cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ferumoxide-enhanced MRI in patients with colorectal cancer and rising CEA: surgical correlation in early recurrence

Abstract The purpose of this study was to evaluate the value of Ferumoxide-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in the detection of hepatic metastases in high-risk patients treated for colorectal cancer that have rising CEA. We used 19 patients treated previously for colorectal cancer with rising CEA levels underwent an unenhanced T 1 -weighted (T1W), T 2 -weighted (T2W), STIR, and Ferumoxide-enhanced hepatic MRI. Following these studies, a laparotomy was performed and the liver was evaluated by palpation and intraoperative ultrasound. Two observers who were blinded to surgical results evaluated each MR sequence separately. The number of lesions considered highly suspicious for metastatic lesions were determined for each sequence and were compared to the results of surgery. The McNemar test was used to compare the outcomes of the different sequences. MR Imaging was unable to detect small ( p > 0.4). The noncontrast T2W sequence had a sensitivity of 29% and a specificity of 77% with an overall accuracy of 46%. When all pre contrast scans were grouped together the common sensitivity was 42%, specificity was 77% and accuracy was 54%. The post-ferumoxide T 2 W scans had a sensitivity of 42%, specificity of 85%, and accuracy of 57%, but did not detect any additional lesions. There was no statistical difference between the pre- and post-contrast studies with regard to identifying patients with metastatic disease ( p > 0.1). In conclusion, we found small hepatic metastases in patients with early signs of recurrent colorectal cancer are difficult to detect on MRI. Ferumoxide-enhanced MRI was unable to detect additional hepatic metastases and performed no better than unenhanced MRI in detecting small hepatic metastasis.
Combining endogenous and exogenous spatial variability in analytical population models

Analytically tractable models of dynamics in continuous space rarely incorporate both endogenous and exogenous spatial heterogeneity. We use spatial moment equations in combination with simulation models to analyze the combined effects of endogenous and exogenous variability on population viability in a simple single-population model where landscape heterogeneity and local population density both affect mortality rate. The equations partition the effects of heterogeneity into an effect of local crowding and an effect of habitat association caused by differential mortality. Exogenous heterogeneity in mortality rate increases population viability through habitat association and decreases it through increased crowding; the net effect of exogenous heterogeneity is generally to improve population viability. This result is contrary to some (but not all) conclusions in the literature, which usually focus on the effects of fragmentation rather than the benefits of refuges to short-dispersing individuals.
The Past, Present, and Future of Education for Gifted Children with Sensory and/or Physical Disabilities.

The authors examine the historical background, the current status, and the future possibilities of appropriate educational programming for gifted children with sensory and/or physical disabilities. They identify trends over the last two decades that are related to the growth of professional interest in this area of educational concern. They also look at those influential factors that seem to facilitate or impede program implementation. A model is proposed for the development of programs for this special population.
FROM THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN: THE PRAXIS DILEMMA OF LINKING PSYCHOPOLITICAL VALIDITY WITH COMMUNITY POLICING

The author applies the concept of psychopolitical validity beyond the confines of the academy to the contemporary practice of American community policing. As such, it presents the promise and pitfalls of this potential union by highlighting points of linkage and places of conflict and tension and provides a commentary on the praxis dilemma of grafting the theoretical with the practical. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The effect of variable fat diets and cholesterol-lowering drugs on Antithrombin III levels in hyperlipoproteinemic and normal subjects.

Functional and immunological Antithrombin III (AT III) levels were studied in normal and hyperlipoproteinemic subjects undergoing crossover therapeutic trials of either diets or hypocholesterolemic drugs. The diet trial subjects, 7 hyperlipoproteinemics and 15 normals, were randomly assigned to crossover between a high saturated fat diet (P/S ratio 1:8) and a high polyunsaturated fat diet (P/S ratio 4:1) for periods of 6-8 weeks, preceded by a baseline period on regular American diet (P/S ratio 1:1). For the drug trials, 33 type II A or B hyperlipoproteinemics were treated in random and double-blind fashion with Colestipol (20 gm/day) or both, for periods of 3 months, preceded by a double placebo period. Mean low density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were significantly different (p less than 0.001) between high saturated and high polyunsaturated fat diets (157 +/- 37 mg/dl vs 137 +/- 31 mg/dl respectively, mean +/- S.D.) and between placebo and drug treatment periods (226 +/- 51 mg/dl vs 183 +/- 44 mg/dl respectively, mean + S.D.). There was no difference in basal functional or immunological AT III levels between normal and hyperlipoproteinemics. AT III levels did not correlate significantly with cholesterol or triglyceride levels and remained unchanged despite significant reductions in serum cholesterol related to the diet and drug therapy. There appears to be no significant association between baseline or post treatment serum cholesterol levels and functional or immunological AT III. Thus, changes in AT III are unlikely to play a role in the link between hypercholesterolemia and thrombosis.
Imprinting regulates mammalian snoRNA-encoding chromatin decondensation and neuronal nucleolar size

