cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Ejaculation profiles of men following radiation therapy for prostate cancer.

Objectives Radical prostatectomy (RP) is associated with anejaculation, which for some men is a source of bother and sexual dissatisfaction. Clinical experience has shown us some men after pelvic radiation therapy (RT) also experience anejaculation. This analysis was conducted to define the ejaculation profiles of men after RT for prostate cancer (PCa). Methods As a routine part of the sexual health evaluation for post-RT patients, men provided information regarding their ejaculatory function and orgasm. Analysis was conducted of a sexual medicine database reviewing demographic data, PCa factors, erectile, ejaculatory, and orgasmic function. Men with prior history of RP, cryotherapy, focal therapies, and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) were excluded. Patients completed the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire at follow-up visits commencing with the first posttreatment visit and specific attention was paid to the IIEF orgasm domain. Results Three hundred and sixty-four consecutive patients were included. Two hundred and fifty-two patients had external beam, and 112 patients had brachytherapy (BT). Mean age was 64 ± 11 (42-78) years and mean follow-up after RT was 6 ± 4.5 years. Mean prostate size at time of RT was 42 ± 21 g. Of the entire population, 72% lost the ability to ejaculate in an antegrade fashion after prostate RT by their last visit. The proportion experiencing anejaculation at 1, 3, and 5 years after RT was 16%, 69%, and 89%, respectively. For men with at least two IIEF questionnaires completed, the orgasm domain scores decreased dramatically over the follow-up period; orgasm domain scores (0-10): 36 months 2.8 (P 100 Gy, and smaller prostates at the time of RT. Conclusions The vast majority of men after prostate RT will experience anejaculation and should be counseled accordingly prior to undergoing therapy. We have identified predictive factors.
Diagnostic electro-neural stimulation device for use with the Marcus method

Team MECCo has embarked on a codevelopment project with a leading Manhattan physician, Dr. Norman Marcus, who specializes in pain management and is a lecturer at New York University Medical School. The physician holds patents (US6432063 Bl) for a revolutionary methodology for pain diagnosis. The methodology implies a device which currently does not exist on the market place. The goal of Team MECCo has been to develop such a device and characterize the physiological and medical implications of its effects. Dr. Marcus postulates that the vast majority of muscular pain diagnosis is performed inaccurately resulting in misdirected treatment and a gross excess of costs associated with pain treatment. Currently Dr. Marcus utilizes a device to aid in diagnosis, but he finds the device to be inadequate and holds concerns regarding its efficacy. MECCo has been collaborating with Dr. Marcus to produce a more appropriate device. The first functional prototype has been delivered and initial tests conclude the technology is successful. This is a stepping point towards a market ready device that will revolutionize pain diagnosis and help many people suffering from chronic pain. The device described in this paper has a pending patent.
Linear ridge regression with spatial constraint for generation of parametric images in dynamic positron emission tomography studies

Due to its simplicity, computational efficiency, and reliability, weighted linear regression (WLR) is widely used for generation of parametric imaging in positron emission tomography (PET) studies, but parametric images estimated by WLR usually have high image noise level. To improve the stability and signal-to-noise ratio of the estimated parametric images, the authors have added ridge regression, a statistical technique that reduces estimation variability at the expense of a small bias. To minimize the bias, spatially smoothed images obtained with WLR are used as a constraint for ridge regression. This new algorithm consists of two steps. First, parametric images are generated by WLR and are spatially smoothed. Ridge regression is then applied using the smoothed parametric images obtained in the first step as the constraint. Since both "generalized" ridge regression and "simple" ridge regression are used in statistical applications, we evaluated specifically in this study the relative advantages of the two when incorporated for generating parametric images from dynamic O-15 water PET studies. Computer simulations of a dynamic PET study with the spatial configuration of Hoffman's brain phantom and a real human PET study were used as the data for the evaluation. Results reveal ridge regressions improve image quality of parametric images for studies with high or middle noise level. As compared to WLR, use of generalized ridge regression offers little advantage over that of simple ridge regression.
Diagnosis of Sjögren's Syndrome: American-European and the American college of rheumatology classification criteria

Classification criteria provide a formalized approach to studying course and management of rheumatic disease, as well as a measure of improvement in care. Understanding the purposes of classification criteria sets and the differences between different classification criteria is crucial for understanding rheumatic disease and for the design and conduct of clinical and epidemiologic investigations. In this article, the similarities and differences between the American-European Consensus Group Criteria (AECG) and the newly proposed American College of Rheumatology (ACR) classification criteria for Sjogren's syndrome and the clinical implications of switching to the ACR classification criteria from the AECG are described.
Optically Controllable Composite Dielectric Based on Photo-Conductive Particulates

We report a method to optically control the effective permittivity of a composite dielectric in which the active inclusions are fabricated from pulverized semi-insulating GaAs. The electric dipoles from the inclusions are controlled by photo-generation of charge carriers using infrared light. An infrared transparent binder provides the matrix material. Our primary purpose is to develop a low-cost pigment-based ink, or paint, for optically tuning electromagnetic devices including metamaterials, frequency-selective surfaces, filters, phase delays, and antennas. In bulk form, applications of the optically controllable dielectric are imagined including a gradient index lens in which inhomogeneous light intensity can provide a dynamic response for focusing or steering of beams. An important feature is that the effective permittivity is linear with electric field intensity over a usable parameter space. We present experimental results as well as a simple model to describe the behavior qualitatively.
IL-7 promotes the transition of CD4 effectors to persistent memory cells.

After transfer to adoptive hosts, in vitro–generated CD4 effectors can become long-lived memory cells, but the factors regulating this transition are unknown. We find that low doses of interleukin (IL) 7 enhance survival of effectors in vitro without driving their division. When in vitro–generated effectors are transferred to normal intact adoptive hosts, they survive and rapidly become small resting cells with a memory phenotype. CD4 effectors generated from wild-type versus IL-7 receptor−/− mice were transferred to adoptive hosts, including intact mice and those deficient in IL-7. In each case, the response to IL-7 was critical for good recovery of donor cells after 5–7 d. Recovery was also IL-7–dependent in Class II hosts where division was minimal. Blocking antibodies to IL-7 dramatically decreased short-term recovery of transferred effectors in vivo without affecting their division. These data indicate that IL-7 plays a critical role in promoting memory CD4 T cell generation by providing survival signals, which allow effectors to successfully become resting memory cells.
Tax Abatements and Rent-seeking

Recent literature has argued that a policy of invariant tax abatement awards is more costly than necessary, and has suggested several ways of improving tax abatement policy by allowing officials discretion in granting abatements. This paper argues such discretion carries its own dangers, and may well create rent-seeking costs larger than the other costs it is meant to avert. Analysis suggests tax abatements should be abandoned as a development policy. More generally, rent-seeking should be recognised as an important concept in the analysis and evaluation of development programmes.
Residual Effects of Past on Later Behavior: Habituation and Reasoned Action Perspectives:

The frequency with which a behavior has been performed in the past is found to account for variance in later behavior independent of intentions. This often taken as evidence for habituation of behavior and as complementing the reasoned mode of operation assumed by such models as the theory of planned behavior. In this article, I question the idea that the residual effect of past on later behavior can be attributed to habituation. The habituation perspective cannot account for residual effects in the prediction of low-opportunity behaviors performed in unstable contexts, no accepted independent measure of habit is available, and empirical tests of them habituation hypothesis have so far met with little success. A review of existing evidence suggests that the residual impact of past behavior is attenuated when measures of intention and behavior are compatible and vanishes when intentions are strong and well formed, expectations are implementation have been developed.
On the solution of stochastic optimization problems in imperfect information regimes

We consider the solution of a stochastic convex optimization problem E[f(x; θ*, ξ)] in x over a closed and convex set X in a regime where θ* is unavailable. Instead, θ* may be learnt by minimizing a suitable metric E[g(θ; η)] in θ over a closed and convex set Θ. We present a coupled stochastic approximation scheme for the associated stochastic optimization problem with imperfect information. The schemes are shown to be equipped with almost sure convergence properties in regimes where the function f is both strongly convex as well as merely convex. Rate estimates are provided in both a strongly convex as well as a merely convex regime, where the use of averaging facilitates the development of a bound.
Accurate estimation of entropy in very short physiological time series: the problem of atrial fibrillation detection in implanted ventricular devices.

