Introduction: Quality improvement and patient safety (QIPS) are increasingly recognized as integral to the provision and advancement of emergency medicine (EM) care. In 2015, QIPS were added to the Canadian Medical Education Directives for Specialists (CanMEDS) framework. However, the level of QIPS education and support that Canadian EM residents receive is unknown. In order to better plan national QIPS efforts aimed at enabling EM residents to improve their local care settings, we sought to assess the current state of QIPS education and support in Canadian EM residency programs. Methods: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional electronic survey that was disseminated to all current Canadian EM residents from both Royal College (RC) and Family Medicine - EM training streams. Residents were recruited either directly or through their program's administrative assistant. The survey consisted of multiple-choice, Likert and free-text entry questions. Themes included a) familiarity with QIPS; b) local opportunities for QIPS projects and mentorship; and c) desire for further QIPS education and involvement. The survey was open for a five-week period, with formal reminders after the first and third weeks. Descriptive statistics are reported. Results: 189 (35%) of 535 current EM residents completed the survey, representing all 17 medical schools. 77% of respondents were from the RC stream. 54.7% of respondents reported being “somewhat” or “very” familiar with QIPS. 47.2% of respondents reported “not knowing” or “not having readily available” QIPS projects to participate in their local environment, and 51.5% had equivalent responses with respect to QIPS mentorship opportunities. Only 17.5% of respondents reported that QIPS methodologies were already formally taught in their residency program, and 66.9% indicated a desire for increased QIPS teaching. The majority of respondents were “slightly” (35.9%), “moderately” (23.2%) or “very” (11.3%) interested in becoming involved with QIPS training and initiatives. Conclusion: Responding Canadian EM residents are interested in obtaining greater QIPS education as well as project and mentorship opportunities, but many perceive that they do not have adequate access to these at the current time. As the importance of QIPS increases in the EM community, supporting residents with more robust educational infrastructures may be necessary. Future efforts may include the standardizing of QIPS postgraduate curricula and improving access to QIPS opportunities across the country.

In May 2016, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) released the report “Genetically Engineered Crops: Experiences and Prospects,” summarizing scientific consensus on genetically engineered crops and their implications. NASEM reports aim to give the public and policymakers information on socially relevant science issues. Their impact, however, is not well understood. This analysis combines national pre- and post-report survey data with a large-scale content analysis of Twitter discussion to examine the report’s effect on public perceptions of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). We find that the report’s release corresponded with reduced negativity in Twitter discourse and increased ambivalence in public risk and benefit perceptions of GMOs, mirroring the NASEM report’s conclusions. Surprisingly, this change was most likely for individuals least trusting of scientific studies or university scientists. Our findings indicate that NASEM consensus reports can help shape public discourse, even in, or perhaps because of, the complex information landscape of traditional and social media.

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: The objective of this study is to use machine Learning techniques to generate maps of epithelium and lumen density in MRI space. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Methods: We prospectively recruited 39 patients undergoing prostatectomy for this institutional review board (IRB) approved study. Patients underwent MP-MRI before prostatectomy on a 3T field strength MRI scanner (General Electric, Waukesha, WI, USA) using an endorectal coil. MP-MRI included field-of-view optimized and constrained undistorted single shot (FOCUS) diffusion weighted imaging with 10 b-values (b=0, 10, 25, 50, 80, 100, 200, 500, 1000, and 2000), dynamic contrast enhanced imaging, and T2-weighted imaging. T2 weighted images were intensity normalized and apparent diffusion coefficient maps were calculated. The dynamic contrast enhanced data was used to calculate the percent change in signal intensity before and after contrast injection. All images were aligned to the T2 weighted image. Robotic prostatectomy was performed 2 weeks after image acquisition. Prostate samples were sliced using a 3D printed slicing jig matching the slice profile of the T2 weighted image. Whole mount samples at 10 μm thickness were taken, hematoxylin and eosin stained, digitized, and annotated by a board certified pathologist. A total of 210 slides were included in this study. Lumen and epithelium were automatically segmented using a custom algorithm written in MATLAB. The algorithm was validated by comparing manual to automatic segmentation on 18 samples. Slides were aligned with the T2 weighted image using a nonlinear control point warping technique. Lumen and epithelium density and the expert annotation were subsequently transformed into MRI space. Co-registration was validated by applying a known warp to tumor masks noted by the pathologist and control point warping the whole mount slide to match the transform. Overlap was measured using a DICE coefficient. A learning curve was generated to determine the optimal number of patients to train the algorithm on. A PLS algorithm was trained on 150 random permutations of patients incrementing from 1 to 29 patients. Slides were stratified such that all slides from a single patient were in the same cohort. Three cohorts were generated, with tumor burden balanced across all cohort. A PLS algorithm was trained on 2 independent training sets (cohorts 1 and 2) and applied to cohort 3. The input vector consisted of MRI values and the target variable was lumen and epithelium density. The algorithm was trained lesion-wise. Trained PiCT models were applied to the test cohort voxel-wise to generate 2 new image contrasts. Mean lesion values were compared between high grade, low grade, and healthy tissue using an ANOVA. An ROC analysis was performed lesion-wise on the test set. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Results: The segmentation accuracy validation revealed R=0.99 and R=0.72 (p<0.001) for lumen and epithelium, respectively. The co-registration accuracy revealed a 94.5% overlap. The learning curve stabilized at 10 patients with a root mean square error of 0.14, thus the size of the 2 independent training cohorts was set to 10, leaving 19 for the test cohort. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: We present a technique for combining radiology and pathology with machine learning for generating predictive cytological topography (PiCT) maps of cellularity and lumen density prostate. The voxel-wise approach to mapping cellular features generates 2 new interpretable image contrasts, which can potentially increase confidence in diagnosis or guide biopsy and radiation treatment.

