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What explains right-wing radicalization in the United States? Existing research emphasizes demographic changes, economic insecurity, and elite polarization. This paper highlights an additional factor: the impact of foreign wars on society at home. We argue communities that bear the greatest costs of foreign wars are prone to higher rates of right-wing radicalization. To support this claim, we present robust correlations between activity on Parler, a predominantly right-wing social media platform, and fatalities among residents who served in U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, at both the county and census tract level. The findings contribute to understanding right-wing radicalization in the US in two key respects. First, it examines widespread, nonviolent radical-right activity that, because it is less provocative than protest and violence, has eluded systematic measurement. Second, it highlights that U.S. foreign wars have important implications for domestic politics beyond partisanship and voting, to potentially include radicalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under what conditions do armed groups escalate their campaigns to civil war? Existing research suggests foreign states' material support is critical to explaining armed groups' conduct during civil war and, thereby, war intensification, duration, and outcomes. Thus far, little attention has been paid to understanding whether and how foreign support influences whether armed groups fight civil wars in the first place, largely due to data limitations. Armed group-level datasets have included only those already engaged in significant civil war violence, which introduces selection bias that precludes investigating factors that influence which groups fight civil wars. Leveraging the new Armed Groups Dataset (AGD), which measures characteristics of armed groups engaged in lower-level violence, we conduct a preliminary empirical investigation into the explanatory role of foreign sponsorship in group-level variation in civil war. While foreign sponsorship and civil war are correlated, there is little evidence that sponsorship has substantial independent explanatory value in predicting civil war. Rather, the evidence is consistent with claims that armed groups' organizational characteristics account for both access to foreign sponsorship and, independently, their likelihood of escalating civil war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the complexities surrounding the implementation of the thoracoabdominal normothermic regional perfusion in organ donation after circulatory determination of death (TANRP-DCDD) protocol. It also discusses the challenges faced by the medical and ethics community in understanding and framing the discourse around TANRP-DCDD, including the interpretation of circulatory criteria of death, the preservation of death through ligating vessels.

Physicians have a long-standing obligation to consider social implications of their practice and its potential influences on health policy. One example of a practice's influence on policy is determining death by neurologic criteria. By lobbying policymakers, maintaining their diagnostic skills, participating in national medical societies, and contributing to robust discourse, physicians can positively influence practice and policy about death determination by neurologic criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paradigm is limited because the occurrence of BD/DNC is infrequent, leading to insufficient exposure and practice to develop competence in the process, procedures, and potential pitfalls in BD/DNC determination. Because the process of BD/DNC determination can be anxiety provoking and challenging and must be done without error, we decided to cover each step of BD/DNC determination. Declaration of brain death, or death by neurologic criteria (BD/DNC), is a long-standing medical practice codified in the United States by the Uniform Determination of Death Act. [Extracted from the article]