Imprinting, non-coding RNA and chromatin organization are modes of epigenetic regulation that modulate gene expression and are necessary for mammalian neurodevelopment. The only two known mammalian clusters of genes encoding small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs), SNRPN through UBE3A(15q11-q13/7qC) and GTL2(14q32.2/12qF1), are neuronally expressed, localized to imprinted loci and involved in at least five neurodevelopmental disorders. Deficiency of the paternal 15q11-q13 snoRNA HBII-85 locus is necessary to cause the neurodevelopmental disorder Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). Here we show epigenetically regulated chromatin decondensation at snoRNA clusters in human and mouse brain. An 8-fold allele-specific decondensation of snoRNA chromatin was developmentally regulated specifically in maturing neurons, correlating with HBII-85 nucleolar accumulation and increased nucleolar size. Reciprocal mouse models revealed a genetic and epigenetic requirement of the 35 kb imprinting center (IC) at the Snrpn-Ube3a locus for transcriptionally regulated chromatin decondensation. PWS human brain and IC deletion mouse Purkinje neurons showed significantly decreased nucleolar size, demonstrating the essential role of the 15q11-q13 HBII-85 locus in neuronal nucleolar maturation. These results are relevant to understanding the molecular pathogenesis of multiple human neurodevelopmental disorders, including PWS and some causes of autism.
Letting applications operate through attacks launched from compromised drivers

With the rapid prevalence of E-Commerce, MMO and social networking, the demand on service availability and continuity is increasingly crucial to production servers or data centers. Hence, software failure recovery systems are thoroughly studied. However, stimulated by significant commercial revenue, attackers begin trying to evade the existing auditing/recovering techniques by manipulating the service applications through the compromised kernel. Nowadays, device drivers account for more than half (could be as high as 70%) of the source code of most commodity operating system kernels, with much more exploitable vulnerabilities than other kernel code [2]. This renders the attackers the opportunity to exploit the driver vulnerability and leverage the kernel privilege of the compromised drivers. With the unrestricted access to the whole (kernel/user) memory address space, successful attackers can launch denial of service attack by incurring driver fault, manipulating critical code/data or even the metadata of the service application process.
A comparison of topical and retrobulbar anesthesia for cataract surgery.

Purpose: To evaluate and compare the efficacy of topical and retrobulbar anesthesia for cataract extraction with intraocular lens implantation. Methods: One hundred thirty-eight patients prospectively were assigned to the topical (group 1; n=69) or retrobulbar (group 2; n=69) anesthesia groups by permuted block restricted randomization. Group 1 received topical 0.75% bupivacaine and intravenous midazolam and fentanyl for anesthesia. Group 2 received intravenous methohexital followed by retrobulbar block with an equal mixture of 2% lidocaine and 0.75% bupivacaine plus hyaluronidase (150 U). A visual pain analogue scale was used to assess the degree of pain during the administration of anesthesia, during surgery, and postoperatively. The degree to which eye movement, touch, and light caused patient discomfort was assessed. Complications and surgical conditions were recorded. Results: There was no difference in the surgical conditions ( P = 0.5) or pain during surgery ( P = 0.35) between the two groups. There was more discomfort during administration of topical anesthesia ( P P Conclusion: Topical anesthesia can be used safely for cataract extraction. The degree of patient discomfort is only marginally higher during administration of the anesthesia and postoperatively. However, surgical training and patient preparation are the keys to the safe use of topical anesthesia.
African American marriage in the 20th century.

It is not possible to understand African American marriages fully without attention to the social, economic, racial, and historical factors that have stressed male-female relationships beyond those stresses experienced by majority couples. I propose that the societal projection process (Bowen, 1978) has entrapped African Americans in ways that have continually and severely strained their marital and couple relationships. These experiences, and the ways in which African Americans have responded to them, have created a vulnerability that is compounded by societal shifts and changes, and is manifest in the precipitous decline of marriages at a rate higher than that found in all other racial groups in the U.S. I will examine the state of African American marriages in this cultural context, with specific attention to the effects of the unequal sex ratio, socioeconomic conditions, and overstressed male-female relationships. I will then discuss implications and offer suggestions for therapists who work with this population.
Achieving Autonomy through Design

ing blocks that are eventually evolving into a comprehensive methodology for autonomous systems design [lo]. In this article, we briefly summarize the definition of an intelligent autonomous system and requirements for achieving high autonomy. Then, model-based techniques which unify autonomous system design are preThis article discusses a high level design methodology and its support of high autonomy systems synthesis. Requirements for high autonomy as well as the design framework are briefly summarized. Then, model-based techniques which unify autonomous system design are presented. sented.
Atrial Natriuretic Factor Is Detectable in Human Cerebrospinal Fluid

