cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
What is campus bridging and what is XSEDE doing about it

The term "campus bridging" was first used in the charge given to an NSF Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure task force. That task force developed this description of campus bridging:"Campus bridging is the seamlessly integrated use of cyberinfrastructure operated by a scientist or engineer with other cyberinfrastructure on the scientist's campus, at other campuses, and at the regional, national, and international levels as if they were proximate to the scientist, and when working within the context of a Virtual Organization (VO) make the 'virtual' aspect of the organization irrelevant (or helpful) to the work of the VO."Campus bridging is more a viewpoint and a set of approaches to usability, software, and information concerns than a particular set of tools or software. We outline here several specific use cases that have been identified as priorities for XSEDE in the next four years. These priorities include documentation, deployment of software used entirely outside of XSEDE, and software that helps bridge from individual researcher to campus to XSEDE cyberinfrastructure. We also describe early pilot tests and means by which the user community may stay informed of campus bridging activities and participate in the implementation of Campus Bridging tools created by XSEDE. Metrics are still being developed, and will include (1) the number of campuses that adopt and use Campus Bridging tools developed by XSEDE and (2) the number of and extent to which XSEDE-developed Campus Bridging tools are adopted among other CI projects.
Smoothing and Regularization for Mixed-Integer Second-Order Cone Programming with Applications in Portfolio Optimization

Second-order cone programming problems (SOCPs) have been well studied in literature, and computationally efficient implementations of solution algorithms exist. In this paper, we study an extension: mixed-integer second-order cone programming problems (MISOCPs). Our focus is on designing an algorithm for solving the underlying SOCPs as nonlinear programming problems (NLPs) within two existing frameworks, branch-and-bound and outer approximation, for mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP). We pay particular attention to resolving the nondifferentiability of the underlying SOCPs via a smoothing reformulation, as well as warmstarting and infeasibility detection using a regularization. We investigate the application of our proposed techniques to portfolio optimization problems that can be formulated as MISOCPs, and preliminary numerical results using the Matlab-based optimization package MILANO (Benson, MILANO—a Matlab-based code for mixed-integer linear and nonlinear optimization. http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~hvb22/milano) are provided.
Seasonal Migration of Gulf Sturgeon in the Suwannee River, Florida

Abstract The movements of 67 Gulf sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi equipped with radio transmitters were monitored in the Suwannee River, Florida, from March 1989 through August 1992. The objectives of this study were (1) to determine the seasonal movement patterns and distribution of Gulf sturgeon while in freshwater, (2) to document relationships between water temperature and Gulf sturgeon movement, and (3) to determine whether springs were used as thermal refugia by these fish. Gulf sturgeon were detected entering the river from mid-February through April; they moved upstream at an average speed of 3.5 km/d to areas where they remained until October or November. Gulf sturgeon moved no more than 0.6 river km (on average) upstream or downstream from their established summer area. Gulf sturgeon began leaving the Suwannee River from mid-September through early November and moved downstream at an average speed of 6.2 km/d; all fish returned to the Gulf of Mexico by early December. Water temperatures as...
The anticonvulsant activity of acetone, the major ketone body in the ketogenic diet, is not dependent on its metabolites acetol, 1,2-propanediol, methylglyoxal, or pyruvic acid.

Summary: Background: Acetone, one of the principal ketone bodies elevated during treatment with the ketogenic diet, exhibits anticonvulsant properties that may contribute to the seizure protection conferred by the diet. The anticonvulsant mechanism of acetone is unknown, but it is metabolized to several bioactive substances that could play a role. Methods: Acetone and its major metabolites—acetol, 1,2-propanediol, methylglyoxal, and pyruvic acid—were assessed for anticonvulsant activity in two mouse seizure models. Various doses of the substances administered intraperitoneally were characterized for their ability to elevate the threshold for clonic seizures induced by intravenous infusion of pentylenetetrazol (PTZ) and for protection against tonic seizures induced by subcutaneous bolus administration of 4-aminopyridine (4-AP). The inverted-screen test was used to assess acute neurological toxicity. Results: Acetone (1–32 mmol/kg, i.p.), in a dose-dependent fashion, elevated the PTZ threshold and conferred protection against 4-AP seizures (ED50, 26.3 mmol/kg). Effective doses of acetone (10–32 mmol/kg) did not cause motor impairment in the inverted-screen test (TD50, 45.7 mmol/kg). In doses 10-fold greater than the minimally effective dose of acetone (3.2 mmol/kg), the metabolites acetol, 1,2-propanediol, and pyruvic acid were inactive in the PTZ model. At higher doses that produced motor impairment, acetol and 1,2-propanediol (but not pyruvic acid) did elevate the PTZ threshold. Methylglyoxal had both proconvulsant and anticonvulsant actions, and had substantial toxicity, producing respiratory distress, motor impairment, and death. None of the acetone metabolites protected against 4-AP seizures. Conclusions: This study confirms the broad-spectrum anticonvulsant properties of acetone and indicates that the seizure protection conferred is unlikely to result from its major metabolic products.
A Commercial Method for Recovery of Natural Pigment Granules from Citrus Juices for Color Enhancement Purposes

