cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Quantitative assessment of Cerenkov luminescence for radioguided brain tumor resection surgery

Cerenkov luminescence imaging (CLI) is a developing imaging modality that detects radiolabeled molecules via visible light emitted during the radioactive decay process. We used a Monte Carlo based computer simulation to quantitatively investigate CLI compared to direct detection of the ionizing radiation itself as an intraoperative imaging tool for assessment of brain tumor margins. Our brain tumor model consisted of a 1 mm spherical tumor remnant embedded up to 5 mm in depth below the surface of normal brain tissue. Tumor to background contrast ranging from 2:1 to 10:1 were considered. We quantified all decay signals (e+/–, gamma photon, Cerenkov photons) reaching the brain volume surface. CLI proved to be the most sensitive method for detecting the tumor volume in both imaging and non-imaging strategies as assessed by contrast-to-noise ratio and by receiver operating characteristic output of a channelized Hotelling observer.
The association between personality traits and sport-related concussion history in Collegiate student-athletes

Cross-sectional survey data were used to test whether personality traits were associated with a self-reported history of diagnosed sport-related concussions (SRC) and undiagnosed SRCs. A total of 1,398 of 2,055 (68%) collegiate student-athletes from four National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCA
Courtship Feeding in Humans

Food sharing may be used for mate attraction, sexual access, or mate retention in humans, as in many other species. Adult humans tend to perceive more intimacy in a couple if feeding is observed, but the increased perceived intimacy may be due to resource provisioning rather than feeding per se. To address this issue, 210 university students (66 male) watched five short videos, each showing a different mixed-sex pair of adults dining together and including feeding or simple provisioning or no food sharing. A survey concerning attraction and intimacy in the dyad was completed after each video. Both provisioning and feeding produced higher ratings of “Involvement,” with feeding producing the highest ratings. Similarly, the perceived attraction of each actor to the other was lowest when no food sharing was shown and highest when feeding was displayed. These findings are consistent with a view of feeding as a courtship display in humans.
Extracting Real-Time Insights from Graphs and Social Streams

Many streaming applications in social networks, communication networks, and information networks are built on top of large graphs Such large networks contain continuously occurring processes, which lead to streams of edge interactions and posts. For example, the messages sent by participants on Facebook to one another can be viewed as content-rich interactions along edges. Such edge-centric streams are referred to as graph streams or social streams. The aggregate volume of these interactions can scale up super-linearly with the number of nodes in the network, which makes the problem more pressing for rapidly growing networks. These continuous streams may be mined for useful insights. In these cases, real-time analysis is crucial because of the time-sensitive nature of the interactions. However, generalizing conventional mining applications to such graphs turns out to be a challenge because of the expensive nature of graph mining algorithms. We discuss recent advances in several graph mining applications like clustering, classification, link prediction, event detection, and anomaly detection in real-time graph streams.
Centronuclear myopathy: Disease entity or a syndrome? ☆: Light- and electron-microscopic study of two cases and review of the literature

Abstract Centronuclear myopathy is a form of hereditary myopathy with onset during gestational life, early infancy or rarely in childhood. Most patients are born as floppy infants. Various skeletal muscles are involved in the disease process. Ptosis, external ophthalmoplegia as well as facial diplegia, and paresis of masticatory, deglutition and speech muscles are common findings. The muscle weakness may rarely show a tendency to improve or to remain stationary, but in most cases, slow and insidious progression occurs. A few cases show no or only minimal handicaps but most of the patients become more or less severely limited in their motor activity. Centronuclear myopathy is characterized by chains of internal nuclei in a high proportion of myofibers. Other histological features vary somewhat from case to case. Centronuclear myopathy is genetically heterogeneous and various patterns of inheritance have been observed. The various genetic types do not differ in their clinical manifestations and anatomical lesions and thus represent true genocopies.
A Comprehensive Review of Methods for Treating Childhood Apraxia of Speech

Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS), also known as developmental apraxia of speech or developmental verbal dyspraxia, is a developmental disorder that affects a child's ability to vocalize their thoughts. Sounds, syllables, or words can be very difficult to say because there is a miscommunication in the brain that affects the coordination of the anatomical structures of speech production (jaw, tongue, etc.) (Childhood Apraxia of Speech a). This is a highly variable disorder in the sense that it presents differently in every child; therefore a treatment that works for one child may not work for another. Many treatments involve multisensory inputs, but it is not clear whether these inputs alone make the greatest difference in a successful therapy, or whether other factors such as the duration of therapy or number of repetitions of a sound are as or more important. Published research on the efficacy of the different treatments is scant, and the majority of articles are case studies. Very few studies include more than four children. Such small study samples weaken generalized conclusions about the treatments. This paper will review the studies of the various treatments and will show that the therapies with both multisensory inputs and repetition provide the most effective treatment. One possibility for treatment that I will explore more in depth is board games. Presently, many computer games are available to children with CAS, but since these games do not have a community of online players, this eliminates a beneficial social aspect of therapy. Board games create the opportunity for a social atmosphere as well as a fun one. The more enjoyable atmosphere that comes hand-in-hand with games helps the child feel more at ease during the therapy session, which in turn can improve the child's learning ability and endurance during treatment (De Bruijn 20 II). This paper will look at what makes educational games effective and fun, and how games have been used in other areas of therapy. I will present a theory for a game that incorporates multisensory inputs and repetition, but which also uses the entertaining elements of games to present the therapy in a less clinical and friendlier light.
Near-Far Matching in R: The nearfar Package

Estimating the causal treatment effect of an intervention using observational data is difficult due to unmeasured confounders. Many analysts use instrumental variables (IVs) to introduce a randomizing element to observational data analysis, potentially reducing bias created by unobserved confounders. Several persistent problems in the field have served as limitations to IV analyses, particularly the prevalence of "weak" IVs, or instrumental variables that do not effectively randomize individuals to the intervention or control group (leading to biased and unstable treatment effect estimates), as well as IV-based estimates being highly model dependent, requiring parametric adjustment for measured confounders, and often having high mean squared errors in the estimated causal effects. To overcome these problems, the study design method of "near-far matching" has been devised, which "filters" data from a cohort by simultaneously matching individuals within the cohort to be "near" (similar) on measured confounders and "far" (different) on levels of an IV. To facilitate the application of near-far matching to analytical problems, we introduce the R package nearfar and illustrate its application to both a classical example and a simulated dataset. We illustrate how the package can be used to "strengthen" a weak IV by adjusting the "near-ness" and "far-ness" of a match, reduce model dependency, enable nonparametric adjustment for measured confounders, and lower mean squared error in estimated causal effects. We additionally illustrate how to utilize the nearfar package when analyzing either continuous or binary treatments, how to prioritize variables in the match, and how to calculate F statistics of IV strength with or without adjustment for measured confounders.
RNNbow: Visualizing Learning via Backpropagation Gradients in Recurrent Neural Networks.

We present RNNbow, an interactive tool for visualizing the gradient flow during backpropagation training in recurrent neural networks. RNNbow is a web application that displays the relative gradient contributions from Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) cells in a neighborhood of an element of a sequence. We describe the calculation of backpropagation through time (BPTT) that keeps track of itemized gradients, or gradient contributions from one element of a sequence to previous elements of a sequence. By visualizing the gradient, as opposed to activations, RNNbow offers insight into how the network is learning. We use it to explore the learning of an RNN that is trained to generate code in the C programming language. We show how it uncovers insights into the vanishing gradient as well as the evolution of training as the RNN works its way through a corpus.
What Are the Costs of Cervical Radiculopathy Prior to Surgical Treatment

Study Design.Retrospective, observational study.Objective.To examine the costs associated with nonoperative management (diagnosis and treatment) of cervical radiculopathy in the year prior to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF).Summary of Background Data.While the costs of operative treat
Dream Characters’ Types of Involvement and Range of Relational Capacities in Non-Lucid Problem-Solving Dreams (Part 2)

Dream characters continue their enduring presence in dreams in general as the prevalent feature of dreaming consciousness. The present work focuses on non-lucid problem-solving dreams, and dream characters’ types of involvement and range of their relational capacities. The analysis of 979 cross-cultural problem-solving dreams using the method of grounded theory yielded 56 exemplary dreams. From the perspective of cross-state consciousness, the tentative explanatory frameworks include attained waking-life relational schemas, habitual or emerging patterns of organizing inner experiences in distress, and potential reliance on adaptive involuntary homeostatic mechanisms. The discussion of results centers on dream characters’ positive and negative involvements in dreamers’ portrayals of family constellations, and dreamers’ reactions and responses to dream characters’ experiencing problems separately from the dreamer and together with the dreamer. In terms of relational capacities, dream characters display beneficence toward the dreamer in the form of kindness, helpful intentions, and behaviors, or they instigate problems for the dreamers and display injurious and harmful attitudes, intentions, or behaviors. Limitations of the study include a study sample from highly motivated dreamers. Further research might focus on similarities or differences in dream characters’ involvement in problematic situations dreamers experience during lucid dreaming.
Affective Behavior in Withdrawal Seizure–Prone and Withdrawal Seizure–Resistant Mice during Long-Term Alcohol Abstinence

