Measuring Trace Element Concentrations in Artiodactyl Cannonbones using Portable X-Ray Fluorescence

Artiodactyl bones are the most common faunal remains found in Washington prehistoric archaeology sites, but they are often too fragmented to accurately identify a family, genus, or species. Traditional faunal analysis can only organize unidentifiable bone fragments into size class, and chemical methods often require the destruction of bone samples. In this thesis research, I tested a new, nondestructive faunal analysis technique using portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) to measure trace element concentrations in comparative collection and archaeological bone samples. Using cannonbones from five different artiodactyl species, I collected trace element data from 50 comparative collection specimens and 18 archaeological specimens previously identified to species. I used a Random Forest classification analysis to predict the family and species of modern comparative and archaeological specimens based on collected trace element data. Species identification accuracy was 70% for modern specimens and 22% for archaeological specimens, while family identification accuracy was 82% for modern specimens and 67% for archaeological specimens. These results suggest that identification pXRF method used in this thesis is promising, but would require further work to be definitive

Digital Technology and a New Era for Archaeology: Cooper\u27s Ferry, Idaho

The field of archaeology has a longstanding set of traditional research methods. I argue in favor of implementing a new series of digital and three dimensional methods that will not only change how archaeology is conducted, but will open the door to invaluable new information that was previously inaccessible. This project draws on my experience at the 2015 Cooper’s Ferry field school conducted by Oregon State University. OSU is on the cutting edge of these new digital technologies, as they aim to discover new information about Western Stemmed Tradition peoples that thrived in the Great Basin around 13,000 years ago. The responsibility of our discipline is to tell the whole story of these early Americans. I argue that this can only be done with the use of digital and three dimensional technologies, as this will expose new information and further preserve the integrity of the sites and collections we study

Dmanisi: A Taxonomic Revolution

Over the past two decades, five different skulls have been found in the Dmanisi site located in the Republic of Georgia. These skulls are all very different in cranial features, but they are also some of the most complete and well preserved hominin skulls ever discovered. There is a major concern with these skulls, and with concern also comes controversy. We know that Homo erectus migrated from Africa into Eurasia. That is why some paleoanthropologists believe that, despite the cranial differences, the skulls found at the Dmanisi site all belong to Homo erectus. They claim that skeletal variations are common in a single species in multiple geographical locations. The opposing theory is that the remains seem to have both characteristics of Homo habilis and Homo erectus. They propose a new species called Homo georgicus, that fits between Homo habilis and Homo erectus. Using comparative analysis, I will demonstrate that the remains found at Dmanisi are in fact Homo erectus, and that the species as a whole contained many variable skeletal features throughout various populations, challenging current taxonomy and placing many species of Homo in the new Homo erectus spectrum

Lithium bis­(2-methyl­lactato)borate monohydrate

The title compound {systematic name: poly[[aqua­lithium]-μ-3,3,8,8-tetra­methyl-1,4,6,9-tetra­oxa-5λ4-borataspiro­[4.4]nonane-2,7-dione]}, [Li(C8H12BO6)(H2O)]n (LiBMLB), forms a 12-membered macrocycle, which lies across a crystallographic inversion center. The lithium cations are pseudo-tetra­hedrally coordinated by three methyl­lactate ligands and a water mol­ecule. The asymmetric units couple across crystallographic inversion centers, forming the 12-membered macrocycles. These macrocycles, in turn, cross-link through the Li+ cations, forming an infinite polymeric structure in two dimensions parallel to (101)

Poly[diacetonitrile­[μ3-difluoro­(oxalato)borato]sodium]

The title compound, [Na(C2BF2O4)(CH3CN)2]n, forms infinite two-dimensional layers running parallel to (010). The layers lie across crystallographic mirror planes at y = 1/4 and 3/4. The Na, B and two F atoms reside on these mirror planes. The Na+ cations are six-coordinate. Two equatorial coordination positions are occupied by acetonitrile mol­ecules. The other two equatorial coordination sites are occupied by the chelating O atoms from the difluoro­(oxalato)borate anion (DFOB−). The axial coordination sites are occupied by two F atoms from two different DFOB− anions

Validation of a Medicare Claims-based Algorithm for Identifying Breast Cancers Detected at Screening Mammography

The breast cancer detection rate is a benchmark measure of screening mammography quality, but its computation requires linkage of mammography interpretive performance information with cancer incidence data. A Medicare claims-based measure of detected breast cancers could simplify measurement of this benchmark and facilitate mammography quality assessment and research

Lithium difluoro­(oxalato)borate tetra­methyl­ene sulfone disolvate

The title compound, Li+·C2BF2O4 −·2C4H8O2S, is a dimeric species, which resides across a crystallographic inversion center. The dimers form eight-membered rings containing two Li+ cations, which are joined by O2S sulfone linkages. The Li+ cations are ligated by four O atoms from the anions and solvent mol­ecules, forming a pseudo-tetra­hedral geometry. The exocyclic coordination sites are occupied by O atoms from the oxalate group of the difluoro­(oxalato)borate anion and an additional tetra­methyl­ene sulfone ligand

Improved Imputation of Common and Uncommon Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) with a New Reference Set

Statistical imputation of genotype data is an important technique for analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS). We have built a reference dataset to improve imputation accuracy for studies of individuals of primarily European descent using genotype data from the Hap1, Omni1, and Omni2.5 human SNP arrays (Illumina). Our dataset contains 2.5-3.1 million variants for 930 European, 157 Asian, and 162 African/African-American individuals. Imputation accuracy of European data from Hap660 or OmniExpress array content, measured by the proportion of variants imputed with R^2^>0.8, improved by 34%, 23% and 12% for variants with MAF of 3%, 5% and 10%, respectively, compared to imputation using publicly available data from 1,000 Genomes and International HapMap projects. The improved accuracy with the use of the new dataset could increase the power for GWAS by as much as 8% relative to genotyping all variants. This reference dataset is available to the scientific community through the NCBI dbGaP portal. Future versions will include additional genotype data as well as non-European populations

Changing the antibiotic prescribing of general practice registrars: The ChAP study protocol for a prospective controlled study of a multimodal educational intervention

Background: Australian General Practitioners (GPs) are generous prescribers of antibiotics, prompting concerns including increasing antimicrobial resistance in the community. Recent data show that GPs in vocational training have prescribing patterns comparable with the high prescribing rate of their established GP supervisors. Evidence-based guidelines consistently advise that antibiotics are not indicated for uncomplicated upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) and are rarely indicated for acute bronchitis. A number of interventions have been trialled to promote rational antibiotic prescribing by established GPs (with variable effectiveness), but the impact of such interventions in a training setting is unclear. We hypothesise that intervening while early-career GPs are still developing their practice patterns and prescribing habits will result in better adherence to evidence-based guidelines as manifested by lower antibiotic prescribing rates for URTIs and acute bronchitis. Methods/design: The intervention consists of two online modules, a face-to-face workshop for GP trainees, a face-to-face workshop for their supervisors and encouragement for the trainee-supervisor dyad to include a case-based discussion of evidence-based antibiotic prescribing in their weekly one-on-one teaching meetings. We will use a non-randomised, non-equivalent control group design to assess the impact on antibiotic prescribing for acute upper respiratory infections and acute bronchitis by GP trainees in vocational training. Discussion: Early-career GPs who are still developing their clinical practice and prescribing habits are an underutilized target-group for interventions to curb the growth of antimicrobial resistance in the community. Interventions that are embedded into existing training programs or are linked to continuing professional development have potential to increase the impact of existing interventions at limited additional cost. Trial registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12614001209684 (registered 17/11/2014)