cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Event driven simulation without loops or conditionals

The past several years have seen much research in event driven logic simulation[1]. Various logic and delay models have been explored[2]. Most simulation research has focused on improving simulation performance. New approaches to both compiled and event driven simulation have been explored[3,4,5].The internal operations of event-driven simulators can be divided into two categories, scheduling, and gate simulation. Much effort has been focused on reducing the cost of scheduling[3,4,5]. There has also been effort to reduce the cost of gate simulation[6,7]. It has also been shown that explicit computation of gate outputs is unnecessary, as long as event-propagation is computed correctly[7].Even though research has reduced the complexity of both scheduling and gate simulation, it is still necessary to test for event propagation and cancellation, and it is necessary to perform some computations during gate simulation.This paper will show that none of these computations are necessary. Most computations are devoted testing internal states and computing new internal states. In our technique, subroutine addresses are used to maintain states. This permits the elimination of all state-testing and state-computation code. Our technique is significantly faster than conventional event-driven simulation[1]. Unlike earlier methods[7], our approach can easily be extended to any logic model or any delay model.
Outcomes after Early Anticonvulsant Discontinuation in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Background: Empiric use of anticonvulsant (AED) for seizure prophylaxis in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) remains controversial and may be associated with worse SAH outcome. We determined the safety and feasibility of early discontinuation of empiric AED in a select cohort of SAH patients. Methods: In a cohort of 166 consecutive SAH patients, a subset underwent early AED discontinuation if they were awake and following commands after aneurysm treatment. We examined the effect of AED discontinuation on seizure incidence, mortality and functional outcome at discharge using logistic regression and validated results using 70%-30% data partition. Results: Seventy-three subjects underwent AED discontinuation. Patient groups had similar gender, age, Fisher grade, incidence of craniotomy, vasospasm, ischemic infarct, intraventricular and intraparenchymal hemorrhages. Hunt-Hess (HH) grade were lower in AED-discontinuation group. Clinical or electrographic seizure occurred in 1/93 (1%) patients on AED and 0/73 patient in AED-discontinuation group. Crude mortality was 24% in patients on AED and 2.7% off AED. After adjusting for age, HH grade, vasospasm, ischemic infarct, intracerebral, and intraventricular hemorrhage, AED discontinuation remains independently associated with lower mortality and higher odds of discharge to home (p=0.0002). AED use is not associated with angiographic vasospasm on exploratory analysis. Conclusion: AED discontinuation in SAH patients who are awake and following commands post aneurysm treatment is safe, feasible, and associated with better outcome at hospital discharge. A larger, prospective study is necessary to determine if empiric AED use in SAH leads to poorer functional status.
The pulmonary embolism risk score system reduces the incidence and mortality of pulmonary embolism after gastric bypass.

Background Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a leading cause of death after roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB); therefore, current recommendations for prophylaxis may be inadequate. Methods We reviewed our first 1,341 patients (controls) who underwent RYGB and weighted factors that may have contributed to PE to arrive at a pulmonary embolism risk score (PERS). We postulated that more aggressive prophylaxis in higher risk patients might have reduced the incidence of PE. We tested our hypothesis by basing prophylaxis on the PERS in 1,652 subsequent RYGB patients (study group). Standard risk patients (PERS 4) had postdischarge LDUH and a preoperative vena cava filter. Results The 0.36% incidence of PE (6 patients) in the study group was significantly lower (P Conclusion The PERS may be an appropriate scoring system for determining preoperatively the level of risk for postoperative PE in RYGB patients. Basing prophylaxis on the level of risk reduces the incidence and mortality of PE and consumes resources judiciously.
Repair of aortic coarctation in the first three months of life: immediate and long-term results.

Abstract The optimum surgical procedure for treatment of coarctation of the aorta in the neonatal period remains controversial. To assess immediate and long-term results of using primarily the subclavian flap angioplasty procedure (SFA), we reviewed our initial 5-year experience. The average follow-up was 6 years. From 1977 to 1981, 25 infants under 3 months of age (1 to 86 days, mean 21) required emergency surgery for repair of coarctation of the aorta. Three groups of patients were identified. Group I consisted of 10 patients with or without patent ductus arteriosus. In group II, 10 patients had coarctation associated with one or multiple ventricular septal defects (VSDs) without other congenital defects. In group III, 5 patients had coarctation associated with more complex congenital heart lesions. Twenty-three SFAs and two patch aortoplasties were performed. No patient with isolated VSD was banded. All patients except one in group III with an associated atrioventricular canal survived initial hospitalizations. Four late deaths occurred, all in patients with associated complex heart defects. There were three recurrent coarctations requiring surgery or balloon angioplasty (12%)—one in each group, with a total rate of 0.77 recurrences per 100 patient-months. SFA for coarctation in the neonatal period is a safe and effective operation with a low initial mortality (4%, 0-19%, 70% confidence limits) well tolerated in this group of ill patients. Long-term outcome is primarily related to the presence of associated complex congenital defects. Infants with VSD associated with coarctation did not require pulmonary artery banding unless primary intracardiac repair was not feasible. The recurrence rate is acceptably low, and recurrences may be effectively treated in certain cases with balloon angioplasty.
Sublethal toxicant effects with dynamic energy budget theory: application to mussel outplants

We investigate the effectiveness of a sublethal toxic effect model embedded in Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) theory for the analysis of field data. We analyze the performance of two species of mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis and M. californianus, near a diffuser discharging produced water in the Southern California Bight, California. Produced water is a byproduct of oil production consisting of fossil water together with compounds added during the extraction process, and generally contains highly elevated levels of pollutants relative to sea water. Produced water negatively affects the production of somatic and reproductive biomass in both mussel species; we show that these negative effects can be quantified with our DEB-based modeling framework through the estimation of toxic effect scaling parameters. Our analyses reveal that the toxic impact of produced water on growth and reproduction of M. californianus is substantially higher than for M. galloprovincialis. Projections of the expected lifetime production of gonad biomass indicate that the environmental impact of produced water can be as large as 100%, whereas short-term assessment without the use of DEB theory projects a maximum effect of only 30%.
The Effects of Thalidomide on Reproduction in Chickens

Abstract The ill effects of thalidomide on developing human embryos has received wide publicity during the past year. The unfortunate results from this drug may stimulate the use of various experimental animals for toxicological studies. However, Seller (1962) and Felisati (1962), on the basis of a differential response of rats and rabbits to thalidomide, have pointed out the importance of species specificity in this type of study. An experiment was initiated at the North Carolina Experiment Station to determine the effects of feeding thalidomide to chickens on egg production and hatchability. Thalidomide was first used at the rate of 1½ percent in the laying rations of White Leghorn hens in toxicity studies involving additional drugs. These results indicated that thalidomide administered at this level caused an almost immediate cessation of egg production. Consequently, a study was designed which involved the feeding of thalidomide at various levels to laying birds. Five groups…
Raven roosts are mobile information centres

Vagrant, non-breeding common ravens,Corvus corax, inhabiting the forested mountains of Maine are specialized to feed on rich but ephemeral carcasses of large mammals during the harsh winter months. The foraging and roosting behaviour of free-ranging ravens were studied during the winters of 1988–1990. Ravens quickly assembled at carcasses, and into communal roosts. Six lines of evidence indicate that these roosts function as information centres. (1) Roosts comprised both knowledgeable and naive foragers. (2) Departures from roosts were highly synchronized, with most members departing in one direction. (3) Direction of departure often changed from day to day. (4) Birds made naive of food sources (by being withheld from the wild and then allowed to join roosts) followed roost-mates to new feeding sites, whereas control birds held and released outside of roosts rarely found the local food bonanzas. (5) Birds made knowledgeable of food sources (by being released at new carcasses) joined roosts and led roost-mates to the food on three of 20 occasions. (6) The same individuals switched leader and follower roles depending upon their knowledge of feeding opportunities. Although ravens may form roosts at traditional areas (near stable food sources) that are used for many years, the ravens in Maine frequently shifted roost sites to be near newly discovered carcasses. Information exchange at roosts principally occurred on the night of, or the night before, the roost shift. Social soaring displays assembled birds from a wide area and were associated with mass movements to new roosts formed at nearby food.
Combination antifungal therapy against Candida species: The new frontier - Are we there yet?

In the past decade, we have seen a significant increase in the incidence of invasive fungal infections. In addition, opportunistic fungal infections resistant to antifungal agents have become increasingly common and their frequency will more than likely continue to increase. The antifungal armamentarium for the treatment of serious fungal infections remains limited. A possible approach to overcoming antifungal drug resistance and high mortality rates seen in severe fungal infections is to combine two or three classes of antifungals, especially if the drugs have different mechanisms of action. The unique properties of newer antifungals now provide us with the opportunity to investigate antifungal combinations that may become the standard of care for serious fungal infections. Combinations of new agents along with more traditional antifungals have now been shown to possess some synergistic or at least additive activity against Candida in clinical trials. On the other hand, caution is still needed since other antifungal combinations have demonstrated antagonistic activity in vitro. Well-controlled clinical trials are needed to define the most efficacious antifungal regimen. Furthermore, these trials should also evaluate the side effect potential of combination regimens and the pharmacoeconomic impact these regimens may have. Thus, while much optimism exists for combination therapy, there is much yet to be done.
Mohs micrographic surgery of primary cutaneous mucinous carcinoma using immunohistochemistry for margin control.

BACKGROUNDPrimary cutaneous mucinous carcinoma is a rare adnexal malignancy with a high recurrence rate following conventional excision and the potential for aggressive local invasion.OBJECTIVETo enhance the microscopic detection of mucinous carcinoma in Mohs micrographic surgical sections by incorp
Health Shocks and Consumption Smoothing: Evidence from Indonesia

AbstractEpisodes of uninsured illness can seriously compromise a household’s well-being. This article provides further evidence on the consequences of illness episodes on earnings and consumption in Indonesia. We exploit a rich panel data set that allows us to combine fixed effects and instrumental variables to address biases associated with the endogeneity of illness. Using deteriorations in physical functioning to measure illness for a sample of prime-age individuals, we find that earnings are significantly reduced. However, the effects on consumption are relatively small and statistically insignificant. In addition, we explore informal mechanisms that households may be using to smooth out the consequences of these episodes. In particular, we study whether households deplete liquid assets or receive transfers from noncoresident kin. Transfers are responsive to illness, but there is no evidence of asset depletions. Overall, our findings suggest some ability to smooth the income effects of illness on aver...
The Leadership Legacy of Justice John Paul Stevens

Commentators have recently praised Justice John Paul Stevens for his transformation from an independent and unpredictable jurist to a consensus builder and leader of the Supreme Court’s liberal bloc during his career on the Court. But is this narrative actually true?Indeed, the data from Justice Stevens’s tenure on the Court tells a story of great influence, just not one involving building a consensus among his colleagues. This essay finds that statistics on the number and types of opinions Justice Stevens authored do not support the view that he “changed” at the midpoint, or any point, of his career. Instead, Justice Stevens remained highly idiosyncratic throughout his career, writing separate opinions at a rate dwarfing that of any other justice in the Court’s history. Those separate opinions also failed to attract high levels of support relative to the votes garnered by other justices’ separate opinions. However, the numbers also show that Justice Stevens acted as an intellectual leader for generations of American scholars and jurists, if not necessarily among his peers on the Court. Indeed, Justice Stevens has been cited by name in over 10,000 federal court opinions since he began his judicial career on the Seventh Circuit, demonstrating that he has profoundly affected the development of federal law over the last forty years, even if he lacked the desire or ability to achieve high levels of consensus within the Court itself.
Victory Over Peer-to-Peer Sharing Has Record Labels 'Grateful,' But Should They Be 'Dead'?

The transfer of copyrighted music for free through peer-to-peer sharing programs such as Lime Wire has been a major issue in the music industry for almost a decade, but how different would the music industry be if peer-to-peer sharing was not considered copyright infringement? What affect would allowing peer-to-peer sharing have on the music industry, the artists, the record labels, and the general public? After looking into what the world would be like if downloading music through peer-to-peer file sharing programs was not considered copyright infringement, it seems there are strong arguments that it shouldn’t be. When considering the effect of the free distribution of music, the first stop undoubtedly has to be the Grateful Dead. At their peak, the Grateful Dead had two million people attending their shows per year and have sold more than $50 million dollars worth of merchandise, but unlike the vast majority of artists in recent history, the Grateful Dead openly allowed the free distribution of their music and live show recordings. Rather than relying on album sales as the band’s revenue stream, the Dead were able to generate financial success through the use of merchandising and touring. The Grateful Dead were able to effectively use taper sections, where fans would be allowed to set up equipment to record the band’s live performances, knowing that those recordings would be duplicated, triplicated, and dispersed to new fans and new listeners.This process wasn’t always pretty, and it didn’t always produce the best sound quality, but it worked. Today, with advancements in technology, and the MP3 file, the transfer of everlasting professional studio quality music files over the Internet is as easy as clicking a mouse. If the Grateful Dead were around in today’s world, considering advancements in technology, there is no telling how successful they could have been. However, this doesn’t stop with the Grateful Dead, with the use of peer-to-peer sharing the opportunity for success with the Grateful Dead Model are greater today than they have ever been before. Part II of this article provides the recent history of the courts’ application and interpretation of copyright law to peer-to-peer sharing as well as other types of distribution, including one of the most recent cases, Arista Records LLC v. Lime Group. Part III takes a closer look at the ‘Grateful Dead Model’ and how this band’s business philosophy enabled it to be one of the most successful bands in history. Part IV examines the diminishing role of the record labels as the gatekeepers to music recording, production, distribution, merchandising, and publicizing musicians’ creative expressions. This article concludes that through the use of peer-to- peer sharing and the Dead Model, the opportunity for success in the music industry is more prevalent today than every before, and that the real threat to the music industry is the crumbling of major record labels’ role as the ‘gatekeepers.’
Determination of Success or Failure in Dynamic (Isotonic) Movements by Isometric Methods

Abstract A study was conducted to determine whether dynamic (isotonic) strength may be evaluated isometrically. A measurable task, chinning (pull-ups), was selected. A survey was first made of 128 young males to determine whether isometric testing could select and predict successful from nonsuccessful chinners (ability or inability to chin once). Isometric testing positions were used at places where failure was previously demonstrated to be frequent on the dynamic task. The results showed that failures in the dynamic task could be predicted by isometric measurements. Subjects who were unsuccessful were given special exercises. Those who eventually became successful reached the predetermined isometric strength levels necessary for success. The unsuccessful never attained those levels. The strength necessary for a dynamic movement appears to be amenable to measurement by isometric techniques. The data suggest that perhaps the controlled dynamic movement against resistance is essentially a series of isometri...
Simulation of a peer-to-peer collaborative architecture for supply chain management

We have developed a system that combines multi-agent architecture with P2P networks. We built our system on the JXTA model for P2P systems. Each peer agent can enter a peer group and communicate with members of that group. Thus, a peer agent can send out a request, each potential supplier of that request can join the peer group and can respond to the originating peer agent. The originating peer agent then can choose among these potential peer agent suppliers. This requesting/responding mechanism is implemented up and down the supply chain in a basic pull methodology.
MORPHOLOGICAL EVOLUTION OF THE DROSOPHILA VIRILIS SPECIES GROUP AS ASSESSED BY RATE TESTS FOR NATURAL SELECTION ON QUANTITATIVE CHARACTERS.

Two rate tests for assessing natural selection on quantitative traits are discussed for their usefulness in macroevolutionary and adaptational studies. The underlying assumptions and parameter estimation for the constant-heritability (CH) and mutation-drift-equilibrium (MDE) models, which are the bases for these tests, are discussed. The purpose of these rate tests is to determine whether morphological change has occurred either too fast to be explained by neutral drift, which suggests directional selection, or too slow, which suggests stabilizing selection. Previous formulations of these rate tests have ignored the phylogenetic component. Several models of evolution are considered to help account for phylogeny in the context of rate tests. The MDE rate test for stabilizing selection was performed on nine morphological characters among several species of the Drosophila virilis species group. These tests can be interpreted to suggest that stabilizing selection has probably been a major factor in producing the observed similarity among the Dro- sophila species examined.
Adenovirus-mediated expression of melanoma antigen gp75 as immunotherapy for metastatic melanoma

Melanocyte differentiation antigens, such as the brown locus protein gp75, are potential biological targets for immunotherapy. We investigated whether expression of the murine gp75 cDNA mediated by an adenovirus (Ad) vector could induce melanoma rejection using this model self antigen that usually induces tolerance, and whether Ad vector-directed production of interleukin-2 (IL2) might augment this response. To evaluate this approach, Ad vectors were constructed containing the murine gp75 cDNA (Ad.gp75) and the human IL2 cDNA (Ad.IL2). Efficacy was evaluated in C57BI/6 mice challenged i.v. with 10(5) B16 cells, using the number of lung metastases as the efficacy parameter. Naive control mice developed 175 +/- 12 metastases by day 14. Controls receiving intranasal Ad.IL2 1 day after B16 cell injection, intraperitoneal (i.p.) mitomycin-C-treated B16 cells +/- i.p. Ad.IL2 before B16 cell challenge and Ad.beta gal-treated mice had similar numbers of metastases as controls (P > 0.1). In marked contrast, preimmunization with intradermal Ad.gp75 provided dramatic reduction in the number of lung metastases (52 +/- 7, 29% of control). Addition of regional (intranasal delivery to the lung) Ad.IL2 to intradermal Ad.gp75 preimmunization 1 day following tumor challenge provided further protection (18 +/- 6, 10% of control). Depletion of CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell subsets effectively blocked the protective effect seen following immunization. Adoptive transfer of macrophage-depleted splenocytes from Ad.gp75-immunized mice similarly afforded significant protection against B16 tumor cell challenge. Further, serum obtained 21 days following Ad.gp75 immunization showed no detectable anti-gp75 antibody by immunoprecipitation. These results suggest that immunization with Ad.gp75 induces cellular immune responses that are capable of rejecting B16 melanoma in a host that is usually tolerant to gp75 antigen.
Thinking Like a Mall

Arguments for the protection of nonliving elements of the natural environment (lakes, mountains, etc.) often argue that such entities deserve respect for their own sake, often appealing to notions of otherness and autonomy; an object's very existence as independent of humans, they assert, provides a prima facie reason to protect it. But independence and otherness are ambiguous terms. The paper will ask about the status of items in the built environment - using the recently razed City Center Mall in Columbus, Ohio as an example - and argue that the same arguments apply to them too. Although human intention is needed for a shopping mall to come into existence, once it has done so the mall continues to exist independently of humans. Otherness-based arguments, I claim, cannot ground a distinction between natural items and artifacts. This is not meant as a reductio of such arguments, but rather to suggest that an environmental politics that ignores the built environment makes no sense.
Technology Research on Utilizing Absorption Heat Pump to Substitute Low Pressure Heating

Basing on heat pump technology,this article has explored the feasibility of utilizing heat pump to substitue lowpressure turbine steamextraction.Using a 300MWsubcritical units as the case study,a analysis of utilizing heat pump to substitute 7 # and 8 # lowpressure steamextraction heating is done in a certain parameter conditions.The caculation result shows that the turbine's power generation increase 2.14MWdue to the heat pump's substitution of part of lowpressure steam extraction heating.However,the turbine's power generation decrease 2.47MWby using a higher parameter extraction steam to drive the heat pump,which makes net power generation decreases 0.33MW.At last,comprehensive analysis result shows that the programcan be achieved technically but is not feasible economicallywith the energy grade factor ignored.
Immune checkpoint blockade therapy for bladder cancer treatment

