cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Educational Review Cellular and Biological Therapies of Gastrointestinal Tumors: Overview of Clinical Trials

Because of the high relapse rate of resected gastrointestinal malignancies and the modest responses of metastatic disease to currently available therapies, biologic agents that harness host-tumor immunologic interactions have received increased attention. Based on promising preclinical data, current clinical trials in cellular and biologic therapies are evaluating the safety and efficacy of passive immunotherapy with tumor-reactive lymphocytes activated ex vivo and active immunotherapy with peptide, viral vector, and cellular vaccines. This review will describe the background, rationale, and experimental approach of these clinical trials. Although equally promising, antibodies, gene therapies, and antiangiogenic strategies will not be discussed.
Multiple scattering in dual-energy compton-scatter densitometry

Compton scattering, one of the fundamental processes by which X-rays and gamma-rays interact, has been used as the basis for the noninvasive determination of the electron density of bone and other tissues. The dual-energy Compton-scatter densitometer utilizes a radionuclide source and a spectrum analyzer. The electron densities of substances of known compositions were investigated using this technique, in order to assess the significance of multiple scattering in such determinations. The “air cavity” method has been used to evaluate the multiple-scatter fractions and the single-scatter fractions over the range of scattering angles, θ = 20°–90°, in cylindrical samples of diameters 3.5–6.5 cm. It is concluded that corrections for the effects of multiple scattering are essential for improving the sensitivity, accuracy, and precision of dual-energy Compton-scatter densitometry.
The Utility of the Millon Behavioral Health Inventory in the Study of Chronic Headaches

SYNOPSIS The present study evaluated the use of the Millon Behavioral Health Inventory (MBHI) in predicting response to a behavioral treatment program for headache reduction. A secondary goal was to also assess whether the MBHI could significantly differentiate among headache patients, patients with other types of chronic pain, and normal subjects. Twenty-three chronic headache sufferers were administered a behavioral treatment program which consisted of 16, one-hour weekly sessions. During the course of the treatment program, subjects were requested to keep daily records of four measures which later served as the treatment-outcome indices: (1) daily number of headaches, (2) duration of headaches, (3) intensity of headaches, (4) medications taken. Results demonstrated that a number of MBHI scales significantly predicted response to treatment. Also, it was found that the MBHI significantly differentiated the chronic headache patients from the normal controls and patients with other forms of chronic pain.
Modeling Permeation Energetics in the KcsA Potassium Channel

The thermodynamics of cation permeation through the KcsA K+ channel selectivity filter is studied from the perspective of a physically transparent semimicroscopic model using Monte Carlo free energy integration. The computational approach chosen permits dissection of the separate contributions to ionic stabilization arising from different parts of the channel (selectivity filter carbonyls, single-file water, cavity water, reaction field of bulk water, inner helices, ionizable residues). All features play important roles; their relative significance varies with the ion's position in the filter. The cavity appears to act as an electrostatic buffer, shielding filter ions from structural changes in the inner pore. The model exhibits K+ vs. Na+ selectivity, and roughly isoenergetic profiles for K+ and Rb+, and discriminates against Cs+, all in agreement with experimental data. It also indicates that Ba2+ and Na+ compete effectively with permeant ions at a site near the boundary between the filter and the cavity, in the vicinity of the barium blocker site.
Caffeine slows turn-off of calcium release in voltage clamped skeletal muscle fibers

Myoplasmic free calcium transients delta [Ca2+] were monitored with the calcium indicators antipyrylazo III and fura-2 in voltage clamped cut frog skeletal muscle fibers, in the presence and absence of 0.5 mM caffeine. Without caffeine delta [Ca2+] began to decline within a few milliseconds of fiber repolarization for pulses of all durations. In caffeine delta [Ca2+] continued to rise for 10–60 ms after 10 or 20 ms depolarizing pulses, indicating that the release of calcium from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) continued well after repolarization of transverse tubular (TT) membranes in the presence of caffeine. Caffeine also increased the peak amplitude of delta [Ca2+] for all pulses and slowed the decline of delta [Ca2+] after pulses of all durations. The rate of calcium release from the SR calculated from delta [Ca2+] showed that for 10 ms pulses in caffeine release did not turn off abruptly on repolarization but instead declined to zero with a time constant essentially the same as the time constant for inactivation of SR calcium release during depolarizing pulses in the presence or absence of caffeine. The observed loss of TT membrane potential control of SR calcium release in the presence of caffeine suggests the appearance of a significant component of cytosolic Ca2+-induced calcium release in caffeine.
Nutritional evaluation of chickpea and germinated chickpea flours

The ability of seed germination to increase the nutritional quality of chickpea was studied. Chickpea flours germinated for 0, 24 and 48 h were evaluated nutritionally by determination of protein efficiency ratio (PER), net protein ratio (NPR), digestibility and essential amino acid availability “in vivo”. A significant increase in ascorbic acid was observed during germination. PER and NPR values indicated that germinated chickpea flours compared favorably to casein. Protein digestibility decreased as germination time increased. Essential amino acid availability did not change after 24 h of germination, but a small decrease was observed after 48 h. The increase in some amino acids during germination may account for the observed increase in PER for the germinated flours. Seed germination enhanced significantly the nutritional quality of chickpea protein and substantially increased the ascorbic acid level.
A conjugate of a tumor-targeting ligand and a T cell costimulatory antibody to treat brain tumors.

