cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Microradiographic visualization of structure in bones of the masked shrew, Sorex cinereus

Sorex cinereus, the masked shrew, is nearly the smallest of mammals. The femur, metatarsal, phalanges and mandible of wild-trapped animals were examined by a variation in the technique of contact microradiography. Purpose of the investigation is the exploration of some aspects of the question of size as a factor in structural complexity in bone, as well as the possibilities of the shrew in studies of skeletal aging. Comparison is made with bones of the laboratory mouse and rat. Limb bones of the masked shrew are avascular. Vascularity of the mandible appears related primarily to maintenance of dental tissues. The femur is comparatively simple, its sparce spongiosa consisting of relatively large trabeculae. Diaphyseal compacta appears to be of maximum thickness for the avascular state. Tubular foot bones are without spongiosa and bone on their articular surfaces is nearly as thick as that in the diaphysis. Metatarsals and phalanges of mice have the same gross structure but are vascular. These bones in the rat have trabeculae in functional patterns. The simplicity of structure of these minute bones, and the drastic structural modification of bones of apparently starved or stressed animals, indicates potential utility of the shrew in experimental investigations.
Stable Isotope Hydrology: Deuterium and Oxygen‐18 in the Water Cycle

In 1973, the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)/UNESCO Working Group on Nuclear Techniques in Hydrology of the International Hydrological Programme recognized the need for a book to acquaint hydrologists, hydrogeologists, and geochemists with the principles and techniques of stable isotope hydrology. This volume fills that need exceptionally well. Although designed as an introductory text, this systematic volume contains sufficient detail to serve as a good reference for the specialist. It is divided into 13 chapters, most of which were written by present or past staff of the IAEA.
Migration, remittances, and inequality: estimating the net effects of migration on income distribution.

This paper examines the net effects of migration and remittances on income distribution. Potential home earnings of migrants are imputed, as are the earnings of non-migrants in migrant households, in order to construct no-migration counterfacmals to compare with the observed income distribution including remittances. The earnings functions used to impute migrant home earnings are estimated from observations on non-migrants in a selection-corrected estimation framework which incorporates migration choice and labor-force participation decisions. For a sample of households in Bluefields, Nicaragua, migration and remittances increase income inequality when compared with the no-migration counterfactual. © 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.
Radiotherapy in the management of far-advanced cutaneous malignancies.

Far-advanced cutaneous malignancies for which no other treatment is feasible may be benefitted by radiotherapy. The treatments of two such cases by techniques of modern radiotherapy are described and illustrated.
Further exploration of the demeanor hypothesis: The interaction effects of suspects' characteristics and demeanor on police behavior

Recent research has reexamined the hypothesis that suspects' demeanor affects police behavior. Reanalyses have supported this demeanor hypothesis, but none have considered the possible interaction effect of demeanor with other extralegal variables. Utilizing systematic observational data collected in 24 police departments in three metropolitan areas, this research examines whether demeanor and suspects' characteristics interact, and ultimately produce differential patterns of citation, arrest, and the use of force. These estimated interaction effects provide a clearer understanding of the effect of demeanor in different contexts; more important, they acknowledge that officers accept some forms of disrespect but not others, depending on factors outside demeanor alone.
Targeting the osteosarcoma cancer stem cell

Osteosarcoma is the most common type of solid bone cancer and the second leading cause of cancer-related death in pediatric patients. Many patients are not cured by the current osteosarcoma therapy consisting of combination chemotherapy along with surgery and thus new treatments are urgently needed. In the last decade, cancer stem cells have been identified in many tumors such as leukemia, brain, breast, head and neck, colon, skin, pancreatic, and prostate cancers and these cells are proposed to play major roles in drug resistance, tumor recurrence, and metastasis. Recent studies have shown evidence that osteosarcoma also possesses cancer stem cells. This review summarizes the current knowledge about the osteosarcoma cancer stem cell including the methods used for its isolation, its properties, and its potential as a new target for osteosarcoma treatment.
Cross-Modality Automatic Face Model Training from Large Video Databases

Face recognition is an important issue on video indexing and retrieval applications. Usually, supervised learning is used to build face models for various specific named individuals. However, a huge amount of labeling work is needed in a traditional supervised learning framework. In this paper, we propose an automatic cross-modality training scheme without supervision which uses automatic speech recognition of videos to build visual face models. Based on Multiple-Instance Learning algorithms, we introduce novel concepts of "Quasi-Positive bags" and "Extended Diverse Density", and use them to develop an automatic training scheme. We also propose to use the "Relative Sparsity" of a cluster to detect the anchorperson in the news videos. Experiments show that our algorithm can get correct models for the persons we are interested in. The automatic learned models are tested and compared with a supervised learning algorithm for face recognition in large news video databases, and show promising results.
Variable window Gabor filters and their use in focus and correspondence

