cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Screening for Cognitive Impairment: Comparing the Performance of Four Instruments in Primary Care

Objectives: To determine whether brief cognitive screening tests perform as well as a longer screening test in diagnosis of cognitive impairment, no dementia (CIND) or dementia. Design: A cross-sectional comparison of cognitive screening tests to an independent criterion standard evaluation using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria. Performance of the cognitive screening tests for identifying dementia, and separately for identifying dementia or CIND, was characterized using sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratios, and diagnostic odds ratios. Setting: Three Department of Veterans Affairs primary care clinics. Participants: Of 826 independently living veterans aged 65 and older without a prior diagnosis of dementia, 639 participated and 630 were assigned a research diagnosis. Measurements: Screening tests included the modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS; average time to administer, 17 minutes) and three brief instruments: the Memory Impairment Screen (MIS; 4 minutes), the Mini-Cog (3 minutes), and a novel two-item functional memory screen (MF-2; 1.5 minutes). Results: Participants were aged 74.8 on average and were mostly white or black. They were mostly male (92.9%) and had been prescribed a mean of 7.7 medications for chronic conditions. The prevalence of dementia and CIND was 3.3% and 39.2%, respectively. Sensitivity and specificity for dementia were 86% and 79% for the 3MS, 76% and 73% for the Mini-Cog, 43% and 93% for the MIS, and 38% and 87% for the MF-2, respectively. Conclusion: In individuals without a prior diagnosis of cognitive impairment, the prevalence of dementia was low, but the prevalence of CIND was high. The 3MS and Mini-Cog had reasonable performance characteristics for detecting dementia, but a definitive diagnosis requires additional evaluation.
An inhibitor of cell proliferation associated with adhesion formation is suppressed by N,O-carboxymethyl chitosan.

Surgical adhesions are a major cause of morbidity and mortality. The ideal barrier agent will both minimize adhesions and provide a milieu for the regeneration of the mesothelium lining of the abdominal and thoracic cavities. N,O-Carboxymethylchitosan (NOCC), a derivation of chitin that markedly reduces adhesions, may function to modulate intracellular signals such as growth factors and cytokines in the inflammatory exudate. Since transforming growth factor-β is implicated in the fibrotic process, we investigated the possibility that NOCC's effects on adhesion formation reflects a modulation of TGF-β activity. Using a biological assay for inhibition of cell proliferation to detect TGF-β activity, we demonstrate that NOCC suppresses the levels of an inhibitor of cell proliferation released into serum and peritoneal exudates after ce-cal abrasion in the rat. However, this activity was distinct from known forms of TGF-β as determined using both TGF-β-neutralizing antisera and a TGF-β-resistant cell prolifera...
Detection of toxigenic Bacillus cereus and Bacillus thuringiensis spores in U.S. rice.

Bacillus cereus is a gram-positive, endospore forming pathogenic bacterium that is ubiquitous in the environment and is frequently associated with emetic and diarrheal types of foodborne illness. In this study, 178 samples of raw rice from retail food stores were analyzed for the presence of B. cereus spores. Spores of Bacillus species were found in 94 (52.8%) of the rice samples with an average concentration of 32.6 CFU/g (3.6–460 CFU/g for B. cereus and 3.6–23 CFU/g for Bacillus thuringiensis). Eighty three of the 94 isolates were identified as B. cereus and 11 were identified as B. thuringiensis. Bacillus mycoides (240 CFU/g) was the predominant isolate in one rice sample. Using PCR the isolates were checked for the presence of the cereulide synthetase gene (ces), the hblA and hblD genes of the hemolysin BL (HBL) complex and the nheA and nheB genes of the nonhemolytic (NHE) enterotoxin complex. The ces gene was not identified in any of the isolates. By contrast 47 (56.6%) B. cereus isolates possessed the hblA and hblD genes and 74 (89.1%) isolates possessed the nheA and nheB genes. As determined by commercial assay kits, forty four (53.0%) of the 83 B. cereus isolates produced both NHE and HBL enterotoxins whereas 78 (93.9%) were positive for either one or the other. Protein toxin crystals were detected visually in the 11 B. thuringiensis isolates. PCR analysis revealed 10 (90.9%) of those 11 isolates carried the cry gene. All the B. thuringiensis isolates were positive for NHE and HBL enterotoxins. Our results suggest that foodborne illness in the U.S. due to B. cereus with rice as the vehicle would be most likely associated with the diarrheal-type syndrome.
LoRy: a locative story game to encourage playful and social learning

In this paper, we introduce LoRy, a system for an interactive story telling game that engages children in reflective ways on issues around healthy nutrition. LoRy provides distributed information from different perspectives in a ubiquitous computing environment where children can explore, gather, combine, and reconfigure information.
Energy and Foliations on Riemann Surfaces

We define the energy of foliations on Riemann surfaces. We prove that meromorphic vector fields are critical points and we compute their energies using the Green’s function. We then generalize the results to principal circle bundles over Riemann surfaces.
The Relationship Between Sleep Deprivation and the Nocturnal Decline of Blood Pressure

Abstract Blood pressure (BP) has a circadian pattern with a 10% to 15% drop in systolic and diastolic BP comparing nighttime and daytime averages. The mechanism and the “reason” for the decline of nocturnal blood pressure has not been described. If the nocturnal decline is a restorative physiologic process we reasoned that sleep deprivation would increase the nocturnal drop. Thus, we tested the hypothesis that there is a compensatory decline in nocturnal sleep blood pressure after a period of nocturnal sleep deprivation. Twenty-four house staff personnel (normotensive and not taking any BP medications) with a mean age of 29.3 years were recruited for this study (13 men and 11 women). Subjects were randomly assigned to have 24-h BP monitoring after being sleep deprived (on call with 3 ± 1.3 h of sleep) or after a normal night's sleep (7.3 ± 0.8 h). There was no significant difference in hours asleep or time to bed or time awake for both 24-h studies. Subjects had similar activities for both monitoring intervals. The percent change in day awake versus night asleep mean values for systolic BP, diastolic BP, and mean arterial pressure for sleep deprived and normal night's sleep intervals were compared using paired t tests. None of these paired parameters were significantly different despite a subjectively “deeper” sleep postcall. In conclusion, sleep deprivation does not appear to result in a compensatory decline in nocturnal blood pressure. Thus, the “reason” for the normal nocturnal decline in blood pressure remains to be explored. Am J Hypertens 1996;9:1136–1138
Application of a Lagrangian Process Analysis tool to characterize ozone formation in Southeast Texas

Abstract Ozone formation in the Houston area is more rapid and efficient than in many other urban areas; these features are due to the interaction of urban emissions with industrial plumes which are associated with both continuous and episodic industrial emissions. To examine the chemistry of interactions of the industrial plumes with urban emissions, a Lagrangian Process Analysis tool was embedded in a gridded photochemical model. The tool successfully isolated the plume so that, within the Process Analysis volume, the dominant process affecting ozone concentrations was chemical production. The analyses showed that the chemistry of the industrial plumes is dependent on emissions encountered downwind, and the extent of radical availability in the morning. For one episode, morning stagnation over the industrial region resulted in enhanced morning radical formation due to aldehyde photolysis. The enhanced morning reactivity led to high ozone concentrations as the plume interacted with urban emissions later in the day. In contrast, during a second episode, the dominant factor influencing ozone concentrations was high volatile organic carbon (VOC)/NO x ratios late in the afternoon, as the plume advected over wooded areas. For emission events, the main perturbation of the ozone formation chemistry occurred during the first few hours of the event due to enhanced production of free radicals from aldehyde photolysis, and more efficient utilization of free radicals due to increased reactive hydrocarbon concentrations.
Age-related macular disease in diabetes mellitus.

Summary Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is one of the leading causes of vision impairment in the elderly and its frequency in general population increases with aging. The ethiology of this disease has remained so far unknown. The rela tionship between ARMD and diabetes mellitus was studied in the present work. Fundus oculi was investigated in 292 diabetic patients older than 50 years and with more than 14 years of duration of diabetes (time since diagnosis). A group of 375 non diabetic, non hypertensive subjects matched for age was studied as control. ARMD frequency was significantly higher in diabetics compared to controls (p
Further simplification of a supernatant flow system for tissue culture.

In der Arbeit wird eine Einrichtung fur kontinuierliche Flussigkeitszufuhr beschrieben, wie sie fur Gewebskulturen wertvoll sein kann. Durch eine feinporose Membran kann die Menge der Flussigkeit reguliert werden.
A novel concept for low drift chemical sensing at micro and nano-scale

It is the purpose of this paper to present a novel generic concept for low drift chemical sensing which is applicable at micro and nanometer scale, based on a new, all-differential approach. At micrometer level, our principle is explained by means of surface acoustic wave (SAW) chemical sensing, while at nano level, we are using the resonant sensing principle to develop our genuine differential concept. Unlike the traditional differential approaches based on functionalized sensing layer in the sensing loop, and on a uncoated surface in the reference loop, our all differential concept provides a better response subtraction between the two paths, as the sensing loop consists of a functionalized sensing layer, as before, but, the reference loop consists of a functionalized non-sensing layer, with the same ageing and humidity behavior as the sensing layer. Twinned electronic reading is used for both loops, and thus all the common mode signals are subtracted in the differential reading, assuring the minimum base line drift of the sensor. Preliminary results of all differential sensor response to humidity and temperature variations are shown for the SAW sensors, with the sensor signal kept independent of their changes.
Characterization of the draining lymph node response in the mouse drug allergy model: A model for drug hypersensitivity reactions

AbstractThe mouse drug allergy model (MDAM) was developed as a tool to predict the potential of systemically administered drugs to produce hypersensitivity reactions (HR). Drugs associated with HR in the clinic produce a marked increase in the cellularity of the draining lymph nodes (DLN) in the MDAM. The objective of this study was to characterize the changes in the DLN following exposure to drugs associated with HR and to investigate whether lymphocyte migration and/or proliferation play a role in the response. These endpoints were also investigated in the local lymph node assay (LLNA) to determine whether responses between the two assays occur via similar mechanisms. Results demonstrated that total numbers of T- and B-cells were proportionally increased in the DLN of mice treated with positive control drugs (i.e. abacavir, amoxicillin, ofloxacin, and sulfamethoxazole) compared to animals administered the vehicle or negative control drugs (metformin and cimetidine). In contrast, a significant increase i...
The effect of real exchange rate changes on output: Jamaica's devaluation experience

Developing economies have relied upon devaluation to assist in the correction of fundamental disequilibrium in the balance of payment. As posited by conventional economic theory and proven by empirical research, a devaluation improves the balance of payments by reducing the demand for imports and increasing the supply of exports. However, recent research on devaluation insists that correction of the trade deficit occurs concurrently with income reduction. Using a three-market Keynesian model, the conclusion reached in this research on the Jamaican economy is that a devaluation is contractionary in the short run and expansionary in the long run.
SFA, TFA and a new thick frontier: graphical and analytical comparisons

This article compares OLS, the normal-half normal stochastic frontier approach (SFA) and the thick frontier approach (TFA) to an alternative thick frontier approach based on a mixture approach. Unlike the TFA approach, the new approach developed here uses all of the data, does not require grouping of the data into an arbitary number of size categories, does not require an arbitrarily chosen fraction (usually the lowest quartile) of lowest average cost firms upon which to base the frontier. The new thick frontier requires the estimation of only one more parameter than the SFA model, and is flexible enough to describe skewness in the data of almost any type. This article presents comparisons of the empirical relationships between these methods using a multiproduct cost function and data on US savings and loans in 1988. The new thick frontier method produces a much thinner ‘thick’ frontier characterizing a much greater fraction of the data than the old TFA approach.
Human Apolipoprotein E4 Alters the Amyloid-β 40:42 Ratio and Promotes the Formation of Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy in an Amyloid Precursor Protein Transgenic Model

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the aggregation and deposition of the normally soluble amyloid-beta (Abeta) peptide in the extracellular spaces of the brain as parenchymal plaques and in the walls of cerebral vessels as cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA). CAA is a common cause of brain hemorrhage and is found in most patients with AD. As in AD, the epsilon4 allele of the apolipoprotein E (apoE) gene (APOE) is a risk factor for CAA. To determine the effect of human apoE on CAA in vivo, we bred human APOE3 and APOE4 "knock-in" mice to a transgenic mouse model (Tg2576) that develops amyloid plaques as well as CAA. The expression of both human apoE isoforms resulted in a delay in Abeta deposition of several months relative to murine apoE. Tg2576 mice expressing the more fibrillogenic murine apoE develop parenchymal amyloid plaques and CAA by 9 months of age. At 15 months of age, the expression of human apoE4 led to substantial CAA with very few parenchymal plaques, whereas the expression of human apoE3 resulted in almost no CAA or parenchymal plaques. Additionally, young apoE4-expressing mice had an elevated ratio of Abeta 40:42 in brain extracellular pools and a lower 40:42 ratio in CSF, suggesting that apoE4 results in altered clearance and transport of Abeta species within different brain compartments. These findings demonstrate that, once Abeta fibrillogenesis occurs, apoE4 favors the formation of CAA over parenchymal plaques and suggest that molecules or treatments that increase the ratio of Abeta 40:42 may favor the formation of CAA versus parenchymal plaques.
Double Punch Test: Simple Performance Test to Evaluate the Fatigue and Rutting Potential of Asphalt Concrete

The primary distresses of the asphalt pavement are rutting, fatigue cracking, and thermal cracking. Laboratory tests can be conducted to characterize the expected performance of asphalt concrete in the field. This study evaluated the double punch test (DPT) as an alternative test method to characterize the fatigue and rutting of asphalt concrete due to its simplicity. In DPT, a cylindrical asphalt concrete specimen is compressed vertically through two steel punches placed concentrically on the top and bottom. The specimen fails along the diametrical plane due to the tensile strain generated in the tangential direction. Double punch tests were performed at intermediate and high temperatures to characterize fatigue and rutting potential of asphalt concrete, respectively. The DPT results were found to correlate well with fatigue parameters from indirect tensile (IDT) tests for fatigue and flow number test results for rutting, both of which have been reported to correlate well with field fatigue and rutting performance, respectively. The results indicate that the DPT can serve as a viable alternative to evaluate the fatigue and rutting behavior of asphalt concrete.
Some dietary carotenoids and blood-carotenoid levels in flamingos—II. γ-carotene and α-carotene consumed by the American flamingo

Abstract 1. 1. American flamingos, Phoenicopterus ruber , when denied dietary carotenoids until their blood-carotenoids had descended to low values, then yielded canthaxanthin as the only such pigment. 2. 2. Supplying γ-carotene as the only added carotenoid failed to supplement the descending cantaxanthin concentrations, or to evoke the presence, in the blood or liver, of γ-carotene itself or any recognized derivative thereof. 3. 3. When β-carotene was added to the γ-carotene supplement, however, this resulted in the elaboration of echinenone and of additional canthaxanthin, both of which were then in the blood, as in earlier studies involving β-carotene as the sole carotenoid. 4. 4. The inclusion of α-carotene (along with lesser concentrations of β-carotene) in the birds' diet was followed by the storage of α-carotene and phoenicopterone, acccompanying the residual, β-carotene-derived canthaxanthin, in the liver, while phoenicopterone and canthaxanthin were the only carotenoids detected in the blood.
Is the liberal peace just an artifact of cold war interests? Assessing recent critiques

Recent research indicates that democracy and economic interdependence reduce the probability that a pair of states will engage in a militarized interstate dispute. These analyses were largely confined to the cold war era, however, leading some to argue that the results are an artifact of the particular bipolar configuration of alliances and interests characteristic of that period. To determine whether this is so, we present two sets of analyses here. First, with new trade data for sixteen countries, 1870–1989, we use logistic analysis of cross‐sectional and time‐series data to test whether democracy and economic openness (total exports as a proportion of gross domestic product) had the same conflict‐reducing effects before World War II as after. We find they did, while the effect of alliances is weak. Moreover, our theoretical model offers a plausible explanation of the outbreak of World War I that is consistent with the liberal peace. Second, for the cold war era, we address the question of whether state...
Effects of repeated injections of interleukin 1beta or lipopolysaccharide on the HPA axis in the newborn rat.

The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is stimulated during immune and inflammatory processes. Interleukin 1beta (IL-1beta) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) are known to be potent stimulators of this axis. During postnatal development, the rat seems to be hyporesponsive to many stimuli. The effects of repeated systemic injections of IL-1beta and LPS on the HPA axis were investigated in neonatal rats. IL-1beta (0.02 microg/pup, administered twice daily from postnatal day 1 to 4) induced marked elevation in plasma corticosterone (CORT) level as compared to controls and LPS groups (0.4 microg or 1.2 microg LPS/pup, injected once daily from postnatal day 1 to 4). Adrenal wet weight was significantly higher, thymus weight was significantly lower. In contrast to the organ weights, there were no differences in CORT concentrations between LPS-exposed groups and controls. However, the weights of the adrenals in rats treated with LPS were significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner as compared to controls. The high LPS dose was associated with significantly lower thymus weights as compared to controls and 0.4 microg LPS rats. Thymus weights were significantly lower following IL-1beta- than LPS-administration. It is supposed that a developing endotoxin tolerance could account for the observed absence of CORT rise after the last LPS injection.
Top quark radiative corrections in nonminimal standard models.

We derive the one-loop effective action induced by a heavy top quark in models with an extended Higgs sector. We use the effective action to analyze the top quark corrections to the \ensuremath{\rho} parameter and to the Higgs-boson\char21{}gauge-boson couplings. We show that in models with \ensuremath{\rho}\ensuremath{\ne}1 at the tree level, one does not lose generally the bound on ${\mathit{m}}_{\mathit{t}}$ from the \ensuremath{\rho} parameter.
Chemical Changes in Bacteria Heated in Milk as Related to Loss of Stainability

Summary The effect of heating bacteria in milk on direct microscopic clump counts was determined. The periodic acid-bisulfite-toluidine blue (PST) and the aniline oil-methylene blue (AOMB) stains were compared. The PST stain gave quantitative recovery in all cases, whereas the AOMB procedure did not stain gram-negative rods that had been heated. Gram-negative rods were poorly stained by the PST method, but could be counted. The proteose-peptone fraction of milk was primarily responsible for the loss of stainability. Mineral salts were less effective. Loss of stainability was associated with extraction from the bacterial cells of nitrogen and phosphorus-containing materials, identified as nucleic acids. The superior results obtained with the PST stain are attributed to the fact that polysaccharides as well as nucleic acids are stained. Strains of bacteria which contain little polysaccharide stain poorly by this procedure after nucleic acids are removed.
New alleles of IGKV genes A2 and A18 suggest significant human IGKV locus polymorphism

The human kappa light chain consists of approximately 35 potentially functional IGKV genes. However, an estimation of the diversity in the IGKV repertoire of an individual will be affected by the extent of polymorphisms for the different IGKV genes and their patterns of inheritance. To date, little information is available to indicate the extent of allelic variation of the IGKV genes. We examined the extent of allelism for one IGKV gene pair, the distal region A2 gene and its closely related proximal region duplicate A18. We found two new alleles for A2 and one new allele for A18, and sequenced ∼1 kilobase flanking each gene. The new A18 allele, unlike the originally described allele, appears to be functional. All these alleles were found at relatively high frequencies in the four ethnic populations studied, with the exception of the defective A2b allele which was highly represented only in Navajos. The originally described A2a allele encodes for the predominant protective antibody against Haemophilus influenzae. Therefore, the patterns of allelic inheritance described for this IGKV gene pair indicate that allelism in the IGKV locus is likely to have a significant impact on immune responses.
Transient strain accumulation and fault interaction in the eastern California shear zone

Satellite synthetic aperture radar interferometry reveals transient strain accumulation along the Blackwater-Little Lake fault system within the Eastern California shear zone.
An anisotropic model for the minimum thermal conductivity

The Cahill-Pohl/Einstein model of minimum phonon thermal conductivity ( κmin), which assumes isotropic material properties, is widely successful as the lower limit for fully dense amorphous and disordered materials. However, measurements of disordered highly anisotropic layered WSe2 [Chiritescu et al., Science 315, 351 (2007)] fall below the isotropic κmin limit by at least a factor of four. Here, we generalize the isotropic κmin to be anisotropic, suitable for both layered and chain-like materials with any anisotropy ratio. We obtain compact algebraic expressions in limiting temperature regimes for heat transfer along both c-axis ( κmin−c) and ab-plane ( κmin−ab). Applying this framework to the disordered layered WSe2 with no free parameters brings the theoretical κmin−c back in line with the experimental results. The anisotropic corrections result from both a phonon focusing effect and a first Brillouin zone truncation effect.
Physical mapping of T7 messenger RNA

Abstract The techniques of electron microscopy have been used to observe directly the RNA-DNA hybrid constructed in vitro of an in vivo messenger RNA synthesized after T7 infection and the separated r -stfand of T7 DNA. After wild-type infection, essentially the entire T7 genome is expressed as mRNA. The four early mRNA's map contiguously on the genome starting at map position 0.010 ± 0.003 and ending at map position 0.198 ± 0.010. A comparison is made among these data, the T7 genetic map, and the published model for T7 early mRNA synthesis.
Design of multistage extractive reaction processes

Multistage extractive reaction (MSER) processes can successfully improve the yield of and selectivity to the desired product, as well as separation of byproducts. A general and efficient design procedure for stand-alone countercurrent MSER cascades and process flowsheets presented here determines the range of feasible operation for the MSER process, the number of stages in the MSER cascade, compositions and molar flow rates at each stage, and the yield or product distribution of the reaction system. It is based on the geometric properties of the phase and reaction equilibrium surfaces and the composition profiles of the MSER cascade. First, a key design variable is identified and the fixed points or pinches of the composition profiles are tracked as a function of this variable by using arc-length continuation, without performing stage-to-stage calculations. The location of the fixed points gives the upper or lower bound on the window of the MSER operation. The other bound is determined by the equilibrium behavior of the system. Within the window of operation MSER profiles are guaranteed to be feasible. Then, stage-to-stage calculations are performed as an initial-value problem to complete the design. The results of these calculations provide a comprehensive picture of the trade-offs in the design of MSER processes and can be used as a basis for screening flowsheet alternatives. The procedure is illustrated with several design examples.
Talking jihad and piety: reformist exertions among Islamist women in Bangladesh

This paper analyses the discursive regime of Islamic study circles within an organization of female students (BICSa) informally affiliated with the leading Islamic political party in South Asia, the Jamaat-e-lslami. I investigate this textual modality of Islamic socialization as a site where members partly discipline their sensibilities in accordance with BICSa's project of Islamization, which is grounded in the jihad (exertion)-orientated model for Islamic reform in South Asia of the Islamist Abul Ala Maududi. I also explore group discussion dynamics arising from activists' daily experiences that not only critique conventional distinctions between the political, social, and religious, in accord with the Islamist worldview, but also facilitate argumentation interrogative of Islamist ideological-textual boundaries. The simultaneously centripetal and centrifugal ethos of the study circle as a contemporary Bangladeshi Islamist pedagogical technique is analysed in relation to shifting discussions of jihad among Islamist women. Two themes have been prominent in the proliferating scholarship on contemporary
SenseWorld: Towards Cyber-Physical Social Networks

Web-based social networks such as Linkedln, FaceBook and MySpace have gained wide popularity in recent years. With the advent of ubiquitous sensing, future social networks will be cyber-physical, combining measured elements of the physical world with manual human input. Microsoft SensorMap is an early example of a cyber-physical network in that it allows users to browse the physical world. In contrast to social networks, however, the main abstractions exported by SensorMap are those of physical objects (such as sensors), not people. This paper extends the concept of SensorMap to incorporate social entities such as individuals and special-interest communities to which they belong. In the extended network, called SenseWorld, SensorMap offers a geographical index into a cyber-physical social network with its own logical topology derived from social connections.
Identifying functional bases for multidimensional neural computations

Current dimensionality-reduction methods can identify relevant subspaces for neural computations but do not favor one basis over the other within the relevant subspace. Finding the appropriate basis can simplify the description of the nonlinear computation with respect to the relevant variables, making it easier to elucidate the underlying neural computation and make hypotheses about the neural circuitry, giving rise to the observed responses. Part of the problem is that although some of the dimensionality reduction methods can identify many of the relevant dimensions, it is usually difficult to map out or interpret the nonlinear transformation with respect to more than a few relevant dimensions simultaneously without some simplifying assumptions. While recent approaches make it possible to create predictive models based on many relevant dimensions simultaneously, there still remains the need to relate such predictive models to the mechanistic descriptions of the operation of underlying neural circuitry. Here we demonstrate that transforming to a basis within the relevant subspace where the neural computation is best described by a given nonlinear function often makes it easier to interpret the computation and describe it with a small number of parameters. We refer to the corresponding basis as the functional basis, and illustrate the utility of such transformation in the context of logical OR and logical AND functions. We show that although dimensionality-reduction methods such as spike-triggered covariance are able to find a relevant subspace, they often produce dimensions that are difficult to interpret and do not correspond to a functional basis. The functional features can be found using a maximum likelihood approach. The results are illustrated using simulated neurons and recordings from retinal ganglion cells. The resulting features are uniquely defined and nonorthogonal, and they make it easier to relate computational and mechanistic models to each other.
Jamming as a critical phenomenon : A field theory of zero-temperature grain packings

A field theory of frictionless grain packings in two dimensions is shown to exhibit a zero-temperature critical point at a nonzero value of the packing fraction. The zero-temperature constraint of force balance plays a crucial role in determining the nature of the transition. Two order parameters, hzi, the deviation of
Multi-view face and eye detection using discriminant features

Multi-view face detection plays an important role in many applications. This paper presents a statistical learning method to extract features and construct classifiers for multi-view face detection. Specifically, a recursive nonparametric discriminant analysis (RNDA) method is presented. The RNDA relaxes Gaussian assumptions of Fisher discriminant analysis (FDA), and it can handle more general class distributions. RNDA also improves the traditional nonparametric discriminant analysis (NDA) by alleviating its computational complexity. The resulting RNDA features provide better accuracy than the commonly used Haar features in detecting objects of complex shapes. Histograms of extracted features are learned to represent class distributions and to construct probabilistic classifiers. RNDA features are subsequently learned and combined with AdaBoost to form a multi-view face detector. The method is applied to both multi-view face and eye detection, and experimental results demonstrate improved performance over existing methods.
Parity and Out-of-Pocket Spending for Children With High Mental Health or Substance Abuse Expenditures

OBJECTIVE: The Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act required health plans to provide mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) benefits on par with medical benefits beginning in 2010. Previous research found that parity significantly lowered average out-of-pocket (OOP) spending on MH/SUD treatment of children. No evidence is available on how parity affects OOP spending by families of children with the highest MH/SUD treatment expenditures. METHODS: We used a difference-in-differences study design to examine whether parity reduced families’ (1) share of total MH/SUD treatment expenditures paid OOP or (2) average OOP spending among children whose total MH/SUD expenditures met or exceeded the 90th percentile. By using claims data, we compared changes 2 years before (1999–2000) and 2 years after (2001–2002) the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program implemented parity to a contemporaneous group of health plans that did not implement parity over the same 4-year period. We examined those enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program because their parity directive is similar to and served as a model for the new federal parity law. RESULTS: Parity led to statistically significant annual declines in the share of total MH/SUD treatment expenditures paid OOP (−5%, 95% confidence interval: −6% to −4%) and average OOP spending on MH/SUD treatment (−$178, 95% confidence interval: −257 to −97). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides the first empirical evidence that parity reduces the share and level of OOP spending by families of children with the highest MH/SUD treatment expenditures; however, these spending reductions were smaller than anticipated and unlikely to meaningfully improve families’ financial protection.
Frequency-tuned isolated attosecond pulses characterized by both 750 nm and 400 nm wavelength streak fields

A novel Mach-Zehnder type interferometer coupled with the double optical gating technique provides tunable XUV or VUV isolated attosecond pulses and streak field detection with fields centered at both 750 nm and 400 nm wavelength.
Local perspectives of the ability of HIA stakeholder engagement to capture and reflect factors that impact Alaska Native health.

Background . Health impact assessment (HIA) is a process used to inform planning and decision making in a range of sectors by identifying potential positive and negative health effects of proposed projects, programs, or policies. Stakeholder engagement is an integral component of HIA and requires careful consideration of participant diversity and appropriate methodologies. Ensuring that the engagement process is able to capture and address Indigenous worldviews and definitions of health is important where Indigenous populations are impacted, particularly in northern regions experiencing increases in natural resource development activities on Indigenous lands. Objective . Investigate local participant perspectives of an HIA of a proposed Alaska coal mine, with a focus on the ability of the HIA process to capture, reflect, and address health concerns communicated by Alaska Native participants. Design . A qualitative approach guided by semi-structured interviews with purposeful sampling to select key informants who participated in the coal mine HIA stakeholder engagement process. Results . Qualitative data identified three key themes as important from the perspective of Alaska Native participants in the Alaska coal mine HIA stakeholder engagement process: (i) the inability of the engagement process to recognize an Indigenous way of sharing or gathering information; (ii) the lack of recognizing traditional knowledge and its use for identifying health impacts and status; and (iii) the inability of the engagement process to register the relationship Indigenous people have with the environment in which they live. Issues of trust in the HIA process and of the HIA findings were expressed within each theme. Conclusion . Recommendations derived from the research identify the need to acknowledge and incorporate the history of colonialism and assimilation policies in an HIA when assessing health impacts of resource development on or near Indigenous lands. These historical contexts must be included in baseline conditions to understand particular vulnerabilities and potential health risks and impacts. Further, HIA practitioners should recognize the range of definitions for “health” and demonstrate this recognition throughout the stakeholder engagement process, as well as in the HIA recommendations and suggested mitigations. Keywords: Indigenous; health impact assessment; community engagement; Alaska; wellbeing (Published: 3 June 2014) Citation: Int J Circumpolar Health 2014, 73 : 24411 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/ijch.v73.24411
Maternal behavior and experience, care access, and agency as determinants of child diarrhea in Bolivia

OBJECTIVE: In Latin America and the Caribbean, Bolivia has the third highest rate of mortality among children under five years of age (57 per 1 000), with 14.0% of under-five deaths attributable to diarrhea. Because a child's world is predominantly controlled by and experienced through his or her mother, this investigation aims to understand what maternal dimensions may determine child diarrhea. METHODS: Variables were selected from the 2003 Bolivia Demographic and Health Survey to create indices of three maternal dimensions using principal components analysis: behavior and experience, access to care, and agency. The three indices were included in a logistic regression model while controlling for economic status, maternal education, and residence type. RESULTS: A total of 4 383 women who had children less than 5 years old were included in the final sample and 25.0% of mothers reported that their most recent born child had experienced an episode of diarrhea in the 2 weeks before the survey. Mothers with high levels of maternal agency or of high economic status were significantly less likely to report their child experienced an episode of diarrhea than women of low levels. Women with primary education were significantly more likely to report that their child experienced diarrhea than women with no education. CONCLUSIONS: High levels of agency have a significant protective effect even when controlling for other factors. Increasing maternal agency could have a positive impact on child health in Bolivia, and future work should aim to understand what accounts for different levels of agency and how it may be strengthened
Characterization of lymphocyte populations in nonspecific interstitial pneumonia

Study objectives Nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP) has been identified as a distinct entity with a more favorable prognosis and better response to immunosuppressive therapies than usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP). However the inflammatory profile of NSIP has not been characterized.
Vertex-pancyclicity of hypertournaments

A hypertournament or a k-tournament, on n vertices, 2≤k≤n, is a pair T=(V, E), where the vertex set V is a set of size n and the edge set E is the collection of all possible subsets of size k of V, called the edges, each taken in one of its ke possible permutations. A k-tournament is pancyclic if there exists (directed) cycles of all possible lengths; it is vertex-pancyclic if moreover the cycles can be found through any vertex. A k-tournament is strong if there is a path from u to v for each pair of distinct vertices u and v. A question posed by Gutin and Yeo about the characterization of pancyclic and vertex-pancyclic hypertournaments is examined in this article. We extend Moon's Theorem for tournaments to hypertournaments. We prove that if k≥8 and n≥k + 3, then a k-tournament on n vertices is vertex-pancyclic if and only if it is strong. Similar results hold for other values of k. We also show that when n≥7, k≥4, and n≥k + 2, a strong k-tournament on n vertices is pancyclic if and only if it is strong. The bound n≥k+ 2 is tight. We also find bounds for the generalized problem when we extend vertex-pancyclicity to require d edge-disjoint cycles of each possible length and extend strong connectivity to require d edge-disjoint paths between each pair of vertices. Our results include and extend those of Petrovic and Thomassen. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 63: 338–348, 2010
6-Oxo and 6-thio purine analogs as antimycobacterial agents

6-Oxo and 6-thio analogs of purine were prepared based on the initial activity screening of a small, diverse purine library against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Certain 6-oxo and 6-thio-substituted purine analogs described herein showed moderate to good inhibitory activity. N(9)-substitution apparently enhances the anti-mycobacterial activity in the purine series described herein. Several 2-amino and 2-chloro purine analogs were also synthesized that showed moderate inhibitory activity against Mtb.
The protein anabolic and other effects of testosterone propionate in mice: effects of nutrition and interrelationship of biologic activities of the hormone.

introduction THE conventional assays for the biologic activities of testosterone propionate concern themselves with measurement of its effects on secondary sex characteristics such as the growth of the capon or chicken comb, the weight of the seminal vesicles, prostate, and preputial gland in the castrate rat, (Dorfman, 1950). With increasing awareness of the clinical usefulness of the so-called “independent” actions of such sex hormones, methods for the quantitative evaluation of some of these effects have been devised (Selye, 1949). Such studies include those of Kochakian (1950) on body weight and nitrogen excretion of rats, those of Papanicolaou and Falk (1938) on the growth of the masseter muscle in the guinea pig, those of Eisenberg and Gordon (1950) on the levator ani muscle of the rat, and previous work from this laboratory (Homburger et al., 1950) on the behavior of the clitoris and the normal and hydronephrotic kidney of white Swiss mice,
Empathy: A Bridge between

Suggests that the capacity for a broad, rich, and encompassing empathy is an essential ingredient of an authentic intercultural experience and understanding for an effective ministry in a world church. Notes that empathy is a process as well as a disposition. Proposes that shared stories greatly enhance the possibility of empathy as do the realities of physical and psychic presence. Suggests that the theological notion of the Incarnation is a powerful metaphor for both the possibilities and the limits of empathy.
Obsessions and Compulsions in Postpartum Women Without Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Abstract Background: To describe the prevalence of obsessions and compulsions and the specific symptoms present in postpartum women without obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Methods: In this prospective cohort, women were screened with the Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale at 2 weeks postpartum. Demographics and comorbid psychiatric symptoms were compared between women with screen-positive OCD, screen-negative OCD but with some endorsed symptoms (subclinical OCD), and no OCD symptoms. The prevalence of each specific set of obsessive and compulsive symptoms and the rate of impairment from those symptoms were compared. Results: Of the 461 women included, 52 (11.2%) screened positive for OCD, while 173 (37.5%) reported experiencing subclinical obsessions or compulsions. This subclinical OCD was associated with an increased rate of depression (24%) and state-trait anxiety (8%) compared with women who did not endorse experiencing any obsessions or compulsions. Aggressive, religious, and somatic obsessio...
A case series of peripheral nerve blocks in pediatrics and young adults with skeletal dysplasia.

SummaryAim The purpose of this study was to report our experience with peripheral nerve blockade in pediatric and young adult patients with skeletal dysplasia undergoing knee arthroscopy. Background The incidence of skeletal dysplasia is 1 : 4000 live births. These patients have biomechanical predispositions to knee joint degeneration, which is often palliated by arthroscopic surgery. Regional anesthesia has been proven to improve the cost and quality of care in adults undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery. Methods This was a retrospective case series of patients with skeletal dysplasia undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery from 2012–2014 at a tertiary-care, pediatric hospital. Data pertaining to block effectiveness, technique, adjunct local anesthetic, rates of postoperative nausea/vomiting and admissions, and complications were recorded. Results Twenty patients with skeletal dysplasia underwent arthroscopic knee surgery during the study period. Ten of these patients received peripheral nerve blockade (12 procedures). All patients received femoral, femoral/sciatic, or femoral/sciatic/obturator blocks. One patient required opioid, constituting a block failure. The same patient required overnight admission for pain control. No patients suffered from PONV. There were no complications associated with any of the blocks performed. Conclusions Patients with skeletal dysplasia receiving lower extremity nerve blocks consume minimal opioid and report no major complications. Anesthesiologists should consider this mode of anesthesia in these patients. While no nerve injuries were discovered, further study is necessary to determine whether rates of nerve injury are comparable to that in the general pediatric population. Given the size of the skeletal dysplasia population, this type of study would require close to a decade of metadata from numerous institutions.
Repair of peripheral nerve defects with epineural sheath grafts

In this study, we investigated the potential of using a detubulized flat epineural sheath for bridging nerve gaps as an alternative to nerve autografting. Nerve gaps were created by removing a 1.2-cm segment of sciatic nerves. Later, the epineurium was incised longitudinally, and after fascicle removal, a flat rectangular epineural sheath was created. Five experimental groups (6 rats each) included: autograft and no treatment controls and epineural sheath groups repaired with 1 strip, 2-strip, and full epineural sheath grafts. Assessments performed at 3, 6, and 12 weeks included functional (pinprick, toe-spread), neurosensory (somatosensory-evoked potentials), and histomorphometric evaluations. The functional results of toe-spread, somatosensory-evoked potentials, and histomorphometric data revealed comparable outcomes between autograft, 2-strip, and full sheath grafts, indicating adequate nerve regeneration. Thus, the new epineural sheath graft technique introduced in this study can be considered as an alternative method to standard nerve autografting technique.
Public Support for Sale Government Spending and Public Approval of Federal Agency Performance

Federal agencies award thousands of grants and contracts each year. Although we have considerable insight into the implications of these expenditures for politicians, we know little about their con...
Between the Living and Undead: How Zombie Cinema Reflects the Social Construction of Risk, the Anxious Self, and Disease Pandemic

The zombie film has become an important component of contemporary popular culture. The sociological nature of the themes addressed by these films reflect prominent social concerns, and lend themsel...