278 research outputs found

    The Saga of the Notre Dame Law School Class of 1969 “Fierce Competition, Stronger Friendships”

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    The Saga is a collective memorial of the Notre Dame Law School class of 1969 of their time spent at the law school. Front Matter Memorial Names Introductory Note The First of the Fighting Irish IntroductionBefore the BeginningIn the Beginning Our Class Orientation with Dean O\u27Meara First Semester Football Preliminary Matters Courses Miscellaneous Matters Social Activities Lunch with Dean O\u27Meara Food Second Semester Courses Lunch with Dean O\u27Meara Cartels and Comprehensive Exams Social Activities Summer Recess Third Semester Courses Social Activities Fourth Semester Courses Social Activities Dean Joseph O\u27Meara\u27s Retirement Robert F. Kennedy at Notre Dame MLK Candlelight Vigil The Summer of 1968 Fifth Semester Student Organizations Major Changes Courses Miscellaneous Matters Social Activities Sixth Semester Courses Shaffer as Dean Miscellaneous GraduationPost GraduationEnd PieceAppendicies A: Dean O\u27Meara\u27s letter to the Class of 1968 and 1969 B: Remembering RFK C: Robert F. Kennedy at Notre Dame, April 4, 1968, by Bob Greene D: Notre Dame Law Review E: Heir F: Principles of the Common Law G: 124th Commencement Exercises, June 1, 1969 H: 50 Year Reunion 1969–201

    Impact of neoadjuvant treatment on total mesorectal excision for ultra-low rectal cancers

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    <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This study reviewed the impact of pre-operative chemoradiotherapy or post-operative chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy on total mesorectal excision (TME) for ultralow rectal cancers that required either low anterior resection with peranal coloanal anastomosis or abdomino-perineal resection (APR). We examined surgical complications, local recurrence and survival.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Of the 1270 patients who underwent radical resection for rectal cancer from 1994 till 2007, 180 with tumors within 4 cm with either peranal coloanal anastomosis or APR were analyzed. Patients were compared in groups that had surgery only (Group A), pre-operative chemoradiotherapy (Group B), and post-operative therapy (Group C).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were 115 males and the mean age was 65.43 years (range 30-89). APR was performed in 134 patients while 46 had a sphincter-preserving resection with peranal coloanal anastomosis. The mean follow-up period was 52.98 months (range: 0.57 to 178.9). There were 69, 58 and 53 patients in Groups A, B, and C, respectively. Nine patients in Group B could go on to have sphincter-saving rectal resection. The overall peri-operative complication rate was 43.4% in Group A vs. 29.3% in Group B vs. 39.6% in Group C, respectively. The local recurrence rate was significantly lower in Group B (8.6.9% vs. 21.7% in Group A vs. 33.9% in Group C) <it>p < 0.05</it>. The 5-year cancer-specific survival rates for Group A was 49.3%, Group B was 69.9% and Group C was 38.8% (<it>p </it>= 0.14).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Pre-operative chemoradiation in low rectal cancer is not associated with a higher incidence of peri-operative complications and its benefits may include reduction local recurrence.</p

    Biogeochemical Cycling of 99Tc in Alkaline Sediments

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    99Tc will be present in significant quantities in radioactive wastes including intermediate-level waste (ILW). The internationally favored concept for disposing of higher activity radioactive wastes including ILW is via deep geological disposal in an underground engineered facility located ∼200–1000 m deep. Typically, in the deep geological disposal environment, the subsurface will be saturated, cement will be used extensively as an engineering material, and iron will be ubiquitous. This means that understanding Tc biogeochemistry in high pH, cementitious environments is important to underpin safety case development. Here, alkaline sediment microcosms (pH 10) were incubated under anoxic conditions under “no added Fe(III)” and “with added Fe(III)” conditions (added as ferrihydrite) at three Tc concentrations (10–11, 10–6, and 10–4 mol L–1). In the 10–6 mol L–1 Tc experiments with no added Fe(III), ∼35% Tc(VII) removal occurred during bioreduction. Solvent extraction of the residual solution phase indicated that ∼75% of Tc was present as Tc(IV), potentially as colloids. In both biologically active and sterile control experiments with added Fe(III), Fe(II) formed during bioreduction and >90% Tc was removed from the solution, most likely due to abiotic reduction mediated by Fe(II). X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) showed that in bioreduced sediments, Tc was present as hydrous TcO2-like phases, with some evidence for an Fe association. When reduced sediments with added Fe(III) were air oxidized, there was a significant loss of Fe(II) over 1 month (∼50%), yet this was coupled to only modest Tc remobilization (∼25%). Here, XAS analysis suggested that with air oxidation, partial incorporation of Tc(IV) into newly forming Fe oxyhydr(oxide) minerals may be occurring. These data suggest that in Fe-rich, alkaline environments, biologically mediated processes may limit Tc mobility.Peer reviewe

