#it's specimen 10's locale

[goodolsammie]

been getting super into spooky's jumpscare mansion again, and decided to repaint a screenshot that i took of one of my favorite moments in Specimen 10's locale. the way that the lights in the room are cued to go off right as you look at the vent's entrance after all those notes about the vents being dangerous, leaving the only way forward in the spotlight with blood trailing towards said way forward is fucking awesome and i love little things like that.

this is the original ref image that i took when it happened. i <3 video game

[mattalit]

Link x Male Reader

A/N: repost from wattpad

Length: 1.7k

Originally Published: Feb 23, 2023

CW: none

In his line of work, customers were infrequent, and new customers were almost unheard of. Regardless of the "untapped potential", as (M/N) often called it, of the Poe industry, it was an unsurprisingly under-utilized--or perhaps useless?--and unheard of industry, and his parents, when he visited them, would often remind him of that. Despite his parents' disfavor towards his particular career choice, (M/N) found it liberating: he had little to no competition, which meant more money for him; he had lots of free time, which he used to peruse different hobbies; and he was alone, which he liked. Well, he was alone outside of cases such as now, where a customer--a new customer, in this case--had wandered into his modest little shop in Castle Town.

The surprise of a new customer was largely (M/N)'s own fault. His shop was never open at the same time twice in a week, he never advertised (outside of an obligatory pamphlet in the Kakariko Village Graveyard, of course), and the only sign that indicated there was a shop here (and more than that, what the shop was) was posted in fine print on the door. All of this, combined with the obscure nature of the Poe industry, led to few, if any, customers in any given day. And when there were customers, they were the same regulars he had come to know since the founding of his little Poe boutique--all were sketchy, most were scummy, and one was crazy. To explain his regulars would be a digression, though, and something (M/N) could not ponder upon due to the current circumstances--that is, having a customer. Now was not the time for thinking; now was the time for quality Customer Service. So, kicking his feet back and forth from his perch on the counter, (M/N) put on his best Customer Service smile.

"Welcome! Are you here to sell or to buy?"

"Uh, I'm here to sell."

(M/N) did a once over his new customer. Blond. Obviously active and reasonably buff. Cool sword. An adventurer... I should send him on a quest. I'm sure he's not busy with other things.

"Of course. What do you bring me today?" the Poe merchant asked.

The blond held out a bottle.

"Oh! Let me see that." (M/N) grabbed the Poe and held it up to the light. Hmm. Orange aura. He tapped the bottle. Not too small, yet not a lot of space for it in this bottle. He ran through his mental list of local Poes. Rare! A Big Poe. Just what I needed. "Young man, you've brought me quite the specimen."

"What's it worth?"

"To your average person? Nothing. To me? 50 rupees, and if you want, 100 points on your tab."

"Tab?"

"Yessir, 'tab.' For Big Poes, which this is a Big Poe if I've ever seen one, I'll give you points on your tab. If you get 1000 points, I'll give you a special gift!" Without giving his new customer time to object, (M/N) continued, "Now, what's your name? I'll get the paperwork."

"It's Link."

On the top of the blank paper (official blank paper, mind you), (M/N) wrote, Link (blond twink) 100 points as of XX/XX/XX.

And now, it was time for (M/N) to sucker this new customer into doing his dirty work.

"...and you're all set, Link. A pleasure to meet you, by the way. I'm (M/N). Now, you seem like the adventuring type..."

Link sighed. As a worn out hero, he was used to this opening phrase, and it always led to some request. He was not particularly excited to undergo more (arguably) meaningless tasks, but he had little else to do now that he saved the world from evil or whatever. Perhaps something less dramatic would help him relax.

"What do you need me to do?"

Thank the Heavens! He took the bait.

"I'm looking to employ someone to do some hunting for me."

"Go on."

"A client of mine has requested 10 Big Poes from me. Unfortunately, they are particularly hard to find, and even harder to capture. Seeing as you've brought me a Big Poe, though, you are clearly more than capable. If you can get me 9 more, you'll have 1000 points and win a gift! Of course, I'll pay you accordingly for each Poe; I might even throw something extra in. I'll consider it an internship. What do you say?"

Now, Link didn't consider himself to be a ghost hunter, but in times like these, when his only choice was to eternal boredom or an "internship" with a some odd man, he was willing to do anything,

"I'll do it."

"Consider yourself employed, then! Welcome to the team, intern."

(M/N) wasn't expecting to see Link back so soon. Of course, it had been a week since Link had brought in his first Big Poe, but from what he had seen, a week to find a Big Poe was a new form of efficiency. He almost doubted the man even brought a Big Poe back.

"Back so soon?" The Poe merchant dropped his hood down, revealing his messy (H/L) (H/C) hair, and gazed questioningly at the adventurer.

"I think I've found a Big Poe."

"Oh, glorious! Hand it over." Link held out a bottle and (M/N) grasped it.

The merchant tentatively tapped the bottle. Hmm. He stared at it. Orange aura. He shook it. Definitely large.

"I dare say, Ghost Hunter, you've found us a Big Poe. You're exceeding my expectations," (M/N) said, pouring the Poe into a crate.

"I've, uh, had some experience with ghosts."

"In the Kakariko Graveyard?" Link nodded. "That's the bulk of my experience, too. We don't have Poes or ghosts where I'm from. Too cold, I suppose," (M/N) said, leaning back against the wall. "Anyways, I'm giving you a bonus for your hard work. 75 rupees. Oh! And 100 points to your tab. Keep it up--there's more where that came from."

Link gladly accepted the rupees it, placing them into his wallet. "So, where is it 'too cold' for Poes? I've seen Poes all over Hyrule."

(M/N) looked at Link and tilted his head. "You can't tell? I'm not from Hyrule. I'm from somewhere much more North. It's a small town. It doesn't rain there; it only snows."

"And you came all this way to sell... Poes?"

"To sell and to buy Poes, yes," (M/N) responded indignanty. "It's a niche interest of mine." He glanced up and down at Link. "And what about you? You're awfully pretty compared to the people around here. Where are you from? What do you do?"

Link considered telling the truth about his majestic adventures, his conquest to save this very apocalyptic town they were currently in, but he decided against it. Despite the idiosyncrasies of his newfound "employer," he wanted to put his temple-diving, life-risking adventuring days behind him... at least for a while.

"I'm from a small village in the south-east, near the forest. I'm an adventurer."

"An 'adventurer', mysterious! Y'know, if I was pretty like you, I'd be doing a different sort of business." (M/N) leaned forward, arms crossed, and offered a flirtatious wink. Link flushed a dark red. Before he could respond, (M/N) was already dismissing him with a wave of his hand. "Anyways, a pleasure as always. I expect to see you again soon with more Big Poes! Scurry long now."

And a week later, (M/N) did see Link, who brought a Big Poe. And a week after that, another Big Poe. And a two weeks after that, two Big Poes. And now, Link was prepared to drop off his seventh.

Unlike his usual visits to the shop, though, the torches were unlit and no light escaped from the windows. Regardless of what is considered "acceptable" when no one appears to be home, Link, with a key gifted to him by (M/N), unlocked the door and tentatively opened it.

"(M/N)?" he called into the darkness. He did not receive a response.

Link closed the door behind him, and, in the soft glow of the moonlight, crept across the room. Again, he called out.

"Ugh," a tired voice called out, "Link?" Lantern light floods through an open door into the store, and the hunched frame of (M/N) followed it. He wore a pair of shorts and nothing else. He rubbed one eye and lazily looked at Link with the other. "It's awfully late to be doing business."

Link blushed lightly in embarrassment. "Oh, uh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you'd be asleep."

(M/N) gave him an odd look. "Link, it must be, what? Three in the morning?" He sighed. "What are you doing here?"

Link didn't respond right away. While he had, in fact, showed up to do business, he didn't want to admit that seeing the merchant's sleepiness.

(M/N) sighed again. "Oh, whatever, it doesn't matter. Come on, Link, let's have a sleep over."

Link hesitantly followed (M/N) into the adjoining room. (M/N)'s room was small, containing a mat and blankets serving as a makeshift bed. A milk crate next to the bed served as a table. Haphazard stacks of books on ghosts and supernatural creatures filled up a corner.

"Sorry it's so small," (M/N) said, scratching his naked chest. "I'm not exactly, uh, used to company." He eased himself onto the mat, laying down with his arms behind his head. He gave Link a once over. "I hope you don't plan on bringing a sword to bed."

"Oh! Right." Link discarded his sword and shield and outer layers of clothes in a corner. To avoid scandal and remain modest, he left his pants and undershirt on. Then, when (M/N) patted the space next to him, sat down. Link's body was noticeably tense, and he seemed unsure of what to do.

"For a ghost-killing adventurer, you're awfully new to sleep overs," (M/N) joked. "Don't worry, pretty boy, I don't bite." He extinguished the flame in his lantern, then furrowed his brows in thought. "Well, unless you're into that."

Link didn't respond, but taking a deep breath to relax, he laid next to the (H/C) man. The dark itself served as a shield against the outside world, and for a moment, Link felt safe.  It was a simple moment of peace, free from adventuring, free from responsibility, and free from near-death experiences. I could get used to this, he thought.

He felt an arm slowly make its way around his waist. "Is this okay?" came (M/N)'s gentle whisper.

"Yeah," Link replied breathlessly, "it's okay."

"Good." (M/N) softly tugged him closer and let out a content sigh that tickled Link's neck. "Good night, Link."

"Good night, (M/N)."

[droctaviolovecraft]

TW: Body deformation, self surgery, vermins

ANM №: ANM-590

Identification: Parasitic Gingival Larvae

Danger Level: Kali 🟠 | Contained ⭕️

Responsible Researcher: None

Anomaly Type: Parasitic, insectoid

Confinement: All instances of ANM-590 larvae are to be contained in a standard containment chamber at Department-05, equipped with a positive-pressure ventilation system to prevent the spread of eggs or larvae. The chamber is to be regularly monitored by Level 2 personnel, and entry is restricted to medical staff or researchers with Level 3 clearance or higher.

Any personnel exposed to ANM-590 are to undergo immediate decontamination and report to D-05's medical wing for examination. If signs of infestation are found, the affected individual is to be quarantined and treated with oral surgical removal procedures followed by a course of antiparasitic medication.

All captured instances of ANM-590 adult specimens are to be kept in an airtight containment chamber and destroyed by incineration. Under no circumstances are live adult specimens to be allowed to escape or reproduce outside of containment. Field agents are tasked with monitoring dental clinics, hospitals, and any locations with reported cases of unexplained gingival inflammation or infestations of unknown parasites.

Description: ANM-590 refers to an anomalous species of parasitic botfly (Diptera: Oestridae) that exclusively targets the gingival (gum) tissue of human hosts. Adult ANM-590 specimens are visually similar to non-anomalous botflies (Dermatobia hominis) but exhibit several key deviations. Most notably, ANM-590 demonstrates a unique parasitic reproductive cycle, wherein its larvae (designated ANM-590-1) develop within the soft tissues of the human oral cavity, specifically targeting the gums.

