cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Plant defences on land and in water: why are they so different?

Author(s): Vermeij, Geerat J | Abstract: BackgroundPlants (attached photosynthesizing organisms) are eaten by a wide variety of herbivorous animals. Despite a vast literature on plant defence, contrasting patterns of antiherbivore adaptation among marine, freshwater and land plants have been little noticed, documented or understood.ScopeHere I show how the surrounding medium (water or air) affects not only the plants themselves, but also the sensory and locomotor capacities of herbivores and their predators, and I discuss patterns of defence and host specialization of plants and herbivores on land and in water. I analysed the literature on herbivory with special reference to mechanical defences and sensory cues emitted by plants. Spines, hairs, asymmetrically oriented features on plant surfaces, and visual and olfactory signals that confuse or repel herbivores are common in land plants but rare or absent in water-dwelling plants. Small terrestrial herbivores are more often host-specific than their aquatic counterparts. I propose that patterns of selection on terrestrial herbivores and plants differ from those on aquatic species. Land plants must often attract animal dispersers and pollinators that, like their herbivorous counterparts, require sophisticated locomotor and sensory abilities. Plants counter their attractiveness to animal helpers by evolving effective contact defences and long-distance cues that mislead or warn herbivores. The locomotor and sensory world of small aquatic herbivores is more limited. These characteristics result from the lower viscosity and density of air compared with water as well as from limitations on plant physiology and signal transmission in water. Evolutionary innovations have not eliminated the contrasts in the conditions of life between water and land.ConclusionPlant defence can be understood fully when herbivores and their victims are considered in the broader context of other interactions among coexisting species and of the medium in which these interactions occur.
Sunscreens. Topical and systemic approaches for the prevention of acute and chronic sun-induced skin reactions

In this article, practical and clinical aspects of photoprotection are discussed with emphasis on topical sunscreens. Protection against the adverse effects of sunlight includes prevention of the following: (1) sunburn in normal individuals; (2) acute phototoxic and photoallergic reactions; (3) chronic skin damage (dermatoheliosis) and skin cancer; and (4) specific disease-oriented responses (such as porphyria or polymorphous photodermatitis).
Cardiovascular hemodynamics in pregnancy. 3. Cardiac rate, stroke volume, total peripheral resistance, and central blood volume in multiple pregnancy. Synthesis of results.

Abstract 1. 1. Changes in cardiac rate, stroke volume, total peripheral resistance, mean circulation time (arm-to-thigh), and central blood volume in single and multiple pregnancies are reported. 2. 2. Mean cardiac rate (15 per cent increase), mean cardiac stroke volume (30 per cent increase), and mean circulation time (16 per cent increase) changed in the same direction and approximately to the same degree in both single and twin pregnancy. 3. 3. Changes in mean total peripheral resistance (31 per cent decrease) and mean central blood volume (29 per cent increase) in twin pregnancy were approximately 10 per cent greater than in corresponding stages of single pregnancy. In both single and twin pregnancy, the central blood volume was an ever-decreasing fraction of total maternal blood volume as pregnancy progressed. 4. 4. An interpretation of the effects of pregnancy on cardiovascular hemodynamics is presented.
Functional severity and Latino ethnicity in specialty services for children with autism spectrum disorder.

Background Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience a range of severity levels characterised as levels of support they need for everyday functioning. By this definition, greater levels of severity should warrant greater use of services and supports among children with ASD. In previous studies, Latino children with ASD in the USA have been shown to have lower access to diagnosis and treatment services than White children. However, none have examined service use in relation to severity. In this study, we examined whether there are ethnic disparities between Latino and White children with ASD in specialty autism-related services, and whether functional severity moderates the relationship between ethnicity and receipt of autism services. Methods We used data from the Survey of Pathways to Diagnosis and Services, a supplement to the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs and analysed four specialty services commonly used by children with ASD, adjusting for demographic variables. Results We found that Latino children with ASD who had severe limitations received fewer specialty autism-related services than White children with similarly severe conditions. These disparities were evident despite the fact that the sample of Latino children in these data were more privileged than the general US Latino population. Conclusion Assertive policy initiatives are needed to address these disparities and ensure that these highly vulnerable children with severe functional limitations receive appropriate services and supports.
Prophylaxis of cytomegalovirus disease in transplant patients

Purpose. A historical perspective and the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and typical patient presentation of cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease in transplant patients; the implications of clinical trials of prophylactic antiviral drug therapy; and unanswered questions about the optimal duration of prophylaxis and the risk of antiviral drug resistance are discussed. Summary. CMV infection and disease are common in transplant patients. They often are the result of transplantation from a CMV-seropositive donor to a CMV-seronegative recipient or reactivation of latent virus in a CMV-seropositive recipient. Reactivation in transplant recipients may be the result of a blunted cytotoxic T-lymphocyte response and an imbalance in the release of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines. CMV disease develops in many infected patients and frequently involves the graft. Antiviral drug therapies reduce the risk of and delay the onset of CMV disease in transplant recipients. They also reduce the risk of graft injury. Conclusion. The optimal duration of antiviral drug prophylaxis in transplant patients remains to be determined; however, it is clear that antiviral prophylaxis can prevent CMV disease as well as many of the complications associated with CMV disease.
“Nor Mind Nor Body of Me Can Be Touched”: The Politics of Passivity in Moyshe Kulbak’s Montog and Samuel Beckett’s Murphy

This article will compare two novels: Moyshe Kulbak’s Montog (“Monday”) and Samuel Beckett’s Murphy. Each novel ends with the death of its protagonist, figured as both a senseless act and the apotheosis of its hero’s self-reflexive, ironic rejection of community, faith, and purpose. Drawing on theories of Hannah Arendt, this comparison proposes to read the two narratives and their preoccupation with incarceration, institutionalization, revolutionary activity, religion, and the family as profound yet oblique parables on the nature of privation, resistance, and commitment in the multiple senses. Indeed, by arguing on behalf of a “politics of failure,” this comparison proposes a methodology for reading Beckett and Kulbak postcolonially that in turn invites further consideration of the postcolonial status of expatriate Irish and early-Soviet Jewish cultures, respectively. This essay creates for the two narratives a community of elective affinity that neither author would have envisioned for himself, and thus demonstrates that their respective critiques of ideological progress—via their shared strategies of parody, linguistic marginality, and exile—fulfill an explicitly political function.
Characterization of Silicon Photovoltaic Wafers Using Infrared Photoelasticity

Reliability of silicon photovoltaic (PV) wafers is strongly influenced by defects and residual stresses from the crystallization and wire-sawing processes. Information about defects and stress in each wafer is important for improving the solar cell efficiency. An approach is developed for characterization of defects and residual stresses on silicon PV wafers. Utilizing a lock-in photoelastic imaging technique, the infrared grey-field polariscope (IR-GFP), retardation images are generated for individual silicon PV wafers taken from industry-grown single crystal stock. Full-wafer scale retardation images are compared with band-to-band photoluminescence (PL) images from the same wafers. The lock-in photoelastic imaging allows for better identification of defects than standard band-to-band PL imaging. Analytical models of elasticity are used to generate retardation patterns for dislocations and the residual thermal stresses. The theoretical retardation profiles are compared with the photoelastic image for defect identification and residual stress analysis. The approach is capable of relatively rapid wafer imaging, automated defect detection and stress analysis, and thus may be suitable for integration as an in-line reliability control process.
New insights into the evolutionary origins of the recombination-activating gene proteins and V(D)J recombination

The adaptive immune system of jawed vertebrates relies on V(D)J recombination as one of the main processes to generate the diverse array of receptors necessary for the recognition of a wide range of pathogens. The DNA cleavage reaction necessary for the assembly of the antigen receptor genes from an array of potential gene segments is mediated by the recombination-activating gene proteins RAG1 and RAG2. The RAG proteins have been proposed to originate from a transposable element (TE) as they share mechanistic and structural similarities with several families of transposases and are themselves capable of mediating transposition. A number of RAG-like proteins and TEs with sequence similarity to RAG1 and RAG2 have been identified, but only recently has their function begun to be characterized, revealing mechanistic links to the vertebrate RAGs. Of particular significance is the discovery of ProtoRAG, a transposon superfamily found in the genome of the basal chordate amphioxus. ProtoRAG has many of the sequence and mechanistic features predicted for the ancestral RAG transposon and is likely to be an evolutionary relative of RAG1 and RAG2. In addition, early observations suggesting that RAG1 is able to mediate V(D)J recombination in the absence of RAG2 have been confirmed, implying independent evolutionary origins for the two RAG genes. Here, recent progress in identifying and characterizing RAG-like proteins and the TEs that encode them is summarized and a refined model for the evolution of V(D)J recombination and the RAG proteins is presented.
Bidirectional Control of Generalized Epilepsy Networks via Rapid Real-Time Switching of Firing Mode.

Thalamic relay neurons have well-characterized dual firing modes: bursting and tonic spiking. Studies in brain slices have led to a model in which rhythmic synchronized spiking (phasic firing) in a population of relay neurons leads to hyper-synchronous oscillatory cortico-thalamo-cortical rhythms that result in absence seizures. This model suggests that blocking thalamocortical phasic firing would treat absence seizures. However, recent in vivo studies in anesthetized animals have questioned this simple model. Here we resolve this issue by developing a real-time, mode-switching approach to drive thalamocortical neurons into or out of a phasic firing mode in two freely behaving genetic rodent models of absence epilepsy. Toggling between phasic and tonic firing in thalamocortical neurons launched and aborted absence seizures, respectively. Thus, a synchronous thalamocortical phasic firing state is required for absence seizures, and switching to tonic firing rapidly halts absences. This approach should be useful for modulating other networks that have mode-dependent behaviors.
Group Theory in Atomic and Molecular Physics

In recent years, the role of group theory in atomic and molecular physics has stressed interpretation rather than calculation.The trend has thus been to return to the style of the 1930’s after a period in the 1940’s and 1950’s when many problems (for example, the calculation of the term energies of electronic states of the f shell) were made accessible only by means of the technical breakthrough achieved by Racah in his work on Lie groups and their applicability to atomic structure calculations. Modern computing facilities are mainly responsible for this change in attitude. On the other hand, the use of the laser has revealed fine structure in atomic and molecular spectra that make new applications of group theory possible. The detailed example of the vibration-rotation fine structure of SF6 is presented, and the recent work of Harter in this area is reviewed. The usefulness of double tensors, in which the two ranks refer to the frame of the molecule and the frame of the laboratory, is illustrated by the derivation of selection rules for several operators. The peculiar clustering of the fine-structure components is described and related to the triple intersections that Lea, Leask, and Wolf found for the crystal-field splittings of the J levels of rare-earth ions such as Ho3+, for which the ground level possesses a value of 8 for J.
The Post-Colonial State and Civil War in Sudan: The Origins of Conflict in Darfur by Noah R. Bassil (review)

Bassil, Noah R. The Post-Colonial State and Civil War in Sudan: The Origins of Conflict in Darfur. London: I.B. Tauris, 2013. Noah Bassil's The Post-Colonial State and Civil War in Sudan: The Origins of Conflict in Darfur confronts traditional explanations of the social-political conflict in Darfur. Previous theories centered on ethnic and racial disparities as a main driver of the crisis between Khartoum and its regions. The issue of Arab racism is advanced under this particular research agenda. Scholars like Gerard Prunier underscore the role of ethnicity and racism in explaining the causes of the conflict. Bassil, however, argues that the disparities rooted in race and ethnicity are not the causes of the crisis, but symptoms. Too often scholars cast blame on the role of race and ethnicity without unpacking the underlying conditions from proximate causes of conflict. The purpose of Bassil's work is to address the origins of conflict in Darfur. He does so by undertaking an in-depth description of state formation in Sudan. He begins with the rise of the Keira Sultanate, its assimilation and integration into the region via commerce and trading routes, the construction of the colonial state under Anglo-Egyptian rule, and efforts at state-building following independence. He concludes by chronicling the collapse of the Sudanese state throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, which gave rise to increasing tensions between Khartoum and Darfur. Bassil eliminates race and ethnicity as a cause of the conflict and moves to the question of culture. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise of intrastate war, many scholars have turned to cultural differences to explain the rise of conflict. These culture wars should be understood as a symptom of inequality, exclusionary policies, and internal struggles for control. According to Bassil, cultural disparity is not the cause of conflict any more than race and ethnicity, but is a symptom of a larger struggle within the state. He devotes an entire chapter to addressing mainstream representations of the conflict in Darfur and re-introduces the role of the state as primary driver of tensions. Race, ethnicity, and culture are structural factors, but Bassil introduces agency into the mix by examining the struggle for control of the state and its territory, as the central causal factor of the conflict. The Post-Colonial State and Civil War in Sudan examines these origins of the conflict through institutional struggles and uses the role of domestic power politics in constructing its analysis of the causes for violence. There are many explanations of the conflict. The complex and multifaceted nature of this power struggle requires an equally complex and multi-dimensional analysis. …
SACH: A tool for assisting Secure Android application development

To mitigate the risk of attacks to mobile applications, it is important for mobile application developers to develop secure mobile applications. There have been tools that statically analyze the mobile applications to determine whether there are data leakage or access control vulnerabilities The Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Melon University published CERT Java secure coding rules applicable to developing android applications. This paper describes SACH (Secure Android Coding Helper) - a tool we implemented to help developers identify security vulnerabilities in Android application. The tool analyzes Android application source code to detect violations of CERT Java secure coding rules. This tool will help Android developers to write Android code that comply with CERT Java secure coding rules. It can also be used in the classroom to teach students about Android secure coding.
Mexico's northern border region and U.S. relations