T cell immunotherapy is a potential strategy for the treatment of brain tumors because it offers a high degree of specificity, the ability to extravasate into solid tumors, and the potential for eliciting a long-term protective immune response. Various approaches have been developed to overcome T cell immune tolerance to cancer, including the use of cytokines and bispecific antibodies. T cell stimulation with the proinflammatory cytokine IL-12 can elicit antitumor immunity. T cell activation can be increased using bispecific antibodies against activating molecules on the surface of T cells and a tumor antigen. We studied the effects of systemic IL-12 administration in combination with a conjugate of an anti-CD28 antibody and a ligand for the folate receptor. The high affinity folate receptor is expressed on endogenously arising choroid plexus tumors of SV11 mice, which are transgenic for large T antigen under the control of the SV40 promoter. SV11 mice are immunocompetent, yet immunologically tolerant to ...
Not Always a Straight Path: College Students’ Narratives of Heterosexual Identity Development

Research has recently begun to examine heterosexual identity development, providing preliminary evidence of variation within a sexual identity category that has frequently been conceptualized as uniform and unremarkable. The current study sought to classify and describe young adult participants’ narratives on their heterosexual identity development using Worthington et al. (2002) heterosexual identity status model. Participants included 1,051 heterosexually-identified undergraduates (632 women; 419 men) from two public universities in the western United States who provided written narratives about their sexual identity development. Responses were analyzed for levels of identity exploration and commitment, which were used to create five identity status categories. The majority of participants described identity commitment with passive exploration, with more men in this category than women. A significant subset of participants described identity commitment with active exploration, with more women in this category than men. Smaller numbers of participants described active exploration without commitment, unexplored commitment, and identity diffusion. More women were in the active exploration without commitment status than men; no gender differences emerged in the other two statuses. Participants classified into statuses with active exploration and higher commitment also evidenced higher scores on quantitative measures of sexual identity exploration and commitment, respectively. Men evidenced higher quantitative scores than women on identity commitment; there were no gender differences in the quantitative assessment of identity exploration. Findings support the existence of variations and systematic gender-based differences in young adults’ heterosexual identity development.
Effect of composition and heat treatment conditions on the tensile strength and creep resistance of SiC-based fibers

Abstract Polymer-derived SiC-based fibers with fine-diameter (∼10–15 μ m) and high strength (∼3 GPa) were prepared with carbon-rich and near-stoichiometric compositions. Fiber tensile strengths were determined after heat treatments at temperatures up to 1950 °C in non-oxidizing atmospheres and up to 1250 °C in air. The creep resistance of fibers was assessed using bend stress relaxation measurements. Fibers showed excellent strength retention after heat treatments in non-oxidizing atmospheres at temperatures up to 1700 °C for the carbon-rich fibers and up to 1950 °C for the near-stoichiometric fibers. The near-stoichiometric fibers also showed considerably better strength retention after heat treatments in air. Creep resistance of the as-fabricated fibers was greatly improved by high-temperature heat treatments. Heat-treated near-stoichiometric fibers could be prepared with ∼3 GPa tensile strengths and bend stress relaxation creep behavior which was significantly better than that reported for the Hi-Nicalon™ Type S near-stoichiometric SiC fibers.
Emotion as a thermostat: Representing emotion regulation using a damped oscillator model

The authors present in this study a damped oscillator model that provides a direct mathematical basis for testing the notion of emotion as a self-regulatory thermostat. Parameters from this model reflect individual differences in emotional lability and the ability to regulate emotion. The authors discuss concepts such as intensity, rate of change, and acceleration in the context of emotion, and they illustrate the strengths of this approach in comparison with spectral analysis and growth curve models. The utility of this modeling approach is illustrated using daily emotion ratings from 179 college students over 52 consecutive days. Overall, the damped oscillator model provides a meaningful way of representing emotion regulation as a dynamic process and helps identify the dominant periodicities in individuals' emotions.
Pleural Fluid Analysis in Chylous Pleural Effusion

Objectives Chyle is a noninflammatory, lymphocyte-predominant fluid that may cause a pleural effusion as a consequence of thoracic duct leakage into the pleural space. Although chyle is reported to have protein concentrations in the transudative range, chylous effusions are typically exudative, as defined by the standard criteria. We hypothesized that chylous effusions from a thoracic duct leak alone have low lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) concentrations due to the absence of inflammation and are lymphocyte-predominant, protein-discordant exudates. Consequently, pleural effusions that do not meet these criteria but with triglyceride concentrations of >110 mg/dL or are positive for chylomicrons should be associated with other diagnoses contributing to pleural fluid formation. Study design Retrospective. Methods The pleural fluid analyses of 876 consecutive thoracenteses were reviewed. All cases with a triglyceride concentration of >110 mg/dL or the presence of chylomicrons were retrieved. The effusions were then classified as transudates, concordant exudates, protein-discordant exudates, and LDH-discordant exudates, and according to lymphocyte predominance (>50%). The causes of these pleural effusions were determined after the review of the medical record. Results Twenty-two pleural effusions had elevated triglyceride concentrations and/or were positive for chylomicrons. Eleven effusions were lymphocyte-predominant, protein-discordant exudates, and two of these were associated with chylous ascites. The remaining effusions were transudates (n=7) or concordant exudates (n=4); all were associated with conditions known to cause pleural effusion apart from chyle leakage. Conclusion Chylous effusions caused solely by conditions known to cause chylothorax were lymphocyte-predominant, protein-discordant exudates. Protein concentrations in the transudative range or elevated LDH concentrations were associated with a coexisting condition that may impact the management of these chylous effusions.
Immunopathogenesis of hepatitis C virus infection.

HCV infection becomes persistent in many patients who are otherwise immune competent. There is increasing support for potential contribution of innate immune response and viral interference with its components to the subsequent outcome. As for the adaptive immune response, humoral immunity may be largely ineffective despite evidence for neutralizing antibody response directed to the E2 HVR region, perhaps due to rapid selection of antibody escape variants. Cellular immune response does seem to play a role in the virologic outcome during acute infection based on strong association of a sustained vigorous and multispecific antiviral CD4 and CD8 T cell response with HCV clearance during acute infection. Following clearance, vigorous CD4 T cell response to HCV is maintained for many years, whereas the memory CD8 T cell response may be maintained with variable efficiency. If unable to clear the virus quickly, the T cell response (particularly if focused) may also select for T cell escape variants that are poorly recognized by the circulating T cells or even actively inactivate them through T cell antagonism. In established chronic infection. HCV-specific T cell response is quantitatively weak, providing only minimal selection pressure for further escape mutation. Although earlier studies using conventional in vitro techniques suggest that this low-frequency T cell response may help control the virus and liver disease progression, the role and nature of these apparently defective T cells in the outcome of chronic HCV infection remains to be fully determined. In summary, much progress has been made in the field of HCV immune pathogenesis since the initial identification of HCV. Although more work is needed to define the mechanism of HCV persistence and liver cell injury, there is considerable hope as well as challenge for potential development of vaccine and immunotherapy for HCV infection (see article by Drs. Inchaupse and Feinstone). A better understanding of the relevant host and viral factors for clinical and virologic outcome, and the mechanism of selective immune defect against HCV, will be invaluable in our ability to treat the many patients infected with HCV.
Peer Monitoring and Credit Markets

A major problem for institutional lenders is ensuring that borrowers exercise prudence in the use of the funds so that the likelihood of repayment is enhanced. One partial solution is peer monitoring: having neighbors who are in a good position to monitor the borrower be required to pay a penalty if the borrower goes bankrupt. Peer monitoring is largely responsible for the successful financial performance of the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh and of similar group lending programs elsewhere. But peer monitoring has a cost. It transfers risk from the bank, which is in a better position to bear risk, to the cosigner. In a simple model of peer monitoring in a competitive credit market, this article demonstrates that the transfer of risk leads to an improvement in borrowers' welfare.
Cardiopulmonary exercise test in patients with subacute pulmonary emboli.

Abstract Objective Patients presenting with suspected pulmonary embolism (PE) may present a challenge, particularly if diagnostic testing is not immediately available or clinically not indicated (iodine allergy, pregnancy, renal dysfunction). These patients have abnormal regional gas exchange that can be recognized by a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET), which may become helpful in their evaluation. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed of outpatients evaluated for subacute exertional dyspnea of 2 to 12 weeks duration with a test for PE and CPET. A total of 108 patients met inclusion criteria. Thirty patients (27.8%) had confirmed PE. Results The patients with PE had increased nadir ventilatory equivalent ratio for carbon dioxide (VE/VCO 2 ), decreased peak oxygen uptake/predicted, and decreased end exercise saturation ( P 15%). A normal nadir VE/VCO 2 excluded PE with 100% sensitivity. By using a “flow chart strategy,” the exercise test had 92.8% sensitivity and 92.1% specificity for PE. Eight patients with PE died during follow-up (3.8 ± 4.6 years), 6 of PE-related causes. Peak VO 2 /kg was the best predictor of all-cause mortality and nadir VE/VCO 2 for PE-related mortality. There were no serious complications from any of the exercise tests. Conclusion PE may be excluded by a normal nadir VE/VCO 2 in patients presenting with subacute dyspnea. A combination of decreased peak VO 2 /kg, increased nadir VE/VCO 2 , normal breathing reserve, and exercise-induced desaturation may be sensitive and specific for PE. CPET may assist in identifying subacute PE in patients with contraindications to use of computed tomography angiography or ventilation perfusion scans.
Leveraging the synergy between industry and academia.

adiologists often feel that the anufacturers of imaging equipent are trying to gouge them, harging high prices for expensive quipment such as magnetic resoance imaging, positron emission omography, and computed toography (CT) scanners. It freuently seems that by the time new quipment has been installed, the ext upgrade has already been anounced. Just as a piece of equipent is beginning to break even, a ew $300,000 upgrade must be urchased. Thus, we are always hasing our tails trying to remain tate of the art. We sometimes foret that one of the reasons radioloists are so well compensated at resent is related to the rising use of his expensive technology and the ontinued 20:80 division of global ees between professional and techical components. As a result, our 0% has grown substantially over he past 3 decades since CT was ntroduced. The business of radiology repreents a synergistic relationship beween private practice radiologists, cademic radiologists, and manuacturers. Private practice radioloists provide the most care and herefore have the largest salaries. hey benefit from research perormed in universities, where new pplications for imaging equipent are generated, expanding the se of imaging technology. They enerally pay the highest price for his equipment. Radiologists in academia proide less care to patients and thus f
Radical endomorphisms of decomposable modules

An element of the Jacobson radical of the endomorphism ring of a decomposable module is characterized in terms of its action on the components of the decomposition. This extends to arbitrary decomposable modules a result previously known only for the special case of free modules.
Effects of human mast cell tryptase on the kinetics of blood clotting.

Mast cells have been associated with bleeding in a variety of disorders. In cutaneous mastocytosis, for example, gastrointestinal and cutaneous bleeding has been attributed to the heparin released by mast cells [1]. Skin mast cells have also been shown to prolong the bleeding time and to inhibit thrombin generation [2]. The clinical association between mast cells, bleeding, and fibrinolysis has led some investigators to propose recently that mast cells may play a physiologic role in promoting a profibrinolytic and antithrombotic state within injured tissues [3]. One possible mediator of this anticoagulant activity is mast cell tryptase [4]. The serine protease tryptase is themajor protein component of human mast cell secretory granules, where it exists in a complex with heparin proteoglycan [5]. Both heparin and tryptase are found only in mast cell granules and are tightly bound to one another under physiologic conditions [5]. Recent evidence indicates that there is a structural requirement for heparin to bridge tryptase monomers to form enzymatically active tryptase tetramers [6]. The physiologic substrate for tryptase remains unknown. There is evidence, however, that mouse mast cell tryptase exhibits anticoagulant activity in vivo and in vitro due to its ability to degrade fibrinogen [7]. Studies with human mast cell tryptase have also shown that tryptase renders fibrinogen unclottable by thrombin [8]. Because of the clear clinical correlates between mast cells and abnormalities in blood clotting, we performed these studies in order to gain further insights into the mechanisms of these clinical correlations. Specifically, we reasoned that mast cell tryptase might function as a potent anticoagulant in vitro. Therefore, the present studies were aimed at better defining the effects of mast cell tryptase on the kinetics of blood clotting in vitro.
Broad-band power amplifier using dielectric photonic bandgap structure

Two class AB GaAs field-effect transistor (FET) power amplifiers have been designed and fabricated in the 4.4-4.8 GHz range. In the first case, a dielectric PBG line was incorporated in the design to tune the second harmonic. In the second case, a 50-/spl Omega/ line is used with no harmonic tuning. The PBG structure allows broad-band harmonic tuning and is inexpensive to fabricate. A 5% improvement in power-added efficiency was achieved at the design frequency of 4.5 GHz, in both simulation and measurement.
Prolonged lipemia and pancreatitis due to extended infusion of lipid emulsion in bupropion overdose

AbstractBackground. Lipid emulsion is gaining popularity as an antidote for lipophilic drug overdose, and is generally considered safe at doses recommended for antidotal therapy. We report a case of asymptomatic pancreatitis following extended infusion lipid emulsion. Case report. A 14-year-old female presented to the emergency department actively seizing after ingesting 9 g of bupropion and unknown amounts of hydroxyzine and citalopram. She was intubated for airway protection, and gastrointestinal decontamination was performed with activated charcoal. She was treated with potassium and magnesium for a prolonged QT interval and sodium bicarbonate for metabolic acidosis and QRS complex widening. Upon transfer to the pediatric intensive care unit, she seized again, became hypotensive, and developed a junctional cardiac rhythm. A lipid emulsion bolus was recommended which improved her hypotension and conduction abnormalities. The lipid emulsion was continued for several hours and she received a total dose of...
Divided by a common degree program? Profiling online and face-to-face information science students

