cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Amphetamine stereotypy is not a homogeneous phenomenon: Sniffing and licking show distinct profiles of sensitization and tolerance

Sniffing and licking components of amphetamine-induced stereotypy were studied separately during chronic drug treatment. Sniffing showed a gradual increase, or sensitization, in intensity and duration. By contrast, licking developed tolerance for approximately the first 21 days, followed by a progressive increase. Stereotypy is therefore not a homogeneous phenomenon, and sniffing and licking are probably subserved by distinct neuroanatomic substrates. The sensitization of sniffing behavior may be related to the induction of amphetamine-induced paranoid psychosis in humans.
Improving NAND Flash Based Disk Caches

Flash is a widely used storage device that provides high density and low power, appealing properties for general purpose computing. Today, its usual application is in portable special purpose devices such as MP3 players. In this paper we examine its use in the server domain—a more general purpose environment. Aggressive process scaling and the use of multi-level cells continues to improve density ahead of Moore’s Law predictions, making Flash even more attractive as a general purpose memory solution. Unfortunately, reliability limits the use of Flash. To seriously consider Flash in the server domain, architectural support must exist to address this concern. This paper first shows how Flash can be used in today’s server platforms as a disk cache. It then proposes two improvements. The first improves performance and reliability by splitting Flash based disk caches into separate read and write regions. The second improves reliability by employing a programmable Flash memory controller. It can change the error code strength (number of correctable bits) and the number of bits that a memory cell can store (cell density) according to the demands of the application. Our studies show that Flash reduces overall power consumed by the system memory and hard disk drive up to 3 times while maintaining performance. We also show that Flash lifetime can be improved by a factor of 20 when using a programmable Flash memory controller, if some performance degradation (below 5%) is acceptable.
Batrachotoxin modifies the gating kinetics of sodium channels in internally perfused neuroblastoma cells

We have studied the effects of batrachotoxin (BTX) on sodium channels in hybrid mouse neuroblastoma cells NG108-15 by using the suction pipet voltage clamp method. BTX-modified sodium channels activate with first-order kinetics and, over most of the potential range, activate more slowly than normal sodium channels. The peak conductance-voltage curve and the time constant of activation-versus-voltage curve for BTX-modified sodium channels are shifted about 50 mV in the hyperpolarizing direction compared to the corresponding curves for normal sodium channels. There is no change in the slope of the conductance-voltage curve. These results suggest that BTX slows down one of the steps leading to channel opening, which consequently becomes rate-limiting. In addition, BTX eliminates both fast and slow inactivation.
The Organization-Client Relationship as an Aspect of Interorganizational Analysis

The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania This paper presents an argument for viewing the relationship between organizations and their clients as a specific case of interorganizational relationship. Following a proposition related to interorganizational analysis suggested by Litwak and Hylton (1962), the paper argues that the organization-client relationship is characterized by interests that arepartly shared and partly conflicting. It is suggested that Litwak and Hylton's hypothesis on the need for mechanisms that preserve both cooperation and conflict between organizations can be applied to the relationship between the organization and its clients. When mechanisms for conflict maintenance are missing the equilibrium of this relationship may be altered in favor of the organization, by a process of overbureaucratization, or of the clients, by a process of debureaucratization. The discussion focuses on the second alternative with an analysis, illustrated by a case study, of the causes and consequences...
Advance Directive Communication with Hospitalized Elderly Patients: Social Workers' Roles and Practices

Abstract This article presents a descriptive study about social workers' advance directive communication practices with hospitalized elderly patients at several hospitals located in upstate New York. The sample consisted of 29 social workers. The research surveyed advance directive communication practices by utilizing a self-administered questionnaire. Advance directive communication was operationalized as a cumulative process incorporating the following phases, which were measured as scales: initiation of the topic, disclosure of information, identification of a surrogate decision-maker, discussion of treatment options, elicitation of patient values, interaction with family members, and collaboration with other health care professionals. Results suggest that social workers frequently and comprehensively address the phases of the advance directive communication process in their practices with hospitalized elderly patients. Implications for the role of social workers as members of the interdisciplinary hea...
Orthogonal components in MANOVA with application to an anesthesiology experiment

We describe orthogonal components in multivariate analysis of variance, and illustrate their value when assessing restricted alternatives.
The motion of a pushed, sliding workpiece

It occurs frequently in robotic applications that a robot manipulates a workpiece which is free to slide on a work surface. Because the pressure distribution supporting the workpiece on the work surface cannot in general be known, the motion of the workpiece cannot be calculated uniquely. The authors find the locus of centers of rotation of a workpiece for all possible pressure distributions. The results allow a quantitative understanding of open-loop robot motions which guarantee the alignment of a workpiece. Several sample problems are solved using the results, including the distance that a flat fence, or robot finger, must push a polygonal workpiece to assure that a facet of the workpiece comes into alignment with the fence. >
Strategic positioning and cost management along various quality dimensions

