cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Focused Transesophageal Echocardiography Protocol for Intraoperative Management During Orthotopic Liver Transplantation.

Objective The value of a simplified, focused intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) protocol in patients undergoing liver transplantation (LT) is unknown. We sought to create and assess a 5-view LT TEE examination focused on 5 prespecified common causes of hypotension during LT. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting Single-center tertiary academic hospital. Participants All patients undergoing LT with TEE from January 2010 through May 2019. Interventions None. Measurements and Main Results A 5-view LT TEE protocol adapted from a published rescue TEE protocol was assessed retrospectively in a cohort of 106 patients. The primary outcome was the frequency with which the protocol would have detected a composite of 5 prespecified causes of hypotension if the TEE exam had been limited to those views. To assess potential influence on intraoperative care, management changes associated with TEE images were extracted from the medical record. The prespecified diagnoses occurred 24 times; the LT TEE protocol would have detected 22 of 24 of these (92%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 74%-98%). Intraoperative management changes occurred in 15 of 16 patients (94%) with 1 of the prespecified TEE findings, compared with 1 of 27 patients (3.7%) with TEE findings outside those diagnoses (p Conclusions In a retrospective cohort study, a simplified LT TEE protocol would have detected 92% of prespecified TEE findings. Management changes occurred in 94% of those patients, while changes rarely occurred in patients with other TEE findings. A focused LT TEE protocol may diagnose critical pathology adequately and guide management during LT when standard monitors are insufficient.
Chi-square Difference Tests for Comparing Nested Models: An Evaluation with Non-normal Data

The relative fit of two nested models can be evaluated using a chi-square difference statistic. We evaluate the performance of five robust chi-square difference statistics in the context of confirm...
Does robo-advisory help reduce the likelihood of carrying a credit card debt? Evidence from an instrumental variable approach

Abstract The rapid increase in consumer credit card debt has been a major concern in the United States. The emerging robo-advisory, which allows fraud detection and credit spending planning, has shown to be a potential preventive measure for credit card indebtedness. Thus, the present study examines the causal effect of robo-advisory usage on the likelihood of carrying a credit card debt. Instrumental variable regression is carried out on a sample (n = 1762) extracted from the 2015 National Financial Capability Study (NFCS) Investor Survey and State-by-State Survey. Although the present study cannot establish a causal relationship between robo-advisory and carrying a credit card debt, this study shows that fear of investment fraud can be a suitable instrument variable for examining this relationship in future research. Results are robust after controlling for an individual’s demographic factors and variables related to financial literacy that may affect credit card use.
Differences in length of stay by teaching team status in an academic medical center in the Midwestern United States

Background: Given the high cost of inpatient stays, hospital systems are investigating ways to decrease lengths of stay while ensuring high-quality care. The goal of this study was to determine if ...
The Mutual Fund Board: A Failed Experiment in Regulatory Outsourcing

Mutual fund boards are a curious institution. Mandated by the Investment Company Act of 1940, they are tasked as “watchdog” supervisors of the management firms that organize, administer and market mutual funds. The fund board and its “independent” directors approve fund transactions with the management firm and ensure compliance with the 1940 Act and implementing SEC rules. Fund directors thus function as outsourced regulators, with their selection and compensation in the hands of the management firm they supervise. This essay argues that the outsourcing to mutual fund boards of key regulatory functions—principally the review and approval of management contracts—has not lived up to the hopes of the 1940 Act. Fund boards have been weak and even feckless protectors of fund investors, their deficiencies exacerbated as mutual funds have grown into the leading investment vehicle for private retirement savings in the United States. Gauged by the important metric of management fees—whose negotiation is delegated to fund boards—the experiment in regulatory outsourcing has failed As the mutual fund industry has grown in size and scope, the fund board has shown itself to be mostly ineffective in negotiating on behalf of fund investors to realize the value from improved information technologies and growing economies of scale. Study after study finds fund expense ratios growing over a period when fund assets have exploded. Just as significant as their poor performance in negotiating lower management fees, fund boards have also failed in their supervision of fund design and marketing. Fund boards, charged with the approval of fund mergers and dissolutions, have acquiesced in the strategy of many fund groups of creating a stable of “above average” funds by merging losers into winners. Fund groups then heavily market the resulting winners (also an activity subject to board supervision) by appealing to the “past is prologue” mentality of many fund investors. Fund boards have failed to respond to the “cognitive biases” of fund investors, a problem aggravated by the shift of
Strawberry Consumption, Cardiometabolic Risk Factors, and Vascular Function: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Adults with Moderate Hypercholesterolemia.

