EarthPT: a foundation model for Earth Observation

We introduce EarthPT -- an Earth Observation (EO) pretrained transformer. EarthPT is a 700 million parameter decoding transformer foundation model trained in an autoregressive self-supervised manner and developed specifically with EO use-cases in mind. We demonstrate that EarthPT is an effective forecaster that can accurately predict future pixel-level surface reflectances across the 400-2300 nm range well into the future. For example, forecasts of the evolution of the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) have a typical error of approximately 0.05 (over a natural range of -1 -> 1) at the pixel level over a five month test set horizon, out-performing simple phase-folded models based on historical averaging. We also demonstrate that embeddings learnt by EarthPT hold semantically meaningful information and could be exploited for downstream tasks such as highly granular, dynamic land use classification. Excitingly, we note that the abundance of EO data provides us with -- in theory -- quadrillions of training tokens. Therefore, if we assume that EarthPT follows neural scaling laws akin to those derived for Large Language Models (LLMs), there is currently no data-imposed limit to scaling EarthPT and other similar `Large Observation Models.'Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, submitted to NeurIPS CCAI worksho

Herd health status and management practices on 16 Irish suckler beef farms

peer-reviewedBackground: There have been few studies published internationally which document herd health management practices in suckler beef herds and no published Irish studies. The study objective was to document herd health status and management practices on sixteen Irish suckler beef herds over a two year period (2009–2010). The farms used in the study were part of the Teagasc BETTER farm beef programme. The mean (s.d.) herd size, stocking rate and farm size was 68 cows (27.6), 2.0 LU/ha (0.3) and 64.3 (21.6) adjusted hectares, respectively. Two questionnaires were designed; 1) a farmer questionnaire to collect information on farm background and current herd health control practices and 2) a veterinary questionnaire to collect information on the extent of animal health advice given by veterinarians to their clients and identification of any on-farm herd health issues. Results: Dystocia, calf pneumonia, and calf diarrhoea, in that order, were identified as the primary herd health issues in these Irish suckler beef herds. In addition, substantial deficiencies in biosecurity practices were also identified on these farms. Conclusions: The findings of this study may serve as the focus for future research in animal health management practices in Irish suckler beef herds

Brachial plexus injury mimicking a spinal-cord injury.

Objective High-energy impact to the head, neck, and shoulder can result in cervical spine as well as brachial plexus injuries. Because cervical spine injuries are more common, this tends to be the initial focus for management. We present a case in which the initial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was somewhat misleading and a detailed neurological exam lead to the correct diagnosis.Clinical presentation A 19-year-old man presented to the hospital following a shoulder injury during football practice. The patient immediately complained of significant pain in his neck, shoulder, and right arm and the inability to move his right arm. He was stabilized in the field for a presumed cervical-spine injury and transported to the emergency department.Intervention Initial radiographic assessment (C-spine CT, right shoulder x-ray) showed no bony abnormality. MRI of the cervical-spine showed T2 signal change and cord swelling thought to be consistent with a cord contusion. With adequate pain control, a detailed neurological examination was possible and was consistent with an upper brachial plexus avulsion injury that was confirmed by CT myelogram. The patient failed to make significant neurological recovery and he underwent spinal accessory nerve grafting to the suprascapular nerve to restore shoulder abduction and external rotation, while the phrenic nerve was grafted to the musculocutaneous nerve to restore elbow flexion.Conclusion Cervical spinal-cord injuries and brachial plexus injuries can occur by the same high energy mechanisms and can occur simultaneously. As in this case, MRI findings can be misleading and a detailed physical examination is the key to diagnosis. However, this can be difficult in polytrauma patients with upper extremity injuries, head injuries or concomitant spinal-cord injury. Finally, prompt diagnosis and early surgical renerveration have been associated with better long-term recovery with certain types of injury

Plasma generation and plume expansion for a transmission-mode microlaser ablation plasma thruster