The traditional view of quality treats it as an economic good which can be developed by incurring costs. Proponents of total quality management have rejected the traditional view and stress the complementary nature of cost and quality. Reconciles these two views as different manifestations of the same underlying phenomenon within the same strategic framework. This requires precise definitions of quality concepts such as conformance and performance quality. The organization first examines its current position within this framework. The definitions of quality help sharpen the formulation of strategic objectives and the framework helps in mapping out a policy for moving the firm from the current position to the desired position. In addition, also determines the operating systems of quality management by how quality is defined in the organization. In conjunction with the strategic direction, the operational management procedures facilitate the process of cost management.
Issues in the writing of contemporary history

There are several factors that influence one's interest in, and the potential for writing a paper in, the area of contemporary history. In the beginning is the mere curiosity to learn of one's technological forefathers and their contributions to the present-day science. Such a curiosity may initially be fulfilled by examining the technical literature of the subject, such as may be found in an annotated bibliography, or in the list of a pioneer's publications. However, technical papers, as may be published in the journals of the ACM and the IEEE Computer Society, are the record of the successes of research and development, but they usually contain little of the background or environment that spawned the activity, nor an assessment of the potential impact of the element on future developments. Historical writing then has three responsibilities:To rediscover and document the environment in which the activity or discovery occurred, and to assess the influence of the environment on the action an its "downstream" impact;To recover the stories of the false starts, the failed attempts, and the unsuccessful trials that channeled the activity into its successful actions; andTo evaluate the impact of the activity or event in the light of more recent developments.
2,3‐Dibromo‐1‐(Phenylsulfonyl)‐1‐Propene as a Versatile Reagent for the Synthesis of Furans and Cyclopentenones: 2‐Methyl‐4‐[(Phenyl‐Sulfonyl)Methyl]Furan and 2‐Methyl‐3‐[(Phenylsulfonyl)Methyl]‐2‐Cyclopenten‐1‐One

2,3-dibromo-1-(phenylsulfonyl)-1-propene as a versatile reagent for the synthesis of furans and cyclopentenones: 2-methyl-4-[(phenyl-sulfonyl)methyl]furan and 2-methyl-3-[(phenylsulfonyl)methyl]-2-cyclopenten-1-one intermediate: 1-(phenylsulfonyl)-1,2-propadiene intermediate: 2,3-dibromo-1-(phenylsulfonyl)-1-propene product: 2-methyl-4-[(phenylsulfonyl)methyl]furan product: 2-methyl-3-[(phenylsulfonyl)methyl]-2-cyclopenten-1-one Keywords: addition, to CC; annulation, heterocyclic-[5]; cyclization, cycloaddition; cyclization, cycloaddition; oxidation, S SO2; oxidation, miscellaneous; rearrangements; dichloromethane (methylene chloride); methanol; triethylamine; bromine
LearnLoc: a framework for smart indoor localization with embedded mobile devices

There has been growing interest in location-based services and indoor localization in recent years. While several smartphone based indoor localization techniques have been proposed, these techniques have many shortcomings related to accuracy and consistency. These prior efforts also ignore energy consumption analysis which is a crucial quality metric in resource-constrained smartphones. In this work, we propose novel techniques based on machine learning algorithms and smart sensor management for real-time indoor localization using smartphones. We implement our proposed techniques as well as state-of-the-art techniques on real smartphones and evaluate their tracking effectiveness and energy overheads across several diverse real-world indoor environments. Our best technique improves upon prior work, achieving indoor localization accuracy between 1--3 meters.
Range Expansion for the Golden Topminnow, Fundulus chrysotus (Günther), and it Rediscovery in Missouri

ABSTRACT Six golden topminnow (Fundulus chrysotus) specimens were collected in Mississippi County, Missouri in 1997. This is the most northern location on record for the species. F. chrysotus is currently listed as extirpated in Missouri, but it should now be reconsidered for endangered status in the state. Because of a planned flood control project in the area of these collections the future of this species in Missouri is uncertain.
Food Choices to Meet Nutritional Needs of Breast-fed Infants and Toddlers on Mixed Diets

The primary focus of this review is considerations for complementary feedings to meet micronutrient needs of infants aged 6-24 mo who are continuing with breast-feeding and minimal or no formula. The World Health Organization recommends initiation of complementary feeding to breast-fed infants at approximately 6 mo of age. Whether complementary foods will meet nutrient needs will depend on the types of food selected. One criterion for the selection of complementary foods is that they be rich sources of zinc and iron because both of these essential micronutrients are critical for normal growth and development, and requirements are not met by exclusive breast-feeding after approximately 6 mo. For an exclusively breast-fed 7-mo-old infant, human milk provides approximately 0.5 mg of zinc, and a little over half of that is absorbed. Adding some cereal can increase zinc intake modestly but will fall short of providing the estimated physiologic requirement because adaptive mechanisms are inadequate to compensate for moderately low zinc intake. Maize, wheat, rice, and roots are also relatively low in zinc and have the added factor of a high phytate-to-zinc molar ratio, which makes the zinc less bioavailable. Meats and liver have greater zinc and iron concentrations than unfortified plant foods and have been shown to have good acceptance by 7-mo-old infants. In contrast to current practices in both developed and developing countries, meats should be considered as an early complementary food for breast-fed infants to provide essential micronutrients.
Ventilation–Perfusion Lung Scanning: Stuck in a Rut?

