cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Designing with distance fields

Creating 3D computer models is a difficult, time consuming task. Existing systems capable of providing detailed, expressive models of sufficient quality for Hollywood or CAD can be labor intensive and complex, thus limiting creativity and the availability of good 3D models. During the past few years, several systems have been presented that address some of these limitations by using distance fields to represent and create models. The author presents the latest advancements to the Kizamu system and several new design paradigms that can make use of distance fields for creating and editing 3D geometry.
The Relationship Between Stratospheric Circulation Patterns and Radioactive Debris in Early 1963

Abstract The large scale atmospheric nuclear testing in 1961 and 1962 afforded the opportunity of observing changes in the distribution of radioactivity and its relationship to stratospheric circulation patterns. Air-craft observations in early 1963 from 15 to 21 km over the Northern Hemisphere and balloon observations to 30 km at 31N together with 50-mb constant pressure charts suggest that most of the debris injected into the polar stratosphere during November-December 1962 was confined to a relatively small volume north of 70N. This debris did not appreciably affect the zone south of 70N until February 1963 when the circumpolar vortex split into two cyclonic cells and moved southward, one cell over Europe, the other over Canada and the United States. This contaminant was then observed as far south as 25N. An anticyclone which moved over Alaska during February 1963 had different radioactivity characteristics than did the polar vortex. These well-defined large-scale eddies maintained their identity until...
Information-Theoretic Approximation of Small Sample Distributions

We propose a simple approach for approximating small sample distributions based on the method of minimum relative entropy density. Unlike previous studies that use this method as a curve-fitting tool, we focus on the 'small sample asymptotics' of the approximation to distributions of general statistics. We show that this method obtains not only the same asymptotic order of accuracy as that of the classical Edgeworth expansion and the exponential Edgeworth expansion by Field and Hampel (1982), but also the minimum Kullback-Leibler distance among all approximations of the same exponential family. The formulation of the minimum relative entropy density facilitates incorporating prior information through a reference density. Moreover, the introduction of a reference density frees us from the assumption of a bounded support, which is typically used in the existing literature. We discuss the selection of a proper reference density that ensures the integrability of the approximation on the real line under various moment constraints. Our numerical experiments show that the proposed method compares competitively with and often outperforms the Edgeworth and exponential Edgeworth expansions, especially when the sample size is small.
Iodide uptake by negatively charged clay interlayers

Understanding iodide interactions with clay minerals is critical to quantifying risk associated with nuclear waste disposal. Current thought assumes that iodide does not interact directly with clay minerals due to electrical repulsion between the iodide and the negatively charged clay layers. However, a growing body of work indicates a weak interaction between iodide and clays. The goal of this contribution is to report a conceptual model for iodide interaction with clays by considering clay mineral structures and emergent behaviors of chemical species in confined spaces. To approach the problem, a suite of clay minerals was used with varying degrees of isomorphic substitution, chemical composition, and mineral structure. Iodide uptake experiments were completed with each of these minerals in a range of swamping electrolyte identities (NaCl, NaBr, KCl) and concentrations. Iodide uptake behaviors form distinct trends with cation exchange capacity and mineral structure. These trends change substantially with electrolyte composition and concentration, but do not appear to be affected by solution pH. The experimental results suggest that iodide may directly interact with clays by forming ion-pairs (e.g., NaI(aq)) which may concentrate within the interlayer space as well as the thin areas surrounding the clay particle where water behavior is more structured relative to bulk water. Ion pairing and iodide concentration in these zones is probably driven by the reduced dielectric constant of water in confined space and by the relatively high polarizability of the iodide species.
11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase modulation of glucocorticoid activities in lymphoid organs

The immunoregulatory effects of glucocorticoids (GCS) are linked to their capacity to alter the production of various species of cytokines associated with immune and inflammatory processes. The present study determined that the influences of GCS within particular lymphoid organs vary, depending on the specific activity of 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11 beta-HSD) within the tissue. This enzyme converts active GCS to inactive metabolites and was found to display greater activity in peripheral than in mucosal lymphoid organs. A direct correlation was found between 11 beta-HSD activity and the preferential production of type 1 cytokines by T-cells residing within certain lymphoid organs. It was established that lymphoid organ 11 beta-HSD was localized in the immobile stromal cell components. Inhibition of 11 beta-HSD activity in vivo reduced type 1 and enhanced type 2 cytokine production by activated T-cells, and it also depressed the ability of animals to generate contact hypersensitivity responses. We conclude that GCS levels can be controlled within lymphoid organs through oxidative inactivation by 11 beta-HSD. GCS action is, therefore, dependent on tissue levels of 11 beta-HSD activity, the number of GCS receptors in a responsive cell, and the concentration of circulating GCS.
A study of high quality Al-doped ZnO thin films grown at low temperature by pulsed laser deposition

Highly conducting and transparent Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films, which are oriented along c-axis and have wurtzite structure, were grown on quartz substrate at low temperature by pulsed laser deposition. The techniques of x-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), optical transmission spectroscopy (OTS), electrical resistivity, and Hall Effect were used to study the effect of growth temperature and oxygen pressure on the structural, electrical transport, and optical properties of these films. The optical transparency in all the films is high and does not change much with oxygen pressure and growth temperature. However, electrical parameters such as resistivity, carrier concentration, and mobility strongly depend on both oxygen pressure and growth temperature. The temperature dependence resistivity measurement indicates semiconducting behavior of all the films. A detailed study indicates that the films which are highly conducting and transparent correspond to an optimum temperature of 200 °C and an oxygen pressure of 5 × 10−7 bar. Higher transmittance of the AZO films compared with pure ZnO and ITO and comparable mobility make us to suggest that Al-doped ZnO is an excellent material for optoelectronic applications.
First-Principles Study of Photoexcited Defects in Polysilane Chains

Organopolysilane materials have recently demonstrated potential technological importance as positive photoresists, photoconductors, and nonlinear optical materials. Many of the technological applications of these materials depend intimately on the photoexcitation process in these materials, possibly resulting in either bond scission or the creation of mobile charge carriers. Herein we present some preliminary results of a model simulation of the photoexcitation process in oligomeric polysilane chains using a recently developed first-principles local-density functional method for the calculation of electronic structures,total energies, and gradients of the total energy with respect to nuclear coordinates.
Dysphagia and anorexia as presentations of leptomeningeal carcinomatosis

A 61-year-old woman presented to the emergency department, with a 4-day history of isolated oropharyngeal dysphagia associated with anorexia and weight loss over the previous 4 weeks. She had no other focal neurological symptoms and no deficits on examination. She had been in a 4-year remission of breast cancer postmastectomy and chemoradiation. Neuroimaging showed enhancement of cranial nerves VII, VIII, cisternal segment of cranial V, dorsal and ventral surfaces of the cervical and thoracic cord as well as enhancement of the cauda equina. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis revealed carcinomatous cells. The patient was diagnosed as having leptomeningeal carcinomatosis secondary to lobular breast cancer and was started on radiation therapy, antihormonal treatments and intrathecal methotrexate.
Can a linear combination of gait principal component vectors identify hip OA stages

Hip osteoarthritis (OA) has been shown to affect gait patterns of lower extremities. However, until now, no specific identifying gait characteristics for the various disease stages of hip OA have emerged. The present study addresses the following questions: (1) does a vector-based principal component analysis (PCA) discriminate between various disease stages? And, is this analysis more robust than using discrete gait variables? (2) Does the elimination of differences in walking speed affect the discriminatory robustness of a vector-based PCA? De-identified data sets of forty-five unilateral hip OA patients with varying disease stages and twenty-three age-matched, healthy control subjects were obtained from an available repository. PCA was performed on trial matrices consisting of all external joint moments and sagittal joint angles of one full gait cycle. Group differences in sagittal angles, external moments and the linear combination of PC vectors were investigated using spatial parameter mapping (SPM), a statistical vector field test. Several individual gait variables (i.e. joint moments or angles) demonstrated differences between healthy and moderately and/or severely affected subjects. Only the hip adduction moment could discriminate between the healthy and the early-stage OA group. There was no variable that could distinguish between all OA disease stages. In contrast, the linear combination of PC vectors demonstrated significant group differences between all stages of osteoarthritis; furthermore, these group differences stayed significant when matched speeds were input to the model.
Ovarian hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids compared with prostanoids and steroids during ovulation in rats.

Hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid methyl esters (HETEs) are lipoxygenase products of arachidonic acid that are generated along with prostaglandins (PGs) during acute inflammatory reactions. Whereas it is well known that ovarian PG levels increase during the ovulatory process, little is known about ovarian HETEs. This report compares the ovarian changes in 5-, 12-, and 15-HETE with ovarian PGE and PGF, along with progesterone, 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone, 4-androstene-3,17-dione, testosterone, and 17 beta-estradiol. Ovulation was induced in immature Wistar rats by sequential treatment with pregnant mare9s serum gonadotropin and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). Follicles began rupturing 10 h after hCG treatment. The greatest correlation was among 12-HETE, 15-HETE, and progesterone, which increased to peak levels at 10 h after hCG. In contrast, the ovarian levels of 5-HETE, 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone, testosterone, and 17 beta-estradiol all declined sharply beginning 4 h after hCG. 2 alpha,4 alpha,7-4,5-Epoxy-17-hydroxy-4,17-dimethyl-3-oxo-androstane-2- carbonitrile (epostane), a potent inhibitor of steroid synthesis and ovulation, sharply reduced the synthesis of all five steroids within 30 min after its injection at 3 h after hCG. Among the five eicosanoids, epostane mainly inhibited 15-HETE. The results suggest that 15-HETE, along with progesterone, may have an important role in ovulation.
Management of centrally located hepatocellular carcinoma: Update 2016

Centrally located hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is sited in the central part of the liver and adjacent to main hepatic vascular structures. This special location is associated with an increase in the difficulty of surgery, aggregation of the recurrence disease, and greater challenge in disease management. This review summarizes the evolution of our understanding for centrally located HCC and discusses the development of treatment strategies, surgical approaches and recurrence prevention methods. To improve patient survival, a multi-disciplinary modality is greatly needed throughout the whole treatment period.
A new interval bounding algorithm for parameter estimation from bounded-error data

Abstract A new interval-based algorithm for parameter estimation from bounded-error data is proposed. The new algorithm utilizes interval mathematics to calculate axis-aligned orthotopic (boxes) outer bounds on the set of feasible parameters. The outer bounds are then revised recursively using this new information. Examples are provided to illustrate the new method.
Use and Effectiveness of Peri-Operative Cefotetan versus Cefazolin Plus Metronidazole for Prevention of Surgical Site Infection in Abdominal Surgery Patients.

Abstract Background: Current practice guidelines for antimicrobial prophylaxis in surgery recommend a cephamycin or cefazolin plus metronidazole for various abdominal surgeries. In February 2016, c...
Economic, Transfusion, and Efficacy Outcomes with the Addition of IV Iron Sucrose to Oral Iron Therapy in Pregnancy Associated Iron Deficiency Anemia

Background: Prior studies have indicated that transfusion is unusual (2%) in pregnant women with iron deficiency anemia. Nonetheless, compliance with oral iron replacement can be an issue and physicians may wish to use IV iron therapy in markedly anemic pregnant women. Objectives: to evaluate the effectiveness of adding intravenous iron sucrose concentrate (ISC) to pregnant patients already taking oral iron in terms of effect on hemoglobin, effect on ferritin levels, rates of transfusion, and cost. Methods: We analyzed all referrals from Obstetrics to Hematology clinic and Obstetrics consultation (Internal medicine) clinic from January 2014 to June 2016. Of the 176 pregnant patients, 98 were referred for anemia, including 81 patients with Hgb Results: The average cumulative dose of iron sucrose was 700 mg, a mean of 5.575 doses (initiated in the third trimester in 38 of 40 patients). The lowest antepartum Hgb was 8.18 g/dl in the ISC group and 9.58 in the oral only group; there was an average Hgb increase of 2.17 vs 1.76 g/dl respectively (p=.107 NS and the 0.41 g/dl difference was considered to be of no clinical consequence). 89% in the ISC group vs 30% in the oral achieved a ferritin >20 (p=0.000015). No adverse events in the IV iron group were reported. There was 1 transfusion in the oral iron group attributable to iron deficiency (2.4%) vs none in the IV iron group (p = 0.107 NS). Two patients were transfused in the antenatal period before IV iron was started and 1 transfused because of post-partum hemorrhage. The total cost of the IV iron therapy would add an average of $1,500 per patient. Thus, and additional cost of $60,000 in IV iron would be required to prevent 1 transfusion [40:1]. Conclusions: ISC corrects ferritin in more patients than oral iron replacement, but did not significantly increase Hgb levels or have a meaningful impact on the transfusion rate. The additional cost and lack of clinically improved outcomes with IV iron argue against its use and in favor of strategies to ensure compliance with oral iron. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
An Artifact of Law: U.S. Prohibition of Retail Hedge Funds

The U.S. hedge fund market is one of the largest and most sophisticated hedge fund markets in the world, yet due to U.S. securities regulation it is also one of the least accessible. In the U.S., federal securities law requires individuals to be wealthy to qualify to invest in hedge funds. Nonwealthy individuals, or retail investors, are effectively prohibited from purchasing hedge fund securities. Wealth-based qualifications are meant to ensure that those investing in hedge funds possess enough financial sophistication to make informed investment decisions. However, the application of wealth-based qualifications to hedge fund investors is more an artifact of the specific regulatory framework under which the funds operate than a reflection of any fundamentally unique economic characteristics of the funds. Hedge funds possess risk and disclosure characteristics comparable to a wide range of investment opportunities that U.S. retail investors are currently permitted to invest in and also typically make disclosures sufficient for retail investors to make informed investment decisions. Limiting hedge funds only to the wealthy prevents financially sophisticated yet nonwealthy investors from using the funds to minimize losses and maximize the risk-adjusted returns of their investment portfolios. To more fully advance the regulatory goals of investor protection and capital formation, U.S. financial regulators should therefore enact reforms to permit retail investors to invest in hedge funds directly or permit registered investment companies to more easily pursue hedge fund-like investment strategies.
Control of μ + δ Gene Expression in B Lymphocyte Development

B lymphocyte development proceeds through an ordered course of immunoglobulin gene rearrangements and expression [reviewed in 3, 24, 42)]. Pre-B cells contain rearranged immunoglobulin μ genes and express intracellular μ heavy chains. Early B lymphocytes express rearranged light chain genes and display monomeric surface IgM. Mature B lymphocytes co-express a new class of immunoglobulin, IgD, along with the IgM on their membranes. Further DNA rearrangements are not involved in the activation of IgD expression. Rather, the μ and δ heavy chains of IgM and IgD are encoded by different heavy chain mRNA species derived from the large μ + δ complex transcription unit (Figure 1). Finally, mature plasma cells actively secrete pentameric IgM formed in covalent association with J-chain.
Multiage Mathematics: Scaffolding Young Children's Mathematical Learning

Exploration, and discovery all come to mind when we envision young children involved in mathematical activities. Early childhood education engages students in an exploratory journey from birth through age 9 in empirical mathematical concepts. The focus of early mathematics is to develop a strong foundation of the requisite skills and concepts throughout NCTM's five Content Standard strands (NCTM 2000). The wide ranges of abilities and understandings of mathematical concepts in early childhood classrooms challenge teachers to meet all students' intellectual needs. In this article, teachers of primary-grade multiage classrooms describe how they used scaffolding to capitalize on the wide ranges of abilities and met their students' needs by providing opportunities for their young learners to work together to understand mathematical concepts.
A multiscale hierarchical Markov transition matrix model for generating and analyzing thematic raster maps

A model is described for generating hierarchically scaled spatial pattern as represented in a thematic raster map. The model involves a series of Markov transition matrices, one for each level in the scaling hierarchy. In full generality, the model allows the transition matrices to be different at each level, potentially making available a large number of parameters for landscape characterization. The model is self-similar when the transition matrices are all equal. A method is presented for fitting the model to data that take the form of a single-resolution thematic raster map. Explicit analytic solutions are obtained for the fitted parameters. The fitting method is based on a relationship between the hierarchical transitions in the model and spatial transitions at varying distance scales in the data map, a categorical analogy of the geostatistical variogram.
What comes after postmodernism? Going fishing

What if we don’t think of time as linear? What if something does not come ‘after’ postmodernism? What if we think of time as circular, or like a spiral? This idea was introduced to me through Zen B...
Prevalence of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Children with Obesity

Objectives To determine the prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in children with obesity because current estimates range from 1.7% to 85%. A second objective was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) for NAFLD in children with obesity. Study design We evaluated children aged 9-17 years with obesity for the presence of NAFLD. Diseases other than NAFLD were excluded by history and laboratories. Hepatic steatosis was measured by liver magnetic resonance imaging proton density fat fraction. The diagnostic accuracy of ALT for detecting NAFLD was evaluated. Results The study included 408 children with obesity that had a mean age of 13.2 years and mean body mass index percentile of 98.0. The study population had a mean ALT of 32 U/L and median hepatic magnetic resonance imaging proton density fat fraction of 3.7%. The estimated prevalence of NAFLD was 26.0% (95% CI 24.2%-27.7%), 29.4% in male patients (CI 26.1%-32.7%) and 22.6% in female patients (CI 16.0%-29.1%). Optimal ALT cut-point was 42 U/L (47.8% sensitivity, 93.2% specificity) for male and 30 U/L (52.1% sensitivity, 88.8% specificity) for female patients. The classification and regression tree model with sex, ALT, and insulin had 80% diagnostic accuracy for NAFLD. Conclusions NAFLD is common in children with obesity, but NAFLD and obesity are not concomitant. In children with obesity, NAFLD is present in nearly one-third of boys and one-fourth of girls.
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair Readmissions and Disparities of Socioeconomic Status: A Multistate Analysis, 2007-2014.