Under what conditions do rebel organizations control territory during civil war? How do civilians influence the distribution of territorial control? This article introduces a civilian agency theory, emphasizing community collective action capacity (CAC) defined by underlying social network structure, to complement existing explanations of territorial control. I argue communities with greater CAC mobilize information and resources more efficiently, increasing belligerents' incentives to control territory. However, CAC also increases community bargaining power to demand costly investments in governance, partially offsetting these gains. CAC increases rebel control in areas of state neglect. But, as state service provision increases, communities leverage CAC to demand prohibitively costly rebel governance, deterring rebel control. This article tests the theory in the context of the communist insurgency in the Philippines, using military intelligence reports from 2011 to 2014 to measure village-level communist insurgent territorial control and a household-level census (2008–2010) to measure village CAC. Interviews with village elders in Eastern Mindanao illustrate causal mechanisms and explore alternative explanations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thomas Aquinas consistently maintains that there are two kinds of beauty: bodily or sensible beauty and spiritual or intelligible beauty. Due to the lively debate over whether intelligible beauty is a transcendental for Thomas, discussions of his aesthetics have tended either to ignore his views on sensible beauty or to mention them only in passing. The present paper will therefore give a brief overview of Thomas's thought on bodily beauty. The first section will discuss the objective aspects of sensible beauty for Thomas, i.e., its definition and three conditions, while the second will present his views on its subjective aspects, i.e., how we experience it, why it pleases us, and its importance for human flourishing. The third and final section will examine how Thomas's account of sensible beauty affects his views on the beauty of the glorified human body and of the universe as a whole after the Last Judgment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Normothermic regional perfusion (NRP) has recently been used to augment organ donation after circulatory death (DCD) to improve the quantity and quality of transplantable organs. In DCD‐NRP, after withdrawal of life‐sustaining therapies and cardiopulmonary arrest, patients are cannulated onto extracorporeal membrane oxygenation to reestablish blood flow to targeted organs including the heart. During this process, aortic arch vessels are ligated to restrict cerebral blood flow. We review ethical challenges including whether the brain is sufficiently reperfused through collateral circulation to allow reemergence of consciousness or pain perception, whether resumption of cardiac activity nullifies the patient's prior death determination, and whether specific authorization for DCD‐NRP is required. ANN NEUROL 2024;95:1035–1039 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial resistance is a growing worldwide crisis, declared by the World Health Organization as "one of the principal threats to global public health today." The emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance is a multifaceted problem that spans all aspects of healthcare, and research efforts to advance the field must likewise employ investigators with a diverse set of expertise and a variety of approaches and study designs who recognize and address the unique challenges of infectious-disease and antimicrobial-resistance research. An understanding of transmission dynamics and externalities, both positive and negative, is critical to any assessment of the impact of an intervention or policy related to infectious disease, infection prevention, or antimicrobial stewardship, in order to create a more comprehensive and accurate estimate of the costs and outcomes associated with an intervention. These types of advanced studies are necessary if we are to significantly alter the course of this crisis and improve the outlook for our future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study discussing short-term risk from COVID-19 vaccine for patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy and other systemic autoimmune and inflammatory disorders.

The article discusses the long-term benefit of thymectomy, clinical factor that predicted a long-term response. Topics include the retrospective study of MG patients, treated at the department of neurology of the Medical University of Vienna, Austria; outcome following thymectomy, and criteria encompassed patients who underwent thymectomy at the department of thoracic surgery of the Medical University of Vienna.

The article discusses the prolonged fatigue after COVID-19 infection may be associated with evidence of myopathy, based on physical examination, electromyography, and muscle biopsy. Topics include the symptoms present included dyspnea, headache and cognitive complaints; history of patients seen at the Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark, and cognitive and psychopathological disturbances occur in COVID-19 survivors.

The article discusses research which aimed to determine how to manage false-positive myasthenia gravis (MG) antibody studies in patients who undergo broad screening for autoimmune disorders affecting the peripheral and central nervous system.

