Mirage cosmology with an unstable probe D3-brane

We consider the mirage cosmology by an unstable probe brane whose action is represented by BDI action with tachyon. We study how the presence of tachyon affects the evolution of the brane inflation. At the early stage of the brane inflation, the tachyon kinetic term can play an important role in curing the superluminal expansion in mirage cosmology.Comment: 11 pages, improved presentation with some clarifications, typos corrected, references adde

Development of a standardized in-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation set-up

Objective. This study evaluated whether chest compression in a standardized inhospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) set-up can be performed as effectively as when the rescuer is kneeling beside the patient lying on the floor. Specifically, the in-hospital test was standardized according to the rescuers’ average knee height. Methods. Experimental intervention (test 1) was a standardized, in-hospital CPR set-up: first, the bed height was fixed at 70 cm. Second, the height difference between the bed and a step stool was set to the average knee height of the CPR team members (45 cm). Control intervention (test 2) was kneeling on floor. Thirty-eight medical doctors on the CPR team each performed 2 minutes of chest compressions in test 1 and 2 in random order (cross-over trial). A Little Anne was used as a simulated patient who had experienced cardiac arrest. Chest compression parameters, such as average depth and rate, were measured using an accelerometer device. Results. In all tests, the average depths were those recommended in the most recent CPR guidelines (50–60 mm); there were no significant differences between Tests 1 and 2 (53.1 ± 4.3 mm vs. 52.6 ± 4.8 mm, respectively; p = 0.398). The average rate in Test 2 (119.1 ± 12.4 numbers/min) was slightly faster than that in Test 1 (116.4 ± 10.2 numbers/ min; p = 0.028). No differences were observed in any other parameters. Conclusions. Chest compression quality in our standardized in-hospital CPR set-up was similar with that performed in a kneeling position on the floor. Trial Registration: Clinical Research Information Service: KCT000159

EFFECTIVE DOSE MEASUREMENT FOR CONE BEAM COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY USING GLASS DOSIMETER

During image-guided radiation therapy, the patient is exposed to unwanted radiation from imaging devices built into the medical LINAC. In the present study, the effective dose delivered to a patient from a cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) machine was measured. Absorbed doses in specific organs listed in ICRP Publication 103 were measured with glass dosimeters calibrated with kilovolt (kV) X-rays using a whole body physical phantom for typical radiotherapy sites, including the head and neck, chest, and pelvis. The effective dose per scan for the head and neck, chest, and pelvis were 3.37±0.29, 7.36±0.33, and 4.09±0.29 mSv, respectively. The results highlight the importance of the compensation of treatment dose by managing imaging dose

Primary Diffuse Leptomeningeal Gliomatosis: Report of a Case Presenting with Chronic Meningitis

Neoplastic meningitis occurs in approximately 5% of patients with cancer. Primary diffuse leptomeningeal gliomatosis is a rare condition whereby a glioma arises from heterotopic cell nests in the leptomeninges. We report here a case presenting with clinical features similar to those of chronic infectious meningitis without positive cerebrospinal fluid cytology. Neurological signs in our patient deteriorated progressively without responding to antitubercular, antiviral, or antibiotic therapy. Leptomeningeal biopsy sampling revealed the condition to be primary diffuse leptomeningeal gliomatosis

Maintenance of skeletal muscle mass during FOLFIRINOX is a favorable prognostic factor in pancreatic cancer patients

Objective The study aimed to investigate the effect of body composition changes during chemotherapy on clinical outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer. Results In patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC), the cross-sectional area of skeletal muscle (SM) and adipose tissue (AT) at the level of third lumbar vertebra was measured. The SM and AT ratios indicated the changes during chemotherapy. The patients were classified into three groups based on these ratios: group 1, ≥ 1.00; group 2, 0.85–0.99; group 3, < 0.85. The overall survival (OS) and surgical resection rates were estimated. Fifty-eight patients with LAPC who received first-line FOLFIRINOX were analyzed. Fifteen (25.9%) patients who underwent resection showed maintained BMI, SM, and AT as compared to the patients who did not undergo resection. As the SM ratio decreased, the risk for death increased significantly. Further, the resection rate was significantly higher in patients with maintained SM compared to those with low SM ratio. On the contrary, the change in AT ratio was not associated with OS and resection rate; however, significant decrease in AT more than 15% showed poor clinical outcomes. Maintenance of SM during chemotherapy is a reliable prognostic factor indicating longer OS and higher resection rate

The effect of Cs/FA ratio on the long-term stability of mixed cation perovskite solar cells

Formamidinium lead iodide (FAPbI3) is ideal for highly efficient and operationally stable perovskite solar cells (PSC). However, a primary challenge for FAPbI3 PSC is to suppress the phase transition from the photoactive black phase into the yellow nonperovskite δ-phase. The preparation of Cs-containing mixed FAPbI3 perovskite by cation stoichiometric engineering is demonstrated and the influence of the Cs/FA ratio on its phase stability and device performance is discussed. By exploring the optimal ratio of Cs and FA cations in Cs x FA1−x Pb(I0.94Br0.06)3 perovskite, an inverted planar device with Cs0.17FA0.83Pb(I0.94Br0.06)3 composition shows the best power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 16.5% in an active area of 1.08 cm2. More importantly, the Cs0.17FA0.83Pb(I0.94Br0.06)3 perovskite photoactive layer showed remarkable long-term stability, maintaining 88.1% of its initial efficiency for 1128 h in the presence of moisture and oxygen and without any encapsulation. The excellent long-term stability is found to originate from the appropriate tolerance factor and low thermodynamic decomposition energy, which underpins the strong potential for the commercialization of Cs-containing mixed FAPbI3 PSCs

Enhanced light harvesting in bulk heterojunction photovoltaic devices with shape-controlled Ag nanomaterials: Ag nanoparticles versus Ag nanoplates

Enhanced power conversion efficiency (PCE(%)) with improved optical path length from two types of shape controlled silver (Ag) materials (Ag nanoplates versus Ag nanoparticles (NPs)) was studied in poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT)/[6,6]-phenyl C 71 butyric acid methyl-ester (PC 71BM) or poly[N-9′′-hepta-decanyl-2,7-carbazole-alt-5,5-(4′, 7′-di-2-thienyl-2′,1′,3′-benzothiadiazole)] (PCDTBT)/[6,6]-phenyl C 71 butyric acid methyl-ester (PC 71BM) bulk heterojunction (BHJ) devices. The Ag nanoplates and Ag NPs can be synthesized by simple solution polyol chemistry with well defined size and shape. A BHJ with a 0.5 wt% optimized blend ratio of Ag nanoplates shows improved cell performance and photo-current density than a BHJ with Ag NPs owing to the enhanced light absorption with the results of an excitation of localized surface plasmon and efficient light scattering by the Ag nanoplates embedded BHJ film. When the BHJ is combined with the Ag nanoplates at an optimized ratio of 0.5 wt%, the PCE (%) increases from 3.2% to 4.4% in P3HT/PC 71BM, and from 5.9% to 6.6% in PCDTBT/PC 71BM BHJ devices. © 2012 The Royal Society of Chemistry.1