cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Monastic Blessings: Deconstructing and Reconstructing the Self

This paper explores the development and maintenance of the self among members of an Orthodox Christian monastery. The principal communicative resource by which members effect their unique social order, the blessing sequence, is interpreted as a spiritual technology for alteringprocesses of reality construction, especially those associated with agency and selfhood. The deconstruction and reconstruction of the monastic self is essential to their membership in the Community and a necessarypreparation for the achievement of their shared objective: immediate experience of Ultimate Reality. This study demonstrates the interdependence of communicative practice and psychological experience and suggests that specific interactive routines may be identified and enacted in order to secure desirable psycho-social outcomes. When I talk about myself, just what am I talking about? Is there a certain something which I may rightly call my self, or is this a case of misplaced concreteness? The paper you are now reading is the product of efforts to reckon with the communicative practices observed among the members of Christ of the Hills Monastery, practices which challenge some “incorrigible propositions” (Pollner 1974, p. 43) about human experience, especially concerning the nature of the self. Those who become members of the monastic community learn to collaborate in creating and sustaining a social order which is specifically organized around the problematization and transcendence of conventional selfing. The social activities in which they participate, even down to their self-talk, are so constructed as to focus attention on, call into question, and ostensibly afford a dramatically altered experience of, their selves. The monastics are literally at war with themselves; they are in a dialogically sustained contest between an old self and a new self (under the supervision of the Transcendent Self). My task here is to inspect ways of selfing as this practice is interactively exposed, deconstructed, modified, and maintained by the members of a unique discourse community. We
A small issue addressed.

Cell size is an important determinant of body size. While the genetic mechanisms of cell size regulation have been well studied in yeast, this process has only recently been addressed in multicellular organisms. One recent report by Wang et al. (2002) shows that in the nematode C. elegans, the TGFβ-like pathway acts in the hypodermis to regulate cell size and consequently body size.1 This finding is an exciting step in discovering the molecular mechanisms that control cell and body size. BioEssays 25:305–308, 2003. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
On a tunable bistable MEMS-theory and experiment

A tunable micromechanical bistable system is presented in this paper. It consists of a long slender micromechanical beam attached to an actuator. The beam is subjected to a transverse force at the middle and a residual stress developed during fabrication. The actuator generates a force along the axial direction of the beam, and is shared by the beam and springs of the actuator. If the total axial load on the beam is compressive and exceeds a critical value, then the beam buckles along the transverse direction and it has two possible equilibrium states. Thus, the actuator and beam together become a bistable system. An analytical model is presented to characterize the system. The model is based on the first mode of buckling of the beam. The model accounts for the elastic axial shortening of the beam and the nonlinear coupling between the beam and actuator. The main result of this paper is a closed-form relation between the transverse force and corresponding equilibrium transverse displacement of the beam for a given actuator force. An experimental micromechanical device is designed and fabricated to verify the theoretical model. Excellent correspondence is found between theory and experiment, as if the experimental device emulates the mathematical model, which is an important result of this paper, since now experimental studies, both quasi-static and dynamic, of bistable systems are possible, which are otherwise difficult to conduct with macrosystems. Several examples of possible applications of the bistable system are provided, including digital sensing of physical parameters.
Exponential Concentration of a Density Functional Estimator

We analyze a plug-in estimator for a large class of integral functionals of one or more continuous probability densities. This class includes important families of entropy, divergence, mutual information, and their conditional versions. For densities on the $d$-dimensional unit cube $[0,1]^d$ that lie in a $\beta$-Holder smoothness class, we prove our estimator converges at the rate $O \left( n^{-\frac{\beta}{\beta + d}} \right)$. Furthermore, we prove the estimator is exponentially concentrated about its mean, whereas most previous related results have proven only expected error bounds on estimators.
Clinical assessment and rest and stress echocardiography for prediction of long-term prognosis in African Americans with known or suspected coronary artery disease.

Background: There is limited information on noninvasive risk stratification of African Americans, a high-risk group for cardiovascular events. We investigated the value of clinical assessment and echocardiography for the prediction of a long-term prognosis in African Americans. Methods: Dobutamine echocardiography was performed in 324 African Americans. Two-dimensional measurements were performed at rest, and rest and stress wall motion was assessed. A retrospective follow-up was conducted for cardiac events: myocardial infarction (MI) or cardiac death (CD). Results: The mean age was 59 ± 12 years, and 83% of patients had hypertension. The follow-up was obtained in 318 (98%) patients for a mean of 5.3 years. The events occurred in 107 (33%) subjects. The independent predictors of events were history of MI (P = 0.001, risk ratio [RR] 2.04), ischemia (P = 0.007, RR 1.97), fractional shortening (P = 0.033, RR 0.08), and left atrial (LA) dimension (P = 0.034, RR 1.39). An LA size of 3.6 cm and a fractional shortening of 0.30 were the best cutoff values for the prediction of events. Prior MI, ischemia, LA size >3.6 cm, and fractional shortening <0.30 were each considered independent risk predictors for events. The event rates were 13%, 21%, 38%, 59%, and 57% in patients with 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 risk predictors, respectively. Event-free survival progressively worsened with an increasing number of predictors: 0 or 1 versus 2 predictors, P < 0.001; 2 versus 3 or 4 predictors, P = 0.003. Conclusion: The long-term prognosis of African Americans can be accurately predicted by clinical assessment combined with rest and stress echocardiography.
Content and Comprehensibility of Juvenile and Adult Tender-of-Plea Forms: Implications for Knowing, Intelligent, and Voluntary Guilty Pleas

The overwhelming majority of criminal convictions in the United States are obtained through guilty pleas. To be constitutionally valid, guilty pleas must be knowing, voluntary, and intelligent. The information the defendant relies on to make a knowing, voluntary, and intelligent plea decision may be conveyed to the defendant through several modes, including but not limited to communication with defense counsel. Here, we address a mode that to our knowledge has previously not been systematically examined—tender-of-plea (ToP) forms. ToP forms are written instruments that inquire into whether the defendant understands and appreciates the plea decision and is capable of entering it. Using content analysis and comprehensibility measures, we examined a national sample of 208 tender-of-plea forms for both juvenile and adult defendants to determine what information they contained and their level of comprehensibility. The ToP forms were coded for several items concerning knowledge and voluntariness including rights waived, direct and collateral consequences, and capacity. Our findings show that the forms (a) are highly variable in their content, (b) exceed the reading comprehension of most defendants, and (c) are available more often to adult than to juvenile defendants. The implications of these findings are the forms should not be used to stand in place of “full and vigorous” judicial plea colloquies or meaningful defender-defendant discussions about plea decision-making.
High Mortality in Egg Layers as a Result of Necrotic Enteritis

Abstract A new facility was designed to hold 1.8 million birds in 10 houses; chickens were placed in five of the houses, and the remaining five houses were under construction when this outbreak occurred. An increase in mortality was reported in five houses; however, mortality in house 7 was quite high. Well-fleshed birds were suddenly found dead without a significant drop in egg production. The middle and distal intestines were distended with gas, congested, thin walled, atonic, and bluish or pale in color with sloughed mucosa in some places. Necrotic enteritis was diagnosed as the cause of increased mortality. The ingesta in the crop occasionally contained flies. The 4-wk mortality in house 7 was 6.55% with a loss of 10,898 chickens. The 4-wk mortality rate in the other houses ranged from 0.54% to 1.98%. The houses affected with necrotic enteritis were treated for coccidiosis with amprolium because low numbers of the oocysts were present in the intestinal specimens of some of the chickens. Household blea...
Kalman filtering in the control of irrigation canals

Abstract The Saint-Venant equations of open-channel flow were linearized about an average operating condition of the canal. The concepts of linear optimal theory were applied to derive a feedback control algorithm for constant-level control of an irrigation canal. The performance of the state estimators designed using the pole-placement technique and the Kalman filtering technique (both time-varying and steady-state) were compared with the results obtained using a full state feedback controller. An example problem with a single pool was considered for evaluating the relative merits of the technique used to design an estimator for irrigation canals. Considering the computational complexity and the accuracy of the results obtained, the steady state Kalman filtering technique was found to be adequate for irrigation canals. The performance of the system under a sampling frequency that is less than the frequency of simulation was also evaluated.
Boolean Matrix Equations in Digital Circuit Design

A systematic digital computational method is given that involves the use of Boolean matrix equations for solving certain types of functional circuit design problems. Specifically, all sets of Boolean functions f1(A1, . . ., A1), . . ., fJ(A1, - . . ., A1) are found such that if circuits with these outputs are connected to a circuit that generates the known Boolean function F(f1, . . . , fJ, X1, . . ., XK), then the output will produce a given desired function E(A1, . . ., A1, X1, . . ., XK). Illustrative examples of the method are presented.
A pilot study of genetic variants in dopamine regulators with indoor tanning and melanoma

Many people frequently tan indoors despite being aware of the increased risk of melanoma. Ultraviolet radiation is hypothesized to modify biological reward pathways, for example, through the dopamine neurotransmitter system, to reinforce tanning behaviour. In this pilot study, we relied on questionnaire and DNA data from a recently completed case–control study to examine 67 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and related haplotypes in five dopamine receptor and drug metabolism genes in relation to indoor tanning among controls. We also examined the association between individual SNPS and likelihood of melanoma, adjusting for or stratifying on indoor tanning status. In candidate and haplotype gene analyses, variants only in the DRD2 dopamine receptor and ANKK1 signalling genes were positively associated with indoor tanning use among controls; only associations for ANKK1 remained statistically significant (P < 0.05) after adjustment. Several SNPs in ANKK1 and DRD2 associated with indoor tanning among controls were also found to be associated with increased risk of melanoma. Upon stratifying for indoor tanning status, one ANKK1 SNP was positively associated with melanoma among non-tanners, while three DRD2 SNPS were positively associated with melanoma among tanners or non-tanners, depending on the SNP. These alleles represent important genomic regions to further explore addictive tanning behaviour.
Variable selection in high-dimensional varying-coefficient models with global optimality

The varying-coefficient model is flexible and powerful for modeling the dynamic changes of regression coefficients. It is important to identify significant covariates associated with response variables, especially for high-dimensional settings where the number of covariates can be larger than the sample size. We consider model selection in the high-dimensional setting and adopt difference convex programming to approximate the L0 penalty, and we investigate the global optimality properties of the varying-coefficient estimator. The challenge of the variable selection problem here is that the dimension of the nonparametric form for the varying-coefficient modeling could be infinite, in addition to dealing with the high-dimensional linear covariates. We show that the proposed varying-coefficient estimator is consistent, enjoys the oracle property and achieves an optimal convergence rate for the non-zero nonparametric components for high-dimensional data. Our simulations and numerical examples indicate that the difference convex algorithm is efficient using the coordinate decent algorithm, and is able to select the true model at a higher frequency than the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), the adaptive LASSO and the smoothly clipped absolute deviation (SCAD) approaches.
Advances in Heat Flux Measurements

Publisher Summary The decade of the 1950s saw great advances in heat-transfer measurement techniques. Optical methods became popular, along with several new heat-flux gages that are still in wide use today, as evidenced by the commercial heat-flux-gage manufacturers. In the last 10 to 20 years, a number of new techniques have been developed and applied, which have greatly increased the resolution and operating range of heat-flux instrumentation. Although the older methods are discussed as the background, the focus of this chapter is on the newer techniques and novel uses of the older techniques. In addition, an effort is made to bring together information from a variety of fields that deal with heat transfer, but that often isn't communicated. Three areas of new capability with important applications are time-resolved heat-flux measurements, simultaneous measurement of spatially distributed heat flux, and heat-flux measurement at high-temperature conditions. Examples of recent advances in these areas are discussed. Such new capabilities, when applied to real-world problems, make the field of heat transfer exciting. From these reviews, it is clear that no one gage or method is good for every application. The limitations of previous heat-flux-gage performance are highlighted and the need for better gage characteristics is expressed. Recent advances have been able to overcome some of these limitations and provide measurements with improved accuracy under conditions previously not possible. The discussion of measurement methods is organized by the first three categories of heat-transfer measurement categories, given in the chapter. Recent measurements using the methods discussed are showcased to demonstrate the advances made in measurement capability. Calibration is briefly addressed in the chapter.
The Sitka Hurricane of October 1880

This study reconstructed a unique and previously poorly understood storm known as the October 1880 Sitka Alaska Hurricane. Data were comprised of daily instrumental records from military posts, exploration surveys, and ship logbooks, as well verbal descriptions from diaries. Hourly pressure data from the USS Jamestown were corrected for elevation, latitude, and gravity, and a meteogram was constructed to assess the specific storm impact at Sitka. Pressure records reveal that the Sitka hurricane is clearly a very abnormal weather event, likely one of the strongest storms ever to strike western North America in the historical period. The plotting of data indicates that the storm track originated off Eastern Siberia and had no associations with any possible typhoon from the western Pacific Ocean.
ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA AtGCN2 KINASE IS INVOLVED IN DISEASE RESISTANCE AGAINST PATHOGENS WITH DIVERSE LIFE STYLES

The ability of the plants to detect diverse stress conditions and initiate cellular responses is vital to their survival in a constantly changing environment. General regulatory molecules often play crucial roles in controlling a multitude of cellular processes throughout the life span of an organism. GCN2 (general control nonderepressible 2) is a serine/threonine-protein kinase that acts as a global translational regulator in all eukaryotes from yeast to mammals to plants. GCN2 plays universal roles in mitigating cellular stresses by directly binding with uncharged tRNAs and phosphorylating its target, eukaryotic initiation factor 2 alpha (eIF2α). Here, we demonstrate that Arabidopsis thaliana GCN2 (AtGCN2) serves as a general regulator of salicylic acid- and jasmonic acid-mediated immune responses triggered upon infection with biotrophic and necrotrophic pathogens. Intriguingly, we found examples of both positive and negative influence of AtGCN2 on plant immunity at different developmental stages. This effect is consistent with the variable amount of abscisic acid accumulation in plants lacking functional AtGCN2 at early stages of development. Finally, we illustrate that AtGCN2 positively contributes to water loss and might also be involved in the epidermis-mediated defense responses.
Comparison of Active Drug Concentrations in the Pulmonary Epithelial Lining Fluid and Interstitial Fluid of Calves Injected with Enrofloxacin, Florfenicol, Ceftiofur, or Tulathromycin

Bacterial pneumonia is the most common reason for parenteral antimicrobial administration to beef cattle in the United States. Yet there is little information describing the antimicrobial concentrations at the site of action. The objective of this study was to compare the active drug concentrations in the pulmonary epithelial lining fluid and interstitial fluid of four antimicrobials commonly used in cattle. After injection, plasma, interstitial fluid, and pulmonary epithelial lining fluid concentrations and protein binding were measured to determine the plasma pharmacokinetics of each drug. A cross-over design with six calves per drug was used. Following sample collection and drug analysis, pharmacokinetic calculations were performed. For enrofloxacin and metabolite ciprofloxacin, the interstitial fluid concentration was 52% and 78% of the plasma concentration, while pulmonary fluid concentrations was 24% and 40% of the plasma concentration, respectively. The pulmonary concentrations (enrofloxacin + ciprofloxacin combined) exceeded the MIC90 of 0.06 μg/mL at 48 hours after administration. For florfenicol, the interstitial fluid concentration was almost 98% of the plasma concentration, and the pulmonary concentrations were over 200% of the plasma concentrations, exceeding the breakpoint (≤ 2 μg/mL), and the MIC90 for Mannheimia haemolytica (1.0 μg/mL) for the duration of the study. For ceftiofur, penetration to the interstitial fluid was only 5% of the plasma concentration. Pulmonary epithelial lining fluid concentration represented 40% of the plasma concentration. Airway concentrations exceeded the MIC breakpoint for susceptible respiratory pathogens (≤ 2 μg/mL) for a short time at 48 hours after administration. The plasma and interstitial fluid concentrations of tulathromcyin were lower than the concentrations in pulmonary fluid throughout the study. The bronchial concentrations were higher than the plasma or interstitial concentrations, with over 900% penetration to the airways. Despite high diffusion into the bronchi, the tulathromycin concentrations achieved were lower than the MIC of susceptible bacteria at most time points.
HDTV Standards Considerations for Electronic Cinematography and Post-Production

Discussion de la necessite d'une norme de television a haute definition universelle comparable de facon maximale avec les recentes normes de television numerique. Proposition d'une norme compatible derivee de la norme de studio numerique universel et d'un ensemble de parametres de balayage specifiques comme nouvelle norme universelle pour la production de television et de cinema electronique
Einfluss der Auslegung von Kolbenringen auf das Formfüllvermögen in thermisch und mechanisch hoch beanspruchten Motoren

Trotz Einsatz neuer Werkstoffe und Beschichtungen besteht im Zylinder die Gefahr einer lokalen thermischen Uberlastung an den Kolbenringlaufflachen. Der Beitrag der Federal Mogul Burscheid GmbH beschreibt ein Rechenmodell zur Bestimmung des Anpressdrucks von Kolbenringen mit konstanter und inkonstanter Wanddicke. Damit erhalt man eine Aussage zur Fahigkeit des Kolbenrings, sich unrunden und thermisch belasteten Zylindern anzupassen. Auf Basis dieser Rechenergebnisse wurden Designvarianten zur Optimierung des Motorbetriebs abgeleitet und entwickelt.
Dale J. Benos, Ph.D. (1950–2010)

the university of alabama at birmingham, the American Physiological Society, and physiologists all over the world were stunned by the untimely passing of Dale J. Benos on October 7th, 2010 ([Fig. 1][1]). In his memorial service, held November 12th, 2010 at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, a
An Ecto-Enzyme of Clostridium Welchii which Decomposes Blood Group Specific Substance A

The enzyme of human saliva, in fresh material, is bound to the salivary cells, thus differing from the diastatic enzyme which is a typical lyoferment in the sense of Willstaetter. While standing, however, the cells are autolyzed and the enzyme quickly becomes demonstrable in the cell free fluid.4 In addition to these so-called "blood group enzymes" of animal origin, a few species of bacteria have been found5'6'7,8 which decompose the group specific substance A of human beings and of animal origin, (human saliva,' gastric juice,"' horse saliva,"",12 commercial preparations of peptone and pepsin3"4 commercial mucin and other preparations from pig gastric mucosa'5). Up to the present time no ecto-enzyme has been obtained from any of these organisms. Among the bacteria in question, there is only one species, Cl. welchii,
Determination of niclosamide in drinking water by HPLC

Objective:To establish a new method for the determination of niclosamide in drinking water by HPLC. Methods:The separation was carried out on an C18 column by using the mobile phase consisting of CH3OH+ H2O(85 + 15). The flow rate was 1. 0 ml/min. Detection was done by DAD at the wavelength of 330 nm. Results:The linearity was obtained in the range of 0. 2 mg /L ~ 25 mg /L,the correlation coefficient was 0. 9999. The limit of detection was 0. 3 μg/L,the rate of recovery was between 95. 02% ~ 103. 9% with RSD less than the reference value 5. Conclusion:This method has good accuracy and precision. This method is suitable for the determination of niclosamide in drinking water.
Investigation of risk factors and clinical features of neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis in 86 full term and premature infants

Objective To compare the risk factors and clinical features of neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) between full term infants and premature infants. Methods Eighty-six NEC patients from April 2001 to August 2008 were enrolled in the present study, and all the clinical data were analyzed retrospectively. Results Chi-square test showed that asphyxiation in perinatal period, late onset intestinal infection, congenital malformation of the alimentary tract were significantly higher in the full term group. Meanwhile, scleredema, respiratory distress syndrome, apnoea and respiratory failure were significantly higher in the premature group. When comparing clinical features, significant higher incidence of hemafecia was found in full term group while higher incidence of haematemesis, hypomyotonia and hypothermia was found in premature neonates group. Conclusions The risk factors and clinical features of NEC are different between full term infants and premature infants. Therefore it will be helpful for reducing the morbidity of NEC by preventing and treating high risk diseases and more attention should be paid to specific clinical features.
COUPLED INTEGRAL-EQUATION APPROACH TO NONRELATIVISTIC THREE-BODY SYSTEMS WITH APPLICATIONS TO ATOMIC PROBLEMS

The coupled integral-equation approach to nonrelativistic three-body systems is reviewed. After examining the relations among various coupled equations, the problems of reducing these coupled equations to forms which are suitable for practical applications are considered. For three-body Coulomb systems, alternative approaches are proposed for treating the long-range Coulomb interaction. Approximate methods for solving these coupled equations are then examined with illustrative examples in atomic problems.
Pulse Shape 22: audiovisual performance and data transmutation

Pulse Shape 22 is an improvisational audiovisual performance featuring shortwave radio transmissions as the sole source material for real-time audio processing alongside video of the sun projected through cast-glass lenses designed specifically for this piece. The structure of the piece is derived from metrics on energy accumulation over a period of 2.2 nanoseconds resulting from the targeting of 60 laser beams on a single tetrahedral hohlraum in weapons testing experiments as carried out by the Los Alamos Inertial Confinement Fusion unit, at the Omega Laser Facility at the University of Rochester. Pulse Shape 22 is an exploration of architectural space through the use of site- and time-specific information found in regions of the electromagnetic spectrum outside the reaches of the human sensory apparatus. It is an attempt to alter the audience's perceptions of their surroundings and create a moment of rupture from hidden worlds found in our local environment.
Near Zero-Ripple Switched Reluctance drives

This paper introduces a Zero First-order (or Fundamental-harmonic) Ripple (ZFR) drive topology for Switched Reluctance Machines (SRM). The proposed drive topology utilizes ripple canceling techniques to eliminate first order ripples on SRM phase currents. This paper will first introduce the proposed ZFR drive topology. Then a Least-Quadratic Regulator (LQR) controller is proposed to utilize the ZFR topology in an optimal fashion. Experimental results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed drive technique.
Hierarchical Dense Structure-from-Motion Reconstructions for Infrastructure Condition Assessment

AbstractAccurate condition assessment of in-service infrastructure systems is critical for system-wide prioritization decisions. Current protocols require lengthy inspections and expensive equipment to examine large infrastructure systems. Furthermore, changes in inspection protocols over time can create discontinuities in recording and understanding the time history of a structure. To address these challenges, a systematic and adaptive technique for converting two-dimensional (2D) digital images into three-dimensional (3D) models has been developed, with the goal of creating high-resolution and scale-accurate inspection records. The developed reconstruction technique utilizes multiscale imaging to reconstruct a structure with varying levels of details and geometric complexity. The captured images are then converted into photorealistic, accurate, and dense 3D scene reconstructions by utilizing a hierarchical adaptation of a dense structure-from-motion (DSfM) algorithm. The result of this approach is a vir...
The Evolution of Per-cell Organelle Number

Organelles with their own distinct genomes, such as plastids and mitochondria, are found in most eukaryotic cells. As these organelles and their host cells have evolved, the partitioning of metabolic processes and the encoding of interacting gene products have created an obligate codependence. This relationship has played a role in shaping the number of organelles in cells through evolution. Factors such as stochastic evolutionary forces acting on genes involved in organelle biogenesis, organelle-nuclear gene interactions, and physical limitations may, to varying degrees, dictate the selective constraint that per-cell organelle number is under. In particular, coordination between nuclear and organellar gene expression may be important in maintaining gene product stoichiometry, which may have a significant role in constraining the evolution of this trait.
The diagnostic thresholds for synovial fluid analysis in late periprosthetic infection of the hip depend on the duration of symptoms

Aims We hypothesised that the synovial white blood cell (WBC) count in patients with a late periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) of the hip would depend on the duration of a patient’s symptoms, and that the optimal diagnostic threshold would also depend on this period of time. Patients and Methods The synovial WBC count and percentage of polymorphonuclear cells (%PMN), and the serum CRP and ESR levels obtained > six weeks after primary THA were compared between 50 infected and 88 non-infected THAs, and in patients with symptoms for more than or less than two weeks. Diagnostic thresholds for the synovial WBC count were calculated using area under the curve calculation. Results The synovial WBC count was significantly higher in patients with symptoms for ≤ two weeks compared with those with symptoms for > two weeks (p = 0.03). The optimal threshold for diagnosing PJI for the synovial WBC count was 5750 cells/µL (sensitivity 94; specificity 100; PPV 100%; NPV 89%; AUC 99%) and 1556 cells/µL (sensitivity 91; specificity 94; PPV 87% and NPV 97%; AUC 95%), respectively. The thresholds for the cut-offs based on duration of symptoms improved the diagnostic performance of this test. Conclusion This study shows that the diagnostic thresholds for synovial fluid analysis in late periprosthetic infection following THA may depend on duration of symptoms. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2016;98-B:1355–9.
Contribution of Selective Conditions to Microbial Competition in Four Listeria Selective Enrichment Formulations.

ABSTRACT Microbial competition during selective enrichment negatively affects Listeria monocytogenes populations and may hinder the subsequent detection or recovery of this organism. Competition assays among 10 selected strains of Listeria and Citrobacter braakii were performed in buffered Listeria enrichment broth, 3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid–buffered Listeria enrichment broth, University of Vermont medium–modified Listeria enrichment broth, and Fraser broth. The individual contributions of each selective agent in these media were also assessed, as well as the contribution of incubation temperature. Acriflavine hydrochloride and sodium nalidixate were ineffective at preventing the overgrowth of C. braakii; this resulted in substantially lower populations of Listeria than when the competitor was absent. At the higher levels, both of these selective agents were detrimental to Listeria populations. The highest enrichment populations of Listeria were observed when either NaCl or LiCl was present. In...
An Empirical Evaluation of Models of Programmer Navigation

In this paper, we report an evaluation study of predictive models of programmer navigation. In particular, we compared two operationalizations of navigation from the literature (click-based versus view-based) to see which more accurately records a developer's navigation behaviors. Moreover, we also compared the predictive accuracy of seven models of programmer navigation from the literature, including ones based on navigation history and code-structural relationships. To address our research goals, we performed a controlled laboratory study of the navigation behavior of 10 participants engaged in software evolution tasks. The study was a partial replication of a previous comprehensive evaluation of predictive models by Piorkowski et al., and also served to test the generalizability of their results. Key findings of the study included that the click-based navigations agreed closely with those reported by human observers, whereas view-based navigations diverged significantly. Furthermore, our data showed that the predictive model based on recency was significantly more accurate than the other models, suggesting the strong potential for tools that leverage recency-type models. Finally, our model-accuracy results had a strong correlation with the Piorkowski results, however, our results differed in several noteworthy ways, potentially caused by differences in task type and code familiarity.
Effect of IL-22 on intestinal stem cells, GVHD-related tissue damage, and GVL.

6539 Background: Intestinal graft vs. host disease (GVHD) is a major complication of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (allo-BMT). Strategies to limit GVHD by selective promotion of epithelial regeneration in the absence of immunosuppression are largely unknown. Methods: We investigated the role of IL-22 in allo-BMT by utilizing wild type and IL-22 knockout (KO) mice as donors or recipients in allo-BMT. Results: We found that administration of an anti-IL-22 neutralizing antibody to allo-BMT recipients during the first month post-BMT led to increased GVHD mortality, indicating that IL-22 functioned to reduce GVHD severity post-BMT. In contrast, use of IL-22 KO donor T cells did not impair their ability to eliminate A20 lymphoma cells upon tumor challenge, thus indicating that IL-22 was not essential for donor T cells to mediate graft vs. lymphoma (GVL) responses. BMT with WT donors and recipients indicated that IL-22 levels in small and large intestine were increased after BMT and after radiation inju...
Conclusion: Informing Customer Engagement Marketing and Future Research

In the conclusion chapter, we summarize the book and present a practical guide for implementing customer engagement marketing, where the firm attempts to motivate, empower, and measure customer contribution to marketing functions beyond financial patronage. The chapter discusses how to use engagement tools and design engagement platforms to facilitate customer engagement, how to incentivize customer engagement, and how to capture value from customer engagement behaviors and the corresponding data generated from these behaviors. It examines both the targeting and timing decisions for deploying engagement marketing initiatives to maximize effectiveness over the entire customer journey. Throughout the chapter, we discuss potentially fruitful areas of future research that emerge from the perspectives presented in the book.
Inclusive and Special Educator Preparation and the edTPA

Introduction to the special issue of Teacher Education and Special Education (TESE) on issues related to the educational Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA) in the preparation of inclusive and s...
Solusforge: controlling the generation of the 3D models with spatial relation graphs

In this paper, we propose Solusforge, a system for automatically generating Lego models from a graph of the components' spatial relationships. The system uses a two step constraint solving approach in which the spatial layout is solved for first, followed by the specific pieces that make up the model, thereby allowing us to explore two separate solution spaces independently. This technology has many uses, including in games featuring a system of snap-together pieces, including Kerbal Space Program, Beseiged, and Spore. While many of these games involve procedurally augmenting human generated design, none of them feature a fully procedural system for generating the artifacts within that space.
Wafer-level adaptive trim seed forecasting based on E-tests

Post silicon trimming is extensively used to counter the effects of manufacturing process variation on certain critical electrical parameters of an integrated circuit (IC). Usually, trimming is performed iteratively by adjusting the resistance value of a trim circuit to specific discrete values. Test programs represent those values by codes and apply common search algorithms in order to find a code which makes a device (optimally) compliant to its design specifications. Consequently, manufacturing yield is increased significantly, yet at the expense of added test time and complexity. In this work, we introduce a novel methodology wherein a trained multivariate model is used to predict, adaptively for each wafer, the optimal starting point of the algorithm that searches for the trim code. Thereby, we seek to minimize the number of code changes that the search algorithm has to perform and, by extension, the overall trim time. In order to provide this prediction prior to wafer sort, so that simplicity of test-floor logistics does not get compromised, the predictive model is built using electrical test (e-test) measurements, which are available before wafer sort, and is trained through measurements from a set of early wafers. Effectiveness of the proposed method in reducing trim time is demonstrated on 370 wafers of an high performance device manufactured by Texas Instruments.
Tuning Bacterial Attachment and Detachment via the Thickness and Dispersity of a pH-Responsive Polymer Brush.

We investigated the effect of two brush parameters, thickness and dispersity in the molecular weight distribution, on the adhesion of bacteria to pH-responsive poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) brushes synthesized using surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization. The attachment and detachment of Staphylococcus epidermidis to PAA brushes at pH 4 and pH 9, respectively, were examined with confocal microscopy. An optimal range of brush thickness, 13–18 nm, was identified for minimizing bacterial adhesion on PAA brushes at pH 4, and bacterial attachment did not depend on the brush dispersity. Increasing either the brush thickness or dispersity detached bacteria from the brushes when the pH was increased from 4 to 9. Bacterial detachment likely arose from an enhanced actuation effect in thick or high-dispersity brushes, as PAA brushes change conformation from collapsed to extended states when the pH is increased from 4 to 9. These results suggest that manipulating the molecular weight distribution provides ...
Serial In-Office Intralesional Steroid Injections in Airway Stenosis

Importance Endoscopic dilation is the mainstay treatment strategy for subglottic and proximal tracheal stenosis (SGS/PTS). Its major limitation is restenosis requiring repeated surgery. Intralesional steroid injection (ISI) is a promising adjunctive treatment aimed at prolonging the effects of dilation. Objective To evaluate the association of serial in-office ISI after endoscopic dilation with surgery-free interval (SFI) in adults with SGS/PTS. Design, setting, and participants A retrospective study of adults with SGS/PTS who underwent at least 2 consecutive in-office ISI at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, over a 3-year period was conducted. Exposure Serial ISI with triamcinolone 40 mg/mL using topical anesthesia, spaced 3 to 6 weeks apart. Main outcomes and measures Surgery-free interval, number of dilations, need for open airway surgery, decannulation rate, and adverse events. Patients with previous dilations and sufficient follow-up time were included in a comparative analysis of SFI before and after ISI. The Mann-Whitney U test was applied for comparisons. Results Twenty-four patients met eligibility criteria. Mean (SD) age was 50.1 (15.1) years; 18 (75%) were female. Ten (42%) patients had idiopathic, 8 (33%) had traumatic, and 6 (25%) had rheumatologic-related SGS/PTS. Mean (SD) follow-up time was 32.3 (33.4) months. Patients underwent mean (SD) 4.08 (1.91) injections. Seventeen (71%) patients have not undergone further surgery after ISI. Mean (SD) SFI was 17.8 (12.8) months overall and was 15.7 (10.6) months for idiopathic, 13.8 (9.9) for traumatic, and 26.7 (16.9) for rheumatologic-related SGS/PTS. Twenty-one (88%) patients underwent dilation(s) prior to ISI. Among patients who fulfilled eligibility criteria for comparison of SFI before and after ISI, SFI improved from 10.1 months before, to 22.6 months after ISI (mean difference, 12.5 months; 95% CI, -2.1 to 27.2 months). Three of 6 patients (all with traumatic SGS/PTS) presenting with a tracheotomy were decannulated. No patients required open airway surgery after ISI. There were no adverse events associated with ISI. Conclusions and relevance Serial in-office ISI are safe and well-tolerated in adults with SGS/PTS. This technique can reduce the surgical burden on these patients and may obviate the need for future airway intervention.
The Flexitarian Flip™ in university dining venues: Student and adult consumer acceptance of mixed dishes in which animal protein has been partially replaced with plant protein

Abstract There is a growing interest in the shift from meat-centric diets towards plant-based diets due to the negative impacts of meat production and consumption on public health and the environment. This research tested the Flexitarian Flip™ in a university dining venue context, by partially replacing meat with legumes in current Dining Services recipes. A two-part Central Location Test was conducted with a college student population sample (n = 118) in a University of California, Davis campus dining venue. This study was repeated at a later date with n = 110 adults ages 18–88 years. Acceptability measures were collected for two recipes (an Indian dish and a Latin American dish), two meat levels (high meat/low legume (HM) and low meat/high legume (LM)), and two spiciness levels (Regular and Spicy). The student and adult consumer populations had similar results, and preference segments were found for both. Overall, in the Latin American recipe, the HM samples had higher acceptability than the LM samples, and in the Indian recipe, the HM and LM had similar acceptability. The LM Spicy sample had the same acceptability as both the Regular and Spicy HM samples or higher, depending on the preference segment. Additionally, the higher level of trigeminal heat increased perceived flavor complexity. To achieve the highest consumer acceptability of plant-forward mixed dishes, a mixture of legumes and vegetables, rather than vegetables or legumes alone, is recommended as a partial replacement for meat, along with a trigeminal boost in the recipe to maintain perceived flavor complexity.
The Eye in the Well of Memory

Somewhat in the manner of the Sumerian goddess Inanna, Odin of Norse mythology, father of the gods, travels to an under region in humility, having shed his outer garments. His venture takes him to Mimir’s well without his usual golden armor and adornments. He goes on foot, not on his mighty eight-legged steed, and he travels anonymously so as not to draw attention to his status. His purpose is to seek wisdom that lies at the eastern base of the great ash tree of the world, called the Yggdrasil, from a well named Memory (Mimir).
Mobile portals: the development of M-commerce gateways

The proliferation of mobile Internet devices is creating an unparalleled opportunity for mobile commerce. Factors composing a productive M-commerce portal development strategy are investigated to improve a company's strategy. Also explored are the nonpareil benefits of mobile applications to introduce a five-step approach for developing an effective mobile portal strategy.
STriatal Enriched Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase mediates Ethanol inhibition of NMDA Receptor Activity

Abstract We demonstrated previously that ethanol inhibition of NMDA receptor (NMDAR) function is accompanied by a reduction in tyrosine phosphorylation of Tyr 1472 on the NR2B subunit, and this action of ethanol is attenuated by a broad spectrum tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor. Here we examined whether this ethanol inhibition of NMDAR activity was due to the actions of STriatal Enriched protein tyrosine Phosphatase (STEP) which has been shown to regulate NMDAR internalization by dephosphorylating Tyr 1472 on the NR2B subunit. Using whole-cell recordings of pharmacologically isolated NMDAR-mediated excitatory post-synaptic currents (NMDA EPSCs) from hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons, we show that intracellular infusion of a substrate-trapping inactive form of STEP (TAT-STEP C/S) significantly blocks ethanol inhibition of NMDA EPSCs. Ethanol does not inhibit NMDA EPSCs or LTP in neurons from STEP knockout mice, but its effect is restored after acute intracellular delivery of wild type TAT-STEP, suggesting that STEP mediates ethanol inhibition of NMDAR function.
Insulin-Like Growth Factor Receptors in Testicular Vascular Tissue from Normal and Diabetic Rats

The complex endocrine regulation of the testicular vascular system is ill defined. Many blood vessels contain growth factor receptors, including those for insulin, IGF-I, and IGF- II. These growth factors may interact to modulate growth and/or repair of damaged vessels, and possibly regulate blood vessel permeability and responsiveness to other regulatory substances. Diabetic vascular complications have many common features whether large or small blood vessels are involved. Whether growth hormone or other growth factors are involved in the altered vascular cell proliferation, thickening of the basement membrane and altered vascular permeability is not yet known. Retinopathy, peripheral vascular disease and glomerular nephropathy remain frequent diabetic abnormalities. Male reproductive functions are also commonly compromised in diabetics. Impotency and decreased androgen levels may result from vascular complications, in addition to diabetic neuropathy. In the present study, we examined insulin-like growth factor receptor characteristics from normal and diabetic testicular vascular tissue using immunohistochemical and affinity crosslinking techniques.
UNIT 8.17 Single-Cell Phospho-Protein Analysis by Flow Cytometry

This protocol describes methods for monitoring intracellular phosphorylation-dependent signaling events on a single-cell basis. This approach measures cell signaling by treating cells with exogenous stimuli, fixing cells with formaldehyde, permeabilizing with methanol, and then staining with phospho-specific antibodies. Thus, cell signaling states can be determined as a measure of how cells interact with their environment. This method has applications in clinical research as well as mechanistic studies of basic biology. In clinical research, diagnostic or drug efficacy information can be retrieved by discovering how a disease affects the ability of cells to respond to growth factors. Basic scientists can use this technique to analyze signaling events in cell lines and human or murine primary cells, including rare populations, like B1 cells or stem cells. This technique has broad applications bringing standard biochemical analysis into primary cells in order to garner valuable information about signaling events in physiologic settings. Curr. Protoc. Immunol. 96:8.17.1-8.17.20. © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Keywords: phosphorylation; signaling; flow cytometry; FACS; intracellular staining