cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Eigenvector Normalization from Mass Perturbations: A Review

Stochastic identification results are not sufficient to determine input-­output relations because one constant for each identified mode is missing. Since the product of a mode and its constant is unique the constant can be absorbed into the modal scaling and it is in this context that the term eigenvector normalization is used in this paper. The seminal contribution in the normalization of operational modes is from Parloo et. al., whom, in a paper in 2002, noted that the required scaling can be computed from the derivative of the eigenvalues to known perturbations. This paper contains a review of the theoretical work that has been carried out on the perturbation strategy in the near decade that has elapsed since its introduction.
Youth Suicide: The First Suicide Attempt.

A mainstay in the identification and management of youth at risk for suicide is the use of suicide risk factors, such as past suicide attempt(s), past or current suicidal ideation, mood disorders, substance use disorders, psychosis, male gender, and lack of family support.1 A history of at least 1 medically serious suicide attempt2 or violent self-harm3 is a particularly important risk factor. This phenomenon has been studied mostly with clinical samples, such as cohorts of patients initially admitted to a hospital for an attempt, having used a particular self-harm method, or seen in an emergency department.4 Olfson et al.3 used Medicaid claims data and tracked patients for 1 year after an episode of self-harm. However, these studies could not contextualize completed suicides that were not preceded by an attempt or other self-harm. McKean et al.,5 in this issue of JAACAP, used a community sample to identify a cohort followed from the first suicide attempt that came to medical attention to the index attempt (IA), including an IA resulting in death. This approach facilitated an analysis that included individuals who lived after or died from the IA, receipt of care, subsequent suicide completion, method of IA and completed suicides, and individuals' demographic and clinical characteristics.
Wonder Woman: superheroine, not superhero

The superhero genre, as the name implies, is a male-focused genre, whose lone ‘redeemer heroes’ enact ‘rites of order’ in which the Other is expelled from contested space and order is restored thro...
The town that food saved? Investigating the promise of a local food economy in Vermont

Proponents of the local food movement point to its environmental, economic, and social benefits, yet there is little research on the extent to which particular local food projects live up to these ...
Physical activity trajectories and subsequent fall risk: ARIC Study.

Abstract To examine the impact of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) trajectories during midlife and older adulthood with subsequent fall risk in later life. Cross-temporal analyses were conducted in 15,792 participants (27% black, 55% women) aged 45 to 64 years enrolled in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study. MVPA was collected at Exams 1 (1987–89), 3 (1993–95) and 5 (2011–13) using the ARIC/Baecke questionnaire. Latent class growth analysis was used to identify the MVPA trajectory groups. Reported falls outcomes were collected in 2013–14, 2015–16, and 2016–17. Generalized Linear Models were used to estimate associations of baseline predictors with trajectory class membership, as well as associations of trajectory classes with any falling (adjusted incident relative risks, aIRR) and with number of falls (adjusted relative rates, aRR). Four primary trajectory classes emerged, reflecting longitudinal patterns of maintained high (48%), maintained low (22%), increasing (14%) and decreasing (15%) MVPA. After adjustment for covariates, the decreasing MVPA trajectory group had a 14% higher risk of reporting any falling compared to the maintained high MVPA group [aIRR = 1.14 (1.01, 1.28)]. When compared to the maintained high MVPA group, the maintained low and decreasing group had a 28% [aRR = 1.28 (1.14, 1.44)] and 27% [aRR = 1.27 (1.17, 1.38)] higher rate in the reported number of falls, respectively. Findings support public health campaigns targeting habitual MVPA or exercise for fall prevention and suggest that interventions should be initiated in midlife; a time when individuals may be more able and willing to change behavior.
Mysticism or the Overstepping of Nature

This chapter extends the concept of self-overcoming to morality, social issues, and social progress by conceiving social life as a stoppage carrying the injunction to overcome the halt. The stoppage yields the closed society, which acts as a source of obligations supporting an internal hierarchical order and inducing hostility toward other groups. The creative continuity of life initiates the movement in the direction of open society, defined by democratic order and human fraternity, and spearheaded by the mystic love of humanity. The latter overflows the closed society, and so inspires rather than determine progress. In light of this relation, the chapter examines Bergson’s stand on modernity and its problems, such as social and gender inequalities, ecological degradation, the handling of human diversity, and the threat of war.
A Seat at the Table: Notes of an Institutional Creature∗

In this article, occasioned by the fiftieth-anniversary of the Whitney Independent Study Program, art-historian Huey Copeland considers the vexed intersections of blackness, gender, and institution...
Abstract 5108: Somatic small variant and copy number alteration calling with the Genome Analysis Toolkit