The concepts of medical futility and rationing are often misunderstood and lead to significant consternation when resources are stretched and pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) beds are unavailable. While the two concepts overlap, each has its own distinct application and moral justification. Most importantly, we should avoid using one to justify the other. Bioethics professionals should assist critical care clinicians in clarifying when each rubric should be applied as well as how to develop policies to standardize the approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Part of the responsibility of a professional society is to establish the expectations for appropriate behavior for its members. Some codes are so essential to a society that the code itself becomes the central document defining the organization and its tenets, as we see with the Hippocratic Oath. In that tradition, we have revised the code of professional conduct for the Neurocritical Care Society into its current version, which emphasizes guidelines for personal behavior, relationships with fellow members, relationships with patients, and our interactions with society as a whole. This will be a living document and updated as the needs of our society change in time. Available online: [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to defend the Cornell variety of naturalistic moral realism from Horgan and Timmons' Moral Twin Earth objection, several philosophers have proposed what I call Normatively Enriched Moral Meta-Semantics (NEMMS). According to NEMMS, the natural properties that serve as the contents of moral predicates are fixed (at least in part) by non-moral normative facts. In this paper, I elucidate two versions of NEMMS: one proposed by David Brink, and the other proposed by Mark van Roojen. I show what these meta-semantics have in common, and how each one promises the Cornell realist a response to the Moral Twin Earth objection. I then argue that Cornell realists ought to be wary of adopting NEMMS. A naturalist realist who adopts this meta-semantics confronts a trilemma. The proponent of NEMMS owes a meta-ethical account of the relevant content-fixing normative facts. Such facts are either reducible to recognizably natural facts or they are not. If they are not reducible, then NEMMS entails the denial of ethical naturalism (and so, the denial of Cornell realism). If such facts are taken to be reducible to facts about agents' actual or hypothetical attitudes, then (among other problems) the account renders moral facts stance-dependent. Consequently, moral realism is false. Alternatively, one might propose that the content-fixing normative facts are reducible to attitude-independent natural facts. However, such a proposal is refuted by its own Twin Earth objection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new synthetic protocol for the preparation of 3-aryl-3-methoxycarbonyl cyclopropenes with an unsubstituted double bond has been developed that allowed for expanded substrate scope and improved product yields. The method involves Rh(II)-catalyzed transfer of carbenoids generated from unpurified aryldiazoesters, followed by desilylation, and is compatible with a wide range of aryldiazoesters. The employed continuous extraction of hardly soluble crude diazoesters helps avoid laborious and often cost-prohibitive isolation and purification of sensitive diazoester precursors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, several philosophers have recommended to moral realists that they adopt a hybrid cognitivist-expressivist moral semantics. Adopting a hybrid semantics enables the realist to account for the action-guiding character of moral discourse, and to account for the possibility of moral (dis)agreement between speakers whose moral sentences express different cognitive contents. I argue that realists should resist the temptation to embrace a hybrid moral semantics. In granting that moral judgments are partly constituted by conative attitudes, the realist concedes too much to her anti-realist opponents: she concedes that, at its most fundamental level, moral disagreement is disagreement in attitude, and the resolution of deep moral disagreement is best guided by non-epistemic norms of inquiry. Furthermore, on a hybrid semantics, moral thought and truth ascriptions turn out to be more responsive to the conative contents of moral judgments than to the supposed propositional contents. Finally, a hybrid semantics makes it difficult to preserve the realist's claim that moral truths are in a certain sense independent of appraisers' attitudes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the relationship between the U.S. and Russia, focusing on diplomatic efforts to strengthen ties between the two countries. It examines the foreign policy of the U.S. in relation to Russia, discussing the merits of former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Other topics discussed in the article include a history of the relationship between the U.S. and Russia including the Cold War and the presidencies of former U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty talks, and U.S. relations with other countries including Syria, North Korea, and Palestine. It also discusses the naïveté of U.S. foreign policy, citing examples where the U.S. has been tricked into concessions.

