cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Structured Approach to Passive Sonar Track Association

The presence of multiple, apparently independent track segments originating from the same target complicates the track-level passive sonar picture. If some of these segments can be shown to have common origin, they can be associated into a single composite track, simplifying that picture. The process could also provide additional information about the target, such as range or classification. Track association is typically a manual process, relying on the expertise of a human sonar operator. If a method could be found to reliably apply numerical scores to the degree of apparent relationship between pairs of tracks, those scores could be used to assist an operator in the track association process or as inputs to a fully automated track association process. This paper outlines the construction of a test based on the sample correlation coefficient and describes the result of its application to tracks produced by a probabilistic data association filter (PDAF) from a set of towed array sensor data.
Cost Cumulant-Based Control for a Class of Linear-Quadratic Tracking Problems

The topic of cost-cumulant control is currently receiving substantial research from the theoretical community oriented toward stochastic control theory. For instance, the present paper extends the application of cost-cumulant controller design to control of a wide class of linear-quadratic tracking systems where output measurements of a tracker follow as closely as possible a desired trajectory via a complete statistical description of the associated integral-quadratic performance-measure. It is shown that the tracking problem can be solved in two parts: one, a feedback control whose optimization criterion representing a linear combination of finite cumulant indices of an integral-quadratic performance- measure associated to a linear tracking stochastic system over a finite horizon, is determined by a set of Riccati-type differential equations; two, an affine control which takes into account of dynamics mismatched between a desired trajectory and tracker states, is found by solving an auxiliary set of differential equations (incorporating the desired trajectory) backward from a stable final time.
Patient based Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm rupture risk prediction combining clinical visualizing modalities with fluid structure interaction numerical simulations

Fluid structure interaction (FSI) simulations of patient-specific fusiform non-ruptured and contained ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) geometries were conducted. The goals were: (1) to test the ability of our FSI methodology to predict the location of rupture, by correlating the high wall stress regions with the rupture location, (2) estimate the state of the pathological condition by calculating the ruptured potential index (RPI) of the AAA and (3) predict the disease progression by comparing healthy and pathological aortas.
Standards and intellectual property rights - the international standardization of third-generation mobile system

When the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) selected a radio access technology based on Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), sponsored by European telecommunications equipment manufacturers Ericsson and Nokia, for its third-generation wireless communications system, a bitter dispute developed between ETSI and Qualcomm, Inc. Qualcomm threatened to withhold its intellectual property on the CDMA technology unless the Europeans agreed to make the radio access technology backward compatible with IS-95 standard, Qualcomm's favored version of CDMA. A dispute over intellectual property rights over key CDMA techniques also erupted between Ericsson and Qualcomm and both filed patent infringement in US Court. The dispute halted the standards activity and has troubled operators worldwide as well as the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
turn‐taking, overlap, and the task at hand: ordering speaking turns in legal settings

Anthropologists and linguists have often noted the careful sequencing of speaking turns in Western courts, and have posited that overlapping speech in legal contexts is dysfunctional and obstructs the proceedings. Data from panchayats (councils) in India and among Indians in Fiji indicate that these functional arguments may be unfounded when, as in most legal cases, the task at hand is not one of fact-finding, but rather of the normative evaluation of known facts. The distinction between these disparate tasks is critical for understanding legal processes, which may be distinguished through examination of the degree of sequencing of speaking turns. This narrow point has broader implications regarding the presumption that conversations and other group verbal activities are cooperative undertakings, and may aid in avoiding false comparisons of legal processes, thereby leading to a more general anthropology of law. [legal processes, argument, ethnography of speaking, India, U.S.]
The Effective Use of Professional Software in an Undergraduate Mining Engineering Curriculum

The use of professional software is an integral part of a student's education in the mining engineering curriculum at The Pennsylvania State University. Even though mining engineering represents a limited market across U.S. educational institutions, the goal still exists for using this type of software to enrich the learning environment with visual elements and, therefore, enhance the students' ability to understand design principles in a more systematic manner. All of the students are required to develop a complete mine-design project, from conception to completion, which includes the selection of appropriate mining components and systems to meet desired needs. However, the question that is often asked is whether or not the desired benefits from using such software can be justified in terms of initial cost, and programming time required for both the instructor and students of small engineering programs, such as mining engineering. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the experiences of faculty and ...
Carbidopa levodopa enteral suspension.

Introduction: The search for consistent, effective treatments in Parkinson’s disease (PD) is ongoing. The importance of continuous dopaminergic stimulation (CDS) is understood to underlie best medical therapy for PD by providing closer replication of physiological patterns of dopamine release in healthy brains.Areas covered: An overview of interventions to improve motor fluctuations in PD is presented. Significant improvements in off-time are achieved by providing continuous therapy using targeted deep brain stimulation (DBS), subcutaneous apomorphine infusion and carbidopa/levodopa enteral suspension (Duopa). Duopa is a newly approved treatment in the US for advanced PD that delivers levodopa pumped to the intestinal tract through a percutaneous gastrostomy with jejunum tube extension (PEG-J tube). Trials with carbidopa/levodopa enteral suspension show improvement in motor fluctuations, reduction in plasma levodopa variation and improvement in overall “on” time compared with oral immediate release formul...
Taste Bud Labeling in Whole Tongue Epithelial Sheet in Adult Mice

Molecular labeling in whole-mount tissues provides an efficient way to obtain general information about the formation, maintenance, degeneration, and regeneration of many organs and tissues. However, labeling of lingual taste buds in whole tongue tissues in adult mice has been problematic because of the strong permeability barrier of the tongue epithelium. In this study, we present a simple method for labeling taste buds in the intact tongue epithelial sheet of an adult mouse. Following intralingual protease injection and incubation, immediate fixation of the tongue on mandible in 4% paraformaldehyde enabled the in situ shape of the tongue epithelium to be well maintained after peeling. The peeled epithelium was accessible to taste bud labeling with a pan-taste cell marker, keratin 8, and a type II taste cell marker, α-gustducin, in all three types of taste papillae, that is, fungiform, foliate, and circumvallate. Overnight incubation of tongue epithelial sheets with primary and secondary antibodies was s...
Typical and Atypical Brain Development Across the Life Span in a Neural Network Model of Psychopathology

In this chapter, we present a developmentally sensitive diathesis–stress model of psychopathology—triple network allostasis—the core components of which are the canonical large-scale networks of the brain. In doing so, we highlight the role of the brain in diathesis–stress processes through the integration of two major theoretical advances, the introduction of allostasis in stress research and recognition of the central role of large-scale neural networks in psychopathology We incorporate these approaches into our life span model of modulated allostasis to produce an allostatic diathesis–stress model based on the large-scale functional architecture of the brain. Through the concept of dynamic diathesis, we link life span development, current contextual risk and resources, prior life experience, and stress physiology into a working diathesis–stress model that predicts mental state, psychopathology onset, and future mental health. Predictions from this model are testable and evidence from the extant literature is reviewed. Keywords: allostasis; diathesis–stress; neural networks; psychopathology; brain development; life span
Universal Thermodynamics at the Liquid–Vapor Critical Point

For 68 fluids that include hydrogen bonding and quantum fluids, the fugacity coefficient that defines the residual chemical potential adopts a near universal value of 2/3 at the critical point. More precisely, the reciprocal of the fugacity coefficient equals 1.52 ± 0.02 and includes fluids as diverse as helium (1.50), dodecafluoropentane (1.50), and water (1.53). For 65 classical fluids, a dimensionless thermal pressure coefficient and internal pressure attain critical values of 1.88 ± 0.11 and 1.61 ± 0.11, respectively. From equations of state, values of these new critical constants have been calculated and agree favorably with experimental values. Specifically, for the critical fugacity coefficient, the following results were obtained for its reciprocal: van der Waals (1.44), lattice gas (1.43), scaled particle theory (1.46), and the Redlich-Kwong eq (1.50). The semiempirical Redlich-Kwong equation is also the most accurate for the thermal pressure coefficient (1.86) and internal pressure (1.53). Physical interpretations of these results are discussed as well as their implications for other critical phenomena.
Current perspectives on the immunopathogenesis of systemic sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis (SSc or scleroderma) is a progressive and highly debilitating autoimmune disorder characterized by inflammation, vasculopathy, and extensive fibrosis. SSc is highly heterogeneous in its clinical presentation, extent and severity of skin and internal organ involvement, and clinical course and has the highest fatality rate among connective tissue diseases. While clinical outcomes have improved in recent years, no current therapy is able to reverse or slow the natural progression of SSc, a reflection of its complex pathogenesis. Although activation of the immune system has long been recognized, the mechanisms responsible for the initiation of autoimmunity and the role of immune effector pathways in the pathogenesis of SSc remain incompletely understood. This review summarizes recent progress in disease pathogenesis with particular focus on the immunopathogenetic mechanisms of SSc.
Design of the Subsonic Aircraft Roughness Glove Experiment (SARGE)

The Subsonic Aircraft Roughness Glove Experiment (SARGE) is a hybrid natural laminar flow and passive laminar flow control flight test that will be carried out under the auspices of the NASA Environmentally Responsible Aviation initiative. Texas A&M has completed the initial aerodynamic design of a wing glove to be installed on a NASA Gulfstream III testbed. The primary goals of the SARGE experiment are to 1) achieve natural laminar flow to 0.60 chord on the suction side at up to 22 million chord Reynolds number and 2) at conditions of at least 22 million chord Reynolds number, demonstrate the effectiveness of passive Discrete Roughness Elements in extending laminar flow beyond the natural transition location. Computations of the flight test configuration flowfield and the initial design of a laminar flow wing glove are presented, followed by a description of the proposed flight test experiment as well as the instrumentation suite. The initial design is shown to marginally fulfill the design requirements. Efforts are underway to optimize the design to improve spanwise flow uniformity and provide better stabilization of streamwise instabilities.
New Directions in the History of Medicine in European, Colonial and Transimperial Contexts

