cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Further examination of headache in a college student population.

SYNOPSIS The purpose of the present study was two-fold. The first was to examine further the prevalence of headache in a college sample. The second was to evaluate the test/re-test reliability of the questionnaire measure of prevalence and its concurrent validity (by comparing information collected on it to like measures collected by systematic, daily headache diary records). Headache was found to be a widespread phenomenon that was affecting at least 45% of all students once per week, and 35–45% of the students experienced headache severe enough to disrupt planned activities. Headaches experienced by females tended to be more frequent, more intense, and of longer duration. Individual questionnaire items overall evidenced high test/re-test reliability over 1, 4, and 8 weeks, although responses to inquiries about location and nature of headache pain were varied. However, questionnaire estimates of frequency, duration, and intensity showed little correspondence to data obtained from diary records. In general, questionnaire measures appear to underestimate frequency and duration, while overestimating intensity, when compared to actual recordings of headache activity. Thus, when used in isolation, global questionnaire measures of headache do not appear to provide accurate information about the occurrence of the problem.
Evaluating the Performance of Benefit Transfer: An Empirical Inquiry

Abstract Benefit transfers are used by public agencies needing information on costs and benefits of policy decisions, although scientific debate regarding the validity of benefit transfer is ongoing. This article develops a methodology to evaluate the performance of direct benefit transfer and benefit function transfer and applies the methodology to two pairs of similar non-market amenities. Empirical results indicate that benefit function transfer is more robust than transfer of average site benefits. Our results suggest that the circumstances under which benefit function transfer provides valid, policy-relevant information may be limited and that errors from applying benefit transfer can be quite large, even across seemingly similar amenities.
False localizing sign of cervico-thoracic CSF leak in spontaneous intracranial hypotension

Objective: Spontaneous spinal CSF leaks are an important cause of new-onset headaches. Such leaks are reported to be particularly common at the cervico-thoracic junction. The authors undertook a study to determine the significance of these cervico-thoracic CSF leaks. Methods: The patient population consisted of a consecutive group of 13 patients who underwent surgery for CSF leak repair based on CT myelography showing CSF extravasation at the cervico-thoracic junction but without any evidence of an underlying structural lesion. Results: The mean age of the 9 women and 4 men was 41.2 years. Extensive extrathecal longitudinal CSF collections were demonstrated in 11 patients. At surgery, small leaking arachnoid cysts were found in 2 patients. In the remaining 11 patients, no clear source of CSF leakage could be identified at surgery. Resolution of symptoms was achieved in both patients with leaking arachnoid cysts, but in only 3 of the 11 patients with negative intraoperative findings. Postoperative spinal imaging was performed in 9 of the 11 patients with negative intraoperative findings and showed persistence of the longitudinal intraspinal extradural CSF. Further imaging revealed the site of the CSF leak to be ventral to the thoracic spinal cord. Five of these patients underwent microsurgical repair of the ventral CSF leak with resolution of symptoms in all 5 patients. Conclusions: Cervico-thoracic extravasation of dye on myelography does not necessarily indicate the site of the CSF leak. Treatment directed at this site should not be expected to have a high probability of sustained improvement of symptoms.
The polymorphism architecture of mouse genetic resources elucidated using genome-wide resequencing data: implications for QTL discovery and systems genetics

Mouse genetic resources include inbred strains, recombinant inbred lines, chromosome substitution strains, heterogeneous stocks, and the Collaborative Cross (CC). These resources were generated through various breeding designs that potentially produce different genetic architectures, including the level of diversity represented, the spatial distribution of the variation, and the allele frequencies within the resource. By combining sequencing data for 16 inbred strains and the recorded history of related strains, the architecture of genetic variation in mouse resources was determined. The most commonly used resources harbor only a fraction of the genetic diversity of Mus musculus, which is not uniformly distributed thus resulting in many blind spots. Only resources that include wild-derived inbred strains from subspecies other than M. m. domesticus have no blind spots and a uniform distribution of the variation. Unlike other resources that are primarily suited for gene discovery, the CC is the only resource that can support genome-wide network analysis, which is the foundation of systems genetics. The CC captures significantly more genetic diversity with no blind spots and has a more uniform distribution of the variation than all other resources. Furthermore, the distribution of allele frequencies in the CC resembles that seen in natural populations like humans in which many variants are found at low frequencies and only a minority of variants are common. We conclude that the CC represents a dramatic improvement over existing genetic resources for mammalian systems biology applications.
Convolutional Coding in Cooperative Relay Systems with Spread Spectrum

We propose a cooperative convolutional coding scheme that exploits spatial diversity and time diversity simultaneously. The proposed scheme combines the cooperative diversity with spread spectrum that achieves diversity gain with the number of relays and minimum free distance while maintaining an average power the same as the maximum ratio combiner (MRC). The results show that our cooperative convolutional coding improves the system performance significantly over MRC-based cooperative systems.
What Fathers Say About Involvement With Children After Separation