While the bioethical principle of beneficence originated in antiquity, the ascension of autonomy, or 'self-rule,' has redefined the physician-patient relationship to the extent that autonomy often dominates medical decision-making. Philosophical and social movements, medical research atrocities, consumerism, and case law have all had their influence on this paradigm shift. Consequently, the contemporary physician encounters an uncertainty in medical practice on how to resolve conflicts that arise in the pursuit of valuing both autonomy and beneficence. This is especially true in the practice of neurologic critical care where physicians may be advising comfort care measures for neurologically devastated patients while surrogates request physiologically futile interventions. This conundrum has been an important subject of the bioethics and social science literature but often this discourse is not disseminated to the clinicians confronting these issues. The purpose of this essay is to present a history of the principles of autonomy and beneficence and then present a shared medical decision-making model, collaborative autonomy, to provide guidance to neurologic critical care providers in how to resolve such dilemmas. Clinical vignettes will help illustrate the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Since the hospice benefit was introduced into the Medicare program, utilization has increased steeply. Previous research suggested that the use of hospice care is growing most rapidly in nursing facilities; however, little was known about the characteristics of the Medicare beneficiaries who receive hospice care in nursing facilities or the hospices that provide care in this setting. A synthesis of research from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (OIG) examined Medicare hospice care provided in nursing facilities. Findings are based on analysis of Medicare hospice claims data and medical record reviews. OIG findings suggest that some hospices may be seeking out beneficiaries with particular characteristics, including those with conditions associated with longer but less complex care. Such beneficiaries are often found in nursing facilities. By serving these beneficiaries for longer periods, the hospices receive more Medicare payments per beneficiary, which can contribute to higher profits. The OIG's recommendations for reform include modifying the payment system for hospice care in nursing facilities and targeting monitoring efforts on certain hospices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Clostridium difficile is one of the most common and important nosocomial pathogens, causing severe gastrointestinal disease in hospitalized patients. Although "bundled" interventions have been proposed and promoted, optimal control strategies remain unknown. Methods: We designed an agent-based computer simulation of nosocomial C. difficile transmission and infection, which included components such as: patients and health care workers, and their interactions; room contamination via C. difficile shedding; C. difficile hand carriage and removal via hand hygiene; patient acquisition of C. difficile via contact with contaminated rooms or health care workers; and patient antimicrobial use. We then introduced six interventions, alone and "bundled" together: aggressive C. difficile testing; empiric isolation and treatment of symptomatic patients; improved adherence to hand hygiene and contact precautions; improved use of soap and water for hand hygiene; and improved environmental cleaning. All interventions were tested using values representing base-case, typical intervention, and optimal intervention scenarios. Findings: In the base-case scenario, C. difficile infection rates ranged from 8–21 cases/10,000 patient-days, with a case detection fraction between 32%–50%. Implementing the "bundle" at typical intervention levels had a large impact on C. difficile acquisition and infection rates, although intensifying the intervention to optimal levels had much less additional impact. Most of the impact came from improved hand hygiene and empiric isolation and treatment of suspected C. difficile cases. Conclusion: A "bundled" intervention is likely to reduce nosocomial C. difficile infection rates, even under typical implementation conditions. Real-world implementation of the "bundle" should focus on those components of the intervention that are likely to produce the greatest impact on C. difficile infection rates, such as hand hygiene and empiric isolation and treatment of suspected cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article argues why an alliance between Russian and Iran will backfire. Topics include the history of Iran's relations with the Soviet Union prior to the end of the Cold War, Iranian leadership under Ali Khamenei and Hasan Rouhani, and the country's trade agreements. Their anti-U.S. agenda's are also discussed.

