cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vancomycin anaphylaxis and successful desensitization in a patient with end stage renal disease on hemodialysis by maintaining steady antibiotic levels

Background Vancomycin anaphylaxis is a major management problem in patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) sepsis. Lerner et al in 1984 have described a protocol for desensitization to vancomycin; however, antibiotic blood levels have never been used as a guide in this process. Case Report A 46-year-old female with ESRD on hemodialysis who developed a dialysis-catheter related MRSA sepsis was found to have anaphylaxis to vancomycin. She underwent successful desensitization to vancomycin using Lerner's protocol. Periodic antibiotic blood levels were used to guide the amount and frequency of vancomycin infusion to successfully maintain desensitization thereafter. Discussion Lerner described loss of desensitization to vancomycin when antibiotic infusion was stopped after 18 hours followed by successful desensitization to the same drug via the same protocol. This observation points out that desensitization to vancomycin appears to be dependent on some minimal drug level. In our case report, we have for the first time used the concept of blood levels to maintain successful desensitization to an antibiotic. Conclusion We hypothesize that desensitization to vancomycin can be induced and maintained by keeping a minimum antibiotic blood level. Further studies are needed to quantify this.
The Rationality of Rules

The standard way of thinking about rationality unacceptably fails to yield a theory that can explain and show the rationality of having a commitment to rules, both in the context of intrapersonal choosing over time, and interpersonal interactions. This can be traced to a basic presupposition that consequential reasoning must conform to a separability principle. There is a distinct approach that rejects separability, but renders the notion of a commitment to rules both intelligible and rational. I characterize this in terms of a model of being deliberatively resolute. This model can be defended by appeal to consequentialism itself. The model, moreover, has application to the class of realistic situations that are the object of the recent ‘folk theorems’ of game theory.
Hepatitis C associated cardiomyopathy: potential pathogenic mechanisms and clinical implications

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) has tropism for other tissues besides the liver (e.g. lymphocytic tissues). It has been isolated from the myocardium of patients with myocarditis and cardiomyopathy hence, its inclusion among the cardiotropic viruses; however, the mechanisms by which this virus damages the myocardium have not been elucidated. It seems that the development of HCV-associated cardiomyopathy may take place in genetically susceptible individuals in whom viral, immunologic, and apotoptic mechanisms may act in concert to produce myocardial damage. In this regard, the HLA and non-HLA systems have been implicated in the susceptibility for the development of HCV-associated cardiomyopathy. In this article, possible mechanisms by which the HCV may cause cardiomyopathy are proposed based on recent knowledge on the behavior of this virus, and on current ideas on the pathogenesis of cardiomyopathy. The understanding of cardiomyopathy as an extrahepatic manifestation of HCV infection is of great importance because the treatments available for chronic hepatitis C at present are considered relative contraindications in patients with myocardial dysfunction. However, if causative and pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying HCV-associated cardiomyopathy are further elucidated patients with chronic hepatitis C and non ischemic cardiomyopathy may benefit from therapeutic interventions that may result in eradication of the virus and reversal of myocardial dysfunction.
Absence of significant structural changes near the magnetic ordering temperature in small-ion rare earth perovskite RMnO3

Detailed structural measurements on multiple length scales were conducted on a new perovskite phase of ScMnO3, and on orthorhombic LuMnO3 as a benchmark. Complementary density functional theory (DFT) calculations were carried out, and predict that ScMnO3 possesses E-phase magnetic order at low temperature with displacements of the Mn sites (relative to the high temperature state) of ?0.07??, compared to ?0.04?? predicted for LuMnO3. However, detailed local, intermediate and long-range structural measurements by x-ray pair distribution function analysis, single crystal x-ray diffraction and x-ray absorption spectroscopy, find no local or long-range distortions on crossing into the low temperature E-phase of the magnetically ordered state. The measurements place upper limits on any structural changes to be at most one order of magnitude lower than DFT predictions and suggest that this theoretical approach does not properly account for the spin?lattice coupling in these oxides and may possibly predict the incorrect magnetic order at low temperatures. The results suggest that the electronic contribution to the electrical polarization dominates and should be more accurately treated in theoretical models.
On the Social Construction of Moral Universals The `Holocaust' from War Crime to Trauma Drama

The following is simultaneously an essay in sociological theory, in cultural sociology, and in the empirical reconstruction of postwar Western history. Per theory, it introduces and specifies a mod...
Time-Dependence of the Adhesion of Micrometer-Size Particles to Substrates: Correlation with Postdeposition Particle Rotation

