cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impact of Surgical Approach in Double Lung Transplantation: Median Sternotomy Decreases Operative and Cardiopulmonary Bypass Time Compared to Clamshell Thoracotomy

Purpose Double lung transplantation (DLT) remains the gold standard for end-stage lung disease. While DLT was historically performed via clamshell thoracotomy, recently the median sternotomy has emerged as a viable alternative. As the ideal surgical approach remains unclear, the aim of our study was to compare the short and long-term outcomes of these two surgical approaches in DLT. Methods We retrospectively reviewed 192 consecutive adult patients who underwent primary DLT at our institution between 2012 and 2017 (Sternotomy, n=147; Clamshell, n=45). The impact of each surgical approach on post-transplant morbidity and overall survival probability analysis was performed. Results There were no significant differences in recipients’ baseline and donors’ characteristics and bilateral allograft ischemic time (Table). Freedom from primary graft dysfunction, acute rejection episode, post-operative prolonged ventilator support, tracheostomy, postoperative stroke, and airway dehiscence was comparable between these two groups (p=NS for all). However, the durations of cardiopulmonary bypass (p=0.01) and operative time (p Conclusion The median sternotomy approach in DLT decreases operative time and more importantly leads to a shorter duration of cardiopulmonary bypass. The type of surgical approach did not show any statistically significant impact on adult DLT recipients’ morbidity and survival probability.
A Bayesian learning algorithm of discrete variables for automatically mining irregular features of pattern images

Multimedia data mining often involves difficult problems where knowledge about patterns should be extracted automatically from datasets. It is also a critical task in pattern recognition systems to automatically extract highly irregular features of pattern images#1, especially when these features (e.g. structural features of unconstrained handwritten characters, video objects, etc.) can hardly be described in a quantitative way. In this paper we propose an image mining algorithm for irregular feature extraction. This algorithm is based on learning belief networks of pattern image pixels, each of which is regarded as a discrete variable with a limited number of states. The probability of belief network, i.e. Bayesian metric, is chosen to measure the associations between image pixels and the pattern image category. A heuristic algorithm is designated to learn the ψ-structure of belief network, where clusters of "equivalent" pixels are regarded as the irregular features. We test the algorithm on both simulated data and real data (i.e. unconstrained handwritten characters). For simulated data, the algorithm can successfully discover the probabilistic associations implied by the ground truth mask. In the character feature extraction experiments, a hierarchy of statistically optimal feature vectors is obtained by averaging the pixel clusters over many independent experiments. The irregular features' soundness is verified with neural classifiers. Our results show that the heuristic Bayesian learning algorithm can produce significantly better features than the multi-layer perceptron, learning vector quantization network, sparse trace neural network, and simple template matching method.
Effects of honeycomb core damage on the performance of composite sandwich structures

This work presents an experimental and numerical investigation of the effects of pre-existing core damage on aluminum honeycomb core composite sandwich structures. Quasi static flexural and compres...
Experiences With Counterfeit Aesthetic Medical Devices and Injectables: A National Survey.

BACKGROUND Counterfeit medical devices and injectables have recently garnered interest in the field of aesthetics. Unlike their original counterparts, these counterfeit products have neither been tested nor verified using certified quality control measures. OBJECTIVE Our study investigated the pervasiveness of counterfeit products in the field as well as the experiences and attitudes of practitioners. MATERIALS AND METHODS An online survey was distributed to current members of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) and the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery (ASLMS). RESULTS For medical devices, 37.4% have encountered counterfeits and 20.1% have experienced patients with adverse events from them. For injectables, 41.1% have encountered counterfeits and 39.7% have experienced patients with adverse events from them. Compared with their original, most respondents believe that counterfeits are worse in terms of reliability, safety, and effectiveness. The majority also believe that counterfeits are either very or extremely endangering to patient safety. CONCLUSION Counterfeit medical devices and injectables are not uncommonly encountered. Overall, practitioners believe counterfeits are endangering patient safety and result in adverse events and think that either stricter rules and regulations or better enforcement of existing regulations is necessary.
Missed acute coronary syndrome during telephone triage at out-of-hours primary care: lessons from a case-control study.

BACKGROUND Serious adverse events (SAE) at out-of-hours services in primary care (OHS-PC) are rare. It most often concerns missed acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Root cause analyses highlighted errors in the triage process, but these analyses are hampered by hindsight bias. AIM To compare triage calls at the OHS-PC of missed ACS with matched controls with chest discomfort but without a missed ACS; and to assess predictors of missed ACS. METHOD A case-control study with triage recordings of calls of a missed ACS registered between 2013-2017. Controls were from the same period. Cases were matched 1:8 with controls based on age and gender. Clinical, patient and call characteristics were assessed, and 15 expert GPs rated the triage safety and quality, being blinded to the final diagnosis. We applied conditional logistic regression analysis. RESULTS Fifteen missed ACS calls and 120 matched control calls were included. Cases used less cardiovascular medication (38.5% versus 64.1%, P = 0.05), and more often experienced retrosternal chest pain (63.3% versus 24.7%, P = 0.02) than controls. Consultation of the supervising GP (86.7% versus 49.2%, P = 0.02) occurred more often in cases than controls. Experts rated the triage of cases more often as 'poor' (33.3% versus 10.9%, P = 0.001), and 'unsafe' (73.3% versus 22.5%, P<0.001) than that of controls. CONCLUSION It seems nearly impossible to differentiate missed ACS at the OHS-PC from others with chest discomfort based on symptom presentation.
Myocardial damage assessed by late gadolinium enhancement on cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging in cancer patients treated with anthracyclines and/or trastuzumab.

