The Unforeseen Evolution of Technology

Technology has evolved in the past two decades to alter how countries and their people live in the present day. Said technology has also both solved and created new problems for world powers (i.e. the U.S. and China) to face. Issues of cyber security and cyber surveillance are already potential problems that need to be addressed, where topics like cyber warfare need to be closely monitored with time. All of these are potentially underestimated threats to civil liberties, and to countries in their entirety. I agree with the findings in my project… • The United States is a model to other countries in the cyber world. • Moving forward, countries and their citizens will have to choose between personal freedoms, and national security. • Cyber warfare can have devastating effects on the world. Such issues will need to be addressed in the future

Ulcerative C2 neurocutaneous dysesthesia (trigeminal trophic syndrome in an alternative distribution)

Trigeminal trophic syndrome is an uncommon condition characterized by paresthesia, itch, and self-inflicted wounds following the trigeminal dermatome(s). Similar processes adhering to cervical nerve distributions have been reported, calling into question the specificity of trigeminal trophic syndrome for the trigeminal network. Herein, we report patient with trigeminal trophic syndrome adhering to the C2 dermatome, a previously unreported distribution

Presence of pharmaceuticals in Irish surface water

At each stage of a pharmaceutical lifecycle, there is a significant risk of environmental exposure. For this reason, it is imperative to implement both source directed and end of pipe control measures. This will mitigate any potential hazards to the environment or to humans. The ever-increasing use and availability of pharmaceuticals in the last decade have led to the contamination of surface water ecosystems with ng/L to µg/L concentrations. The environmental fate and toxicological implications of many pharmaceuticals and their residues are not fully understood. Additionally, the stability and biological activity of these “micropollutants” can lead to chronic environmental exposure causing behavioural and health-related effects. This research investigates pharmaceuticals chosen from the updated surface water “Watch List” (Decision (EU) 2018 /840), followed by pharmaceuticals which are commonly found in European surface water and pharmaceuticals which have a low removal efficiency in wastewater treatment plants. This project aims to create a comprehensive prioritisation framework and a risk-based assessment by calculating their risk quotient for each of the chosen pharmaceuticals

Lifecycle assessment of pharmaceuticals in Irish surface waters

At each stage of a pharmaceutical lifecycle, there is a significant risk of environmental exposure. For this reason, it is imperative to implement both source directed and end of pipe control measures. This will mitigate any potential hazards to the environment or to humans. The ever-increasing use and availability of pharmaceuticals in the last decade have led to the contamination of surface water ecosystems with ng/L to µg/L concentrations. The environmental fate and toxicological implications of many pharmaceuticals and their residues are not fully understood. Additionally, the stability and biological activity of these “micropollutants” can lead to chronic environmental exposure causing behavioural and health-related effects. This research investigates pharmaceuticals chosen from the updated surface water “Watch List” (Decision (EU) 2018/840) followed by pharmaceuticals which are commonly found in European surface water and pharmaceuticals which have a low removal efficiency in wastewater treatment plants. This project aims to create a comprehensive prioritisation framework and a risk-based assessment by calculating their risk quotient for each of the chosen pharmaceuticals

Paying attention to attention: psychological realism and the attention economy

In recent years, philosophers have identified a number of moral and psychological harms associated with the attention economy (Alysworth & Castro, 2021; Castro & Pham, 2020; Williams, 2018). Missing from many of these accounts of the attention economy, however, is what exactly attention is. As a result of this neglect of the cognitive science of attention, many of these accounts are not empirically credible. They rely on oversimplified and unsophisticated accounts of not only attention, but self- control, and addiction as well. Of note are accounts of the attention economy that rely on the ‘brain disease’ rhetoric of addiction and subsequent control failures (Aylsworth & Castro, 2021; Bhargava & Velasquez, 2021), accounts that rely on a strict dichotomy of top-down vs. bottom-up attention (Williams, 2018; Aylsworth & Castro, 2021), and accounts that construe attention as a limited resource (Williams, 2018). Drawing on recent work from the neuroscience and psychology of attention, I demonstrate the shortcomings of these accounts and sketch a way forward for an empirically grounded account of the attention economy. These accounts tend to uphold strict dichotomies of voluntary control (e.g., compulsion versus choice, dual-process models of self-control, and top-down versus bottom-up) that cannot account for the complexities of attentional control, mental agency, and decision-making. As such, these empirically and conceptually impoverished accounts cannot adequately address the current so-called crisis of attention. To better understand the harms associated with the attention economy, we need an empirically responsible account of the nature and function of attention and mental agency

Variable tree establishment in bauxite mine restoration in south-west Australia linked to rainfall distribution, seasonal temperatures and seed rain

Reasons for variable establishment of Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata D. Don ex Sm.) and Marri (Corymbia calophylla (Lindl). K. D. Hill & L. A. S. Johnson) on restored forest sites after bauxite mining in south‐west Australia are not well understood. To refine restoration outcomes, we compiled tree seedling density establishment data from surveys of 654 previously mined sites restored between 1998 and 2017, and applied generalised linear models to discriminate the effects of 24 climatic and restoration practice variables. Final models explained 50% and 31% of the variation in Jarrah and Marri density, respectively. Broadcast seeding and fertiliser rates were positively related to seedling density. A more even rainfall distribution in the early wet season increased seedling density. However, persistent rain later in the wet season decreased density, possibly as a result of ripline soil saturation or ponding. Higher average daily maximum temperatures in the dry season decreased seedling density probably due to drought stress, but warmer daily temperature minima in both wet and dry seasons increased density. Seed rain from surrounding unmined forest was implicated as a significant, but highly variable, source of additional seed to restored sites. Restoration practices that influence soil moisture relations (tillage, depth and texture of returned soil), shallow burial of applied seed and timing of fertiliser application are likely to be important in refining restoration outcomes

Comparison of Seven Extraction Kits for Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in Wastewater

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has been used to trace outbreaks and monitor populations for pathogenic viruses such as poliovirus. SARS-CoV-2 has been identified as a candidate for WBE as the virus can survive for prolonged periods in wastewater. The use of commercial extraction kits alongside polyethylene glycol separation, electrostatic membrane filtration, and ultracentrifugation have been used to analyze wastewater. However, the most consistent and versatile commercial kit has not been identified. In this study, previously analyzed wastewater was extracted using seven different commercial kits and quantified using cycle threshold (CT) values from PCR. Data was analyzed using ANOVA and pairwise comparisons at 95% confidence. Results reveal the use of ThermoFisher MagMax Microbiome Kit alongside proteinase K to be the most consistent kit when analyzing soil samples. Qiagen’s EnvironWater kit was identified as the kit of choice for liquid samples. ZymoBIOMICS DNA/RNA kit was identified as a versatile kit for analyzing both solids and liquids. Liquids were found to have higher quantities of virus on average, but solids had lower CT values on average. We conclude that isolating solids should be the primary focus when concentrating virus. MagMax Microbiome Kit with proteinase K was identified as the most consistent and accurate kit for analyzing wastewater. The MagMax Microbiome Kit was found to have significantly lower CT values when compared to other kits across all viral concentrations and sample types. The method used to concentrate water is inexpensive and uses less resources compared to previous methods, which allows WBE to be used at a larger scale in more areas. This will be important for monitoring SARS-CoV-2 variants and population health as the pandemic progresses. Further studies should focus on the efficiency of the kits when using a spiked positive control as well as variance between water samples.https://digitalcommons.unmc.edu/surp2021/1031/thumbnail.jp