cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Diabetes sleep treatment trial: Premise, design, and methodology

Abstract The Diabetes Sleep Treatment Trial (DSTT) is a multi-site, double-blinded, randomized, sham-controlled trial. The study objective is to test whether treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment results in improved glycemic control and diabetes self-management behavior compared to participants on a sham-CPAP (sub-therapeutic) device in participants with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and co-morbid OSA. The purpose of this paper is to describe the premise for the DSTT, the study design, and the methodology used in this on-going trial. The target enrollment is 210 randomly assigned participants recruited from two sites. The primary outcome for glucose control is HbA1C; additional outcomes for diabetes self-management include objectively measured steps walked and subjectively measured diabetes-related distress, diabetes empowerment, and diabetes knowledge. All participants receive individual diabetes education and counseling for 6 weeks over two individual sessions and three telephone calls. Participants are randomized to receive either sham or active CPAP for 12 weeks, after which, they “guess” their group assignment; this will assist in determining the success of blinding participants to treatment group assignment. Participants revealed to be on active CPAP will be encouraged to continue CPAP for an additional 12 weeks; participants who had been on sham devices will be encouraged to have a repeat CPAP titration study and to crossover to active CPAP treatment for 24 weeks. An intention-to-treat approach will be used for efficacy analyses. The trial is registered with Clinicaltrials.gov ( NCT01901055 ).
Tissue Fibrosis after Radiation Treatment for Breast Cancer

Radiation-induced fibrosis (RIF) is a late side effect from radiation therapy, occurring 4–12 months after radiation therapy, and can be seen in approximately 5–30% of patients receiving radiation therapy to the breast or chest wall. Typical effects of RIF include decreased tissue compliance, atrophy, skin retraction, and induration. Factors influencing the development of RIF include radiation dose, volume, radiation treatment technique, surgical complications, and the use of chemotherapy. Patient-related factors such as age, breast size, genetic background, and expression of molecular markers during radiation therapy are also associated with the development of RIF. Radiation-induced fibrosis may be partially reversible, and treatment strategies to potentially ameliorate the effects of RIF include physical therapy, medical management, and surgery. However, many of these techniques are preliminary, and further research is necessary before widespread clinical adoption.
Racing Through Life: The Distribution of Time Pressures by Roles and Role Resources Among Full-Time Workers

The intent of this paper is to provide a more detailed answer to the question “who are the time pressured?” than has previously been available. Data was gathered through a telephone survey of residents of the Northeast Ohio region, yielding a sample of 734 full-time workers. Results indicate that the affluent are more time pressured, although education is associated with higher time pressures only among women. High time pressures are related to the number of roles occupied but the nature of experience within these roles—the type of volunteer work, job characteristics, the amount of housework done by a spouse, and satisfaction with daycare arrangements—are important for understanding the relationship between everyday lived experience and high time pressures.
The U.S. housing price bubble: Bernanke versus Taylor

Abstract This paper examines the effects of two major macro-economic forces argued by opposing renowned U.S. economists to have contributed most significantly to the U.S. housing price bubble that preceded the recent global financial crisis. The first force examined, as argued by John Taylor, is the Federal Reserve's loose monetary policy stance from 2002 to 2005. The second force examined, as argued by Ben Bernanke, is the substantial global inflow of capital to the U.S. over the same time period. We develop and estimate a reduced form model for U.S. housing prices, and find evidence consistent with both factors’ contributing significantly to the recent macro-housing price behavior in the U.S.
Tert-Butyldiphenylsilylmethyl Triflate: Preparation and Dipolar Cycloaddition Reactions of 1-(Tert-Butyldiphenylsilylmethyl)-6-Cyano-4-Methyl-1,2,5,6-Tetrahydropyridine

Abstract Alkylation of substituted pyridines with tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl triflate provides N-[tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl]pyridinium triflates in excellent yields. Reductive cyanation of the pyridinium triflates provides 1-(tert-butyldiphenylsilylmethyl)-6-cyano-1,2,5,6-tetrahydropyridines, azomethine ylid precursors, in modest yields. An unexpected dipolar cycloaddition reaction of an ylid derived from the title 6-cyanopiperidine is described.
A Summary of the Effects of Reynolds Number on Drag Divergence for Airfoils Tested in the Langley 0.3-Meter Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel

The direct first order effect of Reynolds number on the determination of drag-divergence conditions is summarized for six airfoils which were tested in the Langley 0.3-Meter Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel. A second order effect, derived through the effect of Reynolds number on the sidewall boundary layer, is included. In addition, a comparison of how the drag divergence condition is affected on going from one class of airfoil to another is presented. The drag-divergence condition is affected first order by Reynolds number for each of the six airfoils and of course all data are affected second order, since the presence of the boundary layer necessitates a sidewall correction.
Disease-driven symptoms and response to chemotherapy in treatment-naive patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

