The Schlaining quartz-stibnite deposit, Eastern Alps, Austria: constraints from conventional and infrared microthermometry and isotope and crush-leach analyses of fluid inclusions

Stibnite was mined until the end of the twentieth century in the Schlaining ore district, Austria, near the easternmost border of the Eastern Alps where windows of Penninic ophiolites and metasediments are exposed below Austroalpine tectonic units. In Early Miocene, structurally controlled small vein and metasomatic stibnite-quartz deposits were formed in Penninic Mesozoic calcareous marbles and calcite schists. Fluid inclusion studies identified two fluids involved in the mineralization: (i) a low-salinity, low-CO2 metamorphic fluid that precipitated quartz at approximately 240 °C and (ii) a stibnite-forming ore fluid that had a meteoric origin. There is no evidence of boiling or that the fluids mixed during mineralization. The ore components Sb and H2S were leached by fluid/rock interaction from buried rock units. Stibnite mineralization occurred by cooling the ore fluid to below 300 °C, at less than 2000 m depth. Quartz precipitated at slightly lower temperatures, approximately contemporaneous with stibnite. Fluid migration and ore deposition are probably related to high heat flow during the exhumation of the Rechnitz Window in response to Neogene extension and/or shallow Early Miocene andesitic magmatism. The study emphasizes that data obtained from the analyses of gangue minerals alone cannot routinely be used to infer the origin and depositional conditions of the associated ore minerals.

Co-Creation of Innovative Gamification Based Learning: A Case of Synchronous Partnership

In higher education, gamification offers the prospect of providing a pivotal shift from traditional asynchronous forms of engagement, to developing methods to foster greater levels of synchronous interactivity and partnership between and amongst teaching and learning stakeholders. The small vein of research that focuses on gamification in teaching and learning contexts, has mainly focused on the implementation of pre- determined game elements. This approach reflects a largely asynchronous approach to the development of learning practices in educational settings, thereby limiting stakeholder engagement in their design and adoption. Therefore, we draw on the theory of co-creation to examine the development process of gamification-based learning as a synchronous partnership between and amongst teaching and learning stakeholders. Empirical insights suggest that students gain a greater sense of partnership and inclusivity as part of a synchronous co-creation gamification-based learning development and implementation process.

A short bevel needle with a very thin tip improves vein puncture performance of peripheral intravenous catheters: An experimental study

Background: Peripheral intravenous catheter placement is frequently unsuccessful at the first attempt. One suggested risk factor is a small vein size, because of the consequences of mechanical forces generated by the needle tip. We developed short bevel needles with a very thin tip and evaluated their puncture performance in two in vitro models. Methods: Peripheral intravenous catheters with a new needle ground using the lancet method (experimental catheter (L)) or backcut method (experimental catheter (B)) were compared with a conventional peripheral intravenous catheter (Surshield Surflo®) in a penetration force test and a tube puncture test. Penetration forces were measured when peripheral intravenous catheters penetrated a polyethylene sheet. The tube puncture test was used to evaluate whether the peripheral intravenous catheters could puncture a polyvinyl chloride tube at two positions, at the center and at 0.5 mm from the center of the tube. Results: Mean penetration forces at the needle tip produced by experimental catheters (L) (0.05 N) and (B) (0.04 N) were significantly lower than those produced by the conventional catheter (0.09 N) (p < 0.01). At the catheter tip, mean forces produced by experimental catheter (B) and the conventional catheter were 0.16 N and 0.26 N, respectively (p < 0.05). In the tube puncture test, the frequency at which the conventional catheter punctured the center-shifted site on the tube at an angle of 20° and speed of 50 mm/min was low (40%). In contrast, experimental catheters (L) and (B) were 100% successful at puncturing both the center and center-shifted sites at 20°. Conclusion: Puncture performance was comparable between the lancet-ground and backcut-ground needles except for penetration forces at the catheter tip. The experimental catheters produced lower penetration forces and induced puncture without target displacement at smaller angles compared with the conventional catheter. Therefore, optimization of the needle can prevent vein deformation and movement, which may increase the first-attempt success rate.

Aluviální zlato v oblasti Dlouhá Ves - Řepová (zábřežské krystalinikum)

A detailed panning prospection of the Řepovský potok, Míroveček and Ospitský potok creeks (northern part of the Zábřeh Upland) proved that trace amount of alluvial gold occurs in the whole studied area. The collected gold sheets are 0.2 to 3 mm in size and mostly have shapes only weakly modified by transport in the stream. Although the chemical composition varies widely between Au-rich silver and pure gold (28.1 - 99.8 at. % Au), individual sheets are typically (few exceptions exist) compositionally homogeneous. Less than half of them has the narrow high-fineness rim, which was formed by leaching of silver in supergene conditions. In lower reach of the Řepovský potok creek there were also found gold sheets containing elevated mercury (0.1 - 5.1 at. %), which most probably originated from neighbouring vein-type Ag-Zn-Pb deposit Řepová. In contrast, the source of Hg-free gold sheets was not unambiguously established. The first possibility includes small vein-type mineralizations similar to the Řepová ore deposit and containing trace amount of gold (an occurrence of this type was newly recognized in the vicinity of Dlouhá Ves village). Second, one cannot exclude the trace occurrence of gold sheets directly in underlying metasiltstones or acid metavolcanic rocks of the Zábřeh Crystalline Complex [with respect to repeatedly observed intergrowths of gold with polymineral aggregates of phyllosilicates (muscovite, chlorite, biotite, clay minerals), feldspars (K-feldspar, albite, K-Na feldspar) and minor quartz in the alluvial gold sheets]. The particles of metallic Cu-Zn-Sn alloys with admixture of Ni, Sb and In, panned from the Řepovský potok creek, could contain metals originated from smelting of polymetallic ores from the deposit Řepová, which comprise the same minor elements.

Catheter Modification Techniques for Venous Sampling

Venous sampling is critically important in the diagnosis and localization of pituitary, parathyroid, renal, adrenal, and ovarian endocrine tumors and conditions. Catheterization of smaller veins can present a challenge and may be responsible for technical failures, particularly with adrenal vein, parathyroid, and inferior petrosal sinus venous sampling. Beyond the inherent challenges of catheterization posed by small veins, obtaining adequate blood samples can be difficult because the return of blood from a small vein may be exceedingly slow. This chapter discusses techniques to enhance the return of venous blood flow from a diagnostic catheter in a small vein. These techniques are applicable to all venous sampling, but they are particularly beneficial when sampling small-caliber veins.