cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Static Test Compaction for Functional Test Sequences With Restoration of Functional Switching Activity

Test vector omission allows the length of a functional test sequence to be reduced without reducing its fault coverage. When a circuit is embedded in a design, the omission of test vectors from a functional test sequence for the circuit may result in a sequence that does not satisfy the functional constraints imposed by the design. This paper addresses this issue by developing a procedure that restores omitted test vectors in order to satisfy functional constraints. For the discussion in this paper, functional constraints are captured by the switching activity of the sequence before any test vectors are omitted from it. This is referred to as its functional switching activity profile. Experimental results demonstrate that the length of a sequence can be reduced even after restoration of omitted test vectors based on its functional switching activity profile.
Analysis of Circumstance of Health Foods Registered from 2003 to 2005

Objective To find out the circumstance of the health foods registered by SFDA from 2003 to 2005.Method The quantities and compositions,the territory distributions,the forms of drugs,health functions and functional ingredients were analyzed.Results Total 2?655 health foods were registered by SFDA from 2003 to 2005.The 2?570 homemade products were mainly from the territories of Beijing city,Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces and so on.The forms of drugs of health foods were capsule,slice and liquid.The quantities of product types of common foods were less.The distributions of health function were not balanced.The health function of most products could have enhance immunity,alleviative physical fatigue and anti oxidation(alleviative consenescence).The distributions of functional ingredients were not balanced.Total ginsenosides,total flavonoids and polysaccharides were the important functional or characteristic ingredients of health foods,which were 80% products of health foods authorized by SFDA.Conclusion The efficacy theory and detective level of functional ingredients of health foods should be strengthened.
Brief introduction of an indicator systems assessing for the impact of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on city health environment

This article describes an indicator system assessing for the impact of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on city health environment in detail,including part of the three secondary indicators for health environment,social security,and health care service of the Beijing Olympic Games legacy,which covered the meanings,definitions,objectives,sources of data,computation methods and measurement frequency of relevant indicators,as well as their applications.
The Status Quo of Quality Management on Suppliers in Enterprises and its Analysis

Under the condition of global economy integration,the competitions between enterprises has transferred into the ones between group organizations.In this case,quality management has to be carried out by every group member in industry chain together,rather than by one enterprise solely.Based on the win-win scenario,taking the successful case of SAIC -GM-Wuling Automobile Co.,Ltd.(hereafter referred to as SGMW) as an example,the article discusses about suppliers' selection,assessment and dynamic management,which is meaningful to increase the efficiency of quality management in enterprises and to realize the goals of continuously stabilizing and improving quality management.
A prospective controlled study of luteal and endometrial abnormalities in an infertile population

Objective To investigate whether luteal and endometrial abnormalities occur more frequently in an infertile population and thus contribute to infertility. Design Prospective controlled clinical study. Setting Outpatient clinic in an academic research institution. Participants Thirty-three fertile controls and 31 infertile women without ovulatory disorders, tubal disease, or male factors. Interventions All women underwent an endometrial biopsy 9 days after the LH surge followed by an IM injection of 5,000 IU hCG. Blood samples were drawn immediately before hCG administration for serum P and placental protein 14 (PP14) measurements, at 6 hours after hCG stimulation for serum P concentrations, and on day 5 after hCG administration for serum PP14 levels. Main Outcome Measures Histologic dating of the endometrium and serum P and PP14 measurements. Results Abnormal endometrial biopsies occurred more frequently in infertile (43%) than in fertile women (9%). Except for one case, these specimens were not associated with low hCG-stimulated P levels. Serum PP14 measurements varied widely and did not discriminate subjects with abnormal endometrial development. Conclusions Disruption of endometrial maturation without a concomitant defect of the corpus luteum occurs more frequently in an infertile population and thus may contribute to infertility.
The Interaction of π-Mesons with Nuclear Matter

A number of experiments relating more or less directly to meson scattering and absorption are discussed and compared. Because of the variety of experiments interrelated by such considerations, it is seen that any model to describe meson scattering and absorption will have to meet a corresponding number of conditions. In particular, the absorption experiments of Panofsky and his collaborators permit one to put a lower limit on the absorption cross section for complex nuclei which seems appreciably larger than the expected scattering cross section.
LdtMav2, a nonclassical transpeptidase and susceptibility of Mycobacterium avium to carbapenems

Aim: Mycobacterium avium infections, especially in immune-compromised individuals, present a significant challenge as therapeutic options are limited. In this study, we investigated if M. avium genome encodes nonclassical transpeptidases and if newer carbapenems are effective against this mycobacteria. Materials & methods: Biochemical and microbiological approaches were used to identify and characterize a nonclassical transpeptidase, namely L,D-transpeptidase, in M. avium. Results & conclusion: We describe the biochemical and physiological attributes of a L,D-transpeptidase in M. avium, LdtMav2. Suggestive of a constitutive requirement, levels of LdtMav2, a L,D-transpeptidase in M. avium, remain constant during exponential and stationary phases of growth. Among β-lactam antibacterials, only a subset of carbapenems inhibit LdtMav2 and tebipenem, a new oral carbapenem, inhibits growth of M. avium.
Eastern Red-backed Salamanders Regulate Top-Down Effects in a Temperate Forest-Floor Community

Abstract Understanding the role of species interactions as regulatory mechanisms for ecosystem processes presents a challenge to ecologists working in systems with high species diversity and habitat complexity. Recent studies suggest that interactions among intraguild predators, such as terrestrial salamanders and large arthropods, might be important for the regulation of detritivores, fungivores, and perhaps detritus within terrestrial webs. A key prediction is that interactions among predators weaken trophic cascades. Our research examined this prediction by removing predators for 4 yr from unfenced field plots to investigate the effects on litter arthropods, the microbial community, and rates of leaf litter decomposition. We manipulated predator abundance in three treatments (salamander removal, centipede removal, and multiple predator removal) compared to a control in which no predators were removed. Despite difficulties in suppressing centipede numbers, we observed increases in salamanders, millipede...
Comparative Analysis of Participation of Teachers of STEM and Non-STEM Subjects in Professional Development.

School administrators continuously consider teacher professional development (PD) as one of the key strategies to improving teachers’ pedagogical skills. Modern proposals for advancing education by improving student learning outcomes are centered on high quality professional development for teachers. However, teachers face a number of barriers when it comes to participation in PD. Also, students in K-12 levels taking Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and non-STEM subjects often report different learning experiences, most of which influence their decisions to enroll in STEM or non-STEM career-related programs in higher education. Understanding factors that influence the differential in teacher participation in PD is a critical step towards addressing student interest in STEM careers. Using the cross-sectional survey data from the Teaching and Learning International Survey of 2013, this study compared the participation of middle school STEM and non-STEM teachers in PD activities in the US. A bivariate analysis was used to compare STEM subject teachers versus non-STEM subject teachers’ participation in PD activities, its impact, and challenges. The findings showed that PD participation was higher among teachers of STEM subjects, but not significantly different from those for non-STEM subjects. Out-field teaching (no formal training of subject taught) accounted for 10.3% of the survey participants. Further, conflict with one’s work schedule was one of the major barriers to PD participation for teachers.
Readiness for Radiological and Nuclear Events among Emergency Medical Personnel.

Background Amongst medical providers, even though radiological and nuclear events are recognized as credible threats, there is a lack of knowledge and fear about the medical consequences among medical personnel that could significantly affect the treatment of patients injured and/or contaminated in such scenarios. The results of the only two nuclear detonations in war so far and more recent nuclear reactor accidents have demonstrated the remarkably inefficient response of the medical community. This study was conducted to evaluate the relative knowledge, willingness to respond, and familiarity with nuclear/radiological contamination risks among U.S. and Asian emergency medical personnel. Methods An IRB approved anonymous paper survey was distributed at various medical and disaster conferences and medicine courses in Japan and the U.S. The Surveys were written in Japanese and English and collected 4 categories of information: generalized demographics, willingness to manage, knowledge of disaster systems, and contamination risks. Results A total of 416 surveys were completed and collected. Demographics showed that physicians and prehospital responders were the prevalent survey responders. The majority of responders, despite self professed disaster training, were still very uncomfortable with and unaware how to respond to a radiological/nuclear event. Conclusion Despite familiarity with disasters both through courses and actual events, there is a paucity of comfort and knowledge regarding nuclear and radiological events amongst the medical community. Further education including course development in multiple languages promoted in multiple venues needs to occur to better educate and prepare the medical community for inevitable upcoming radiological/nuclear events.
Impact of Multiple Daily Clinical Pharmacist-Enforced Assessments on Time in Target Sedation Range.

Objectives Incorporation of a single daily assessment by a clinical pharmacist to improve adherence with a sedation protocol is associated with reduced duration of mechanical ventilation and intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (LOS). We test the feasibility of incorporating a clinical pharmacist into more frequent sedation assessments and observed whether there are any potential differences in the sedatives administered. Methods Prospective, quasi-experimental, pilot study of patients admitted to the medical ICU. Patients were included in the analysis if ≥18 years of age within the first 24 hours of initiation of mechanical ventilation. Our primary intent was to test the clinical feasibility surrounding more frequent sedation assessments by a clinical pharmacist by evaluating potential differences in time in target sedation range and sedative administration. Exploratory efficacy end points included time in target sedation range (0 to -2) using the Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale (RASS) and sedative exposure. Patients were assigned to receive either 3 assessments with a clinical pharmacist per day (intervention) or a single assessment by a clinical pharmacist per day (standard of care). During the assessments, clinical pharmacists participated in the RASS administration and made dosing adjustments according to an established sedation protocol. Main results Seventeen patients were enrolled (n = 6 intervention group, n = 11 standard of care). Duration of mechanical ventilation was similar in the 2 groups (intervention 100.0 hours [52.5-197.5] vs control 76.0 hours [46.0-201.0], P = .95), but patients in the intervention group exhibited a greater percentage time in the target RASS range (intervention 76.0% [53.7-81.5%] vs control 45.2% [35.3-67.0], P = .11) that was not statistically significant. Patients in the intervention group received less fentanyl per day (820.9 µg [227.3-1579.4] vs 1997 µg [1648.2-2477.2], P = .02) than in the control group. Conclusion Incorporating a clinical pharmacist into more frequent daily sedation assessments was associated with a reduction in fentanyl administration. There were no observed differences in time in target sedation range or reduction in duration of mechanical ventilation.
New Americans and the Quest for Political Office

