cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Migration of VOC Plume in the Subsurface Domain at the Y‐12 National Security Site

During the production of thermonuclear fusion weapons at the Y-12 National Security Complex (Y-12 NSC) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, between 1950 and 1963, the regional environment was extensively contaminated by volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Old Salvage Yard (OSY) on the western side of the site has been characterized as the major source of VOCs. In order to analyze the long-term fate and transport of chlorinated VOC sources, an integrated surface and subsurface flow and transport model was developed for the Y-12 NSC using the hydrodynamic and transport numerical package MIKE-SHE. The model was developed considering the recent hydrogeological investigations on preferential flow and transport pathways at the site. The model was calibrated using the recorded groundwater flow and water-quality data. The modeling simulated migration of the VOC plume for the next 100 years. Considering a range of hydrogeological and transport parameters, uncertainty of the results is discussed. The modeling predicted that tetrachloroethene, trichloroethene, and 1,2-dichloroethene may exceed human health–related risk levels for the next 10 to 20 years. However, the contamination is unlikely to migrate to surface water under the current hydrogeological conditions and will decay below acceptable risk levels within approximately 20 years. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Effect of Analytical Error on the Assessment of Cardiac Risk by the High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein and Lipid Screening Model

Background: Several prospective epidemiologic studies have demonstrated that high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) is an effective serum marker for cardiac risk assessment. When hsCRP is considered in conjunction with traditional lipid screening, its clinical utility is further increased. In this report, hsCRP, HDL-cholesterol (HDLC), and total cholesterol (TC) assay imprecision is evaluated in terms of the impact on the cardiac risk assessment process. Methods: Cardiac risk assessment events were simulated using software written in Visual Basic for Applications with Microsoft Excel. Representative sets of analyte concentrations were used for true patient cardiac marker values. Monte Carlo simulations about the marker values were run using assay SD estimates based on College of American Pathologists surveys and journal articles. Results: Risk distributions for reasonable assay imprecision showed clinically significant variation. Estimated relative risks of cardiovascular disease using the Ridker–Rifai quintile model varied by as much as 2.5-, 3.5-, and 6-fold for conditions of low, medium, and high laboratory test imprecision, respectively. The true relative risks were underestimated by >25% in 3%, 6.7%, and 10.5% of cases under conditions of low, medium, and high laboratory test imprecision, respectively, and overestimated by >25% in 4.4%, 8.5%, and 11.1% of cases under those conditions. Conclusions: Use of the Monte Carlo simulation method as a tool to assess the impact of analytical variation on the clinical decision-making process is valuable. From this analysis, it is shown that multiple measurements of HDLC may reduce misclassifications that result from assay imprecision. This is most important when using HDLC assays that include sample preparation with 500 000 molecular weight dextran sulfate. For these assays the total assay method SDs are higher than for other assay methods. In addition, as demonstrated by a propagation of error analysis, HDLC has the largest component of overall error in the relative risk estimate. Under conditions of typical TC and hsCRP assay performance, replication of these assays is less important.
Gene expression profiling in the liver of CD-1 mice to characterize the hepatotoxicity of triazole fungicides

Four triazole fungicides used in agricultural or pharmaceutical applications were examined for hepatotoxic effects in mouse liver. Besides organ weight, histopathology, and cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzyme induction, DNA microarrays were used to generate gene expression profiles and hypotheses on potential mechanisms of action for this class of chemicals. Adult male CD-1 mice were exposed daily for 14 days to fluconazole, myclobutanil, propiconazole, or triadimefon at three dose levels by oral gavage. Doses were based on previous studies that resulted in liver hypertrophy or hepatotoxicity. All four triazoles caused hepatocyte hypertrophy, and all except triadimefon increased relative liver/body weight ratios at the middle and high dose levels. CYP enzyme activities were also induced by all four triazoles at the middle and high doses as measured by the dealkylations of four alkoxyresorufins, although some differences in substrate specificity were observed. Consistent with this common histopathology and biochemistry, several CYP and xenobiotic metabolizing enzyme (XME) genes were differentially expressed in response to all four (Cyp2d26 and Cyp3a11), or three of the four (Cyp2c40, Cyp2c55, Ces2, Slco1a4) triazoles. Differential expression of numerous other CYP and XME genes discriminated between the various triazoles, consistent with differences in CYP enzyme activities, and indicative of possible differences in mechanisms of hepatotoxicity or dose response. Multiple isoforms of Cyp1a, 2b, 2c, 3a, and other CYP and XME genes regulated by the nuclear receptors constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) and pregnane X receptor (PXR) were differentially expressed following triazole exposure. Based on these results, we expanded on our original hypothesis that triazole hepatotoxicity was mediated by CYP induction, to include additional XME genes, many of which are modulated by CAR and PXR.
Depression is not associated with diabetes control in minority elderly.

