cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Validity of goal attainment scaling in infants with motor delays.

Background and Purpose. The purpose of this study was to examine (1) content validity of goal attainment scaling (GAS), (2) the responsiveness of GAS compared with a behavioral objective, and (3) concurrent validity of GAS and the Peabody Developmental Gross Motor Scale. Subjects and Methods. Two motor goals were developed for two consecutive 3-month periods for 21 infants with motor delays. The goals were put into behavioral objective and GAS formats and scored by independent examiners. Content validity was examined by having 10 physical therapists rate 10 randomly selected GAS-formatted goals on three dimensions: (1) the importance of the goal for motor development and function, (2) whether the expected progress was achievable, and (3) whether each of the four levels of change was clinically important. Results. Between 77% and 88% of the therapists' ratings for each dimension met the criterion for content validity. The ratings did not differ significantly among the therapists for any of the three dimensions. Change that could not be measured with the behavioral objective format was measured with the GAS format for 61% of the goals, including 73% of the goals in which the behavioral objective was achieved. Correlations between GAS T-scores and Peabody gross motor age-equivalent change scores were not significant. Conclusion and Discussion. The results support content validity and the responsiveness of GAS, and provide evidence that GAS and the Peabody Scale measure different aspects of motor development. Goal attainment scaling is recommended for use in clinical practice and in treatment outcomes research.
A Synoptic Revision of Carapa (Meliaceae)

Abstract. Carapa comprises trees confined to tropical forests in Africa and America. Previous revisions of the genus based primarily on herbarium specimens recognized few variable species, but also stressed the need for further research to clarify and understand the patterns of morphological variation in these species complexes. In the present revision, 27 species are recognized in Carapa of which 16 occur in Africa and 11 in America. Nine new species are described and illustrated, and a new combination is proposed. The remaining 17 species correspond to either recently described species or previously described species that had been placed in synonymy. A key to the 27 species and their distribution maps are provided.
Linear regression analysis of censored medical costs

This paper deals with the problem of linear regression for medical cost data when some study subjects are not followed for the full duration of interest so that their total costs are unknown. Standard survival analysis techniques are ill-suited to this type of censoring. The familiar normal equations for the least-squares estimation are modified in several ways to properly account for the incompleteness of the data. The resulting estimators are shown to be consistent and asymptotically normal with easily estimated variance-covariance matrices. The proposed methodology can be used when the cost database contains only the total costs for those with complete follow-up. More efficient estimators are available when the cost data are recorded in multiple time intervals. A study on the medical cost for ovarian cancer is presented.
Nonthyroidal Illness Syndrome in Adult Horses

Background This study was performed to determine whether sick horses have thyroid hormone (TH) alterations similar to those observed in nonthyroidal illness syndrome in other species. Hypothesis Horses suffering from systemic diseases have decreased THs and inappropriately low thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). Animals Seventy-one clinically normal horses; 380 hospitalized horses. Methods Total thyroxine (TT4), free thyroxine by equilibrium dialysis (fT4D), total triiodothyronine (TT3), free triiodothyronine (fT3), and TSH were measured in normal and hospitalized horses. Disease severity was categorized as mild, moderate, or severe by both subjective and objective criteria. Results Negative correlations existed between all THs, except TSH, and objective illness severity scores. These scores also increased with each subjective disease severity category. TT3 and fT3 were decreased with mild disease. TT3 progressively decreased more with moderate and severe disease. TT4 and fT4D remained normal with mild disease, but decreased progressively with disease severity. TSH increased with mild disease, but remained normal with moderate or severe disease. Horses that died or were euthanized had lower concentrations of all THs, except TSH, when compared with those that lived. In horses that received >3 doses of NSAIDs, corticosteroids, or heparin compared to 0–3 doses, TT3 and TT4 were decreased, whereas fT4D and TSH remained normal. There were minimal TH changes in horses that were not eating. Conclusions and Clinical Importance Thyroid hormones decrease in horses with systemic disease. TT3 decreases first, followed by TT4 and fT4D. TSH fails to increase proportionally to the changes in THs, indicating hypothalamic–pituitary axis dysregulation. NSAIDs, corticosteroids, heparin, and fasting have less effect on THs compared with disease severity.
Nox4 Is Required for Maintenance of the Differentiated Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Phenotype

Objective— The mechanisms responsible for maintaining the differentiated phenotype of adult vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are incompletely understood. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been...
Development of North Carolina's first Software Engineering program: An experience report

The North Carolina's first Master of Science in Software Engineering program was introduced at East C The North Carolina's first Master of Science in Software Engineering program was introduced at East Carolina University in spring 2008. In this paper we report on our progress in terms of successful student recruitment and retention and also course delivery methods in both face-to-face and online environments.
Analysis of Small Credit Union Trends and Opportunities for Accountants

This paper reviews the benefits small credit unions confer to their members and communities, the decrease in the number of institutions and members in recent history, the challenges facing small credit unions today, and how accountants can help small credit unions reverse these negative trends. Credit unions are able to pay higher interest rates on deposits, charge lower rates on borrowings, and charge fewer and lower fees than traditional banks. Additionally, bank customers benefit from the presence of credit unions through increased competition on rates. Credit unions also serve traditionally underserved populations and, in the past, experienced high customer satisfaction ratings. However, there has been a reduction of 22 percent in the number of small credit unions since 2008. This decrease can be linked to a decline in customer satisfaction, which is a result of the increased compliance and regulatory burden on already overworked staffs. Accountants, by providing compliance support and strategic planning advice, can help small credit unions reverse these negative trends and thrive.
Looking for Meaning in All the Wrong Places: Why Negative Advertising Is a Suspect Category.

A critical review of academic work on negativity in political advertising shows that the concept has been defined in ways that are too broad, insufficiently holistic, and too pejorative. Data from the American National Election Study demonstrate the disproportionate use of “negative” to describe campaign ads by voters. Exploratory data suggest the component parts of negativity: misleading claims, emotional appeals, one-sided attacks, and a generally loathsome view of politicians. To better understand academic interest in the subject, it is necessary to explore the shared assumptions of the political reform movement of the past century and of reform-minded researchers—specifically their disdain for the emotional underpinnings of political behavior, even as emotion is linked with higher citizen engagement with politics. It is possible to pursue a better informed and less benighted discourse on campaign advertising by eschewing the global conception of negativity by more seriously engaging the theoretical bases of representative government.
Estrogen receptor subtypes alpha and beta contribute to neuroprotection and increased Bcl-2 expression in primary hippocampal neurons

Estrogen receptor (ER) mediated neuroprotection has been demonstrated in both in vitro and in vivo model systems. However, the relative contribution by either ER subtype, ERalpha or ERbeta, to estrogen-induced neuroprotection remains unresolved. To address this question, we investigated the impact of selective ER agonists for either ERalpha, PPT, or ERbeta, DPN, to prevent neurodegeneration in cultured hippocampal neurons exposed to excitotoxic glutamate. Using three indicators of neuronal viability and survival, we demonstrated that both the ERalpha selective agonist PPT and the ERbeta selective agonist DPN protected hippocampal neurons against glutamate-induced cell death in a dose-dependent manner, with the maximal response occurring at 100 pM. Further analyses showed that both PPT and DPN enhanced Bcl-2 expression in hippocampal neurons, with an efficacy comparable to their neuroprotective capacity. Collectively, the present data indicate that activation of either ERalpha or ERbeta can promote neuroprotection in hippocampal neurons, suggesting that both receptor subtypes could be involved in estrogen neuroprotection. As ERbeta is highly expressed in the brain and has little or no expression in the breast or uterus, discovery and design of ERbeta selective molecules could provide a strategy for activating the beneficial effects of estrogen in the brain without activating untoward effects of estrogen in reproductive organs.
Modeling the dissolution behavior of defense waste glass in a salt repository environment

A mechanistic model describing a dynamic mass balance between the production and consumption of dissolved silica was found to describe the dissolution behavior of SRL-165 defense waste glass in a high-magnesium brine (PBB3) at a temperature of 90°C. The synergistic effect of the waste package container on the glass dissolution rate was found to depend on a precipitation reaction for a ferrous silicate mineral. The model predicted that the ferrous silicate precipitate should be variable in composition where the iron/silica stoichiometry depended on the metal/glass surface area ratio used in the experiment. This prediction was confirmed experimentally by the variable iron/silica ratios observed in filtered leachates. However, the interaction between dissolved silica and iron corrosion products needs to be much better understood before the model can be used with confidence in predicting radionuclide release rates for a salt repository.
Playback tests and studies of animal contest dynamics: concepts and an example in the gray tree frog

Lay SummaryWhen animals have disputes, what determines the outcome? Playback tests can help us to answer this question. Animals may decide to continue in contests or withdraw depending on their own qualities, the quality of their opponent or both. Contests can be simulated by playing signals to animals and measuring their response. When the experiments are designed properly, this can tell us how important the individual’s own qualities and those of its opponent were. In gray tree frogs, both are important.
Consistency management for complex applications

Consistency management is important in many complex applications, but current languages and database systems inadequately support it. To address this limitation, we defined a consistency management model and incorporated it into the PLEIADES object management system. This paper illustrates some typical consistency management requirements and discusses the requirements in terms of both functionality and cross-cutting concerns that affect how this functionality is provided. It then describes the model and some design and implementation issues that arose in instantiating it. Finally, we discuss user feedback and future research plans.
Induction of Tolerance for Food-Induced Anaphylaxis

Anaphylaxis is the most severe manifestation of IgE-mediated food allergy, which has been linked to a loss of oral tolerance or a failure in the induction of tolerance. Oral ­tolerance is the physiologic mechanism by which immune responses to an antigen are suppressed by prior ­administration of the antigen by the oral route. This normal process is crucial in allowing a wide array of dietary proteins access to the body without activating harmful immune responses. A growing understanding of the factors involved in the development of oral tolerance has spurred recent studies investigating potential therapies targeting these pathways. Further work is necessary to define the molecular mechanisms involved in oral tolerance induction and to identify specific targets for immunomodulatory treatments. Definitive therapies for food allergy and food-induced anaphylaxis are on the horizon and will soon expand the treatment options available to individuals living with these diseases.
African Conflict and Climate Data for an Undergraduate Research Project

Undergraduate research experiences can be a powerful tool that statistics educators can use to give students an in-depth look at real data analysis as it occurs in multiple professional and academic settings. This article has two goals. The first is to introduce two large and fascinating datasets that are freely available, interesting in content to students, and widely used in current studies. The second is to outline an undergraduate research project that utilized these data. This project was undertaken by four undergraduates over the course of a semester. The phases of the project are discussed as well as example results from the students. There are many possible modifications to the project that can be made at various levels of complexity. Appendices provide relevant R code and descriptions of the merged data available for download.
Phase II Trial of a Combination of Interferon-βser and Interferon-γ in Patients with Advanced Malignant Melanoma

Based upon the in vitro synergistic activity of interferon-beta (IFN-beta) and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) observed in melanoma cells, we initiated a Phase II trial using the combination to determine the clinical antitumor efficacy in patients with advanced disease. Fifteen patients with metastatic malignant melanoma were given 2,000 micrograms of recombinant IFN-gamma (rIFN-gamma) (Biogen) intravenously (i.v.) over 10 min, followed by a 10 min i.v. injection of 30 million units of recombinant IFN-beta (rIFN-beta ser) (Triton) 3 x/week. Six patients had skin, soft tissue, nodal, or subcutaneous metastases, 6 had visceral disease only, and 3 had both. Seven patients had received prior treatment, including chemotherapy (6), radiotherapy (3), and/or immunotherapy (3). Side effects included typical IFN constitutional symptoms such as anorexia, fatigue, nausea, and myalgias, but were not dose limiting. The mean drop in the white blood cell count (WBC) following 1 month of therapy, compared to baseline, was 3.3 x 10(3)/mm2 (p = 0.002); the mean increase in SGOT was 24.1 U/l (p less than 0.001). One patient had a dose reduction for Grade III anorexia and fatigue which did not resolve with repeated treatment. One patient with liver metastases had radiographical and clinical stabilization of his disease for 1 year. No responses were seen. The median time to progression was 6 weeks. Two patients' tumors were evaluable in the human tumor colony forming assay (HTCFA) and were markedly sensitive to the antiproliferative effects of IFN combinations. Both patients, however, failed to respond clinically.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
A Supervised Linear Dimensionality Reduction Algorithm for Face Recognition

Because Locality Preserving Projection(LPP) ignores the label information of the data and it is lack of robustness, this paper proposes a Linear Discriminant Projection(LDP) algorithm. By introducing between-class weight matrix and within-class weight matrix,LDP maximizes the separability of different submanifolds and minimizes the compactness of local submanifolds. Moreover, LDP is robust to outlier data by a robust within-class processing way. Compared with PCA, LDA, LPP, LSDA, LPDP, the experimental results on ORL,AR and Extended Yale B face databases show that the best average recognition rates of LDP are higher, which can reach 95.3%, 93.64%and 96.28%, and this verifies the efficiency of the proposed algorithm.
Sclerosing mediastinitis with occlusion of pulmonary veins: Manifestations and management

A case of mediastinal fibrosis with occlusion of the right inferior and middle lobe pulmonary veins is described. The patient had severe hemoptysis, and the diagnosis was established with thoracotomy. Review of the literature emphasizes the lethal nature of this syndrome if untreated. Resection of the involved bronchopulmonary tissue, when feasible, offers good palliation, although the long-term prognosis is unpredictable.
Anharmonicity and phase stability of antiperovskite Li 3 OCl

A lattice-dynamics study of the cubic ${\mathrm{Li}}_{3}\mathrm{OCl}$ antiperovskite, a candidate solid electrolyte in lithium-ion batteries, reveals the presence of dynamical instabilities with respect to rotations of the ${\mathrm{Li}}_{6}\mathrm{O}$ octahedra. Calculated energy landscapes in the subspace of unstable octahedral rotational modes are very shallow with at most a 1 meV per formula unit reduction in energy upon breaking the cubic symmetry. While ${\mathrm{Li}}_{3}\mathrm{OCl}$ is not stable relative to decomposition into ${\mathrm{Li}}_{2}\mathrm{O}$ and LiCl at 0 K, estimates of the vibrational free energy suggest that ${\mathrm{Li}}_{3}\mathrm{OCl}$ antiperovskite should become entropically stabilized above approximately 480 K.
Identification of Effects of Regulatory Actions on Air Quality in Goods Movement Corridors in California

Few studies have assessed the impact of regulatory actions on air quality improvement through a comprehensive monitoring effort. In this study, we designed saturation sampling of nitrogen oxides (NOX) for the counties of Los Angeles and Alameda (San Francisco Bay) before (2003–2007) and after (2008–2013) implementation of goods movement actions in California. We further separated the research regions into three location categories, including goods movement corridors (GMCs), nongoods movement corridors (NGMCs), and control areas (CTRLs). Linear mixed models were developed to identify whether reductions in NOX were greater in GMCs than in other areas, after controlling for potential confounding, including weather conditions (e.g., wind speed and temperature) and season of sampling. We also considered factors that might confound the relationship, including traffic and cargo volumes that may have changed due to economic downturn impacts. Compared to the pre-policy period, we found reductions of average pollut...
The Role of the Philadelphia Convention in Constitutional Adjudication

Max Farrand's Records of the Federal Convention of 1787 shed light on the intricacies of the debates of the framers over the text of the Constitution. They do not, however, provide authoritative evidence of constitutional meaning. The Philadelphia Convention, after all, was conducted in secret, and the ratifiers, operating in thirteen distinct conventions in culturally and politically diverse states, had no access to its notes. Attempts to glean original intent or meaning from the Records face even greater challenges than attempts to discern a single, collective legislative intent from pieces of legislative history. Yet the Records are not entirely without value in constitutional interpretation. This Article suggests that Farrand's Records serve to confirm something fundamental about the nature of the original Constitution itself-that its text is the product of a hardscrabble compromise, rather than a statesmanlike articulation of broad principle. In contrast with the "living Constitution" theory that the Court has, at times, endorsed, the Records demonstrate that the Constitution's details are not mere placeholders for broader principles; they reflect bargained-for policy decisions. Accordingly, any theory of interpretation that treats textual detail as a marker for broader principle violates the terms of the bargain upon which the framers ― who were a veto gate in the process ― allowed the document to go forward.
Nonmedical Out-of-Pocket Patient and Companion Expenditures Associated With Glaucoma Care.

PURPOSE Nonmedical out-of-pocket cost to both patients and their companions of office visits for routine glaucoma care has not been extensively studied in the United States. We evaluate potential key predictors of patient expenditures that are critical to assessing the cost-effectiveness of glaucoma health care delivery. MATERIALS AND METHODS In total, 300 patients responded to the survey in 3 clinics in 2 clinical practice settings. Main outcome measures included both average visit and yearly expenditures. RESULTS Of the 300 patients, the majority were female (n=187, 62.3%) and African American (n=171, 57.0%). The median age was 66 years. The median [range; mean (SD)] expenditure per patient visit was $22.10 ($11.1, $42.9; $44.1 (72.8)). Patients with companions paid $38.77 more in average visit expenditure (β: 0.87, P<0.001). The average visit expenditure for retired patients was $17.37 less when compared with nonretired patients (β: -0.4, P=0.004). Patients living in a rural or suburban area paid $43.91 and $14.13 more per visit, respectively (β: 0.73, P=0.0004; β: 0.31, P=0.03), compared with patients living in an urban area. Patients with noncommercial insurance paid $24.01 less in average visit expenditure (β: -0.66, P=0.0008). The median yearly patient expenditure was $96.70 [$44.6, $222.7; $210.4 (333.9)]. Patients with companions paid $192.37 more in yearly expenditure (β: 0.9, P<0.001) than those without companions, whereas retired patients paid $80.83 less in yearly expenditure (β: -0.39, P=0.03) than nonretirees. Patients with noncommercial insurance paid $109.34 less in yearly expenditure (β: -0.63, P=0.01). CONCLUSIONS Although a small part of the total cost of glaucoma care, nonmedical out-of-pocket costs constitute a substantial noncovered medical expense to most patients in the United States. Patients who are employed, come with companions, live in nonurban areas, or are on Medicare have greater expenditures.
Hardware-based novel authentication scheme for advanced metering infrastructure

Security issues pertaining to Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system has been a major concern since the advent of the smart grid. In this paper, a novel authentication and key management scheme is proposed for AMI system based on Configurable Ring Oscillator Physically Unclonable Functions (RO PUFs). The scheme provides end-to-end security for the confidentiality and integrity of messages exchanged between utility centers and smart meters. The design is compatible with existing AMI technology and can be implemented on smart meters as PUFs on FPGAs or ASICs. To demonstrate the proof of concept, the proposed scheme is implemented on Xilinx Spartan 3E FPGA boards. The performance of the scheme is measured in terms of storage requirement and authentication time. In addition, a threat model analysis is performed to validate the design against modeling attacks and common wireless sensor network attacks.
BOOK REVIEW: Halma, R. & Oplinger, C. S. (2001). The Lehigh Valley: A Natural and Environmental History. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University Press. 361 pages. ISBN: 0271020946.

BOOK REVIEW: Halma, R. & Oplinger, C. S. (2001). The Lehigh Valley: A Natural and Environmental History. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University Press. 361 pages. ISBN: 0271020946. The full text of the article can be found at 10.18275/fire201704011117
Optimizing Iceberg Queries with Complex Joins

Iceberg queries, commonly used for decision support, find groups whose aggregate values are above or below a threshold. In practice, iceberg queries are often posed over complex joins that are expensive to evaluate. This paper proposes a framework for combining a number of techniques---a-priori, memoization, and pruning---to optimize iceberg queries with complex joins. A-priori pushes partial GROUP BY and HAVING condition before a join to reduce its input size. Memoization caches and reuses join computation results. Pruning uses cached results to infer that certain tuples cannot contribute to the final query result, and short-circuits join computation. We formally derive conditions for correctly applying these techniques. Our practical rewrite algorithm produces highly efficient SQL that can exploit combinations of optimization opportunities in ways previously not possible. We evaluate our PostgreSQL-based implementation experimentally and show that it outperforms both baseline PostgreSQL and a commercial database system.
Finding Shakespeare in Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby

This essay argues that Luhrmann’s films William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet (1996) and The Great Gatsby (2013) bring the two classic texts together through visual and thematic parallels, particularly in scenes that feature Leonardo DiCaprio, who plays the titular protagonist of both films. The latter film imagines an alternate ending for Shakespeare’s young lovers, as DiCaprio’s Gatsby becomes a grown up Romeo who lost his Juliet and is desperate to get her back. It is difficult to untangle the complex relationships between Luhrmann and DiCaprio, Fitzgerald and Shakespeare, but an attempt to do so can help unearth another iteration of “Shakespeare” in contemporary culture.
Student Happiness, School Climate, and School Improvement Plans: Implications for School Counseling Practice

To align with a more holistic perspective of wellness, the authors advocate for the inclusion of student subjective well-being (SWB) or happiness ratings as part of school climate assessment within school improvement plans (SIPs). Relevant theory and research demonstrate the reciprocal relationship between student perceptions of school climate and their overall SWB. Within the context of school improvement planning/assessment and counselor program accountability, the authors provide recommendations for school counselors’ evidence-based practice.
PASTA for proteins

Summary PASTA is a multiple sequence method that uses divide-and-conquer plus iteration to enable base alignment methods to scale with high accuracy to large sequence datasets. By default, PASTA included MAFFT L-INS-i; our new extension of PASTA enables the use of MAFFT G-INS-i, MAFFT Homologs, CONTRAlign and ProbCons. We analyzed the performance of each base method and PASTA using these base methods on 224 datasets from BAliBASE 4 with at least 50 sequences. We show that PASTA enables the most accurate base methods to scale to larger datasets at reduced computational effort, and generally improves alignment and tree accuracy on the largest BAliBASE datasets. Availability and implementation PASTA is available at https://github.com/kodicollins/pasta and has also been integrated into the original PASTA repository at https://github.com/smirarab/pasta. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Intravenous Therapies for Intractable Headache

Unrelenting, severe headaches are difficult to treat since they usually do not respond to conventional medical management. Among invasive interventions, infusion therapies have emerged as an effective treatment for refractory headaches when other noninvasive treatments have been exhausted. This chapter reviews several pharmacological options of intravenous infusions for intractable headaches.
Granulated Lymphoid Cells of the Pregnant Uterus: Morphological and Functional Features

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the morphological and functional features of granulated lymphoid cells of the pregnant uterus. A large population of granulated lymphocytes is present in the uterus of many species during pregnancy. The cells are concentrated in the placental bed or decidua basalis, and have been termed granulated metrial gland cells in rodents or endometrial granulocytes in humans. This chapter discusses the occurrence and possible functions of the granulated lymphoid cells in decidual tissue, in particular the granulated metrial gland (GMG) cells. The gestational factors that regulate the differentiation and activation of GMG cells in situ are maternal in origin. Identification of the endocrine and/or paracrine factors that activate natural killer (NK) cells in decidual tissue is an important step toward elucidating the biological role of GMG cells. Trophoblasts, which form a physical barrier between the mother and the fetus, are also known to have the capacity to produce a number of cytokines. These trophoblast-derived cytokines may be involved in modulating the functions of GMG cells and other maternal immune cells. The complicated interactions between GMG cells and other maternal or fetal cells are probably necessary to achieve the least harmful reactions to the developing fetus but provide sufficient surveillance against infectious pathogens and aggressive invading trophoblasts.
The Dirichlet Problem for Degenerate Elliptic Equations

This chapter provides an overview of the Dirichlet problem for degenerate elliptic equations. It presents the case where L is degenerating on a subset of D. The methods presented in the chapter are based on the theory of stochastic differential equations. For the formulation of Dirichlet problem, the boundary ∂ D is divided into four disjoint subsets. This chapter explains the convergence of paths to boundary points. It reviews the concepts of regular points and strongly regular points. The chapter also explores distinguished boundary points.
Data Redundancies in Reflectivity Tomography Using Offset Sources and Receivers

In this work, we investigate the existence and utilization of data redundancies in reflectivity tomography employing offset source and receiver transducers, which we refer to as bistatic reflectivity tomography. A layer-stripping procedure is described heuristically and mathematically, which reveals that a two-fold redundancy exists in a complete data set. This indicates that knowledge of the measured data function over any half of its domain is, in principle, sufficient for image reconstruction. Computer-simulation studies are presented for demonstrating the numerical feasibility of half-data image reconstruction
Response of different wheat tissues to increasing doses of ethyl methanesulfonate

Mutation experiments require careful selection of a mutagen with characteristics suited to the tissue source and mutagenesis objective, and an appropriate treatment regime. The objectives of the present investigation were:-to compare the ability of immature embryos to initiate calluses and calluses derived from immature embryos to survive and grow after being treated with ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) doses of 0.2, 0.4, 0.8, 1.2, and 1.6% (v/v) and-to compare these results with those published for seed mutagenesis. To determine if the response of tissue source to EMS treatment varied with genotype, tissues from two spring wheat cultivars, ‘Angus’ and ‘Pavon 76’, were used. The combined analysis of variance detected highly significant differences (p≤0.01) among doses. The higher the dose, the lower the tissue survival in each tissue source. No significant differences were detected between cultivars, tissue sources, in the cultivar by dose interaction, tissue source by dose interaction, tissue source by cultivar interaction, or tissue source by cultivar by dose interaction. Hence, both cultivars and tissue sources responded similarly to EMS doses. The predicted LD20 are 0.35%±0.08% for the immature embryo treatment, and 0.36%±0.10% for the callus treatment. The predicted LD50 are 0.82%±0.13% for the immature embryo treatment, and 0.77%±0.13% for the callus treatment. These results were very similar to published results for seed mutagenesis, hence seed mutagenesis research may be applicable to immature embryo and callus mutagenesis.
Meniscotherium Mass-Death Assemblages

Meniscotherium is a relatively small condylarth that is considered unusual in having a specialized dentition consisting of molarized posterior premolars and selenodont-lophodont molars (Figure 1). It unites this specialized dentition with a very generalized skeleton (Williamson and Lucas, 1992). Two species of Meniscotherium are recognized, M. chamense and M. tapiacitum (Williamson, 1989; Williamson and Lucas, 1992). M. chamense from the San Jose Formation of the San Juan Basin, New Mexico probably was about 58 cm in length and ranged from between 4.88–9.76 kg in body weight. M. tapiacitum was approximately 70% the size of San Juan Basin M. chamense in linear dimensions (about 41cm in length) and probably weighed between 1.7 and 3.3 kg (Williamson and Lucas, 1992). The apparently erratic occurrence of Meniscotherium has long been noted (Van Houten, 1945) and the presence/absence of Meniscotherium in the San Jose Formation was believed to be controlled by the depositional environment as reflected in particular facies association (Granger, 1914; Simpson, 1948b; Gazin, 1952, Gazin, 1962, Gazin, 1965a, Gazin, 1965b). Meniscotherium is often found in large concentrations in the San Jose Formation, New Mexico and as a result, it is one of the best known early Paleogene condylarths.
PhD Forum: Priority-Based MPTCP Approach for Software-Defined Heterogeneous Naval Networks

We propose a priority-based approach based on MPTCP and Software-Defined Networking for heterogeneous naval networks. Our proposed approach is able to manage the different communication links in heterogeneous naval networks by reducing the handover overhead and improving the total end-to-end throughput. Our dynamic SDN controller also supports both static and mobile scenarios.
"I keep it to myself": a qualitative meta-interpretive synthesis of experiences of postpartum depression among marginalised women.

Postpartum depression (PPD) is a significant public health concern due to the physical, emotional, economic, and life course outcomes. Rates of PPD are significantly higher for marginalised populations and can impact low-income, minority, and/or immigrant women differently when compared to white middle-class women. Commonly studied negative effects of PPD include poor health outcomes, mother-child bonding challenges, and negative child educational outcomes. However, research surveying the postpartum experience and negative outcomes among marginalised women is sparse. This study implemented a qualitative meta-interpretive synthesis (QIMS) methodology to synthesise themes across 12 qualitative research articles surveying postpartum experiences of marginalised women in North American countries. Articles included in the QIMS were extracted from online databases from a 10-year window spanning January 2008-2018. The guiding research question was "What are the PPD experiences of women belonging to marginalized populations?" Constant comparative analysis was used with coding in atlas.ti and themes were synthesised with input of all three authors. Five main themes emerged. The themes are (a) intersections of PPD and poverty, (b) culture and PPD, (c) pressures of mothering, (d) strengths and coping, and (e) abuse affects my PPD experience. Subthemes such as "I keep it to myself" relating to cultural response to PPD and idealised mothering were also discovered. Implications for social workers, nurses, and future research are discussed.
Learning supportive communication through an adaptation of the board game Apples to Apples

ABSTRACTPeople who receive supportive communication when they are distressed benefit from a series of advantageous outcomes. We designed the following activity based on the popular board game Apples to Apples to provide students with an experiential understanding of different types of social support—(1) emotional, (2) esteem, (3) network, (4) informational, (5) tangible, (6) celebratory, (7) social presence, and (8) nonverbal—as well as to illustrate the concepts of support matching and person centeredness.Courses: Interpersonal Communication, Relational Communication, Health Communication.Objectives: To provide students with an experiential understanding of different types of social support: (1) emotional, (2) esteem, (3) network, (4) informational, (5) tangible, (6) celebratory, (7) social presence, and (8) nonverbal, as well as to illustrate the concepts of support matching and person centeredness.
Differential privacy

In 1977 Dalenius articulated a desideratum for statistical databases: nothing about an individual should be learnable from the database that cannot be learned without access to the database. We give a general impossibility result showing that a formalization of Dalenius' goal along the lines of semantic security cannot be achieved. Contrary to intuition, a variant of the result threatens the privacy even of someone not in the database. This state of affairs suggests a new measure, differential privacy, which, intuitively, captures the increased risk to one's privacy incurred by participating in a database. The techniques developed in a sequence of papers [8, 13, 3], culminating in those described in [12], can achieve any desired level of privacy under this measure. In many cases, extremely accurate information about the database can be provided while simultaneously ensuring very high levels of privacy
Weak greedy algorithms[*]This research was supported by National Science Foundation Grant DMS 9970326 and by ONR Grant N00014‐96‐1‐1003.

Theoretical greedy type algorithms are studied: a Weak Greedy Algorithm, a Weak Orthogonal Greedy Algorithm, and a Weak Relaxed Greedy Algorithm. These algorithms are defined by weaker assumptions than their analogs the Pure Greedy Algorithm, an Orthogonal Greedy Algorithm, and a Relaxed Greedy Algorithm. The weaker assumptions make these new algorithms more ready for practical implementation. We prove the convergence theorems and also give estimates for the rate of approximation by means of these algorithms. The convergence and the estimates apply to approximation from an arbitrary dictionary in a Hilbert space.
Does Other Comprehensive Income Volatility Influence Credit Risk and the Cost of Debt

We examine the usefulness of other comprehensive income (OCI) to debt investors in nonfinancial companies. Motivated by Merton's (1974) real options framework, we construct a measure of incremental OCI volatility, designed to capture the effect of OCI on overall firm asset volatility, which is a primary driver of credit risk in Merton's (1974) model. We find that the volatility of incremental OCI influences the likelihood of default, credit ratings, and the cost of debt. Overall, our evidence suggests that creditors use information from OCI in their assessment of firm credit risk and in pricing debt contracts. La volatilite des autres elements du resultat global influe‐t‐elle sur le risque de credit et le cout des capitaux empruntes? Les auteurs s'interrogent sur l'utilite des autres elements du resultat global (AERG) pour les investisseurs en titres d'eumprunt de societes non financieres. Le cadre des options reelles de Merton (1974) leur suggere la creation d'un indicateur de volatilite marginale des AERG permettant d'evaluer l'incidence des AERG sur la volatilite globale de l'actif de l'entreprise, un inducteur de risque de credit de premier plan dans le modele de Merton (1974). Les auteurs constatent que la volatilite marginale des AERG influe sur la probabilite de manquement, la notation du credit et le cout des capitaux empruntes. Dans l'ensemble, les donnees recueillies semblent indiquer que les creanciers utilisent l'information livree par les AERG dans leur evaluation du risque de credit de l'entreprise et dans l'etablissement du prix des contrats d'emprunt.
Virtual ligand screening combined with NMR to identify Dvl PDZ domain inhibitors targeting the Wnt signaling.

Virtual ligand screening (VLS) is a powerful technique to identify potential hits of targets and to increase hit rates. Here, we describe how we used this technique combined with NMR 15N HSQC experiments to obtain small molecules that bind to the PDZ domain of Dvl targeting the Wnt signaling pathway.
CF Airway Clearance

Airway clearance is an important mainstay of CF therapy. Ideally it includes two arms: mucolytic agents and airway clearance techniques (ACTs). Aerosolized recombinant human DNase (RhDNase, dornase alfa) is the most widely used mucolytic agent. It decreases sputum viscosity and should be considered in all CF patients ages 6 and older to help reduce pulmonary exacerbations (PEs) and improve lung function. Hypertonic saline, which serves to promote clearance by hydrating the aqueous surface layer (ASL), can also be used as monotherapy or as an adjunct to dornase alfa. Although the evidence to support the use of hypertonic saline is less robust than that available for dornase alfa, it is an affordable and widely available therapy that appears to have positive effects on respiratory symptoms and lung function. There are a variety of ACTs available, none of which has been found to be clinically superior to another. Because of this, treatments are often individualized based on patient age, preference, and ease of use. ACTs serve either to increase laminar flow or to create shearing forces which help mechanically clear airway secretions and improve respiratory function.
Distinct roles of structure-specific endonucleases EEPD1 and Metnase in replication stress responses

Accurate DNA replication and segregation are critical for maintaining genome integrity and suppressing cancer. Metnase and EEPD1 are DNA damage response (DDR) proteins frequently dysregulated in cancer and implicated in cancer etiology and tumor response to genotoxic chemo- and radiotherapy. Here, we examine the DDR in human cell lines with CRISPR/Cas9 knockout of Metnase or EEPD1. The knockout cell lines exhibit slightly slower growth rates, significant hypersensitivity to replication stress, increased genome instability and distinct alterations in DDR signaling. Metnase and EEPD1 are structure-specific nucleases. EEPD1 is recruited to and cleaves stalled forks to initiate fork restart by homologous recombination. Here, we demonstrate that Metnase is also recruited to stalled forks where it appears to dimethylate histone H3 lysine 36 (H3K36me2), raising the possibility that H3K36me2 promotes DDR factor recruitment or limits nucleosome eviction to protect forks from nucleolytic attack. We show that stalled forks are cleaved normally in the absence of Metnase, an important and novel result because a prior study indicated that Metnase nuclease is important for timely fork restart. A double knockout was as sensitive to etoposide as either single knockout, suggesting a degree of epistasis between Metnase and EEPD1. We propose that EEPD1 initiates fork restart by cleaving stalled forks, and that Metnase may promote fork restart by processing homologous recombination intermediates and/or inducing H3K36me2 to recruit DDR factors. By accelerating fork restart, Metnase and EEPD1 reduce the chance that stalled replication forks will adopt toxic or genome-destabilizing structures, preventing genome instability and cancer. Metnase and EEPD1 are overexpressed in some cancers and thus may also promote resistance to genotoxic therapeutics.
Dance Programs for School-Age Individuals With Disabilities: A Systematic Review.

The purpose of this systematic review was to examine published research literature pertaining to dance programs for school-age individuals with disabilities by describing study characteristics and major findings. Electronic database searches were conducted to identify relevant articles published between January 2008 and August 2018. Sixteen articles met all inclusion criteria, and extracted data from the articles included major findings, study design characteristics (e.g., sample size), and dance program characteristics (e.g., location of program). The methodological quality of each study was assessed using the Crowe Critical Appraisal Tool. Major findings expand on previous reviews on dance by including school-age individuals with disabilities. The critical appraisal of the articles demonstrates a gap in study design rigor between studies. Future research should aim to specify sampling strategies, use theories to frame the impact of dance programs, and provide a thorough description of ethical processes and dance classes.
Adaptive streaming of HD and 360° videos over software defined radios

Abstract In this paper we study and implement real-time adaptation schemes for video encoding and channel selection that work in tandem to facilitate HD and 360 ° video streaming for secondary users in a dynamic spectrum access network. Out-of-band feedbacks on instantaneous pathloss of the signal between the transmitter and the receiver, the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) at the receiver, and the quality of the reconstructed video, are used to continuously determine the best possible encoding parameters. Similarly, the radio transmitter continuously adjusts the channel parameters (i.e., center frequency and channel bandwidth) based on the transmission activities of the primary users who are prioritized on these channels. We consider the physical limitations of the encoder and the channel statistics to determine when to change the encoder parameters and when to switch to a new channel. We propose a multi-level threshold based mechanism to find the optimal number of encoding bit rates. We also propose a threshold based algorithm to find the best available channel between the transmitter–receiver pair. We validate our theoretical propositions on an indoor testbed using universal software radio peripherals (USRPs) and GNU Radio. Live videos captured with a web-cam and a 360 ° VR camera were encoded with open source H.264 software libraries and streamed using GStreamer. The signal was transmitted over the 915 MHz ISM bands with omni-directional antennas. We used two B210s (from Ettus Research) for the transmitter and the receiver. Another B210 was programmed to sense the energy levels on all the channels in order to detect the presence of primary user transmissions. GNU Radio was used to build the initial flow-graph of all the signal processing modules, both at the transmitter and the receiver. We used Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) and Structural Similarity Index (SSIM) to measure the video quality. Experimental results show that (i) the video encoder and the USRP transmitter–receiver pair were able to adapt to the changing RF conditions, (ii) the adaptation schemes yielded better video quality than non-adaptive schemes, and (iii) the USRPs could switch the channels fast enough allowing uninterrupted video streaming even when the primary users preempted the secondary user’s transmission. We also present a simulation study to show that the proposed encoder and channel adaptation algorithms can be scaled to larger networks.