cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hyperthermia impairs liver mitochondrial function in vitro.

The effects of temperature on the relationships among the rates of pyruvate carboxylation, O2 uptake (J o), oxidative phosphorylation (J p), and the free energy of ATP hydrolysis (G p) were studied...
Perianal lymphoma in a heterosexual and nonimmunocompromised patient: report of a case and review of the literature.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to report a rare case of anorectal pathology. METHODS: We report a case of perianal lymphoma in a nonimmunocompromised, heterosexual patient and review the literature. RESULTS: A 67-year-old white male was found to have an ulcerated posterior anal mass. Biopsy revealed large cell lymphoma, B cell type, immunoblastic. There was no disseminated disease. The patient denied any homosexual activity and was HIV negative. There was complete resolution with chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone), and he remained disease free for six years. CONCLUSIONS: Rare anorectal pathology may mimic common conditions. Biopsies should be taken to rule out malignancy.
Rearing Stored-Product Insects for Laboratory Studies: Lesser Grain Borer, Granary Weevil, Rice Weevil, Sitophilus zeamais, and Angoumois Grain Moth

Cultures of Rhyzopertha dominica (F.), lesser grain borer; Silophilus granaries (L.), granary weevil; S. oryzne (L.), rice weevil; S. zeamais Motschulsky; and Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier), Angoumois grain moth, were reared in a room maintained at 80±2°F and 55±5% relative humidity on Ramona wheat contained in gallon jars. The moisture of wheat used as media was adjusted to contain 13±0.3% moisture content. Systematic rotation of the lesser grain borer was based on food consumption; rotation of cultures of the other species was based on the age of insects in each. A 30-ml measure of lesser grain borer adults (approximately 9000 live insects) emptied onto 2 quarts of wheat resulted in an average of 29,000 insects per jar in 8 weeks Parent stock of Silophilus spp. was left on 2/½ quarts of media I week, and the same stock was used for 3 consecutive weeks to establish new cultures. Starting with a 40-ml measure of granary weevil adults (approximately 7000), cultures of this species yielded an average of 10,000 insects in 7 weeks; cultures started with a 27-ml measure of the rice weevil (approximately 5200) and a 30ml measure of S . zeamais (approximately 5200) yielded an average of 12,000 insects in 6 weeks. Adult progeny of the Angoumois grain moth began emerging during the third week after 300 moths were placed on 2½pints of wheat. Emergence reached its peak 5 weeks after initial infestation, and an average of 2850 moths was produced in each culture.
THE GEOGRAPHIC LITERATURE ON AGING AND OLD AGE: AN INTRODUCTION

(1984). THE GEOGRAPHIC LITERATURE ON AGING AND OLD AGE: AN INTRODUCTION. Urban Geography: Vol. 5, No. 3, pp. 262-272.
Interstitial lung disease in systemic sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis is a multisystem disorder of unknown etiology and involves organ systems such as the skin, peripheral vasculature, gastrointestinal tract, kidney, heart, and the lungs is observed quite frequently. In this review, we discuss the development of interstitial lung disease, one of the common pulmonary manifestations and a major cause of mortality and morbidity in this disorder. It is, however, under-recognized and diagnosed late in the course of the illness. Early use of pulmonary function tests followed by bronchoalveolar lavage in appropriate cases helps in early diagnosis. Recent studies emphasize the role of various profibrotic and inflammatory cytokines both locally in the lung and systemically in its pathogenesis. Treatment is helpful in arresting the progression if initiated early. Cyclophosphamide with or without corticosteroids given orally or as intravenous pulse may be helpful.
Effects of Preblood-Meal Sugar on Sugar Seeking and Upwind Flight by Gravid and Parous Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae)

Sugar seeking and upwind flight of gravid and parous female Aedes aegypti L.) was measured by their attraction to honey in a dual-port airflow olfactometer at selected time intervals after a blood meal. Comparisons were made between pre-bloodmeal sugar-fed and unfed females. Sugar-fed females had greater total energy reserves, mostly because of elevated lipid levels. Gravid mosquitoes in both groups showed a strong tendency to fly upwind. This appears to be a pre-ovipositional response. Gravid female orientation to honey was greater in unfed females than in sugar-fed females. After oviposition, parous females became more strongly attracted to honey, if their honey response was not already high.
Association between ACE Gene of Men of Han Nationality in Northern China and the Effects of the HiHiLo Training

Objective:To explore the association between Insertion/Deletion polymorphism of the angiotensin converting enzyme(ACE) gene and the effects of HiHiLo(living at high altitude-exercise at high altitude-training at low altitude) training.Method:Seventy-one healthy men of Han nationality in northern China underwent HiHiLo training for 4 weeks.Training programme was as follows: exposure in hypoxic environment(14.5%~14.8%O2,10h/day),three times hypoxic training per week(15.4%O2),and training at sea level.VO2max and Haemogram were measured before and after the protocol,and the ACE gene I/D polymorphism was detected by PCR.Result:The findings indicated that the frequency of genotypes in the subjects was in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.No significant differences were in the baseline VO2max、VO2max/W、RBC、HB and HCT among groups.VO2max、VO2max/W、RBC、HB and HCT all increased more significantly in total and II、ID after training than those before the training(P0.01),but no significant changes showed in GG(P0.05) except HCT.Conclusion:The present study suggested that HiHiLo could be helpful for developing aerobic ability.Moreover,men carrying II and ID probably were more sensitive to the hypoxic training than those carrying DD.
Deliberations on the Development of an Intercultural Competence Curriculum.

