Educating and Training Library Practitioners: A Comparative History with Trends and Recommendations

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Effects of soft contact lenses as an alternative to topical anesthesia when utilizing the pneuma-tonometer

The purpose of this study was two-fold. We attempted to determine if valid intraocular pressure readings could be obtained when utilizing the Digilab Pneuma-tonometer over a soft contact lens in place of an anesthetic on a patient\u27s eye. We also attempted to determine the nature of any difference in patient sensation between utilizing the tonometer with a soft lens versus utilization with a topical corneal anesthetic. Our results indicated that soft lenses allow accurate readings over a range of normal pressures. We also found that no significant difference in sensation existed between the two conditions (contact lens versus anesthetic). We found that utilizing a soft lens during the tonometric procedure was surprisingly uncomplicated, even on inexperienced patients. The results of this study suggest that the technique of utilizing soft lenses with the Pneuma-Tonometer is practical and will yield valid readings over a normal range of pressures

Maternal and nourishment factors interact to influence offspring developmental trajectories in social wasps

The social and nutritional environments during early development have the potential to affect offspring traits, but the mechanisms and molecular underpinnings of these effects remain elusive. We used Polistes fuscatus paper wasps to dissect how maternally controlled factors (vibrational signals and nourishment) interact to induce different caste developmental trajectories in female offspring, leading to worker or reproductive (gyne) traits. We established a set of caste phenotype biomarkers in P. fuscatus females, finding that gyne-destined individuals had high expression of three caste-related genes hypothesized to have roles in diapause and mitochondrial metabolism. We then experimentally manipulated maternal vibrational signals (via artificial ‘antennal drumming’) and nourishment levels (via restricted foraging). We found that these caste-related biomarker genes were responsive to drumming, nourishment level or their interaction. Our results provide a striking example of the potent influence of maternal and nutritional effects in influencing transcriptional activity and developmental outcomes in offspring

Femoroacetabular impingement as a cause of hip pain in young adult patients. Diagnosis and treatment methods using arthroscopy

Konflikt udowo-panewkowy jest nie do końca poznanym problemem klinicznym, który jest jedną z przyczyn dolegliwości bólowych stawu biodrowego u pacjentów w 3. i 4. dekadzie życia. Zjawisko opisali i zdefiniowali po raz pierwszy Reinhold Ganz i wsp. w 2003 roku. Od tego czasu powstało wiele ciekawych i oryginalnych prac, a problemem tym zajęli się zarówno ortopedzi, radiolodzy, jak i fizjoterapeuci. W niniejszej pracy dokonano przeglądu dostępnego piśmiennictwa. Przedstawiono dane epidemiologiczne, sposoby rozpoznawania, leczenia ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem techniki artroskopowej.Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) is not well recognized clinical problem and one of the possible cause of hip pain in young adult patients in 3rd and 4th decade of life. This phenomenon was described by Reinhold Ganz et al. in 2003. Since than many interesting oryginal papers about FAI were published by orthopedic surgeons, radiologists and physiotherapists. In this paper we do reasearch of the avaible literature, we presented information about epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment in particular taking into account hip arthroscopy

Simple statistical probabilistic forecasts of the winter NAO

The variability of the North Atlantic Oscillation is a key aspect of Northern Hemisphere atmospheric circulation and has a profound impact upon the weather of the surrounding land masses. Recent success with dynamical forecasts predicting the winter NAO at lead times of a few months has the potential to deliver great socio-economic impacts. Here we find that a linear regression model can provide skillful predictions of the winter NAO based on a limited number of statistical predictors. Identified predictors include El-Niño, Arctic sea ice, Atlantic SSTs and tropical rainfall. These statistical models can show significant skill when used to make out-of-sample forecasts and we extend the method to produce probabilistic predictions of the winter NAO. The statistical hindcasts can achieve similar levels of skill to state-of the art dynamical forecast models, although out-of-sample predictions are less skillful, albeit over a small period. Forecasts over a longer out-of-sample period suggest there is true skill in the statistical models, comparable with that of dynamical forecasting models. They can be used both to help evaluate, and to offer insight into sources of predictability and limitations of, dynamical models

Decadal climate variability and predictability: challenges and opportunities

The study of Decadal Climate Variability (DCV) and Predictability is the interdisciplinary endeavor to characterize, understand, attribute, simulate, and predict the slow, multi-year variations of climate at global (e.g. the recent slowdown of global mean temperature rise in the early 2000s) and regional scales (e.g. decadal modulation of hurricane activity in the Atlantic, ongoing drought in California or in the Sahel in the 1970s-1980s, etc.). This study remains very challenging in spite of decades of research, extensive progress in climate system modeling and improvements in the availability and coverage of a wide variety of observations. Considerable obstacles in applying this knowledge to actual predictions remain. This short article is a succint review paper about DCV and predictability. Based on listed issues and priorities, it also proposes a unifying theme referred to as “drivers of teleconnectivity” as a backbone to address and structure the core DCV research challenge. This framework goes beyond a preoccupation with changes in the global mean temperature and directly addresses the regional impacts of external (natural and anthropogenic) climate forcing and internal climate interactions; it thus explicitly deals with the societal needs for region-specific climate information. Such a framework also enables the integration of efforts in a large international research community towards advancing the observation, characterization, understanding and prediction of DCV. Recommendations to make progress are provided as part of the contribution of the CLIVAR “DCVP Research Focus” group

Atlantic multidecadal variability and North Atlantic jet: a multi-model view from the decadal climate prediction project

The influence of the Atlantic Multidecadal Variability (AMV) on the North Atlantic storm track and eddy–driven jet in the winter season is assessed via a coordinated analysis of idealised simulations with state-of-the-art coupled models. Data used are obtained from a multi-model ensemble of AMV± experiments conducted in the framework of the Decadal Climate Prediction Project component C. These experiments are performed by nudging the surface of the Atlantic ocean to states defined by the superimposition of observed AMV± anomalies onto the model climatology. A robust extra-tropical response is found in the form of a wave-train extending from the Pacific to the Nordic seas. In the warm phase of the AMV compared to cold phase, the Atlantic storm track is typically contracted and less extended poleward and the low-level jet is shifted towards the equator in the Eastern Atlantic. Despite some robust features, the picture of an uncertain and model-dependent response of the Atlantic jet emerges and we demonstrate a link between model bias and the character of the jet response

Systems Biology Approach Predicts Antibody Signature Associated with Brucella melitensis Infection in Humans

A complete understanding of the factors that determine selection of antigens recognized by the humoral immune response following infectious agent challenge is lacking. Here we illustrate a systems biology approach to identify the antibody signature associated with Brucella melitensis (Bm) infection in humans and predict proteomic features of serodiagnostic antigens. By taking advantage of a full proteome microarray expressing previously cloned 1406 and newly cloned 1640 Bm genes, we were able to identify 122 immunodominant antigens and 33 serodiagnostic antigens. The reactive antigens were then classified according to annotated functional features (COGs), computationally predicted features (e.g., subcellular localization, physical properties), and protein expression estimated by mass spectrometry (MS). Enrichment analyses indicated that membrane association and secretion were significant enriching features of the reactive antigens, as were proteins predicted to have a signal peptide, a single transmembrane domain, and outer membrane or periplasmic location. These features accounted for 67% of the serodiagnostic antigens. An overlay of the seroreactive antigen set with proteomic data sets generated by MS identified an additional 24%, suggesting that protein expression in bacteria is an additional determinant in the induction of Brucella-specific antibodies. This analysis indicates that one-third of the proteome contains enriching features that account for 91% of the antigens recognized, and after B. melitensis infection the immune system develops significant antibody titers against 10% of the proteins with these enriching features. This systems biology approach provides an empirical basis for understanding the breadth and specificity of the immune response to B. melitensis and a new framework for comparing the humoral responses against other microorganisms