Using differential centrifugation, natural highly colored orange pigment granules were recovered from the juices of single lots of Florida Dancy tangerines harvested in each of 4 years, and orange/red pigment granules from two lots of Murcotts harvested during a single year. Recovery of the concentrated colored matter was about 0.6% by vol. for the tangerine juice; 2.4% for the Murcott juice. Color was significantly enhanced in poorly colored commercial orange juices through addition of relatively small amounts of pigment granules recovered from the tangerine and Murcott juices. Addition of pigment granules to poorly colored orange juices to increase color numbers from 1 to 1.5 points did not significantly affect flavor (P > 0.05) in the resultant products.
The Impact of a Long-Acting Erythropoiesis Stimulating Protein on Patient Throughput in a Hospital-Based Ambulatory Oncology Clinic

Objectives: To quantify labor and time expended, resources used, and the net impact on patient throughput and staff time (from the institution's perspective) associated with short-acting (epoetin alfa) and long-acting (darbepoetin alfa) erythropoietin stimulating proteins (ESPs). Design: Prospective time/motion assessment and retrospective chart review of patient visits and resources used. Setting: Single hospital-based ambulatory oncology clinic. Methods: Time and motion measurements related to patient treatment and drug preparation were collected for (1) patient check-in; (2) phlebotomy; (3) laboratory processing; (4) pharmacist assessment/counseling; and (5) ESP preparation, administration, and documentation. ESP use for 266 chemotherapy cycles administered between August 1, 2003 and March 31, 2004 was grouped as epoetin alfa only and darbepoetin alfa only. Results: For 313 observed events, the mean total time calculated for the 5 prespecified activities associated with a visit for ESP administration was 55.4 minutes, of which pharmacy assessment/counseling was responsible for the majority of time expended (22.6 min). A significant (23%) reduction in the number of mean visits per cycle was recorded for the darbepoetin alfa group (P < 0.001, resulting in 1 less visit per average chemotherapy cycle). This difference remained statistically different (42% reduction; P < 0.001) when the mean number of visits specifically for ESP administration was compared between the darbepoetin alfa and epoetin alfa groups. Darbepoetin alfa recip- ients also received significantly fewer doses of ESP per cycle compared with those given epoetin alfa (P < 0.001). The use of darbepoetin alfa saved the clinic 125 hours of staff/patient time per cycle with a potential of 120 hours/cycle additional savings if the epoetin alfa patients had received this long-acting ESP. During calendar year 2004, 610 patients received a red-cell growth factor following chemotherapy for a solid tumor. These patients represent an average of 3,660 cycles of chemotherapy per year. The reduction in visits (1/cycle) with long-acting ESP, at 55.4 min- utes of staff time per visit, will potentially result in avoidance of 3,379.4 hours of staff time or 1.62 full-time equiv- alents per year. Conclusions: Patient office visits for ESP administration are associated with significant time for clinic staff. A long- acting ESP, such as darbepoetin alfa, may enable significant time savings for clinic staff and providers by reducing the number of necessary visits for ESP administration. The time saved also provides an opportunity to reallocate staff to perform additional supportive care activities.
Has Exposure to Poor Neighbourhoods Changed in America? Race, Risk and Housing Locations in Two Decades:

While extreme concentrations of poor racial minorities, briefly `rediscovered' as a social problem by media in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, declined significantly in the 1990s, no research has de...
Fast and Selective Room-Temperature Ammonia Sensors Using Silver Nanocrystal-Functionalized Carbon Nanotubes

We report a selective, room-temperature NH3 gas-sensing platform with enhanced sensitivity, superfast response and recovery, and good stability, using Ag nanocrystal-functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (Ag NC–MWCNTs). Ag NCs were synthesized by a simple mini-arc plasma method and directly assembled on MWCNTs using an electrostatic force-directed assembly process. The nanotubes were assembled onto gold electrodes with both ends in Ohmic contact. The addition of Ag NCs on MWCNTs resulted in dramatically improved sensitivity toward NH3. Upon exposure to 1% NH3 at room temperature, Ag NC–MWCNTs showed enhanced sensitivity (∼9%), very fast response (∼7 s), and full recovery within several minutes in air. Through density functional theory calculations, we found that the fully oxidized Ag surface plays a critical role in the sensor response. Ammonia molecules are adsorbed at Ag hollow sites on the AgO surface with H pointing toward Ag. A net charge transfer from NH3 to the Ag NC–MWCNTs hybrid leads to th...
Safety Evaluation of Silver Nanoparticles: Inhalation Model for Chronic Exposure