Somatic small mutations, SNVs or Indels, and copy number alterations are the two categories of mutations with the largest impact on cancer tumors. The Broad Institute has released somatic variant calling workflows for small mutations (M2) and copy number alterations (ModelSegments) based on the Genome Analysis Toolkit (GATK). The suite of workflows can call variants in capture or whole-genome sequencing data and will include functional annotations (Funcotator), such as protein change (for small variants) and impacted gene (for all variants). Common artifacts in sequencing data, such as those arising from oxidative DNA damage, FFPE/deamination, or mapping errors, are corrected automatically. Evaluation of the workflows is standardized and repeatable, which allows tracking of performance across versions, both detection performance (e.g. sensitivity, precision), as well as runtime performance (e.g. CPU and RAM usage). A matched normal is not required for a given tumor sample, since the workflows can leverage pre-processed panels of normals (PoNs). The workflows are freely available, are portable (i.e. can be run on local, on-prem, or cloud compute), are optimized for cost reduction, and can be tuned to optimally leverage available compute.The measured sensitivity of M2 was at least 0.93 for small somatic nucleotide variants (SNVs) and 0.83 for small insertions/deletions (Indels) on DREAM1, DREAM2, and DREAM3 challenges, and on a titrated mixture of germline samples (>=100x depth, AF = 0.2). The measured precision of M2 ranged from 0.91 to 0.98 on DREAM1, DREAM2, and DREAM3 for both SNVs and Indels. The false positive rate (FPR) of M2 was between 0.03 and 0.21 FP/Mb for SNVs, and between 0.0 and 0.1 FP/Mb for indels, on twelve paired, replicate normal-normal samples. The cost of the M2 workflow is about USD$1.15 for a pair of 35x WGS matched tumor-normal samples, using Google Cloud Compute, and required about 32 hours of CPU time on a single core with 3GB RAM. The measured sensitivity of ModelSegments was at least 0.91 for deletions and amplifications across three cohorts of TCGA whole-exome samples (Stomach adenocarcinoma N=39, Thyroid carcinoma N=50, and Lung adenocarcinoma N=60). The measured specificity for the same set of cohorts was at least 0.96 for both deletions and amplifications. All results reported here were using the corresponding SNP Array results as a truth set. GATK MS cost was approximately USD$0.65 on a 30x WGS pair using Google Cloud Compute and required about 6 hours of CPU time with a single core. The RAM usage was varied automatically in the workflow to minimize cost, but was in the range of 2-13GB. Citation Format: Lee Lichtenstein, Jonn Smith, David Benjamin, Aaron Chevalier, Kristian Cibulskis, Samuel K. Lee, Eric Banks. Somatic small variant and copy number alteration calling with the Genome Analysis Toolkit [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 5108.
Sensing mechanical deformation via ionic polymer metal composites: A primer

Ionic polymer metal composites (IPMCs) were discovered about twenty five years ago by Prof. Oguro and his team in Japan [1], and evidence about metalizing ionomer membranes dates even earlier [2]. Since their discovery, IPMCs have been the object of intensive research across the entire globe [3]–[5]. In its simplest form, an IPMC is constituted by a hydrated ionomeric membrane (that is, an electrically-charged polymer), which is neutralized by mobile counterions in a solution and plated by noble metal electrodes. IPMCs can be used as actuators and sensors, whereby a voltage applied across the electrodes will elicit mechanical deformation, and an imposed mechanical deformation will induce a measurable voltage across the electrodes.
Program and Instructional Strategies Supportive of Doctoral Students' Degree Completion

Doctoral education demands significant time, energy, financial, and emotional commitments. Depending on the characteristics of the doctoral student, barriers to completion and challenges with the d...
The PET Sandwich: Using Serial FDG-PET Scans with Interval Burst Suppression to Assess Ictal Components of Disease

Determining the cause of refractory seizures and/or interictal continuum (IIC) findings in the critically ill patient remains a challenge. These electrographic abnormalities may represent primary ictal pathology or may instead be driven by an underlying infectious, inflammatory, or neoplastic pathology that requires targeted therapy. In these cases, it is unclear whether escalating antiepileptic therapy will be helpful or harmful. Herein, we report the use of serial [F-18] fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) coupled with induced electrographic burst suppression to distinguish between primary and secondary ictal pathologies. We propose that anesthetic suppression of hypermetabolic foci suggests clinical responsiveness to escalating antiepileptic therapy, whereas non-suppressible hypermetabolic foci are suggestive of non-ictal pathologies that likely require multimodal therapy. We describe 6 patients who presented with electrographic findings of seizure or IIC abnormalities, severe neurologic injury, and clinical concern for confounding pathologies. All patients were continuously monitored on video electroencephalography (cvEEG). Five patients underwent at least two sequential FDG-PET scans of the brain: one in a baseline state and the second while under electrographic burst suppression. FDG-avid loci and EEG tracings were compared pre- and post-burst suppression. One patient underwent a single FDG-PET scan while burst-suppressed. Four patients had initially FDG-avid foci that subsequently resolved with burst suppression. Escalation of antiepileptic therapy in these patients resulted in clinical improvement, suggesting that the foci were related to primary ictal pathology. These included clinical diagnoses of electroclinical status epilepticus, new-onset refractory status epilepticus, stroke-like migraine attacks after radiotherapy, and epilepsy secondary to inflammatory cerebral amyloid angiopathy. Conversely, two patients with high-grade EEG abnormalities had FDG-avid foci that persisted despite burst suppression. The first presented with a poor examination, fever, and concern for encephalitis. Postmortem pathology confirmed suspicion of herpes simplex virus encephalitis. The second patient presented with concern for checkpoint inhibitor-induced autoimmune encephalitis. The persistence of the FDG-avid focus, despite electrographic burst suppression, guided successful treatment through escalation of immunosuppressive therapy. In appropriately selected patients, FDG-PET scans while in burst suppression may help dissect the underlying pathophysiologic cause of IIC findings observed on EEG and guide tailored therapy.
N1 of N2 constructions in academic written discourse: A pattern grammar analysis

