cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Study of the Transient Behavior and Microstructure Degradation of a SOFC Cathode Using an Oxygen Reduction Model Based on Steepest-Entropy-Ascent Quantum Thermodynamics

Oxygen reduction in a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) cathode involves a non-equilibrium process of coupled mass and heat diffusion and electrochemical and chemical reactions. These phenomena occur at multiple temporal and spatial scales, from the mesoscopic to the atomistic level, making the modeling, especially in the transient regime, very difficult. Nonetheless, multi-scale models are needed to improve an understanding of oxygen reduction and guide fuel cell cathode design. Existing methods are typically phenomenological or empirical in nature so their application is limited to the continuum realm and quantum effects are not captured.Steepest-entropy-ascent quantum thermodynamics (SEAQT) can be used to model non-equilibrium processes (even those far-from equilibrium) from the atomistic to the macroscopic level. The non-equilibrium relaxation is characterized by the entropy generation, and the study of coupled heat and mass diffusion as well as electrochemical and chemical activity are unified into a single framework. This framework is used here to study the transient and steady state behavior of oxygen reduction in an SOFC cathode system. The result reveals the effects on performance of the different timescales of the varied phenomena involved and their coupling. In addition, the influence of cathode microstructure changes on performance is captured.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
The effect of noise fluctuation and spectral bandwidth on gap detection

Experiment 1 investigated gap detection for random and low-fluctuation noise (LFN) markers as a function of bandwidth (25–1600 Hz), level [40 or 75 dB sound pressure level (SPL)], and center frequency (500–4000 Hz). Gap thresholds for random noise improved as bandwidth increased from 25 to 1600 Hz, but there were only minor effects related to center frequency and level. For narrow bandwidths, thresholds were lower for LFN than random markers; this difference extended to higher bandwidths at the higher center frequencies and was particularly large at high stimulus level. Effects of frequency and level were broadly consistent with the idea that peripheral filtering can increase fluctuation in the encoded LFN stimulus. Experiment 2 tested gap detection for 200-Hz-wide noise bands centered on 2000 Hz, using high-pass maskers to examine spread of excitation effects. Such effects were absent or minor for random noise markers and the 40-dB-SPL LFN markers. In contrast, some high-pass maskers substantially worsened performance for the 75-dB-SPL LFN markers. These results were consistent with an interpretation that relatively acute gap detection for the high-level LFN gap markers resulted from spread of excitation to higher-frequency auditory filters where the magnitude and phase characteristics of the LFN stimuli are better preserved.
COST CONSIDERATIONS AND SAMPLE SIZE REQUIREMENTS IN COHORT AND CASE-CONTROL STUDIES

Three methods for incorporating cost considerations into sample size determination for cohort and case-control studies are considered. It is found that when the costs of obtaining exposed and nonexposed subjects or of obtaining case and control subjects differ, an improvement in design can be achieved.
Does desmopressin acetate prophylaxis reduce blood loss after valvular heart operations? A randomized, double-blind study.

The effectiveness of prophylactic desmopressin acetate in reducing hemorrhage after cardiopulmonary bypass operations is controversial. We conducted a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial to determine its effectiveness and safety in such patients. Eighty-three evaluable patients undergoing valvular heart operations were randomized to receive desmopressin (0.3 μg/kg) (41) or placebo (42) after cardiac bypass. Demographic characteristics were similar in both groups. There was no significant difference in total 24-hour blood loss between groups (desmopressin 1064.8 ± 647.1 ml versus placebo 844.4 ± 507.6 ml; p > 0.05), or in the requirement for red blood cell, platelet, or fresh frozen plasma transfusion, or for reexploration for control of hemorrhage. Neither was there a difference in the occurrence of thrombotic complications between groups. Analysis of factor VIII activity, von Willebrand factor, or von Willebrand factor multimers failed to show significant correlations with blood loss or differences between groups except for factor VIII activity, which was significantly higher in the desmopressin group 1 hour after operation than in the placebo group. A detailed comparative analysis of similar trials to determine the reasons for different outcomes suggests that desmopressin should not be used routinely as a prophylactic agent to reduce postsurgical hemorrhage, but that it may be beneficial when used in patients who already manifest excessive bleeding postoperatively. (J T horac C ardiovasc S urg 1992;104:117–23)
Die komplexe Diskursivität der Visualisierungen

Das titelgebende Stichwort der komplexen Diskursivitat zielt auf Dimensionen diskursiver Formationen, die allesamt starker das akzentuieren, was man als das ‘Jenseits des Textes’ bezeichnen kann – also Strukturelemente, Bestandteile und Kontexte, die selbst nicht als Text vorliegen, aber doch auch nicht auserhalb von Diskursen verortet, sondern in ihnen prasent sind. Sie stellen Herausforderungen fur eine Diskursforschung dar, die sich weder auf Medieninhaltsanalyse noch auf andere Formen einer ausschlieslich textbasierten Untersuchungsstrategie hin orientiert. Im Unterschied zu diskurslinguistischen und auch manchen, sich selbst als poststrukturalistisch bezeichnenden Ansatzen wird in diesem Zusammenhang im nachfolgenden Beitrag fur eine offensive Nutzung des sozialwissenschaftlichen Begriffs- und Methodenspektrums – u.a. auch fur methodenplural ansetzende empirische Fallstudien – pladiert.
One Library’s Journey: History of Library Services at Abbott Northwestern