Abstract : The rapid emergence of nanotechnology including production of engineered nanoparticles is likely to provide our society with a continuous range of consumer products with advanced technology applications. Among the 580 consumer products containing known nanomaterials, the most common material is silver-based nanoparticles. Human exposure likelihood and needed risk exposure analysis to these product-derived nanomaterials are now required for every age level. Further, disposal and degradation of these products and release from engineered sources has an indirect human exposure potential and an environmental impact concern. The approach to assess toxicity of nanomaterials is a new and evolving field. Most nanotoxicology studies have focused on mechanistic understanding using in vitro models with the early reports demonstrating that high levels of silver nanoparticles are lethal to eukaryotic cell-based systems. Nanotoxicology assessment studies performed in vivo using appropriate dosing amounts and routes of exposure carry greater significance because of the diversity of systemic phenotypic response and the physiologic/anatomic influence that can be translatable from animal models to human exposures. Particle pharmacokinetics and dynamics of nondissolved solution materials combined with issues of regional dissolution rates can provide the true impact of dosing on systemic physiology and positional anatomy. The present information on silver nanoparticle toxicity in vivo has been limited. More importantly, there remains a need to differentiate between soluble/ionic forms of silver in tissues or a test for the presence of insoluble salts. Thus the distribution of silver nanoparticle after inhalation will require much more information to delineate distribution kinetics/dynamics, toxicity processes, and define key mechanisms for the effects observed.
New agents for the prevention of opportunistic infections in haematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.

Over the past three decades, autologous and allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCTs) have become effective treatments for a variety of malignant and nonmalignant conditions. Patients who undergo HSCT receive high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation that induce a prolonged period of profound immunodeficiency, placing them at high risk for infection from a panoply of opportunistic organisms. Although supportive treatment for these patients has markedly improved, 10 – 20% of allogeneic HSCT recipients will ultimately succumb to infection. Joint guidelines to prevent opportunistic infection were released in 2000 by the Centers for Disease Control, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, and the American Society of Blood and Marrow Transplantation; however, treatment decisions for these patients are often based on limited studies or depend on institution-specific transplant protocols and antibiotic resistance patterns. This paper will discuss new agents for preventing bacterial, fungal an...
Professors as Corporate Fiduciaries: Implications for Law, Organizational Ethics, and Public Policy

The Article envisions the possibility of a nonprofit university utilizing corporate and agency law principles in order to invoke a breach of fiduciary duty claim (or counterclaim) against a professor who engages in activities that the university deems disloyal — hence seeking termination and/or equitable relief consisting of compensation forfeiture and the revenue lost by the alleged fiduciary malfeasance — particularly activities that the professor believes would benefit her students but could be construed as detrimental to the university’s financial interests. Such potential allegations of disloyalty could arise out of advising students to take certain courses elsewhere due to cost considerations, encouraging transfer to another university altogether, or facilitating such transfer by serving as reference or through the utilization of the professor’s contacts at other institutions. While this type of guidance may be considered protected speech under the First Amendment for faculty that teach at public universities, the present Article proposes that there are competing extraconstitutional factors and extralegal concepts that are also triggered by the aforementioned hypothetical. Thus, the Article proceeds by dissecting the doctrinal and theoretical schisms that render the fiduciary responsibilities of the university professor nuanced in both public and private institutions, generating vertical tensions between public and private law, horizontal frictions within private law itself, and also raising the question as to whether the corporate university is ultimately a nexus of contracts or something more: a creature of state law that encompasses a complex web of contending fiduciary relations and challenges corporate wealth maximization norms in favor of the stakeholder theory of the firm. After analyzing the legal, ethical, and public policy tensions that arise out of the above-noted scenario, the Article concludes by proposing a two-pronged judicial test that courts may employ in order to shield the professor who acts in good faith.
Self-criticism in therapist training: A grounded theory analysis

AbstractObjective: The primary objective of this study is to engender an understanding of how therapists-in-training experience and cope with self-criticism in the context of their clinical training and therapy experiences. Method: In this study, trainees were interviewed about their experience of self-criticism related to psychotherapy practice and these interviews were subjected to a grounded theory analysis generating a core self-critical process. Results: The analysis highlighted the vulnerability of self-criticism in therapists‘ training experiences, especially when they related to balancing the ”expert“ role while maintaining authentic interactions with their clients. The results also described ways in which self-criticism is mitigated by a sense of interpersonal safety and the provision of clinical freedom and flexibility in therapists‘ training. Conclusions: The implications for future psychotherapy research and clinical training within clinical training environments are discussed.
Compression of Silicone Foams

Silicone foams are used as cushions for impact protection. They are soft and will recover from very large deformation with little damage. Understanding their compression behaviors in high performance environments and providing necessary calibration and validation data for constitutive models are highly important. Characterizing these soft materials, however, is quite challenging. In this study, the foam deformation is carefully studied. With a new compression experimental setup, the force and displacement fields at the foam-platen interface are examined in detail. These additional data will be used to compute the compressive stress-stain behavior of the soft material. The experimental method and foams compression results are presented.
Importance of Hydrophilic Hydration and Intramolecular Interactions in the Thermodynamics of Helix–Coil Transition and Helix–Helix Assembly in a Deca-Alanine Peptide

For a model deca-alanine peptide the cavity (ideal hydrophobic) contribution to hydration favors the helix state over extended states and the paired helix bundle in the assembly of two helices. The energetic contributions of attractive protein–solvent interactions are separated into quasi-chemical components consisting of a short-range part arising from interactions with solvent in the first hydration shell and the remaining long-range part that is well described by a Gaussian. In the helix–coil transition, short-range attractive protein–solvent interactions outweigh hydrophobic hydration and favor the extended coil states. Analysis of enthalpic effects shows that it is the favorable hydration of the peptide backbone that favors the unfolded state. Protein intramolecular interactions favor the helix state and are decisive in favoring folding. In the pairing of two helices, the cavity contribution outweighs the short-range attractive protein–water interactions. However, long-range, protein–solvent attracti...
Palladium Coordination Compounds of σ3λ5-Phosphoranes: First Examples of Phosphonio−Methylene(imino)metallophosphorane [(R3P)(Me3Si)CP(MLn)NSiMe3] and Phosphonio−Methylene(oxo)phosphorane [(R3P)(Me3Si)CP(O)NSiMe3] Ligands

The oxidative addition reaction of Pd(PPh3)4 with Cl2CPN(SiMe3)2 forms the phosphavinyl phosphonium complex Cl(Ph3P)Pd[η2-C(Cl)(PPh3)PN(SiMe3)2] (IIIa), which results from PPh3 migration from Pd to carbon in the η1-phosphavinyl intermediate trans-Cl(Ph3P)2Pd[C(Cl)PN(SiMe3)2] (IIa). The reaction of Pd(dba)(dppe) with Cl2CPN(SiMe3)2 forms the η1-phosphavinyl complex cis-Cl(dppe)Pd[C(Cl)PN(SiMe3)2] (VI), which does not undergo phosphine migration. Compound IIIa undergoes substitution of the chloride ligand by PPh3 or MeCN in the presence of KPF6 to generate [(Ph3P)2Pd(η2-C(Cl)(PPh3)PN(SiMe3)2)](PF6) (IV) or [(Ph3P)(MeCN)Pd(η2-C(Cl)(PPh3)PN(SiMe3)2)](PF6) (V), respectively; the structure of V was determined by X-ray diffraction studies. The reaction of Pd(PEt3)4 with Cl2CPN(SiMe3)2 forms the η1-phosphavinyl complex trans-Cl(Et3P)2Pd[C(Cl)PN(SiMe3)2] (IIb), which does not undergo PEt3 migration. When 2 equiv of Pd(PEt3)4 are reacted with Cl2CPN(SiMe3)2 the phosphonio−methylene(imino)metallophosphorane complex ...
Comprehensive Study on the Dissociative Chemisorption of NH3 on the Sidewalls of Stone–Wales Defective Armchair (5,5) Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

Dissociative chemisorption of NH3 into H and NH2 on the sidewalls of (5,5) armchair Stone–Wales defective single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) has been investigated using B3LYP/6-31G(d) and M06-2X/6-31G(d) levels of theory. In particular, H• and NH2• have been attached to the adjacent carbon atom sites on and around the Stone–Wales defect (SWD). Here, we consider SWD with two different orientations in finite H-terminated (5,5) SWCNTs. The reaction energy data suggest that the dissociative chemisorption of NH3 on the surface of the Stone–Wales defective SWCNTs is mostly endothermic except the adsorption at very few defect sites, wherein the chemisorption process is exothermic at the M06-2X/6-31G(d) level. Our systematic study reveals that the SWD generated by 90° rotation of nearly axial C–C bond in (5,5) SWCNT is more favorable for the chemisorption of ammonia than the nanotube containing SWD with another orientation. The HOMO–LUMO energy gap values of defect-free and Stone–Wales defective SWCNTs are s...
CONTEXT AND LINKAGE Reflections on Comparative Research and ‘Internationalism’ in Criminology

Comparative criminology has recently become a growth area, with the publication of several major books.1 With this in mind, I would like to present an argument about the current concerns and possible future directions of comparative criminological research. The argument begins with a consideration of how far we can detach crime and criminal justice data from their social, political, and economic contexts. This is treated as a matter of whether bodies of prima facie comparable data can be seen as addressing similar issues, given the context from which they come. My thesis is that both in terms of the crimes we seek to understand, and the theories we use to address them, we need to think much more carefully about the kinds of linkages that can be made between various aspects of criminal activity in different societies, about the relevances we are prepared to entertain, and what they are likely to mean in the context of any individual society. When we consider comparative data in this light, the nature of the crime and criminal justice problems under investigation may change in rather important ways. Reflection on those changes might offer some new directions for what I have termed a more internationalist' criminology. The kinds of directions that might flow from such a re-orientation are illustrated towards the end of this paper, with an admittedly eclectic set of examples.
Cold Test Validation of Novel Slow Wave Structure for High-Power Backward-Wave Oscillators

Previous work presented the concepts of mode dominance reversal using a novel slow wave structure (SWS). An example application of this mode reversal was a backward-wave oscillator operating in the $K_{a}$ band. However, the concepts have not yet been experimentally validated. In this paper, we use a scaled version of the SWS to experimentally demonstrate mode dominance reversal in the $S$ band. Using the detected resonances of the six SWS cells, a highly accurate synthetic technique is used to derive the dispersion curve. Simulations based on a commercial particle-in-cell code using this SWS design show peak output powers of 5.94 MW at 2.64 GHz with a 35% peak power electronic efficiency.
Investigations into the Quality of Shale Oil Pyrolyzed from Oil Shale under Different Heating Rates

Nowadays,the oil production cannot meet the market demand with the increasing development of China's economy.The shale oil industry is a part of the energy industry and supplementing energy of natural oil.The oil shale samples from Huadian and Longkou have been measured including fischer assay,proximate analysis,ultimate analysis and calorific value.And the oil yield of oil shale samples at different heating rate(5 ℃/min,10 ℃/min,15 ℃/min,20 ℃/min)have been presented,as well as the shale oil quality.
Abstract IA16: Endometriosis-related ovarian cancer.

Endometriosis-related ovarian neoplasms (ERONs) include clear cell carcinoma, endometrioid carcinoma, and, least frequently, seromucinous carcinomas. They belong to a unique group of ovarian tumors in that unlike other histotypes of ovarian cancer, these tumors are frequently associated with endometriosis, especially the lesions presenting as ovarian endometriotic cysts or endometriomas. ERONs usually present as large, unilateral, cystic neoplasms. In general, ERONs tend to behave in an indolent fashion because many of the diseases present at early clinical stages. When confined to the ovary, they have an excellent prognosis, but advanced stage tumors have a poor outcome. It has been demonstrated that ERONs can develop from endometriotic cyst epithelium through sequential stages of tumor progression. The microenvironment of an endometriotic cyst is highly inflammatory, and the cyst contains abundant iron-induced reactive oxygen species that are thought to be genotoxic and mutagenic. Chronic exposure of cystic epithelium to this microenvironment likely facilitates the accumulation of somatic molecular genetic changes that ultimately transform the cells and lead to tumor development. Molecular analyses of ERONs, including genome-wide analysis, have identified several alterations associated with aberrant activation or inactivation of pathways involving ARID1A, PI3K, Wnt, PP2A and mismatch repair. Specifically, canonical Wnt signaling pathway defects and microsatellite instability are more frequently detected in endometrioid carcinomas than in clear cell carcinomas. Among all of the molecular genetic changes identified to date, inactivating mutations of the ARID1A tumor suppressor gene are most common in ERON. Interestingly, ARID1A mutations are rarely observed in other types of ovarian cancer. ARID1A participates in the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex, which plays a fundamental role in a variety of cellular processes, including DNA damage repair, telomere maintenance, transcription and DNA synthesis and methylation. The molecular events that dictate the development of different ERONs remain elusive, but studies using genetically engineered mouse models demonstrate that co-deletion of ARID1A and PTEN results in ovarian endometrioid carcinoma, while co-deletion of ARID1A and PIK3CA leads to formation of clear cell-like ovarian neoplasms in mice. However, deletion of ARID1A by itself is insufficient to drive ovarian tumor formation. Understanding the molecular changes and pathogenesis involved in the development of ERON is fundamental for future translational studies aimed at designing new diagnostic tests for outcome prediction and at identifying critical molecular features for target-based therapy. Citation Format: Ie-Ming Shih. Endometriosis-related ovarian cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Ovarian Cancer Research: Exploiting Vulnerabilities; Oct 17-20, 2015; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2016;22(2 Suppl):Abstract nr IA16.
Long-term results with the Jonas malleable penile prosthesis.

Abstract Long-term assessment (mean followup 30 months) of patient-partner satisfaction and device reliability was done in 100 patients who had undergone implantation of a Jonas malleable penile prosthesis. Evaluation included an extensive questionnaire and radiographs of the prosthesis. The long-term satisfaction rate was 84 per cent and 2 patients had wire fractures. A life-table analysis was performed with the data from 78 patients who had completed the questionnaire and who had a radiograph of the original implanted device. The probability of having a device without mechanical failure at 23.6 months was estimated to be 96.1 per cent. Thereafter, no additional mechanical failures occurred in units followed up to a maximum of 44 months.
Site Selection in Service Organizations: An Empirical Test of the Mills and Margulies Typology of Services

This exploratory study empirically tests a typology that classifies service organizations based on the nature of customer involvement in the production of the service. The typology is tested in the context of actual site selection decisions which are found to vary with three types of services identified in the typology.
A sequential anesthesia technique for surgical repair of unilateral vocal fold paralysis

Thyroplasty with arytenoid adduction, a combined procedure for treatment of unilateral vocal fold paralysis, is typically performed under local anesthesia with sedation to allow for intraoperative voice assessment. However, the need for patient immobility and suppression of laryngeal responses to surgical manipulation can make sedation-analgesia challenging. We describe our first 26 consecutive cases undergoing thyroplasty and arytenoid adduction with a standardized technique consisting of a combination of general anesthesia with tracheal intubation followed by sedation-analgesia. Most patients (69 %) were women, with age of 53 ± 15 years (mean ± SD). Neck surgery was the cause of vocal fold paralysis in 50 % of patients. Initially, general anesthesia was maintained with desflurane and remifentanil with dexmedetomidine added just before tracheal extubation. During the sedation-analgesia phase, patients received infusions of remifentanil and dexmedetomidine. Duration of general anesthesia and sedation-analgesia phases was 162 ± 68.2 and 79 ± 18.3 min, respectively. Mean (SD) wake-up time was 8.0 ± 4.0 min after desflurane discontinuation. Extubation occurred without coughing, bucking, or agitation in 96 % of patients. All the patients were able to phonate appropriately and remained comfortable after emergence. This technique allowed improved surgical conditions with reduced patient discomfort and may be advantageous for other laryngeal and neck surgeries in which intraoperative patient feedback is required.
Community-Based ART Programs: Sustaining Adherence and Follow-up.

The advent of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in 1996 brought with it an urgent need to develop models of health care delivery that could enable its effective and equitable delivery, especially to patients living in poverty. Community-based care, which stretches from patient homes and communities—where chronic infectious diseases are often best managed—to modern health centers and hospitals, offers such a model, providing access to proximate HIV care and minimizing structural barriers to retention. We first review the recent literature on community-based ART programs in low- and low-to-middle-income country settings and document two key principles that guide effective programs: decentralization of ART services and long-term retention of patients in care. We then discuss the evolution of the community-based programs of Partners In Health (PIH), a nongovernmental organization committed to providing a preferential option for the poor in health care, in Haiti and several countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, Russia and Kazakhstan. As one of the first organizations to treat patients with HIV in low-income settings and a pioneer of the community-based approach to ART delivery, PIH has achieved both decentralization and excellent retention through the application of an accompaniment model that engages community health workers in the delivery of medicines, the provision of social support and education, and the linkage between communities and clinics. We conclude by showing how PIH has leveraged its HIV care delivery platforms to simultaneously strengthen health systems and address the broader burden of disease in the places in which it works.
Development and validation of a LC-MS/MS method for the determination of isoeugenol in finfish

A simple, rapid, selective and sensitive LC-MS/MS method was developed and validated for the determination of isoeugenol in finfish using an off-line dansylation derivatization step to enhance signal intensity. The sample was extracted with 10mL acetone using a tissue homogenizer, followed by derivatization with dansyl chloride and analysis by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The method detection limit ranged from 0.2 to 0.7ngg-1 in six fish species. The limit of quantification was 2.5ngg-1 in each species. Recoveries of isoeugenol at three different levels (5, 10 and 20ngg-1) over two different days ranged from 91.2% to 108.0%. Precision (%RSDR) values determined at 10ngg-1 were 4.3%, 8.0%, 5.3%, 5.1%, 2.6% and 8.0% for tilapia, catfish, trout, salmon, hybrid striped bass and yellow perch, respectively. Studies of linearity in the range 2.5-40ngg-1 produced determination coefficients (R2) above 0.997 for all matrices.
Big Progress in Authentic Assessment, But by Itself Not Enough

Faculty practices must change if college student learning of both disciplinary content and higher-order skills is to meet 21st-century needs and expectations.Unlike results generated by many of the...
The Medieval Islamic Republic of Letters as World Model

My argument in the two-part essay focuses on the dilemma of nahḍah as an unfinished mission; a transition as Țāhā Ḥusayn calls it. I join many scholars who are trying to see through its problematic nature, but I see it also in relation to the immediate past with which it has maintained an uneasy relationship. The recent premodern or medieval past, I argue, could have been read and approached differently to build up a better link with the masses that the nahḍah intellectual bypasses or disparages. The past as a significant period of constellations and knowledge construction could have helped the search for new paths that could also accommodate European knowledge. Other models, alluded to by my insightful respondents and interlocutors, confirm the validity of this proposal, despite the fact that the medieval Islamic republic of letters—as a blanket term for multidimensional efforts—offers more venues in knowledge construction that challenge Casanova’s one single model.
Decentralized filtered feedback linearization for uncertain nonlinear systems

Summary This paper presents decentralized filtered feedback linearization (D-FFL), which is a decentralized controller for uncertain nonlinear systems with potentially unknown disturbance. Moreover, D-FFL uses only local-state feedback (or, in certain cases, local-output feedback) and local reference-model-input feedforward and requires limited model information. For sufficiently small initial conditions and sufficiently large choice of a scalar control parameter, D-FFL makes the ℒ∞ norm of the command-following error arbitrarily small.
Inborn Errors of Metabolism

