cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Design and fabrication of CoCrMo alloy based novel structures for load bearing implants using laser engineered net shaping

Abstract Designing load bearing implants with the desired mechanical and biological performance and to fabricate net shape, functional implants with complex anatomical shapes is still a challenge. In addition, patient specific load bearing implants with the possibilities of guided tissue regeneration are gaining significant interest in orthopedics. Novel design approaches and fabrication technologies that can achieve balanced mechanical and functional performance in mono-block implants are necessary to accomplish these objectives. In this article we give an overview of our novel design concepts for load bearing metal implants and demonstrate the manufacturing of unitized implant structures with and/or without porosity using laser engineered net shaping (LENS™) — a solid freeform fabrication technique. We have fabricated porous metal implants with designed porosities up to 70 vol.% in various biomedical metals/alloys, such as Ti, Ti6Al4V, NiTi and CoCrMo, and tailored their effective modulus to suit the modulus of human cortical bone, thus eliminating stress-shielding. Unitized structures with functionally graded CoCrMo alloy coating on porous Ti6Al4V alloy have been fabricated using LENS™ to minimize wear induced osteolysis. Finally, this technology can also be used to fabricate porous, net shape implants with functional gradation in structure and/or composition to mimic natural bone. Since the LENS™ fabrication does not change the chemistry of the biocompatible alloys the inherent in vitro and in vivo biocompatibility will remain the same and therefore, we have not provided any biocompatibility results in this article. This article provide an insight into the important aspects of LENS™ fabrication and properties of CoCrMo alloy structures, which can potentially eliminate long standing challenges in load bearing implants such as total hip prosthesis to increase their in vivo life time.
Reducing Bias and Uncertainty in Multievaluator Multicriterion Decision Making

AbstractMany decisions are based on more than one criterion, judged by more than a single evaluator. Multievaluator multicriterion (MEMC) decision making can be controversial if bias or uncertainty...
Distinguishing essential tremor from Parkinson's disease: bedside tests and laboratory evaluations

Distinguishing essential tremor from Parkinson’s disease can be challenging, both in the early stages of these diseases and as these diseases progress. Various tremor types (rest, postural, kinetic and intention) may be seen in both essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease. Furthermore, with time, the two diseases may coexist within a single patient. Detailed clinical examination with attention to specific features of tremor (frequency, amplitude, pattern and distribution) and associated neurological findings may help distinguish patients with the two diseases. Laboratory testing may provide information that further aids in differentiating the two diseases. These tests include accelerometry and surface electromyography, spiral analysis, dopamine transporter imaging, olfactory testing and, eventually, postmortem histopathology. These tests have limitations and their diagnostic utility requires additional study.
ACAT Inhibition Reduces the Progression of Preexisting, Advanced Atherosclerotic Mouse Lesions Without Plaque or Systemic Toxicity

Objective— Acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) converts cholesterol to cholesteryl esters in plaque foam cells. Complete deficiency of macrophage ACAT has been shown to increase atherosclerosis in hypercholesterolemic mice because of cytotoxicity from free cholesterol accumulation, whereas we previously showed that partial ACAT inhibition by Fujirebio compound F1394 decreased early atherosclerosis development. In this report, we tested F1394 effects on preestablished, advanced lesions of apolipoprotein-E–deficient mice. Methods and Results— Apolipoprotein-E–deficient mice on Western diet for 14 weeks developed advanced plaques, and were either euthanized (Baseline), or continued on Western diet with or without F1394 and euthanized after 14 more weeks. F1394 was not associated with systemic toxicity. Compared with the baseline group, lesion size progressed in both groups; however, F1394 significantly retarded plaque progression and reduced plaque macrophage, free and esterified cholesterol, and tissue factor contents compared with the untreated group. Apoptosis of plaque cells was not increased, consistent with the decrease in lesional free cholesterol. There was no increase in plaque necrosis and unimpaired efferocytosis (phagocytic clearance of apoptotic cells). The effects of F1394 were independent of changes in plasma cholesterol levels. Conclusion— Partial ACAT inhibition by F1394 lowered plaque cholesterol content and had other antiatherogenic effects in advanced lesions in apolipoprotein-E–deficient mice without overt systemic or plaque toxicity, suggesting the continued potential of ACAT inhibition for the clinical treatment of atherosclerosis, in spite of recent trial data.
Work-Related Disability, Veteran Status, and Poverty: Implications for Family Well-Being

The authors examine the interrelationships between work-related disability, veteran, and poverty statuses using data from the 1992–2004 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation. They find that households with nondisabled veterans present have a lower likelihood of poverty, but that advantage is severely eroded when the veteran or another family member has a work-limiting disability. Nevertheless, all veteran households have substantially lower odds of poverty than disabled nonveteran households, which have the highest poverty rate (32.53%). Veteran and disability statuses interact at the household level in ways that contribute to substantial variability in household-level poverty, which has implications for all household members.
Analysis of Design-Build Procurement Activities Durations for Highway Projects

The design-build (DB) method is being used at increasing rates for delivering highway projects in the United States. Benefits of adopting DB rather than the traditional design-bid-build (DBB) method have been identified by several studies that measured performance of projects delivered with DB as opposed to DBB. The majority of these studies support the widely-held belief that an owner can achieve a schedule advantage by adopting DB for delivering its projects. While these studies analyzed the duration of DB projects after a contract has been awarded, there is a lack of information on DB procurement activities’ durations. This paper reports preliminary findings from a study that is collecting and analyzing data on procurement schedule durations and project characteristics to identify factors affecting duration of DB procurement and effect of duration on project success. Based on data of nineteen DB highway projects, the authors provide descriptive statistics on duration of DB procurement activities. Findings show that project size measured by contract dollar amount affects the duration of DB procurement activities. The analysis of nineteen project data shows that procurement durations had no correlation with project cost for projects costing less than $250 million. However, when the projects costing more than $250 million were included in the analysis, a linear correlation between these two variables existed. Future research for determining relationships between project characteristics and procurement duration as well as between procurement duration and project success is also described.
Public Information Technology and E-Governance: Managing the Virtual State

G. David Garson Public Information Technology and E-Governance: Managing the Virtual State Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett, 2006 ISBN 0-7637-3468-3 The author's goal was to “write a comprehensive t...
Effect of implementation of folic acid fortification of food on homocysteine concentrations in subjects with coronary artery disease.

In summary, because folic acid may reduce HCY plasma levels, a new risk factor for CAD, we tested whether an FDA mandate for folic acid fortification of foods would affect plasma HCY among 2,755 subjects studied angiographically over 4 years and at high risk of incident coronary events. Plasma HCY declined by 2 μmol/L, and the percentage of patients with high-risk HCY decreased by 1/3 in temporal association with implementation of the FDA rule.
Evaluation of the Relationship between Literacy and Mathematics Skills as Assessed by Curriculum-Based Measures.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent that reading performance (as measured by curriculum-based measures [CBM] of oral reading fluency [ORF] and Maze reading comprehension), is related to math performance (as measured by CBM math computation and applied math). Additionally, this study examined which of the two reading measures was a better predictor of applied math performance. Results of multiple hierarchical regression analyses indicated that math computation was the best predictor of applied math performance, followed by the Maze task. Also, results indicated that ORF did not significantly predict applied math test scores above and beyond math computation and Maze. Thus, from these results it appears that for fourth and fifth grade students, reading comprehension as measured by the Maze plays a more important role in predicting applied math performance than oral reading fluency.
Genetic variability in IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 and body size in early life

Background: Early life body size and circulating levels of IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 have been linked to increased risks of breast and other cancers, but it is unclear whether these exposures act through a common mechanism. Previous studies have examined the role of IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 genetic variation in relation to adult height and body size, but few studies have examined associations with birthweight and childhood size. Methods: We examined whether htSNPs in IGF-1 and the IGFBP-1/IGFBP-3 gene region are associated with the self-reported outcomes of birthweight, body fatness at ages 5 and 10, and body mass index (BMI) at age 18 among healthy women from the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and NHSII. We used ordinal logistic regression to model odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of a one category increase for birthweight and somatotypes at ages 5 and 10. We used linear regression to model associations with BMI at age 18. Results: Among 4567 healthy women in NHS and NHSII, we observed no association between common IGF-1 or IGFBP-1/IGFBP-3 SNPs and birthweight, body fatness at ages 5 and 10, or BMI at age 18. Conclusions: Common IGF-1 and IGFBP-1/IGFBP-3 SNPs are not associated with body size in early life.
Role of σD in Regulating Genes and Signals during Myxococcus xanthus Development

was not restored by codevelopment with wild-type cells, indicating that D is needed for cellular responses to A-signal. Despite these early developmental defects, the sigD mutant responded to C-signal supplied by codeveloping wild-type cells by inducing a subset of late developmental genes. D RNA polymerase is dispensable for transcription of this subset, but a distinct regulatory class, which includes genes essential for sporulation, requires D RNA polymerase or a gene under its control, cell autonomously. The level of sigD transcript in a relA mutant during growth is much lower than in wild-type cells, suggesting that (p)ppGpp positively regulates sigD transcription in growing cells. The sigD transcript level drops in wild-type cells after 20 min of starvation and remains low after 40 min but rises in a relA mutant after 40 min, suggesting that (p)ppGpp negatively regulates sigD transcription early in development. We conclude that D synthesized during growth occupies a position near the top of a regulatory hierarchy governing M. xanthus development, analogous to factors that control biofilm formation of other bacteria.
Environmental cues for cyclomorphosis in Daphnia retrocurva Forbes

SUMMARY. 1 The invertebrate predators. Chaohorus, Leptodora, Hydra, Utricularia, and cyclopoid copepods were ineffective as inducers of high helmets in laboratory reared Daphnia retrocurva. Lako water from different sources, when used as culture medium, was also ineffective. 2 High helmets were induced when clones were grown under warm and turbulent conditions. Presence or absence of illumination and varying photoperiod did not affect helmet growth in warm turbulent cultures. Different clones grown under warm turbulent conditions differed in their responsiveness to the treatment, but no relationship between helmet size in clones and helmet size in the field on the dates of clone isolation was demonstrated. Laboratory-induced phenotypes were rarely as extreme as those of field animals.
A user-centric network communication broker for multimedia collaborative computing

The development of collaborative multimedia applications today follows a vertical development approach, where each application is built on top of low-level network abstractions such as the socket interface. This stovepipe development process is a major inhibitor that drives up the cost of development and slows down the innovation pace of new generations of communication applications. In this paper, we propose a network communication broker (NCB) that provides a unified higher-level abstraction for the class of multimedia collaborative applications. We demonstrate how NCB encapsulates the complexity of network-level communication control and media delivery, and expedites the development of applications with various communication logics. We investigate the minimum necessary requirements for the NCB abstraction. We identify that the concept of user-level sessions involving multiple parties and multiple media, is critical to designing a reusable NCB to facilitate next-generation multimedia communications. Furthermore, the internal design of NCB decouples the user-level sessions from network-level sessions, so that the NCB framework can accommodate heterogeneous networks, and applications can be easily ported to new network environments. In addition, we demonstrate how the extensible and self-managing design of NCB supports dynamic adaptation in response to changes in network conditions and user requirements.
A haptic hybrid controller for virtual prototyping of vehicle mechanisms

In this paper the Haptic Buck, a system to interactively design and evaluate vehicle mechanisms, is presented as an alternative to physical prototyping. At the core of the package are a 3D GUI interface to quickly and intuitively design and modify mechanisms and a novel haptic control scheme to achieve high-quality rendering of very large mechanisms, such as full scale modeling of vehicle liftgate, doors, and seat assemblies.
Making distributed systems secure with program analysis and transformation

Building secure distributed systems is difficult, and making sure they are secure is even harder. For strong security, a variety of different mechanisms are used, such as encryption, digital signatures, access control, and replication. But once the system is built, it is difficult to know that system-level security objectives have been achieved.
Hallway Patients Reduce Overall Emergency Department Satisfaction.

Abstract Background Patient satisfaction impacts emergency medicine in multiple ways, including patient−physician rapport, patient compliance with medical recommendations, and individual physician and hospital reimbursement issues. Objective The objective of this study was to assess the differences, if any, in satisfaction scores among patients treated in regular treatment rooms vs. those treated in hallway treatment areas. Methods A cross-sectional survey study of conveniently sampled participants from both regular treatment rooms and hallway treatment areas in an urban, adult community teaching emergency department (ED) was performed confidentially, measuring overall satisfaction, as well as satisfaction with regard to treatment location only, medical care only, and their willingness to return to or recommend the ED in the future based on their experience. Each of these four outcomes was measured on a 100-mm visual analog scale. Results Overall satisfaction scores were 8 mm lower for those patients treated in hallway treatment areas, and there was a 20-mm difference with regard to location only. After controlling for apparent baseline differences between the groups, a 7.6-mm difference for overall satisfaction remained. Conclusions Despite differences between patients placed in regular treatment rooms vs. hallway treatment areas, overall satisfaction levels are lower for those patients treated in hallway treatment areas. This difference is likely attributable primarily to their hallway location, and stakeholders should therefore take appropriate steps to address such discrepancies.
The clinical learning environment in nursing education: a concept analysis

Aim The aim of this study was to report an analysis of the clinical learning environment concept. Background Nursing students are evaluated in clinical learning environments where skills and knowledge are applied to patient care. These environments affect achievement of learning outcomes, and have an impact on preparation for practice and student satisfaction with the nursing profession. Providing clarity of this concept for nursing education will assist in identifying antecedents, attributes and consequences affecting student transition to practice. Design The clinical learning environment was investigated using Walker and Avant's concept analysis method. Data sources A literature search was conducted using WorldCat, MEDLINE and CINAHL databases using the keywords clinical learning environment, clinical environment and clinical education. Articles reviewed were written in English and published in peer-reviewed journals between 1995–2014. Methods All data were analysed for recurring themes and terms to determine possible antecedents, attributes and consequences of this concept. Results The clinical learning environment contains four attribute characteristics affecting student learning experiences. These include: (1) the physical space; (2) psychosocial and interaction factors; (3) the organizational culture and (4) teaching and learning components. These attributes often determine achievement of learning outcomes and student self-confidence. Conclusion With better understanding of attributes comprising the clinical learning environment, nursing education programmes and healthcare agencies can collaborate to create meaningful clinical experiences and enhance student preparation for the professional nurse role.
Stigma and the etiology of depression among the obese: An agent-based exploration.

Abstract Background Obesity and depression are comorbid more often than chance predicts. However, depression among the obese is more common in settings where obesity is less common. This suggests that body habitus norms and social stigmatization may play a role in the etiology of depression among the obese. Methods We developed an agent-based social network model to explore mechanisms by which deviance from normative body habitus may contribute to social isolation in the obese. At each of 240 simulated months (20 years), each agent updated its body mass index based on environmental, peer influence, and stochastic factors. At each month, each agent was subject to social ostracization and consequent depression if its body mass index deviated from that of its peers and the network-wide mean. We compared risk of depression as a function of obesity and obesity norms through simulations of a high-obesity context simulating the US state of Mississippi and a low-obesity context simulating the US state of Colorado, then explored the relationship between global obesogenic forces and agent-specific resistance to the forces. Results Over 1000 simulations in each context, 25 percent of obese agents in simulated Colorado were ever-depressed as compared to 21 percent in simulated Mississippi, although 10 percent overall were ever-depressed in both settings. High and low levels of resistance to obesogeneity prevented the most depression, whereas medium resistance levels were more depressogenic. Conclusions Social stigma and ostracization that occur as a consequence of deviance from body habitus norms may be a plausible mechanism by which weight stigma may influence depression in the obese. Public health interventions targeting individuals rather than obesogenic environments may modify body habitus norms with the unintended consequence of increasing stigma-based social isolation among those who remain obese.
Oncologic reconstruction: General principles and techniques

Halsted's principle of radical mastectomy influenced cancer treatment for decades. Randomized controlled trials resulted in a paradigm shift to less radical surgery and the use of adjuvant therapies. Oncologic reconstruction performed by plastic surgeons has evolved, ranging from skin grafts and local flaps for smaller defects to pedicled flaps and free flaps for larger and more complex defects. Immediate reconstruction facilitates resection is oncologically safe and contributes to meaningful improvements in quality of life. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016;113:852-864. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Intra-body communication model based on variable biological parameters

This paper presents a simple, yet realistic and accurate model for signal transmission through the human body. The model is developed for intra-body communications, covering the range 100 KHz–50 MHz. To gain a deeper insight about the human body gain profile, biological parameters collected from statistical studies, were utilized when deriving the representative circuit model. The resulting model is the first to consider human age and weight as input parameters determining the models' response, and hence the different impedance values. Simulation results compared with prior work using conventional modeling approaches, as well as, with previously published experimental results, confirm the models' accuracy.
ON THE SELECTIVE ADVANTAGE OF FRATRICIDE IN RAPTORS.

Many nestling hawks and owls die before fledging. Incubation of eggs usually begins with the first egg and because eggs are laid singly at intervals of several days, the young usually hatch at similar intervals. First-hatched birds often receive an advantage of greater food intake over younger siblings. During years of low food abundance, the younger birds may starve, and dead young are occasionally fed to (or eaten by) their siblings. Older chicks may even be responsible for the final demise of the starving chick (e.g., Pilz and Siebert, 1978). Lack (1966) has argued that this reproductive pattern maximizes the reproductive output of the parents. In years of high food abundance, the adults are able to feed all of the young adequately; in other years, wastage of food on young destined to die is minimized, thereby maximizing the reproductive success of the parents. Such a mechanism seems to pertain to tawny owls (Strix aluco: Southern, 1970), goshawks (Accipiter gentilis: Schnell, 1958), and hen harriers (Circus cyaneus: Watson, 1977) among others. Another behavior, which is more problematical for the evolutionary biologist, has been documented for other raptors such as lesser spotted eagles (Aquila pomarina: Meyburg, 1974) and black eagles (A. verreauxi: Gargett, 1978). These birds also produce more young than they usually fledge, but instead of younger chicks passively starving to death, the older chick attacks and can cause the death of its sibling(s) shortly after they hatch, often regardless of immediate food abundance (Gargett, 1970a; Meyburg, 1974). The older chick may not deliver the coup de grace to the younger chick, but nevertheless the demise of the younger is due to harassment and intimidation from the older chick (e.g., Rowe, 1947; Meyburg, 1974; Gargett, 1978). The adaptive basis of such fratricidal behavior, often referred to as cainism (e.g., Brown, 1976), is unclear (Brown, 1955, 1970, 1976; Ingram, 1959; Brown and Amadon, 1968). While starvation of chicks by siblings who dominate the food supply allows the survival of younger chicks during years of abundant food, active destruction of the younger chicks shortly after hatching never permits their survival. Seemingly, cainism should result in a lower average reproductive output than starvation, and consequently should be selected against. In this note, I discuss how cainism might in fact be adaptive for the parents as well as for the older chick, but I also demonstrate that cainism can be selected for even when it decreases the reproductive productivity of the adults.
An Investigation of Position Effects in Large-Scale Writing Assessments

Position effect, the interaction between a test item’s position in an exam booklet and examinees’ performance, is always of concern in developing test instruments. This study is intended to explore the factors that have interactive effects with prompt position in large-scale writing assessments and to differentiate the impact of each factor. This study analyzed the 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress writing assessment by comparing three types of p-value scores at the first and second item positions; mixed linear regression models were applied to explore the factors correlated with position effects in the writing assessment. Although examinee motivation was the leading predictor of position effects, the results showed that other factors, such as gender, school type, and teaching emphasis, could also be predictors of position effects in writing performance, and they could be further differentiated by grade and other demographics.
Alternatives in Obstetric Anesthesia

No routine method of anesthesia applies to all obstetric patients, and the choice of anesthesia must depend on the available facilities and the situation at the moment. In all cases premedication must be minimal, since all hypnotic and narcotic medications given to the mother will cross the placenta and affect the fetus. Institution of anesthesia before definite cervical dilatation has been established may retard the progress of labor. The inhalation method is most commonly used for vaginal delivery, and induction of thiopental sodium is the safest and most effective method for cesarean section in the majority of cases, but many alternative methods of obstetric anesthesia are also satisfactory.
Effects of Preparing Conditions on Size and Morphology of Nanometer TiO_2 Particles

The method of the controlled hydrolysis of ethanol diluted n-butyl titanate is investigated. The important preparing conditions, such as reaction medium, pH value, reflux time or azeotropic distillation time, added polymer, etc., which might affect significantly the diameter distribution and the morphology of the yielded nanometer TiO 2 particles, are examined thoroughly. It is found that in alkaline or neutral reaction mediums of smaller ratio of alcohol to water containing polyethylene glycol, the TiO 2 particles, obtained by the hydrolysis of n-butyl titanate, and removing organic solvents and calcining at lower temperatures, are smaller ball particles with clear surface, which may be nanometer TiO 2 particles consisting of a few crystals of anatase crystal form.
Terahertz coherent tomography

T-ray coherent tomography technology(T-CT)is introduced. Compared with the X-ray computer tomography (X-CT), more information could be extracted to process the image. Theoretically, Terahertz-CT could be used to map the complex refractive index distribution in target 3 D space. Therefore, it is possible to employ the principle of Terahertz-CT to classify the target inside a black box, which implies potential applications in security inspection and nondestructive examination.
Celiac Axis Resection with Distal Pancreatectomy (Modified Appleby Procedure) Allows for R0 Resection of Pancreatic Body and Tail Mass Following Neoadjuvant Therapy: Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract Background: The modified Appleby procedure has been developed for cancer of the pancreatic body or tail with celiac axis invasion, historically classified as unresectable disease. Post-Appleby resection, the source of arterial blood to the liver is the superior mesenteric artery, which supplies the gastroduodenal artery and ultimately feeds the proper hepatic artery. In cases of inadequate collateralization, preoperative coiling of the common hepatic artery (CHA) or intraoperative reconstruction via an aorto-hepatic bypass has been described. Method: We describe a 74-year-old female with a pancreatic mass that was initially determined to be unresectable. She underwent extensive combination neoadjuvant chemotherapy. A favorable response was evidenced by a decrease in serum CA 19–9 levels. After 7 months, she was restaged and offered a distal pancreatectomy (DP) with the possibility of a modified Appleby procedure due to potential tumor involvement of the proximal CHA. Results: Intraoperatively, tu...
Superintermolecular orbitals in the C 60 -pentacene complex

We report a group of unusually big molecular orbitals in the ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$-pentacene complex. Our first-principles density-functional calculation shows that these orbitals are very delocalized and cover both ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$ and pentacene, which we call superintermolecular orbitals (SIMOs). Their spatial extension can reach 1 nm or larger. Optically, SIMOs are dark. Different from ordinary unoccupied molecular orbitals, SIMOs have a very weak Coulomb and exchange interaction. Their energy levels are very similar to the native superatomic molecular orbitals in ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$and can be approximately characterized by orbital angular momentum quantum numbers. They have a distinctive spatial preference. These features fit the key characters of charge-generation states that channel initially bound electrons and holes into free-charge carriers. Thus, our finding is important for ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$-pentacene photovoltaics.
EHL modeling of nonhomogeneous materials: The effects of polycrystalline anisotropy on RCF

Abstract Bearing steel is comprised of a polycrystalline aggregate of anisotropic crystals which affects the stress distribution and subsurface fatigue crack formation. In the present investigation an approach is proposed to determine the contact pressure, film thickness and subsurface stresses in a polycrystalline anisotropic aggregate material operating under elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL). The approach is based on a fully coupled finite element EHL model which uses 1D finite elements to solve the Reynolds equation and 2D finite elements to resolve the deformations for a line contact EHL problem. The polycrystalline material is simulated using a Voronoi polygon discretization with each Voronoi polygon receiving a unique crystallographic orientation. The anisotropic material definition used for this model has a cubic crystal structure. Results from the FE Voronoi EHL model show that the contact pressures vary due to crystallographic orientation and stress concentrations occur at the polycrystalline grain boundaries. EHL film thickness profiles were not significantly affected by the addition of crystal anisotropy effects to the microstructural model. However, relative life prediction obtained from the model with the anisotropic stress profiles showed that significant life scatter is generated by the addition of crystal anisotropy into the microstructural model. The results obtained from the FE Voronoi EHL model show much closer agreement to experimental results than models that assume isotropic material models.
Bread and Liberty in Under Western Eyes

This final chapter will show how, in Under Western Eyes, Conrad uses food and scenes of eating as a means to explore his ‘fundamental ideas’ about ‘man, society and historical process’. Beginning contextually and historically, the place of food in Conrad’s portrait of Russia will be examined. Building upon this, I will demonstrate how Conrad uses food-references as a site for exploring the novel’s revolutionary tensions and as a means of portraying the Russian psyche. This reading will be supported by focussing on the references to Jean-Jacques Rousseau, juxtaposing his ‘split personality’ and ‘contradictions’ with those of the protagonist, Razumov. Finally, this chapter will draw upon Russian folklore in order to examine the political allusions to cannibalism in Under Western Eyes.
A review of psychological issues that may be associated with a sport-related concussion in youth and collegiate athletes.

The physical effects of sport-related concussion (SRC) on the health and well-being of youth and collegiate athletes have been well documented. However, the psychological aspects of SRC in youth and collegiate athletes continue to be largely unknown due to scant research on the subject matter. The m
Legitimacy: The Lynchpin of Military Success in Complex Battlespaces

The need for legitimacy is among the key reasons Nation-States willingly yield sovereignty and adhere to the law of armed conflict. This chapter examines the importance of legitimacy to States and the ways States seek to garner it through their military operations. To fully detail the importance of legitimacy to forces operating on complex battlefields, this chapter is organized into the following subparts. The initial section explores how legitimacy is increasingly recognized and understood to be a foundational principle of war. It surveys the ways legitimacy is stressed in military doctrine and public pronouncements. Next the article details how modern militaries, by their actions, improve the legitimacy of their States’ military operations. It focuses particularly on military uses of transparent investigations and, as required, prosecutions of misconduct on the battlefield. Then the paper delves into an analysis of external pressures affecting States’ abilities to frame legitimacy. Finally, the article concludes with findings that legitimacy is essential to success on the complex battlefield and that States are justified in pushing back against the ongoing trend of outside interference on States’ abilities to establish the boundaries of the law of armed conflict.
Observed Home Dampness and Mold Are Associated with Sustained Spikes in Personal Exposure to Particulate Matter Less than 10 μm in Diameter in Exacerbation-Prone Children with Asthma

Rationale: Home dampness and mold are associated with asthma severity and exacerbations, but little is known about the nature of these exposures in at-risk children.Objectives: To test the hypothes...
THE ‘ACCEPTABLE DAILY INTAKE’ AS A QUANTIFIED EXPRESSION OF THE ACCEPTABILITY OF PESTICIDE RESIDUES

Abstract - Estimating acceptably exposure limits for potentially dangerous substances is common to many public and environmental health fields. Scientific data, reproducible in nature, forms the foundation, but the estimate is essentially the product of informed judgment even when expressed as a finite number such as a threshold limit value for the work environment or a maximum residue limit for pesticides in food. Guideposts are required to evaluate the usefulness of the estimated limits and for the evaluation of the judgmental processes used in their establishment. For pesticide residues in food, one guidepost is the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) defined as the daily exposure level of a pesticide residue which, during the entire lifetime of man, appears to be without appreciable risk on the basis of all facts known at the time. The ADI is expressed in milligrams of pesticide, as it appears in the diet, per kilogram of body weight per day (mg/kg/day). “Without appreciable risk” is taken to mean the practical certainty that injury will not result even after a lifetime of exposure. Two characteristics are recognizable, the ADI is dynamic based on known facts at the time of calculation and therefore subject to change by newer facts, and its usefulness is limited by the debatable judgmental concept of appreciable risk. The quantifiable nature of the ADI lies for the most part in the reliability of the known facts. Discussion of the methodologies will reveal some of the errors inherent in the development of the ADI and some of the errors in application of the concept to evaluation of maximum residue limits for pesticides. In spite of its limitations the ADI is useful and should not be discarded simply on the basis of misapplication.
Surveys in the ADC Archive

The ADC archive contains more than 800 catalogs and extensive tables from more than 750 journal articles. The archive is increasing steadily at the rate of about 20 data sets per month. This archive can be accessed either by anonymous FTP or by a World Wide Web (WWW) browser at http://adc.gsfc.nasa.gov/
The Poor: Defined and Estimated in Terms of Subsistence Need and Economic Class

There are two ways to address the problem of defining and measuring unmet physical need. One is by demonstrated need, the other is by presumed need. By demonstrated need, a set of physical needs is defined beforehand and a person is determined to be needy (more or less) if he/she is able to demonstrate that his/her financial resources are inadequate to provide (more or less) for those needs. This method is used in the social-assistance form of direct aid to the needy, such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Medicaid, and Public Assistance. By presumed need, a person is presumed to be needy if a certain reasonably predictable life event occurs that is indicative of need such as becoming unemployed, being elderly and sick, or being orphaned. This method is used in social-insurance programs such as Unemployment Insurance, Medicare, and Survivors Insurance. Presumption scrutinizes personal and family financial circumstances less intrusively than demonstration.
Shellac formulations to reduce epiphytic survival of coliform bacteria on citrus fruit postharvest.

Survival of the coliform bacteria Enterobacter aerogenes and Escherichia coli was monitored in a neutral carboxyme-thylcellulose formulation and in shellac formulations with various pH and concentrations of ethanol and the preservative paraben; populations were subsequently measured from the surface of citrus fruit coated with these formulations. Numbers of the two bacteria increased over 24 h from 106 CFU/ml to approximately 108 CFU/ml in the carboxymethylcellulose solution, but over this time numbers remained little changed in the neutral solution of shellac. The Enterobacter was more tolerant of alcohol over a 3-h period; although its numbers in a shellac solution with 10% ethanol dropped from more than 106 CFU/ml to just over 103 CFU/ml, E. coli and a third species, Klebsiella pneumoniae, declined toward the limit of detection (5 CFU/ml) during this time. The addition of morpholine to increase the formulation pH to 9.0 caused numbers of bacteria to plummet to an undetectable level within 30 to 60 min....
Cross-National Curriculum Evaluation

This paper is concerned with the measurement of curriculum and its role in cross-national curriculum evaluation studies. The methods developed and the data used to illustrate the procedures are taken from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).
Information for Submitting Articles to Law Reviews & Journals

This document contains information about submitting articles to law reviews and journals, including the methods for submitting an article, any special formatting requirements, how to contact them to request an expedited review, and how to contact them to withdraw an article from consideration. It covers 203 law reviews. The document was updated in January 2017.
On the phenomenon of natural-frequency splitting of a guitar string caused by a magnetic field

A magnet can affect the vibration of the metal strings in a musical instrument. We show that the magnetic field from a magnetic pickup can cause a frequency splitting of a metal guitar string’s normally degenerate transverse vibration modes, leading to a beat note in the resulting sound. The amount of frequency splitting induced by the magnet depends on the product of the induced magnetization in the ferromagnetic string, and the magnet’s spatial gradient at the position of the string, and is on the order of a few Hz. We apply free vibration theory to the string to obtain an eigenvalue problem, which we solve using a distributed-transfer function method. This method accurately predicts the natural frequencies of the vibrating guitar string in a non-uniform magnetic field. Videos of a high-E string vibrating with and without a nearby magnet will be shown.
A convolutional neural network for ultra-low-dose CT denoising and emphysema screening.

PURPOSE Reducing dose level to achieve ALARA is an important task in diagnostic and therapeutic applications of computed tomography (CT) imaging. Effective image quality enhancement strategies are crucial to compensate for the degradation caused by dose reduction. In the past few years, deep learning approaches have demonstrated promising denoising performance on natural/synthetic images. This study tailors a neural network model for (ultra-)low-dose CT denoising, and assesses its performance in enhancing CT image quality and emphysema quantification. METHODS The noise statistics in low-dose CT images has its unique characteristics and differs from that used in general denoising models. In this study, we first simulate the paired ultra-low-dose and targeted high-quality image of reference, with a well-validated pipeline. These paired images are used to train a denoising convolutional neural network (DnCNN) with residual mapping. The performance of the DnCNN tailored to CT denoising (DnCNN-CT) is assessed over various dose reduction levels, with respect to both image quality and emphysema scoring quantification. The possible over-smoothing behavior of DnCNN and its impact on different subcohort of patients are also investigated. RESULTS Performance evaluation results showed that DnCNN-CT provided significant image quality enhancement, especially for very-low-dose level. With DnCNN-CT denoising on 3%-dose cases, the peak signal-to-noise ratio improved by 8 dB and the structure similarity index increased by 0.15. This outperformed the original DnCNN and the state-of-the-art nonlocal-mean-type denoising scheme. Emphysema mask was also investigated, where lung voxels of abnormally low attenuation coefficient were marked as potential emphysema. Emphysema mask generated after DnCNN-CT denoising on 3%-dose image was demonstrated to agree well with that from the full-dose reference. Despite over-smoothing in DnCNN denoising, which contributed to slight underestimation of emphysema score compared to the reference, such minor overcorrection did not affect clinical conclusions. The proposed method provided effective detection for cases with appreciable emphysema while serving as a reasonable correction for normal cases without emphysema. CONCLUSIONS This work provides a tailored DnCNN for (ultra-)low-dose CT denoising, and demonstrates significant improvement on both the image quality and the clinical emphysema quantification accuracy over various dose levels. The clinical conclusion of emphysema obtained from the denoised low-dose images agrees well with that from the full-dose ones.
Molecular Genetics and the Role of Molecularly Targeted Agents in Metastatic Colorectal Carcinoma.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in the world. It is the third most common malignancy and fourth leading cancer-related deaths worldwide. In the USA, CRC is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in both men and women. It is caused by genetic components and potential environmental factors such as consumption of processed meat, red meat, animal fats, low fiber intake, and obesity. Despite the utilization of effective screening modalities and guidelines in the USA, a significant number of patients are diagnosed with advanced, metastatic disease at the time of presentation to the physician. Recent advances in the understanding of molecular medicine with subsequent development and incorporation of newer therapeutic agents into current chemotherapeutic regimens have improved outcomes; however, the management of metastatic CRC remains challenging, particularly for the treating oncologists. We conducted a literature search on CRC mainly related to molecular genetics, targeted biologic agents, and published clinical trials. We also searched and reviewed ongoing clinical trials from Clinicaltrials.gov. Alterations in several oncogenes are associated with CRC, among those RAS, BRAF, and HER2 are of current clinical importance. Chemotherapy drugs, along with vascular endothelial growth factor or epidermal growth factor receptor monoclonal antibodies, are proven to be efficient with manageable toxicity profiles in metastatic CRC. Additional researches on Her-2-directed therapy, BRAF-targeted agents, immunotherapeutic, and newer molecularly targeted agents are needed for further improvement in outcome.
Doctor, Snitch, and Weasel: Narrative Family Therapy With a Child Suffering From Encopresis and Enuresis:

Children who experience enuresis and encopresis can face many difficulties, including social isolation, shame, embarrassment, anxiety, and depression. Due to the prevalence of enuresis and encopres...
Response to Open Peer Commentaries on “Ethical Dimensions of Direct-to-Consumer Neurotechnologies”

I thank the authors for the thoughtful commentaries written in response to my article “Ethical Dimensions of Direct-to-Consumer Neurotechnologies” (Kreitmair 2019) and regret that I cannot respond ...
Comparing PFGE, MLST, and WGS in monitoring the spread of macrolide and rifampin resistant Rhodococcus equi in horse production

Abstract Background Rhodococcus equi (R. equi) infections are endemic in many horse facilities in the United States resulting significant economic loses annually. Currently, there is no commercial vaccine available and the emergence of isolates that are resistant to the current treatment and prophylaxis using antibiotics prompts closer surveillance of this pathogen. Objective This study compares three different genotyping techniques, Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE), Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) and whole genome SNP-based phylogeny to determine the most accurate method to monitor the spread of macrolide-and-rifampin-resistant R. equi. Methods 16 macrolide and rifampin-resistant and 6 susceptible R. equi and their Illumina Miseq whole genome sequences were used in this study. The isolates were sub-typed by PFGE with VspI and a dendrogram based on their similarities generated. Additionally, three phylogenetic trees were constructed using CSI phylogeny on (i) whole genome sequences (WGS), (ii) in silico MLST sequences and (iii) MLST sequences obtained after PCR-amplification and Sanger sequencing. Results PFGE identified 18 different genetic profiles and grouped the 22 isolates into 3 clusters independently of their susceptibilities. The phylogenetic trees built from WGS and MLST data showed similar topology, separating the isolates into 2 major clades in accordance with their susceptibility profiles (susceptible and resistant). However, only the trees generated with next generation sequencing data could detect the clonality of the resistant isolates.
The Future at Stake: Modes of Speculation in The Highest Frontier and Microbiology: An Evolving Science

Colin Milburn examines the function of speculation as it bridges Slonczewski’s scientific and literary practices. Milburn explores two sites of Slonczewski’s work that illuminate how the study of science-fictional speculation can promote self-reflection about learning processes. Speculation shapes our modern world, galvanizing science and innovation. Science fiction, especially in Slonczewski’s handling, challenges the tendencies of high-tech culture to foreclose future options. The highest frontier—the edge of human territory and knowledge—orients the practices of speculation in relation to the political discourses and debates staged in that narrative. The Highest Frontier affirms a mode of speculation that opens to alterity as well as the cognitive qualities of science fiction as a narrative genre.