cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of Postemergence Herbicides on Populations of Bean Leaf Beetle, Cerotoma trifurcata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), and Corn Earworm, Heliothis zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in Soybeans

The effect of treatment with postemergence herbicides on abundance of bean leaf beetle (BLB), Cerotoma trifurcata (Forster), adults and corn earworm (CEW), Heliothis zea (Boddie), larvae was investigated in field trials over a 3-year period (1982–1984) in eastern North Carolina. In 1983 only, BLB numbers were significantly higher in plots treated with fluazifop-butyl than in untreated plots 5 days after application. Timing herbicide application with periods of high BLB populations appeared to be the main requirement for expression of this herbicide effect. In studies on corn earworm populations, stem terminal samples taken in 1982 revealed significantly higher numbers of eggs and early instars in untreated plots than in those treated with sethoxydim 3 days earlier. In contrast, beat cloth samples for later instars showed higher numbers in 1984 in plots treated with fluazifop-butyl and sethoxydim 14 days after the application date. These results suggest an initial repellency effect of the herbicides that is followed by a period when larval establishment, survival, or both is enhanced on treated plants. Presence of adequate insect numbers relatively soon after treatment is presumed to be necessary to reveal any influence of these compounds on insect abundance.
PROXIMITY-DEPENDENT CROSS-COMPATIBILITY IN PHLOX.

The present study was undertaken to show the extent to which pollen-pistil compatibility in Phlox drummondii is a function of the relatedness of crossing plants and to determine the relationship between pollen-pistil compatibility and the physical distance between crossing plants in natural populations
Larval western bean cutworm feeding damage encourages the development of Gibberella ear rot on field corn.

BACKGROUND A 2 year study was conducted to determine whether western bean cutworm (Striacosta albicosta Smith) (WBC) larval feeding damage increases severity of the fungal disease Gibberella ear rot [Fusarium graminearum (Schwein.) Petch] in field corn (Zea mays L.). The effect of a quinone-outside inhibiting fungicide, pyraclostrobin, on Gibberella ear rot severity and mycotoxin production, both with and without WBC pressure, was also evaluated. The impact of each variable was assessed individually and in combination to determine the effect of each upon ear disease severity. RESULTS There was a positive correlation between the presence of WBC larvae in field corn and Gibberella ear rot severity under inoculated conditions in the 2 years of the experiment. An application of pyraclostrobin did not impact Gibberella ear rot development when applied at corn growth stage R1 (silks first emerging). CONCLUSION Feeding damage from WBC larvae significantly increases the development of F. graminearum in field corn. We conclude that an effective integrated management strategy for Gibberella ear rot should target the insect pest first, in an effort to limit disease severity and subsequent mycotoxin production by F. graminearum in kernels. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.
WE-G-BRC-01: Risk Assessment for Radiosurgery

Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) originated as an industrial engineering technique used for risk management and safety improvement of complex processes. In the context of radiotherapy, the AAPM Task Group 100 advocates FMEA as the framework of choice for establishing clinical quality management protocols. However, there is concern that widespread adoption of FMEA in radiation oncology will be hampered by the perception that implementation of the tool will have a steep learning curve, be extremely time consuming and labor intensive, and require additional resources. To overcome these preconceptions and facilitate the introduction of the tool into clinical practice, the medical physics community must be educated in the use of this tool and the ease in which it can be implemented. Organizations with experience in FMEA should share their knowledge with others in order to increase the implementation, effectiveness and productivity of the tool. This session will include a brief, general introduction to FMEA followed by a focus on practical aspects of implementing FMEA for specific clinical procedures including HDR brachytherapy, physics plan review and radiosurgery. A description of common equipment and devices used in these procedures and how to characterize new devices for safe use in patient treatments will be presented. This will be followed by a discussion of how to customize FMEA techniques and templates to one's own clinic. Finally, cases of common failure modes for specific procedures (described previously) will be shown and recommended intervention methodologies and outcomes reviewed. Learning Objectives: 1.Understand the general concept of failure mode and effect analysis 2.Learn how to characterize new equipment for safety 3.Be able to identify potential failure modes for specific procedures and learn mitigation techniques 4.Be able to customize FMEA examples and templates for use in any clinic
Historical Overview: A Brief Review of Major Snowstorms of the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Centuries

Through the centuries, severe winter storms have become part of the historical folklore of many regions. A comprehensive accounting of major winter storms in the Northeast over the past three centuries has been assembled by David Ludlum (1966, 1968, 1976, 1982, 1983).5 His unique studies document the distribution, depth, and duration of great snowfalls, along with their wind velocity, degree of cold, and effects on the general population. Nearly 300 years of such information provides important historical and climatological insight into the limits of severity these storms are capable of attaining. A sampling of the region’s legendary storms is briefly described below.
Mercados como espelho

