569 research outputs found
Streptomycin ototoxicity in the unborn child
The original publication is available at http://www.samj.org.zaStreptomycin has been used in pregnant patients for more than 30 years. Some doubt, however, still exists with regard to its effects on the ear of the unborn child. Thirty-three children whose mothers had received streptomycin during pregnancy were followed up and their hearing tested. A minor degree of hearing loss which could possibly be due to the action of streptomycin was found in only 2 children.Publishers' versio
Interval cancers in the NHS breast cancer screening programme in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Background:
The United Kingdom NHS Breast Screening Programme was established in 1988, and women aged between 50 and 70 are routinely invited at three yearly intervals. Expected United Kingdom interval cancer rates have been calculated previously, but this is the first publication from an exercise to collate individual-based interval cancer data at a national level.
Methods:
Interval cancer case ascertainment is achieved by the regular exchange of data between Regional Breast Screening Quality Assurance Reference Centres and Cancer Registries. The present analysis includes interval cancers identified in women screened between 1st April 1997 and 31st March 2003, who were aged between 50 and 64 at the time of their last routine screen.
Results:
In the periods >0–<12 months, 12–<24 months and 24–<36 months after a negative screen, we found overall interval cancer rates and regional ranges of 0.55 (0.43–0.76), 1.13 (0.92–1.47) and 1.22 (0.93–1.57) per 1000 women screened, respectively. Rates in the period 33–<36 months showed a decline, possibly associated with early re-screening or delayed presentation.
Conclusions:
Interval cancer rates were higher than the expected rates in the 24-month period after a negative screen, but were similar to published results from other countries. Increases in background incidence may mean that the expected rates are underestimated. It is also possible that, as a result of incomplete case ascertainment, interval cancers rates were underestimated in some regions in which rates were less than the expected
Photon echo quantum memories in inhomogeneously broadened two level atoms
Here we propose a solid-state quantum memory that does not require spectral
holeburning, instead using strong rephasing pulses like traditional photon echo
techniques. The memory uses external broadening fields to reduce the optical
depth and so switch off the collective atom-light interaction when desired. The
proposed memory should allow operation with reasonable efficiency in a much
broader range of material systems, for instance Er3+ doped crystals which have
a transition at 1.5 um. We present analytic theory supported by numerical
calculations and initial experiments.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figure
New infrared emission of the NV centre in diamond: Zeeman and uniaxial stress studies
An emission band in the infrared is shown to be associated with a transition
within the negative nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond. The band has a
zero-phonon line at 1046 nm, and uniaxial stress and magnetic field
measurements indicate that the emission is associated with a transition between
1E and 1A1 singlet levels. Inter-system crossing to these singlets causes the
spin polarisation that makes the NV- centre attractive for quantum information
processing, and the infrared emission band provides a new avenue for using the
centre in such applications.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figure
The evolution of bits and bottlenecks in a scientific workflow trying to keep up with technology: Accelerating 4D image segmentation applied to nasa data
In 2016, a team of earth scientists directly engaged a team of computer scientists to identify cyberinfrastructure (CI) approaches that would speed up an earth science workflow. This paper describes the evolution of that workflow as the two teams bridged CI and an image segmentation algorithm to do large scale earth science research. The Pacific Research Platform (PRP) and The Cognitive Hardware and Software Ecosystem Community Infrastructure (CHASE-CI) resources were used to significantly decreased the earth science workflow's wall-clock time from 19.5 days to 53 minutes. The improvement in wall-clock time comes from the use of network appliances, improved image segmentation, deployment of a containerized workflow, and the increase in CI experience and training for the earth scientists. This paper presents a description of the evolving innovations used to improve the workflow, bottlenecks identified within each workflow version, and improvements made within each version of the workflow, over a three-year time period
Method of extending hyperfine coherence times in Pr^3+:Y_2SiO_5
In this letter we present a method for increasing the coherence time of
praseodymium hyperfine ground state transitions in Pr^3+:Y_2SiO_5 by the
application of a specific external magnetic field. The magnitude and angle of
the external field is applied such that the Zeeman splitting of a hyperfine
transition is at a critical point in three dimensions, making the first order
Zeeman shift vanishingly small for the transition. This reduces the influence
of the magnetic interactions between the praseodymium ions and the spins in the
host lattice on the transition frequency. Using this method a phase memory time
of 82ms was observed, a value two orders of magnitude greater than previously
reported. It is shown that the residual dephasing is amenable quantum error
correction
Book Reviews
Management of Low Back Pain. Ed. by H. Carron and R. E. McLaughlin. Pp. xii + 246. Illusuated. £16,75. Boston: John Wright. 1982.Obesity and Leanness: Basic Aspects. By M. Stock and N. Romwell. Pp. 98. Illustrated. £10,00. London: John Libbey. 1982.Head and Neck Surgery: Indications, Techniques, Pitfalls, vo!. 3. Ed. by H. H. Naumann. Pp. xvi + 643. Illustrated. RI43,95. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders. 1982.Manual ofClinical Nephrology. Ed. by D. P. Earle, F. del Greco, M. L. Levine and A. P. Saunders. Pp. xx + 585. Illustrated. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders. 1982.Complications of Pediatric Surgery: Prevention and Management. By K. J. Welch. Pp. xiii + 468. Illustrated. RI09,75. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders. 1982.Shoulder Surgery. Ed. by I. Bayley and L. Kesse!. Pp. xvi + 217 + index. Illustrated. DM 140,-. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. 1982.Management of Open Fractures and Their Complications (Saunders Monographs in Clinical Orthopaedics). 4th ed. By R. B. Gustilo. Pp. x + 211. Illustrated. R7l,95. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders. 1982
Conversations on critical thinking: can critical thinking find its way forward as the skill set and mindset of the century?
The capacity to successfully, positively engage with the cognitive capacities of critical thinking has become the benchmark of employability for many diverse industries across the globe and is considered critical for the development of informed, decisive global citizenship. Despite this, education systems in several countries have developed policies and practices that limit the opportunities for students to authentically participate in the discussions, debates, and evaluative thinking that serve to develop the skill set and mindset of critical thinkers. This writing examines the status of critical thinking in four different contexts across the globe as reflected in educational policies and academic experiences as a preface to investigating actual classroom practices and possible impacts the support of critical thinking skills may have on the potential development of the global citizens of the future. Each vignette reflects the contextualized difficulties that are presented by social and cultural concerns and traditions of making meaning. These stories of education also illustrate the various ways in which the skills and capacities of critical thinking are interpreted in different contexts and address the negative nuances with which thinking critically has become associated. Finally, a pedagogical model of teaching, which may support student development of the skill set of critical thinking within the boundaries of social and cultural mindsets, has been developed
Critical Infrastructure Risk in Healthcare Trusts in England: Predicting the impact of Trust building portfolio age on the national condition of NHS assets
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