LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Course Assessment Plan: A Tool For Integrated Curriculum Management

As we enter the 21 Century in engineering education, a common desire exists to improve curriculum structure, integration and assessment. Much has been written and discussed in workshops and professional journals concerning the top-down process for assessing and/or revising a program curriculum. Institutions are finally realizing they cannot afford to rely solely upon the senior capstone design experience to be the integrator of all previous engineering experiences. Studies are beginning to show the positive effects of well-integrated curricula where assessment methods are applied consistently. What is missing in many instances is a credible link between top-down curriculum management and bottom-up course assessment. At the United States Military Academy at West Point, a widely accepted assessment model provides the framework for program management. The Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at West Point has long prided itself on working hard to provide a rigorous and well-integrated undergraduate engineering program of study. Over the last five years we have developed and refined an integrating tool within the academy’s assessment model called a course assessment plan. The course assessment plan provides that crucial link between the program curriculum and the individual courses. The plan process and content will be the major focus of this paper. To illustrate the impact of the course assessment plan in closing the assessment loop, we will discuss an example of a course change with implications at the program level that was initiated and completed through use of the plan.
The evolution of mating systems in insects and arachnids

Introduction 1. Evolutionary perspectives on insect mating Richard D. Alexander, David Marshall, and John Cooley 2. Sexual selection by cryptic female choice in insects and arachnids William G. Eberhard 3. Natural and sexual selection components of odonate mating patterns Ola M. Finke, Jonathan Waage, and Walter D. Koenig 4. Sexual selection in resource defense polygyny: lessons from territorial grasshoppers Michael D. Greenfield 5. Reproductive strategies of the crickets (Orthoptera: Gryllidae) Marlene Zuk and Leigh W. Simmons 6. The evolution of edible 'sperm sacs' and other forms of courtship feeding in crickets, katydids and their kin (Orthoptera: Ensifera) Darryl T. Gwynne 7. Sexual conflicts and the evolution of mating patterns in the Zoraptera Jae C. Choe 8. The evolution of water strider mating systems: causes and consequences of sexual conflicts Goran Arnqvist 9. Multiple mating, sperm competition, and cryptic female choice in the leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Janis L. Dickinson 10. Firefly mating ecology, selection and evolution James E. Lloyd 11. Modern mating systems in archaic Holometabola: sexuality in neuropteroid insects Charles S. Henry 12. Mating systems of parasitoid wasps H. C. J. Godfray and J. M. Cook 13. Fig wasp mating systems: pollinators and parasites, sex ratio adjustment and male polymorphism, population structure and its consequences E. A. Herre, S. A. West, J. M. Cook, S. G. Compton and F. Kjellberg 14. Predictions from sexual selection on the evolution of mating systems in moths P. Larry Phelan 15. Sexual dimorphism, mating systems and ecology in butterflies Ronald L. Rutowski 16. Lek behaviour of insects Todd Shelly and Timothy S. Whittier 17. Mate choice and species isolation in swarming insects John Sivinski and Erik Petersson 18. Function and evolution of antlers and eye stalks in flies Gerald S. Wilkinson and Gary N. Dodson 19. Sex via the substrate: mating systems and sexual selection in pseudoscorpions David W. Zeh and Jeanne A. Zeh 20. Jumping spider mating strategies: sex with cannibals in and out of webs Robert R. Jackson and S. D. Pollard 21. Sexual conflict and the evolution of mating systems William D. Brown, Bernard J. Crespi and Jae C. Choe.
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of carvedilol on the prevention of nitrate tolerance in patients with chronic heart failure.

OBJECTIVES
This study was designed to evaluate the effect of carvedilol on nitrate tolerance in patients with chronic heart failure.


BACKGROUND
The attenuation of cyclic guanosine 5'-monophosphate (cGMP) production due to inactivation of guanylate cyclase by increased superoxide has been reported as a mechanism of nitrate tolerance. Carvedilol has been known to combine alpha/beta-blockade with antioxidant properties.


METHODS
To evaluate the effect of carvedilol on nitrate tolerance, 40 patients with chronic heart failure were randomized to four groups that received either carvedilol (2.5 mg once a day [carvedilol group, n=10]), metoprolol (30 mg once a day [metoprolol group, n=10]), doxazosin (0.5 mg once a day [doxazosin group, n=10]) or placebo (placebo group, n=10). Vasodilatory response to nitroglycerin (NTG) was assessed with forearm plethysmography by measuring the change in forearm blood flow (FBF) before and 5 min after sublingual administration of 0.3 mg NTG, and at the same time blood samples were taken from veins on the opposite side to measure platelet cGMP. Plethysmography and blood sampling were obtained serially at baseline (day 0); 3 days after carvedilol, metoprolol, doxazosin or placebo administration (day 3); and 3 days after application of a 10-mg/24-h NTG tape concomitantly with carvedilol, metoprolol, doxazosin or placebo (day 6).


RESULTS
There was no significant difference in the response of FBF (%FBF) and cGMP (%cGMP) to sublingual NTG on day 0 and day 3 among the four groups. On day 6, %FBF and %cGMP were significantly lower in the metoprolol, doxazosin and placebo groups than on day 0 and day 3, but these parameters in the carvedilol group were maintained.


CONCLUSIONS
These results indicated that carvedilol may prevent nitrate tolerance in patients with chronic heart failure during continuous therapy with NTG.
The efficacy and biobehavioural basis of baclofen in the treatment of alcoholic liver disease (BacALD): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND
Effective treatments for alcohol use disorders in those with significant liver disease are critically lacking. The primary aim of the current study is to explore the effectiveness and biobehavioural basis of low and high dose baclofen in improving treatment outcomes for alcohol dependence in people with alcoholic liver disease (The BacALD study).


METHODS
This double-blind, placebo-controlled study will randomize 180 participants to a 12-week regime of either baclofen (30 mg/day baclofen, 75 mg/day baclofen) or placebo. Participants must meet the ICD-10 criteria for alcohol dependence in addition to alcoholic liver disease (ALD) defined as the presence of symptoms and/or signs referable to liver disease or its complications with or without cirrhosis. Primary outcome measures will include total abstinence duration, and time to lapse and relapse. Furthermore, 60 of the ALD patients enrolled in the trial will also participate in a pharmacokinetic and cue-reactivity component, along with an additional 30 healthy volunteers matched for age and gender randomised to a 1 week regime of either 30 mg/day baclofen or 75 mg/day baclofen. At week 1, plasma levels of baclofen and β-p-chlorophenol-γ-hydroxybutric acid will be measured at 0, 1 and 4 h following baclofen administration and psychophysiological responses to alcohol-associated stimuli will be assessed in a cue reactivity paradigm. Recruitment commenced in late March 2013.


CONCLUSIONS
This trial will demonstrate the efficacy and safety of two doses of baclofen in patients with alcoholic liver disease and will explore the biobehavioural mechanisms of the treatment effect.
Deep Learning 3D Shape Surfaces Using Geometry Images

1. Established relevance of authalic spherical parametrization for creating geometry images used subsequently in CNN. 2. Robust authalic parametrization of arbitrary shapes using area restoring diffeomorphic flow and barycentric mapping. 3. Creation of geometry images (a) with appropriate shape feature for rigid/non-rigid shape analysis, (b) which are robust to cut and amenable to learn using CNNs. Experiments Cuts & Data Augmentation
Combined, Minimally Invasive, Thread-based Facelift

Aging is a natural, biological process. Patients want to overcome the aesthetic problems associated with facial aging. Plastic surgeons have tried facelifts to meet patients’ expectations [1,2]. With the development of society and technology, patients prefer simple, lessinvasive procedures for rapid recovery. A barbed suture lift can meet the requirement for a minimally invasive facial rejuvenation procedure. Former thread lifts have used either a floating or fixed type thread [1]. But when we consider the functional anatomy of the face in terms of facial expressions and mastication, and a natural looking appearance after surgery, a floating-type thread lift is preferred for the mobile area of the face and a fixed-type thread lift is recommended for use in relatively fixed areas. The authors call this method the combined-type thread lift. The authors have performed this type of facelift in 28 patients with satisfactory results.
Monitoring of Grouting Compactness in a Post-Tensioning Tendon Duct Using Piezoceramic Transducers

A post-tensioning tendon duct filled with grout can effectively prevent corrosion of the reinforcement, maintain bonding behavior between the reinforcement and concrete, and enhance the load bearing capacity of concrete structures. In practice, grouting of the post-tensioning tendon ducts always causes quality problems, which may reduce structural integrity and service life, and even cause accidents. However, monitoring of the grouting compactness is still a challenge due to the invisibility of the grout in the duct during the grouting process. This paper presents a stress wave-based active sensing approach using piezoceramic transducers to monitor the grouting compactness in real time. A segment of a commercial tendon duct was used as research object in this study. One lead zirconate titanate (PZT) piezoceramic transducer with marble protection, called a smart aggregate (SA), was bonded on the tendon and installed in the tendon duct. Two PZT patch sensors were mounted on the top outside surface of the duct, and one PZT patch sensor was bonded on the bottom outside surface of the tendon duct. In the active sensing approach, the SA was used as an actuator to generate a stress wave and the PZT sensors were utilized to detect the wave response. Cement or grout in the duct functions as a wave conduit, which can propagate the stress wave. If the cement or grout is not fully filled in the tendon duct, the top PZT sensors cannot receive much stress wave energy. The experimental procedures simulated four stages during the grout pouring process, which includes empty status, half grouting, 90% grouting, and full grouting of the duct. Experimental results show that the bottom PZT sensor can detect the signal when the grout level increases towards 50%, when a conduit between the SA and PZT sensor is formed. The top PZT sensors cannot receive any signal until the grout process is completely finished. The wavelet packet-based energy analysis was adopted in this research to compute the total signal energy received by PZT sensors. Experimental results show that the energy levels of the PZT sensors can reflect the degree of grouting compactness in the duct. The proposed method has the potential to be implemented to monitor the tendon duct grouting compactness of the reinforced concrete structures with post tensioning.
Crime Prevention through Environmental Design Crime Prevention through Environmental Design

Criminology and Penology Theories Anomie Differential Association Theory Deviance Labeling Theory Psychopathy Rational Choice Theory Social Control Theory Social Disorganization Theory Social Learning Theory Strain Theory Subcultural Theory Symbolic Interactionism · Victimology Types of crimes Blue-collar crime · Corporate crime Juvenile crime Organized crime Political crime · Public order crime Public order case law in the U.S. State crime · State-corporate crime White-collar crime · Victimless crime Plaid-collar crime Penology Deterrence · Prison Prison reform · Prisoner abuse Prisoners' rights · Rehabilitation Recidivism · Retribution Utilitarianism
Early skin-to-skin contact for mothers and their healthy newborn infants.

BACKGROUND
Mother-infant separation postbirth is common in Western culture. Early skin-to-skin contact (SSC) begins ideally at birth and involves placing the naked baby, head covered with a dry cap and a warm blanket across the back, prone on the mother's bare chest. According to mammalian neuroscience, the intimate contact inherent in this place (habitat) evokes neurobehaviors ensuring fulfillment of basic biological needs. This time may represent a psychophysiologically 'sensitive period' for programming future physiology and behavior.


OBJECTIVES
To assess the effects of early SSC on breastfeeding, physiological adaptation, and behavior in healthy mother-newborn dyads.


SEARCH METHODS
We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (30 November 2011), made personal contact with trialists, and consulted the bibliography on kangaroo mother care (KMC) maintained by Dr. Susan Ludington.


SELECTION CRITERIA
Randomized controlled trials comparing early SSC with usual hospital care.


DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
We independently assessed trial quality and extracted data. Study authors were contacted for additional information.


MAIN RESULTS
Thirty-four randomized controlled trials were included involving 2177 participants (mother-infant dyads). Data from more than two trials were available for only eight outcome measures. For primary outcomes, we found a statistically significant positive effect of early SSC on breastfeeding at one to four months postbirth (13 trials; 702 participants) (risk ratio (RR) 1.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06 to 1.53, and SSC increased breastfeeding duration (seven trials; 324 participants) (mean difference (MD) 42.55 days, 95% CI -1.69 to 86.79) but the results did not quite reach statistical significance (P = 0.06). Late preterm infants had better cardio-respiratory stability with early SSC (one trial; 31 participants) (MD 2.88, 95% CI 0.53 to 5.23). Blood glucose 75 to 90 minutes following the birth was significantly higher in SSC infants (two trials, 94 infants) (MD 10.56 mg/dL, 95% CI 8.40 to 12.72).The overall methodological quality of trials was mixed, and there was high heterogeneity for some outcomes.


AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
Limitations included methodological quality, variations in intervention implementation, and outcomes. The intervention appears to benefit breastfeeding outcomes, and cardio-respiratory stability and decrease infant crying, and has no apparent short- or long-term negative effects. Further investigation is recommended. To facilitate meta-analysis, future research should be done using outcome measures consistent with those in the studies included here. Published reports should clearly indicate if the intervention was SSC with time of initiation and duration and include means, standard deviations and exact probability values.
Knee-extension exercise's lack of immediate effect on maximal voluntary quadriceps torque and activation in individuals with anterior knee pain.

CONTEXT
Weight-bearing (WB) and non-weight-bearing (NWB) exercises are commonly used in rehabilitation programs for patients with anterior knee pain (AKP).


OBJECTIVE
To determine the immediate effects of isolated WB or NWB knee-extension exercises on quadriceps torque output and activation in individuals with AKP.


DESIGN
A single-blind randomized controlled trial.


SETTING
Laboratory.


PARTICIPANTS
30 subjects with self-reported AKP.


INTERVENTIONS
Subjects performed a maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) of the quadriceps (knee at 90°). Maximal voluntary quadriceps activation was quantified using the central activation ratio (CAR): CAR = MVIC/(MVIC + superimposed burst torque). After baseline testing, subjects were randomized to 1 of 3 intervention groups: WB knee extension, NWB knee extension, or control. WB knee-extension exercise was performed as a sling-based exercise, and NWB knee-extension exercise was performed on the Biodex dynamometer. Exercises were performed in 3 sets of 5 repetitions at approximately 55% MVIC. Measurements were obtained at 4 times: baseline and immediately and 15 and 30 min postexercise.


MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Quadriceps torque output (MVIC: N·m/Kg) and quadriceps activation (CAR).


RESULTS
No significant differences in the maximal voluntary quadriceps torque output (F2,27 = 0.592, P = .56) or activation (F2,27 = 0.069, P = .93) were observed among the 3 treatment groups.


CONCLUSIONS
WB and NWB knee-extension exercises did not acutely change quadriceps torque output or activation. It may be necessary to perform exercises over a number of sessions and incorporate other disinhibitory interventions (eg, cryotherapy) to observe acute changes in quadriceps torque and activation.
An expert advisory system for the ISO 9001 quality system

The ISO 9000 quality management system has been widely accepted and adapted as a national standard by most industrial countries. Despite its high popularity and the urgent demand from customers to implement ISO 9000, some major concerns for those organizations that are seeking registration to ISO 9000 include the expensive cost and the lengthy time to implement. The purpose of this paper is to describe an expert advisory system for ISO 9001 implementation by using an expert system shell called Visual Rules Studio. This expert advisory system integrated the ISO 9001 quality system guidelines and an evaluation approach based on the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) criteria into a knowledge-based expert system. By identifying the critical ISO elements and comparing the company’s current quality performance with ISO standards, this advisory system provides assessment results and implementation suggestions to the organization. The advisory system has been validated by a group of quality professionals. The following contains a description of the system and a discussion of the validation results. Limitations of the system and recommendations for future research are also discussed. q 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Beneficial effects of intravenously administered N-3 fatty acids for the prevention of atrial fibrillation after coronary artery bypass surgery: a prospective randomized study.

BACKGROUND
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common complication after coronary artery bypass grafting operation (CABG). Experimental data have shown antiarrhythmic effects of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) on myocardial cells. Orally administered PUFA could significantly reduce the rate of postoperative AF. We assessed the efficacy of PUFA for the prevention of AF after CABG. PUFA were given intravenously to prevent variation in bioavailability.


METHODS AND RESULTS
52 patients were randomized to the interventional group, 50 served as controls. In the control group free fatty acids (100 mg soya oil/kg body weight/day) were infused via perfusion pump, starting on admission to hospital and ending at discharge from intensive care. In the interventional group PUFA were given at a dosage of 100 mg fish oil/kg body weight/day. Primary end point was the postoperative development of AF, documented by surface ECG. Secondary end point was the length of stay in the ICU. The demographic, clinical and surgical characteristics of the patients in the two groups were similar. Postoperative AF occurred in 15 patients (30.6 %) in the control and in 9 (17.3 %) in the PUFA group ( P < 0.05). After CABG, the PUFA patients had to be treated in the ICU for a shorter time than the control patients. No adverse effects were observed.


CONCLUSIONS
Perioperative intravenous infusion of PUFA reduces the incidence of AF after CABG and leads to a shorter stay in the ICU and in hospital. Our data suggest that perioperative intravenous infusion of PUFA should be recommended for patients undergoing CABG.
Maxillary sinus lift without grafting, and simultaneous implant placement: a prospective clinical study with a 51-month follow-up.

A prospective clinical study of maxillary sinus lift procedures in the posterior region of the maxilla, using only blood clot as filling material, was conducted. Seventeen patients underwent a maxillary sinus lift procedure; 20 maxillary sinus regions were operated on and a total of 25 implants were placed. The sinus mucosa was lifted together with the anterior wall of the osteotomized maxilla and supported by the implants placed. Computed tomography (CT) scans were obtained immediately postoperative (T initial) and at 3 (T1) and 51 (T2) months postoperative for the measurement of linear bone height and bone density (by grey tones). Only one implant was lost in the first stage (96% success). After dental prosthesis placement and during up to 51 months of follow-up, no implant was lost (100% success, second stage). The difference in mean bone height between T initial (5.94 mm) and T1 (13.14 mm), and between T initial and T2 (11.57 mm), was statistically significant (both P<0.001); comparison between T1 and T2 also presented a statistical difference (P<0.001). Bone density had increased at the end of the period analyzed, but this was not statistically significant (P>0.05). Thus, the maxillary sinus lift technique with immediate implant placement, filling with blood clot only, may be performed with a high success rate.
Male Sexual Behavior

This article was originally published in Encyclopedia of Behavioral Neuroscience, published by Elsevier, and the attached copy is provided by Elsevier for the author’s benefit and for the benefit of the author’s institution, for non-commercial research and educational use including without limitation use in instruction at your institution, distribution to specific colleagues, and providing a copy to your institution’s administrator.
The effect of narrowed segment length on the degree of early postoperative dysphagia in laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication.

BACKGROUND/AIMS
Although laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication is the gold standard in the surgical treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease, it may cause troublesome complications like dysphagia. In this study, we demonstrated the effect of narrowed segment length on early dysphagia in patients.


MATERIALS AND METHODS
Forty-one patients who underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication by a single surgeon between January 2007 and November 2008 were reviewed. Dysphagia scores were assessed by a question in the Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index questionnaire and recorded preoperatively and at 1 month and 6 months. Barium esophagogram was performed for all patients at 1 month. Narrowed segment length was measured on esophagogram. Patients were divided into two groups (Group 1, ≤30 mm; Group 2, >30 mm). Dysphagia scores preoperatively and at 1 month and 6 months were compared between the two groups.


RESULTS
The two groups were homogeneous in age, gender, body mass index, and preoperative dysphagia score. We were unable to demonstrate any difference in preoperative and postoperative dysphagia scores between the two groups.


CONCLUSIONS
In this study, we used subjective data for grade of dysphagia and esophagogram for wrap length instead of manometric data. In our opinion, there is no effect of narrowed segment length on the degree of early postoperative dysphagia in patients undergoing laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication.