cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ga distribution and adhesion issues in selenization of metallic Cu-Ga-In precursors

A Three-step selenization process consisting of H 2 Se/Ar/H 2 Se reaction was employed to mitigate adhesion and Ga homogeneity problems in the formation of Cu(InGa)Se 2 films. In particular, reaction conditions for the 3rd step have been experimentally optimized to address these issues. The Cu(InGa)Se 2 films prepared by three-step selenization using H 2 Se/Ar/H 2 Se sequentially at 400/550/500 °C with the reaction times of 30/20/(20–30) min had good adhesion to Mo and survived the chemical bath deposition of CdS. Additionally, EDS, XRD and AES analyses show significantly improved Ga homogeneity through the depth of the film. However, AES results indicate Ga depletion near the surface where it matters, also evidenced by low VOC in J-V plot.
Stable circularly-polarized emission from vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

A vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) comprising a polarization-selective chiral reflector was designed, fabricated, and tested. Stable, single-mode, circularly-polarized (CP) lasing oscillation was achieved, for the first time, in a VCSEL cavity.
Effects of Environmental Temperature and Humidity During Growth on Muscle Properties of Two Porcine Breeds

SUMMARY Studies were conducted on the muscle properties of pigs reared in one of several combinations of environmental temperature and humidity. Longissimus dorsi muscle of pigs reared in alternating temperatures (29 and 18°C) was inferior in structure to that of pigs reared in 29 or 18°C constant temperatures if the relative humidity was low (30%). High relative humidity (85%) during growth tended to improve muscle structure and tenderness (68 and 72°C cooking temperature), regardless of environmental temperature. Breed-treatment interactions for muscle structure score indicated that Poland China and Hampshire pigs differed in response to environment. Breed comparisons over all treatments revealed that muscle from Poland China pigs was less tender than muscle from Hampshire pigs when it was heated to 60°C. The data on tenderness suggest that the major environmental effects were exerted on the muscle constituents which are susceptible to high cooking temperatures (protein hardening range) whereas the breed differences were evident at low cooking temperatures (collagen shrinkage range).
Illusory Contour-motion Arising from Translating Terminators

Periodic grating patterns were created by phase shifting or eliminating vertical columns of a fine line carrier grating oriented 45 deg. Motion was created by translating the patterns parallel to the carrier grating. This veridical motion was seen when terminators (i) were created in low-frequency carriers; (ii) terminated short lines; and (iii) moved slowly. In the complementary conditions an illusory contour-motion was seen perpendicular to the orientation of the terminator-defined contours. A model involving a competition between second-layer filters (encoding the orientation and motions of the terminator defined contours) and double endstopped mechanisms (signalling the presence of terminators) was developed and found to be in quantitative agreement with these data. Experiments with plaids composed of two such patterns were generally consistent with the results of the one-dimensional cases. Coherent "subjective contour plaid" motion was almost always seen when the two subjective contours had the same orientation and were perfectly phase aligned.
Velocity of flow in natural streams

Object of paper—The object of this paper is to discuss some of the laws and characteristics of the velocity of flow of natural streams. This will include both a discussion of theory and of some of the common formulae for velocity and also the results of studies of velocity made upon the Delaware River in connection with the recent case of New Jersey vs. New York before the United States Supreme Court. A comparison of the results of these velocity studies with velocities obtained by float-measurements through the entire length of this River will also be given, as well as a discussion of such velocities as compared with those of a flood wave passing down the River.
Stable isotopes of fossil teeth corroborate key general circulation model predictions for the Last Glacial Maximum in North America

[1] Oxygen isotope data provide a key test of general circulation models (GCMs) for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) in North America, which have otherwise proved difficult to validate. High δ18O pedogenic carbonates in central Wyoming have been interpreted to indicate increased summer precipitation sourced from the Gulf of Mexico. Here we show that tooth enamel δ18O of large mammals, which is strongly correlated with local water and precipitation δ18O, is lower during the LGM in Wyoming, not higher. Similar data from Texas, California, Florida and Arizona indicate higher δ18O values than in the Holocene, which is also predicted by GCMs. Tooth enamel data closely validate some recent models of atmospheric circulation and precipitation δ18O, including an increase in the proportion of winter precipitation for central North America, and summer precipitation in the southern US, but suggest aridity can bias pedogenic carbonate δ18O values significantly.
Development of an interactive computer program for advance care planning

Objective To describe the development of an innovative, multi-media decision aid for advance care planning. Background Advance care planning is an important way for people to articulate their wishes for medical care when they are not able to speak for themselves. Living wills and other types of advance directives are the most commonly used tools for advance care planning, but have been criticized for being vague, difficult to interpret, and inconsistent with individuals’ core beliefs and values. Results We developed a multimedia, computer-based decision aid for advance care planning (‘Making Your Wishes Known: Planning Your Medical Future’) to overcome many of the limitations of standard advance directive forms. This computer program guides individuals through the process of advance care planning, and unlike standard advance directives, provides tailored education, values clarification exercises, and a decision-making tool that translates an individual’s values and preferences into a specific medical plan that can be implemented by a health-care team. Pilot testing with 50 adult volunteers recruited from an outpatient primary care clinic showed high levels of satisfaction with the program. Further pilot testing with 34 cancer patients indicated that the program was perceived to be highly accurate at representing patients’ wishes. Conclusions This paper describes the development of an innovative decision aid for advance care planning that was designed to overcome common problems with standard advance directives. Preliminary testing suggests that it is acceptable to users and is accurate.
Compliance and comprehension in very young toddlers.

We studied the relation of compliance with comprehension in 30 toddlers, 10 each at 12–13, 14–16, and 17–18 months of age. Requests, using preselected words, were made to children in the context of a naturalistic and pleasant play situation in a quasilaboratory setting. Detailed coding systems were used to define comprehension, compliance, and patterns of compliance-comprehension, noncompliance-comprehension, compliance-noncomprehension, and noncompliance-noncomprehension at each age period. Findings indicated significant shifts in the categories of compliance-comprehension and noncompliance-noncomprehension across the 3 ages, with the most striking change occurring between 14–16 and 17–18 months. Implications of the data are discussed.
Isolation and characterization of S49 lymphoma cells deficient in beta-adrenergic receptors: relation of receptor number to activation of adenylate cyclase.

Variant S49 lymphoma cells that have a diminished response to beta -adrenergic amines were selected from wild-type clones, using the beta -adrenergic agonist terbutaline in the presence of phosphodiesterase inhibitors. Variants (termed beta p variants) having approximately 50% of wild-type beta -adrenergic receptors and 50% catecholamine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity relative to wild-type were isolated in a single step selection. When these beta p variants were mutagenized and subjected to a second round of selection with terbutaline and phosphodiesterase inhibitors, receptor deficient variants (termed beta d ) expressing 10-30% of wild-type beta -adrenergic receptors and responsiveness to isoproterenol were isolated. Two independent beta p clones and the respective beta d clones selected from them were characterized with respect to their adenylate cyclase and receptor properties. Both beta p and beta d variant cells demonstrated a diminished response to isoproterenol and an increased response to PGE 1 relative to wild-type. Membranes from all four receptor-deficient clones responded normally to Gpp(NH)p, NaF, and PGE 1 . The density of beta -adrenergic receptors in membranes measured by the specific binding of [ 125 I]IHYP was between 40 and 65%, relative to wild-type, for clones beta p1 and beta p2 and from 10 to 30% in beta d1 and beta d2 . The dissociation constant for agonist and antagonist binding was the same for receptor-deficient and wild-type membranes. A direct relationship was obtained between beta -adrenergic receptor number and maximal activation of adenylate cyclase, indicating that beta -adrenergic receptor number limits the maximal activation of adenylate cyclase by catecholamines. These results conflict with the finding that isoproterenol stimulates S49 adenylate cyclase at concentrations well below those required to produce an equivalent fractional occupancy of receptors. The beta p and beta d phenotypes rule out an explanation of this discrepancy that depends on a number of receptors in excess of that required for maximal stimulation.
Deposition of Thin Insulating films by Plasma Enhanced CVD

We discuss a new low temperature process for the deposition of electronic quality thin films of silicon oxide and nitride. In contrast to conventional plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition [PECVD], this process involves the remote excitation of one of the gas reactants followed by the extraction of the active species out of the plasma region where they react to generate precursor molecules. The precursors undergo a CVD reaction at a heated substrate to form the desired thin film. The process is called remote PECVD [RPECVD]. Insulators produced in this way show significant reductions in the incorporation of impurity groups such as SiH and SiOH relative to films grown by the PECVD process at the same substrate temperatures.
A Most Significant and Satisfactory Report: The Experimental College

(1933). A Most Significant and Satisfactory Report: The Experimental College. The Journal of Higher Education: Vol. 4, No. 3, pp. 161-161.
The Golden Hours of AKI: Is Oxygen Delivery the Key?

Throughout various fields of scientific investigation, including neonatology and trauma medicine, the idea of the golden hour of treatment has long been debated ([1][1]–[3][2]). Defined as an interval most critical for successful emergency treatment and improved patient outcomes, the golden hour(s
Prevalence of Diabetes among Residents in a Town of Qingpu District,Shanghai

