cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Piecewise-linear modeling of I-V characteristics with SPICE

This paper presents a technique for piecewise-linear modeling of arbitrary nonlinear I-V characteristics with SPICE. In particular, I-V characteristics (including those exhibiting negative resistance) that lend themselves to piecewise-linear approximation are easily modeled using six elemental building blocks; three for voltage-controlled I-V characteristics and three for current-controlled I-V characteristics. The elemental building blocks are implemented with resistor, diode, independent voltage source, and independent current source SPICE primitives. Two of the elemental building blocks use the ability of SPICE to accept negative values for the resistance and diode saturation current parameters. The technique is applied to model a unijunction transistor and a tunnel diode. Two negative resistance oscillator examples which use these models are included; a current-controlled negative resistance sinusoidal oscillator (unijunction transistor) and a voltage-controlled negative resistance relaxation oscillator (tunnel diode). These examples have been used to teach the fundamentals of negative resistance oscillators and nonlinear effects to sophomores and juniors. >
The Fading Promise of a More Meritocratic Society

Abstract Administrative practices, political initiatives, and budgetary concerns are eroding the ability of most universities to fulfill their mission as engines of meritocratic upward mobility. Colleges fulfilled this mission because they signaled that a student had acquired—or had always possessed—superior skills. Elite universities admit students who we know can succeed: Upward mobility occurred because other schools took chances on students whose backgrounds suggested that they might or might not succeed. Pushes to improve undergraduate retention and completion rates at these other universities result in a lowering of standards that threatens their signaling role, and with it, their ability to open doors for their students.
Fully integrated 0.18/spl mu/m CMOS equalizer with an active inductance peaking delay line for 10Gbps data throughput over 500m multimode fiber

In this paper, we present a fully integrated equalizer for 10Gbps data throughput over multimode fiber. The equalizer uses a newly proposed active delay line approach with an active inductance. The active inductance enables 10Gbps data throughput equalization with an integrated single to differential converter. A buffer stage is also integrated at the output stage to deliver low voltage differential signaling (LVDS) level at the 50-ohm termination. The overall architecture is implemented using a 0.18/spl mu/m, standard CMOS process with a 1.8V supply voltage. The active delay line scheme results in reduced equalizer chip area in comparison to a passive delay line approach. The 10Gbps non return-to-zero (NRZ) signal is received through a 500m multimode fiber channel, and the signal impairment due to the differential mode delay is successfully compensated.
Experiences of parallel processing with direct cover algorithms for multiple-valued logic minimization

The implementation of the direct cover algorithm, a heuristic, on a real parallel computer system, Intel iPSC/2, is reported. A CAD tool, HAMLET, that is based on direct cover algorithms has been ported to iPSC/2. Parallel neighborhood decoupling (PND), a parallel version of ND that runs faster than ND, is used, as well as another parallel implementation of ND, multibranch ND (Multi-ND), which allows each processor to search one path of the search tree until the number of processors is exhausted. Searching in multiple branches guarantees a higher probability of reaching an exact solution. In addition, Multi-ND uses less communication than PND, since once a process is assigned a task it will remain isolated from the host until there is a need to report its solution. The results show that Multi-ND outperforms PND in both optimality and speed. >
CRT-D therapy in heart failure: how much do NYHA class IV patients benefit?

For many of these patients, gains inpharmacologic therapy have helped signiﬁcantly in delayingprogression to transplantation requirement. However, evenwith the advent of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors,beta blockers, and aldosterone antagonists, overall attritionin the advanced HF population is still substantial.Device therapy, ﬁrst with implantable cardioverter de-ﬁbrillators (ICDs) and, more recently, with cardiac resyn-chronization (CRT) or combination (CRT-D) devices, hasprovideddocumentedsurvivalbeneﬁt(oratleastclinicalben-eﬁt [the initial CRT trials]) beyond medical therapy alone intheadvancedHFpopulation.
Experiencing Products in the Virtual World: The Role of Goal and Imagery in Influencing Attitudes versus Purchase Intentions

The research agenda for this article is to examine how individuals process information presented through virtual interaction with a product (object interactivity) and the impact that this has on their purchase intentions if they are looking for an aesthetic experience (browsers) or to find specific information (searchers). It is proposed that the congruency between users’ goals and the delivery of product information will influence discursive processing and thus attitudes. However, what is most effective for creating favorable product attitudes is not necessarily most effective in raising purchase intentions. This is because imagery processing should play a more prominent role in affecting purchase intentions because, when estimating their own behavior, people likely run a mental simulation of themselves performing that behavior. It is predicted that object interactivity will evoke vivid mental images of product use regardless of the users’ goals and thus increase intentions. The results of four experiments support these hypotheses.
Endoscopic ultrasound-guided transmural drainage of infected pancreatic necrosis developing 2 years after acute pancreatitis

This is a case report of endoscopic ultrasound guided transmural drainage of a large infected pancreatic necrosis. The infected necrosis was treated by placement of a fully covered metal stent with subsequent endoscopic necrosectomy to remove solid debris. The case is notable for the fact that the patient developed infection of a long-standing and previously stable area of walled-off pancreatic necrosis 2 years after it formed. We believe this is the longest time ever reported between necrotizing pancreatitis and the development of infected pancreatic necrosis.
Activation of Innate Immunity Is Required for Efficient Nuclear Reprogramming

SUMMARY Retroviral overexpression of reprogramming factors (Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, c-Myc) generates induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). However, the integration of foreign DNA could induce genomic dysregulation. Cell-permeant proteins (CPPs) could overcome this limitation. To date, this approach has proved exceedingly inefficient. We discovered a striking difference in the pattern of gene expression induced by viral versus CPP-based delivery of the reprogramming factors, suggesting that a signaling pathway required for efficient nuclear reprogramming was activated by the retroviral, but not CPP approach. In gain- and loss-of-function studies, we find that the toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) pathway enables efficient induction of pluripotency by viral or mmRNA approaches. Stimulation of TLR3 causes rapid and global changes in the expression of epigenetic modifiers to enhance chromatin remodeling and nuclear reprogramming. Activation of inflammatory pathways are required for efficient nuclear reprogramming in the induction of pluripotency.
Variation in material removal in Gaussian removal processes

In previous experiments involving ion figuring of optical components, repeated machining resulted in little to no improvement in workpieces due to a variation in the removal. We demonstrate that the variation in removal is due to insufficiently large machining limits and that such variation is common to all Gaussian removal processes. Once larger limits are chosen, successive machining iterations improves workpiece contour significantly.
Dynamic imaging: scintimammography.

Although mammography remains the technique of choice for the early detection of breast cancer, new emerging breast imaging techniques such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance and radionuclide scanning have been investigated and included in many diagnostic protocols. This overview discusses the current problems related to radionuclide breast imaging trying to define its role in the management of women with suspicious breast lesions at mammography. A number of tumor-imaging agents have been recently used for the differential diagnosis of malignant and benign lesions in radiographically dense breasts and breasts with architectural distortions from prior biopsy or surgery or following radiation therapy. 99mTc-MIBI is the most used tracer which has become the paradigm of this new class of compounds suitable for breast imaging. The current sensitivity and specificity rates for breast scintigraphy with 99mTc-MIBI depend on a number of factors including lesion size and site. Sensitivity and specificity rates and positive and negative predictive values of 92, 89, 81 and 96%, respectively, have been reported in a large series of patients with palpable breast lesions, which figures have been confirmed in many other series. On the contrary, lower sensitivity has been reported for nonpalpable breast abnormalities or for lesions smaller than 1 cm. This observation, confirmed by many authors, implies that a new nonpalpable lesion that is suspicious for malignancy at mammography needs a histologic diagnosis. We also report the results of our recent studies on functional imaging with 99mTc-MIBI of the multidrug resistance phenotype in breast cancer patients. These studies followed an observation that this tracer is a suitable transport substrate for the P-glycoprotein (P-gp) which is commonly associated with the development of a multidrug resistance phenotype. We examined 30 patients with histologically confirmed breast carcinoma who had received no previous chemotherapy or preoperative local irradiation. We found a positive and significant correlation between the efflux rates of 99mTc-MIBI determined by in vivo kinetic analysis and the P-gp levels measured in vitro by quantitative autoradiography in the same tumors (r = 0.62; p or = 204 min) did not guarantee an objective tumor response to chemotherapy in all patients, in agreement with the existence of several P-gp-independent mechanisms of drug resistance. We conclude that the preliminary study of this phenotype would allow to predict the response to (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy and select the appropriate treatment regimen for each patient. Finally, radionuclide breast scanning may be helpful in the differential diagnosis of malignant and benign breast lesions as a guide to subsequent chemotherapy.
Thin Films Made From Colloidal Antimony Tin Oxide Nanoparticles for Transparent Conductive Applications

Commercially available antimony tin oxide (ATO) nanoparticles were dispersed in water using tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) as a dispersing agent and deposited onto glass substrates by spin coating. Films of one to five layers were made. These thin films were characterized using impedance spectroscopy and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy to obtain their sheet resistances and optical transmittance, respectively. The films displayed sheet resistances around 105-106 kΩ/☐ and optical transmittance in the near infrared to near ultraviolet range above 95%. Films were then made using a higher concentration ATO solution and found to achieve sheet resistances on the order of 102 kΩ/☐ but had decreased transmittance as low as 65% at some wavelengths. Impedance measurements, along with optical micrographs, were taken at different locations on the films. These experiments demonstrated that films of more than one layer showed greater uniformity. Additional sets of films were also produced with varying substrate preparation and dispersion deposition parameters. Aside from dispersion concentration, high humidity during film measurement was found to be the most crucial parameter for achieving low sheet resistances.
Exercise as Treatment for Androgen Deprivation Therapy–Associated Physical Dysfunction: Ready for Prime Time?