Abstract Aims We investigated the longitudinal association of depression, with and without cognitive dysfunction, with hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) in a predominantly minority cohort. Methods There were 613 participants. Presence of depression was defined by a score ≥ 7 on the Short-CARE depression scale. We tested participants for executive dysfunction using the Color Trails Test (CTT), part 2, and for memory dysfunction using the total recall task of the Selective Reminding Test (TR-SRT). We classified performance in these tests as abnormal based on standardized score cutoffs ( Results Baseline depression was present in 36% of participants. Over a median follow-up of 2 years, depression was not related to worse HbA1c, SBP, or LDL. The presence of (1) abnormal performance on a test of executive function and depression (n = 57) or (2) abnormal performance on a test of verbal recall and depression (n = 43) was also not associated with clinically significant worse change in diabetes control. Conclusions Depression, with or without low performance in tests of executive function and memory, may not affect clinically significant measures of diabetes control in the elderly.
Electrical Transport Dissipation Effects in Epitaxial Y1ba2cu3o7.X Thin Films

The electrical transport properties of a series of Y1Ba2Cu307.x thin films deposited onto single crystal substrates by thermal coevaporation and laser ablation were investigated. For fully epitaxial, c-oriented films on (001) substrate surfaces, the critical current density Jc showed large high-field enhancements for the film aligned with H parallel to the copper-oxygen planes. With H||c, a precipitous decay of Jc with increasing field is described by thermally activated flux motion. Films on (110) SrTiO3 substrates were comprised of finely-divided arrays of grains having [110], and -type orientations, and exhibited granular behavior. For these “triaxial” films, the transport dissipation was also thermally activated but with much smaller energy barriers.
Pathoadaptive Mutations That Enhance Virulence: Genetic Organization of the cadA Regions of Shigella spp.

Pathoadaptive mutations improve the fitness of pathogenic species by modification of traits that interfere with factors (virulence and ancestral) required for survival in host tissues. A demonstrated pathoadaptive mutation is the loss of lysine decarboxylase (LDC) expression in Shigella species that have evolved from LDC-expressing Escherichia coli. Previous studies demonstrated that the product of LDC activity, cadaverine, blocks the action of Shigella enterotoxins and that the gene encoding LDC, cadA, was abolished by large chromosomal deletions in each Shigella species. To better understand the nature and evolution of these pathoadaptive mutations, remnants of the cad region were sequenced from the four Shigella species. These analyses reveal novel gene arrangements in this region of the pathogens' chromosomes. Insertion sequences, a phage genome, and/or loci from different positions on the ancestral E. coli chromosome displaced the cadA locus to form distinct genetic linkages that are unique to each Shigella species. Hybridization studies, using an E. coli K-12 microarray, indicated that the genes displaced to form the novel linkages still remain in the Shigella genomes. None of these novel gene arrangements were observed in representatives of all E. coli phylogenies. Collectively, these observations indicate that inactivation of the cadA antivirulence gene occurred independently in each Shigella species. The convergent evolution of these pathoadaptive mutations demonstrates that, following evolution from commensal E. coli, strong pressures in host tissues selected Shigella clones with increased fitness and virulence through the loss of an ancestral trait (LDC). These observations strongly support the role of pathoadaptive mutation as an important pathway in the evolution of pathogenic organisms.
Lithography Constrained Placement and Post-Placement Layout Optimization for Manufacturability

Technology scaling has brought about sub-wavelength lithography. Sub-wavelength lithography requires resolution enhancement techniques (RETs) including significant layout constraints and manufacturability verification using lithography simulation. Despite the use of these techniques, the design iterations may take too long and may not converge. In standard cell based designs, inter-feature interactions across abutting standard cells can result in reduced design and parametric yield. In this paper, we propose a litho aware design methodology that aims at fixing the violations due to standard cell abutments. The major contributions of this work are a phased approach towards elimination of lithography violations by 1) Pre-characterization of abutments for early detection of violations, 2) Iterative changes to placement to minimize violations and 3) SRAF insertion rules to eliminate violations. Experimental results on ISCAS and AES benchmark circuits show that the proposed methodology eliminates all lithography violations with no impact on area and minimal impact on performance.
Configural properties in sentence memory

