cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mr. Piketty and the Classics

Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2014) has receivedwidespread attention for its use of data to examine economic inequality. Piketty explicitlyextends the debate of nineteenth century classical economists over income and wealthdistribution. This paper examines Piketty's analysis, comparing it to the interpretations ofclassical economists. The paper demonstrates that Piketty's work is more a revival ofclassical economic theory than an application of contemporary economic theory. (B1)
Alcohol and marijuana use in pathways of risk for sexually transmitted infection in white and black adolescent females.

ABSTRACTBackground: Some types of sexually transmitted infection (STI) have higher prevalence in females than males, and among black, relative to white, females. Identifying mechanisms of STI risk is critical to effective intervention. The authors tested a model in which alcohol and marijuana use serve as mediating factors in the associations between depression and conduct problems with sexual risk behavior (SRB) and STI in adolescent females. Methods: The Pittsburgh Girls Study is a longitudinal observational study of females who have been followed annually to track the course of mental and physical health conditions. The 3 oldest cohorts (N = 1750; 56.8% black, 43.2% white) provided self-reports of substance use, depression and conduct problems, SRB, and STI at ages 16–18. A path model tested alcohol and marijuana use at age 17 as mechanisms that mediate the associations of depression and conduct problems at age 16 with SRB and STI at age 18. Results: Race was involved in 2 risk pathways. In one pathway...
Predictive Computational Pharmacology: From Atom to Rhythm

Common paroxysmal electrical diseases that affect millions of people worldwide are notoriously difficult to manage with drug therapy, and some drugs intended for therapy can even exacerbate disease. A vital hindrance to safe and effective drug treatment of excitable disorders is that there is currently no way to predict how drugs with complex interactions and multiple subcellular targets will alter the emergent electrical activity of cells and tissues. Our work involves the development of a novel quantitative systems pharmacology approach derived from a combination of experiments, computational biology, high performance computing and clinical observation that allows for probing the mechanisms of action of drugs in the settings of one of the most common excitable diseases: cardiac arrhythmias. These new tools can be applied to preclinical screening of compounds for therapeutic benefit or harm. A computer-based approach can be used to determine mechanisms of drugs, with a specific focus to conduct failure analysis for once promising drugs that have failed clinically. Finally, models are applied to demonstrate utility in guiding therapy for specific clinical situations and to identify optimal “polypharmacy” to inform the common practice of clinical empirical mixing and matching of drugs to create multidrug therapeutic regimens. The computational processes that we have developed are paradigms for how the explosion in systems and computational biology can be utilized to assist drug-screening, determination of mechanisms and to guide therapy. The eventual goal is a scalable, automated platform that will interact with other cutting edge technologies to serve purposes in industry, academia and in clinical medicine that will be widely expanded to pharmacology of other common disorders of excitability such as epilepsy, ataxia and even pain.
Code Design in Visible Light Communications Using Color-Shift-Keying Constellations

Abstract-The IEEE 802.15.7 standard on visible light communications (VLC) proposes color-shift-keying (CSK) as a way to increase data rate while keeping a constant optical power. In this paper, we propose two algorithms to design codes by finite state machines (FSM) using newly introduced CSK constellations. These codes ensure a constant perceived color eliminating the use of the scrambler proposed by the standard. Furthermore, they achieve about 1 to 3 dB of coding gain compared with the standard constellations and are optimally and efficiently softdecision decodable using the Viterbi algorithm.
Effect of yield curves and porous crush on hydrocode simulations of asteroid airburst

Simulations of asteroid airburst are being conducted to obtain best estimates of damage areas and assess sensitivity to variables for asteroid characterization and mitigation efforts. The simulations presented here employed the ALE3D hydrocode to examine the breakup and energy deposition of asteroids entering the Earth's atmosphere, using the Chelyabinsk meteor as a test case. This paper examines the effect of increasingly complex material models on the energy deposition profile. Modeling the meteor as a rock having a single strength can reproduce airburst altitude and energy deposition reasonably well but is not representative of real rock masses (large bodies of material). Accounting for a yield curve that includes different tensile, shear, and compressive strengths shows that shear strength determines the burst altitude. Including yield curves and compaction of porous spaces in the material changes the detailed mechanics of the breakup but only has a limited effect on the burst altitude and energy deposition. Strong asteroids fail and create peak energy deposition close to the altitude at which ram dynamic pressure equals the material strength. Weak asteroids, even though they structurally fail at high altitude, require the increased pressure at lower altitude to disrupt and disperse the rubble. As a result, a wide range of weaker asteroid strengths produce peak energy deposition at a similar altitude.
Carbon pricing, carbon sequestration and social discounting

Abstract This paper studies the optimal taxation of carbon emissions in a dynastic economy. When the welfare function places direct Pareto weights on unborn generations, the social discount rate is lower than the discount rate of the current generation. I show that this welfare criterion has important consequences for the structure of the optimal regulatory system. In particular, I show that: (i) the optimal carbon tax does not in general equal the social cost of carbon; (ii) a subsidy on oil reserves is sometimes optimal; and (iii) carbon trading programs should limit the award of carbon offset allowances
Elastic scattering of 0.8-GeV protons from C12, Ni58, and Pb208

Differential cross sections for elastic scattering of 0.8-GeV protons from /sup 12/C, /sup 58/Ni, and /sup 208/Pb have been measured. Preliminary analysis of the data in terms of the Kerman-McManus-Thaler formalism with spin-dependent nucleon-nucleon amplitudes shows sensitivity to details of proton and neutron matter distributions.
Survival differences among patients with hepatocellular carcinoma based on the stage of disease and therapy received: pre and post sorafenib era.

Background: The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is increasing. Development of newer therapeutic modalities has changed the paradigm of HCC treatment in recent years. So, the aim of our study is to analyze the impact of these treatment modalities into the survival of HCC patients, based on the stage of HCC in real life practice. Methods: We analyzed the data from the SEER database: Incidence − SEER 18 Regs Research Data + Hurricane Katrina Impacted Louisiana Cases, Nov 2015 Sub (1973–2013 varying). Relative survival rates (RSRs) and hazard ratios (HRs) were measured for patients diagnosed with HCC between 2001 and 2013. Rates were compared between pre sorafenib [2001–2007] and post sorafenib [2008–2013] eras. Results: A total of 50,088 patients (21,435 in pre sorafenib era and 28,653 in the post-sorafenib era) were included with HCC from SEER database. The median relative survival for the entire population was 14 months with 5-year RSR of 21.20%; 11 months for those diagnosed in 2001–2007 with 5-year RSR 19.30% and 17 months for those diagnosed in 2008–2013 with 5-year RSR 22.40% (P vs . 37.00% for pre and post sorafenib era respectively; P value vs . 22.60% for pre and post sorafenib era respectively; P value Conclusions: Survival in patients with HCC has improved since 2008, which is limited to early stage HCC. Survival of advanced stage HCC patients is extremely poor and has not shown any significant improvement since the approval of sorafenib, emphasizing the need for better therapeutic options. Not receiving any surgical intervention is associated with significantly poor prognosis. Large numbers of early stage HCC patients were not able to receive surgical interventions. This can impose a significant financial burden, as these patients would progress on to the advanced stage, where treatment options are very limited and not as cost-effective. This emphasizes the need for further research to identify various barriers and the possible need for healthcare policy changes.
The Origins of Children's Growth and Fixed Mindsets: New Research and a New Proposal.

Children's mindsets about intelligence (as a quality they can grow vs. a trait they cannot change) robustly influence their motivation and achievement. How do adults foster “growth mindsets” in children? One might assume that adults act in ways that communicate their own mindsets to children. However, new research shows that many parents and teachers with growth mindsets are not passing them on. This article presents a new perspective on why this is the case, and reviews research on adult practices that do instill growth mindsets, concluding that a sustained focus on the process of learning is critical. After discussing key implications and promising future directions, we consider the topic in the context of important societal issues, like high-stakes testing.
Reemergence of Blended Tube Feeding and Parent's Reported Experiences in Their Tube Fed Children.

Abstract Objective: Healthcare providers (HCPs) report increased interest in blenderized tube feeding (BTF) as an alternative to commercial formula (CF) feeding—particularly in families of tube fed children. The objective of this study was to explore parents' reported experiences of CF and BTF in their children. Design: Prospective descriptive study utilizing a convenience sample. Setting/Subjects: Parents (n = 433) of tube fed children in an online tube feeding support group completed an electronic survey to compare experiences of CF and BTF in their tube fed children. Results: The sample was evenly represented by parents using CF (50.5%) and BTF (49.5%). Reasons parents chose BTF included desire to provide whole foods (20.2%), decrease symptoms of tube feeding intolerance (19.7%), provide family meals (12.2%), increase oral intake (10.8%), address allergies (5.3%), or because they did not like formula (19.7%). Parents reported fewer symptoms of tube feeding intolerance on BTF and their children more fre...
Life-Cycle Assessment: The Energy Return on Invested of Biodiesel

Abstract High oil prices are driving renewed interest in biofuels, including biodiesel in the hope that it can substitute for petroleum-derived diesel. Although many criteria must be used to determine whether these biofuels offer benefits over their fossil fuel-derived counterparts, the primary criteria must be that the biofuels are able to generate an energy surplus, defined as a positive energy return on energy invested (EROI). A literature review of biodiesel EROI yields estimates that vary widely, from those below the energy-break-even point of 1:1 to those up to 8:1.
Abstract 13: Next generation sequencing of cell free circulating tumor DNA in blood samples of recurrent and metastatic head and neck cancer patients

Background: Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is an increasingly prevalent disease but effective targeted therapy is lacking. The use of next generation sequencing (NGS) in the identification of novel targets has been suggested as a way to potentially expand therapeutic options and thereby improve outcomes. Methods: Data were collected on patients with recurrent and metastatic (R/M) head and neck cancers who underwent molecular profiling of blood samples utilizing Guardant360, a 70-gene circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) NGS platform. CtDNA sequencing data was compared to tumor NGS data, when available. Best response to therapy was assessed using RECIST measures. Results: 60 HNSCC patients were evaluated from February 2015 to June 2016. The most common tumor type and histology was oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (n=21), which was commonly human papillomavirus (HPV) positive (n=15). Other cancer types included salivary gland and thyroid cancers. The most common mutations identified by ctDNA analysis were TP53 (98%), PIK3CA (43%), NOTCH1 (38%), and ARID1A (36%). These findings were consistent with results from tumor sequencing data (n=29) where TP53 (48%) and PIK3CA (24%) were also reported with the highest frequency. Importantly, 73% (n=22) of patients had alterations identified in ctDNA that were not present in tumor specimens. Actionable mutations were identified in 66% of HNSCC and in 50% salivary gland cancer patients. Of patients with actionable mutations, 10% (n=6) received matched targeted therapy (MTT): 3 (50%) had stable disease (SD), 1 had progressive disease (PD), and 2 were not evaluated. Of those who did not receive targeted therapy (n=23), 1 (4.3%) patient had a complete response treated with immunotherapy, 11 (47%) had SD, and 11 (47%) had PD. Conclusions: Analysis of ctDNA may play a role in management decisions in R/M HNSCC. The majority of patients had unique mutations identified on ctDNA. The utility of ctDNA NGS and its role in patient management should be explored in future studies. Citation Format: Ashleigh Porter, Gregory A. Daniels, Sandip Pravin Patel, Assuntina Sacco, Kimberly C. Banks, Ezra E. W. Cohen. Next generation sequencing of cell free circulating tumor DNA in blood samples of recurrent and metastatic head and neck cancer patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-AHNS Head and Neck Cancer Conference: Optimizing Survival and Quality of Life through Basic, Clinical, and Translational Research; April 23-25, 2017; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2017;23(23_Suppl):Abstract nr 13.
BIOCHEMICAL ANATOMY OF THE EXTRAPYRAMIDAL SYSTEM

The substantia nigra, the neostriatum (striatum, caudate-putamen), and the globus pallidus (pallidum, palcostriatum) comprise the “extrapyramidal system” for the purposes of this review. These structures are interconnected, and they also receive inputs from several other areas of the central nervous system. A brief summary of the neuroanatomy of the extrapyramidal system appears in the following section; a more detailed description has been prepared by Dr. Nauta (this volume).
Measurement Implications of a Psychoevolutionary Theory of Emotions

Most people usually think of emotion as a subjective feeling of a certain kind, the kind for which labels like happy, sad, and frightened are appropriate. However, there is much evidence to suggest that this is too narrow a way to define emotion, that the facts available to us and the current uses of the term imply the need for a different and broader conceptualization.
6.23 – Urogenital Diseases/Disorders, Sexual Dysfunction and Reproductive Medicine: Overview

Diseases and disorders of the urogenital tract, while non life-threatening, have become a major societal challenge with the quality of life of an increasing aging population. Incontinence and other disorders of the bladder, erectile dysfunction (ED) and female sexual dysfunction have become more prominent issues adding to established diseases of the kidney, prostate cancer, birth control, and postmenopausal disorders. The serendipitous discovery of the PDE5 inhibitor sildenafil as an effective treatment for ED provided an unexpected drug treatment for a disorder, the existence of which is controversial, to the forefront. Like nonmorbid obesity, where lifestyle changes are more effective than passive drug therapy, nonorganic, psychologically related ED is a debatable disorder. Similarly, there is considerable debate whether female sexual dysfunction is a psychiatric disorder nonamendable to drugs that increase clitoral blood flow. Transdermal testerone treatments for female sexual dysfunction have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration due to issues with clinical trial endpoints and long-term safety. A major issue in developing drugs for bladder and sexual dysfunction is the benefit-to-risk-ratio. To the latter however are added political and religious issues as evidenced by the heated debates on the use of RU-486 (‘the morning after’) pill for birth control.
Co-Evolving Team Capture Strategies for Dissimilar Robots.

Evolving team members to act cohesively is a complex and challenging problem. To allow the greatest range of solutions in team problem solving, heterogeneous agents are desirable. To produce highly specialized agents, team members should be evolved in separate populations. Co-evolution in separate populations requires a system for selecting suitable partners for evaluation at trial time. Selecting too many partners for evaluation drives computation time to unreasonable levels, while selecting too few partners blinds the GA from recognizing highly fit individuals. In previous work, we employed a method based on punctuated anytime learning which periodically tests a number of partner combinations to select a single individual from each population to be used at trail time. We began testing our method in simulation using a two-agent box pushing task. We then expanded our research by simulating a predator-prey scenario in which all the agents had the exact same capabilities. In this paper, we report the expansion of our work by applying this method of team learning to five dissimilar robots.
The Great (White) Wail: Percival Everett’s The Water Cure and Thomas Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia

Percival Everett’s The Water Cure asserts that revenge is the US body politic’s calm, right, and proper function. Emerging from John Locke’s functional revenge fantasy, Everett’s novel slices apart Thomas Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia (1785), especially Query XIV and its white supremacist disquisition that culminates with the infamous “But never yet could I find that a black had uttered a thought above the level of plain narration….” As if in responding to Jefferson’s racist claim, narrator Ishmael Kidder eschews even the appearance of “plain narration,” churns the novel’s “fragments” into a tour de force of philosophical and aesthetic retribution, and forces Jefferson’s work to stand in for the person who may never be punished for raping and murdering Kidder’s daughter.
Physical Function and Pre-Amputation Characteristics Explain Daily Step Count after Dysvascular Amputation.

BACKGROUND People with dysvascular lower limb amputation (LLA) achieve one-third of the recommended steps per day and experience severe disability. Although physical function improves with rehabilitation after dysvascular LLA, physical activity remains largely unchanged, and factors contributing to limited daily step count are unknown. OBJECTIVES To identify factors that contribute to daily step count after dysvascular LLA. DESIGN Cross-sectional, secondary data analysis. SETTING Outpatient rehabilitation facilities. PARTICIPANTS Fifty-eight patients with dysvascular major LLA (age: 64 ± 9 years, body mass index: 30 ± 8 kg/m2 , male: 95%, transtibial LLA: 95%). METHODS Data were collected by a blinded assessor after dysvascular LLA. Candidate explanatory variables included (1) demographics, (2) LLA characteristics, (3) comorbidities and health behaviors, and (4) physical function. Variables with univariate associations with log steps/day (transformed due to non-normality) were included in a multiple linear regression model using backward elimination to identify factors that explained significant variability in log steps/day. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE The primary outcome, daily step count, was measured with accelerometer-based activity monitors worn by participants for 10 days. RESULTS Participants took an average (± SD) of 1450 ± 1309 steps/day. After backward elimination, the final model included four variables explaining 62% of the overall daily step count (P < .0001): 2-minute walk distance (32%), assistive device use (11%), cardiovascular disease (10%), and pre-amputation walking time (11%). CONCLUSIONS Average daily step count of 1450 steps/day reflects the lowest category of sedentary behavior. Physical function, cardiovascular disease, and pre-amputation walking time explain 62% of daily step count after dysvascular LLA. Although physical rehabilitation commonly focuses on improving physical function, interventions to increase daily step count after dysvascular LLA should also consider chronic disease and health behaviors that predate LLA. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III.
The interprofessional dedicated education unit: Design, implementation and evaluation of an innovative model for fostering interprofessional collaborative practice

Abstract Clinically-based interprofessional education offers students an opportunity to witness and experience how interprofessional competencies are translated into practice. In 2011, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and the MGH Institute of Health Professions (IHP) established the first interprofessional dedicated education unit (IPDEU) in the United States, adapting the dedicated education unit model used in nurse education. On the IPDEU, interprofessional groups of IHP students spent a half-day per week across a semester working on both clinical and interprofessional competencies under the guidance of IPDEU staff nurses and therapists who served as clinical instructors. Though student evaluations were consistently favorable, the program strained resources while being able to accommodate only a limited number of students. After three years, MGH and IHP charged a steering committee with re-envisioning a cost-effective instructional model of IPE in acute care, capable of supporting more students. This redesigned experience, introduced in 2015 and continuing today, provides students with a facilitated observational experience focused exclusively on competencies for interprofessional collaborative practice. Scheduled in interprofessional dyads, students spend one half-day on an IPDEU with a nurse interprofessional practice instructor (IPI) and a second half-day with an IPI from speech-language pathology, physical therapy, or occupational therapy. Instructors use active observation techniques to help students recognize interprofessional collaboration and its underlying competencies as they encounter it during their typical care-delivery day, with each session ending in a group debriefing. In evaluations, students indicate that the experience reinforces interprofessional competencies, highlighting the importance of the IPI role and debriefings. In this article, we describe the IPDEU's evolution, share results, offer evidence of the model's scalability and sustainability, and discuss factors contributing to its success in overcoming barriers to clinically-based IPE.
Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fractures

As the population continues to age and the number of people living past the age of 65 continues to increase, osteoporotic compression fractures will continue to be a significant concern to the medical provider. Osteoporosis and osteopenia are major public health concerns in the United States and are estimated to effect 54 million Americans. In the United States, a woman older than 50 has a 40% chance of developing an osteoporotic compression fracture in her lifetime. Radiographic studies show that 8–13% of women in their 60s and 30–40% of women in their 70s are found to have evidence of vertebral compression fractures on plain radiographs in epidemiological studies.
Treating Medical Comorbidities Associated with Dementia Among Latinos

Latinos in the United States (U.S.) experience greater prevalence and worse course for certain health conditions associated with dementia when compared to the general population. Close scrutiny of these discrepancies is crucial in order to improve the early and accurate detection of neurodegenerative processes, as well as intervene in potentially treatable causes of cognitive decline. Such scrutiny involves the examination of biological and sociocultural contributors of medical comorbidities among different Latino subgroups, with the largest U.S.-residing populations being Mexican Americans and Caribbean Latinos. This chapter will review the medical comorbidities most often associated with dementia and cognitive decline as they pertain to Latinos in the U.S., including type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), thyroid disease, infectious diseases (i.e., HIV, hepatitis C), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), depression, alcohol abuse, and nutritional deficiencies (i.e., vitamin B12, folate). Following this section, the four major dementias are reviewed with an emphasis on the prevalence, genetics, pathology, and clinical presentation for Latino populations: Alzheimer’s disease (AD), vascular dementia (VaD), frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), and Lewy body dementias (LBD), including dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Parkinson’s disease dementia (PDD).
Fermions in the Desert

In the following we consider the possibility of adding to the standard Grand Unified Models such as SU5, SO10 or E6extra vector-like fermions with anomalously low masses. We present some models and in some cases understand the low masses of these fermions in terms of a global chiral symmetry which solves the strong CP problem and leads to an all but invisible axion.
Clinical and procedural implications of congenital vena cava anomalies in adults: A systematic review

Abstract Background Although congenital vena cava (CVC) anomalies in adults have implications for surgical and radiological interventions, the literature is scare and disparate. The aim of this systematic review was to assess cardiovascular clinical and procedural implications of CVC anomalies in adults without congenital heart disease. Methods and results We searched PubMed and EMBASE from database conception through October 2018 for English-language studies describing the epidemiology of CVC anomalies or their clinical or procedural implications in humans. Two independent reviewers screened 7093 records and identified 16 relevant studies. We found two major implications of CVC anomalies: 1) congenital inferior vena cava (CIVC) anomalies are associated with a 50–100-fold higher risk of deep venous thrombosis, particularly among younger patients, and 2) persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is associated with a 2–3-fold higher risk of supraventricular arrhythmias. PLSVC also poses technical challenges to cardiovascular electronic device implantation, requiring alterations in surgical approach and lengthening procedure and X-ray exposure times. Due to the large disparity in reported prevalence rates of CIVC anomalies, we performed a meta-analysis of CIVC anomaly prevalence including 8 studies, which showed a weighted prevalence of 6.8% (95% CI, 4.5–9.2%). Conclusion These findings challenge the notion that CVC anomalies are rare and asymptomatic in adults. Rather, the literature indicates that CVC anomalies are not uncommon and have important clinical and procedural implications. To further understand the prevalence and implications of CVC anomalies, a robust US population-based study and nationwide registry is warranted in the current era of venous interventions.
Case for a Voice-Internet: Voice Before Conversation

This position paper makes the case for constructing a voice-Internet; applications that run on voice activated personal agents (VAPAs) and that complement apps people run on their smartphones. I am promoting this position because screen readers will never really work. The content that screen readers read was designed to be seen, not heard. Text content relies on visual semantics for communication, it offers readers the ability to skim. Neither work with audio. This paper describes two studies that explore how VAPAs both do and do not meet the needs of current screen reader users. It then describes why now might be the perfect time to create a voice-Internet, noting that a technical platform already exists, that natural language processing technology is not yet ready for real conversation, and that enterprises show some willingness to create a new communication channel for their customers.
The Church, Migration and Global (In)Difference: They End in the City

This chapter argues that migration and cities are closely connected and that cities are places where the sacred takes material form. A brief survey of the Christian biblical tradition and a quick look at the global Christian experience through history points towards the manner in which these two affirmations have continuously been intertwined in world Christianity. Cities and migration are both central themes in Christian history and Christian faith. The Christian notion of salvation is, in fact, that of a migration to a city, the New Jerusalem. The conclusion is that the Christian notion of the image of God is an urban image, and that “outside the city there is no salvation.”
“Alone in a Crowd: Indigenous Migrants and Language Barriers in American Immigration”:

Indigenous migrants in American custody often speak neither English nor Spanish. This leaves them at risk for family separation, deportation and due process violations. In this article, I discuss t...
Introduction to the Special Issue, Part II–Innovative Methodologies in Park and Recreation: Applying Innovative Methods for Sustainable Resource Management

The purpose of this special issue “Innovative Methodologies in Park and Recreation Management” is to showcase innovative methods for collecting and analyzing a variety of aspatial and spatial data collected from GPS, mobile application, and social media in park and recreation management. Volume I introduced nine papers based on empirical research and case studies. These papers focused on topics associated with the measurement and management of park visitors’ experience. In Volume II, nine papers further addressed additional topics with an emphasis on park resource management. Similar to Volume I, papers in this volume also represented empirical and case studies from diverse geographic regions. As with the introduction to Volume I, each of these nine papers in this volume is briefly summarized below.Subscribe to JPRA
Comparison of Mid-Turbinate and Nasopharyngeal Specimens for Molecular Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Among Symptomatic Outpatients at a Pediatric Drive-Through Testing Site.

Background Nasopharyngeal (NP) specimen testing by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is the standard of care for detecting SARS-CoV-2. Data comparing the sensitivity and specificity of the NP specimen to the less invasive, mid-turbinate (MT) nasal specimen in children are limited. Methods Paired clinical NP and research MT specimens were collected from children Results Out of 907 children, 569 (62.7%) had parental consent and child assent when appropriate to participate and provided paired MT and NP specimens a median of 4 days after symptom onset (range 1-14 days). 16.5% (n = 94) of MT specimens were positive for SARS-CoV-2 compared with 20.0% (n = 114) of NP specimens. The sensitivity of research MT compared to clinical NP specimens was 82.5% (95% CI: 74.2%, 88.9%), specificity was 100.0% (95% CI: 99.2%, 100.0%), and overall agreement was 96.1% (κ = 0.87). The sensitivity of MT specimens decreased with time from 100% (95% CI: 59.0%, 100.0%) on day 1 of illness to 82.1% (95% CI: 73.8%, 88.7%) within 14 days of illness onset; sensitivity was generally >90% when specimens were collected within the first week of illness. Conclusion MT specimens, particularly those collected within the first week of illness, have moderately reduced sensitivity and equivalent specificity to less-tolerated NP specimens in pediatric outpatients. MT specimen use in children may represent a viable alternative to NP specimen collection.
Are Cost-of-Care Conversations Best Practice? A Qualitative Study of Oncologists' Attitudes and Practice.

PURPOSE:Patients' desire for cost conversations exceeds the incidence of such conversations, and many oncologists report avoiding cost conversations despite reporting willingness to have them. Our ...
Message Dissemination Scheme for Rural Areas Using VANET (Hardware Implementation)

Vehicular Ad hoc NETworks (VANETs) are likely to play an important role in Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS). Information collected by On Board Units (OBUs) located in vehicles can help in avoiding congestion, provide useful information to drivers, etc. However, not all drivers on roads can benefit from OBU implementation because OBU is currently not available in all car models. Therefore, in this paper, we designed and built a hardware implementation for OBU which allows to disseminate messages in rural areas. This OBU implementation is simple, efficient, and at low cost. Evaluation results show that our proposed model can transmit and receive plaintext and encrypted messages (e.g., safety messages) to nearby vehicles, Access Point (AP), and destination with acceptable time.
COVID-19 Symptoms Are Attenuated in Moderate-to-Severe Atopic Dermatitis Patients Treated with Dupilumab.

Background In the SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic, we need to understand the impact of immunomodulatory medications on COVID-19 symptom severity in patients with inflammatory diseases, including the type 2/Th2 polarized skin disease, atopic dermatitis (AD). Objective Because it is believed that type 1/Th1 immunity controls viral infections and that there is a Th1/Th2 counter-regulation, we hypothesized that Th2 targeting with the IL-4Rα-antagonist, dupilumab, in patients with moderate-to-severe AD would rebalance the Th1/Th2 axis, potentially leading to attenuated COVID-19 symptoms. Methods A total of 1237 patients with moderate-to-severe AD in the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Department of Dermatology were enrolled in a registry. Patients were screened for COVID-19-related symptoms and assigned a severity score (asymptomatic [0]-fatal [5]). Scores were compared among 3 treatment groups: dupilumab (n = 632), other systemic treatments (n = 107), and limited/no treatment (n = 498). Demographic and comorbid covariates were adjusted by multivariate generalized logistic regression models. Results The dupilumab-treated group showed reduced incidence and severity of COVID-19 symptoms versus other treatment groups. Dupilumab-treated patients were less likely to experience moderate-to-severe symptoms versus patients on other systemics (P = .01) and on limited/no treatment (P = .04), and less likely to experience any symptoms versus patients on other systemics (P = .01). This effect was seen in our entire cohort and in the subgroup of patients with verified COVID-19 or high-risk exposure. Conclusions Patients on dupilumab experienced less severe COVID-19 manifestations and lesser symptoms compared with patients on other systemics and on limited/no treatment. These results suggest that Th2 modulation with dupilumab may have a protective effect on anti-viral immune response in patients with AD.
Five species of the family Odiidae (Crustacea: Amphipoda) collected from Japan, with descriptions of a new genus and four new species

Five species of the family Odiidae (Amphipoda), including four new species, are recorded from Japan: Metodius cyanomaculatus sp. nov.; M. leucomaculatus sp. nov.; Postodius albifacies sp. nov.; P. sanguineus sp. nov.; and Antarctodius japonicus Ariyama, 2011. Morphological characters and coloration of these species are described in detail. Metodius gen. nov. is established for the two new species and is characterized by the very short and bare palp of the maxilla 1 and the large gnathopod 2 propodus. Keys to the odiid genera and the Postodius species in the world are provided. The genera can be distinguished from one another by the shapes of maxilla 1, maxilliped, pereopod 7, and telson. The Postodius species differs in the shapes of gnathopod 2, and pereopods 3, 7. Female of A. japonicus is firstly recorded. In this species, the presence of an accessory flagellum and a gill on the coxa 7 is confirmed.
The Ruins of French Imperialism: An Archaeology of Rural Dislocations in Twentieth-Century Senegal

This chapter draws on the results of long-term archaeological survey and oral histories to examine the intersection of rural migrations, colonial rule, and economic impoverishment in the Siin region of Senegal during the twentieth century. The Siin is today the theater of acute rural anxiety, a ‘peasant malaise’ carved by the combined effects of ecological crises, declining land productivity, degrading life conditions, adverse food prices, and state withdrawal over the past 40 years. These worrisome circumstances, however, have roots in a longer colonial history of agricultural commodification, which sparked considerable human displacement. While much has been written on long-distance seasonal migrant labor in Senegal, smaller-scale movements have received more limited scholarly treatment, even as they subtly reshaped the contours of regional social worlds. The chapter charts some of these internal mobilities and transformations, paying special attention to how peasant senses of place were made and unmade, and the processes of economic dispossession that engulfed rural communities. Engaging with recent literature on ruins and ruination, it connects the material waste littering Senegal’s rural landscapes to a broader history of imperial decay, whose effects still pulse in the present.
Inelastic Steel Beams Under Uniform Moment

The out-of-plane behavior of closely braced steel wide-flange beams is examined. Unloading (failure) of such beams terminates their rotation capacity and thus their usefulness in plastic design. A theory of discontinuous yielding is used to estimate the out-of-plane behavior in the inelastic range and to provide an analytical prediction of the rotation capacity of beams under uniform moment. The lateral support spacing is found to be a function of the quantity of rotation which the beam is required to deliver. It is shown that the condition of the spans adjacent to the one under consideration has a marked influence on the behavior of the beam. The effective length concept is used to account for this effect.
Chapter XII The Continuous Cultivation of Micro-organisms: I. Theory of the Chemostat

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the facts that must be taken into account when designing a single-stage chemostat and when operating this, both as a tool for research and for producing microbes and microbial products. The chapter discusses the growth of micro-organisms in a “batch” culture. All continuous cultures start their existence as batch cultures, in that medium, contained in a growth vessel, are inoculated with organisms that then proceed to grow and divide. To appreciate fully the kinetics of bacterial growth in a chemostat culture, it is essential to understand the exact relationship between the dilution rate and the growth rate of organisms in the culture. For a completely quantitative statement of the behavior of microbial cultures in a chemostat, one must consider also the effect of dilution rate on the concentration of growth-limiting substrate ( s ) and of organisms ( x ) in the culture. A mixed microbial population may occur unintentionally in a chemostat culture through either entry of a contaminant organism into the growth chamber or mutation of an organism in the culture. Phenol is toxic to most organisms, but some phenol-sensitive microbes are capable of assimilating low concentrations of phenol.
Recovery of eustachian tube function and hearing outcome in patients with cleft palate

Eustachian tube dysfunction is a nearly universal complication of cleft palate, resulting in chronic ear disease and conductive hearing loss. Cleft palate repair is thought to result in recovery of eustachian tube function, but the length of time between repair and recovery of eustachian tube function is not known. Furthermore, the efficacy of tympanostomy tubes in the treatment of eustachian tube dysfunction and hearing sequelae has not been examined in a systematic way. To answer these questions, we performed a retrospective study that used serial audiometric data and tympanometry on 81 patients with cleft palates (162 ears), with follow-up ranging from 1 to 17.3 years. Average time to recovery of eustachian tube function was 6.0 years (range, 1.0 to 10.3 years) after cleft palate surgery. For children followed up for at least 6 years (longest follow-up, 17.3 years), 70% (67 of 85) had normal eustachian tube function at their last follow-up visit. Ears treated with Armstrong tympanostomy tubes required an average of 3.1 tubes per ear until recovery of eustachian tube function, whereas ears treated with Goode T tubes required only 1.1 tubes per ear (p 20 dB) before tympanostomy tube placement, whereas only 7.5% of ears demonstrated this loss after tube placement. Furthermore, more than 90% of ears maintained normal thresholds after recovery of eustachian tube function. These data indicate that most children with cleft palates eventually recover normal eustachian tube function after palatoplasty, but for the majority of children, this does not occur for many years.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Humanitarian Claims and Expert Testimonies: Contestation Over Health Care for Ghanaian Migrants in the United Kingdom

Ghanaian migrants seeking to remain within the United Kingdom for medical treatment employ various strategies to navigate health and humanitarian assistance law. U.K. immigration officers police immigration controls and assess humanitarian claims often without requisite medical knowledge. Drawing on ethnographic case studies, this article examines the expert country conditions report, and its capacity to document medical provision and supply in Ghana in response to the diagnoses and prescription of physicians. Whereas immigration officers attempt to detach individual claimants from their biomedical narratives by arguing that medical care is available and improving in Ghana, expert testimony re-tethers claimants to the specificities of their conditions by documenting the incapacity of the Ghanaian state to provide adequate treatment and therapy.
A constructive induction framework

Publisher Summary Concept learning from examples can be relatively easy if the training set is represented in a suitable form. However, when the features used in describing the examples are inappropriate for the target concept, learning can be difficult or impossible using selective induction methods. This chapter presents a framework for constructive induction based on four inherent aspects of this problem: (1) need detection, (2) constructor selection, (3) constructor generalization, and (4) feature evaluation. This framework has proven useful for analyzing and contrasting existing systems, uncovering the strengths and weaknesses of current methods, and guiding the development of new systems such as CIE, a constructive induction engine, and CITRE, a learning system that performs constructive induction on decision trees. Four processes have been seen to be inherent to the problem of constructive induction: (1) detection of when constructive induction is necessary, (2) selection of constructive operators and operands, (3) generalization of the selected constructors, and (4) evaluation of the new features. Although each of these processes may not be explicit in all systems performing constructive induction, they represent four central aspects that account for much of the observed variability between systems. As a result, these aspects have proven useful as a framework for the analysis and comparison of systems, and also for the development of new methods and techniques.
Intraaortic balloon pumping in the experimental animal: Effects and problems☆

Abstract Although the basic principle of intraaortic balloon pumping theoretically appears both sound and simple, the effects of balloon pumping in the experimental animal depend on a number of variables, some related to the animal (functional state of the left ventricle, shifting heart rates and arrhythmias, intraaortic blood volume), some to the balloon (ratio of inflated balloon volume to central aortic volume and stroke volume, relation of balloon inflation/deflation to rate of left ventricular ejection, and timing and duration of application). These factors limit the effectiveness of intraaortic balloon pumping in cardiogenic shock when the need for mechanical circulatory assistance is most acute.
Constraints on shallow mantle viscosity from morphology and deformation of fast‐spreading ridges

[1] We show that the morphology and the deformation of a fastspreadingridgeconstrainshallowuppermantleviscosity. A fast spreading center is simulated in a numerical model that couples tectonic deformation due to plate spreading and periodic dike emplacements. The amount of magma intruded into dikes or extruded is enough to make a 7 km thick crust and the axial lithosphere is fixed at ∼2 km thickness. For low viscosities (≤10 19 Pa·s),the model spreadingcenter is marked by an axial high with relief governed by the axial density structure. For high viscosities (≥10 20 Pa·s) the axial morphology is a valley and extensional brittle deformation is distributed away from the near‐axis region. The observed morphology and deformation of fast spreading ridges are not consistent with the high mantle viscosity estimated for very dry olivine, as some suggest may result from partial melting related dehydration. Citation: Choi, E., and W. R. Buck (2010), Constraints on shallow mantle viscosity from morphology and deformation of fast‐spreading ridges, Geophys. Res. Lett., 37, L16302, doi:10.1029/2010GL043681.
Robot-assisted retroperitoneal lymph node dissection: technique and initial case series of 18 patients.

Objective To evaluate outcomes of the first 18 patients treated with robot-assisted retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RA-RPLND) for non-seminomatous germ cell tumours (NSGCT) and paratesticular rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) at our institution. Patients and Methods Between March 2008 and May 2013, 17 patients underwent RA-RPLND for NSGCT and one for paratesticular RMS. Data were collected retrospectively on patient demographics, preoperative tumour characteristics, and perioperative outcomes including open conversion rate, lymph node (LN) yield, rate of positive LNs, operative time, estimated blood loss (EBL), and length of stay (LOS). Perioperative outcomes were compared between patients receiving primary RA-RPLND vs post-chemotherapy RA-RPLND. Medium-term outcomes of tumour recurrence rate and maintenance of antegrade ejaculation were recorded. Results RA-RPLND was completed robotically in 15 of 18 (83%) patients. LNs were positive in eight of 18 patients (44%). The mean LN yield was 22 LNs. For cases completed robotically, the mean operative time was 329 min, EBL was 103 mL, and LOS was 2.4 days. At a mean (range) follow-up of 22 (1–58) months, there were no retroperitoneal recurrences and two of 17 (12%) patients with NSGCT had pulmonary recurrences. Antegrade ejaculation was maintained in 91% of patients with a nerve-sparing approach. Patients receiving primary RA-RPLND had shorter operative times compared with those post-chemotherapy (311 vs 369 min, P = 0.03). There was no significant difference in LN yield (22 vs 18 LNs, P = 0.34), EBL (100 vs 313 mL, P = 0.13), or LOS (2.75 vs 2.2 days, P = 0.36). Conclusion This initial selected case series of RA-RPLND shows that the procedure is safe, reproducible, and feasible for stage I–IIB NSGCT and RMS in the hands of experienced robotic surgeons. Larger studies are needed to confirm the diagnostic and therapeutic utility of this technique.