An end-to-end model is presented of the transient plume created by a microlaser ablation plasma thruster. In this article, we describe a model of the plasma generation and expansion for a micro-laser plasma thruster operated in transmission-mode (T-mode). The laser ablation and plasma formation processes are modeled using a kinetic ablation model. This procedure provides boundary conditions at the target surface for the plume model that is based on a particle computational approach. The present study considers a 2.5–8 W diode-based laser irradiating a poly-vinyl chloride target for a pulse length of 3–10 ms. Laser beam shape full width at half maximum at the target is about 25×25 μm. The plume simulations reveal many details of the multicomponent plasma expansion. The results are compared with experimentally obtained plume signatures. Generally good agreement between experimental and calculated flux profiles is found. © 2004 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69665/2/JAPIAU-96-1-49-1.pd

Radiative D∗D^* Decay Using Heavy Quark and Chiral Symmetry

The implications of chiral $SU(3)_L \times SU(3)_R$ symmetry and heavy quark symmetry for the radiative decays $D^{*0}\to D^0\gamma$, $D^{*+}\to D^+\gamma$, and $D_s^*\to D_s\gamma$ are discussed. Particular attention is paid to $SU(3)$ violating contributions of order $m_q^{1/2}$. Experimental data on these radiative decays provide constraints on the $D^* D\pi$ coupling.Comment: 9 pages plus 3 pages of figures in POSTSCRIPT file appended to TeX file (uses harvmac.tex and tables.tex), UCSD/PTH 92-31, CALT-68-1816, EFI-92-45, CERN-TH.6650/9

Innovative trial approaches in immune-mediated inflammatory diseases: current use and future potential.

BACKGROUND: Despite progress that has been made in the treatment of many immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs), there remains a need for improved treatments. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) provide the highest form of evidence on the effectiveness of a potential new treatment regimen, but they are extremely expensive and time consuming to conduct. Consequently, much focus has been given in recent years to innovative design and analysis methods that could improve the efficiency of RCTs. In this article, we review the current use and future potential of these methods within the context of IMID trials. METHODS: We provide a review of several innovative methods that would provide utility in IMID research. These include novel study designs (adaptive trials, Sequential Multi-Assignment Randomised Trials, basket, and umbrella trials) and data analysis methodologies (augmented analyses of composite responder endpoints, using high-dimensional biomarker information to stratify patients, and emulation of RCTs from routinely collected data). IMID trials are now well-placed to embrace innovative methods. For example, well-developed statistical frameworks for adaptive trial design are ready for implementation, whilst the growing availability of historical datasets makes the use of Bayesian methods particularly applicable. To assess whether and how these innovative methods have been used in practice, we conducted a review via PubMed of clinical trials pertaining to any of 51 IMIDs that were published between 2018 and 20 in five high impact factor clinical journals. RESULTS: Amongst 97 articles included in the review, 19 (19.6%) used an innovative design method, but most of these were relatively straightforward examples of innovative approaches. Only two (2.1%) reported the use of evidence from routinely collected data, cohorts, or biobanks. Eight (9.2%) collected high-dimensional data. CONCLUSIONS: Application of innovative statistical methodology to IMID trials has the potential to greatly improve efficiency, to generalise and extrapolate trial results, and to further personalise treatment strategies. Currently, such methods are infrequently utilised in practice. New research is required to ensure that IMID trials can benefit from the most suitable methods

Matched-pair analysis of hematopoietic progenitor cell mobilization using G-CSF vs. cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and G-CSF: Enhanced CD34+ cell collections are not necessarily cost-effective