The methodology for high-quality ventilation–perfusion (V/Q) imaging is available at almost all nuclear medicine sites in the United States and throughout the world. However, a large number of the sites continue to use older techniques, originally introduced over 40 y ago. This results in lower-accuracy imaging for pulmonary embolism, when more modern approaches can achieve accuracy equal to or greater than CT angiography, which has become the de facto standard in recent years. Perfusion lung scanning has been done with 99m Tcmacroaggregated albumin since 1964 (1). This agent has been successful, and although albumin microspheres have also been used, the quality of the imaging of lung perfusion is limited by instrumentation and not by the radiopharmaceutical. Ventilation imaging was initially done with 133 Xe, beginning in 1969 (2), although at that time radioaerosols were also beginning to be studied. Since then, several different approaches to ventilation imaging have been studied, including 81m Kr, aerosols with different radiopharmaceuticals, and more recently Technegas (Cyclomedica Ltd.). 133 Xe ventilation imaging is generally less effective than radioaerosols in evaluations for pulmonary embolism because of greater technical complexity, limited views without SPECT capability, problems with patient tolerance, and difficulty in studying patients on ventilators. The radiopharmaceutical used in the initial radioaerosol studies was human serum albumin or derivatives of albumin. Several other tracers were investigated, including diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA), pyrophosphate, and various colloids. Interestingly, although the conclusions in these papers were that pyrophosphate and colloid resulted in higher-quality studies (3), it was DTPA that was widely adopted. This was probably because the nebulizer manufacturers used it in their clinical trials and it was suggested in the package insert. The major disadvantage of DTPA is rapid washout, which can occur in patients with inflammatory lung disease. In the mid 1980s, investigators began to look at the feasibility of SPECT imaging for V/Q studies (4). Perfusion studies were done with 99m Tc-macroaggregated albumin, and ventilation studies were done with 99mTc-human serum albumin. The results were tantalizing but did not have a comparison with a gold standard, and these initial studies had little impact on practice. This began to change in the early 2000s. Several papers were published suggesting that V/Q imaging should be done using SPECT (5–7). More recently, Gutte et al. (8) convincingly demonstrated that V/Q SPECT was more accurate than CT angiography in a head-to-headstudy in which CT angiography was done immediately after V/Q SPECT using the same system, a Symbia SPECT/CT scanner (Siemens). The agents used were 99m Tc-macroaggregated albumin and 81m Kr. Similar results have been reported using 99m Tc-macroaggregated albumin and Technegas (9). Although neither 81m Kr nor Technegas is available in the United States, it is feasible to do ventilation SPECT imaging with 99m Tc-DTPA (10) and with 99m Tc-sul
Anticonvulsants for the treatment of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia : a literature review

Objective: To review and summarize the currently available data on the use of anticonvulsant mood stabilizers (carbamazepine, valproic acid, gabapentin, lamotrigine, topiramate) in the treatment of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD); to determine whether these medications can be recommended for routine clinical use.Methods: Literature search in five databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsychINFO and COCHRANE collaboration) and analysis of the randomized controlled double-blinded clinical trials found therein.Results: A total of seven RCTs were identified (two for carbamazepine and five for valproate). One study showed statistically significant improvement of BPSD in the medication group in comparison to the placebo group; five studies showed no significant differences; one study showed statistically significant worsening of the symptoms in the medication group vs. placebo. The majority of the studies reported significantly more frequent adverse effects in the medication group.Conclusion: Although clearly beneficial in some patients, anticonvulsant mood stabilizers cannot be recommended for routine use in the treatment of BPSD at the present time.
Genistein: mechanisms of action in colorectal cancer

383 ISSN 1758-194X 10.2217/CRC.13.51 © 2013 Future Medicine Ltd Colorect. Cancer (2013) 2(5), 383–385 1Division of Hematology & Medical Oncology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Tisch Cancer Institute, 1 Gustave L Levy Place, Box 1128, New York, NY 10029, USA *Author for correspondence: Tel.: +1 212 659 5420; Fax: +1 212 659 5599; sofya.pintova@mountsinai.org With the advent of modern medicine and technology there has been great interest in understanding how natural substances that have been consumed for thousands of years affect the human physiology and molecular machinery. Environmental factors, most notably diet, are well known to influence a number of disease states including both metabolic syndromes and cardiovascular disorders. More recently, diet has been implicated in modulating the risk of cancer. The incidence of cancer varies among ethnic groups and even among individuals of the same ethnic group residing in different geographic regions when they consume a diet specific to that region. For example, Asian women who moved to the USA were found to ingest higher amounts of tofu than Asian–American women born in the USA [1], and US-born Japanese migrants have a significantly higher incidence of colorectal cancer compared with their foreign-born counterparts [2]. It has been suggested that populations consuming a soy-rich diet may have a lower risk of specific malignancies and extracts of soy have been investigated for the prevention and treatment of neoplasia. One of such extracts, genistein, was first isolated from a plant Genista tinctoria in 1899 and chemically synthesized in the 1920s. It is a plant-derived isoflavone and phytoestrogen found predominantly in soy products that has been studied for a potential role in colon cancer prevention and treatment.
Mixed Asian Americans and Health: Navigating Uncharted Waters

Over 2.6 million people who self-identified with more than one race in the 2010 U.S. Census claimed Asian ancestry, about 15% of the total population of Asians, making these individuals a significant part of Asian America. Mixed Asian Americans come from a variety of backgrounds, making it difficult to generalize about their health, though some common characteristics have emerged. While research on physical health outcomes of mixed Asian Americans is still limited, there is a growing body of research that may indicate increased risk for behavioral problems among some subgroups. The chapter reviews the existing research and discusses social and genetic factors relevant to the health and wellbeing of mixed Asian Americans.
Implementation of parental feeding practices: does parenting style matter?

Objectives To combat childhood obesity, researchers have focused on parental feeding practices that promote child health. The current study investigated how parenting style relates to twelve parental feeding practices. Design Data on parenting style and parental feeding practices were obtained for a correlational study from users of Amazon's Mechanical Turk, an online survey system. Setting USA. Subjects Mothers of children aged 7-11 years (n 193). Results Parenting style related differentially to eleven out of the twelve measured practices. Authoritative mothers displayed more feeding practices that promote child health and fewer practices that impede child health. Authoritarian and permissive mothers displayed more unhealthy practices than authoritative mothers, but differed from each other on the practices they employed. Conclusions Parenting style may relate to more aspects of feeding than previously realized. The inclusion of numerous healthy feeding practices along with unhealthy practices in the current study provides suggestions for the application of healthy feeding behaviours. Instruction on feeding behaviours and parenting style should be a focus of future educational programmes.
Egg Production by the Engelmann Spruce Beetle, Dendroctonus obesus, in Relation to Status of Infestation

The number of eggs laid by the Engelmann spruce beetle, Dendroctonus obesus (Mannerheim), in relation to population trend was studied from 1955 to 1959 at 9 locations in western and southwestern Colorado. The number of eggs produced by the females differed considerably from year to year and seemed to be directly correlated with stage of infestation (Table 1).
Hydrogen plasma cleaning of the Si(100) surface: Removal of oxygen and carbon and the etching of Si

Silicon etch rates and the in situ remote H plasma cleaning effectiveness in a Remote Plasma-enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (RPCVD) system have been measured under conditions of varying substrate temperature, exposure time, and hydrogen pressure. An incubation phenomenon is observed in the Si etch rate as a function of exposure time to the plasma species at a substrate temperature of 250°C. The etch rate is observed to increase from 20 A/hr. for 45 min. exposure to 70 A/hr. for a 4 hour exposure. The dependence of the etch rate on the plasma discharge pressure shows the etch rate to decrease from 72 A/hr. at 50-55 mTorr to 4 A/hr. for pressures greater than 125 mTorr. The substrate temperature is found to have the greatest effect on both the cleaning of the surface and the Si etch rate, with 250AC resulting in a surface with oxygen and carbon concentrations less than the detection limit for Auger Electron Spectroscopy. On wafers exposed to atomic H at both 150 and 400AC, oxygen, carbon and nitrogen were detected after 4 hr. exposures. The etch rate is inversely related to temperature, consistent with earlier results. At a substrate temperature of 150AC, Reflection High Energy Electron Diffraction (RHEED) shows the diffraction pattern to change from a streak pattern observed at higher temperatures to a spot pattern, indicating a roughened surface after 4 hrs. of etching. Wafers cleaned at temperatures above 150AC yielded streak patterns even after 4 hr. exposure. Increasing the H pressure during the clean had no effect on the final RHEED pattern.
Multi-scale computational analysis of the nano-indentation and nano-scratch testing of Kevlar® 49 single fibers

To carry out virtual nano-indentation and nano-scratch Kevlar® 49 single-fiber tests, a multi-scale computational framework has been developed and employed. Such tests are generally conducted to de...
Spectral Measurement and Data Processing of Textile Surface Reflection

This paper reports a study on reflection measurement of a textile surface. The measurement was made involving spatial directions and wavelength. To integrate a spectral detector with a setup for different lighting and viewing directions, the method of fixed sample normal is proposed. In this method, the sample's surface normal is fixed and various lighting and viewing directions are obtained by relocating the source and detector. A visualization system was developed to help explore the measured data. The system allows the user to select a measured data point to display simultaneously the spectrum and its associated color and angle information. Finally, a new interpolation method based on space partition was proposed. Given an interpolation point P, the space is subdivided into subspaces and the data point closest to P in each subspace is selected. This generates a set of points and tetrahedrons, and if any tetrahedron contains P, it will be used for the interpolation based on the barycentric coordinates. ...
Within-District Racial Segregation and the Elusiveness of White Student Return to Urban Public Schools.

Recent research has determined that racial segregation within school districts has decreased, on average, over the past two decades, even as segregation between school districts has persisted. Alth...
Economic View and Strategic Management View toward Understanding Outsourcing in Amateur Sport

Outsourcing as a strategic business decision has been a prevalent business practice in sport industry, and as a result has been receiving increasing academic attention by scholars in sport management. In many cases, the academic attention has been focused on multi-billion dollar hyper-commercialized sport industry, like professional and intercollegiate sport in the U.S. However, outsourcing has infiltrated the world of amateur sport, for instance youth sports programs (YSP), too. In spite of a growing use of outsourcing as a viable business strategy within a community based sport setting, efforts to understand outsourcing in amateur sport has so far gone unheeded in academia. Accordingly, this study examined outsourcing YSP by city- owned recreation centers (CORC). The motivation of outsourcing and the risk of outsourcing were analyzed using a multiple case study approach. The results of this study argue that combination of both economic and strategic management views are effective ways to understand outsourcing strategies in an amateur sport setting. The findings of this study provide both theoretical and practical implications. Furthermore, to contribute to the body of literature, the findings of this study are compared with previous sport management outsourcing literature to provide a comprehensive understanding of outsourcing.
Chronic Early-life Stress in Rat Pups Alters Basal Corticosterone, Intestinal Permeability, and Fecal Microbiota at Weaning: Influence of Sex

Author(s): Moussaoui, Nabila; Jacobs, Jonathan P; Larauche, Muriel; Biraud, Mandy; Million, Mulugeta; Mayer, Emeran; Tache, Yvette | Abstract: Background/aimsWistar rat dams exposed to limited nesting stress (LNS) from post-natal days (PND) 2 to 10 display erratic maternal behavior, and their pups show delayed maturation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and impaired epithelial barrier at PND10 and a visceral hypersensitivity at adulthood. Little is known about the impact of early life stress on the offspring before adulthood and the influence of sex. We investigated whether male and female rats previously exposed to LNS displays at weaning altered corticosterone, intestinal permeability, and microbiota.MethodsWistar rat dams and litters were maintained from PND2 to 10 with limited nesting/bedding materials and thereafter reverted to normal housing up to weaning (PND21). Control litters had normal housing. At weaning, we monitored body weight, corticosterone plasma levels (enzyme immunoassay), in vivo intestinal to colon permeability (fluorescein isothiocyanate-dextran 4 kDa) and fecal microbiota (DNA extraction and amplification of the V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene).ResultsAt weaning, LNS pups had hypercorticosteronemia and enhanced intestinal permeability with females g males while body weights were similar. LNS decreased fecal microbial diversity and induced a distinct composition characterized by increased abundance of Gram positive cocci and reduction of fiber-degrading, butyrate-producing, and mucus-resident microbes.ConclusionsThese data indicate that chronic exposure to LNS during the first week post-natally has sustained effects monitored at weaning including hypercorticosteronemia, a leaky gut, and dysbiosis. These alterations may impact on the susceptibility to develop visceral hypersensitivity in adult rats and have relevance to the development of irritable bowel syndrome in childhood.
AgRP Neurons Can Increase Food Intake during Conditions of Appetite Suppression and Inhibit Anorexigenic Parabrachial Neurons

To maintain energy homeostasis, orexigenic (appetite-inducing) and anorexigenic (appetite suppressing) brain systems functionally interact to regulate food intake. Within the hypothalamus, neurons that express agouti-related protein (AgRP) sense orexigenic factors and orchestrate an increase in food-seeking behavior. In contrast, calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-expressing neurons in the parabrachial nucleus (PBN) suppress feeding. PBN CGRP neurons become active in response to anorexigenic hormones released following a meal, including amylin, secreted by the pancreas, and cholecystokinin (CCK), secreted by the small intestine. Additionally, exogenous compounds, such as lithium chloride (LiCl), a salt that creates gastric discomfort, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a bacterial cell wall component that induces inflammation, exert appetite-suppressing effects and activate PBN CGRP neurons. The effects of increasing the homeostatic drive to eat on feeding behavior during appetite suppressing conditions are unknown. Here, we show in mice that food deprivation or optogenetic activation of AgRP neurons induces feeding to overcome the appetite suppressing effects of amylin, CCK, and LiCl, but not LPS. AgRP neuron photostimulation can also increase feeding during chemogenetic-mediated stimulation of PBN CGRP neurons. AgRP neuron stimulation reduces Fos expression in PBN CGRP neurons across all conditions. Finally, stimulation of projections from AgRP neurons to the PBN increases feeding following administration of amylin, CCK, and LiCl, but not LPS. These results demonstrate that AgRP neurons are sufficient to increase feeding during noninflammatory-based appetite suppression and to decrease activity in anorexigenic PBN CGRP neurons, thereby increasing food intake during homeostatic need.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The motivation to eat depends on the relative balance of activity in distinct brain regions that induce or suppress appetite. An abnormal amount of activity in neurons that induce appetite can cause obesity, whereas an abnormal amount of activity in neurons that suppress appetite can cause malnutrition and a severe reduction in body weight. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a population of neurons known to induce appetite ("AgRP neurons") could induce food intake to overcome appetite-suppression following administration of various appetite-suppressing compounds. We found that stimulating AgRP neurons could overcome various forms of appetite suppression and decrease neural activity in a separate population of appetite-suppressing neurons, providing new insights into how the brain regulates food intake.
The Capitalist Peace: a New Way Forward for American Foreign Policy

Since the beginning of the republic, Americans have viewed their state as a “beacon of liberty.” This self-conception has caused Americans to think that they can be a force for positive change in the world. Over time, their outlook has facilitated increasingly aggressive efforts to democratization other countries, leading many to see America as an imperial power. It is my contention that regardless of other factors, Americans become the most invasive when liberal ideology, the very thing that makes them a “beacon of liberty” overpowers other ideological forces. Only by restoring a balanced debate about the merits of democratization by reintegrating other perspectives on America’s role in the world can they be the force for good they believe themselves to be.
Patient-reported mobility function and engagement in young adults with cerebral palsy: a cross-sectional sample

Abstract Purpose To describe self-reported life satisfaction and motor function of young adults with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods A total of 57 young adults with spastic CP classified as levels I (seven), II (25), III (16), IV (nine) by the Gross Motor Function Classification System, followed from childhood by our CP clinic, returned at a mean age of 27 years two months (SD 3 years 4 months). Self-reported life satisfaction and mobility status were measured by the Pediatric Outcomes Data Collection Instrument (PODCI), Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS), Functional Mobility Scale (FMS) and a project questionnaire. Surgical history and childhood mobility were confirmed from medical records. Results The Functional Mobility Scale demonstrated limited but stable mobility function from childhood to adulthood. The PROMIS and PODCI revealed limited motor function compared with a non-disabled normative reference (p < 0.05). Descriptive results showed high dependence on transportation...
Tilt table testing for syncope and collapse.

Head-up tilt (HUT) has long been used to examine heart rate and blood pressure adaptation to changes in position. During such studies, incidental observations noted that some test subjects experienced total or near-total transient loss of consciousness and that, in some cases, hypotension was associated with unexpected marked bradycardia compatible with a vasovagal syncope (VVS) reaction. The first report of HUT as a clinical tool to confirm a diagnosis of suspected VVS was published in 1966, and led to the concept of using HUT as a diagnostic tool for VVS. Subsequently, HUT testing, either drug-free or, if necessary, with pharmacological provocation (usually nitroglycerin) has proven to be a useful and safe modality for identifying susceptibility to VVS. In this regard, it is recognized that VVS is best diagnosed by careful history taking. Unfortunately, the history may be non-diagnostic; HUT may be helpful in such cases. However, the interpretation of HUT requires care and experience; in particular, the outcome must be consistent with the patient’s clinical presentation. The reproduction of patient symptoms may not only provide a diagnosis, but also offer some comfort to the patient and family in that the medical team has documented the basis of symptoms and are thereby positioned to address therapy.
AAV-mediated gene transfer to the liver

The liver is a frequent target of gene-transfer experiments, because of its central role in many metabolic and synthetic pathways. For applications where prolonged expression of genes in the liver is required, adeno-associated virus (AAV) has proven to be an effective tool for in vivo gene transfer. High-level, persistent hepatic expression has been achieved in a number of experimental systems following a single treatment with AAV in murine and larger animal models. This prolonged expression is particularly useful for the treatment of genetic diseases such as the inborn errors of metabolism, where lifelong expression of the deficient enzyme may be required. Therapeutic benefits using AAV vectors have been demonstrated in animal models of amino acid disorders, lysosomal storage diseases, and coagulopathies (3-5), and Phase I clinical trials are proposed for the treatment of hemophilia B (6). Gene transfer to the murine liver using AAV is achieved by intravenous (iv) injection of recombinant virus, either via a peripheral or portal vein. The liver is the primary organ transduced following intravenous injection of AAV, although other tissues such as heart and lung may also take up virus to a lesser extent when peripheral injection sites are used (7). Portal-vein injection can reduce the amount of extra-hepatic transduction, and allows a larger dose of virus to be delivered to the liver. However, this technique requires surgical expertise, and can only be performed on adult mice.
Schizophrenia and the Metabolic Syndrome

Individuals with schizophrenia are at a high risk of developing life-shortening illnesses and are especially prone to developing metabolic diseases. Epidemiological evidence has demonstrated that schizophrenia is closely associated with the metabolic syndrome and its associated disorders, including type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, dyslipidemia, visceral fat distribution, and hypertension. This association has been attributed to behavioral factors seen in patients with schizophrenia like poor diet, increased food intake, increased dietary fat content, lack of exercise, and reduced physical activity but there are clearly other mediating factors. Specific features of the metabolic syndrome are known to be exacerbated by severe stress and elevated levels of cortisol, elements common in schizophrenia. The antipsychotic medications widely prescribed in schizophrenia, especially the atypical antipsychotics, have been implicated in the onset and worsening of metabolic symptoms. There is also evidence pointing towards the fact that schizophrenia and the metabolic syndrome present comorbidly because of a shared genetic basis. The public health significance of these associations is clear and provides impetus for mental health professionals to become more responsible for identifying, treating, and monitoring the physical symptoms of schizophrenia in addition to the psychiatric ones. Unfortunately, health care practitioners may not place enough emphasis on the treatment of metabolic disorders in this population because of low awareness and past ambiguity of findings.
A problem of unsymmetrical bending of shear-deformable circular ring plates

The classical solution of the problem of a circular ring plate which is clamped along its outer edge and loaded along its inner edge by the rotation about a diameter of a rigid circular inclusion is generalized so as to account for the effect of transverse shear deformability. Numerical results for overall stiffness, for bending and twisting moments and for transverse shear stress resultants are obtained for several values of the ratio of outer radius r0to inner radius rias a function of a transverse shear deformability parameter λ which for a transversely homogenous plate of thickness h is of the form \(\lambda = \sqrt {20(1 + v)E/G} (r_{{\text{ }}0} - r_{{\text{ }}i} )/h\)
Exploring Parallel Computing with OpenMP on the Raspberry Pi

The ACM/IEEE CS 2013 report recommends fifteen hours of parallel & distributed computing (PDC) education for every undergraduate. This workshop illustrates the use of the Raspberry Pi as an inexpensive, multicore platform for teaching shared-memory parallel programming. The inexpensive and tactile nature of the Raspberry Pi enables each student to experience her own parallel multiprocessor through sight and touch. In this hands-on workshop, we will teach attendees how they can leverage the Raspberry Pi and the OpenMP library to teach shared-memory parallel concepts in their own classrooms. All CS educators who are interested in learning about the Raspberry Pi, shared memory parallelism, and OpenMP are encouraged to attend. In Part I of the workshop, each participant will connect to and learn about the Raspberry Pi's multicore capabilities. In Part II, each participant will engage in self-paced, hands-on exploration of basic parallel computing concepts using the OpenMP "patternlets" from CSinParallel.org. In Part III, participants will investigate more complex applications, such as numeric integration and drug design and study how these applications can be parallelized using OpenMP. We will conclude the workshop with a series of lightning talks discussing how the Raspberry Pi has been used to teach parallel computing concepts at different institutions. We will also present a summary of student perceptions of the Raspberry Pi. All materials from this workshop will be freely available from CSinParallel.org. Space is limited to 20 participants. A laptop is required.
Epigenome-wide DNA methylation in placentas from preterm infants: association with maternal socioeconomic status.

ABSTRACTThis study evaluated the hypothesis that prenatal maternal socioeconomic status (SES) adversity is associated with DNA methylation in the placenta. SES adversity was defined by the presence...
Dynamic Voltage Balancing for the High-Voltage SiC Super-Cascode Power Switch

Presented in this paper is an optimization method to improve the dynamic performance of high-voltage super-cascode power switches (SCPSs) by implementing silicon carbide (SiC) junction field-effect transistor (JFET). The basic operating principle of SCPS is explained at the beginning of the paper. Equivalent circuit models are outlined next, with equations describing the voltage distribution among each SiC JFET during switching transients. Based on the sensitivity analysis, a component optimization method for balancing the SCPS internal voltage is proposed, which effectively eliminates the overvoltage. This significantly reduces the switching loss and the chance of diode avalanche. Compared with the nonoptimized case, the turn-on loss of the SCPS is reduced to 8.85%, and the turn-off loss reduces to 48.4%.
A temporal map of maternal immune activation-induced changes reveals a shift in neurodevelopmental timing and perturbed cortical development in mice.