Life Cycle and Reproduction:

1. Adult Stage:

ANM-590 adults resemble a typical botfly in appearance, with iridescent green and black coloration and an approximate body length of 12-14 mm. Unlike common botflies, ANM-590 adults are active primarily during nighttime, seeking out human hosts through a combination of chemical signals, including pheromones produced by the human body and trace amounts of blood from gingival irritation or damage, or from bacteria likely to appear if the individual does not brush their teeth.

During oviposition, an adult ANM-590 will release a specialized neurotoxin via its ovipositor to numb the host's gums. Once the host is anesthetized, the fly deposits eggs directly beneath the gum line. This process is generally painless and often goes unnoticed by the victim.

2. Egg and Larval Stage (AMM-590-1):

After approximately 48 to 72 hours, ANM-590 eggs hatch into larvae (ANM-590-1). The larvae possess highly specialized mandibles, which allow them to burrow into the soft tissue of the gums. As they develop, ANM-590-1 larvae feed on both blood and gingival tissue, causing localized swelling, bleeding, and irritation. This stage lasts 10 to 14 days, during which time the larvae grow to a size of 8-10 mm in length.

Hosts report symptoms similar to periodontal disease, including:

Persistent itching or tingling sensation in the gums

Swollen or bleeding gums, especially when brushing teeth or eating

Unexplained tooth sensitivity

In rare cases, sensations of "crawling" or movement within the gums

Once mature, the larvae migrate toward the surface of the gums, often concentrating around the base of the teeth. At this stage, they secrete an enzyme that dissolves part of the gum tissue, creating small abscesses or lesions that allow the larvae to escape. In some cases, larvae can be manually expelled by squeezing the affected area, though this can lead to secondary infections.

3. Pupal Stage and Emergence:

Once the larvae emerge, they fall to the ground and burrow into the nearest soft substrate, where they enter the pupal stage. After approximately 1-2 weeks, adult ANM-590 flies emerge and the cycle begins anew.

Anomalous Properties:

ANM-590-1 larvae exhibit rapid tissue regeneration and healing properties in their host, preventing severe damage to the gums despite extensive feeding. This is believed to be a survival adaptation that ensures the host remains functional until the larvae reach maturity. The host's immune system is also suppressed, minimizing inflammatory responses, which further allows the larvae to go unnoticed.

While ANM-590 infestations do not typically result in fatalities, they can cause long-term dental damage if untreated. In severe cases, ANM-590 larvae may become dislodged and enter the bloodstream, causing embolisms or systemic infections, although this is exceedingly rare.

Psychological effects have been noted in several cases. Infested individuals frequently report anxiety, insomnia, and obsessive-compulsive behaviors related to oral hygiene, often excessively brushing or flossing their teeth in an attempt to alleviate the sensation of crawling or itching.

Discovery:

ANM-590 was first identified in 20���█ after a series of reports surfaced from rural villages in Belford Roxo, Brazil, where several individuals had been admitted to local hospitals for extreme gingival irritation. Initial reports were dismissed as cases of severe periodontal disease or fungal infections, but further investigation by Institute agents revealed that the symptoms were caused by an unknown parasitic entity.

Subsequent containment efforts led to the identification of several breeding sites in tropical forested regions, where adult ANM-590 specimens were captured for study. Due to the widespread nature of non-anomalous botfly species, it is believed that ANM-590 may have existed undetected for decades before being formally classified by the MOTHRA.

Addendum 590-A:

Interview Log 590-04:

Interview with Dr. Moron, a Institute dentist and researcher who was exposed to ANM-590 while examining a patient.

Interviewer: Dr. █████

Date: 20██

Dr. Moron: "The itching. It was unbearable. At first, I thought it was just dry gums, maybe an allergic reaction to something. But then… I felt it, like something was moving under the surface. I had this irrational urge to dig into my gums, to get whatever was inside me out."

Interviewer: "You performed a self-extraction, correct?"

Dr. Moron: "Yes. I used a pair of sterilized dental tweezers and started probing around one of the swollen areas. That's when I saw them. Tiny, wriggling white larvae, right at the base of my molar. I can still feel it sometimes, even though they’re all gone. It’s like they left something behind."

Interviewer: "Did you experience any psychological effects?"

Dr. Moron: "Every night I dream about it. The sensation of them moving, feeding, growing. I keep imagining they’re still in there, just deeper. Hiding."

Addendum 590-B:

Following the interview, Dr. Moron was placed on temporary medical leave and has been referred to psychological counseling due to ongoing symptoms of parasitosis and persistent gum irritation. No further ANM-590 larvae were found during follow-up examinations.

Note: Personnel exposed to ANM-590 should be monitored closely for similar psychological aftereffects, even after physical decontamination and removal. Further research into the long-term effects of ANM-590 infestation is ongoing.

Addendum 590-C:

Due to increased reports of ANM-590 infestations in urban areas, containment teams have been deployed to dental clinics and hospitals in high-risk regions. Task Force "Mouthwashers" has been created to respond to outbreaks and prevent ANM-590 from spreading into densely populated areas.

End of File

[digitalintelligigencearchive]

[[[From: Doctor Alan Gabor, Science & Research RE: Jewellery test]

I'm not sure why you saw fit to waste the valuable time of our scientists on trinkets and rumours, Becker. Do have the foresight to research your family history in your own time and not during your shift. Nevertheless, we have the results you asked for. Pray that these results are worthwhile to Chimera. For your sake.

[Subject: silver necklace, 18 inches. Repeated crescent pattern, engraved with the constellation Lupus. Tested 28th June, 1961]

[Subject: human blood (Jerry Becker, junior enlisted personnel). Type: O negative + DEA 1.2*. Tested 28th June, 1961]

*follow-up tests required

The silver contains contaminants that we have traced back to the Sierra Nevada range in California and thereabouts. Its chemical makeup is that of perfectly average silver.

The blood test, however, is where the results become interesting. Your blood contains particles that should by all rights cause extreme biochemical imbalances. In this test we discovered that you have two blood types—a condition which is known, ironically, as chimerism. This is a rare but fairly unremarkable condition. What is worthy of notice is that the other blood type you have has only ever been seen before in canines. Especially since the last few standard tests (August 22, 1960; September 29, 1959; January 10, 1959; March 19, 1958) revealed no such results.

In light of this development, we at the S&R division encourage you to engage in full-time tests in our laboratories. If you are not essential personnel at your current post, you may be far more useful to Chimera as a subject for experimental research. If you must stay, you are required to send us mandatory samples of blood and tissue fortnightly, or to submit yourself to monthly live testing. We have not seen a specimen such as yourself before, and we are eager to run more tests.]]

-🥼

Owen, am I essential personnel? I don't think so. I could be pretty easily replaced, since my job is just to oversee general maintenance. If I'm not needed here, I'll go to S&R to be their... test subject. If you want me to stay, of course I'll be here. But I don't think Doctor Gabor will let me go that easily...

So, there you have it. I'm apparently part werewolf. Wait, aren't werewolves part wolf? So I'm...a demiwolf? Would that be the word? Oh God I'm part wolf that's why I'm allergic to chocolate-

Heh, maybe since it's only partially wolf blood I should be called... a chimeriwolf. Because... yeah, I'll stop wasting your time. Sorry.

Um. So. There you have it. I do think it's interesting that the wolf blood only showed up in the most recent test... which was the only one taken on the full moon. Huh. Do you think that being part wolf is why I get attached so easily, or is it just a me thing? Who am I kidding, it's probably just because I have no friends.

And I think this answers the question of whether Chimera should take a look at Connor Creek. Who knows, maybe we could buy out the mines and blackmail the local werewolves into working for us! But what do I know, I'm just a janitor. Who is apparently part wolf. Still getting used to that part.

-🧹

(OOC: I am not a scientist. Please ignore all the invitable mistakes in the science part)

I’d prefer Becker to be released as soon as possible. Competent employees that care about their job are a rare find these days and he has been very pleasant. Oh, and congratulations, you’re going to help us change the world, Becker. Isn’t that exciting?

[oliviaphleb]

Opening the Veins: Essential Phlebotomy Insights for Aspiring Professionals

Unlocking the Veins: Essential Phlebotomy Insights for Aspiring Professionals

Embarking on ‌a career in phlebotomy can be both rewarding and challenging. As the backbone of⁤ clinical laboratory services, phlebotomists play a crucial role in patient care ⁢by collecting blood samples for diagnostic testing. This article provides essential ​insights,practical tips,and⁢ valuable facts to ⁤help⁤ aspiring professionals‌ navigate their journey in this field.

What is Phlebotomy?

Phlebotomy is the practice of​ obtaining blood specimens from patients for medical testing,​ transfusions, or donation. This vital process requires not only technical‍ skills but‌ also excellent communication and patient care‌ abilities. For⁢ aspiring ⁣phlebotomists, understanding the fundamentals of this procedure is the first step⁢ toward success.

Understanding the Role of a Phlebotomist

Phlebotomists are integral ‍members of healthcare ‍teams.Their primary responsibilities include:

Performing venipuncture (drawing blood) and microcollection⁣ procedures.

Ensuring patient comfort and explaining procedures to alleviate anxiety.

Labeling and ⁢transporting specimens accurately.

Maintaining a sterile surroundings‌ to prevent contamination.

Adhering to safety protocols and regulations.

key Skills Required for⁤ Aspiring Phlebotomists

To excel in the field of phlebotomy, certain skills are essential:

Technical skills: Proficiency ⁢in various blood collection techniques.

Communication: Ability to ​interact with patients effectively and empathetically.

Attention to detail: Ensuring accuracy‍ in labeling and documenting samples.

Time Management: managing multiple tasks ‍efficiently and effectively.

Knowledge of Safety Protocols: Understanding global precautions to minimize risks.

Benefits of a Career ​in Phlebotomy

Choosing phlebotomy as a career offers numerous benefits, including:

High Demand: The healthcare industry continually seeks qualified⁤ phlebotomists.

Short Training Period: Many phlebotomy programs can be completed in less than a‍ year.

Flexible Work Environment: Opportunities exist⁣ in hospitals, clinics, labs, and⁣ even blood‍ donation centers.

Competitive ⁣Salary: Phlebotomists enjoy a ⁣decent starting salary with potential ⁢for advancement.

Practical Tips for Aspiring Phlebotomists

To help you on your journey, here are some practical tips:

Get Certified: Pursue certification from accredited⁣ organizations such as the National Phlebotomy Association ​(NPA) for better job prospects.

Practice Regularly: ⁢ Gain hands-on experience through internships or clinical placements.

Stay​ Updated: Keep ⁤abreast of advancements⁢ in technology and techniques in the field.

network: join professional associations to connect⁣ with experienced phlebotomists.

Manage Stress: Develop⁢ coping mechanisms‌ to‍ handle high-pressure situations and⁢ emotional encounters.

Case Study: A Day in the Life of a Phlebotomist

understanding what a typical day looks like can provide valuable insights. Meet‌ Sarah,a full-time phlebotomist at a ​local hospital:

8:00 AM: Arrives for shift and checks the schedule for patient appointments.

8:30 AM: Prepares equipment and reviews safety protocols.

9:00 AM: Introduces herself to the first patient, explains the procedure, and performs venipuncture.

10:00 AM: Collects and labels samples for multiple patients, dealing with both adults and children.

12:00 PM: Takes a lunch‌ break,discusses challenges with colleagues.

