cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A methodology for engineering collaborative and ad-hoc mobile applications using SyD middleware

Today's web applications are more collaborative and utilize standard and ubiquitous Internet protocols. We have earlier developed System on Mobile Devices (SyD) middleware to rapidly develop and deploy collaborative applications over heterogeneous and possibly mobile devices hosting web objects. In this paper, we present the software engineering methodology for developing SyD-enabled web applications and illustrate it through a case study on two representative applications: (i) a calendar of meeting application, which is a collaborative application and (ii) a travel application which is an ad-hoc collaborative application. SyD-enabled web objects allow us to create a collaborative application rapidly with limited coding effort. In this case study, the modular software architecture allowed us to hide the inherent heterogeneity among devices, data stores, and networks by presenting a uniform and persistent object view of mobile objects interacting through XML/SOAP requests and responses. The performance results we obtained show that the application scales well as we increase the group size and adapts well within the constraints of mobile devices.
T and B Lymphocytes in Contact and Atopic Dermatitis

• The pattern of distribution of T and B lymphocytes was investigated in a group of patients with contact, atopic, and mixed dermatitis by means of immunofluorescence and T-cell rosette tests. A significant increase (P (Arch Dermatol112:1095-1100, 1976)
The Impact of a Brief Motivational Intervention on Unprotected Sex and Sex While High Among Drug-Positive Emergency Department Patients Who Receive STI/HIV VC/T and Drug Treatment Referral as Standard of Care

This randomized, controlled trial, conducted among out-of-treatment heroin/cocaine users at an emergency department visit, tests the impact on sexual risk of adding brief motivational intervention (B-MI) to point-of-service testing, counseling and drug treatment referral. 1,030 enrollees aged 18–54 received either voluntary counseling/testing (VC/T) with drug treatment referral, or VC/T, referral, and B-MI, delivered by an outreach worker. We measured number and proportion of non-protected sex acts (last 30 days) at 6 and 12 months (n = 802). At baseline, 70% of past-30-days sex acts were non-protected; 35% of sex acts occurred while high; 64% of sexual acts involved main, 24% casual and 12% transactional sex partners; 1.7% tested positive for an STI, and 8.8% for HIV. At six or 12 month follow-up, 20 enrollees tested positive for Chlamydia and/or Gonorrhea, and 6 enrollees HIV sero-converted. Self-reported high-risk behaviors declined in both groups with no significant between-group differences in behaviors or STI/HIV incidence.
Metal-organic chemical vapor deposition of Sr–Co–Fe–O films on porous substrates

Aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition using the {beta}-diketonate precursors Sr(tmhd){sub 2}{center_dot}2H{sub 2}O, Fe(tmhd){sub 3}, and Co(tmhd){sub 3} was investigated for depositing thin films of the mixed-conducting ceramic SrCo{sub y}Fe{sub 1{minus}y}O{sub 3{minus}{delta}} onto porous {alpha}{endash}Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} substrates. Single-phase SrCo{sub y}Fe{sub 1{minus}y}O{sub 3{minus}{delta}} perovskite films were obtained at a deposition temperature of 550{degree}C and pressure of 15 mm Hg, whereas deposition at atmospheric pressure produced mixed-phase films. The Co/Fe elemental ratios in the films reflected those in the precursor solution, but the films were depleted in Sr. Reduced-pressure deposition provided a more uniform film morphology than atmospheric pressure, and led to a supported film which was leak-tight to N{sub 2} flow. {copyright} {ital 1998 Materials Research Society.}
Interstitial cystitis treated with intravesical doxorubicin

Abstract Three patients with interstitial cystitis diagnosed on the basis of clinical symptoms,classic endoscopic findings, and a typical histologic picture were treated with intravesical doxorubicin. All 3 patients showed remarkable improvement, as manifested by complete clearance of irritative bladder symptoms and healing of ulceration. Doxorubicin therefore may be the breakthrough drug for interstitial cystitis.
Genetic Analysis of a Population of Tribolium. VI. Polymorphism and Demographic Equilibrium.

Demographic and genetic data of continuously growing populations of Tribolium castaneum initiated with identical age structures but with different frequencies of the unsaturated fatty acid-sensitive allele were collected for 68 weeks.—The life history data provided the following insights: Genotypic differences for total number of offspring were due primarily to larval viability. The total lifetime offspring production of the genotypes predicted a stable polymorphic genetic equilibrium. The genotypic reproductive functions forecast that a stable age structure was not a prerequisite for genetic equilibrium.—Those cultures initially segregating for the unsaturated fatty acid-sensitive allele converged to an equilibrium allele frequency of 0.25 and a genotypic array composed of equal numbers of +/+ and +/cos individuals.—The numbers of larvae, pupae and adults during the first six weeks were quadratic functions of the initial frequency of the sensitive allele. Qualitative age structure changes that followed were similar in all cultures and demographic equilibrium was realized at week 50. The overall demographic pattern during the 68-week study was interpreted in terms of the interactions among the numbers of small larvae, large larvae plus pupae, and adults.
Data Requirements for Assessing the Private and Social Returns to Strategic Research Partnerships: Analysis and Recommendations

Existing studies of Strategic Research Partnerships (SRPs) suffer from data limitations that preclude an accurate assessment of the private and social returns to these activities. To address these limitations in a cost-efficient manner, statistical agencies should focus their data collection effort on public-private SRPs and measures of output and performance , including the role of SRPs in fostering technological diffusion and the creation of new products, firms, and industries. The collection of similar information from (observationally equivalent) firms not engaged in SRPs, including firms that applied for public funds and did not receive them, would also greatly improve our ability to evaluate government R&D programs. Government agencies should also partner with private organizations that have compiled data on SRPs and facilitate linkages between existing governments' datasets on SRPs and economic performance. The use of qualitative data should also be encouraged.
Combining contingency tables with missing dimensions.

We propose a methodology for estimating the cell probabilities in a multiway contingency table by combining partial information from a number of studies when not all of the variables are recorded in all studies. We jointly model the full set of categorical variables recorded in at least one of the studies, and we treat the variables that are not reported as missing dimensions of the study-specific contingency table. For example, we might be interested in combining several cohort studies in which the incidence in the exposed and nonexposed groups is not reported for all risk factors in all studies while the overall numbers of cases and cohort size is always available. To account for study-to-study variability, we adopt a Bayesian hierarchical model. At the first stage of the model, the observation stage, data are modeled by a multinomial distribution with fixed total number of observations. At the second stage, we use the logistic normal (LN) distribution to model variability in the study-specific cells' probabilities. Using this model and data augmentation techniques, we reconstruct the contingency table for each study regardless of which dimensions are missing, and we estimate population parameters of interest. Our hierarchical procedure borrows strength from all the studies and accounts for correlations among the cells' probabilities. The main difficulty in combining studies recording different variables is in maintaining a consistent interpretation of parameters across studies. The approach proposed here overcomes this difficulty and at the same time addresses the uncertainty arising from the missing dimensions. We apply our modeling strategy to analyze data on air pollution and mortality from 1987 to 1994 for six U.S. cities by combining six cross-classifications of low, medium, and high levels of mortality counts, particulate matter, ozone, and carbon monoxide with the complication that four of the six cities do not report all the air pollution variables. Our goals are to investigate the association between air pollution and mortality by reconstructing the tables with missing dimensions, to determine the most harmful pollutant combinations, and to make predictions about these key issues for a city other than the six sampled. We find that, for high levels of ozone and carbon monoxide, the number of cases with a high number of deaths increases as the levels of particulate matter, PM10, increases and that the most harmful combinations corresponds to high levels of PM10, confirming prior findings that levels of PM10 higher than the NAAQS standard are harmful.
The effects of physiological adaptations to calorie restriction on global cell proliferation rates.

Calorie restriction (CR) reduces the rate of cell proliferation in mitotic tissues. It has been suggested that this reduction in cell proliferation may mediate CR-induced increases in longevity. Ho...
EFFECTS OF LIGHT ON PHOTOSYNTHESIS, GRAZING, AND POPULATION DYNAMICS OF THE HETEROTROPHIC DINOFLAGELLATE PFIESTERIA PISCICIDA (DINOPHYCEAE)1

In studying how environmental factors control the population dynamics of Pfiesteria piscicida Steidinger et Burkholder, we examined the influence of light re- gime on kleptoplastidic photosynthesis, growth, and grazing. Prey ( Rhodomonas sp.)-saturated growth rate of P. piscicida increased (0.67 � 0.03 d � 1 to 0.91 � 0.11 d � 1 ) with light intensity varying from 0 to 200 � mol photonsm � 2 � s � 1 . No significant effect was observed on grazing, excluding the possibility that light enhanced P. piscicida growth through stimulating grazing. Light- grown P. piscicida exhibited a higher gross growth ef- ficiency (0.78 � 0.10) than P. piscicida incubated in the dark (0.32 � 0.16), and photosynthetic inhibitors significantly decreased growth of recently fed popu- lations. These results demonstrate a role of klepto- plastidic photosynthesis in enhancing growth in P. piscicida . However, when the prey alga R. sp. was de- pleted, light's stimulating effect on P. piscicida growth diminished quickly, coinciding with rapid disappear- ance of Rhodomonas -derived pigments and RUBISCO from P. piscicida cells. Furthermore, the effect of light on growth was reversed after extended starvation, and starved light-grown P. piscicida declined at a rate sig- nificantly greater than dark-incubated cultures. The observed difference in rates of decline appeared to be attributable to light-dependent cannibalism. Using a 5-chloromethylfluorescein diacetate staining tech- nique, cannibalistic grazing was observed after 7 days of starvation, at a rate four times greater under illu- mination than in the dark. The results from this study suggest that kleptoplastidy enhances growth of P. pis- cicida only in the presence of algal prey. When prey is absent, P. piscicida populations may become vul- nerable to light-stimulated cannibalism.
Early Studies in Acquiring Evidentiary, Reusable Business Process Models for Legal Compliance

Government laws and regulations impose legal requirements on information practices in healthcare and finance. These requirements govern the use and disclosure of information across organizations and their business practices. To comply with the law, organizations must demonstrate that they have verifiable procedures in-place to implement these requirements. This paper surveys our experiences acquiring business process models expressed in the Business Process Model Notation (BPMN) using a systematic method. The method requires business process owners to classify regulatory statements using a legal ontology to identify legal requirements. The itemized requirements can then be used to specify elements in a business process model to demonstrate due diligence under the law. The contributions of this paper include lessons learned while acquiring the model with attention to traceability, distinguishing between legally expressed and implied activities and implementing legally imposed deadlines and suspensions. We discuss the lessons learned with examples from the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Die unveröffentlichten Gedichte der Marte Brill (1894–1969): Leiden zwischen Lebenslust und Todessehnsucht

Although Marte Brill's novel of exile, Der Schmelztiegel , was posthumously published in 2002, this has not been the case with the poetry she wrote largely between 1910 and 1919. After briefly sketching Brill's difficult life of exile in Spain (Mallorca), Italy, and Brazil, this article aims at an analysis of her poetry with its neoromantic, symbolistic, and expressionistic elements. Thematically it displays an emotional gamut between a desire for life and a longing for death. Brill's explosion of youthful feelings could be seen as normal for a young, sensitive individual had she not found a noteworthy poetic form for expressing herself. A representative sampling of her poetry follows the article. (OR; in German)
Studies on Ion Accumulation in Muscle Cells

A comparison is made between the quantitative predictions of equilibrium ionic distribution in living cells according to the membrane theory (Donnan equilibrium) and according to the association-induction hypothesis. This comparison shows that both theories predict competitive effects of one permeant ion on the equilibrium concentration of another permeant ion; but within the limit of experimental accuracy only the association-induction model predicts quantitatively significant specific competition of one specified ion with the accumulation of another specified ion. The equilibrium distributions of K+, Rb+, and Cs+ ions in frog sartorius muscle were studied and quantitatively significant specific competition was demonstrated; these results favor the association-induction hypothesis (adsorption on cell proteins and protein complexes and partial exclusion from cell water). Based on this model we estimated that at 257deg;C, the apparent association constants for K+, Rb+, and Cs+ ion are 665, 756, and 488 (mole/liter)-1. We found that the total concentration of adsorption sites (no less than 240 mmole/kg of fresh cells) agrees with the analytically determined concentrations of β- and γ-carboxyl groups of muscle cell proteins (260 to 288 mmole/kg).
Polymer characterization by thermal field flow fractionation with a continuous viscosity detector

A sensitive flow viscometer detector has been successfully used with time-delay, exponential-decay thermal field flow fractionation (TDE-TFFF) to produce unique information on polymers. TFFF with a concentration-dependent detector (e.g., refractometer) and a differential capillary viscometer is unable to produce a universal calibration plot that eliminates the necessity of polymer standards for accurate molecular-weight calibration. However, this system directly provides valuable information on the inherent (or intrinsic) viscosity distribution of polymers. Absolute intrinsic viscosity values are measured by TFFF without the need of calibration. Detailed TFFF/inherent-viscosity distribution profiles uniquely describe individual sample differences and are not affected by the experimental conditions used in TFFF separations. These viscosity distributions should be very useful in polymer characterization, since they are closely correlated with polymer end-use and solution properties, as well as to polymer molecule weight.
USE OF RADIATION PRESSURE TO CALIBRATE SUB MICRO-NEWTON FORCES AND DAMPING RATIOS

We present a noncontact method to calibrate micro/nanostructures using sub-nN forces. In this work, a microcantilever’s material properties as well as damping ratio are determined using two independent laser systems. A continuous wave laser system is used as a heterodyne interferometer to determine displacements while another laser system is pulsed in order to produce radiation pressure. A noncontact method is preferred while calibrating sub-μN forces since no material is transferred between the calibrating apparatus and (NEMS/MEMS) to be calibrated. The incidence force is calculated from the optical properties of Si cantilever. Simulations presented in this work shows that thermal gradient along the length of the cantilever beam is very small to affect its physical properties due to the difference in time scales on which both operate.
Small‐Scale Remotely Piloted Vehicles in Environmental Research

Small-scale remotely piloted vehicles (RPVs) have been experimentally used in environmental fieldwork. They have found employment in range management, forestry, wildlife studies, crop monitoring, marine investigations, and aerobiological sampling. The advantages of small-scale RPVs include pilot safety, fast data turnaround time, low capital and per-flight costs, ease in flight planning, quick response for targets of opportunity, and the potential to gather ultrahigh resolution pictures in situations where in situ data gathering is impossible. Significant limitations of small-scale RPVs include their low stability as photographic platforms; short flight times, airframe fragility, the paucity of sensor packages available, and the difficulties involved integrating pilot-assist flight navigation systems. Further development is required before small-scale RPVs will be accepted as mainstream tools for environmental monitoring. Besides discovering and validating environmental applications of the technology, this work includes the design of inexpensive lightweight sensor packages for environmental tasks and the improvement of image processing algorithms to interpret, rectify, and manage RPV imagery.
Protein Release from the Yeast Pichia Pastoris by Chemical Permeabilization: Comparison to Mechanical Disruption and Enzymatic Lysis