There are two basic problems concerned with Gabor filterings that we will address in this paper. One is the window size problem, in which we will adopt a set of 2D variable window Gabor filters, and compare its performance with those of fixed window filters. We will show that the variable window scheme is more adaptive to image contents. The other problem we will address is the stability of amplitude and phase information resulting from convolving the filters with images. We will extend Fleet's 1D phase stability analysis to 2D phase and amplitude stability analysis based upon the assumption of local resemblance of filter outputs to a single sinusoid. Applications on focus quality measurement and 2D correspondence are described, and the results demonstrate improvements of performance by detecting unstable information using the criterion developed. >
The Epidemiology of Tourette's Syndrome: A Pilot Study

A new, precoded, self-report questionnaire was used to collect information on 75 patient members of the Tourette Syndrome Association. This diverse group of Tourette's syndrome (TS) patients supplied by mail detailed medical, symptom, developmental, family, and personal history information. Analysis of these data supported the usefulness and validity of the questionnaire, and also indicated that the diagnosis of TS is being made earlier; attentional difficulties may be basic to the disorder; haloperidol is an effective treatment for many patients, but alternative treatments are needed because unpleasant side effects of haloperidol often lead to discontinued use, and TS is disabling for many with most patients reporting serious problems in one or more areas of functioning.
Moderators of the Relationship Between Work-Family Conflict and Career Satisfaction

In this study, we examined the moderating effects of individual differences and sources of support on the negative relationship between work-family conflict and career satisfaction. Data from 975 managers indicated that the relationship was significant for women irrespective of age but was significant for men only in later career. Moreover, the relationship was stronger for individuals who were in the minority gender in their work groups, but it was weaker for those who had strong community ties. Implications are discussed.
Collapsing ROC approach for risk prediction research on both common and rare variants

Risk prediction that capitalizes on emerging genetic findings holds great promise for improving public health and clinical care. However, recent risk prediction research has shown that predictive tests formed on existing common genetic loci, including those from genome-wide association studies, have lacked sufficient accuracy for clinical use. Because most rare variants on the genome have not yet been studied for their role in risk prediction, future disease prediction discoveries should shift toward a more comprehensive risk prediction strategy that takes into account both common and rare variants. We are proposing a collapsing receiver operating characteristic (CROC) approach for risk prediction research on both common and rare variants. The new approach is an extension of a previously developed forward ROC (FROC) approach, with additional procedures for handling rare variants. The approach was evaluated through the use of 533 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 37 candidate genes from the Genetic Analysis Workshop 17 mini-exome data set. We found that a prediction model built on all SNPs gained more accuracy (AUC = 0.605) than one built on common variants alone (AUC = 0.585). We further evaluated the performance of two approaches by gradually reducing the number of common variants in the analysis. We found that the CROC method attained more accuracy than the FROC method when the number of common variants in the data decreased. In an extreme scenario, when there are only rare variants in the data, the CROC reached an AUC value of 0.603, whereas the FROC had an AUC value of 0.524.
Classifying user environment for mobile applications using linear autoencoding of ambient audio

Many mobile devices and applications can act in context-sensitive ways, but rely on explicit human action for context awareness. It would be preferable if our devices were able to attain context awareness without human intervention. One important aspect of user context is environment. We present a novel method for classifying environment types based on acoustic signals. This method makes use of linear autoencoding neural networks, and is motivated by the observation that biological coding systems seem to be heavily influenced by the statistics of their environments. We show that the autoencoder method achieved a lower error rate than a standard Gaussian mixture model on a representative sample task, and that a linear combination of autoencoders and GMMs yielded better performance than either alone.
Risk factors for early and late biliary complications in pediatric liver transplantation

BC are a common source of morbidity after pediatric LT. Knowledge about risk factors may help to reduce their incidence. Retrospective analysis of BC in 116 pediatric patients (123 LT) (single institution, 05/1990-12/2011, medium follow-up 7.9 yr). One-, five-, and 10-yr survival was 91.1%, no patient died of BC. Prevalence and risk factors for anastomotic and intrahepatic BC were examined. There were 29 BC in 123 LT (23.6%), with three main categories: 10 (8.1%) primary anastomotic strictures, eight (6.5%) anastomotic leaks, and three (2.4%) intrahepatic strictures. Significant risk factors for anastomotic leaks were total operation time (increase 1.26-fold) and early HAT ( 48 yr (increase 1.09-fold) and MELD score >30 (increase 1.2-fold). To avoid morbidity from anastomotic BC in pediatric LT, the preferred biliary anastomosis appears to be biliary-enteric. Operation time should be kept to a minimum, and HAT must by all means be prevented. Children with a high MELD score or receiving livers from older donors are at increased risk for intrahepatic strictures.
EFFECTS OF SHRINK FILM WRAP ON INTERNAL GAS CONCENTRATIONS, CHILLING INJURY, AND RIPENING OF HONEYDEW MELONS

