cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Analytical investigation in bending characteristic of twisted stacked-tape cable conductor

An analytical model to evaluate bending strains of a twisted stack-tape cable (TSTC) conductor has been developed. Through a comparison with experimental results obtained for a soldered 32-tape YBCO TSTC conductor, it has been found that a Perfect-Slip Model (PSM) taking into account the slipping between tapes in a stacked-tape cable during bending gives much better estimation of the bending performance compared to a No-Slip Model (NSM). In the PSM case the tapes can slip so that the internal longitudinal axial strain can be released. The longitudinal strains of compression and tension regions along the tape are balanced in one twist-pitch and cancel out evenly in a long cable. Therefore, in a cable the strains due to bending can be minimized. This is an important advantage of a TSTC conductor. The effect of the cable diameter size on the bending strain is also expected to be minor, and all tapes composing a TSTC conductor have the same strain response under bending, therefore the cable critical current can be characterized from a single tape behaviour.
The business of doing good

Might it be possible to apply the scientific method to affect social change? Using the resources and knowledge available in a university setting, could we develop and test evidence-based solutions to the social problems facing our society? In Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship , Teresa Chahine challenges us to do just that. Chahine, an environmental health scientist, teaches a course at Harvard that seeks to train students not just to analyze social problems but also to solve them. The book, based on the course, offers a step-by-step framework for thinking about the challenges facing our society and their solutions.
The effect of free and carrier-bound cortisol on equine neutrophil function

Cortisol is a key anti-inflammatory hormone that increases in bacterial sepsis and circulates predominantly bound to cortisol binding globulin (CBG). Only unbound cortisol was believed to be biologically active, but recent evidence suggests that CBG-bound cortisol also regulates inflammation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of free and CBG-bound cortisol on equine neutrophil function ex vivo. We hypothesized that CBG would enhance cortisol-mediated suppression of neutrophil pro-inflammatory responses. Neutrophils isolated from 8 foals and 6 adult horses were exposed to Staphylococcus aureus antigen (SAA) alone and with hydrocortisone (HC), CBG, or both (CBG+HC). Inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α, IL-8) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production were measured and compared among stimulants and between ages with linear mixed-effects models. CBG and CBG+HC inhibited ROS production induced by SAA in both foal and horse neutrophils, maintaining it at levels comparable to baseline production (P≤0.060-0.907). TNF-α production was not significantly different among stimulants (P=0.284). CBG+HC significantly (P≤0.016) increased IL-8 production by neutrophils in response to SAA in both foals and adults, although the response of foals was significantly greater than that of adults (P<0.001). These findings suggest that CBG directly modulates equine neutrophil responses, but the effects are cytokine- and age-specific.
Density of steam-flaked sorghum grain, roughage level, and feeding regimen for feedlot steers.

Two hundred fifty-two steers (366 kg) were assigned to a 3 x 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of three densities of steam-flaked sorghum grain (bulk [flake] density of 437, 360, and 283 g/liter, B34, B28, and B22, respectively), two roughage levels (9 [R9] and 18% [R18]) and two feeding strategies (ad libitum [AD] or multiple of maintenance [MM], 2.3, 2.5, and 2.7 MM for wk 1, 2, and 3, and 2.9 MM thereafter). Steers fed R18-AD gained faster than steers fed R18-MM (1.59 vs 1.52 kg/d, P = .10); for R9 diets, no difference (P greater than .25) was found between steers fed AD and MM (interaction, P = .07). Flake density did not affect ADG (1.53 kg, P greater than .2). Dry matter intake decreased (9.8, 9.3, and 9.0 kg/d, linear, P less than .001) and gain efficiency (G/DMI, kg of gain/100 kg of DMI) increased (15.7, 16.5, and 16.9, linear, P less than .001; quadratic, P = .19) as processing degree increased (B34 to B22). Percentage of choice carcasses for B34 (67.0%) was higher (linear, P = .05) than for B28 (51.9%) and B22 (52.3%). Fecal starch and pH were 10.8, 5.7, and 4.0%, and 6.11, 6.23, and 6.37 for B34, B28, and B22, respectively (linear, P less than .001). The correlation between fecal starch and pH was -.51 (P less than .001, n = 252). Enzymatic glucose release, in vitro 6-h gas production, microbial protein synthesis, and protein degradability were 375, 483, and 559 mg/g; 24.7, 28.2, and 31.1 ml/.2 g; 6.15, 6.88, and 7.84 g/100g; and 61.4, 56.6, and 42.2% for B34, B28, and B22, respectively (linear, P less than .05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Increased 18F-fluoro-L-DOPA (F-DOPA) uptake by neuroblastoma

1619 Objectives: Neuroblastoma is an embryonal malignancy that arises from neuroblasts of the sympathetic nervous system and is the most common extracranial childhood cancer. The sympathetic origin of these tumor cells is exploited by many clinical diagnostic schemes. Homovanillic acid (HVA) and Vanillymadelic acid (VMA), byproducts of catecholamine metabolism, are the principle biochemical methods used to detect neuroblastoma. Furthermore, radioiodinated Iodobenzylguanidine (MIBG), which is taken up by adrenergic cells through the active amine transport system, has proven to be useful for diagnosing and treating neuroblastomas. One shortcoming of this technique is that both agents currently used, 123I-MIBG and 131I-MIBG, contain single photon emitting radioisotopes, limiting their sensitivity and specificity. L-DOPA is a precursor of catecholamines that is selectively taken up by neuroadrenergic cells through a sodium/chloride dependent monoamine transporter and converted to dopamine by dopamine decarboxylase (DDC). Bozzi et al (diagn. Mol Path 2004, 13:135) demonstrated that 10/10 primary neuroblastomas and 17/18 neuroblastoma bone metastases contained transcript for DDC. In this work, we demonstrate the feasibility of imaging the sympathetic pathways of neuroblastoma utilizing 18F-fluoro-L-DOPA (FDOPA) as a tracer for PET imaging. Methods: We therefore performed FDOPA cell uptake experiments on two DDC positive neuroblastoma cell lines (SK-N-AS and NBL-S). Furthermore, we examined clinical FDOPA tissue distribution obtained from infants with congenital hyperinsulinism undergoing FDOPA PET imaging to determine if FDOPA is suitible for imaging neuroblastoma in patients. Results: In the FDOPA cell uptake experiments, both cell lines demonstrated a nine-fold increased FDOPA uptake compared to transformed fibroblast controls. We are currently testing additional neuroblastoma cell lines and xenografted tumors to further validate the use of FDOPA PET imaging in neuroblastoma. Additionally, based on the FDOPA tissue distribution in patients imaged with FDOPA for hyperinsulinism and the typical anatomic locations of Neuroblastoma, we demonstrate that FDOPA is indeed a potential radiotracer for neuroblastoma imaging. Conclusions: Our preliminary evidence of increased FDOPA neuroblastoma uptake and favorable tissue distribution of FDOPA in vivo opens the possibility of using this PET tracer for sensitive detection of neuroblastoma and for potentially obtaining prognostic information of overall response and event free survival following therapy, which may be useful in tailoring treatment.
Patriotic betrayal: the inside story of the CIA’s secret campaign to enroll American students in the crusade against communism

The covert cold war that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) waged for the hearts and minds of international students came to an abrupt end with the Ramparts exposes of early 1967. The Ramparts i...
Affective Disposition Theory

Affective disposition theory refers to a set of explanations for why and how an audience member enjoys various media entertainment narratives. In simple terms, the theory predicts that enjoyment increases when liked characters experience positive outcomes and/or when disliked characters experience negative ones. Conversely, enjoyment diminishes when liked characters experience negative outcomes and/or disliked characters experience positive ones. Thus, broadly speaking, the theory is composed of three psychological processes or components: the dispositions formed and held toward characters, emotional reactivity to the plights of those characters, and the viewer's hedonic response to the ultimate resolution of the narrative. Empathy and morality play primary roles in these processes and help to explain variance in emotional responses to and enjoyment of media entertainment across viewers. Keywords: audience; cognitive processes; entertainment; media psychology; narrative
A Gut Reaction: Aging Affect Gut-Associated Immunity

The digestive functions of the intestinal tract are familiar to everyone. The immunoprotective functions of the intestinal tract are not. Not long ago, when relatively little was known about the structure and function of the intestinal immune system, it was reasonable to conclude that aging affected gastrointestinal (GI) immunity to a minor extent, if at all. However, there were gerontologists who were not convinced because – given excessive functional potential beyond what is normally required – it was doubtful whether experiments involving whole animals or complex ex vivo systems were reliable. To illustrate the point, consider the following quotation: ‘‘The multiorgan system that composes the gastrointestinal tract has a large reserve capacity, and thus there is little change in gastrointestinal function because of aging in the absence of disease.’’ Although that quotation was directed at the digestive function of the GI system, it may reasonably be argued that it embraces the immunological function as well. We intend to develop that argument in this chapter. First, however, we will provide a review of current understanding and
Predictors of BRCA1/2 genetic testing among Black women with breast cancer: a population-based study

Evidence shows that Black women diagnosed with breast cancer are substantially less likely to undergo BRCA testing and other multipanel genetic testing compared to White women, despite having a higher incidence of early-age onset breast cancer and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Our study identifies predictors of BRCA testing among Black women treated for breast cancer and examines differences between BRCA testers and nontesters. We conducted an analysis of 945 Black women ages 18-64 diagnosed with localized or regional-stage invasive breast cancer in Pennsylvania and Florida between 2007 and 2009. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of BRCA 1/2 testing. Few (27%) (n = 252) of the participants reported having BRCA testing. In the multivariate analysis, we found that perceived benefits of BRCA testing (predisposing factor) ([OR], 1.16; 95% CI: 1.11-1.21; P < 0.001), income (enabling factor) ([OR], 2.10; 95% CI: 1.16-3.80; p = 0.014), and BRCA mutation risk category (need factor) ([OR], 3.78; 95% CI: 2.31-6.19; P < 0.001) predicted BRCA testing. These results suggest that interventions to reduce disparities in BRCA testing should focus on identifying patients with high risk of mutation, increasing patient understanding of the benefits of BRCA testing, and removing financial and other administrative barriers to genetic testing.
Spatial Filtering Considerations in Bragg Diffraction Imaging