Two theories of human memory, Gestalt theory and assoclationism, are contrasted with respect to their predictions about the cued recall of sentences. The Gestalt theory, with its assumption of emergent propemes, predicts that test probes which maintain the configural properties of the studied sentences should be superior to probes that do not. The associative theory, with its assumption of independent associatlons, is shown to yield just the opposite prediction. The associative theory is confirmed in Exps. 1 and 2, but Gestalt theory is supported in Exps. 3 and 4 where the Ss were required to generate continuations to the sentence as part of the study task. What is the structure of human memory? Historically, psychology has known two major theories on this subject which stand in profound opposition to one another. The first is assoclationism, dating back to Aristotle, which attempts to reduce memory to a set of base elements called ideas, words, sense data, or, more recently, memory nodes. Knowledge is encoded in the form of connections among the base elements. The structure of these connections is very simple and mechanistic; there are bonds or associations linking pairs of elements. In recent times, the naked associations have been clothed with labels for semantic relations (e.g., Quillian, 1969; Anderson, 1972; Rumelhart, Lindsay, & Norman, 1972), but even so, one ts left with a rather simplistic structure for human memory. The second theory is Gestalt or organizational psychology which proposes a strikingly different conception of human memory. Compared to associationism, it is a relative newcomer to the scene, receiving its first systematic formulation in Koffka's (1935) classic book. The Gestalters completely abandoned the associatlonists' attempt to
Quantifying the origin of inter-adsorbate interactions on reactive surfaces for catalyst screening and design

The adsorption energy of reactant molecules and reaction intermediates is one of the key descriptors of catalytic activity of surfaces and is commonly used as a metric in screening materials for design of heterogeneous catalysts. The efficacy of such screening schemes depends on the accuracy of calculated adsorption energies under reaction conditions. These adsorption energies can depend strongly on interactions between adsorbed molecules in the adlayer. However, these interactions are typically not accounted for in screening procedures that use DFT-based zero-coverage adsorption energies. Identifying the physical mechanisms behind these interactions is essential to model realistic catalyst surfaces under reaction conditions and to understand the dependence of adsorption energies on reaction parameters like surface strain and composition. This article describes a method to quantitatively resolve the observed inter-adsorbate interactions into various direct adsorbate–adsorbate interactions (i.e. Coulombic and steric) and surface-mediated interactions (i.e. adsorbate-induced surface relaxation and change in electronic structure) by combining density functional theory and cluster-expansion calculations of coverage-dependent adsorption energies. The approach is implemented on a model catalyst surface of FeS2(100) reacting with H2S molecules. We find that the adsorption energy of H2S molecules can be affected by over 0.55 eV by the repulsive inter-adsorbate interactions caused primarily by the adsorbate-induced changes to the electronic structure of the FeS2 surface. These interactions also show a strong monotonic dependence on surface strain, being three times stronger on compressively strained surfaces than on surfaces under tensile strain. The large magnitude of inter-adsorbate interactions as well as their strong dependence on lattice strain demonstrate the need for using coverage-dependent adsorption energies for more accurate screening, for example for strained catalytic systems like core–shell and overlayer structures.
LONG-TERM EFFECTIVENESS OF MODIFIED GRID LASER PHOTOCOAGULATION FOR DIFFUSE DIABETIC MACULAR EDEMA

Fifty eyes of 42 patients with background diabetic retinopathy and diffuse macular edema were included in a prospective, randomized, clinical study to determine the long-term visual results of modified grid laser photocoagulation compared with the natural course of the disease. At the end of the three annual follow-up visits there were more eyes with improved visual acuity in the treatment group and more eyes with worse visual acuity in the control group. However, statistical analysis of the data showed that only at the end of the first and the second year was there a significant statistical difference between the two groups. At the end of the third year no statistically significant difference was found. These results suggest that modified grid laser photocoagulation is not an effective procedure for the long-term management of diffuse diabetic macular edema compared with the natural course of the disease.
Challenges in enhancing science education in elementary classrooms through university-school district partnerships

Science and math performance of America's children has shown a decline in recent years. A study among K-S teachers in the Hillsborough County, Florida (location of the project) showed that 64% the teachers did not feel prepared in science content and 49% did not feel prepared in mathematics. This paper discusses some of the major challenges of a partnership between the University of South Florida and the school district of the Hillsborough County of Florida that was undertaken with the help of a National Science Foundation grant to improve science education in elementary classes. This project focuses on K-5 classes and is poised to infuse advanced knowledge in sciences and engineering in the curriculum within the framework of state science education standards.
An Inclusion Membrane Protein from Chlamydia trachomatis Enters the MHC Class I Pathway and Stimulates a CD8+ T Cell Response

During its developmental cycle, the intracellular bacterial pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis remains confined within a protective vacuole known as an inclusion. Nevertheless, CD8(+) T cells that recognize Chlamydia Ags in the context of MHC class I molecules are primed during infection. MHC class I-restricted presentation of these Ags suggests that these proteins or domains from them have access to the host cell cytoplasm. Chlamydia products with access to the host cell cytoplasm define a subset of molecules uniquely positioned to interface with the intracellular environment during the pathogen's developmental cycle. In addition to their use as candidate Ags for stimulating CD8(+) T cells, these proteins represent novel candidates for therapeutic intervention of infection. In this study, we use C. trachomatis-specific murine T cells and an expression-cloning strategy to show that CT442 from Chlamydia is targeted by CD8(+) T cells. CT442, also known as CrpA, is a 15-kDa protein of undefined function that has previously been shown to be associated with the Chlamydia inclusion membrane. We show that: 1) CD8(+) T cells specific for an H-2D(b)-restricted epitope from CrpA are elicited at a significant level (approximately 4% of splenic CD8(+) T cells) in mice in response to infection; 2) the response to this epitope correlates with clearance of the organism from infected mice; and 3) immunization with recombinant vaccinia virus expressing CrpA elicits partial protective immunity to subsequent i.v. challenge with C. trachomatis.
Novel 3D computer-automated threshold Amsler grid visual field testing of scotomas in patients with glaucoma

