Development and validation of a cryogenic far-infrared diffraction grating spectrometer used to post-disperse the output from a Fourier transform spectrometer.

Recent advances in far-infrared detector technology have led to increases in raw sensitivity of more than an order of magnitude over previous state-of-the-art detectors. With such sensitivity, photon noise becomes the dominant noise component, even when using cryogenically cooled optics, unless a method of restricting the spectral bandpass is employed. The leading instrument concept features reflecting diffraction gratings, which post-disperse the light that has been modulated by a polarizing Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) onto a detector array, thereby reducing the photon noise on each detector.

Political partisanship, laissez-faire attitudes, and COVID-19 behaviours and viewpoints in Canada and the United States.

Objective: In the United States, clear partisan differences in responses to COVID-19 have been shown in leadership and elite cueing at the state level as well as in perspectives and behaviours of the citizenry. This study probes differences in political values-particularly the prevalence of laissez-faire attitudes-that might explain the stronger social consensus on pandemic countermeasures seen in Canada.

Methods: Data were obtained from temporally aligned waves of cross-sectional surveys of Canadian and US adults in the first year of the pandemic.

In the fast lane: Receptor trafficking during status epilepticus.

Status epilepticus (SE) remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality and often is refractory to standard first-line treatments. A rapid loss of synaptic inhibition and development of pharmacoresistance to benzodiazepines (BZDs) occurs early during SE, while NMDA and AMPA receptor antagonists remain effective treatments after BZDs have failed. Multimodal and subunit-selective receptor trafficking within minutes to an hour of SE involves GABA-A, NMDA, and AMPA receptors and contributes to shifts in the number and subunit composition of surface receptors with differential impacts on the physiology, pharmacology, and strength of GABAergic and glutamatergic currents at synaptic and extrasynaptic sites.

Virtual Adaptation of Resident I-PASS Training Session During COVID-19.

Introduction: Effective communication during the patient handoff process is critical for ensuring patient safety. At our academic medical center, first-year interns complete hand-off training before starting clinical rotations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a virtual handoff training for residents as an alternative to in-person sessions due to limitations imposed by COVID-19.

Case Report: What-or who-killed Frank Ramsey? Some reflections on cause of death and the nature of medical reasoning.

Philosopher Frank Ramsey died in 1930 aged only 26. There has been much speculation about the nature of his final illness and the sequence of events which led to his death. To prepare this case report, we traced Ramsey's medical records and combined them with an extensive and unique dataset of contemporaneous sources.

Blood Pressure Changes While Hiking at Moderate Altitudes: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Recreational hiking in the mountains is a common activity, whether for a single day or for several days in a row. We sought to measure blood pressure (BP) response during a 10-day trek at moderate-altitude elevation (6500-13,000 feet) and observe for uncontrolled hypertension and/or adverse cardiovascular outcomes. A total of 1279 adult participants completed an observational study of resting BP during a 10-day trek in the Sangre de Cristo mountains.

An angle-scanned cryogenic Fabry-Pérot interferometer for far-infrared astronomy.

The sensitivity of state-of-the-art superconducting far-infrared detectors used in conjunction with cryogenically cooled space telescopes and instrumentation is such that spectroscopic observations are generally limited by photon noise from the astronomical source or by galactic foreground or zodiacal emission within the field-of-view. Therefore, an instrument design that restricts the spectral bandpass viewed by the detector must be employed. One method of achieving background limited, high resolution spectroscopy is to combine a high resolution component such as a Fabry-Pérot interferometer (FPI) with a lower resolution, post-dispersing system, such as a grating spectrometer, the latter serving to restrict the spectral bandpass.

Early polytherapy for benzodiazepine-refractory status epilepticus.

The transition from single seizures to status epilepticus (SE) is associated with malaptive trafficking of synaptic gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate receptors. The receptor trafficking hypothesis proposes that these changes are key events in the development of pharmacoresistance to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) during SE, and that blocking their expression will help control drug-refractory SE (RSE). We tested this hypothesis in a model of SE induced by very high-dose lithium and pilocarpine (RSE), and in a model of SE induced by sc soman.

Variation in clinical practice: forests and trees revisited.

Variations in clinical practice are commonly viewed as a sign of uneven quality of care and attributed to provider self-interest. However, patient preferences, physician practice patterns, and diagnostic and therapeutic uncertainty also cause variations. Greater attention to both doctor-patient interactions and limits to the available evidence might enable more effective assessment and improvement of health-care quality.

α7-Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor inhibition by indinavir: implications for cognitive dysfunction in treated HIV disease.

Objective: The study set out to determine if the HIV protease inhibitor, indinavir, alters responsiveness of α7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptors to acetylcholine.

Design: Treatment with HAART has dramatically reduced development of HIV-associated dementia and more severe forms of cognitive impairment. However, many individuals continue to experience cognitive decline of uncertain cause.