cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Computational complexity analysis of set membership identification of a class of nonlinear systems

This paper analyzes the computational complexity of set membership identification of a class of nonlinear systems consisting of the interconnection of a linear time invariant plant and a static nonlinearity. Its main result shows that, even in cases where a portion of the plant is known, the problem is generically NP-hard both in the number of experimental data points and in the number of inputs or outputs of the nonlinearity. These results provide new insight into the reasons underlying the high computational complexity of several recently proposed algorithms and point out to the need for developing computationally tractable relaxations.
Community Professionals’ Response to Intimate Partner Violence Against Rural Older Women

The purpose of this study was to examine rural community professionals' awareness, perceptions, and experience with intimate partner violence (IPV) in late life. Using standard focus group methodology, 87 community professionals were engaged in discussions about IPV in late life and their experience in providing support to victims. Responses were analyzed using an open coding process. Most professionals were not aware that IPV against older women was a problem in their communities, although were willing to offer support if asked. Support for older victims was provided within the purview of each profession. Referrals to other support services were made, although collaboration did not occur unless a health-related emergency arose in which professionals were mandated to work together. Findings provide the groundwork for further research on the education and training of community professionals on IPV in late life and the development of more integrated community-based service protocols to address this hidden, but widespread concern.
Hermetically Sealed Glass Packages

Significant advances have been accomplished in the field of Through Glass Via (TGV) technology; enabling a new generation of electronic designs that achieve higher performance, while leveraging low cost system solutions. Through-hole creation methods in glass have been optimized for mass production with consistent via diameter, shape and wall chemistry/morphology. This has enabled the development of unique copper via metallization materials that exhibit very high conductivity, thermal expansion matching (with borosilicate glass) and hermeticity in the 10E-10 Atm.cc/sec range (Ultra-High Vacuum Hermeticity). Further developments in Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) for glass wafers with copper vias, surface sensitization and metal deposition techniques, have enabled thin film metallization on both sides of the glass wafer for fine line redistribution layers (RDL). The thin film RDL is compatible with the TGV with excellent continuity in conductivity. The RDL metallization is plated to allow flip chip, la...
Interpretando a Jim Crow: Blackface y emancipación

A nineteenth-century American actor named Thomas Rice was sensationally popular as a blackface character named Jim Crow. His popularity is credited with giving birth to blackface minstrelsy as others began to imitate him in the hope of emulating his success. Rice’s Jim Crow provided a name for laws and customs designed to repudiate the emancipation of African slaves. Blackface minstrelsy staged an idealized version of slave life on a southern plantation. Paradoxically, as blackface revoked the emancipation of slaves on stage, it emancipated the American theatre from its British origins and its audience of recently immigrated laborers from a low social position. It even occasionally performed an ironic reversal of the subaltern status of the very African slaves whose freedom by proclamation and constitutional amendment the performance sought to negate. Contradictions in the history of blackface performance in the United States stage American anxieties about race, class, emancipation, and the very construction of the concepts of blackness and whiteness.
ACA Provisions Associated With Increase In Percentage Of Young Adult Women Initiating And Completing The HPV Vaccine

Affordable Care Act provisions implemented in 2010 required insurance plans to offer dependent coverage to people ages 19–25 and to provide targeted preventive services with zero cost sharing. These provisions both increased the percentage of young adults with any source of health insurance coverage and improved the generosity of coverage. We examined how these provisions affected use of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, which is among the most expensive of recommended vaccines, among young adult women. Using 2008–12 data from the National Health Interview Survey, we estimated that the 2010 policy implementation increased the likelihood of HPV vaccine initiation and completion by 7.7 and 5.8 percentage points, respectively, for women ages 19–25 relative to a control group of women age 18 or 26. These estimates translate to approximately 1.1 million young women initiating and 854,000 young women completing the vaccine series.
Estimating Leaf Area Index by Bayesian Linear Regression Using Terrestrial LiDAR, LAI-2200 Plant Canopy Analyzer, and Landsat TM Spectral Indices

AbstractLeaf area index (LAI) is a key biophysical variable and an ecosystem condition indicator that is measured from multiple methods. In this study, LAI was measured by a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) and Li-Cor LAI-2200 plant canopy analyzer for understanding differences. A total of six different methods that consider leaf clumping, leaf–wood separation, and orthographic and stereographic projection were compared. A reasonable agreement among all methods for LAI estimates was observed (i.e., correlations r > 0.50). The Bayesian linear regression (BLR) approach was used to scale up the six different LAI estimates and to produce continuous field surfaces for the Oak Openings Region in northwest Ohio using Landsat TM–derived spectral vegetation indices (weighted difference vegetation index [WDVI], difference vegetation index [DVI], normalized difference vegetation index [NDVI], soil-adjusted vegetation index [SAVI], and perpendicular vegetation index 3 [PVI3]). The BLR approach provides details about t...
Implantation of a Tissue-Binding Material in the Female Genital Tract: A Preliminary Study on Oviduct Occlusion and the Prevention of Adhesions in Baboons*