9118 Background: The disease-driven symptoms of treatment-naive patients with advanced NSCLC have not been the primary focus of previous studies. One reason for this gap in the literature is that r...
Acquisition of Typical Occupancy Schedules for Commercial Buildings from Social Networks

Occupancy behavior in buildings has been a hotspot of research as building systems become more sophisticated. Traditional sensing technologies suffer from high costs, inevitable sensor errors, and scalability issues and thus are not widely implemented in buildings. In this notes paper, two different approaches for extracting the typical occupancy schedules for the input to the building energy simulation are explored based on the data from social networks. The first approach is to use text classification algorithms to identify whether people are present in space where they are making posts on social networks. To achieve this, word embedding and machine learning algorithms for the classification are used. On top of that, we could extract the typical occupancy schedules by assuming certain people counting rules. The second approach is to utilize the processed GPS location tracking data provided by social network giants such as Facebook and Google Map. Web scraping techniques are used to obtain the data and extract the building typical occupancy schedules. Two preliminary case studies demonstrate these two approaches as a proof of concept using a museum building, the Art Institute of Chicago. The results show that the extracted building occupancy schedules from different social network data sources (Twitter, Facebook, and Google Map) share a similar trend but slightly distinct with each other, which requires more explorations and further validations and corrections. However, the methodology and promising results from this preliminary study will lay the foundation of the occupancy sensing through the social network data mining, which aims to provide another data source for occupancy sensing in buildings at the building level. This will provide another alternative to estimate the occupancy at the community- and urban-scale.
Multi-scale two-dimensional packed bed reactor model for industrial steam methane reforming

Abstract A non-isothermal heterogeneous steady-state model was developed for a packed bed reactor for steam methane reforming employing a multi-scale approach. The model consists of two-dimensional fluid-phase mass and heat transport equations accounting for axial and radial dispersion in the reactor tube, as well as accounting for mass and heat transfer resistances at the fluid-solid phase boundary, calculated using empirical equations. Reaction, mass and heat transfer in the catalyst particle are directly coupled with the fluid-phase equations using a 1D pellet model, thus avoiding the use of a catalyst effectiveness factor for reaction. The performance of the packed-bed reactor is compared using three pressure drop equations: the Ergun equation which neglects wall effects and the Eisfeld-Schnitzlein and Di Felice-Gibilaro correlations which include them. This multi-scale model also accounts for the effects of temperature, pressure and molar change of gas species due to reaction on superficial velocity using a separate equation. The impact of neglecting these effects through simplified models is evaluated.
Location-Specific Social Norms and Personal Approval of Alcohol Use are Associated with Drinking Behaviors in College Students

Background: Prior research on risky alcohol use points to drinking norms as predictors of drinking behavior. Most research to date has only explored global (versus context-specific) drinking norms ...
Automated high content image analysis of dendritic arborization in primary mouse hippocampal and rat cortical neurons in culture

Abstract Background Primary neuronal cell cultures are useful for studying mechanisms that influence dendritic morphology during normal development and in response to various stressors. However, analyzing dendritic morphology is challenging, particularly in cultures with high cell density, and manual methods of selecting neurons and tracing dendritic arbors can introduce significant bias, and are labor-intensive. To overcome these challenges, semi-automated and automated methods are being developed, with most software solutions requiring computer-assisted dendrite tracing with subsequent quantification of various parameters of dendritic morphology, such as Sholl analysis. However fully automated approaches for classic Sholl analysis of dendritic complexity are not currently available. New Method The previously described Omnisphero software, was extended by adding new functions to automatically assess dendritic mass, total length of the dendritic arbor and the number of primary dendrites, branch points, and terminal tips, and to perform Sholl analysis. Results The new functions for assessing dendritic morphology were validated using primary mouse hippocampal and rat cortical neurons transfected with a fluorescently tagged MAP2 cDNA construct. These functions allow users to select specific populations of neurons as a training set for subsequent automated selection of labeled neurons in high-density cultures. Comparison with Existing Semi-Automated Methods Compared to manual or semi-automated analyses of dendritic arborization, the new functions increase throughput while significantly decreasing researcher bias associated with neuron selection, tracing, and thresholding. Conclusion These results demonstrate the importance of using unbiased automated methods to mitigate experimenter-dependent bias in analyzing dendritic morphology.
Non-volatile electrochemical memory operating near the thermal voltage limit

