cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Here we go again: why is it difficult for developers to learn another programming language?

Once a programmer knows one language, they can leverage concepts and knowledge already learned, and easily pick up another programming language. But is that always the case? To understand if programmers have difficulty learning additional programming languages, we conducted an empirical study of Stack Overflow questions across 18 different programming languages. We hypothesized that previous knowledge could potentially interfere with learning a new programming language. From our inspection of 450 Stack Overflow questions, we found 276 instances of interference that occurred due to faulty assumptions originating from knowledge about a different language. To understand why these difficulties occurred, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 16 professional programmers. The interviews revealed that programmers make failed attempts to relate a new programming language with what they already know. Our findings inform design implications for technical authors, toolsmiths, and language designers, such as designing documentation and automated tools that reduce interference, anticipating uncommon language transitions during language design, and welcoming programmers not just into a language, but its entire ecosystem.
Asthma in patients with suspected and diagnosed coronavirus disease 2019.

Abstract Background Patients with asthma are comparatively susceptible to respiratory viral infections and more likely to develop severe symptoms than people without asthma. During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, it is necessary to adequately evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of the population with asthma in the population tested for and diagnosed as having COVID-19. Objective To perform a study to assess the impact of asthma on COVID-19 diagnosis, presenting symptoms, disease severity, and cytokine profiles. Methods This was an analysis of a prospectively collected cohort of patients suspected of having COVID-19 who presented for COVID-19 testing at a tertiary medical center in Missouri between March 2020 and September 2020. We classified and analyzed patients according to their pre-existing asthma diagnosis and subsequent COVID-19 testing results. Results Patients suspected of having COVID-19 (N = 435) were enrolled in this study. The proportions of patients testing positive for COVID-19 were 69.2% and 81.9% in the groups with asthma and without asthma, respectively. The frequencies of relevant symptoms were similar between the groups with asthma with positive and negative COVID-19 test results. In the population diagnosed as having COVID-19 (n = 343), asthma was not associated with several indicators of COVID-19 severity, including hospitalization, admission to an intensive care unit, mechanical ventilation, death due to COVID-19, and in-hospital mortality after multivariate adjustment. Patients with COVID-19 with asthma exhibited significantly lower levels of plasma interleukin-8 than patients without asthma (adjusted P = .02). Conclusion The population with asthma is facing a challenge in preliminary COVID-19 evaluation owing to an overlap in the symptoms of COVID-19 and asthma. However, asthma does not increase the risk of COVID-19 severity if infected.
Mapping Reward Mechanisms by Intracerebral Self Stimulation in the Rhesus Monkey (Macaca mulatta)

The objective of the study was to identify brain structures that mediate reward as evidenced by positive reinforcing effects of stimuli on behavior. Testing by intracerebral self-stimulation enabled monkeys to inform whether activation of ~2900 sites in 74 structures of four sensorimotor pathways and four modulatory loop pathways was positive, negative or neutral. Stimulation was rewarding at 30% of sites, negative at 17%, neutral at 52%. Virtually all (99%) structures yielded some positive or negative sites, suggesting a ubiquitous distribution of pathways transmitting valence information. Mapping of sites to structures with dense vs. sparse dopaminergic (DA) or noradrenergic (NA) innervation showed that stimulation of DA-pathways was rewarding or neutral. Stimulation of NA-pathways was not rewarding. Stimulation of association areas was generally rewarding; stimulation of purely sensory or motor structures was generally negative. Reward related more to structures' sensorimotor function than to density of DA-innervation. Stimulation of basal ganglia loop pathways was rewarding except in lateral globus pallidus, an inhibitory structure in the negative feedback loop; stimulation of the cerebellar loop was rewarding in anterior vermis and the spinocerebellar pathway; and stimulation of the hippocampal CA1 loop was rewarding. While most positive sites were in the DA reward system, numerous sites in sparsely DA-innervated posterior cingulate and parietal cortices may represent a separate reward system. DA-density represents concentrations of plastic synapses that mediate acquisition of new synaptic connections. DA-sparse areas may represent innate, genetically programmed reward-associated pathways. Implications of findings in regard to response habituation and addiction are discussed. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
A Qualitative Study of Religion and Spirituality in a Perinatal Psychiatry Inpatient Unit in the Southeast USA.

