cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Delamination of moisture saturated graphite/polyimide composites due to rapid heating

Abstract In this study, experimental methods and a theoretical model are developed with aim of understanding and predicting the onset of steam pressure-induced delamination. Experiments are performed by rapid heat-up of moisture saturated T650-35/HFPE-II-52 graphite/polyimide laminates, pre-implanted in the midplane with circular starter cracks. The deformation of these flaws and subsequent delamination growth is measured using custom designed, transverse extensometers. A theoretical model for calculation of internal steam pressure within a deforming circular cavity is derived and combined with a linear elastic fracture mechanics approach to predict the onset of delamination growth. The experimental results and theoretical calculations are used to highlight the effect of heating rate, initial flaw size, initial moisture content, and material toughness on steam-induced delamination. A parametric study is conducted and used to identify conditions required for transition between steam-induced delamination and steam-induced blistering damage.
Effect of Shoe Stiffness on Injury Produced Under External Rotation of the Foot in Human Cadavers

Ankle sprain is a common occurrence in sports, accounting for 10–30% of injuries9. Injury to the lateral ligamentous complex occurs under excessive foot inversion and is known as a “lateral ankle sprain”1. Injury to the anterior deltoid ligament (ADL), which consists of the tibionavicular ligament (TiNL) and the anterior tibiotalar ligament (ATiTL), is known as a “medial ankle sprain”13. High ankle sprains occur in the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis, which is comprised of the anterior and posterior tibiofibular ligaments (ATiFL and PTiFL) and the interosseous ligament (IOL)2. While approximately 85% of ankle sprains are lateral ankle injuries, syndesmotic (high) and medial injuries typically result in more time off the field. The mechanism of both high and medial ankle sprain is commonly ascribed to excessive internal rotation of the upper body, while the foot is planted on the playing surface.Copyright © 2013 by ASME
Detecting volcanic events in the northeast Pacific

On 27 February 2005, one of the largest submarine earthquake sequences ever recorded in 12 years of real-time seismoacoustic monitoring of the northeastern Pacific Ocean occurred at the Juan de Fuca Ridge (JFR) Endeavour segment (Figure 1). On the basis of available information, an oceanographic expedition was quickly organized to investigate the site for magmatic activity and hydrothermal discharge. The research vessel T.G. Thompson arrived on site and began water column and seafloor surveys just seven days after the onset of earthquake activity, the most rapid response cruise to the JFR yet organized. However, no evidence of plume generation or a seafloor eruption was found.
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy of Diffuse Brain Trauma in the Pig

ABSTRACT The acute metabolic events linked to the evolution of selective axonal pathology in the white matter following diffuse brain injury have not previously been evaluated due to the paucity of relevant experimental models. Here, we utilized a new model of inertial brain injury in the pig that selectively damages axons in the white matter, and applied proton and phosphorous magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to noninvasively monitor the temporal course of metabolic changes following trauma. Evaluating four pigs with MRS prior to injury, within 1 h and 3 and 7 days postinjury, we found that widespread axonal injury was produced in the absence of changes in pH, PCr/Pi, or the concentrations of ATP, and lactate. However, we did observe an acute 60% loss of intracellular Mg2+ levels, which gradually resolved by 7 days postinjury. In addition, we found that the levels of the neuron marker, Nacetylaspartate (NAA), acutely dropped 20% and remained persistently decreased for at least 7 days postinjury. Mor...
Cortical hypothermia is a sequela of electroconvulsive shock.

THE impaired retention of a recently learned habit that is commonly observed in experimental animals after administration of electroconvulsive shock (ECS) is also observed after partial immersion for a few minutes in cold water1–4. The physical differences between a hypothermal and an electrical amnesic agent do not preclude a common mode of action; indeed, we have confirmed that ECS results in hypothermia as well as amnesia.
Real-time monitoring of laser welding of galvanized high strength steel in lap joint configuration

Abstract Two different cases regarding the zinc coating at the lap joint faying surface are selected for studying the influence of zinc vapor on the keyhole dynamics of the weld pool and the final welding quality. One case has the zinc coating fully removed at the faying surface; while the other case retains the zinc coating on the faying surface. It is found that removal of the zinc coating at the faying surface produces a significantly better weld quality as exemplified by a lack of spatters whereas intense spatters are present when the zinc coating is present at the faying surface. Spectroscopy is used to detect the optical spectra emitted from a laser generated plasma plume during the laser welding of galvanized high strength DP980 steel in a lap-joint configuration. A correlation between the electron temperature and defects within the weld bead is identified by using the Boltzmann plot method. The laser weld pool keyhole dynamic behavior affected by a high-pressure zinc vapor generated at the faying surface of galvanized steel lap-joint is monitored in real-time by a high speed charge-coupled device (CCD) camera assisted with a green laser as an illumination source.
Competing commitments in psychiatric research: An examination of psychiatric researchers' perspectives