    Promoting physical activity and physical function in people with long-term conditions by primary care:the Function First realist synthesis with co-design

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    Background As people age and accumulate long-term conditions, their physical activity and physical function declines, resulting in disability and loss of independence. Primary care is well placed to empower individuals and communities to reduce this decline; however, the best approach is uncertain. Objectives To develop a programme theory to explain the mechanisms through which interventions improve physical activity and physical function in people with long-term conditions in different primary care contexts, and to co-design a prototype intervention. Data sources Systematic literature searches of relevant databases with forwards and backwards citation tracking, grey literature searches and further purposive searches were conducted. Qualitative data were collected through workshops and interviews. Design Realist evidence synthesis and co-design for primary care service innovation. Setting Primary care in Wales and England. Participants Stakeholders included people with long-term conditions, primary care professionals, people working in relevant community roles and researchers. Methods The realist evidence synthesis combined evidence from varied sources of literature with the views, experiences and ideas of stakeholders. The resulting context, mechanism and outcome statements informed three co-design workshops and a knowledge mobilisation workshop for primary care service innovation. Results Five context, mechanism and outcome statements were developed. (1) Improving physical activity and function is not prioritised in primary care (context). If the practice team culture is aligned to the elements of physical literacy (mechanism), then physical activity promotion will become routine and embedded in usual care (outcome). (2) Physical activity promotion is inconsistent and unco-ordinated (context). If specific resources are allocated to physical activity promotion (in combination with a supportive practice culture) (mechanism), then this will improve opportunities to change behaviour (outcome). (3) People with long-term conditions have varying levels of physical function and physical activity, varying attitudes to physical activity and differing access to local resources that enable physical activity (context). If physical activity promotion is adapted to individual needs, preferences and local resources (mechanism), then this will facilitate a sustained improvement in physical activity (outcome). (4) Many primary care practice staff lack the knowledge and confidence to promote physical activity (context). If staff develop an improved sense of capability through education and training (mechanism), then they will increase their engagement with physical activity promotion (outcome). (5) If a programme is credible with patients and professionals (context), then trust and confidence in the programme will develop (mechanism) and more patients and professionals will engage with the programme (outcome). A prototype multicomponent intervention was developed. This consisted of resources to nurture a culture of physical literacy, materials to develop the role of a credible professional who can promote physical activity using a directory of local opportunities and resources to assist with individual behaviour change. Limitations Realist synthesis and co-design is about what works in which contexts, so these resources and practice implications will need to be modified for different primary care contexts. Conclusions We developed a programme theory to explain how physical activity could be promoted in primary care in people with long-term conditions, which informed a prototype intervention. Future work A future research programme could further develop the prototype multicomponent intervention and assess its acceptability in practice alongside existing schemes before it is tested in a feasibility study to inform a future randomised controlled trial. Study registration This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42018103027. Funding This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research programme and will be published in full in Health Services and Delivery Research; Vol. 9, No. 16. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information. </jats:sec

    Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on incidence of long-term conditions in Wales: a population data linkage study

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    Background The COVID-19 pandemic has directly and indirectly had an impact on health service provision owing to surges and sustained pressures on the system. The effects of these pressures on the management of long-term or chronic conditions are not fully understood. Aim To explore the effects of COVID-19 on the recorded incidence of 17 long-term conditions. Design and setting This was an observational retrospective population data linkage study on the population of Wales using primary and secondary care data within the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank. Method Monthly rates of new diagnosis between 2000 and 2021 are presented for each long-term condition. Incidence rates post-2020 were compared with expected rates predicted using time series modelling of pre-2020 trends. The proportion of annual incidence is presented by sociodemographic factors: age, sex, social deprivation, ethnicity, frailty, and learning disability. Results A total of 5 476 012 diagnoses from 2 257 992 individuals are included. Incidence rates from 2020 to 2021 were lower than mean expected rates across all conditions. The largest relative deficit in incidence was in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease corresponding to 343 (95% confidence interval = 230 to 456) undiagnosed patients per 100 000 population, followed by depression, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, anxiety disorders, and asthma. A GP practice of 10 000 patients might have over 400 undiagnosed long-term conditions. No notable differences between sociodemographic profiles of post- and pre-2020 incidences were observed. Conclusion There is a potential backlog of undiagnosed patients with multiple long-term conditions. Resources are required to tackle anticipated workload as part of COVID-19 recovery, particularly in primary care

