cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Physiological and cellular adaptations of zebu cattle to thermal stress

During their separate evolution from Bos taurus, zebu cattle (Bos indicus) have acquired genes that confer thermotolerance at the physiological and cellular levels. Cattle from zebu breeds are better able to regulate body temperature in response to heat stress than are cattle from a variety of B. taurus breeds of European origin. Moreover, exposure to elevated temperature has less deleterious effects on cells from zebu cattle than on cells from European breeds. Superior ability for regulation of body temperature during heat stress is the result of lower metabolic rates as well as increased capacity for heat loss. As compared to European breeds, tissue resistance to heat flow from the body core to the skin is lower for zebu cattle while sweat glands are larger. Properties of the hair coat in zebu cattle enhance conductive and convective heat loss and reduce absorption of solar radiation. At the cellular level, genetic adaptations to resist deleterious effects of elevated temperature result in preimplantation embryos from zebu being less likely to be inhibited in development by elevated temperature than are embryos from European breeds. The zebu genotype has been utilized in crossbreeding systems to develop cattle for beef and dairy production systems in hot climates but success has been limited by other unfavorable genetic characteristics of these cattle. An alternative scheme is to incorporate specific thermotolerance genes from zebu cattle into European breeds while avoiding undesirable genes. Once specific genes responsible for thermotolerance in zebu have been identified or mapped, breeding strategies such as marker-assisted selection and transgenics can be applied to further the exploitation of the zebu genotype for cattle production systems. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Young Readers' Use of Phonological Information Phonological Awareness, Memory, and Comprehension

In this study, we explored the relationship between beginning readers' phonological awareness and other aspects of phonological processing, specifically as manifested in short-term memory and comprehension tasks. The theoretical questions underlying the study were (a) what roles phonological processes play in children's beginning reading, from word identification through sentence comprehension, and (b) whether those roles are sufficiently related that potential difficulties at one level directly affect processing at other levels. Phonologically induced effects were observed for word-list memory and for sentence judgments for both novice readers (at the end of kindergarten) and relatively more experienced readers (end of Grades 1 and 2). For both age groups, correlational analyses revealed relationships among phonological awareness, phonological processing in list memory, and word reading. However, phonological processing in sentence comprehension was not related to other types of phonological processing. These results indicate that although phonology plays a role during comprehension, phonological processing may not be as limiting a factor in comprehension as in word reading.
Genetic Consequences of Many Generations of Hybridization Between Divergent Copepod Populations

Crosses between populations of the copepod Tigriopus californicus typically result in outbreeding depression. In this study, replicate hybrid populations were initiated with first generation backcross hybrids between two genetically distinct populations from California: Royal Palms (RP) and San Diego (SD). Reciprocal F(1) were backcrossed to SD, resulting in expected starting frequencies of 25% RP/75% SD nuclear genes on either a pure RP cytoplasmic or a pure SD cytoplasmic background. After 1 year of hybridization (up to 15 generations), seven microsatellite loci were scored in two replicates on each cytoplasmic background. Frequencies of the rarer RP alleles increased significantly in all four replicates, regardless of cytoplasmic source, producing a mean hybridity of 0.97 (maximum = 1), instead of the expected 0.50. Explicit tests for heterozygote excess across loci and replicates showed significant deviations. Only the two physically linked markers showed linkage disequilibrium in all replicates. Subsequent fitness assays in parental populations and early generation hybrids revealed lower fitness in RP than SD, and significant F(2) breakdown. Computer simulations showed that selection must be invoked to explain the shift in allele frequencies. Together, these results suggest that hybrid inferiority in early generations gave way to hybrid superiority in later generations.
Penetration of Zona-Free Hamster Eggs by Liposome-Treated Sperm from the Bull, Ram, Stallion, and Boar

Spermatozoa from each of four rams, four stallions, and three boars (six semen samples) were treated with dilauroylphosphatidylcholine (PC12) liposomes and compared with control bull sperm to induce the acrosome reaction (AR) and study possible penetration of the sperm into zona-free hamster eggs. Diluted sperm were incubated with several concentrations of PC12 for 7 min at 39 degrees C prior to insemination of the hamster eggs in vitro. The sperm from the bull were diluted to 10(6) cells/ml, as previously studied. Sperm from the ram, stallion, and boar were diluted to 6 X 10(6) and 20 X 10(6) cells/ml. After addition to the eggs, the sperm concentration was reduced by 75 percent. Inseminated eggs were incubated with sperm for 3 h at 39 degrees C prior to being fixed, stained, and observed for sperm penetration. At an initial concentration of 6 X 10(6) cells/ml, bull sperm treated with 36.7 microM PC12 achieved an egg penetration rate of 92%, whereas under nearly identical conditions stallion spermatozoa achieved only 54% egg penetration. Under similar conditions, ram spermatozoa failed to penetrate eggs, but when the initial sperm concentration was increased to 20 X 10(6) cells/ml, sperm incubated with 51.1 microM PC12 achieved 52% egg penetration. Boar spermatozoa treated with PC12 at either sperm concentration failed to exhibit an AR or penetrate hamster eggs. In general, as PC12 concentration increased the percentage of sperm with an AR increased and sperm motility decreased. It is concluded that 1) PC12 liposomes are effective in inducing the AR in sperm from the bull, ram, and stallion, but under conditions tested are ineffective with boar sperm;(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Defined Nongrowth Media for Stage II Development of Competence in Haemophilus influenzae