Honeydew muskmelons (Cucumis melo L.) were individually wrapped with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) shrink film and stored at 2.5° or 7.5 °C for 21 days and examined, then held an additional 2 or 3 days at 20°C and examined again. Nonwrapped melons were the control. The concentration of CO2 in the cavity of wrapped melons stored 21 days was 5.6% at 2.5°C, 9.1% at 7.5°C, but only 1.1% and 1.5% in the nonwrapped held at 2.5°C or 7.5°C, respectively. Wrapped fruit ripened slower than nonwrapped fruit during storage and subsequent holding at 20°C, after which time 70% of the wrapped melons were rated eating ripe, but 62% of the controls were overripe. Wrapped melons exhibited 30% less chilling injury (CI) symptoms than nonwrapped fruit stored at 2.5°C. The CI symptoms ranged from reddish-brown to dark-brown surface discolorations and sometimes included dry sunken areas of skin. Fresh weight loss was about 1 % in wrapped melons, but 5% in nonwrapped fruit, regardless of storage temperature. Decay incidence was about equal in wrapped and nonwrapped melons after storage at 2.5°C, but was greater for wrapped than nonwrapped melons after storage at 7.5°C. Soluble solids content was about 12.5% in wrapped and nonwrapped melons stored at either temperature.
Structural Characterization of a Composition Tolerant Bulk Heterojunction Blend

The ratio of the donor and acceptor components in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) organic solar cells is a key parameter for achieving optimal power conversion efficiency (PCE). However, it has been recently found that a few BHJ blends have compositional tolerance and achieve high performance in a wide range of donor to acceptor ratios. For instance, the X2:PC61BM system, where X2 is a molecular donor of intermediate dimensions, exhibits a PCE of 6.6%. Its PCE is relatively insensitive to the blend ratio over the range from 7:3 to 4:6. The effect of blend ratio of X2/PC61BM on morphology and device performance is therefore systematically investigated by using the structural characterization techniques of energy-filtered transmission energy microscopy (EF-TEM), resonant soft X-ray scattering (R-SoXS) and grazing incidence wide angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS). Changes in blend ratio do not lead to obvious differences in morphology, as revealed by R-SoXS and EF-TEM. Rather, there is a smooth evolution of a connected structure with decreasing domain spacing from 8:2 to 6:4 blend ratios. Domain spacing remains constant from 6:4 to 4:6 blend ratios, which suggests the presence of continuous phases with proper domain size that may provide access for charge carriers to reach their corresponding electrodes.
Discontinuity of Breastfeeding Care: "There's No Captain of the Ship".

Abstract Background: Breastfeeding rates in the United States are suboptimal. Health professionals (HPs) have a unique opportunity to support breastfeeding because of the frequency and timing of their visits with mothers and infants as well as their call by professional organizations to do so. The objective of this study was to understand HPs' perceived roles and experiences with providing breastfeeding-related care. Materials and Methods: In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 34 HPs (obstetricians, midwives, pediatricians, nurses, and lactation consultants) who care for pregnant or lactating women. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and verified for accuracy; content analysis was used to identify themes using a grounded theory approach. Results: The overarching theme was discontinuity in breastfeeding care across the continuum. Most HPs relied on other HPs to provide breastfeeding care, which resulted from and contributed to problematic gaps in care that were reported. A minority ...
Rainfall variability and nitrogen addition synergistically reduce plant diversity in a restored tallgrass prairie

Summary 1. Climate change is expected to bring fewer, larger rainfall events and prolonged droughts (i.e. increased rainfall variability). Concurrently, the burning of fossil fuels and reliance on nitrogen (N) fertilizers are expected to continue to increase N availability in many ecosystems. These changes in water and N availability have the potential to alter plant community composition and structure. 2. We manipulated rainfall variability and N inputs in a restored tallgrass prairie over the course of two growing seasons. 3. Greater rainfall variability led to wetter soils throughout the majority of both growing seasons and provided punctuated relief from a severe drought that occurred during the first three months of the experiment. 4. Both rainfall variability- and fertilization-induced increases in resource availability favoured fast-growing, deeply rooted C3 forbs, particularly the dominant Solidago canadensis, at the expense of species adapted to low resource conditions, particularly C4 grasses and N-fixing forbs. 5. This change in community composition decreased plant community diversity and evenness in plots receiving both supplemental N and more variable rainfall. 6. Synthesis and applications. These results suggest that future increases in rainfall variability and nitrogen (N) deposition could synergistically alter the structure of prairie restorations and jeopardize restoration targets related to increasing floral diversity. Mitigating N availability in restoration sites may help to maintain prairie diversity as rainfall patterns become more variable.
HYPOTHESIS : MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS IS A TYPE I INTERFERON DEFICIENCY SYNDROME

Multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS), is in part an immune mediated disease (1). MS is clinically associated with periods of disability (relapse) alternating with periods of recovery (remission) but often leading to progressive neurological disability (2). White matter lesions in the CNS are associated with mononuclear infiltrates that consist primarily of T cells and macrophages and resemble the lesion produced by T-lymphocyte delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) (2–3). Alternatively, T-cell infiltration may not be the “initial hit” but T cells may be recruited secondarily by the release of chemokines from activated macrophages (4). Activated immune cells in the CNS lead to inflammation and eventually demyelination. MS has been associated with abnormalities of immunoregulation (5).We propose a unifying hypothesis of the etiopathogenesis of MS that mirrors the relapsing-remitting character of clinical MS and defines MS as a type I interferon (IFN) imm...
Fatigue Life Prediction of IM7/977-3 Composite Laminates with Multispatial/Multitemporal Homogenization

This manuscript presents the fatigue life prediction of an IM7/977-3 quasi-isotropic [0,45,90,-45]2s laminate using multiple space-time homogenization. Progressive damage accumulation in the constituent materials of the composite was modeled using the Eigendeformation based homogenization method with reduced order models. A fast time integration approach was implemented to address the multiple temporal scales present in the cyclic analysis for fatigue. Calibration of the damage evolution behavior of the fiber and matrix constituents was performed using a small number of standard fatigue experiments. The calibrated model was exercised in the prediction of progressive stiffness degradation, residual tension and compression strength after fatigue, and progressive damage accumulation.
Collecting widely the characteristics of many styles,creating own appearance——Commenting on Yao Xilong's handwriting

Handwriting is the soul of Chinese culture,generates along with the Chinese characters,and is not separated form Chinese culture.Yao Xilong acknowledged famous literary history experts and handwriting masters as teachers in his early years,it establishes solid Chinese sinology basis and makes him stand higher start-point on the aspect of handwriting.Though Yao Xilong studies all styles,bends the creation of cursive style.The characteristics of his handwriting productions are style of handwriting is religious,spirit is affecting;style is changeful,has his own;pays equal attention to skill and doctrine,passes affection and doctrine with handwriting.
Prevention of Preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a disease unique to pregnancy. Treatment for the disease has remained suboptimal because of the unknown etiology of the disease. Preventive strategies have been suggested and have provided new ways to approach the patient at risk for developing preeclampsia.
Depolarization-induced Ca entry via Na-Ca exchange triggers SR release in guinea pig cardiac myocytes

In mammalian heart muscle, Ca entry through L-type Ca channels is thought to be the primary trigger for the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca release, which initiates contraction. The results of this study show that, in guinea pig myocytes with a normal internal Na (10 mM Na in pipette), another trigger mechanisms for SR release and contraction exists. A crucial feature of these experiments was the ability to change rapidly the extracellular environment of a single myocyte so that alterations of intracellular Ca and SR Ca load were minimized for each solution change. We found the following results. 1) A switch to Na-free solution 50 ms before depolarization led to an increase of phasic contraction without increasing L-type Ca current (Ica) or Ca loading of the SR. 2) Although rapid application of 20 microM nifedipine 3 s before a + 10-mV pulse blocked ICa completely, 43 +/- 11 (SE) % of the phasic contraction remained. Similar results were obtained by rapid switching to 150 microM Cd to block ICa. 3) Phasic contraction and ICa had different voltage dependence. With steps to positive potentials there was little ICa but still a substantial phasic contraction. 4) Under action potential conditions, 64.6 +/- 7.9% of the control phasic contraction remained after switching to 20 microM nifedipine to block ICa. 5) The contraction remaining with nifedipine was unaffected by adding 100 microM Ni. Because 100 microM Ni blocks T-type Ca channels, this shows that Ca entry via T-type Ca channels is not involved in triggering SR release. 6) The phasic contraction remaining after a rapid switch to nifedipine was blocked completely by adding 5 mM Ni. Because this concentration of Ni is known to block the Na-Ca exchange, this result suggests that the exchange plays a role in triggering SR release. Taken together, the present results indicate that depolarization-induced Ca entry on the Na-Ca exchange is able to trigger SR release and phasic contraction. This explanation can account for increased phasic contraction after a rapid switch to Na-free solution, persistence of a phasic contraction in the complete absence of ICa, substantial phasic contraction at positive test potentials where there is no ICa, and abolition of nifedipine-resistant contraction by 5 mM Ni.
Top-Down Bank Capital Regulation

The rules that govern bank capital are often referred to as “minimum” capital ratios. Institutions that comply with these ratios are not necessarily safe or unlikely to fail in a crisis given that the rules still allow extremely high levels of debt. Experience suggests that minimum capital ratios are a lagging indicator of a bank’s financial stability. During the Financial Crisis, banks that failed or required government support appeared adequately capitalized under the then current rules. The firm-specific supervisory process is meant to correct the deficiencies of one-size-fits-all rules by requiring some banks to hold higher levels of capital. For large banks, this case-by-case determination is made through Federal Reserve’s annual Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR) process and for small institutions these decisions are made through formal and informal administrative enforcement proceedings. While the imposition of higher capital ratios through these supervisory mechanisms sounds promising, this system is actually at odds with the concept of “prudential” regulation in that the supervisory process builds only incrementally upon weak minimum rules. Our combined rulemaking and supervisory system would be more effective if capital rules applicable to all banks were set high — high enough so that the risk of serious undercapitalization, distress or insolvency is very small. This would make capital rules consistent with a precautionary approach, erring on the side of more capital. Conceptually, capital rules would be guided by what is prudent as opposed to what is minimally tolerable. This article explores how moving to a system of prudent capital rules could interact with firm-specific supervision to achieve a safer banking system.
Why autologous tissue