In the late 1970s scholars of Europe and its colonies began probing the relationship between medicine and empire. In the decades since, following the cue of Steven Feierman, John Janzen, Megan Vaughan and Randall Packard, the literature has demonstrated that colonial medicine constructed an African ‘other’ and greatly contributed to harmful practices that did not improve the overall health and welfare of the local populations European administrations claimed to be civilising. Through the 1990s, scholarship concentrated primarily on local agency and socio-economic and political factors that furthered our understanding of how medicine and health care operated in a colonial context. These foundational studies have enabled the most recent wave of research in the history of medicine to turn its attention to questions of public health, especially as it relates to the politics of development, nationalism, and decolonisation. Historians, including Sunil Amrith and Clifford Rosenberg, have emphasised the significant role medicine has played in projecting state power in European colonies and have shown how international organisations became prominent agents in shaping national and global health policies. However, their important work has left unanswered questions about the intellectual networks that formed the elite scientific and medical minds of the day and the legacies of health policies under colonial rule.
Blending Education and Emerging Technologies to Reduce HospitalReadmission and Improve Self-Care for Individuals Living With HeartFailure

The global burden of chronic heart failure (HF) continues to grow, affecting more than 5 million people in the United States and an estimated 23 million worldwide [1]. About half of people diagnosed with HF will face mortality within 5 years of initial diagnosis [2]. Individuals with HF often will be hospitalized several times within a year, leading to more than $39 million in annual health care costs in the United States [1].
11 THE INCIDENCE OF PULMONARY HYPERTENSION AT HIGH-ALTITUDE LIVER TRANSPLANT CENTERS IS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN AT LOW-ALTITUDE LIVER TRANSPLANT CENTERS.

Purpose Pulmonary hypertension (PH) occurs in a fraction of patients with cirrhosis. The basic lesion of PH is pulmonary arteriolar vasoconstriction. Because we have noted possible differences in the prevalence of PH in patients evaluated at a high-altitude center (Denver), we performed a formal analysis to compare the prevalence of PH in cirrhotics at high-altitude (Denver) and low-altitude (Chapel Hill) liver transplantation centers. Methods All 721 patients evaluated for liver transplantation at each institution between July 1999 and October 2001 were retrospectively analyzed. Estimates of the maximum systolic pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) were made from the tricuspid regurgitation jet velocity (gradient = 4(jet velocity)2) by echocardiography and confirmed by right heart catheterization in selected patients. PH was defined as systolic PAP > 35 mm Hg, 36 to 45 mm Hg mild, 46 to 60 mm Hg moderate, > 60 mm Hg severe. Results Patients with PH were more likely to have advanced liver disease, restrictive pulmonary function tests, female gender, and evaluation in Denver. The percentage of patients with PH and severe PH in Denver was significantly higher than in Chapel Hill, p Conclusions Patients with cirrhosis who are evaluated at a high-altitude center have a significantly higher prevalence and severity of PH compared with patients at a low-altitude center. The explanation for this observation is not known, but we speculate that one possibility is relative hypoxia experienced at high altitude.
Inner Mitochondrial Membranes: Basic and Applied Aspects

The major energy supply of animal cells is generated in the inner mitochondrial membrane, the oxidizing enzymes of which are assembled asymmetrically in a way that gives rise to a vectorial movement of protons. Recent studies support the view that this proton current is the driving force in the production of biologically useful energy. The findings may have a bearing on clinical problems such as obesity and cancer.
Electrothermal Atomic Absorption Spectroscopic Determination of Chromium in Plant Tissues

This method involves sample digestion in nitric, perchloric, and sulfuric acids. Chromium is concentrated by coprecipitation with ferric hydroxide. Redissolved iron is removed by liquid-liquid extraction, remaining silica is dissolved with hydrofluoric acid, and chromium is determined by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. The sensitivity and detection limits for chromium approach those given by the manufacturers of the various instruments. Recovery studies and analysis of standard materials show that this method is reliable.
SU-F-J-182: Investigation of Systems for Improved Accuracy in Clinical Y-90 Percent Delivered Calculations

Purpose: Y-90 Selective Internal Radiation Therapy (SIRT) is used to treat liver tumors, and by nature has variability in the percent of the intended dose that is actually delivered. To determine the quality of the administration, pre and post activity measurements are taken, and used to infer percent delivered. Vendor specifications indicate the use of an ion chamber to take these measurements. In our work, we investigated the accuracy of ion chambers, and compared them to other detector systems. Methods: We have built phantoms, phantom holders, and protocols, which allow us to measure our Y90 doses with varying apparatuses: a dose calibrator, a Geiger-counter, an ion chamber, a crystal based thyroid probe, and a gamma camera. We have set up a system that has enabled us to gather data by measuring clinical Y90 doses as they are used in the clinic using all of the instrumental methods. Five initial doses (25 measurements/acquisitions) have been taken at the time of this abstract submission. Results: Our initial results show that measurements acquired using scintillation based detectors (thyroid probe and gamma camera) correlate better with the gold standard (i.e. the dose calibrator). Pearson correlations between the dose calibrator measurements and the GM counter, Ion chamber, thyroid probe, and gamma camera were found to be 0.88, 0.83, 0.98, 0.99, respectively. More acquisitions and analysis are planned to determine the precision of the systems, as well as optimal energy window settings. Conclusion: It is likely that current standard practice can be improved using scintillation crystal based detectors. Such systems are more sensitive, can integrate signal, and can use energy discrimination. Furthermore, phantoms can be built to integrate with probe and gamma camera systems that are robust and provide reproducibility. Future work will include expanded acquisition and analysis.
Squeezing and Cavity QED in Semiconductors

The purpose of this lecture is to give an overview of the control of quantum noise (squeezing) and the control of spontaneous emission (cavity quantum electrodynamics) in semiconductors. In the second section, the generation and application of squeezed states of light with a semiconductor laser are discussed. The third section treats the suppression of transport and tunneling noise of electrons in mesoscopic systems, and introduces a single photon state generating turnstile device. In the fourth section, the principle of cavity QED in low-Q regime and its application to microcavity semiconductor laser are described. The last section is devoted to the discussions of the principle of cavity QED in high-Q regime and its application to quantum well exciton systems.
Resources for Policy Surveillance: A Report Prepared for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Public Health Law Program

Law is one of the primary tools used in public health to promote healthier environments and behaviors. Governments at all levels use statutes, regulations and other policies, often in innovative ways, to make our communities healthier and safer. The effective and efficient use of law as a public health intervention depends upon research to evaluate what works and what does not, and diffusion of information to speed the adoption and implementation of laws that improve health. The term “Legal Epidemiology” is apt for this public health law work, capturing both its importance and its scientific nature. Legal epidemiology may be defined as “the scientific study of law as a factor in the cause, distribution and prevention of disease in a population.” Within legal epidemiology, “policy surveillance,” the systematic tracking of policies of public importance, is an emerging practice that supports both scientific evaluation and the diffusion of policies the work for health. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Public Health Law Research program (PHLR), working in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Office of State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support (OSTLTS), ChangeLab Solutions, The Network for Public Health Law, the Public Health Law Center, and many expert volunteers, undertook a series of research and consultation projects intended to advance the understanding and practice of legal epidemiology at CDC and state, local and tribal health agencies, with special focus on policy surveillance.The results of this work are collected in this report and include:• A Scan of Explicit Legal Recommendations in Federal Guidance Documents, to document the important place of law in the nation’s health strategies;• A Scan of Existing 50 State Survey and Policy Surveillance Resources, to describe the current investment in legal monitoring, and the state of the art;• Criteria for Selecting Policies for Surveillance: Recommendations of an Expert Committee, to provide initial guidance to decision-makers on the wise use of limited legal monitoring resources;• Technical Standards for Policy Surveillance and Legal Datasets: Report of a Delphi Process, to define consensus expert standards for the conduct of scientific legal surveillance; and• Policy Surveillance Competencies (1.0), embodying the expert standards in measurable workforce capacities.Together, these resources provide a foundation for building a stronger, transdisciplinary practice of public health law.
Decadal timescale variability of the Enceladus plumes inferred from Cassini images

The brightness of the Enceladus plumes varies with position in the satellite's eccentric orbit, with altitude above the surface, and with time from one year to the next. Hedman et al. (2013, hereinafter H13) were the first to report these variations. They used data from Cassini's Visible and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS). Here we present brightness observations from Cassini's Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS), which has 40 times higher spatial resolution than VIMS. Our unit of measure is slab density, the total mass of particles in a horizontal slab per unit thickness of the slab. Using slab density is one approach to correcting for the variation of brightness with wavelength and scattering angle. Approaches differ mainly by a multiplicative scaling factor that depends on particle density, which is uncertain. All approaches lead to the same qualitative conclusions and agree with the conclusions from VIMS. We summarize our conclusions as follows: At all altitudes between 50 and 200 km, the corrected brightness is 4–5 times greater when Enceladus is farther from Saturn (near apocenter) than when it is closer (near pericenter). A secondary maximum occurs after pericenter and before apocenter. Corrected brightness vs. altitude is best described as a power law whose negative exponent is greatest in magnitude at apocenter, indicating a slower launch speed for the particles at apocenter than at other points in the orbit. Corrected brightness decreased by roughly a factor of two during much of the period 2005–2015. The last is our principal result, and we offer three hypotheses to explain it. One is a long-period tide—the decreasing phase of an 11-year cycle in orbital eccentricity; another is buildup of ice at the throats of the vents; and the third is seasonal change—the end of summer at the south pole.
Generating 100+ GHz repetition rate soliton pulse trains with a Kerr microcavity

We explore highly ordered configurations of up to 24 Kerr-cavity solitons in a silica disk microresonator. Our work relaxes thermal stability requirements for Kerr-soliton generation, and suggests a mechanism that mediates soliton interactions.
Effect of rotational misalignment on interlayer coupling in a graphene/hBN/graphene van der Waal's heterostructure

We simulate the effects of rotational misalignment of the tunnel barrier layer between aligned channel layers in a monolayer-graphene/hBN/monolayer-graphene system. Through use of density functional theory (DFT) methods, we demonstrate a reduction in tunneling current due to weakened coupling across the rotationally misaligned interfaces between the channel layers and the tunnel barrier.
BCR inhibitor failure in CLL: An unmet need

In this issue of Blood, Mato et al report a retrospective cohort analysis of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who discontinued a kinase inhibitor (KI).1 Drug toxicity was the main reason for treatment discontinuation. Approximately 50% of patients who discontinued a KI responded to a subsequent salvage therapy.
ATHERECTOMY IS ASSOCIATED WITH LOWER RATES OF REPEAT INTERVENTION AFTER BELOW KNEE PERIPHERAL VASCULAR INTERVENTION

Background: There is scarce data to support use of atherectomy devices over other forms of lower extremity peripheral vascular interventions (PVI). Methods: Data from the multicenter Excellence in Peripheral Artery Disease (XLPAD) registry ([NCT01904851][1]) were analyzed to examine predictors of
Do fourth year pharmacy students use Facebook to form workplace-based learning peer groups during rotations?

Abstract Introduction The objective of this study was to gain an understanding of whether pharmacy students are using Facebook® to create formal or informal workplace-based peer groups to learn from each other and share information while completing their advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs). Methods Fourth-year pharmacy students from two colleges of pharmacy in the same geographical area were recruited by email to participate. Inclusion criteria were: completion of two or more APPEs, current assignment to an APPE rotation in the local area, and a Facebook® profile. Two focus groups, of eight students each were conducted on each of the two colleges’ campuses. An incentive to participate was provided. Thematic analysis was used to analyze responses. Results Students reported using Facebook® to learn about rotation expectations, roles/responsibilities, and preceptors. However, frequency and depth of interactions varied among the participants. Most participants noted that they prefer more private methods of communication to learn about APPE experiences. Students found Facebook® to be a good source of motivation and support during experiential learning. Discussion The use of social media sites like Facebook® may help students form “virtual” workplace-based peer groups during APPEs. Conclusion Pharmacy schools interested in providing support for formal workplace-based learning groups should consider using social media sites as one component of this program.
Identification of a Functionally Unique Family of Penicillin-Binding Proteins

Penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) are enzymes involved in the assembly of the bacterial cell wall, a major target for antibiotics. These proteins are classified by mass into high-molecular-weight PBPs, which are transpeptidases that form peptidoglycan cross-links, and low-molecular-weight PBPs, which are typically hydrolases. We report a functionally unique family of low-molecular-weight PBPs that act as transpeptidases rather than hydrolases, but they do not cross-link peptidoglycan. We show that these PBPs can exchange d-amino acids bearing chemical tags or affinity handles into peptidoglycan precursors, including Lipid II, enabling biochemical studies of proteins involved in cell wall assembly. We report that, in two organisms, the PBPs incorporate lysine into cellular peptidoglycan and that, further, the PBPs have the unprecedented ability to transfer the primary e-amine of lysine to peptidoglycan.
Estrogenic hormones and dental implant therapy: the effects of estrogen and progesterone levels on osseointegration of dental implants

Successful rehabilitation of female service members suffering traumatic injuries to the maxillofacial region is both a physiological and a psychological issue. A clinical evaluation to determine if an association exists between sex hormone levels and dental implant success was undertaken. Endosseous dental implants were placed in three patient groups: (1) male controls, (2) females with high estrogen, and (3) females with low estrogen. Female groupings were based on ovulation cycles. Serum estrogen (ng/dl), serum progesterone [ng/dl], and serum interleukin-6 (pg/ml) were determined at time of implant placement. Pre- and postsurgical photographs and vinyl-polysiloxane impressions were taken to evaluate crestal alveolar bone loss. Upon data analysis, the authors concluded that the balance of alveolar osseous wound healing was not influenced by temporal fluctuations in the ovulatory cycle.
Platinum Compounds and Radiation

Combining concurrent radiation with platinum compounds has been the subject of both preclinical and clinical cancer research for over two decades. The property of platinum to enhance the effect of radiation on a variety of tumors has been successfully translated to the treatment of head and neck, non-small cell lung (NSCLC), and cervical cancer.
Lower-extremity functional electrical stimulation decreases platelet aggregation and blood coagulation in persons with chronic spinal cord injury: a pilot study.

Background: Individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) develop premature cardiovascular disease. Regular exercise reduces the incidence and symptoms of cardiovascular disease in able-bodied individuals; these salutary effects of exercise have not been documented in persons with SCI.
Real-time imaging-guided microbubble mediated high intensity focused ultrasound heating in an ex-vivo machine-perfused pig liver

High intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is used clinically for the ablation of prostate and liver tumors. More recently, HIFU has been used in the brain for locally controlled thermal treatment of nonessential tremors. However, the thermal lesion location is restricted to a small area in the tissue due to geometric and boundary limitations (avoiding skin and bone burns). Bubble-enhanced heating (BEH) allows for the use of lower power and can generate spatially controlled thermal lesions in regions not currently accessible with conventional HIFU. We have studied BEH in vitro and in a machine perfused pig liver (MPL). The MPL presents a versatile platform for perfusion and BEH studies because it is clinically relevant and allows for delivery of microbubbles under ultrasound imaging. We first applied conventional HIFU and BEH in vitro, in an enclosure with acoustic windows contaiing glycerin and microbubbles while monitoring the temperature with a fine wire thermocouple. A focused 1 MHz transducer and various clinically approved microbubbles were used. Then we applied BEH on the MPL by introducing microbubbles under image guidance. With this initial study, we have observed that BEH has resulted in 5-10x energy reduction for the formation of a reference lesion in vitro, and 3-6x in the MPL.
Concomitant Hiatal Hernia Repair Is more Common in Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy than During Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass: an Analysis of 130,772 Cases.

Obesity is associated with the development of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and hiatal hernia (HH). This study aimed to assess practice patterns regarding concomitant HH repair (HHR) during laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). The incidence of concomitant HHR with LSG or LRYGB was analyzed using the 2015 Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program database. One hundred thirty thousand, seven hundred seventy-two patients underwent RYGB (30.5%) and LSG (69.5%). Concomitant HHR was more common, despite less GERD, in SG patients compared to RYGB (21.0% vs 10.8%, p < 0.0001; adjusted OR 2.14, 95% CI 2.06–2.22). This marked difference in the intraoperative management of HH during bariatric surgeries may hinder our ability to evaluate the long-term effects of bariatric surgery on GERD.
Institutional Preservation Work at a Family Business in Crisis: Micro-processes, Emotions, and Nonfamily Members:

While research tends to focus on how family members respond to and manage crises arising in family businesses, nonfamily members play important roles as well. In this qualitative study, we demonstr...
A Hierarchical Framework for Timely Freeway Accident Detection and Localization

The increase of motor vehicle accidents over the past decades has made their early and accurate detection crucial not only for saving human lives, but also for decreasing time and energy wasted due to congestion. Unlike existing work that has thus far focused on accident detection, this work recognizes the problem of accident localization as an equally important challenge to be addressed. A novel algorithm is proposed to optimally detect the time of an accident and subsequently estimate its geographic location in near–real–time based on speed sensor readings. Evaluation on a large–scale real–world dataset demonstrates that the proposed approach achieves significant gains compared to state–of–the–art with respect to false alarm rate and average detection delay, while at the same time being capable of pinpointing the exact location of accidents within less than 2 miles on average.
Report of the committee on dynamics of streams, 1933–34

With the work of the previous year as a basis the Committee on Dynamics of Streams during the year 1933–34 has distributed certain phases of its activities among different groups of members in order that a more concentrated effort might be given to the subject-matter with which the Committee is concerned. In order to avoid the provincialism which sometimes occurs in the development of a science it appeared obvious that a means of propagation of the results of current reports was definitely a continuous function of the Committee. Likewise the standardization of the terminology required for discussion of stream dynamic problems seemed to be a definite and important phase of the prospective activities.
Equity versus Excellence: Is the Pursuit of “Tier-1” Status Compatible With Social Justice?:

This study explored the social justice implications of the transition of a Hispanic-serving Institution (HSI) to a “Tier-1” institution. Interviews and demographic statistics describe a university ...
Improved Stress Management and Tension Control: A Model Program in a Community College

The purpose of this paper is to describe the origin, content, and results of a model program to teach improved stress management and tension control at a community college. Much of this text will deal with methodology, allowing for only a brief summary of the results of several years’ research using program participants. I hope to illustrate the form and function of an effective adult educational program which is intended to enhance the participant’s progress toward the goal of high-level wellness.
Ideological Composition of the Classroom: Testing the Effects of Polarization on Perceptions of Open Classroom Climate among Students in Five Countries.

This quantitative study tests the relationship between ideological classroom composition and perceptions of open classroom climate. Using data from the 2016 International Education Association’s In...
Bacterial Protein Translocation

Protein translocation is a process common to all cells. Both prokaryotes and eukaryotes are divided into distinct compartments, each containing a unique set of proteins important to specific cellular functions. Except for a few mitochondrial and chloroplast proteins, almost all proteins are synthesized in the cytoplasm; therefore many proteins must cross at least one membrane to reach their final destination within the cell. The eukaryotic endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria, the bacterial plasma membrane and various secreted proteins have been used as model systems for extensive research on protein translocation. From these studies certain common themes for membrane assembly have emerged (Wickner and Lodish, 1985). In summary (i) translocation can occur independently of protein synthesis, (ii) the information for translocation is contained throughout the protein, not just in the leader (signal) sequences, (iii) translocation requires energy, either as a high energy phosphate, a membrane electrochemical potential, or both. Still, the molecular mechanisms for translocation remain largely unknown. To gain further understanding of these problems, we have focused our efforts on studying membrane assembly and protein export in E. coli, exploiting the sophistication of bacterial genetic engineering and the relative ease of cellular fractionation and biochemistry of bacteria.
a New Risk Assessment Tool for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Introduction: Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), can be curative for many hematologic disorders. However, HSCT is still associated with significant risks. HSCT outcomes are dependent on patient, disease and transplant related factors. There are a number of assessment tools being used to predict outcomes. Some use patient related variables such as the hematopoietic cell transplantation specific comorbidity index (HCT-CI), some use disease-related variables such as the disease-risk index (DRI) and some others incorporate combined variables. We aimed to incorporate disease, patient comorbidities, donor, and transplant characteristics into one comprehensive prognostic model to predict 2 year disease-free survival (DFS). Methods: 273 consecutive patients (162 males, 111 females) receiving an initial HSCT from 2010 and 2016 were identified and retrospectively analyzed. Median age was 56 years (range 18-76 years) and a broad representation of hematologic disorders (119 AML, 46 ALL, 60 MDS, 18 NHL, 30 other) were included. All pts received peripheral blood as graft source. The majority received an unrelated donor transplant (166) and were conditioned with a myeloablative regimen (199). The dataset was randomly split in a 2:1 ratio to create training and testing dataset prior to data analysis. Variables under consideration as predictors of 2 year disease-free survival included: patient (age, sex, blood type, CMV status, Karnofsky Performance Status, HCT-CI), donor (age, sex, blood type, CMV status), disease (type, time since diagnosis, Disease Risk Index), and transplant (prep regimen, year of transplant, related/unrelated, match/mismatch) characteristics. Using the training dataset, a lasso penalized Cox regression was applied with the penalty parameter being derived as the mean of 1,000 iterations of 10-fold cross-validation. Patient risk scores was computed from the model and used to stratify patients based on a median split of risk scores; survival differences were evaluated using the log-rank test. Model performance was evaluated in the training and testing datasets by deriving time-dependent AUC curves, evaluating survival differences by risk strata, and comparing predicted to observed survival probabilities at 2 years. Results: Karnofsky Performance Status ( Conclusion: This comprehensive prognostic model is able to stratify patients into high risk and low risk groups with significantly different outcome. The inclusion of additional variables in the model increased accuracy (higher AUC) relative to existing models, which highlights the importance of taking into consideration additional constructs when trying to predict DFS. Further independent validation of our findings is necessary. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Can Markets Be Moral

Most scholars accept that people are materially better off in market societies, and that people are materially worse off in nonmarket societies. However, there is a debate among the critics, defenders, and students of commercial life concerning whether or not the wealth that societies gain by embracing markets comes at a high moral cost. This chapter argues that it is important to answer the question of whether or not engaging in market activities is morally corrupting. As such, we ask and answer the question: Do markets corrupt our morals? Are markets moral spaces that depend on and cultivate our morality or are markets immoral spaces where vice thrives and is encouraged? Is virtue endogenous to markets?
Structural Responses to Gendered Social Problems: Police Agency Adaptations to Human Trafficking:

The identification and investigation of human trafficking cases has lagged behind what prevalence estimates of the scope of the crime have suggested. Previous research has identified the importance...
Connected Graphs with a Given Degree Sequence: Efficient Sampling, Correlations, Community Detection and Robustness

Random graph models can help us assess the significance of the structural properties of real complex systems. Given the value of a graph property and its value in a randomized ensemble, we can determine whether the property is explained by chance by comparing its real value to its value in the ensemble. The conclusions drawn with this approach obviously depend on the choice of randomization. We argue that keeping graphs in one connected piece, or component, is key for many applications where complex graphs are assumed to be connected either by definition (e.g. the Internet) or by construction (e.g. a crawled subset of the World-Wide Web obtained only by following hyperlinks). Using an heuristic to quickly sample the ensemble of small connected simple graphs with a fixed degree sequence, we investigate the significance of the structural patterns found in real connected graphs. We find that, in sparse networks, the connectedness constraint changes degree correlations, the outcome of community detection with modularity, and the predictions of percolation on the ensemble.
The effects of cyclododecane and subsequent removal on δ15N, δ13C, and δ18O values in collagen and bioapatite of a modern bone

Abstract Applying consolidants to bone material in museum collections often is necessary to stabilize fragile specimens. However, this process can be difficult to reverse and may chemically alter the material, which may affect future biochemical analyses. Cyclododecane (CDD), a pliable solid that sublimates at room temperature, is a potential reversible alternative for temporary consolidation. This study examined the effects of CDD and Shell Cyclosol 53 (C53 – a solvent commonly used with CDD) on stable nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen isotope values in a modern whale rib. Different application methods (penetrating hot melt vs. surface heat spatula) and removal methods (low heat, ambient sublimation, and solvent) were tested in various combinations. The most effective method for removing CDD was low heat (65 °C); applying C53 also proved a viable option. All stable isotope values were unaffected by CDD application and solvent. No alteration was observed which suggests CDD does not affect the bone tissue structure, nor does it facilitate isotopic exchange or fractionation. This is an improvement over certain permanent consolidants which can alter bioapatite oxygen isotope values in particular. CDD is a viable temporary consolidant when further chemical analyses of bone tissue are desired.
Clinical observation of early feeding tolerance to amino acid-based formula combined with rice oil in children with persistent diarrhea induced by cow's milk protein allergy

Objective To evaluate the clinical effects of amino acid-based formulae (AAF) combined with rice oil in treating children with persistent diarrhea caused by cow's milk protein allergy (CMPA).Methods We selected 60 infants (6-12 months) with CMPA-induced persistent diarrhea treated in Tianjin Children's Hospital between April 2011 and December 2013 and divided them into control group (n =30) and observation group (n =30) with a random number table.The control group was given AAF treatment,while the observation group was given the combination treatment of AAF + rice oil The two groups were compared in terms of treatment efficiency,period before improvement of stools,antidiarrheal time,early adverse reactions (vomit,abdominal distension),and the period before disappearance of systemic symptoms (frequent crying).Results The effective rate was 89.3％ in the control group and 96.7％ in the observation group,with no statistically significant difference (P =0.267).Adverse reactions disappeared significantly earlier in the observation group than in the control group [abdominal distension:(7.2 ± 1.7) days vs.(9.4 ±2.3) days; vomit:(8.6 ±2.5) days vs.(12.5 ±2.0) days; frequent crying:(8.0 ± 1.6) days vs.(10.0 ± 2.1) days; all P =0.000].Conclusions AAF is the first choice to treat CMPA-induced diarrhea.Early use of AAF in combination with rice oil could achieve better feeding tolerance in infant with CMPA-induced diarrhea. Key words: Amino acid-based formula; Rice oil; Infant; Cow's milk protein allergy; Persistent diarrhea
EGFR activation attenuates the mechanical threshold for integrin tension and focal adhesion formation.

Mechanical forces, growth factors, and the extracellular matrix all play critical roles in cell adhesion. To understand how epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) impacts the mechanics of adhesion we employed tension gauge tether (TGT) probes displaying the integrin ligand cRGDfK and quantified integrin tension during cell adhesion. EGF exposure increased spread area, cell circularity, integrated integrin tension, mechanical rupture density, radial organization and size of focal adhesions (FAs) significantly in Cos-7 cells on TGT surfaces. These findings suggest EGFR regulates integrin tension and FA spatial organization. Additionally we found the mechanical tension threshold for outside-in integrin activation is tunable by EGFR. Parallel genetic and pharmacologic strategies demonstrated that these phenotypes are driven by ligand-dependent EGFR signalling. Our results establish a novel mechanism where EGFR regulates integrin activation and cell adhesion, providing control over cellular responses to the environment.
Perceptions of the Value of Clinical Pharmacy Medication Review for Women During Early Pregnancy

BACKGROUND: The benefit of continuing medications to prevent or treat illness is often overlooked, since pregnant women tend to overestimate the teratogenic risk of medications. Pharmacists can ser...