1:00 PM: Continues patient care, maintaining professionalism and empathy.

4:00 PM: Prepares for the end of the​ shift, ensuring all samples are correctly labeled and logged.

First-Hand Experience: testimonials from Phlebotomy Students

Name

experience

Emily R.

“The hands-on training was invaluable; it built my confidence.”

John D.

“I love interacting with patients and making their experience better.”

Claire S.

“Every day brings new challenges that help me grow⁢ professionally.”

Conclusion: Begin Your ⁢Phlebotomy Journey Today

Phlebotomy offers a fulfilling career path filled with​ opportunities for growth, stability, and patient interaction. By mastering the necessary skills, gaining‍ experience, and staying current​ with industry standards, aspiring phlebotomists can truly unlock their potential in this vital healthcare role.‌ Take the first step today, and embark on your journey​ in ‌the world of phlebotomy!

https://phlebotomytechnicianschools.org/opening-the-veins-essential-phlebotomy-insights-for-aspiring-professionals/

[snakemanaustralia]

Taxonomic vandalism - James Farquhar

Jules Farquhar and the Adam Britton cohort are faking scientific discoveries again.

Today they have SPAMMED the media and the web with false claims of the discovery of a new species of lizard from central Australia, that they have called Liopholis aputja. Problem is that it was already named Liopholis faaark by a proper scientist, Snake Man Raymond Hoser a year ago!

The fake scientists have merely copied the pioneering work of the snake man and then falsely claimed it as their own.

This dishonest practice of renaming species already named is called Taxonomic vandalism.

Download the original Hoser paper from Feb 2024 at: Hoser, R. T. 2024. Hiding in plain sight: Yet ten more new species and five new subspecies of skink lizard from mainly southern Australia (Scincidae: Liopholis and Flamoscincus). Australasian Journal of Herpetology 67:44-64. Published 12 February 2024. LSIDURN:LSID:ZOOBANK.ORG:PUB:37F01C42-C0A4-4CBF-9883-57E1ECDC22D8

Full text at: https://www.smuggled.com/AJH-67-pages-44-64.pdf

The more recent so-called “paper” was published in the notorious online only, not peer reviewed “journal” called Zootoxic.

It is was uploaded to the web this week (Nov 2024) and titled: “A new species of rock skink (Scincidae: Liopholis) from the central ranges bioregion of arid Australia. Zootaxa 5536(1) 153-177“

You cannot read this bootlegged data because the authors have stashed it behind a paywall in breach of the relevant rules of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.

Renaming an established species in an act of taxonomic vandalism is also a breach of the Australian Copyright Act under the moral rights sections.

From Hoser 2024.

LIOPHOLIS FAAAAAARK SP. NOV.

LSIDurn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:4B15ED4F-FF8D-48E8-86CF 49618271EFD0

Holotype: A preserved specimen at the South Australian Museum, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, specimen number R51590 collected from 36.5 km south east of Amata, South Australia, Australia, Latitude -26.2558 S., Longitude 131.4933 E. This government-owned facility allows access to its holdings.

Paratypes: 1/ A preserved specimen at the Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, specimen number R.17456 collected from the Erliwunyawunya Rockhole, Musgrave Ranges, South Australia, Australia, Latitude -26.35833 S., Longitude 131.72499 E. 2/ A preserved specimen at the South Australian Museum, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, specimen number R60802 collected from approximately 10km north of Ernabella (now called Pukatja), South Australia, Australia, Latitude -26.1917 S., Longitude 132.1458 E. 3/ A preserved specimen at the Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, specimen number R.17271 collected from the Piltadi Rockhole in South Australia, Australia, Latitude -26.116 S., Longitude 130.283 E.

Diagnosis: Since Glen Storr’s original description of “Egernia margaretae” in 1968, the South Australian population of Liopholis margaretae (Storr, 1968) as it is now known, type locality: Palm Valley, Northern Territory (NT), Australia, Latitude 24.03 S., Longitude 132.42 E. has been treated by all Australian herpetologists until now as the same species. However the concept of the South Australian population being of the same species is biogeographically untenable. Therefore it is formally described herein as Liopholis faaaaaark sp. nov.. L. faaaaark sp. nov. is readily separated from L. margaretae by the very narrow separation of nasals (versus wide), wider interparietal (more-or-less as wide as the frontal), versus not so in L. margaretae, fewer supraciliaries (6) versus 7-9 (usually 8) in L. margaretae, usually more upper palpebrals (11 to 13) versus 10-12 in L. margaretae, and on average fewer rows of midbody scales (32 to 36), versus 34-38 in L. margaretae. The relatively long limbs are about 31 and 42 percent of SVL (versus 22-28% and 31-38% in L. margaretae). Colouration of both L. margaretae and L. faaaaark sp. nov. is olive brown dorsally with reddish-brown anteriorly and paler on the tail. In L. margaretae there is black spotting on the back and tail that is irregularly distributed, but tending towards longitudinal alignment. Small black spots are scattered on the top and side of the head. Sutures of chin shields are irregularly margined with black. There are dark brownish grey spots or short wavy lines on the throat. In about a third of specimens black markings are almost or completely lacking. L. faaaaark sp. nov. generally lacks patterning on the dorsum in adults. Sometimes there are faded black spots, these being the remnants of a laterodorsal stripe that is better defined in juveniles. Both preceding species have a narrow to moderately-wide ear aperture, 3-5 lobules, usually obtuse, sometimes rectangular, rarely acute. Snout-vent length averages about 95 mm in adults and a snout that is no more depressed than the rest of the head (versus strongly depressed and concave in plan in the closely related species M. personata (Storr, 1968), the latter being found in more southern parts of South Australia, generally in or around the Flinders Ranges district. The three preceding species are separated from all others in the genus Liopholis Fitzinger, 1843 by the presence of smooth dorsal scales, the presence of conspicuous black callus along the free edge of the subdigital lamellae and the scales of the soles and palms each with a prominent black tubercle. L. faaaaark sp. nov. from hilly country in far north South Australia, is separated from the Northern Territory population of L. margaretae with a distribution centred on the central ranges of central Australia by the Amadeus Lowlands, a well-known biogeographical barrier. A molecular phylogeny of Oliver et al. (2007) at fig. 3. found that centralian populations of geckos in the genus Diplodactylus subgenus Yankunytjatjaragecko Hoser, 2023, namely D. (Yankunytjatjaragecko) galeatus Kluge, 1963 from the Coober Pedy area of South Australia, D. (Yankunytjatjaragecko) aah Hoser, 2023 from the Macdonell Ranges of central Australia and D. (Yankunytjatjaragecko) ooh Hoser, 2023 from the Bagot and Beddoma Ranges in northern South Australia, diverged from one another between 5 and 10 MYA. A similar divergence between L. faaaaark sp. nov. and L. margaretae can therefore also be reasonably expected.

This is more than sufficient divergence for species-level recognition. L. faaaaark sp. nov. is depicted in life in Cogger (2014) on page 639 bottom left. L. margaretae in life is depicted in Wilson and Swan (2021) on page 397, second image from top and Brown (2014) on page 513, second from top on right. Distribution: L. faaaaark sp. nov. is confined the hilly region in the north-west of South Australia, just south of the NT/SA border. It is separated from the Centralian population of the closely related species L. margaretae by the Amadeus Lowlands, a well-known biogeographical barrier.

Conservation: While this taxon is relatively range restricted by virtue of relevant biogeographical barriers, the remoteness of the region in terms of human activity offers the species significant protection. Long-term habitat destruction by feral or native animals is perhaps the biggest potential issue facing this taxon in the foreseeable future and to that extent populations of this and other species and subspecies restricted to this region, such as the recently described range restricted gecko Diplodactylus (Yankunytjatjaragecko) ooh Hoser, 2023 should have their populations monitored at regular intervals.

Etymology: In 1983, when searching for the newly named species in far north-west South Australia, I recruited the assistance of some native Pitjantjatjara children who said they knew where and how to find them. When a child saw a lizard scuttle under a boulder he yelled out “FAAAAAARK”, giving this species it’s scientific name.

[yeehawgeek]

liveblogging my reaction to s3 e10 and 11

im just doing one post for today bc im lazy

from e10’s description i seemed to have been right about who’s having the crisis

ok onto the episode

where is that

force sensitive baby

cad bane is going to be here aint he

oh ok we’re on tantiss now

she’s gonna see the project and be like “wtf im out”

the specimens are gonna be like force sensitive kids ain’t it

bingo

ok so omega isn’t force sensitive, she can just replicate midichlorians

these poor babies aren’t allowed to have names are they

this really is some fucking nazi ass shit

broccoli over there is planning an escape aint he

cad bane?

CAD BANE!

leave baby master shifu alone

emiere is trying so hard to not interact with these kids personally

poor broccoli kid

these are fucking children

they just stunned him, he’ll be fine

it’d be so funny if that kid just pulled a padme and died bc he didn’t wanna live anymore

not actually funny but like fucked up yk

“theyre children. like i was. was your plan to discard them too?” WHAT DO YOU MEAN GIRLIE

i can’t stand the way nala se talks

ominous motherfucker damn

she’s gonna be like “oh my god that’s a literal fucking toddler this is insane”

is that cx-2

CID? PHEE? OH FUCK OH GOD

omega infected her with morals didnt she

“he just wanted to go home. we all want to go home” the empire is like evil evil

SHE KEPT STRAW LULA????

what happened to “no personal items”

ok that was the end of episode 10, onto 11

i see cx-2 in the thumbnail

PHEEEEEEEE YAYYYYYYY

i really hope that cx-2 isn’t tech god

is he just gonna steal her ship

omg she has a full on sword

my second favorite pirate in star wars

oh wait pabu is totally fucked isn’t it

“i broke the encryption” now im convinced that he’s tech

MY HUSBAND HES BACK

i love wrecker

aww the locals living on batcher is so cute

NOT TECHS GOGGLES OH MY GOD

AND LULA??????

do they have friendship necklaces bc if so that’s adorable

is that the ventress cave

he’s gonna blow up the marauder isn’t he

NO THE MARAUDER

wrecker better be ok or i’m hunting jennifer corbett down

BABY CLONES

i hope we get a cx-2 reveal this ep

i dont think stealing a ship is gonna go well tbh

who says “domicile”

get their asses batcher

ok hunter is assassins creeding it

hunters not gonna die like this

of course omega is going to sacrifice herself

they have another way to track her

NO THE TRACKER MISSED

omegas gonna pull some force bullshit before the series ends isnt she

[alligatorpie1945]

I love your bad batch modern au art!!! It's adorable!! But I was wondering what is Omega's back story in your au?

Okay. This is a long one. Kinda went on a tangent about Nala Se, the boys and Omega's origins. I'm not a writer, so please excuse inconsities and grammar. I'm kinda coming up with this stuff as I go. 😊

Nala Se used to work for the CIA. She was one of their top scientists, and was the head of the classified cloning initiative. Her methods were inhumane, cruel, and at the end of the day unsuccessful. Eventually, she was removed from the organization, and was forced to reintegrate to civilian life. She became a microbiologist at a local hospital.