PROGRESSIVE SYMMETRICAL MUSCLE WEAKNESS, ASSOCIATED with absent or hyporelexia, are the cardinal clinical features of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Additional features are facial and oropharyngeal weakness in 50%, respiratory weakness necessitating ventilatory support in 10-30%, ophthalmoparesis in 15%, hand and feet paresthesiae in more than 80%, back and limb pain in 66%, and dysautonomia in 70%. Unusual features of GBS include mental status changes, meningeal signs, papilledema, facial myokymia, hearing loss, vocal cord paralysis, and the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion (SIADH). How often are deep tendon relexes (DTRs) normal or overactive in GBS, and with which other features are they more likely to occur? In a Japanese survey study of patients' sera sent for anti-ganglioside testing to the Dokkyo Medical University Neuroimmunology Laboratory between 2001-2006, clinical criteria for GBS were fulfilled in 48 who demonstrated normal or brisk DTRs on initial examination. Comparison was made to 1000 randomly chosen GBS patients with hypo- or arelexia, who served as controls. Subsequent retrospective analysis of clinical, serologic, and electro-physiologic features was performed on a total of 213 GBS patients culled from three hospitals, two in Japan and one in Chieti, Italy, seen between 1999-2010. Statistical analysis included the Mann--Whitney U test, and the x2 or Fisher's exact test, with P < 0.05 considered statistically significant. Compared to 1000 GBS patients with hypo- or areflexia, the 48 GBS patients in the Japanese survey study with preserved DTRs were more likely to have experienced antecedent diarrhea, demonstrate limb weakness as opposed to distal paresthesiae as an initial symptom, demonstrate a mild functional grade at nadir, and have IgG antibodies to GM1, GM1b, GD1a, or GalNAc-GD1a. Ophthalmoparesis, facial weakness, and sensory dysfunction were less likely. Normal or hyperrelexia was maintained throughout the course in 32 of these patients. Among the 213 GBS patients culled from three hospitals, three patients demonstrated hyperrelexia throughout their course, eight demonstrated normal DTRs throughout, and 12 demonstrated hyperrelexia, even at nadir, with return of normal relexes upon recovery. These 23 patients more frequently demonstrated: 1) pure motor weakness, 2) independent ambulation even at nadir, 3) acute motor axonal, rather than acute inflammatory demyelinating, polyneuropathy, and 4) GM1, GM1b, GD1a, or GalNAc-GD1a antibodies. Approximately 10% of GBS patients retain normal or brisk DTRs, and their presence should not preclude the diagnosis of GBS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Necrotizing myopathy (nm) lacks the mononuclear inflammatory cell infiltrates seen histologically on muscle biopsy in idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM), including polymyositis, dermatomyositis, and inclusion body myositis. Both groups, however, present with proximal weakness, elevated serum creatine kinase levels, and similar electromyographic abnormalities comprising positive waves, fibrillation potentials, and small amplitude, short duration, myopathic motor unit potentials. Are there particular clinical and serological features or comorbidities associated with NM that set it apart from IIM? All muscle histopathology reports from 1992-2009, from the Neuropathology Laboratory, Institute of Medical and Veterinary Science, Adelaide, South Australia, were reviewed to identify cases of NM. Record review of their clinical features, including symptoms, signs, and comorbidities, was then compared to those of patients with histologically confirmed IIM, based on Hohlfeld criteria. Statistical analysis comprised Fisher's exact two-tailed test and the chi square test, with significance set at P < 0.05.Among 86 patients initially identified as NM, 64 were confirmed (based on review of biopsy specimens), demonstrating muscle fiber necrosis, macrophage myophagia, and basophilic fiber regeneration in the absence of lymphocytic infiltrates, infrequent immunostain positivity for CD45 lymphocytes or CD68 mononuclear cells. Only 15% demonstrated major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I and II up-regulation, a feature usually seen with IIM. Males comprised 61% of the cases (39/64), significantly higher than the female predominance seen in IIM (P = 0.0004), and myalgia was more frequent in NM than IIM, 81% vs 41% (P = 0.0005). Distal weakness was not seen in any NM patient, compared to 27% of the IIM group. Among various comorbidities, including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, thyroid disease, cerebrovascular or ischemic cardiovascular disease, only systemic lupus erythematosus was found to be significantly more common in NM compared to IIM (21% vs 1%, P = 0.004), but hypertension and diabetes mellitus were found in 65% and 23% of NM cases, respectively. Anti-signal recognition particle (anti-SRP) antibodies, reportedly a marker for NM, were not found in any patient, but anti-PMScl75, anti-Ro-52, anti-anti-Ku were found in 5, 2, and 1 patients, respectively. No association with malignancy was detected in this cohort of NM. Comprehensive cardiovascular evaluation is warranted in patients diagnosed with NM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article the author discusses Syria and its involvement with Muslim terrorism. The central focus of the article is on the author's contention that Syria supports radical Islam and terror and thus perpetrates a significant risk to U.S. national security. Examined in the article is conflict between Syria's government and the Muslim Brotherhood and evidence that president Bashir al-Assad of Syria has made terrorism central for Syrian foreign policy. Among other issues the article examines the attitude toward Syria manifested by U.S. president Barack Obama and his administration.

