cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Safety and efficacy of 2,790-nm laser resurfacing for chest photoaging

Chest photodamage is a common cosmetic complaint. Laser treatment of the chest may be higher risk than other areas. The objective of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of 2,790-nm chest resurfacing for photodamage. Twelve patients with Fitzpatrick skin types I-III were enrolled in this university IRB-approved study. Photo documentation was obtained at baseline and each visit. A test spot with the 2,790-nm resurfacing laser was performed on the chest. Patients who did not have adverse effects from the test spot went on to have a full chest resurfacing procedure. Patients were instructed on standardized aftercare, including sunscreen. A 5-point healing and photodamage improvement scale was used to rate improvement by both investigators and the patients and was obtained at 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months. One pass chest treatment with the 2,790-nm resurfacing laser at fluences greater than or equal to 3.0 mJ with 10% overlap leads to unacceptable rates of hyperpigmentation. Double pass chest treatment at fluences less than or equal to 2.5 mJ with 10% overlap leads to mild improvement in chest photodamage parameters without significant or persistent adverse effects. Laser treatment of aging/photodamaged chest skin remains a challenge due to the delicacy of chest skin. Mild improvement may be obtained with double pass resurfacing with the 2,790-nm wavelength.
Implementation of the DCLD Competency Standards.

This article discusses the DCLD Code of Ethics and Competencies for Teachers of Learning Disabled Children and Youth and reviews each of its stated purposes related to: teacher training programs, certification standards, employment criteria, and monitoring of ongoing professional practices. Recommendations are made for practical implementation of the competency statements. While some of the recommendations pertain to applications in the future, the discussion emphasizes the need to implement the DCLD competencies as soon as possible. Even though the philosophical and theoretical debates regarding learning disabilities will not be resolved by the DCLD document, implementation of the competency standards will lead to significant improvement of services to children with learning disabilities.
On some metric properties of the systems of compartments.

Rules for the enumeration of the strong components of a graph and for the calculation of its variable adjacency matrix are presented. A new method is given to calculate the transfer function of a graphy by analyzing the strong components of the graph, the elementary paths between two nodes, and the linear subgraphs.
Recurrent attacks of amaurosis fugax treated with calcium channel blocker

Vasospasm may be one of the causes of amaurosis fugax. A patient is reported who daily experienced multiple brief episodes of amaurosis fugax. The absence of physical, laboratory, or radiographic evidence for thromboembolism, hemodynamic compromise, or vasculitis, suggested that the amaurosis might be caused by vasospasm. This hypothesis was supported by cessation of the attacks of amaurosis when the patient was treated with a calcium channel blocker.
Profile and effects of consumer involvement in fresh meat

This study investigates the profile and effects of consumer involvement in fresh meat as a product category based on cross-sectional data collected in Belgium. Analyses confirm that involvement in meat is a multidimensional construct including four facets: pleasure value, symbolic value, risk importance and risk probability. Four involvement-based meat consumer segments are identified: straightforward, cautious, indifferent, and concerned. Socio-demographic differences between the segments relate to gender, age and presence of children. The segments differ in terms of extensiveness of the decision-making process, impact and trust in information sources, levels of concern, price consciousness, claimed meat consumption, consumption intention, and preferred place of purchase. The two segments with a strong perception of meat risks constitute two-thirds of the market. They can be typified as cautious meat lovers versus concerned meat consumers. Efforts aiming at consumer reassurance through quality improvement, traceability, labelling or communication may gain effectiveness when targeted specifically to these two segments. Whereas straightforward meat lovers focus mainly on taste as the decisive criterion, indifferent consumers are strongly price oriented.
Limitations of Bioassays for Monitoring Forest Soil Productivity: Rationale and Example

Sustaining forest soil productivity is a common goal of forest land-owners in the Southeast, but determining the effects of forest management practices on soil and site quality has not been easy. An unbiased measurement is needed to monitor sustained soil and site productivity. Growth cycle comparisons, traditional measures of forest productivity, are not very timely, are often biased, and do not always account for changes in soil quality due to management. This was demonstrated by comparing growth curves of two successive loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) rotations, and by comparing growth curves influenced by two site preparation treatments within the last rotation. The growth cycle comparison between rotations was not a definitive indicator of sustained soil quality because stand response could have been confounded by differences in genotype and vegetation management from the first to the second rotation. Stand responses due to soil treatment in the last rotation were confounded by the influence of different levels of competing vegetation. Because stand response is a function of many confounding non-soil factors as well as soil quality, soil sustainability and the effects of management should be determined by measuring soil properties and processes directly.
Determination of triazine pesticides by high-performance liquid chromatography with swept-potential electrochemical detection

Abstract A swept-potential electrochemical detector, operating in the square-wave voltammetric mode, is used to detect a mixture of five triazine pesticides separated on a reverse-phase resin column. Limits of detection are below 1 ng injected. Two compounds, not completely separated by the column, are resolved on the potential axis.
A Pilot Study Examining the Effects of Kouk Sun Do on University Students with Anxiety Symptoms

