cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Minimum Rail Size in Heavy Axle Load Environment

The effects of increasing axle loads on rail integrity are examined in this paper. In the present context, rail integrity refers to the prevention and control of rail failures. Rail failures usually occur because cracks or defects develop and grow from cyclic forces caused by the repeated passage of wheel loads over the rails, i.e. metal fatigue. Once a crack or defect has formed, it may grow to a critical size and cause a sudden fracture of the rail. Moreover, a broken rail may cause a train to derail. Rail integrity evaluations are performed in this paper by applying a framework developed previously to estimate track capacity. The framework is exercised using two different criteria while varying axle loads: (1) allowable rail deflections and bending stresses, and (2) metal fatigue characterized in terms of propagation life (also referred to as slow crack-growth life). The engineering analyses based on these criteria are described. Results from these analyses are used to provide the rational basis for estimating the minimum rail size under heavy axle loads.
Fault tolerant control for partial loss of control authority in aircraft using piecewise affine slab models

In this paper, a new fault tolerant control methodology is proposed for partial loss of control authority in aircraft using piecewise affine (PWA) slab models while minimizing an upper bound on a quadratic cost function. The proposed controller stabilizes and satisfies performance bounds for both the nominal and faulty systems. The controller design criteria are cast as a set of Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs) that can be solved efficiently. The new technique is illustrated in a numerical example for the Beechcraft 99 aircraft model.
The Heliospheric Magnetic Field Over the Hale Cycle

The concept that open magnetic flux of the Sun (rooted with one and only one footpoint at the Sun) is a conserved quantity is taking root in the heliospheric community. Observations show that the Sun's open magnetic flux returns to the baseline from one solar minimum to the next. The temporary enhancement in the 1AU heliospheric magnetic flux near solar maximum can be accounted for by the temporary creation of closed magnetic flux (with two footpoints at the Sun) during the ejection of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which are more frequent near solar maximum. As a part of the International Heliophysical Year activities, this paper reviews two recently discussed consequences of open flux conservation: the reversal of open magnetic flux over the solar cycle driven by Coronal Mass Ejections and the impacts of open flux conservation on the global structure of the heliospheric magnetic field. These studies demonstrate the inherent linkages between coronal mass ejections, footpoint motions back at the Sun, and the global structure and evolution of the heliospheric magnetic field.
Efficiency of the transformer Cuk PWM converter

A transformer Cuk PWM converter is analyzed for continuous conduction mode (CCM). For simplicity, an unidirectional single quadrant converter is considered. An equivalent circuit is developed for efficiency calculation. Expressions are derived for power losses in various components of the converter. Then, the efficiency is calculated theoretically for a 60 W converter. >
A systematic fitting procedure for accurate force field models to reproduce ab initio phonon spectra of nanostructures

Abstract A fitting procedure is presented to use a valence force field model to generate the phonon spectrum of large nanostructures. This approach uses a relatively large number of parameters (∼50) in order to generate the accurate ab initio phonon spectrum. Since the emphasis is in the accuracy rather than the transferability, it can only be used in similar bonding environments. Because of this, a reliable and automatic fitting procedure is essential. We discuss the detailed aspects of the fitting procedure, including the stages of fitting, the type of ab initio values used for the fitting, the weighting factors for different quantities, the number of ab initio data points needed, as well as the uniqueness of the parameters. We found that the parameters cannot be determined uniquely, indicating interdependence of the parameters. Nevertheless, the different parameters resulted from different fits all give accurate phonon spectrum compared to ab initio results. We have used the fitted valence force field model to study the phonon spectra of CdSe nanowires.
Sustainability rooted in science

The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals emphasize the importance of evidence-based decision-making. This is a clarion call for Earth scientists to contribute directly to the health, prosperity and well-being of all people.
Eliminating right-to-left shunt with patent foramen ovale closure: not as simple as it seems.

Patent foramen ovale (PFO) is associated with numerous clinical conditions, such as cryptogenic stroke, paradoxical embolism, migraine headaches, decompression illness, and shunt-related hypoxemia. As a result, transcatheter closure of PFO has become relatively common, driven by the apparent ease of
Development and Testing of a Microwave Powered Regenerable Air Purification Technology Demonstrator

Dielectric heating via microwave irradiation of contaminant laden sorbents offers distinct advantages in comparison to conventional thermal regeneration techniques. High temperatures may be achieved very rapidly because electromagnetic energy is absorbed directly by the sorbent material. A Technology Demonstrator, incorporating efficient rectangular waveguide based sorbent cartridge designs and effective microwave transmission systems was designed, fabricated and tested. Importantly, the performance of the Molecular Sieve 13X Waveguide Cartridge for the removal of water vapor, the Molecular Sieve 5A Waveguide Cartridge for the removal of CO2, and the Activated Carbon Waveguide Cartridge for removal of volatile organics from air, were each validated by successive sorption/ microwave desorption cycles.
Spinoza on Philosophical Skepticism

In the Ethics, Spinoza is not expressly concerned with skepticism and the possibility envisaged by Descartes that clear and distinct ideas or conceptions may not be true. There is reason for this, as he was of the opinion that, if as in the Ethics we proceed in our thinking in the right order, doubt will not arise.1 In his earlier works, however, he is concerned with skepticism and, in particular, with the questioning of clear and distinct ideas. In the Prolegomenon in Part One of Descartes9 Principles (G I, 145-49), he sets forth what he takes to be Descartes' attempt to allay doubts about clear and distinct perceptions. He finds there that Descartes does not succeed in answering an objection to his procedure, and he proposes an alternative way of escape from doubt. This alternative is also stated in the Improvement of the Understanding in the section on doubt or idea dubia (G II, 29-30); and considerable light is cast upon it by his discussion in this section of the nature of doubt. Distinguishing genuine doubt (vera dubitatio in mente) and merely verbal doubt, i.e. professions of doubt when "the soul does not doubt," he explains what leads to genuine doubt and how such doubt is to be removed. In my paper, I shall explicate the view stated in these passages and raise questions about the relations of this view to other views of Spinoza's. I shall also be concerned with a short and cryptic passage earlier in the Improvement of the Under
Reconfigurable pressure-sensitive terahertz metamaterials using liquid metals

We demonstrate a liquid metal-based reconfigurable terahertz metamaterial device that is not only pressure driven, but also exhibits pressure memory. The discrete response is obtained by injecting eutectic gallium indium into a microfluidic structure.
Numerical Investigation of River Ice-Bridge Pier Interaction

Rivers freeze in most North America areas in winter season. The thick ice sheets formed around bridge piers will not only change the constraint or boundary conditions of bridge structures, but also generate great forces on bridge piers under earthquake loading. The ice-pier interaction was deemed as the main reason that caused failure of bridges in South-central Alaska during the 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake. Figure 1 shows two examples of the damages occurred to the highway bridge piers. River ice increases the lateral constraint stiffness to bridge piers, hence reduces its free length and causes the formation of short piers. Short piers are notoriously known for their much weaker resistance to shear force than long piers. The interaction mechanism between ice sheet and bridge pier has to be understood in order to investigate its impact on the seismic performance of highway bridges in cold regions. This paper presents the interim results from the analysis of river ice-bridge pier interaction process.
Effects of antenatal ambroxol and dexamethasone on rat fetal lung morphogenesis

Objective:To compare the effects of antenatal ambroxol and dexamethason on rat fetal lung morphogenesis. Methods:Nine pregnant rats were divided into three groups randomly:ambroxol group,dexamethasone group and control group with 3 rats in each group. On the 19th day on gestation, cesareans were taken out and the histologic structures of 6 fetal rat lungs of each pregnant rat were observed with light microscope,electronic microscope and image analysis. Results:Under the light microscope, compared with control group,fetal rat lung in the two treatment groups had more alveolar numbers, larger alveolar space, and thinner alveolar septum(P 0.01). Under the light microscope, compared with ambroxol group,fetal rat lung in the dexamethasone group had more alveolar numbers, larger alveolar space, and thinner alveolar septum(P 0.01). Under the electronic microscope, lamellar body and cellular organs such as bioblast in endochylema of the two treatment groups were more common compared with the control group. And lamellar body in the two treatment groups was more anachromasis and condensed compared with the control group. Conclusion:Both ambroxol and dexamethasone could promote the development of fetal rat lung, and dexamethasone had prior effects to ambroxol. However, considering of much side effects of dexamethasone, it is suggested that ambroxol could be used as a better drug to promote fetal lung maturity.
A prospective, randomized study of pregnancy rates after transuterotubal and intrauterine insemination

Abstract Objective To assess the relative efficacy, in terms of clinical pregnancy rates (PRs), of transuterotubal insemination versus the more traditional intrauterine insemination (IUI) procedure. Design Prospective, randomized, cross-over. Setting University-affiliated tertiary care center. Patients One hundred sixty infertile patients underwent 414 inseminations with or without controlled ovarian hyperstimulation. Interventions All patients were randomized in their initial cycle to transuterotubal insemination or IUI then crossed-over in subsequent cycles (n=191 total cycles of transuterotubal insemination and n=223 total cycles of IUI). Transuterotubal insemination was performed initially with ultrasound guidance, and then a tactile technique was used for the last 6months of the study. Main Outcome Measures Clinical PRs and complications after both insemination methods. Results The clinical PR per treatment cycle was 7% (13/191) after transuterotubal insemination and 7% (16/223) after IUI. The overall PR per patient was 18% (29/160). The incidence of ectopic pregnancy was 1 in 191 for transuterotubal insemination cycles and 0 in 223 for IUI cycles. Other complications included 3 vasovagal episodes with transuterotubal insemination and 1 with IUI. There was no clinical evidence of tubal infection, trauma, or perforation in either group. Conclusion Transuterotubal insemination did not appear to be associated with a higher PR when compared with IUI in this study. The potential for increased risk from complications related to the more invasive tubal technique does not appear to justify its use presently.
The Impact of Intraoperative Microvascular Compromise on Outcomes in Microsurgical Breast Reconstruction

Background In microsurgical breast reconstruction, the nature and fate of postoperative vascular compromise has been well studied, but limited data exist on intraoperative vascular compromise. Methods A review of all breast free flaps between 2007 and 2012 was performed. Details of intraoperative vascular compromise were recorded. Patients who experienced intraoperative microvascular compromise (Group I) were compared with patients who experienced only postoperative microvascular compromise (Group P) and all other patients (Group N). Results A total of 612 microsurgical breast reconstructions were reviewed. There were 73 (11.9%) flaps in Group I, 27 (4.4%) in Group P, and 512 (83.7%) in Group N. Compared with Group P, Group I more often involved arterial problems (p = 0.01), required supercharging for venous problems (p = 0.02), and was more likely to be salvaged (89.0 vs. 70.4%, p = 0.03). Group I had a similar overall complication rate compared with all other flaps (Group N + P) (31.5 vs. 27.1%, p = 0.49), but a higher flap loss rate (11.0 vs. 1.7%, p = 0.0003). The need to perform > 1 arterial revision was a risk factor for flap loss in Group I (p = 0.028). Total ischemia times > 175 minutes (p = 0.047) and reperfusion times > 80 minutes (p = 0.041) significantly increased the risk of flap loss to approximately 50%. Conclusion Intraoperative vascular problems occur more frequently than postoperative vascular problems but are more frequently salvaged. They do not increase the likelihood of reoperation or total complications compared with all other flaps but do increase the risk of flap loss.
WE-A-BRC-00: The Quality Gap

Quality and safety in healthcare are inextricably linked. There are compelling data that link poor quality radiation therapy to inferior patient survival. Radiation Oncology clinical trial protocol deviations often involve incorrect target volume delineation or dosing, akin to radiotherapy incidents which also often involve partial geometric miss or improper radiation dosing. When patients with radiation protocol variations are compared to those without significant protocol variations, clinical outcome is negatively impacted. Traditionally, quality assurance in radiation oncology has been driven largely by new technological advances, and safety improvement has been driven by reactive responses to past system failures and prescriptive mandates recommended by professional organizations and promulgated by regulators. Prescriptive approaches to quality and safety alone often do not address the huge variety of process and technique used in radiation oncology. Risk-based assessments of radiotherapy processes provide a mechanism to enhance quality and safety, both for new and for established techniques. It is imperative that we explore such a paradigm shift at this time, when expectations from patients as well as providers are rising while available resources are falling. There is much we can learn from our past experiences to be applied towards the new risk-based assessments. Learning Objectives: 1.Understand the impact of clinical and technical quality on outcomes 2.Understand the importance of quality care in radiation oncology 3.Learn to assess the impact of quality on clinical outcomes D. Followill, NIH Grant CA180803
Deep Dive Topic: State of understanding of capsule modeling in context of high-foot

The work is summarized from several perspectives: 1D simulation perspective: Post-shot models agree with yield data to within a factor of ~2 at low implosion velocities, but the models diverge from the data as the velocity and convergence ratio increase. 2D simulation perspective: Integrated hohlraum-capsule post-shot models agree with primary data for most implosions, but overpredict yield and DSR for a few of the highest velocity implosions. High-resolution 3D post-shot capsule-only modeling captures much of the delivered performance of the one shot currently simulated.
Pipes and Forbes Models

As the beginning discussion on car-following models, this chapter introduces two simple models–that is, the Pipes model and the Forbesmodel, both of which are derived from drivers’ daily driving experiences. Applications of these models are discussed, and model properties are analyzed. In addition, benchmarking is performed to compare these models against numerical and empirical data.
Synergistic antiviral activity of Sofosbuvir and type-I interferons (α and β) against Zika virus.

Zika virus (ZIKV) is transmitted by mosquitoes and causes Dengue-like illness, neurological symptoms such as Guillain-Barre Syndrome and microcephaly in children born to infected pregnant mothers. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared ZIKV infection as a Global Health Emergency. However, there are no known prophylactic or therapeutic measures against this virus. As a proof of concept toward combination therapeutic strategy against ZIKV, combinations of host-targeted (Interferon-α and Interferon-β) and direct acting (Sofosbuvir) antivirals were evaluated in a hepatic cell line (Huh7) using a Cytoprotection (CP) assay. The combination of these antivirals resulted in synergistic inhibition of ZIKV infection in the in vitro CP assay. Additional testing in a ZIKV yield assay demonstrated that combination treatment of these antivirals conferred >2-log reduction in the release of viral RNA. Measurement of ZIKV proteins in the cells infected with multiple ZIKV strains isolated from different geographical regions (Americas, Asia, and Africa) using an immunofluorescence assay confirmed the effective antiviral activity of this combination against ZIKV. These results demonstrate the in vitro proof of concept (POC) for using a combination approach utilizing the strengths of both virus and host-targeted antivirals. These results suggest the effectiveness of the combination strategy in combating ZIKV, in the in vitro systems. Further evaluation of such combination therapies in vivo might provide an impetus for the development of effective ZIKV therapeutic strategies.
Some Extensions to Arbitrary Initial Point a ε I(0,2)

The purpose of this last chapter is to indicate briefly some aspects of the extension of the theory developed in Chapters 2–10 for stable limit cycles with initial point a=1 to the general case a e I(0,2) discussed in the Introduction. Many of the results given earlier for a=1 have an obvious generalization; these are summarized below without detailed proofs, beginning with relations that generalize those of Chapter 2.
COUNTING TECHNIQUES; PERMUTATIONS AND COMBINATIONS

This chapter presents counting techniques, permutations, and combinations. There are two kinds of counting problems—the problem of counting the number of elements in a set, and the problem of counting the number of ways that the elements of a set can be arranged. The arrangements of objects are called permutations if the order is important. The arrangements of objects are called combinations if the order is not important. The general counting rule is called the multiplication principle. The multiplication principle can be extended to more than two decisions. An arrangement of a set of distinct objects in a definite order without repetitions is called a permutation of the set.
Daily Fluctuations in Hormonal and Performance Markers in Collegiate Weightlifters

The purpose of this study was to assess relationships between daily fluctuations in hormonal and performance markers in weightlifters. Nine male collegiate weightlifters gave daily pre-practice salivary samples for one week and were tested daily for standing broad jump distance; first jump (BJ1) and best jump (BJB) were recorded. Volume-load was heavy on Monday (47%), light on Tuesday (13%), and medium-heavy on Wednesday (40%). To determine if variables differed by day, RM ANOVAs were used with partial-eta squared effect sizes (η2 p) to calculate meaningful changes. RM ANOVA models suggest daily differences occurred for T (F=4.027, p=.024, η2 p =.402), T/C (F=11.735, p=.019, η2 p =.898), and BJ1 (F=6.229, p=.004, η2 p =.509), but not for C (F=1.623, p=.219, η2 p =.213) nor BJB (F=1.088, p=.379, η2 p =.154). Daily fluctuations in BJ1 shared a moderate inverse relationship with daily fluctuations in C (r = -0.42), whereas BJB revealed no association with hormonal markers. T, T/C, and BJ1 appeared to be meaningfully affected by the previous day’s training stress in collegiate weightlifters, suggesting that BJ1 may be indicative of hormonal status and that a one-day reduction in VL may enhance acute athlete readiness.
River Song: Caste and Cultural Assimilation in the Brahmaputra River Valley, Assam

In this paper, the author argues that the lens of assimilation which is often used to understand cultural change within the Mising1 community in the Brahmaputra River Valley, Assam overlooks state developmental initiatives that attempt to pathologize and exploit the reproductive rights of tribal women. This paper specifically focuses on the ideas of menstrual pollution ascribed to the bodies of Mising women embedded in coercive menstrual management and family planning awareness campaigns. More broadly, the paper focuses on state discourses of purity and pollution that shapes the location of the Mising community outside Hindu caste hierarchies despite their adoption of Assamese Hindu religious and socio-economic practices.
Space-time dynamics of electricity markets incentivize technology decentralization

Abstract We study economic incentives provided by space-time dynamics of day-ahead and real-time electricity markets. Specifically, we seek to analyze to what extent such dynamics promote decentralization of technologies for generation, consumption, and storage (which is essential to obtain a more flexible power grid). Incentives for decentralization are also of relevance given recent interest in the deployment of small-scale modular technologies (e.g., modular ammonia and biogas production systems). Our analysis is based on an asset placement problem that seeks to find optimal locations for generators and loads in the network that minimize profit risk. We show that an unconstrained version of this problem can be cast as an eigenvalue problem. Under this representation, optimal network allocations are eigenvectors of the space-time price covariance matrix while the eigenvalues are the associated profit variances. We also construct a more sophisticated placement formulation that captures different risk metrics and constraints on types of technologies to systematically analyze trade-offs in expected profit and risk. Our analysis reveals that space-time market dynamics provide significant incentives for decentralization and strategic asset placement but that full mitigation of risk is only possible through simultaneous investment in generation and loads (which can be achieved using batteries or microgrids).
5 – Peptide Conformation: Stability and Dynamics

This chapter focuses on the computational and experimental tools used to elucidate the conformational stability and dynamics of peptides. Peptides are unique in having both a large number of degrees of freedom and a broad spectrum of functional groups. The importance of peptides in regulating biological processes and their seemingly infinite conformational possibilities define both the impetus and the impediment to understanding their mechanism of action. As mediators in precisely regulated, complex biological systems, peptides have a combination of flexibility and functionality that gives them the countervailing properties of adaptability and specificity. The innate properties of peptides that allow them to be multipotent with regard to encoded 3D message complement the expression of receptor subtypes having specific biological functions. It is generally accepted that the biological activity of a peptide is coupled to its conformation. Because of the linkage between conformation and activity, the field of conformationally directed peptide design has arisen in order to understand, elicit, or inhibit a given biological activity. There are two basic elements of this process: identifying the relevant conformation and developing means to stabilize that conformation. Any evaluation of peptide conformational stability and dynamics requires a description of the statistical distribution between equilibrium states of a peptide as well as the energetic barriers separating them. The role of dynamics in the bioactivity of a peptide is not certain. This chapter also discusses specific cases in which the conformational stability of peptides has been studied and/or rationally perturbed.
Do local leaders know their voters? A test of guessability in India

Abstract Prominent theories of clientelism—the exchange of benefits for political support—depend on the assumption that politicians, through local agents immersed in local social networks, possess detailed information on voters’ political preferences prior to targeting. This article provides the first direct test of this assumption. It develops a behavioral measure, guessability, which gauges the ability of elected village leaders, who often function as brokers and prominent vote mobilizers, to correctly identify the partisan vote intentions of voters in their locality. It then develops a method to estimate added informational value, which compares the performance of local leaders to low-information benchmarks that capture guessability rates that can feasibly be achieved by outsiders. Original data from surveys of voters and elected village politicians across 96 village councils in Rajasthan, India indicate that while these village leaders out-perform low-information benchmarks with respect to co-partisans, they perform no better than this baseline vis-a-vis non-co-partisans.
Online Public Spheres in the Era of Fake News: Implications for the Composition Classroom

Abstract This article revisits Matt Barton's 2005 article "The Future of Rational-Critical Debate in Online Public Spheres" in light of recent debates around misinformation and disinformation, data-driven influence campaigns, the blurring line between social media and news media, and the algorithmic incentivization of “fake news.” While today’s social media platforms exhibit many of the qualities that C.W. Mills and Jurgen Habermas associate with a healthy public sphere—communication between strangers is participatory, immediate, accessible, and decentralized—this article raises questions about the extent to which everyday digital writing and circulation practices align with broader democratic aspirations. The goal of this article is to explore not only what these social and technological developments mean for the health of public discourse, but also how we, as teachers of writing, can meaningfully engage with them in our classrooms. An appendix includes ideas for assignments that engage students in critical reflection about their own participation in today’s online public spheres.
Water follows polar and nonpolar protein surface domains.

The conformation of water around proteins is of paramount importance, as it determines protein interactions. Although the average water properties around the surface of proteins have been provided experimentally and computationally, protein surfaces are highly heterogeneous. Therefore, it is crucial to determine the correlations of water to the local distributions of polar and nonpolar protein surface domains to understand functions such as aggregation, mutations, and delivery. By using atomistic simulations, we investigate the orientation and dynamics of water molecules next to 4 types of protein surface domains: negatively charged, positively charged, and charge-neutral polar and nonpolar amino acids. The negatively charged amino acids orient around 98% of the neighboring water dipoles toward the protein surface, and such correlation persists up to around 16 A from the protein surface. The positively charged amino acids orient around 94% of the nearest water dipoles against the protein surface, and the correlation persists up to around 12 A. The charge-neutral polar and nonpolar amino acids are also orienting the water neighbors in a quantitatively weaker manner. A similar trend was observed in the residence time of the nearest water neighbors. These findings hold true for 3 technically important enzymes (PETase, cytochrome P450, and organophosphorus hydrolase). Our results demonstrate that the water-amino acid degree of correlation follows the same trend as the amino acid contribution in proteins solubility, namely, the negatively charged amino acids are the most beneficial for protein solubility, then the positively charged amino acids, and finally the charge-neutral amino acids.
Chapter 9 – Output Analysis

Publisher Summary Output analysis is the modeling stage concerned with designing replications, computing statistics from them and presenting them in textual or graphical format. Thus, as its name suggests, output analysis focuses on the analysis of simulation results (output statistics). It provides the main value-added of the simulation enterprise by trying to understand system behavior and generate predictions for it. The main issues addressed by output analysis follow replication design, estimation of performance metrics, and system analysis and experimentation. The chapter addresses generic output analysis issues such as data collection for various statistics under various simulation regimes (terminating or steady state), estimation of performance measures, and testing of statistical hypotheses. It also surveys the output analysis facilities supported by Arena via a detailed working example.
Anomaly Detection with Domain Adaptation.

We study the problem of semi-supervised anomaly detection with domain adaptation. Given a set of normal data from a source domain and a limited amount of normal examples from a target domain, the goal is to have a well-performing anomaly detector in the target domain. We propose the Invariant Representation Anomaly Detection (IRAD) to solve this problem where we first learn to extract a domain-invariant representation. The extraction is achieved by an across-domain encoder trained together with source-specific encoders and generators by adversarial learning. An anomaly detector is then trained using the learnt representations. We evaluate IRAD extensively on digits images datasets (MNIST, USPS and SVHN) and object recognition datasets (Office-Home). Experimental results show that IRAD outperforms baseline models by a wide margin across different datasets. We derive a theoretical lower bound for the joint error that explains the performance decay from overtraining and also an upper bound for the generalization error.
Cushing's Syndrome in a Pregnant Patient Secondary to Adrenal Adenoma: Treatment With Unilateral Adrenalectomy.

Background A pregnant woman presented with Cushing's syndrome (CS) secondary to adrenal adenoma and was treated with laparoscopic-assisted right adrenalectomy during the second trimester of pregnancy. Summary Our patient is a 33-year-old woman who presented with hypertension and cushingoid appearance at 21 weeks gestational age. Laboratory evidence indicated CS was likely, and imaging found a 2.3 x 3.0 cm right adrenal nodule as a suggested cause. Laparoscopic-assisted right adrenalectomy was performed at 23 weeks 4 days gestation without complication. Pathology of the removed specimen revealed an adrenal gland containing a 3.0 x 3.0 x 2.0 cm well-circumscribed proliferation of adrenal cortical cells without significant atypia. This report describes the rare occurrence of CS during pregnancy and subsequent successful surgical management. We review the diagnosis of CS during pregnancy and surgical considerations. Conclusion CS, while a rare entity in the general population, is even more unique in the setting of pregnancy due to the negative effects of hypercortisolism on fertility. CS during pregnancy presents a diagnostically complicated scenario, along with specific considerations necessary for successful surgical management.
A case report of an infiltrative cardiomyopathy in everyday practice: a specific cause that cannot be missed in the elderly.

Background Transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) is a commonly misdiagnosed cardiac condition due to low disease awareness and perceived rarity, which frequently results in incorrect management and poor outcomes. Early and prompt diagnosis has become critical with emerging therapies that improve patient survival. Case summary A 68-year-old woman presented to a tertiary care centre with acute decompensated heart failure following recurrent hospitalizations for the same issue over the past several months. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed severe concentric left ventricular hypertrophy with grade III diastolic dysfunction. However, QRS voltage by 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) was discordant with the degree of left ventricular hypertrophy seen by echocardiography, and the patient had recurrent non-sustained ventricular tachycardia that necessitated implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implantation a few months prior. After aggressive diuresis, the patient completed cardiac magnetic resonance imaging that raised concern for cardiac amyloidosis. Subsequent serum and urine protein electrophoresis with associated immunofixation were within normal limits. Finally, ATTR-CM was confirmed by technetium-99m pyrophosphate scintigraphy with plans to initiate tafamidis after genetic testing. Discussion Patients >60 years of age with diastolic heart failure phenotypically similar to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and/or hypertensive heart disease should always be evaluated for ATTR-CM. Features that increase suspicion include discordance between left ventricular wall thickness and ECG voltage, and signs/symptoms of a primary peripheral and autonomic neuropathy. Useful non-invasive diagnostic testing has also made the diagnosis of ATTR-CM inexpensive and possible without the need for an endomyocardial biopsy. Unfortunately, this patient's diagnosis of ATTR-CM came late in her disease course, which delayed the onset of definitive therapy.
Kleptocracy, nepotism, kakistocracy: impact of corruption in Sub-Saharan African countries

The adverse effect of corruption has been widely investigated in literature. Corruption is said to hamper both economic and human development. A foe of transparency and ethical business ambiance, corruption promotes a trans-lucid accounting milieu. In this paper we investigate the governmental accounting framework in a set of Sub-Saharan countries. This paper contributes to the research literature regarding corruption and government accountability, by developing a new index measure of accountability, which incorporates socio-economic indicators of government accountability. Using this index, results of analysis indicate that corruption has a significant negative relationship with the quality of the government accounting framework and with economic development in the Sub-Saharan countries included in the study.
Bayesian Networks for software testing

A software design methodology is proposed that involves development of approximate models based on Bayesian Networks capturing probabilistic representations of expected behavior, which are further used in developing and running tests that can dynamically diagnose bugs and attacks during production. While automation of Software design is still a very remote goal, it can already benefit from AI tools and ideas. One of the main challenges with automating software design methods, for any product with modest complexity, is the mere intractability of enumerating all scenarios of the product usage when also taking into account user intentions. This leads to an intractability of generating exact specifications and exhaustive tests. We show how approximate models of the design can exploit AI techniques to represent the system and to derive meaningful tests, warning when the environment is not behaving as designed, detecting bugs and attacks. The representation can use Bayesian Networks that are rather simple, enabling usage by novice practitioners. We validate the methodologies with on two different applications: a device driver for Wi-Fi Direct, and a website, MindBlog.com. In the Wi-Fi Direct use case, we successfully built a test ensuring the connection is fair and contrasted it experimentally to earlier work where we created a robust Bayes network based on expert knowledge. In the MindBlog.com use case, we show that the procedure is flexible and can detect when the developers found a bug and were attempting to debug their application yielding anomalous behavior.
Palliative Care Consultation for Hospitalized Patients with Primary and Secondary Brain Tumors at a Single Academic Center.

Introduction: Studies addressing palliative care delivery in neuro-oncology are limited. Objectives: To compare inpatients with brain tumors who received palliative care (through referral or trigge...
Cluster Expansion of Alloy Theory: A Review of Historical Development and Modern Innovations

The parameterization of a physical or empirical model from a set of highly accurate but expensive calculations or measurements to generate less precise but cheaper predictions is common in many disciplines. In computational materials science and informatics-enabled design of materials, the cluster expansion (CE) method provides a direct approximation of the free energy of a lattice, or any other thermodynamic variable, in terms of a discrete cluster function, making it one of the most widely used approaches for phase diagram calculations, including order–disorder phase transitions. In this article, we review the theoretical developments that culminated in the formulation of the CE method, numerous statistical techniques currently used to fit and optimize the parameters of the CE model, the convergence of the CE method with modern machine learning and data science techniques, and recent developments that push the field beyond the conventional CE, including for structural alloy design.
Toward a General Theory of Risk Perception

Several risk perception studies employing univariate techniques have found very strong predictors of risk perceptions, but these results are of limited use in describing the cognitive process that results in perception of risk. Also, although a few multivariate investigations have been conducted, the validity of the obtained results are similarly limited due to concern over deriving easily interpretable solutions. The present study, therefore, attempts to derive a more valid model of the risk perception process through confirmatory factor analysis based on previously reported findings.
Sustaining Resources: Soil

Farmers, with notable exceptions, have benignly neglected the future farmers and their soil reserves. Exceptions include organic farmers and other conservation-minded farmers. With others the view is toward profits now and let other generations worry about the future. In all fairness their actions, although not the best choice, are understandable. Farmers have very large capital investments in land, equipment, seeds, fertilizers, fuel, and pesticides. Their profession often does not generate high yearly profits and disaster is sometimes only a change in the weather away. Many are financially overextended and faced with credit problems. Operating so close to the margin, they grasp at short-term profits and can ill afford the long-term investment needed for sustaining the soil.
Douching behavior in high-risk adolescents. What do they use, when and why do they douche?

Objectives: To describe feminine hygiene practices and douching behavior in adolescent women. Design: A cross-sectional anonymous survey. Subjects: Adolescents (majority rural) admitted to a correctional institution for girls. Main Outcome Measures: Description of feminine hygiene practices, prevalence of vaginal douching, types of substances used, reported reasons for, and timing of douching. Results: In a period of 16 weeks, 104 girls were surveyed within a week of admission. The mean age was 15.4 (SD 1.5; range 12–18) yr, and age at sexual debut 13.1 (SD 1.4) yr. Use of feminine hygiene products was reported by: 9% for feminine suppository, 33% towelettes, 40% spray, 67% feminine wash; only 18% reported no use of those feminine hygiene products listed. A history of ever having douched was reported by 79%; the mean first douching age was 14.0 (SD 1.3; range 11–16). Douching product users were significantly more likely to know someone who douches regularly (P < .0001) and have watched douche commercials (P = .0001) than those who did not douche. A majority used store-bought products, vinegar in water and scented solution being the most popular; baking soda, Betadine, Pine-sol, and Lysol were other products used. Commonly cited reasons for douching included to feel good and fresh (60%), and to rid of odor and of blood (47% each). Other reasons cited were to please partner (12%) and to avoid going to a doctor (6%). Timing of douching included: after period (69%), after sex (52%), before sex (16%), before going to a doctor (17%). Among those who douched, 51% douched once a month, and an additional 32% more often than that. Conclusion: This study provides troublesome findings regarding the feminine hygiene practices of mostly rural southern teenagers who have been incarcerated.
PAIR programming as a model of collaborative learning: a review of the research

Pair programming is a form of collaborative learning; the pair works together to achieve a common goal. Recent research has clearly documented the benefits of pair programming on student performance. Collaborative learning research has established two things: (1) the effectiveness of having students work together and, (2) the critical attributes common to successful collaborative learning approaches. This paper uses the critical attributes of collaborative learning as a framework to review research on pair programming. The conclusion is that pair programming, as reported in the literature, is a model of collaborative learning, i.e., pair programming is generally consistent with the identified critical attributes. One way that those of us who use the pair programming pedagogy can enhance this consistency is to increase the emphasis on the pair programming process.
Increased gene expression of plasminogen activators and inhibitors in left ventricular hypertrophy

In the early stages of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) acute adaptive changes occur in the coronary vasculature as it remodels. Plasminogen activators (PAs) and inhibitors (PAIs) have the potential effects of proteolytic degradation that is relevant to tissue remodeling and angiogenesis. Our study focused on the possible roles of PAI-1, PAI-2, uPA and tPA in myocyte hypertrophy and angiogenesis in the early and late stages of pressure overload induced left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH). We divided seventeen adult swine, weighing 24.2 ± 6.5 kg, into four groups: control, sham-operated, early LVH and late heart failure LVH group. At surgery we placed a fixed constrictor on the ascending aorta immediately above the aortic valve. This increased LV systolic pressure from 133 ± 15 to 193 ± 24 mm Hg after the surgery. We subdivided the early group into groups of 3 animals each that we euthanized at 8, 24 and 72 h after operation and obtained heart samples for analysis. In the late heart failure group individual animals were euthanized at 55, 59, 62 and 72 days after the detection of congestive heart failure. We also obtained tissue samples from the control and sham-operated swine. Sections for histologic analysis were fixed in 10% buffered formalin. We isolated RNA, size fractionated it using 1% formaldehyde-agarose gel electrophoresis and then did Northern blots. The mRNAs from both PAI-1 and PAI-2 showed a remarkable increase at 8 and 24 h after acute aortic constriction and returned to control by 72 h. Regional differences showed that most of the increases were in the endocardium. Three animals in the late heart failure LVH group were determined to be in congestive heart failure at about 2 months after the onset of aortic constriction. In these animals PAI-1 and PAI-2 were increased in both the left and right ventricles but remained low in an animal of the same elevation in aortic pressure seen by the LV who did not have congestive failure. These data suggest that PA and PAI gene expressions change before morphologic changes occur in the early stages of developing LVH. Also at the time of onset of congestive heart failure this increased expression reappears. PAs and PA inhibitors mRNA levels vary in the different regions of the heart reflecting changing wall stresses. Thus, the PAs and PA inhibitors may play an important role in angiogenesis that occurs during the early stages of LVH. The increased expression in the late stage of LVH may reflect further changes in wall stresses since these animals also showed overt clinical signs of heart failure. (Mol Cell Biochem 176: 265–271, 1997)
Security Limitations of Virtualization and How to Overcome Them

To be useful, security primitives must be available on commodity computers with demonstrable assurance and understandable by ordinary users with minimum effort. Trusted computing bases comprising a hypervisor, which implements the reference monitor, and virtual machines whose layered operating system services are formally verified, will continue to fail these criteria for client-side commodity computers. We argue that demonstrable high assurance will continue to elude commodity computers, and complex policies that require management of multiple subjects, object types, and permissions will continue to be misunderstood and misused by most users. We also argue that high-assurance, usable commodity computers require only two security primitives: partitions for isolated code execution, and trustworthy communication between partitions and between users and partitions. Usability requirements for isolated partitions are modest: users need to know when to use a small trusted system partition and when to switch to a larger untrusted one; developers need to isolate and assure only few security-sensitive code modules within an application; and security professionals needed to maintain only the trusted partition and a few isolated modules in the untrusted one. Trustworthy communication, which requires partitions and users to decide whether to accept input from or provide output to others, is more challenging because it requires trust, not merely secure (i.e., confidential and authentic) communication channels.