauf schließen, dass die Exposition gegenüber anthropogenen Aktivitäten mit dem Fortbestand gruppenlebender Großraubtiere vereinbar sein kann, wenn die räumlich-zeitliche Überlappung zwischen den wichtigsten Verhaltensweisen der Art und den anthropogenen Aktivitäten begrenzt ist. In Kapitel 4 schließlich zeige ich anhand von fäkalen DNA-Metabarkodierungen, dass die Tüpfelhyänenpopulation im Ngorongoro-Krater nicht regelmäßig vom Aussterben bedrohte Arten wie Spitzmaulnashörner (Diceros bicornis), fressen. Basierend auf DNA-Nachweisen von Massai-Giraffen (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) und Haustieren in den Kotproben, zeige ich außerdem, dass Tüpfelhyänen zumindest gelegentlich den Krater zur Nahrungssuche verlassen. Darüber hinaus wurde ein positiver Zusammenhang zwischen dem Alter der Tupfelhyänen und der Neigung zum Verzehr von Haustieren festgestellt, was Hinweise zum für das Konfliktmanagement liefert. Diese Dissertation gibt Aufschluss über (i) die wichtigsten Variablen zur Verbesserung der lokalen Akzeptanz von Managementstrategien für Großraubtiere, (ii) die Auswirkungen anthropogener Aktivitäten auf den Fortpflanzungserfolg und Physiologie von Großraubtieren und (iii) die Art und Weise, wie Großraubtiere mit bedrohten Arten und lokalen Gemeinschaften in vielseitig genutzten Landschaften interagieren. Zusammenfassend sollte diese Dissertation wertvolles Wissen für die Optimierung des evidenzbasierten Großraubtierschutzes und die Koexistenz von lokalen Gemeinschaften und Raubtieren

Molecular Analyses of Changes Induced in the Microbial Populations of Murine Colon After As(III) Exposure

The gut microbiota is essential for mammalian health and metabolism. Thus identifying factors that influence the host microbiota is key to understanding the dynamic interplay between the host and its microbiota. Recent studies have shown the effect of chronic exposures of trivalent arsenic [As(III)] in environmentally relevant concentrations on host physiology, however, little is known of how it impacts the gut microbiota. This study examined the hypothesis that environmentally relevant concentrations of As(III) in drinking water will directly affect the murine colon microbial composition and physiology. The colon microbial communities from 10 and 250 ppb of As(III) exposed mice were compared to the control mice after 2, 5 and 10 weeks of As(III) exposure. Molecular analysis based on 16S rRNA gene and 16S- 23S intergenic region indicated a time and dose dependent shift in microbial community composition. Analysis of 16S rDNA clone libraries demonstrated an increase in Bacteroidetes and proportionally fewer Firmicutes in colon microbiota in response to As(III) exposure. Microbes have developed mechanisms to tolerate arsenic present in the environment. This study is the first to show that the gut microbes express arsenic resistant genes (arsA and arsB) in the colon. However, exposure to ppb concentrations of As(III) did not induce the expression of these genes in colon microbes. These data suggest that the selective effect of As(III) on colon microbiota was not due to direct exposure of colon microbes to As(III), but rather a response to changes in the host physiology. Since arsenic affects the NO levels in human cell lines, it was hypothesized that As(III) will affect the pathways that are linked to NO levels in human body. Many microbes present in human body have nitrogen metabolizing genes (nrfA) that contribute to NO levels, thus the expression levels of nrfA gene in colon microbes was examined. Real time RT-qPCR studies showed a time and dose dependent increase in nrfA expression in response to As(III) exposure. Together, the results presented in this study demonstrated an indirect effect of As(III) on the composition and physiology of murine colon microbiota that may further impact the host health

A general theorem in spectral extremal graph theory

Tur´an numbers are a cornerstone of extremal graph theory. Their asymptotics are completely known when forbidding graphs with chromatic number at least three, however they remain unknown for several basic bipartite graphs. Nikiforov introduced a spectral analogue to Tur´an problems referred to as spectral Tur´ an problems. Here our objective is to maximize the spectral radius of the adjacency matrices of graphs not containing some subgraphs. Such a study may give strong upper bounds for the associated Tur´ an problems. While the asymptotics of spectral Tur´ an numbers are known for graphs with chromatic number at least three, several families of bipartite graphs remain open in this scenario too. In this talk we will share recent progress on the spectral Tur´an numbers for some families of bipartite graphs. In some cases, this will strengthen the previous upper bounds for the associated Tur´ an numbers. Conversely, a recent result for forbidden graphs with chromatic number at least three, proves that whenever the extremal graph for a Tur´an problem consists of a Tur´ an graph + finitely many edges added into it, the spectral extremal graph is also edge extremal. In this talk we will share our recent explorations where we show similar phenomena also occurring with bipartite Tur´an problems, where the role of the Tur´an graph is now replaced by a small clique joined to an independent set

