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Historical thinking, a term that encompasses a diverse set of definitions and competencies, calls on students to replicate the work and cognitive processes of historians by analyzing and interpreting evidence and making logical conclusions based on this evidence. Given this emphasis on discipline-specific skills, "sources" (especially primary sources) constitute a significant feature of the research about historical thinking. Much of this literature stresses the need for "accurate," "reliable," "trustworthy," and "legitimate" evidence when constructing a historical argument. Although this emphasis on accuracy can be helpful in understanding the cognitive processes associated with the study of history, it does not effectively reflect the way historians work within their discipline. A historian might subject a piece of evidence to a reliability assessment, but a source's utility is not dependent solely on its accuracy. Moreover, historians regularly use different kinds of unreliable evidence to construct historical arguments. The study here thus proposes to do two things. First, it provides a new perspective on historical thinking by illustrating the role that inaccurate and unreliable evidence can play in the creation of a historical account. Second, this study examines the idea of evidence use as a component of historical expertise and the discipline-specific skills associated with the study of history.

The study of emergent languages in deep multi-agent simulationshas become an important research field. While targetingdifferent objectives, most studies focus on analyzing propertiesof the emergent language—often in relation to the agents’inputs—ignoring the influence of the agents’ perceptual processes.In this work, we use communication games to investigatehow differences in perception affect emergent language.Using a conventional setup, we train two deep reinforcementlearning agents, a sender and a receiver, on a reference game.However, we systematically manipulate the agents’ perceptionby enforcing similar representations for objects with specificshared features. We find that perceptual biases of both senderand receiver influence which object features the agents’ messagesare grounded in. When uniformly enforcing the similarityof all features that are relevant for the reference game,agents perform better and the emergent protocol better capturesconceptual input properties.

Purpose To compare the CT imaging performance of a carboxybetaine zwitterionic-coated tantalum oxide (TaCZ) nanoparticle CT contrast agent with that of a conventional iodinated contrast agent in a swine model meant to simulate overweight and obese patients. Materials and Methods Four swine were evaluated inside three different-sized adipose-equivalent encasements emulating abdominal girths of 102, 119, and 137 cm. Imaging was performed with a 64-detector row CT scanner at six scan delays after intravenous injection of 240 mg element (Ta or I) per kilogram of body weight of TaCZ or iopromide. For each time point, contrast enhancement of the aorta and liver were measured by using regions of interest. Two readers independently recorded the clarity of vasculature using a five-point Likert scale. Findings were compared by using paired t tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Results Mean peak enhancement was higher for TaCZ than for iopromide in the aorta (270 HU [σ = 24.5] vs 199 HU [σ = 10.2], P < .001) and liver (61.3 HU [σ = 11.7] vs 45.2 HU [σ = 8], P < .001). Vascular clarity was higher for TaCZ than for iopromide in 63% (132 of 208), 82% (170 of 208), and 86% (178 of 208) of the individual vessels at the 102-, 119-, and 137-cm girths, respectively (P < .01). Arterial clarity scores were higher for TaCZ than for iopromide in 62% (208 of 336) of vessels. Venous clarity scores were higher for TaCZ than for iopromide in 89% (128 of 144) of the veins in the venous phase and in 100% (144 of 144) of veins in the delayed phase (P < .01). No vessel showed higher clarity score with iopromide than with TaCZ. Conclusion An experimental tantalum nanoparticle-based contrast agent showed greater contrast enhancement compared with iopromide in swine models meant to simulate overweight and obese patients. © RSNA, 2018.

This article discusses how the history of sports can serve as way to understand abstract concepts associated with local history and social studies education. An introductory discussion outlines how sports can engage and interest students, focusing especially on ideas related to history thinking (such as change and continuity). A case study using the Brooklyn Dodgers' move to Los Angeles is used to illustrate these ideas, focusing on themes associated with suburbanization and urban renewal. A lesson plan is also provided.

The introduction of spectral CT imaging in the form of fast clinical dual-energy CT enabled contrast material to be differentiated from other radiodense materials, improved lesion detection in contrast-enhanced scans, and changed the way that existing iodine and barium contrast materials are used in clinical practice. More profoundly, spectral CT can differentiate between individual contrast materials that have different reporter elements such that high-resolution CT imaging of multiple contrast agents can be obtained in a single pass of the CT scanner. These spectral CT capabilities would be even more impactful with the development of contrast materials designed to complement the existing clinical iodine- and barium-based agents. New biocompatible high-atomic number contrast materials with different biodistribution and X-ray attenuation properties than existing agents will expand the diagnostic power of spectral CT imaging without penalties in radiation dose or scan time.