This study examines profiles of online and face-to-face students in a single information science school: the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Information Studies. A questionnaire was administered to 76 students enrolled in online course sections and 72 students enrolled in face-to-face course sections. The questionnaire examined student capabilities in four areas associated with success in distance education. These are: basic communication skills and access to the Internet, motivational styles, preferences for individual vs. group work, time management issues, and attitudes toward online education. Online students were more comfortable than face-to-face students communicating electronically, had better access to the Internet, and reported better typing skills. Face-to-face students reported themselves to be more reliant on class participation to stimulate their interest in a class, and were more favorably disposed to group exercises. Online students were very much more likely than face-to-face students within the same institution and degree program to believe that online education was of comparable quality to face-to-face education.
Saliency Aggregation: A Data-Driven Approach

A variety of methods have been developed for visual saliency analysis. These methods often complement each other. This paper addresses the problem of aggregating various saliency analysis methods such that the aggregation result outperforms each individual one. We have two major observations. First, different methods perform differently in saliency analysis. Second, the performance of a saliency analysis method varies with individual images. Our idea is to use data-driven approaches to saliency aggregation that appropriately consider the performance gaps among individual methods and the performance dependence of each method on individual images. This paper discusses various data-driven approaches and finds that the image-dependent aggregation method works best. Specifically, our method uses a Conditional Random Field (CRF) framework for saliency aggregation that not only models the contribution from individual saliency map but also the interaction between neighboring pixels. To account for the dependence of aggregation on an individual image, our approach selects a subset of images similar to the input image from a training data set and trains the CRF aggregation model only using this subset instead of the whole training set. Our experiments on public saliency benchmarks show that our aggregation method outperforms each individual saliency method and is robust with the selection of aggregated methods.
The Impact of Parental Incarceration on the Physical and Mental Health of Young Adults

OBJECTIVES: We investigated the relationship between parental incarceration history and young adult physical and mental health outcomes using Wave 1 and Wave 4 data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. METHODS: Dependent variables included self-reported fair/poor health and health diagnoses. The independent variable was parental incarceration history. Cross-tabulations and logistic regression models were run. RESULTS: Positive, significant associations were found between parental incarceration and 8 of 16 health problems (depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, cholesterol, asthma, migraines, HIV/AIDS, and fair/poor health) in adjusted logistic regression models. Those who reported paternal incarceration had increased odds of 8 mental and physical health problems, whereas those who reported maternal incarceration had increased odds of depression. For paternal incarceration, with the exception of HIV/AIDS, larger associations were found for mental health (odds ratios range 1.43–1.72) as compared with physical health (odds ratios range 1.26–1.31) problems. The association between paternal incarceration and HIV/AIDs should be interpreted with caution because of the low sample prevalence of HIV/AIDs. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests exposure to parental incarceration in childhood is associated with health problems in young adulthood. Extant literature suggests underlying mechanisms that link parental incarceration history to poor outcomes in offspring may include the lack of safe, stable, nurturing relationships and exposure to violence. To prevent poor health in offspring of the incarcerated, additional studies are needed to (1) confirm the aforementioned associations and (2) assess whether adverse experiences and violence exposure in childhood mediate the relationship between parental incarceration history and offspring health problems.
Transcriptional Regulation of Cidea, Mitochondrial Cell Death-inducing DNA Fragmentation Factor α-Like Effector A, in Mouse Liver by Peroxisome Proliferator-activated Receptor α and γ

Cidea (cell death-inducing DNA fragmentation factor α-like effector A), a member of a novel family of proapoptotic proteins, is expressed abundantly in the brown adipose tissue of the mouse. Although Cidea mRNA is not detectable in the mouse liver, we now show that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) α ligands Wy-14,643 and ciprofibrate increase the Cidea mRNA level in a PPARα-dependent manner, whereas Cidea induction in liver by PPARγ overexpression is PPARα independent. Increase in Cidea mRNA content in liver did not alter the expression of uncoupling protein 1 (Ucp1) gene, which regulates thermogenesis, lipolysis, and conservation of energy. Although Cidea is considered to be a proapoptotic factor, Cidea induction in liver did not result in increased apoptosis. To elucidate the mechanism by which PPARα and PPARγ regulate Cidea gene expression in the liver, we analyzed the promoter region of the Cidea gene. Three putative peroxisome proliferator response elements (PPREs) are found in the Cidea gene promoter. Transactivation, gel-shift, and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays indicated that the proximal PPRE in Cidea gene (Cidea-PPRE1 at -680/-668) is functional for both PPARα and -γ. We conclude that Cidea is a novel target gene for both PPARα and -γ in the liver where these two transcription factors utilize the same PPRE region for dual regulation. The induction of Cidea in liver with these PPARα and -γ agonists suggests a possible role for Cidea in energy metabolism and a less likely role in hepatocyte apoptosis.
Using Context-Aware Ubiquitous Learning to Support Students’ Understanding of Geometry

In this study, context-aware ubiquitous learning was used to support 4th grade students as they learn angle concepts. Context-aware ubiquitous learning was provided to students primarily through the use of iPads to access real-world connections and a Dynamic Geometry Environment. Gravemeijer and van Eerde’s (2009), design-based research (DBR) methodology was used in this study. As a systematic yet flexible methodology, DBR utilizes an iterative cyclical process of design, implementation, analysis, and revision. Using this particular DBR methodology, a local instruction theory was developed that includes a set of exemplar curriculum activities and design guidelines for the development of context-aware ubiquitous learning activities. Data collection included semi-structured clinical interviews, observations, student artefacts, video recordings and lesson reflections. This study of technology is grounded in a subject content area (mathematics) so the researchers could clearly state the advantages of using this approach in an educational context. A review of the findings indicates that context-aware ubiquitous learning proved useful in avoiding many common errors and misconceptions that students have in learning these concepts, and students demonstrated growth in their understanding of angle and angle measure beyond what is typically expected. From this study, the researchers present four design guidelines and a full set of context-aware ubiquitous activities.
Towards fish-eye camera based in-home activity assessment

Indoors localization, activity classification, and behavioral modeling are increasingly important for surveillance applications including independent living and remote health monitoring. In this paper, we study the suitability of fish-eye cameras (high-resolution CCD sensors with very-wide-angle lenses) for the purpose of monitoring people in indoors environments. The results indicate that these sensors are very useful for automatic activity monitoring and people tracking. We identify practical and mathematical problems related to information extraction from these video sequences and identify future directions to solve these issues.
Mesenchymal stem cells for intervertebral disc repair and regeneration

Low back pain secondary to degenerative intervertebral disc disease contributes to significant pain and disability in the United States. The potential to reverse intervertebral disc degeneration has driven significant interest in the development of stem cell therapy for degenerative disc disease. Early animal models have demonstrated that stem cell therapy may facilitate the reversal of the disc degeneration. The aim of this study is to review the currently available literature on MSC technology and its use in intervertebral disc repair and regeneration.
Read Lining: UHD9 Renovation

Abstract For a University of Houston downtown (UHD) campus renovation, the school's administration asked us to convert the entire ninth floor of a 1929 cotton warehouse into executive administrative offices, including those of the president, vice president, provost, and human resources department. In response to this task, we posed two primary questions: How can we combine “high-end” and “low-end” materials to alter typical expectations of how a university administrative office should and should not appear? How can we challenge assumed differences between use and appearance, part and whole—and, ultimately, between student and administrator—to produce a space that suspends hierarchical preconceptions and produces a more open “etiquette” for dialogue?
Identification of fraudulent financial statements using linguistic credibility analysis

The strategic use of deceptive language in managerial financial fraud is investigated with linguistic cues extracted from 202 publicly available financial disclosures. Those crafting fraudulent disclosures use more activation language, words, imagery, pleasantness, group references, and less lexical diversity than non-fraudulent ones. Writers of fraudulent disclosures may write more to appear credible while communicating less in actual content. A parsimonious model with Naive Bayes and C4.5 achieved the highest classification accuracy. Results support the potential use of linguistic analyses by auditors to flag questionable financial disclosures and to assess fraud risk under Statement on Auditing Standards No. 99.
Epizootiology of Amblyospora stimuli (Microsporidiida: Amblyosporidae) infections in field populations of a univoltine mosquito, Aedes stimulans (Diptera: Culicidae), inhabiting a temporary vernal pool.

Abstract The epizootiology of the microsporidium Amblyospora stimuli was studied in natural populations of a univoltine mosquito, Aedes stimulans, inhabiting a temporary vernal pool over an 18-year period. The yearly prevalence of benign oenocytic infections in adult females was variable, ranging from 1.0 to 9.6% (mean = 5.1%). The yearly prevalence of transovarially transmitted meiospore infections in larval populations was consistently lower but less variable, ranging from 1.3 to 5.9% (mean = 3.5%). Meiospore infections in F1-generation larvae were significantly correlated with infections in parental-generation females, thus suggesting that larval infection rates could be substantially increased if methods were available to facilitate transmission of A. stimuli to a larger portion of the female population via inundative or inoculative release of infected copepods. No correlation was found when infections in filial-generation adult females were measured against meiospore infections in larvae from the preceding year. Analysis of yearly prevalence data using Fine's Fundamental Vertical Transmission Equation revealed low rates of horizontal transmission from the intermediate copepod host to female larvae in most years, ranging from 0.1 to 8.7% (mean = 3.1%). A. stimuli is enzootic, persists at a very low level, and has minimal impact on Ae. stimulans populations at this site. The low incidence rate of horizontal transmission to larvae appears to be due largely to a paucity of copepods and is a major factor that limits the abundance and subsequent proliferation of A. stimuli in Ae. stimulans populations at this locale. Results support the view that host–parasite cospeciation is an important mechanism of evolution in this group of mosquito/copepod microsporidia.
Personality Disorder Comorbidity in Treatment-Seeking Men with Hypersexual Disorder