Clinician-researchers have responsibilities both to seek the best interests of the people they treat and to advance scientific knowledge. The purpose of this study was to examine researchers' beliefs and behaviors regarding areas of tension between their clinical and scientific roles. We conducted and analyzed 19 in-depth interviews with psychiatric clinical researchers to explore these issues. Responses usually indicated that researchers recognize limits on their abilities to be helpful to patients, since they cannot know in advance whether a specific research intervention will help and whether participation is in the patient's best interest. Hence, most researchers did not make special efforts to recruit patients doing poorly in standard care, although they occasionally tolerated minor deviations from recruitment and treatment protocols when they might be in participants' interests. Often respondents asked the IRB to approve these deviations or change the protocol for all subjects, though it was unclear how often they may have acted without this approval. Despite researchers' high regard for following the research protocol, clinical judgment remained the ultimate guide if patients were not doing well and needed alternative care. Hence, respondents expressed a strong commitment both to protecting patients' interests and to advancing science. In cases of direct conflict between the two, many of the researchers tended to promote patients' best interests even at some cost to scientific research.
Improving the diagnosis of tuberculosis: From QuantiFERON to new techniques to diagnose tuberculosis infections

The diagnosis of latent and active tuberculosis in the HIV-positive population is challenged by diminished sensitivity of conventional tests, atypical presentations, and the lack of culture methods in the developing world, where the burden of co-infection is greatest. In response to these challenges, a variety of new diagnostics have emerged. These include interferon-gamma release assays for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis (TB) infection and novel culture methods and molecular assays for the diagnosis of active tuberculosis. Although some tests (such as interferon-gamma release assays) are not clearly superior to existing diagnostics, other novel diagnostics, such as real-time polymerase chain reaction and the microscopic observed direct susceptibility assay hold much promise for prompt and accurate TB diagnosis in this population. Line-probe, nitrate reductase, and mycobacteriophage assays have also provided rapid alternatives to conventional time-consuming drug susceptibility testing and are critical to curtailing the spread of multidrug-resistant TB.
Oral disc muscles of anuran tadpoles.

The presence and configurations of the small, extrinsic muscle fibers of the M. mandibulolabialis superior in the upper labium and the M. inferior in the lower labium are described for 24 species in 9 families. Although several species possess only the M. inferior, or both the M. inferior and superior, none has only the M. superior. Some species without tooth rows possess the M. inferior, and microhylid tadpoles have a single-stranded muscle different than the M. mandibulolabialis in each oral flap. The extrinsic oral muscles insert near the bottom of the inter-row valleys behind each tooth ridge and the bases of marginal papillae lateral to the ends of tooth rows. Muscles do not extend to marginal papillae beyond the most distal row of teeth. Muscle contraction is presumed to rotate the teeth distally so that they contact the substrate at the proper working angle. This action probably occurs at full extension of the oral disc just before disc closure starts.
Approaches to neurodevelopmental assessment in congenital diaphragmatic hernia survivors

Abstract Background Infants with congenital diaphragmatic hernia require complex surgical care and may have neurodevelopmental morbidity. We examined the performance of reports of motor functioning in 25 congenital diaphragmatic hernia survivors using the parent-completed Developmental Profile-II and a clinical evaluation by a neurodevelopmental pediatrician (MD) measured against the Bayley motor scale. Methods Bayley motor scores were dichotomized as normal or abnormal. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated for each test. Results The median age at assessment was 25 months. Bayley motor scores were abnormal in 77% of infants tested (10/13). The MD examinations detected motor problems in 92% (12/13). Sensitivity and specificity of the MD examination were 1.0 and 0.33, respectively. Developmental Profile-II physical scores were abnormal in 15% (2/13); sensitivity and specificity were 0.2 and 1.0, respectively. Conclusions The high rate of abnormal motor findings in this study supports the need for ongoing screening and evaluation. The sensitivity of MD examinations was excellent, but hypotonia findings were not universally corroborated by the Bayley. Although specificity of parent-reported motor findings was high, parents underreported abnormal motor findings. Parental reports of neurodevelopmental problems should be heeded, and physicians should perform screening motor examinations. Bayley assessments may be warranted to determine the functional implications of observed abnormalities.
Critique on Theories Predicting Thermoelastic Properties of Fibrous Composites

A critique on the theories predicting the thermoelastic properties of unidirectional fibrous composites is presented. The method of approach in these theories varies from netting analysis to complex statistical methods. This critique provides a concise description and evaluation of those theories which are instructive or illustrate an interesting approach in the prediction of the thermoelastic proper ties. It is intended to contribute to better understanding and judicious application of these theories, to familiarize the researcher with the state of the art and to provide him with a basis for future effort. Thermoelastic properties predicted by the various theories are arranged in check-list form for quick reference. Typical results are included for comparison purposes and current trends are dis cussed. References and publications which provide working equa tions and/or result comparison of these theories are cited.
How Can Hospital Futility Policies Contribute to Establishing Standards of Practice

A few years ago a battered infant was admitted to a California hospital. After a period of observation and testing, the physicians concluded that the infant had been beaten so badly that his brain was almost completely destroyed, leaving him permanently unconscious. The hospital had just adopted a policy specifying that life-sustaining treatment for permanent unconsciousness was futile and, therefore, not indicated. According to this policy, after suitable subspecialty consultations and deliberations, including efforts to gain parental agreement and documentation of unanimous ethics committee support, the patient's physician had the authority to discontinue life-sustaining treatment. The infant's physician wished to do this. The mother, however, who was the prime battery suspect, insisted that the baby be kept alive.
Body composition by air-displacement plethysmography by using predicted and measured thoracic gas volumes

The BOD POD, a new air-displacement plethysmograph for measuring human body composition, utilizes the inverse relationship between pressure and volume (Boyle’s law) to measure body volume directly....
Induced smoothing for the semiparametric accelerated failure time model: asymptotics and extensions to clustered data

SUMMARY This paper extends the induced smoothing procedure of Brown & Wang (2006) for the semiparametric accelerated failure time model to the case of clustered failure time data. The resulting procedure permits fast and accurate computation of regression parameter estimates and standard errors using simple and widely available numerical methods, such as the Newton–Raphson algorithm. The regression parameter estimates are shown to be strongly consistent and asymptotically normal; in addition, we prove that the asymptotic distribution of the smoothed estimator coincides with that obtained without the use of smoothing. This establishes a key claim of Brown & Wang (2006) for the case of independent failure time data and also extends such results to the case of clustered data. Simulation results show that these smoothed estimates perform as well as those obtained using the best available methods at a fraction of the computational cost.
Factors Affecting ENSO’s Period

Accurately capturing the observed mean period of ENSO in general circulation models (GCMs) is often challenging, and it is therefore useful to understand which parameters and processes affect this period. A computationally efficient simulation-based approach is used to extract both the dominant eigenvalues and corresponding eigenvectors of the linearized model from the Zebiak–Cane intermediate-complexity model of ENSO without having to directly construct the linearization. The sensitivity of the period to a variety of parameters is examined, including atmosphere–ocean coupling, atmospheric heating parameterization, thermocline depth zonal profile, western boundary reflection coefficient, atmospheric and ocean wave speeds or Rossby radii of deformation, ocean decay time, and the strength of the annual cycle. In addition to the sensitivity information, the spatial structures of the main fields (SST, thermocline thickness, and more) that are involved in period changes are obtained to aid in the physical interpretation of the sensitivities. There are three main time lags that together compose one-half of a model ENSO period: the Rossby-plus-Kelvin wave propagation time for a wind-caused central Pacific disturbance to propagate to the western ocean and back, SST dynamics that determine the lag between eastern ocean thermocline anomalies and eastern ocean SST anomalies, and the “accumulation” lag of integrating a sufficient delayed wave signal arriving from the western ocean to cancel the eastern ocean anomalies. For any of the parameter changes considered, the eigenvector changes show that the largest contributor to the period change is from changes to the last of these three mechanisms. Physical mechanisms that affect this accumulation delay are discussed, and the case is made that any significant change to ENSO’s period is in turn likely to involve changes to this delay.
Geometry effects at atomic-size aluminium contacts

Abstract We present electronic structure calculations for aluminium nanocontacts. Addressing the neck of the contact, we compare characteristic geometries to investigate the effects of the local aluminium coordination on the electronic states. We find that the Al 3p z states are very sensitive against modifications of the orbital overlap, which has serious consequences for the transport properties. Stretching of the contact shifts states towards the Fermi energy, leaving the system instable against ferromagnetic ordering. By spacial restriction, hybridization is locally suppressed at nanocontacts and the charge neutrality is violated. We discuss the influence of mechanical stress by means of quantitative results for the charge transfer.
A Case Study of Community-Based Responses to Rural Woman Battering

This case study addresses intimate partner violence against women in a rural Texas county. Employing qualitative data analysis, we examined rural woman battering from the perspectives of battered women, criminal justice officials, and community service providers. The findings reveal that survivors of intimate violence and providers of community-based interventions had conflicting perspectives about the delivery of services for battered women. Regarding criminal justice services, survivors expressed concerns about inadequate protection, discourteous treatment, and insufficient information about their legal options. In contrast, criminal justice providers were reluctant to make arrests, tended to impose lenient sanctions on abusers, questioned victim credibility, and expressed victim-blaming attitudes. The article concludes by discussing political implications of the study for battered women's services and research in rural settings. The authors suggest that the disjuncture between battered women's needs an...
B Vitamins: Proposed Fortification Levels for Complementary Foods for Young Children

The B vitamins, except for folate, can be classified as group I nutrients during lactation. Nutrients in this category share the following characteristics: low maternal intake or stores during lactation reduce the concentration in human milk, and infants' stores are readily depleted. For some of these nutrients, the infants' stores at birth may be depleted by maternal deficiency during pregnancy. The prevalence of some B vitamin deficiencies, especially deficiencies of riboflavin and vitamin B-12, is probably much higher than is usually assumed. Taken together, these considerations emphasize the importance of supplying adequate amounts of B vitamins to infants and young children. Recommendations are made here on the amounts and densities of B vitamins that should be present in fortified complementary foods fed to children aged 6 -24 mo. The values are based on the difference between recommended daily intakes and the amount that the child will receive from maternal milk using estimates reported in the literature. There are few concerns about the potential toxicity of any of these vitamins at the levels likely to be added to complementary foods. If there are losses during food preparation or concentrations of the vitamins are low in human milk, the estimates provided may need to be increased. The adequacy of these recommendations must be evaluated thoroughly. J. Nutr. 133: 3000S-3007S, 2003.
Relating aliasing in signature analysis to test length and register design

Recently derived upper bounds on the aliasing probability for serial signature analysis using the Bernoulli error model are reviewed. Since the bit error probability p is unrestricted in general, upper bounds independent of p are emphasized. It is also shown that even for exhaustive testing, the aliasing probability for non-primitive polynomials with short periods does not reach its asymptotic value of all p. >
USAP multiple access: dynamic resource allocation for mobile multihop multichannel wireless networking

A number of tactical military and commercial applications require self-organizing, wireless networks that can operate in dynamic environments and provide peer-to-peer, multi-hop, multimedia communications. Rockwell Collins developed the Soldier Phone to meet these needs as part of the WireCorn Engine Technology Reinvestment Program jointly sponsored by DARPA and CECOM. USAP multiple access is the part of the system that manages the TDMA slot and channel assignments for optimal operation in the face of changing topologies and traffic requirements.
Effects of limiting energy availability via diet and physical activity on mammalian target of rapamycin-related signaling in rat mammary carcinomas

This study evaluated how different approaches to limiting energy availability (LEA) by 15% affected mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)-related signaling in mammary carcinomas. Female Sprague Dawley rats, injected with 50mg 1-methyl-1-nitrosourea per kilogram body weight, were randomized to a control or three LEA interventions: (i) sedentary and restricted rats fed to 85% of energy available to the control or motorized wheel running (37 m/min) for an average of (ii) 1621 ± 55 (WRL) or (iii) 3094 ± 126 (WRH) meters/day with food intake adjusted to provide the same net amount of available energy across LEA interventions. Under these conditions, LEA reduced overall cancer burden by 28% (P = 0.04) and down-regulated mTOR-related signaling (Hotelling multivariate, P = 0.002). Among the regulatory nodes assessed, reduced levels of activated protein kinase B (pAkt) and induction of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) were the most influential factors in distinguishing between sham control and LEA carcinomas. P-Akt was predictive of observed changes in levels of proteins involved in cell cycle control (r = 0.698, P < 0.0001) and induction of apoptosis (r = -0.429, P = 0.014). Plasma insulin and leptin were strongly associated with carcinoma pAkt levels. Consistent with downregulation of mTOR-related signaling by LEA, evidence of decreased lipid synthesis in carcinomas was observed (Hotelling multivariate, P < 0.001) and was negatively correlated with SIRT1 induction. Despite large differences between control and LEA, effects on mTOR regulation were insufficient to distinguish among LEA intervention groups. Given the modest effects observed on the LKB1/AMP-activated protein kinase regulatory node, NADH and NADPH rather than ATP may be more limiting for tumor growth when LEA is 15%.
Mutant Telomere Sequences Lead to Impaired Chromosome Separation and a Unique Checkpoint Response

Mutation of the template region in the RNA component of telomerase can cause incorporation of mutant DNA sequences at telomeres. We made all 63 mutant sequence combinations at template positions 47...
Cavity-Nest Webs in a Longleaf Pine Ecosystem

Abstract Cavity-nesting communities can be viewed as interconnected webs that interact through the creation of and competition for cavities as nest sites. Using a web approach, we depicted the flow of cavity creation and use in the cavity-nesting bird community of a Florida longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) ecosystem to examine the relationship between cavity-nesting bird abundance and cavity resources, and to identify species with potential to respond to cavity management for the endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis). We identified two groups into which most cavity-nesting species could be placed: 1) six species associated with pine snags and Red-cockaded Woodpecker cavities, and 2) five species associated with hardwood snags. We found the majority of nests (60%) in large pine snags. Red-cockaded Woodpeckers and Northern Flickers (Colaptes auratus) excavated most cavities used by other cavity nesting birds. The Northern Flicker was the primary creator of large nest cavities, through its ex...
Organizing for effective new product development: The moderating role of product innovativeness.

Marketing and sales personnel are frequently called on to work with—and sometimes to lead—specialists from other functional areas in the development of new products and services. Such cross-functio...
Removal of Impella® 2.5 while maintaining vascular access: A solution to a vascular quandary

Cardiogenic shock (CS) in the setting of acute myocardial infarction is associated with high in-hospital mortality rates. Society guidelines provide a Class Ib recommendation for the use of hemodynamic support devices in patients with CS following ST-elevation myocardial infarction. Exchanging of hemodynamic support devices is often complicated by inability to maintain percutaneous vascular access upon device removal in the setting of anticoagulation. This report highlights one potential solution to the dilemma of maintaining vascular access following removal of an Impella® 2.5 mechanical support device to allow safe transition to a TandemHeart system in a patient with refractory CS. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Variable step molecular dynamics: an exploratory technique for peptides with fixed geometry

A new algorithm is presented for performing molecular dynamics simulations of peptides with fixed geometry, with the aim of simulating conformational changes and of exploring conformational space. The principle of the method is to expand the potential energy as a Taylor's series in the coordinates around the current point, retaining the force and its first two derivatives, and obtain a series solution of the resulting differential equations using a method due to Lyapunov. By choosing the time step so that the second term in the series is small compared to the first, the true solution can in principle be approximated to any desired degree of accuracy. The algorithm has been used to solve numerically Lagrange's equations of motion for N-acetyl alanine amide and N-acetyl methionide amide, regarded as fixed at their C-termini, under the influence of the ECEPP/2 potential energy function, and time steps of 15–30 fsec have been achieved with little variation in the total energy. Possible directions for future development are discussed.
A Shape Memory Polymer with Improved Shape Recovery

Thermally actuated shape memory polymers (SMPs) interest, both academically and industrially, due to their ability to memorize a permanent shape that is set during processing and a temporary shape that is later programmed by manipulation above a critical temperature, either Tg or Tm. However, the thermal triggering process for SMPs is usually retarded compared to that of shape memory alloys, because the thermal conductivity of polymers is much lower (<0.30 W/m⋅K). In the present study, we incorporated a highly thermal conducting filler into a shape memory matrix to increase its thermal conductivity and therefore, shorten the heat transfer progress. A mathematical was worked out that quantitatively relates the material’s thermal conductivity with the heat transfer time, τ, also defined as a shape memory induction time. The model fit nicely with our experimental data. In addition, mechanical reinforcement was observed with the addition of this rigid thermal conducting filler.
Personality and Intellectual Predictors of Leadership

Contemplate the lives of these historical figures: Moses, Buddha, Mohammed, Pope Urban II, Martin Luther, and Joseph Smith; Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, and Genghis Khan; Richelieu, Cavour, and Bismarck; Demonsthenes, Cicero, Lincoln, and Winston Churchill; Spartacus, Joan of Arc, Bolivar, Garibaldi, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King; Tiberius Gracchus, Robespierre, Lenin, and Mao; Hammurabi, Kublai Khan, Ivan the Terrible, Queen Elizabeth I, and Louis XIV; Franco, Mussolini, Hitler, and Tojo; Cosimo Medici, Meyer Rothschild, Andrew Carnegie, and Alfred Krupp. Now think about the persons who occupy one of these contemporary roles: president of the United States, prime minister of Great Britain, secretary general of the United Nations, CEO of Ford Motor Company, pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, Dalai Lama of Tibetan Buddhism, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, chief justice of the Supreme Court, governor of the state of California, mayor of Berlin, and president of the American Psychological Association. Finally, to get closer to what some of us may have directly experienced, recall persons whom you have actually known: the manager who supervises your unit at work, the lieutenant who commanded your platoon, the president of your local parent-teacher association, the captain of your college track team, the student body president back in your high school days, the master of your youth club, or the head of the street gang in the old neighborhood.
Safety of the trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine among children: a population-based study.

Background To our knowledge, there are no published population-based studies on the safety of the inactivated trivalent influenza vaccine among children. Objective To screen a large population of children for evidence of increased medical visits in the 2 weeks after influenza vaccination compared with 2 control periods. Secondary analyses included shorter risk periods and restricted age categories. Design Self-control screening analysis. Children vaccinated from January 1, 1993, through December 31, 1999, were randomly divided into 2 equal groups. In group 1, risks of outpatient, emergency department, and inpatient visits during the 14 days after vaccination were compared with the risks of visits in 2 control periods. Significant plausible medically attended events identified in group 1 were then analyzed in group 2, using the same 2 control periods. Medically attended events significant in both groups were considered potentially associated with vaccination and were assessed by medical record review. Setting Five managed care organizations in the United States. Participants Children younger than 18 years who received an influenza vaccination in one of the managed care settings (N = 251 600). Main Outcome Measure Among vaccinated children seen for a medically attended event, the odds of the visit occurring in the 2 weeks after vaccination vs during 1 of the 2 control periods. Results Study participants incurred 1165, 230, and 489 different diagnoses during the 14 days after vaccination according to the outpatient, emergency department, and inpatient data, respectively. Four diagnoses were positively associated with the vaccine in both groups 1 and 2: impetigo, dermatitis, uncomplicated diabetes mellitus, and ureteral disorder not otherwise specified. After medical record review, impetigo (9 cases) in children 6 to 23 months old remained significantly associated with vaccination. Conclusion This large screening safety study did not reveal any evidence of important medically attended events associated with pediatric influenza vaccination.
Therapeutic Cancer Vaccines in Prostate Cancer: The Paradox of Improved Survival Without Changes in Time to Progression

