Group F: Cell Phone Forearm Holder

Design a forearm device that stores cell phones while traveling and provides an easy access apparatus for one handed use on the go. A compression sleeve will be the main feature as it will be the way in which our device will stay on the users arm. An adjustable apparatus that securely holsters the cellphone will be another feature so that our device will be viable for cellphones of varying dimensions. A swivel apparatus that will allow users to select horizontal or vertical viewing of the cellphone while connected to our device. A track system that allows for the movement of the cellphone from different positions on our device

Reflections on Crafting an Ayahuasca Community Guide for the Awareness of Sexual Abuse

This commentary serves to reflect upon the conception and development of a set of guidelines for the awareness of sexual abuse in ayahuasca settings, an assortment of scenarios that take place in local and global settings entailing the use of a psychedelic brew known for producing visionary and purgative effects composed of Amazonian Banisteriopsis caapi (ayahuasca vine) most commonly combined with the leaves of Psychotria viridis (chacruna) or Diplopterys cabrerana (chaliponga). The globalization and diaspora of ayahuasca expertise, usage, and plant materials has broadened the diversity of individual and group interactions and geographical and social contexts in which this hallucinogenic concoction is ingested, and thus given rise to a range of possibilities which also may, despondently, include possibilities for sexual harassment and abuse. Here, the authors raise the key issues and processes that have led to formation, publication, and dissemination of the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines’ Ayahuasca Community Guide for the Awareness of Sexual Abuse, focusing specifically on the needs for such guidelines, as well as the challenges faced in collaboratively creating them. The creation of guidelines as a form of education is a task wrought with concerns, as they must first and foremost convey the fact that abuse is never the victim/survivor’s fault, and yet they must also aim to inform individuals of potential common scenarios that can lead to abuse. In this sense, guidelines themselves are held up to scrutiny, and the process of collaboratively crafting the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines’ Ayahuasca Community Guide for the Awareness of Sexual Abuse has not been an exception. The authors stress the importance of research and experience in understanding the complexities of the contexts in which potential abuse can occur, particularly around issues of consent and intercultural communication. The overall aim is one of education at all levels; not just in better informing participants but, in doing so, being part of a broader goal of changing the potential scenarios themselves

Evaluación del curso en línea Matemática I para computación de la FEC usando el estándar OPEN ECBCheck

La realización del trabajo investigativo se basa en la implementación del estándar Open ECBCheck para evaluar la calidad y la construcción del curso en línea de Matemática I para ingeniería en computación, con el propósito de mejorar los cursos y los programas en línea

Quality of life measurement in bone metastases: A literature review

Quality of life (QOL) has become an important consideration in the care of patients with bone metastases as prevalence, incidence and patient survival are on the rise. As a result, more interventional studies now measure patient’s QOL as a meaningful endpoint. However, well-developed bone metastases specific quality of life instruments are lacking. A literature review was conducted to better understand the nature of QOL instruments used in bone metastases trials. A total of 47 articles evaluating QOL in patients with bone metastases were identified. Twenty-five different instruments were used to evaluate QOL with study-designed questionnaires and the EORTC QLQ-C30 being most commonly employed. Many studies used more than one scale or instrument to measure QOL. This makes it difficult to compare QOL in bone metastases patients across studies and come to any formal conclusions. Therefore, this review demonstrates the need to develop a bone module that can be used across countries in future clinical trials

Winter warming effects on overwinter survival, energy use, and spring emergence of Cerotoma trifurcata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Bean leaf beetle Cerotoma trifurcata (Förster) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) is a pest of soybean in the U.S.A. and is becoming a concern in Canada. The projected increase in winter temperatures under climate change could affect overwinter survival, timing of spring emergence and, ultimately, the severity of this pest. We assessed the potential effects of warmer winters in field experiments performed in three consecutive years. Three warming levels were applied: (i) heated approximately 4 °C above ambient; (ii) unheated with snow cover left intact; and (iii) unheated with snow cover removed. Survival and date of emergence were assessed in all years, and beetle lipid content was analyzed in 1 year to determine rates of energy use. Overwinter survival was 6.5–14.5% among years. Winter warming inconsistently affected overwinter survival: increasing survival in one winter, decreasing survival in the warmest winter and having no effect in one winter. Beetles that received supplemental winter warming emerged approximately 2 weeks earlier in spring, and lipid content did not differ among treatment groups. Earlier spring emergence may allow for the production of an additional generation per year of C. trifurcata under future climate change. However, further experiments are required to establish the relationship between overwinter survival and subsequent beetle population growth to determine potential pest status and best management practices under future climate conditions

Minocycline fails to modulate cerebrospinal fluid HIV infection or immune activation in chronic untreated HIV-1 infection: results of a pilot study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Minocycline is a tetracycline antibiotic that has been shown to attenuate central nervous system (CNS) lentivirus infection, immune activation, and brain injury in model systems. To initiate assessment of minocycline as an adjuvant therapy in human CNS HIV infection, we conducted an open-labelled pilot study of its effects on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood biomarkers of infection and immune responses in 7 viremic subjects not taking antiretroviral therapy.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were no discernable effects of minocycline on CSF or blood HIV-1 RNA, or biomarkers of immune activation and inflammation including: CSF and blood neopterin, CSF CCL2, CSF white blood cell count, and expression of cell-surface activation markers on CSF and blood T lymphocytes and monocytes.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This pilot study of biological responses to minocycline suggests little potential for its use as adjunctive antiviral or immunomodulating therapy in chronic untreated HIV infection.</p

Observations of Carbon Nanotube Oxidation in an Aberration-Corrected Environmental Transmission Electron Microscope

We report the first direct study on the oxidation of carbon nanotubes at the resolution of an aberration-corrected environmental transmission electron microscope (ETEM), as we locate and identify changes in the same nanotubes as they undergo oxidation at increasing temperatures in-situ in the ETEM. Contrary to earlier reports that CNT oxidation initiates at the end of the tube and proceeds along its length, our findings show that only the outside graphene layer is being removed and on occasion, the interior inner wall is oxidized, presumably due to oxygen infiltrating into the hollow nanotube through an open end or breaks in the tube. We believe that this work provides the foundation for much scientific understanding of the mechanism underlying the nanotube oxidation process, as well as guidelines to manipulate their structure or prevent their oxidation

Quantum-limited optical time transfer for future geosynchronous links

The combination of optical time transfer and optical clocks opens up the possibility of large-scale free-space networks that connect both ground-based optical clocks and future space-based optical clocks. Such networks promise better tests of general relativity, dark matter searches, and gravitational wave detection. The ability to connect optical clocks to a distant satellite could enable space-based very long baseline interferometry (VLBI), advanced satellite navigation, clock-based geodesy, and thousand-fold improvements in intercontinental time dissemination. Thus far, only optical clocks have pushed towards quantum-limited performance. In contrast, optical time transfer has not operated at the analogous quantum limit set by the number of received photons. Here, we demonstrate time transfer with near quantum-limited acquisition and timing at 10,000 times lower received power than previous approaches. Over 300 km between mountaintops in Hawaii with launched powers as low as 40 $\mu$W, distant timescales are synchronized to 320 attoseconds. This nearly quantum-limited operation is critical for long-distance free-space links where photons are few and amplification costly -- at 4.0 mW transmit power, this approach can support 102 dB link loss, more than sufficient for future time transfer to geosynchronous orbits