Stony Brook University

About: Stony Brook University is a education organization based out in Stony Brook, New York, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 32534 authors who have published 68218 publications receiving 3035131 citations. The organization is also known as: State University of New York at Stony Brook & SUNY Stony Brook.

Perirhinal and parahippocampal cortices of the macaque monkey: Cortical afferents

Abstract: Neuropsychological studies have recently demonstrated that the macaque monkey perirhinal (areas 35 and 36) and parahippocampal (areas TH and TF) cortices contribute importantly to normal memory function. Unfortunately, neuroanatomical information concerning the cytoarchitectonic organization and extrinsic connectivity of these cortical regions is meager. We investigated the organization of cortical inputs to the macaque monkey perirhinal and parahippocampal cortices by placing discrete injections of the retrograde tracers fast blue, diamidino yellow, and wheat germ agglutinin conjugated to horseradish peroxidase throughout these areas. We found that the macaque monkey perirhinal and parahippocampal cortices receive different complements of cortical inputs. The major cortical inputs to the perirhinal cortex arise from the unimodal visual areas TE and rostral TEO and from area TF of the parahippocampal cortex. The perirhinal cortex also receives projections from the dysgranular and granular subdivisions of the insular cortex and from area 13 of the orbitofrontal cortex. In contrast, area TF of the parahippocampal cortex receives its strongest input from more caudal visual areas V4, TEO, and caudal TE, as well as prominent inputs from polymodal association cortices, including the retrosplenial cortex and the dorsal bank of the superior temporal sulcus. Area TF also receives projections from areas 7a and LIP of the posterior parietal lobe, insular cortex, and areas 46, 13, 45, and 9 of the frontal lobe. As with area TF, area TH receives substantial projections from the retrosplenial cortex as well as moderate projections from the dorsal bank of the superior temporal sulcus; unlike area TF, area TH receives almost no innervation from areas TE and TEO. It does, however, receive relatively strong inputs from auditory association areas on the convexity of the superior temporal gyrus.

The impact of college on students

Abstract: In this landmark work, Kenneth Feldman and Theodore Newcomb review and synthesize the findings of more than 1,500 studies conducted over four decades on the subject. Writing in 1991, Ernest Pascarella and Patrick Terenzini maintained that The Impact of College on Students not only provided the first comprehensive conceptual map of generally uncharted terrain, but also generated a number of major hypotheses about how college influences students. They also noted that Feldman and Newcombe helped to stimulate a torrent of studies on the characteristics of collegiate institutions and how students change and benefit during and after their college years from college attendance. The Impact of College on Students is now a standard text in graduate courses as well as a standard and frequently cited reference for scholars, students, and administrators of higher education. Much of what we understand about the developmental influence of college is based on this work.

Comprehensive QA for radiation oncology: report of AAPM Radiation Therapy Committee Task Group 40.

Abstract: Published by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine DISCLAIMER: This publication is based on sources and information believed to be reliable, but the AAPM and the editors disclaim any warranty or liability based on or relating to the contents of this publication. The AAPM does not endorse any products, manufacturers, or suppliers. Nothing in this publication should be interpreted as implying such endorsement. PREFACE This document is the report of a task group of the Radiation Therapy Committee of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine and supersedes the recommendations of AAPM Report 13 (AAPM, 1984). The purpose of the report is twofold. First, the advances in radiation oncology in the decade since AAPM Report 13 (AAPM, 1984) necessitated a new document on quality assurance (QA). Second, developments in the principles of quality assurance and continuing quality improvement necessitated a report framed in this context. The title \" Comprehensive Quality Assurance for Radiation Oncology \" may need clarification. While the report emphasizes the physical aspects of QA and does not attempt to discuss issues that are essentially medical (e.g., the decision to treat, the prescription of dose), it by no means neglects issues in which the physical and medical issues intertwine, often in a complex manner. The integrated nature of QA in radiation oncology makes it impossible to consider QA as limited to, for example, checking machine output or calibrating brachytherapy sources. QA activities cover a very broad range, and the work of medical physicists in this regard extends into a number of areas in which the actions of radiation oncologists, radiation therapists, 1 dosimetrists, accelerator engineers, and medical physicists are important. Moreover, this is true for each of the disciplines-each has special knowledge and expertise which affects the quality of treatment , and each discipline overlaps the others in a broad \" gray zone. \" It is important not only to understand each discipline's role in QA, but to clarify this zone so that errors do not \" fall between the cracks. \" This report therefore attempts to cover the physical aspects of QA both in a narrow or traditional sense and in a more integrated sense. The report comprises 2 parts: Part A is for administrators, and Part B is a code of practice in six sections. The first section of Part B describes a comprehensive quality assurance program in which the importance of a written procedural …

Measuring ecological niche overlap from occurrence and spatial environmental data

Abstract: Aim Concerns over how global change will influence species distributions, in conjunction with increased emphasis on understanding niche dynamics in evolutionary and community contexts, highlight the growing need for robust methods to quantify niche differences between or within taxa. We propose a statistical framework to describe and compare environmental niches from occurrence and spatial environmental data. Location Europe, North America and South America. Methods The framework applies kernel smoothers to densities of species occurrence in gridded environmental space to calculate metrics of niche overlap and test hypotheses regarding niche conservatism. We use this framework and simulated species with pre-defined distributions and amounts of niche overlap to evaluate several ordination and species distribution modelling techniques for quantifying niche overlap. We illustrate the approach with data on two well-studied invasive species. Results We show that niche overlap can be accurately detected with the framework when variables driving the distributions are known. The method is robust to known and previously undocumented biases related to the dependence of species occurrences on the frequency of environmental conditions that occur across geographical space. The use of a kernel smoother makes the process of moving from geographical space to multivariate environmental space independent of both sampling effort and arbitrary choice of resolution in environmental space. However, the use of ordination and species distribution model techniques for selecting, combining and weighting variables on which niche overlap is calculated provide contrasting results. Main conclusions The framework meets the increasing need for robust methods to quantify niche differences. It is appropriate for studying niche differences between species, subspecies or intra-specific lineages that differ in their geographical distributions. Alternatively, it can be used to measure the degree to which the environmental niche of a species or intra-specific lineage has changed over time.

The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among adults in the United States.

Abstract: Objective: To determine the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among adults 40 years and older in the United States.Methods: Pooled analysis of data from 8 population-based eye surveys was used to estimate the prevalence, among persons with diabetes mellitus (DM), of retinopathy and of vision-threatening retinopathy-defined as proliferative or severe nonproliferative retinopathy and/or macular edema. Within strata of age, race/ethnicity, and gender, US prevalence rates were estimated by multiplying these values by the prevalence of DM reported in the 1999 National Health Interview Survey and the 2000 US Census population.Results: Among an estimated 10.2 million US adults 40 years and older known to have DM, the estimated crude prevalence rates for retinopathy and vision-threatening retinopathy were 40.3% and 8.2%, respectively. The estimated US general population prevalence rates for retinopathy and vision-threatening retinopathy were 3.4% (4.1 million persons) and 0.75% (899000 persons). Future projections suggest that diabetic retinopathy will increase as a public health problem, both with aging of the US population and increasing age-specific prevalence of DM over time.Conclusion: Approximately 4.1 million US adults 40 years and older have diabetic retinopathy; 1 of every 12 persons with DM in this age group has advanced, vision-threatening retinopathy.