The composition of a defined nongrowth medium used in stage II development of competence of Haemophilus influenzae affects the course of this development. The development of competence in two nongrowth media, M-IV and M-V, is rapid, logarithmic, and independent of the cell concentration. This last property indicates that there is probably no transfer of a competence factor from competent to noncompetent cells, in contrast to results reported for other organisms. Levels of competence reached in these completely defined media are such that 1 to 5% of the cells are transformed in the presence of an excess of marked deoxyribonucleic acid. The method of evaluating competence, which depends on the frequency of multiple independent transformations, has been reexamined. This and other methods are compared on samples taken from a culture during development of competence.
Nominal Tense? The Meaning of Guaraní Nominal Temporal Markers

Paraguayan Guarani has nominal markers that affect the temporal interpretation of the noun phrase they attach to. On the basis of data collected during recent fieldwork in Paraguay, I explore in this article the lexical semantic, semantic, and discourse properties of these nominal temporal markers and develop a semantic analysis that accounts for their meaning and use. I then address the claim (made e.g. in Nordlinger & Sadler 2004) that such markers are nominal past and future tenses. A comparison of the properties of verbal temporal markers to those of the Guarani nominal markers reveals that the Guarani nominal markers share few of the properties of verbal tenses and hence should not be called nominal tenses. I conclude by addressing the implications of these findings for theories of temporality.*
Hypothalamic control of energy balance: different peptides, different functions

Energy balance is maintained via a homeostatic system involving both the brain and the periphery. A key component of this system is the hypothalamus. Over the past two decades, major advances have been made in identifying an increasing number of peptides within the hypothalamus that contribute to the process of energy homeostasis. Under stable conditions, equilibrium exists between anabolic peptides that stimulate feeding behavior, as well as decrease energy expenditure and lipid utilization in favor of fat storage, and catabolic peptides that attenuate food intake, while stimulating sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity and restricting fat deposition by increasing lipid metabolism. The equilibrium between these neuropeptides is dynamic in nature. It shifts across the day-night cycle and from day to day and also in response to dietary challenges as well as peripheral energy stores. These shifts occur in close relation to circulating levels of the hormones, leptin, insulin, ghrelin and corticosterone, and also the nutrients, glucose and lipids. These circulating factors together with neural processes are primary signals relaying information regarding the availability of fuels needed for current cellular demand, in addition to the level of stored fuels needed for long-term use. Together, these signals have profound impact on the expression and production of neuropeptides that, in turn, initiate the appropriate anabolic or catabolic responses for restoring equilibrium. In this review, we summarize the evidence obtained on nine peptides in the hypothalamus that have emerged as key players in this process. Data from behavioral, physiological, pharmacological and genetic studies are described and consolidated in an attempt to formulate a clear statement on the underlying function of each of these peptides and also on how they work together to create and maintain energy homeostasis.
Fiscal Year Ends and Nonlinear Incentive Contracts: The Effect on Business Seasonality

Salesperson and executive compensation contracts typically specify a nonlinear relationship between firm revenues and pay. These agents therefore have incentive to manipulate prices, influence the timing of customer purchases, and vary effort over their firms' fiscal years. This paper empirically establishes results consistent with agents' focusing on performance over the fiscal year. Most notably, in addition to varying with the calendar business cycle, manufacturing firms' sales are higher at the end of the fiscal year, and lower at the beginning, than they are in the middle. Further evidence is found in fiscal-year price movements and patterns in the industry variation of fiscal-year effects.
Ten-year postoperative results of penetrating keratoplasty.

