Thermally Activated Dynamics of the Capillary Condensation

This paper is devoted to the thermally activated dynamics of the capillary condensation. We present a simple model which enables us to identify the critical nucleus involved in the transition mechanism. This simple model is then applied to calculate the nucleation barrier from which we can obtain informations on the nucleation time. We present a simple estimation of the nucleation barrier in slab geometry both in the two dimensional case and in the three dimensional case. We extend the model in the case of rough surfaces which is closer to the experimental case and allows comparison with experimental datas.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, Submitted to J. Phys. : Condens. Matter, Proceedings of the IV Liquid Matter Conference - Grenada(Spain) july 199

Strategic avionics technology definition studies. Subtask 3-1A: Electrical Actuation (ELA) systems

This interim report presents the preliminary results of an electrical actuation (ELA) system study (subtask TA3-1A) to support the NASA strategic avionics technology definition studies. The final report of this ELA study is scheduled for September 30, 1993. The topics are presented in viewgraph form and include the following ELA technology demonstration testing; ELA system baseline; power and energy requirements for shuttle effector systems; power efficiency and losses of ELA effector systems; and power and energy requirements for ELA power sources

Childhood membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis type I: Limited steroid therapy

Childhood membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis type I: Limited steroid therapy. Nineteen patients with biopsy proven membranopro liferative glomerulonephritis type I (MPGN I) and a minimum of three years of follow-up (mean 6.5 ± 0.7 years) have been treated with an uncontrolled regimen of limited corticosteroids . Initial therapy ranged from 20 mg per os (po) every other day to 30 mg/kg/day i.v. for three consecutive days, depending on clinical disease severity. Therapy was then decreased based on each patient's improving clinical status. At diagnosis creatinine clearance (Ccr) was < 80 ml/min/l .73 m2 in 12 patients and < 50 in 2. All patients had hematuria and proteinuria, with 15 in the nephrotic range. Hypertension, present at diagnosis in 13, developed in five others following institution of prednisone, and was controlled medically. Renal biopsy was repeated after two years of therapy prior to cessation of treatment (mean total treatment duration 38 ± 3 months). Follow-up biopsy revealed decreased glomerular inflamn activity in 88% of patients. All patients have now been off prednisone for 40 ± 9 months. The mean CCr is 126 ± 5 ml/min/l.73 m2. Eight patients have normal urinalyses. These data suggest that early therapy with a limited course of corticosteroids, and control of associ ated hypertension, may forestall progressive renal insufficiency in children with MPGN type I

Student Self-Screening for Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) Nasal Colonization in Hand Hygiene Education

Objective. To determine the feasibility and effectiveness of adding a hand hygiene exercise in self-screening for Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) nasal colonization to a health care delivery course for first-year pharmacy (P1) students. Design. About one month after students were trained in hand hygiene technique and indications, faculty members demonstrated how to self-screen for MRSA nasal colonization. Students were then asked to screen themselves during the required class time. Aggregated class results were shared and compared to prevalence estimates for the general population and health care providers. Assessment. The 71 students present in class on the day of the self-screening exercise chose to participate. A survey comparing presecreening and postscreening responses indicated incremental improvements in student knowledge and awareness of health care associated infections and motivation to perform hand hygiene. On the written exam, student performance demonstrated improved knowledge compared to previous class years. Conclusion. Self-screening for MRSA nasal colonization in a health care delivery course for P1 students increased students’ motivation to perform hand hygiene techniques and follow indications promulgated by the World Health Organization

Differences in Proinflammatory Cytokines and Monocyte Subtypes in Older as Compared With Younger Kidney Transplant Recipients.

Background:The number of elderly patients with end-stage kidney disease requiring kidney transplantation continues to grow. Evaluation of healthy older adults has revealed proinflammatory changes in the immune system, which are posited to contribute to age-associated illnesses via "inflamm-aging." Immunologic dysfunction is also associated with impaired control of infections. Whether these immunologic changes are found in older kidney transplant recipients is not currently known, but may have important implications for risk for adverse clinical outcomes. Methods:Three months after transplant, innate immune phenotype was evaluated by flow cytometry from 60 kidney transplant recipients (22 older [≥60 years] and 38 younger [&lt;60 years old]). Multiplex cytokine testing was used to evaluate plasma cytokine levels. Younger patients were matched to older patients based on transplant type and induction immune suppression. Results:Older kidney transplant recipients demonstrated decreased frequency of intermediate monocytes (CD14++CD16+) compared with younger patients (1.2% vs 3.3%, P = 0.007), and a trend toward increased frequency of proinflammatory classical monocytes (CD14++CD16-) (94.5% vs 92.1%) (P = 0.065). Increased levels of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) were seen in older patients. Conclusions:In this pilot study of kidney transplant recipients, we identified differences in the innate immune system in older as compared with younger patients, including increased levels of IFN-γ. This suggests that age-associated nonspecific inflammation persists despite immune suppression. The ability to apply noninvasive testing to transplant recipients will provide tools for patient risk stratification and individualization of immune suppression regimens to improve outcomes after transplantation

DNA-Based Authentication of Botanicals and Plant-Derived Dietary Supplements: Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going?

Herbal medicines and botanicals have long been used as sole or additional medical aids worldwide. Currently, billions of dollars are spent on botanicals and related products, but minimal regulation exists regarding their purity, integrity, and efficacy. Cases of adulteration and contamination have led to severe illness and even death in some cases. Identifying the plant material in botanicals and phytomedicines using organoleptic means or through microscopic observation of plant parts is not trivial, and plants are often misidentified. Recently, DNA-based methods have been applied to these products because DNA is not changed by growth conditions unlike the chemical constituents of many active pharmaceutical agents. In recent years, DNA barcoding methods, which are used to identify species diversity in the Tree of Life, have been also applied to botanicals and plant-derived dietary supplements. In this review, we recount the history of DNA-based methods for identification of botanicals and discuss some of the difficulties in defining a specific bar code or codes to use. In addition, we describe how next generation sequencing technologies have enabled new techniques that can be applied to identifying these products with greater authority and resolution. Lastly, we present case histories where dietary supplements, decoctions, and other products have been shown to contain materials other than the main ingredient stipulated on the label. We conclude that there is a fundamental need for greater quality control in this industry, which if not self-imposed, that may result from legislation

Wigs, disguises and child's play : solidarity in teacher education

It is generally acknowledged that much contemporary education takes place within a dominant audit culture, in which accountability becomes a powerful driver of educational practices. In this culture both pupils and teachers risk being configured as a means to an assessment and target-driven end: pupils are schooled within a particular paradigm of education. The article discusses some ethical issues raised by such schooling, particularly the tensions arising for teachers, and by implication, teacher educators who prepare and support teachers for work in situations where vocational aims and beliefs may be in in conflict with instrumentalist aims. The article offers De Certeau’s concept of ‘la perruque’ to suggest an opening to playful engagement for human ends in education, as a way of contending with and managing the tensions generated. I use the concept to recover a concept of solidarity for teacher educators and teachers to enable ethical teaching in difficult times

Thermodynamics, Structure, and Dynamics of Water Confined between Hydrophobic Plates

We perform molecular dynamics simulations of 512 water-like molecules that interact via the TIP5P potential and are confined between two smooth hydrophobic plates that are separated by 1.10 nm. We find that the anomalous thermodynamic properties of water are shifted to lower temperatures relative to the bulk by $\approx 40$ K. The dynamics and structure of the confined water resemble bulk water at higher temperatures, consistent with the shift of thermodynamic anomalies to lower temperature. Due to this $T$ shift, our confined water simulations (down to $T = 220$ K) do not reach sufficiently low temperature to observe a liquid-liquid phase transition found for bulk water at $T\approx 215$ K using the TIP5P potential. We find that the different crystalline structures that can form for two different separations of the plates, 0.7 nm and 1.10 nm, have no counterparts in the bulk system, and discuss the relevance to experiments on confined water.Comment: 31 pages, 14 figure