Variability between credit units dedicated to dental and clinical sciences in dental schools across the USA

PurposeThe Commission of Dental Accreditation (CODA) does not set minimum standards for clock hours of training in Dental and Clinical sciences. The purpose of this evaluation was to compare United States (US) dental schools for variability in clock hours. The current paper utilizes the American Dental Association’s survey of clock hours of all US dental schools which is publicly available data. Clock hours survey from 2010 to 2011 was utilized and the analysis tool, JMP, was utilized to visualize and report variability.PerspectiveThe current paper highlights the large variation in clock hours of training among core clinical subjects in accredited dental schools around the United States. For example, teaching Physical Evaluations; Oral and Maxillofacial; and Oral Diagnosis and Treatment Planning were 97.0; 126.6; and 74.4 h. Moreover, upper limit for hours of Operative Dentistry teaching was 1410 h and lower limit was 129 h. Various other fields of education do enforce strict requirements on educational clock hours. For instance, Massachusetts’ General Law states that both private and public schools must have 900 and 990 h in a school year for elementary and secondary schools, respectively. However, no such stipulation exists in the field of Dental Education. CODA’s mission is “to serve the oral health care needs of the public” and CODA must consider if the average dental patient would consider a dentist who attended the school delivering 1410 h of Operative Dentistry to be the same standard as a graduate of the school delivering 129 h.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138359/1/jicd12229.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138359/2/jicd12229_am.pd

XBootes: An X-Ray Survey of the NDWFS Bootes Field - Paper I Overview and Initial Results

We obtained a 5 ksec deep Chandra X-ray Observatory ACIS-I map of the 9.3 square degree Bootes field of the NOAO Deep Wide-Field Survey. Here we describe the data acquisition and analysis strategies leading to a catalog of 4642 (3293) point sources with 2 or more (4 or more) counts, corresponding to a limiting flux of roughly 4(8)x10^{-15} erg cm^{-2}s^{-1} in the 0.5-7 keV band. These Chandra XBootes data are unique in that they consitute the widest contiguous X-ray field yet observed to such a faint flux limit. Because of the extraordinarily low background of the ACIS, we expect only 14% (0.7%) of the sources to be spurious. We also detected 43 extended sources in this survey. The distribution of the point sources among the 126 pointings (ACIS-I has a 16 x 16 arcminute field of view) is consistent with Poisson fluctuations about the mean of 36.8 sources per pointing. While a smoothed image of the point source distribution is clumpy, there is no statistically significant evidence of large scale filamentary structure. We do find however, that for theta>1 arcminute, the angular correlation function of these sources is consistent with previous measurements, following a power law in angle with slope -0.7. In a 1.4 deg^{2} sample of the survey, approximately 87% of the sources with 4 or more counts have an optical counterpart to R ~26 mag. As part of a larger program of optical spectroscopy of the NDWFS Bootes area, spectra have been obtained for \~900 of the X-ray sources, most of which are QSOs or AGN.Comment: 18 Pages, 10 figures (AASTex Preprint format

Recombinant luciferase-expressing human cytomegalovirus (CMV) for evaluation of CMV inhibitors

Recombinant Towne CMV expressing luciferase under the control of CMV-DNA polymerase (POL) or the late pp28 (UL99) promoters were evaluated for potential application in high-throughput screening of anti-viral compounds. POL-and pp28-luciferase displayed maximal expression 48 and 72 hours post infection, respectively. The pp28-luciferase virus achieved a wider dynamic range of luciferase expression (6-7 logs) and was selected for testing of inhibition by five anti-viral compounds. Luciferase expression highly correlated with plaque reduction and real-time PCR. The pp28-luciferase reporter system is rapid, reproducible, and highly sensitive. It may be applied to screening of novel anti-CMV compounds

A First Look at the Nuclear Region of M31 with Chandra

We report on the first observation of the nuclear region of M31 with the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The nuclear source seen with the Einstein and ROSAT HRIs is resolved into five point sources. One of these sources is within 1'' of the M31 central super-massive black hole. As compared to the other point sources in M31, this nuclear source has an unusual x-ray spectrum. Based on the spatial coincidence we identify this source with the central black hole, and note that the unusual spectrum is a challenge to current theories. A bright transient is detected ~26'' to the west of the nucleus, which may be associated with a stellar mass black hole.Comment: Submitted to ApJ Letters, 4 pages, 4 figures. email: garcia,ssm,fap,wrf,jem,cjf, @head-cfa.harvard.ed