Many of the techniques and effects observed in images from systems using Bragg diffraction imaging can be explained using concepts of optical spatial filtering. This is possible because the Bragg diffraction phenomenom can be thought of as an interaction of a plane-wave of light with a plane-wave of sound to produce a plane-wave of diffracted light. Changing the incident light causes a change in the diffracted light. Hence, the input light field of the imaging system plays an analogous role to the filter transparency of an optical spatial filtering system. The plane-wave components of the diffracted light that form the image of the sound field can be selectively changed by modification of the incident light field. When the imaging method is analyzed as a plane-wave: plane-wave interaction, simple explanations can be given for such diverse effects as the observed astigmatic resolution, the dependence of the resolution on the semi-apex angle of the incident light wedge, dark field imaging, and reflection imaging.
Reconfiguring time, love, and money: Adjusting chronotopic realities among queer and trans of color community organizers in Toronto, Canada:

Based on ethnographic research in Toronto, Canada this article considers how queer and trans of color community arts initiatives come to exist as temporal phenomena. Given the association of racial...
Kurt Vonnegut’s “Homage to Santa Rosalia”: The “Patroness of Evolutionary Studies” and Galapagos

Though critics have noted the evolutionary themes in Kurt Vonnegut’s Galapagos, none has discussed the name Vonnegut gave to the fictional island where most of the novel’s action takes place: Santa Rosalia. Since Vonnegut had been reading up on evolutionary ideas while writing the novel, it seems likely that his source for the name was ecologist G. Evelyn Hutchinson’s famous 1959 article, “Homage to Santa Rosalia: Or Why Are There So Many Kinds of Animals?” In a study of water bugs in a spring below a cave on Mount Pellegrino where Saint Rosalia’s bones had been found in the seventeenth century, Hutchinson established ecological principles regarding speciation, ecological niches, and biodiversity, and he expressed prescient concerns about human impacts on the natural world. These concerns all surface in Galapagos. Of particular interest to Vonnegut must have been Hutchinson’s designation of Saint Rosalia as the “patroness of evolutionary studies.” Keywords: Kurt Vonnegut, Galapagos, G. Evelyn Hutchinson, Santa Rosalia, evolution, biodiversity loss, extinction, ecological niche, speciation, ecocide
Social class shapes the form and function of relationships and selves

Social class shapes relational realities, which in turn situate and structure different selves and their associated psychological tendencies. We first briefly review how higher class contexts tend to foster independent models of self and lower class contexts tend to foster interdependent models of self. We then consider how these independent and interdependent models of self are situated in and adapted to different social class-driven relational realities. We review research demonstrating that in lower social class contexts, social networks tend to be small, dense, homogenous and strongly connected. Ties in these networks provide the bonding capital that is key for survival and that promotes the interdependence between self and other(s). In higher social class contexts, social networks tend to be large, far-reaching, diverse and loosely connected. Ties in these networks provide the bridging capital that is key for achieving personal goals and that promotes an independence of self from other. We conclude that understanding and addressing issues tied to social class and inequality requires understanding the form and function of relationships across class contexts.
Early nutritional inadequacy is associated with psoas muscle deterioration and worse clinical outcomes in critically ill surgical patients.

Abstract Purpose To explore whether psoas cross sectional area (CSA) and density (Hounsfield Units, HU) are associated with nutritional adequacy and clinical outcomes in surgical intensive care unit patients. Materials and methods Subjects with at least one CT scan within 72 h of ICU admission were included. Demographic, nutritional, radiographic, and outcomes data were collected. Psoas muscle CSA and HU were assessed at the L4–L5 intervertebral disk level. Change (Δ) in CSA and HU overall and per day were calculated. Results 140 patients were included. There was no significant correlation between baseline CSA and HU and clinical outcomes. Patients with at least two CT scans (n = 65), had a median decrease in CSA of − 15% [IQR: − 20%, − 8%] and decrease in HU of − 2% [IQR: − 30%, + 24%]. Patients with the greatest daily %HU decline received significantly fewer calories/kg and proteins/kg and accumulated greater protein deficits at day 7 and overall. Patients with daily %HU increase had the shortest ICU and hospital LOS and more ventilator-free days in univariate and multivariable analyses. Conclusions In this exploratory study, early nutritional deficits were correlated with muscle quality deterioration. Inpatient gain in psoas density, compared to maintenance or loss, is associated with shorter hospital stay.
Torsion of an Isotropic Elastic Circular Cylinder

