cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Helical variation of density profiles and fluctuations in the tokamak pedestal with applied 3D fields and implications for confinement

Small 3D perturbations to the magnetic field in DIII-D ( δB/B∼2×10−4) result in large modulations of density fluctuation amplitudes in the pedestal, which are shown using Doppler backscattering measurements to vary by a factor of 2. Helical perturbations of equilibrium density within flux surfaces have previously been observed in the pedestal of DIII-D plasmas when 3D fields are applied and were correlated with density fluctuation asymmetries in the pedestal. These intra-surface density and pressure variations are shown through two fluid MHD modeling studies using the M3D-C1 code to be due to the misalignment of the density and temperature equilibrium iso-surfaces in the pedestal region. This modeling demonstrates that the phase shift between the two iso-surfaces corresponds to the diamagnetic direction of the two species, with the mass density surfaces shifted in the ion diamagnetic direction relative to the temperature and magnetic flux iso-surfaces. The resulting pedestal density, potential, and turbulence asymmetries within flux surfaces near the separatrix may be at least partially responsible for several poorly understood phenomena that occur with the application of 3D fields in tokamaks, including density pump out and the increase in power required to transition from L- to H-mode.Small 3D perturbations to the magnetic field in DIII-D ( δB/B∼2×10−4) result in large modulations of density fluctuation amplitudes in the pedestal, which are shown using Doppler backscattering measurements to vary by a factor of 2. Helical perturbations of equilibrium density within flux surfaces have previously been observed in the pedestal of DIII-D plasmas when 3D fields are applied and were correlated with density fluctuation asymmetries in the pedestal. These intra-surface density and pressure variations are shown through two fluid MHD modeling studies using the M3D-C1 code to be due to the misalignment of the density and temperature equilibrium iso-surfaces in the pedestal region. This modeling demonstrates that the phase shift between the two iso-surfaces corresponds to the diamagnetic direction of the two species, with the mass density surfaces shifted in the ion diamagnetic direction relative to the temperature and magnetic flux iso-surfaces. The resulting pedestal density, potential, and turbul...
An evaluation of the use of depleted uranium as a structural component for transport casks

Depleted uranium (DU) alloys are currently used for gamma-ray shielding in casks and as shielding blocks. For the transport cask application, a significant weight and dimensional penalty exists when using the DU solely for shielding. If credit could be taken for the structural use of the DU for containment in a transport cask, greater payloads may be realized. Mechanical property measurements of several uranium alloys and finite element analyses of prototype transport casks assumed to be constructed, in part, from selected uranium materials were performed to evaluate the potential for the use of DU alloys for cask containment. These data and analyses support the concept of the use of DU alloys for the containment function even under hypothetical accident conditions. A conclusion is that the properties of certain DU alloys are therefore sufficient to warrant further consideration of the material for this purpose.
Plane Algebraic Curves

In the Introduction and Chapter 1 we considered several ways of studying properties of rational points on curves using intersection theory, and we saw how modifications had to be made for singular points. In this chapter we develop background material on projective spaces, plane curves, and to a limited extent on hypersurfaces, and in the next chapter apply these results to cubic curves.
Connection Problems in the Parameterless Case: Progress and More Problems

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the connection problems in the parameter less case. The problems of the analytic part of the global theory involve determining maximal sectors in which an actual solution may keep the same expansion and effective representations for the actual solutions. In the general case, it is not possible to obtain both asymptotic and uniqueness sectors as existence can be lost long before uniqueness could be achieved. The desired uniqueness in the general case can be brought about by considering a system of actual solutions simultaneously whose connection matrices satisfy a certain minimality condition with respect to their support, that is, the off-diagonal positions where they are allowed to have nonzero elements. The lateral connection phenomenon is related to the behavior of the functions y k (t; n) near the other singular points. The cases in which more than two of the eigenvalues λ 1 ,……,λ n are co-linear correspond to multiple Stokes' rays, that is, a single Stokes' ray corresponds to several pairs. The geometry in the t-plane becomes more complicated and the connection matrices generally contain more entries due to the multiplicity of pairs. The method for treating the general lateral connection problem utilizes a fundamental solution matrix y*(t; n), which can be constructed using the matrix of singular solutions together with the matrix C = (c jk (n)). In the case of the general differential equation, there is no analogous differential equation but associated functions can nevertheless be constructed which share almost all of the analytic properties of the y k (t) arising from a differential equation.
The calculus concept inventory: a psychometric analysis and implications for use

Concept inventories have become increasingly common in STEM disciplines as a means of assessing student conceptual understanding on a given topic, and overall they have led to significant reform in...
Non-Responsive Virtual Humans for Self-Report Assessments