The time dependence of the detachment force of 7-µm ground polyester particles coated with silica nanoparticles from a ceramer-coated substrate was determined by ultracentrifugation. The detachment force of the particles from the substrate was found to increase with the time since the particle deposition. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results show that, following deposition, the particles rotate at approximately the same scale as the observed increase in the detachment force. This suggests that the increase in adhesion may be due to particle rotation from their initial positions obtained upon deposition to a more stable position that results from torques generated by either electrostatic or van der Waals forces acting on the particles.
Complications of 125I implantation: Inability to deflate foley catheter

Abstract Obstruction of the balloon inflation tract of a Foley catheter by an 1251 seed is reported. An endoscopic method for catheter removal is described.
Three-dimensional knee joint contact forces during walking in unilateral transtibial amputees

Individuals with unilateral transtibial amputations have greater prevalence of osteoarthritis in the intact knee joint relative to the residual leg and non-amputees, but the cause of this greater prevalence is unclear. The purpose of this study was to compare knee joint contact forces and the muscles contributing to these forces between amputees and non-amputees during walking using forward dynamics simulations. We predicted that the intact knee contact forces would be higher than those of the residual leg and non-amputees. In the axial and mediolateral directions, the intact and non-amputee legs had greater peak tibio-femoral contact forces and impulses relative to the residual leg. The peak axial contact force was greater in the intact leg relative to the non-amputee leg, but the stance phase impulse was greater in the non-amputee leg. The vasti and hamstrings muscles in early stance and gastrocnemius in late stance were the largest contributors to the joint contact forces in the non-amputee and intact legs. Through dynamic coupling, the soleus and gluteus medius also had large contributions, even though they do not span the knee joint. In the residual leg, the prosthesis had large contributions to the joint forces, similar to the soleus in the intact and non-amputee legs. These results identify the muscles that contribute to knee joint contact forces during transtibial amputee walking and suggest that the peak knee contact forces may be more important than the knee contact impulses in explaining the high prevalence of intact leg osteoarthritis.
Coverage Loss By Using Space Compactors in Presence of Unknown Values

The presence of unknown values in simulation is the great est barrier to effective test response compaction. For space compactors, some responses may not be observable due to the masking effect caused by unknown values. This paper reports on experiments conducted to evaluate the impact on the test quality of various percentages of observable responses for both modeled and un-modeledfaults.
Osteopetrosis in Five Fetuses from a Single Herd of 16 Cows

10. Griffin JW, Watson DF: 1988, Axonal transport in neurological disease. Ann Neurol 23:3-l3. 11. Higgins RJ, Rings DM, Fenner WR, Stevenson S: 1983, Spontaneous lower motor neuron disease with neurofibrillary accumulation in young pigs. Acta Neuropathol (Berl) 59:288-294. 12. Higgins RJ, Vandevelde M, Hoff EF, et al.: 1977, Neurofibrillary accumulation in the zebra (Equus burchelli). Acta Neuropatho1 (Berl) 37: 1-5. 13. Hoffman PN, Clark AW, Carroll PT, Price DL: 1978, Slow axonal transport of neurofilament proteins: impairment by B,B’iminodiproprionitrile administration. Science 202:633-635. 14. Hoffman PN, Lasek RJ: 1975, The slow component of axonal transport: identification of major structural polypeptides of the axon and their generality among mammalian neurons. J Cell Biol 66:35l-366. 15. Mitsumoto H, Bradley WG: 1982, Murine motor neuron disease (the wobbler mouse): degeneration and regeneration of the lower motor neuron. Brain 105:81l-834. 16. Papasozomenos SCh, Autilio-Gambetti L, Gambetti P: 1981, Reorganization of axoplasmic organelles following B,B’-iminodiproprionitrile administration. J Cell Biol 91:866-871. 17. Rousseaux CB, Klavano GG, Johnson ES, et al.: 1985, “Shaker” calf syndrome: a newly recognized inherited neurodegenerative disorder of horned Hereford calves. Vet Patho1 22: 104111. 18. Shields SP, Vandevelde M: 1978, Spontaneous lower motor neuron disease in rabbits (Oryctalagus cuniculus). Acta Neuropathol (Berl) 44:85-90. 19. Vandevelde M, Green CE, Hoff EJ: 1976, Lower motor neuron disease with accumulation of neurofilaments in a cat. Vet Patho1 13:428-435.
New technical approaches to monitoring and interpreting the dynamics of real neural networks

Understanding the functional organization of large-scale real neural networks will require the development of techniques capable of predicting, recording, and interpreting the activities of the very large numbers of neurons that participate in their operation. This presents a considerable technical problem for systems-level neurobiologists and associated biomedical engineers. The authors describe their recent work using silicon manufacturing techniques to make multineuron in vivo recording devices, as well as the software tools developed for realistically simulating the neural networks studied. >
Decision making across social contexts: Competition increases preferences for risk in chimpanzees and bonobos

Context can have a powerful influence on decision-making strategies in humans. In particular, people sometimes shift their economic preferences depending on the broader social context, such as the presence of potential competitors or mating partners. Despite the important role of competition in primate conspecific interactions, as well as evidence that competitive social contexts impact primates’ social cognitive skills, there has been little study of how social context influences the strategies that nonhumans show when making decisions about the value of resources. Here we investigate the impact of social context on preferences for risk (variability in payoffs) in our two closest phylogenetic relatives, chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, and bonobos, Pan paniscus .I n afirst study, we examine the impact of competition on patterns of risky choice. In a second study, we examine whether a positive play context affects risky choices. We find that (1) apes are more likely to choose the risky option when making decisions in a competitive context; and (2) the play context did not influence their risk preferences. Overall these results suggest that some types of social contexts can shift patterns of decision making in nonhuman apes, much like in humans. Comparative studies of chimpanzees and bonobos can therefore
HAXPES of protected ITO surfaces at the buried P3HT/ITO interface

The characterization of buried interfaces is difficult and often has to be performed by a post-processing method where the interface is exposed. Hard energy X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy offers the ability to tune the X-ray energy and thereby change the information depth. In this work, an inorganic/organic interface was evaluated, namely the poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) interface with indium tin oxide (ITO), with relevance to organic photovoltaic devices. P3HT/ITO buried interfaces were examined using three X-ray energies where the ITO surface was prepared under different pretreatment conditions. The P3HT film protected the ITO surface from adventitious adsorbents and allowed for sensitivity to the buried ITO surface. Robust peak fitting parameters were obtained to model the O 1 s and In 3d lineshapes. The deconvolution of these lineshapes allowed for the clear identification of a surface layer on the ITO which is oxidized to a greater extent than the underlying bulk ITO. The surface oxide layer, composed of indium oxide and indium hydroxide, is deficient of oxygen vacancies and would therefore be expected to act as an insulating barrier on the ITO surface. Peak fitting conditions allowed for an estimation of the relative thicknesses of this insulating layer. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Ground-Penetrating Radar Techniques to Discover and Map Historic Graves

Ground-penetrating radar is a geophysical technique that can be used to identify and map features commonly associated with historic graves, including intact or partially collapsed coffins and vertical shafts. Data are collected by moving radar antennas that transmit pulses of energy into the ground along parallel transects within grids, recording reflections of those pulses from significant discontinuities within the ground. Visual analysis of radar reflection profiles can be used to identify both coffins and the vertical shaft features commonly associated with human burials. Spatial analysis of the reflection amplitudes within a grid consisting of many profiles (when converted to depth using site-specific velocities) produces three-dimensional maps of these burial features. The identification and mapping of graves can identify remains for possible excavation and study, and the results can also be used for statistical and spatial analysis when integrated with historical records. If identified by these methods, previously unidentified graves can be preserved in areas threatened by construction or erosion.
Genetic differences in concentration of immunoglobulins G1 and M in serum and colostrum of cows and in serum of neonatal calves.

Blood samples obtained 24 and 36 hr postparturition from 187 calves in 2 years were analyzed for serum concentration of immunoglobulins G1 (IgG1) and M (IgM). Serum and colostrum samples also were obtained from their dams, and corresponding immunoglobulin levels were determined. Calves were evaluated for their ability to acquire and absorb immunoglobulins and cows for their ability to produce immunoglobulins. Mathematical models included sources of variation for breed of sire, sire within breed, breed of dam, age of dam and sex of calf. Of these factors, breed of sire, breed of dam and age of dam were the most important. Simmental- and Pinzgauer-sired calves tended (p = .07) to have lower IgG1 and IgM levels than calves sired by Hereford, Hereford X Angus and Tarentaise bulls. Calves of Hereford X Angus dams had consistently higher immunoglobulin concentrations than calves of Hereford dams. Hereford X Angus cows tended to have higher colostrum concentrations and lower serum concentrations of the two immunoglobulins than Hereford cows. A fetal sire effect was demonstrated for serum IgM concentrations in that cows mated to Simmental bulls had lower (P = .05) concentrations than cows mated to bulls of other breeds. Advancing age of dam was associated with higher concentrations of immunoglobulins, except for serum IgM in the calf and in the cow. Correlations between serum and colostrum concentrations of both immunoglobulins in the dam were low, as were correlations between cow colostrum concentration and calf serum concentration of IgG1. IgM in the colostrum was positively associated with IgM in calf serum, however. Heritability estimates for calf serum IgG1 concentration were high (.52 +/- .28 and .69 +/- 30 at 24 and 36 hr, respectively), while estimates for heritability of IgM concentrations were intermediate (.30 +/- .26 and .35 +/- .26 at 24 and 36 hr, respectively). There was no evidence that sires within breeds influenced, through the fetus, immunoglobulin concentrations in serum or colostrum of their mates. Relatively high repeatabilities for all traits imply that observed differences among cows were due in part to genetic and (or) permanent environmental differences.
Research note: Bandwidth allocation in wide-band communication networks under two types of priorities