To determine whether atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) is detectable in human cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), I measured ANF in CSF samples obtained from subjects undergoing myelography for various neurological disorders. Immunoreactive ANF, measured by RIA, ranged from undetectable (<9.7) to 36 pmol/L. All measurable samples diluted in parallel in the RIA. Reverse phase high pressure liquid chromatography and subsequent RIA confirmed the presence of ANF, with most of the immunoreactivity eluting at the position of standard human ANF-(99–126). Simultaneous plasma ANF levels were measured in most individuals and the plasma concentrations were less than those in CSF; most of the immunoreactivity in plasma also eluted at the position of human ANF-(99–126). Thus, ANF is present in CSF in substantial amounts in some subjects with neurological disorders. Further, the CSF levels exceeded the circulating plasma ANF levels in most subjects. These results suggest that ANF in CSF is at least partially derived from producti...
A Comparison of Civil Patients and Incompetent Defendants: Pre and Post Deinstitutionalization

There has been a great deal of speculation that deinstitutionalization has resulted in the criminalization of the mentally ill. Using two samples of defendants found incompetent to stand trial (IST) and two samples of civil patients randomly selected from five states, pre and post deinstitutionalization, this research compares changes in their mental health and arrest histories. After deinstitutionalization, fewer and less dramatic differences in the arrest and mental health histories were evident between ISTs and civil patients. Both patient samples displayed significant increases in prior hospitalization and arrest histories. Among the civil patients there was a significant increase in the frequency and seriousness of criminal activity. There was no evidence that IST commitments are being expanded to hospitalize the nondangerous mentally ill no longer subject to civil commitment.
Gaming Mind, Gaming Body: The Mind/Body Split For a New Era

Drawing on the phenomenologically inspired works of drew Leder and Randy Martin, this paper examines the ways in which playing a First-Person Shooter first creates a secondary body for the player and then, because of the first-person perspective, proceeds to erase that body from the player’s consciousness. The paper explores the notion of and the ways in which First-Person Shooters complicate our conception of embodiment. Offering an ethnographically-influenced semiotic analysis of playing a FPS, the paper begins by declaring that we are typically not aware of our bodies and that playing a FPS gives us another body on which to concentrate causing an erasure of the physical body. It is then asserted that the virtual body is also rendered invisible due to the perspective and speed of the game resulting in a double erasure of the body leaving behind only the mind.
Artificial neural nets as tools for expert systems in objective histopathology

The use of artificial neural networks was explored as a tool for the evaluation of DNA ploidy spectra as part of an expert diagnostic system for the objective evaluation of stratified epithelia using high-resolution karyometry. The classification rates obtained by multilayer nets compare favorably with those obtained from more traditional methods. This suggests that these techniques could provide useful tools for expert diagnostic systems in histopathology when applied to appropriate problems. >
Quaternary Diversion and Incision, Dearborn River, Montana

Direct measurements of stream-incision rates are generally neither practical nor meaningful because bed-rock abrasion rates are so small, and the variability of average stream discharge and sediment load is so great. Field examples of bed-rock incision by streams rarely allow determination of incision duration, initial channel geometry, or history of flow parameters. Complications arising from threshold-response and complex-response behavior of drainage basins (Schumm, 1977) often obscure the very cause of incision. However, incision resulting from datable stream diversion or capture allows determination of the duration of cutting. In extraordinary instances, such as the one reported herein, initial channel geometry, hydraulics, and sediment transport can be estimated in addition to the time of diversion. This paper develops the chronology of incision of a glacially diverted river over a time span of some 25,000 yr. Duration of this natural incision experiment was long enough that short-term perturbations may be ignored and meaningful average incision rates determined. The chronology, with accompanying estimates of channel geometry, hydraulics, and sediment-transport rate, thus provides data for the study of bed-rock incision processes in gravel-bed rivers (Foley, 1980a, 1980b).
Browsing document collections: automatically organizing digital libraries and hypermedia using the Gray code

Abstract Relevance and economic feedback may be used to produce an ordering of documents that supports browsing in hypermedia and digital libraries. Document classification based on the Gray code provides paths through the entire collection, each path traversing each node in the set of documents exactly once. Systems organizing documents based on weighted and unweighted Gray codes are examined. Relevance feedback is used to conceptually organize the collection for an individual to browse, based on that individual's interests and information needs, as reflected by their relevance judgements and user supplied economic preferences. We apply Bayesian learning theory to estimating the characteristics of documents of interest to the user and supply an analytic model of browsing performance, based on minimizing the Expected Browsing Distance (EBD). Economic feedback may be used to change the ordering of documents to benefit the user. Using these techniques, a hypermedia or digital library may order any and all available documents, not just those examined, based on the information provided by the searcher or people with similar interests.
Fine-needle aspiration cytology of thymic basaloid carcinoma: case studies and review of the literature.