Breast reconstruction with autologous tissue achieves more natural results and a better simulation of a real breast than reconstruction based on prosthetic implants. Unlike implant-based reconstructions, which tend to develop capsular contractures, the results of autologous tissue reconstruction tend to improve with time. In the long run, the costs of autologous breast reconstruction with transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) flaps are equal to or lower than those of reconstruction with tissue expansion and implants. Consequently, autologous tissue is preferable for most patients, provided they are suitable candidates for the surgery required by autologous reconstruction.
Mobile Learning Technologies

While educational and corporate training environments have made large investments in getting wired to high-speed Internet connections, our work and social environments are rapidly becoming more mobile and flexible. The Internet and organizationally based intranets are powerful learning and performance tools, as long as users have a high-speed connection and up-to-date computing equipment. Online learning and information is not nearly as convenient or reliable when learners need to access sites from their homes, hotel rooms, client locations, or while on the road. In corporate settings, large numbers of critical employees such as factory engineers, health care professionals, builders, and maintenance workers often do not even have offices in which to use a computer.
Large reptiles and cold temperatures: Do extreme cold spells set distributional limits for tropical reptiles in Florida?

Distributional limits of many tropical species in Florida are ultimately determined by tolerance to low temperature. An unprecedented cold spell during 2–11 January 2010, in South Florida provided an opportunity to compare the responses of tropical American crocodiles with warm-temperate American alligators and to compare the responses of nonnative Burmese pythons with native warm-temperate snakes exposed to prolonged cold temperatures. After the January 2010 cold spell, a record number of American crocodiles (n = 151) and Burmese pythons (n = 36) were found dead. In contrast, no American alligators and no native snakes were found dead. American alligators and American crocodiles behaved differently during the cold spell. American alligators stopped basking and retreated to warmer water. American crocodiles apparently continued to bask during extreme cold temperatures resulting in lethal body temperatures. The mortality of Burmese pythons compared to the absence of mortality for native snakes suggests that the current population of Burmese pythons in the Everglades is less tolerant of cold temperatures than native snakes. Burmese pythons introduced from other parts of their native range may be more tolerant of cold temperatures. We documented the direct effects of cold temperatures on crocodiles and pythons; however, evidence of long-term effects of cold temperature on their populations within their established ranges remains lacking. Mortality of crocodiles and pythons outside of their current established range may be more important in setting distributional limits.
Offshoring and Outsourcing in the PC Industry: A Historical Perspective

Author(s): Dedrick, J; Kraemer, KL | Abstract: Offshoring and outsourcing of manufacturing and knowledge work is a highly visible and controversial issue in the public debate over the impacts of globalization. In their efforts to expand markets and optimize production for competitive advantage, firms distribute their activities around the world through their own offshore subsidiaries, by outsourcing to other firms, or both. This pattern is blamed by many critics for job losses in the U.S., while credited by others with benefiting U.S. firms, shareholders and consumers. In reality the impacts of offshoring and outsourcing are hard to measure as they can be subtle and indirect. For instance, there is no measure for jobs that were never created in the U.S. because new products were sourced from overseas from almost their inception. However, by observing one industry over time, it is possible to identify patterns in the location of production work and knowledge work, and to qualitatively assess the impacts of offshoring on firms and workers. Production work is operations-oriented and includes activities such as subassembly, final assembly and logistics. Knowledge work is innovation-oriented and includes activities such as Ragn and development of new products and process engineering. We focus on the PC industry, which offers an important case for understanding the forces that influence U.S. firms to outsource their activities, and for identifying the impacts of those decisions. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
A Comparison of Body Segment Inertial Parameter Estimation Methods and Joint Moment and Power Calculations During a Drop Vertical Jump in Collegiate Female Soccer Players.