Purpose. Three-dimensional (3D) computer-automated threshold Amsler grid testing was used to identify and characterize scotomas typical of glaucoma. Methods. The 3D test exhibits a grid on a computer screen at a preselected grayscale and angular resolution, and allows patients to trace those areas on the grid that are missing in their visual field using a touch screen. Eleven eyes in patients with an established diagnosis of glaucoma were examined according to the above protocol. A total of 23 eyes from normal subjects were used as controls. The 5-minute test required that patients repeatedly outline scotomas on a touch screen with varied displays of contrast while maintaining their gaze on a central fixation marker. A 3D depiction of the visual field defects was then obtained that was further characterized by the location, shape, extent, depth, and slope of the scotomas. Results. In this pilot study, the 3D depiction of visual field loss demonstrated paracentral, superior and inferior altitudinal, and nasal step defects consistent with glaucomatous damage. The 3D depiction showed a shape, extent, depth, and slope that are consistent with the severity of damage. Conclusions. The 3D test identified and characterized scotomas typical of glaucoma. The test provides several advantages over conventional perimetry including additional information through 3D depiction of scotomas with the addition of contrast sensitivity and a higher angular/spatial resolution. Improved patient compliance and reliability through shorter testing time and potential interactive accessibility and distribution over the Internet further characterize the test.
Reduced Bone Mineral Density Is Associated with Celiac Disease Autoimmunity in Children with Type 1 Diabetes.

Objective To evaluate the association between bone mineral density (BMD), glycemic control (hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c]), and celiac autoimmunity in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) and in an appropriate control population. Study design BMD was assessed cross-sectionally in 252 children with T1D (123 positive for anti-tissue transglutaminase antibody [tTGA] and 129 matched children who were negative for tTGA). In addition, BMD was assessed in 141 children without diabetes who carried T1D-associated HLD-DR, DQ genotypes (71 positive for tTGA and 70 negative). Results Children with T1D who were positive for tTGA had significantly worse BMD L1-L4 z-score compared with children with T1D who were negative for tTGA (−0.45 ± 1.22 vs 0.09 ± 1.10, P = .0003). No differences in growth measures, urine N-telopeptides, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, ferritin, thyroid stimulating hormone, or HbA1c were found. However, both higher HbA1c (β = −1.25 ± 0.85, P = .0016) and tTGA (β = −0.13 ± 0.05, P = .0056) were significant and independent predictors of lower BMD in multivariate analyses. No differences in BMD or other variables measured were found between children without diabetes who were positive vs negative for tTGA. Conclusions The results suggest a synergistic effect of hyperglycemia and celiac autoimmunity on low BMD.
Uncoupling Environmental pH and Intrabacterial Acidification from Pyrazinamide Susceptibility in Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Pyrazinamide (PZA) is a first-line antitubercular drug for which the mode of action remains unresolved. Mycobacterium tuberculosis lacks measurable susceptibility to PZA under standard laboratory growth conditions. However, susceptibility to this drug can be induced by cultivation of the bacilli in an acidified growth medium. Previous reports suggested that the active form of PZA, pyrazinoic acid (POA), operates as a proton ionophore that confers cytoplasmic acidification when M. tuberculosis is exposed to an acidic environment. In this study, we demonstrate that overexpression of the PZA-activating enzyme PncA can confer PZA susceptibility to M. tuberculosis under neutral and even alkaline growth conditions. Furthermore, we find that wild-type M. tuberculosis displays increased susceptibility to POA relative to PZA in neutral and alkaline media. Utilizing a strain of M. tuberculosis that expresses a pH-sensitive green fluorescent protein (GFP), we find that unlike the bona fide ionophores monensin and carbonyl cyanide 3-chlorophenylhydrazone, PZA and POA do not induce rapid uncoupling or cytoplasmic acidification under conditions that promote susceptibility. Thus, based on these observations, we conclude that the antitubercular action of POA is independent of environmental pH and intrabacterial acidification.
Feasibility of Reusable Vehicle Modeling:Application to Hybrid Vehicles