Withdrawal of circulating androgens, most notably testosterone, has been the major treatment modality for men diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer (PCa) for >70 yr [1]. However, profound hypogonadism from androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is associated with multiple adverse physical consequences—for example, muscle atrophy with a concomitant increase in body fat mass (ie, sarcopenic obesity)—that contribute to decreased quality of life (QOL). These adverse alterations predispose individuals to profound impairments in glycemic control, which in turn significantly elevate the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) [2]. As a result, the US Food and Drug Administration instructed all manufacturers of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists to add cardiovascular-associated safety concerns to their drug labeling [3]. However, there is no standard of care to prevent or mitigate ADT-induced cardiovascular toxicity. In this issue of European Urology, two new studies [4,5] add to the growing evidence base supporting the efficacy of exercise training (ie, aerobic training, resistance training, or the combination) as a strategy to offset or treat ADTinduced toxicity [6,7]. A considerable advantage of exercise-based interventions is that exercise possesses the capacity to simultaneously targetmultiple ADT-associated toxicities with no additional toxicity and at comparably minimal cost. Against this background, in the first study, Galvao et al. investigated the effects of a combined aerobic and resistance training program, in comparison with printed materials describing the benefits of exercise (no structured program), on physical functioning and related outcomes in 100 men following the completion of ADT for locally advanced PCa [5]. Exercise training consisted of supervised training (twice-weekly upper and lower
Epithelial Cell Renewal

The epithelium of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract undergoes constant rapid renewal. This process is an important mechanism of mucosal protection throughout the GI tract because it maintains the functional integrity of the epithelium and is also necessary for the repair of mucosal injury. Thus, it is reasonable to expect that certain conditions and agents that predispose to peptic ulcer disease or mucosal injury may do so in part by affecting epithelial renewal in the upper GI tract.
Computation of excess capacitances of various strip discontinuities using closed-form Green's functions

An efficient quasi-static method to compute excess (equivalent) capacitances of various strip discontinuities in a multilayered dielectric medium is presented. The excess charge distribution on the surface of a conductor is obtained by solving an integral equation in conjunction with closed-form Green's functions. A complete list of expressions of the closed-form Green's functions for a point charge, a line charge, and a semi-infinite line charge is presented. An open end, a bend, a step junction, and a T junction are considered as numerical examples.
Why Immigrants Stay in Fashion: Insights from New York's Garment Industry

For many observers the influx of immigrants into New York's garment industry seemed to exemplify the deleterious impact of undocumented immigration: native displacement and a simultaneous deterioration of wages and working conditions. This article argues that this conventional view is incorrect. There is little evidence linking immigrant presence to the availability of undocumented workers. Rather, the immigrant presence is the consequence of the industry's basic labor strategy; immigrants have moved into garments as an older labor force deriving from earlier waves of migration has cyckd out. Copyright 1992 by The Policy Studies Organization.
The Changing Role of Accelerators in Radiation Therapy

Conventional low energy x-rays have been used in radiation therapy since the turn of the century. Van de Graaff and Betatron accelerators changed the complexion of radiation therapy in the mid 1940's by providing significantly deeper penetrating photon beams and also providing therapeutic quality electron beams. The development of Cobalt-60 teletherapy in the mid 1950's suppressed the role of accelerators in radiation therapy for nearly 20 years. However, with the development of reliable isocentric rotating linear accelerators, accelerators are rapidly becoming the most popular conventional therapy devices. Following unfavorable clinical results with fast neutron therapy in the late 1930's and early 1940's, the role of cyclotron produced fast neutrons is presently experiencing a renewal in radiation therapy. Several facilities are also experimenting with heavy charged particle beams for therapy. This changing role of accelerators in radiation therapy will be observed in detail along with a look to the future. I will concentrate on developments in North America. However developments in Europe closely parallel them.
Local Anesthesia Strategies for the Patient With a “Hot” Tooth

Attaining local anesthesia for the treatment of teeth diagnosed with irreversible pulpitis ("hot" tooth) can be a challenge. This article looks at the strategies a dentist can use to help achieve adequate pulpal anesthesia for the patient, thereby eliminating or reducing treatment pain.
Evolution of the turbulence structure in the surf and swash zones

The velocity field and turbulence structure within the surf and swash zones forced by a laboratory-generated plunging breaking wave were investigated using a particle image velocimetry measurement technique. Two-dimensional velocity fields in the vertical plane from 200 consecutive monochromatic waves were measured at four cross-shore locations, shoreward of the breaker line. The phase-averaged mean flow fields indicate that a shear layer occurs when the uprush of the bore front interacts with the downwash flow. The turbulence characteristics were examined via spectral analysis. The larger-scale turbulence structure is closely associated with the breaking-wave- and the bore-generated turbulence in the surf zone; then, the large-scale turbulence energy cascades to smaller scales, as the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) evolves from the outer surf zone to the swash zone. Smaller-scale energy injection during the latter stage of the downwash phase is associated with the bed-generated turbulence, yielding a −1 slope in the upper inertial range in the spatial spectra. Depth-integrated TKE budget components indicate that a local TKE equilibrium exists during the bore-front phases and the latter stage of the downwash phases in the outer surf zone. The TKE decay resembles the decay of grid turbulence during the latter stage of the uprush and the early stage of the downwash, as the production rate is small because of the absence of strong mean shear during this stage of the wave cycle as well as the relatively short time available for the growth of the bed boundary layer.
Quantifying instruction criticality for shared memory multiprocessors

Recent research on processor microarchitecture suggests using instruction criticality as a metric to guide hardware control policies. Fields et al. [3, 4] have proposed a directed acyclic graph (DAG) model for characterizing program microexecutions on uniprocessors. Under such a model, critical path analysis can be applied and instructions' slack values can be used to quantify instruction criticality. In this paper, we extend the uniprocessor DAG model to characterize parallel program executions on shared memory multiprocessor systems. We describe how critical path analysis can be applied, at a fine grain, in a multiprocessor system running both finite and continuous workloads. We provide detailed evaluations for various aspects of multiprocessor executions under the DAG model. To enable efficient offline critical path analysis, we propose a novel graph reduction technique that reduces a DAG to an equivalent but significantly smaller DAG.
Thoracoscopic Resection of Multiple Müllerian Cysts.

Mullerian cysts in the mediastinum were first described by Hattori in 2005 [1]. We report the first known case of multiple mullerian cysts in the thorax in a 35-year-old woman with cough and an abnormal chest roentgenogram. Multiple bilateral cysts were resected thoracoscopically. Histologic examination showed benign ciliated tubal epithelium that stained positive with immunohistochemical stains for estrogen receptor (ER), cancer antigen 125 (CA-125), Wilms' tumor protein 1 (WT-1), and paired box gene 8 (PAX8), confirming mullerian origin. We also review the embryogenesis and pathologic characteristics of mullerian cysts and the rare occurrence of their migration to the thorax.
Tschermak: a non-discoverer of Mendelism II. A critique

An examination of Tschermak's two papers of 1900 not only reinforces our conclusion cited in our first paper on Tschermak that he was not a rediscoverer of Mendelism, but also he did not understand Mendel when he had read it. His concept of dominance differed from that of Mendel, and his use of his own concept is inconsistent and contradictory. His discussion of his backcross data indicated that he had no idea of the nature of Mendelian ratios. Nowhere did he develop the ideas of segregation and independent assortment.
SPONTANEOUS SUBCAPITAL HIP FRACTURES OCCURRING IN TABES DORSALIS

1. A study of all the cases of hip fracture seen at time Massachusetts General Hospital since 1920 revealed five cases of spontaneous fracture of the neck of the femur through the site of the epiphyseal line in adults. Three of these patients were known tabetics. Recognition of the fracture in another case led to a diagnosis of latent syphilis. A similar fracture was seen in only one other condition,—namely, radiation osteonecrosis. 2. The condition is recognized by four diagnostic criteria: (1) a break through the epiphyseal region between the femoral head and neck; (2) flocculent areas of calcification in the soft tissues surrounding the hip joint; (3) an apparent increased density of the femoral head; and (4) a history of little or no trauma to account for the fracture. 3. In view of the pathology and clinical aspects of these cases, one is justified in suspecting tabes when this fracture occurs.
Growth of Cage Reared Turkeys

Abstract The effects of various cage floor environments on growth and foot debility during the rearing period were determined. From 177 selected 6-week-old B. B. White hen poults, 160 were randomly distributed into 20 cages representing 5 replications of 4 treatment floorings; ½ inch hail screen, ½ inch Neoprene matting, tire link matting, and Bressler Polyethylene Self-Supporting Poultry Flooring. Each cage provided 0.577 m.2 of floor space. At 12 and 18 weeks of age, respectively, cage densities were reduced to 4 and 2 birds per cage. These density reductions provided 10 and 20 replications of each flooring treatment from 12 to 18 and 18 to 24 weeks of age, respectively. Seventeen poults were concurrently placed in a floor pen as floor managed controls, and were each provided 0.12, 0.23 and 0.46 m.2 of floor space for 6–8, 8–16, and 16–24 weeks of age, respectively. At 24 weeks of age, individual foot debility scores were assigned. Each foot of each bird was ranked; 1 was a normal foot, and 4 was a severely afflicted foot. No differences in growth rate, due to cage treatments, were found. Caged birds, irrespective of treatment, gained significantly (P Birds housed on Bressler flooring had significantly (P
Transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease to the Stumptail Macaque (Macaco arctoides)

SummaryThe successful transmission of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease from both affected human and chimpanzee brain to stumptail macaques has been accomplished. The incubation period of 5 yr was the same for both animals; however, the course of the disease was longer in the animal receiving the human brain. In both cases, initial mild symptoms slowly remitted only to reappear some 4 mo later. Muscle biopsies revealed changes suggestive of a mild neuropathy. In addition, there appeared to be an increased ability to incorporate 3H-thymidine in untreated cultures of lymphocytes from peripheral blood.
Chemical studies of the red band produced by S. aureus on blood agar.

