cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
title: Detection of Cocaine Use with Wireless Electrocardiogram Sensors
Creators: name: Natarajan, Annamalai
name: Parate, Abhinav
name: Gaiser, Edward C.
name: Angarita, Gustavo A.
name: Malison, Robert T.
name: Ganesan, Deepak
name: Marlin, Benjamin M.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: In recent years, the ability to continuously monitor activities, health, and lifestyles of individuals using sensor technologies has reached unprecedented levels. Such ubiquitous physiological sensing has the potential to profoundly improve our understanding of human behavior, leading to more targeted treatments for a variety of disorders. The long terms goal of this work is development of novel computational tools to support the study of addiction in the context of cocaine use. The current paper takes the first step in this important direction by posing a simple, but crucial question: Can cocaine use be reliably detected using wearable on-body sensors and current machine learning algorithms? We select wireless ECG as the most promising sensing modality for cocaine use detection.

The main contributions in this paper include the presentation of a novel clinical study of cocaine use in which a unique set of wireless ECG data were collected, the description of a computational pipeline for inferring morphological features from noisy wireless ECG waveforms, and the evaluation of cocaine use detection algorithms based on data-driven and knowledge-based feature representations. Our results show that cocaine use can be detected with AUC levels above 0.9 in both the within-subjects and between-subjects cases at the 32mg/70kg dosage level.
A novel high resolution contactless technique for thermal field mapping and thermal conductivity determination: Two-Laser Raman Thermometry
Creators: name: Reparaz, J. S.
name: Chavez-Angel, E.
name: Wagner, M. R.
name: Graczykowski, B.
name: Gomis-Bresco, J.
name: Alzina, F.
name: Torres, C. M. Sotomayor
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We present a novel high resolution contactless technique for thermal conductivity determination and thermal field mapping based on creating a thermal distribution of phonons using a heating laser, while a second laser probes the local temperature through the spectral position of a Raman active mode. The spatial resolution can be as small as $300$ nm, whereas its temperature accuracy is $\pm 2$ K. We validate this technique investigating the thermal properties of three free-standing single crystalline Si membranes with thickness of 250, 1000, and 2000 nm. We show that for 2-dimensional materials such as free-standing membranes or thin films, and for small temperature gradients, the thermal field decays as $T(r) \propto ln(r)$ in the diffusive limit. The case of large temperature gradients within the membranes leads to an exponential decay of the thermal field, $T \propto exp[-A \cdot ln(r)]$. The results demonstrate the full potential of this new contactless method for quantitative determination of thermal properties. The range of materials to which this method is applicable reaches far beyond the here demonstrated case of Si, as the only requirement is the presence of a Raman active mode.
Classifying Text-Based Conspiracy Tweets related to COVID-19 using Contextualized Word Embeddings
Creators: name: Rehman, Abdul
name: Abbasi, Rabeeh Ayaz
name: Qureshi, Irfan ul Haq
name: Khattak, Akmal Saeed
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Computation and Language (cs.CL)
subject: Machine Learning (cs.LG)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences
subject: I.2.7
subject: 68T01

description: The FakeNews task in MediaEval 2022 investigates the challenge of finding accurate and high-performance models for the classification of conspiracy tweets related to COVID-19. In this paper, we used BERT, ELMO, and their combination for feature extraction and RandomForest as classifier. The results show that ELMO performs slightly better than BERT, however their combination at feature level reduces the performance.
description: Published in Multimedia Benchmark Workshop 2022, Bergen, Norway and Online, 12-13 January 2023: https://2022.multimediaeval.com/
title: Frequency and Impact of Intensive Care Unit Complications on Moderate-Severe Traumatic Brain Injury – Early Results of the Outcome Prognostication in Traumatic Brain Injury (OPTIMISM) Study
Creators: name: Muehlschlegel, Susanne
name: Carandang, Raphael A.
name: Ouillette, Cynthia
name: Hall, Wiley R.
name: Anderson, Frederick
name: Goldberg, Robert J.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Background: Known predictors of adverse outcomes in patients with moderate-severe TBI (msTBI) explain only a relatively small proportion of patient-related outcomes. The frequency and impact of intensive care unit complications (ICU-COMPL) on msTBI-associated outcomes is poorly understood.

Methods: In 213 consecutive msTBI patients admitted to a Level-I-Trauma-Center neuro-trauma-ICU, twenty-eight ICU-COMPL (21 medical and 7 neurological) were prospectively collected and adjudicated by group consensus, using pre-defined criteria. We determined frequencies, and explored associations of ICU-COMPL and functional neurological outcomes measured by Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) at hospital discharge using multivariable logistic regression.

