cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sympathetic hyperinnervation and inflammatory cell NGF synthesis following myocardial infarction in rats

Sympathetic hyperinnervation occurs in human ventricular tissue after myocardial infarction and may contribute to arrhythmias. Aberrant sympathetic sprouting is associated with elevated nerve growth factor (NGF) in many contexts, including ventricular hyperinnervation. However, it is unclear whether cardiomyocytes or other cell types are responsible for increased NGF synthesis. In this study, left coronary arteries were ligated and ventricular tissue examined in rats 1-28 days post-infarction. Infarct and peri-infarct tissue was essentially devoid of sensory and parasympathetic nerves at all time points. However, areas of increased sympathetic nerve density were observed in the peri-infarct zone between post-ligation days 4-14. Hyperinnervation occurred in regions containing accumulations of macrophages and myofibroblasts. To assess whether these inflammatory cells synthesize NGF, sections were processed for NGF in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. Both macrophage1 antigen-positive macrophages and alpha-smooth muscle actin-immunoreactive myofibroblasts expressed NGF in areas where they were closely proximate to sympathetic nerves. To investigate whether NGF produced by peri-infarct cells induces sympathetic outgrowth, we co-cultured adult sympathetic ganglia with peri-infarct explants. Neurite outgrowth from sympathetic ganglia was significantly greater at post-ligation days 7-14 as compared to control tissue. Addition of an NGF function-blocking antibody prevented the increased neurite outgrowth induced by peri-infarct tissue. These findings provide evidence that inflammatory cell NGF synthesis plays a causal role in sympathetic hyperinnervation following myocardial infarction.
A PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE HOT SPRING DIATOM, ACHNATHES EXIGUA GRÜN1

SUMMARY The diatom Achnanthes exigua, isolated from Alhambra North Hot Spring, showed a maximum growth rate of 2 doublings per day at 40 C; the maximum and minimum temperatures at which growth occurred was 44 and 10 C, respectively. The optimal temperature for respiration was 40 C, whereas the optimum temperature for photosynthesis was 42 C. Respiration exhibited greater thermotolerance than either growth or photosynthesis. Light saturation occurring at comparatively low light intensities suggests that the unialgal diatom culture may represent a selected shade-adapted organism.
Antigenic variation of rhinovirus type 22.

SummarySeventeen of eighteen type 22 rhinoviruses isolated in this laboratory were shown to be antigenic variants of the prototype strain (127-CV22). The variant viruses were neutralized poorly or not at all by immune serum to the prototype strain. However, immune serum prepared to one of the variant viruses (Chase) neutralized both the prototype and homologous strains to similar titer and also neutralized all of the other isolates. The neutralizing reactivity of the Chase virus immune serum for the prototype and homologous strains was found to be essentially unaltered by multiple absorptions with human liver powder, a procedure capable of removing cytoxic factors or nonspecific inhibitors found in certain rhinovirus antisera. The Chase virus thus appears to represent a “prime strain” of rhinovirus type 22.The authors acknowledge the excellent technical assistance of Mrs. Dana Gallo and Mrs. Florence Lester.
Transient fluid–structure interaction with non-matching spatial and temporal discretizations

Abstract This paper presents a review of spatial and temporal discretization schemes for unsteady flow interacting with structure. Two types of spatial coupling schemes are analyzed: (i) point-to-element projection and (ii) common-refinement based projection. It is shown that the point-to-element projection schemes may yield inaccurate load transfer from the source fluid mesh to the target solid mesh, leading to a weak instability in the form of spurious oscillations and overshoots in the interface solution. The common-refinement scheme resolves this problem by providing an accurate transfer of discrete interface conditions across non-matching meshes. With respect to the temporal discretization, three coupling techniques are assessed: (i) conventional sequential staggered (CSS); (ii) generalized serial staggered (GSS) and (iii) combined interface boundary condition (CIBC). Traditionally, continuity of velocity and traction along interfaces are satisfied through algebraic interface conditions applied in a sequential fashion, which is often referred to as staggered computation. In existing partitioned staggered procedures, the interface conditions may undermine stability and accuracy of coupled fluid–structure simulations. By utilizing the CIBC technique on the velocity and traction boundary conditions, a staggered coupling procedure can be constructed with similar order of accuracy and stability as standalone computations. The effectiveness of spatial and temporal coupling schemes is investigated with the aid of simple 1D examples and new 2D subsonic flow-shell aeroelastic simulations.
Disruptive Comprehension Instruction: Deconstructing, Resituating, and Rewriting Texts

Literacy researchers operating from poststructuralist theoretical perspectives have too often talked past and against issues of concern to teachers and policy-makers (such as reading comprehension) rather than addressing them in productive ways. In response to this concern, the author uses poststructuralist sensibilities to critique and build on traditional approaches to reading comprehension. The author engages in processes of deconstruction, resituating, and rewriting to trouble and reimagine the instructional texts or storylines of comprehension strategy instruction, and draws on examples from her research to illustrate how teachers may engage students in these same processes in their classrooms.
Tears and fears: modeling emotions and emotional behaviors in synthetic agents

