Study of behavioral modifications resulting from exposure to high let radiation

Animal irradiations, behavioral studies, neurological studies, and nuclear medicine studies are discussed

The Analysis of a Link between a Remote Local Area Network and its Server Resources

As the Air Force transitions to an expeditionary force, the service\u27s ability to provide computer capabilities at remote locations becomes more and more paramount. One way to provide this support is to create a Local Area Network (LAN) in which the workstations are positioned at the deployed location while the servers are maintained at a Main Operating Base (MOB). This saves the military money, because it eliminates the need to purchase and deploy server equipment as well as eliminating the need to deploy personnel to set-up and maintain the servers. There is, however, a tradeoff. As the number of personnel at the deployed location increases and their computing requirements change, the link between the deployed location and the MOB can become saturated causing degraded performance. This research looks at how the number of personnel at the deployed location and the types of applications they are using affect the link and the overall system performance. It also examines the effects of adding a server to the deployed location. The results of this study show that the network as configured can support up to 30 users. With the addition of an FTP server at the deployed location, the system can handle 50 users. The system was only able to handle 70 users under the lightest application loads. If the network must support over 50 users, more bandwidth is needed between the deployed location and the MOB

Ultrasonic Doppler measurement of renal artery blood flow

Studies were made of (1) blood flow redistribution during lower body negative pressure (LBNP), (2) the profile of blood flow across the mitral annulus of the heart (both perpendicular and parallel to the commissures), (3) testing and evaluation of a number of pulsed Doppler systems, (4) acute calibration of perivascular Doppler transducers, (5) redesign of the mitral flow transducers to improve reliability and ease of construction, and (6) a frequency offset generator designed for use in distinguishing forward and reverse components of blood flow by producing frequencies above and below the offset frequency. Finally methodology was developed and initial results were obtained from a computer analysis of time-varying Doppler spectra

An exploratory randomised controlled trial comparing telephone and hospital follow-up after treatment for colorectal cancer

Aim:  Following treatment for colorectal cancer it is common practice for patients to attend hospital clinics at regular intervals for routine monitoring, although debate persists on the benefits of this approach. Nurse-led telephone follow-up is effective in meeting information and psycho-social needs in other patient groups. We explored the potential benefits of nurse-led telephone follow-up for colorectal cancer patients. Method:  Sixty-five patients were randomised to either telephone or hospital follow-up in an exploratory randomised trial. Results:  The telephone intervention was deliverable in clinical practice and acceptable to patients and health professionals. Seventy-five percent of eligible patients agreed to randomization. High levels of satisfaction were evident in both study groups. Appointments in the hospital group were shorter (median 14.0 minutes) than appointments in the telephone group (median 28.9 minutes). Patients in the telephone arm were more likely to raise concerns during consultations. Conclusion:  Historical approaches to follow-up unsupported by evidence of effectiveness and efficiency are not sustainable. Telephone follow-up by specialist nurses may be a feasible option. A main trial comparing hospital and telephone follow-up is justified although consideration needs to be given to trial design and practical issues related to the availability of specialist nurses at study locations

GraphSE2^2: An Encrypted Graph Database for Privacy-Preserving Social Search

In this paper, we propose GraphSE$^2$, an encrypted graph database for online social network services to address massive data breaches. GraphSE$^2$ preserves the functionality of social search, a key enabler for quality social network services, where social search queries are conducted on a large-scale social graph and meanwhile perform set and computational operations on user-generated contents. To enable efficient privacy-preserving social search, GraphSE$^2$ provides an encrypted structural data model to facilitate parallel and encrypted graph data access. It is also designed to decompose complex social search queries into atomic operations and realise them via interchangeable protocols in a fast and scalable manner. We build GraphSE$^2$ with various queries supported in the Facebook graph search engine and implement a full-fledged prototype. Extensive evaluations on Azure Cloud demonstrate that GraphSE$^2$ is practical for querying a social graph with a million of users.Comment: This is the full version of our AsiaCCS paper "GraphSE$^2$: An Encrypted Graph Database for Privacy-Preserving Social Search". It includes the security proof of the proposed scheme. If you want to cite our work, please cite the conference version of i

Low latency via redundancy

Low latency is critical for interactive networked applications. But while we know how to scale systems to increase capacity, reducing latency --- especially the tail of the latency distribution --- can be much more difficult. In this paper, we argue that the use of redundancy is an effective way to convert extra capacity into reduced latency. By initiating redundant operations across diverse resources and using the first result which completes, redundancy improves a system's latency even under exceptional conditions. We study the tradeoff with added system utilization, characterizing the situations in which replicating all tasks reduces mean latency. We then demonstrate empirically that replicating all operations can result in significant mean and tail latency reduction in real-world systems including DNS queries, database servers, and packet forwarding within networks

Comparing hospital and telephone follow-up after treatment for breast cancer: randomised equivalence trial