Results: The average age of the study sample was 53 years, and the median presenting Glasgow Coma Scale and Injury Severity Scores were 5 and 27, respectively. Hyperglycemia (79%), fever (62%), systemic inflammatory response syndrome (60%), and hypotension requiring vasopressors (42%) were the four most common medical ICU-COMPL. Herniation (39%), intracranial rebleed (39%), and brain edema requiring osmotherapy (37%) were the three most common neurological ICU-COMPL. After adjusting for admission variables, duration of ventilation, and ICU length-of-stay, patients with brain edema (OR 5.8; 95% CI 2,16.7) had a significantly increased odds for dying during hospitalization whereas patients with hospital-acquired urinary tract infection (UTI) had a decreased odds (OR 0.05; 95% CI 0.005,0.6). Sensitivity-analysis revealed that UTI occurred later, suggesting a non-causal association with survival. Brain herniation (OR 15.7; 95% CI 2.6,95.4) was associated with an unfavorable functional status (GOS 1-3).

Conclusion: ICU-COMPL are very common after msTBI, have a considerable impact on short-term outcomes, and should be considered in the prognostication of these high-risk patients. Survival associations of time-dependent complications warrant cautious interpretation.
New dwarf galaxy candidates in the sphere of influence of the Local Volume spiral galaxy NGC2683
Creators: name: Crosby, E.
name: Jerjen, H.
name: Müller, O.
name: Pawlowski, M.
name: Mateo, M.
name: Dirnberger, M.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We present initial results of a survey of host $L_{*}$ galaxies environments in the Local Volume ($D<10\,$Mpc) searching for satellite dwarf galaxy candidates using the wide-field Hyper Suprime-Cam imager on the 8m Subaru Telescope. The current paper presents complete results on NGC2683 ($M_{B_T,0}=-19.62$, $D=9.36\,Mpc$, $v_{\odot}=411\,km\,s^{-1}$), an isolated Sc spiral galaxy in the Leo Spur. At the distance of NGC2683, we image the complete volume out to projected radii of $380\,kpc$ using a hexagonal arrangement of 7 pointings. Direct inspection of the images is complete down to $M_{g}\sim-11$ and has revealed 4 new satellite galaxy candidates, 2 of which have been independently discovered by other researchers. Assuming the distance of NGC2683, these candidates span luminosities $-12 < M_g < -9$ and effective radii 150\,pc $< r_e <$ 1100\,pc and are found to be morphologically reminiscent of satellite galaxies in the Local Group. These 4 new candidates add to the 8 already known. A Principle Component Analysis of the 2D projected distribution of the 12 satellite galaxies of NGC2683 reveals a flattened projected disk of satellites, with axis ratio $b/a=0.23$. This flattening in the 2D projected system of satellites is a 1 percent outlier of simulated isotropic satellite systems but is mostly consistent with satellite distributions of comparable galaxy environments in the IllustrisTNG simulation. This indicates the possible presence of a satellite plane, which will need to be investigated with follow-up observations.
description: 17 pages, 12 figures, accepted to MNRAS
Resonantly-Produced 7 keV Sterile Neutrino Dark Matter Models and the Properties of Milky Way Satellites
Creators: name: Abazajian, Kevork N.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)
subject: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
subject: High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena (astro-ph.HE)
subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Sterile neutrinos produced through a resonant Shi-Fuller mechanism are arguably the simplest model for a dark matter interpretation origin of the recent unidentified X-ray line seen toward a number of objects harboring dark matter. Here, I calculate the exact parameters required in this mechanism to produce the signal. The suppression of small scale structure predicted by these models is consistent with Local Group and high-$z$ galaxy count constraints. Very significantly, the parameters necessary in these models to produce the full dark matter density fulfill previously determined requirements to successfully match the Milky Way Galaxy's total satellite abundance, the satellites' radial distribution and their mass density profile, or "too big to fail problem." I also discuss how further precision determinations of the detailed properties of the candidate sterile neutrino dark matter can probe the nature of the quark-hadron transition, which takes place during the dark matter production.
description: 5 pages, 3 figures. v3: discussion added, matches version accepted to Phys. Rev. Lett
An interferometric study of the post-AGB binary 89 Herculis. II Radiative transfer models of the circumbinary disk
Creators: name: Hillen, M.
name: Menu, J.
name: Van Winckel, H.
name: Min, M.
name: Gielen, C.
name: Wevers, T.
name: Mulders, G. D.
name: Regibo, S.
name: Verhoelst, T.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Solar and Stellar Astrophysics (astro-ph.SR)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The presence of disks and outflows is widespread among post-AGB binaries. In the first paper of this series, a surprisingly large fraction of optical light was found to be resolved in the 89 Her post-AGB system. The data showed this flux to arise from close to the central binary. Scattering off the inner rim of the circumbinary disk, or in a dusty outflow were suggested as two possible origins. With detailed dust radiative transfer models of the disk we aim to discriminate between these two configurations. By including Herschel/SPIRE photometry, we extend the SED such that it now fully covers UV to sub-mm wavelengths. The MCMax radiative transfer code is used to create a large grid of disk models. Our models include a self-consistent treatment of dust settling as well as of scattering. A Si-rich composition with two additional opacity sources, metallic Fe or amorphous C, are tested. The SED is fit together with mid-IR (MIDI) visibilities as well as the optical and near-IR visibilities of Paper I, to constrain the structure of the disk and in particular of its inner rim. The near-IR visibility data require a smooth inner rim, here obtained with a two-power-law parameterization of the radial surface density distribution. A model can be found that fits all the IR photometric and interferometric data well, with either of the two continuum opacity sources. Our best-fit passive models are characterized by a significant amount of mm-sized grains, which are settled to the midplane of the disk. Not a single disk model fits our data at optical wavelengths though, the reason being the opposing constraints imposed by the optical and near-IR interferometric data. A geometry in which a passive, dusty, and puffed-up circumbinary disk is present, can reproduce all the IR but not the optical observations of 89 Her. Another dusty, outflow or halo, component therefore needs to be added to the system.
description: 15 pages, in press
title: The Association Between Low Health Literacy and Attitudes, Behaviors and Knowledge that Influence Engagement in Cancer Screening and Prevention Activities
Creators: name: Morris, Nancy
name: Field, Terry S.
name: Wagner, Joann L.
name: Cutrona, Sarah L.
name: Roblin, Douglas W.
name: Gaglio, Bridget
name: Williams, Andrew E.
name: Han, Paul
name: Costanza, Mary E.
name: Mazor, Kathleen M.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Background: Health literacy is a complex, multifaceted phenomenon. While health literacy has historically been measured using instruments that assess reading and numeracy, comprehension of spoken information is also important. The purpose of this study was to identify adults with low health literacy using a multi-dimensional assessment of health literacy and to explore whether low health literacy was associated with variables likely to affect engagement in cancer prevention and screening activities.