Therapeutic cancer vaccines represent a new class of agents in the treatment of cancer. Sipuleucel-T is an antigen-presenting cell–based vaccine that recently demonstrated a significant 4.8-month improvement in overall survival in advanced prostate cancer patients and was well tolerated. The findings of that study have been met with skepticism, primarily because the agent did not change initial disease progression and yet led to longer survival. Although the commonly accepted treatment paradigm suggests that treatments should initially decrease tumor volume, perhaps vaccines work differently. Vaccines may induce delayed responses not seen in the first few months of therapy or they may initiate a dynamic immune response that ultimately slows the tumor growth rate, resulting in longer survival. Subsequent therapies may also combine with the induced immune response, resulting in a combination that is more effective than conventional treatments alone. Also, other treatments may alter tumor-associated antigen expression, enhancing the immune response. Future trials are currently planned to investigate these hypotheses; however, the results of the sipuleucel-T vaccine in prostate cancer should not be dismissed. Results with another vaccine in prostate cancer are similar, perhaps suggesting a class effect. In a broader context, clinicians may need to reconsider how they measure success. Several agents have been approved that produce superior disease progression results, but do not affect overall survival. Given the toxicity and costs of cancer therapies, perhaps studies should put more weight on long-term survival endpoints than on short-term endpoints that may be less consequential.
Modelling data dissemination in opportunistic networks

In opportunistic networks data dissemination is an important, although not widely explored, topic. Since opportunistic networks topologies are very challenged and unstable, data-centric approaches are an interesting direction to pursue. Data should be proactively and cooperatively disseminated from sources towards possibly interested receivers, as sources and receivers might not be aware of each other, and never get in touch directly. In this paper we consider a utility-based cooperative data dissemination system in which the utility of data is defined based on the social relationships between users. Specifically, we study the performance of this system through an analytical model. Our model allows us to completely characterise the data dissemination process, as it describes both its stationary and transient regimes. After validating the model, we study the system's behaviour with respect to key parameters such as the definition of the data utility function, the initial data allocation on nodes, the number of users in the system, and the data popularity.
STUDIES ON THE BIOLOGY OF STREPTOCOCCUS : III. AGGLUTINATION AND ABSORPTION OF AGGLUTININ WITH STREPTOCOCCUS SCARLATINÆ.

1. Strains of hemolytic streptococci from cases of scarlet fever occurring in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Baltimore, and Copenhagen, Denmark, all interagglutinate with immune sera prepared with these strains. 2. Sera prepared with these strains do not agglutinate pyogenic streptococci or strains isolated from cases of septic sore throat. 3. The strains obtained from the throats of patients from an epidemic of scarlet fever and the strain from the milk responsible for this epidemic fall into the scarlatinal group according to these agglutination tests. 4. Absorption tests can be carried out with these strains and sera under proper conditions. 5. A group of hemolytic streptococci biologically distinct from streptococci from other sources than scarlet fever is constantly associated with scarlatina. They constitute a group of closely related streptococci which may be identified by agglutination tests.
First failure data capture in embedded system

First failure data capture (FFDC) is a technology that is used to capture diagnostic information when errors occur. This information reduces the need to reproduce errors. FFDC involves all firmware components. The processes and techniques of FFDC are crucial to the success of an embedded system. With a good FFDC implementation, software engineers can collect diagnostic data quickly and fix defects without impacting customer's operation. One of the challengers with FFDC is collecting the useful data. There are cases where the volume of data collected is huge but only covers a short amount of time. In other cases, the collected data cover a long period time, but only gather a few variables or items. A new FFDC technique has been developed to capture useful data. This new FFDC technique captures very detail data for a short period of time and captures much less detail data for a long period of time. This paper first introduces three FFDC techniques. The three techniques are general dump, event trace and error log. Second, it analyzes the problems of current FFDC techniques. Third, it discusses a new FFDC technique. This new FFDC technique is low cost, efficient and good for data collection.
Defining HFpEF: where do we draw the line?