BACKGROUND Certain fruits, such as strawberries, may impart cardiometabolic benefits due to their phytochemical content. OBJECTIVES Study aims were to assess the effects of strawberry intake on cardiometabolic risk factors and vascular endothelial function in adults with moderate hypercholesterolemia. METHODS This study was a randomized, controlled, double-blinded, 2-arm, 2-period (4-wk/period) crossover trial. Adults (n = 34; male/female 1:1; mean ± SEM age, 53 ± 1 y; BMI, 31 ± 1 kg/m2; LDL cholesterol, 133 ± 3 mg/dL) were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 study sequences in a 1:1 ratio. Participants drank study beverages twice daily containing freeze-dried strawberry powder (2 × 25 g) or energy-, volume-matched control powder for 4 wk separated by a 4-wk washout. The primary outcome variable was the difference in fasting LDL cholesterol after 4-wk interventions. Secondary outcomes were metabolic markers, inflammation, quantitative (poly)phenolic metabolomics, flow-mediated dilation (FMD), and blood pressure (BP), with the latter (FMD, BP) also assessed acutely at 1 h and 2 h after a 50-g bolus strawberry or control beverage. Mixed-model analysis of repeated measures via PROC MIXED, PC-SAS was performed on primary and secondary outcome variables. RESULTS LDL cholesterol did not differ after the 4-wk interventions (P > 0.05), nor did fasting total cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, insulin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, FMD, or BP (all P > 0.05). Significant intervention-by-hour interaction for FMD (P = 0.03) and BP (P = 0.05) revealed increased FMD at 1 h after strawberry compared with control by 1.5 ± 0.38% (P = 0.0008) and attenuated systolic BP at 2 h by 3.1 ± 0.99 mmHg (P = 0.02). Select phenolic metabolites increased significantly (P < 0.05) in blood following strawberry consumption while others decreased, including 3-(4-methoxyphenyl)propanoic acid-3-O-glucuronide, which was significantly correlated with increased FMD (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION Strawberries may improve vascular health, independent of other metabolic changes. The effect may be related to changes in microbial-derived phenolic metabolites after strawberry consumption influencing endothelial function. Data support inclusion of strawberries in a heart-healthy diet in adults with moderate hypercholesterolemia.This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02612090.
Cultures of Calvinism in early modern Europe: edited by Crawford Gribben and Graeme Murdock, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2019, 264 pp., $99 (hardback), ISBN: 9780190456283

“Tracing the influence of a charismatic religious leader of global significance is never simple.” So the Reformation historians Irena Backus and Philip Benedict observed in a volume of essays comme...
Action Classification Using Sequence Alignment and Shape Context

In this paper, we describe a method for classifying human actions from videos. The method uses the Longest Common Sub-Sequence (LCSS) algorithm to match actions represented by sequences of pose silhouettes. The silhouettes are extracted from each video frame using foreground segmentation. The main novelty of our method is the use of the Shape Context (SC) and Inner-Distance Shape Context (IDSC) as a pairwise shape-similarity measurement for constructing the sequence-alignment cost matrix. Experiments performed on two action datasets compare our approach favorably with previous related methods.
Implementation of a task-dependent anisotropic impedance controller into a 2-DOF platform-based ankle rehabilitation robot

Inspired by achievements in rehabilitation, motor learning, and neuroscience, therapeutic robots are aiming to provoke neuromotor plasticity and improve recovery after stroke and mobility impairments. Human sensorimotor system is specialized with position and velocity sensory fibers and exhibits variant muscle impedance in accordance with the ongoing task. The virtually interfaced robotic ankle and balance trainer (vi-RABT) was introduced as a cost-effective platform-based rehabilitation robot to improve overall ankle / balance strength, mobility and control. This study is the first step toward assistive / resistive ankle rehabilitation using vi-RABT. We have implemented a task-dependent anisotropic impedance controller into the 2-DOF ankle rehabilitation robot. An objective virtual Maze game is developed. The controller is specifically designed for the Maze workspace; and exhibits elastic or pure viscos properties in compliant with the subject's direction of movement. Early results on two human subjects are presented.
Combining Theorem Proving and Model Checking through Symbolic Analysis

Automated verification of concurrent systems is hindered by the fact that the state spaces are either infinite or too large for model checking, and the case analysis usually defeats theorem proving. Combinations of the two techniques have been tried with varying degrees of success. We argue for a specific combination where theorem proving is used to reduce verification problems to finite-state form, and model checking is used to explore properties of these reductions. This decomposition of the verification task forms the basis of the Symbolic Analysis Laboratory (SAL), a framework for combining different analysis tools for transition systems via a common intermediate language. We demonstrate how symbolic analysis can be an effective methodology for combining deduction and exploration.
A geometric proof for subspace tracking theorems

Existing subspace tracking theorems play an important role in obtaining recursive subspace estimation algorithms. In this paper a novel proof to the subspace tracking theorems proposed is presented which, not only gives a new geometric interpretation to such results based on the projection theory, but also extends those theorems to a system with a more general class of system noise. In particular, we introduce a unified procedure to analyze three different systems: noise free, with spatially white noises, and with colored noises. Finally, we show that spatially white noise does not cause any bias on the subspace tracking while the colored noise may in general deteriorate the quality of such a tracking.
Nuclear Magnetic Relaxation of Liquid 3He in a Constrained Geometry

