cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Building and Strengthening Infrastructure for Data Exchange: Lessons from the Beacon Communities

Introduction: The Beacon Community Cooperative Agreement Program supports interventions, including care-delivery innovations, provider performance measurement and feedback initiatives, and tools for providers and consumers to enhance care. Using a learning health system framework, we examine the Beacon Communities’ processes in building and strengthening health IT (HIT) infrastructures, specifically successes and challenges in sharing patient information to improve clinical care. Background: In 2010, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) launched the three-year program, which provided $250 million to 17 Beacon Communities to invest in HIT and health information exchange (HIE) infrastructure. Beacon Communities used this funding to develop and disseminate HIT-enabled quality improvement practices found effective in particular community and practice environments. Methods : NORC conducted 7 site visits, November 2012– March 2013, selecting Communities to represent diverse program features. From August–October 2013, NORC held discussions with the remaining 10 Communities. Following each visit or discussion, NORC summarized the information gathered, including transcripts, team observations, and other documents the Community provided, to facilitate a within-Community analysis of context and stakeholders, intervention strategies, enabling factors, and challenges. Results : Although each Community designed and implemented data-sharing strategies in a unique environment, similar challenges and enabling factors emerged across the Beacons. From a learning health system perspective, their strategies to build and strengthen data-sharing infrastructures address the following crosscutting priorities: promoting technical advances and innovations by helping providers adapt EHRs for data exchange and performance measurement with customizable IT and offering technical support to smaller, independent providers; engaging key stakeholders; and fostering transparent governance and stewardship of the infrastructure with neutral conveners. Conclusion : While all the Communities developed or strengthened data-exchange infrastructure, each did this in a unique environment of existing health care market and legal factors. The Communities, however, encountered similar challenges and enabling factors. Organizations undertaking collaborative data sharing, performance measurement and clinical transformation can learn from the Beacon Communities’ experience.
THE DURATION OF GLUCAGON EFFECT1

The duration of glucagon effect was determined by measuring the interval after an injection of glucagon into fasted rats, before glucose feeding resulted in liver glycogen deposition. Doses of 0.2–0.4 mg./kg. inhibited liver glycogen deposition for 2–2.5 hours. Larger doses (1.0 mg./kg.); administered either intravenously or subcutaneously, produced inhibition of glycogenesis for 4-7 hours. However, increasing the intraperitoneal dose resulted in less prolongation of effect. Zinc glucagon induced more prolonged effects than glucagon. Large doses (5.0 mg./kg.) of zinc glucagon inhibited liver glycogen deposition for at least S hours. The effects observed were not due to depletion of “primer glycogen.”
Brief paper: Distributed adaptive control for synchronization of unknown nonlinear networked systems

This paper is concerned with synchronization of distributed node dynamics to a prescribed target or control node dynamics. A design method is presented for adaptive synchronization controllers for distributed systems having non-identical unknown nonlinear dynamics, and for a target dynamics to be tracked that is also nonlinear and unknown. The development is for strongly connected digraph communication structures. A Lyapunov technique is presented for designing a robust adaptive synchronization control protocol. The proper selection of the Lyapunov function is the key to ensuring that the resulting control laws thus found are implementable in a distributed fashion. Lyapunov functions are defined in terms of a local neighborhood tracking synchronization error and the Frobenius norm. The resulting protocol consists of a linear protocol and a nonlinear control term with adaptive update law at each node. Singular value analysis is used. It is shown that the singular values of certain key matrices are intimately related to structural properties of the graph.
PEAR: Power efficiency through activity recognition (for ECG-based sensing)

The PEAR (Power Efficiency though Activity Recognition) framework is presented using an ECG-based body sensor network as a case study. PEAR addresses real-world challenges in continuously monitoring physiological signals. PEAR leverages a wearable sensor's embedded processing power to conserve energy resources. This is accomplished by performing some data processing on the sensor and reducing the overhead of wireless data transmission. A coarse-grained decision tree-based activity classifier was implemented on a sensor node to recognize the sensor wearer's activity level. Using the wearer's activity level, the sensor dynamically manages its activities-sampling of the ECG sensor, processing of the data, and wireless transmission — to minimize overall power consumption. This paper describes the design and implementation of RR interval extraction and activity recognition modules on a SHIMMER sensor node. An activity-aware energy model is presented along with energy profiling results. The level of energy conservation varies with a wearer's level of activity, and a sensitivity analysis shows that PEAR's advantage over standard body sensor network architectures increases with more activity. In a user study, our participants were active 18%–28% of the time. Based on this level of activity, our implementation of PEAR increases battery life up to 2.5 times when compared to conventional ECG sensing approaches. This approach is applicable to a broad range of pervasive health applications that incorporate continuous monitoring of physiological signals.
Thermoelectric Nanowires by Electrochemical Deposition

Nanowires made of thermoelectric-relevant materials were grown by electrochemical deposition. Their diameter and ordering are dictated by the porous alumina template that is fabricated on the working electrode prior to the deposition. The composition of the nanowires is controlled by the composition of the electrolyte and the deposition potential. This technique offers unique opportunities regarding the range of geometries and materials that can be employed. The structural and transport properties of these wires will be presented, and comparison will be made to nanowires synthesized by other techniques.
Perturbation analysis of fiber surface plasma resonance sensor

Perturbation method is used to calculate the resonance wavelength shift and the sensitivity of fiber surface plasma resonance sensor. We show that the resonance wavelength always shifts to long wavelength direction as the sensed medium dielectric index increases. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 48: 2425–2427, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.21956
Making Fidelity an Intramural Game: Localizing Quality Assurance Procedures to Promote Sustainability of Evidence-Based Practices in Usual Care

Although the science of disseminating empirically supported behavioral treatments has made remarkable advances, the ultimate goal of dissemination—sustaining the implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) in usual care with a high degree of fidelity—remains challenging. This article presents a rationale and guidelines for transitioning from conventional purveyor-driven dissemination methods to intramural quality assurance procedures that can be maintained with routine agency resources. Three innovations for localizing EBP quality assurance are described: adaptation of observational fidelity methods for therapist self-report and supervisor observation of EBPs, process control benchmarking methods for continuous tracking of EBP fidelity strength and consistency, and development of intramural clinical expertise grounded in local management of EBP implementation and outcome data. These innovations exemplify a fundamentally empirical approach to sustaining quality EBP implementation in frontline settings.
PERIPHERALLY HYDROGENATED NEUTRAL POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS AS CARRIERS OF THE 3 MICRON INTERSTELLAR INFRARED EMISSION COMPLEX: RESULTS FROM SINGLE-PHOTON INFRARED EMISSION SPECTROSCOPY

Infrared emission spectra of five gas-phase UV laser-excited polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) containing aliphatic hydrogens are compared with the main 3.3 microns and associated interstellar unidentified infrared emission bands (UIRs). We show that neutral PAHs can account for the majority of the 3 microns emission complex while making little contribution to the other UIR bands; peripherally hydrogenated PAHs produce a better match to astrophysical data than do those containing methyl side groups; 3.4 microns plateau emission is shown to be a general spectral feature of vibrationally excited PAHs containing aliphatic hydrogens, especially those containing methyl groups; and finally, hot-band and overtone emissions arising from aromatic C-H vibrations are not observed in laboratory emission spectra, and therefore, in contrast to current assignments, are not expected to be observed in the UIRs.
Laboratory measurements of cryogenic liquid alkane microwave absorptivity and implications for the composition of Ligeia Mare, Titan

The complex dielectric constants of liquids methane and ethane were measured at 90 K and 14.1 GHz, close to the frequency of the Cassini RADAR. The liquid ethane loss tangent is far greater than that of liquid methane, facilitating discrimination by remote sensing. The results suggest a methane-dominated composition for the northern sea, Ligeia Mare, on the basis of a recent loss tangent determination using Cassini RADAR altimetry. This contrasts a previous far higher loss tangent for the southern lake, Ontario Lacus, which is inconsistent with simple mixtures of methane and ethane. The apparent nonequilibrium methane-to-ethane ratio of Ligeia Mare can be explained by poor admixture of periodically cycled methane with a deeper ethane-rich alkanofer system, consistent with obliquity-driven volatile cycling, sequestration of ethane from the hydrocarbon cycle by incorporation into crustal clathrate hydrates, or periodic flushing of Ligeia Mare into adjacent Kraken Mare by fresh rainfall.
The “Hero’s Journey”: A Way of Viewing Music Teacher Socialization

In this article, the author explores philosophically the possibility of a connection between music teacher socialization and the work of Joseph Campbell in comparative mythology. Campbell’s “hero’s...
Her Conclusions—With Which He Is in Love: Why Hume Would Fancy Anscombe

The features of Hume's philosophy which I have mentioned, like many other features of it, would incline me to think that Hume was a mere—brilliant—sophist; and his procedures are certainly sophistical. But I am forced, not to reverse, but to add to, this judgment by a peculiarity of Hume's philosophizing: namely that although he reaches his conclusions—with which he is in love—by sophistical methods, his considerations constantly open up very deep and important problems … hence he is a very profound and great philosopher, in spite of his sophistry.1
Model Comparison for $1/f$ Noise in Oscillators With and Without AM to PM Noise Conversion

A new generalized 1/f Kurokawa noise analysis applicable to both low- and high-Q oscillators is proposed for 1/f phase modulation (PM) and amplitude modulation (AM) noise. A theoretical correspondence between the new generalized Kurokawa theory and the impulse sensitivity function and the perturbation projection vector (PPV) is also derived in the absence and presence of AM to PM noise conversion. The importance of AM to PM noise conversion effect is investigated next using a modified Van der Pol oscillator with fourth-order nonlinear capacitances and a harmonic short. The same analytic solution for the phase noise is derived for both the new generalized 1/f Kurokawa and the PPV analysis and is found to match the results from the conversion matrix method in two commercial harmonic-balance circuit simulators.
In Vivo Characterization of Coronary Atherosclerotic Plaque by Use of Optical Coherence Tomography

Background— The current understanding of the pathophysiology of coronary artery disease is based largely on postmortem studies. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a high-resolution (≈10 μm), catheter-based imaging modality capable of investigating detailed coronary plaque morphology in vivo. Methods and Results— Patients undergoing cardiac catheterization were enrolled and categorized according to their clinical presentation: recent acute myocardial infarction (AMI), acute coronary syndromes (ACS) constituting non-ST-segment elevation AMI and unstable angina, or stable angina pectoris (SAP). OCT imaging was performed with a 3.2F catheter. Two observers independently analyzed the images using the previously validated criteria for plaque characterization. Of 69 patients enrolled, 57 patients (20 with AMI, 20 with ACS, and 17 with SAP) had analyzable images. In the AMI, ACS, and SAP groups, lipid-rich plaque (defined by lipid occupying ≥2 quadrants of the cross-sectional area) was observed in 90%, 75%, an...
ToxoDB: accessing the Toxoplasma gondii genome

ToxoDB (http://ToxoDB.org) provides a genome resource for the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii. Several sequencing projects devoted to T. gondii have been completed or are in progress: an EST project (http://genome.wustl.edu/est/index.php?toxoplasma=1), a BAC clone end-sequencing project (http://www.sanger.ac.uk/Projects/T_gondii/) and an 8X random shotgun genomic sequencing project (http://www.tigr.org/tdb/e2k1/tga1/). ToxoDB was designed to provide a central point of access for all available T. gondii data, and a variety of data mining tools useful for the analysis of unfinished, un-annotated draft sequence during the early phases of the genome project. In later stages, as more and different types of data become available (microarray, proteomic, SNP, QTL, etc.) the database will provide an integrated data analysis platform facilitating user-defined queries across the different data types.
Eliminating undetectable shorts between horizontal wires during channel routing

Presents a procedure for reducing the probability of undetectable shorts occurring between horizontal wires. This procedure is implemented by modifying a channel router to predict many of the shorts that are undetectable and then place the associated signal wires in nonadjacent tracks. For the designs routed, it is found that the probability of an undetectable nonfeedback short between horizontal lines in the routing channels is reduced by 39.9% with no increase in the number of routing tracks required and little increase in routing computation cost. >
The low‐income housing tax credit program goes mainstream and moves to the suburbs

Abstract The Low‐Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program is now 20 years old. With the maturing of the program, the use of tax credits has become commonplace in the development of rental housing across the nation. This article examines how the program has changed both financially and spatially. Specifically, the article asks whether it provides a mechanism that can help deconcentrate impoverished renters by providing access to low‐poverty neighborhoods. This research finds that as the price for tax credits rises, the program becomes increasingly popular with developers who are helping it make inroads in low‐poverty suburbs. By entering the suburbs, the LIHTC program is meeting and even exceeding the performance of the Housing Choice Voucher Program in terms of offering opportunities to live in low‐poverty settings.
Quality Assurance for the Laboratory Aspects of Prosthodontic Treatment

Inconsistency in the product returned from the commercial dental laboratory led to the development of a formal quality assurance (QA) program at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry in 1994. The goal of the program was to improve the quality of prosthodontic laboratory submissions and the returned product, facilitate laboratory communications, and, ultimately, enhance the quality and timeliness of patient care. Each student submission is evaluated with a criterion-referenced evaluation form. Deficiencies are communicated to the student, and the corrected submission is then sent to the laboratory. Three-year remake data from the main clinic (QA site) and an extramural clinic (non-QA site) demonstrate the effectiveness of the program. The major benefits are more efficient, cost-effective patient care, as well as the provision of a model for the student to practice the skills needed for effective communication with the dental technician, upon graduation.
DETERMINING THE VALUE OF REMANUFACTURE IN AN INTEGRATED MANUFACTURING-REMANUFACTURING ORGANIZATION

In recent years, the concept of reusing products has received significant attention in academia as a means for reducing society’s negative impact on the environment. In fact, due to a number of both economic and environmental advantages to product reuse, some authors have proposed a larger role for reuse within society. In order to achieve an expanded role for product reuse, it will first be necessary to integrate remanufacturing capabilities into original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) such that reuse can be carefully planned by both product and process design. However, the implementation of OEM reuse is currently limited to the few examples that exist today by several barriers. These barriers include the problem of incomplete incentives due to the product disposal externality, the trends in production towards rapid innovation and mass customization, and the fact that remanufacture presents a fundamentally new set of challenges that producers are not prepared to deal with. It is our belief that reuse will not play a larger role in society until producers have both the incentives and ability to implement remanufacture given their business conditions. Providing this capability and these incentives will require a better understanding of how different factors impact remanufacturing operations within an OEM. This understanding can be provided through the improved modeling of remanufacture. In this work, a motivation and an algorithm for modeling how product design characteristics, product development strategies, and different business conditions impact remanufacturing viability is presented. The authors’ implementation of this model is described and the model is used to study a family of single use camera products over an eleven-year period in order to gain insight from a successful OEM remanufacturer.
Local distribution of strong earthquake ground motions

Twenty ground stations distributed over a 40-square-mile area in Pasadena recorded strong ground shaking during the San Fernando earthquake of February 9, 1971. Relative responses at 10 of these same stations as measured for small earthquakes by standard Wood-Anderson torsion seismometers are available for comparison from a study made by Gutenberg in the 1950's. Frequency spectra of strong ground motions as calculated for four sites having time-recording accelerographs assist in the interpretation of seismoscope results at the other stations. Attempts to correlate local distributions with known features of local geology such as thickness of alluvium, distance from known faults, etc., indicate that no single feature plays a dominant role in the resulting patterns. The implications of such complicated distributions for the preparation of seismic risk maps are discussed, and it is concluded that it would not be possible in the present state of knowledge to assess meaningful variations in the seismic risk throughout the Pasadena area.
Oral Health in North Carolina: Relationship With General Health and Behavioral Risk Factors

background Oral health is an integral part of general health, and loss of teeth may affect both physical and mental health. We examined how an individual’s perception of his or her general health is related to oral care and loss of teeth, as well as how socioeconomic and behavioral factors are related to loss of teeth and oral care. methods Logistic regression was used to analyze data from the North Carolina Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey to investigate how oral health relates to general health. We examined the effects of loss of teeth and recency of dental clinic visits on perceived general health; we also examined the effects of demographic characteristics and health-related behavioral risk factors on oral health. results Adults who had lost 6 or more teeth were more likely to report poor or fair general health, especially among those who were younger than 65 years (adjusted odds ratio = 3.59) compared to those who were 65 years or older (adjusted odds ratio = 1.87). Those who had not visited a dentist within the past year, those who had less education, those with lower incomes, and smokers were more likely to have lost 6 or more teeth. limitations BRFSS is a large-scale survey that collects self-reported data using random telephone methods; during the years included in this analysis, the sample included only households with landline phones that answered the survey. The measure of general health is subjective. As the BRFSS survey is a cross-sectional survey, causal relationships cannot be established. conclusions Loss of teeth and poor oral care are significant predictors of poor general health, indicating that oral health and oral care are integral parts of general health. Loss of teeth and oral care are affected by demographic factors such as educational attainment, income, and health-related risk factors.
Cross-linking electrochemical mass spectrometry for probing protein three-dimensional structures.

Chemical cross-linking combined with mass spectrometry (MS) is powerful to provide protein three-dimensional structure information but difficulties in identifying cross-linked peptides and elucidating their structures limit its usefulness. To tackle these challenges, this study presents a novel cross-linking MS in conjunction with electrochemistry using disulfide-bond-containing dithiobis[succinimidyl propionate] (DSP) as the cross-linker. In our approach, electrolysis of DSP-bridged protein/peptide products, as online monitored by desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry is highly informative. First, as disulfide bonds are electrochemically reducible, the cross-links are subject to pronounced intensity decrease upon electrolytic reduction, suggesting a new way to identify cross-links. Also, mass shift before and after electrolysis suggests the linkage pattern of cross-links. Electrochemical reduction removes disulfide bond constraints, possibly increasing sequence coverage for tandem MS analy...
An Introduction to Modal Design and Analysis of Structures: Part I

Structures in civil engineering may be analyzed using the displacement method, which is based on a stiffness approach, or the flexibility method, which is based on the flexibility approach. In the displacement method of analysis, the stiffness matrix for a structure is determined based on material and geometrical properties of the members and the connections. The flexibility matrix for a structure is the inverse of the stiffness matrix. This paper examines the fundamental characteristics of the stiffness and flexibility matrices of civil structures based on modal properties, specifically, mode shapes and natural frequencies. Typically, in modal testing of civil structures, only the lowest modes are measured. The modal properties of a damped free structure are examined herein. The stiffness and flexibility matrices of a structure based on limited mode shapes and natural frequencies are examined and compared with the exact analytical matrices. Based on the results of a simple structure, the stiffness matrix is shown to be strongly influenced by the highest “practical” modes, while the flexibility matrix is strongly influenced by the lowest modes. But is this true of more complicated structures? And, what role does this have in terms of Modal Design and Analysis (MDA) of structures? By understanding the modes of vibration, civil engineers can better design structures. The findings are of value to the practicing structural engineering community.
Understanding the Association of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Breast Cancer Among African American and European American Populations in South Carolina

Background In South Carolina, the co-occurrence of diabetes mellitus (DM) and breast cancer (BrCA) is much more prevalent among African American populations than among European American populations. The underlying relationship between diabetes and breast cancer may influence breast cancer survival. The purpose of this investigation is to examine the effect of diabetes on developing breast cancer and to reduce racial disparities in breast cancer outcomes.
Continuous venous to venous hemofiltration. Implementing and maintaining a program: examples and alternatives.

This article discusses essential elements to be considered when implementing a continuous venous to venous hemofiltration (CWH) program. This information comes from the author’s experience at the University of California Davis Medical Center. This article also describes various continuous renal replacement therapies (CRRT), and elaborates on initiating a CWH program with examples and alternatives for each step in the process.
Management of Orbital Lymphoma

Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) is the sixth most common cancer in the United States in both incidence and mortality. NHL may involve the conjunctiva (bulbar or palpebral), lacrimal gland, or posterior orbit either primarily or as a manifestation of systemic disease. Primary orbital lymphomas account for approximately 1% (Fitzpatrick and Macko 1984) of all NHL, with an annual incidence of 1 case per million. Although uncommon, NHL is the most common malignancy of the orbit and accounted for 55% of malignant orbital tumors in a report from the Florida Cancer Registry (Margo and Mulla 1998). The median age of patients at diagnosis is approaching 65 years, and the diagnosis is rare in children and adolescents (Kennerdell et al. 1999). The incidence is equal in men and women. Orbital NHL appears to be becoming more common, with a 155% rise in incidence noted between 1987 and 1993 in the Florida Registry (Margo and Mulla 1998).
The Effect of State Competitive Food and Beverage Regulations on Childhood Overweight and Obesity

Abstract Purpose Policy efforts for combating childhood obesity have sought stronger state policies for regulating competitive foods and beverages (CF&Bs) available in schools. However, the evidence linking state policies to children's overall diet and body weight outcomes is limited and mixed, and experts have called for more rigorous studies that are able to address concerns about selection bias. The present study leverages a rare natural experiment where children in military families are "assigned" to different state policies, due to their military parent's periodic relocation, to examine whether state CF&B policies were associated with children's body mass index (BMI) and overweight or obesity. Methods We analyzed data from 894 children (12–13 years old) in army families attending public schools located near 25 installations across 23 states in 2013. State CF&B policy measures from the Bridging the Gap project were linked to the child data. Primary outcomes included BMI z-scores and indicator for overweight or obesity. For a subsample of children with self-reported food frequency measures, we also examined the link between state CF&B policies and overall diet. All regression analyses adjusted for a rich set of child and family covariates. Results Having strong or weak policies was significantly associated with lower BMI z-scores, lower odds of overweight or obesity, and better dietary outcomes, relative to no policy. Conclusions A portfolio of policies that includes multiple strong policies is likely needed to observe any meaningful changes in BMI and obesity.
Sulfated cyclodextrins as water-soluble chiral NMR solvating agents for cationic compounds

Abstract The utility of a series of sulfated cyclodextrins as water-soluble chiral NMR solvating agents for cationic substrates is described. Sulfated α-, β- and γ-cyclodextrin with degrees of substitution of 12, 13 and 14, respectively, a sulfated β-cyclodextrin with a degree of substitution of 9 and a sulfobutyl ether β-cyclodextrin with a degree of substitution of 6.3 are examined. Results with 33 water-soluble cationic organic salts are reported. Chiral differentiation with the sulfated cyclodextrins is compared to prior results obtained with anionic carboxymethylated and phosphated cyclodextrins. The highly sulfated cyclodextrins are often more effective at causing enantiomeric differentiation in 1 H NMR spectra than the sulfobutyl ether, carboxymethylated and phosphated cyclodextrins, and are recommended as the first choice of a chiral solvating agent for the analysis of chiral cationic organic salts in aqueous solution.
Communication Challenges of Oncologists and Intensivists Caring for Pediatric Oncology Patients: A Qualitative Study

Abstract Context The families of oncology patients requiring intensive care often face increasing complexity in communication with their providers, particularly when patients are cared for by providers from different disciplines. Objective The objective of this study was to describe experiences and challenges faced by pediatric oncologists and intensivists and how the oncologist-intensivist relationship impacts communication and initiation of goals of care discussions (GCDs). Methods We conducted semi-structured interviews with a convenience sample of 10 physicians, including pediatric oncology and intensive care attendings and fellows. Results We identified key themes (three barriers and four facilitators) to having GCDs with families of oncology patients who have received intensive care. Barriers included challenges to communication within teams because of hierarchy and between teams due to incomplete sharing of information and confusion about who should initiate GCDs; provider experiences of internal conflict about how to engage parents in decision-making and about the "right thing to do" for patients; and lack of education and training in communication. Facilitators included team preparation for family meetings; skills for partnering with families; the presence of palliative care specialists; and informal education in communication and willingness for further training in communication. Notably, the education theme was identified as both a barrier and resource. Conclusion We identified barriers to communication with families both within and between teams and for individual physicians. Formal communication training and processes that standardize communication to ensure completeness and role delineation between clinical teams may improve oncologists' and intensivists' ability to initiate GCDs, thereby fulfilling their ethical obligations of decision support.
The Role of Radiation in All Stages of Nodular Lymphocytic Predominant Hodgkin Lymphoma.

Abstract Background The goal of this study was to assess the survival differences seen in early-stage and advanced-stage nodular lymphocytic predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL) based on treatment modality. Patients and Methods The National Cancer Database was queried to identify patients diagnosed with NLPHL between 2004 and 2012. Overall survival (OS) was determined using univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis. Kaplan-Meier and log-rank analysis were used to estimate differences in OS between treatment groups. Results A total of 1968 patients were identified for analysis, consisting of stage I (40.4%), stage II (29.3%), stage III (22.3%), and stage IV (8.0%) disease. The median age of patients was 46 years. The following factors were predictive of radiotherapy (RT) omission in treatment: increasing age, black race, Medicare insurance, chemotherapy use, stage II to IV disease, and the presence of B-symptoms. On survival analysis, RT was associated with prolonged OS in all stages of NLPHL (50.1 vs. 42.4 months; P P P P = .06) NLPHL. Radiotherapy was also associated with prolonged OS among patients with B-symptoms (49.0 vs. 42.6 months; P Conclusion The use of RT in NLPHL is less likely among those with advanced-stage disease and B-symptoms. However, we found RT to be associated with prolonged OS in all stages of NLPHL, including those with B-symptoms.
Artificial intelligence in neurodegenerative disease research: use of IBM Watson to identify additional RNA-binding proteins altered in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease with no effective treatments. Numerous RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) have been shown to be altered in ALS, with mutations in 11 RBPs causing familial forms of the disease, and 6 more RBPs showing abnormal expression/distribution in ALS albeit without any known mutations. RBP dysregulation is widely accepted as a contributing factor in ALS pathobiology. There are at least 1542 RBPs in the human genome; therefore, other unidentified RBPs may also be linked to the pathogenesis of ALS. We used IBM Watson® to sieve through all RBPs in the genome and identify new RBPs linked to ALS (ALS-RBPs). IBM Watson extracted features from published literature to create semantic similarities and identify new connections between entities of interest. IBM Watson analyzed all published abstracts of previously known ALS-RBPs, and applied that text-based knowledge to all RBPs in the genome, ranking them by semantic similarity to the known set. We then validated the Watson top-ten-ranked RBPs at the protein and RNA levels in tissues from ALS and non-neurological disease controls, as well as in patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells. 5 RBPs previously unlinked to ALS, hnRNPU, Syncrip, RBMS3, Caprin-1 and NUPL2, showed significant alterations in ALS compared to controls. Overall, we successfully used IBM Watson to help identify additional RBPs altered in ALS, highlighting the use of artificial intelligence tools to accelerate scientific discovery in ALS and possibly other complex neurological disorders.
Selection for Borel Relations

We present several selection theorems for Borel relations, involving only Borel sets and functions, all of which can be obtained as consequences of closely related theorems proved in [3], [4], [5], [6], involving coanalytic sets. The relevant proofs given there use substantial set theoretic methods, which were also shown to be necessary. We show that none of our Borel consequences can be proved without substantial set theoretic methods. The results are established for Baire space. We give equivalents of some of the main results for the reals.
Various Types of Arthritis in the United States: Prevalence and Age-Related Trends From 1999 to 2014

Objectives. To determine the prevalence trends of osteoarthritis (OA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and other types of arthritis in the United States from 1999 to 2014.Methods. We analyzed data on 43 706 community-dwelling adults aged 20 years and older who participated in the 1999–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. We accounted for survey design and sampling weights so that estimates were nationally representative. We assessed temporal trends in age-standardized arthritis prevalence by using joinpoint regression.Results. Age-adjusted prevalence of arthritis was 24.7% (OA = 9.7%; RA = 4.2%; other arthritis = 2.8%; “don’t know” type = 8.0%). Prevalence of OA increased from 6.6% to 14.3%, whereas RA prevalence decreased from 5.9% to 3.8%. Increase in OA prevalence was significant in both genders; in non-Hispanic Whites, non-Hispanic Blacks, and Hispanics; and in people with high socioeconomic status. Decrease in RA prevalence was more pronounced in men, non-Hispanic Blacks, and participan...
Proposed business and franchising models for primary care in Kenya