Objective To compare traditional hospital follow-up with telephone follow-up by specialist nurses after treatment for breast cancer. Design A two centre randomised equivalence trial in which women remained in the study for a mean of 24 months. Setting Outpatient clinics in two NHS hospital trusts in the north west of England Participants 374 women treated for breast cancer who were at low to moderate risk of recurrence. Interventions Participants were randomised to traditional hospital follow-up (consultation, clinical examination, and mammography as per hospital policy) or telephone follow-up by specialist nurses (consultation with structured intervention and mammography according to hospital policy). Main outcome measures Psychological morbidity (state-trait anxiety inventory, general health questionnaire (GHQ-12)), participants’ needs for information, participants’ satisfaction, clinical investigations ordered, and time to detection of recurrent disease. Results The 95% confidence interval for difference in mean state-trait scores adjusted for treatment received (−3.33 to 2.07) was within the predefined equivalence region (−3.5 to 3.5). The women in the telephone group were no more anxious as a result of foregoing clinic examinations and face-to-face consultations and reported higher levels of satisfaction than those attending hospital clinics (intention to treat P<0.001). The numbers of clinical investigations ordered did not differ between groups. Recurrences were few (4.5%), with no differences between groups for time to detection (median 60.5 (range 37-131) days in hospital group v 39.0 (10-152) days in telephone group; P=0.228). Conclusions Telephone follow-up was well received by participants, with no physical or psychological disadvantage. It is suitable for women at low to moderate risk of recurrence and those with long travelling distances or mobility problems and decreases the burden on busy hospital clinics

Helen Matthews Lewis: Living Social Justice in Appalachia

Often referred to as the leader of inspiration in Appalachian studies, Helen Matthews Lewis linked scholarship with activism and encouraged deeper analysis of the region. Lewis shaped the field of Appalachian studies by emphasizing community participation and challenging traditional perceptions of the region and its people. Helen Matthews Lewis: Living Social Justice in Appalachia, a collection of Lewis’s writings and memories that document her life and work, begins in 1943 with her job on the yearbook staff at Georgia State College for Women with Mary Flannery O’Connor. Editors Patricia D. Beaver and Judith Jennings highlight the achievements of Lewis’s extensive career, examining her role as a teacher and activist at Clinch Valley College (now University of Virginia at Wise) and East Tennessee State University in the 1960s, as well as her work with Appalshop and the Highland Center. Helen Matthews Lewis connects Lewis’s works to wider social movements by examining the history of progressive activism in Appalachia. The book provides unique insight into the development of regional studies and the life of a dynamic revolutionary, delivering a captivating and personal narrative of one woman’s mission of activism and social justice. Helen Matthews Lewis has served as the director of the Berea College Appalachian Center, Appalshop’s Appalachian History Film Project, and the Highlander Research and Education Center. She is coauthor of Mountain Sisters: From Convent to Community in Appalachia and Colonialism in Modern America: The Appalachian Case. Patricia D. Beaver, director of the Center for Appalachian Studies and professor of anthropology at Appalachian State University, is coeditor of Tales from Sacred Wind: Coming of Age in Appalachia. Judith Jennings, executive director of the Kentucky Foundation for Women, is the author of Gender, Religion, and Radicalism in the Long Eighteenth Century: The “Ingenious Quaker” and Her Connections. This book will be welcomed by those of us who found in Helen a role model who combines the life of the mind, the thirst for social justice, and the wisdom of soulful humor. For those others who are looking for such a role model have you made a discovery!”—Richard A. Couto, editor of Political and Civic Leadership: A Reference Handbook This rich collection of memories, photographs, commentaries, and archival documents is an exemplary weave of history and biography—the lived story of Appalachian social movements over much of the twentieth century. The sweeping chronicle of Helen Lewis’s actions and words reveals how she continues to make history by living social justice and refusing to capitulate to unjust power. The lessons could not be more timely, instructive, and inspiring. --Barbara Ellen Smith, author of Neither Separate Nor Equal: Women, Race and Class in the South It is one thing to speak truth to power. Helen does that with intelligence and wit -- to southern segregationists, coal companies, and academic institutions. It’s another thing to speak truth with the powerless. On nearly every page of this wonderful book, Helen combines her commitment to those who lack power with trust in their agency. She breaks into the unruly and uncontainable, and wraps \u27the belt of truth around our waist.\u27 --Anne Lewis, director of Morristown: in the air and sun In showcasing Helen Matthews Lewis, Beaver and Jennings remind us that an individual impassioned to do the right thing will make a positive difference. . . . the editors have also offered us Lewis\u27 legacy as a challenge to examine our own roles vis-a-vis committing to transform our communities. --Courier-Journal Lewis has achieved the status of an icon among Appalachian activists and scholars. . . . An important book. --Appalachian Heritage “Brings together in one volume Lewis’s many contributions to Appalachian Studies. . . . The book reveals the breadth and depth of scholarship and activism in Appalachia and will no doubt become a classic.”--West Virginia History “Provides a more intimate insight into her life and her impact on people and society than a more formal portrait could. . . . Recommended.”--Choice A fitting tribute to a woman who deserves greater acknowledgment and appreciation for her lifetime of work in Appalachia and for the betterment of struggling communities everywhere...The work is a success. -- Joseph Witt- -- Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics Winner of the Appalachian Writers Association’s Book of the Year Award for Nonfictionhttps://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_appalachian_studies/1028/thumbnail.jp