cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Framework for Decision-Based Engineering Design

Engineering design is increasingly recognized as a decision-making process. This recognition brings with it the richness of many well-developed theories and methods from economics, operations research, decision sciences, and other disciplines. Done correctly, it forces the process of engineering design into a total systems context, and demands that design decisions account for a product's total life cycle, It also provides a theory of design that is based on a rigorous set of axioms that underlie value theory. But the rigor ofdecision-based design also places stringent conditions on the process of engineering design that eliminate popular approaches such as Quality Function Deployment. This paper presents the underlying notions of decision-based design, points to some of the axioms that underlie the theory of decision-based design, and discusses the consequences of the theory on engineering education.
Primary venous insufficiency increases risk of deep vein thrombosis.

Background Varicose veins have been recognized as a risk factor for deep vein thrombosis (DVT). However, venous reflux has not carried the same correlation. This study evaluated the association between primary valvular reflux and DVT. Methods We performed a nested case-control study with enrollment of outpatients presenting to the vascular laboratory with signs and symptoms of DVT. All patients had a complete bilateral venous duplex examination evaluating for DVT and superficial and deep venous valvular reflux. Eighty-seven patients with confirmed DVT on venous duplex were selected for the study group. The control group was randomly selected from the same cohort in a 4:1 ratio matched by age and gender (n = 348). Groups were compared for the prevalence of deep and superficial reflux. Results DVT outpatients were 4.7-times more likely to have primary valvular reflux than symptomatic controls (65.5% vs 29.0%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.8-7.7; P P = .005) and superficial reflux was 4.6-times more prevalent (43.7% vs 14.4%; odds ratio, 4.62; 95% CI, 2.75-7.77; P P = .044). Conclusions The prevalence of primary valvular reflux in patients with DVT is significantly higher than expected. Reflux may be considered as a novel risk factor for DVT. Two-thirds of patients with DVT have pre-existent primary chronic venous disease, which is likely to contribute to post-thrombotic morbidity.
Harm Reduction Outreach Services and Engagement of Chemically Dependent Homeless People Living with HIV/AIDS: An Analysis of Service Utilization Data to Evaluate Program Theory

This study examines service utilization patterns among a socially vulnerable population of homeless people living with HIV/AIDS and who have a history of chemical dependence, as they are engaged through outreach services. CitiWide Harm Reduction collaborates with Montefiore Medical Center to connect homeless people with health care through harm reduction outreach and low threshold medical services. Analysis of two cohorts – individuals engaged through harm reduction outreach and individuals who “walk-in” to engage in services at CitiWide Harm Reduction’s drop-in center – assesses the program’s theory that outreach engagement is a mediating variable increasing service utilization. These results demonstrate that low-threshold harm reduction outreach, a brand of outreach designed to reduce barriers to services, does increase access to health care and related services for a socially vulnerable, traditionally “hard-to-reach,” population. Harm reduction outreach is a valuable intervention for increasing service utilization among this highly marginalized group.
Effects of sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ load on the gain function of Ca2+ release by Ca2+ current in cardiac cells

We studied the effects of variable sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ loading on changes in the gain index of Ca2+ release from the SR, measured as the ratio of the amount of Ca2+ released to the magnitude of the Ca2+ current (ICa) integrated for the initial 20 ms of the depolarization, in whole cell voltage-clamped rat ventricular myocytes dialyzed with the Ca2+ indicator indo 1 salt at 23 degrees C. Changes in ICa were measured directly, and changes in the SR Ca2+ release were indexed by changes in the amplitudes and rates of rise of cytosolic Ca2+ (Ca2+i) transients. The SR Ca2+ load was graded by the duration of conditioning voltage-clamp steps and verified by caffeine-dependent Ca2+i transients. A train of abbreviated (from 100 to 20 ms) voltage-clamp depolarizations, which triggers SR Ca2+ release but fails to replenish the SR with Ca2+, diminished the SR Ca2+ load by 56 +/- 5%, did not alter peak ICa but reduced the amplitudes of the ICa-dependent Ca2+i transients by 52 +/- 3%, and decreased the gain index by 60 +/- 3% (SE; n = 5 or 6). Changes in the amplitudes of Ca2+i transients elicited by ICa and changes in the gain index were linearly correlated (r2 = 0.83 and 0.79, respectively; P < 0.001 for each) with changes in amplitudes of Ca2+i transients elicited by caffeine pulses applied in lieu of the respective voltage-clamp pulses.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Experiences with the New York State Bovine Leukosis Virus Eradication and Certification Program

The Diagnostic Laboratory at the Veterinary College at Cornell University has offered a bovine leukosis virus (BLV) eradication/certification program since 1985. The program has been popular with purebred breeders since its inception. Recently, many commercial dairymen have also begun participating to reduce the high incidence of clinical leukosis observed in their heavily infected herds. Eradication is achieved through a management and testing program designed to meet the needs of each farm. Over the years, experiences and observations have elucidated a number of factors that significantly affect the rate of progress and time required for a herd to become "BLV-Free."
The Variation in the Blood-Cell Count of Periplaneta Americana (L.) during a Molt