Athletic individuals may differ in body segment inertial parameter (BSIP) estimates due to differences in body composition, and this may influence calculation of joint kinetics. The purposes of this study were to (1) compare BSIPs predicted by the method introduced by de Leva1 with DXA-derived BSIPs in collegiate female soccer players, and (2) examine the effects of these BSIP estimation methods on joint moment and power calculations during a drop vertical jump (DVJ). Twenty female NCAA Division I soccer players were recruited. BSIPs of the shank and thigh (mass, COM location, and radius of gyration) were determined using de Leva’s method and analysis of whole-body DXA scans. These estimates were used to determine peak knee joint moments and power during the DVJ. Compared with DXA, de Leva’s method located the COM more distally in the shank (P = .008) and more proximally in the thigh (P < .001), and the radius of gyration of the thigh to be further from the thigh COM (P < .001). All knee joint moment and ...
140 COMPARISON OF 3 DIFFERENT METHODS TO SELECT HIGH SPERM QUALITY FOR IVF

Sperm selection is a fundamental step for IVF, influencing treatment and the health of offspring. Over the years, several techniques have been tested to recover highly motile sperm, including centrifugation with discontinuous gradients and numerous filtration procedures. In our previous paper, we showed that it is possible, in ~20 min, to select a high quality sperm population using an electric charge in a microchannel device. This method produced the same blastocyst rates as a discontinuous gradient (DG), but in less time [25 min less; Rubessa et al. 2016 Andrology (Los Angeles) 5]. This technique takes advantage of one of the physiological characteristics of high quality sperm; that is, the head has a negative electric charge. The aim of the present experiment was to analyse the characteristics of the sperm selected with our device. We compared 2 standard sperm procedures and our device, with semen assessed using a computer-assisted sperm analyzer to evaluate the principal sperm parameters. Standard procedures were used to select sperm by DG and swim-up (SU). Thawed semen was pipetted into the microchannel of our device and then exposed to the electric charge (10 V) for 10 min [Rubessa et al. 2016 Andrology (Los Angeles) 5]. For each replicate, 3 straws of frozen bovine semen were thawed at 37°C for 40 s and pooled. The pooled sample was divided into 3 aliquots: one for each technique, 5 replicates of the experiment were performed. Data were analysed by ANOVA using the general linear model (GLM) procedure (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Bonferroni’s post hoc test was used to perform statistical multiple comparison. The α-level was set at 0.05. The results show an effect of the method all motility parameters are not significantly different, although some of the motility parameters were statistically different (P < 0.05). (P < 0.05). The beat cross frequency results were 23 ± 2.4 v. 37.7 ± 2.1 v. 19.5 ± 0.7 (µm/s) for DG, SU, and EC. The same statistical differences were found for the STR (straightness): 75 ± 3.5 v. 84.5 ± 2.0 v. 62.3 ± 2.4 (µm/s), and LIN (linearity): 39.8 ± 4.4 v. 53 ± 1.2 and 31.8 ± 1.4. These results confirmed the potential of this new device, and that it is possible to use this new method to select high motility sperm without harming sperm characteristics. These results showed that our device produced the same quality of sperm obtained with DG and SU but in as little as 20 min.
Motor Neurons Tune Premotor Activity in a Vertebrate Central Pattern Generator

Central patterns generators (CPGs) are neural circuits that drive rhythmic motor output without sensory feedback. Vertebrate CPGs are generally believed to operate in a top-down manner in which premotor interneurons activate motor neurons that in turn drive muscles. In contrast, the frog (Xenopus laevis) vocal CPG contains a functionally unexplored neuronal projection from the motor nucleus to the premotor nucleus, indicating a recurrent pathway that may contribute to rhythm generation. In this study, we characterized the function of this bottom-up connection. The X. laevis vocal CPG produces a 50-60 Hz "fast trill" song used by males during courtship. We recorded "fictive vocalizations" in the in vitro CPG from the laryngeal nerve while simultaneously recording premotor activity at the population and single-cell level. We show that transecting the motor-to-premotor projection eliminated the characteristic firing rate of premotor neurons. Silencing motor neurons with the intracellular sodium channel blocker QX-314 also disrupted premotor rhythms, as did blockade of nicotinic synapses in the motor nucleus (the putative location of motor neuron-to-interneuron connections). Electrically stimulating the laryngeal nerve elicited primarily IPSPs in premotor neurons that could be blocked by a nicotinic receptor antagonist. Our results indicate that an inhibitory signal, activated by motor neurons, is required for proper CPG function. To our knowledge, these findings represent the first example of a CPG in which precise premotor rhythms are tuned by motor neuron activity.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Central pattern generators (CPGs) are neural circuits that produce rhythmic behaviors. In vertebrates, motor neurons are not commonly known to contribute to CPG function, with the exception of a few spinal circuits where the functional significance of motor neuron feedback is still poorly understood. The frog hindbrain vocal circuit contains a previously unexplored connection from the motor to premotor region. Our results indicate that motor neurons activate this bottom-up connection, and blocking this signal eliminates normal premotor activity. These findings may promote increased awareness of potential involvement of motor neurons in a wider range of CPGs, perhaps clarifying our understanding of network principles underlying motor behaviors in numerous organisms, including humans.
A Developmental Model of Self-Inflicted Injury, Borderline Personality, and Suicide Risk