In Reply.— I thank Drs Wiswell and Weisse for their interesting observations regarding the occurrence of intracranial hemorrhage in term infants with inborn errors of metabolism. There is no question that intracranial hemorrhage is a potentially devastating, although presumably uncommon, complication of these disorders. In my personal experience, neonates with inborn errors of metabolism who have experienced intracranial hemorrhages have all had obvious predisposing factors, such as severe metabolic acidosis, which would provide a clue to the underlying diagnosis.
Mortgage Lending Discrimination and Racial Differences in Loan Default

This article analyzes the use of racial differences in loan default to test for mortgage lending discrimination, an approach whose underlying theory has not been carefully explored. The loan approval process creates a selected sample of loans. If mortgage lenders hold minorities to a higher standard, the minority sample should have greater selection bias than the majority sample and so should exhibit lower default rates. This article examines the default approach in this framework and observes that the approach suffers from heteroskedasticity bias caused by loan defaults as a discrete dependent variable. In addition, the correlations between race and the unobservable variables in the loan approval and default equations bias the default approach away from a finding of discrimination. The article concludes that tests based on the loan approval approach should be accepted as the principal technique for determining whether mortgage lending discrimination exists.
Hacking Wireless Access Points: Governmental Context

The number of US breaches reported publicly for all levels of government between 2005 and mid-2016 was 314 with at least 148,491,010 records (not individuals) compromised. In spite of a decade of work to break down bureaucratic silos between agencies, partly in support of eGovernment initiatives, the standard of care over digital assets is not uniform either vertically (at multiple layers of government) or horizontally (across government service or functional categories). Meanwhile, agencies are often dependent upon external contractors that may not follow best practices for information asset protection (e.g., contractors implicated in the successful exploit against the US OPM, publicized in 2015). This extends the security chain, increasing the possibility for exploitation of a weak link. From a hacker’s perspective, confusion at jurisdictional boundaries offers attack opportunities throughout the chain. New uses for WAPs supporting smart transportation and other citizen benefits are multiplying.
An investigation of factors predicting the type of bladder antimuscarinics initiated in Medicare nursing homes residents

To examine factors predicting type of bladder antimuscarinics (BAM) initiated in nursing home (NH) residents. Incident BAM initiators following NH admission were identified by constructing a retrospective cohort from Medicare files and Minimum Data Set (MDS). Participants included all residents 65 years and older admitted in Medicare-certified NH between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2008 who were prescribed BAM and had continuous Medicare (Part A, B, and D) enrollment. Patient characteristics, medications, and comorbidities were derived from Medicare enrollment and claims. NH characteristics and health status were derived from MDS assessments. The outcome was defined as type of BAM initiated after admission (selective, non-selective extended release, non-selective immediate release). Multinomial logistic regression using generalized estimating equation methodology determined which factors predicted the type of BAM initiated. Twelve thousand eight hundred ninety-nine NH residents initiating BAM therapy were identified; 13.38% of new users were prescribed selective BAM, 45.56% non-selective extended release, and 41.07% non-selective immediate release medications. In both sexes, significant predictors of BAM included region of nursing home, body mass index, cognitive performance score, frailty measures, activities of daily living, and measures of bladder continence. In women, history of fracture and fall-related injuries were significant predictors of type of BAM use, while race and indicators of balance were significant predictors of type of BAM use in men. Non-pharmacological continence management strategies were not predictive of type of BAM initiation. Several factors are important in predicting type of BAM initiation in both women and men, but other factors are sex-specific. Some observed factors predicting the type of BAM initiated, such as other medications use, body mass index, or provider-related factors are potentially modifiable and could be used in targeted interventions to help optimize BAM use in this population. Not applicable.
Migratory hummingbirds make their own rules: the decision to resume migration along a barrier

Knowing how naive migrants respond to intrinsic and extrinsic factors experienced en route will allow a more thorough understanding of the endogenous migratory programme. To understand how inexperienced individuals respond to ecological features, we tracked the migratory departures of juvenile ruby-throated hummingbirds, Archilochus colubris, one of the smallest (∼ 3 g) and least-studied migrants, along the Gulf of Mexico during southbound migration using an international automated radiotelemetry system. The recent miniaturization of radiotags provides a novel method to track one of the smallest migratory birds, rendering the first information on departure decisions of known hummingbirds in relation to an ecological barrier. Using weather conditions and individual attributes, we also determined which factors influenced the time and direction of departure from a coastal stopover site. Most migrants (83%) departed in the morning, and daily departure time was only influenced by stopover duration, the amount of time spent at a stopover site. The majority (77%) of departure orientations paralleled the coastline, and we found little influence of any factor on departure direction. Our results reveal that (1) juvenile hummingbirds departing coastal Alabama move in a direction indicative of a circum-Gulf path during southbound migration and (2) departure decisions support a fly-and-forage strategy in which hummingbirds likely take advantage of resources along the coast while moving towards their destination.
Simultaneously ensuring smartness, security, and energy efficiency in Internet-of-Things sensors