Coinfection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and viral hepatitis is associated with high morbidity and mortality in the absence of clinical management, making identification of these cases crucial. We examined characteristics of HIV and viral hepatitis coinfections by using surveillance data from 15 US states and two cities. Each jurisdiction used an automated deterministic matching method to link surveillance data for persons with reported acute and chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections, to persons reported with HIV infection. Of the 504 398 persons living with diagnosed HIV infection at the end of 2014, 2.0% were coinfected with HBV and 6.7% were coinfected with HCV. Of the 269 884 persons ever reported with HBV, 5.2% were reported with HIV. Of the 1 093 050 persons ever reported with HCV, 4.3% were reported with HIV. A greater proportion of persons coinfected with HIV and HBV were males and blacks/African Americans, compared with those with HIV monoinfection. Persons who inject drugs represented a greater proportion of those coinfected with HIV and HCV, compared with those with HIV monoinfection. Matching HIV and viral hepatitis surveillance data highlights epidemiological characteristics of persons coinfected and can be used to routinely monitor health status and guide state and national public health interventions.

A substantial and continual economic loss within the pig industry is the 5-20% pre-weaning mortality rate that occurs during the neonatal period (MLC, 2002). The principal causes of piglet death are low birth weight in conjunction with insufficient amounts of body fat reserves (Herpin et al., 1993; Varley, 1995). Studies by Rooke et al. (2000) have demonstrated that the fatty acid profiles of the sows diet during late pregnancy and lactation is an important factor influencing piglet performance. The benefits of dietary manipulations aimed at improving piglet survival, however, remain controversial. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of supplementing the maternal diet with palm and/or soya oil during late gestation on piglet growth performance.

Insulin is a central regulatory factor in the control of nutrient partitioning during growth and development. It has been demonstrated that the rate of protein deposition is elevated in porcine muscle following insulin infusion (WrayCahen 1998), and that the degree of adiposity is positively associated with plasma insulin concentration (Wood et al., 1977; Polonsky 1995). The objective of the study was to examine the effect of plasma glucose and insulin concentrations on growth performance in two porcine genotypes.

Dynamic surficial changes and changes in the position of the firn line and the areal extent of Hofsjökull ice cap, Iceland, were studied through analysis of a time series (1973–98) of synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) and Landsat data. A digital elevation model of Hofsjökull, which was constructed using SAR interferometry, was used to plot the SAR backscatter coefficient (σ°) vs elevation and air temperature along transects across the ice cap. Seasonal and daily σ° patterns are caused by freezing or thawing of the ice-cap surface, and abrupt changes in σ° are noted when the air temperature ranges from ∼−5° to 0°C. Late-summer 1997 σ° (SAR) and reflectance (Landsat) boundaries agree and appear to be coincident with the firn line and a SAR σ° boundary that can be seen in the January 1998 SAR image. In January 1994 through 1998, the elevation of this σ° boundary on the ice cap was quite stable, ranging from 1000 to 1300 m, while the equilibrium-line altitude, as measured on the ground, varied considerably. Thus the equilibrium line may be obscured by firn from previous years. Techniques are established to measure long-term changes in the elevation of the firn line and changes in the position of the ice margin.

We describe the design and performance of the Engineering Development Array, which is a low-frequency radio telescope comprising 256 dual-polarisation dipole antennas working as a phased array. The Engineering Development Array was conceived of, developed, and deployed in just 18 months via re-use of Square Kilometre Array precursor technology and expertise, specifically from the Murchison Widefield Array radio telescope. Using drift scans and a model for the sky brightness temperature at low frequencies, we have derived the Engineering Development Array’s receiver temperature as a function of frequency. The Engineering Development Array is shown to be sky-noise limited over most of the frequency range measured between 60 and 240 MHz. By using the Engineering Development Array in interferometric mode with the Murchison Widefield Array, we used calibrated visibilities to measure the absolute sensitivity of the array. The measured array sensitivity matches very well with a model based on the array layout and measured receiver temperature. The results demonstrate the practicality and feasibility of using Murchison Widefield Array-style precursor technology for Square Kilometre Array-scale stations. The modular architecture of the Engineering Development Array allows upgrades to the array to be rolled out in a staged approach. Future improvements to the Engineering Development Array include replacing the second stage beamformer with a fully digital system, and to transition to using RF-over-fibre for the signal output from first stage beamformers.