[Objective]To determine the prevalence and risk factors of diabetes among 35-74 years old residents in a town of Qingpu District in Shanghai.[Methods]A cross-sectional survey for diabetes was performed among 1 000 local residents of 35-74 years old from a village by a stratified random sampling approach.Oral glucose tolerance test(OGTT)was set for the screening strategy.[Results]The standardized prevalences of diabetes mellitus,impaired glucose tolerance,impaired fast glucose and impaired glucose regulation were 7.17%,1.14%,10.6%and 11.8%repectively.The diabetes mellitus prevalence of female residents was higher than those of male(11.3%vs.6.7%,P0.05).The prevalence of diabetes increased along with age. Age,sex,obesity,hypertension,hyperlipidemia and family history were the risk factors of diabetes mellitus.[Conclusion]The prevalence of diabetes mellitus inthe selected town of Qingpu District was significantly higher than the national average level in 1997.Urbanization and aging could relate to the increase of diabetes mellitus prevalence.
A Reflector Antenna Generating a Pin Beam and a Fan Beam

A shaped reflector which can be used as a pin-beam antenna and a fan-beam antenna is presented.The gains and the radiation patterns of the shaped reflector are achieved by calculation.E-plane and H-plane half-power beamwidth of the pin-beam antenna in a particular case is 2.320 and 2.240 respectively;E-plane and H-plane half-power beamwidth of the fan-beam antenna in the particular case is 2.010 and 6.40 respectively.
Leveraging multiple cues for recognizing family photos

Social relation analysis via images is a new research area that has attracted much interest recently. As social media usage increases, a wide variety of information can be extracted from the growing number of consumer photos shared online, such as the category of events captured or the relationships between individuals in a given picture. Family is one of the most important units in our society, thus categorizing family photos constitutes an essential step toward image-based social analysis and content-based retrieval of consumer photos. We propose an approach that combines multiple unique and complimentary cues for recognizing family photos. The first cue analyzes the geometric arrangement of people in the photograph, which characterizes scene-level information with efficient yet discriminative capability. The second cue models facial appearance similarities to capture and quantify relevant pairwise relations between individuals in a given photo. The last cue investigates the semantics of the context in which the photo was taken. Experiments on a dataset containing thousands of family and non-family pictures collected from social media indicate that each individual model produces good recognition results. Furthermore, a combined approach incorporating appearance, geometric and semantic features significantly outperforms the state of the art in this domain, achieving 96.7% classification accuracy. A new geometry feature is proposed to capture people's standing pattern at the scene level.Deep convolutional neural network is incorporated into appearance model to capture facial similarities of the group photo.Semantic information is applied and fused with other information to discriminant two different photo categories.
Lumbar contribution to the trunk forward bending and backward return; age-related differences.

AbstractAge-related differences in lumbar contribution to the trunk motion in the sagittal plane were investigated. Sixty individuals between 20–70 years old in five gender-balanced age groups performed forward bending and backward return with slow and fast paces. Individuals older than 50 years old, irrespective of the gender or pace, had smaller lumbar contribution than those younger than this age. The lumbar contribution to trunk motion was also smaller in female participants than male participants, and under fast pace than under the slow pace. Age-related differences in lumbar contributions suggest the synergy between the active and passive lower back tissues is different between those above and under 50 years old, differences that are likely to affect the lower back mechanics. Therefore, detailed modelling should be conducted in future to find the age-related differences in the lower back mechanics for tasks involving large trunk motion.Practitioner Summary: Lumbar contribution to the sagittal trunk ...
Konstruktion und Evaluation von Wissensbasen in textverstehenden Systemen

Diese Arbeit beschaftigt sich mit Aspekten der Aufbereitung von Hintergrundwissen fur ein textverstehendes System. Es wird die These aufgestellt, das man nur durch die Spezifikation eines Szenarios eine Wissensbasis fur ein solches System entwickeln und evaluieren kann.
Free gingival grafts for implants exhibiting lack of keratinized mucosa: A prospective controlled randomized clinical study

Introduction To evaluate clinical and radiographic outcomes following free gingival grafts (FGGs) around implants with limited keratinized mucosa (KM) during 18 months follow-up compared to oral prophylaxis without augmentation. Materials and Methods This prospective controlled randomized blind clinical study investigated 41 implants displaying lack of KM in 28 subjects. After baseline examination, 14 subjects in the experimental group received FGGs followed by oral prophylaxis and 14 subjects in the control group received oral prophylaxis only. The width of KM, the level of mucosal margin, pocket depths, plaque index, and gingival index (GI) were assessed at baseline, 6, 12, and 18 months. Changes in crestal bone levels, from baseline, were assessed at 18 months. Results There was a significant gain in KM in the FGG group compared to controls at 6, 12, 18 months. The mean GI was significantly lower for the FGG group at all follow-ups. Crestal bone loss in the FGG group was significantly less than the control group (mesial: p = 0.0005, distal: p = 0.042) at 18 months. Conclusions Free gingival graft for implants exhibiting lack of KM is a viable treatment option to reduce mucosal inflammation and to maintain crestal bone level in the short term.
Overview of Visual Information Representation

Machine “sees” every pixel in an image, but can it detect, say, happiness or excitement in a picture or video? Can it EVER “feel” the emotions or semantics behind?
Intranasal sphenoethmoidectomy and antrotomy.

The intranasal sphenoethmoidectomy and antrotomy are safe and effective operations in the treatment of sinus disease. The surgeon must adhere to strict surgical anatomic guidelines, and patient selection must be according to pathophysiologic indications.
Growing Healing Touch as supportive cancer care in western New York.

176Background: Healing Touch (HT) is a specific energy medicine modality that incorporates several techniques to balance the human energy field to help promote healing. It is a safe and non-invasive therapy that complements traditional, standard care and is recognized by NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. HT was first introduced to cancer survivors at our NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in 2013. We demonstrate HT is well-received and easy to integrate into traditional cancer care. Methods: A Certified Healing Touch Practitioner taught pediatric survivors and families HT techniques, as well as trained staff and volunteers to participate in the pilot program and to offer HT sessions throughout the year. Results: See Table. Qualitative analysis of participant’s feedback indicate benefits in the following themes: 1. Physical Symptom Relief 2. Emotional Issue Relief 3. Spiritual/Grief Support 4. Recommendation to Other Patients. Conclusions: Healing Touch is an energy me...
Competition in two-tier serial and assembly supply chains with general consumer utility functions

We consider two-tier serial supply chains with multiple entrants at each tier and investigate the existence of an equilibrium under a general consumer utility function corresponding to a general in...
TRH Interactions with Cholinergic Mechanisms and Consequent Therapeutic Implications

Subsequent to the claim that thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH; pyroglutamyl-histidyl-proline amide) was effective in the treatment of depression (Prange and Wilson, 1972) and the demonstration that TRH enhanced the stimulant properties of L-dopa in mice (Plotnikoff et al., 1972), a great deal of experimental work has been devoted to elucidating both the basic pharmacological properties of this small peptide and its underlying mode of action. To date, a unifying hypothesis that would satisfactorily account for the multiple and unique actions of exogenously administered TRH is not apparent. Similarly, the functional significance of endogenous, extrahypothalamic TRH, which is found in both mammalian and nonmammalian species, is largely a matter of conjecture. However, with continued research in a variety of experimental preparations an unusual property, which appears to underlie many of the pharmacological effects of TRH, has emerged; namely that TRH, at all levels of the neuraxis and in a unique fashion, appears to facilitate cholinergic transmission via a unique action on central cholinergic neurons. The evidence for these phenomena and consequent therapeutic indications are summarized below.
Nanostructures, Microscale Technologies, and Plasma Deposited Films

Richard Feynman’s 1960 talk, “There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom” is often cited as the stimulus for the modern interest in nanotechnology and nanofabrication.(1) But, plasma scientists, “complaining” about thin films (nanometers to microns) coating the walls their reactors, have been doing unintentional nanofabrication even before Irving Langmuir coined the term, “plasma.” Another group involved with nanotechnology and microtechnology well before the words had cachet and funding is the molecular biologists—the protein “machines,” lipid bilayer membranes, ion channels and supramolecular structures they describe are all at the nanometer to micron scale. Thus, these technologies of small things are not so new as many perceive it to be. Still, it’s interesting to view plasmas in the context of modern nanotechnology and microtechnology and ask about opportunities and trends. A quick review of the literature relating to technology and fabrication at a scale between 1 and 10,000 nanometers reveals the following themes to be popular:
Kinematics of large-scale asymmetric buckle folds in overthrust shear: an example from the Helvetic nappes

Kinematic analysis of asymmetric detachment folds from the Wildhorn nappe, central Helvetics, Switzerland, supports models of buckle fold formation in overthrust shear between nappe boundaries. The overall geometry shows a 2500 m thick multilayer of competent Jurassic limestones deflected into super- and subjacent less competent marls and shales by buckling above the basal decollement. Detailed investigation and measurement of the distribution, orientation, and relative timing of mesoscale structures, primarily dilatant veins and solution cleavage, allow documentation and quantification of the following kinematic development: (1) the nappe boundaries originated at a low angle (ca. 10°) to undeformed bedding; (2) local stress reorientation and buckling instabilities initiated symmetric buckle folds possibly characterized by tangential longitudinal strain; (3) the far-field stress directions imposed by the shear zone became dominant, and mesoscale structures developed asymmetrically on backlimbs and forelimbs; and (4) buckling ceased when fold interlimb angles reached 90–100°, and further shearing caused the fold limbs and axial planes to rotate into their current orientations. The total shear strain required is 2.9, equivalent to ca. 8 km of displacement of the overlying Cretaceous with respect to the base of the nappe. It is suggested that only an overthrust shear model can explain all the observations, and that other models, such as gravitational sliding and buttressing by normal faults, are incompatible with the data.
Classroom age composition and the early learning of preschoolers

AbstractData from 1,407 preschoolers were used to examine the implications of classroom age composition for the early learning and development of 4-year-olds in classrooms with 3- and 5-year-olds a...
Popularizing the environment in modern media

ABSTRACTThe present essay comparatively explores and reflects on popularizing the environment in a changing media ecology wherein content is no longer exclusive to traditional television viewing or...
Revival of saprotrophic and mycorrhizal basidiomycete cultures after 30 years in cold storage in sterile water.

Vegetatively colonized agar cores of 54 basidiomycete fungal isolates were stored at 5 °C in tubes of sterile distilled water without manipulation for 30 years. The cultures represented 28 isolates of saprotrophic fungi and 26 isolates of mycorrhizal fungi. These cultures came from a group of 57 fungal isolates that were determined to be viable after 20 years of cold-water storage. Overall, 47 of the 54 isolates (87%) grew vigorously when revived after storage for 30 years. Of the 28 saprotrophic fungal isolates, 26 revived (93%); of the 26 mycorrhizal fungal isolates, 21 revived (81%). Eight of 13 isolates (62%) of Laccaria were viable after 30 years, which was considerably less viable than what was found after 20 years for this genus of mycorrhizal fungi. However, a greater percentage of isolates of Laccaria bicolor (83%) were viable than isolates of Laccaria laccata (43%), suggesting that 30 years is approaching the maximum limit for storage in cold sterile water for certain species. Considering the or...
Primary Care Spending in the Fee-for-Service Medicare Population

This study assesses primary care spending as a proportion of total spending among Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries by using narrow and broad definitions of primary care practitioners and services.
Getting in LINE with Replication.

Sultana et al. (2019) and Flasch et al. (2019) determined integration patterns of human LINE-1 (long interspersed element-1) retrotransposons highlighting their interaction with DNA replication guided by their 5′-TTTT/AA-3′ integration motif and nucleotide biases in the genome.
A phase II randomized placebo-controlled double-blind study of salvage radiation therapy plus placebo versus SRT plus enzalutamide with high-risk PSA-recurrent prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy (SALV-ENZA)

In men with a rising PSA following radical prostatectomy, salvage radiation therapy (SRT) offers a second chance for cure. Hormonal therapy can be combined with SRT in order to increase prostate tumor control, albeit with associated higher rates of treatment side effects. This trial studies the effectiveness of SRT combined with hormonal therapy using a more potent anti-androgen with a favorable side effect profile. Enzalutamide, a next generation selective androgen receptor antagonist, is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) where it has been shown to improve overall survival in combination with androgen deprivation therapy. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of combination SRT and enzalutamide for freedom-from-PSA-progression. Secondary objectives include time to local recurrence within the radiation field, metastasis-free survival and safety as determined by frequency and severity of adverse events. This is a randomized, double-blind, phase II, prospective, multicenter study in adult males with biochemically recurrent prostate cancer following radical prostatectomy. Following registration, enzalutamide 160 mg or placebo by mouth (PO) once daily will be administered for 6 months. Following two months of study drug, external beam radiotherapy to 66.6–70.2 Gray (Gy) will be administered to the prostate bed over 7–8 weeks while continuing daily placebo/enzalutamide. This is followed by two additional months of placebo/enzalutamide. The SALV-ENZA trial is the first phase II placebo-controlled double-blinded randomized study to test SRT in combination with a next generation androgen receptor antagonist in men with high-risk recurrent prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy. The primary hypothesis of this study is that clinical outcomes will be improved by the addition of enzalutamide compared to standard-of-care SRT alone and pave the path for phase III evaluation of this combination. ClinicaltTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02203695 Date of Registration: 06/16/2014. Date of First Participant Enrollment: 04/16/2015.
Co-Adapt: Continuously Tailored Software

While software tools can be very powerful, a one-size-fits-all approach does not work because individual needs vary over time. Co-Adapt is a software framework that learns from user activity and adjusts the interface in real time to suit changing needs. Prior research has shown that the best in class user interfaces (UI) are not as effective across multiple groups of people. We performed three experiments by integrating with three distinct UI prototypes that tested iteratively tailored software to show the effectiveness of different UI presentations. Co-Adapt demonstrates that a multitude of UIs improve usability, which in some instances lead to greater tool adoption. Our success across three domains suggests generalizability of the framework and is promising for further experimentation across other application areas.
Health service utilization among African American women living with systemic lupus erythematosus: perceived impacts of a self-management intervention.

Healthcare access, utilization, and quality play critical roles in shaping mortality and morbidity among patients diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and yet healthcare access, utilization, and quality can be suboptimal for many people living with SLE. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the perceived impact of a peer-led, group-based educational intervention (the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program [CDSMP]) on healthcare engagement behaviors among African American women with SLE. Participants were recruited from the WELL (Women Empowered to Live with Lupus) study, a behavioral trial of the effectiveness of the CDSMP on African American women diagnosed with SLE. We conducted two waves of qualitative, one-on-one, semi-structured interviews with 24 purposively sampled WELL participants; one interview was conducted before CDSMP participation and one after. Wave 1 interviews explored health service use behaviors at baseline; Wave 2 interviews focused on changes in these behaviors post-intervention and women’s perceptions of whether and how the CDSMP shaped these changes. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis methods. Study participants perceived the CDSMP to be a valuable resource for supporting two distinct health service use behaviors: communicating with doctors (N = 16 [88.9%]) and managing medication side effects (N = 17 [41.2%]). Women perceived that the CDSMP had the most potent and widespread effects on patients’ communication with doctors. Strategies that women believed generated improvements in patient-doctor communication included enhancing preparation for appointments and boosting patient participation during doctor’s visits. Women’s reported post-CDSMP improvements in health service use behaviors varied by disease severity and depression. Insurance coverage, while not probed directly during baseline interviews, emerged organically as a key factor affecting health service use behaviors; the CDSMP did not seem to improve participants’ ability to circumvent insurance-related barriers to accessing care. Our findings suggest that the CDSMP may help enhance healthcare service utilization among African American women with SLE by improving doctor/patient communication and medication side effect management. If future research confirms this conclusion, African American women living with SLE should be encouraged to participate in CDSMP workshops to enhance health service use behaviors. NCT02988661 . Registered 12/07/2016
Computations of Ship Stern and Wake Flow and Comparisons with Experiment

A numerical method for the solution of the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations has been employed to study the turbulent shear flow over the stern and in the wake of a ship hull. Detailed comparisons are made between the numerical results and available experimental data to show that most of the important overall features of such flows can now be predicted with considerable accuracy.
Respecting Cultural Differences in Goals of Care Conversations

Goals of care conversations are often tough when patients face a poor prognosis, yet when patients are from a different culture it may be even more difficult. However, seeing cultural values as complementing rather than opposing could be beneficial to the care of the patient.
Nonlinear resonances and transitions to chaotic dynamics of a driven magnetic moment

Abstract We examine a magnetic moment subject to a static external magnetic field and a time dependent driving magnetic field. Taking the system in the highly anisotropic limit, like that of a thin film, we lower the complexity of the system so that it may be analyzed for transitions to chaos analytically using the Melnikov method. Guided by the calculation of the Melnikov bifurcation functions we computationally calculated the Lyapunov characteristic exponents for several lines in parameter space and find that the Melnikov method is a good predictor of chaotic motion for sufficiently small external fields. Motion plots and Poincare sections are also plotted for several parameter space points to observe the transitions to and from chaos around the calculated Melnikov bifurcations functions.
On the Estimation of Destructive Cure Rate Model: A New Study with Exponentially Weighted Poisson Competing Risks

A new estimation method is proposed founded upon a nonlinear conjugate gradient‐type algorithm having an efficient line search technique for cure rate models with competing risks, which are subject to elimination. An extensive simulation study is carried out to compare the performance of the proposed algorithm with some existing algorithms, including other conjugate gradient‐type algorithms and the expectation maximization algorithm. For this purpose, it is assumed that the initial competing risks follow an exponentially weighted Poisson distribution. In particular, it is shown that that the proposed algorithm produces estimates that are more accurate and efficient (i.e., the bias and root mean square errors are smaller), specifically with respect to the parameters related to the cure rate. Although for the purpose of simulation study an exponentially weighted Poisson competing risks distribution is assumed, the proposed algorithm incorporates a generic framework that can accommodate any competing risks distribution. Finally, a real data application is provided.
Estimating Ectopic Beat Probability with Simplified Statistical Models that Account for Experimental Uncertainty

Abstract Ectopic beats (EBs) are cellular arrhythmias that can trigger lethal arrhythmias. Simulations using biophysically-detailed cardiac myocyte models can reveal how model parameters influence the probability of these cellular arrhythmias, however such analyses can pose a huge computational burden. Here, we develop a simplified approach in which logistic regression models (LRMs) are used to define a mapping between the parameters of complex cell models and the probability of EBs (P(EB)). As an example, in this study, we build an LRM for P(EB) as a function of diastolic cytosolic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i), sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ load, and kinetic parameters of the inward rectifier K+ current (IK1) and ryanodine receptor (RyR). This approach, which we refer to as arrhythmia sensitivity analysis, allows for evaluation of the relationship between these arrhythmic event probabilities and their associated parameters. This LRM is also used to demonstrate how uncertainties in experimentally measured values determine the uncertainty in P(EB). In a study of the role of [Ca2+]SR uncertainty, we show a special property of the uncertainty in P(EB), where with increasing [Ca2+]SR uncertainty, P(EB) uncertainty first increases and then decreases. Lastly, we demonstrate that IK1 suppression, at the level that occurs in heart failure myocytes, increases P(EB). Author summary An ectopic beat is an abnormal cellular electrical event which can trigger dangerous arrhythmias in the heart. Complex biophysical models of the cardiac myocyte can be used to reveal how cell properties affect the probability of ectopic beats. However, such analyses can pose a huge computational burden. We develop a simplified approach that enables a highly complex biophysical model to be reduced to a rather simple statistical model from which the functional relationship between myocyte model parameters and the probability of an ectopic beat is determined. We refer to this approach as arrhythmia sensitivity analysis. Given the efficiency of our approach, we also use it to demonstrate how uncertainties in experimentally measured myocyte model parameters determine the uncertainty in ectopic beat probability. We find that, with increasing model parameter uncertainty, the uncertainty in probability of ectopic beat first increases and then decreases. In general, our approach can efficiently analyze the relationship between cardiac myocyte parameters and the probability of ectopic beats and can be used to study how uncertainty of these cardiac myocyte parameters influences the ectopic beat probability.
The History of Epilepsy: From Ancient Mystery to Modern Misconception.

Epilepsy is an ancient disease, which has fascinated and frightened scientists and laymen alike. Before the working knowledge of the central nervous system, seizures were shrouded in mystery. In antiquity, this disease was accredited to gods and demonic possession, causing those with epilepsy to be feared and isolated. Epilepsy patients continued to face discrimination through the mid-20th century. This discrimination ranged from lack of access to health insurance, jobs, and marriage equality to forced sterilizations. Despite the strides that have been made, there are still many misconceptions globally regarding epilepsy. Studies show that patients with epilepsy in communities that understand the pathology and cause of seizures are generally more successful in social and educational environments. While there has been progress, there is more work which needs to be done to educate people across the globe about the pathology of epilepsy.
Agendas and Strategies: Prophetic Voices and Cautious Reformers

What issues are on faith-based NGOs’ (FBOs) advocacy agendas? In this analysis of ten FBOs’ agendas in 2010 and 2018, Nelson finds that development aid budgets and policies dominate, with most FBOs giving less attention to issues such as human rights, trade, labor rights, and climate. There are exceptions, and between 2010 and 2018 climate and immigration drew somewhat more attention in FBO agendas. But the focus on aid policy signals to FBO constituencies that aid is the key issue for activism, even though aid is known to have less impact on poor peoples’ prospects than many other variables. Moreover, aid policy has not proven to be a compelling cause that draws large numbers of people into anti-poverty activism.
How do children’s perceptions of machine intelligence change when training and coding smart programs?

Children are increasingly surrounded by AI technologies but can overestimate smart devices’ abilities due to their lack of transparency. Drawing on the sense-making theory, this study explores how children come to see machine intelligence after training custom machine learning models and creating smart programs that use them. Through a 4-week observational study in after-school programs with 52 children (7 to 12 years old), we found that children engage in the scientific method while training, coding and testing their smart programs. We also found that children became more skeptical of certain abilities of smart devices as they shifted their attribution of agency from the devices to the people who program them. These changes in perception happened both through individual interactions with agents and prompted debates with peers. Based on these results, we conclude with discussions on strategies for promoting children’s sense-making practices and sense of agency in the age of machine learning.
Cytokine and Reward Circuitry Relationships in Treatment-Resistant Depression

Abstract Background Depressive disorders are linked to dysfunction in reward-related behaviors and corticostriatal reward circuitry. Low-grade dysregulation of the immune system, e.g., elevations in plasma interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor α, have been thought to affect corticostriatal reward circuitry. Little is presently known about the degree to which these relationships generalize to patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and/or childhood trauma history. Methods Resting-state functional connectivity between the ventral striatum (VS) and ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) regions and plasma inflammatory marker levels (IL-6, tumor necrosis factor α) were measured in 74 adults with TRD. Regression analyses examined associations of inflammatory markers with VS-vmPFC connectivity and the moderating effects of self-reported childhood trauma on these associations, with exploratory analyses examining trauma subtypes. Results IL-6 was negatively associated with VS-vmPFC connectivity (specifically for the left VS). Childhood trauma moderated the relationships between tumor necrosis factor α and VS-vmPFC connectivity (specifically for the right VS) such that greater childhood trauma severity (particularly emotional neglect) was associated with stronger cytokine-connectivity associations. Conclusions This study independently extends previously reported associations between IL-6 and reductions in corticostriatal connectivity to a high-priority clinical population of treatment-seeking patients with TRD and further suggests that childhood trauma moderates specific associations between cytokines and corticostriatal connectivity. These findings suggest that associations between elevated plasma cytokine levels and reduced corticostriatal connectivity are a potential pathophysiological mechanism generalizable to patients with TRD and that such associations may be affected by trauma severity.
Simultaneous spectral decomposition in Euclidean Jordan algebras and related systems

This article deals with necessary and sufficient conditions for a family of elements in a Euclidean Jordan algebra to have simultaneous (order) spectral decomposition. Motivated by a well-known mat...
Factors associated with success following transcervical innominate artery suspension.

Abstract Objective Aortopexy including innominate artery suspension is a well-established treatment of anterior vascular compression and associated tracheomalacia. We report the results of our case series of cervical approach to innominate artery suspension and hypothesize that increased distance from the innominate to the sternum is predictive of superior symptomatic outcome. Study design Retrospective Case Series. Methods All cases of cervical innominate artery suspension at our institution over the last 10 years were reviewed. CT scans of the neck and chest were reviewed to obtain anatomical measurements including anterior-posterior thoracic outlet distance, thymic thickness, and sternum-innominate artery distance. Measurements were compared with surgical outcomes as verified by follow up bronchoscopy and clinical course to determine factors predictive of success. Results Ten cases of cervical innominate artery suspension were performed by the otolaryngology service at our institution over the last 10 years. Six patients had improvement in their symptoms. The average sternum-innominate artery distance (SID) was larger (14.4 mm (95% CI 9.1–19.7)) in patients who had improvement in clinical symptoms following innominate suspension compared to those that did not improve (6.3 mm (95% CI 2.5–10.1)) (p value = 0.02). Similarly, the anterior-posterior distance of the thoracic outlet was larger (34.9 mm (95% CI 27.4–42.4)) in patients who had improvement post-op compared to those that did not improve (22.6 mm (95% CI 18.2–27.2) (p value = 0.01). Two patients required spine surgery to achieve improvement in their symptoms. Conclusion Cervical innominate artery suspension is successful in carefully selected patients. More space in the thoracic outlet and larger distance from the innominate artery to the sternum is associated with symptomatic improvement.
Fundamental Study Of Atmospheric Rf Breakdown At 3.3 MHz

RF breakdown at a frequency of particular relevance to ionospheric heating - 3.3 MHz, close to the low end of the applicable frequency range - is studied at centimeter sized gap distances and compared to literature for small gaps. Paschen's famous DC breakdown study utilizing two brass spheres of radius 1 cm was recreated following the original procedure, from which the data was used to compare to a study of RF breakdown. Through testing it was found that brass as an electrode material exhibits a large standard deviation in breakdown voltage and as such stainless-steel Bruce profile uniform electric field electrodes were substituted. Steel's resistance to surface ablation provided for extremely low standard deviation of measurements and hence good repeatability. Additionally, unlike brass, steel is not contaminated through reaction with gaseous elements such as carbon, oxygen and nitrogen. Electrodes were polished to remove any field enhancements and cleaned of polishing compound such that dielectric inclusions were largely avoided.
To Make a Desert and Call It Peace: Stasis and Judgment in the MX Missile Debate

This article demonstrates that the public debate over the MX program alters what we normally perceive as the preconditions for public debate. Instead of establishing the materially relevant facts of the issue at hand in order to provide a point of stasis for formulating competing positions to facilitate argumentative clash, the decision rendered by the Congress responds to justifications from both positions to formulate its policy. The controversy provides insight into the way stasis is established in public debates by challenging the understanding that they are determined in advance. We argue stasis points are established retroactively by the agent of judgment ratifying a point of contact as if this point of stasis had organized the debate all along.
Concepts of Equilibrium Exchange Rates

Calculations of estimated equilibrium exchange rates can provide guidance in judging the extent to which actual exchange rates are in line with the fundamentals. First, we describe the concepts of Williamson’s FEER and the IMF economists’ DEER equilibrium exchange rate. Then these concepts are contrasted with the NATREX approach. Finally, we suggest a way of combining these approaches.
Geospatial information in complex mobile field settings

Field data collection and information management are essential to numerous government field operations. Geospatial data and emerging computing technologies offer the potential to vastly expand the type and quality of support available to the field worker during field campaigns. This requires the development of appropriate field tools and computing systems to responsively and reliably support secure information exchange between the stored repositories, remote services, and the mobile field environment. For example, new models for extensible computing infrastructures are needed to support field activities with intermittent and highly constrained mobile computing settings. At the same time, methodological principles are needed to guide user interface design for displaying geospatial information resources with limited screen environments for scientific data collection.
Long-Term Growth of Malignant Thymocytes In Vitro

We report a new methodology for the long-term growth of malignant T-lymphoblasts from patients with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) and T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LL). When malignant cells were cultured in the presence of insulin-like growth factor I under hypoxic conditions, cellular proliferation occurred that resulted in the establishment of immortal cell lines from ten of 12 patient tumors. Authenticity of each cell line was verified by a direct comparison of the immunophenotype, karyotype, and immunogenotype with the patient's tumor cells. This improved method of cell culture permits frequent establishment of cell lines from patients with T-ALL /T-LL, thereby aiding in analysis of thymocyte transformation and neoplasia.© 1989 by Grune & Stratton, Inc. 0006-4971/89/7308-0025S3.00/0.
Low-Calorie Sweeteners and Health

Objective: To summarize existing evidence on Low-Calorie Sweeteners (LCSs) and selected health outcomes using evidence mapping, a new method that systematically characterizes the range of research ...