Objective Record numbers of first‐ and second‐generation immigrants have won elected office over the last few electoral cycles, yet we find immigrants are still underrepresented at all levels of government. What are the perceived barriers to entry into political life among these New Americans? Method Using a unique survey data set that includes an oversample of first‐ and second‐generation immigrants who have enrolled in civic leadership trainings, we examine the similarities and differences between immigrant and nonimmigrant leaders. Results We find that immigrants are in many ways similar to their nonimmigrant counterparts in that access to structural resources help shape their political ambition. Yet immigrants, unlike their nonimmigrant counterparts, often have less of these resources and perceive their ability to capitalize on these resources as less feasible. Conclusions We find that the traditional barriers to office—lack of professional and political experiences, finances, and monied networks—all contribute to lower self‐perceived qualifications for office among both immigrants and nonimmigrants. Yet, the New American leaders who are highly politically involved, deeply rooted in their communities, and well‐positioned to run for office face the additional psychological barriers posed by their race and ethnicity, immigrant identity, citizenship status, language ability, and acculturation, barriers that are often offered in open‐ended essays as self‐evident and crippling. Leadership training programs play a crucial role in providing training and instilling confidence in would‐be immigrant candidates.
Stable solvent for solution-based electrical doping of semiconducting polymer films and its application to organic solar cells

The immersion of polymeric semiconducting films into a polyoxometalate (PMA) solution was found to lead to electrical doping over a limited depth, enabling the fabrication of organic photovoltaic devices with simplified geometry; yet, the technique was highly solvent selective and the use of nitromethane was found to be limiting. Here, we report on the use of acetonitrile as an alternative solvent to nitromethane. Morphology studies on pristine and PMA doped P3HT films suggest that dopants reside in between the lamella of the polymer, but cause no distortion to the P3HT π–π stacking. With this information, we propose an explanation for the observed solvent-selectivity of the doping method. Degradation studies reveal a superior stability of films doped with PMA in acetonitrile. Based on these findings, we believe that the post-process immersion technique, when dissolving PMA in acetonitrile, is a more suitable candidate to conduct solution-based electrical p-doping of organic semiconductors on an industrial scale.
Hilbert on General Covariance and Causality

Einstein and Hilbert both struggled to reconcile general covariance and causality in their early work on general relativity. In Einstein’s case, this first led to his infamous “hole argument”, a stumbling block that persuaded him early on that generally covariant field equations for gravitation could never be found. After his breakthrough to general covariance in the fall of 1915, the resolution came in form of the “point-coincidence argument.” Hilbert from the beginning took a different view of the “causality problem,” though he shifted his position somewhat in the light of Einstein’s breakthrough in November 1915. Nevertheless, his aim was to establish initial conditions that would lead to a well-defined Cauchy problem in general relativity. Hilbert consistently advocated the use of coordinate conditions in order to obtain solutions of the field equations that would maintain the causal ordering of events. Einstein’s “causality problem” thus differs from that of Hilbert, and the latter was never a victim of Einstein’s “hole argument.”
Habitual physical activity and central artery stiffening in older adults: the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study.

INTRODUCTION Regular physical activity appears to attenuate or even reverse age-related arterial stiffening. Yet, it is not clear if the reduced stiffening associated with habitual physical activity is also observed in community-dwelling older adults. METHODS Among 3893 older adults in a prospective cohort study, we associated physical activity with measures of central arterial stiffness (via carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity or cfPWV) and pressure pulsatility (via central pulse pressure or cPP). We also examined the association of long-term habitual physical activity, measured as persistence in physical activity levels from mid-life to late-life, with cfPWV and cPP among 1747 participants. RESULTS The adjusted mean difference in cfPWV was lower, reflecting less arterial stiffness, for those with moderate (s = -0.30 m/s) or high (s = -0.38 m/s) physical activity compared with no physical activity. The adjusted mean difference in cPP was also lower for those with high (s = -2.49 mmHg) physical activity, relative to no physical activity. Stronger effect estimates were observed among those with persistent physical activity from mid-life to late-life. CONCLUSION Higher physical activity in late-life, and habitual physical activity from mid-life to late-life, is associated with lower central arterial stiffness and pressure pulsatility in a large population-based sample of community-dwelling older adults.
Community-based land sparing: Territorial land-use zoning and forest management in the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca, Mexico

Land sparing land-use practices have been proposed as a strategy for optimizing commodity production, whether food or timber, and biodiversity conservation. Land sparing approaches have been criticized for being unrealistic in developing countries, as sustainable land sharing is well documented, high commodity yields and biodiversity can co-exist, and the land-use pattern a particular landscape exhibits is heavily dependent on development history. As well, the kind of large-scale land use planning required is highly unlikely in developing countries and rare in developed ones. However, in situations where large-scale land sparing could be carried out with democratic participation supported by government policy, it is entirely likely that there could be benefits for commodity production, biodiversity conservation, and community well-being. We present a regional case study of the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca. Resulting from historical phases of both passive and active land-use zoning, we found that 23 communities, with a total area of 201,093.94 hectares, and with forest management plans for ten to twenty years, have zoned 36% of the total territory for conservation, 37% for timber production, 5% for restoration, and 22% for agriculture and other uses, with 78% (156,550.63 ha) of the total area, forested. An average of 39% of the timber production areas was logged in the most recent ten-year period (2003–2013), leaving 61% of the forest production area in reserve, under medium-term conservation. Over a 20-year period, this highly forested landscape has produced nearly 3 million metric tons of timber. This suggests that community-based land sparing may be a viable option for commodity production and forest conservation.
Africa’s Continental Free Trade Area: A Closer Look at the 2012 African Union’s Action Plan for Boosting Intra-African Trade

Many scholars are skeptical about the African Union's commitment to establish a Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) by 2017 because African leaders are generally characterized by their passivity, slowness and their tendency to depend on foreign aids. Here are some of the questions that are asked: Can African countries really make it? Is it too soon for them to think of a CFTA? Will they have to cooperate with foreign institutions (including states) and especially the WTO? How can they learn from previous mistakes? What is the sustainable development aspect of their plan? And what is the gender aspect of it considering the increased number of informal cross border trade by women? This paper will attempt to answer some of those questions. It will submit that African leaders have to transform their political decision into action and that they have to cooperate with their partners, not donors, and with the WTO/World Bank/African Development Bank and the UNCTAD if they want to establish a successful FTA that respects multilateral norms. Further, the paper critically analyzes the action plan highlighting some previous mistakes and warning African leaders not to fall in the same traps.
Metabolites of Ovarian Hormones and Behavioral Correlates in Captive Female Bonobos (Pan Paniscus)

1. Both urinary (predominantly E1G, E1S and PdG) and fecal (mainly metabolites from the 5α-pregnane series and estrone) hormones can be used to monitor ovarian activity in bonobos. 2. Fecal progestin measurements may complete the picture obtained from urinary samples after conversion via simple regression. 3. Fecal estrogen measurements by RIA are unsuitable for monitoring cyclicity. 4. Females of 45 years and older are still regularly cycling. The question of the onset of menopause in this species requires further exploration. 5. Preliminary findings reveal different copulation patterns for adult and adolescent males across the female’s ovarian cycle. More behavioral and hormonal data are needed to verify this claim.
Stem Cells: Are They Pertinent to My Research?

Stem cells are a long-lived population of small round cells possessing two remarkable and distinct characteristics, immortality and pluripotency. These two characteristic properties are inherent in “stemness”: (1) immortality is the capacity for indefinite self-renewal, which is duplication or regeneration without the loss of developmental potential, and (2) pluripotency is the ability to differentiate into all the tissues of the adult body. So stem cells can replicate via mitotic division while retaining their undifferentiated state or differentiate into lineage-specific cells. The promise of stem cells now spans a multitude of fields with therapeutic applications for numerous diseases. Major areas of applications include reversal of target organ injury, reversal of senescence for end organ disease, targeting the cancer stem cell to reverse chemoresistance, and corrections for genetic and birth defects.
Computer-Aided Star Shot Analysis for Linac Quality Assurance Testing

With the increase in the precision of treatments delivered using radiotherapy machines, there has been a corresponding rise in demand for quality assurance tests that can verify the accuracy of the...
Why Have Losses Become More Common at Large U.S. Firms? Falling Operating Profits, Rising Debt. (WITHDRAWN)

In recent decades, corporate profits have risen while household incomes for the vast majority of Americans have stagnated. In this paper, I document a trend that offers a new way of making sense of...
Dual Invasive Fungal Infection Presenting with Cervical Myelopathy

Disseminated fungal infections are often seen in immunocompromised patients. Here we present a case of a previously healthy woman presenting with cervical myeloradiculopathy found to have two separate fungal infections in the setting of depressed CD4 cell counts and a genetic mutation predisposing to invasive fungal infections.
Current US Food and Drug Administration-Approved Pharmacologic Therapies for the Treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome with Diarrhea

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional bowel disorder characterized by abdominal pain and alterations in stool form and/or frequency, leading to reduced quality of life. Pharmacologic agents currently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment of IBS with diarrhea (IBS-D) in adults are the nonsystemic antibiotic rifaximin, the mixed µ- and κ-opioid receptor agonist/δ-opioid antagonist eluxadoline, and the selective serotonin 5-HT3 antagonist alosetron (the last of which is indicated only in women with severe IBS-D refractory to conventional therapy). Both eluxadoline and alosetron are administered as chronic daily therapies; rifaximin is given as a 2-week course of treatment with repeat courses administered as needed for symptom recurrence. Presumed mechanisms of action of rifaximin include modulation of the gut microbiota, anti-inflammatory activity, normalization of visceral hypersensitivity, and reduction in intestinal permeability. Eluxadoline targets opioid receptors in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, resulting in decreased GI motility, fluid secretion, and visceral pain perception. Alosetron antagonizes serotonergic afferent neural signals and also slows GI motility. The efficacy and safety of these agents have been investigated in several rigorous clinical trials, and it has been demonstrated that they improve global and individual IBS symptoms. This review highlights the pivotal efficacy and safety data of the three pharmacologic agents currently indicated in the USA for the management of IBS-D in adults.Funding: Salix Pharmaceuticals.
Steroidogenic acute regulatory protein transcription is regulated by estrogen receptor signaling in largemouth bass ovary.

Abstract Estrogenic contaminants in the environment are linked to the occurrence of reproductive abnormalities in many aquatic species, including largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides; LMB). Previous work has shown that many different types of xenoestrogens regulate expression of the Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory protein (StAR), a cholesterol-transporting protein vital to steroid hormone biosynthesis; however, the regulatory mechanisms of StAR are incompletely characterized in fish. To learn more about endogenous expression patterns of StAR in the ovary, LMB were collected from the St. John’s River (Florida, USA) over an entire breeding season to investigate StAR expression. Plasma 17β-estradiol (E2) and StAR mRNA levels were positively correlated in females, and StAR mRNA levels displayed ~ 100-fold increase between primary oocyte growth stages and final maturation. To further study the regulation of StAR, female LMB in the laboratory were fed at ≃2% of their weight on a diet laden with 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2, 70 or 200 ng EE2 per gram feed). Diets were designed to achieve a physiologically-relevant exposure to EE2, and StAR expression was assessed in vivo. We observed a dose-dependent suppression of StAR mRNA levels, however both diets led to high, pharmacological levels in the blood and do not represent normal physiological ranges of estrogens. In the 200 ng EE2/gm feed group, ovarian StAR mRNA levels were suppressed to approximately 5% of that of the LMB control group. These investigations suggest that LMB StAR increases in expression during oocyte maturation and that it is suppressed by E2 feedback when estrogen levels are high, through the HPG axis. A 2.9 kb segment of the LMB StAR promoter was examined for putative E2 response elements using in silico software, and a putative estrogen receptor binding element (ERE/-1745) was predicted in the promoter. The functionality of the ERE was examined using MA-10 mouse Leydig cells transfected with the LMB StAR promoter. Estrogen receptor (ER) interaction with ERE/-1745 was evaluated under basal and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)-treated conditions in the presence and absence of E2. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) experiments revealed that ESR1 binding to the promoter was enriched under basal conditions and E2 exposure elicited an increase in enrichment (4-fold) above that observed under basal conditions. ESR2 was not strongly enriched at the ERE/-1745 site, suggesting that StAR may be preferentially regulated by LMB estrogen receptor 1 (esr1). Taken together, these different experiments provide evidence that LMB StAR is under the control of estrogens and that ESR1 binds directly to the LMB StAR promoter in an E2-responsive manner.
A study of the reaction12C(π +,π + +p)11B

We have measured the cross section for the reaction12C(π+,π++p)11B in a coincidence experiment with an incident pion energy of 100 MeV and find that the residual11B nucleus remains predominantly in the ground state. A test of the nucleon charge exchange model by Hewson [3] is discussed.
Taxi Scheduling Optimization with Incomplete Information

Past researches on taxi operation mainly tackles the problem of taxi scheduling from an economics and mathematical modeling perspective. Such methodology requires as much information as possible to yield accurate and meaningful results. However, such information is usually impossible to get as data are becoming crucial assets to taxi companies. In this study we propose a novel model and simulation of taxi scheduling where limited and incomplete information is given. We aim to reduce the waiting time for taxi driver by generating cruising strategy for them. Our simulation strategy turns out to reduce taxi waiting time by 7% which has potential economic improvement.
Clinical features and genetic analysis of a child with mosaic variegated aneuploidy syndrome