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present proposed solutions and interventions to some of the major barriers to providing adequate access to healthcare in Kenya. Specific business models are proposed to improve access to quality healthcare in low- and middle-income countries. Finally, strategies are developed for the retail clinic concept (RCC). Design/methodology/approach Google Scholar, PubMed and EBSCOhost were among the databases used to collect articles relevant to the purpose in Kenya. Various governmental and news articles were collected from Google searches. Relevant business models from other sectors were considered for potential application to healthcare and the retail clinic concept. Findings After a review of current methodologies and approaches to business and franchising models in various settings, the most relevant models are proposed as solutions to improving quality healthcare in Kenya through the RCC. For example, authors reviewed physician recruitment strategies, insurance plans and community engagement. The paper is informed by existing literature and reports as well as key informants. Research limitations/implications This paper lacks primary data collection within Kenya and is limited to a brief scoping review of literature. The findings provide effective strategies for various business and franchising models in healthcare. Originality/value The assembling of relevant information specific to Kenya and potential business models provides effective means of improving health delivery through business and franchising, focusing on innovative approaches and models that have proven effective in other settings.
Investigation of vascular scattering patterns in retinal and choroidal OCT angiography with a contrast agent (Conference Presentation)

Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) has recently emerged for imaging vasculature in clinical ophthalmology. Yet, apparent OCTA image artifacts remain challenging to interpret. Here, contrast-enhanced OCTA is employed in rats to help explain these apparent artifacts. By quantifying enhancement due to an intravascular contrast agent with rheological and scattering properties that are different from red blood cells (RBCs), OCTA image features are ascribed to specific rheological and scattering properties of RBCs. By imaging pigmented and unpigmented rats at a wavelength where scattering dominates image contrast (1300 nm), the impact of melanosome scattering on OCT and OCTA signals is determined.
Phenotype and Clinical Course of Inflammatory Bowel Disease With Co-existent Celiac Disease.

Background and Aims Inflammatory bowel diseases, principally Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, and celiac disease are among the most common immune-mediated gastrointestinal diseases. We aim to elucidate the clinical course and outcomes of patients with concomitant inflammatory bowel disease and celiac disease, a unique population that remains scarcely studied to date. Methods A retrospective matched case-control study of adults with co-existent inflammatory bowel disease [IBD] and celiac disease was performed at a tertiary referral institution in North America. Logistic regression and Kaplan-Meier curves compared disease characteristics and clinical outcomes of the two groups. Results A total of 342 inflammatory bowel disease patients were included in this study, of whom 114 had co-existent celiac disease and 228 did not. Patients with co-existent inflammatory bowel disease and celiac disease had higher rates of primary sclerosing cholangitis [19.3% vs 5.7%; odds ratio, 4.4; 95% confidence interval, 2.1-9.4; p <0.001], extensive ulcerative colitis [78.1% vs 59.0%; odds ratio, 2.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.5-5.5; p =0.002], and family history of celiac disease [10.5% vs 3.5%; odds ratio 3.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-8.2; p =0.01], compared with patients without concomitant celiac disease. Conclusions Patients with inflammatory bowel disease with concomitant celiac disease have unique phenotypic features compared with non-celiac inflammatory bowel disease, with higher risks for colitis-related hospitalisations, extensive colitis, and primary sclerosing cholangitis. Increased recognition of co-existent IBD and celiac disease can prompt clinicians to investigate for concomitant disease sooner, particularly in patients with seemingly refractory disease.
Modeling Spontaneous Episodic Activity in Developing Neuronal Networks

Neuronal networks are extraordinarily complex systems, structurally and dynamically, given the number of elements that compose them, their functional architecture, their plasticity, and their nonlinear mechanisms for signaling over vast ranges of time scales. One approach to understanding how neuronal circuits generate activity is to study developing networks that are relatively simpler, before any experienced-based specialization has occurred. Here, we present a model for the generation of spontaneous, episodic activity by developing spinal cord networks. This model only represents the averaged activity and excitability in the network, assumed purely excitatory. In the model, positive feedback through excitatory connections generates episodes of activity, which are terminated by a slow, activity-dependent depression of network activity (slow negative feedback). This idealized model allowed a qualitative understanding of the network dynamics, which leads to prediction/comprehension of experimental observations. Although the complexity of the system has been restricted to interactions between fast positive and slow negative feedback, the emergent feature of the network rhythm was captured, and it applies to many developing/excitatory networks. An open question is whether this mechanism can help us explain the activity of more complex/mature networks including inhibitory connections.
NOTCH EFFECTS ON FATIGUE AND STATIC STRENGTH

