Richard Wolf (Germany)

The increasing volume and diversity of Earth Observation (EO) and climate data produced by Copernicus missions and the Destination Earth (DestinE) initiative pose a major challenge for interoperability and large-scale analysis. Today, global datasets are distributed on heterogeneous spatial grids, forcing users to repeatedly perform ad-hoc regridding steps, which are costly, error-prone, and difficult to reproduce.The GRID4EARTH project addresses this issue by promoting a common Discrete Global Grid System (DGGS) as a foundation for analysis-ready Earth data. In this context, HEALPix emerges as a strong candidate due to its equal-area property, hierarchical structure, and long-standing adoption in global modelling and large-scale data analysis. These properties enable efficient multi-resolution workflows, scalable data access, and natural integration with modern cloud-native formats such as Zarr.However, a key limitation remains: HEALPix is formally defined on the sphere, whereas EO are naturally referenced to the WGS84 ellipsoid. While often ignored at coarse resolutions, this mismatch introduces non-negligible area distortions at Copernicus resolutions and may bias zonal or regional analyses.To overcome this limitation, GRID4EARTH explores anextension of HEALPix to the WGS84 ellipsoid using the authalic sphere associated with the ellipsoid. By preserving equal-area properties on the ellipsoid, this approach provides a consistent spatial framework bridging spherical climate models and ellipsoidal EO. It enables a unified representation for DestinE model outputs and Copernicus satellite data, while remaining compatible with existing HEALPix-based tools and workflows.This contribution presents the motivation, principles, and expected benefits of ellipsoidal HEALPix within GRID4EARTH, and discusses its role as a practical and scalable DGGS for next-generation Earth system data infrastructures.

Ocular graft-versus-host disease (oGVHD) remains one of the most challenging complications of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), often leading to severe ocular surface morbidity and irreversible vision loss if not properly managed. Diagnostic uncertainty persists due to variability in clinical presentation and a lack of universally accepted criteria, but the greatest clinical burden lies in establishing effective, durable treatment protocols. Current strategies range from lubricants and topical immunomodulators to advanced surgical interventions; however, outcomes remain inconsistent due to delayed recognition and heterogeneous practices across institutions. At institutions like MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC), a structured treatment strategy has been developed that emphasizes early recognition and targeted therapy based on the specific ocular tissues affected. This approach integrates patient-reported outcomes with objective ocular findings and applies stepwise therapeutic escalation aligned with tissue-specific pathology. This review offers a brief overview of the clinical burden and pathophysiology of oGVHD, outlines the key diagnostic challenges, and a more detailed discussion on therapeutic strategies with particular emphasis on the targeted tissue-based approaches.

This study aims to develop and validate a standardized palpebral conjunctival redness (PCR) scale for clinical assessment of ocular inflammation, addressing the distinct vascular anatomy and immune characteristics of the palpebral conjunctiva compared to the bulbar conjunctiva. Astudy was conducted using digital image manipulation to create a 10-point PCR grading scale (10-100 in increments of 10). The scale was developed through Adobe Photoshop modification of high-resolution ocular photographs and validated by trained ophthalmic professionals. A total of 24 eyes from 12 patients were assessed using both the newly developed PCR scale and the established Schulze bulbar conjunctival redness (BCR) scale. Statistical analysis included Cronbach's alpha for internal consistency, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) for inter-rater reliability, paired t-tests for comparison between PCR and BCR scores, and Pearson's correlation coefficient to assess the relationship between the two measures. The PCR scale demonstrated excellent inter-rater reliability with an ICC of 0.773 (95% CI: 0.537-0.896) and strong internal consistency with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.880. Individual components showed robust reliability ranging from 0.842 to 0.891. Mean PCR scores were significantly higher than BCR scores by 15.90 units (p<0.0001), with a moderate correlation coefficient of 0.45 between the two measures. The combined PCR and BCR assessment achieved an ICC of 0.852 (95% CI: 0.780-0.902). This study successfully established a reliable and clinically applicable PCR grading scale that addresses the unique anatomical and immunological characteristics of the palpebral conjunctiva. The moderate correlation between PCR and BCR measurements supports the necessity of independent assessment tools for different conjunctival regions. The PCR scale complements existing BCR assessments and provides enhanced diagnostic sensitivity for conditions affecting the eyelid margins and inner conjunctival surfaces. Further validation in larger, more diverse patient populations is recommended before widespread clinical implementation.

The accurate inference of causality between actions and their sensory outcomes requires determining their temporal relationship correctly despite variable delays within and across sensory modalities. Temporal recalibration—the perceptual realignment of actions with delayed sensory feedback—has been demonstrated across various sensorimotor domains. Here, we investigate whether this mechanism extends to saccadic eye movements and sensory events contingent on them. In three experiments, participants made horizontal saccades that triggered high-contrast flashes at varying delays. They then reported whether the flashes occurred during or after the saccade, allowing us to track perceived event timing. Exposure to consistent delays between saccade onset and the flash led to a shift in perceptual reports: flashes presented after saccade offset were more often judged as occurring during the movement. This recalibration effect was robust even when we manipulated relevant visual cues such as the presence of a structured background or the continuity of the saccade target. In a replay condition, we found a significant but much smaller recalibration effect between replayed saccades and flash, demonstrating the importance of action execution for visuomotor temporal recalibration. These findings highlight the visual system's remarkable adaptability to temporal delays between eye movements and their sensory consequences. A similar recalibration mechanism may support perceptual stability in natural vision by dynamically realigning saccades with their resulting visual input, even amid changing visual conditions.

We present a hardware realization and measurements of a tetron qubit device in a superconductor-semiconductor heterostructure. The device architecture contains two parallel superconducting nanowires, which support four Majorana zero modes (MZMs) when tuned into the topological phase, and a trivial superconducting backbone. Two distinct readout interferometers are formed by connecting the superconducting structure to a series of quantum dots. We perform single-shot interferometric measurements of the fermion parity for the two loops, designed to implement Pauli-$X$ and $Z$ measurements of the tetron. Performing repeated single-shot measurements yields two widely separated time scales $\tau_X = 14.5\pm 0.3 \, \mathrm{\mu s}$ and $\tau_Z = 12.4\pm 0.4\, \mathrm{ms}$ for parity switches observed in the $X$ and $Z$ measurement loops, which we attribute to intra-wire parity switches and external quasiparticle poisoning, respectively. We estimate assignment errors of $\mathrm{err}^X_a=16\%$ and $\mathrm{err}^Z_a=0.5\%$ for $X$ and $Z$ measurement-based operations, respectively.

Health care in the United States is among the most technologically advanced in the world, but it is largely failing to meet the needs of the nation. The US can claim international excellence in important areas of care, such as cancer treatment, and it leads the world in biomedical innovation and building a well-prepared and dedicated clinical workforce. The Affordable Care Act was a major step forward in expanding access to health care in the US. However, Americans are faced with staggering health costs, inadequate access to care, pervasive health inequities, and lagging life expectancy compared with other developed nations. In this article, part of the National Academy of Medicine's Vital Directions for Health and Health Care: Priorities for 2025 initiative, we present a partial road map for transforming the US health care system. We propose bold national goals: affordable and equitable care for all, an additional decade of healthy birthdays after retirement, elimination of racial and ethnic disparities in health, substantial reduction in health care expenditures, and, most important, improved health outcomes. To achieve these goals, we recommend changes to ensure coverage for all, invest in primary care and social determinants of health, create financing to incentivize population health, and improve transparency and accountability. Major systemic transformation of the US health care system is not just required; it is a moral and economic imperative.

