Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) nest predation at Cape Range National Park

Most of the existing sea turtle populations worldwide are in decline. In particular, loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) are listed as endangered and loggerhead nesting populations in Eastern Australia have declined by 86% since the 1970s. However, whilst Eastern Australian loggerhead populations have been extensively studied and monitored, not much is known about the Western Australian nesting population

Shades of Grey: Ethical Dilemmas

No abstract available

An active-architecture approach to COTS integration

Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software products are increasingly used as standard components within integrated information systems. This creates challenges since both their developers and source code are not usually available, and the ongoing development of COTS cannot be predicted. The ArchWare Framework approach recognises COTS products as part of the ambient environment of an information system and therefore an important part of development is incorporating COTS as effective system components. This integration of COTS components, and the composition of components, is captured by an active architecture model which changes as the system evolves. Indeed the architecture modelling language used enables it to express the monitoring and evolution of a system. This active architecture model is structured using control system principles. By modelling both integration and evolution it can guide the system’s response to both predicted and emergent changes that arise from the use of COTS products.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

A possible mechanism of ultrafast amorphization in phase-change memory alloys: an ion slingshot from the crystalline to amorphous position

We propose that the driving force of an ultrafast crystalline-to-amorphous transition in phase-change memory alloys are strained bonds existing in the (metastable) crystalline phase. For the prototypical example of GST, we demonstrate that upon breaking of long Ge-Te bond by photoexcitation Ge ion shot from an octahedral crystalline to a tetrahedral amorphous position by the uncompensated force of strained short bonds. Subsequent lattice relaxation stabilizes the tetrahedral surroundings of the Ge atoms and ensures the long-term stability of the optically induced phase.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure

Quality of Life Assessment in Multiple Myeloma Patients Undergoing Dose-Reduced Tandem Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation

Few studies exist that consider health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) in patients with multiple myeloma (MM) undergoing tandem autologous stem cell transplantation (TASCT). Eighteen patients with advanced MM who underwent dose-modified TASCT were enrolled in this study between March 2006 and March 2008. Patients <60 year old (10) received conditioning with melphalan 140 mg/m2 and patients who were ≥60 years (8) received 100 mg/m2. The median age was 57.5 years (range 35–69). We conducted the European Organization of Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ-C30 and the QLQ-MY24 questionnaires via interviews at presentation, after each ASCT and thereafter every 3 months for 24 months. Mean global health measure improved from 3.44 before transplant to 4.50 (1=very poor, 7=excellent) at the second and subsequent follow-up visits (P<0.001) and the mean global quality of life score improved from 3.61 to 4.71 (P<0.001). Pain symptoms were reduced (P=0.001), and physical functioning improved (P<0.001) throughout the period of post-transplant follow-up. Our study showed that dose-reduced TASCT is well tolerated with low toxicity albeit the transient reduction in QoL during both transplants. Post-transplant follow-up showed significant improvement in overall HR-QoL that reflects positively on the overall disease-outcome. Furthermore, a sole focus on patient-survival does not adequately provide indication regarding the tolerability and effectiveness of a proposed treatment on the patient’s perceived quality of life. As clinicians, our primary concern should be toward patient-welfare as well as survival. Therefore, we should employ the tools of QoL in conjunction with overall survival in order to deliver the best possible patient outcomes. The EORTC-QLQ-MY24 is a practical tool in measuring QoL in myeloma patients

New Path Equations in Absolute Parallelism Geometry

The Bazanski approach, for deriving the geodesic equations in Riemannian geometry, is generalized in the absolute parallelism geometry. As a consequence of this generalization three path equations are obtained. A striking feature in the derived equations is the appearance of a torsion term with a numerical coefficients that jumps by a step of one half from equation to another. This is tempting to speculate that the paths in absolute parallelism geometry might admit a quantum feature.Comment: 4 pages Latex file Journal Reference: Astrophysics and space science 228, 273, (1995

Role of Optical Neuromonitoring in Neonatal Encephalopathy—Current State and Recent Advances

Neonatal encephalopathy (NE) in term and near-term infants is a significant global health problem; the worldwide burden of disease remains high despite the introduction of therapeutic hypothermia. Assessment of injury severity and effective management in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) relies on multiple monitoring modalities from systemic to brain-specific. Current neuromonitoring tools provide information utilized for seizure management, injury stratification, and prognostication, whilst systemic monitoring ensures multi-organ dysfunction is recognized early and supported wherever needed. The neuromonitoring technologies currently used in NE however, have limitations in either their availability during the active treatment window or their reliability to prognosticate and stratify injury confidently in the early period following insult. There is therefore a real need for a neuromonitoring tool that provides cot side, early and continuous monitoring of brain health which can reliably stratify injury severity, monitor response to current and emerging treatments, and prognosticate outcome. The clinical use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technology has increased in recent years. Research studies within this population have also increased, alongside the development of both instrumentation and signal processing techniques. Increasing use of commercially available cerebral oximeters in the NICU, and the introduction of advanced optical measurements using broadband NIRS (BNIRS), frequency domain NIRS (FDNIRS), and diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) have widened the scope by allowing the direct monitoring of oxygen metabolism and cerebral blood flow, both key to understanding pathophysiological changes and predicting outcome in NE. This review discusses the role of optical neuromonitoring in NE and why this modality may provide the next significant piece of the puzzle toward understanding the real time state of the injured newborn brain