cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Is there anything we can modify among factors associated with morbidity following elective laparoscopic sigmoidectomy for diverticulitis

Laparoscopic sigmoidectomy for diverticulitis is widely accepted, using either endolinear staplers or traditional linear staplers under direct vision through the extraction site to transect the rectum. The aim of this study was to assess modifiable factors affecting perioperative morbidity after elective laparoscopic sigmoidectomy for diverticulitis. Potential associations between perioperative morbidity and demographic, disease-related, and treatment-related factors were assessed on all consecutive patients included in a prospectively collected database undergoing elective laparoscopic sigmoidectomy for diverticulitis between 1992 and 2013. Rectal transection with a linear stapler under direct vision through the extraction site was considered compatible with laparoscopic technique. There were two deaths out of 1059 patients (0.19 %). Conversion rate was 13.1 %, overall morbidity 28 %, and anastomotic leak 3.7 %. Independent factors associated with morbidity in an intent-to-treat analysis were ASA 3 (OR 1.53, p = 0.006), conversion (OR 1.71, p = 0.015), and rectal transection without endolinear stapling (traditional linear stapler: OR 1.75, p = 0.003; surgical knife: OR 2.09, p = 0.002). The same factors along with complicated diverticulitis (OR 1.56, p = 0.013) were independently associated with overall morbidity among laparoscopically completed cases. BMI ≥ 35 (OR 2.3, p = 0.017), complicated diverticulitis (OR 2.37, p = 0.002), and rectal transection with a traditional linear stapler (OR 2.19, p = 0.018) were independently associated with abdomino-pelvic infections, both in an intent-to-treat analysis and among laparoscopically completed cases. The number of endolinear stapler firings was not associated with morbidity. Most factors associated with morbidity of laparoscopic sigmoidectomy for diverticulitis cannot be easily modified. With the limitation of a retrospective analysis, modifiable factors to minimize morbidity are laparoscopic completion and endolinear stapling.
The End of the HIPAA Privacy Rule

The HIPAA Privacy Rule is notoriously weak because of its limited coverage, numerous exclusions and exemptions, and limited rights for individuals. The three areas in which it provides the most protection are fundraising, marketing, and research. Provisions of the 21st Century Cures Act, pending in Congress, and the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to amend the federal research regulations (Common Rule), awaiting final regulatory action, would weaken the privacy protections for research. If these measures are adopted, the HIPAA Privacy Rule would have so little value that it might not be worth the aggravation and burden.
A Computer-Assisted Surgical Pathology System

SURPATH is a comprehensive, integrated computer-assisted system for service, research, and management in surgical pathology that has been in use at New England Medical Center (NEMC) since July 1, 1978. Functions of the system include: maintenance of patient-name and diagnostic files; generation, editing, and printing of preliminary and final specimen reports; SNOMED coding and indexing of diagnoses; retrieval and video display or printing of data on individual cases or groups of cases; billing and generation of billing reports; and, calculation of intervals between accession and signout of specimens. Use of the system has greatly facilitated the production of surgical pathology reports; increased the speed with which inquiries about individual specimens can be answered; provided rapid, accurate searches of the diagnostic files; improved timeliness, accuracy, and completeness of billing resulting in increased departmental revenue; reduced intervals between accession and reporting; and, improved the morale of the professional and support staffs.
Death Causes of Residents in Hedong District of Linyi City

[Objective]To investigate the death causes of residents in Hedong District of Linyi City from 1995—2007,and provide evidence for prevention and treatment of diseases.[Methods]Stratified random sampling method was adopted to retrospectively study the death causes data during 1995—2004.[Results] The annual average mortality was 613.84/100 000,the standardized mortality was 462.33/100 000.The main sequences of death causes were as follows: circulatory system disease,tumor,respiratory system disease,poisonings and injuries,that accounted for 71.88% of total deaths.[Conclusion]Based on the results of investigation,the prevention and control of noninfectious chronic disease should be strengthened on target in Hedong District.
Complexity of the exact solution to the test sequencing problem

Consider a doctor choosing a treatment for an uncertain disorder for which there are n costly tests available. Based on the test results observed so far, the doctor can either order another test or proceed to the treatment decision. Although test sequencing is a problem that arises frequently in many decision situations, finding an exact solution is NP-hard with respect to n. In this paper, we analyze the time complexity of classic symmetric and asymmetric formulations, using influence diagrams and decision trees, to the general test sequencing problem, making no assumptions of conditional independence among the test results. We develop an alternative influence diagram formulation that scales better, and show how a decision circuit formulation improves even more on the decision tree solution through recursive coalescence. We prove that this decision circuit formulation achieves the lower bound complexity for any method for the general test sequencing problem that examines the entire policy space. As a result, the problem is tractable for much larger n than has been possible to date.
Substitution of a conserved catalytic dyad into 2-KPCC causes loss of carboxylation activity.

The characteristic His-Glu catalytic dyad of the disulfide oxidoreductase (DSOR) family of enzymes is replaced in 2-Ketopropyl Coenzyme M Oxidoreductase/Carboxylase (2-KPCC) by the residues Phe-His. 2-KPCC is the only known carboxylating member of the DSOR family and has replaced this dyad potentially to eliminate proton-donating groups at a key position in the active site. Substitution of the Phe-His by the canonical residues results in production of higher relative concentrations of acetone versus the natural product acetoacetate. The results indicate that these differences in 2-KPCC are key to discriminating between carbon dioxide and protons as attacking electrophiles. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
From QA to TQM.

In the decade from 1950 to 1960, two quality-related processes--medical audit and total quality management--were being developed, one directly in the health care field and the other in the manufacturing sector. These processes remained isolated from each other until the mid-1980s. Each would have a separate but major effect on the health care industry.
Thin Film Cracking / Delamination Evaluation Using Assembly Test Chip

We have utilized an Assembly Test Chip (ATC) to study die and packaging interaction during a new fab process development. This paper shows a case study of using ATC to evaluate 2 plastic-package specific failure mechanisms, Thin Film Cracking (TFC) and Thin Film Delamination (TFD). Special test structures have been designed and shown to be sensitive to TFC and TFD. Failures can be detected electrically by simple continuity test, as opposed to the conventional decap &visual technique. We find that Temperature Cycling induces TFC for large die size and Steam induces TFD for thin film stack. New process options have been developed in order to achieve optimum TFC and TFD performance, using the ATC.
Predicting long-term product ratings based on few early ratings and user base analysis

A new prediction problem of predicting long-term average ratings of products is designed.A Bayesian network model is proposed to solve this problem.Performance of the proposed model is compared with the performance of five other prediction methods/models; a Linear Regression model, two variations of a Running Average predictor, an Ordered Logistic Regression model and a Confirmatory Factor Analysis model.Each models performance is evaluated using the MovieLens dataset. The training is done on 56,590 data points, the ratings submitted for 1155 movies, and the prediction results are reported for 495 movies.Applications of this problem along with future research directions are discussed. Product reviews and ratings are major quality indicators in online shopping systems. In making the decision about carrying a product as part of their inventory, an online seller often pays attention to the products rating. However, when the observed average is based on a small number of individual user-submitted ratings, the decision-maker may not feel as confident about the product, even when the average is high. The long-term average rating predictions can help online retailers to identify products to promote on their websites as top picks. The paper proposes a Bayesian Network model to predict the long-term average product ratings based on a (limited) number of early submitted ratings. Performance of the proposed model is compared with the performance of five other prediction methods/models; a Linear Regression model, two variations of a Running Average predictor, an Ordered Logistic Regression model and a Confirmatory Factor Analysis model. Each models performance is evaluated using the MovieLens dataset (GroupLensResearch, 2012). The training is done on 56,590 data points, the ratings submitted for 1155 movies, and the prediction results are reported for 495 movies. It is demonstrated that the proposed Bayesian Network and the Linear Regression models are particularly effective in making accurate predictions around the time of product introduction when the information about the prospective, future ratings is especially valuable. The Bayesian Network model performs better in the very early stage of feedback collection, and in the later stages, as more feedback is received, the Linear Regression model emerges as the best predictor. The strengths and weaknesses of all the assessed prediction methods are discussed.
Perceptions About Pimps in an Upscale Mega Brothel in Germany

This paper examines how different actors in an upscale brothel in Germany experience and describe pimps and the influence they have in the brothel and in their lives. Over the last years, scholars, activists, and lawmakers working on prostitution have looked critically to Germany—which legalized prostitution in 2002—and to what extent this improved the working conditions and lives of sex workers there. The brothel under study is one of the many new upscale sauna clubs that have sprung up all over Germany. In contrast to the club’s claims as a model for legal prostitution, sex workers, clients, and even a substantial number of employees often talked about the sex workers who were working for pimps, about pimps’ mingling among customers, about their attempts to recruit new girls as well as their surveillance and the stress that caused. Even though this study relies on statements about pimps, the preponderance of this subject and prostitution insiders’ pervasive concern with them suggest that they play a significant role even in legal and upscale prostitution.
THINKING ABOUT THE MEDIA: A REVIEW OF THEORY AND RESEARCH ON MEDIA PERCEPTIONS, MEDIA EFFECTS PERCEPTIONS, AND THEIR CONSEQUENCES

This review explicates the past, present and future of theory and research concerning audience perceptions of the media as well as the effects that perceptions of media have on audiences. Before the sections that examine media perceptions and media effects perceptions, we first identify various psychological concepts and processes involved in generating media-related perceptions. In the first section, we analyze two types of media perceptions: media trust/credibility perceptions and bias perceptions, focusing on research on the Hostile Media Perception. In both cases, we address the potential consequences of these perceptions. In the second section, we assess theory and research on perceptions of media effects (often referred to as Presumed Influence) and their consequences (referred to as the Influence of Presumed Influence). As examples of Presumed Influence, we evaluate the literature on the Persuasive Press Inference and the Third-Person Perception. The bodies of research on media perceptions and media effects perceptions have been featured prominently in the top journals of the field of mass communication over the past 20 years. Here we bring them together in one synthetic theoretical review.
Modeling and spectroscopy of carrier relaxation in semiconductor optoelectronics

The end performance of semiconductor optoelectronic devices is largely determined by the carrier dynamics of the constituent base materials. When combined with full-scale numerical models, optical spectroscopy is capable of providing detailed information about carrier generation and dynamics that is essential to accurate analysis of empirical test structure studies, and to translating those results into predictions for device performance. We have applied time-resolved and steady-state luminescence techniques to a variety of III-V materials and reference structures in order to investigate the mechanisms controlling carrier dynamics and to develop diagnostic tools to provide actionable feedback to R and D efforts for improvement and optimization of material/device performance.
A Response to the Attempted Critique of the Scientific Phenomenological Method

Recently, a book (details are given below) was published, the sole purpose of which was to discourage researchers from using the scientific phenomenological method. The author (Paley, 1997; 1998; 2000) had previously been critical of nurses who had used the scientific phenomenological method but in the new book he goes after the originators of different methods of scientific phenomenological research and attempts to criticize them severely. In this review I defend only the scientific phenomenological method that is strictly based upon the thought of Edmund Husserl. Given the entirely negative project of only critiquing phenomenologically grounded scientific research, one would expect the author to be sensitive to the cautions historians and philosophers of science speak about when one attempts to criticize concepts and procedures that belong to a different research community. Paley, an empiricist, uses empirical criteria to criticize phenomenological work.Moreover, given the entirely negative project of critiquing phenomenologically grounded scientific research one would expect the author to be knowledgeable about phenomenology and the innovative research practices used by a new research community. However, (1) the author has only a thin, superficial understanding of phenomenology (e.g., it is not a technology; Paley, 2017, 109). One gets the impression that he only reads phenomenology in order to critique it. He displays an outsider’s understanding of it which means that his criticisms of it are faulty because he does not know how to think and dwell within the phenomenological framework; (2) he does not understand “discovery-oriented” research and he keeps judging such research according to criteria from the “context of verification” perspective which are the wrong criteria for “discovery-oriented” research; (3) he denigrates and reduces nursing research strategies because he interprets them to be based on pragmatic motivations only. He does not even grant that nurses can have authentic scientific motivations for seeking phenomenologically based methods; (4) he uses unfair rhetorical strategies in the sense that he uses strategies himself that he criticizes when others use them. The review below documents what has been summarized here.
Immunotherapy of CMV Infections

Although cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is common, the majority of infections cause little or no symptoms. Serious disease occurs virtually exclusively in fetuses or neonates and immunosuppressed individuals including those on corticosteroids, transplant recipients, and those with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Retinitis, gastrointestinal disease, and interstitial pneumonitis are among the more common manifestations of CMV disease, but infections at other sites also occur.
Balancing patient value and payer cost in hematologic malignancies: can it be done?

Since 2012, the FDA has approved 88 new oncologic therapies or indications, including 28 drugs for hematologic malignancies (centerwatch.com/drug-information/fda-approved). Correspondingly, the Sur...
A Robot That Communicates With Vocal Fillers Has … Uhhh … Greater Social Presence

Social robots are communicative partners that need interpersonal communication skills. Vocal fillers have been shown to act as cues during interpersonal communication. The purpose of this experimen...
Do Status Hierarchies Benefit Groups? A Bounded Functionalist Account of Status

Scholars have long debated the impact of status hierarchies on group welfare. On the one hand, functionalist accounts posit that the status hierarchies that emerge within groups benefit those groups by providing order, coordination, and incentives for individual sacrifice. In contrast, critical accounts argue that status hierarchies are only loosely tied to merit, create divisions among individuals, foster mistrust, and hamper communication and collective success. The current chapter integrates these two opposing views by proposing a bounded functionalist perspective of status hierarchies. Specifically, we argue that group members strive to form functional hierarchies that will foster their collective success, but they are constrained in their ability to do so by the difficulties in allocating status based on merit and by the opposing force of individual self-interest.
Molten Salt Chemistry of the Haloaluminates

This review covers the molten salt chemistry of the aluminum halides and their mixtures with other metal halides. These materials have extremely interesting properties from the molten salt point of view. They are almost unique in their wide range of acid-base properties. In addition, they form low melting liquids with good thermal stabilities. These facts together with recent studies showing the existence of unusual dissolved species suggest a vast potential for the haloaluminates as molten salt solvents.
Sleep and Aging

The purpose of this chapter is to discuss changes in sleep quality and architecture that occur as one ages. Normal age related changes in sleep architecture will be discussed first, followed by sleep and circadian rhythm disorders that increase in prevalence as we age. Finally, a short section at the end of this chapter discusses neurological disorders more frequently seen in older adults, and their impact on sleep.
Panoramic Image Processing using Non-Commutative Harmonic Analysis Part I: Investigation

Automated surveillance, navigation and other applications in computational vision have prompted the need for omnidirectional imaging devices and processing. Omnidirectional vision involves capturing and interpreting full 360° panoramic images using rotating cameras, multiple cameras or cameras coupled with mirrors. Due to the enlarged field of view and the type of sensors required, typical techniques in image analysis generally fail to provide sufficient results for feature extraction and identification. A non-commutative harmonic analysis approach takes advantage of the Fourier transform properties of certain groups. Past work in representation theory already provides the theoretical background to analyze 2-D images though extensive numerical work for applications is limited. We will investigate the implementation and computation of the Fourier transform over groups, such as the motion group. The Euclidean motion group SE(2) is a solvable Lie group that requires a 2-D polar FFT and has symmetry properties that could be used as a tool in processing panoramic images.
Perinatal HIV-1 transmission: recent advances and therapeutic interventions.

Objectives : To review recent advances and current understanding of risk factors associated with perinatal HIV-1 transmission, the critical gaps in our knowledge, and current and future approaches to prevention of transmission. Factors influencing mother-to-child transmission : Perinatal HIV transmission is multifactorial and all potential risk factors must be considered in the context of the timing of transmission in utero, at birth or after birth by breastfeeding. Major factors that have been associated with increased transmission include a high maternal virus load, decreased CD4+ count, lack of HIV neutralizing antibody, advanced clinical disease, primary infection, first-born twins, and obstetric factors including chorioamnionitis, mode of delivery and more than 4 h of ruptured membranes. There are still significant gaps in our knowledge to explain the known variables in transmission, including the fact that 70-80% of infants born of HIV-infected mothers escape infection. Approaches to reduce perinatal HIV-1 infection : One of the major advances in prevention of perinatal transmission was the AIDS Clinical Trials Group 076 trial, which showed that antiretroviral therapy with zidovudine given to the mother during pregnancy and delivery, and to the infant, reduced transmission by 70%. Current approaches to further reduce transmission and provide practical application worldwide are discussed, including combined potent antivirals, local approaches and immune-based therapy given to the mother and/or infant. Conclusions : There is reason for optimism for the potential to further reduce perinatal transmission to a level of less than 2%. The challenge will be to increase education and awareness worldwide in order to translate scientific advances into practical approaches that will be applicable in both industrialized and non-industrialized countries.
Self, World and Space: The Meaning and Mechanismsof Ego- and Allocentric Spatial Representation

The problem of how physical systems, such as brains, come to representthemselves as subjects in an objective world is addressed. I developan account of the requirements for this ability that draws on and refines work in a philosophical tradition that runs from Kant throughPeter Strawson to Gareth Evans. The basic idea is that the ability torepresent oneself as a subject in a world whose existence isindependent of oneself involves the ability to represent space, andin particular, to represent oneself as one object among others in anobjective spatial realm. In parallel, I provide an account of howthis ability, and the mechanisms that support it, are realizedneurobiologically. This aspect of the article draws on, and refines,work done in the neurobiology and psychology of egocentric andallocentric spatial representation.
Monitoring Soybean Leaf Water Status using Terahertz Spectroscopy

Water status of soybean leaves can truly reflect the degree of soil water deficit. The strong attenuation of terahertz radiation in water makes it a contact-less probe, which does not require contact with the sample. In this study, terahertz spectroscopy technology was studied to rapidly and conveniently estimate water content in soybean canopy leaf, so as to monitor the health status of plant and help scientific water-saving irrigation management.
Digitally Integrated Self-Trained Predistortion Curve Finder for Passive Sweep Linearization of Semiconductor Lasers

This paper reports a digitally integrated, self-trained predistortion curve finder for linearly frequency-swept semiconductor lasers. In this method, we introduce an iteration machine to train the laser current curves by utilizing the feedback signals from the laser's output. By measuring the phase and frequency information of lasers, we find that the predistortion finder in our design can generate various high sweep velocities (THz/ms) of lasers in 1 s with phase error range less than $\boldsymbol{\pi }/2.$ This method is universal for semiconductor lasers at any sweep frequency velocity.
Weak Log-majorization of Unital Trace-preserving Completely Positive Maps

Let Φ : Mn → Mn be a unital trace preserving completely positive map and A ∈ Mn be a positive definite matrix. Weak log-majorization and weak majorization between Φ(A) and A are studied. Determinantal inequalities between Φ(A) and A are obtained as a consequence. By considering special classes of unital trace preserving completely positive map, some known matrix inequalities such as Fischer’s inequality are rediscovered. An affirmative answer to a question of Tam and Zhang in 2019 is given.
Variations in Teaching Assistant Case Experience During General Surgical Residency

