cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Viewpoint: Reforming Christians or Converting Non-Christians?

As Martin Luther, John Calvin, and the other Protestant Reformers developed their theological positions they also developed deep missiological commitments. Millions of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, animists, and others knew little or nothing about the Bible and had not accepted Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Reformers knew the long history and ongoing work of Roman Catholic missionaries among non-Christian peoples. They quickly become convicted of their obligation to proclaim the Protestant way of being a Christian to non-Christian peoples. Therefore, they launched a systematic plan of global mission. They would not only work to reform the church from within but also to convert non-Christians to Jesus Christ.
Magnesium Requirement of the Chick

During studies on simplified rations for chicks it became evident that one deficiency in the rations was of a mineral nature. The deficient inorganic growth-promoting substance was subsequently identified as magnesium. As a result of these studies it has been shown that the magnesium requirement of the chick is comparatively high, sufficiently so as to constitute a very influential factor in experimental chick diets. The purified diet used in this work has been described elsewhere.1 Without a magnesium supplement, the diet contained approximately 40 p.p.m. of magnesium.Four quantitative experiments have been conducted. Magnesium was added to the diet as the sulphate (Mg content determined by analysis) to provide various levels of magnesium up to 600 p.p.m. The growth rates of chicks fed diets containing added magnesium at 120, 240, and 250 p.p.m. were in every case lower than the growth rates at 350, 450, 480, and 600 p.p.m. 350 p.p.m. may have been a barely adequate supplementary level. The growth rates ...
A Comparison of Alternative Procedures for Collecting Consumer Expenditure Data for Frequently Purchased Products

This pilot study on alternative means of obtaining consumer expenditure data finds that compensation clearly increased both the level of cooperation and expenditures reported, that government versus university auspices does not make much difference, and that diaries seem to yield more complete and accurate information than telephone procedures, although the latter approach may be very useful for supplementary purposes.
Microbial killing by human neutrophil cytokineplasts: similar suppressive effects of reversible and irreversible inhibitors of nitric oxide synthase

Employing anucleate, granule-poor, motile fragments from human blood neutrophils (cytokineplasts; CKP), we previously provided evidence for a new staphylococcal killing pathway for human neutrophils involving reactive nitrogen intermediates: the NO synthase inhibitor N(omega)-monomethyl-L-arginine (NMMA), an analogue of L-arginine (L-Arg), substantially decreased the killing capacity of CKP for Staphylococcus aureus (Staph), an effect reversible by excess L-Arg but not D-Arg. We have extended these findings to two irreversible NO synthase inhibitors: the first, N-iminoethyl-L-ornithine (L-NIO), is an L-Arg analogue; the other, diphenyleneiodonium (DPI), is not. After 60 min of incubation with bacteria, despite having taken up somewhat fewer staphylococci than did controls, cytoplasts treated with NO synthase inhibitors had many more live, CKP-associated bacteria: for NMMA, 6.9 times more (40.0% of the inoculum vs. 5.8%; n = 8, P = 0.003); for L-NIO, 3.6 times more (25.5 vs. 7%; n = 4, P = 0.004); for DPI, 5.8 times more (37.4 vs. 6.4%; n = 7, P = 0.002). Results were similar after only 20 min of incubation. In two experiments in which the Gram-negative bacterium, Serratia marcescens, was employed instead of Staph, the results were again similar. In contrast, killing of either bacterium by intact neutrophils (PMN) was not inhibited by NMMA, by L-NIO, or by DPI, a failure most likely attributable to their granule content. The irreversible inhibitors of NO synthase will be especially useful in analyzing particular effects on CKP employed in multicellular systems.
Obesity and weight gain among former World Trade Center workers and volunteers

A high prevalence of obesity has been observed among former World Trade Center (WTC) workers and volunteers. We hypothesized that unemployment and disability status would predict obesity. We surveyed 220 participants at the 
 Mount Sinai WTC Clinical Center to assess their obesity and current employment and disability status, WTC occupational exposure level, medical comorbidities, and dietary and exercise habits. Bivariate and logistic regression multivariate analyses were used to explore associated risk factors. Obesity was associated with active employment status. Other significant covariates included non-Latino African American race, having a high number of comorbid chronic diseases, low exercise frequency, and not drinking any glass of juice daily. The association of obesity with active employment suggests that interventions that favor healthy habits among actively employed individuals are warranted.
Update on acne.