We have measured the nuclear magnetic relaxation properties of liquid 3He contained within a vessel filled with fine carbon powder. The purpose of the experiments was to gain a better understanding of the surface relaxation mechanisms for 3He atoms at low temperatures in order to: (1) interpret the NMR relaxation rates in thin films, and (2) look for more general manifestations of the apparent magnetic thermal coupling between 3He and paramagnetic salts observed at low temperatures.1
Applications of living systems theory to life in space

Earth, as far as we know, is the only planet in our solar system on which living systems have ever existed. Since Earth’s primeval atmosphere lacked free oxygen and therefore had no ozone layer to protect primitive cells and organisms from the Sun’s killing radiation, life evolved in the sea for the first 2 billion years. The biological activity of primitive algae is considered a major factor in creating our oxygen atmosphere, making it possible to colonize land. Now the human species is contemplating a second great migration, this time into space.
S12.4 Chlamydia Trachomatis

In vaccine enterprises there are two goals that must be achieved to be successful. Priority is usually given to the vaccine components, which antigen(s) and adjuvants. However an equally important goal is to understand the parameters of protective immunity, or the immunologic goal of vaccination. Chlamydia trachomatis infections pose a unique challenge for host immunity. In the majority of infected individuals the invading bacteria replicate only in the epithelial monolayer lining the reproductive tract. The business end (mechanism) of an effective vaccine is likely to be T cells functioning at the epithelial interface. During natural infections individuals’ immune responses range from asymptomatic clearance, to asymptomatic infertility, to hospitalisation for PID. Early Chlamydia vaccine attempts were associated with enhanced immunopathology. It is possible that Chlamydiavaccine candidates will cause enhanced immunopathology, with or without enhanced protection from bacterial replication in the reproductive tract. Evaluation of Chlamydia vaccines will need to include their ability to limit bacterial replication and immunopathology. There are some after-the-fact correlates for bad outcomes in women infected with C. trachomatis including circulating peripheral mononuclear cells that make too little IFN-γ, too much IL-10 or TNFα when activated by C. trachomatisantigens. The Chlamydia muridarum mouse model provides an opportunity to define the parameters of protective immunity in the genital tract, and then evaluate/validate them in humans. The mouse model has shown the CD4 T cells are critical to protection and CD8 T cells likely responsible for immunopathology. More recently it was demonstrated that there are redundant mechanisms for clearing C. muridarumfrom the genital tract. This presentation will cover the newest mouse model data, correlating it with what is known in humans. The practicable human correlates of protective immunity and immunopathology are likely to be novel CD4 and CD8 T cell subsets, with antibody possibly falling into disfavour.
Right-Left Symmetry of Right Nonsingular Right Max-Min CS Prime Rings

In this article we show, among others, that if R is a prime ring which is not a domain, then R is right nonsingular, right max-min CS with uniform right ideal if and only if R is left nonsingular, left max-min CS with uniform left ideal. The above result gives, in particular, Huynh et al. (2000) Theorem for prime rings of finite uniform dimension.
An examination of LES filtering within the finite element method

The finite element method (FEM), in combination with large-eddy simulation (LES) techniques, is considered for the study of incompressible turbulent flows. The combination of these methodologies brings together the advantages of each: LES provides a high degree of accuracy with a minimum of empiricism for turbulence modelling, and FEM provides a robust way to simulate flow in very complex domains. It is shown that the LES filtering operator and filter width can be independently chosen with FEM just as with spectral methods because, even though FEM is grid based, it is also a method that provides an unambiguous solution everywhere by employing global basis functions. The assumption that the LES filtering operator commutes with differentiation is shown to be valid with the FEM approach. It is also shown that the error introduced by non-uniform filtering is small so long as the filter width changes smoothly. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Role of LRAT on the Retinoid Isomerase Activity and Membrane Association of Rpe65

Absorption of a photon by a vertebrate opsin pigment induces 11-cis to all-trans isomerization of its retinaldehyde chromophore. Restoration of light sensitivity to the bleached opsin requires chemical re-isomerization of the chromophore via an enzyme pathway called the visual cycle. The retinoid isomerase in this pathway is Rpe65, a membrane-associated protein in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) with no predicted membrane-spanning segments. It has been suggested that Rpe65 is S-palmitoylated by lecithin:retinol acyl transferase (LRAT) on Cys231, Cys329, and Cys330, and that this palmitoylation is required for isomerase activity and the association of Rpe65 with membranes. Here we show that the affinity of Rpe65 for membranes is similar in wild-type and lrat–/– mice. The isomerase activity of Rpe65 is also similar in both strains when all-trans-retinyl palmitate is used as substrate. With all-trans-retinol substrate, isomerase activity is present in wild-type but undetectable in RPE homogenates from lrat–/– mice. Substitution of Cys231, Cys329, and Cys330 with Ser or Ala did not affect the affinity of Rpe65 for membranes. Further, these Cys residues are not palmitoylated in Rpe65 by mass spectrometric analysis. Global inhibition of protein palmitoylation by 2-bromopalmitate did not affect the solubility or isomerase activity of Rpe65. Finally, we show that soluble and membrane-associated Rpe65 possesses similar isomerase specific activities. These results indicate that LRAT is not required for isomerase activity beyond synthesis of retinyl-ester substrate, and that the association of Rpe65 with membranes is neither dependent upon LRAT nor the result of S-palmitoylation. The affinity of Rpe65 for membranes is probably an intrinsic feature of this protein.
A simple parameter for accurate detection of severe carotid disease