Religion and spirituality are important aspects of culture that can interact with mental health. They can also be central components of women’s experiences during pregnancy and the postpartum period. This study aims to explore the role of religion and spirituality among women experiencing severe psychopathology during the perinatal period using qualitative interviews of women hospitalized during pregnancy or postpartum on an inpatient unit in the Southeast USA. The average age of participants was 34.2 and all identified as white, aside from one who identified as other. Though religious affiliation was varied, most participants were Christian. Each patient interviewed had a diagnosis of depressive disorder, among other comorbid diagnoses. Three main themes emerged in the subsequent analyses (1) spirituality providing a sense of healing and connectedness above and beyond religion, (2) patients seeking support from religious leaders, and (3) patients experiencing familial pressure to enact religion in a certain way, especially as it relates to child rearing. Clinical implications for each of the themes are explored.
The Ciguatera Dinoflagellates

AbstractThis review was undertaken with the intention of clarifying the role of marine dinoflagellates and. their varied toxins in the human disease ciguatera. Although progress in this field has been slow, great strides have been made within the last few years in the chemistry of ciguatera toxins. Due to the emphasis on toxin structure, other aspects of the ciguatera problem have received insufficient attention. However, preliminary research on dinoflagellate ecology, physiology, and genetics has provided a sound foundation for future studies. An effort has been made to include all probable dinoflagellate contributors and their respective toxins stressing their possible role in the etiology of ciguatera. Also included are sections covering ecology, culture studies, population genetics, and the physiology of toxin production.
Toward a psychology of knowledge. 3. Speculations regarding philosophical correlates of Rorschach movement responses.

James says the history of philosophy is largely the history of a certain clash of temperaments. Boring suspects that a methodological difference he finds among psychologists stems from temperamental differences—but he leaves such differences largely “unreduced.” Murphy speaks of the “basic temperamental or emotional incompatibility of the promachine and antimachine theorists.” Following their lead, the present paper asks whether anything would be different about the history of Western thought, including the theorizing of contemporary scholars and scientists, if nobody to this moment had produced the equivalent of a Rorschach movement response. The paper's answer involves (1) suggesting differences between movement and all other Rorschach response dimensions, (2) illustrating the significance of these suggested differences, (3) applying the foregoing to theorizing in scientific psychology, and (4) suggesting commonality among the intellectual controversies of ancient and contemporary thinkers.
Measurements of 3H(d, n)4He neutron polarizations for Ed = 1.0 to 5.0 MeV

Neutron time-of-flight techniques and a liquid-helium polarized-neutron analyser were used to measure seven neutron polarization angular distributions for the 3H(d, n)4He reaction at deuteron energies from 1.0 to 5.0 MeV. Using Legendre polynomial expansions of σ(θ) and P(θ)σ(θ), values of P(θ) and P2(θ)σ(θ) were calculated, and a contour map of P(θ) was produced for the energy range 1.0 to 5.0 MeV. Various techniques used to measure the 3H(d, n)4He polarizations are discussed, and previous and present results are compared.
Hydrodynamic loading of structural components due to electrical discharge in fluids

Electrical discharge in a fluid produces a transient pressure wave, which should be taken into account when designing structural components of pulsed power machines. By combining theoretical approaches for underwater explosive theory with a self-consistent approach for modeling water as a compressible non-flow material, finite element models can be used to investigate mechanical response to arc driven pressure waves. Water switch testing includes impulse measurements of both multiple and single arc gaps compared with theory. Pressure wave interactions seen in computer models were in good agreement with peak pressures measured from a three-electrode water switch. Pressure measurements from a single electrode water switch were in close approximation to predictions based on explosive theory. Structural damage tests were also conducted in which damage to machine parts were related to arc energies.
Cooperative relaying for ad-hoc ground networks using swarm UAVs

Low cost UAVs have proved valuable in their use as sensor data collection systems in tactical situations. In this paper we examine their use as communication relays to improve range and reliability of ad hoc ground based network. MIMO based wireless communications are well known to improve capacity and reliability of point-to-point communication links. Recently, cooperation between distributed wireless nodes has been studied to exploit multi user macro diversity in an adhoc network. Application of MIMO techniques using distributed wireless nodes are also envisioned, where the cooperating nodes become the virtual antennas of a MIMO transceiver. Inspired by the recent advances in multi-UAV formation flights, we study the application of such distributed MIMO based relay schemes on a cluster of multiple UAVs. Specifically we look at the performance of distributed transmit beamforming and distributed OSTBC schemes under ideal and non ideal conditions of UAV flight. Simulation parameters are chosen based on literature study of air-to-ground propagation models. The results from our simulations show tremendous improvements in range and reliability when compared to direct ground based communication links
SRAM Design Techniques for Sub-nano CMOS Technology

The scaling of CMOS technology has significant impacts on SRAM cell  random fluctuation of electrical characteristics and substantial leakage current. The random fluctuation of electrical property causes the symmetrical 6T cell to have huge mismatch in transistor threshold voltage. Consequently, the static noise margin (Read Margin) and the write margin are degraded dramatically. The SRAM cell tends to be unstable and the low power supply operation becomes hard to achieve. Besides that, the large leakage current caused by the low threshold voltage and thin gate oxide let the sub-nano SRAM design have huge static power. This makes portable electronics applications become difficult. In this talk, several design techniques used to minimize the static power consumption will be addressed and compared first. Second, in order to increase the read/write margins of SRAM cell, the VDC (Voltage Down Converter) approach will be discussed. It is founded that by using a simple VDC design, the RM (Read Margin) and WM (Write Margin) can be significantly improved and let the SRAM design be functional in the 0.7V range. The yield of the SRAM chip can also be dramatically improved. Incorporated with a resistor-less BGR (Bandgap Reference) design, this VDC can be used for static power reduction, read margin and write margin improvement, programmable voltage and voltage clamping.
Quantitative left ventricular angiocardiographic findings in mitral stenosis. Detailed analysis of the anterolateral wall of the left ventricle.