Prof. Mattingly:

Welcome to this Symposium, “Institutionalization and Education in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.” This afternoon we hope to initiate several lines of inquiry which will be productive in the historical study of institutionalization and education. Both of these notions have become increasingly important in all disciplines of American scholarship, and in a sense in proportion to this heightened significance their meaning becomes progressively confused. It would not be totally out of place to make that ratio one of the maxims for studying both institutions and education today.

The snow-pack on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska has a well-developed depth-hoar layer which forms each year at the base of the snow-pack due to upward vapor transfer resulting from a temperature gradient in the snow-pack. The thickness of the depth-hoar layer tends to increase inland where greater temperature extremes (in particular, lower minimum temperatures) permit larger temperature gradients to develop within the snow-pack. Brightness temperature (T B) data were analyzed from October through May for four winters using the 37 GHz horizontally polarized Nimbus-7 Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR). By mid-winter each year, a decrease in T B of approximately 20K was found between coastal and inland sites on the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska. Modeling has indicated that a thicker depth-hoar layer in the inland sites could be responsible for the lower T Bs. The large grain-sizes of the depth-hoar crystals scatter the upwelling radiation moreso than do smaller crystals, and greater scattering lowers the microwave T B. Using a two-layered radiative transfer model, the crystal diameter in the top layer was assumed to be 0.50 mm. The crystals in the depth-hoar layer may be 5–10 mm in diameter but the effective crystal diameter used in the radiative-transfer model is 1.40 mm. The crystal size used in the model had to be adjusted downward, relative to the actual crystal size, because the hollow, cup-shaped depth-hoar crystals are not as effective at scattering the microwave radiation as are spherical crystals that are assumed in the model. In the model, when the thickness of the depth-hoar layer was increased from 5 cm to 10 cm, a 21K decrease in T B resulted. This is comparable to the decrease in T B observed from coastal to inland sites in the study area.

In this study a new microwave snow retrieval algorithm was developed to account for the effects of atmospheric emission on microwave radiation over high-elevation land areas. This resulted in improved estimates of snow-covered area in western China when compared with the meteorological station data and with snow maps derived from visible imagery from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program satellite. Some improvement in snow-depth estimation was also achieved, but a useful level of accuracy will require additional modifications tested against more extensive ground data.

The Antarctic Roadmap Challenges (ARC) project identified critical requirements to deliver high priority Antarctic research in the 21st century. The ARC project addressed the challenges of enabling technologies, facilitating access, providing logistics and infrastructure, and capitalizing on international co-operation. Technological requirements include: i) innovative automated in situ observing systems, sensors and interoperable platforms (including power demands), ii) realistic and holistic numerical models, iii) enhanced remote sensing and sensors, iv) expanded sample collection and retrieval technologies, and v) greater cyber-infrastructure to process ‘big data’ collection, transmission and analyses while promoting data accessibility. These technologies must be widely available, performance and reliability must be improved and technologies used elsewhere must be applied to the Antarctic. Considerable Antarctic research is field-based, making access to vital geographical targets essential. Future research will require continent- and ocean-wide environmentally responsible access to coastal and interior Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Year-round access is indispensable. The cost of future Antarctic science is great but there are opportunities for all to participate commensurate with national resources, expertise and interests. The scope of future Antarctic research will necessitate enhanced and inventive interdisciplinary and international collaborations. The full promise of Antarctic science will only be realized if nations act together.

Skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) due to Staphylococcus aureus have become increasingly common in the outpatient setting; however, risk factors for differentiating methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) SSTIs are needed to better inform antibiotic treatment decisions. We performed a case-case-control study within 14 primary-care clinics in South Texas from 2007 to 2015. Overall, 325 patients [S. aureus SSTI cases (case group 1, n = 175); MRSA SSTI cases (case group 2, n = 115); MSSA SSTI cases (case group 3, n = 60); uninfected control group (control, n = 150)] were evaluated. Each case group was compared to the control group, and then qualitatively contrasted to identify unique risk factors associated with S. aureus, MRSA, and MSSA SSTIs. Overall, prior SSTIs [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 7·60, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3·31–17·45], male gender (aOR 1·74, 95% CI 1·06–2·85), and absence of healthcare occupation status (aOR 0·14, 95% CI 0·03–0·68) were independently associated with S. aureus SSTIs. The only unique risk factor for community-associated (CA)-MRSA SSTIs was a high body weight (⩾110 kg) (aOR 2·03, 95% CI 1·01–4·09).