cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Combination Therapy with Zoledronic Acid and Parathyroid Hormone Improves Bone Architecture and Strength following a Clinically-Relevant Dose of Stereotactic Radiation Therapy for the Local Treatment of Canine Osteosarcoma in Athymic Rats

Clinical studies using definitive-intent stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT) for the local treatment of canine osteosarcoma (OSA) have shown canine patients achieving similar median survival times as the current standard of care (amputation and adjuvant chemotherapy). Despite this, there remains an unacceptable high risk of pathologic fracture following radiation treatment. Zoledronic acid (ZA) and parathyroid hormone (PTH) are therapeutic candidates for decreasing this fracture risk post-irradiation. Due to differing mechanisms, we hypothesized that the combined treatment with ZA and PTH would significantly improve bone healing more than ZA or PTH treatment alone. Using an orthotopic model of canine osteosarcoma in athymic rats, we evaluated bone healing following clinically-relevant doses of radiation therapy (12 Gy x 3 fractions, 36 Gy total). Groups included 36 Gy SRT only, 36 Gy SRT plus ZA, 36 Gy SRT plus ZA and PTH, 36 Gy SRT plus PTH, and 36 Gy SRT plus localized PTH treatment. Our study showed significant increases in bone volume and increased polar moments of inertia (in the distal femoral metaphysis) 8 weeks after radiation in the combined (ZA/PTH) treatment group as compared to radiation treatment alone. Histomorphometric analysis revealed evidence of active mineralization at the study endpoint as well as successful tumor-cell kill across all treatment groups. This work provides further evidence for the expanding potential indications for ZA and PTH therapy, including post-irradiated bone disease due to osteosarcoma.
Computational Methods for Optimization

In this chapter, some of the computational problems that arise in real applications are discussed. A few of the most popular methods are also explained with real life examples. This chapter will help in learning the practical application of some important computational techniques such as one variable optimization, multivariable optimization, linear programming, discrete optimization, integer programming, etc. A practical introduction to integer programming is given using the branch-and-bound method and the connection between linear and integer programming problems is also explored. Nonlinear dynamical systems in both discrete and continuous time are covered for the development of new computational methods for special types of multivariable optimization problems.
Talking Like a Tax Collector or a Social Guardian? The Use of Administrative Discourse by U.S. State Lottery Agencies

Aside from higher education, lotteries are probably the most important state product provided directly to the public. In the United States, revenues from lotteries finance directly one or a few socially desirable causes. Lotteries are depicted as a well-focused quest for increased revenues that also takes into account a liberal respect for consumer sovereignty. State lottery agencies have two goals: a main taxing goal and secondary societal welfare goals such as protecting compulsive gamblers and funding charitable or welfare programs. As such, lotteries are often advertised as a way to earn proceeds for some social cause (often Education). Analyzing the administrative discourse provides a window inside the balancing act of the two missions. The tax-collector/social guardian positions taken by the different U.S. state lottery agencies will be scrutinized. Efforts to understand the determinants of the ideological positions revealed by administrative discourse will be presented. In this chapter, administrative discourse will be used to estimate how state lottery agencies balance their dual missions. The results will shed light on the nature of state government and its bureaucratic apparatus.
Does serum procalcitonin aid in the diagnosis of bloodstream infection regardless of whether patients exhibit the systemic inflammatory response syndrome

Physicians frequently rely on the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) criteria to detect bloodstream infections (BSIs). We evaluated the diagnostic performance of procalcitonin (PCT) in detecting BSI in patients with and without SIRS. We tested the association between BSI, serum PCT levels, contemporaneous SIRS scores and serum lactate using logistic regression in a dataset of 4279 patients. The diagnostic performance of these variables was assessed. In multivariate regression analysis, only log(PCT) was independently associated with BSI (p < 0.05). The mean area under the curve (AUC) of PCT in detecting BSI (0.683; 95% CI 0.65–0.71) was significantly higher than serum lactate (0.615; 95% CI 0.58–0.64) and the SIRS score (0.562; 95% CI 0.53–0.58). The AUC of PCT did not differ significantly by SIRS status. PCT of less than 0.1 ng/mL had a negative predictive value (NPV) of 97.4 and NPV of 96.2% for BSI in the SIRS-negative and SIRS-positive patients, respectively. A PCT of greater than 10 ng/mL had a LR of 6.22 for BSI in SIRS-negative patients. The probability of BSI increased exponentially with rising PCT levels regardless of SIRS status. The performance of PCT for the diagnosis of BSI was not affected by SIRS status. Only PCT was independently associated with BSI, while the SIRS criterion and serum lactate were not. A low PCT value may be used to identify patients at a low risk for having BSI in both settings. An elevated PCT value even in a SIRS negative patient should prompt a careful search for BSI.
A Fast Hybrid Approach for Stream Compaction on GPUs

Stream compaction, also known as stream filtering or selection, produces a smaller output array which contains the indices of the only selected elements from the input array for further processing. With the tremendous amount of data elements to be filtered, the performance of selection is of great concern. Recently, modern Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) have been increasingly used to accelerate the execution of massively large, data parallel applications. In this paper, we proposed a hybrid implementation method for stream compaction on GPUs by using both parallel prefix-sum and atomics approaches. We compared its performance with different parallel selection algorithms on the current generation of NVIDIA GPUs. The experimental results show that our method can be more than 120 times faster than the sequential selection on CPU. Furthermore, the hybrid method performs the best among all existing selection algorithms on GPU and can be 5.6 times faster than Thrust, an open-source parallel algorithms library.
Integrated Multi-Method Probes as a Research Method in Cognitive Systems Engineering:

The continued development of Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) as both an academic discipline and as a field of practice requires constant and continuous reconsideration of the types of technique...
On the motivations for Merleau-Ponty’s ontological research

ABSTRACTThis paper attempts to clarify Merleau-Ponty’s later work by tracing a hitherto overlooked set of concerns that were of key consequence for the formulation of his ontological research. I argue that his ontology can be understood as a response to a set of problems originating in reflections on the intersubjective use of language in dialogue, undertaken in the early 1950s. His study of dialogue disclosed a structure of meaning-formation and pointed towards a theory of truth (both recurring ontological topics) that post-Phenomenology premises could not account for. A study of dialogue shows that speakers’ positions are interchangeable, that speaking subjects are active and passive in varying degrees, and that the intentional roles of subjects and objects are liable to shift or ‘transgress’ themselves. These observations anticipate the concepts of ‘reversibility’ and ‘narcissism’, his later view of activity and passivity, and his later view of intentionality, and sharpened the need to adopt an intersu...
Erratum: Targeting tumor gene by shRNA-expressing Salmonella-mediated RNAi

Correction to: Gene Therapy (2011) 18, 95–105; doi:10.1038/gt.2010.112; and Gene Therapy (2011) 18, 106; doi:10.1038/gt.2010.154 In a Corrigendum to the above article (both of which were published in volume 18 issue 1, 2011), a new error was introduced in the corresponding author details. That errorhas now been corrected in the details above.
Tenets for Social Accessibility: Towards Humanizing Disabled People in Design

Despite years of addressing disability in technology design and advocating user-centered design practices, popular mainstream technologies remain largely inaccessible for people with disabilities. We conducted a design course study investigating how student designers regard disability and explored how designing for multiple disabled and nondisabled users encouraged students to think about accessibility in the design process. Across two university course offerings one year apart, we examined how students focused on a design project while learning user-centered design concepts and techniques, working with people with and without disabilities throughout the project. In addition, we compared how students incorporated disability-focused design approaches within a classroom setting. We found that designing for multiple stakeholders with and without disabilities expanded student understanding of accessible design by demonstrating that people with the same disability could have diverse needs and by aligning such needs with those of nondisabled users. We also found that using approaches targeted toward designing for people with disabilities complemented interactions with users, particularly with regard to managing varying abilities across users, or incorporating social aspects. Our findings contribute to an understanding about how we might incur change in design practice by working with multiple stakeholders with and without disabilities whenever possible. We refined Design for Social Accessibility by incorporating these findings into three tenets emphasizing: (1) design for disability ought to incorporate users with and without disabilities, (2) design should address functional and social factors simultaneously, and (3) design should include tools to spur consideration of social factors in accessible design.
The LITA Leadership Guide: The Librarian as Entrepreneur, Leader, and Technologist. (2017): by Carl Antonucci and Sharon Clapp, eds. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 137 pp., $37.00 (paperback), ISBN: 9781442279025.

The Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) has produced a guidebook to change in libraries, and the management of changes in technology, to the extent that disruptive technologies ca...
Tightness of the Sequence of Empiric C.D.F. Processes Defined from Regression Fractiles

The sequence of “regression fractile” estimates of the error distribution in linear models (developed by Bassett and Koenker) is shown to be tight in appropriate metric spaces of distribution functions. This result yields weak convergence to the transformed “Brownian Bridge” process in these spaces, and has obvious application to goodness-of-fit tests for the error distribution. It also suggests that using this estimate may be better than using the empirical distribution of residuals when applying “bootstrap” methods.
A Surgeon Led Clinically Focused Anatomy Course Increases Student Selection of General Surgery As a Career

Objective This study aims to identify program-specific critical factors in a student's path to general surgery and how different factors contribute to our high rate of matriculation. Design Semi-structured interviews were conducted focusing on critical factors in student's decision processes to pursue general surgery. Three investigators independently evaluated the transcripts and identified recurring themes based on phenomenological qualitative methods until saturation was achieved. Inter-rater reliability was determined. Setting The study took place at Tulane University School of Medicine, an academic medical center in New Orleans, Louisiana. Participants Current fourth-year students from our medical school, applying into general surgery, were interviewed for the study. Results Twelve of 21 students were interviewed. The most common factor cited was the positive effect of clinically based anatomy and of having surgeons in anatomy (81%). Other factors mentioned included interest before medical school, clerkship experience, and mentor interactions; Kappa was 0.76 or higher for each theme. Conclusions A clinically focused anatomy course led by surgeons at our institution has a significant impact on a general surgery career choice. With the constant evolution of the medical field, understanding what guides students toward a career in general surgery will better assist medical education planners in providing resources that will positively impact future classes.
The Future of Maternal and Child Health.

The purpose of this commentary is to start a national conversation about the future of maternal and child health (MCH). In the coming decades, we will have unprecedented opportunities to improve MCH, but will also face unprecedented threats. This paper examines emerging opportunities and threats to MCH, and discusses strategies for leading the future of MCH. Scientific advancements will continue to drive improvements in MCH, but to unleash its full potential for improving population health future MCH research must become more transdisciplinary, translational, and precise. Technological innovations could dramatically transform our work in MCH while big data could enhance predictive analytics and precision health; our challenge will be to assure equitable access. The greatest gains in MCH will continue to come from improving social conditions, which will require advancing MCH in all policies. Climate change, infectious outbreaks and antimicrobial resistance pose increasing threats to MCH, which can be averted by reducing global warming, implementing global early warning systems, and instituting responsible antimicrobial stewardship. The growing burden of chronic diseases in children and adults need to be addressed from an ecological and life course perspective. The water crisis in Flint shined a spotlight on the growing health threats from America’s decaying infrastructure. We can lead the future of MCH by starting a national conversation, improving MCH research, and preparing future MCH workforce, but the future of MCH will depend on our effectiveness in bringing about social and political change in the coming decades.
Metabolomics and Communication Skills Development in Children; Evidence from the Ages and Stages Questionnaire

We hypothesized metabolomic profiling could be utilized to identify children who scored poorly on the communication component of the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ); which assesses development in childhood, and to provide candidate biomarkers for autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In a population of three-year-old children, 15 plasma metabolites, were significantly (p < 0.05) different between children who were categorized as having communication skills that were "on schedule" (n = 365 (90.6%)) as compared to those "requiring further monitoring/evaluation" (n = 38 (9.4%)) according to multivariable regression models. Five of these metabolites, including three endocannabinoids, were also dysregulated at age one (n = 204 "on schedule", n = 24 "further monitoring/evaluation") in the same children. Stool metabolomic profiling identified 11 significant metabolites. Both the plasma and stool results implicated a role for tryptophan and tyrosine metabolism; in particular, higher levels of N-formylanthranilic acid were associated with an improved communication score in both biosample types. A model based on the significant plasma metabolites demonstrated high sensitivity (88.9%) and specificity (84.5%) for the prediction of autism by age 8. These results provide evidence that ASQ communication score and metabolomic profiling of plasma and/or stool may provide alternative approaches for early diagnosis of ASD, as well as insights into the pathobiology of these conditions.
Quantifying the Impact of Patient-Specific Factors and Disease Severity on Clinical Decision Making in Cuff Tear Arthropathy: A Case-Based Survey.

Rotator cuff tears are a common cause of disability. Some patients with massive and irreparable tears can develop cuff tear arthropathy (CTA), which makes management more challenging. We sought to examine how orthopedists determine treatment for patients with CTA. Specifically, we investigated (1) the effect of patient age, symptoms, activity level, range of motion, and radiographic findings on the decision making of shoulder specialists and (2) the observer reliability of the Seebauer and Hamada grading systems. Five shoulder surgeons were each sent 108 simulated patient cases. Each simulated patient had a different combination of factors, including patient age, symptoms, activity level, range of motion, and radiographs. Responders graded the radiographs and chose a treatment (non-operative, arthroscopic, hemiarthroplasty, or reverse total shoulder arthroplasty). Spearman’s correlations and χ2 tests were used to assess the relationship between factors and treatments. Sub-analysis was performed on surgical cases. An intra-class correlation (ICC) was used to assess observer agreement. The significant Spearman’s correlations were symptoms (0.45), Hamada grade (0.38), patient age (0.34), and Seebauer type (0.29). In sub-analysis of operative cases, the significant correlations were Hamada grade (0.56), patient age (0.51), Seebauer type (0.46), activity level (−0.13). The χ2 analysis was significant for all factors except activity level. The inter- and intraobserver reliabilities were, respectively, Seebauer type (0.59 and 0.63) and Hamada grade (0.58 and 0.65). Interobserver reliability for patient management was 0.44. When evaluating CTA, patient symptoms, radiographic grade, and patient age are the factors most strongly associated with the decision making of shoulder specialists. Additionally, the Seebauer and Hamada classifications had similar reliability and clinical utility. However, there was only fair agreement regarding treatment, which indicates that CTA management remains controversial.
Toward a Multidimensional Conceptual Framework for Understanding “Servingness” in Hispanic-Serving Institutions: A Synthesis of the Research:

Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) are colleges and universities that enroll at least 25% Latinx students. Despite being recognized by the federal government since 1992, HSIs lack a historical mi...
Macao air quality forecast using statistical methods

The levels of air pollution in Macao often exceeded the levels recommended by WHO. In order for the population to take precautionary measures and avoid further health risks under high pollutant exposure, it is important to develop a reliable air quality forecast. Statistical models based on linear multiple regression (MR) and classification and regression trees (CART) analysis were developed successfully, for Macao, to predict the next day concentrations of NO2, PM10, PM2.5, and O3. All the developed models were statistically significantly valid with a 95% confidence level with high coefficients of determination (from 0.78 to 0.93) for all pollutants. The models utilized meteorological and air quality variables based on 5 years of historical data, from 2013 to 2017. Data from 2013 to 2016 were used to develop the statistical models and data from 2017 was used for validation purposes. A wide range of meteorological and air quality variables was identified, and only some were selected as significant independent variables. Meteorological variables were selected from an extensive list of variables, including geopotential height, relative humidity, atmospheric stability, and air temperature at different vertical levels. Air quality variables translate the resilience of the recent past concentrations of each pollutant and usually are maximum and/or the average of latest 24-h levels. The models were applied in forecasting the next day average daily concentrations for NO2 and PM and maximum hourly O3 levels for five air quality monitoring stations. The results are expected to be an operational air quality forecast for Macao.
Recent population genomic insights into the genetic basis of arsenic tolerance in humans: the difficulties of identifying positively selected loci in strongly bottlenecked populations

Recent advances in genomics have enabled researchers to shed light on the evolutionary processes driving human adaptation, by revealing the genetic architectures underlying traits ranging from lactase persistence, to skin pigmentation, to hypoxic response, to arsenic tolerance. Complicating the identification of targets of positive selection in modern human populations is their complex demographic history, characterized by population bottlenecks and expansions, population structure, migration, and admixture. In particular, founder effects and recent strong population size reductions, such as those experienced by the indigenous peoples of the Americas, have severe impacts on genetic variation that can lead to the accumulation of large allele frequency differences between populations due to genetic drift rather than natural selection. While distinguishing the effects of demographic history from selection remains challenging, neglecting neutral processes can lead to the incorrect identification of candidate loci. We here review the recent population genomic insights into the genetic basis of arsenic tolerance in Andean populations, and utilize this example to highlight both the difficulties pertaining to the identification of local adaptations in strongly bottlenecked populations, as well as the importance of controlling for demographic history in selection scans.
Solubility and volume swell of fuel system elastomers with ketone blends of E10 gasoline and blendstock for oxygenate blending (BOB)

The compatibility of key infrastructure elastomers with five ketone molecules was assessed via solubility studies and volume swell measurements. The elastomer materials included two fluorocarbons, ...
Evolution of a high-performance and functionally robust musculoskeletal system in salamanders

The evolution of ballistic tongue projection in plethodontid salamanders—a high-performance and thermally robust musculoskeletal system—is ideal for examining how the components required for extreme performance in animal movement are assembled in evolution. Our comparative data on whole-organism performance measured across a range of temperatures and the musculoskeletal morphology of the tongue apparatus were examined in a phylogenetic framework and combined with data on muscle contractile physiology and neural control. Our analysis reveals that relatively minor evolutionary changes in morphology and neural control have transformed a muscle-powered system with modest performance and high thermal sensitivity into a spring-powered system with extreme performance and functional robustness in the face of evolutionarily conserved muscle contractile physiology. Furthermore, these changes have occurred in parallel in both major clades of this largest family of salamanders. We also find that high-performance tongue projection that exceeds available muscle power and thermal robustness of performance coevolve, both being emergent properties of the same elastic-recoil mechanism. Among the taxa examined, we find muscle-powered and fully fledged elastic systems with enormous performance differences, but no intermediate forms, suggesting that incipient elastic mechanisms do not persist in evolutionary time. A growing body of data from other elastic systems suggests that similar coevolution of traits may be found in other ectothermic animals with high performance, particularly those for which thermoregulation is challenging or ecologically costly.
An evaluation of a renewal-mitigation procedure for inappropriate mealtime behavior

Renewal, the increase in behavior during extinction following context changes, may be particularly concerning during intervention for feeding disorders because context changes are often necessary for intervention generality and maintenance (Podlesnik et al., 2017). In the current study, we tested for renewal and evaluated a renewal-mitigation procedure when we transferred intervention from a therapist to a caregiver, from clinic to the home, and changed the foods the feeder presented. We used an ABA arrangement to evaluate the generality of the renewal effect with 7 participants who engaged in inappropriate mealtime behavior. Context A was functional reinforcement. Context B was function-based extinction during the control and mitigation conditions and our renewal-mitigation procedure in the mitigation condition. The renewal test was function-based extinction in Context A. We observed renewal of inappropriate mealtime behavior in 4 of 7 participants, and our renewal-mitigation procedure was effective for 4 of 4 participants.
Reporting in clinical studies on platelet-rich plasma therapy among all medical specialties: A systematic review of Level I and II studies.

Background The clinical practice of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy has grown significantly in recent years in multiple medical specialties. However, comparisons of PRP studies across medical fields remain challenging because of inconsistent reporting of protocols and characterization of the PRP being administered. The purpose of this systematic review was to determine the quantity of level I/II studies within each medical specialty and compare the level of study reporting across medical fields. Methods The Cochrane Database, PubMed, and EMBASE databases were queried for level I/II clinical studies on PRP injections across all medical specialties. From these studies, data including condition treated, PRP processing and characterization, delivery, control group, and assessed outcomes were collected. Results A total of 132 studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria and involved 28 different conditions across 8 specialties (cardiothoracic surgery, cosmetic, dermatology, musculoskeletal (MSK), neurology, oral maxillofacial surgery, ophthalmology, and plastic surgery). Studies on PRP for MSK injuries made up the majority of the studies (74%), with knee osteoarthritis and tendinopathy being most commonly studied. Of the 132 studies, only 44 (33%) characterized the composition of PRP used, and only 23 (17%) reported the leukocyte component. MSK studies were more likely to use patient-reported outcome measures to assess outcomes, while studies from other specialties were more likely to use clinician- or imaging-based objective outcomes. Overall, 61% of the studies found PRP to be favorable over control treatment, with no difference in favorable reporting between MSK and other medical specialties. Conclusions The majority of level I/II clinical studies investigating PRP therapy across all medical specialties have been conducted for MSK injuries with knee osteoarthritis and tendinopathy being the most commonly studied conditions. Inconsistent reporting of PRP composition exists among all studies in medicine. Rigorous reporting in human clinical studies across all medical specialties is crucial for evaluating the effects of PRP and moving towards disease-specific and individualized treatment.
Multiplex Molecular Stool Testing Rarely Impacts Antimicrobial Treatment Decisions More Than Three Days After Admission.

Background Acute diarrheal illness in the United States is a significant cause of healthcare utilization and hospitalizations. For patients who develop diarrhea while hospitalized, testing for pathogens other than Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) using conventional stool testing is low yield. Newer testing modalities for infectious diarrhea such as the multiplex molecular stool testing provide an improved detection rate and a faster turn-around time compared to conventional stool testing. Methods We retrospectively examined the use of a multiplex molecular stool test at our institution for all hospital encounters over a two-year period to determine which organisms were identified ≤ 3 days and > 3 days after admission. Results A total of 2032 patients underwent multiplex molecular stool testing during the study period, with 1698 (83.6%) performed ≤ 3 days and 334 (16.3%) > 3 days after admission. An enteric non-C. difficile pathogen was identified more frequently when patients were tested ≤ 3 days after admission (350, 20.6%) as compared to > 3 days after admission (38, 11.4%, p 3 days after admission (64, 20.3%) versus another organism (30, 9.0%) (p 3 days after admission, a bacterial pathogen amenable to treatment was only identified in 6% (21) of patients. Conclusion Multiplex molecular stool testing for patients tested > 3 days after admission is a low yield of information that could guide antimicrobial treatment decisions, and C. difficile testing is more useful in this clinical situation.
Characterizing the Impact of COVID-19 on Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Care.

COVID-19 is a public health crisis that has fundamentally altered health care provision. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of COVID-19 on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) care. We reviewed all patient records for those who presented for PrEP care at a PrEP program in Providence, Rhode Island from September 1st, 2019 to May 29th, 2020. The number of PrEP encounters decreased but was not significantly different over time (ps > .05). Patients were still able to access PrEP clinical services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Implementing flexible and timely PrEP delivery approaches in this setting likely minimized the disruption of PrEP care during COVID-19.
Partial deployment of Al in Zn–MnO2 alkaline battery anodes to improve the capacity and reversibility

Abstract Zn–MnO2 alkaline batteries have been the dominant primary energy storage solution for decades. Despite their success, there is a desire to improve their discharge capacity and energy density as they approach their practical engineering limits. Since the capacity of alkaline batteries is limited by the Zn anode mass, one possible pathway to enhance the energy density is to modify the Zn anode with secondary materials that boost their capacity without sacrificing their stability. Herein, partial deployment of Al in Zn anodes was investigated to increase capacity and energy density as Al has a ~3.5 fold higher theoretical gravimetric capacity than Zn. To do that, Zn-rich electrolytic Zn/Al (e-Zn/Al) was synthesized, physically characterized and exposed to a series of electrochemical methods in both three-electrode cells and cylindrical full cells, including linear sweep and cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and charge/discharge cycling. In addition, an electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance was utilized to explore the influence of ZnO and Al(OH)3 electrolyte additives to KOH on Zn corrosion and passivation. It was shown that partial Al inclusion significantly improved capacity, to 581 mAh g−1anode (~784 Wh kg−1anode) at C/20. Finally, excellent cycle performance was observed over 800 h in secondary full cells.
Analysis of Respiratory Kinematics: a method to characterize breaths from motion signals

Rationale: Breathing motion (respiratory kinematics) can be characterized by the interval and depth of each breath, and by magnitude-synchrony relationships between locations. Such characteristics and their breath-by-breath variability might be useful indicators of respiratory health. Objectives: To enable breath-by-breath characterization of respiratory kinematics, we developed a method to detect breaths using motion sensor signals. Methods: In 34 volunteers who underwent maximal exercise testing, we used 8 motion sensors to record upper rib, lower rib and abdominal kinematics at 3 exercise stages (rest, lactate threshold and exhaustion). We recorded volumetric air flow signals using clinical exercise laboratory equipment and synchronized them with kinematic signals. Using instantaneous phase landmarks from the analytic representation of kinematic and flow signals, we identified individual breaths and derived respiratory rate signals at 1Hz. To evaluate the fidelity of kinematics-derived respiratory rate signals, we calculated their cross-correlation with the flow-derived respiratory rate signals. To identify coupling between kinematics and flow, we calculated the Shannon entropy of the relative frequency with which kinematic phase landmarks were distributed over the phase of the flow cycle. Measurements and Main Results: We found good agreement in the kinematics-derived and flow-derived respiratory rate signals, with cross-correlation coefficients as high as 0.94. In some individuals, the kinematics and flow were significantly coupled (Shannon entropy < 2) but the relationship varied within (by exercise stage) and between individuals. The final result was that the phase landmarks from the kinematic signal were uniformly distributed over the phase of the air flow signals (Shannon entropy close to the theoretical maximum of 3.32). Conclusions: The Analysis of Respiratory Kinematics method can yield highly resolved respiratory rate signals by separating individual breaths. This method will facilitate characterization of clinically significant breathing motion patterns on a breath-by-breath basis. The relationship between respiratory kinematics and flow is much more complex than expected, varying between and within individuals.
Gentamicin and Tobramycin selectively inhibit the secretion of Pseudomonas aeruginosa elastase

The secretion of proteases by Pseudomonas aeruginosa grown in the presence of subinhibitory concentrations of gentamicin and tobramycin was studied. Both gentamicin and tobramycin selectively inhibited the secretion of these proteases. Conditions that inhibited the energy-dependent uptake of gentamicin, high magnesium ion concentration and high ionic strength, did not antagonize the ability of these aminoglycosides to block secretion of the proteases. The binding of gentamicin to the outer membrane of P. aeruginosa has been shown to cause a rapid disruption of this membrane. However, under the conditions of these experiments, neither gentamicin nor tobramycin increased the permeability of the outer membrane.
Finite-Difference Time-Domain Modeling of Nickel Nanorods

FINITE-DIFFERENCE TIME-DOMAIN MODELING OF NICKEL NANORODS By Joseph Steele Parris A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth Univerity, 2012 Major Director: Dexian Ye, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Physics Theoretical and experimental plasmonics is a growing field as a method to create near fields at sub-wavelength distances. In this thesis, a finite-difference time-domain method is used to simulate electromagnetic waves onto a thin film that present of nickel nanorods with sharp apexes. The absorbed, transmitted, and reflected fields were shown to depend linearly on silver film thickness and nanotip length. The electric field is visualized along the tip to show strong charge density along the base of the tip’s apex and how that density changes for wavelength, metal, and source tilt. Lastly, the study shows gold film on the nanotip apex provides the largest enhancement of the electric field for the wavelengths 532, 572, and 633 nm.
Christian and Islamic Roots of a Holistic Rhetoric

Generally, it is accepted that rhetoric has two main aspects. Those are first its persuasive function and secondly its ornamental character. Both aspects are usually regarded as implying that rhetoric is quite distinct from science and philosophy or even works in opposition to them. There might be a more holistic approach to rhetoric in which scientific and philosophical knowledge are seen as different branches within rhetoric. This paper offers such an approach indicating its roots in some Christian and Muslim theologians such as Augustine, and Ibn Wahb.
A Sobering Look at Why Sunday Liquor Laws Violate the Sherman Act

This Article does not address all Sunday closing laws in effect today, but limits its focus to Sunday closing laws having to do with alcohol-Sunday liquor laws. As states move to modernize blue laws, the laws most difficult to repeal have been those restricting the sale of alcohol on Sunday. Alcohol-related blue laws are particularly relevant statutes, not only because of their staying power, but because they are subject to the Twenty-First Amendment to the Constitution. The evolution of the Court's jurisprudence as to the intersection of the Commerce Clause and the Twenty-First Amendment has opened the door for a challenge to Sunday laws under the Sherman Antitrust Act. Part II provides a brief history of Sunday closing laws in the United States. Part III discusses failed constitutional challenges to Sunday closing laws, generally under the First and Fourteenth Amendments. Part IV describes the Supreme Court's evolving jurisprudence on the intersection of the Commerce Clause and the Twenty-First Amendment and shows how, over time, federal interests have grown in increasing importance relative to state interests. Part V explains the strong anticompetitive effects of Sunday liquor laws. Part VI evaluates the countervailing state interests in Sunday liquor laws, and discusses the lack of empirical literature demonstrating the efficacy of Sunday liquor laws in promoting public health and safety objectives. Part VII concludes that these laws unreasonably restrain trade and might not withstand a challenge under the Sherman Antitrust Act.
Induction of Morphogenesis in Geodermatophilus by Inorganic Cations and by Organic Nitrogenous Cations

Abstract Morphogenesis of Geodermatophilus strain 22–68 involves two stages, a motile rod (R form) and an irregularly shaped cluster of coccoid cells (C form). A variety of mono- and divalent cations have been found to induce R-form to C-form morphogenesis and to maintain the organism in the C form. Concentration optima for all cations exceeded 100 mM. Results indicated that uptake of cations was accompanied by extrusion of intracellular protons, causing an increase in intracellular pH. A variety of organic amines also induced morphogenesis. Organic amines were taken up in the dissociated free base form, causing the intracellular pH to rise. None of these compounds was utilized as a carbon or nitrogen source.
Multichip module connector evaluation at Unisys

Unisys Corporation has been pursuing a course towards high pin count multichip modules (MCMs) for several years. The module development program includes an effort to evaluate and test the connectors required to interconnect these modules. Central to this effort is the Z-AXIS Interconnect Program, which concentrates on the pinless (or pad array) connectors. The studies and testing so far indicate that a Z-AXIS connector like the Fuzz Button is a viable approach for a pad array interconnection of an MCM. The flatness and structural requirements have been studied and determined to be manageable. Testing of buttons has demonstrated that initially buttons can be made to work. Related experience with button connections has been good. >
OCF and e-business

Today, a lot of companies and businesses are transforming into e-businesses to improve their internal efficiency, to improve the link to their suppliers, and to reach new markets via the Internet. The rising number of e-business transactions and increasing transaction values make security a top priority. As a result, integration of secure tokens like smart cards into e-business applications becomes more and more important (see Chapter 3).
Wrestling with The Passion of the Christ: At the Movies with Roland Barthes and Mel Gibson

Gibson offers his spectacle of Christ suffering as a reel sacrament. To do so, he writes the Hollywood passion hero and the legalistic Western Christian myth over Jesus, or lifts the sign of Jesus’ suffering into those mythic orders. In the West, as Gibson’s success shows, this myth often masquerades as the nature of things. This myth transforms us into bastards who consume the suffering of others at a safe distance. We can confess this myth, as if it were a hierophany, or we can wrestle with it, exposing it as an interpretation.
An Introduction to Thermopower for Those Who Might Want to Use It to Study Organic Conductors and Superconductors

Thermopower is one of the easiest experiments that can be performed on conductors. It is also one of the most sensitive probes of the carriers in the system. As cartooned in figure 1, a sample is heated at one end and the voltage difference between the hot and cold side are measured. The ratio between the temperature difference and the voltage (or equivalently the temperature gradient and the electric field) is called the Seebeck[1] coefficient and is an intrinsic property of the material.
Galois Theory for the Selmer Group of an Abelian Variety

This paper concerns the Galois theoretic behavior of the p-primary subgroup SelA(F)p of the Selmer group for an Abelian variety A defined over a number field F in an extension K/F such that the Galois group G(K/F) is a p-adic Lie group. Here p is any prime such that A has potentially good, ordinary reduction at all primes of F lying above p. The principal results concern the kernel and the cokernel of the natural map sK/F′ SelA(F′)p → SelA(K)pG(K/F′) where F′ is any finite extension of F contained in K. Under various hypotheses on the extension K/F, it is proved that the kernel and cokernel are finite. More precise results about their structure are also obtained. The results are generalizations of theorems of B.Mazurand M. Harris.
High resolution sound velocity measurement in liquid3He using path length modulation technique

Employing path length modulation technique, we are able to make high resolution sound velocity measurements (≈ 10 ppm) with a relatively short path length. We present new values ofF 2 3 calculated from zeroand first-sound velocity measurements at 12.6 MHz in liquid3He over the pressure range of 0.6 to 14 bar. We also report a newly observed behavior in high frequency zero-sound velocity at 113 MHz near the superfluid transition temperature at 0.6 bar.
Cochlear implantation in a patient with profound hearing loss with the A1555G mitochondrial DNA mutation and no history of aminoglycoside exposure

The A1555G mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid (mtDNA) point mutation has classically been associated with sensorineural hearing loss in patients following aminoglycoside exposure. More recently, the mutation has been implicated in sensorineural hearing loss in patients without previous aminoglycoside use. In addition, cochlear implantation has been shown to be effective in the group of patients with prior aminoglycoside exposure but, to date, no case of cochlear implantation in a patient with the A1555G mutation and no prior exposure to aminoglycosides has been explicitly described in the literature. We report the case of an 80-year-old woman with the A1555G mtDNA mutation, a 35-year history of bilateral progressive hearing loss and no history of aminoglycoside exposure who underwent successful implantation of a Nucleus 24 Contour device at our institution. Post-operatively, the patient exhibited marked improvement in tests of auditory performance. We conclude that cochlear implantation can be an effective method to restore some sense of hearing in patients with the A1555G mtDNA mutation and sensorineural hearing loss.
Predicting protein-protein interactions using full Bayesian network

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) are central to the most cellular processes. Although PPIs have been generated exponentially from experimental methods ranging from high throughput protein sequences to the crystallized structures of complexes, only a fraction of interactions have been identified. It's challenging to integrate diverse datasets for computational methods. In order to predict PPIs over diverse datasets, we proposed a full Bayesian network model. First, we investigated the dihedral angle of atom C-alpha to describe flexible and rigid regions of protein structures and then design domain-domain interaction (DDI) template library to predict DDIs by the dihedral angle of atom C-alpha. Hence, both of them are viewed as the features of a full Bayesian Network (BN). Second, we used two encoding methods on sequences. The two encoding sequences can reflect both biological and physiochemical properties of proteins. Third, we also viewed gene co-expression as a feature of the BN model. Finally, we used receiver operating characteristic (ROC) to assess the performance compared to the Support Vector Machine (SVM) model.
Travels in Referenceland: Computing the Almanac

Anne Grodzins Lipow is a whiz at helping people satisfy needs they never knew they had. Who would have suspected a market for small wooden dreidls (first‐of‐a‐kind in California) when she and a partner began to make and sell these special children's tops a few years ago? Now it is a Berkeley tradition: just step up to Anne's Berkeley street‐stand during the holiday season to buy one of these attractive, inexpensive Chanukah offerings. Not enough time for your library research? Call the University of California at Berkeley Library's Baker service (dial 64‐BAKER) and order campus‐mail delivery of copies of one or more articles or books, located on the Berkeley campus or elsewhere. Lipow began this service for Berkeley faculty and students in 1974, an advance that generated many an “Of course!” from colleagues at the time and scores of “copycat” services since. If you were hunting for a list of female judges in California, you would look in the state almanac, naturally; but a California almanac for adults did not exist until this year. That was when librarian Lipow, having again heard opportunity tapping, joined with political scientist James Fay, and American literature scholar Stephanie Fay, to bring out the inaugural edition of California Almanac (Novato, CA: Presidio Press, 1984; $12.95).
On nonlinear discrete boundary value problems

MO), x(1 ),..., x(N)) = 0 (1.4) where N is a fixed positive integer; &,..., 8, represent n by n constant matrices; A(t) is an n by n matrix for each te (0, l,...}; h(t) belongs to IR” for each nonnegative integer t; u is in R”; 1 is a real parameter; f and g are continuously differentiable, f: R” + i -+ IR” and g: R?‘+ I) -+ R”. For systems (1.1 )-( 1.2) we prove that if the linear system x(t+ l)=A(l)x(t)+h(t) (1.5) subject to
Application of Leaching Model to Describe Potato Nutrient Losses in Hot Water Blanching

Nutritive losses of hot water blanched potatoes were studied. The potatoes lost significant amounts of some amino acids-glutamic acid, aspartic acid, valine, phenylalanine, arginine, methionine and tryptophan. They also lost a significant amount of gamma-amino butyric acid. The concentration of the water soluble vitamins, ascorbic acid, riboflavin, thiamin, and niacin was significantly reduced. A leaching model, with diffusion as the rate controlling step, successfully predicted losses of these vitamins as a function of process parameters.
Ultrasonic diffraction grating spectroscopy: particle size measurements and investigation of the inertial model for attenuation

Using the technique of ultrasonic diffraction grating spectroscopy (UDGS), data have been obtained for slurries of polystyrene spheres in water for nine particle sizes, ranging from 45 microns to 467 microns, and for concentrations up to a volume fraction of 0.20. The basic data are the FFT amplitude as a function of frequency and the value of the critical frequency. Data have been obtained for the transmitted spectral orders m = 1 and m = 2. The results of experiments over this large range of particle diameters show different behaviors for the larger diameter particles than for the smaller ones. The development of UDGS can lead to an on-line instrument or a laboratory instrument to measure particle size and concentration.