cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Risk and Valuation Under an Intertemporal Capital Asset Pricing Model

We analyze the risk characteristics and the valuation of assets in an economy in which the investment opportunity set is described by the real interest rate and the maximum Sharpe ratio. It is shown that, holding constant the beta of the underlying cash flow, the beta of a security is a function of the maturity of the cash flow. For parameter values estimated from U. S. data, the security beta is always increasing with the maturity of the underlying cash flow, while the discount rates for risky cash flows can be increasing, decreasing or non-monotone functions of the maturity of the cash flow. The variation in discount rates and present value factors that is due to variation in the real interest rate and the Sharpe ratio is shown to be large for long maturity cash flows, and the component of the volatility that is due to variation in the Sharpe ratio is more important than that due to variation in the real interest rate.
Comparison Of Stack Plume Properties Obtained From Aircraft And Spacecraft Measurements

Landsat II imagery data and aircraft nephelometer measurements were analyzed to determine the quantitative properties of a stack plume emitted from a moderate-sized pulpmill. Aircraft measurements were obtained at several heights across the plume at 1.0, 3.0, and 6.5 km downwind from the stack, and for comparative purposes, the Landsat data were also analyzed at these same three locations and at 0.5 and 10.0 km. Overlapping, consecutive-day MSS data provided plume/no-plume radiances upwelling from the stack site. Imagery data from a 10- by 10 km region in the vicinity of the mill were normalized to correct for atmospheric, solar, and viewing angle differences for the 2 observation days, and cloud-shadow data were used to evaluate sky radiance. Particle concentrations, vertical and lateral dispersions, and plume heights determined from both the aircraft and spacecraft measurement techniques are in good agreement.
Partner Reactions to Work-to-Family Conflict: Cognitive Appraisal and Indirect Crossover in Couples:

In studying observed work-to-family conflict in 139 couples, the authors integrate theory from cognitive appraisal and indirect crossover processes to explain how partner reactions may affect a focal employee’s work attitudes. The focal employee’s work-interfering-with-family behaviors were positively associated with the partner’s reports of observed work-to-family conflict, resulting in more partner blame attributions and negative emotional displays when discussing work. The partner’s negative emotional displays were related to less career resilience and more turnover exploration by the focal employee. Theoretical and practical implications of the dynamic reactive consequences of appraisal and crossover of observed work-to-family conflict are discussed.
High-dose-rate brachytherapy for large prostate volumes (≥50 cc)—Uncompromised dosimetric coverage and acceptable toxicity

Abstract Purpose The purpose of this study was to review our single-institution experience using high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy in patients with large-volume prostate glands (≥50 cc). Methods and materials Fifty-four patients treated with HDR brachytherapy for prostate cancer at the Penrose Cancer Center between 2001 and 2006 were identified as having an ultrasound volume of at least 50 cc at the time of implant (range, 50–97.3 cc; mean, 61.5 cc; median, 57 cc; upper quartile, 83.3–97.3 cc). Neoadjuvant hormones (17 patients) were not routinely recommended unless the initial ultrasound volume suggested pubic arch interference or the patient's Gleason score or prostate specific antigen prompted use. All patients received HDR brachytherapy as a boost before or after conformal external beam radiation therapy to 4500 cGy. Boost brachytherapy doses ranged from 1600 to 1900 cGy, given in two to three fractions. Results The median D 90 (minimal dose to 90% of the prostate) was 109% of prescription dose (range, 95–115%) and the median V 100 (volume receiving 100% of the dose) was 96% (range, 90–99%). V 150 ranged from 10% to 35%, with a median value of 18.3%. Six patients (11%) required temporary placement of a urinary catheter for acute obstructive symptoms after brachytherapy. With a median followup of 1.8 years, there has been a single case of Grade 2 gastrointestinal toxicity and 1 patient has developed a bulbo-urethral stricture requiring dilation. There have been no cases of rectal bleeding. Conclusions Large prostate volume is not a contraindication to HDR brachytherapy. Excellent dosimetric coverage can be attained with acceptable acute toxicity.
Piezoelectric Multimaterial Fibers

Here we report on the design, fabrication, and characterization of fiber containing an internal crystalline non-centrosymmetric phase enabling piezoelectric functionality over extended fiber lengths [1]. A ferroelectric polymer layer of 30 μm thickness is spatially confined and electrically contacted by internal viscous electrodes and encapsulated in an insulating polymer cladding hundreds of microns in diameter. The structure is thermally drawn in its entirety from a macroscopic preform, yielding tens of meters of piezoelectric fiber. Electric fields in excess of 50V/μm are applied through the internal electrodes to the ferroelectric layer leading to effective poling of the structure. To unequivocally establish that the internal copolymer layer is macroscopically poled we adopt a two-step approach. First, we show that the internal piezoelectric modulation indeed translates to a motion of the fiber’s surface using a heterodyne optical vibrometer at kHz frequencies. Second, we proceed to an acoustic wave measurement at MHz frequencies: a water-immersion ultrasonic transducer is coupled to a fiber sample across a water tank, and frequency-domain characterizations are carried out using the fiber successively as an acoustic sensor and actuator. These measurements establish the broadband piezoelectric response and acoustic transduction capability of the fiber. The potential to modulate sophisticated optical devices is illustrated by constructing a single-fiber electricallydriven device containing a high-quality-factor Fabry-Perot optical resonator and a piezoelectric transducer.
Sam68 is absolutely required for Rev function and HIV-1 production

Sam68 functionally complements for, as well as synergizes with, HIV-1 Rev in Rev response element (RRE)-mediated gene expression and virus production. Furthermore, C-terminal deletion/point mutants of Sam68 (Sam68DeltaC/Sam68-P21) exert a transdominant negative phenotype for Rev function and HIV-1 production. However, the relevance of Sam68 in Rev/RRE function is not well defined. To gain more insight into the mechanism of Sam68 in Rev function, we used an RNAi (RNA interference) strategy to create stable Sam68 knockdown HeLa (SSKH) cells. In SSKH cells, Rev failed to activate both RRE-mediated reporter gene [chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) and/or gag] expressions. Importantly, reduction of Sam68 expression led to a dramatic inhibition of HIV-1 production. Inhibition of the reporter gene expression and HIV production correlated with the failure to export RRE-containing CAT mRNA and unspliced viral mRNAs to the cytoplasm, confirming that SSKH cells are defective for Rev-mediated RNA export. Taken together, these results suggest that Sam68 is involved in Rev-mediated RNA export and is absolutely required for HIV production.
Stimulus Uncertainty and Reaction Time for Identification and Recognition

The process of stimulus identification was examined by comparing reaction times for two identification tasks. In Exp. 1, 12 subjects made manual responses for 2, 4, and 6 stimulus alternatives in a simple identification condition and in a matching condition which required a unique identity for each stimulus but not a unique response. In Exp. 2, 16 subjects made verbal responses in each condition. Results from both experiments showed that stimulus uncertainty directly affected RT for identification but had no significant effect on matching. It was concluded that the time required to recognize the identity of a stimulus is essentially independent of stimulus uncertainty, while response selection is directly dependent on uncertainty. Because this result was obtained for both verbal and manual responses, it was concluded that stimulus uncertainty primarily affects selection of responses rather than their execution.
Do increasing levels of income deprivation have an effect on the prescribing of OTC medication

Focal points □ People who are on a low income frequently visit their general practitioner to obtain medication that is also available over the counter, because it will be dispensed at no cost to them □ This activity reduces the amount of time available for the GP to treat more serious illnesses □ This leads to inequity when compared with the service provided in more affluent areas □ Pharmacists should be more involved in the provision of free health care to these patients
Microwave-assisted "libraries from libraries" approach toward the synthesis of allyl- and C-cyclopropylalkylamides.

Cascade reactions of internal and terminal alkynes, zirconocene hydrochloride, dimethylzinc, and phosphinoyl imines (prepared in one step from aldehydes and diphenylphosphinoyl amide) lead to allylic phosphinoyl amides after aqueous workup. Microwave acceleration allows the completion of this one-pot reaction sequence in 10 min. These allylic amides can be converted into a variety of derivatives, including carbamates and sulfonamides, or reacted prior to workup with diiodomethane to give novel C-cyclopropylalkylamides. A solution-phase “libraries from libraries” approach was used to generate an intermediate 20-member library which was subsequently expanded to a 100-member library by a series of N-functionalizations. The biological activity was evaluated in an assay for competitive binding to the estrogen receptor (ERα), revealing three potent lead compounds of a new structural type.
A monoclonal antibody specific for immunoglobulin A receptor triggers polymorphonuclear neutrophil superoxide release.

An immunoglobulin M (1gM) monoclonal an- tibody, My43, specific for IgA Fc receptor (FcaR) on hu- man monocytes, bound to human polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) and inhibited their ability to bind IgA but not IgG. It was observed that the PMN oxidative burst was induced by both polymeric IgA and aggregated IgG, whereas 1gM was without effect. The IgG-mediated oxidative burst was inhibited by anti-Fc'yRII Fab and anti-Fc'yRIII F(ab')z but not by My43. Conversely, the IgA-mediated oxidative burst was inhibited by My43 but not by anti-Fc'yRII or anti-Fc7RIII. When anti-Fc recep- tor monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were used directly as ligands, it was observed that both anti-Fc7RII Fab and anti-FcyRII F(ab')2 promoted the oxidative burst when cross-linked. Moreover, My43, when cross-linked with F(ab')2 antimouse 1gM, also triggered the oxidative burst, whereas an 1gM anti-CD15 mAb, PM81, did not stimu- late function. This demonstrates that IgA receptors on PMNs are function-triggering molecules and that an anti- IgA receptor mAb may be substituted as a ligand.J. Lcu- koc. Biol. 51: 373-378; 1992.
Combining Component and System Information in System Reliability Calculation

In system reliability prediction, one of the most difficult problems (especially if the classical statistics approach is used) is to combine component and system failure data. Asymptotic and approximate methods to calculate classical confidence intervals on system reliability continue to be produced each year [cf Martz and Waller (1982), Chapter 11]. However, since classical confidence intervals do not produce a probability for system survival conditional on data, they c a n n o t provide the basis for action in the decision theory sense [see Lindley (1972), p. 16 for a discussion of confidence intervals]. Since the Bayesian Approach does provide a means for producing a probability for system survival, conditional on data, which can be used for decision, we concentrate on this approach.
Centering Movement and the Visualization of Transformational Imagery

Body movement, experienced physically or imaginatively, plays a key role in the conscious awareness of inner images. In fact, physical movement can release the barriers to active, spontaneous participation in the visualization process that many individuals experience.
Detecting Latent Ideology in Expert Text: Evidence From Academic Papers in Economics

Previous work on extracting ideology from text has focused on domains where expression of political views is expected, but it’s unclear if current technology can work in domains where displays of ideology are considered inappropriate. We present a supervised ensemble n-gram model for ideology extraction with topic adjustments and apply it to one such domain: research papers written by academic economists. We show economists’ political leanings can be correctly predicted, that our predictions generalize to new domains, and that they correlate with public policy-relevant research findings. We also present evidence that unsupervised models can under-perform in domains where ideological expression is discouraged.
Protection and Long-Lived Immunity Induced by the ID93/GLA-SE Vaccine Candidate against a Clinical Mycobacterium tuberculosis Isolate

Mycobacterium tuberculosis HN878 represents a virulent clinical strain from the W-Beijing family, which has been tested in small animal models in order to study its virulence and its induction of host immune responses following infection. This isolate causes death and extensive lung pathology in infected C57BL/6 mice, whereas lab-adapted strains, such as M. tuberculosis H37Rv, do not. The use of this clinically relevant isolate of M. tuberculosis increases the possibilities of assessing the long-lived efficacy of tuberculosis vaccines in a relatively inexpensive small animal model. This model will also allow for the use of knockout mouse strains to critically examine key immunological factors responsible for long-lived, vaccine-induced immunity in addition to vaccine-mediated prevention of pulmonary immunopathology. In this study, we show that the ID93/glucopyranosyl lipid adjuvant (GLA)-stable emulsion (SE) tuberculosis vaccine candidate, currently in human clinical trials, is able to elicit protection against M. tuberculosis HN878 by reducing the bacterial burden in the lung and spleen and by preventing the extensive lung pathology induced by this pathogen in C57BL/6 mice.
Absorption-induced scattering and surface plasmon out-coupling from absorber-coated plasmonic metasurfaces

Interactions between absorbers and plasmonic metasurfaces can give rise to unique optical properties not present for either of the individual materials and can influence the performance of a host of optical sensing and thin-film optoelectronic applications. Here we identify three distinct mode types of absorber-coated plasmonic metasurfaces: localized and propagating surface plasmons and a previously unidentified optical mode type called absorption-induced scattering. The extinction of the latter mode type can be tuned by controlling the morphology of the absorber coating and the spectral overlap of the absorber with the plasmonic modes. Furthermore, we show that surface plasmons are backscattered when the crystallinity of the absorber is low but are absorbed for more crystalline absorber coatings. This work furthers our understanding of light-matter interactions between absorbers and surface plasmons to enable practical optoelectronic applications of metasurfaces.
Wide Variation Found In Hospital Facility Costs For Maternity Stays Involving Low-Risk Childbirth

Childbirth is the leading cause of hospital admission in the United States, yet there has been little research on variation in hospital costs associated with childbirth. Using data from the 2011 Nationwide Inpatient Sample, we characterized the variation in estimated facility costs of hospitalizations for low-risk childbirth across US hospitals. We found that the average estimated facility cost per maternity stay ranged from $1,189 to $11,986 (median: $4,215), with a 2.2-fold difference between the 10th and 90th percentiles. Estimated facility costs were higher at hospitals with higher rates of cesarean delivery or serious maternal morbidity. Hospitals having government or nonprofit ownership; being a rural hospital; and having relatively low volumes of childbirths, low proportions of childbirths covered by Medicaid, and long stays also had significantly higher costs. The large variation in estimated facility cost for low-risk childbirths among hospitals suggests that hospital practices might be an import...
Three-Dimensional Modeling of Creep Damage in Airfoils for Advanced Turbine Systems

Future oxy-fuel and hydrogen-fired turbines promise increased efficiency and low emissions. However, this comes at the expense of increased thermal load from higher inlet temperatures and a change in the working fluid in the gas path, leading to aero-thermal characteristics that are significantly different than those in traditional gas turbines. A computational methodology, based on three-dimensional finite element analysis (FEA) and damage mechanics is presented for predicting the evolution of creep in airfoils in these advanced turbine systems. Information revealed from three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of external heat transfer and thermal loading over a generic airfoil provides detailed local distributions of pressure, surface temperature, and heat flux penetrating through the thermal barrier coated layer. There is an additional mechanical loading due to the centrifugal acceleration of the airfoil. Finite element analysis is then used to predict temperature and stress fields over the domain of the airfoil. The damage mechanics-based creep model uses a scalar damage parameter. This creep model is coupled with finite element analysis to predict the evolution of stress and creep damage over the entire airfoil. Visualization of the creep damage evolution over the airfoil shows the regions that are most susceptible to failure by creep.© 2008 ASME
Necrotizing Fasciitis of the Chest Wall: Report of Pediatric Cases

Necrotizing fasciitis is a soft tissue infection uncommonly described in children and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality if not treated early and aggressively. Reports of cases involving the upper torso are rare in general. In adults, necrotizing fasciitis is most commonly described in the abdomen, perineum, and extremities. For children, particularly neonates, necrotizing fasciitis most commonly involves the trunk presenting as omphalitis. In this report, we describe 2 pediatric cases of necrotizing fasciitis of the chest wall that presented within 6 months from each other at Los Angeles County Hospital/University of Southern California Pediatric Emergency Department. Both cases involved previously healthy children with above normal body mass indices of 36 and 25.6, respectively. These cases are noteworthy because of the rarity of necrotizing fasciitis among children especially in the chest wall, atypical presentation with nonspecific symptoms which made the diagnosis challenging, and suggestion that obesity may be a potential risk factor. Despite the rarity of this disease, the information presented in these cases may aid in raising the index of suspicion for diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis.
Oxidative Stress Responses in Aquatic and Marine Fishes

Oxidative stress results from an imbalance between the production of free radicals and the ability of an organism to ameliorate their effects through the actions of enzymes and small molecules that function as antioxidants. Many of the pollutants found in freshwater and marine systems are known to promote a pro-oxidant cellular environment that leads to the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Considerable research efforts are beginning to provide a mechanistic understanding of oxidative stress in fishes as related to the basic biochemical and molecular mechanisms of oxidative stress in fishes, its relevance to basic biomedical sciences, and its application toward an understanding of the impact of environmental stressors on fish population health. This chapter will discuss the chemicals known to cause oxidative stress in fishes, and the variety of small molecule and enzymatic defenses employed by fish to counteract the effects of ROS. We will also consider how the molecular-level understanding is informing the development of Adverse Outcome Pathways to link environmentally-induced oxidative stress to ecological risk assessments.
Response to Treatment of Chronic Mastitis Induced in Mice by Strains of Staphylococcus Aureus Isolated from Herds of Different Susceptibility to Cloxacillin Therapy

SUMMARY Strains of staphylococci, derived from field cases of mastitis in two herds that differed in their response to cloxacillin therapy, induced chronic reactions in the mammary glands of lactating mice under experimental conditions. These chronic infections were equally refractory to intramammary therapy with sodium cloxacillin though the strains were susceptible to cloxacillin in vitro . The results indicate that failure to respond to therapy was due to differences in the way the mammary gland responded to invasion rather than to inherent differences between the strains of staphylococcus.
SU-F-R-16: Delineation of Tumor Habitats Based On Dynamic Contrast Enhanced MRI

Purpose: To determine an automatic procedure for determining the number and delineation of tumor habitats from Dynamic Contrast Enhanced (DCE) MRI data. Methods: An automatic procedure for delineation of tumor habitats from DCE-MRI datasets was developed as a two-part process involving: (1) statistical testing of the principal components of the dataset to detect the number of habitats and (2) the use of this number in an unsupervised pattern recognition (PR) technique to recover the temporal pattern and location of detected habitats. The procedure was tested on simulated DCE-MRI datasets with one, two, and three unique temporal patterns, corresponding to well-perfused, hypoxic, and necrotic tumor environments, at various noise levels. Recovery of the temporal pattern and location of detected habitats was tested on a separate simulated DCE-MRI dataset mimicking tumors with three unique habitats present in mixed proportions in each voxel of the dataset at different noise levels. The automatic procedure for delineation of tumor habitats was then applied to a DCE-MRI dataset from a preclinical prostate cancer tumor model and a soft tissue adult fibrosarcoma. Results: Statistical testing of the principal components of the simulated DCE-MRI datasets revealed correct estimation of the number of habitats in 99.6%, 99.5%, 99.7%, and 99.6% of trials (1000 total trials) when signal-to-noise ratio was 10, 7.5, 5, and 2.5, respectively. Recovery of the temporal pattern and location of tumor habitats from simulated DCE-MRI datasets using the unsupervised PR technique produced the three habitats used in the simulation with good fidelity at all noise levels. The automatic procedure for delineation of tumor habitats revealed three unique temporal patterns in the experimental rat model, resembling wellperfused, hypoxic, and necrotic habitats. Conclusion: The number of underlying tumor habitats can be determined using the automatic procedure, allowing potential use for finding hypoxic habitats indicative of worse patient outcomes.
Alcohol Use and Management

Unhealthy alcohol use is a leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality that can be addressed in the primary-care setting. All individuals seeking medical care should be screened for unhealthy alcohol use and provided feedback based on their level of use. Brief interventions for those who are drinking excessively can lead to reductions in drinking levels, and for those who meet the criteria for alcohol use disorder, brief interventions can assist in the referral to specialty treatment. Treatment recommendations should be provided in a clear and nonjudgmental manner, and options for reducing alcohol use or seeking additional treatment should be provided. Assessing willingness to change and working collaboratively can facilitate engagement and guide treatment recommendations. The use of pharmacological treatment can assist in reducing unhealthy alcohol use.
Objective Measurements of Energy Balance Are Associated With Sleep Architecture in Healthy Adults

Study Objectives We objectively measured body composition, energy expenditure, caloric intake, and sleep in a large, diverse sample of healthy men and women and determined how energy balance and diet associated with sleep physiology. Methods Healthy adults (n = 50; 21-50 years) participated in an in-laboratory study involving two baseline sleep nights (BL1-2, 10 hours time-in-bed/night, 2200-0800 hours). Polysomnography was recorded on BL2. Demographic information, body composition, and energy expenditure measurements were collected at study admittance and on BL1. Daily food/drink intake was recorded both before (on BL1) and after (on BL2) the sleep measurement. Partial Pearson's correlations assessed the relationship between energy balance and sleep physiology variables. Results At baseline, greater fat-free mass associated with lower total sleep time (r = -0.52, p = .030), lower sleep efficiency (r = -0.53, p = .004), and greater wake after sleep onset (r = 0.55, p = .002). Higher body fat percentage (r = 0.39, p = .038) and being overweight (Body Mass Index [BMI] 25-30; p = .026) associated with more rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Higher protein intake (r's = 0.46-0.52; p's < .001-.002) and lower carbohydrate intake (r's = -0.31 to -0.34; p's = .027-.046) on BL1 and BL2 associated with more REM sleep. Greater fiber consumption on BL1 and BL2 associated with more slow-wave sleep (SWS; r's = 0.33-0.35; p's = .02-.03). More SWS related to increased carbohydrate intake the following day (BL2, r = 0.32, p = .037). Conclusions Body composition and diet were related to baseline sleep characteristics, including SWS and REM sleep duration and sleep maintenance. Future studies should further evaluate the influence of energy balance measures on sleep physiology, since dietary interventions may be useful in treating insufficient sleep, poor sleep quality, excessive sleepiness or other sleep disorders.
Impact of a Multidisciplinary Team Approach Including an Intensivist on the Outcomes of Critically Ill Patients in the Cardiac Care Unit

Abstract Objective To investigate the impact of integrating a medical intensivist into a cardiac care unit (CCU) multidisciplinary team on the outcomes of CCU patients. Patients and Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 2239 CCU admissions between July 1, 2011, and July 1, 2013, which constituted patients admitted in the 12 months before and 12 months after the introduction of intensivists into the CCU multidisciplinary team. This team included a cardiologist, a medical intensivist, medical house staff, nurses, a pharmacist, a dietitian, and physical and respiratory therapists. The primary outcome was CCU mortality. Secondary outcomes included hospital mortality, CCU length of stay, hospital length of stay, and duration of mechanical ventilation. Results After the implementation of a multidisciplinary team approach, there was a significant decrease in both adjusted CCU mortality (3.5% vs 5.9%; P =.01) and hospital mortality (4.4% vs 11.1%; P P P P Conclusion The implementation of a multidisciplinary team approach in which an intensivist and a cardiologist comanage the critical care of CCU patients is feasible and may result in better patient outcomes.
Pancreatoduodenectomy with venous or arterial resection: A NSQIP propensity score analysis

Abstract Introduction Vascular resection during pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) is being performed more frequently. Our aim was to analyze the outcomes of PD with and without vascular resection in a large, multicenter cohort. Methods Patient data were gathered from 43 institutions as part of the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) Pancreatectomy Demonstration Project. Over a 14-month period, 1414 patients underwent PD without (82.2%) or with major venous (PD + V; 13.7%) or arterial (PD + A; 4.0%) vascular resection. Results Postoperative morbidity and mortality following PD + A (51.0% and 3.6%) was comparable to PD + V (46.9% and 3.6%) and PD (44.3 and 1.5%, p = 0.50 and 0.43). A propensity score matched analysis revealed that vascular resection was associated with significant increases (p ≤ 0.05) in operative time (7:37 vs 6:11), need for blood transfusion (42.2% vs 18.1%), deep venous thromboembolism (6.9% vs 0.9%), postoperative septic shock (6.9% vs 1.7%), and length of stay (12.2 vs 10 days) while overall morbidity (45.7% vs 46.6) and mortality (1.0% vs 0%) were comparable. Conclusions Compared to PD alone, PD + VR was associated with increased operative time, perioperative transfusions, deep venous thrombosis, septic shock, as well as length of stay, but overall morbidity and mortality were not increased.
Postburn Contractures of the Elbow and Heterotopic Ossification

Postburn contractures of the elbow are uncommon debilitating sequelae of severe burn injuries, which result from thermal injury to both deep and superficial tissues. When periarticular heterotopic bone forms in association with burn injuries, severe and rigid contractures may develop that prohibit basic functions of daily living and are often refractory to nonoperative intervention. Surgical intervention is aimed at releasing or excising all pathologic anatomy limiting elbow motion. In patients with proper indications, surgical intervention can result in substantial improvement in elbow motion, allowing patients to return to activities of daily living, employment, and recreational activities.
Griffith observatory: Hollywood’s celestial theater

AbstractHollywood has always been about seeing and being seen and Griffith Observatory, perched on Mount Hollywood overlooking the Los Angeles metropolis, is the perfect stage set for a cosmic drama. In this article, the authors show how the Observatory’s form and function are uniquely Southern California productions. Since Griffith J. Griffith bequeathed funds for a public observatory in 1919, the astronomical community at the California Institute of Technology and the Mount Wilson Observatory have informed the selection of instrumentation, programming, and exhibitions at Griffith Observatory. Meanwhile, thanks to the Observatory’s studio connections, it has always been able to call upon the skills of some of Hollywood’s best artists, model makers, and scriptwriters to translate the latest astronomical discoveries into spectacular audiovisual experiences. In turn, the Observatory has featured prominently in hundreds of programs on radio, television, and film, becoming a celebrity in its own right. Aerosp...
Granular Cell Tumor of the Spermatic Cord: A Case Report with Light and Electron Microscopic Study

AbstractThe first case of granular cell tumor of the spermatic cord is reported. Surgical removal of the tumor was successful without recurrence. Possible histogenesis is discussed along with light and electron microscopic study.
They're Doing What? A Brief Paper on Service Use and Attitudes in ASD Community-Based Agencies.

This brief article examines the community services delivered to youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in a Southern Californian city as a way to better understand ASD service provision and serv...
“Love’s Not Time’s Fool”: Some Continuities, Discontinuities, and Alterations in Psychoanalysis During My Lifetime

In this lecture the author reviews some important developments in North American psychoanalysis over the years since 1933. The most important of the changes is the recognition of the psychoanalyst ...
Interactive mathematics texts: ideas for developers

If you’re going to try and reinvent the gear, it may be easier if you don’t have to reinvent the wheel first. If you’re going to try and develop interactive mathematics texts (IMTs) using Maple, it may be easier if you have experience as a mathematician, teacher of mathematics, computer programmer, instructional designer, developer of computer-based instructional materials, and textbook author, in addition to being familiar with a computer algebra system such as Maple.
Antimicrobial Functions of Phagocytes and Microbial Countermeasures

Phagocytic cells are an essential part of a system that functions to protect the host against microbial invasion. Neutrophils (and on occasion, eosinophils) are the first cells of the immune system to respond to a challenge such as microbial penetration of the skin or mucous membranes. The fact that of many thousands of species of microbes only a few are pathogenic suggests that there is something unique about these organisms. These microbes possess virulence factors, alternatively called impedins or aggressins, which may not only enable them to establish a site of infection but also to maintain that infection in the face of host defenses.
Neural Correlates of the Perception of Sound Source Separation

As two sound sources become spatially separated in the horizontal plane, the binaural cues used for sound localization become distorted from their values for each sound in isolation. Because firing rates of most neurons in the inferior colliculus (IC) are sensitive to these binaural cues, we hypothesized that these neurons would be sensitive to source separation. We examined changes in the target azimuth tuning functions of IC neurons in unanesthetized rabbits caused by the concurrent presentation of an interferer at a fixed spatial location. Both target and interferer were broadband noise bursts, uncorrelated with each other. Signal detection analysis of firing rates of individual IC neurons shows that responses are correlated with psychophysical performance on segregation of spatially separated sources. The analysis also highlights the role of neural sensitivity to interaural time differences of cochlea-induced envelopes in performing this task. Psychophysical performance on source segregation was also compared to the performance of two contrasting ­maximum-likelihood classifiers operating on the firing rates of the population of IC ­neurons. The “population-pattern” classifier had access to the firing rates of every neuron in the population, while the “two-channel” classifier operated on the summed firing rates from each side of the brain. Unlike the two-channel classifier, the ­population-pattern classifier could segregate the sources accurately, suggesting that some of the information contained in the heterogeneity of azimuth tuning functions across IC neurons is used to segregate sources.
Single Person Background

The game players in this book are frequently going to encounter situations where it is necessary to select one alternative out of several when some of the alternatives lead to payoffs that are random. We will invariably advocate selecting the alternative for which the expected value of the payoff is largest. The skeptical reader might protest this apparently cavalier preference for expected values in favor of other statistics such as the median. He might even wonder whether any statistic can satisfactorily summarize a payoff that is in truth random. If the alternatives were $1,000 for certain or a 50/50 chance at $3,000, for example, a reasonable person might argue that selecting the certain gain is the right thing to do, even though 0.5($0) + 0.5($3,000) > $1,000, and might offer this example as evidence that life is not so simple that one can consistently make decisions by comparing expected values.
Cooperation for Cognitive Networks: A Game Theoretic Perspective

The next generation of wireless networks is evolving towards networks of small, smart devices, which opportunistically share the spectrum with minimal coordination and infrastructure. This evolution is motivated by the technological advances in software defined radio (SDR) technology which promote high adaptability and flexibility for radio transmissions. The new emerging generation of networks consists of cognitive terminals, which intelligently and autonomously adapt to the channel environment to optimize their transmission parameters. In this chapter, we address the problem of designing and analyzing such networks, in the context of improving the overall network performance through cooperation. We discuss how the protocols run by these networks can be modeled as games, and what it takes to enforce cooperation in such scenarios. Our perspective is to take a fresh look at the design of upper layer protocols, and the interactions between them, in the context of enforcing cooperation for more efficient spectrum sharing. The questions we will address are related to the necessary protocol modifications to support cooperation, as well as to the viability of such cooperative network protocols.
Black hole entropy as a consequence of excision

Black hole entropy is shown to be a consequence of restricting our description of physics to the exterior of black holes. This precludes the need for a statistical mechanical description of this entropy in terms of microstates.
The capacity of private information retrieval with colluding databases

Private information retrieval (PIR) is the problem of retrieving as efficiently as possible, one out of K messages from N non-communicating replicated databases (each holds all K messages) while keeping the identity of the desired message index a secret from each individual database. T-private PIR is a generalization of PIR to include the requirement that even if any T of the N databases collude, the identity of the retrieved message remains completely unknown to them. The information theoretic capacity of T-private PIR (equivalently, the reciprocal of minimum download cost) is the maximum number of bits of desired information that can be privately retrieved per bit of downloaded information. We show that the capacity of T-private PIR is (1 + T/N + T2/N2 + … + TK-1/NK-1)−1.
Exploring faculty perceptions of teaching cultural competence in nursing

Abstract This mixed methods study was to explore nursing faculty cultural competence and their perspectives of teaching culturally competent care to students. A convenience sample of nursing faculty participated in a survey and a semistructured interview to address their perspectives in teaching nursing student cultural competence. The results indicated that faculty were culturally aware and approaching culturally competent. Four themes emerged, including student communication skills, student cultural skills, engaged learning, and activities for practice.
Obfusifier: Obfuscation-Resistant Android Malware Detection System

The structure-changing obfuscation has become an effective means for malware authors to create malicious apps that can evade the machine learning-based detection systems. Generally, a highly effective detection system for detecting unobfuscated malware samples can lose its effectiveness when encountering the same samples that have been obfuscated. In this paper, we introduce Obfusifier, a highly effective machine-learning based malware detection system that can sustain its effectiveness even when malware samples are obfuscated using complex and composite techniques. The training of our system is based on obfuscation-resistant features extracted from unobfuscated apps, while the classifier retains high effectiveness for detecting obfuscated malware. Our experimental evaluation shows that Obfusifier can achieve the precision, recall, and F-measure that exceed 95% for detecting obfuscated Android malware, well surpassing any of the previous approaches.
Determining the Net Present Value of Timber Investments and Comparing Investments of Different Rotations

Would a forest landowner be economically better off growing a forest for pulpwood production with a short rotation instead of growing the same forest for sawtimber production with a longer rotation? To help answer this and related questions, this 4-page fact sheet written by Andres Susaeta and Chris Demers and published by the UF/IFAS School of Forest Resources and Conservation presents two approaches to determine the profitability of a forest stand. The net present value (NPV) of a single rotation provides the criterion to choose between different forest project investments of equal lives, whereas the equivalent annuity approach (EAA) is employed when forest project investments have different time lengths. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fr421
Percutaneous coronary intervention versus coronary artery bypass grafting in patients with reduced ejection fraction.

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate comparative outcomes for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) versus coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) in patients with reduced ejection fraction. Methods All patients from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center from 2011 to 2018 who had reduced preoperative ejection fraction ( Results A total of 2000 patients were included in the current study, consisting of CABG (n = 1553) and PCI (n = 447) cohorts with a mean ejection fraction of 35% ± 9.53%. Propensity matching yielded a 1:1 match with 324 patients in each cohort, controlling for all baseline characteristics. Thirty-day mortality was similar for PCI versus CABG (6.2% vs 4.9%; P = .49). Overall mortality over the study follow-up period (median, 3.23 years; range, 1.83-4.98 years) was significantly higher for the PCI cohort (37.4% vs 21.3%; P Conclusions Patients with reduced ejection fraction who underwent CABG had significantly improved survival, lower MACCE, and fewer repeat revascularization procedures compared with patients who underwent PCI.
Non-Perturbative Schwinger-Dyson Equations for 3d ${\cal N} = 4$ Gauge Theories.

We analyze symmetries corresponding to separated topological sectors of 3d ${\cal} N=4$ gauge theories with Higgs vacua, compactified on a circle. The symmetries are encoded in Schwinger-Dyson identities satisfied by correlation functions of a certain gauge-invariant operator, the "vortex character." Such a character observable is realized as the vortex partition function of the 3d gauge theory, in the presence of a 1/2-BPS line defect. The character enjoys a double refinement, interpreted as a deformation of the usual characters of finite-dimensional representations of quantum affine algebras. We derive and interpret the Schwinger-Dyson identities for the 3d theory from various physical perspectives: in the 3d gauge theory itself, in a 1d gauged quantum mechanics, in 2d $q$-Toda theory, and in 6d little string theory. We establish the dictionary between all approaches. Lastly, we comment on the transformation properties of the vortex character under the action of three-dimensional Seiberg duality.
Update on extracranial arteriovenous malformations: A staged multidisciplinary approach

Abstract Arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are vascular lesions that are thought to arise from congenital errors during development of vessels resulting in abnormal connections between arteries and veins. Though most AVMs develop in the brain or spinal cord, they can occur anywhere in the body. These extracranial or peripheral AVMs have a predilection for the head, neck, and limbs. Since these malformations infiltrate normal soft tissue, management requires selective treatment with preservation of normal surrounding architecture. Therefore, they are best addressed through a staged multimodal and multidisciplinary approach, using a combination of different laser, interstitial, intravascular and surgical techniques to specifically target anomalous vessels. The goal of treatment is overall disease improvement and symptom control with interventions that do not result in outcomes worse than the disease itself. Recently, the discovery of somatic and germline mutations in peripheral AVMs have contributed to a better understanding of the pathophysiology, resulting in promising new pharmacologic treatments. Recent evidence suggests that adjuvant medical therapy can enhance and sustain interventional and/or surgical outcomes. Herein we describe how a new understanding of the etiology and physiology of extracranial AVM provides guidance to current treatment approaches.
Drug Efficacy Testing in the Mouse Footpad Model of Buruli Ulcer

Great progress has been made in understanding the pathogenesis and treatment of Buruli ulcer over the last 20 years. The rediscovery of the mouse footpad model of the disease with translation to clinical practice has changed treatment of this infectious disease, caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans, from surgery and skin grafting to the administration of antibiotics for 8 weeks or less with superior cure rates. Here we describe the development and enhancement of the mouse model during the last two decades.
Composition and sequential organization of song repertoires in Cassin’s Vireo (Vireo cassinii)

The rules governing bird song sequences vary considerably across the avian phylogeny, and modifications to these rules represent one of the many ways in which bird song varies interspecifically. Cassin’s Vireo (Vireo cassinii) is one species that shows a highly structured syntax, with clearly non-random patterns of sequential organization in their songs. Here I present a description of Cassin’s Vireo song sequences from the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California and employ network analysis to quantify transition patterns within the songs. Repertoire sizes varied between 44 and 60 phrase types per bird for the 13 birds analyzed here. The repertoire was subdivided into ‘themes’ containing between two and seven phrase types. The birds sang the phrase types in a given theme for a time before eventually introducing a new theme; in this manner the repertoire was revealed relatively slowly over time. Theme composition within a bird’s repertoire did not change within or between singing bouts throughout the season. The tendency to sing in themes was corroborated by network analysis, which revealed small-world structure in the songs. Phrase types were widely shared within the population. I discuss these findings as they compare with the singing styles of other species, both closely and distantly related.
An Examination of Visual Search Success for Transportation Security Officers and Behavior Detection Officers

This paper discusses ongoing research that seeks to better understand the core visual search skills and requirements of Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) and Behavior Detection Officers (BDOs). The purpose of the first phase of research is to compare TSO and BDO visual search performance on a simple visual search task and to determine whether certain personality and demographic characteristics are related to search performance. The goal of the second phase of research is to identify measures and assessment devices that are more applicable to the visual search requirements of the BDO position. Methods and approaches used to answer key questions related to each phase of research are described, as are potential implications of the research.
Determination of transferable hydrogen in coal (1) -- Reaction behavior of coal with iodomethane --

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the reaction characteristics of coal with iodomethane to determine the transferable hydrogen in coal. Model compounds and 13C isotope of iodomethane are used to elucidate the mechanism of reaction. The reaction of model compounds with iodomethane shows that the dehydrogenation from hydro-aromatic compounds strongly depend on the chemical structures of compounds, but side reactions, such as dealkylation, are not observed. The reaction of coal with iodomethane is found to be more complex. The CH2 carbon of coal decreased readily and aromatic carbon increased significantly. The increased aromatic carbon is found to be a result of the propagation and aromatization of CH3 carbon, which is incorporated into coal from iodomethane.