SummaryS. aureus grown on whole blood agar produced a diffusible material which caused changes in the nitrogen, hemin and red cell content of the agar. Experiments using blood cells tagged with Cr51 indicated that the dense red band around the growth of the organism was due to a concentration of red blood cells which had been moved into the area of the band from the area just outside it.
Quantum-fractal revival structure in C N quadratic spectra: Base-N quantum computer registers

A closer examination of Eberly ``revivals,'' Berry ``quantum fractals,'' and Schleich ``carpets'' exposes a simple unitary-cyclic group structure in the dynamics of wave packets for rotorlike systems with quadratic spectra. Quantum quasifractal patterns are revealed to be permeated by self-similar ``X-braid'' structures seen by Hofstadter in Zeeman-perturbed band structures and in other spectra related to circle maps. The patterns are shown to correspond to revival dynamics in the flow of energy or information through these N-level systems with X-braids being directly related to quantum beats or elementary U(2) resonance transfer. ${C}_{N}$-group analysis and Farey arithmetic discretely catalog X-braid hierarchy and suggest the possibility of homocyclic nanostructures or ${C}_{N}$ circuits that are base-N digital quantum computing registers. The phase dynamics corresponds to a fairly sophisticated integer arithmetic that includes an output of all rational numbers resolvable by a given energy input. ${C}_{N}$ circuits automatically give all factors of N. The dynamics of a ${C}_{6}$ device is discussed in detail.
Narrating Wartime Rapes and Trauma in a Woman in Berlin

In her article "Narrating Wartime Rapes and Trauma in A Woman in Berlin" Agatha Schwartz examines the reception of the controversial wartime diary published anonymously first in 1954 in English translation. The book is a narrative representation of the mass rapes committed by Red Army soldiers during the siege of Berlin in 1945. Schwartz argues that A Woman in Berlin's portrayal of the rapes and the rapists, although not unbiased, leaves room for the initiation of the healing of trauma and forgiveness. Schwartz reflects on how life writing, particularly by women about a difficult chapter of German history can contribute to memorialization of collective trauma outside the frame of national victimhood and defeated masculinity.
Visualization, optimization, business strategy: a case study

We describe a visualization application intended for operational use in formulating business strategy in the customer service arena. The visualization capability provided in this application implicitly allows the user to better formulate the objective function for large optimization runs which act to minimize costs based on certain input parameters. Visualization is necessary because many of the inputs to the optimization runs are themselves strategic business decisions which are not pre-ordained. Both information visualization presentations and three-dimensional visualizations are included to help users better understand the cost/benefit tradeoffs of these strategic business decisions. Here, visualization explicitly provides value not possible algorithmically, as the perceived benefit of different combinations of service level does not have an a priori mathematical formulation. Thus, we take advantage of the fundamental power of visualization, bringing the user's intuition and pattern recognition skills into the solution, while simultaneously taking advantage of the strength of algorithmic approaches to quickly and accurately find an optimal solution to a well-defined problem.
Technical specification of protection device for 1 000 kV UHV AC pilot project

To make sure the high reliability and advanced technology for relay protection of 1 000 kV UHV AC pilot project, the correlative technical specification should be studied. Based on the relative standards and specifications of general relay protection equipments, considering the functions of pilot project and the future UHV power system planning, the technical specification of Protection Device adapted to 1 000 kV UHV AC pilot project was set down. The adaptive scope, equipped principles, functions and technical guidelines for the relay protections of 1 000 kV UHV AC pilot project were presented, including line protection, over-voltage protection, transformer protection, reactor protection and breaker protection. The principles for main items were analyzed on the base of dynamic simulation tests.
CNS-restricted Transduction and CRISPR/Cas9-mediated Gene Deletion with an Engineered AAV Vector

Gene therapy using recombinant adeno-associated viral (AAV) vectors is emerging as a promising approach to treat central nervous system disorders such as Spinal muscular atrophy, Batten, Parkinson and Alzheimer disease amongst others. A critical remaining challenge for central nervous system-targeted gene therapy, silencing or gene editing is to limit potential vector dose-related toxicity in off-target cells and organs. Here, we characterize a lab-derived AAV chimeric (AAV2g9), which displays favorable central nervous system attributes derived from both parental counterparts, AAV2 and AAV9. This synthetic AAV strain displays preferential, robust, and widespread neuronal transduction within the brain and decreased glial tropism. Importantly, we observed minimal systemic leakage, decreased sequestration and gene transfer in off-target organs with AAV2g9, when administered into the cerebrospinal fluid. A single intracranial injection of AAV2g9 vectors encoding guide RNAs targeting the schizophrenia risk gene MIR137 (encoding MIR137) in CRISPR/Cas9 knockin mice resulted in brain-specific gene deletion with no detectable events in the liver. This engineered AAV vector is a promising platform for treating neurological disorders through gene therapy, silencing or editing modalities.
Optimizing muscle selection for electromyography in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Introduction: We compared the yield of limb and thoracic paraspinal muscles for revealing lower motor neuron (LMN) dysfunction on electromyography (EMG) in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Methods: A retrospective review of 354 patients with clinically definite or probable ALS was performed. Seventeen limb muscles and thoracic paraspinal muscles were evaluated for the presence of both active and chronic denervation. Results: Distal limb muscles showed the highest electrodiagnostic sensitivities of LMN dysfunction in ALS regardless of onset region and diagnostic certainty at the time of diagnosis. Electrodiagnostic yield is higher in muscles from onset limb. Non-contiguous spread of lower motor neuron degeneration is present in ALS. Optimally selected 6 upper and 5 lower extremity muscles yielded >98% of potential positive cervical or lumbosacral segments. Discussion: An algorithmic approach to needle EMG in ALS based on pre-test probability of individual muscles optimizes electrodiagnostic yield, thus possibly minimizing test duration and patient discomfort. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Probabilistic Inference with Generating Functions for Poisson Latent Variable Models

