cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Financial data breaches in the U.S. retail economy: Restoring confidence in information technology security standards

Abstract Managing effective security of personal customer data located in computer networks has become a strategic business and public policy issue for the U.S. retail sector. The article discusses the global credit card payment industry self-regulation regime established by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (“Council”) to combat cybercrime, comparing and evaluating the Council's existing standards regime to the theory and practices found in the industry self-regulation literature. A review of national cybercrime trends in both the volume and financial impacts (“losses”) of electronic financial record breaches on the U.S. retail sector is presented. After identifying the primary areas of retail electronic records breach vulnerability, an improved industry standards framework is developed that proposes to enhance security and minimize data privacy compromises through the adoption of recommended pure industry self-regulation (improved “security standard”) and market force mechanisms (mandatory “cyber liability insurance coverage”). The article concludes with a discussion of the implementation of the proposed industry self-regulation and market force framework; its current limitations; and what technology advancements may bring in the future to provide more effective security and protection for consumers' personal data and financial transactions.
Thermodynamics of Lithium in TiO2(B) from First Principles

We use first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations combined with statistical mechanical techniques based on the cluster expansion method and Monte Carlo simulations to predict the lithium site occupancies, voltage curves, and phase diagram for TiO2(B), a candidate anode material for lithium ion batteries. We find that Li intercalation is thermodynamically favorable up to a Li/Ti ratio of 1.25, higher than the theoretical maximum usually assumed for TiO2. The calculated phase diagram at 300 K contains three first-order phase transformations corresponding to major changes in the favored intercalation sites at increasing Li concentrations. Calculations based on DFT predict the stability of a new Li site at high Li concentrations in TiO2(B) and the occurrence of a dramatic site-inversion as Li is added to the host.
Response of the human tympanic membrane to transient acoustic and mechanical stimuli: Preliminary results

The response of the tympanic membrane (TM) to transient environmental sounds and the contributions of different parts of the TM to middle-ear sound transmission were investigated by measuring the TM response to global transients (acoustic clicks) and to local transients (mechanical impulses) applied to the umbo and various locations on the TM. A lightly-fixed human temporal bone was prepared by removing the ear canal, inner ear, and stapes, leaving the incus, malleus, and TM intact. Motion of nearly the entire TM was measured by a digital holography system with a high speed camera at a rate of 42 000 frames per second, giving a temporal resolution of <24 μs for the duration of the TM response. The entire TM responded nearly instantaneously to acoustic transient stimuli, though the peak displacement and decay time constant varied with location. With local mechanical transients, the TM responded first locally at the site of stimulation, and the response spread approximately symmetrically and circumferentially around the umbo and manubrium. Acoustic and mechanical transients provide distinct and complementary stimuli for the study of TM response. Spatial variations in decay and rate of spread of response imply local variations in TM stiffness, mass, and damping.
Adiponectin: A Mediator of Obesity, Insulin Resistance, Diabetes, and the Metabolic Syndrome

Abstract The worldwide prevalence of obesity has nearly doubled since 1980. More than 42 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight in 2013 according to the World Health Organization’s 2014 global status report on noncommunicable diseases. In 2014, 11% of men and 15% of women aged 18 years and older were obese. Obesity increases the risk of developing insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and atherosclerosis, and the coexistence of these diseases has been termed the metabolic syndrome. Once regarded as a relatively inert storage depot for fat, the adipose tissue is now recognized as an important endocrine organ that releases a host of biologically active hormones and cytokines collectively referred to as adipokines. Adiponectin, an adipokine, has emerged as a major player in the pathogenesis of obesity, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome. Emerging evidence also indicates the association of obesity and insulin resistance with a state of low-grade chronic inflammation of the adipose tissue as a result of incessant activation of the native immune system which plays a major role in the pathogenesis of obesity-related metabolic complications. These developments have contributed considerably to an improved understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying obesity and insulin resistance. In this chapter, we will review the mechanisms underlying obesity and discuss the role of heme oxygenase and adiponectin in obesity, insulin resistance, and the metabolic syndrome, and their relation to the genesis of atherosclerotic heart disease.
Practice variations in voice treatment selection following vocal fold mucosal resection.

Objectives/Hypothesis To characterize initial voice treatment selection following vocal fold mucosal resection in a Medicare population. Study Design Retrospective analysis of a large, nationally representative Medicare claims database. Methods Patients with > 12 months of continuous Medicare coverage who underwent a leukoplakia- or cancer-related vocal fold mucosal resection (index) procedure during calendar years 2004 to 2009 were studied. The primary outcome of interest was receipt of initial voice treatment (thyroplasty, vocal fold injection, or speech therapy) following the index procedure. We evaluated the cumulative incidence of each postindex treatment type, treating the other treatment types as competing risks, and further evaluated postindex treatment utilization using the proportional hazards model for the subdistribution of a competing risk. Patient age, sex, and Medicaid eligibility were used as predictors. Results A total of 2,041 patients underwent 2,427 index procedures during the study period. In 14% of cases, an initial voice treatment event was identified. Women were significantly less likely to receive surgical or behavioral treatment compared to men. From age 65 to 75 years, the likelihood of undergoing surgical treatment increased significantly with each 5-year age increase; after age 75 years, the likelihood of undergoing either surgical or behavioral treatment decreased significantly every 5 years. Patients with low socioeconomic status were significantly less likely to undergo speech therapy. Conclusion The majority of Medicare patients do not undergo voice treatment following vocal fold mucosal resection. Further, the treatments analyzed here appear disproportionally utilized based on patient sex, age, and socioeconomic status. Additional research is needed to determine whether these observations reflect clinically explainable differences or disparities in care. Level of Evidence 2c. Laryngoscope, 2016
CFD predictions for control surface effectiveness

This paper examines the capability of current CFD methods to simulate results from a “2-D” aileron effectiveness test conducted with an aft-loaded airfoil with modest trailing-edge thickness to investigate Reynolds number effects on aileron effectiveness characteristics. The results presented herein are follow-on to a previous 2-D CFD simulation, which failed to capture measured Reynolds number effects. As a result of this earlier study the interaction of the airfoil flowfield with the tunnel sidewall viscous flow and sidewall suction used in the test are accounted for in this 3-D simulation. The 3-D predictions provide a substantially-improved correlation with the experimental results. A very prominent aspect of the 3-D approach is the prediction of flow separation at the juncture of the airfoil and tunnel sidewall. This occurs in spite of the application of suction, and raises serious doubts about the validity of scores of previous (and ongoing) CFD investigations, which have presumed that such “2-D” airfoil test results were actually 2-D.
Queasiness: An Informal Look

Responses of 435 students to 6 questions from Hippocrates indicated considerable queasiness perceived in the hypothetical situations posed. Eating after someone else, especially if the person is unfamiliar, elicited more response than other situations. Students and the original respondents to the magazine's inquiry rated the situations in a similar manner.
Assisted Circulation: A Progress Report

Temporary circulatory assist devices now appear to hold more promise of clinical application than permanent, implanted artificial hearts. Two contrasting approaches to temporary assist are described: the bypass and the counterpulsation pump. The latter has developed into a completely external system through which coronary filling is enhanced and blood delivered to the systemic circulation during diastole.
Counseling women about mammography: benefits vs. harms.

Studies of mammography show a 0.1 percent absolute reduction in breast cancer mortality with mammography. This means that if 2,000 women are offered mammography over 10 years, one woman would have her life prolonged, 10 healthy women would be treated unnecessarily for breast cancer, and about 200 women would undergo psychological distress and additional testing because of false-positive results. Women should be informed of the potential benefits ansd harms of mammography before undergoing the screening test at any age.
Suprageniculate Approach to Release of Popliteal Entrapment without Distal Bypass Despite Preoperative Runoff Thrombosis.

Background Popliteal artery entrapment syndrome is an uncommon condition in which anatomic or functional popliteal artery compression causes arterial insufficiency. We present a case of popliteal entrapment with runoff thrombosis treated with suprageniculate release of entrapment without distal bypass. Results A 15-year old boy with Klinefelter syndrome presented with right leg claudication severely limiting his activity. He had a palpable femoral pulse, but no palpable popliteal or foot pulses on the right. Noninvasive testing showed a partially thrombosed popliteal artery with an ankle-brachial index (ABI) of 0.69. Computed tomography scan revealed type III popliteal entrapment with distal thromboses and abnormal insertion of gastrocnemius muscle. Popliteal entrapment release was performed via a medial suprageniculate approach in consideration for distal bypass. The soleus was released first; intraoperative angiography showed continued popliteal compression with forced dorsiflexion. This was followed by release of the gastrocnemius and found caudal and medial to the soleus as a tight band. Repeat angiography showed cessation of popliteal artery compression with dorsiflexion. Bypass was not performed due to improvement of distal flow seen on angiography. Postoperative recovery was unremarkable. On 1-month and 9-month follow-up, he had a normal ABI and arterial duplex, was asymptomatic, and had returned to normal activities. Conclusions We describe suprageniculate approach to popliteal release that may be useful if a distal bypass is planned. In this case, bypass was unnecessary despite the abnormal appearance of distal runoff on preoperative imaging, as the child's perfusion improved with entrapment release alone, and arterial remodeling over time resulted in normal perfusion and arterial appearance on duplex imaging.
Models for Studying Pain and Searching for Pain Killers in Vitro Electrophysiological Studies of Pain

Studying pain and searching for pain killer have been involved at several different levels, including behavioral test on whole animals of pain models, studies on pain related neuronal pathways and circuits at tissue levels, research on nociceptive mechanisms and therapeutic targets at cellular, subcellular and molecular levels. Electrophysiological approaches have been applied at each of these levels for addressing fundamental questions including nociceptive signal initiation, encoding, transmission, modulation, and perception. Modern pain therapy and management rely on the understating of cellular, subcellular, and molecular mechanisms of pain under both physiological and pathological conditions. These mechanisms can be studied using electrophysiological approaches, particularly the patch-clamp recordings in in vitro tissue and cell model systems. Combination of in vitro electrophysiological approaches with molecular biological and other neurobiological methods provides a powerful tool in pain research and in searching for pain killers.
Analyzing mHealth Engagement: Joint Models for Intensively Collected User Engagement Data.