Entropy estimation is useful but difficult in short time series. For example, automated detection of atrial fibrillation (AF) in very short heart beat interval time series would be useful in patien...
Kupferproteine: Koordination und Aktivierung von Sauerstoff und seine Reduktion zu Wasser

Die aktiven Zentren von Kupferproteinen spielen eine entscheidende Rolle bei der biologischen und nichtbiologischen Aktivierung von Disauerstoff. Sauerstoff-Zwischenstufen sind fur die Proteine und Enzyme der reversiblen O2-Koordination (Hamocyanin), -Aktivierung (Tyrosinase) und -Vier-Elektronen-Reduktion zu Wasser (mehrkernige kupferhaltige Oxidasen) grundlich untersucht worden. Diese Sauerstoff-Zwischenstufen weisen ungewohnliche spektroskopische Eigenschaften auf, die auf neue geometrische und elektronische Strukturen bei der Sauerstoff-Aktivierung hindeuten. Die spektroskopische und quantenmechanische Untersuchung dieser Zwischenstufen hat Beziehungen zwischen geometrischen und elektronischen Strukturen und der Funktion aufzeigen konnen, und detaillierte Beschreibungen des Reaktionsverlaufs konnten fur die reversible Bindung von O2, die Hydroxylierung und die H-Atom-Abspaltung von unterschiedlichen Substraten sowie die reduktive Spaltung der O-O-Bindung bei der Bildung von Wasser entwickelt werden.
Paliperidone palmitate injection site.

Edited by Marian W. Roman, PhD, RN, PMHCNS-BCThe University of Tennessee, College of Nursing, Knoxville, Tennessee, USAAchieving optimal medication adherence can be difficult for patients with seri...
Factored singularities and high-order Lax-Friedrichs sweeping schemes for point-source traveltimes and amplitudes

In the high frequency regime, the geometrical-optics approximation for the Helmholtz equation with a point source results in an Eikonal equation for traveltime and a transport equation for amplitude. Because the point-source traveltime field has an upwind singularity at the source point, all formally high-order finite-difference Eikonal solvers exhibit first-order convergence and relatively large errors. In this paper, we propose to first factor out the singularities of traveltimes, takeoff angles, and amplitudes, and then we design high-order Lax-Friedrichs sweeping schemes for point-source traveltimes, takeoff angles, and amplitudes. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the performance of our new method.
Selection for leucocyte count in the house mouse and some physiological effects.

The mean of total leucocyte counts from 118 outbred mice (T strain) was 9121 cells per cubic millimeter (log count 3.980 plus or minus .0128). Selections were based on family and individual merit in a closed system and matings were brother by sister. By generation 13, the maximum difference between strains was achieved with arithmetic and log counts as follows: LCH 17,500 (4.244 plus or minus .0162); LCL was uniform in the two lines, the intensity of response was greater in LCH. Response in the LCL was more gradual, but continued until the end of the experiment. However, the outbred T mice also followed a downward trend, indicating environmental influences. Heritability estimates by four methods were: 22.4, 20.3, 18.7, and 17.4 percent. The major portion of the difference in leucocyte count between LCH and LCL is accounted for by lymphocytes. LCR mice had more cells of all categories. In LCL mice the number of granulocytes increased under downward selection pressure for total count. The selected lines did not differ significantly in numbers of progeny or weaning weight. At the end of the experiment, LCH families were albino and leaden, LCL leaden brown. There were no significant differences between strains inmore » resistance to a standard dose of live organisms of S. typhimurium, the toxic effects of massive doses of heat-killed organisms, or to reinoculation with live organisms after immunization. After an acute dose of 850 r of x rays, survivals were: LCH 24/30 (80 percent); LCL 9/25 (38 percent). (auth)« less
Genetic architecture of resilience of executive functioning

The genetic basis of resilience, defined as better cognitive functioning than predicted based on neuroimaging or neuropathology, is not well understood. Our objective was to identify genetic variation associated with executive func- tioning resilience. We computed residuals from regression models of executive functioning, adjusting for age, sex, edu- cation, Hachinski score, and MRI findings (lacunes, cortical thickness, volumes of white matter hyperintensities and hip- pocampus). We estimated heritability and analyzed these residuals in models for each SNP. We further evaluated our mostpromisingSNPresultbyevaluatingcis-associationswith brain levels of nearby (±100 kb) genes from a companion data set, and comparing expression levels in cortex and cerebellum from decedents with AD with those from other non-AD
Alkylglycerol Prodrugs of Phosphonoformate Are Potent In Vitro Inhibitors of Nucleoside-Resistant Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 and Select for Resistance Mutations That Suppress Zidovudine Resistance

