The subject of this article is material research carried out on the ruins of a medieval castle located in west-central Poland. This facility was built at the beginning of the 15th century by the Order of St. John, and during its long life, it was subjected to many reconstructions. Unfortunately, in 1975, it was destroyed by fire. Since then, it has been left in a state of advanced ruin, exposed to climatic influences without any protection. The subject of the research was to assess the possibility of maintaining such buildings in a severely degraded condition while ensuring their technical efficiency. The article discusses a particular instance of \"consolidation\" applied to a structure in a state of historical, architectural, and structural ruin. After the diagnosis, it was determined that the structure should be safeguarded using a minimally invasive method. The purpose of these activities was to answer the question of whether the structure could be left to continue operating despite failing to meet the requirements of current standards and regulations while posing an additional danger to itself and the environment,. This goal was achieved by obtaining a considerable amount of data on the condition of the materials embedded in the masonry structure, thanks to which the initial parameters for conducting an assessment of the technical condition of the damaged masonry structure and evaluating the degree of its danger were developed. The results of the research and analysis carried out and described in this article can be used in other similar situations where saving national heritage objects through \"artificial modern\" strengthening will be unsafe and will lead to a loss of their authenticity. We still have a long way to go to develop a comprehensive method for \"in situ\" diagnosis of heterogeneous masonry structures, so we should use possible techniques and knowledge to conduct such assessments and propose rescue methods for historically valuable objects in a way that could minimize the damage and that can \"easily\" disappear from our surroundings. Each study should have a specific purpose, not only research but also a long-term perspective, making it possible to leave material for further research and analysis, including testing new research methods in real conditions of its installation.

BACKGROUND: With the progressive increase in aging populations, the use of opportunistic computed tomography (CT) scanning is increasing, which could be a valuable method for acquiring information on both muscles and bones of aging populations.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop and externally validate opportunistic CT-based fracture prediction models by using images of vertebral bones and paravertebral muscles.
METHODS: The models were developed based on a retrospective longitudinal cohort study of 1214 patients with abdominal CT images between 2010 and 2019. The models were externally validated in 495 patients. The primary outcome of this study was defined as the predictive accuracy for identifying vertebral fracture events within a 5-year follow-up. The image models were developed using an attention convolutional neural network-recurrent neural network model from images of the vertebral bone and paravertebral muscles.
RESULTS: The mean ages of the patients in the development and validation sets were 73 years and 68 years, and 69.1% (839/1214) and 78.8% (390/495) of them were females, respectively. The areas under the receiver operator curve (AUROCs) for predicting vertebral fractures were superior in images of the vertebral bone and paravertebral muscles than those in the bone-only images in the external validation cohort (0.827, 95% CI 0.821-0.833 vs 0.815, 95% CI 0.806-0.824, respectively; P<.001). The AUROCs of these image models were higher than those of the fracture risk assessment models (0.810 for major osteoporotic risk, 0.780 for hip fracture risk). For the clinical model using age, sex, BMI, use of steroids, smoking, possible secondary osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes mellitus, HIV, hepatitis C, and renal failure, the AUROC value in the external validation cohort was 0.749 (95% CI 0.736-0.762), which was lower than that of the image model using vertebral bones and muscles (P<.001).
CONCLUSIONS: The model using the images of the vertebral bone and paravertebral muscle showed better performance than that using the images of the bone-only or clinical variables. Opportunistic CT screening may contribute to identifying patients with a high fracture risk in the future.

In autistic individuals, the role, performance, and autonomy of perceptual functioning are atypical. Overlapping underlying mechanisms of perception and mental imagery predict that the mental imagery abilities of autistic individuals should differ from those of non‐autistic individuals. While enhanced abilities to manipulate mental images have been demonstrated in autism, the other stages of mental imagery (generation, maintenance, inspection) remain to be explored. Forty‐four autistic adults and 42 typical participants performed four tasks to assess different stages of mental imagery: the Image generation task (mentally generating a letter on a grid and indicating whether it passes over a probe located in the grid), the Visual pattern test (maintaining visual patterns in memory), the Image scanning test (inspecting mental images) and the Mental rotation test (mentally manipulating representations of geometric figures). In the image generation task and the mental rotation test, autistic and typical individuals performed equivalently, both in accuracy and response time. The span observed in the visual pattern test was significantly higher in the autistic group, indicating better maintenance of mental images. In the image scanning test, response times were influenced by the distance to mentally inspect in the typical group but not in the autistic group. Autistic participants were equally fast regardless of distance to inspect. Preserved, greater or differently influenced visual mental imagery abilities are in line with an atypical perceptual functioning in autism, possibly reflecting an increased weight of perception‐based information relatively to the top‐down effect of knowledge and language‐based influence.