Objective To explore the clinical phenotype, genetic variant, treatment and prognosis of a child with mosaic variegated aneuploidy syndrome (MVAS). Methods Immunological marker screening, chromosomal karyotyping and whole exome sequencing were carried out. Results The 1-year-11-month old girl has featured severe growth retardation, feeding difficulty, short stature, microcephaly, facial anomalies, scoliosis, visual impairment, hypotonia, chylothorax, and renal lesions. Karyotype analysis of peripheral blood lymphocytes has discovered variegated aneuploidy cells (6/11). DNA sequencing has identified compound heterozygous c. 826delG (p.Asp276Metfs*21) and c. 2441G>A (p.Arg814His) variants in the BUB1B gene, which were inherited from her father and mother, respectively. Conclusion The compound heterozygous variants of the BUB1B gene probably underlie the pathogenesis in this patient. Key words: Mosaic variegated aneuploidy syndrome; BUB1B gene; Chylothorax
Compositional Probabilistic Analysis of Temporal Properties Over Stochastic Detectors

Runtime monitoring is a vital part of safety-critical systems. However, early stage assurance of monitoring quality is currently limited: it relies either on complex models that might be inaccurate in unknown ways or on data that would only be available once the system has been built. To address this issue, we propose a compositional framework for modeling and analysis of noisy monitoring systems. Our novel 3-value detector model uses probability spaces to represent atomic (noncomposite) detectors, and it composes them into a temporal logic-based monitor. The error rates of these monitors are estimated by our analysis engine, which combines symbolic probability algebra, independence inference, and estimation from labeled detection data. Our evaluation on an autonomous underwater vehicle found that our framework produces accurate estimates of error rates while using only detector traces, without any monitor traces. Furthermore, when data are scarce, our approach shows higher accuracy than noncompositional data-driven estimates from monitor traces. Thus, this article enables accurate evaluation of logical monitors in early design stages before deploying them.
Characterization of Electronic Cigarette Warning Statements Portrayed in YouTube Videos

INTRODUCTION In 2018, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) required that electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) manufacturers, packagers, importers, distributors, and retailers display an addictive or alternate warning statement on e-cigarette visual advertisements. Few studies have investigated the FDA-mandated and other warnings on social media. This study examined the prevalence and content of warning statements in e-cigarette-related YouTube videos. METHODS In 2019, The Virginia Commonwealth University Center for the Study of Tobacco Products conducted bi-monthly (February-June) YouTube searches by relevance and view count to identify e-cigarette-related videos. Overall, 178 videos met the inclusion criteria. Staff coded each video for the presence of a visual/verbal warning statement, warning statement type (eg, FDA-mandated, addiction/tobacco, safety/toxic exposure, health effects), sponsorship, and tobacco product characteristics. A data extraction tool collected the video URL, title, upload date, and number of views, likes/dislikes, and comments. RESULTS Only 5.1% of videos contained FDA-mandated and 21.9% contained non-mandated warnings. All videos with FDA-mandated and 46.2% of non-mandated warnings were represented visually. Only 13.1% of industry-sponsored videos uploaded after the mandate effective date had an FDA-mandated warning statement and videos with FDA-mandated and non-mandated (v. no) warnings had significantly fewer views, likes, dislikes, and comments. Among all non-mandated warnings, 31.3% featured an addiction/tobacco, 18.8% a safety/toxic exposure, and 37.5% a health effects warning. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of FDA-mandated warning statements in e-cigarette related YouTube videos was low. FDA enforcement of the warning statement mandate on YouTube could increase the public's understanding of the addictive nature of nicotine in e-cigarettes. IMPLICATIONS The FDA has the authority to regulate the advertisement and promotion of e-cigarettes on the Internet. These data can inform future FDA requirements related to the language content and visual representation of addiction/tobacco, safety/exposure, and health effects warning statements that appear in YouTube videos and other visual social media popular among young people. Such data would help consumers make informed decisions about purchasing e-cigarette products, using e-cigarettes, and avoiding unintentional harm related to e-cigarettes. In addition, these data may help social media platforms make decisions on whether they will prohibit advertisements that promote or facilitate the sale of tobacco products.
Exposure to Weight Management Counseling Among Students at 8 U.S. Medical Schools.

Introduction Clinical guidelines support physician intervention consistent with the Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, Arrange framework for adults who have obesity. However, weight management counseling curricula vary across medical schools. It is unknown how frequently students receive experiences in weight management counseling, such as instruction, observation, and direct experience. Methods A cross-sectional survey, conducted in 2017, of 730 third-year medical students in 8 U.S. medical schools assessed the frequency of direct patient, observational, and instructional weight management counseling experiences that were reported as summed scores with a range of 0‒18. Analysis was completed in 2017. Results Students reported the least experience with receiving instruction (6.5, SD=3.9), followed by direct patient experience (8.6, SD=4.8) and observational experiences (10.3, SD=5.0). During the preclinical years, 79% of students reported a total of ≤3 hours of combined weight management counseling instruction in the classroom, clinic, doctor's office, or hospital. The majority of the students (59%–76%) reported never receiving skills-based instruction for weight management counseling. Of the Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, Arrange framework, scores were lowest for assisting the patient to achieve their agreed-upon goals (31%) and arranging follow-up contact (22%). Conclusions Overall exposure to weight management counseling was less than optimal. Medical school educators can work toward developing a more coordinated approach to weight management counseling.
Review of bio-optical imaging systems with a high space-bandwidth product

Optical imaging has served as a primary method to collect information about biosystems across scales—from functionalities of tissues to morphological structures of cells and even at biomolecular levels. However, to adequately characterize a complex biosystem, an imaging system with a number of resolvable points, referred to as a space-bandwidth product (SBP), in excess of one billion is typically needed. Since a gigapixel-scale far exceeds the capacity of current optical imagers, compromises must be made to obtain either a low spatial resolution or a narrow field-of-view (FOV). The problem originates from constituent refractive optics—the larger the aperture, the more challenging the correction of lens aberrations. Therefore, it is impractical for a conventional optical imaging system to achieve an SBP over hundreds of millions. To address this unmet need, a variety of high-SBP imagers have emerged over the past decade, enabling an unprecedented resolution and FOV beyond the limit of conventional optics. We provide a comprehensive survey of high-SBP imaging techniques, exploring their underlying principles and applications in bioimaging.
Potential Booby Traps and Landmines

This chapter highlights the probable risks of drawing misleading conclusions. Certain traps or landmines may result in exaggerated or unduly optimistic views about the effectiveness of services, whereas others may lead to an underestimation of service effectiveness. Usually, systematically accumulating errors result in distortion and misleading conclusions by the unwary evaluator. Drawing reasonable conclusions is neither simple nor uncomplicated. Experimental research is straight forward because one has to follow methodological rules and regulations there. On the other hand, program evaluation demands more awareness, judgment, and professional responsibility in interpreting the numbers and in drawing logical conclusions. This chapter also discusses the risk for drawing misleading conclusions if one assesses emotional and behavioral variables alone. Evaluators and managers need to become creative in developing procedures to counteract concerns regarding the vested interests where providers are the probable sources of the outcome data. The evaluator, in such cases, has to be vigilant and aware of the probable potential biases, and should accordingly qualify conclusions when they are likely to have influenced the data.
Religion in the Public Sphere—with Dietrich Bonhoeffer towards a Renewed Understanding of ‘the Two Kingdoms’

In this article Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s critical reception of the Lutheran doctrine of the two kingdoms is related to the discussion about religion and politics in liberal democracies. Bonhoeffer experienced not only how the church isolated itself from the political sphere—by a ‘pseudo-Lutheran’ doctrine of the two kingdoms—but also how the church was politicized and abused by Deutsche Christen. His theological thinking is therefore a helpful starting point to formulate a theology which is politically relevant without being transformed into politics. Against the background of Bonhoeffer’s theology an argument is advanced that a renewed understanding of the two kingdoms assists the church in being focused on the Gospel, at the same time as it can also give the church instruments to be present in the public sphere with well-defined pretensions, which clarifies whether the assertions of the church are based on revelation or on public reason.
Beta-adrenergic coupled phospholipid methylation: A possible role in withdrawal from chronic ethanol

Abstract Phospholipid methylation was studied in rat brain cortex preparations. Adrenergic agonists stimulated methylation in a dose-dependent manner. The effect was stereospecific and the order of potency of agonists was isoproterenol > norepinephrine ≥ epinephrine. The stimulation could be blocked by propranolol. It was concluded that adrenergic stimulation of phospholipid methylation in these preparations involved a beta-adrenergic receptor and that this response was dependent upon an intact membrane environment. Neither adenosine nor histamine stimulated methylation. In fact, histamine appeared to inhibit methylation. Cleavage of phosphatidylcholine to lyso-phosphatidylcholine occurred in the presence of either adrenergic agonists or histamine, indicating an involvement of phospholipase A 2 . Norepinephrine-sensitive methylation in cortex homogenates from rats withdrawn from chronic ethanol administration was double that of controls by 72 hr after the final ethanol dose. Furthermore, basal methylation exhibited a decreasing trend during this period.
Staphylococcus aureus Outbreak Investigation of an Illinois Bakery

