Classifying Matrix-Valued Holomorphic Cross-Sections Over An Annulus Up To Complete Isometric Isomorphism

We classify certain algebras of matrix-valued cross-sections over an annulus up to complete isometric isomorphism, based on topological bundle invariants. In particular, we study sections of matrix bundles which are continuous on the closure of the annulus and holomorphic on its interior. Our strategy includes exploiting the relationship between concomitants and modulus automorphic functions, as well as the classification of $n$-homogeneous $C^*$-algebras by Fell and Tomiyama-Takesaki. Furthermore, we describe a partial extension of our results over the annulus to larger classes of finitely and smoothly bordered planar domains.Comment: 12 page

Self Esteem in Pre-Teen Girls

Low self-esteem in young girls is on the rise. A review of the literature reveals that low self-esteem has been linked to addictions including drinking, drug abuse, bullying, disordered eating, cutting, depression, promiscuity, and suicide. What are the issues facing preteen girls today that have led to such rampant and widespread negative thought patterns and destructive behavior in their teen years? This study employs a qualitative approach. Information was gathered from a purposive sample from two professionals. Data were gathered from their responses to a questionnaire that addressed contemporary issues that young girls face regarding self-esteem. Results indicated that young girls face many issues with self-esteem that include familial, social, and academic factors. As a result young girls are abusing themselves, beginning in the preteen years. If self-esteem is not improved for these girls they will carry these destructive behaviors into adulthood, leading to a cycle of destructive behavior

The SQUAD : Santa Clara Quadrotor Autonomous Drone

We have constructed a quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that could be used to supplement emergency response personnel, including police and military, when in the field. The SQUAD focused primarily on designing and constructing a sound structure for the UAV, as well as beginning controls work, which will be continued by another team at a later date. This quadrotor UAV has a video camera to provide a live video from its point of view to the user. It carries a global positioning system (GPS) to provide information on its location, and to navigate to waypoints in the immediate area. The quadrotor will be enhanced with pre-loaded commands to take off, land, circle a point, and to hold position. An onboard computer runs the pre-loaded commands and the auto-stabilization system using the GUI programming tool LabVIEW®

Savante

A poster presented by Sean McCormick, Seth Thomas, Jacob Frisk and Audrey Pelster for the class Business, Accounting and Entrepreneurship: Proposed Business Plans.https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/gsp_projects_2019/1005/thumbnail.jp

Complication profiling and Evolution of pelvic exenteration surgery performed in high volume tertiary referral centres over thirty years

Objective: To examine the changes in exenterative surgery over three decades analysing oncological outcomes and whether changes in surgical approach have led to improved patient outcomes Background: Advances in surgical technology, perioperative care and pattern of disease recurrence have coincided with an evolutionary change in exenterative surgery. Methods: A review of prospectively maintained databases of pelvic exenteration surgery from 1988 – 2018 at two high volume specialised institutions. The total cohort was divided into three major time points (1988- 2004, 2005-2010 and 2011 to 2018) to allow comparative analysis. Primary endpoints were overall survival in primary and recurrent disease at each time point. Secondary endpoints included anastomotic leak, blood transfusion, ileus, wound infection rates and evolution of case complexity. Data were analysed using R with a p<0.05 considered significant. Results: Six hundred and seventy patients underwent exenterative surgery. In 2011–2018 there was an increase in resection of recurrent malignancy with a continuous increase in gastro-intestinal malignancies resected over each time period(p<0.001,<0.01) and a reduction in gynaecological malignancy(p<0.001). A significant increase in sacrectomy, pelvic sidewall resection and ileal conduit reconstruction was observed (p<0.01,<0.001). In 2005–2010 patients had increased rates of ileus and anastomotic leak(p<0.05). Patients undergoing resection for primary disease had improved overall survival at time points 1998-2004 and 2011–2018 compared to those with recurrent disease(p=0.007,<0.001). Overall survival was significantly improved in patients with primary versus recurrent disease(p=0.022). Conclusion: There has been a significant improvement in survival in patients undergoing pelvic exenteration surgery from primary disease. Case complexity has increased without significant morbidity. BACKGROUND: The oncological role of pelvic exenteration for locally advanced and recurrent pelvic malignancies arising from the anorectum, gynaecological or urological systems is now well established. Despite this, the surgical community has been slow to accept pelvic exenteration, undoubtedly owing to concerns about high morbidity and mortality rates based on historical data. Therefore, the aims of this study were to assess the general major complications and predictors of morbidity following exenterative surgery for locally advanced and recurrent pelvic malignancies. METHODS: Data were collected from prospective databases at two high-volume institutions specialising in beyond TME surgery for locally advanced and recurrent pelvic malignancies between 1990 and 2015. The primary outcome measures were major complications (Clavien-Dindo 3 or above) and predictors for morbidity. RESULTS: A total of 646 consecutive patients requiring exenterative surgery for local advanced pelvic malignancies were identified. The median age was 63 years (range 19-89 years), and the majority were female patients (371; 57.4%). Five hundred and forty patients did not suffer a major complication (83.6%) following pelvic exenterative surgery. One or more major complications were observed in the remaining 106 patients (16.4%). The most common major complications were intra-abdominal collection (43.7%; n=59/135) and wound infection (14.1%; n=19/135). The overall inpatient mortality rate was 0.46% (n=3/646). Independent predictors for major morbidity following exenterative surgery for locally advanced or recurrent pelvic malignancies were squamous cell carcinoma of anus, sacrectomy, past history of peripheral vascular disease and requirement for blood transfusion. CONCLUSION: Our series adds to the increasing evidence that good outcomes can be achieved for pelvic exenterative surgery in locally advanced and recurrent pelvic malignancies. A coordinated approach in specialist centres for beyond TME surgery demonstrates this is a safe and feasible procedure, offering low major complication rates