Este artigo interroga a conceitualizacao convencional dos mercados como redes, instituicoes e realizacoes performativas ao apresenta-los como espelhos culturais que refletem as idiossincrasias e modos de organizacao social de seus ambientes. Estendendo a metafora weberiana do mercado como comunidades, e combinando-a com recentes teorias antropologicas do parentesco, o artigo propoe compreender processos de mercado como espacos de producao de relacoes sociais ao inves de transacoes meramente impessoais. Utilizando discussoes a respeito de compensacao e trocas nos mercados financeiros contemporâneos como um exemplo, o artigo defende repensar o papel e a ontologia dos mercados na vida moderna.
Coma cluster ultradiffuse galaxies are not standard radio galaxies

Matching members in the Coma cluster catalogue of ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs, Yagi et al. 2016) from SUBARU imaging with a very deep radio continuum survey source catalogue of the cluster (Miller et al. 2009) using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) within a rectangular region of ~ 1.19 square degrees centred on the cluster core reveals matches consistent with random. An overlapping set of 470 UDGs and 696 VLA radio sources in this rectangular area finds 33 matches within a separation of 25 arcsec; dividing the sample into bins with separations bounded by 5 arcsec, 10 arcsec, 20 arcsec and 25 arcsec finds 1, 4, 17 and 11 matches. An analytical model estimate, based on the Poisson probability distribution, of the number of randomly expected matches within these same separation bounds is 1.7, 4.9, 19.4 and 14.2, each respectively consistent with the 95 percent Poisson confidence intervals of the observed values. Dividing the data into five clustercentric annuli of 0.1 degree, and into the four separation bins, finds the same result. This random match of UDGs with VLA sources implies that UDGs are not radio galaxies by the standard definition. Those VLA sources having integrated flux > 1 mJy at 1.4 GHz in Miller et al. (2009) without SDSS galaxy matches are consistent with the known surface density of background radio sources. We briefly explore the possibility that some unresolved VLA sources near UDGs could be young, compact, bright, supernova remnants of type Ia events, possibly in the intracluster volume.
Kuznets curve in happiness: A cross-country exploration

Abstract In the context of the recent emergence of enormous research and policy interest in the many dimensions of happiness, this paper explores for the first time a Kuznets-type relation between average happiness and happiness-inequality in a large cross-country setting. Three different data sets and several types of specifications are used. The study suggests three main points. First, in all cases there is a clear indication of an inverted-U relation in which happiness-inequality first increases with mean happiness, reaches a peak, and then declines. Moreover, the estimated turning-point occurs at a fairly "late" stage, and 35% to 40% of the countries lie in the increasing-inequality segment. Second, a possible policy implication is that there may be need to address accentuation of happiness-inequality at early stages of increase in average happiness. Third, the estimates indicate that the predominant sentiment in the literature toward a negative relation between mean happiness and happiness-inequality is probably based on oversimplified linear models.
Oral lichen sclerosus-a review of clinical presentation, treatment, and clinical outcomes.

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the disease involvement, treatment and response, and malignant potential of oral lichen sclerosus (LS). Study Design We conducted a review of the literature of 37 cases of oral LS. We looked specifically for the following data: patient demographic characteristics, disease involvement, treatment, response to treatment, duration of follow-up, symptoms, risk factors for oral malignancy, and malignant transformation. Results The most common area of oral involvement included the labial mucosa (67.6%). Of patients with oral LS, 38.5% reported symptoms, and 35.1% exhibited extraoral manifestations. Patients were less likely to receive treatment when asymptomatic (62.5%) than when symptomatic (80%). Topical steroids were more efficacious (66.7%) compared with other treatments. Risk factors for malignancy were found in 25% of patients. No patient had malignant transformation of oral lesions at follow-up (mean follow-up 22.1 months; median 12 months). Conclusions More data and longer follow-up are required to determine the long-term clinical outcomes of oral LS.
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma detection and treatment monitoring in vivo and in post-surgical human specimens using Harmonic Motion Imaging (HMI)

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) has one of the lowest prognosis due to non-specific symptoms leading to late diagnosis. The tumor is characterized by an unusually dense stroma limiting chemotherapeutic perfusion. Harmonic Motion Imaging (HMI) assesses tissue mechanical properties by inducing localized oscillation resulting from a periodic acoustic radiation force. The amplitude of the displacement is inversely related to the underlying tissue stiffness. The objective of this study was to evaluate the utility of HMI in post-surgical human pancreatic cancer specimens to detect the tumor, and assess the tumor response to neoadjuvant treatments.
The United Nations & Civil Wars

The UN engagement in civil wars was almost nonexistent until the end of the Cold War, but recent experience brings some important lessons: the traditional principles of peacekeeping are ill-suited ...
Primary Nocardia Infection Causing a Fluorodeoxyglucose-Avid Right Renal Mass in a Redo Lung Transplant Recipient.

Immunosuppression after lung transplantation may increase susceptibility to opportunistic infection and is associated with early and delayed deaths in lung transplant recipients. Factors that may predispose lung transplant recipients to opportunistic bacterial and fungal infections include prolonged corticosteroid use, renal impairment, treatment of acute rejection, and post-transplant diabetes mellitus. We present a unique case of a 63-year-old woman with diabetes mellitus who underwent redo lung transplantation. Three years after her right-sided single redo lung transplant, she presented with right-sided abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. Upon examination, computed tomography showed a 4.5 × 3.3 cm heterogeneous, enhancing right renal mass with a patent renal vein. Magnetic resonance imaging confirmed a T1/T2 hypointense, diffusion-restricting, right mid-renal mass that was fluorodeoxyglucose-avid on positron emission tomography. We initially suspected primary renal cell carcinoma. However, after a right nephrectomy, no evidence of neoplasia was observed; instead, a renal abscess containing filamentous bacteria was noted, raising suspicion for infection of the Nocardia species. Special stains confirmed a diagnosis of Nocardia renal abscess. Computed tomography of the chest and brain revealed no lesions consistent with infection. We initiated a long-term therapeutic regimen of anti-Nocardia therapy with imipenem and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole.
Reward Responsivity in Parenting: Development of a Novel Measure in Mothers of Young Children.

The purpose of the current study was to develop and evaluate a measure of maternal reward responsivity in parenting. Deficits in reward responsivity, a common feature of depression, may contribute to maladaptive parenting behaviors. Reward responsivity is an individual difference in reactivity to pleasurable stimuli and represents a key motivational component that could contribute to the frequency and quality of mothers’ interactions with their infants. However, there is currently no measure of reward responsivity in parenting, which would be necessary to evaluate the link between mother reward responsivity, behaviors towards their infant, and infant behavior. Therefore, the current study reports on the development and initial evaluation of a self-report measure of reward responsivity in parenting, the Mother Inventory of Reward Experience (MIRE). We evaluated the MIRE among 200 mothers (M = 28.45, SD = 5.50) recruited from a pediatric primary care center. After item analysis, 22 items were retained and displayed high internal consistency reliability and test re-test reliability. Convergent validity was established via a significant correlation with global reward responsivity. Concurrent validity was established via significant correlations with depressive symptoms, parenting stress, and child behavior problems. Incremental validity of the MIRE over a measure of global reward responsivity was supported. These results support the reliability and validity of the MIRE as a measure of reward responsivity in parenting.
Treatment of chest burn contracture causing respiratory compromise with island release and grafting using cross-link collagen and Integra™ bilayer dressing

Post-burn skin contractures of the anterior and lateral abdomen and chest may result in respiratory compromise due to limitation of rib excursion. This case report describes a young man with respiratory compromise limiting his daily activity and function, as a result of a 90% burn sustained 6 years previously. Release of his chest and upper abdomen was achieved using “island” scar releases and a cross-linked bovine tendon collagen and glycosaminoglycan and a semi-permeable polysiloxane bilayer matrix dressing (Integra™) followed by subsequent split thickness skin graft. An immediate increase in maximal inspiratory volume was obtained intra-operatively and in the im­mediate post-operative period, and this improvement was sustained after healing of all wounds with subjective relief of the patient’s symptoms.
Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography in pre-clinical Alzheimer’s disease (S16.001)

Objective: To determine whether retinal structural and vascular changes occur in pre-clinical Alzheimer’s disease Background: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is marked by slowly progressive memory loss, behavioral changes, and deterioration of executive function. Approved treatments may prevent further neurodegeneration, but symptoms of AD only become apparent after irreversible neuron loss has already occurred. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) are noninvasive imaging techniques that allow analysis of retinal and microvascular anatomy. We used OCT and OCTA technology to compare retinal architecture and vascularization between cognitively normal individuals with pre-clinical, biomarker positive AD and biomarker negative age-matched controls. Design/Methods: Subjects were recruited from our Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC). All subjects were cognitively normal and had either positron emission tomography or cerebrospinal fluid analysis for known biomarkers of AD, and separated into either biomarker positive or biomarker negative groups. Exclusion criteria included presence of underlying ophthalmic disease, elevated IOP, or high refractive error. OCTA was performed using an AngioVueHD (OptoVue, California); retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, ganglion cell layer thickness, foveal thickness, vascular density, macular volume, and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) data were collected. A model III analysis of covariance was used to analyze data. Results: 32 subjects were enrolled in the study. Data was collected from 57 eyes from 30 patients ; 16 were biomarker negative, 14 were biomarker positive. The FAZ was significantly increased in biomarker positive patients (0.30mm 2 vs. 0.40mm 2 , n = 0.002). Inner foveal thickness was found to be thinner in biomarker positive patients (75.4 vs. 66 μm, p = 0.278). Conclusions: These data suggest that biomarker positive, pre-clinical AD subjects have retinal microvascular abnormalities in addition to foveal thinning. Furthermore, patients with pre-clinical AD may be identifiable by OCTA characteristics prior to the onset of cognitive dysfunction, which could allow for early therapeutic opportunities to prevent further neuronal loss. Study Supported by: Optovue, Inc Disclosure: Dr. Van Stavern has nothing to disclose. Dr. Apte has nothing to disclose. Dr. Kung has nothing to disclose. Dr. O9Bryhim has nothing to disclose. Dr. Coble has nothing to disclose.
The Discrete Equations

In order to develop a scheme for the numerical computation of magneto-hydrodynamic equilibria, we apply the ideas used in the previous chapter to formulate a discrete variational principle for the potential energy E. This is accomplished by writing down a second-order accurate discrete approximation of E based on a rectangular mesh. To arrive at finite difference equations for equilibrium, we set the derivatives of the approximation of E with respect to the nodal values of the unknowns equal to zero.
Purification and Properties of the B Component of Escherichia coli Tryptophan Synthetase

SUMMARY The procedure used to purify the B subunit of Escherichia coli tryptophan synthetase is described. The purified protein ap- pears nearly homogeneous in the ultracentrifuge and in starch gel electrophoresis. Its sedimentation coefficient was determined to be 5.0X, and a molecular weight of 108,000 was calculated from ultracentrifuge experiments. Pyridoxal phosphate has been established as the cofactor of the enzyme; approximately 2 moles are bound to each mole of B protein. B protein was re- solved into an apoenzyme which is catalytically inactive in the pyridoxal phosphate-dependent conversion of indole to trypto- phan but which retains its capacity to aid the A protein in indolyl- glycerol phosphate cleavage. Treatment with sodium borohy- dride results in a protein which is inactive in the indole to tryptophan conversion but is more active than the native protein in assisting the A subunit in the cleavage of indolylglyc- erol phosphate. A calculation based on the specific activities and molecular weights of the purified tryptophan synthetase subunits and their complex suggests that the catalytically active AB complex consists of 2 A protein molecules and 1 B protein molecule. REFERENCES
Detection of Philadelphia chromosome-positive cells from glass slide smears using the polymerase chain reaction.

Abstract Southern and Northern blot hybridization studies and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) have been used to analyze the bcr-abl gene complex in chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Because fresh or cryopreserved cells may not always be available for molecular analyses, we investigated the possibility of using routinely prepared glass slide smears of blood or bone marrow as our source of cellular material. Cellular RNA was prepared directly from the blood or bone marrow smears using a modified RNA extraction procedure. cDNA was synthesized from RNA and amplified with PCR using bcr and abl-specific primers. Using this procedure, the bcr-abl fusion gene was detected by PCR in 21 of 21 patients with CML. Three patients who had undergone allogenic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) for CML were also studied by PCR. bcr-abl was identified transiently in one patient, persisted in one patient after BMT for 2 years until relapse occurred, and was absent in one patient to 18 months after BMT. We have shown that PCR can detect the bcr-abl gene of CML using material from glass-slide smears. This technique may be useful as a general approach in evaluating archival hematologic specimens for the expression of critical gene products.
A 280mV 3.1pJ/code Huffman Decoder for DEFLATE Decompression Featuring Opportunistic Code Skip and 3-way Symbol Generation in 14nm Tri-gate CMOS

A 10,790μm2 dynamic Huffman decoder targeted for DEFLATE header decompression in area and energy constrained IoT platforms is fabricated in 14nm Trigate CMOS. Ternary CAM (TCAM) assisted concurrent literal-length and distance tree generation, opportunistic code-skipping with register file tagging to leverage symbol sparsity, and 3-way forward-reverse-parallel Huffman decoding results in 300 cycle header processing latency, 2.4× faster than conventional serial decoding approach. Absence of custom circuits enables a fully synthesizable design operating over a wide supply range of 210-900mV with 895M codes/s throughput measured at 750mV, 25°C. Near-threshold voltage operation and clock power reduction with vector latch insertion provides peak energy-efficiency of 3.1pJ/code (5.9× higher than nominal) at 280mV, 15MHz operation with 32μW and 6μW total and leakage power consumption.
Effects of Intrapulmonary Percussive Ventilation on Peak, Plateau Pressure, and Auto-PEEP: A Bench Model