Anonymous computer-based assessments are used to collect sensitive data in self-report assessments. However they lack human element for building rapport with users. Anonymous rapport building responsive virtual humans (VHs) are known to increase users' willingness to disclose honest information in self-report assessments. However, implementing responsive VHs is a complex task. It requires modeling verbal and nonverbal user behaviors in realtime and generating appropriate responses to address these behaviors. In our work, we investigate the use of non-responsive VHs as middle-ground between computers and responsive VHs to conduct self-report assessments. Prior research has shown that non-responsive VHs, which are unaware of users' behavior, can provide task-related support. We conducted a user study to evaluate the usability of non-responsive VHs to conduct self-report assessment. We also compared users' reported impression management and fear of negative evaluation with computer-based assessment to measure users' willingness to disclose honest information. We found that participants reported significantly higher usability for VH based assessment. Moreover, participants' willingness to disclose honest information with VH was same as in computer-based assessment. We conclude that non-responsive VHs can be used to improve user experience during time consuming self-report assessments.
Some Remarks on Equality in Health and Health Care

The univariate distribution of health in a population is of little interest to egalitarians, whether relational or distributional, and the relational egalitarian has a hard time saying anything about how the distribution of health bears on whether individuals can interact as equals. The correlations between health and other factors relevant to well-being are of interest to both kinds of egalitarians, even though the relational egalitarian, unlike the distributional egalitarian, has no ultimate interest in distribution. It is difficult to specify distributional or relational egalitarian ideal distributions of health care and to determine what policies would best implement these ideals. What is of particular interest about health to egalitarians are mainly the links between health and other relevant social factors and the distribution of health care, public health programs, and health research. It might be thought that health care resources should be redistributed in the most cost-effective way, measuring effectiveness not by the consequences for total welfare alone, but by the consequences for some measure of egalitarian value. But there are ethical objections to the use of cost-effectiveness information to allocate health-care resources, even with an egalitarian understanding of “effectiveness.” It is very difficult to adjudicate among the moral considerations that are relevant to the allocation of the health-care budget: efficiency with respect to egalitarian objectives, prioritizing the treatment of those whose health problems are worst, offering fair chances to all, and avoiding discrimination are difficult problems. Regulated markets offer one possible response to these difficulties.
Carrying the Burden of a Culture: Bargaining With Patriarchy and the Gendered Reputation of Arab American Women:

This article analyzes how Arab American women understand cultural expectations that govern their lives and bodies, as they grapple with tension between U.S. and Arab cultural narratives. Using data...
Homogeneous versus Heterogeneous Response of a Flexible Pavement Structure: Strain and Domain Analyses

AbstractThis paper presents a computational model of a flexible pavement structure in finite elements (FE). The model is used to evaluate the response of a control (homogeneous) pavement structure,...
Effect of N-Acetyltransferase 2 Genotype on the Pharmacokinetics of Hydralazine During Pregnancy.

Hydralazine, an antihypertensive agent used during pregnancy, undergoes N-acetylation primarily via N-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2) to form 3-methyl-1,2,4-triazolo[3,4-a]phthalazine (MTP). To characterize the steady-state pharmacokinetics (PK) of hydralazine during pregnancy and evaluate the effects of NAT2 genotype on hydralazine and MTP PK during pregnancy, 12 pregnant subjects received oral hydralazine (5-25 mg every 6 hours) in mid- (n = 5) and/or late pregnancy (n = 8). Serial blood samples were collected over 1 dosing interval, and steady-state noncompartmental PK parameters were estimated. Subjects were classified as either (rapid acetylators, n = 6) or slow acetylators (SAs, n = 6) based on NAT2 genotype. During pregnancy, when compared with the SA group, the RA group had faster weight-adjusted hydralazine apparent oral clearance (70.0 ± 13.6 vs 20.1 ± 6.9 L/h, P < .05), lower dose-normalized area under the concentration-time curve (AUC; 1.5 ± 0.8 vs 5.9 ± 3.7 ng·h/mL, P < .05), lower dose-normalized peak concentrations (0.77 ± 0.51 vs 4.04 ± 3.18 ng/mL, P < .05), and larger weight-adjusted apparent oral volume of distribution (302 ± 112 vs 116 ± 45 L/kg, P < .05). Furthermore, the MTP/hydralazine AUC ratio was ∼10-fold higher in the RA group (78 ± 30 vs 8 ± 3, P < .05) than in the SA group. No gestational age or dose-dependent effects were observed, possibly because of the small sample size. This study describes for the first time, the PK of oral hydralazine and its metabolite, MTP, during pregnancy, and confirmed that the PK of oral hydralazine is NAT2 genotype dependent during pregnancy.
Hepatitis C Screening in Mothers and Infants Exposed to Opioids.

OBJECTIVES: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the most common blood-borne pathogen in the United States. In the context of the opioid epidemic, there has been a dramatic rise in perinatal opioid use and the prevalence of HCV infection, which can be transmitted to infants. One national guideline recommends HCV screening for all pregnant women and screening for HCV-exposed newborns after 18 months of age. In this study, we aimed to identify the trends in HCV prevalence and screening among mothers using opioids during pregnancy and infants exposed to HCV infection in utero. METHODS: Infants with International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (779.5) or International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision codes (P96.1) for neonatal abstinence syndrome and in-utero exposure to methadone, buprenorphine, or other opioid medications were identified for this retrospective cohort analysis. Information regarding maternal and infant HCV screening, demographics, and follow-up care was also extracted from the electronic medical record and HealthInfoNet, a statewide database of laboratory results. RESULTS: Between 2013 and 2018, 769 infants with in-utero opiate exposure were identified. The maternal HCV screening rate increased from 58.1% in 2013 to 90% in 2018. Of the mothers tested for HCV during pregnancy, 257 (47.9%) were HCV-positive. Of the 177 infants eligible for testing by age criteria, 94 (53%) were tested for HCV, and 7 (7.4%) were HCV-positive. We estimate that an additional 10 infants were HCV-positive and undiagnosed. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the high prevalence of HCV, rates of maternal and infant screening remain suboptimal. This study highlights the need for improved care for this high-risk population of infants born to mothers with opiate use disorder.
Adaptive QoS-Based Resource Management Framework for IoT/Edge Computing

With the vast proliferation of Internet of Things, it will soon become unsustainable to manage the increasing number of connected devices in the cloud. An alternative is to perform a significant amount of the processing at the "edge" of the IoT cluster. Edge nodes can be placed in close proximity to the IoT devices to offload most of the processing between the devices and the cloud. However, with unpredictable processing requirements and varying workloads, care must be taken to adequately manage resources, so as not to overwhelm an edge node. For this reason, we present a new resource management framework for edge computing. Our method utilizes a Quality-of-Service (QoS) based approach to resource management that utilizes the concept of virtual clustering to dynamically allocate resources in a multiprocessor environment. In order to account for unpredictable computational loads, we incorporate feedback to adjust the resource levels based upon the QoS parameters. Fuzzy logic is used to combine various task properties such as, timeliness, resource utilization and criticality to make scheduling decisions. Simulations results indicate that this adaptive approach more effectively manages the system resources and provides for protections against task overruns during overload conditions as compared to traditional static allocation techniques.
Stoichiometry counts

Although stoichiometry is a chemistry term derived from the Greek words stoikhein (element) and metron (measure), the phrase underlies all biological processes. Cell biology depends upon protein–protein interactions, which are defined by stoichiometry and binding affinities. The recent article by Marchetti et al. (1) revisits the stoichiometry of the p75 neurotrophin receptor, which has been the subject of considerable interest and debate. For more than 30 y, this topic generated multiple models and controversies (2⇓⇓–5). Why has the p75 receptor drawn so much attention? The p75 receptor is highly relevant to the neurotrophic theory which predicted programmed neuronal cell death occurs during development due to a competition for low concentrations of trophic factors such as nerve growth factor (NGF) (6). The ability of p75 to induce cell death or survival, and to participate in high-affinity ligand binding, is consistent with its ability to determine pruning and connectivity between neurons and their targets (7). In addition, p75 has been implicated in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease (8). As the first identified member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor superfamily, p75 shares many common features of extracellular cysteine-rich repeats of 40 amino acids and a death domain at the C terminus. These motifs are also found in the Fas, TNFR1, and death receptors, DR3–6 (9). When discovered as an NGF receptor, skepticism arose about the identification of p75, due to the lack of a catalytic domain and a smaller than expected size. The identification of the TrkA tyrosine kinase receptor as another NGF receptor seemed to reconcile this discrepancy, but did not completely resolve the question of stoichiometry or high-affinity binding. The association of p75 with its ligands has been enigmatic, since a receptor monomer, dimer, and trimer have been reported. The ratio of NGF … [↵][1]1Email: moses.chao{at}med.nyu.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Novel Approaches for Restoring the Function of the Limbal Stem Cell Niche

Various congenital, traumatic, toxic, and autoimmune processes may lead to limbal stem cell dysfunction (LSCD). In the past, patients with LSCD suffered from permanent loss of visual function as the condition was difficult to manage. In recent decades, research in this area has led to novel treatment paradigms. It was discovered that significant corneal injury in patients with LSCD can lead to not only a decreased number of corneal epithelial progenitor cells but also a disturbance in the limbal stem cell niche. Under these pathological conditions, a pro-inflammatory environment persists in patients with LSCD, leading to continued activation of inflammatory cytokines, impaired macrophage phagocytosis, and pathological hemangiogenesis. Thus, the current strategy in corneal regeneration in this area is a two-pronged approach, including both direct repopulation of limbal epithelial stem cells (LESCs) and also restoration of the limbal stem cell niche. In this chapter, a summary of current approaches to corneal epithelial regeneration will be provided. Novel research into possible future approaches to corneal regeneration including the use of mesenchymal stem cells will also be discussed (Fig. 20.1).
Inhibition of flowering in short-day plants.

In 1925, Garner and Allard (5) reported that placing the top leaves of the SDP Cosmos in LD’s inhibited the flower-stimulating effect from the lower leaves that were in SD’s. The top leaves of the controls were in darkness. Since then a variety of experiments have confirmed that LD’s, rather than being merely neutral, may inhibit flowering in SDP’s (1, 8, 14). Lang (14) has reviewed the early literature. I shall give references only to papers not cited by him.
The Effects of Different Property Models in a Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulation of a Reciprocating Compressor

Computational fluid dynamics was applied to model a simple reciprocating compressor using R134a (1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane) as the working fluid. The sensitivity of the compressor model to various property models was quantitatively assessed by calculating the work required to carry out several compression cycles. The ideal gas equation, a virial equation using only the second virial coefficient, and the Peng–Robinson equation were compared to a reference-quality Helmholtz energy equation of state. Significant errors, up to 12% in the density of the outflowing gas, can result from the use of the ideal gas model. The Peng–Robinson equation resulted in density errors up to 6.3%. The virial equation gave values closest to those calculated using the Helmholtz energy equation of state, with errors in density up to 4.7%. The results also show that an increase in accuracy in work and mass flow calculations achieved by using the Helmholtz energy equation of state is obtainable without an impractical increase in computation time.
Bladder Cancer: Overview, Epidemiology, Initial Presentation and Diagnosis

Bladder cancer, also known as urothelial carcinoma, is the most common malignancy of the genitourinary system. It can occur anywhere along the urothelial lining, including the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer worldwide and sixth most common cancer in the United States. Transitional cell carcinoma is the most common type of urothelial carcinoma. Histologic variants of bladder cancer are harder and aggressive to treat. Squamous cell carcinoma is the most common type of non-urothelial carcinoma. Smoking is one of the major risk factors for the development of bladder cancer, and smokers are three times more susceptible to developing bladder cancer compared to nonsmokers. The mortality rate for urothelial cancer has decreased by 5% mainly because of awareness, which helped with smoking cessation, changes in environmental carcinogens, healthier lifestyles, better access to treatments, and better choice of chemotherapy for metastatic urothelial cancer patients to name a few. In terms of diagnosing urothelial carcinoma, a complete urological evaluation with complete history and physical, laboratory tests including microscopic analysis, urine culture, and cytology is warranted. Complete workup involves computed tomography (CT) urogram and cystoscopy as the final steps of evaluation. Gross hematuria and asymptomatic hematuria are one of the key elements of clinical presentation, as well as other irritative urinary symptoms. Early detection of bladder cancer is the key to have a favorable prognosis and to prevent metastasis.
Comparison of Derivative Estimation Methods in Optimal Control Using Direct Collocation

A study is conducted to evaluate four derivative estimation methods when solving a large sparse nonlinear programming problem that arises from the approximation of an optimal control problem using ...
Co-constructing Engineering Doctoral Identities Through Career Prospects

This WIP research paper explores how engineering doctoral identity influences the perceived career prospects and resources of domestic engineering doctoral students. The qualitative research methodology of Narrative Inquiry was used to highlight the experiences or ‘stories’ of nine domestic engineering doctoral students from in-depth interviews at a research institution within the western United States. This WIP paper will focus on one of three themes, Engineering Doctoral Identity, that emerged from thematic analysis of the data. This analysis revealed that the aggregate perspectives of student participants revealed a co-constructed engineering doctoral identity. This identity was formed primarily in response to ‘insiders’, or people who have or are pursuing a Ph.D. in engineering. On the other hand, doctoral student participants had to manage their perceived fit with ‘outsiders’ who assess the utility of a Ph.D. in engineering for employment. Doctoral student perception and utilization of resources was also influenced by insiders (i.e., engineering faculty), which revealed a preference for resources offered by insiders. Career resources offered by major professors/research advisors were highly regarded and sought after by participants while those offered by Career Services were not pursued at all.
Data-Mining Homogeneous Subgroups in Multiple Regression When Heteroscedasticity, Multicollinearity, and Missing Variables Confound Predictor Effects

Multiple regression is not reliable to recover predictor slopes within homogeneous subgroups from heterogeneous samples. In contrast to Monte Carlo analysis, which assigns completely to the first-s...
The nasopharyngeal microbiota of preweaned dairy calves with and without ultrasonographic lung consolidation

Preweaning is a high-risk time period for dairy calves; pneumonia is a predominant cause of mortality and use of antibiotics on farms. Given the concern of antibiotic resistance, there is demand to investigate alternative therapies. Administering probiotics to alter the respiratory microbiome and reduce the risk of pneumonia has shown promising results in mice. Although the bacterial community dynamics of the upper airway have been investigated in dairy calves, they have not been evaluated in calves diagnosed with pneumonia using lung ultrasound (US). By allowing visualization of lung consolidation, US increases the sensitivity of pneumonia diagnosis. Elucidating phenotypes of the commensal community in healthy and pneumonic dairy calves is crucial to investigating probiotics as a preventative for pneumonia. The primary objective of this prospective case-control study was to describe bacterial communities in the nasopharynx (NP) of preweaned dairy calves with and without lung consolidation. Secondary objectives included evaluating the effects of previous antibiotic therapy and age on the composition of NP microbiota.
Ketogenic diet as an advanced option for the management of pediatric obesity.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW The Duke Healthy Lifestyles Program (HL), established in 2006, has treated over 15,000 pediatric patients with obesity. A subset of patients with obesity do not respond to dietary and lifestyle changes. Development of the Staged Transitional Eating Plan (STEP) in 2012 provided a ketogenic advanced dietary option for these specific patients. RECENT FINDINGS The goal of STEP is to facilitate weight loss, while assuring adequacy and the promotion of health through the abundant inclusion of vegetables, fatty fish, nuts, olive oil, and other foods consistent with the Mediterranean Diet. STEP is a three-phase eating plan, each with a defined carbohydrate limit. STEP is ideal for patients eager to try a low carbohydrate diet, those with good vegetable acceptance, and those with families who are able to participate in the same eating plan as them. SUMMARY STEP, the HL version of low carbohydrate high fat eating, is a safe dietary intervention for a carefully selected subset of pediatric patients with obesity who are trying to lose weight.
Environmental support and physical education teacher self-efficacy: A test of social cognitive theory

There is a need for sound self-efficacy measures in education that are based on Social Cognitive Theory. Physical education benefits public health by addressing physical inactivity and obesity. The purpose of this study was to develop and test a standards-based training program and virtual blog on self-efficacy. Participants were 60 physical education teachers recruited from 16 school districts. Three self-efficacy scales were administered at the beginning of a workshop and after a six-week collaborative blog. The major finding is that the intervention enhanced self-efficacy to a much greater extent than the control group. The average experimental group effect size for ESBI was .97 compared to .19 for the control group. This work supports the notion that self-efficacy is specific to context and content and could serve as a guide for future professional development opportunities.
Bounds in auctions with unobserved heterogeneity

Many empirical studies of auctions rely on the assumption that the researcher observes all variables that make auctions differ ex ante. When there is unobserved heterogeneity, the direction of the bias this causes is known only in a few restric- tive examples. In this paper, I show that ignoring unobserved heterogeneity in a first price sealed bid auction with symmetric independent private values gives bounds on several quantities of economic interest under surprisingly general con- ditions. The results apply to certain quantities related to expectations of valua- tions, including bidder profits (which can be used to recover bid preparation costs in entry models) and the efficiency loss of assigning the object randomly. I then turn to estimation of these bounds, and show that, when only the winning bid is available, the rate of convergence can be slower than the square root of the num- ber of auctions observed and depends on the number of bidders. These results ap- ply more generally to estimation of functionals of a distribution from repeated ob- servations of an order statistic and may be of independent interest. I apply these methods to bound the efficiency loss from replacing a set of procurement auc- tions for highway construction in Michigan with random assignment. Keywords. Auctions, unobserved heterogeneity, L-statistics, nonstandard asymp- totics. JEL classification. C14, C44.
Improvements to an explosives detection algorithm based on active neutron interrogation using statistical modeling

Earlier efforts have identified an algorithm that uses active neutron interrogation to find explosives hidden in cargo containers. This algorithm uses flags, in the form of specific mathematical manipulations of the exiting neutron and photon radiation at different angles, to classify the cargo type, search for hidden explosives, and minimize certain false positives due to cargo heterogeneities. Statistical modeling software has now been applied to the previously-identified flags in an effort to improve the detection algorithm. The new detection models have shown accurate results exceeding 95 % for simplified screening scenarios 80–90 % when more realistic conditions are considered.
Conducted Communications Media

The purpose of this article is to discuss conducted communications media used for computer network applications. The three major types of cable to be discussed include coaxial, twisted pair, and fiber optic. Each cable type exhibits several important characteristics, such as physical makeup, bandwidth, and maximum cable lengths. This article compares and contrasts the distinctions between the different types of conductive transmission cables. By reviewing cable specifications, the reader should gain a better understanding of the network applications for a particular communications media. Furthermore, advantages and disadvantages ought to become more apparent. Finally, the current and future position of conducted communications media in the computer networking community is evaluated. Keywords: bandwidth; baseband and broadband; cable access methods; coaxial cable; fiber optic; network topologies; protocols; twisted-pair
Hepatic insulin clearance is the primary determinant of insulin sensitivity in the normal dog.

Objective Insulin resistance is a powerful risk factor for Type 2 diabetes and a constellation of chronic diseases, and is most commonly associated with obesity. We examined if factors other than obesity are more substantial predictors of insulin sensitivity under baseline, nonstimulated conditions. Methods Metabolic assessment was performed in healthy dogs (n = 90). Whole-body sensitivity from euglycemic clamps (SICLAMP) was the primary outcome variable, and was measured independently by IVGTT (n = 36). Adiposity was measured by MRI (n = 90), and glucose-stimulated insulin response was measured from hyperglycemic clamp or IVGTT (n = 86 and 36, respectively). Results SICLAMP was highly variable (5.9-75.9 dl/min per kg per μU/ml). Despite narrow range of body weight (mean, 28.7 ± 0.3 kg), adiposity varied approximately eight-fold and was inversely correlated with SICLAMP (P < 0.025). SICLAMP was negatively associated with fasting insulin, but most strongly associated with insulin clearance. Clearance was the dominant factor associated with sensitivity (r = 0.53, P < 0.00001), whether calculated from clamp or IVGTT. Conclusions These data suggest that insulin clearance contributes substantially to insulin sensitivity, and may be pivotal in understanding the pathogenesis of insulin resistance. We propose the hyperinsulinemia due to reduction in insulin clearance is responsible for insulin resistance secondary to changes in body weight.
Minimal Awareness and Stalled Uptake of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Among at Risk, HIV-Negative, Black Men Who Have Sex with Men

Abstract In the United States, rates of HIV infection are highest among black men who have sex with men (BMSM). Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a highly effective form of HIV prevention, but the uptake of this strategy has been slow since FDA approval in 2012, and it is unknown whether information about PrEP is reaching BMSM. Four hundred and thirty-six BMSM in Atlanta, GA were surveyed from January 2012 (6 months prior to PrEP approval) to March 2014 (20 months after approval). Analyses revealed no association between date of survey assessment and awareness of PrEP (20.5% were aware of PrEP before approval and 23.4% were aware after approval; OR=0.99 [0.98–1.02], p=0.952). In a multivariate model, BMSM unaware of PrEP reported lower rates of HIV testing knowledge, fewer experiences with HIV testing, and higher rates of transactional sex than BMSM who were aware of PrEP. Our findings suggest that there is limited understanding of PrEP and that there is considerable groundwork that needs to be achieved ...
Issues of Diversity in Adolescent Health Psychology: Exploring Sociocultural Influences on Adolescent Health

The field of health psychology explores the intricate and complex balance between physical and psychological health and disease. Given the large number ethnic minority adolescents residing in the USA, a thorough review of the scientific literature on adolescent cultural minorities and health psychology seemed necessary. In this chapter information regarding the operational definitions associated with the concept of culture are defined, contexts for adolescent development and their relationship to sociocultural factors are explored, and ethnic differences with regard to conditions that impact health are provided. Overall it is evident that sociocultural factors can be health-promoting, health-demoting, or a combination of both.
Sources of amino acids for protein synthesis during early organogenesis in the rat. 1. Relative contributions of free amino acids and of proteins

Summary Rat conceptuses on the 10th day of gestation were cultured for 27 h in whole rat serum. An addition of either [ 3 H]leucine or [ 3 H]leucine-labelled rat serum proteins was made once during the culture period, and the acid-soluble and acid-insoluble radioactivities of embryo and visceral yolk sac measured at harvesting. The extent of radiolabel incorporation into embryonic and yolk-sac proteins increased linearly with the duration of exposure of the conceptus to the radiolabelled leucine or radiolabelled serum proteins, indicating roughly constant rates of incorporation, per unit mass of tissue, throughout the culture period. The incorporation rates, expressed as clearances, were 0.73 and 0.78 μl/mg tissue protein/h for embryo and yolk sac, respectively, when the source was [ 3 H]leucine; and 1.8 and 1.3 μl/mg tissue protein/h, for embryo and yolk sac, respectively, when the source was [ 3 H]leucine-labelled serum proteins. It is estimated, from the known leucine and protein concentrations in serum, that protein contributed over 99 per cent of the leucine supplied to the conceptus for its protein synthesis. In parallel experiments, measurements were made on cultures conducted in the presence of an antiserum against rat visceral yolk sac (100 μg/ml). Antiserum profoundly inhibited incorporation of radioactivity into embryo and yolk-sac proteins, when the source was 3 H-labelled protein, a result consistent with the known ability of the antiserum to inhibit pinocytosis in the yolk sac. Antiserum also decreased incorporation from [ 3 H]leucine in the yolk sac, suggesting that a proportion of the free leucine entering the yolk sac does so by pinocytosis. The failure of antiserum to affect incorporation of [ 3 H]leucine into the embryo probably indicates that leucine can enter the embryo without the mediation of yolk-sac pinocytosis. The primacy of protein, as a source of amino acids for the organogenesis-stage embryo, is consistent with the serious effects, in terms of embryonic death and malformation, that result from the interruption of amino acid supply when either pinocytosis or lysosomal proteolysis in the yolk sac is inhibited.
Crossed-Beam Imaging of the H Abstraction Channel in the Reaction of CN with 1-Pentene

The reaction of the cyano radical with 1-pentene has been studied in crossed molecular beams experiments at a range of collision energies from 5 to 9 kcal/mol. In these studies, the pentenyl radical product is probed using single-photon ionization at 157 nm, and the product flux contour map is obtained directly using DC slice imaging. The results clearly demonstrate the presence of the hydrogen abstraction channel in this reaction, which has largely been neglected in studies of analogous systems. The reaction likely gives rise to the resonantly stabilized C5H9 radical. The yield of this channel is estimated by comparison to the reaction of the cyano radical with n-pentane. The results have implications for hydrocarbon growth and nitrile incorporation in formation of haze particles on Saturn’s moon, Titan.
The Impact of Spousal Teammates on Entrepreneurial Persistence and New Venture Creation

Should your spouse be a member of your new venture team? This question has broad practical and theoretical implications, and yet remains unexplored in the literature. This study begins to answer th...
The effect of maillard reaction products on the absorption of tryptophan

1. 1. The kinetics of the absorption of tryptophan in the presence of Maillard reaction products formed in the glucose-tryptophan system was studied by both in vitro everted gut sac method and in vivo catherization of the portal vein. 2. 2. Fructose-l-tryptophan (Amadori compound) appeared to be the major fraction of the reaction products when fractionated using a cellulose column eluted by water-saturated n-butanol. 3. 3. The absorption of l-tryptophan was partially inhibited in vitro and in vivo by fructose-l-tryptophan in a competitive manner with an inhibitor constant (Ki)of 1.1 mM. 4. 4. The relative absorption rate of l-tryptophan was significantly lower in the presence of the Maillard reaction products than in the presence of fructose-l-tryptophan indicating the presence of other inhibitory factors in the reaction products. 5. 5. The in vivo absorption of fructose-l-tryptophan was almost negligible compared to that of tryptophan. 6. 6. The inhibited absorption by Maillard reaction products may have contributed in part to an incomplete recovery in the growth of the rats when fed a supplemented browned synthetic amino acid diet.
Improving the Performance of SVM-RFE to Select Genes in Microarray Data

Background Recursive Feature Elimination is a common and well-studied method for reducing the number of attributes used for further analysis or development of prediction models. The effectiveness of the RFE algorithm is generally considered excellent, but the primary obstacle in using it is the amount of computational power required.
Crystal growth of silicate apatites by flux method

Abstract Silicate apatites containing alkaline and rare earth elements, with the formula ALn9 (SiO4)6O2 (A = Li, Na; Ln = Eu, Nd), were prepared by solid-state reaction by triple hearings at 1100 °C after which the single crystals were grown by the slow cooling flux method at the soaking temperatures of 1360-1380 °C. Needle-shaped NaNd9 (SiO4)6O2 crystals 1.0 mm long, and granular NaEu9 (SiO4)6O2 crystals as large as 0.05 mm were grown from Na2MaO4 flux. Hexagonal prismatic LiNd9 (SiO4)6O2 crystals 4.0 mm long, and tabular LiEu9 (SiO4)6O2 crystals 1.0 turn across were obtained from Li2MoO4 flux. The crystals are well-faceted and mainly surrounded by c(001), m(100), a(110), x(101) and s(111) faces. They form complete series of solid solutions with hexagonal symmetry space group (P63/m) in such a way that lattice dimensions of a0- and c0-axes from LiEu9 (SiO4)6O2 to NaEu9 (SiO4)6O2 increase from 9.4285 and 6.8765 A to 9.4432 and 6.9164 A, respectively.
Ventral Decompression of the Canine Spinal Cord Using the 3–M Perforator

The use of an air powered automatic trephine (3-M Perforator) for performing ventral decompression of the canine spinal cord was evaluated based on its use in 5 experimental dogs. The problems of hemorrhage and spinal cord trauma encountered in this study are discussed and indicate little practical application of the instrument in decompression from the ventral approach.
Determination of the Number of Items and Passing Score in a Mastery Test

Wilcox (1976) has recently recommended the use of binomial tables to determine the minimum number of items (n) and the minimum passing score (xc) for a mastery test, which would yield acceptable risks of misclassifying an examinee. Fhaner (1974) described another method of estimating n and xc, which is based on normal approximation to binomial distributions. The present paper describes a method of estimating n and xc when n is too large to use Wilcox's binomial-table-scanning method, and when the parameters Π1 and Π2 of the relevant binomial distributions, are either too small or too large to justify the use of Fhaner's normal approximation method.
Respiratory Augmentation of Left Ventricular Function during Spontaneous Ventilation in Severe Left Ventricular Failure by Grunting: An Auto-EPAP Effect

A patient with severe congestive cardiomyopathy demonstrated involuntary forceful expiratory grunting that was associated with an elevated intrathoracic pressure and stable hemodynamics. Face-mask administration of 20 cm H2O as continuous positive-airway pressure (CPAP) abolished the grunting without hemodynamic compromise. However, loss of CPAP by mask leak resulted in rapid hemodynamic deterioration and resumption of grunting. Endotracheal intubation with 20 cm H2O of positive end-expiratory pressure restored hemodynamic stability. This suggests that spontaneous ventilatory efforts can augment the failing myocardium.
Studies on the effect of hydrogen induction on performance, emission and combustion behaviour of a WCO emulsion based dual fuel engine

Abstract This paper aims at studying the effect of hydrogen induction on engine performance, emission and combustion behaviour of a diesel engine fuelled with the emulsion of used palm oil (called as WCO-waste cooking oil) as pilot fuel and hydrogen as primary fuel. A single cylinder water-cooled direct injection diesel engine was tested at 100% and 40% loads. Results were compared with neat diesel, neat WCO and WCO emulsion at both loads in single fuel operation. WCO emulsion in single fuel mode indicated improvement in performance and reduction in all emissions as compared to neat WCO. Dual fuel operation with hydrogen induction further reduced the emissions of smoke HC and CO with WCO as pilot fuel at all power outputs. However, hydrogen induction resulted in reduced thermal efficiency at 40% load. WCO emulsion showed higher ignition delay as compared to neat WCO. Dual fuel operation with hydrogen induction increased the ignition delay further. Heat release pattern showed higher premixed combustion rate with hydrogen induction mainly at high power outputs. Premixed combustion rate became very high at higher rates of hydrogen admission mainly at high power output. In general, hydrogen induction showed superior performance at high power output and inferior performance at low power output with WCO emulsion as injected fuel.
A new class of fenonic Markov word models for large vocabulary continuous speech recognition

A technique for constructing hidden Markov models for the acoustic representation of words is described. The models, built from combinations of acoustically based subword units called fenones, are derived automatically from one or more sample utterances of words. They are more flexible than previously reported fenone-based word models and lead to an improved capability of modeling variations in pronunciation. In addition, their construction is simplified, because it can be done using the well-known forward-backward algorithm for the parameter estimation of hidden Markov models. Experimental results obtained on a 5000-word vocabulary continuous speech recognition task are presented to illustrate some of the benefits associated with the new models. Multonic baseforms resulted in a reduction of 16% in the average error rate obtained for ten speakers. >
The next President: Will your vote decide it?

Will Douglas VanDerwerken change the world? He becomes converted to voting — and works out the odds that his vote will be the crucial all-important pivotal decider that determines who becomes President.
Soft Upsets in 16K Dynamic RAMs Induced by Single High Energy Photons

Soft upsets have been observed in dynamic random access memories (RAMs) that can be attributed to single high energy photon interactions. In the experiments, bremsstrahlung produced by the interaction of 40 MeV electrons with a thin tungsten converter has been found to produce soft upsets at flux levels well below those where photocurrent generation of upsets dominates. The number of upsets observed at low photon fluxes depends on the total number of photons which have been incident on the device but is independent of the dose rate. This behavior is consistent with preliminary calculations which assume that the upsets are caused by alpha particles Produced in the silicon chip by the nuclear reaction 28Si(?,?)24Mg. In these calculations the bremsstrahlung spectrum and the reaction cross section were integrated over the range from 15 to 22 MeV.
Lutheranism in Hungary in the aftermath of communism

(1994). Lutheranism in Hungary in the aftermath of communism. Religion, State and Society: Vol. 22, No. 3, pp. 339-344.
Alpha-lithiation of n-alkyl groups in pyrazoles

Abstract 1,3,5-Trimethylpyrazole and l-ethyl-3,5-dimethylpyrazole undergo lithiation exclusively at the α -position of the N-alkyl group. 1-Benzylpyrazole is metallated under kinetic control at -78° at the CH 2 group, but the metallorganic intermediate rearranges rapidly at 23° to give the thermodynamically more stable 5-lithio-l-benzylpyrazole. 1-Methylpyrazole gives mixtures of α- and 5-lithiation; 1-ethylpyrazole showed only 5-lithiation. The carbanions were trapped by a variety of electrophiles.
Cometary grain scattering versus wavelength, or 'What color is comet dust'?

Optical and near-infrared observations of comets are combined in a systematic study of the wavelength dependence of the scattering from cometary grains. The normalized rate of change of the reflectivity of cometary grains with respect to the wavelength of observations decreases as the wavelength increases. The observed wavelength dependence of the reflectivity gradient is consistent with an origin by scattering from micron-sized or larger, slightly absorbing spheres. The optically important comet grains are about an order of magnitude larger than the optically important interstellar grains. This size difference is a probable result of grain growth in the cloud from which the comets condensed. Grain properties differ so widely among the comets that any phase angle or heliocentric distance dependences of the continuum color are hidden.