SUMMARY In summary, the therapy of acne has to be individualized according to the nature of the lesions. Noninflammatory acne requires a different therapeutic approach from that for inflammatory acne, and even among those with inflammatory acne, there can be a difference in the therapeutic approach, depending upon the extent of involvement. Attention to the principles of therapy will be a great aid in the success of the therapeutic program for acne.
Dantrolene and basal ileal sodium and chloride transport: involvement of calcium stores

The effect of dantrolene on active ion transport in rabbit ileum was determined using the Ussing chamber short-circuiting technique. Dantrolene prevents the release of calcium from intracellular stores in skeletal muscle and was used to probe the role of intracellular calcium stores in intestinal ion transport. A saturated solution of dantrolene (approx 25 microM) decreased ileal short-circuit current and potential difference, increased conductance and mucosal-to-serosal and net Na and Cl fluxes, but did not alter serosal-to-mucosal Na and Cl fluxes. The dantrolene stimulation of active Na and Cl absorption was specific since it did not alter glucose-dependent Na absorption, transport changes caused by Ca2+ ionophore A23187, or the increase in short-circuit current caused by dibutyryl cAMP or theophylline. These effects were associated with an increase in total ileal calcium content and a decreased rate of 45Ca2+ efflux without any change in 45Ca2+ influx from the serosal or mucosal surfaces. These findings are consistent with an effect of dantrolene to stimulate active ileal Na and Cl absorption by a mechanism involving lowered cytosol Ca2+ levels and compatible with trapping calcium in intracellular stores. It thus appears as if intracellular calcium stores have an important role in the control of basal ion transport in the intestine.
Impact of a Mental Illness Stigma Awareness Intervention on Pharmacy Student Attitudes and Knowledge

Objective. To determine if exposure to an intervention course impacts pharmacy students' mental health stigma (MHS) and mental health knowledge (MHK). Methods. A one-group pre/posttest intervention study of third-year pharmacy students (N=120) was conducted. Dependent variables were subdomains of MHS (recovery, safety, disclosure, separation, comfort) which were measured on a 5-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree; 5=strongly agree). Mental health knowledge was measured with 10 true/false questions. The 2.5-hour intervention included presentations, videos, discussions, and active-learning exercises. Pre/posttests were administered, and data were analyzed using paired t tests and McNemar's tests. Results. Among responding students (n=88; 73.3% response rate), the following stigma subdomains significantly decreased after the intervention for depression and schizophrenia: recovery, safety, separation, and comfort. Mental health knowledge scores significantly increased from 5.9 (1.5) to 6.8 (1.5). Conclusion. Pharmacy students' MHS and MHK related to depression and schizophrenia can be improved through a brief and interactive anti-stigma intervention.
Dark-Noise Analysis

This chapter provides an overview of the dark-noise analysis. The first step in the calibration of an electro-optical sensor is to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate the dark-noise signal. Such an evaluation can be obtained when the sensor aperture is blocked with a light-tight cover. The noise content of the dark signal provides for one measure of the sensor precision, or reproducibility, and for a measure of the false signal content of the output. The properties of the dark-noise output are a function of wavelength, or spectral scan position, of a spectrometer. A radiometer is a degenerate case of the spectrometer for which there is only one wavelength. The precision, or reproducibility, of the sensor is limited by the system noise. The variance of the dark-noise signal is a measure of the uncertainty in terms of either the output signal or the input flux. The statistical characteristics of the dark-noise output are approximated by the sample mean and the sample variance based on a set of measurements. The mean value and the standard deviation of the dark signal of a spectrometer are obtained by processing many scans over a relatively long time. The mean of the dark-noise output is frequently referred to as the offset error. The chapter also highlights dark-noise data processing.
In Vivo Angiography Quantifies Oxygen-Induced Retinopathy Vascular Recovery.

PURPOSE Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a potentially blinding vasoproliferative disease. There is no standardized way to quantify plus disease (tortuous and dilated retinal vessels) or characterize abnormal recovery during ROP monitoring. This study objectively studies vascular features in live mice during development using noninvasive retinal imaging. METHODS Using fluorescein angiography (FA), retinal vascular features were quantified in live mice with oxygen induced retinopathy (OIR). A total of 105 wild-type mice were exposed to 77% oxygen from postnatal day 7 (P7) till P12 (OIR mice). Also, 105 age-matched pups were raised in room air (RA mice). In vivo FA was performed at early (P16 to P20), mid (P23 to P27), late (P30 to P34), and mature (P47) phases of retinal vascular development. Retinal vascular area, retinal vein width, and retinal artery tortuosity were quantified. RESULTS Retinal artery tortuosity was higher in OIR than RA mice at early (p < 0.0001), mid (p < 0.0001), late (p < 0.0001), and mature (p < 0.0001) phases. Retinal vascular area in OIR mice increased from early to mid-phase (p < 0.0001), but remained unchanged from mid to late (p = 0.23), and from late to mature phase (p = 0.98). Retinal vein width was larger in OIR mice compared to RA mice during early phase only. Arteries in OIR mice were more tortuous from early to mid-phase (p < 0.0001), but tortuosity remained stable from mid through mature phase. RA mice had an increase in retinal vascular area from early to late phase, but maintained uniform retinal vein width and retinal artery tortuosity in all phases. CONCLUSIONS In vivo FA distinguished arterial and venous features, similar to plus disease, and revealed aberrant recovery of OIR mice (arterial tortuosity, reduced capillary density, and absent neovascular buds) that persisted into adulthood. Retinal artery tortuosity may be a reliable, objective marker of severity of ROP. Infants with abnormal retinal vascular recovery may need extended monitoring.
State-level actions following adoption of common core state standards for mathematics

The adoption of Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSS-M) by 45 states, the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands represents a historic landmark in curriculum governance in the United States. For the first time, a significant majority of K-12 teachers and students will focus on common learning expectations for mathematics. Coupled with common grade-level assessments aligned to CCSS-M currently under development by two state-led consortia—Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for Colleges and Careers (PARCC) and the Smarter Balance Assessment Consortium (SBAC)—this initiative has the potential to impact aspects of educational practice critical to K-12 students’ mathematical learning (e.g., teacher preparation and professional development, curriculum material development, and policies related to K-12 course-taking and graduation requirements).
Logical Form and Linguistic Theory

The concept of logical form has had almost as many ups and downs in language theory as the Dow Jones in Wall Street. It played an important role in the early decades of this century in the philosophy of language of the middle period Russell (1914) and of the early Wittgenstein (1929).1 Later, it has been appealed to by Davidson (1984) and Quine (1960).2 It was not much in evidence in Chomsky’s published oeuvre before the late seventies. Recently, however, it has been restored to a place of honor in the linguistic work inspired by Chomsky or carried out by him. Indeed, most of the work that has been labelled ‘Government and Binding Theory’ can be viewed as dealing essentially with the logical forms of natural-language sentences.3
Cocaine-Responsive miRNA and Blood Pressure Elevation

See related article, pp 752–760 Abuse of cocaine is a major societal problem that crosses the boundaries of user age, sex, race, and ethnicity. Cocaine use has surged since 2011, and nearly one million individuals in the United States initiate cocaine use annually.1 The financial impact of cocaine use in the United States includes costs associated with healthcare services, lost work productivity, and contact with the criminal justice system. Weekly use of cocaine, particularly in older adults, carries a high risk of cerebral and cardiovascular events, with 6800 deaths attributed to cocaine toxicity in 2015.2 The acute cardiovascular effects of cocaine are attributed primarily to block of catecholamine reuptake into central and peripheral sympathetic neurons. The elevated circulating and synaptic norepinephrine increases heart rate and contractility and mediates vasoconstriction and hypertension. Acute norepinephrine-independent effects of cocaine relate to its effect on proteins involved in cardiac signaling, including voltage-gated sodium, calcium and potassium channels, and calsequestrin.3,4 Ultimately, cocaine toxicity may trigger lethal cardiac arrhythmias, myocardial infarction, and stroke. In addition to acute cardiovascular effects, cocaine use also is implicated in the development of long-term and adverse cardiovascular consequences, including aortic stiffness and hypertension.5 The molecular pathways by which cocaine contributes to these diseases are poorly understood, but recognition of the pathways may allow for therapeutic intervention to lower cardiovascular risk in patients with a history of cocaine use. In this regard, Zhu et al6 provide an intriguing study in this issue of Hypertension , which identifies a cocaine-responsive microRNA in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) that mediates the development of aortic stiffness and hypertension in mice. For their studies, Zhu et al6 injected mice with cocaine (20 mg/kg IP …
A Preliminary Study of the Effects of Racialization and Humanness on the Verbal Abuse of Female-Gendered Robots

Recent research has indicated that people engage, and unabashedly so, in the verbal abuse of female-gendered robots. To understand whether this also cuts across racial lines, and furthermore, whether it differs from objectifying treatment of actual people, we conducted a preliminary mixed-methods investigation of online commentary on videos of three such robots -- Bina48, Nadine, and YangYang -- contrasted with commentary on videos of three women with similar identity cues. Analysis of the frequency and nature of abusive commentary suggests that: (1) the verbal abuse of the Bina48 and YangYang (two robots racialized as Black and Asian respectively) is laced with both subtle and overt racism; (2) people more readily engage in the verbal abuse of humanlike robots (versus other people). Not only do these findings reflect a concerning phenomenon, consideration is warranted as to whether people»s engagement in abusive interactions with humanlike robots could impact their subsequent interactions with other people.
Optimization Based WLAN Modeling and Design

This chapter describes strategies, software tools, and optimization models that may be used to design wireless local area networks. While most small scale WLAN deployments can be designed in an ad-hoc fashion, medium to large scale networks can benefit from a more methodical design approach. In one design strategy, RF signal strength data are sampled at various locations within a site. Measurements are then used to determine transmitter locations that ensure site wide coverage. This chapter describes approaches that belong to an alternate strategy, which relies on using special purpose software tools. These tools most often attempt to solve an underlying optimization problem maximizing either coverage or capacity. Some coverage models are simple and can be solved with existing commercial optimization software. Solution procedures for sophisticated capacity models with integer variables and nonlinear constraints are not solvable using current commercial optimization software. Therefore, many industrial and academic research groups rely upon metaheuristics for problem solution. The chapter concludes with a discussion of computational results that illustrate the application of two widely known metaheuristics to the WLAN design problem.
Use of multitoxin immunoaffinity columns for determination of aflatoxins and ochratoxin a in ginseng and ginger

Conditions were optimized for the simultaneous, alkaline, aqueous methanol extraction of aflatoxins (AFL), i.e., B1 (AFB1), B2 (AFB2), G1 (AFG1), and G2 (AFG2), and ochratoxin A (OTA) with subsequent purification, isolation, and determination of the toxins in ginseng and ginger. Powdered roots were extracted with methanol-0.5% NaHCO3 solution (7 + 3). After shaking and centrifugation, the supernatant was diluted with 100 mM phosphate buffer containing 1% Tween 20 and filtered through glass microfiber filter paper. The filtrate was then passed through an immunoaffinity column, and the toxins were eluted with methanol. The AFL were separated and determined by reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) with fluorescence detection after postcolumn UV photochemical derivatization. OTA was separated and determined by RPLC with fluorescence detection. Recoveries of AFL added at 2-16 ng/g and OTA added at 1-8 ng/g to ginseng were 72-80 and 86-95%, respectively. Recoveries of AFL and OTA added to ginger were similar to those for ginseng. A total of 39 commercially available ginger products from 6 manufacturers were analyzed. Twenty-six samples were found to be contaminated with AFL at 1-31 ng/g and 29 samples, with OTA at 1-10 ng/g. Ten samples contained no AFL or OTA. Ten ginseng finished products were also analyzed; 3 contained AFL at 0.1 ng/g and 4 contained OTA at levels ranging from 0.4 to 1.8 ng/g. LC/tandem mass spectrometry with multiple-reaction monitoring of 3 collisionally induced product ions from the protonated molecular ions of OTA, AFB1, and AFG1 was used to confirm the identities of the toxins in extracts of the finished products.
Directional preference of the extremity: a preliminary investigation

Background: Mechanical diagnosis and therapy (MDT) is a specific classification-based musculoskeletal examination and intervention system that uses repeated end range and sustained movement to classify patients into mechanical syndromes. Research has recently demonstrated increased prevalence, reliability, and efficacy of MDT syndromes in varied peripheral musculoskeletal populations. There is currently no research analyzing if predictive variables exist for establishing directional preference in peripheral joints, other than the wrist. The aim of this study was to examine the clinical application of predictive variables for establishing directional preference and spinal referral in patients with isolated peripheral joint pain. Case Description: Thirty-seven consecutive patients with isolated peripheral pain were evaluated and classified using MDT assessment. Secondary analysis of predetermined variables was performed for association with directional preference and identification of spinal referral in Derangement syndrome. Results: All 37 patients were classified using MDT assessment. Thirty-three (89.2%) were classified as Derangement syndrome: 17 as spinal Derangement (45.9%) and 16 as peripheral Derangement (43.2%). One peripheral derangement also had an underlying Articular Dysfunction. Additionally, there were four patients classified as Other (10.8%). Discussion: Historical and physical examination findings were analyzed to determine if there were associated variables of directional preference or spinal referral. Mechanical stress was found to be the most associated factor in predicting directional preference. No peripheral movement loss, paresthesia, and constant pain were more associated with spinal referral. These findings may lead to a greater understanding of peripheral MDT assessment, which may lead to increased identification of directional preference and improved patient outcomes. Level of Evidence: 4.
Characteristics and Outcomes in a Contemporary Group of Patients With Suspected Significant Mitral Stenosis Undergoing Treadmill Stress Echocardiography.

Background: In contemporary patients with suspected significant mitral stenosis (MS) undergoing rest and treadmill stress echocardiography, we assessed characteristics and factors associated with l...
Approximate Definitional Constructs as Lightweight Evidence for Detecting Classes Among Wikipedia Articles

A lightweight method applies a few extraction patterns to the task of distinguishing Wikipedia articles that are classes ("Walled garden", "Garden") from other articles ("High Hazels Park"). The method acquires a set of classes, based on patterns targeting phrases that likely refer to either concepts being introduced or defined ("a *walled garden* is a garden [..]"); or to concepts used to introduce or define other concepts ("a walled garden is a *garden* [..]"). Experimental results over multiple evaluation sets are better, when relying on defined phrases alone vs. defining phrases alone; and further improved, when combining complementary evidence from both.
Fibrotic Signaling Pathways of Skin Fibroblasts in Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis

The focus of this article is to describe the etiology, clinical presentation, treatment, and molecular signaling mechanisms involved in the dermatological manifestations of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF). The pathogenesis of NSF involves the recruitment of fibrocytes to tissue where they differentiate into the pro-fibrotic myofibroblast phenotype involved in collagen deposition. This review focuses on the different pro-fibrotic molecular signaling pathways of fibroblasts that mediate skin fibrosis in NSF. This article provides an overview of the clinical presentation and treatment of NSF, with an in depth review of the signaling pathways of fibroblasts associated with the development of skin fibrosis in NSF.
Bile Acid Changes Associated With Liver Fibrosis and Steatosis in the Mexican‐American Population of South Texas

Biomarkers to predict risk of liver fibrosis in subjects with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, a common risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma, would allow for early preventive interventions. We sought to characterize bile acid profiles associated with liver fibrosis in subjects from the community-based Cameron County Hispanic Cohort, a population in South Texas with high rates of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Plasma bile acid levels were measured in 390 subjects. These subjects were screened with liver elastography, detecting significant liver fibrosis in 58 subjects and steatosis in 186 subjects. Unsupervised clustering of the bile acid profiles revealed five clusters that differed by liver fibrosis, liver steatosis, liver injury, age and gender, identifying these parameters as major determinants of circulating bile acid changes. Total bile acid levels were significantly higher in subjects with fibrosis, with chenodeoxycholic acid displaying the greatest increase among individual bile acids. The primary conjugated bile acids, glycocholic and glycochenodeoxycholic acids, displayed the strongest association with fibrosis by logistic regression. High lithocholic acid levels were strongly associated with advanced fibrosis. In contrast, deoxycholic acid and total unconjugated secondary bile acids were positively associated with steatosis, whereas relative glycoursodeoxycholic acid abundance was negatively associated. Milk and yogurt intake notably contributed to fibrosis-associated bile acid changes. In addition, multiple families within the Firmicutes phylum, Prevotellaceae, and Bacteroides species in stool significantly correlated with fibrosis-associated and steatosis-associated bile acid parameters, suggesting that the gut microbiome contributes to bile acid changes in the context of liver disease. Conclusion: Circulating bile acid levels were markedly but differently changed in liver fibrosis and steatosis in a high-risk Mexican-American population.
22 – THE ECONOMICS OF GOVERNMENT FAILURE

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on reasons for the failure of the market mechanism to meet the criteria of ideal efficiency. Economic analysis is used to assess the effectiveness of public sector action. Some of the limitations of collective action are considered as a vehicle for promoting economic efficiency. The collective decision-making process is not an ideal mechanism that automatically corrects the inefficiencies of the market. One of the painful lessons of history is that government action often does not have the hoped- and planned for results. Even well-designed programs based on humanitarian principles sometimes fail to meet their initial objectives. The five specific types of government failure are as follows: (1) voter ignorance and inefficient public, (2) the special interest effect, (3) imprecise reflection of consumer preferences, (4) the shortsightedness effect, and (5) little entrepreneurial incentive for internal efficiency.
Analysis of epidemic distribution and drug resistance of clinically-isolated bacteria in neonates of Chengdn Children's Hospital from 2002 to 2007

Objective To investigate the epidemic distribution and variation of drug resistance of common pathogenic bacteria in neonates of Chengdu Children's Hospital. Methods All the bacteria isolated from 2002 to 2007 were analyzed. Tests were performed according to the guidelines of National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Results Gram negative (G-) bacteria accounted for 67.9%, Gram positive (G+) bacteria and fungi accounted for 30.8% and 1.3% respectively of the 1050 strains isolated. Although the mutative tendency of proportion between G-and G+ bacteria was similar, the sequence of common pathogenic bacteria in neonates was different (χ2=18.654, P=0.009) between the former (2002 to 2004) and later three years(2005 to 2007). The trend of antibiotics resistance of the pathogenic bacteria changed and common phenotype of drug resistance also altered from the former to later three years. The proportion of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was 10.0% and 18.4% (U = 1.090, P>0.05); the methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococci rate was 4.9% and 53.10% (U= 2.169 ,P 0.05). Conclusions The distribution of common pathogenic bacteria in neonates of Chengdu Children's Hospital had changed and the trend of drug resistance of pathogenic bacteria was eteriorated in recent three years. Monitoring the regional changes in pathogenic bacteria and the trend of drug resistance is important for clinical treatment of neonatal infections. Key words: Infant, newborn; Cross infection; Anti-bacterial agents; Drug resistance, bacterial
Online Review Consistency Matters: An Elaboration Likelihood Model Perspective

To date, online review usefulness studies have explored the independent influence of central and peripheral cues on online review usefulness. Employing the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM), however, we argue that central and peripheral cues are jointly, not independently, processed by online users. For this exploration, we develop and measure “review consistency” variable (i.e., level of consistency between a review text and its attendant review rating), and rating inconsistency (i.e., level of inconsistency between a review rating and the average rating). We find a positive effect of review consistency on the review usefulness. Contrary to our hypothesis, however, we find a positive effect of rating inconsistency on the review usefulness. Our results also indicate that the contingency effect of rating inconsistency on the relationship between review consistency and review usefulness. Particularly, we find that rating inconsistency negatively moderates the effect of review consistency on the review usefulness. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.
How Many Factors Influence Minima in SGD

Stochastic gradient descent (SGD) is often applied to train Deep Neural Networks (DNNs), and research efforts have been devoted to investigate the convergent dynamics of SGD and minima found by SGD. The influencing factors identified in the literature include learning rate, batch size, Hessian, and gradient covariance, and stochastic differential equations are used to model SGD and establish the relationships among these factors for characterizing minima found by SGD. It has been found that the ratio of batch size to learning rate is a main factor in highlighting the underlying SGD dynamics; however, the influence of other important factors such as the Hessian and gradient covariance is not entirely agreed upon. This paper describes the factors and relationships in the recent literature and presents numerical findings on the relationships. In particular, it confirms the four-factor and general relationship results obtained in Wang (2019), while the three-factor and associated relationship results found in Jastrzȩbski et al. (2018) may not hold beyond the considered special case.
Key Evidence Supporting Prescription Opioids Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 1997 to 2018.

BACKGROUND Little is known about the evidence required by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for new approvals of opioid analgesics. OBJECTIVE To characterize the quality of safety and efficacy data in new drug applications (NDAs) for opioid analgesics approved by the FDA between 1997 and 2018. DESIGN Cross-sectional analysis. SETTING Data from ClinicalTrials.gov, FDA reviews, and peer-reviewed publications. PARTICIPANTS Patients with pain who participated in phase 3 pivotal trials. INTERVENTION FDA-approved opioid analgesics. MEASUREMENTS Key characteristics of each NDA, including the number, size, and duration of pivotal trials; trial control groups; the use of enriched trial populations; and systematically measured safety outcomes. RESULTS Most of the 48 NDAs evaluated were for new dosage forms (n = 25 [52.1%]) or new formulations (n = 9 [18.8%]); only 1 (2.1%) was for a new molecular entity. Of 39 NDAs approved for treating chronic pain, only 21 products were supported by at least 1 pivotal trial; these trials (n = 28) had a median duration of 84 days (interquartile range [IQR], 25 to 84 days) and enrolled a median of 299 patients (IQR, 174 to 525 patients). Seventeen (81%) of these products were approved on the basis of designs that excluded patients who could not tolerate the drugs, had early adverse effects, or reported few immediate benefits. Among NDAs for chronic pain, 8 (20.5%) included pooled safety reviews that reported systematic assessment of diversion, 7 (17.9%) reported systematic measurement of nonmedical use, and 15 (38.5%) assessed development of tolerance. Eight of 9 products for acute pain were supported by at least 1 pivotal trial; the pivotal trials (n = 19) had a median duration of 1 day (IQR, 1 to 2 days) and enrolled a median of 329 patients (IQR, 199 to 456 patients). Although all but 1 of the 48 approved NDAs were for previously approved moieties, analysis of available NDAs for referent products yielded similar findings. LIMITATIONS The analysis was limited to approved opioids. Animal studies and nonpivotal trials were excluded. Evidence for safety in NDAs was presented for chronic pain only. CONCLUSION Between 1997 and 2018, the FDA approved opioids on the basis of pivotal trials of short or intermediate duration, often in narrowly defined pain populations of patients who could tolerate the drug. Systematic collation of certain important safety outcomes was rare. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE None.
Predictors of Colorectal Cancer Screening Modality Among Newly Age-Eligible Medicaid Enrollees.

Introduction This study examines individual- and practice-level predictors of screening modality among 1,484 Medicaid enrollees who initiated colorectal cancer screening (fecal immunochemical test/fecal occult blood tests or colonoscopy) within a year of turning age 50 years. Understanding screening modality patterns for patients and health systems can help optimize colorectal cancer screening initiatives that will lead to high screening completion rates. Methods Multivariable logistic regression was conducted in 2019 to analyze Medicaid claims data (January 2013–June 2015) to explore predictors of colonoscopy screening (versus fecal testing). Results Overall, 64% of enrollees received a colonoscopy and 36% received a fecal immunochemical test/fecal occult blood test. Male (OR=1.21, 95% CI=1.08, 1.37) compared with female enrollees and those with 4–6 (OR=1.57, 95% CI=1.15, 2.15), 7–10 (OR=2.23, 95% CI=1.64, 3.03), and ≥11 (OR=1.79, 95% CI=1.22, 2.65) primary care visits compared with 0–3 visits had higher odds of colonoscopy screening. Non-White, non-Hispanic enrollees (OR=0.71, 95% CI=0.58, 0.87) compared with White, non-Hispanics Whites had lower odds of colonoscopy screening. Practices with an endoscopy facility within their ZIP code (OR=1.50, 95% CI=1.08, 2.08) compared with practices without a nearby endoscopy facility had higher odds of colonoscopy screening. Conclusions Among newly age-eligible Medicaid enrollees who received colorectal cancer screening, non-White, non-Hispanic individuals were less likely and male enrollees and those with ≥4 primary care visits were more likely to undergo colonoscopy versus fecal immunochemical test/fecal occult blood test. Colonoscopy also was the more common modality among adults whose primary care clinic had an endoscopy facility in the same ZIP code. Future research is needed to fully understand patient, provider, and practice preferences regarding screening modality.
Simulation of polymerization induced phase separation in model thermosets

Polymerization induced phase separation (PIPS) in a three component thermoset is studied using molecular dynamics simulations of a new coarse-grained thermoset model. The system includes two crosslinker molecules, which differ in their glass transition temperatures (Tg) and chain length and thus have the potential for phase separation. One crosslinker has a high Tg corresponding to a rubbery behavior, and simulations were performed for a short length (4 beads) and a long length (33 beads). The resin and other crosslinker have low Tg. A coarse-grained model is developed with these features and with interaction parameters determined so that for either rubbery crosslinker length, the system is in the liquid state at the cure temperature. For sufficiently slow reaction rates, the long rubbery molecule exhibits PIPS into a bicontinuous array of nanoscale domains, but the short one does not, reproducing recent experimental results. The simulations demonstrate that the reaction rates must be slow enough to allow diffusion to yield phase separation. Particularly, the reaction rate corresponding to the secondary amine must be very slow, else the structure of crosslinked clusters and the substantially increased diffusion time will prevent PIPS.
Inappropriately sweet: Environmental endocrine-disrupting chemicals and the diabetes pandemic

Afflicting hundreds of millions of individuals globally, diabetes mellitus is a chronic disorder of energy metabolism characterized by hyperglycemia and other metabolic derangements that result in significant individual morbidity and mortality as well as substantial healthcare costs. Importantly, the impact of diabetes in the United States is not uniform across the population; rather, communities of color and those with low income are disproportionately affected. While excessive caloric intake, physical inactivity, and genetic susceptibility are undoubted contributors to diabetes risk, these factors alone fail to fully explain the rapid global rise in diabetes rates. Recently, environmental contaminants acting as endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetes. Indeed, burgeoning data from cell-based, animal, population, and even clinical studies now indicate that a variety of structurally distinct EDCs of both natural and synthetic origin have the capacity to alter insulin secretion and action as well as global glucose homeostasis. This chapter reviews the evidence linking EDCs to diabetes risk across this spectrum of evidence. It is hoped that improving our understanding of the environmental drivers of diabetes development will illuminate novel individual-level and policy interventions to mitigate the impact of this devastating condition on vulnerable communities and the population at large.
Comparison of PV Conformational Epitopes Expressed by L1 Proteins in Mammalian (COS) and Insect (SF9) Cells

Papillomavirus (PV) vaccines are currently used to prevent infection by bovine papillomavirus (BPV), canine oral. papillomavirus (COPV) and cottontail rabbit papillomavirus (CRPV). Most of these vaccines are derived from either live or formalin-fixed homogenates of productively-infected warts. The humoral. immune response that results from prophylactic vaccination has been difficult to study because of a paucity of virions available from most natural. PV infections. However, the use of the athymic mouse model developed by Kreider and colleagues1 for neutralization studies of HPV-11, CRPV, and BPV-1, particularly when the latter correlated precisely with neutralization of focus-formation (FF) of C127 cultured cells by BPV-14, suggested that conformational. epitopes on the surface of PV virions are the primary target of neutralizing antibodies. These epitopes are also type-specific and immunodominant. Recent studies of recombinant PV L1 proteins expressed in eucaryotic cells produced L1 proteins with antigenicity mimicking that of intact PV virions5. The BPV-1 L1 protein expressed in Sf9 insect cells self-assembled into empty capsids and induced high-titered neutralizing antibodies6. Thus, the use of virion subunits such as the L1 protein as prophylactic vaccines are likely to be successful because they are antigenic and protective in animal. models and lack viral. DNA that might be carcinogenic to the host.
Querying Cardinal Directions between Complex Objects in Data Warehouses

Data warehouses help to store and analyze large multidimensional datasets and provide enterprise decision support. With an increased availability of spatial data in recent years, several new strategies have been proposed to enable their integration into data warehouses and and perform complex OLAP analysis. Cardinal directions have turned out to be very important qualitative spatial relations due to their numerous applications in spatial wayfinding, GIS, qualitative spatial reasoning and in domains such as cognitive sciences, AI and robotics. They are frequently used as selection and restriction criteria in spatial queries. In data warehouses, cardinal directions can be used to perform spatial OLAP and feature navigation operations. In this article, we introduce and develop the Objects Interaction Graticule OIG approach to query the cardinal direction relations among spatio-temporal objects in data warehouses. First, we apply a tiling strategy that determines the zones belonging to the nine cardinal directions of each spatial object at a particular time and intersects them. This leads to a collection of grids over time called the Objects Interaction Graticule OIG. For each grid cell, the information about the spatial objects that intersect it is stored in a Objects Interaction Matrix. In the second phase, an interpretation method is applied to these matrices to determine the cardinal direction between the moving objects. The results obtained for each valid instant over the objects' lifetime describe the variation in the objects movement over time. This is integrated as a spatio-temporal OLAP operation in a novel moving objects data warehouse MODW that provides an extensible framework for supporting complex structured objects. Finally, we define new directional predicates that extend MDX querying and leverage OLAP between moving objects.
The Baker–Campbell–Hausdorff Formula and Its Consequences

Consider three elementary results from the preceding chapters of this book: (1) Every matrix Lie group G has a Lie algebra \(\mathfrak{g}\). (2) A continuous homomorphism \(\Phi\) between matrix Lie groups G and H gives rise to a Lie algebra homomorphism \(\phi : \mathfrak{g} \rightarrow \mathfrak{h}\). (3) If G and H are matrix Lie groups and H is a subgroup of G, then the Lie algebra \(\mathfrak{h}\) of H is a subalgebra of the Lie algebra \(\mathfrak{g}\) of G. Each of these results goes in the “easy” direction, from a group notion to an associated Lie algebra notion. In this chapter, we attempt to go in the “hard” direction, from the Lie algebra to the Lie group. We will investigate three questions relating to the preceding three theorems.
THE COLICIN Ia RECEPTOR, Cir, IS ALSO THE TRANSLOCATOR FOR COLICIN Ia

Colicin Ia, a channel-forming bactericidal protein, uses the outer membrane protein, Cir, as its primary receptor. To kill E. coli, it must cross this membrane. The crystal structure of Ia receptor-binding domain bound to Cir, a 22-stranded plugged β-barrel protein, suggests that the plug does not move. Therefore, another pathway is needed for the colicin to cross the outer membrane, but no “second receptor” has ever been identified for TonB-dependent colicins, such as Ia. We show that if the receptor-binding domain of colicin Ia is replaced by that of colicin E3, this chimera effectively kills cells, provided they have the E3 receptor (BtuB), Cir, and TonB. This is consistent with wild-type Ia using one Cir as its primary receptor (BtuB in the chimera) and a second Cir as the translocation pathway for its N-terminal translocation (T) domain and its channel-forming C-terminal domain. Deletion of colicin Ia’s receptor-binding domain results in a protein that kills E. coli, albeit less effectively, provided they have Cir and TonB. We show that purified T-domain competes with Ia and protects E. coli from being killed by it. Thus, in addition to binding to colicin Ia’s receptor-binding domain, Cir also binds weakly to its translocation domain.
Magnetic Properties of He 3 at Pressures Near the Minimum in the Melting Curve

The self-diffusion coenfficient, the transverse relaxation time, and the magnetic suscenptibility were measured using the spin-echo method. The longitudinal relaxation time was estimated by observing the time necessary for the magnetization to recover after being destroyed. At 28.9 atm, below P/sub min/ in, the liquid, behavior was similarly to that at lower pressures, the susceptibility being nearly constant with temperature. At 29.5 atm, slightly greater than P/sub min/ then susceptibility was a factor of 2 larger than before and displayed a considerably different temperature dependence. (L.N.N.)
Influence of chronic distention on myometrial contractile protein.

Abstract Myometrial contractile protein was studied in chronically distended uteri of ovariectomized and estrogen-treated ovariectomized rabbits. Comparative observations were made on uterine surgical specimens obtained from menstruant, postmenopausal, and term pregnant individuals. The animal data indicate that experimentally produced uterine distention does not cause a preferential increase in uterine actomysin. The presence of myometrial hypertrophy resulting in uterine growth is associated with an increase in total myometrial contractile protein. This change in conjunction with an altered viscosity behavior of the isolated actomyosin could account for the increased contractility that has been reported in chronically distended uteri. 1
VLSI based design of a battery-operated digital hearing aid

A two-chip design is proposed wherein one chip is responsible for data acquisition and reconstruction while a second chip is dedicated to the digital signal-processing circuitry. A custom digital signal processor, potentially capable of performing over 3*10/sup 6/ multiply accumulate operations per second while consuming less than a fraction of a milliwatt, that is required to implement a four-channel hearing aid, is presented. Power consumption is minimized while maintaining a wide dynamic range through the use of sign/logarithm arithmetic. >
Rigorous one-port measurement method for the characterization of on-chip pad response

The paper presents a rigorous, one-port measurement technique for the characterization of on-chip pad response, particularly the pad capacitance (Cpad). By adding two independent (“short” and “match”, or two terminations with known impedance other than “open”) standards to the existing one-port method, the method eliminates the errors in the current vector network analyzer (VNA) method, while providing frequency-dependent data. This not only overcomes the fundamental restriction in conventional two-port measurement methods that are prohibitively complex, but also is better than existing one-port methods that are inaccurate due to lack of two independent measurements. Simulations and experiments are performed to validate the proposed method in the paper.
Impact of natural gas system on short-term scheduling with volatile renewable energy

In this paper, the impact of natural gas system on the short-term scheduling with high penetration of renewable energy is illustrated and analyzed. The natural gas infrastructure constraints are integrated into the security-constrained unit commitment model, which minimizes the expected operation cost while considering the variable wind power generation. Benders decomposition is applied to solve the problem with non-linear natural gas network constraints. Illustrative examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach for analyzing the impact natural gas system on system scheduling with volatile renewable energy.
Uncovering the Role of Invariant Chain in Controlling MHC Class II Antigen Capture

It has been known for centuries that humans can become specifically immune to particular infectious organisms if they survive a first infection. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, it became clear that much of this specific resistance was the property of soluble factors in blood termed Abs. It was