A wide-band ISDN provides access to many different users in a shared fashion. Control of the available bandwidth allocation is necessary for efficiency and flexibility. In this paper, the system is modelled as a multiple-server multiplequeue system, where access requests require service from a random number of servers. Requests are generated by a finite number of sources. Each request is entered in a queue so that the queue index indicates the bandwidth needed by the request (in basic bandwidth units). Control of service allocation is accomplished by assigning priorities to queues. Two priority types are examined here, where relatively higher priority is assigned to requests in the smaller indexed or the larger indexed queues. When more than one request can be served due to the availability of band-width, the one with the highest priority is chosen first. The procedures that regulate the bandwidth allocation are described, and a Markov-chain based solution to the model is developed to produce the system state probabilities, and utilization and performance measures.
The Distribution of Insects in Western North America.

The fauna of the western part of North America has long been recognized as possessing many characteristics which have differentiated it from that found elsewhere in North America. This is particularly the case as regards the insects and Le Conte as early as 1859 called attention to this. Other entomologists in more recent years have mentioned this fact and have cited many cases to show its peculiarity. The insect fauna as a whole, however, has not been studied in regard to this point, in the manner that it has merited.
Ion Beam Analysis of O, N, and B Compositions in Materials Using Non-Rutherford Scattering of Protons

Elastic scattering of protons with energies from 1.5 MeV to 2 McV was used to determine the concentration of oxygen in Y-Ba-Cu-0 compound, nitrogen in GaN films, and boron in B-Si glass and other materials. Proton scattering from light elements in this energy range exhibits non-Rutherford scattering cross section, which are enhanced by a factor of 3 to 6 or more relative to the Rutherford scattering cross sections. Thus the sensitivity for the light clement detection is considerably larger than that obtained by He ion scattering. Quantitative analysis by proton scattering is discussed and compared with other methods.
Medical abortion: the hidden revolution

While the medical abortion (MA) drugs, mifepristone and misoprostol, have radically altered reproductive health practices around the world, there has been little field research on the sales and use of these drugs, especially in developing countries. This leaves the family planning community with many unanswered questions. While good profiles of contraceptive use are available for many countries and we have good technical data on the MA drugs’ efficacy, dosages and regimens such as home dosage of misoprostol versus clinic dosage, we have very little information about the quantities of MA drugs sold, how they are used, where they are used, and, in the case of misoprostol, for what purposes. Sales data are available from one excellent commercial survey and from social marketing sales of mifepristone and misoprostol and these are presented. Acknowledging the sensitivity of the issue, especially in countries where abortion is severely restricted, the author makes a plea for careful additional research to shed light on an important and growing part of the international reproductive health picture.
Analysis of thermal conductivity and viscosity of graphite suspensions

Thermal conductivity and viscosity of graphite suspensions were experimentally studied by transient hotwire method and ARG2method,respectively.By choosing different sonication time,thermal conductivity of graphite suspension at different volume fractions were obtained,as well as a thermal percolation behavior was observed.The viscosity shows opposite trend compared with thermal conductivity near percolation regime,which increases much faster before percolation than after percolation.
Studies on Analogues of L-Cysteine and L-Cystine I. Some Structural Requirements for Inhibiting the Incorporation of Radioactive L-Cystine by Leukemic Leukocytes

Abstract The amino acids L-cysteine and L-cystine appear to have an important role in the metabolism of leukocytes. Decreased availability of these amino acids may therefore have important effects on leukocytes. The possibility of decreasing the influx of radioactive L-cystine into leukemic leukocytes was investigated by exposing the leukocytes to various analogues of cysteine (cystine) prior to incubation with S35 L-cystine. It was found that a highly specific structural and spatial configuration is required to decrease the influx of S35 L-cystine. Thus unlabeled L-cysteine is effective in decreasing the incorporation of radioactive L-cystine. However, analogues of cystine in which there is modification or substitution of the sulfhydryl, amino or carboxyl group do not decrease the influx of S35 L-cystine. Furthermore, any alteration in the spatial relationship of the sulfhydryl and amino groups of L-cysteine also results in a loss of the ability of an analogue to decrease the incorporation of S35 L-cystine. Of the compounds studied and in the concentrations employed, only unlabeled L-cysteine, selenium cystine and phenyl selenium cysteine were effective. Selenium cystine is identical with cystine except that selenium replaces the sulfur in the molecule. Phenyl selenium cysteine is also closely related structurally to cysteine. The mechanism of action of selenium cystine and phenyl selenium cysteine in decreasing the influx of S35 L-cystine is not known. Other selenium compounds tested were ineffective. These compounds may exert their inhibitory effect by (a) competitive combination with specific intracellular receptors for L-cysteine (L-cystine), (b) inactivation of enzymes or compounds essential for normal cellular function, (c) alteration in membrane permeability or (d) a toxic effect of selenium. Since selenium cystine and phenyl selenium cystine are inhibitory in low concentrations in vitro, these compounds may have important effects on leukemic leukocytes in vivo.
Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 and Cancer of the Prostate

AbstractA seroepidemiologic study was performed to determine if there was an association between antibodies to herpes simplex virus type 2 and cancer of the prostate, similar to that reported for herpes simplex virus type 2 and cervical carcinoma. No significant difference in herpes simplex virus type 2 antibodies was seen between patients with cancer of the prostate and those with benign prostatic hypertrophy. Further studies are needed to define the possible role of herpes simplex virus type 2 in the etiology of cancer of the prostate.
Protein Translation Activity: A New Measure of Host Immune Cell Activation

We describe the in vivo ribopuromycylation (RPM) method, which uses a puromycin-specific Ab to fluorescently label ribosome-bound puromycylated nascent chains, enabling measurement of translational activity via immunohistochemistry or flow cytometry. Tissue staining provides a unique view of virus-induced activation of adaptive, innate, and stromal immune cells. RPM flow precisely quantitates virus-induced activation of lymphocytes and innate immune cells, and it provides a unique measure of immune cell deactivation and quiescence. Using RPM we find that high endothelial cells in draining lymph nodes rapidly increase translation in the first day of vaccinia virus infection. We also find a population of constitutively activated splenic T cells in naive mice and further that most bone marrow T cells activate 3 d after vaccinia virus infection. Bone marrow T cell activation is nonspecific, IL-12-dependent, and induces innate memory T cell phenotypic markers. Thus, RPM measures translational activity to uniquely identify cell populations that participate in the immune response to pathogens, other foreign substances, and autoantigens.
Challenges of Interdisciplinary IoT Curriculum

The "Internet-of-things" (IoT) is interdisciplinary in nature; it involves many courses across disciplines. Current programs and curricula do not adequately meet the rapidly emerging demand for IoT-skilled professionals. To address this urgent need, the light talk discusses the needs for IoT skills and presents a curriculum reference guide. The audience will be able to use this guide to embed new IoT curriculum, modify existing IoT curriculum, or develop new courses/programs for IoT.
Effects of tillage intensity on nitrogen dynamics and productivity in legume-based grain systems

In 1988 an experiment was established at the Rodale Institute Experimental Farm to study weed control and nitrogen (N) management in rotations with grain crops and N-fixing green manures under reduced tillage without the use of herbicides. Tillage intensities ranging from moldboard plow (MP) to continuous no-till (NT) were compared. We present results for maize production in 1994, the seventh year of the experiment. Our goal was to further investigate reduced tillage regimes that alternated no-till with different forms of primary tillage in legume-based systems. In the chisel-disc (CD) and MP treatments comparable yields were achieved under so-called organic (weeds controlled with cultivation and green manure N source) and conventional management (weeds controlled with herbicides and mineral N fertilizer applied). Weed competition in these treatments was minimal and the N status of maize plants was essentially the same regardless of the N source (fertilizer or green manure). Of the four organic no-till maize treatments, only the mixed-tillage system with cultivation for weed control (CD-NTc) produced yields comparable to conventional NT maize. The fate of vetch N as well as temporal N dynamics were largely determined by tillage intensity and the handling of the vetch residues at maize planting. Treatments with primary tillage (CD and MP) had extremely high levels of mineral N early in the season and had greater average net N-mineralization, even though N content of hairy vetch in these treatments was equal to or lower than that in treatments with mow-killed vetch. In terms of soil mineral N concentrations, the CD-NTc treatment was similar to the other mow-killed vetch/no-till maize treatments. However, N availability in this treatment was greater, probably due to more complete decomposition of green manure residues. Cultivation for weeds not only helped control weeds but also increased mineralization of the vetch residues, which in turn increased the N supply during the period of maximum N demand by the maize. Carefully designed rotations combining tillage reductions with the use of leguminous N sources can have multiple benefits, including improved timing of N availability, reduced herbicide applications, and improved soil quality in the long term.
Engaging Underrepresented High School students in Data Driven Storytelling: An Examination of Learning Experiences and Outcomes for a Cohort of Rising Seniors Enrolled in the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP)

