cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Florida bladder cancer trends 1981-2004:Minimal progress in the reduction of advanced disease

A25 Introduction: While bladder cancer (BC) is the 4 th most common cancer in males in the U.S. there are no accepted screening recommendations for this disease despite the fact that the greatest risk factors for BC are identifiable and modifiable (i.e., tobacco exposure). Survival from BC is highly correlated with stage of disease. We sought to ascertain if there have been any changes in the stage at presentation of BC in Florida over the last 25 years. > Methods: The Florida Cancer Data Registry was evaluated for all BC cases between 1981 and 2004. Cases were coded and analyzed as local, in-situ or advanced (regional and distant) disease. Cases were stratified by demographic groups. > Results: The overall incidence of BC declined slightly over the last 25 years from 24.3 to 20.5 cases per 100,000. Overall, non-Hispanic White males have a nearly three-fold incidence of BC compared to Black males, while Hispanic males have approximately a two-fold higher incidence compared to Black males. Non-Hispanic White females have nearly a two-fold increased incidence compared to both Black and Hispanic females. Advanced stage BC decreased minimally over 25 years; white and black females had the smallest decline in annual percentage changes of advanced BC. Conclusions: Despite knowledge of the main risk factors for BC, there have been only small decreases in the percentage of patients presenting with advanced cases in Florida over the last 25 years. BC may thus be an appropriate cancer for increased public awareness campaigns and potentially targeted screening of high-risk populations.
Another Senseless Death — The Case for Supervised Injection Facilities

Many heroin users abstain from use while taking buprenorphine, but the daily decision to take it is tough. Supervised injection facilities can save lives, improve health, increase neighborhood safety, reduce cost, and ultimately increase engagement in treatment.
A comparison of induction of labor success rates over three time periods in 20 years at a single academic tertiary care center: are we improving vaginal delivery rates?

AbstractObjective: To compare the rates of successful induction of labor during three one-year periods over 20 years at a single institution.Methods: All women at 37 weeks or beyond with a living, singleton, cephalic fetus admitted for induction of labor in 1992, 2002, and 2012 were included. The use of induction agents and rates of successful vaginal delivery were compared.Results: A total of 627 women were evaluated, 219 in 1992, 220 in 2002, and 188 in 2012. Various induction agents were employed over the 20 year period. However, the rates of successful vaginal deliveries did not significantly vary over the three time periods, 79.5% in 1992, 72.3% in 2002, 76.1% in 2012, p = .21. In subgroup analysis, no significant differences were found among women with one or more prior vaginal delivery, no prior vaginal delivery, or after excluding those with a prior cesarean section. In multiple variable logistic regression analysis, no induction agent besides amniotomy improved successful vaginal delivery rates.C...
Presurgical thalamic "hubness" predicts surgical outcome in temporal lobe epilepsy

Objective: To characterize the presurgical brain functional architecture presented in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) using graph theoretical measures of resting-state fMRI data and to test its association with surgical outcome. Methods: Fifty-six unilateral patients with TLE, who subsequently underwent anterior temporal lobectomy and were classified as obtaining a seizure-free (Engel class I, n = 35) vs not seizure-free (Engel classes II–IV, n = 21) outcome at 1 year after surgery, and 28 matched healthy controls were enrolled. On the basis of their presurgical resting-state functional connectivity, network properties, including nodal hubness (importance of a node to the network; degree, betweenness, and eigenvector centralities) and integration (global efficiency), were estimated and compared across our experimental groups. Cross-validations with support vector machine (SVM) were used to examine whether selective nodal hubness exceeded standard clinical characteristics in outcome prediction. Results: Compared to the seizure-free patients and healthy controls, the not seizure-free patients displayed a specific increase in nodal hubness (degree and eigenvector centralities) involving both the ipsilateral and contralateral thalami, contributed by an increase in the number of connections to regions distributed mostly in the contralateral hemisphere. Simulating removal of thalamus reduced network integration more dramatically in not seizure-free patients. Lastly, SVM models built on these thalamic hubness measures produced 76% prediction accuracy, while models built with standard clinical variables yielded only 58% accuracy (both were cross-validated). Conclusions: A thalamic network associated with seizure recurrence may already be established presurgically. Thalamic hubness can serve as a potential biomarker of surgical outcome, outperforming the clinical characteristics commonly used in epilepsy surgery centers.
Potential impact-induced water-solid reactions on the Moon

Abstract Water (ice, liquid, or vapor) is a critical driver of future exploration, and methods of its detection and characterization are a high priority for upcoming lunar missions. Thus, we assess the potential for alteration products resulting from water-ice liberated during various impact events in the lunar polar regions. In this work, we estimate the maximum amount and duration of melted, vaporized, or sublimed water-ice during representative post-impact environments using a model of bulk heat transfer. Our model is sensitive to heat loss by radiation, initial and final near-surface temperatures, and pre-existing water-ice abundance and distribution. Mineral dissolution rates in aqueous solution are used as a metric for potential chemical alteration in the presence of liberated water-ice following an impact. We find that the modeled timescales and potential for water liberation and reactivity are compatible with near-surface chemical alteration in some lunar post-impact environments. While initial surface temperatures less than ∼110 K are adequate to maintain near-surface ice reservoirs at the lunar poles, when heated, pore pressures below a depth of ∼35 cm are potentially adequate to sustain liquid water. Mild near-surface environments (e.g., ∼5 °C) lasting a few decades, allow for aqueous alteration of sensitive minerals such as olivine, apatite, and glassy materials. Higher temperatures favor degassing of H2O, but vapor-phase interactions may occur. The limited amounts of available water will likely result in reactions with only the most sensitive minerals such as glasses and Fe-metal. Over time, secondary mineralization would be mixed into the upper few meters of the lunar regolith through subsequent bombardment, assuming it escapes later intense heating events; however, surface exposures would be subjected to space weathering. Nonetheless, based on our modeling, future explorers should consider instrumentation capable of detecting minor to trace amounts of impact-induced chemical alteration in the upper few meters of the lunar surface.
Early Literacy Teacher Preparation: One University's Perspective.

Colleges and universities can have an impact on the entire field of education when preparing teachers for one of the most challenging part of the job: teaching literacy. When teachers are properly trained and have a toolbox of strategies and teaching techniques to use, they can have a tremendous impact on student learning. In teacher preparation courses, pre-service teachers have the opportunity to learn content and pedagogy while field experiences allow them to practice their newly learned skills. This study explores what instruction teachers need to have, in order to teach reading effectively, especially when teaching students who struggle with literacy. Coletti (2013) refers to these students as SEEDS students: Struggling readers and learners from all social groups, Economically disadvantaged youngsters, English language learners, Dyslexic students and Specific learning disabilities and language impairments. The purpose of this research was to explore one university’s students’ perspectives on an early literacy teacher preparation. Subscribe to LDMJ
Broadening the exploration of the accelerator design space in embedded scalable platforms

Accelerators are specialized hardware designs that generally guarantee two to three orders of magnitude higher energy efficiency than general-purpose processor cores for their target computational kernels. To cope with the complexity of integrating many accelerators into heterogeneous systems, we have proposed Embedded Scalable Platforms (ESP) that combines a flexible architecture with a companion systemlevel design (SLD) methodology. In ESP, we leverage high-level synthesis (HLS) to expedite the design of accelerators, improve the process of design-space exploration (DSE), and promote the reuse of accelerators across different target systems-on-chip (SoCs). HLS tools offer a powerful set of parameters, known as knobs, to optimize the architecture of an accelerator and evaluate different trade-offs in terms of performance and costs. However, exploring a large region of the design space and identifying a rich set of Pareto-optimal implementations are still complex tasks. The standard knobs, in fact, operate only on loops and functions present in the high-level specifications, but they cannot work on other key aspects of SLD such as I/O bandwidth, on-chip memory organization, and trade-offs between the size of the local memory and the granularity at which data is transferred and processed by the accelerators. To address these limitations, we augmented the set of HLS knobs for ESP with three additional knobs, named eXtended Knobs (XKnobs). We used the XKnobs for exploring two selected kernels of the wide-area motion imagery (WAMI) application. Experimental results show that the DSE is broadened by up to 8.5× for the performance figure (latency) and 3.5× for the implementation costs (area) compared to use only the standard knobs.
The Structure and Cl-O Dissociation Energy of the ClOO Radical: Finally, the Right Answers for the Right Reason

The chlorine peroxy radical (ClOO) has historically been a highly problematic system for theoretical studies. In particular, the erratic ab initio predictions of the Cl–O bond length reported in the literature thus far exhibit unacceptable errors with respect to the experimental structure. In light of the widespread disagreement observed, we present a careful and systematic investigation of the ClOO geometry toward the basis set and correlation limits of single reference ab initio theory, employing the cc-pVXZ (X = D, T, Q, 5, 6) basis sets extrapolated to the complete basis set limit and coupled cluster theory through single, double, triple, and perturbative quadruple excitations [CCSDT(Q)]. We demonstrate a considerable sensitivity of the Cl–O bond length to both electron correlation and basis set size. The CCSDT(Q)/CBS structure is found to be re(ClO) = 2.082, re(OO) = 1.208, and θe(ClOO) = 115.4°, in remarkable agreement with Endo’s semi-experimentally determined values re(ClO) = 2.084(1), re(OO) = 1....
Secure Proof of Stake Protocol

The Secure Proof of Stake protocol (SPoS) uses a reputation-verification platform to solve the centralization, efficiency, and security problems that afflict existing blockchain consensus protocols. At heart, a secure proof of stake protocol follows naturally from a secure decentralized autonomous system for validating the reputation of anonymous users. SPoS has several advantageous features over previous PoS protocols. SPoS enables on-chain governance to decide issues such as standards for block creation, policing, and scaling. All protocol upgrades are handled swiftly, decisively, openly, and stably, through the weighted democracy of reputation-staked decision making. Because nodes no longer hash mine but rather check the validity of blocks and vote, SPoS is more efficient than proof-of-work consensus. This paper explains the SPoS protocol and how it maintains decentralization, efficiency, liveness, swift finality, and anonymity, while addressing the security issues of Byzantine faults, the various 51% attacks, stake grinding, the tragedy of the commons, DoS attacks, censorship, liveness faults, Sybil attacks, tyranny of the majority, and soft protocol upgrades.
On the Interfacial Phase Growth and Vacancy Evolution during Accelerated Electromigration in Cu/Sn/Cu Microjoints

Abstract In this work, we integrate different computational tools based on multi-phase-field simulations to account for the evolution of morphologies and crystallographic defects of Cu/Sn/Cu sandwich interconnect structures that are widely used in three dimensional integrated circuits (3DICs). Specifically, this work accounts for diffusion-driven formation and disappearance of multiple intermetallic phases during accelerated electromigration and takes into account the non-equilibrium formation of vacancies due to electromigration. The work compares nucleation, growth, and coalescence of intermetallic layers during transient liquid phase bonding and virtual joint structure evolution subjected to accelerated electromigration conditions at different temperatures. The changes in the rate of dissolution of Cu from intermetallics and the differences in the evolution of intermetallic layers depending on whether they act as cathodes or anodes are accounted for and are compared favorably with experiments. The model considers non-equilibrium evolution of vacancies that form due to differences in couplings between diffusing atoms and electron flows. The significance of this work lies in understanding the vacancy transport due to the difference in intrinsic diffusion of elements in different features of the microstructure, and the severe unidirectional convective flux of atoms due to the enforced electron wind that ultimately paves the road to study nucleation of microvoids.
Applications of Diagnostic Classification Models: A Literature Review and Critical Commentary

Diagnostic classification models (DCMs) classify examinees based on the skills they have mastered given their test performance. This classification enables targeted feedback that can inform remedial instruction. Unfortunately, applications of DCMs have been criticized (e.g., no validity support). Generally, these evaluations have been brief and not the study’s focus. Thus, the literature of DCM applications was extensively analyzed. Results mostly supported criticisms. For example, most DCM applications lacked strong reliability and validity evidence and were not used to give feedback to examinees. We provide possible explanations for these results and suggest how to advance the application and usage of DCMs.
School based optimization algorithm for design of steel frames

Abstract In this paper, a school-based optimization (SBO) algorithm is applied to the design of steel frames. The objective is to minimize total weight of steel frames subjected to both strength and displacement requirements specified by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) Load Resistance Factor Design (LRFD). SBO is a metaheuristic optimization algorithm inspired by the traditional educational process that operates within a multi-classroom school. SBO is a collaborative optimization strategy, which allows for extensive exploration of the search space and results in high-quality solutions. To investigate the efficiency of SBO algorithm, several popular benchmark frame examples are optimized and the designs are compared to other optimization methods in the literature. Results indicate that SBO can develop superior low-weight frame designs when compared to other optimization methods and improves computational efficiency in solving discrete variable structural optimization problems.
Psychological Subversion of the Patriarchal Order in The Tao Te Ching and The Dream of the Red Chamber

(2002). Psychological Subversion of the Patriarchal Order in The Tao Te Ching and The Dream of the Red Chamber. Comparative Literature: East & West: Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 105-136.
Gender, the individual, and intelligibility

In the clinic and in the laboratory, opinions differ on the relative intelligibility of the speech of women and men. However, the effect of gender alone has rarely been studied explicitly. Here we present a study of 30 talkers (15 male) and 32 listeners assessing intelligibility of a 180-sentence subset of the IEEE sentences presented in steady-state speech-shaped noise. Four signal-to-noise ratios (−4, −2, 0, + 2 dB SNR) were tested with 45 sentences each. Results showed substantial overlap between intelligibility scores for each gender. Although standard statistical approaches show a slight advantage for female talkers at all SNRs, post-hoc analyses indicated that the gender effect is an artifact driven by a few particularly unintelligible males. These results do not address intrinsic gender-related differences in speech intensity, or in the ability to overcome background noise by speaking clearly, but suggest that gender-related differences are negligible when those factors are controlled. More generally, even with a large sample of talkers, the high degree of talker-intrinsic variability in intelligibility can lead to conclusions that do not generalize to the population of interest, an issue that could affect comparisons rooted in gender, dialect, or other social factors. In the clinic and in the laboratory, opinions differ on the relative intelligibility of the speech of women and men. However, the effect of gender alone has rarely been studied explicitly. Here we present a study of 30 talkers (15 male) and 32 listeners assessing intelligibility of a 180-sentence subset of the IEEE sentences presented in steady-state speech-shaped noise. Four signal-to-noise ratios (−4, −2, 0, + 2 dB SNR) were tested with 45 sentences each. Results showed substantial overlap between intelligibility scores for each gender. Although standard statistical approaches show a slight advantage for female talkers at all SNRs, post-hoc analyses indicated that the gender effect is an artifact driven by a few particularly unintelligible males. These results do not address intrinsic gender-related differences in speech intensity, or in the ability to overcome background noise by speaking clearly, but suggest that gender-related differences are negligible when those factors are controlled. More general...
The Interactive Value of the CEO’s and the Board’s Human Capital: A Study of Biotechnology IPOs

Even though recent research draws attention to the importance of the corporate board’s human capital, the costs of garnering this capital and the interactions between board’s human capital and CEO’...
Friis Transmission Over a Ground Plane: Understanding the Effects of Nonfree-Space Conditions

The free-space Friis equation is often used in a half space over a conducting ground plane, sometimes with erroneous results. In this article, corrections for the Friis equation are shown for several ground-plane cases. This article also offers an explanation for the previously misunderstood 6-dB puzzle in the monopole-to-monopole case.
A combined creep and fatigue prediction methodology for fiber-reinforced polymer composites based on the kinetic theory of fracture

Abstract Due to the presence of different failure mechanisms in the constituents with different growth rates as well as interaction among these mechanisms, durability prediction of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites is a challenging problem. Prediction of creep and fatigue damage progression in FRP composites demands progressive damage analysis tools that can account for the physics of the constituents. In this chapter, a summary of physics-based, progressive failure modeling methodologies for long-term behavior prediction of FRP composites existing in the literature is presented first. Then, one such methodology based on the kinetic theory of fracture (KTF) is derived from the first principles that model the damage occurring in the ply and the delamination layer matrices due to fatigue and creep loading. Finite element (FE) implementations of the KTF-based methodology predicting durability of composites is presented next. Finally, results from the KTF-based methodology for creep and fatigue prediction of composites are presented and benchmarking with experimental data is performed. To conclude the chapter, a review of the literature on composite durability-related problems implementing KTF-based methodologies is provided.
High-latitude benthic bivalve biomass and recent climate change: Testing the power of live-dead discordance in the Pacific Arctic

Abstract Time-averaged molluscan death assemblages sampled from tropical to temperate open continental shelves commonly disagree in species composition with local living communities only in areas that have changed in response to anthropogenic eutrophication and other locally intense human stresses, providing a means of recognizing shifted baselines. In contrast, the ability of live-dead discordance to resolve the spatially heterogeneous effects of human-induced climate change has not been tested in high-latitudes, where climate change entails substantial changes in nutrient cycling with consequences for benthic biomass and where cold waters are antagonistic to carbonate shell preservation. North Pacific Arctic and Subarctic seabeds offer ideal conditions for testing the resolving power of molluscan live-dead discordance, using well-documented ecologic changes in nutrient cycling and benthic biomass in response to reduced sea ice. Ecosystem monitoring since 1980 has established that the boundary between the Arctic and the Subarctic on the Bering Sea continental shelf, maintained by ice-influenced bottom water, shifted northward between 1998 and 2001. The benthic community in the transitioned area now experiences new pelagic predators, more variable quantity and quality of deposited food, and altered sediment grain size, and macrofaunal dominance has shifted from diverse communities of specialized suspension or deposit feeders to facultative deposit feeding guilds. We find that in habitats where either Subarctic or Arctic conditions have persisted, bivalve death assemblages agree closely with counterpart living communities in taxon and guild composition and are not subject to significant post-mortem bias. Significant live-dead discordance occurs only in areas with documented changes in carbon delivery, sediment grain size, and community composition over the last several decades; there, death assemblages are mixtures of shells from pre- and post-transition communities, as confirmed by monitoring data. This spatial pattern is robust to both numerical abundance- and biomass-based measures of community composition. In fact, biomass is especially powerful in revealing fine, station-level discordance that is strongly tied to known sites within habitats where new carbon deposition levels, grain size, or benthos have occurred since 1980. Live-dead discordance can thus reliably differentiate between stable and rapidly changing habitats in cold, high-latitude settings, relevant to evaluating climate change, and biomass-based currencies of community composition are as robust as numerical abundance data, and in fact, improve spatial resolution.
Race, threat and workplace sexual harassment: The dynamics of harassment in the United States, 1997–2016

Sexual harassment is a persistent problem for women in the workplace. Prior research has explored the effects of sexual harassment on the psychological, physical and economic wellbeing of the victims. Despite the extensive research exploring the causes, most studies focus on micro‐level factors, and few studies examine the role of macro‐level factors on sexual harassment in the workplace. Using public Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) data and a separate dataset of individual level workplace sexual harassment complaints, we test two hypotheses about sexual harassment in American workplaces. First, we show that the decline in workplace sexual harassment complaints has been uneven, with African‐American women experiencing an increased relative risk of sexual harassment in the workplace, even as overall reported harassment complaints are down. Second, we show that economic threat — operationalized in this case through unemployment rates — drives increases in sexual harassment of women in American workplaces. While the data on harassment complaints is limited, data strongly suggests that the changes are driven by shifts in underlying levels of harassment, rather than changes in the likelihood of reporting harassment.
Taxonomic revision of the Neotropical genus Rhabdotylus Lutz, 1913 (Diptera: Tabanidae).

Background Here I revise the Neotropical genus Rhabdotylus Lutz, 1913 (Tabaninae: Diachlorini), including redescription of three species that range from Guatemala to Argentina: Rhabdotylus rubrum (Thunberg, 1827), Rhabdotylus venenatum (Osten Sacken, 1886), and Rhabdotylus viridiventris (Macquart, 1838). New information Rhabdotylus planiventris (Wiedemann, 1828) is established as a junior synonym of R. rubrum, syn. nov. A dichotomous identification key based on external morphological characters is provided.
Isolated Axillary Nerve Injury in an Elite High School American Football Player: A Case Report:

An elite high school American football athlete sustained a traumatic, isolated, axillary nerve injury. Axillary nerve injuries are uncommon, but serious injuries in American football. With the advent of nerve transfers and grafts, these injuries, if diagnosed in a timely manner, are treatable. This case report discusses the multidisciplinary approach necessary for the diagnosis and treatment of an elite high school American football player who presented with marked deltoid atrophy. The athlete's injury was diagnosed via electrodiagnostic testing and he underwent a medial triceps nerve to axillary nerve transfer. After appropriate postsurgical therapy, the athlete was able to return to American football the subsequent season and continue performing at an elite level. This case report reviews the evaluation and modern treatment for axillary nerve injuries in the athlete, including nerve transfers, nerve grafts, and return to play.
Potential Distribution of Six North American Higher-Attine Fungus-Farming Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Species

Ants are among the most successful insects in Earth's evolutionary history. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding range-limiting factors that may influence their distribution. The goal of this study was to describe the environmental factors (climate and soil types) that likely impact the ranges of five out of the eight most abundant Trachymyrmex species and the most abundant Mycetomoellerius species in the United States. Important environmental factors may allow us to better understand each species' evolutionary history. We generated habitat suitability maps using MaxEnt for each species and identified associated most important environmental variables. We quantified niche overlap between species and evaluated possible congruence in species distribution. In all but one model, climate variables were more important than soil variables. The distribution of M. turrifex (Wheeler, W.M., 1903) was predicted by temperature, specifically annual mean temperature (BIO1), T. arizonensis (Wheeler, W.M., 1907), T. carinatus, and T. smithi Buren, 1944 were predicted by precipitation seasonality (BIO15), T. septentrionalis (McCook, 1881) were predicted by precipitation of coldest quarter (BIO19), and T. desertorum (Wheeler, W.M., 1911) was predicted by annual flood frequency. Out of 15 possible pair-wise comparisons between each species' distributions, only one was statistically indistinguishable (T. desertorum vs T. septentrionalis). All other species distribution comparisons show significant differences between species. These models support the hypothesis that climate is a limiting factor in each species distribution and that these species have adapted to temperatures and water availability differently.
Direct method of constructing H - 2 -suboptimal controllers: discrete-time systems

For discrete-time systems, an H 2-suboptimal control problem is defined and analyzed. Then, an algorithm called H 2-suboptimal state feedback gain sequence (Algorithm A1) is developed. Rather than utilizing a perturbation method, which is numerically stiff and computationally prohibitive, Algorithm A1 utilizes a direct eigenvalue assignment method to come up with a sequence of H 2-suboptimal state feedback gains. Also, although the sequence of H 2-suboptimal state feedback gains constructed by Algorithm A1 depends on a parameter ɛ, the construction procedure itself does not require explicitly the value of the parameter ɛ. Next, attention is focused on constructing a sequence of H 2-suboptimal estimator-based measurement feedback controllers. Three different estimator structures (prediction, current, and reduced-order estimators) are considered. For a given H 2-suboptimal state feedback gain, a sequence of estimator gains for any of the three estimators considered can be constructed by merely dualizing Algorithm A1. The direct method of constructing H 2-suboptimal controllers developed here has a number of advantages over the perturbation method, e.g., it has the ability to design all three types of estimator-based controllers while still maintaining throughout the design the computational simplicity of it. This paper is the discrete-time version of Ref. 1. There are some conceptual similarities as well as fundamental differences between the H 2-suboptimal control problems for continuous-time and discrete-time systems. The fundamental differences arise mainly from the fact that, in contrast to continuous-time systems, for discrete-time systems the infimum of the H 2-norm over the class of strictly proper controllers is in general different from the infimum of the H 2-norm over the class of proper controllers.
Evidence from the visual world paradigm raises questions about unaccusativity and growth curve analyses.

Abstract Many syntactic theories posit a fundamental structural difference between intransitive verbs with agentive subjects (unergative verbs) and those with theme subjects (unaccusative verbs). This claim garners support from studies finding differences in the online comprehension of these verbs. The present experiments seek to replicate one such finding using the visual world paradigm (Koring, Mak, & Reuland, 2012). We control for several factors that were uncontrolled in previous studies. We find no differences in the processing of unergative and unaccusative sentences in logistic regressions and cluster analyses. However, in growth curve analyses, modeled closely on the original paper, we find differences between the verb conditions that appear to be statistically significant but are unstable across experiments. A resampling analysis reveals that the growth curve analyses are highly anticonservative, suggesting that the earlier finding was a false positive. We conclude that there is no strong evidence that unaccusatives are processed differently from unergatives. We suggest that growth curve analyses only be used with visual world paradigm data when the underlying assumptions of the analysis can be validated via resampling.
Intensive chemotherapy in patients with high grade myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS): A systematic review and meta-analysis.

e19530Background: Intensive chemotherapy (IC) regimens are rarely used in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) for many reasons including advanced age at diagnosis, the frailty of these pa...
Development of a longitudinal two-biomarker algorithm for early detection of ovarian cancer in women with BRCA mutations

Abstract Objective To develop a longitudinal algorithm combining two biomarkers, CA125 and HE4, for early detection of ovarian cancer in women with BRCA mutations. Methods Women with BRCA mutations and intact ovaries were invited to participate in a novel ovarian cancer early detection prospective study. The Risk of Ovarian Cancer Algorithm (ROCA) identifying significant increases above each woman's baseline in serum CA125 and HE4 was performed every four months; abnormal risks triggered a subsequent ultrasound. The study first used a risk algorithm for only CA125, a second algorithm was developed for HE4 and finally a risk algorithm combining the two biomarkers was implemented. The ROCA strategy was compared to Standard of Care (SOC) surveillance strategy. Results A total of 149 women enrolled in the ROCA arm while 43 women enrolled in the SOC arm. Abnormal scores were found in 24% of ROCA CA125 tests, 16% if ROCA CA125 or the novel ROCA HE4 were used independently and reduced to 8% using the new two-marker ROCA, significantly lower than the 15% of abnormal tests seen in the SOC arm (p = 0.042). The average false positive rate among women without ovarian cancer for two-marker ROCA for referral to ultrasound was 6.6% (specificity 93.4%), and for the two-marker ROCA plus ultrasound for referral to surgical consultation was 1.7% (specificity 98.3%). Conclusion A newly developed two-marker ROCA administered every 4 months had lower call-back rates than SOC surveillance. Having established high specificity, the two-marker ROCA score deserves further evaluation for sensitivity in a larger trial.
Uncommon Cervical Lesions: A Review and Discussion of the Differential Diagnosis

Context.— While the vast majority of cervical tumors consist of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related squamous cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma, a subset of rare tumor types, frequently unrelated to HPV, does occur in this location. These tumors vary widely in prognostic and therapeutic implications, and accurate recognition is crucial to providing appropriate treatment. Some are benign or portend a favorable prognosis (adenoid basal carcinoma, ectopic prostate tissue), while others are frankly malignant lesions with a less favorable prognosis (adenoid cystic carcinoma, HPV-negative endocervical adenocarcinoma, mesonephric adenocarcinoma, clear cell carcinoma, small cell carcinoma, and adenosquamous carcinoma). Objective.— To review the morphologic features of uncommon cervical lesions, the utility of immunohistochemistry for distinction between these entities, and the clinical and prognostic implications of accurate diagnosis. Data sources.— University of Michigan cases and review of the pertinent literature regarding the entities described. Conclusions.— Key morphologic and immunohistochemical features detailed herein will allow for the accurate distinction between these uncommon cervical lesions. Morphology is most useful in discriminating between the entities, as there is frequent immunohistochemical overlap between them; however, in rare instances immunohistochemistry can be useful in resolving the diagnosis.
Acute Knee Injuries in Children and Adolescents: A Review.

Importance Knee injuries in children and adolescents are exceedingly common. When an active youth presents complaining of knee pain, the treating pediatrician should be comfortable with forming a working differential diagnosis and should be able to manage many such injuries or recognize when it is necessary to make an appropriate referral. Observations Knee injuries typically present after acute trauma. Appreciating the likely etiologies pertaining to a particular case is best achieved with a thorough history and physical examination. This review discusses the etiologies of acute injuries including fractures that are unique to skeletally immature individuals, patellar dislocations, ligamentous injuries, and meniscal tears. Imaging findings and management of these conditions are also reviewed. Conclusions and relevance This review summarizes the more common acute knee injuries seen in active children and adolescents. Given how frequently such conditions present, this overview of diagnosis and management will provide a useful resource for the nonspecialist.
ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID FROM A STRAIN OF STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS

Blobel, Hans (University of Wisconsin, Madison). Isolation and characterization of deoxyribonucleic acid from a strain of Staphylococcus aureus. J. Bacteriol. 82:425–429. 1961.—Highly polymerized deoxyribonucleic acid was extracted from washed cells of Staphylococcus aureus with a mixture of equal parts of phenol and 2 m NaCl at pH 7.4. The aqueous phase was treated twice with phenol and the deoxyribonucleic acid precipitated with an equal volume of 2-ethoxyethanol. Residual ribonucleic acid was removed by treatment with ribonuclease and subsequent dialysis. Deoxyribonucleic acid was reprecipitated with 2-ethoxyethanol. The final product contained less than 1% protein. The deoxyribonucleic acid obtained from S. aureus strain S44 had a (adenosine + thymine)/(guanine + cytosine) base ratio of 1.98. Intrinsic viscosity in 0.15 m NaCl + 0.015 m sodium citrate was approximately 76 dl/g. The sedimentation coefficient, S20w, was close to 25 S.
Environmental Sustainability in East Asia: Policies and Technological Output in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan

Environmental problems but especially those related to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions present huge collective action difficulties, as the sources of the problems are local while the effects are trans-national. Efforts to control pollution can also limit rapid growth, but it is claimed here that application of the newest advancements in GHG-related technology can mitigate some of these costs. This paper examines the potential for the combined mobilization of science and technology (S&T) on the one hand, and global and regional coordination on the other. The countries of the northeast Asian region – Japan, Taiwan, Korea, and China – are the units of analysis, where patterns of GHG emissions and S&T efforts vary, and where there is a tendency for nationalist resistance to non-S&T forms of cooperation. Given the national/trans-national effects of environmental hazards, the greatest positive impact for these countries individually and regionally rests in regional research projects such as the APPCDC and technology transfer programs like the CDM.
Phosphorylation of an inhibitory subunit of cGMP phosphodiesterase in Rana catesbeiana rod photoreceptors. II. A possible mechanism for the turnoff of cGMP phosphodiesterase without GTP hydrolysis.

In amphibian rod photoreceptor membranes, P gamma, an inhibitory subunit of cGMP phosphodiesterase, is phosphorylated by a protein kinase when P gamma is complexed with the guanosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate)-bound alpha subunit of transducin (GTP gamma S.T alpha). Five different experiments support the conclusion that the phosphorylated P gamma loses its interaction with GTP gamma S.T alpha. These observations include 1) detection of the inhibitory effect of the GTP gamma S.T alpha.P gamma complex on cGMP phosphodiesterase activity after P gamma in the complex is phosphorylated in a system reconstituted from isolated components, 2) no stimulating effect of GTP gamma S.T alpha on the phosphorylated P gamma-inhibited cGMP phosphodiesterase in the reconstituted system, 3) physical release of phosphorylated P gamma from GTP gamma S.T alpha in the reconstituted system, 4) no inhibitory effect of phosphorylated P gamma on both GTP hydrolysis by T alpha and GTP gamma S/GDP exchange on T alpha in the reconstituted system, and 5) no enhanced activity of cGMP phosphodiesterase by GTP gamma S.T alpha in rod outer segment membranes after incubation of the membranes with the kinase preparation in the presence of ATP. Together with our data that P gamma released with GTP.T alpha is not phosphorylated, and that phosphorylated P gamma inhibits more effectively cGMP phosphodiesterase activity than nonphosphorylated P gamma (Tsuboi, S., Matsumoto, H., Jackson, K. W., Tsujimoto, K., Williams, T., and Yamazaki, A. (1994) J. Biol. Chem. 269, 15016-15023), these observations suggest that, after P gamma is released with GTP.T alpha from catalytic subunits of cGMP phosphodiesterase, P gamma complexed with GTP.T alpha is phosphorylated by a kinase. Then, the phosphorylated P gamma is released from GTP.T alpha and binds to active cGMP phosphodiesterase to inhibit the cGMP hydrolysis. It is suggested that in some G-protein-dependent signal transduction systems G-protein-activated effector may be phosphorylated with a specific kinase and that phosphorylation of the effector results in the turnoff of signal transduction without GTP hydrolysis.
Quenching of quantum noise and detection of weak optical signals in the quantum beat laser

Starting from a Hamiltonian model of the coupled three-level/two-mode system, a nonlinear quantum theory of the quantum beat laser is developed. The theory is valid under the special conditions that lead to correlated spontaneous emission laser (CEL) operation in the linear theory. It is shown that vanishing of the diffusion constant for the relative phase persists in the nonlinear theory and this operation is stable above threshold.. We show, on the example of the CEL gyro/gravity wave detector, how this effect can advantageously be applied to the detection of weak optical signals. A detailed analysis of the noise performance suggests that, the “in principle” sensitivity of CEL detectors might exceed the standard quantum limit. A theoretical upper limit for the sensitivity increase is established,
The Global Phase Structure of the Three Dimensional Isosceles Three Body Problem with Zero Energy

We study the global flow defined by the three-dimensional isosceles three-body problem with zero energy. A new set of coordinates and a scaled time are introduced which alow the phase space to be compactified by adding boundary manifolds. Geometric argument gives an almost complete sketch of the global phase portrait of this gravitational system.
On Understanding the Global Properties of Galaxies

The global properties of galaxies must necessarily be determined from large samples of galaxies. Yet, the means by which astronomers can choose such large samples yield data that are biased in ways known and sometimes unknown. Problems in selecting galaxy samples are reviewed. Two general techniques for overcoming these biases are discussed. One of these techniques is applied to the vexing problem of determining the average change of spiral galaxy diameter and magnitude with inclination.
Law and Neuroscience: Possibilities for Prosecutors

Many see the introduction of neuroscience into law as necessarily leading to reduced culpability, mitigation, and the ratcheting down of incarceration rates. But such possibilities may not materialize if prosecutors stay ahead of the brain science curve. This commentary provides a brief introduction to neurolaw, and highlights several key features of neuroscientific evidence that are relevant to prosecutors' work.I propose strategies by which prosecutors may respond to the introduction of neuroscientific evidence by the defense. The first, and perhaps most fundamental, strategy is to emphasize that just because an individual has an abnormal brain, it does not necessarily explain or excuse the defendant's behavior. Brain-behavior linkages are often tenuous. Second, through aggressive cross-examination of defense expert witnesses, prosecutors can highlight the differences between laboratory experiments and the real-world, and show how these differences matter greatly in limiting the law-relevant inferences that can be drawn from brain scans. No one has ever been scanned while in the heat of a fight, while plotting a murder, or while deciding whether or not to go through with a sexual assault. Recognizing that the legal use of neuroscientific evidence relies so heavily on inference and interpretation, prosecutors have an opportunity to harness the power of brain science to both prevent its misuse and to constructively use the science to promote safety and social welfare. Possibilities abound for prosecutors who are willing to research, learn, and engage with the brain sciences.
Lossless high-index contrast distributed Bragg reflector

Summary form only given. We show that lossless high index contrast structures can be achieved without affecting device performance. This approach can be extended to 3D and to more elaborate photonic structures. It will open the door to a new class of lossless photonic devices for applications in planar all-optical circuits.
Solid state properties of xylenyl ether-aryl ether sulfone triblock copolymers

The morphology and mechanical properties of a series of xylenyl ether-aryl ether sulfone ABA triblock copolymers were studied, where the A represents the xylenyl ether block (PXE) and the B represents aryl ether sulfone block (PSF). The copolymers investigated were composed of PXE block lengths of 16,000 or 23,000 g/mol together with aryl ether sulfone oligomers with molecular weights ranging from 5,000 to 20,000 g/mol. Both homo- and heterogeneous morphologies were observed depending on the composition of the copolymers. The copolymers with the high polysulfone block lengths showed higher phase demixing. The triblock copolymers showed the expected tough ductile mechanical properties, as judged by the high elongations (50–165%).
STATUTORY INTERPRETATIONS OF THE SUPREME COURT Congressional Response

Studies of the Supreme Court-Congressional relationship have concentrated on the interaction that occurs between the two institutions in constitutional policy areas while ignoring the presumably more routine aspects of the relationship involving statutory issues. This article focuses on the less visible side of Court-Congressional interaction by examining Congress' response to the Court's interpretations of labor and antitrust statutes. Patterns of reaction are delineated, and several hypotheses linking Congressional response to characteristics of the Court's decision are tested. Factors such as the unanimity and direction of the Court's decision, which are often thought to have some bearing on the response of other political actors to the Court, do not, however, provide clear-cut explanations for Congressional reaction to the Court's statutory decisions. Striking differences are found between the labor and antitrust policy areas, suggesting that those who study judicial impact need to be careful in gener...
Sol–Gel Transcription of Semi-Fluorinated Organogel Fiber into Fluorocarbon-Functionalized Silica Nanotubes

A self-assembled fiber of a perfluoroalkyl chain-containing organogelator can be an effective template for a direct synthesis of fluorocarbon-functionalized silica nanotubes through the aggregation of perfluoroalkyl chains between the gelator and a fluorocarbon-functionalized alkoxysilane.
Cellulose biosynthesis in higher plants

Cellulose is one of the most important primary plant products, yet its biosynthetic pathway remains obscure. Freeze-fracture studies have revealed that organized macromolecular structures — ‘terminal complexes' — are present on the plasma membrane, and are associated with cellulose microfibril assembly. A variety of techniques have been developed to isolate and characterize components of this cellulose synthesis complex, and to reconstitute the biosynthetic apparatus in vitro . In this review, we discuss progress to date, both in plants and in other organisms (mainly from studies with the Gram-negative bacterium, Acetobacter xylinum ). We also consider the prospects for further analysis based on an integrated approach employing biochemical, ultrastructural and genetic techniques.