The observation of diminished motion of the anterolateral wall of the left ventricle in patients with mitral stenosis initiated this study. Twelve patients with mitral stenosis, 4 with right ventricular enlargement of other origin, and 8 normal subjects formed the basis for a quantitative analysis of the left ventricle by left cineventriculography. Our study indicated a markedly impaired contractility of the anterolateral wall of the left ventricle and posterobasal area in our patients with mitral stenosis. The 4 patients with right ventricular enlargement showed the same phenomenon of the anterolateral wall, but an abnormality of the posterobasal area was not evident. A reduced ejection was found in both groups. Our study further implicates a myocardial factor as a cause of reduced cardiac output in mitral stenosis. Lastly, as a potential explanation, we postulate that right ventricular enlargement, in some patients, may produce secondary abnormalities of left ventricular contractility.
Learner Support Services for Online Students: Scaffolding for Success.

A critical component of an effective retention program for online students is a learner support services program. While many factors contribute to attrition, at the top of the list are level of interaction and support. To this end, some students in distance learning programs and courses report feelings of isolation, lack of self-direction and management, and eventual decrease in motivation levels. This article describes the types of learner support services strategies that can effectively address these retention challenges. Examples from Western Governors University (WGU) are provided to describe these strategies in action.
Ethanol‐Induced Hepatic Fibrosis in the Rat: Role of the Amount of Dietary Fat

We have made a comparison between groups of rats fed ethanol and a diet that received intragastric infusion of ethanol continuously for prolonged periods varying only in the amount of fat in the diet (percentage of total calories as fat was 5, 25, and 35%). A fourth group of rats fed high fat (32% of calories) and a diet marginal in protein, vitamins and minerals was also studied. Control rats were pair-fed dextrose in isocaloric amounts. For rats fed diets containing 5, 25, 32, and 35% fat, the avenge blood alcohol levels achieved were 216,224,266 and 353 mg/100 ml, respectively. Average weight gains of the ethanol fed rats were: 15.4,19.6,14.7, and 14.9 g/week, respectively. Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels of the ethanol-fed rats averaged 123,292,144, and 213 units/liter, respectively. ALT levels in pair-fed controls for the rats fed 32% fat averaged 62 and those of chow-fed controls averaged 49 units/liter. Comparison of liver biopsy-semiquantHied morphological findings revealed an increased 3–4+ fatty change in the ethanol-fed rats also fed the high fat diets: 6/16, 17/17, 5/6, and 5/7 rats, respectively. Necrosis, zonal or spotty, and inflammation were more common in high fat-fed rats. Moreover, fibrosis was only observed centrilobu-lariy in rate fed diets with varying fat content (5, 25, 32, or 35% of calories): 0/16,10/17, 4/6, and 3/7 rats, respectively, over a 5-mon period of feeding. Electron microscopy showed that (to cells predominated in the scarred areas. The mechanism for the centrilobular necrosis-fibrosis was investigated in rats given a diet of ethanol plus 32% fat diet by measuring the level of adenine nucleotide in repeated liver biopsies in five pairs of rate. There was a significant decrease in liver ATP levels and the total adenylate pool which tended to worsen in serial biopsies over a 4-mon period of ethanol feeding. Energy change did not decrease. Arterial pOj levels determined in four of these ethanol-fed rats were reduced compared to controls (83 ± 9,106 ± 9 mm Hg, respectively, p < 0.001). The results support the conclusion that rats fed high fat diets and ethanol by continuous intragastric infusion develop centrilobular scarring similar to that seen in baboons and man ingesting ethanol. This implies that a high fat diet may be obligatory for ethanol-induced Hver fibrosis to develop in the rat Both Ito cell synthesis of collagen and centrilobular hypoxia may be involved in the pathogenesis of the centrilobular fibrosis.
Hyperosmolar nonketotic diabetic coma: vascular complications.

: Serious vascular complications can be readily overlooked in cases of hyperosmolar nonketotic diabetic coma. They were found by the authors in 3 of 5 autopsy cases. Such a high proportion attests to the importance of early recognition, not only of the type of coma but the presence of life-threatening vascular complications.
Analysis of cell cycle-related gene expression in postmitotic neurons: Selective induction of cyclin D1 during programmed cell death

Sympathetic neurons undergo RNA and protein synthesis-dependent programmed cell death when deprived of nerve growth factor. To test the hypothesis that neuronal programmed cell death is a consequence of conflicting growth signals which cause the inappropriate activation of cell cycle genes, we have analyzed cell cycle-related genes for their expression in postmitotic neurons. Surprisingly, many of these genes are expressed in neurons, although cdc2, cdk2, and cyclin A are not. During programmed cell death, the expression of most of these genes, including several cyclins and the Rb and p53 tumor suppressor genes, decreases similar to that of neuronal genes. In contrast, cyclin D1 expression is selectively induced in dying neurons. Cyclin D1 mRNA levels peak 15-20 hr after nerve growth factor withdrawal, concurrent with the time that neurons become committed to die. These results provide an extensive characterization of cell cycle gene expression in postmitotic neurons and provide the evidence for a gene induced during neuronal programmed cell death.
Forced Convective Boiling of Ethylene Glycol/Water Mixtures Inside a Small Tube

Forced convective boiling heat transfer of water and ethylene glycol/water mixtures with volume concentration ratios of 40/60, 50/50, and 60/40 in a 2.98-mm inner-diameter circular tube has been investigated for both horizontal and vertical upward flows. Boiling heat transfer rates of the test fluids were determined experimentally over a range of mass flux, vapor mass quality, and inlet subcooling through a boiling data reduction procedure that allowed analytical calculation of the fluid boiling temperatures along the experimental test section by applying ideal mixture and equilibrium assumptions along with Raoult’s law. Based on the experimental findings that the heat flux in the nucleation-dominant-boiling region was dependent strongly on the wall superheat but almost independent of the mass flux and the inlet subcooling, prediction equations were developed for boiling heat transfer coefficients of water and ethylene glycol/water mixtures in small channels. The equations predict the experimental data well, and most of the predicted values are within ±30 % of the experimental data.
Minimality, controllability and observability for uncertain systems

A complete generalization of the notions of minimality, controllability and observability is presented for uncertain systems modelled by linear fractional transformations on structured operators. Both an algebraic perspective and a geometric perspective are given. The algebraic results include necessary and sufficient linear matrix inequality conditions for reducibility, and the development of structured controllability and observability matrices. The geometric approach involves a decomposition of the system variable space into reachable and unobservable subspaces. Both approaches lead to Kalman-like decomposition structures for uncertain systems.
Effect of axillary lymphadenectomy on breast carcinoma survival.

Purpose. To determine the effect of axillary lymphadenectomy on breast carcinoma survival, and to determine racial and age differences in the extent of axillary lymphadenectomy.
Nutrient content of morel mushroom mycelium: amino acid composition of the protein.

SUMMARY Mycelia of three species of morel mushrooms, Morchella crassipes, M. esculenta, and M. hortensis, were grown in submerged culture in a glucose-ammonium phosphate-corn steep liquor medium. The dried mycelia were subjected to proximate analyses and amino acid determinations. A commercial morel mushroom powder was also analyzed for the same constituents. The dry samples contained 22.8–51.0% protein and 2.18–7.55% fat, depending upon the species. Amino aeid contents were similar to those reported in the literature for other fungi.
Integrative Symptom-Focused Dynamic Psychotherapy

The advent of the relational perspective in psychoanalytic theory has opened up exciting new prospects for integrative psychotherapy. My own integrative model draws on self psychology and attachment theory for ideas about development and treatment, but also posits the need for active techniques at times to help with troubling symptoms. In addition to using interventions from behavioral and cognitive behavioral traditions, my treatment approach has been evolving to include a variety of mindfulness based strategies. In this article I focus on interventions I use most often to help patients with two major domains: self regulation (which includes affect management and perspective on the self), and self-initiated behavior change. Case examples illustrating the interplay of symptom-focused work and more dynamic exploration are provided.
Self-consistently optimized energy functions for protein structure prediction by molecular dynamics

The protein energy landscape theory is used to obtain optimal energy functions for protein structure prediction via simulated annealing. The analysis here takes advantage of a more complete statistical characterization of the protein energy landscape and thereby improves on previous approximations. This schema partially takes into account correlations in the energy landscape. It also incorporates the relationships between folding dynamics and characteristic energy scales that control the collapse of the proteins and modulate rigidity of short-range interactions. Simulated annealing for the optimal energy functions, which are associative memory hamiltonians using a database of folding patterns, generally leads to quantitatively correct structures. In some cases the algorithm achieves “creativity,” i.e., structures result that are better than any homolog in the database.
Serum Leptin Does Not Predict Body Fat Mass in the Very Low Birthweight Infant 1546