Background: Evaluating engagement with an intervention is a key component of understanding its efficacy. With an increasing interest in developing behavioral interventions in the mobile health (mHealth) space, appropriate methods for evaluating engagement in this context are necessary. Data collected to evaluate mHealth interventions are often collected much more frequently than those for clinic-based interventions. Additionally, missing data on engagement is closely linked to level of engagement resulting in the potential for informative missingness. Thus, models that can accommodate intensively collected data and can account for informative missingness are required for unbiased inference when analyzing engagement with an mHealth intervention. Objective: The objectives of this paper are to discuss the utility of the joint modeling approach in the analysis of longitudinal engagement data in mHealth research and to illustrate the application of this approach using data from an mHealth intervention designed to support illness management among people with schizophrenia. Methods: Engagement data from an evaluation of an mHealth intervention designed to support illness management among people with schizophrenia is analyzed. A joint model is applied to the longitudinal engagement outcome and time-to-dropout to allow unbiased inference on the engagement outcome. Results are compared to a naive model that does not account for the relationship between dropout and engagement. Results: The joint model shows a strong relationship between engagement and reduced risk of dropout. Using the mHealth app 1 day more per week was associated with a 23% decreased risk of dropout (P<.001). The decline in engagement over time was steeper when the joint model was used in comparison with the naive model. Conclusions: Naive longitudinal models that do not account for informative missingness in mHealth data may produce biased results. Joint models provide a way to model intensively collected engagement outcomes while simultaneously accounting for the relationship between engagement and missing data in mHealth intervention research. [JMIR Mhealth Uhealth 2017;5(1):e1]
Out-of-Band Millimeter Wave Beamforming and Communications to Achieve Low Latency and High Energy Efficiency in 5G Systems

Communications in the millimeter wave (mmWave) band faces significant challenges due to variable channels, intermittent connectivity, and high energy usage. Moreover, speeds for electronic processing of data is of the same order as typical rates for mmWave interfaces, making the use of complex algorithms for tracking channel variations and adjusting resources impractical. In order to mitigate some of these challenges, we propose an architecture that integrates the sub-6 GHz and mmWave technologies. Our system exploits the spatial correlations between the sub-6 GHz and mmWave interfaces for beamforming and data transfer . Based on extensive experimentation in indoor and outdoor settings, we demonstrate that analog beamforming can be used in mmWave without incurring large overhead, thanks to the spatial correlations with sub-6 GHz. In addition, we incorporate the sub-6 GHz interface as a fallback (secondary) data transfer mechanism such that: 1) the negative effects of highly intermittent mmWave connectivity are mitigated and 2) the abundant mmWave capacity is fully exploited. To achieve these goals, we consider the problem of scheduling the arrival traffic over the mmWave or sub-6 GHz in order to maximize the mmWave throughput while delay (due to mmWave outages) is guaranteed to be bounded. We prove using subadditivity analysis that the optimal scheduling policy is based on a single threshold that can be easily adopted despite high link variations. Numerical results demonstrate that our scheduler provides a bounded mmWave delay performance, while it achieves a similar throughput performance as the throughput-optimal policies (e.g., MaxWeight).
Word Chains: A Simulation of Proof.

Can you fill in the blanks in such a way that each horizontal string of letters is an English word, which is derived from the one above it by changing exactly one letter? No doubt you have seen puzzles of this type before; perhaps you enjoy working them. The one above should be within the capabilities of most third-graders. One so lution is CAT, COT, COG, DOG; another is CAT, COT, DOT, DOG. The more steps that are allowed, the more solutions there are. If we call solutions to such puzzles word chains, then the two solutions pro vided could be labeled word chains of
The Postdiaspora Question

Chapter 2 evokes a cluster of interpretations for both diaspora and postdiaspora, providing a hermeneutics of “post” in postdiaspora akin to postcoloniality and postmodernity. The chapter raises the question: if every diaspora is situated in relation to a supposedly nondiaspora mainstream, is the diaspora caught in a subaltern status that forever subjugates its position and identity? In other words, diaspora status is, in this text, interpreted as a technology that reproduces inequality. The chapter goes on to review the literature on postdiaspora, explaining how the concept has come into being, how it is used by immigration scholars, and the contexts in which it is applied to map its universe, deployment and significance, and unveil the light it sheds on the globalization process.
Epithelial Tumors of the Gastrointestinal Tract: Definitional Problems Regarding Morphologic Terminology

These are Major terminological problems relating to definitions of epithelial tumors of the whole gastrointestinal tract (squamous and glandular). Furthermore, the clinical implications vary from site to site. The definitional problems primarily involve epithelial atypia and the terminology of neoplastic lesions, namely dysplasia, adenomas, carcinoma in situ, and early cancer [1–8].
A sub-wavelength, hollow-core waveguiding network based on complementary high and low impedance cladding

The ability to manipulate electromagnetic waves on scales much smaller than the wavelength is of great interest for various applications in device miniaturization, sensing, and nonlinear wave generation. Surface plasmon polaritons provide a natural solution to this problem through localized resonances. Here, we introduce an alternative novel platform to create deeply sub-wavelength hot-spots in periodic arrangements. The localized power is shown to be guided within narrow hollow channels across electro-magnetically thick surfaces composed of complementary low/high impedance electric and magnetic dielectrics. We will discuss physical intuitions on the observed localization phenomenon along with some numerical examples.
Surgical preferences in the management of recalcitrant endophthalmitis

ABSTRACTTo assess the practice patterns of current members of the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASOPRS) in the treatment of medically refractive endophthalmitis (MRE). A 17-question survey included the procedure of choice for MRE, the preferred type of orbital implant, the timing of implant placement, and the incidence of postoperative complications. 107 ASOPRS members participated in the study. In the setting of MRE, 72% preferred evisceration versus 28% who preferred enucleation. Fifty-nine percent of responders preferred enucleation if the MRE extended to orbital tissues versus 27% who would eviscerate. Among those that would place an orbital implant at the initial surgery, 65% would do so during an enucleation and 58% would do so during an evisceration. If an orbital implant was placed at the initial surgery, 52% of responders preferred a silicone implant, while 17% preferred hydroxyapatite implant. A minority of responders (6%) reported “yes” to ever having infect...
Optimal Scaling of Aftershock Zones using Ground Motion Forecasts

The spatial distribution of aftershocks following major earthquakes has received significant attention due to the shaking hazard these events pose for structures and populations in the affected region. Forecasting the spatial distribution of aftershock events is an important part of the estimation of future seismic hazard. A simple spatial shape for the zone of activity has often been assumed in the form of an ellipse having semimajor axis to semiminor axis ratio of 2.0. However, since an important application of these calculations is the estimation of ground shaking hazard, an effective criterion for forecasting future aftershock impacts is to use ground motion prediction equations (GMPEs) in addition to the more usual approach of using epicentral or hypocentral locations. Based on these ideas, we present an aftershock model that uses self-similarity and scaling relations to constrain parameters as an option for such hazard assessment. We fit the spatial aspect ratio to previous earthquake sequences in the studied regions, and demonstrate the effect of the fitting on the likelihood of post-disaster ground motion forecasts for eighteen recent large earthquakes. We find that the forecasts in most geographic regions studied benefit from this optimization technique, while some are better suited to the use of the a priori aspect ratio.
Grappling with complexity: Medical students' reflective writings about challenging patient encounters as a window into professional identity formation.

Aim: Clerkship-specific interactive reflective writing (IRW)-enhanced reflection may enhance professional identity formation (PIF), a fundamental goal of medical education. PIF process as revealed ...
Dependence of Tumor Formation in Frogs on Abnormal Nucleolar Function

During the past three years, in contrast with earlier tumor-filtrate and infective DNA initiations of growth (2), experiments with heavy metals such as lead, chromium, and cobalt were begun. Heavy metals were found capable of stimulating nucleolar organizers and initiating adenocarcinomas in the kidney, with comparable pathology of the lung, liver, and occasionally spleen. Thus, in effect, it was found possible to induce in the frog kidney a so-called virus tumor by an inorganic reagent. A related cytological study of DNA and RNA inhibitory effects on nucleoli and ribosomes by several Actinomycins and Puromycin was also begun. These preliminary experiments in frogs are reported for the first time in this paper.
Laura Valentini: Justice in a Globalized World: A Normative Framework

Laura Valentini’s Justice in a Globalized World presents, with admirable clarity, a new, hybrid conception of global justice that builds on insights from both cosmopolitans and statists, especially their relational variants. Relational cosmopolitans generally argue that substantial economic cooperation and interdependence (i.e., the relevant economic relations) trigger robust obligations of distributive justice. They then argue that, as a matter of fact, these relations obtain globally in virtue of intensifying global trade, capital flows, and labor migration. Thus, relational cosmopolitans conclude that obligations of distributive justice directly apply to the global economic order. Relational statists, by contrast, argue that obligations of distributive justice are trigged by coercive, political relations. Furthermore, these coercive relations only obtain—and can only be justified—within a state. As a consequence, the global order is a ‘secondary site’ of justice that ought to be concerned with assisting and protecting legitimate states but does not directly trigger obligations of distributive justice. Valentini’s view occupies a conceptual space that borrows from both the cosmopolitan and statist conceptions. From the statists, she agrees that obligations of distributive justice are triggered by coercion. Yet, pace the statist conception, Valentini argues that the global order is itself coercive. Thus, Valentini argues that, on the statists’ own view, they ought to be committed to globally-oriented obligations of distributive justice. While cosmopolitans argue for uniquely global obligations of justice because globalization has led to economic cooperation, Valentini argues that globalization—and its concomitant institutional regimes as described by the cosmopolitans—actually creates sources and loci of coercive power. So, Valentini accepts the normative conception of statists—at least in its general terms—but she rejects the statist application of that conception to the global order. Statists miss the coercive nature of the global order, argues Valentini, because they have an impoverished view of coercion that fails to detect these new sources of global power. Statists have, incorrectly, thought that the only relevant kind of coercion is ‘interactional,’ which is defined as “Agent A coerces another agent B if A foreseeably and avoidably places non-trivial constraints on B’s freedom, compared to B’s freedom in the absence of A’s intervention” (130). This type of coercion is ascribable to a single agent, and represents a rights violation. Yet, the Ethic Theory Moral Prac (2014) 17:587–588 DOI 10.1007/s10677-014-9509-9
A 23.6-Mb/mm $^{2}$ SRAM in 10-nm FinFET Technology With Pulsed-pMOS TVC and Stepped-WL for Low-Voltage Applications

A 23.6-Mb/mm $^{2}$ and a 20.4-Mb/mm $^{2}$ SRAM arrays are manufactured in a 10-nm FinFET CMOS technology, utilizing high-density $0.0312~\mu \text{m}^{2}$ and low-voltage $0.0367~\mu \text{m}^{2}~6\text{T}$ SRAM bitcells. A pulsed-pMOS transient voltage collapse (PP-TVC) write assist circuit is implemented to minimize write energy overhead of the TVC write assist technique, delivering 43% write energy reduction compared to the conventional strong-bias nMOS TVC (SBN-TVC). PP-TVC also achieves up to 50-mV write $V_{\text {MIN}}$ reduction at 90th percentile, enabling 0.6-V $V_{\text {MIN}}$ for the low-voltage 6T SRAM cell (LVC). A stepped-wordline (S-WL) technique is implemented to deliver >100-mV reduction in the high-density 6T SRAM cell (HDC) write $V_{\text {MIN}}$ relative to static WL underdrive (WLUD), while achieving similar read $V_{\text {MIN}}$ , pulling the HDC $V_{\text {MIN}}$ within 35 mV of the LVC $V_{\text {MIN}}$ .
Radical consequences of redox active metals on α-synuclein assemblies

Histopathological hallmarks of Parkinson’s disease (PD) include the development of granular inclusions known as Lewy bodies that are enriched with aggregates of the protein α-synuclein (αS). Historically, αS has been considered a natively unfolded protein prone to amyloidogenic behavior. A molecular understanding of how the structurally dynamic nature of this protein contributes to PD symptoms is still lacking, but metal dyshomeostasis has long been linked to PD. Thus, a deeper understanding of biometal-influenced dynamics and metal-mediated redox chemistry associated with each of the various conformational states of αS may shed light on PD pathways associated with cerebral metal miscompartmentalization. Work in our lab is dedicated to the overarching goal of elucidating the mechanistic roles of cerebral biometals, specifically iron and copper, as either protagonistic cofactors or antagonistic toxins. My lab has recently demonstrated the biophysical consequences of metal binding that influence αS structure and aggregation, including an FeII/O2-dependent self-association of αS to a PD-relevant oligomer-locked A11+ species with a high degree of right-twisted anti-parallel b-sheet structure. In this work, we further elaborate the downstream effects of metal-αS interactions, including how aerobically aggregated FeII-bound αS, in particular, promotes protein-protein interactions. Secondary structural deconvolution and identification of proteins with homologous structures have implicated protein partners for αS with significance to PD and other neurodegenerative diseases, and we have verified these interactions through immunological analyses and chemical cross-linking. We have also established the metal-induced generation of protein-based radicals that are distinct to the metal ion identity and that contribute to the structural heterogeneity of αS assemblies. Presentation of this work will offer a unique perspective on both the beneficial and consequential role of prevalent transition metals in the brain.
Structural insight into substrate and product binding in an archaeal mevalonate kinase

Mevalonate kinase (MK) is a key enzyme of the mevalonate pathway, which produces the biosynthetic precursors for steroids, including cholesterol, and isoprenoids, the largest class of natural products. Currently available crystal structures of MK from different organisms depict the enzyme in its unbound, substrate-bound, and inhibitor-bound forms; however, until now no structure has yet been determined of MK bound to its product, 5-phosphomevalonate. Here, we present crystal structures of mevalonate-bound and 5-phosphomevalonate-bound MK from Methanosarcina mazei (MmMK), a methanogenic archaeon. In contrast to the prior structure of a eukaryotic MK bound with mevalonate, we find a striking lack of direct interactions between this archaeal MK and its substrate. Further, these two MmMK structures join the prior structure of the apoenzyme to complete the first suite of structural snapshots that depict unbound, substrate-bound, and product-bound forms of the same MK. With this collection of structures, we now provide additional insight into the catalytic mechanism of this biologically essential enzyme.
Continuous-time Optimization using Sub-threshold Current-mode Growth Transform Circuits