Objective(s) To determine differences in perioperative abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair outcomes based on patient sociodemographics. Design A retrospective analysis of patient hospitalization and discharge records. Setting All-payer patients in nonpsychiatric hospitals in New York, Maryland, Florida, Kentucky, and California. Participants A total of 92,028 patients from the State Inpatient Databases Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality from January 2007 to December 2014 (excluding California, ending December 2011) who underwent AAA repair. Interventions Data extraction and univariate and multivariate regression analysis. Measurements and Main Results Patients in the highest income quartile were less likely to be readmitted compared with those in the poorest income quartile at both 30 days (odds ratio [OR] 0.89, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.83-0.95) and 90 days (OR 0.85, 95% CI 0.81-0.91). Hospital readmissions were significantly greater for African American (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.20-1.44) and Hispanic patients (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.04-1.25) compared with white patients 30 days after AAA repair. These results were consistent 90 days after AAA repair. Patients insured with Medicare (OR 1.25, 95% CI 1.17-1.34) or Medicaid (OR 1.46, 95% CI 1.30-1.64) were more likely to be readmitted after both time points as compared with those with private insurance. The authors also found that patients with lower income, African American and Hispanic patients, and patients without private insurance were all significantly more likely to undergo emergency rather than elective repair. Conclusions Lower socioeconomic status is shown to be an independent risk factor for increased postoperative morbidity in AAA repair. The authors believe the present study demonstrates the importance of socioeconomic status as a factor in perioperative risk stratification.
Neuroprotection and vasculoprotection using genetically targeted protease-ligands.

Abstract Thrombin and activated protein C (APC) are known coagulation factors that exhibit profound effects in brain by acting on the protease activated receptor (PAR). The wild type (WT) proteases appear to impact cell survival powerfully, and therapeutic forms of APC are under development. Engineered recombinant thrombin or APC were designed to separate their procoagulant or anticoagulant effects from their cytoprotective properties. We measured vascular disruption and neuronal degeneration after a standard rodent filament stroke model. For comparison to a robust anticoagulant, we used a GpIIb/IIIa inhibitor, GR144053. During 2 h MCAo both WT murine APC and its mutant, 5A-APC, significantly decreased neuronal death 30 min after reperfusion. During 4 h MCAo, only 5A-APC significantly protected neurons but both WT-APC and 5A-APC exacerbated vascular disruption during 4 h MCAo. Human APC mutants appeared to reduce 24 h neuronal injury significantly when given after 2 h delay after MCAo. In contrast, 24 h vascular damage was worsened by high doses of WT and mutant APCs, although only statistically significantly for high dose 3K3A-APC. Mutated thrombin worsened vascular damage significantly without affecting neuron damage. GR144053 failed to ameliorate vascular disruption or neuronal injury despite significant anticoagulation. Differential effects on neurons and the vasculature were demonstrated using wild-type and mutated proteases. The mutants murine 3K3A-APC and 5A-APC protected neurons in this rodent model but in high doses worsened vascular leakage. Cytoactive effects of plasma proteases may be separated from their coagulation effects. Further studies should explore impact of dose and timing on cytoactive and vasculoactive properties of these drugs.
Heightened defensive responses following subtotal lesions of macaque orbitofrontal cortex

Anxiety disorders are characterized by excessive attention to threat. Several brain areas, including the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), have been associated with threat processing, with more recent work implicating specialized roles for the medial and lateral subregions of the OFC in mediating specific symptoms of anxiety disorders. Virtually no causal work, however, has evaluated the role of these OFC subregions in regulating behavioral responses under threat. To address this gap, we compared male rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) with bilateral excitotoxic lesions restricted to either the lateral OFC (lOFC), targeting Walker's areas 11 and 13, or the medial OFC (mOFC), targeting Walker's area 14, to a group of unoperated controls on behavioral responses to the presentation of a fake rubber snake, fake spider, and neutral stimuli. Both lesion groups showed heightened defensive and reduced approach responses, accompanied by longer latencies to retrieve a food reward, in the presence of the threatening stimuli. Compared to unoperated controls, the mOFC lesion group also showed longer latencies to reach for rewards and a greater proportion of defensive responses (e.g., piloerection) in the presence of neutral stimuli. Thus, monkeys with mOFC lesions displayed a greater tendency to express defensive responses even in the absence of threat. Overall, our data reveal that both the mOFC and lOFC contribute to the attenuation of defensive responses. Notably, these findings, obtained following selective, excitotoxic lesions of the OFC, are diametrically opposed to the effects of aspiration lesions of OFC observed in macaques.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Engaging in adaptive defensive responses under threat promotes biological fitness. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) has been implicated in regulating defensive responses to threat, with distinct subregions likely playing different roles. Here we tested the effects of excitotoxic damage restricted to either the lateral or medial subdivisions of the OFC in rhesus macaques. We found significantly heightened defense and reduced approach responses to threatening stimuli in both lesion groups. While lateral OFC lesions led to an increase in defense responses to the threatening stimuli, medial OFC lesions produced increases in defense responses to both threatening and neutral stimuli. Our findings provide insights into the neural regulation of defensive responses to threat and inform the etiology and treatment of anxiety disorders in humans.
Integrated-Phased-Array-Based Visible-Light Near-Eye Holographic Projector

An integrated-phased-array-based visible-light holographic projector is proposed as a scalable solution towards the next generation of augmented-reality head-mounted displays. A passive pixel-based architecture is developed and projection of a wire-frame cube is experimentally demonstrated © 2019 The Author(s)
Pre-Instrumental Climate: How Has Climate Varied During the Past 500 Years?