Neuromorphic computers based on analogue neural networks aim to lower computing power by reducing the need to shuttle data between memory and logic units. Artificial synapses containing nonvolatile analogue conductance states enable direct computation using memory elements; however, most nonvolatile analogue memories require high write voltages and large current densities and are accompanied by nonlinear and unpredictable weight updates. We develop an inorganic redox transistor based on electrochemical lithium-ion insertion into LiXTiO2 that displays linear weight updates at both low current densities and low write voltages. The write voltage, as low as 200 mV at room temperature, is achieved by minimizing the open-circuit voltage and using a low-voltage diffusive memristor selector. We further show that the LiXTiO2 redox transistor can achieve an extremely sharp transistor subthreshold slope of just 40 mV/decade when operating in an electrochemically driven phase transformation.
Buying Time: The AMR Action Fund and the State of Antibiotic Development in the United States 2020

Antimicrobial resistance is a pressing global threat, but companies developing antibiotics are failing. Large pharmaceutical companies recently created the AMR Action Fund, which will invest $1 billion in small antibiotic development companies. To understand the state of antibiotic development in the United States, we conducted a case study of new agents against carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Factors contributing to market failures were slow clinical uptake of drugs despite their effectiveness and safety, relatively small numbers of target infections that are insufficient to support existing drugs economically, and an excess of recently approved and pipeline agents with redundant spectra of activity. The AMR Action Fund will provide an immediate lifeline to companies in danger of failing due to an inability to secure investment, but it will not address issues identified in the case study or fix the antibiotic development model or marketplace. The Fund buys time for reforms to salvage antibiotic development.
Designing with the Mind in Mind: The Psychological Basis of User Interface Design Guidelines

UI design rules and guidelines are not simple recipes. Applying them effectively requires determining rule applicability and precedence and balancing trade-offs when rules compete. By understanding the underlying psychology, designers and evaluators enhance their ability to apply design rules. This two-part (160-minute) course explains that psychology.
A National Cost Analysis of Community Interventions to Prevent Underage Drinking and Prescription Drug Misuse.

This prospective cost analysis addresses a gap in the prevention literature by providing estimates of the typical real-world costs to implement community interventions focused on preventing underage drinking and prescription drug misuse. The study uses cost data reported by more than 400 community subrecipients participating in a national cross-site evaluation of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Success grant program during 2013–2017. Community subrecipient organizations completed an annual Web-based survey to report their intervention costs. The analysis compares the relative startup and annual ongoing implementation costs of different prevention strategies and services. Partnerships for Success communities implemented a wide variety of interventions. Annual ongoing implementation was typically more costly than intervention startup. Costs were generally similar for population-level interventions, such as information dissemination and environmental strategies, and individual-level interventions, such as prevention education and positive alternative activities. However, population-level interventions reached considerably more people and consequently had much lower costs per person. Personnel contributed the most to intervention costs, followed by intervention supplies and overhead. Startup costs for initial training and costs for incentives, ongoing training, and in-kind contributions (nonlabor) during ongoing implementation were not typically reported. This study informs prevention planning by providing detailed information about the costs of classes of interventions used in communities, outside of research settings.
IFT20 is critical for early chondrogenesis during endochondral ossification

Ciliogenic components, such as the family of intraflagellar transport (IFT) proteins, are recognized to play key roles in endochondral ossification, a critical process to form most bones. However, it remains unclear how each IFT protein performs its unique function to regulate endochondral ossification. Here, we show that intraflagellar transport 20 (IFT20) is required for early chondrogenesis. Utilizing three osteo-chondrocyte lineage-specific Cre mice (Prx1-Cre, Col2-Cre and Aggrecan-CreERT2), we deleted Ift20 to examine its function. While chondrocyte-specific Ift20 deletion with Col2-Cre or Aggrecan-CreERT2 drivers did not cause overt skeletal defects, mesoderm-specific Ift20 deletion using Prx1-Cre (Ift20:Prx1-Cre) resulted in shortened limb outgrowth. Although primary cilia were not formed in Ift20:Prx1-Cre mice, ciliary Hedgehog signaling was only moderately affected. Interestingly, loss of Ift20 lead to upregulation of Fgf18 expression resulting in ERK1/2 activation and sustained Sox9 expression, thus preventing endochondral ossification. Inhibition of enhanced phospho-ERK1/2 activation partially rescued defective chondrogenesis in Ift20 mutant cells, supporting an important role for FGF signaling. Our findings demonstrate a novel mechanism of IFT20 in early chondrogenesis during endochondral ossification.
Timing of intervention and complications of tunneled peritoneal catheter placement for recurrent malignant ascites in ovarian cancer patients