The Chandra XBootes Survey - III: Optical and Near-IR Counterparts

The XBootes Survey is a 5-ks Chandra survey of the Bootes Field of the NOAO Deep Wide-Field Survey (NDWFS). This survey is unique in that it is the largest (9.3 deg^2), contiguous region imaged in X-ray with complementary deep optical and near-IR observations. We present a catalog of the optical counterparts to the 3,213 X-ray point sources detected in the XBootes survey. Using a Bayesian identification scheme, we successfully identified optical counterparts for 98% of the X-ray point sources. The optical colors suggest that the optically detected galaxies are a combination of z<1 massive early-type galaxies and bluer star-forming galaxies whose optical AGN emission is faint or obscured, whereas the majority of the optically detected point sources are likely quasars over a large redshift range. Our large area, X-ray bright, optically deep survey enables us to select a large sub-sample of sources (773) with high X-ray to optical flux ratios (f_x/f_o>10). These objects are likely high redshift and/or dust obscured AGN. These sources have generally harder X-ray spectra than sources with 0.1<f_x/f_o<10. Of the 73 X-ray sources with no optical counterpart in the NDWFS catalog, 47 are truly optically blank down to R~25.5 (the average 50% completeness limit of the NDWFS R-band catalogs). These sources are also likely to be high redshift and/or dust obscured AGN.Comment: 19 pages, 13 figures, ApJ accepted. Catalog can be found at: http://www.noao.edu/noao/noaodeep or ftp://archive.noao.edu/pub/catalogs/xbootes

AN ANALYSIS of the 20-year use of a deep Broward County lime-rock pit as a natural advanced wastewater treatment and groundwater recycling facility, with a recommendation that: with the large number of similar lime-rock pits in Southeast Florida, the opportunity for expanding the benefits of such inland wastewater retention should be given serious consideration instead of wastefully discharging the water into the ocean.

The benefits of the inland retention of freshwaters in South Florida are indisputable. During periods of prolonged drought, the maintenance of a higher groundwater table, which benefits terrestrial vegetation and retards saltwater intrusion, is clearly preferable to the alternative of discharging up to 400,000 gallons of freshwater per day into the ocean. Therefore, the only objections to the retention of treated sewage effluent in an inland lime-rock pit, with the physical, chemical and biologic characteristics of our pits, would have to do with possible detrimental effects to public health or the environment. The major public health concern involves the possible discharge of human pathogens. This can be prevented by high-level chlorination of well-treated effluent such as that of the Ferncrest Utilities. With the cooperation and help of the Nova University Oceanographic Center, the Florida Agricultural Research and Education Station, the Broward County Environmental Quality Control Board and the landowners, the Tindall Hammock Irrigation and Soil Conservation District and the Ferncrest Utilities respectfully submit that retention of the excellent tertiary-treated Ferncrest Utilities effluent in such a lime-rock pit accomplishes the following: • Provides an inexpensive, safe, practical, alternative, non-structural, natural, and environmentally sound drainage and wastewater pollutant treatment and inactivation facility that uses no energy except sunlight. • Conserves, stores and recycles stormwater and wastewater instead of wasteful discharge into canals or the ocean. • Helps to maintain a higher groundwater elevation, thereby reducing the volume of irrigation water needed for area lawns and shrubbery, and the energy and expense thereof. • Retards the rate of saltwater intrusion into the aquifer. • Enhances the U.S. EPA\u27s goal of fishable, swimmable public waters by complexing and precipitating runoff and wastewater pollutants, thereby keeping them out of the North New River Canal, the New River and the ocean. With the large number of similar lime-rock pits in Southeast Florida, the opportunity for expanding the benefits of such inland wastewater retention should be given serious consideration

Cytomegalovirus Viral Load and Virus-Specific Immune Reconstitution after Peripheral Blood Stem Cell versus Bone Marrow Transplantation

Peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) products contain more T cells and monocytes when compared with bone marrow (BM), leading to fewer bacterial and fungal infections. Cytomegelovirus (CMV) viral load and disease as well as CMV-specific immune reconstitution were compared in patients enrolled in a randomized trial comparing PSBC and BM transplantation. There was a higher rate of CMV infection and disease during the first 100 days after transplantation among PBSC recipients (any antigenemia/DNAemia: PBSC, 63% vs BM, 42%, P = .04; CMV disease: PBSC, 17% vs BM, 4%, P = .03). By 2 years, CMV disease rates were similar. The early increase in CMV events correlated temporarily with lower CMV-specific CD4+ T helper and CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte function at 30 days after transplantation in PBSC recipients. By 3 months after transplantation and thereafter, CMV-specific immune responses were similar between BM and PBSC recipients. In conclusion, higher CMV infection and disease rates occurred in PBSC transplant recipients early after transplantation. These differences may be because of a transient delay in CMV-specific immune reconstitution following PBSC transplantation