The total blood cell count of the American cockroach was examined by counting a large number of samples from individuals selected from a laboratory culture. The results indicate that the intraspecific variation is too great to establish a normal count which can be used as a basis for comparison to determine abnormalities caused by external factors. The data also show that there is a significant reduction in the blood cell population at the time of a molt which is followed by a very rapid recovery in cell numbers immediately after the skin is shed.
Geriatric Patients With Fractures Below the Hip are Medically Similar to Geriatric Patients With Hip Fracture

The objective of this study was to compare a cohort of geriatric patients with operatively managed isolated fractures below the hip to a cohort of geriatric patients with operatively managed isolated hip fractures. All patients greater than 59 years of age admitted to our institution for surgical care of an isolated lower extremity fracture during a 3-year period were included. Patients were divided into 2 cohorts: BTH (fracture below the subtrochanteric region of the femur) and HIP (proximal femoral fracture at subtrochanteric region or proximal). We identified 141 patients included in cohort BTH and 205 patients included in cohort HIP. HIP patients were older (P < .01) and less obese (P < .01) but were otherwise very similar. An extensive comorbidity review revealed that the 2 cohorts were similar, with the exception of an increased incidence of dementia (P = .012) or glaucoma (P = .04) in HIP patients and of peripheral neuropathy (P = .014) in BTH patients. HIP patients were more likely to be under active antiosteoporotic medication management and were more likely to be receiving pharmacological anticoagulation at the time of admission. HIP patients and BTH patients were similar with regard to necessity of assistance with ambulation preinjury, but HIP patients were less likely to reside independently at home than were BTH patients (P < .001). HIP patients were also less likely to be discharged directly home from the hospital (P < .001). Geriatric patients with fractures below the hip are medically similar to geriatric patients with hip fracture. Medical comanagement protocols have been extensively published that improve care of geriatric patients with hip fracture; consideration should be given to similar protocol-driven medical comanagement programs for geriatric patients with fractures below the hip.
Bismuth-Based, Disposable Sensor for the Detection of Hydrogen Sulfide Gas

A new sensor for the detection of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas has been developed to replace commercial lead(II) acetate-based test papers. The new sensor is a wet, porous, paper-like substrate coated with Bi(OH)3 or its alkaline derivatives at pH 11. In contrast to the neurotoxic lead(II) acetate, bismuth is used due to its nontoxic properties, as Bi(III) has been a reagent in medications such as Pepto-Bismol. The reaction between H2S gas and the current sensor produces a visible color change from white to yellow/brown, and the sensor responds to ≥30 ppb H2S in a total volume of 1.35 L of gas, a typical volume of human breath. The alkaline, wet coating helps the trapping of acidic H2S gas and its reaction with Bi(III) species, forming colored Bi2S3. The sensor is suitable for testing human bad breath and is at least 2 orders of magnitude more sensitive than a commercial H2S test paper based on Pb(II)(acetate)2. The small volume of 1.35-L H2S is important, as the commercial Pb(II)(acetate)2-based paper requ...
Amniotic Fluid Levels of α‐Fetoprotein and Other Proteins in a Case of Turner's Syndrome of the Fetus

A 34-year-old primigravida underwent genetic amniocentesis at 20 weeks' gestation and the fetus was diagnosed as having Turner's syndrome. The concentration of α-fetoprotein in amniotic fluid was greatly elevated. Normal concentrations of amniotic fluid total protein, albumin and immunoglobulin indicated that the elevated level of α-fetoprotein was not the result of leakage through a hygroma, which has been previously suggested without supporting data in cases of Turner's syndrome of the fetus.
Multi-Capacity Bin Packing with Dependent Items and its Application to the Packing of Brokered Workloads in Virtualized Environments

Providing resource allocation with performance predictability guarantees is increasingly important in cloud platforms, especially for data-intensive applications, for which performance depends greatly on the available rates of data transfer between the various computing/storage hosts underlying the virtualized resources assigned to the application. With the increased prevalence of brokerage services in cloud platforms, there is a need for resource allocation solutions that provide predictability guarantees in such settings, in which neither application scheduling nor cloud provider resources can be managed/controlled by the broker. This paper addresses this problem, as we define the Multi-Capacity Bin Packing with Dependent Items (MCBP-DI) problem to model the various resource allocation models adopted in such a brokered setting. The MCBP-DI problem represents a class of multi-dimensional bin packing problems, in which the amount of resources consumed by a subset of the items depends on the relationship between these items.Focusing on offering predictability guarantees to data-intensive applications, we define a sub-problem of the MCBP-DI problem, namely the Network-Constrained Packing (NCP) problem, in which the items to be packed form a connected component, and the resources consumed by any subset of these items are equivalent to the cost of the cut of that subset from the component. Our definition of the NCP problem is presented as part of our proposed cloud brokerage framework, in which the optimal mapping of brokered resources to applications is decided with guaranteed performance predictability. We prove that NCP is NP-hard, and we define two special instances of the problem, for which exact solutions can be found efficiently. We develop a greedy heuristic to solve the general instance of the NCP problem, and we evaluate its efficiency using simulations on various application workloads, and network models. Proposal of a novel brokerage model for providing execution predictability services to data-intensive applications.Definition of a new class of multi-dimensional bin packing problems, namely Multi-Capacity Bin Packing with Dependent Items.Definition of the Network-Constrained Packing problem model for resource allocation in our proposed brokerage model.The definition of an exact polynomial algorithm to solve an instance of our proposed packing problem, which occurs frequently in reality.The development of a greedy approximation algorithm to solve the NCP problem in the general model.
The Early Life of Ragnar Frisch