Objectives: In ovarian cancer patients, recurrent malignant ascites reduces quality of life and is associated with a poor prognosis. There is a lack of guidance in the literature regarding the placement of a tunneled peritoneal catheter in this patient population. We evaluated the outcomes of ovarian cancer patients who underwent tunneled peritoneal catheter placement for recurrent malignant ascites. Methods: We queried the institutional interventional radiology records from 5/2009 to 5/2020 for female patients with ovarian cancer who had a tunneled peritoneal catheter placed for malignant ascites. We evaluated patient characteristics, number of paracentesis procedures recorded prior to placement, complications, and the time between placement and death. Descriptive statistics were performed. Results: 30 patients were identified. The mean age was 68 (range, 42-88). 77% of patients were White and the average BMI was 26. 56.7% of patients had stage IIIC ovarian cancer and the 83.3% had papillary serous adenocarcinoma. Patients had a mean of four lines (range, 0-11) of chemotherapy before undergoing tunneled peritoneal catheter placement. The mean number of paracentesis performed prior to peritoneal catheter placement was two (range, 0-6). There were six minor complications (20%), including two catheter-related infections requiring removal and four instances of catheter dysfunction requiring revision. The median time of catheter placement to death was 44 days (range, 3-151). Conclusions: The complication rate of tunneled peritoneal catheter placement is low, as evidenced by no major complications found in this patient population. The short period from catheter placement until patient death suggests that tunneled peritoneal catheters should be pursued earlier in the disease course if patients have symptomatic, recurrent ascites.
The use of intravascular lithotripsy in conjunction with transcarotid artery revascularization for high grade carotid artery stenosis

Abstract Transcarotid artery revascularization (TCAR) with dynamic flow reversal has been shown to be safe and effective in preventing stroke during carotid artery stenting (CAS), and has offered a less invasive option for carotid revascularization. Heavily calcified lesions has been a relative contraindication for carotid stenting in the past, although the use of intravascular lithotripsy (IVL)- a process of sonic pressure that fractures the calcium deposits has been shown to be effective in treating calcified lesions in arteries. When compared to carotid endarterectomy, TCAR has been shown to have similar complication rates for stroke and mortality and fewer complications when compared to transfemoral carotid artery stenting Herein, we describe a case of utilizing IVL to treat highly calcified carotid lesions before TCAR for a patient who otherwise would be a high-risk surgical patient.
Effect of Mo on the microstructure and mechanical properties of (Hf0.73Ta0.27)100-XMoX (X = 0, 5, 16, 21 and 30 at.%) alloys

Abstract Microstructure and compression properties of (Hf0.73Ta0.27)100-XMoX alloys, where X = 0, 5, 16, 21 and 30 at. %, are reported. The alloys were prepared by vacuum arc melting and hot isostatically pressed at 207 MPa for 3 h at 1400 °C. The alloys with 0, 5, 16 and 21 at. % Mo contained two phases, BCC and HCP, while the alloy with 30 at. % Mo contained three phases, BCC, HCP and cubic Laves (C15). The Hf73Ta27, Hf69Ta26Mo5 and Hf61Ta23Mo16 alloys experienced eutectoid transformation with the formation of a mixture of Hf-rich HCP and Ta-rich BCC phases. The volume fraction of the eutectoid regions decreased from 55% to 0% with increasing Mo from 0 to 21 at.%. The alloy with 30% Mo (Hf51Ta19Mo30) experienced eutectoid transformation with the formation of a mixture of the Mo-rich cubic Laves (C15) phase and Hf-rich HCP phase. The volume fraction of the eutectoidally transformed regions in Hf51Ta19Mo30 was ~20%. Among the studied alloys, Hf73Ta27 had the highest room temperature yield stress of 1738 MPa. The yield stress continuously decreased with increasing Mo concentration to 1468 MPa at 16% Mo and then increased to 1672 MPa at 30% Mo. The room temperature ductility strongly depended on the amount of Mo. The maximum true fracture strain of 0.137 was achieved in Hf69Ta26Mo5, but it rapidly decreased to 0.027 in Hf51Ta19Mo30. All the studied alloys were ductile at 1000–1400 °C and no fracture was observed after 0.7 true strain. The yield stress increased almost linearly with increasing the amount of Mo at these high temperatures.
Atherosclerotic Plaque Characterization in Humans with ARFI Variance of Acceleration: Blinded Reader Study

Stroke is commonly caused by thromboembolic events originating from atherosclerotic plaques in the carotid vasculature. To improve stroke risk prediction by delineating vulnerable plaque features, our group has developed ARFI Variance of Acceleration log(VoA) imaging. We herein evaluate the ability of trained, blinded readers to interpret in vivo ARFI log(VoA) images of human carotid plaques, with validation by matched histology. Patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy were imaged using a Siemens S3000 and a 9L4 transducer. From 21 plaques, one was excluded due to specimen damage during surgery. Parametric 2D images of ARFI log(VoA) were rendered and evaluated by 3 neuroradiologists, 1 abdominal radiologist, 1 sonographer, and 1 pathologist, all blinded to the histological gold standard. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed, and area under the curve (AUC) was taken as a metric of performance for detecting lipid-rich necrotic core (LRNC), intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH), collagen (COL), and calcium (CAL). Reader log(VoA) outcomes were compared to those achieved using ARFI peak displacement (PD) in a comparable prior study. Average AUC performance for plaque features were as follows: CAL, 0.77; COL, 0.76; LRNC, 0.79; IPH, 0.82. Grouping the stiff (COL and CAL) and soft (LRNC and IPH) features together increased average AUCs to 0.86 for stiff and 0.87 for soft. These log(VoA) AUC outcomes were higher than those achieved by blinded readers evaluating ARFI PD images. This study shows the relevance of ARFI log(VoA) imaging, as interpreted by trained, blinded readers, to delineating the structure and composition of carotid atherosclerotic plaque in humans, in vivo.
Cash Hedging Motivates Information Sharing in Supply Chains

We study the interplay between firms’ information sharing behaviors and cash hedging strategies in supply chains. First, we argue that if an information-sharing channel is built up to guide supplier’s cash hedging strategies, then voluntary market information sharing from retailer to supplier may take place when information rent on cost reduction effect of hedging, i.e., the effect of reduced expected cost attained by a more informed supplier via cash hedging outweighs the summation of information rent on flexibility loss of hedging, i.e., the effect of losing contingent production opportunity by a more informed supplier after cash hedging, and wholesale cost of information sharing, i.e., more exploitative wholesale price by a more informed supplier. Second, we find that for homogeneous Cournot-competing retailers, asymmetric information-sharing outcomes could emerge as equilibrium, and building up an information-sharing channel typically will not hurt, and sometimes it can achieve Pareto improvement of the supply chain and consumer welfare. Third, when a single supplier serves multiple markets, the heterogeneity across market sizes and the correlation among market shocks play big roles in shaping the equilibrium. Especially in a simultaneous information-sharing game, greater market size heterogeneity, and negatively correlated market shocks are more likely to result in the nonexistence of pure Nash equilibrium. When the Stackelberg sequence is introduced, greater market size heterogeneity and positively correlated market shocks are more likely to induce information sharing in the equilibrium. Furthermore, in the multi-market setting, the existence of an information-sharing channel could hurt retailers, the system as a whole, and consumer welfare.
A multi-institutional analysis of prehospital tourniquet use.

BACKGROUNDRecent military studies demonstrated an association between prehospital tourniquet use and increased survival. The benefits of this prehospital intervention in a civilian population remain unclear. The aims of our study were to evaluate tourniquet use in the civilian population and to comp
A short construction of highly chromatic digraphs without short cycles

A natural digraph analogue of the graph-theoretic concept of an `independent set' is that of an `acyclic set', namely a set of vertices not spanning a directed cycle. Hence a digraph analogue of a graph coloring is a decomposition of the vertex set into acyclic sets. In the spirit of a famous theorem of P. Erd\H{o}s [Graph theory and probability, Canad. J. Math. {\bf11} (1959), 34--38], it was shown probabilistically in [D. Bokal et al., The circular chromatic number of a digraph, J. Graph Theory {\bf46} (2004), no. 3, 227--240] that there exist digraphs with arbitrarily large girth and chromatic number. Here we give a construction of such digraphs.
Adapting Scholarship Reconsidered and Scholarship Assessed to Evaluate University of Wisconsin-Extension Outreach Faculty for Tenure and Promotion

A defining feature of American higher education at the end of the twentieth century has been the dialogue at and among universities about how to re-engage more productively with their local and regional communities. One component of that discussion is how to recognize and reward “the scholarship of engagement”—scholarly activity that is both grounded in the best current research and teaching and aimed at contributing to practical solutions to real problems. Just over a decade ago the University of Wisconsin–Extension embarked on a journey to address that dilemma. This article details how an institution can build on the core principles presented in Boyer’s Scholarship Reconsidered (1990) and Glassick, Huber, and Maeroff’s Scholarship Assessed (1997) to develop a robust definition of the scholarship of engagement and a rigorous model to assess it.
Ideological Constructs through the Medium of Fiction in Kafka's “In der Strafkolonie”

“In der Strafkolonie” offers a highly effective fictionalized account of the overarching potency of power structures, as well as of the intrinsically ideological nature of power as such. Kafka's story could then be said to function as a critique of ideology, one whose implied conclusion coincides, to some extent, with that postulated by Louis Althusser in his essay “Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses.” The first half of this article explores the parallels between the two texts, focusing on two main lines of inquiry: the semantic and metaphoric reverberations between Kafka's literalized apparatus and Althusser's notion of ideological state apparatuses, and the two accounts' thematic and conceptual preoccupation with the self-reproducing and ultimately empty structure of institutional power. The second half of this article, however, explores the ways in which the fictional status of Kafka's text allows for an ideology critique that is far more effective and revealing than Althusser's theoretical one...
Abstract 14: Poor Physical Activity is Associated with Subclinical Myocardial Injury in Obese Adults