La importancia de la franja fronteriza norte de Mexico en las relaciones bilaterales con Estados Unidos aumenta a la par de la creciente fuerza economica de la region. En la frontera, los trabajadores indocumentados, las maquiladoras, el petroleo, la seguridad nacional y el turismo llevan a cabo una interaccion que es crucial para Estados Unidos. En lo que a Mexico respecta, el impacto que tendra la region fronteriza sobre el grueso de la economia nacional obligara a un cambio en su postura en las relaciones entre los dos paises y se pueden contemplar varios escenarios: un "tercer pais", un mercado comun norteamericano, y un pacto de las zonas fronterizas.Para llegar a cualquier acuerdo hay obstaculos, las tendencias hegemonicas son dificiles de borrar. Aun asi, los muchos problemas que existen entre Mexico y Estados Unidos deberan contemplarse como contratiempos entre amigos y su solucion debera provenir por principio, de esta amistad. ABSTRACT The importance of Mexico's northern border in bilateral relations with the United States grows apace with the region's increasing economic weight. At the border, oil, maquiladoras, undocumented workers, national security and tourism interface in a complex interaction crucial to the future of the United States. As for Mexico, the border region's impact upon the whole of the national economy will force a change in thinking regarding the relationship between the two countries. Several scenarios suggest themselves: a "third country," a North American common market, and a border areas compact. There are obstacles to any new arrangement. Hegemonic tendencies die hard, a problem for the United States to overcome. Mexico's suspicions of the northern neighbor are equally difficult to eliminate. But the many problems that exist between Mexico and the United States should be viewed as problems between friends, therefore resolvable in principle by friends.
Joshua L. Miller and Ann Marie Garran. (2017). Racism in the United States: Implications for the Helping Professions. 2nd Ed. New York,NY: Springer (393 pp., $80 paperback, ISBN# 978-0826148841)

In America, the idea of race was a way of granting legitimacy to the relations of domination imposed by the conquest. … This principle has proven to be the most effective and long-lasting instrumen...
Consequences of resource supplementation for disease risk in a partially migratory population.

Anthropogenic landscape features such as urban parks and gardens, landfills and farmlands can provide novel, seasonally reliable food sources that impact wildlife ecology and distributions. In hist...
Tuning of TCR in poly-crystalline VO2 for enhanced IR detection

We explored the effect of Cr dopant on the transport behaviors of polycrystalline VO2 thin films in order to suppress the sharp metal-insulator transition, and tune the temperature coefficient of resistivity (TCR) value. A reactive bias target ion beam deposition was used for combinational sputtering to Cr doped VO2 thin films (~100 nm). The addition of Cr led a structural change in the semiconducting phase of VO2. With the Cr content >7 at. %, the sharp metal-semiconductor transition and the hysteresis loop was suppressed in thin film VO2. A further increase of Cr content reduced the TCR. Separately the effect of the oxygen flow rate was investigated to modulate the TCR and the resistivity value of Cr doped VO2. We demonstrated the resistivity of Cr doped VO2 was modulated by 2 orders of magnitude with a very small change in the oxygen flow rate. We obtained TCR of ~ 4.5 %/K in Cr doped VO2 grown on single crystal sapphire substrate near room temperature.
Percutaneous Closure of Peridevice Leak After Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion.

Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) is an effective stroke prevention method in atrial fibrillation patients who are not suitable for long-term anticoagulation. However, persistent leak is seen in up to 12% of patients following LAAO with the currently available devices [(1)][1]. Continuation of
Least-squares reconstruction of low-frequency inhomogeneous plane waves

Abstract Through the use of linear acoustic source arrays, it is possible to generate sound fields with a specified pressure distribution at a given standoff distance. By specifying the desired pressure at a number of points on a target surface, the powers and relative phases of the sound sources can be tuned to generate a least-squares reconstruction of a desired pressure distribution. While this method of sound field reconstruction has been explored for homogeneous waves, here its application to the generation of inhomogeneous plane waves, or waves that decay spatially in a direction perpendicular to their direction of propagation, will be analyzed. Models of the pressure field created from many sources will be applied to determine the effects of altering certain array parameters, such as the standoff distance and the source spacing, on the maximum pressure error and total acoustic power consumption. These figures of merit will be compared to similar values for homogeneous plane waves to elucidate the effect of inhomogeneity on sound field reconstruction. The extent to which imprecision at the source affects the observed inhomogeneity will be discussed, as proper tuning of the decay parameter is critical to minimizing the reflection coefficient of an inhomogeneous plane wave incident on a surface.
Detecting Abnormal Pattern of Epileptic Seizures via Temporal Synchronization of EEG Signals

Objective: Synchronization phenomena of epileptic electroencephalography (EEG) have long been studied. In this study, we aim at investigating the spatial-temporal synchronization pattern in epileptic human brains using the spectral graph theoretic features extracted from scalp EEG and developing an efficient multivariate approach for detecting seizure onsets in real time. Methods: A complex network model is used for representing the recurrence pattern of EEG signals, based on which the temporal synchronization patterns are quantified using the spectral graph theoretic features. Furthermore, a statistical control chart is applied to the extracted features overtime for monitoring the transits from normal to epileptic states in multivariate EEG systems. Results: Our method is tested on 23 patients from CHB-MIT Scalp EEG database. The results show that the graph theoretic feature yields a high sensitivity ( $\sim$ 98%) and low latency ( $\sim$ 6 s) on average, and seizure onsets in 18 patients are 100% detected. Conclusion: Our approach validates the increased temporal synchronization in epileptic EEG and achieves a comparable detection performance to previous studies. Significance: We characterize the temporal synchronization patterns of epileptic EEG using spectral network metrics. In addition, we found significant changes in temporal synchronization in epileptic EEG, which enable a patient-specific approach for real-time seizure detection for personalized diagnosis and treatment.
Stochastic averaging near homoclinic orbits via singular perturbations

We outline a singular-perturbations approach to the graph-valued stochastic averaging results of Freidlin-Wentzell and Freidlin-Weber. We specifically consider the Freidlin-Weber problem (a Newtonian particle in a double-well potential). To show the Freidlin-Weber convergence result, we develop a perturbed test function via a boundary-layer PDE near the homoclinic orbit. Solvability of this PDE is equivalent to the glueing conditions of Freidlin-Wentzell. Details of our calculations will appear elsewhere.
Ethical considerations of neuroprostheses

Neuroprosthetics has enjoyed increasing interest among researchers, health care professionals, the media, and the general public over the past few decades. New developments in neuroprostheses are the result of increased collaboration among those working in science, engineering, and medicine. It is a rapidly growing field with tremendous potential for restoration or supplementation of an existing bodily function or sense, as well as creation of potentially novel functional and sensing abilities. With rapid technological advancements, significant ethical concerns related to neuroprostheses have been noted. Here we discuss such ethical issues associated with neuroprostheses at their various stages of development and use.
Quick, reliable estimates of high-power microwave fluences: The SNEAKY-II program

The propagation of high-power microwave pulses through the atmosphere is often modeled with time-dependent fluid or kinetic codes that require a fine mesh of range and time points. The computational time to run these codes precludes their use to determine the optimum pulse characteristics and propagation paths for delivery of a desired fluence to a specified target. In this work, a universal, parameterized scaling law for microwave-induced air breakdown is integrated into the SNEAKY model to produce a new microwave propagation code, SNEAKY-II. It estimates microwave fluences to within 1%--13% agreement with the more elaborate time-dependent fluid codes while running a hundred to several thousand times faster. The purpose of this report is to document the SNEAKY-II code, complete with benchmarking and specifications of the inherent limitations. 5 refs., 17 figs., 3 tabs.
Nucleosome Turnover Regulates Histone Methylation Patterns over the Genome.

Summary Recent studies have indicated that nucleosome turnover is rapid, occurring several times per cell cycle. To access the effect of nucleosome turnover on the epigenetic landscape, we investigated H3K79 methylation, which is produced by a single methyltransferase (Dot1l) with no known demethylase. Using chemical-induced proximity (CIP), we find that the valency of H3K79 methylation (mono-, di-, and tri-) is determined by nucleosome turnover rates. Furthermore, propagation of this mark is predicted by nucleosome turnover simulations over the genome and accounts for the asymmetric distribution of H3K79me toward the transcriptional unit. More broadly, a meta-analysis of other conserved histone modifications demonstrates that nucleosome turnover models predict both valency and chromosomal propagation of methylation marks. Based on data from worms, flies, and mice, we propose that the turnover of modified nucleosomes is a general means of propagation of epigenetic marks and a determinant of methylation valence.
Are Parent–Teacher Groups Leading? An Exploratory Study of Nonprofit–Government Interactions in the Public School Context

Parent–teacher groups (PTGs) are nonprofits that play varying partnership roles with public schools with shared governance arrangements. However, these partnerships exhibit tensions between PTGs’ roles as engines of social participation and as financial resources. We explored factors that encourage or detract from PTGs’ leadership. We specifically explored PTGs’ autonomy around how they raise and allocate money with partnering schools and how funding partnerships vary across schools with different levels of affluence and racial composition. Our data came from an electronic survey of PTG presidents at public elementary schools in North Carolina. We found that school affluence matters in the leadership of these shared governance arrangements—with consequences not only for PTGs’ funding sources and activities, but also in the ways that PTGs financially partner with schools.
Toward a Better Understanding of Species Interactions through Network Biology.