Leptin is a hormone produced by adipocytes that regulates body weight and has been found to correlate with the percentage of body fat in children and adults. In addition, leptin is also produced by the placenta and a positive correlation between cord blood leptin levels and birthweight suggests a role for leptin as a fetal growth factor. In the premature infant several studies have demonstrated a higher accretion of body fat when compared to fetuses of the same post-conceptual age and accurate measures of body fat might be useful in guiding nutritional decisions in this population. In this initial study we therefore set out to examine leptin levels in the very low birthweight infant and correlate with other measures of body fat including skinfold measurements and dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Four infants with a mean birthweight of 890 grams and gestational age of 27.7 weeks were studied. Infants were greater than 1 week of age and initiating feeds at enrollment and underwent weekly anthropometric measurements in addition to serum leptin levels until discharge or back transport. All infants manifested adequate weight gain and linear growth as well as increases in skinfold thickness suggesting deposition of subcutaneous fat. In addition, one infant underwent DEXA evaluation revealing 7.3% body fat at one month of age which increased to 9.3% at seven weeks of age. However, no serum leptin was detected in this infant at the time of the DEXA measurements. Suprisingly only one of the four infants had detectable serum leptin with a mean level of.19 ng/ml utilizing an ultrasensitive RIA. We conclude that serum leptin as it is currently measured is not useful to predict body fat mass in the very low birthweight infant. We further speculate that the lack of detectable leptin may be important in altering the extrauterine accretion of body fat in the prematurely born infant.
An autosomal dominantly inherited syndrome of facial asymmetry, esotropia, amblyopia, and submucous cleft palate (Bencze syndrome)

This is the second report of a dominantly inherited syndrome of facial asymmetry, esotropia, and amblyopia (Bencze syndrome). The phenotypic spectrum is expanded to include submucous cleft palate. The observation for the first time of male-to-male transmission seems to confirm an autosomal dominant mode of inheritance. The facial asymmetry in this family was mild and did not require surgical intervention. With the exception of one patient who had other abnormalities, intelligence was normal.
Distributed order scheduling and its application to multi-core dram controllers

We study a distributed version of the order scheduling problem that arises when scheduling memory requests in shared DRAM systems of many-core architectures. In this problem, a set of n customer orders needs to be scheduled on multiple facilities. An order can consist of multiple requests, each of which has to be serviced on one designated facility, and an order is completed only when all its requests have been serviced. In the distributed setting, every facility has its own request buffer and must schedule the requests having only limited knowledge about the buffer state at other facilities In this paper, we quantify the trade-off between the amount of communication among different facilities and the quality of the resulting global solution. We show that without communication, the average completion time of all orders can be by a factor Ω(√n) worse than in the optimal schedule. On the other hand, there exists a 2-approximation algorithm if the complete buffer states are exchanged in n communication rounds. We then prove a general upper bound that characterizes the region between these extreme points. Specifically, we devise a distributed scheduling algorithm that, for any k, achieves an approximation ratio of O(k) in n/k communication rounds. Finally, we empirically test the performance of our different algorithms in a many-core environment using SPEC CPU2006 benchmarks as well as Windows desktop application traces.
Efficacy of mifepristone followed on the same day by misoprostol for early termination of pregnancy: report of a randomised trial

Objective To examine the clinical efficacy of mifepristone 600 mg followed on the same day or two days later by misoprostol 400μg orally in women undergoing medical termination of pregnancy whose pregnancies have a gestational age up to 49 days. Design Prospective, randomised trial. Setting Clinical research office. Participants Eighty-six women, requesting elective termination of a pregnancy which has a gestational age of ≤ 49 days. Methods After administration of mifepristone 600 mg, participants were randomised to take misoprostol six to eight hours later (Group 1) or 48 hours later (Group 2). Women returned for a follow up evaluation 24±1 hours after taking the misoprostol. Participants in Group 1 who had not aborted received a second dose of misoprostol to take 48 hours after the mifepristone. All women returned approximately two weeks after receiving mifepristone. If termination of pregnancy had still not occurred and the pregnancy was non-viable, the woman returned again in three weeks. Main outcome measures Rate of complete abortion 24 hours after administration of misoprostol. Results At 24 hours after receiving misoprostol, 21/42 (50%, 95% CI 35%, 65%) women in Group 1 and 40/44 (91%, 95% CI 82%, 99%) women in Group 2 had complete abortions. By follow up two weeks later after the administration of mifepristone, 40/42 (95%, 95% CI 89%, 100%) women in Group 1 and 43/44 (98%, 95% CI 93%, 99%) women in Group 2 were known to have complete abortions. Nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea in women using the standard regimen (Group 2) occurred in 68%, 36%, and 20%, respectively. Conclusions After treatment with mifepristone 600 mg, administration of misoprostol 400 μg orally on the same day is not as effective at causing abortion within the first 24 hours compared with the standard time interval of 48 hours between medications.
Characterization of peroxo and hydroperoxo intermediates in the aerobic oxidation of N-heterocyclic-carbene-coordinated palladium(0).

An η2-peroxopalladium(II) complex, derived from dioxygen addition to Pd(IMes)2 (IMes = bis-1,3-di(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)imidazoline-2-ylidene), has been isolated and characterized. Subsequent addition of HOAc to (IMes)2Pd(O2) yields the first example of a hydroperoxopalladium species derived from molecular oxygen. The characterization and reactivity studies of these complexes provide the most detailed insights to date into the proposed mechanism for palladium(0) oxidation by molecular oxygen.
Prescription order risk factors for pediatric dosing alerts.

