cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Reaction time measures of processing speed: Are they yielding new information about intelligence?

Abstract Studying the speed of performing very simple mental operations has become important for the advancement of theories of intelligence. Processing speed is typically measured with electronic presentation of stimuli, and reaction times are measured in milliseconds. The apparatuses and experimental paradigms being used are thought to have several advantages over traditional paper-and-pencil psychometric tasks. The present study was conducted to determine the relationship of reaction time measures to paper-and-pencil measures of processing speed, and the relationship of both measures to general intelligence. The results showed that it is possible to separate motor components from cognitive components on both types of tasks, and that measures of speed on the two types of tasks are significantly correlated. The paper-and-pencil tasks were more strongly related to general intelligence than were the reaction time tasks.
VStore: efficiently storing virtualized state across mobile devices

Mobile virtualization is a nascent technology the value of which lies in enforcing data protection, providing process isolation and simplifying application reuse across device platforms. In this paper, we present VStore, a flexible mechanism for storage management and content protection that exploits virtualization to modularize data access and sharing mechanisms into containers separate from those containing guest operating systems and applications. This can provide mobile devices with rich storage options, including local, remote, or peer to peer stores, without affecting guest operating systems, middleware, or applications, and it enables diverse content create-query-share semantics. Further, VStore can provide the means to support centralized content protection and access control to all resident applications, thereby enabling new content distribution or privacy preservation policies to be enforced transparently. We discuss initial VStore implementation results and conclude by outlining new opportunities and challenges for further research.
Sparse Optimal Motor Estimation (SOME) for Extracting Commands for Prosthetic Limbs

It is possible to replace amputated limbs with mechatronic prostheses, but their operation requires the user's intentions to be detected and converted into control signals to the actuators. Fortunately, the motoneurons (MNs) that controlled the amputated muscles remain intact and capable of generating electrical signals, but these signals are difficult to record. Even the latest microelectrode array technologies and targeted motor reinnervation can provide only sparse sampling of the hundreds of motor units that comprise the motor pool for each muscle. Simple rectification and integration of such records is likely to produce noisy and delayed estimates of the actual intentions of the user. We have developed a novel algorithm for optimal estimation of motor pool excitation based on the recruitment and firing rates of a small number (2-10) of discriminated motor units. We first derived the motor estimation algorithm from normal patterns of modulated MN activity based on a previously published model of individual MN recruitment and asynchronous frequency modulation. The algorithm was then validated on a target motor reinnervation subject using intramuscular fine-wire recordings to obtain single motor units.
The Guttenberg Plagiarism Scandal Myths Through Germany’s Leading News Magazines

Not long after a German newspaper revealed that Germany’s popular Defense Secretary Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg had plagiarized his dissertation, he resigned from office, leaving international news ...
Biomechanical Considerations in Dynamic Strength Performance

This paper attempts to explain how biomechanical factors operate to affect human strength performance under dynamic conditions. It is shown that both inertial factors and muscle performance factors must be considered when modeling dynamic strengths. Both are shown to affect strength performance as well as how dynamic tasks must be evaluated.
Maximum utility rate allocation for energy harvesting wireless sensor networks

There is currently tremendous interest in deploying energy harvesting wireless sensor networks. Engineering such systems requires striking a careful balance between sensing performance and energy management. Our work addresses this problem through the design and analysis of a harvesting aware utility-based sensing rate allocation algorithm. Based on a network utility formulation, we show that our algorithm is optimal in terms of assigning rates to individual nodes to maximize overall utility, while ensuring energy-neutral operation. To our knowledge, our work is the first optimal solution that maximizes network utility through rate assignments for tree-structured energy harvesting sensor networks. Our algorithm is fast and efficient with running time O(N3), where N is the number of nodes. We evaluate the performance, scalability, and overhead of our algorithm for various utility functions and network sizes, underlining its significant advantages.
Regulation of Host Cell Transcriptional Physiology by the Avian Pneumovirus Provides Key Insights into Host-Pathogen Interactions

Infection with a viral pathogen triggers several pathways in the host cell that are crucial to eliminating infection, as well as those that are used by the virus to enhance its replication and virulence. We have here used suppression subtractive hybridization and cDNA microarray analyses to characterize the host transcriptional response in an avian pneumovirus model of infection. The results of our investigations reveal a dynamic host response that includes the regulation of genes with roles in a vast array of cellular functions as well as those that have not been described previously. The results show a considerable upregulation in transcripts representing the interferon-activated family of genes, predicted to play a role in virus replication arrest. The analysis also identified transcripts for proinflammatory leukocyte chemoattractants, adhesion molecules, and complement that were upregulated and may account for the inflammatory pathology that is the hallmark of viral respiratory infection. Interestingly, alterations in the transcription of several genes in the ubiquitin and endosomal protein trafficking pathways were observed, suggesting a role for these pathways in virus maturation and budding. Taken together, the results of our investigations provide key insights into individual genes and pathways that constitute the host cell's response to avian pneumovirus infection, and they have enabled the development of resources and a model of host-pathogen interaction for an important avian respiratory tract pathogen.
A New Type IV Secretion System Promotes Conjugal Transfer in Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Two DNA transfer systems encoded by the tumor-inducing (Ti) plasmid have been previously identified in Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The virB operon is required for the transfer of transferred DNA to the plant host, and the trb system encodes functions required for the conjugal transfer of the Ti plasmid between cells of Agrobacterium. Recent availability of the genome sequence of Agrobacterium allowed us to identify a third system that is most similar to the VirB type IV secretion system of Bartonella henselae. We have designated this system avhB for Agrobacterium virulence homologue virB. The avhB loci reside on pAtC58 and encode at least 10 proteins (AvhB2 through AvhB11), 7 of which display significant similarity to the corresponding virulence-associated VirB proteins of the Ti plasmid. However, the AvhB system is not required for tumor formation; rather, it mediates the conjugal transfer of the pAtC58 cryptic plasmid between cells of Agrobacterium. This transfer occurs in the absence of the Ti plasmid-encoded VirB and Trb systems. Like the VirB system, AvhB products promote the conjugal transfer of the IncQ plasmid RSF1010, suggesting that these products comprise a mating-pair formation system. The presence of plasmid TiC58 or plasmid RSF1010 reduces the conjugal transfer efficiency of pAtC58 10- or 1,000-fold, respectively. These data suggest that complex substrate interactions exist among the three DNA transfer systems of Agrobacterium.
Supergravity, Dark Energy and the Fate of the Universe

We propose a description of dark energy and acceleration of the universe in extended supergravities with de Sitter (dS) solutions. Some of them are related to M theory with noncompact internal spaces. Masses of ultralight scalars in these models are quantized in units of the Hubble constant: ${m}^{2}{=nH}^{2}.$ If the dS solution corresponds to a minimum of the effective potential, the universe eventually becomes dS space. If the dS solution corresponds to a maximum or a saddle point, which is the case in all known models based on $N=8$ supergravity, the flat universe eventually stops accelerating and collapses to a singularity. We show that in these models, as well as in the simplest models of dark energy based on $N=1$ supergravity, the typical time remaining before the global collapse is comparable to the present age of the universe, ${t=O(10}^{10})\mathrm{yr}.$ We discuss the possibility of distinguishing between various models and finding our destiny using cosmological observations.
The Yogi Berra school of library science

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into issues encountered in maintaining library technologies on a limited budget and with limited personnel.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses real world experiences to report on collection development decisions as they relate to electronic resources in an era of shrinking budgets.Findings – The percentage of library budgets allocated for the acquisition of electronic resources has risen steadily in an online era. As state legislatures across the country cut funding, librarians must cut expenditures accordingly. With electronic resources comprising a large segment of overall expenditures, cuts in this area are unavoidable.Originality/value – This paper examines the decision‐making process in the context of renewing or canceling underused electronic resources in an era of shrinking library budgets. It takes a humorous approach in suggesting that librarians need to look beyond emotions and base their decisions on facts.
Estimating near-infrared leaf reflectance from leaf structural characteristics

The relationship between near-infrared reflectance at 800 nm (NIRR) from leaves and characteristics of leaf structure known to affect photosynthesis was investigated in 48 species of alpine angiosperms. This wavelength was selected to discriminate the effects of leaf structure vs. chemical or water content on leaf reflectance. A quantitative model was first constructed correlating NIRR with leaf structural characteristics for six species, and then validated using all 48 species. Among the structural characteristics tested in the reflectance model were leaf trichome density, the presence or absence of both leaf bicoloration and a thick leaf cuticle ( .1 mm), leaf thickness, the ratio of palisade mesophyll to spongy mesophyll thickness (PM/SM), the proportion of the mesophyll occupied by intercellular air spaces (%IAS), and the ratio of mesophyll cell surface area exposed to IAS ( Ames) per unit leaf surface area (A), or Ames/A. Multiple regression analysis showed that measured NIRR was highly correlated with Ames/A, leaf bicoloration, and the presence of a thick leaf cuticle (r2 5 0.93). In contrast, correlations between NIRR and leaf trichome density, leaf thickness, the PM/SM ratio, or %IAS were relatively weak (r2 , 0.25). A model incorporating Ames/A, leaf bicoloration, and cuticle thickness predicted NIRR accurately for 48 species (r2 5 0.43; P , 0.01) and may be useful for linking remotely sensed data to plant structure and function.
Optimal Therapy for Adults with Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis Bone Lesions

Background There is little data on treatment of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) in adults. Available data is on small numbers of patients with short follow-up times and no comparison of results from different treatment regimens. We analyzed the responses of adult LCH patients with bone lesions to three primary chemotherapy treatments to define the optimal one.
Inner Derivations on σ-C*-Algebras

We prove the following two improvements of a result of Becker. (1) If A is a pro-C*-algebra, then every derivation on A is approximately inner. (2) If A is a separable σ-C*-algebra, and if every C* quotient of A has the property that every derivation on it is inner, then also every derivation on A is inner. We also give an example of a derivation on a separable σ-C*-algebra which is not inner but which induces an inner derivation on every C* quotient.
Decision directed autocorrelation receivers for pulsed ultra-wideband systems

The need for effective capture of multipath energy presents a key challenge to receiver design for pulsed ultra-wideband (UWB) systems operating in non-line-of-sight propagation environments. Conventional RAKE receivers can capture only a fraction of the received signal energy under practical implementation constraints, and have to deal with stringent synchronization and channel estimation requirements. Transmit-reference and autocorrelation receivers can effectively collect energy from all the received multipath components without explicit channel estimation, but the detection performance is limited by noise enhancement effects and the data rate drops by 50% because of pilot symbol overhead. In this paper, we develop decision-directed autocorrelation (DDA) receivers for effective multipath energy capture at low complexity. Operating in an adaptive decision-directed mode, the proposed DDA methods can considerably lower the noise level in the self-derived template waveform, thus improving overall detection performance. There is little loss in energy efficiency since no reference pilots are required during adaptation. Analytical performance analysis along with corroborating simulations is performed to evaluate the error performance of the proposed receivers in indoor lognormal fading channels
Transvenous Pacemaker Failure: Migration of Catheter Lead by Patient Manipulation

ransvenous implantable pacemakers are being used in increasing numbers in poor-risk patients with Stokes-Adams syndrome. T As with pacemakers directly implanted on the myocardium, the failure rate is still significant [1, 4, 5, 71. Dislodgment of the catheter tip from ventricular trabeculations is one source of failure. In many of these patients this has been attributed to arm and shoulder motion [6]. In the case reported below, dislodgment appeared to be due to the patient’s “winding up” of the intracardiac lead around the battery unit. We do not believe this complication has been previously recorded.
Electrophysiology and Live Fluorescence Imaging to Monitor the Effects of Potassium Channel Blockade on Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Immune Signaling

Studies have shown that ion-channel function in immune cells such as macrophages can influence pathogen-induced immune signaling. Thus, ion channels are viewed by some researchers as potential therapeutic targets for developing novel strategies for regulating immune response on demand when standard anti-pathogen therapies such as antibiotics and vaccinations fall short. However, the direct contribution of ion-channel function to the complex and interconnected signaling pathways in immune response has proved elusive, largely due to the difficulty in tracking multiple signaling nodes in these pathways in real-time. Toward this end, we tracked the real-time inflammatory response to E. coli derived lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in a mouse macrophage-like cell-line (RAW 264.7) with electrophysiology to measure potassium channel currents and live imaging with fluorescent fusion reporters of crucial events involved in immune signaling. We developed two reporter constructs: 1) GFP fused to the NFκB transcription factor subunit RelA (GFP-RelA) to track early ( 2 hours) cytokine induction. In RAW264.7 cells, a 100 nM LPS challenge produces two waves of GFP-RelA translocation from the cytoplasm to the nucleus while gradually increasing the expression of mCherry (TNFα promoter activity). Continuous exposure of LPS-challenged cells to the BK- and Kv-channel blocker tetraethylammonium modifies the translocation dynamics of GFP-RelA and the induction of the TNFα promoter in a dose-dependent manner. Thus we provide evidence in support of a BK- and/or Kv-channel contribution to both early and later LPS induced inflammatory signaling.
Chaotic Terrain of Mars: A Tectonic Interpretation from Mariner 6 Imagery

Analysis of lineaments observed in Mariner 6 imagery of the chaotic terrain in Pyrrhae Regio suggests that the lineaments are tectonic fractures related to stresses within the crust of Mars rather than the effects of meteorite impact or removal of permafrost. Apparently the chaotic terrain was created by slumping of blocks up to 15 km in length from a plateau down into the lower lying chaotic terrain. These blocks seem to have been isolated by tectonic fractures prior to the slump movement. The tectonic fractures follow a consistent orientation-frequency pattern across both the chaotic terrain and the surrounding cratered plateaus over an area of about 1.5 million km2. This orientation-frequency pattern is consistent with a conjugate shear fracture pattern. If this interpretation is correct, the observed fracture pattern apparently indicates a local tectonic extension of the Martian crust as the mechanism for producing the chaotic terrain.
Building a better bridge: Remodeling, recovery, and a better understanding of the biologic foundation of mechanical circulatory support

From the Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pa. Disclosures: Authors have nothing to disclose with regard to commercial support. Received for publication Aug 31, 2015; revisions received Sept 8, 2015; accepted for publication Sept 9, 2015. Address for reprints: Pavan Atluri, MD, Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Pennsylvania, 6 Silverstein Pavilion, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA 19072 (E-mail: pavan.atluri@uphs. upenn.edu). J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2015;150:1342-3 0022-5223/$36.00 Copyright 2015 by The American Association for Thoracic Surgery http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jtcvs.2015.09.042
Proceedings of the twentieth annual ACM-SIAM symposium on Discrete algorithms

We were very pleased to choose papers for presentation at the ACM-SIAM Symposium on Discrete Algorithms (SODA), which will take place in Manhattan in January 2009. A total of 550 short abstracts were submitted, later materializing into 458 submissions, of which 135 were selected. The program committee meeting was entirely electronic and the selection process took place in July and August 2008. The Best Student Paper award was given to the paper "Improved Bounds and New Techniques for Davenport---Schinzel Sequences and Their Generalizations" by Gabriel Nivasch, and the Best Paper award was given to the paper "Natural Algorithms" by Bernard Chazelle. There will be three invited presentations: one by Volker Strassen, as the recipient of the ACM-SIGACT 2008 Knuth prize; one by Michael Jordan; and one by Yuval Peres.
Agricultural Prices Following World War II

W E ARE sometimes told that prices are all too often and too exclusively the center of agricultural attention, that there are other items with which farmers and their spokesmen could be better concerned. Perhaps. But this concern with prices is well founded. Prices received by farmers explain about 75 percent of the variation in farm income from 1910 through 1943, and an even greater percent of the year-to-year changes in income over the same period.1 This is easy enough to understand when we remember that agricultural production is relatively constant, that about one-half of all farm costs are non-cash costs, and that cash costs for such items as feed and hired labor tend to move with prices received. As a result, an endeavor to understand the future course of agricultural prices should at least serve as a fair introduction to the confused and difficult future with which farmers and the rest of us are faced.
Ordering in Pb(Mg13Nb23)O3Pb(Mg12W12)O3 solid solutions

Abstract Compositional ordering was found to occur in the ferroelectric (1 − x) Pb(Mg 1 3 Nb 2 3 )O 3 -antiferroelectric x Pb(Mg 1 2 W 1 2 )O 3 solid solution system. X-Ray diffraction and neutron profile fitting structure refinement were used to refine one such composition with x = 0.9. The paraelectric structure of compositions with x
Clonal Development of Coyote Willow, Salix exigua (Salicaceae), and Attack by the Shoot-Galling Sawfly, Euura exiguae (Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae)

Five clones of the willow, Salix exigua Nuttall, along the Weber River, Utah, produced shorter shoots with increasing ramet age. The number of ovipositions by the shootgalling sawfly, Euura exiguae Smith, correlated positively with shoot length, so that sawfly density was high on younger ramets of a clone and low on older ramets. The sawfly attacked the most vigorous parts of the clones. Survival of progeny in galls decreased with ramet age from 60% survival on 1-yr-old ramets to 26% survival on 6-yr-old ramets when plant-induced mortality was considered alone. The effects of parasitoids on the pattern of sawfly attack was not significant. Survival of progeny in young ramets (2 and 3 yr old) was higher in the egg to very early first-instar stage (50%) than in older ramets (37%) (5 and 6 yr old), but differences were slight after that stage. The major determinants of Euura population distribution on willow clones were the female selective oviposition behavior on longer shoots on younger ramets, which probably evolved in response to higher survival of progeny in the younger ramets. When the relative effects of attack and survival were evaluated in response to ramet age, age accounted for 89% of the variance in attack and 95% of the variance in survival. The contrast between this species and others that attack vigorous plants and plant parts and those that attack stressed plants is emphasized, and an explanation is proposed for the difference between epidemic pest insect herbivores and those that remain as endemic species.
Monitoring results of drinking-water type fluorosis in Xinzhou city from 2008 to 2011

Objectives To understand the effect of water improvement project on defluoridation and epidemiological dynamic of drinking-water type fluorosis of Xinzhou city.Methods With Surveillance Program for Endemic Fluorosis of Shanxi Province and Standard Examination Methods for Drinking Water(GB/T5750-2006) as guide we detected the fluoride content in drinking water.Fluoride content in urine was detected with fluoride ion selective electrode;Dental fluorosis determined by Dean method;Clinical and X-ray skeletal fluorosis were tested by diagnostic standard for endemic skeletal fluorosis(WS/T192-2007).Results We carried out water improvement and defluoridation project on 221 experimental units covering 230 villages with the coverage rate of 80.7% benefiting 282 thousand people and accounted for 70.3% of the whole population in endemic area,462 drinking water was detected,the average water fluoride value was1.08mg/L ranged from 0.56 to 4.97 ㎎/L,l 7352 children were surveyed aged from 8 to 12,positive rate was 21.87%,dental fluorosis index was 0.49;1368 urine samples of children were determined,geometric average of urine fluorine in total sample was1.67 ㎎/L from 0.52 to 15.36㎎/L;4935 cases were diagnosed with clinical skeletal fluorosis in 31,728 people aged over 16 years old,the overall detection rate was 15.55%;622 people were examined with X-ray and 163cases of skeletal fluorosis was detected,detection rate was 26.21%.Conclusion Water improvement and defluoridation project achieved results in Xinzhou,but fluorosis still spread in certain area,prevention and control work still has a long way to go.
A shadow detector for photosynthesis efficiency

Plants tolerate large variations in the intensity of the light environment by controlling the efficiency of solar to chemical energy conversion. To do this, plants have a mechanism to detect the intensity, duration, and change in light as they experience moving shadows, flickering light, and cloud cover. Sugars are the primary products of CO2 fixation, a metabolic pathway that is rate limited by this solar energy conversion. We propose that sugar is a signal encoding information about the intensity, duration and change in the light environment. We previously showed that the Arabidopsis heterotrimeric G protein complex including its receptor-like Regulator of G signaling protein, AtRGS1, detects both the concentration and the exposure time of sugars (Fu et al., 2014. Cell 156: 1084-1095). This unique property, designated dose-duration reciprocity, is a behavior that emerges from the system architecture / system motif. Here, we show that another property of the signaling system is to detect large changes in light while at the same time, filtering types of fluctuation in light that do not affect photosynthesis efficiency. When AtRGS1 is genetically ablated, photosynthesis efficiency is reduced in a changing- but not a constant-light environment. Mathematical modeling revealed that information about changes in the light environment is encoded in the amount of free AtRGS1 that becomes compartmentalized following stimulation. We propose that this property determines when to adjust photosynthetic efficiency in an environment where light intensity changes abruptly caused by moving shadows on top of a background of light changing gradually from sun rise to sun set and fluctuating light such as that caused by fluttering leaves.
Caso único de sangramento pela porta de conexão do cateter de artéria pulmonar ao módulo de oximetria

Resumo O cateter de arteria pulmonar e um monitor invasivo geralmente usado durante cirurgias cardiacas em pacientes de alto risco para aprimorar as funcoes cardiacas. Apresentamos o caso de escoamento de sangue pela porta de conexao do cateter de arteria pulmonar para oximetria que resultou na impossibilidade de monitorar o debito cardiaco continuo e na substituicao do cateter. A causa do sangramento anormal foi posteriormente confirmada como um defeito de fabricacao.
Oxytocin’s Effects in Cocaine and Other Psychostimulant Addictions

The neuropeptide oxytocin plays a role in social bonding as well as learning and memory. Rodent studies have investigated whether oxytocin can reverse the neuroadaptations that occur with repeated cocaine and psychostimulant use. There is increasing evidence that oxytocin’s effects on these processes are centrally mediated and that these effects are apparent after peripheral administration of oxytocin. In addition, oxytocin levels and its receptor levels in the brain are altered with chronic exposure to cocaine. The mechanisms by which oxytocin modifies the behavioral effects of cocaine and psychostimulants are beginning to be understood. In humans, a small number of pilot studies have been conducted in cocaine-dependent patients. This chapter summarizes the preclinical as well as clinical literature to date on the relevance of the oxytocin system to cocaine and psychostimulant addiction.
Does noninvasive follicular thyroid neoplasm with papillary‐like nuclear features have distinctive features on sonography?

Background The noninvasive encapsulated follicular variant of papillary carcinoma (nEFVPTC) has recently been reclassified to "noninvasive follicular thyroid neoplasm with papillary-like nuclear features (NIFTP)," removing this entity from the malignant category. This re-categorization has had major implications for clinical management. NIFTP has overlapping cytohistologic features with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and with follicular adenomas (FA), but sonographic data comparing NIFTP to PTC and FA is lacking. Our study examines the sonographic features of NIFTP as compared with PTC and FA. Methods Ultrasound scans and Doppler blood flow from subjects who had pre-surgical sonograms and fine needle aspiration biopsies with final surgical pathology diagnoses of NIFTP/nEFVPTC, classical PTC, and FA between 01/2013-08/2016 were assessed. Sonographic and Doppler features as well as Bethesda System (TBS) diagnoses were recorded and analyzed. Results 40 NIFTP, 58 classical PTC, and 23 FA cases were included. The most common NIFTP pre-surgical TBS cytology diagnosis was Atypia of Undetermined Significance (AUS/FLUS) (40%). NIFTP cases predominantly displayed wider-than-tall shape (100%), smooth borders (75%), occurrence in multinodular glands (82.5%), heterogeneous echogenicity (50%), both perinodular and intranodular Doppler flow patterns (70%), minimal Doppler flow grade (62.5%), and no calcifications (90%). Conclusions Our study demonstrates that NIFTP, PTC, and FA display several distinguishing and overlapping sonographic and Doppler features. Sonographic features appear to complement cytology findings and may help raise pre-operative concern for NIFTP in the proper clinical setting, potentially leading to a more conservative management approach.
Hematology and Serum Chemistry Reference Values for Pigtailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina) Infants

The pigtailed macaque infants described in these tables were assessed for various hematology (Table 27-1) and serum chemistry (Table 27-2) measures during their first postnatal year. Nursery infants were raised under standard conditions in the Infant Primate Research Laboratory (IPRL), as described by Ruppenthal and Sackett (1992; see also Chapter 18 in this volume). Mother-raised infants were housed at the Primate Field Station (PFS) of the Washington National Primate Research Center (WaNPRC). Until they were weaned at an average of 6 months, mother-raised animals lived in harem groups of one male and four to eight females or groups containing only four to eight mother-infant pairs. After weaning, infants lived in mixed-sex peer groups containing 8–16 animals. Open image in new window Table 27-1. Hematology Values a Open image in new window Table 27-2. Serum Chemistry Values a
Longitudinal outcomes of children with pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS)

Little is known about the natural history of children with pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder associated with streptococcal infections (PANDAS). This study prospectively followed 33 children with PANDAS for up to 4.8 years (mean 3.3 ± 0.7 years) after enrollment in a 24-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) (N = 35). Fourteen of eighteen children randomized to placebo received open label IVIG 6 weeks after the blinded infusion, so follow-up results reported below largely reflect outcomes in a population of children who received at least one dose of IVIG. Telephone interviews with the parents of participants found that at the time of phone follow-up, 29 (88%) were not experiencing clinically significant obsessive–compulsive symptoms. During the interim period (6–57 months after entering the clinical trial), 24 (72%) had experienced at least one exacerbation of PANDAS symptoms, with a median of one exacerbation per child (range 1–12; interquartile range 0–3). A variety of treatment modalities, including antibiotics, IVIG, psychiatric medications, cognitive behavioral therapy, and others, were used to treat these exacerbations, and were often used in combination. The outcomes of this cohort are better than those previously reported for childhood-onset OCD, which may support conceptualization of PANDAS as a subacute illness similar to Sydenham chorea. However, some children developed a chronic course of illness, highlighting the need for research that identifies specific symptoms or biomarkers that can be used to predict the longitudinal course of symptoms in PANDAS.
Digital Holography, a metrological tool for quantitative analysis: Trends and future applications

Abstract A review on the last achievements of Digital Holography is reported in this paper, showing that this powerful method can be a key metrological tool for the quantitative analysis and non-invasive inspection of a variety of materials, devices and processes. Nowadays, its range of applications has been greatly extended, including the study of live biological matter and biomedical applications. This paper overviews the main progresses and future perspectives of digital holography, showing new optical configurations and investigating the numerical issues to be tackled for the processing and display of quantitative data.
The impact of current smoking on outcomes after infrainguinal bypass for claudication

Abstract Objective Although smoking cessation is a benchmark of medical management of intermittent claudication, many patients require further revascularization. Currently, revascularization among smokers is a controversial topic, and practice patterns differ institutionally, regionally, and nationally. Patients who smoke at the time of revascularization are thought to have a poor prognosis, but data on this topic are limited. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of smoking on outcomes after infrainguinal bypass for claudication. Methods Data from the national Vascular Quality Initiative from 2004 to 2014 were used to identify infrainguinal bypasses performed for claudication. Patients were categorized as former smokers (quit >1 year before intervention) and current smokers (smoking within 1 year of intervention). Demographic and comorbid differences of categorical variables were assessed. Significant predictors were included in adjusted Cox proportional hazards models to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) by smoking status for outcomes of major adverse limb event (MALE), amputation-free survival, limb loss, death, and MALE or death. Cumulative incidence curves were created using competing risks modeling. Results We identified 2913 patients (25% female, 9% black) undergoing incident infrainguinal bypass grafting for claudication. There were 1437 current smokers and 1476 former smokers in our study. Current smoking status was a significant predictor of MALE (HR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.00-1.60; P = .048) and MALE or death (HR, 1.22; 95% CI, 1.03-1.44; P = .02). Other factors found to be independently associated with poor outcomes in adjusted models included black race, below-knee bypass grafting, use of prosthetic conduit, and dialysis dependence. Conclusions Current smokers undergoing an infrainguinal bypass procedure for claudication experienced more MALEs than former smokers did. Future studies with longer term follow-up should address limitations of this study by identifying a data source with long-term follow-up examining the relationship of smoking exposure (pack history and duration) with outcomes.
Degradation mechanism of SESAMs under intense ultrashort pulses in modelocked VECSELs

Mode-locked VECSELs using SESAMs are a relatively less complex and cost-effective alternative to state-of-the-art ultrafast lasers based on solid-state or fiber lasers. VECSELs have seen considerable progress in device performance in terms of pulse width and peak power in the recent years. However, it appears that the combination of high power and short pulses can cause some irreversible damage to the SESAM. The degradation mechanism, which can lead to a reduction of the VECSEL output power over time, is not fully understood and deserves to be investigated and alleviated in order to achieve stable mode-locking over long periods of time. It is particularly important for VECSEL systems meant to be commercialized, needing long term operation with a long product lifetime. Here, we investigate the performance and robustness of a SESAM-modelocked VECSEL system under intense pulse intensity excitation. The effect of the degradation on the VECSEL performance is investigated using the SESAM in a VECSEL cavity supporting ultrashort pulses, while the degradation mechanism was investigated by exciting the SESAMs with an external femtosecond laser source. The decay of the photoluminescence (PL) and reflectivity under high excitation was monitored and the damaged samples were further analyzed using a thorough Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis. It is found that the major contribution to the degradation is the field intensity and that the compositional damage is confined to the DBR region of the SESAM.
Internal Hernia and Small Bowel Obstruction After Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass

Gastric bypass (RYGB) is considered the gold standard for bariatric surgical procedures. Small bowel obstruction (SBO) after gastric bypass is not uncommon; the internal hernia is the most common etiology followed by adhesions.
Rennen und Springen

Bodenbewohnende Vertebraten, die meistens auf dem Boden laufen und morphologisch adaptiert sind, um die Schnelligkeit oder die Ausdauer zu erhohen, werden als Lauftiere bezeichnet. Die meisten Lauftiere sind entweder Rauber oder mittelgrose bis grose Pflanzenfresser. Nicht-Lauftiere sind z. B. die vielen Tiere, die viel laufen, aber selten rennen, auserdem die kleinen Formen, die zwar rennen, aber nur wenige Adaptationen in der Korperhaltung oder ihrer Morphologie haben, die mit Schnelligkeit assoziiert sind (z. B. verschiedene Eidechsen, Insectivora und Rodentia). (Manche Definitionen umfassen nur vierbeinige Tiere und schliesen so schnelle und morphologisch adaptierte Renner wie Strause und bestimmte Dinosaurier aus. Eine andere Definition setzt Lauftiere mit Vertebraten gleich, die senkrecht gestellte Gliedmassen haben. Alle Lauftiere haben eine aufrechte Haltung der grosen Gelenke, aber these Definition schliest auch „graviportale“ Tetrapoden ein, die, wie im vorigen Kapitel beschrieben wurde, in erster Linie an das Tragen von grosem Korpergewicht angepasst sind.)
US asthma mortality: 1941 to 1989.

Background: Asthma mortality in the United States has nearly doubled in the past 10 years. An examination of long-term trends in United States asthma mortality places the current mortality rates in a historical perspective, identifies high-risk groups for interventions, and may provide clues to the etiology of asthma mortality. Methods: Asthma deaths for the population aged 5 to 34 years were abstracted from United States vital statistics reports for the period 1941 through 1989. Race-specific and sex-specific mortality rates were age-adjusted to the 1989 estimate of the US population. Results: Among the population aged 5 to 34 years, three distinct periods of asthma mortality were observed: 1941 to 1964, 1965 to 1977, and 1978 to 1989. From 1941 through 1964, nonwhites exhibited a gradual increase in asthma mortality rates; in contrast, whites showed no change in mortality rates. From 1965 through 1977, a marked decline in mortality rates was observed among both nonwhites and whites. From 1978 through 1989, asthma mortality increased with a near doubling in the mortality rates in both nonwhites and whites. Overall, non-whites had mortality rates 4 times those of whites, with nonwhite males aged 15 to 34 at the greatest risk of death due to asthma. Age and sex differences in asthma mortality are also apparent. The population aged 15 to 34 years generally had mortality rates greater than the population aged less than 15 years. For the population aged 5 to 14 years, regardless of calendar year, females had lower mortality rates than males. Among the population aged 15 to 34 years, females experienced twice the mortality rates of males prior to 1965; however, by the 1980s this relationship no longer existed. Conclusions: The asthma mortality rate for nonwhites was 4-fold higher than for whites, although the reported prevalence of asthma is less than 2-fold greater. The population aged 15 to 34 years had higher mortality rates than the population aged 5 to 14 years despite exhibiting a lower prevalence of asthma. There are also gender differences in asthma mortality. These differences may be attributable to differences in asthma severity, or differences in disease management or reflect actual differences in mortality. These findings suggest that the search for clues to understand the increase in asthma mortality from 1978 to 1989 should include an attempt to understand why asthma mortality declined in the preceding decade from 1967 to 1977 as these may not be completely unrelated trends
Observational Constraints on Interstellar Dust Composition

This paper provides a general review of what is known about the composition of the interstellar dust and how we know it. Several general methods are cited, but the emphasis here is on the measurement of interstellar gas-phase depletions and the inferences drawn from them about the dust. Depletion estimates are derived from measurements of gas-phase abundances, and the first major section of the review describes the methods for determining the composition of the gas in diffuse and translucent interstellar clouds. Following this is a review of depletion results, including a discussion of the so-called ‘standard’ depletion pattern. Evidence favoring a revision of the assumed reference standard (the ‘cosmic’ abundances) is then reviewed, along with the implications for models of the dust. Next the dependences of depletions on various environmental factors (cloud velocity, density, and extinction properties) are summarized. Finally, future work in this field is outlined.
Monitoring Auditory Evoked Potentials

Monitoring of the auditory system makes use of subcortical evoked potentials [Auditory Brainstem Responses (ABR) and CAP recorded from the exposed auditory nerve]. These modalities of evoked potentials are not affected by commonly used anesthetics.
ANOVA: Testing for Differences Among Many Samples and Much More

In this chapter, you will learn how the analysis of variance produces a p -value based on an F test based on the F statistic, a ratio of two variance measures, to perform each hypothesis test. The numerator represents the variability due to the special, interesting effect being tested (for example, differences from one group to another) and the denominator represents a baseline measure of randomness (because we see differences even within a group). If the ratio is larger than the value in the critical F value, the effect is significant. The one-way analysis of variance, in particular, is used to test whether or not the averages from several independent situations are significantly different from one another. This is the simplest kind of analysis of variance, and if the F test is significant, then individual pairs of averages may be tested against one another using the least-significant-difference test. Advanced analysis of variance (ANOVA) techniques include two-way and higher designs, in addition to covariance analysis and multivariate ANOVA. Note that the ANOVA table does not tell the whole story; always ask to see the average values so that you can understand what's really going on. Although these more complex situations require more complicated calculations, the general ANOVA idea remains the same: to test significance by comparing one source of variability (the one being tested) against another source of variability (the underlying randomness of the situation) and to produce the p -value.
Data Collection with Accuracy-Aware Congestion Control in Sensor Networks

Data collection is a fundamental and critical function of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) for the cyber-physical systems (CPS) to estimate the state of the physical world. However, unstable network conditions impose significant challenges in guaranteeing the data accuracy that is essential for the reliable estimation of physical states. Without efficiently resolving congestion during data transmission in WSNs, packet loss due to congestion can significantly degrade the data quality. Various congestion control schemes have been proposed to address this issue. Most of them rely on reducing transmitted data samples to eliminate the congestion, which, however, could lead to abysmally high estimation error. In this paper, we analyze the impact of congestion control on the data accuracy and propose a Congestion-Adaptive Data Collection scheme (CADC) to efficiently resolve the congestion under the guarantee of data accuracy. CADC mitigates congestion by adaptive lossy compression while ensuring a given overall data estimation error bound in a distributed manner. Considering that for a CPS application different data items may have different priorities, we also propose a weighted CADC scheme such that the data with higher priority has less distortion. We further adapt CADC to guarantee the accuracy of specific aggregate computations. Extensive simulations demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of CADC.
Abstract 441: Role of Nitric Oxide and S-nitrosylation in Cardiomyogenesis by iPSCs

Introduction: The mechanism by which signaling pathways, such as Wnt and BMP interact and modulate each other’s function is crucial to our understanding of cardiomyogenesis and cardiomyocyte prolif...
Framing Learning Analytics and Educational Data Mining for Teaching: Critical Inferencing, Domain Knowledge, and Pedagogy

This chapter reviews key challenges of learning analytics and educational data mining. It highlights early generation learning analytics pitfalls that could compromise the future of their use in technology-delivered instruction, especially if teachers are not well trained and adequately equipped with both technical and sociocritical literacy of this new field. Among the issues are potential for bias and inaccuracy in the algorithms involved, the propensity toward closed proprietary systems whose algorithms cannot be scrutinized, and the paucity of learning models typically considered. The new learning analytics and educational data mining systems bring with them a set of claims, aspirations, and mystique. These underlying technologies could be harbingers of future breakthroughs: a new generation of artificial intelligence systems adaptively responding to students’ interactions with online teaching environments.
Baseline Body Mass Predicts Average Depressive Symptoms over the Next Two Decades for White but Not Black Older Adults.

Background: Although obesity and depression have a bidirectional association, this link may vary based on race. The current study tested racial variation in bidirectional links between depressive symptoms and body mass index (BMI) over 24 years of follow-up in older adults over the age of 50 in the United States. We hypothesized weaker bidirectional links in Blacks compared to Whites. Methods: Data came from waves 1 to 12 (1990 to 2014) of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), an ongoing state-of-the-art national cohort. The study followed a representative sample of Americans (n = 15,194; 2,200 Blacks and 12,994 Whites) over the age of 50. Dependent variables were average depressive symptoms and BMI over 24 years, based on measurements every other year, from 1990 to 2014. Independent variables included baseline depressive symptoms and BMI. Covariates included age, gender, marital status, veteran status, and activities of daily living. Structural equation models were fitted to the data for data analysis. Results: In the pooled sample, bidirectional associations were found between BMI and depressive symptoms as baseline BMI predicted average depressive symptoms over time and baseline depressive symptoms predicted average BMI over 24 years. Racial differences were found in the bidirectional association between BMI and depressive symptoms, with both directions of the associations being absent for Blacks. For Whites, baseline BMI predicted average depressive symptoms over the next 24 years. Conclusion: Reciprocal associations between BMI and depressive symptoms over a 24-year period among individuals over the age of 50 vary for Blacks and Whites. As these associations are stronger for Whites than Blacks, clinical and public health programs that simultaneously target comorbid obesity and depression may be more appropriate for Whites than Blacks.