Consideration of Hypersexual Disorder as a diagnosable condition has led to recognition that various aspects of its psychopathology, including comorbidity, are largely unknown. Comorbidity with personality disorders (PDs) has been hypothesized, but the few studies assessing PD comorbidity are limited by sample size, recruitment methods, and varying definitions of hypersexuality. This study examines the presence of confirmed PD diagnoses among 132 men seeking treatment for Hypersexual Disorder, as diagnosed by the criteria proposed for DSM-5. The SCID-II Personality Questionnaire, a screening measure for DSM-IV-TR PDs, suggested potential disorders in 92% of the sample. However, only 17% of the sample met full criteria for a PD based on the SCID-II interview. Thus, whereas personality-based difficulty appears commonplace in these men, the broad, severe dysfunction required for a PD diagnosis does not. This prevalence is higher than expected for community samples, but lower than for either general clinic sa...
Analysis of the Lung Microbiome in the “Healthy” Smoker and in COPD

Although culture-independent techniques have shown that the lungs are not sterile, little is known about the lung microbiome in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We used pyrosequencing of 16S amplicons to analyze the lung microbiome in two ways: first, using bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) to sample the distal bronchi and air-spaces; and second, by examining multiple discrete tissue sites in the lungs of six subjects removed at the time of transplantation. We performed BAL on three never-smokers (NS) with normal spirometry, seven smokers with normal spirometry (“heathy smokers”, HS), and four subjects with COPD (CS). Bacterial 16 s sequences were found in all subjects, without significant quantitative differences between groups. Both taxonomy-based and taxonomy-independent approaches disclosed heterogeneity in the bacterial communities between HS subjects that was similar to that seen in healthy NS and two mild COPD patients. The moderate and severe COPD patients had very limited community diversity, which was also noted in 28% of the healthy subjects. Both approaches revealed extensive membership overlap between the bacterial communities of the three study groups. No genera were common within a group but unique across groups. Our data suggests the existence of a core pulmonary bacterial microbiome that includes Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, Prevotella, Fusobacterium, Haemophilus, Veillonella, and Porphyromonas. Most strikingly, there were significant micro-anatomic differences in bacterial communities within the same lung of subjects with advanced COPD. These studies are further demonstration of the pulmonary microbiome and highlight global and micro-anatomic changes in these bacterial communities in severe COPD patients.
Infection induced by oral administration of attenuated poliovirus to persons possessing homotypic antibody.

Four of five individuals possessing homotypic antibody in titers of 8 to 64 were infected on being fed Type III (Leon KP-34) poliovirus attenuated by Sabin by passage through tissue culture. None of the infected subjects or controls showed any evidence of illness which could be attributed to virus infection. There was no evidence of spread of infection to any of the control adult wardmates of the experimental subjects, although the two groups were in close contact: none of the controls excreted virus, none showed any antibody shift. One control who had no Type III antibodies at the start of the experiment was still antibody-negative on the 63rd day of the experiment. Three of the four individuals who became infected had naturally acquired-Type III antibodies; the other had antibodies induced by formalinized vaccine. Virus excretion in the stool was of short duration (7 to 13 days) in the three with natural antibodies, and lasted at least 6 weeks after feeding in the vaccinated child. Virus in the throat was detected only in the two persons receiving the larger virus dose (107.5 TCD50). In them it was present in small amounts between the 2nd and 6th day after feeding. No virus was detected in the blood of any of the infected individuals. The antibody responses of the four infected individuals were variable. There was no clear correlation with virus dosage, amount of virus excretion in the stools, or presence of virus in the throat. Only the child whose neutralizing antibodies were "Salk" vaccine induced showed a marked CF response. The virus excreted by two of the individuals who became infected, as tested in the 2nd tissue culture passage by monkey inoculation, was slightly more neurotropic than the virus which was ingested. Virus excreted by one of these individuals behaved as a virulent strain when tested by the in vitro plaque virulence test, while that isolated from the other had the characteristics of an attenuated strain in this test.
Differences in cortical response to acupressure and electroacupuncture stimuli

FMRI studies focus on sub-cortical effects of acupuncture stimuli. The purpose of this study was to assess changes in primary somatosensory (S1) activity over the course of different types of acupuncture stimulation. We used whole head magnetoencephalography (MEG) to map S1 brain response during 15 minutes of electroacupuncture (EA) and acupressure (AP). We further assessed how brain response changed during the course of stimulation. Evoked brain response to EA differed from AP in its temporal dynamics by showing clear contralateral M20/M30 peaks while the latter demonstrated temporal dispersion. Both EA and AP demonstrated significantly decreased response amplitudes following five minutes of stimulation. However, the latency of these decreases were earlier in EA (~30 ms post-stimulus) than AP (> 100 ms). Time-frequency responses demonstrated early onset, event related synchronization (ERS), within the gamma band at ~70-130 ms and the theta band at ~50-200 ms post-stimulus. A prolonged event related desynchronization (ERD) of alpha and beta power occurred at ~100-300 ms post-stimulus. There was decreased beta ERD at ~100-300 ms over the course of EA, but not AP. Both EA and AP demonstrated conditioning of SI response. In conjunction with their subcortical effects on endogenous pain regulation, these therapies show potential for affecting S1 processing and possibly altering maladaptive neuroplasticity. Thus, further investigation in neuropathic populations is needed.
REF: resource elasticity fairness with sharing incentives for multiprocessors

With the democratization of cloud and datacenter computing, users increasingly share large hardware platforms. In this setting, architects encounter two challenges: sharing fairly and sharing multiple resources. Drawing on economic game-theory, we rethink fairness in computer architecture. A fair allocation must provide sharing incentives (SI), envy-freeness (EF), and Pareto efficiency (PE). We show that Cobb-Douglas utility functions are well suited to modeling user preferences for cache capacity and memory bandwidth. And we present an allocation mechanism that uses Cobb-Douglas preferences to determine each user's fair share of the hardware. This mechanism provably guarantees SI, EF, and PE, as well as strategy-proofness in the large (SPL). And it does so with modest performance penalties, less than 10\% throughput loss, relative to an unfair mechanism.
Prevalence Of Conventional Versus Non-conventional Cardiovascular Risk Factors In Patients Following Percutaneous Coronary Intervention For Acute Coronary Syndrome

Traditional risk factors often fail to correlate with event incidence, thus there is a need for novel risk assessment in order to predict events and guide therapy in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Peripheral endothelial dysfunction (PED) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can both predict cardiovascular events, yet the prevalence of PED and OSA in patients hospitalized for ACS following PCI is unknown. Patients in the USA (n=65) and Qatar (n=352) were consented, enrolled following PCI for ACS, and underwent endothelial function testing (EndoPAT) on day 5 and home OSA testing (WatchPAT) following PCI. Baseline demographics at the time of patient admission showed only a modest prevalence of traditional CVD risk factors (Figure 1). The prevalence of PED (defined by EndoPAT 5; Figure 1). These functional, non-traditional risk factors were significantly more prevalent (p 30 (43%), diabetes (36%), smoking (30%), CHF (1%), or family history of CVD (37%). Prevalence of both PED and OSA was present in 57% of participants. The current study demonstrated a higher prevalence of PED and OSA following ACS than the traditional CVD risk factors, underscoring their potential value for patient management. Detection and treatment of these functional risk factors may predict events and guide therapy in patients with ACS.
Beyond Hidden Curriculum

(1984). Beyond Hidden Curriculum? Journal of Curriculum Studies: Vol. 16, No. 1, pp. 29-36.
TECHNIQUES FOR MANIPULATING CHROMOSOMAL REARRANGEMENTS AND THEIR APPLICATION TO DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER. II. TRANSLOCATIONS

ABSTRACT Translocations have long been valued for their segregational properties. This paper extends the utility of translocations by considering recombinational derivatives of pairs of simple reciprocal translocations. Three major derivative structures are noted. One of these derivatives is suitable for use in half-tetrad experiments. A second should find use in recombining markers with translocation breakpoints. The third is an insertional-tandem duplication: it has a section of one chromosome inserted into a heterologue with a section of the latter chromosome tandemly repeated about the breaks of the insert. All of these structures are contained in "constellations" of chromosomes that regularly segregate aneuploid-1 products (informationally equivalent to nonrecombinant adjacent-1 segregants) for one of the parental translocations but do not segregate euploid products. This is in contrast to the parental T 1 / T 2 constellations which segregate euploid products but not aneuploid-1 products. Methods are described for selecting translocation recombinants on the basis of this dichotomy. Several examples of translocation recombinants have been recovered with these techniques, and the recombination frequencies seem to be consistent with those observed for crossovers between inversion breakpoints. Recombinant chromosomes tend to disjoin, but it is observed that the tendency may vary according to the region involved in the recombination, and it is suggested that this difference reflects a difference in chiasmata terminalization times. Special consideration is given to insertional-tandem duplications. Large insertional-tandem duplications are useful in cytogenetic screens. Small insertional-tandem duplications are useful in gene dosage studies and other experiments that require an insert from one chromosome to another. Large duplications can be deleted to form small duplications. To generate a small insert for a specified region, it is only necessary to have one translocation with a breakpoint flanking the region of interest. The second translocation can have a breakpoint quite far from the region: an insertional-tandem duplication containing the region that has one closely flanking breakpoint can be deleted to create a smaller duplication that has two closely flanking breakpoints.