The article discusses whether blood transfusion may be continued as a palliative therapy for patients suffering from myeloma and other hematological cancers, with reference to the case of a woman suffering from cancer. A number of hospitals are showing their willingness to invest in expertise and administrative time to take decisions on the optimum use of resources, and the need to balance individual patient needs with other obligations to the community.

Abstract: Fritted glass is commonly used as a light diffusing element in modern buildings. Traditionally it has been used for aesthetic purposes but it can also be used for energy savings by incorporating it in novel daylighting systems? To answer such questions the light scattering properties must be properly characterized. This paper contains measurements of different varieties of fritted glass, ranging from the simplest direct-hemispherical measurements to angle-resolved goniometer measurements. Modeling the light scattering to obtain the full bidirectional scattering distribution function (BSDF) extends the measured data, making it useful in simulation programs such as Window 6 and Radiance. Surface profilometry results and SEM micrographs are included to demonstrate the surface properties of the samples studied. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The first catalytic diastereo- and enantioselective hydroformylation of cyclopropenes was demonstrated. The reaction proceeds efficiently under very mild conditions and low catalyst loadings providing high yields of cyclopropylcarboxaldehydes. This novel methodology represents a convenient, atom-economic approach toward optically active cyclopropylcarboxaldehydes from readily available prochiral cyclopropenes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a tendency in Western capitals to dismiss adversarial Iranian behavior as the work of rogue regime factions, which are not representative of Tehran's true intentions. Following a Baghdad press conference providing evidence of Iranian weapons shipments to Iraq, U.S. officials raised doubts about Iran's actual culpability. The weapons shipments do "not translate to that the Iranian government per se, for sure, is directly involved in doing this," Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, noted the next day. On February 14, 2007, President George W. Bush said, "What we don't know is whether or not the head leaders of Iran ordered the Qods Force to do what they did." Likewise, when the lslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seized fifteen British sailors patrolling a waterway between Iran and Iraq, commentators suggested that responsibility may rest more with freelancing commanders than the Iranian government. Identifying the true decision-makers in the Islamic Republic is essential not only for accountability but also to ensure that any Western diplomatic outreach is targeted at those who have the power to affect regime behavior. Unfortunately, as U.S. officials again debate negotiations with the Islamic Republic, they simultaneously embrace Iranian reformists and dismiss pariah behavior as the actions of isolated rogue elements. Such an assessment is backwards, though. The IRGC represents the core of the Iranian state, and Iran's reformists are those who, by acting on their own without either state support or any ability to deliver on promises are, in the Iranian context, the true rogue elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of philosophers defend naturalistic moral realism by appeal to an externalist semantics for moral predicates. The application of semantic externalism to moral predicates has been attacked by Terence Horgan and Mark Timmons in a series of papers that make use of their “Moral Twin Earth” thought experiment. In response, several defenders of naturalistic moral realism have claimed that the Moral Twin Earth thought experiment is misleading and yields distorted and inaccurate semantic intuitions. If they are right, the intuitions generated by Moral Twin Earth cannot be appealed to in arguments against externalist moral semantics. The most developed case against the Moral Twin Earth argument that follows this strategy is found in a paper by Stephen Laurence, Eric Margolis and Angus Dawson. Here I argue that their attack on the Moral Twin Earth thought experiment fails. Laurence, Margolis and Dawson have not shown that we have reason to distrust the semantic intuitions it generates [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on Coats' disease of the eye. Patients with Coats' disease manifest with yellow lipid-rich subretinal and intraretinal exudates associated with retinal vascular abnormalities such as telangiectasia. It is stated that fluorescein angiography demonstrating retinal vascular changes is an important diagnostic tool for Coats' disease. The authors share that treatments such as diathermy and cryotherapy aim to eradicate abnormal vessels and minimize exudates.