Many within the prosthetics and orthotics (P&O) industry are embracing 3D printing technology to produce better devices more efficiently, cost-effectively and to improve patient outcomes. 3D printing is here to stay, but how much will it transform P&O practices? This paper explores the state-of 3D printing technology as it applies to P&O and aims to highlight important considerations for bringing 3D printing into mainstream practice. The paper draws from recent published literature, as well as experiences stemming from ongoing efforts focused on implementing digital workflows and 3D printing into P&O care. The paper examines the topic from the technological, research, economics, funding, and clinical perspectives. While 3D printing and digital workflows have advantages over traditional methods (i.e. ability to design more complex parts, reprinting and reproduction of parts, less labour intensive) there are also challenges limiting adoption. First, despite recent advancements in 3D printing technology, gaps still exist in terms of the materials and processes. For example, cost-effectively fabricating devices that are concurrently strong and durable, allow for colourful designs, and are thermoformable are still being developed. Cost-wise, 3D printing may currently be more viable for small, or paediatric devices. There are also limited technical standards to ensure safe and durable devices are produced, as well as a lack of evidence and information about patient outcomes and operating costs. Nevertheless, a great amount of enthusiasm and momentum exists within the industry to innovate, and with it the potential for 3D printing to one day be central to mainstream P&O care. Given the many aspects of the P&O industry, collaboration and partnerships will facilitate learning from each other to advance and realize the potential of 3D printing sooner.

An analog PID controller-based galvanometer scanner is widely used by fractional laser medical equipment (FLME) to scan lasers across tissue surfaces, achieving the desired therapeutic effect. This type of driver, primarily composed of passive components and operational amplifiers, can only accept commands from the central controller of the FLME, with a simple hardware circuit-based fault diagnosis; thus, the safety of the FLME is compromised. To address these issues, the failure mechanisms of galvanometers and their impact on the safety of FLME are thoroughly analyzed first. Then, an adaptive limit protection method, a coil open circuit fault diagnosis, a communication timeout protection based on two handshakes, and a galvanometer control timeout protection are proposed, respectively, based on a digital driver platform, to supplement the deficiencies in the original fault diagnosis and protection system. This ensures the safety of the FLME. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed strategies is validated through experiments.
点阵激光治疗仪广泛使用基于模拟PID控制器的驱动器来控制振镜，将激光脉冲以点阵图形的方式扫描人体组织表面，以实现预期的治疗效果。然而，这类振镜驱动器由无源元件和运算放大器组成，它们只能单向接收点阵激光治疗仪中控系统的扫描定位指令，并且通常只能通过比较电路对振镜进行简单的故障诊断，这可能会降低点阵激光治疗仪的安全性。针对这些问题，该研究首先分析并总结了振镜可能出现的各种故障机理，以及这些故障对点阵激光治疗仪安全运行的影响。接着，在数字振镜驱动器的基础上，针对传统振镜系统故障诊断策略的不足，提出了自适应限位保护、线圈断路故障诊断、基于二次握手的通信超时故障诊断以及振镜控制超时故障诊断策略。这些策略的实施提高了点阵激光治疗仪扫描手具的整体安全性。最后，通过实验验证了这些保护策略的有效性。.

OBJECTIVE: To compare vascular scanning parameters (vessel diameter, peak systolic velocity, end-diastolic velocity, and resistive index) and scanning time before and after breathing control training program for selected abdominal vessels.
METHODS: This study was pre and post quasi-experimental. The researchers designed a breathing training program that gives participants instructions through a video describing breathing maneuvers. Data were collected at the ultrasound laboratory/College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences in Princess Nourah bint Abdul Rahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from January 2023 to November 2023. About 49 volunteers at the university participated in the study. Scanning was performed two times for the right renal artery, upper abdominal aorta, inferior vena cava, and superior mesenteric artery. Scanning time was measured before and after the program as well. A paired sample t-test was used to compare the parameters means and time before and after the program.
RESULTS: The program had a significant effect on the following parameters: right renal artery peak systolic velocity (p=0.042), upper abdominal aortic peak systolic velocity, and resistive index (p=0.014, p=0.014 respectively), superior mesenteric artery and inferior vena cava diameters (p=0.010 and p=0.020). The scanning time was reduced significantly (p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: The breathing training program saves time and improves ultrasound measurement quality. Hospitals and health centers should consider the importance of breathing control training programs before abdominal scanning.