Studies conducted in adult female baboons have documented the potential usefulness of a new alloplastic substance, Proplast, when applied to the genital tract of the human female. Two areas of likely application are in the prevention of adhesions in infertility surgery and in reversible or permanent tubal occlusion.
On the square roots of infinite matrices

Is there a matrix A which has the property A2 = C? We began by constructing lower triangular matrices which have this property. Alerted by a colleague to work of Hausdorff, Toeplitz, and others, we investigated various convergence properties of our square roots. We used computer-generated estimates of the first 25 rows of two of the square roots to formulate conjectures which we then proved on the behavior of their entries. We showed that the first of these square roots takes convergent sequences to convergent sequences and that the second does not even take bounded sequences to bounded sequences. For a while we believed that all the square roots of C were lower triangular; eventually, having found no obstruction, we proved that all nonzero infinite matrices have nontriangular square roots. Also, our technique for finding lower triangular square roots of C applies to any infinite lower triangular matrix with all positive entries on the diagonal. Halmos was, of course, interested in finding a square root of C which is also a bounded operator, i.e., one which takes square-convergent series to square-convergent series. J. B. Conway has proved the existence of a well-defined bounded subnormal operator vC by using the Conway-Olin functional calculus [1], [2]. Also, by a theorem of T. Kato [3], C has a bounded accretive square root. The proofs are not constructive, so we do not know a matrix square root which is a bounded subnormal square root. In our investigation, we used only elementary techniques. The computations are complex, but require knowledge only of calculus, linear algebra, binomial coefficients and, above all, the principle of induction. Most of the proofs are inductive; the square roots are iteratively defined; the inductive relationship between binomial coefficients reflected in Pascal's triangle is essential. In this note we present our results without proof, but will gladly supply details upon request.
Study on Security Temperature Limits of Mixed Transportation in Daqing Oil Field

Daqing Oilfield external field the vast majority of the gathering and transportation system using annular Water flow,the gathering and transportation system by a low single well production,gas-oil ratio low,low wellhead fluid temperature,the radius of gathering and transportation,and higher freezing point of crude oil factors,gathering and transportation system has been the production of high energy consumption.Oil production for the status quo,after two years of field trials and related theoretical study,given the kind of gathering and transportation system for the safe operation of the technical boundaries for the outer ring oil field low-temperature process to run a new avenue to explore,also for the realization of heating oil gathering and transportation do not provide technical support.
Case report: An unusual case of portal systemic encephalopathy.

A middle-aged woman with severe obesity, but without any evidence of chronic liver disease, developed episodes of portal systemic encephalopathy following a jejunoileal bypass. High arterial blood ammonia in the face of apparently normal liver morphology indicated the presence of spontaneous portal systemic shunting of blood. This was further supported by an abnormal oral ammonia tolerance test. Selective abdominal angiography revealed occlusion of the portal vein and its tributaries, with development of extensive collateral circulation. It is suggested this unusual complication had developed as a result of previous abdominal surgery.
SU-F-T-274: Modified Dose Calibration Methods for IMRT QA

Purpose: To investigate IMRT QA uncertainties caused by dose calibration and modify widely used dose calibration procedures to improve IMRT QA accuracy and passing rate. Methods: IMRT QA dose measurement is calibrated using a calibration factor (CF) that is the ratio between measured value and expected value corresponding to the reference fields delivered on a phantom. Two IMRT QA phantoms were used for this study: a 30×30×30 cm3 solid water cube phantom (Cube), and the PTW Octavius phantom. CF was obtained by delivering 100 MUs to the phantoms with different reference fields ranging from 3×3 cm2 to 20×20 cm2. For Cube, CFs were obtained using the following beam arrangements: 2-AP Field - chamber at dmax, 2-AP Field - chamber at isocenter, 4-beam box - chamber at isocenter, and 8 equally spaced fields and chamber at isocenter. The same plans were delivered on Octavius and CFs were derived for the dose at the isocenter using the above beam arrangements. The Octavius plans were evaluated with PTW-VeriSoft (Gamma criteria of 3%/3mm). Results: Four head and neck IMRT plans were included in this study. For point dose measurement with Cube, the CFs with 4-Field gave the best agreement between measurement and calculation within 4% for large field plans. All the measurement results agreed within 2% for a small field plan. Compared with calibration field sizes, 5×5 to 15×15 were more accurate than other field sizes. For Octavius, 4-Field calibration increased passing rate by up to 10% compared to AP calibration. Passing rate also increased by up to 4% with the increase of field size from 3×3 to 20×20. Conclusion: IMRT QA results are correlated with calibration methods used. The dose calibration using 4-beam box with field sizes from 5×5 to 20×20 can improve IMRT QA accuracy and passing rate.
The Formation of American Relationships and Interests

