New cancer information resources for people of Ukraine from NCCN

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network—a non-profit based in the United States—is providing free patient-tailored cancer treatment guides to help Ukrainians with cancer get the best possible care, available online at NCCN.org/Ukraine

Business Announcement

NATIONAL COMPREHENSIVE CANCER NETWORK

 

IMAGE: NCCN GUIDELINES FOR PATIENTS IN UKRAINIAN AVAILABLE AT NCCN.ORG/UKRAINE view more 

CREDIT: NCCN

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA [April 14, 2022] — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®)—an alliance of leading U.S. cancer centers—joins the global plea for peace in Ukraine and recognizes the profound impact to cancer care. As an organization whose mission is to improve cancer care globally, NCCN stands in solidarity with the Ukrainian people. As part of that support, NCCN is providing free, Ukrainian-language cancer treatment information guides at NCCN.org/Ukraine.

“Our heart goes out to the people of Ukraine during this unjust invasion and humanitarian crisis,” said Robert W. Carlson, MD, Chief Executive Officer, NCCN. “War not only threatens people’s immediate safety, it also makes it much harder to provide necessary health care, including essential cancer care. We hope these Ukrainian-language treatment guides can offer some help to patients, their caregivers, and their providers during this difficult time.”

The NCCN resources include 14 newly-translated NCCN Guidelines for Patients® featuring patient-friendly, evidence-based, expert information on the following 8 topics in cancer care:

• Breast Cancer (ductal carcinoma in situ/DCIS, invasive, and metastatic)
• Cervical Cancer
• Colon Cancer
• Distress Management
• Head & Neck Cancers (nasopharyngeal, oral, and oropharyngeal)
• Lung Cancer (early and metastatic)
• Lymphomas (diffuse large B-cell)
• Prostate Cancer (early and advanced)

The English-language versions of these patient guidelines are based on the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®)—the recognized standard for clinical direction and policy in cancer care and the most thorough and frequently updated clinical practice guidelines available in any area of medicine. The patient versions are presented in an easy-to-read format via funding from the NCCN Foundation®, to help patients better understand their cancer care, especially when crossing geographic borders and receiving care in different settings.

“As hard as it is to endure an invasion, it can be even harder for people with cancer who have additional, urgent medical concerns,” said Nelya Melnitchouk, MD, Global Medical Knowledge Alliance (GMKA). “This Ukrainian-language information can help people with cancer and their health care providers understand where they are in their treatment journey and how to adapt their next steps in changing circumstances.”

“NCCN joins numerous organizations around the world that are answering the call to support Ukrainian cancer patients, their doctors, and their families,” said Mike Morrissey, Chief Executive, European Cancer Organisation (ECO). “We’ve gathered translated resources from many different medical and patient organizations in one place at onco-help.org, so the people who need this information can access it quickly and easily.”

NCCN’s resource site builds on longstanding work and ongoing partnerships worldwide to also provide adapted and stratified versions of cancer guidelines that can help health care providers identify treatment options to provide the best possible outcomes in resource-constrained or conflict settings, among other unique regional concerns.

NCCN pledges to continue supporting the people of Ukraine by continuously updating the information at NCCN.org/Ukraine and on the NCCN apps. More resources are coming soon.

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About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) is a not-for-profit alliance of leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education. NCCN is dedicated to improving and facilitating quality, effective, equitable, and accessible cancer care so all patients can live better lives. Visit NCCN.org for more information on the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®) and other initiatives. Follow NCCN on Facebook @NCCNorg, Instagram @NCCNorg and Twitter @NCCN.

About the NCCN Foundation

The NCCN Foundation® was founded by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) to empower people with cancer and advance oncology innovation. The NCCN Foundation empowers people with cancer and their caregivers by delivering unbiased expert guidance from the world’s leading cancer experts through the library of NCCN Guidelines for Patients® and other patient education resources. The NCCN Foundation is also committed to advancing cancer treatment by funding the nation’s promising young investigators at the forefront of cancer research. For more information about the NCCN Foundation, visit NCCN.org/foundation.

Lies that 'might' eventually come true seem less unethical

People could be willing to forgive, spread misinformation they think might become true in the future, study says

Peer-Reviewed Publication

AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

People may be willing to condone statements they know to be false and even spread misinformation on social media if they believe those statements could become true in the future, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.