Background : Upward trends in data-oriented careers threaten to further increase the underrepresentation of both females and individuals from racial minority groups in programs focused on data analysis and applied statistics. To begin to develop the necessary skills for a data-oriented career, project-based learning seems the most promising given its focus on real-world activities that are aimed at engaging student interest and enthusiasm. Method : Using pre and post survey data, the present study examines student background characteristics, learning experiences and course outcomes for a cohort of 33 rising high school seniors involved in a two-week, accelerated version of a project-based data analysis and applied statistics curriculum. Results : On average, students rated the experience as rewarding and the vast majority (78.1%) felt that they had accomplished more than they had expected. Based on responses to both the pre and post course surveys, roughly half of the students reported increases in confidence in applied skills (i.e. developing a research question, managing data, choosing the correct statistical test, effectively presenting research results, and conducting a statistical analysis of data), while more than 80% reported increased confidence in writing code to run statistical analyses. Fully 84.4% of students reported interest in one or more follow-up courses with interest in computer programming being endorsed by the largest number of students (53.1%). Conclusions : These findings support previous research showing that real-world, project-based experiences afford the best hope for achieving the kind of analytic and statistical literacy necessary for meaningful engagement in research, problem solving and professional development.
Reciprocal Effects of Transitional Instability, Problem Drinking, and Drinking Motives in Emerging Adulthood

The cumulative experience of different transitions over a limited time is known as transitional instability. Young adulthood is a time of instability that can promote problem drinking. Theoretically, however, transitions could have positive or negative effects. This study was designed to evaluate reciprocal associations between transitional instability and problem drinking in emerging adults. These effects were tested in a sample of 402 university student participants who were under the age of 21 at time 1. Participants completed self-report measures of drinking problems, drinking motivations, and different transitions common during emerging adulthood (e.g., transferring to a new school or moving back in with parents). One year later, 285 of these participants completed these same measures. Data were analyzed with latent variables cross-lagged structural equation models. The results showed that problem drinking at time 1 was associated with increased transitional instability over the 1-year course of the investigation. Also, transitional instability at time 1 was associated with lower problem drinking by time 2. This later, unexpected effect may be explainable by elements of role compatibility theory. Problem drinking promotes transitional instability in emerging adults. However, transitions may also signify entry into adult roles that can lessen problem drinking over time.
Water policy: Science versus political realities

Debate rages over which water bodies in the US are protected under federal law by the Clean Water Act. Science shows that isolated wetlands and headwater systems provide essential downstream services, but convincing politicians is another matter.
Staff Experiences Forming and Sustaining Palliative Care Teams in Nursing Homes.

Background and Objectives Building palliative care (PC) capacity in nursing homes (NH) is a national priority and essential to providing high quality care for residents with advanced illness. We report on NH staff experiences in developing and sustaining Palliative Care Teams (PCTeams) as part of a randomized clinical trial to "Improve Palliative Care through Teamwork" (IMPACTT). Research Design and Methods We conducted rapid ethnographic assessments of all NH (N = 14) in the intervention arm. Data included semistructured interviews with direct care and administrative staff (n = 41), field observations, and written materials. We used a phased approach to data analysis including open coding and comparative analyses within and across homes. Results We found four key structural themes in our analysis including: administrative support, financial considerations, turnover and staffing, and competing priorities. The development and sustainability of the nascent PCTeams were constantly threatened by competing priorities and the key factor in their success was consistent and tangible administrative support. Discussion and Implications While improving PC in NHs is a recognized priority, lack of stable infrastructure and unintended consequences of reimbursement policies created conditions which often thwarted the sustainability of the PCTeams.
The New Normal is “Maximizing Shareholder Value”: Predatory Value Extraction, Slowing Productivity, and the Vanishing American Middle Class

In the United States, concentration of income and wealth among the very richest households have become extreme, while middle-class employment opportunities have disappeared. Building since the late...
Religious vs. secular human rights organizations: Discourse, framing, and action

The study of human rights is dominated by secular voices; however, increasingly the study of international relations recognizes the tension and interplay between the religious and the secular, and the impetus for human rights work has often come from a religious or moral foundation. Although understudied, religious NGOs and religious beliefs and universal ethics have long shaped discourses on human rights in the United Nations. This article explores the ways in which religious and secular human rights organizations frame, discuss, legitimize, and operationalize human rights issues and priorities. Through document analysis and interviews with members of international human rights organizations, the authors trace the similarities and differences between the organizations, their missions and focus, their conceptions of human rights, and their rationale for engaging in the field for the purpose of better assessing the opportunities and challenges for cooperation between these groups.
Temporal dynamics and longitudinal co-occurrence of depression and different anxiety syndromes in youth: Evidence for reciprocal patterns in a 3-year prospective study.