Over 100 individuals were sickened after ingesting an assortment of desserts linked to four staphylococcal food poisoning outbreaks leading investigators to products manufactured by an Illinois bakery. The investigative team identified substantial deviations from the current Good Manufacturing Practice Regulations, 21 CFR Part 110, during multiple visits to the bakery. A total of 299 environmental swabs and 16 raw ingredients were collected for bacteriological analysis. Staphylococcus aureus isolates recovered from these samples were evaluated using either serological or polymerase chain reaction methods for the identification of staphylococcal enterotoxins SEA-SEE, SEG-SEI, SE-like SElJ-SElU or their respective genes, and for Panton–Valentine leukocidin cytotoxin. A raw ingredient and 16% of the environmental samples revealed the presence of enterotoxigenic S. aureus capable of producing diverse combinations of toxins. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing found that all S. aureus isolates were resistant to one or more agent(s). Pulsed field gel electrophoresis characterization of the isolates identified six pattern types. Practical Applications This Staphylococcus aureus outbreak investigation revealed the prevalence and diversity of antimicrobial-resistant strains of S. aureus carrying both classical staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) and genes for nonclassical SE and SE-like enterotoxins found in the environment of an Illinois bakery. In this occurrence, nonclassical SE and SE-like enterotoxin serotypes were coupled with classical SEs, and therefore detectable by commercially available kits. This outbreak investigation demonstrated the abundance of the nonclassical SE and SE-like enterotoxin serotypes in the environment and the anticipated need for new screening method requirements.
An Expert System at the Reference Desk

A prototype expert system is being tested by technical writing classes at Texas AM the second surveyed their opinion of the expert system. Patron reactions, problems encountered, and future changes will be discussed.
Fourier analysis on finite groups and applications

Introduction Cast of characters Part I: 1. Congruences and the quotient ring of the integers mod n 1.2 The discrete Fourier transform on the finite circle 1.3 Graphs of Z/nZ, adjacency operators, eigenvalues 1.4 Four questions about Cayley graphs 1.5 Finite Euclidean graphs and three questions about their spectra 1.6 Random walks on Cayley graphs 1.7 Applications in geometry and analysis 1.8 The quadratic reciprocity law 1.9 The fast Fourier transform 1.10 The DFT on finite Abelian groups - finite tori 1.11 Error-correcting codes 1.12 The Poisson sum formula on a finite Abelian group 1.13 Some applications in chemistry and physics 1.14 The uncertainty principle Part II. Introduction 2.1 Fourier transform and representations of finite groups 2.2 Induced representations 2.3 The finite ax + b group 2.4 Heisenberg group 2.5 Finite symmetric spaces - finite upper half planes Hq 2.6 Special functions on Hq - K-Bessel and spherical 2.7 The general linear group GL(2, Fq) 2.8. Selberg's trace formula and isospectral non-isomorphic graphs 2.9 The trace formula on finite upper half planes 2.10 The trace formula for a tree and Ihara's zeta function.
Establishment of Terrestrial Reference Frames by new Observational Techniques

The use of space techniques for establishing transcontinental and intercontinental distances is progressing very rapidly. We can think of the set of station locations used in either LAGEOS ranging or VLBI measurements as forming the vertices of a polyhedron. After correcting for tectonic plate motions using an adopted model, we expect the geometry of the polyhedron to be fairly stable over periods of the order of a year. However, after some period of time, a new set of station coordinates will be required because of improved data, unexpected station motions, etc. Methods for maintaining agreement with the previous set of station coordinates in some average sense are discussed in this paper. Some of the contributions expected from other new measurement methods also are described.
Adenosine Regulates the Proinflammatory Signaling Function of Thrombin in Endothelial Cells

The plasma level of the regulatory metabolite adenosine increases during the activation of coagulation and inflammation. Here we investigated the effect of adenosine on modulation of thrombin-mediated proinflammatory responses in HUVECs. We found that adenosine inhibits the barrier-disruptive effect of thrombin in HUVECs by a concentration-dependent manner. Analysis of cell surface expression of adenosine receptors revealed that A2A and A2B are expressed at the highest level among the four receptor subtypes (A2B > A2A > A1 > A3) on HUVECs. The barrier-protective effect of adenosine in response to thrombin was recapitulated by the A2A specific agonist, CGS 21680, and abrogated both by the siRNA knockdown of the A2A receptor and by the A2A-specific antagonists, ZM-241385 and SCH-58261. The thrombin-induced RhoA activation and its membrane translocation were both inhibited by adenosine in a cAMP-dependent manner, providing a molecular mechanism through which adenosine exerts a barrier-protective function. Adenosine also inhibited thrombin-mediated activation of NF-κB and decreased adhesion of monocytic THP-1 cells to stimulated HUVECs via down-regulation of expression of cell surface adhesion molecules, VCAM-1, ICAM-1, and E-selectin. Moreover, adenosine inhibited thrombin-induced elevated expression of proinflammatory cytokines, IL-6 and HMGB-1; and chemokines, MCP-1, CXCL-1, and CXCL-3. Taken together, these results suggest that adenosine may inhibit thrombin-mediated proinflammatory signaling responses, thereby protecting the endothelium from injury during activation of coagulation and inflammation. J. Cell. Physiol. 229: 1292–1300, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.