The effects of Kouk Sun Do (KSD), a mind–body exercise on mental health in university students, were investigated in this pilot study. University students (N = 30) with self-reported anxiety symptoms were randomly assigned to either the treatment group or the waiting list control group. Eighteen participants (N = 18; seven in the treatment group and 11 in the waiting list control group) completed a pre-test and a post-test, and 12 participants dropped out before or during the intervention. Ten 70-min KSD exercise sessions were conducted three times per week over a 4-week period. Trait anxiety, depressive symptoms and general self-efficacy in coping with stress were measured with the pre-test and the post-test. Qualitative data were collected using open-ended questions regarding benefits of KSD at the last session. A two (group) by two (time) repeated-measure analysis of variance was used to analyse the data. Trait anxiety and depressive symptoms decreased whereas general self-efficacy increased over a 4-week period. The treatment group had significantly reduced trait anxiety and depressive symptoms compared with the control group across time. Qualitative data provided support that the self-induced relaxation effects of KSD may lead to reduced anxiety. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Coronary and systemic hemodynamic effects of nicardipine

Systemic and coronary hemodynamic effects of a new dihydropyridine calcium antagonist, nicardipine, were studied in 15 patients. Nicardipine was administered as a 2-mg bolus intravenously followed by an infusion titrated to maintain a 10 to 20-mm Hg decrease in systolic pressure. Nicardipine increased both heart rate from 69 ± 3 to 81 ± 3 beats/min and cardiac output from 7.3 ± 0.5 to 9.9 ± 0.5 liters/min (both p < 0.001) as systemic vascular resistance decreased from 1,183 ± 70 to 733 ± 33 dynes s cm−5 (p < 0.001). Left ventricular end-diastolic pressure remained constant, at 14 ± 1 vs 14 ± 1 mm Hg as stroke volume increased from 108 ± 6 to 123 ± 6 ml/m2 (p < 0.001). Coronary blood flow increased from 102 ± 9 to 147 ± 13 ml/min, while coronary resistance decreased from 1.17 ± 0.1 to 0.7 ± 0.1 mm Hg/ml/min (both p < 0.001). Heart rate-systolic blood pressure product did not change (104 ± 5 vs 106 ± 5 beats/min mm Hg × 10−2, difference not significant) with drug administration. At the same heart rate before and during nicardipine administration (using atrial pacing in 6 patients), significant augmentation of coronary flow was still observed. Thirteen of 14 patients showed a greater percent decrease in coronary resistance than systemic vascular resistance. Nicardipine differs from other calcium antagonists with respect to consistent augmentation of coronary blood flow. This effect appears to be the result, in part, of increased potency in the coronary bed compared with the systemic vascular bed.
Improvement in coronary anastomosis with cardiac surgery simulation

Objective Cardiac surgery trainees might benefit from simulation training in coronary anastomosis and more advanced procedures. We evaluated distributed practice using a portable task station and experience on a beating-heart model in training coronary anastomosis. Methods Eight cardiothoracic surgery residents performed 2 end-to-side anastomoses with the task station, followed by 2 end-to-side anastomoses to the left anterior descending artery by using the beating-heart model at 70 beats/min. Residents took home the task station, recording practice times. At 1 week, residents performed 2 anastomoses on the task station and 2 anastomoses on the beating-heart model. Performances of the anastomosis were timed and reviewed. Results Times to completion for anastomosis on the task station decreased 20% after 1 week of practice (351 ± 111 to 281 ± 53 seconds, P = .07), with 2 residents showing no improvement. Times to completion for beating-heart anastomosis decreased 15% at 1 week (426 ± 115 to 362 ± 94 seconds, P = .03), with 2 residents demonstrating no improvement. Home practice time (90–540 minutes) did not correlate with the degree of improvement. Performance rating scores showed an improvement in all components. Eighty-eight percent of residents agreed that the task station is a good method of training, and 100% agreed that the beating-heart model is a good method of training. Conclusions In general, distributed practice with the task station resulted in improvement in the ability to perform an anastomosis, as assessed by times to completion and performance ratings, not only with the task station but also with the beating-heart model. Not all residents improved, which is consistent with a "ceiling effect" with the simulator and a "plateau effect" with the trainee. Simulation can be useful in preparing residents for coronary anastomosis and can provide an opportunity to identify the need and methods for remediation.
Low-fat diet alters intramuscular substrates and reduces lipolysis and fat oxidation during exercise

We determined whether a low-fat diet reduces intramuscular triglyceride (IMTG) concentration, whole body lipolyis, total fat oxidation, and calculated nonplasma fatty acid (FA) oxidation during exe...
Laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy in the porcine model

Background: Minimally invasive techniques offer theoretical advantages for treating resectable periampullary neoplasms. Laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) was first reported in 1992 and has been performed clinically despite lack of animal data to support the operation. The purpose of this study was to develop LPD in an acute porcine model and to assess safety and efficacy before considering clinical trials.
Sex, stress, and epigenetics: regulation of behavior in animal models of mood disorders