Background: Obesity is associated with myocardial injury and subsequent heart failure (HF). Higher physical activity (PA) is associated with reduced risk of HF among individuals with obesity, but the mechanisms for this protective association remain poorly understood. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that low levels of PA would be independently associated with a higher prevalence of subclinical myocardial injury among obese individuals, as assessed by a high-sensitivity assay for cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT). Methods: We evaluated 9,845 ARIC participants without cardiovascular disease at Visit 4 (1996-99) and with body-mass index (BMI) >18.5 kg/m2. PA was assessed at Visit 3 (1993-95) using a modified Baecke questionnaire. The sports indices were converted into minutes per week of moderate or vigorous exercise, and categorized as per AHA guidelines as: recommended (≥150 min/wk of moderate + vigorous intensity or ≥75 min/wk of vigorous intensity); intermediate (1-149 min/wk of moderate + vigorous intensity or 1-74 min/wk of vigorous intensity); or poor (0 min/wk of moderate or vigorous exercise). BMI was also assessed at Visit 3. The primary outcome was elevated hs-cTnT (>14 ng/L) measured at Visit 4. We constructed multivariable logistic regression models to assess the association of PA and obesity with elevated hs-cTnT. Results: After multivariable regression, relative to recommended PA, poor PA was associated with elevated hs-cTnT (OR 1.33, 95% CI: 1.09-1.61). In analyses stratified by obesity status, lower PA levels were associated with subclinical myocardial injury among non-obese and obese participants (p for trend <0.02 in both groups). Among obese participants, those with recommended PA levels had the lowest likelihood of myocardial injury (Table). Conclusion: Low PA was associated with prevalent subclinical chronic myocardial injury as manifested by elevated hs-cTnT. This may help explain the possible protection conferred by PA against the development of HF in obese individuals. ![][1] [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif
Anaerobic activation of toluene and o-xylene by addition to fumarate in denitrifying strain T.

Anaerobic assays conducted with strain T, a denitrifying bacterium capable of mineralizing toluene to carbon dioxide, demonstrated that toluene-grown, permeabilized cells catalyzed the addition of toluene to fumarate to form benzylsuccinate. This reaction was not dependent on the presence of coenzyme A (CoA) or ATP. In the presence of CoA, formation of E-phenylitaconate from benzylsuccinate was also observed. Kinetic studies demonstrated that the specific rate of benzylsuccinate formation from toluene and fumarate in assays with permeabilized cells was >30% of the specific rate of toluene consumption in whole-cell suspensions with nitrate; this observation suggests that benzylsuccinate formation may be the first reaction in anaerobic toluene degradation by strain T. Use of deuterium-labeled toluene and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry indicated that the H atom abstracted from the toluene methyl group during addition to fumarate was retained in the succinyl moiety of benzylsuccinate. In this study, no evidence was found to support previously proposed reactions of toluene with acetyl-CoA or succinyl-CoA. Toluene-grown, permeabilized cells of strain T also catalyzed the addition of o-xylene to fumarate to form (2-methylbenzyl)succinate. o-Xylene is not a growth substrate for strain T, and its transformation was probably cometabolic. With the exception of specific reaction rates, the observed characteristics of the toluene-fumarate addition reaction (i.e., retention of a methyl H atom and independence from CoA and ATP) also apply to the o-xylene-fumarate addition reaction. Thus, addition to fumarate may be a biochemical strategy to anaerobically activate a range of methylbenzenes.
Productivity measurement in contract–oriented service organizations

The measurement of productivity in the service sector remains highly complex and difficult, primarily because output is intangible and often ill–defined. This paper is aimed at the development of a methodology for measuring the productivity of engineering and technical (contract–oriented) organizations. The approach presented has been implemented in a major technical installation company in the Southeast USA. The approach offers technical managers a tested tool for the management of productivity, and can be applied in other contract based organizations such as defence contractors, uitility contractors, building contractors, electrical contractors, etc.
Evolution of the social contract

Preface to the second edition Preface to the original edition Acknowledgments 1. Sex and justice 2. Fairness and commitment 3. Mutual aid 4. Correlated convention 5. The evolution of meaning Postscript Notes References Index.
Orientation estimation via low cost depth sensor ICP versus MEMS gyroscope sensor fusion

Working implementations of 3D simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) using low cost depth sensors have exploded in popularity in recent years but remain limited in some important ways. In particular, they are not robust to rapid changes in orientation and can accumulate significant error with just a single gradual turn into a new scene. In this work we integrate and compare the Kinfu iterative closest point (ICP) based SLAM implementation from the Point Cloud Library with a hybrid optical-based inertial tracker (HObIT). In three separate experiments we find the HObIT to be far more accurate and robust to both slow and rapid changes in orientation. We therefore propose the integration of precision calibrated MEMS inertial sensors into existing low cost SLAM solutions for far more practical and robust solutions.
Audit pricing and auditor industry specialization in an emerging market: Evidence from China

Abstract In this paper we examine the determinants of audit fees by focusing on auditor industry specialization and second tier auditors in the Chinese market. We find evidence of Big 4 premiums for brand name as well as industry specialization in both the statutory and supplementary market. Big 4 industry specialists earn additional premiums in the statutory market as compared to non-industry specialists. We also find that market expansion did not provide the second tier auditors any price advantage. These auditors increased their market share mainly in the mid- and small-sized clienteles. Moreover, industry experience developed by the second tier firms may have helped them gain economy of scale and reduce service fees. This may be their strategy to win future clients that seek low-priced audits.
Time-critical information services: analysis and workshop findings on technology, organizational, and policy dimensions to emergency response and related e-governmental services

This paper discusses a general framework for understanding and researching end-to-end performance of inter-organizational e-governmental services and reports the findings from an expert workshop held at the National Center for Digital Government. The focus of this paper is on time-critical information services (TCIS) - the medical necessity to deliver emergency services as rapidly as possible coupled with the dependence of these services upon accurate and timely information from multiple organizations. The authors outline a TCIS model and then discuss an invitational workshop that allowed for expert (academic and practitioner) input and feedback on TCIS dimensions and the best means for understanding their occurrence in on-the-ground emergency services. Workshop participants analyzed TCIS from a socio-technical perspective and provided conceptual, practitioner and methodological critiques and suggestions. Overall, participants found the concept of TCIS to be a valid model for understanding, researching, and developing e-government systems within the specific context of emergency response as well as within the broader context of time-critical services to the public. Workshop recommendations focused on the need to closely assess inter-agency and inter-organizational information exchanges along and between three levels: technical, organizational, and governance. The paper concludes with a discussion about future research directions based on the analytical framework and workshop findings.
Increased Levels of Inositol Hexakisphosphate (InsP6) Protect HEK293 Cells from Tumor Necrosis Factor α- and Fas-induced Apoptosis

The overexpression of inositol 1,3,4-trisphosphate 5/6-kinase has recently been shown to protect HEK293 cells from tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα)-induced apoptosis. This overexpression leads to an increase in the levels of both inositol 1,3,4,5,6-pentakisphosphate (InsP5) and inositol 1,2,3,4,5,6-hexakisphosphate (InsP6). Cells that overexpress InsP5 2-kinase have increased levels of InsP6 and are also protected from TNFα-induced apoptosis; furthermore, cells that express an RNA interference construct to the 2-kinase are deficient in InsP6 and are sensitized to TNFα-induced apoptosis. Therefore the protective effect of 5/6-kinase on TNFα-mediated apoptosis is due to an increase of InsP6 or to a metabolite derived from InsP6. Furthermore, we find that the InsP6 also protects from Fas-mediated apoptosis. No effect was seen in the endocytic rate of transferrin receptor, caspase 8 activity, or TNF receptor number at the cell surface. Cells that overexpress 2-kinase do show an increase in the amount of receptor-interacting protein (RIP), while cells with reduced InsP6 levels show relatively less RIP, providing a possible mechanism for the effect on apoptosis.
Acoustic radiation from plates excited by flow noise

Theoretical formulation of noise radiation from thin, rectangular, flexible plates excited by turbulent wall pressure fluctuations. An extensive parametric study including surface roughness and both plate and flow parameters is presented. From the results, presented graphically, it is possible to predict the spectrum of the total radiated power provided that the power spectral density of the wall-pressure fluctuations, the flow velocity, the plate dimensions and the plate modal damping parameters are known. Along with the parametric study, an estimate of the dependence of the noise radiation on plate boundary conditions based on a consideration of the wavenumber-frequency selectivity of the plate is presented. The parametric study is based on the assumption that the wave number/frequency spectrum of the wall-pressure fluctuations can be described by a Fourier transform of a Corcos model of the cross spectral density. The results indicate that at frequencies above the hydrodynamic-coincidence frequency the radiated power is dependent on the low-wave-number spectrum of the excitation. The dependence on the high-wave-number spectrum, however, is limited to a narrow band of frequencies below the hydrodynamic-coincidence frequency.
Corticobasal Ganglionic Degeneration and Progressive Supranuclear Palsy: Clinical and Speech-Language Characteristics

Abstract Purpose: The purpose of this article is to present a brief description of the neuroanatomical correlates, pathophysiology, and clinical presentation of corticobasal ganglionic degeneration...
Sharing the Importance of Attentive Listening Skills

This article describes a first-day, in-class exercise that has worked to elevate student awareness of the importance of attentive listening to achieving interpersonal success. Small groups of students answer one of six questions about the impact of the listener's behavior on speakers, and class discussion revolves around their answers. Students learn how important it is to consciously manage listening behavior. This exercise is also an outstanding springboard for introducing topics the professor will discuss later in the semester, including supporting, coaching, disciplining, interviewing, and team building.
The effect of annealing atmosphere on the thermoluminescence of synthetic calcite