Abstract Objectives To determine dosing alert rates based on prescription order characteristics and identify prescription order risk factors for the occurrence of dosing alerts. Methods A retrospective analysis of inpatient medication orders and dosing alerts occurring during October 2011 and January, April, and July 2012 at a pediatric institution. Prescription orders and alerts were categorized by: medication class, patient age, route of administration, and month of the year. Results There were 228,259 orders during the studied period, with 11,072 alerted orders (4.9%). The most frequently alerted medication class was the non-analgesic central nervous system agent class (14% of alerts). Age, route, medication class, and month all independently affected dosing alert rates. The alert rate was highest for immunosuppressive agents (54%), neonates (6.7%), and orders for rectal administration (9.5%). The alert rate was higher in adult patients receiving their care at a pediatric institution (5.7%) compared to children (4.7%), but after multivariate analysis, pediatric orders had higher odds for an alert (OR 1.1, 95% CI 1.05–1.16). Mercaptopurine had the highest alert rate when categorized by active ingredient (73.9%). Albuterol 2.5 mg/mL continuous aerosol and heparin 1000 units in 0.9% sodium chloride injection solution were the unique medications with the highest alert rates (100.0% and 97.7%, respectively). Conclusions Certain types of prescription orders have a higher risk for causing dosing alerts than others. Patient age, medication class, route of administration, and the month of year can affect dosing alert rates. Design and customization efforts should focus on these medications and prescription order characteristics that increase the risk for dosing alerts.
A heuristic model of sensory adaptation.

Adaptation is a universal process in organisms as diverse as bacteria and humans, and across the various senses. This article proposes a simple, heuristic, mathematical model containing tonic and phasic processes. The model demonstrates properties not commonly associated with adaptation, such as increased sensitivity to changes, range shifting, and phase lead. Changes in only four parameters permit the model to predict empirical psychophysical data from different senses. The relatively prolonged time courses of responses to oral and topical capsaicin are used to illustrate and validate this mathematical modeling approach for different stimulus profiles. Other examples of phenomena elucidated by this modeling approach include the time courses of taste sensation, brightness perception, loudness perception, cross-adaptation to oral irritants, and cutaneous mechanoreception. It also predicts such apparently unrelated phenomena as perceived alcohol intoxication, habituation, and drug tolerance. Because the integration of phasic and tonic components is a conservative, highly efficacious solution to a ubiquitous biological challenge, sensory adaptation is seen as an evolutionary adaptation, and as a prominent feature of Mother Nature’s small bag of tricks.
Transmission of laser energy and assessment of target temperature in an experimental model of laser balloon angioplasty

The potential application of laser balloon angioplasty (LBA) is limited because of difficulties in temperature control and dosimetry during trans-balloon laser irradiation. An experimental model of LBA was designed to help understand the polymer membrane effects of two materials on tissue temperature. The durability of two types of polymer films with different optical properties, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a low scattering polymer and polyetheretherketone (PEEK), a high scattering polymer, were examined as potential balloon material. The PEEK film (thickness: 50 μm) was melted and perforated by light from a diode laser (wavelength: 808±10 nm, irradiance: 1469 W cm−2, mean exposure time: 30±7 s). On the other hand, the PET film with the same thickness was completely intact after 1 min exposure at the same irradiance.
Fair Division Transportation Allocation Model for Funding Prioritization

AbstractDue to the increasing population and limited funding for maintenance and construction, the efficiency of the transportation network system in the U.S. is being challenged by a potential crisis that endangers the economic growth of the nation and the quality of life of the people. Although funding allocation can be approached using different methods, it is difficult to reach consensus on the criteria used to distribute limited funds among competing needs. Conventional funding allocation methods use weighted formulas based on population and other criteria. However, formula-based funding allocation methods may lead to the public’s disagreement if funding allocation final decisions are not perceived as fair or equitable by all agencies. A fair division transportation allocation model (FDTAM) is proposed as an alternative to fairly distribute limited funds among the agencies competing for funding. The FDTAM aims to maximize the participants’ project desirability and to minimize total envy due to budget...
Optical design of the LSST camera

The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) uses a novel, three-mirror, modified Paul-Baker design, with an 8.4-meter primary mirror, a 3.4-m secondary, and a 5.0-m tertiary feeding a camera system that includes a set of broad-band filters and refractive corrector lenses to produce a flat focal plane with a field of view of 9.6 square degrees. Optical design of the camera lenses and filters is integrated with optical design of telescope mirrors to optimize performance, resulting in excellent image quality over the entire field from ultra-violet to near infra-red wavelengths. The LSST camera optics design consists of three refractive lenses with clear aperture diameters of 1.55 m, 1.10 m and 0.69 m and six interchangeable, broad-band, filters with clear aperture diameters of 0.75 m. We describe the methodology for fabricating, coating, mounting and testing these lenses and filters, and we present the results of detailed tolerance analyses, demonstrating that the camera optics will perform to the specifications required to meet their performance goals.
Effect of Earthquake-Induced Damage on the Sidesway Response of Steel Moment-Frame Buildings during Fire Exposure

