Non-Contact Documentation of Physical Characteristics of Ecstasy Tablets, Hemp Coins, and Imprint Punches by using 3D Optical Surface Scanning

The description of seized illicit ecstasy tablets and other pressed drug products is an important step in casework. The physical and visual analysis and the description of the characteristics can be employed for intelligence purposes. Besides photography and manual measurements of dimensions, some optical instruments are employed for detailed measurements of physical characteristics. In this work, the method of 3D surface digitizing is introduced as a suitable tool for highly accurate documentation of small objects, especially for pressed drug products. The resulting detailed information about the geometry, and the results of an automatic comparison of apparently uniform tablets and coins with punches, can support drug intelligence.

Oxygen isotope record of oceanic and high-pressure metasomatism: a P-T-time-fluid path for the Monviso eclogites (Italy)

Fluids are considered a fundamental agent for chemical exchanges between different rock types in the subduction system. Constraints on the sources and pathways of subduction fluids thus provide crucial information to reconstruct subduction processes. The Monviso ophiolitic sequence is composed of mafic, ultramafic and minor sediments that have been subducted to ~80 km depth. In this sequence, both localized fluid flow and channelized fluids along major shear zones have been documented. We investigate the timing and source of the fluids that affected the dominant mafic rocks using microscale U-Pb dating of zircon and oxygen isotope analysis of mineral zones (garnet, zircon and antigorite) in high pressure rocks with variable degree of metasomatic modification. In mafic eclogites, Jurassic zircon cores are the only mineralogical relicts of the protolith gabbros and retain δ18O values of 4.5–6 ‰, typical of mantle melts. Garnet and metamorphic zircon that grew during prograde to peak metamorphism display low δ18O values between 0.2 and 3.8 ‰, which are likely inherited from high-temperature alteration of the protolith on the sea floor. This is corroborated by δ18O values of 3.0 and 3.6 ‰ in antigorite from surrounding serpentinites. In metasomatised eclogites within the Lower Shear Zone, garnet rim formed at the metamorphic peak shows a shift to higher δ18O up to 6‰. The age of zircons in high-pressure veins and metasomatised eclogites constrains the timing of fluid flow at high pressure at around 45–46 Ma. Although the oxygen data do not contradict previous reports of interaction with serpentinite-derived fluids, the shift to isotopically heavier oxygen compositions requires contribution from sediment-derived fluids. The scarcity of metasediments in the Monviso sequence suggests that such fluids were concentrated and fluxed along the Lower Shear Zone in a sufficient amount to modify the oxygen composition of the eclogitic minerals.

Associating optical measurements and estimating orbits of geocentric objects through population-based meta-heuristic methods

Currently several thousands of objects are being tracked in the MEO and GEO regions through optical means. The problem faced in this framework is that of Multiple Target Tracking (MTT). In this context both, the correct associations among the observations and the orbits of the objects have to be determined. The complexity of the MTT problem is defined by its dimension S. The number S corresponds to the number of fences involved in the problem. Each fence consists of a set of observations where each observation belongs to a different object. The S ≥ 3 MTT problem is an NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem. There are two general ways to solve this. One way is to seek the optimum solution, this can be achieved by applying a branch-and- bound algorithm. When using these algorithms the problem has to be greatly simplified to keep the computational cost at a reasonable level. Another option is to approximate the solution by using meta-heuristic methods. These methods aim to efficiently explore the different possible combinations so that a reasonable result can be obtained with a reasonable computational effort. To this end several population-based meta-heuristic methods are implemented and tested on simulated optical measurements. With the advent of improved sensors and a heightened interest in the problem of space debris, it is expected that the number of tracked objects will grow by an order of magnitude in the near future. This research aims to provide a method that can treat the correlation and orbit determination problems simultaneously, and is able to efficiently process large data sets with minimal manual intervention.

Perceptual Training in Beach Volleyball Defence: Different Effects of Gaze-Path Cueing on Gaze and Decision-Making

For perceptual-cognitive skill training, a variety of intervention methods has been proposed, including the so-called “color-cueing method” which aims on superior gaze-path learning by applying visual markers. However, recent findings challenge this method, especially, with regards to its actual effects on gaze behavior. Consequently, after a preparatory study on the identification of appropriate visual cues for life-size displays, a perceptual-training experiment on decision-making in beach volleyball was conducted, contrasting two cueing interventions (functional vs. dysfunctional gaze path) with a conservative control condition (anticipation-related instructions). Gaze analyses revealed learning effects for the dysfunctional group only. Regarding decision-making, all groups showed enhanced performance with largest improvements for the control group followed by the functional and the dysfunctional group. Hence, the results confirm cueing effects on gaze behavior, but they also question its benefit for enhancing decision-making. However, before completely denying the method’s value, optimisations should be checked regarding, for instance, cueing-pattern characteristics and gaze-related feedback.

Long-term outcomes and prognostic factors of skull-base chondrosarcoma patients treated with pencil-beam scanning proton therapy at the Paul Scherrer Institute

BACKGROUND Skull-base chondrosarcoma (ChSa) is a rare disease, and the prognostication of this disease entity is ill defined. METHODS We assessed the long-term local control (LC) results, overall survival (OS), and prognostic factors of skull-base ChSa patients treated with pencil beam scanning proton therapy (PBS PT). Seventy-seven (male, 35; 46%) patients with histologically confirmed ChSa were treated at the Paul Scherrer Institute. Median age was 38.9 years (range, 10.2-70.0y). Median delivered dose was 70.0 GyRBE (range, 64.0-76.0 GyRBE). LC, OS, and toxicity-free survival (TFS) rates were calculated using the Kaplan Meier method. RESULTS After a mean follow-up of 69.2 months (range, 4.6-190.8 mo), 6 local (7.8%) failures were observed, 2 of which were late failures. Five (6.5%) patients died. The actuarial 8-year LC and OS were 89.7% and 93.5%, respectively. Tumor volume > 25 cm(3) (P = .02), brainstem/optic apparatus compression at the time of PT (P = .04) and age >30 years (P = .08) were associated with lower rates of LC. High-grade (≥3) radiation-induced toxicity was observed in 6 (7.8%) patients. The 8-year high-grade TFS was 90.8%. A higher rate of high-grade toxicity was observed for older patients (P = .073), those with larger tumor volume (P = .069), and those treated with 5 weekly fractions (P = .069). CONCLUSIONS This is the largest PT series reporting the outcome of patients with low-grade ChSa of the skull base treated with PBS only. Our data indicate that protons are both safe and effective. Tumor volume, brainstem/optic apparatus compression, and age were prognosticators of local failures.

Pencil Beam Scanning Proton Therapy for Pediatric Parameningeal Rhabdomyosarcomas: Clinical Outcome of Patients Treated at the Paul Scherrer Institute

BACKGROUND Parameningeal rhabdomyosarcomas (PM-RMSs) represent approximately 25% of all rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) cases. These tumors are associated with early recurrence and poor prognosis. This study assessed the clinical outcome and late toxicity of pencil beam scanning (PBS) proton therapy (PT) in the treatment of children with PM-RMS. PROCEDURES Thirty-nine children with PM-RMS received neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by PBS-PT at the Paul Scherrer Institute, with concomitant chemotherapy. The median age was 5.8 years (range, 1.2-16.1). Due to young age, 25 patients (64%) required general anesthesia during PT. The median time from the start of chemotherapy to PT was 13 weeks (range, 3-23 weeks). Median prescription dose was 54 Gy (relative biologic effectiveness, RBE). RESULTS With a mean follow-up of 41 months (range, 9-106 months), 10 patients failed. The actuarial 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 72% (95% CI, 67-94%) and the 5-year overall survival was 73% (95% CI, 69-96%). On univariate analysis, a delay in the initiation of PT (>13 weeks) was a significant detrimental factor for PFS. Three (8%) patients presented with grade 3 radiation-induced toxicity. The estimated actuarial 5-year toxicity ≥grade 3 free survival was 95% (95% CI, 94-96%). CONCLUSIONS Our data contribute to the growing body of evidence demonstrating the safety and effectiveness of PT for pediatric patients with PM-RMS. These preliminary results are encouraging and in line with other combined proton-photon and photons series; observed toxicity was acceptable.

