cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Development of definitions for acute illness in nursing home residents based on chart-recorded physical exam findings.

Objectives To develop and test simple, chart-based criteria for acute illness in nursing home residents for clinical and epidemiological study. Design Observational study. Setting A 409-bed not-for-profit nursing home. Participants 102 custodial care residents. Measurements Physical exam findings commonly performed in nursing home residents were used to define 10 acute conditions. Residents were observed prospectively to test the clinical relevance of these definitions. Episodes of acute illness satisfying definition criteria were identified, as well as treatment changes, hospitalizations, and deaths. Results During a median follow-up of 60 days, 43 acute illnesses occurred, affecting 30 (29%) residents. Of these episodes, 77% were associated with treatment changes, hospitalization, or death. The new definitions captured 79% of all episodes of acute illness. The most common diagnoses were urinary tract infection, lower respiratory infection, and gastroenteritis/gastrointestinal upset. Independent risk factors for acute illness were gastrostomy feeding, depression, and history of fracture. Conclusions Acute illness in the nursing home is common and frequently associated with treatment changes, hospitalization and death. It can be identified using a small number of chart-recorded physical exam-based findings as criteria.
The Fish Assemblage Structure of the Saco River Estuary

The Saco River estuary is a narrow estuary in southern Maine, for which the fauna has not been described in nearly 30 years. Beach seining, otter trawling, and beam trawling were conducted between April and October of 2007 and 2008 to assess seasonal variation in fi sh assemblage structure. Twenty-four species were observed over the two sampling seasons, and nearly all species were at lengths indicative of juvenile age. Clu- pea harengus (Atlantic Herring), Pseudopleuronectes americanus (Winter Flounder), Anguilla rostrata (American Eel), Microgadus tomcod (Atlantic Tomcod), Pomatomus saltatrix (Bluefi sh), and Osmerus mordax (Rainbow Smelt) are either commercially or recreationally valuable, while Acipenser oxyrynchus oxyrynchus (Atlantic Sturgeon), Alosa aestivalis (Blueback Herring), and Rainbow Smelt are federally listed species of concern. Substantial historical assemblage changes were observed, including both the loss of commercially important species and the addition of species of concern. Regular monitoring of estuarine habitats is necessary to identify changes in assemblages and to better understand potential drivers of ecosystem change.
A Photoemission Study of Electrochemically Etched Light Emitting Silicon

The valence band and the Si 2p core level of electrochemically etched light emitting porous silicon samples prepared with different etching parameters and upon thermal annealing have been studied. The core level shows appreciable broadening as chemical etching time increases. Upon annealing, the core level linewidth decreases and the valence band develops spectral features. The photoluminescence intensity, also, decreases upon annealing. However, impurity species are found to be present only in trace amounts. Our data is consistent with a photoluminescence mechanism involving a silicon species that degrades, decomposes, or desorbs upon annealing.
Combination therapy for malignant glioma based on PTEN status

The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway is a central regulator of cell proliferation, migration, tumor growth, survival, angiogenesis and metabolism, contributing to the malignant phenotype of gliomas. Trials using targeted therapeutics against growth factor receptors and downstream signal mediators of the PI3K pathway have demonstrated only modest clinical benefit. Although recent clinical data suggests that malignant gliomas with PTEN are more likely to respond to EGF receptor inhibitors, gliomas have multiple concomitantly activated pathways, making them highly resistant to single-targeted therapy. This review discusses the importance of the PI3K pathway in glioma, the potential role of PTEN status in directing specific therapies, discusses clinical trial development of drug combinations to treat malignant gliomas and offers strategies for trial design that will be necessary to fully understand the successes and failures of current approaches to glioma therapy.
TASTE PANEL TESTING OF UHT FLUID DAIRY PRODUCTS

Fluid dairy products processed by ultra-high-temperature steam injection were evaluated by two independent panels to determine the effect of % fat and process and storage conditions of flavor. Fat content from 0.5 to 10.5%, process time from 3.4 to 20.3 s, process temperature from 138 to 149°C, storage time from zero to 48 weeks, and storage temperature from 4 to 40°C were studied. The two panels consisted of an untrained consumer panel and a trained panel of dairy judges. Scores from both panels correlated well. Scores on all samples stored at 4°C generally increased through time while those at 40°C had declining scores. Samples with 3.25% fat generally scored higher than those with 0.5 or 10.5% fat. An empirical relationship and nomograph were formulated between diary judge score, % fat, storage temperature and storage time. Milk produced and stored at or near room temperature may be predicted to receive moderate scores through one year.
VARIETIES OF STIMULUS CONTROL IN MATCHING-TO- SAMPLE: A KERNEL ANALYSIS

Conditional discrimination or matching-to-sample procedures have been used to study a wide range of complex psychological phenomena with infrahuman and human subjects. In most studies, the percentage of trials in which a subject selects the comparison stimulus that is related to the sample stimulus is used to index the control exerted by the relation between the stimuli. Performances indexed by percentage correct based on an aggregation across single trials, however, cannot identify the stimulus control topographies that exert momentary control of responding in a matching-to-sample milieu. The behavioral kernel is a unit of analysis that can provide such a measure. When a two-choice matching-to-sample procedure is used, analysis in terms of behavioral kernels permits the measurement of 16 potential stimulus control topographies. The kernel analysis provides the potential of assessing the many stimulus control topographies that control performances on a transient basis prior to the emergence of experimenter-specified conditional discriminative control. This sort of analysis could clarify the behavioral processes involved in the formation of learning set and problem-solving strategies when subjects are faced with complex discriminations, as well as the variables that influence these phenomena. As such, it is also related to accounts of discrimination learning as addressed by error-factor theory, hypothesis-based learning, and stimulus control topography coherence theory. Finally, a kernel analysis could also be used to
Corruption, economic growth, and income inequality in Africa

This paper uses panel data from African countries and a dynamic panel estimator to investigate the effects of corruption on economic growth and income distribution. I find that corruption decreases economic growth directly and indirectly through decreased investment in physical capital. A unit increase in corruption reduces the growth rates of GDP and per capita income by between 0.75 and 0.9 percentage points and between 0.39 and 0.41 percentage points per year respectively. The results also indicate that increased corruption is positively correlated with income inequality. The combined effects of decreased income growth and increased inequality suggests that corruption hurts the poor more than the rich in African countries.
The Relation Between Microstructure and Electronic Properties of Magnetron Sputtered a-Si1-x,Cx:H

We have grown a-Si1-x,Cx:H films by reactive magnetron sputtering, varying the H2 partial pressure from 0 to 6 mTorr and maintaining the substrate temperature at 275°C and argon and methane partial pressures at 1.70 and 0.10 mTorr, respectively. We investigate the correlation between electronic properties and the fraction of H bonded in "microstructure," defined by the ratio of SiHx stretching mode absorptions in IR and the low temperature H2release in thermal evolution. Our results on sputtered films disprove the monotonic decrease in carrier transport with increasing microstructure fraction which is commonly observed for a-Si1-xCx:H grown by glow discharge of SiH4 and CH4. We find that the electronic properties and microstructure depend on film composition and growth technique, and that the electronic properties are not uniquely determined by the microstructure of hydrogen bonding.
A high-throughput assay for phosphoprotein-specific phosphatase activity in cellular extracts

Protein phosphatases undo the post-translational modifications of kinase-signaling networks, but phosphatase activation in cells is difficult to measure and interpret. Here, we report the design of a quantitative and high-throughput assay platform for monitoring cellular phosphatase activity toward specific phosphoprotein targets. Protein substrates of interest are purified recombinantly, phosphorylated in vitro using the upstream kinase, and adsorbed to 96-well plates. Total phosphatase extracts from cells are then added to trigger a solid-phase dephosphorylation reaction. After stopping the reaction, phosphoprotein levels are quantified by ELISA with a phospho-specific antibody, and the loss of phospho-specific immunoreactivity is used as the readout of phosphatase activity. We illustrate the generality of the method by developing specific phosphatase-activity assays for the three canonical mitogen-activated protein phospho-kinases: ERK, JNK, and p38. The assays capture changes in activity with a dynamic range of 25–100-fold and are sensitive to a limit of detection below 25,000 cells. When applied to cytokine-induced signaling, the assays revealed complex and dynamic regulation of phosphatases suggesting cross-communication and a means for cellular memory. Our assay platform should be beneficial for phosphoproteomic surveys and computational-systems models of signaling, where phosphatases are known to be important but their activities are rarely measured.
CENTRIFUGATION STUDIES ON PNEUMONIA VIRUS OF MICE (PVM) : THE RELATIVE SIZES OF FREE AND COMBINED VIRUS.

A technique has been devised for obtaining free or uncombined pneumonia virus of mice (PVM). Free PVM, liberated from infected mouse lungs by means of this technique, is infectious and causes hemagglutination directly. The results of quantitative studies carried out in the high speed angle centrifuge indicate that the free virus is relatively small, with dimensions of the order of 40 millimicrons. When it is in combination with lung tissue particles, PVM appears to be a relatively large virus with minimal dimensions of the order of 140 millimicrons. Non-infectious virus particles, released from combination with lung tissue particles by heating, are similar to the infectious free virus in size.
Transoral laser microsurgery in previously irradiated patients with laryngeal cancer

Abstract Purpose Early laryngeal cancer is successfully managed with transoral laser microsurgery. Previously radiated patients may experience more post-operative complications. We investigate disease-free survival and secondarily prolonged pain and chondronecrosis. Materials and methods Retrospective review of 52 patients undergoing transoral laser microsurgery after previous radiation. Results Mean disease-free survival was 36.7 months. Overall disease-free survival was 57.6% at 3-year and 48.4% at 5-year follow-up, with no significant difference between surgery within as opposed to after 60 months of radiation or within as opposed to after 12 months of radiation. Thirteen patients, all with surgery within 60 months of radiation, experienced prolonged pain. Twelve experienced chondronecrosis, all within 12 months of surgery. Conclusion Transoral laser microsurgery for early laryngeal cancer is an adequate therapeutic option in patients with history of radiation with comparable disease-free survival to other reports. Patients undergoing transoral laser microsurgery within 60 months of radiation treatment are more likely to experience prolonged pain.
Boundary equations of configuration obstacles for manipulators

A method is described for obtaining the boundary equations of configuration obstacles for stick-figure manipulators in three-dimensional environments. Polyhedral obstacles are represented as a collection of planar triangular patches, and the intersection conditions between a line segment and a triangular patch are used to derive boundary equations. It is shown that the boundary equation for the nth joint variable can be solved explicitly in terms of the 0th, 1st, . . ., (n-1)th joint variables. The expressions can be used to compute configuration obstacles or to analyze the geometry of contacts between manipulators and obstacles. >
Types and Quantifiers in SHRUTI: A Connectionist Model of Rapid Reasoning and Relational Processing

In order to understand language, a hearer must draw inferences to establish referential and causal coherence. Hence our ability to understand language suggests that we are capable of performing a wide range of inferences rapidly and spontaneously. This poses a challenge for cognitive science: How can a system of slow neuron-like elements encode a large body of knowledge and perform inferences with such speed? SHRUTI attempts to answer this question by demonstrating how a neurally plausible network can encode a large body of semantic and episodic facts, and systematic rule-like knowledge, and yet perform a range of inferences within a few hundred milliseconds. This paper describes a novel representation of types and instances in SHRUTI that supports the encoding of rules and facts involving types and quantifiers, enables SHRUTI to distinguish between hypothesized and asserted entities, and facilitates the dynamic instantiation and unification of entities during inference.
Coherence Potentials: Loss-Less, All-or-None Network Events in the Cortex

Transient associations among neurons are thought to underlie memory and behavior. However, little is known about how such associations occur or how they can be identified. Here we recorded ongoing local field potential (LFP) activity at multiple sites within the cortex of awake monkeys and organotypic cultures of cortex. We show that when the composite activity of a local neuronal group exceeds a threshold, its activity pattern, as reflected in the LFP, occurs without distortion at other cortex sites via fast synaptic transmission. These large-amplitude LFPs, which we call coherence potentials, extend up to hundreds of milliseconds and mark periods of loss-less spread of temporal and amplitude information much like action potentials at the single-cell level. However, coherence potentials have an additional degree of freedom in the diversity of their waveforms, which provides a high-dimensional parameter for encoding information and allows identification of particular associations. Such nonlinear behavior is analogous to the spread of ideas and behaviors in social networks.
High-Frequency Resonant Transistor DC-DC Converters

Transistor dc-dc converters which employ a resonant circuit are described. A resonant circuit is driven with square waves of current or voltage, and by adjusting the frequency around the resonant point, the voltage on the resonant components can be adjusted to any practical voltage level. By rectifying the voltage across the resonant elements, a dc voltage is obtained which can be either higher or lower than the input dc voltage to the converter. Thus, the converter can operate in either the step-up or step-down mode. In addition, the switching losses in the inverter devices and rectifiers are extremely low due to the sine waves that occur from the use of a resonant circuit (as opposed to square waves in a conventional converter); also, easier EMI filtering should result. In the voltage input version, the converter is able to use the parasitic diode associated with an FET or monolithic Darlington, while in the current input version, the converter needs the inverse blocking capability which can be obtained with an IGT or GTO device. A low-power breadboard operating at 200-300 kHz has been built. Two typical application areas are switching power supplies and battery chargers. The converter circuits offer improvements over conventional circuits due to their high efficiency (low switching losses), small reactive components (high-frequency operation), and their step-up/stepdown ability.
Paleodigms and paleodigmatics: a new theoretical construct applicable to Munchausen's syndrome by proxy, child-abuse dwarfism, paraphilias, anorexia nervosa, and other syndromes.

A paleodigm is a formulation of ancient folk wisdom that encodes a causal explanation in a saying or story that penetrates the idiom of everyday language and influences behavior. Although paleodigm...
Low Temperature Asymptotics of Spherical Mean Field Spin Glasses

In this paper, we study the low temperature limit of the spherical Crisanti–Sommers variational problem. We identify the \({\Gamma}\)-limit of the Crisanti–Sommers functionals, thereby establishing a rigorous variational problem for the ground state energy of spherical mixed p-spin glasses. As an application, we compute moderate deviations of the corresponding minimizers in the low temperature limit. In particular, for a large class of models this yields moderate deviations for the overlap distribution as well as providing sharp interpolation estimates between models. We then analyze the ground state energy problem. We show that this variational problem is dual to an obstacle-type problem. This duality is at the heart of our analysis. We present the regularity theory of the optimizers of the primal and dual problems. This culminates in a simple method for constructing a finite dimensional space in which these optimizers live for any model. As a consequence of these results, we unify independent predictions of Crisanti–Leuzzi and Auffinger–Ben Arous regarding the one-step Replica Symmetry Breaking (1RSB) phase in this limit. We find that the “positive replicon eigenvalue” and “pure-like” conditions are together necessary for optimality, but that neither are themselves sufficient, answering a question of Auffinger and Ben Arous in the negative. We end by proving that these conditions completely characterize the 1RSB phase in 2 + p-spin models.
Timed intravenous infusion of metrazol and strychnine for testing anticonvulsant drugs.

SummaryThe timed intravenous infusion metrazol test makes possible an accurate, economical, and rapid evaluation of anticonvulsant compounds. It presents distinct advantages over the subcutaneous method because: (1) fewer animals are needed in order to draw a statistically significant conclusion on the drug being evaluated; (2) less time is necessary to complete the testing procedure; and (3) it is equal in accuracy to the subcutaneous method.
STABILITY OF A SAND BED UNDER BREAKING WAVES

The possible effect on the stability of a porous sand bed of the flow induced within the bed during the passage of near-breaking or breaking waves is considered. It is found that the horizontal flow rather than the vertical flow within the bed may affect its stability. An approximate analysis, used in geotechnical computations of slope stability, indicates that a momentary bed failure is likely to occur during the passage of the steep front slope of a near-breaking wave. Experimental results for the pressure gradient along the bottom under near-breaking waves are presented. These results indicate that the pressure gradient is indeed of sufficient magnitude to cause the momentary failure suggested by the theoretical analysis. The loss of stability of the bed material due to the flow induced within the bed itself may affect the amount of material set in motion during the passage of a near-breaking or breaking wave, in particular, in model tests employing light weight bed material. The failure mechanism considered here is also used as the basis for a hypothesis for the depth of disturbance of the bed in the surf zone. The flow induced in a porous bed is concluded to be an important mechanism which should be considered when dealing with the wave-sediment interaction in the surf zone.
Analysis of Multi-Arm Caliper Data for the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve

The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) has an increasing reliance on mul t i - arm caliper surveys to assess the integrity of casing for cavern access wells and to determine priorities for casing remediation. Multi - arm caliper (MAC) surveys provide a view of well casing deformation by reporting radial measurements of the inner cas ing wall as the tool is drawn through the casing. Over the last several years the SPR has collected a large number of modern MAC surveys. In total, these surveys account for over 100 million individual measurements. The surveys were collected using diff ering survey vendors and survey hardware. This has resulted in a collection of disparate data sets which confound attempts to make well - to - well or time - dependent evaluations. In addition, the vendor supplied MAC interpretations often involve variables wh ich are not well defined or which may not be applicable to casings for cavern access wells. These factors reduce the usability of these detailed data sets. In order to address this issue and provide an independent analysis of multi - arm caliper survey data, Sandia National Labs has developed processing techniques and analysis variables which allow for themore » comparison of MAC survey data regardless of the source of the survey data. These techniques use the raw radial arm information and newly developed analysis variables to assess the casing status and provide a means for well - to - well and time - dependent analyses. Well - to - well and t ime - dependent investigation of the MAC survey data provide s information to prioritize well remediation activities and identify wells with integrity issues. This paper presents the challenges in using disparate MAC survey data, techniques developed to address these challenges and some o f the insights gained from these new techniques.« less
Potentiation by red blood cells of shear-induced platelet aggregation: relative importance of chemical and physical mechanisms

Evidence has been reported to indicate that red blood cells (RBCs) may potentiate platelet adherence and platelet aggregation (PAG) in different flow systems in vitro as well as hemostatic platelet plug formation in response to vascular injury. In this study, we demonstrate that RBCs enhance PAG induced by well-defined, low-intensity, uniform, laminar shear stress. Potentiation by RBCs of shear-induced PAG was associated with appreciable loss of adenine nucleotides from 14C- adenine-labeled RBCs, the extent of which increased with increasing RBC concentration. The concentrations of RBC-derived ADP measured in the medium after shear, as determined by both high pressure liquid chromatography and the luciferin/luciferase system, were within the range of concentrations of ADP which may trigger PAG or potentiate PAG induced by low concentrations of other platelet agonists in the aggregometer. To assess the relative contribution of chemical (ADP) and physical (platelet surface transport) mechanisms in the RBC-mediated potentiation of shear-induced PAG, aliquots of citrated platelet-rich plasma (C-PRP) were exposed to shear stress in the presence of untreated RBCs or RBCs exposed to an antihemolytic concentration (5 mumol/L) of the membrane stabilizing agent, chlorpromazine (CPZ). Potentiation of shear-induced PAG in the RBC-CPZ system was significantly less than that in the untreated RBC system. However, CPZ- induced reduction of PAG potentiation was associated with an increase rather than a decrease in loss of adenine nucleotides from RBC. Furthermore, shear-induced PAG in C-PRP as well as ADP- and collagen- induced PAG in C-PRP in the aggregometer was significantly inhibited by 5 mumol/L CPZ, indicating that the observed reduced potentiation of shear-induced PAG by RBCs in the presence of CPZ was due to a direct inhibitory effect of the drug on platelets rather than a reduction of shear-induced liberation of ADP from RBCs. When aliquots of C-PRP were exposed to shear stress in the presence of RBCs completely depleted of ADP by fixation in 1% glutaraldehyde, potentiation of PAG was approximately half of that observed with intact RBCs. These findings indicate that both RBC-derived ADP and RBC-mediated platelet surface transport are involved in the potentiation by RBCs of PAG induced by laminar shear stress.
Managing a closed-loop supply system with random returns and a cyclic delivery schedule

Abstract Motivated by an industry example, we develop a mathematical framework to address the inventory replenishment and capacity planning problem for a closed-loop supply system with random returns. The provider needs to deliver new or refurbished products to a group of clients under a fixed cyclic schedule, and also collects back a random portion of the used products in the subsequent delivery cycle for refurbishment. We first address the product replenishment strategy, in which only a random portion of the delivered products will be returned for refurbishment and the supplier must regularly purchase new products to replace the lost units. We then analyze the capacity decision problem where the provider uses his facility to refurbish the returned products for reuse, and the provider could incur extra refurbishing cost to handle the returned product at the end of each cycle due to insufficient capacity. Our models provide a simple decision support tool for making effective replenishment and capacity decisions in managing such a closed-loop supply system.
Toward the Broad Adoption of 3D Tumor Models in the Cancer Drug Pipeline

Despite a cost of approximately $1 billion to develop a new cancer drug, about 90% of drugs that enter clinical trials fail. A tremendous opportunity exists to streamline the drug selection and testing process, and innovative approaches promise to reduce the burdensome cost of health care for those suffering from cancer. There is great potential for 3D models of human tumors to complement more traditional testing methods; however, the shift from 2D to 3D assays at early stages of the drug discovery and development process is far from widely accepted. 3D platforms range from simple tumor spheroids to more complex microfluidic hydrogels that better mimic the tumor microenvironment. While several companies have developed and patented advanced high-throughput 3D platforms for drug screening, their cost and complexity have limited their adoption as an industry standard. In this review, we will highlight the various tumor platforms that have been developed, emphasizing the approaches that have successfully led ...
In Reply: Cognitive bias and diagnostic error.

IN REPLY : We thank Dr. Field for his insights and personal observations related to diagnosis and biases that contribute to diagnostic errors. Dr. Field’s comment about the importance of revisiting one’s initial working diagnosis is consistent with our proposed diagnostic time out. A diagnostic
Human exposures to pentobarbital–phenytoin combination veterinary drugs:

A combination of pentobarbital and phenytoin is used as a veterinary euthanasia drug. Because of its lethal effect, this study described pentobarbital-phenytoin combination veterinary drug human exposures reported to Texas poison centers during 2000-2015. Of 66 exposures, 73% involved female and 27% male patients. The distribution by patient age was 3% 0-5 years, 5% 6-19 years, 91% 20+ years, and 2% unknown. The most common routes were ocular (41%), ingestion (32%), injection (23%), and dermal (18%). The exposure reasons were unintentional (77%) and intentional (23%). The exposure site was the workplace (52%), patient's own residence (38%), health-care facility (2%), and other/unknown (9%). The management site was managed on site (48%), at/en route to health-care facility (45%), referred to health-care facility (5%), and other (2%). The medical outcomes were no effect (23%), minor effect (30%), moderate effect (8%), major effect (8%), not followed nontoxic (3%), not followed minimal effects (24%), unable to follow potentially toxic (2%), and unrelated (3%). The most common adverse effects were ocular irritation/pain (18%), drowsiness/lethargy (15%), and coma (9%). The most common treatments were dilution/irrigation (70%), intravenous fluids (21%), and oxygen (14%). This study found few pentobarbital-phenytoin combination veterinary drug exposures were reported to Texas poison centers during a 16-year period. Although meant to be administered intravenously, the most common exposure routes were ocular and ingestion. Many of the exposures appeared to be unintentional and occurred at the workplace.
Improvising Harmony: Opportunities for Technologies to Support Crowd Orchestration

This paper details the work of a seldom studied but growing population of members of grassroots, offline-project based groups. We aim to understand how these groups self-organize to enable a large number of volunteers to gather and "get things done," and identify design opportunities for technologies to support such work. By studying the work structure, we identified two types of members, regular and episodic participants, who differ in structural role, motivation, and type of work they do. We studied two key tasks: 1) project management, which is mostly done collaboratively by the regular participants; and 2) organization of work events-the project implementation, which involve many episodic participants. For both tasks, we report on common practices and tools that are currently used. We then discuss design implications and user requirements for developing specialized tools to support these tasks.
Planar ultrawideband modular antenna (PUMA) wavelength-scaled array

The wavelength-scaled array architecture reduces element count and associated T/R module costs by replacing a portion of a periodic array by fewer, but scaled up elements that are excited only at lower frequency bands. We propose the implementation of the wavelength-scaled array using low-cost Planar Ultrawideband Modular Antenna (PUMA) radiators to further reduce cost, profile and improve polarization performance. Full wave finite array simulations are used to quantify the impedance and far-field radiation performance of the PUMA wavelength-scaled array and to compare it to conventional square array counterparts.
New species of Primozygodactylus from Messel and the ecomorphology and evolutionary significance of early Eocene zygodactylid birds (Aves, Zygodactylidae)

AbstractZygodactylids (Zygodactylidae) are the extinct sister taxon of passerines (Passeriformes) and among the more abundant small arboreal birds in the early Eocene German fossil site Messel. Four species of the taxon Primozygodactylus have previously been identified and here two new species are described. In addition, new fossils of the poorly known P. eunjooae are reported. The fossils corroborate the presence of two very long central tail feathers for Primozygodactylus, and the feathering of the taxon corresponds with that of extant birds foraging in scrub and undergrowth. Species diversity of zygodactylids falls short of that of passerines, the most species-rich extant avian clade, and in bill shapes they also do not reach the diversity seen in extant Passeriformes. Because zygodactylids closely resemble passerines in skeletal morphology, the evolutionary success of passerines is unlikely to be due to particular skeletal features. Passerines and zygodactylids coexisted in Europe from the early Oligo...
Temperature sensitive liposomes combined with thermal ablation: Effects of duration and timing of heating in mathematical models and in vivo.

Background Temperature sensitive liposomes (TSL) are nanoparticles that rapidly release the contained drug at hyperthermic temperatures, typically above ~40°C. TSL have been combined with various heating modalities, but there is no consensus on required hyperthermia duration or ideal timing of heating relative to TSL administration. The goal of this study was to determine changes in drug uptake when heating duration and timing are varied when combining TSL with radiofrequency ablation (RF) heating. Methods We used computer models to simulate both RF tissue heating and TSL drug delivery, to calculate spatial drug concentration maps. We simulated heating for 5, 12 and 30 min for a single RF electrode, as well as three sequential 12 min ablations for 3 electrodes placed in a triangular array. To support simulation results, we performed porcine in vivo studies in normal liver, where TSL filled with doxorubicin (TSL-Dox) at a dose of 30 mg was infused over 30 min. Following infusion, RF heating was performed in separate liver locations for either 5 min (n = 2) or 12 min (n = 2). After ablation, the animal was euthanized, and liver extracted and frozen. Liver samples were cut orthogonal to the electrode axis, and fluorescence imaging was used to visualize tissue doxorubicin distribution. Results Both in vivo studies and computer models demonstrate a ring-shaped drug deposition within ~1 cm of the visibly coagulated tissue. Drug uptake directly correlated with heating duration. In computer simulations, drug concentration increased by a factor of 2.2x and 4.3x when heating duration was extended from 5 to either 12, or 30 minutes, respectively. In vivo, drug concentration was by a factor of 2.4x higher at 12 vs 5 min heating duration (7.1 μg/g to 3.0 μg/g). The computer models suggest that heating should be timed to maximize area under the curve of systemic plasma concentration of encapsulated drug. Conclusions Both computer models and in vivo study demonstrate that tissue drug uptake directly correlates with heating duration for TSL based delivery. Computational models were able to predict the spatial drug delivery profile, and may serve as a valuable tool in understanding and optimizing drug delivery systems.
Using Statistical Process Control to Drive Improvement in Neonatal Care: A Practical Introduction to Control Charts

Quality improvement (QI) is based on measuring performance over time, and variation in data measured over time must be understood to guide change and make optimal improvements. Common cause variation is natural variation owing to factors inherent to any process; special cause variation is unnatural variation owing to external factors. Statistical process control methods, and particularly control charts, are robust tools for understanding data over time and identifying common and special cause variation. This review provides a practical introduction to the use of control charts in health care QI, with a focus on neonatology.
A structural explanation of recent changes in life-cycle labor supply and fertility behavior of married women in the United States

Abstract This study documents and explains important changes in the life-cycle labor supply and fertility behavior of married women in the United States from the 1950s to more recent cohorts. The younger cohorts, relative to the 1950s, supply more labor at earlier stages of the life-cycle, delay motherhood to later stages without reducing the fertility rate, and upon childbearing, show a greater tendency to stay out of the labor force. In a life-cycle model for married couples in which a household makes decisions on fertility as well as labor supply, consumption, and savings, all the behavioral changes are jointly and quantitatively explained by a combination of changes in various labor supply/fertility determinants, with the increased returns (penalties) to work (non-work) experience being the dominant contributor. The results survive a series of robustness tests, including endogenizing education choice and assortative marriage.
Educators as the “Frontline” of Human-Trafficking Prevention: An Analysis of State-Level Educational Policy

Despite its significance as a policy issue, there is a paucity of knowledge about trafficking within educational policy and leadership research. The lack of research in this area and the contempora...
Streptococcus Dysgalactiae Subspecies Equisimilis Endogenous Endophthalmitis Associated with Aortic Valve Abscess.

ABSTRACTPurpose: To describe a case of endogenous endophthalmitis from Streptococcus dysgalactiae subspecies equisimilis in the setting of an aortic valve abscessMethods: Retrospective case report....
Cache fault injection with DrSEUs

Operating processor devices in space environments is challenging due to radiation strikes, which can cause a device to fail or fault. Caches are of particular interest in radiation effects research because they occupy a large portion of a device's area, and therefore account for a significant proportion of Single-Event Upsets (SEUs) within a device. Unfortunately, caches are difficult to access directly and impossible on most hardware testbeds. This paper presents the methodology for injecting faults into processor caches using our Dynamic Robust Single-Event Upset Simulator, DrSEUs. DrSEUs leverages the Simics full-system simulator to provide simulation-based, fault-injection capabilities. Simics provides tools to build cache models for simulated devices (but not included by default). However, these models are intended for collecting timing information and do not contain cache contents. In order to support fault injections, we have modified the g-cache Simics extension to include cache contents and added support to DrSEUs for targeting the simulated cache objects. We demonstrate and evaluate the injection capabilities and analysis features of DrSEUs by presenting cache fault-injection results for an image-processing application.
A visual medication schedule to improve anticoagulation control: a randomized, controlled trial.

Article-at-a-Glance Background Misunderstanding between clinicians and patients may lead to medication-related errors and poor clinical outcomes, particularly in anticoagulant care. Methods One hundred forty-seven chronic warfarin users were randomized to receive a visual medication schedule at each visit, along with brief counseling, versus standard care, and followed for 90 days. At baseline, patient and clinician reports of the prescribed warfarin regimen were recorded to identify patients as "discordant" versus "concordant" to determine whether the effect of the intervention varied with clinician-patient discordance. Results At baseline, clinician-patient warfarin regimen discordance was common in intervention and control groups (38% versus 42%). Intervention subjects achieved anticoagulation control more rapidly than control subjects (median 28 versus 42 days; hazard ratio [HR], 1.43; confidence interval [CI], 1.00, 2.06). The benefit of the intervention was significant among subjects with baseline regimen discordance (median, 28 versus 49 days; HR, 1.92; CI, 1.08, 3.39) but not among subjects with baseline concordance (median 28 versus 35 days; HR, 1.14; CI, 0.71,1.83). Discussion Among patients in poor anticoagulant control whose understanding of their warfarin regimen is discordant with their providers', a visual medication schedule, combined with brief counseling, reduced time to anticoagulation control. The study suggests a simple strategy to enhance medication safety and efficacy for at-risk patients.
Limits on power and rationality

This paper re-examines the classic impossibility results of Arrow (J Polit Econ 58(4):328–346, 1950) and Sen (J Polit Econ 78:152–157, 1970) with preferences replaced by choice functions that satisfy Weak WARP. In particular, both social and individual choices can be as in bounded rationality models of categorization, inattention or psychological constraints. A simple delegation rule that assigns a social decider to each choice satisfies Arrow’s desiderata. In addition, and in direct contrast with central ideas in economics, social choices can be ordered when all individual choice functions are anomalous. Finally, no delegation rule can be liberal [in a formal sense akin to the definition in Sen 1970], satisfy independence of irrelevant alternatives and map Weak WARP individual choice functions into Weak WARP social choice functions.
Modeling residential coastal flood vulnerability using finished-floor elevations and socio-economic characteristics.

Abstract Densely populated coastal regions are vulnerable to threats associated with climate change and variability, especially storms. In the United States, millions of people are repeatedly at risk of flooding and because this number will only continue to grow, the identification of the intersection of social vulnerability and physical risk to flood inundation is essential for both coastal planning and adaptation purposes. Although a key tool to identify vulnerable populations, most vulnerability models are built at the county or coarser scales, thereby hindering the effectiveness of mitigation and adaptation planning at community scales, which are more socially and physically diverse than what county-scale analyses can reveal. We present an integrated social and physical model of vulnerability at the block-group level of geography using census data to measure social variability based population and housing data and physical exposure based on the intersection of finished floor elevation of all buildings in coastal North Carolina, USA with flood hazards maps. We identify, in a spatially-explicit manner and at multiple levels of governance, areas of high social vulnerability and their intersection with areas of high physical exposure to inundation. We found that in the 28 coastal counties of North Carolina, 45.3% of the structures within the 100-year floodplain were structurally exposed to potential damage from inundation. Supporting our hypothesized patterns of vulnerability to inundation, a significant clustering of highly vulnerable block-groups were located in Albemarle and Eastern Carolina coastal regions, yet high vulnerability outliers were also located at significant distance away from the highly physically-exposed coastline. Our findings suggest that the high-resolution block-group level analysis identified multiple levels of vulnerability to inundation at the sub-county scale and provide essential information for effective hazard mitigation within scales ranging from the community to transboundary governing bodies.
Shifts in dominant tree mycorrhizal associations in response to anthropogenic impacts

Plant-fungal symbioses play critical roles in vegetation dynamics and nutrient cycling, modulating the impacts of global changes on ecosystem functioning. Here, we used forest inventory data consisting of more than 3 million trees to develop a spatially resolved "mycorrhizal tree map" of the contiguous United States. We show that abundances of the two dominant mycorrhizal tree groups-arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) and ectomycorrhizal trees-are associated primarily with climate. Further, we show that anthropogenic influences, primarily nitrogen (N) deposition and fire suppression, in concert with climate change, have increased AM tree dominance during the past three decades in the eastern United States. Given that most AM-dominated forests in this region are underlain by soils with high N availability, our results suggest that the increasing abundance of AM trees has the potential to induce nutrient acceleration, with critical consequences for forest productivity, ecosystem carbon and nutrient retention, and feedbacks to climate change.
Insomnia and daytime sleepiness: risk factors for sports-related concussion.

Abstract Objective/Background Poor quality and inadequate sleep are associated with impaired cognitive, motor, and behavioral components of sport performance and increased injury risk. While prior work identifies sports-related concussions as predisposing factors for poor sleep, the role of sleep as a sports-related concussion risk factor is unknown. The purpose of this study was to quantify the effect of poor sleep quality and insomnia symptoms on future sports-related concussion risk. Patients/Methods In this study, 190 NCAA Division-1 athletes completed a survey battery, including the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) Sleep module. Univariate risk ratios for future sports-related concussions were computed with ISI and NHANES sleepiness scores as independent predictors. An additional multiple logistic regression model including sport, sports-related concussion history, and significant univariate predictors jointly assessed the odds of sustaining a concussion. Results Clinically moderate-to-severe insomnia severity (RR = 3.13, 95% CI: 1.320–7.424, p = 0.015) and excessive daytime sleepiness two or more times per month (RR = 2.856, 95% CI: 0.681–11.977, p = 0.037) increased concussion risk. These variables remained significant and comparable in magnitude in a multivariate model adjusted for sport participation. Conclusion Insomnia and daytime sleepiness are independently associated with increased sports-related concussion risk. More completely identifying bidirectional relationships between concussions and sleep requires further research. Clinicians and athletes should be cognizant of this relationship and take proactive measures – including assessing and treating sleep-disordered breathing, limiting insomnia risk factors, improving sleep hygiene, and developing daytime sleepiness management strategies – to reduce sports-related concussion risk and support overall athletic performance.
Stress granules regulate paraspeckles: RNP granule continuum at work.

Eukaryotic cells contain several types of RNA-protein membraneless macro-complexes – ribonucleoprotein (RNP) granules that form by liquid-liquid phase separation. These structures represent biochemical microreactors for a variety of cellular processes and also act as highly accurate sensors of changes in the cellular environment. RNP granules share multiple protein components, however, the connection between spatially separated granules remains surprisingly understudied. Paraspeckles are constitutive nuclear RNP granules whose numbers significantly increase in stressed cells. Our recent work using affinity-purified paraspeckles revealed that another type of RNP granule, cytoplasmic stress granule (SG), acts as an important regulator of stress-induced paraspeckle assembly. Our study demonstrates that despite their residency in different cellular compartments, the two RNP granules are closely connected. This study suggests that nuclear and cytoplasmic RNP granules are integral parts of the intracellular “RNP granule continuum” and that rapid exchange of protein components within this continuum is important for the temporal control of cellular stress responses. It also suggests that cells can tolerate and efficiently handle a certain level of phase separation, which is reflected in the existence of “bursts”, or “waves”, of RNP granule formation. Our study triggers a number of important questions related to the mechanisms controlling the flow of RNP granule components within the continuum and to the possibility of targeting these mechanisms in human disease.