cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Percutaneous valve repair and replacement: the frontier of valve disease treatment.

The percutaneous treatment of mitral stenosis using balloon valvuloplasty is a reality. However, in Western countries there is only a low incidence of rheumatic valvular disease. Thus, attention is now focused on percutaneous, transcatheter approaches that will allow wider ranging treatment of pulmonic, aortic and mitral valve disease. These new approaches should result in percutaneous technologies that will allow replacement of pulmonic and aortic valves for both stenosis and regurgitation, repair of mitral regurgitation, and possibly even replacement of the mitral valve. Pulmonic and aortic valve replacement are already being studied in safety and efficacy trials in Europe. Investigators using percutaneous mitral valve repair will soon complete a Phase I US trial and the technology will be studied in a Phase II randomized trial. Patient care options for valvular heart disease are rapidly changing.‘Potential percutaneous replacement of the mitral valve still faces many practical hurdles, but sooner or la...
Influence of promoter/enhancer region haplotypes on MGMT transcriptional regulation: a potential biomarker for human sensitivity to alkylating agents

The O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase gene (MGMT) encodes the direct reversal DNA repair protein that removes alkyl adducts from the O 6 position of guanine. Several single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) exist in the MGMT promoter/enhancer (P/E) region. However, the haplotype structure encompassing these SNPs and their functional/biological significance are currently unknown. We hypothesized that MGMT P/E haplotypes, rather than individual SNPs, alter MGMT transcription and can thus alter human sensitivity to alkylating agents. To identify the haplotype structure encompassing the MGMT P/E region SNPs, we sequenced 104 DNA samples from healthy individuals and inferred the haplotypes using the data generated. We identified eight SNPs in this region, namely T7C (rs180989103), T135G (rs1711646), G290A (rs61859810), C485A (rs1625649), C575A (rs113813075), G666A (rs34180180), C777A (rs34138162) and C1099T (rs16906252). Phylogenetics and Sequence Evolution analysis predicted 21 potential haplotypes that encompass these SNPs ranging in frequencies from 0.000048 to 0.39. Of these, 10 were identified in our study population as 20 paired haplotype combinations. To determine the functional significance of these haplotypes, luciferase reporter constructs representing these haplotypes were transfected into glioblastoma cells and their effect on MGMT promoter activity was determined. Compared with the most common (reference) haplotype 1, seven haplotypes significantly upregulated MGMT promoter activity (18–119% increase; P < 0.05), six significantly downregulated MGMT promoter activity (29–97% decrease; P < 0.05) and one haplotype had no effect. Mechanistic studies conducted support the conclusion that MGMT P/E haplotypes, rather than individual SNPs, differentially regulate MGMT transcription and could thus play a significant role in human sensitivity to environmental and therapeutic alkylating agents.
Comparison of Hyper-DAG based task mapping and scheduling heuristics for wireless sensor networks

In-network processing emerges as an approach to reduce energy consumption in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) by decreasing the overall transferred data volume. Parallel processing among sensors is a promising approach to provide the computation capacity required by in-network processing methods. In this paper, Hyper-DAG based Mapping and Scheduling (HDMS) algorithms for energy constrained WSNs are introduced. The design objective of these algorithms is to minimize schedule lengths subject to energy consumption constraints. Simulation results show that the CNPT-based HDMS algorithm outperforms other heuristic algorithms with respect to schedule lengths and heuristic execution times subject to energy consumption constraints.
Nonlinear Model-Based Control of Pulse Width Modulated Pneumatic Servo Systems

This paper presents a control methodology that enables nonlinear model-based control of pulse width modulated (PWM) pneumatic servo actuators. An averaging approach is developed to describe the equivalent continuous-time dynamics of a PWM controlled nonlinear system, which renders the system, originally discontinuous and possibly nonaffine in the input, into an equivalent system that is both continuous and affine in control input (i.e., transforms the system to nonlinear control canonical form). This approach is applied to a pneumatic actuator controlled by a pair of three-way solenoid actuated valves. The pneumatic actuation system is transformed into its averaged equivalent control canonical form, and a sliding mode controller is developed based on the resulting model. The controller is implemented on an experimental system, and the effectiveness of the proposed approach validated by experimental trajectory tracking. DOI: 10.1115/1.2232689
Assessing Competition Issues in the Amended Google Book Search Settlement