Many of today’s vehicle modeling tools are good for simulation, but they provide rather limited support for model building and management. Setting up a simulation model requires more than writing down state equations and running them on a computer. The role of a model library is to manage the physics of the system and allow users to share and reuse component models. In this paper, we describe how modern software techniques can be used to support modeling and design activities; the objective is to provide better system models in less time by assembling these system models in a “plug and play” architecture. With the introduction of hybrid electric vehicles, the number of components that can populate a model has increased considerably, and more components translates into more drivetrain configurations. To address these needs, we explain how users can simulate a large number of drivetrain configurations. The proposed approach could be used to establish standards within the automotive modeling community.
Rehabilitation in the Intensive Care Unit

Understand the importance of the team approach and the process of care issues, which lead to successful implemention of rehabilitation in the ICU patient. Understand the main neuromuscular, respiratory, and psychological conditions that affect rehabilitation in the ICU. Develop a systematic approach for implementing early mobility of ventilated patients. Execute effective measures to prevent complications in ventilated patients in the ICU.
The National Archives and the Archival Theorist Revisited, 1954-1984

In 1954, on the twentieth anniversary of the establishment of the National Archives, Ernst Posner evaluated the Archives' contributions to archival theory. In 1984, on the fiftieth anniversary, the author of this article looked back on the thirty years since Posner's assessment and carried his analysis forward. The review, which specifically excluded theoretical contributions to records management, concludes that since 1954 there have been two main periods of archival theorizing at the National Archives, with significant contributions during each one: the first from 1954 to 1966, which produced the classic written formulations of the archival theories developed during the period 1934-1954; the second from 1966-1984, which brought important advances in the theory of access to archival materials.
Linguistic Profiling based on General--purpose Features and Native Language Identification

In this paper, we describe our approach to native language identification and discuss the results we submitted as participants to the First NLI Shared Task. By resorting to a wide set of general‐purpose features qualifying the lexical and grammatical structure of a text, rather than to ad hoc features specifically selected for the NLI task, we achieved encouraging results, which show that the proposed approach is general‐purpose and portable across different tasks, domains and languages.
Intra-erythrocyte deposition of growth hormone in rheumatic diseases

Standard radioimmunoassay was employed to quantify matched basal intra-erythrocyte growth hormone (GH) and serum GH levels from patients with osteoarthritis, diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH), gout, and Sjogren's syndrome and in a group of normal volunteers (control group). Basal intra-erythrocyte GH concentration was significantly higher ( P<0.05) than serum GH concentration in blood samples from patients with osteoarthritis and DISH but not from those with gout or Sjogren's syndrome. Regression analysis determined that basal serum GH levels did not correlate with age. While intra-erythrocyte GH levels exceeded serum GH levels in osteoarthritis and DISH, intra-erythrocyte GH was not a strong predictor of serum GH levels in osteoarthritis, DISH, or in the control group.
Effects of aqueous extracts of PM10 filters from the Utah Valley on human airway epithelial cells

We hypothesized that the reduction in hospital respiratory admissions in the Utah Valley during closure of a local steel mill in 1986–1987 was attributable in part to decreased toxicity of ambient ...
Desmoid Tumor Formation following Posterior Spinal Instrumentation Placement

Study Design Case report. Objective The objective of the article is to illustrate a case of desmoid tumor (DT) formation after posterior instrumentation of the thoracic spine. Methods A 57-year-old woman presented with lower extremity clumsiness, balance, and ambulation difficulty resulting from spinal cord compression due to an upper thoracic atypical vertebral hemangioma. Ten months after undergoing embolization, resection, and placement of instrumentation for this lesion, the patient developed a growing mass at the rostral end of the incision. Biopsy revealed desmoid fibromatosis. The mass was removed via an en bloc resection. Histology revealed an infiltrative DT above the laminectomy site abutting the instrumentation. Results At 2-year follow-up, there was no evidence of recurrence of the tumor. Conclusion Paraspinal DTs have been reported in the literature to develop after surgical procedures of the spine. Often times, patients attribute swelling or fullness at the site of their surgery to scar tissue formation or instrumentation. One must consider the possibility of a DT in the setting of reported surgical site fullness or mass after spine surgery. It is thought that postoperative inflammation present in the surgical bed may promote formation of DTs. Instrumentation may also contribute to inflammation and increase the likelihood of developing a DT. Generous margins must be taken to prevent recurrence.
Primary squamous cell carcinoma of the thyroid gland: a report of four cases.

Four cases of pure squamous cell carcinoma were found among 130 consecutive malignant tumors of the thyroid gland accessioned in the surgical pathology files in the past 10 years. The clinicopathologic data from the four cases are reported and the literature is reviewed briefly. It is suggested that squamous cell carcinoma of the thyroid, although uncommon, may occur after squamous metaplasia of the follicular epithelium. The tumor occurs most frequently in older persons who have long histories of goiter or other chronic thyroid diseases. Morphologically, squamous cell carcinoma of the thyroid is similar to that seen in other organs. The tumor is radioresistant and highly malignant.
Measurement Techniques for the Study of Thin Film Heterogeneous Water Oxidation Electrocatalysts

Heterogeneous electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are complicated materials with dynamic structures. They can exhibit potential-induced phase transitions, potential-dependent electronic properties, variable oxidation and protonation states, and disordered local/surface phases. These properties make understanding the OER, and ultimately designing higher efficiency catalysts, challenging. We report a series of procedures and measurement techniques that we have adopted or developed to assess each of the above challenges in understanding materials for the OER. These include the targeted synthesis of hydrated oxyhydroxide phases, the assessment and elimination of electrolyte impurities, the use of a quartz crystal microbalance to monitor film loading and dissolution, and the use of an in situ conductivity measurement to understand the flow of electrons from the catalyst active sites to the conductive support electrode. We end with a recipe for the synthesis and characterization of a “stand...
Safety Activity Analysis Framework to Evaluate Safety Performance in Construction

AbstractThe construction work environment remains one of the most hazardous worldwide. As a result of dangerous working environments, construction workers often face safety and health risks throughout the construction process. However, an emphasis on construction safety has increased mainly in the aspect of safety performance, and efforts are required to not only monitor but also seek to improve safety performance. This research develops a safety activity analysis framework and tool to facilitate the collection and analysis of the safety activity data for continuous evaluation of safety performance. A case study is also carried out on an active construction project to implement and validate the framework and tool. The findings of the case study show that the safety index of the construction site increased from 37.0 to 62.8% and was in consonance with the actual site records of the project’s total recordable incident rate, which decreased from 7.11 to 1.42. This study contributes to the body of knowledge b...
Thinking Clinically from the Beginning: Early Introduction of the Pharmacists’ Patient Care Process

Objective. To describe a student-centered teaching method used to introduce a pharmacist patient care process (PPCP) during the first year of a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) program. Design. In the fall of 2014, a cohort of students (n=85) began an integrated pharmacotherapy (IPT) course sequence in the first semester of pharmacy school. The first course in this sequence laid the foundation for the delivery of care, focusing on the individual components of a PPCP. Faculty member used a variety of teaching methods in the course to introduce medication history taking, identification of drug-related problems, identifying components of a patient case, and learning/beginning to write subjective, objective, assessment, plan (SOAP) notes. Students' SOAP notes submissions and performance on multiple-choice examinations were evaluated to demonstrate evidence of learning. Students also completed online course evaluations. Assessment. Course-imbedded assessments were designed to measure student learning related to individual School of Pharmacy outcomes and course learning objectives. The mean individual student score on exam questions related to the PPCP topics was 83.7%±18.8%. The majority of students (86%-88%) rated their progress on achieving course learning objectives as "substantial" or "exceptional." Students also enrolled in the introductory pharmacy practice experience (IPPE) in a community setting after completing the first IPT. The students performed significantly better than a historic cohort in identifying actual and potential drug therapy problems. Conclusion. The described teaching methods, when introduced in early curricular stages, are effective in building a foundation for learning PPCP.
New nonlinear lateral-vertical coupled shear element model for use in finite element structural analysis applications

Abstract In nonlinear structural analysis, shear walls within whole-system models are often modeled using a spring model with a single degree of freedom where the lateral stiffness of the shear wall is modeled as a nonlinear spring. The stiffness of the spring is often described by the hysteretic relationship between the lateral restoring force and shear wall lateral deformation. In this study, a new shear element is introduced, which couples the lateral and vertical stiffness of the shear wall. This new shear element is able to better describe the behavior of shear walls in mid-rise and tall buildings. An illustrative example is presented to help explain the application of the new shear element in finite element modeling. In the examples, the new shear element is used to calculate displacement and internal forces for cold-formed steel frames. The results show that without including vertical wall stiffness, the lateral displacement is significantly underestimated. The difference increases with the height of the building and for a ten-story frame the new model demonstrates an increased lateral displacement at roof level of 64.1% when compared with current typical shear element model (lateral stiffness only).
Leadership Turnover and the Durability of International Trade Commitments

Under what conditions do states uphold their formal trade commitments? While recent work focuses on the formation and design of trade agreements, we know comparatively little about the durability of agreements over time. We argue that government turnover undermines states’ commitments to liberalization, even if they have already signed an international agreement meant to constrain their behavior. We test this argument using data on realized trade in the presence of around 300 preferential trade agreements (PTAs) since 1970. Even in the presence of an international agreement, ideological turnover is associated with increased political barriers to trade, especially when the shift is toward left-wing leaders. These findings have important implications for our understanding of international cooperation: If new leaders do not adhere to their predecessors’ commitments, international agreements may not have lasting economic consequences.
Pseudoprogression in cancer immunotherapy: Rates, time course and patient outcomes.

6580Background: Pseudoprogression (PP), tumor growth from treatment effect rather than true disease progression, has been described with immune checkpoint inhibitors. Our study measures rates and time course of PP and associated patient outcomes using RECIST 1.1 and irRC criteria. Methods: Cohort was retrospectively drawn from subjects enrolled in phase I and II trials from March 2008 to July 2015 at two hospitals within one cancer center network. Inclusion required followup with every 4-12 week scheduled torso CT or MRI for > 1 year or until death analyzed using RECIST 1.1 and irRC criteria by the imaging core lab. A single investigator blinded to patient outcome abstracted the core lab database; another blinded to imaging assessment abstracted patient survival from the medical record. Pattern of response during the first year of therapy assessed according to RECIST 1.1 and irRC criteria were categorized as stable (SD), partial response (PR), progressive disease (PD) or pseudoprogression (PP). PP was def...
Resource Allocation with User Discrimination for Spectrum Sharing

In this chapter, we focus on the problem of radio resource allocation with user discrimination for different scenarios in cellular networks. First, we present a resource allocation with user discrimination approach for spectrum sharing between public safety and commercial users. It is important to have a common technical standard for commercial and public safety users as it provides advantages for both. The public safety systems market is much smaller than the commercial cellular market which makes it unable to attract the level of investment that goes in to commercial cellular networks and this makes a common technical standards for both the best solution. The public safety community gains access to the technical advantages provided by the commercial cellular networks whereas the commercial cellular community gains enhancement in their systems and makes it more attractive to consumers. The National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) and other organizations recognized the desirability of having an inter operable national standard for a next generation public safety network with broadband capabilities. The USA has reserved spectrum in the 700 MHz band for an LTE based public safety network. The current public safety standards support medium speed data which drives the need of new technology to add true mobile broadband capabilities and makes LTE the baseline technology for next generation broadband public safety networks.
Bipolar Radiofrequency Ablation (Coblation) of External Auditory Canal Lymphatic Malformation and Other Soft Stenoses.

Introduction Soft tissue occlusion of the external auditory canal (EAC) can cause intense pruritis, recurrent foul smelling otorrhea, recurrent otitis externa, and conductive hearing loss. Occlusion of the EAC can be challenging to treat as the area is prone to circumferential scarring. Methods We describe the novel use of serial bipolar radiofrequency ablation (coblation) to treat 3 children with complete EAC occlusion from congenital and acquired conditions including lymphedema (1), microcystic lymphatic malformation (1), and venolymphatic malformation (1). Results Patients underwent a mean of 3 procedures with postoperative EAC stenting (7 days) and antibiotic and steroid aural preparations (10 days). Otologic symptoms resolved in all patients, and their EACs remained patent 14 months after last procedure (range, 4-32 months). One patient experienced a pinpoint tympanic membrane perforation that healed spontaneously 2 weeks later. Conclusions Coblation of soft tissue stenosis of the EAC can be an effective treatment for this problematic condition.
Coal to Coke Conversion

Summary This Chapter is principally concerned with the major topics associated with the conversion of coal to coke. Only a limited range of coal rank i.e . the bituminous coals, produce acceptable metallurgical cokes. The history of coke making is briefly reviewed followed by description of a coke battery and the by-products of coking. Theories of carbonization are abundant but current knowledge of liquid crystal theory has done much to expand the understanding of the origin of cokes and their properties. Coal Rank, Type and Grade are properties used in coal classification for coke making. The coking of a single coal particle and the development of the coke cenosphere are described. The importance of the plastic (fluid) layer, developed within the coal charge in the slot coke oven, is high-lighted including the thermal transformation of coal macerals to coke components. In industrial practice, the ability to predict coke strength or mechanical stability from properties of coal blends is of obvious importance. Much has been done to analyse coke structure in terms of optical microscopy of polished sections, i.e . coke petrography. This exhibits the various isotropic and anisotropic components of coke structure. Cokes from different coal blends have different contents of anisotropic shapes, 0.5 to >25.0 μm in size, arising from the heterogeneous nature of the plastic (fluid) phase of carbonization from which the liquid crystal structures develop. Classifications of anisotropy are listed. The Chapter continues with descriptions of porosity and pore wall structures in cokes. Carbonization variables relate to final coke property. The behaviour of coke in the blast furnace, including discussions of reactivity, aspects of formed coke, pre-heating and co-carbonization conclude the Chapter.
Pre-emergence and Post-emergence Applied Herbicides for Weed Management in Soybean

Materials and Methods The crop rotation was soybean following corn. The seedbed was prepared by a spring field cultivation. Crop residue was 15–18% at planting. A randomized complete block design with three replications was used. Herbicides were applied in 20 gallons of water/acre. Visual estimates of crop injury and percentage weed control were made during the growing season. These observations are compared with an untreated control and rated on a 0–100% scale (0% = no control or injury; 100% = complete control or crop kill).
Game Changing Beliefs for the Product Developing Organization

How can you improve as a product developing organization? Are there principles that you as an organization can chose to believe in, which will then help change the odds of success in your favor? This paper will argue for a positive answer to this question and further attempt to suggest a useful set of such beliefs – I call them ‘Game Changing Beliefs’
STUDIES OF MURINE CORONAVIRUS DI RNA REPLICATION FROM NEGATIVE-STRAND TRANSCRIPTS

The positive-strand transcripts as well as negative-strand transcripts of mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) defective interfering (DI) RNA, when introduced into MHV-infected cells, re-sulted in DI RNA replication and accumulation. The leader sequence of the majority of DI RNAs that accumulated from the expression of negative-strand DI RNA transcripts with no extra non-MHV nucleotides at the 3’ end switched to that of helper virus, whereas this leader sequence switching did not occur in most of the positive-strand DI RNAs that accumulated from the expressed negative-strand DI RNA transcripts with extra non-MHV nucleotides at the 3’ end. These data demonstrated that the extra 4 nucleotides at the 3’-end of negative-strand DI RNA transcripts affected leader sequence switching on DI RNA, and indicated that the leader switching probably occurred during positive-strand DI RNA synthesis.
Persistent and emergent cardiac responses elicited by simple stimuli

Heart rate and respiration were recorded as rabbits were exposed to visual and auditory events: light-on, light-off, light-change, noise-on, noise-off and noise-change. Each event lasted one second.
Questions 1–10

This chapter illustrates a variety of different scenarios of rheumatic disease in succinct question and answer format. It contains ten complex cases with potentially unusual diagnoses designed to stimulate thought and further reading in this rapidly evolving specialty.
Malignant Tenosynovial Giant Cell Tumor: The True "Synovial Sarcoma?" A Clinicopathologic, Immunohistochemical, and Molecular Cytogenetic Study of 10 Cases, Supporting Origin from Synoviocytes.

We present our experience with ten well-characterized malignant tenosynovial giant cell tumors, including detailed immunohistochemical analysis of all cases and molecular cytogenetic study for CSF1 rearrangement in a subset. Cases occurred in 7 M and 3 F (mean age: 52 years; range: 26–72 years), and involved the ankle/foot (n = 1), finger/toe (n = 3), wrist (n = 1), pelvic region (n = 3), leg (n = 1), and thigh (n = 1). There were eight primary and two secondary malignant tenosynovial giant cell tumors. Histologically, all cases showed definite areas of typical tenosynovial giant cell tumor. The malignant areas varied in appearance. In some cases, isolated malignant-appearing large mononuclear cells with high nuclear grade and mitotic activity were identified within otherwise-typical tenosynovial giant cell tumor, as well as forming larger masses of similar-appearing malignant cells. Occasionally, these nodules of malignant large mononuclear cells showed transition to pleomorphic spindle cell sarcoma, with varying degrees of collagenization and myxoid change. One malignant tenosynovial giant cell tumor was composed of sheets of monotonous large mononuclear cells with high nuclear grade, growing in a hyalinized, osteoid-like matrix, with areas of heterologous osteocartilaginous differentiation. Mitotic activity ranged from 2 to 34 mitoses per 10 HPF (mean 18/10 HPF). Geographic necrosis was observed in four cases. The malignant-appearing large mononuclear cells were consistently positive for clusterin and negative for CD163, CD68, and CD11c. Desmin was positive in a small minority of these cells. Areas in malignant tenosynovial giant cell tumor resembling pleomorphic spindle cell sarcoma or osteo/chondrosarcoma showed loss of clusterin expression. RANKL immunohistochemistry was positive in the large mononuclear cells in eight cases. Two cases showed an unbalanced rearrangement of the CSF1 locus. Follow-up (nine patients; range 0.5–66 months; mean 20 months) showed three patients dead of disease, with three other living patients having lung and lymph node metastases; three patients were disease-free. We conclude that malignant tenosynovial giant cell tumors are highly aggressive sarcomas with significant potential for locally destructive growth, distant metastases, and death from disease. The morphologic and immunohistochemical features of these tumors and the presence of CSF1 rearrangements support origin of malignant tenosynovial giant cell tumor from synoviocytes.
Recrystallization kinetics of cold-rolled U-10 wt% Mo

Abstract Samples of U-10 wt%Mo (U Mo) alloy were thermomechanically processed and annealed at 600 °C and 700 °C for periods lasting up to 8 h. Annealed microstructures were examined using electron backscattered diffraction in order to estimate the completeness of recrystallization. Hardness measurements of the U Mo samples were taken to further qualify the progress of recovery and recrystallization. This allowed us to evaluate the recrystallization activation energy and the recrystallization kinetics with a Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov equation. The results show that the activation energy of recrystallization is approximately 100.6 ± 23.1 kJ/mol. The mechanisms active in the recrystallization of cold-rolled U-10 wt% Mo are discussed in the context of these results.