Power-law persistence and trends in the atmosphere: a detailed study of long temperature records.

We use several variants of the detrended fluctuation analysis to study the appearance of long-term persistence in temperature records, obtained at 95 stations all over the globe. Our results basically confirm earlier studies. We find that the persistence, characterized by the correlation C(s) of temperature variations separated by s days, decays for large s as a power law, C(s) approximately s(-gamma). For continental stations, including stations along the coastlines, we find that gamma is always close to 0.7. For stations on islands, we find that gamma ranges between 0.3 and 0.7, with a maximum at gamma=0.4. This is consistent with earlier studies of the persistence in sea surface temperature records where gamma is close to 0.4. In all cases, the exponent gamma does not depend on the distance of the stations to the continental coastlines. By varying the degree of detrending in the fluctuation analysis we obtain also information about trends in the temperature records.

[Image quality assurance in x-ray diagnostic units. Information on DIN 6868 standard series]. / Sicherung der Bildqualität in röntgendiagnostischen Betrieben. Informationen zur Normenreihe DIN 6868.

The Working Group for Standardisation justifies and comments on the establishment of a standard series for image quality assurance in X-ray diagnostic services (DIN 6868). In order to promote compliance with these standards, the users are given some background information on the structure of the standard series and on the recommended procedures to be followed. The definitions for the various hierarchically arranged tests, such as constancy test, status test, acceptance test as well as a definition for the term "base-line image quality" are explained.

[Bone marrow transplantation in adults in acute leukemia, aplastic anemia and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria. Results of the Medical Clinic IIi of LMU (Ludwig-Maximilians University) Munich]. / Knochenmarktransplantation im Erwachsenenalter bei akuter Leukämie, aplastischer Anämie und paroxysmaler nächtlicher Hämoglobinurie. Ergebnisse der Medizinischen Klinik III der LMU München.

Eleven adults have been transplanted for various reasons between July 1979 and July 1982: 2 with aplastic anemia (AA), 1 with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), 8 with acute leukemia (AL). Four patients suffered from acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) and four from acute non-lymphocytic leukemia (ANLL). Two of them were transplanted in relapse, 1 in a partial remission, and 5 in complete remission. All patients were in their late stage of disease. The PNH-patient had an identical twin, 8 patients had an HLA- and MLC compatible sib, 1 an unrelated donor, and 1 was transplanted from his father. Four patients are alive, 2 more than 3 years: 1 with AA and 1 with ALL who was transplanted in relapse. Six patients died of infectious complications (4 of interstitial pneumonia, 1 of a candida sepsis, 1 of acute toxoplasmosis). Patients living more than 3 weeks had a take. Acute graft-versus-host (GvH) disease did not present a major problem. All patients received methotrexate for GvH-prophylaxis, in three instances the marrow was additionally pre-incubated with anti-T-cell globulin.

[Bone marrow transplantation for aplastic anaemia (author's transl)]. / Knochenmarktransplantation bei aplastischer Anämie.

From March 1975 until May 1980 twelve patients with severe aplastic anemia were grafted with bone marrow from HLA-identical siblings by the Munich Cooperative Group for Bone Marrow Transplantation. Six patients are alive between 10 months and more than 5 years after grafting with normal blood values and marrow. One patient is treated as an out patient for chronic localized graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), five patients are well and without treatment. Six patients have died, one patient with a cerebral hemorrhage the day before transplantation, three patients following rejection of grafts 32, 40 and 55 days after grafting, one patient with severe GvHD 85 days after grafting and one patient, probably with interstitial pneumonia, following cerebral hemorrhage. Three of 6 patients who were conditioned with Cyclophosphamide (CY) only died following rejection of the graft. Two adults who were conditioned with CY and "total lymphoid irradiation" and three children, who wer given unirradiated leukocyte concentrates from the marrow donor after grafting, did not reject their grafts. The results of the Munich-Cooperative Group for Bone Marrow Transplantation are comparable to those of large, specialized centers for bone marrow transplantation, they indicate possibilities of cure of severe aplastic anemia by marrow grafts from HLA-identical siblings. They confirm that better results are obtained with earlier transplantation in the course of the disease.