The value of the ratio of the peak systolic velocity in the internal carotid artery to the end diastolic velocity in the common carotid artery in quantifying the severity of carotid arteriosclerosis has been investigated in 86 diseased vessels and 30 normal vessels. The ratio permitted gradation of disease into 60 per cent stenosis and greater with 95 per cent accuracy, 65 per cent stenosis and greater with 97 per cent accuracy and greater than 90 per cent stenosis with 100 per cent accuracy. The values for 30 normal sides studied fell below those of the 60 per cent stenosis group. The ratio has a value in predicting the severity of disease in the internal carotid artery in those with a 60 per cent stenosis and greater.
Rain and snow scavenging of HNO3 vapor in the atmosphere

Abstract The coefficients for the wet removal of HNO 3 vapor from the atmosphere by rain (in-cloud and below-cloud) and snow have been derived under a number of approximations. The wet removal coefficients are parametrized in terms of precipitation rate. These coefficients are intended to represent the average scavenging from large precipitation bands or frontal systems where there is widespread weakly ascending air motion. Consequently, the derived coefficients would be appropriate, on an interim basis, for inclusion into regional or mesoscale models which include the wet removal of HNO 3 vapor. These coefficients, when combined with altitude-dependent precipitation rates and vertical profiles of HNO 3 concentrations, are also useful to estimate the flux of HNO 3 to the earth's surface. The derived snow scavenging coefficients are consistent with those of recent measurements by Huebert et al. Both rain and snow scavenging coefficients are also consistent with recent observations of ionic composition in winter precipitation samples which indicated that snow removes HNO 3 vapor more efficiently than rain.
Let Us Have Peace: Ulysses S. Grant and the Politics of War and Reconstruction, 1861-1868

Historians have traditionally drawn distinctions between Ulysses S. Grant's military and political careers. In Let Us Have Peace , Brooks Simpson questions such distinctions and offers a new understanding of this often enigmatic leader. He argues that during the 1860s Grant was both soldier and politician, for military and civil policy were inevitably intertwined during the Civil War and Reconstruction era. According to Simpson, Grant instinctively understood that war was 'politics by other means.' Moreover, he realized that civil wars presented special challenges: reconciliation, not conquest, was the Union's ultimate goal. And in peace, Grant sought to secure what had been won in war, stepping in to assume a more active role in policymaking when the intransigence of white Southerners and the obstructionist behavior of President Andrew Johnson threatened to spoil the fruits of Northern victory.
A computer corpus-based study of subject raising in modern portuguese

This study is the first comprehensive, data-based examination of subject raising in Portuguese, and is based on 4500+ tokens in more than 26,500,000 words of text from both the written and spoken registers of Brazilian and European Portuguese. We have suggested that there are important differences in raising between the spoken and written registers, which are related to presumably universal production strategies for the two registers. Evidence suggests that morphological factors such as subject-verb agreement play an important role in determining whether raising occurs with first, second, and third person subjects. In terms of differences between the European and Brazilian dialects, we find that split agreement (eles parece saberem) and obligatory coreference {me parece ver um fantasma) are both more common in European Portuguese. Finally, these last two facts, along with a number of related phenomena, suggest that there are important differences in the underlying clause structure of European and Brazilian Portuguese, which can further be extended to include other languages such as Spanish.
Existence of Length-Dependent Modulation of Cross-Bridge Cycling Kinetics in Right Ventricles of Non-Failing and Failing Human Myocardium

Heart failure affects more than 5 million patients in the United States. The mechanisms by which the heart regulates cross-bridge cycling rate and if and how such regulation is altered in heart failure are poorly understood. One possible modulator of this cycling rate is muscle length. In a previously published study, we showed that the rate of tension redevelopment (ktr) can be reproducibly measured in intact cardiac trabeculae using a novel approach. Furthermore, we showed that slacking trabeculae from Lopt corresponding to end-diastolic volume in vivo) to L90 (corresponding to end-systolic volume in vivo) increases ktr by about 60%. While this regulation is present in a small animal model, its role in human myocardium in both health and disease remains unanswered. Therefore, we extended our studies using our novel method to right ventricular trabeculae isolated from non-failing donor and patients with heart failure. The failing samples had preserved length-tension relationship, reduced force-frequency relationship, and β-adrenergic desensitization as compared to non-failing donors. Contractile and relaxation kinetics of twitch of both non-failing and failing trabeculae were slowed down with increasing muscle length from L90 to Lopt. We were able to reproducibly measure ktr in intact human cardiac trabeculae; ktr during maximal myofilament activation in both non-failing and failing samples decreased with increasing muscle length. This effect of muscle length on ktr was also present at sub-maximal activation. These effects can be potentially due to post-translational modifications. We have preliminary ktr data after rapid length changes during maximal activation and PKA/PKCBII inhibition at maximal and sub-maximal activation levels. The overall data provides evidence that muscle length can regulate cross-bridge cycling kinetics in both non-failing and failing human hearts.
Differential enlargement of artery segments in response to enlarging atherosclerotic plaques