Aims In cancer patients with cardiomyopathy related to anthracyclines and/or trastuzumab, data regarding late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) on cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging are confusing. The prevalence ranges from 0% to 30% and the patterns are ill-defined. Whether treatment with anthracyclines and/or trastuzumab is associated with LGE is unclear. We aimed to investigate these topics in a large cohort of consecutive cancer patients with suspected cardiotoxicity from anthracyclines and/or trastuzumab. Methods and results We studied 298 patients, analysed the prevalence, patterns, and correlates of LGE, and determined their causes. We compared the findings with those from 100 age-matched cancer patients who received neither anthracyclines nor trastuzumab. Amongst those who received anthracyclines and/or trastuzumab, 31 (10.4%) had LGE. It had a wide range of extent (3.9-34.7%) and locations. An ischaemic pattern was present in 20/31 (64.5%) patients. There was an alternative explanation for the non-ischaemic LGE in 7/11 (63.6%) patients. In the age-matched patients who received neither anthracyclines nor trastuzumab, the prevalence of LGE was higher at 27.0%, while the extent of LGE and the proportion with ischaemic pattern were not different. Conclusion LGE was present in only a minority. Its patterns and locations did not fit into a single unique profile. It had alternative explanations in virtually all cases. Finally, LGE was also present in cancer patients who received neither anthracyclines nor trastuzumab. Therefore, treatment with anthracyclines and/or trastuzumab is unlikely to be associated with LGE. The absence of LGE can help distinguish anthracycline- and/or trastuzumab-related cardiomyopathy from unrelated cardiomyopathies.
Trauma Symptoms and Relationship Satisfaction: An Examination of Self and Partner Contribution in Dual-Trauma Outpatient Clinical Couples

Using a sample of 107 clinical couples in which both had experienced childhood trauma, the study investigated if and to what extent each spouse’s trauma symptoms and relationship satisfaction were ...
What is the burden of proof for tumor mutational burden in gliomas

The treatment of patients with a variety of solid tumors has benefitted from immune checkpoint inhibition targeting the anti-programmed cell death-1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) axis. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval of PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with TMB-high (TMB-H), solid tumors that have progressed following prior treatment and who have no other treatment options, including the extension to tumors of the Central Nervous System (CNS). In general, pan-cancer approvals are viewed positively to empower patients and clinicians. There are subsets (eg, BRAF, NTRK) for which this pathway for approval is appropriate. However, the pan-cancer FDA approval of pembrolizumab raises several concerns regarding the generalizability of the evidence to other tumor types, including managing patients with gliomas and other CNS tumors. The cut off for TMB-H is not well defined. There are intrinsic immunological differences between gliomas and other cancers types, including the immunosuppressive glioma microenvironment, the tumor's effects on systemic immune function, and the transformation of the T cell populations to an exhausted phenotype in glioma. Here we address the caveats with pan-cancer approvals concerning gliomas, complexities of the unique CNS immune environment, and discuss potential predictive biomarkers, including TMB, and explain why the recent approval should be applied with caution in CNS tumors.
Using Scouting Reports Text To Predict NCAA → NBA Performance

Draft decisions by National Basketball Association (NBA) teams are notoriously poor. Analytics can help but are often dismissed for being too overfit, complex, risky, and incomplete. To address the...
Selected Topics in the Pathology of the Thyroid and Parathyroid Glands in Children and Adolescents

The goals of this chapter in keeping with the overall general themes of this special edition will be (1) to highlight aspects of development of the thyroid and parathyroid glands with particular focus on the role and contribution of the neural crest (or not) and how this may impact on the pathology that is seen, (2) to emphasize those lesions particularly more commonly arising in the pediatric population that actually generate specimens that the surgical pathologist would encounter, and (3) highlight more in depth specific lesions associated with heritable syndromes or specific gene mutations since the heritable syndromes tends to manifest in the pediatric age group. In this light, the other interesting areas of pediatric thyroid disease including medical thyroid diseases, congenital hypothyroidism, anatomic variants and aberrations of development that lead to structural anomalies will not be emphasized here.
3D Printing Carbonaceous Objects from Polyimide Pyrolysis

Fully aromatic polyimides are amenable to efficient carbonization in thin two-dimensional (2D) films due to a complement of aromaticity and planarity of backbone repeating units. However, repeating...
Assessing COVID prevention strategies to permit the safe opening of college campuses in fall 2021

ABSTRACT Background Effective vaccines, improved testing technologies, and declines in COVID-19 incidence prompt an examination of the choices available to college administrators to safely resume in-person campus activities in fall 2021. Objective To develop a decision support tool that assists college administrators in designing and evaluating customized COVID vaccination, screening, and prevention plans. Design Decision analysis linked to a compartmental epidemic model, quantifying the interaction of policy instruments (e.g., vaccination promotion, asymptomatic testing, physical distancing, and other non-pharmaceutical interventions), institutional priorities (e.g., risk tolerance, desire to resume activities), and assumptions about vaccine performance and background epidemic severity. Participants Hypothetical cohort of 5000 individuals (students, faculty, and staff) living and working in the close environs of a residential college campus. Main Outcome(s) and Measure(s) Cumulative infections over a 120-day semester. Results Under Base Case assumptions, if 90% coverage with an 85%-effective vaccine can be attained, the model finds that campus activities can be fully resumed while holding cumulative cases below 5% of the population without the need for routine, asymptomatic testing. With 50% population coverage using such a vaccine, a similar “return to normalcy” would require daily asymptomatic testing of unvaccinated individuals. The effectiveness of vaccination in reducing susceptibility to infection is a critical uncertainty. Conclusions & Relevance Vaccination coverage is the most powerful tool available to college administrators to achieve a safe return to pre-pandemic operations this fall. Given the breadth of potential outcomes in the face of uncontrollable and uncertain factors, even colleges that achieve high vaccination coverage should be prepared to reinstitute testing and distancing policies on short notice.
RF Hardware Design for 5G mm-Wave and 6G Revolutions: Challenges and Opportunities

The millimeter-wave (mm-Wave) 5G hardware design requirements are considerably tougher to meet compared to their sub-6 GHz 5G counterparts, especially on the stringent power efficiency, linearity, bandwidth and cost. For the next generation 6G that utilizes Terahertz (THz) communication, its hardware design specs are expected to be even more challenging, putting a tremendous amount of pressure on the RF hardware design communities. In this paper, we will highlight some key challenges and opportunities on mm-Wave 5G and 6G hardware design for the upcoming 5G/6G revolutions.
Head and Neck Quality of Life Assessment and Outcomes Research

Head and neck cancer and its treatment can be both debilitating and disfiguring. There is an undeniable impact on function, appearance, and pain, with potentially devastating consequences for nutrition, communication, and social interaction. Because of this impact, head and neck cancer treatment outcomes must center not only on survival, but also on quality of life (QOL). Whereas survival or disease-free survival can be mathematically straightforward measurements, QOL is more difficult to characterize and to measure. A QOL outcomes monitoring system for head and neck cancer and treatment requires tools that are valid and reliable, and that also address broad constructs of general health as well as those specific to the head and neck region.
A semantic importing approach to knowledge reuse from multiple ontologies

We present the syntax and semantics of a modular ontology language SHOIQP to support context-specific reuse of knowledge from multiple ontologies. A SHOIQP ontology consists of multiple ontology modules (each of which can be viewed as a SHOIQ ontology) and concept, role and nominal names can be shared by "importing" relations among modules. SHOIQP supports contextualized interpretation, i.e., interpretation from the point of view of a specific package. We establish the necessary and sufficient constraints on domain relations (i.e., the relations between individuals in different local domains) to preserve the satisfiability of concept formulae, monotonicity of inference, and transitive reuse of knowledge.
We are going to shop till we drop

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how Chanel, the world famous cosmetics and clothing marketer, has enjoyed uncommon success, not only in its native France, but elsewhere as well, especially Japan. What is the formula for success in this country?Design/methodology/approach – A review of the literature has been undertaken in an effort to understand the success of Chanel in the Japanese marketplace.Findings – The success of Chanel in Japan clearly demonstrates that an understanding of a marketplace combined with classic marketing strategy principles including the marketing mix elements of product, price, promotion and distribution can lead to a brand's success in the international arena.Research limitations/implications – Though there are several universal marketing “truths” presented in this paper, a caution must be noted when generalizing from one company to a universe of firms.Practical implications – This paper provides an excellent example of how classic marketing strategy as taught in ...
Species richness and allometric scaling jointly determine biomass in model aquatic food webs

1. Allometric theory makes specific predictions about how density, and consequently biomass, scale with organism size within trophic levels, across trophic levels and across food webs. 2. Diversity-yield relationships suggest that more diverse food webs can sometimes support more biomass through mechanisms involving niche complementarity or selection effects that are sometimes attributed to organism size. 3. We combine the above two approaches and show that, generally, density and biomass scale with organism size within and between trophic levels as predicted by allometric theory. Further, food webs converged in total biomass despite persistent differences in the composition and size of the organisms among food webs; species richness explained deviations from the constant yield of biomass expected from size-abundance relationships. 4. Our results suggest that organism size plays only a transient role in controlling community biomass because population increases or decreases lead to rapid convergence in biomass. Species richness affects community biomass independently by effectively increasing the mass of organisms that can be supported in a given productivity regime.
Basic Issues in Lagrangian Optimization

These lecture notes review the basic properties of Lagrange multipliers and constraints in problems of optimization from the perspective of how they influence the setting up of a mathematical model and the solution technique that may be chosen. Conventional problem formulations with equality and inequality constraints are discussed first, and Lagrangian optimality conditions are presented in a general form which accommodates range constraints on the variables without the need for introducing constraint functions for such constraints. Particular attention is paid to the distinction between convex and nonconvex problems and how convexity can be recognized and taken advantage of.
Sarcoplasmic reticulum. XI. The mode of involvement of phospholipids in the hydrolysis of ATP by sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes.

Abstract The mode of involvement of phospholipids in the hydrolysis of ATP and the transport of Ca 2+ by sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes was studied using various phospholipases for the controlled degradation of microsomal membrane phospholipids. The hydrolysis of microsomal phospholipids by phospholipase A from Crotalus terr. terr . (EC 3.1.1.4) and by phospholipase C enzymes isolated from Clostridium welchii (EC 3.1.4.3) and from Bac. cereus inhibits the hydrolysis of adenosine-5′-triphosphate without comparable inhibition of the formation of phosphoprotein intermediate. The observations are consistent with a strict requirement for membrane phospholipids in the decomposition of phosphoprotein.
Optimizing the MLC model parameters for IMRT in the RayStation treatment planning system

Unlike other commercial treatment planning systems (TPS) which model the rounded leaf end differently (such as the MLC dosimetric leaf gap (DLG) or rounded leaf-tip radius), the RayStation TPS (RaySearch Laboratories, Stockholm, Sweden) models transmission through the rounded leaf end of the MLC with a step function, in which the radiation transmission through the leaf end is the square root of the average MLC transmission factor. We report on the optimization of MLC model parameters for the RayStation planning system. This (TPS) models the rounded leaf end of the MLC with the following parameters: eaf-tip offset, leaf-tip width, average transmission factor, and tongue and groove. We optimized the MLC model parameters for IMRT in the RayStation v. 4.0 planning system and for a Varian C-series linac with a 120-leaf Millennium MLC, and validated the model using measured data. The leaf-tip offset is the geometric offset due to the rounded leaf-end design and resulting divergence of the light/radiation field. The offset value is a function of the leaf-tip position, and tabulated data are available from the vendor. The leaf-tip width was iteratively evaluated by comparing computed and measured transverse dose profiles of MLC defined fields at dmax in water. In-water profile comparisons were also used to verify the MLC leaf position (leaf-tip offset). The average transmission factor and leaf tongue-and-groove width were derived iteratively by maximizing the agreement between measurements and RayStation TPS calculations for five clinical IMRT QA plans. Plan verifications were performed by comparing MapCHECK2 measurements and Monte Carlo calculations. The MLC model was validated using five test IMRT cases from the AAPM Task Group 119 report. Absolute gamma analyses (3 mm/3% and 2 mm/2%) were applied. In addition, computed output factors for MLC-defined small fields (2 × 2, 3 × 3, 4 × 4, 6× 6cm2) of both 6 MV and 18 MV photons were compared to those independently measured by the Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core (IROC), Houston, TX. 6MV and 18 MV models were both determined to have the same MLC parameters: leaf-tip offset = 0.3 cm, 2.5% transmission, and leaf tongue-and-groove width = 0.05 cm. IMRT QA analysis for five test cases in TG-119 resulted in a 100% passing rate with 3 mm/3% gamma analysis for 6 MV, and > 97.5% for 18 MV. The passing rate was > 94.6% for 6 MV and > 90.9% for 18 MV when the 2 mm/2% gamma analysis criteria was applied. These results compared favorably with those published in AAPM Task Group 119. The reported MLC model parameters serve as a reference for other users.
Condition Monitoring of Wind Power System With Nonparametric Regression Analysis

Condition monitoring helps reduce the operations and maintenance costs by providing information about the physical condition of wind power systems. This study proposes to use a statistical method for effective condition monitoring. The turbine operation is significantly affected by external weather conditions. We model the wind turbine response as a function of weather variables, using a nonparametric regression method named least squares support vector regression. In practice, online condition monitoring of wind power systems often relies on datasets contaminated with outliers. This study proposes to use a weighted version of least squares support vector regression that provides a formal procedure for removing the outlier effects. We determine the decision boundaries to distinguish faulty conditions from normal conditions by examining the variations in the operational responses that are significantly affected by external weather. The results show that the proposed method effectively detects anomalies.
Hybrid least-squares methods for reinforcement learning

Model-free Least-Squares Policy Iteration (LSPI) method has been successfully used for control problems in the context of reinforcement learning. LSPI is a promising algorithm that uses linear approximator architecture to achieve policy optimization in the spirit of Q-learning. However it faces challenging issues in terms of the selection of basis functions and training sample. Inspired by orthogonal Least-Squares regression method for selecting the centers of RBF neural network, a new hybrid learning method for LSPI is proposed in this paper. The suggested method uses simulation as a tool to guide the "feature configuration" process. The results on the learning control of Cart-Pole system illustrate the effectiveness of the presented method.
VARIATIONS IN INFANT DEVELOPMENT AND RESPONSE TO MATERNAL LOSS IN MONKEYS

Sustained physical contact between animals characterizes bonnet but not pigtail monkey groups. This pattern encourages maternal permissiveness and enhances social orientation in infants. Moreover, pigtail infants show depression and behavioral debilitation after maternal loss, whereas bonnets are often adopted by others and suffer minimal affective and behavioral changes.
An Exit Strategy for Measles Virus

The causative agent of measles is one of the most infectious viruses known—each infected person can transmit the virus to 15 to 20 susceptible individuals. Identification of the cell adhesion molecule nectin-4 as an epithelial cell receptor for measles virus ( 1 , 2 ) provides insight into how this high rate of transmission is achieved.
Biology of Human Alkaline Phosphatases with Special Reference to Cancer

AbstractThe current information on the cloning and sequencing of four alkaline phosphatase genes (PLAP, GCAP, LAP, TNAP) has been reviewed. It has provided insights into their evolutionary history and the mechanisms of catalysis and of uncompetitive inhibition. The oncodevelopmental biology of the germ cell and its excessive GCAP eutopic expression in neoplasia are noted, and there is reason to suggest that the enzyme may serve to guide migratory cells and to transport specific molecules such as fat and immunoglobulins across membranes. The hyperexpression of all four genes has been observed in various human tumors and in their cell lines, particularly cancers of the testis and ovary. The membrane APs have been investigated as targets for immunolocalization and immunotherapy.
Comparative outcomes of laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding in adolescents and adults

Abstract Background Obesity is a major health problem in all age groups. Morbidly obese adolescents often fail to lose weight with diet and exercise and, as adults, become candidates for surgical intervention. Methods We matched adolescents (14–19 yr) and adults (19–73 yr) retrospectively from university medical center-based adolescent and adult obesity surgery programs who had undergone laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding by gender and body mass index (n = 115). Results The most common co-morbid condition in adolescents was menstrual irregularity/polycystic ovary syndrome. Hypertension was the most common co-morbid condition in adults. The adults were nearly 9 times as likely to be diabetic as the adolescents. We analyzed patients with ≥6 months of follow-up for the percentage of excess weight loss at 6-month intervals for ≤24 months. Both groups demonstrated progressive weight loss that did not differ significantly in the initial 12 months; however, the data beyond 12 months were limited by the small numbers. Conclusion The presence of more serious co-morbidities in obese adults, coupled with the successful weight loss after laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding, in adolescents suggests that weight loss surgery might be indicated at a younger age for severely obese individuals.
DICARBOXYLIC ACIDS AS UNCOUPLERS IN REYE'S SYNDROME

A general impairment of liver mitochondrial enzymes is central to Reye's Syndrome(RS). The effect of RS serum from 8 patients in profound coma on respiration of isolated liver mitochondria was measured with 2.5mg of mitochondrial protein, 3mM substrates, and 5x concentrated serum. RS serum stimulates respiration(1.05± .14 nmol O2/min/mg protein, control .30± .08). This effect is due to: 1.)oxidation of uric acid by microsomes contaminating the preparation, 2.)fatty acids providing substrate, 3.)uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation by 30-40%. The amount of uncoupling is additive, correlates with the amount of free fatty acids in the serum but is not inhibited by 1% defatted albumin as is oleate added to normal serum. The degree of stimulation/mcg of fatty acid is distinct from that of oleate or octanoate added to normal serum. RS serum stimulates respiration in the presence of antimycin and 3mM ascorbate by 80-149%: oleate+ normal serum causes a 0-10% increase. 3mM medium chain dicarboxylic acids are not readily bound to 1% albumin and induce a 90-105% increase in antimycin/ascorbate respiration; they require intact mitochondria and exogenous substrate. Dicarboxylic acids are markedly elevated (1-3mg/mg creatinine, N=12; controls<.10, N=40) in urine from our RS patients and unusual long and unsaturated dicarboxylic acids were reported in the serum of 2 RS patients (Amer. Soc. Mass. Spec. 31:98, 1983). Thus, dicarboxylic acids act as uncouplers and may be important in the general impairment of mitochondrial function in RS and other disorders where large amounts of dicarboxylic acids are present.
Identification of a novel member in the family Albulidae (bonefishes).

A novel Caribbean species Albula sp. cf. vulpes in the family Albulidae (bonefishes) was diagnosed through genetic and morphometric study. Phylogenies derived from 16S rRNA sequences revealed deeply separated lineages among Caribbean bonefishes. Mitochondrial DNA sequence divergences indicated a separation between 3·0 and 5·2 million years before present (b.p.). Cytochrome b phylogenies further supported the classification of A. sp. cf. vulpes as a novel albulid. Morphological variability revealed several differences between A. sp. cf. vulpes and other Caribbean species. A microsatellite library was developed to discern hybridization rates among the species. Microsatellite analyses revealed low levels of hybridization between some members in the complex. One instance of backcrossing was found between A. vulpes×A. sp. B and a pure A. sp. B, indicating that hybrids may have reduced fitness or may be reproductively isolated due to temporal–spatial spawning habitat differences.
Numerical approximation of optimal control of fluid equations with buoyancy

The numerical approximation of an optimal control problem involving the Burgers' equation coupled with a heat equation is considered. The numerical scheme couples the finite element method with an iterative scheme based on a fixed point theorem to solve the partial differential equations. Introducing finite dimensional admissible control sets, we are able to solve numerically the optimal control problem. Convergence is proved utilizing the regularity result of the optimal controls established in [1].
The first structure-activity relationship studies for designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs.

Over the past decade, two independent technologies have emerged and been widely adopted by the neuroscience community for remotely controlling neuronal activity: optogenetics which utilize engineered channelrhodopsin and other opsins, and chemogenetics which utilize engineered G protein-coupled receptors (Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs (DREADDs)) and other orthologous ligand–receptor pairs. Using directed molecular evolution, two types of DREADDs derived from human muscarinic acetylcholine receptors have been developed: hM3Dq which activates neuronal firing, and hM4Di which inhibits neuronal firing. Importantly, these DREADDs were not activated by the native ligand acetylcholine (ACh), but selectively activated by clozapine N-oxide (CNO), a pharmacologically inert ligand. CNO has been used extensively in rodent models to activate DREADDs, and although CNO is not subject to significant metabolic transformation in mice, a small fraction of CNO is apparently metabolized to clozapi...
Non-Cardiac Surgery After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Perioperative management of patients after percutaneous coronary intervention presents physicians with unique challenges and dilemmas. Although newer generation drug-eluting stents, transcatheter-based therapies, and minimally invasive surgical techniques have changed the medical landscape, guidelines for managing perioperative patients after percutaneous intervention are based largely on expert opinion and inconsistent data from an earlier era. In conclusion, the aims of this review are to summarize the data pertinent to managing patients after percutaneous coronary intervention in the perioperative period and to explore future perspectives.
Application of Reference Data for Assessing and Restoring Headwater Ecosystems

Attributes of 25 headwater streams and their associated wetlands were quantitatively sampled in the inner coastal plain of eastern North Carolina. Data from these sites were used to construct and test one functional assessment model (biogeochemical cycling) using the hydrogeomorphic (HGM) approach. Of the 25 sites sampled, 16 unaltered sites were used to establish standards against which field indicators could be compared (indexed). Nine altered sites were used to examine the sensitivity of the model to assess the types of alterations typically inflicted upon headwater ecosystems in eastern North Carolina: channelization, logging, construction of cross-floodplain ditches to shunt water directly from uplands to the main stream channel, and conversion of stream floodplains and buffer zones to cropland. Of 30 field indicators measured that potentially could be used to model alterations to hydrologic regime and biomass stocks, we found six were robust in assessing conditions related to biogeochemical cycling. Hydrologic indicators used in the model included: (1) presence/absence of channelization, (2) presence/absence of cross-floodplain ditches, and (3) a measure of buffer condition (using width and quality). Biomass indicators included: (4) total basal area of trees, (5) percent litter cover, and (6) volume of coarse woody debris. Our preliminary biogeochemical cycling model using these six variables was sensitive to alterations in nine altered sites and to a suite of hypothetical restorations of the most altered site. However, in order to improve accuracy of our preliminary model, it should be validated with studies designed to measure how alterations of various types and magnitudes affect biogeochemical processes.
Using an E-Mail Exchange To Promote Cultural Learning.

Abstract: This study describes an intercultural e-mail exchange at the college level. Students in a beginning Spanish class in the United States and an intermediate English as a second language class in Mexico corresponded weekly for one semester. The U.S. students also wrote reflective papers and completed surveys before and after the exchange regarding their attitudes toward their own and Mexican cultures and their perceptions of the exchange itself. Quantitative and qualitative data from these papers and surveys are presented and discussed. Although students recognized the limited amount they were able to learn in one semester, they responded positively to the exchange and felt that their attitudes toward and perceptions about Mexican culture were influenced by the experience. Suggestions for implementing electronic exchanges are offered.
Is open stabilization superior to arthroscopic stabilization for the treatment of recurrent traumatic anterior shoulder instability?: Commentary on an article by Nicholas G.H. Mohtadi, MD, MSc, FRCSC, et al.: "A randomized clinical trial comparing open and arthroscopic stabilization for recurrent traumatic anterior shoulder instability. Two-year follow-up with disease-specific quality-of-life outcomes".

A recent analysis of data from the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery (ABOS) Certification Examination revealed that the use of open Bankart repair for glenohumeral dislocation is declining1. Indeed, the authors of several recent reports have suggested that arthroscopic stabilization for recurrent traumatic anterior shoulder instability with use of modern techniques yields similar recurrence rates to that of open stabilization2-4. Mohtadi et al. called this idea into question and provided evidence to the contrary in a well-powered prospective randomized trial. These authors compared arthroscopic and open stabilization in a large group of patients with recurrent traumatic anterior glenohumeral instability. A particular strength of the study was the matching of surgeons according to …
Development of a Patient-Reported Outcome Measure for Recurrent or Metastatic Head-and-Neck Cancer

However, a significant percentage of these patients have persistent or recurrent disease and undergo salvage surgery as a secondary curative option. Surgery after radiation or chemoradiation is, however, associated with significantly higher morbidity rates when compared with primary surgical intervention. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) has been widely studied in the area of wound healing with promising results in the prevention of osteoradionecrosis, treatment of diabetic wounds and improved tissue perfusion in previously irradiated tissue. However, the evidence supporting the efficacy of its use for the prevention of post-operative wound complications in the area of salvage surgery remains limited. The primary objective of the study is to assess the efficacy of HBOT in the prevention of post-operative complications within the study population. Materials/Methods: 175 patients who underwent a clean-contaminated head and neck procedure following previous radiation or chemoradiation treatment for head and neck cancer from January 2006 to June 2013 were identified at a large academic tertiary care center. 134 of these patients did not receive post-operative HBOT and were designated for the control cohort. 41 patients received prophylactic post-operative HBOT and were designated for the study cohort. Patient co-morbidities, clinicopathologic data, and morbidity outcomes were analyzed. Results: The control and study cohorts were statistically matched in age, gender, history of previous chemotherapy, and time between completion of radiation therapy and surgical intervention. The overall rates of surgical complications in the control and study cohorts were 43% and 48%, respectively (p Z 0.59). The rates of major surgical complications, which resulted in significant morbidity or increased hospital stay to the patient, were 21% and 22% in the control and study cohorts, respectively (p Z 0.78). Similarly, the length of hospital stay (p Z 0.88), need for additional surgical intervention (p Z 0.13) and hospital re-admission rates (p Z 0.66) were not statistically different between the two groups. The 2-year overall survival in the control cohort was 40% and 36% in the study cohort. Conclusions: Prophylactic HBOT following salvage surgery does not decrease rates of postoperative complications, length of hospital stay or need for additional surgical intervention. Author Disclosure: A. Marcinow: None. T. Teknos: None. A. Agrawal: None. E. Ozer: None. R. Carrau: None. D. Schuller: None. M. Old: None.
Mechanism of o-phenanthroline mediated inhibition of E. coli DNA polymerase I: Formation of template-primer-metal-phenanthroline complexes with resultant loss of catalytic activity

Abstract Inhibition of E. coli DNA polymerase I activity by 1,10 phenanthroline in the absence of reducing agents requires a high concentration of inhibitor (1–10 mM) depending upon the template primer used to direct the synthesis. We find that o-phenanthroline, unlike its non-chelating analogue, forms a divalent cation mediated complex with template-primers. Enzyme bound to such complexes is unable to catalyse either polymerization or nuclease functions.
Galvanomagnetic effects in amorphous film alloys

Measurements of the spontaneous Hall effect and magnetization of a series of rare earth-transition metal amorphous film alloys fit a model that the Hall asymmetric scattering is simply the sum of the Hall angles of the alloy components. Alloys of the form Gd .2 (TM) .8 where TM is Mn, Fe, Co or Ni show a maximum of \rho_{H}/\rho the Hall angle, (where ρ H is the Hall resistivity and ρ the sample resistivity) for Gd .2 (TM) .8 of 6%. We find that other rare earth elements have lower \rho_{H}/\rho ratios than Gd and that Nd-Fe alloys exhibit a smaller \rho_{H}/\rho than Gd-Fe because the Nd moments are in an disordered state. Of the alloys studied Gd .2 (TM) .8 is suitable for a Hall sensor because R s the spontaneous Hall coefficient ( \rho_{H} = R_{s}4\piM ) is also large, approximately 10-2μΩcm/G. This is because Gd .2 Fe .8 is a nearly compensated ferrimagnet and 4\piM is low. The anisotropic magnetoresistance in rare earth-transition metal alloys is about 0.1 to 0.2% and does not scale with ρ. The Corbino disc type magnetoresistance is found to be smaller than expected because in the demagnetized state magnetic domains remain effective Hall scatterers.
Polylactides: properties and prospects of an environmentally benign plastic from renewable resources

Pressing environmental and economic concerns dictate the need to develop new synthetic macromolecules based on renewable resources. The vast majority of existing materials are based on non-renewable fossil resources that will eventually be extinguished. Manufacturing synthetic polymers and disposal by incineration produces CO 2 and contributes to global warming. For these reasons, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) polymers are of increasing commercial interest because they are derived from a renewable resources, sequester significant quantities of carbon dioxide relative to petrochemical based materials, conserve energy, and easily degrade. The mechanical properties of PLA are compared to other commodity plastics and it is shown that PLA closely resembles polystyrene. The effects of blending linear and branched chain architectures are discussed and it is shown that this provides a convenient method for controlling the elasticity and viscosity of the composite material without affecting mechanical or permeation properties. The melt rheology of high L content linear PLAs shows two unique features; they may be drawn to large Hencky strains without breaking and they exhibit considerable strain hardening. As a result, PLA is easily processed into fiber form. Due to the excellent combination of mechanical, rheological, and environmental properties, the prospects for widespread commercialization of PLA are excellent.
A generalized quadratic flow law for sheet metals

A planar quadratic flow law is proposed for anisotropic sheet materials. This law is similar to the anisotropic strength criterion of Tsai and Wu. It has six experimentally determinable coefficients as compared to four in Hill’s flow law and, thus, allows more experimental information to be accommodated. However, the resulting strain increment vector, while unique, is not necessarily normal to the flow surface.
SOCIAL JUSTICE AND FAMILY COURT REFORM

Creating a unified family court, or any type of family court reform, may have only a minimal impact if it simply changes the structure of how judges do business rather than addresses the structure of the child welfare system itself. The authors argue that family court reform must place social justice at its center. First, they discuss profound flaws in the child welfare system that make poor and minority families especially vulnerable to coercive state intervention. Second, they describe two approaches to child welfare cases–family systems theory and therapeutic justice–that can help to guide reform efforts directed at addressing these structural flaws. Finally, they suggest ways in which family law scholarship can assist in creating a social justice agenda for family court reform.
Trust, Voice, and Library 2.0.

Web 2.0 is a constant and growing theme in the library field. This article describes a social networking site based on a Web 2.0 infused course management system (CMS) developed by Clatsop Community College in Astoria, Oregon.
Parental self-esteem and behavior problems in children: similarities between mothers and fathers

The relationship between parental self-esteem and behavior problems in children was investigated using 1624 married couple's responses from the National Survey of Families and Households. The sample was weighted to be nationally representative in terms of race and ethnicity. It was hypothesized that the existence of behavior problems among children would be associated with low self-esteem among parents and that the parent's gender, child's gender, parents' gender role attitudes, and parental employment would moderate this relationship. The results indicated that parental self-esteem is negatively associated with behavior problems in children. However, none of the moderating variables had a significant impact. This suggests that the relationship between parental self-esteem and behavior problems among children is robust and does not vary appreciably with the gender of the parent, the gender of the child, the attitudes of the parent, or the employment of the parent.
Collaborative coupling of sensing and actuation: uncertainty beyond querying

This talk will present an opportunity for extending the role of spatio-temporal uncertainty beyond its traditional realm of data management. The main motivation is that, in practice, it is often the case that the devices that perform sensing/management are either within the same embedded system, or a closely coupled with the devices the perform actuation. However, the actuation (which typically implements some control logic) may have an additional impact on the system under consideration.
Analyzing large-scale spiking neural data with HRLAnalysis(™).

The additional capabilities provided by high-performance neural simulation environments and modern computing hardware has allowed for the modeling of increasingly larger spiking neural networks. This is important for exploring more anatomically detailed networks but the corresponding accumulation in data can make analyzing the results of these simulations difficult. This is further compounded by the fact that many existing analysis packages were not developed with large spiking data sets in mind. Presented here is a software suite developed to not only process the increased amount of spike-train data in a reasonable amount of time, but also provide a user friendly Python interface. We describe the design considerations, implementation and features of the HRLAnalysis suite. In addition, performance benchmarks demonstrating the speedup of this design compared to a published Python implementation are also presented. The result is a high-performance analysis toolkit that is not only usable and readily extensible, but also straightforward to interface with existing Python modules.
A Numerical Analysis on the System Impedance in a Fan Cooling System

To seek the fan operating point on a cooling system with fans, it is very important to determine the system impedance curve and it has been usually examined with the fan tester based on ASHRAE standard and AMCA standard. This leads to a large investment in time and cost, because it could not be executed until the system is made actually. Therefore it is necessary to predict the system impedance curve through numerical analysis so that we could reduce the measurement time and effort. This paper presents how the system impedance curve (pressure drop curve) is computed by CFD in substitute for experiment. In reverse order to the experimental principle of the fan tester, pressure difference was adopted first as inlet and outlet boundary conditions of the system and then flow rate was calculated. After determining the system impedance curve, it was compared with experimental results. Also the computational domain of the system was investigated to minimize computational time.Copyright © 2003 by ASME