Google takes products out of beta status slowly, even while it is making substantial improvements in the product. Objectors will see the amended settlement agreement as a mixed bag, with some finding almost nothing in the changes (privacy advocates and those who fear high prices for institutional subscriptions), while others will find their concerns addressed (foreign governments acting, one hopes, with the correct sense of the interests of foreign authors).The amended settlement agreement clearly responds to the concerns raised by the Department of Justice. In waiving the benefits of possible doctrines of antitrust immunity, the ASA solves a timing problem for DOJ. DOJ faced an all-or-nothing quandary: challenge the agreement now or risk the possibility losing the right to challenge it later. The Noerr waiver solves that problem. There may be real benefits to seeing how the pricing provisions play out in actual operating conditions. Don’t shadow box now but fight later if necessary. I could easily see DOJ or Judge Chin reaching that conclusion and choosing to defer consideration of the pricing issues to another day.The orphan works licensing is differently situated. The revised agreement creates a new unclaimed works fiduciary but does so in incomplete fashion. The UWF takes over some of the registry’s responsibilities rather than acting as a true fiduciary for orphan works holders. Such a fiduciary would be situated to license the orphan works to third parties on a going forward basis. That would have been an elegant solution to the competitive issues raised by the current plan to grant a license to the orphan works to Google and only to Google. The revised settlement makes real progress on these issues only to stop short of a visible and attainable real solution.
Using prediction errors to drive saccade adaptation: the implicit double-step task

A prediction-based error signal, neurally computed as the difference between predicted and observed movement outcomes, has been proposed as the driving force for motor learning. This suggests that the generation of predictive saccades to periodically paced targets-whose performance accuracy is actively maintained using this same error signal-invokes the motor-learning network. We examined whether a simple predictive-saccade task (implicit double-step adaptation, in which targets are gradually displaced outward to exaggerate normal hypometric movement errors) can stand in place of a traditional double-step saccade-adaptation task to induce an increase in saccade gain. We find that the implicit double-step adaptation task can induce significant gain-increase adaptation (of comparable magnitude to that of the standard double-step task) in normal control subjects. Unlike control subjects, patients with impaired cerebella are unable to adapt their saccades in response to this paradigm; this implies that the cerebellum is crucial for processing prediction-based error signals for motor learning.
Pure mucinous carcinoma of the breast: is axillary staging necessary?

Background Mucinous carcinoma of the breast (MCB) may be associated with a low risk of axillary metastases.
An Evaluation of a New Anticoagulant, Acenocoumarin (Sintrom)

A new coumarin anticoagulant, acenocoumarin (Sintrom) is compared with other hypoprothrombinemic agents in the same human subjects. Comparing doses which result in the same peak prothrombin time, both speed of onset and duration of effect are found to be a function of the rate of biotransformation. Rapid biotransformation results in fast onset and short duration of action and vice versa. Sintrom is intermediate between the slow, long-acting compounds (Dicumarol, Warfarin, Coumopyrin) and the fast, short-acting Tromexan. One 16 to 32 mg. dose of Sintrom rapidly results in a desirable hypoprothrombinemia which is maintained by a single daily dose of 2 to 10 mg.
Protection against diet-induced obesity and obesity- related insulin resistance in Group 1B PLA2-deficient mice

Group 1B phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is an abundant lipolytic enzyme that is well characterized biochemically and structurally. Because of its high level of expression in the pancreas, it has been pres...
Challenge--Construction of an Adequate Digital Forensics Testbed

The challenge - what is an adequate laboratory specification for emulating network attacks and experimenting with network forensics, other digital forensics techniques and social behavioral traits? Could published specifications for different scales of research assist in research development? Is the specification described here adequate for research purposes? What additional considerations are needed for simulating network attacks and validating forensic tools?
Effects of Type of Value Appealed to and Valence of Appeal on Children's Dental Health Behavior

Examined the effects of the type of value appealed to and valence of appeal on children's intentions to engage in toothbrushing, their self-report of toothbrushing frequency, and their plaque level. 98 fifth-grade students served as the participants. Slide shows appealed to either health- or socially oriented values and also differed with respect to valence (positive vs. negative). A control group received a message that provided basic dental health information. Group comparisons revealed that children who received the negative social appeal showed a significant improvement in plaque level. Only the negative social appeal group differed significantly from the control group on the dependent measures.
Autologous transplantation of retrovirally transduced bone marrow or neonatal blood cells into cats can lead to long-term engraftment in the absence of myeloablation.

Autologous transplantation of retrovirally transduced bone marrow or neonatal blood cells into cats can lead to long-term engraftment in the absence of myeloablation
Modeling Interplanetary Logistics: A Mathematical Model for Mission Planning

The objective of this paper is to demonstrate a methodology for designing and evaluating the operational planning for interplanetary exploration missions. A primary question for space exploration mission design is how to best design the logistics required to sustain the exploration initiative. Using terrestrial logistics modeling tools that have been extended to encompass the dynamics and requirements of space transportation, an architectural decision method has been created. The model presented in this paper is capable of analyzing a variety of mission scenarios over an extended period of time with the goal of deflning interesting architectural scenarios for space logistics. This model can be utilized to evaluate difierent logistics trades, such as a possible establishment of a push-pull boundary, which can aid in commodity pre-positioning. The results of this implementation are presented for a lunar campaign using estimated surface demands for exploration.
Advances in the Metallurgical Application of Electron Probe Microanalysis

