cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A case of Ehrlichiosis mimicking course of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura requiring hemodialysis

We present an atypical presentation of Ehrlichiosis induced sepsis requiring hemodialysis. Ehrlichiosis is a common tick-borne illness in Missouri, and in this case mimicks the course of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). A 48-year-old male with a history of marginal zone lymphoma had received radiation and chemotherapy with fludarabine. He was admitted to oncology service for evaluation of nausea and vomiting and generalized malaise. His initial laboratory data revealed platelet count 16,000 mm3, WBC 3,800 mm3, AST 327 units/L, ALT 185 units/L, BUN/Creatinine 53 mg/dl/3.8 mg/dl. Because the peripheral smear showed a morulae consistent with human granulocytic Ehrlichiosis, intravenous doxycycline 100 mg twice daily was initiated. Acute renal failure was thought due to hemodynamic changes, but the role of TTP remained in the differential diagnosis. On hospital day two, he became confused and lethargic and continued to be febrile. Hours later, he developed tonic-clonic seizures and became hypotensive. A clinical diagnosis of TTP was made. Peripheral smear showed only a few schistocytes, inconsistent with TTP. Microangiaopthic anemia, thrombocytopenia, sepsis with DIC, and multi-organ failure sustained the acute renal failure. Hemodialysis was used for ARF over the next several days in conjuction with IV doxycycline. The patient improved without plasmapharesis. Kidney function returned back to normal in due course of time. A final diagnosis of ehrlichia-induced sepsis with ARF was made. Conclusion: Ehrlichiosis is endemic in Missouri and usually presents with thrombocytopenia, leukopenia, and elevated liver function tests; however it rarely presents with sepsis. The course of this case was made unusual possibly due to chemotherapy, fludarabine for the treatment of lymphoma, which can commonly cause micrangiopathic anemia, myelosuppression, and even a leukopenia for several years afterwards. This presentation mimicking TTP can be confusing but has previously been documented as a complication of severe Ehrlichiosis in the immunocompromised state.
Fatigue in Neurologic Disorders

Fatigue is a common complaint and a major source of morbidity in patients with neurological disorders. It is independent of neurologic disability and is often very limiting, with a significant impact on quality of life. It is crucial that health care providers regularly enquire into the presence and adequate treatment of fatigue in their patients with neurologic disorders. Fatigue must be distinguished from weakness, muscle fatigability, depression and excessive daytime sleepiness, all of which may coexist in neurologic disease. In most neurologic disorders, both central and peripheral fatigue play a role. Treatment of the underlying neurologic disease and fatigue must proceed in a complementary manner. Several pharmacological agents have been tried to treat fatigue in a variety of disorders, but for most patients with central fatigue, a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy and a graded exercise program seem to be most efficacious.
Maffucci's syndrome : two case reports with a literature review

Sixty-three cases of Maffucci's syndrome in the English literature plus two additional cases of our own are reviewed. This syndrome is nonhereditary and is characterized by multiple enchondromas and hemangiomas. It occurs in all races with no sex predominance. The enchondromas and hemangiomas can occur anywhere but are most common in the hands. Long bone involvement is common and leads to progressive skeletal deformity and pathologic fractures. The incidence of malignancies in patients with this syndrome is high. Chondrosarcomas are especially common and occur in 30% oT the patients.
The Effects of Weather and Climate on the Seasonality of Influenza: What We Know and What We Need to Know

Influenza is one of the most deadly of all airborne and upper-respiratory infections. On average, 22,000 deaths and over 3 million hospitalizations in USA are attributed to influenza each year. The distinct seasonality of influenza suggests a climate connection, but the wide range of methodologies used to explore this connection makes it difficult to elucidate a definitive relationship. Much of what is known about the effects of weather and climate on the seasonality of influenza stems from research conducted by members of the public health and medical communities, with few contributions from other physical and social science fields. Most of these studies are either based on experiments conducted under controlled laboratory conditions or on the broad-scale patterns of morbidity and mortality and their relationship to large-scale climate signals. What remains largely unknown is the suitability of these results for the development of early warning systems and for determining the dynamics of viral transmission on multiple space and time scales.
Genome scan of systemic biomarkers of vascular inflammation in the Framingham Heart Study: evidence for susceptibility loci on 1q.