Abstract Objective To investigate the changes in central corneal endothelial cells and corneal thickness in transplanted corneas from 5 to 10 years after grafting. This study also aimed to investigate the development of glaucoma, graft rejection, and graft failure during the first 10 postoperative years. Design/participants Longitudinal cohort study of 500 consecutive penetrating keratoplasties by 1 surgeon. Patients were asked to return for follow-up examinations at 2 months and at 1, 3, 5, and 10 years after grafting. The authors excluded eyes regrafted during the study and the fellow eyes of bilateral cases, leaving 394 grafts in 394 patients for analysis. Intervention Penetrating keratoplasty was performed. Main outcome measures Using specular microscopy, the authors measured endothelial cell density, coefficient of variation of cell area, percentage of hexagonal cells, and corneal thickness. The authors performed clinical examinations to determine graft rejection or failure and the development of glaucoma. Results By 10 years postkeratoplasty, 80 of the 394 patients had died and 68 grafts had failed. Of the remaining 246 patients, 119 (48%) returned for their 10-year examinations. For the 72 patients who returned for all of the scheduled postoperative visits and had no rejection episodes, reoperations, or failure, endothelial cell loss from preoperative donor levels at 10 years was 67 ± 18% (mean ± standard deviation), endothelial cell density was 958 ± 471 cells/mm 2 , coefficient of variation was 0.32 ± 0.11, hexagonal cells were 56 ± 12%, and corneal thickness was 0.58 ± 0.05 mm. The 5- to 10-year changes for all these values were significant ( P ≤ 0.004). The mean rate of late endothelial cell loss from 5 to 10 years postkeratoplasty was 4.2% per year. Eyes that were aphakic after grafting had the lowest endothelial cell loss (57 ± 24%) and the lowest interval cell loss from 5 to 10 years postkeratoplasty (4 ± 19%). Eyes that were phakic had the highest endothelial cell loss (73 ± 8%) and 5- to 10-year-interval cell loss (17 ± 31%). Eyes with posterior chamber lenses had a greater endothelial cell loss (71 ± 9%) than did eyes with anterior chamber lenses (51 ± 25%, P = 0.03). The 10-year cumulative risk of glaucoma, rejection, or failure was 21%, 21%, and 22%, respectively. Late endothelial failure became the major cause for graft failure, accounting for 9 of the 11 failures after 5 postoperative years. Conclusions From 5 to 10 years after penetrating keratoplasty, the annual rate of endothelial cell loss was seven times the normal rate. The endothelial cell loss, pleomorphism, polymegethism, and corneal thickness increased significantly during this time, indicating continued endothelial instability and dysfunction, resulting in an increasing rate of late endothelial failure.
EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES ON DIABETES : SERIES I. PRODUCTION AND CONTROL OF DIABETES IN THE DOG. 3. EFFECTS OF PROTEIN DIETS.

1. The injurious effects of excessive carbohydrate diet are demonstrable in partially depancreatized dogs, in the same manner as in human patients. With severe diabetes there is rapid progress of emaciation and weakness and early death. 2. With milder diabetes, there is frequently a transitional state following operation, when the fate depends on the diet. If the tolerance is spared for a time, recovery sometimes occurs to such extent that diabetes cannot be produced by any kind or quantity of feeding, but only by removal of a small additional fragment of pancreatic tissue. The proper degree of carbohydrate overfeeding is important in this early period for producing the most useful type of diabetic animals; namely, those having good digestion and general health combined with a permanent lowering of assimilative power, like the condition of human patients. 3. In the early stage, glucose is more powerful than starch in producing diabetes, and animals which are progressing toward complete recovery on starch diet can be sent into hopeless diabetes by admixture of glucose. The difference seems to be merely of the rate of absorption, and indicates that a rapid flood of carbohydrate is more injurious to the pancreatic function than a slow absorption. Whenever permanent diabetes is present, so that complete recovery is impossible, starch brings on glycosuria more slowly than sugar, but just as surely. The difference in time in different cases amounts to days, weeks, or months. The clinical lesson from such experiments is that even if a patient becomes free from glycosuria on withdrawal of sugar only, nevertheless other foods should also be limited. 4. No significant differences were observed between the assimilation of different starches, or any extreme lowering of the carbohydrate tolerance by proteins, such as alleged by certain writers in connection with the "oatmeal cure". 5. Repair of traumatic inflammation and hypertrophy of the pancreas remnant have been mentioned incidentally as the basis of the early tendency to recovery, and also hydropic degeneration of Langerhans islands as an accompaniment of the lowering of tolerance by excessive diet. These are believed to have their parallels in human cases, and are to be described more fully hereafter.
CommandSpace: modeling the relationships between tasks, descriptions and features

Users often describe what they want to accomplish with an application in a language that is very different from the application's domain language. To address this gap between system and human language, we propose modeling an application's domain language by mining a large corpus of Web documents about the application using deep learning techniques. A high dimensional vector space representation can model the relationships between user tasks, system commands, and natural language descriptions and supports mapping operations, such as identifying likely system commands given natural language queries and identifying user tasks given a trace of user operations. We demonstrate the feasibility of this approach with a system, CommandSpace, for the popular photo editing application Adobe Photoshop. We build and evaluate several applications enabled by our model showing the power and flexibility of this approach.
Young tableaux and linear independence of standard monomials in multiminors of a multimatrix