Emotions play a critical role in creating engaging and believable characters to populate virtual worlds. Our goal is to create general computational models to support characters that act in virtual environments, make decisions, but whose behavior also suggests an underlying emotional current. In service of this goal, we integrate two complementary approaches to emotional modeling into a single unified system. Gratch's Emile system focuses on the problem of emotional appraisal: how emotions arise from an evaluation of how environmental events relate to an agent's plans and goals. Marsella et al. 's IPD system focuses more on the impact of emotions on behavior, including the impact on the physical expressions of emotional state through suitable choice of gestures and body language. This integrated model is layered atop Steve, a pedagogical agent architecture, and exercised within the context of the Mission Rehearsal Exercise, a prototype system designed to teach decision- making skills in highly evocative situations.
Political Philosophy and the God of Abraham

Political Philosophy and the God of Abraham, Thomas L. Pangle, Baltimore and London: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2003, pp. 263 In the beginning was Leo Strauss with his trailblazing Platonizing exegeses of Genesis, “On the Interpretation of Genesis” and “Jerusalem and Athens.” Strauss begat many strong and independent minds who commented on the text. Hillel Fradkin and Robert Sacks were two of the earliest, as was Leon Kass. Kass recently published a hefty commentary on the entirety of Genesis, The Beginning of Wisdom (New York: Free press, 2003).
Acetyl-lysine erasers and readers in the control of pulmonary hypertension and right ventricular hypertrophy.

Acetylation of lysine residues within nucleosomal histone tails provides a crucial mechanism for epigenetic control of gene expression. Acetyl groups are coupled to lysine residues by histone acety...
Interference Mitigation Processing for Spectrum-Sharing Between Radar and Wireless Communications Systems

The theoretical feasibility is explored of spectrum-sharing between radar and wireless communications systems via an interference mitigation processing approach. The new approach allows radar and wireless systems to operate at the same carrier frequency if the radar possesses a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) structure. A novel signal processing approach is developed for coherent MIMO radar that effectively minimizes the arbitrary interferences generated by wireless systems from any direction, while operating at the same frequency using cognitive radio technology. Various theoretical aspects of the new approach are investigated, and its effectiveness is further validated through simulation.
Monitoring boundaries for adverse effects in long-term clinical trials

The typical long-term trial has a data monitoring committee. A primary responsibility of this committee is maintenance of patient safety. In this role, this committee is likely to recommend stopping a trial when a new treatment appears worse than the control even when the difference is not statistically significant or if it appears that the new treatment will not be clearly beneficial. Several approaches, including the use of conditional power, can be used to help the monitoring committee decide if a study should be stopped early because of a harmful or insufficiently effective treatment. These monitoring approaches have altered the way in which we view one-sided or two-sided tests of significance.
Spectrum sharing between a ZigBee frequency hopper and an FSK modem

Allowing multiple users to transmit in the same band simultaneously in an uncoordinated manor may require agility and reaction on the part of one or both of the users. In the scenario we consider here, one of the users is considered a primary user (PU) and will not react to the secondary user (SU). The SU is responsible for maximizing the combined channel throughput while minimizing interference to the PU. The scenario we examine has a PU operating in a frequency span of 20 MHz occupying a nominal 5 MHz Bandwidth centered at one of the offsets of ±2.5 MHz or ±7.5 MHz from band center. The PU randomly hops between these band centers. The SU can monitor the PU spectral position and respond with appropriate changes to its transmitted signal position to minimize interfering transmissions. We designed our SU signal to overlay the PU without the need to monitor and avoid the PU's occupied band while preserving negligible interaction between the signal sets.
Zinc is a mixed antagonist of homomeric rho 1 gamma-aminobutyric acid-activated channels.

The transition metal Zn2+ is differentially distributed in the central nervous system, where it is proposed to be a neuromodulator. One of the documented effects of Zn2+ is the antagonism of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-mediated synaptic inhibition. This antagonism is presumed to result from a direct interaction of Zn2+ with the GABA receptor/ionophore complex, although the characteristics of Zn2+ sensitivity are dependent on the particular GABA subunit combination. In this study, we examined the effects of Zn2+ on homomeric rho 1 GABA-activated channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes. Zn2+ was found to be a mixed antagonist of these recombinant rho 1 GABA receptors. The antagonism was predominantly competitive at low Zn2+ concentrations ( 100 microM) a noncompetitive antagonism was apparent. Evidence is presented showing that the antagonism was not due to an interaction of GABA and Zn2+ in solution but, rather, resulted from interactions of these two ligands with the GABA-activated channel. A mechanism is proposed for Zn(2+)-mediated antagonism in which GABA and Zn2+ bind to distinct sites on the GABA complex. The apparent mixed antagonism may arise from different Ki values for the binding of Zn2+ to non-agonist-bound or agonist-bound receptors. However, two distinct Zn2+ binding sites, one competitive and one noncompetitive, could also give rise to the dual antagonism.
Laryngeal Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma A Systematic Review

ObjectiveAdenoid cystic carcinoma is a malignant minor salivary gland tumor that represents <1% of all laryngeal tumors. The submucosal location of laryngeal adenoid cystic carcinoma (LACC) results in delayed presentation. Here, we present the first systematic review of reported cases of LACC to determine trends in presentation, diagnostic and treatment modalities, and patient outcome.Data SourcesPubMed, Web of Science, MEDLINE, and EMBASE databases.MethodsA search of the above databases was done to identify articles reporting cases of LACC. The variables included in the analysis were patient demographics, presenting symptoms, tumor location, imaging, treatment, follow-up time, recurrence, and outcome.ResultsA total of 50 articles and 120 cases were included in the review. The most common presenting symptom was dyspnea (48.8%), followed by hoarseness (43.9%). LACC arose most frequently from the subglottis (56.7%). At presentation, 14.6% (13 of 89) of patients had regional disease. The average follow-up ti...
Respiratory function of velopharyngeal constrictor muscles during wakefulness in normal adults

Launois, Sandrine H., Judy Tsui, and J. Woodrow Weiss.Respiratory function of velopharyngeal constrictor muscles during wakefulness in normal adults. J. Appl. Physiol. 82(2): 584–591, 1997.—The lev...
Climate and Mammalian Evolution

A review of After the Dinosaurs: The Age of Mammals. By Donald R Prothero. Bloomington (Indiana): Indiana University Press. $39.95. xvi 362 p 10 pl; ill.; index. ISBN: 0-253-34733-5. 2006. This book is a tour of the evolution of mammals over the Cenozoic Era (the past 65 million years since the extinction of the dinosaurs) against the backdrop of the Earth’s changing climate. Written for nonspecialists, but useful for paleontologists or evolutionary biologists, After the Dinosaurs joins similar volumes in the Life of the Past series edited by dinosaur paleontologist James O Farlow for Indiana University Press. As series editor, Farlow has helped to bring all sorts of syntheses on a variety of paleontological topics that are up to date and mostly accessible to general readers. Although most of these titles concern the dinosaurs, others (such as After the Dinosaurs) explore other vertebrate groups over different times in Earth’s history. In comparison with dinosaurs, Cenozoic mammals offer a more complete fossil record, more recent diversification, better understood functional anatomy, and arguably a more mature understanding of taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships. All of these factors should make it possible to develop a more complete and meaningful synthesis of mammalian history than dinosaur history. In his preface, the author makes clear his goal of summarizing Cenozoic mammal succession against global trends in climate. Along the way, he acknowledges a small number of other grand syntheses on Cenozoic mammals by Osborn, Kurten, Pomerol and, more recently, Agusti and Anton for Europe, which Prothero frequently cites. In this way, he informs readers of the ancestral lineage of After the Dinosaurs. Next follows a brief, obligatory introduction to the topics of field paleontology, geologic time, and systematics and taxonomy ( just enough to understand the rules of giving names to species and higher taxa, but not enough to understand phylogenetic relationships; see below). The rest of the volume follows a chronological organization, with each epoch of the Cenozoic (Paleocene and Eocene, among others) treated as a separate chapter. To begin, let us establish what After the Dinosaurs is not. This book is not a comprehensive account of the entire fossil record of mammals, which span the past 225 million years. Beginning 65 million years ago at the K/P boundary (“K/P” is replacing “K/T” as geologists abandon the “Tertiary Period” in favor of the “Paleogene” and “Neogene”), readers are placed in the final third of mammalian history or the final fifth of synapsid history. Synapsida is the larger group to which mammals belong, consisting of mammals and the mammal-like “reptiles”—pelycosaurs and therapsids—that are more closely related to mammals than to other living vertebrates.
Symmetric Matrices with Prescribed Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors

It is a well-known result that if S is a real n X n symmetric matrix then it is diagonalizable, it has n mutually orthogonal eigenvectors, and there exists an orthogonal matrix P such that its columns are eigenvectors of S and such that PTSP = D is the diagonal matrix of corresponding eigenvalues [1, 2, 3, 4, and 5]. In matrix theory courses it is customary to look at a particular real n X n symmetric matrix for some small n > 2 and to try to find its eigenvalues and corresponding eigenvectors. Naturally it is up to an instructor to provide the students with "nice" symmetric matrices, i.e., matrices possessing integer (or rational) eigenvalues and eigenvectors with integer (or rational) components before normalization. One of the goals of this note is to show how to start with an arbitrary orthogonal basis {P 1'P2 * , Pn } of R " and find a real n X n symmetric matrix having the pi for eigenvectors and having either "nice" eigenvalues or having n arbitrarily prescribed real numbers X I, X 2 1 . . . for its eigenvalues. Recall that a real n X n symmetric matrix S is positive (nonnegative) definite if and only if all of its eigenvectors are positive (nonnegative). It is a well-known result that a matrix S is symmetric positive definite if and only if there exists a nonsingular matrix B such that S = BBT [1, 3, and 5]. Another goal here is to sharpen this result and generalize it to characterize real symmetric matrices (Theorems 2 and 3). Our last goal is to provide a simple method for constructing "nice" symmetric matrices. We first present our theorems and then give several examples which illustrate the ideas and methods from the theorems and their proofs. Our first theorem will be useful in two ways; it gives an explicit method for constructing a symmetric matrix with prescribed eigenvectors and eigenvalues and it also is useful in establishing further results. Throughout our discussion, vectors will be considered as column vectors, and we will denote a matrix A with column vectors ai as A = (a1 I a2l ... I a,,).
Orientation of Some Florida Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) Toward Small Vertebrates and Carbon Dioxide in the Field

All-night catches in 32 radially arranged ramp traps were compared for evidence of wind-influenced flight orientation and to investigate the range at which various Florida mosquitoes respond to air-borne host stimuli. Culex nigripalpus displayed strong upwind orientation both with and without animal bait, while the flight pattern of Culex pilosus was scarcely influenced by wind direction. Species showing a positive response to the multiple hosts exposed appeared to begin orienting toward the bait about 15 m away and the response increased the nearer they approached, i.e., at 10 and 5 m.
Self-Concepts and Academic Aspirations of “Understood” and “Misunderstood” Boys and Girls in Ninth Grade

The purpose of the study was to compare self-concepts, academic aspirations, and vocational maturity of adolescents (9th graders) whose parents “understood” them with those whose parents “misunderstood” them. Ss were 50 boys and 50 girls from a Southeastern university town of about 50,000. Families were of predominantly middle-class background with parental education and occupation somewhat above average. Instruments used were Gordon's “How I See Myself,” two measures of academic aspirations from Brookover's research, and Crites Vocational Development Inventory. Data supported the hypotheses that understood Ss perceived themselves more favorably in Parent-Teenager Relations and Academic Adequacy and had higher desired and expected aspirations. Although more boys than girls described themselves as misunderstood, the difference was not significant.
Time and Cost Functions for Egg Routes

Abstract THE costs involved in the collection of eggs are of considerable importance to egg producers, assemblers, and consumers. Detailed analysis of the physical and economic relationships are necessary to determine these costs. Estimates of the costs involved in collecting eggs under different conditions are important data for the entrepreneur of the egg assembling firm to know in an effort to more efficiently allocate resources now or potentially at his command. A review of the literature on this problem reveals few fruitful studies. Perhaps the most important study on this subject is one carried out by the Department of Agricultural Economics at the Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station. A series of bulletins under the title of Milk Marketing Efficiency in Connecticut was published (especially Clarke and Bressler, 1943). While these bulletins dealt with milk, the principle involved is the same. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY This paper develops some of the physical and . . .
Abstract B76: Effects of navigation on initial and repeat mammography screening among medically underserved women

Purpose: Despite its increasing popularity to address breast cancer disparities, existing efforts to assess the effect of patient navigation on regular breast cancer screening utilization among medically underserved groups have been cross-sectional or ecological in nature. Such work is warranted to examine the longitudinal benefits of patient navigation, given one-time utilization of cancer screening is not sufficient strategy for improving early detection of breast cancer. Objective: Our study had two objectives. First, we test the effectiveness of navigation on adherence to initial recommended screening mammography appointments among a population of medically underserved, largely African American women. Second, for women with normal screening results, we test the effectiveness of navigation on attainment of subsequent screening mammograms. Methods: The larger trial, Patient Navigation in Medically Underserved Areas, is a five year project to assess the effectiveness of multimodal, primarily phone-based, navigation services to timely diagnostic resolution after an abnormal screening result within three hospitals located in South Chicago. The current study focuses on secondary outcomes concerning the effectiveness of navigation for mammography screening. Our analytic sample includes 4185 women referred for mammography screening with available medical record data concerning demographic (age, race, insurance, miles to clinic, neighborhood median income) and healthcare information (insurance, screening patterns). Participants were classified by their assignment from randomization, which was focused on the primary outcome (diagnostic follow-up), and whether they interacted with staff prior to the initial appointment: navigated with contact; control with contact; navigated without contact; and control without contact. Results: After adjusting for demographic and healthcare insurance, navigated with contact, women obtained the initial screening mammogram within fewer days relative to other groups, HR= 0.7, 95%CI [0.6, 0.9], p = .001 and greater odds of obtaining screening mammograms, OR = 1.6, 95%CI [1.3, 1.9], p Conclusions: Our study adds to a growing body of work demonstrating the usefulness of patient navigation, including the impact of delivering services outside of in-person interaction. Future studies are warranted to confirm our findings and assess the potential of these services in real life settings. Citation Format: Yamile Molina, Sage Kim, Anne L. Glassgow, Nerida M. Berrios, Julie Darnell, Heather Pauls, Ganga Vijayasiri, Richard Warnecke, Elizabeth A. Calhoun. Effects of navigation on initial and repeat mammography screening among medically underserved women. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eighth AACR Conference on The Science of Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; Nov 13-16, 2015; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2016;25(3 Suppl):Abstract nr B76.
The contribution of the β-adrenergic system to the cardiovascular response to hypovolemia

Unanesthetized, chronically instrumented, nonpregnant sheep were studied in periods of progressive blood withdrawal, hypovolemic shock, blood reinfusion, and recovery. Hemodynamic responses were recorded during experiments with an intact beta-adrenergic system (saline solution), beta-adrenergic blockage (propranolol), and beta-adrenergic stimulation (isoxsuprine). With an intact beta-adrenergic system, stepwise bleeding produced a progressive decrease in arterial pressure, stroke volume, and cardiac output and an increase in systemic vascular resistance; heart rate increased initially but fell when hypovolemia became severe. All circulatory parameters returned toward control valves during blood reinfusion and recovery. In animals deprived of beta-adrenergic control, the hemodynamic response to progressive hypovolemia and blood reinfusion was not greatly different from that of control animals, despite abolition of tachycardia. During beta-adrenergic stimulation, arterial pressure and cardiac output fell more rapidly than in control and tachycardia was relatively small; cardiac output and stroke volume rebounded strikingly during reinfusion and recovery. These results support findings of others that the role of the beta-adrenergic system is minor during hypovolemia. When pharmacologically activated, it might play a significant role in the posthypovolemia compensatory mechanisms.
Impact of Telomere Shortening with Age in Stem Cell Therapy: New Strategies to Increase Telomere Length

Adult stem cell functionality is impaired upon aging. This impedes on the success of stem cell–based regenerative therapy in aged individuals suffering from heart failure, which represent the target population for regenerative medicine. Therefore, a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms involved in cellular aging is essential in order to provide a more efficient therapeutic strategy. Accumulation of cellular damage occurs with age. Consequently, a constant cell turnover takes place in order to replace damaged cells leading to telomere attrition. Telomere shortening is thus a critical factor in cellular aging. Strategies focusing on preserving or elongating telomere length represent an attractive approach for the rejuvenation of stem cells. This chapter highlights the impact of aging on telomere length in stem cells and suggests new strategies to improve stem cell properties by maintaining telomere length.
Conflict on the Red River: Applying the institutional collective action framework to regional flood policy

In reaction to major flooding, local governments in Minnesota and North Dakota formed a cooperative network to construct a $1.2 billion flood diversion along the Red River of the North. Threatened by this diversion, a second set of governments formed their own network in opposition to flood policy. This study uses propositions derived from the Institutional Collective Action framework to examine formal contracts at the core of these cooperative networks, as well as the circumstances under which the contracts were negotiated. It considers the ability of the framework to understand interlocal cooperation where regional consensus is nonexistent. The study finds that the two sets of governments faced very different transaction costs, resulting in contrasting approaches to governance.
A receptor and neuron that activate a circuit limiting sucrose consumption.

All animals – from the fruit fly to mammals like humans – must control their dietary intake of nutrients to survive and stay healthy. Taste receptors that sense high-calorie sugars are essential to this process. Typically, when food tastes sweet, it signals that the food contains nutrients and promotes consumption. However, eating too much sugar can be detrimental because the animal wastes time and energy eating food that it does not need, and could eventually lead to obesity and other metabolic diseases. This raised the question: are there any taste receptors that, once they detect sugars, cause animals to eat less? Joseph et al. worked with the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and identified one such taste receptor called IR60b. The experiments showed that this taste receptor responds selectively to sucrose (a high-calorie sugar), and that it activates nerve cells that cause fruit flies to eat less food, rather than more. When the receptor was experimentally inactivated, the fruit flies ate for longer and ate too much sucrose. This indicates that the flies need this receptor to control their sugar intake. A next step will be to see if mammals similarly use sweet-sensing taste receptors to limit the amount of food they eat. A better insight into how mammals can control what they eat could provide a deeper understanding of how to tackle major health issues, such as obesity, in humans.
Ten-story building: App development for ESL

Abstract This activity uses an app to teach language skills. Ten-Story Building is a handheld app, currently for Android devices, that teaches students phrasal verbs, which are idiomatic expressions that are particularly troublesome for English as a second language students. The app uses a game-like mechanic and correlates to informal learning tools that focus on engagement, iteration, convenience, and high-interest content.
Ten Suggested Health Literacy Attributes of a Health Care Organization

ABSTRACTThe health care system in the United States is becoming increasingly complex, placing greater demands on consumers to be more proactive and informed about their care. However, 88% of the population is unable to successfully navigate the health care system due to low levels of health literacy. Health care organizations can play a role in improving health literacy. The “Ten Attributes of the Health Literate Health Care Organizations” produced by members of the Institute of Medicine’s Roundtable on Health Literacy provides guidance.
Multimodal MR Imaging Signatures of Cognitive Impairment in Active Professional Fighters

The results of this study suggest that the imaging biomarkers the authors identified by using a multivariate analysis can be used to detect and track the progression of brain damage related to cognitive decline in subjects with repeated head trauma.
Long-Term Use of Benzodiazepines and Nonbenzodiazepine Hypnotics, 1999-2014.

Objective:Clinical guidelines suggest that benzodiazepines (BZDs) and non-BZD hypnotics (NBHs) be used on a short-term basis. The authors examined trends in long-term BZD and NBH use from 1999 to 2...
Paraffin Embedding and Thin Sectioning of Microbial Colony Biofilms for Microscopic Analysis

Sectioning via paraffin embedding is a broadly established technique in eukaryotic systems. Here we provide a method for the fixation, embedding, and sectioning of intact microbial colony biofilms using perfused paraffin wax. To adapt this method for use on colony biofilms, we developed techniques for maintaining each sample on its growth substrate and laminating it with an agar overlayer, and added lysine to the fixative solution. These optimizations improve sample retention and preservation of micromorphological features. Samples prepared in this manner are amenable to thin sectioning and imaging by light, fluorescence, and transmission electron microscopy. We have applied this technique to colony biofilms of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas synxantha, Bacillus subtilis, and Vibrio cholerae. The high level of detail visible in samples generated by this method, combined with reporter strain engineering or the use of specific dyes, can provide exciting insights into the physiology and development of microbial communities.
Design and realization of temperature measurement system based on optical fiber temperature sensor for wireless power transfer

The electric vehicles (EV) have become accepted by increasing numbers of people for the environmental-friendly advantages. A novel way to charge the electric vehicles is through wireless power transfer (WPT). The wireless power transfer is a high power transfer system. The high currents flowing through the transmitter and receiver coils increasing temperature affects the safety of person and charging equipment. As a result, temperature measurement for wireless power transfer is needed. In this paper, a temperature measurement system based on optical fiber temperature sensors for electric vehicle wireless power transfer is proposed. Initially, the thermal characteristics of the wireless power transfer system are studied and the advantages of optical fiber sensors are analyzed. Then the temperature measurement system based on optical fiber temperature sensor is designed. The system consists of optical subsystem, data acquisition subsystem and data processing subsystem. Finally, the system is tested and the experiment result shows that the system can realize 1°C precision and can acquire real-time temperature distribution of the coils, which can meet the requirement of the temperature measuring for wireless power transfer.
Acquiring insights into infrastructure repair policy using discrete choice models

Abstract Infrastructure agencies routinely make maintenance, rehabilitation, and reconstruction (MRR) decisions to keep their assets in state of good repair or to extend their service lives. They use one of three general mechanisms to make such decisions: expert opinion, continuation of historical practices, or explicit optimization using costs and benefits data for alternative MRR actions. In using any of these decision mechanisms, the agency is guided by decision factors (i.e., the attributes of the infrastructure, the operating environment, and the action in question). With regard to the historical-practice mechanism where the agency’s MRR policy is governed by past MRR decisions, there typically exists ample data on past decisions as well as the decision factors that existed at the time of the decision and hypothetically influenced the decision. Agencies that still use this decision mechanism continue to grapple with several issues, which include the feasibility of modeling the agency’s past decisions as a function of the decision factors prevailing at the time of the decision; and the influence of the decision factors on the decision outcome (MRR choice) and the temporal stability of such influences. This paper demonstrates a proposed framework to address these questions using data associated with in-service bridge decks at a highway agency in Midwestern USA. This paper also discusses the insights gained about bridge infrastructure repair policy by assessing the sensitivity of past decisions to the decision factors. The paper also demonstrates how the framework can be used to develop MRR-choice probability distributions to guide future MRR decisions and then to estimate the funding needs for future bridge deck actions. Agencies can use the methodology presented in this paper for work decisions, training of new personnel, and long-term work planning and budgeting.
Transformer based power combining for outphasing power amplifiers

This paper provides an evaluation and mathematical analysis of transformer-based power combiners for outphasing transmitters. Both voltage and current combining are discussed. The non-idealities associated with transformer parasitic coupling inductances are analyzed. This work proposes using a parallel-series combining transformer (PSCT) structure for 2-way outphasing. Finally, this work explores the implementation of a 4-way outphasing transmitter using a transformer combiner.
Biostratigraphy of the Equatorial North Pacific DOMES Sites A, B, and C

Radiolarians from box cores and gravity cores indicate that Quaternary sediment covers the sea floor at DOMES Sites A, B, and C; however, at Sites A and B dissolution-resistant, reworked Tertiary species (predominantly middle and late Eocene and early Miocene) generally outnumber the fragile Quaternary forms. In contrast, at Site C an early Miocene calcareous nannofossil flora underlies the Quaternary layer in three cores, and specimens of different ages are not mixed; barren sediment generally underlies the Quaternary in the remainder of cores from Site C. The abundant admixture of Tertiary radiolarians in Quaternary sediment at Sites A and B is most likely caused by an increase ill bottom current activity during the Pleistocene, resulting in several cycles of erosion and redeposition of Tertiary sediment. This physical process of erosion, aided by selective dissolution of fragile radiolarians, explains the dominance of dissolution-resistant forms in the mixtures.
Guillain–Barré syndrome hyponatremia: is it SIADH or pseudohyponatremia?

Approximately 5% of hospitalized patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) experience SIADH; but pseudohyponatremia has also been reported in patients treated with IVIG. We present a case of a 51-year-old male with GBS who developed acute hyponatremia the day after initiation of IVIG; his sodium levels began to improve within 24 h of completion of IVIG. Differentiating between pseudohyponatremia caused by the IVIG treatment and SIADH caused by GBS was the key to successfully treating this patient. This case exemplifies the importance of pursuing further studies to determine the exact cause of hyponatremia in GBS in order to prevent further neurologic damage to the patient.
Osteoporosis and musculoskeletal complications related to therapy of breast cancer

Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are the treatment of choice for the majority of postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor (ER) positive breast cancers in early and advanced stage settings. One of most frequent side effects of AIs is bone loss that is of sufficient magnitude to increase risk of osteoporotic fractures. Osteoporosis is primarily a complex genetic disease with few modifiable risk factors. As the lifespan increases, and breast mortality decreases, more women with breast cancer will be at risk of osteoporotic fractures, or falls that result in fractures. The screening, prevention, and treatment of osteoporosis do not differ in women with or without breast cancer. Rather, breast cancer treatments, including AIs, chemotherapy-induced ovarian failure, and gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists, all decrease estrogen, which causes net bone resorption, leading some women to experience fracture. Occurring in about fifty-percent of women, AI-induced arthralgia is one of the most common side effects, and causes of nonadherence and discontinuation. Registry studies show that nonadherence and discontinuation may contribute to higher breast cancer mortality. Thus, understanding the mechanisms, risk factors, and interventions to mitigate symptoms of AI-induced arthralgia is a high priority.
Effects of environmental stressors on daily governance

Human workers ensure the functioning of governments around the world. The efficacy of human workers, in turn, is linked to the climatic conditions they face. Here we show that the same weather that amplifies human health hazards also reduces street-level government workers’ oversight of these hazards. To do so, we employ US data from over 70 million regulatory police stops between 2000 and 2017, from over 500,000 fatal vehicular crashes between 2001 and 2015, and from nearly 13 million food safety violations across over 4 million inspections between 2012 and 2016. We find that cold and hot temperatures increase fatal crash risk and incidence of food safety violations while also decreasing police stops and food safety inspections. Added precipitation increases fatal crash risk while also decreasing police stops. We examine downscaled general circulation model output to highlight the possible day-to-day governance impacts of climate change by 2050 and 2099. Future warming may augment regulatory oversight during cooler seasons. During hotter seasons, however, warming may diminish regulatory oversight while simultaneously amplifying the hazards government workers are tasked with overseeing.
Quantifying the relationship between optical anatomy and retinal physiological sensitivity: A comparative approach.

Light intensity varies 1 million-fold between night and day, driving the evolution of eye morphology and retinal physiology. Despite extensive research across taxa showing anatomical adaptations to light niches, surprisingly few empirical studies have quantified the relationship between such traits and the physiological sensitivity to light. In this study, we employ a comparative approach in frogs to determine the physiological sensitivity of eyes in two nocturnal (Rana pipiens, Hyla cinerea) and two diurnal species (Oophaga pumilio, Mantella viridis), examining whether differences in retinal thresholds can be explained by ocular and cellular anatomy. Scotopic electroretinogram (ERG) analysis of relative b-wave amplitude reveals 10- to 100-fold greater light sensitivity in nocturnal compared to diurnal frogs. Ocular and cellular optics (aperture, focal length, and rod outer segment dimensions) were assessed via the Land equation to quantify differences in optical sensitivity. Variance in retinal thresholds was overwhelmingly explained by Land equation solutions, which describe the optical sensitivity of single rods. Thus, at the b-wave, stimulus-response thresholds may be unaffected by photoreceptor convergence (which create larger, combined collecting areas). Follow-up experiments were conducted using photopic ERGs, which reflect cone vision. Under these conditions, the relative difference in thresholds was reversed, such that diurnal species were more sensitive than nocturnal species. Thus, photopic data suggest that rod-specific adaptations, not ocular anatomy (e.g., aperture and focal distance), drive scotopic thresholds differences. To the best of our knowledge, these data provide the first quantified relationship between optical and physiological sensitivity in vertebrates active in different light regimes.
Knowledge Representation for Philosophers

This article provides an overview of the subfield of Artificial Intelligence known as “Knowledge Representation and Reasoning.” This field uses the techniques of philosophical logic, but aims at providing a theoretical basis for the management of declarative information in automated reasoning systems. Three topics are singled out here for attention: planning and reasoning about actions, description logics, and nonmonotonic logics.
Preoperative Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) scores predict postoperative outcome in total shoulder arthroplasty patients.

Background The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) has recently been validated in orthopedic patients with upper-extremity disease. The purpose of this study was to describe preoperative and postoperative PROMIS scores in total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) patients, compare PROMIS physical function (PF) scores with clinical functional measurements, and determine whether preoperative PROMIS scores could predict achievement of the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) postoperatively. Methods Preoperative and postoperative (>3 months) PROMIS scores in patients who underwent primary anatomic TSA were reviewed. Preoperative and postoperative shoulder forward flexion and external rotation were also collected. PROMIS PF, pain interference (PI), and depression scores were compared. Accuracy analyses determined whether preoperative PROMIS scores from each domain could predict postoperative achievement of the MCID in the same domain. Results The study included 62 patients. Significant improvements in PROMIS PF, PI, and depression scores, as well as forward flexion and external rotation, were found postoperatively (P Conclusions In TSA patients, preoperative PROMIS PF, depression, and PI scores demonstrated strong to excellent abilities to predict postoperative achievement of the MCID. PROMIS PF scores were responsive to the functional improvements observed clinically. The reported cutoff scores allow surgeons to identify patients with increased or decreased probabilities of achieving a clinically meaningful improvement after TSA.
Quantitative modeling of self-oligomerization of proteins in the nuclear envelope by fluorescence fluctuation analysis.

Abstract Analysis of fluorescence fluctuation data through the time-shifted mean-segmented Q (tsMSQ) analysis method has recently been shown to successfully identify protein oligomerization and mobility in the nuclear envelope by properly accounting for local volume fluctuations of the nuclear envelope within living cells. However, by its nature, tsMSQ produces correlated data which poses unique challenges for applying goodness of fit tests and obtaining parameter uncertainties from individual measurements. In this paper, we overcome these challenges by introducing bootstrap tsMSQ which involves randomly resampling the fluorescence intensity data to eliminate the correlations in the tsMSQ data. This analysis technique was verified in both the cytoplasm and the lumen of the nuclear envelope with well-characterized proteins that served as model systems. Uncertainties and goodness of fit tests of individual measurements were compared to estimates obtained from sampling multiple experiments. We further applied bootstrapping to fluorescence fluctuation data of the luminal domain of the SUN domain-containing protein 2 in order to characterize its self-oligomerization within the nuclear envelope. Analysis of the concentration-dependent brightness suggests a monomer-trimer transition of the protein.
Acquired and Persistent Eldercare Demands: Impact on Worker Well-Being:

Eldercare demands (ECD) may result in stress when finite resources needed to fulfill life roles (i.e., family, work) become scarce. ECD may be acquired, continue over time, or be relinquished. They...
Can Human Evidence Accumulation Be Modeled Using the Set-Theoretic Nature of Dempster-Shafer Theory?

Belief updating and the integrating of streams of evidence are critical tasks for artificially intelligent systems. Traditional AI systems tend to employ Bayesian models of conditioning or approaches based on Dempster-Shafer. These approaches have assumptions that run counter to the cognitive models developed for human belief updating. In addition, human cognition has an added limitation of finite working memory, which requires the human cognitive system to develop and manage representations of data to manage capacity. While the evidence updating approach of Dempster-Shafer has issues with behaving as humans, the approaches use of the concept of the power set and the management of the beliefs through subsets of varying cardinality as evidence unfolds can serve as a promising model for human management of working memory. This paper uses a Clue® game approach to testing human subjects. The results show that the use of sets of information at varying cardinalities may be an effective model for describing how human subjects develop and manage beliefs.
Smartphone-based microscopes

Abstract Disease diagnosis in low-resource settings is often hampered by lack of equipment and trained personnel required for microscopic examination of the biological sample. Recently, many smartphone-based microscopes have been developed and shown promise in microscopic imaging of the biological sample with minimal sample preparation. In this chapter, we will review the latest development of the smartphone microscopes. Various smartphone-based microscopy imaging methods will be reviewed. Approaches for smartphone microscope objective lenses will be discussed for their advantages and challenges. Finally, remaining challenges in translating the smartphone microscopy devices into field diagnostic tools will be discussed.