Internet-of-Things (IoT) sensors have begun generating zettabytes of sensitive data, thus posing significant design challenges: limited bandwidth, insufficient energy, and security flaws. Due to their inherent trade-offs, these design challenges have not yet been simultaneously addressed. We propose a novel way out of this predicament by employing signal compression, machine learning inference, and cryptographic techniques on the IoT sensor node. Our approach not only enables the IoT system to push signal processing and decision-making to the extreme of the edge-side (i.e., the sensor node), but also solves data security and energy efficiency problems simultaneously. Experimental results on six different IoT applications indicate that relative to traditional sense-and-transmit sensors, IoT sensor energy can be reduced by 77.8× for electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor based arrhythmia detection, 808.6× for freezing of gait detection in the context of Parkinson's disease, 162.8× for neural prosthesis spike sorting, 37.6× for human activity classification, 368.4× for electroencephalogram (EEG) sensor based seizure detection, and 12.9× for chemical gas classification.
The Personal Statement for Residency Application: Review and Guidance

All applicants to US residency programs are required to write a personal statement. Recent reports of plagiarism and homogeneity in these freeform essays suggest the need for better guidance in this process. The authors review the historical and current role of the personal statement and provide a practical framework for writing a unique and effective personal statement, which will help both applicants and residency directors to maximize their chances of a successful match.
Avoiding Emergencies in the Pregnant Patient with Heart Disease

Physiologic changes that occur in normal pregnancy may cause signs and symptoms that will simulate heart disease even though no heart disease is present. To begin with, the normal pregnant patient tends to hyperventilate. This happens relatively early in pregnancy, and is believed to be related to elevated progesterone levels [4]. Most patients do not react to the hyperventilation, but some will be concerned and bothered. There are several ausculatory findings in the normal pregnant state that could lead a physician to suspect heart disease when, in fact, no heart disease is present.
Recent Developments in the Chemistry of Penicillins

The purpose of this review is to summarize the important developments in the chemistry of the penicillin molecule which have been reported in the scientific literature during the approximate period 1964 through 1972. The penicillins were intensively studied from a chemical point of view during the 1940’s and this work is discussed in detail in the penicillin monograph (36). The isolation of 6-aminopenicillanic acid in 1959 (16) led to the preparation of large numbers of penicillin derivatives in which the side chain at the 6-position of the penicillanic acid nucleus was modified. These efforts, which have been successful in introducing a number of important changes in the biological properties of the penicillin molecule, have been reviewed by PRICE (144) and others (55, 175, 72, 145, 2, 91). This aspect of penicillin chemistry will be dealt with only briefly in this review, and then only with reference to the chemistry involved. Recently, and particularly during the last four years (1969 through 1972), there have been increasing numbers of reports in which the chemistry of the penicillanic acid nucleus itself has been investigated, and it is principally to these studies that this review will address itself (see also 81, 129, 130, and 66).
Demographic Trends Affecting the Age Structure of the Labor Force: 1950 to 2000

The structure of the labor force depends on the structure of the underlying population and on labor force participation (activity) rates. These two factors are not independent, but synergistic. This paper will present an analysis of the demographic structure of the United States labor force in the last half of the twentieth century. “Technology,” as defined by the Office of Technology Assessment, includes “soft” technology, such as law, regulation, and indeed social custom, as well as the more conventional aspects of “hard” technology. Although the main thrust of his paper is descriptive, we will touch on some aspects of changes in technology on the composition of the future labor force.
State Formation, Theory of

Most social scientists would agree that the state consists of a set of ongoing institutions for social control and authoritative decision-making and implementation. Beyond this basic description, the concept of the state becomes multidimensional. The modern state emerged in Western Europe in the fifteenth–sixteenth centuries and became more firmly grounded in the seventeenth century. Its development is intimately linked to the political, economic, intellectual, and religious developments of the time. Theorists differ about the dynamic of the formation of the state and its consequences for domestic and international affairs over given historical periods. Because state formation and reformation is continuous, it is useful to examine how and why state formation took shape among the ‘old’ states, as well as how the ‘new’ postcolonial states address state formation in the light of contemporary exigencies. Today state formation and reformation vies with the forces for regional integration (Europe) and globalization, brought on by global commerce and the revolutions in communication and technology. State formation continues to be a work in progress.
ERISA and the Prudent Man Rule: Avoiding Perverse Results

A decade of intensive study and congressional hearings on private pension plans culminated in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) of 1974.1 Signed into law on Labor Day 1974, ERISA was designed ostensibly to cope with the numerous shortcomings of unregulated private pension plans.2 Although many aspects of ERISA have been controversial, the basic goal of retirement income security is not disputed.3 Most employers have been disabused of any lingering notion that a pension is gratuitous or akin to a gold watch for long and faithful service to the firm. A pension is more properly recognized as deferred compensation that would otherwise have been reflected in current compensation or in current fringe benefits. One consequence of deferred compensation is that the employee must rely upon his (or her) employer to establish and maintain a fund that will be sufficient to provide retirement income. Congressional hearings, however, provided documented examples of workers who lost their anticipated pensions benefits for a variety of reasons.4