“To Mr. Jefferson on the Occasion of My ‘Madness,’” “The Campaign Manager Talks Shop”

Jon Davis is the author of Dangerous Amusements (OR Press). A chapbook of his prose poems, The Hawk. The Road. The Sunlight After Clouds, is forthcoming from Owl Creek Press. New work has appeared or will be appearing in The Harvard Review, Gulf Coast, and The Prose Poem. He lives in Glorieta, New Mexico, and teaches at the Institute of American Indian Arts

Incomplete software requirements and assumptions made by software engineers

Many software engineers make implicit assumptions when working with incomplete software requirements. To study assumptions made by software engineers while converting incomplete requirements to software design or to implementation phase deliverables, we conducted an experiment with 251 software engineers from eight companies. The results of this empirical study showed that how software engineers responded (using source code, pseudo code, or prototype) to an incomplete requirement significantly impacted the number of explicit assumptions they made. We studied relationships between the number of explicit assumptions and the engineers' experience and educational backgrounds. On average, non-computer-background engineers made more explicit assumptions than computerbackground graduates. We found a significant relationship between the engineers' experience and the number of explicit assumptions made. We discuss the results and their implications. © 2009 IEEE

Effects of boron supplementation to the diet on tibia mineral concentrations, peripheral blood leucocytes percentages and some selected variables of layers

In this study the effects of 0, 50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 mg/kg boron (B) supplementation to diets of laying hens on tibia B, Ca and P (inorganic) concentrations, tibia weight and ash levels (in % and g DM), leucocyte counts (PBL) and positivity of ANAE percentages in peripheral blood were investigated. Boron caused significant (P0.05) increased by B additions. There was no effect of B supplementation on peripheral blood ANAE percentages and splenic plasma cell counts (SPCC). In general, evidence from this study suggests that the effects of B supplementation on mineral metabolism may be modified by treatment time, the age of the birds, or the type of animal used. But, further research is needed in order to investigate the interaction between B and Ca to obtain maximum beneficial effects on bone metabolism of laying hens. © Verlag Eugen Ulmer

Rupture of a pacemaker lead during the course of infective endocarditis

A 23-year-old male who had a VDDR pacemaker implanted seven years ago due to sick sinus syndrome and recurrent syncope episodes was admitted with symptoms of dyspnea, fever, and tachycardia, which were present for a few days. He was suspected to be suffering from pneumonia and underwent computed tomography scanning of the thorax, which revealed widespread infiltration in the lung parenchyma and pulmonary emboli. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed an extremely mobile echogenic structure in the right atrium, which was determined to be the free portion of a ruptured pacemaker lead. There was an overlying thrombus and/or vegetation-like organized soft tissue within the right ventricle around the lead component. In this article, the rupture of a permanent pacemaker lead, which complicated the course of infective endocarditis associated with pulmonary embolism and pneumonia is reported. We hypothesize that the underlying mechanism for the rupture is soft tissue entrapment within the right ventricle. Unfortunately, this rare and life-threatening situation led to the death of our patient after the surgical removal of the device and its components. © 2013 Turkish Society of Cardiology

Centre of the posterior cruciate ligament and the sulcus between tubercle spines are reliable landmarks for tibial component placement

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether the axes aligned with the sulcus between the tibial spines and the middle of the posterior cruciate ligament at the knee and with the tibialis anterior tendon at the ankle provide a neutral rotational and coronal alignment of the tibial component in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). In a cohort of 45 TKA patients, CT scans were taken to quantify coronal and rotational positioning of the components. All patients received a posterior stabilised total knee replacement with a fixed insert (PFC Sigma; DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc; Warsaw, IN, USA). The tibial guide was aligned with the sulcus between the tibial spines and the middle of the posterior cruciate ligament at the knee and with the tibialis anterior tendon at the ankle. The average post-operative coronal mechanical alignment was 1A degrees varus (range 4.5A degrees varus-1.5A degrees valgus; SD +/- 1.51). The average post-operative rotational deviation from the transepicondylar axes (TEA) was 0.78A degrees of internal rotation (1.50A degrees of internal rotation - 3.5A degrees of external rotation) for the tibial component. The whole-extremity mechanical axis deviation was outside the tolerance range of 3A degrees in 4 patients (8.9 %). Deviation of the tibial component rotational position relative to the TEA was 3A degrees or less in 94.5 % of the patients. When the tibial component is aligned using the axis drawn from the centre of the PCL to the sulcus between the tibial spines on the proximal tibia and to the tibialis anterior tendon at the ankle, good alignment will be achieved in both the coronal and axial planes

Weight and Height Percentiles For 0-84-Month-Old Children in Kayseri - A Central Anatolian City in Turkey

Objective: The aim of this study was to present weight and height percentiles for Turkish children aged 0-84 months residing in Kayseri, Turkey and to compare these findings with national references and international standards