This article examines the potential impact of nonresponse on information about paternal involvement after separation by comparing the sample of mothers whose children have a nonresident father to the sample of nonresident fathers in the National Survey of Families and Households. We show that when the samples are restricted to parents of children who were born in a first marriage, resident mothers and nonresident fathers are similar on a variety of demographic characteristics, including racial composition, family size, and duration of separation. Although resident mothers and nonresident fathers in the restricted sample report more similar levels of paternal involvement after divorce than in the comparison of the unrestricted samples, fathers still report greater involvement than do mothers. Whether the respondent is the mother or father does not affect the factors that predict variation in child support receipts or payments or visits between nonresident fathers and children. The last part of the article ...
Diagnostics by RADAR REMPI: Microwave Scattering from Laser-induced Small-volume Plasmas

This work presents predictions and measurements of microwave scattering properties of laser sparks in air. This work is part of an ongoing study of Resonant Enhanced Multiphoton Ionization (REMPI) for the generation of a species selective ionization region and the use of microwaves (Radar) to detect the presence of that ionization. From a single laser induced breakdown, the model assumes and measurements confirm that the breakdown regime can be viewed as a point dipole scatterer of the microwave radiation and thus the detected microwave signal is directly related to the time evolving number of electrons. The delay between the laser pulse and the rise of the microwave scattering signal is a direct measure of the avalanche ionization process. If the volume is exposed to two sequential pulses, the experiments show that the signal amplitude increases significantly if the pulses are separated by less that a few tens of nanoseconds. Tens of microsecond delay can be used to extend the lifetime of the plasma. An examination of two simultaneous laser induced breakdowns separated in space shows that the microwave scattering from multiple breakdowns is coherent.
Simulation of multipath impulse response for indoor wireless optical channels

A recursive method for evaluating the impulse response of an indoor free-space optical channel with Lambertian reflectors is presented. The method, which accounts for multiple reflections of any order, enables accurate analysis of the effects of multipath dispersion on high-speed indoor optical communication systems. A simple algorithm for computer implementation of the technique and computer simulation results for both line-of-sight and diffuse transmitter configurations are also presented. In both cases, it is shown that reflections of multiple order are a significant source of intersymbol interference. Experimental measurements of optical multipath, which help verify the accuracy of the simulations, are discussed. >
Substituent Effects of Germanium, Tin and Lead Groups

1 The Nature of Structural Effects 2 Electrical Effects 3 Steric Effects 4 Intermolecular Forces 5 Applications 6 The Validity of Estimated Substituent Constants 7 Appendix I. Glossary Keywords: germanium, tin and lead group substituent effect; nature of structural effects; structure property quantitative relationships (SPQR); electrical effects; steric effects; directed nature of steric effects; intermolecular forces; validity of estimated substituent constants
Intact Flagellar Motor Architecture Revealed by Cryo-Electron Tomography

Motility is an important component of the pathogenesis of bacteria and the bacterial flagellar motor is considered to be the most proficient biological machine for this purpose. The influx of protons through the motor produces either counterclockwise or clockwise flagellar rotation, resulting in translational motion or ‘tumbling’, respectively. Although the rotor portion of the bacterial flagellar motor has been purified and studied for decades, very little is known about the stator portion of the motor and its relationship to the rotor. We used high-throughput Cryo-Electron Tomography (Cryo-ET) and cutting edge image analysis to obtain 3-D structures of the intact flagellar motor assembly associated with native snap frozen bacteria at a level of detail that has not been previously observed. By averaging the 3-D volumes of ∼1280 flagellar motors, we obtained a detailed model of the intact flagellar motor showing both stator and rotor assembly in its native cellular environment at about 3 nm resolution. We have also been able to identify distinctive structural changes resulting from the mutation of a flagellar gene. This is direct mapping of a single genetic code change into the 3-D structure of a functioning molecular machine in situ. Our results provide new insights into the motor structure and the molecular basis for bacterial motility.
Cultivar, Processing, and Storage Effects on Pecan Kernel Color

Pecan kernels of two cultivars (Cheyenne and Wichita) and two trial selections (61–6–67 and 49–1478) were evaluated for color differences before and after processing by three methods (chlorine soak, hot water, and steam) and during 15 wk storage at 21°C and 65% RH. Hunter color values varied significantly among cultivars before processing. Significant cultivar and treatment differences were observed after processing and during storage. Kernels of all cultivars subjected to hot water and steam treatments were darker and redder in color after processing and after all storage times than the control (untreated) kernels and those subjected to the chlorine soak method.
Predictive dynamic load balancing of parallel and distributed rule and query processing

Expert Databases are environments that support the processing of rule programs against a disk resident database. They occupy a position intermediate between active and deductive databases, with respect to the level of abstraction of the underlying rule language. The operational semantics of the rule language influences the problem solving strategy, while the architecture of the processing environment determines efficiency and scalability.In this paper, we present elements of the PARADISER architecture and its kernel rule language, PARULEL. The PARADISER environment provides support for parallel and distributed evaluation of rule programs, as well as static and dynamic load balancing protocols that predictively balance a computation at runtime. This combination of features results in a scalable database rule and complex query processing architecture. We validate our claims by analyzing the performance of the system for two realistic test cases. In particular, we show how the performance of a parallel implementation of transitive closure is significantly improved by predictive dynamic load balancing.
Concerted functions of HDAC1 and microRNA-574-5p repress alternatively spliced ceramide synthase 1 expression in human cancer cells

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) and microRNAs (miRs) have pro-survival roles, but the mechanism behind this is unclear. Repression of ceramide synthase 1 (CerS1), altering C(18) -ceramide generation, was linked to drug resistance and metastasis. Here we report that the CerS1 promoter was repressed by HDAC1-dependent inhibition of Sp1 recruitment to two specific GC-boxes spanning the -177 and -139 region. Moreover, an alternatively spliced variant CerS1 mRNA (CerS1-2) was detected mainly in cancer cells or primary tumour tissues compared to controls, which was targeted by miR-574-5p for degradation. A specific 3'UTR-targeting site, localized within the retained intron between exons 6 and 7, was identified, and its mutation, or miR-574-5p knockdown prevented the degradation of CerS1-2 mRNA. Interference with HDAC1 and miR-574-5p reconstituted CerS1-2 expression and C(18) -ceramide generation in multiple human cancer cell lines, which subsequently inhibited proliferation and anchorage-independent growth. Accordingly, knockdown of CerS1 partially protected cancer cells from MS-275/miR-574-5p siRNA-mediated growth inhibition. Thus, these data suggest that the HDAC1/miR-574-5p axis might provide a novel therapeutic target to reconstitute tumour suppressor CerS1/ceramide signalling.
On interprocess interaction in distributed architectures

Computational concurrency has been with us for some time and is here to stay, particularly in the domain of distributed systems and fault-tolerant computers. Processes executing concurrently in such systems communicate in order to exchange information and to synchronize the activities they perform. Classical interprocess synchronization mechanisms, based on shared variables and semaphores, are neither efficient nor methodically sound; nor do they produce correct solutions when dealing with autonomous processes running on different processors.The purpose of this paper is to define the problem, submit the arguments against using shared variables and semaphores for interprocess synchronization in distributed systems, and to present a mechanism for handling interprocess interaction in such systems.
‘The Sciences of Life’: Living Form in William Blake and Aldous Huxley

Of all the genealogies of Romantic phrases or ideas, perhaps none interests today’s students more than the line of descent by which a gnomic statement from William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (‘If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is: infinite’) becomes the title of Aldous Huxley’s 1954 exploration of psychedelic drug use, The Doors of Perception, and, in a subsequent transformation, the name of Jim Morrison’s band The Doors, founded in 1965. (For the chain of transmission to be complete, one should also include the vital link of Timothy Leary, who had read Huxley’s book and met with him at Harvard, and who served as a conduit for his ideas to the California counter-culture of the 1960s). For the teacher of British Romanticism seeking to inspire in undergraduates an enthusiasm for the topic that can be turned to serious study, the aura of cool surrounding this textual series is invaluable. But the precise nature of the relation between Blake and Huxley has for the most part been ignored or, when considered, largely trivialised. Shirley Dent and Jason Whittaker, for instance, in their wide-ranging survey of Blake’s ‘influence and afterlife’ in the years since his death, identify a ‘particular brand of Blakean mysticism’ as Huxley’s main borrowing, welcome in the American post-war context because ‘it appeared to celebrate the individual’s free will to create a universe in his or her own image’. As such, Huxley’s reference to Blake fits into a pattern Dent and Whittaker identify, whereby later users of Blakean imagery and language repeatedly suppress or avoid the inherently social or political force of his work. Leaving aside for the moment the question of the political implications of Huxley’s drug experiments, the suggestion that Huxley finds in Blake a strong instance of ‘individual free will’ sits oddly beside some of his explicit statements about Blake’s particular value. Far from being merely a product of his psychedelic works, Huxley’s interest in and regard for Blake (along with a multitude of other touchstones, literary, scientific and philosophical) was of long standing and the result of careful study, and tends more to a shattering of the form of individual subjectivity than its upkeep. One comment that sounds the ground note for his view of Blake occurs in the 1936 novel Eyeless in Gaza, where Blake’s doctrine of states – that ‘[g]ood and evil can be predicated only of states, not of individuals’ – is heralded as ‘the end of personality in the old sense of the word’. Earlier still, in the major novel of 1928, Point Counter Point, Blake plays a key role in the philosophical argument of Mark Rampion, Huxley’s spokesman for a D.H. Lawrence-inspired vitalism:
Traumatic occupational fatalities in South Carolina, 1989-90.

Death certificates for South Carolina for 1989 and 1990 were examined to identify deaths resulting from injury incurred in the workplace. There were 277 deaths in that category in the 2-year period, an average yearly rate for traumatic occupational fatalities of 8.84 per 100,000 workers. The groups of industries with the highest fatality rates were transportation-communication-utilities, construction, and agriculture-fishing-forestry. The leading causes of death were injuries from motor vehicle crash, homicide, and falls. The traumatic occupational fatality rate for men was about 13 times greater than that for women; however, a much higher proportion of women died from homicide on the job. The findings in general reflect trends reported in other studies. The death rates for workers in South Carolina for 1989-90, however, were higher than national averages for 1980-88. National data for 1989-90 were not available for comparison. The data suggest that more effective injury prevention efforts need to be applied to such causes of on-the-job injury as motor vehicle crash, homicide, and falls. Those three categories accounted for more than 56 percent of all traumatic occupational fatalities in South Carolina in 1989 and 1990. Motor vehicle crash prevention efforts particularly are needed in the transportation-communication-utilities industries. The findings show that particular efforts need to be directed to the retail trade category for prevention of homicide and to the construction industry for prevention of falls. Language: en
N omega-nitro-L-arginine and pulmonary vascular pressure-flow relationship in conscious dogs

We investigated the effects of an inhibitor of nitric oxide (NO) synthesis, N omega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA), on the pulmonary vascular pressure-flow relationship in chronically instrumented conscious dogs. The L-arginine analogue L-NNA (20 mg/min for 60 min iv) had no effect on the baseline pressure-flow relationship. This result indicates that tonic release of endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF), which is thought to be NO or a labile NO-generating molecule, is not responsible for low resting pulmonary vasomotor tone in conscious dogs. In contrast, L-NNA caused a leftward shift in the dose-response relationship to the thromboxane mimetic U-46619, indicating that the endogenous release of EDRF modulates the pulmonary vascular response to this vasoconstrictor. Finally, after preconstriction with U-46619, L-NNA abolished the pulmonary vasodilator response to bradykinin (1-10 micrograms.kg-1.min-1) but had no effect on the pulmonary vasodilator response to sodium nitroprusside (1-10 micrograms.kg-1.min-1). Thus EDRF does not appear to tonically regulate the baseline pulmonary vascular pressure-flow relationship in conscious dogs. However, EDRF does act to attenuate the magnitude of U-46619-induced pulmonary vasoconstriction. Moreover, the pulmonary vasodilator response to bradykinin is entirely mediated by EDRF in conscious dogs.
Long Life of a River Otter

On 29 May 1943, on the Wishkah River about 25 miles above its mouth, Grays Harbor County, Washington, G. A. Bushnell met an adult river otter ( Lutra canadensis ) with two young. The adult and one of the young fled. The other stayed …
Remplacement des gros composants du circuit primaire principal (CPP) : innovations récentes apportées par Framatome ANP

Le remplacement des gros composants du CPP est en pleine evolution depuis les premieres interventions datant de 1983. Dans un cadre de securite et surete extremement exigeant et face a l'apparition de phenomenes de degradations (corrosion sous contrainte de l'Inconel 600, fatigue thermique ...), le souci d'accroitre la duree de vie des centrales a conduit les exploitants a generaliser les remplacements des gros composants (generateurs de vapeur, couvercles de cuve, troncons du CPP, et maintenant pressuriseurs). Cette operation touche tous les types de centrales et tous les pays. Les exploitants desireux de maintenir les performances de production souhaitent minimiser les temps d'intervention pour ces operations. Ils sont alors frequemment conduits a grouper les remplacements et confier a leurs fournisseurs des responsabilites elargies. Ceux-ci ont fait evoluer leurs capacites tant dans le domaine du management de l'operation de remplacement (qui peut ainsi inclure la fourniture des composants, l'intervention de remplacement avec un champ tres large et le licensing), que dans le domaine technologique, ou des innovations sont permanentes. On evoquera en particulier les domaines du soudage, de la manutention, de la metrologie et de l'intervention en tuyauterie. L'evolution des relations entre les exploitants et les fournisseurs, jointe a la forte implication technologique de ces derniers, sont des facteurs preponderants pour la reussite economique des remplacements des gros composants, dont les perspectives restent mondialement tres importantes pour plus d'une decennie.
Hemolytic-Uremic Syndrome in an Adult: Light and Electron Microscopic Observations

The case of an adult patient with hemolytic-uremic syndrome is presented. Coagulation studies showed no abnormalities, but platelet adhesiveness was zero and platelet aggregation with adenosine diphosphate was markedly decreased. Light and electron microscopic studies of a renal biopsy specimen from this patient revealed arterial and glomerular thrombosis, extensive mural alteration of small arteries, and "acute glomerular obsolescence."
7136 Pitfalls in the use of technetium-99m-pertectnetate scanning in occult gastrointestinal bleeding.