In February 1874, William Ewart Gladstone resigned from the premiership following an election earlier in the month in which the Conservatives led by Benjamin Disraeli had won a clear parliamentary majority of 52. The Liberal government of 1868–74 had been a memorable one. The party, inspired by its leader and the general reform impulse set in motion by the act of 1867, responded with the passage of a series of well-known measures, including Forster’s Education Bill, Cardwell’s army reforms, Bruce’s Licensing Bill, reform of the civil service and judicature, and the Irish Land Act. The leaders and the party had worked together in a surprisingly harmonious fashion to produce an ‘ “era of liberation” in reform politics.’1 There were no obvious reasons why the Liberals would not return to similarly constructive policies after a period of rest and re-evaluation of individual, party and national responsibilities. In fact, their retirement from office was for a long six years. Their policies would never be so productive or their party so cohesive throughout the remainder of the nineteenth century as during Gladstone’s first ministry.
Are informal “Sign-Out Rounds” beneficial for 3rd year medical students on the Neurology Clerkship? (P4.206)

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of instituting daily “Sign-Out Rounds” for 3rd year medical students rotating on the Neurology Clerkship, and to study its effect on students’ level of comfort in assessing common neurologic conditions. Background: The current didactic schedule for 3rd year medical students on the neurology clerkship includes formal faculty lectures, but informal resident teaching opportunities are often trumped by patient care responsibilities. The goals of resident-led “Sign-Out Rounds” are to provide an opportunity for informal, low-pressure, student-centered teaching, and to improve student understanding of neurologic disease. Design/Methods: The Neurology Chief Resident at the University of Rochester Medical Center led a half-hour teaching session on weekdays during the first clerkship block of 2014. One day per week the Child Neurology Chief Resident led the session. Topics included overviews of common neurologic chief complaints (e.g. headache). A pre-test survey using a 5-point Likert scale was administered to evaluate comfort level in assessing eight of the most common neurologic chief complaints. A similar post-test survey was administered at the end of the rotation, and scores were compared using paired t-tests. Comments were coded for strengths and suggestions for improvement. Results: “Sign-Out Rounds” were held 16 days over 4 weeks, with 12 medical students in the clerkship block. The pre and post survey response rate was 100[percnt] and 92[percnt], respectively. 100[percnt] of survey responders supported continuation of “Sign-Out Rounds.” The level of comfort in assessing each chief complaint improved significantly after 4 weeks (p-value ranged from 0.001 to 0.024). Students commented that sessions were organized and informal, but they would have appreciated handouts. Conclusions: Daily “Sign-Out Rounds” for 3rd year students were associated with improved comfort levels in assessing common neurologic chief complaints. All students supported implementation of “Sign-Out Rounds” into the Neurology Clerkship. Disclosure: Dr. Wexler has nothing to disclose. Dr. Schneider has nothing to disclose. Dr. Rubin has nothing to disclose. Dr. Huffer has nothing to disclose. Dr. Muhlhofer has nothing to disclose. Dr. Hilmarsson has nothing to disclose. Dr. Kulik has nothing to disclose. Dr. Meyers has nothing to disclose. Dr. Thompson-Stone has nothing to disclose. Dr. Jozefowicz has nothing to disclose.
Paper Tools and Molecular Architecture in the Chemistry of Linus Pauling

In 1954 Linus Carl Pauling was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry “for his research into the nature of the chemical bond and its application to the elucidation of the structure of complex substances.” At the time of the Nobel award, Pauling’s book on The Nature of the Chemical Bond was widely recognized as the classic statement of the application of quantum mechanics to an explanation of chemical bonding. Yet, ironically, Pauling’s valence bond and atomic orbital approach in quantum chemistry, which he had first developed in the early 1930s, was just beginning in 1954 to lose ground to the molecular orbital method, which Robert Mulliken had long been developing as a rival system of explanation in quantum chemistry.
Estimation of daily stream water temperatures with a Bayesian regression approach

Stream water temperature plays a significant role in aquatic ecosystems where it controls many important biological and physical processes. Reliable estimates of water temperature at the daily time step are critical in managing water resources. We developed a parsimonious piecewise Bayesian model for estimating daily stream water temperatures that account for temporal autocorrelation and both linear and nonlinear relationships with air temperature and discharge. The model was tested at 8 climatically different basins of the USA and at 34 sites within the mountainous Boise River Basin (Idaho, USA). The results show that the proposed model is robust with an average root mean square error of 1.25 °C and Nash–Sutcliffe coefficient of 0.92 over a 2-year period. Our approach can be used to predict historic daily stream water temperatures in any location using observed daily stream temperature and regional air temperature data.
Changing trends in residents-as-teachers across graduate medical education.

