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Over the past 18 months, there has been scrutiny and controversy over the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's accelerated approval of aducanumab, a novel monoclonal antibody to treat Alzheimer's disease and prevent disease progression. As clinicians, educators, and advocates for our patients and caregivers impacted daily by this debilitating illness, this approval reinforces the need to maintain vigilance and awareness about emerging agents. The intent of the current article is to highlight some of the medications in Phase 3 clinical trials and share resources and updates on disease-modifying agents and their unique pharmacology. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 49(1), 6–10.], Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in the United States and worldwide. It is estimated that 6.5 million Americans aged ≥65 years have dementia due to [...]

When a heavy atomic nucleus splits (fission), the resulting fragments are observed to emerge spinning1; this phenomenon has been a mystery in nuclear physics for over 40 years2,3. The internal generation of typically six or seven units of angular momentum in each fragment is particularly puzzling for systems that start with zero, or almost zero, spin. There are currently no experimental observations that enable decisive discrimination between the many competing theories for the mechanism that generates the angular momentum4–12. Nevertheless, the consensus is that excitation of collective vibrational modes generates the intrinsic spin before the nucleus splits (pre-scission). Here we show that there is no significant correlation between the spins of the fragment partners, which leads us to conclude that angular momentum in fission is actually generated after the nucleus splits (post-scission). We present comprehensive data showing that the average spin is strongly mass-dependent, varying in saw-tooth distributions. We observe no notable dependence of fragment spin on the mass or charge of the partner nucleus, confirming the uncorrelated post-scission nature of the spin mechanism. To explain these observations, we propose that the collective motion of nucleons in the ruptured neck of the fissioning system generates two independent torques, analogous to the snapping of an elastic band. A parameterization based on occupation of angular momentum states according to statistical theory describes the full range of experimental data well. This insight into the role of spin in nuclear fission is not only important for the fundamental understanding and theoretical description of fission, but also has consequences for the γ-ray heating problem in nuclear reactors13,14, for the study of the structure of neutron-rich isotopes15,16, and for the synthesis and stability of super-heavy elements17,18.

MedStar's Center for Successful Aging (CSA) participated in the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative led by The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United States. This initiative focuses on bringing the 4Ms framework—What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility—to caring for older adults. A quality improvement project was conducted at the CSA to integrate the 4Ms framework into the CSA ambulatory clinical pathway. Our interventions found upward trends in patients receiving 4Ms care during their new patient visits. Positive preliminary feedback was also obtained from providers following the incorporation of the 4Ms framework in the high-risk rounds discussion. A focus on high-risk medications and deprescribing illustrated positive clinical outcomes. This ongoing interprofessional collaboration illustrates the importance of person-centered care and quality improvement to achieve Age-Friendly Health Systems status within an ambulatory practice. [MedStar's Center for Successful Aging (CSA) participated in the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative led by The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United States. This initiative focuses on bringing the 4Ms framework—What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility—to caring for older adults. A quality improvement project was conducted at the CSA to integrate the 4Ms framework into the CSA ambulatory clinical pathway. Our interventions found upward trends in patients receiving 4Ms care during their new patient visits. Positive preliminary feedback was also obtained from providers following the incorporation of the 4Ms framework in the high-risk rounds discussion. A focus on high-risk medications and deprescribing illustrated positive clinical outcomes. This ongoing interprofessional collaboration illustrates the importance of person-centered care and quality improvement to achieve Age-Friendly Health Systems status within an ambulatory practice. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 46(10), 7–11.]

La simulation numérique du soudage (SNS) permet aujourd’hui à l’industriel l’accès à la prédiction des contraintes et déformations résiduelles induites par les opérations d’assemblage par soudage. Cet article s’ouvre dans un premier temps sur les forces et faiblesses de la SNS puis donne quelques clés d’améliorations et se ferme par des exemples de réalisations maîtrisées au sein d’AREVA et du CEA.

HiPER is the European Project for Laser Fusion that has been able to join 26 institutions and signed under formal government agreement by 6 countries inside the ESFRI Program of the European Union (EU). The project is already extended by EU for two years more (until 2013) after its first preparatory phase from 2008. A large work has been developed in different areas to arrive to a design of repetitive operation of Laser Fusion Reactor, and decisions are envisioned in the next phase of Technology Development or Risk Reduction for Engineering or Power Plant facilities (or both). Chamber design has been very much completed for Engineering phase and starting of preliminary options for Reactor Power Plant have been established and review here.

An experimental spectroscopic investigation of 35Al has been performed. The delayed neutron and γ spectra, following the β decay of 35Al, have been measured using the delayed neutron detector array TONNERRE coupled with high efficiency γ detectors. A detailed analysis of such spectra allows one to extract the level schemes of its daughters. These levels are compared with the few previously existing data and shell-model calculations. Based on triple β–γ–n coincidences eight new levels above the neutron separation energy in 34Si were for the first time observed.

The reactions 30Si+170Erand 29Si+170Erhave been studied by the particle-γcoincidence method. The first chance α-particle spectrum from the decay of the 200Pb compound nucleus at 80 MeV excitation energy has been obtained by using a subtraction technique. The emission barrier distribution has been extracted from the first chance spectrum, using the second derivative analysis, commonly employed in sub-barrier fusion studies. The comparison with earlier systematics demonstrates that the α-particle emission barriers of the excited systems are lower than those observed in the inverse (capture) reactions on ground state nuclei.

Abstract:: High-spin states of 10343Tc have been identified for the first time, this nucleus being produced as fission fragment following the fusion reaction 37Cl + 176Yb at 170 MeV bombarding energy. The high-spin level scheme has been built from the prompt gamma rays detected using the Euroball III array. It exhibits similarities with those of the neighbouring isotopes and isotones. All the band head configurations observed in the 97-105Tc isotopes are identified from the behaviour of the rotational bands built on them. The single-proton states located around the Fermi level are discussed as a function of deformation of these nuclei.

The quadrupole moments of the first two superdeformed (SD) bands in the nucleus ¹⁵¹Tb have been measured with the Doppler Shift Attenuation Method (DSAM) using the EUROGAM -ray spectrometer. The first excited band (B2) is identical to the yrast SD band of ¹⁵²Dy in terms of dynamical moments of inertia and -ray energies. The measured relative quadrupole moments of the yrast band (B1) with respect to the band B2 are nicely reproduced by self-consitent Hartree-Fock calculations. The variation of the Q₀ value at the bottom of the yrast band suggests a large admixture between wave functions in the normal and the SD wells. This could explain the rather high deexcitation spin for the yrast band.

Abstract:: High-spin states have been studied in 101Tc produced as a fission fragment in the reaction 176Yb +28Si at 145 MeV. Gamma rays were detected with the EUROGAM2 array. The level scheme of 101Tc has been extended up to 4.2 MeV excitation energy and several band structures are observed. Configurations are assigned to two new bands on the basis of their behaviour and of cranked Hartree-Fock-Bogolyubov calculations.

Abstract:: The low-spin band structure of neutron-deficient 11554Xe has been studied following a low-energy (212.3 MeV) 60Ni(58Ni,2pnγ) reaction performed at IReS, Strasbourg, with the Garel+ spectrometer. The relative excitation energies of νh11/2 (isomeric), νg7/2, and νd5/2 bandheads have been established.

Abstract.: The neutron deficient 199At nucleus has been studied in the 175Lu+28Si reaction at Eb= 141 MeV. In order to select events of interest in the presence of the very strong background caused by fission, γ-rays have been detected in coincidence with recoiling evaporation residues. The excited states of 199At observed for the first time may indicate that this nucleus is deformed.