    Robots claiming space: gauging public reaction using computer vision techniques

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    Handling delicate crops without damaging or bruising is a challenge facing the au-tomation of tasks within the agri-food sector, which encourages the utilization of soft grippers that are inherently safe and passively compliant. In this paper we present a brief overview of the development of a printable soft gripper integrated with printable bend sensors. The softness of the gripper fingers allows delicate crops to be grasped gently, while the bend sensors are calibrated to measure bending and detect contact. This way the soft gripper not only benefits from the passive compliance of its soft fingers, but also demonstrates a sensor-guided approach for improved grasp control

    Dynamic graphical instructions result in improved attitudes and decreased task completion time in human−robot co-working: an experimental manufacturing study

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    Collaborative robots offer opportunities to increase the sustainability of work and workforces by increasing productivity, quality, and efficiency, whilst removing workers from hazardous, repetitive, and strenuous tasks. They also offer opportunities for increasing accessibility to work, supporting those who may otherwise be disadvantaged through age, ability, gender, or other characteristics. However, to maximise the benefits, employers must overcome negative attitudes toward, and a lack of confidence in, the technology, and must take steps to reduce errors arising from misuse. This study explores how dynamic graphical signage could be employed to address these issues in a manufacturing task. Forty employees from one UK manufacturing company participated in a field experiment to complete a precision pick-and-place task working in conjunction with a collaborative robotic arm. Twenty-one participants completed the task with the support of dynamic graphical signage that provided information about the robot and the activity, while the rest completed the same task with no signage. The presence of the signage improved the completion time of the task as well as reducing negative attitudes towards the robots. Furthermore, participants provided with no signage had worse outcome expectancies as a function of their response time. Our results indicate that the provision of instructional information conveyed through appropriate graphical signage can improve task efficiency and user wellbeing, contributing to greater workforce sustainability. The findings will be of interest for companies introducing collaborative robots as well as those wanting to improve their workforce wellbeing and technology acceptance

    A Complete Spectroscopic Survey of the Milky Way Satellite Segue 1: The Darkest Galaxy

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    We present the results of a comprehensive Keck/DEIMOS spectroscopic survey of the ultra-faint Milky Way satellite galaxy Segue 1. We have obtained velocity measurements for 98.2% of the stars within 67 pc (10 arcmin, or 2.3 half-light radii) of the center of Segue 1 that have colors and magnitudes consistent with membership, down to a magnitude limit of r=21.7. Based on photometric, kinematic, and metallicity information, we identify 71 stars as probable Segue 1 members, including some as far out as 87 pc. After correcting for the influence of binary stars using repeated velocity measurements, we determine a velocity dispersion of 3.7^{+1.4}_{-1.1} km/s, with a corresponding mass within the half-light radius of 5.8^{+8.2}_{-3.1} x 10^5 Msun. The stellar kinematics of Segue 1 require very high mass-to-light ratios unless the system is far from dynamical equilibrium, even if the period distribution of unresolved binary stars is skewed toward implausibly short periods. With a total luminosity less than that of a single bright red giant and a V-band mass-to-light ratio of 3400 Msun/Lsun, Segue 1 is the darkest galaxy currently known. We critically re-examine recent claims that Segue 1 is a tidally disrupting star cluster and that kinematic samples are contaminated by the Sagittarius stream. The extremely low metallicities ([Fe/H] < -3) of two Segue 1 stars and the large metallicity spread among the members demonstrate conclusively that Segue 1 is a dwarf galaxy, and we find no evidence in favor of tidal effects. We also show that contamination by the Sagittarius stream has been overestimated. Segue 1 has the highest measured dark matter density of any known galaxy and will therefore be a prime testing ground for dark matter physics and galaxy formation on small scales.Comment: 24 pages, 4 tables, 11 figures (10 in color). Submitted for publication in ApJ. V3 revised according to comments from the refere
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