cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Using voluntary reports from physicians to learn from diagnostic errors in emergency medicine

Objectives Diagnostic errors are common in the emergency department (ED), but few studies have comprehensively evaluated their types and origins. We analysed incidents reported by ED physicians to determine disease conditions, contributory factors and patient harm associated with ED-related diagnostic errors. Methods Between 1 March 2009 and 31 December 2013, ED physicians reported 509 incidents using a department-specific voluntary incident-reporting system that we implemented at two large academic hospital-affiliated EDs. For this study, we analysed 209 incidents related to diagnosis. A quality assurance team led by an ED physician champion reviewed each incident and interviewed physicians when necessary to confirm the presence/absence of diagnostic error and to determine the contributory factors. We generated descriptive statistics quantifying disease conditions involved, contributory factors and patient harm from errors. Results Among the 209 incidents, we identified 214 diagnostic errors associated with 65 unique diseases/conditions, including sepsis (9.6%), acute coronary syndrome (9.1%), fractures (8.6%) and vascular injuries (8.6%). Contributory factors included cognitive (n=317), system related (n=192) and non-remedial (n=106). Cognitive factors included faulty information verification (41.3%) and faulty information processing (30.6%) whereas system factors included high workload (34.4%) and inefficient ED processes (40.1%). Non-remediable factors included atypical presentation (31.3%) and the patients’ inability to provide a history (31.3%). Most errors (75%) involved multiple factors. Major harm was associated with 34/209 (16.3%) of reported incidents. Conclusions Most diagnostic errors in ED appeared to relate to common disease conditions. While sustaining diagnostic error reporting programmes might be challenging, our analysis reveals the potential value of such systems in identifying targets for improving patient safety in the ED.
A Nanoscratch Method for Assessing Wear of Metal Carbide-Metal Nacreous Nanostructures

The wear resistance of metal carbide-metal nacreous nanostructures is compared to that of a solid metal carbide hard coating. A reciprocating nanoscratch method has been developed which allows the assessment of wear resistance of the film independent of substrate type or film-substrate adhesion. A series of nominally 1 micron thick TiC-based multilayer films on Si substrates were produced using RF magnetron sputtering. A scratch protocol consisting of 70 reciprocal scratches each 9.5 m m in length was applied. Data reduction techniques were used to remove the effects of sample tilt and drift. The resulting normal displacement as a function of scratch cycles is used to compare the wear of different films on Si substrates. Specific wear characteristics related to film morphology are examined. This investigation showed that this nanoscratch technique holds promise as a thin film wear characterization technique.
Internet-based Teaching Model-WebQuest

A WebQuest is an Internet-based learning activity in which students gather and synthesize Web information to solve real world problems.Since this model was first developed in early 1995,WebQuests have often been referred to as a popular form of guided inquiry in North America.The goal of this paper is to introduce this model to Chinese educators.As 21st century demands high standards for younger generations,it is increasingly critical that we engage Chinese students in real-world problem solving experiences in which they gain valuable knowledge and skills beyond the classroom.
Protein structure, stability, and interactions. Preface.

1 Microcalorimetry of Proteins and Their Complexes Peter L. Privalov 2 Determining the Conformational Stability of a Protein Using Urea Denaturation Curves Kevin L. Shaw, J. Martin Scholtz, C. Nick Pace, and G. R. Grimsley 3 Defining the Stability of Multimeric Proteins John W. Shriver and Stephen P. Edmondson 4 Protein-Protein and Ligand-Protein Interactions Studied by Analytical Ultracentrifugation Walter Stafford 5 Monitoring Molecular Interactions by NMR James M. Lipchock and J. Patrick Loria 6 Ligand Binding Interactions and Stability John W. Shriver and Stephen P. Edmondson 7 A Method for Direct Measurement of Protein Stability in Vivo Zoya Ignatova and Lila Gierasch 8 Quantifying the Roles of Water and Solutes (Denaturants, Osmolytes, and Hofmeister Salts) in Protein and Model Processes Using the Solute Partitioning Model Laurel M. Pegram and M. Thomas Record, Jr. 9 Molecular Crowding and Solvation: Direct and Indirect Impact on Protein Reactions Jorg Rosgen 10 Defining the Role of Salt Bridges in Protein Stability Ilian Jelesarov and Andrey Karshikoff 11 Protein Stabilization by the Rational Design of Surface Charge-Charge Interactions Katrina L. Schweiker and George I. Makhatakze 12 Analysis of Native State Protein Conformational Flexibility by Hydrogen Exchange Griselda Hernandez and David M. LeMaster 13 Single-Molecule Fluorescence Studies of Protein Folding G. Ulrich Nienhaus 14 Experimental Characterization of the Denatured State Ensemble of Proteins Jae-Hyun Cho and Dan Raleigh
Psychosocial distress and its effects on the health-related quality of life of primary brain tumor patients

All cancer patients experience distress from the diagnosis, the effects of the disease or the treatment. Clinically significant distress decreases overall quality of life and the recognition of distress with prompt intervention is essential. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network distress thermometer (NCCN-DT) is a validated measuring tool that has been utilized in the primary brain tumor population to detect psychologic distress thereby provoking a referral process to the appropriate support system. Brain tumor patients commonly reported emotional and physical distress encompassing: fatigue, fears, memory and concentration and worry. More research is needed to identify the stressors of all primary brain tumor patients and their caretakers and integrate appropriate interventions to improve health-related quality of life in both groups.
Social capital, institutional performance, and sustainability in Italy's regions: Still evidence of enduring historical effects?

Abstract Robert Putnam's celebrated book, Making Democracy Work , identified “path dependent” sources of differences in social capital in Italy's regions as an explanation for their variations in success at “overcoming dilemmas of collective action” (1993, p. 167). This article identifies among Italy's regions: (1) the relationships among Putnam's historical legacy-based levels of social capital on the one hand, and subsequent contemporary levels of social capital on the other hand; and, (2) the relationships of both of these sets of measures to variations in contemporary Italian regional institutional performance and sustainability indicators. The results show that: (1) historic and contemporary social capital levels at the regional level are strongly linked; and, (2), that they both are strongly related to contemporary indicators of regional institutional performance and sustainability initiatives, but that the historic effects appear to take a path through contemporary social capital levels. These findings are consistent with Putnam's theory of path dependence in explaining the persisting differences in performance across Italian regions.
4 mil DAF Die Thickness Sawing Capability Study

The drive for package thickness reduction has created new processing challenges with regards to thin wafer handling. While back grinding and die attach film (DAF) lamination are now established processes to 8 mil but dicing DAF-laminated wafers with wafer thickness of 4 mils and below is a significant challenge. This paper reports the successful introduction of 4 mil wafer dicing; with and without DAF lamination. This capability involves work in evaluating different saw parameters such as feed speed, RPM and blade types. Detail understanding in the fundamental of blade properties and characteristics is crucial to the success of this study. The results show that for thin die a dual pass saw process gives better results than a conventional single pass process. An innovative Step cut sawing is proposed. In this paper, an insight of 30 um sawing feasibility is also provided.
An assessment of direct and indirect effects of two herbicides on aquatic communities

Herbicides are often detected in watersheds at concentrations that are toxic to phytoplankton, potentially causing indirect effects on higher trophic organisms. The long-term effects of 5 applications over 30 d of binary mixtures of the herbicides diuron and hexazinone were assessed at "low" and "high" concentrations typically found in the environment, using mesocosms. Sixteen of 95 phytoplankton taxa, 3 of 18 zooplankton taxa, and 6 of 14 macroinvertebrate taxa responded negatively to contaminant exposures. Herbicide applications altered the phytoplankton community structure. Relative abundance of Cyanophyceae decreased following 5 applications from 52.1% in the control to 37.3% in the low treatment and to 25.9% in the high treatment, while Chlorophyceae increased to 50.6% in the low treatment and to 61.7% in the high treatment compared with the control (39.7%). Chlorophyceae had the greatest number of affected species (8), whereas 1 species within the Cyanophyceae was negatively affected on more than 1 sampling day. Further, chlorophyll a was reduced on 4 and 5 d out of the 8 total sampling days in the low and high treatments, respectively, compared with the control. These results highlight that integrating multiple taxa and contaminants with long-term exposures in ecological risk assessments of herbicides can facilitate the ability to make predictive and mechanistic generalizations about the role of herbicides in shaping patterns of species abundance in natural systems. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;36:2234-2244. © 2017 SETAC.
Signaling Mechanisms in Pathogenesis and Virulence of Candida albicans

Invasive fungal infections kill over 1.5 million people a year worldwide, and this number is on the rise due to increasing numbers of people living with compromised immunity, including the elderly, premature infants, transplant recipients, and cancer patients. Fungal pathogens, such as, Candida albicans rely on complex network of signal transduction pathways that allow fungus to not only survive in the human host but also contribute to its pathogenesis. This chapter will focus on the up-to-date information on the signaling pathways and downstream target proteins that contribute to C. albicans virulence, which has been obtained primarily through the analysis of null mutants or inference from genome annotation. However, before addressing these issues in detail, a brief introduction of the magnitude and the economic impact of the healthcare problems caused by fungal pathogens and the currently available treatment options are discussed.
Women's Work is Never Done: Employment, Family, and Activism - an Introduction

This article frames the issues in the Supreme Court case, Nevada Department of Human Resources v. Hibbs, and introduces the articles making up the inaugural symposium of the Law and Women's Studies Program at the University of Cincinnati. Hibbs involved a husband who was trying to get leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in order to take care of his severely injured wife. The case presents an opportunity to rethink issues of work and family, the legal subordination of women, and the law as an agent for social change, and it was therefore an ideal focus for the symposium.
Optimizing the formation of solid solutions with components of different shapes

A key challenge to engineer ordered solids from the co-assembly of two differently shaped building blocks is to predict the key particle characteristics that lead to maximal mutual ordered-phase compatibility (MaxOC). While both entropy disparity, as captured by the relative size of the components, and energetic inter-species selectivity affect MaxOC, it is the former whose effect is less intuitive and the main focus of this work. Such MaxOC predictive rules are formulated and validated by using Monte Carlo simulation results for hard-core mixtures of octahedra and spheres and of other previously studied mixtures. Specifically, it is proposed that component size ratios should maximize their “substitutional symmetry” and hence minimize the combined free-energy cost associated with mutating a host-particle into a guest-particle in each of the solid phases. For the hard-core mixtures examined, packing entropy stabilizes substitutionally disordered solid solutions but not stoichiometric compounds. Additional ...
Scalable Hierarchical Multipole Methods Using an Asynchronous Many-Tasking Runtime System

Hierarchical Multipole Methods (HMMs) are an important class of methods in scientific and engineering applications. They are challenging to parallelize for contemporary and emerging platforms using existing programming models. Asynchronous many-tasking (AMT) execution models provide abstractions suitable for HMMs and promise scalability in the context of future exascale systems. In our work we (1) present a novel AMT-based HMM framework on HPX-5---an experimental exascale interface and runtime system, (2) evaluate its performance and scalability for a range of interaction types and data sets, and (3) reflect on the costs and benefits of using HPX-5 for this class of applications.
Total Marrow Lymphoid Irradiation/Fludarabine/ Melphalan Conditioning for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation.

Abstract Reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) regimens for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) can reduce morbidity and mortality, but patients with advanced disease may require alternative approaches. In an initial report of RIC with fludarabine (FLU) and melphalan (MEL) with total marrow lymphoid irradiation (TMLI) in HCT for advanced hematologic malignancies in 33 patients, we found that the addition of TMLI to RIC was feasible and safe. Here we report long-term outcomes for these patients. This prospective study included 61 patients treated with TMLI to a dose of 12 Gy (1.5 Gy twice daily for 4 days), FLU (25 mg/m2/day for 5 days), and MEL (140 mg/m2/day for 1 day). Overall survival (OS), event-free survival (EFS), cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR), and nonrelapse mortality (NRM) were measured from the date of HCT. Survival outcomes were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Patients were categorized as low/intermediate or high/very high risk using the Disease Risk Index. The median follow-up was 7.4 years. The majority of patients had acute leukemia (72%); 49% had high/very high-risk disease. The median patient age was 55 years (range, 9-70 years). Two-year OS, EFS, CIR, and NRM were 54% (95% confidence interval [CI], 41%-66%), 49% (95% CI, 36%-61%), 21% (95% CI, 13%-35%), and 30% (95% CI, 20%-43%), respectively. Five-year OS, EFS, CIR, and NRM were 42% (95% CI, 30%-54%), 41% (95% CI, 28%-53%), 26 (95% CI, 17%-40%), and 33% (95% CI, 23%-47%, respectively). Acute (any grade) and chronic (limited or extensive) graft-versus-host disease occurred in 69% and 74% of patients, respectively. The most common toxicity was mucositis. The addition of TMLI to FLU/MEL conditioning was well tolerated, with favorable outcomes. Dosage escalation of TMLI or other modifications may be needed to improve disease control.
Biological and Biogeochemical Preludes to the Ediacaran Radiation

Evolution is sometimes envisioned as a dynamic process played out on an inert or passive planetary platform; however, if the geological record contains a message for evolutionary biology, other than the fact of the fossil record itself, it is that the Earth’s surface is in a continual state of change. On various time scales, climates fluctuate, reservoirs and fluxes of biogeochemical cycles vary, sea levels rise and fall, and oceanic water masses form and decay, while continents grow, split apart, drift, and recombine. At the same time, organisms that compete with, prey upon, provide food for, or live in symbiotic association with any given taxon of interest radiate, undergo morphological and physiological change, and become extinct. This is the context of evolution, and paleontological efforts to understand evolutionary events of the past require that we attempt to root those events in the context of ongoing biological and environmental change.
New Risk-Adjustment Policies Reduce But Do Not Eliminate Special Enrollment Period Underpayment

Millions of uninsured Americans do not sign up for available coverage despite job loss or other factors that would make them eligible for special enrollment periods (SEPs). Such periods let people enroll in nongroup insurance outside the usual open enrollment period for Marketplace coverage. Concerned that risk adjustment results in underpayment for the health risks associated with SEP enrollees, carriers rarely market their products to consumers eligible for SEPs, and many do not pay agents and brokers to enroll such consumers. To address the apparent underpayments, federal officials added enrollment duration factors that, starting in 2017, increased risk scores for SEP enrollees and other part-year members. Using individual-market claims data for 2015 from two large carriers, we found that risk adjustment did, in fact, undercompensate plans for part-year members. However, underpayment was much larger for SEP enrollees than for part-year members who joined during open enrollment periods. Short-term, urgent health problems appeared to drive enrollment more for SEP enrollees than for part-year members who signed up during open enrollment. We also found that the federal government's enrollment duration factors will remedy underpayment for part-year members whose coverage begins during open enrollment but leave carriers significantly underpaid for SEP enrollees. For carriers to recruit rather than avoid SEP enrollees, further increases to risk adjustment for such enrollees are likely needed.
Process design kits for RF analog & mixed signal design methodologies enabling silicon success

