Plantar Loading During Cutting While Wearing a Rigid Carbon Fiber Insert.

Context : Stress fractures are one of the most common injuries in sports, accounting for approximately 10% of all overuse injuries. Treatment of fifth metatarsal stress fractures involves both surgical and nonsurgical interventions. Fifth metatarsal stress fractures are difficult to treat because of the risks of delayed union, nonunion, and recurrent injuries. Most of these injuries occur during agility tasks, such as those performed in soccer, basketball, and lacrosse. Objective : To examine the effect of a rigid carbon graphite footplate on plantar loading during 2 agility tasks. Design :  Crossover study. Setting : Laboratory. Patients or Other Participants : A total of 19 recreational male athletes with no history of lower extremity injury in the past 6 months and no previous metatarsal stress fractures were tested. Main Outcome Measure(s) :  Seven 45° side-cut and crossover-cut tasks were completed in a shoe with or without a full-length rigid carbon plate. Testing order between the shoe conditions and the 2 cutting tasks was randomized. Plantar-loading data were recorded using instrumented insoles. Peak pressure, maximum force, force-time integral, and contact area beneath the total foot, the medial and lateral midfoot, and the medial, middle, and lateral forefoot were analyzed. A series of paired t tests was used to examine differences between the footwear conditions (carbon graphite footplate, shod) for both cutting tasks independently (α = .05). Results : During the side-cut task, the footplate increased total foot and lateral midfoot peak pressures while decreasing contact area and lateral midfoot force-time integral. During the crossover-cut task, the footplate increased total foot and lateral midfoot peak pressure and lateral forefoot force-time integral while decreasing total and lateral forefoot contact area. Conclusions : Although a rigid carbon graphite footplate altered some aspects of the plantar- pressure profile during cutting in uninjured participants, it was ineffective in reducing plantar loading beneath the fifth metatarsal.

Cutting edge: distinct glycolytic and lipid oxidative metabolic programs are essential for effector and regulatory CD4+ T cell subsets.

Stimulated CD4(+) T lymphocytes can differentiate into effector T cell (Teff) or inducible regulatory T cell (Treg) subsets with specific immunological roles. We show that Teff and Treg require distinct metabolic programs to support these functions. Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells expressed high surface levels of the glucose transporter Glut1 and were highly glycolytic. Treg, in contrast, expressed low levels of Glut1 and had high lipid oxidation rates. Consistent with glycolysis and lipid oxidation promoting Teff and Treg, respectively, Teff were selectively increased in Glut1 transgenic mice and reliant on glucose metabolism, whereas Treg had activated AMP-activated protein kinase and were dependent on lipid oxidation. Importantly, AMP-activated protein kinase stimulation was sufficient to decrease Glut1 and increase Treg generation in an asthma model. These data demonstrate that CD4(+) T cell subsets require distinct metabolic programs that can be manipulated in vivo to control Treg and Teff development in inflammatory diseases.

Simulation of 2-D metal cutting by means of a distributed algorithm

Temperature distributions involved in some metal-cutting or surface-milling processes may be obtained by solving a non-linear inverse problem. A two-level concept on parallelism is introduced to compute such temperature distribution. The primary level is based on a problem-partitioning concept driven by the nature and properties of the non-linear inverse problem. Such partitioning results to a coarse-grained parallel algorithm. A simplified 2-D metal-cutting process is used as an example to illustrate the concept. A secondary level exploitation of further parallel properties based on the concept of domain-data parallelism is explained and implemented using MPI. Some experiments were performed on a network of loosely coupled machines consist of SUN Sparc Classic workstations and a network of tightly coupled processors, namely the Origin 2000.

Delayed failure of a deep cutting in lodgement till

Recent research on the delayed failure of cuttings in clay clearly recognises and predicts progressive delayed failure of deep cuttings. This is due to a combination of strain-softening, weathering, dissipation of negative excess pore water pressure generated at the time of excavation, and frequent occurrence of prolonged periods of wet weather. There have been several slope failures of this kind in Northern Ireland. This paper discusses a case study based on a failure of a deep cutting, excavated at a slope of 1 in 2, on the A1 near Dromore (County Down) in Northern Ireland. The cutting was in lodgement till, a stiff, heavily overconsolidated clay. The failure occurred approximately 30 years after the cutting was excavated, following a prolonged period of heavy rainfall. An analysis of the failure, together with laboratory test data on soil samples taken from the site, confirmed that by using long-term soil strength parameters the factor of safety of this slope was unity. The conclusion of the analysis is that slopes excavated in this soil should be designed (and assessed) on long-term strength parameters.

Packet classification by multi-level cutting of the classification space: An algorithmic-architectural solution for IP packet classification in next generation networks

Traditionally, the Internet provides only a “best-effort” service, treating all packets going to the same destination equally. However, providing differentiated services for different users based on their quality requirements is increasingly becoming a demanding issue. For this, routers need to have the capability to distinguish and isolate traffic belonging to different flows. This ability to determine the flow each packet belongs to is called packet classification. Technology vendors are reluctant to support algorithmic solutions for classification due to their non-deterministic performance. Although CAMs are favoured by technology vendors due to their deterministic high lookup rates, they suffer from the problems of high power dissipation and high silicon cost. This paper provides a new algorithmic-architectural solution for packet classification that mixes CAMs with algorithms based on multi-level cutting the classification space into smaller spaces. The provided solution utilizes the geometrical distribution of rules in the classification space. It provides the deterministic performance of CAMs, support for dynamic updates, and added flexibility for system designers.