Women have a higher incidence of stress related disorders including depression and generalized anxiety disorder, and epigenetic mechanisms likely contribute to this sex difference. Evidence from preclinical research suggests that epigenetic mechanisms are responsible for both sexual dimorphism of brain regions and sensitivity of the stress response. Epigenetic modifications such as DNA methylation and histone modifications can occur transgenerationally, developmentally, or in response to environmental stimuli such as stress exposure. This review will provide an overview of the various forms of epigenetic modifications observed in the central nervous system and will explain how these mechanisms contribute to a sexually dimorphic brain. It will also discuss the ways in which epigenetic alterations coincide with, and functionally contribute to, the behavioral response to stress across the lifespan. Ultimately, this review will focus on novel research utilizing animal models to investigate sex differences in epigenetic mechanisms that influence susceptibility to stress. Exploration of this relationship reveals epigenetic mechanisms with the potential to explain sexual dimorphism in the occurrence of stress related disorders.
Local structure resulting from photo and thermal diffusion of Ag in Ge-Se thin films

Thermally and photoinduced diffusion of Ag in thin amorphous Ge20Se80 films are investigated with particular attention being given to the reaction kinetics and the local structure that results. The differences in the nature of the two diffusion processes with regard to the amount of the diffused silver in the films and the changes in the backbone structure of the hosting film are presented and discussed. Ag diffusion in this particular chalcogenide glass composition results in the formation of a phase separated structure formed by the Ge–Se backbone and Ag2Se or Ag nanocrystals.
The affect of bicarbonate salt addition on the gel forming properties of Alaska pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) and Pacific whiting (Merluccius productus) surimi.

Abstract Bicarbonate salts (0.075-0.125% NaHCO3, KHCO3 or 1:1 NaHCO3:KHCO3) added to surimi containing 0.3% of a phosphate blend, or added by weight at replacement levels of 25-100% of the phosphate blend, impacted the gel forming properties, color and pH of pollock and whiting surimi made under commercial production conditions. Whiting surimi also incorporated 1.5% (w/w) bovine blood plasma. The gel forming properties of either pollock or whiting surimi gels were enhanced only when specific substitution levels of bicarbonate salts were used. At certain concentrations, particularly for gels containing KHCO3, weaker gels were formed by addition of bicarbonate salts.
Laser power locking for improvement of carrier-envelope phase stability

The pulse energy fluctuation of a kilohertz femtosecond laser was reduced from 1.33% RMS to 0.28% RMS, which improves the carrier-envelope phase stability from 500 mrad to 200 mrad.
Research issues in robot safety

Major areas of research currently under investigation in the development of safe and reliable robots are summarized. These areas include human factors issues, the design of the robot itself, systems engineering issues and standards development. It is concluded that much more research needs to be done in preparation for more sophisticated robot applications. >
Bank Hegemony Research and its Implications for Power Structure Theory

This paper reviews case studies of bank hegemony research, illustrating the challenges it poses for power structure theory to develop a more dynamic model of power and to take into account modern organized capital flow relationships, both locally and globally.
Management of complicated hemangiomas with vincristine/vinblastine: Quantitative response to therapy using MRI.

Abstract Purpose To quantify the efficacy of vincristine and vinblastine in the treatment of complicated hemangiomas. Design Retrospective review. Methods Charts were reviewed to identify patients treated with vincristine or vinblastine for complicated hemangiomas from August 2002 to October 2007. Only patients who received both a pre and post-treatment magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were considered. A database was created which includes patient gender, age at treatment initiation, rationale for treatment, hemangioma location, number of cycles of chemotherapy received, and complications of treatment. A single pediatric radiologist calculated lesion volumes from both pre and post-treatment MRI which were compared to quantify treatment response. Results Seven patients (2 male, 5 female) met criteria. Mean age at treatment initiation was 20 weeks (median 14, range 5–60). Rationale for treatment included four patients (57%) with proptosis/orbital compromise and one patient each (14%) with heart failure, airway compression, and hemangiomatosis with rapid growth of multiple lesions. Patients received a mean of 2.86 cycles of chemotherapy (median 3, range 1–5). Twelve lesions were identified and analyzed for pre and post-treatment volume on MRI in the seven patients. Eleven of twelve (92%) lesions decreased in size after treatment. The mean volume ratio of hemangiomas at the conclusion of chemotherapy was 0.45 compared to pre-treatment size (median 0.18, range 0–2.19) Orbital compromise, airway compression, and cardiac failure either improved or resolved in all patients. Three complications of treatment were seen in seven patients (42%) including bacteremia with anemia, peripheral neuropathy and motor delay. All complications resolved after cessation of chemotherapy. Conclusions Treatment of complicated hemangiomas with vincristine or vinblastine can control growth and improve symptoms in the majority of patients. Treatment often requires multiple cycles of chemotherapy. Complications of treatment are common, but reversible.
Comparing Residents' and Tourists' Emotional Solidarity with One Another: An Extension of Durkheim's Model

This study is the first of its kind to examine residents’ and tourists’ degree of emotional solidarity experienced with one another in a destination—Galveston County, Texas. Two main purposes for this study are (1) to confirm the factor structure of the emotional solidarity scale for both residents and tourists while assessing psychometric properties of reliability and validity and (2) to compare residents’ and tourists’ emotional solidarity (based on resulting factors from confirmatory factor analysis) with one another. Ultimately, the scale produced the same factors (i.e., welcoming nature, emotional closeness, and sympathetic understanding) as in previous studies while exhibiting sound psychometric properties. Significant differences in mean factor scores were found for the factors welcoming nature and emotional closeness across residents and tourists. Implications, limitations, and future research directions are provided.
Soil carbon and nitrogen changes as influenced by tillage and cropping systems in some Iowa soils

Soil organic C (SOC) and total N (TN) contents play a crucial role in sustaining agricultural production systems. Short-term (10-year) management effects on SOC and TN dynamics are often complex and variable. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate short-term tillage and cropping system effects on SOC and TN within the 0‐30 cm soil depth across Iowa. The first experiment with no-tillage and chisel plowing treatments was established in 1994 on Clarion-Nicollet-Webster (CNW), GalvaPrimghar-Sac (GPS), Kenyon-Floyd-Clyde (KFC), Marshall (M), and Otley-Mahaska-Taintor (OMT) soil associations under a corn (Zea mays L.)‐soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) rotation. The second experiment with no-tillage, strip-tillage, chisel plowing, deep ripping, and moldboard plowing treatments was initiated in 1998 on the CNW soil association in a corn‐soybean rotation. The third experiment consisting of smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) and corn‐soybean‐alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) treatments was established in 1991 on Monona-Ida-Hamburg (MIH) soil association under no-tillage management. Short-term tillage effects on SOC and TN occurred primarily at the 0‐15 cm soil depth. Tillage effects did not vary significantly with soil association. No-tillage resulted in greater SOC and TN contents than chisel plowing at the end of 7 years of tillage practices averaged over the CNW, GPS, KFC, M, and OMT soil associations. The increase in SOC and TN with no-tillage was not related to SOC and TN stratification in the soil profile or annual C and N inputs from crop residue, but most likely due to decreased mineralization rate of soil organic matter. However, tillage effects on SOC and TN were negligible at the end of only 3 years of tillage practices on the CNW soil association. Smooth bromegrass and switchgrass systems resulted in greater SOC and TN contents at both 0‐15 cm and 15‐30 cm soil depths than a corn–soybean– alfalfa rotation after 10 years of management on the MIH soil association. Smooth bromegrass and switchgrass systems increased SOC by 2.3 and 1.2 Mg ha 1 yr 1 at the 0‐15 cm soil depth, respectively. We conclude from these short-term experiments that reducing tillage intensity and increasing crop diversity to include perennial grasses could be effective in improving C and N sequestration in Midwest soils. # 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Evaluation of Computer Program for Maximizing Income Above Feed Cost from Dairy Cattle

Abstract Feeding trials tested a computer program to formulate rations which result in maximum income above feed costs from lactating dairy cows. Factors considered by the computer include feed prices, milk prices, milk production with varying levels of nutrients, maximum voluntary feed intake, and productive ability of the cow. The first trial involved 12 cows in a double-reversal design at the University of California Davis Experiment Station whereas the second test was a field trial under commercial conditions in the 180-cow dairy herd at Deuel Vocational Institution, Tracy, California. Cows fed the computer-formulated rations returned $15 to $21 more income above feed costs per year than cows fed control rations formulated and fed according to management practices in effect in the herds before initiation of the trials.
Seismic fragility analysis: Application to simple linear and nonlinear systems

Seismic fragility of a structural, nonstructural and/or geotechnical system is the probability that a system response exceeds a critical value under seismic ground motions of specified intensities. Fragility curves are plots of system fragilities versus a scalar measure of seismic intensity. Traditionally, peak ground acceleration (PGA) has been used as an intensity measure. Recent studies show that pseudo-spectral acceleration provides a superior measure of seismic intensity than PGA. It is shown that pseudo-spectral acceleration may not be a satisfactory measure of seismic intensity for the fragility analysis of nonlinear systems, so that fragility curves based on pseudo-spectral acceleration are not recommended for these systems. An alternative intensity measure based on two parameters, the earthquake moment magnitude m and the distance r from the seismic source to system site, is proposed for the fragility analysis of nonlinear systems. The relationship between a system probability of failure and (m, r) is called fragility surface. Findings are for single degree of freedom systems and synthetic ground motion records. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Coming to grips with the past: effect of repeated simulation on the perceived plausibility of episodic counterfactual thoughts

When people revisit previous experiences, they often engage in episodic counterfactual thinking: mental simulations of alternative ways in which personal past events could have occurred. The present study employed a novel experimental paradigm to examine the influence of repeated simulation on the perceived plausibility of upward, downward, and neutral episodic counterfactual thoughts. Participants were asked to remember negative, positive, and neutral autobiographical memories. One week later, they self-generated upward, downward, and neutral counterfactual alternatives to those memories. The following day, they resimulated each of those counterfactuals either once or four times. The results indicate that repeated simulation of upward, downward, and neutral episodic counterfactual events decreases their perceived plausibility while increasing ratings of the ease, detail, and valence of the simulations. This finding suggests a difference between episodic counterfactual thoughts and other kinds of self-referential simulations. Possible implications of this finding for pathological and nonpathological anxiety are discussed.
Entropy based spectrum sensing in cognitive radio

Cognitive radio (CR) is defined as an intelligent wireless communication, which has the capability of sensing and utilizing the underutilized spectrum resources. One of the key problems is how to efficiently and successfully detect the spectrum hole. In this paper, an entropy based technique for detection of primary users in cognitive radio networks with unknown noise and interference levels will be discussed. The likelihood ratio test will be used to examine the presence or absence of the primary user by comparing the empirical entropy of the received signal to a suitable threshold. In this paper, we will assume the primary user's signaling waveform is known by the cognitive radios and the matched-filter based detection will be specifically considered.
The six amino-terminal amino acids of p60src are sufficient to cause myristylation of p21v-ras.

Abstract We have used oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis to replace the N-terminal amino acids of p21v-ras with residues which mimic the amino terminus of p60v-src. p21v-ras protein possessing only the first five amino acids of p60src was not myristylated, while substitution of residue 6 (serine) produced a protein p21(GSSKS) which incorporated [3H]myristic acid that was stable to hydroxylamine, sensitive to inhibitors of protein synthesis, and found in both the normally nonacylated precursor and mature forms of p21(GSSKS). This defines the minimum framework of the p60v-src myristylation signal (glycine 2 and serine 6) and identifies serine 6 as a crucial part of that signal for myristylation of a protein in vivo.
Health Care Reform and Health Care Stocks: Evidence from the Supreme Court Ruling

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 marked a substantial shift in US healthcare policy. We create an event study observing the returns of healthcare stocks in the S&P 500 when on June 28, 2012 the US Supreme Court very unexpectedly ruled that the individual mandate, a provision requiring that Americans maintain a certain level of health insurance or face a monetary penalty, was not unconstitutional. The paper finds that as a result of the upheaval, over two days following the ruling the cumulative average abnormal return of managed care stocks was -6.7% (equal to -$6.9 bn in market capitalization), while the same metric was -1.2% (-$1.5 bn) for biotechnology companies, +3.2% ($0.4 bn) for hospital firms, +1.9% ($1.6 bn) for healthcare service firms, and +0.5% ($4.8 bn) for pharmaceutical companies. Healthcare equipment, distribution, and technology sub-industry stocks had relatively flat cumulative abnormal returns over the period.
Iâ€™m a Belieber: Social Roles via Self-identification and Conceptual Attributes

Motivated by work predicting coarsegrained author categories in social media, such as gender or political preference, we explore whether Twitter contains information to support the prediction of finegrained categories, or social roles. We find that the simple self-identification pattern “I am a ” supports significantly richer classification than previously explored, successfully retrieving a variety of fine-grained roles. For a given role (e.g., writer), we can further identify characteristic attributes using a simple possessive construction (e.g., writer’s ). Tweets that incorporate the attribute terms in first person possessives (my ) are confirmed to be an indicator that the author holds the associated social role.
Grand multiparity—its obstetric implications

3105 cases of infants of at least 20 weeks gestation delivered at Hazard and Whitesburg Memorial Hospitals during the period April 1956-March 1961 were reviewed and grand multiparas (6 or more pregnancies terminated after at least 20 weeks gestation) were compared to women of parity 1-5 to determine the relationship between average birth weight maternal weight gain during pregnancy incidence of stillborn infants number of prenatal visits and number of neonatal deaths. Also comparisons were made relating age and parity of the mother to a variety of obstetrical factors and complications of pregnancy. There were 725 grand multipara deliveries by 516 women. Average birthweight was greater among multiparas. Occurrance of infants of 2500 gm or less was unrelated to parity while incidence of infants 10 pounds or more was greater among multiparas. The incidence of stillborns increased in the grand multipara 2.86% as compared to 1.31% para 1-5 and increased with age. Maternal factors were responsible for the majority of stillbirths regardless of parity. Increasing parity was unrelated to neonatal deaths or length of gestation. Transverse lie face and brow presentations increased among grand multiparas. Several maternal complications were also more frequent including heart disease and diabetis mellitus. Hypertension as a complication of pregnancy and preeclampsia both increased with grand multiparity and with age of patient. Grand multiparas also showed increases in incidence of primary uterine inertia prenatal anemia and postpartum hemorrhage.
Feasibility of a Unique Skylight Design for Day and Night Illumination of a Large Volume Room

The feasibility of a unique daylighting approach using a skylight with clerestory windows, also known as a roof monitor, and an outdoor lighting array will be evaluated. The design will illuminate a room 100 feet wide, 100 feet long and 75 feet high, equivalent to a large auditorium located at 40 degrees north latitude. Comparisons will be made to flat skylight wells for the same volume. The design will be shown meet lighting requirements that satisfy Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) standards for day and night for tasks of low contrast and small size (i.e. criteria F). The design will be tested with AGI32 version 1.7 software created by Lighting Analysts, Inc of Littleton Colorado. Results will show the unique skylight meets IESNA criteria F during the daytime with an assist by external lighting as daylight is reduced by the setting sun. Background Lighting the interior of a building using sunlight (called daylighting) is one of the oldest forms of illumination used since humans have been building shelter. The shortcomings of using the sun have also been known for a very long time; the amount of light varies with the time of day, the season, weather and the position of openings allowing sunlight to enter a room. Engineers and architects can overcome the design limitations of daylighting by limiting its use and relying principally on artificial lighting. This approach mitigates the variance in sunlight levels but can limit the range of uses for daylighting to accent lighting, passageway illumination and some office tasks. Applications involving large enclosed volumes often times minimize the use of daylighting and principally use artificial lighting to meet user requirements for a constant light level. This approach does not avail large volumes of the free sunlight that is available in most latitudes. The unique daylighting design for this paper will incorporate a skylight that uses vertical clerestory windows facing north and south and mounted above the roof (also called a roof monitor) to illuminate a reflector that diverts light downward into the room and on to a suspended semi-transparent glass luminarie that scatters light to the walls and ceiling and provides the majority of illumination for tasks. Exterior mounted artificial lighting will augment sunlight during the day and the evening without the need for additional interior lighting. The design approach will be shown
Measurement of the wake behind a bat-like flapper and the influence of the flapping frequency on lift generation

The wake structure behind a simplified flapping model based on the Lesser short-nosed fruit bat Cynopterus brachyotis was examined at a Reynolds number Re ≈ 3 x 10 4 and four Strouhal numbers between St = 0.014 and St = 0.126 using high speed PIV in the Trefftz plane. Besides the tip vortex, three other vortex structures were observed at higher Strouhal numbers: a proximal counter rotating vortex, indicating that over the body temporarily no lift is produced, and a distal vortex dipole, showing that the distal part of the wing is generating negative lift during the upstroke at higher Strouhal numbers. Even though real bats cruise at higher Strouhal numbers ( St ≥ 0.2), the same four vortices were described for the wake structures of three different bat species.
Performance of Commercial Television Stations as an Outcome of Interorganizational Linkages and Environmental Conditions

This study explored the effects of interorganizational linkages as a moderator between organizational performance and environmental conditions. Analyses covered 145 commercial television stations i...
Among My Autographs

(1921). Among My Autographs. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 28, No. 5, pp. 207-209.
The exploration on CDC records management work

With the rapid development of information and technology,CDC records management work faces new opportunities and challenges.How to achieve the informatization and modernlize of CDC records management work has become a urgent problem to solve.However,CDC records management work in our country starts late.It occours many problems and faultiness.The thesis mainly explores the problems exsist in CDC records management work and how to achieve the informatization and modernlize of CDC records management work.
Detrusor Upethral Sphincter Dyssynergia: Micturitional Vesicourethral Pressure Profile Patterns

AbstractVesicourethral static pressure recordings were attempted in patients with detrusor urethral sphincter dyssynergia. The technique consisted of recording vesicourethral pressures at successive points, commencing in the lower segment of the bladder during micturition, A small catheter with side holes was used for this purpose and static (lateral) pressure profile recordings were attempted during voiding. Successful static pressure recordings were obtained only in those patients who could expel urine as uninterrupted stream. Patients who could not void or those who could void only with interrupted stream have demonstrated profile patterns that required careful interpretation. The accuracy of urodynamic interpretation also depended upon careful clinical evaluation and awareness of the built-in artifacts of the technique.
Hypocalcemia, but not PTH or hypophosphatemia, induces a rapid increase in 1,25(OH)2D3 levels in rats.

This study determined whether acute decreases in plasma ionized calcium (Ca2+) levels regulate plasma 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3] levels independent of changes in parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion and plasma phosphate levels. Chronically catheterized rats were subjected to a hypocalcemic clamp (mean decrement of Ca2+ levels 0.38 +/- 0.04 mM), a rat PTH-(1-34) infusion, and a PTH vehicle infusion for 2 h. Plasma NH2-terminal immunoreactive PTH levels were elevated 3.2- and 8.7-fold during hypocalcemia and PTH infusion, respectively. Plasma phosphate decreased by 23 +/- 4 and 42 +/- 3% during hypocalcemia and PTH infusion, respectively. In response to hypocalcemia, plasma 1,25(OH)2D3 levels increased promptly, were significantly elevated by 15 min (56 +/- 23% increase), and continued to increase until the end of the experiment at 5 h (350 +/- 30% increase). In contrast, no changes in plasma 1,25(OH)2D3 levels occurred during the PTH infusion, but levels were elevated by 5 h, i.e., 3 h after the end of the infusion (360 +/- 20% increase). No significant changes in 25(OH)D3 or 24,25(OH)2D3 levels occurred in any protocol. Thus hypocalcemia rapidly elevates 1,25(OH)2D3 levels in rats, but the increase is not caused by elevated PTH secretion, hypophosphatemia, or elevated 25(OH)D3 levels. Furthermore, the increase in 1,25(OH)2D3 levels by hypophosphatemia does not occur rapidly. These studies show that there is a calcium-dependent mechanism that is independent of changes in PTH secretion and that results in the rapid elevation of plasma 1,25(OH)2D3 levels to counteract hypocalcemia.
The siren song of open hardware/software in wireless sensor design

In low- to medium-income homes, indoor air quality is a significant factor with regards to both respiratory and overall health. In this paper, we discuss a proof-of-concept design that provides an open-hardware/open-software solution for the monitoring of indoor air quality in new and existing homes. Our commitment to open hardware challenges the traditional approach to environmental sensing, and the difficulties we encountered in our work suggest critical strategies for those who would pursue similar work in this or related areas of research.
Hydrogel-enabled osmotic pumping for microfluidics: towards wearable human-device interfaces

This paper describes a technique that utilizes the osmotic properties of hydrogels to passively draw fluid through a membrane and pass it along to a microfluidic network for sensing purposes. This technique may enable non-invasive collection and manipulation of sweat for biosensing. To demonstrate the concept, thin hydrogel discs equilibrated in saline or glycerol were integrated with a microfluidic device. The hydrogel interfaces with a water-permeable membrane. The high concentration of solute in the hydrogel creates an osmotic pressure difference across the membrane, driving fluid flow through the membrane and into the device. The release of solute from the hydrogel autonomously pumps the fluid into an adjacent microfluidic channel. The flowrate of liquid drawn through the membrane is controlled by the osmotic pressure of the hydrogel and its interfacial contact area with the membrane. The flowrate gradually decreases over time as the continuous influx of withdrawn fluid dilutes the concentrated solute in the hydrogel. Initial testing has shown the device can pump accurate levels of glucose across the membrane and through a microchannel to a reservoir with a glucose sensor. Sensors and electrodes can be implemented in future microfluidic devices operating on these principles to test for other bioanalytes in sweat.
18F-FDG PET response and clinical outcomes after stereotactic body radiation therapy for metastatic melanoma.

Abstract Background Clinical data that support stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) metastatic malignant melanoma (MM) are limited. Furthermore, functional imaging with 18F-fludeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (PET) may offer a more accurate post-SBRT assessment. Therefore, we assessed the clinical outcomes and metabolic response of metastatic MM after SBRT. Methods and materials Patients with MM who were treated with SBRT and had pre- and post-PET scans (>1) were included in this study. A total of 390 pre- and post-SBRT PET/computed tomography (CT) scans for 80 metastases were analyzed. The PET metabolic response was evaluated per the PET Response Criteria in Solid Tumors (PERCIST), version 1.0, criteria. Single-fraction equivalent dose (SFED) was calculated as per the standard. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for estimates of overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival. The cumulative incidence method was used to estimate metastasis control (MC). A Wilcoxon test was used to compare survival estimates. The prognostic factors for MC and OS were assessed using the Cox proportional hazards model, and the Likelihood Ratio was also used for comparisons between groups. Results A median of 6 PET scans (range, 2-6 scans) was evaluated for each metastasis. The median SFED was 42.8 Gy (range, 18-56.4 Gy) and the median biologically effective dose was 254.4 Gy 2.5 (range, 100.8-540 Gy 2.5 ). Twenty percent of patients received chemotherapy and 59% received immunotherapy: granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (64%) and ipilimumab (34%). MC was 94% and 90% at 1 year and 3 years, respectively. The OS was 74% and 27% and 1 year and 3 years, respectively. Complete response was achieved in 90% at a median of 2.8 months (range, 0.4-25.2 months). SFED >24 Gy correlated with improved MC (93% vs 75%, P = .01). Acute and late grade 3+ toxicities were 4% and 11%, respectively, with no grade 5 toxicity. Conclusions Post-SBRT PET/CT for extracranial metastatic MM resulted in high rates of complete response at a median of 2.8 months, and durable MC was achieved with SFED >24 Gy. SBRT, in addition to surgery and ablation, should be discussed with patients with MM, especially those with oligometastases.
A guide to sperm DNA fragmentation testing