Background: Intrapulmonary percussive ventilation (IPV) in conjunction with conventional ventilation provides benefits for secretion clearance, improved oxygenation, and atelectasis[1]. Studies have shown IPV can cause dynamic hyperinflation and lung injury in patients receiving Volume Control ventilation (VC) [2]. Riffard et al demonstrate hyperinflation and auto-PEEP to be affected by extrinsic PEEP with higher extrinsic PEEP (PEEPex) diminishing auto-PEEP[2]. The goal of this study was to determine if hyperinflation and auto-PEEP would be increased if PEEPex were set to zero. To evaluate these effects, changes in peak pressure (Ppeak), plateau pressure (Ppause), and auto-PEEP were measured with low and high frequency IPV settings using an active lung simulator with long and short time constants. Methods: An Avea ventilator was set to VC, f 15 breaths/min, VT 500 mL, flow 60 L/min, PT 0.50 s, PEEP 0 cm H2O, flow trigger 2.0 L/min, and FIO2 0.21. Then connected to an ASL 5000 as a passive lung (compliance of 20 mL/cm H2O or 50 mL/cm H2O with resistance set at 5 cm H2O/L/s). After baseline measures were obtained IPV was added to the system at low and high frequency settings. Six trials with low compliance, 3 of which had low frequency IPV and 3 with high frequency IPV. The same procedure was repeated with a high compliance. Driving pressure was approximately 27 psig and was applied for 2 min. Measurements of Ppeak, Ppause, and auto-PEEP were collected at steady state. Results: Pressure and volume data ± IPV at low and high frequency are shown in Figures A and B. VT increased the most in conditions of high compliance. Ppeak and Ppause increased the most in conditions of low compliance. The altering of IPV frequency did not affect these pressures significantly. Altering IPV frequency increased auto-PEEP in both conditions of low and high compliance with a greater effect in the latter. Conclusions: The addition of IPV to a conventional ventilator increases Ppeak, Ppause, and levels of auto-PEEP in a model with varying compliance. In a patient with varying lung units of compliance and resistance the modality should be applied with caution. The observation that auto-PEEP develops with IPV warrants future studies to evaluate patient-ventilator trigger dyssynchrony when IPV is superimposed on conventional ventilation. 1. Dellamonica J, Louis B, Lyazidi A, et al. Intensive Care Med 2008;34:2035-2043. 2. Riffard G, Buzenet J, Guerin C. Respir Care 2014;59(7):1116-1122.
Genetics of Lipid Disorders

The majority of lipid disorders have a genetic basis of inheritance; however, not all of these disorders are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). In this chapter we review the most common genetic disorders of lipid metabolism summarizing the genetic defects, clinical presentations and treatment modalities. We present evidence from recent genetic epidemiology studies identifying disorders linked to increased CVD risk.
On the use of usage patterns from telemetry data for test case prioritization

Abstract Context Modern applications contain pervasive telemetry to ensure reliability and enable monitoring and diagnosis. This presents a new opportunity in the area of regression testing techniques, as we now have the ability to consider usage profiles of the software when making decisions on test execution. Objective The results of our prior work on test prioritization using telemetry data showed improvement rate on test suite reduction, and test execution time. The objective of this paper is to further investigate this approach and apply prioritization based on multiple prioritization algorithms in an enterprise level cloud application as well as open source projects. We aim to provide an effective prioritization scheme that practitioners can implement with minimum effort. The other objective is to compare the results and the benefits of this technique factors with code coverage-based prioritization approaches, which is the most commonly used test prioritization technique. Method We introduce a method for identifying usage patterns based on telemetry, which we refer to as “telemetry fingerprinting.” Through the use of various algorithms to compute fingerprints, we conduct empirical studies on multiple software products to show that telemetry fingerprinting can be used to more effectively prioritize regression tests. Results Our experimental results show that the proposed techniques were able to reduce over 30% in regression test suite run times compared to the coverage-based prioritization technique in detecting discoverable faults. Further, the results indicate that fingerprints are effective in identifying usage patterns, and that the fingerprints can be applied to improve regression testing techniques. Conclusion In this research, we introduce the concept of fingerprinting software usage patterns through telemetry. We provide various algorithms to compute fingerprints and conduct empirical studies that show that fingerprints are effective in identifying distinct usage patterns. By applying these techniques, we believe that regression testing techniques can be improved beyond the current state-of-the-art, yielding additional cost and quality benefits.
Improved EM Tactical Applications through UAS-Enhanced High-Resolution Mesoscale Data Assimilation and Modeling

Abstract : The objective is to develop, validate, and transition new METOC capabilities within a high-resolution modeling system using advanced data assimilation of UAS data in order to achieve superior short and medium term forecasts of high-impact weather and EM-related parameters. We will use three crucial model components: i) the coupled atmospheric and oceanic components of the Coupled Ocean/Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS 1), ii) the 3D-variational (3DVAR) analysis schemes NAVDAS (NRL Atmospheric Variational Data Assimilation System) for the atmosphere and NCODA (Navy Coupled Ocean Data Assimilation) for the ocean and wave models, and iii) the COAMPS Adjoint observation impact system. COAMPS-OS 1 will be used as the software interface for configuring COAMPS and the other system components to facilitate high-resolution coupled mesoscale forecasts.
News for All the People: The Epic Story of Race and the American Media by Juan González and Joseph Torres. London and New York: Verso, 2011, 453 Pp.