An MILP-based heuristic for staff scheduling problems with acceptance levels

We present a real-world staff-assignment problem that was reported to us by a provider of an online workforce scheduling software. The problem consists of assigning employees to work shifts subject to a large variety of requirements related to work laws, work shift compatibility, workload balancing, and personal preferences of employees. A target value is given for each requirement, and all possible deviations from these values are associated with acceptance levels. The objective is to minimize the total number of deviations in ascending order of the acceptance levels. We present an exact lexicographic goal programming MILP formulation and an MILP-based heuristic. The heuristic consists of two phases: in the first phase a feasible schedule is built and in the second phase parts of the schedule are iteratively re-optimized by applying an exact MILP model. A major advantage of such MILP-based approaches is the flexibility to account for additional constraints or modified planning objectives, which is important as the requirements may vary depending on the company or planning period. The applicability of the heuristic is demonstrated for a test set derived from real-world data. Our computational results indicate that the heuristic is able to devise optimal solutions to non-trivial problem instances, and outperforms the exact lexicographic goal programming formulation on medium- and large-sized problem instances.

A heuristic approach for scheduling assessment centers

Human resources managers often use assessment centers to evaluate candidates for a job position. During an assessment center, the candidates perform a series of exercises. The exercises require one or two assessors (e.g., managers or psychologists) that observe and evaluate the candidate. If an exercise is designed as a role-play, an actor is required as well which plays, e.g., an unhappy customer with whom the candidate has to deal with. Besides performing the exercises, the candidates have a lunch break within a prescribed time window. Each candidate should be observed by approximately half the number of the assessors. Moreover, an assessor cannot be assigned to a candidate if they personally know each other. The planning problem consists of determining (1) resource-feasible start times of all exercises and lunch breaks and (2) a feasible assignment of assessors to candidates, such that the assessment center duration is minimized. We propose a list-scheduling heuristic that generates feasible schedules for such assessment centers. We develop novel procedures for devising an appropriate scheduling list and for incorporating the problem-specific constraints. Our computational results indicate that our approach is capable of devising optimal or near-optimal solutions to real-world instances within short CPU time.

Choosing the path of austerity: how parties and policy coalitions influence welfare state retrenchment in periods of fiscal consolidation

What are the conditions under which some austerity programmes rely on substantial cuts to social spending? More specifically, do the partisan complexion and the type of government condition the extent to which austerity policies imply welfare state retrenchment? This article demonstrates that large budget consolidations tend to be associated with welfare state retrenchment. The findings support a partisan and a politico-institutionalist argument: (i) in periods of fiscal consolidation, welfare state retrenchment tends to be more pronounced under left-wing governments; (ii) since welfare state retrenchment is electorally and politically risky, it also tends to be more pronounced when pursued by a broad pro-reform coalition government. Therefore, the article shows that during budget consolidations implemented by left-wing broad coalition governments, welfare state retrenchment is greatest. Using long-run multipliers from autoregressive distributed lag models on 17 OECD countries during the 1982–2009 period, substantial support is found for these expectations.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Full-Body Linear X-Ray Scanning in Multiple Trauma Patients in Comparison to Computed Tomography

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of full-body linear X-ray scanning (LS) in multiple trauma patients in comparison to 128-multislice computed tomography (MSCT). Materials and Methods: 106 multiple trauma patients (female: 33; male: 73) were retrospectively included in this study. All patients underwent LS of the whole body, including extremities, and MSCT covering the neck, thorax, abdomen, and pelvis. The diagnostic accuracy of LS for the detection of fractures of the truncal skeleton and pneumothoraces was evaluated in comparison to MSCT by two observers in consensus. Extremity fractures detected by LS were documented. Results: The overall sensitivity of LS was 49.2 %, the specificity was 93.3 %, the positive predictive value was 91 %, and the negative predictive value was 57.5 %. The overall sensitivity for vertebral fractures was 16.7 %, and the specificity was 100 %. The sensitivity was 48.7 % and the specificity 98.2 % for all other fractures. Pneumothoraces were detected in 12 patients by CT, but not by LS. 40 extremity fractures were detected by LS, of which 4 fractures were dislocated, and 2 were fully covered by MSCT. Conclusion: The diagnostic accuracy of LS is limited in the evaluation of acute trauma of the truncal skeleton. LS allows fast whole-body X-ray imaging, and may be valuable for detecting extremity fractures in trauma patients in addition to MSCT. Key Points: • The overall sensitivity of LS for truncal skeleton injuries in multiple-trauma patients was < 50 %.• The diagnostic reference standard MSCT is the preferred and reliable imaging modality.• LS may be valuable for quick detection of extremity fractures. Citation Format: • Jöres APW., Heverhagen JT, Bonél H et al. Diagnostic Accuracy of Full-Body Linear X-Ray Scanning in Multiple Trauma Patients in Comparison to Computed Tomography. Fortschr Röntgenstr 2016; 188: 163 - 171.