Social familiarity improves fast-start escape performance in schooling fish

Using social groups (i.e. schools) of the tropical damselfish Chromis viridis, we test how familiarity through repeated social interactions influences fast-start responses, the primary defensive behaviour in a range of taxa, including fish, sharks, and larval amphibians. We focus on reactivity through response latency and kinematic performance (i.e. agility and propulsion) following a simulated predator attack, while distinguishing between first and subsequent responders (direct response to stimulation versus response triggered by integrated direct and social stimulation, respectively). In familiar schools, first and subsequent responders exhibit shorter latency than unfamiliar individuals, demonstrating that familiarity increases reactivity to direct and, potentially, social stimulation. Further, familiarity modulates kinematic performance in subsequent responders, demonstrated by increased agility and propulsion. These findings demonstrate that the benefits of social recognition and memory may enhance individual fitness through greater survival of predator attacks

Living in a risky world: the onset and ontogeny of an integrated antipredator phenotype in a coral reef fish

Prey individuals with complex life-histories often cannot predict the type of risk environment to which they will be exposed at each of their life stages. Because the level of investment in defences should match local risk conditions, we predict that these individuals should have the ability to modulate the expression of an integrated defensive phenotype, but this switch in expression should occur at key life-history transitions. We manipulated background level of risk in juvenile damselfish for four days following settlement (a key life-history transition) or 10 days post-settlement, and measured a suite of physiological and behavioural variables over 2 weeks. We found that settlement-stage fish exposed to high-risk conditions displayed behavioural and physiological alterations consistent with high-risk phenotypes, which gave them a survival advantage when exposed to predators. These changes were maintained for at least 2 weeks. The same exposure in post-settlement fish failed to elicit a change in some traits, while the expression of other traits disappeared within a week. Our results are consistent with those expected from phenotypic resonance. Expression of antipredator traits may be masked if individuals are not exposed to certain conditions at key ontogenetic stages

Total Neoadjuvant Therapy in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer: A Systematic Review and Metaanalysis of Oncological and Operative Outcomes

Background: Total neoadjuvant therapy in rectal cancer refers to the administration of chemoradiotherapy plus chemotherapy before surgery. Recent studies have shown improved pathological complete response and disease-free survival with this approach. However, survival benefits remain unproven. Our objective is to present a metaanalysis of oncological outcomes of total neoadjuvant therapy in locally advanced rectal cancer. Patients and methods: A comprehensive search was performed on PubMed, Medline, and Google Scholars. Studies comparing total neoadjuvant therapy with standard&nbsp;neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy were included. Data extracted from the individual studies were pooled and a metaanalysis performed. The outcomes of interest are the rate of complete pathological response, nodal response, resection margin, anal preservation, anastomotic leak, local recurrence, distant recurrence, disease-free survival, and overall survival. Results: There were 15 comparative studies with 2437 patients in the neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy group and 2284 in the total neoadjuvant therapy group. The pooled complete pathological response was 22.3% in the total neoadjuvant therapy group, compared with 14.2% in the standard neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy group (p&nbsp;&lt;&nbsp;0.001). Even though there was no difference in local recurrence rate, there was a significantly lower rate of distant recurrence (OR 0.81, p&nbsp;=&nbsp;0.02), and better 3-year disease-free survival (70.6% vs. 65.3%, respectively, p&nbsp;&lt;&nbsp;0.001) and overall survival (84.9% vs. 82.3%, respectively, p&nbsp;=&nbsp;0.006), favoring the total neoadjuvant therapy group. Due to significant heterogeneity in the study protocols, there remains uncertainty on the ideal chemotherapy/radiotherapy sequence. Conclusions: This study provides supporting evidence on the favorable immediate and intermediate oncological outcomes with the use of total neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced rectal cancer

Hebbian and homeostatic plasticity mechanisms in regular spiking and intrinsic bursting cells of cortical layer 5

Layer 5 contains the major projection neurons of the neocortex and is composed of two major cell types: regular spiking (RS) cells, which have cortico-cortical projections, and intrinsic bursting cells (IB), which have subcortical projections. Little is known about the plasticity processes and specifically the molecular mechanisms by which these two cell classes develop and maintain their unique integrative properties. In this study, we find that RS and IB cells show fundementally different experience-dependent plasticity processes and integrate Hebbian and homeostatic components of plasticity differently. Both RS and IB cells showed TNFα-dependent homeostatic plasticity in response to sensory deprivation, but IB cells were capable of a much faster synaptic depression and homeostatic rebound than RS cells. Only IB cells showed input-specific potentiation that depended on CaMKII autophosphorylation. Our findings demonstrate that plasticity mechanisms are not uniform within the neocortex, even within a cortical layer, but are specialized within subcircuits