Abstract We studied the relationships among intimal plaque area, lumen area, and artery size in 481 sections of the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery taken at four standard sampling sites in 125 pressure-perfusion-fixed postmortem adult human hearts. The internal elastic lamina area was considered to be a measure of artery size or potential lumen area. Artery size correlated strongly with intimal plaque area at each LAD level (p 2 = 0.20 to 0.33). Sections of arteries with the most intimal plaque (highest quartile) were compared with those with the least plaque (lowest quartile) at each sample site. In the proximal LAD artery, the most severely diseased arteries increased in size 62% but lumen area decreased 25%. In the midportion of the LAD artery, plaque area was 10 times greater in the most diseased arteries, but lumen area remained normal because of an 80% increase in artery size. In the most severely diseased distal LAD artery sections, despite a fourteenfold increase in plaque area, lumen area almost doubled because of a marked increase in artery size. If no enlargement had occurred, the most severely diseased arteries in the proximal LAD segment would have developed a 92% lumen stenosis rather than the observed 25% lumen stenosis. In the distal LAD artery, without enlargement there would have been a 65% lumen stenosis rather than the 85% increase in lumen area that was found. We conclude that coronary arteries enlarge in response to increasing atherosclerotic plaque and that such enlargement can prevent narrowing of the lumen. However, different segments of the same artery may respond differently. Local differences in the relative rates of plaque growth and artery enlargement may determine progression to stenosis, preservation of normal lumen area, or enlargement. (J VASC SURG 1988;7:386-94.)
Bringing Afrocentricity to the Funnies: An Analysis of Afrocentricity Within Aaron McGruder’s The Boondocks

Cartoonist Aaron McGruder entered the syndicated comic strip arena in 1998. As an African American, McGruder’s social commentary, political criticism, and jokes have a perspective on America unlike...
Effect of Surface Roughness on the Oxidation Behavior of the Ni-Base Superalloy ME3

Ni-base superalloys are used in applications, such as jet aircraft engines and power production facilities that require excellent elevated temperature oxidation resistance. This present work evaluated the effect of surface roughness on the oxidation behavior of the Ni-base superalloy ME3. Isothermal oxidation tests were performed in air at different times to investigate the oxide growth kinetics. The surface oxides were also characterized using scanning electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction. The surface roughness was measured using a linear scanning profilometer. The surface roughness measurements were correlated to the oxidation rates and an empirical model is proposed to describe the effect of surface roughness on the oxidation behavior.
Eshelby's solution for ellipsoidal inhomogeneous inclusions with applications to compaction bands

Abstract Eshelby's solution for an ellipsoidal inhomogeneous inclusion in an infinite elastic body is applied to compaction and shear-enhanced compaction bands in the Aztec sandstone at Valley of Fire State Park, NV. The inclusion and matrix are linear elastic and isotropic, but have different elastic moduli, and a remote stress represents tectonic loading. A prescribed uniform strain within the inclusion accounts for inelastic compaction for a porosity change from 25 to 10%. Differences in elastic moduli between the matrix and inclusion are based on laboratory data. We generalize earlier results, limited to 2D and axisymmetric geometries, by considering ellipsoids with different intermediate and greatest axial lengths, consistent with field observations. Stiffness contrasts and non-circular tip-line shapes produce modest concentrations of the remote stress, but compaction strains of 1–10% produce significant triaxial compressive stress concentrations, which presumably are responsible for band propagation. The plastic strain is triaxial, but dominated by the normal strain across the inclusion. The stress diminution on the band flank is easily overcome by minor increases in the tectonic loading, enabling bands to be closely spaced. For the shear-enhanced band, if the plastic shear and normal strains are approximately equal, the ratio of shear to normal stress is about 1.3 at the tip.
The absolute radiometric calibration of Terra imaging sensors: MODIS, MISR, and ASTER

