cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Art//Archaeology//Art: Letting-Go Beyond

Professor Bailey investigates the articulations of art and archaeology. He argues that while recent influences of contemporary art have expanded archaeological interpretations of the past, more provocative and substantial work remains to be done. The most exciting current output is pushing hard against the boundaries of art as well as of archaeology. Bailey’s proposal is for archaeologists to take greater risks in their work, and to cut loose the restraints of their traditional subject boundaries and institutional expectations. The potential result of such work will rest neatly within neither art nor archaeology, but will emerge as something else altogether. The new work will move the study of human nature into uncharted and exciting new territories.
Enhancement of Voltage Profile in Unbalanced Distribution Systems with Variable Loads

Nowadays, interconnection of distributed generation (DG) units to distribution grids becomes more popular due to the many benefits they provide to grids. Their contribution in voltage regulation can improve the voltage profile in distribution networks. In addition, optimal power flow as a powerful tool in planning and load management can be applied to the distribution networks as well as at transmission level. This paper proposes a multi-objective function to address the nonlinear optimal power flow (OPF) problem in the medium voltage (MV) distribution networks. Cuckoo Search (CS) optimization approach is applied to solve the OPF problem. The proposed method is applied to IEEE 13 nodes test case with variable load. The results indicate the enhancement in voltage profile in addition to reduction of the network losses and more balanced system.
Process Measures of Dyadic Collaborative Interaction for Social Skills Intervention in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Technology-based social skills interventions have shown promise for people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impairments in social interaction and communication. Primary advantages of a technology-based approach to intervention relate to consistency of service delivery as well as an ability to quantitatively measure process and outcomes. Despite these strengths, however, many current computer-supported systems rely on survey data or data collected post-interaction. In response, we have developed and pilot-tested DOSE (Dyad-Operated Social Encouragement), a novel game and data acquisition platform for collaborative skills intervention that leverages the ability of software to collect time-series, speech audio, and event information for the purposes of finer-grained analyses of dyadic interactions. A pilot study involving 12 participant dyads—comprised of children with ASD and typically developing (TD) peers (6 ASD-TD dyads and 6 TD-TD dyads)—was conducted and several metrics were computed during interactions. Preliminary results suggest that the DOSE system is engaging to users, is capable of collecting a wide range of quantitative process measures, and that post-training measures show preliminary evidence of increased communication and activity coordination. Furthermore, DOSE has been made open-source, allowing other investigators to use and extend DOSE for a variety of applications.
Improved Accuracy for Constant pH-REMD Simulations through Modification of Carboxylate Effective Radii

The accuracy of computational models for simulating biomolecules under specific solution pH conditions is critical for properly representing the effect of pH in biological processes. Constant pH (CpH) simulations involving implicit solvent using the AMBER software often incorrectly estimate pKa values of aspartate and glutamate residues due to large effective radii stemming from the presence of dummy protons. These inaccuracies stem from problems in the sampled ensembles of titratable residues that can influence other observable pH-dependent behavior, such as conformational change. We investigate new radii assignments for atoms in titratable residues with carboxylate groups to mitigate the systematic overestimation in the current method. We find that decreased carboxylate radii correspond with increased agreement with experimentally derived pKa values for residues in hen egg-white lysozyme and Δ+PHS variants of staphylococcal nuclease (SNase) and improved conformation state sampling compared to experiment...
The Mutual Designing of Travel Websites: Perceptions of the Visually Impaired

This paper investigates the travel Web usage perception of the visually impaired (VI). Websites designed for sighted online users may not be suitable for VI users. In order to determine VI perceptions of travel Websites, interviews were conducted with members of the National Federation of the Blind, Indiana Chapter using the modified Nominal Group Technique(NGT) method. From the analysis of the interview data using the ground theory technique, ten themes emerged. This study discusses these findings. Recommendations are provided on how to make travel Websites more accessible to the VI.
The added effect of cabergoline to metformin on serum hormones and rate and regularity of menstruation in women with Polycystic ovary syndrome

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an important cause of menstrual irregularities and infertility in women. Management approaches are variable and share in common the objectives of improving menstrual irregularities, hormonal disturbances, associated clinical features, and fertility. Cabergoline has been suggested to be effective in reducing some adverse effect associated with PCOS; however, sufficient controversy existed that permitted the conduction of the current study. This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of adding Cabergoline to the standard mode of treatment (metformin) in a cohort of women with PCOS, on serum hormone levels, BMI, and menstrual irregularities. The present case-control study included 100 women diagnosed as having a polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) according to clinical, ultrasonic and hormonal bases. They were divided into two groups; the first group included 50 PCOS women received metformin treatment for 4 months’ duration and served as control group whereas the second group included 50 PCOS women who were given cabergoline in addition to metformin for 4 months’ duration and served as a study group. Both types of treatment, with or without cabergoline, resulted in highly significant reduction in mean weight in both groups (P<0.001), highly significant reduction in mean serum prolactin in both groups (P<0.001), highly significant reduction in mean serum testosterone in both groups (P<0.001) and highly significant reduction in mean serum DHEAS in both groups (P<0.001); however cabergoline was more effective in reducing mean serum prolactin, 10.20 ±1.92 ng/ml versus 32.20 ±1.79 ng/ml (P<0.001) and improved menstrual irregularities more efficiently. Addition of cabergoline lowers serum prolactin more significantly than metformin alone has improved menstrual irregularity more significantly. Keywords: Cabergoline; PCOS; Metformin; Menstruation
Identification of Phenotypic Patterns of Dysphagia: A Proof of Concept Study.

Purpose The purpose of the current project was to explore the feasibility for subtyping dysphagia traits or patterns of scores in a subset of data from the Modified Barium Swallow Impairment Profil...
Accuracy of Veterans Affairs databases for diagnoses of chronic diseases.

INTRODUCTION Epidemiologic studies usually use database diagnoses or patient self-report to identify disease cohorts, but no previous research has examined the extent to which self-report of chronic disease agrees with database diagnoses in a Veterans Affairs (VA) health care setting. METHODS All veterans who had a medical care visit from October 1, 1996, through May 31, 1998, at any of the Veterans Integrated Service Network 13 facilities were surveyed about physician diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)/asthma, depression, diabetes, and heart disease. Four administrative case definitions (data from VA databases) consisting of combinations of International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, codes and disease-specific medication data were compared with self-report of each disease to assess sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, area under receiver operating characteristics curve, and kappa statistic. RESULTS Sensitivity for administrative definitions compared with self-report of physician diagnosis was 24% to 54% for COPD/asthma, 25% to 47% for depression, 27% to 59% for heart disease, and 64% to 78% for diabetes. Specificity was 88% to 100% for all diseases. The kappa statistic showed fair agreement for COPD/asthma, depression, and heart disease and substantial agreement for diabetes. CONCLUSION Diagnoses identified from databases agree with self-report for diabetes but not COPD/asthma, depression, or heart disease in a VA health care setting.
Shape resonances in quantum mechanics

We prove the existence of shape resonances for Schrodinger operators of the form H(λ)=−Δ+λ2V+U, λ=n−1, in the semiclassical limit in any number of dimensions. The potential V is non-negative, vanishing at infinity as 0(|x|−α),α>0, and forms a barrier about a compact region in which V has finitely many zeros. U∈L loc 2 is any real function which is bounded above and continuous except at a finite number of points. In addition, V and U are assumed to be dilation analytic in a neighborhood of infinity. The resonances shown to exist correspond as λ→∞ to the eigenvalues of a particle confined to the region containing the zeros of V. The width of a resonance near one of these eigenvalues λE is proved to be bounded above by c exp(−2β(λ)(ρE−e)), for any e>0 and where c>0 is a constant. β(λ) depends upon α and is given by λ for α>2, λ ln λ for α=2, and λ1/α+1/2 for 0<α<2. The factor ρE satisfies \(\mathop {\lim }\limits_{\lambda \to \infty } \rho _E (\lambda ) < \infty\), and β(λ)ρE is the leading asymptotic to the geodesic distance in the Agmon metric ds2=(λ2V+U−λE)+dx2 between the turning surfaces given by {x|λ2V+U=λE}.
An Integral Role of the Dietitian: Implications of the Diabetes Prevention Program

Obesity and type 2 diabetes have become increasingly prevalent worldwide. Cross-sectional data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System indicate that in 2000, over 56% of US adults were overweight, and during the 1990s the proportion of survey participants reporting that they had diabetes rose by 49% (1). Lifestyle changes (increasingly sedentary lifestyle and increasing dietary energy density) have resulted in a dramatic rise in obesity and type 2 diabetes in the developing economies of Latin America as well in the market economies of North America, Europe, and Australia (2). Higher fat diets and increased adiposity have also been linked to a rise in diabetes in Asia, where much of the population develops type 2 diabetes at a lower relative body weight than in Western population groups (2). The worldwide population with diabetes in expected to more than double from an estimated 135 million people in 1995 to 300 million by 2025 (2). Intermediate blood glucose levels between normal and diabetic are associated with insulin resistance and greater risk of macrovascular disease. Impaired glucose tolerance and impaired fasting glucose can be used to classify intermediate glucose values (3). The American Diabetes Association added impaired fasting glucose (defined as a fasting glucose of ≥ 6.1 mmol/L and < 7.0 mmol/L) as a classification in 1997 to more readily identity people with intermediate glucose levels in clinical settings. Studies conducted in Da Qing, China, and in Finland provided early evidence that lifestyle intervention can reduce the risk of developing diabetes in individuals with impaired glucose tolerance. The Da Qing Impaired Glucose Tolerance and Diabetes Study (n = 577) found that diet, exercise, and the combination of diet and exercise appeared to reduce the risk of developing diabetes in people with impaired glucose tolerance (4). The Finish Diabetes Prevention Study (n =523) demonstrated that a lifestyle intervention could reduce the risk of developing diabetes by 58% in individuals with impaired glucose tolerance over a 3.2-year follow-up (5). The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) was a large (n = 3, 234), 27-center rendomized clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of interventions in delaying or preventing diabetes in diverse populations of high-risk individuals in the United States (6).
Distinctions in Alcohol-Induced Memory Impairment: A Mixed Methods Study of En Bloc Versus Fragmentary Blackouts.

BACKGROUND Blackouts-or memory loss for all or part of a drinking event-are reliable predictors of alcohol-related consequences. Studies suggest a distinction between en bloc (complete memory loss) and fragmentary (off-and-on memory loss) blackouts; however, research has not consistently differentiated between these 2 forms of blackout. This study aimed to validate the distinction between en bloc and fragmentary blackouts among young adults. METHODS Data were collected using qualitative (Study 1) and quantitative (Study 2) research methods. Participants in both studies were college students with a history of alcohol-induced memory impairment. They were recruited using community advertisement (Study 1, N = 50, 56% female) and Qualtrics survey panels (Study 2, N = 350, 56% female). Study 1 participants engaged in 8 focus groups. Discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and coded using applied thematic analysis. Findings guided assessment of en bloc and fragmentary blackout in Study 2. In Study 2, a separate sample of participants completed an online survey assessing drinking behavior, alcohol-induced memory impairment, and theoretical correlates of en bloc and fragmentary blackouts. RESULTS Study 1 participants differentiated between en bloc and fragmentary blackouts (which they referred to as "blackouts" and "brownouts," respectively) based on duration and extent of memory loss. They indicated that blackouts occur along a continuum, with en bloc "blackouts" at the extreme. They also stated that the term "blackout drinking" does not always imply memory loss. Study 2 participants reported higher rates of "brownouts" (81%) than "blackouts" (54%). They reported less negative outcome expectancies and attitudes, greater personal approval, higher prevalence estimates, lower self-efficacy, and stronger intentions for "brownouts" than "blackouts" (p < 0.001). Women perceived "blackouts/brownouts" as more prevalent than men and reported lower intentions to experience "blackouts" (p < 0.005). CONCLUSIONS Young adults are more permissive of fragmentary than en bloc blackout. En bloc blackouts may be a target for future interventions.
Shifting From Passive Quality Reporting to Active Nudging to Influence Consumer Choice of Health Plan.

Comparative quality information on health plan and provider performance is increasingly available in the form of quality report cards, but consumers rarely make use of these passively provided deci...
Experiences of Academic Librarians Serving as Interim Library Leaders.

Using a mixed-methods approach, the researchers explored the experiences of 108 academic librarians who served as interim library leaders at U.S. institutions of higher education between 2012 and 2017. Statistical analysis showed no associations between gender, type of institution, or degree-granting level with the duration of interim service or whether a respondent applied for or was hired as the permanent leader. The authors provide recommendations for future interim library leaders and the university executives who appoint them. Serving as an interim library leader can be a once-in-a lifetime opportunity well worth the experience.
Practical Nonlinear Control Systems

This chapter, on practical nonlinear control design, includes a variety of open-loop and closed-loop control design techniques that not only do not avoid the nonlinearities of the model but sometimes utilize the nonlinearities as part of a successful control strategy. The chapter includes many MATLAB Simulink examples. One of the chapter purposes is to serve as a MATLAB Simulink tutorial. Nonlinearities in the process model are often the “heart and soul” of the process model. We tried to demonstrate it with many real-life examples—aircraft motion models, missile guidance, physiological models, and more. In all these examples, the nonlinearities play a central role. Dynamic simulations, if done carefully and systematically, can compensate for the lack of full control design experience and training. A simulator in the loop that performs multiple runs of a slow enough process can provide meaningful control insight that can be put into action in real time. Sliding mode control and Lyapunov Design are powerful control design techniques in their own right. These control design methods particularly shine in the presence of modeling uncertainties and poorly modeled disturbance signals. One may even apply these methods to linear process in order to obtain superior performance at certain circumstances. Due to time and space constraints, several subjects regrettably ended up being omitted from this chapter (awaiting possibly future editions of this book). These subjects include Model Linearization by means of MATLAB and Simulink and PID Control Auto-Tuning.
Why Aβ42 Is Much More Toxic than Aβ40

Amyloid precursor A4 (770 amino acids (aa)) dimerizes and aggregates, as do its C-terminal (99 aa) and amyloid Aβ (40,42 aa Aβ40,Aβ42) fragments. The titled question has been discussed extensively, and here it is addressed further using thermodynamic scaling theory to analyze mutational trends in structural factors and kinetics. Special attention is given to Family Alzheimer's disease mutations in C99 outside Aβ42 centered on Aβ46. The scaling analysis is connected to extensive C99 docking simulations which included membranes ( Sun et al. J. Chem. Inf. Model. 2017 , 57 , 1375 - 1387 ), thereby confirming their C99 results and extending them to A4.
Five-Year Follow-Up of Coronary Microvascular Dysfunction and Coronary Artery Disease in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Results From a Community-Based Lupus Cohort.

Objective The present study was undertaken to investigate prospective change in the prevalence of coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) and obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) in a cohort of subjects with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) initially evaluated for anginal chest pain (CP). Prior work documented a relatively high prevalence of CMD in the absence of obstructive CAD in subjects with SLE. Methods Twenty female SLE subjects with CP who underwent stress cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) and coronary computed tomography angiography at baseline were reevaluated at 5 years. Results Seventeen subjects (85%) were available and reenrolled, of which 11 (65%) had persistent CP at follow-up. Fourteen subjects had complete follow-up CMRI, of which 36% (n = 5) demonstrated CMD at follow-up. Further, 25% (1 of 4) of the originally abnormal myocardial perfusion reserve index (MPRI) findings at baseline were lower at follow-up, while 2 additional abnormal MPRI findings at follow-up were noted in previously normal MPRI results. The prevalence of CMD and nonobstructive/obstructive CAD both was unchanged between baseline and follow-up, respectively (both P values not significant). During follow-up, 33% of subjects (5 of 15) had adverse cardiac outcomes, including pericarditis, unstable angina, or intracranial aneurysm clipping procedure. Conclusion At the 5-year follow-up of SLE subjects with CP who were evaluated at baseline and follow-up, a majority had persistent CP, and nearly one-half had similar or worse myocardial perfusion consistent with CMD without obstructive CAD. These findings propose an alternative explanation for CP in SLE subjects compared to the more common SLE-related accelerated obstructive CAD accounting for CP and adverse outcomes. These findings support further studies of CMD as an etiology for cardiac morbidity and mortality in SLE.
Is the Focus of Community-Based Mental Health Treatment Consistent With Adolescent Psychiatric Diagnoses?

Most adolescents do not receive effective mental health services. This may stem in part from infrequent use of evidence-based and multi-informant diagnostic assessments to guide clinical care. The primary purpose of the present study was to examine whether adolescent mental health diagnoses and suicidality, derived via evidence-based diagnostic interviews and assessments, correspond with reported "reason for treatment" received by adolescents. Secondarily, we examined the potential association between socio-economic status and the match between youth diagnoses and reasons for treatment. The influence of parent-adolescent agreement on diagnoses and reasons for treatment on findings was also explored. Using chi-square analyses, a significant association was found between youth diagnoses of mood disorders, disruptive behavior disorders, and suicidality, respectively, and a focus of treatment on these conditions per combined parent-adolescent report. The same was not true for youth anxiety, attention-deficit hyperactivity, or substance abuse disorders. Results of exploratory analyses suggest that these results are driven by adolescent, but not parent report. With regard to socio-economic status, there was a trend for those with higher incomes to report a treatment focus consistent with youth diagnoses, per combined parent-adolescent report. Results suggest that focus of mental health treatment received by adolescents in standard community-based care may not uniformly address all current disorders. Efforts are needed to disseminate multi-informant evidence-based assessments to enhance the quality and effectiveness of care.
Proteomic Pathway Analysis of Monocyte-Derived Exosomes during Surgical Sepsis Identifies Immunoregulatory Functions.

Background: Patients with sepsis exhibit significant long-term immunosuppressive sequelae. Monocyte dysfunction is a hallmark of this damage. Circulating exosomes are an important mediator of the systemic signaling events that occur during the septic response; thus, we sought to characterize the contribution of circulating exosomes to the inflammatory process induced during sepsis Methods: Monocyte-derived exosomes were isolated from cultured monocytes from healthy adult donors via stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). The proteome was determined by capillary-liquid chromatography-nanospray tandem mass spectrometry (capillary-LC/NT/MS). Using pathway analysis, proteomic networks of exosomes derived from LPS-stimulated monocytes were compared with those isolated from patients with surgical sepsis. Naive monocytes were then treated with these exosomes and stimulated with LPS to determine the effects on recipient-cell immune function. Results: Proteomic analysis demonstrated 18 differentially expressed proteins (17 down-regulated, one up-regulated) in sepsis-derived exosomes, with 15 differentially expressed proteins (14 down-regulated, one up-regulated) in the LPS-stimulated exosomes. Functional enrichment analysis demonstrated several down-regulated processes, including localization, biogenesis, and metabolic and cellular processes in addition to immune system processes. In LPS-stimulated macrophages, similar down-regulated processes were seen, including metabolic and cellular processes, as well as the response to stimulus. Cells treated with sepsis-derived exosomes or exosomes from LPS-stimulated monocytes demonstrated significant reductions in tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α generation in response to LPS stimulation. Conclusions: Proteomic analysis of sepsis-derived exosomes and LPS-stimulated, macrophage-derived exosomes exhibited down-regulation of several important protein networks, including the immune response. In addition, human monocytes treated with exosomes from patients with sepsis or LPS-stimulated monocytes demonstrated significant reductions in TNF-α generation in response to LPS stimulation. These data suggest the contribution of circulating exosomes to systemic signaling and immunomodulation during sepsis.
The Inverse Function Theorems of L. M. Graves

The classical inverse/implicit function theorem revolves around solving an equation involving a differentiable function in terms of a parameter and tells us when the solution mapping associated with this equation is a differentiable function. Already in 1927 Hildebrand and Graves observed that one can put aside differentiability using instead Lipschitz continuity. Subsequently, Graves developed various extensions of this idea, most known of which are the Lyusternik-Graves theorem, where the inverse of a function is a set-valued mapping with certain Lipschitz type properties, and the Bartle-Graves theorem which establishes the existence of a continuous and calm selection of the inverse. In the last several decades more sophisticated results have been obtained by employing various concepts of regularity of mappings acting in metric spaces, mainly aiming at applications to numerical analysis and optimization. This paper presents a unified view to the inverse function theorems that originate from the works of Graves. It has a historical flavor, but not entirely, tracing the development of ideas from a personal perspective rather than surveying the literature.
Female-to-Male Gender-Confirming Drainless Mastectomy May Be Safe in Obese Males.

BACKGROUND Gender dysphoria is a medical condition associated with suicidality. Transgender men who have undergone female-to-male (FTM) chest reconstruction report higher quality of life and reduced gender dysphoria. It has been reported that transgender men are at higher risk of obesity. OBJECTIVES The objective of this study was to compare perioperative outcomes and complications between different classes of obesity in FTM transgender patients who underwent chest masculoplasty. METHODS A retrospective review of 145 consecutive patients who underwent mastectomy with free nipple graft was conducted. Postoperative outcomes and complications were collected. Patients were divided into nonobese (body mass index [BMI] 50 kg/m2) groups. RESULTS Sixty-six of the 145 patients were not obese, 52 were obese, 22 were morbidly obese, and 5 were super obese. There was a statistically significant increase in amount of breast tissue resected between each of the 4 groups (866.8 g vs 1672.4 g vs 3157.1 g vs 4827.6 g; P ≤ 0.0005) as BMI increased, respectively. There was a significant difference in operative time between the nonobese and obese groups (128.7 vs 134.6 vs 150.5 vs 171 minutes; P = 0.026). A significant increase in postoperative infections was observed between the morbidly obese, super obese, and the nonobese group (P = 0.048). CONCLUSIONS Chest wall reconstruction in FTM and nonbinary transgender people is important in relieving gender dysphoria. Postoperative complications were not significantly increased in obese patients (30-39.9 kg/m2). Delaying surgery for weight loss may not be necessary unless patients are morbidly obese. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4
Consensus Report on Shigella Controlled Human Infection Model: Introduction and Overview

In recent years, controlled human infection models (CHIMs) have become available for a range of infectious agents and have proved invaluable for understanding the disease process, pathogenesis, and mechanisms of immunity. CHIM studies have also contributed significantly to advancing development of a number of vaccines by providing an indication of vaccine efficacy. The Shigella CHIM has been established in 3 sites in the United States, and it is likely that the CHIM will play an important regulatory role for advancing the range of Shigella vaccine candidates that are currently in development. This supplement describes the harmonization of best practices across sites, with a view to maximizing the contribution that CHIM studies can make to Shigella vaccine development.
Programmatic strategies for optimal interactions in a youth sport for development context

Rationale/purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine a single sport-based youth development program across a variety of contexts and examine programmatic differences and similarities that le...
Preliminary investigation into metal-material extrusion

Additive manufacturing (AM) technologies provide a method of fabrication that minimizes the production of waste and maximizes part customization. The most common form of this technology is material extrusion (ME) in which material is deposited layer-by-layer to produce a highly customized part. However, this additive production method has experienced difficulty in widespread adoption in metal fabrication due to the inability to produce metallic parts with strong mechanical properties. This study presents some innovations on a new metal-fabrication technique for ME printing that allows for low-cost metal printing. A metal powder polymer composite filament, with a high metal composition, can be printed and sintered to yield a part that is completely metal. Overall, this study provides the initial investigation of the microstructural behavior and the resulting hardness levels. This study found that the metal powder in finished parts is fused by approximately 90% derived from the percent area porosity on a microstructural level. The final hardness of the processed parts is reduced by approximately 60%. Characterizing these properties is the initial step in incorporating ME technology in the field of metal 3D printing.
Baseline Assessment of Circulating MicroRNAs Near Diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes Predicts Future Stimulated Insulin Secretion

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease resulting in severely impaired insulin secretion. We investigated whether circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) are associated with residual insulin secretion at diagnosis and predict the severity of its future decline. We studied 53 newly diagnosed subjects enrolled in placebo groups of TrialNet clinical trials. We measured serum levels of 2,083 miRNAs, using RNA sequencing technology, in fasting samples from the baseline visit (<100 days from diagnosis), during which residual insulin secretion was measured with a mixed meal tolerance test (MMTT). Area under the curve (AUC) C-peptide and peak C-peptide were stratified by quartiles of expression of 31 miRNAs. After adjustment for baseline C-peptide, age, BMI, and sex, baseline levels of miR-3187-3p, miR-4302, and the miRNA combination of miR-3187-3p/miR-103a-3p predicted differences in MMTT C-peptide AUC/peak levels at the 12-month visit; the combination miR-3187-3p/miR-4723-5p predicted proportions of subjects above/below the 200 pmol/L clinical trial eligibility threshold at the 12-month visit. Thus, miRNA assessment at baseline identifies associations with C-peptide and stratifies subjects for future severity of C-peptide loss after 1 year. We suggest that miRNAs may be useful in predicting future C-peptide decline for improved subject stratification in clinical trials.
Blunt Chest Trauma Causing a Displaced Sternal Fracture and ST-elevation Myocardial Infarction: A Case Report.

Author(s): Nasser, Keaton; Matsuura, Jaclyn; Diep, Jimmy | Abstract: Introduction: Blunt chest trauma and motor vehicle collisions are common presentations to the emergency department (ED). Chest pain in a trauma patient can usually and reasonably be attributed to chest wall injury, leading to a potential delay in diagnosis and treatment.Case Report: In this case report, we present a 52-year-old male who was brought to the ED with complaints of chest pain and pressure after a motor vehicle collision. He was subsequently found to have both a displaced sternal fracture and simultaneous acute myocardial infarction with 100% occlusion of the mid left anterior descending artery without dissection requiring stent placement.Conclusion: Chest pain after blunt cardiac trauma is a common complaint. While rare, acute myocardial infarction must be considered. Most injuries result as direct trauma to the artery causing either dissection or acute thrombosis resulting in a myocardial infarction as opposed to acute plaque rupture with thrombosis, as seen in this case.
Impact of the degree of dehydrogenation in ethanol C-C bond cleavage on Ir(100).

A lack of comprehensive studies of the C–C bond cleavage in organic molecules hampers the rational design of catalysts for many applications, such as in fuel cells and steam reforming technologies. Employing ethanol on Ir(100) as an example, we studied 14 C–C bond cleavages of various species involved in the ethanol oxidation reaction using density functional theory calculations and used the degree of dehydrogenation (DoDH) of the reactant species as a variable to correlate the C–C bond cleavage barrier and reaction energy. This correlation method was also applied to the dehydrogenation reactions of ethanol on various catalysts, and great insight was obtained. The results show that the C–C cleavage barrier generally decreases with DoDH, with a local minimum around 33.3% DoDH. For reactants having more than 50% DoDH, the C–C cleavage is more ready to take place than the dehydrogenation and can occur at room temperature. Furthermore, the O atom in the reactive species plays a critical role in lowering the C–C bond cleavage barrier. The results provide necessary inputs for kinetic studies of ethanol reactions under operando conditions, where a reaction network beyond the minimum energy pathway is needed. The results will also serve as a benchmark for future studies of the ethanol C–C cleavage on other facets of Ir catalysts or on different catalysts. Furthermore, this work demonstrates that the proposed method opens up a new and effective way of correlating catalytic activities for the C–C bond cleavage involving long-chain alkanes and alcohols.
Tacrolimus Dosage Adjustments after Posaconazole Discontinuation in Lung Transplant Recipients

Purpose Posaconazole is commonly used in lung transplant recipients (LTRs) as prophylaxis against invasive fungal infections. Due to CYP3A4 drug interactions, tacrolimus (TAC) dose adjustments are required after discontinuing posaconazole. Current data has assessed tacrolimus dose adjustments only with posaconazole initiation. This study's purpose was to assess TAC dose adjustment requirements following posaconazole discontinuation in LTRs. Methods This was a single-center, retrospective review of LTRs between Jan and Dec 2019. The primary outcome was the change in TAC dose‐corrected trough concentration (∆C/D) from pre- to post-posaconazole discontinuation. Secondary outcomes included the time to first therapeutic TAC level post-posaconazole discontinuation and the number of TAC dose changes to achieve the first therapeutic TAC level after stopping posaconazole. Results 19 LTRs were included, the majority of which were Caucasian and CYP3A5 poor metabolizers [Table 1]. The median (IQR) TAC ∆C/D was 3.1 (2.3-4.4). Following posaconazole discontinuation, the median (IQR) time to the first therapeutic TAC level was 19 (14-26) days, and a median (IQR) of 3 (1-4) dose changes were required to achieve the first therapeutic TAC level. There was a trend towards the one CYP3A5 extensive metabolizer having a higher TAC ∆C/D (11.2), compared with poor (3.1) and intermediate metabolizers (3.3), although non-significant (p=0.25). Baseline posaconazole trough level did not impact the TAC ∆C/D (p=0.57). Similarly, baseline TAC trough level did not impact the time to first therapeutic TAC level post-posaconazole discontinuation (p=0.42). Conclusion In this cohort, LTRs required a 3-fold increase in TAC dose to obtain a trough level within goal after posaconazole discontinuation. Further studies are warranted to assess the impact of posaconazole discontinuation on TAC dose adjustments in various CYP3A5 pharmacogenomic phenotypes, cystic fibrosis LTRs, and those receiving TAC extended-release.
Intradermal immunotherapy with actinomycetales preparations as treatment for feline atopic syndrome: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded study.

Background Feline atopic syndrome (FAS) is a common disease. Single intradermal injections of heat-killed actinomycetales have shown beneficial effects in canine allergies. Hypothesis/objective To evaluate the clinical effects of heat-killed actinomycetales [Gordonia bronchialis (GB) and Rodococcus coprophilus (RC)], alone or in combination, in FAS. Methods and materials Privately owned cats with a diagnosis of FAS were assigned randomly in three treatment groups (GB, RC and GB/RC combination) or placebo. Five intradermal injections were performed over a one year period. At each visit [Day (D)0, D20, D40, D60, D90, D180 and D365], clinical signs, global owner assessment score, use of rescue medications, clinical adverse effects, skin hydration and cutaneous pH were assessed. Results Seventeen cats were enrolled. When compared to the placebo group and improvement in treatment GB was sustained from D90. When compared with D0 significant improvement in the GB group was seen from D60. Over one year, a complete remission of the clinical signs was seen in 30-67% of cats in the treatment groups. A reduction in the pruritus score was seen for RC after 365 days of treatment (P = 0.04). Differences in the other variables were not seen. Conclusions and clinical importance The use of multiple intradermal injections of heat-killed GB shows promise as effective and well-tolerated treatment for FAS. Because of the low cost and the lack of adverse effects, GB could be a beneficial treatment option for FAS. A larger study is needed to confirm these data and to evaluate the immunological changes occurring in the treated cats.
Continuous Time Frank-Wolfe Does Not Zig-Zag

The Frank-Wolfe algorithm has regained much interest in its use in structurally constrained machine learning applications. However, one major limitation of the Frank-Wolfe algorithm is the slow local convergence property due to the zig-zagging behavior. We observe that this zig-zagging phenomenon can be viewed as an artifact of discretization, as when the method is viewed as an Euler discretization of a continuous time flow, that flow does not zig-zag. For this reason, we propose multistep Frank-Wolfe variants based on discretizations of the same flow whose truncation errors decay as $O(\Delta^p)$, where $p$ is the method's order. We observe speedups using these variants, but at a cost of extra gradient calls per iteration. However, because the multistep methods present better search directions, we show that they are better able to leverage line search and momentum speedups.
Estimating the DJI Series by Multifractional Brownian Motion

This paper estimates the stock market and its price dynamics in terms of the multifractional Brownian motion. In our analysis, we use the financial dataset of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) time series from March 2009 to June 2015. First, we briefly introduce the definitions and properties of the Brownian motion (Bm), fractional Brownian motion (fBm) and multifractional Brownian motion (mBm). Then we model price processes as exponential of the sum of a regular process and a stochastic process. Finally, we estimate the Holder exponent and show how mBm can capture the fluctuations of the price dynamics.
No Implementation Without Representation: Real-Time Pharmacist Intervention Optimizes Rapid Diagnostic Tests for Bacteremia at a Small Community Hospital:

Background: Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for bacteremia allow for early antimicrobial therapy modification based on organism and resistance gene identification. Studies suggest patient outcomes ar...
Simulations of Membrane Effects of Cells After Exposure to Ultrashort Pulses

Externally applied nanosecond electric pulses are useful to trigger and tailor bioeffects in cells and tissues. However, the parameter space is large given the different types of cells, and the wide range of potential electrical parameters (such as pulse durations and waveforms, field intensities, and number of pulses) that are available for use. To maximize benefits, tailor a desired response, and devise an efficient system, it becomes necessary to first understand and quantify the biological behavior driven by the electrical input. Model development based on the inherent biophysical processes is an elegant and cost-effective option to help advance this technology. Given the merits and need for modeling then, this chapter focuses on the various schemes for analysis and simulations of the electrically driven bioeffects. Schemes ranging from molecular level descriptions to an averaged continuum analyses are presented and discussed in this chapter. Relevant examples and illustrative result are also given in this context of cellular bioelectrics.
Preference Optimality (An optimality concept in multicriteria problems)

Any concept of optimality on a set is based on an ‘ordering’ of the set. In its most general form such an ‘ordering’ will be termed a ‘preference’ on a set and it will simply be a binary relation whose purpose it is to introduce a hierarchy among the elements of the set. In finite-dimensional multicriteria decision problems one basically deals with a mapping g(.):D → a, where D is some decision set and a = {a∈RN: a=g(d),d∈D } is the set of corresponding criterion values, e.g. D may be a functional constraint set in programming or a set of admissible controls in control theory. The optimality concept introduced here consists of a preference ≲ on a and the definition of preference optimal decisions d*∈D as those for which g(d*)=a* is a least or a minimal element of a with respect to ≲ .
Chronic Alcohol Consumption and its Effects on the Cardiac Apoptosis

Alcohol is a product that has been used by virtually all cultures for rituals, worship, antibacterial and analgesic properties. Clinically, excessive alcohol use increases the risk of liver and hea...
Modeling Semantic Question Context for Question Answering

Within a Question Answering (QA) framework, Question Context plays a vital role. We define Question Context to be background knowledge that can be used to represent the user’s information need more completely than the terms in the query alone. This paper proposes a novel approach that uses statistical language modeling techniques to develop a semantic Question Context which we then incorporate into the Information Retrieval (IR) stage of QA. Our approach proposes an Aspect-Based Relevance Language Model as basis of the Question Context Model. This model proposes that the sparse vocabulary of a query can be supplemented with semantic information from concepts (or aspects) related to query terms that already exist within the corpus. We incorporate the Aspect-Based Relevance Language Model into Question Context by first obtaining all of the latent concepts that exist in the corpus for a particular question topic. Then, we derive a likelihood of relevance that relates each Context Term (CT) associated with those aspects to the user’s query. Context Terms from the topics with the highest likelihood of relevance are then incorporated into the query language model based on their relevance score values. We use both query expansion and document model smoothing techniques and evaluate our approach using the traditional recall metric. Our results are promising and show significant improvements recall at low levels of precision using the query expansion method.
Enhancing the Detector for Advanced Neutron Capture Experiments

The Detector for Advanced Neutron Capture Experiments (DANCE) has been used for extensive studies of neutron capture, gamma decay, photon strength functions, and prompt and delayed fission-gamma emission. Despite these successes, the potential measurements have been limited by the data acquisition hardware. We report on a major upgrade of the DANCE data acquisition that simultaneously enables strait-forward coupling to auxiliary detectors, including high-resolution high-purity germanium detectors and neutron tagging array. The upgrade will enhance the time domain accessible for time-of-flight neutron measurements as well as improve the resolution in the DANCE barium fluoride crystals for photons.
MFNW: A Flip-N-Write architecture for multi-level cell non-volatile memories

The increased capacity of multi-level cells (MLC) in emerging nonvolatile memory (NVM) technologies comes at the cost of higher cell write energies and lower cell endurance. In this paper, we describe MFNW, a Flip-N-Write encoding solution that effectively reduces the average write energy and improves endurance of MLC NVMs. Two MFNW modes are proposed and analyzed: cell Hamming distance (CHD) mode and energy Hamming distance (EHD) mode. For both modes, we derive a probabilistic model to approximate the statistical behavior of MFNW. For negligible error, the probabilistic model predicts the average number of cell writes per memory word, which is proportional to energy consumption. This enables word length optimization to maximize energy reduction subject to memory overhead constraints. We also estimate the hardware and delay overheads to integrate MFNW into a phase change memory prototype. MFNW is compared to two state-of-the-art techniques in the literature using traces of SPEC2006 benchmarks. Simulation results show an average energy reduction of 19% over the state-of-the-art techniques. Furthermore, we investigate the sensitivity of MFNW to the choice of word length, and our findings suggest a tradeoff between word length and energy reduction.
High School Nutrition Policy: Case Study of Intended and Unintended Consequences

Background: There is a fundamental gap in understanding how policies of the past decade influence high school nutrition environments and how youths' obesogenic behaviors change in response to polic...
A Scale for Source Credibility; Validated in the Selling Context

AbstractContributions from the research include: (1) the development of a validated scale to measure the perception of source credibility in personal selling; (2) understanding the underlying dimensions of the perception of source credibility in the selling context; (3) identification of the Sociability factor for the first time in source credibility research; and (4) recognition of the credibility implications associated with salesperson's title.
Factors influencing doctors’ selection of dabigatran in non-valvular atrial fibrillation

Rationale, aims and objectives This study was designed to examine the factors that influence doctors’ decision in initiating or switching from warfarin to dabigratran. Method A survey questionnaire was sent to 181 doctors who were most likely to prescribe dabigatran (e.g. cardiologists and general internists) at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center between November 2011 and February 2012. Survey participants were asked to complete an electronic or a paper version of the questionnaire, which consisted of 17 multiple-choice questions. Fisher's exact test and Cochran–Mantel–Haenszel test were used to compare survey responses between cardiologists and general internists. Results A total of 65 survey responses were received (35.9% response rate). There were 13 cardiologists and 51 general internists who participated in the study. Cost (25%), renal function (21%) and CHADS 2 score (18%) were the three factors doctors considered most often to determine a patient's eligibility for dabigatran in warfarin-naive patients. On the other hand, histories of unstable international normalized ratio (37%) and missed appointments (17%) along with cost (19%) were most often considered in patients on warfarin. Cardiologists had prescribed dabigatran more often and had a significantly higher level of comfort with prescribing the drug than general internists (P = 0.003; 77% vs. 27%). Conclusions Cost was the most important factor influencing doctors’ decision to prescribe dabigatran. Safety and effectiveness of dabigatran as well as patient preference were additional factors influencing their decision. General internists were less comfortable with prescribing dabigatran than cardiologists.