Bladder cancer remains the most immunogenic and expensive malignant tumor in the United States today. As the 4th leading cause of death from cancer in United States, Immunotherapy blocking immune checkpoints have been recently been applied to many aggressive cancers and changed interventions of urological cancers including advanced bladder cancer. The applied inhibition of PD-1–PD-L1 interactions can restore antitumor T-cell activity and enhance the cellular immune attack on antigens. The overall goals of this short review article are to introduce current cancer immunotherapy and immune checkpoint inhibitors, and to provide new insight into the underlying mechanisms that block immune checkpoints in tumor microenvironment. Furthermore, this review will address the preclinical and clinical trials to determine whether bladder cancer patients could benefit from this new cancer therapy in near future.
Characteristics of glycosaminoglycans in chicken eggshells and the influence of disaccharide composition on eggshell properties

Glycosaminoglycans (GAG) are linear, highly negatively charged polysaccharides that may perform an important role in biomineralization. GAG were isolated from chicken eggshell membranes and calcified shells. Disaccharide compositional analysis was performed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. All 4 groups of GAG - hyaluronan (HA), keratan sulfate (KS), chondroitin sulfate (CS), and heparan sulfate (HS) - were detected in shell membranes and in calcified shells. HA was the most plentiful GAG in shell membranes, and CS was the most abundant in calcified shells. The CS present, in both membranes and calcified shells, consisted primarily of 6SCS-C, 4SCS-A, and 0SCS-0 disaccharides. Neither 4S6SCS-E nor 2SCS was detectable in shell components. Small amounts of 2S4SCS-B were detected in membranes and TriSCS, and 2S4SCS-B and 2S6SCS-D were detected in calcified shells. HS in calcified shells contained all disaccharides except for 2S6S. In shell membranes, HS contained primarily NS and 0S as well as small amounts of TriS, NS2S, NS6SHS, and 6S, but neither 2S6S nor 2S was detectable. The disaccharide composition of membrane CS, as well as membrane and calcified shell HS, were very similar in all eggshells. In contrast, the composition of calcified shell CS disaccharides was highly variable. In membranes, both HA and KS content showed a correlation with egg shape index. The 4SCS-A content correlated with eggshell strength, and 0SCS-0 correlated with eggshell strength and calcified shell thickness. HS content and its disaccharide composition showed no apparent correlation to properties of calcified shells. In calcified shells, only HS 6S correlated with egg shape index. This study suggests that GAG content and disaccharide composition of shell membranes might impact the quality of chicken eggshells.
Autoimmunity and otologic disease: clinical and experimental aspects.

Each of the anatomic structures of the ear (external, middle, and inner) is subject to immunologic influence and injury. Studies in experimental animals have shown that primary immune responses to foreign antigens can be induced within the middle and inner ear as indicated by (1) infiltration and local persistence of mononuclear leukocytes and plasma cells, (2) appearance of antibody in perilymph, and (3) eventual development of systemic immunity. Protective effects of inner ear immunization against subsequent viral challenge have also been shown. Clinically, otologic disease can occur in association with a wide variety of systemic autoimmune and immunologic disorders: systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, Behcet's disease, Sjogren's syndrome, relapsing polychondritis, ulcerative colitis, Cogan's syndrome, and vasculitis-related disease. Evidence for immunologic involvement has also been found in cases of idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss frequently accompanied by vestibular-dysfunction (Meniere's disease). Many of these cases progress into systemic autoimmune disorders. Autoimmune-associated hearing loss has been recognized as one of the few types of treatable hearing dysfunction, with good responses to immunosuppressive therapy. The pathogenesis of autoimmune-related otologic disease has not been established; however, evidence suggests three possible types of immunologic injury: (1) autoantibody binding to type II collagen or other otologic components (type II immunologic injury); (2) immune complex formation leading to vasculitis (type III); and (3) T cell-mediated autoreactivity to inner ear membranous elements (type IV). These mechanisms may not be mutually exclusive. Clinical laboratory procedures should be directed at evaluating these possibilities to assist in diagnosis.
Diversity and constraints in the floral morphological evolution of Leandra s.str. (Melastomataceae).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Putative processes related to floral diversification and its relation to speciation are still largely unaccounted for in the Melastomataceae. Leandra s.str. is one of the most diverse lineages of the Neotropical Miconieae and ranks among the ten most diverse groups in the Atlantic Forest. Here, we describe the floral diversity of this lineage in a continuous framework and address several questions related to floral evolution and putative developmental and environmental constraints in its morphology. METHODS The morphological data set includes individual size measurements and shape scores (from elliptical Fourier analysis) for hypanthia, petals, stamens and styles. We evaluate whether there is evidence of correlation among these floral structures, shifts and convergent patterns, and association of these traits with elevation. KEY RESULTS Leandra s.str. flower structures present a strong phylogenetic signal and tend to be conserved among close relatives. The extremes in flower regimes seem to be quite distinct, but non-overlapping discrete flower types are not observed. Overall, the morphology of Leandra s.str. floral structures is correlated, and anther colour and inflorescence architecture correlate with flower structures. Additionally, the rates of species diversification and morphological evolution are correlated in most clades. CONCLUSIONS Although some flower regimes tend to occur in different elevational ranges, no significant association is observed. The general idea that hypanthium-ovary fusion is associated with fruit types in the Melastomataceae does not hold for Leandra s.str., where, instead, hypanthium-ovary fusion seems to be associated with anther shape. The lowest rate of flower morphological change, when compared with species diversification rates, is observed in the clade that possesses the most specialized flowers in the group. While stuck on a single general pollination system, Leandra s.str. seems to be greatly wandering around it, given the flower diversity and convergent patterns observed in this group.
Treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphomas with biologic response modifiers: Recombinant leukocyte A interferon and T101 monoclonal antibody

Mycosis fungoides and the Sezary syndrome are collectively referred to as the cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCL) because of the universal infiltration of the skin by malignant T-lymphocytes [1, 2]. While the clinical and histopathologic features of the cutaneous lesions were well described between the original case description in 1806 and the description of the Sezary syndrome in 1939, the lymphomatous nature of the malignant cells was not proven until 1970 [2, 3]. The cells were subsequently shown to have both functional and phenotypic properties of the helper subset of T-lymphocytes [4–6].
Embree ray tracing kernels: overview and new features

Embree is an open source ray tracing library consisting of high-performance kernels optimized for modern CPUs with increasingly wide SIMD units. Since its original release, it has become the state-of-the-art for professional CPU-based rendering applications. In the first half of this talk, we will give a brief overview of the Embree framework and how to use it. In the second half, we will present recent improvements and features introduced since the initial publication of the system. These additions include new geometry types commonly used in production renderers (quads, subdivision surfaces, and hair), improved motion blur support, and ray streams that can be traversed more efficiently than single rays and ray packets.
Connected Dominating Set in Wireless Networks

In a graph G D .V;E/, a subset C of vertices is called a Connected Dominating Set if every vertex is either in C or adjacent to a vertex in C , and in addition the subgraph induced by C is connected. Given a graph, finding the minimum Connected Dominating Set is a classical combinatorial optimization problem, existing in literature for a long time. Due to wide applications of the minimum Connected Dominating Set in wireless networks, Connected Dominating Sets attract many recent research efforts. In this chapter, those developments are surveyed.
Theranostic Profiling for Actionable Aberrations in Advanced High Risk Osteosarcoma with Aggressive Biology Reveals High Molecular Diversity: The Human Fingerprint Hypothesis

The survival of patients with advanced osteosarcoma is poor with limited therapeutic options. There is an urgent need for new targeted therapies based on biomarkers. Recently, theranostic molecular profiling services for cancer patients by CLIA-certified commercial companies as well as in-house profiling in academic medical centers have expanded exponentially. We evaluated molecular profiles of patients with advanced osteosarcoma whose tumor tissue had been analyzed by one of the following methods: 1. 182-gene next-generation exome sequencing (Foundation Medicine, Boston, MA), 2. Immunohistochemistry (IHC)/PCR-based panel (CARIS Target Now, Irving, Tx), 3.Comparative genome hybridization (Oncopath, San Antonio, TX). 4. Single-gene PCR assays, PTEN IHC (MDACC CLIA), 5. UT Houston morphoproteomics (Houston, TX). The most common actionable aberrations occur in the PI3K/PTEN/mTOR pathway. No patterns in genomic alterations beyond the above are readily identifiable, and suggest both high molecular diversity in osteosarcoma and the need for more analyses to define distinct subgroups of osteosarcoma defined by genomic alterations. Based on our preliminary observations we hypothesize that the biology of aggressive and the metastatic phenotype osteosarcoma at the molecular level is similar to human fingerprints, in that no two tumors are identical. Further large scale analyses of osteosarcoma samples are warranted to test this hypothesis.
Biochemical and Biological Aspects of Leukocyte Chemotactic Factors

The degradation of antigen by the immune system is the result of a complex series of events beginning with detection of the foreign material by recognition elements of the immune system and culminating with the ingestion of the antigen by phagocytic cells. One mechanism by which phagocytes may accumulate at antigenic sites is Chemotaxis, or the directed migration of cells in response to a gradient of a chemoattractant substance. Much data has accumulated over the past twenty years concerning the nature of the chemical substances which produce the unidirectional migration of leukocytes in vitro. Microbial or viral materials, upon interaction with humoral and cellular immune recognition components can lead to the production of chemotactic substances. Some antigenic materials may possess intrinsic chemotactic properties themselves.
Abstract P116: The Oral Glucose Tolerance Test is Highly Reproducible for the Diagnosis of Diabetes in Africans: The Africans in America Study

Introduction: As the diabetes epidemic spreads across Africa, the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) has the potential to provide important information on glucose tolerance category for the individ...
Grief, ecocritical negativity, and the queer anti-pastoral

This article introduces the queer anti-pastoral as an ecocinematic model that destabilizes pastoral conventions of nature as a site for harmonious patterns and generative transformations at the ser...
Obstructive Sleep Apnea Classification in a Mixed-Disorder Elderly Male Population Using a Low-Cost Off-Body Movement Sensor

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common but serious sleep disorder in humans which affects oxygenation due to upper airway collapse, and leads to multiple health sequelae. Common symptoms of OSA include repeated arousal during sleep and gasping for air, which we have previously shown can be identified on video recordings as coarse human movement. In this work, we aimed to use a low cost passive off-body device that would continuously allow monitoring for OSA severity in a privacy-preserving manner. A passive infrared (PIR) sensor, was used to monitor coarse human movement during overnight sleep in a clinical sleep-lab. Simultaneously, polysomnograms were recorded and OSA labels were assigned by an expert. A cohort of 32 elderly male participants, 14 with severe OSA and 18 controls were studied. A Raspberry Pi was used to record the PIR sensor data (a series of time-stamps at which movement was registered). Movement time-stamp data were processed to obtain novel activity metrics based on time series statistics and entropy-based statistics. A logistic regression model was trained and tested with leave one out cross validation to classify participants into OSA vs control. A total of 11 features plus periodic leg movement were used. An out of sample F1-score $(\mathcal{F}_{1})=0.89$ and an accuracy $(Acc) =91\%$ was obtained using five features when a combination of entropy, distribution statistics, and PLM information were used, and $\mathcal{F}_{1}=0.83,\ Acc=84\%$ without PLM from 10 features. This suggests that data from the PIR sensor alone could be used for OSA evaluation on an ongoing basis in this population. The proposed method therefore provides a novel, simple, and scalable method for monitoring OSA.
Green Certifications in Residential Real Estate: Discounted Cost Savings or Name Recognition?

A variety of green certifications is now available for residential housing in the United States. However, they have not been thoroughly investigated yet. The few existing studies have found positiv...
Effect of Yoga on Antiretroviral Adherence Postincarceration in HIV+ Individuals.

The negative impacts of stress on antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence and the many stressors faced by people returning from incarceration support the need for stress reduction interventions for ...
Proteomic signatures of in vivo muscle oxidative capacity in healthy adults.

Adequate support of energy for biological activities and during fluctuation of energetic demand is crucial for healthy aging; however, mechanisms for energy decline as well as compensatory mechanisms that counteract such decline remain unclear. We conducted a discovery proteomic study of skeletal muscle in 57 healthy adults (22 women and 35 men; aged 23-87 years) to identify proteins overrepresented and underrepresented with better muscle oxidative capacity, a robust measure of in vivo mitochondrial function, independent of age, sex, and physical activity. Muscle oxidative capacity was assessed by 31 P magnetic resonance spectroscopy postexercise phosphocreatine (PCr) recovery time (τPCr ) in the vastus lateralis muscle, with smaller τPCr values reflecting better oxidative capacity. Of the 4,300 proteins quantified by LC-MS in muscle biopsies, 253 were significantly overrepresented with better muscle oxidative capacity. Enrichment analysis revealed three major protein clusters: (a) proteins involved in key energetic mitochondrial functions especially complex I of the electron transport chain, tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, fatty acid oxidation, and mitochondrial ABC transporters; (b) spliceosome proteins that regulate mRNA alternative splicing machinery, and (c) proteins involved in translation within mitochondria. Our findings suggest that alternative splicing and mechanisms that modulate mitochondrial protein synthesis are central features of the molecular mechanisms aimed at maintaining mitochondrial function in the face of impairment. Whether these mechanisms are compensatory attempt to counteract the effect of aging on mitochondrial function should be further tested in longitudinal studies.
Effects of dilution and pressure on combustion characteristics within externally heated micro-tubes

Abstract This study investigates the impact of pressure and dilution on combustion behavior of C2H6/air/N2 mixtures within an externally heated micro-tube using both experimental and analytical techniques. Experiments are conducted for pressures up to 10 bar at multiple dilution levels and document three flame regimes, i.e. weak flames, FREI and normal flames. Characteristic temperatures for flame stabilization, as well as ignition and extinction are obtained by applying a novel thin filament pyrometry method (TFP), which uses a thin silicon carbide (SiC) filament that enables temperature measurements for both reacting and non-reacting cases. Results show a decrease of characteristic temperatures with increasing pressure, which can be partially compensated by a decrease of O2 content. Further, regime transitions occur at lower velocities as the pressure increases, whereas weak flame positions are insensitive to dilution at a given pressure. Predictions from an analytical model compare favorably with experimental results. The most prominent finding is that as dilution increases, the transition from weak flame to FREI becomes less abrupt and is completely lost for high dilution levels (i.e. low O2 content). Both experimental and analytical results indicate that the unstable FREI combustion regime does not exist at high dilution levels, i.e. weak flame and normal flame regimes are no longer clearly separated. As FREI correspond to a cyclic transition from an ignition zone to a propagating flame, results for highly diluted conditions are interpreted as a combustion regime where classical flame propagation ceases to exist.
Predicting Core Characteristics of ASD Through Facial Emotion Recognition and Eye Tracking in Youth