The Terra spacecraft contains five Earth-observation instruments, three of which are multispectral imaging sensors that complement each other in spectral and spatial coverage. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) has 36 channels ranging from 0.4–14.4 μm, with spatial resolutions of 250, 500, and 1000 m. The Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) uses individual imaging sensors to view the earth at nine discreet angles. Each radiometer has four channels in the visible and near infrared (VNIR), and the nadir-viewing camera has a spatial resolution of 275 m. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) was designed with fourteen bands ranging from 0.5–11.6 μm. It is the high-resolution sensor on Terra, with a spatial resolution of 15 m in the VNIR, and 30 m in the shortwave infrared (SWIR). This work describes the vicarious techniques used to perform the absolute radiometric calibration of MODIS, MISR, and ASTER in the solar-reflective region (0.4–2.5 μm). It includes the reflectance-based approach, which uses ground-based personnel to make in situ measurements during the time of overpass. It also includes more recent results that were obtained using the University of Arizona’s automated Radiometric Calibration Test Site (RadCaTS) at Railroad Valley, Nevada. In addition to the absolute radiometric calibration of Terra sensors, RadCaTS is used to perform the cross comparison of MODIS, MISR, and ASTER with Landsat 7 ETM+ and Landsat 8 OLI.
Multilevel, Micro/Macro-Approach for Analysis of Woven-Fabric Composite Plates:

An approach wasdeveloped to analyze woven-fabric composite structures based on microlevel properties of the fiber and matrix materials. The approach is based on bilateral relationships among the fi...
Programming Maintenance as a Major Component of a Community-Centered Preventive Effort: Escape from Fire

The present study investigated maintenance of responding by severely to moderately mentally retarded subjects following behavioral training of socially validated methods of exiting from a burning house. Four subjects in a community living arrangement were taught methods of exiting the house in fire emergency situations via a multiple baseline design across subjects. Training included instructions, modeling, behavioral rehearsal, social and tangible external reinforcement, and self-reinforcement. To facilitate maintenance, all children received (a) isolated followed by simultaneous presentation of situations, and those children who met certain criteria received (b) fading of reinforcement and (c) alteration from external to self-reinforcement. To increase the likelihood of generalization to an actual fire, children were taught in their own home and were presented with simulated cues. Generalization to a second room, a secondary focus, was trained to those children who met designated criteria via fading of reinforcement, self-reinforcement, and training in a third room. The procedure was effective in both training and maintaining emergency exiting skills in the simulated setting. Generalization probe data indicated the need to either program generalization or train children in their own rooms. The results were socially validated through presentation of a questionnaire to firefighters.
Oxytocin-like immunoreactive nerves are associated with insulin-containing cells in pancreatic islets of anglerfish (Lophius americanus)

Recent reports indicate that oxytocin exerts direct effects on the release of insulin and glucagon from the endocrine pancreas of the rat. The purpose of this study was to determine whether oxytocin-like immunoreactivity is present in the anglerfish islet, and if it is associated with subsets of hormone-producing cells. Antisera against oxytocin, insulin, glucagon, somatostatin, neuropeptide Y, and the 200 — kd neurofilament polypeptide were applied to serial 5 μm sections of pancreatic islets. The antiserum to the 200 — kd neurofilament polypeptide labeled nerve bundles and axons, some of which were also stained with the oxytocin antiserum. Oxytocin immunoreactivity was observed in large nerves that branched into varicose fibers. These fibers were consistently associated only with clusters of insulin-producing cells. Successive application of oxytocin and insulin antisera to the same section provided additional verification of this relationship. Oxytocin-labeled nerves were not associated with cells immunoreactive to glucagon, somatostatin, or neuropeptide Y (anglerfish peptide Yg). The results demonstrate that oxytocin or an oxytocin-like peptide is located in fibers that surround only insulin-producing cells in the anglerfish islet. Although the functional significance of this observation remains to be determined, the results imply that oxytocin, or an oxytocin-like peptide, may affect the synthesis or release of insulin from anglerfish islets.
Simulation of pedestrian behavior in intermodal facilities

Planning pedestrian environments requires that designers understand how pedestrians interact with their environment and one another. With improved knowledge, the design and planning of pedestrian areas can provide improvements in safety, throughput, and utility. This paper provides an overview of the Intermodal Simulator for the Analysis of Pedestrian Traffic (ISAPT). It focuses on the methodology and approaches used in simulation of the pedestrian traffic, including route planning and navigation.
“What About the Children?” The Psychological and Social Well-Being of Multiracial Adolescents

We used the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) to examine the social and psychological well-being of multiracial adolescents. Using two different measures of multiracial identity, we investigated the ways in which these adolescents compare to their monoracial counterparts on five outcomes: depression, seriously considering suicide, feeling socially accepted, feeling close to others at school, and participating in extracurricular activities. We found that multiracial adolescents as a group experience some negative outcomes compared to white adolescents, but that this finding is driven by negative outcomes for those with American Indian and white heritage. We found no consistent evidence, however, that multiracial adolescents as a group face more difficulty in adolescence than members of other racial and ethnic minority groups. The results were similar, whether the multiracial population is defined by self-identification or by their parents' racial identifications.
An Examination of How Academic Advancement of U.S. Journalism Students Relates to Their Degree Motivations, Values, and Technology Use:

The newsroom is a powerful influence in a journalist’s identity formation. Research has yet to verify the socializing impact of academia. This research utilized the quantitative survey method apply...
Transcatheter aortic valve replacement: flattening the cost curve.

Each year, an estimated 80 000 patients in the United States undergo surgery for correction of aortic valve stenosis.1 Because patients with aortic stenosis are often elderly and have multiple comorbidities, surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) for treatment of patients considered inoperable and the subsequent expansion of the indication to include patients at high risk of SAVR was thus met with enthusiasm. Experts in structural heart disease posited, however, that TAVR could provide high-value care if physicians were able to develop a new set of technical skills, appreciated the limitations and risks associated with the procedure, and judiciously selected patients—goals that could best be achieved by the creation of regional centers of excellence that housed a well-organized team of caregivers with broad expertise in structural and valvular heart disease, cardiovascular imaging, and postprocedure care.2 However, rapid physician adoption, an inability to control the proliferation of its utilization, and a high-cost structure have made TAVR another example of how difficult it may be to bend the cost curve by increasing value in health care through improvement in quality and reduction of health care costs.
Numerical solution of laplace equation in three dimensions for a pierce type electron gun

Abstract In this paper, as part of a three-dimensional ribbon beam gun design, Laplace equation is solved in 3D for the case of boundaries which can be represented as simple surfaces which are subjected to specified voltages. Curve fitting by the least squares method is used to characterize the accelerator electrode shape as an extension of the 1D laminar electron flow in a Pierce type electron gun. The method involves solution of governing equations by an iterative finite difference technique. Modification of the standard Leibmann procedure is used to greatly increase the rapidity of convergence. The technique of handling irregular boundary points is considered in detail.
Interdisciplinary Teams, Mentorship and Intergenerational Service-Learning.

This paper discusses the implementation of an intergenerational service-learning (IS-L) project with a mentorship component for graduate students at Western Michigan University's Gerontology Program. Two classes of students, one graduate and one undergraduate, taking introductory gerontology courses were brought together to complete IS-L projects of their own designs. Graduate students were asked to act as mentors to undergradute team members. To guide development of mentorship skills, eight Seifter and Economy (2001) teachable principles of good team management were used: (1) put power in the hands of the people doing the work; (2) encourage individual responsibility; (3) create clarity of roles; (4) share and rotate leadership; (5) foster horizontal teamwork; (6) learn to listen, learn to talk; (7) seek consensus; and, (8) dedicate passionately to your mission. While challenging, most of the graduate students found the process of developing mentorship skills personally insightful and valuable.
Nascent RNA Sequencing Reveals Widespread Pausing and Divergent Initiation at Human Promoters

RNA polymerases are highly regulated molecular machines. We present a method (global run-on sequencing, GRO-seq) that maps the position, amount, and orientation of transcriptionally engaged RNA polymerases genome-wide. In this method, nuclear run-on RNA molecules are subjected to large-scale parallel sequencing and mapped to the genome. We show that peaks of promoter-proximal polymerase reside on ∼30% of human genes, transcription extends beyond pre-messenger RNA 3′ cleavage, and antisense transcription is prevalent. Additionally, most promoters have an engaged polymerase upstream and in an orientation opposite to the annotated gene. This divergent polymerase is associated with active genes but does not elongate effectively beyond the promoter. These results imply that the interplay between polymerases and regulators over broad promoter regions dictates the orientation and efficiency of productive transcription.
Effects of feeding rate on the expression of antimicrobial polypeptides and on susceptibility to Ichthyophthirius multifiliis in hybrid striped (sunshine) bass (Morone saxatilis ♂ × M. chrysops ♀)

The single greatest expense in aquaculture is feed. To further optimize feed efficiency, culturists are attempting to improve feeding regimens. One method being intensively explored is restricting feeding for varying periods, which can induce compensatory growth (CG), an enhanced growth rate that occurs when restoring normal feeding after keeping fish in a suboptimal environment. However, inadequate nutrition is known to affect immune function and disease resistance and the effect of restricting feed on immunity is poorly understood. Among the most potent of the innate immune defenses are antimicrobial polypeptides (AMPP), comprising host-produced peptides and small proteins, that are broad-spectrum defenses. Among the most prevalent and potent AMPP in fish are histone-like proteins (HLP) and piscidins. In this study, gill, skin, blood and spleen samples were collected from fish fed either at a high (apparent satiation), moderate (half of the high feed rate), low (fed 0.6% of body weight three times per week), or fasting (not fed) feed rate. Tissue antibacterial activity, HLP and piscidin levels were determined on Days 0, 50 and 80. At Day 50, there were no significant changes in AMPP expression in tissues of any treatment group. However, on Day 80, the fasting group had significantly less antibacterial activity and piscidin 4 concentration in the gill; piscidin 4 levels dropped well below the concentration that killed ich in vitro (25 μg/ml). Fasted fish also had the most rapid mortality rate after ich challenge. Our data indicate that prolonged fasting results in depressed levels of AMPP, which probably substantially contributes to increased disease susceptibility.
On robust stabilizability of linear differential-difference systems with unstable D-operator

The robustness of linear delayed neutral-type control systems with the unstable difference operator is considered. The robustness analysis is stipulated by the impossibility of implementing precisely derivative feedback. Different approximations of stabilizing controls and their influence on the stability of the closed-loop system are considered. >
Iterating Masuyama’s method to reduce sampling variation

Masuyama in Sankhya 14(3):181–186, 1954 gave a method for addressing the boundary overlap problem that arises when sampling in a delineated study region. Here we propose a general sampling framework that allows one to iterate Masuyama’s method in a way that provides a smaller sampling variance. Results of simulations comparing the proposed method to existing approaches for addressing the boundary overlap problem are given. Variations, including systematic sampling, are also discussed.
Techniques of assessing small airways dysfunction

The small airways are defined as those less than 2 mm in diameter. They are a major site of pathology in many lung diseases, not least chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. The small airways are frequently involved early in the course of these diseases, with significant pathology demonstrable often before the onset of symptoms or changes in spirometry and imaging. Despite their importance, they have proven relatively difficult to study. This is in part due to their relative inaccessibility to biopsy and their small size which makes their imaging difficult. Traditional lung function tests may only become abnormal once there is a significant burden of disease within them. This has led to the term ‘the quiet zone’ of the lung. In recent years, more specialised tests have been developed which may detect these changes earlier, perhaps offering the possibility of earlier diagnosis and intervention. These tests are now moving from the realms of clinical research laboratories into routine clinical practice and are increasingly useful in the diagnosis and monitoring of respiratory diseases. This article gives an overview of small airways physiology and some of the routine and more advanced tests of airway function. Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; asthma; lung function; small airways; impulse oscillometry; multiple breath nitrogen washout; imaging (Published: 17 October 2014) Citation: European Clinical Respiratory Journal 2014, 1 : 25898 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/ecrj.v1.25898
The relative potencies of psychotomimetic drugs

Abstract The behavioral effects of several indole and catechl derivatives, some of which have psychotomimetic properties in man, were compared in a situation in which hungry rats were trained to press a bar for food on a simple schedule of reinforcement (FR 30). It was found that 1) the amount of disruption each drug induces is proportional to dose, i.e., the amount given i.p. immediately before the test session. 2) d-LSD is about 10 times more potent than I-LSD, BOL, psilocybin and d-amphetamine and 100 times more potent than mescaline. 3) Among the psychotomimetic drugs, the order of potency in the animal behavior test parallels that found in man. 4) A compound related to mescaline (3–4 dimethoxy-phenylethylamine) which occurs in the urine of schizophrenic patients had no behavioral effects.
Tl Cuprate Superconductors Studied by XPS

XPS measurements on epitaxial thin films of the Tl cuprate superconductors Tl2Ba2CaCu2O8, Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10, and Tl0.78Bi0.22Ba0.4Sr1.6Ca2Cu3O9−δ are presented. These data, together with previous measurements in this lab on Tl2Ba2CuO6−δ and TlBa2CaCu2O7−δ, comprise a comprehensive data set for comparison of Tl cuprates in which the number of Tl–O and Cu–O layers, and hence the chemical and electronic properties, vary.
Age and size structure of Caribbean spiny lobster, Panulirus argus, in a no-take marine reserve in the Florida Keys, USA

Abstract Fisheries managers worldwide are increasingly using no-take marine reserves (NTMR) to bolster the sustainability of fisheries. Within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS), the Western Sambo Ecological Reserve (WSER) was created to protect a natural area for spawning and a permanent residence area for marine life by eliminating recreational and commercial harvest of resident species. To evaluate whether WSER is meeting these design criteria, we assessed the age structure and potential egg production of the Caribbean spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) population in WSER and in a nearby, unprotected, fished area. Concentration of the age-pigment neurolipofuscin in eyestalks of P. argus was quantified histologically to determine age. We used Monte Carlo simulations to compare the age structure between the two populations of lobster. Lobsters in WSER were older than those in the fished area. Analyses suggested that more than 90% of the lobsters in the fished area were younger than 1.9 years, whereas half of the lobsters in WSER were older than 1.9 years. Moreover, some lobsters may have been the same age (5–6 years) as was WSER itself at the time of the survey, suggesting that they were long-term residents of WSER. Evident in this age-based study was the retention of female lobsters in WSER, as confirmed by the presence of older females, whereas large and thus likely protected females were uncommon during surveys in which only size and sex data were collected. Also, as expected in an older population, the frequency of female lobsters with evidence of maturity was higher in WSER than in the fished areas of the Florida Keys. This research indicates that WSER is functioning as an NTMR, which has resulted in the development of a multiple-year-class lobster population and increased egg production of female lobsters.