Introduction: Of patients who initially present with gastrointestinal (GI) hemorrhage, up to 5 percent have no identifiable source. Common causes of occult GI bleeding include vascular ectasias, small bowel tumors, Dieulafoy lesions, varices, and in younger patients, Meckel's diverticulum. Many of these lesions are diagnosed with repeat EGDs and colonoscopies; however, some cases require advanced modalities such as tagged RBC scintigraphy, arteriography, enteroscopy (including Sonde'), enteroclysis, or technetium-99m-pertectnetate scanning. Case Report: We report a case of occult GI bleeding in a 24-year-old male who prior to referral had 5 years of chronic, intermittent melena. The patient's previous GI bleed work-up included multiple EGDs, colonoscopies, upper GI series with SBFT, tagged RBC scintigraphy, enteroscopies (including Sonde'), and a technetium- 99m-pertectnetate scan, all of which were negative. He had no history of alcohol, NSAID, or tobacco use. On initial evaluation, EGD, colonoscopy, enteroscopy, tagged RBC scintigraphy, and enteroclysis were normal. A SMA/IMA/Celiac arteriogram revealed an abnormal ectatic vessel in the terminal ileum. The patient underwent elective laparoscopy for diagnostic evaluation. At surgery a Meckel's diverticulum was found and resected. Pathology demonstrated copious ectopic gastric mucosa with a 1-2cm ulcer. The patient did well post-operatively and has not had a recurrence of GI bleeding in over two years of follow-up. Conclusion: The technetium-99mpertectnetate scan has become the imaging modality of choice for the diagnosis of Meckel's diverticulum. The reliability of this test, however, is still in debate. The sensitivity of technetium-99m-pertectnetate scintigraphy is approximately 90% in the pediatric population, but falls to 60% in the adult age group. False negative studies are often attributable to improper technique, pooling of radioactivity in the bladder obscuring the diverticulum, or a paucity of ectopic gastric mucosa in the diverticulum itself. Several modifications of this test have been used to improve its diagnostic yield. These include saline lavage of the bladder and/or premedication with a histamine receptor antagonist with or without pentagastrin. The utilization of either of these two modifications may have provided a diagnosis in this individual and avoided the risk of repeated testing. Standard use of these modifications may lead to improved sensitivity in the diagnosis of Meckel's diverticulum.
Impaired deformability of copper-deficient neutrophils

We have previously shown that dietary copper deficiency augments neutrophil accumulation in the lung microvasculature. The current study was designed to determine whether a diet deficient in copper promotes neutrophil chemoattraction within the lung vasculature or if it alters the mechanical properties of the neutrophil, thus restricting passage through the microvessels. Sprague-Dawley rats were fed purified diets that were either copper adequate (6.3 microg Cu/g diet) or copper deficient (0.3 microg Cu/g diet) for 4 weeks. To assess neutrophil chemoattraction, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was assayed for the neutrophil chemokine macrophage inflammatory protein-2 (MIP-2) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Neutrophil deformability was determined by measuring the pressure required to pass isolated neutrophils through a 5-microm polycarbonate filter. The MIP-2 concentration was not significantly different between the dietary groups (Cu adequate, 435.4 +/- 11.9 pg/ml; Cu deficient, 425.6 +/- 14.8 pg/ml). However, compared with controls, more pressure was needed to push Cu-deficient neutrophils through the filter (Cu adequate, 0.150 +/- 0.032 mm Hg/sec; Cu deficient, 0.284 +/- 0.037 mm Hg/sec). Staining of the filamentous actin (F-actin) with FITC-Phalloidin showed greater F-actin polymerization and shape change in the Cu-deficient group. These results suggest that dietary copper deficiency reduces the deformability of neutrophils by promoting F-actin polymerization. Because most neutrophils must deform during passage from arterioles to venules in the lungs, we propose that copper-deficient neutrophils accumulate in the lung because they are less deformable.
Further studies of in vitro cytotoxicity of lymphocytes for colonic epithelial cells.

Ln a series of 14 tests using lymphocytes from the peripheral blood of normal healthy adults, we were successful in inducing cytotoxicity for allogeneic colonic epithelial cells by preliminary incubation of the lymphocytes with a lipopolysaccharide extract from Escherichia coli O119:B14, but not by the use of phytohemagglutinin or by incubation alone. The cytotoxicity was unrelated to the incidence of blast transformation in the lymphocytes per se and could not be attributed to allogeneic inhibition. In three tests no cytotoxicity of lymphocytes for ileal epithelial cells could be induced, although the lymphocytes treated with the extract of E. coli became cytotoxic for colonic cells. When lymphocytes were used from 2 patients with dys- gammaglobulinemia, no cytotoxicity for colonic cells was induced by treatment of the lymphocytes with the extract of E. coli O119:B14 or phytohemagglutinin.
Myocardial infarction. How representative are autopsied subjects with this clinical entity

We documented the differences in clinical features between 86 autopsied and 54 nonautopsied subjects who died of myocardial infarction to ascertain any bias that might be present in use of postmortem data. More than 200 historical, clinical, noninvasive, and hemodynamic aspects were compared. Of noninvasive aspects examined in all subjects, only 13 had significant differences (by chi 2 or unpaired t tests) between autopsied and nonautopsied subjects. However, there had been greater impairment of vital signs and hemodynamic aspects during early hospitalization in the autopsied vs the nonautopsied subjects. Further, the one-month survival rate was lower in autopsied subjects (31% vs 72%; P less than .01). We conclude that patients in severe congestive heart failure or shock and, presumably, with relatively large or complicated myocardial infarcts are more likely to die early and be autopsied. Those with better cardiac function live longer, and often die after having been released from the initial hospitalization; these subjects, presumably with smaller and uncomplicated infarcts, do not undergo autopsy. Before correlating pathological and clinical data from subjects with acute myocardial infarction, it is important to carefully analyze bias inherent in the selection of subjects to undergo autopsy.
Abstract 5283: Vav2 oncoprotein up regulation may predict the aggressive subtype of ductal carcinoma in situ

Background: A subset of patients with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) will develop invasive breast cancer (IBC). To date, there are no effective predictive biomarkers for identifying this subset with worse prognosis whose lesions are essentially indistinguishable histologically from those with favorable outcomes. We hypothesized that measurable parameters that discriminate DCIS from DCIS with concurrent invasion may serve as diagnostic biomarkers (BM) of progressive cancer in situ (CIS). Methods: Using a novel imaging-based method of tissue testing, we measured the relative expression levels of three candidate BM proteins specifically implicated in IBC progression - the insulin-like growth factor I receptor (IGF-IR), Ras-related protein 1 (Rap1), and Vav2 oncoprotein. Protein profiles were compared in 42 histologically normal mammary epithelial samples, 71 CIS (35 without/36 with invasion either on diagnostic biopsy or final surgical excision), and 98 IBC of known estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status. Groups were compared using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by pair-wise t-tests with Tukey9s correction for multiple testing. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed to evaluate how well each BM can predict tumor type. Results: The levels of the IGF-IR and Rap1 protein expression were significantly elevated in ER-positive (ER+/PR+/-/HER2 -) DCIS relative to normal epithelium (P Conclusions: This study describes the use of a novel imaging method for archival tissue testing, which may inform the status of protein BM in archived tissue and may help to stratify a women9s individual risk for tumor invasiveness to avoid potential over- or under-treatment. Despite the apparent limitation of our study DCIS cohort size, our novel findings hold promise for utilizing Vav2 as a predictive BM of progressive DCIS and a target for cancer therapy. Citation Format: Marina A. Guvakova, Yun Qing Jiang, Indira Prabakaran, Fei Wan, Nandita Mitra, Paul J. Zhang, Douglas L. Fraker. Vav2 oncoprotein up regulation may predict the aggressive subtype of ductal carcinoma in situ. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 5283. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-5283
Globus auth: A research identity and access management platform

Globus Auth is a foundational identity and access management platform service designed to address unique needs of the science and engineering community. It serves to broker authentication and authorization interactions between end-users, identity providers, resource servers (services), and clients (including web, mobile, desktop, and command line applications, and other services). Globus Auth thus makes it easy, for example, for a researcher to authenticate with one credential, connect to a specific remote storage resource with another identity, and share data with colleagues based on another identity. By eliminating friction associated with the frequent need for multiple accounts, identities, credentials, and groups when using distributed cyberinfrastructure, Globus Auth streamlines the creation, integration, and use of advanced research applications and services. Globus Auth builds upon the OAuth 2 and OpenID Connect specifications to enable standards-compliant integration using existing client libraries. It supports identity federation models that enable diverse identities to be linked together, while also providing delegated access tokens via which client services can obtain short term delegated tokens to access other services. We describe the design and implementation of Globus Auth, and report on experiences integrating it with a range of research resources and services, including the JetStream cloud, XSEDE, NCAR's Research Data Archive, and FaceBase.
Role of Aromatic and Negatively Charged Residues of DrrB in Multisubstrate Specificity Conferred by the DrrAB System of Streptomyces peucetius

Resistance to the anticancer antibiotics, doxorubicin and daunorubicin, in the producer organism Streptomyces peucetius is conferred by an ABC transporter made of two proteins, DrrA and DrrB, which together form a dedicated exporter for these two antibiotics. Surprisingly, however, the DrrAB system exhibits broad substrate specificity overlapping with well-studied multidrug resistance transporters, including P-glycoprotein. Therefore, it provides an excellent model for studying the molecular basis of multispecificity in a prototype efflux system with the potential to unravel the origin and evolution of multidrug resistance. It has been suggested that multispecificity in multidrug exporters may be generally determined by the number and location of aromatic residues. Strategically placed negatively charged residues may also be critical for binding of cationic lipophilic drugs. We selected 13 aromatic and four negatively charged residues on the basis of their location in and/or near the predicted drug-bindin...
Liquidity Constraints and Credit Card Delinquency: Evidence from Raising Minimum Payments

We use credit card data to estimate the impact of increasing minimum payments on delinquency, payments, spending, and write-offs. Our identification strategy exploits an unusual institutional feature: Borrowers can use their account to make purchases with both revolving loans (on which minimum payments increased) and term loans (on which there was no change). Payment increases by delinquent borrowers are insufficient to match increasing minimums, resulting in lower cure rates and an increase in write-offs. Affected borrowers migrate away from these accounts by decreasing charges and increasing payments, consequently lowering the interest earned by the bank.
Biophilic Cities and Healthy Societies

Biophilia holds that as a species humans are innately drawn to nature and to living things. Mounting research confirms the many positive health benefits of contact with nature, and the need for daily (and hourly) contact with the natural environment in order to live happy, healthy, meaningful lives. A new vision of Biophilic Cities is put forward here: cities that are nature-abundant, that seek to protect and grow nature, and that foster deep connections with the natural world. This article describes the emergence of this global movement, the new and creative ways that cities are restoring, growing and connecting with nature, and the current status and trajectory of a new global Biophilic Cities Network, launched in 2013. There remain open questions, and significant challenges, to advancing the Biophilic Cities vision, but it also presents unusual opportunities to create healthier, livable cities and societies.
Uses of oral history and digital storytelling in public health research and practice.

Abstract Objectives Oral history (OH) and digital storytelling (DST) have been used in a range of ways in public health, including educating populations about health-protecting practices, advocating for improved clinical care and reflecting on public health efforts to combat infectious disease. Yet, these methods are rarely recognized for their potential to contribute to public health research and practice. The aim of this article is to assess how OH and DST have been used in the health fields and to provide examples of ways that these methods have contributed to work in several domains of public health. Study design Narrative review. Methods We conducted a narrative review of articles gathered from PubMed using the search terms ‘oral history’ and ‘digital storytelling’, which resulted in 102 articles relevant to public health. We then conducted a thematic analysis to create a typology of article topics and to examine cross-cutting themes. Results OH and DST have been used for both research and interventions in public health. Specifically, they have been used to 1) examine health risks and experiences; 2) engage and educate populations; 3) educate clinical professionals and organizations; and 4) inform public health practice. Conclusions Despite the time, resources, and training required to do OH and DST well, we argue that these methods have substantial potential for supplementing public health activities, allowing the field to glean additional lessons from its experiences, to educate its practitioners further, and to better learn from the experiences of communities affected by public health problems.
Urban Sustainability and Industrial Migration: The Green Transition of Hefei, China

Abstract From the early 2000s, the capital city of China's Anhui Province, Hefei, has been simultaneously the largest recipient in the central region of investment from high-polluting industries migrating from the coast and of provincial investment for environmental pollution treatment. In these conditions, Hefei carried out stringent efforts in the lead up to the end of the 11th Five Year Plan (2006–10) to move away from a “growth at any cost” model and toward a more sustainable development, and succeeded. Although large quantities of available government investment in pollution treatment made Hefei financially capable of carrying out this transition, other additional forces were at play. This study frames Hefei's leadership as underpinned urban growth machine politics, where profit maximization and economic growth demands primarily drive decision making, and argues that massive inflows of high-polluting industrial investment had satisfied the growth demands of the urban growth machine, thus allowing Hefei leaders to be politically able to carry out the green transition. This may help explain similar dynamics in nations experiencing migration of high-polluting industries from more to less developed regions, and the potential for sustainable reform in the latter.
The interrelationships among pain interference, depressive symptoms, loneliness, and employment status: a moderated mediation study.

Objective:To explore the mediating effect of loneliness on the relationship between pain interference and depressive symptoms and to determine whether this mechanism is contingent on employment sta...
Gate turn-off thyristor (GTO)

A gate turn-off switch (GTO) is a four-layer p-n-p-n device similar in construction to an SCR. A GTO is triggered into conduction by applying a forward bias to its gate and turned off by the application of a reverse-gate bias. An SCR, on the other hand, is turned off primarily by reducing or reversing the anode current. A simplified two-dimensional model of the switching mechanism of a GTO is discussed. The model predicts the dependence of the storage time (plasma-pinching time) on the device turn-off gain, i.e., on the ratio of the anode current to the reverse-gate current. An expression for the maximum switchable current is also derived.
Disability in the Health Services Curriculum

Health Services, or Health Policy and Management, is a core discipline within schools of public health. For those who pursue a concentration, the curriculum is designed to provide students with an understanding of current health care policies and the historical context of the organization, structure, financing and regulation of health care in the United States. Course offerings typically include the organization and structure of the health care delivery system, health care financing, the management of health care organizations, public health policy courses, the health care workforce, health economics and law, health care quality and outcomes measurement, medical technology, and cost effectiveness. Health services research includes policy analysis, health outcomes, program evaluation, quality improvement, and cost-effectiveness.
Planktonic Marine Archaea.

Archaea are ubiquitous and abundant members of the marine plankton. Once thought of as rare organisms found in exotic extremes of temperature, pressure, or salinity, archaea are now known in nearly...
Friedreich’s sign

An 82-year-old man with chronic atrial fibrillation treated with anticoagulation was admitted to the hospital for subacute progressive exertional dyspnoea. On examination, the jugular venous waveform was elevated to the mandibular angle with the patient sitting upright. Heart sounds were muffled. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) revealed a large circumferential pericardial effusion with early tamponade physiology. Pericardiocentesis yielded a large volume of sanguineous fluid. Following the procedure, there was improvement in jugular venous pressure to 14 cm H2O. The height of the waveform increased with inspiration (Kussmaul’s sign) and there was a prominent y descent, known as Friedreich’s sign (see video 1). Repeat TTE revealed thickened …
Understanding historical summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus) abundance patterns through the incorporation of oceanography-dependent vital rates in Bayesian hierarchical models

Climate can impact fish population dynamics through changes in productivity and shifts in distribution, and both responses have been observed for many fish species. However, few studies have incorp...
Super-resolution digital pathology image processing of bone marrow aspirate and cytology smears and tissue sections

Background: Accurate digital pathology image analysis depends on high-quality images. As such, it is imperative to obtain digital images with high resolution for downstream data analysis. While hematoxylin and eosin (H&E)-stained tissue section slides from solid tumors contain three-dimensional information, these data have been ignored in digital pathology. In addition, in cytology and bone marrow aspirate smears, the three-dimensional nature of the specimen has precluded efficient analysis of such morphologic data. An individual image snapshot at a single focal distance is often not sufficient for accurate diagnoses and multiple whole-slide images at different focal distances are necessary for diagnostics. Materials and Methods: We describe a novel computational pipeline and processing program for obtaining a super-resolved image from multiple static images at different z-planes in overlapping but separate frames. This program, MULTI-Z, performs image alignment, Gaussian smoothing, and Laplacian filtering to construct a final super-resolution image from multiple images. Results: We applied this algorithm and program to images of cytology and H&E-stained sections and demonstrated significant improvements in both resolution and image quality by objective data analyses (24% increase in sharpness and focus). Conclusions: With the use of our program, super-resolved images of cytology and H&E-stained tissue sections can be obtained to potentially allow for more optimal downstream computational analysis. This method is applicable to whole-slide scanned images.
Cell population balance of cardiovascular spheroids derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells

Stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes and vascular cells can be used for a variety of applications such as studying human heart development and modelling human disease in culture. In particular, protocols based on modulation of Wnt signaling were able to produce high quality of cardiomyocytes or vascular cells from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs). However, the mechanism behind the development of 3D cardiovascular spheroids into either vascular or cardiac cells has not been well explored. Hippo/Yes-associated protein (YAP) signaling plays important roles in the regulation of organogenesis, but its impact on cardiovascular differentiation has been less evaluated. In this study, the effects of seeding density and a change in YAP signaling on 3D cardiovascular spheroids patterning from hPSCs were evaluated. Compared to 2D culture, 3D cardiovascular spheroids exhibited higher levels of sarcomeric striations and higher length-to-width ratios of α-actinin+ cells. The spheroids with high seeding density exhibited more α-actinin+ cells and less nuclear YAP expression. The 3D cardiovascular spheroids were also treated with different small molecules, including Rho kinase inhibitor (Y27632), Cytochalasin D, Dasatinib, and Lysophosphatidic acid to modulate YAP localization. Nuclear YAP inhibition resulted in lower expression of active β-catenin, vascular marker, and MRTF, the transcription factor mediated by RhoGTPases. Y27632 also promoted the gene expression of MMP-2/-3 (matrix remodeling) and Notch-1 (Notch signaling). These results should help our understanding of the underlying effects for the efficient patterning of cardiovascular spheroids after mesoderm formation from hPSCs.
A primer on some celestial geometry

In anticipation of AstroNotes articles planned for the near future, a short primer on certain fundamental aspects of the celestial sphere and its associated geometry is in order. While astronomers proper and longtime astronomy faculty will already be familiar with this topic, newer faculty and perhaps those from other disciplines, but teaching astronomy for the first time, may find it helpful. The geometry of planes, spheres, and great circles figures heavily in celestial geometry.