Abstract This paper presents a corpus-based, pattern grammar-driven analysis of N1 of N2 constructions in academic written discourse. Different from other approaches to phraseology, the pattern grammar approach focuses on schematic grammatical patterns with a high degree of lexical variation rather than continuous word sequences or word sequences with a single open lexical slot. Using a corpus of research article introductions in applied linguistics annotated for rhetorical moves and steps, we identified instances of the N1 of N2 pattern and analyzed these instances in terms of frequency distribution, general discourse functions, and the rhetorical functions with which they were strongly associated. The analysis provides a comprehensive functional description of the N1 of N2 pattern in the context of disciplinary academic writing. Our findings have methodological implications for phraseology analysis and the development of pedagogically useful constructicons of academic English.
Participating in Paradox: An Integrative Framework:

Drawing from Alan Watts’s philosophy of paradox, this essay aims to articulate an integrative framework of ontological paradox (i.e., that all aspects of existence feature distinct and integral dim...
Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Exercise, Sleep, and Mood in Young Adults.

Insufficient sleep is a serious public health problem in college students. Exercise is a widely prescribed behavioral treatment for sleep and mood issues; however, more focused and gender-specific ...
Tuning proton transfer and catalytic properties in triple junction nanostructured catalyts

Abstract Nature is abundant with multi-functional and efficient catalysts such as redox enzymes which scientists wish to emulate with synthetic catalysts. One approach is to tune molecular catalysts through metal-organic ligands but there are grand challenges of molecular catalysts for real applications in energy field. Here we demonstrate a robust inorganic construct based on metal-metal oxide-carbon triple junction nanostructures (ZrO2/Pd/carbon) that mimics the functions of enzymes for highly efficient proton transport. The metal oxide tunes the local acidic environment of the metal and improves its ability for proton transport, efficient adsorption of substrate, and accelerated electron transfer. Using electrocatalytic hydrogenation (ECH) of benzaldehyde as a model reaction, we show that the intrinsic activity of the metal toward hydrogenation reaction is improved by over 200 % on the triple junction nanostructured catalysts. This study demonstrates the potential of rational design of multicomponent nanostructured catalysts to achieve enzyme like properties in synthetic catalysts.
Non-destructive Chemical Imaging of Bone Tissue for Intraoperative and Diagnostic Applications

Bone is difficult to image using traditional histopathological methods, leading to challenges in intraoperative consultations needed in orthopedic oncology. However, intraoperative pathological evaluation is critical in guiding surgical treatment. In this study, we demonstrate that a multimodal imaging approach that combines stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy, two-photon fluorescence (TPF) microscopy, and second harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy can provide useful diagnostic information regarding intact bone tissue fragments from surgical excision or biopsy specimens. We imaged bone samples from 14 patient cases and performed comprehensive chemical and morphological analyses of both mineral and organic components of bone. Our main findings show that carbonate content combined with morphometric analysis of bone organic matrix can separate several major classes of bone cancer associated diagnostic categories with an average accuracy of 92%. This proof-of-principle study demonstrate that multimodal imaging and machine learning-based analysis of bony tissue can provide crucial diagnostic information for guiding clinical decisions in orthopedic oncology.
Outcomes of KRAS mutated, EGFR mutated, ALK mutated and wildtype patients in non-small cell lung cancer brain metastases.

e21028Background: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common primary tumor leading to brain metastases. Multiple genetic markers have been profiled in NSCLC patients for potential target...
Regional air transportation of ovarian tissue for cryopreservation in a prepubertal female with cancer.

Ovarian tissue cryopreservation is the only fertility preservation (FP) option available to prepubescent females receiving gonadotoxic therapy, but it has limited availability. A 6-year-old female was diagnosed with high-risk rhabdomyosarcoma, and the planned treatment carried an 80% risk of ovarian failure. Her parents desired FP, but the nearest center was 500 miles away. The patient underwent oophorectomy at the cancer center with air transport of the tissue to the oncofertility center, where it was successfully cryopreserved. Formation of networks between full-service and limited oncofertility centers in a hub-and-spoke model would increase access to FP services, particularly in children.
Mindful Versus Diaphragmatic Breathing: Spirituality Moderates the Impact on Heart Rate Variability

Both mindful breathing and deep diaphragmatic breathing are used in the treatment of emotional disorders and can help people learn to modulate the body’s stress response. While both result in deep, slow breathing, the two approaches are quite different in their origins. We tested whether individual differences in spirituality might moderate their efficacy. Forty-eight undergraduates from the University of Pennsylvania completed baseline measures of spirituality as well as respiration rate, tidal volume and heart rate variability (HRV) at rest. Participants were then randomly assigned to a video that guided them through a mindful breathing exercise (which mentioned “a long tradition of meditation style exercises that have been used for literally thousands of years”) (N = 21) or a diaphragmatic breathing exercise (N = 27). Both types of training resulted in lower respiration rate and higher tidal volume over baseline (all ts > 3.78, ps < 0.001), but only diaphragmatic breathing resulted in significant increases in HRV (t(26) = 6.29, p < 0.001). Spirituality moderated the impact, such that spiritual people benefited equally from both types of breathing training, but less spiritual people benefited more from diaphragmatic breathing than from mindful breathing (F(4,46) = 3.69, p = .06). These results suggest that spirituality may moderate the impact of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) in the American context. Discussion focuses analyzes how our results may reflect a misunderstanding of eastern wisdom traditions as they were characterized during colonial times.
A Rubric for Assessing Student Drawings & Reasoning to Gauge Understanding of Osmosis & Diffusion

The concepts of osmosis and diffusion are essential to biology, and student difficulties with them are well documented, along with multiple ways of assessment and diagnosis. We add to the literature by sharing how we used drawing and reasoning prompts with first-year undergraduate biology students to gauge learning before and after an osmosis and diffusion lab. We also share the development and validation of a three-point analytical rubric to score the keywords, student drawings, and reasoning prompts. The qualitative and quantitative nature of this exercise provides instructors with the unique opportunity to diagnose difficulties not only in introductory biology but throughout the undergraduate curriculum. Implementation strategies throughout the undergraduate curriculum are discussed.
Differential Type 1 IFN Gene Expression in CD14+ Placenta Cells Elicited by Zika Virus Infection During Pregnancy

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an arthropod-borne Flavivirus that can also be transmitted vertically from infected mother to fetus. Infection of the fetus during pregnancy can lead to congenital malformations and severely impact fetal brain development causing a myriad of diseases now labeled Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS). The mechanisms by which ZIKV crosses the placenta into the fetal circulation and the extent of ZIKV-induced changes remain unclear. We have previously shown that ZIKV infection of pregnant rhesus macaques results in abnormal oxygen transport across the placenta which may promote uterine vasculitis and placental villous damage. Changes in immune cell frequencies and activation status were also detected, as were distinct changes in the proportions of CD14+ cell subsets with an altered ratio of classical to non-classical CD14+ monocyte cells in both the maternal decidua and placental villous from ZIKV-infected animals compare to uninfected controls. In the current study, we performed single cell RNA sequencing on CD14+ cells isolated from the villous of animals that were ZIKV infected at 31, 51, or 115 days gestation (term is ~168 days) compared to pregnant, time-matched uninfected controls. Bioinformatic analysis identified unique transcriptional phenotypes between CD14+ cells of infected and uninfected animals suggesting a distinct and sustained difference in transcriptomes between infected and uninfected CD14+ cells derived from the decidua. The timing of ZIKV infection had no effect on the CD14+ cell transcriptional profiles. Interestingly, ZIKV infection caused changes in expression of genes in pathways related to cellular stress and metabolism as well as immune response activation. Type 1 interferon response genes (ISGs) were among those that were differentially expressed following infection and these included members of the ISG12 family, IFI27 and IFI6. These ISGs have been recently described as effectors of the IFN response to flaviviruses. Supplementing our animal findings, in CD14+ cells isolated from human placenta, ZIKV infection similarly induced the expression of IFI27 and IFI6. Overall, our results showed that ZIKV infection during pregnancy induces the stable expression of antiviral genes within CD14+ cells of the placenta, which may provide an immune shield to protect the placenta from further infection and damage.
Epilogue: Some Implications

To what extent do the results obtained suggest general principles concerning the relationship between child rearing and personality development? Are they applicable to societies other than the Kibbutz? The answer is that some generalizations and conclusions may prove useful beyond the boundaries of the society in which the investigation took place.
Bazaar and State in Iran: The Politics of the Tehran Marketplace

1. The puzzle of the Tehran Bazaar under the Pahlavi monarchy and the Islamic Republic 2. Conceptualising the bazaar 3. Bazaar transformations: networks, reputations and solidarities 4. Networks in the context of transformative agendas 5. Carpets, tea and teacups: commodity types and sectoral trajectories 6. Networks of mobilisation under two regimes 7. Conclusions Selected bibliography Index.
Associations between Outpatient and Inpatient Service Use among Persons with HIV Infection: A Positive or Negative Relationship?