Methods: A random sample of English speaking adults aged 40-70 were invited to participate from: Kaiser Permanente Georgia, Hawaii, Colorado, and Fallon Community Health Plan Massachusetts. The Cancer Message Literacy Test-Listening, the Cancer Message Literacy Test-Reading, and the Lipkus Numeracy Scale were all used to assess aspects of health literacy. We also assessed self-efficacy, provider trust, and fatalism. Participants self-reported demographic data, health seeking behavior, and media use.

Results: Out of 1074 adults, 48% were white, 73% were educated beyond high school, and 53% rated their health as very good or excellent. Compared to others, adults with low health literacy were more likely to avoid physician visits (p < .001), more fatalistic about cancer (p <. 001), had less familiarity and knowledge about common cancer screening tests (p <. 001), and were less likely to seek health information from sources other than physicians (P = .001).

Conclusions: In this population of insured adults, we identified differences among adults with low health literacy which may impact their engagement in cancer prevention and screening activities. These findings have important implications for health care interactions and public health communication. Understanding the reasons for these beliefs and behaviors may suggest ways to target and tailor communication for this vulnerable population.
title: Assessment of Parental Mental Disorders in the National Children’s Study (NCS)
Creators: name: McLaughlin, Thomas J.
name: Roy-Bujnowski, Kristen M.
name: Aupont, Onesky
name: Zhan, Xin
name: Foley, Christine M.
name: Sepavich, Deidre M.
name: Felice, Marianne E.
name: Kessler, Ronald
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Introduction: Parental mental disorders are powerful risk factors for children’s behavioral and mental disorders, making it critical to obtain estimates of parental mental disorders in NCS baseline assessments. These disorders are usually clinically assessed and diagnosed using lengthy interview instruments. This study will validate a brief set of mental health screens against the gold-standard Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI).

Methods: Sample: Up to 1200 English-speaking pregnant women and their male partners, aged >17 with over-sampling of racial and ethnic minorities.

Instruments: A brief 25-minute set of REDCap based screening scales will be administered. Probability sub-samples of 450-600 respondents with or without DSM-IV diagnoses will be selected for clinical reappraisal using the CIDI. Patients without DSM-IV diagnoses but with subsyndromal disorders will be used to optimize the sensitivity and specificity of screening scales.

Diagnostic Assessment: Major depression, bipolar spectrum disorders, generalized anxiety, panic, post-traumatic stress, and substance abuse will be assessed.

Analytic Methods: Kappa statistics, Receiver Operating Curve and regression methods will be used to evaluate concordance between diagnoses from screening scales and the CIDI at the aggregate and individual levels. Sensitivity and specificity will be reported for the cohort and separately for mothers and fathers as well as racial and ethnic minorities.

Significance: This is the largest investigation of the epidemiology of mental disorders in a representative sample of community based pregnant mothers and their male partners. Information will be used to study the importance of parental psychopathology in the emergence of mental disorders in children over 21 years of follow-up of the parents and their children.
title: Adipose Tissue Architecture and Gestational Weight Gain in Normoglycemic Pregnancies
Creators: name: Moore Simas, Tiffany A.
name: Gaelekman, Olga
name: Zhang, Ningning
name: Rosal, Milagros C.
name: Lee, Mary M.
name: Corvera, Silvia
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Objective: To investigate histologic architecture of subcutaneous (SQAT) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) growth in relationship to gestational weight gain (GWG). Epidemiological data suggest that SQAT expansion may be protective of obesity related co-morbidities, whereas VAT expansion is associated with Type-2 diabetes risk. We hypothesized that in normal gravidas, GWG would be associated with hypertrophy of SQAT and not VAT.

