Endoscopic Repair of Spontaneous CSF Rhinorrhoea: Results from 21 Cases

Introduction Surgery to close the skull base defect is the treatment of choice in persistent spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhoea with endoscopic endonasal repair being the method of choice.  This study analysed the demographics of presentation, optimal diagnostic and localisation strategies and the effectiveness of transnasal endoscopic treatment strategies  with post-operative follow-up of CSF rhinorrhoea patients in a tertiary care institution   . Materials and Methods  A prospective longitudinal study was conducted on 21 CSF rhinorrhoea patients operated on between August 2014 and August 2018 and results documented. Results CSF rhinorrhoea was found most commonly in middle aged female patients in our study. HRCT PNS was capable of identifying a leak site in 66% of the cases. All patients were operated endoscopically with no major intra-operative or post-operative complications. Resolution of CSF leak occurred in 85% of cases. Conclusion CSF rhinorrhoea can be diagnosed and endoscopic repair can be effectively performed in our existing tertiary care set-ups with good results

Significant quantum effects in hydrogen activation

Dissociation of molecular hydrogen is an important step in a wide variety of chemical, biological, and physical processes. Due to the light mass of hydrogen, it is recognized that quantum effects are often important to its reactivity. However, understanding how quantum effects impact the reactivity of hydrogen is still in its infancy. Here, we examine this issue using a well-defined Pd/Cu(111) alloy that allows the activation of hydrogen and deuterium molecules to be examined at individual Pd atom surface sites over a wide range of temperatures. Experiments comparing the uptake of hydrogen and deuterium as a function of temperature reveal completely different behavior of the two species. The rate of hydrogen activation increases at lower sample temperature, whereas deuterium activation slows as the temperature is lowered. Density functional theory simulations in which quantum nuclear effects are accounted for reveal that tunneling through the dissociation barrier is prevalent for H2 up to ∼190 K and for D2 up to ∼140 K. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations indicate that the effective barrier to H2 dissociation is so low that hydrogen uptake on the surface is limited merely by thermodynamics, whereas the D2 dissociation process is controlled by kinetics. These data illustrate the complexity and inherent quantum nature of this ubiquitous and seemingly simple chemical process. Examining these effects in other systems with a similar range of approaches may uncover temperature regimes where quantum effects can be harnessed, yielding greater control of bond-breaking processes at surfaces and uncovering useful chemistries such as selective bond activation or isotope separation

Wild for UFOs

NOTE: This is a Tableau dashboard. The National UFO Research Center (NUFORC) collects and serves over 80,000 reports of UFO sightings from more than 100 years. The dataset contains the time, location, duration, shape of the sighting. Features of the Interactive Tableau Dashboard includes: 1. The color of the visualization is set to Black to match the theme of the dataset 2.USA Map: The sightings are represented based on: a. Exact location (Lat-long) b. The size of the sighting is matched using Tableau Shapes c. The size of the data point is directly proportional to the time of the sighting. 3. If you hover over the map, the tooltip will show details regarding individual sighting 4. Shapes of the sighting 5. Time of the sighting 6. Year of the sightingOpe

Wild for UFOs

NOTE: This is a Tableau dashboard. The National UFO Research Center (NUFORC) collects and serves over 80,000 reports of UFO sightings from more than 100 years. The dataset contains the time, location, duration, shape of the sighting. Features of the Interactive Tableau Dashboard includes: 1. The color of the visualization is set to Black to match the theme of the dataset 2.USA Map: The sightings are represented based on: a. Exact location (Lat-long) b. The size of the sighting is matched using Tableau Shapes c. The size of the data point is directly proportional to the time of the sighting. 3. If you hover over the map, the tooltip will show details regarding individual sighting 4. Shapes of the sighting 5. Time of the sighting 6. Year of the sightingOpe

Static and Dynamic Characterization and Control of a High-Performance Electro-Hydraulic Actuator

This paper characterizes the static, dynamic, and controlled behavior of a high-performance electro-hydraulic actuator to assess its suitability for use in evaluating machine tool behavior. The actuator consists of a double-acting piston and cylinder arrangement controlled by a servo valve and a separate rear chamber controlled by a separate valve, designed to work in conjunction to generate static forces of up to 7000 N that can be superposed with dynamic forces of up to ±1500 N. This superposition of periodic forces with a non-zero mean makes the actuator capable of applying realistic loading conditions like those experienced by machines during cutting processes. To characterize the performance of this actuator, linearized static and dynamic models are described. Since experiments with the actuator exhibit nonlinear characteristics, the linearized static model is expanded to include the influence of nonlinearities due to flow, leakages, saturations, and due to friction and hysteresis. Since all major nonlinearities are accounted for in the expanded static model, the dynamical model remains linear. Unknown static and dynamical model parameters are calibrated from experiments, and the updated models are observed to capture experimentally observed behavior very well. Validated models are used to tune the proportional and integral gains for the closed-loop control strategy, and the model-based tuning in turn guides appropriate closed-loop control of the actuator to increase its bandwidth to 200 Hz. The statically and dynamically characterized actuator can aid machine tool structural testing. Moreover, the validated models can instruct the design and development of other higher-performance electro-hydraulic actuators, guide the conversion of the actuator into a damper, and also test other advanced control strategies to further improve actuator performance

Prophylactic use of pentoxifylline and tocopherol in patients undergoing dental extractions following radiotherapy for head and neck cancer

Background: In head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy, osteoradionecrosis (ORN) of the jaw is one of the major but uncommon complications. Satisfactorily results have been observed while treating ORN patients with upcoming treatment modalities such as combination therapy of pentoxifylline and Vitamin E (PVe). It is believed that in patients undergoing dental extractions, these treatment modalities can be used prophylactically for lowering the risk of development of ORN. Hence, keeping all these things in mind, we planned the present study to assess the prophylactic role of pentoxifylline and tocopherol in patients who require dental extractions after radiotherapy for cancer of head and neck. Materials and Methods: A total of 110 patients were included in this retrospective study, which had radiotherapy for cancer of the head and neck. After radiotherapy, a total of 450 dental extractions were done in these 110 patients. Results: External beam therapy was given in 92.72% of the patients. 7.27% and 40% of the patients received intensity modulated radiotherapy combination of chemotherapy and intensity modulated radiotherapy, respectively. ORN developed only in 2 patients. Patients had taken PVe for a mean of 12 (24) weeks preoperatively and 14 (18) weeks postoperatively. The incidence was lower than that normally associated with dental extractions in irradiated patients. Conclusion: In patients undergoing dental extractions, after receiving radiotherapy of head and neck region, combination therapy of pentoxifylline and tocopherol are sufficiently effective