The Role of Radiation Therapy in Renal Carcinoma

In the treatment of renal adenocarcinoma, radiation therapy alone is insufficient. Preoperative radiation increases the resectability rate and delays metastasis, but overall improvement in survival is tentative. Postoperative radiation has not been of proven benefit. While palliation may be achieved, relatively high doses of radiation are required

Advances in the Radiation Therapy of Carcinoma of the Prostate

Basic principles of radiation biology and radiation tolerance are reviewed. The Implications for radiation therapy of newer staging techniques in carcinoma of the prostate such as exploratory laparotomy, lymphangiography, and bone marrow acid prosphatase are discussed. A technique for treating the prostate and para-aortic lymph nodes in continuity is presented. Complications and results of therapy are discussed

File Early, Then Free Ride: How Delaware Law (Mis)Shapes Shareholder Class Actions

Delaware courts have largely privatized enforcement of fiduciary duties in public corporations. In In re Fuqua Industries, Inc. Shareholder Litigation, Chancellor Chandler expressly acknowledged this judicial policy. He noted that Delaware courts implement it partly by allowing private attorneys, working on a contingent fee basis, to initiate and maintain derivative and class actions in the names of nominal shareholder plaintiffs. Attorneys are subject only to the relatively weak constraints that they must inform their clients and receive their consent before they file shareholder suits. Further, Delaware courts use cost and fee shifting mechanisms to economically incentivize those attorneys to initiate such suits. Chancellor Chandler also explained that Delaware courts have adopted this policy because they believe that the plaintiffs\u27 bar is capable of performing a valuable service on behalf of shareholders. Plaintiffs\u27 attorneys understand abstruse issues of corporate governance and fiduciary duties far better than do most shareholders. Consequently, they are uniquely qualified to identify situations in which principles of corporate governance have been violated or fiduciary duties have been breached and then to initiate lawsuits seeking corrective action

Country-level factors in a failing relationship with nature: Nature connectedness as a key metric for a sustainable future

Climate change and biodiversity loss show that the human–nature relationship is failing. That relationship can be measured through the construct of nature connectedness which is a key factor in pro-environmental behaviours and mental well-being. Country-level indicators of extinction of nature experience, consumption and commerce, use and control of nature and negativistic factors were selected. An exploratory analysis of the relationship between these metrics and nature connectedness across adult samples from 14 European countries was conducted (n = 14,745 respondents). The analysis provides insight into how affluence, technology and consumption are associated with the human–nature relationship. These findings motivate a comparison of how nature connectedness and composite indicators of prosperity, progress, development, and sustainability relate to indicators of human and nature’s well-being. In comparison to composite indexes, it is proposed that nature connectedness is a critical indicator of human and nature’s well-being needed to inform the transition to a sustainable future

TESTING FOR CORRECTNESS AND REBASELINING OF IMAGES

An image correctness testing system compares an expected image with an image generated at a device. The system transmits the expected image to the device. The system then analyzes the image that is generated at the device in order to determine a checksum of the image generated at the device. The system further compares the checksum of the image generated at the device with a checksum of the expected image and presents a difference to a user on a web interface. The system can then receive an input from the user to rebaseline the image generated at the device and/or the expected image. On receiving the user input, the system updates the checksum of the expected image equal to the checksum of the image generated at the device or vice versa

Goal 2XL herbicide research project on hybrid poplar at the Conservation Learning Centre, Prince Albert

Non-Peer ReviewedEffective weed control is essential in establishing hybrid poplar grown in afforestation systems in Saskatchewan. Few registered herbicides are currently available for use in hybrid poplar crops, although there are several registered for use in shelterbelts. Goal 2XL is a herbicide registered for hybrid poplar crop use in the United States. The Poplar Council of Canada initiated a research project to gather data necessary for application for herbicide Minor Use Registration of Goal 2XL in Canada. The project was carried in four locations in Canada; two projects in Ontario, one in Saskatchewan and one in Alberta. The use registrations for Goal 2XL in the United States are for rates of 0.5 and 1.0 kg ai/ha. The decision was to use these rates in the project and to add 2.0 and 4.0 kg ai/ha. rates. The four treatment rates were used alongside a weedy check and a weed free check as controls. These six randomized treatments were replicated in triplicate with two poplar clones – Walker and Assinaboine. Each plot sprayed with Goal 2XL consisted of ten Walker and ten Assiniboine clones sprayed pre-planting and ten Walker and ten Assiniboine clones sprayed post- planting. All Goal 2XL treatment rates were sprayed on June 6, 2005, using a backpack CO2 pressure regulated sprayer. The treatments were assessed throughout the growing season for weed control and crop tolerance. The 2.0 and 4.0 kg ai/ha rates provided season long weed control. The 1.0 kg ai/ha rate had 31% weed cover after 99 days and the 0.5 kg ai/ha rate provided satisfactory weed control for only 45 days. No significant loss of growth or damage to trees occurred from the herbicide treatments, even at the 4.0 kg ai/ha rate. The weed free controls were maintained by bagging the trees and treating the plots with Roundup in mid-June, mid-July, and mid-September at a 3L/ha rate

The Hubble Space Telescope high speed photometer

The Hubble Space Telescope will provide the opportunity to perform precise astronomical photometry above the disturbing effects of the atmosphere. The High Speed Photometer is designed to provide the observatory with a stable, precise photometer with wide dynamic range, broad wavelenth coverage, time resolution in the microsecond region, and polarimetric capability. Here, the scientific requirements for the instrument are examined, the unique design features of the photometer are explored, and the improvements to be expected over the performance of ground-based instruments are projected

CollecTF : a database of experimentally-validated transcription factor-binding sites in Bacteria

The influx of high-throughput data and the need for complex models to describe the interaction of prokaryotic transcription factors (TF) with their target sites pose new challenges for TF-binding site databases. CollecTF (http://collectf.umbc.edu) compiles data on experimentally validated, naturally occurring TF-binding sites across the Bacteria domain, placing a strong emphasis on the transparency of the curation process, the quality and availability of the stored data and fully customizable access to its records. CollecTF integrates multiple sources of data automatically and openly, allowing users to dynamically redefine binding motifs and their experimental support base. Data quality and currency are fostered in CollecTF by adopting a sustainable model that encourages direct author submissions in combination with in-house validation and curation of published literature. CollecTF entries are periodically submitted to NCBI for integration into RefSeq complete genome records as link-out features, maximizing the visibility of the data and enriching the annotation of RefSeq files with regulatory information. Seeking to facilitate comparative genomics and machine-learning analyses of regulatory interactions, in its initial release CollecTF provides domain-wide coverage of two TF families (LexA and Fur), as well as extensive representation for a clinically important bacterial family, the Vibrionaceae