Electron probe microanalysis is widely used in the investigation of phenomena of general metallurgical interest as well as in the study of specific materials and processes. New devices for X-ray detection and automatic data collection, increase the usefulness of the microprobe for such applications. Besides the well-known methods for qualitative and quantitative electron probe analysis, the instrument can also be used advantageously for quantitative metallography and related techniques.
Potassium channels are not involved in vasopressin-induced vasodilation in the rat lung

We have previously observed that arginine vasopressin (AVP)-induced pulmonary vasodilation is attenuated by nitric oxide (NO) synthesis inhibition; however, blockade of the response is incomplete even at very high doses of the inhibitor. Thus it was hypothesized that the remaining vasodilation might be due to release of an endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor acting to open vascular smooth muscle K+ channels. Lungs were isolated from male Sprague-Dawley rats and perfused at constant flow with physiological saline solution containing 4% albumin. After equilibration, lungs were treated with either glibenclamide (50 microM), Ba2+ (100 microM), tetraethylammonium (10 mM), or the respective vehicle and were then constricted with the thromboxane mimetic U-46619. Upon development of a stable degree of vasoconstriction, AVP (2.5 x 10(-9) M) was administered and its vasodilator action noted. AVP caused an approximately 60% reversal of U-46619 vasoconstriction in control lungs, and this response was not affected by any of the K+ channel blockers. In contrast, administration of the NO synthesis inhibitor N omega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA; 300 microM) significantly attenuated AVP-induced dilation to approximately 25%. The addition of K+ channel blockers did not further diminish the vasodilatory response in L-NNA-treated lungs. In conclusion, these results suggest that ATP- and Ca(2+)-sensitive K+ channels are not involved in the pulmonary vasodilatory response to AVP.
A Tutorial on AG Code Construction from a Gröbner Basis Perspective

This chapter is meant primarily as an introduction to AG codes, with material on producing proper one-point descriptions of these codes as well. The terminology chosen is that of the easily understood concepts of multivariate polynomial rings and ideals of relations among the variables, which is more useful computationally than the more standard algebraic geometry terminology.
Operative considerations for late-presenting persistent Müllerian duct syndrome.

Persistent Mullerian duct syndrome (PMDS) is a condition in which a 46, XY male displays masculine external genitalia, but internally retains developed Mullerian duct structures (uterus, fallopian tubes, and upper two-thirds vagina). Thoughtful operative consideration is needed to maximize the therapeutic benefit while minimizing the risk of hypogonadism, infertility, and erectile dysfunction. We report a 53-year-old male with a pelvic mass incidentally discovered on routine ultrasound, intra-operatively discovered to be PMDS. PMDS is a rare condition that may present late in life. The primary operative consideration is performing orchiopexy for cancer surveillance or orchiectomy if orchiopexy is not possible. Additional considerations include surveillance and counseling of infertility, hypogonadism, and assessment of the potential need for involvement of psychiatry. Removal of Mullerian remnants is a subject to debate. If possible, discuss with the patient their risks and options in the preoperative setting to guide operative planning.
Description of a risk predictive model of 30-day postoperative mortality after elective abdominal aortic aneurysm repair

Abstract Objective Despite vast improvement in the field of vascular surgery, elective abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair still leads to perioperative death. Patients with asymptomatic AAAs, therefore, would benefit from an individual risk assessment to help with decisions regarding operative intervention. The purpose of this study was to describe such a 30-day postoperative (POD) risk prediction model using American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Project (NSQIP) data. Methods The NSQIP database (2005-2011) was queried for patients undergoing elective AAA repair using open or endovascular techniques. Clinical variables and known predictors of mortality were included in a full prediction model. These variables included procedure type, patient's age, functional dependence and comorbidities, and surgeon's specialty. Backward elimination with alpha-level of 0.2 was used to construct a parsimonious model. Model discrimination was evaluated in equally sized risk quintiles. Results The overall mortality rate for 18,917 elective AAA patients was 1.7%. In this model, surgeon's specialty was not predictive of POD. The most significant factors affecting POD included open repair (odds ratio [OR], 2.712; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.119-3.469; P 70 (OR, 2.243; 95% CI, 1.695-3.033; P P P P = .001).The discriminating ability of the NSQIP model was reasonable (C-statistic = 0.751) and corrected to 0.736 after internal validation. The NSQIP model performed well predicting mortality among risk-group quintiles. Conclusions The NSQIP risk prediction model is a robust vehicle to predict POD among patient undergoing elective AAA repair. This model can be used for risk stratification of patients undergoing elective AAA repair.
Natural and anthropogenic controls on the frequency of preferential flow occurrence in a wastewater spray irrigation field

