cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effect of psychic stress upon dermal permeability of chronically heat- and humidity-stressed rats.

The effect of psychic stress upon the dermal permeability of chronically heat- and humidity-stressed rats was studied. Permeability was increased by chronic and acute psychic stress. The increase was maintained in the acutely stressed rats twenty-seven days after the stress, the last day of the study.
Directions and Redirections in Chicano Psychology

This reaction provides a general overview of the articles on Chicana(o) mental health issues. Summaries of the respective articles are provided. Selective aspects of each article are highlighted and serve as the basis for making critical comments and recommendations relative to the topics addressed in the articles. Out of a desire to provoke thought regarding other topics that merit attention, an overview of two research topics is provided—one that exemplifies how the research reviewed in the articles can be applied in innovative mental health settings and one that, I believe, directs attention to a new perspective relative to understanding Chicana(o) mental health. In addition to these two topics other topics that beg to be studied are identified.
CT imaging features and frequency of left ventricular myocardial fat in patients with CT findings of chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction.

Aim To determine the frequency of left ventricular myocardial fat in patients with computed tomography (CT) findings of chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction, and to review the typical CT imaging features. Materials and methods A retrospective search of the CT and nuclear scintigraphy reports from 1998–2005 for chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction was performed. The study group comprised those cases with available CT examinations revealing findings of chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction. Assessment for the presence of various imaging characteristics of left ventricular myocardial fat was performed in all cases. Results The frequency of left ventricular myocardial fat in 47 patients with CT evidence of chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction was 51%. Typical CT imaging features include thin linear or curvilinear fat attenuation within left ventricular myocardium, most commonly subendocardial, often associated with left ventricular wall thinning and/or calcification, predominantly in elderly men. Conclusions Fat in the left ventricular myocardium is a common additional finding in patients with CT findings of chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction. The potential, but as yet unproven, use of this CT imaging finding is that the radiologist may be able to suggest a potential diagnosis of chronic left ventricular myocardial infarction on unenhanced, thick-section, non-gated or non-triggered chest CT imaging where identification of myocardial wall thinning may be difficult.
Creating printed music automatically

Most users of notational software have little or no music copyist training, and musicianship does not guarantee notational skills. Even professional composers fail at many notational tasks if they have not had explicit copyist training. The ability to notate music has very little in common with the ability to compose or play it. Unfortunately, we do not have the rules for notating music in a prescriptive form, that is, one that a computer can use. Music copyists take years to learn them. For the most part, books present these rules in descriptive form using examples. Individual rules by themselves present little problem to notational software. It is the interaction between the rules that is so difficult to capture. The article presents a partial solution to this problem: how can users with little or no copyist training create publication-quality printed music? The solution, a program called MusicEase, applies constraints to notational information the user enters, automatically arranging graphical elements correctly. This can also speed up the notation process, since the copyist doesn't have to make as many decisions or enter as much data.
Susceptibility of Oriental Fruit Moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) Larvae to Selected Reduced-Risk Insecticides

ABSTRACT To determine their baseline susceptibility to chlorantraniliprole, spinetoram, spinosad, and acetamiprid, oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), neonates were placed on diet cubes containing a range of concentrations of each insecticide. Mortality was assessed after 96 h. Two populations—a long-term laboratory colony from Rutgers University and a colony established in 2007 from a southwestern Illinois (Calhoun County) field population—were tested. We used probit and logit analyses to compare the responses of Calhoun colony neonates from parents reared on ‘Gala’ apples (Malus spp.) with those of Calhoun colony neonates from parents reared on lima bean, Phaseolus lunatus L., diet. We also compared the responses of Calhoun colony neonates with those of Rutgers colony neonates (all from parents reared on apples). LC50s (ppm in diet) for Calhoun colony progeny of adults reared on apples were 0.08, 0.06, 0.41, and 0.30, respectively, for chlorantraniliprole, spineto...
An introduction to engineering with signal processing

Engineers of the 21st century will work in an environment that will require a variety of skills that include not only traditional engineering topics but that also includes more emphasis on topics such as communications, teamwork, the design/process/manufacture steps for taking a concept to a product, and combining the techno-scientific base with a societal context. This paper discusses a pilot section of a freshman course entitled Engineering Projects that is designed to introduce new students to engineering through a design-oriented course in which students "learn by doing". This course is part of the curriculum being developed for the Integrated Teaching Laboratory (ITL) that is being built at the University of Colorado to provide interdisciplinary design and development experiences for engineering students beginning at the freshman level. >
Lessons from the BP Oil Spill

The BP Oil Spill of 2010 was one of the largest in history. Although the lessons of the BP Spill are most immediately relevant to the United States, they have broader implications for Brazil and other countries. It is no secret that the regulatory system functioned poorly in the era before the spill, providing little incentive for industry to exercise care. Post-spill reforms should be an improvement. The U.S. government took the spill seriously and sought major penalties. These penalties are measured in billions of dollars. In the meantime, a multi-billion dollar class action settlement has also resulted from the spill. Actions to recover for harm to natural resources and ecosystems are still in preparation. Hopefully, the lessons learned from this deplorable event will be instructive not only for the United States but for other nations such as Brazil that are involved in deepwater oil drilling. Keywords: Environmental Law, Disaster Law, oil drilling.
Plant remains from a new cretaceous site in Santa Cruz, Argentina

Leaf remains are described from a new locality in the Springhill Formation in Santa Cruz, Argentina. Specimens of Brachyphyllum and the new species Ptilophyllum angustus n. sp. and Itozamites archangelskyi n. sp. are described based on cuticular studies using light and electron microscopy. The composition of the flora reaffirms the Early Cretaceous age of the site and points out the importance that megafossils may play in biostratigraphic correlations in southern Argentina.
Pharmacists Levels of Emotionality and Career Success Correlates An Exploratory Study

Objective:The objectives of this study were to (1) examine the relationships between Emotional Thinking Scale (ETS) scores and demographic variables such as income, years worked as a pharmacist, an...
Full-Mouth Rehabilitation for a Patient With Dentinogenesis Imperfecta: A Clinical Report

Dentinogenesis imperfecta (DI) is a genetic disorder affecting the structural integrity of the dentin that can result in weakened dentin. The affected teeth, especially posterior teeth, often need to be extracted due to severe wear or fracture. This frequently yields a loss of posterior occlusion and occlusal vertical dimension. Besides wear and fracture, anterior teeth often have an unesthetic appearance because of discoloration. Current treatments of choice, including composite bonding restorations and, more recently, all-ceramic restorations, are typically suggested to preserve the remaining teeth and tooth structure. However, there are a limited number of studies on dental implants in patients with DI. The effectiveness of dentin bonding and dental implants in patients with DI is not known. This clinical report describes a 32-year-old Asian woman with DI who underwent full-mouth rehabilitation. The posterior occlusion, mostly in the molar areas, was restored with dental implants and ceramometal restorations. The anterior teeth and premolars were restored with bonded lithium disilicate glass-ceramic pressed veneers and crowns made with computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing. This case demonstrates that restoring functional occlusion and esthetics for a patient with DI can be completed successfully using contemporary implant therapy and adhesive dentistry.
Molecular characterization of a chromosomal region involved in the oxidation of acetyl-CoA to glyoxylate in the isocitrate-lyase-negative methylotroph Methylobacterium extorquens AM1.

A region on the Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 chromosome previously shown to complement a chemically induced mutant (PCT48) unable to convert acetyl-CoA into glyoxylate was characterized in detail in order to identify the gene(s) involved in the unknown pathway for acetyl-CoA oxidation. Six complete and two partial ORFs were identified by sequencing. Sequence comparisons suggested these might code for, respectively, a dehydrogenase of unknown specificity, a polypeptide of at least 15 kDa with unknown function, a coenzyme-B12-linked mutase, a catalase, an alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) of unknown function, a polypeptide of 28 kDa, a ketol-acid reductoisomerase and a propionyl-CoA carboxylase (PCC). Insertion mutations were introduced into each ORF in order to determine their involvement in C1 and C2 metabolism. Mutations in three genes, encoding the mutase, ADH and PCC, resulted in a phenotype characteristic of mutants unable to oxidize acetyl-CoA, i.e. they were C1-and C2-negative and their growth on these compounds was restored by the addition of glycolate or glyoxylate. Mutants in the genes thought to encode catalase and PCC were found to be deficient in the corresponding enzyme activity, confirming the identity of these genes, while physiological substrates for the mutase and ADH remain unidentified. This work, in which three new genes necessary for conversion of acetyl-CoA into glyoxylate were identified, is an intermediary step on the way to the solution of the unknown pathway for acetyl-CoA oxidation in isocitrate-lyase-negative methylotrophs.
On Men and Bears: a Forgotten Migration in Nineteenth-Century Italy

This article centres on a unique type of migration: the seasonal travels of animal-trainers, mainly orsanti (bear-trainers), from the Italian Apennine region to the rest of Europe in the mid nineteenth century. These migrants set out from the walled mountain towns of Bedonia and Compiano and from surrounding villages in the province of Parma, at the intersection of Liguria, Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna. They roamed Italy and Europe, reaching as far as Turkey, Russia and Scandinavia, with their carts and their animals: a strange company of men, boys, bears, camels and monkeys. The article is based on material recently acquired by the Archivio Ligure della Scrittura Popolare of Genoa (henceforth ALSP) and the Museo degli Orsanti in Compiano, Parma (henceforth Compiano Museum). 1 Primary materials from these collections – personal documents, private journals, objects and yellowed pictures – have been tackled by borrowing from an unusual body of criticism that extends from the mythological implications of bears to visual semiotics and art history. This interdisciplinary synergy responds to the call by Felix Driver and Bill Schwarz for a widening of the circle of historical production – ‘breaking down the barriers between historians, and ... encouraging greater communication between different fields of historical practice’. 2 Such a wider outlook is especially necessary when dealing with marginal subjects for whom sources are scarce. In my research I followed the orsanti back to their hometowns, tracking the faded traces of bears and men who travelled a narrow path at the periphery of society and historiography. 3 These animal-trainers, usually travelling in small groups but also sometimes alone or with a larger performing company, were part of a large movement of people that for centuries animated the entire European continent. The lower classes had hardly been immobile. Waves of local, circular, chain and career migrations had corrugated the European landscape since the 1600s, belonging to a long history of poverty and charity. 4 For the peasant classes, as Leslie Moch notes in her Moving Europeans, ‘stability was a privilege’. 5 Various migrant groups played a part in the developing European economy. Teams of seasonal workers were hired to reclaim and fertilize potential agricultural land, as in the unhealthy swamps of the Tuscan Maremma. In winter men from the poor mountain villages of the
Development and Use of Touch-Screen Audio Computer-assisted Self-Interviewing in a Study of American Indians

This article describes the development and usability of an audio computer-assisted self-interviewing (ACASI) questionnaire created to collect dietary, physical activity, medical history, and other lifestyle data in a population of American Indians. Study participants were part of a cohort of American Indians living in the southwestern United States. Data were collected between March 2004 and July 2005. Information for evaluating questionnaire usability and acceptability was collected from three different sources: baseline study data, auxiliary background data, and a short questionnaire administered to a subset of study participants. For the subset of participants, 39.6% reported not having used a computer in the past year. The ACASI questionnaires were well accepted: 96.0% of the subset of participants reported finding them enjoyable to use, 97.2% reported that they were easy to use, and 82.6% preferred them for future questionnaires. A lower educational level and infrequent computer use in the past year were predictors of having usability trouble. These results indicate that the ACASI questionnaire is both an acceptable and a preferable mode of data collection in this population.
Lifestyle Risk Factors Among People Who Have Had Cancer Genetic Testing

Hereditary cancer genetic counseling often focuses on medically intensive risk-reduction strategies, like imaging and risk-reducing surgeries. Lifestyle factors also influence cancer risk, but health behavior counseling is not common in genetic counseling. Information about typical lifestyle risk factors among patients seeking hereditary cancer risk is sparse. The current study describes cancer risk-relevant lifestyle factors for people who have had cancer genetic testing. Data came from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 4) collected in 2013. Analytic variables represented American Cancer Society nutrition and physical activity guidelines. Lifestyle factors were assessed for people who had undergone testing for BRCA1, BRCA2, or Lynch Syndrome genes. Among 3016 HINTS respondents, 135 had cancer genetic testing. Of these, 58 % were overweight or obese. Eighteen percent reported no moderate-intensity physical activity. Average sedentary screen-time was 3.4 h (SE = 0.472) daily. Sixty-three percent drank non-diet soda, and 23 % of these people drank soda every day. Between 18 and 36 % consumed less than 2 ½ cups fruits/vegetables daily. Twenty-four percent were current smokers. Lifestyle risk factors were not different between people who had genetic testing and those who had not. In conclusion, most people who had genetic testing for cancer susceptibility have at least one modifiable risk factor. Genetic counselors have opportunities to impact a counselee's cancer risk not only through risk-tailored medical procedures, but also through lifestyle modification recommendations. Results of the current study may foster a broader discussion of genetic counselors' roles in healthy lifestyle education.
Stochastic Contextual Edit Distance and Probabilistic FSTs

String similarity is most often measured by weighted or unweighted edit distance d(x, y). Ristad and Yianilos (1998) defined stochastic edit distance—a probability distribution p(y | x) whose parameters can be trained from data. We generalize this so that the probability of choosing each edit operation can depend on contextual features. We show how to construct and train a probabilistic finite-state transducer that computes our stochastic contextual edit distance. To illustrate the improvement from conditioning on context, we model typos found in social media text.
Marianismo and Caregiving Role Beliefs Among U.S.-Born and Immigrant Mexican Women

Objectives We aimed to explore how women of Mexican-origin conceptualized caregiving as a construct in terms of cultural beliefs, social norms, role functioning, and familial obligations. We examined the personal experiences of U.S-born and immigrant Mexican female caregivers to identify how these 2 groups differed in their views of the caregiver role. Methods We conducted 1-time in-depth interviews with 44 caregivers living in Southern California. Our study was guided by marianismo, a traditional role occupied by women in the Mexican family. We analyzed data from a grounded theory approach involving the constant comparative method to refine and categorize the data. Results The majority of all caregivers had similar views about caregiving as an undertaking by choice, and almost all caregivers engaged in self-sacrificing actions to fulfill the marianismo role. Despite these similarities, U.S.-born and immigrant caregivers used different words to describe the same concepts or assigned different meanings to other key aspects of caregiving, suggesting that these 2 groups had different underlying motivations for caregiving and orientations to the role. Discussion Our findings highlight the complexity of language and culture in underlying caregiving concepts, making the concepts challenging to operationalize and define in a heterogeneous sample of Latinos.
Assemblage of social technologies and informal knowledge sharing

This study focuses on the ways in which social technologies as a whole facilitate informal knowledge sharing in the workplace. Social technologies include both common technologies such as email, phone and instant messenger and emerging social networking technologies, often known as social media or Web 2.0, such as blogs, wikis, public social networking sites (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn), enterprise social networking technologies, etc. To understand the role of social technologies in informal knowledge practices, we pursue a field study of knowledge workers in consulting firms to investigate the role of social technologies in their informal knowledge sharing practices. Findings highlight five knowledge practices motivated by different knowledge problems and supported by the use of multiple social technologies.
Should postmenopausal hormone therapy be used to prevent osteoporosis

OBJECTIVE To discuss the risks and benefits of hormone therapy for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis. DATA SOURCES A MEDLINE search was conducted to identify articles that are pertinent to the risks and benefits of hormone therapy for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis. Additional references were obtained from the bibliographies of these articles. STUDY SELECTION Human studies that present efficacy and safety data for the effects of postmenopausal hormone therapy. DATA EXTRACTION Analysis of studies to determine the benefits of hormone therapy on bone (in terms of bone mineral density or fracture risk) and risks of hormone therapy in postmenopausal women. DATA SYNTHESIS Studies were analyzed to determine the risk-benefit profile of hormone therapy for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis. This information was synthesized to help practitioners make decisions regarding the role of postmenopausal hormone therapy in the prevention of osteoporosis. CONCLUSION Given the risks of hormone therapy, some of which are associated with increased duration of use, hormone therapy cannot be routinely recommended for the sole purpose of preventing osteoporosis. Many alternative therapies exist that may offer patients a better benefit versus risk ratio.
Defense Reactions of Drosophila Species (Diptera: Drosophilidae) to the Parasite Pseudeucoila bochei (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae)

Previous studies in Europe have shown that various percentages of larvae of Drosophila melanogaster Meigen and D. simulans Sturtevant encapsulate the eggs of the cynipid Pseudeucolia bochei Weld. Similar reactions were found in several strains of D. melanogaster from the northeastern United States. Several other Drosophila species collected in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Maine were found also to perform this encapsulation in greater or lesser degree although, in this study, P. bochei was taken only in western Pennsylvania, where its probable host was D. melanogaster. More than 90% of the parasite eggs were encapsulated by larvae of D. busckii Coquillett, of which only 1 strain was tested; D. algonquin Sturtevant and Dobzhansky also proved highly immune to this cynipid; but D. affinis Sturtevant proved only moderately successful in encapsulating the parasite's eggs. D. athabasca Sturtevant and Dobzhansky, D. immigrans Sturtevant, and D. robusta Sturtevant made only partial reactions involving hemocyte clumping and melanization, and in the last 2 of these species the reactions were rather weak and very rare. No reaction at all was observed in D. putrida Sturtevant. Although no hemocyte reaction was observed in either D. paramelanica Patterson or D. nigromelanica Patterson and Wheeler, both these species appear highly immune to P. bochei, as the parasite's eggs often failed to hatch or, if they hatched, the larvae died. Whether a humoral reaction was involved or whether these hosts are otherwise unsuitable for development of P. bochei is not known. The possible role of mimicry by parasites in the evolution of defense mechanisms is discussed.
Socioeconomic differences in code-focused emergent literacy skills

In the present study, we examined patterns of code-focused emergent literacy skill growth for children from lower and higher socioeconomic (SES) families enrolled at a high-quality early childhood center. Measures of letter name knowledge, letter sound knowledge, alliteration, and rhyming were collected at three time points over the course of the year. Additionally, standardized measures of print knowledge and phonological awareness were collected at the end of the year. Growth curve analyses indicated SES-related differences in initial status, but no differences in rate of growth. Initial status predicted end-of-year print knowledge. Both initial status and SES predicted end-of-year phonological awareness. These results suggest that gaps in code-focused emergent literacy skills exist earlier than previously documented with no evidence of compensatory or Matthew effects.
Two new species of Bejaria (Ericaceae) from South America

Two new species ofBejaria,B. zamorae from Ecuador andB. infundibula from Peru, are described, illustrated, and compared with other species of the genus.
A Cross-Species Comparative Approach to Positive Emotion Disturbance:

Recent discoveries stress the importance of studying positive emotion disturbances (PED) yet there remains little empirical work or integrative conceptual framework in this domain. We suggest that an ideally suited opportunity to advance the study of PED is to consider a cross-species evolutionary framework. We apply this framework—drawing from principles of stabilizing selection—to recent empirical findings in humans and nonhumans suggesting how positive emotion and associated play behaviors may lead to detrimental outcomes. This cross-species approach suggests a potential paradigm shift in the way psychologists and evolutionary biologists approach positive emotion functioning, opening the possibility for new conceptual opportunities and interdisciplinary dialogues and research.
Isoniazid therapy for Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in HIV clinics, Los Angeles, California.

SETTING Publicly funded human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) clinics in Los Angeles County, California, USA. BACKGROUND HIV-infected persons are a high priority group for targeted testing and treatment for Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in the United States. OBJECTIVE To describe rates of isoniazid (INH) initiation and completion among HIV-1 and M. tuberculosis co-infected persons in Los Angeles County. DESIGN We conducted a cross-sectional study using routinely collected surveillance data from publicly funded HIV clinics. We examined differences in INH treatment initiation and completion between four clinic categories: the three largest clinics (Clinics A, B, and C) and 'Other' clinics (pooled data for the remaining 10 clinics). RESULTS During 2010-2013, 802 (5.3%) of 15 029 HIV-1-infected persons tested positive for M. tuberculosis infection. INH was initiated in 581 (72.4%) persons, of whom 457 (78.7%) completed treatment. We found significant differences between clinics in terms of treatment initiation (range 59.1-93.4%) and completion (range 58.8-82.3%). Overall, 57% (457/802) of HIV and M. tuberculosis co-infected persons completed the recommended treatment (range across clinics 34.8-76.3%). CONCLUSION We identified significant gaps in the treatment for M. tuberculosis infection among HIV-infected persons in Los Angeles County. Interventions are needed to improve initiation and completion of treatment for M. tuberculosis infection in this population.
Role of Mg in the activation of Na-H exchange in dog red cells

Depleting dog red cells of Mg prevents activation of Na-H exchange by cell shrinkage but has no effect on activation by acidification of the cytosol. Replacing cell Mg restores the activation of Na-H exchange by cell shrinking. We conclude that Mg is required, not for the transport process per se, but for the transduction of the volume stimulus.
Obstetric referral in family practice. Factors Affecting Cesarean Section (FACS) Study Group.

BACKGROUND This study examines referral patterns of family physicians who perform obstetrics to determine the effects of referral bias on family physician and obstetrician patient populations. METHODS A retrospective review of deliveries from five medical centers over a 2-year period produced a sample of 2568 women who began their obstetric care with family physicians and 2648 whose labor was initially managed by family physicians. To determine which demographic and risk factors are associated with an increased likelihood of referral, those who were referred to obstetricians before the onset of labor (early referrals) and those who were referred during labor (late referrals) were identified and compared with patients who were not referred. RESULTS Of the initial 2701 patients who entered care with family physicians, 167 were early referrals and 249 were late referrals. Early referrals were more likely to have had a prior cesarean section (32% vs 3% of those not referred, P < .001) or malpresentation (10% vs 4%, P < .001) than those who were not referred. Among patients referred during labor, previous cesarean section (10% vs 2%, P < .001) and preeclampsia (12% vs 6%, P < .001) were more common. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that referral bias is not a major source of differences in patient populations cared for by family physicians and obstetricians.
Novel immunological strategies for HIV-1 eradication

Despite the significant advances in antiretroviral therapy (ART), HIV-1 is able to persist in cellular reservoirs. Preclinical studies suggest that the latent reservoir is established within days of virus exposure, even before virus can be detected in peripheral blood. Latently infected cells remain undetectable by the immune system and can persist for years without losing their ability to produce infectious virus when ART is discontinued. Novel concepts for viral eradication strategies combine pharmacological induction of latently infected cells to produce virus together with immune-enhancing interventions to enable the host to clear these cells. In this review, we describe the early establishment of HIV-1 latency and discuss current strategies to disrupt latency and potentially enable clearance of these persistently infected cells.
A comparative study of metagenomics analysis pipelines at the species level

Many metagenomics classification tools have been developed with the rapid growth of the metagenomics field. However, the classification of closely related species remains a challenge for this field. Here, we compared MetaPhlAn2, kallisto and Kraken for their performances in two metagenomics settings, human metagenomics and environmental metagenomics. Our comparative study showed that kallisto demonstrated higher sensitivity than MetaPhlAn2 and Kraken and better quantification accuracy than Kraken at the species level. We also showed that classification tools that run on full reference genomes misidentified many species that were not truly present. In order to reduce false positives, we introduced marker genes from MetaPhlAn2 into our pipeline, which uses kallisto for the classification step, as an additional filtering step for species detection.
Reducing Ventricular Pacing Frequency in Patients With Atrioventricular Block: Is It Time to Change the Current Pacing Paradigm?

With aging of the general population, an increased incidence of conduction disease will result in an increased need for permanent pacemaker therapy. According to the 2015 European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) White Book, in the 56 member countries of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), the pacemaker implantation rate has increased from a mean implantation rate of 614 per million inhabitants in 2010 to 641 in 2014, thus growing at a rate of about 0.4% to 0.6% per year.1 Much has been learned from clinical studies to identify optimal device mode selection and device programming for an individual patient to maximize the benefits of cardiac implantable electronic device therapy, as well as to minimize any potential adverse outcomes caused by ventricular pacing (VP). Several clinical studies have reported that chronic right ventricular (RV) pacing has detrimental effects on cardiovascular outcomes, including adverse cardiac remodeling, atrial fibrillation (AF), congestive heart failure (HF), and mortality. The potential mechanism(s) by which RV pacing increases the risk for HF and AF are not completely elucidated, but are likely caused by both electric and mechanical dyssynchrony, disruption of sympathetic/parasympathetic balance that alters myocardial activation pattern and contraction sequence, thereby modifying myocardial strain resulting in less efficient contraction. These changes lead to chamber enlargement, functional mitral regurgitation, reduction of parasympathetic/sympathetic balance in response to reduced ventricular output, and contribute to the development of HF and AF. Notably, not all patients paced in the RV experience adverse outcomes; these detrimental effects seem to be dependent on a high cumulative percentage of RV pacing, generally indicated by >40%. Furthermore, the increased risk of HF has been more frequently observed in those with pre-existing left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction. A recent review by Gillis2 has covered the optimal pacing mode for RV and biventricular devices. It is …
A Fungus-Specific Protein Domain Is Essential for RasA-Mediated Morphogenetic Signaling in Aspergillus fumigatus

ABSTRACT Ras proteins function as conserved regulators of eukaryotic growth and differentiation and are essential signaling proteins orchestrating virulence in pathogenic fungi. Here, we report the identification of a novel N-terminal domain of the RasA protein in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus fumigatus . Whereas this domain is absent in Ras homologs of higher eukaryotes, the N-terminal extension is conserved among fungi and is characterized by a short string of two to eight amino acids terminating in an invariant arginine. For this reason, we have termed the RasA N-terminal domain the invariant arginine domain (IRD). Through mutational analyses, the IRD was found to be essential for polarized morphogenesis and asexual development, with the invariant arginine residue being most essential. Although IRD truncation resulted in a nonfunctional Ras phenotype, IRD mutation was not associated with mislocalization of the RasA protein or significant changes in steady-state RasA activity levels. Mutation of the RasA IRD diminished protein kinase A (PKA) activation and resulted in decreased interaction with the Rho-type GTPase, Cdc42. Taken together, our findings reveal novel, fungus-specific mechanisms for Ras protein function and signal transduction. IMPORTANCE Aspergillus fumigatus is an important fungal pathogen against which limited treatments exist. During invasive disease, A. fumigatus hyphae grow in a highly polarized fashion, forming filaments that invade blood vessels and disseminate to distant sites. Once invasion and dissemination occur, mortality rates are high. We have previously shown that the Ras signaling pathway is an important regulator of the hyphal growth machinery supporting virulence in A. fumigatus . Here, we show that functional Ras signaling in A. fumigatus requires a novel, fungus-specific domain within the Ras protein. This domain is highly conserved among fungi, yet absent in higher eukaryotes, suggesting a potentially crucial difference in the regulation of Ras pathway activity between the human host and the fungal pathogen. Exploration of the mechanisms through which this domain regulates signaling could lead to novel antifungal therapies specifically targeting fungal Ras pathways.
Daytime Locations in Spatial Mismatch: Job Accessibility and Employment at Reentry From Prison.

Individuals recently released from prison confront many barriers to employment. One potential obstacle is spatial mismatch—the concentration of low-skilled, nonwhite job-seekers within central cities and the prevalence of relevant job opportunities in outlying areas. Prior research has found mixed results about the importance of residential place for reentry outcomes. In this article, we propose that residential location matters for finding work, but this largely static measure does not capture the range of geographic contexts that individuals inhabit throughout the day. We combine novel, real-time GPS information on daytime locations and self-reported employment collected from smartphones with sophisticated measures of job accessibility to test the relative importance of spatial mismatch based on residence and daytime locations. Our findings suggest that the ability of low-skilled, poor, and urban individuals to compensate for their residential deficits by traveling to job-rich areas is an overlooked and salient consideration in spatial mismatch perspectives.
A Current Library of Congress Project for Cataloging 19th-Century Imprints

As the sheer volume of uncataloged special collection materials, especially 18th- and 19th-century, continues to mount, we find ourselves faced with the serious dilemma of how to provide bibliographic control to this material in the most cost-effective, timely manner possible. The Library of Congress (LC) is using enhanced minimal-level cataloging (MLC)1 to provide access to pamphlets, one of the most prevalent form s of 18th- and 19th-century publications. The Bound Pamphlet Collection in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division was selected for enhanced minimal-level cataloging because this collection has long been known as “a rich source of American and . . .
The end of the cosmic ray spectrum

The cosmic ray spectrum is so steep that even with the relatively big and stable air shower arrays that were built in 1950s it was not obvious whether it ends or it continues forever to really huge energies. It seemed quite possible that there are showers of energy 1020 eV and higher that cannot be seen only because of their very low flux. With a spectral index of 2.7 each higher decade of energy decreases the flux by a factor of 50. After the knee, which has already been suggested, and the steepening of the spectrum each decade would decrease the flux by more than a factor of 100.
“Retweet to Pass the Blunt”: Analyzing Geographic and Content Features of Cannabis-Related Tweeting Across the United States

Objective:Twitter data offer new possibilities for tracking health-related communications. This study is among the first to apply advanced information processing to identify geographic and content features of cannabis-related tweeting in the United States.Method:Tweets were collected using streaming Application Programming Interface (March–May 2016) and were processed by eDrugTrends to identify geolocation and classify content by source (personal communication, media, retail) and sentiment (positive, negative, neutral). States were grouped by cannabis legalization policies into “recreational,” “medical, less restrictive,” “medical, more restrictive,” and “illegal.” Permutation tests were performed to analyze differences among four groups in adjusted percentages of all tweets, unique users, personal communications only, and positive-to-negative sentiment ratios.Results:About 30% of all 13,233,837 cannabis-related tweets had identifiable state-level geo-information. Among geolocated tweets, 76.2% were perso...
Reading Immigration with The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez

This Teaching Note describes using The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez to spark critical inquiry about immigration in developmental English and composition courses at a New York City community college.
Referral Regions for Time-Sensitive Acute Care Conditions in the United States

Study objective Regional, coordinated care for time-sensitive and high-risk medical conditions is a priority in the United States. A necessary precursor to coordinated regional care is regions that are actionable from clinical and policy standpoints. The Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care, the major health care referral construct in the United States, uses regions that cross state and county boundaries, limiting fiscal or political ownership by key governmental stakeholders in positions to create incentive and regulate regional care coordination. Our objective is to develop and evaluate referral regions that define care patterns for patients with acute myocardial infraction, acute stroke, or trauma, yet also preserve essential political boundaries. Methods We developed a novel set of acute care referral regions using Medicare data in the United States from 2011. For acute myocardial infraction, acute stroke, or trauma, we iteratively aggregated counties according to patient home location and treating hospital address, using a spatial algorithm. We evaluated referral political boundary preservation and spatial accuracy for each set of referral regions. Results The new set of referral regions, the Pittsburgh Atlas, had 326 distinct regions. These referral regions did not cross any county or state borders, whereas 43.1% and 98.1% of all Dartmouth Atlas hospital referral regions crossed county and state borders. The Pittsburgh Atlas was comparable to the Dartmouth Atlas in measures of spatial accuracy and identified larger at-risk populations for all 3 conditions. Conclusion A novel and straightforward spatial algorithm generated referral regions that were politically actionable and accountable for time-sensitive medical emergencies.
1.10 – Experimental Models for the Investigation of Toxicological Mechanisms

Experimental scientific models are used to understand toxicological mechanisms. An experimental scientific model can be defined as an entity that represents or is patterned after the biochemical, cellular, molecular, or physiologic processes that are affected following exposure to toxicants. Models have long been used by scientists to understand the complex chemical and biologic mechanisms involved in cellular and physiologic homeostasis. The utility of model systems has found applications in elucidating the pharmacological and toxicological mode of action or mechanism of action (MOA). Various model systems can be used to study the different steps in toxicity pathways. The first part of this chapter reviews different types of experimental models used to investigate toxicological mechanisms and their advantages and disadvantages. Then, examples of hypothesis-driven model development and hypothesis testing using a combination of experimental models will be presented. The successful prediction of toxicological pathways and mechanisms will most likely require the use of several different experimental models, including in vivo, in vitro, in silico, and computational models using translational experiments and integrated test strategies. All models must undergo a validation process to demonstrate its usefulness in predicting in vivo human responses.
Please Clap: Modeling Applause in Campaign Speeches

This work examines the rhetorical techniques that speakers employ during political campaigns. We introduce a new corpus of speeches from campaign events in the months leading up to the 2016 U.S. presidential election and develop new models for predicting moments of audience applause. In contrast to existing datasets, we tackle the challenge of working with transcripts that derive from uncorrected closed captioning, using associated audio recordings to automatically extract and align labels for instances of audience applause. In prediction experiments, we find that lexical features carry the most information, but that a variety of features are predictive, including prosody, long-term contextual dependencies, and theoretically motivated features designed to capture rhetorical techniques.
Economic Resilience and Its Contribution to the Sustainability of Cities

Economic resilience is a prerequisite for sustainability. If cities cannot cope with short-run natural and man-made disasters, they will not thrive in the long run. This presentation will explain the role of economic resilience in the survival of cities and how experience with disasters can be transformed into actions that promote sustainability. I begin with a discussion of features of cities that make them both vulnerable and resilient. I then define economic resilience and offer an operational metric. Next I discuss individual tactics to implement it at the micro, meso, and macroeconomic levels. Then I summarize studies of the relative effectiveness of resilience tactics and their costs. I conclude with a discussion of broader strategies to make cities more resilient in the short-run and emphasize the importance of translating them into adaptations for the long-run. A key strategy is to translate ingenuity in coping with disasters into decisions and practices that continuously promote sustainability.
Machine Learning for ‘Strategic Conservation and Planning’: Patterns, Applications, Thoughts and Urgently Needed Global Progress for Sustainability

‘Strategic Conservation Planning’ has become a research discipline very relevant for conservation, but is still widely centered on optimization software and stakeholder input, and thus limited, narrow and quite subjective. While data are often missing, a simple scoping and delphi process using experts is commonly applied to achieve a simple agreement on data gaps. This has now become a global standard, e.g. for conserving ocean systems and many other applications for precious natural landscapes. Whereas, the existing network of globally protected areas is driven by widely under-protected landscapes, ad hoc and last-minute decisions, convenience and industrial and political compromise. Here it gets demonstrated how machine learning can be used to assist, improve, extend and progress the strategic conservation process. While species distribution models (SDMs) are widely cited as ‘good’ approaches to describe patterns and processes, they also make Strategic Conservation Planning better. Several additional options also exist such as spatial Population Viability Analysis (sPVA) and scenario predictions, all based on computationally intense global applications explicit in space and time. While long-term sustainability always should be the ultimate goal, eventually, the best-possible spatial and temporal predictions help us to provide relevant and urgently needed progress for conservation to reach a society that lives sustainably in a global framework by making good use of all options possible.
The Role of Dietary Nutrients in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic and relapsing inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. Although the precise etiology of IBD remains incompletely understood, accumulating evidence suggests that various environmental factors, including dietary nutrients, contribute to its pathogenesis. Dietary nutrients are known to have an impact on host physiology and diseases. The interactions between dietary nutrients and intestinal immunity are complex. Dietary nutrients directly regulate the immuno-modulatory function of gut-resident immune cells. Likewise, dietary nutrients shape the composition of the gut microbiota. Therefore, a well-balanced diet is crucial for good health. In contrast, the relationships among dietary nutrients, host immunity and/or the gut microbiota may be perturbed in the context of IBD. Genetic predispositions and gut dysbiosis may affect the utilization of dietary nutrients. Moreover, the metabolism of nutrients in host cells and the gut microbiota may be altered by intestinal inflammation, thereby increasing or decreasing the demand for certain nutrients necessary for the maintenance of immune and microbial homeostasis. Herein, we review the current knowledge of the role dietary nutrients play in the development and the treatment of IBD, focusing on the interplay among dietary nutrients, the gut microbiota and host immune cells. We also discuss alterations in the nutritional metabolism of the gut microbiota and host cells in IBD that can influence the outcome of nutritional intervention. A better understanding of the diet-host-microbiota interactions may lead to new therapeutic approaches for the treatment of IBD.
Last Words Volume 14:2

Marchand writes about other library journals such as "The Colby Library Quarterly" and "Princeton University Library Chronicle" and their purpose.