Ultrasound by emergency physicians to detect abdominal aortic aneurysms: a UK case series

Early identification of abdominal aortic aneurysms in some patients can be difficult and the diagnosis is missed in up to 30% of patients. Ultrasound cannot be used to identify a leak, but the presence of an aneurysm in an unstable patient is conclusive. With minimal training emergency physicians can easily identify the aorta and thus in the early phase of resuscitation an aneurysm can be confidently excluded. The purpose of the examination is not to delineate the extent of the aneurysm, but to identify those patients that will need emergency surgery. A series of patients presented to the department in an unstable condition with equivocal abdominal signs. An ultrasound scan in the resuscitation room by members of the emergency department revealed an aneurysm, which was enough to convince the vascular surgeons to take the patient straight to theatre with good results. In patients who are stable, computed tomography will continue to be used to evaluate the extent of the aneurysm and identify a leak

Force and energy dissipation variations in non-contact atomic force spectroscopy on composite carbon nanotube systems

UHV dynamic force and energy dissipation spectroscopy in non-contact atomic force microscopy were used to probe specific interactions with composite systems formed by encapsulating inorganic compounds inside single-walled carbon nanotubes. It is found that forces due to nano-scale van der Waals interaction can be made to decrease by combining an Ag core and a carbon nanotube shell in the Ag@SWNT system. This specific behaviour was attributed to a significantly different effective dielectric function compared to the individual constituents, evaluated using a simple core-shell optical model. Energy dissipation measurements showed that by filling dissipation increases, explained here by softening of C-C bonds resulting in a more deformable nanotube cage. Thus, filled and unfilled nanotubes can be discriminated based on force and dissipation measurements. These findings have two different implications for potential applications: tuning the effective optical properties and tuning the interaction force for molecular absorption by appropriately choosing the filling with respect to the nanotube.Comment: 22 pages, 6 figure

Heavy-light meson decay constants from NRQCD: an analysis of the 1/M corrections

We present {\it preliminary} results for the decay constants of heavy-light mesons using NRQCD heavy and tadpole improved Clover light quarks. A comparison is made with data obtained using Wilson light quarks. We present an analysis of the 1/M corrections to the decay constants in the static limit and compare with the predictions of HQET.Comment: Contribution to Lattice 95, 4 pages uuencoded compressed postscript fil

Searching for magnetic monopoles trapped in accelerator material at the Large Hadron Collider

If produced in high energy particle collisions at the LHC, magnetic monopoles could stop in material surrounding the interaction points. Obsolete parts of the beam pipe near the CMS interaction region, which were exposed to the products of pp and heavy ion collisions, were analysed using a SQUID-based magnetometer. The purpose of this work is to quantify the performance of the magnetometer in the context of a monopole search using a small set of samples of accelerator material ahead of the 2013 shutdown.Comment: 11 page

The Road from Medical Injury to Claims Resolution: How No-Fault and Tort Differ

In the area of medical malpractice, no-fault has been offered as a response to the criticisms leveled against tort litigation for medical injuries. Five issues of no-fault are examined within the context of obstetrical malpractice

Lichen Zonation on Coastal Rocks in Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands), British Columbia

The occurrence of 43 marine lichen species on intertidal rocky shores of southern Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands), British Columbia is described and related particularly to elevation on the shore (duration of seawater immersion) and exposure to waves. In the area of Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site on Moresby Island, rockdwelling marine lichens are distributed in zones much as they are elsewhere in the world, although some species found abundantly only in Haida Gwaii give the local shores a unique appearance. In common with other areas, there is a conspicuous black band of Verrucaria species (in this case, nine species plus other black lichens) at the upper edge of the intertidal zone. A conspicuous white band of Coccotrema maritimum above the black band is a unique feature of this flora. The unusually large percentage of endemic, near-endemic or disjunct lichen species and their phytogeography suggest that at least the headland rocks along the west coast were refugia during the last glacial maximum. Verrucaria striatula and V. sandstedei are reported for the first time from British Columbia. Erratum for figure included

Introduced Marine Species in the Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) Region, British Columbia

This historical review of a marine area’s introduced species was facilitated by geo-referenced marine species inventories of the Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) region. One plant, 14 invertebrate, and two fish introduced species have been recorded since the early 20th century from the marine waters around Haida Gwaii. Records of species occurrences are listed and mapped, and modes of introduction are discussed. It will be important to continue documenting areas’ introduced species locations to track the progress of invasions that could affect local marine ecosystem well-being. Erratum for figure included