In the first decade of the HIV epidemic, efforts were made to develop community-based systems of care, in part to reduce the frequency and cost of inpatient treatment (Mor et al. 1994). These efforts culminated in 1990 with the passage of the Ryan White CARE Act, which provides funds to support and enhance community-based care for HIV disease (Bowen et al. 1992). One premise of such programs is that appropriate outpatient care could reduce the incidence of costly inpatient episodes. Closer outpatient disease management could potentially avoid hospitalization by discovering and treating incipient conditions. If this is correct, one would expect to find a negative relationship between outpatient and inpatient utilization. Alternatively, sicker patients might consume higher levels of both inpatient and outpatient care, leading to a positive relationship between inpatient and outpatient utilization. Relatively few studies of persons with HIV have investigated the association between inpatient and outpatient service use. Most research examines inpatient and outpatient use in separate analyses (e.g., Shapiro et al. 1999; Fleishman et al. 2005). Cunningham et al. (1996) reported a positive association between number of ambulatory visits and the probability of having had a prior hospitalization. However, the sample was recruited from patients hospitalized for HIV-related conditions, raising the potential for selection bias. Pezzin and Fleishman (2003) developed a complex econometric model to examine the effect of number of ambulatory visits on inpatient and emergency department use. Overall, the association between number of ambulatory visits and number of inpatient episodes was not significant. These studies were based on data collected before the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in 1996. It is not clear if similar relationships would be obtained in the current treatment environment. The introduction of HAART was associated with substantial declines in inpatient censuses of patients with HIV (Torres and Barr 1997; Fleishman and Hellinger 2001; Gebo, Diener-West, and Moore 2001; Paul et al. 2002). Despite the reductions, HIV-related inpatient utilization is still far from rare; among 15,211 HIV-infected patients from several care sites in 2001, 20.4 percent had one or more inpatient episodes (Fleishman et al. 2005). Inpatient care remains a major component of overall expenses for treating HIV infection (Gebo et al. 2006). This study examines the association between ambulatory visits and inpatient admissions, using data from 2001 to 2004 in a large sample of HIV patients in care. We examine whether ambulatory care helps to prevent subsequent inpatient care (i.e., a negative relationship) or whether outpatient and inpatient care are complementary (i.e., a positive relationship). If both processes are at work, the relationship could be nonlinear.
Nuclear pants and other Web queries : Unexpected consequences of using the Web to promote a small, specialized collection

Approximately two years ago, the Pennsylvania State University Engineering Library created a Web site to advertise its Three Mile Island 2 (TMI-2) Decontamination and Recovery Collection. The main part of the collection consists of several thousand videotapes that document the various stages of the TMI-2 cleanup project along with technical reports describing these efforts and related research. The Web site was intended to alert the global nuclear community to its existence and encourage use of the collection. The actual users and use of the site were quite unexpected. This paper will explore the process of setting up the Web page, its use, and the benefits and drawbacks of using this medium to promote a small, specialized collection.
Coping with partially corrupted data

One of the obstacles in data analysis tasks is the variable quality of the data. We investigated ways to automatically deal with corruptions in the data. These include robust measures which avoid over fitting, interpolation-based imputation of missing values, and polishing by which the corrupted elements are fitted with more appropriate values. We applied such methods to a data set of vegetation indices and land cover type assembled from NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data collection. The experimental comparison suggested that straight-forward Interpolation, although a commonly used technique for filling in missing values, may not always yield the best results. Robust algorithms and polishing are both viable alternatives for dealing with partially corrupted data, with polishing performing slightly better in our experiments in terms of classification accuracy.
Responsive Reading Assessment: An Alternative.

Approaches to assessment can be divided into two types, positivist and responsive. While positivist assessment compares a student's performance to predetermined standards, responsive assessment focuses on the context and the questions that need to be answered to guide instruction. This article presents vignettes to illustrate the nature of responsive assessment. A variety of assessment techniques are also described.
Atmospheric Interactions with Spacecraft

This chapter describes the origin and significance of gasdynamic forces and torques experienced by objects in low orbits about massive bodies with sensible atmospheres. Emphasizing low earth orbit (LEO), we review gasdynamic interactions with solid bodies in orbital trajectories. We review the detriments and potential benefits of gasdynamic forces and torques experienced by objects in orbit. We provide guidance and references to the state of the art for estimating gasdynamic forces and using information for predicting orbit lifetime and satellite attitude. We discuss the dichotomies between determining atmospheric drag and inferring the characteristics of the atmosphere from drag measurements. There are great gaps in understanding gasdynamic forces and torques. We highlight the major uncertainties and suggest directions for future research. Keywords: atmospheric composition; spacecraft flight regimes; space debris; atmospheric modeling; spacecraft control; spacecraft technologies; gasdynamics; nonconservative force modeling; aerochemistry; aerodynamic drag
Treating Acne With High-Dose Isotretinoin

Importance Isotretinoin is the most effective treatment for acne. The ideal dosing regimen is unknown. Objective To determine the rates of relapse of acne vulgaris and retrial of isotretinoin after high cumulative-dose treatment and the changes to the adverse effect profile.
A Monte-Carlo Approach for Tracking Mobile Personnel

In this paper, we propose a Monte-Carlo method based on the particle filter framework to track footfall locations generated by mobile personnel using seismic arrays. While the particle proposal function follows a simple bootstrap approach, the novelty in our algorithm comes from a unique weighting strategy that takes into account the sparse nature of the seismic footfall signal and is robust against missed detections and clutter which could appear in the form of other impulsive sources or other walkers. Our weighting strategy automatically makes use of the wavefront shape, either planar or circular, and assigns weights in x-y space. Data association is built into the system, eliminating the need to explicitly associate the received footfall impulses with different walkers. Hence our algorithm is ideal for tracking multiple mobile personnel. We also demonstrate the fusion of our system with range information available by means of radar. Fusion with radar improves x-y tracking when range resolution is lost due to a large distance between the target and the seismic array leading to planar wavefronts.
A powerful ethernet interface module for digital camera control

We have found a commercially-available ethernet interface module with sufficient on-board resources to largely handle all timing generation tasks required by digital imaging systems found in astronomy. In addition to providing a high-bandwidth ethernet interface to the controller, it can largely replace the need for special-purpose timing circuitry. Examples for use with both CCD and CMOS imagers are provided.
No assembly required: compiling standard ML to C

C has been used as a portable target language for implementing languages like Standard ML and Scheme. Previous efforts at compiling these languages to C have produced efficient code, but have compromised on portability and proper tail recursion. We show how to compile Standard ML to C wihout making such compromises. The compilation technique is based on converting Standard ML to a continuation-passing style l-calculus intermediate language and then compiling this language to C. The code generated by this compiler achieves an execution speed that is about a factor of two slower than that generated by a native code compiler. The compiler generates highly portable code, yet still supports advanced features like garbage collection and first-class continuations. We analyze the performance and determine the aspects of the compilation method that lead to the observed slowdown. We also suggest changes to C compilers that would better support such compilation methods.
Using baldrige method frameworks, excellence in higher education standards, and the sakai CLE for the self assessment process

Marist College has designed a unique approach to self-assessment in order to have a full and detailed experience. The IT department is using the combination of the Baldrige frameworks, in addition to the Excellence in Higher Education Standards guidelines, and the flexibility of the Sakai Collaborative Learning Environment (CLE) to complete their self-assessment. The process is being conducted using a method that blends real time meetings and asynchronous Sakai collaboration sites which include a wiki, blogger, and discussion forums. We plan to share our outcomes institutionally by using Sakai's Open Source Portfolio (OSP).
Multicentric Castleman's Disease, Associated with Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura

The most common cause of a neck mass in young adults is hyperplastic lymphadenopathy consequent to infection and inflammation. Castleman's disease (CD), an unusual benign lymphoproliferative disorder, infrequently causes neck masses. It occurs in unicentric (UCD) and multicentric (MCD) forms and is associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), human herpes virus 8 (HHV-8), and Kaposi's sarcoma. We present the third known association between MCD and previous immune thrombocytopenia in the absence of HIV and HHV-8 infection and review its association with other autoimmune disorders and attendant implications for pathogenesis. Finally, we summarize the current approach to therapy.
Detection of hearing impairment with the acoustic stapedius reflex

The acoustic stapedius reflex (ASR) is the sound-evoked contraction of the stapedius muscle. The ASR is mediated by a neural network, receiving its afferent input from the VIIIth cranial (auditory) nerve and sending its efferent output to the VIIth cranial (facial) nerve. Several centers in the brain stem comprise the central portion of the reflex pathway. The stapedius muscle in each ear responds to ipsilateral, contralateral, and binaural stimulation. The normal ASR threshold is 90 to 95 dB SPL for tones and 70 to 75 dB SPL for wideband noise. In ears with sensorineural hearing loss, ASR thresholds are elevated more for wideband noise than for tones. These bandwidth-related changes form the basis for detection of hearing loss from ASR data. A number of methods have been proposed which differ in the nature of the outcome. Some try to quantitatively estimate hearing loss, whereas others categorize outcomes as pass or fail. In general, methods that attempt quantitative estimation of hearing loss do so at the expense of higher error rates. With adequate recording techniques, the ASR has been shown to effectively detect hearing losses exceeding 30 dB in adult subjects. Although ASR recording in newborns requires a higher probe frequency than the commonly used 226 Hz, ASR thresholds in newborns appear to be similar to those in adults. Limited information exists on the use of the ASR for detection of hearing loss in the infant population. With adequate attention to methodological requirements of testing infants, the ASR may offer a cost-effective method for the early detection of hearing loss.
Prevention of ocular scarring post glaucoma filtration surgery using the inflammatory cell and platelet binding modulator saratin in a rabbit model.

Clinical Relevance: Late complications can occur with use of current antimetabolites to prevent scarring following glaucoma filtration surgery (GFS). Safer, more targeted, anti-fibrosis agents are sought. Objectives: The protein saratin has been shown to exhibit anti-fibrotic and anti-thrombotic properties in response to injury, but had not been used for glaucoma surgery. The goal of this study was to compare the efficacy of saratin with that of the widely accepted mitomycin-C (MMC) in prolonging bleb survival following GFS in the rabbit model. Two saratin delivery routes were compared; a single intraoperative topical application versus a combination of intraoperative topical application with two additional postoperative injections. Methods: Twenty-four New Zealand White rabbits underwent GFS and received either intraoperative topical saratin, intraoperative topical saratin plus two injections on post-operative days 4 and 8, balanced saline solution (BSS), or MMC. The bleb tissues and their elevation durations were compared based on clinical and histological findings. Results: Rabbits receiving topical+injections of saratin had a mean bleb survival of 33.668.5 days, significantly higher than the negative BSS controls, which averaged 17.466.0 days (p=0.018). No improvement over BSS was seen for rabbits receiving topical saratin only (15.564.8 days, p=0.749). Rabbits receiving saratin did not develop bleb avascularity and thinning associated with MMC treatment and there were no apparent clinical signs of toxicity. Conclusions: Treatment with a single intraoperative topical application plus two additional postoperative injections significantly prolonged bleb elevation comparable to MMC, but without toxicity; however, topical application alone was ineffective.
Diode laser noise reduction by high-frequency modulation method in optical disk drive

High frequency (HF) modulation method is commonly used in magneto-optic (MO) disk drive to reduce the laser noise, which is mainly caused by optical feedback (OFB). In this paper, the noise behavior of three commercial laser diodes is studied, to find their optimum operating conditions. It shows that their optimum conditions are significantly different. In addition, two of them are very sensitive to temperature while the other one is not.© (1992) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Uptake and binding of cadmium, copper and zinc by Drosophila melanogaster larvae

Abstract Drosophila melanogaster larvae reared on food containing radioactive cadmium retained over 80% of ingested radioactivity; more than 95% was located in the intestinal epithelium. The majority of this radioactivity associated with a macromolecule (probably a protein) of less than 10,000 molecular weight. Synthesis of this cadmium-binding protein (CBP) was induced by the metal as demonstrated by incorporation of radioactive cysteine and the synthesis proceeded at such a rate that within a few hours there was enough CBP to bind 90–95% of the ingested cadmium. Most of the copper ingested by larvae was also found to associate with a low molecular-weight, inducible protein, but a significant fraction of this metal was found in an insoluble fraction. Zinc was unable to bind or induce the synthesis of a similar protein or did so very inefficiently. The cadmium- and copper-binding protein(s) are probably metallothioneins.
Multiple, autoreactive TCR Vβ genes utilized in response to a small pathogenic peptide of an autoantigen in EAU☆

Abstract The restricted usage of particular T cell receptor β chain genes in autoimmune disease was studied in LEW rats using T cell hybridomas specific for an immunodominant sequence of bovine retinal S-Ag, which induces experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis. T cell hybridomas from a pathogenic T cell line, R858, specific for residues 273–289 of bovine retinal S-Ag were analyzed in order to determine the contribution of their TCR Vβ to self specificity as determined by recognition of the pathogenic epitope represented in the autologous rat S-Ag sequence. Six different, functional TCR rearrangements were expressed by the panel of hybridomas, including two distinct Vβ8.2 rearrangements and functional Vβ10, Vβ14, Vβ19 rearrangements, and an unidentified Vβ gene. All hybridomas were Ag specific and reacted both to nonself-peptide derivatives as well as to self-peptide homologues. No unique pattern of peptide reactivity distinguished Vβ8.2 + hybridomas from Vβ8.2 − hybridomas; all of the hybridomas were most reactive to the nonself sequences and reacted to self peptide with one to three orders of magnitude less sensitivity. However, all Vβ8.2 + hybridomas were much better responders overall and were activated by lower concentrations of all peptides than were Vβ8.2 − hybridomas. Although Vβ8.2 gene usage is strongly associated with autoimmune pathology, these data show that in LEW rats several different TCR Vβ genes are utilized in response to a short pathogenic sequence of this autoantigen and show that Vβ8.2 receptors are not uniquely self-reactive. However, the enhanced reactivity to Ag of Vβ8.2 + hybridomas relative to Vβ8.2 − hybridomas specific for the same peptide may help explain the close association of Vβ8.2 TCR gene usage with pathogenicity found in autoimmune disease models.
Teen Driving. Motor-Vehicle Crashes and Factors That Contribute