Methods: A subset of subjects enrolled in the Pregnancy & Postpartum Observational Dietary Study (PPODS) and undergoing Cesarean delivery had SQAT (midline superior edge Pfannenstiel incision) and VAT (inferior omental periphery) biopsies after neonatal delivery, uterine closure and hemostasis achievement. Excised tissues were fixed and stained. Average adipocyte size and capillary density were assessed in 10 independent sections per AT depot per subject. GWG determined by the difference of weight at first visit and immediately postpartum (1-4 days post-op). GWG plotted vs mean SQAT or VAT adipocyte size.

Results: Table illustrates general clinical characteristics of the 5 subjects. Figure A demonstrates SQAT and VAT mean adipocyte size with representative sections from patient E depicted above bar graphs representing means and SEM from 5 patients. SQ adipocytes were significantly larger than those from VAT. Significant positive correlation was noted between GWG and SQAT adipocyte size (Figure B), but not VAT adipocyte size (Figure C).

Discussion: Preliminary results reveal that in normal pregnancies, GWG is associated with changes in SQAT but not VAT architecture, which reflects lipid accumulation. These results are consistent with the model that SQAT is specifically adapted for healthy lipid storage, and provides a basis for comparison between normal gravidas and those with GDM.
Local stability of a gravitating filament: a dispersion relation
Creators: name: Freundlich, Jonathan
name: Jog, Chanda J.
name: Combes, Françoise
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)
subject: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Filamentary structures are ubiquitous in astrophysics and are observed at various scales. On a cosmological scale, matter is usually distributed along filaments, and filaments are also typical features of the interstellar medium. Within a cosmic filament, matter can contract and form galaxies, whereas an interstellar gas filament can clump into a series of bead-like structures which can then turn into stars. To investigate the growth of such instabilities, we derive a local dispersion relation for an idealized self-gravitating filament, and study some of its properties. Our idealized picture consists of an infinite self-gravitating and rotating cylinder with pressure and density related by a polytropic equation of state. We assume no specific density distribution, treat matter as a fluid, and use hydrodynamics to derive the linearized equations that govern the local perturbations. We obtain a dispersion relation for axisymmetric perturbations and study its properties in the (k_R, k_z) phase space, where k_R and k_z are respectively the radial and longitudinal wavenumbers. While the boundary between the stable and unstable regimes is symmetrical in k_R and k_z and analogous to the Jeans criterion, the most unstable mode displays an asymmetry that could constrain the shape of the structures that form within the filament. Here the results are applied to a fiducial interstellar filament, but could be extended for more astrophysical systems such as cosmological filaments and tidal tails.
description: 8 pages, 1 figure, published in A&A
Playskool Travel-Lite Crib (Part A)
Publisher: name: Online Ethics Center
Year: 2010
Subjects: Product Liability
Public Health and Safety

description: Part A of the Playskool Travel-Lite Crib case discusses how the Travel-Lite came to market, details the deaths of three infants in the product, and brings Sanfred Koltun, CEO of Kolcraft, to a point where he must decide how the company will conduct a recall, as ordered by the CPSC.
title: Health Literacy and Cancer Prevention: It’s Not What You Say It’s What They Hear
Creators: name: Mazor, Kathleen M.
name: Roblin, Douglas W.
name: Williams, Andrew E.
name: Han, Paul J. K.
name: Costanza, Mary E.
name: Cutrona, Sarah L.
name: Field, Terry S.
name: Gaglio, Bridget
name: Wagner, Joann L.
name: Robinson, Brandi E.
name: Vijayadeva, Vinutha
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Background: A growing body of literature documents the relationship between health literacy and important health behaviors and outcomes. Most research to date has focused on print literacy–few studies have examined literacy with respect to spoken information (“spoken health literacy”). We sought to examine the extent to which responses to physician advice about cancer prevention and screening were associated with spoken health literacy.

Methods: Participants listened to 3 simulated physician-patient discussions addressing: 1) Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) testing; 2) tamoxifen for breast cancer prevention; and 3) colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. The physician provided information on risks and benefits but did not endorse one course of action. Post-vignette questions assessed understanding and reactions to the physician’s advice. Participants had previously completed the Cancer Message Literacy Test-Listening (CMLT-L), a measure of spoken health literacy. Bivariate analyses examined the relationship between CMLT-L scores and comprehension, attitudes, and behavioral intentions.

Results: Four hundred thirty-eight adults from 3 HMORN sites participated. Comprehension: Post-vignette comprehension scores were correlated with CMLT-L scores (r=0.62, p<.001) and those scoring in the lowest CMLT-L quartile scored significantly lower on the vignette-specific comprehension scales (p<.001). Attitudes: Participants scoring in the lowest CMLT-L quartile were more likely to report their views had become more favorable on PSA testing (p<.001) and CRC screening (p<.001) as a result of the vignette. Behavioral intentions: Participants who scored in the lowest CMLT-L quartile expressed stronger intent than higher scoring participants to undergo PSA testing (p=.028) and to take tamoxifen for chemoprevention (p=.017).

