cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of Elastic and Surface Strains on the Optical Properties of Semiconducting Core-Shell Nanoparticles

Nanoparticles, particularly core-shell nanoparticles (CSNPs), offer a wide palette of customizable properties unlike those of their bulk counterparts. Here finite-element modeling shows how the size, morphology, and composition of a semiconducting CSNP can be tailored to tune its optical properties. Large misfit strains are created at the interface of core and shell, yielding a distribution of values for the optical band gap throughout the shell volume---a phenomenon that could be used to engineer solar cells or photocatalysts, for example.
A Scourge Returns: Black Lung in Appalachia

Once a month, a group of men in t-shirts, jeans, and baseball caps gather around a long table at the New River Health Clinic. The clinic, a small, one-story yellow clapboard building, is located in the tiny town of Scarbro, nestled in the bituminous hills of southern West Virginia. The members of the Fayette County Black Lung Association greet each other by name while they pour bitter black coffee into small Styrofoam cups. In the early 1970s, coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, or black lung, affected around one-third of long-term underground miners. After new dust regulations took effect, rates of black lung plunged. Today, however, they are once again rising dramatically, ... Amidst the chatter and the coffee are the coughs. Some of the men hack loudly, others more quietly. All of them have advanced black lung, a disease they acquired working in the local mines. Although roughly 22% of underground miners smoke,1 compared with about 18% of U.S. adults in general,2 none of these men do. They gather not just as a support group but also to help one another complete the stacks of paperwork necessary to apply for government-mandated benefits for black lung and navigate the tortuous appeals process. Aside from the group’s leader, a bespectacled septuagenarian named Joe Massie, all the other members are in their 50s or early 60s. That’s relatively young for someone with advanced black lung, and other workers are getting sick even earlier. These miners, who have gotten so sick so fast, are on the forefront of a wave of new black lung cases that are sweeping through Appalachia. Scientists first noticed a troubling trend in 2005, when national surveillance conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) identified regional clusters of rapidly progressing severe black lung cases, especially in Appalachia.3 These concerns were confirmed in followup studies using a mobile medical unit providing outreach to coal mining areas,4,5 with later research showing that West Virginia was hit particularly hard.6 Between 2000 and 2012, the prevalence of the most severe form of black lung rose to levels not seen since the 1970s,7 when modern dust laws were enacted.8 Scarier still, the new generation of black lung patients have disease that in many cases progresses far more rapidly than in previous generations. Today, advanced black lung can be acquired within as little as 7.5–10 years of beginning work, says Edward Petsonk, a pulmonologist at West Virginia University. But not all cases progress so quickly; thus, occupational health researchers fear that what they are seeing now is only the tip of the iceberg.
Separation of bile acids of rat bile by thin-layer chromatography

The common bile acids of rat bile (chenodeoxycholic, hyodeoxycholic, cholic, alpha-muricholic, and beta-muricholic acids) are completely separated by a new thin-layer chromatographic system.
Stochastic dynamics of extended objects in driven systems: I. Higher-dimensional currents in the continuous setting

Abstract The probability distributions, as well as the mean values of stochastic currents and fluxes, associated with a driven Langevin process, provide a good and topologically protected measure of how far a stochastic system is driven out of equilibrium. By viewing a Langevin process on a compact oriented manifold of arbitrary dimension m as a theory of a random vector field associated with the environment, we are able to consider stochastic motion of higher-dimensional objects, which allow new observables, called higher-dimensional currents, to be introduced. These higher dimensional currents arise by counting intersections of a k -dimensional trajectory, produced by a evolving ( k - 1 ) -dimensional cycle, with a reference cross section, represented by a cycle of complimentary dimension ( m - k ) . We further express the mean fluxes in terms of the solutions of the Supersymmetric Fokker–Planck (SFP), thus generalizing the corresponding well-known expressions for the conventional currents.
Space charge probing with electron beam

A diffused monoenergetic electron beam of variable energy is used to measure space charge profiles in thin polyethylene terephthalate films. The method and a quantitative model used for the profile calculations are presented. Results are given of charge profiles set up both by electron beam deposition and by voltage poling. The method is shown to have a spatial resolution of about 0.5 pm and a minimum detectable charge density of about 10−4 C/cm3. Inherent experimental problems and potential uses of the method are discussed.
Solvable stochastic differential games in rank one compact symmetric spaces

ABSTRACTSome nonlinear stochastic differential games are formulated in the family of complex and quaternion projective spaces that are among the rank one compact symmetric spaces that consist of the spheres, the projective spaces over R,C , and H and one arising from an exceptional Lie algebra called the Cayley plane. The payoff functionals for the differential games are obtained from some eigenfunctions of the radial part of the Laplacians for these Riemannian manifolds and these payoffs induce symmetries for the game problems that reduce the required analysis to a radial direction in these manifolds. These projective spaces are given a natural Riemannian metric from the Killing forms of the compact Lie groups for these spaces that are the special unitary groups, SU(n), and the symplectic groups, Sp(n). Explicit optimal control strategies are obtained for these differential games and the explicit payoffs are given. A countable family of distinct solvable stochastic differential games can be obtained for ...
Predictors of acute gastrointestinal bleeding in diabetic ketoacidosis: a retrospective observational study in minority population.

Background Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a common acute complication of diabetes mellitus requiring aggressive medical management. We attempted to study the incidence and various clinical and laboratory variables associated with acute gastrointestinal bleeding (AGIB) and acute upper AGIB (AUGIB) in patients with DKA. Methods We conducted a retrospective chart review of all the patients admitted to our hospital with DKA between January 2010 and December 2015. We collected demographic, clinical, laboratory, endoscopy and hospitalization details using an electronic medical-record database. Patients were divided into two groups based on the occurrence of gastrointestinal bleeding. Results A total of 234 patients with DKA were admitted during this period, of which 27 (11.5%) patients had documented AGIB. The majority of patients had hematemesis (n=22, 9.4%) except two had rectal and three had occult bleeding. We did not notice any difference in age, gender and ethnicity distribution between the two groups. There was no difference in the serum levels of electrolytes, anion gap, pH and hemoglobin A1C between the two groups. However, patients with AGIB had significantly higher initial blood glucose levels (738 vs 613 mg/dL, p =0.014). There was also increased mortality (7.4% vs 4.8%) in patients with AGIB, but this did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion We conclude that higher initial serum blood glucose was associated with increased incidence of AGIB in patients admitted with DKA. We also noted increased in-patient mortality in patients with DKA who had AGIB, even though statistically insignificant. More aggressive measures to correct blood glucose levels may result in decreased incidence of AGIB, thereby reducing mortality during hospitalization in patients with DKA.
A Shared Authority: Essays on the Craft and Meaning of Oral and Public History. By Michael Frisch

On rare occasions a concept becomes so foundational that new scholars struggle to find a primary citation marking its emergence. For instance, where exactly does one go to cite the origin of the ne...
Contemporary Management of Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis in Children

Recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP) is a rare disease, yet represents the most common benign neoplasm of the larynx in children. While the primary symptom is hoarseness, these changes in voice may go unnoticed with potentially devastating consequences due to airway obstruction. This chapter will focus on the contemporary management of RRP in children. Virology will be discussed briefly, focusing specifically on disease severity. Clinical features, including history, physical exam, and airway endoscopy with staging assessment, will be provided. The main emphasis will be directed at surgical management including cold-steel, microdebrider, and laser techniques, as well as anesthesia considerations. A brief discussion on combination therapy, in which adjuvant treatment is paired with surgical management, will be reviewed. Finally, we will present novel opportunities for personalized medicine using cell culture techniques on tumor specimens.
Does Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Reduce Maternal Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Among Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder?

ABSTRACTMaternal stress, anxiety, and depression are associated with ineffective parenting strategies for families of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). We present the use of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) with three mother-child dyads to reduce maternal stress, anxiety, and depression and child disruptive behavior in children with ASD. Results included increases in positive parenting skills, and decreases in maternal anxiety, depression, and stress, as well as child behavior problems. PCIT is a promising alternative to more intensive and costly interventions, both at reducing disruptive behaviors and improving maternal health. Implications of PCIT for dyads affected by ASD are discussed.
On the Algebraic Structure of Convergence

Current self-healing systems are built from “convergent” actions that only make repairs when necessary. Using an algebraic model of system administration, we challenge the traditional notion of “convergence” and propose a stronger definition with improved algebraic properties. Under the new definition, the structure of traditional configuration management systems is a natural emergent property of the algebraic model. We discuss the impact of the new definition, as well as the changes required in current convergent tools in order to conform to the new definition.
Kidney offer acceptance at programs undergoing a Systems Improvement Agreement.

In the United States, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) use Systems Improvement Agreements (SIAs) to require transplant programs repeatedly flagged for poor-performance to improve performance or lose CMS funding for transplants. We identified 14 kidney transplant (KT) programs with SIAs and 28 KT programs without SIAs matched on waitlist volume and characterized kidney acceptance using SRTR data from 12/2006-3/2015. We used difference-in-differences linear regression models to identify changes in acceptance associated with an SIA independent of program variation and trends prior to the SIA. SIA programs accepted 26.9% and 22.1% of offers pre- and post-SIA, while non-SIA programs accepted 33.9% and 44.4% of offers in matched time periods. After adjustment for donor characteristics, time-varying waitlist volume, and secular trends, SIAs were associated with a 5.9 percentage-point (22%) decrease in kidney acceptance (95% CI: -10.9 to -0.8, P = .03). The decrease in acceptance post-SIA was more pronounced for KDPI 0-40 kidneys (12.3 percentage-point decrease, P = .007); reductions in acceptance of higher KDPI kidneys occurred pre-SIA. Programs undergoing SIAs substantially reduced acceptance of kidney offers for waitlisted candidates. Attempts to improve posttransplant outcomes might have the unintended consequence of reducing access to transplantation as programs adopt more restrictive organ selection practices.
Does Mandatory Disclosure of Internal Control Weaknesses Affect Corporate Financing Decisions

We examine the impact of internal control weaknesses (ICWs) on firms’ financing choices and how firms alter their financing behavior after the mandated disclosure of ICWs. We find that, before disclosure, ICW firms tend to seek external financing more than non-ICW firms do and are more likely to use equity financing as opposed to debt. After the disclosure, however, ICW and non-ICW firms exhibit similar financing preferences. In exploring the motivations for equity financing, we find that ICW firms are more prone than non-ICW firms to use the equity proceeds to fund investments and that this penchant disappears post-disclosure. The overall evidence indicates that ICW disclosure alters the information environment and managerial incentives, which has significant impact on firms’ financing decisions.
Reversing the view of ‘political pilgrims’: re-examining Italian travelogues about China in the 1950s

Scholars often consider the mostly positive representations of China by Italian visitors in the 1950s as the false and embellished depictions of political pilgrims. This article challenges this ove...
Graph Geometry, Quantized Groups and Non-Amenable Subfactors

The symmetry structure of the quantized space are discussed. The associated structures of the quantized group are also elaborated. The quantized group concept shows that graphs, connections, interwines, harmonic analysis, etc., are part of structures of the symmetries of the non commutative space. All these can be viewed as continuation of John Van Neuman’s program of using operator algebras in the description of quantum mechanics and field theory.
Spatial Audio on the Web - Create, Compress, and Render

The recent surge of VR and AR has spawned an interest in spatial audio beyond its traditional delivery over loudspeakers in, e.g., home theater environments, to headphone delivery over, e.g., mobile devices. In this talk we'll discuss a web-based approach to spatial audio. It will cover creating real-time spatial audio directly in the browser, data compression of the audio for immersive media, and efficient binaural rendering.
Exploring entrepreneurial architecture for the service industries: the emerging role of storytelling in higher education

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between entrepreneurial architecture and diversity and its significance to service based industries. This research explored how entrepreneu...
Obstacles to participation in carbon sequestration for nonindustrial private forest landowners in the southern United States: A diffusion of innovations perspective

Abstract Forest carbon sequestration, resulting in increased carbon storage in forests, is an effective tool for climate change mitigation. Nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) landowner participation is crucial for increasing carbon stocks in the southern United States forests. Carbon sequestration is a relatively new practice, so NIPF landowners are expected to have varied adoption responses depending on their different internal (socioeconomic, financial, and forest structure factors) and external (environmental, governmental policy, and market factors) environments. This study identified major obstacles for NIPF participation in carbon sequestration and grouped landowners into adoption categories with respect to carbon sequestration using the diffusion of innovations model. Principal component analysis was used to identify five major obstacles to participation in carbon sequestration programs: revenue implications, forest characteristics, owner preferences, normative reasons, and understanding. NIPF landowners were grouped into three adoption categories: adopters (18%), majority (60%) and laggards (22%). The adopters, compared to the other categories, were richer, more educated, relatively younger, and owned larger landholdings. These results provide a valuable insight about the adoption behavior of NIPF landowners with respect to climate change mitigation programs in the southern United States. Program planners and outreach professionals should consider these NIPF landowner adoption categories and the role of peer landowners in promoting new programs and policies for developing effective mitigation strategies.
Accelerating Diverse Leader Readiness Through Foresight and Futures Thinking

This chapter highlights Mayo Clinic’s journey to accelerating diverse leader readiness through foresight and futures thinking. Workforce leadership diversity has a substantial impact on organizational economic, political, and cultural wellbeing. Research still places women in < 5% of CEO positions (Chira in New York Times, 2017; Kaiser and Wallace in Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research 68:72, 2016), and suggests the inability to recruit and retain women and ethnic minorities in healthcare professions puts the future of academic medicine in jeopardy (cited by Murrell and South-Paul in Mentoring diverse leaders, Routledge, New York, NY, pp. 85–103, 2017). The challenge lies in sustainable strategies to close the gap and promote a culture where all levels of leadership are more inclusive of women and ethnic minorities (Johns 2013). Mayo Clinic discovered a dearth of preparation for leadership that mirrors the global society. These findings resulted in a targeted development program to ensure a diverse leadership talent pool is prepared to effectively lead with fortitude and impact through rapid global, technological, and environmental changes.
Evolutionary dynamics of hybridization and introgression following the recent colonization of Glossy Ibis (Aves: Plegadis falcinellus) into the New World.

Geographic range shifts can cause secondary contact and hybridization between closely related species, revealing mechanisms of species formation and integrity. These dynamics typically play out in restricted geographic regions, but highly vagile species may experience major distributional changes resulting in broad areas of contact. The Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) is a dispersive waterbird of the Old World and Australia that colonized eastern North America in the early 19th century and came into contact with the native White-faced Ibis (P. chihi). Putative hybrids between the two species have been observed across North America. To examine the population genomic consequences of this natural invasion, we sequenced 4,616 ultraconserved elements from 66 individuals sampled across the distributions of falcinellus, chihi, and the Puna Ibis (P. ridgwayi) of South America. We found genomic differentiation among the three species. Loci with high sequence divergence were often shared across all pairwise species comparisons, were associated with regions of high nucleotide diversity, and were concentrated on the Z chromosome. We detected signals of genetic admixture between chihi and falcinellus in individuals both near and far from their core area of sympatry. Genomic cline analyses revealed evidence of greater introgression into falcinellus from chihi, but we found little evidence for selection against hybrids. We also found signals of admixture between ridgwayi and South American populations of chihi. Our results indicate vagile species can experience pervasive introgression upon secondary contact, although we suggest these dynamics may be more ephemeral than the stable hybrid zones often observed in less dispersive organisms.
Invaded by Cancer, and the Patient is Me

A cancer diagnosis is life-altering. Each patient situation is unique, including response to the news, approach to available treatment options, and insight into every aspect of life. As a pharmacist, the author shares personal insights into living with a cancer diagnosis, her new role as a patient, her perspective as a pharmacist, processing the reactions of those surrounding her, and what she's learning about herself through all of this.
Mechanical stimulation improves osteogenesis and the mechanical properties of osteoblast‐laden RGD‐functionalized polycaprolactone/hydroxyapatite scaffolds

This article presents the results of the combined effects of RGD (arginine-glycine-aspartate) functionalization and mechanical stimulation on osteogenesis that could lead to the development of implantable robust tissue-engineered mineralized constructs. Porous polycaprolactone/hydroxyapatite (PCL/HA) scaffolds are functionalized with RGD-C (arginine-glycine-aspartate-cysteine) peptide. The effects of RGD functionalization are then explored on human fetal osteoblast cell adhesion, proliferation, osteogenic differentiation (alkaline phosphatase activity), extracellular matrix (ECM) production, and mineralization over 28 days. The effects of RGD functionalization followed by mechanical stimulation with a cyclic fluid shear stress of 3.93 mPa in a perfusion bioreactor are also elucidated. The tensile properties (Young's moduli and ultimate tensile strengths) of the cell-laden scaffolds are measured at different stages of cell culture to understand how the mechanical properties of the tissue-engineered structures evolve. RGD functionalization is shown to promote initial cell adhesion, proliferation, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, and ECM production. However, it does not significantly affect mineralization and tensile properties. Mechanical stimulation after RGD functionalization is shown to further improve the ALP activity, ECM production, mineralization, and tensile properties, but not cell proliferation. The results suggest that combined RGD functionalization and mechanical stimulation of cell-laden PCL/HA scaffolds can be used to accelerate the regeneration of robust bioengineered bone structures.
The Meaning of “Father’s House” (בית אב bêt ’āb) and a Chiastic Structure in Numbers 18.1-7:

The phrase bet ’ābikā “your father’s house” in Num 18.1 is often translated as referring to the Levites or the Kohathites. I suggest the reference is, rather, to Aaron’s own family and descendants....
Quantification of Estrogen Concentration in a Creek Receiving Wastewater Treatment Plant Effluent

Estrogen in streams threatens aquatic animals, especially where wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent contributes to baseflow. We investigated total estrogen (E1+E2+E3) as estradiol equivalent (E2) and ethynylestradiol (EE2) concentration in Cibolo Creek (Cibolo), a groundwater-fed stream near San Antonio, TX, receiving effluent via two WWTP. We collected water samples bi-monthly from late spring to early fall 2018 in Cibolo and WWTP effluent, and used ELISA analysis and discharge measurements to determine concentrations and loads of estrogens. We measured several environmental variables to investigate what factors influenced estrogen concentrations in Cibolo downstream from WWTP inputs. Mean concentrations of WWTP effluent (E2, 41.43 ± 15.48; EE2, 11.40 ± 2.07 ng L−1) were higher compared with concentrations in Cibolo, both downstream (E2, 30.09 ± 25.85; EE2, 6.33 ± 1.92 ng L−1) and upstream (E2, 12.91 ± 11.12; EE2, 4.5 ± 1.38 ng L−1) of WWTP inputs. Both E2 and EE2 concentrations decreased downstream from WWTP inputs, a section of stream without large quantities of fine sediments for sorption, indicating potential dilution or chemical and biological degradation. Effluent into Cibolo via the first, and older, WWTP contributed the most estrogen load in Cibolo. Median concentrations of E2 and EE2 were 19 and 5 ng L−1, respectively, downstream of WWTP inputs, concentrations known to affect reproductive processes of aquatic biota and impair human health. Results suggest estrogens may pose a risk to aquatic ecosystems wherever WWTP effluent comprises a majority of baseflow, though further studies are required in this stream to verify biological impacts.
State-of-the-art review of morphological advancements in graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) for sustainable hydrogen production

Abstract Considering the technological benefits, the generation of hydrogen (H2) via solar-powered enabled water splitting is not only an ideal route to harvest and stock the sustainable sun-energy for meeting the increasing energy demands but also to mitigate the global warming by reducing carbon footprints. Ideally, the photocatalyst involved in the process of solar-to-hydrogen (STH) production should remain unaffected by the undesirable catalytic processes and charge separation and transportation taking place at its surface. In the quest of lowering down the cost of producing H2, the challenge of developing a cheaper photocatalyst material which can efficiently split water into hydrogen has become more prominent. Although, the metal-free semiconductor graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN or g-C3N4), owing to its 2D architecture and apposite band-energy gap and relatively lower production cost has shown immense potential in H2 production via water splitting, yet the concerns for its low specific surface area (SSA) and rich defect density have limited its photocatalytic performance and water-splitting efficiency. This mini review features the recent research accomplishments made in the design strategies of g-CN nanostructures based on its pore texture/surface area tailoring, dimensionality tuning, band-gap modulation, defect control, metal-doping and semiconductor heterojunction formation and the corresponding application in H2 generation. The reviewing of important state-of-the-art developments and prospect of high surface area g-C3N4 can provide new avenues in designing the g-CN with high SSA for utilization in H2 evolution, fuel cell, solar cell, supercapacitor and lithium battery.
Exploring Multidimensional Measurements for Pain Evaluation using Facial Action Units

Although pain is widely recognized to be a multidimensional experience, it is typically measured by unidimensional patient self-reported visual analog scale (VAS). However, self-reported pain is subjective, difficult to interpret and sometimes impossible to obtain. Machine learning models have been developed to automatically recognize pain at both the frame level and sequence (or video) level. Many methods use or learn facial action units (AUs) defined by the Facial Action Coding System (FACS) for describing facial expressions with muscle movement. In this paper, we analyze the relationship between sequence-level multidimensional pain measurements and frame-level AUs and an AU derived pain-related measure, the Prkachin and Solomon Pain Intensity (PSPI). We study methods that learn sequence-level metrics from frame-level metrics. Specifically, we explore an extended multitask learning model to predict VAS from human-labeled AUs with the help of other sequence-level pain measurements during training. This model consists of two parts: a multitask learning neural network model to predict multidimensional pain scores, and an ensemble learning model to linearly combine the multidimensional pain scores to best approximate VAS. Starting from human-labeled AUs, the model achieves a mean absolute error (MAE) on VAS of 1.73. It outperforms provided human sequence-level estimates which have an MAE of 1.76. Combining our machine learning model with the human estimates gives the best performance of MAE on VAS of 1.48.
Anxiety and depressive symptoms in U.S. Census Bureau assessments of adults: Trends from 2019 to fall 2020 across demographic groups.

BACKGROUND: Events from spring to fall 2020, including the COVID-19 pandemic, hate crimes, and social unrest, may have impacted mental health, particularly mood and anxiety disorders. This study compares rates of positive screens for anxiety and depressive disorders in separate U.S. national samples from 2019 and April to September 2020. The analysis includes trends within demographic groups, which have received scant attention. METHODS: Nationally representative probability samples of U.S. adults administered by the U.S. Census Bureau (n = 1.3 million) completed the PHQ-2 screening for depressive disorder and the GAD-2 screening for anxiety disorder. RESULTS: U.S. adults in 2020 were four times more likely to screen positive for depressive and anxiety disorders than in 2019, with the largest increases among males, 18- to 29-year-olds (for depression), Asian Americans, and parents with children in the home. Anxiety and depression rose and fell in tandem with the number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., as well as increasing during the early June weeks of racial justice protests. CONCLUSIONS: Screens for mood and anxiety disorders remained at elevated levels in spring, summer, and fall 2020, especially among certain groups.
Attack dynamics and impacts of emerald ash borer on wild white fringetree populations

North American forests have been heavily impacted from the loss of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) due to emerald ash borer (EAB, Agrilus planipennis) invasion. Recently, white fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus), an ash relative, has been found to support the development of EAB in ornamental plantings, but interactions between EAB and this plant have never been examined in wild populations. We monitored two wild white fringetree populations in Ohio throughout the invasion wave of EAB to examine its impacts and factors that increased the likelihood of attack. Within 2 years of study initiation, the majority of white ash (F. americana) were attacked by EAB in these areas, in contrast to a few individual fringetrees. By the end of 5 years, however, EAB attacked up to 30% of white fringetrees and caused branch mortality in several individual plants. The percentage of white fringetrees attacked was significantly lower than in white ash trees, the majority of ash died due to EAB. Those fringetrees that were attacked displayed signs of stress, including epicormic branching and canopy thinning, both symptoms of larval damage by EAB. Our results provide the first reported findings of the dynamics and impact of EAB on wild white fringetree populations.
Re-theorising the genocide–ecocide nexus: Raphael Lemkin and ecocide in the Amazon

The genocide–ecocide nexus has become the topic of a small but growing body of scholarly literature. This literature has largely relied on the original concept of genocide as developed by Raphael L...
Radiation Induced Rectal Toxicity

The incidence of late radiation-induced bowel toxicity has been reported to range from 5 to 20 %. Molecularly, NF-KB and COX-2 play important roles in the pathophysiology of radiation induced colitis. Acutely, radiation impairs the proliferative ability of the intestinal mucosa resulting in a deficit in cell re-population while the differentiated cells continue to shed. Chronic radiation injury to the bowel is manifested by a progressive vasculitis leading to thrombosis of small arteries and arterioles resulting in varying degrees of ischemia of the bowel wall. Bleeding is the most common symptom of chronic radiation proctitis compared to acute radiation proctitis where bleeding is relatively uncommon. The classic endoscopic findings of radiation proctitis include prominent telangiectasia, erythema, and friability. In patients receiving high dose rate (HDR) implants for gynecologic malignancies, a higher dose per fraction increases the rate of proctitis. Rectal bleeding was found to correlate with anorectal V55–V65 with V65 being the most significant parameter while stool frequency correlated with anorectal V40.
The prevalence of neonatal morbidities associated with late-preterm birth

Abstract Objective Obstetrical and medical complications in pregnancy may necessitate delivery between 34 and 37 weeks' gestation. To assist decision making and patient counseling, we sought to determine the prevalence of neonatal morbidities between 34 and 37 weeks' gestation. Study design Retrospective cohort study of live births was conducted at our institution over a seven year period. Multiple gestations and congenital anomalies were excluded. The prevalence of neonatal morbidities between 34 and 37 were calculated. Results 1060 births between weeks 34–36 and 975 births occurred during week 37. Gestational age was inversely related to NICU admission, days in NICU, intubation, poor feeding, hyperbilirubinemia, and respiratory distress (p Conclusion There is decreased neonatal morbidity for each week gained between 34 and 37 weeks' gestation.
Changes in IgG sialylation and glycosylation in pulmonary arterial hypertension (1089.3)

Rationale: Anti-endothelial cell antibodies are found in both idiopathic and connective tissue disease associated pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). IgG is the most abundant immunoglobulin and ...
Compartmental analysis of collagen synthesis in fetal rat calvaria. I. Perturbations of proline transport.

Abstract We formulated a mathematical model with steady state and nonsteady state features for describing proline uptake and utilization in fetal rat calvaria. Conclusions based on our model include the following: 1. 1. Proline entering the cell first passes through a protein precursor pool from which protein synthesis originates. 2. 2. Rates of proline influx control the size of this precursor pool. 3. 3. Proline influx, efflux, and incorporation of proline into protein are related by saturable mechanisms to proline concentration in their respective pools of origin. 4. 4. Amino acids which are not incorporated into protein can inhibit proline incorporation into protein as well as proline transport.
Nuclear Distribution of Aflatoxin B1 and Its Interaction with Histones in Rat Liver in Vivo

Abstract The distribution and retention of [3H]aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) residues in rat liver nuclear fractions were determined at 0.5, 2, 12, and 36 hr following administration of a single i.p. dose of [3H]AFB1 (1 mg/kg body weight). Approximately 85 to 90% of the nuclear-bound AFB1 was associated with chromatin 2 hr after aflatoxin treatment, with the remainder present in the nucleoplasmic fraction. Further fractionation of the chromatin showed that approximately 80% of the aflatoxin residues was bound to the DNA, 10% was removed by dialysis, and the remaining 10% was recoverable in the dialyzed chromatin protein fraction. The apparent rate of removal of aflatoxin residues from DNA was twice as fast (t1/2 = 12 hr) as that from the chromatin proteins (1/2 = 24 hr). Liver nucleoplasmic and chromatin proteins were separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate:polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. No major differences were observed in the Coomassie Blue dye-binding patterns of control and AFB1-treated animals for at least 36 hr postdosing. Although no significant radiolabeled protein peaks were detected in the nucleoplasmic fraction, two major peaks, accounting for 50 to 60% of the total activity applied to the gel, were observed at each time point in the chromatin protein fraction, with apparent molecular weights of 15,000 and 30,000. Approximately 5 to 10% of the total nuclear-bound aflatoxin residues were associated with these proteins, which were identified as histones by their extraction in 0.25 n HCI and their fractionation patterns on polyacrylamide gel filtration columns and acid:urea gel electrophoresis. Specific activity measurements demonstrated that histone H1 was the major protein target for [3H]AFB1 residue binding with an adduction level 3 to 4 times higher than that for any other histone. A linear, dose-dependent relationship for the binding of [3H]AFB1 residues to DNA, histone H1, and the total histone population was noted over a 16-fold dose range (0.125 to 2.0 mg AFB1 per kg). Turnover rates of rat liver histones as a function of AFB1 exposure were determined by labeling the amino acids of histones by i.p. injection of sodium [14C]bicarbonate 22 hr prior to treatment with the toxin and sacrificing the animals up to 4 days following the dosage protocol. The half-life of histone H1 and the total histone population was identical (approximately 3.5 days) in both control and AFB1-treated rats. However, the rate of removal of [3H]AFB1 residues following either a 0.125-or a 1.0-mg/kg dose was 3 to 4 times faster (t1/2 = approximately 1 day) than was the decrease in specific activity of the 14C-labeled histone backbone.
Media Portal of Alcohol Usage

Abstract Alcohol abuse remains a continuing problem throughout many cultures. Researchers have suggested that a contributing factor to alcohol abuse may be the ways in which the media portray alcohol usage in television programming. This study investigates the ways in which Korean television programming portrays alcohol usage and the potential linkages to alcohol abuse in that country.
A computer based study of the yaw/ roll stability of heavy trucks characterized by high centers of gravity

A class of heavy truck vehicles, characterized primarily by high centers of gravity, was studied using analysis and computer simulation to identify and understand the relationship between directional and roll stability of such vehicles during steady turning maneuvers. Findings of the computer based study suggest: (1) directional instability (yaw divergence) is possible for such vehicles during steady turning while operating at elevated speeds on horizontal road surfaces, (2) yaw divergence will lead to rollover in the absence of corrective steering action and/ or reduced speed, and (3) the primary mechanism responsible for precipitating yaw divergent behavior in such vehicles is the non linear sensitivity of truck tire cornering stiffness to vertical load acting in combination with typical heavy truck fore/ aft roll stiffness distributions. In addition, the influences of roadway superelevation and driver steering control as contributors to vehicle stabilization are examined and discussed (a).
Public Policies and Financial Exigencies: Black Colleges Twenty Years Later, 1965–1985

Often black colleges and universities are studied as a homogeneous amalgam of institutions, as though they have one identity that makes them capable of being understood as a single entity. Yet informed scholarship recognizes the opposite to be true. While claiming common ground in their circumstances of founding, black colleges differ considerably in their academic quality, financial health, physical facilities, student body attributes, and faculty strength. This discussion recognizes and acknowledges the diversity among these institutions. Although the limitations of space impose the use of some generalizations, every attempt is made to give as fair and balanced an assessment of the colleges as possible. Specifically, the purpose of this article is to delve into the financial progress made by historically black colleges and universities in the twenty years from 1965 to 1985 as the result of increased federal and state attention. Why scrutinize this particular period? Quite simply, it was one of the most progressive eras in black history and in American higher education. Those two decades witnessed passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the Higher Education Act of
High‐order methods for low Reynolds number flows around moving obstacles based on universal meshes

Summary We propose a family of methods for simulating two-dimensional incompressible, low Reynolds number flow around a moving obstacle whose motion is prescribed. The methods make use of a universal mesh: a fixed background mesh that adapts to the geometry of the immersed obstacle at all times by adjusting a few elements in the neighborhood of the obstacle's boundary. The resulting mesh provides a conforming triangulation of the fluid domain over which discretizations of any desired order of accuracy in space and time can be constructed using standard finite element spaces together with off-the-shelf time integrators. We demonstrate the approach by using Taylor-Hood elements to approximate the fluid velocity and pressure. To integrate in time, we consider implicit Runge-Kutta schemes as well as a fractional step scheme. We illustrate the methods and study their convergence numerically via examples that involve flow around obstacles that undergo prescribed deformations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Multiple vehicle tracking in surveillance videos

In this paper, we present KNIGHT, a Windows-based stand-alone object detection, tracking and classification software, which is built upon Microsoft Windows technologies. The object detection component assumes stationary background settings and models background pixel values using Mixture of Gaussians. Gradient-based background subtraction is used to handle scenarios of sudden illumination change. Connected-component algorithm is applied to detected foreground pixels for finding object-level moving blobs. The foreground objects are further tracked based on a pixel-voting technique with the occlusion and entry/exit reasonings. Motion correspondences are established using the color, size, spatial and motion information of objects. We have proposed a texture-based descriptor to classify moving objects into two groups: vehicles and persons. In this component, feature descriptors are computed from image patches, which are partitioned by concentric squares. SVM is used to build the object classifier. The system has been used in the VACE-CLEAR evaluation forum for the vehicle tracking task. Corresponding system performance is presented in this paper.
A satisficing approach to free flight

Proposed enhancements to centralized air traffic control lead to a distributed control scheme giving pilots more autonomy but requiring more support for on-board decision-making. Satisficing decision theory offers a useful framework for intelligent decision support in distributed multiagent systems. Satisficing theory uses social utility functions that enhance the ability of the agents to perform cooperatively. Simulations of air traffic demonstrate that systems of autonomous agents employing satisficing decision-making are viable, in terms of both performance and computational overhead.
Comparison between slow sodium channel inactivation in rat slow‐ and fast‐twitch muscle.

1. Voltage-clamp Na+ currents (INa) were studied in rat soleus slow-twitch muscle fibres at about 18 degrees C using the loose-patch-clamp technique. The maximum inward current density was produced by depolarizations to about -19 mV. 2. Fast inactivation was studied utilizing 20 ms conditioning potentials. INa was reduced by 50% with conditioning potentials to about -70 mV. 3. Changes in the conditioning membrane potential produced slow changes in the peak INa due to a slow inactivation process. INa was reduced by 50% at about -86 mV due to slow inactivation. 4. The mean maximum inward INa when slow inactivation was fully removed was 6.83 mA cm-2. 5. Due to the slow inactivation process, slow-twitch fibres were less susceptible to reduction in INa than fast-twitch fibres.
Approach to Red Eye for Primary Care Practitioners

A red eye is a common presenting complaint in the primary care setting. Redness of the eye indicates the presence of ocular inflammation, and most commonly represents benign conditions that can be readily treated by the primary care provider. However, there are emergent conditions that can present as a red eye. Primary care providers must readily recognize the danger signs that indicate these more serious ophthalmologic conditions that warrant immediate referral to an ophthalmologist.
Simple passive valves for addressable pneumatic actuation

We present a method for setting the pressure of multiple chambers using a single pressure source when they are interconnected via band-pass valves. These valves can be constructed from simple passive devices that behave like leaky check valves. We present the theory of operation and design parameters for individual valves, give a control strategy for serial connections of pressure chambers, and demonstrate the approach by building prototype valves and using them to control serially connected soft-robotic actuators from a single
Study on Large-signal Linearity and Efficiency of AlGaN/GaN MODFETs

Linearity and efficiency of AlGaN/GaN MODFETs were investigated under large-signal conditions. The power-added-efficiency (PAE) of 0.25×200 ?m2 devices was found to be ~33% and ?45% without and with harmonic tuning. Third-order Intermodulation (IMD3) was also measured using the two-tone technique. Third-order Intercept Point (IP3) of ~ 29 dBm at Pin=15 dBm was obtained at f0=5 GHz (?f= 10 MHz). Load-pull contours showed that the impedance values for best PAE and Pout are very close. IP3 was found to be insensitive to the gate bias voltage. In addition, high efficiency and high linearity can be achieved simultaneously with the assistance of harmonic termination.
“Things Are Different Down Here”: The 1955 Perfect Circle Strike, Conservative Civic Identity, and the Roots of the New Right in the 1950s Industrial Heartland

The article examines the history of the violent 1955 Perfect Circle strike to join the growing body of labor history scholarship that rejects the existence of a postwar “labor-management accord.” Contrary to previous depictions of a postwar “class peace,” the small-town industrial Midwest stood as a key battleground between unionized workers and competitive-sector employers such as the Indiana-based Perfect Circle Corporation, a small, family-owned manufacturer, a model welfare capitalist firm, and one of the nation's leading automotive parts producers. Driven by their desire to hold down labor costs and their own antistatist ideology, Perfect Circle's owners had opposed the New Deal and, by the late 1930s, had shed their previous provincialism to join the national political coalition of business conservatives in the National Association of Manufacturers to secure the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947. During the Cold War era, even while they were extending their political reach and expanding their operations overseas, Perfect Circle's owners sought to forge labor-management unity by promoting a quaint vision of “heartland consensus,” a conservative civic identity that management was convinced would render unions unnecessary. As with many business conservatives, Perfect Circle owners tried to rid their plants of unions by tapping into an interlocking network of well-financed right-wing policy groups to mount an extensive employee educational program and public relations campaign in defense of “free enterprise.” Despite Perfect Circle's vigorous efforts to undercut unionization, by 1953 the majority of workers at all four of its east-central Indiana plants voted to affiliate with the United Auto Workers (UAW). Conflict between labor and management culminated in the violent 1955 strike, in which Perfect Circle handed the UAW a decisive defeat while enjoying widespread support from the regional and national press. The strike became a conservative cause celebre during the 1957 national “right-to-work” campaign and a centerpiece of the Senate's 1958 McClellan “Labor Rackets” hearings, which launched Barry Goldwater's bid for the 1964 presidency. The article concludes that Perfect Circle and many other employers not only continued to contest unions in the 1950s but also played a neglected but important role in the formation of the New Right.
Subordinating Courage to Justice: Statecraft and Soulcraft in Fourth-Century Athenian Rhetoric and Platonic Political Philosophy

Abstract After discussing the relationship of courage to justice in modern and ancient political thought, this paper explores the debate between Athenian democratic orators and Plato on the subject of andreia , or “manly courage.” While the orators set andreia in a particular relation to justice by embedding andreia within a salvific narrative of the city9s history, Plato used the figure of Callicles to draw attention to the democrats9 self-serving construal of andreia within their own politics. Plato9s arguments suggest that statecraft must begin with a deeper “soulcraft” than Athenian politics is capable of.