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We examined vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE)-directed antimicrobial use and VRE bacteremia in a cohort of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation patients from a center where VRE screening is standard prior to transplant. In this cohort, VRE bacteremia (VREB) was infrequent. In patients without VREB, colonized patients received VRE therapy more often than noncolonized patients.

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2018;1–4

The Ediacaran to lower Cambrian Chilhowee Group of the southern and central Appalachians records the rift-to-drift transition of the newly formed Iapetan margin of Laurentia. Body fossils are rare within the Chilhowee Group, and correlations are based almost exclusively on lithological similarities. A critical review of previous work highlights the relatively weak biostratigraphic and radiometric age constraints on the various units within the succession. Herein, we document a newly discovered fossil-bearing locality within the Murray Shale (upper Chilhowee Group) on Chilhowee Mountain, eastern Tennessee, and formally describe a nevadioid trilobite, Buenellus chilhoweensis n. sp., from that site. This trilobite indicates that the Murray Shale is of Montezuman age (provisional Cambrian Stage 3), which is older than the Dyeran (provisional late Stage 3 to early Stage 4) age suggested by the historical (mis)identification of “Olenellus sp.” from within the unit as reported by workers more than a century ago. Buenellus chilhoweensis n. sp. represents only the second known species of Buenellus, and demonstrates that the genus occupied both the Innuitian and Iapetan margins of Laurentia during the Montezuman. It is the oldest known trilobite from the Iapetan margin, and proves that the hitherto apparent absence of trilobites from that margin during the Montezuman was an artifact of inadequate sampling rather than a paleobiogeographic curiosity. The species offers a valuable biostratigraphic calibration point within a rock succession that has otherwise proven recalcitrant to refined dating.

UUID: http://zoobank.org/30af790b-e7b1-44c3-b1d5-55cdf579bde2

Germanium is a small-gap semiconductor that efficiently absorbs visible light, resulting in photoexcited electrons predicted to be sufficiently energetic to reduce H2O for H2 gas evolution. In order to protect the surface from corrosion and prevent surface charge recombination in contact with aqueous pH 7 electrolyte, we grew epitaxial SrTiO3 layers of different thicknesses on p-Ge (001) surfaces. Four-nanometer SrTiO3 allows photogenerated electrons to reach the surface and evolve H2 gas, while 13 nm SrTiO3 blocks these electrons. Ambient pressure x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicates that the surface readily dissociates H2O to form OH species, which may impact surface band bending.

Given that a properly formed utilitarian response to healthcare distribution issues should evaluate cost effectiveness against the total utility increase, it follows that any utilitarian cost-effectiveness metric should be sensitive to increases in both individual and social utility afforded by a given intervention. Quality adjusted life year (QALY) based decisionmaking in healthcare cannot track increases in social utility, and as a result, the QALY cannot be considered a strict utilitarian response to issues of healthcare distribution. This article considers arguments against, and a possible defence of, the QALY as a utilitarian concept; in response, the article offers a similar — but properly formed — utilitarian metric called the (IALY). This article also advances a tool called the ‘glee factor’ (GF) on which the IALY may lean in a similar way to which the QALY leans on the Rosser Index.

We examine whether the dark, orbitally-leading hemisphere of Saturn's satellite Iapetus might be coated by debris from low-albedo Phoebe, which orbits retrograde well exterior to Iapetus. Using simplified analytical models along with more complete numerical integrations, we follow the paths of various-sized particles launched gently off Phoebe following collisions with interplanetary and interstellar meteoroids. Micron grains can quickly reach Iapetus since (due to solar radiation) they trace elliptical orbits; larger grains may only hit after their more-circular orbits collapse due to Poynting-Robertson drag; few very large and very small Phoebe grains strike Iapetus. Despite some inconsistencies with observations, we conclude that Phoebe may possibly be the agent that has darkened Iapetus.

We report the breeding success of four species of burrow-nesting petrels at sub-Antarctic Marion Island where house mice Mus musculus are the sole introduced mammal. Feral cats Felis catus were present on Marion for four decades from 1949, killing millions of seabirds and greatly reducing petrel populations. Cats were eradicated by 1991, but petrel populations have shown only marginal recoveries. We hypothesize that mice are suppressing their recovery through depredation of petrel eggs and chicks. Breeding success for winter breeders (grey petrels Procellaria cinerea (34±21%) and great-winged petrels Pterodroma macroptera (52±7%)) were lower than for summer breeders (blue petrels Halobaena caerulea (61±6%) and white-chinned petrels Procellaria aequinoctialis (59±6%)) and among winter breeders most chick fatalities were of small chicks up to 14 days old. We assessed the extent of mouse predation by monitoring the inside of 55 burrow chambers with video surveillance cameras (4024 film days from 2012–16) and recorded fatal attacks on grey (3/18 nests filmed, 17%) and great-winged petrel chicks (1/19, 5%). Our results show that burrow-nesting petrels are at risk from mouse predation, providing further motivation for the eradication of mice from Marion Island.

An internationally approved and globally used classification scheme for the diagnosis of CHD has long been sought. The International Paediatric and Congenital Cardiac Code (IPCCC), which was produced and has been maintained by the International Society for Nomenclature of Paediatric and Congenital Heart Disease (the International Nomenclature Society), is used widely, but has spawned many “short list” versions that differ in content depending on the user. Thus, efforts to have a uniform identification of patients with CHD using a single up-to-date and coordinated nomenclature system continue to be thwarted, even if a common nomenclature has been used as a basis for composing various “short lists”. In an attempt to solve this problem, the International Nomenclature Society has linked its efforts with those of the World Health Organization to obtain a globally accepted nomenclature tree for CHD within the 11th iteration of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). The International Nomenclature Society has submitted a hierarchical nomenclature tree for CHD to the World Health Organization that is expected to serve increasingly as the “short list” for all communities interested in coding for congenital cardiology. This article reviews the history of the International Classification of Diseases and of the IPCCC, and outlines the process used in developing the ICD-11 congenital cardiac disease diagnostic list and the definitions for each term on the list. An overview of the content of the congenital heart anomaly section of the Foundation Component of ICD-11, published herein in its entirety, is also included. Future plans for the International Nomenclature Society include linking again with the World Health Organization to tackle procedural nomenclature as it relates to cardiac malformations. By doing so, the Society will continue its role in standardising nomenclature for CHD across the globe, thereby promoting research and better outcomes for fetuses, children, and adults with congenital heart anomalies.

Modern technology and technological advances offer a variety of benefits and challenges for assessment, data collection, communication, and other research- and practice-related endeavors. The focal article written by Morelli, Potosky, Arthur, and Tippins (2017) offers a segue into discussions about some of these issues. Although the authors offer some unique insights, we believe their view is incomplete, as it is potentially limited by their focus on testing and assessment. Below, we outline a few key points we hope will advance the conversation. Our commentary is largely grounded in the field of human–computer interaction (HCI), which is an interdisciplinary field that integrates expertise from computer science, psychology (and other behavioral sciences), and many other fields. Whereas psychology tends to place the human user at the forefront of discussions concerning technology, HCI expands beyond just the user's psychology, focusing on the design of interfaces that allow users to interact with computing technology in new ways (Card, Moran, & Newell, 1983).

Morelli, Potosky, Arthur, and Tippins (2017) make a timely and appropriate call for authors to create conceptual models of technology in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology. We agree with their call, but we believe that Morelli et al. overlooked the contributions of related fields that conduct research on technology in the workplace that are already consistent with their call. For this reason, we briefly detail other fields that commonly study the dynamics of technology and its influence on the workplace, followed by a discussion regarding the place of I-O psychology in the broader scheme of technology research. This discussion can aid future authors in conceptualizing appropriate contributions to the study of technology in I-O psychology as well as identifying whether these contributions benefit other fields. Perhaps more importantly, this discussion can help identify where I-O psychology fits in the broader scheme of technology research and which associated fields may be most readily available to aid in the creation of new models—two questions that currently seem unanswered.

The religious landscapes of Republican-era urban communities in central and southern Italy were built on complex relationships between the inhabitants and their sacred spaces. The critical need to defend sacred sites such as temples, shrines and altars contributed directly to the shaping of urban centers and the formation of their cultural identities. Many urban centers had a separate citadel where communities protected their sanctuaries behind fortifications. In a reciprocal process the gods protected settlements. Some city gates (e.g., Volterra, Perugia, Falerii Novi) still carry prominent adornments in the form of busts and reliefs that evoke implicit civic and religious associations. The deities' presence implies a complex political and social interaction between the population, protective gods, and fortifications. As tutelary deities, their manipulation whether by a local élite or by a power such as Rome was an important part of the definition and appropriation of local identity.