In this paper, a six-degree-of-freedom analog tactile probe with a new, simple, and robust mechanical design is presented. Its design is based on the use of one elastomeric ring that supports the stylus carrier and allows its movement inside a cubic measuring range of ±3 mm. The position of the probe tip is determined by three low-cost, noncontact, 2D PSD (position-sensitive detector) sensors, facilitating a wider application of this probe to different measuring systems compared to commercial ones. However, several software corrections, regarding the size and orientation of the three LED light beams, must be carried out when using these 2D sensors for this application due to the lack of additional focusing or collimating lenses and the very wide measuring range. The development process, simulation results, correction models, experimental tests, and calibration of this probe are presented. The results demonstrate high repeatability along the X-, Y-, and Z-axes (2.0 µm, 2.0 µm, and 2.1 µm, respectively) and overall accuracies of 6.7 µm, 7.0 µm, and 8.0 µm, respectively, which could be minimized by more complex correction models.

Melting is a fundamental property of DNA that can be monitored by absorbance or fluorescence. PCR conveniently produces enough DNA to be directly monitored on real-time instruments with fluorescently labeled probes or dyes. Dyes monitor the entire PCR product, while probes focus on a specific locus within the amplicon. Advances in amplicon melting include high resolution instruments, saturating DNA dyes that better reveal multiple products, prediction programs for domain melting, barcode taxonomic identification, high speed microfluidic melting, and highly parallel digital melting. Most single base variants and small insertions or deletions can be genotyped by high resolution amplicon melting. High resolution melting also enables heterozygote scanning for any variant within a PCR product. A web application (uMelt, http://www.dna-utah.org) predicts amplicon melting curves with multiple domains, a useful tool for verifying intended products. Additional applications include methylation assessment, copy number determination and verification of sequence identity. When amplicon melting does not provide sufficient detail, unlabeled probes or snapback primers can be used instead of covalently labeled probes. DNA melting is a simple, inexpensive, and powerful tool with many research applications that is beginning to make its mark in clinical diagnostics.

BACKGROUND: This study compared the marginal gaps of CAD/CAM lithium disilicate (LDS) crowns constructed using a contemporary and older scanner/milling unit combination at three different cement spaces.
METHODS: Twenty-four undergraduate students prepared a Columbia model lower left first molar for an LDS crown in a simulated environment. From each crown preparation, one LDS crown was constructed using an E4D scanner/E4D milling unit (E4DS/E4DM) and TRIOS 3 scanner/Sirona inLab MC X5 milling unit (TRIO/MCX5) at cement space settings of 50, 100 and 200 μm. Each LDS crown was positioned onto the original crown preparation, and then a stereomicroscope was used to make three vertical marginal gap measurements at four locations (mid-buccal, mid-lingual, mid-mesial and mid-distal). The mean marginal gap (MMG) was calculated for each crown and each individual tooth surface.
RESULTS: The MMGs of CAD/CAM LDS crowns constructed by TRIO/MCX5 were 72.31 at 50, 63.73 at 100 μm and 46.23 μm at 200 μm, which were smaller than E4DS/E4DM at each cement space.
CONCLUSIONS: Increasing the cement space decreased the MMG in both scanner/milling unit combinations. The smallest MMG was found using the newer scanner/milling unit at the 200 μm cement space. © 2024 Australian Dental Association.

Visual exploratory activities (VEA) refer to head and body movements that football players make prior to receiving the ball to search possibilities for action. VEA is considered a key performance indicator that differentiates the skill level of players. This study revisited whether VEA also distinguishes super elite, award winning players from their elite teammates without awards. To this end, video footage from the men\'s UEFA Champions League season 2018-2019 featuring the super elite players (n = 18) and the elite players (n = 18) was analyzed. To reduce the potential differences in match dynamics as much as possible, the selected players in the two groups were of the same team, playing the same match, in the same positioning line. VEA (i.e. frequency per unit time) during the penultimate and final pass prior to ball reception and performance (i.e. percentages of adequate ball contacts and subsequent actions) were compared between the two groups of players using ANOVA and Mann-Whitney tests, respectively. In addition, hierarchical stepwise regression analyses were conducted to explore the degree to which VEA was predicted by group and subsequent performance. The results showed that the players had higher VEA during the final pass (M = 0.45) than the penultimate pass (M = 0.41). There were no significant differences in VEA or performance between the two groups. Also, the regression analyses did not deliver significant models. We conclude that with partial control for match dynamics, no evidence emerged to support that VEA distinguishes super elite players from elite football players.