Acronyms of Ailment

Profanity, obscenity and violence are slipping into medical terminology and phraseology unobtrusively through the back door of the acronymal abbreviation. When quoted as an acronym, coronary artery disease becumes an insulting CAD, secondary carcinoma of the upper mediastinum turns into SCUM, thyroid uptake gradient transforms into THUG, and right atrial pressure elevation transmutes into RAPE. Medical papers abound in such vulgarisms as GIP (gonorrheal invasive peritonitis), HOG (hepatic output of glucose), IMP (idiopathic myeloid proliferation) and HOOD (hyperbaric oxygen ongoing delivery)

Lavinia Espy Morehead Scrapbook & Portrait

MS030-201

Rapid analysis of forensic-related samples using two ambient ionization techniques coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometers

RATIONALE: This paper highlights the versatility of interfacing two ambient ionization techniques, Laser Diode Thermal Desorption (LDTD) and Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe (ASAP), to high-resolution mass spectrometers and demonstrate the method’s capability to rapidly generate high-quality data from multiple sample types with minimal, if any, sample preparation. METHODS: For ASAP-MS analysis of solid and liquid samples, the material was transferred to a capillary surface before being introduced into the mass spectrometer. For LDTD-MS analysis, samples were solvent extracted, spotted in a 96-well plate, and the solvent was evaporated before being introduced into the mass spectrometer. All analyses were performed using Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionization in positive mode. RESULTS: Seven consumer Spice packets were combined and analyzed by both ASAP and LDTD, which identified 11 synthetic cannabinoids/cathinones by full MS and MS/MS experiments. To further show the usefulness of these techniques, black tar heroin was analyzed, which resulted in the identification of heroin and its impurities (monoacetylmorphine, papaverine, and noscapine). These experiments were performed on the LTQ-Orbitrap to demonstrate the ability to perform both parallel and serial MS and MSn experiments. CONCLUSIONS: Interfacing LDTD and ASAP to high-resolution mass spectrometers allows for expeditious analysis of a wide range of samples, with minimal or no sample preparation. Both allow for rapid full scan, MS/MS, and/or MSn experiments from a single sample introduction

High asymptomatic carriage with the Omicron variant in South Africa

We report a 23% asymptomatic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) Omicron carriage rate in participants being enrolled into a clinical trial in South Africa, 15-fold higher than in trials before Omicron. We also found lower CD4 + T-cell counts in persons with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) strongly correlated with increased odds of being SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) positive.The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants. The Sisonke study was funded by the National Treasury of South Africa; the National Department of Health; Solidarity Response Fund NPC; The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation; The Elma Vaccines and Immunization Foundation; and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.https://academic.oup.com/cidam2023Paediatrics and Child Healt

Gesture and Vocabulary Learning in a Foreign Language

When introducing new words in a second language (L2), presenting vocabulary with concurrent gestures might facilitate learners’ recollection of new words. Previous research has suggested that this gestural advantage might hold only for gestures that overlap with the semantics of the words. Dual coding theory (Paivio, 1986, 1990) predicts that learners should learn input better when multiple sensory routes act as aids to retrieval. Our research replicated and extended previous studies examining the limits of gestures in learning L2 vocabulary. A within-participant design directly compared the effects of pairing low idiosyncratic gestures (gestures traditionally iconic with word meanings) versus high idiosyncratic gestures (gestures that likely need to be idiosyncratically paired with word meanings) with L2 vocabulary presentation, relative to using no gestures. Results supported dual coding theory: All gestures were helpful if they were not confusable with other to-be-learned words and if the number of words presented was limited

Gesture and Vocabulary Learning in a Foreign Language

When introducing new words in a second language (L2), presenting vocabulary with concurrent gestures might facilitate learners’ recollection of new words. Previous research has suggested that this gestural advantage might hold only for gestures that overlap with the semantics of the words. Dual coding theory (Paivio, 1986, 1990) predicts that learners should learn input better when multiple sensory routes act as aids to retrieval. Our research replicated and extended previous studies examining the limits of gestures in learning L2 vocabulary. A within-participant design directly compared the effects of pairing low idiosyncratic gestures (gestures traditionally iconic with word meanings) versus high idiosyncratic gestures (gestures that likely need to be idiosyncratically paired with word meanings) with L2 vocabulary presentation, relative to using no gestures. Results supported dual coding theory: All gestures were helpful if they were not confusable with other to-be-learned words and if the number of words presented was limited