Abbott Northwestern Hospital, located in the heart of Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a 662-bed quarternary care facility, and serves as the flagship hospital for Allina Health, a nonprofit health syste...
Holographic data storage comes a step closer

Computer technology continues to advance at a dizzying pace, with the steady refinement of existing technologies being punctuated by innovative leaps. The next such leap may well be holographic data storage. In this technique, data is recorded throughout the whole volume of a photosensitive material using lasers, rather than in a thin layer as happens in magnetic and magneto-optical disks. Moreover, holographic data could be stored and read out a "page" at a time, with up to 10million bits per page.
Molecular dispersion spectroscopy based on Fabry-Perot quantum cascade lasers.

Two Fabry–Perot quantum cascade lasers are used in a differential dual comb configuration to perform rapidly swept dispersion spectroscopy of low-pressure nitrous oxide with <1 ms acquisition time. Active feedback control of the laser injection current enables simultaneous wavelength modulation of both lasers at kilohertz rates. The system demonstrates similar performance in both absorption and dispersion spectroscopy modes and achieves a noise-equivalent absorption figure of merit in the low 10−4/Hz range.
Polymicrogyria Clinical/Imaging Heterogeneity

Researchers at the Royal Children's Hospital. Melbourne, Australia, and other international centers studied the imaging features of 328 patients with polymicrogyria referred from 6 centers, with detailed clinical data for 183 patients.
Sequential Set-Point Control for Heterogeneous Thermostatically Controlled Loads Through an Extended Markov Chain Abstraction

This paper investigates utilizing a heterogeneous group of thermostatically controlled loads (TCLs) for long-term demand response applications. The steady-state services are achieved through manipulating the stored thermal-energy with minimal impact on devices’ switching rates and the operating duty-cycles. The Markov chain abstraction method has been developed in literature for aggregating the TCLs at fixed temperature set-point. In this paper, an extended Markov model (EMM) is proposed to account for the dynamics involved in modifying various set-point magnitudes in both directions. The EMM is formulated online based on linear mapping and fast restructuring to Markov chains developed offline at fixed set-points, where a training process is used to construct each Markov chain. Set-point adjustments force devices to operate in a synchronized pattern, causing the aggregated power to oscillate or traverse extreme conditions. Therefore, model predictive control with direct ON/OFF switching capability is proposed to apply the set-point change sequentially and control devices’ movement toward the new operating set-point. The performance of the proposed modeling and control techniques are compared against existing methods which rely on the direct ON/OFF control solely rather than adjusting the thermal-energy level.
Multimodality Management of Recurrent Skull Base Chordomas: Factors Impacting Tumor Control and Disease-Specific Survival

BACKGROUND Limited data exist to guide the management of recurrent chordomas arising in the skull base. OBJECTIVE To determine factors affecting tumor control rates and disease-specific survival (DSS) in recurrent disease. METHODS A retrospective review was performed of 29 patients with 55 recurrences treated at our institution. Tumor and treatment factors were assessed for impact on freedom from progression (FFP; primary outcome) and DSS (secondary outcome). RESULTS Postradiotherapy disease failure was much more difficult to manage vs progression after surgery alone (15.9 vs 41.4 mo, P = .094). Distant metastases and, specifically, leptomeningeal disease at presentation were associated with poorer DSS and FFP (P .05), while a trend towards improved FFP was seen with stereotactic radiosurgery (28.3 vs 16.2 mo, P = .233). For distant metastases, site-directed therapy (surgery or radiation) allowed for site control (P < .05) but did not affect FFP or DSS. Presentation with early progression <6 mo from previous treatment portended significantly worse DSS (19.3 vs 77.6 mo, P < .05). CONCLUSION There is a need for treatment of recurrent disease to be tailored to the pattern of tumor recurrence and previously received treatments. Postradiotherapy progression poses particular challenges given the apparent limited role of repeat resection alone. Stereotactic radiosurgery may have a role in this setting. While patients with systemic metastases appear to respond well to site-directed therapy, those with leptomeningeal disease have a dismal prognosis.
Optimizing Function for Very Low Rectal Tumors: Intersphincteric Resection or APR?

Surgical resection represents the mainstay treatment of rectal cancer. However, for patients with very low rectal cancer, this usually entails removing the anal sphincter and committing the patient to a permanent colostomy. Dr. Gerald Marks was the first to describe in 1984 the transanal abdominal transanal (TATA) proctectomy, a sphincter-preserving surgery, designed to avoid a permanent colostomy. Despite the advent of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and the refinement of techniques, the rates of abdominoperineal resection (APR) remain high. We are discussing herein the indications and the surgical technique of TATA as well as its functional outcomes compared to APR.
Spectral tunability for accuracy, robustness, and resilience

In overlay (OVL) metrology the quality of measurements and the resulting reported values depend heavily on the measurement setup used. For example, in scatterometry OVL (SCOL) metrology a specific target may be measured with multiple illumination setups, including several apodization options, two possible laser polarizations, and multiple possible laser wavelengths. Not all possible setups are suitable for the metrology method as different setups can yield significantly different performance in terms of the accuracy and robustness of the reported OVL values. Finding an optimal measurement setup requires great flexibility in measurement, to allow for high-resolution landscape mapping (mapping the dependence of OVL, other metrics, and details of pupil images on measurement setup). This can then be followed by a method for analyzing the landscape and selecting an accurate and robust measurement setup. The selection of an optimal measurement setup is complicated by the sensitivity of metrology to variations in the fabrication process (process variations) such as variations in layer thickness or in the properties of target symmetry. The metrology landscape changes with process variations and maintaining optimal performance might require continuous adjustments of the measurement setup. Here we present a method for the selection and adjustment of an optimal measurement setup. First, the landscape is measured and analyzed to calculate theory-based accurate OVL values as well as quality metrics which depend on details of the pupil image. These OVL values and metrics are then used as an internal ruler (“self-reference”), effectively eliminating the need for an external reference such as CD-SEM. Finally, an optimal measurement setup is selected by choosing a setup which yields the same OVL values as the self-reference and is also robust to small changes in the landscape. We present measurements which show how a SCOL landscape changes within wafer, wafer to wafer, and lot to lot with intentionally designed process variations between. In this case the process variations cause large shifts in the SCOL landscape and it is not possible to find a common optimal measurement setup for all wafers. To deal with such process variations we adjust the measurement setup as needed. Initially an optimal setup is chosen based on the first wafer. For subsequent wafers the process stability is continuously monitored. Once large process variations are detected the landscape information is used for selecting a new measurement setup, thereby maintaining optimal accuracy and robustness. Methods described in this work are enabled by the ATL (Accurate Tunable Laser) scatterometry-based overlay metrology system.
Favorable results of coronary artery bypass grafting in patients older than 75 years

There is controversy whether the short-term and long-term results of coronary artery bypass grafting in elderly patients justify performing the procedure. Between January 1977 and December 1986, 4580 patients underwent coronary artery bypass grafting, of whom 222 (4.9%) were 75 years old or older (mean 77 years). There were 143 men and 79 women and 139 (63%) were in New York Heart Association class IV. One hundred forty-six patients (66%) had had at least one preoperative myocardial infarction. Myocardial revascularization was performed under emergency conditions in 17 patients (18%). The mammary artery was used in 43%, 96% of the patients received two or more grafts. The mean number of bypass grafts was 3.1 per patient. The overall hospital mortality rate was 10.8% (24/222), 3.6% for elective procedures, 14.9% in urgent cases, and 35% in emergencies. In contrast, the overall early mortality rate was 3.1% in 4358 patients less than 75 years old. Complications occurred in 83 patients (37%). Of the patients discharged from the hospital, 198 were followed up for a mean of 48 months (1 to 130). Actuarial probability of survival was 75% at 48 months. Postoperatively 70% were in New York Heart Association class I or II and only 21% were rehospitalized for cardiac problems. During the follow-up period 77% of the patients were free from angina, and of those experiencing angina the mean time from operation to the first episode was 75 months. Although elderly patients have a somewhat increased operative mortality rate, particularly if operated on urgently or emergently, long-term survival and freedom from angina are excellent and justify continued performance of coronary bypass grafting in selected patients over 75 years of age.
Chapter 17 Structural Morphology of Diatom-Dominated Stream Biofilm Communities Under the Impact of Soil Erosion

Abstract Diatom-dominated biofilm communities which developed in one-month periods over two years were monitored in tributaries of a small eutrophic prairie stream with agricultural watershed subject to extensive soil erosion. Site A, which was spring fed, had a year-round flow, the highest silica and nitrate-nitrogen levels, and a distinct diatom community regardless of the season with generally less trapped sediments in the early spring than sites downstream. All communities (Sites A-E) had at least two tiers existing side by side on the primary glass substrates: a prostrate tier of pennate diatoms, attached or motile, with their valve surfaces parallel to the substrate; and a second tier of pennate species attached by a proximal apical pole perpendicular to the primary substrate. At all sites, but particularly the downstream sites, the communities were surrounded and/or covered by sediments held by mucilages of dominant and codominant diatom species and bacteria of the first two tiers. Second tier (perpendicular) life-forms included rosettes of Surirella ovata , individual Navicula lanceolata , clumps or rows of Gomphonema parvulum , rosettes of Synedra ulna , clumps or rosettes of Eunotia curvata , and fan-like aggregates of Meridion circulare forming hemispherical colonies. Some diatoms of this tier were not attached directly to the artificial substrate but to other diatoms or to bound particulates. Filamentous bacteria were particularly important in tying together clumps of organisms and sediments in tiers 1 and 2, at sites C and D. A third tier consisted of filamentous organisms, e.g. Oedogonium sp. (Chlorophyceae), a stalked diatom Gomphonema sp., and protozoans including stalked peritrichs, which developed intermingled with the first two tiers and directly attached to the glass substrate. Secondary attachment of Gomphonema and Synedra to filaments of the third tier occurred, but this tier was never sufficiently populated or stable enough to trap and hold a layer of sediments. A species of diatom could occupy only one tier ( Achnanthes lanceolata , tier 1; Synedra ulna, Synedra acus tier 2), or more than one tier if its growth habit included structural and/or functional heteromorphy. Diatom life-forms are illustrated, as are bacteria in their associations with the diatom-dominated communities.
A Simple Model of the Chemical Nature of Bonds at the Si—SiO2 Interface and its Influence on the Electronic Properties of MOS Devices

Thermal and chemical treatments of metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices have resulted in a substantial collection of experimental observations which are still unexplained by existing physical models of MOS devices. For example, the exact physical and chemical nature of oxide-fixed charges is still largely undetermined. It has long been observed that electronic properties of MOS devices such as oxide-fixed charge density, interface traps, and barrier heights are changed by thermal treatments in vacuum, thermal treatments in inert gases, thermal treatments in reactive gases, electrical stressing, and exposure to radiation or photons [1]. The simple and direct influence of annealing in a nitriding ambient on the electrical characteristics of MOS devices is still not fully understood on an atomic level.
LOCA Analysis for Manganese-Stabilized Steel

AbstractManganese-stabilized steels have been proposed as candidate structural materials for fusion reactors, because they have been perceived as “low-activation” materials. Depending on the neutron spectra and the neutron fluence, the decay heat in Mn-stabilized steels is about 3–7 times larger than that in the Ni-stabilized steels. This large amount of decay heat could have serious impact in the case of the loss of coolant accident (LOCA). A two-dimensional LOCA model has been used to examine the LOCA temperature response of the manganese steel when utilized in an earlier U.S. design of ITER. The results show that the Mn-steel has approached its melting temperature by less than 100°C after about 7 hours from the onset of LOCA. On the other hand, the results for the nickel stabilized steel alloy 316SS show that the maximum temperature reached is 532°C in about the same time.
Influence of Dietary Restriction on Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Up to two-thirds of patients with IBS attribute their gastrointestinal symptoms to food. The therapeutic focus of IBS has been to alleviate gastrointestinal symptoms, approached by pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical treatments. Although the most traditional approach has involved the use of medications such as bulking agents, anticholinergics, antispasmodics, and antidiarrheals, unfortunately these are only modestly effective and patients are left with a small menu of successful pharmacologic agents. These treatments, however, are not always enough to alleviate symptoms. Alternative approaches have therefore been tried, including dietary manipulation. This article aims to review dietary restrictions as a non-pharmaceutical management approach for IBS, covering literature on various dietary triggers and the impact of dietary manipulation on gastrointestinal symptoms.
Conclusion: Evangelical Christianity and Immigration Reform: What Comes Next?

First, we summarize the key findings from the preceding chapters. We consider the fault lines among the faithful and growing areas of convergence. And we garner lessons from our church surveys, elite interviews, and public opinion data. We argue that there are biblical, moral, and historical rationales for immigration reform that are potentially persuasive for at least some evangelicals, and there are varying methods that can be utilized more effectively to mobilize evangelical public opinion and action in this arena. Finally, we reflect upon areas for future research.
Probability and Statistics Preliminaries

This chapter presents the necessary probability and statistics preliminaries that we will need in our study. This includes a discussion of the different moments (mean, variance, skewness, and kurtosis) of a probability distribution. We also discuss multivariate probability distributions as well as stochastic processes, including Gaussian processes. Sampling from a probability distribution is presented using the inverse CDF technique as well as rejection. The use of the Box-Mueller transform to sample a normal random variable and the Cholesky factorization technique for sampling a multivariate normal are presented. The chapter concludes with a discussion of Bayesian statistics.
Resilient design of large-scale distribution feeders with networked microgrids

Abstract Electrical distribution systems are often vulnerable to severe weather. Upgrades, such as microgrids, system hardening, and line redundancy, can greatly reduce the number of electrical outages during such extreme events. More recently, the networking of microgrids has received attention as a solution to further improve the resilience of distribution feeders. Although these upgrades have the potential to improve resilience, a barrier to their execution is a lack of tools and approaches that support systematic exploration of the underlying parameters of these upgrades and their cost vs. resilience tradeoffs.To address this gap, we develop a method for designing resilient distribution grids, including networked microgrids, by posing the problem as a two-stage stochastic program. When resilience is defined as the ability of a network to supply load immediately following a storm event, we show that a decomposition-based heuristic algorithm scales to a 1200-node distribution system. We also vary the study parameters, i.e., the cost of microgrids relative to system hardening and target resilience metrics. In this study, we find regions in this parametric space that correspond to different resilient distribution system architectures, such as individual microgrids, hardened networks, and a transition region that suggests the benefits of microgrids networked via hardened circuit segments.
Right ventricular and pulmonary vascular function indices for risk stratification of patients with pulmonary regurgitation.

BACKGROUND We hypothesized that echocardiographic indices of right ventricular to pulmonary artery (RV-PA) coupling were comparable to cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI)-derived RV volumetric indices in predicting disease severity in chronic pulmonary regurgitation (PR). METHODS Patients with ≥ moderate PR (2003-2015) with and without prior CMRI scans were enrolled into the study cohort and validation cohort, respectively. Endpoint was to determine the association between noninvasive RV-PA coupling indices (tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion/right ventricular systolic pressure [TAPSE/RVSP] and fractional area change [FAC]/RVSP ratio) and markers of disease severity, and compared this association to that of CMRI-derived RV volumetric indices and markers of disease severity (peak oxygen consumption [VO2 ], NT-proBNP and atrial and/or ventricular arrhythmias). RESULTS Of the 256 patients in the study cohort (age 33 ± 6 years), 187 (73%) had tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) while 69 (27%) had valvular pulmonic stenosis (VPS). TAPSE/RVSP (r = 0.73, P < .001) and FAC/RVSP (r = 0.78, P < .001) correlated with peak VO2 . Among the CMRI-derived RV volumetric indices analyzed, only right ventricular end-systolic volume index correlated with peak VO2 (r = -0.54, P < .001) and NT-proBNP (r = 0.51, P < .001). These RV-PA coupling indices were tested in the validation cohort of 218 patients (age 37 ± 9 years). Similar to the study cohort, TAPSE/RVSP (r = 0.59, P < .001) and FAC/RVSP (r = 0.70, P < .001) correlated with peak VO2 . TAPSE/RVSP (but not FAC/RVSP) was also associated with arrhythmia occurrence in both the study cohort and validation cohorts. CONCLUSION Noninvasive RV-PA coupling may provide complementary prognostic data in the management of chronic PR. Further studies are required to explore this clinical tool.
Flaxseed Oil or n-7 Fatty Acid-Enhanced Fish Oil Supplementation Alters Fatty Acid Composition, Plasma Insulin and Serum Ceramide Concentrations, and Gene Expression in Lambs

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of flaxseed (FLAX) oil or 16-carbon n-7 fatty acid -enhanced fish oil (Provinal; POA) supplementation on serum, liver and skeletal muscle fatty acid concentrations, serum ceramide and plasma insulin concentrations, and gene expression. Lambs [n = 18; 42 ± 5.6 kg body weight (BW); 7 months] were individually fed one of the three treatments: (1) control (CON), no oil supplement, (2) FLAX; at 0.1% of BW, or (3) POA at 0.1% of BW for 60 days. Daily feed intake and weight gain were decreased by 21% and 34%, respectively, for POA than FLAX. Liver and skeletal muscle concentrations of palmitoleic acid were greater by 396% and 87%, respectively, for POA than FLAX; whereas, liver and skeletal muscle α-linolenic acid concentrations were greater by 199% and 118%, respectively, for FLAX. Supplementation with POA also had greater serum and tissue concentrations of eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids. Serum glucose and plasma insulin concentrations were elevated with FLAX supplementation at the end of the study. Supplementation with POA altered serum ceramide concentrations compared to CON or FLAX. Oil supplementation, both FLAX and POA, downregulated expression of unesterified fatty acid receptors (FFAR) 1 and FFAR4 in the liver; however, oil supplementation upregulated expression of FFAR1 in muscle. Interleukin-6 (IL6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFA) expression were downregulated with oil supplementation in the liver; however, FLAX upregulated TNFA in muscle. These results show that oil supplementation can enhance uptake and deposition of unique fatty acids that alter ceramide concentrations and gene expression in tissues.
Screening of Clostridioides difficile carriers in an urban academic medical center: Understanding implications of disease

Objective:Efforts to reduce Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) have targeted transmission from patients with symptomatic C. difficile. However, many patients with the C. difficile organism are carriers without symptoms who may serve as reservoirs for spread of infection and may be at risk for progression to symptomatic C. difficile. To estimate the prevalence of C. difficile carriage and determine the risk and speed of progression to symptomatic C. difficile among carriers, we established a pilot screening program in a large urban hospital.Design:Prospective cohort study.Setting:An 800-bed, tertiary-care, academic medical center in the Bronx, New York.Participants:A sample of admitted adults without diarrhea, with oversampling of nursing facility patients.Methods:Perirectal swabs were tested by polymerase chain reaction for C. difficile within 24 hours of admission, and patients were followed for progression to symptomatic C. difficile. Development of symptomatic C. difficile was compared among C. difficile carriers and noncarriers using a Cox proportional hazards model.Results:Of the 220 subjects, 21 (9.6%) were C. difficile carriers, including 10.2% of the nursing facility residents and 7.7% of the community residents (P = .60). Among the 21 C. difficile carriers, 8 (38.1%) progressed to symptomatic C. difficile, but only 4 (2.0%) of the 199 noncarriers progressed to symptomatic C. difficile (hazard ratio, 23.9; 95% CI, 7.2–79.6; P < .0001).Conclusions:Asymptomatic carriage of C. difficile is prevalent among admitted patients and confers a significant risk of progression to symptomatic CDI. Screening for asymptomatic carriers may represent an opportunity to reduce CDI.
Strengthening collaborative research and scholarship in a College of Nursing.

Abstract Background There is a need to facilitate research collaboration between PhD- and DNP-educated faculty at colleges and schools of nursing. Both types of doctoral-prepared faculty are hired, and their skills and expertise are often different yet complementary. Strengthening collaborations can contribute to new knowledge and the translation of research into practice. Purpose The purpose of this study was to implement four strategies to foster research and scholarship productivity and evaluate the outcomes. Method We implemented four strategies to foster collaboration. Two interactional strategies included Research Exchange (an annual event) and an enhanced matchmaking and mentoring plan. The two organizational strategies implemented were internal research pilot funds and writing clubs. Results All four approaches have been found to be effective in improving research collaboration and scholarship outcomes, including presentations, manuscripts, and proposals for external funding. Faculty have provided suggestions for further improvements. Conclusions National trends indicate that there may be more DNP-prepared faculty than PhD-prepared faculty hired at colleges and schools of nursing. As such, it is useful to develop and purposefully offer approaches such as the four strategies described to enhance research productivity, facilitate career progression, and contribute to improved patient outcomes.
Multiple sclerosis relapse rates and healthcare costs of two versions of glatiramer acetate.

Objective: To compare relapse rates and healthcare costs in MS patients treated with Glatopa 20 mg (generic glatiramer acetate) versus Copaxone 20 mg in a US managed care population.Methods: A retr...
Shattering Hope and Building Empire: Economics the Imperial Science at Chicago, George Stigler and Aaron Director

The forays of the Chicago School of Economics into law, political science, and sociology have attracted no shortage of attention. The secondary literature on these forays focuses on the published work of members of the Chicago School, and is purblind to the examination of archival materials. This chapter uses archival research about two pillars of the Chicago School, George Stigler and Aaron Director, and offers a novel account of the history of economics imperialism. What becomes evident is that the diverse activities collectively labeled “economics imperialism” (educating judges in Chicago law and economics to better use economic analysis in a decision, undermining the ideal of the state governed by democratic consensus purportedly held by the professoriate, and inventing a certain kind of cost–benefit analysis for evaluating regulatory bodies) were devised for the same political goal: the ascendancy of Chicago neoliberalism.
A Geometric Introduction to Mathematical Induction.

No explanation is given as to the source of these rather mysterious sums; he is merely presented with the equation as a problem to be proved by the method of mathemat ical induction and told to get on with it. Now these sums arise in a natural way in the course of solving some problems in elementary geometry. In this article I would like to suggest that the student be led to discover the above sums for himself. Consider the problem of finding the number of lines determined by a given number of points in a plane, no three of which are collinear. Clearly three non TABLE 1
Foreshadowing the Future: 1957 and the United States Black Freedom Struggle

On January 1, 1957, Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed a 7000-person NAACP Emancipation Day benefit rally at Atlanta’s Big Bethel AME Church. Titling his remarks “Facing the Challenge of a New Age,” King declared that he and his listeners were living in “an age in which a new world order is being born . . . The old order of colonialism is passing away, and the new order of freedom and equality is coming into being . . . ” A new world was dawning in the United States as well, King said, thanks to the Supreme Court’s 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. “[A]s a result of this decision,” King stated, we can “gradually see the old order of segregation and discrimination passing away and the new order of justice and freedom coming into being.”The events of 1957 across the South, and in Washington, foreshadowed a future in which two successive Presidents overcame the racial ambivalence that had constrained Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Oval Office behavior. Once the determined southern black activism symbolized by King finally won the committed support of first John Kennedy, and then far more so Lyndon Johnson, the transformative promise so richly visible throughout 1957 burst forth in full flower in 1964 and 1965. King had been right on that New Year’s Day to call that forthcoming transformation inevitable, even if he could not then fully foresee how long it would take, the price to be paid, or the ineluctable limits — as Bayard Rustin was beginning to teach him — of a social metamorphosis that would come to be defined wholly in racial rather than economic terms. That future may have been inexorably constrained in ways that King could only dimly discern, but the events of 1957 foreshadowed that future more than any previous year in American history.
New Quantum Mechanics Based Methods for Multiscale Simulations with Applications to Reaction Mechanisms for Electrocatalysis

Electrocatalysis may provide the solution to some of the most important energy and environmental problems facing society: converting solar energy during the day to fuel (H2) that can provide power at night (hydrogen fuel cells) through water splitting, ·reducing the CO2 in the atmosphere to valuable chemicals (methane, ethylene, ethanol). However significant improvements must be made in the selectivity and activity of current electrocatalysts to obtain practical solutions. A great many experiments are underway to find such solutions, but the progress is slow. We consider that quantum mechanics based multiscale simulations can dramatically accelerate the progress by identifying the reaction mechanisms involved and the using in silico methods to predict the best modifications to Improve performance. We will discuss some of the progress in developing the methods needed and applying them to improving electrocatalysts.
PET Imaging of Upregulated VLA-4 in a Novel Mouse Model of BRAFV600E Melanoma

96 Objectives: About 50% of melanomas harbor a mutation in the serine/threonine kinase BRAF, resulting in constitutive activation of the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway; most of these are a single nucleotide substitution at codon 600 (BRAFV600E). However, treatment with BRAF inhibitor (BRAFi) monotherapies such as dabrafenib and vermurafenib are not durable, with a median time to progression of less than 6 months. Therefore, there is a substantial need to develop novel therapeutic modalities and combination immunotherapy for effective treatment of advanced-stage BRAF-mutant melanoma. Very late antigen-4 (VLA-4, α4β1) is a transmembrane non-covalent heterodimer overexpressed in melanoma tumors that plays an important role in tumor growth, angiogenesis, and metastasis by promoting adhesion and migration of cancer cells. In this study, we evaluated a VLA-4 targeted PET tracer, 64Cu-CB-TE1A1P-LLP2A (64Cu-LLP2A), in a novel pair of BRAFi-resistant melanoma cell lines (BPR and BPRα4). Methods: BPR cells were transduced to express the α4 subunit of VLA-4 to generate BPRα4. To verify the α4 transduction and isolate clones, flow sorting was conducted. LLP2A was conjugated with PEG4 and a cross-bridged copper chelator (CB-TE1A1P) and radiolabeled with Cu-64, as previously described (Beaino et al. JNM 2014; 55:1856-63). To determine the 64Cu-LLP2A binding to BPR and BPRα4 cells, a saturation binding assay was conducted. 64Cu-LLP2A was injected via tail vein in BPR and BPRα4 subcutaneous tumor bearing C57BL/6 mice (7.4 MBq per animal, 57.2 MBq/nmol. PET/CT imaging was performed at 4 and 24 h post-injection (p.i.), and the biodistribution was evaluated at 24 h p.i. by gamma-counting. Results: The saturation binding cell assay indicated that 64Cu-LLP2A had a higher binding affinity for the BPRα4 cells (Kd= 48.23 nM) compared to the BPR cells (Kd= 1.400 x 103 µM). The BPRα4 tumors showed increased tracer uptake, with SUVmean of 1.4 ± 0.3 and 0.6 ± 0.2 at 4 and 24 h, respectively. The SUVmean in the BPR tumors was 0.9 ± 0.3 at 4 h and 0.3 ± 0.06 at 24 h) (Figure 1). Additionally, the biodistribution at 24 h showed a higher tumor uptake in BPRα4 tumors (2.80 ± 0.18 %ID/g) compared to 1.70 ± 0.22 %ID/g for BPR tumors. Uptake in VLA-4 negative BPR tumors is likely due to VLA-4 expression in immune cells in the tumor microenvironment. Conclusions: These data demonstrate that 64Cu-LLP2A could be used as an imaging agent in BRAFV600E mutant melanoma tumors that are VLA-4 positive. Future experiments will explore dosimetry towards targeted radiotherapy with 177Lu-LLP2A. Acknowledgments: This research was supported by NIH R01 CA204018 to CJA. UPMC Hillman Cancer Center shared resources (In Vivo Imaging Facility) were supported in part by NIH P30 CA047904.
Melting mutating territory

This poem imagines the mass metanoic shift required to incite revolution as dispersing through a form of critical consciousness. As the “idea” spreads, ontologies largely sculpted by interlocking s...
Prediction of magnitude data of multi-channel vibration on a vehicle platform environment

The vibration prediction model of the key vibration source points of a vehicle platform is studied. Starting from the analysis of the factors affecting the vibration response and the correlation analysis, the key factors affecting the vibration response of the same vehicle structure are sorted out. The vibration prediction model of the key vibration source points is established by using neural network, and using the measured data to verify the accuracy of the vibration prediction model of the cabin section I, cabin II and cabin III of the platform. The results show that in the frequency range of 1∼500Hz, the maximum error of root mean square of cabin I is 2.75dB, that of cabin II is 2.3dB, and that of cabin II is 2.97dB.
Anesthetic Choices, Techniques, and Injections

• General anesthesia using total intravenous anesthesia (TIVA) with propofol and remifentanyl may improve endoscopic vision in the surgical field.
The legitimation crisis of educational change