BACKGROUND Teaching residents how to teach is a critical part of residents' training in graduate medical education (GME). The purpose of this study was to assess the change in resident-as-teacher (RaT) instruction in GME over the past 15 years in the US. METHODS We used a quantitative and qualitative survey of all program directors (PDs) across specialties. We compared our findings with a previous work from 2000-2001 that studied the same matter. Finally, we qualitatively analyzed PDs' responses regarding the reasons for implementing and not implementing RaT instruction. RESULTS Two hundred and twenty-one PDs completed the survey, which yields a response rate of 12.6%. Over 80% of PDs implement RaT, an increase of 26.34% compared to 2000-2001. RaT instruction uses multiple methods with didactic lectures reported as the most common, followed by role playing in simulated environments, then observing and giving feedback. Residents giving feedback, clinical supervision, and bedside teaching were the top three targeted skills. Through our qualitative analysis we identified five main reasons for implementing RaT: teaching is part of the residents' role; learners desire formal RaT training; regulatory bodies require RaT training; RaT improves residents' education; and RaT prepares residents for their current and future roles. CONCLUSION The use of RaT instruction has increased significantly in GME. More and more PDs are realizing its importance in the residents' formative training experience. Future studies should examine the effectiveness of each method for RaT instruction.
Clustering Effects in Solid Solutions

Solid-state transformations can be classified into two main categories: (a) homogeneous reactions, which occur in the bulk crystalline (or amorphous) phases, and (b) heterogeneous ones, which occur at structural defects such as grain boundaries, dislocations, etc. This chapter covers homogeneous reactions only, and particularly those transformations that are caused by instabilities or meta-stabilities of solid solutions to local compositional changes. Such replacive reactions can be of two types: (a) clustering transformations, which favor like-atom bonds, and (b) ordering transformations, which favor unlike bonds. Only clustering reactions are treated here, although the formalism can easily be extended to cover order—disorder reactions as well.
Spatial Ensemble Learning

This chapter introduces a novel ensemble learning framework called spatial ensemble, which is used to classify heterogeneous spatial data with class ambiguity. Class ambiguity refers to the phenomenon whereby samples with similar features belong to different classes at different locations (e.g., spectral confusion between different thematic classes in earth observation imagery). This chapter also provides preliminary results of comparison between spatial ensemble and traditional ensemble learning (e.g., bagging, boosting, and random forest) on wetland mapping datasets.
Is Vigorous Exercise Training Superior to Moderate for CVD Risk after Menopause

Postmenopausal women have an increased risk for cardiovascular disease through many factors, such as a sedentary lifestyle and reduced heart rate variability (HRV). Endurance training improves coronary risk but the role of exercise intensity is unclear. The purpose of this observational study was to evaluate the effects of moderate versus vigorous exercise on cardiovascular disease risk in postmenopausal women. Thirty-six postmenopausal women who self-reported training at moderate (3–5.9 METS; n=18; age 58.9±4.4yr) or vigorous intensities (>6 METS; n=18; age 59.7±5.2yr) participated. C-reactive protein (CRP), HRV, VO2max, and stress (Perceived Stress Survey, Menopause Rating Scale) were measured. Groups were compared using independent samples t-tests, and associations of exercise intensities with CRP and HRV were assessed using multiple regression. CRP, HRV, and VO2max were similar (p>0.05). Vigorous exercise had lower stress subscale scores (p
Farm-to-School in Indiana: The local politics of feeding children

Focusing on farm-to-school (FTS) policies, this article uses interviews with 10 school district foodservice directors in Indiana to identify what influences their decisions about where to purchase ...
The Purpose and Perception of Learning Objectives

Much of existing assessment and instructional design strategies revolve around the use of learning objectives. Learning objectives are used by faculty, by instructional designers, by accreditors, b...
Use of Gene Fusions to Study Biological Problems

A fundamental practical problem in molecular biology is the detection and quantitation of particular proteins of interest. In those cases in which biological or immunological assays exist, problems of how the expression of particular genes is regulated, how proteins find their correct location inside or outside of a cell, or what features govern protein structure and function in vivo are within the realm of accessibility. In many cases, however, reliable assays are not available and the alternative method of gene fusion is appropriate. The principle of the approach is to fuse either a promoter region or a gene whose product is under study to another gene encoding a product which can be assayed conveniently, for example the lacZ gene of E. coli which encodes β-galactosidase. In promoter fusions, the promoter region will direct synthesis of wild-type β-galactosidase with transcription initiating in the promoter region, and translation starting at the amino-terminal AUG encoded by lacZ (Figure 1). In gene fusions, a hybrid protein will be encoded containing sequences from the protein under study at the amino terminus, and an active β-galactosidase moiety at the carboxy-terminus (Figure 1). These fusions are active because the amino-terminal sequences of β-galactosidase may be replaced with a wide variety of sequences without a loss in its enzymatic activity. The β-galactosidase moiety, in such fusions, serves as a tag which can be used to monitor amounts or cellular location of the protein to which it is fused. In promoter or gene fusions, the myriad of genetic methods developed to study the lac operon can now be adapted to a genetic analysis of the promoter or gene fused to lacZ. For studies of fusions in bacteria, this adaptation is complete, while studies of fusions in eukaryotic cells such as yeast can draw from only a subset of the prokaryotic methods.
Effects of Temperature on the UV-Visible Spectrum of Dynamically Compressed CS2

The transmission spectrum of liquid CS2 contained in a penny-shaped cavity approximately 150 µm thick has been measured in the range 320 to 700 nm. The samples were contained between sapphire plates and compressed in uniaxial strain induced by plane impact of a third sapphire plate on the front plate of the cell. The shock generated by the sapphire impact produced a series of reverberating shocks in the CS2 which caused it to ring up to the impact pressure of the two sapphire plates.1 Impact pressure ranged from 54 to 130 kilobars. The ringing-up process is shown in the x-t plane in Fig. 1 where the impact shock produces state 1 shown in the lower left.
Human–Environment Interactions – Taste

Humans have evolved to consume natural products in their environment and have acquired a sense of taste. Our ability to taste bitter and sour evolved to identify potentially dangerous food. On the contrary, the ability to recognize a sweet taste developed to identify an energy source, while a salty taste is a signal of minerals. As time progressed, humans began to use bitter, pungent, and even astringent tastes that were initially considered to be unpleasant. This may have been because we became aware that such substances were effective at improving health or even treating disease. Human food culture progressed further with the development of cooking methods that use spices and more dramatically through the enjoyment of fermentation products. There has been no recent comprehensive review on the chemistry of taste written from the perspective of natural products chemistry. In this chapter, several taste sensations found in natural products are described along with their structures. Although it is still very difficult to anticipate the taste quality and intensity from the structure of an organic compound, it is expected that recent progress in the study of receptors will contribute to a full understanding of the relationship between taste sensation and chemical structure.
Heterogeneous Integration using the Silicon Interconnect Fabric

In the 70's, Amdahl proposed and then abandoned the concept of wafer scale integration to build a high-performance mainframe on a single silicon wafer. Recent developments in advanced packaging such as the Silicon Interconnect Fabric being worked on at UCLA, flexible electronics, three-dimensional integration allow us to revisit this concept with a very high probability of success. This talk will examine the technology, challenges, and architectural benefits of such systems for the heterogeneous integration of massively scaled-out high performance systems as well as physically flexible integration platforms for Medical applications.
Exploring the link between trust and political participation in a divided society: evidence from South Africa

In empirical research political scientists have found that individuals with higher levels of trust participate more frequently in politics. But how does this link manifest in deeply divided societi...
What Is the Confusion With Cortisol

Cortisol has many roles not only in mediating the response to stress but also in the circadian rhythm, and it does so by both genomic and nongenomic cellular and molecular mechanisms. Yet, it is common to associate cortisol only with stress and, in particular, with the negative aspects of stress even though we would not survive without it. This commentary provides a brief overview not only of the diverse roles of cortisol but also of how to measure it to get meaningful information in the context of other mediators of stress and adaptation and the concepts of allostasis and allostatic load and overload. In particular, the adaptive plasticity of the brain mediated by glucocorticoids and excitatory amino acids is discussed in relation to misconceptions about what constitutes brain damage. Thus the confusion with cortisol is that it does too many important things both positive and negative!
Product Placement in Virtual Reality Videos from the Perspective of Dialogic Engagement

AbstractTwo studies were conducted to examine product placement in virtual reality (VR) videos using the theoretical framework of dialogic engagement. Specifically, Study 1 used content analysis to...
Feeding in Jawless Fishes

Hagfishes and lampreys are a peculiar minority of fishes that bite in the absence of jaws. Despite not being mounted to proper jaws, the dentition of hagfishes and lampreys can effectively incise the tissues of large marine animals. The jawless feeding mechanisms employed by hagfish and lamprey may prove insightful in our attempts to understand the evolutionary origins of jaw-driven feeding and, more broadly, the evolution of chordate feeding. These taxa appear to be descendants of the first chordates that possessed dentition, and thus potentially represent the earliest chordates to acquire prey through biting: the process of driving teeth into prey tissue by the means of a closed kinematic chain or loop. In this chapter, we demonstrate how hagfish and lamprey generate true biting movements and provide a comprehensive review of the anatomy and biomechanics of jawless feeding in both taxa.
Why Emotions Matter in Politics

This chapter provides a summary overview of some traditional approaches in political science to better understand the function of emotions in voting behavior. It articulates the research question that anchors the book: Do voters’ feelings toward candidate influence their support of campaigns issues? The meaning of the discrete feelings subject to analysis here, pride, hope, anger, fear, and disgust is briefly explained. The theories that justify the academic exploration of emotions in politics in the 2016 presidential campaigns include affective intelligence theory, the transfer-of-affect thesis, and the rise of negative partisanship. A brief outline of the book details the campaign issues examined throughout the chapters.
Does the time to initiate adjuvant chemotherapy effect outcome in patients with breast cancer? A National Cancer Database-based retrospective analysis.

e12054Background: The Early Breast Cancer Trialists Collaborative Group showed that adjuvant therapy for breast cancer (BC) significantly reduces the 5-year recurrence and 15-year mortality rates. ...
Review of Moving Image and Sound Collections for Archivists.

Book review of Moving Image and Sound Collections for Archivists. By Anthony Cocciolo. Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 2017. 218 pp. Softcover. ISBN: 978-0-931828-93-5
Thermal transport, magnetism, and quantum oscillations in Weyl semimetal BaMnS b 2

Topological semimetals host unique electronic phases with either Dirac or Weyl characteristic. One way to obtain the Weyl phase is to break the time-reversal symmetry by establishing magnetic ordering. We have investigated the electrical and magnetic properties of a magnetic Weyl semimetal candidate $\mathrm{BaMnS}{\mathrm{b}}_{2}$ under the application of magnetic field $(H)$ up to 35 T. We find that $\mathrm{BaMnS}{\mathrm{b}}_{2}$ undergoes three magnetic phase transitions with a ferromagnetic transition at ${T}_{\mathrm{C}}\ensuremath{\sim}690\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$ and two antiferromagnetic transitions at ${T}_{\mathrm{N}1}\ensuremath{\sim}286\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$ and ${T}_{\mathrm{N}2}\ensuremath{\sim}450\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$. At low temperatures, both the Shubnikov-de Haas and de Haas-van Alphen oscillations are observed by applying H along the $c$ axis of $\mathrm{BaMnS}{\mathrm{b}}_{2}$. Data analysis indicates that the oscillations result from a single band, and the system can reach the first Landau level at high H. Evidence for Zeeman splitting is also observed at low Landau levels, which yields the Land\'e factor $g\ensuremath{\sim}8.9\ensuremath{-}10.4$. In addition, thermal property measurements reveal very low phonon thermal conductivity and moderate thermopower. The coupling between charge, spin and lattice is discussed.
Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Associations Between Four Common Cancers and Disability

BACKGROUND Approximately 61 million Americans have a disability. Little research has explored whether disability is associated with subsequent diagnosis of cancer, the second-leading cause of death in the United States. The objective of this study was to explore associations between cancer and disability, focusing on 4 cancers that may present with nonspecific symptoms that could be conflated with aspects of disability, thus delaying cancer diagnoses. An analysis of a nationally representative survey using sampling weights to produce national estimates was performed. METHODS Civilian, noninstitutionalized US residents responding to the 2010-2017 National Health Interview Surveys totaling 259,392 Sample Adult Core survey respondents were included. We used self-reported functional status limitations to identify persons with movement difficulties (MD), complex activity limitations (CAL), and no disability. Multivariable regressions predicting cancer diagnosis included sociodemographic characteristics, tobacco use, body mass index, access to care indicators, and disability status. RESULTS Persons with preexisting disability had significantly higher rates of cancer (ranging from 0.40 [SE, 0.05] for ovarian to 3.38 [0.14] for prostate) than did those without disability (0.20 [0.02] and 1.26 [0.04] for the same cancers; all P<.0001). Multivariable analyses found strong associations of preexisting MD and CAL with colorectal cancer, with adjusted odds ratios (aORs) of 1.5 (95% CI, 1.2-1.9) and 1.9 (1.5-2.4), respectively. For non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, the aOR for CAL was 1.5 (1.1-2.1). For prostate cancer, aORs for MD were 1.2 (1.0-1.3) and 1.1 (1.0-1.3) for CAL. Using cross-sectional survey data, we could only identify statistical associations, not causality. CONCLUSIONS Our population-based analyses suggest that persons with disability may constitute a high-risk population, with higher cancer incidence. Optimizing appropriate screening and fully investigating new signs and symptoms are therefore critical for patients with disability.
A Misunderstood Friendship: Mao Zedong, Kim Il-sung, and Sino–North Korean Relations, 1949–1976

Zhihua Shen and Yafeng Xia have written an exceptional book on the history of China-North Korea relations. Using archival sources from China and Eastern Europe and oral interviews, Shen and Xia unc...
Editorial: Staying Healthy and Strong Together

“Happy New Year!” As you open this January 2021 issue of IEEE T ransactions on N eural N etworks and L earning S ystems (IEEE TNNLS), I hope everyone enjoyed a healthy and happy holiday season!
A Block Bidiagonalization Method for Fixed-Precision Low-Rank Matrix Approximation.

We present randUBV, a randomized algorithm for matrix sketching based on the block Lanzcos bidiagonalization process. Given a matrix $\bf{A}$, it produces a low-rank approximation of the form ${\bf UBV}^T$, where $\bf{U}$ and $\bf{V}$ have orthonormal columns in exact arithmetic and $\bf{B}$ is block bidiagonal. In finite precision, the columns of both ${\bf U}$ and ${\bf V}$ will be close to orthonormal. Our algorithm is closely related to the randQB algorithms of Yu, Gu, and Li (2018) in that the entries of $\bf{B}$ are incrementally generated and the Frobenius norm approximation error may be efficiently estimated. Our algorithm is therefore suitable for the fixed-accuracy problem, and so is designed to terminate as soon as a user input error tolerance is reached. Numerical experiments suggest that the block Lanczos method is generally competitive with or superior to algorithms that use power iteration, even when $\bf{A}$ has significant clusters of singular values.
Evaluating benefits of ecologically-inspired nested architectures for industrial symbiosis

Abstract Industrial Symbiosis (IS), inspired by the highly effective resource utilization found in nature, advocates byproduct-exchange partnerships between industries to reduce raw material use, emissions, and waste generation while promoting economic growth. Ecological research on mutualistic ecosystems (such as plant-pollinator networks) has found a connection between high values of nestedness, a unique linkage distribution strategy, and effective resource utilization. The present work is the first to test the benefits of nested architectures for IS goals, a characteristic thus far overlooked in bio-inspired IS efforts. A generated large dataset of hypothetical-realistic Industrial Water Networks spanning the entire nestedness domain shows that highly nested designs significantly reduce resource consumption. Circumstances where these savings outweigh any additional infrastructure and operation costs are also shown, highlighting that low to moderate resource abundance and manageable geographical dispersion between participating industries (conditions that commonly generate interest in IS) are particularly favorable for nested architectures. Ecologically-similarly nested IS networks, especially those with highly connected high-throughput industries, are also found to have a reduction in negative impacts during pipeline disruptions. The results provide promising evidence that the principle of nestedness can be a powerful quantitative bio-inspired design guideline for IS, capable of simultaneously addressing environmental, economic, and resiliency concerns.
Differences in brain structure and theta burst stimulation-induced plasticity implicate the corticomotor system in loss of function after musculoskeletal injury.

Traumatic musculoskeletal injuries may involve adaptive changes in the brain that contribute to loss of function. Our combination of neuroimaging and theta burst transcranial magnetic stimulation (...
Transurethral Incision with Transverse Mucosal Realignment for the Management of Bladder Neck Contracture and Vesicourethral Anastomotic Stenosis.

Abstract Objective To assess efficacy and safety of a novel cystoscopic technique for definitive repair of bladder neck contracture (BNC) and vesicourethral anastomotic stenosis (VUAS). Methods A retrospective review of patients who underwent a transurethral incision with transverse mucosal realignment between July 2019 and December 2020 by a single surgeon was completed. This is novel procedure of incising a scar cystoscopically and using a laparoscopic suturing device transurethrally to bring healthy bladder mucosa across the defect, like a YV plasty. Patients were only included if they had ≥4 months follow-up. Surgical success was defined as ability to pass a 17 French flexible cystoscope through the previously stenotic segment at 4 month follow up. Results Nineteen patients with a median follow-up of 6 months were included in this analysis. Etiology of posterior urethral stenosis was 53% from VUAS and 47% from BNC, with 32% of patients having prior pelvic radiation. Success was achieved in 89% of patients after 1 procedure and 100% of patients achieved success after a second procedure. There was no de novo incontinence or major complications. Conclusion Transurethral incision with transverse mucosal realignment for VUAS and BNC has a high success rate after only 1 procedure. This is the first reported series of an endoscopic Y-V plasty type repair for BNC and VUAS. Longer term follow up to ensure durability and reporting from other institutions will be needed to establish reproducibility.
Protection Motivation During COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study of Family Health, Media, and Economic Influences.

BackgroundProtection motivation to practice preventive behaviors is necessary for sustained mitigation during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); however, limited research exists on the ecological...
Chemical-genetic interrogation of RNA polymerase mutants reveals structure-function relationships and physiological tradeoffs.

Summary The multi-subunit bacterial RNA polymerase (RNAP) and its associated regulators carry out transcription and integrate myriad regulatory signals. Numerous studies have interrogated RNAP mechanism, and RNAP mutations drive Escherichia coli adaptation to many health- and industry-relevant environments, yet a paucity of systematic analyses hampers our understanding of the fitness trade-offs from altering RNAP function. Here, we conduct a chemical-genetic analysis of a library of RNAP mutants. We discover phenotypes for non-essential insertions, show that clustering mutant phenotypes increases their predictive power for drawing functional inferences, and demonstrate that some RNA polymerase mutants both decrease average cell length and prevent killing by cell-wall targeting antibiotics. Our findings demonstrate that RNAP chemical-genetic interactions provide a general platform for interrogating structure-function relationships in vivo and for identifying physiological trade-offs of mutations, including those relevant for disease and biotechnology. This strategy should have broad utility for illuminating the role of other important protein complexes.
Analog Solver for Embedded Model Predictive Control with Application to Quadruple Tank System

Continuous-time dynamic solvers have emerged as a viable alternative for online optimization of model predictive control (MPC). This class of solvers emulates the behavior of MPC by tracing its solution trajectories to the Karush-Kuhn-Tucker (KKT) optimality point. In this paper, we develop an analog circuit architecture for the hardware realization of such dynamic controllers. Using the gradient dynamics as a case study, we develop a prototype solver using a Field Programmable Analog Array (FPAA) and we validate its efficacy on a quadruple water tank system.
Phosphomannose Isomerase High Expression Associated with Better Prognosis in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

Introduction Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States. The need for increased patient survival has not been met for PDAC. The addition of mannose to conventional chemotherapy leads to accumulation of mannose metabolite in cancer cells and increases subsequent cell death. This susceptibility to mannose depends on the levels of phosphomannose isomerase (PMI). The cancer cells with lower levels of PMI are more sensitive to mannose than cells with higher levels. In this study, we investigated the association of PMI expression with clinical and pathological features of PDAC cases. Methods PMI antibody immunohistochemistry (AbCam) was performed on tissue microarrays from 235 PDAC by a standard protocol on Ventana automated immunostainer. The PMI intensity was graded (0-3) and the proportion of positivity was scored. Correlation of PMI expression with staging and survival was analyzed. Results Of the 235 cases, 51.5% (n=121) cases demonstrated grade 2 intensity with 90.1% of these (n=109) showing positivity in ≥70% of tumor cells. Ninety-eight (41.7%) cases exhibited grade 3 intensity with 94.9% (n=93) of these cases showing ≥70% reactivity. Sixteen cases (6.8%) were nonreactive (intensity grade 0-1). Intensity of PMI expression was associated with significantly better prognosis as assessed by median survival in months (M): grade 0-1 intensity group: 11.2 M; grade 2 intensity group: 25.2 M; and grade 3 intensity group: 33.2 M (p=0.03). A minority (6.8%) of PDACs show non-high PMI expression with poorer prognosis. Discussion Mannose may be a particularly useful adjunct with chemotherapy to treat this aggressive subgroup. PMI expression is also a potential biomarker to predict the prognosis of PDAC.
Beyond the Eckardt Score: Patient-Reported Outcomes Measures in Esophageal Disorders.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW To provide an overview of patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) and summarize their role in assessing undifferentiated dysphagia and common esophageal disorders, including achalasia, eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). RECENT FINDINGS Given the subjective nature of swallowing disorders, accurate diagnoses often rely on capturing the patient experience. As a result, the number of PROMs used to characterize esophageal symptoms is increasing with a recent particular emphasis on EoE. Overall, esophageal-focused PROMs are used to interpret patient symptoms and quality of life, diagnosis, and symptom changes over time. There are limitations with each instrument, including factors affecting validity, reliability, accessibility, patient participation, and logistical implementation. PROM instruments can be helpful tools in the diagnosis and treatment of esophageal disorders. Instruments should be chosen based on factors such as target population and setting, including research, clinical, and quality improvement efforts. Future research should address how best to implement PROMs and integrate the obtained data with patient care.
Cost Structures and Nash Play in Repeated Cournot Games

This paper reports an experiment designed to assess the effects of a rotation in the marginal cost curve on convergence in a repeated Cournot triopoly. Increasing the cost curve's slope both reduces the serially-undominated set to the Nash prediction, and increases the peakedness of earnings. We observe higher rates of Nash equilibrium play in the design with the steeper marginal cost schedule, but only when participants are also rematched after each decision. Examination of response patterns suggests that the treatment with a steeper marginal cost curve and with a re-matching of participants across periods induces the selection of Nash Consistent responses.
Learning to Teach Qualitative Research:: Reflections of a Quantitative Researcher

This paper is a case study of my experiences as a quantitative researcher who taught myself to teach qualitative research at the Ph.D. level. I share my processes of learning qualitative epistemologies, research designs, data collection methods, and reporting styles. I included conceptual schemas, bibliographies, and other resources for teaching qualitative research in the hope that my work will be helpful to others who want to learn to teach qualitative research methods.
A computationally scalable speaker recognition system

Computationally scalable speaker recognition systems are highly desirable in practice. To achieve this objective, we use a two-stage architecture for text-prompted speaker recognition. In this system, the input speech is first segmented on subword boundaries using a Viterbi alignment. The second stage applies a polynomial classifier to each subword for verification. Through a simple approximation, the scoring criterion for the polynomial classifier is made highly scalable. The resulting combination of speaker independent segmentation and a scalable recognition system results in a system which can perform speaker recognition on a large population with minimal computation.
Submission of Earth-based ring occultation observations to the NASA planetary data system rings discipline node

This is a technical report summarizing our progress in our program of contributing high quality Earth-based occultation observations to NASA's Planetary Data System (PDS) Rings Node. During our first year of funding, we selected five data sets for eventual inclusion in the PDS Rings Node. These were Uranus occultation observations obtained by the PI and co-workers from the IRTF of event stars U34 (26 April 1986), U1052 (5 May 1988), U65 (21 June 1990), U7872 (25 June 1991), and U7808 (28 June 1991). In our original proposal, we described four tasks: data sets to a common format; documentation of the occultation observations and associated calibrations; calculation of the occultation geometry for each event; establish prototype PDS templates. As discussed in our renewal proposal, submitted 8 June 1993, we have completed the first three tasks, and are working on the fourth. As an indication of our progress to date, we provide information about each of the data sets, their formats, the documentation, and the method used for reconstructing the occultation geometry.