Environmental insults that activate the maternal immune system are potent primers of developmental neuropathology and maternal immune activation (MIA) has emerged as a risk factor for neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders. Animal models of MIA provide an opportunity to identify molecular pathways that initiate disease processes and lead to neuropathology and behavioral deficits in offspring. MIA-induced behaviors are accompanied by anatomical and neurochemical alterations in adult offspring that parallel those seen in affected human populations. We performed transcriptional profiling and neuroanatomical characterization in a time course across mouse embryonic cortical development, following MIA via single injection of the viral mimic polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (polyI:C) at E12.5. Transcriptional changes identified in the cortex of MIA offspring at E17.5 were validated and mapped to cortical neuroanatomy and cell types via protein analysis and immunohistochemistry. MIA induced strong transcriptomic signatures, including induction of genes associated with hypoxia, immune signaling, and angiogenesis. The acute response identified 6h after the MIA insult was followed by changes in proliferation, neuronal and glial differentiation, and cortical lamination that emerged at E14.5 and peaked at E17.5. Decreased numbers of proliferative cell types in germinal zones and alterations in neuronal and glial cell types across cortical lamina were identified in the MIA-exposed cortex. MIA-induced transcriptomic signatures in fetal offspring overlap significantly with perturbations identified in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), and provide novel insights into alterations in molecular and developmental timing processes linking MIA and neuropathology, potentially revealing new targets for development of novel approaches for earlier diagnosis and treatment of these disorders.
Common Biological Modulators of Acute Pain: An Overview Within the AAAPT Project (ACTTION-APS-AAPM Acute Pain Taxonomy).

Objective The ACTTION-APS-AAPM Acute Pain Taxonomy (AAAPT) project relies on the identification of modulators to improve characterization and classification of acute pain conditions. In the frame of the AAAPT effort, this paper presents an overview of common biological modulators of acute pain. Methods Nonsystematic overview. Results Females may experience more acute pain than males, but the clinical significance may be modest. Increasing age is associated with decreasing analgesic requirement and decreasing pain intensity after surgery and with higher risk of acute low back pain. Racial and ethnic minorities have worse pain, function, and perceived well-being. Patients with preexisting chronic pain and opioid use are at higher risk of severe acute pain and high opioid consumption. The OPRM1 gene A118G polymorphism is associated with pain severity and opioid consumption, with modest quantitative impact. Most studies have found positive associations between pain sensitivity and intensity of acute clinical pain. However, the strength of the association is unclear. Surgical techniques, approaches, and complications influence postoperative pain. Conclusions Sex, age, race, ethnicity, preexisting chronic pain and opioid use, surgical approaches, genetic factors, and pain sensitivity are biological modulators of acute pain. Large studies with multisite replication will quantify accurately the association between modulators and acute pain and establish the value of modulators for characterization and classification of acute pain conditions, as well as their ability to identify patients at risk of uncontrolled pain. The development and validation of quick, bed-side pain sensitivity tests would allow their implementation as clinical screening tools. Acute nonsurgical pain requires more investigation.
Closing the Gender Gap in Global Surgery: Trends at the Academic Surgical Congress.

Abstract Introduction Female researchers are underrepresented in academic surgery. While they are increasingly producing original research, they lag male researchers in productivity. This disparity is not well understood within the nascent field of global surgery. The following study examines gender parity in global surgery research presented at the Academic Surgical Congress and within subsequent publications. Methods Abstracts presented at the Academic Surgical Congress (ASC) between 2015 and 2019 in “Global Surgery” sessions were reviewed to obtain title, the first author (FA) and senior author (SA). The authors were classified by gender. The Scopus database was queried by two reviewers for abstracts with corresponding publications, citations, and journal impact factors. Statistical analysis was conducted using chi-square analysis and t-tests where appropriate. Results Of a total of 6635 abstracts, 218 global surgery abstracts over a 5-year period were identified. Of these abstracts, 96 (44%) had female FAs, while 56 (26%) had female SAs. When comparing gender, female (44%) FAs and male (56%) FAs were equally represented. While SAs were significantly less likely to be female (26% versus 74%, P Conclusions This study presents 5 y of gender trends in global surgery scholarly work presented at the ASC. Despite an overall predominance of male senior authors, the paradigm is shifting with a recent trend to gender parity. Male and female authors have equal output and are equally impactful. Findings of gender equity in academic global surgery are encouraging, and further study of other disciplines are warranted.
Olfactory Testing in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy: a Systematic Review

Olfactory testing is a potentially safe, cost-effective, bedside evaluation tool for diagnosis, monitoring, and risk assessment for surgery in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) patients, but testing methods and relevant olfactory domains are not standardized. We conducted a systematic review to evaluate olfactory tests in TLE and summarize the results of the literature. Olfactory tests varied significantly in odorant administration tools and devices, target odorants, evaluation timing, and grading scales. The Smell Threshold Test and University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test were the most validated single-domain tests for odor detection and odor identification, respectively. For multi-domain tests, Odor Memory/Discrimination Test and the Sniffin’ Sticks test were the most validated. Results of olfactory tests in TLE are presented by domain. Rigorous validation, standardization, and comparative analysis of existing olfactory tests by domain is urgently needed to establish the utility and efficacy of olfactory testing in TLE.