Spectral Tur\'an problems for intersecting even cycles

Let $C_{2k_1, 2k_2, \ldots, 2k_t}$ denote the graph obtained by intersecting $t$ distinct even cycles $C_{2k_1}, C_{2k_2}, \ldots, C_{2k_t}$ at a unique vertex. In this paper, we determine the unique graphs with maximum adjacency spectral radius among all graphs on $n$ vertices that do not contain any $C_{2k_1, 2k_2, \ldots, 2k_t}$ as a subgraph, for $n$ sufficiently large. When one of the constituent even cycles is a $C_4$, our results improve upper bounds on the Tur\'an numbers for intersecting even cycles that follow from more general results of F\"{u}redi [20] and Alon, Krivelevich and Sudakov [1]. Our results may be seen as extensions of previous results for spectral Tur\'an problems on forbidden even cycles $C_{2k}, k\ge 2$ (see [8, 34, 44, 45])

HyDroQuad: A Next-Generation Hybrid Drone-Quadruped Robot

Exploring planetary surfaces like Mars is incredibly challenging due to rough terrain, steep cliffs, and loose soil, areas where traditional rovers struggle. While legged robots offer better adaptability and aerial drones provide speed, neither can handle all terrains efficiently on their own. That is where HyDroQuad comes in. HyDroQuad is a next generation hybrid robot that seamlessly combines walking and flying, allowing it to move through extreme environments with ease. Its legs provide stability and energy efficient travel on rough ground, while its drone like flight capabilities let it jump over obstacles, cross challenging terrain, and reach elevated locations. Built with lightweight, high strength materials like carbon fibre, but initially conceptualized with 3d printed materials like carbon-fibre PLA. To prepare for real world deployment, HyDroQuad undergoes rigorous testing in Mars like environments on Earth, as well as advanced simulations replicating Martian gravity and atmosphere. By bridging the gap between ground and air mobility, HyDroQuad has the potential to explore previously unreachable locations, unlocking new possibilities for planetary science, space exploration, and even search and rescue missions here on Earth

Automatic News Summerization

Natural Language Processing is booming with its applications in the real world, one of which is Text Summarization for large texts including news articles. This research paper provides an extensive comparative evaluation of extractive and abstractive approaches for news text summarization, with an emphasis on the ROUGE score analysis. The study employs the CNN-Daily Mail dataset, which consists of news articles and human-generated reference summaries. The evaluation employs ROUGE scores to assess the efficacy and quality of generated summaries. After Evaluation, we integrate the best-performing models on a web application to assess their real-world capabilities and user experience

Strategies for managing postmenopausal bleeding: a clinician's perspective

Postmenopausal bleeding (PMB) poses a diagnostic challenge due to the varied presentation of endometrial pathologies ranging from benign endometrial atrophy to the possibility of endometrial carcinoma. Although the incidence varies with patient characteristics, it warrants thorough evaluation. Risk factors such as obesity and hormone use should guide assessment. Bleeding may originate from various gynecological and non-gynecological sites, demanding meticulous history-taking and examination. Transvaginal sonography (TVS) is typically the initial step, yet its accuracy in excluding carcinoma remains debated. Invasive procedures like hysteroscopy and endometrial sampling offer higher accuracy but are more intrusive. The optimal diagnostic strategy remains uncertain, necessitating focused research for enhanced accuracy. TVS-guided assessment with an endometrial thickness (ET) threshold of >4 mm prompts evaluation and endometrial sampling. Progestogen therapy mitigates endometrial cancer risk associated with estrogen use, with atypia-hyperplasia necessitating vigilant monitoring and possible hysterectomy. Patient counselling on treatment options is crucial. In summary, PMB warrants a systematic approach integrating imaging, histological assessment, and tailored therapy guided by risk factors, final diagnosis and patient preferences.