While Cowles and his scholarship were distinctly American, two of the greatest influences on the Cowles Commission were distinctly Norwegian. This tradition began with Ragnar Frisch .
How does the front page of the Internet behave? Readability, emoticon use, and links on Reddit

Reddit, known as “the front page of the Internet,” has been one of the most widely visited Web sites since its inception in 2005. As a social networking site it is unique in that the personal relationships between its users are considered secondary to its content, which includes both original, user-generated content and links to outside sources. Although previous research has investigated other social networking platforms in depth, relatively little has been written on Reddit. The present research considers a variety of indicators, including text readability, emoticon usage, and domain linkage. It was found that the most popular communities on Reddit behave very differently from each other, in terms of language sophistication, sentiment, and topicality (as measured by top-level links to outside sources). The results can be used to inform future investigations of online discourse spaces, particularly those in the contemporary social media sphere.
Understanding Uncertainty in Measurement and Accommodating its Impact in 3D Modeling and Printing

The growing accessibility of 3D printing to everyday users has led to the rapid adoption, sharing of 3D models on sites such as Thingiverse.com, and visions of a future in which customization is a norm and 3D printing can solve a variety of real-world problems. However, in practice, creating models is difficult and many end users simply print models created by others. In this paper, we explore a specific area of model design that is a challenge for end users' measurement. When a model must conform to a specific real world goal once printed, it is important that that goal is precisely specified. We demonstrate that measurement errors are a significant (yet often overlooked) challenge for end users through a systematic study of the sources and types of measurement errors. We argue for a new design principle--accommodating measurement error--that designers, as well as novice modelers, should to use at design time. We offer two strategies--buffer insertion and replacement of minimal parts--to help designers, as well as novice modelers, to build models that are robust to measurement error. We argue that these strategies can reduce the need for and costs of iteration and demonstrate their use in a series of printed objects.
Combined effect of weaning time and co‐feeding duration on growth and survival of peled Coregonus peled (Gmelin) larvae

The study investigated the combined effect of weaning from live feed to a commercial dry pellet at 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30 days posthatching (dph) and co-feeding for 1, 3 or 6 days on survival and growth of Coregonus peled larvae. Additional groups fed only live Artemia sp. nauplii (ART), and only Biomar LARVIVA ProWean 100 (DRY) were included. A final survival rate of 66.4%–85.5% was observed in groups weaned after 20 dph. Final body weight (BW) and total length (TL) were significantly lower in groups weaned at 10 and 15 dph, regardless of the duration of co-feeding. Larvae reached 29–37 mg BW and TL of 17.7–19.0 mm in groups weaned at 20, 25 and 30 dph. The recommended minimum duration of feeding with live food, based on these results, is 20 days. Based on the significantly higher yield of larvae weaned after 20 dph irrespective of co-feeding duration, it can be concluded that abrupt weaning to dry food after 20 days of feeding with live prey can provide adequate production while reducing the effort and costs associated with live feed.
Early mortality rate (EMR) and complications in adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in California.

e13091Background: Early mortality (defined here as death ≤ 60 days from diagnosis) continues to be a barrier to improving overall survival in AML patients. There are few population-based studies th...
ThermalThrift: Cost Effective Thermal Energy Storage for Load Shifting with Water Heaters

Thermal energy storage (TES) is among the cheapest forms of energy storage and is used to efficiently shift thermal loads such as HVAC. Recent work has begun to explore using water heaters for TES but does not yet address several key challenges, including making TES cost effective for all consumers. This paper presents ThermalThrift , a system that learns the water consumption patterns of each household in order to better manage TES standby loss to cost effectively perform thermal load shifting for individual households. We evaluate ThermalThrift by collecting 78 days of in-situ hot water usage data from 6 pairs of participants and 12 different time-of-use (TOU) pricing schedules from utility companies. Results indicate that after only 7 days of learning data for a given household, ThermalThrift is able to achieve a 47-62% peak load reduction while reducing cost for consumers up to 25% and never increasing cost for an individual. These results indicate that TES with water heaters can be made cost effective for each household by learning and applying a model of individual water usage patterns.
Nasogastric Decompression Not Associated With a Reduction in Surgery or Bowel Ischemia for Acute Small Bowel Obstruction.

Abstract Objectives Small bowel obstructions (SBOs) occur 300,000 times annually leading to $1.3 billion in cost. Approximately 20% of patients require a laparotomy to manage the obstruction and either prevent or treat intestinal ischemia. Early management may play a role in reducing these complications. Nasogastric decompression is commonly used for early management. Our primary objective was to determine if NGD was associated with lower rates of surgery, bowel ischemia or length of stay. Methods We retrospectively enrolled 181 ED patients with SBO from 9/2013 to 9/2015 in order to determine if nasogastric decompression was associated with a reduction in rates of surgery, bowel ischemia or hospital length of stay. Results Our subject population was 46% female, median age of 60.27% of patients received surgery. Nasogastric decompression was used in 51% of patients. There was no association with a reduction in rates of surgery ( p = 0.20) or bowel resection ( p = 0.41) with patients receiving Nasogastric decompression, and no difference in baseline characteristics. Nasogastric decompression was associated with a two-day increase in hospital length of stay. Factors that were significantly associated with surgical exploration of SBO were: female (OR 2.32 (95% CI: 1.01–5.31)) and “definite SBO” on CT (OR 3.29 (95% CI: 1.18–9.20)). Abnormal vital signs, obstipation, and lab values were not predictors of surgery. Conclusion Nasogastric decompression is not associated with a reduction in need for surgery or bowel resection, but is associated with a 2-day increase in median LOS. Women were more likely to receive surgery than men.
DAFi: A Directed Recursive Filtering and Clustering Approach to Data-Driven Identification of Cell Populations from Polychromatic Flow Cytometry Data

Computational methods for identification of cell populations from high-dimensional flow cytometry data are changing the paradigm of cytometry bioinformatics. Data clustering is the most common computational approach to unsupervised identification of cell populations from multidimensional cytometry data. We found that combining recursive filtering and clustering with constraints converted from the user manual gating strategy can effectively identify overlapping and rare cell populations from smeared data that would have been difficult to resolve by either a single run of data clustering or manual segregation. We named this new method DAFi: Directed Automated Filtering and Identification of cell populations. Design of DAFi preserves the data-driven characteristics of unsupervised clustering for identifying novel cell-based biomarkers, but also makes the results interpretable to experimental scientists as in supervised classification through mapping and merging the high-dimensional data clusters into the user-defined 2D gating hierarchy. By recursive data filtering before clustering, DAFi can uncover small local clusters which are otherwise difficult to identify due to the statistical interference of the irrelevant major clusters. Quantitative assessment of cell type specific characteristics demonstrates that the population proportions calculated by DAFi, while being highly consistent with those by expert centralized manual gating, have smaller technical variance than those from individual manual gating analysis. Visual examination of the dot plots showed that the boundaries of the DAFi-identified cell populations followed the natural shapes of the data distributions. To further exemplify the utility of DAFi, we show that DAFi can incorporate the FLOCK clustering method to identify novel cell-based biomarkers. Implementation of DAFi supports options including clustering, bisecting, slope-based gating, and reversed filtering to meet various auto-gating needs from different scientific use cases.
Enhanced prostaglandin synthesis after ultraviolet-B exposure modulates DNA synthesis of lens epithelial cells and lowers intraocular pressure in vivo.

Purpose. To study the functional significance of prostaglandin synthesis after ultraviolet-B (UVB) exposure of cultured human lens epithelial cells and rabbit eyes in vivo. Methods. Prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2 ) was assayed using a radioimmunoassay (RIA) and mass spectroscopy. An immortalized human lens epithelial cell line (HLE-B3) was exposed to UV irradiation, and the synthesis of PGE 2 was compared with the rabbit lens epithelial cell line N/N1003A. Intact human lenses were exposed to UVB in organ culture. [ 3H H]Thymidine incorporation was measured in cultured lens epithelial cells by incubation with the radiolabel. The effects of isobutyl methyl xanthine (IBMX), an inhibitor of phosphodiesterase and of dibutyryl cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), an analog of cAMP, on PGE 2 synthesis and DNA synthesis, were determined. Rabbit eyes were exposed to UVB radiation in vivo. Intraocular pressure was measured at specific times after exposure. Aqueous humor was removed from rabbit eyes, and its PGE 2 content was measured by RIA. Results. Cultured human lens epithelial cells (HLE), like rabbit lens epithelial cells (RLE), showed a dose-dependent increase in basal PGE 2 synthesis 24 hours after UVB exposure. However, the amount of PGE 2 synthesis was 2000-fold higher in the rabbit cells. Ultraviolet-B radiation enhanced the incorporation of [ 3 H]thymidine in lens epithelial cells. Pretreatment of cells with indomethacin reduced PGE 2 synthesis and [ 3 H]thymidine incorporation. The human and rabbit cells responded in a similar manner to changes in DNA synthesis after UVB exposure. The addition of IBMX or dbcAMP to indomethacin-treated, UVB-exposed cells restored DNA synthesis toward the levels observed in the UVB-exposed cells. An increase in the concentration of cAMP was observed in lens epithelial cells exposed to exogenous PGE 2 . PGE 2 synthesis in intact human lenses also increased twofold 24 hours after UVB exposure. Exposure of the rabbit eye in vivo to an optimal dose of UVB produced an increase in the PGE 2 levels of the lens and the aqueous humor. Measurements of the intraocular pressure (IOP) of the animals showed a decrease in IOP by 2.21 ± 0.66 and 6.45 ± 0.79 mm Hg (mean ± SEM, P = 0.004, t-test) at 6 and 24 hours after UVB exposure, respectively. The decrease in IOP was prevented by pretreatment with indomethacin. Exposure of the rabbit lens to UVB radiation in vivo enhanced [ 3 H]thymidine incorporation twofold into the lens. Pretreatment of rabbits with indomethacin before exposure reduced this response. Conclusions. Results indicate that UVB exposure enhances PGE 2 synthesis in HLE cultures as well as in rabbit lenses irradiated in vivo. This increased PGE 2 synthesis is related to the increase in DNA synthesis observed after UVB treatment. The modulation of DNA synthesis in cultured lens epithelial cells after UVB exposure may be mediated by a cAMP-dependent mechanism.
Steps Forward: Review and Recommendations for Research on Walkability, Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Health

Built environments that support walking and other physical activities have the potential to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD). Walkable neighborhoods—characterized by density, land use diversity, and well-connected transportation networks—have been linked to more walking, less obesity, and lower coronary heart disease risk. Yet ongoing research on pedestrian-friendly built environments has the potential to address important gaps. While much of the literature has focused on urban form and planning characteristics, additional aspects of street-scapes, such as natural and architectural amenities, should also be considered. Promising future directions include (1) integration of multiple built environment measures that facilitate an understanding of how individuals perceive and act within their environment; (2) examination of both the daily physical activities that are most feasibly influenced by the local environment and those more deliberate or vigorous patterns of physical activity that are most predictive of CVD; (3) consideration of multiple pathways that could mediate a link between walkability and CVD, including not only physical activity, but also air quality improvements from reduced vehicle mileage and enhanced neighborhood social cohesion from unplanned interactions; (4) testing competing hypotheses that may explain interactions of built environment characteristics with each other and with personal barriers to walking; (5) stronger conceptualization of the multiple neighborhoods or activity spaces that structure opportunities for physical activity throughout the day; (6) collecting and strategically analyzing longitudinal data to support causal inference; and (7) studying neighborhood preferences and selection to move beyond biased assessments of neighborhood health effects. While walkability has been linked to health-related behaviors and CVD risk factors, the implications of the observed correlations are not yet clear. New theoretical insights, measurement technologies, and built environment changes represent opportunities to enhance the evidence base for bringing health promotion and cardiovascular disease prevention into the conversation about how communities are planned and built.
Forecasting Changes in Profitability in the Oil and Gas Industry Using Ratios and Data Envelopment Analysis

Fairfield and Yohn (2001) show that disaggregating change in return on assets into change in asset turnover and change in profit margin helps in predicting future profitability. For oil and gas firms, we disaggregate return on assets in the same manner and also use data envelopment analysis (DEA) to develop an efficiency measure. DEA is a linear programming based technique that allows us to measure the efficiency of oil and gas firms’ exploration and development efforts using net property, plant and equipment as an input and oil and gas footnote disclosures as outputs. For oil and gas firms that use the full cost method, we show that change in asset turnover does not help predict future profitability whereas our efficiency measure based on DEA is useful in forecasting future profitability. On the other hand, for firms that use the successful efforts method, we document that both change in asset turnover and our DEA-based efficiency measure are useful in predicting future profitability. Furthermore, the amount of oil reserves reported in the financial statement footnotes is useful in predicting future profitability for successful efforts firms but not for full cost firms. Prior researchers have argued that full cost accounting results in relatively low quality accounting numbers (Bandyopadhyay, 1994; Ramakrishnan and Thomas, 1992). Our results support this argument by showing that the usefulness of financial ratio analysis in forecasting full cost firms’ profitability is limited. Additionally, we show that for oil and gas firms, a DEA efficiency measure can provide information in forecasting change in future profitability that is incrementally useful to that provided by traditional ratios.
Proceedings of the 8th symposium on Dynamic languages

It is our great pleasure to welcome you to Tucson and the 2012 Dynamic Languages Symposium! This year's symposium -- the 8th in the series -- continues the tradition of communicating research results in the design, implementation, and application of dynamic languages. We are happy to report that the overall quality of this year's submissions was particularly high. Out of a total of 23 submissions, the program committee accepted 10 papers whose topics range from modularity to pattern matching, language semantics, and optimization. The program also includes an invited talk by David Smith on the Virtual World Framework, a new architecture for creating and distributing collaborative virtual spaces that's built on top of JavaScript and other Web technologies. Beyond the formal program, we hope this year's DLS will, like its predecessors, be a valuable forum for sharing ideas with other dynamic language researchers and practitioners from institutions around the world. Thank you for being part of this exciting community, and once again, welcome!
Deepagent: An Algorithm Integration Approach for Person Re-Identification

Person re-identification(RE-ID) has played a significant role in the fields of image processing and computer vision because of its potential value in practical applications. Researchers are striving to design new algorithms to improve the performance of RE-ID but ignore the advantages of existing approaches. In this paper, motivated by deep reinforcement learning, we propose a Deep Agent which can integrate existing algorithms and enable them to complement each other. Two Deep Agents are designed to integrate algorithms for data augmentation and feature extraction parts separately for RE-ID. Experiment results demonstrate that the integrated algorithms can achieve a better accuracy than using each one of them alone.
Microwave-Assisted Flame With Sodium Seeding

Analysis of the laminar flame propagation in the methane–air mixture seeded by sodium with microwave energy coupling to the flame front was presented. Calculation results showed that a flame suppression effect caused by sodium could be reduced by the microwave discharge, but an increase in the sodium concentration up to 0.5% leads to overheating of combustion products and flame extinguishment. Thermal effect of the microwave discharge influence on the laminar flame speed prevails, but additional slight increase in a flame speed is caused by the formation of excited oxygen species.
Collaborative Dialogue in Minecraft

We wish to develop interactive agents that can communicate with humans to collaboratively solve tasks in grounded scenarios. Since computer games allow us to simulate such tasks without the need for physical robots, we define a Minecraft-based collaborative building task in which one player (A, the Architect) is shown a target structure and needs to instruct the other player (B, the Builder) to build this structure. Both players interact via a chat interface. A can observe B but cannot place blocks. We present the Minecraft Dialogue Corpus, a collection of 509 conversations and game logs. As a first step towards our goal of developing fully interactive agents for this task, we consider the subtask of Architect utterance generation, and show how challenging it is.
Nonlinear changes in selection on a mating display across a continuous thermal gradient

Understanding how animal communication varies across time and space is critical to understanding how animal signals have evolved and how they function. Changes in temperature, which occur across both time and space, can alter both the courtship and mate choice behaviour of ectothermic animals. In this study, we examine the effect of daily thermal variation on courtship and mate choice in the wolf spider Schizocosa floridana, which produces a complex song with vibrations from three distinct body parts. We test the hypothesis that different components of S. floridana's courtship respond differently to daily changes in temperature and that corresponding mate choice patterns lead to complex, overlapping shifts in selection on the display itself. By manipulating the thermal environment of courting and choosing pairs, we found that several song components increased in production rate with increased temperature, whereas others decreased, or did not respond at all. We also found evidence that selection on courtship shifts with temperature in several ways, with some display components experiencing directional selection at higher temperatures, but not at lower temperatures. Our findings make it clear that understanding the effect of environmental variation on communication is critical to understanding how selection operates on mate choice and how signals, particularly complex signals, evolve.
A systematic review of case studies testing a melatonergic agonist/ 5HT2c antagonist for individuals with obsessive compulsive disorder

Abstract Background Treatments for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) have greatly improved over time. However, some patients do not respond to current interventions and many are left with residual symptoms even if they are ‘responders’. There is increasing evidence that individuals with OCD frequently report delayed bedtimes and are at elevated risk for Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD). Therefore, it is logical to ask whether interventions addressing disruptions in sleep timing and circadian rhythms would lead to reductions in OCD symptoms. A prior study from our group showed that behaviorally shifting sleep timing resulted in significant symptom reduction in a treatment resistant OCD patient. Objectives Extending prior findings, this manuscript presents quantitative data from case studies which tested the use of a pharmacological intervention that targets melatonin receptors. Specifically, the case studies reviewed herein utilized the melatonin analog and melatonergic MT1 and MT2 receptor agonist, Agomelatine. Methods A literature review revealed 10 cases which have used Agomelatine for OCD. RESULTS: Seven of the cases were reported to have sleep and/or circadian disruptions prior to treatment. These cases OCD symptom reductions between 46%–90%. In contrast, three additional cases without pre-treatment sleep and/or circadian disruptions did not respond to the intervention. Discussion There is growing evidence that disruptions in sleep and circadian rhythms may contribute to the maintenance of OCD. Further work is warranted.
Pulmonary Disease Burden in Primary Immune Deficiency Disorders: Data from USIDNET Registry

Pulmonary manifestations are common in patients with primary immunodeficiency disorders (PIDs) but the prevalence, specific diseases, and their patterns are not well characterized. We conducted a retrospective analysis of pulmonary diseases reported in the database of the United States Immunodeficiency Network (USIDNET), a program of the Immune Deficiency Foundation. PIDs were categorized into 10 groups and their demographics, pulmonary diagnoses and procedures, infections, prophylaxis regimens, and laboratory findings were analyzed. A total of 1937 patients with various PIDs (39.3% of total patients, 49.6% male, average age 37.9 years (SD = 22.4 years)) were noted to have a pulmonary disease comorbidity. Pulmonary diseases were categorized into broad categories: airway (86.8%), parenchymal (18.5%), pleural (4.6%), vascular (4.3%), and other (13.9%) disorders. Common variable immune deficiency (CVID) accounted for almost half of PIDs associated with airway, parenchymal, and other pulmonary disorders. Pulmonary procedures performed in 392 patients were mostly diagnostic (77.3%) or therapeutic (16.3%). These patients were receiving a wide variety of treatments, which included immunoglobulin replacement (82.1%), immunosuppressive (32.2%), anti-inflammatory (12.7%), biologic (9.3%), and cytokine (7.6%)-based therapies. Prophylactic therapy was being given with antibiotics (18.1%), antifungal (3.3%), and antiviral (2.2%) medications, and 7.1% of patients were on long-term oxygen therapy due to advanced lung disease. Pulmonary manifestations are common in individuals with PID, but long-term pulmonary outcomes are not well known in this group of patients. Further longitudinal follow-up will help to define long-term prognosis of respiratory comorbidities and optimal treatment modalities.
Reduction of AMPA receptor activity on mature oligodendrocytes attenuates loss of myelinated axons in autoimmune neuroinflammation

Glutamate dysregulation occurs in multiple sclerosis (MS), but whether excitotoxic mechanisms in mature oligodendrocytes contribute to demyelination and axonal injury is unexplored. Although current treatments modulate the immune system, long-term disability ensues, highlighting the need for neuroprotection. Glutamate is elevated before T2-visible white matter lesions appear in MS. We previously reported that myelin-reactive T cells provoke microglia to release glutamate from the system xc− transporter promoting myelin degradation in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Here, we explore the target for glutamate in mature oligodendrocytes. Most glutamate-stimulated calcium influx into oligodendrocyte somas is AMPA receptor (AMPAR)–mediated, and genetic deletion of AMPAR subunit GluA4 decreased intracellular calcium responses. Inducible deletion of GluA4 on mature oligodendrocytes attenuated EAE and loss of myelinated axons was selectively reduced compared to unmyelinated axons. These data link AMPAR signaling in mature oligodendrocytes to the pathophysiology of myelinated axons, demonstrating glutamate regulation as a potential neuroprotective strategy in MS.
Pain Agreements and Time-to-Event Analysis of Substance Misuse in a Primary Care Chronic Pain Program

BACKGROUND Types and correlates of pain medication agreement (PMA) violations in the primary care setting have not been analyzed. METHODS A retrospective analysis was completed to examine patient characteristics and correlates of PMA violations, a proxy for substance misuse, over a 15-year period in an outpatient General Medicine Pain Service within the Division of General Medicine and Clinical Epidemiology, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Patients who signed the PMA were managed for chronic pain from 2002 through 2017 (N = 1,210). The incidence of PMA violations was measured over a 15-year span. Substance misuse was defined a priori in the study as urine toxicology screen positive for illicit or nonprescribed controlled substances, patient engagement in prescription alteration, doctor-shopping, or diversion. RESULTS Most patients received a prescription for a controlled substance (77.4%). During enrollment, 488 (40.3%) patients had one or more violations of their PMA. One-third (33.4%) of pain service patients had a violation within 365 days of signing the agreement. Active tobacco smokers had double the incidence of agreement violation within the first 30 days of enrollment. Almost one-half (49.8%) of violations were due to inconsistent use of controlled substances. Patients with any prior DWI/DUI or drug-related offense had a significantly increased rate of substance misuse (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS PMA violations were common among a population of patients managed for chronic nonmalignant pain. Universal opioid prescribing precautions, including PMAs, require further investigation to assess their roles in mitigating the potential patient and societal harms associated with opioid prescribing.
Evaluation of Low-Value Diagnostic Testing for 4 Common Conditions in the Veterans Health Administration.

Importance Low-value care is associated with harm among patients and with wasteful health care spending but has not been well characterized in the Veterans Health Administration. Objectives To characterize the frequency of and variation in low-value diagnostic testing for 4 common conditions at Veterans Affairs medical centers (VAMCs) and to examine the correlation between receipt of low-value testing for each condition. Design, Setting, and Participants This retrospective cohort study used Veterans Health Administration data from 127 VAMCs from fiscal years 2014 to 2015. Data were analyzed from April 2018 to March 2020. Exposures Continuous enrollment in Veterans Health Administration during fiscal year 2015. Main Outcomes and Measures Receipt of low-value testing for low back pain, headache, syncope, and sinusitis. For each condition, sensitive and specific criteria were used to evaluate the overall frequency and range of low-value testing, adjusting for sociodemographic and VAMC characteristics. VAMC-level variation was calculated using median adjusted odds ratios. The Pearson correlation coefficient was used to evaluate the degree of correlation between low-value testing for each condition at the VAMC level. Results Among 1 022 987 veterans, the mean (SD) age was 60 (16) years, 1 008 336 (92.4%) were male, and 761 485 (69.8%) were non-Hispanic White. A total of 343 024 veterans (31.4%) were diagnosed with low back pain, 79 176 (7.3%) with headache, 23 776 (2.2%) with syncope, and 52 889 (4.8%) with sinusitis. With the sensitive criteria, overall and VAMC-level low-value testing frequency varied substantially across conditions: 4.6% (range, 2.7%-10.1%) for sinusitis, 12.8% (range, 8.6%-22.6%) for headache, 18.2% (range, 10.9%-24.6%) for low back pain, and 20.1% (range, 16.3%-27.7%) for syncope. With the specific criteria, the overall frequency of low-value testing across VAMCs was 2.4% (range, 1.3%-5.1%) for sinusitis, 8.6% (range, 6.2%-14.6%) for headache, 5.6% (range, 3.6%-7.7%) for low back pain, and 13.3% (range, 11.3%-16.8%) for syncope. The median adjusted odds ratio ranged from 1.21 for low back pain to 1.40 for sinusitis. At the VAMC level, low-value testing was most strongly correlated for syncope and headache (ρ = 0.56;P Conclusions and Relevance In this cohort study, low-value diagnostic testing was common, varied substantially across VAMCs, and was correlated between veterans’ receipt of different low-value tests at the VAMC level. The findings suggest a need to address low-value diagnostic testing, even in integrated health systems, with robust utilization management practices.
Use of Electronic Health Record Data to Estimate the Probability of Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome in a National Cohort of Hospitalized Veterans.

OBJECTIVES Inpatient alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) is common and early treatment improves outcomes, but no prior study has used electronic health record (EHR) data, available at admission, to predict the probability of inpatient AWS. This study estimated the probability of inpatient AWS using prior-year EHR data, hypothesizing that documented alcohol use disorder (AUD) and AWS would be strongly associated with inpatient AWS while exploring associations with other patient characteristics. METHODS The study investigated patients hospitalized ≥24 hours on medical services in the Veterans Health Administration during 2013 using EHR data extracted from the Veterans Health Administration Corporate Data Warehouse. ICD-9-CM diagnosis code, demographic, and healthcare utilization data documented in the year before admission defined prior-year AUD, AWS, and other factors associated with inpatient AWS. The primary outcome, inpatient AWS, was defined by inpatient ICD-9-CM codes. RESULTS The unadjusted probability of AWS was 5.0% (95% CI 4.5%-5.4%) among 209,151 medical inpatients overall, 26.4% (95% CI 24.4%-28.4%) among those with prior-year AUD, and 62.5% (95% CI 35.2%-39.7%) among those with prior-year AWS. Of those with AWS, 86% had documented prior-year AUD and/or AWS. Other patient characteristics associated with increased probability of inpatient AWS (P < 0.001) were: male sex, single relationship status, homelessness, seizure, and cirrhosis. CONCLUSIONS Although inpatient providers often use history to predict AWS, this is the first study in hospitalized patients to inform and validate this practice, showing that prior-year diagnosis of AUD and/or AWS in particular, can identify the majority of inpatients who should be monitored for AWS.
What’s Left—The Influence of the Psychological School

This chapter attempts to demonstrate some of the major lines of influence that our authors had on mainstream, as well as Austrian economics. Among them are the now prevailing conception of economics as a science dealing with the use and allocation of scarce goods to achieve human preferences, developed by Lionel Robbins mostly on the basis of Wicksteed’s and Menger-Bohm Bawerk’s earlier contributions, the theory of comparative advantage adjusted and reinterpreted by Gotfried Haberler so as to absorb the alternative theory of cost from chapter III, contribution by Murray Rothbard to welfare economics, Mises’ and Rothbard’s Austrian synthesis that owes much to Frank Fetter and Philip Wicksteed, as well as a widespread acceptance and significance of the marginal productivity theory of Clark and Wicksteed for contemporary philosophical discussions of distributive justice, especially with regard to Robert Nozick’s classical liberal theory and many other similar arguments for the fairness of the free market system.
Advancing Bail and Pretrial Justice Reform in Arizona

This Article assesses Arizona’s pretrial justice reforms to date and suggests some ways to further improve pretrial justice to remedy the fact that 78.5% of the people held in the state’s jails have not been convicted of the crimes for which they were arrested, but rather are awaiting trial. This state of affairs undermines the presumption of innocence while unnecessarily costing the taxpayers of Arizona far too much money. Moreover, it threatens public safety on account of the criminogenic effects of pretrial detention. And finally, the state’s reliance on pretrial risk assessment instruments perpetuates racial and ethnic injustice in the state. The state can address these problems by adopting practices that increase fairness, decrease costs, improve public safety, and minimize racial disparities in criminal justice processes and outcomes.
Clinical utility of brain MRS imaging of patients with adult-onset non-cirrhotic hyperammonemia

Adult-onset non-cirrhotic hyperammonemia (NCH) is a rare, but often fatal condition that can result in both reversible and irreversible neurological defects. Here we present five cases of adult-onset non-cirrhotic hyperammonemia wherein brain magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) scans for cerebral glutamine (Gln) and myo-inositol (mI) levels helped guide clinical management. Specifically, we demonstrate that when combined with traditional brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, cerebral Gln and mI MRS can help disentangle the reversible from irreversible neurological defects associated with hyperammonemic crisis. Specifically, we demonstrate that whereas an elevated brain MRS Gln level is associated with reversible neurological defects, markedly low mI levels are associated with a risk for irreversible neurological defects such as central pontine myelinolysis. Overall, our findings indicate the utility of brain MRS in guiding clinical care and prognosis in patients with adult-onset non-cirrhotic hyperammonemia.