Analog circuits have long been used for solving various mathematical optimization problems due to their lower latency when compared to their digital counterparts. This paper presents a novel continuous-time analog optimization circuit based on a growth transform-based fixed-point algorithm. The circuit uses translinear MOSFET elements to implement the multiplication and normalization functions using only 5 transistors, whereas continuous-time updates and recursion are implemented using current mirrors. The circuit does not require any additional components to enforce optimization constraints and naturally converges to a steady-state solution corresponding to a local minimum of an objective function. We show that the proposed circuit is generic enough to encompass a multitude of objective functions simply by changing the external circuitry, and the power dissipation of circuit can be adjusted according to the desired latency. For this paper, we present simulation results for specific forms of quadratic and linear cost functions with tunable coefficients, subject to a normalization constraint, and the results show excellent match to floating-point software simulation results.
Spectroscopic analysis with a monolithic micro-structured microsphere fiber probe

A microsphere-fiber probe used for spectroscopic analysis of material samples is presented. The monolithic structure is formed by melting the end of a section of optical fiber forming a bead at the distal end of the fiber. Light guided through the fiber and emerges from the sphere focusing to a point beyond the surface. Raman scattering is used to demonstrate the efficacy of the probe, which operates in a bidirectional manner efficiently collecting the scattered light, re-imaging it back into the waveguide, and transmitting it to a spectrometer for dispersion. The probe demonstrates an order of magnitude improvement over the spatial resolution conventional fiber probes. This improvement in spatial resolution and corresponding collection efficiency will aid in critical analyses such as cancer margin detection and material characterization.
Opinion Shift and Stability: The Information Environment and Long-Lasting Opposition to Trump’s Muslim Ban

On January 27, 2017, President Trump signed executive order 13769, which denied citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries entry into the United States. Opposition to what was termed the “Muslim ban” quickly amassed, producing sudden shifts to the information environment and to individual-level preferences. The present study examines whether within-subject shifts against the ban lasted over an extended period of time. Evidence from a three-wave panel study indicates that individual-level opinions, once they shifted against the ban, remained fairly stable one year later. Analysis of a large corpus of cable broadcast transcripts and newspaper articles further demonstrates that coverage of the ban from February 2017 to January 2018 did not dissipate, remained largely critical, and lacked any significant counter-narratives to potentially alter citizens’ preferences once again. Our study underscores the potential of capturing the dynamics of rapid attitudinal shifts with timely panel data, and of assessing the durability of such changes over time. It also highlights how mass movements and political communication may alter and stabilize citizens’ policy preferences, even those that target stigmatized groups.
Auxiliary Beam Pair Enabled Initial Access in mmWave Systems: Analysis and Design Insights

In this paper, two auxiliary beam pair schemes, i.e., auxiliary-half (AH) and auxiliary-full (AF) are proposed to improve the initial access (IA) mechanism in millimeter wave (mmWave) systems. In AH, a uniform linear array (ULA) is split equally to form two beams simultaneously to detect a user in the scan region. On the other hand, AF utilizes the full antenna array to form a beam to search the same sector but at different time slots. We compare our schemes with the already existing schemes in literature, i.e., exhaustive and iterative algorithms. It is shown that both, AH and AF exhibit a high dependence on the separation between the beam pair. For a reasonable value of beam separation, AH achieves a balance between exhaustive and iterative schemes, i.e., it achieves a lower probability of miss detection (PMD) than iterative search and also a lower discovery delay (DD) than exhaustive method. Moreover, AF outperforms all other schemes in terms of PMD and also achieves lower DD than exhaustive search algorithm.
Effectiveness on Mucous Membranes of Topically Applied Antipyretic Analgesics

Certain antipyretic analgesics are advocated for topical use to relieve acute or chronic pain. It is alleged, without scientific evidence to support the claim, that they possess local anesthetic activity. This study was undertaken to determine whether or not these ingredients possess local anesthetic activity. Using an electric current delivered from a nerve stimulator to the pain receptors at the tip of the tongue, it was found that saturated solutions of aspirin, sodium salicylate, methyl salicylate, triethanolamine salicylate, acetaminophen, phenylbutazone (Butazolidine®), and antipyrine possessed no topical anesthetic activity in contrast to benzocaine which produced a complete blockade of these pain receptors. Presumably, any pain-relieving effect with antipyretic analgesics is obtained due to a systemic action following absorption of these drugs when applied topically to mucous membranes.
Looking for Mickey Mouse™ But Finding a Munchkin: The Perceptual Effects of Frequency Upshifts for Single-Sided Deaf, Cochlear Implant Patients

Purpose Our aim was to make audible for normal-hearing listeners the Mickey Mouse™ sound quality of cochlear implants (CIs) often found following device activation. Method The listeners were 3 sing...
Effects on blood pressure of intracerebroventricular administration of a kinin antagonist.