Abhyankar, S.S. and ~. R. Ghorpade, Young tableaux and linear independence of standard monomials in multimimws of a multimatrix, Discrete Mathematics 96 (1991) 1-32. As a culmination of th~ efforts of the invariant theorists from Clebsch, Gordan, Young, to Rota, in 1972 Doublet-Rota-Stein proved the Straightening Law which says that the standard monomials in the minors of a matrix X, which correspond to standard bitableaux, form a vector space basis of the polynomial ring K[X] in the indeterminate entries X over the coefficient field K. Now we may ask what happens to this when we consider 'higher dimensional' matrices by using cubical, 4-way ..... q-way determinants which were already introduced by Cayley in 1843. In the present paper we show that, for every q > 2, the standard monomials in the multiminors of the multimatrix X are linearly independent over K. In a forthcoming paper it will be shown that they do not span the polynomial ring K[X]. The proof of linear independence given in this paper also applies to the classical case of q = 2.
Predictors of Administrative and Technological Innovations in Nonprofit Organizations

This study examines the effects of human and structural/process factors on two types of innovation—administrative and technological—in a sample of nonprofit organizations. The results indicate that factors that are favorable to administrative innovations differ from those that are conducive to technological innovation. Three variables are significant predictors of administrative innovation: centralization, transformational leadership, and the executive director’s job tenure. Transformational leadership contributes significantly to the model of technological innovation. Based on the results of this study, the author provides implications for nonprofit management and future research.
Spatial attention: normal processes and their breakdown.

High-level vision involves processes such as object recognition, selective attention, and visuomotor action, at the interface of perception and cognition. This article focuses on selective attention, a set of processes that allows selection of some stimuli over others and performance of multiple tasks in a coordinated manner [1,2]. This discussion is restricted to visuospatial attention—those attentional processes that select visual stimuli based on their spatial location. Spatial attention is perhaps the most widely studied variety of attention in normal populations and neurologic populations. Before discussing spatial attention, this article addresses what attention is, and what it is useful for. A common view is that attentional processes are required because the environment contains more information than can be processed and comprehended at any given time. Attentional processes can be viewed as protecting an organism from information overload and are selective in that they allow processing of some stimuli while disregarding others. The stimuli that are selected may become attended for several reasons. For example, when faced with much sensory input, an optimal strategy is to attend to those that are relevant to current behavior. For example, a driver’s distance from a lead vehicle is relevant for the task of safe driving, but cell phone conversation generally is not. The processes that permit an organism to choose some environmental inputs over others are referred to collectively as attention.
Thermodynamic Studies of SHC Phosphotyrosine Interaction Domain Recognition of the NPXpY Motif

Abstract The N-terminal 200 amino acids of SHC constitute a unique phosphotyrosine (Tyr(P)) interaction (PI) domain that shows no significant sequence similarity to the other Tyr(P)-recognizing module, the SH2 domain. We describe the thermodynamic parameters characterizing PI domain binding to various tyrosyl phosphopeptides, using isothermal titration calorimetry. The PI domain forms 1:1 complexes of similar affinity with a 12-mer peptide (ISLDNPDpYQQDF) derived from Tyr-1148 of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) (K = 28 nM) and an 18-mer (LQGHIIENPQpYFSDACVH) derived from Tyr-490 of Trk (K = 42 nM). Binding of the EGFR-derived peptide was largely enthalpy-driven at 25°C, while Trk490 peptide binding was entropy-driven. Based on the change in heat capacity upon binding, approximately 700 A2 of nonpolar surface was estimated to be buried upon interaction. Alteration of the Asn or Pro to Ala in the NPXpY motif of the EGFR Tyr-1148 peptide increased the K of PI domain interactions to 238 and 370 nM, respectively. Alteration of a Leu at position −5 (with respect to Tyr(P)) in the EGFR peptide to Gly also reduced the binding affinity (K = 580 nM). It is proposed that the PI domain recognizes the β1 turn that is found in NPXpY-containing peptides and also interacts with a larger segment of the peptide than seen for SH2 domains.
Ultrasound with mineral water or aqua gel to reduce pain and improve the WOMAC of knee osteoarthritis

Aims: Osteoarthritis is the most degenerative joint disease. The aim was to investigate the effects of ultrasound using mineral water or aqua sonic gel on severity of knee pain, measured by the visual analog scale and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC). Materials and methods: Thirty women with bilateral osteoarthritis of the knee were assigned to two groups: ultrasound with mineral water (group 1, n = 15) or with aqua sonic gel (group 2, n = 15). Both groups underwent 4 weeks intervention, three per week. The participants were assessed using the visual analog scale and the WOMAC. Tests were performed before and after interventions. Results: Both groups had significantly reduced pain and improved WOMAC compared with preintervention values. Discussion: The ultrasound with mineral water group had more pronounced improvement at p-value < 0.001. Conclusion: Ultrasound with mineral water is preferable in treatment of knee OA.
Statistical Mechanics of Multilayer Sorption: Surface Tension

Mathematical models of surface tension as a function of solute concentration are needed for predicting the behavior of surface processes relevant to the environment, biology, and industry. Current aqueous surface tension-activity models capture either solutions of electrolytes or those of nonelectrolytes, but a single equation has not yet been found that represents both over the full range of compositions. In prior work, we developed an accurate model of the activity-concentration relationship in solutions over the full range of compositions by extending the BET (Brunauer, Emmett, Teller) and GAB (Guggenheim, Anderson, de Boer) isotherms to multiple monolayers of solvent molecules sorbed to solutes. Here, we employ similar statistical mechanical tools to develop a simple equation for the surface tension-activity relationship that differs remarkably from prior formulations in that it (1) works equally well for nonelectrolyte and electrolyte solutes and (2) is accurate over the full range of concentrations from pure solvent to pure solute.
Functional neuroimaging research in bipolar disorder.

Functional neuroimaging techniques have been important research tools in the study of bipolar disorder (BPD). These methods provide measures of regional brain functioning that reflect the mental state at the time of scanning and have helped to elucidate both state and trait features of BPD. This chapter will review converging functional neuroimaging evidence implicating state and trait dysfunction in a ventral prefrontal cortex–amygdala neural system in BPD. Emerging evidence that suggests a developmental progression in dysfunction in this neural system over the course of adolescence will be considered. Finally, new research approaches that have begun to reveal the contribution of specific genetic mechanisms to regional dysfunction in the disorder, potential salutary effects of medications, and structure–function relationships will be discussed.
320 ALTERATIONS IN AKT PHOSPHORYLATION IN EXERCISE TRAINED INTRAUTERINE GROWTH RESTRICTED RATS

Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) leads to dysregulation of glucose/insulin homeostasis and aberrant Glut4 translocation. Alterations in the Glut4 translocation pathway due to IUGR are not clearly elucidated, and it is unclear whether exercise can help reverse alterations. Phosphorylation of Akt (pAkt) is a part of the Glut4 translocation pathway. We assessed pAkt and insulin-induced Glut4 translocation in control (n=6) and maternal nutrient restriction induced IUGR (n=6) rats. Rats were exercised 15min/day from day21 to day60 or allowed to remain sedentary. Skeletal muscle was obtained at day 2 and 60, and proteins of interest were assessed by Western blot. At day 2, insulin administration led to increased Glut4 translocation in control rats, but not in IUGR rats. At day 60, insulin increased pAkt levels in control and IUGR rats, but significantly increased Glut4 translocation in control rats (p≤0.05), but not in IUGR rats. After exercise, insulin administration increased pAkt in control and IUGR rats, and insulin-induced Glut4 translocation was significantly increased in both control and IUGR groups (p≤0.05). We conclude that exercise is beneficial in IUGR rats since it increases insulin sensitivity of the insulin-GLUT 4 translocation pathway.
28‐3: Invited Paper: Light Field, Focus‐tunable, and Monovision Near‐eye Displays

Emerging virtual and augmented reality (VR/VR) displays must overcome the prevalent issue of visual discomfort to provide comfortable user experiences. In particular, the mismatch between vergence and accommodation cues inherent to most stereoscopic displays has been a long-standing challenge. We evaluate several display modes that have the promise to mitigate visual discomfort caused by the vergence-accommodation conflict (VAC), and improve user comfort as well as performance in VR/AR applications. In particular, we explore light field, focus-tunable, and monovision display modes. Whereas light field displays seek to synthesize the 4D light field over the eye box of the viewer, for example with a stacked liquid crystal display architecture, focus-tunable display mode use either programmable liquid lenses or actuated displays to adaptively place the accommodation plane at different distances during the VR/AR experience. Monovision is an unconventional mode that accommodates each eye of the observer at different depths, a technique commonly used in ophthalmology. We evaluate the effectiveness of several different display modes enabled by light field and focus-tunable near eye displays.
Immersion Diversity: Teaching Tourism, Travel Writing, and Race from the Inside Out

In today’s media landscape, new media discourses help define the travel experience for emerging generations. From newspaper features, to niche magazines, to dedicated cable channels, the proliferation of travel media reflects a hard-to-satiate desire to leave home and parachute in along the fringes of other neighborhoods. Within these parameters, it is a challenging enterprise to invite students to explore race as a component of their and others’ experiences. Writing race, then, as a form of travel limits us to the roads we may have already traveled. This chapter discusses an approach to teaching race through travel. Specifically, through a class I created in travel writing, I invite students to grapple with ideas about race and identity as part of their acquisition of career-oriented, professional skills in media and mass communication. But it is in the pursuit of those skills — including the need to interview strangers and accurately represent their ideas — that the notion of what it means to be “raced” becomes powerfully salient.
Reaction-Bonded Silicon Carbide by Reactive Infiltration

Exothermic reactions between a porous matrix and an infiltrating melt provide a more economic alternative for synthesizing many ceramics, intermetallics, and composites. It has recently been demonstrated that infiltration of cast microporous carbon preforms by silicon melt can be used to fabricate high-density, nearly net-shaped silicon carbide components at significantly reduced cost. This paper describes the synthesis of reaction-bonded silicon carbide by reactive infiltration of microporous carbon preforms. The kinetics of unidirectional infiltration of silicon melt into microporous carbon preforms as a function of pore morphology and melt temperature is investigated in this paper. Qualitative agreement between experimental data and a mathematical model for capillarity-driven fluid flow through cylindrical pores is demonstrated. Experimental evidence of high parametric sensitivity is also presented. A simplified model relating fluid flow, transport, and reaction phenomena is formulated to interpret experimental evidence of pore closing and free silicon entrapment. A robust numerical formulation is also described.
Monitoring of Serum DNA Methylation as an Early Independent Marker of Response and Survival in Metastatic Breast Cancer: TBCRC 005 Prospective Biomarker Study.

PurposeEpigenetic alterations measured in blood may help guide breast cancer treatment. The multisite prospective study TBCRC 005 was conducted to examine the ability of a novel panel of cell-free DNA methylation markers to predict survival outcomes in metastatic breast cancer (MBC) using a new quantitative multiplex assay (cMethDNA).Patients and MethodsTen genes were tested in duplicate serum samples from 141 women at baseline, at week 4, and at first restaging. A cumulative methylation index (CMI) was generated on the basis of six of the 10 genes tested. Methylation cut points were selected to maximize the log-rank statistic, and cross-validation was used to obtain unbiased point estimates. Logistic regression or Cox proportional hazard models were used to test associations between the CMI and progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and disease status at first restaging. The added value of the CMI in predicting survival outcomes was evaluated and compared with circulating tumor cells (Ce...
Theoretical Foundations of Team Matchmaking

Online team games need matchmaking systems which can handle a high throughput of players and form fair teams to play matches together. We study this problem from a theoretical perspective, by defining and analyzing a broad model which captures many applications. In the most basic formulation, we desire a data structure which supports adding and removing players, and extracting the best possible games. We design an efficient solution, where with n players in the structure, operations can be performed in O(log n) time. We then consider a natural extension one might want in a team game setting, where each team has different roles, and each player is only willing to play in some of these roles. We show that this extension is computationally intractable, conditioned on the popular 3SUM conjecture; nevertheless, we are able to design an efficient constant-factor approximate solution. Our results help explain recent practical issues with the matchmaking systems in some of the most popular online games. We also prove similar results in an offline setting, which has many applications to matching and partitioning beyond online games.
Potential for Plug-In Electric Vehicles to provide grid support services

Since the introduction of Plug-in Electric Vehicles (PEVs), scientists have proposed leveraging PEV battery packs as distributed energy resources for the electric grid. PEV charging can be controlled not only to provide energy for transportation but also to provide grid services and to facilitate the integration of renewable energy generation. With renewable generation increasing at an unprecedented rate, most of which is non-dispatchable and intermittent, the concept of using PEVs as controllable loads is appealing to electric utilities. If incentivized suitably, this could serve as an additional driver for PEV adoption. It has been widely proposed that PEVs can provide valuable grid services, such as load shifting to provide voltage and frequency regulation. The objective this work is to address the degree to which PEVs can provide grid services and mutually benefit the electric utilities, PEV owners, and auto manufacturers.
Anonymous authentication and pseudonym-renewal for VANET in NDN

Secure deployment of a vehicular network depends on the network's trust establishment and privacy-preserving capability. In this paper, we propose a scheme for anonymous pseudonym-renewal and pseudonymous authentication for vehicular ad-hoc networks over a data-centric Internet architecture called Named Data networking (NDN). We incorporated our design in a traffic information sharing demo application and deployed it on Raspberry Pi-based miniature cars for evaluation.
Filtering the Evidence: Is There a Cognitive Cost of Hemodialysis?