Abstract There is a need for a long-term record of global or hemispheric temperature which extends back in time beyond the limited (100–150 year) span of the instrumental record. The extent to which this can be achieved is discussed and attention is focused on climatic (mainly temperature) information that has been derived form historical (documentary) sources. Records from western Europe, East Asia, North America and Africa are examined and the characteristics that they have in common are identified. Although there are many differences among the regional records, all show that the 20th-century warming is unique in the context of the last 500 years. However, many types of documentary evidence tend to emphasize colder intervals and may underestimate warmer periods. The underlying trend in temperature depends on the time period selected and may differ by season. Maximum upward trends are given by a series beginning in the late 19th century and extending through the 1980s. There is little prospect of reconstructing a hemispherically representative record of temperature from historical data alone, and the best strategy may be to combine many different types of proxy data.
Development of a clinician-parent home care education intervention.

Objectives To examine the strengths and opportunities for improvement of current home care education practices to inform the development of the Home Care for Heart Health intervention, and to develop a web-based intervention for parents and clinicians with complimentary print materials that could provide the right education at the right time to foster a safer transition from hospital to home. Methods An inter-professional focus group of parents, clinicians, and designers was formed to co-create a home care education intervention for parents of children with congenital heart disease (CHD) and their care team. We used the Integrated New Product Development process model created by Jonathon Cagan and Craig Vogel at Carnegie Mellon University to develop the intervention. This process model is a way of thinking that combines horizontal and inter-disciplinary teams, stakeholder-centric focus, and a system of qualitative discovery and development evolving towards quantitative methods of refinement. Results Our team developed the Home Care for Heart Health intervention. The evidenced-based intervention includes a quick reference guide for parents of children with CHD, an accompanying app, family-friendly pathways, and clinician education. Conclusion Using an inter-professional approach, our team of clinicians, parents, and design experts were able to co-create a clinician-parent home care education intervention with broad application and lifelong relevance to the Congenital Heart Disease Community. Practice implications Our intervention has the potential to be used as a model for other home care education interventions for parents of children with chronic illnesses.
Review of Tim Judah. In Wartime: Stories from Ukraine.

Book review of Tim Judah. In Wartime: Stories from Ukraine. Penguin Books, 2016. xxx, 258 pp. Illustrations. Maps. Sources. $21.99, paper.
12 Korean hemorrhagic fever and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome: Examples of emerging hantaviral diseases

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the different aspects of the Korean hemorrhagic fever (KHF) and Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS). Two important examples of emerging viral diseases are presented by KHF and HPS, first identified in 1951 and 1993, respectively. Hantaan virus (HTN) is the cause of KHF and Sin Nombre virus (SN) is the most common cause of HPS. Although viruses causing these diseases occur in totally different parts of the world, they have many features in common. Both cause enzootic infections of rodents in which a single rodent species undergoes lifelong persistent infection, with the shedding of the agent in the urine. The viruses of the genus, Hantavirus, of the family Bunyaviridae provide a paradigm for one class of emerging viral diseases. Each virus has adapted to a single or a small group of rodent hosts with which it has a commensal relationship, being transmitted from adults to young animals and causing lifelong persistent infections with little or no acute disease consequence, although there may be late pathological abnormalities perhaps associated with immune complex deposition. Hantaviruses cause relatively benign persistent infections in their natural hosts, but lead to acute infections with severe disease in humans.
Art Education in the Face of Injustice

Everyone is hard at work making pictures of the things they love back home, occasionally pausing to tell a joke. The room is filled with rhythms and undulations of Spanish—adults arranging travel p...
Annals On Call - Approach to UGI Bleeding

In this episode of Annals On Call, Dr. Centor discusses the approach to patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding with Dr. Chad Burski.
On the Clear Evidence of the Risks to Children from Smartphone and Wifi Radio Frequency Radiation

Children’s health and well-being is under significant threat from everyday digital technologies, as the past 15 years have seen the proliferation of microwave Radio Frequency Radiation (RFR) devices in the home, school and society. The safety standards for such devices — smartphones, tablets etc. — were based on the proven thermal effects of microwave devices in adults, not children. Scientists in the life sciences have long been aware of equally harmful non-thermal effects. However, physicists and engineers have operated on the theory that non-ionizing RFR could not directly damage human DNA and lead to cancer, as it was far less powerful than ionizing radiation (x-rays, nuclear etc.). That theory has been solidly and roundly refuted, as this paper illustrates. Cancer risks aside, research studies have demonstrated that low-intensity RFR elicits a range of pathophysiological conditions in experimental animals and humans. This is why parents, educators and governments should be alarmed and take immediate and appropriate action. There is clear ignorance on such matters among parents, educators and governments, as well as academics across the natural, life and social sciences. In response, this paper aims to inform by presenting clear evidence, in a balanced manner, of the risks to children based on proven scientific theories and empirical evidence. The paper concludes by offering practical advice on how the risks to children, and indeed adults, can be minimised.
When saliva becomes a problem: the challenges and palliative care for patients with sialorrhea

Sialorrhea, or relative excess of salivary excretion, is a vexing problem for many patients. This symptom is precipitated by dysfunction in one of two interrelated processes-salivary production and oropharyngeal clearance. While medications primarily precipitate the former, dysphagia, often due to neurologic dysfunction, often causes the latter. This overabundance of saliva coupled with difficulty swallowing can predispose patients to respiratory issues, infections, and poor quality of life. There are, however, a myriad of treatment options that have shown clinical efficacy in treating this dysfunction. The purpose of this article is to present some background and etiology behind sialorrhea as well as present treatment options-non-pharmacologic, pharmacologic, surgical, and radiotherapeutic-that can help to ameliorate symptoms and improve quality of life for patients.
How Nurse Practitioners can Advocate for Local, State, and Federal Policy to Promote Colorectal Cancer Prevention and Screening

ABSTRACT Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most common cause of cancer deaths for men and women, combined, even though it is the most preventable, treatable, and beatable cancer. Polyp removal during colonoscopy is one major way to help prevent CRC, but it can also be prevented by modifiable risk factor reduction. The National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable's campaign "80% in Every Community" is an effort to address disparities in the less-screened populations and communities. The nurse practitioner (NP) can assist health care organizations to develop policies for high-quality screening programs and create system changes to promote CRC prevention and screening. Professional organizations provide an easy way to become involved in policy change at the health system, local, state, and federal levels. State and federal policies affect patient access to care and adherence to the CRC prevention and screening recommendations. Fourteen states have not yet elected to expand Medicaid. Every NP has the knowledge, skills, and ability to advocate for the expansion of Medicaid in these remaining states to reduce this access to care barrier for underserved patients and communities.
Moving into the Energy Future

In the long term, fossil fuels are not sustainable. The present abundance of shale gas and tight oil is only temporary, and should be used to help switch to new, climate-friendly, long-term sustainable energy resources. Carrying on with business as usual will take humanity and the planet over a brink in the not too distant future, and the closer we get to that brink, the harder it will be to turn away. This transition must occur if human civilization and the ecosystems that support it are to have any chance for long-term survival, but make no mistake: it will not be easy. Changing the energy paradigm in the United States initially and the world eventually will require going up against a lot of entrenched oil money and fighting a huge amount of economic inertia. It will not be easy, but it cannot fail.
Dimethyl fumarate dose-dependently increases mitochondrial gene expression and function in muscle and brain of Friedreich's ataxia model mice.

Previously we showed that Dimethyl fumarate (DMF) dose-dependently increased mitochondrial gene expression and function in cells and might be considered as a therapeutic for inherited mitochondrial disease, including Friedreich's ataxia. Here we tested DMF's ability to dose-dependently increase mitochondrial function, mitochondrial gene expression (frataxin and cytochrome oxidase protein) and mitochondrial copy number in C57BL6 wild-type mice and the FXNKD mouse model of Friedreich's Ataxia. We first dosed DMF at 0-320 mg/kg in C57BL6 mice and observed significant toxicity above 160 mg/kg orally, defining the Maximum Tolerated Dose, MTD. Oral dosing of C57BL6 mice in the range 0-160 mg/kg identified a maximum increase in aconitase activity and mitochondrial gene expression in brain and quadriceps at 110 mg/kg DMF, thus defining the Maximum Effective Dose, MED. The MED of DMF in mice overlaps the currently approved human-equivalent doses of DMF prescribed for Multiple Sclerosis (480 mg/day) and Psoriasis (720 mg/day). In the FXNKD mouse model of Friedreich's ataxia, which has a doxycycline-induced deficit of frataxin protein, we observed significant decreases of multiple mitochondrial parameters, including deficits in brain mitochondrial Complex 2, Complex 4, and aconitase activity, supporting the idea that frataxin deficiency reduces mitochondrial gene expression, mitochondrial functions and biogenesis. 110 mg/kg oral DMF rescued these enzyme activities in brain and rescued frataxin and cytochrome oxidase expression in brain, cerebellum and quadriceps muscle of the FXNKD mouse model. Taken together, these results support the idea of using fumarate-based molecules to treat Friedreich's ataxia or other mitochondrial diseases.
X-ray Topography Characterization of GaN Substrates Used for Power Electronic Devices

