cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impacts of 21st-century climate change on hydrologic extremes in the Pacific Northwest region of North America.

Climate change projections for the Pacific Northwest (PNW) region of North America include warmer temperatures (T), reduced precipitation (P) in summer months, and increased P during all other seasons. Using a physically based hydrologic model and an ensemble of statistically downscaled global climate model scenarios produced by the Columbia Basin Climate Change Scenarios Project, we examine the nature of changing hydrologic extremes (floods and low flows) under natural conditions for about 300 river locations in the PNW. The combination of warming, and shifts in seasonal P regimes, results in increased flooding and more intense low flows for most of the basins in the PNW. Flood responses depend on average midwinter T and basin type. Mixed rain and snow basins, with average winter temperatures near freezing, typically show the largest increases in flood risk because of the combined effects of warming (increasing contributing basin area) and more winter P. Decreases in low flows are driven by loss of snowpack, drier summers, and increasing evapotranspiration in the simulations. Energy-limited basins on the west side of the Cascades show the strongest declines in low flows, whereas more arid, water-limited basins on the east side of the Cascades show smaller reductions in low flows. A fine-scale analysis of hydrologic extremes over the Olympic Peninsula echoes the results for the larger rivers discussed above, but provides additional detail about topographic gradients.
Biological approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder appears to be associated with biological alterations in central noradrenergic activity, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis, the endogenous opioid system, and the sleep cycle. This pattern of biologic abnormalities, which appears unique to PTSD, has practical implications for diagnosis and treatment. A biological approach may complement psychological diagnostic techniques. With regard to treatment, almost every type of psychotropic agent has reported efficacy in PTSD. However, very few double-blind therapeutic trials have been published. Successful pharmacotherapy appears to alleviate DSM-III-R intrusive recollections and hyperarousal but not avoidant symptoms. Current information suggests that drug treatment alone can rarely alleviate the suffering in PTSD. Medication appears to be most useful as an adjunct to psychotherapy. Finally, the neurobiological alterations associated with PTSD may make affected individuals more susceptible to alcohol, opiates, and other illicit drug use. This also has important implications for treatment.
Validation of Mayo Clinic risk adjustment model for in-hospital complications after percutaneous coronary interventions, using the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute dynamic registry.

OBJECTIVES We sought to validate the recently proposed Mayo Clinic risk score model for complications after percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), using an independent data set. BACKGROUND The Mayo Clinic risk score has eight simple clinical and angiographic variables for the prediction of complications defined as either death, Q-wave myocardial infarction, emergent or urgent coronary artery bypass graft surgery, or cerebrovascular accident after PCI. External validation using an independent data set is lacking. METHODS A total of 3,264 patients undergoing PCI at each of the 17 sites in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Dynamic Registry during two enrollment periods (July 1997 to February 1998 and February to June 1999) were studied. Logistic regression was used to model the calculated risk score and major procedural complications. The expected number of complications, with 95% confidence bounds (CBs), was also calculated. RESULTS There were 96 (2.94%) observed procedural complications, and the Mayo Clinic risk score predicted 93.5 events (2.86%; 95% CB 2.32% to 3.41%; p = NS). The Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness-of-fit p value was 0.28, and the area under the receiver operating curve was 0.76, indicating excellent overall discrimination. There were no statistical differences between observed and predicted procedural complications using the Mayo Clinic risk score among the most selected high- and low-risk subgroups. CONCLUSIONS Eight variables were combined into a convenient risk scoring system that accurately predicts cardiovascular complications after PCI. The Mayo clinic predictive model for procedural complications yielded excellent results when applied to a multi-center external data set.
Provably correct vectorization of nested-parallel programs

The work/step framework provides a high-level cost model for nested data-parallel programming languages, allowing programmers to understand the efficiency of their codes without concern for the eventual mapping of tasks to processors. Vectorization, or flattening, is the key technique for compiling nested-parallel languages. This paper presents a formal study of vectorization, considering three low-level targets: the EREW, bounded-contention CREW, and CREW variants of the VRAM. For each, we describe a variant of the cost model and prove the correctness of vectorization for that model. The models impose different constraints on the set of programs and implementations that can be considered; we discuss these in detail.
Scale-space properties of quadratic feature detectors

We consider the scale-space properties of quadratic feature detectors and, in particular, investigate whether, like linear detectors, they permit a scale selection scheme with the "causality property", which guarantees that features are never created as the scale is coarsened. We concentrate on the design of one dimensional detectors with two constituent filters, with the scale selection implemented as convolution and a scaling function. We consider two special cases of interest: the constituent filter pairs related by the Hilbert transform, and by the first spatial derivative. We show that, under reasonable assumptions, Hilbert-pair quadratic detectors cannot have the causality property. In the case of derivative-pair detectors, we describe a family of scaling functions related to fractional derivatives of the Gaussian that are necessary and sufficient for causality. In addition, we report experiments that show the effects of these properties in practice. We thus demonstrate that at least one class of quadratic feature detectors has the same desirable scaling property as the more familiar detectors based on linear filtering.
"It Has No Color, It Has No Gender, It's Gender Bending": Gender and Sexuality Fluidity and Subversiveness in Drag Performance.

ABSTRACTGender identity is a key question for drag performers. Previous research has shown a lack of consensus about the subversiveness and gender fluidity of drag performers. This article examines the question: How does the relationship between performers and their audience affect the subversive nature and gender representation of drag performers in this study? Furthermore, is this relationship complicated by sexuality? This study uses ethnographic and interview methods, examining experiences of 10 drag performers. Findings indicate mutuality in the relationship between performers and audience. The recursiveness of this relationship provides a constant feedback to the performers in their effort to displace the audience’s previously held notions. The performers have fluid understandings of gender and sexuality, often presenting multiple genders in and out of drag. Interactions between performers and their audience indicate their belief in gender fluidity; moreover, the drag performers themselves desire to...
Ant-Hemipteran Mutualisms: Keystone Interactions that Alter Food Web Dynamics and Influence Plant Fitness

Predicting the direct and indirect effects of natural enemies on herbivorous insects in species-rich, highly connected arthropod food webs can be extremely difficult. Community ecologists developed the keystone species concept to help simplify this task. Keystone species are species that have disproportionately large effects on the abundance of many interacting species in a community. Keystone species, however, can be difficult to identify in some communities and the effect of species that seem to play key roles in community dynamics often vary dramatically in both space and time. In some communities, pairwise interactions among species may alter the community-wide effect of a species such that it functions as a keystone species. In this chapter, we term this a ‘keystone interaction’ and explore the possibility that mutualisms involving ants and honeydew-producing Hemipterans may alter the abundance and distribution of many species in a predictable manner via increased ant predation in the presence of Hemipterans. Mutualisms involving ants and honeydew-producing insects are incredibly widespread in terrestrial ecosystems and may alter the structure of entire arthropod communities. We review cases where these mutualisms result in interference of biological control via intraguild predation of important biological control agents as well as cases where ant mutualisms result in enhanced biological control via intensified ant predation of important plant-damaging herbivores. In addition, we report the results of our own work involving the ecological consequences of fire ant-aphid mutualisms. We conclude that ant-Hemiptera mutualisms rarely disrupt biological, but instead these mutualisms often increase the effectiveness of ants as biological control agents via the removal of insect herbivores that are more important pests than the Hemipterans that benefit from ant mutualisms.
Rule-Based Moral Reasoning and CPAs' Political Ideology

Prior research reveals that Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) tend to be very rule-based in their moral reasoning and decision-making relative to non-accounting groups. Lampe and Finn (1992) suggested that the rule-oriented nature of accounting and auditing practice may explain a CPA’s preoccupation with resorting to rules when faced with resolving an ethical issue. In other studies, it has been determined that political liberals tend to be more principled in their moral reasoning and decision-making whereas political conservatives are less principled and more rule-oriented. This study sought to provide empirical evidence as to one plausible factor behind CPAs’ bent toward rule-based moral reasoning. Findings show that CPAs’ rule-based moral reasoning is strongly related to their political ideology. Moving from conservative to moderate to liberal, politically, CPAs are less and less rule-based in moral reasoning. The findings are highly salient to accounting regulators, educators, and recruiters who are working to move the CPA profession toward exercising more principled accounting and auditing judgments.
RT-28INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW OF GAMMA KNIFE RADIOSURGERY IN PRIMARY AND RECURRENT HIGH-GRADE GLIOMAS.

The role of Gamma Knife stereotactic radiosurgery (GK-SRS) as a treatment option for patients with primary or recurrent high grade gliomas (HGG) is not well defined. To better understand clinical outcomes with GK-SRS we reviewed the charts of 94 consecutive patients treated for primary (n = 10) or recurrent (n = 84) WHO grade III/IV astrocytomas (n = 91), oligodendrogliomas (n = 2), or mixed (n = 1) lesions. Treatment prior to GK-SRS included External beam radiotherapy (EBRT) (median dose, 60Gy) in 90% and chemotherapy in 87%. Overall survival (OS) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate analyses (MVA) were performed using Cox proportional hazards regression models incorporating age, Karnofsky performance status (KPS) prior to GK-SRS (100 vs. 18mos), and tumor volume (≤12,000, >12,000). Median age at treatment was 49.6yrs (range, 18.4-77.2). KPS was ≥ 70 for all patients. Median follow-up was 0.9 years (range, 0.15-21.5). Tumor grade at diagnosis was II (10), III (18), or IV (66), with several progressions of II-to-III (9), II-to-IV (1), and III-to-IV (4) at time of GK-SRS. Median treatment volume was 12,800 mm3 (range, 484-139,000) with a median prescription dose of 15 Gy (50% isodose; range, 8-24). Median survival was 4.8 years for grade III (initial grade III: 3.9yrs; grade II-to-III progression: 5.6yrs) and 1.8 years for grade IV (initial grade IV 1.8yrs; grade II/III-to-IV progression: 4.2yrs). Predictors of OS on MVA include age at GK-SRS treatment per year (p = 0.0014, HR 1.033, 95% CI 1.012-1.053), grade IV at GK-SRS (p = 0.0078, HR 2.218, 95% CI 1.233-3.990), and interval EBRT to GK-SRS >18 months (p = 0.0011, HR 2.909, 95% CI 1.531-5.528). Our results show favorable survival outcomes with the use of GK-SRS compared to historic controls. Further prospective investigation is warranted.
Shape minimisation problems in liquid crystals

ABSTRACTWe consider a class of liquid crystal free-boundary problems for which both the equilibrium shape and internal configuration of a system must simultaneously be determined, for example in films with air–liquid or fluid–liquid crystal interfaces and elastomers. We develop a finite element algorithm to solve such problems with dynamic mesh control, achieved by supplementing the free energy with an auxiliary functional that promotes mesh quality and is minimised in the null space of the energy. We apply this algorithm to a flexible capacitor, as well as to determine the shape of liquid crystal tactoids as a function of the surface tension and elastic constants. These are compared with theoretical predictions and experimental observations of tactoids from the literature.
Basic Principles and Mathematical Models of Engineering Mechanics Problems

As an introductory chapter to the subsequent mathematical development of the Complex Variable Boundary Element Method (CVBEM) and its applications to various engineering mechanics and hydraulics problems, the related physics and mathematics are reviewed in the following sections. No attempt has been made to give a complete review, because as an introductory volume to explain a new numerical modeling technique, the presentation is structured to begin from the basic mathametics and systematically build up to the more specifics. This chapter is designed to provide some preliminary concepts and background material concerning the subject matter, to set some definitions, terminologies, and physical laws, to realign diverse views stemming from different disciplines toward a more unified perspective, and to list some useful equations for convenient reference in later chapters.
A Freight Train Suspension System

From O’Connor and Luo (2014), a freight train suspension system will be presented for all possible types of motion. The suspension system includes a wedge system and a bolster system. The suspension system experiences impacts and friction between wedges and bolster. The impacts cause the chatter motions between wedges and bolster, and the friction cause the stick and non-stick motions between wedges and bolster. Due to the wedge effect, the suspension system may become stuck and not move, which causes the suspension to lose function. To discuss such phenomena in the freight train suspension systems, the theory of discontinuous dynamical systems will be used, and the motion mechanism of impacting chatter with stick and stuck will be discussed. The analytical conditions for the onset and vanishing of stick motions between the wedges and bolster will be presented, and the condition for maintaining stick motion will be obtained as well. The analytical conditions for stuck motion will be developed for the onset and vanishing conditions for stuck motion. Analytical prediction of periodic motions relative to impacting chatter with stick and stuck motions in train suspension will be performed through the mapping dynamics. Numerical simulations will be completed for illustration of periodic motions of stick and stuck motions. Finally, from field testing data, the effects of wedge angle on the motions of the suspension will be presented to find a more desirable suspension response for design.
Air-filled fibres could speed up the Web

The Internet has created a boom in long-distance optical communications. Web surfers click away and download ever-larger files, oblivious to their distance from a Web host. As a result the demand for capacity in undersea optical-fibre communications is escalating. A simple way to increase the capacity is to send many separate optical wavelengths through the same fibre, a technique known as wavelength division multiplexing. However, there is a limit to the optical power that can be used to send information along a fibre, and this – rather than the bandwidth of the fibre, which is prodigious – limits the capacity of optical fibres to carry information.
Rigorous coupled-wave analysis equivalent-index-slab method for analyzing 3D angular misalignment in interlayer grating couplers

The interlayer waveguide grating coupling efficiencies under angular (rotational) misalignments are simulated using the 3D rigorous coupled-wave analysis (3D-RCWA) together with the RCWA equivalent-index-slab (RCWA-EIS) method. As examples of conical diffraction, rotations about the two coordinate axes, x and z, defined by the vectors [1 0 0] and [0 0 1], respectively, as well as an arbitrary axis, defined by the vector [2 2 1], are simulated for binary rectangular-groove gratings. The interlayer grating coupling efficiency is approximated by the product of the top- and bottom-grating diffraction efficiencies (DEs). It is found that the bottom-grating DEs decrease about 25% when the bottom grating is rotated ±0.1 rad (5.73°) about the z-axis. DEs slightly increase (5% to 10% depending on the grating structures) when the bottom grating is rotated ±0.1 rad about the x-axis. This is consistent with the diffraction behavior of an over-modulated grating. When the bottom grating is rotated about the vector [2 2 1], the change in DEs is asymmetric with a 100% decrease at a rotation angle −0.1 rad and a 67% decrease at a rotation angle +0.1 rad. The method is shown to be computationally efficient and numerically stable for grating structures with optimized parameters, and the resulting bottom-grating diffraction efficiencies demonstrate similar trends as those calculated by the 3D finite-difference time-domain simulations. The procedure presented can be directly used in the analysis and design of interlayer waveguide grating coupling for optical interconnects in high-density integrated electronics.
Synthesis and characterization of siloxane‐based cyanate ester elastomers from readily available materials: a top‐down approach

A number of siloxane-based cyanate ester (SiCE) elastomers were prepared from commercially available starting reagents employing a hydrosilylation reaction. Each elastomer was designed to utilize 2,4,6-tris(allyloxy)-1,3,5-triazine as a crosslinker and multifunctional vinyl component in the hydrosilylation reaction, ensuring that the triazine rings were completely formed, and thus the elastomers resemble fully cured cyanate ester networks. The hydride-terminated siloxane components used were varied from small-molecule siloxanes to pre-polymers of different molecular weights. Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared analysis confirmed the successful hydrosilylation reaction and complete curing of the SiCE elastomers via functional group analysis. Thermal characterization by thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry demonstrated that thermal properties of the elastomers could be tailored depending on the type of siloxane component that was utilized. The gel content of the elastomers was also determined. Investigations into the effects of a platinum catalyst on the elastomers determined that the presence of the catalyst affected the thermochemical stability of the SiCE elastomers. Published 2016. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
Annular screen printed thermoelectric generators for ultra-low-power sensor applications

We report on the materials preparation and device fabrication for screen printed Bi2Te3/Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 annular thermoelectric generators (TEGs) for use in ultra-low-power sensor applications. At a 20K temperature gradient, test couples — n- & p-type 1 cm2 squares connected electrically in series with printed Ag traces — demonstrated an average power of 0.068nW at 26nA and 2.6mV. The material preparation leverages mechanical alloying for both the n- and p-type materials in order to reduce electrical resistivity and increase device power output. Screen printed thermoelectric elements were found to have substantial challenges with mechanical failure due to cracking and delamination. This work specifically describes these challenges and corresponding mitigation strategies for screen printing the TEG slurries.
Molecular breath analysis identifies the breathprint of renal failure.

Many uremic solutes retained in chronic kidney disease are volatile, and can be detected by breath testing. We compared the exhaled breath of subjects with end stage renal disease (ESRD) to healthy volunteers to identify volatile compounds that can serve as a potential breathprint for renal failure. We analyzed the exhaled breath of 86 ESRD subjects and 25 healthy volunteers using selected-ion flow-tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS). Using a random forests classification model, we identified three known volatiles (2-propanol, ammonia, acetaldehyde) and two unknown volatiles ( NO+76) that were highly significant for discriminating individuals with renal failure from individuals without renal failure (C statistic > 0.99). This study provides preliminary support for the use of exhaled breath as a potential noninvasive screening tool in renal failure.
Targeting palmitoyl acyltransferase ZDHHC21 improves gut epithelial barrier dysfunction resulting from burn-induced systemic inflammation.

Increased mucosal permeability in the gut is one of the major complications following severe burn. Here we report the novel finding that zinc finger DHHC domain-containing protein-21 (ZDHHC21) medi...
Stratigraphy of the Upper Miocene Deposits in Sarasota County, Florida

The presence of undisputed Upper Miocene sediments in Sarasota County, Florida, has not been widely known. Most authors have stared that the Middle Miocene Hawthorn Formation is overlain by Pliocene to Recent deposits. The Upper Miocene is represented in southern Florida by the Tamiami Formation. The Upper Miocene age determination is based on the characteristic faunal assemblage, Ostrea disparalis, Chione ulocyma, and Ecphora quadricostata umbilicata. Fossil mollusks, echinoderms, and bryozoans collected from outcrops, quarries, and sinkholes in this area definitely confirm the presence of Upper Miocene sediments in Sarasota County. Typical Upper Miocene species include Anadara cf. A. idonea, Chi- one ulocyma, Ostrea cf. O. tamiamiensis, Ostrea tamiamiensis monroensis, and Encope macrophora tamiamiensis. Within the Upper Miocene deposits exists an impermeable bur porous bed characterized by a decrease in radioactivity and electrical resistivity. These characteristics are indicative of clay and the interpretation of x-ray diffraction patterns verified the predominance of clay minerals in the aquiclude. Montmorillonite was the dominant clay mineral with lesser amounts of attapulgite and alpha sepiolite. Based on evidence presented in this paper, the Upper Miocene deposits occurring in Sarasota County are considered to be a lithosome of the Tamiami Formation.
Introduction: Basic Ultrasound Principles

Learning ultrasound can be overwhelming and confusing, especially for those who are becoming familiar with equipment and images for the first time. This chapter will provide an overview of basic point-of-care ultrasound physics and procedure. It will explain ultrasound-specific terminology for image optimization, transducer types including clinical application and positioning, and different scanning modes such as brightness mode, motion mode, and Doppler. Lastly, common ultrasound artifacts, their characteristics, and how to recognize them will be described.
A SOCIAL SYSTEMS MODEL FOR THE UTILIZATION OF SOCIAL WORKERS WITHIN THE HEALTH FIELD

ABSTRACT The most cursory review of health care services would suggest a differentiation of health care services into separate delivery sub-systems, each with a single entry point and each with its array of specializations. The movement to holistic health care has further emphasized primary and ambulatory care. Therefore, current difficulties and future needs are concerned with improving access and linkage. Systems models will be suggested which address these dilemmas through new areas of differentiation and specialization of social work manpower, particularly focussing on case management and client and community information systems.
Effect of ovarian hormone pretreatment on gallbladder motility in vitro.

Abstract Adult male guinea pigs were pretreated with estrogen, progesterone, or estrogen plus progesterone and the in vitro contractile response of the gallbladder to cholinergic stimulation examined. The data were compared with results obtained from control animals. Progesterone pretreatment was associated with a significant decrease in the maximal contractile response of the tissues and with a significant increase in the dose of acetylcholine needed to produce a threshold response. Estrogen pretreatment significantly decreased the threshold dose requirements but had no effect on maximum tension development. In addition, estrogen pretreatment antagonized the inhibitory effect of progesterone pretreatment. The data support the hypothesis that the ovarian steroid hormones can affect gastrointestinal smooth muscle. Furthermore, the hormones appear to exert independent and opposite effects on gallbladder motility. Additional studies will be required to determine the physiological significance of these observations.
SYNTHESIS IN THE STUDY OF NUCLEIC ACIDS

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses various experiments undertaken to study the synthesis of the study of nucleic acids. New phosphate esters and nucleotide derivatives with new biochemical functions were being discovered in large numbers during 1950s. The tide set in motion by the work of Severo Ochoa and Arthur Kornberg in the enzymatic synthesis and general chemistry of polynucleotides further stimulated and enhanced the sense of purpose in efforts to develop purely chemical methods for the synthesis of oligonucleotides. The primary objective in the 1950s and early 1960s was to develop chemical methods for the synthesis of ribo and deoxyribo-oligonucleotides of completely defined nucleotide sequences. This work in turn opened doors to two new lines of research. Progress in both these lines of research hinged on the truly miraculous action of two enzymes (DNA polymerase-I and DNA ligase) on the synthetic short-chain oligonucleotides.
Role of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase alpha subunit in modulation of pausing, termination and anti-termination by the transcription elongation factor NusA.

Abstract The alpha subunit (alpha) of RNA polymerase (RNAP) is critical for assembly of polymerase and positive control of transcription initiation in Escherichia coli. Here, we report that alpha also plays a role in transcription elongation, and this involves a direct interaction between alpha and NusA factor. During in vitro transcription without NusA, alpha interacts with the nascent RNA, as revealed by photocrosslinking. When NusA is present, RNA crosslinks to NusA rather than to alpha. We show that this NusA-RNA interaction is diminished during transcription with an RNAP mutant that lacks the C-terminus of alpha beyond amino acid 235, including the so-called alpha CTD. The absence of alpha CTD also affects NusA's ability to enhance transcription pausing, termination at intrinsic terminators and anti-termination by the phage lambda Q anti-terminator, but not anti-termination by the lambda N anti-terminator. NusA functions are not recovered even when transcription with mutant RNAP is done with excess NusA, a condition which does restore NusA-RNA crosslinking. By affinity chromatography, we show that NusA interacts directly with alpha, and also with beta and beta', but not with mutant alpha. Hence, alpha-NusA interaction is vital for the control of transcript elongation and termination.
Development of a single format membrane assisted solvent extraction-molecularly imprinted polymer technique for extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in wastewater followed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry determination.

Abstract A technique that combines membrane assisted solvent extraction and molecularly imprinted polymer into a single step format has been successfully developed and evaluated for the extraction of the 16 US-EPA priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in wastewater samples followed by determination using gas chromatography coupled with time of flight mass spectrometry. The technique involves placing the polymer particles into a hydrophobic polypropylene membrane bag which is in contact with an aqueous donor phase. The technique was optimized for various parameters that include presence of an organic modifier in the donor phase, stirring rate and extraction time. The optimum conditions were 25% of dimethyl sulfoxide as an organic modifier and stirring at 1000 rpm for 120 min. The limits of detection using the technique were in the 0.01–0.45 ng mL−1 range. Linearity values determined in the 10–1 000 ng mL−1 calibration range were all above 0.9972. Extraction efficiencies of the sixt analytes calculated as averages for three spiking concentrations ranged from 62.8 to 96.8% (RSD = 3.1–12.3%). The optimized method was tested for the extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in wastewater samples in the presence of surrogate standards. The developed method showed great reproducibility with inter day repeatability values ranging from 0.6 to 24.9%. The analytes were quantified in the nanogram level showing that the developed technique is a viable alternative in the analysis of trace organic compounds in complex aqueous samples.
Measuring the Rate of Isotropization of Quark-Gluon Plasma Using Rapidity Correlations

Abstract We propose that rapidity dependent momentum correlations can be used to extract the shear relaxation time τ π of the medium formed in high energy nuclear collisions. The stress-energy tensor in an equilibrium quark-gluon plasma is isotropic, but in nuclear collisions it is likely very far from this state. The relaxation time τ π characterizes the rate of isotropization and is a transport coefficient as fundamental as the shear viscosity. We show that fluctuations emerging from the initial anisotropy survive to freeze-out, in excess of thermal fluctuations, influencing rapidity correlation patterns. We show that these correlations can be used to extract τ π . In [S. Gavin, G. Moschelli, C. Zin, Rapidity Correlation Structure in Nuclear Collisions, Phys. Rev. C94 (2) (2016) 024921. arXiv: 1606.02692 , doi: 10.1103/PhysRevC.94.024921 .] we describe a method for calculating the rapidity dependence of two-particle momentum correlations with a second order, causal, diffusion equation that includes Langevin noise as a source of thermal fluctuations. The causality requirement introduces the relaxation time and we link the shape of the rapidity correlation pattern to its presence. Here we examine how different equations of state and temperature dependent transport coefficients in the presence of realistic hydrodynamic flow influence the estimate of τ π . In comparison to RHIC data, we find that the ratio τ π / ν ≈ 5 − 6 where ν = η / s T is the kinematic viscosity.
How early can we diagnose Alzheimer disease (and is it sufficient)? The 2017 Wartenberg lecture.

A seismic shift in our understanding of the ability to diagnose Alzheimer disease (AD) is occurring. For the last several decades, AD has been a clinical–pathologic diagnosis, and this conceptualization of the disease has served the field well. Typically, the clinician would identify a syndrome such as mild cognitive impairment or dementia, and label the condition as “probable AD” since the diagnosis of definite AD could not be made until an autopsy revealed the presence of amyloid plaques and tau-based neurofibrillary tangles. However, with the advent of biomarkers for AD including neuroimaging and CSF, the identification of AD pathology can be made in life, which greatly enhances the ability of clinicians to be precise about the underlying etiology of a clinical syndrome. Hypothetical models of the temporal relation among the pathologic elements and the clinical symptoms have been proposed and have influenced the field enormously. This has enabled clinicians to be specific about the underlying cause of a given clinical syndrome. As such, the diagnostic capability of the clinician is evolving. However, AD pathology is only a component of the puzzle describing the causes of cognitive changes in aging. Most often, there is a multitude of pathologic entities contributing to the neuropathologic explanation of cognitive changes in aging. AD changes contribute important elements to the diagnosis, but the final answer is more complex. The field of aging and dementia will have to incorporate these additional elements.
Assessing psychometric properties of the PROMIS Sleep Disturbance Scale in older adults in independent-living and continuing care retirement communities.

Abstract Purpose Sleep disturbances are associated with poor health outcomes in older adults. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Information System (PROMIS) Sleep Disturbance Scale was designed to assess self-reported general sleep and sleep disturbance. The objective of this study was to validate the short-form PROMIS Sleep Disturbance Scale for use among older adults living in independent-living and continuing care retirement communities. Methods Older adults (N = 307) were recruited from retirement communities in San Diego, CA, to participate in a physical activity intervention. Study participants were on average 83.6 years (SD 6.4) and predominately female (72.3%). Self-reported health outcomes included sleep disturbance, depressive symptoms, quality of life, stress, and pain. Internal consistency of the PROMIS Sleep Disturbance Scale was determined using Cronbach α, individual item means, and interitem correlations. Construct validity was examined using exploratory factor analysis techniques. Adjusted linear regression models assessed the predictive validity of the Sleep Disturbance Scale and associations with health outcomes. Results The PROMIS Sleep Disturbance Scale had a Cronbach α = .856 and an interitem correlation of .504. All items loaded on 1 sole factor. Additionally, the sleep scale was significantly predictive of depressive symptoms, stress, and quality of life at 12 months. Conclusions The PROMIS 6-item Sleep Disturbance Scale had acceptable internal consistency and strong construct validity among a sample of elderly older adults in an independent-living community setting. These findings suggest that the PROMIS scale may provide an accurate assessment of sleep disturbance in older adults. Additional validation testing using objective measures of sleep is needed to confirm these findings further.
Proceedings of the 31st ACM international conference on Design of communication

Our conference this year provides a premiere opportunity to hear researchers and practitioners share the latest investigations and experiences in the design of communication. Over the two days of the conference, you will interact with an exciting, international group of academic and industry researchers as well as practitioners. Part of SIGDOC's appeal is its mix of researchers and practitioners and the synergy that interaction provides. We look forward to another high-energy conference that will increase the levels of that mixing. Our program includes many different opportunities to engage with fellow design of communication thinkers, including workshops, papers, panels, experience reports, and posters. The conference program embraces a variety of perspectives, reflecting how the design of communication intersects with the related areas of user experience design, information architecture, interaction design, and documentation. From the many submissions made to the conference this year, we have put together a strong program, with exceptionally high quality work. The varied methods used in the studies discussed this year are intriguing, ranging from large-scale surveys to ethnographies, from deployment studies to discourse analyses. The diversity of perspectives is also mirrored by geographic diversity among contributors.
Intradermal injection of transforming growth factor-β1 gene enhances wound healing in genetically diabetic mice

Purpose. To evaluate the biologic effect of direct cutaneous TGF-β1 gene delivery on impaired wound healing models using genetically diabetic mice.
With or without class: Resolving Marx’s Janus-faced interpretation of worker-owned cooperatives:

To shed light on polarized perspectives regarding the virtues or downfalls of worker cooperatives among variants of Marxists, this article focuses on Marx’s own Janus-faced analysis of worker coope...
How Should Commerce and Calling Be Balanced

Physicians and all health professionals need to find an appropriate balance between the interests of individual patients and their organization's bottom line. Corporatization in health care has complicated such efforts. More and more health professionals function as employees of health care organizations, some of which value leaders' and shareholders' interests over those of patients. When faced with such conflicts, physicians bear a responsibility to put patients first and to advocate for their profession.
Anion Influence on Some Soil Physical Properties

Addition of HCl, H2SO4, and H3PO4 to montmorillonite clay and a montmorillonitic soil had little effect on the liquid limit of these materials over a wide range of concentrations. The liquid limit of a kaolinitic soil clay was reduced markedly by both HCl and H2SO4, whereas H3PO4 decreased the liquid limit value at lower concentrations and increased it at higher ones. These results are discussed in light of the charge variability and of anion retention by the kaolinitic soil.
A Large-Eddy Simulation Study of Contrail Ice Number Formation

AbstractIce crystal number is a critical ingredient in the potential climate impact of persistent contrails and contrail-induced cirrus. We perform an extensive set of large-eddy simulations (LES) ...
An Ultra-low Power and Lower Area Current-Mode based Physically Unclonable Function with less than 100nW Power Consumption and a Native Instability of 0.6875% for IoT Applications

This paper presents an ultra-low power and lower area, sequential physically unclonable function (PUF) circuit for Internet-of-Things (IoT). The proposed PUF is used to generate a 16 bit secret key array and uses a current-mode based differential bit cell architecture to exploit the inherent device mismatch. The proposed PUF design has an energy efficiency of 7.5fJ/bit and a native instability of 0.6875%.
Accurate and Reliable Diagnosis of Avascular Necrosis of the Femoral Head From Total Hip Arthroplasty Specimens Requires Pathologic Examination.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the necessity of pathologic examination for confirming the diagnosis of avascular necrosis (AVN). METHODS We retrospectively reviewed consecutive nonfractured total hip arthroplasty cases (n = 1,722), comparing operative diagnoses and radiologic data with final histologic diagnoses, focusing specifically on AVN. RESULTS Among 199 histologically confirmed cases of AVN, 62 (31%) had a preoperative diagnosis of osteoarthritis/degenerative joint disease (OA/DJD); 58 of the latter patients had radiology reports, but only two (3%) documented AVN. Patients with AVN preoperatively diagnosed as OA/DJD were significantly older (mean, 65 years) than patients with AVN correctly diagnosed clinically (mean, 52 years; P < .00001). Among 163 cases with a preoperative diagnosis of AVN, 26 (16%) were confirmed as OA/DJD; the radiology report incorrectly diagnosed AVN in 17 (65%) patients. These latter patients also were significantly older (mean, 60 years) than patients with AVN correctly diagnosed clinically (P = .0008). Patients with a preoperative clinical and/or radiologic diagnosis of AVN were more likely to be younger and have known AVN risk factors. CONCLUSIONS Accurate and reliable diagnosis of AVN requires pathologic examination, especially among older patients without known risk factors. Prompt diagnosis may lead to behavioral changes in affected patients that reduce the risk of subsequent lesions.
Anthropogenic underwater sound emissions and other ecological effects on the marine environment

This presentation provides an overview of U. S. Navy and academia sponsored research to monitor, measure, model and mitigate the effects of active sonar sound transmissions on the health and well-being of marine mammals. Sound in the ocean has received considerable attention in the last several decades. Such intensive interest is in the sustainability and conservation of marine resources in ocean environments. Marine mammals in particular are sensitive to anthropogenic sounds. To capture the frequency-dependent nature of these sound effects on marine species, auditory computed weighting functions emphasize frequencies where a particular species is most susceptible to noise exposure. Researchers within academia and government continue development of functions like these and other metrics to characterize marine mammal responses to anthropogenic sound in the ocean. Underwater acousticians, marine biologists, oceanographers, engineers and computer scientists combine efforts to provide common standards of measuring and characterizing the anthropogenic sound effects on marine species. Further, computerized sonar equation models are used to: (1) provide standards of measuring and characterizing anthropogenic sound affecting various mammal species, and (2) determine metrics to guide policy makers' decisions in determining best practices for balancing marine environmental protection with national defense obligations.
Exploring asymmetries in the effects of El Niño-Southern Oscillation on U.S. food and agricultural stock prices

Abstract State-dependent local projection methods have become the state-of-the-art technique for investigating asymmetric and/or nonlinear responses to economic (and other) shocks. We apply this methodology to examine whether El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) has asymmetric impacts on U.S. food and agricultural stock prices. Using weekly data from 1990:1 to 2019:4, we find support for the hypothesis that food and agricultural stock prices respond asymmetrically to ENSO shocks. In particular, we provide evidence that El Nino shocks typically decrease or have no effects on U.S. food and agricultural stock prices, whereas La Nina shocks generally increase prices. We argue that this asymmetric response of stock prices to El Nino and La Nina shocks may in part be explained by the differential impact of these shocks on food and agricultural commodity prices. The analysis, thus, emphasizes the need to consider asymmetries in the impacts of ENSO, as failure to do so might result in misleading conclusions about the effect of ENSO on U.S. food and agricultural stock prices.
The Relation of Anxiety to Nonsuicidal Self Injury Is Indirect Through Mindfulness

Extant research indicates a robust association between anxiety and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). However, research identifying factors that may account for this relation is lacking. Mindfulness is one candidate construct that may account for the relation of anxiety to NSSI. The objective of the present study was to examine the indirect relation of anxiety to recurrent NSSI and NSSI versatility (i.e., the number of different NSSI methods used) through overall and specific facets of mindfulness while controlling for participant sex and depression symptoms. Undergraduates (N = 339; Female = 76.4%), of whom approximately 14% reported recurrent NSSI behavior, completed the Deliberate Self-Harm Inventory, Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21, and Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. Four path-analytic regression analyses were conducted. Results revealed significant positive indirect relations of anxiety to recurrent NSSI and NSSI versatility through low total mindfulness, [95% CIs [0.001, 0.024] and [0.001, 0.008], respectively. Examination of mindfulness facets indicated significant positive indirect relations of anxiety to recurrent NSSI and NSSI versatility through nonjudging only, 95% CIs [0.001, 0.033] and [0.0001, 0.012], respectively. Mindfulness partially accounts for NSSI behavior among individuals struggling with anxiety.
Fair Value Measurement Discretion and Opportunistic Avoidance of Impairment Loss Recognition

Prior studies find evidence that opportunistic reporting occurs in settings where fair value measurement is used. However, such research cannot determine whether the source of the opportunistic reporting is the estimate of fair value itself. Using detailed insurer investment holdings information, we separate the use of fair value measurement discretion from the application of non-measurement-related discretion in accounting for incurred losses of financial instruments. Our evidence contradicts the view that fair value measurement discretion plays a large role in opportunistic avoidance of loss recognition for financial instruments. Instead, managers appear to avoid impairment loss recognition by opportunistically applying subjective criteria related to perceived loss persistence and intent to hold.
Consumption Pattern of Agricultural Labour Households in the Konkan Region (M.S.)

The problem of human hunger has always remained the top most problem with the man through ages. About two-third of the world's population today is Inadequately fed according to modern nutritional norms.
Evaluating climate models' cloud feedbacks against expert judgement

The persistent and growing spread in effective climate sensitivity (ECS) across global climate models necessitates rigorous evaluation of their cloud feedbacks. Here we evaluate several cloud feedb...
Methylphenidate Improves Autonomic Functioning among Youth with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

Psychostimulants are commonly prescribed medications for youth with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Limited studies have evaluated how psychostimulants (e.g., methylphenidate [MPH]) impact autonomic nervous system (ANS) indexes among youth with ADHD. Understanding the effects of MPH on autonomic functioning is essential, given that youth with ADHD have been shown to experience atypical autonomic functioning (i.e., reduced activity across both sympathetic and parasympathetic branches) compared to typically developing youth. The current study investigated how a specific psychostimulant, Osmotic Release Oral System [OROS] MPH, impacts parasympathetic (indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]) and sympathetic (indexed by electrodermal activity [EDA]) functioning among youth with ADHD via a within-subjects, double-masked, cross-over design. Two hundred fifty-six participants (157 youth with ADHD), ages 5 to 13 years, completed a two-minute resting baseline task while electrocardiograph and electrodermal data were obtained. Youth with ADHD completed the resting baseline task twice, 3 weeks apart, once during active medication and once during placebo conditions (counterbalanced). Typically developing youth were assessed without medication or placebo. Youth with ADHD during the placebo condition exhibited reduced RSA and EDA compared to typically developing youth. In contrast, youth with ADHD during the medication condition did not differ significantly from typically developing youth with respect to either RSA nor EDA. As such, OROS MPH appears to normalize RSA and EDA levels among youth with ADHD to levels comparable to typically developing youth. Future studies including indexes of the ANS among youth with ADHD are urged to consider the impact of MPH.