Conventional in-center hemodialysis (HD) is the most common form of dialysis in the United States. Approximately 88% of individuals with ESRD initiate RRT with in-center HD.[1][1] On the basis of current trends, in-center HD is anticipated to remain the dominant dialysis modality into the
Poor Compliance with Sepsis Guidelines in a Tertiary Care Children's Hospital Emergency Room.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess factors related to adherence to the Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) guidelines for severe sepsis and septic shock (SS) in an emergency room (ER) of a tertiary care children’s hospital. Methods: This was a retrospective, observational study of children (0-18 years old) in The Children’s Hospital of San Antonio (CHofSA) ED over one year with the International Consensus Definition Codes, version-9 (ICD-9) diagnostic codes for "severe sepsis" and "septic shock." Patients in the adherent group were those who met all 3 elements of adherence: 1) rapid vascular access with at most 1 IV attempt before seeking alternate access (unless already in place), 2) fluids administered within 15 minutes from sepsis recognition and 3) antibiotic administration started within 1 hour of sepsis recognition. Comparisons between groups with and without sepsis guideline adherence were performed using student t-test (the measurements expressed as median values). The proportions were compared using chi-square test. P value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results: A total of 43 patients who visited the ED from July 2014 to July 2015 had clinically proven severe sepsis or septic shock ICD-9 codes. The median age was 5 years. The median triage time, times from triage to vascular access, fluid administration and antibiotic administration were 26, 48.5, 76 and 135 minutes respectively. Adherence to vascular access, fluid and antibiotic administration guidelines was 21%, 26% and, 34% respectively. Appropriate fluid bolus (20mls/kg over 15-20mins) was only seen in 6% of patients in the non-adherent group versus 38% in the adherent group (p=0.01). All of the patients in the non-adherent group used an infusion pump for fluid resuscitation. Hypotension and ≥ 3 organ dysfunction were more commonly observed in patients in adherent group as compared to patients in non-adherent group (38% vs. 14% p=0.24; 63% vs. 23% p=0.03). Conclusions: Overall adherence to sepsis guidelines was low. The factors associated with non-adherence to sepsis guidelines were >1 attempt at vascular access, delay in antibiotic ordering, fluid administration using infusion pump, absence of hypotension, and absence of three or more organs in dysfunction at ER presentation.
Maltose Effects on Barley Malt Diastatic Power Enzyme Activity and Thermostability at High Isothermal Mashing Temperatures: II. α-Amylase1

The hypothesis that maltose would increase the thermostability of barley malt β-amylase activity during isothermal mashing was tested. Malts of the two-row cultivar Harrington and the six-row culti...
Determining the BTR by conducting a Trans-Varestraint test using a high-speed camera and two-color pyrometry

The Ni-Fe alloy consumable that applies to the welding of 9% nickel steel for LNG storage tanks is highly susceptible to solidification cracks. To evaluate susceptibilities such as the brittleness temperature range (BTR), a Trans-Varestraint test is generally conducted. However, it is difficult to evaluate the minimum strain value for the BTR and the real temperature at both ends of a solidification crack in a conventional Trans-Varestraint test because these values are measured indirectly. In this study, we propose determining the temperature range by conducting in-situ observations during a Trans-Varestraint test using a high-speed camera and two-color pyrometry so that the temperature range can be measured directly from the temperatures at both ends of the crack. Furthermore, we measured the augmented strain from the time elapsed since the initiation of bending. This method allowed us to successfully measure the augmented strain and the temperature range in the Trans-Varestraint test and to determine the BTR more accurately.
Comparison of Cellular Membranes of Liver with Emphasis on the Golgi Complex as a Discrete Organelle

The hepatocyte is a highly differentiated mammalian cell whose functions are carried out to a large extent on the subcellular level by a number of membranous organelles. Over the last 15 years much attention has been focussed on the isolation of highly purified preparations of these organelles in order to study their composition and enzymic capacities with the hope that such information would help us understand their role in cell function.
Clinical and Virologic Aspects of Varicella-Zoster Virus Infection

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV), a member of the family of human herpesviruses, causes chickenpox (varicella) in childhood, becomes latent in dorsal root ganglia and reactivates decades later to produce shingles (zoster) in adults. Since the development of a vaccine for measles, chickenpox has replaced measles as the most common childhood disease in most of the world. Except in immunocompromised individuals, chickenpox is not a disease associated with significant morbidity and mortality. On the other hand, disease resulting from VZV reactivation is a clinical problem of considerable magnitude. Furthermore, zoster and its attendant complications of postherpetic neuralgia, encephalitis and granulomatous arteritis not only are more frequent in the elderly population, but also the number of cases is likely to rise as the aged population increases.
A Simple Explanation of Complexation.

The topics of solution thermodynamics, activity coefficients, and complex formation are introduced through computational exercises and sample applications. The presentation is designed to be accessible to freshmen in a chemical engineering computations course. The MOSCED model is simplified to explain complex formation in terms of hydrogen bonding. In the current work, the acidity and basicity parameters are adopted directly, but the polarity and dispersion parameters are lumped together. In this way, the contrast between the physical interactions and the chemical interactions is more readily apparent. Examples are given of ConcepTesting, exam, and homework problems.
Control of Opinions in an Ideologically Homogeneous Population

We describe a simple model for the process of changing opinions where clusters of different opinions form in a society. We are interested in what happens to these clusters after they are formed. Is the cluster robust to the introduction of people with differing opinions? We focus on the case where some people are influenced more easily than others and examine the impacts of network structure and different strategies aimed at changing the mean opinion of the population. We find that the more variation in a population’s open-mindedness, the easier it is for the population to be influenced, and exploiting the structure of the network allows the society influenced more efficiently
Immigration Appeals: A Rough Look at Two Courts

The Second and Ninth Circuits are the two U.S. courts of appeals with the greatest recent increase in immigration appeals. This paper describes the mechanisms, particularly screening panels, that each court uses to handle these increased appeals, and then portrays the proportion of the output of these courts these appeals constitute and describes, for each court, first, differences in outcomes between the courts' use of published precedential opinions and non-precedential dispositions, and second, differences in support of aliens' appeals by individual judges, including district judges and out-of-circuit judges who sit with the courts of appeals.This paper provides a very rough cut at what these two courts have done, using only a rudimentary count of votes as pro- or anti-alien. A more sophisticated study would separate various types of claims (asylum, withholding of deportation, etc.) and countries of origin.
Evaluating Student Achievement in Discipline-Based Art Programs

A general lack of emphasis on evaluation has characterized the field of art education until recently. Evaluation is essential for validation of student achievement. The goal of discipline-based art...
Would You Trust a Robot Therapist? Validating the Equivalency of Trust in Human-Robot Healthcare Scenarios

With the recent advances in computing, artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly becoming a key component in the future of advanced applications. In one application in particular, AI has played a major role - that of revolutionizing traditional healthcare assistance. Using embodied interactive agents, or interactive robots, in healthcare scenarios has emerged as an innovative way to interact with patients. As an essential factor for interpersonal interaction, trust plays a crucial role in establishing and maintaining a patient-agent relationship. In this paper, we discuss a study related to healthcare in which we examine aspects of trust between humans and interactive robots during a therapy intervention in which the agent provides corrective feedback. A total of twenty participants were randomly assigned to receive corrective feedback from either a robotic agent or a human agent. Survey results indicate trust in a therapy intervention coupled with a robotic agent is comparable to that of trust in an intervention coupled with a human agent. Results also show a trend that the agent condition has a medium-sized effect on trust. In addition, we found that participants in the robot therapist condition are 3.5 times likely to have trust involved in their decision than the participants in the human therapist condition. These results indicate that the deployment of interactive robot agents in healthcare scenarios has the potential to maintain quality of health for future generations.
Immediate Physical Therapy following Total Joint Arthroplasty: Barriers and Impact on Short-Term Outcomes.

Background. Recent evidence suggests benefit to receiving physical therapy (PT) the same day as total joint arthroplasty (TJA), but relatively little is known about barriers to providing PT in this constrained time period. We address the following questions: (1) Are there demographic or perioperative variables associated with receiving delayed PT following TJA? (2) Does receiving immediate PT following TJA affect short-term outcomes such as length of stay, discharge disposition, or 30-day readmission? Methods. Primary TJA procedures at a single center were retrospectively reviewed. Immediate PT was defined as within eight hours of surgery. Demographic and perioperative variables were compared between patients who received immediate PT and those who did not. We identified an appropriately matched control group of patients who received immediate PT. Postoperative length of stay, discharge disposition, and 30-day readmissions were compared between matched groups. Results. In total, 2051 primary TJA procedures were reviewed. Of these, 226 (11.0%) received delayed PT. These patients had a higher rate of general anesthesia (25.2% versus 17.8%, p=0.006), later operative start time (13:26 11:31-14:38 versus 9:36 8:24-11:16 , p 1.5-2.2 versus 1.6 1.4-1.8 hours, p=0.002), and higher overall caseload on the day of surgery (6 4-9 versus 5 4-8 , p=0.002). A matched group of patients who received immediate PT was identified. There were no differences in postoperative length of stay or discharge disposition between matched immediate and delayed PT groups, but delayed PT (OR 4.54; 95% CI 1.61-12.84; p=0.004) was associated with a higher 30-day readmission rate. Conclusion. Barriers to receiving immediate PT following TJA included general anesthesia, later operative start time, longer operative time, and higher daily caseload. These factors present potential targets for improving the delivery of immediate postoperative PT. Early PT may help reduce 30-day readmissions, but additional research is necessary to further characterize this relationship.
Reflections from Crisis: A Phenomenological Study of the Texas A&M Bonfire Collapse.

The 1999 Texas A&M University Bonfire collapse killed 12 students and injured dozens. Response to this event involved a number of campus administrators, lasted for many years, and led to the emerge...
Heterogeneous traffic estimation with particle filtering

This article considers the state estimation problem for heterogeneous traffic characterized by various vehicle sizes. The interactions between vehicle classes display unique features that are distinct from homogeneous traffic flows. Modeling and estimation methods for heterogeneous traffic, however, still remain relatively unexplored. This article adopts a particle-filtering approach to sequentially estimate the traffic state with a heterogeneous traffic flow model that allows overtaking and creeping behaviors. Numerical experiments are introduced to evaluate the estimator performance, indicating that the filter can reduce estimation errors by up to 48% when compared to pure forward simulation of the model.
Correcting Smith et al.’s (2018) Criticisms of All Rorschach Studies in Mihura, Meyer, Dumitrascu, and Bombel’s (2013) Meta-Analyses

Abstract. Smith et al. (2018) describe their article as “an evaluation as to the extent that individual studies have conformed to [Exner’s (1995a)] proposed methodological criteria” (Abstract). How...