Graphical models with latent count variables arise in a number of fields. Standard exact inference techniques such as variable elimination and belief propagation do not apply to these models because the latent variables have countably infinite support. As a result, approximations such as truncation or MCMC are employed. We present the first exact inference algorithms for a class of models with latent count variables by developing a novel representation of countably infinite factors as probability generating functions, and then performing variable elimination with generating functions. Our approach is exact, runs in pseudo-polynomial time, and is much faster than existing approximate techniques. It leads to better parameter estimates for problems in population ecology by avoiding error introduced by approximate likelihood computations.
Dissonance Strikes a Chord in Stilbene Synthesizers

In this issue of Cell Chemical Biology, Mori et al. (2016) combine X-ray crystallography and biochemistry to discover a new mechanism for stilbene synthesis in bacteria. The dialkyl-condensing enzyme StlD catalyzes formation of cyclohexanediones using a non-canonical β-ketosynthase active site. Aromatization by StlC completes production of the stilbene product.
Rocket to Creativity: A Field Experience in Problem-Based and Project-Based Learning

The purpose of this article is to examine the impact of a field experience in problem-based (PBL) and project-based learning (PjBL) on pre-service and in-service teachersΓCO conceptions of experiential learning. ┬aIn our study, participants had been enrolled in a hybrid class that included an online component in which they learned about PBL and PjBL and an experiential component in which they facilitated PBL and PjBL with children in grades 1-9 during a one-week field experience on a university campus. ┬aThe goal of the field experience is for teachers to change their practice from didactic to inquiry and to promote critical and creative thinking in their students. ┬aWe used a case study method that involved data derived from six different sources: online structured interviews, follow-up telephone interviews, discussion board posts, reflections, course feedback, and observations.┬a The main theme that emerged from the data analysis was the critical role the field experience played in applying theory to practice.┬a Sub-themes included understanding the process of implementing PBL and PjBL, mastering the logistics of PBL and PjBL, becoming facilitators, and collaborating with partners.┬a Results showed that the field experience gave the teachers the ΓC£courageΓC¥ to experiment with a student-centered methodology.┬a
Using ACT1, a Connexin 43 Blocker, Against Glioblastoma Stem Cells (P5.258)

Background: The prognosis for patients with glioblastoma (GBM) is dismal, with a median survival time of 14.6 months following aggressive treatment. Recent evidence suggests that the cells driving GBM malignancy and recurrence are small populations of glioma stem cells (GSCs) which have been shown to be resistant to therapeutics that target the entire tumor. Objective: To isolate GSCs from surgically resected tumor, determine capability of self-renewal and expression of stem cell markers, and gauge the therapeutic response to temozolamide and ACT1, an inhibitor of connexin43. Methods: Surgically resected tumor was digested and individual tumor cells were isolated and incubated in serum-free stem cell media. Spheres were subject to the following assays for assessing their stem cell identity: (1) Serial dilution assay to assess self-renewal; (2) Western blot of stem cell markers (NESTIN, NOTCH1, and CD133) and the astrocyte marker GFAP. Verified glioblastoma stem cells were tested for their responsiveness to ACT1 and/or temozolomide using the sphere formation assay. Results: Some glioblastoma stem cells had strong capability to form spheres (as low as 4 cells). Glioblastoma stem cells expressed a high level of NESTIN and NOTCH1, while levels of GFAP were low. Two stem cell lines VTC 036 and VTC 064 were selected for drug treatment. The sphere formation capability of these stem cells was significantly inhibited by ACT1 and temozolomide, but not each treatment alone. Conclusion: Sphere formation is an effective way to isolate and enrich glioblastoma stem cells. The combinational treatment of ACT1 and temozolomide inhibits glioblastoma stem cell sphere formation. Disclosure: Dr. Kanabur has nothing to disclose. Dr. Sheng has nothing to disclose.
Diagnostic utility of intravenous contrast for MR imaging in pediatric appendicitis

