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The aim of the present systematic review is to evaluate the effects of different photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) approaches in oncological treatment practices. The review follows the PRISMA guidelines. Specifically, the review is composed of laser PBMT and LED PBMT. A total of 23 studies were included, 14 investigating laser PBMT and 9 examining LED PBMT. In vitro studies demonstrated laser PBMT's potential to induce apoptosis and cytotoxicity in various cancer cell lines while enhancing sensitivity to chemotherapeutics and natural compounds. However, some studies highlighted divergent effects between in vitro (promoted proliferation) and in vivo xenograft models (slowed tumor growth) for certain laser wavelengths. LED PBMT studies showed blue light inhibited melanoma and pancreatic cancer cell growth, potentially via ROS generation, while red light raised concerns about enhancing oral cancer invasiveness. Both modalities mitigated treatment side effects like oral mucositis, xerostomia, peripheral neuropathy, and improved quality of life. While promising, the outcomes varied based on light parameters, cancer type, and experimental setting, necessitating further optimization of PBMT protocols through well-designed studies to establish long-term safety and efficacy across clinical scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximately two billion people worldwide lack access to clean drinking water, negatively impacting national security, hygiene, and agriculture. Atmospheric water harvesting (AWH) is the conversion of ambient humidity into clean water; however, conventional dehumidification is energy-intensive. Improvement in AWH may be achieved with elastocaloric cooling, using temperature-sensitive materials in active thermoregulation. Potential benefits, compared to conventional desiccant wheel designs, include substantial reductions in energy use, size, and complexity. A nickel–titanium (NiTi) elastocaloric water harvester was designed and compared with a desiccant wheel design under controlled conditions of relative humidity, air volume, and power. In a 30 min interval, the NiTi device harvested more water on average at 0.18 ± 0.027 mL/WH, compared to the 0.1567 ± 0.023 mL/WH of the desiccant wheel harvester. Moreover, the NiTi harvester required half the power input and was thermoregulated more efficiently. Future work will focus on mechanical design parameter optimization. Elastocaloric cooling is a promising advancement in dehumidification, making AWH more economical and feasible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-invasive transcranial electrical stimulation is a category of neuromodulation techniques used for various disorders. Although medically approved devices exist, the variety of consumer electrical stimulation devices is increasing. Because clinical trials and animal tests are costly and risky, using a brain phantom can provide preliminary experimental validation. However, existing brain phantoms are often costly or require excessive preparation time, precluding their use for rapid, real-time optimization of stimulation settings. A limitation of direct electric fields in a phantom is the lack of 3D spatial resolution. Using well-researched modalities such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and newer modalities such as amplitude-modulated transcranial pulsed-current stimulation (am-tPCS), a range of materials was tested for use as electrical phantoms. Based on cost, preparation time, and efficiency, ground beef and agar gel with a 10% salt mix were selected. The measured values for the total dosages were 0.55 W-s for am-tPCS and 0.91 W-s for tDCS. Due to a low gain on the recording electrodes, the signal efficiency measured against the power delivered was 4.2% for tDCS and 3.1% for am-tPCS. Issues included electrodes shifting in the soft material and the low sensitivity of the recording electrodes. Despite these issues, the effective combination of the phantom and recording methodologies can enable low costs and the rapid testing, experimentation, and verification of consumer neuromodulation devices in three dimensions. Additionally, the efficiency factors (EFs) between the observed dosage and the delivered dosage could streamline the comparison of experimental configurations. As demonstrated by comparing two types of electrical neuromodulation devices across the 3D space of a phantom, EFs can be used in conjunction with a cost-effective, time-expedient phantom to rapidly iterate and optimize stimulation parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The osteotome was a hand-cranked medical chainsaw designed in 1830 by the German surgeon Bernhard Heine. Before Heine, surgeons used crude, manual tools, such as hammers, chisels, and handsaws. The osteotome was among the first mechanical tools used in orthopedic surgery, and it preceded the later use of the motorized chainsaw for woodcutting. Due to the small number of units manufactured, questions remain about the osteotome's usage. To facilitate conservation and assist with investigation, Heine's osteotome was digitally reconstructed. As with other digital reconstruction attempts in cultural heritage, assumptions were made to facilitate reproduction. To highlight the functional similarities and contrasts between early and contemporary tools, its parts were compared with contemporary chainsaws and surgical tools. Contemporary orthopedic surgeons have largely shifted away from medical chainsaws, such as the osteotome, in favor of reciprocating saws. Due to its small size and medical purpose, the osteotome was designed for greater precision than a modern industrial chainsaw. Based on the reproduction and comparative analysis, the device was likely used in a manner more similar to modern medical reciprocating saws than to its direct descendant, the industrial chainsaw. The Heine osteotome mechanized surgery and its descendants are still used in medicine and the industry. The osteotome model enabled an analysis of its function and use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biologists and veterinarians rely on dart projectors to inject animals with drugs, take biopsies from specimens, or inject tracking chips. Firearms, air guns, and other launchers are limited in their ability to precisely control the kinetic energy of a projectile, which can injure the animal if too high. In order to improve the safety of remote drug delivery, a lidar-modulated electromagnetic launcher and a soft drug delivery dart were prototyped. A single-stage revolver coilgun and soft dart were designed and tested at distances up to 8 m. With a coil efficiency of 2.25%, the launcher could consistently deliver a projectile at a controlled kinetic energy of 1.00 ± 0.006 J and an uncontrolled kinetic energy of 2.66 ± 0.076 J. Although modifications to charging time, sensors, and electronics could improve performance, our launcher performed at the required level at the necessary distances. The precision achieved with commercial components enables many other applications, from law enforcement to manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the dilemma of the locomotive engineer for certification of the regulations related to the contractual due process in various discipline cases. Topics discussed include certification of the locomotive engineers to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Rail Safety Improvement Act (RSIA) enacted by the Congress and regulations of the FRA for the development of the railroad industry. It also discusses the need of training and qualification for the engineers.

The article compares the benefits and drawbacks of mediation, arbitration and litigation. The authors discuss the growth of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) practices due to the high costs and long duration of litigation. They note characteristics of U.S. court procedures, such as the use of appeals, the presence of judges to make legal decisions and the public nature of court proceedings. The authors note additional fees that are required in arbitration and mediation and compare the role of judges to mediators and arbitrators. They compare the limitations of legal remedies and awards in litigation and arbitration and note the adversarial qualities of litigation.

Biosignal classification systems often have to deal with extraneous features, highly imbalanced datasets, and a low SNR. A robust feature selection/reduction method is a crucial step in this process. Sets of artificial data were generated to test a prototype EEG-based microsleep detection system, consisting of a combination of EEG and 2-s bursts of 15-Hz sinusoids of varied signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) ranging from 16 to 0.03. The balance between events and non-events was varied between evenly balanced and highly imbalanced (e.g., events occurring only 2% of the time). Features were spectral estimates of various EEG bands (e.g., alpha band power) or ratios between them. A total of 34 features for each of the 16 channels yielded a total of 544 features. Five minutes of EEG from a total of eight subjects were used in the generation of the artificial data. Several feature reduction and classifier structures were investigated. Taking only a single feature corresponding to the maximum of average distance between events and non-events (ADEN) on unbalanced data yielded a phi correlation of 0.94 on the mock data with an SNR of 0.3, compared with a phi coefficient of 0.00 for principal component analysis (PCA). ADEN consistently outperformed alternative system configurations, independent of the classifier utilized. While ADEN's high performance may be due to the nature of the artificial dataset, this simulation has demonstrated strong potential compared to other feature selection/reduction methods.