Oesophageal varices usually develop in the setting of portal hypertension secondary to chronic liver disease. However, superior vena cava (SVC) obstruction can result in 'downhill' varices forming in the upper oesophagus. A case of torrential upper gastrointestinal bleeding from SVC obstruction due to chronic central venous access for home total parenteral nutrition is described. It is suggeste...

A dramatic failure of orientation constancy is documented in the perception of downhill slopes. Contrary to naïve expectation, steep downhill slopes look shallower from the edge than they do from back from the edge. Three experiments document and quantify this failure of constancy for real and virtual surfaces using a variety of dependent measures. Two additional studies document overestimation...

We examined the length changes and electromyographic (EMG) activity of two hindlimb muscles in wild turkeys, to determine how these muscles modulate mechanical function with changes in running speed and slope. The muscles studied were the iliotibialis lateralis pars postacetabularis (ILPO), a biarticular knee and hip extensor, and the femorotibialis lateralis (FT), a knee extensor. Muscle lengt...

The ultrasmoothness of diamond-like carbon coatings is explained by an atomistic/continuum multiscale model. At the atomic scale, carbon ion impacts induce downhill currents in the top layer of a growing film. At the continuum scale, these currents cause a rapid smoothing of initially rough substrates by erosion of hills into neighboring hollows. The predicted surface evolution is in excellent ...