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is increasingly employed as a diagnostic modality for suspected appendicitis in children. However, there is uncertainty as to which MRI sequences are sufficient for safe, timely and accurate diagnosis. Several recent studies have described different MRI protocols, including exams both with and without the use of intravenous contrast. We hypothesized that intravenous contrast may be useful in some patients but could be safely omitted in others. All MRI examinations (n=112) performed at our institution for evaluating appendicitis in children were retrospectively reevaluated. Exams were reread by pediatric radiologists under three conditions: With postcontrast images, Without postcontrast images, and Without/With – selective use of postcontrast sequences only when needed for diagnostic certainty. Samples were scored as positive, negative or equivocal for appendicitis. Findings were compared to pathological or clinical follow-up in the medical record. Without the use of intravenous contrast yielded more equivocal results (12.4%) compared to With contrast (3.4%). By selectively using postcontrast sequences, the Without/With group yielded fewer equivocal results (1.1%) compared to Without while also reducing contrast use 79.8% compared to the With contrast group. No significant differences in conditional sensitivity or conditional specificity were detected among the three groups. MRI diagnosis of acute appendicitis can be performed without contrast for most patients; injection of contrast can be reserved for only those patients with equivocal non-contrast imaging.
Nationalism, Ethnic Identity, and Jews in the Socialist Ideology of Otto Bauer

This paper examines the ideas of Otto Bauer (1881–1938) on national identity as a theoretical concept, the nationalities question in the Habsburg Monarchy, and the concept of a civic Austrian national identity. Additionally, it demonstrates that the experience of assimilation in Bauer’s family background affected most directly the way he wrote about Jewish identity, and finds that some of his writings reveal a degree of doubt about his own identity as a German.
Roots of the Radical Right: Nostalgic Deprivation in the United States and Britain:

Following trends in Europe over the past decade, support for the Radical Right has recently grown more significant in the United States and the United Kingdom. While the United Kingdom has witnesse...
A wideband 60 GHz LNA with 3.3 dB minimum noise figure

This work presents a 60 GHz two-stage low-noise amplifier (LNA) without the use of a base inductor. A common emitter (CE) stage followed by a cascode (CC) stage is chosen to achieve a low noise figure (NF) with high gain. The LNA is designed in the Jazz SBC18H3 process technology, exhibits 15 dB gain with a 3-dB bandwidth of 14 GHz (52–66 GHz), has a minimum NF of 3.3 dB and an input Pids of −13.5 dBm ±0.5 dB with 19.6 mW of power consumption. A detailed set of experiments are presented to eliminate the uncertainties and errors, such as ENR data and measurement components, in the noise figure measurement set-up at mm-wave frequencies.
OpenRec: A Modular Framework for Extensible and Adaptable Recommendation Algorithms

With the increasing demand for deeper understanding of users» preferences, recommender systems have gone beyond simple user-item filtering and are increasingly sophisticated, comprised of multiple components for analyzing and fusing diverse information. Unfortunately, existing frameworks do not adequately support extensibility and adaptability and consequently pose significant challenges to rapid, iterative, and systematic, experimentation. In this work, we propose OpenRec, an open and modular Python framework that supports extensible and adaptable research in recommender systems. Each recommender is modeled as a computational graph that consists of a structured ensemble of reusable modules connected through a set of well-defined interfaces. We present the architecture of OpenRec and demonstrate that OpenRec provides adaptability, modularity and reusability while maintaining training efficiency and recommendation accuracy. Our case study illustrates how OpenRec can support an efficient design process to prototype and benchmark alternative approaches with inter-changeable modules and enable development and evaluation of new algorithms.
The Impact of Dialect Density on the Growth of Language and Reading in African American Children.

Purpose The goal of the current study was to examine the impact of dialect density on the growth of oral language and reading skills in a sample of African American English (AAE)-speaking children ...
Crystal structures of a manganese(I) and a rhenium(I) complex of a bi-pyridine ligand with a non-coordinating benzoic acid moiety.

The structures of two facially coordinated Group VII metal complexes are reported, namely: fac-bromido­[2-(2,2′-bipyridin-6-yl)benzoic acid-κ2N,N′]tricarbonyl­manganese(I) tetra­hydro­furan monosolvate, [MnBr(C17H12N2O2)(CO)3]·C4H8O, I, and fac-[2-(2,2′-bipyridin-6-yl)benzoic acid-κ2N,N′]tricarbonyl­chlorido­rhenium(I) tetra­hydro­furan monosolvate, [ReCl(C17H12N2O2)(CO)3]·C4H8O, II. In both complexes, the metal ion is coordinated by three carbonyl ligands, a halide ion, and a 2-(2,2′-bipyridin-6-yl)benzoic acid ligand, in a distorted octa­hedral geometry. In manganese complex I, the tetra­hydro­furan (THF) solvent mol­ecule could not be refined due to disorder. The benzoic acid fragment is also disordered over two positions, such that the carb­oxy­lic acid group is either positioned near to the bromide ligand or to the axial carbonyl ligand. In the crystal of I, the complex mol­ecules are linked by a pair of C—H⋯Br hydrogen bonds, forming inversion dimers that stack up the a-axis direction. In the rhenium complex II, there is hydrogen bonding between the benzoic acid moiety and a disordered co-crystallized THF mol­ecule. In the crystal, the mol­ecules are linked by C—H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds, forming layers parallel to (100) separated by layers of THF solvent mol­ecules.
AIDS/HIV crisis in developing countries: the need for greater understanding and innovative health promotion approaches.

Epidemiologic data on morbidity and mortality have show that the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome/human immunodeficiency virus (AIDS/HIV) epidemic is relatively widespread in the developing countries of the world especially in the already economically deprived regions of sub-Saharan Africa. Africa is estimated to have approximately 5 million seropositive individuals and by the year 2000 this number is expected to include 10 million HIV-infected children. Improved control over this epidemic can only come through a greater understanding of the specifics of the disease and eventually the introduction of more effective and innovative health promotion campaigns targeted at medical personnel traditional healers families and persons with AIDS. Comprehensive health promotion campaigns carefully using mass media strategies in addition to more community-based programs all operating under "decentralized" AIDS control programs are reasoned to be the most efficacious approach that African and other developing countries can use to successfully contain the AIDS/HIV epidemic. Given the reality of the following factors--Pattern II (i.e. transmission of AIDS via heterosexual sexual activity) is the main mode of HIV transmission in Africa the traditional dominant roles males have in sexual relations and the positive relationship between sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS--health promotion campaigns must focus specifically on addressing at-risk culturally related sexual values and behaviors in African communities. Failure to address these and other related factors will certainly lead to an escalation of the AIDS/HIV epidemic in Africa and therefore concomitant devastation in the human and societal realms of the region. (authors)
Attempts to Improve the Sensitivity of an Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for 2-Methylisoborneol

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) was described previously with a sensitivity of 1 µg/ml (Chung et al., 1990). In an attempt to increase the sensitivity, the following approaches were used: (1) new high-titer antibodies raised against a camphor-ethylenediamine-BSA conjugate; (2) use of a camphor-alkaline phosphatase conjugate as the detecting system; and (3) modification of the ELISA conditions by different blocking agents, microtiter plates, and plate shaking. Despite these approaches, the sensitivity of the ELISA remained at 1 µg/ml, indicating that the sensitivity most probably related to the antibody affinity for MIB and not to the assay conditions and antibody titer.
Understanding the human brain via its spatio-temporal properties (vision paper)

The human brain is probably the most complex object in the universe, and also one of the least understood. For example, how the brain produces the mind and consciousness is a complete mystery. Nevertheless, the brain is amenable to measurements of various kinds that produce lots of data. It is a spatial object residing in the skull; it is also temporal in the sense that neurons communicate by signals that take traverse the brain network over time. In this paper we ask whether spatio-temporal data analysis can contribute to its understanding. Toward this goal we propose several research directions that are inspired by GIS work. However, these are just examples, and other work on moving objects in space or on networks is applicable.
Large breakdowns of entanglement wedge reconstruction

We show that the bulk region reconstructable from a given boundary subregion---which we term the reconstruction wedge---can be much smaller than the entanglement wedge even when backreaction is small. We find arbitrarily large separations between the reconstruction and entanglement wedges in near-vacuum states for regions close to an entanglement phase transition, and for more general regions in states with large energy (but very low energy density). Our examples also illustrate situations for which the quantum extremal surface is macroscopically different from the Ryu-Takayanagi surface.
Neighborhood crime, socioeconomic status, and suspiciousness in adolescents and young adults at Clinical High Risk (CHR) for psychosis

Abstract Introduction Contextual factors representing chronic stressors, such as neighborhood crime characteristics, have been repeatedly linked to compromised mental and physical health, and may contribute to the pathologizing of normative/non-clinical experiences. However, the impact of such structural factors has seldom been incorporated in Clinical High Risk (CHR) for psychosis research. Understanding how context can influence the presence or severity of symptoms such as suspiciousness/paranoia may have important relevance for promoting valid and reliable assessment, as well as for understanding ways in which environment may be related to illness development and expression. Methods A total of 126 adolescents and young adults (nCHR = 63, ncontrol = 63) underwent clinical interviews for Clinical High-Risk syndromes. Neighborhood crime indices and socioeconomic status were calculated through geocoding and extracting of publicly available Census and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) data. Analyses examined presence of associations between neighborhood crime indices, socioeconomic status, suspiciousness and total symptoms. Results Greater neighborhood crime was related to increased suspiciousness in CHR individuals, even after controlling for neighborhood socioeconomic status, r = 0.27, p = .03. Neighborhood crime was not related to total symptoms, and neither was neighborhood socioeconomic status. Discussion Results suggest neighborhood crime uniquely related to suspiciousness symptoms in CHR individuals, while this was not the case for healthy volunteers (HV). Future work will be critical for determining the extent to which assessors are pathologizing experiences that are normative for a particular context, or rather, if a stressful context is serving as a sufficient environmental stressor to unmask emerging psychosis.