It is shown that a static pure torsion can be imposed on a circular cylinder comprised of any homogeneous isotropic elastic material subject to suitable surface tractions alone if the material is incompressible, but such a pure torsion cannot generally be imposed if the material is compressible. Hence the static torsion is a universal deformation for an incompressible isotropic elastic material, but not for a compressible isotropic elastic material. The analysis of such a pure torsion is due to Rivlin (1947; 1948a; 1949a). A broader family of universal deformations of Ericksen & Rivlin (1954) is also discussed, where this larger family includes not only torsions but also extensions and inflations of a circular cylinder. The calculation of these and other universal exact solutions for finite elastic deformation represents a remarkable achievement in the mathematical theory of elasticity. The development here follows that of Truesdell & Noll (1965).
The Role of Chemical Driving Forces in Bombardment-Induced Compositional Change

This constitutes part of a discussion on bombardment-induced compositional change with alloys, oxides, oxysalts, and halides. Already treated are the role of the surface binding energy (1), the role of bombardment-induced Gibbsian segregation (“BIS”) (2), as well as an extended version of the present material (3). We here consider three aspects of what will be termedchemical driving forcesWe first consider how it is possible for BIS to occur at all given the small numerical value of the driving force, 0.06 to 0.52 eV. The same is then done for bombardment-induced mixing, now recognized to be chemically driven by the heat of mixing, now recognized to be chemically driven by the heat of mixing, typically <1.3 eV (4,5). We finally consider bombardment-induced decomposition, i.e. the characteristic compositional changes found with many oxides and oxysalts. In early work these changes were normally inferred from electron diffraction (e.g. 6) or AES (e.g. 7), but more recently there has been an increasing use of XPS (“x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy”), thence the possibility of confirming valence states which do not give stable bulk compounds (e.g. 8–11). A typical example of BIS is shown in Fig. 1 (12–14) and of decomposition in Fig. 2 (10).
Ion transport mechanisms in native human retinal pigment epithelium.

Electrophysiologic techniques were used to characterize the electrical properties and the ion transport mechanisms at the apical and basolateral membranes of the human retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). These experiments used fresh native tissue from adult donor and fetal eyes. In the upper range, adult donor RPE had an apical membrane resting potential (VA) of approximately equal to -60 mV and a transepithelial potential (TEP) and resistance (Rt) of 3.5 mV and 148 omega.cm2, respectively. The means were at least 50% of these values. In RPE from fetuses of gestational age 19-23 wk, VA was -56 +/- 4 mV, TEP was 2.2 +/- 1.5 mV, Rt was 206 +/- 151 omega.cm2, and the ratio of apical to basolateral resistance was 0.70 +/- 0.50 (mean +/- standard deviation; n = 15). The apical membrane of the adult donor and fetal RPE contains a large relative K+ conductance (TK > 0.3) that is barium blockable. In fetal RPE, there is evidence for separate K+ and Cl- conductive mechanisms at the basolateral membrane. However, the evidence for the Cl- conductance is indirect. The fetal RPE apical membrane, but not the basolateral membrane, contains a ouabain-sensitive mechanism that exhibits two distinct phases of apical depolarization. The first, rapid phase suggests that the pump is electrogenic. The apical membrane of fetal RPE contains a bumetanide-sensitive mechanism and a receptor activated by nanomolar amounts of epinephrine. In fetal RPE, step changes in apical [K+]o between 5 and 2 mmol/l produced a delayed basolateral membrane hyperpolarization that in situ generates the fast oscillation trough of the electroretinogram.
Biological Roles of Glycans

Simple and complex carbohydrates (glycans) have long been known to play major metabolic, structural and physical roles in biological systems. Targeted microbial binding to host glycans has also been studied for decades. But such biological roles can only explain some of the remarkable complexity and organismal diversity of glycans in nature. Reviewing the subject about two decades ago, one could find very few clear-cut instances of glycan-recognition-specific biological roles of glycans that were of intrinsic value to the organism expressing them. In striking contrast there is now a profusion of examples, such that this updated review cannot be comprehensive. Instead, a historical overview is presented, broad principles outlined and a few examples cited, representing diverse types of roles, mediated by various glycan classes, in different evolutionary lineages. What remains unchanged is the fact that while all theories regarding biological roles of glycans are supported by compelling evidence, exceptions to each can be found. In retrospect, this is not surprising. Complex and diverse glycans appear to be ubiquitous to all cells in nature, and essential to all life forms. Thus, >3 billion years of evolution consistently generated organisms that use these molecules for many key biological roles, even while sometimes coopting them for minor functions. In this respect, glycans are no different from other major macromolecular building blocks of life (nucleic acids, proteins and lipids), simply more rapidly evolving and complex. It is time for the diverse functional roles of glycans to be fully incorporated into the mainstream of biological sciences.
From Photography to Forensics: Technology, Modernity, and the Internationalization of Spanish History in Gran Hotel

In this chapter, Tang examines the role of turn-of-the-century technologies within the narrative and staging of the international hit series Gran Hotel (Grand Hotel; Bambu Producciones, 2011–2013). As she argues, on-screen period technology serves to familiarize global audiences with Restoration Spain in three key ways: firstly, by refuting the long-standing stereotype of Spain as a historically backward nation; secondly, by highlighting universally familiar themes of Restoration society, such as class conflict or the modernizing impulse; and finally, by appealing to twenty-first-century technophiles who recognize the importance of technological innovation in their own lives. Tang concludes that through these functions, the technology featured in Gran Hotel serves to present the Restoration period as a universally legible and visually appealing setting.
Entrapped Oxide Formation in the Friction Stir Weld (FSW) Process

