Photosynthesis and crop productivity are enhanced by glucose-functionalised carbon dots.

From global food security to textile production and biofuels, the demands currently made on plant photosynthetic productivity will continue to increase. Enhancing photosynthesis using designer, green and sustainable materials offers an attractive alternative to current genetic-based strategies and promising work with nanomaterials has recently started to emerge. Here we describe the in planta use of carbon-based nanoparticles produced by low-cost renewable routes that are bioavailable to mature plants.

Treatment of Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fractures: Applicability of Appropriateness Criteria in Clinical Practice.

Background: Appropriate treatment choice for osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCF) is challenging due to patient heterogeneity. Using the RAND/UCLA method, an international multidisciplinary expert panel established patient-specific criteria for the choice between non-surgical management (NSM), vertebroplasty (VP), and balloon kyphoplasty (BKP).

Objectives: To assess the applicability of the appropriateness criteria in real-life practice.

Estimating upper bounds for occupancy and number of manatees in areas potentially affected by oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform created the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history.

Criteria for the appropriate treatment of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures.

Background: The heterogeneity of patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (VCF) necessitates a tailored approach of balancing the benefits and limitations of available treatments. Current guidelines are divergent, sometimes contradictory, and often insufficiently detailed to guide practice decisions.

Objectives: This study aimed at establishing treatment recommendations at the patient-specific level.

Photophysiology and albedo-changing potential of the ice algal community on the surface of the Greenland ice sheet.

Darkening of parts of the Greenland ice sheet surface during the summer months leads to reduced albedo and increased melting. Here we show that heavily pigmented, actively photosynthesising microalgae and cyanobacteria are present on the bare ice. We demonstrate the widespread abundance of green algae in the Zygnematophyceae on the ice sheet surface in Southwest Greenland.

Estimating distribution of hidden objects with drones: from tennis balls to manatees.

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), or drones, have been used widely in military applications, but more recently civilian applications have emerged (e.g., wildlife population monitoring, traffic monitoring, law enforcement, oil and gas pipeline threat detection).

A randomized, double-blind trial of pre-emptive local anesthesia in day-case knee arthroscopy.

Purpose: The study goal was to assess the efficacy of pre-emptive analgesia in a clinical setting.

Type Of Study: A block randomized, double-blind design was used.

Methods: Subjects were 40 patients undergoing day-case arthroscopy of the knee.