cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Politics in an american lifeboat: The case of laotian immigrants

He is an American, who, leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds. He becomes an American by being received in the broad lap of our great Alma Mater. Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labor and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world.
An Analysis of the Assessment of Glycated Hemoglobin Using A1cNow+™ Point-of-Care Device Compared to Central Laboratory Testing—an Important Addition to Pharmacist-Managed Diabetes Programs?

The diabetes epidemic is accelerating rapidly. If no progress is made in early detection, then early intervention and treatment-to-goal diabetes care will become an overwhelming burden on our health care system. Better utilization of self-monitoring of blood glucose in patients with type 2 diabetes not on insulin could be achieved with regular review of hemoglobin A1c (A1C) values. Educating patients about the importance of diet, exercise, and medication compliance is enhanced when evidence of average blood glucose control can be presented to the patient directly. Affordable, accurate point-of-care testing of A1C with A1cNow+™ (Bayer HealthCare, Terrytown, NY) utilized in pharmacist-managed outpatient diabetes programs may prove to be an important clinical tool for improving patient outcomes and reducing the cost of the expanding diabetes epidemic.
Rates of auxiliary is and are in African American English speaking children with specific language impairment following language treatment

The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine rates of auxiliary is and are across dialect patterns produced by African American English with specific language impairment (AAE-SLI) children following language treatment. The following research question is asked: Do AAE-SLI children exhibit rates of auxiliary is and are across dialect patterns consistent with previous reports of typically developing children and adult AAE speakers? A pre-/post-test design was used to identify patterns in which auxiliary is and are were produced at significant levels. Individual performance was included to examine variable rates of use across patterns. Group and individual results suggest children used auxiliary is and are in dialect patterns at rates consistent with typically developing child and adult AAE speakers. We conclude that rates of use may contribute to evidence-based guidelines for morphological intervention with AAE-SLI children.
Survey of maneuvering target tracking: III. Measurement models

This is the third part of a series of papers that provide a comprehensive survey of the techniques for tracking maneuvering targets without addressing the so-called measurement-origin uncertainty. Part I and Part II deal with general target motion models and ballistic target motion models, respectively. This part surveys measurement models, including measurement model-based techniques, used in target tracking. Models in Cartesian, sensor measurement, their mixed, and other coordinates are covered. The stress is on more recent advances - topics that have received more attention recently are discussed in greater details.
Consequences of cAMP and catalytic-subunit binding on the flexibility of the A-kinase regulatory subunit.

A combination of site-directed labeling and time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy was used to further elucidate the structure and underlying dynamic features of the type I regulatory (R I R) subunit of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase. Specifically, the consequences of cAMP and the catalytic (C)- subunit binding on the backbone flexibility around seven sites of cysteine substitution and fluorescein maleimide labeling (Thr 6 Cys, Leu 66 Cys, Ser 75 Cys, Ser 81 Cys, Ser 99 Cys, Ser 145 Cys, and Ser 373 Cys) in the R I R subunit were assessed. Focusing on the fast rotational correlation time, the results indicate that most of the interdomain segment connecting the dimerization/docking (D/D) and tandem cAMP-binding domains is probably weakly associated with the latter domain. Also, this segment becomes more tightly bound to the C subunit upon holoenzyme formation. The results also suggest that there is a short 'hinge' segment (around Leu 66 Cys) that could allow the structured interdomain/cAMP-binding and D/D domains to pivot about each other. Finally, cAMP binding dramatically reduces the backbone flexibility around only the two sites of cysteine substitution in the cAMP-binding domains, suggesting a selective structural stabilization caused by cAMP and a "tight" coupling of low-nanosecond fluctuations selectively within the tandem cAMP-binding domains.
Adaptivity and convergence in the Voronoi cell finite element model for analyzing heterogeneous materials

Abstract In this paper, an adaptive Voronoi cell finite element model is presented for analyzing micromechanical response of composites and porous materials. Both elastic and elastic–plastic materials are considered. Two error measures, viz. a traction reciprocity error and an error in the kinematic relation, are formulated as indicators of the quality of VCFEM solutions. Based on a posteriori evaluation of these error measures, element adaptation is executed in two consecutive stages. In the first stage, displacement function adaptations on the element boundaries and matrix–inclusion/void interfaces are carried out to minimize the corresponding traction reciprocity errors. This is accomplished through a sequence of h-refinement and spectral p-enrichment strategy in an optimal displacement direction. Following this, an enrichment of matrix and inclusion stress functions or enrp-adaptation is conducted to reduce the error in kinematic relations. The complete process improves convergence characteristics of the VCFEM solution. Numerical analysis is conducted to examine the potential of the resulting VCFEM code in analyzing microstructures with different distributions, sizes and shapes of heterogeneities. The method is seen to perform very well for the wide variety of problems solved.
The National Research Council interdivisional committee on density‐currents

The importance that has come to be attached in recent years to the silting of reservoirs is rapidly focussing attention on the phenomena that occur in such bodies of water. The fact that currents of silty water due to inflow at the head of a reservoir or lake may move as more or less clearly defined bottom-currents for long distances through the main body of clear, quiet water and so may carry at least the finer portion of the suspended load for long distances before dropping it has been recognized for some time. However, such a phenomenon is not easy to observe, and instances of it have passed practically unnoticed except in the infrequent cases in which the silty currents have passed entirely through the reservoir and issued through the outlet-gates at the dam. (Instances have been reported recently of the observation of such currents from airplanes.) A number of these muddy discharges have been observed at the Elephant Butte Reservoir [see 1 and 2 under “References” at end of paper], and more recently the passage of silty currents through Lake Mead has been reported [3].
Volcanism on Mars

One of the earliest and most significant of the Mariner 9 results was the recognition of prominent volcanic features on Mars. The volcanic features have a markedly asymmetric distribution. The planet can be roughly divided into two hemispheres. One includes nearly all the central volcanic features and the sparsely cratered plains; the other, for the most part, is densely cratered terrain, superficially resembling the lunar highlands.
Seismic modeling and analysis of a prototype heated nuclear waste storage tunnel, Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Wehavedevelopedseismicvelocitymodelsfortheheated rock surrounding a tunnel in Yucca Mountain tuff and compared the results with field data obtained at theYucca Mountain drift scale test DST facility from 1998 to 2002. During that time, the tunnel was heated to replicate the effects of long-term storage of decaying nuclear waste and to study the effects of extreme temperatures on the surrounding rock and groundwater flow. Our velocity models are based on borehole temperature data, thermal models, and laboratory measurements on granite. Comparisons between field and synthetic seismograms show that superheating the rock around the tunnel causes thermally induced variations in P- and S-wave arrival-time separation. Barring out-of-plane reflections, 2D spectral element waveform modeling in the source planeconsistentlyreplicatesseismicreceiverwaveformsand classicbehaviorofpulsesreflectedfromcylinders.Ourmodels constrain the in situ V 1 dV/dT velocity/temperature derivative of the tuff to be approximately 0.5% per 100°C. This velocity change is consistent with thermally induced wavespeedchangesindryrocksamplesandislowerthanexpected for water-to-steam conversion in saturated rock. We infer that velocity changes are controlled by thermal expansion and fracturing.Additionally, we have developed an improved method for monitoring tunnel conditions that uses waves diffracted around the tunnel in the region of changing velocity.
Identification of a novel abscisic acid-regulated farnesol dehydrogenase from Arabidopsis.

In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), farnesylcysteine is oxidized to farnesal and cysteine by a membrane-associated thioether oxidase called farnesylcysteine lyase. Farnesol and farnesyl phosphate kinases have also been reported in plant membranes. Together, these observations suggest the existence of enzymes that catalyze the interconversion of farnesal and farnesol. In this report, Arabidopsis membranes are shown to possess farnesol dehydrogenase activity. In addition, a gene on chromosome 4 of the Arabidopsis genome (At4g33360), called FLDH, is shown to encode an NAD+-dependent dehydrogenase that oxidizes farnesol more efficiently than other prenyl alcohol substrates. FLDH expression is repressed by abscisic acid (ABA) but is increased in mutants with T-DNA insertions in the FLDH 5′ flanking region. These T-DNA insertion mutants, called fldh-1 and fldh-2, are associated with an ABA-insensitive phenotype, suggesting that FLDH is a negative regulator of ABA signaling.
Welfare and family dissolution revisited

De plus en plus d'enfants vivent dans des foyers dans lesquels les deux parents sont absents. Quels sont les facteurs qui rendent compte de cette tendance a la dissolution familiale? C'est dans cette perspective que les A. repondent aux critiques de leur article precedent point par point. Si les decideurs politiques ont besoin de donnees factuelles pour evaluer les effets de la protection sociale sur la structure familiale, d'autres etudes similaires sont necessaires pour confirmer les resultats obtenus
Hydrogen peroxide or heat shock induces resistance to hydrogen peroxide in Chinese hamster fibroblasts

Survival after H2O2 exposure or heat shock of asynchronous Chinese hamster ovary cells (HA-1) was assayed following pretreatment with mildly toxic doses of either H2O2 or hyperthermia. H2O2 cytotoxicity at 37 degrees C, expressed as a function of mM H2O2 was found to be dependent on cell density at the time of treatment. The density dependence reflected the ability of cells to reduce the effectiveness of H2O2 as a cytotoxic agent. When the survival data were plotted as a function of mumoles H2O2/cell at the beginning of the treatment, survival was independent of cell density. Cells pretreated with 0.1 mM (3-5 mumoles/cell X 10(-7)) H2O2 for 1 hr at 37 degrees C (30-50% survival) became resistant to a subsequent H2O2 treatment 16-36 hr after pretreatment [dose modifying factor (DMF) at 1% isosurvival = 4-6]. Their resistance to 43 degrees C heating, however, was only slightly increased over controls 16-36 hr following pretreatment (DMF at 1% isosurvival = 1.2). During this same interval, the synthesis of protein migrating in the 70 kD region of a one-dimensional SDS-polyacrylamide gel was enhanced twofold in the H2O2-pretreated cells. When the cells were heated for 15 min at 45 degrees C (40-60% survival), the survivors became extremely resistant to 43 degrees C heating and somewhat resistant to H2O2 (DMF at 1% isosurvival = 2). The heat-induced resistance to heat developed much more rapidly (reached a maximum between 6 and 13 hr) following pretreatment than the heat-induced resistance to H2O2 (16-36 hr). The enhanced synthesis of 70 kD protein after heat shock was greater in magnitude and occurred more rapidly following preheating than following H2O2 pretreatment. The cells that became resistant to H2O2 by either pretreatment (H2O2 or heat shock) also increased their ability to reduce the H2O2 cytotoxicity from the treatment medium beyond that of the untreated HA-1 cells. This may be one of the mechanisms involved in the increased resistance and a common adaptive mechanism induced by both stresses. These data indicate that mammalian cells develop resistance to H2O2 following mild pretreatment with H2O2 or heat shock. The cross-resistance induced by H2O2 and heat shock reinforce the hypothesis that some overlap in mechanisms exist between the cellular responses to these two stresses. However, the failure of H2O2 pretreatment to induce much resistance to heat indicates that there are also differences in the actions of the two agents.
Regional Cement Stratigraphy and Diagenetic History of Waulsortian Limestones, Eastern Midlands, Republic of Ireland: ABSTRACT

The Lower Carboniferous Waulsortian Limestones, eastern Midlands, Republic of Ireland, contain 7 distinct luminescent zones in clear calcite cements that overlie inclusion-rich, marine cements in cavities and also fill fractures and aragonite-skeleton molds. The luminescent sequence, which records precipitation from increasingly reducing pore waters, is regionally and stratigraphically consistent over an interval more than 1,200 ft thick. Zone 1 cements are nonluminescent; zone 2 cements are brightly luminescent; and zones 3-7 cements are ferroan with a moderate to dull luminescence. Zone 1 cements (mean -2.6% ^dgr18O/+3.3% ^dgr13C PDB) are slightly depleted in oxygen relative to radiaxial-fibrous cements (mean -1.8%^dgr18O/+3.5%^dgr1 C PDB) which have a composition that reflects Lower Carboniferous seawater. Zone 4 cements (mean -4.1%^dgr18O/+3.1%^dgr13C PDB) are depleted in oxygen relative to zone 1, whereas zone 5 cements (mean -11.8%^dgr18O/+1.1^dgr13C PDB) are extremely depleted in oxygen and somewhat in carbon. Locally intense dolomitization includes 2 regionally extensive generations of ferroan saddle dolomite. Petrographic relationships demonstrate these dolomite generations were replaced by zone 5 cement. Sulfide mineralization, principally pyrite and sphalerite, occurred after the precipitation of zone 5 cement. Much of diagenesis occurred during a brief period in the Lower Carboniferous. Zones 1-6 and saddle dolomites are contained in Chadian (upper Osagean), shallow-marine facies overlying the Waulsortian. Fractures filled by zone 5 cements are truncated at the margins of Waulsortian clasts contained in a conglomerate overlying an early Arundian (early Meramecian) unconformity. In the proposed model, marine pore waters were displaced by oxidizing meteoric waters, which became reducing with shallow burial. Warm brines were introduced during later stages of diagenesis and were involved in late calcite cementation (zone 4?-7), saddle dolomitization and sulfide mineralization. End_of_Article - Last_Page 273------------
Does It Matter that Nothing We Do Will Matter in a Million Years

On a pu deduire que nos vies sont absurdes en supposant que rien de ce que nous faisons n'aura d'importance dans un million d'annees. Dans cet article, j'evalue cet argument en faveur de l'absurdite. Apres avoir explique comment deux refutations formulees dans la litterature sur le sujet sont impuissants a contrecarrer la meilleure version de cet argument, je formule plusieurs considerations qui concourront a reduire de beaucoup la force de cet argument. Je conclus en suggerant que ces considerations non seulement refutent l'argument en faveur de l'absurdite, mais aussi justifient l'agir moral.
Discrete Scale Invariance of Human Large EEG Voltage Deflections is More Prominent in Waking than Sleep Stage 2

Electroencephalography (EEG) is typically viewed through the lens of spectral analysis. Recently, multiple lines of evidence have demonstrated that the underlying neuronal dynamics are characterized by scale-free avalanches. These results suggest that techniques from statistical physics may be used to analyze EEG signals. We utilized a publicly available database of fourteen subjects with waking and sleep stage 2 EEG tracings per subject, and observe that power-law dynamics of critical-state neuronal avalanches are not sufficient to fully describe essential features of EEG signals. We hypothesized that this could reflect the phenomenon of discrete scale invariance (DSI) in EEG large voltage deflections (LVDs) as being more prominent in waking consciousness. We isolated LVDs, and analyzed logarithmically transformed LVD size probability density functions (PDF) to assess for DSI. We find evidence of increased DSI in waking, as opposed to sleep stage 2 consciousness. We also show that the signatures of DSI are specific for EEG LVDs, and not a general feature of fractal simulations with similar statistical properties to EEG. Removing only LVDs from waking EEG produces a reduction in power in the alpha and beta frequency bands. These findings may represent a new insight into the understanding of the cortical dynamics underlying consciousness.
Localization and contractile properties of intrinsic longitudinal motor units of the rat tongue.

Tongue dysfunction is a hallmark of many human clinical disorders, yet we lack even a rudimentary understanding of tongue neural control. Here, the location and contractile properties of intrinsic ...
Central vs. peripheral neuraxial sympathetic control of porcine ventricular electrophysiology

Sympathoexcitation is associated with ventricular arrhythmogenesis. The aim of this study was to determine the role of thoracic dorsal root afferent neural inputs to the spinal cord in modulating v...
Examining Incentive-Based State Tax Legislation in the Film Industry

Competition among states to attract the multi-billion dollar film industry has intensified. Almost all states have been aggressively pursuing the film industry with incentive-based tax legislation to draw film production within state borders. Firmly rooted in economic policy and fueled by a need to stimulate economic growth, create jobs and enhance revenues, state tax incentives such as income tax credits, cash rebates, exclusions, and sales tax relief are being utilized. This paper examines the growth of film industry tax incentives and questions whether the economic benefits derived by these incentives exceed the states’ investment in subsidizing film production projects.
Jet arrays in supersonic crossflow — An experimental study

Jet injection into a supersonic crossflow is a classical fluid dynamics problem with many engineering applications. Several experimental and numerical studies have been taken up to analyze the interaction of a single jet with the incoming crossflow. However, there is a dearth of the literature on the interaction of multiple jets with one another and with the crossflow. Jets in a supersonic crossflow are known to produce a three-dimensional bow-shock structure due to the blockage of the flow. Multiple jets in a streamwise linear array interact with both one another and the incoming supersonic flow. In this paper, a parametric study is carried out to analyze the effect of microjet (sub-mm diameter) injection in a Mach 1.5 supersonic crossflow using flow visualization and velocity field measurements. The variation of the microjet orifice diameter and spacing within an array is used to study the three-dimensional nature of the flow field around the jets. The strength of the microjet-generated shock, scaling of the shock wave angle with the momentum coefficient, averaged streamwise, spanwise, and cross-stream velocity fields, and microjet array trajectories are detailed in the paper. It was found that shock angles of the microjet-generated shocks scale with the momentum coefficient for the three actuator configurations tested. As the microjets issue in the crossflow, a pair of longitudinal counter-rotating vortices (CVPs) are formed. The vortex pairs remain coherent for arrays with larger spanwise spacing between the micro-orifices and exhibit significant three-dimensionality similar to that of a single jet in crossflow. As the spacing between the jets is reduced, the CVPs merge resulting in a more two-dimensional flow field. The bow shock resulting from microjet injection also becomes nearly two-dimensional as the spacing between the micro-orifices is reduced. Trajectory estimations yield that microjets in an array have similar penetration as single jets. A notional schematic depicting the interaction of the microjet arrays with the supersonic crossflow is presented summarizing the principal features of the interaction.
Finite element analysis simulations of thermomechanical head-disk interface contact in thermal flying-height control slider design

Abstract In order to achieve higher recording density in hard disk drive (HDD), thermal flying-height control (TFC) slider design has been used to reduce the physical spacing between the read/write elements in the slider and the rotating disk surface. During the read/write operation in hard disk drives, the intermittent contact at the head-disk interface (HDI) directly affects its performance and reliability. In this study, the thermomechanical micro-contact between a TFC slider and a disk defect was systematically investigated through finite element analysis (FEA) modeling and simulations. The thermal actuation technology in a TFC slider was incorporated into the FEA model to enable the thermal protrusion of read/write sensors outward the air bearing surface (ABS). In order to obtain the scientific relationship between the thermal protrusion and the resulting HDI contact behavior, parametric FEA simulations were carried out based on the 23-factorial design of experiment (DOE), where the surface temperature rise and the residual deformation on the TFC slider surface were used as the output parameters. From the statistical data analysis, it could be found that the larger thermal protrusion resulted in higher temperature rise and more residual deformation.
The Variation of CMP Pad Asperity Friction as a Function of Speed and Normal Load

CMP (chemical mechanical polishing) is a vital IC (integrated circuit) manufacturing process. CMP is performed by rubbing the IC surface with a roughened polyurethane polishing pad in the presence of a chemically active, abrasive containing slurry. Friction is a natural consequence of CMP, and this friction can damage next generation, mechanically weak, porous dielectric materials on the IC surface. Earlier research has been done to characterize this friction, but the data is confounded with hydrodynamic effects. More recent experiments have measured the coefficient of friction with varying slurry characteristics but at low speeds and constant normal load which could decouple hydrodynamic effects. This new research measures the coefficient of friction with varying low speeds and varying loads. The coefficient of friction had a very small, statistically significant decrease with increasing normal load. This effect was attributed to elastic Hertzian pad asperity deflection with friction force being proportional to the asperity contact area. At lower normal loads, there was not statistically significant change in the coefficient as a function of speed. At the highest normal load, there was a very small increase in the coefficient of friction as the speed increased. It is proposed that counter-intuitive trend was a result of the following mechanism. Time dependent surface hydration film reduces the coefficient of friction. This surface film is damaged by rubbing, and the lower speed permitted more time for the film to regenerate.© 2008 ASME
A Provably Efficient Algorithm for the k-Mismatch Average Common Substring Problem

Abstract Alignment-free sequence comparison methods are attracting persistent interest, driven by data-intensive applications in genome-wide molecular taxonomy and phylogenetic reconstruction. Among all the methods based on substring composition, the average common substring (ACS) measure admits a straightforward linear time sequence comparison algorithm, while yielding impressive results in multiple applications. An important direction of this research is to extend the approach to permit a bounded edit/hamming distance between substrings, so as to reflect more accurately the evolutionary process. To date, however, algorithms designed to incorporate k ≥ 1 mismatches have O(n2) worst-case time complexity, where n is the total length of the input sequences. On the other hand, accounting for mismatches has shown to lead to much improved classification, while heuristics can improve practical performance. In this article, we close the gap by presenting the first provably efficient algorithm for the k-mismatch ...
OPTIMAL SENSOR PLACEMENT BASED ON SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS OF STRUCTURAL DAMAGE

A new optimal sensor placement method,called sensitivity analysis method(SAM),is presented in this paper.It analyzes the sensitivity according to the changes of structural mode shape due to stiffness changes(damages are reflected through stiffness reduction).Two traditional methods of optimal sensor placement,the effective independence method(EFI) based on maximizing the data information and the kinetic energy method(KEM) based on maximizing the kinetic energy,are discussed briefly.And we compare the new method(SAM) with the two traditional methods under two criteria:mean square error(MSE) and modal assurance criterion(MAC).The numerical simulation results show that the SAM is the best of the three.
Chemical neuroanatomy of the parapyramidal region of the ventral medulla in the rat.

Publisher Summary The parapyramidal region of the ventral medulla is a neurochemically complex group of cells that projects to cardiovascular-related central nervous system (CNS) nuclei and that affects sympathetic activity to the cardiovascular system. Anatomical, neurochemical, and functional evidence showed that several regions of the ventral medulla are involved in cardiovascular control. One of these regions, an area that is referred to as the parapyramidal region, consists of neurons located close to the ventral surface and lateral to the pyramidal tract. The neurons of the parapyramidal region of the ventral medulla project to the intermediolateral cell column (IML) of the thoracic spinal cord and to the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS). The activation of the parapyramidal region increases mean arterial blood pressure, an effect that is independent of the more laterally located C1 (rostra1ventrolateral medulla) region. Classical studies by several investigators showed that the exposure of the ventral surface of the medulla to various excitatory and inhibitory drugs, alterations in pC0 2 and electrical stimulation or focal cooling results in marked changes in cardiovascular function.
Cholesterol screening for blood donors: characteristics of screenees and determinants of follow-up behavior.

This study assesses the ability of a blood donor cholesterol screening program to enhance awareness of cholesterol levels among screenees and to promote lifestyle changes and physician follow-up. Beginning in November 1990, all blood donors at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center were offered free cholesterol screening. Each screenee also received educational materials and brief counseling from a nurse. Two weeks after donation, screenees received a postcard with their cholesterol level and information regarding recommended follow-up. Baseline information for all screenees was obtained at the time of donation through a self-administered questionnaire. Follow-up data were collected through structured telephone interviews. During the program’s first four months, 1,039 donors (33%) requested cholesterol screening. At baseline, 82.6% of screenees had at least one risk factor for coronary heart disease, and 37% had two or more risk factors. More than one third were unaware of their cholesterol levels. At follow-up, more than 95% indicated that they were aware of their cholesterol levels, and 90% of those with high cholesterol levels had followed up with their physician or made dietary or other lifestyle changes. We conclude that a cholesterol screening and minimal intervention program for blood donors enhances awareness of cholesterol levels and encourages dietary or other lifestyle changes.
Cognitive Functioning in Treatment-Seeking Gulf War Veterans: Pyridostigmine Bromide Use and PTSD

Gulf War (GW) deployed veterans have reported health symptoms since returning from the war that suggest dysfunction of the central nervous system (CNS). These symptoms include memory and concentration difficulties, fatigue, and headaches. Leading hypotheses for the etiology of these cognitive complaints include psychological factors and/or exposures to chemicals with neurotoxic properties. In this study, cognitive functioning was compared in treatment-seeking GW-deployed veterans and a treatment-seeking non–GW-deployed veteran control group. Results indicated that GW-deployed veterans performed significantly worse than the comparison group on tests of attention, visuospatial skills, visual memory, and mood. GW-deployed veterans who reported taking pyridostigmine bromide (PB) performed worse than GW-deployed veterans without PB use on executive system tasks. Treatment-seeking GW-deployed veterans with diagnoses of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) did not differ on cognitive test measures compared with GW-deployed veterans without PTSD. No interaction effect of PTSD and PB use was found.
A combinatorial dual-immunoassay predicts reactivation risk for patients with previously incomplete treatment for latent tuberculosis infection

Rationale: Diagnosis of latent TB infection (LTBI) remains challenging. The combination of QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT) and flow cytometric (FC) detection of T-cell co-expression of CD25 (IL-2α receptor) and CD134 (OX40) after ex vivo TB-antigen specific challenge can visualize distinct immune subsets between unexposed subjects, untreated LTBI patients, and treated LTBI patients, which correlates with distinct TB reactivation risk predictions. We hypothesize that this strategy would identify patients with prior incomplete LTBI therapy and predict risk of TB reactivation. Objective: To apply this combinatorial dual-immunoassay analysis to subjects who were excluded from the original study, and to compare predicted cumulative risk of TB reactivation. Methods: QFT was combined with a FC assay that detects T-cell CD25 + CD134 + co-expression after TB-antigen stimulations in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Analysis was based on previously determined technical cut-offs, and 95% bivariate normal density ellipse prediction. A modified “Online TST/IGRA interpreter” predictive formula was used. Results: We studied 74 subjects. Three out of 8 patients with history of previously incomplete LTBI therapy were identified with a combination of QFT(+) and FC assay(+) for CD4 + T-cells. Subjects with this immunoreactivity profile had the highest risk of TB reactivation (3.62± 2.60%). Conclusion: These findings further support that the strategy of combinatorial multi-immunoassay analysis is capable of generating subset profiles that can distinguish infection and treatment status, and probably confer distinctive risk of TB reactivation potential.
Pair mobility functions for rigid spheres in concentrated colloidal dispersions: Stresslet and straining motion couplings.

Accurate modeling of particle interactions arising from hydrodynamic, entropic, and other microscopic forces is essential to understanding and predicting particle motion and suspension behavior in complex and biological fluids. The long-range nature of hydrodynamic interactions can be particularly challenging to capture. In dilute dispersions, pair-level interactions are sufficient and can be modeled in detail by analytical relations derived by Jeffrey and Onishi [J. Fluid Mech. 139, 261–290 (1984)] and Jeffrey [Phys. Fluids A 4, 16–29 (1992)]. In more concentrated dispersions, analytical modeling of many-body hydrodynamic interactions quickly becomes intractable, leading to the development of simplified models. These include mean-field approaches that smear out particle-scale structure and essentially assume that long-range hydrodynamic interactions are screened by crowding, as particle mobility decays at high concentrations. Toward the development of an accurate and simplified model for the hydrodynamic...
Looking for laws in all the wrong spaces: Kant on laws, the understanding, and space

Prolegomena §38 is intended to elucidate the claim that the understanding legislates a priori laws to nature (the ‘Legislation Thesis’). Kant cites various laws of geometry as examples and discusses a derivation of the inverse-square law from such laws. I address 4 key interpretive questions about this cryptic text that have not yet received satisfying answers: (a) How exactly are Kant's examples of laws supposed to elucidate the Legislation Thesis? (b) What is Kant's view of the epistemic status of the inverse-square law and, relatedly, of the legitimacy of the geometric derivation of that law? (c) Whose account of laws, the understanding, and space is Kant critiquing in the passage? (d) What positive account of the relationship between laws, the understanding, and space is Kant offering in the passage? My answer to (d) depends crucially on my answers to (a)–(c). As I interpret Kant, he holds that a wide range of a priori laws—including geometric laws, the inverse-square law, and the universal laws discussed in the Analytic of Principles—are ‘grounded’ (a technical term defined in the paper) in categorial syntheses rather than the intrinsic nature of the space given to us in pure intuition.
What are the six degree-of-freedom errors of a robotically-machined femoral cavity in total hip arthroplasty and are they clinically important? An in-vitro study.

Abstract Errors during a robot-assisted THA may result in a femoral cavity with position and orientation different than planned. This can lead to a femoral component placement that inaccurately sets a patient's femoral anteversion (FA), femoral offset (FO), and vertical offset (VO). The objectives of this study were to determine the position and orientation errors of robotically-machined femoral cavities in six degrees of freedom and to determine how position and orientation errors translate into errors in the setting of FA, FO, and VO. After creating preoperative plans, robot-assisted THAs were performed on twelve cadaveric specimens. The position and orientation of the machined cavities were compared to those of the planned cavities to determine the errors in six degrees of freedom. Placement of femoral components into the machined cavities was simulated, and the differences in FA, FO, and VO between the simulated and planned component placement were computed. While bias (i.e. mean error) occurred for three of six degrees of freedom in femoral cavities machined by a robotic system, the root mean squared errors (RMSEs) when the placement of femoral component was simulated were limited to 1.9° for FA, 1.0 mm for FO, and 2.1 mm for VO and were clinically unimportant.
Carbon nanotube transistor technology for extending logic roadmap

Both theoretical and recent experimental results indicate that CNTs could potentially offer several times better performance over advanced silicon technologies [1], due to their high mobility, small intrinsic capacitance, and atomically smooth ultra-thin body. Great progress in CNT nanoelectronics has been made during the past decade and currently the maior research interest has shifted from demonstrating simple proof-of-concept device operations toward practical matters of the manufacturability in a large-scale.
Performing gesture: The pragmatic functions of pantomimic and lexical repertoires in a natural sign narrative

This article focuses on a signed performance by a deaf Nepali man who communicates in natural sign, which is similar to home sign but with greater cross-signer conventionality. The signer skillfully employs pantomimic (“gestural”) and lexical (“linguistic”) repertoires for distinct pragmatic purposes. In the narrative frame, he uses pantomime to vividly enact his morning routine; in the metanarrative frame, he utilizes lexical signs to directly address the audience. By examining the two repertoires’ formal characteristics and their relationship to different frames, this analysis showcases the signer’s communicative competency, demonstrates the relevance of pragmatics and genre to studies of all signed communicative modes, and challenges the idea that gesture is what language leaves behind.
Macular Xanthophylls Are Related to Intellectual Ability among Adults with Overweight and Obesity.

Excess adiposity or obesity has been inversely related to cognitive function and macular xanthophyll status. However, whether the neuroprotective effects of macular xanthophylls on cognitive function are independent of excess adiposity is unclear. We investigated the relationship between macular xanthophylls and intellectual ability among adults (N = 114) between 25 and 45 years with overweight and obesity (≥25 kg/m2). Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and heterochromatic flicker photometry were used to assess whole body adiposity (%Fat) and macular pigment optical density (MPOD), respectively. Dietary xanthophylls (lutein and zeaxanthin) were assessed using 7-day diet records. The Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test-2 (KBIT-2) was used to assess general intelligence (IQ) as well as fluid and crystallized intelligence. Bivariate correlations revealed that MPOD was inversely related to %Fat and positively associated with IQ and fluid intelligence. Although %Fat was inversely correlated to IQ and fluid intelligence, this relationship did not persist following adjustment for sex and MPOD. Further, MPOD was an independent predictor of IQ and fluid intelligence. However, no significant relationships were observed between MPOD and crystalized intelligence. These results suggest that macular xanthophylls are selectively related to fluid intelligence, regardless of degree of adiposity among adults with overweight and obesity.
Privacy-Preserving Watermarking Transformation Technique in a Distributed Environment

Watermarking relational data is an important topic in the field of copyright protection, given the increasing prevalence of piracy and illegal duplication of databases. While there exist solutions for watermarking relational data, the problems that arise due to multiple ownerships have not been acknowledged. When data in consideration are independently owned, it may not be possible to integrate the data together and then embed a watermark because of privacy and data confidentiality issues. This paper focuses on developing a privacy-preserving watermarking transformation technique to counter the aforementioned problems. The proposed technique works with most existing watermarking methods and necessitates the data owners to collaboratively perform the watermarking process. The transformation technique is applicable for both numerical and categorical data. The computation overhead of the proposed technique is evaluated through comprehensive experiments with various factors that affect the underlying watermarking methods.
Risk factors for recurrent anaphylaxis-related emergency department visits in the United States.

Abstract Background Anaphylaxis is a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction with a strong risk of recurrence. Objective To assess risk factors associated with recurrent anaphylaxis-related emergency department (ED) visits within 1 year of an ED visit for anaphylaxis in a large observational cohort study. Methods We used an administrative claims database to identify patients seen from 2008 through 2012 in the ED for anaphylaxis based on an International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis code algorithm. Patients with at least 2 years of continuous enrollment in a health plan were included. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to determine associations with recurrence of anaphylaxis within 1 year. Results During the 5-year study period, 7,367 patients (median age, 42 years; Conclusion In this contemporary cohort study, history of asthma, food trigger, and greater index anaphylaxis severity, as measured by intensive care unit admission, were associated with a higher likelihood of a recurrent anaphylaxis-related ED visit within 1 year.
An Argument for Unbelief : A Discussion about Terminology

The rupture with traditional religion and the loss of belief in God as a widespread religious position represents a sea change in Western thought. However, there were very few self-declared atheists, secularists, and humanists in Western history prior to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and even during the Modern period, there are not many. This is especially true in my own research of nineteenth and early twentieth-century France. Those who took the name of atheist such as Baron d’Holbach or Jacques-Andre Naigeon were exceptional militants. The quest to find other such atheists buried in the pages and hidden messages of key books is a limited endeavor. Atheism as a concept does not originate from any single creed or doctrine and is itself open to permutation. Looking for a clear and distinct form of atheism is looking for a conceptual phenomenon constructed by the researcher. The language and words we use control and direct how we understand the past. The term “atheist” imposes a rigidity to a fluid and shifting phenomenon. Instead, we should open up our research to the emergence of modern “unbelief,” as defined by Gordon Stein and Tom Flynn in The Encyclopedia of Unbelief. This paper will argue for “unbelief” as the proper analytical category as a field of future research that will allow for a much larger, more inclusive, variegated set of parameters to understand the rupture with traditional forms of religion or spiritual practices. The important change in intellectual history was not the emergence of a particular atheism that promoted scientism and which held to its positions dogmatically but the acute doubt of past intellectual and religious traditions that led to a spectrum of new ideologies and religious positions.
Parallel streaming between heterogeneous HPC resources for real-time analysis

Abstract Performing analysis or generating visualizations concurrently with high performance simulations can yield great benefits compared to post-processing data. Writing and reading large volumes of data can be reduced or eliminated, thereby producing an I/O cost savings. One such method for concurrent simulation and analysis is in transit – streaming data from the resource running the simulation to a separate resource running the analysis. In transit analysis can be beneficial since computational resources may not have certain resources needed for visualization and analysis (e.g. GPUs) and to reduce the impact of performing analysis tasks to the run time of the simulation. When sending and receiving data in transit, data redistribution mechanisms are needed in order to support heterogeneous data layouts that may be required by the simulation and analysis applications. The work described in this paper compares two mechanisms for on-the-fly data redistribution when streaming data in parallel between two distributed memory applications. Our results show that it is often more advantageous to stream data in the same layout as the sender and redistribute data amongst processes on the receiving end than to stream data in the final layout needed by the receiver.
Distributed Feedback Lasers

Good quality long distance optical transmission over fiber needs lasers which emit at a single wavelength. This is almost universally realized by putting a wavelength-dependent reflector into the laser cavity, in a distributed feedback laser. In this chapter, the physics, properties, fabrication, and yields of distributed feedback lasers are described.
Kierkegaard and Religion: Personality, Character, and Virtue

No thinker has reflected more deeply on the role of religion in human life than Soren Kierkegaard, who produced in little more than a decade an astonishing number of works devoted to an analysis of the kind of personality, character, and spiritual qualities needed to become an authentic human being or self. Understanding religion to consist essentially as an inward, passionate, personal relation to God or the eternal, Kierkegaard depicts the art of living religiously as a self through the creation of a kaleidoscope of poetic figures who exemplify the constituents of selfhood or the lack thereof. The present study seeks to bring Kierkegaard into conversation with contemporary empirical psychology and virtue ethics, highlighting spiritual dimensions of human existence in his thought that are inaccessible to empirical measurement, as well as challenging on religious grounds the claim that he is a virtue ethicist in continuity with the classical and medieval virtue tradition.
Ready to be distracted: Further evidence that the alerting-congruency interaction requires stimulus-response directional associations

ABSTRACTPrevious research has found a greater congruency effect when participants are alerted in the Attention Network Test relative to situations where participants are not alerted. However, the i...
ER-associated degradation in health and disease - from substrate to organism

The recent literature has revolutionized our view on the vital importance of endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated degradation (ERAD) in health and disease. Suppressor/enhancer of Lin-12-like (Sel1L)-HMG-coA reductase degradation protein 1 (Hrd1)-mediated ERAD has emerged as a crucial determinant of normal physiology and as a sentinel against disease pathogenesis in the body, in a largely substrate- and cell type-specific manner. In this Review, we highlight three features of ERAD, constitutive versus inducible ERAD, quality versus quantity control of ERAD and ERAD-mediated regulation of nuclear gene transcription, through which ERAD exerts a profound impact on a number of physiological processes.