She was angry at her firing from the CIA and decided to dedicate her life to proving the organization was wrong about her. So every moment she was not working, she was in her makeshift lab continuing her work that was cut short. Her goal; to create a superior being that would prove to her former employer, that she was in fact a genius.

She was hitting a roadblock though, while she could clone small animals like rats and chicks. She was nowhere close to recreating a human. Especially without a base to work from.

Then Jango came along.

She hadn't planned on getting pregnant. But when she made the discovery that she was, she realized this was a perfect opportunity to have a live test subject that could be molded into what she needed. She was thrilled when she realized she was going to have four.

When the boys were born, she got straight to work. Not even bothering to name them, just referred to them as numbers. They were kept in her basement for the first couple years of their lives. She wanted to see what she could do to improve certain skills in each on a micro and macro level.

She experimented on each, she'd mess with 03 and 04's eyes. Finding that one experiment greatly improved 04's eye sight, while another diminished 03's. She purposefully gave extra educational material and training to 03, and none to 02. Resulting is 02 being unable to read or write until much later in development. She experimented with 02's Musculoskeletal system. Practically giving the boy steroids' to accelerate his growth. And 01, she realized early one, was naturally sensitive to outside stimuli. She exploited that to try and create a more alert and observant subject.

When the boys were about 5 she allowed them to go outside and start military training. She wanted her specimens to not only be perfect genetically but also highly skilled and obedient. She knew the CIA only payed attention to power that could be controlled.

At age 10 the boys came to realize what hell they had been living through, and devised a plan to escape. After many months of planning. They did. Escaping their "mother", left the boys homeless. Which they stayed for the rest of their young childhood, they did eventually manage to find a safe area to call home, managed to work side jobs where the managers didn't care how old they were, and even managed to sneak their way into a high school to get some form of education.

As soon as they were old enough, they joined the military, seeing it as the only way to get out of their extreme poverty.

Shortly after Nala Se discovered that her four subjects has escaped she was furious. Unfortunately there wasn't much to do, she couldn't call the police, knowing that it would be clear that she was at worst abusive and at best neglectful. She looked everywhere for them, but their training payed off a little to well, and they were gone.

About a year later, she got a call that an old fling of her's was back in town. And before she knew it, she was pregnant once more.

Not wanting a repeat of her last attempt, Nala Se decided she would need to be more "motherly" to this child. Hopefully making it more difficult for the child to run away.

She named the girl Omega, instead of a number. And tried to love it as much a cold unfeeling monster like herself could. Omega was allowed to see the sun, and was given a small room on the top floor. Nala Se decided that Omega was unfit to be a weapon. But she could prove useful as an assistant/doner in her research. So Omega was taught everything and anything about medicine and biology. And her blood and tissue was utilized as needed for experiments.

When Omega was old enough, she was allowed to go to a private school to continue her education, after all Nala Se needed her to smart, but didn't have the time to teach her everything. However, Omega was not allowed to have friends, she was never allowed to leave the house alone, she was not allowed to speak to anyone of her home life, she was not allowed sweets, gifts, parties, or honestly any fun. Omega was to become a highly skilled doctor and scientist. And doctors did not have time for games, or laughter.

Omega was never hugged, or shown what true love was. Nala Se was more of uncaring nanny then a mother. Omega never knew about any other family. She didn't know who her father was, and was never told about brothers.

One day though, she was digging around in the basement and came across an old box filled with folders, notebooks, and research notes concerning four other children.

Omega started to obsess about these boys and started to sneak downstairs when ever she has a moment alone to read about their time with Nala Se.

And when she was 11, there was knock on the door. She answered it, and when she opened it, a tall, well built man with long curly black hair was standing there. He had a skull tattooed on one side of his face. Omega recognized his eyes, they were the same ones that had stared back at her from the dusty files in the basement.

Later she would come to find out that Hunter had come back to try and find some sort of closure. He wasn't sure why he thought seeing his abusive mother again was a good idea. But he had gone with his gut anyway, the last thing he expected to see was a child.

That spur of the moment decision would change all their lives forever.

Many court dates and painful testimonies later, Hunter and his brothers were able to get Omega out of Nala Se's custody and into theirs. Nala Se had somehow won the right to have Omega on certain weekends. But for the most part, Omega was now in their custody. And they were gonna give her the best life they could.

--

Wowee that was long. Hopefully that made sense. I tried to blend as much as Star Wars lore with modern ideas as I could. I feel like Nala Se wasn't nearly as physically abusive with Omega as she was with the boys, but she certainly was emotionally abusive and cruel to her.

[gems-and-geology-of-the-globe]

Anglesite from Touissit dist., Oujda-Angad prov., Oriental, Morocco

Gemmy amber colored wedge-shaped crystals to 1cm in a cluster of at least 10 crystals. Of course the Anglesite from this locality were found in much larger crystals in the early 1980's to 5cm. Some of the crystals were treated (accidentally or on purpose) to bring out the color. This specimen was NOT treated as can be seen in a small chip off the crystal at the bottom, which internally shows the same color.

The mines around Touissit are classified by geologists as Mississippi Valley Type. As in the mines of Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee, the Touissit district contain large mineable lead-zinc replacement deposits hosted within dolomite beds. Concentrations of ore are located along structured and are also stratigraphically controlled. In contrast to the US midwest MVT deposits, the Touissit deposits are fluorine deficient.

For more, see -> Gems & Geology of the Globe blog on tumblr

[whatdoesshedotothem]

Saturday 2 August 1834

8

10 25

no kiss tho’ she came to me for about half hour at six this morning lay very quietly fine morning F67° at 8 am - breakfast at 9 – very well satisfied till the bill came – and then I said the being charged 8/. a night for our double bedded room and the 2 servants rooms was ridicule – however the man said I had agreed to pay 19/. per day for all and everything and he had distributed the price so as to come to that – that fact is, I have a good lesson - according to his valuation I now see what dinners and breakfasts ought to be in little town like this - off from les Echelles [Les Échelles] at 1 5 having previously agreed with the postmaster for the horses at 3 at 1/50 and the 4th at 1/. per poste, and paid him - telling the postilion I should only give him 1/50 per poste - alighted at the grotte, on the other side of the tunnel, at 11 39 – walked down the bottom of the old road and back in ½ hour - In descending the 1st natural cave (on the left) is of considerable extent – the curé a little while ago during la grande sécheuse went on ½ hour in it – sometimes on hands and knees  - a little lake at the far end of the cavern – the large cavern just on this side of the inscription of honour of Charles Emmanuel and a little lower down (right) now the water course, was the original road along which people made use of ladders to get up and down the inequalities and from which the neighbouring town was called Les Echelles [Les Échelles], on account of the ladders being left there - The man at the grotte would have accompanied us but he was not well and we could not now go into the cavern on the account of the late rain - but during sécheuse one could go thro’ the cavern and it is very interesting - off again in 33 minutes at 12 12 – a few drops of rain as we drove along from the grotte – on reaching Saint Thiebault de Coux [Saint-Thibaud-de-Couz]  found there was a capital most picturesque new road just opened about 2 months ago direct from Les Echelles [Les Échelles] by Voreppe where 2  good Inns – 6 ½ postes from there to Grenoble – 10 postes to ditto by Chambery – should save 2 postes by turning back - would have done so but for the torment of a little douane on entering France (vid. yesterday) - this road just going to be entered in the livre des postes - at present the postmaster charged the 1st stage postes, but it was not really so much - at the cascade de Coux [Couz] at 1 ¾ and alighted at La Parfaite Union, Chambery at 2 25 – tired – had ½ hour’s nap in my chair – then A- and I out at 3 ½ put into the post office my and A-‘s letter to my aunt Shibden – written last night and dated at Les Echelles [Les Échelles] – would be in Paris in 3 days and paid 6 sols français - put in the p.o. also my letter 2 ½ pages to ‘Lady Duff Gordon, Poste restante, à Munich, Bavière’ dated as today at Chambery - paid 1/. - will be at Munich in 8 days - then went to the nursery garden - saw Frederic Burnier - went about with us very civilly - told him to give the habitat and temps du floraison locally where  and time when gathered of each specimen - sauntered about the town – went to the castle – saw the Sainte Chapelle – fine painted glass windows – loft groined roof – exterior handsome old gothic except the modern Greek front to the castle yard – old ruined empty partly square and partly round tower singular but picturesque - Home at 5 25 – dinner (very good one) at 5 40 - had a Lavaret (salmo lavaretus) excellent sort of fish the fishermen on lake Bourget, at Hautcombe, asked us 4/. a piece for - as large and .:. 1lb. weight the 1st time I remember to have tasted this fish - melon brought with the veal steaks cutlets - sat  long over dessert – till 9 25 wrote all the above of today – a few drops of rain at the grotte and afterwards occasional showers during the rest of the day - F69° now at 9 25 pm - the drive from Chambery to Les Echelles [Les Échelles] is certainly very fine - Chambery a very nice town but one most marchander with everybody - I ought to have done so with my garden botaniste Mr. Frederic Burnier, but I never thought of it at the time - he said they had here 64 journals of ground in nursery - a journal = 4000 French ft. carrés - sometimes (in the spring and autumn and now when much work to do) 250 workpeople - have given up the establishment at Turin- but one at Lyons and Grenoble, the latter newly established -  with her twenty minutes before getting into my own bed

[angryschnauzer]

Superior Specimen - Chapter 4

Summary: One night when you are following the Archaeology tag on instagram you stumbled across a fun looking dig… and an even more interesting Paleontologist who soon follows you back. Over the following weeks you start chatting and a friendship soon grows.

Relationship: AU Henry Cavill x Female Reader (No race or body shape mentioned)

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3

Warnings: Slow Burn, NSFW, 18+, Mutual Masturbation, Phone Sex, Drunken Piggy Back Rides, Oral Sex (Female Recieving), Drama, Theft, Amateur Heroics, Hospital Visit, 

I do not operate a tag list, but please follow @angryschnauzerwrites​ and put that blog onto notifications, as you will then be notified whenever i post something new.

I don’t have a masterlist, but all my works are on AO3, link here. Usually i post oneshots to Tumblr and AO3, and multichapters exclusively to AO3, but as this is my first henry story and its going to be a short series, i’ll post to both places.

Chapter 4

 The following few days were busy; it was the weekend and you were on duty both days, plus the following Monday and Tuesday. As it was the height of summer the museum was at its busiest, tourists, locals, and school groups all filling the halls of the old building, plus with a research team now on site the underground laboratories where people could get hands on with less valuable specimens were hugely popular. 

 During one of your breaks you decided to grab a frozen treat from the gift shop, making your way down to the viewing laboratories to see what the teams were up to. Sucking on the fruity ice you peered through the window, your eyes going wide when you saw Henry at the front of the classroom, thirty school children avidly listening to his every word. He glanced up and saw you looking through the window, a sly wink in your direction and his attention was back on the class who were all enraptured by what he was saying. You finished your snack and slipped quietly into the room, standing at the back where few paid little attention to you. Henry called out to the class;

 “So, I hope you have enjoyed the presentation, are there any questions?”

 Several small hands shot up, and you estimated the kids must have been around 9 or 10 years old;

 “Do you ever dig pyramids up?”