This article presents an examination of the work of Richard Boyd regarding moral goodness and his assertion that it is a homeostatic property cluster. He argues that goodness is defined by a set of unified properties. The author disagrees, however, citing a lack of inductive inferences and the artificiality of the homeostatic mechanism.

The article focuses on cyclopropenes and cyclopropanes and their transition metal chemistry. The recent developments in transition metal-catalyzed chemistry of methylenecyclopropanes, cyclopropenes, vinylcyclopropanes and cyclopropanes are discussed. The mechanics of catalysis of transition metal chemistry is also discussed.

We assessed the efficacy of topical cyclosporin 0.05% ophthalmic emulsion versus tobramycin 0.3%/dexamethasone 0.1% in patients with posterior blepharitis. Posterior blepharitis improved significantly from the initial study visit with both cyclosporin treatment and tobramycin/dexamethasone. Cyclosporin provided greater improvements in Schirmer's scores ( P < 0.001) and tear break-up time ( P =0.018) than tobramycin/dexamethasone after 12 weeks of treatment. Eyelid health also improved in both groups, but the mean improvement in meibomian gland secretion quality was significantly greater with cyclosporin than with tobramycin/dexamethasone ( P = 0.015). Moreover, a higher percentage of patients in the cyclosporin treatment group had improvements in symptoms of blurred vision, burning, and itching and more cyclosporin-treated patients experienced resolution of lid telangiectasia. The findings in this prospective study suggest that posterior blepharitis can be more effectively treated with cyclosporin than with tobramycin/dexamethasone. These findings should be further evaluated in large-scale, controlled, clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polarization of the triple bond in a series of differently substituted ortho- and para-tolanes has been studied by NMR and computational methods in order to examine if 13C NMR data can be effectively used for the assessment of electronic polarization of a triple bond in diarylacetylenes. DFT calculations of both natural charges and NMR properties revealed that chemical shifts concur with effective charges on sp-carbon atoms in para-tolanes, whereas in ortho-analogues magnetic anisotropy complicates the analysis making 13C NMR data inapplicable for ascribing triple bond polarization. The obtained information was used to reevaluate factors affecting the regiochemistry of the Pd-catalyzed hydrostannation of the triple bond in tolanes. Computational study on the polarization of triple bonds taken together with the experimental data on hydrostannation of various mono- and disubstituted tolanes bearing para- and ortho-substituents demonstrated that the regioselectivity of hydrostannation is governed by a combination of electronic and steric factors. In para-tolanes, the electronic effect prevails and α and β-vinylstannanes are obtained predominantly for substrates with electron-withdrawing and electron-donating groups, respectively. In the ortho-series, steric factors dominate over electronics and α-isomers are produced with high selectivity regardless of the substituents' nature. However, it was found that in disubstituted "push-pull" tolanes steric control of an ortho-group can be overruled by the very strong electronic effect of an electron-withdrawing substituent in para-position. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Antibiotic prescribing for upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) is widespread, is often inappropriate, and may contribute to antibiotic resistance among community-acquired pathogens, such as Streptococcus pneumoniae. Methods. A multifaceted intervention involving health care professionals and patients was introduced to a small rural Utah community and included the repetitive use of printed diagnostic and treatment algorithms by professionals. Data on the quantity and class of antibiotic prescribing, which were collected from multiple sources, were measured for the intervention period (from January through June) in 2001 and compared with data for the baseline period during the same months in 2000. Results. Medicaid claims data revealed that the percentage of patients in the community who received antibiotics for URTIs during the intervention period was 15.6% less than that for the baseline period, whereas the percentage in the rest of rural Utah was relatively stable, with a 1.5% decrease (P = .006). The greatest impact of the intervention was on prescribing for acute bronchitis (decreases of 56.1% and 1.7% in the community and rural Utah, respectively;P = .024) and on prescribing of macrolides (decreases of 13.4% and 0.2% in the community and rural Utah, respectively P < .001). Community pharmacy data likewise revealed a 17.5% decrease in the rate of antibiotic prescribing during the intervention period (P < .001), with the largest decrease observed for macrolide prescribing (50.9%; P < .001). Chart review data, in contrast, revealed no significant decrease in the percentage of patients with URTI who were prescribed an antibiotic (3.8%; P = .49), although there was a significant decrease of 11.2% in macrolide use (P = .045). Conclusions. A multifaceted intervention involving the repetitive use of printed algorithms resulted in modest improvements in antibiotic prescribing for outpatient URTIs, although one data source did not corroborate this. However, macrolide prescribing decreased sharply, irrespective of the source of data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the leadership of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Reconciliation Party in Turkey. Popularity of the Islamic-oriented party; Association of the Turkish domestic and foreign policy to green money from wealthy Islamist businessmen and Middle Eastern states; Analysis of Erdogan's economic policy.

Presents a summary of an unclassified report written by coalition security contractor David Stokes regarding the violence in Al-Kut, Iraq on April 5, 2004. Role of the Kellogg, Brown and Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton, in some of the problems during the attack in Al-Kut; Significance of the Ukrainian Army in the outcome of the events over the period of the assault; Implication of the decision of the Governorate Coordinator to the problems in Al-Kut.

The cross-coupling of a variety of terminal alkynes 1 with allenylphosphine oxides 2 catalyzed by a Pd(OAc)[sub 2]-TDMPP system provided conjugated endo-enynes 3 solely, while the TCPC-catalyzed reaction of the same regents led to the exclusive formation of exo-isomers 4. The mechanistic rationale for these selective transformations was proposed. Synthetic usefulness of the prepared exo-enyne 4 was demonstrated in the synthesis of multisubstituted diarylbenzylphosphine oxides 5 via the Pd-catalyzed [4+2]-benzannulation reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the pariah minority status of Kurds. Arab ethnic chauvinism is a great factor in the Kurds' pariah status in Iraq and Syria. The ideals of the ruling Ba'th party in both countries assigns second-class status for non-Arabs. The success of Iraq's Kurdish minority in areas freed from Saddam Hussein's autocracy show the Kurdish potential when released from government oppression. In the Islamic Republic of Iran, religion instead of ethnicity is the main factor in Kurds' pariah status. The best hope for the Kurds is in Turkey where they share a big portion of blame for their historical treatment in the said country.

Evaluation of solar heat gain and daylight distribution through complex window and shading systems requires the determination of the bi-directional transmission distribution function (BTDF). Measurement of BTDF can be time-consuming, and inaccuracies are likely because of physical constraints and experimental adjustments. A general calculation methodology, based on more easily measurable component properties, would be preferable and would allow much more flexibility. In this paper, measurements and calculations are compared for the specific case of prismatic daylight-redirecting panels. Measurements were performed in a photogoniometer equipped with a digital-imaging detection system. A virtual copy of the photogoniometer was then constructed with commercial ray-tracing software. For the first time, an attempt is made to validate detailed bi-directional properties for a complex system by comparing an extensive set of experimental BTDF data with ray-tracing calculations. The results generally agree under a range of input and output angles to a degree adequate for evaluation of glazing systems. An analysis is presented to show that the simultaneously measured diffuse and direct components of light transmitted by the panel are properly represented. Calculations were also performed using a more realistic model of the source and ideal model of the detector. Deviations from the photogoniometer model were small and the results were similar in form. Despite the lack of an absolute measurement standard, the good agreement in results promotes confidence in both the photogoniometer and in the calculation method. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Examines the efficient method for Lewis-acid-catalyzed trans-selective hydrosilation of alkenes. Preparation on the diversely efficient aryl and alkyl using hydrosilylation methodology; Synthesis of alcohol via trans-selective hydrosilylation/Tamao—Fleming oxidation sequence; Manipulation of argon atmosphere by glovebox and Schlenk technique.