Abstract To quantify the frequency of preferential flow (PF) occurrence and its controls, and to examine the interactions of soils and irrigation on water flow dynamics, soil moisture was monitored at six depths every two minutes at four sites in a wastewater spray irrigation field from 2009 to 2011. Two irrigated sites – one cropped and another forested – were compared with two corresponding non-irrigated sites. Activation of preferential flow pathways was determined from the sequences of soil moisture responses at various depths for a total of 633 water input events, including 82 irrigation events. The results showed that the overall averaged frequencies of PF at the non-irrigated sites were 24.9% at the cropped site and 24.7% at the forested site. By contrast, the averaged frequencies at the irrigated sites were 47.1% at the cropped site and 45.0% at the forested site. The temporal stability of PF frequency was evaluated, showing that the overall frequency of PF stabilized after 70 events at non-irrigated sites, while the irrigated sites took as many as 105 events (24 of which were irrigations). Associations between 20 possible controls related to water input, moisture response, and season were quantified using the Student’s t -test between each parameter and PF detection. The most influential factors were water inputs, especially the total input and peak input intensity. Antecedent soil moisture and response slope (maximum 2-min increase in moisture content during the response) were also significant in some but not all cases. Soil horizonation influenced soil water storage and dynamics by restricting flow and causing perched water tables. Irrigated sites experienced saturated conditions for as much as 38% of the monitoring time at some depths, compared to a maximum of 3% at non-irrigated sites. Preferential flow was not only more likely to occur during irrigation events, but also during natural events at the irrigated sites, suggesting that the irrigated soils have physically adapted to accommodate large volumes of water, after decades of spray irrigation. The results of this study have implications for understanding hydrology and contaminant fate in anthropogenically-altered landscapes as well as implementing sustainable management practices.
“Thanks Alisha, Keep in Touch”: Gender Effects and Engagement with Virtual Learning Companions

Virtual learning companions have shown significant potential for supporting students. However, there appear to be gender differences in their effectiveness. In order to support all students well, it is important to develop a deeper understanding of the role that student gender plays during interactions with learning companions. This paper reports on a study to explore the impact of student gender and learning companion design. In a three-condition study, we examine middle school students’ interactions in a game-based learning environment that featured one of the following: (1) a learning companion deeply integrated into the narrative of the game; (2) a learning companion whose backstory and personality were not integrated into the narrative but who provided equivalent task support; and (3) no learning companion. The results show that girls were significantly more engaged than boys, particularly with the narrative-integrated agent, while boys reported higher mental demand with that agent. Even when controlling for video game experience and prior knowledge, the gender effects held. These findings contribute to the growing understanding that learning companions must adapt to students’ gender in order to facilitate the most effective learning interactions.
La política real y el traslado del consulado en tiempos del régimen antiguo

El abrupto traslado de la Casa de la Contratacion y del Consulado de Cargadores a Indias de Sevilla a Cadiz en 1717 dio lugar al comienzo de una lucha politica entre las dos ciudades que no seria completamente resuelta hasta que el absolutismo ilustrado del marques de la Ensenada impuso su voluntad. Esta lucha fue testigo de la politica del Antiguo Regimen en sus mejores y en sus peores aspectos. Este trabajo analiza las varias manifestaciones de esta competicion, asi como los amplios escenarios en que tuvieron lugar. Aunque el nuevo absolutismo aparecio primero con el Abad Alberoni en el traslado original y despues con la afirmacion del duque de Riperda, con la mano de la reina Isabel bajo la superficie, la cultura tradicional de consulta y compromiso eventualmente emergio y permitio a Sevilla retener poderes importantes hasta mucho despues. Entonces, en una nueva era con prioridades diferentes, profundamente influidas por la llegada de la Guerra del Asiento, el absolutismo real personificado por Ensenada y sus predecesores inmediatos quitarian a Sevilla los derechos que le quedaban y por fin completarian el traslado que habia comenzado mas de veintiseis anos antes.
H2A.Z promotes the transcription of MIR156A and MIR156C in Arabidopsis by facilitating the deposition of H3K4me3

Vegetative phase change in Arabidopsis thaliana is mediated by a decrease in the level of MIR156A and MIR156C, resulting in an increase in the expression of their targets, SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN-LIKE (SPL) genes. Changes in chromatin structure are required for the downregulation of MIR156A and MIR156C, but whether chromatin structure contributes to their initial elevated expression is unknown. We found that mutations in components of the SWR1 complex (ARP6, SEF) and in genes encoding H2A.Z (HTA9 and HTA11) reduce the expression of MIR156A and MIR156C, and accelerate vegetative phase change, indicating that H2A.Z promotes juvenile vegetative identity. However, arp6 and sef did not accelerate the temporal decline in miR156, and the downregulation of MIR156A and MIR156C was not accompanied by significant change in the level of H2A.Z at these loci. We conclude that H2A.Z contributes to the high expression of MIR156A/MIR156C early in shoot development, but does not regulate the timing of vegetative phase change. Our results also suggest that H2A.Z promotes the expression of MIR156A/MIR156C by facilitating the deposition of H3K4me3, rather than by decreasing nucleosome occupancy.
Reduction of Parenteral Opioid Use in Community Emergency Departments Following Implementation of Treatment Guidelines