Abstract Samples of high purity calcite powder were annealed in air, nitrogen and carbon dioxide atmospheres in the temperature range 300–700°C and in atmospheric pressure. The samples were subsequently irradiated and the effect of the annealing atmosphere and temperature on the thermoluminescence (TL) of the samples was studied. Our results show that both carbonate and oxygen ions play an important part in the TL of calcite annealed in this temperature range. The intensities of the TL signal in the nitrogen and carbon dioxide anneals rise continuously with the annealing temperature. For all annealing temperatures it was found that the carbon dioxide atmosphere caused an increase in the observed TL signal as compared with anneals in an inert nitrogen atmosphere, while the shape of the TL glow curves remained the same. This increase in the observed TL signal is explained via the surface adsorption of carbonate ions. The shape and location of the TL peaks suggest that samples annealed in air exhibit a different type of TL center than samples annealed in nitrogen and carbon dioxide atmospheres. A possible mechanism for the role of oxygen ions involves a surface adsorption process and a subsequent diffusion of oxygen ions in the bulk of the crystal. Annealing of the samples in air at temperatures T >600°C causes a collapse of the TL signal, in agreement with previous studies of calcite powders. No such collapse of the TL signal is observed for the nitrogen and carbon dioxide anneals, suggesting that a different type of TL center and/or recombination center is involved in air anneals. Arrhenius plots for the air anneals yield an activation energy E =0.45±0.05 eV, while the carbon dioxide and nitrogen anneals yield a lower activation energy E =0.28±0.04 eV.
What Managers Must Know to Conduct Business in Brazil

Before conducting business in Brazil, a business person should become familiar with its commercial and economic environment as much as possible. This entails attaining a general knowledge of its culture, its laws, level of development, and how these factors affect one's ability to transact business there. Brazil is the largest and most developed country in Latin America. Its uniqueness demands respect for its complexity. No‐one should take it for granted by assuming that it is nothing more than another third world country of overcrowded slums.
Longitudinal changes in PON1 enzymatic activities in Mexican-American mothers and children with different genotypes and haplotypes

article i nfo Organophosphate Pesticides Pregnancy Children The paraoxonase 1 (PON1) enzyme prevents low-density lipoprotein oxidation and also detoxifies the oxon derivatives of certain neurotoxic organophosphate (OP) pesticides. PON1 activity in infants is low compared to adults, rendering them with lower metabolic and antioxidant capacities. We made a longitudinal comparison of the role of genetic variability on control of PON1 phenotypes in Mexican-American mothers and their children at the time of delivery (n=388 and 338, respectively) and again 7 years later (n=280 and 281, respectively) using generalized estimating equations models. At age 7, children's mean PON1 activities were still lower than those of mothers. This difference was larger in children with genotypes associated with low PON1 activities (PON1−108TT, PON1192QQ, and PON1−909CC). In mothers, PON1 activities were elevated at delivery and during pregnancy compared to 7 years later when they were not pregnant (pb0.001). In non- pregnant mothers, PON1 polymorphisms and haplotypes accounted for almost 2-fold more variation of arylesterase (AREase) and chlorpyrifos-oxonase (CPOase) activity than in mothers at delivery. In both mothers and children, the five PON1 polymorphisms (192, 55, −108, −909, −162) explained a noticeably larger proportion of variance of paraoxonase activity (62-78%) than AREase activity (12.3-26.6%). Genetic control of PON1 enzymatic activity varies in children compared to adults and is also affected by pregnancy status. In addition to known PON1 polymorphisms, unidentified environmental, genetic, or epigenetic factors may also influence variability of PON1 expression and therefore susceptibility to OPs and oxidative stress.
Effects of Recycled Asphalt Pavement Amounts on Low-Temperature Cracking Performance of Asphalt Mixtures Using Acoustic Emissions:

Significant increases in the cost of asphalt paving and increased awareness of the need for sustainable infrastructure in recent years have in turn increased the use of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) in the manufacture of hot-mix asphalt (HMA). The use of RAP reduces the overall cost of HMA and provides significant environmental benefits. Experience has shown, however, that the addition of RAP to HMA can have a negative effect on the low-temperature fracture characteristics of the pavement. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of RAP amounts on the low-temperature cracking performance of asphalt mixtures. Different percentages of RAP material, ranging from 0% to 50%, were studied. The embrittlement temperature of mixtures was determined with the use of an acoustic emissions technique. The disk-shaped compact tension [DC(T)] test was used to determine the fracture energy of asphalt mixtures. DC(T) fracture tests were conducted on two control mixtures with no RAP and mixtures that contain...