cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence Analysis of Generalized Least Squares Estimators

Abstract Influence analysis and leverage analysis are important and well-established adjuncts to ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, but analogous regression diagnostics are not generally available for multivariate regression problems. This article describes measures of influence and leverage for a generalized least squares (GLS) estimator of the regression coefficients in a class of multivariate linear models for repeated measurements. When the covariance matrix of the observation vectors is known, the GLS estimator can be expressed as an OLS estimator calculated from transformed variables. In this situation, the multivariate regression diagnostics are directly related to the univariate measures. When the covariance matrix is unknown, however, multistage estimation procedures are required. We describe measures of influence and leverage for a three-step estimator that uses the residuals from an initial OLS regression to estimate the covariance matrix of the response vectors. These diagnostics account...
Energy Accommodation between Noble Gases and Carbon Nanotubes

Molecular dynamics simulations are used to predict the energy accommodation coefficients (EACs) between the noble gases He, Ne, and Ar and the outside of single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with diameters between 0.41 and 6.10 nm at a temperature of 300 K. The EAC increases monotonically with CNT diameter and approaches the value predicted for graphene. The EAC also increases monotonically with gas atom mass. The CNT EAC data collapse to a linear trend when they are normalized by the graphene EAC and plotted versus the depth of their potential energy well on the CNT normalized by that for graphene. The EACs are used to estimate that the thermal boundary conductance between noble gases and graphene will be of order 0.1 MW/m2·K at a gas pressure of 1 atm, corresponding to a gas Kapitza length of order 100 nm.
CAM05-4: Handling Multiple Network Failures through Interface Specific Forwarding

It has been observed that transient failures are fairly common in IP backbone networks and there have been several proposals based on local rerouting to provide high network availability despite transient failures. Previously, we proposed failure inferencing based fast rerouting for IP backbone networks that ensures delivery of a packet to its destination if there exists a path when a single link fails but can cause forwarding loops in case of multiple simultaneous failures. On the other hand, blacklist-aided forwarding, we proposed earlier for wireless mesh networks, provides loop-free forwarding even in the presence of multiple failed links in the network but requires that each packet carry a blacklist of failed links encountered along its path. Our aim is to achieve the best of both these approaches, i.e., successfully deliver packets while ensuring loop-freedom even in case of multiple failures without changing packet format. We propose blacklist-based interface-specific forwarding (BISF) that infers a blacklist, a list of links that might have failed, based on a packet's incoming interface and its destination, and determines the next-hop by excluding the blacklisted links. We show that BISF is loop-free regardless of the number of failures in the network while forwarding packets successfully in most cases.
Falls and traumatic brain injury among older adults

This commentary discusses traumatic brain injury (TBI) related to falls among elderly individuals, as well as common TBI sequelae and their treatment. It also discusses the current understanding of TBI-related dementia and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Language: en
Adoption of labor-enhancing technologies by specialty crop producers: the case of the Washington apple industry.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is twofold, first: to define the profile of adopters of labor-enhancing technologies (e.g. platforms) identifying factors – such as operations size, mix of fruits grown, apple operation location, principal operators socio-demographics – and second: to estimate the efficiency threshold for platform adoption during apple harvesting to be financially feasible considering future increases in farm labor wages. Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted a mixed-mode survey in January-February 2010. Data were analyzed using a bivariate probit model, considering that the decision to adopt platforms was related with the orchard planting system. The authors conducted simulation scenarios to estimate the efficiencies – harvest – platforms must achieve in order to be economically feasible. Findings – In total, 11 percent of the 316 apple operations covered by the survey used platforms. Orchard operations most likely to invest in planar structures are relatively large, prod...
Understanding User Values of Wearable Computing

Wearable computing facilitates a new form of human-computer interaction and enables user mobility and connectivity. It has demonstrated its usefulness in niche applications, but its prospects in the mainstream electronics industry remain to be seen. Our understanding of wearable computing’s impact is limited. In this study, we explore user values in using wearable technology of Google Glass. Adopting the value sensitive design framework, we conducted an experiment study and collected detailed narratives by 75 college students. Our initial means-end chain analysis of data revealed a set of six values – assurance; autonomy; communication; efficiency, learning capability; and productivity in daily life—and different interplay between technological functions and user values. The diverse usage led to a digital learning environment – a "Digital Information Space" — that embodies user values and is constantly constructed by users. The study introduces the value-oriented perspective to technology adoption and offers design implications for wearable computing.
Virtual Reality as a Surrogate Sensory Environment

This chapter examines certain aspects of virtual reality systems that contribute to their utility as surrogate sensory environments. These systems aim to provide users with sensory stimuli that simulate other worlds. The fidelity of the simulation depends on the input data, the software, the display hardware, and the physical environment that houses it all. Robust highfidelity general-purpose simulation requires a collaborative effort of modelers, artists, programmers, and system administrators. Such collaboration depends on standards for modeling and data representation, but these standards lag behind the leading-edge capabilities of processors and algorithms. We illustrate this through a review of the evolution of a few of the leading standards and case studies of projects that adhered to them to a greater or lesser extent. Multi-modal simulation often requires multiple representations of elements to accommodate the various algorithms that apply to each mode – for example, alternative geometries for visualization, auralization, and collision detection. Tools and algorithms to assist in the extraction of these representations from common base data will expand the pool of high-quality multi-modal simulations. In the final analysis, the output stimuli depend on aspects of the display hardware and its physical setting that might not be adequately accounted for by idealistic algorithms. It is important to measure these actual stimuli in order to validate and fine-tune the simulation system.
Tata Tea Ltd. And Tetley, Plc (a)

In 2001, Tata Tea, an Indian tea-production company, took over Tetley, a U.K.-based tea-marketing giant more than twice its size, in a leveraged buyout. Tata Tea paid too much, as its bid was $100 million more than that of its nearest competitor, Sara Lee. The merger presented an array of vertical-integration synergies, but the leveraged-buyout structure, cultural differences, and lack of planning meant that the realization of synergies was delayed. The difficulties were exacerbated by the cyclical downturn in the tea industry and the increased competition from substitute products. This case illustrates (1) issues associated with cross-border merger integration, (2) scenarios where vertical integration makes sense and where it does not, (3) the application of PMI frameworks and concepts, (4) the issues associated with a leveraged-buyout structure, and (5) the trap of the winner's curse. See also the B case (UVA-BP-0479).
Mathematical Induction in Commutative Semigroups

(1960). Mathematical Induction in Commutative Semigroups. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 67, No. 6, pp. 533-537.
Smoking and Cellular Telephone Use Among Pregnant Women Seeking Prenatal Care: Opportunities for Intervention.

OBJECTIVES Although smoking during pregnancy is associated with poor pregnancy outcomes, many women continue to smoke throughout pregnancy. Behavioral interventions for smoking cessation yield modest benefits, particularly in lower socioeconomic groups. Pharmacotherapy, a first-line option for smoking cessation, has not shown clear benefits for pregnant smokers, partly due to limited adherence. We evaluated the feasibility of conducting a pharmacotherapy trial for smoking cessation in pregnant women, using text messaging to enhance medication adherence. METHODS We surveyed 724 predominantly minority pregnant women to examine the prevalence and correlates of smoking and the use of cellular telephones and text messaging. RESULTS Nearly 18% of the respondents were current smokers, with a majority (67.7%) expressing interest in participating in a smoking cessation trial. Only about 6% of women with a smoking history ever received nicotine dependence treatment. Smokers were significantly more likely to be depressed than non-smokers. The vast majority of respondents (92.1%) owned cell phones, with 93.2% having an unlimited text-messaging plan. CONCLUSIONS These data support the feasibility of conducting a pharmacotherapy smoking cessation trial and using text messaging to enhance medication adherence in a predominantly minority population of pregnant smokers.
The Use of the Condom for Disease Prevention: Catholic Doctrine for the Health Care Professional

(1996). The Use of the Condom for Disease Prevention: Catholic Doctrine for the Health Care Professional. The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 63, No. 2, pp. 26-30.
Improving Lexical Memory Access and Decision Making Processes Using Cognitive Word Games.

Strengthening semantic and orthographic associations among words in a lexicon may help to improve memory processes related to fluent organizing and retrieval of language. In the present study, we examined how training in several different word games impacts later retrieval access for the words. Games included a word-stem completion task (orthographic), a free association task (semantic), and a crossword paradigm task (orthographic+semantic). A within-subject experiment was used to compare the relative effectiveness of these three training methods on a lexical association task performed prior to and following training. Results showed that the games were able to improve participants’ decision times, and the increased fluency in the lexical association task due to the free association task was greater than the other games. We will further apply and examine this study with non-native English speakers.
BCG-SSI® vaccine-associated lymphadenitis: Incidence and management

Background and objective: There is a high incidence of childhood tuberculosis in Latvia, including children aged less than 1 year, while BCG-associated lymphadenitis is one of the most frequent adverse events requiring surgical treatment. The aim of this study was to analyze the incidence of purulent BCG adenitis through-out the population of Latvia after the introduction of BCG-SSI® vaccine and to evaluate the treatment results. Material and methods: The study included 194 patients. All patients had received the BCGSSI ® vaccine during the first week of life routinely or at a later time according to the indications. The indications for surgical treatment were lymph node destruction also affecting the skin. All patients in this study received surgical treatment – the affected lymph node extirpation. Results: The mean age of the patients was 5.12 0.96 months. A total of 172 patients had purulent axillar lymphadenitis, 14 had purulent supraclavicular lymphadenitis, 8 patients had lymphadenitis at both localizations. During the whole study period the incidence of BCG adenitis varied from 0.02% to 0.36%, while the mean rate was 0.11% 0.08% from 184,068 vaccinated children during the study period. We observed an increasing trend in the incidence of BCG lymphadenitis during the study period. The primary and complete healing rate at the end of period was 99.5% (n = 193) following an affected lymph node extirpation. The mean hospitalization time after the operation was 3.71 0.18 days. Conclusions: The incidence of BCG-SSI® vaccine associated purulent lymphadenitis varied widely with an increasing trend, followed by the return to the product characteristic limits. Indications for the surgical treatment should not be changed. Extirpation of the purulent BCG adenitis is a safe treatment method and leads to the primary wound healing in the majority of cases.
Intuitions, Analytics, and Killing Ants: Inference Literacy of High School-educated Adults in the {US}

systems increasingly allow companies to draw inferences about users' characteristics, yet users may not fully understand these systems due to their complex and often unintuitive nature. In this paper, we investigate inference literacy: the beliefs and misconceptions people have about how companies collect and make inferences from their data. We interviewed 21 non-student participants with a high school education, finding that few believed companies can make the type of deeply personal inferences that companies now routinely make through machine learning. Instead, most participant's inference literacy beliefs clustered around one of two main concepts: one cluster believed companies make inferences about a person based largely on a priori stereotyping, using directly gathered demographic data; the other cluster believed that companies make inferences based on computer processing of online behavioral data, but often expected these inferences to be limited to straightforward intuitions. We also find evidence that cultural models related to income and ethnicity influence the assumptions that users make about their own role in the data economy. We share implications for research, design, and policy on tech savviness, digital inequality, and potential inference literacy interventions.
Grating coupled surface emitting laser analysis using rigorous grating eigenvalues

In a second-order distributed feedback (DFB) laser one diffraction order produces emission from the device through its surface while another order provides the required feedback for oscillation as shown in Fig. 1.
The Role of Imaging for Trigeminal Neuralgia: A Segmental Approach to High-Resolution MRI

High-resolution MRI affords exquisite anatomic detail and allows radiologists to scrutinize the entire course of the trigeminal nerve (cranial nerve [CN] V). This article focuses first on the normal MRI appearance of the course of CN V and how best to image each segment. Special attention is then devoted to the role of MRI in presurgical evaluation of patients with neurovascular conflict and in identifying secondary causes of trigeminal neuralgia, including multiple sclerosis. Fundamental concepts in postsurgical imaging after neurovascular decompression are also addressed. Finally, how imaging has been used to better understand the etiology of trigeminal neuralgia is discussed.
Mechanisms of lipid mobilization towards egg formation in broiler breeder hens using stable isotopes.

The contribution of dietary, mobilized, or newly synthesized fatty acids in yolk formation at different periods of egg production was determined. In an initial experiment, a single dose of 13C-linoleic acid was administered to pullets at the onset of egg production and their presence in follicles determined over the subsequent 10 days. In a second experiment, pullets were fed a daily 15 mg dose of U-13C-glucose beginning 2 wk prior to sexual maturity through the end of the experimental period. A 50 mg meal of U-13C-linoleic acid was orally administered approximately 10 d prior to sexual maturity (defined as first egg) representing body linoleic acid. Upon each hen's first egg, each bird received a 25 mg meal of 2D31-linoleic acid representing dietary linoleic acid. All eggs were collected for the next 10 days. The incorporation of labeled linoleic acid and palmitic acid in egg yolk was then determined using GC-MS. This process was repeated at peak production and at 45 wk of age. At sexual maturity, the deposition of labeled palmitic acid in the yolk was higher compared with its deposition at peak production and 45 wk of age. The deposition of both 13C- and 2D31-linoleic acid increased with hen age. These results suggest that dietary and tissue linoleic acid is utilized to a greater extent in older hens and that lipogenesis (synthesis of palmitic acid) plays a larger role at sexual maturity in the young hen.
Enhanced two-photon absorption and fluorescence upconversion in Thioflavin T micelle-type aggregates in glycerol/water solution

Abstract In this article, we report the systematic characterization of the two-photon absorption of ThT in different mixtures of glycerol/water solution. The relationships of TPA peak position and amplitude revealed a dependence on particle size suggesting that the curious trend observed in TPA with changing glycerol content can be attributed to the presence of micelle-type aggregates. Consequently, the relatively strong TPA cross-section (δTPA = 300 GM) obtained in 8.75% glycerol/water solutions could be attributed to the immobilization of dye molecules and the strong coupling of the molecular transition dipoles in micelle-type aggregates. This enhancement of TPA, in addition to the already reported significant fluorescence quantum yield of ThT attached to brain tissue, is expected to boost the application of this compound for in vitro and perhaps in vivo high resolution multiphoton bioimaging of amyloids in brain tissue.
Harnessing Nanoscale Device Properties for Hardware Security

Traditional measures for hardware security have heavily relied on currently prevalent CMOS technology. However, with the emergence of new vulnerabilities, attacks and limitations in current solutions, researchers are now looking into exploiting emerging nanoelectronic devices for security applications. In this paper, we discuss three emerging nanoelectronic technologies, namely phase change memory, graphene and carbon nanotubes, to point out some unique features that they offer, and analyze how these features can aid in hardware security. In addition, we present challenges and future research directions for effectively integrating emerging nanoscale devices into hardware security.
A C-terminal "Tail" Region in the Rous Sarcoma Virus Integrase Provides High Plasticity of Functional Integrase Oligomerization during Intasome Assembly.

Abstract The retrovirus integrase (IN) inserts the viral cDNA into the host DNA genome. Atomic structures of five different retrovirus INs complexed with their respective viral DNA or branched viral/target DNA substrates have indicated these intasomes are composed of IN subunits ranging from tetramers, to octamers, or to hexadecamers. IN precursors are monomers, dimers, or tetramers in solution. But how intasome assembly is controlled remains unclear. Therefore, we sought to unravel the functional mechanisms in different intasomes. We produced kinetically stabilized Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) intasomes with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 strand transfer inhibitors that interact simultaneously with IN and viral DNA within intasomes. We examined the ability of RSV IN dimers to assemble two viral DNA molecules into intasomes containing IN tetramers in contrast to one possessing IN octamers. We observed that the last 18 residues of the C terminus (“tail” region) of IN (residues 1–286) determined whether an IN tetramer or octamer assembled with viral DNA. A series of truncations of the tail region indicated that these 18 residues are critical for the assembly of an intasome containing IN octamers but not for an intasome containing IN tetramers. The C-terminally truncated IN (residues 1–269) produced an intasome that contained tetramers but failed to produce an intasome with octamers. Both intasomes have similar catalytic activities. The results suggest a high degree of plasticity for functional multimerization and reveal a critical role of the C-terminal tail region of IN in higher order oligomerization of intasomes, potentially informing future strategies to prevent retroviral integration.
Structural Development of the Kidney

The function of the mammalian kidney is critically dependent on its structure. This chapter will describe the developmental processes involved in defining the complex three-dimensional architecture of the nephron in the context of the kidney, and how this relates to the acquisition of renal function during development.
Sexy Birth: Breaking Hollywood’s Last Taboo

I look at several depictions of birth in popular culture that seem to be breaking ‘Hollywood’s last taboo’ against showing graphic representations of the birthing body. I offer four illustrations o...
Highly Luminescent Cyclometalated Iridium Complexes Generated by Nucleophilic Addition to Coordinated Isocyanides

In this work, we report a new class of blue-emitting cyclometalated iridium complexes supported by acyclic diaminocarbene (ADC) ancillary ligands. These neutral, tris-chelated complexes are not obtainable via traditional synthesis routes and instead are generated through metal-mediated nucleophilic addition to a metal-bound isocyanide, which is followed by orthometalation of the ADC under mild conditions. Importantly, four of the variants exhibit efficient phosphorescence when immobilized in PMMA matrix, achieving quantum yields of 79% for blue emitters with a 2-(2,4-difluorophenyl)pyridine (F2ppy) C^N ligand and 30–37% for orange emitters with a 2-phenylbenzothiazole (bt) C^N ligand. Electrochemical studies demonstrate significantly higher-lying HOMO levels in the ADC complexes relative to the NHC analogues, a phenomenon that results in enhanced charge-transfer character in the excited states of the ADC complexes. This study demonstrates that ADC ancillary ligands not only give rise to new structures for...
Prevention of Ransomware Execution in Enterprise Environment on Windows OS: Assessment of Application Whitelisting Solutions

Application whitelisting software allows only examined and trusted applications to run on user's machine. Since many malicious files don't require administrative privileges in order for them to be executed, whitelisting can be the only way to block the execution of unauthorized applications in enterprise environment and thus prevent infection or data breach. In order to assess the current state of such solutions, the access to three whitelisting solution licenses was obtained with the purpose to test their effectiveness against different modern types of ransomware found in the wild. To conduct this study a virtual environment was used with Windows Server and Enterprise editions installed. The objective of this paper is not to evaluate each vendor or make recommendations of purchasing specific software but rather to assess the ability of application control solutions to block execution of ransomware files, as well as assess the potential for future research. The results of the research show the promise and effectiveness of whitelisting solutions.
Evaluation of Bypass Grafts

Surgical revascularization of the coronary arteries is one of the most frequent surgical procedures performed worldwide. The reduction or disappearance of angina, the improved tolerability of physical exercise and the overall improvement in quality of life and life expectancy have been the motivations underlying its use since the first procedures were performed in the 1950s. However, although the procedure is one of the major successes of modern medicine, it does not treat the disease underlying the symptoms (atherosclerosis) but only the clinical presentation of coronary artery disease (CAD).
Surface Linking and Helical Repeat of Protein-Wrapped DNA

The binding of closed circular DNA to proteins involves significant alterations in both the secondary and tertiary structure of the DNA. The effects on the DNA secondary structure are often manifested by the formation of bends or kinks, as well as by changes in the helical repeat or other duplex winding parameter. The effects on the DNA tertiary structure can be either local or global in nature. For example, the tertiary structure can change locally as a consequence of wrapping of a portion of the DNA on a protein surface. More generally, global DNA tertiary structural alterations can arise as a consequence of the requirement that the linking number remain constant as long as the topological constraint is maintained. As a result, the three-dimensional configuration of the DNA axis may be significantly altered compared to a DNA that is topologically unconstrained.
TCF1 expression marks self-renewing human CD8+ T cells

Expression of the transcription factor T-cell factor 1 (TCF1) identifies antigen-experienced murine CD8+ T cells that retain potential for lymphoid recirculation and the ability to self-renew while producing more differentiated effector cells. We found that CD8+ T cells in the blood of both healthy and chronically infected humans expressed TCF1 at 3 distinct levels: high (TCF1-hi), intermediate (TCF1-int), and low (TCF1-lo). TCF1-hi cells could be found within both the naive and memory compartments and were characterized by relative quiescence and lack of immediate effector function. A substantial fraction of TCF1-int cells were found among memory cells, and TCF1-int cells exhibited robust immediate effector functions. TCF1-lo cells were most enriched in effector memory cells that expressed the senescence marker CD57. Following reactivation, TCF1-hi cells gave rise to TCF1-lo descendants while self-renewing the TCF1-hi progenitor. By contrast, reactivation of TCF1-lo cells produced more TCF1-lo cells without evidence of de-differentiating into TCF1-hi cells. Flow cytometric analyses of TCF1 expression from patient specimens may become a useful biomarker for adaptive immune function in response to vaccination, infection, autoimmunity, and cancer.
Quality of life of women in its interrelation with the prevalence of urinary tract disorder in Ukraine

У роботі представлений порівняльний аналіз результатів комплексного підходу відносно визначення поширеності розладів сечовипускання та пов’язаною з нею якості життя у жіночого населення України. Дослідженням передбачене одночасне вивчення даних офіційної статистики, що вперше за спеціальним замовленням отримані за 2016 рік, згідно з програмою щодо складання статистичних звітів державними закладами, підпорядкованими МОЗ України і які виходять за її рамки, а також проведеного в цьому році популяційного соціологічного опитування 30 тис. жінок із усіх регіонів країни. Висвітлені особливості структури розладів сечовипускання у жінок, виявлені регіональні відмінності за кількістю випадків зареєстрованих хворих, які не співпадають із розподілом їх за відповідями респондентів. Підтверджено негативний вплив нетримання сечі на якість життя жінок і здійснена його оцінка за запропонованою п’ятибальною системою. Простежені зміни за віком та місцем проживання. Отримано обґрунтування актуальності подальшого поглибленого вивчення реального стану проблеми в Україні, визначені її перспективні напрями, провідними з яких є удосконалення діагностики, підвищення результативності лікування медикаментозного із промацією хірургічних його видів на тлі масштабних цільових просвітницьких програм. Зазначене разом наблизить до виявлення реальної ситуації в Україні щодо поширеності розладів сечовипускання, сприятиме доступності якісної медичної допомоги і, як наслідок, забезпечить, принаймі, збереження якості життя жінок із нетриманням сечі.
Introduced Biocontrol Agents to Suppress Diseases Caused by Rhizoctonia

The application or augmentation of preparations of biocontrol agents to suppress diseases caused by soilbome plant pathogens generally, and species of Rhizoctonia specifically, has received considerable attention during the past 18 years with regard to field or horticultural greenhouse applications. However, due to the space constraints imposed on this manuscript, certain limitations were placed upon papers cited in this brief review. Consequently, it was decided only to include information which has been published within the past 10 years. Apologies are given to investigators who published earlier work or to those whose work was inadvertently omitted. Much of this earlier information, specifically with reference to introduced biocontrol agents to control Rhizoctonia diseases, can be obtained from articles in recent books edited by Mukerji and Garg (1988), Baker and Dunn (1990), Homby (1990), Beemster et al. (1991), Tjamos et al. (1992), and Lumsden and Vaughn (1993). This chapter is divided into the following sections: introduction, application of formulations prepared with biocontrol agent biomass, use of bulk formulations and infested grains, treatment of seeds and soils with fungal spores and bacterial cells, use of novel biocontrol agents, and conclusions. A chapter dealing with integrated control is presented in section VI.E.
Impact of timing of palliative care team consults in patients with advanced cancer.

e18182Background: The 2018 ASCO palliative care guidelines recommend palliative care team (PCT) involvement within 8 weeks for patients with an advanced cancer diagnosis. However, the optimal timin...
Pre-existing opioid use disorder and postoperative outcomes after appendectomy or cholecystectomy: A multi-state analysis, 2007-2014

Introduction and objectives: Opioid use disorder has become increasingly prevalent in recent years. Previous studies have shown that patients with opioid use disorder undergoing orthopedic, elective abdominopelvic, and cardiac procedures have poorer postoperative outcomes. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of pre-existing opioid use disorder on postoperative outcomes including in-hospital mortality, hospital length of stay (LOS), hospital readmission, and postoperative complications in patients undergoing appendectomy or cholecystectomy. Methods: The authors used administrative data from the State Inpatient Databases of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project for the years 2007-2014 from California, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, and New York. The authors compared unadjusted rates of in-hospital mortality, postoperative complications, LOS, and 30-day and 90-day readmission status. The authors calculated the adjusted odds ratio (OR) for their outcomes using logistic regression models. Results: In all, 488,981 appendectomy patients and 790,491 cholecystectomy patients aged ≥ 18 years were included in the analysis. Appendectomy (OR 2.26) but not cholecystectomy patients with opioid use disorder had statistically significant adjusted odds of in-hospital death. Patients with opioid use disorder (overall reported, and by each procedure separately) had higher adjusted odds of postoperative complication (OR 1.46), 30-day readmission (OR 1.80), 90-day readmission (OR 1.98), and longer LOS (OR 1.37). Conclusions: The authors found higher unadjusted rates and adjusted ORs of in-patient mortality, hospital readmission, and postoperative complications in patients with opioid use disorder undergoing common abdominal surgeries. The authors’ study shows that opioid use disorder is a risk factor for poorer postoperative outcomes in this surgical patient population.
Effect of CYP3A Genetic Variants on Different Measures of Tacrolimus Variability in Heart Transplant Recipients

Purpose CYP3A genetic variants are associated with tacrolimus (TAC) dose requirements and levels. However, the contribution of CYP3A genetics to variability in TAC levels is unclear. We sought to determine the relationship between CYP3A genetic variants and three measures of TAC variability, i.e., coefficient of variation (CV) of dose-adjusted trough levels (C0/D), time in therapeutic range (TTR), and TTR via the Rosendaal method (Rosendaal TTR), in adult heart transplant (HTx) recipients. Methods This was a retrospective study of 69 HTx recipients during the first-year post-HTx. Patients were grouped as CYP3A5 expressors (CYP3A5*1/*1 or *1/*3) or non-expressors (CYP3A5*3/*3) and CYP3A4 non-carriers (CYP3A4*1/*1) or carriers (CYP3A4*1/*22 or *22/*22). Combined CYP3A phenotypes included extensive (EM, CYP3A5*1 carrier + CYP3A4*1/*1) vs intermediate (IM, CYP3A5*3/*3 + CYP3A4*1/*1) vs poor (PM, CYP3A5*3/*3 + CYP3A4*22 carrier) metabolizers. TAC data were extracted from medical records. The primary outcome was TTR. Secondary outcomes were CV of C0/D and Rosendaal TTR. Data were analyzed using generalized linear models. Results The study consisted of 80% men and 78% Caucasians (mean age at HTx=50 ± 13 years). Mean TTR, CV, and Rosendaal TTR were 30.9 ± 13.6%, 42.5 ± 21.0%, and 37.4 ± 19.8%, respectively. TAC-CYP3A variability data are shown in the table. TAC TTR was significantly lower in CYP3A5 expressors vs non-expressors, 24.0% (95% CI=18.0 to 30.1) vs 33.3% (95% CI=29.7 to 37.0), p=0.010. Similar findings were observed for combined CYP3A phenotype, with differences largely driven by CYP3A5 genotype. Neither CYP3A5 nor CYP3A4 genetics were significantly associated with CV or Rosendaal TTR. Conclusion Of the three measures of variability evaluated in our cohort, CYP3A5 genetics was only associated with TAC TTR. These findings suggest that different measures of TAC variability may elicit different findings in pharmacogenomic association studies of HTx recipients.
Influence of water quality, local knowledge and river–floodplain connectivity on commercial wild crayfish harvesting in the Atchafalaya River Basin

Water quality and river connectivity influence fisheries, but their role is not understood in wild crayfish harvest, or how water quality and river connectivity are incorporated into crayfish harvest strategies. In Louisiana, wild harvesting practices were evaluated with field observations and interviews with individual harvesters. Field observations included trap locations, water quality, water stable isotopes (2016) and habitat components over two seasons (2015 and 2016). Traps were set in less turbid water (NTU 40% respondents; a surrogate for turbidity and connectivity) in harvesting initiation and trap locations. Harvesters appeared to follow lateral water movements onto and within the floodplain, likely based on local environmental knowledge.
Prediction of gas–liquid interface in oscillatory period

A new theoretical expression was developed to predict the bubble shape under nonequilibrium conditions by considering damping and inertial forces. Nonequilibrium bubble formation may happen during the bubble departure and bubble oscillation and when shear stress between liquid and gas phases are relatively high. The new theoretical expression can be used to predict the bubble shape and variation of force and pressure across the liquid–gas interface along the perimeter. To enhance the accuracy of prediction of the new theoretical model, the bubble was divided into several parts, k (k = 1:N), and the new expression was solved separately for each individual part. The theoretical prediction was compared with experimental data, and a good agreement was observed. The new model can predict the fluctuation force across the liquid–gas interface along the perimeter of the bubble during the oscillatory period.
Splintering urbanism and nationalism in the “world-class city”: reflections on field work on stand-up comedy production in Mumbai

This paper explores the contradictions I encountered during fieldwork in the city of Mumbai, India, studying stand-up comedy as a site of struggle over globalization and national identity. In this ...
Toward a Pragmatic Understanding of Rawls’ Social Justice Theory in Social Work: A Critical Evaluation

Notwithstanding its popularity, social justice has received little attention in terms of theoretical merits and shortcomings. This paper expands the literature by using the Theory Evaluation Scale (TES) to appraise Rawls’ social justice theory that is commonly used in social work. The TES is an epistemological tool that critically analyzes theories through nine criteria: coherence, conceptual clarity, philosophical assumptions, historical roots, testability, empiricism, scope of competence, usefulness for practice, and human agency. Results showed that social workers should continue to rely on this theory to address social issues as mandated in various national and international social work codes of ethics.
Moving Your Mojo Online

This column will suggest how neutrals can move their dispute resolution mojo with them when they are providing dispute resolution services online. For those neutrals who have yet to cultivate their own mojo, this column will provide some insight into how to do so. Merriam Webster has defined mojo in relevant part as a “magical power” or “charm.” Mojo has also been described as the je ne sais quo, making it hard to define. Ironically, even though our mojo is such an integral part of our effectiveness as neutrals, there has been little discussion about dispute resolution mojos until now.
Comparison of Corrosion Protection Measures of Grounding Grids for Electric Power Station

In order to prolong the service life of grounding grid for electric power station, the corrosion rate of grid without and with protection measures was evaluated by weight-loss method and electrochemical method respectively. The advantages and disadvantages of corrosion inhibitor, sacrificial anode cathodic protection and combined measure of corrosion inhibitor and sacrificial anode cathodic protection are compared and analyzed. The results show that three inhibitors of 1% of Na2 MoO4, 2% of(NaPO3)6 and 4% of Na2 SiO3 all show good efficiency in corrosion inhibition on Q235 steel grounding grid. The corrosion rate of grounding grid nearly decreased to 0.1200 mm/a with an inhibition efficiency about 70%. When(NaPO3)6 +Na2 MoO4 is used as mixed inhibitor, the corrosion rate of Q235 steel decreased from 0.4667 to 0.0873 mm/a with an inhibition efficiency up to 81.3%. Furthermore, by using magnesium sacrificial anode for cathodic protection, the corrosion rate of Q235 steel decreased from 0.2671 to 0.0639 mm/a with an inhibition efficiency up to 76.1%. By using combined protection measure of corrosion inhibitor plus sacrificial anode,the corrosion rate of Q235 steel decreased from 0.3342 to 0.0260 mm/a and inhibition efficiency is up to 92.2%.
Procédure et pratique en éthique de la recherche : de la norme du vivant à la reconnaissance du vécu

Les comites d’ethique de la recherche (CER) et les dynamiques qu’ils induisent dans les sciences sociales ont fait l’objet de plusieurs travaux critiques depuis le debut des annees 2000. Cet article poursuit la reflexion amorcee par ces travaux en considerant la dimension normative de l’ethique de la recherche telle qu’elle est definie par l’Enonce de politique des trois conseils (EPTC) au Canada. Cette normativite est mise en evidence a travers une description du contexte politique et philosophique a l’origine de la bioethique et par une comparaison des principes moraux contenus dans l’EPTC a des exemples de relations d’enquete tires de mes experiences de recherche. L’article defend l’idee que l’EPTC, par ses racines morales bioethiques, represente un outil pour les comites d’ethique pouvant reconduire un declassement de la vie concue comme fait social et politique au profit de la vie concue comme fait biologique. Les relations d’enquete proposees en contre-exemple mettent en scene une negociation du consentement qui vise la reconnaissance de la vie humaine comme fait social et politique. Cette negociation, en plus d’etre a la base de la confiance accordee par les participant-e-s, a le potentiel de faire emerger d’autres enjeux qui peuvent amener les chercheur-e-s a questionner leur approche et leurs presupposes ethiques. Le terrain devient ainsi un enchevetrement de cadres de references ou la procedure, la pratique et l’ordinaire se rencontrent et complexifient pour les chercheur-e-s l’identification de ce qui devrait etre considere comme une question d’ethique de la recherche.
RASopathy Mutations Demonstrate the Critical Function of the Cysteine-rich Domain in Maintaining BRAF in an Autoinhibited State

BRAF is frequently mutated in human cancer and the RASopathy syndromes, with RASopathy mutations often observed in the cysteine-rich domain (CRD). Although the CRD is known for roles in phosphatidylserine (PS) binding, the RAS-RAF interaction, and RAF autoinhibition, how these differing activities impact BRAF function in normal and disease states is not well-characterized. Here, we analyze a panel of BRAF-CRD mutations and find that they can be classified into three groups based on their ability to relieve autoinhibition and/or enhance PS binding, with relief of autoinhibition being the predominant factor determining mutation severity. Comparison of the BRAF and CRAF CRDs further reveals that the BRAF-CRD is a stronger mediator of both autoinhibition and PS binding. Moreover, given the increased catalytic activity of BRAF versus CRAF, our findings indicate a more critical role for CRD-mediated autoinhibition in BRAF regulation, consistent with the high frequency of mutations that disrupt this function in the RASopathies.
Deep Learning-Based Registration of MR and Treatment Planning Ultrasound Images for HDR Prostate Brachytherapy.

Purpose/Objective(s) Propagation of contours from high-quality magnetic resonance (MR) images to treatment planning ultrasound (US) images with severe needle artifacts is a challenging task, which can greatly aid the organ or intraprostatic lesion contouring in high dose rate (HDR) prostate brachytherapy. In this study, a deep learning approach was developed to automatize this registration procedure for HDR brachytherapy practice. Materials/Methods With the approval from the institutional review board, the MR and US images with manual prostate contours were collected from our clinical database and processed to construct the deep learning dataset. A deep learning framework based on the weakly-supervised strategy was proposed for the registration of prostate MR images and US images after the needle insertion, which consisted of two segmentation networks and a deformable registration network. Specifically, two 3D V-Net was trained for the prostate segmentation on the MR and US images separately, to generate the weak supervision labels automatically for the registration network training. Besides the image pair, the corresponding prostate probability maps from the segmentation were further fed to the registration network to improve the registration accuracy, and the deformation matrix was the output. A random augmentation method was designed to alleviate the map overfitting problem during the network training. The overlap between the deformed and fixed prostate contours was analyzed to evaluate the registration accuracy. Results Clinical data from 121, 104 and 63 patient cases were collected and utilized for the MR and US image segmentation networks, and the registration network learning, respectively. The mean DSC, center-of-mass (COM) distance, Hausdorff distance (HD) and averaged symmetric surface distance (ASSD) results for the registration of prostate contours were 0.87 ± 0.05, 1.70 ± 0.89 mm, 7.21 ± 2.07 mm, 1.61 ± 0.64 mm, respectively. By providing the prostate probability map from the segmentation to the registration network, as well as applying the random map augmentation method, the evaluation results of the four metrics were all improved, such as an increase of DSC from 0.83 ± 0.08 to 0.86 ± 0.06 and from 0.86 ± 0.06 to 0.87 ± 0.05, respectively. Conclusion This study first worked on the deep learning-based registration about the treatment planning US image for HDR prostate brachytherapy. A novel segmentation-based registration framework was proposed for this multi-modality registration problem, which not only largely saved the labor work on the data preparation, but also improved the registration accuracy. The evaluation results showed the potential of this approach in HDR brachytherapy to automatize current clinical procedures.
Liberalism and Mass Psychology: The American Experience

European liberals have viewed themselves as the avatars of the rational individual as opposed to the mob or tyrant. Faced with the populist, democratic, and egalitarian character of US society, Ame...
Measuring the total impact of demographic and behavioural factors on the risk of obesity accounting for the depression status: a structural model approach using new BMI

Building upon previous studies that highlight considerable overlap in the influential factors of both obesity and depression, we employ a structural model to investigate the direct and indirect impacts of behavioural and demographic factors on obesity. We use new body mass index (BMI) to calculate the obesity status and find a significant relationship between an individual’s depression status and his/her obesity status. The results and simulations imply that demographic and behavioural factors can significantly influence the obesity status both directly and indirectly through their impact on depression. Therefore, this study suggests that models which do not account for these various pathways of influence are most likely misrepresenting the impact of these factors on obesity.
Construction Contract Staffing Needs

This paper presents some of the current practices within a context of change, because the dynamic environment that is highway construction demands a constant reappraisal of present conditions. The first step in any construction manpower management system is planning, or predicting manpower needs. The planning systems that have recently been developed in Michigan, Louisiana, Arkansas and Washington are presented. Although each of these states has adopted a slightly different approach, as a group they probably offer the best example of what can be done to improve current planning practices. The key elements examined from these planning systems include: (1)Classification of projects; (2)definition of contractor activities; (3)development of work measurement units; (4)definition of agency construction engineering activities; and (5)conversion to man-hours required. Productivity standards are also presented. The appropriate use of these standards will permit both long-range planning at the district level and short-range planning at the project level.
A PASSIVE REMINDER INCREASES THE RATE OF PREHOSPITAL ASPIRIN ADMINISTRATION FOR SUSPECTED CARDIAC CHEST PAIN

(2004). A PASSIVE REMINDER INCREASES THE RATE OF PREHOSPITAL ASPIRIN ADMINISTRATION FOR SUSPECTED CARDIAC CHEST PAIN. Prehospital Emergency Care: Vol. 8, No. 1, pp. 93-94.
Comparative pathology of periodontal disease: I. Gorilla

Abstract A total of 292 gorilla skulls were examined for periodontal disease as evidenced by resorptive lesions of the alveolar bone. Osseous periodontal lesions consisting of horizontal resorption, furcation involvements, interproximal craters, fenestrations, and buccal vertical defects were observed in 76.4 per cent of the specimens. The roots of the maxillary first molar appeared to be most often involved with a fenestration defect. Measurements of the alveolar bone lesions appear to indicate that a severe vertical loss of buccal bone (dehiscence may result from a confluence of the increasing horizontal and fenestration types of alveolar bone resorption.