Objective Opioid prescribing guidelines are commonly seen as part of the solution to America's opioid epidemic. However, the effectiveness of specific treatment guidelines on altering opioid prescribing in the emergency department (ED) is unclear. We examined provider ordering patterns before and after implementation of opioid use guidelines for ED patients overall and the specific subsets of ED patients with either chronic opioid use or fracture. Methods We conducted a pre-post interrupted time series analysis of adult (≥18 years old) ED encounters in 14 integrated community EDs before (2013) and after (2014) the implementation of opioid prescribing guidelines. We compared opioid use pre- and postintervention using segmented logistic regression for primary and secondary analyses. The primary outcome was parenteral opioid use in the ED, with additional subgroup analysis of chronic pain and fracture cohorts. We also examined ED oral opioid use and discharge prescribing. Results There were 508,337 pre- and 531,620 postintervention encounters. The intervention was associated with an initial reduction in the odds of parenteral opioids ordered (odds ratio [OR] = 0.89, 95% CI = 0.87-0.91) and a decrease in the monthly trend compared to the preintervention period (OR = 0.99, 95% CI = 0.99-0.99). The immediate reduction in parenteral opioid use was significantly larger in the cohort of patients with chronic pain (OR = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.72-0.91), whereas the fracture cohort showed no change (OR = 1.10, 95% CI = 0.97-1.25). Conclusion The use of an opioid ordering guideline was associated with significant reduction in parenteral opioid use in the ED and as intended subgroup comparisons suggest that acute fractures were not affected and chronic pain visits were associated with larger decreases in opioid use.
Socioeconomic Disparities in Adherence and Outcomes After Heart Transplant: A UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) Registry Analysis.

Background: There is mixed evidence of racial and socioeconomic disparities in heart transplant outcomes. Their underlying cause—and whether individual- or community-level traits are most influential—remains unclear. The current study aimed to characterize socioeconomic disparities in outcomes and identify time trends and mediators of these disparities. Methods and Results: We used United Network for Organ Sharing registry data and included 33 893 adult heart transplant recipients between 1994 and 2014. Socioeconomic status (SES) indicators included insurance, education, and neighborhood SES measured using a composite index. Black race and multiple indicators of low SES were associated with the primary outcome of death or retransplant, independent of baseline clinical characteristics. Blacks had lower HLA and race matching, but further adjustment for these and other graft characteristics only slightly attenuated the association with black race (HR, 1.25 after adjustment). This and the associations with neighborhood SES (HR, 1.19 for lowest versus highest decile), Medicare (HR, 1.17), Medicaid (HR, 1.29), and college education (HR, 0.90) remained significant after full adjustment. When comparing early (1994–2000) and late (2001–2014) cohorts, the disparities associated with the middle (second and third) quartiles significantly decreased over time, but those associated with lowest SES quartile and black race persisted. Low neighborhood SES was also associated with higher risks of noncompliance (HR, 1.76), rejection (HR, 1.28), hospitalization (HR, 1.13), and infection (HR, 1.10). Conclusions: Racial and socioeconomic disparities exist in heart transplant outcomes, but the latter may be narrowing over time. These disparities are not explained by differences in clinical or graft characteristics.
Density functional theory study of thermodynamic and kinetic isotope effects of H2/D2 dissociative adsorption on transition metals

We studied the thermodynamic isotope effects (TIEs) and kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) for H2/D2 dissociative adsorption using periodic, density functional theory (DFT)-based calculations. We examined the TIEs on the close-packed, open, and stepped surfaces, of twelve transition metals (Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Re, Ir, Pt, and Au), and the KIEs on the surfaces of three noble metals (Cu, Ag, and Au). Both TIEs and KIEs were evaluated at 1/9 ML coverage. We find distinct TIEs on different adsorption sites, indicating that TIEs could be used in conjunction with binding energies to determine the dominant adsorption sites for hydrogen. Additionally, we find that while H2 dissociative adsorption may traditionally be considered structure insensitive in terms of reaction rates, it can exhibit structure sensitivity in terms of its KIEs. Complementarily to TIEs, KIEs might therefore be useful for identifying active sites for H2 dissociative adsorption on the three noble metal transition metal catalysts studied.
Datenschutz für Whistleblowing-Hotlines