Summary Tensile stresses in structural components cause failure, as a rule, at some geometric discontinuity. Engineering predictions of such failures require the development of methods which take into account realistically the complex interplay between stress distribution and material behavior. This paper gives a status report on a method originally formulated to deal with the fatigue notch strength of low-alloy steels, then applied to the fatigue and static notch strength of aluminium alloys, and now extended to cover the static notch strength of titanium alloys at temperatures ranging from cryogenic to moderately elevated. In the discussions of static notch strength, attention is focused mostly on the problem of parts containing cracks, a problem which has been of vital interest for years in several fields of engineering. The method is also useful for correlating data on the rate of propagation of fatigue cracks.
Venturing Beyond the Binary Sexual Health Interview.

The article discusses the use of binary and non-binary thinking in sexual health interviews, including in regard to data collection from interviews, categories for sexual orientation and interview questions related to gender.
Language ID for a Thousand Languages

ODIN, the Online Database of INterlinear text, is a resource built over language data harvested from linguistic documents (Lewis, 2006). It currently holds approximately 190,000 instances of Interlinear Glossed Text (IGT) from over 1100 languages, automatically extracted from nearly 3000 documents crawled from the Web. A crucial step in building ODIN is identifying the languages of extracted IGT, a challenging task due to the large number of languages and the lack of training data. We demonstrate that a coreference approach to the language ID task significantly outperforms existing algorithms as it provides an elegant solution to the unseen language problem. We also discuss several issues that make automated Language ID and the maintenance of ODIN very difficult.
Enhanced endothelial vasoreactivity in endurance-trained older men.

Using external vascular ultrasound, we measured brachial artery diameter (Diam) at rest, after release of 4 min of limb ischemia, i. e., endothelium-dependent dilation (EDD), and after sublingual nitroglycerin, i.e., non-endothelium-dependent dilation (NonEDD), in 35 healthy men aged 61-83 yr: 12 endurance athletes (A) and 23 controls (C). As anticipated, treadmill exercise maximal oxygen consumption (VO(2 max)) was significantly higher in A than in C (40. 2 +/- 6.6 vs. 27.9 +/- 3.8 ml. kg(-1). min(-1); respectively, P < 0. 0001). With regard to arterial physiology, A had greater EDD (8.9 +/- 4.2 vs. 5.7 +/- 3.5%; P = 0.02) and a tendency for higher NonEDD (13.9 +/- 6.7 vs. 9.7 +/- 4.2%; P = 0.07) compared with C. By multiple linear regression analysis in the combined sample of older men, only baseline Diam (beta = -2.0, where beta is the regression coefficient; P = 0.005) and VO(2 max) (beta = 0.23; P = 0.003) were independent predictors of EDD; similarly, only Diam (beta = -4.0; P = 0.003) and VO(2 max) (beta = 0.27; P = 0.01) predicted NonEDD. Thus endurance-trained older men demonstrate both augmented EDD and NonEDD, consistent with a generalized enhanced vasodilator responsiveness, compared with their sedentary age peers.
Defining the Minimal Clinically Important Difference for Patients With Vestibular Schwannoma: Are all Quality-of-Life Scores Significant?

Background The diagnosis of vestibular schwannomas (VS) is associated with reduced patient quality of life (QOL). Minimal clinically important difference (MCID) was introduced as the lowest improvement in a patient-reported outcome (PRO) score discerned as significant by the patient. We formerly presented an MCID for the Penn Acoustic Neuroma QOL (PANQOL) battery based on cross-sectional data from 2 tertiary referral centers. Objective To validate the PANQOL MCID values using prospective data. Methods A prospective registry capturing QOL was queried, comprising patients treated at the authors' institution and Acoustic Neuroma Association members. Anchor- and distribution-based techniques were utilized to determine the MCID for domain and total scores. We only included anchors with Spearman's correlation coefficient larger than 0.3 in the MCID threshold calculations. Most domains had multiple anchors with which to estimate the MCID. Results A total of 1254 patients (mean age: 57.4 yr, 65% females) were analyzed. Anchor-based methods produced a span of MCID values (median, 25th-75th percentile) for each PANQOL domain and the total score: hearing (13.1, 13-16 points), balance (14, 14-19 points), pain (21, 20-28 points), face (25, 16-36 points), energy (16, 15-18 points), anxiety (16 [1 estimate]), general (13 [1 estimate]), and total (12.5, 10-15 points). Conclusion Current findings corroborate our formerly shared experience using multi-institutional, cross-sectional information. These MCID thresholds can serve as a pertinent outcome when deciphering the clinical magnitude of VS QOL endpoints in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies.
Graduate Student Perceptions of Online Advising.

As online education continues to expand across the nation and world, studies on online learners need to continually address student needs for and satisfaction with advising. However, to date, acade...