We report the features in fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) of thymic basaloid carcinomas. This is a rare neoplasm, of which there are only three documented in our hospital files. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first fine-needle aspiration (FNA) report on basaloid carcinoma of the thymus. This is a tumor in which the FNA diagnosis is difficult and the differential diagnosis is broad. We describe the cytologic features encountered in the three cases, and immunohistochemical and ultrastructural findings so as to raise awareness of this entity in the differential diagnosis of thymic neoplasms on FNABs. The cases studied included three male patients, aged 73, 65, and 50, who presented with anterior mediastinal masses, with no primary tumor elsewhere. FNAB was performed on two cases, followed by thymectomy. One case, additionally, had metastasis to a cervical lymph node, and the other two were associated with thymic cysts. The diagnoses on all three cases were thymic basaloid carcinoma. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2006;34:358–366. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Nationalism, Political Community and the Representation of Society Or, Why Feeling at Home is not a Substitute for Public Space

Discussion of political and legal citizenship requires attention to social solidarity. Current approaches to citizenship, however, tend to proceed on abstract bases, neglecting this sociological dimension. This is partly because a tacit understanding of what constitutes a `society' has been developed through implicit reliance on the idea of `nation'. Issues of social belonging are addressed more directly in communitarian and multiculturalist discourses. Too often, however, different modes of solidarity and participation are confused. Scale is often neglected. The model of `nation' again prefigures the ways in which membership and difference are constructed. The present paper suggests the value of maintaining a distinction among relational networks, cultural or legal categories, and discursive publics. The first constitute community in a sense quite different from either of the second and third. Categories, however, are increasingly prominent in largescale social life. But the idea of the public is crucial...
Wintertime Ozone Fluxes and Profiles above a Subalpine Spruce–Fir Forest

Abstract High rural concentrations of ozone (O3) are thought to be stratospheric in origin, advected from upwind urban sources, or photochemically generated locally by natural trace gas emissions. Ozone is known to be transported vertically downward from the above-canopy atmospheric surface layer and destroyed within stomata or on other biological and mineral surfaces. However, here the authors report midwinter eddy correlation measurements of upward vertical O3 flux of 0.2 μg m−2 s−1 (5.6 kg km−2 day−1) above a subalpine canopy of Picea engelmannii and Abies lasiocarpa in the Snowy Range Mountains of Wyoming. Simultaneous below-canopy upward fluxes reached 0.1 μg m−2 s−1. These results corroborate similar late winter (presnowmelt) upward O3 fluxes of 0.5 μg m−2 s−1 (19 kg km−2 day−1) taken at the same site in 1992. Profile results show sustained “countergradient” fluxes below the canopy and sustained “with gradient” fluxes above the canopy. Ozone concentrations that decrease for several hours to several ...
Health and the Option Value of Medical Innovation

We propose a dynamic framework to study the option value of medical innova- tion, which accrues - in expectation - to healthy individuals who anticipate some possibility of future illness. We apply our framework to evaluate an HIV treatment breakthrough known as HAART. In lowering both the expected cost and likelihood of HIV infection, HAART reduced the implicit price of risky sex. Forward-looking agents responded by optimally shifting their behavior. The magnitude of their responses permits identication of health state dependent utility parameters, from which we can derive the the option value of medical innovation. We nd that the option value of HAART introduction for healthy, uninfected agents corresponds to between 2 and 4 years of life, with greater value accruing to individuals with stronger preferences for risky sex or a higher propensity to quickly fall ill once infected with HIV.
Safety and technique of ferumoxytol administration for MRI

Ferumoxytol is an ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide agent marketed for the treatment of anemia. There has been increasing interest in its properties as an MRI contrast agent as well as greater awareness of its adverse event profile. This mini-review summarizes the current state of knowledge of the risks of ferumoxytol and methods of administration.
Pediatric Oral Electrical Burns: Incidence of Emergency Department Visits in the United States, 1997-2012.

ObjectivesTo investigate the epidemiology of emergency department visits for pediatric patients presenting with electrical burns to the mouth.Study DesignCross-sectional analysis of a national data...
OSCILLATORY COMBUSTION OF FINE-AP/HTPB PROPELLANTS