Whether the situation involves a politician making a controversial statement, a business stretching the truth in an advertisement or a job seeker lying about their professional skills on a resume, people who consider how a lie might become true subsequently think it is less unethical to tell because they judge the lie’s broader message (or “gist”) as truer. The study was published in APA’s Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

“The rise in misinformation is a pressing societal problem, stoking political polarization and eroding trust in business and politics. Misinformation in part persists because some people believe it. But that’s only part of the story,” said lead author Beth Anne Helgason, a doctoral student at the London Business School. “Misinformation also persists because sometimes people know it is false but are still willing to excuse it.”

This study was sparked by cases in which leaders in business and politics have used claims that “it might become true in the future” to justify statements that are verifiably false in the present.

To explore why people might be willing to condone this misinformation, researchers conducted six experiments involving more than 3,600 participants. The researchers showed participants in each study a variety of statements, clearly identified as false, and then asked some participants to reflect on predictions about how the statements might become true in the future.

In one experiment, researchers asked 447 MBA students from 59 different countries who were taking a course at a UK business school to imagine that a friend lied on their resume, for example by listing financial modeling as a skill despite having no prior experience. The researchers then asked some participants to consider the possibility of the lie becoming true (e.g., “Consider that if the same friend enrolls in a financial modeling course that the school offers in the summer, then he could develop experience with financial modeling”). They found that students thought it was less unethical for a friend to lie when they imagined whether their friend might develop this skill in the future.

In another experiment, 599 American participants viewed six markedly false political statements designed to appeal to either conservatives or liberals, including, “Millions of people voted illegally in the last presidential election” and, “The average top CEO makes 500 times more than the average worker.” Each statement was clearly labelled as false by reputable, non-partisan fact-checkers. Participants were then asked to generate their own predictions about how each statement might become true in the future. For instance, they were told that “It’s a proven fact that the average top CEO currently makes 265 times more money than the average American worker,” then asked to respond to the open-ended prompt, “The average top CEO will soon make 500 times more money than the average American worker if …”

The researchers found that participants on both sides of the political aisle who imagined how false statements could eventually become true were less likely to rate the statement as unethical than those who did not because they were more likely to believe its broader meaning was true. This was especially the case when the false statement fit with their political views. Importantly, participants knew these statements were false, yet imagining how they might become true made people find them more excusable.

Even prompting the participants to think carefully before judging the falsehoods did not change how ethical the participants found the statements, said study co-author Daniel Effron, PhD, a professor of organizational behavior at the London Business School.

“Our findings are concerning, particularly given that we find that encouraging people to think carefully about the ethicality of statements was insufficient to reduce the effects of imagining a future where it might be true,” Effron said. “This highlights the negative consequences of giving airtime to leaders in business and politics who spout falsehoods.”

The researchers also found that participants were more inclined to share misinformation on social media when they imagined how it might become true, but only if it aligned with their political views. This suggests that when misinformation supports one’s politics, people may be willing to spread it because they believe the statement to be essentially, if not literally, true, according to Helgason.

“Our findings reveal how our capacity for imagination affects political disagreement and our willingness to excuse misinformation,” Helgason said. “Unlike claims about what is true, propositions about what might become true are impossible to fact-check. Thus, partisans who are certain that a lie will become true eventually may be difficult to convince otherwise.”

Article: “It Might Become True: How Prefactual Thinking Licenses Dishonesty,” by Beth Anne Helgason and Daniel Effron, PhD, London Business School. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, published online April 14, 2022.

Contact: Beth Anne Helgason may be contacted at bhelgason@london.edu.

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JOURNAL

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

It Might Become True: How Prefactual Thinking Licenses Dishonesty

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

14-Apr-2022

Bank of Canada and Multiverse Computing complete preliminary quantum simulation of cryptocurrency market

Business Announcement

HKA MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS

 

IMAGE: BANK OF CANADA AND MULTIVERSE COMPUTING COMPLETE PRELIMINARY QUANTUM SIMULATION OF CRYPTOCURRENCY MARKET view more 

CREDIT: BANK OF CANADA

Toronto, Canada – April 14, 2022 – Multiverse Computing, a global leader in quantum computing solutions for the financial industry and beyond with offices in Toronto and Spain, today announced it has completed a proof-of-concept project with the Bank of Canada through which the parties used quantum computing to simulate the adoption of cryptocurrency as a method of payment by non-financial firms.

“We are proud to be a trusted partner of the first G7 central bank to explore modelling of complex networks and cryptocurrencies through the use of quantum computing,” said Sam Mugel, CTO at Multiverse Computing. “The results of the simulation are very intriguing and insightful as stakeholders consider further research in the domain. Thanks to the algorithm we developed together with our partners at the Bank of Canada, we have been able to model a complex system reliably and accurately given the current state of quantum computing capabilities.”

Companies may adopt various forms of payments. So, it’s important to develop a deep understanding of interactions that can take place in payments networks.

Multiverse Computing conducted its innovative work related to applying quantum computing for modelling complex economic interactions in a research project with the Bank of Canada. The project explored quantum computing technology as a way to simulate complex economic behaviour that is otherwise very difficult to simulate using traditional computational techniques.

By implementing this solution using D-Wave’s annealing quantum computer, the simulation was able to tackle financial networks as large as 8-10 players, with up to 2^90 possible network configurations. Note that classical computing approaches cannot solve large networks of practical relevance as a 15-player network requires as many resources as there are atoms in the universe.

“We wanted to test the power of quantum computing on a research case that is hard to solve using classical computing techniques,” said Maryam Haghighi, Director, Data Science at the Bank of Canada. “This collaboration helped us learn more about how quantum computing can provide new insights into economic problems by carrying out complex simulations on quantum hardware.”

Motivated by the empirical observations about the cooperative nature of adoption of cryptocurrency payments, this theoretical study found that for some industries, these digital assets would share the payments market with traditional bank transfers and cash-like instruments. The market share for each would depend on how the financial institutions respond to the cryptocurrency adoptions, and on the economic costs associated with such trades.

The quantum simulations helped generate examples that illustrate how similar firms may end up adopting different levels of cryptocurrency use.

About Multiverse Computing

Multiverse Computing is a leading quantum software company that applies quantum and quantum-inspired solutions to tackle complex problems in finance to deliver value today and enable a more resilient and prosperous economy. The company’s expertise in quantum control and computational methods as well as finance means it can secure maximum results from current quantum devices. Its flagship product, Singularity, allows financial professionals to leverage quantum computing with common software tools.  The company is targeting additional verticals as well, including mobility, energy, the life sciences and industry 4.0.

Contacts:

Multiverse Computing
www.multiversecomputing.com

A pre-Easter surprise: massive recall of chocolate products due to outbreak of monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium in 10 European countries

Rapid communication in Eurosurveillance describes epidemiological investigations and measures taken

Peer-Reviewed Publication

EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR DISEASE PREVENTION AND CONTROL (ECDC)

An outbreak of monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium in 10 European countries with 150 reported cases, predominantly affecting young children, has been linked to chocolate products produced by a large multinational company. Since the identification of the first cases in the United Kingdom (UK) in February 2022, one of the most extensive withdrawals of chocolate products in European commercial history has taken place. Given the approach of Easter, the widespread product distribution, and the vulnerability of the affected population, early and effective real-time sharing of microbiological and epidemiological information has been of critical importance in managing this serious food-borne incident.

In a rapid communication published in Eurosurveillance, Larkin et al. [1] describe the epidemiological investigations and coordination of measures across countries. In February 2022, a small five-single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) single linkage cluster of eight cases of infection with monophasic Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serotype Typhimurium (1,4,5,12:i:-) eBG 1, sequence type (ST) 34 was identified in the UK. The cluster was unusual, with all but one reported case younger than 10 years, and the strain demonstrated genotypic markers of an unusual antimicrobial resistance pattern not commonly seen in livestock, food, or human disease cases in the UK. The cluster was not closely related to any other UK strains of monophasic S. Typhimurium.

Exploratory interviews using an open-ended, anthropological approach (not binary yes/no questions) were undertaken for hypothesis generation, after which a targeted questionnaire was used to refine hypotheses identified through the exploratory interviews, confirming a strong signal for a specific brand of chocolate products.

Following the UK’s notification on the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) EpiPulse Food and Waterborne Diseases (FWD) platform on 17 February 2022, and an Early Warning and Response System (EWRS) alert on 25 March, Germany, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Norway, Ireland, Belgium, and Spain reported confirmed or probable cases in their respective countries. By 8 April 2022, a total of 150 confirmed and probable cases had been identified, with case sampling dates ranging from 21 December 2021 (the first UK case) to 28 March 2022. Descriptive epidemiological investigations demonstrated cases to be predominately in young children. The hospitalisation rate was 42% of cases for whom information was available, higher than that usually reported in salmonellosis outbreaks and for individual cases of infection with S. Typhimurium. While this is probably also influenced by the demographic characteristics of those affected, this is a possible indicator of increased clinical severity of infection in this outbreak.

Food chain investigations in the affected countries indicated that most products implicated in the epidemiological investigations were predominantly produced at a single production site in Belgium. This was the same facility from which the outbreak strain had been identified in December 2021 in the processing equipment for the buttermilk ingredient.

Based on the strong descriptive epidemiological evidence implicating these products in this outbreak, on the identified food chain links and on evidence of contamination previously identified at production, risk management actions were taken in all affected countries, including withdrawal of all product lines produced in the identified production facility and extensive product recalls, supported by news alerts and advice for consumers, starting with the first recall on 2 April in the UK and Ireland and extended to other countries shortly after. Extended recalls were also carried out from 7 April as the investigations in several countries progressed, resulting in further evidence to support these recalls. On 8 April, Belgian authorities stopped production at the facility in Belgium, and the WHO/FAO International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN) also issued a global alert on 10 April notifying 77 countries and territories to which distribution of the implicated products had been established to initiate a global recall.

Multidrug resistant profile

A striking aspect of the outbreak was the multidrug resistance profile of the outbreak strain, specifically resistance to kanamycin and gentamicin, and the presence of lnu(F), a determinant of resistance to lincosamides, which are relatively rare for monophasic S. Typhimurium in Europe. The outbreak strain is susceptible to fluoroquinolones, azithromycin and third-generation cephalosporins, which provide effective treatment options for cases of bloodstream infection, but the unusual AMR profile provided an additional characteristic of the outbreak strain that could be assessed by all countries in the early stages of investigation for case ascertainment and possible hypothesis generation. This emphasises the usefulness of including more uncommon AMR profiles in early international communications and subsequent incorporation as part of the international outbreak case definitions, where this facilitates identification of possible or probable cases before the application of WGS and/or epidemiological investigations to confirm outbreak cases.

Early notification of the detection of the outbreak and the preliminary findings of the UK investigation followed by rapid multi-country collaboration in information-sharing was essential to the rapid progress of the outbreak investigations. The descriptive epidemiological information provided strong evidence implicating the vehicle of infection, especially when amalgamated at an international level, enabling public health and food safety authorities to undertake the necessary controls swiftly. The subsequent information about the detection of the outbreak strain in the implicated processing facility in December 2021, provided further microbiological confirmation of the link between the company’s products and the Europe-wide outbreak.

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JOURNAL

Eurosurveillance

DOI

10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2022.27.15.2200314 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Investigation of an international outbreak of multidrug-resistant monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium associated with chocolate products, EU/EEA and United Kingdom, February to April 2022

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

14-Apr-2022

New approach can predict pollution from cooking emissions

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM

Organic aerosols – such as those released in cooking – may stay in the atmosphere for several days, because of nanostructures formed by fatty acids as they are released into the air.

By identifying the processes which control how these aerosols are transformed in the atmosphere, scientists will be able to better understand and predict their impact on the environment and the climate.

Experts at the Universities of Birmingham and Bath have used instruments at the Diamond Light Source and the Central Laser Facility, both based at the Harwell Campus in Oxford, to probe the behaviour of thin films of oleic acid – an unsaturated fatty acid commonly released when cooking.

In the study, published in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, they were able to analyse the particular molecular properties that control how rapidly aerosol emissions can be broken down in the atmosphere.

Then, using a theoretical model combined with experimental data the team was able to predict the amount of time aerosols generated from cooking may hang around in the environment.

These types of aerosols have long been associated with poor air quality in urban areas, but their impact on human-made climate change is hard to gauge. That’s because of the diverse range of molecules found within aerosols, and their varying interactions with the environment.

By identifying the nanostructure of molecules emitted during cooking that slows down the break-up of organic aerosols, it becomes possible to model how they are transported and dispersed into the atmosphere.

Lead author Dr Christian Pfrang, of the University of Birmingham’s School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, said: “Cooking aerosols account for up to 10 per cent of particulate matter (PM) emissions in the UK. Finding accurate ways to predict their behaviour will give us much more precise ways to also assess their contribution to climate change.”

Co-author Dr Adam Squires, of the University of Bath, said: “We’re increasingly finding out how molecules like these fatty acids from cooking can organise themselves into bilayers and other regular shapes and stacks within aerosol droplets that float in the air, and how this completely changes how fast they degrade, how long they persist in the atmosphere, and how they affect pollution and weather.” 

The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council and the data was produced and analysed using the University of Birmingham’s BlueBEAR high performance and high throughput computing service. BlueBEAR employs some of the latest technology to deliver fast and efficient processing capacity for researchers while minimizing energy consumption by using direct, on-chip, water cooling.

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JOURNAL

Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

DOI

10.5194/acp-22-4895-2022 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

The impact of molecular self-organisation on the atmospheric fate of a cooking aerosol proxy

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

13-Apr-2022

Paleobiology: Rare beetle larva in amber

Peer-Reviewed Publication

LUDWIG-MAXIMILIANS-UNIVERSITÄT MÜNCHEN

LMU zoologists have found the first ever riffle beetle larva in Baltic amber.

Amber is a treasure trove of information from the Earth’s past, as it can preserve trapped plants and animals down to the smallest detail. The fossilized tree resin is an outstanding source for fossils of soft-bodied creatures such as insect larvae, which are less frequently preserved in sedimentary deposits (stony fossils). Most of the amber in Europe comes from the Baltic amber forest, which covered large areas of today’s northern Europe 33-38 million years ago. Scientists led by LMU zoologist Joachim Haug have now discovered the first ever riffle beetle larva in Baltic amber. Although riffle beetles (Elmidae) seem to play an important role in modern freshwater ecosystems, there is scant fossil evidence for this group, and what evidence there is comes from adult specimens. Using microtomography and synchrotron radiation analyses, the scientists also managed to reveal details of the larva that were obscured by inclusions and turbidity in the amber. These showed that the larva possesses unusually large rows of triangular plates on the upper part of its body. The larva’s presence in Baltic amber points to the existence of oxygen-rich rivers in the Baltic amber forest, as the larvae of click beetles mostly live in such habitats.

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JOURNAL

PeerJ

DOI

10.7717/peerj.13025 

ARTICLE TITLE

The first fossil immature of Elmidae: an unusual riffle beetle larva preserved in Baltic amber

Innovative researcher from University of Calgary receives the 2021 Turnbull-Tator Award in Spinal Cord Injury and Concussion Research

Grant and Award Announcement

BRAIN CANADA FOUNDATION

Since 2001, in honour of Barbara Turnbull, Brain Canada and the Barbara Turnbull Foundation have been partnering to support the need for exceptional research in the area of spinal cord and/or brain injury to improve the lives of those affected. Co-sponsored by the foundations, the Turnbull-Tator Award in Spinal Cord Injury and Concussion Research recognizes an outstanding publication by a Canadian researcher in the field.

"Barbara was an advocate devoted to bringing attention to the importance of recognizing and funding excellence in Canadian-based research in the areas of spinal cord injury,” says Gary Goldberg, a director of the Barbara Turnbull Foundation for Spinal Cord Research. “It is a privilege to continue her legacy through the Barbara Turnbull Foundation in her honour. "

This year, Dr. Aaron Phillips from the University of Calgary was selected to receive the 2021 Turnbull-Tator Award for his paper entitled “Neuroprosthetic baroreflex controls hemodynamics after spinal cord injury”, a paper published in Nature.

Selected based on the publication’s innovation and originality, impact of the research and its findings, and quality of the research, Dr. Phillips is being awarded a $50,000 grant to continue his research on the treatment of spinal cord and brain injury.

Spinal cord injury leads to blood pressure instability that threatens survival, impairs neurological recovery, increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, and reduces quality of life. This occurs because the brain can no longer activate the sympathetic nervous system, preventing the blood pressure stabilizing

system, known as the baroreflex, from effectively functioning.

“In the published paper, we used epidural electrical stimulation to activate and control the sympathetic nervous system in a closed-loop. This system functions as a ‘neuroprosthetic baroreflex’,” explains Dr. Phillips. “With the new fundamental knowledge, we generated regarding how the nervous system functions, we developed clinical-grade epidural electrical stimulation hardware targeting a new region within the spinal cord that we discovered houses the key circuits responsible for blood pressure control. We then engineered hardware to recapitulate the natural dynamics of the sympathetic nervous system that are lost after spinal cord injury.”

In 2020, Dr. Phillips was awarded a Future Leader in Canadian Brain Research grant from Brain Canada– Future Leaders is an early-career program that provides seed funding to budding researchers with enormous potential.

“Dr. Phillips winning this prestigious award is a great example of why it’s so important to invest in the next generation of neuroscientists. It demonstrates how innovative Canadian researchers can be when given the resources,” says Dr. Viviane Poupon, President and CEO of Brain Canada. “We are proud to be funding Dr. Phillips and are excited to now be seeing the global impact of his research.”

Dr. Phillips and his team are now developing new complimentary devices, further understanding the basic biology of the sympathetic nervous system and completing a series of clinical trials to make the neuroprosthetic baroreflex a widely available therapy.

“This award is a terrific honour as it acknowledges my research program as being amongst the top spinal cord injury research groups. This work included a series of preclinical studies, and we successfully translated our findings to a human in only four years since starting my research program - and this is truly only the beginning!” says Dr. Phillips.  “We are poised to make a giant leap forward in terms of how spinal cord injury is understood and managed. The plan now is to work with cutting-edge companies to ensure our research findings don’t just stay in the lab, but in fact change the lives of people in the community living with spinal cord injury.”

To Learn more about Dr. Phillips’ research, watch this video.

This project has been made possible with the financial support of the Barbara Turnbull Foundation for Spinal Cord Research and the Canada Brain Research Fund (CBRF), an innovative arrangement between the Government of Canada (through Health Canada) and Brain Canada Foundation. To date, Health Canada has invested over $130 million through the CBRF which has been matched by Brain Canada Foundation and its donors and partners.

About the Barbara Turnbull Foundation for Spinal Cord Research

The initial purpose of the Foundation was to encourage the public to recognize and financially support internationally esteemed research being done in Canada in the field of neuroscience, particularly as it relates to the remediation of spinal cord injuries. More recently, the Foundation has expanded its area of interest to include both spinal cord and brain injuries, including concussions. Great advances have been made in neuroscience, and the driving force that encouraged Barbara Turnbull to write her autobiography Looking in the Mirror was the realization that these advances may make the goal of regaining function in the damaged nervous system attainable. Through continued research, there is the possibility of new discoveries which may result in repair or regeneration of the spinal cord and brain after injury. Successful remediation will improve the quality of life of those who have been affected by neurotrauma, as well as reduce the ongoing costs of providing associated care and support.

Based on a synergistic approach that recognizes excellence in collaborative research in Canada in the field of neuroscience, the mission of the Foundation is to enhance public awareness of the need to financially support this vision, to develop strategic cooperative initiatives with other institutions and foundations with similar interest, such as Brain Canada, and to fund the highest quality research in spinal cord and brain injury being conducted in Canada.

About Brain Canada

Brain Canada is a national non-profit organization that enables and supports excellent, innovative, paradigm-changing brain research in Canada. It plays a unique and invaluable role as the national convener of the brain research community. Brain Canada understands that better insight into how the brain works contributes to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure of disorders of the brain, thereby improving the health outcomes and quality of life of all Canadians. To learn more, please visit braincanada.ca.

About the Turnbull-Tator Award

In 2001, the Barbara Turnbull Foundation, Brain Canada, and CIHR’s Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction established a partnership to recognize and support excellent brain research in the area of spinal cord injury. In 2019, the Barbara Turnbull Foundation for Spinal Cord Research and Brain Canada expanded the scope of the Award to include traumatic brain injury and concussion research, and to reposition the award to recognize a recent publication that significantly impacts those fields. Accordingly, the name of the Award was changed to reflect the close relationship, sense of common purpose, and aligned missions of both Barbara Turnbull and her neurosurgeon, Dr. Charles Tator, to promote awareness of the impact of spinal cord injury and its prevention, research into its treatment, and a better understanding of the nature, diagnosis, and treatment of concussion and traumatic brain injury. To learn more about the history of the Turnbull-Tator Award, click here.

Applications for the Turnbull-Tator Award were reviewed by members of an international peer review panel chaired by Dr. Charles Tator and composed of experts with experience in the relevant field(s) of spinal cord and/or brain injury research. Based on the reviewers' scores and panel discussion, the review panel recommended to the Barbara Turnbull Foundation and Brain Canada the top-ranked publication to receive the Award.

AI can improve teacher training

Peer-Reviewed Publication

LUDWIG-MAXIMILIANS-UNIVERSITÄT MÜNCHEN

Budding teachers can benefit from AI-assisted training: A study highlights the potential of adaptive feedback.

During their studies, pre-service teachers’ often lack the opportunity to gain sufficient practical experience. Combining simulations with artificial intelligence can be a promising way to give a more hands-on edge to the skills they learn. This is the conclusion reached by a study conducted by Professor Frank Fischer, Professor for Education and Educational Psychology at LMU Munich, and Dr. Michael Sailer. The study appears in the latest edition of the journal Learning and Instruction.

The two educational researchers worked with Iryna Gurevych, Professor of Computer Science at the Technical University of Darmstadt, to develop and train what is known as an artificial neural network that gives adaptive feedback tailored to pre-service teachers’ individual performances.

As part of an experiment, online simulations were used to train the diagnostic reasoning of pre-service teachers. The aim was for trainees to learn to recognize certain learning difficulties and provide written justification of why they suspected a given difficulty. In  these written justifications  composed by the pre-service teachers, the AI identified what the learners had done right and wrong and gave feedback accordingly. “Above all, using AI and providing individualized feedback improved the diagnostic reasoning of the trainee teachers,” says Michael Sailer, who believes that AI deployment adds value especially for the advancement of complex skills.

“The adaptive feedback is similar to the individual feedback that a human lecturer would give,” Frank Fischer says. “Especially in large courses of study such as teacher education but also medical education, where you have lots of students, this is a promising way to add a great deal of value.”

The study was published in collaboration with Professor Riikka Hofmann of the University of Cambridge under the aegis of the strategic partnership between LMU and Cambridge.

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JOURNAL

Learning and Instruction

DOI

10.1016/j.learninstruc.2022.101620 

ARTICLE TITLE

Adaptive Feedback from Artificial Neural Networks Facilitates Pre-Service Teachers’ Diagnostic Reasoning in Simulation-based Learning

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

11-Apr-2022

UK invests to modernize polar science

The UK is investing in modernising its research facilities in Antarctica and the Arctic, with total investment to date of £670 million, including £290 million announced today

Grant and Award Announcement

UK RESEARCH AND INNOVATION

 

IMAGE: ANTARCTICA view more 

CREDIT: BAS/PETE BUCKTROUT

The UK is investing in modernising its research facilities in Antarctica and the Arctic, with total investment to date of £670 million, including £290 million announced today.  

As a world leader in polar science, UK research conducted in the regions are of global importance. Investing in research is crucial in helping us understand the drivers and rates of changes to polar ice, oceans and atmosphere and the regional and global impacts of climate change. 

The importance of research in both Antarctic and Arctic regions has been underpinned by an investment by the UK of £670m for infrastructure improvement in addition to existing science funding activity. This is transforming how British Antarctic Survey (BAS) facilitates and supports frontier science.

The latest £290 million funding, announced today, will provide up-to-date aircraft facilities to ensure cargo and scientists can be transported easily to Antarctic research stations.

Commissioned by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) part of UK Research and Innovation, and funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), this ambitious group of projects will confirm Britain’s continued position as a world leader in the field of polar environmental science.

The Antarctic Infrastructure Modernisation programme (AIMP) has so far delivered a new polar research ship, RRS Sir David Attenborough, plus the upgrade of the wharf at Rothera Research Station, and King Edward Point and Bird Island in South Georgia, and modernisation of the Signy research station. 

Along with enhanced aircraft facilities, BAS is building a new science support facility at the Rothera Research Station for scientists, alongside new modern collaboration spaces. This will secure polar science over the next 25 years. 

The programme will contribute to the UK’s key priorities and will ensure the delivery of cutting-edge  science and innovation in Antarctica. Research undertaken on these continents answers globally significant questions, improving our understanding of our planet, climate change and polar science.

Over the coming decades, UK polar scientists will address some of the most important questions facing our changing planet, particularly the impact of melting ice sheets on global sea levels.

The modernisation programme will enable collaboration with international partners, influencing the global climate change debate, and builds on the UK’s environmental leadership beyond COP26.

Professor Sir Duncan Wingham, Executive Chair of the Natural Environment Research Council, part of UKRI, said:

“This new investment is part of a wider, long-term programme of renewal of the UK’s polar infrastructure that includes the new polar vessel, the RRS Sir David Attenborough, and the replacement of the UK’s Rothera buildings with modern, low-energy accommodation and laboratories. It will future proof the air-bridge with South America and the Falkland Islands.

“The renewal programme recognises the central role of the Antarctic in future climate change and the commitment of the UK to maintain its leadership of polar science.”

Professor Dame Jane Francis, Director of British Antarctic Survey, said:

“Investing in Antarctic infrastructure means we can secure the future for the next generation of polar scientists. It means BAS can continue to be a world leader for polar science, addressing issues of global importance and helping society adapt to a changing world.

“The British Antarctic Survey has provided a permanent British scientific presence in Antarctica for the past 60 years, undertaking a vast range of science, which includes discovery of the ozone hole and an ongoing major project to study the stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.”

The AIM programme project includes:

• A new polar research vessel RRS Sir David Attenborough, providing a next-generation marine science platform, with increased endurance ability of up to 60 days unsupported at sea so it can undertake longer voyages and open up new remote locations for science.  
• The modernisation of the Rothera Research Station, our main base on the Antarctic peninsula. This includes a new Discovery Building,  rebuild and update of the wharf, and the introduction of carbon-reducing technology..
• Updating the King Edward Point wharf and slipway on South Georgia to ensure the new ship can moor safely and resupply the station.
• Modernising  Bird Island Research Station on South Georgia to increase storage and improve energy use.
• Modernising the summer-only  Signy Research Station, to include a longer, more robust jetty, better storage and handling facilities and improved living spaces.
• Relocation of the Halley research station, to prevent an ice chasm separating the station from the rest of the Halley research site on the Brunt ice shelf.

Smallest earthquakes ever detected in micron-scale metals

On the micrometer scale deformation properties of metals change profoundly: the smooth and continuous behaviour of bulk materials often becomes jerky due to random strain bursts of various sizes.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

EÖTVÖS LORÁND UNIVERSITY (ELTE), FACULTY OF SCIENCE

 

IMAGE: ON THE MICROMETER SCALE DEFORMATION PROPERTIES OF METALS CHANGE PROFOUNDLY: THE SMOOTH AND CONTINUOUS BEHAVIOUR OF BULK MATERIALS OFTEN BECOMES JERKY DUE TO RANDOM STRAIN BURSTS OF VARIOUS SIZES. view more 

CREDIT: CREDIT: PÉTER DUSÁN ISPÁNOVITY AND DÁVID UGI

On the micrometer scale deformation properties of metals change profoundly: the smooth and continuous behaviour of bulk materials often becomes jerky due to random strain bursts of various sizes. The reason for this phenomenon is the complex intermittent redistribution of lattice dislocations (which are line-like ctystal defects responsible for the irreversible deformation of crystalline materials) due to external loading, which is also the cause of the formation of the uneven step-like surface upon deformation.

To study this phenomenon in more detail, research groups of the Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest, Charles University of Prague and École des Mines de Saint-Étienne have developed a highly sensitive micromechanical platform, where weak elastic waves emitted by the specimen can be detected during the deformation of micron-scale pillars. Compression experiments performed on such zinc single crystalline micropillars in a scanning electron microscope confirmed that these so-called acoustic signals indeed occur during strain bursts, so, this experiment allowed us, for the first time, to practically hear the `sound of dislocations’.

The acoustic signals are sampled with a rate of 2.5 MHz, therefore, they provide extremely detailed information on the dynamics of dislocations. The in-depth statistical analyses performed by the researchers revealed that strain bursts exhibit a two-level structure: what has so far been seen as a single plastic slip is, in fact, a result of several correlated events on a μs-ms timescale.

The most surprising outcome of the experiments is that this process,

despite the fundamental differences between deformation mechanisms of metals and that of tectonic plates, was found to be completely analogous to earthquakes.

Acoustic signals emitted from the testpieces followed fundamental empirical laws established for main shocks and aftershocks in seismology, such as the Gutenberg-Richter and Omori laws.

 

VIDEOABSTRACT: https://youtu.be/kAf4iP8PnkU Compression of a zinc micropillar. The otherwise ultrasonic acoustic signals were transformed into the audible domain to better illustrate the correlation between acoustic events and strain bursts.

 

`These results are expected to bear high technological impact since, for the first time, we were able to observe direct connection between acoustic signals and the plastic events that emitted them’ said Péter Dusán Ispánovity, assistant professor at Eövös Loránd University and head of the Micromechanics and Multiscale Modelling Research Group. `Since the measurement of acoustic emission is a frequent method for monitoring and locating material failure in technological applications, by providing fundamentally new information about the underlying physics our results are expected to contribure to the further development of this technique.’

Dávid Ugi, PhD student in the group of Ispánovity and corresponding author of the publication added: `These experiments are rather complex, since one has to couple the nanometer precision manipulation tool with the extremely sensitive acoustic sensor, all in the vacuum chamber of a scanning electron microscope.

Such measurements, to our knowledge, at the moment can only be performed at our laboratory’ added the young researcher.

The methodology can also be used to investigate other types of deformation mechanisms, such as twinning or fracture, so the results, which were published in Nature Communications, are expected to open up new vistas in the research of micromechanical propeties of materials.

CAPTION

The reason for this phenomenon is the complex intermittent redistribution of lattice dislocations (which are line-like ctystal defects responsible for the irreversible deformation of crystalline materials) due to external loading, which is also the cause of the formation of the uneven step-like surface upon deformation.

CREDIT

Credit: Péter Dusán Ispánovity and Dávid Ugi

JOURNAL

Nature Communications

DOI

10.1038/s41467-022-29044-7 

ARTICLE TITLE

Dislocation avalanches are like earthquakes on the micron scale

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

13-Apr-2022