In 2014 to 2015, the American Council for Graduate Medical Education required that graduating surgical residents must complete 25 cases as a teaching assistant (TA). The definition of TA varies among programs. The purpose of this study is to gain insight into how many cases residents log as a TA, the operative setting, and the types of cases performed. An online survey of 21 questions was sent via email to all general surgery program directors across the nation between August and October of 2015. Questions regarding the number of cases performed as TA, types of cases performed, and the operative setting were asked. We received 88 responses of 200 surveys sent. Fifty-two per cent of programs stated that their graduating residents log more than 25 cases as TA on graduating. All 88 respondents stated that senior residents acted as TAs in the operating room; of these respondents, 59 per cent stated that senior residents acted as TAs in the clinic also, 66 per cent on floors, and 70 per cent in the emergency room. The definition of TA differs among programs. Also, the types of cases that residents log as TA varies among programs as there are no clear guidelines set by the American Council for Graduate Medical Education as to what constitutes a TA case. Nonetheless, in most programs, senior residents perform more than 25 TA cases.
Prolonged prophylactic effects of gabapentin on status epilepticus-induced neocortical injury

Abstract Long-term consequences of status epilepticus (SE) occur in a significant proportion of those who survive the acute episode. We developed an in vivo model of acute focal neocortical SE (FSE) to study long-term effects on local cortical structure and function and potential strategies to mitigate adverse consequences of SE. An acute 2 h episode of FSE was induced in anesthetized mice by epidural application of gabazine +4-aminopyridine over sensorimotor neocortex. Ten and 30 days later, the morphological and functional consequences of this single episode of FSE were studied using immunocytochemical and electrophysiological techniques. Results, focused on cortical layer V, showed astrogliosis, microgliosis, decreased neuronal density, and increased excitatory synapses, along with increased immunoreactivity for thrombospondin 2 (TSP2) and α2δ-1 proteins. In addition, neocortical slices, obtained from the area of prior focal seizure activity, showed abnormal epileptiform burst discharges along with increases in the frequency of miniature and spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents in layer V pyramidal cells, together with decreases in both parvalbumin immunoreactivity (PV-IR) and the frequency of miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents in layer V pyramidal cells. Treatment with an approved drug, gabapentin (GBP) (ip 100 mg/kg/day 3×/day for 7 days following the FSE episode), prevented the gliosis, the enhanced TSP2- and α2δ-1- IR and the increased excitatory synaptic density in the affected neocortex. This model provides an approach for assessing adverse effects of FSE on neocortical structure and function and potential prophylactic treatments.
Speech cues to deception in bilinguals.

Acoustic cues to deception on a picture-naming task were analyzed in three groups of English speakers: monolinguals, bilinguals with English as their first language, and bilinguals with English as a second language. Results revealed that all participants had longer reaction times when generating falsehoods than when producing truths, and that the effect was more robust for English as a second language bilinguals than for the other two groups. Articulation rate was higher for all groups when producing lies. Mean fundamental frequency and intensity cues were not reliable cues to deception, but there was lower variance in both of these parameters when generating false versus true labels for all participants. Results suggest that naming latency was the only cue to deception that differed by language background. These findings broadly support the cognitive-load theory of deception, suggesting that a combination of producing deceptive speech and using a second language puts an extra load on the speaker.
An atypical presentation of primary central nervous system lymphoma: A case report.

Rationale Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) involving the choroid plexus is exceedingly rare. The differential diagnosis for choroid plexus enhancing lesions in addition to lymphoma includes infections, sarcoidosis, tuberculosis, papilloma, meningioma, subependymoma, and metastatic lesions. Patient concerns A 71-year-old man presented with 3 days of episodic memory loss and gait disturbance. Brain magnetic resonance imaging showed homogenously enhancing lesions with mildly restricted diffusion and T2 hypointensity in the lateral ventricles, as well as T2 hyperintensity and enhancement in the right hippocampus. His episodic memory loss was thought to be secondary to subclinical focal seizures, supported by EEG revealing right temporal lobe epileptiform discharges. Diagnoses Large B-cell lymphoma, nongerminal center type was revealed on pathological examination. Interventions Stereotactic biopsy of his right thalamic lesion was performed. Outcomes The patient underwent induction therapy with high-dose methotrexate, temozolomide, and rituximab, which resulted in complete resolution of the enhancing lesions. He then underwent conditioning chemotherapy with carmustine and thiotepa, followed by autologous stem cell transplantation. His PCNSL remains in remission 42 weeks after the onset of symptoms. Lessons We report a patient with multifocal PCNSL involving the choroid plexus, who presented with abnormal gait and episodic confusion and memory loss. PCNSL should be considered in the differential diagnosis of acute encephalopathy among immunocompetent older individuals who have choroid plexus enhancing lesions.
Activating Corticotropin-Releasing Factor Systems in the Nucleus Accumbens, Amygdala, and Bed Nucleus of Stria Terminalis: Incentive Motivation or Aversive Motivation?

Abstract Background Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) neural systems are important stress mechanisms in the central amygdala (CeA), bed nucleus of stria terminalis (BNST), nucleus accumbens (NAc), and related structures. CRF-containing neural systems are traditionally posited to generate aversive distress states that motivate overconsumption of rewards and relapse in addiction. However, CRF-containing systems may alternatively promote incentive motivation to increase reward pursuit and consumption without requiring aversive states. Methods We optogenetically stimulated CRF-expressing neurons in the CeA, BNST, or NAc using Crh-Cre+ rats (n = 37 female, n = 34 male) to investigate roles in incentive motivation versus aversive motivation. We paired CRF-expressing neuronal stimulations with earning sucrose rewards in two-choice and progressive ratio tasks and investigated recruitment of distributed limbic circuitry. We further assessed valence with CRF-containing neuron laser self-stimulation tasks. Results Channelrhodopsin excitation of CRF-containing neurons in the CeA and NAc amplified and focused incentive motivation and recruited activation of mesocorticolimbic reward circuitry. CRF systems in both the CeA and NAc supported laser self-stimulation, amplified incentive motivation for sucrose in a breakpoint test, and focused “wanting” on laser-paired sucrose over a sucrose alternative in a two-choice test. Conversely, stimulation of CRF-containing neurons in the BNST produced negative valence or aversive effects and recruited distress-related circuitry, as stimulation was avoided and suppressed motivation for sucrose. Conclusions CRF-containing systems in the NAc and CeA can promote reward consumption by increasing incentive motivation without involving aversion. In contrast, stimulation of CRF-containing systems in the BNST is aversive but suppresses sucrose reward pursuit and consumption rather than increase, as predicted by traditional hedonic self-medication hypotheses.
Fault-tolerant Distributed Transactions on Blockchain

Abstract Since the introduction of Bitcoin—the first widespread application driven by blockchain—the interest of the public and private sectors in blockchain has skyrocketed. In recent years, block...
Broadband asymmetric light transmission interfaces for luminescent solar concentrators

Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) are actively researched to be incorporated into multi-functional building envelope systems. They consist of a plastic matrix with absorbing–emitting media, which guides and concentrates light to edges where solar cells are located. A main drawback of LSCs is escape cone losses at the surface intercepting light. This study investigates trapezoidal nanostructures for creating an interface that enables asymmetric light transmission and reduces these losses. The study employs alumina nanostructures on a PMMA substrate, materials of relevance to LSC applications. The geometry of nanostructures was optimized to maximize asymmetry in the 700–1100 nm wavelength interval, which corresponds to the range best utilized by silicon solar cells. The multiphysics software COMSOL was utilized to simulate forward (air to PMMA) and backward (PMMA to air) transmission. Spectral transmissivity was calculated for this wavelength interval for a variety of incident polar and azimuthal angles. The largest difference between forward and backward light transmission was found at 720 nm, as designed. The forward spectral transmissivity for all polar angles considered was found to be approximately 77% in the 700–1100 nm range at an azimuth angle of zero. The backward spectral directional transmissivity in this range was approximately 37%, resulting in a 40% difference. The difference for the entire wavelength range of 400–1200 nm was approximately 37%. Similar results were obtained when the azimuth angle was varied. All these show that the incorporation of nanostructured interfaces can effectively reduce optical losses in LSCs, which will help increase their efficiency. This will make LSCs a more viable solution for use in zero or net-zero energy buildings.
Probing Lanmodulin's Lanthanide Recognition via Sensitized Luminescence Yields a Platform for Quantification of Terbium in Acid Mine Drainage.

Lanmodulin is the first natural, selective macrochelator for f elements-a protein that binds lanthanides with picomolar affinity at 3 EF hands, motifs that instead bind calcium in most other proteins. Here, we use sensitized terbium luminescence to probe the mechanism of lanthanide recognition by this protein as well as to develop a terbium-specific biosensor that can be applied directly in environmental samples. By incorporating tryptophan residues into specific EF hands, we infer the order of metal binding of these three sites. Despite lanmodulin's remarkable lanthanide binding properties, its coordination of approximately two solvent molecules per site (by luminescence lifetime) and metal dissociation kinetics (koff = 0.02-0.05 s-1, by stopped-flow fluorescence) are revealed to be rather ordinary among EF hands; what sets lanmodulin apart is that metal association is nearly diffusion limited (kon ≈ 109 M-1 s-1). Finally, we show that Trp-substituted lanmodulin can quantify 3 ppb (18 nM) terbium directly in acid mine drainage at pH 3.2 in the presence of a 100-fold excess of other rare earths and a 100 000-fold excess of other metals using a plate reader. These studies not only yield insight into lanmodulin's mechanism of lanthanide recognition and the structures of its metal binding sites but also show that this protein's unique combination of affinity and selectivity outperforms synthetic luminescence-based sensors, opening the door to rapid and inexpensive methods for selective sensing of individual lanthanides in the environment and in-line monitoring in industrial operations.
Human TRPV1 and TRPA1 are receptors for bacterial quorum sensing molecules.

In this study, we investigated the activation of TRPV1 and TRPA1 by N-acyl homoserine lactones, quorum sensing molecules produced by Gram-negative bacteria, and the inhibitory effect of TRPV1 and TRPA1 by autoinducing peptides, quorum sensing molecules produced by Gram-positive bacteria, using human embryonic kidney 293T cell lines stably expressing human TRPV1 and TRPA1, respectively. As a result, we found that some N-acyl homoserine lactones, such as N-octanoyl-L-homoserine lactone (C8-HSL), N-nonanoyl-L-homoserine lactone (C9-HSL) and N-decanoyl-L-homoserine lactone (C10-HSL) activated both TRPV1 and TRPA1. In addition, we clarified that some N-acyl homoserine lactones, for example, N-3-oxo-dodecanoyl-L-homoserine lactone (3-oxo-C12-HSL) only activated TRPV1, and N-acyl homoserine lactones having saturated short acyl chain, such as N-acetyl-L-homoserine lactone (C2-HSL) and N-butyryl-L-homoserine lactone (C4-HSL) only activated TRPA1, respectively. Furthermore, we found that an autoinducing peptide, simple linear peptide CHWPR, inhibited both TRPV1 and TRPA1, and peptide having thiolactone ring DICNAYF, thiolactone ring were formed between C3 to F7, strongly inhibited only the TRPV1. Although the specificity of TRPV1 and TRPA1 for quorum sensing molecules were different, these data suggest that both TRPV1 and TRPA1 would function as receptors for quorum sensing molecule produced by bacteria.
Correlation Between Empowering the Leader of Elderly Community and the Elders’ Quality of Life in Sanunrak Municipality, Pathumthani, Thailand

The objective of this research is to study the correlation between the Empowering the Leader of Elderly Community and the Elders’ Quality of Life, living in Sanan Rak Mmunicipality, Pathumthani, Thailand. The sample group consisted of elders in Sanan Rakmunicipality, Pathumthani, using random stratification technique and of the questionnaires respondents. The sample group of 377 persons are from Krejce and Morgan chart. Tools used are questionnaires, statistic is by mean, pearson’s simple correlation moment product. It is found from the study that 1) The overall level of Empowering the Leader of Elderly Community in Sanan Rak municipality, Pathumthani, is at a moderate level 2) The overall Quality of Life level of the Elders in Sanan Rak municipality, is at a good level 3) The community leader of the elders and the elders are of the opinion that the levels of Empowering the Leader of Elderly Community are of non-significant statistic different 4) The community leader of the elders and the elders are of the opinion that the levels of the the Elders’Quality of Life are of non-significant statistic different 5) The correlation levels between Empowering the Leader of Elderly Community and the Elders’ Quality of Life are at a very low level, with statistic significant at .05, correlation coefficient at .230.
Analysis and construction of engaging facial forms and expressions: interdisciplinary approaches from art, anatomy, engineering, cultural studies, and psychology

The topic of this dissertation is the anatomical, psychological, and cultural examination of a human face in order to effectively construct an anatomy-driven 3D virtual face customization and action model. In order to gain a broad perspective of all aspects of a face, theories and methodology from the fields of art, engineering, anatomy, psychology, and cultural studies have been analyzed and implemented. The computer generated facial customization and action model were designed based on the collected data. Using this customization system, culturally-specific attractive face in Korean popular culture, "kot-mi-nam (flower-like beautiful guy)," was modeled and analyzed as a case study. The "kot-mi-nam" phenomenon is overviewed in textual, visual, and contextual aspects, which reveals the gender- and sexuality-fluidity of its masculinity. The analysis and the actual development of the model organically co-construct each other requiring an interwoven process. Chapter 1 introduces anatomical studies of a human face, psychological theories of face recognition and an attractive face, and state-of-the-art face construction projects in the various fields. Chapter 2 and 3 present the Bezier curve-based 3D facial customization (BCFC) and Multi-layered Facial Action Model (MFAF) based on the analysis of human anatomy, to achieve a cost-effective yet realistic quality of facial animation without using 3D scanned data. In the experiments, results for the facial customization for gender, race, fat, and age showed that BCFC achieved enhanced performance of 25.20% compared to existing program Facegen , and 44.12% compared to Facial Studio. The experimental results also proved the realistic quality and effectiveness of MFAM compared with blend shape technique by enhancing 2.87% and 0.03% of facial area for happiness and anger expressions per second, respectively. In Chapter 4, according to the analysis based on BCFC, the 3D face of an average kot-mi-nam is close to gender neutral (male: 50.38%, female: 49.62%), and Caucasian (66.42-66.40%). Culturally-specific images can be misinterpreted in different cultures, due to their different languages, histories, and contexts. This research demonstrates that facial images can be affected by the cultural tastes of the makers and can also be interpreted differently by viewers in different cultures.
Randomized double-blind study comparing the effectiveness of balloon dilation of the prostate and cystoscopy for the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia.

AbstractWe attempted to determine the effectiveness of balloon dilation of the prostate for the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). A total of 33 men with symptomatic BPH signed informed consent to participate in a randomized, double-blind study comparing balloon dilation of the prostate and cystoscopy. Balloon dilation of the prostate and cystoscopy were performed with the patient under intravenous sedation after intraurethral instillation of viscous lidocaine and infiltration of the autonomic neural innervation of the prostate with 1% lidocaine. Efficacy was based upon improvement in Boyarsky symptom scores, increases in peak urinary flow rates and patient global assessment of symptomatic improvement. Efficacy was assessed at 1 and 3 months after treatment. A study nurse blinded to the randomization scheme administered the symptom score questionnaires and supervised the uroflowmetry studies. The study was randomized, since the mean baseline prostate sizes, peak urine flow rates,...
Modeling the Oxidation of Carbon Fibers in a C/SiC Composite Under Stressed Oxidation

A model for the oxidation of carbon fibers in a cracked C/SiC composite has been developed in order to better understand environmental/oxidation effects on the strength reduction and life of the composite. The physics based model simulates the oxidation of crack bridging carbon fibers across a 2-D plane within the composite. Oxygen concentrations and carbon consumption can be tracked throughout the 2-D plane with respect to time. The model will be compared to experimental results from stressed oxidation (stress rupture) tests conducted in an air environment. The amount of carbon consumed versus time and oxidation trends from the model will be compared to that of polished cross-sections taken from tested samples.
Integrating Patient-Reported Outcome Measures into Routine Cancer Care: Cancer Patients' and Clinicians' Perceptions of Acceptability and Value.

Introduction: Despite growing interest in integrating patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures of symptoms and functional status into routine cancer care, little attention has been paid to patients’ and clinicians’ perceptions of acceptability and value. Methods: A two-phase qualitative study was conducted to develop a web-based PRO screening system with 21 items assessing symptoms (e.g., nausea) and functional status. Phase 1 involved cognitive interviews with 35 cancer outpatients (n=9 breast chemotherapy, radiation for prostate (n=8) or head and neck cancer (n=10), and n=8 bone marrow transplant [BMT]). In Phase 2, we evaluated the acceptability and perceived value of reviewing a PRO measure during real-time clinical encounters with 39 additional outpatients (n=10 breast, n=9 head and neck, n=10 prostate, n=10 BMT) and 12 clinicians (n=3 breast, n=2 head and neck, n=4 prostate, n=3 BMT). At least 20% of patients were ≥60 years, African American, or ≤ high school. Results: Patients felt that their PRO summary of symptoms and functional status was helpful in discussing health issues with clinicians (92%), wanted to review their results with clinicians during future visits (82%), and would recommend it to other patients (87%). Clinicians found the PRO summary to be easy to interpret (83%), most helpful for documenting the Review of Symptoms (92%), and would recommend it to future patients (92%). Over 90% of clinicians reported that consultation time did not increase. Conclusion: Both cancer patients and clinicians reported that discussing a PRO summary of symptoms and functional status during an outpatient visit was useful, acceptable, and feasible.
Lithium Aluminum Hydride–Chromium(III) Chloride

(LiAlH4) [16853-85-3] AlH4Li (MW 37.96) InChI = 1S/Al.Li.4H/q-1;+1;;;; InChIKey = OCZDCIYGECBNKL-UHFFFAOYSA-N (CrCl3) [10025-73-7] Cl3Cr (MW 158.35) InChI = 1S/3ClH.Cr/h3*1H;/q;;;+3/p-3 InChIKey = QSWDMMVNRMROPK-UHFFFAOYSA-K (reducing agent for reductive dimerization of allylic halides,2 halide reduction,2, 3 and reductive alkylation of carbonyls2, 4, 5) Physical Data: see Lithium Aluminum Hydride. Solubility: sol THF, DMF, HMPA. Form Supplied in: prepared in situ from commercially available compounds. Preparative Method: by adding lithium aluminum hydride to anhydrous chromium(III) chloride suspended in THF at 0 °C under an argon atmosphere. A small amount of zinc metal helps solubilize the chromium(III) chloride. A 2:1 molar ratio of chromium(III) chloride to lithium aluminum hydride yields the most effective reagent.2 Handling, Storage, and Precautions: see Lithium Aluminum Hydride. Bottles of the lithium aluminum hydride–chromium(III) chloride reagent should be refrigerated and stored under argon.