When Jurgen Habermas published Legitimation Crisis in 1973, he was responding to the splintering of the social movements of the 1960s with a theory of ‘‘universal pragmatics’’ that would make it possible for citizens with many diverse perspectives to authorize governments to act on behalf of the public good. Without legitimacy there could be no capacity. Furthermore, without legitimacy for governments and their institutions, markets most likely would be turned to as vehicles for public provision. Later scholars, and in particular Suchman (1995) disaggregated legitimacy into the three components of pragmatic, moral, and cognitive legitimacy. Increasingly, it came to be seen that every set of institutions—corporations, non-profit agencies, and schools for example—would have to persuade the public about its legitimacy across these three domains to survive. Failure to attend to issues around legitimacy could lead to the hollowing out of the state under New Public Management, with diverse provider models increasingly blended with or overtaking traditional civil service agencies. In this neoliberal understanding, markets achieve legitimacy and are the guarantors that government does not plunder public revenues for its own purposes. The quest for legitimacy has driven many governments to turn to data and a more scientific approach to educational change. On the one hand this is a felicitous development, especially for researchers. On the other hand, the pursuit of certainty through the quantification of education has itself proved nettlesome. It seems that the mathematization of teaching and learning can conceal a number of blind spots that can create new problems for teachers and students. How this occurs and can be
Modeling the PiezoElectronic Transistor - a nanoscale, strain-based transduction device for fast low power switching

We have invented a post-CMOS transduction device based on a piezoelectrically driven metal insulator transition termed the PiezoElectronic Transistor (PET) [1]. An input voltage pulse activates a piezoelectric element (PE) [2] which transduces input voltage into an electro-acoustic pulse that in turn drives an insulator to metal transition (IMT) in a piezoresistive element (PR) [3,4]; the transition efficiently transduces the electro-acoustic pulse to voltage. Using the known properties of bulk materials, we show using modeling that the PET achieves multi-GHz clock speeds with voltages as low as 0.1 V and a large On/Off switching ratio (≈104) for digital logic [1]. The PET switch is compatible with CMOS-style logic. At larger scale the PET is predicted to function effectively as a large-area low voltage device for use in sensor applications and at larger yet as a RF-switch with an excellent figure of merit. Three demonstration devices have been fabricated to show proof of concept [5].
Identification, cloning, and sequencing of a gene required for ferric vibriobactin utilization by Vibrio cholerae.

Abstract Chromosomal DNA downstream of the Vibrio cholerae ferric vibriobactin receptor gene, viuA, was cloned and sequenced, revealing an 813-bp open reading frame encoding a deduced protein of 271 amino acids. In vitro transcription-translation of this DNA confirmed expression of a protein of the expected size. A deletion mutation of this gene, viuB, was created in the classical V. cholerae strain O395 by in vivo marker exchange. By cross-feeding studies, this mutant was unable to utilize exogenous ferric vibriobactin but synthesized the siderophore normally; synthesis of siderophore by the mutant was also confirmed by the Arnow assay. Complementation of the mutant with a plasmid encoding only viuB restored ferric vibriobactin utilization to normal. Unexpectedly, hydropathicity analysis of ViuB did not reveal a signal sequence or transmembrane domain, suggesting that ViuB is not a periplasmic or membrane protein but may be a cytoplasmic protein involved in ferric vibriobactin uptake and processing, perhaps analogous to the Escherichia coli protein Fes. ViuB was not, however, homologous to Fes or to other proteins in the database. Complementation studies revealed that the cloned V. cholerae viuB gene could complement an E. coli fes mutant but that the cloned E. coli fes gene could not complement a V. cholerae viuB mutant. Northern (RNA) blot analysis of RNA from wild-type V. cholerae grown in high- and low-iron media revealed a monocistronic viuB message that was negatively regulated by iron at the transcriptional level. The promoter of viuB was located by primer extension and contained a nucleotide sequence highly homologous to the E. coli Fur binding consensus sequence, suggesting that expression of viuB is under the control of the V. cholerae fur gene.
Informativeness of Value-at-risk Disclosure in the Banking Industry

Following the Basel Committee’s advocacy of value-at-risk (VaR) disclosure in external reports of financial institutions, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued Financial Reporting Release No. 48 to permit VaR disclosure as one of the most important disclosure approaches for market-risk quantitative information in 1997. I empirically examine both economic determinants and consequences of VaR disclosure informativeness in the banking industry. First, this study finds that more informative VaR disclosure is associated with more effective corporate governance characteristics, including better shareholder protection, a larger and more independent board, the presence of a separate risk committee under the board of directors, a more independent risk committee, higher institutional ownership and a better overall governance environment. These results suggest that corporate governance mechanisms are important determinants of the informativeness of VaR disclosure. Second, the evidence shows that the cost of equity capital is negatively associated with the informativeness of VaR disclosure, consistent with informative VaR disclosure effectively communicating private information to investors about both a bank’s market risk exposure and its risk management system. Additional evidence during the recent crisis further suggests the importance of VaR disclosure informativeness to the capital market as a strong signal reflecting the efficacy of risk management practices and the quality of risk governance mechanisms.
Do potential technological spillovers matter for how trade restrictions or openness affect economic growth

In this paper we investigate if trade barriers or openness affect economic growth differently in the presence of technological diffusion. A sample of about 70 developing countries is chosen and the impact of import tariffs and SW openness index on economic growth when these countries engage in technology diffusing trade is studied. The results indicate that two measures of technological diffusion namely machinery and transport equipment and manufactured imports, have a positive and significant impact on how trade openness affects growth. The impact of trade barriers is generally not significant.