 Henry chuckled;

 “No, that’s Archaeology. I am a Palaeontologist. Archaeology is the study of humans; Palaeontology is the study of fossils… they do sometimes overlap where settlements will have been made in the ice age though”

 “Have you ever found a T-rex?”

 “Yes, I was part of a dig in America when we found an excellent complete specimen a few years back”

 “Do you have a girlfriend?”

 Your ears pricked up at the question, and you watched as a slight blush covered Henry’s cheeks and his ears went a cute shade of crimson. He let out a low chuckle;

 “Yes, yes I do”

 “Does she like bones too?” came an innocent voice and you could have sworn most of the teachers on the trip had to stifle their laughter. Henry cleared his throat;

 “Well, you can ask her yourself, she’s joined us and is standing at the back of the room”

 At that moment thirty heads snapped around, eyes going wide when they saw you and recognised you from giving them their visitors lanyards upon arrival. Henry cleared his throat;

 “Well darling, do you like bones?” he cocked an eyebrow and you could see a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. You cleared your throat;

 “Yes, I studied Palaeontology at university and look forward to further studies on bones under Dr Cavill’s instruction”

 The kids seemed satisfied with that answer, and as you looked at the teachers you could see some of them had tears rolling down their cheeks from where they were trying so hard not to laugh.

 The class soon ended, the kids packing up their bags and visitors’ packs, everyone thanking Henry for the informative lesson, and when the door finally closed it was just the two of you in the large white room. Standing next to him you smiled;

 “So… bones huh?”

 He snorted out a laugh as he gathered up the samples into a box, nodding to a miniature model of a Diplodocus;

 “Just grab that would you, need to get everything packed away”

 Following him into the storage room you slid the model onto a shelf before suddenly a strong pair of arms was wrapped around you from behind, soft lips pressing kisses to your neck and you were practically melting into Henry’s arms;

 “Fuck… your mouth is so good…”

 He spun you around and his lips met yours, his tongue eagerly pushing into your mouth and you felt yourself  submitting completely to the skilled muscle as he kissed you deeply, his hands gripping your hips as he pulled you flush with the hard plains and curves of his body. When you finally broke apart you were both breathless;

 “So Princess, what do you really think of my bone?”

 “Well, I haven’t actually had any experience of your bone yet”

 “Dinner, Friday night?”

 A huge smile spread over your face;

 “That would be wonderful… just let me know where and when”

 “I’ll pick you up at 7”

 “Where are we going?”

 He grinned;

 “I’ll pull in a favour, but it’ll be high end… black tie, etcetera”

 -

 You’d returned on a high back to your desk, already thinking about what you would wear on your date. You worked hard, the steady flow of visitors wanting help was continual, and you were tested to the limits of your knowledge of languages with so many international visitors needing assistance.

 However at the back of your mind a synapse was firing, and your attention was drawn to a group of older teenagers, in fact they were probably in their early 20’s. They didn’t seem to be with any of the school groups and didn’t look in the vaguest bit interested in the exhibits. They were however hovering around one of the large donation stations; the large Perspex fish tanks with a slot in the top for visitors to drop coins and notes into. In recent days visitors had been very generous, and there was a large number of notes sitting on top of the heavier coins. Once you had served the visitor who needed help finding the Butterflies exhibit you grabbed the security radio, paging the security guards and calling out a code 10 - suspicious activity/suspected theft. Two of the guards near the door looked at you and you nodded to the group and the guards started to slowly move towards them. 

 As you slotted the radio back into the cradle something else caught your eye, a young man intently looking at the backpack hanging on the back of a wheelchair as its user and carer were reading one of the large displays. 

 Suddenly he snatched the backpack and was running for the door, you called out to security, but the noise of the room was too much to be heard, but you could see the person in the wheelchair look in horror;

 “My medication!” you could read their lips as they shouted and without thinking you were pushing out of the desk and yelling back to your colleague;

 “Get security, the group was a distraction!”

 Thankful you’d worn flat shoes; you were running after the thief who was struggling to get through the crowds. He was out the front doors and down the steps way ahead of you, but the curved driveway was packed with visitors which was slowing him down giving you chance to gain on him. 

 Your legs were powerful beneath you, racing through the now parted crowds and as he took a sharp left to run down the ramp to the lawns you were gaining on him. It was painfully obvious what was going on, the man was carrying a bright flowery bag under his arm, and was being chased by a member of museum staff in uniform, so when two policemen that had been patrolling the area saw you in the distance, they started running towards you. The thief spotted them, slowing his run as he attempted to figure a way out, except the lawns only had two exits; the one the two of you had entered by, and the one the two policemen were now running down. His moment of indecision cost him his lead, and as you caught up you didn’t wait to talk, you ran fully into him, knocking him to the ground and the pair of you into the shrubs that surrounded the lawns. 

 The next thing you knew the two policemen were pulling the thief to his feet and arresting him, security having caught up with the pair of you. A passer-by offered you a hand, helping you up but you felt wobbly on your feet. Someone helped you to the grass to sit in the shade, and you winced as a tissue was pressed to your head;

 “You’re bleeding”

 -

 As you sat in a treatment area of the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital’s casualty department, the lovely policeman that had driven you there quietly took your statement between visits from the nursing staff. There had been a bad accident in Covent Garden, so all the paramedic and ambulance crews had been called to that, and with a head wound you needed to be treated. As you had been helped into the squad car you’d overheard that the thief had also been armed with a knife, and it shook you, to where as soon as you were able to you’d been sat down with a cup of strong sweet tea as the Officer had gotten you to hospital.

 One of the nurses fussed around you, checking on the stitches for the thankfully small wound that was mostly in your hairline;

 “It’ll sting like a bastard - excuse the language - for a few days, but you’ll be fine with over the counter painkillers. If you show any signs of concussion make sure to call 999… do you know what the signs are?”

 You nodded and explained you’d covered it on your first aid course you’d taken for work as she went on;

 “I’ll see if we can get a doctor to discharge you soon. It would also be advisable if you could ensure you don’t spend the night alone… it was quite a solid bump you had”

 “Ok sure” you nodded as you watched her walk away, the Officer turning to you;

 “Is there someone I can call to come pick you up? A boyfriend or girlfriend?”

 “Umm… boyfriend…” using the word gave your mind a happy tingle at the thought of calling Henry your boyfriend; “But I don’t have his number memorised… and I left my phone at the museum… you could message him on Instagram I suppose?”

 He pulled his personal phone out of his pocket;

 “Sure thing… what’s his username?”

 You told him and watched as his eyebrows shot to the top of his forehead;

 “This him?” he turned his phone and you nodded when you saw Henry’s page, sitting quietly as the officer quickly tapped out a message, his phone beeping almost instantly to which he smiled; “he said he’s on his way”

 -

 Fifteen minutes later you were being discharged by the doctor when you heard Henry’s voice, the Officer with you peering out of the curtained area before ducking back in;

 “Ok he’s here…”

 Moments later Henry appeared at the curtain, rushing in and pulling you into a giant bear hug. With you still crushed to his chest by one arm he extended a hand to the officer, thanking him for helping you. 

 Soon he was walking you to his car, parked on double yellow lines outside the hospital and with a parking ticket flapping on the windscreen, he helped you into the car before grabbing the ticket and climbing in beside you. Instead of starting the car he reached over and gently cupped your cheek;

 “How are you doing Princess?”

 You went to speak but all that came out of your mouth was a squeak, the tears starting to flow as the shock and stress of the afternoon came flowing out. He leant across the car and wrapped his massive arms around you, letting you sob into his shoulder as he gently held you. When you finally stopped sobbing, he pulled away and looked into your eyes, he steel blue gaze full of concern;

 “How about we get you home?”

 “Please...” you said with a sigh; “but my bag is still at the museum…”

 “Check the glovebox” he nodded, and you pulled the handle and your bag was there; “I got your supervisor to get it for you as soon as I got the message from the police officer… and I guess our relationship just became public too with the staff…”

 “I don’t care” you said with a smile as he started to drive.

Chapter 5 >>>

[doctorfoxtor]

tried to do more questions but physically can't stay awake longer than this

100 days of productivity

day 30

CVS/RS

in a coarct, a continuous murmur typically arises from a small, tight coarct <2 mm

notching of the ribs in coarctations is typically seen only starting late adolescence to early adulthood

A-a gas equilibriation takes about 0.25 s in the resting lung and further decreases in high-output states due to decreased RBC transit time

montelukast is likely benign in pregnancy and can be added to a preggo's asthma regimen

SVC stenting should be first line before radiotherapy for SVC syndrome (radiotherapy induces local fibrosis making it hard to stent later, whereas stenting now does not preclude radio later)

pacemaker nomenclature: 1st position = chambres paced (A/V/D), 2nd position = chambres sensed (A/V/D/O), 3rd position = mode of response by means of output pulse (Inhibited/Triggered/Dual-mode/O), 4th position = rate-modulation (R/O), 5th position = multisite pacing (A/V/D/O)

10% of saphenous grafts for CABG thrombose within 30 days d/t either injury to the vein while harvesting or technical problems during anastomosis; half of these suffer clinically significant IHD

CNS/Psych

in early Parkinson's, symptoms should attempt to be controlled with levodopa-decarboxylase inhibitor only, as most ssx come about as a result of insufficient levodopa Rx; COMTis, MAOIs and amantadine should be reserved for later stages of the disease

successful achievement of childhood milestones predicts future success with CBT

Endocrine/Repro

lid lag itself can occur in any hypersympathetic state and is not specific to Grave's (whereas exophthalmos is)

0.1 mg/kg prednisolone approximates daily physiological endogenous glucocorticoid production

↑risk of adrenal suppression: evening doses, long acting corticoids (eg, dexamethasone), hepatic cytochrome inhibitors

in the context of insulin therapy for diabetes with new-onset sudden recurrent attacks of hypoglycaemia despite being on an insulin dose that was previously acceptable, consider adrenal insufficiency (especially if autoimmune history... such as type 1 diabetes!)

Rheum/Derm

although kidney/liver are the most common sites involved in 1° amyloidosis, cardiac involvement is the most common cause of death

definitive diagnosis of Sjögren's is labial gland biopsy from behind the lower lip; requires specimen of at least 5-10 glands showing more than 1 focus of periductal infiltrates of >50 lymphocytes per 4 mm^2

diabetic arthropathy is said to be due to an exaggerated local inflammatory response in the neuropathic foot

PVL-producing S. aureus is implicated in recurrent cellulitis that may or may not be self-limiting

GIT

splenic atrophy in coeliac disease does NOT respond to gluten withdrawal

stool frequency >8x/day, especially if CRP >45, is highly indicative of eventual colectomy

low vitamin C is apparently a positive risk factor for adenoca stomach

if a ca colon patient can tolerate oral meds, capecitabine is an excellent choice over 5-FU; it achieves a similar continuous exposure to 5-FU similar to IV infusion while eliminating the need for a CVC/PICC

Onc/Haem

for any pt who presents with a fever 7-14 days after a round of chemotherapy, even if there are no localising signs of infection, don't wait for the absolute PMN count to come back, tx empirically as febrile neutropaenia

Richter's transformation = CLL → high grade lymphoma; ssx: rapidly enlarging nodes + ↑Ca

Renal

suspend ACEis/ARBs when a patient is hypovolaemic to preserve the kidneys

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Diabloceratops eatoni

By Jack Wood 

Etymology: Devil Horned Face

First Described By: Kirkland et al., 2010

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Ornithischia, Genasauria, Neornithischia, Cerapoda, Marginocephalia, Ceratopsia, Neoceratopsia, Coronosauria, Ceratopsoidea, Ceratopsidae, Centrosaurinae?

Status: Extinct

Time and Place: Between 81 and 79 million years ago, in the Campanian of the Late Cretaceous 

Diabloceratops is known from the lower and middle members of the Wahweap Formation of Utah 

Physical Description: Diabloceratops is one of the most completely visually distinctive Ceratopsids - like all members of this very samey group, its body was the same as the rest of them, but its head was distinctive enough to give it a famous name. Like other Ceratopsids, Diabloceratops had four squat legs, a thick torso, and a short tail. It had a long head, with a large crest and a giant beak in the front of its snout, as well as teeth well built for chewing. The interesting thing about this Ceratopsid is that, while it has small brow horns like most early members of this group, it also had two very noticeable horns coming out of its frills - curving away from each other, the left one curving out to the left and the right one curving out to the right. This gave Diabloceratops the very distinctive look of… well, the Christian depiction of Satan. Hence its name, Devil Horned Face! It had a lightly built skull, with a hole seen in earlier Ceratopsians than the later Ceratopsids, and its head was shorter and deeper than later members. The frill of Diabloceratops was kind of weird too - very tall and narrow, rather than wider as in later Ceratopsians. Diabloceratops was primarily scaly all over, though it is possible (especially given how early derived it was) that it had quills or feathery fluff on its tail like earlier Ceratopsians. It was probably about 5.5 meters long from head to tail. 

By Nix, CC BY-NC 4.0 

Diet: As a Ceratopsid, Diabloceratops probably fed primarily on plants, though it is possible that it supplemented its diet with meat from time to time for protein. It would focus on low-lying and medium-level plant material, less than a meter in height. 

By Franz Anthony

Behavior: The frill and fancy spikes of Diabloceratops would have been primarily used in sexual display and other types of communication between members of the herd, especially since they were rather small all things considered. That being said, other Ceratopsians would use these features for defense, and it is thus likely that Diabloceratops did too, even though they didn’t evolve for such a purpose. Diabloceratops, like other Ceratopsians, would have been a very social animal, spending most of its life in herds with socially complex behavior. These herds would have aided Diabloceratops in defending itself from the local predator Lythronax, and any other predatory animals that may have attempted to attack it. Like other dinosaurs, Diabloceratops probably would have taken care of its young, and the social group would have aided it in doing so. Being a large herbivore with deadly weapons on its face, Diabloceratops would have been a very aggressive animal, not trusting anything that got too close to it or its family. It is possible that Diabloceratops herds also migrated too and from the Western Interior Seaway, based on the seasonal rainfall. 

By Sam Stanton

Ecosystem: The Wahweap Formation is one of the earliest environments we know of from the charismatic and iconic Late Cretaceous North American faunas - those ecosystems from the Campanian and Maastrichtian which featured Ceratopsians, Hadrosaurs, and Ankylosaurs a plenty, all being preyed upon by terrifying Tyrannosaurs. Weirdly enough, this unique makeup of these ecosystems is unique to North America - while Hadrosaurs could be found elsewhere somewhat, both Tyrannosaurs and Ceratopsids were very rare elsewhere, Ceratopsids especially so. Instead, the world was frequented with many other kinds of large predatory dinosaurs (especially Abelisaurids), and Titanosaurs were some of the most common large herbivores. But I am getting off track - the Wahweap Formation is one of the earliest of these charismatic locations, and as expected, it has some of the earliest members of these groups to branch off, including Diabloceratops. The Wahweap Formation began as a very dry ecosystem, filled with sand and very brief wet seasons; over time, it became a pond ecosystem and - by the time Diabloceratops disappeared - a very fertile system of rivers running in from the Western Interior Seaway. 

By Nathan E. Rogers, used with permission from Studio 252Mya 

So, in the time of the earliest part of the formation, Diabloceratops was a living in an extremely seasonally varied environment, as it began to transition to more freshwater being present in later millenia from its earlier dry beginnings. The diversity of the later environments, however, was lacking in the earliest one. Here, Diabloceratops was preyed upon by Lythronax, and while some mammals, turtles, and crocodylomorphs were present, it is entirely possible that the great diversity of mammals and other animals to be found later wasn’t present quite yet. In the middle environment, when the ponds were coming in and things were getting more lush, Lythronax was gone - but now Diabloceratops was accompanied by the Hadrosaur Acristavus, similar to the later Maiasaura. There were many non-dinosaurs too, like turtles, though it is uncertain if the many mammals found in Wahweap are from the middle, lower, or upper parts of this environment.

By Nix, CC BY-NC 4.0 

Interestingly enough, one of Diabloceratops’ closest relatives, Machairoceratops, is known from the upper unit of this formation - indicating that it is possible that Diabloceratops evolved into Machairoceratops, and never really disappeared from the environment at all. 

By José Carlos Cortés

Other: Diabloceratops is usually found to be a Centrosaurine, the group of Ceratopsids with prominent nose horns and frill ornamentation, and usually little to no brow horns. However, a very recent analysis of Ceratopsian relationships found Diabloceratops to be neither a Centrosaurine nor a Chasmosarine (the other group of Ceratopsians, which includes Triceratops and its closest relatives), but rather outside both. Either way, Diabloceratops was a very early Ceratopsids, showing characteristics that are often found in common between both of the major groups of these dinosaurs - and showing how weird their headgear got even early on in their evolution.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources Under the Cut 

Chiba, K.; Michael J. Ryan; Federico Fanti; Mark A. Loewen; David C. Evans (2018). "New material and systematic re-evaluation of Medusaceratops lokii (Dinosauria, Ceratopsidae) from the Judith River Formation (Campanian, Montana)". Journal of Paleontology. in press (2): 272–288.  

Dalman, Sebastian G.; Hodnett, John-Paul M.; Lichtig, Asher J.; Lucas, Spencer G. (2018). "A new ceratopsid dinosaur (Centrosaurinae: Nasutoceratopsini) from the Fort Crittenden Formation, Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) of Arizona". New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin. 79: 141–164.

De Blieux, Donald D. 2007. Analysis of Jim's hadrosaur site; a dinosaur site in the middle Campanian (Cretaceous) Wahweap Formation of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM), southern Utah. Abstracts with Programs – Geological Society of America 39 (5): 6.

Eaton, J. G., R. L. Cifelli. 2005. Review of Cretaceous mammalian paleontology; Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America 37 (7): 115.

Evans, D. C., and M. J. Ryan. 2015. Cranial anatomy of Wendiceratops pinhornensis gen. et sp. nov., a centrosaurine ceratopsid (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Oldman Formation (Campanian), Alberta, Canada, and the evolution of ceratopsid nasal ornamentation. PLoS ONE 10(7):e0130007

Farke, A. A. 2011. Anatomy and taxonomic status of the chasmosaurine ceratopsid Nedoceratops hatcheri from the Upper Cretaceous Lance Formation of Wyoming, U.S.A. PLoS One 6(1(e16196)):1-9

Farke, A. A., M. J. Ryan, P. M. Barrett, D. H. Tanke, D. R. Braman, M. A. Loewen, and M. R. Graham. 2011. A new centrosaurine from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta, Canada, and the evolution of parietal ornamentation in horned dinosaurs. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 56(4):691-702

Fiorillo, A. R., and R. S. Tykoski. 2012. A new Maastrichtian species of the centrosaurine ceratopsid Pachyrhinosaurus from the North Slope of Alaska. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 57(3):561-573

Fowler, D. W. 2017. Revised geochronology, correlation, and dinosaur stratigraphic ranges of the Santonian-Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) formations of the Western Interior of North America. PLoS ONE 12 (11): e0188426.

Gates, T.A.; Horner, J.R.; Hanna, R.R.; Nelson, C.R. (2011). "New unadorned hadrosaurine hadrosaurid (Dinosauria, Ornithopoda) from the Campanian of North America". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 31 (4): 798–811.

Gates, Jinnah, Levitt, and Getty, 2014. New hadrosaurid specimens from the lower-middle Campanian Wahweap Formation of southern Utah. pp. 156–173. In The Hadrosaurs: Proceedings of the International Hadrosaur Symposium (D. A. Eberth and D. C. Evans, eds), Indiana University Press, Bloomington.

Getty, M. A., M. A. Loewen, E. M. Roberts, A. L. Titus, and S. D. Sampson. 2010. Taphonomy of horned dinosaurs (Ornithischia: Ceratopsidae) from the late Campanian Kaiparowits Formation, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. In M. J. Ryan, B. J. Chinnery-Allgeier, D. A. Eberth (eds.), New Perspectives on Horned Dinosaurs: The Royal Tyrrell Museum Ceratopsian Symposium. Indiana University Press, Bloomington 478-494

Hone, D.W.E.; Naish, D.; Cuthill, I.C. (2011). “Does mutual sexual selection explain the evolution of head crests in pterosaurs and dinosaurs?” (PDF). Lethaia. 45 (2): 139–156.

Glut, D. F., 2012, Dinosaurs, the Encyclopedia, Supplement 7: McFarland & Company, Inc, 866pp.

Kentaro Chiba; Michael J. Ryan; Federico Fanti; Mark A. Loewen; David C. Evans (2018). "New material and systematic re-evaluation of Medusaceratops lokii (Dinosauria, Ceratopsidae) from the Judith River Formation (Campanian, Montana)". Journal of Paleontology. in press (2): 272–288.

Kirkland, J. I. 2005. An inventory of paleontological resources in the lower Wahweap Formation (lower Campanian), southern Kaiparowits Plateau, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America 37 (7): 114.

Kirkland, J. I., and D. D. DeBlieux. 2007. New horned dinosaurs from the Wahweap Formation, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, southern Utah. Utah Geological Survey Notes 39(3):4-5

Kirkland, J. I., and D. D. Deblieux. 2010. New basal centrosaurine ceratopsian skulls from the Wahweap Formation (middle Campanian), Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, southern Utah. New Perspectives on Horned Dinosaurs: The Royal Tyrrell Museum Ceratopsian Symposium. Indiana University Press, Bloomington 117-140

Loewen, M. A., R. B. Irmis, J. J. W. Sertich, P. J. Currie, and S. D. Sampson. 2013. Tyrant dinosaur evolution tracks the rise and fall of Late Cretaceous oceans. PLoS ONE 8(11):e79420

Lund, E. K., P. M. O'Connor, M. A. Loewen and Z. A. Jinnah. 2016. A new centrosaurine ceratopsid, Machairoceratops cronusi gen et sp. nov., from the Upper Sand Member of the Wahweap Formation (Middle Campanian), southern Utah. PLoS ONE 11(5):e0154403:1-21

Mallon, Jordan C; David C Evans; Michael J Ryan; Jason S Anderson (2013). [tp://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/1472-6785-13-14 “Feeding height stratification among the herbivorous dinosaurs from the Dinosaur Park Formation (upper Campanian) of Alberta, Canada”]. BMC Ecology. 13: 14.

Orsulak, M. 2007. A lungfish burrow in late Cretaceous upper capping sandstone member of the Wahweap Formation Cockscomb area, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America 39 (5): 43.

Sampson, S. D., 2001, Speculations on the socioecology of Ceratopsid dinosaurs (Orinthischia: Neoceratopsia): In: Mesozoic Vertebrate Life, edited by Tanke, D. H., and Carpenter, K., Indiana University Press, pp. 263–276.

Simpson, Edward L.; Hilbert-Wolf, Hannah L.; Wizevich, Michael C.; Tindall, Sarah E.; Fasinski, Ben R.; Storm, Lauren P.; Needle, Mattathias D. (2010). "Predatory digging behavior by dinosaurs". Geology. 38 (8): 699–702.

Tester, E. 2007. Isolated vertebrate tracks from the Upper Cretaceous capping sandstone member of the Wahweap Formation; Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah. Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America 39 (5): 42.

Thompson, C. R. 2004. A preliminary report on biostratigraphy of Cretaceous freshwater rays, Wahweap Formation and John Henry Member of the Straight Cliffs Formation, southern Utah. Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America 36 (4): 91.

Weishampel, David B; et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution (Late Cretaceous, North America)." In: Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. Pp. 574–588.

Williams, J. A. J., C. F. Lohrengel. 2007. Preliminary study of freshwater gastropods in the Wahweap Formation, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. Abstracts with Programs - Geological Society of America 39 (5): 43.

Zubair A. Jinnah, #30088 (2009)Sequence Stratigraphic Control from Alluvial Architecture of Upper Cretaceous Fluvial System - Wahweap Formation, Southern Utah, U.S.A. Search and Discovery Article #30088. Posted June 16, 2009.

[carnegiemuseumnaturalhistory]

Delving into Lepidoptera Life History Studies

For a number of years now in the Section of Invertebrate Zoology (IZ), we have been rearing larvae (= caterpillars) of different species of Lepidoptera (moths & butterflies) for both fun and research. This summer, given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the need for everyone to isolate, I have taken to collecting and rearing a number of different species at home that were collected at a bug sheet in my own back yard (Figure 1).

Figure 1. A set up “bug sheet” used to attract insects at night.

Female moths are collected live and held in a plastic jar we call a “live jar” (Figure 2), until they lay eggs. If eggs are laid, and they are fertile, they usually hatch in about 7-10 days. This gives you enough time to identify the female adult to species (a recent field guide to moths and butterflies is a good place to start) so you can find out information on its preferred food source(s), or host plant(s), before the little larvae hatch are start searching around for food. If the eggs do hatch, rearing the resulting little caterpillars is a fun way to break up the tedium of being cooped-up at home for so long and is a nice way to bring Nature indoors.

Figure 2. Plastic “live jar” used to hold female moths until they lay eggs for rearing.

We have a little bit of experience rearing caterpillars at home. As you may know from a previous IZ blog post, my son and I reared some caterpillars that were not yet known to science, which resulted in a small publication. Right now, we have caterpillars of ten different species at various developmental stages. I check on them daily, making sure to keep their containers clean, and provide them with enough food to eat from their preferred host plant (Figure 3). It is amazing how quickly these little guys grow and change, all in the matter of a few short weeks. I try to capture images of them as they develop (see Figure 4), so they can be used on our websites, in blog posts (such as this one), or in eventual scientific publications that may result from the work.

Figure 3. Clear plastic rearing chambers containing caterpillar cultures, each started from eggs laid by a single female moth (= iso-female culture). Host plants include Maple, Willow, Oak, Sassafras, Cherry and Poplar.

Figure 4. Images of various species of caterpillars currently being reared by the author at home. A.) Early instar of Gluphisia septentrionis (Notodontidae), B.) Early instar of Acronicta dactylina (Noctuidae), C.) Later instar of Metarranthis sp. (Geometridae), D.) Last instar of Lithophane disposita (Noctuidae), E.) Later instar of Antheraea polyphemus (Saturniidae), F.) Two different early instars of Heterocampa obliqua(Notodontidae), G.) Early instar of Paonias excaecata (Sphingidae), H.) Last instar of Besma quercivoraria (Geometridae), I.) Later instar of an unknown caterpillar that was found on host plant food obtained for other caterpillars. The species will be determined when the adult moth emerges from the pupa later in the summer.

Once the females have laid eggs, they usually die as a result, having completed their task in the moth’s life cycle.  The females are then pinned, and the wings are usually spread on wooden blocks until they dry, so that the specimens can be easily identified and examined by experts in the future (Figure 5).  They then receive data labels that includes information on the specific locality and date of collection, method of collection, and the collector name(s).

Figure 5. Moths that have been pinned with their wings spread to aid in identification. Note the data labels have been associated with each specimen (lower right of each block).

My son and I are looking forward to watching our little menagerie of caterpillars progress throughout the summer, eventually completing their life cycle and becoming adult moths. I’m glad that we are able to give you a glimpse of our progress to date and hope you have enjoyed seeing some of these diverse little spineless wonders. Hopefully, when we can all return to our normal outdoor activities, you will have a newfound appreciation for these amazing insects when you encounter them out in the wild.

James W. Fetzner Jr. is Assistant Curator of Invertebrate Zoology at Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Museum staff, volunteers, and interns are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

[irispublishersmedicaljournals]

Iris Publishers - Current Trends in Clinical & Medical Sciences (CTCMS)

Pattern of The Buccal Branch of Facial Nerve Among A Sample of Sudanese Subjects: A Multicenters Study

Authored by Saeed Shoja Shafti

It is well known in the vast majority of the literature; the buccal branch can be single or double in number. It has a close relationship to the parotid duct, and it was divided to superficial and deep branches, which can be further divided to upper and lower branches as they cross the face horizontally, they predominantly supply a clinically significant part of the face [1]. For successful surgery for parotid field area, it is extremely essential to have a tremendous knowledge of the topography of the buccal branch and its relation to the parotid duct. It’s worthwhile to mention that, careful selection of the surgical technique and suitable incision is highly relevant in these sorts of surgeries in relation to the parotid duct as it is essential in elucidation the pattern of the buccal nerve branch of the facial nerve [1]. A study on the relationship of the buccal branch of the facial nerve to the parotid duct was carried by Pogrel MA et al. [2], in California. In 85% of the cadavers there was a single buccal branch of the facial nerve, whereas 15% had two branches. In 75% of cases, the nerve was inferior to the duct as it emerged from the parotid gland, whereas in 25% of cases the nerve crossed the duct, usually from superior to inferior [2].

In 2006 Saylam et al. [3], studied the anatomic landmarks of the buccal branches of the facial nerve among a sample of Turkish subjects. Thirty cadaver heads 60 specimens were dissected. The vertical and horizontal relationships between the buccal branches of the facial nerve and tragus, and parotid duct were recorded and analyzed. The buccal branches of the facial nerve were classified into four types:

Methodology

A total of 90 facial nerves were dissected, [40 cadavers (bilateral) and 10 patients (unilateral)]. Out of these 50 cases, 41 were males (37 cadavers and 4 patients) and 9 were females (3 cadavers & 6 patients). Forty-six (51%) were left and 44 (49%) were right facial nerves. The study was conducted in Khartoum Teaching Dental Hospital and the Dissection Rooms at the Department of Anatomy, medical campuses of different Universities and Bashair mortuary in Khartoum state, Sudan. Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Khartoum Faculty of Dentistry, Ethical Committee Review Board, research unit at Khartoum Teaching Dental Hospital and a signed written consent was obtained from the patients. Previous damaged intraparotid facial nerve in cadaveric dissection, patients with history of previous surgical operations in the parotid region and subjects with history of maxillofacial trauma which damaged the facial nerve were excluded from the study. Data were entered in a computer master sheet using SPSS version 16. All statistical analysis was set at 95% confidence level, 0.2the width of the confidence interval and the level of significance alpha 0.05.

Pattern of the buccal branch was classified according to Saylam classification. In all cases an incision was made anterior to the tragus of the ear and extending down below the lobule of the ear. An inverted S-shaped incision was extended behind the ear and inferio-posterior to the angle of the mandible. In case of anterior parotid lesion, the incision was extended further down the neck. After elevating the flaps, the anterior border of sternocleidomastoid muscle was dissected to the mastoid process. The posterior belly of digastric muscle was visualized. The cartilaginous portion of external auditory canal was dissected to the bony portion. So, in an orthograde approach the facial nerve was identified using the two standard anatomic landmarks (the tragal pointer and the posterior belly of digastric muscle). The facial nerve was visualized and dissected peripherally, and tracing of the buccal branch was carried out. For the retrograde approach the buccal branch was used as a guide to reach the main trunk. Following dissection, schematic illustrations and photographs of the buccal branch in relation to the parotid duct were done and according to the branching pattern they were classified into groups as described by Saylam.

Discussion

A precise identification, localization and preservation of the facial nerve branches must precede the excision of an involved gland by proper exposure and handling that attains by means of meticulous careful dissection unless the nerve branches are to be sacrificed because of invasion by a tumor [4]. The area of greatest vulnerability for the buccal nerve is the area between the anterior border of the parotid gland before it innervates the lip elevators and a line drawn from the lateral canthus to the oral commissure anterior. Patients with facial paralysis, may experience tremendous psychosocial distress and stigma about their condition [5]. The pattern of the buccal branches of the facial nerve was classified by Saylam et al. [3] into four types according to the vertical and horizontal relationships between the buccal nerve branch and the parotid duct. Few studies were performed to record and analyse the pattern of the buccal nerve branch in relation to the parotid duct and most of them on Turkish specimens. According to Saylam classification: Type I where a single buccal nerve branch inferior to the parotid duct. Type II where a single buccal nerve branch superior to the parotid duct.

In the present study the most common pattern of the buccal nerve branch in relation to the parotid duct was type II (43.3%) followed by type I (32.2%). These findings were different from studies carried by Saylam et al. [3], who reported that type I was the most common pattern of buccal branch accounting for (52%), followed by type II (35%) respectively. So, the current study highlights a major variation in this pattern topography in relation to the saylam study, which is the main reference study, this may be due to the difference in sample size and anatomogeographical variations. Type III where the buccal nerve branch and other branches of the facial nerve formed a plexus was found in one cadaveric case in the left side of the face, which is an important surgical point as its difficult to approach this complex type during surgical dissection.

Type IV where two branches of buccal branch; one superior and one inferior to the duct at the point of emergence from the parotid gland was found in 23.3% of the present study. Saylam et al. [3] reported that 13% of the cases where found to have mixed patterns of the buccal nerve branch. There were no reported studies in the literature that recorded and analyzed the gender distribution of the pattern of the buccal branch. The present study revealed that type I and II were the most prevalent types among males accounting for 36 and 25 cases respectively. Type IV and type I were the most common types among females accounting for 5 and 4 cases respectively.

Also, there were no reported studies in the literature on the distribution of the pattern of the buccal branch according to the side of dissection. The present study showed that type II was the most common pattern on the right and left sides of face (58.9% and 41%) respectively. Moreover, bilateral buccal nerve branch pattern configuration (40 cadaveric cases) of the present study was found different on the two sides of the face in 42.5% and similar in 57.5% of the specimens. In the literature there were no previous reports related to the bilateral buccal nerve branch pattern configuration.