Committed to developing an institution-wide intercultural competence curriculum for master’s-level students preparing for international careers, a team of nine professors from across disciplines deliberated for a year on their fundamental understandings of intercultural competence and what it would mean to facilitate the development of that competence in students. This article recounts the team’s philosophical debates related to intercultural competence: definitions, effective methods of teaching, intersectionality of identities, Western bias in the literature, power and inequity, and the role of language learning. The deliberations became the foundation for an institution-wide curriculum, focused on helping graduates to be not only effective workers and managers in multicultural settings, but also to be leaders in social change. This article shares the conversations and considerations of the planning process and the breadth and emphasis of the curriculum that emerged. Reflections on students’ learning an...
Being the younger child in a large African Family: a study of birth order as a risk factor for poor health using the demographic and health surveys for 18 countries

One hundred eighty six nations have adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), one of which, SDG 3.2, aims to reduce under-5 mortality to 25 deaths per thousand in all countries by 2030. Achieving this goal is daunting for many African countries, where child mortality remains high. Research around the world and over time has shown an association between birth order and mortality, with later born children (of higher “birth order”) generally having higher mortality, in addition to having less education and fewer health services. We aim to investigate how child mortality and nutritional status vary by birth order in Africa. We obtained data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) from 18 African countries, one survey in each of the following decades: 1986–1995, 1996–2005, and 2006–2015. We examined mortality for two groups: ages 1–4 and 5–14, using a Cox proportional hazards model. We then examined 4 separate nutritional outcomes for young children using logistic regression. Nutritional outcomes are stunting, low weight, consuming fewer than 4 food groups in the past 24 h, and consuming any fruits or vegetables in that period. Analyses control for country and characteristics of the household, mother, and child. Birth order is significantly related to mortality for both age groups. On average, there is a 13 % increase in mortality risk for each increase in birth order for children ages 1–4, and a 10 % increase in children ages 5–14. Similarly, we find that a higher birth order child is significantly more likely to be stunted (OR 1.08) or of low weight (OR 1.06). Higher birth order children are significantly more likely to consume fewer food groups (OR 1.11) and less often eat fruits and vegetables (OR 1.09). Birth order is significantly related to mortality and nutritional status in large African families, with later born children having poorer outcomes. These data suggest that increased attention to family planning initiatives and targeted nutritional interventions provide clear strategies for meeting the child mortality and nutritional status Sustainable Development Goals in African countries.
Understanding the mycobiota of maize from the highlands of Guatemala, and implications for maize quality and safety

Abstract Maize is a staple crop in Guatemala, especially in the rural regions where it is consumed in high amounts. Given that traditional pre- and post-harvest practices lead to exposure to the environmental surroundings where pests and microorganisms may be present, maize quality and safety can be compromised severely. In order to assess the potential degree of risk, an exploratory study involving maize mycobiota from six farms from Huehuetenango, Guatemala was conducted. DNA was extracted from the maize samples, and the ITS1 region was subjected to Illumina sequencing. This survey identified 52 fungal taxa in the 90-day maize storage period. For the samples where the maize moisture content exceeded 20%, a high yeast content was observed which can reflect spoilage during storage. A significant amount of Fusarium and Aspergillus – mycotoxin-producing molds – was found, representing a potential for mycotoxin contamination. This indicates a plausible health risk in a region where maize represents a significant portion of the diet. Potential maize pathogens in the genera Acremonium and Cladosproium, and Stenocarpella maydis, were also common. Results from this study can help better understand the potential health-risk scenario in the Highlands of Guatemala if poor grain handling practices are adopted.
The utility of hepatic artery velocity in diagnosing patients with acute cholecystitis

To test the diagnostic performance of elevated peak systolic hepatic arterial velocity (HAv) in the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis. 229 patients with an ultrasound (US) performed for right upper quadrant (RUQ) pain were retrospectively reviewed. 35 had cholecystectomy within 10 days of ultrasound and were included as test subjects. 47 had normal US and serology and were included as controls. Each test patient US was reviewed for the presence of gallstones, gallbladder distention, sludge, echogenic pericholecystic fat, pericholecystic fluid, gallbladder wall thickening, gallbladder wall hyperemia, and reported sonographic Murphy sign. Demographic, clinical, and hepatic artery parameters at time of original imaging were recorded. Acute cholecystitis at pathology was the primary outcome variable. 21 patients had acute cholecystitis and 14 had chronic cholecystitis by pathology. For patients who went to cholecystectomy, HAv ≥100 cm/s to diagnose acute cholecystitis was more accurate (69%) than the original radiology report (63%), the presence of gallstones (51%), and sonographic Murphy sign (50%). Statistically significant predictors of acute cholecystitis included HAv ≥100 cm/s (p = 0.008), older age (p = 0.012), and elevated WBC (p = 0.002), while gallstones (p = 0.077), hepatic artery resistive index (HARI) (p = 0.199), gallbladder distension (p = 0.252), sludge (p = 0.147), echogenic fat (p = 0.184), pericholecystic fluid (p = 0.357), wall thickening (p = 0.434), hyperemia (p = 0.999), and sonographic Murphy sign (p = 0.765) were not significantly correlated with acute cholecystitis compared to chronic cholecystitis. HAv ≥100 cm/s is a useful objective parameter that may improve the performance of US in the diagnosis of acute cholecystitis.
KRAS mutation of extraovarian implants of serous borderline tumor: prognostic indicator for adverse clinical outcome

In contrast to non-invasive extraovarian implants, invasive implants of ovarian serous borderline tumor/atypical proliferative serous tumor are associated with adverse outcome and have been reclassified as low-grade serous carcinoma. Mutations of KRAS and/or BRAF have been reported in up to 50% of serous borderline tumor/atypical proliferative serous tumor. We investigated KRAS and BRAF mutation frequencies in the two types of implants of serous borderline tumor/atypical proliferative serous tumor in correlation with clinical outcome. Forty-two implants of serous borderline tumor from 39 patients were included (invasive implants/low-grade serous carcinoma, n=20; non-invasive implants, n=22). KRAS mutation was found in 12 of 20 invasive implants (60%) and 3 of 22 non-invasive implants (14%). BRAF V600E mutation was found in 1 of 22 non-invasive implants (5%) and none in invasive implants (0%). Invasive implants were more frequently associated with higher stage disease. Nine of 14 patients (64%) with KRAS mutation were found to have stage IIIC disease, while 5 of 24 patients (20%) without the mutation had stage IIIC disease. Patients with invasive implants had higher recurrence rate compared to those with non-invasive implants (60 vs 14 %, P=0.0003, log-rank test) and worse disease-specific survival (P=0.0008, log-rank test). Regardless of the histological subtypes, patients with KRAS mutation positive implants had significantly higher recurrence rate than those without the mutation (71 vs 21%, P=0.0021, log-rank test) and an unfavorable disease-specific survival (P=0.0104, log-rank test). In conclusion, compared to those with non-invasive implants, patients with invasive implants present with higher stage of the disease, higher recurrence rate and worse survival. KRAS mutation, but not BRAF V600E mutation, is significantly associated with invasive implants of serous borderline tumor. Regardless of the histological subtypes of the implants, KRAS mutation is a significant prognostic indicator for high risk of tumor recurrence and worse disease-specific survival.
SITA-Standard perimetry has better performance than FDT2 matrix perimetry for detecting glaucomatous progression.

Purpose The Humphrey Matrix (FDT2) may be more sensitive in detecting glaucomatous visual field loss than SITA standard automated perimetry (SAP) performed on the Humphrey Field Analyzer (HFA). Therefore, FDT may be a good candidate to determine disease progression in patients with glaucoma. Our aim was to test the hypothesis that automated perimetry using the FDT2 would be equal to, or more effective than, HFA SITA-Standard, in identifying glaucomatous progression. Methods One hundred and twenty patients with glaucoma were tested twice at baseline and every 6 months for 4 years with HFA SITA-Standard and FDT2. FDT2 values were standardised to HFA SAP values. We used pointwise linear regression (PLR) over the full data series to identify glaucomatous progression and generated an array of results using three different criteria: (1) three or more clustered test locations progressing, (2) three or more non-clustered test locations progressing and (3) total number of progressing test locations. We compared HFA SAP and FDT2 for the number of locations signalled by the PLR detection algorithm. Results Regardless of the criteria, HFA SAP with SITA-Standard testing detected visual field progression at a higher rate than the FDT2 overall (P Conclusion HFA SAP identifies glaucomatous visual field progression at a rate at least as high if not higher than FDT2.
The utility of animal behavior studies in natural resource management.

On the Ground • Although research on the behavior of individual animals has been growing in recent years, the role that individual variation among animals may play in the outcome of species interactions in nature may be somewhat overlooked in natural resource management. Recognizing potential implications of individual behavioral variation can aid in developing more cost-effective and sustainable management techniques. Four illustrative examples are provided. • Livestock foraging behaviors are important to understand, as they affect an animal'’s ability to locate and identify forage with nutritional qualities required for optimal growth. Studying the behavior of individual animals can help livestock producers anticipate and influence livestock grazing patterns to increase efficiency and productivity. • Sage-grouse populations have declined dramatically in many areas, and managers are required to consider their needs in all management decisions where the species persists. Sage-grouse exhibit complex mating, nesting, and migratory behaviors that are important to recognize for management to be successful. • Mountain lions were generally assumed to prey mainly upon mule deer, but recent studies have found that individual lions may specialize on alternate prey such as feral horses or bighorn sheep. The Bureau of Land Management spends millions of dollars each year to manage feral horse populations. Revelations surrounding prey switching in individual mountain lions may support management goals in which feral horse predation is occurring but may hinder bighorn sheep translocation efforts by wildlife managers. • Many plants important to land managers, including grasses, shrubs, and trees, are dispersed by granivorous rodents that store seeds in scattered caches, and a growing body of literature reveals that the majority of seedling recruitment for some of these species is attributable to scatter-hoarding by rodents. This relationship can be utilized for restoration applications, and variation in seed preferences among individual animals may be valuable in this regard.
Photodynamic Therapy in Ocular Oncology

Although introduced for the treatment of maculopathies, photodynamic therapy (PDT) is now largely used in some eye cancers treatment. The selective tissue damage with PDT is achieved by sequestration of the photosensitizer in the target tissue and focal activation of the photosensitizer by low energy directed light. In this way, it is possible to achieve the destruction of the tumor tissue by safeguarding the surrounding healthy structures. Our study describes the clinical uses and efficacy of photodynamic therapy in ocular oncology.
Overcoming Poletown: County of Wayne v. Hathcock, Economic Development Takings, and the Future of Public Use

County of Wayne v. Hathcock is an important step forward in public use takings law. The Michigan Supreme Court was right to overturn its notorious 1981 Poletown decision and forbid condemnations that transfer property to private parties solely on the grounds that the new owners will contribute to economic development. Poletown was the best known and most widely criticized decision justifying a nearly unlimited condemnation power. As the Poletown case dramatically demonstrates, the economic development rationale is a virtual blank check for eminent domain abuse for the benefit of private parties. Poletown upheld a condemnation as a result of which 4200 people were uprooted so that General Motors could build a new factory in Detroit. Although GM and the City of Detroit promised that the new plant would create over 6000 jobs for the community, in reality the new plant employed less than half that many workers. By destroying hundreds of homes and numerous businesses, churches, and other institutions, the Poletown condemnations very likely inflicted more economic harm than they created benefits. Economic development takings are highly vulnerable to such abuse for three interrelated reasons: the economic development rationale can justify almost any condemnation that benefits a private business; economic development takings rarely receive adequate scrutiny through the political process because of their nontransparent nature; and the absence of binding legal obligations on the new owners to actually produce the promised economic benefits severely exacerbates the danger of interest group manipulation. Although the Hathcock case will help curb eminent domain abuse, it is not a panacea. Hathcock still permits condemnations that transfer property to private parties in three sets of circumstances: public necessity of the extreme sort, situations where the public retains some control over the condemned property, and cases where condemnation is justified by facts of independent public significance rather than by the new owners' planned use for the property. All three of these scenarios, particularly the last two, are vulnerable to manipulation and abuse. Hathcock's third category is particularly problematic. It is intended to protect blight condemnations, which historically have often been used to benefit politically influential developers at the expense of the poor and ethnic minorities.
Adding the Team into T1 Translational Research: A Case Study of Multidisciplinary Team Science in the Evaluation of Biomarkers of Prostate Cancer Risk and Prognosis.

Background: Given translational research challenges, multidisciplinary team science is promoted to increase the likelihood of moving from discovery to health effect. We present a case study documenting the utility of multidisciplinary team science in prostate cancer tissue biomarker validation. Methods: We used primary data generated by a team consisting of a pathologist, cancer biologists, a biostatistician, and epidemiologists. We examined their contributions by phase of biomarker evaluation to identify when, through the practice of team science, threats to internal validity were recognized and solved. Next, we quantified the extent of bias avoided in evaluating the association of Ki67 (immunohistochemistry), stromal cell telomere length (fluorescence in situ hybridization), and microRNA (miRNA) (miR-21, miR-141, miR-221; quantitative RT-PCR) with prostate cancer risk or recurrence in nested case–control studies. Results: Threats to validity were tissue storage time (Ki67, miRNA) and laboratory equipment maintenance (telomeres). Solutions were all in the data analysis phase and involved using tissue storage-time specific cutpoints and/or batch-specific cutpoints. Bias in the regression coefficient for quantiles of each biomarker ranged from 24% to 423%, and the coefficient for the test for trend ranged from 15% to 910%. The interpretation of the associations changed as follows: Ki67, null to positive; stromal cell telomere length, null to positive; miR-21 and miR-141 remained null; miR-221, weak to moderate inverse. Conclusions: In this case study, we documented the inferential benefits of multidisciplinary team science when the team’s collaboration and coordination led to the identification of threats to validity and the implementation of appropriate solutions.
Can reporting more lead to less? The role of metrics in assessing liver transplant program performance

Appropriate metrics for performance analysis is an active topic of debate within the transplant community. This study explores current proposals on metric expansion as well as potential metrics and prospective collaborations that have not received widespread discussion within the transplant community. The premature introduction of additional, nonvalidated metrics risks behaviors that may undermine donor utilization and patient access to transplantation.
Abstract 557: The Effect of Dietary Fat and Carbohydrate on the Metabolism of HDL Subspecies Containing ApoE in Humans

Background: The effect of diet on the metabolism of HDL subspecies defined by protein content remains undetermined. ApoE forms subspecies on HDL with unique metabolic properties. HDL containing apo...
Authoritarianism, Attitudes toward Blindness, and Managers: Implications for the Employment of Blind Persons:

Some employers express positive attitudes toward the capabilities of blind persons, yet are unwilling to hire them. One factor which may help to explain this reluctance is the authoritarian persona...
Quantification of Mandibular Morphology in Pierre Robin Sequence to Optimize Mandibular Distraction Osteogenesis.

Background:Mandibular distraction osteogenesis (MDO) is the primary surgical intervention to treat airway obstruction in Pierre Robin sequence (PRS). Current morphologic studies of PRS mandibles do...
Advances in hereditary research of primary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis(HLH)is a life-threatening syndrome characterized by multiple organs infiltrations of lymphocytes and histiocytes with proliferation and hemophagocytic activity,and pancytopenia.HLH can be classified as either primary or secondary.Primary HLH includes familial HLH and immune deficiency syndromes associated HLH.Until now, familial HLH is classified into five types, whereas,immune deftciencv svndromes associated HLH is divided into Chediak-Higashi syndrome, GrisceUi syndrome 2,research of primary HLH. screening genetic defects and researches in functions of target genes and coding proteins, the effect of these genes and proteins in pathogenesis of HLH could be known further. Key words: Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis; Primary; Gene mutation
Popliteal artery injuries. Less ischemic time may lead to improved outcomes.

Abstract Background Popliteal artery injuries are rare. They have high amputation rates. Objectives: to report our experience, identify predictors of outcome; mechanism of injury (MOI), Mangled Extremity Severity Score (MESS) score and length of ischemic time. We hypothesized that ischemic time as close to six hours results in improved outcomes. Methods Retrospective 132-month study. All popliteal artery injuries. Urban Level I Trauma Center. Outcome Measures: MOI, ISS, MESS, ischemic time, risk factors for amputation, role of popliteal venous injuries, and limb salvage. Statistical analysis: univariate and multivariate. Results 76 patients – 59 (76.1%) males and 17 (22.4%) females. MOI: penetrating – 54 (71%). MESS for penetrating injuries – 5.8 ± 1.5, blunt injuries – 5.6 ± 1.8. Admission-perfusion restoration (n = 76) – 5.97 hours (358 minutes). Ischemic time was not predictive of outcome (p = 0.79). Ischemic time penetrating (n = 58) 5.9 hours (354 ± 209 minutes), blunt 6.1 hours (371 ± 201 minutes). Popliteal arterial repairs: RSVG 44 (58%), primary repair 21 (26%), PTFE 3 (4%), vein patch 2 (2%), ligation 2 (3%), exsanguinated 4 (6%). No patients underwent stenting. Popliteal Vein: Repair 19 (65%), ligation 10 (35%). Fasciotomies 45 patients (59%). Outcomes Limb salvage – 90% (68/76). Adjusted limb salvage excluding intraoperative deaths – 94% (68/72). Selected patient characteristics; MOI: penetrating vs. blunt – age (p Conclusions Decreasing ischemic time from arrival to restoration of perfusion may lead to improved outcomes and increased limb salvage. MESS is not predictive for amputation. Blunt MOI is a risk factor for amputation. Maintaining ischemic times as close to six hours as possible may lead to improved outcomes.
Accelerating Forward-Backward Sweep Power Flow Computation on the GPU

In this study, we accelerate power flow computation used in modeling and analysis of electric power distribution systems utilizing the GPU. We use kernels and parallel computation patterns (i.e., segmented scan and reduction) running on the GPU to accelerate a common method that is used to perform power flow computation called “forward-backward sweep”. To evaluate our approach, we compare the GPU-accelerated parallel implementation of this method written in CUDA to the serial implementation that runs on the CPU. We perform our tests on binary power distribution trees that have number of nodes between 1K to 256K. Our results show that the parallel implementation brings up to 3.9x total speedup over the serial implementation. As expected, for the parts of the computation that entirely run on the GPU, larger speedups are achieved as the size of the distribution tree increases. We also provide a discussion on how the topology of the tree would affect the results.
Sport in Isolation? New Perspectives on Race, Sport, and Politics in Apartheid South Africa

The following essays constitute the second part of a double-issue that started with New Perspectives on Sport and Apartheid: Local and Global. 1 Inspired by the same scholarly mission that fueled p...
Using an inclusive therapeutic theatre production to teach self-advocacy skills in young people with disabilities

Abstract This quantitative study utilized an inclusive therapeutic theatre production for young people with disabilities, mental illness, and medical conditions to establish if involvement in the production could affect self-advocacy skills, specifically, assertiveness. In the literature, assertiveness has been documented as a subcomponent of self-advocacy. The therapeutic theatre intervention thematically centered on the characters advocating for their needs. The Drama Therapy Role Play Interview (DTRPI), an established role-play measure developed by Snow (2009) for participants with disabilities, was used as the pre- and post-test measure. A single-sample t-test was conducted to determine if any difference existed between the pre-test and post-test scores for assertiveness. The participants scored significantly higher in the post-test (M = .88, SD = .92) than in the pre-test t(12) = (3.48), p = 0.005. The agent of change could have been achieved through several means: education, discussion, or embodiment.
Wilms Tumor in Sub-Saharan Africa: Molecular and Social Determinants of a Global Pediatric Health Disparity.

Wilms tumor (WT) is the most common renal malignancy of childhood. Global disparities in WT have been reported with the highest incidence and lowest overall survival occurring in sub-Saharan African nations. After a detailed search of PubMed, we reviewed available literature on WT in sub-Saharan Africa and summarized findings that explore biologic and social factors contributing to this alarming cancer health disparity. Access to care and treatment abandonment are the most frequently reported factors associated with decreased outcomes. Implementation of multidisciplinary teams, collaborative networks, and financial support has improved overall survival in some nations. However, treatment abandonment remains a challenge. In high-income countries globally, WT therapy now is risk-stratified according to biology and histology. To a significantly lesser extent, biologic features have been studied only recently in sub-Saharan African WT, yet unique molecular and genetic signatures, including congenital anomaly-associated syndromes and biomarkers associated with treatment-resistance and poor prognosis have been identified. Together, challenges with access to and delivery of health care in addition to adverse biologic features likely contribute to increased burden of disease in sub-Saharan African children having WT. Publications on biologic features of WT that inform treatment stratification and personalized therapy in resource-limited regions of sub-Saharan Africa have lagged in comparison to publications that discuss social determinants of health. Further efforts to understand both WT biology and social factors relevant to appropriate treatment delivery should be prioritized in order to reduce health disparities for children residing in resource-limited areas of sub-Saharan Africa battling this lethal childhood cancer.
Bewusstsein und Gehirn

Heute wissen wir, dass das fluchtige Etwas, das wir im Tod abgeben, eng mit dem drei Pfund schweren, an Tofu erinnernden Organ verknupft ist, das wohlgeschutzt in seiner Knochenkapsel liegt. Aber das war nicht immer so. In diesem Kapitel zeichne ich den Anbruch des neurozentrischen Zeitalters nach, die kritische Unterscheidung zwischen Bewusstseinszustanden und bewussten Zustanden, und ich erklare die Logik, die der Suche nach den neuronalen Fusstapfen des Bewusstseins zugrunde liegt.
Choosing wisely for the other 80%: What we need to know about the more mature newborn and NICU care

Although neonatal intensive unit (NICU) care is envisioned as the care of very immature infants, more than 95% of births and 80% of NICU admissions are of more mature newborns-infants born at 34 or more weeks' gestation. In spite of the size of this population there are important gaps in the understanding of their needs and optimal management as reflected by remarkably large unexplained variation in their care. The goal of this article is to describe what is known about the more mature, higher birth weight newborn population's use of NICU care and highlight important gaps in knowledge and obstacles to research. Research priorities are identified: including (1) the need for birth population based rather than NICU based studies, and (2) population specific data elements. Summary: More mature newborns-infants of 34 or more weeks' gestation-account for most NICU admissions. There are large gaps in the understanding of their needs and optimal management as reflected by large unexplained variation in their care. We enumerate these gaps in current knowledge and suggest research priorities to address them.
Six New Genera in the Chaetognath Family Sagittidae

The following six new genera of Sagittidae, with type species listed in parentheses, are proposed: Adhesisagitta (Sagitta hispidu Conant, 1985), Demisagitta (Sagitta demipenna Tokioka and Pathansali, 1963), Decipisugitta (Sugittu decipiens Fowler, 1905). Tenuisugittu (Sagitta tenuis Conant, 1986), Abacisagitta (Sagitta pulchra Doncaster, 1903), Oculosagitta (Sagitta megalophthalma Dallot and Ducret, 1969).
Inhibition of Macromolecular Synthesis in Escherichia coli by Protease Inhibitors: SPECIFIC REVERSAL BY GLUTATHIONE OF THE EFFECTS OF CHLOROMETHYL KETONES

Abstract A number of chloromethyl ketone protease inhibitors reversibly inhibit β-galactosidase induction, growth, RNA synthesis, and protein synthesis in Escherichia coli at concentrations (0.1 to 1.0 mm) which are not toxic to the cells. The competitive protease inhibitor pentamidine isothionate inhibits β-galactosidase induction at a concentration (0.01 mm) which has little effect on general macromolecular synthesis. The action of chloromethyl ketone compounds is specifically blocked by reduced glutathione. Neither oxidized glutathione, Cleland's reagent, cysteine, nor mercaptoethanol were able to replace glutathione. Although there is a structural similarity between chloromethyl ketones and iodoacetamide, our studies indicate that chloromethyl ketones do not act as general "sulfhydryl inhibitors." While tosyl lysine chloromethyl ketone can react with glutathione under neutral or alkaline conditions it does not inactivate RNase, as does iodoacetamide. Furthermore, glutathione was able to reverse the inhibition caused by tosyl-lysine chloromethyl ketone even when added 15 min after inhibition has been established. Glutathione is not able to reverse the inhibition caused by iodoacetamide. In E. coli, the inhibition of macromolecular synthesis by chloromethyl ketones may be the result of reactions with intracellular glutathione.
An Introduction to the Consequences of Spin and Bond Strength in the Chemistry of Diatomic Oxygen, Peroxides, and Related Species

This review chapter discusses oxygen and peroxides in organic chemistry. Numerous types of oxygen species are described including ions, radicals, biradicals, and zwitterionic species; examples of such species are superoxide anion (O2 ⋅−), dioxygenyl cation (O2 ⋅+), ozone (O3), oxygen oligomers (Ox), and the lowest excited singlet state of oxygen (1Δ). An analysis of acyclic peroxides and cyclic peroxides (e.g., 1,2-dioxetanes,1,2,3-trioxolanes, and 1,4-endoperoxides) is provided. Isoelectronic heteroatom structures and other analogs are also provided to help guide thinking for the factors that underlie the stability of peroxide and other oxygen-containing species. Keywords: hydro- and polyperoxides; methylene and sulfur species; oxygen species; peroxides; radicals
Automated Market Makers That Enable New Settings: Extending Constant-Utility Cost Functions

Automated market makers are algorithmic agents that provide liquidity in electronic markets. We construct two new automated market makers that each solve an open problem of theoretical and practical interest. First, we formulate a market maker that has bounded loss over separable measure spaces. This opens up an exciting new set of domains for prediction markets, including markets on locations and markets where events correspond to the natural numbers. Second, by shifting profits into liquidity, we create a market maker that has bounded loss in addition to a bid/ask spread that gets arbitrarily small with trading volume. This market maker matches important attributes of real human market makers and suggests a path forward for integrating automated market making agents into markets with real money.
Lymphocyte transformation by pollen extracts and purified protein derivative (PPD) in leukocyte cultures of normal human subjects: I. Description of findings and conditions required

Abstract It is shown in a large number of experiments that short ragweed extract, mixed-grass pollen extract, and purified protein derivative (PPD) can produce very substantial tritiated thymidine uptake and lymphocyte blast transformation of peripheral blood leukocytes from normal individuals. Cord blood lymphocytes were also stimulated by pollen extracts. Differing conditions of culture probably explain the discrepancy between these results and many previous studies in which normal cells were not stimulated by these agents. Of particular importance are the use of human plasma in the cultures, restricted washing of the cells, the culture medium, and prolonged (8-day) cell culture times. Heparin has considerable influence on the results.
Contractual freedom and family business

This chapter argues for a conception of contractual freedom that places renewed emphasis on the importance of default rules and background equitable principles as tools for facilitating the parties’ business relationship. In other words, contractarianism should not be seen as synonymous with contract; a meaningful freedom of contract is broader and more complex than the proverbial blank sheet of paper on which to draft and a deferential court willing to enforce the results, however nonsensical. Declaring contract king does not establish that it is actually capable of governing its realm. Rather, to facilitate the underlying contractual values of personal autonomy and welfare maximization, it may be better to guide the parties’ relationship with well-crafted default rules and reasonable equitable constraints. In a family business, for instance, a contractarian framework is typically insufficient to support the expectations of family participants. As is true of any closely held business, contracts in family businesses establish relationships rather than the terms of specific, bargained-for exchanges, and the parties cannot be expected to anticipate and adequately address all eventualities that may occur over time. For family businesses, relational aspects are particularly significant: the time horizon stretches across generations, objectives often include more than simple profit maximization, and business dealings involve emotional consequences for the participants that also need to be acknowledged. Instead of adhering to a false assumption that the parties to a business venture are capable of negotiating adequate protections for themselves and likely to do so, contract law should offer a resource — a set of principles that credit the parties’ negotiated bargain in full context but that also compensate for what they cannot anticipate or adequately address.
Supporting effective reuse and safe evolution in metadata-driven software development

In recent years, metadata-driven software development has gained prominence. In this implementation model, various application concerns are provided as third-party frameworks and libraries that the programmer configures through metadata, such as XML configuration files or Java annotations. Metadata-driven software development is a special case of declarative programming: metadata serves as a domain-specific language that the programmer uses to declare various concerns, whose implementation is provided by an elaborate ecosystem of libraries and frameworks that serve as pre-defined application building blocks. Examples abound: transparent persistence mechanisms facilitate data management; security frameworks provide access control and encryption; unit testing frameworks provide abstractions for implementing and executing unit tests, etc. Metadata-driven software development has been particularly embraced in enterprise computing as a means of providing standardized solutions to common application scenarios. Despite the conciseness and simplicity benefits of metadata-driven software development, this implementation model introduces a unique set of reuse and evolution challenges. In particular, metadata is not reusable across application modules, and program evolution causes unsafe discrepancies between the main source code and its corresponding metadata. The research described in this dissertation addresses five fundamental problems of metadata-driven software development: (1) bytecode enhancements that transparently introduce concerns hinder program understanding and debugging; (2) mainstream enterprise metadata formats are hard to understand, evolve, and reuse; (3) concerns declared via metadata cannot be reused when source-to-source compiling emerging languages to mainstream ones; (4) metadata correctness cannot be automatically ensured as application source code is being refactored and enhanced; and (5) lacking built-in metadata, JavaScript programs can be enhanced with additional concerns only through manual source code changes. The research described in this dissertation leverages domain-specific languages and automated code generation to enable effective reuse and safe evolution in metadata-driven software development. The specific innovations that address the problems outlined above are as follows: (1) a domain-specific language (DSL) describing bytecode enhancement that facilitates the understanding and debugging of additional concerns; (2) a novel metadata format expressed as a DSL that is easier to author, understand, reuse, and maintain than existing metadata formats; (3) automated metadata translation that enables effective reuse of target language additional concerns from source-to-source compiled source language programs; (4) metadata invariants—a new abstraction for expressing and verifying metadata coding convention; and (5) a new approach to declaratively enhancing JavaScript programs with additional concerns.
ESCAPE for minorities and women

Engineering is becoming more diverse both technically and culturally. Under represented minorities and women are playing an increasing role in the advancement of engineering knowledge. ESCAPE, Engineering Specific Career Advisory Problem Solving Environment, is being developed as an interactive computer program to help students acquire information and knowledge related to engineering and to assist in career decisions. With the conversion of the program from the limited Hypercard environment to the multi platform accessibility via the World Wide Web, the content is being expanded to include information specifically related to minorities and women. Chronological information within the different fields of engineering is included to give a historical context. Documentation regarding the increasing diversity of bachelor master and doctoral recipients and in the engineering workforce demonstrate the changes taking places in engineering education. Organizations such as the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) are included along with membership information. Professional journals in addition to electronic network discussion and mail groups are included with some subscription information. As each school system becomes a node on the World Wide Web, the potential number of engineering students increases. The information on minorities and women will assist students who have never been aware of engineering to consider it as a career and possibly become the next engineer to advance the field of engineering.
Culture in Practice: Selected Essays

Culture in Practice: Selected Essays. Marshall Sahlins. New York: Zone Books, 2000. 646 pp.
Promoting Carpooling with Distributed Schedule Coordination and Incentive Alignment of Contacts

Carpooling is recognized as a viable alternative by city managers to reduce traffic demand and consequent congestion and pollution on city roads. Members of a carpool face the daily challenge of deciding whether to go alone or with some or all members of their carpool, and further, to take their own vehicle or ride with others. These decisions may seem trivial in isolation but if not taken judiciously, over time, may disrupt the carpool. In this paper, we have designed a system which models daily carpool scheduling as a repeated stochastic game played among willing carpoolers which allows for individual choices and promotes carpooling as an equilibrium outcome through equitable payoff distribution using social credits. We empirically show the efficacy of our system through simulation and also discuss how game-theoretic design inherently helps to deploy the system as a mobile application.
Development of a Comprehensive Assessment Examination for Baccalaureate Pharmacy Students

ABSTRACTThe College of Pharmacy at Wayne Sate University recently implemented a revised competency-based baccalaureate pharmacy curriculum. All graduation competencies are cross-referenced to a specific course within the curriculum. The objectives of this project were to: 1. develop a valid and reliable comprehensive assessment examination, and 2. determine if student learning on experiential training can be measured by an improvement in student performance on the comprehensive examination. A total of 311 questions submitted by faculty underwent external review for content validity. Exam questions meeting an acceptable level of content validity, n = 286, were field tested on 196 students from six colleges of pharmacy. Questions meeting an appropriate difficulty level, 30–80%, and an appropriate discrimination level, point biserial correlation coefficient of ≥ 0.2 for the correct response were included in the final question pool. A total of 183 questions met the above criteria. These questions were used to...
Layerwise mechanics and finite element for the dynamic analysis of piezoelectric composite plates

Laminate and structural mechanics for the analysis of laminated composite plate structures with piezoelectric actuators and sensors are presented. The theories implement layerwise representations of displacements and electric potential, and can model both the global and local electromechanical response of smart composite laminates. Finite-element formulations are developed for the quasi-static and dynamic analysis of smart composite structures containing piezoelectric layers. Comparisons with an exact solution illustrate the accuracy, robustness and capability of the developed mechanics to capture the global and local response of thin and/or thick laminated piezoelectric plates. Additional correlations and numerical applications demonstrate the unique capabilities of the mechanics in analyzing the static and free-vibration response of composite plates with distributed piezoelectric actuators and sensors.