Whistleblowing-Hotlines sind Angebote von Unternehmen an ihre Mitarbeiter, ein nicht regelkonformes Verhalten anderer Mitarbeiter dem Arbeitgeber im Regelfall anonym zur Kenntnis zu geben. Der Autor problematisiert die Rechtsgrundlagen solcher Erhebungen vor dem Hintergrund von Verhaltenskodizes, mit denen, durch den Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) veranlasst, Borsenmanipulationen unterbunden werden sollen, und pruft in diesem Zusammenhang auch die Moglichkeiten einer kollektivrechtlichen Losung. Der Verfasser geht insbesondere auch auf die Problematik einer Erhebung in internationalen Konzernen mit Drittstaatenbezug ein.
Comparing the effects of aquatic and land-based exercise on the physiological stress response of women with fibromyalgia.

While many studies have suggested various treatment mechanisms for individuals with fibromyalgia (FMS), few have examined the impact of aquatic and land-based exercise on the physiological stress response in women with fibromyalgia. Due to the increased physiological and psychological stress associated with fibromyalgia, additional research examining the physiological responses to stress and interventions addressing stress in the FMS population is warranted. The present study examined salivary cortisol response of women with fibromyalgia during land-based exercise (i.e., walking on a treadmill) and aquatic exercise (i.e., Ai Chi). A single-subject alternating treatment design (N = 3) was selected to compare the effectiveness of Ai Chi and treadmill walking on salivary cortisol levels. Cortisol samples were obtained from each participant prior to and immediately following each treatment session to serve as a psycho-physiological marker of stress. Results suggested both aquatic and land-based exercise had a positive influence in reducing salivary cortisol in women with FMS; however, exercising at a moderate pace on a treadmill proved to be the superior treatment intervention. Results of this study may potentially help women with FMS discover an alternate or additional treatment to assist in coping with stress related to chronic illness.
Sweet flowers are slow, and weeds make haste: leveraging methodology from research on tobacco, alcohol, and opioid analgesics to make rapid and policy-relevant advances in cannabis science

The legalization of medical and recreational cannabis use has occurred ahead of science. The current evidence base has poor utility for determining if cannabis products can meet the standards of safety, efficacy, and quality intrinsic to modern medicine, and for informing regulation of cannabis as a legal intoxicant. Individual jurisdictions that pass cannabis reforms may not have adequate resources to support the level of new scientific research needed to inform regulatory actions; this could make it difficult to keep a rapidly growing multi-billion-dollar cannabis industry in check. Further, the present lack of evidence-based regulatory oversight for cannabis parallels the climates that gave rise to the tobacco and prescription opioid epidemics, suggesting that continued omission may result in negative public health consequences. However, translating a methodological framework developed through research on these compounds may promote rapid advances in cannabis science germane to regulatory knowledge gaps. The present review highlights specific advancements in these areas, as well as in alcohol regulation, that are prime for informing policy-relevant cannabis science, and also offers some recommendations for evidence-based regulatory policy. Resulting progress may directly inform both regulation of cannabis in both medical and licit recreational drug frameworks, and new cannabis-related public health initiatives.
Perceptual Organization of Interrupted Speech and Text

Purpose Visual recognition of interrupted text may predict speech intelligibility under adverse listening conditions. This study investigated the nature of the linguistic information and perceptual...
CruzAffect at AffCon 2019 Shared Task: A feature-rich approach to characterize happiness

We present our system, CruzAffect, for the CL-Aff Shared Task 2019. CruzAffect consists of several types of robust and efficient models for affective classification tasks. We utilize both traditional classifiers, such as XGBoosted Forest, as well as a deep learning Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) classifier. We explore rich feature sets such as syntactic features, emotional features, and profile features, and utilize several sentiment lexicons, to discover essential indicators of social involvement and control that a subject might exercise in their happy moments, as described in textual snippets from the HappyDB database. The data comes with a labeled set (10K), and a larger unlabeled set (70K). We therefore use supervised methods on the 10K dataset, and a bootstrapped semi-supervised approach for the 70K. We evaluate these models for binary classification of agency and social labels (Task 1), as well as multi-class prediction for concepts labels (Task 2). We obtain promising results on the held-out data, suggesting that the proposed feature sets effectively represent the data for affective classification tasks. We also build concepts models that discover general themes recurring in happy moments. Our results indicate that generic characteristics are shared between the classes of agency, social and concepts, suggesting it should be possible to build general models for affective classification tasks.
Professionalizing Arts Management in Healthcare Facilities

An urgent need exists for trained specialists to manage organizational policies and practices involving arts programs and activities in healthcare facilities. This article introduces the field of a...
Truthful Surveys