Discussion: The ability to understand spoken information is a critical component of health literacy. In this study, spoken health literacy influenced patients’ comprehension of, and reaction to spoken health information provided by a physician. The findings that participants scoring in the lowest quartile on the CMLT-L were more likely to respond favorably to physician advice on cancer prevention but were less likely to comprehend content of the vignettes, may indicate that physician mention of a prevention service is interpreted as endorsement of a prevention service in the absence of a full understanding of its risks and benefits.
title: Identifying Critical Roles for the Lamin B Receptor and Additional Nuclear Envelope Proteins in Regulating the Proliferation and Differentiation of Myeloid Progenitors
Creators: name: Malu, Krishnakumar M.
name: Shah, Hetavi P.
name: Pelletier, Margery G.H.
name: Giadone, Richard M.
name: Gendreau, Kerry L.
name: Manmode, Rahul
name: Ryan, David K.
name: Gaines, Peter C.W.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Neutrophils are blood phagocytes that contain lobulated nuclei, development of which depend on the expression of an inner nuclear membrane (INM) protein called the lamin B receptor (LBR). Loss of LBR expression causes not only hypolobulation of neutrophil nuclei (Pelger-Huët anomaly) but also severe developmental defects in humans (HEM/Greenberg dysplasia) and mice (ichthyosis). LBR is considered a dual function protein: the N-terminal domain contains chromatin and lamin B binding sites, whereas the C-terminal domain anchors LBR to the INM and exhibits C14 sterol reductase activity. Despite our knowledge of these two structural features of LBR, which domain supports normal development is unclear. We recently addressed this issue with regards to myelopoiesis by expressing wild-type and mutant forms of mouse Lbr in myeloid cells derived from an ichthyosis mouse. We demonstrated that expression of the Lbr sterol reductase domain alone can support nuclear morphologic maturation and is critical to both cholesterol biosynthesis and lipid-stressed proliferative responses of myeloid progenitors. In contrast, myeloid progenitors that lack the homologous C14 sterol reductase Tm7sf2 displayed normal nuclear maturation, cholesterol biosynthesis and lipid-stressed proliferation. We have now generated ichthyosis myeloid cells that express forms of Lbr with missense mutations in the sterol reductase domain known to cause HEM/Greenberg dysplasia. Our preliminary results indicate that these sterol reductase missense mutations disrupt cholesterol biosynthesis and lipid-stressed proliferation, but do not appear to affect nuclear maturation. We are also analyzing the expression patterns of Lbr and two additional nuclear envelope (NE) proteins, Lamin A/C and Sun2, during neutrophil vs. macrophage differentiation using both cell line models and ex vivo differentiated mouse bone marrow, and examining how overexpression of either Lamin A/C or Sun2 affects myeloid differentiation. Our studies may reveal new insight into how different NE proteins regulate the complex functions of two professional phagocytes.
Playskool Travel-Lite Crib (Part B)
Publisher: name: Online Ethics Center
Year: 2010
Subjects: Product Liability
Public Health and Safety

description: Part B of the Playskool Travel-Lite Crib case details the recall process as it occurred, including negotiations between Kolcraft and the CPSC, and Kolcraft's actions in conducting its recall. It also discusses three additional infant deaths that occurred after the recall.
title: High Frequency, All-Optical Ultrasound Transducer for Biomedical Applications
Creators: name: Wu, Nan
name: Tian, Ye
name: Zou, Xiaotian
name: Wang, Xingwei
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: High-frequency (> 30 MHz), high-resolution (<100 >μm) ultrasonic imaging has been increasingly demanded in applications that include dermatology, ophthalmology, intravascular imaging, and small animal imaging. It is also a valuable imaging tool for non-invasive studies of disease progression and regression. The conventional approach that relies on piezoelectric transducers is difficult to design at high frequencies. An all-optical photoacoustic transducer, which can operate above 50 MHz, can circumvent this problem. It converts pulsed laser energy exerted onto a thin photoabsorptive film into thermoelastic waves. The center frequency and bandwidth of the generated ultrasound are determined by the incident laser pulse. In addition, the size and spacing of each generation/receiving element, which are defined by the focal point of a laser beam, can be easily reduced to several microns. This poster presents a novel fiber-optic ultrasound transducer based on optical generation and detection approaches. The ultimate goal of the project is to integrate generation and detection functions onto a single optical fiber and to achieve ultrasound beam steering via phased array technique. The ultrasound transducer presented in this poster has great potential in biomedical applications including intravascular ultrasound imaging and noncontact characterization of biological tissues. The high-frequency of the transducer gives it the capability to achieve high axial resolution (< 100 μm) and the compact size (125 μm in diameter) makes it a perfect candidate for intravascular applications.
code and data
Creators: name: Drax, Katie
name: Pedder, Hugo
name: Munafo, Marcus
name: Thompson, Jacqueline
name: Van Den Akker, Olmo
name: Thibault, Robert T.
name: Westwood, Samuel
name: Clark, Robbie
Publisher: name: OSF
Year: 2020

description: This component includes the data and code used to produce the preprint for this review.
title: A Pilot Study of Neuroplasticity Based Cognitive Remediation in Early Onset Psychosis
Creators: name: Maloney, Ann E.
name: Baluyot, Kristine
name: Hazzard, Lindsey
name: Alderman, Cheryl
name: George, Rose
name: Noyes, Nancy
name: Bethea, Terrence C.
name: Verdi, Mary
name: Nahum, Mor
name: Johnson, Jacqueline L.
name: Hooper, Stephen R.
name: Sikich, Linmarie
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Introduction – Neuroplasticity based auditory and visual training programs appear to improve neurocognitive function in adults with schizophrenia, but use in younger individuals has not been determined. We hypothesized that adolescents might play more often and respond better than adults to training using a game-like laptop in their home environment.