Conclusion

It is extremely crucial for the surgeons to have familiarity and basic knowledge with the different pattern types of buccal branch of the facial nerve in order to avoid injury of it and the parotid duct during surgery, avoid the functional loss of the acting muscles which supply and enhance the quality of life. Another surgical benefit. it could describe the way of selection of parotid surgical approach specifically the retrograde one which depends commonly on the buccal branch taking the parotid duct as essential landmark. The study recommended further large cadaveric study on this field using the micro-loups which will be a major forward leap to have a challenge of detection of any tiny nerve twigs and reporting of a new pattern variation.

To read more about this article: https://irispublishers.com/ctcms/fulltext/pattern-of-the-buccal-branch-of-facial-nerve-among-a-sample-of-sudanese.ID.000512.php

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[irispublishersengineeringscience]

Global Journal of Engineering Sciences (GJES)

Investigation of the Evolution of Clay Microstructure under Different Loading Paths and Impact on Constitutive Modelling

Authored by Simona Guglielmi

The paper presents part of a research work in the field of the interpretation of the mechanical response of clays to support their constitutive modelling, according to an approach which combines the investigation of the soil element macro-behaviour, through laboratory experimental testing, with the observation of the soil features and processes at the micro-scale, through scanning electron microscopy, SEM.The effect of compression on the mechanical behaviour of clays, once reconstituted in the laboratory, has been the subject of experimental studies for many years, and has been extended to the behaviour of natural clays, which develop, in their geological history, different structure from that forming in the reconstituted during normal consolidation in the laboratory [1-3]. To date, several studies in the literature have shown that processes other than simple compression can result in an increase in the strength of clays [1-6], one example being diagenesis, which is one of those geological processes that cause an increase in stiffness and strength of the natural clay above that provided solely by the reduction in volume with compression.Diagenetic processes, which are responsible for important changes in natural clays at the microscale, typically occur at depth, under high effective stresses. They give rise to the aggradation of swelling minerals, the increase in bonding (non-frictional interparticle forces [7,8]) and changes in fabric (the arrangement of the soil particles [7,8]). As a result, natural clays can develop a structure stronger than that of the corresponding (same void ratio) reconstituted clay. This paper examines the microstructure of a natural stiff, diagenetically modified clay, by comparison with the microstructure of the same clay when reconstituted in the laboratory. This comparison is then extended to explore the evolution of microstructure after 1D compression to states preand post- gross-yield, up to large preological history is known in some detail [9]. This study is one aspect of a wider research [2,3,10-12] aimed at identifying the main physical factors and internal features which control, at the micro-scale, the material response, causing given behavioural facets. The research final aim is at assessing the influence of the different aspects of behaviour on model parameter values, hence supporting constitutive modelling and finding a relation between classes of behaviour and corresponding models and classes of clays.

Materials and Methods

Pappadai clay is a Pleistocene marine clay which was deposited in a quiet sea in the Montemesola Basin, near Taranto. The engineering geology of the clay is discussed by Cotecchia & Chandler (1995), who present paleontological and microstructural data demonstrating both the stillness of the water and the reducing conditions of the depositional environment. The main properties of the clay and its mineralogical composition are shown in Table 1.

Table 1:Index Properties and mineralogy of Pappadai clay.

The clay is of high plasticity and possesses a high carbonate content. Cotecchia & Chandler (1995) have shown that the carbonate content is largely concentrated in the sand and the silt fractions of the soil, since the carbonates increase with reducing clay fraction and plasticity index [13]. Large part of the sand and silt fractions are formed of shells of foraminifera and nannofossils. However, as will be seen, at least part of the carbonates present contribute to bonding in the clay.

Block samples were taken from a depth of 25 m during construction of a reservoir draw-off shaft and were subjected to mechanical testing [2]. The clay forming the block samples is massive and regularly laminated.

At the sampling location the clay is overconsolidated due to the erosion of some 120 m of overlying sediments. Prior to erosion the clay had undergone diagenesis resulting in a decrease in the portion of smectites, an increase in the portion of the nonswelling minerals (intergrades, Table 1), and a decrease in activity, all with respect to depth [9]. Thus, it is likely that there will have been changes in microstructure of the clay under the stress levels required to generate the mineralogical changes, that is towards the end of normal consolidation.

After unloading due to erosion, the clay in the top strata of the deposit underwent deep drying and subsequently swelled. Cotecchia e Chandler (1995) confirmed this reconstruction through the modelling of the state history of the deposit [9], the results of which are shown in Figure 1. The current profile of liquidity index against vertical effective stress at Pappadai and the modelled one are compared in Figure 1. The history of normal consolidation (stage (i)-O→P), erosion (stage (ii)-P→N), drying of the sole top strata due to lowering of the water table (stage (iii)-N→M) and water table rise (stage (iv)-M→B) was modelled and resulted in the state paths represented in the figure as continuous lines.

The last profile is “S” shaped and, as such, it is consistent with the profile of liquidity index on the undisturbed samples taken at different depth along a borehole and a shaft nearby; this latter one is the block sample B in the figure. Such undisturbed block sample is that which the experimental data presented in the following refer to. Its preconsolidation state corresponds to point P in Figure 1, as for an overconsolidation ratio (OCR) of 3.1. Such OCR resulted solely from the erosion cycle (ii) cited before, since the sample was not affected by the deep drying, which instead affected the clay layers above. For the full explanation of the reconstruction of the geological history of the clay and of the state history modelling, whose results are sketched in Figure 1, refer to [2,9].

The natural clay was reconstituted in the laboratory at a water content 1,6x liquid limit, and was one- dimensionally consolidated in a consolidometer to a vertical effective stress of 200 kPa, point A* in Figure 1, at which point it was removed from the consolidometer and placed in an oedometer where the one dimensional loading was continued. As seen in Figure 1, natural Pappadai clay followed a sedimentation compression curve (SCC; see [14] for the definition, or [1,2]) to the right of the normal consolidation line of the reconstituted clay (ICL; [1]). Thus, after a normal consolidation to point P, the natural clay already had a structure different from that of the reconstituted clay, and later underwent further changes through diagenesis.

The qualitative analysis of the clay fabric is carried out on both the natural and the reconstituted clay by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), using freeze-dried gold-coated clay specimens trimmed from the undisturbed block sample and from the specimens subjected to 1D compression after completion of the test and rapid undrained unloading. The microstructure of the natural clay is examined at different stages of 1D loading, i.e. at undisturbed state, soon after gross yield and to large pressures, and compared to the microstructure of the reconstituted clay after consolidation in the consolidometer and compressed to large pressures.

SEM micrographs taken on vertical fractures are shown, and sketches are reported in which fabric features are identified and local fabric arrangements are recognized. The orientation of the fabric is then quantified by means of digital image processing [15] on micrographs of size corresponding to the micro-scale representative element volume (micro-REV, [12]), recognised for the clay under study as the clay portion of size about 10-3 mm3, investigated at the medium magnification [12]. The microstructural data are related to the observed macro- response of the clay and to the constitutive hydro-mechanical parameters, highlighting what the constitutive laws deviced to represent the material macroresponse in the frame of porous media hydro-mechanics are reflecting at the micro-scale.

The bonding of Pappadai clay is such that a small undisturbed sample softens only a little after being submerged in water for several months. Drying at 120°C caused the clay to open up along the contact of the clay with silt bedding planes, and the softening of the clay on submergence was then more significant. Hence, the diagenetic bonding of Pappadai clay is significantly reduced by drying.

The fabric on a vertical fracture of reconstituted Pappadai clay, A* in Figure 1, is shown at medium-high magnification in Figure 4. As with the natural clay, a non-uniform orientation of the clay particles took place during one-dimensional normal consolidation. Both stacks and randomly oriented flocculated fabric areas can be recognized (Figure 4b). The image processing of several medium magnification micrographs allows to identify values of L in the range 0.23-0.27, indicative of a well oriented fabric.

So, although the reconstituted fabric (see for example Figure 4c) is found to be more open than that of the natural clay, as expected given the difference in void ratio between points A* and B in Figure 1, the natural fabric is not more oriented. Rather, the natural fabric appears to have less regular alternations of oriented and flocculated fabrics than the reconstituted, despite the much higher preconsolidation pressure, hence appearing far more complex, probably the consequence of diagenesis.

The average gross yield stress (i.e. the stress beyond which a transient major stiffness decay occurs, as reported by [3]) for the reconstituted clay is 200 kPa (Figure 5), i.e. the maximum stress attained in the initial consolidation in the consolidometer. Beyond gross yield, the CRS oedometer test on the reconstituted clay defines the intrinsic compression line (ICL; [1]) of Pappadai clay, for the stress range 0.2-22 MPa.

The current state of the natural clay in situ is indicated as C in the figure with a vertical stress at the sampling depth, σ’v0, of 415 kPa. Representative compression and swelling curves are shown, some compression stages prior to swelling being omitted for clarity.

The gross yield state for the natural clay lies far to the right of both the current clay state C and the ICL, confirming that the natural clay is both overconsolidated and also has a different structure from the reconstituted clay. If overconsolidated only by simple geological unloading, the clay gross yield should lie at about the preconsolidation state (Figure 5), which also lies to the right of the ICL since the structure of the natural clay was already stronger than the reconstituted clay after normal consolidation (Figure 1). However, the natural clay does not gross yield until well beyond the preconsolidation stress, since the gross yield stress is σ’y≈2600 kPa (Yield, Figure 5). This observation suggests that a strengthening of the clay structure occurred as a result of additional bonding acquired during diagenesis, increasing the gross yield stress of the clay. Consequently, the current yield stress ratio YSR= σ’y/ σ’v of the natural clay, that is the ratio of the yield stress σ’y to the current vertical stress is σ’v (YSR=σ’y/ σ’v), is twice the value of the clay’s geological OCR.

It follows that Pappadai clay is an example of a stiff clay which owes its high strength not only to its considerable compression during normal consolidation, but also to a strengthening of the clay structure due to diagenetic bonding. The effects of such diagenetic bonding are evident in the mechanical response of the clay to loading.

In test OED 7 (Figure 5), a natural clay sample was unloaded from its in situ state, then reloaded (reloading is not shown in Figure 5). In the laboratory the undisturbed state corresponds to a suction of about 700 kPa, measured by the filter paper method [20]. In the initial swelling stage of test OED 7 the response of the undisturbed clay to unloading is quite stiff, much stiffer than after compression to gross yield.

In Figure 6 the whole test OED 7 is shown, together with another similar test, OED 5, in which the sample was loaded from the undisturbed state. It can be seen that sample OED 7 gross yields at a lower stress (1800 kPa) than the that exhibited by the clay in test OED5, as a consequence of the unloading before reloading. Not only does the swelling process reduce the gross yield stress (hence reducing the YSR), but it also results in the post-yield compression line differing from that of the undisturbed clay. This illustrates the level of weakening induced on the structure of Pappadai clay by a large unloading path and subsequent reloading. This weakening, although limited, appears to be due to the slow cyclic (rather than monotonic) unloading-reloading path, which is causing the degradation of the amorphous calcite film binding the particles.

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