(2012). News for All the People: The Epic Story of Race and the American Media by Juan Gonzalez and Joseph Torres. London and New York: Verso, 2011, 453 Pp. American Journalism: Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 126-128.
Experimental Verification of the Effect of Uncoordinated Charging of Electric Vehicles on Power Grids

The anticipated increase in the number of Electric Vehicles will have diverse effects on the power system. Although the transmission system might be impacted, the majority of the impacts will be witnessed at the distribution system level. These impacts include both the system loading conditions and power quality issues. This paper provides insights on the impacts of electric vehicle charging using a small-scale laboratory distribution system. The paper shows experimental results of the effect of Electric Vehicles on the system loading and voltage levels at different points of the distribution system.
Polymerization of Counteranions in the Cationic Nanoporesof a Cross-linked Lyotropic Liquid Crystal Network to Modify Ion TransportProperties

The nanopores of an as-synthesized cross-linked, cationic, type I bicontinuous cubic (QI)-phase lyotropic liquid crystal network were modified by exchange of its Br– counteranions in the pores with...
The developmental origins of sex-biased expression in cardiac development

Expression patterns between males and females vary in every adult tissue, even in organs with no conspicuous dimorphisms such as the heart. While studies of male and female differences have traditionally focused on the influence of sex hormones, these do not account for all the differences at the molecular and epigenetic levels. We previously reported that a substantial number of genes were differentially expressed in male and female mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells and revealed dose-dependent enhancer activity in response to Prdm14, a key pluripotency factor expressed more highly in female ES cells. In this work, we investigated the role of Prdm14 in establishing sex-specific gene expression networks. We surveyed the sex-specific landscape in early embryogenesis with special reference to cardiac development. We generated sex-specific co-expression networks from mouse ES cells, examined the presence of sex-specific chromatin domains, and analyzed previously published datasets from different developmental time points to characterize how sex-biased gene expression waxes and wanes to evaluate whether sex-biased networks are detectable throughout heart development. We performed ChIP-seq on male and female mouse ES cells to determine differences in chromatin status. Our study reveals sex-biased histone modifications, underscoring the potential for the sex chromosome complement to prime the genome differently in early development with consequences for later expression biases. Upon differentiation of ES cells to cardiac precursors, we found sex-biased expression of key transcription and epigenetic factors, some of which persisted from the undifferentiated state. Using network analyses, we also found that Prdm14 plays a prominent role in regulating a subset of dimorphic expression patterns. To determine whether sex-biased expression is present throughout cardiogenesis, we re-analyzed data from two published studies that sampled the transcriptomes of mouse hearts from 8.5 days post-coitum embryos to neonates and adults. We found sex-biased expression at every stage in heart development, and interestingly, identified a subset of genes that exhibit the same bias across multiple cardiogenic stages. Overall, our results support the existence of sexually dimorphic gene expression profiles and regulatory networks at every stage of cardiac development, some of which may be established in early embryogenesis and epigenetically perpetuated.
Promoting Family Engagement in the ICU: Experience From a National Collaborative of 63 ICUs.

Objectives:As part of an improvement program targeting ICU, a national collaborative was launched to help hospitals implement patient- and family-centered care engagement initiatives.Design:Ten-month quality improvement collaborative.Setting:Guided by a national patient and family advisory group, pa
UNIVERSAL SCREENING OF COVID-19 IN ASYMPTOMATIC PATIENTS STARTING FERTILITY TREATMENT IN NEW YORK CITY

Objective: To evaluate a protocol of universal symptom and viral screening prior to initiation of controlled ovarian hyperstimulation among patients receiving care in New York City Design: Prospective cohort study Materials and Methods: Prior to initiation of controlled ovarian hyperstimulation for oocyte cryopreservation or in vitro fertilization cycles, patients were screened by phone for symptoms of fever, cough, sore throat, recent travel or contact with confirmed COVID cases If negative, patients were scheduled for nasopharyngeal swabs at our center the following day, with visits spaced at 15 minute intervals to avoid crowding Upon presentation for swab testing, patients were again screened for symptoms and fever Nasopharyngeal swabs were collected in accordance with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, and delivered to the university’s clinical microbiology laboratory The swabs were tested using the Roche Cobas 6800 SARS-CoV-2 test, a qualitative assay, using real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test (Roche Diagnostics, USA), with results delivered in the same day A negative test result was required prior to patients' baseline ultrasound and bloodwork the following morning This study was conducted from April 21- May 21, 2020, Results: The study sample included 151 asymptomatic patients who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 via nasopharyngeal swab Overall, 149 (98 68%) tested negative for COVID-19, 1 (0 66%) tested indeterminate, 2 (1 32%) tested invalid, and 0 (0%) tested positive for COVID-19 Of the 149 patients who have tested negative, 81 have successfully undergone oocyte retrieval without complications One patient screened positive for symptoms at the time of swab presentation and was instructed to return for testing in 2 weeks Conclusions: The incidence of COVID-19 infection among asymptomatic patients seeking fertility treatment in NYC is low We have demonstrated that fertility care can safely resume in a way to limit risk to our patients, staff, and our physicians working in the epicenter of infection
Visualization of refrigerant two-phase flow before and through distributor and evaluation of its performance

Abstract This paper presents an evaluation of the performance of a refrigerant distributor with visualization of the two-phase flow. The distributor is a typical conical design w/o the orifice for about 4 kW R134a system. Three factors influencing two-phase flow distribution are varied: mass flow rate, distributor inlet quality, and orientation. We looked at the uniformity of mass flow rates, evaporator inlet qualities, and capacities of each circuit. The authors built a transparent distributor following the exact geometry of an original distributor to visualize two-phase flow regimes exiting the expansion device and entering the distributor. We related flow regimes with distributor performance. A high-speed camera is used to capture two-phase flow regimes. After acquiring results for a baseline situation, the authors applied two approaches in an attempt to improve flow distribution: The first is manual adjustment of the resistance of each circuit individually to achieve uniform mass flow rates, and the second is the homogenization of the flow regime before division by adding an orifice in the distributor before separation to four channels. The average deviations of capacity for each branch are 9% for the baseline case, 3.3% for manual adjusting, and only 1.6% for the homogenization approach, stressing the importance of that simple strategy.
Performance-Enhancing Drug Use in Recreational Athletes.

Family physicians may be surprised to learn the number of their patients who use performance-enhancing drugs, either deliberately to improve athletic performance or unknowingly through contaminated dietary supplements.
Cannabinoid Detection and Quantitation

In countries were medicinal or adult recreational use cannabis programs have been legalized, analytical testing including cannabinoid quantitation, pesticides and mycotoxins analysis, heavy metals analysis, residual solvents analysis, terpene profiling, and microbial screening has been regulated. Other tests like moisture content, water activity, and “filth” may also be regulated. Performance of these tests requires a suite of analytical testing platforms. This chapter will focus on cannabinoid quantitation using high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography, liquid chromatography mass spectrometry, and gas chromatography mass spectrometry. Other topics of discussion will include sample preparation, caveats to some of the applications, and non-targeted comprehensive screening methodologies using time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Although focused on cannabis and cannabinoid product testing, these methods are easily translated to hemp and hemp products. At its essence hemp is the same species as cannabis but differentiated only by its psychoactive potential as defined by total ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol content.
Regenerated cellulose in textiles: rayon, lyocell, modal and other fibres

Abstract Cellulose is the most abundant natural polymer. It has a high industrial value for many applications including as textile fibres. Regenerated cellulose fibres (RCF) have the potential to couple versatility with safety, comfort, renewability and biodegradability, which can lead to production of green textile products with superior performance. This chapter focuses on regenerated cellulose fibres and presents an overview of two established industrial processes of RCF production, namely rayon and lyocell and Ioncell, an emerging process of RCF production. General properties of RCF obtained from different processes are discussed and compared. Finally, various methods of improvement of RCF production processes as well as RCF products are also presented and discussed.
High-Throughput Screening to Identify Inhibitors of SSB-Protein Interactions

The bacterial single-stranded DNA-binding protein (SSB) uses an acidic C-terminal tail to interact with over a dozen proteins, acting as a genome maintenance hub. These SSB-protein interactions are essential, as mutations to the C-terminal tail that disrupt these interactions are lethal in Escherichia coli. While the roles of individual SSB-protein interactions have been dissected with mutational studies, small-molecule inhibitors of these interactions could serve as valuable research tools and have potential as novel antimicrobial agents. This chapter describes a high-throughput screening campaign used to identify inhibitors of SSB-protein interactions. A screen targeting the PriA-SSB interface from Klebsiella pneumoniae is presented as an example, but the methods may be adapted to target nearly any SSB interaction.
The Obesity-COVID-19 Relationship: How Much Do Diabetes and Age Matter?

Background: Obesity and diabetes have been independently linked to COVID-19 severity, but their joint impact has not been extensively investigated. This study examines the joint and mediating role of diabetes and weight in COVID-19 severity and mortality in a large sample of patients treated in a large urban hospital located in Southern California. Methods: A retrospective observational cohort study of patients who tested positive for COVID-19 between March 8, 2020 and January 25, 2021 was implemented. Participants were patients with a diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection who received care within the Cedars-Sinai Health System in Los Angeles, CA. Inclusion criteria required objectively measured height, weight, and diabetic status to be present in the patients’ medical record (N=4224). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify associated risk factors, and a regression causal mediation analysis examined the role of diabetes in the association between obesity and illness severity. All analyses were stratified by age (<65 and ≥65). Findings: Among individuals younger than 65yo, diabetes accounted for 19-30% of the associations between obesity and COVID-19 illness severity. In both age groups, those with both obesity and diabetes had the highest odds of increased disease severity. Among patients 65yo and older, being underweight (BMI <18.5) was a risk factor for mortality regardless of diabetes history. Interpretation: Our findings have clinical implications in documenting which patients may be at elevated risk for hospitalization and adverse outcomes. More in-depth prospective studies are needed to capture how glycemic regulation before and after infection influence prognosis. Funding Statement: This work is supported by the National Cancer Institute (1U54CA260591-01; Cheng/Figueiredo). The manuscript was partially supported by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) Obesity Health Disparities Research Center (U54MD0000502; Salvy/Dutton), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD; R01HD092483; Salvy/de la Haye) and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Eris M. Field Chair in Diabetes Research (P30-DK063491; Goodarzi). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NCI, NIMHD, NICHD or NIDDK. Declaration of Interests: We declare no competing interests. Ethics Approval Statement: The CSMC institutional review board approved all protocols for the current study (Proposal # Pro00056865).
A Case for Hurricane Irene: Disaster Recovery Preparedness Score

This case study is for business students, who are taking a class in Disaster Recovery from an internet securities perspective. It is recommended that the students should have been exposed to the issues of disaster recovery (DR), recovery plans, business criticality, business tolerance, computer security, risk management techniques, and recovery strategies before reading this case. This case is about trying to measure the disaster recovery preparedness (DRP) of a university by creating a disaster recovery preparedness score (DRPS) in order to evaluate how prepared universities are for major disasters that may disrupt their business operations. It also serves as a template for students to understand and appreciate the parts of a complete implementation of a university’s DRP plan.
A Complex Systems Approach to Understanding and Combating the Obesity Epidemic

Publisher Summary Obesity has become an important public health crisis worldwide. The obesity epidemic urgently requires well-crafted policy interventions but also represents an especially challenging problem for study and for policy design due to its complexity. Many of its features—breadth of scale, diversity in actors, and multiplicity of mechanisms—are hallmarks of a complex adaptive system. The lessons and tools of complexity science can help to understand and to combat the obesity epidemic, but only if complexity is taken seriously and the problem of obesity is approached from a systems viewpoint. Agent-based computational modeling (ABM) is an especially promising avenue for future research and for policy exploration. This is a powerful and relatively new approach in which complex dynamics are modeled by constructing “artificial societies” on computers. In an ABM, every individual actor (or “agent”) in the system is explicitly represented in computer code. These agents are placed in a spatial context with specified starting conditions and are given a set of adaptive rules for interaction with each other and with their environment. The agents' decision processes and their interactions produce the output for agents themselves and for the system as a whole. In this way, the computer simulation “grows” macro-level patterns and trends from the bottom up.
Vertical Integration in Oligopoly

In this article, I investigate the implications of vertical mergers between upstream and downstream firms, where the upstream market is characterized by competition among a few firms (oligopolistic). I focus on vertical mergers that are motivated by the quest of the upstream firms to improve the information that is available to them about the characteristics of the downstream market. Such an investigation has already been pursued in the context of a monopolistic upstream market. Crocker, for instance, examines an environment of a bilateral monopoly that arises when the provision of an intermediate good requires the use of specialized assets. He demonstrates that when one of the firms has access to private information about its productivity, there are incentives for the firms to vertically integrate, in order to eliminate "opportunistic behavior" on the part of the privately informed firm and to improve production efficiency. In fact, in Crocker's analysis both the producer surplus and social welfare are higher with vertical integration, since the vertical
The Psychology Of Advertising: A Simple Exposition Of The Principles Of Psychology In Their Relation To Successful Advertising

A pioneering contribution to applied psychology. More than any other, this work served to make the business community aware of the power of psychological conceptions in the design of effective advertising.
Dynamic multi‐coil tailored excitation for transmit B1 correction at 7 Tesla

Purpose Tailored excitation (TEx) based on interspersing multiple radio frequency pulses with linear gradient and higher-order shim pulses can be used to obtain uniform flip angle in the presence of large radio frequency transmission (B ) inhomogeneity. Here, an implementation of dynamic, multislice tailored excitation using the recently developed multi-coil nonlinear shim hardware (MC-DTEx) is reported. Methods MC-DTEx was developed and tested both in a phantom and in vivo at 7 T, and its efficacy was quantitatively assessed. Predicted outcomes of MC-DTEx and DTEx based on spherical harmonic shims (SH-DTEx) were also compared. Results For a planned 30 flip angle, in a phantom, the standard deviation in excitation improved from 28% (regular excitation) to 12% with MC-DTEx. The SD in in vivo excitation improved from 22 to 12%. The improvements achieved with experimental MC-DTEx closely matched the theoretical predictions. Simulations further showed that MC-DTEx outperforms SH-DTEx for both scenarios. Conclusion Successful implementation of multislice MC-DTEx is presented and is shown to be capable of homogenizing excitation over more than twofold B variations. Its benefits over SH-DTEx are also demonstrated. A distinct advantage of MC hardware over SH shim hardware is the absence of significant eddy current effects, which allows for a straightforward, multislice implementation of MC-DTEx. Magn Reson Med, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A Review of “Roots and Research in Urban School Gardens”

“The urban school garden represents a cultural, pedagogical and practical shift in priorities towards the earth” (p. 1). Veronica Gaylie's latest book is just one example of the many ways she has c...