This editorial refers to ‘Influence of ejection fraction on outcomes and efficacy of spironolactone in patients with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction’[†][1], by S.D. Solomon et al ., on page 455. Most people agree that there are two different kinds of heart failure (HF).1,2 There is one kind where ventricular function during systole and diastole is severely impaired and the left ventricle is dilated. This is referred to as HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). A number of therapies targeting neurohormonal stimulation and remodelling have been shown to improve outcome in these patients.1,2 There is another type of HF where function during diastole is markedly impaired, function during systole is modestly impaired, and the ventricle is generally not dilated.1–7 This type is referred to as HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Therapies that improve outcome in people with HFrEF have not been found to help people with HFpEF, further supporting the idea that these two kinds of HF are fundamentally different.1,2 What remains unknown is what EF partition value should be used to distinguish the two varieties of HF.1 EF poorly gauges contractile function and should more accurately be considered as an index of ventricular–arterial coupling.5 Nonetheless, EF provides a convenient method to distinguish HF patients given the universal availability of echocardiography.2 Prior studies have variably defined HFpEF using EF values ranging from 40% to 55%, but it is likely that there is significant mechanistic heterogeneity within this range. Identification of the optimal EF partition value that allows us to categorize HF patients into more homogenous groups … [1]: #fn-2
Environmentally driven variation in ancient populations of turritellids: evaluating the causal link

Understanding the response of a species or lineage to long-term environmental change is a critical aspect of evolutionary paleoecology. In order to do this, paleobiologists must have an excellent fossil record of a lineage and an independent source of environmental data in the same region. This situation occurs in the San Pedro area of southern California, where relatively new paleotemperature and paleoproductivity records enhance the well-known fossil gastropod record. We quantified shell morphology of late Pleistocene and Recent turritellid gastropods from this area and compared the timing of changes with temperature and productivity reconstructions for the region. Our results indicate that warm temperatures and moderate to high productivity are associated with larger shells and wider whorls. Cold temperatures and lower productivity are associated with smaller, narrower shells. We propose that warm temperatures and moderate productivity result in higher growth rates in turritellid gastropods. Our work also suggests that below a certain threshold temperature, productivity appears to have no influence on shell morphology. In other words, growth rate is unaffected by high productivity unless average temperatures are above a certain level. These results are consistent with models of shell deposition and with experimental results from living gastropods and bivalves reported in the literature.
SOIL PHOSPHORUS RELEASE FROM A RESTORATION WETLAND, UPPER KLAMATH LAKE, OREGON

Many wetland restoration projects are initiated with phosphorus (P) retention as a primary objective. While undisturbed wetlands often are net sinks for P and other nutrients, there is evidence that newly flooded restoration wetlands on former agricultural land initially release P to surface waters. The objectives of this study were to: 1) measure P release from soils to overlying surface waters that would occur when re-flooding agricultural fields to restore a lake fringe wetland connected to Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon; and 2) identify management strategies to abate nutrient release from soils during restoration to minimize P loading to Upper Klamath Lake. We simulated the process of re-flooding soils using mesocosms in a laboratory experiment. The soils were flooded with lake water, and the water was replenished on a weekly basis. The net P flux from soils to surface water was estimated by measuring differences in P concentrations between water that had been in the mesocosms and the lake water used for replenishment. After the flooding experiment, we measured the concentrations of four forms of soil P using a modification of the Hedley procedure, to examine relationships between soil P chemistry and P release. The majority of P was released in the first two days of the experiment, and all detectable P was released by the end of the second month. We estimated that 1-9 g P/m 2 were released from the soils to the water column over the course of the experiment, which amounted to 1%-16% of total soil P. Scaling up to the entire wetland, this totals approximately 64 tons P released over 3,000 ha. We did not find any statistically significant relationships between any of the four forms of soil P and the amount of P released in the flooding experiment. Even though we demonstrate here that P is released while undertaking wetland restoration projects on former agricultural land, it is likely to be a temporary process, and once the wetland begins to resume more natural hydrological and biogeochemical functions and vegetation structure, it will re-start the process of soil accretion and P sequestration.
Case Report: Pomalidomide as Consolidation Therapy after Salvage Autologous Stem Cell Transplant

Over the past decade there have been many advances in the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM). In the first-line setting, induction treatment followed by high-dose chemotherapy plus autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) is still considered the standard of care for eligible patients. Maintenance therapy has become a mainstay in MM treatment for both transplant-eligible and eineligible patients and, accordingly, a recent study showed that in both groups maintenance treatment with the immunomodulatory drug (IMiD) lenalidomide led to an improved progression-free survival (1). The vast majority of MM patients will eventually suffer a relapse or progression of their disease. Novel therapies such as pomalidomide(POM), a next-generation IMiD approved for patients with relapsed / refractory myeloma (RRM), and carfilzomib have expanded treatment options and increased progression-free survival. Despite the role of new therapies, salvage ASCT remains an effective and useful tool for many patients. Reinduction therapy followed by salvage ASCT should be considered in patients who have responded well to their initial transplant and have had a progression-free interval of at least 12-18 months (2). It is an open question, however, whether patients will derive a similar benefit from consolidation/maintenance (CM) treatment after salvage ASCT as they do in the first-line setting. In this report, we describe the clinical course of 4 consecutive patients who received CM treatment with POM after salvage therapy with high-dose melphalan (HDM) followed by ASCT. Since POM has received FDA-approval for the treatment of patients with RRM, we have placed 4 patients on CM treatment with POM following
Practice Variation and the Risk of Low Birth Weight in a Public Prenatal Care Program