Gallium nitride (GaN) substrates grown by different methods were characterized by high-resolution x-ray diffraction and synchrotron x-ray topography. Using the monochromatic beam in the grazing incidence geometry, high-resolution x-ray topographs reveal the various dislocation types present. Dislocation contrasts were correlated with ray-tracing simulation results successfully so that the Burgers vectors of the dislocations could be determined. Ammonothermal-grown GaN substrate wafers show the best quality among all the wafers. These wafers, which are free of basal plane dislocations (BPDs) have threading mixed dislocations (TMDs) dominant among the threading dislocations (TDs). Images of patterned hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) GaN reveal a starkly heterogeneous distribution of dislocations with large areas containing low threading dislocation densities in between a grid of strain centers with higher threading dislocation densities and BPDs. The strain level of regular HVPE GaN substrates is very high, and the dislocation density is around 105–106 cm−2, which is much higher than 104 cm−2 of ammonothermal samples and dislocation-free areas in the patterned HVPE samples.
Dentate Nucleus Signal Intensity Changes in Children with Adrenoleukodystrophy in Comparison to Primary Brain Tumor with and without Radiotherapy after Gadobutrol Administration

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE To determine whether cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy (cALD) or brain irradiation in patients with primary brain tumor affects T1-weighted imaging (T1WI) signal intensity (SI) of the dentate nucleus (DN) in a pediatric cohort who had received consecutive macrocyclic gadolinium-based contrast agent (mcGBCA) gadobutrol. METHODS This study included 97 pediatric patients who underwent mcGBCA-enhanced MRI from 2010 to 2020 (29 children with primary brain tumors without brain radiation therapy [mcGBCA group-1], 33 children with primary brain tumors and radiation treatment [mcGBCA group-2], 35 children with cALD [mcGBCA group-3], and 97 sex-/age-matched control subjects [subgroups matched to each of the three subject groups] without GBCA administration). The DN-to-middle cerebellar peduncle (MCP) SI ratios on T1WI were then determined. A paired t-test was performed to compare SI ratios between children exposed to mcGBCA in each group and control subjects. The relationships between SI ratios and confounding variables were analyzed utilizing the Pearson correlation analysis. RESULTS The DN-to-MCP SI ratio was significantly higher of mcGBCA group-2 (1.046±.071) or mcGBCA group-3 (.972±.038) than in the control group-2 (.983±.041, P .05). CONCLUSIONS Hyperintense T1WI signal in the DN may be seen in children with brain tumors undergoing brain irradiation, as well as in children with cALD.
First search for new long rage forces at the micron scale using optically levitated microspheres

First search for new long rage forces at the micron scale using optically levitated microspheres
Automated construction of reduced mechanisms and additive reaction modules

Abstract A bottom-up approach to assemble reduced combustion kinetics mechanisms is proposed as an alternative to conventional reduction techniques. Rather than relying on simulations using detailed mechanisms to identify the set of species and reactions to include in the reduced mechanism, the proposed “building” algorithm follows an add-as-needed approach, in which reduced mechanisms are progressively augmented with individual reactions carefully selected among a restricted list in order to properly capture combustion dynamics in increasingly varied operating conditions. The algorithm is first described in details, and its characteristics and performance are explored through several examples. In a first example, reduced mechanisms able to capture methane/air auto-ignition in a constant volume homogeneous reactor are built, and compared to those generated with a conventional graph-based reduction technique. In the second example, the selection behavior of the algorithm is explored at the medium (methane) and large (heptane) mechanism scale, showing some computational advantage in using a building, bottom-up approach. Finally, the flexibility of the algorithm to add, onto a reduced mechanism, kinetic pathways that were initially not considered in the reduction is demonstrated, using the addition of a reduced representation of NO x pathways on a previously obtained methane oxidation reduced mechanism as example. The algorithm is found to yield similar results compared to reduction techniques informed by detailed mechanisms, while providing increased efficiency and flexibility to the end-user.
Serving the Needs of Performing Arts Students: A Case Study

The intent of this case study was to gain insight into the information needs and research behaviors of upper-division performing arts students, and how to best address those needs. This article presents findings from focus group interviews of thirty music, dance, and theater majors at the University of Wyoming in Laramie. The data revealed several themes, including that performing arts students have unmet multimedia, primary, and interdisciplinary research needs and that they struggle with the discovery layer and the catalog. The findings have implications for how library instruction and research services should evolve to serve this population.