Abstract Background Depression is highly comorbid with anxiety in youth. It is frequently reported that anxiety precedes depression; however, evidence surrounding the temporal precedence of anxiety over depression is mixed. Many studies of anxiety-depression co-occurrence lump distinct forms of anxiety, obscuring information regarding trajectories of specific anxiety syndromes. This study sought to more accurately describe the development of anxiety and depression over time by moving beyond the question of temporal precedence to investigate a developmentally dynamic model of anxiety-depression co-occurrence. Methods A community sample of 665 youth (M= 11.8, SD= 2.4; 55% female) completed repeated self-report measures of depression and anxiety (social, physical, and separation anxiety) over a 3-year longitudinal study. Prospective associations between distinct syndromes of anxiety with depression were analyzed using an autoregressive cross-lagged path model over four time points. Results Physical symptoms and depression symptoms reciprocally predicted each other, above and beyond the stability of either domain. Social anxiety and depression symptoms similarly predicted each other in a systematic pattern. Limitations Our study is limited in its generalizability to other forms of anxiety, like worry. Additional research is needed to determine whether similar patterns exist in clinical populations, and whether these processes maintain symptoms once they reach diagnostic levels. Conclusions The development of syndromes of depression, physical, and social anxiety during childhood and adolescence occurs in a predictable, systematic reciprocal pattern, rather than sequentially and unidirectionally (i.e., anxiety syndromes precede depression). Results are clinically useful for predicting risk for disorder, and demonstrate the necessity of tracking symptom levels across domains.
Pose-Graph SLAM Using Forward-Looking Sonar

This letter reports on a real-time simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) algorithm for an underwater robot using an imaging forward-looking sonar and its application in the area of autonomous underwater ship hull inspection. The proposed algorithm overcomes specific challenges associated with deliverable underwater acoustic SLAM, including feature sparsity and false-positive data association when utilizing sonar imagery. An advanced machine learning technique is used to provide saliency-aware loop closure proposals. A more reliable data association approach using different available constraints is also developed. Our evaluation is presented on the real-world data collected in a ship hull inspection application, which illustrates the system's performance and robustness.
Multiple Nicotinic Receptors: Nicotinic Ligands with Different Specificities

These studies suggest that both (-)-and (+)-nicotine are involved in complex binding site and receptor interactions which may involve positive cooperativity as well as up-regulation of binding at the high affinity sites. Early studies employing (±)-[3H]nicotine as the labeled ligand suggested that (-)-and (+)-nicotine each bound to 3 rat brain membrane sites: a very high affinity site, a high-affinity site and a low-affinity site. It was also found that each of the isomers enhanced the binding of (±)-[3H]nicotine in low concentrations and that (+)-nicotine was more potent and efficacious in producing this effect than (-)-nicotine. Further, both the configuration of Scatchard plots of saturation curves as well as Hill plots at low concentrations (nH = 1.34) suggested positive cooperativity. In subsequent studies employing optically pure (-)-and (+)-[3H]nicotine it was found in saturation studies that (+)-nicotine occupied only one-tenth as many binding sites as (-)-nicotine. This suggested that (+)-nicotine might be occupying a site different from most of the sites occupied by (-)-nicotine. It was further observed that (-)-and (+)-nicotine increased the binding of both (-)-and (+)-[3H]nicotine. (+)-Nicotine was more effective in this regard than (-)-nicotine. In an effort to identify drugs with specificity for nicotine’s binding sites, the binding characteristics of over 50 substituted pyridines, piperidines, and pyrrolidines, as well as other nicotinic drugs, were studied using (±)-[3H]nicotine as the labeled ligand. Drugs were found to differ markedly both in their ability to inhibit as well as to enhance the binding of (±)-[3H]nicotine. Compounds were identified which had specificity for the up-regulatory site in that they enhanced binding over a wide range of concentrations but had little ability to inhibit binding. Of these (±)-2-methylpiperidine was the most specific. Its activity in enhancing the binding of (-)-[3H]nicotine resides in its (+)-isomer whereas both isomers are equally effective in inhibiting the binding of (-)-and (±)-[3H]nicotine. Saturation studies with (±)-[3H]-2-methylpiperidine indicate that it binds to a very high affinity binding site. These data taken together suggest that the very high affinity nicotine binding site is probably the up-regulatory site (Site I) and have identified 2 drugs with stereospecificity for this site, (+)-2-methylpiperidine and (+)-nicotine. The data further suggest that there are separate (-)-[Site II(-)] and (+)-nicotine [Site III(+)] high-affinity binding sites and a low-affinity site (Site IV).
Electron Spectroscopy of Surfaces via Field and Photoemission

The purpose of these lectures is to convey a sense of what information on the electronic and geometrical properties of surfaces, with and without adsorbed monolayers of gases, is currently being obtained using field and photoemission spectroscopy. These notes are not a comprehensive review of the field as many such articles already exist or are in preparation now(1–6). The emphasis here will be on some of the theoretical principles underlying the physics of the measurement process.
Is prenatal genetic screening unjustly discriminatory

A philosophy professor argues that prenatal genetic testing allows potentially painful afflictions to be discovered prior to birth and does not unjustly discriminate against disabled people. Virtual Mentor is a monthly bioethics journal published by the American Medical Association.
Interferometric Detection and Enumeration of Viral Particles using Si-Based Microfluidics

Single-particle interferometric reflectance imaging sensor enables optical visualization and characterization of individual nanoparticles without any labels. Using this technique, we have shown end-point and real-time detection of viral particles using laminate-based active and passive cartridge configurations. Here, we present a new concept for low-cost microfluidic integration of the sensor chips into compact cartridges through utilization of readily available silicon fabrication technologies. This new cartridge configuration will allow simultaneous detection of individual virus binding events on a 9-spot microarray, and provide the needed simplicity and robustness for routine real-time operation for discrete detection of viral particles in a multiplex format.
Large-scale comparative analysis of microbial pan-genomes using PanOCT

Summary The JCVI pan-genome pipeline is a collection of programs to run PanOCT and tools that support and extend the capabilities of PanOCT. PanOCT (pan-genome ortholog clustering tool) is a tool for pan-genome analysis of closely related prokaryotic species or strains. The JCVI Pan-Genome Pipeline wrapper invokes command-line utilities that prepare input genomes, invoke third-party tools such as NCBI Blast+, run PanOCT, generate a consensus pan-genome, annotate features of the pan-genome, detect sets of genes of interest such as antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes and generate figures, tables and html pages to visualize the results. The pipeline can run in a hierarchical mode, lowering the RAM and compute resources used. Availability and implementation Source code, demo data, and detailed documentation are freely available at https://github.com/JCVenterInstitute/PanGenomePipeline.
Ultrafine Mineral Associations in Superhigh-Organic-Sulfur Kentucky Coals.

Two high-organic-sulfur Kentucky coals, the eastern Kentucky River Gem coal and the western Kentucky Davis coal, are examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), both including elemental analysis by energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). From the SEM–EDS analysis, it is observed that the western Kentucky coal had areas with Pb and Cd in addition to the expected Fe and S and the eastern Kentucky coal had individual Fe–S-rich areas with La and Ni and with Si, Al, Cr, Ni, and Ti. TEM and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) analyses demonstrate that anglesite with a rim of Pb-bearing amorphous Fe-oxide occurs in the western Kentucky coal. Melanterite, an Fe-sulfate, with minor Al, Si, and K EDS peaks, suggests that clay minerals may be in close association with the sulfate, is also detected in the coal. A polycrystalline metal in the eastern Kentucky sample with a composition similar to stainless steel is adjacent to an Al-rich shard. Euhedral pyrite grains s...
Do better schools help to prolong early childhood education effects

Abstract As scholars investigate factors to prolong early childhood education (ECE) effects on student achievement, a neglected hypothesis is that subsequent school quality promotes this goal. We test this, using data from 1844 students who attended kindergarten in the Tulsa Public Schools (TPS) in 2006 and who were identifiable in the school district a decade later. Approximately half of those students attended an ECE program. We establish a close link between school quality and magnet schools which we use as a proxy for higher quality schools. Using propensity score weighting with multiple imputation, we find that ECE alumni are more likely to attend a magnet middle school and a magnet high school. We find that magnet middle school attendance yields higher test scores, after controlling for multiple variables. We conclude that higher quality middle schools could help school districts to sustain short-term gains from ECE for a diverse cross-section of students.
A 1 MHz Miniaturized Electrical Impedance Tomography System for Prostate Imaging

An ASIC for a high frequency electrical impedance tomography (EIT) imaging system for prostate cancer screening is presented. The ASIC enables a small form-factor architecture, which ensures high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) at MHz frequencies. The 4-channel ASIC was designed and fabricated in a standard CMOS 0.18- $\mu$ m technology and integrates a novel current driver for current stimulus, instrumentation amplifier to interface with the tissue, VGA to provide variable gain and ADC with SPI interface for digitization. A prototype miniaturized EIT system was built and it was evaluated using a model transrectal imaging probe immersed into a tank filled with saline and a metal inclusion that demonstrated the open-domain problem of imaging prostate cancer lesion. The system maintained an SNR between 66 and 76 dB over the frequency range of 500 Hz to 1 MHz. Also, it produced reconstructed EIT images that depicted the presence of the small metal inclusion that modeled a prostate cancer imaging application.
Preparing for the next generation pharmacists.

To address the changes in health care and the needs of society related to medicines, we must redefine the profession of pharmacy. We have defined the next generation pharmacists (NGP) as “a health care provider and change agent on the interprofessional health care team, personalizing medication use, managing safe and effective medication systems, and creating healthier communities.” Schools and colleges of pharmacy should thoroughly examine their curriculum to ensure it is preparing pharmacists for this future. By creating a vision for the NGP and implementing the best curriculum, we ensure that pharmacists of the future will be up to the challenge of our society’s health care needs.