With rapid advancements in the technology arena, novel design methodologies have been embraced and to support these requirements, semiconductor process technology is also rapidly evolving. There is a need for efficient handshake between the foundry and design houses. PDKs play an important role in inheriting the foundry offering to aid in successful silicon realization. This paper presents an overview of process design kits and the importance of well-crafted kits in niche RF IC designs. The chip design ecosystem has been pictorially explained while emphasizing on the role of a foundry in the ecosystem. The different components of the process design kit have been discussed in brief. The method of qualification of process design kits and the various quality enhancement approaches to enable first pass silicon success have been presented in this paper. Towards the end of the paper, different substrate methodologies adopted by foundries for RF designs have been presented at a high level.
Emerging and Future Technologies in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Care

The care for victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is evolving and will be influenced by future and emerging technologies that will play a role in the systems of care for these patients. Recent advances in extracorporeal life support and point-of-care ultrasound imaging, both in-hospital and out-of-hospital, may offer a therapeutic solution in some systems for patients with refractory or recurrent cardiac arrest. Drones capable of delivering automated external defibrillators to the scene of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, advances in digital and mobile technologies to notify and leverage bystander response, and wearable life detection technologies may improve survival.
Immersive, Social Applications for 8K Displays

Collaborations between the MIT Media Lab, NHK, and Toshiba Memory Corporation are exploring applications for large touch- and gesture-sensing 8K screens, including collaborative educational games, interactive visualizations for extremely dense anatomical datasets, and novel interfaces for exploring large media archives. In this paper I give an overview of the project, describe four representative applications, and provide design and user experience lessons learned.
Neuroimaging in Traumatic Brain Injury

The ideal neuroimaging study for the patient with concussion depends primarily on what one is seeking and what types of studies are available to satisfy that need. There is a variety of tests that can be ordered, therefore it is usually the time since the injury and the patient’s symptoms that dictate what one should be concerned about, and which test is most useful. Accordingly, this chapter is partially addressing this issue and may help medical practitioner to further appreciate possible brain structural changes and functional abnormalities as result of concussion.
Sarcomas of Bone

Sarcomas of bone have a number of distinguishing features that set them apart from primary cancers of many other organ systems. First, they are extremely rare in comparison with other types of cancer, a fact that has impeded the ability of treatment in this field to evolve rapidly in an evidence-based manner because of the small numbers of patients available for studies. Progress in this field has been possible only with multicenter and oncology group trials that can provide sufficient numbers of patients for study. Even so, clinical trials are generally limited to prospective case series at best, and much of the literature is based on retrospective case series. True controlled randomized prospective trials are extremely rare. Nevertheless, a number of clinically useful observations defining the behavior of these tumors and their responses to treatments have derived from the analyses of the numerous case series that have been published, and these results and the associated levels of evidence are reviewed here.
Populations at Special Health Risk: The Elderly

The elderly are an at-risk population because they have increased risk for adverse health outcomes, a need for health services, and unique social circumstances. Risks for common diseases increase over the life span, and other diseases are linked specifically to old age. Elderly persons have great need for health services and frequently have difficulty accessing and paying for appropriate care. In addition to acute medical care, elderly persons need services for personal care and independent living. Social circumstances also make the elderly an at-risk population. Shrinking social networks, loss of income, changes in living arrangements, and lifelong problems such as poverty have an impact on the well-being of elderly adults.
The sites of thyroid hormone formation in rabbit thyroglobulin.

Rabbit thyroglobulin (Tg) was labeled in vivo with 125I and purified by gel filtration. Separation by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) of tryptic digests of S-cyanoethylated Tg yielded four major iodothyronine-containing peaks, designated A, B, C, and D. These were further purified on HPLC and sequenced for identification of amino acid residues and for location of the iodothyronine by 125I counting. The published primary structure for bovine Tg, derived from cDNA sequencing of the Tg gene (Mercken, L., Simons, M.J., Swillens, S., Massaer, M., and Vassart, G. (1985) Nature 316, 647-651), permitted tentative location of the rabbit hormonogenic peptides within the Tg polypeptide chain. Site A, corresponding to bovine residue 5, contained 44% of Tgs [125I]T4 (thyroxine) and 25% of its [125I]T3 (triiodothyronine); its specific activity of iodine was higher than that for other sites, indicating priority of iodination. Site B, containing 24% of Tgs [125I]T4 and 18% of its [125I]T3, corresponded to bovine residue 2555. Site C, at the third residue from the C terminus (bovine residue 2748), was the major T3 site, accounting for over 50% of Tgs [125I]T3. The amino acid sequence around this site shows less homology among different animal species than do those flanking the other hormonogenic sites. Site D accounted for 17% of Tgs [125I]T4 and corresponded to bovine Tyr-1291, in the midportion of Tgs polypeptide chain. The three major T4-forming sites had the sequence Asp-Tyr (sites B and D) or Glu-Tyr (site A), while the sequence Ser-Tyr-Ser appeared to favor T3 synthesis (site C), suggesting an important influence of primary structure on hormonogenesis. We conclude that site A is the major T4-forming site and site C the major T3-forming one, but others are available and offer the opportunity for flexibility in meeting different demands for hormone formation.
Micro-RNAs in Hematologic Malignancies

Micro-RNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs with gene regulatory functions. Abnormal expression of miRNAs distinguishes normal from tumoral tissues in both solid and hematological malignancies. These aberrations parallel abnormal expression of miRNA target genes, which ultimately are responsible for the development of the malignant phenotype. Intriguingly, miRNAs expression levels are variable during normal hematopoiesis, revealing that their up/downregulation is required during the physiologic differentiation of the hematopoietic multipotent precursor. Therefore, variations in miRNA levels mirror abnormal expression of their target genes and are involved in the development of lymphomas and leukemias. This chapter will describe how miRNAs affect normal hematopoiesis and contribute to the genesis of hematological malignancies, and how they affect the prognosis, and harbor therapeutic implications for patients affected by lymphomas and leukemias.
The Grand Tour in the Twenty-first Century: Perspectives of Chinese Adolescents and Their Parents

This study investigates Chinese adolescents’ overseas study tours from the perspectives of both Chinese adolescents and their parents. Fifty in-depth interviews were conducted and analyzed with 30 ...
Interactive kernel dimension alternative clustering on GPUs

Machine learning has seen tremendous growth in recent years thanks to two key advances in technology: massive data generation and highly-parallel accelerator architectures. The rate that data is being generated is exploding across multiple domains, including medical research, environmental science, web-search, and e-commerce. Many of these advances have benefited from emergent web-based applications, and improvements in data storage and sensing technologies. Innovations in parallel accelerator hardware, such as GPUs, has made it possible to process massive amounts of data in a timely fashion. Given these advanced data acquisition technology and hardware, machine learning researchers are equipped to generate and sift through much larger and complex datasets quickly. In this work, we focus on accelerating Kernel Dimension Alternative Clustering algorithms using GPUs. We conduct a thorough performance analysis by using both synthetic and real-world datasets, while also modifying both the structure of the data, and the size of the datasets. Our GPU implementation reduces execution time from minutes to seconds, which enables us to develop a web-based application for users to, interactively, view alternative clustering solutions.
Modeling gas transport in polymer-grafted nanoparticle membranes

We use coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to study gas diffusion within nanocomposites consisting of matrix-free polymer-grafted nanoparticles. We compare the transport of gas penetrants in systems using polymer models with and without an angle potential and show that gas diffusion enhancement occurs in nanocomposite systems only with the angle potential. This enhancement is related to the free volume in the system, but the cage size experienced by the gas penetrant seems to be a more relevant indicator of gas diffusion enhancement. The enhancement seen in our simulations is smaller than that observed in experiments.
Iron/Carbon Composites for Cr(VI) Removal Prepared from Harmful Algal Bloom Biomass via Metal Bioaccumulation or Biosorption

Iron/carbon (Fe/C) composites efficiently remove Cr(VI) because of synergistic adsorption and reduction effects. This study uses harmful algal bloom (HAB) biomass and ferric ammonium citrate (FAC) or ferric nitrate as precursors for preparing Fe/Cs with a one-pot synthesis. The investigation uniquely differentiates material and performance impacts associated with two iron loading approaches, bioaccumulation (metal uptake by living algae), and biosorption (metal deposition onto dry algae). As-prepared Fe/Cs are up to 70% mesoporous with iron loading reaching 8.3 wt %. Uniformly dispersed nanoparticles (20–50 nm) are observed in all Fe/Cs, and microscale particles are present on the surface of biosorption samples due to sintering. Fe3O4 is the dominant iron species in Fe (NO3)3 added samples, while Fe0 dominates samples prepared with FAC, attributed to the reducing atmosphere generated during FAC pyrolysis. Up to 4.0 wt % nitrogen doping is achieved, from nitrogen in HAB biomass and iron precursors. Fe/Cs r...
Evidence of dissipative and growing nonlinearity in Lamb waves due to stress-relaxation and material degradation in composites.

Abstract Experimentally observed dissipated nonlinearity in Lamb wave propagation in composites due to stress-relaxation is reported herein. It was found that the stress relaxation in composite is inherently coupled with the second order nonlinear parameter derived from the Lamb wave modes. Due to the combined effect of internal stresses and damage accumulation in composites, the second harmonic frequency was found to be shifted towards the lower frequency with increasing amplitude, which was partially recovered and shifted back during the stress relaxation. A comprehensive fatigue experiment was conducted on ASTM standard composite specimens with fatigue loading sequences and relaxation, while the guided Lamb wave signals were collected using piezoelectric sensors integrated with the specimens. A remarkable ∼27% reduction of acoustic nonlinearity was observed during relaxation. Rate and degree of relaxation were found to be the function of number and frequency of loading cycles and inherently correlated with the remaining strength of the composites.
Response of a Memristive Biomembrane and Demonstration of Potential Use in Online Learning

The pervasive von Neumann architecture uses complex processor cores and sequential computation. In contrast, the brain is massively parallel and highly efficient, owing to the ability of the neurons and synapses to store and process information simultaneously and to adapt according to incoming information. These features have motivated researchers to develop a host of brain-inspired computers, devices, and models, collectively referred to as neuromorphic computing systems. The quest for synaptic materials capable of closely mimicking biological synapses has led to an alamethicin-doped, synthetic biomembrane with volatile memristive properties which can emulate key synaptic functions to facilitate learning and computation. In contrast to its solid-state counterparts, this two-terminal, biomolecular memristor features similar structure, switching mechanisms, and ionic transport modality as biological synapses while consuming considerably lower power. To use the device as a circuit element, it is important to understand its response to different kinds of input signals. Here we develop a simplified closed form analytical solution based on the underlying state equations for pulse and sine wave inputs. A Verilog-A model based on Runge-Kutta method was developed to incorporate the device in a circuit simulator. Finally, the paper demonstrates possible applications for short- and long-term learning using its unique volatile memristive properties.
Local Similarity Matrix for Cysteine Disulfide Connectivity Prediction from Protein Sequences

Accurately predicting three dimensional protein structures from sequences would present us with targets for drugs via molecular dynamics that would treat cancer, viral infections, and neurological diseases. These treatments would have a far reaching impact to our economy, quality of life, and society. The goal of this research was to build a data mining framework to predict cysteine connectivity in proteins from the sequence and oxidation state of cysteines. Accurately predicting the cysteine bonding configuration improves the TM-Score, a quantitative measurement of protein structure prediction accuracy. We provided state of the art $\mathrm{Q}_{{\mathrm{p}}}$ Q p and $\mathrm{Q}_{{\mathrm{c}}}$ Q c on the PDBCYS and IVD-54 Datasets. Furthermore, we have produced a Local Similarity Matrix that compares favorably to the default PSSMs generated from PSI-Blast in a statistically significant way. Our $\mathrm{Q}_{{\mathrm{p}}}$ Q p for SP39, PDBCYS, and IVD-54 were 90.6, 80.6, and 68.5, respectively.
Increased reoperation rates among patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy with concomitant biceps tenodesis.

Background The purpose of this study was to determine whether patients undergoing any shoulder arthroscopic procedure with concomitant biceps tenodesis have higher reoperation and complication rates vs. patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy without concomitant biceps tenodesis. Methods A large database was queried for patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy, identified by Current Procedural Terminology code. Only records indicating the laterality of the procedure were included. Patients were divided into 3 cohorts: arthroscopic shoulder surgery without concomitant biceps tenodesis (group 1), surgery with arthroscopic biceps tenodesis (group 2), and surgery with open biceps tenodesis (group 3). Reoperations on the same shoulder, as well as medical or surgical complications (by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision code) during the 30-day postoperative period, were determined. Multivariate logistic regression was used to control for differences in age, sex, and Charlson Comorbidity Index between groups. Results We identified 62,461 patients (54.3% male patients) in the database who underwent shoulder arthroscopy, with 51,773 patients in group 1, 7134 patients in group 2, and 3554 patients in group 3. Overall, 3134 patients (5.0%) underwent a shoulder arthroscopy reoperation. With adjustment for age, sex, and Charlson Comorbidity Index, the biceps intervention groups demonstrated a significantly higher overall reoperation rate (odds ratio, 1.3 [95% confidence interval, 1.2-1.5]; P Conclusion Reoperation rates were significantly higher in patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy with biceps tenodesis than in patients undergoing shoulder arthroscopy without biceps tenodesis. Both the arthroscopic and open tenodesis groups had significantly lower complication rates.
PHENIX Experiment Highlights

Over sixteen yesrs of running the PHENIX experiment at RHIC has collected a wealth of data on proton-proton, proton-nucleus, and nucleusnucleus collisions at various collision energies. In this talk we present the most recent and exciting results from the PHENIX experiment.
Leukocyte-associated immunoglobulin-like receptor 1 inhibits T-cell signaling by decreasing protein phosphorylation in the T-cell signaling pathway.

Multiple observations implicate T-cell dysregulation as a central event in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis. Here, we investigated mechanisms for suppressing T-cell activation via the inhibitory receptor leukocyte-associated immunoglobulin-like receptor 1 (LAIR-1). To determine how LAIR-1 affects T-cell receptor (TCR) signaling, we compared 1) T cells from LAIR-1–sufficient and –deficient mice, 2) Jurkat cells expressing either LAIR-1 mutants or C-terminal Src kinase (CSK) mutants, and 3) T cells from mice that contain a CSK transgene susceptible to chemical inhibition. Our results indicated that LAIR-1 engagement by collagen or by complement C1q (C1Q, which contains a collagen-like domain) inhibits TCR signaling by decreasing the phosphorylation of key components in the canonical T-cell signaling pathway, including LCK proto-oncogene SRC family tyrosine kinase (LCK), LYN proto-oncogene SRC family tyrosine kinase (LYN), ζ chain of T-cell receptor–associated protein kinase 70 (ZAP-70), and three mitogen-activated protein kinases (extracellular signal–regulated kinase, c-Jun N-terminal kinase 1/2, and p38). The intracellular region of LAIR-1 contains two immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibition motifs that are both phosphorylated by LAIR-1 activation, and immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that Tyr-251 in LAIR-1 binds CSK. Using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing, we demonstrate that CSK is essential for the LAIR-1–induced inhibition of the human TCR signal transduction. T cells from mice that expressed a PP1 analog–sensitive form of CSK (CskAS) corroborated these findings, and we also found that Tyr-251 is critical for LAIR-1's inhibitory function. We propose that LAIR-1 activation may be a strategy for controlling inflammation and may offer a potential therapeutic approach for managing autoimmune diseases.
Embarking on a Career in Cardio-Rheumatology

Systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), psoriatic arthritis, and systemic sclerosis (SSc), are estimated to affect up to 3% of the population worldwide, with RA affecting approximately 1.3 million individuals in the United States
Long-Term Gemcitabine Treatment Reshapes the Pancreatic Tumor Microenvironment and Sensitizes Murine Carcinoma to Combination Immunotherapy

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a leading cause of cancer-related death with a median survival time of 6-12 months. Most patients present with disseminated disease and the majority are offered palliative chemotherapy. With no approved treatment modalities for patients who progress on chemotherapy, we explored the effects of long-term gemcitabine administration on the tumor microenvironment to identify potential therapeutic options for chemorefractory PDAC. Using a combination of mouse models, primary cell line-derived xenografts, and established tumor cell lines, we first evaluated chemotherapy-induced alterations in the tumor secretome and immune surface proteins by high throughput proteomic arrays. In addition to enhancing antigen presentation and immune checkpoint expression, gemcitabine consistently increased the synthesis of CCL/CXCL chemokines and TGFβ-associated signals. These secreted factors altered the composition of the tumor stroma, conferring gemcitabine resistance to cancer-associated fibroblasts in vitro and further enhancing TGFβ1 biosynthesis. Combined gemcitabine and anti-PD-1 treatment in transgenic models of murine PDAC failed to alter disease course unless mice also underwent genetic or pharmacologic ablation of TGFβ signaling. In the setting of TGFβ signaling deficiency, gemcitabine and anti-PD-1 led to a robust CD8+ T-cell response and decrease in tumor burden, markedly enhancing overall survival. These results suggest that gemcitabine successfully primes PDAC tumors for immune checkpoint inhibition by enhancing antigen presentation only following disruption of the immunosuppressive cytokine barrier. Given the current lack of third-line treatment options, this approach warrants consideration in the clinical management of gemcitabine-refractory PDAC. SIGNIFICANCE: These data suggest that long-term treatment with gemcitabine leads to extensive reprogramming of the pancreatic tumor microenvironment and that patients who progress on gemcitabine-based regimens may benefit from multidrug immunotherapy.See related commentary by Carpenter et al., p. 3070 GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT: http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/canres/80/15/3101/F1.large.jpg.
Deterrence with Imperfect Attribution

Motivated by recent developments in cyberwarfare, we study deterrence in a world where attacks cannot be perfectly attributed to attackers. In the model, each of attackers may attack the defender. The defender observes a noisy signal that probabilistically attributes the attack. The defender may retaliate against one or more attackers and wants to retaliate against the guilty attacker only. We note an endogenous strategic complementarity among the attackers: if one attacker becomes more aggressive, that attacker becomes more “suspect” and the other attackers become less suspect, which leads the other attackers to become more aggressive as well. Despite this complementarity, there is a unique equilibrium. We identify types of improvements in attribution that strengthen deterrence—namely, improving attack detection independently of any effect on the identifiability of the attacker, reducing false alarms, or replacing misidentification with non-detection. However, we show that other improvements in attribution can backfire, weakening deterrence—these include detecting more attacks where the attacker is difficult to identify or pursuing too much certainty in attribution. Deterrence is improved if the defender can commit to a retaliatory strategy in advance, but the defender should not always commit to retaliate more after every signal.
Breast Reconstruction and Post Mastectomy Radiotherapy: A Primer for Members of a Multidisciplinary Team

Background: Post-mastectomy radiation therapy (PMRT) is a key component in managing breast cancer with increased potential for locoregional recurrence. Breast reconstruction has evolved to include various techniques that can be categorized according to the type of reconstruction (implant-based versus autologous reconstruction), and the timing of reconstruction (one versus two-step techniques). Methods/Results: This review article aims to provide a digestible summary of PMRT in the context of breast reconstruction by summarizing salient existing literature with a focus on considerations of the plastic surgeon. The main findings summarized in this review include the technique and timing of breast reconstruction, how breast reconstruction can affect radiation delivery, and the type of reconstruction. Within implant-based reconstruction, existing data on the location of the implant in the context of PMRT and PMRT delivery to the tissue expander versus permanent implant are reviewed. Each consideration may alter the probability of successful reconstruction and patient satisfaction.Conclusion: It is essential for the multidisciplinary breast cancer team to have knowledge of the various reconstructive options, and to understand the safety and comparative effectiveness of staged reconstruction in the setting of PMRT. Additionally, one must consider that reconstructive procedures may have implications on the timely administration of PMRT. This review serves as a reference for members of the oncologic care team when discussing reconstructive options with patients who will receive PMRT as part of their treatment plan.
Ambitious and Anxious: How Chinese College Students Succeed and Struggle in American Higher Education

In this new publication, Syracuse University Associate Professor Yingyi Ma employs a mixed-method research design to examine and analyze the educational motivations, experiences, and trajectories of a new wave of Chinese undergraduate students from diverse family backgrounds with an emphasis on “the duality of ambition and anxiety” (p. 7). This book challenges the stereotyped expectations of Americans in regards to Chinese students (for instance, that all are from well-off families and have poor English skills). Ma argues that it is pivotal to consider the educational, social, and cultural backgrounds of Chinese internationals in their processes of self-formation in order to have a well-rounded and diverse understanding of Chinese undergraduate students
Cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of park coverage, greenness exposure and neighbourhood median household income with children's depressive and anxiety symptoms.

AIM Internalising symptoms and disorders often emerge in childhood and are associated with negative health outcomes into adulthood. Studies have shown neighbourhood characteristics (e.g. socio-economic composition, greenspace exposure) to be associated with depression and anxiety symptoms in adults; however, research that explores these relationships longitudinally in children is lacking. This study examined cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of neighbourhood characteristics with developmental trajectories of internalising symptoms in 202 children (ages 8-12) from the Mothers' and Their Children's Health (MATCH) Study. METHODS The MATCH Study is a Los Angeles-based longitudinal observational investigation of children's health outcomes with six semi-annual assessment waves across 3 years. Latent growth curve modelling was used to examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between child's self-reported anxiety or depressive symptoms and their neighbourhood's park coverage, greenness exposure and median household income. All models included the following as covariates: child's age, sex, ethnicity, family household income and mother's mental health measures. RESULTS Cross-sectionally, results indicated that neighbourhood median household income was negatively associated with children's depressive symptoms at baseline. Longitudinally, neighbourhood median household income was associated with steeper increases in children's depressive symptoms. Neither greenness exposure nor park coverage was associated with children's depressive or anxiety symptoms cross-sectionally or longitudinally. CONCLUSIONS Childhood plays a key factor in setting the foundations for healthy mental, social, physical and cognitive growth. Our study suggests future mental health prevention programmes in youth should cater to a multilevel approach that integrates individual, familial and neighbourhood interventions and pay special attention to their neighbourhood SES levels.
Policy Frameworks and Taxonomies: Gaps Within Research

Accepting that there are a variety of values and education discourses potentially at work within any education policy (or policies), and a variety of ways we can analyse them, how can we best understand them? What conceptual framing is appropriate, or holds value across policy types and constructions? Is there a framing or paradigmatic exemplar that can work across methodologies and analysis types? One way of answering this question is by looking at what a variety of analyses consistently reveal or discuss. Education policy analysis often reveals the broader political education goals and strategies behind the policy or policies under investigation. This is particularly true in the case of methodological approaches such as discourse analysis, critical discourse analysis, historical discourse analysis and genealogy. Research into single policy documents usually reveals the operation of one paradigm or paradigmatic ‘orientation’ to education. For example, Heck uncovered a ‘liberal’ or neo-liberal paradigm within the Australian Discovering Democracy framework through a Critical Discourse Analysis (Heck, 2003). However, it is important to note that this research did not consider other paradigms in its conceptual framing, and the Civic Republican Citizenship Discourse she describes as within this liberal paradigm is in other broader analyses more correctly cast as ‘conservative’ (Jones, 2009). Rigour and reproducibility become questionable when the same policy is thus described as ‘liberal’, ‘neo-liberal’ or ‘conservative’ within different analyses. Similarly, Harvey (2006) uncovers ‘neoliberalism’ and an economic focus in tertiary education policy, although it is important to again outline that neo-liberalism is not explored in the full context of alternative orientations; underlying the sense that researchers will find ‘what they are looking for’ paradigmatically (where it is present) and overlook what they are not looking for.