Cutting edge: Langerin+ dendritic cells in the mesenteric lymph node set the stage for skin and gut immune system cross-talk.

Topical transcutaneous immunization (TCI) presents many clinical advantages, but its underlying mechanism remains unknown. TCI induced Ag-specific IgA Ab-secreting cells expressing CCR9 and CCR10 in the small intestine in a retinoic acid-dependent manner. These intestinal IgA Abs were maintained in Peyer\'s patch-null mice but abolished in the Peyer\'s patch- and lymph node-null mice. The mesenteric lymph node (MLN) was shown to be the site of IgA isotype class switching after TCI. Unexpectedly, langerin(+)CD8alpha(-) dendritic cells emerged in the MLN after TCI; they did not migrate from the skin but rather differentiated rapidly from bone marrow precursors. Depletion of langerin(+) cells impaired intestinal IgA Ab responses after TCI. Taken together, these findings suggest that MLN is indispensable for the induction of intestinal IgA Abs following skin immunization and that cross-talk between the skin and gut immune systems might be mediated by langerin(+) dendritic cells in the MLN.

Cut down by some cowardly miscreants’: Plant maiming, or the Malicious Cutting of Plants as an Act of Protest in Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Rural England

Since the publication of Hobsbawm and Rudé's Captain Swing our understanding of the role(s) of covert protests in Hanoverian rural England has advanced considerably. Whilst we now know much about the dramatic practices of incendiarism and animal maiming and the voices of resistance in seemingly straightforward acquisitive acts, one major gap remains. Despite the fact that almost thirty years have passed since E. P. Thompson brought to our attention that under the notorious ‘Black Act’ the malicious cutting of trees was a capital offence, no subsequent research has been published. This paper seeks to address this major lacuna by systematically analysing the practices and patterns of malicious attacks on plants (‘plant maiming’) in the context of late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century southern England. It is shown that not only did plant maiming take many different forms, attacking every conceivable type of flora, but also that it was universally understood and practised. In some communities plant maiming was the protestors' weapon of choice. As a social practice it therefore embodied wider community beliefs regarding the defence of plebeian livelihoods and identities.

Packet classification by multi-level cutting of the classification space

Traditionally, the Internet provides only a “best-effort” service, treating all packets going to the same destination equally. However, providing differentiated services for different users based on their quality requirements is increasingly becoming a demanding issue. For this, routers need to have the capability to distinguish and isolate traffic belonging to different flows. This ability to determine the flow each packet belongs to is called packet classification. Technology vendors are reluctant to support algorithmic solutions for classification due to their nondeterministic performance. Although content addressable memories (CAMs) are favoured by technology vendors due to their deterministic high-lookup rates, they suffer from the problems of high-power consumption and high-silicon cost. This paper provides a new algorithmic-architectural solution for packet classification that mixes CAMs with algorithms based on multilevel cutting of the classification space into smaller spaces. The provided solution utilizes the geometrical distribution of rules in the classification space. It provides the deterministic performance of CAMs, support for dynamic updates, and added flexibility for system designers.

Influence of environmental enrichment on the behaviour, performance and meat quality of domestic pigs

Three hundred and twenty pigs were reared from birth to slaughter at 21 weeks in either barren or enriched environments. The barren environments were defined as intensive housing (slatted floors and minimum recommended space allowances) and the enriched environments incorporated extra space, an area which contained peat and straw in a rack. Behavioural observations showed that environmental enrichment reduced time spent inactive and time spent involved in harmful social and aggressive behaviour while increasing the time spent in exploratory behaviour. During the finishing period (15-21 weeks) mean daily food intakes were higher and food conversion ratios were lower for pigs in enriched environments compared with their counterparts in barren environments (P

Red meat consumption: An overview of the risks and benefits

Red meat is long established as an important dietary source of protein and essential nutrients including iron, zinc and vitamin B12, yet recent reports that its consumption may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and colon cancer have led to a negative perception of the role of red meat in health. The aim of this paper is to review existing literature for both the risks and benefits of red meat consumption, focusing on case-control and prospective studies. Despite many studies reporting an association between red meat and the risk of CVD and colon cancer, several methodological limitations and inconsistencies were identified which may impact on the validity of their findings. Overall, there is no strong evidence to support the recent conclusion from the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) report that red meat has a convincing role to play in colon cancer. A substantial amount of evidence supports the role of lean red meat as a positive moderator of lipid profiles with recent Studies identifying it as a dietary source of the anti-inflammatory long chain (LC) n-3 PUFAs and conjugated linoleic acid (CIA). In conclusion. moderate consumption of lean red meat as part of a balanced diet is unlikely to increase risk for CVD or colon cancer, but may positively influence nutrient intakes and fatty acid profiles, thereby impacting positively on long-term health. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved