cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Interpersonal traits and the technology acceptance model: applying the interpersonal circumplex model as a nomological net for understanding user perceptions within human-to-computer interaction

This study examines the effects that individual personality traits have on technology acceptance. Previous research on technology acceptance focuses primarily on exogenous variables such as trustor's perceptions, attitudes, computer anxiety, positive or negative affect, age, and experience. This research seeks to improve our understanding of technology acceptance by examining user interpersonal traits as the underpinnings of user perceptions of technology and disposition to trust. A general theory of personality, the interpersonal circumplex (IPC) model, is used here as a framework to explain IT-users' computer self-efficacy, computer anxiety, and perceptions about- and trust in technology. The interpersonal circumplex model is well established and provides a strong foundation for understanding interaction styles and interpersonal trust. Based on the interpersonal circumplex model, I develop predictions about how various personality types will interact with technology acceptance model (TAM) related variables: that is, I predict how individuals with different interpersonal traits will rate the following: their computer self-efficacy, computer anxiety, and perceptions of an information system's performance; the system's trustworthiness, ease of use, usefulness; as well as the user's behavioral intention to use the system in the future. In general, I hypothesize that a computer user's blend of the primary interpersonal dimensions of Control and Affiliation influences his or her responses to computer usage related questions. In this study, student-participants completed an on-line assessment of their interpersonal dispositions, using the Circumplex Scales of Interpersonal Values (CSIV; Locke, 2000); subsequently the student-participants reported their perceptions of- and trust in a computer-based learning system that they used as part of their class. In particular, this research suggests that the Communality (Affiliation) dimension of personality, as measured by the CSIV, indicates particular and significant correlations to user's computer anxiety, perceived system performance, perceived usefulness (of the technology), and behavioral intent to use (IT) in the future. The Interpersonal Circumplex demonstrates improved acuity in detecting personality differences that may impact the way users respond to, perceive, and evaluate technology. As a new tool for information systems research, the IPC shows potential to provide further insight into IS theory by building a bridge between interpersonal theory and technology acceptance models.
Understanding Superintendents’ Self-Efficacy Influences on Instructional Leadership and Student Achievement:

This qualitative interpretivist research study focused on understanding perceived superintendent self-efficacy and instructional leadership in school districts that have persistently failed to serv...
Preparation of Porous Alumina Ceramics by Using the Gelation of Ammonium Alginate

The gelation of ammonium alginate by hydrochloric acid was applied for the formation of gel-like precursor composed of alumina particles and alginic polymer. The porous alumina ceramics fired at temperatures from 1000° to 1600°C had very sharp pore size distributions. Their porosity ranged from 17 to 56%, which was 15 to 20% higher compared with that of porous alumina prepared by the slip casting method. Furthermore, the pore structure was more stable at high temperatures than that of the slip casting method. The optimum concentration of ammonium alginate for the uniform mixing of each raw material was 0.3 to 2.0wt%. The concentration of hydrochloric acid was over 0.1N for the sufficient gelation of the gel-like precursor.
A Qualitative Analysis of Health Education Practice in Applied Work Settings

Job analysis projects play a critical role in the health education profession by validating what is constant in the profession and identifying emerging patterns of effective practice. In this regard, the Role Delineation Project, Competencies Update Project (CUP), and Health Educator Job Analysis Project (HEJA) have provided frameworks for the accreditation of professional preparation programs, credentialing, and continuing education of health education specialists. To date, projects (CUP, HEJA, and Health Education Specialist Practice Analysis) have revalidated the framework to help describe the contemporary practice of health education specialists. Evidence is lacking regarding exactly how the frameworks have been integrated into applied practice and what guides the practice of health educators. In context of the Areas of Responsibility for health education specialists, the purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the gap between the "state of the art" and the "state of the practice" among health education practitioners in a range of workplace settings. Data were collected through structured interviews and analyzed for emergent themes. Major themes included the use of formal and informal assessment methods, program-specific planning materials and implementation strategies, supplemental materials for planning and conveying information, and the influence and work with organizations. Based on the emergent themes, the gaps between the "state of the art" and the "state of the practice" were described, with suggestions for advancing the profession.
Information Processing Differences in Active Versus Passive Person Perceivers

Previous work has shown that compared to passive perceivers who view preselected information about target persons, active perceivers are less confident in their impressions, do not show increased confidence with increased amounts of information, and like targets less. The authors now explain these findings, postulating that perceivers without control over the amount of information they receive should be motivated to form impressions earlier, altering their information-processing strategies. Study 1 predicted and found that content-only active perceivers who control the content, but not the amount, of information show the same positive relationship between confidence and amount of information as passive perceivers, as well as the same reading-time patterns and level of liking. Study 2 used clearly valenced target stimuli and found support for the hypothesis that passive perceivers form more extreme early impressions, leading to greater liking when early information is positive but less liking when it is ne...
Timing deviations in jazz performance: The relationships of selected musical variables on horizontal and vertical timing relations: A case study

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects and relationships of selected musical variables on the horizontal (i.e., successive eighth note timing relationships) and vertical (i.e., the degree of ensemble synchronicity between separate parts) timing properties of jazz rhythm. A total of 949 eighth note samples from five improvised solos by saxophonist Chris Potter were analysed. Musical variables included metrical beat placement, melodic character, intervals, articulation, underlying harmony, and tempo. Results of the simultaneous multiple regression analyses revealed that intervals preceding and intervals succeeding the sample eighth notes had a significant effect on eighth note durations. Articulation had a significant effect on upbeat beat ratio. The relationships between the relative onset timing data of the saxophone, bass, and drums yielded significant results. There was a large, negative correlation between the relative timing onsets of saxophone and bass, a large negative correlation betw...
The Product Life Cycle and Time-Varying Advertising Elasticities

A model of sales response to advertising using advertising elasticities that change over the product life cycle. The model is applied to the case history of a household cleanser.
337 ROLE OF BACTERIAL DNA IN THE STIMULATION OF MACROPHAGE TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR BUT NOT INDUCIBLE NITRIC OXIDE SYNTHASE PRODUCTION IN RESPONSE TO STREPTOCOCCUS PYOGENES.

Background The group A streptococcus (GAS), Streptococcus pyogenes, is an important cause of both focal and invasive infections. Infections caused by GAS are often associated with severe inflammation. Exposure of macrophages to GAS stimulates the production of inflammatory mediators, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and via the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) enzyme nitric oxide (NO). Several GAS components have been reported to trigger the host inflammatory response, but the role of GAS DNA has not been examined. Purpose We sought to define the role of bacterial DNA in stimulating the macrophage inflammatory response to antibiotic-treated live GAS. Methods RAW 264.7 murine macrophages were stimulated for 16 to 18 hours with 106 or 107 cfu/mL of a well-characterized M1T1 GAS isolate in the presence of penicillin G (5 mg/L). Recombinant interferon-γ 10 U/mL was added for the iNOS experiments. In a series of parallel experiments, cells were preincubated for 1 hour prior to bacterial challenge with one of two selective inhibitors of the bacterial DNA/Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) pathway, either chloroquine (2.5 mg/L) or iCpG DNA, an inhibitory oligonucleotide (3 mg/L). TNF concentrations in cell supernatants were determined by ELISA, and accumulation of iNOS protein in cell lysates was quantitated by immunoblotting. Results We found that penicillin-treated GAS stimulated the secretion of large amounts of TNF and the accumulation of substantial amounts of iNOS protein by RAW 264.7 cells. Preincubation of these cells with chloroquine led to significantly reduced secretion of TNF (24-38% less) in response to antibiotic-treated GAS but did not affect iNOS protein accumulation under these conditions. Preincubation of RAW cells with iCpG DNA resulted in a 17% decline in GAS-stimulated TNF secretion (although this difference was not statistically significant) and had no effect on iNOS production. Conclusions Our data suggest that bacterial DNA contributes to the magnitude of the TNF but not iNOS response by macrophages exposed to whole, antibiotic-treated GAS. The role of bacterial DNA in triggering the host response to GAS deserves additional study.
Ethical considerations regarding oral preexposure prophylaxis in HIV prevention trials.

Purpose of reviewAlthough substantial evidence supports oral preexposure prophylaxis with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine (OPTF) for the primary prevention of HIV infection in certain settings, assessing whether other promising HIV prevention interventions are safe and effective as w
The Real Effects of FAS 166 and FAS 167

We examine the real effects of FAS 166 and FAS 167 on banks’ lending and loan sale decisions. Effective as of 2010, the two accounting standards tightened the accounting for securitizations and the consolidation of securitization entities, respectively, causing banks to consolidate $765 billion of assets and thereby increasing capital requirements for consolidating banks. We find that banks consolidating more assets more strongly reduce loan supply, as proxied by loan-level mortgage approval decisions, and more strongly increase loan sales, as proxied by loan-level mortgage sale decisions. These effects of consolidated securitization entities are significantly larger than those of the assets held by banks’ unconsolidated securitization entities, consistent with it being the consolidation of securitization entities rather than securitization per se that reduces banks’ loan supply and increases their loan sales. The evidence suggests that FAS 166/167 leads regulated banks to reduce their loan risk, in part by transferring that risk to the less regulated shadow banking system.
The Cornell Main Linac Cryomodule: A Full Scale, High Q Accelerator Module for cw Application☆

Abstract Cornell University is in the process of building a 10 m long superconducting accelerator module as a prototype of the main linac of a proposed ERL facility. This module houses 6 superconducting cavities- operated at 1.8 K in continuous wave (CW) mode - with individual HOM absorbers and one magnet/BPM section. In pushing the limits, a high quality factor of the cavities (2•10 10 ) and high beam currents (100 mA accelerated plus 100 mA decelerated) were targeted. We will review the design shortly and present the results of the components tested before the assembly. This includes data of the quality-factors of all 6 cavities that we produced and treated in-house, the HOM absorber performance measured with beam on a test set-up as well as testing of the couplers and the tuners.
Axial Ligand Coordination to the C–H Amination Catalyst Rh2(esp)2: A Structural and Spectroscopic Study

The compound Rh2(esp)2 (esp = α,α,α′,α′-tetramethyl-1,3-benzenediproponoate) is the most generally effective catalyst for nitrenoid amination of C–H bonds. However, much of its fundamental coordination chemistry is unknown. In this work, we study the effects of axial ligand coordination to the catalyst Rh2(esp)2. We report here crystal structures, cyclic voltammetry, UV–vis, IR, Raman, and 1H NMR spectra for the complexes Rh2(esp)2L2 where L = pyridine, 3-picoline, 2,6-lutidine, acetonitrile, and methanol. The compounds all show well-defined π* → σ* electronic transitions in the 16500 to 20500 cm–1 range, and Rh–Rh stretching vibrations in the range from 304 to 322 cm–1. Taking these data into account we find that the strength of axial ligand binding to Rh2(esp)2 increases in the series CH3OH ∼ 2,6-lutidine < CH3CN < 3-methylpyridine ∼ pyridine. Quasi-reversible Rh24+/5+ redox waves are only obtained when either acetonitrile or no axial ligand is present. In the presence of pyridines, irreversible oxidati...
Quantum dimensions and fusion products for irreducible VQσ-modules with σ2 = 1

ABSTRACTEvery isometry σ of a positive-definite even lattice Q can be lifted to an automorphism of the lattice vertex algebra VQ. An important problem in vertex algebra theory and conformal field theory is to classify the representations of the σ-invariant subalgebra VQσ of VQ, known as an orbifold. In the case when σ is an isometry of Q of order two, we have classified the irreducible modules of the orbifold vertex algebra VQσ and identified them as submodules of twisted or untwisted VQ-modules in [6]. Here we calculate their quantum dimensions and fusion products.The examples where Q is the orthogonal direct sum of two copies of the A2 root lattice and σ is the 2-cycle permutation as well as where Q is the An root lattice and σ is a Dynkin diagram automorphism are presented in detail.
Comparison of Umbilical Cord Blood Derived Mononuclear Cells and Endothelial Generating Cells in Response to Ischemia in the Murine Hind-Limb Injury Model.

Abstract Recent reports have studied the use of cell populations from bone marrow, peripheral blood and umbilical cord blood (UCB) in mediating therapeutic angiogenesis in patients with coronary artery disease. We investigated the surface phenotype of UCB derived-mononuclear cells (MNC), and endothelial generating cells (EGC) by flow cytometry and in vitro functional migration studies. We used a murine hind-limb injury ischemia model to assess in vivo efficacy of the cell populations. METHODS: MNC were isolated by density centrifugation and CD133+ cells were isolated by magnetic separation (Miltenyi). EGC were derived by adherence of CD133− cells cultured 16h on fibronectin-coated tissue culture plates in EGM2 media (Clonetics). Cell characterization included surface phenotype determined by flow cytometry for monocyte markers CD14 and CD11b, stromal markers CD73 and CD105, KDR (VEGFR2), and the receptor for SDF-1, CXCR4. Transwell plates with 5μm collagen coated filters (Costar) were used to observe chemotactic migration of MNC or EGC towards SDF-1 (100ng/mL). Following a 3 hour incubation, the cells migrated to the bottom wells was counted by flow cytometry with TruCOUNT™ tubes (BD Biosciences. NOD/SCID mice underwent right femoral artery ligation and were injected with cytokines (EGM2 media, n=10), MNC (n=7) or EGC (n=8), 1X 106 cells/mouse. Laser Doppler blood flow measurements were recorded weekly for four weeks. RESULTS: Enhanced expression of CXCR4, CD105, KDR, CD14 and CD11b was found in the EGC cells generated after 16h culture on fibronectin. Surface Phenotype of UCB MNC and EGC CD14 CD11b CD73 CD105 KDR CXCR4 MNC (n≥5) 8.1 ± 2.7 22.7 ± 6.6 5.1 ± 2.2 6.7 ± 2.1 7.1 ± 2.1 28.5 ± 5.8 EGC (n=5) 67.7 ± 9.5 80.0 ± 4.8 7.1 ± 4.0 33.8 ± 5.8 37.6 ± 6.4 64.6 ± 7.8 Functional assays showed increased migration of both MNC and EGC to SDF-1 compared to control media (4.9 ± 2.9, n=2 and 3.2 ± 0.6, n=3 fold increases respectively). With VEGF as a chemoattractant MNC exhibited a 1.5 fold increase over the negative control (n=1) and EGC showed a 1.4 ± 0.3 fold increase (n=2). In the murine hind-limb ischemia model the ratio of ischemic/non-ischemic limb blood flow was used to compare vasculogenic potential. There was improvement of blood flow 14 days after injection of the EGC cells (p=0.019). On days 21 and 28, blood flow ratio was higher than control but was not statistically significant (p=0.06). The difference between MNC and EGC was not significant at any time point (p> 0.05). Histological studies are ongoing. CONCLUSION: In summary, UCB derived EGC exhibited monocyte and stromal surface antigen expression, migrated to an SDF-1 gradient, and mediated improved vascular blood flow. Ongoing studies are focused on direct cell vs. paracrine effects underlying observed neovasculogenesis mediated by EGC.
Processing Positive Cultures

It can be said that the diagnosis of bloodstream infections is one of the most important roles of the clinical microbiology laboratory; the mortality rate associated with bloodstream infection ranges from 25 to 80% ( 1 , 2 ). There are a number of factors that contribute to the mortality rate subsequent to bloodstream infection, with time to appropriate antimicrobial therapy frequently cited as one of the most important variables correlating with clinical outcome ( 3 – 5 ). Herein, we describe procedures for optimization of positive blood culture specimens and describe current and future methodologies to augment blood culture to diagnose bloodstream infection.
Timescale Separation of Positive and Negative Signaling Creates History-Dependent Responses to IgE Receptor Stimulation

The high-affinity receptor for IgE expressed on the surface of mast cells and basophils interacts with antigens, via bound IgE antibody, and triggers secretion of inflammatory mediators that contribute to allergic reactions. To understand how past inputs (memory) influence future inflammatory responses in mast cells, a microfluidic device was used to precisely control exposure of cells to alternating stimulatory and non-stimulatory inputs. We determined that the response to subsequent stimulation depends on the interval of signaling quiescence. For shorter intervals of signaling quiescence, the second response is blunted relative to the first response, whereas longer intervals of quiescence induce an enhanced second response. Through an iterative process of computational modeling and experimental tests, we found that these memory-like phenomena arise from a confluence of rapid, short-lived positive signals driven by the protein tyrosine kinase Syk; slow, long-lived negative signals driven by the lipid phosphatase Ship1; and slower degradation of Ship1 co-factors. This work advances our understanding of mast cell signaling and represents a generalizable approach for investigating the dynamics of signaling systems.
Beyond Monetary Poverty Analysis: The Dynamics of Multidimensional Child Poverty in Developing Countries

This study investigates transitions in monetary and multidimensional poverty using the 2006 and 2009 Young Lives surveys in Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam. While the headcount ratio in both measures of poverty decreases over time, there is only a small overlap between the groups in monetary and multidimensional poverty in either or both waves. Children remaining in monetary poverty are more likely to stay in multidimensional poverty. However, children escaping from monetary poverty do not always exit from multidimensional poverty. The results suggest the need to go beyond traditional monetary poverty indicators to understand and monitor poverty dynamics among children.
In vivo Raman spectroscopy for biochemical monitoring of the human cervix throughout pregnancy.

Background The cervix must undergo significant biochemical remodeling to allow for successful parturition. This process is not fully understood, especially in instances of spontaneous preterm birth. In vivo Raman spectroscopy is an optical technique that can be used to investigate the biochemical composition of tissue longitudinally and noninvasively in human beings, and has been utilized to measure physiology and disease states in a variety of medical applications. Objective The purpose of this study is to measure in vivo Raman spectra of the cervix throughout pregnancy in women, and to identify biochemical markers that change with the preparation for delivery and postpartum repair. Study Design In all, 68 healthy pregnant women were recruited. Raman spectra were measured from the cervix of each patient monthly in the first and second trimesters, weekly in the third trimester, and at the 6-week postpartum visit. Raman spectra were measured using an in vivo Raman system with an optical fiber probe to excite the tissue with 785 nm light. A spectral model was developed to highlight spectral regions that undergo the most changes throughout pregnancy, which were subsequently used for identifying Raman peaks for further analysis. These peaks were analyzed longitudinally to determine if they underwent significant changes over the course of pregnancy (P Results Raman peaks indicative of extracellular matrix proteins (1248 and 1254 cm−1) significantly decreased (P Conclusion Raman spectroscopy was successfully used to biochemically monitor cervical remodeling in pregnant women during prenatal visits. This foundational study has demonstrated sensitivity to known biochemical dynamics that occur during cervical remodeling, and identified patient variables that have significant effects on Raman spectra throughout pregnancy. Raman spectroscopy has the potential to improve our understanding of cervical maturation, and be used as a noninvasive preterm birth risk assessment tool to reduce the incidence, morbidity, and mortality caused by preterm birth.
The Idealized Model of the American Family

The concept of the ideal American family sets goals that are unattainable and may lead to tragic results in parent-child relationships and societal institutions
Star gazing: Transing gender communication

This activity implores students and pedagogues to engage intrapersonal gender subjectivity through the analytic practice of transing gender communication. Specifically, Yep, Russo, and Allen (Pushi...
The Role of Police Officer Race/Ethnicity on Crime Rates in Immigrant Communities:

Few studies have examined the role of city police officer racial/ethnic representation on violent crime in immigrant neighborhoods. Yet police officer race/ethnicity might play a significant role i...
Extensión semántica del sustantivo posparticipial

L'A. procede a l'analyse semantique systematique des substantifs postparticipiaux rencontres dans des dictionnaires espagnols monolingues et dans un dictionnaire espagnol/anglais
Erkrankungen der Articulatio metatarsophalangea I (MTP)

Schmerz in der Region des I. MTP-Gelenks tritt haufig auf. Die Behandlungsformen sind von einer sehr sorgaltigen Anamnese und Untersuchung abhangig.
Housing Policies in Developing Countries

This article offers an overview of the evolution of housing policies in developing countries since the 1950s. It is designed to complement many of the articles throughout this volume and provides an outline of public and private production of housing in both the formal and informal sectors. Mostly privately produced throughout the twentieth century, state-sponsored housing only began to be a feature significant in most countries from the 1960s, and even then it was limited in scope until interventions in the (low income) informal sector quickened from the 1980s onwards. Housing policies and their implementation track are embedded within the particular models of economic and political development adopted by countries, and more recently in the changing paradigms of liberalisation which emphasise decentralisation, greater urban sustainability, and greater efficiency of urban management and city planning. Today, new policy approaches are required that will address issues such as ‘Rights to the City’, renting, inheritance, sustainability, ‘green’ solutions, and housing rehab – areas in which policy-thinking often remains at best incipient.
Expression and Regulation of Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein-1 and Retinol Binding Protein in the Baboon (Papio anubis) Uterus

There has been increasing appreciation in recent years for the importance of fetal and maternal tissue interactions in pregnancy. Numerous interactions are associated with this mutual relationship, the most important of which is the achievement of implantation and maintenance of pregnancy (Enders and Schlafke 1979). In a broad sense, the establishment of pregnancy in all mammalian species could be divided into the maternal and fetal components, whose synergistic interaction is essential for a viable pregnancy. The maternal contribution is to provide an appropriate milieu within the oviduct to optimize fertilization, secrete or sequester substances within the uterus to sustain conceptus development and limit the degree of blastocyst invasiveness. Coincidentally, the embryonic component secretes luteotrophic or anti-luteolytic substances to prevent corpus luteal regression, in addition to maintaining uterine secretory activity and blood flow, and achieving immunologic privilege as a fetal allograft.
Max Plus Decision Processes in Planning Problems for Unmanned Air Vehicle Teams

Many aspects of unmanned air vehicle (UAV) operations In this paper, we consider some idempotent modifications of stochastic and Bayesian analysis suitable for decision making in mixed initiative and multi-agent systems. Of particular interest are techniques for mixed initiative and highly autonomous operation.We examine certain Markov Decision Processes (MDPs) within the context of max-plus probability, and we discuss their application to problems of control of unmanned air sensing assets.
Cortical morphology, epileptiform discharges and neuropsychological performance in BECTS

Objectives The aim of this study was to understand the relationship between cortical morphology, centrotemporal spike (CTS), and neuropsychological functioning in children with BECTS compared to their typically developing peers. Materials and methods To examine whole-brain differences in cortical thickness between groups, a general linear model approach was applied to T1-weighted structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in children with BECTS and typically developing children. Further region-of-interest (ROI) analyses were performed to examine the effects of frequency and lateralization of CTS. In addition, the relationship between Processing Speed Index (PSI) and cortical thickness was investigated. Results Twenty-three patients with BECTS and thirty-two controls were included. There was no statistically significant difference in global cortical thickness between groups. With ROI analyses, we found significantly thinner cortex within right pars opercularis when comparing children with right predominant CTS, and with very frequent right CTS (>10/min) to the control group (P = 0.028 and P = 0.026, respectively). A statistically significant interaction of group (controls vs BECTS) and PSI was seen in bilateral frontal and right superior parietal cortices, indicating a positive relationship between cortical thickness and PSI in healthy controls but not BECTS. Conclusion A region of cortex where right CTS may originate was thinner in BECTS compared to children without BECTS. Typically developing children with faster processing speed had thicker cortices in regions supporting visuomotor integration, motor, and executive function, but this relationship was not observed in BECTS. These results suggest that BECTS is associated with atypical cortical morphology that may underlie poorer neuropsychological performance.
Electrical properties of the transverse tubular system

The transverse tubular system (T-system) of skeletal muscle links surface membrane action potential and release of activator calcium from sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). The spread of depolarization along this system has been studied in voltage-clamped frog muscle fibers by using the spread of contractile activation in a thin optical cross section through the fiber center as an index. In tetrodotoxin treated fibers as depolarization of the fiber is increased contraction spreads from superficial to axial myofibrils. In tetrodotoxin free fibers the radial gradient of activation is reversed indicating that normally the activating signal is propagated along the T-system. Activation across the SR-T tubule junction does not appear to trigger an all-or-none response from the SR.—Costantin, L. L. Electrical properties of the transverse tubular system. Federation Proc. 34: 1390–1394, 1975.
Poverty and Privilege: Shakespeare in the Mountains

This essay explores the impact that a Shakespeare festival can have on an economically depressed rural community. Frostburg State University, located in one of the poorest counties in Appalachian Maryland, hosts a Shakespeare festival every spring, a collaborative outreach project involving both university and high school students in western Maryland, southern Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. This essay places Frostburg’s Shakespeare Festival within the larger context of the role Shakespeare has played in American life, especially in rural and culturally isolated regions of the country, and argues that Shakespeare’s immense power as a marker of cultural capital, his privileged place in a contested canon, can have great value for communities that are lacking in privilege.
Structural representation of additively manufactured 316L austenitic stainless steel

Abstract Three 316L stainless steel materials are studied and reported upon; wrought, as-built additively manufactured (AM), and heat-treated AM material. The AM material was produced from the laser engineered net shaping (LENS) process. Macroscopic uniaxial compression stress-strain curves were obtained for all three materials. The curves were similar for the wrought and heat-treated AM materials but the as-built AM material demonstrated approximately 1.7 times greater flow stress at any given level of strain than the other two materials. Electron-backscatter diffraction analysis of the materials also showed that the microstructures of the three materials differed; with complex grain morphology for the as-built AM material. The mean grain size of each of the three materials also differed. The initial dislocation density was also measured with neutron diffraction and line-profile analysis for both wrought and as-built AM materials with the density in the AM material approximately 2.5 times greater. A single crystal model was proposed to represent the essential features of the three FCC materials accounting for dislocation interactions and representation of grain size via a simple Hall-Petch type term. The strength of this term is evaluated through independent experimental results on traditionally manufactured materials. The model was applied to each of the three materials by simulation of the uniaxial compression experiments by direct numerical simulation of electron-backscatter diffraction images. This allowed for representation of the size of each grain in the simulations. The results suggest that the difference in initial dislocation density of the three materials is the primary factor causing the difference in stress-strain response. Although the differences in grain size contribute to a higher stress for the as-built AM material, the effect is small. Other factors such as internal stress and grain morphology could play a role in mechanical behavior difference and these two factors are also discussed.
Developmental outcomes after gestational antidepressant treatment with sertraline and its discontinuation in an animal model of maternal depression.

Abstract Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are commonly prescribed to women before or during pregnancy to manage their depressive symptoms. However, there is still little knowledge regarding the long-term development effects of SSRI exposure for the fetus or the effects of discontinuing SSRI treatment during pregnancy. This study utilized a translational animal model of maternal depression (based on giving high levels of corticosterone (CORT, 40 mg/kg, s.c.) or vehicle (Oil) for 21 days prior to conception) to investigate the effects of sertraline (a frequently prescribed SSRI; 20 mg/kg p.o., treatment started ∼7 days prior to conception) and its discontinuation during pregnancy (on gestational day 16) compared to vehicle (water) treatment on the development of the offspring. Our results revealed that both corticosterone exposure prior to pregnancy and sertraline administration and its discontinuation during gestation had sex-specific effects on behavior in the adult offspring. In particular, pre-conceptional maternal corticosterone treatment impacted the stress response, anxiety-like behavior and cognitive performance in adult female offspring, while gestational SSRI exposure and its discontinuation compared to full-term exposure affected impulsivity in females, and exploratory behavior in males. More research is needed on the effects of exposure to antidepressant medication and its discontinuation compared to depression during pregnancy and how each impacts development to better help women make informed decisions about their medication use during pregnancy.
Serum miR-204 is an early biomarker of type 1 diabetes-associated pancreatic beta-cell loss.

Pancreatic beta-cell death is a major factor in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes (T1D), but straightforward methods to measure beta-cell loss in humans are lacking, underlining the need for nove...
The Impact of Ethnicity on Craniosynostosis in the United States.

While many studies have examined potential risk factors for nonsyndromic craniosynostosis, there have been no publications to date investigating the role of ethnicity in the United States. The current study was undertaken as the first multi-center investigation to examine the relationship between ethnicity and nonsyndromic craniosynostosis, looking at both overall prevalence as well as potential correlation between ethnicity and pattern of affected suture site. A chart review of patients diagnosed with nonsyndromic craniosynostosis treated at four major children's hospitals was performed to obtain ethnicity data. Analysis was preformed based on ethnic group as well as suture site affected. To account for potentialOne regional selection bias, the KID database (1997-2012) was utilized to identify all cases of craniosynostosis on a national level. This data was analyzed against birth rates by ethnicity obtained from CDC WONDER natality database.Amongst the 2112 cases of nonsyndromic craniosynostosis at all institutions, Caucasians and African Americans were consistently the predominant ethnic groups. There was a statistically significant difference in the distribution of affected suture type with African Americans more likely to present with unicoronal synostosis and Caucasians more likely to present with metopic synostosis (P = 0.005). The national data revealed that there were more cases of craniosynostosis in Caucasians and fewer in African Americans than expected when compared to population birth rates. Our findings demonstrate that the Caucasian race is associated with increased rates of synostosis.
Clinical Characteristics of Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Receiving a Primary Total Knee or Hip Arthroplasty

Aim. The purpose of this study is to explore clinical characteristics of patients with T2DM receiving a primary knee (TKA) or hip (THA) arthroplasty to patients without T2DM receiving a TKA or THA and patients with T2DM with no history of osteoarthritis (OA). Methods. The study included a retrospective database review of 500 consecutive primary TKA or THA identified with ICD-9 codes and 100 consecutive T2DM patients. Patients who received a TKA or THA were screened for inclusion and exclusion and divided into with or without T2DM groups. A comparison group of patients with T2DM only without arthroplasty was screened to exclude patients with a history of OA or arthroplasty. All groups were compared based on demographic and relevant comorbidity differences. OA characteristics, including OA and previous arthroplasty of the involved and contralateral joints, were compared between patients with and without T2DM receiving a TKA or THA. Finally, patients with T2DM with and without TKA or THA were compared for T2DM differences. Results. Study results found that among those receiving a primary arthroplasty, patients with T2DM were more likely to be obese and older and reported cardiovascular, urinary, dyslipidemia, and peripheral neuropathy than those with T2DM. Among the T2DM individuals, those receiving an arthroplasty surgery were older and obese and more likely to report peripheral neuropathy; however, those with T2DM with no OA were more likely to report atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. Within the arthroplasty subgroup of individuals with T2DM, those requiring antidiabetic medication were 4.5 times more likely to have contralateral OA or arthroplasty. Conclusions. The results of this study suggest that patients with T2DM requiring a primary arthroplasty are a unique subgroup that requires careful considerations as they are often older, have obesity, and specific comorbidities predisposing to worse postoperative outcomes than their non-T2DM arthroplasty counterparts. Therefore, clinical practice and future studies must consider strategies that would limit OA and arthroplasty management delays while accounting for comorbidities and patient characteristics.
A note on abelian partitionable groups

A group G has an abelian partition if it has a set theoretic partition into disjoint commutative subsets A0,A1,…,An where |Ai|>1 for all i and the identity is in A0, such a group is called an abeli...
Washington State's Public Records Act: A Battle in the 2018 Legislature and Beyond

This case study documents the battle over the Washington State Public Records Act, which raged from 2017 through the end of 2019, reaching a crucial point through an extraordinary combination of citizen activism, journalistic pressure, and court action. The act, adopted in 1972 by a voter initiative, covers all “agencies,” but state legislators rejected the classification and refused to honor records requests. Journalists successfully challenged the Legislature in court, and in response lawmakers attempted to update the act to allow for secrecy, but failed. Lessons learned from the scuffle may be applied by legislators and transparency advocates in Washington state and throughout the country.
Morphological and Sedimentological Impacts of Hurricane Michael along the Northwest Florida Coast

Wang, P.; Adam, J.D.; Cheng, J., and Vallee, M., 2020. Morphological and sedimentological impacts of Hurricane Michael along the northwest Florida coast. Journal of Coastal Research, 36(5), 932–950. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.On October 10, 2018, category 5 Hurricane Michael made landfall at Mexico Beach, generating a nearly 5-m storm surge. The greater landfall area is characteristic of a cuspate headland protruding into the Gulf of Mexico for up to 50 km. The headland is composed of several barrier islands with different orientations fronting a large estuary. The hurricane-impacted areas include densely developed small beachfront communities, modestly to sparsely developed shoreline communities, mostly pristine state parks, and a completely pristine national wildlife refuge. Therefore, Hurricane Michael provides an excellent opportunity to study the impact of an extreme storm over various coastal environments with different degrees of human developments. Because of the shoreline orientation and bathymetry changes induced by the headland, the wave field associated with the hurricane is complicated, with different locations for the highest wave and the landfall site where the surge and wind speed were the greatest. Numerical wave modeling revealed two wave-focusing points along the headland where barrier-island breaching occurred. Beach-dune erosion and impact to infrastructure were examined and compared among various natural–human coastal systems. The magnitude of dune erosion was mostly controlled by the storm wave height and prestorm beach width, but the height of the prestorm dune was not a determining factor. Sedimentological characteristics of storm deposits along the barrier islands, within Apalachicola Bay, and in the surrounding coastal marsh were examined using 116 sediment cores and 40 grab sediment samples. Characteristics of storm deposits and their preservation are described for various subenvironments, including beaches, dunes, interior wetlands, back-barrier bay, and coastal marsh along the landward side of the estuary. The landward penetrations of identifiable sandy overwash deposits were less than 150 m along the barrier islands and less than 30 m along the mainland marshes. These results should have potential implications on paleostorm study.
Micranthes petiolaris variety shealyi : A New Variety of Micranthes (Section Stellares , Saxifragaceae) from South Carolina