Self-injurious behaviors, including nonsuicidal self-injury and suicide attempts, have long been of interest to social scientists. Although self-inflicted injury is the single best predictor of eventual suicide, and is engaged in by many who develop borderline personality disorder, existing models are primarily descriptive. We present an etiological model of self-inflicted injury, borderline personality development, and suicide risk in which specific biological vulnerabilities (genetic, neurobiological) interact with environmental risk factors (family coercion, invalidation, peer group contagion) to increase the likelihood of self-injury. This model emphasizes both trait impulsivity, which is almost entirely heritable, and emotion dysregulation, which is largely socialized, in promoting self-injury as a coping mechanism for intrapersonally overwhelming negative affect. Alone, neither trait impulsivity nor emotion dysregulation are sufficient to result in self-injury. In combination, however, they likely comprise a primary pathway to self-injury, borderline personality development, and suicide risk.
The grammar of failure: dispossession, mourning, and the afterlife of socialist futurities

ABSTRACTThis essay takes up the incommensurate but connected afterlives of the socialist visions cultivated by anti-colonial and radical revolutionary movements in Vietnam and the USA. The most significant period of American-–Vietnamese entanglement, the Vietnam War, occasioned socialist visions with seemingly opposite results: while in Vietnam, revolutionary socialism ‘succeeded’ in capturing the state, in the USA, Left movements were brutally crushed, leading many to mourn their ‘failure’. Yet in the twenty-first century, it seems less and less clear what ‘success’ and ‘failure’ mean at a time when the socialist Vietnamese government has become the deliverer of land for global speculative markets, while massive anti-finance movements have emerged in the USA. Juxtaposing the iconography of mourning mobilized by some Vietnamese protesters against the socialist state’s land appropriation for speculation with present-day reflections on the ghostly residues of 1960s era US social movements, particularly the ...
Invited paper: Ultra-low energy security circuit primitives for IoT platforms

Low-area energy-efficient security primitives are key building blocks for enabling end-to-end content protection, user authentication in IoT platforms. This paper describes 3 designs that employ energy-efficient circuit techniques with optimal hardware-friendly arithmetic for seamless integration into area/battery constrained IoT systems: 1) A 2040-gate AES accelerator achieving 289Gbps/W efficiency in 22nm CMOS, 2) Hardened hybrid Physically Unclonable Function (PUF) circuit to generate a 100% stable encryption key. 3) All-digital TRNG to achieve >0.99 min-entropy with 3pJ/bit energy-efficiency.
Total Knee Arthroplasty

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is used to manage knee arthritis when conservative measures have failed. Most TKA is made up of distal femoral/tibial components with tibial and patellar polyethylene. TKA designs can be grouped by level of constraint to cruciate retaining, posterior stabilized, constrained non-hinged, and constrained hinged. Standard and extensile exposures are discussed as well as concepts and techniques to produce a well-balanced TKA. Anticoagulation, unique complications, and causes of revision are briefly discussed with some tips to excel on an arthroplasty rotation as a medical student.
First recognition of the genus Verneuilia Hall and Clarke (Brachiopoda, Spiriferida) from North America (West-Central Alaska)

The brachiopod genus Verneuilia Hall and Clarke, 1893, is recognized for the first time in North America, where it is represented by a new species described here, V. langenstrasseni. This occurrence not only extends the geographic range of the genus, but also the lower age and stratigraphic limit into the Eifelian (early Middle Devonian). Previously, the oldest known species was the type, V. cheiropteryx d'Archiac and de Verneuil, 1842, from the Givetian (late Middle Devonian) of Germany. Internal structures of V. langenstrasseni n. sp. are similar to those of genera in the ambocoeliid subfamily Rhynchospiriferinae, providing the first good evidence of a systematic relationship.
WSNED : a suite of data collection and dissemination applications for W ireless S ensor N etwork ED ucation

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have become an ideal area of study to provide a wide range of applications for Computer Science and Engineering courses. However, the complexities and extensive background knowledge requirement of WSNs make the design of suitable WSN courses a non-trivial task. The principle that learning must be grounded in experience necessitates a suite of suitable WSN applications for students to gain hands-on experience in order to deepen their understanding of WSNs. In this paper, focusing on using WSN data collection and dissemination as examples to provide technology-based education and training, we present a suite of practical WSN applications based on TinyOS 2.x (the dominant second generation operating system for low power WSNs) and MicaZ motes. Our presented suite ranges from the easy Listen-BaseStation-BlinkToRadio one-hop data collection application to the complex Octopus multi-hop data collection and dissemination application. These applications can provide students with a deep understanding of WSNs and therefore intrigue their interests to achieve effective learning.
ECONOMICS AND CONSERVATION

ABSTRACT Stability in oil prices will aid in speeding worldwide economic recovery. The effect of increases and/or decreases in petroleum prices on the economics and conservation efforts of various countries is discussed.
Carcinoma of the Thyroid

The incidence of thyroid carcinoma is low with about 8000 new cases per year in the United States. Worldwide, there is a wide variation among geographic areas (0.3 to 15 cases per 100,000 population per year) suggesting environmental influences to be predominant. The incidence among females is higher than for males, averaging about 3 to 1. The incidence rises steadily with age for males but rises rapidly in the third decade of life and then stabilizes for females. The overall sex differential is therefore due to these differences in rates among young adults. Since about 1940 there has been a trend toward a nearly three-fold increased incidence, principally among young adults. It is quite possible that this rising incidence is related to neck irradiation previously administered for benign conditions (1,2).
Ultrasonographic screening for developmental dysplasia of the hip: an epidemiologic analysis (Part II).

Ultrasonography offers distinct advantages in the imaging of the neonatal hip and has proved useful in the diagnosis and management of developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). However, its role as a screening tool for DDH remains controversial. The purpose of this article is to critically assess ultrasonographic screening of DDH from an epidemiologic viewpoint, considering aspects of the disease to be screened and characteristics of the screening tool, while evaluating screening efficacy and feasibility.
Deterministic Latent Variable Models and Their Pitfalls.

We derive a number of well known deterministic latent variable models such as PCA, ICA, EPCA, NMF and PLSA as variational EM approximations with point posteriors. We show that the often practiced heuristic of “folding-in” can lead to overly optimistic estimates of the test-set log-likelihood and we verify this result experimentally. We trace this problem back to an infinitely negative entropy term that is ignored in the variational approximation.
Cardiovascular Risk Assessment

Parturients with cardiac disease may have an increased risk of cardiac complications in pregnancy. This section outlines three risk assessment tools for pregnant patients with cardiac disease (CARPREG, ZAHARA, and WHO) that may be useful in preconception counseling, prenatal, and peripartum care.
Underground power lines can be the least cost option when study biases are corrected

Abstract After nearly every major storm that causes widespread power outages, there are calls for undergrounding power lines in the United States. It is often pointed out that most other developed countries have significantly better power reliability due to the prevalence of underground networks. However, many studies of U.S. electric utilities have concluded that a broad undergrounding mandate would be too expensive and undergrounding can only be justified when factoring customers’ willingness to pay more for underground lines. We show that misleading national comparisons and improperly conducted U.S. studies have led to false conclusions about the economic efficiency of undergrounding power lines. Once data are standardized and properly disaggregated, the case for undergrounding improves significantly. We offer a basic methodology for conducting more accurate power line studies.
Trends in Pediatric Hospitalizations and Readmissions: 2010-2016.

BACKGROUND: Health reform and policy initiatives over the last 2 decades have led to significant changes in pediatric clinical practice. However, little is known about recent trends in pediatric hospitalizations and readmissions at a national level. METHODS: Data from the 2010–2016 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Readmissions Database and National Inpatient Sample were analyzed to characterize patient-level and hospital-level trends in annual pediatric (ages 1–17 years) admissions and 30-day readmissions. Poisson regression was used to evaluate trends in pediatric readmissions over time. RESULTS: From 2010 to 2016, the total number of index admissions decreased by 21.3%, but the percentage of admissions for children with complex chronic conditions increased by 5.7%. Unadjusted pediatric 30-day readmission rates increased over time from 6.26% in 2010 to 7.02% in 2016 with a corresponding increase in numbers of admissions for patients with complex chronic conditions. When stratified by complex or chronic conditions, readmission rates declined or remained stable across patient subgroups. Mean risk-adjusted hospital readmission rates increased over time overall (6.46% in 2010 to 7.14% in 2016) and in most hospital subgroups but decreased over time in metropolitan teaching hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric admissions declined from 2010 to 2016 as 30-day readmission rates increased. The increase in readmission rates was associated with greater numbers of admissions for children with chronic conditions. Hospitals serving pediatric patients need to account for the rising complexity of pediatric admissions and develop strategies for reducing readmissions in this high-risk population.
Mobility Prediction Empowered Proactive Energy Saving Framework for 5G Ultra-Dense HetNets

Increased network wide energy consumption is a paramount challenge that hinders wide scale ultra- dense net- works (UDN) deployments. While several Energy Saving (ES) enhancement schemes have been proposed recently, these schemes have one common tenancy. They operate in reactive mode i.e., to increase ES, cells are switched ON&#x002F;OFF reactively in response to changing cell loads. Though, significant ES gains have been reported for such ON&#x002F;OFF schemes, the inherent reactiveness of these ES schemes limits their ability to meet the extremely low latency and high QoS expected from future cellular networks vis-a-vis 5G and beyond. To address this challenge, in this paper we propose a novel user mobility prediction based AUtonomous pROactive eneRgy sAving (AURORA) framework for future UDN. Instead of observing changes in cell loads passively and then reacting to them, AURORA uses past hand over (HO) traces to determine future cell loads. This prediction is then used to proactively schedule small cell sleep cycles. AURORA also incorporates the effect of Cell Individual Offsets (CIOs) for balancing load among cells to ensure QoS while maximizing ES. Extensive system level simulations leveraging realistic SLAW model based mobility traces show that AURORA can achieve significant energy reduction gain without noticeable impact on QoS.