Robustness of the Voluntary Breath-Hold Approach for the Treatment of Peripheral Lung Tumors Using Hypofractionated Pencil Beam Scanning Proton Therapy.

PURPOSE The safe clinical implementation of pencil beam scanning (PBS) proton therapy for lung tumors is complicated by the delivery uncertainties caused by breathing motion. The purpose of this feasibility study was to investigate whether a voluntary breath-hold technique could limit the delivery uncertainties resulting from interfractional motion. METHODS AND MATERIALS Data from 15 patients with peripheral lung tumors previously treated with stereotactic radiation therapy were included in this study. The patients had 1 computed tomographic (CT) scan in voluntary breath-hold acquired before treatment and 3 scans during the treatment course. PBS proton treatment plans with 2 fields (2F) and 3 fields (3F), respectively, were calculated based on the planning CT scan and subsequently recalculated on the 3 repeated CT scans. Recalculated plans were considered robust if the V95% (volume receiving ≥95% of the prescribed dose) of the gross target volume (GTV) was within 5% of what was expected from the planning CT data throughout the simulated treatment. RESULTS A total of 14/15 simulated treatments for both 2F and 3F met the robustness criteria. Reduced V95% was associated with baseline shifts (2F, P=.056; 3F, P=.008) and tumor size (2F, P=.025; 3F, P=.025). Smaller tumors with large baseline shifts were also at risk for reduced V95% (interaction term baseline/size: 2F, P=.005; 3F, P=.002). CONCLUSIONS The breath-hold approach is a realistic clinical option for treating lung tumors with PBS proton therapy. Potential risk factors for reduced V95% are small targets in combination with large baseline shifts. On the basis of these results, the baseline shift of the tumor should be monitored (eg, through image guided therapy), and appropriate measures should be taken accordingly. The intrafractional motion needs to be investigated to confirm that the breath-hold approach is robust.

Diffusion tensor imaging of the human kidney: Does image registration permit scanning without respiratory triggering?

PURPOSE To investigate if image registration of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) allows omitting respiratory triggering for both transplanted and native kidneys MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nine kidney transplant recipients and eight healthy volunteers underwent renal DTI on a 3T scanner with and without respiratory triggering. DTI images were registered using a multimodal nonrigid registration algorithm. Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), the contribution of perfusion (FP ), and the fractional anisotropy (FA) were determined. Relative root mean square errors (RMSE) of the fitting and the standard deviations of the derived parameters within the regions of interest (SDROI ) were evaluated as quality criteria. RESULTS Registration significantly reduced RMSE in all DTI-derived parameters of triggered and nontriggered measurements in cortex and medulla of both transplanted and native kidneys (P < 0.05 for all). In addition, SDROI values were lower with registration for all 16 parameters in transplanted kidneys (14 of 16 SDROI values were significantly reduced, P < 0.04) and for 15 of 16 parameters in native kidneys (9 of 16 SDROI values were significantly reduced, P < 0.05). Comparing triggered versus nontriggered DTI in transplanted kidneys revealed no significant difference for RMSE (P > 0.14) and for SDROI (P > 0.13) of all parameters. In contrast, in native kidneys relative RMSE from triggered scans were significantly lower than those from nontriggered scans (P < 0.02), while SDROI was slightly higher in triggered compared to nontriggered measurements in 15 out of 16 comparisons (significantly for two, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION Registration improves the quality of DTI in native and transplanted kidneys. Diffusion parameters in renal allografts can be measured without respiratory triggering. In native kidneys, respiratory triggering appears advantageous. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2016.