Abstract: Generally, the present invention is directed to marketing techniques and more particularly to direct-to-patient marketing for medical devices, pharmaceutical drugs, and biotechnology products. The approach presented here may also be applied to the recruitment of patients for clinical trials evaluation including tracking outcomes after treatment. An embodiment of the invention includes the steps of finding potential patients, qualifying potential patients, connecting potential patients to preferred physicians, and tracking the patient's progress through the appointment phase and tracking outcomes.

Abstract: A line driver provides an output signal onto an output. The line driver includes a first current driver coupled to a first terminal of the output. The first current driver is capable of providing a first current to the first terminal that is sufficient to cause an output voltage having a magnitude Y to appear across the output. The first current driver includes a first plurality of elements to provide the first current to the first terminal of the output, each of the plurality of elements having a maximum voltage tolerance that is less than the magnitude Y.

Abstract: A plane having an easily removable blade positionable in use flush against the work surface. A magnet attached to the underside of the handle of the plane secures the blade to the handle. The blade may be positioned on the handle with the cutting edge exposed or simply reversed to store the cutting edge of the blade under the handle.

Abstract: A carpenter's gauge for use as a marking gauge or a compass includes a compass bar, a pin carrier, and a marking instrument holder. The compass bar is an elongated bar having a slot formed along its center. The pin carrier slides along the compass bar and includes a pin holder and a knob located opposite the pin holder along the compass bar. The pin holder includes a reference surface that lies substantially in line with a pin held by the pin holder. The knob allows the pin holder to be rotated between a first position where the reference surface lies parallel to the compass bar, and a second position where the reference surface lies perpendicular to the compass bar. When the reference surface lies perpendicular to the compass bar, the gauge may be used as a marking gauge or a compass by inserting a marking instrument into the marking instrument holder. Etched markings along the compass bar indicate the distance between the reference surface or pin and the marking instrument.

Abstract: A laser pulse is injected into an unstable ring resonator-amplifier structure. Inside this resonator the laser pulse is amplified, spatially filtered and magnified. The laser pulse is recirculated in the resonator, being amplified, filtered and magnified on each pass. The magnification is chosen so that the beam passes through the amplifier in concentric non-overlapping regions similar to a single pass MOPA. After a number of passes around the ring resonator the laser pulse is spatially large enough to exit the ring resonator system by passing around an output mirror.

Abstract: A method is disclosed for apodizing a laser beam to smooth out the production of diffraction peaks due to optical discontinuities in the path of the laser beam, such method comprising introduction of a pattern of scattering elements for reducing the peak intensity in the region of such optical discontinuities, such pattern having smoothly tapering boundaries in which the distribution density of the scattering elements is tapered gradually to produce small gradients in the distribution density, such pattern of scattering elements being effective to reduce and smooth out the diffraction effects which would otherwise be produced. The apodizer pattern may be produced by selectively blasting a surface of a transparent member with fine abrasive particles to produce a multitude of minute pits. In one embodiment, a scattering apodizer pattern is employed to overcome diffraction patterns in a multiple element crystal array for harmonic conversion of a laser beam.

Abstract: A pair of uniaxial birefringent crystal elements are fixed together to form a serially arranged, integral assembly which, alternatively, provides either a linearly or elliptically polarized second-harmonic output wave or a linearly polarized third-harmonic output wave. The "extraordinary" or "e" directions of the crystal elements are oriented in the integral assembly to be in quadrature (90.degree.). For a second-harmonic generation in the Type-II-Type-II angle tuned case, the input fundamental wave has equal amplitude "o" and "e" components. For a third-harmonic generation, the input fundamental wave has "o" and "e" components whose amplitudes are in a ratio of 2:1 ("o":"e" reference first crystal). In the typical case of a linearly polarized input fundamental wave this can be accomplished by simply rotating the crystal assembly about the input beam direction by 10.degree..