From Our Kitchen to Yours: First English Lutheran W.M.F. Cook Book

https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/sd_cookbooks/1074/thumbnail.jp

Complex lithium ion dynamics in simulated LiPO3 glass studied by means of multi-time correlation functions

Molecular dynamics simulations are performed to study the lithium jumps in LiPO3 glass. In particular, we calculate higher-order correlation functions that probe the positions of single lithium ions at several times. Three-time correlation functions show that the non-exponential relaxation of the lithium ions results from both correlated back-and-forth jumps and the existence of dynamical heterogeneities, i.e., the presence of a broad distribution of jump rates. A quantitative analysis yields that the contribution of the dynamical heterogeneities to the non-exponential depopulation of the lithium sites increases upon cooling. Further, correlated back-and-forth jumps between neighboring sites are observed for the fast ions of the distribution, but not for the slow ions and, hence, the back-jump probability depends on the dynamical state. Four-time correlation functions indicate that an exchange between fast and slow ions takes place on the timescale of the jumps themselves, i.e., the dynamical heterogeneities are short-lived. Hence, sites featuring fast and slow lithium dynamics, respectively, are intimately mixed. In addition, a backward correlation beyond the first neighbor shell for highly mobile ions and the presence of long-range dynamical heterogeneities suggest that fast ion migration occurs along preferential pathways in the glassy matrix. In the melt, we find no evidence for correlated back-and-forth motions and dynamical heterogeneities on the length scale of the next-neighbor distance.Comment: 12 pages, 13 figure

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

A flexible alternative to the Cox proportional hazards model for assessing the prognostic accuracy of hospice patient survival.

Prognostic models are often used to estimate the length of patient survival. The Cox proportional hazards model has traditionally been applied to assess the accuracy of prognostic models. However, it may be suboptimal due to the inflexibility to model the baseline survival function and when the proportional hazards assumption is violated. The aim of this study was to use internal validation to compare the predictive power of a flexible Royston-Parmar family of survival functions with the Cox proportional hazards model. We applied the Palliative Performance Scale on a dataset of 590 hospice patients at the time of hospice admission. The retrospective data were obtained from the Lifepath Hospice and Palliative Care center in Hillsborough County, Florida, USA. The criteria used to evaluate and compare the models' predictive performance were the explained variation statistic R(2), scaled Brier score, and the discrimination slope. The explained variation statistic demonstrated that overall the Royston-Parmar family of survival functions provided a better fit (R(2) =0.298; 95% CI: 0.236-0.358) than the Cox model (R(2) =0.156; 95% CI: 0.111-0.203). The scaled Brier scores and discrimination slopes were consistently higher under the Royston-Parmar model. Researchers involved in prognosticating patient survival are encouraged to consider the Royston-Parmar model as an alternative to Cox