Background: Epigenetics studies mechanisms such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, non-coding RNAs, and alternative polyadenylation that can modify gene activity without changing the underlying DNA nucleotide base-pair structure. Because these changes are reversible, they have potential in developing novel therapeutics. Currently, seven pharmaceutical agents targeting epigenetic changes are FDA approved and commercially available for treatment of certain cancers. However, studies investigating epigenetics in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) have not been undertaken previously in the United States. Objectives: The goal of this study was to investigate sinonasal DNA methylation patterns in CRS versus controls, to discern environmentally-induced epigenetic changes impacting CRS subjects. Methods and Results: Ethmoidal samples from CRS and inferior turbinate mucosal tissue samples from controls without CRS were studied. DNA methylation was studied by Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing. RADMeth® biostatistical package was used to identify differentially methylated regions (DMRs) between CRS and controls. Ingenuity Pathway analysis of DMRs was performed to identify top upstream regulators and canonical pathways. Ninety-three samples from 64 CRS subjects (36 CRSwNP; 28 CRSsNP) and 29 controls were studied. CRS and control samples differed in 13 662 CpGs sites and 1381 DMRs. Top upstream regulators identified included: 1. CRS versus controls: TGFB1, TNF, TP53, DGCR8, and beta-estradiol. 2. CRSwNP versus controls: TGFB1, CTNNB1, lipopolysaccharide, ID2, and TCF7L2. 3. CRSsNP versus controls: MYOD1, acetone, ID2, ST8SIA4, and LEPR. Conclusions: Differential patterns of methylation were identified between controls and CRS, CRSwNP, and CRSsNP. Epigenetic, environmentally-induced changes related to novel, inflammatory, immunologic, and remodeling pathways appear to affect epithelial integrity, cell proliferation, homeostasis, vascular permeability, and other yet uncharacterized pathways and genes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mometasone-eluting poly-L-lactide-coglycolide (MPLG) is available commercially for frontal sinus ostium (FSO) stenting. An alternative chitosan polymer-based drug delivery microsponge is also available at a lower cost per unit. Objective: To compare the outcomes of MPLG stents versus triamcinolone-impregnated chitosan polymer (TICP) microsponge in frontal sinus surgery. Methods: Patients who underwent endoscopic sinus surgery from December 2018 to February 2022 were reviewed to identify those with the intraoperative placement of TICP microsponge or MPLG stent in the FSO. FSO patency was evaluated by endoscopy at follow-up. Twenty-two-item sinonasal outcome test (SNOT-22) was also recorded, and complications were noted. Results: A total of 68 subjects and 96 FSOs were treated. TICP was first used in August 2021 and MPLG in December 2018. MPLG placement in a Draf 3 cavity was excluded since TICP had not been used during Draf 3 procedure. Both cohorts (TICP 20 subjects, 35 FSOs; MPLG 26 subjects, 39 FSOs) had similar clinical characteristics. At a mean total follow-up of 249.2 days for TICP and 490.4 days for MPLG, FSO patency was 82.9% and 87.1%, respectively (P =.265). At an equivalent follow-up of 130.6 days in TICP and 154.0 days in MPLG, patency was 94.3% and 89.7%, respectively (P =.475). Both groups showed significant reductions in SNOT-22 (P <.001). MPLG demonstrated crusting within the FSO at 1 month (none in TICP). Conclusion: FSO patency for both stents was similar, although TICP had significantly lower costs per unit. Additional comparative trials may be helpful for guiding clinicians on the appropriate clinical situations for the use of these devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pizza serves as a powerful example of historical themes such as immigration, cultural exchange and urbanization. In the post-WWII United States, Trenton, NJ, and other cities were gradually being transformed by suburbanization, the rise of fast food, and changes in family living related to women's entry in large numbers into the paid workforce. This case study of an Italian neighborhood in Trenton, Chambersburg, and its well-known pizza restaurants offers teachers a model for using the history of food and place to investigate their own communities.

The purpose of this article is to provide further insight into how local history can enhance a history curriculum. However, rather than focus on the exceptional, it will use things found in suburban communities to show how suburbs can inform wider understanding of American history and culture. It is intended to help teachers in suburban areas use their own communities as a basis for historical study and analysis, even though no battles, protests, or famous events may have occurred in these places. While suburbs are often derided for their banality and lack of distinctiveness, history can be found within them, and this history is vital to understanding life in modern America.

Almost eighty years ago, Lucy Sprague Mitchell, founder of Bank Street College of Education in New York City, wrote about social studies in ways that sound remarkably contemporary: "In the first place, we shall say that the curriculum should continue the laboratory methods, which means it should furnish the children with as many first-hand experiences with the mores of other groups as possible, that it should supplement with vicarious experiences gained through source materials; that it should supply source materials relating to their own mores from the point of view of historic origin, present functioning, and comparative method; that the children should have more than a passive, absorbent role; that they should do something to their data." Mitchell's ideas have new currency today with the introduction of the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for State Social Studies Standards, or the "C3 Framework" for short. Geography has found a prominent place in the framework as one of four "core disciplines" of social studies--and a particularly important one for elementary education. In many states, geography is taught to all students only in the early grades. This article returns to the setting in which Mitchell's ideas about geography and curriculum developed-New York City. The authors offer several teaching strategies suitable for grades 3-5 that blend three curriculum documents: Geography for Life: National Geography Standards, Second Edition, The C3 Framework, and New York City's social studies standards for the elementary grades.

This article provides a methodology that teachers can use to incorporate themes and ideas related to local history in their classrooms. Using the city of New Brunswick, New Jersey as a case study, the article offers different approaches that allow local history to be connected to wider themes in American history. The focus here on a small, relatively anonymous city shows that history can be found in many places, and that one does not have to live in a famous or noteworthy place to find compelling historical resources. The article concludes with specific suggestions that teachers can use in their own classrooms.

This article discusses how local history can be used by teachers to help develop historical thinking skills such as source analysis, the collection of data, and the creation of historical arguments. Using New York City as a case study, this article argues that urban spaces and local communities provide historical evidence that can be read and analyzed. It uses different streets, buildings, and neighborhoods from New York City to show how historical conclusions can be drawn from those resources. It also discusses instructional ideas that teachers can develop in their classrooms. (Contains 5 notes and 15 figures.)

Research about social studies textbooks overwhelmingly supports the conclusion that these books are unpopular and often the subject of intense criticisms. These criticisms concern anything ranging from the language they employ, to the way they are utilized by teachers, to the undue influence they exert on shaping and defining curriculum. This paper will look more closely at world history textbooks, focusing specifically on how these texts organize and present the topic of world history. Analysis of the historical content found in five leading high school world history texts yields several important findings. First, if these texts are placed within a broad construct of curriculum change as it relates to the world history movement, then they do show some evidence of the impact of this reform effort. All the volumes organize themselves around various themes that define and unite the history of the world. Further, the world history movement stresses the commonality of the human experience and the interconnectedness of the various regions of the world. It also emphasizes key concepts, ideas, and premises that can help unify the histories of the world's people. The texts all demonstrate adherence to these different concepts, a fact that is evident in their use of visual materials and maps, their organizational structures, and very specific reminders, add-ons, and activities that continually illustrate these concepts to readers. The influence of the world history movement is obvious, and the books give evidence to the success of this curriculum reform movement. The texts also show that while it is easy to pay heed to novel ideals about world history and historical chronology through maps, photographs, catchy titles, and amusing anecdotes, it is considerably more difficult to carry these concepts through the actual narrative and scope of a textbook. (Contains 7 tables and 50 notes.)

This article discusses the role that teacher educators can play in helping their students develop a fuller understanding of world history. Trends such as globalization have led to calls for increased teaching about the diverse cultures and peoples of the world. However, prospective teachers' educational backgrounds have in most cases not adequately prepared them to teach world history effectively. The article begins with a discussion of the historical evolution of the course in world history; it then defines different approaches to this field, and concludes by providing suggestions for how teacher educators can help their students bring a true version of world history to their classrooms.

Understanding world history is critical for our development as citizens in our interconnected society. Yet it is not clear that the standards for world history courses in the U.S. foster understanding of the whole world or of its history. The authors argue that the high school world history standards mapped out by various states promulgate a Eurocentric orientation, particularly in the treatment of events before 1945. Moreover, even when they purport to use a global approach, state world history standards do little to implement a vision of world history that emphasizes global connections, cross-cultural interactions, world-systems, or the commonality of human experience. Examining the topics listed as important to know in U.S. state high school world history standards and the organization of these standards, the researchers found that although several state standards have been influenced by the thematic or chronological approaches advocated by world historians, with two exceptions, state standards conceptualize world history through a "western" rather than global lens. (Contains 7 tables and 12 notes.)

The article presents a study on historical thinking, particularly on the alleged use by historians of inaccurate and unreliable historical evidence to construct historical arguments. Other topics include the cognitive processes in the study of history, the discipline-specific skills needed in the study of history, and how historians assess the reliability of their information.

Background: The histopathology and microbiology associated with silent sinus syndrome (SSS) have not been well described. Objective: This study details the histopathological and microbiological characteristics in addition to radiographic findings of SSS in comparison to those of chronic maxillary sinusitis (CRS). Methods: 42 patients diagnosed with SSS at Mayo Clinic Hospital in Arizona were identified. Paranasal computed tomography scans of the 42 SSS patients as well as 42 matched CRS patients were analyzed in order to assess differences in the prevalence of septal spurs/deviation. 20 of the SSS patients and 19 of the matched CRS patients also had histopathology and microbiology reports, which were compiled and summarized. Additionally, 19 SSS and 19 matched CRS patients were contacted via phone survey for a more complete patient history regarding maxillary dental disease/surgery. Results: SSS patients have a significantly higher prevalence of septal spurs/deviation than CRS patients. The microbiomes of SSS patients more closely resemble those of healthy controls than those of CRS patients. Analysis of the histopathology of SSS reveals chronic, non-specific inflammation similar to that seen in non-eosinophilic CRS without polyps. SSS patients were significantly more likely to have a history of maxillary dental disease requiring surgery. Conclusion: These data support the hypothesis that the pathogenesis of SSS is more likely due to anatomical/mechanical factors than inflammatory/microbiological factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]