Methods -- Youth 10-19 years with Early Onset Psychosis (EOP) were provided a laptop and randomly assigned to play games to enhance basic auditory, visual and social processing neuroplasticity games (NPG) or assigned to control games with cognitive components, such as Sudoku or hangman or (CG). All received neurocognitive assessments at baseline, intervention completion and 4 months post treatment.

Results — 12 youth (15.5 +3.2 yrs) were assigned to NPG and 10 participants (16.2 +2.1 years) were assigned to CG. More NPG than CG participants completed the prescribed hours of game play (block 1 - 92% vs. 70% over the first 40 hours), with both groups engaged less over time. Although most neurocognitive functions did not change, the NPG group did show improvements in WRAML Visual Learning, WISC Digit Span Forward, Spatial Span Backwards and CPT omission errors. Surprisingly, satisfaction was lower for NPG than CG.

Conclusions — Groups were well matched for baseline illness characteristics. On the global measures of cognition, both EOP groups showed improvement over time but those improvements were generally greater in the CG than in the NPG group, with potentially significant differences favoring the CG evident in the neurocognitive composite score (p=0.072) and BRIEF metacognition (p=.117). Youth did not play as frequently or as long as requested despite providing a laptop for their home use and stipends for playing.
title: Evaluation of Restaurant Menus to Determine the Availability of Healthy Food Options and Guide Community Transformation Grant Activities in Massachusetts
Creators: name: Li, Wenjun
name: Andersen, Victoria A.
name: Kane, Kevin J.
name: Svencer, Susan
name: Andrews, Bonnie
name: Wedick, Nicole M.
name: Williamson, Barrett
name: Olendzki, Barbara C.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: INTRODUCTION. The availability of healthy menu options in restaurants is an important factor in the prevention of obesity. The Mass in Motion Initiative and two Community Transformation Grant (CTG) projects are conducting statewide longitudinal surveys to determine the availability of healthy food in restaurants in the state of Massachusetts.

METHODS. The Community Nutrition Environment Evaluation Data System-Restaurant (C-NEEDS-R) was developed for food environment surveillance. C-NEEDS-R takes into account seasonal and geographic variations in food supplies, cultural relevance, and USDA dietary recommendations. Between summer 2012 and winter 2013, 506 restaurants in 36 Massachusetts towns and cities were surveyed and analyzed. Through menu and site evaluation, the availability of healthy entrees was examined for each restaurant, and the total number of healthy entrees as well as the percent of healthy entrees was calculated for each restaurant. For each municipality, the average number and average percentage of healthy entrees for restaurants within the community was also calculated.

RESULTS. The surveyed restaurants had average 3.2 healthy entrees on the menu, accounting for 13.4% of the total number of entrees available. The percentage of healthy options varied widely by restaurant and restaurant type, ranging from 0 to 84%, and only 15 of the 506 surveyed restaurants (

DISCUSSION. As noted, menu evaluation demonstrated that the large majority of the surveyed restaurants had few healthy entrees, indicating a need to increase availability of healthy options. Analysis of restaurant- and community-level variations in availability is useful for CTG programs to formulate and prioritize interventions. Future longitudinal surveys of food stores in the intervention and control communities will help evaluate the effectiveness of CTG interventions.
Topos Quantum Theory on Quantization-Induced Sheaves
Creators: name: Nakayama, Kunji
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Mathematical Physics (math-ph)
subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this paper, we construct a sheaf-based topos quantum theory. It is well known that a topos quantum theory can be constructed on the topos of presheaves on the category of commutative von Neumann algebras of bounded operators on a Hilbert space. Also, it is already known that quantization naturally induces a Lawvere-Tierney topology on the presheaf topos. We show that a topos quantum theory akin to the presheaf-based one can be constructed on sheaves defined by the quantization-induced Lawvere-Tierney topology. That is, starting from the spectral sheaf as a state space of a given quantum system, we construct sheaf-based expressions of physical propositions and truth objects, and thereby give a method of truth-value assignment to the propositions. Furthermore, we clarify the relationship to the presheaf-based quantum theory. We give translation rules between the sheaf-based ingredients and the corresponding presheaf-based ones. The translation rules have `coarse-graining' effects on the spaces of the presheaf-based ingredients; a lot of different proposition presheaves, truth presheaves, and presheaf-based truth-values are translated to a proposition sheaf, a truth sheaf, and a sheaf-based truth-value, respectively. We examine the extent of the coarse-graining made by translation.
description: 33 pages
Playskool Travel-Lite Crib (Part C)
Publisher: name: Online Ethics Center
Year: 2010
Subjects: Product Liability
Public Health and Safety

description: Part C of the Playskool Travel-Lite Crib case considers the numerous issues surrounding the succession of the company to Sanfred Koltun's son Thomas and details Travel-Lite deaths that occurred during and after the recall. The case ends with Thomas Koltun facing a major lawsuit, public relations challenges, maneuverings by Hasbro to separate itself from the product's liabilities, and the possibility that Travel-Lites are still in use by the public.
title: Field Testing a Food Purchasing Survey: Progress from the Residential Environment and Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors (REACH) Pilot Study
Creators: name: Li, Wenjun
name: Olendzki, Barbara C.
name: Churchill, Linda C.
name: Wedick, Nicole M.
name: Hayes, Rashelle B.
name: Duckham, Rachel
name: Kane, Kevin J.
name: Patil, Viji
name: Ockene, Judith K.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Objective: Testing a novel instrument for assessing the perceptions of the food environment, and personal and family factors influencing food purchasing behaviors in community-living older women.

Methods: Women 65 years and older residing in Worcester County were enrolled into the study and returned a 26-item food purchasing survey. The survey inquired about timing and frequency of food purchasing by participants and/or their family, location and type of food stores frequently visited, and transportation modes. Eating habits outside of the home at restaurants, cafeterias, community meal sites, and fast food outlets were also assessed. Food stores were defined as any stores selling cooked/uncooked foods, including grocery and convenience stores, wholesale clubs, and farmer’s markets. Food shopping was described as purchasing a relatively large quantity of foods.

Results: Complete data were available for 52 women at the time of this progress report. The mean age was 72 years (range 65-85yrs), 88% White race, 75% with baccalaureate degree and 42% with annual family income over $50,000. Most women drove and went food shopping for their household themselves, and less than 10% traveled more than 20 minutes to reach the food store. Factors most important to store choice included parking, safety and distance from home. The most important store features included organized aisles, sales/promotion items, one-stop shopping, clean, and fast checkout. Approximately 60% did not know if a nutritional rating system was available. Less than one-third of women reported eating foods from restaurants more than once per week. Most participants reported unawareness of the availability of healthful options (e.g., low/fat-free dairy, whole grains, low sodium foods) in restaurants.

Conclusion: This food purchasing instrument captures information on factors influencing food purchasing behaviors. Preliminary results suggest general lack of awareness of nutritional rating and healthy food options available. Further exploration of these factors and close coordination with community interventions can assist older women with improvements to dietary patterns.
title: Impact of Ivacaftor on Medication Use, Hospital and Outpatient Provider Visits and Associated Costs in a Medicaid Population
Creators: name: Leo, Sam M.
name: Lowe, Maria M.
name: Alper, Caroline J.
name: Lee, Karen W.
name: Lenz, Kimberly J.
name: Liou, Gloria
name: Pomfret, Thomas C.
name: Price, Mylissa K.
name: Tesell, Mark A.
name: Jeffrey, Paul L.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: BACKGROUND: Ivacaftor is the first Food and Drug Administration-approved medication to treat an underlying genetic defect in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). With an approximate annual cost of $300,000 per patient, ivacaftor may have a profound financial impact on health systems, even when utilized by a small population. Clinical data has demonstrated that treatment with ivacaftor may reduce pulmonary exacerbations (PE) and associated hospitalizations. As a result, patients receiving ivacaftor may need less outpatient care and fewer medications to treat CF complications. Evaluating the impact of ivacaftor therapy on medication utilization, PEs and hospital/outpatient visits can aid formulary decision makers in its effective management.

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective is to examine the effects of ivacaftor on patients’ overall medication regimen and associated costs within a Medicaid population. The secondary objective is to examine its effect on the rates of PEs and hospital/outpatient visits.

METHODS: Pharmacy and medical claims data for Medicaid members ≥ six years of age was collected for six months before and after the first reported pharmacy claim of ivacaftor. Data included: total number of unique claims, days supply, dose, and total cost for each medication, number of short-term antibiotic and/or steroid courses, outpatient provider visits, hospitalizations, ER visits and corresponding diagnosis codes. Diagnosis codes and short-term antibiotic and/or steroid courses were reviewed to determine if a PE may have occurred.

RESULTS: Ivacaftor treatment did not decrease the utilization of medications used to treat patients with CF and resulted in increased pharmacy expenditures for other medications. However, a 65% reduction in PEs as well as a reduction in hospitalizations/ER visits was observed in members receiving ivacaftor.