The ultimate design values for a friction stir weld (FSW) are not based on the average strength, but the lowest strength or outlier. Thus, the robustness of the process could be ultimately increased by understanding and minimizing the sources of data scatter within the mechanical properties of a FSW panel. Internal voids are known to result in reduced strength, but are detectable using non-destructive evaluation (NDE). Other metallurgical discontinuities, such as internal oxides, are difficult to detect using NDE and are often blamed for random variations in the mechanical properties of FSWs. Current efforts to minimize internal oxides within a FSW nugget focus on cleaning of the workpiece surfaces prior to the FSW. This study proposes that internal oxides within FSW interiors may occur during the process and not from a redistribution of native oxides on the workpiece surfaces as commonly cited. Typical temperatures during FSWing of aluminum and its alloys are reported to be in the range of 0.7 to 0.9 the absolute melting temperature. At the upper limit of this range, the expected temperature is above 500 °C where the oxidation rate of aluminum changes from self-limiting parabolic to linear. At these temperatures, entrained air could enhance the oxidization of the freshly sheared surfaces and become trapped. In this study, a series of intentionally “hot” FSWs were made in three different thickness panels of AA2219 (0.95, 1.27, and 1.56 cm) at two different weld pitches. Microstructures from the as-welded FSW nugget showed thickened grain boundary regions. Cracks were observed in transverse sections of the FSW nugget after tensile tests. Electron microscopy found evidence of eutectic structures along grain boundaries. At the expected FSW temperatures, the eutectic temperature of 548 °C could be exceeded thereby causing localized melting. Thus in addition to oxidation of the freshly sheared surfaces, exposure of molten metal to air would also promote formation of internal oxides. Results from this study will assist in a better understanding of strength outliers in FSWs and provide methodology for minimizing their occurrence.
Verifying Measurements of Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) on LTE Network using an App on Android Smartphones

RF engineers use drive test systems and equipment to measure the characteristics of cellular networks as a part of their everyday work. Their tasks include planning, performance monitoring, optimization, etc. A fundamental Long Term Evolution (LTE) performance measurement is the Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP). Measurements of RSRP are taken using either smartphones, receivers or channel scanners. The RSRP is considered as the fundamental coverage metric in an L TE network. This paper describes an Android application (LTENetScan) that enables RSRP measurement and logging. A comparison is made between RSRP measurements taken by LTENetScan on phones from different manufacturers with the same data captured by a professional-grade scanner. This comparison validates the accuracy of the phone-based systems as well as their feasibility as alternative test drive systems.
Singularities in rotating black holes coupled to a massless scalar field

We employ a late-time expansion to study the interior of rotating black holes coupled to a massless scalar field in asymptotically flat spacetime. We find that decaying fluxes of scalar radiation into the black hole necessitate the existence of a null singularity at the Cauchy horizon and a central spacelike singularity at radius $r = 0$. In particular, the decaying influxes source a localized cloud of scalar radiation near $r=0$ whose amplitude grows unboundedly large as advanced time $v \to \infty$. The scalar cloud inevitably results in a central spacelike singularity at late times $v$, with the curvature near $r = 0$ diverging like $r^{-\alpha v}$, where $\alpha > 0$ is a constant.
Was Boeing’s Compensation Committee Sufficiently Independent in Judging the Business Risk of the 737 Max?

Boeing’s 2011 launch of the 737 Max has been a disastrous decision for the company and could even threaten its long-term viability. In the 2011 letter to shareholder, the CEO said it will “reduce our business risk substantially for the next decade.” The CEO also convinced his compensation committee to factor “risk reduction” into its measure of economic profit and company performance score. Consequently, CEO pay rose from less than $20 million in the two years preceding 2011, to over $26 million in the three years after 2011. Coincidentally, the CEO was a long-term veteran of General Electric, as were two of the four members of the compensation committee. This case study illustrates that management can capture the compensation committee and put into place compensation incentives that can harm the company in the long-run.
Using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry for tracking of minimal residual disease in peripheral blood from patients with multiple myeloma.

e19525Background: Minimal residual disease (MRD) negativity after completed therapy is associated with longer progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with multiple myeloma (MM). Current standar...
How broadband and cell phone access have impacted marriage and divorce in the US

Internet use has lowered search costs in the marriage market, as participants (both single and married) can now search for and gather information more easily on potential partners. Additionally, the internet provides ample entertainment options that may act as a substitute for relationships. This paper extends the literature on internet and marriage by using more recent data, a more refined geographical level, and by including a measure of mobile internet. County-level data provides ample variation in internet access and enables consideration of marriage-market size as measured by population and urban density. Fixed-effect regressions indicate that increases in internet access from 2008–2015, either through broadband or cell phone access, are associated with decreased marriage and increased divorce in rural counties. However, in large metropolitan areas, expansion in internet access is correlated with increases in the married population and decreases in the divorced or separated populations. Regressions on age at marriage and percent of the ever-married population in their first, second, or third marriage suggests that the rise in the married population in urban areas is derived from both an increase in initial uptake of marriage and an increase in re-matching of divorcees in secondary marriage markets.
Development and validation of the COVID-19 severity index (CSI): a prognostic tool for early respiratory decompensation

Objective: The goal of this study was to create a predictive model of early hospital respiratory decompensation among patients with COVID-19. Design: Observational, retrospective cohort study. Setting: Nine-hospital health system within the Northeastern United States. Populations: Adult patients (≥ 18 years) admitted from the emergency department who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) up to 24 hours after initial presentation. Patients meeting criteria for critical respiratory illness within 4 hours of arrival were excluded. Main outcome and performance measures: We used a composite endpoint of respiratory critical illness as defined by oxygen requirement beyond low-flow nasal cannula (e.g., non-rebreather mask, high-flow nasal cannula, bi-level positive pressure ventilation), intubation, or death within the first 24 hours of hospitalization. We developed predictive models using patient demographic and clinical data collected during those first 4 hours. Eight hospitals were used for development and internal validation (n=932) and 1 hospital for model external validation (n=240). Predictive variables were identified using an ensemble approach that included univariate regression, random forest, logistic regression with LASSO, Chi-square testing, gradient boosting information gain, and gradient boosting Shapley additive explanation (SHAP) values prior to manual curation. We generated two predictive models, a quick COVID-19 severity index (qCSI) that uses only exam and vital sign measurements, and a COVID-19 severity index (CSI) machine learning model. Using area under receiver operating characteristic (AU-ROC), precision-recall curves (AU-PRC) and calibration metrics, we compare the qCSI and CSI to three illness scoring systems: Elixhauser mortality score, qSOFA, and CURB-65. We present performance of qCSI and CSI on an external validation cohort. Results: During the study period from March 1, 2020 to April 27, 2020, 1,792 patients were admitted with COVID-19. Six-hundred and twenty patients were excluded based on age or critical illness within the first 4 hours, yielding 1172 patients in the final cohort. Of these patients, 144 (12.3%) met the composite endpoint within the first 24 hours. The qCSI (AU-ROC: 0.90 [0.85-0.96]) comprised of nasal cannula flow rate, respiratory rate, and minimum documented pulse oximetry outperformed the baseline models (qSOFA: 0.76 [0.69-0.85]; Elixhauser: 0.70 [0.62-0.80]; CURB-65: AU-ROC 0.66 [0.58-0.77]) and was validated on an external cohort (AU-ROC: 0.82). The machine learning-based CSI had superior performance on the training cohort (AU-ROC: 0.91 [0.86-0.97]), but was unlikely to provide practical improvements in clinical settings. Conclusions: A significant proportion of admitted COVID-19 patients decompensate within 24 hours of hospital presentation and these events are accurately predicted using respiratory exam findings within a simple scoring system.
Typologies, Typifications, and Types

This article positions types at the center of anthropological knowledge production, considering them both from the abstract, analytical perspective of expert typologies and from the tacit, phenomen...
Walking the Tightrope: A Center's Experience with Simultaneous Heart-liver-kidney Transplantation

Background Fewer than 25 simultaneous heart-liver-kidney transplants (SHLKTxs) have been performed in the U.S. This highly complex operation was performed nine times by only four centers from 2018 to 2019. However, one institution, the University of Chicago Medical Center (UCMC), is responsible for two-thirds of all SHLKTxs performed in that period. There is a paucity of literature regarding the logistics and infrastructure of performing SHKLTxs. The development of a standardized, effective protocol would improve outcomes in the high-risk patients who undergo this operation. We assessed the unique strategies that this center employs to successfully perform a high volume of SHLKTxs to understand possible programmatic procedures. Methods We reviewed the logistical methods and infrastructure of the UCMC concerning the process of SHLKTx, spanning the stages from patient selection to operating room (OR) management. Additionally, we attempted to identify areas of future improvement. Results The UCMC employs strict patient selection criteria, as potential candidates must meet the listing criteria for each organ independently. The severity of illness, however, must also indicate the potential for a successful outcome, and the age limit for candidates is typically 60 years. Donor selection and organ allocation are critical to ensure that all organs are received from the same donor, which can require negotiation when the procurement is not in a local area. The technically challenging surgery requires the transplant teams to move quickly in order to minimize ischemic time for the heart and prevent reperfusion injury in the liver, while the kidney is perfused. Due to the risk of these events, the transplant team recommends the use of mechanical support, such as extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). The key element of the UCMC's success was found to be the team's ability to procure and achieve success with organs that many other centers would turn down. The team is willing to accept undersized hearts, travel further distances, use DCD organs, and transplant Hepatitis C seropositive non-viremic (HCV Ab+/NAT-) livers to an HCV seronegative recipient in pursuit of an expeditious and successful SHLKTx. The combined efforts of a skilled, multidisciplinary team are also essential. The various teams see the patients together in a structured rounding schedule, and the operation itself consists of three distinct phases with choreographed and planned handoffs. Areas identified for future improvement included standardizing the approach used in the OR, particularly team transfer and timing. Conclusion The UCMC owes its established track record of successful SHLKTxs to the internal infrastructure of its program. In particular, its willingness to accept organs that other centers refuse allows it to perform a high volume of expeditious and successful SHLKTxs. Future steps include protocolizing OR management along with identifying parameters that allow for a structured system of team transfer.
Engaging People on Climate Change: The Role of Emotional Responses

Overcoming climate change skepticism and disengagement is a pressing challenge. Evidence suggests that reactions to climate science and proposed solutions are strongly driven by emotion. This paper...
The Fractal Dimension of Product Sets

Using methods from nonstandard analysis, we define a nonstandard Minkowski dimension which exists for all bounded sets and which has the property that $\dim(A\times B) = \dim(A) + \dim(B)$.That is, our new dimension is product-summable. To illustrate our theorem we generalize an example of Falconer's to show that the standard upper Minkowski dimension, as well as the Hausdorff dimension, are not product-summable. We also include a method for creating sets of arbitrary rational dimension.
Preclinical evaluation of a precision medicine approach to DNA vaccination in Type 1 diabetes

Antigen-specific immunotherapy involves the delivery of self-antigens as proteins or peptides (or using nucleic acids encoding them) to be presented with the goal of inducing tolerance. Approaches employing specific epitopes restricted to the subjects MHC haplotypes have multiplied and offer a more focused and tailored way of targeting autoreactive T cells. In addition, the Endotope platform allows endogenously expressed epitopes to be processed and presented on appropriate MHC class I and II molecules. Here, we evaluated the efficacy of a DNA vaccine encoding epitopes selected and tailored for the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse compared to the expression of the proinsulin protein, one of the most successful antigens in prevention of NOD disease, and we assessed the influence of several parameters (e.g. route, dosing frequency) on preventing diabetes onset at normoglycemic and dysglycemic stages. First, encoded peptides should be secreted for effective disease prevention. Furthermore, short weekly treatments with Endotope and proinsulin DNA vaccines delay disease onset, but sustained treatments are required for long-term protection, which was more significant with intradermal delivery. Although epitopes can be presented for at least two weeks, reducing the frequency of antigen administration from weekly to every other week reduced efficacy. Finally, both Endotope and proinsulin DNA vaccines were effective in the dysglycemic stage of disease, but proinsulin provided better protection, particularly in subjects with slower progression of disease. Thus, our data support the possibility of applying a precision medicine approach based on tailored epitopes for the treatment of tissue-specific autoimmune diseases with DNA vaccines. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTAntigen-specific immunotherapy is a targeted approach to treat autoimmune diseases by turning off responses to disease-relevant antigens only, leaving the rest of the immune system unaffected. Protein antigens contain many epitopes, but only a fraction of them can be presented on a specific HLA haplotype and the relative importance of different antigens vary between patients due to disease heterogeneity. Strategies based on specific epitopes do not only consider the HLA haplotype and immune profile of groups of patients but can also include important neoepitopes not present in protein antigens. Here, we provide proof-of-principle that such strategy applied to tolerogenic DNA vaccination is effective in a preclinical model of autoimmune diabetes, paving the way for precision medicine using endogenously encoded epitopes.
Abstract 175: Delayed Effects of Ischemic Stroke on Lung Mechanics and Intrinsic Antioxidant Defenses

Ischemia-reperfusion injury causes central and peripheral inflammatory changes for which there are no viable therapeutic options. Following ischemic stroke, danger signals are released into the per...
Design Rules, Volume 2: Chapter 12—The Planar Process and Moore's Law

Moore’s Law is the prediction that transistor densities of semiconductor chips will double, speeds double, and prices drop by half approximately every eighteen months to two years. The Law lies at the heart of the high rates of technical change observed in the computer, communication and software industries during the last fifty years. The purpose of this chapter is to explain the underpinnings of Moore’s Law and to assess whether the industry-wide rate of technical change is likely to continue. I first discuss the Law’s origin as an empirical observation and its grounding in the physics of semiconductors. I describe how the Law became established as a dynamic equilibrium among semiconductor manufacturers, and how it was challenged and reaffirmed several times. I explain how in the 1990s, the Law was institutionalized in series of an industry-wide roadmaps, which became self-fulfilling prophecies. I go on to describe the performance of semiconductor chips and companies in the five decades since the Law was first proposed. I end with a discussion of the physical limits that now constrain the operation of Moore’s Law and a description of other paths to improved performance that still remain to be explored.
Pre-bond Qualification of Through-Silicon Via for the Application of 3-D Chip Stacking

In this paper, the fabrication of the through-silicon via (TSV) is introduced and characterized. Pre-bond structural analysis and electrical tests were performed and analyzed to examine the robustness of the fabrication process and the structural integrity of the TSVs. It is shown that the TSVs are robust even after given stress. The influence of the presence of TSVs on nearby metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) devices and metal interconnects is also characterized by means of electrical tests. The results show that the fabricated TSV is robust and that the presence of TSV does not pose significant impact on the performance of MOSFET as long as they are sufficiently distanced from each other.
Roux-en-Y gastric bypass reverses the effects of diet-induced obesity to inhibit the responsiveness of central vagal motoneurones

Diet-induced obesity (DIO) has been shown to alter the biophysical properties and pharmacological responsiveness of vagal afferent neurones and fibres, although the effects of DIO on central vagal neurones or vagal efferent functions have never been investigated. The aims of this study were to investigate whether high-fat diet-induced DIO also affects the properties of vagal efferent motoneurones, and to investigate whether these effects were reversed following weight loss induced by Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were made from rat dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV) neurones in thin brainstem slices. The DMV neurones from rats exposed to high-fat diet for 12-14 weeks were less excitable, with a decreased membrane input resistance and decreased ability to fire action potentials in response to direct current pulse injection. The DMV neurones were also less responsive to superfusion with the satiety neuropeptides cholecystokinin and glucagon-like peptide 1. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass reversed all of these DIO-induced effects. Diet-induced obesity also affected the morphological properties of DMV neurones, increasing their size and dendritic arborization; RYGB did not reverse these morphological alterations. Remarkably, independent of diet, RYGB also reversed age-related changes of membrane properties and occurrence of charybdotoxin-sensitive (BK) calcium-dependent potassium current. These results demonstrate that DIO also affects the properties of central autonomic neurones by decreasing the membrane excitability and pharmacological responsiveness of central vagal motoneurones and that these changes were reversed following RYGB. In contrast, DIO-induced changes in morphological properties of DMV neurones were not reversed following gastric bypass surgery, suggesting that they may be due to diet, rather than obesity. These findings represent the first direct evidence for the plausible effect of RYGB to improve vagal neuronal health in the brain by reversing some effects of chronic high-fat diet as well as ageing. Vagovagal neurocircuits appear to remain open to modulation and adaptation throughout life, and understanding of these mechanisms may help in development of novel interventions to alleviate environmental (e.g. dietary) ailments and also alter neuronal ageing.
Soliton Stars and the Cosmic X-ray Background

Properties and origin of soliton stars are explored. Evolution of soliton stars in early universe is discussed. A large amount of matter in the Universe could be irreversibly locked inside soliton stars. Soliton stars are efficient energy converters. Models based on the simplest soliton structure (with no net quantum numbers) indicate that soliton stars are possible intense X-ray sources at large red shifts.
Radiation dosimetry for NCT facilities at the Brookhaven Medical Research Reactor

Brookhaven Medical Research Reactor (BMRR) is a 3 mega-watt (MW) heterogeneous, tank-type, light water cooled and moderated, graphite reflected reactor, which was designed for medical and biological studies and became operational in 1959. Over time, the BMRR was modified to provide thermal and epithermal neutron beams suitable for research studies. NCT studies have been performed at both the epithermal neutron irradiation facility (ENIF) on the east side of the BMRR reactor core and the thermal neutron irradiation facility (TNIF) on the west side of the core.1 Neutron and gammaray dosimetry performed from 1994 to the present in both facilities are described and the results are presented and discussed.
Adapting cognitive interviewing for nursing research.

Cognitive interviewing (CI) has been used by instrument developers to examine how well an instrument generates the intended data when tested with prospective respondents. In using CI to test a new instrument to measure patients’ perceptions of the quality of nursing care, the authors found challenges in applying a theory-based traditional CI approach derived from experimental psychology to more clinically-oriented nursing research. The purposes of this article are to describe these challenges and the modifications of CI to capture the nursing care perspectives of hospitalized participants, and to present interpretive phenomenology as a theoretical orientation for clinically-situated CI.
Functional characterization of interstitial macrophages and subpopulations of alveolar macrophages from rat lung

The specific function of interstitial macro- phages (IM) in the lung is poorly understood because of difficulties in isolating these cells in high purity or large number. In the present studies, a pure population of en- zymatically isolated IM and lung macrophages obtained mechanically from the lung were compared functionally with alveolar macrophages recovered by lavage (AM). Macrophages isolated mechanically from the tissue and AM displayed similarly high levels of Fc-receptor mcdi- ated phagocytosis. In contrast, IM phagocytized significantly fewer opsonized sheep red blood cells per macrophage than AM. In addition, although some varia- tions in the amounts of nitric oxide and superoxide anion produced by AM and macrophages obtained by mechani- cal tissue disruption were observed, these subpopulations released significantly more of these mediators than IM. �These data support the concept that macrophages isolated by mechanical disruption of the tissue represent a sub- population of AM. We also found that, in contrast to AM, IM did not respond synergistically to combinations of IFN-'y and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or tumor necrosis factor a in terms of nitric oxide production. Furthermore, regulation of superoxide anion release in AM and IM by LPS and/or IFN-'y was distinct. Taken together, these studies demonstrate that IM are functionally different from other macrophage subpopulations which might reflect their unique location within the lung. J. Leukoc. Biol. 55: 141-146; 1994.