A new variety of Micranthes is described from a low-elevation granite outcrop in Pickens County, South Carolina. It is similar to high elevation Micranthes petiolaris populations in leaf morphology and chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) sequences, but differs in its annual habit, floral morphology, phenology, and ecology. The variety is known only from the type locality, with most clusters of individuals occurring along the forested boundary of an open granite outcrop, associated with Juniperus virginiana L., and growing upon moist to saturated moss mats and/or shallow soils. A discussion comparing the proposed taxon with M. petiolaris is provided, with notes about the distribution, habitat, and taxonomy of the variety.
Towards an Automated Approach for Detecting Architectural Weaknesses in Critical Systems

Architecture-first approaches are increasingly widely adopted for addressing resiliency requirements in critical systems. In these approaches, the system is built from the ground-up to be resilient, starting with the system's architecture design. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that the architecture design is robust, without any flaws that could compromise the system's ability to detect, prevent, react to or recover from adverse conditions, such as cyber-attacks. In this paper, we describe our ongoing efforts in aiding software architects in designing cyber-resilient systems by automatically detecting weaknesses in their architectural models.
&#x1d4ab;&#x1d4af;-Symmetric Quantum Mechanics Basics & Zeeman Effect

The non-Hermitian aspect of Quantum Mechanics has been of great interest recently. There have been numerous studies on non-Hermitian Hamiltonians written for natural processes. Some studies have ev...
Beyond Exposure-Response: A Tutorial on Statistical Considerations in Dose-ranging Studies.

Dose-ranging studies are a crucial part of the phase II drug development process. They complement the understanding gained from exposure-response analyses. However, the statistical design issues related to dose-ranging studies are not always keenly understood and a poorly designed study can be costly for later development. In this tutorial, we review five key statistical principles in designing such a study. We also describe some popular statistical approaches, including pairwise comparison, modeling, and Multiple Comparison Procedure modeling in the context of principles.
Cardiovascular Safety of Hydroxychloroquine in Veterans with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

OBJECTIVE Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) may prolong the QT interval, a risk factor for torsade de pointes, a potentially fatal ventricular arrhythmia. This study was undertaken to examine the cardiovascular safety of HCQ in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS We conducted an active comparator safety study of HCQ in a propensity score-matched cohort of 8,852 US veterans newly diagnosed as having RA between October 1, 2001 and December 31, 2017. Patients were started on HCQ (n = 4,426) or another nonbiologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD; n = 4,426) after RA diagnosis, up to December 31, 2018, and followed up for 12 months after therapy initiation, up to December 31, 2019. RESULTS Patients had a mean ± SD age of 64 ± 12 years, 14% were women, and 28% were African American. The treatment groups were balanced with regard to 87 baseline characteristics. There were 3 long QT syndrome events (0.03%), 2 of which occurred in patients receiving HCQ. Of the 56 arrhythmia-related hospitalizations (0.63%), 30 occurred in patients in the HCQ group (hazard ratio [HR] associated with HCQ 1.16 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.68-1.95]). All-cause mortality occurred in 144 (3.25%) and 136 (3.07%) of the patients in the HCQ and non-HCQ groups, respectively (HR associated with HCQ 1.06 [95% CI, 0.84-1.34]). During the first 30 days of follow-up, there were no long QT syndrome events, 2 arrhythmia-related hospitalizations (none in the HCQ group), and 13 deaths (6 in the HCQ group). CONCLUSION Our findings indicate that the incidence of long QT syndrome and arrhythmia-related hospitalization is low in patients with RA during the first year after the initiation of HCQ or another nonbiologic DMARD. We found no evidence that HCQ therapy is associated with a higher risk of adverse cardiovascular events or death.
An immunogenomic analysis of melanoma brain metastases (MBM) compared to extracranial metastases (ECM).

9521Background: Previous work has shown that MBM have a unique molecular profile compared to ECM. Description of the biology of MBM will facilitate the design of rational therapies for patients (pt...
Effects of Construal Level on Responses to Ambiguous Health Information about Alcohol Consumption.

Information about the health effects of alcohol consumption can be ambiguous (i.e., lacking in reliability, credibility, or adequacy) and thus may promote maladaptive health behavior. Guided by Con...