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD) with a high rate of comorbidity. The implementation of eye-tracking methodologies has informed behavioral and neurophysiological patterns of visual processing across ASD and comorbid NDDs. In this study, we propose a machine learning method to predict measures of two core ASD characteristics: impaired social interactions and communication, and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped behaviors and interests. Our method extracts behavioral features from task performance and eye-tracking data collected during a facial emotion recognition paradigm. We achieved high regression accuracy using a Random Forest regressor trained to predict scores on the SRS-2 and RBS-R assessments; this approach may serve as a classifier for ASD diagnosis.
“Good Teaching” and “Good Teachers” for Whom? Critically Troubling Standardized and Corporatized Notions of Quality in Teacher Education:

BackgroundHistorically and contemporarily, dominant conceptualizations of quality teaching are and have been rooted in notions of the cultural deficiency and inferiority of intersectionally minorit...
Organizational Learning Processes and Outcomes: Major Findings and Future Research Directions

We trace the evolution of research on organizational learning. As organizations acquire experience, their performance typically improves at a decreasing rate. Although this learning-curve pattern i...
Challenges and Approaches to Population Management of Long-Term Opioid Therapy Patients.

Purpose: Primary care is challenged with safely prescribing opioids for patients with chronic noncancer pain (CNCP), specifically to address risks for overdose, opioid use disorder, and death. We identify sociotechnical challenges, approaches, and recommendations in primary care to effectively track and monitor patients on long-term opioid therapy, a key component for supporting adoption of opioid prescribing guidelines. Methods: We examined qualitative data (field notes and postintervention interview and focus group transcripts) from 6 rural and rural-serving primary care organizations with 20 clinic locations enrolled in a study evaluating a practice redesign program to improve opioid medication management for CNCP patients. Two independent researchers used content analysis to categorize data into key themes to develop an understanding of sociotechnical factors critical to creating and implementing an approach to tracking and monitoring of patients on long-term opioid therapy in primary care practices. Results: Four factors were critical to developing a tracking and monitoring system. For each we describe common challenges and approaches used by the clinics to overcome then. The first factor, buy-in and participation, was essential for accomplishing the other 3. The other factors occurred sequentially: 1) cohort identification—finding the right patients, 2) data collection and extraction—tracking the right data, and 3) data use—monitoring patients and adjusting care processes. Conclusions: We identified common challenges and approaches to tracking and monitoring patients using long-term opioid therapy for CNCP in primary care. Based on these findings we provide recommendations to build capacity for tracking and monitoring for organizations that are engaged in improving safe opioid-prescribing practices for CNCP in primary care.
Further Evaluation and Application of the Wisconsin Age-Related Hearing Impairment Classification System

Purpose The primary purpose of this report is to further evaluate the Wisconsin Age-Related Hearing Impairment Classification System (WARHICS) scheme for the classification of audiograms obtained from older adults, ages 50-89 years. Method This was a retrospective analysis of data from 11,729 older adults included in two population, one community, and two clinical data sets. To aid in the interpretation of the audiogram classifications, the functional significance of audiogram categories was evaluated using Hearing Handicap Inventory-Screen scores available for 10,330 of these same individuals. Results A WARHICS level could be obtained successfully for 99.5% of the 11,729 audiograms included in these analyses. It was applied successfully to population, community, and clinical samples. WARHICS Level 8 audiograms, corresponding to a broad profound hearing impairment (pure-tone thresholds from 500 to 8000 Hz, all > 80 dB HL), were very rare (.1% prevalence). WARHICS subtypes, designed to identify those with high-frequency notched audiograms or flat audiograms, occurred only 3%-6% of the time, depending on the data set. When compared to the current hearing-impairment grading system of the World Health Organization (WHO), several WARHICS levels fell within a given WHO hearing-impairment grade suggesting a finer grained categorization by the WARHICS. The Hearing Handicap Inventory-Screen scores provided justification for the fine-grained categorization according to the WARHICS. It is also demonstrated that the WARHICS levels could be extended to the classification of audiograms from all adults, regardless of age. Finally, a WARHICS-WHO hybrid classification scheme is proposed for future evaluation. Conclusions Although the WARHICS was developed from a population data set, it was demonstrated here to be applicable to population, community, and clinical data sets for adults aged 50-89 years. The applicability of the WARHICS or a WARHICS-WHO hybrid to population data sets that included younger adults suggests that this classification system has the potential to be applied even more broadly than just to age-related hearing loss.