Background While the acute alcohol withdrawal syndrome has been well characterized both in human clinical studies and in experimental animals, much less is known regarding long-term affective disturbances that can sometimes persist during protracted abstinence. Nevertheless, since relapse often occurs long after acute detoxification and may be predicted by persistent affective disruption, a better understanding of the long-term behavioral consequences of prior alcohol dependence may lead to improved strategies for relapse prevention. Methods Male and female Withdrawal Seizure-Prone and Withdrawal Seizure-Resistant mice from the second selection replicate (WSP-2, WSR-2) were exposed to a 10-day chronic-intermittent ethanol vapor protocol (CIE) or plain air and then tested repeatedly on the sucrose preference test (SPT), marble burying test (MBT), and the light-dark box test (LDT) over 7 weeks of (forced) abstinence. Results While WSP and WSR mice differed significantly on tests of anxiety-like behavior (LDT, MBT), we found little evidence for long-term affective disruption following CIE in either line. The major exception was in the LDT, in that WSP but not WSR mice displayed longer latencies to enter the light compartment following CIE relative to air-controls. Conclusions Selective breeding for acute withdrawal severity has resulted in differences in anxiety-like behavior between WSP and WSR mice. In contrast, however, genes contributing to the severity of acute withdrawal convulsions appear to have little overlap with those predisposing to affective disruption during long-term abstinence.
Advances in Geotechnical Sensors and Monitoring

The recent advances in sensor and communication technologies are making significant impacts on the monitoring methods used for geotechnical engineering. This chapter introduces several emerging technologies that have shown to provide new types of dataset that were not available a decade ago. Technologies such as computed tomography scanning, environmental scanning electron microscope, microfluidics, particle image velocimetry and transparent soils are now used to observe the behavior of geomaterials under various changes in the surrounding environment at the laboratory scale. Computer vision technologies, distributed fiber optic sensing, LiDAR, wireless sensor network and satellite images produce data of high resolution and large spatial coverage at relatively low cost at the field scale. They can be used for life-time performance monitoring of geotechnical structures. The new dataset obtained from these new emerging technologies can be the catalysts to transform the geotechnical engineering methods used for risk assessment, design, construction and maintenance to a higher level.
Black Wind, White Snow: The Rise of Russia’s New Nationalism

The problem of Russia’s relationship with the West has dominated the debate about national identity since the eighteenth century. During the nineteenth century, the battles among the intelligentsia...
Working Memory Load Performance Based on Collocation of Virtual and Physical Hands

The use of real-like hands in virtual reality simulators is common; however, research into understanding how the human brain perceives hands in virtual environments is limited. Self avatars are a great way to improve the users presence and perception of space [6], but the precise implementation of avatars is arduous, and including only hands is an attractive alternative. Earlier psychology research reported that the closer the hands to the studied object, the lower the working memory load. We hypothesized that in virtual environments, virtual hands that are collocated with the users hands should improve the users working memory load, and we tested our hypothesis with a between-participant study $(\text{n}=30)$ measuring working memory load with the Stroop Interference Task.
The Effect of Overrun, Fat Destabilization, and Ice Cream Mix Viscosity on Entire Meltdown Behavior

This study aims at exploring ice cream meltdown behavior by changing the levels of stabilizer (ST), polysorbate 80 (PS80), and overrun (OR). By adjusting the formulation of ice cream, the degree of fat destabilization (FD), mix viscosity (MV), and overrun can be controlled within a certain range, which in turn presents different meltdown behaviors for study. In addition to the drip-through test, the shape of ice cream as it melts was recorded as height change to further investigate ice cream meltdown. Mix viscosity (at 50 s-1 ) and fat destabilization were found to have a significant effect not only on drip-through rate, but also the induction time, final weight of the drip-through part, height-change rate, and final height of melted ice cream. On the other side, overrun was found only to have an effect on meltdown when no stabilizers were added. These results indicate serum phase viscosity (mix viscosity) and fat destabilization are important parameters to describe ice cream meltdown. Besides, the entire ice cream meltdown curve and height collapse curve provide important information on ice cream meltdown behavior. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: A new direction of analysis of ice cream meltdown behavior is provided in this study. The induction time, the final drip-through weight, and the height change during the meltdown process were found to be the indicators on the influence of microstructure on ice cream meltdown behavior for the future study.
Internal and marginal discrepancies associated with stereolithography (SLA) additively manufactured zirconia crowns.

Abstract Statement of problem Stereolithography (SLA) additive manufacturing (AM) technologies can be selected to fabricate zirconia crowns; however, the internal and marginal discrepancies associated with these new technologies remain unclear. Purpose The purpose of this in vitro study was to measure and compare the marginal and internal discrepancies of milled and AM zirconia crowns by using the silicone replica technique. Material and methods An implant custom abutment was manufactured and scanned by using a laboratory scanner (CARES Software; Institut Straumann AG). An anatomic contour crown was digitally designed, and the standard tessellation language (STLC) file was obtained. The STLC file was splinted into 2 pieces, simulating the parts of the crown that would replace the enamel (STLG1 file) and dentin (STLG2 file) structures. Three groups were determined: anatomic contour zirconia milled (CNC group), AM anatomic contour zirconia (AM group), and AM splinted zirconia (SAM group). For the CNC group, the STLC file was used to manufacture milled (CARES zirconium-dioxide crown; Institut Straumann AG) zirconia specimens. For the AM group, the STLC file was used to additively fabricate (CERAMAKER 900; 3DCeram Co) the zirconia (3DMix ZrO2 paste; 3DCeram Co) specimens. For the SAM group, the STLG2 file was selected to AM (CERAMAKER 900; 3DCeram Co) the zirconia (3DMix ZrO2 paste; 3DCeram Co) specimens. Ten specimens per group were manufactured. The silicone replica technique was used to measure the marginal and internal discrepancies. The cement gap was measured on images captured by using a digital microscope at ×100 magnification. For the internal gap, 50 measurements were made for each specimen, and for the marginal gap, 25 measurements were made for each specimen. The normality test, Shapiro-Wilk test, was conducted. The results indicated that the distributions were not normal; therefore, nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis H and pairwise Mann-Whitney U-tests were used to analyze the data. The Spearman correlation coefficient was used to determine the correlation between marginal and internal discrepancies in all 3 groups. Results Significant differences were found in marginal and internal discrepancies among the groups. The CNC group had the least marginal and internal discrepancies compared with the AM and SAM groups. The SAM group had significantly lower values for marginal and internal discrepancies than the AM group. The AM group showed the highest marginal and internal discrepancies. The CNC group had a weak correlation coefficient of 0.13 (P=.046), the AM group had a moderate correlation coefficient of 0.32 (P Conclusions CNC and SAM groups had clinically acceptable marginal and internal discrepancies, while the AM group had a clinically unacceptable marginal and internal crown discrepancies. Furthermore, a weak correlation was encountered between the marginal and internal discrepancies measured in all groups.
Correlation of Arthroscopic and Histologic Findings in Synovial Membrane Disease of the Temporomandibular Joint

Purpose The purpose of the present study was to correlate specific arthroscopic findings in temporomandibular joint (TMJ) arthroscopy and histologic results from arthroscopic-guided synovial biopsy. Patients and Methods A retrospective cohort study was completed of patients who had undergone arthroscopy and arthroscopic synovial biopsy from January 1, 2011 to March 31, 2016 at the senior author's practice in Miami, Florida. The demographic, arthroscopic, histologic, serologic, and historical variables were recorded by electronic medical record review. Two-tailed Fisher's exact tests were used to test the correlation of the arthroscopic and histologic variables. Results A total of 210 patients were included in the present study. The mean age was 43.1 ± 18.8 years, and the study population included 91.7% women. The following histologic findings had significant associations: lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate with petechiae synovitis (P = .0018), chronic inflammation with joint stenosis (P = .019), and crystal deposition with visualization of crystals (P = .0472). Hyperplastic synovium found on histologic examination was associated with both petechiae synovitis and adhesions. Histologic vascular proliferation was associated with synovial plica and joint stenosis. Conclusions The findings from the present study indicated an association between specific findings during arthroscopy and histologic findings. A prospective study is required to validate the findings to evaluate their utility in patient care.
Do Patients Benefit From a Cochlear Implant When They Qualify Only in the Presence of Background Noise

Objective To compare the difference in pre- to postoperative speech performance of patients qualifying for a cochlear implant (CI) in quiet, +10 dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and +5 dB SNR. Study design Retrospective. Setting Tertiary referral center. Patients Fifty-eight post-lingually deafened, unilateral CI recipients from three Groups were included: 1) those who met CI candidacy criteria with AzBio sentences in quiet, 2) in noise at +10 dB SNR but not in quiet, 3) and in noise at +5 dB SNR but not in quiet or +10 dB SNR. Intervention Unilateral CI. Main outcome measures Pre- and 1 year postoperative speech recognition scores. Results Best-aided AzBio speech recognition of individuals in Group 1 improved significantly for all test conditions and improved significantly for Groups 2 and 3 in the +10 and +5 dB SNR test conditions postoperatively. When tested with their CI alone however, while AzBio speech recognition of individuals in Group 1 and Group 2 improved significantly in the quiet and +10 dB SNR conditions, speech recognition was not significantly changed postoperatively under any testing condition for individuals in Group 3. Conclusions While individuals qualifying for a CI only in the +5 dB SNR condition may derive significant benefit from implantation in best aided conditions, speech understanding outcomes can be more variable thus warranting additional counseling before implantation and case-by-case consideration of listening needs and goals.
Provider participation in the Florida Medicaid Promoting Interoperability program: Practice characteristics, meaning use attestations, and incentive payments.

Abstract Objective The objective of this study was to quantify the rate of provider participation beyond year 1 incentive in the Florida Medicaid Promoting Interoperability (PI) program, formerly the Electronic Health Record Incentive program, and identify the provider and practice characteristics associated with Meaningful Use attestations. Methods and materials We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the 2011–2018 records from the PI program, Provider Participation Database. Bivariate associations between Meaningful Use and categorical and ordinal variables were tested using Chi-square and Mantel-Haenszel Chi-square, respectively, with results informing logistic regressions. Adjusted odds ratios and 95 % confidence intervals are reported. Results We found that 42.56 % of Florida Medicaid providers achieved Meaningful Use after receiving first-year incentives. Logistic regression showed that pediatricians represented the largest percentage of providers who achieved Meaningful Use (65.06 %) while dentists had the lowest Meaningful Use (7.78 %). We also found that certain geographic areas and various EHR vendors were associated with higher rates of providers Meaningful Use attestation. Discussion Although the PI program successfully influenced the adoption of a basic EHR system, low Meaningful Use attestations have inadvertently created a digital “advanced use” divide among providers who serve large numbers of Medicaid patients. This is concerning because advanced EHR functions are necessary precursors to address unmet socioeconomic needs to reduce health disparities. Conclusion Florida has distributed over $100 million to Medicaid providers who ultimately did not achieve Meaningful Use after collecting their first-year incentive. Policy interventions that can promote advanced EHR use functions are necessary to optimize technology in low-resourced practice settings where the potential benefits are greater.
Comparing the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination Pass Rate of Graduates From Programs Utilizing Distance Education to the National Average.

PURPOSE The goal of this study was to compare the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) pass rate of graduates from physician assistant (PA) programs utilizing distance education to the national average of PANCE pass rates. METHODS The Physician Assistant Education Association online PA program directory was used to obtain the name and number of physician assistant (PA) programs that offered distance education in their curriculum. The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants PANCE Exam Performance Summary Report was reviewed for each PA program that offered distance education. The 5-year first-time taker mean pass rate for all PA programs offering distance education was calculated and compared to the 5-year national first-time taker average for all PA programs in the United States over the same 5-year period. RESULTS The mean 5-year first-time taker pass rate for PA programs offering distance education was 96.9%. The 5-year national first-time taker average pass rate for all PA programs was 96.0%. CONCLUSION The results of this study show that graduates from PA programs utilizing distance education are effectively prepared to pass the PANCE and do so at a rate that is higher than the national mean for all PA programs.
Trends in incidence of dementia among patients with rheumatoid arthritis: A population-based cohort study

Abstract Objective We aimed to assess the incidence of dementia over time in patients with incident rheumatoid arthritis (RA) as compared to non-RA referents. Methods This population-based, retrospective cohort study included Olmsted County, Minnesota residents with incident RA by ACR 1987 criteria, diagnosed between 1980 and 2009. We matched non-RA referents 1:1 on age, sex, and calendar year and followed all individuals until 12/31/2019. Incident dementia was defined as two codes for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) at least 30 days apart. Cumulative incidence of ADRD was assessed, adjusting for the competing risk of death. Cox proportional hazards models calculated hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for incident ADRD by decade. Results After excluding individuals with prior dementia, we included 897 persons with incident RA (mean age 56 years; 69% female) and 885 referents. The 10-year cumulative incidence of ADRD in individuals diagnosed with RA during the 1980s was 12.7% (95%CI:7.9–15.7%), 1990s was 7.2% (95%CI:3.7–9.4%), and 2000s was 6.2% (95%CI:3.6–7.8%). Individuals with RA diagnosed in 2000s had insignificantly lower cumulative incidence of ADRD than those in the 1980s (HR 0.66; 95%CI:0.38–1.16). The overall HR of ADRD in individuals with RA was 1.37 (vs. referents; 95%CI:1.04–1.81). When subdivided by decade, however, the risk of ADRD in individuals diagnosed with RA was higher than referents in the 1990s (HR 1.72, 95%CI:1.09–2.70) but not 2000s (HR 0.86, 95%CI:0.51–1.45). Conclusions The risk of dementia in individuals with RA appears to be declining over time, including when compared to general population referents.
Acute resolution of pulmonary alveolar infiltrates in 10 dogs with pulmonary hypertension treated with sildenafil citrate: 2005–2014

Abstract Objective To describe clinical canine patients with naturally occurring pulmonary hypertension and radiographic pulmonary alveolar infiltrates before and after treatment with sildenafil. Animals Ten client-owned dogs. Methods A retrospective analysis of dogs with echocardiographically-determined pulmonary hypertension and pulmonary alveolar infiltrates on thoracic radiographs was performed before (PRE) and after (POST) sildenafil therapy. Clinical scores, pulmonary alveolar infiltrate scores and tricuspid regurgitation gradients were analyzed PRE and POST sildenafil. Results Pulmonary alveolar infiltrates associated with pulmonary hypertension developed in a diffusely patchy distribution (10/10). Sixty percent of dogs had a suspected diagnosis of interstitial pulmonary fibrosis as the etiology of pulmonary hypertension. Median PRE clinical score was 4 (range: 3–4) compared to POST score of 0 (0–2) (p = 0.005). Median alveolar infiltrate score PRE was 10 (5–12) compared to POST score of 4 (0–6) (p = 0.006). Median tricuspid regurgitation gradient PRE was 83 mmHg (57–196) compared to 55 mmHg POST (33–151) (p = 0.002). Conclusions A subset of dogs with moderate to severe pulmonary hypertension present with diffuse, patchy alveolar infiltrates consistent with non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema. The typical clinical presentation is acute dyspnea and syncope, often in conjunction with heart murmurs suggestive of valvular insufficiency. This constellation of signs may lead to an initial misdiagnosis of congestive heart failure or pneumonia; however, these dogs clinically and radiographically improve with the initiation of sildenafil.
Broad-Range PCR for Detection and Identification of Bacteria

The two main molecules that are suitable for bacterial broad-range PCR are the 16S rRNA gene, consisting of approximately 1,540 bp (in Escherichia coli, 1,542 bp), and the 23S rRNA gene, consisting of approximately 2,900 bp (in E. coli, 2,904 bp). While the impact of this appears to be somewhat smaller for diagnostic broad-range PCR in cases of suspected monomicrobial infections, it can be dramatic for polymicrobial infections, microbial flora studies, or environmental studies, where certain bacterial taxa may become significantly over- or under-represented after PCR amplification. In addition, the inherent nonselective nature of broad-range PCR makes it susceptible to minute amounts of any bacterial DNA that might be encountered along the various steps of testing. The classical way to detect and identify bacteria by broad-range PCR is via visualization of PCR products by standard gel electrophoresis, followed by sequencing, preferably for both DNA strands of the products. Broad-range PCR offers two potential benefits: it lacks selectivity for particular groups of bacteria, and it can detect as well as identify culture-resistant, fastidious, damaged, and slow-growing microorganisms. Bacterial broad-range PCR has also attracted interest in transfusion medicine, in order to assess blood products for bacterial contamination. Conducting broad-range PCR analysis at a level of high analytical and clinical sensitivity is a complex task and remains one of the most difficult and challenging PCR applications. Sequence-based identification of positive diagnostic broad-range PCR products is generally advisable, even when real-time technology is used.
The pulse and respiratory rates during labor as a guide to the onset of cardiac failure in women with rheumatic heart disease

I N A previously reported study1 of the pulse and respiratory varial ions of 180 normal women during labor, it was observed that the pulse and respirations remained practically unchanged throughout the first stage of labor. With the advent of bearing down efforts ill the second stage of labor 4 per cent of patients showed a rise of the pulse rate to above 110 per minute with respirations of not. over 24 per minute. Such elevations were considered as established only when they persisted for at least forty-five minutes. Thirteen per cent showed a rise in t,he respiratory rate to above 24 per minute with the pulse rat.e not over 110, and 7 per cent showed a rise of both pulse and respirat,ory rates above these values. The levels of 110 and 24 were chosen arbitrarily since a large percentage of patients approached or reached these values but relatively few esceeded them. Prolonged labor and prulungetl second stage were found to predispose to such rises but no definite influence of analgesia or of the particular analgesic used could be observed. We have extended these studies to women wit,h rheumatic+ heart disease to note if their pulse and respiratory variations during labor differed in any way from those of normal women su as to give a warning of the approach of serious cardiac insuficiency~. The 200 patients studied were first seen in the ante-yartnm clinic at various stages of t,heir pregnancy. The diagnosis of the particular form of heart disease was made at this t,ime and sometimes was amended as later observations seemed t,o indicate. The patients wer(’ classified as IO their functional capacit,y (Class 1. 2. 3, or 4) according to t,he criteria uf the New York Heart Association, and as they were followed progressively in tile antepartum clinic, this diagnosis was changt~cl as indicat,ions seemed t.0 warrant. At the onset, of labor or as soon thereafter as the patient was admitted t,o the hospital, the pulse and respirations were counted every fiftc(:rr minutes between pains and charts made of this similar to those appear-~___.
Novel method for monitoring genetically engineered microorganisms in the environment.

Abstract A method has been devised for directly detecting and monitoring genetically engineered microorganisms (GEMs) by using in vitro amplification of the target DNAs by a polymerase chain reaction and then hybridizing the DNAs with a specific oligonucleotide or DNA probe. A cloned 0.3-kilobase napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) genomic DNA that did not hybridize to DNAs isolated from various microorganisms, soil sediments, and aquatic environments was inserted into a derivative of a 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid-degradative plasmid, pRC10, and transferred into Escherichia coli. This genetically altered microorganism, seeded into filter-sterilized lake and sewage water samples (10(4)/ml), was detected by a plate count method in decreasing numbers for 6 and 10 days of sample incubation, respectively. The new method detected the amplified unique marker (0.3-kilobase DNA) of the GEM even after 10 to 14 days of incubation. This method is highly sensitive (it requires only picogram amounts of DNA) and has an advantage over the plate count technique, which can detect only culturable microorganisms. The method may be useful for monitoring GEMs in complex environments, where discrimination between GEMs and indigenous microorganisms is either difficult or requires time-consuming tests.
On the Simes inequality and its generalization

The Simes inequality has received considerable attention recently because of its close connection to some important multiple hypothesis testing procedures. We revisit in this article an old result on this inequality to clarify and strengthen it and a recently proposed generalization of it to offer an alternative simpler proof.
Beyond SYNCOIN: Informational requirements for the three-block war

As the U.S. contemplates its withdrawal from Afghanistan and its experience in Iraq fades, military planners are already contemplating operations beyond the counter-insurgency (COIN) mission. In 1997, Gen. Krulak, then Commandant of the Marine Corps, proffered the term, “three block war” to describe the future of combat operations. Across Krulak's three blocks, military engagement cycled from humanitarian assistance to peace keeping to all-out combat. While never accepted into official Department of Defense publications, the notion of engaging in military operations in three spheres simultaneously conveys the multidimensionality of conflict and is reflected in the “full spectrum operation” doctrine adopted by the U.S. Army in 2008. Regardless of the moniker, the future operational environment is likely to be a composite affair that will require an understanding of full spectrum information. This paper explores various information elements that are likely to span future conflict space and offers suggestions on modeling a dataset for test and evaluation (T&E), much like the Synthetic Counter-Insurgency (SYNCOIN) dataset did for counter-insurgency. The SYNCOIN dataset was developed by The Pennsylvania State University as a T&E dataset to support a multi-year Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI), sponsored by the Army Research Office. Lacking a suitable unclassified dataset, Penn State researchers were prompted to create Synthetic Counter-Insurgency (SYNCOIN), which was used in the development and implementation of fusion and analysis processes, data stores design, and the development of process flows and interfaces. The SYNCOIN dataset is centered on a representative set of entities (people, places and events) within a COIN environment circa 2010 Iraq. The goal of th
Morrow, Reiff, Receive 2013 Space Physics and Aeronomy Richard Carrington Awards: Citation for Patricia H. Reiff

Patricia Reiff has been awarded the SPARC Education and Outreach Award for her pioneering education and outreach efforts communicating excitement for, and understanding of, space and Earth science.
Multiple Tests for Wind Turbine Fault Detection and Score Fusion Using Two- Level Multidimensional Scaling (MDS)

Wind is an important renewable energy source. The energy and economic return from building wind farms justify the expensive investments in doing so. However, without an effective monitoring system, underperforming or faulty turbines will cause a huge loss in revenue. Early detection of such failures help prevent these undesired working conditions. We develop three tests on power curve, rotor speed curve, pitch angle curve of individual turbine. In each test, multiple states are defined to distinguish different working conditions, including complete shut-downs, under-performing states, abnormally frequent default states, as well as normal working states. These three tests are combined to reach a final conclusion, which is more effective than any single test. Through extensive data mining of historical data and verification from farm operators, some state combinations are discovered to be strong indicators of spindle failures, lightning strikes, anemometer faults, etc, for fault detection. In each individual test, and in the score fusion of these tests, we apply multidimensional scaling (MDS) to reduce the high dimensional feature space into a 3-dimensional visualization, from which it is easier to discover turbine working information. This approach gains a qualitative understanding of turbine performance status to detect faults, and also provides explanations on what has happened for detailed diagnostics. The state-of-the-art SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) system in industry can only answer the question whether there are abnormal working states, and our evaluation of multiple states in multiple tests is also promising for diagnostics. In the future, these tests can be readily incorporated in a Bayesian network for intelligent analysis and decision support.
Observations of Gap Flow in the Wipp Valley on 20 October 1999: Evidence of Subsidence

Abstract Using extensive observations collected from various platforms around the Brenner Pass in the Austrian Alps during the Mesoscale Alpine Programme, a detailed description of the kinematic and thermodynamic structure of the shallow-foehn event that occurred on 20 October 1999 in the Wipp Valley is constructed. Downstream of the gap the flow develops a well-mixed surface layer capped by a relatively strong temperature inversion of 5–6 K. Such inversions are often assumed to be kinematically similar to the free surface at the top of a liquid; however, the data suggest the presence of strong subsidence through the mean position of the inversion layer capping the flow. Such subsidence is supported by in situ aircraft observations and Doppler lidar measurements but is not consistent with the observed turbulent heat fluxes, which are too small to account for the diabatic heating required by the isentrope-relative downward velocities. The 1-Hz time resolution of the P3 data may, however, be too coarse to c...
Interaction of crude oils and water in Sakhalin oil fields

Distribution of the specific gravity of oil and the yield of fractions up to 300° is considered as a function of hypsometric position of the samples with respect to the pool outline. Relationship is determined between the difference in specific gravity of edge- and crest oils and the carbon dioxide ion content in edgewaters; it is explained by oxidation of oil by the waters. It is demonstrated by means of graphs for Ekhabi and Tungor oil fields that oxidation is more important than the force of gravity, in the distribution of the properties of oil throughout the deposit. The flushing effect of waters on the light petroleum fractions proves to be less significant that the oxidation effect. Calculation shows that the loss of oil by oxidation is small at depths below 600 m; losses by water flushing are even smaller, but rise rapidly at shallower depths. -- Author.
High energy neutrino scattering results from NuTeV

The NuTeV experiment at Fermilab has obtained a unique high statistics sample of neutrino and antineutrino interactions using a novel high-energy sign-selected neutrino beam. Recent results from this sample are presented including a precision measurement of the electroweak parameter sin2≡W, which is observed to be three standard deviations above the standard model prediction.
A Database Computer Architectures Performance Evaluation System (DACPES)

The design and implementation of a database computer architecture performance evaluation system (DACPES) are presented. DACPES is a simulation tool which can be configured to evaluate a class of parallel database computers (DBCs), which have shared-nothing architectures, use data flow query processing strategies, and support object-oriented databases. DACPES can be used to simulate concurrent multiple query processing in a parallel DBC under varying conditions. The functions and design issues for each of the modules of DACPES are discussed and a case study of the evaluation of an object flow computer using DACPES is presented. >
Platelet function in intravascular device implant-induced intimal injury.

Abstract Platelets are involved in the rapid response to intimal injury in which the underlying thrombogenic subendothelial matrix is exposed, leading to platelet adhesion, secretion, aggregation, and initiation of arterial thrombus formation. The platelet activation pathway involves a multistep process of distinct receptors, adhesive ligands, release of mediators, receptor–ligand interactions, and recruitment of more platelets to the site of injury. The balance between blood fluidity and intimal injury-induced arterial thrombosis is maintained by an intact endothelium that controls vessel tone, synthesizes inhibitors and activators of platelet function, and thereby allows the free flow of blood cell elements. An intravascular device implant causes intimal injury, which is accompanied by decreased antithrombotic potential of the endothelial cells and increased release of prothrombotic substances. A trigger for the formation of intimal injury-induced thrombus formation may be due to endothelial dysfunction and/or the loss of endothelial cell barrier between the subendothelial matrix and flowing blood, which allows initiation of platelet activation. A thorough understanding of the platelet regulatory mechanisms is necessary to develop effective antiplatelet therapy to prevent the complications of thrombosis following revascularization procedures using percutaneous coronary intervention. This review summarizes the temporal events following intravascular device implants, including endothelial cell injury, platelet activation, receptor-mediated signaling events, platelet-rich thrombus formation, and the redundant platelet pathways, all of which may be potential therapeutic targets.
Inelastic scattering and the nuclear shell model

Abstract The application of a previously derived formalism to a microscopic description of the inelastic and charge exchange scattering of various projectiles by nuclei is discussed. The problem is reduced to the evaluation of certain nuclear form factors. The model appropriate for low energies assumes a central but spin- and isospin-dependent two-body force between the projectile and each target nucleon. The high-energy impulse approximation is also discussed. The nuclear wave functions are treated in an independent-particle (shell model) representation. Particular attention is paid to selection rules which may be imposed by assumptions about the nuclear structure.
Occupational stress, social support, and depression among black and white professional-managerial women.

This study employed a quota sample of 200 black and white professional-managerial women from the Memphis, Tennessee, area to explore the relationships among occupational stress, social support, and well-being. Data were gathered through face-to-face, focused life history interviews. Depression was measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD). Social support for one's career was assessed from three sources: family, friends, and co-workers, and measures of occupational stress included workload, unfair/impersonal treatment, and trouble with boss or subordinates. Using multiple regression techniques, the findings of this study indicate that there are complex differences in levels of social support, occupational stress, and depression across social structural dimensions (race, class background, supervisory status, marital status, parental status) for this sample, including significant two-and three-way interactions. Trouble with boss or subordinates was also found to be related t...
Measurements in a total-body irradiation facility.

Abstract A total-body irradiation facility for human patients has been in clinical operation at the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies, Medical Division, since May 1960. Before that date measurements were made to determine the radiation parameters. Investigations were made concerning room backgrounds, radiation leakage from nearby teletherapy rooms, uniformity of the exposure field, exposure rates available for treatment purposes and spectral changes at different exposure rates. Rate measurements were made with an ionization probe; spectral data were obtained with a scintillation crystal. Exposure rates are adjustable from 286 r/hr to 1·8 r/hr in thirty-two steps.
Biological metaphors in the design of complex software systems

Abstract In this paper we discuss metaphors inspired by structural biology, genetics, neurology and immunology for building complex software ystems. Structural biology offers hints for software composition. Genetics provides ideas to construct software modules from descriptions. A network of software agents could emulate the nervous system, coordinate various activities and mediate amongst interacting entities. Immunology inspires the design of secure systems. As a case study we present Bond, a distributed-object system providing agent support for network centric computing.