Conventional large scale recovery methods for intracellular proteins involve mechanical disruption of the cells, a nonselective process which yields a solution contaminated by nucleic acids and cell wall fragments. We have investigated chemical permeabilization of microorganisms as an alternative to mechanical disruption. For the yeast Pichia pastoris, we have compared chemical permeabilization to two more traditional means of protein release, mechanical disruption and enzymatic lysis. The chemical treatment agents in our permeabilization scheme, guanidine hydrochloride and Triton X-100, combine synergistically to release more protein from P. pastoris than either acting individually. We have demonstrated overall protein recovery by chemical permeabilization of this host to be on the same order attainable by mechanical disruption or enzymatic lysis, but each process has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Models of Quasi-Steady and Unsteady Discharge from Plumbing Fixtures

Modeling methods are developed to predict the discharge characteristics of simulated simplified configura­ tions for plumbing fixtures connected to horizontal drain branch piping. Computations are carried out to illus­ trate several methods of determining the effect of various loss coefficients of the drain connection, pipe length, pipe diameter, and friction factor. Solutions are obtained for the case of a fixture with a constant head (contin­ uous refill) and a falling head (emptying of a sink). Numerical solution of the non-linear differential equation for the falling head case was obtained by the Runge-Kutta method. Discharge characteristics are presented for a range of flows and pipe diameter-t().length ratios representative of plumbing installations. The feasibility of developing predictive models for hydraulic characteristics of interconnected plumbing fixture and drainage pip" ing systems is shown. The variations of efflux rate with the drain pipe diameter, length, and slope obtained from the assumed models are similar in trend to the available experimental data.
Neprilysin Inhibition — A Novel Therapy for Heart Failure

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last approved a new oral drug (hydralazine–isosorbide dinitrate) for patients with heart failure and a reduced ejection fraction in 2005 — and this drug was recommended only for self-identified black patients who continued to have symptoms despite evidence-based treatment.1 TThe aldosterone antagonist eplerenone was approved for the treatment of heart failure in 2003. (In 2012, the European Medicines Agency approved ivabradine, which has not received FDA approval.) Now, a novel drug, LCZ696, a dual inhibitor of angiotensin II receptor and neprilysin, may prove to be the first disruptive agent to the heart-failure treatment algorithm, . . .
High-throughput fabrication of photoconductors with high detectivity, photosensitivity, and bandwidth.

Nanocrystalline cadmium selenide (nc-CdSe) was electrodeposited within a sub-50 nm gold nanogap, prepared by feedback-controlled electromigration, to form a photoconductive metal–semiconductor–metal nanojunction. Both gap formation and electrodeposition were rapid and automated. The electrodeposited nc-CdSe was stoichiometric, single cubic phase with a mean grain diameter of ∼7 nm. Optical absorption, photoluminescence, and the spectral photoconductivity response of the nc-CdSe were all dominated by band-edge transitions. The photoconductivity of these nc-CdSe-filled gold nanogaps was characterized by a detectivity of 6.9 × 1010 Jones and a photosensitivity of 500. These devices also demonstrated a maximum photoconductive gain of ∼45 and response and recovery times below 2 μs, corresponding to a 3 dB bandwidth of at least 175 kHz.
The Future of Medical Training and the Need for Human Factors

Within the last five years, several events have taken place that will have a profound effect on the practice of medicine and patient safety. First, medical virtual reality simulators have been deve...
The association between the oculocardiac reflex and post-operative vomiting in children undergoing strabismus surgery

The oculocardiac reflex (OCR) is a potentially serious complication of ophthalmic surgery which is most commonly elicited during paediatric strabismus surgery. Post-operative vomiting (POV) is also extremely common after such procedures and may result in admission following planned day-case surgery. Although many factors play a part in the occurrence of POV, stimulation of the trigemino-vagal reflex arc is thought to explain the particularly high rate of vomiting after strabismus surgery. The OCR and the vaso-vagal response share this neuronal pathway, the bradycardia of the OCR often being the only objective feature of the vaso-vagal response while the patient is anaesthetised. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible association between the occurrence of the OCR and subsequent POV in children undergoing strabismus surgery. We have studied this relationship in 79 children, aged between 1 and 13 years, undergoing strabismus surgery under standardised anaesthetic conditions. A positive OCR was regarded as a drop in heart rate of 10% or more, or the onset of a dysrhythmia. An intraoperative OCR was elicited in 51 (64.6%) of the 79 children, whilst 29 (36.7%) developed POV in the subsequent 24 h period. There was a significant association between a positive intraoperative OCR and POV (p = 0.01): children with a positive OCR were 2.6 times more likely to vomit than those without the reflex. We conclude that there is an association between the occurrence of the OCR and POV and discuss possible preventive strategies.
Lewy bodies of Parkinson's disease. Immune electron microscopic demonstration of neurofilament antigens in constituent filaments

Recently it has been shown by light microscopic immunochemistry that Lewy bodies (LBs) react with antibodies raised against neurofilament proteins (NFPs). Because of the ubiquity of the NFPs within neurons, the heterogeneous makeup of the inclusions, and the varying patterns of immunolabeling, we undertook to determine whether the labeled elements are indeed constituent filaments. Employing a preembedding technique, we investigated sections of the same LBs by light and electron immunochemistry. Decoration of the filaments was obtained with a monoclonal anti-NFP antibody. Whereas cores of mature LBs were unreactive by light microscopy, these same cores yielded a positive reaction at the ultrastructural level. Early LBs were intensely labeled in both the core and periphery. These results demonstrate that the filamentous profiles that form the LBs are antigenically identical to neurofilaments and suggest a posttranslational modification of the filaments as they "age" within the inclusion.
Decline of phosphorus, copper, and zinc in anaerobic swine lagoon columns receiving pretreated influent

Land application of both anaerobic lagoon liquid and sludge can increase nutrient accumulation beyond the soil’s assimilative capacity and become a threat to water quality in regions with intensive, confined swine production. In a 15-month meso-scale column study, we evaluated the effect of manure pretreatment on the reduction of total suspended solids (TSS), total phosphorus (TP), soluble reactive P (SRP), and total copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in swine lagoons using (i) enhanced solid-liquid separation (SS) and (ii) solid-liquid separation plus biological nitrogen treatment with nitrification-denitrification (SS + NDN). A conventional anaerobic lagoon treatment was included as a control. A mass flow balance revealed that with both pretreatments the net mass input of TP, Cu, and Zn in the lagoon columns declined 80 to 100 % when compared to the control. Even though both pretreatments significantly reduced P in the inflow, TP and SRP were negatively correlated (r = -0.51 to -0.87) with TSS in the liquid fraction because of the dissolution of P from sludge into the overlying lagoon liquid. On the other hand, the removal of solids by both pretreatments effectively reduced Cu and Zn concentrations in the lagoon liquid, and their concentrations were positively correlated (r = 0.79 to 0.90) with TSS. The decline in mass accumulation of TP, Cu, and Zn in sludge as a result of the reduction of input solids can help minimize both the frequency of sludge removal for lagoon maintenance and the land area for its disposal.
MicroRNA-101 Is Down-Regulated In PV and ET Granulocytes and Its Decrease Is Associated with Over-Expression of Histone Methyltransferase In EZH2 In MPN Patients

Abstract 1989 Polycythemia vera (PV), essential thrombocythemia (ET) and idiopathic myelofibrosis (MF) are hematological malignancies due to clonal proliferation arising from a multilineage stem cell and have been classified as myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs). A somatic point JAK2 V617F mutation occurs in the majority (>95%) of PV patients and about 50–60% of ET and MF patients. The nonspecificity of this mutation, presence of JAK2 V617F-negative PV patients, and evidence of both JAK2 V617F-negative and positive PV clones demonstrate that the JAK2 V617F mutation is not the initial or sole somatic event in the pathogenesis of PV. However, JAK2 V617F plays an important role in the dysregulation of hematopoiesis in MPNs. MicroRNAs (miRs) have been shown to be important regulators of hematopoiesis. We searched for miRs that directly regulate JAK2 expression by in silico analysis. Two of these miRs, namely miR101-1 and miR101-2, had JAK2 as a putative target. Interestingly, miR101-2 is located on chromosome 9p adjacent to the JAK2 locus. miR101 also negatively regulates the enhancer of zeste homolog 2 ( EZH2 ), a member of the polycomb group of proteins involved in controlling and maintaining stem cell pluripotency and cell proliferation. Loss of miR101 in the cancer genome leads to overexpression of EZH2 , contributing to cancer progression. We analyzed the expression of miR101 in 35 PV, 15 ET and 3 MF patients and 20 normal controls by quantitative RT-PCR and found it was decreased in PV, ET and MF patients compared to normal controls (PV; P EZH2 mRNA levels in MPN patients, as had been previously reported in human tumors. We examined the expression level of EZH2 for the same cohort of PV, ET and MF patients by quantitative RT-PCR and found a significant increase of EZH2 expression compared with normal controls (PV; P Analysis of the molecular bases of these observations is in progress. We will test the hypothesis that the dysregulation of these miRs further increases the expression of EZH2 and contributes to the severity and pathophysiology of the MPNs. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Evaluation of Extension Methods Employed in Farm and Home Development in the Northeast

EFORE evaluating extension methods used in the northeast states in farm and home development, it is necessary to state briefly some of my concepts of farm and home development. Farm and home development is a method of doing extension work-it is not a program. In the early stages many extension workers in the northeast considered it a separate program. This mistake, I believe, has been largely overcome, and most extension workers in the northeast recognize that it is a method of doing extension work. In most part, they understand that the advantages of each separate improvement are not fully utilized until all are integrated into a good, sound, economic unit. To do this requires planning. It is fairly well agreed that successful farm and home development requires cooperation and coordination of all extension workers, specialists and county workers. The approach can, and should, become a part of many of our regular organized extension projects. Farm and home development can be carried into production fields-agronomy, nutrition, dairy herd improvement and many other established programs. Farm and home development stresses the point that wise use of resources must be tailored to each farm unit, and that the management decisions in any segment influence the entire farm unit. Many of our present extension programs provide much of the basic information, and when carried further, can be developed into a sound farm and home development procedure. The primary objective of farm and home development is to teach farm people how to make sound decisions in the operation of the farm business and the farm home. Most of the leaders in the northeast states agree with this. However, there are some extension workers who believe you are not doing farm and home development work unless you carry through, with a farm family, a complete farm and home plan. I do not object to farm people developing a farm and home plan. It is an excellent procedure to use to teach decision making. However, a farm plan, once developed and put on paper, is not the end product. No one has the ability to do the job once and for all. Farmers are confronted with the weather, changes in costs and prices, new techniques and practices and new machinery. A farm plan must be adjusted from time to time to meet the changes that occur. A farm plan is a guide. Farm and home development is a continuing practice just like feeding farm animals. The important thing is how to make sound decisions that confront the farm family from week to week,
ERISA: Nonwaivability of Preemption

Congress attempted to encourage the growth of private employee benefit plans by drafting the preemption provision in ERISA in an effort to develop the federal common law of employee benefits and discourage varied jurisdictional interpretations. States and federal courts have addressed the issue of preemption waivability with differing results. Some interpret the preemption clause as a waivable defense under a choice of law argument, while others treated preemption as a subject matter jurisdiction issue which cannot be waived. ERISA’s express language clearly precludes state law causes of action under qualified ERISA plans. Furthermore, the legislative intent of the statute reiterates that it was the drafters’ intention to preempt state law claims as documented throughout the legislative history of ERISA. Several jurisdictions compared the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Labor Management Relations Act’s implied preemption of state law claims to the interpretation of ERISA. However, ERISA expressly preempts all state law claims in clear language within the federal statute. Federal preemption of state law claims serves the intent and purpose of the Act, encourages settlement of claims as opposed to expensive litigation, fosters a uniformity of interpretation nationally, and encourages the growth of private employee benefit plans.
Selective outcome reporting in obesity clinical trials: a cross-sectional review

Selective outcome reporting is a form of bias resulting from discrepancies between outcomes presented in a trial's registration and the published report. We investigate this selective bias in obesity clinical trials. A PubMed search was conducted to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in four obesity journals from 2013 to 2015. Primary, secondary and tertiary outcomes were recorded for each trial and compared to pre-specified outcomes in each trial's registration. Of the 392 identified articles, 142 were included in the final analysis; 22 (15%) RCTs demonstrated major outcome discrepancies between registration and publication: No primary outcomes were demoted to a secondary or tertiary outcome; 14 (36.84%) primary outcomes were omitted; 14 (36.84%) primary outcomes were added: 5 (13.16%) secondary outcomes were upgraded to primary outcomes; and timing of assessment for a primary outcome changed 5 (13.16%) times. Out of the 63 prospectively registered studies, 53 had no discrepancies. A total of 76 of the studies (29.80%) were unregistered or did not have an associated registration number. Our results suggest that selective outcome reporting may be a concern in obesity clinical trials. As selective outcome reporting may distort clinical findings and limit outcomes in systematic reviews, we encourage trialists and journal editors to work towards solutions to mitigate this issue.
Diet segregation in American bison ( Bison bison ) of Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming, USA)

Body size is a major factor in the nutritional ecology of ruminant mammals. Females, due to their smaller size and smaller rumen, have more rapid food-passage times than males and thereby require higher quality forage. Males are more efficient at converting high-fiber forage into usable energy and thus, are more concerned with quantity. American bison are sexually dimorphic and sexually segregate for the majority of their adult lives, and in Yellowstone National Park, they occur in two distinct subpopulations within the Northern and Central ranges. We used fecal nitrogen and stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen from American bison to investigate sex-specific differences in diet composition, diet quality, and dietary breadth between the mating season and a time period spanning multiple years, and compared diet indicators for these different time periods between the Northern and Central ranges. During mating season, diet composition of male and female American bison differed significantly; females had higher quality diets, and males had greater dietary breadth. Over the multi-year period, females had higher quality diets and males, greater dietary breadth. Diet segregation for bison in the Central Range was more pronounced during the mating season than for the multi-year period and females had higher quality diets than males. Finally, diet segregation in the Northern Range was more pronounced during the multi-year period than during the mating season, and males had greater dietary breadth. Female bison in Yellowstone National Park have higher quality diets than males, whereas males ingest a greater diversity of plants or plants parts, and bison from different ranges exhibited more pronounced diet segregation during different times. Collectively, our results suggest that diet segregation in bison of Yellowstone National Park is associated with sex-specific differences in nutritional demands. Altogether, our results highlight the importance of accounting for spatial and temporal heterogeneity when conducting dietary studies on wild ungulates.
Biomarkers of Pulmonary Immunologic Responses

Biomarkers of pulmonary immune/inflammatory responses have been measured in the lungs of humans and animals injured by exposure to occupational toxicants (e.g. silica, asbestos, beryllium, isocyanates) as well as to environmental toxicants (e.g. ozone, nitrogen dioxide). Detection of different populations of inflammatory cells, cell proliferation, protein mediators, reactive oxygen/nitrogen species, and activated transcription factors may indicate acute or chronic inflammation as well as antigen-dependent or -independent immune responses. This Chapter will briefly summarize pulmonary defense in the upper and lower airways, changes in pulmonary immune/inflammatory markers measured in different xenobiotic-induced pulmonary diseases, and the potential significance of these changes as biomarkers of immunologic and inflammatory responses in the lung.
BARD1 is necessary for ubiquitylation of nucleosomal histone H2A and for transcriptional regulation of estrogen metabolism genes.

Missense mutations that disrupt the RING domain of the tumor suppressor gene BRCA1 lead to increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer. The BRCA1 RING domain is a ubiquitin ligase, whose structure and function rely critically on forming a heterodimer with BARD1, which also harbors a RING domain. The function of the BARD1 RING domain is unknown. In families severely affected with breast cancer, we identified inherited BARD1 missense mutations Cys53Trp, Cys71Tyr, and Cys83Arg that alter three zinc-binding residues of the BARD1 RING domain. Each of these mutant BARD1 proteins retained the ability to form heterodimeric complexes with BRCA1 to make an active ubiquitin ligase, but the mutant BRCA1/BARD1 complexes were deficient in binding to nucleosomes and in ubiquitylating histone H2A. The BARD1 mutations also caused loss of transcriptional repression of BRCA1-regulated estrogen metabolism genes CYP1A1 and CYP3A4; breast epithelial cells edited to create heterozygous loss of BARD1 showed significantly higher expression of CYP1A1 and CYP3A4. Reintroduction of wild-type BARD1 into these cells restored CYP1A1 and CYP3A4 transcription to normal levels, but introduction of the cancer-predisposing BARD1 RING mutants failed to do so. These results indicate that an intact BARD1 RING domain is critical to BRCA1/BARD1 binding to nucleosomes and hence to ubiquitylation of histone H2A and also critical to transcriptional repression of BRCA1-regulated genes active in estrogen metabolism.
USAFA Robot Deathmatch: The Use of Robots to Model the System Engineering Process

With robot technologies becoming more readily available in classroom settings, we integrated a three week project using commercially available robots as prototyping kickoff project for their year long System Engineering (SE) capstone course. As part of this undergraduate class, students assembled and programmed robots in four teams to compete against each other in the 'Robot Deathmatch Competition'. They were given real-world requirements, customers, materials, and deadlines to prepare them for larger scale projects. The project integrated lessons from previously taught courses into a condensed technology-inclusive experience and set students on a successful path for their upcoming year long projects.
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS | Sampling and Statistical Requirements

This article focuses on the concepts that are related to collecting data when chemical analyses are conducted. Sample size, statistical confidence, limit of detection, standard curves, variability, and significant digits are all discussed with the goal of giving the reader a practical understanding of how to prepare samples, collect data, and report data. Examples of data analysis and sampling procedures are included with the best past practices for reporting data.
Disruption of Intestinal Homeostasis and Intestinal Microbiota During Experimental Autoimmune Uveitis

Purpose We determine the changes in intestinal microbiota and/or disruptions in intestinal homeostasis during uveitis. Methods Experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU) was induced in B10.RIII mice with coadministration of interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein peptide (IRBP) and killed mycobacterial antigen (MTB) as an adjuvant. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, we looked at intestinal microbial differences during the course of uveitis, as well as intestinal morphologic changes, changes in intestinal permeability by FITC-dextran leakage, antimicrobial peptide expression in the gastrointstinal tract, and T lymphocyte prevalence before and at peak intraocular inflammation. Results We demonstrate that increased intestinal permeability and antimicrobial peptide expression in the intestinal tract coincide in timing with increased effector T cells in the mesenteric lymph nodes, during the early stages of uveitis, before peak inflammation. Morphologic changes in the intestine were most prominent during this phase, but also occurred with adjuvant MTB alone, whereas increased intestinal permeability was found only in IRBP-immunized mice that develop uveitis. We also demonstrate that the intestinal microbiota were altered during the course of uveitis, and that some of these changes are specific to uveitic animals, whereas others are influenced by adjuvant MTB alone. Intestinal permeability peaked at 2 weeks, coincident with an increase in intestinal bacterial strain differences, peak lipocalin production, and peak uveitis. Conclusions An intestinal dysbiosis accompanies a disruption in intestinal homeostasis in autoimmune uveitis, although adjuvant MTB alone promotes intestinal disruption as well. This may indicate a novel axis for future therapeutic targeting experimentally or clinically.
Characterization of age-related susceptibility of macrophages to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus

Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV) is the most economically important disease affecting swine production worldwide. The severity and susceptibility of PRRSV infection varies with age. Nursery pigs have been shown to be more susceptible to PRRSV infection and a more severe and prolonged infection is observed as compared to growing or adult pigs. However, antibody responses to PRRSV are observed independent of age. Swine are the only known hosts of PRRSV, infection is restricted to cells of monocytic lineage, and fully differentiated porcine alveolar macrophages are the primary target of natural infection. Pulmonary intravascular macrophages from young pigs have been shown to be more susceptible to infection than those from adult pigs. A better understanding of why young pigs and macrophages from young pigs are more susceptible to PRRSV infection is critical to identify mechanisms of infection that can be explored for enhanced treatment or prevention of disease. This study examined PRRSV susceptibility of porcine alveolar macrophages isolated from the lungs of pigs of different age groups, and the presence of cell surface receptors to determine if differences correlated with infection level. The younger the pigs were, the more susceptible the macrophage were to PRRSV infection, but no differences in cellular receptor expression were observed between pigs of different ages. Resistance to infection is likely related to intracellular innate immune mechanisms rather than receptor-mediated entry.
Ticket Sales and Violent Content in Popular Movies

Recent research has found a link between the presence of violent content, movie ratings, and ticket sales, but has left several questions unanswered. The current study attempts to answer these ques...
A Multidimensional Holistic Framework for the Security of Distributed Energy and Control Systems

The digitization of smart grid distributed generation and industrial control systems has prompted utilities to deploy tools with ubiquitous communications that potentially widen the attack surface. The utilities still continue to rely on the traditional cybersecurity technologies, such as firewalls, anti-malware tools, and passwords that do not ensure security across all dimensions of the information assurance model required for a strong cybersecurity business process. This paper proposes a multidimensional holistic framework that addresses this gap through advanced technologies, intelligent algorithms, and continued assessments. To show proof, the layered defense model, a solution dimension of the framework, is integrated into the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Security and Resilience Testbed to replicate a utility's enterprise and substation networks. The model is used to evaluate the security and resilience of microgrid control systems, and, based on the insights gathered, recommend best practices for utility cybersecurity analysts for a strong business process. With this baseline, the paper conceptually introduces intelligence-driven solutions comprising contextual data analysis and machine learning to respond to advanced persistent threats sponsored by campaign efforts.
Timing of Surgical Stabilization of Rib Fractures

Surgical stabilization of rib fractures (SSRF) has a proven benefit in patients with flail chest. However, the timing of intervention is currently unclear. We aim to evaluate and summarize current evidence related to the time interval for the surgical stabilization of rib fractures. Retrospective studies specifically addressing when to perform SSRF in patients with severely displaced rib fractures have reported a benefit for patients who underwent the procedure within 72 h of injury. There are currently no prospective trials specifically addressing timing of rib fixation. Delayed (i.e., months to years) SSRF may be indicated in highly select cases with both physical exam findings of “clicking” or instability and radiographic evidence of nonunion. For patients in whom there are no contra-indications, current evidence suggests that surgical stabilization of rib fractures should occur as early as possible, and ideally within 72 h of injury. The decision to perform delayed SSRF should be undertaken cautiously and on a case-by-case basis.
Modeling and Simulation Approach for Multi-Domain Environments (MASAME)

A complex system is often partitioned into components that are modeled independently and then recombined to assess measures of overall system performance. Thus, individual models must be integrated into a system-level model that aggregates uncertainty to reflect system behavior. This paper focuses on integration of models that mathematically characterize and analyze complex systems, such as weapon systems. These systems include threat systems (e.g., ballistic missiles) and effects systems to defend against those threats (e.g., missile interceptors). To conduct a mathematical characterization, relevant data must first be collected and categorized. Then these data are applied to either existing, well proven algorithms, or to newly derived algorithms. The new algorithms are derived with the help of Subject Matter Experts and through automated means. The algorithms are then applied to specific scenarios and results are generated and validated. Although effective, this process is time-consuming, expensive, and, in many cases, subjective. End-users have attempted to apply portions this process for stove-piped, i.e., single domain, environments. These current solutions are not adaptable to multi-domain scenarios that include capabilities and assets from space, air, water, and land environments. This paper presents a new Modeling and Simulation approach for multi-domain environments (MASAME) that addresses the mathematical characterization and assessment problem for complex systems. Examples are provided for national defense scenarios, and notional results are presented that were derived from an initial prototype system.