CONCLUSIONS: This study found that while ivacaftor treatment may not decrease total medication utilization or associated costs, it may decrease the number of PEs and associated hospitalizations in patients with CF.
Case 1: Fire by Sodium Coolant Leak at Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor, Monju
Publisher: name: Online Ethics Center
Year: 2009
Subjects: Engineer/Client Relationships
Ethics and Society
Product Liability
Public Health and Safety
Public Well-being
Risk
Safety
Whistleblowing
Workplace Ethics

description: Case 1 of Teaching Case Studies of Accidents in Nuclear Energy Development in Japan describes a fire caused by a massive sodium coolant leak at the Monju fast breeder reactor.
Sensitivity of Vertebrate Embryos to Heavy Metals as a Criterion of Water Quality
Creators: name: Birge, Wesley J.
name: Just, John J.
Publisher: name: Kentucky Water Resources Research Institute, University of Kentucky
Year: 1973

description: Abstract:
Embryonic and/or larval stages of the leopard frog (Rana pipiens), domestic fowl (Gallus domesticus) and the goldfish (Carassiua auratus) were treated with cadmium chloride, mercuric chloride, lead chloride, zinc chloride and sodium arsenite. The principal objectives were (1) to determine the sensitivity of vertebrate embryos to certain metals which are of consequence in water pollution, and (2) to ascertain the suitalility of vertebrate embryos as bioassay organisms for monitoring metallic pollutants within water resources. Vertebrate embryos are found to be highly sensitive to the toxic effects of all the metals studied. Concentrations of mercury as low as 10 ppb, with continuous treatment, produced a 100% kill of frog embryos and a significant degree of lethality in chick embryos. Cadmium and lead also produced detectable levels of lethality and/or anomalous development when administered to chick embryos at concentrations of 10 ppb. At 0.5 ppm mercury and cadmium produced 100% lethality in populations of goldfish embryos treated for four days. Lead and zinc were less toxic to the latter, producing approximately 80% lethality under simitar conditions.
These results indicate that vertebrate embryos are substantially more sensitive to metallic pollutants than are adult forms, and that they may constitute a valuable tool for monitoring the quality of water resources.
Funding information: The work on which this report is based was supported in part by funds provided by the Office of Water Resources Research, United States Department of the Interior, as authorized under the Water Resources Research Act of 1964.
Flag statistics from the Ehrhart series of multi-hypersimplices
Creators: name: Han, Guo-Niu
name: Josuat-Vergès, Matthieu
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Combinatorics (math.CO)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: It is known that the normalized volume of standard hypersimplices (defined as some slices of the unit hypercube) are the Eulerian numbers. More generally, a recent conjecture of Stanley relates the Ehrhart series of hypersimplices with descents and excedences in permutations. This conjecture was proved by Nan Li, who also gave a generalization to colored permutations. In this article, we give another generalization to colored permutations, using the flag statistics introduced by Foata and Han. We obtain in particular a new proof of Stanley's conjecture, and some combinatorial identities relating pairs of Eulerian statistics on colored permutations.
description: 18 pages
Case 2: Fire and Explosion at Bituminization Demonstration Facility in 1997
Publisher: name: Online Ethics Center
Year: 2009
Subjects: Catastrophes, Hazards, Disasters
Lab and Workplace Safety
Public Health and Safety
Workplace Ethics
Community Relations

description: Case 2 of Teaching Case Studies of Accidents in Nuclear Energy Development in Japan describes an explosion at Tokai Works of PNC, located in Tokaimura, 140km north of Tokyo.
title: Understanding Antipsychotic Drug Use in the Nursing Home Setting
Creators: name: Lemay, Celeste A.
name: Bonner, Alice F.
name: Compher, Christina
name: Field, Terry S.
name: Freedlander, Jonathan
name: Joslin, Susan
name: Mazor, Kathleen M.
name: Tjia, Jennifer
name: Gurwitz, Jerry H.
Publisher: name: eScholarship@UMMS
Year: 2013

description: Introduction: The increasing prevalence of antipsychotic medication use in residents of nursing homes (NH) in the absence of psychiatric diagnoses is concerning. To address these concerns, it is essential to explore how these medications are being prescribed and managed in the NH setting. Our objectives were to understand the decision-making process that influences prescribing and factors that trigger administration of antipsychotic medications to residents with dementia in NHs and to explore why residents remain on antipsychotic medications over an extended period of time.

Methods: Interviews with prescribers, caregivers, and family members, on-site observations in study facilities, and review of NH resident medical records. Facilities were selected to obtain a diverse sample of NHs.

Results: 204 NH residents with dementia in 26 facilities distributed across five selected Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services regions were included. Problematic behaviors were the dominant reasons offered as influencing prescribing of antipsychotic medications. Providers indicated that they chose an antipsychotic, rather than another drug class, because they believed that antipsychotic medications were more likely to be effective. There was no standard approach to taper attempts. Family members identified a lack of communication as a barrier to their involvement in decision-making.

Conclusions: There is widespread perception that antipsychotic medications are effective and beneficial in managing problematic behaviors in NH residents with dementia. Little attention is given to planning for antipsychotic tapering or discontinuation. There may be opportunities to involve family members more fully in decision-making around the use of antipsychotic medications.
Case 3: Criticality Accident at JCO in 1999
Publisher: name: Online Ethics Center
Year: 2009
Subjects: Catastrophes, Hazards, Disasters
Lab and Workplace Safety
Community Relations
Public Health and Safety

description: Case 3 of Teaching Case Studies of Accidents in Nuclear Energy Development in Japan describes an "irradiation" accident at JCO, a subsidiary of Sumitomo Metal Mining Co.