ABSTRACT Within the last decade, there has been an explosion of multi-omics data generated for several microbial systems. At the same time, new methods of analysis have emerged that are based on inferring networks that link features both within and between species based on correlation in abundance. These developments prompt two important questions. What can be done with network approaches to better understand microbial species interactions? What challenges remain in applying network approaches to query the more complex systems of natural settings? Here, I briefly describe what has been done and what questions still need to be answered. Over the next 5 to 10 years, we will be in a strong position to infer networks that contain multiple kinds of omic data and describe systems with multiple species. These applications will open the door for a better understanding and use of microbiomes across a variety of fields.
A Review of Art as Contemplative Practice: Expressive Pathways to the Self

“Art as Contemplative Practice reminds the reader that art is a powerful and transformative tool, one that is essential to being alive and engaged with life.”Can art heal? Can art bring laughter, g...
Education, counseling, support groups, and provider knowledge of total laryngectomy: The patient's perspective.

Abstract Purpose Studies over a 40 year period have reported inadequate education and counseling for persons with laryngectomy; however, several long-term trends, including centralization of laryngectomy surgeries in major teaching hospitals, the rise of the internet, and the increased use of the tracheoesophageal prosthesis (TEP) for voice all have the potential to improve this situation. This study investigated if persons with total laryngectomy reported receiving adequate education and counseling before and after their laryngectomy, and how this varied by gender, geographic setting, communication method, and time. It also examined who participated in in-person and online support groups, and what health care providers and settings are perceived as most knowledgeable about laryngectomy. Methods This research was a cross-sectional study, with 200 participants meeting the inclusion criteria. Results were analyzed via descriptive statistics, Pearson chi-square test, McNemar’s test, Fisher’s exact test, and one-way ANOVA with post-hoc analysis. Results About half of persons with total laryngectomy reported receiving adequate education and counseling pre- and post-surgery, with men being more likely to report adequate education than women, and persons using a TEP for voice more likely to report adequate education than persons using alternate communication methods. Most participants (71%) participated in support groups, with women more likely to participate than men. Participants in rural areas were less likely to participate in in-person support groups than those from suburban or urban areas. Participants using a TEP as a communication method were more likely to participate in in-person support groups than those using other communication methods. Doctors, speech-language pathologists (SLPs), the internet, and support groups were highly rated sources of information. Among health-care providers, ENTs and SLPs were rated as the most knowledgeable, and primary-care physicians, dentists, and emergency medical technicians the least. Conclusions There continues to be a need for adequate education and counseling both before and after surgery. This education and counseling may need to continue for months or years post-surgery, due to the traumatic nature of the laryngectomy procedure. Doctors and SLPs can play a leading part in providing education and counseling, and with other health professions and in-person and online support groups also having a role to play. Frontline health care providers are perceived as having low knowledge of laryngectomy.
Mechanical and durability characteristics of flyash-based soil-geopolymer mixtures for pavement base and subbase layers

In this research study, medium and high plastic soils were utilised in evaluating the physical, microstructural, mechanical and durability characteristics of fly ash-based soil-geopolymer mixtures....
Effect of right ventricular pacing on left ventricular systolic function in patients with Tetralogy of Fallot.

Abstract Background Prevalence of pacemaker-induced cardiomyopathy (PICM) in adults with congenital heart disease is unknown. Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is a common diagnosis in the adult congenital heart disease population, and the purpose of this study was to determine association between frequent right ventricular (RV) pacing and temporal decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) from pre-implantation to 2-years post-implantation (LVEFpost-pre) in TOF patients. Methods We studied TOF patients that received RV leads only (N = 51) and a reference group of 7 patients with atrial pacing or biventricular pacing. We defined PICM as a ≥10% decrease in LVEF resulting in LVEF 40%) and LVEFpost-pre. Results PICM occurred in 2 (4%) of 51 patients in RV pacing group. LVEFpost-pre was +3% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0% to +5%) in the reference group and −4% (95% CI −11% to +2%) in RV pacing group. No significant difference occured in LVEFpost-pre between the reference group (LVEFpost-pre +3%) vs RV pacing ≤20% (LVEFpost-pre +1%) vs RV pacing 21–40% (LVEFpost-pre −3%) vs RV pacing >40% (LVEFpost-pre −5%), p = 0.318. There was also no association between frequent RV pacing and LVEFpost-pre, R2 = 0.307, p = 0.10. Conclusion PICM occurred in 4% of TOF patients receiving RV pacing, and there was no association between frequent RV pacing and temporal decline in LVEF. Further studies are required to determine the long-term impact of RV pacing in the TOF population, and explore optimal treatment strategies.
Longitudinal and reciprocal associations between financial strain, home characteristics and mobility in the National Health and Aging Trends Study.

Older adults need homes that suit their physical capacity. Financial strain may limit home repairs and modifications and prompt relocations; repairing, relocating or modifying may increase financial strain. Likewise, reciprocal relationships may exist between financial strain and home characteristics and mobility; financial strain and home characteristics may influence mobility and mobility declines may increase financial strain, limit home repairs and modifications and prompt relocations. We test cross-lagged associations between financial strain, home disorder, relocation, home modifications and mobility. In the National Health and Aging Trends Study, ability to complete a walking test, speed among those able to complete, financial strain, home disorder, relocating and modifying the home were recorded annually for 3 years (2012–2014). Structural equation models separately examined ability to walk and walking speed among those able, accounting for sociodemographic characteristics, social support, health prior health characteristics and autoregressive effects. Sampling weights accounted for the complex survey design and non-response over time. In both models (n = 3234 and n = 2467), financial strain predicted greater home disorder and vice versa, but cross-lagged associations were not found with relocating and modifications. Greater home disorder predicted lower odds of ability to walk and slower speed among those able. Financial strain and home modifications predicted lower odds of ability to walk. Also, faster walking speed predicted lower odds of subsequent financial strain and lower subsequent home disorder scores and ability to walk predicted less subsequent home disorder and lower odds of relocating. Home disorder links financial strain with reduced mobility in a national sample of U.S. older adults. Cross-lagged associations between financial strain and home disorder and between home disorder and mobility suggest reciprocal effects that may accumulate over time. Also, financial strain, reduced mobility, relocations and modifications predicted greater home disorder. Together, these results highlight home disorder as a social determinant of mobility for older adults. Greater attention should be given to repairing and modifying home environments and supporting stable housing for older adults with financial strain.
Direct-to-Consumer Advertising and Pharmaceutical Ethics: The Case of Vioxx

In the pharmaceutical industry, one of the most valuable assets a company has is its reputation. The work we do is a public trust. When you are researching, developing, and manufacturing drugs that people rely on to prevent or treat disease in themselves or their families, you should be expected to maintain the highest standards of ethics and integrity. At Merck, that is the standard to which we hold ourselves.
SpeakEasy: Browser-based automated multi-language intonation training

Learning to speak a second language involves a cycle of observation, mimicry, and feedback. A student observes a teacher, attempts to copy the teacher's performance, and then the teacher provides feedback on how the student performed. When the students' access to feedback is limited, so is their ability reinforce their learning. In this work a web based application, Speakeasy tools, in introduced to provide remote students with automated visual intonation feedback for multiple languages. For this study, participants are selected from the pool of Speakeasy users and their interactions with the application are observed over a set period of time. The application presents participants with native speaker examples generated via text-to-speech in the form of audio samples, fundamental frequency visualizations, and grapheme and phoneme level timelines. Participants are able to record and review an unlimited number of practice attempts which are processed using the same pipeline used for the native speaker examples. Using the Root-Mean-Square Error (RMSE) between native and participant fundamental frequencies over time, the practice attempt is assigned a score. Practice-attempt scores with respect to time spent using the application provide a metric for measuring a participant's progress. [Work supported by RPI Seed Grant and CISL.]
Making the Connection: Attitudes about Women in Politics and Voting for Women Candidates

Research on women candidates in the United States often considers the role that attitudes toward women in politics can play in shaping the electoral success of these candidates. However, besides anecdotal information about reactions to individual candidates, we lack systematic data that allow us to examine whether there is a link between the attitudes voters have about women in politics and their vote choices decisions when they are faced with a woman candidate. Relying on data from a two-wave panel survey of 3150 U.S. adults in 2010, we test whether the gendered attitudes people hold are related to their voting decisions in mixed-sex (woman v. man) and male-only races for the House of Representatives. We consider the role of attitudes alongside traditional political forces like political party and incumbency and examine whether the party of the woman candidate is relevant. In all, we find that some attitudes about women in politics are related to voting for women candidates, but the relationships are not a central influence.
Cost-effectiveness of laparoscopic disease assessment in patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer

Abstract Objective To determine if laparoscopy is a cost-effective way to assess disease resectability in patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer. Methods A cost-effectiveness analysis from a health care payer perspective was performed comparing two strategies: (1) a standard evaluation strategy, where a conventional approach to treatment planning was used to assign patients to either primary cytoreduction (PCS) or neoadjuvant chemotherapy with interval cytoreduction (NACT), and (2) a laparoscopy strategy, where patients considered candidates for PCS would undergo laparoscopy to triage between PCS or NACT based on the laparoscopy-predicted likelihood of complete gross resection. A microsimulation model was developed that included diagnostic work-up, surgical and adjuvant treatment, perioperative complications, and progression-free survival (PFS). Model parameters were derived from the literature and our published data. Effectiveness was defined in quality-adjusted PFS years. Results were tested with deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA). The willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold was set at $50,000 per year of quality-adjusted PFS. Results The laparoscopy strategy led to additional costs (average additional cost $7034) but was also more effective (average 4.1 months of additional quality-adjusted PFS). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of laparoscopy was $20,376 per additional year of quality-adjusted PFS. The laparoscopy strategy remained cost-effective even as the cost added by laparoscopy increased. The benefit of laparoscopy was influenced by mitigation of serious complications and their associated costs. The laparoscopy strategy was cost-effective across a range of WTP thresholds. Conclusions Performing laparoscopy is a cost-effective way to improve primary treatment planning for patients with untreated advanced ovarian cancer.
Towards the three-dimensional parton structure of the pion: Integrating transverse momentum data into global QCD analysis

We perform a new Monte Carlo QCD analysis of pion parton distribution functions, including, for the first time, transverse momentum dependent pion-nucleus Drell-Yan cross sections together with ${p}_{\mathrm{T}}$-integrated Drell-Yan and leading neutron electroproduction data from HERA. We assess the sensitivity of the Monte Carlo fits to kinematic cuts, factorization scale, and parametrization choice, and we discuss the impact of the various datasets on the pion's quark and gluon distributions. This study provides the necessary step towards the simultaneous analysis of collinear and transverse momentum dependent pion distributions and the determination of the pion's three-dimensional structure.
An exploration of the relationships of experiential avoidance (as measured by the aaq-ii and meaq) with negative affect, perceived stress, and avoidant coping styles.

Background Current psychotherapies seek to reduce experiential avoidance (EA) which has also been put forth as a risk factor for anxiety disorders, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. EA is a potentially maladaptive self-regulatory tendency to avoid negative thoughts, feelings, memories, physical sensations, and other internal experiences. One unresolved issue with the most commonly used measures of EA, the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II) which measures EA as a single factor and the Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire (MEAQ) which measures EA as six subdimensions, is what exactly is being measured. The AAQ-II appears to measure negative affect (NA), some aspects of avoidant coping, and psychological distress. In addition, the relationships of all the MEAQ subscales have not been thoroughly examined with these other constructs. In the current study, the relationships of AAQ-II and MEAQ scores with NA, avoidant coping styles, and perceived stress were examined. Methods Two-hundred undergraduates (154 females and 46 males) completed the AAQ-II and MEAQ, the Distressed Type D Personality Scale (DS-14) which includes a measure of NA, the Brief COPE which measures coping styles, and the Perceived Stress Scale. Results Scores on the AAQ-II had moderate positive relationships with the MEAQ total score and all MEAQ subscales with the exception of distress endurance which had a moderate negative relationship. The AAQ-II had a stronger relationship with NA, avoidant coping, and perceived stress than did the MEAQ. All MEAQ subscales had a positive relationship to NA, avoidant coping, and perceived stress with the exception of distress endurance which had a negative relationship with these constructs. While the AAQ-II is limited as a unitary measure of EA the multiple dimensions of the MEAQ may involve an extraneous factor of distress endurance. Future work should examine the relationships of the MEAQ with NA, avoidant coping and perceived stress with clinical populations.
A modeling approach for soot formation in non-premixed flames with elevated stoichiometric mixture fraction

Abstract Most soot formation models have been developed with particular applications in mind and as such, are valid only for the range of fuel-air combustion conditions representative of the target application. This limits the applicability and versatility of most models, especially for combustion processes wherein the stoichiometric mixture fraction, Zst, could vary widely. A soot-producing flame could become non-sooting (blue) with an increase in Zst even while maintaining constant flame temperature. This paper presents a novel modeling approach to account for the unique flame characteristics at elevated-Zst environments and their effect on soot formation. This modeling approach is designed to capture both the formation and the reversible processes that occur on the fuel-side of a diffusion flame in a way which is robust, simple, and can be utilized in diverse applications. Additionally, a new semi-empirical model is developed for extending two widely-used models–Leung-Lindstedt and Moss-Brookes–both of which render inaccurate predictions under varying Zst conditions. When applied to the counterflow flame system, the soot volume fraction profiles predicted by incorporation of our new and modified models agree well with experimental observations reported in the literature for low Zst. Using this modeling approach also resulted in the prediction of blue (soot-free) limit condition in a non-premixed counterflow flame for the first time. We show that this result cannot be obtained by considering formation processes alone and that the performance of semi-empirical soot formation models can be dramatically improved when applied to higher-Zst flames if the reversible nature of soot formation at high temperature is considered.
Civil Engineering and Urban Systems

A new engineering activity, Urban Systems Engineering, is emerging in response to the increasing demands of urbanization. Contributing to this activity are mathematics, economics, and the social, behavioral and institutional sciences (law, government, etc.), all of which pyramid upon an engineering base. Analytic methodology, theories and descriptions of the behavior of urban systems and institutions, and the use of inductive and deductive quantitative methods are particularly important. The civil engineering profession has a major opportunity in Urban Systems Engineering. Areas of responsibility and leadership should be identified and accepted enthusiastically, for if the civil engineering profession fails to meet this challenge effectively, the job will be done by others.