We consider the problem of truthfully sampling opinions of a population for statistical analysis purposes, such as estimating the population distribution of opinions. To obtain accurate results, the surveyor must incentivize individuals to report unbiased opinions. We present a rewarding scheme to elicit opinions that are representative of the population. In contrast with the related literature, we do not assume a specific information structure. In particular, our method does not rely on a common prior assumption.
Classroom Pivotal Response Teaching: Teacher Training Outcomes of a Community Efficacy Trial:

Classroom Pivotal Response Teaching (CPRT) is a naturalistic behavioral intervention for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that was systematically adapted for teacher use. In this study,...
Casinos and Crime: A Review of the Literature

One part of the analysis in Chap. 10 focused on gambling behavior and criminal behavior among adolescents. The findings were that individuals who are more likely to gamble are also more likely to engage in criminal activity. However, the results showed that the type of gambling was important; this effect did not occur among lottery or casino gamblers; rather, it was individuals who engage in other types of gambling who were significantly more likely to engage in crime. These results confirm that there is a link between gambling behavior and criminal behavior. But there is no indication from our evidence that casino players engage in crime any more than other individuals do. Of course, our sample was limited to adolescents, so there may still be a general link between casino gambling and crime.
The Factor Reliability and Convergent Validity of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 Among an International Sample of Pregnant Women

Background: Pregnant women are at an increased risk for anxiety and depression, but a majority of women go untreated due to a high rate of undetected symptoms. The 4-item Patient Health Questionnai...
Reverse genetics approaches for the development of mammarenavirus live-attenuated vaccines.

Several mammarenaviruses can cause severe hemorrhagic fever disease with a very high case fatality rate, representing important threats to human health within the viruses’ endemic regions. To date, there are no United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-licensed vaccines available to combat mammarenavirus infections in humans, and current anti-mammarenavirus therapy is limited to off-label use of the guanosine analog ribavirin, which has limited efficacy and has been associated with significant side effects. Vaccination is one of the most effective ways to prevent viral diseases, and live-attenuated vaccines (LAVs) have been shown to often provide long-term protection against a subsequent natural infection by the corresponding virulent form of the virus. The development of mammarenavirus reverse genetics systems has provided investigators with a powerful approach for the investigation of the molecular and cell biology of mammarenaviruses and also for the generation of recombinant viruses containing predetermined mutations in their genome for their implementation as LAVs for the treatment of mammarenavirus infections. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on the mammarenavirus molecular and cell biology, and the use of reverse genetic approaches for the generation of recombinant mammarenaviruses. Moreover, we briefly discus some novel LAV approaches for the treatment of mammarenavirus infections based on the use of reverse genetics approaches.
Feasibility of Health Literacy Tools for Older Patients in the Emergency Department.

Author(s): McGuinness, Matthew J.; Bucher, Joshua; Karz, James; Pardee, Carla; Patti, Laryssa; Ohman-Strickland, Pamela; McCoy, Jonathan V. | Abstract: Introduction: This study evaluates the feasibility of using a volunteer research associate (RA) to administer two separate health literacy assessment tools in the emergency department (ED), specifically in an older population of patients. The outcomes measured were administration time and interruptions.Methods: Using a prospective, cross-sectional study with a convenience sample, adult patients over the age of 55 presenting between June–August 2018 to one urban, academic ED were evaluated by a volunteer RA using either the Newest Vital Sign (NVS) or the Short Assessment of Health Literacy (SAHL). All patients 55 years of age or older who consented to participate were included. We excluded from this study the following: patients with dementia or other disability involving reading, speech, or cognitive function, as noted in their medical record or by their attending physician; prisoners; and those subjectively deemed in extremis or too ill to participate by their attending physician.Results: Health literacy was assessed in 202 patients using either the NVS or SAHL. Mean time of administration was 214.0 seconds for the NVS, and 206.8 for the SAHL. The maximum time of administration for the NVS was 563 seconds, compared to 607 seconds for the SAHL. We found that 95.2% of NVS and 93.9% of SAHL tests incurred no interruptions during administration.Conclusion: No significant difference was found between the length of time needed to administer the NVS or SAHL to older patients in the ED. Both tools averaged an administration time of around three to four minutes, and neither incurred regular interruptions to its administration by a volunteer RA. Further study is needed to assess validity of these tools in an ED setting.
Control Barrier Functions for Safe CPS Under Sensor Faults and Attacks

CPS safety, defined as the system state remaining within a desired safe region, is a critical property in applications including medicine, transportation, and energy. Sensor faults and attacks may cause safety violations by introducing bias into the system state estimation, which in turn leads to erroneous control inputs. In this paper, we propose a class of Fault- Tolerant Control Barrier Functions (FT-CBFs) that provide provable guarantees on the safety of stochastic CPS. Our approach is to maintain a set of state estimators, each of which ignores a subset of sensor measurements that are affected by a particular fault pattern. We then introduce a linear constraint for each state estimator that ensures that the estimated state remains outside the unsafe region, and propose an approach to resolving conflicts between the constraints that may arise due to faults. We present sufficient conditions on the geometry of the safe region and the noise characteristics to provide a desired probability of maintaining safety. We then propose a framework for joint safety and stability by integrating FT-CBFs with Control Lyapunov Functions. Our approach is validated through a numerical study of a wheeled mobile robot.
Should We Do More to Police Medicaid Fraud? Evidence on Intended and Unintended Consequences of Expanded Enforcement

Every year, across the country, the federal and state governments spend about $259 million on Medicaid Fraud Control Units (MFCUs); these agencies conduct investigations that recover almost $1.8 billion in inappropriate Medicaid spending, returning $7 for every $1 spent. We study the effects of increasing the size of MFCU budgets in fraud enforcement outcomes and treatment intensity in the Medicaid population. We develop a theoretical model to describe how profit-maximizing health care providers might respond to changes in MFCU budgets. The model points out that MFCU spending could have both desirable deterrence effects and undesirable defensive medicine effects. We combine data on Medicaid hospital discharge and state MFCU budgets with a difference-in-difference and triple-difference research design to empirically measure the effects of MFCU spending. We find that increases in MFCU spending substantially increase fraud enforcement actions (investigations, convictions, recoveries). MFCUs with expanded budgets do not appear to investigate less severe cases in the margin. However, MFCU spending increases do not generate substantial changes in treatment intensity. Expanded MFCU budgets seem to make sense given the financial returns and continuing pool of cases. Defensive medicine and deterrence effects do not seem to be an important consideration at current margins.
Work-based learning and Wellbeing

Learning is widely considered to support wellbeing and is therefore treated as a high societal priority. In the workplace, learning is considered core to the success of individuals and organisations, yet it is not typically considered in terms of its relation to wellbeing. Rather, learning is viewed as fundamental to work competence, innovation and competitive advantage, justifying investment in Human Resource Development (HRD). Whilst a broad range of theory and empirical research has explored wellbeing at work, learning remains peripheral to these. Evidence suggests that learning can act as a buffer to the demands and strains of work whereas restricted opportunities for learning are likely to form part of a negative work environment for wellbeing. However, the relationship between learning and wellbeing is not always positive and much more work is required to unpack the relationship between learning and wellbeing in the workplace. This chapter reviews literature on work-based learning and wellbeing drawing out practical implications whilst also making the case for further research and practical attention to this topic.
The impact of patient-reported penicillin or cephalosporin allergy on surgical site infections.

Objective To determine the impact of a documented penicillin or cephalosporin allergy on the development of surgical site infections (SSIs). Background Appropriate preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis reduces SSI risk, but documented antibiotic allergies influence the choice of prophylactic agents. Few studies have examined the relationship between a reported antibiotic allergy and risk of SSI and to what extent this relationship is modified by the antibiotic class given for prophylaxis. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of adult patients undergoing coronary artery bypass, craniotomy, spinal fusion, laminectomy, hip arthroplasty and knee arthroplasty at 3 hospitals from July 1, 2013, to December 31, 2017. We built a multivariable logistic regression model to calculate the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of developing an SSI among patients with and without patient-reported penicillin or cephalosporin allergies. We also examined effect measure modification (EMM) to determine whether surgical prophylaxis affected the association between reported allergy and SSI. Results We analyzed 39,972 procedures; 1,689 (4.2%) with a documented patient penicillin or cephalosporin allergy, and 374 (0.9%) resulted in an SSI. Patients with a reported penicillin or cephalosporin allergy were more likely to develop an SSI compared to patients who did not report an allergy to penicillin or cephalosporins (adjusted odds ratio, 3.26; 95% confidence interval, 2.71-3.93). Surgical prophylaxis did not have significant EMM on this association. Conclusions Patients who reported a penicillin or cephalosporin allergy had higher odds of developing an SSI than nonallergic patients. However, the increase in odds is not completely mediated by the type of surgical prophylaxis. Instead, a reported allergy may be a surrogate marker for a more complicated patient population.
Three Cube Rules

A traditional pedagogical approach to perspective drawing often begins utilizing the same technical drawing tools that are used in drafting. Students measure and plot vanishing points. These are used as guides to establish foreshortening through convergence. This approach can be quite useful as students develop a foundational understanding of perspective drawing theory. Naturally, students transition away from drafting tools and the act of plotting actual points. This transition often proves challenging, as students must now visualize vanishing points that may or may not exist on the media on which they are working. This paper presents an approach to establishing a 2-point perspective viewpoint by following three rules based upon the object’s horizontal position relative to two imagined vanishing points. The three rules focus on angle of convergence, rate of convergence, and proportional width.