The components of the kallikrein kinin system are present in brain, and blood pressure is increased when kinins are injected into the brain cerebral ventricles. Therefore, brain kinins may play a role in the regulation of blood pressure. Kinin analogs which are effective as blockers of the vasodilatory and musculotropic activity of kinins have recently become available. Our objective in this study was to examine whether one of these kinin antagonists (K-ant) inhibits the pressor activity of intracerebroventricular (ICV) bradykinin, and whether ICV injections of this antagonist would alter basal mean blood pressure (BP). The analog used was DArg0 -Hyp3-Thi5,8-DPhe -bradykinin. All injections (10µl) were made into a lateral cerebral ventricle of restrained, conscious rats. The hypertensive response to 0.5 µig bradykinin was partially blocked by simultaneous injections of either 5 or 10 µg of the K-ant: From (ΔMBP-36 ± 7 to 17 ± 5, p<0.05, and from 34 ± 6 to 8 ± 1 mmHg, p<0.01, respectively. Lower concentrations of K-ant were ineffective; the K-ant at doses up to 10 µg had no effect on BP. Doses of 25 and 50 µg increased BP (ΔMBP=32.5 ± 5 and 59.0 ± 5.5 mmHg, respectively, p<0.001). Both the 25 and the 50 µg doses of the K-ant induced barrel rotation in all rats. These data suggest that kinins present in circumventricular structures do not play a role in normal blood pressure regulation. When given at high doses, the kinin analogs of the type used in this study appear to act as mixed agonists-antagonists on the brain receptors involved in the hypertensive response to centrally administered bradykinin. The mechanisms involved in the barrel rotation response to K-ant remain to be elucidated.
Online Predictive Modeling of the Thermal Effect of Bio-Implants With Spatially Distributed Parameters

With the increased functionality of implantable medical devices (IMDs), real-time thermal management of these devices has gained growing attention to prevent overheating in the surrounding tissue of IMDs in certain applications, such as neural prostheses like deep brain stimulators (DBS). In this paper, a novel identification method is developed to predict the thermal dynamics of bio-implants, e.g. Utah electrode array (UEA). The proposed method adopts a thermal model with multiple heat sources to characterize the thermal dynamics of IMDs with multiple modules using the data collected by spatially distributed heat sensors. Algorithm predicts the temperature readings of heat sensors in an online fashion within a time window and updates the system parameters iteratively to improve the performance of the algorithm. Algorithm validation is realized using COMSOL software simulations as well as using an in vitro experimental system.
Perceptions of the Persistent: Engagement and Learning Community in Underrepresented Populations.

In an effort to characterize perceptions of learning community and engagement in relation to success for underrepresented populations of online learners at a public institution in southeastern United States, a survey was conducted in Spring 2016. The results of the survey were paired with institutional data to create a baseline engagement and learning community profile for the online student population, which comprised 22% of total enrollments. The subpopulations of interest were: Age, gender, race/ethnicity, disability, Pell grant eligibility, first-generation, and orphan. For all students, a very strong positive relationship was observed between student perceptions of engagement and learning community and student outcomes (grades). This strong and positive relationship was confirmed across the subpopulations, but there were a few noteworthy exceptions: Hispanic and Black students were more engaged than Whites, but earned lower grades. Younger students and students with disabilities were less engaged than their counterparts, but earned equivalent grades. These patterns corresponded to withdrawal statistics, which revealed a higher percentage of young minority males withdrawing from online courses.
A Brief Version of the LASSI-L Detects Prodromal Alzheimer's Disease States.

Background The Loewenstein-Acevedo Scales for Semantic Interference and Learning (LASSI-L) is an increasingly utilized cognitive stress test designed to identify early cognitive changes associated with incipient neurodegenerative disease. Objective To examine previously derived cut-points for cognitively unimpaired older adults that were suggestive of performance impairment on multiple subscales of the LASSI-L. These cut-points were applied to a new sample of older adults who were cognitive healthy controls (HC: n = 26) and those on the Alzheimer's disease (AD) continuum from early stage mild cognitive impairment (E-MCI: n = 28), late stage MCI (L-MCI: n-18) to mild AD (AD: n = 27). Methods All participants were administered the LASSI-L. All cognitively impaired participants were PET amyloid positive which likely reflects underlying AD neuropathology, while cognitively normal counterparts were deemed to have amyloid negative scans. Results There was a monotonic relationship between the number of deficits on LASSI-L subscales and independent classification of study groups with greater severity of cognitive impairment. Importantly, taken together, impairment on maximum learning ability and measures of proactive semantic interference (both reflected by cued recall and intrusion errors) correctly classified 74.1% of EMCI, 94.4% of LMCI, and 96.3% of AD. Only 7.7% of HC were incorrectly classified as having impairments. Conclusion A modest number of LASSI-L subscales taking approximately 8 minutes to administer, had excellent discriminative ability using established cut-offs among individuals with presumptive stages of AD. This has potential implications for both clinical practice and clinical research settings targeting AD during early prodromal stages.
Unfolder-Based Single-Stage AC-AC Conversion System for Wireless Charging Applications