The South African government has recently proposed a streamlined environmental impact assessment (EIA) process to fast-track decision-making and expedite a broad range of activities linked to the construction and upgrading of tourism infrastructure, maintenance, conservation and rehabilitation in the Kruger National Park (KNP). This proposal is founded on the adoption of the KNP’s Management Plan and a Generic Environmental Management Programme as environmental management instruments (EMIs) under the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998. The intention is to exclude South African National Parks (SANParks), the management authority for the KNP, from having to undertake any form of EIA and from having to secure an environmental authorisation from the competent authority prior to undertaking these activities. This article critically explores the merits of implementing such an approach in a state-owned national park established to protect the area’s sensitive and vulnerable ecosystem and species, viewscapes and sense of place. It highlights an array of issues and risks associated with the proposal which, if implemented, hold the potential to undermine the effective management and conservation of the KNP. These risks include a perceived fundamental misunderstanding of the role of management plans, EMIs and EIAs; the potential broad scope of the exclusion; the extent to which the exclusion potentially undermines key constitutionally entrenched principles of administrative justice; and anomalies in the array of proposed conditions built into the exclusion that may undermine the operation of these conditions as satisfactory safeguards.

O infarto agudo do miocárdio (IAM) é subdivido em IAMSSST (infarto agudo do miocárdio sem supradesnivelamento do segmento ST) e IAMCSST (infarto agudo do miocárdio com supradesnivelamento do segmento ST), e este último necessita de reperfusão miocárdica imediata. No entanto, essa classificação pode não ser precisa o suficiente no manejo emergencial pois pacientes com IAMSSST podem ter oclusão coronariana. Tal cenário decorre da limitada capacidade de identificar a anatomia fisiopatológica do IAM pelo exame eletrocardiográfico (ECG), heterogeneidade de apresentações clínicas e subestimação do risco em IAMSSST. Visando superar tais limitações, uma abordagem moderna e integrada propõe a divisão entre Oclusão coronariana aguda (OCA) e Ausência de oclusão coronariana aguda (NOCA), considerando características fisiopatológicas, exames de imagem e biomarcadores.

Introdução: A ansiedade cardíaca (AC) é um achado comum em pacientes no pré e pós-operatório de cirurgia de revascularização do miocárdio (CRM). A restrição ventilatória gerada pela dor e redução da força muscular está associada ao aumento do nível de AC. O treinamento muscular inspiratório (TMI) para gerar aumento da força muscular pode causar diminuição da PC no pós-operatório. Objetivo: Avaliar o impacto do TMI na força muscular inspiratória e sua relação com a ansiedade cardíaca em pacientes submetidos à cirurgia de revascularização do miocárdio. Métodos: Trata-se de um ensaio clínico controlado e randomizado. No momento pré-operatório, todos os pacientes responderam a um questionário de ansiedade cardíaca, composto por dois domínios: medo e vigilância e evitação. Além disso, foi avaliada a pressão inspiratória máxima (PImáx). Após o procedimento cirúrgico, os pacientes foram divididos em um grupo controle (GC) que recebeu cuidados hospitalares de rotina e um grupo de treinamento (GT) que foi submetido a um protocolo de TMI até o momento da alta hospitalar. Resultados: Foram avaliados 80 pacientes, 40 em cada grupo. O grupo TMI apresentou uma diminuição de 17% na PImáx enquanto o GC diminuiu 43% (p &lt; 0,01). O domínio medo e vigilância teve uma redução de -16±3 no GC enquanto no GT a redução foi de -8±3 (p &lt; 0,01). O domínio evitamento reduziu -17 ± 4 no GC vs -10 ± 4 no TG (p &lt; 0,01). Para além disso, verificou-se uma forte correlação entre a PImáx do TG com os domínios do medo/vigilância (r -0,77) e evitamento (r -0,72). Conclusão: O TMI está associado a uma redução na perda de força muscular inspiratória, resultando em um nível reduzido de ansiedade cardíaca em pacientes submetidos à cirurgia de revascularização do miocárdio.