A conundrum exists in the field of male infertility as in many other areas of medical study. It is described by the adage that advises one to not order a test or exam if you don’t know what to do with the results. The urologists’ conundrum is: how to use the information we have learned about abnormalities in sperm chromatin, specifically DNA fragmentation, in our daily practice. How to measure it, what are the qualitative and quantitative norms, what are the effects (on fertilization and pregnancy both natural and assisted) of deviations from these norms, is it treatable or just manageable with some sort of work-around? These are some of the questions the urologist/male fertility specialist must consider when he or she is requested to consult on a man referred for “evaluation of an abnormal sperm DNA fragmentation test”. These tests are relatively easy to obtain and at least one has been standardized and commercially available for a number of years. The article on “Clinical utility of sperm DNA fragmentation testing” addresses these issues (1).
The Neuroscience of Mindfulness: How Mindfulness Alters the Brain and Facilitates Emotion Regulation

Here we present a survey of the current state of the neuroscience of mindfulness, integrating it into a theoretical framework of emotion regulation and linking research to clinical practice. Findings from the neuroscience of emotion regulation are reviewed, implicating activation in the anterior cingulate cortex, insular cortex, and prefrontal cortex, and deactivation of the amygdala. We then review the nascent literature on the neuroscience of mindfulness, which suggests that similar areas are involved in mindfulness processing. People high in dispositional mindfulness display greater activity in the prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and insular cortex and lesser activity in the amygdala than those low in dispositional mindfulness when engaging in various emotionally salient tasks. Similarly, practitioners engaging in intentional mindfulness appear to demonstrate both functional and structural differences from controls in this emotion regulation network, which correlate with behavioral differences in areas ranging from attentional abilities to psychological well-being. We theorize how the neurologic correlates of mindfulness might support the psychologically healthy mindfulness skills of present-moment focus and detachment from self-referential processing. Finally, we address the limitations of the state of this emerging field and suggest areas for future research. Notably, we illustrate a confound in the literature—that research designs rarely disambiguate intentional mindfulness practice from a more intrinsic, dispositional, mindfulness—and propose a terminological framework to rectify this confound in the field.
Follow-up Blood Cultures in Gram-Negative Bacteremia: Are They Needed?

Background Bloodstream infections remain a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Gram-negative bacilli (GNB) bacteremia is typically transient and usually resolves rapidly after the initiation of appropriate antibiotic therapy and source control. The optimal duration of treatment and utility of follow-up blood cultures (FUBC) have not been studied in detail. Currently, the management of gram-negative bacteremia is determined by clinical judgment. To investigate the value of repeat blood cultures, we analyzed 500 episodes of bacteremia to determine frequency of FUBC and identify risk factors for persistent bacteremia. Methods Of 500 episodes of bacteremia, we retrospectively analyzed 383 (77%) that had at least 1 FUBC. We sought information regarding presumed source of bacteremia, antibiotic status at the time of FUBC, antibiotic susceptibility, presence of fever, comorbidities (intravenous central lines, urinary catheters, diabetes mellitus, AIDS, end-stage renal disease, and cirrhosis), need for intensive care, and mortality. Results Antibiotic use did not affect the rate of positivity of FUBC, unless bacteria were not sensitive to empiric antibiotic. Fever on the day of FUBC was associated with higher rates of positive FUBC for gram-positive cocci (GPC) but not GNB. Mortality and care in the intensive care unit were not associated with positive FUBC. Seventeen FUBC and 5 FUBC were drawn for GNB and GPC to yield 1 positive result. Conclusions FUBC added little value in the management of GNB bacteremia. Unrestrained use of blood cultures has serious implications for patients including increased healthcare costs, longer hospital stays, unnecessary consultations, and inappropriate use of antibiotics.
Establishing Rules for Self-Organizing Systems-of-Systems

Abstract Self-organizing systems-of-systems offer the possibility of autonomously adapting to new circumstances and tasking. This could significantly benefit large endeavors such as smart cities and national defense by increasing the probability that new situations are expediently handled. Complex self-organizing behaviors can be produced by a large set of individual agents all following the same simple set of rules. While biological rule sets have application in achieving human goals, other rules sets may be necessary as these goals are not necessarily mirrored in nature. To this end, a set of system, rather than biologically, inspired rules is introduced and an agent-based model is used to simulate and analyze the behavior produced with various parameters. Agents represent systems and their decisions are defined by the given rule set and parameters. The environment provides a variety of time-critical missions on an ongoing basis. The effectiveness of a particular rule or set of rules is measured by a set of key performance metrics such as the rate at which missions achieve their required capabilities within a given deadline and the average time required to do so. Different rules will be compared using this criterion along with an assessment of their ability to demonstrate beneficial self-organizing behavior.
Newer hormonal pharmacotherapies for heart failure

Introduction: Heart failure (HF) is characterized by maladaptive neurohormonal activation of the cardiovascular and renal systems resulting in circulatory inadequacy and frequent acute exacerbation...
The Banach-Tarski Paradox. By Stan Wagon

(1987). The Banach-Tarski Paradox. By Stan Wagon. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 94, No. 7, pp. 698-700.
Creating Business Documents with Mail Merge

In this chapter, you will learn how to use Word’s powerful mail merge feature to create business documents such as form letters, catalogs, mailing labels, and envelopes. Each of these types of documents is built around a common core, the main document, into which you merge variable data contained in records in a list, or data source, such as an Excel workbook or an address book.