This paper presents a grid-frequency to high-frequency AC-AC converter and its control scheme for wireless charging applications. The proposed AC-AC converter utilizes a T-type converter to process the soft DC-link generated by a 3-φ unfolder. A control strategy for the T-type converter to perform both power factor correction and output voltage or current control simultaneously is presented in this paper. The expressions for duty ratios of the T-type converter are derived using the fundamental harmonic analysis method. Simulation results for a 100 kW system driving a series-series compensated wireless charging topology are presented to validate the control method. Hardware results of a 1 kW scaled-down prototype with less than 2% grid current THD using feed-forward control are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed system.
COVID-19 Pandemic: A Usability Study on Platforms to Support eLearning

With the COVID-19 pandemic, the higher education communities throughout almost the entire world have moved from traditional face-to-face teaching to remote learning by using video conferencing software and online learning applications and platforms. With social distancing requirements, it is expected that eLearning will be part of the delivery modalities at least until an effective vaccine is widely available. Even after the pandemic is over, it is expected that remote learning and online education will be part of the “new or next normal.” Such online and remote learning modalities are not simply restricted to academic institutions. Businesses are using online and remote learning to re-train, re-tool, and re-educate their employees. The students, in general, are not enthusiastic about the virtual classroom. Niche.com surveyed 14,000 undergraduate and graduate students in April 2020 and found that more than 2/3 of them thought online classes are not as effective as in-person and teacher-centered classes. This unplanned change in teaching modes caused by COVID-19 and the negative feedback from students creates some serious concerns for educators and universities. How to enhance the eLearning experience for students? How to choose from many eLearning platforms on the market? Which eLearning platform is the most user friendly and the best suited for online classes? Which eLearning platforms enable the best class participation and student involvement? In this research, we apply the eLearning usability heuristics to evaluate the major video conferencing platforms (e.g., Cisco Webex, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom).
Lost in Fees - An Analysis of Financial Planning Compensation

Compensation paid to financial advisors often is difficult for a client to assess. Different forms of compensation within the financial advice industry may contribute to this complexity. This article investigates whether clients are able to estimate accurately how much compensation they pay to their primary financial advisor. It uses a series of surveys collected by a financial consulting company called Advisor Impact. The data were collected from the United States (2014, 2012), and Canada (2011, 2012). The data were collected from clients in multiple financial planning companies. Clients were asked to estimate the amount of fees they paid to their advisors in the previous 12 months. The data for the U.S. show that around 17% of clients do not know how their primary financial advisors charge for their services and that 32% of clients do not know how much they paid in the last 12 months. For the other two thirds of respondents who think they know how much they paid, 80% gave an estimate well below the industry standard. The probability that a client is unaware of the exact fees paid becomes even higher when compensation is a blend of fees and commissions. Similar results can be found in the data from Canada. A lack of awareness of the fees paid could not be explained by education level or marital status. Clients with a longer tenure with their primary financial advisors have a greater likelihood of ignoring fees. The results suggest that the shrouded nature of advisor fees leads to the underestimation of the amount paid for financial advice.
A novel micro-computerized tomography method reveals Drosophila cardiac hypertrophy caused by upregulated store-operated calcium entry

ABSTRACT Heart failure is often preceded by pathological cardiac hypertrophy, a thickening of the heart musculature driven by complex gene regulatory and signaling processes. The Drosophila heart has great potential as a genetic model for deciphering the mechanisms that underlie cardiac hypertrophy. However, current methods for evaluating hypertrophy of the Drosophila heart are laborious and difficult to carry out reproducibly. Here we demonstrate that micro-computerized tomography (microCT) is an accessible, highly reproducible method for non-destructive, quantitative analysis of the morphology and size of the Drosophila heart. To validate our microCT approach for analyzing Drosophila cardiac hypertrophy, we show that expression of constitutively active Ras (Ras85DV12), previously shown to cause hypertrophy of the fly heart, results in significant thickening of both adult and larval heart walls when measured from microCT images. We then show using microCT analysis that genetic upregulation of store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) driven by expression of constitutively active Stim (StimCA) or Orai (OraiCA) proteins also results in significant hypertrophy of the Drosophila heart, through a process that specifically depends on Ca2+ influx through Orai channels. Importantly, dysregulation of Ca2+ homeostasis in cardiomyocytes is a major driver of cardiac hypertrophy, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. These results demonstrate that increased SOCE activity is an important driver of hypertrophic cardiomyocyte growth, and demonstrate how microCT analysis combined with tractable genetic tools in Drosophila can be used to delineate molecular signaling processes that underlie cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure.