cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Constitutional Law: Critical and Comparative

This brief essay serves as an introduction to a volume of studies by Latin American scholars of constitutional law and theory responding to themes in my work. It outlines the jurisprudential and historical-political background against which my work developed, stressing the important roles played by American Legal Realism and the politics of the 1960s in shaping my thinking. The essay explains how my interest in populist constitutional law and dialogic forms of constitutional review emerged from the same background, but was strengthened by an interest in comparative constitutional law that I developed in the 1990s.
Behavioral Variability in the Service of Constancy

Author(s): Bell, Heather Christine | Abstract: From a stimulus-response (S-R) point of view, or even with an intermediate step, involving cognition (S-O-R), the existence of behavioral variablity in organisms, even under tightly controlled experimental conditions, suggests that 1) the relevant inputs to the system have not been fully characterized, 2) even the most minute difference in system inputs can produce vastly variable behavioral output, or 3) that behavior is fundamentally variable. Any of these possibilities leads to the conclusion that precise behavioral prediction, at any given moment, is virtually impossible. One can, however, re-conceptualize the challenge of understanding behavior such that it involves not what the organism will do from moment to moment, but what the characteristics of the system that governs the behavior of the organism are. In this paper, I outline a closed-loop cybernetic approach to understanding behavior, for which behavioral variability is actually a requirement. Findings are presented from a series of experiments across species, and using computer simulations, that support a cybernetic interpretation of behavior. I argue that behavioral variability provides adaptive advantages to organisms – regardless of whether that variability is produced by noise, or is actively generated by nervous systems. Finally, I discuss some ideas from embodied cognition that impose constraints on the variability of behavior.
Quand l’invisible s’affiche Entretien avec Fabienne Kanor

Cet article enclot un entretien entre la cineaste martiniquaise Fabienne Kanor et Gladys M. Francis, chercheure en etudes francophones et culturelles. Il examine le septieme art aux Antilles dans n...
Impact of socioeconomic status and degree of ethnic isolation on cervical cancer incidence among Hispanics and Asians in California.

5605 Background: The incidence of cervical cancer in the United States has declined since the introduction of the pap smear. However, differences exist based on ethnicity and socioeconomic status (...
The Earnings and Income Mobility Consequences of Attending a Historically Black College/University: Matching Estimates From 2015 U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Data:

This article considers the labor market consequences of attending a Historically Black College/University (HBCU). With 2015 U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Data, we use a matching es...
Returning to work after fatigue treatment and counseling in HIV/AIDS.

BACKGROUND Employment rates for people with HIV/AIDS are low, compared to the general population. One widespread barrier is fatigue, accompanied by daytime sleepiness and a lack of stamina. Previous pharmacological studies have demonstrated improvement of fatigue-related symptoms without affecting work-related goal attainmentOBJECTIVE:In this pilot study, we sought to determine whether a pharmacologic-behavioral two-phase combined approach could facilitate returning to work. METHODS HIV+ participants with fatigue were treated with armodafinil. If energy improved, 8 sessions of biweekly manualized Behavioral Activation (BA) counseling were added to medication maintenance. Outcome was assessed on a 3-point scale along with clinician and self-ratings. RESULTS Of the 46 participants enrolled in BA, 15 (33%) did not complete all 8 sessions: 6 got jobs so they no longer needed counseling; 4 did not like BA, and 5 dropped out for reasons such as moving away or substance use relapse. Of the 46, 29 (63%) attained their vocational goal and showed significant changes on self-report scales. CONCLUSIONS Our integrated treatment including armodafinil plus BA counseling significantly increased the success of achieving work-related goals. The two-phase medication plus counseling program was well-tolerated by participants and the manualized BA counseling was readily applied by counselors without advanced mental health training, making the method potentially feasible in community settings.
Tobacco and E-cigarette use among cancer survivors in the United States.

Background Limited information exist on tobacco and e-cigarette use patterns in cancer survivors. The purpose of this study is to report on use patterns in cancer survivors compared with non-cancer participants from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study. Methods Sociodemographic data and tobacco product use were analyzed for 32,244 adult participants from the PATH Study in 2013–2014 by cancer status and age. Logistic regression examined the patterns of and factors associated with tobacco use by cancer status. Results Overall, cancer survivors represented 7.1% (n = 1,527) of participants, were older, and had a higher proportion of females and non-Hispanic whites than non-cancer participants. In cancer survivors, current and former cigarette smoking was reported in 12.7% and 32.9% respectively, compared with 18.5% and 19.0% in non-cancer adults. Current e-cigarette use was reported by 3.8% of survivors compared with 5.7% of non-cancer participants. Dual tobacco use was reported by 25.0% and poly use by 6.9% of cancer survivors who currently smoked. All other forms of current tobacco use were individually reported by <5% of survivors. Young adult cancer survivors (aged 18–44) reported the highest rates of current cigarette smoking (27.9%) and current e-cigarette use (11.8%). The effects of age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, and income on tobacco use status were comparable for cancer survivors and non-cancer participants. Cancer survivors who were younger, male, of lower educational attainment, and those diagnosed with a tobacco-related cancer were more likely to report current tobacco use. Conclusions Among cancer survivors, cigarette smoking remains the predominant form of tobacco use, although other tobacco/nicotine use and dual/poly use are common. The PATH Study provides detailed tobacco product use patterns in survivors, including their adoption of emerging alternative tobacco products.
Medicine on, of and off the Brain

The central chapter of this book discusses the ways of interaction between medical science, art, and practice and neural activity. More specifically, by ‘on’ the author indicates “the medical opinion (thus comprising diagnostic and prognostic aspects) on matters related to brain activity, including function and dysfunction.” With ‘of’ the focus is on the specific subfields or areas of medicine that deal with the nervous system, especially the CNS and more precisely with the brain. Finally, with ‘off the brain’ the book stresses the importance of those areas of scientific investigation as an integral part of modern medicine that fail (in the sense of general application of the scientific method) to account or appropriately describe certain phenomena using only medical science. Given the strong emphasis of this chapter on medicine (neurology in particular), a relevant space is given to nursing theory and practice.
Pulmonary Neuroendocrine Tumors: Adjuvant and Systemic Treatments.

Bronchial carcinoids are uncommon tumors accounting for 20 to 30% of all neuroendocrine tumors and about 1–2% of all cancers of pulmonary origin. Bronchial carcinoids are well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors and have a favorable survival outcome when compared with other subtypes of lung cancers. Treatment of bronchial carcinoids is not simple owing to intricacy of symptom presentation and heterogeneity of disease biology. Successful treatment of patients requires a multimodality approach. Resection is curative in the majority of patients with localized tumors and adjuvant treatment is not routinely recommended. Multiple options for systemic therapy exist for patients with advanced disease. To date, very few randomized clinical trials have been done, partly owing to the relative rarity of this malignancy. Somatostatin analogs (SSAs) are reasonable first-line choice for patients with tumors expressing somatostatin receptors. Everolimus is an appropriate first-line choice for somatostatin receptor negative tumors and for any patients with progressive disease. PRRT can also be considered for progressive tumors expressing somatostatin receptors. Based on retrospective series, cytotoxic chemotherapy can be selected in patients with progressive tumors, primarily when cytoreduction is needed. Herein, we will discuss evidence supporting the role of adjuvant and systemic treatment therapies for those with bronchial carcinoid tumors by focusing on various studies.
Deconstructing Racialized Experiences in Healthcare: What a Missed Opportunity for Healing Looks Like and Healthcare Resources for Children and Their Families

Some patients and families of color, including Asian Americans, face significant adverse stressors due to living within a White-dominant society. Xenophobia and racism can impact health. Research evidence points to early exposure to adverse childhood experiences such as racial discrimination as being detrimental and having significant short-term and long-term impact on physical and mental health. The purpose of this commentary article is to illuminate the need of patients and their families who may seek health care providers (HCPs) to express their concerns and fears when issues of xenophobia and racism arise. Patients and families need space in a healthcare setting to feel heard and understood. Anti-Asian xenophobia and racism among medically underserved Asian Americans persists and has been heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic. We describe tenets of Critical Race Theory and AsianCrit, and use this lens to understand an example actual scenario, a counter-story, of a Vietnamese mother, and her Vietnamese-Chinese American family's experience with xenophobia and racism at a community recreation center and the subsequent communication of this experience with a HCP. We describe the impacts of these experiences of seeking healing including discontinuity of a HCP-patient-family relationship. It takes bravery for patients and families to tell their story of xenophobia and racism to a HCP. There are Asian Americans who are afraid to seek healthcare because of anti-Asian xenophobia and concerns about White fragility. Following, we highlight research evidence on implicit bias, also known as unconscious bias, as context about its persistent and widespread existence among healthcare professionals in general and the need to address this in healthcare. Implicit bias can influence care provided to a patient-family and the interactions between a HCP-patient-family. We include additional resources such as those from the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, American Psychological Association Office on Children Youth and Families, the Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs, the Office on Socioeconomic Status, and American Academy of Pediatrics to consider in support of equity in healthcare practice of children and their families.
A Scalable Algorithm for Decentralized Actor Termination Detection.

Automatic garbage collection (GC) prevents certain kinds of bugs and reduces programming overhead. GC techniques for sequential programs are based on reachability analysis. However, testing reachability from a root set is inadequate for determining whether an actor is garbage: Observe that an unreachable actor may send a message to a reachable actor. Instead, it is sufficient to check termination (sometimes also called quiescence): an actor is terminated if it is not currently processing a message and cannot receive a message in the future. Moreover, many actor frameworks provide all actors with access to file I/O or external storage; without inspecting an actor's internal code, it is necessary to check that the actor has terminated to ensure that it may be garbage collected in these frameworks. Previous algorithms to detect actor garbage require coordination mechanisms such as causal message delivery or nonlocal monitoring of actors for mutation. Such coordination mechanisms adversely affect concurrency and are therefore expensive in distributed systems. We present a low-overhead reference listing technique (called DRL) for termination detection in actor systems. DRL is based on asynchronous local snapshots and message-passing between actors. This enables a decentralized implementation and transient network partition tolerance. The paper provides a formal description of DRL, shows that all actors identified as garbage have indeed terminated (safety), and that all terminated actors--under certain reasonable assumptions--will eventually be identified (liveness).
Upper Esophageal Sphincter Compression Device as an Adjunct to Proton Pump Inhibition for Laryngopharyngeal Reflux

The Reflux Band, an external upper esophageal sphincter (UES) compression device, reduces esophago-pharyngeal reflux events. This study aimed to assess device efficacy as an adjunct to proton pump inhibitor (PPI) therapy in patients with laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR). This two-phase prospective clinical trial enrolled adults with at least 8 weeks of laryngeal symptoms (sore throat, throat clearing, dysphonia) not using PPI therapy at two tertiary care centers over 26 months. Participants used double dose PPI for 4 weeks in Phase 1 and the external UES compression device nightly along with PPI for 4 weeks in Phase 2. Questionnaire scores and salivary pepsin concentration were measured throughout the study. The primary endpoint of symptom response was defined as reflux symptom index (RSI) score ≤ 13 and/or > 50% reduction in RSI. Thirty-one participants completed the study: 52% male, mean age 47.9 years (SD 14.0), and mean body mass index (BMI) 26.2 kg/m2 (5.1). Primary endpoint was met in 11 (35%) participants after Phase 1 (PPI alone) and 17 (55%) after Phase 2 (Device + PPI). Compared to baseline, mean RSI score (24.1 (10.9)) decreased at end of Phase 1 (PPI alone) (21.9 (9.7); p = 0.06) and significantly decreased at end of Phase 2 (Device + PPI) (15.5 (10.3); p < 0.01). Compared to non-responders, responders to Device + PPI had a significantly lower BMI (p = 0.02) and higher salivary pepsin concentration (p = 0.01). This clinical trial highlights the potential efficacy of the external UES compression device (Reflux Band) as an adjunct to PPI for patients with LPR (ClinicalTrials.Gov NCT03619811).
Analysis of Intersection Site-Specific Characteristics for Type II Dilemma Zone Determination

AbstractDilemma zone could be an effective surrogate safety measure of a signalized intersection because its length and location are significantly correlated with right-angle and rear-end conflicts...
The Keokuk County rural health study: methodology and demographics

SUMMARY The Keokuk County Rural Health Study is a population-based, prospective study of environmental exposures and health status of a large randomly-selected sample of residents from each of three strata in one rural Iowa county. The study focuses on injury rates and respiratory disease; in addition, it monitors health care de-livery; geriatric, reproductive, and mental health; and other health outcomes. Injury and disease prevalence are investigated in relation to occupational, agricultural, and other environmental exposures. This paper describes the sampling method, the protocol, and the demographic profile of adult subjects of the first 400 households en-rolled in the study. Farmers were slightly younger than rural non-farmers and townspeople and more farmers had lived in the county all of their lives. Females were more highly educated than were males, and less than half as many female farmers had lived in the county all their lives than had male farmers. Net household income figures were complex and...
The Aftermath 1945–1950

“I assure you, Monsieur le President, that I have never eaten little children for lunch,” exclaimed Maurras during the course of his trial on charges of “intelligence with the enemy” (a euphemism for treason).1 The time was January, 1945 ; the place, Lyon; and the atmosphere that of a feverish France racked by the lingering spasms of the Liberation. By a sort of grim, unsolicited recognition of his pre-eminence among the enemies of democracy, Maurras’ case received more attention than any in the long list of French writers and intellectuals who were called to account for their actions during the Occupation.
Evidence for intestinal chloride secretion

Intestinal fluid secretion is pivotal in the creation of an ideal environment for effective enzymatic digestion, nutrient absorption and stool movement. Since fluid cannot be actively secreted into the gut, this process is dependent on an osmotic gradient, which is mainly created by chloride transport by the enterocyte. A pathological dysbalance between fluid secretion and absorption leads to obstruction or potentially fatal diarrhoea. This article reviews the widely accepted model of intestinal chloride secretion with an emphasis on the molecular players involved in this tightly regulated process.
Interleukin-6 inhibitors in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis

Recent developments in understanding the immunopathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), combined with progress in biopharmaceutical development, have facilitated the introduction of novel immune modulating therapies for this progressive debilitating disorder. Efficacy achieved with certain agents, particularly the TNF inhibitors, has spurred the development of additional biologic agents targeting other components of the dysregulated immune response relevant to the etiology and sustenance of immune driven systemic inflammation characteristic of RA. Among these other potential targets is IL-6, a cytokine with effects on numerous cell types, including those involved in the pathogenesis of RA. Based on its activities, IL-6 appeared to be a viable target for autoimmune disease. Inhibitors of IL-6 were successful in animal models of autoimmune disease paving the way for subsequent studies in humans. The greatest experience to date has been with tocilizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody specific for the IL-6 receptor (IL-6R). Beginning with open label studies, and progressing through larger and more rigorous controlled trials, tocilizumab has been shown to have significant Efficacy in patients with RA. Additional studies analyzing its effects in varied populations of RA patients, as well as greater detail concerning its longer-term tolerability and safety, will help define the ultimate role of tocilizumab and other future inhibitors of IL-6 activity as potential therapies for RA.
Saving in the development process

The importance of domestic saving in the process of economic development has been stressed by a long line of distinguished economists from Adam Smith on. Two recent, excellent surveys (Gersovitz, 1988; Deaton, 1989) of the theory of and empirical evidence on saving from developing countries are available. An earlier survey by King (1985), though not devoted to development per se, is also useful. This section attempts to highlight some relatively neglected if not altogether ignored aspects, though some overlap with the earlier surveys is unavoidable. In particular, discussion begins with the severe problems of measurement errors and biases in the available data on income and saving from developing countries, using Indian data for illustration. The section then explores the implications of the absence and imperfect functioning of credit and insurance markets in developing countries, drawing on some recent theoretical developments and empirical studies.
NO MORE CASEBOOKS: USING SIMULATION‐BASED LEARNING TO EDUCATE FUTURE FAMILY LAW PRACTITIONERS

Teaching family law using the traditional casebook method provides students with marginal knowledge and skills. To practice family law, one needs to know how to interview and counsel clients, negotiate with opposing counsel, file pleadings and supporting documents, draft agreements, and understand tax consequences. Moreover, ethical issues abound in the practice of family law, such as confidentiality, conflict of interest, and fee arrangements. Critics of traditional pedagogies in legal academia have included the MacCrate Report, the Carnegie Report, and Best Practices for Legal Education. The Family Law Education Reform Project has focused its attention on the failure of law schools to keep pace with the ever-evolving nature and requirements of family law practice. This article offers one answer to those who seek to educate law students in a manner that will better prepare them for the practice of family law. The author, who is the director of Vermont Law School's General Practice Program, describes a family law course she has developed and taught for many years. The course is taught in an integrative fashion, and includes substantive law, practice skills, and ethical and professionalism issues. She offers the course as a response and antidote to the ongoing criticisms of tradition a methods of teaching law.
Insulin effects on apolipoprotein B production by normal, diabetic and treated-diabetic rat liver and cultured rat hepatocytes

1. The effect of insulin on apolipoprotein (apo B) secretion was studied in 24 h recirculating liver perfusions of isolated normal, diabetic and insulin-treated diabetic rats. In single perfusions from each group apo B accumulated in the media in a linear fashion. 2 In perfusions of normal rat livers, when the medium contained insulin plus cortisol, apo B production was significantly inhibited (by 35.8%), demonstrating a hormone effect on apo B secretion. 3. In perfusions of diabetic-rat livers, apo B production was decreased to 11.8% of normal when the medium contained no hormones, and was not significantly changed by the addition of insulin plus cortisol to the medium, suggesting that the hormone effect on apo B secretion is missing in long-term hypoinsulinaemic states. 4. Treatment of diabetic rats with daily insulin injection restored apo B production and restored the effect of insulin plus cortisol in the medium to inhibit apo B secretion during perfusion. 5. Parallel studies of apo B secretion with insulin alone, cortisol alone and insulin plus cortisol in the medium were performed in primary cultures of hepatocytes to compare results from liver perfusions. 6. Apo B secretion by hepatocytes from normal, diabetic and treated-diabetic rats was inhibited (by 36.8%, 57.1% and 57.9% respectively) when insulin alone was added to the medium. 7. Insulin plus cortisol inhibited apo B secretion by hepatocytes from normal and treated diabetic rats (by 30.2% and 47.2% respectively), but failed to inhibit apo B secretion by hepatocytes from diabetic rats.
Should We Require Every New Venture to Be a Hybrid Organization

Critics of entrepreneurial capitalism have argued that entrepreneurship creates dysfunction in individuals, families, communities, and society because entrepreneurs neglect social and environmental dimensions of value in favour of financial value creation. By way of contrast, hybrid organizations, such as Benefit Corporations, are created explicitly to address social and environmental objectives in addition to their financial objective. Therefore, in this paper we explore the consequences of a world of blended value in which every new venture is required to be a hybrid organization. In doing so, we reveal the boundary conditions of current social criticism levied against entrepreneurship and suggest that blended value may best be relegated to the role of ideal or guideline as opposed to normative or legal obligation.
Accumulation of cadmium by the eye with special reference to the lens.

Abstract Subcutaneously administered Cd2+ (in vivo) was accumulated in the eyes of rabbits. The concentration was greatest in the iris-ciliary body, followed by the retina, cornea, and lens. It was also present in the vitreous humor, but was not detectable in the aqueous humor. Cd2+ in the bathing medium in vitro was toxic to the lens (tissues gained Na and lost K) at 10−3 m , for 24 hr incubation, or 10−5 m , for 7 days. Cadmium-109 was gradually accumulated by the lens in vitro (the process may be saturable), but with 10−7 m Cd in the medium (similar to the vitreous in Cd-treated rabbits) 100 times less was taken up in 24 hr than in the 28-day in vivo experiments. Cadmium-109 in vitro was almost confined to the outer 30 to 50% of the lens tissue. Cadmium-109 was able to reenter the bathing medium, and its efflux was not changed by the presence of external Cd, suggesting that substantial specific binding was not occurring. Efflux could be reduced by lanthanum so that it may follow pathways similar to those used by Ca and Zn.
Ecometrics: An ideal for economics and ecology

The idea of ecometrics, which it has been the purpose here to begin to explain, has its primary basis in pure science’s sublime insights into nature. That is its main strength at this point. It has to do largely with what happens and has happened, in terms of DNA’s energy transformations and information gathering. But where it applies to problems which call for decision and action, it has also to do with what should happen, in connection with which the timeless aim of pursuit of the sublime offers an important adjunct. In small compass little more can be done than to present the vision of a quantitative discipline which can be used to serve this end; even the main outlines suggested for its development may be subject to much revision. However, the discipline envisaged has great flexibility and scope, and therewith significance and interest. On the practical side, enlightened control of affairs large and small inheres in its embrace of biological and economic knowledge, making it of concern alike to the educated private citizen and to responsible managers of the planet. On the theoretical side, illumination of the mind inheres in such potential understanding of the biosphere, in the perspective of geological time as well as of day to day living, as the idea may suggest.
Nonoptimally Weighted Least Squares

Abstract This research was supported in part by National Institutes of Health Grants AR20610 (Multipurpose Arthritis Center) and 2R01GM21215–12 (Adaptation of New Statistical Ideas for Medicine) awarded to Stanford University. Most of the ideas here originate with John Tukey, in published or unpublished work. The authors indicate that it was especially helpful (while they were trying to prove the result for the regression case) to learn from him, when they asked, that the proposition was true.
Making coal pay: The conversion of natural resources to economic resources in Southern Appalachia: The case of eastern Kentucky

This analysis follows up earlier empirical research in Appalachian Kentucky on how coal production influences socioeconomic development and still earlier research on dimensions of development. The research issue approached here is what factors affect counties' ability to convert a natural resource, coal, to an economic resource, income. The answer appears to be that counties that are more effective are more developed and those less effective are less developed.
Radiocarbon Ages of Postglacial Lake Clays near Michigan City, Indiana.

Two radiocarbon dates were obtained for postglacial clays. One sample, 6350 years old, was taken from a bed of compacted and carbonized wood just above a bed of pebbly clay. Overlying the woody bed is 5½ feet of organic bluish clays and beach sands near the present lake level. The upper clay layer contained a younger wood sample, 5475 years old. The blue clays are of shallow swamp origin and were deposited during the late low-water stage of Lake Chippewa; the pebbly clay is assumed to be of Glenwood age (about 11,000 years) or older.
Relations between convexity and homogeneity in multioutput technologies

Abstract Homogeneity and convexity are two important concepts in economics. With homogeneity, this paper shows that the technology set is convex if and only if the input sets are convex. Furthermore, even if individual technology sets are not convex, the aggregate technology can be made convex by considering at most two firms only.
Paradoxes of the EphB4 Receptor in Cancer

Recent findings have started to uncover the intriguing roles of the Eph family of receptor tyrosine kinases in normal epithelial cells and during oncogenic transformation. This review focuses on EphB4, an Eph receptor that has both tumor-suppressing and tumor-promoting activities in breast cancer. Understanding the multifaceted role of EphB4 in tumorigenesis may allow the development of new anticancer therapies.
The role of basal insulin and glucagon-like peptide-1 agonists in the therapeutic management of type 2 diabetes--a comprehensive review.

The treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has been revolutionized by the introduction of novel therapeutic regimens following the clinical approval of the long-acting basal insulin glargine 10 years ago, followed by insulin detemir and, more recently, agents that target the glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 system with dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4)-resistant products, such as liraglutide and exenatide, and DPP-4 inhibitors, such as sitagliptin, saxagliptin, alogliptin, and vildagliptin. The position and clinical efficacy of the GLP-1 mimetics are less well understood, however, and how they should be best used in the context of the established clinical efficacy of long-acting insulin analogs is yet to be defined. The aim of this review is to provide a summary of the efficacy, safety, and weight changes associated with long-acting insulin analogs (insulin glargine and insulin detemir) and two GLP-1 mimetics (exenatide and liraglutide). MEDLINE, EMBASE, and BIOSIS databases were searched with a timeframe of January 1, 2003-January 12, 2009 using the following terms: "Insulin glargine," with the co-indexing terms "LANTUS" and "HOE901"; "Insulin detemir," with the co-indexing term "Levemir"; "Exenatide"; and "Liraglutide." This literature review demonstrates that GLP-1 and basal insulin therapies are effective treatment options for insulin-naive patients with suboptimal glycemic control with oral hypoglycemic agents. There are potential advantages of basal insulin and GLP-1 therapies in particular populations of patients. Further comparative data are needed to fully investigate the relative positioning of these therapies within the T2DM treatment paradigm.
The Effects of Perceived and Objective Safety Risk on Employee Outcomes

Abstract Perceptions related to work safety are examined in relation to their ability to account for variation in employee attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors indicative of vocational adjustment, after objective indicators of safety risk have been taken into account. Results, based on a sample of 1167 railroad employees, indicate that objective risk factors typically accounted for 1–3% of the variation in outcome indicators, with perceptions of work safety explaining between 1 and 20% of additional variation. The importance of safety perceptions as a predictor of employee outcomes is discussed.
Federal incentives for industrial modernization: Historical review and future opportunities

Concerns over the aging of the U.S. aerospace industrial base led DOD to introduce first its Technology Modernization (Tech Mod) Program, and more recently the Industrial Modernization Incentive Program (IMIP). These incentives include productivity shared savings rewards, contractor investment protection to allow for amortization of plant and equipment, and subcontractor/vendor participation. The purpose here is to review DOD IMIP and to evaluate whether a similar program is feasible for NASA and other non-DOD agencies. The IMIP methodology is of interest to industrial engineers because it provides a structured, disciplined approach to identifying productivity improvement opportunities and documenting their expected benefit. However, it is shown that more research on predicting and validating cost avoidance is needed.
Phytosterols ameliorate clinical manifestations and inflammation in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis

Using experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model for multiple sclerosis (MS), the objective of this study was to examine the effect of phytosterol (PS) administration on inflammation-based EAE development. Female SJL mice were orally administered PS prior to disease induction and maintained throughout the experiment. EAE was induced with antigenic peptide (PLP131–155). Mice were clinically scored for disease and euthanized for biochemical and histological analysis of inflammation. PS delayed onset of EAE development by 2 days and decreased disease severity by 55%. Brain histological analysis revealed an 82% decrease in central nervous system (CNS) inflammatory infiltration and a 48% decrease in demyelination in PS-treated mice versus control. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) showed a 35% reduction in macrophages entering brains of PS-treated mice. Anti-inflammatory interleukin (IL)-10 was up-regulated by 10%, while pro-inflammatory CCL2 was inhibited by 50% with PS treatment. Additionally, PS slightly decreased other pro-inflammatory factors, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, IL-6, and interferon (IFN)-γ. PS protects against development of EAE by reducing infiltration and inflammatory activity of immune cells into CNS of treated mice, thereby decreasing demyelination associated with EAE. These results provide evidence to support PS as a preventative agent that helps to protect against the development of inflammation-driven disease, such as MS.
Minimal Electromagnetic Coupling of Spin-Two Fields

The apparent increase in the number of degrees of freedom of a massive spin-two field upon introduction of minimal electromagnetic coupling is considered. It is shown that if one gives up the usual formulation of such a system in favor of one possessing fewer dependent field components such a problem does not occur. It is consequently suggested that minimal coupling may be a useful concept only within the framework of theories which are described with a minimal number of components.
Evaluating access control of open source electronic health record systems

Incentives and penalties for healthcare providers as laid out in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 have caused tremendous growth in the development and installation of electronic health record (EHR) systems in the US. For the benefit of protecting patient privacy, regulations and certification criteria related to EHR systems stipulate the use of access control of protected health information. The goal of this research is to guide development teams, regulators, and certification bodies by assessing the state of the practice in EHR access control. In this paper, we present a compilation of 25 criteria relative to access control in EHR systems found in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulation, meaningful use certification criteria, best practices embodied in the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) role-based access control standard, and other best practices found in the literature. We then examine the state of the practice in access control by evaluating four open source EHR systems using these 25 evaluation criteria. Our research indicates that the NIST Meaningful Use criteria provide HIPAA compliance, but none of the regulatory and certification criteria address the implementation standards, and best practices related to access control. Additionally, our results indicate that open source EHR system designers are not implementing robust access control mechanisms for the adequate protection of patient data.
Ecological stress phenomena and holistic environmental ethics—a viewpoint

Stress ecology represents the field of ecology that measures and evaluates impacts of perturbations on the structure and function of ecosystems. Many human ecologists and philosophers maintain that environmental ethics should be predicted upon holistic ecological principles. Specifically, this implies the successful application of stress ecology to environmental problems. However, few thoroughly discuss the extent to which stress ecology is capable of serving as a basis for environmental ethics, nor do they make substantial reference to the scientific literature which examines this question. A number of factors constrain the successful development and application of stress ecology, and its usefulness as a basis for a holistic environmental ethics. These factors include: (1) lack of consensus about the definitions of stress to organisms or ecosystems, (2) insufficient knowledge about causes of environmental perturbations (e.g. pollutants), (3) inadequate ecosystemic knowledge, and (4) lack of integration o...
The Large, Free-living Amoebae: Wonderful Cells for Biological Studies

The large, free-living amoebae have been widely used as model cells for studying a variety of biological phenomena, including cell motility, nucleocytoplasmic interactions, membrane function, and symbiosis. Results of studies by our group on amoebae as moving cells, as material for micrurgical manipulations, and as hosts for intracellular symbionts are summarized here. In particular, our recent studies of the amoeba as a microcosm, in which spontaneously infecting foreign microbes have become integrated as necessary cell components, are described in some detail. These processes have involved an initial microbial infection, mutual adaptation by the host and symbionts, and development of obligatory symbiosis. Evidence is presented to show that symbiont-derived macromolecules are involved in the protection of symbionts from digestion, the symbionts have acquired regulatory elements on their chromosomal genes to enhance production of beneficial gene products, and symbionts apparently utilize host-derived macromolecules to their benefit. These studies involved morphological observations both at light and electron microscopic levels, physiological and genetic studies, production and use of poly- and monoclonal antibodies, and molecular-biological approaches including gene cloning and sequencing. It is shown that amoebae are uniquely suited as model cells with which to study these phenomena.
Active Fixation Leads in the Distal Coronary Venous System for Left Ventricular Stimulation: A Safety and Feasibility Study

Introduction: Well positioned left sided lead implantation via the coronary venous system is central in ensuring delivery of resynchronization therapy in selected patients with heart failure. Unfortunately, many factors can negatively impact optimal positioning. Therefore, we investigated the safety and feasibility of using an active fixation lead in the distal branches of the coronary sinus for left ventricular stimulation. Methods: From May 2009 till May 2011 we replaced failed conventional left ventricular with 4F active fixation leads (SelectSecure Model 3830, Medtronic, Minneapolis, USA) in 24 patients requiring cardiac resynchronization therapy or left ventricular pacing. The lead was positioned and actively fixed in the distal coronary sinus. Results: The leads were successfully implanted in all patients. From this 24 patients, 4 were implanted due to recurrent lead dislodgements, 3 were due to phrenic nerve stimulations and 17 were because of primary lead instability. Pacing threshold at implantation was 1.33±0.60 V and impedance was 905±444 ohms. There were no lead dislodgements and no complications were noted in the peri-implantation period. Conclusions: Placement of a 4F active fixation lead in the distal coronary sinus to deliver left ventricular stimulation in selected patients with implantation obstacles is safe and feasible. Chronic data is needed to assess the clinical utility.
Femicide and the Feminist Perspective

The gender disparity in intimate killings underscores the need for close attention to the phenomenon of intimate partner–perpetrated femicides and theories useful in understanding this pervasive and enduring problem. The most overarching paradigm used is that of the feminist perspective. The purpose of this article is to review the tenets of feminist theory as the most viable and efficacious framework for understanding and explaining intimate partner–perpetrated femicide, to highlight empirical evidence supporting the strength and value of this perspective, to address the contentions of those in opposition to this perspective, and to provide research and policy implications targeted at greater understanding, and, ultimately, lower rates of femicide.
Eclipsed M2X6 compounds exhibiting very short metal-metal triple bonds.

The preparation, characterization, and electronic structure of homoleptic complexes of molybdenum and tungsten bridged by bis(alkylamido)phenylboranes, M2[RN−BPh−NR]3 (M = Mo, R = Et (1), iPr (2); M = W, R = Et (3), iPr (4)), are described. These triple metal−metal bond species (i) exhibit a nearly eclipsed ligand geometry and (ii) possess the shortest metal−metal bonds of neutral dimolybdenum and ditungsten M2X6 complexes observed to date (d(Mo−Mo) = 2.1612(6) A (1); d(W−W) = 2.2351(7) A (4)).
If Cell Mechanics Can Be Described by Elastic Modulus: Study of Different Models and Probes Used in Indentation Experiments

Here we investigated the question whether cells, being highly heterogeneous objects, could be described with the elastic modulus (effective Young’s modulus) in a self-consistent way. We performed a comparative analysis of the elastic modulus derived from the indentation data obtained with atomic force microscopy (AFM) on human cervical epithelial cells (both normal and cancerous). Both sharp (cone) and dull (2500-nm radius sphere) AFM probes were used. The indentation data were processed through different elastic models. The cell was approximated as a homogeneous elastic medium that had either 1), smooth hemispherical boundary (Hertz/Sneddon models) or 2), the boundary covered with a layer of glycocalyx and membrane protrusions (“brush” models). Consistency of these approximations was investigated. Specifically, we tested the independence of the elastic modulus of the indentation depth, which is assumed in these models. We demonstrated that only one model showed consistency in treating cells as a homogeneous elastic medium, namely, the brush model, when processing the indentation data collected with the dull AFM probe. The elastic modulus demonstrated strong depth dependence in all models: Hertz/Sneddon models (no brush taken into account), and when the brush model was applied to the data collected with sharp conical probes. We conclude that it is possible to describe the elastic properties of the cell body by means of an effective elastic modulus, used in a self-consistent way, when using the brush model to analyze data collected with a dull AFM probe. The nature of these results is discussed.
Legal gambling availability and problem gambling among adolescents and young adults

A national US telephone survey was conducted with 2274 respondents aged 14–21. The number of types of legal gambling operating in the respondent's state was positively related to the odds of lifetime gambling, current gambling, current frequent gambling and current problem gambling. For respondents aged 18–21, odds of current problem gambling, as opposed to never gambling, increased 39% for each additional type of legal gambling. The number of types of gambling in which a respondent was old enough to participate legally had a positive relationship to gambling involvement, including problem gambling. Being old enough to participate in specific forms of gambling was positively related to the frequency of playing those specific types. It was concluded that a greater number of types of legal gambling, as well as being old enough to legally play a greater number of types of gambling, is associated with a greater likelihood of problem gambling.
The simultaneous diophantine approximation of values of functions satisfying certain n variable q-difference equations☆

Abstract In a previous paper lower bounds were obtained on the simultaneous diophantine approximation of values of certain functions which satisfy linear q-difference equations. In the present paper these results are generalized from n = 1 to n > 1 variables. In order to better see what some of these solutions “look like” the algebraic properties of certain classes of functions are investigated, particularly with regard to a type of multiplication which is analogous to the convolution product. At the end of the paper such algebraic results are also obtained for the case n = 1.
Haplotype associations of 90 rare alleles from the National Marrow Donor Program

The National Marrow Donor Program maintains an HLA database of over 4.1 million US adult volunteers, 43,000 cord blood units, and 111,000 patients from which we identified 1,999,424 samples having allele-level HLA-A, HLA-B, or HLA-DRB1 results. We analyzed 811 rare alleles reported at a frequency of less than 1 in 50,000 in this study pool and found strong predicted haplotype associations for 90 of them. The data set includes the number of times the allele was seen, the predicted haplotypes, and the racial or ethnic groups in which it was identified. This information can be helpful in designing search strategies for patients with rare alleles requiring hematopoietic stem cell therapy.
When Do We Confront? Perceptions of Costs and Benefits Predict Confronting Discrimination on Behalf of the Self and Others

Across two studies, we tested whether perceived social costs and benefits of confrontation would similarly predict confronting discrimination both when it was experienced and when it was observed as directed at others. Female undergraduate participants were asked to recall past experiences and observations of sexism, as well as their confronting behaviors. Path modeling in Study 1 (N = 148) demonstrated that women were more likely to report confronting if they believed that the confrontation would make a difference (perceived benefits), or they were less concerned about social sanctions (perceived costs), and the prediction patterns were similar for both experienced and observed sexism. Study 2 (N = 166) replicated the results of Study 1, as well as tested the moderating influence of gender identification. In situations of higher perceived social costs, women who were less strongly identified with their gender group were more responsive to the perceived benefits of the confrontation when deciding whether ...
The Role of Retail Prices and Promotions in Determining Cigarette Brand Market Shares

Over the past two decades, two forms of price competition have emerged within the cigarette industry: the introduction and spread of discount and deep discount cigarettes and the increased use of price-related promotions. In this paper, we use quarterly market-level, scanner-based data on cigarette prices, promotions, and sales for 50 US markets over the period from 1994-IV through 2002-II to examine the impact of price and promotions on market shares for premium, discount, and deep discount brand cigarettes. Our estimates indicate that changes in relative prices, including those resulting from promotions, account for much of observed changes in market shares.