The motor-vehicle crash risk of novice teen drivers is unacceptably high. This article examines the historical trends in fatal crash rates for male and female teen drivers as compared to adult drivers by both population and person-miles driven. The effect of motor-vehicle policies on teen driver crashes, characteristics of teen driver crashes, and combinations of these crash characteristics are also examined. A framework of seven categories of influences on teen driving behavior is presented, including the following elements: driving ability, developmental factors, behavioral factors, personality factors, demographics, the perceived environment, and the driving environment. Because a complex set of different factors influence teen drivers' behavior, comprehensive, multilevel interventions are needed to reduce teen drivers' exposure to high-risk driving conditions and to address factors identified in the framework.
Abstract 2421: An adenoviral vaccine encoding full-length inactivated human HER2 exhibits potent immunogenicity and enhanced therapeutic efficacy without oncogenicity

While HER2 oncogene directed therapies such as lapatinib and trastuzumab confer clinical benefits, a majority of metastatic HER2+ patients eventually experience progressive disease; however, their tumors remain strongly HER2+. Thus, current therapeutic limitations combined with continued HER2 expression in patients makes immunotherapeutic vaccination against HER2 an attractive strategy. But as HER2 is an oncogene, it is imperative to develop HER2 vaccines with maximal immunologic potential, but minimal oncologic potential. To address these issues, we created recombinant adenoviral vectors expressing the extracellular domain of HER2 (Ad-HER2-ECD), ECD plus the transmembrane domain (Ad-HER2-ECD-TM) and full length HER2 inactivated for kinase function (Ad-HER2-ki) and determined their relative immunogenicity, anti-tumor effectiveness, as well as their oncogenic potential. As an immunotherapeutic vaccine, we found that that both Ad-HER2-ki and Ad-HER2-ECD-TM were highly effective in eliciting significant T-cell and antibody responses to HER2 in naive mouse models compared to plasmid vaccination with HER2-ki constructs, thus validating the immunologic efficacy of the adenoviral platform. In contrast, we did not observe any induction of HER2 specific T-cell or antibody responses in HER2-ECD vaccinated animals. While the strong immune responses from both Ad-HER2-ki and Ad-HER2-ECD-TM vectors translated into significantly retarded tumor growth in naive animals, our studies revealed that Ad-HER2ki vaccinated animals had the most significant HER2-specific T-cell responses as well as the most significant anti-tumor response. When a HER2+ tolerant mouse model was used, we observed that direct Ad-HER2-ki vaccination elicited only slightly diminished T-cell and antibody responses compared to HER2 naive mice. Most significantly, we were able to demonstrate that Ad-HER2-ki vaccination of HER2+ tolerant mice elicits significant anti-HER2+ tumor responses. Subsequent investigation into the oncogenicity associated with strong overexpression of HER2-ki revealed no evidence for its oncogenic functionality in terms of phosphorylation or transcriptional signature in primary human cells. We also found no evidence for its oncogenicity in enabling enhanced cellular proliferation, anchorage-independent growth, or transformation in vivo. In sum, we found that vaccination with mutationally inactivated, non-oncogenic Ad-HER2-ki results in robust polyclonal immune responses to HER2 in tolerant models, which translate into strong and effective anti-tumor responses in vivo. Ad-HER2-ki is thus a safe and promising vaccine for evaluation in clinical trials. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2421.
Hyperuricemia in Patients with Cancer

Hyperuricemia is a common early complication in patients with hematological malignancies treated with intensive chemotherapy. It results from the breakdown of nuclear proteins leading to increased blood levels of hypoxanthine and xanthine. These compounds are degraded into uric acid by the enzyme xanthine oxidase. Because the mechanisms of excretion of uric acid are limited in humans and blood levels are near saturation level, a common complication of hyperuricemia is renal failure resulting from the deposition of uric acid in renal tubules. When renal insufficiency occurs in conjunction with other metabolic aberrations, such as hyperkalemia, hyperphosphatemia, and hypocalcemia, this process is termed tumor lysis syndrome. Patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, particularly Burkitt’s lymphoma, are at greatest risk because of the high sensitivity of the cells to chemotherapy. Other factors associated with increased risk of hyperuricemia and tumor lysis syndrome include hyperleukocytosis, massive organomegaly, renal enlargement, extrinsic compression of the genitourinary tract, and elevated serum lactate dehydrogenase activity. Conventionally, patients at risk of developing hyperuricemia receive alkalinized fluids and allopurinol, an inhibitor of the enzyme xanthine oxidase. These measures have been effective in reducing mortality associated with metabolic complications during tumor lysis in the majority of the cases. However, as many as 25% of patients at high-risk of developing tumor lysis syndrome require dialysis, and some of them have the treatment course altered because of these complications. Recently, a synthetic recombinant form of the enzyme urate oxidase, rasburicase has become available in the US. This enzyme acts directly on urate and degrades it to allantoin, a much more soluble compound.