Spray-applied fire-resistive material (SFRM) is prone to debonding, cracking, and spalling in steel moment-frame plastic hinge regions during inelastic seismic response. To evaluate the effect of experimentally observed earthquake-induced SFRM spall patterns on building sidesway response during an ensuing fire, an analytical case study is developed for a steel special moment-frame building with a seismic hazard representative of coastal California. Response data from numerical earthquake simulations indicate that damage to SFRM insulation in beam hinge regions should be anticipated following ground shaking representative of the maximum considered seismic hazard. Thermomechanical post-earthquake fire simulations demonstrate that earthquake-induced SFRM spalling significantly increases thermal degradation in the affected beam hinge regions during fire exposure, leading to pronounced softening of moment-rotation response for the beam-column assemblies. This temperature-induced moment-frame connection softeni...
Domains, plural truth, and mixed atomic propositions

In this paper, I discuss two concerns for pluralist truth theories: a concern about a key detail of these theories and a concern about their viability. The detailed-related concern is that pluralists have relied heavily upon the notion of a domain, but it is not transparent what they take domains to be. Since the notion of a domain has been present in philosophy for some time, it is important for many theorists, not only truth pluralists, to be clear on what domains are and what work they can do. The viability-related concern is that it's not clear how a pluralist truth theory could explain the truth-conditions of mixed atomic propositions. To address this concern, truth pluralists should recognize something to which they have not been sufficiently attentive: that some atomic propositions belong to more than one domain. But, recognizing this requires rethinking the relationships between the nature of propositions, their membership in domains, and their truth. I address these issues and propose an understanding of them that is preferable to the best existing account of them, that offered by Michael Lynch.
The development of opioid tolerance in the formalin test in the rat

Abstract The formalin test produces persistent pain in animals and is believed to provide a better model of the pain experienced by humans than do tests that measure reflex nociceptive thresholds. The present study evaluated whether tolerance to morphine develops in the formalin test in the rat. Morphine (75 mg) or vehicle pellets were implanted subcutaneously for 5 consecutive days. On the 6th day, a subcutaneous (s.c.) dose of either morphine (10 mg/kg) or saline was given 30 min prior to the injection of 50 μl of 5% formalin into the left hindpaw of the rats. In vehicle-pelleted rats administered saline, formalin evoked characteristic pain behavior consisting of licking, biting and flinching of the affected hindpaw. The pain behavior in morphine-tolerant rats given morphine did not differ significantly from the saline control; i.e., tolerance to the analgesic effect of morphine was demonstrable in the formalin test. These results do not agree with previous published reports. Rather, these results suggest that the mechanisms involved in morphine analgesia in the formalin test and in reflex nociceptive tests are similar and subject to the same problem of tolerance with chronic opioid administration.
An efficient sorting algorithm for a sequence of kings in a tournament

A king $u$ in a tournament is a player who beats ($\rightarrow$) any other player $v$ {\em directly or indirectly}. That is, either $u \rightarrow v$ or there exists a third player $w$ such that $u \rightarrow w$ and $w \rightarrow v$. A sorting sequence of kings in a tournament of $n$ players is a sequence of players, $S=(u_1$, $u_2$, ..., $u_n)$, such that $u_i \rightarrow u_{i+1}$ and $u_i$ in a king in the sub-tournament $T_{u_i}$ induced by $u_i, u_{i+1}, ..., u_n$ for $i=1, 2,..., n-1$. The existence of a sorting sequence of kings in any tournament is shown \cite{LouW00} where a sorting algorithm with a complexity of $\Theta(n^{3})$ is given. In this paper, we present a constructive proof for the existence of a sorting sequence of kings of a tournament and propose an efficient algorithm with a complexity of $\Theta(n^2)$.
Use of loperamide as a phenotypic probe of mdr1a status in CF-1 mice.

Purpose. A subpopulation of the CF-1 mouse strain (approximately 25%) lacks P-gp expression, and consequently, increased brain penetration of many substrates is observed in these animals. Mice lacking the mdr1a gene represent an important research tool to study the potential effects of P-gp on CNS substrate disposition.
Grafting of Polymers from Clay Nanoparticles via In Situ Free Radical Surface-Initiated Polymerization: Monocationic versus Bicationic Initiators