OBJECTIVES Use of antepartum tests of fetal well-being is widespread even though effectiveness in preventing fetal damage or stillbirth has not been established. The study objective was to examine whether aggressive use of these tests might contribute to increased rates of other birth outcomes, including low birth weight (LBW). METHODS A total of 3,235 low-income women receiving care from 28 clinic sites were studied. All women were eligible for Medi-Cal benefits. Clinic sites were classified as aggressive, moderate, or low users of antepartum tests. The relations between patient risk factors, clinic testing style, LBW, and other pregnancy outcomes were examined using multiple logistic regression. RESULTS After adjustment for risk factors, patients seen by aggressive testers had a risk of LBW higher than patients receiving care from moderate testers (odds ratio = 1.65; P < 0.01). Rates of LBW within patients receiving care from moderate and low testers did not differ (P = 0.22). Patients seen by aggressive testers also had higher rates of preterm delivery, cesarean delivery, and provided more expensive care. CONCLUSIONS Although antepartum testing is intended to prevent fetal distress, extremely aggressive use of antepartum testing may have unfavorable effects on LBW and other pregnancy outcomes. More attention should be paid to variation in obstetric practices in evaluations of the costs and effectiveness of public prenatal care programs.
Heterogeneity of Abnormal RUNX1 Leading to Clinicopathologic Variations in Childhood B-Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Objectives: Abnormalities of the RUNX1 gene in childhood B-acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) are manifested by ETV6-RUNX1 or RUNX1 amplification. A detailed comparison between the two regarding clinicopathologic features with genetic analysis has not been performed previously. This parallel study assessed how different RUNX1 abnormalities affect the clinicopathology of B-ALL. Methods: We compared clinicopathologic factors, including age, sex, WBC count, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) involvement, immunophenotype, and blast proliferation rate between B-ALL with RUNX1 amplification (10 cases) and B-ALL with ETV6-RUNX1 translocation (67 cases) in childhood B-ALL. Results: CD7 was often expressed in RUNX1 amplification but not in ETV6-RUNX1 (44% vs 0%, P = .0001) and appeared to correlate with CSF involvement in the former group (3/4 [75%]). CD13 was often detected in ETV6-RUNX1 with additional RUNX1 gain (38%) with an even higher frequency in double ETV6-RUNX1 translocation (77%), but was not detected in RUNX1 amplification (0%, P < .05). Children with RUNX1 amplification were older and more often CSF positive, while those with ETV6-RUNX1 were younger, more frequently had hyperleukocytosis, and had higher blast proliferation rates. Conclusions: RUNX1 copy numbers seem to be proportional to the age of B-ALL onset and the frequency of CSF involvement, while RUNX1 amplification vs translocation causes aberrant expression of CD7 and CD13, respectively.
Assessment of Postgraduate Year 2 Pharmacy Residency Programs Within the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System.

Purpose:Despite the increasing importance placed on advanced training for clinical pharmacists, literature describing postgraduate year 2 (PGY2) residency opportunities is limited. The objective of...
Cardiac atrial natriuretic factor during evolution of congestive heart failure

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a pathophysiological condition associated with increased plasma levels of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF), a peptide hormone of cardiac origin that participates in...
Rethinking algorithms for future architectures: Communication-avoiding algorithms

This article consists of a collection of slides from the author's conference presentation on the deployment of communication-avoiding algorithms. Some of the specific topics discussed include: new architectures to support CPU processing; reasons to avoid communication algorithms; and the design and processing capabilties of new algorithms to improve network performance and accuracy.
Abstract IA27: Inhibition of MYC transcriptional signaling

MYC is a master regulator of stem cell state, embryogenesis, tissue homeostasis, and aging. As in health, in disease MYC figures prominently. Decades of biological research have identified a central role for MYC in the pathophysiology of cancer, inflammation and heart disease. The centrality of MYC to such a vast breadth of disease biology has attracted significant attention to the historic challenge of developing inhibitors of MYC. This presentation will discuss therapeutic strategies towards the development of inhibitors of MYC-dependent transcriptional signaling and the elusive goal of developing potent, direct-acting inhibitors of MYC. Citation Format: James E. Bradner. Inhibition of MYC transcriptional signaling. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Myc: From Biology to Therapy; Jan 7-10, 2015; La Jolla, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Res 2015;13(10 Suppl):Abstract nr IA27.