AbstractUsing matched-pair analysis, we compared two popular methods of stem cell mobilization in 24 advanced-stage breast cancer patients who underwent two consecutive mobilizing procedures as part of a tandem transplant protocol. For the first cycle, 10 microg/kg/day granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) was given and apheresis commenced on day 4 and continued for < or =5 days (median 3 days). One week after the first cycle of apheresis, 4000 mg/m2 cyclophosphamide, 400 mg/m2 etoposide, and 10 microg/kg G-CSF were administered for < or =16 days (cycle 2). Apheresis was initiated when the white blood cell (WBC) count exceeded 5000 cells/microL and continued for < or =5 days (median 3 days). Mean values of peripheral blood WBC (31,700+/-3200 vs. 30,700+/-3300/microL) were not significantly different between cycles 1 and 2. Mean number of mononuclear cells (MNC) collected per day was slightly greater with G-CSF mobilization than with the combination of chemotherapy and G-CSF (2.5+/-0.21x10(8) vs. 1.8+/-0.19x10(8) cells/kg). Mean daily CD34+ cell yield, however, was nearly six times higher (12.9+/-4.4 vs. 2.2+/-0.5x10(6)/kg; p = 0.01) with chemotherapy plus G-CSF. With G-CSF alone, 13% of aphereses reached the target dose of 5x10(6) CD34+ cells/kg in one collection vs. 57% with chemotherapy plus G-CSF. Transfusions of red blood cells or platelets were necessary in 18 of 24 patients in cycle 2. Three patients were hospitalized with fever for a median of 3 days after cycle 2. No patients received transfusions or required hospitalization during mobilization with G-CSF alone. Resource utilization (cost of drugs, aphereses, cryopreservation, transfusions, hospitalization) was calculated comparing the median number of collections to obtain a target CD34+ cell dose of 5x10(6) cells/kg: four using G-CSF vs. one using the combination in this data set. Resources for G-CSF mobilization cost $7326 vs.$8693 for the combination, even though more apheresis procedures were performed using G-CSF mobilization. The cost of chemotherapy administration, more doses of G-CSF, transfusions, and hospitalizations caused cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and G-CSF to be more expensive than G-CSF alone. A less toxic and less expensive treatment than cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and G-CSF is needed to be more cost-effective than G-CSF alone for peripheral blood progenitor cell mobilization.Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 1999;5(6):379-85

The Vehicle, 1969, Vol. 11 no. 1

Vol. 11, No. 1 Table of Contents PhotoJeff Nelsonpage 4 The Dancing BodLukepage 5 The Hide-OutEleanor Aikenpage 6 DrawingLawrence Unfriedpage 7 Rain-Drunk Midnight ManiaThomas W. Reapage 9 What I\u27m Supposed To Say About WarMichael G. McKeepage 10 Sinking LashesThomas W. Reapage 10 CandleThomas W. Reapage 10 Nervous ChaperoneThomas W. Reapage 10 Formless Beauty Left To DryThomas W. Reapage 10 MasqueradeThomas W. Reapage 10 Mad JohnJames Jonespage 11 Black RacistJames Jonespage 12 HandsLawrence Unfriedpage 13 The Real Jonathan T. WillwickCharles Whitepage 14 A Cold Afternoon In JanuaryCharles Whitepage 16 Crumpled PaperLawrence Unfriedpage 16 ImpressionMichael G. McKeepage 18 The HunterMary Ann Spidelpage 19 PhotoJeff NelsonCaptionMichael G. McKeepage 20https://thekeep.eiu.edu/vehicle/1019/thumbnail.jp

The Vehicle, 1969, Vol. 11 no. 1

Vol. 11, No. 1 Table of Contents PhotoJeff Nelsonpage 4 The Dancing BodLukepage 5 The Hide-OutEleanor Aikenpage 6 DrawingLawrence Unfriedpage 7 Rain-Drunk Midnight ManiaThomas W. Reapage 9 What I\u27m Supposed To Say About WarMichael G. McKeepage 10 Sinking LashesThomas W. Reapage 10 CandleThomas W. Reapage 10 Nervous ChaperoneThomas W. Reapage 10 Formless Beauty Left To DryThomas W. Reapage 10 MasqueradeThomas W. Reapage 10 Mad JohnJames Jonespage 11 Black RacistJames Jonespage 12 HandsLawrence Unfriedpage 13 The Real Jonathan T. WillwickCharles Whitepage 14 A Cold Afternoon In JanuaryCharles Whitepage 16 Crumpled PaperLawrence Unfriedpage 16 ImpressionMichael G. McKeepage 18 The HunterMary Ann Spidelpage 19 PhotoJeff NelsonCaptionMichael G. McKeepage 20https://thekeep.eiu.edu/vehicle/1019/thumbnail.jp