The steady and oscillatory combustion of wide distribution AP/HTPB composite propellants containing coarse AP and fuel-rich, fine-AP/HTPB pocket regions is being investigated experimentally and theoretically. These propellants are of special interest because they are similar to many wide distribution bi-modal tailorable plateau propellants. Unsteady combustion response is measured using the laser-recoil method. It was found in agreement with previous results that at 1 atm monomodal fuel rich propellants containing fine AP (representati ve of the pocket propellant in the bi-modal propellants) exhibit both a low frequency combustion response peak due to the thermal relaxation in the solid and a secondary peak at a higher frequency. The frequency of this second peak has a strong correlation with particle size; it only appears for small AP (< 50 pm) and its frequency increases with decreasing AP size, even down to the smallest size tested to date. The addition of coarse AP (which results in a nearly stoichiometric overall mixture but still has a reasonably large Peclet number, of order 10) suppresses the second peak. Curative type had a noticeable effect only in very fuel rich pocket propellants under those conditions. The addition of a transition metal oxide and minor variations in fine-coarse AP ratio, which have a significant effect at higher pressures, had little affect at 1 atm. The use of plasticizer (DOA) shows little effect on the second peak. Displacement of fine AP with coarse for fuel rich propellants was found to diminish and eliminate the second peak. The frequency of the second peak was found to scale linearly with r<j/d except in the case of very fuel rich propellants.
Thermal conductivity of polycrystalline YBa 2 Cu 4 O 8 from 10 to 300 K

The thermal conductivity l and electrical resistivity r were measured on two samples of the cuprate superconductor YBa2Cu4O8 ~Y124!. The l results pass through a maximum at about half of the superconducting transition temperature Tc . The peak l value is much higher than the peak value for polycrystalline YBa2Cu3O72d , Y123, and is about equal to ab plane values for good melt processed Y123. In the normal state most of the l is due to phonon transport l p and estimates of l p were obtained from the data by making a correction for electronic transport. Phonon-phonon and phonon-electron scattering limit the l p of both Y124 and Y123. In the two compounds, the phonon-phonon scattering is about equally strong, but electron-phonon scattering is considerably weaker in Y124. In the superconducting state, below the l maximum at Tc/2, l varies as T n (n’1/2). This behavior has also been observed in Y123, but is not consistent with phonon scattering theory. The implications of this observation are discussed. @S0163-1829~98!08117-X#
Meshing Characteristics Analysis of Spur Gear Pair Considering Modification Coefficient

Meshing characteristics of spur gear pair were researched using finite element method.Parametric finite element model of modified spur gear pair w as built on the on the basis of APDL.Numerical simulation of gear meshing w as performed via application of explicit dynamic softw are LS-DYNA.Dynamic meshing characteristics caused by gear meshing such as dynamic contact force and dynamic transmission error(DTE) w ere obtained,and the effect of modification coefficient on dynamic meshing characteristics w as studied.Static transmission error(STE) w as compared w ith the aforementioned DTE.Finally the reasons for the difference betw een the DTE and STE w ere discussed.The results show n that under different modification coefficients,the meshing frequency is alw ays the main frequency component.Other frequency components are affected by modification coefficient,and amplitude of the frequency component close to natural frequency is relatively larger.The STE is much different from the DTE on both time and frequency domains.
The Geopolitics of European Security and Cooperation

At the present moment of obvious tension between Moscow and Washington, it may be tempting to dismiss the likelihood of progress on any diplomatic front, let alone in the complex multilateral format of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. Yet the 1972–75 Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (csce) itself took place against a backdrop of intense rivalry between the u.s. and Soviet-led blocs, suggesting that reasoned dialogue and consensus on core issues of shared security in the osce space is possible, despite—or perhaps even because of—the looming threat of conflict between geopolitical rivals. Despite some superficial similarities, relations between Russia and the United States today are sufficiently different from the past that they cannot accurately be described as a conflict in the same category as the Cold War. The u.s.-Russia relations have been severely strained over the crisis in Ukraine, but management of the crisis alone will not be enough to restore productive relations between Washington and Moscow or to repair the damage to European security. The best hope is likely a return to the principles of the 1975 Helsinki Final Act, and through a similarly inclusive region-wide dialogue. Today, the United States, Europe, and Russia all share an interest in renewal of just such a dialogue, although what will not—indeed what must not—return is the Cold War “balance of terror” that exerted pressure on all sides to participate seriously in the original Helsinki process.
Modeling the Response of Dissolved Oxygen to Phosphorus Loading in LakeSpokane

ABSTRACTWells SA, Berger CJ. 2016. Modeling the response of dissolved oxygen to phosphorus loading in Lake Spokane. Lake Reserv Manage. 32:270–279.Mathematical models of hydrodynamics and water quality are often used to determine the assimilative capacity of a waterbody when waterbodies violate state water quality standards. A model of the Spokane River and Lake Spokane in eastern Washington was developed to evaluate the assimilative capacity of the waterbody by setting a total maximum daily load (TMDL). A CE-QUAL-W2 model of this system was developed to establish the TMDL limits for the critical low-flow year of 2001. A recent paper evaluated this model and raised several issues about the validity of this model application as a regulatory tool related to its ability to predict total phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, and chlorophyll a relationships. This paper analyzes the validity of their critiques. For example, the critique used an incorrect formula to calculate total phosphorus inflows into Lake Spokane a...
A hardware platform for network intrusion detection and prevention

The need for building high-speed NIDS that can reliably generate alerts as intrusions occur and have the intrinsic ability to scale as network infrastructure and attack sophistication evolves has been discussed in this chapter. The key design principles are analyzed and it has been argued that network intrusion-detection functions should be carried out by distributed and collaborative NNIDS at the end hosts. It is shown that an NNIDS running on the network interface instead of the host operating system can provide increased protection, reduced vulnerability to circumvention, and much lower overhead. The chapter also describes the experience in implementing a prototype NNIDS, based on Snort, an Intel IXP 1200, and a Xilinx Virtex-1000 FPGA. These experiments help to identify the performance bottlenecks and give insights on how to improve the design. System stress tests shows that the embedded NNIDS can handle high-speed traffic without packet drops and achieve the same performance as the Snort software running on a dedicated high-end computer system. Ongoing work includes optimizing the performance of NNIDS, developing strategies for sustainable operation of the NNIDS under attacks through adaptation and active countermeasures, studying algorithms for distributed and collaborative intrusion detection, and further developing the analytical models for buffer and processor allocation. Also tested were FPGA pattern-matching designs that approach 10 Gbps throughput with the entire Snort ruleset using a Xilinx Virtex2 device. A better understanding of the design principles and implementation techniques for building high-speed has been provided, along with reliable, and scalable network intrusion detection systems.
Characterization of a Block Copolymer with a Wide Distribution of Grain Sizes

Block copolymer/lithium salt mixtures are an emerging class of lithium battery electrolytes. Previous studies have shown that the ionic conductivity of these materials is a sensitive function of grain size. Both depolarized light scattering (DPLS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) have proven to be effective techniques for elucidating the grain structure of block copolymer (BCP) materials. DPLS is particularly useful for the characterization of samples with grain sizes larger than 1 μm, whereas SAXS is particularly well suited for samples with grain sizes smaller than 0.1 μm. We present the results of both DPLS and SAXS measurements of grain structure in a BCP/lithium salt mixture that was annealed after being initially prepared by freeze-drying from solution. The combination of the two techniques demonstrates that our sample is characterized by an extremely wide distribution of grain sizes. In particular, the sample has a large population of small sub-micrometer-sized grains that cannot be detected...
Mathematical Models of Cancer Evolution and Cure

Abstract Since the pioneering work of Salmon and Durie, the availability of a quantitative measure of malignant cell burden in multiple myeloma has been used to make clinical predictions and to model tumor cell growth. Here, we analyzed a large set of tumor response data from three randomized controlled clinical trials (total sample size n=1,469 evaluable patients) to establish and validate a novel mathematical model of MM cell dynamics based on responses to bortezomib-based chemotherapy regimens. Dynamics of treatment response in newly diagnosed patients were most consistent with a mathematical model postulating the existence of two tumor cell subpopulations, "myeloma progenitor cells" and "myeloma differentiated cells". Differential treatment responses were observed with significant tumoricidal effects on myeloma differentiated cells and less clear effects on myeloma progenitor cells. We validated this model using a second trial of newly diagnosed MM patients and a third trial of refractory patients. When applying our model to data of relapsed MM patients, we found that a hybrid mathematical model incorporating both a MM differentiation hierarchy and clonal evolution best explains the tumor response patterns in all patients. The clinical data, together with mathematical modeling, suggest that bortezomib-based therapy exerts a selection pressure on myeloma cells that can shape the disease phenotype, thereby generating further inter-patient variability. This model may be a useful tool for improving the rational design of chemotherapy regimens in multiple myeloma. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
A Fair Power Allocation Approach to NOMA in Multiuser SISO Systems

A nonorthogonal multiple access (NOMA) approach that always outperforms orthogonal multiple access (OMA) called Fair-NOMA is introduced. In Fair-NOMA, each mobile user is allocated its share of the transmit power such that its capacity is always greater than or equal to the capacity that can be achieved using OMA. For any slow-fading channel gains of the two users, the set of possible power allocation coefficients is derived. For the infimum and supremum of this set, the individual capacity gains and the sum-rate capacity gain are derived. It is shown that the ergodic sum-rate capacity gain approaches 1 b/s/Hz when the transmit power increases for the case when pairing two random users with independent identically distributed channel gains. The outage probability of this approach is derived and shown to be better than OMA. The Fair-NOMA approach is applied to the case of pairing a near base-station user and a cell-edge user and the ergodic capacity gap is derived as a function of total number of users in the cell at high SNR. This is then compared to the conventional case of fixed-power NOMA with user pairing. Finally, Fair-NOMA is extended to $K$ users and it is proven that the capacity can always be improved for each user, while using less than the total transmit power required to achieve OMA capacities per user.
Finding a Better Way.

It is no secret that our healthcare system can do a better job taking care of patients. A simple trip to the emergency room or a week long hospitalization because of an acute illness or injury can highlight some of the most glaring issues in our healthcare delivery system. But in the case of a chronic illness that suddenly spirals out of control, things can become both complex and dangerous. See Commentary by Hummel Our patient was Mary (please note that the name has been changed to protect confidentiality). She was a mother to one daughter and 3 sons and a grandmother to 5 young children. She was a sister, a daughter, and a dear friend to many. She was a physical therapist whose patients adored her. We, her daughter and sister, were her caregivers. We experienced Mary’s slow demise firsthand, from October 2014 to May 2015. We have both spent our entire careers in health care. Finding ourselves on the patient and family/caregiver side of health care was eye-opening. On October 13, 2014, Mary was driving to a routine pacemaker check. Beginning in the summer of 2013, she had been experiencing shortness of breath, fatigue, and edema of the legs and feet. Her cardiologist was attempting to manage her disease with medication and a pacemaker to regulate a slow heart rate; despite this, she continued to experience symptoms diagnosed as heart failure of unknown cause. As she pulled into the parking deck of the physician’s building, her heart stopped beating. By the grace of God, a Good Samaritan came to her rescue, and shouted for help. Several physicians happened to be nearby, and they quickly responded and started cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). She was then transferred to the hospital emergency department, just a few hundred feet away. After a cardiac …
Framework for assessing causality of air pollution-related health effects for reviews of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards

To inform regulatory decisions on the risk due to exposure to ambient air pollution, consistent and transparent communication of the scientific evidence is essential. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) develops the Integrated Science Assessment (ISA), which contains evaluations of the policy-relevant science on the effects of criteria air pollutants and conveys critical science judgments to inform decisions on the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. This article discusses the approach and causal framework used in the ISAs to evaluate and integrate various lines of scientific evidence and draw conclusions about the causal nature of air pollution-induced health effects. The framework has been applied to diverse pollutants and cancer and noncancer effects. To demonstrate its flexibility, we provide examples of causality judgments on relationships between health effects and pollutant exposures, drawing from recent ISAs for ozone, lead, carbon monoxide, and oxides of nitrogen. U.S. EPA's causal framework has increased transparency by establishing a structured process for evaluating and integrating various lines of evidence and uniform approach for determining causality. The framework brings consistency and specificity to the conclusions in the ISA, and the flexibility of the framework makes it relevant for evaluations of evidence across media and health effects.
Commentary on a participatory inquiry paradigm used to assess EOL simulation participant outcomes and design.

Care at the end-of-life has attracted global attention, as health care workers struggle with balancing cure based care with end-of-life care, and knowing when to transition from the former to the latter. Simulation is gaining in popularity as an education strategy to facilitate health care provider decision-making by improving communication skills with patients and family members. This commentary focuses on the authors’ simulation evaluation process. When data were assessed using a participatory inquiry paradigm, the evaluation revealed far more than a formative or summative evaluation of participant knowledge and skills in this area of care. Consequently, this assessment strategy has ramifications for best practices for simulation design and evaluation.
Machine learning approach on frontal lobe activity to assess depression in adults: Implications for rehabilitation outcomes

The purpose of this study was to explore whether depression can be assessed using prefrontal activation using novel machine learning algorithms. Twenty participants (10 diagnosed with Major depressive disorder) were instructed to perform submaximal isometric handgrip force control tasks. Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) optodes recorded continuous bilateral prefrontal cortex (PFC) activity during the trials. 10 features were extracted from the neural hemodynamic activation. Extracted features were submitted to several machine learning classification algorithms to examine the features and channels that showed best classification performance. The best performance predictive model has an accuracy 85% (OneR algorithm; sensitivity: 90%; specificity: 80%) when the 10 features obtained from the first HbO peak of right lateral PFC were selected. Finally, this preliminary analysis demonstrate that machine learning algorithms applied to multiple features of PFC optodes can help to identify biomarkers in classifying adults with MDD.
Theoretical Modeling of the Ethanol Induced Changes in the Lateral Interactions of the Ionic Head Groups of Phosphatidylcholine at the Water-Lipid Interface

Because of the direct relationship between the efficacy of alcohols and other anesthetics with their oil/water partition coefficients, most research concerning the mechanism of action of ethanol has focused on the disruptive effects of the alcohol on the molecular order in the interior of neuronal and model membrane systems. The observed changes are, however, small and alone cannot explain the total pharmacological actions of alcohols1. Recent studies have shown that ethanol and other anesthetics not only interact with the interior of the membrane but also interact with the surface domain2–6.
Identifying Characteristics in Low SES and Bicultural Parent Groups That Enhance Their Capacity to Enact Successful Change.

6 Chapter 1 Introduction 7 Purpose Statement 10 Research Question 10 Theoretical Rationale 10 Assumptions 12 Background and Need 12 Chapter 2 Review of the Literature 15 Introduction 15 Parent Engagement and Student Achievement 16 Systems Thinking 17 Intersection of Race and Socioeconomic Status 17 Community Organizing 18 Change 18 Chapter 3 Method 20 Introduction 20 Sample and Site 20 Ethical Standards 21 Access and Permission 21 Successful Change in Parent Communities 4 Data Gathering Strategies 21 Data Analysis Strategies 22 Chapter 4 Findings 23 Description of Site, Individuals, Data 23 Parent Understanding 24 How Schools Define Parents Role 24 Parent Efficacy 24 Impact of Differing Educational and Cultural Backgrounds Between Teachers and Parents 25 Parent Efficacy 26 Parent Led Change 26 Strengths and Deficits in Parent Community 26 Role of Parent 27 Parent Education 28 Parents as Partners 28 Parents Ability to Drive Change 28 Deficit Thinking by School Staff 29 Overall Themes 29 Unions are a Limiting Factor 29 Self-Efficacy 29 Supportive Role Versus Partnership 30 Parent Engagement As A Cultural Value 30 Chapter 5 Discussion /Analysis 31 Summary of Major Findings 31 Limitations/Gaps in the Study 36 Successful Change in Parent Communities 5 Implications for Future Research 36 Overall Significance of the Study 37 About the Author 38 References 39 Successful Change in Parent Communities 6
Heterogeneity in localization of isoforms of TGF-β in human retina, vitreous, and choroid

PURPOSE The purpose of this work was to investigate further the immunohistochemical localization of transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta 1 to photoreceptors, which we had previously observed, to elucidate the cell types of origin for TGF-beta 1, and to determine sites of localization for TGF-beta 2 and beta 3 in the posterior segment of the human eye. METHOD Streptavidin-peroxidase immunohistochemistry was used to localize TGF-beta antibodies in sections from cryopreserved human posterior segments from six adult donors. Two recently described polyclonal antibodies to TGF-beta 1 (anti-CC[1-30] and anti-LC[1-30]) and antibodies against TGF-beta 2 and beta 3 were employed in this study. Other studies suggest that anti-LC(1-30) antibody recognizes pre-pro-TGF-beta 1 and therefore sites of production, while anti-CC(1-30) recognizes secreted forms of TGF-beta 1. RESULTS Regional labeling of choriocapillaris was observed in all eyes using anti-LC(1-30) (anti-pre-pro-beta 1). Anti-CC(1-30) (anti-secr-beta 1) was localized predominantly in photoreceptor inner and outer segments in all eyes. Outer segment localization appeared identical to anti-opsin localization, indicating that this form of TGF-beta 1 is most likely intracellular. TGF-beta 2 was observed predominantly in the connective tissue of long ciliary arteries in choroid and in photoreceptor outer segments in all eyes. TGF-beta 3 was observed in isolated individual cells in choroid and retina. Vitreous hyalocytes were the only cell type examined that were immunoreactive for all four forms of TGF-beta studied. CONCLUSION The heterogeneity in localization of TGF-beta s in the human posterior eye suggests that TGF-beta s are produced, used, and degraded locally. TGF-beta 1 produced by the choriocapillaris may be stored or used by photoreceptors.
The Development of River City, a Multi-User Virtual Environment-Based Scientific Inquiry Curriculum: Historical and Design Evolutions

This chapter details the 8-year development of River City from the initial design through its current large-scale version. Throughout the project’s history, we employed a design-based research (DBR) approach to the iterative, formative development of the MUVE-based inquiry curriculum, with a current focus on resolving scalability issues inherent in large-scale implementations. In this chapter, we reflect on the evolution of our design-based methodology and discuss what we have learned about designing for inquiry using DBR through several cycles of implementations. We also present an overview of the affective and learning outcomes of the nearly 15,000 students and 100 teachers that have learned from River City. By reflecting explicitly on the evolution of our design strategy, we hope to provide a guide to others interested in design-based research for the use of MUVEs to facilitate scientific inquiry in the K-12 classroom.
Retinoids in Heart Development

Publisher Summary Clues to the function of retinoids in heart development came initially from studies of the effects of vitamin A-deficient diets on the pups of pregnant rats. Two general experimental strategies have been employed in these efforts. Retinoid-deficient diets (or loss-of-function genetic manipulation of retinoid receptors) cause heart defects because of failures in endogenous retinoid-dependent developmental processes. Alternatively, ectopic administration of an excess of retinoids results in defects that reflect the competence of the developing heart to respond to retinoids, although this response might not necessarily occur in normally developing embryos or might not occur to as great an extent. It is found that retinoids have a broad role in directing normal cardiovascular morphogenesis, and that the developing heart is extremely sensitive to perturbation (in either direction) of retinoid signaling. Previously, a popular model held that retinoic acid (RA) worked by establishing positional identity within a developmental field, such as the limb bud or in principle the heart. Recent analyses are far more supportive of a conceptualization of RA acting in multiple independent events during the course of heart development, even though these events are closely linked in space and time.