Surface-initiated polymerization (SIP) from clay nanoparticles was compared between surface-bound mono- and bicationic free radical initiators. Distinct properties in molecular weight (MW), extent of exfoliation, and particle morphology were observed as a consequence of using two different initiator architectures. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed that the clay intercalated with monocationic initiator has a larger d spacing and gave a more ordered structure. IR, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and qualitative thermogravimetric analysis confirmed the attachment of both initiators. XRD further showed that the SIP product from the bicationic initiator retained some intercalated structure while a highly exfoliated structure is achieved by the SIP through the monocationic initiator. Consequently the monocationic initiator gave a higher MW polymer. We have found that well-dispersed intercalated clay particles and efficient monomer diffusion are crucial factors in performing a successful SIP and in achiev...
Particle Identification by Processing of Signals from Multiple Detectors

It is shown that for particle identification it is convenient to develop instrumentation based on coding the output of the detectors according to the ratio of probabilities that a particular signal is given by the two kinds of particles considered. Particular emphasis has been given to uncorrelated responses of each detector of a set, but the case of correlated responses leads to obvious extensions of the ideas presented. (auth)
Pathologic response of the pancreas and duodenum to experimental intraoperative irradiation

The pancreas and duodenum of 24 beagle dogs were given intraoperative irradiation (IORT) with 6 MeV electrons. The dose range was 17.5 Gy to 40 Gy. Billroth II gastrojejunostomy was performed on all dogs prior to irradiation. Six control dogs received only Billroth II surgery. Starting 2 weeks after surgery, dogs in the irradiation groups were given 50 Gy 6 MV X rays external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) to the pancreas and duodenum. The total dose of 50 Gy was given in 2 Gy fractions over 5 weeks. Dogs were monitored for 135 days then necropsied. Gross and histopathologic changes in the pancreas and duodenum were evaluated and quantitative analysis of pancreatic lesions done. Duodenal ulcers were found following 32.5 Gy and 40 Gy IORT. The pancreases were atrophic in irradiated dogs and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency occurred in one dog given 25 Gy. Gross pancreatic atrophy correlated with IORT dose. Histopathologic evidence of radiation damage to the pancreas was observed in acinar cells. Islet cell lesions were not apparent. There was pancreatic fibrosis and damage to blood vessels and ducts. Dose-response relationships were observed for the index of damage to the pancreas as a whole, for pancreatic fibrosis and a decrease in normal acinar cells. Although 25 Gy IORT plus 50 Gy EBRT was tolerated by the duodenum to 135 days, these doses may cause later pancreatic injury as an expression of damage to blood vessels and ducts. Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency and diabetes mellitus may thus represent potential late complications of IORT following 25 Gy or higher doses.
Estimating the parameters of multidimensional signal detection theory from simultaneous ratings on separate stimulus components.

In the concurrent rating task, stimuli are constructed by factorially combining several levels of separate physical components. Subjects give simultaneous judgments of their confidence that each component is presented at the highest possible level. The concurrent rating task has great potential for testing hypotheses and estimating parameters of multidimensional signal detection theory. In this article, the relationship between the parameters of the distribution of rating responses and the underlying perceptual distributions is detailed. The product moment correlation between ratings is shown to seriously underestimate the degree of perceptual dependence. More accurate estimators of the correlation between perceptual effects are suggested. The relation between the interrating correlation and measures of perceptual dependence developed for complete identification tasks is discussed. A powerful test of perceptual separability is then developed. Finally, these techniques are applied to some representative data.
Er-doped ZnO films grown by pulsed e-beam deposition

Erbium (Er)-doped ZnO thin films were grown on fused silica (SiO2) substrates by pulsed electron-beam deposition (PED) and analysed by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), ultraviolet–visible absorption, and photoluminescence (PL). Subsequent annealing at 700 °C produces remarkable effects on the optical properties of Er-doped films. Under 325 nm excitation, a dramatic increase of deep-level emission from 450 to 680 nm was observed from annealed Er-doped ZnO films. Under 488 nm excitation, the PL spectrum of annealed Er-doped ZnO films revealed sharp and well-resolved Stark-splitting peaks in both the green emission of transition and the red emission of transition of Er3+ ions, which suggests that the Er ions have been incorporated inside the crystalline ZnO grains after thermal annealing.
Distributed telerobotics system for space operations

Robotic systems for space operations will require a combination of teleoperation, closely supervised autonomy, and loosely supervised autonomy. They may involve multiple robots, multiple controlling sites, and long communication delays. We have constructed a distributed telerobotics system as a framework for studying these problems. Our system is based on a modular interconnection scheme which allows the components of either manual or autonomous control systems to communicate and share information. It uses a wide area network to connect robots and operators at several different sites. This presentation will describe the structure of our system, the components used in our configurations, and results of some of our teleoperation experiments.
Fluctuations in Ionospheric Absorption Events at Conjugate Stations

BROWN1 has recently presented observations of those ionospheric absorption events observed at Kiruna which fluctuate over periods of several minutes, and from it has concluded that the fluctuations are consistent with modulation of the electron precipitation by hydromagnetic waves. However, no detailed mechanism for this interaction has yet been proposed. The purpose of this communication is to present a complementary feature which any theory must take into account: namely, the phase relation between these fluctuations in magnetically conjugate regions.