Abstract Vascular inflammation plays a central role in atherosclerosis and inflammatory biomarkers predict risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Thus, finding genes that influence systemic levels of inflammatory biomarkers may provide insights into genetic determinants of vascular inflammation and CVD. We conducted variance-component linkage analyses of blood levels of four biomarkers of vascular inflammation [C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1)] in 304 extended families from the Framingham Heart Study, using data from a 10 cM genome scan. We computed p-values by a permutation approach. Heritability estimates ranged from 14% (IL-6) to 44% (MCP-1) after log transforming and adjusting for covariates. Significant linkage to MCP-1 was found on chromosome 1 (LOD = 4.27 at 186 cM; genome-wide p = 0.005), in a region containing inflammatory candidate genes such as SELE, SELP (E- and P-selectin) and CRP. Other linkage peaks with LOD scores >2 were found for MCP-1 on chromosome 1 (LOD = 2.04 at 16 cM; LOD = 2.34 at 70 cM) and chromosome 17 (LOD = 2.44 at 22 cM) and for sICAM-1 on chromosome 1 at 229 cM (LOD = 2.09) less than 5 cM from the interleukin-10 (IL10) gene. Multiple genes on chromosome 1 may influence inflammatory biomarker levels and may have a potential role in development of CVD.
Breakdown of Debye-Stokes-Einstein and Stokes-Einstein relations in glass-forming liquids: An explanation from the coupling model

Abstract The breakdown of Debye-Stokes-Einstein and Stokes-Einstein relations in glass-forming liquids is shown to be a special case of a more general phenomenon. A general explanation is given in the framework of the coupling model, which is based on the fact that different dynamie variables may have different coupling parameters entering into the stretch exponents of their Kohlrausch correlation functions. In most of the applications, the explanation requires no adjustable parameter. An exception is the explanation of the breakdown of a Stokes-Einstein relation where an experimental technique has not yet been developed to determine the coupling parameter of translational diffusion. We can explain also the breakdown of the Debye-Stokes-Einstein relation of depolarized light scattering data of the liquid diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A. This breakdown oceurs at high temperatures due to a reduction of the light scattering relaxation rate as compared with the shear stress relaxation rate. This behaviour is ...
Electron Microscopy Studies Of Mo5Si3-MOSi2 Eutectic Composites Modified By Erbium Additions

Erbium additions to MO 5 Si 3 -MoSi 2 eutectic composites have been investigated in an effort to reduce oxygen impurity levels found in the MoSi 2 starting powders. Additions of 0.35 atomic percent Er were found to refine the script lamellar microstructure and increase the hardness of the composite as compared with the unmodified material. This increase in hardness was maintained over the temperature range 25°C to 1300°C. Oxygen rich Er particles have been observed in the Er-modified material suggesting that Er has acted as a gettering agent for oxygen. An intermetallic phase Er 2 Mo 3 Si 4 was also observed in the Er-treated material. The character of this phase was determined by convergent beam electron diffraction (CBED), wavelength dispersive spectroscopy (WDS) and X-ray dispersive spectroscopy (XEDS). The particles of Er 2 Mo 3 Si 4 were found to be heavily faulted which caused a reduction in the experimental diffraction symmetries. Thus, ambiguities arose during CBED analysis. Therefore, a standard sample of Er 2 Mo 3 Si 4 was prepared and used to aid in the identification of the faulted particles.
Wavefront splitting intrinsic Fabry-Perot fiber optic sensor

We present the principle, fabrication, and characterization of a novel wavefront splitting intrinsic Fabry-Perot fiber temperature sensor. The sensor is made by splicing a section of fused silica tubing to the tip of a single-mode fiber. The completed sensor has the same diameter as the fiber and the sensor length is less than 0.5 mm.
Singular field used to calculate the self-force on nonspinning and spinning particles

The singular field of a point charge has recently been described in terms of a new Green's function of curved spacetime. This singular field plays an important role in the calculation of the self-force acting upon the particle. We provide a method for calculating the singular field and a catalog of expansions of the singular field associated with the geodesic motion of monopole and dipole sources for scalar, electromagnetic, and gravitational fields. These results can be used, for example, to calculate the effects of the self-force acting on a particle as it moves through spacetime.
Three notes on the language in Marlowe's Tamburlaine, part I

This article comments on three of the many devices Marlowe employs to create, develop, and sustain the poetic world of Tamburlaine.
Restructuring charges and takeover likelihood: Evidence from the pre-and post-SFAS 146 eras

Abstract We investigate whether restructuring charges are related to the market for corporate control. Since the poor performance triggering restructuring charges and the potential for value generation in correcting the situation may invite takeovers, we argue that there would be a positive relation between the occurrence and magnitude of restructuring charges and takeover likelihood (indicated by takeover bids). We find evidence consistent with this argument. We also examine the effect of SFAS 146, which changed the nature of restructuring charges to include actual restructuring expenses and not planned future expenses, and find that the relationship between charges and takeover likelihood (interpreted as the information content of the charges) is stronger in the post-SFAS 146 period, lending support to the perspective that by eliminating the speculative element from the charge, SFAS 146 enhanced its information content. Since SFAS 146 is a principles-based standard, this result appears to allay concerns that such standards allow greater managerial manipulation and distort information.
Playing the Ultimatum Game with Grades: Gender, Confidence, and Performance in Public International Law

In the Ultimatum Game, two strangers share $100. One divides the money; the other accepts or rejects the division, with the caveat that rejection means neither receives any money. Playing the Ultimatum Game with money is par for the course; playing with grades is not. Given that law students value their grades highly, I hoped that negotiating grades would bring an immediacy and concreteness to the theoretical problems of negotiation in my Public International Law class. Subject to challenges posed by certain ABA rules, playing the Ultimatum Game with grades was a cheap, effective tool to explicate and explore rationality, self-interest, context, and the myriad other issues that international negotiations raise. The data I collected as part of the exercise also took me beyond my initial concern with international negotiations and law to reveal interesting connections among gender, rationality, confidence, and reality. After all was said and done, the men in the class negotiated a better deal for themselves than did the women, but the women's negotiated grades more accurately reflected their actual exam performance. Measuring negotiated grades against law school GPAs, the men in the class were not particularly overconfident. On the other hand, when measuring negotiated grades against actual exam grades in the class, the men in the class were overconfident in projecting their actual performance. The women were not particularly underconfident. This data replicates the findings of other research, although the psychological and economic scholarship as a whole is mixed on the question of men's and women's confidence and self-assessment of skills relative to actual performance.
Abstract WP230: The Yield of Echocardiography in Cancer Patients with Suspected Cardioembolic Stroke

Background: Autopsy studies demonstrate that cardioembolism from nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis (NBTE) is a common cause of stroke in patients with cancer. Echocardiography is often used to clinically diagnose NBTE, but it has unknown yield for NBTE lesions, which are typically small and difficult to detect. Methods: We identified all patients with active cancer admitted to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital from 2008 to 2010 with acute ischemic stroke who underwent transthoracic (TTE) or transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). Two neurologists independently reviewed all clinical data and classified patients as having suspected cardioembolic (CE) strokes if brain MRI showed embolic-appearing infarcts in more than one vascular territory. They also reviewed TTE and TEE reports and adjudicated whether these studies revealed a definite or possible source of stroke. Definite sources included complex aortic arch atheroma, valve vegetation, left atrial or ventricular thrombus, patent foramen ovale (PFO) with documented venous thromboembolism (VTE), severe cardiomyopathy, or cardiac tumor. Possible sources consisted of PFO without VTE, atrial septal aneurysm, dyskinetic left ventricular segment, spontaneous echo contrast, and simple aortic arch atheroma. NBTE was diagnosed if valve vegetations were seen on echocardiography, blood cultures were negative, and clinical signs of infection were absent. Results: Among 119 patients with cancer and ischemic stroke (mean age 66 [SD 13], 51% men), 99 (83%) had TTE and 16 (13%) had TEE. TTE revealed a definite source in 3 (3%) patients and a possible source in 15 (15%). Conversely, TEE revealed a definite source in 6 (38%) patients and a possible source in 5 (31%). No vegetations were seen on TTE, but 4 were discovered on TEE, all from NBTE. In 42 of 52 patients with suspected CE stroke who underwent TTE, 3 (7%) had a definite source and 8 (19%) a possible source. Eleven of these patients also underwent TEE, which demonstrated a definite or possible source in 9 (81%). Conclusions: The yield of TTE for detecting NBTE and other cardiac sources of stroke in patients with cancer is poor, but TEE may be helpful in targeted patients.
Secure Learning and Mining in Adversarial Environments [Extended Abstract]

Machine learning and data mining have become ubiquitous tools in modern computing applications and large enterprise systems benefit from its adaptability and intelligent ability to infer patterns that can be used for prediction or decision-making. Great success has been achieved by applying machine learning and data mining to the security settings for large dataset, such as in intrusion detection, virus detection, biometric identity recognition, and spam filtering. However, the strengths of the learning systems, such as the adaptability and ability to infer patterns, can also become their vulnerabilities when there are adversarial manipulations during the learning and predicting process. Considering the fact that the traditional learning strategies could potentially introduce security faults into the learning systems, robust machine learning techniques against the sophisticated adversaries need to be studied, which is referred to as secure learning and mining through this abstract. Based on the goal of secure learning and mining, I aim to analyze the behavior of learning systems in adversarial environments by studying different kinds of attacks against the learning systems. Then design robust learning algorithms to counter the corresponding malicious behaviors based on the evaluation and prediction of the adversaries' goal and capabilities. The interactions between the defender and attackers are modeled as different forms of games, therefore game theoretic analysis are applied to evaluate and predict the constraints for both participants to deal with the real world large dataset.
Hookah smoking behavior initiation in the context of Millennials.

Abstract Objectives This study aims to examine current hookah users' perceptions, attitudes, and normative beliefs regarding hookah smoking to further elucidate the rise in hookah smoking prevalence among young adults (aged 18–24 years) and reveal why hookah smoking is perceived as less harmful than other forms of tobacco consumption. Study design Qualitative. Methods Data from six focus group interviews with hookah smokers aged between 18 and 24 years were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Focus groups were evenly split between frequent and infrequent hookah users, and were predominantly composed of college students, with two groups of hookah users consisting of 18–24 year olds of non-student status. Results Hookah users shared a much larger set of positive hookah smoking behavioral beliefs as opposed to negative behavioral beliefs. Generational traits served as the overarching commonality among the behavior performance initiation determinants observed. The most notable generational trends observed were within the cultural category, which included the following millennial characteristics: autonomy, personalization, novelty appeal, convenience, globally oriented, entertainment, collaboration, health conscious, and valuing their social network. Conclusions Millennial hookah users revealed mindfulness regarding both potential negative and positive reasons stemming from continued hookah use; however, behavioral beliefs were primarily fixated on the perception that hookah smoking was a healthier alternative to cigarette smoking. Future implications for this study's findings include generating more positive ways to express these traits for young adults; policy implications include raising hookah bar age limits, implementing indoor smoking restrictions, and limiting the ease of accessibility for purchasing hookah supplies.
Marsh accretion and sediment accumulation in a managed tidal wetland complex of Delaware Bay

Abstract Wetland impoundments are created to provide ecological benefits such as water quality improvement, mosquito control, and migratory bird habitat. Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, located on the southwestern shore of the Delaware Bay, is composed of four interconnected wetland management units. Tidal inflow from Delaware Bay to Units I and IV occurs naturally, whereas flow to Units II and III has been restricted by tidal gates since the mid-1980s. To assess the accretionary status of Refuge marshes and inform an ongoing restoration, we investigated soil physical properties and developed 137 Cs and 210 Pb radiochronologies for cores collected at twelve sites. Results indicate that marsh accretion is driven by a combination of mineral sediment and organic matter accumulation, the relative proportions of which vary among and within the wetland units. Accretion rates (0.11–0.54 cm/y) were found to be significantly correlated with organic matter accumulation but not with mineral sediment accumulation. These relationships demonstrate that biotic contributions to marsh accretion, such as belowground biomass productivity, must be considered in marsh restoration strategies, in addition to the supply of mineral sediment. At eight of the sites, the contribution of mineral sediment to the total volume of the soils has decreased significantly since the early 1900s, predating the impoundment works, perhaps in association with closure of two tidal inlets by natural processes. By comparison, changes in organic soil volume were relatively small over the same time span. At seven of the sites the marsh is accreting at, to just below, the rate of local relative sea-level rise (0.34±0.03 cm/y) with potential for submergence on the long term. Additional research at the Refuge is needed to better align measurements of marsh accretion, relative sea-level from tide gauges, and wetland elevation change.
Force Transfer Characterization of a Soft Exosuit for Gait Assistance

Recently, there has been a growing interest in moving away from traditional rigid exoskeletons towards soft exosuits that can provide a variety of advantages including a reduction in both the weight carried by the wearer and the inertia experienced as the wearer flexes and extends their joints. These advantages are achieved by using structured functional textiles in combination with a flexible actuation scheme that enables assistive torques to be applied to the biological joints. Understanding the human-suit interface in these systems is important, as one of the key challenges with this approach is applying force to the human body in a manner that is safe, comfortable, and effective. This paper outlines a methodology for characterizing the structured functional textile of soft exosuits and then uses that methodology to evaluate several factors that lead to different suit-human series stiffnesses and pressure distributions over the body. These factors include the size of the force distribution area and the composition of the structured functional textile. Following the test results, design guidelines are suggested to maximize the safety, comfort, and efficiency of the exosuit.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
The Bonanza King Myth: Western Mine Owners and the Remonetization of Silver

Were congressional demands for the remonetization of silver in the 1870's triggered and supported by large-scale mining interests seeking a guaranteed market for their product? Contemporaries and historians have generally answered “yes.” Professor Weinstein revises this traditional interpretation by analyzing the actual interrelationships between American silver producers and government coinage policies.
Karyotype and Banding Pattern Analysis of Somatic Cell Chromosome in Astragalus mongolicus

Taking the root tip of seed fromAstragalus mongolicus as material,the chromosome number,karyotype and zone type of somatic cell were studied by the methods of chemical staining,producer slide,C-banding methods and technology,computer and its software measurement and so on.The results showed that the number of RTC of Astragalus mongolicus was 8,and the karyotype formula was 2n=16=2L+4M1+6M2+4S.The karyotype belonged to 2Btype;and A.sK(asymmetrical karyotype coefficient)=16.17/25.63×100%=63.09%.The total volume of chromosome was 69.0μm3.In addition,the C-banding formula was 2n=16=8m+6sm+2sm+sat.There was a satellite in the segment of short arm of chromosome 3,which would lay the foundation for identifying and utilizing Astragalus membranaceus and Astragalus mongolicus.
Insulation materials for flat conductor cables and their mechanical performances

The paper demonstrated the high and diversified performance of FCC due to insulation material qualities. The field of FCC application has been expanded into areas where no other cable was acceptable. The savings in volume and weight were made possible largely because of the electrical and mechanical qualities of the insulation materials.
Pre-season Changes in Performance in Collegiate Women Tennis Players

Purpose: This investigation was to examine preseason fitness levels and seasonal changes in fitness, serve performance, and perceived burnout in 13 NCAA Division I collegiate women tennis players. Methods: Every two weeks subjects performed a maximal serve velocity (MSV) test, and an athlete burnout questionnaire (ABQ); the mean score from the ABQ scores gives global burnout index (GBI). Subjects completed the spider agility (SA) test, the 20m shuttle run test at T1 (pre), T4 (mid), and T6 (post). Training load was quantified using the session rating of perceived exertion. Results: The 20m shuttle test revealed that aerobic capacity increased significantly (34.12 ± 4.50 to 40.15 ± 3.62 ml.kg.min; p 0.05). Conclusions: The current findings suggest that the participants improved their fitness levels as the season progressed. Therefore, the implementation of a tennis-specific conditioning program during the three month summer break is an appropriate strategy to minimize the effects of detraining.
Atom-Atom Pair Potentials

When the complexity in a chemical system results from the number of molecules or atoms in the system, the determination of the intermolecular interactions becomes of dominant interest. This point has been fully realized since the beginning of quantum chemistry by those researchers who were interested in transport phenomena in the liquid state and, in general, in thermodynamics.
P065 Information theory-based analysis of classical HLA genes

Aim In IMGT/HLA Release 3.24.0, less than 7% of the named classical HLA alleles have curated full-length gene sequences or sequences outside the antigen recognition sites (ARS). This study is to investigate genetic variants, polymorphism, SNPs and linkage disequilibrium (LD) within the entire gene region for the classical HLA genes using information theory. Methods Multiple sequence alignment was performed on full-length HLA Class I alleles (HLA-A, -B, -C) and partial-length (from intron 1 through intron 3) Class II alleles (HLA-DQB1, -DRB1) for 15,865 subjects, followed by a gene annotation pipeline. We analyzed the Shannon entropy of each nucleotide site and mutual information within each of the loci. Conditional asymmetric linkage disequilibrium (ALD) measures were employed to characterize the LD between multiallelic SNPs within a locus. Results For HLA Class I alleles, the untranslated regions generally show high entropy variation. Highly variable sites (entropy >0.01) appear most in the noncoding regions (intron 3 in HLA-A and -B, respectively; intron 4 in HLA-C); while within coding regions, the ARS regions contain the most variants. However, since multiple sequence alignment introduces gaps that are ambiguous, we considered the distribution of variants after removing sites with at least one alignment gap. Consequently, for noncoding regions, intron 5 in HLA-A and -B, respectively, and introns 3 and 4 in HLA-C show the highest entropy variation; for coding regions, ARS regions remain highest entropy variation across all five loci. The ALD measures indicate that highly associated polymorphic sites mostly reside within exons 2, 3 and 4 (ARS regions for class II). Some of these associations also showed high heterogeneity. Conclusions Non-coding regions along with the non-ARS coding regions include many informative sites and the proposed method could be utilized in allele typing, typing validation, SNP association study, as well as matching for stem cell transplant.
Examining the relationship between intercultural engagement and undergraduate students’ global perspective

This study examines the relationship between intercultural engagement and undergraduate students’ global perspective. Utilizing a cross-sectional design, six global perspective outcomes were regressed on an intercultural engagement scale and its component parts, controlling for student background characteristics and other forms of on- and off-campus engagement. Additionally, conditional effects models were employed to examine the intercultural engagement scale across separate ethnoracial and international student groups. Results demonstrate highly significant relationships between the intercultural engagement scale and five of the global perspective outcomes with relatively consistent effects across each of the components of the intercultural engagement scale. More distinct patterns were uncovered when examining specific ethnoracial and international student groups. The study concludes with a discussion of the findings for educators and practitioners interested in developing intercultural opportunities th...
Continuous Attribute Values in a Simulation Environment: Offshore Energy Production and Mid-Atlantic Beach Visitation

Abstract There is a large and growing offshore energy distance siting disamenity literature. We offer a new approach to understanding public preferences for renewable wind turbine and conventional oil platform siting, which uses an original stated-preference response choice in the form of distance rather than referendum-style willingness to pay. Distance-preference data are collected from beach visitors and analyzed in part by adapting a duration model, where “time” is modeled as distance at which utility-indifference occurs. The results show that the public consists of two highly-contrasting groups—one large group that views wind turbines as a substantial disamenity while another large group views them as an amenity. When pooled, these groups tend to wash out their impacts, revealing that average preference results suggesting that wind turbines might not be amenities or disamenities. However, when viewed in this new model, one finds that policy is much more complicated and no single siting strategy (far or close) will satisfy the public because the two main groups have largely irreconcilable preferences.
Gene mapping of the Usher syndromes.

The successful search for the Usher genes is complicated by the factors of diagnosis and genetic heterogeneity. At least four different genetic types of Usher syndrome are believed to exist. Two types have been localized: one type II to human chromosome lq and type I to chromosome 14. As more Usher genes are localized, identified, and then sequenced, a better understanding of the nature of the clinical variation of Usher syndrome will be gained.
Impact of child summertime obesity interventions on body mass index, and weight-related behaviours: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.

Introduction In previous studies, it has been found that on average, children consistently gained weight during the summer months at an increased rate compared with the 9-month school year. This contributed to an increased prevalence of overweight and obesity in children. Several obesity-related interventions have occurred during or targeting the summer months. We propose to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of obesity prevention and treatment interventions for school-age children conducted during the summer or targeting the summer months when children are not in school on their body mass index (BMI), or weight-related behaviours. Methods and analyses A literature search will be conducted by the first author (JPM) using MEDLINE/PubMed, Cochrane Library, Scopus, CINAHL, PsycINFO, EMBASE and Proquest Dissertations and Theses databases from the date of inception to present. Studies must examine interventions that address the modification or promotion of weight-related behaviours (eg, dietary patterns, eating behaviours, physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviour or sleep) and target school-age children (ages 5–18). The primary outcomes will be changes from baseline to postintervention and/or the last available follow-up measurement in weight, BMI, BMI percentile, standardised BMI or per cent body fat. Secondary outcomes will include changes in dietary intake, PA, sedentary behaviour or sleep. Risk of bias will be assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool for randomised and non-randomised studies, as appropriate. Ethics and dissemination Because this is a protocol for a systematic review, ethics approval will not be required. The findings will be disseminated via presentations at scientific conferences and published in a peer-reviewed journal. All amendments to the protocol will be documented and dated and reported in the PROSPERO trial registry. PROSPERO registration number CRD42016041750
Two-body Schrödinger wave functions in a plane-wave basis via separation of dimensions.

Using a combination of ideas, the ground and several excited electronic states of the helium atom and the hydrogen molecule are computed to chemical accuracy—i.e., to within 1–2 mhartree or better. The basic strategy is very different from the standard electronic structure approach in that the full two-electron six-dimensional (6D) problem is tackled directly, rather than starting from a single-electron Hartree-Fock approximation. Electron correlation is thus treated exactly, even though computational requirements remain modest. The method also allows for exact wave functions to be computed, as well as energy levels. From the full-dimensional 6D wave functions computed here, radial distribution functions and radial correlation functions are extracted—as well as a 2D probability density function exhibiting antisymmetry for a single Cartesian component. These calculations support a more recent interpretation of Hund’s rule, which states that the lower energy of the higher spin-multiplicity states is actuall...
The influence of physical activity on the incidence of site-specific cancers in college alumni.

The past dozen years have seen wide acceptance of epidemiologic evidence that adequate physical activity promotes physical fitness and counters tendencies toward development of coronary heart disease, a chief cause of early debilitation and premature death. But the evidence that physical activity influences cancer incidence is less clear, perhaps because cancer is a variety of diseases differing in underlying cause, age of onset, organ of involvement, induction period, and clinical course. Since exercise is a natural function of the body, its health benefits are thought to be achieved through its effects on all body systems, and accordingly it deserves serious study in relation to any effect it may have on prevention or delay in cancer occurrence.
Shaking Table Testing of Segmental Hollow-Core FRP-Concrete-Steel Bridge Columns

AbstractThis article presents dynamic tests of three damage-resistant segmental hollow-core bridge columns with posttensioned unbonded strands. One column was constructed without energy dissipaters...
Preventing Suicide in Hospital-Based Care

While much has been written about suicide and suicide prevention broadly, there is a relative lack of literature about suicide in hospital settings. As more research is conducted on this topic, a general consensus appears to be lacking with respect to the best way or ways to prevent suicide in hospitals. In this chapter, we identify proposed risk factors for suicide across different types of hospital settings and ways in which hospital-based suicide prevention is currently addressed. Special consideration is given to the use of constant observation or “sitters,” effectiveness of sitter use, and potential alternatives.
Stress states in RENi5 powders during hydrogen charging and discharging cycles

In this study, the evolution of the stress states in RENi 5 particles during hydrogen charging and discharging cycles were investigated using coupled diffusion–deformation finite-element method analyses. The results indicate that large tensile stresses, of the order of 20–30% of the modulus of elasticity, develop in the particles even in the absence of both internal and external crack-like defects. The internal and external cracks behave differently from each other during hydrogen charging and discharging cycles. Therefore, the fracture resistance of the particles containing external cracks will be different from the particles having internal cracks. The disc-shaped particles, in addition to having faster charging–discharging cycles, may offer better resistance to fracture than the spherical particles.
Phage λ Integration/Excision

Bacteriophage λ moves its viral genome into and out of the bacterial chromosome using site-specific recombination. This reaction proceeds via a complex protein–DNA assembly and requires accessory proteins encoded by both the bacteriophage and host. Recent biochemical and structural data have provided exciting insights into this process. Extrapolation of these critical observations to a complete recombination reaction constitutes the next great challenge.
More About Numbers and Equations

This chapter provides an overview of the numbers and equations available to users in Mathematica. The equation kinds can be linear, polynomial, algebraic, and transcendental equations in one or more variables as well as ordinary and partial differential equations involving one or several unknown functions of one or more variables. There are two important measures attached to numbers in Mathematica: precision, which is the total number of significant digits in x; and accuracy, which is the number of significant decimal digits to the right of the decimal point in x. It is possible to specify the form in which Mathematica displays floating point numbers. Mathematica can deal with numbers in different bases and convert values between different bases. Six numerical functions exist in Mathematica, namely, NDSolve, NIntegrate, NProduct, NRoots, NSolve, and NSum. There are seven minimum ways to approach ordinary differential equations in Mathematica: DSolve, N[ DSolve[-] ], NDSolve, the package DSolve.m, the package RungeKutta.m, series solutions, and Laplace transform methods in the package LaplaceTransform.m.
Open-Label Study of the Stability of Sublingual Nitroglycerin Tablets in Simulated Real-Life Conditions

Contemporary practice favors refilling sublingual nitroglycerin (SL NTG) every 3 to 6 months. This recommendation is based on antiquated data that does not consider the reformulated tablet and the improved manufacturing process. Our objective was to investigate the stability of SL NTG over time using simulated real-life scenarios in comparison to controlled storage conditions. This was an open-label study of 100- and 25-count commercial SL NTG bottles stored in either controlled temperature and relative humidity conditions, or carried in a pocket or purse. SL NTG potency (chemical stability) was assessed using high performance liquid chromatography and physical stability was assessed by changes in tablet weights over time through the labeled expiration date. Both chemical and physical stability of SL NTG were affected by environmental and physical factors. High temperature storage resulted in the most rapid loss of potency. Tablets carried in a pant pocket lost potency faster than those carried in a purse. Potency was also dependent on headspace of the bottle. Tablets stored in the original bottle in a temperate environment could be expected to maintained potency for more than 2 years when carried in a purse, irrespective of package size. When carried in a pant pocket, potency of a 25-count bottle was maintained for 2 years, whereas potency of a 100-count bottle fell below acceptable limits at 12 months. In conclusion, since potency is dependent on temperature, headspace, and carrying practices, frequency of SL NTG refills should be based on individual patient behavior.
Examining the Return on Investment of the Breath of Life Mobile Pediatric Asthma Clinic in a Rural Region with Small Metropolitan Statistical Areas

The current study sought to examine the return on investment (ROI) of a mobile pediatric asthma clinic in a rural region with small metropolitan statistical areas, in terms of reduced costs attribu...
An accurate approximation for the expected site frequency spectrum in a Galton–Watson process under an infinite sites mutation model

Abstract If viruses or other pathogens infect a single host, the outcome of infection often hinges on the fate of the initial invaders. The initial basic reproduction number R 0 , the expected number of cells infected by a single infected cell, helps determine whether the initial viruses can establish a successful beachhead. To determine R 0 , the Kingman coalescent or continuous-time birth-and-death process can be used to infer the rate of exponential growth in an historical population. Given M sequences sampled in the present, the two models can make the inference from the site frequency spectrum (SFS), the count of mutations that appear in exactly k sequences ( k = 1 , 2 , … , M ). In the case of viruses, however, if R 0 is large and an infected cell bursts while propagating virus, the two models are suspect, because they are Markovian with only binary branching. Accordingly, this article develops an approximation for the SFS of a discrete-time branching process with synchronous generations (i.e., a Galton–Watson process). When evaluated in simulations with an asynchronous, non-Markovian model (a Bellman–Harris process) with parameters intended to mimic the bursting viral reproduction of HIV, the approximation proved superior to approximations derived from the Kingman coalescent or continuous-time birth-and-death process. This article demonstrates that in analogy to methods in human genetics, the SFS of viral sequences sampled well after latent infection can remain informative about the initial R 0 . Thus, it suggests the utility of analyzing the SFS of sequences derived from patient and animal trials of viral therapies, because in some cases, the initial R 0 may be able to indicate subtle therapeutic progress, even in the absence of statistically significant differences in the infection of treatment and control groups.
The influence of dopaminergic medication on gait automaticity in Parkinson's disease.

Abstract Dual-tasking studies have shown that gait automaticity in Parkinson’s disease (PD) is significantly diminished. Additionally, it’s well accepted that dopaminergic medication improves single-task gait. But, how dopaminergic medication influences gait automaticity in PD has not been sufficiently understood. This study was a cross-sectional design, where sixteen subjects with PD completed single- and dual-task walking for 3 min off and on medication. Gait velocity, cadence, and stride length were measured. Kinematic variables included mean, maximum, and SD angles of bilateral hip, knee, and shoulder joints. Data were analyzed with a repeated measures ANOVA and a linear mixed effects repeated measures model. Dopaminergic medication significantly increased gait velocity (p = 0.007) and stride length (p = 0.046). After controlling for gait velocity, several kinematic variables were also improved with medication. Despite medication state, dual-tasking significantly interfered with cadence (p = 0.042), stride length (p
Pico-Grid Smart Home Energy Management System Using Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients

Residences consume a significant amount of electrical power. Unfortunately, some of it goes to waste as homeowners often unintentionally consume excessive amounts of power. Home energy management systems aid homeowners in their power consumption decisions by measuring their power consumption and presenting that information in a user-friendly format. In this paper, we propose the enhancement of the Pico-Grid Smart Home Energy Management System by using Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients. It is a consumer-grade energy management system capable of identifying loads by analyzing current draw and is distinguished from other home energy management systems by its incorporation of a novel hardware design created to ensure reliable sampling and a classifier consisting of several artificial neural networks (ANN). Each neural network corresponds to a classified device which allows the system to be trained to recognize additional devices without having to re-train the entire existing network. The classifier converts the current signal to the Mel-spaced Cepstrum domain in order to extract relevant features achieving an overall classification accuracy of 97.8% with average positive and negative predictive values of 93.2% and 98.7% respectively. This enables the system to potentially have a lower cost but higher accuracy than other similar designs that have been suggested thus far. This system aids homeowners in making energy-conscious decisions such as monitoring the energy costs of their home appliances and scheduling heavy loads during periods of low demand.
Spectral Invariance Hypothesis Study of Polarized Reflectance With the Ground-Based Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager

Many models used to represent the boundary condition for the separation of atmospheric scattering from the surface reflection in polarized remote sensing measurements, assuming that the polarized surface reflectance is spectrally neutral. To test this hypothesis, referred to the spectral invariance hypothesis, JPL’s Ground-based Multiangle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (GroundMSPI) was used to measure the polarized bidirectional reflectance factors (pBRFs) of different types of outdoor surfaces. GroundMSPI measures the linear polarization Stokes parameters ( $I$ , $Q$ , and $U$ ) at three wavebands centered at 470, 660, and 865 nm. Images of pBRF were acquired at the three wavelengths and the best-fitting slopes of pairwise spectral regressions were determined. The spectral invariance hypothesis predicts that these slopes should be unity. All region types, excluding grass, meet this criterion within 8% for all three wavelengths. Grass measurements show a large mean deviation of 31.1% from the expected slope when regressing 865-nm data against other wavelengths due to the differences in the spectral absorbance of chlorophyll. Angle of linear polarization (AoLP) analysis of cotton crops is presented as a method to isolate cases where the scattered light is dominated by single reflection within the plants from cases where multiple scattering plays a larger role. Spectral invariance is observed in those cases where specular reflection from the top surfaces of the leaves is primarily responsible for the measured polarization.
"Filler-ins" to Physicians: History of the Otolaryngology Training Program at Mayo Clinic

Abstract The first officially recognized otolaryngology resident at Mayo Clinic started training in 1908. In the following years, the residency program evolved through emerging national standards and regulations for medical education, declining and resurgent interest in the specialty, and radical changes in otolaryngology as a practice. This article details the growth of the Mayo Clinic otolaryngology residency program, often in the words of the pioneering physicians involved in the process, from “filler-ins” for the staff to today’s nationally recognized program.