Phosphonoformate (foscarnet; PFA) is a potent inhibitor of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) reverse transcriptase (RT), but its use for the treatment of HIV-1 infection is limited by toxicity and the lack of an orally bioavailable formulation. Alkylglycerol-conjugated prodrugs of PFA (1-O-octadecyl-sn-glycero-3PFA [B-PFA]) having sn-2 substituents of hydrogen (deoxybatyl-PFA [DB-PFA]), methyl (MB-PFA), or ethyl (EB-PFA) are more-potent inhibitors of wild-type HIV-1 in vitro than unmodified PFA and are orally bioavailable in mice. We have evaluated the activities of these compounds against a panel of nucleoside-resistant HIV-1 variants and have characterized the resistant variants that emerge following in vitro selection with the prodrugs. Except for an HIV-1 variant encoding the K65R mutation in RT that exhibited 3.3- to 8.2-fold resistance, the nucleoside-resistant viruses included in the panel were sensitive to the PFA prodrugs ( 10-fold) were selected in vitro after 15 or more serial passages of HIV-1 in MT-2 cells in escalating prodrug concentrations. Mutations detected in the resistant viruses were S117T, F160Y, and L214F (DB-PFA); M164I and L214F (MB-PFA); and W88G and L214F (EB-PFA). The S117T, F160Y, and M164I mutations have not been previously identified. Generation of recombinant viruses encoding the single and double mutations confirmed their roles in prodrug resistance, including 214F, which generally increased the level of resistance. When introduced into a zidovudine (AZT)-resistant background (67N 70R 215F 219Q), the W88G, S117T, F160Y, and M164I mutations reversed AZT resistance. This suppression of AZT resistance is consistent with the effects of other foscarnet resistance mutations that reduce ATP-dependent removal of AZT monophosphate from terminated template primers. The favorable activity and resistance profiles of these PFA prodrugs warrant their further evaluation as clinical candidates. Phosphonoformic acid (PFA; foscarnet) is a potent inhibitor of herpesvirus, influenza, and retroviral polymerases (7) and has antiviral activity in human infections caused by herpes simplex virus, cytomegalovirus (CMV), and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) (3, 32, 33). PFA is an analog of pyrophosphate, which is a byproduct of nucleotide polymerization and is composed of the b and g phosphates cleaved from the incoming nucleotide triphosphate during incorporation into the nascent DNA strand. PFA is thought to inhibit HIV-1 replication by binding to reverse transcriptase (RT), preventing pyrophosphate release and thereby blocking further catalysis (7). Mutations in HIV-1 RT that reduce sensitivity to PFA have been identified in resistant viruses selected in vitro and in isolates from HIV-infected patients treated with PFA. These
The Diels-Alder Reaction

Publisher Summary One of the most powerful tools for the formation of cyclic molecules is the Diels-Alder reaction. The reaction generally involves the combination of a diene with a “dienophile ”. Maleic anhydride is a convenient dienophile because of its rapid reaction with most dienes as well as its stability and ease in handling, although it is poisonous. The use of cyclopentadiene as a diene provides a route to the bicycloheptane skeleton. Cyclopentadiene, however, exists as its Diels-Alder dimer at room temperature and must be “cracked” thermally to obtain the monomer. This chapter presents the procedures for cracking the dimer and for a convenient addition reaction of the monomer. It explains that the dicarboxylic acid is prepared by heating the anhydride in water until dissolution is complete.
Flow simulation and visualization on gpu clusters

In recent years, the performance of graphics processing units (GPUs) has been increasing dramatically. Modern GPUs have surpassed CPUs in raw computational power by an order of magnitude. Because of the explicit data parallelism in the graphics pipeline, the GPU can efficiently use hundreds of thread processors to process data in parallel. Moreover, the GPU is becoming more and more flexible and programmable. As a result, accelerating general-purpose computation on the GPU (GPGPU) has become an active area of research. This dissertation presents efficient ways to use GPUs and GPU clusters for GPGPU in general and flow simulation and visualization in visual applications in particular. We focus on a GPU-friendly method, called the Lattice Boltzmann Model (LBM), a mesoscopic method that applies linear and local operations at discrete lattice sites. We describe an optimized LBM implementation on a single GPU and its applications in real-time modeling of natural phenomena, such as fire, smoke, wind, and heat shimmering. We also present a novel GPU-based adapted unstructured LBM algorithm for simulating flow on arbitrary 3D triangular surfaces. We further extend the LBM implementation from a single GPU to a GPU cluster and describe how to efficiently manage the communication among the multiple GPUs. We also present an application of the GPU cluster simulation in urban dispersion modeling. We further present an LBM implementation of irregular-shaped simulation domain on a GPU cluster and its application for thermal fluid dynamics in a pressurized water reactor of a nuclear power plant. Finally, Zippy, a general framework for GPU cluster programming, is presented. Zippy abstracts the GPU cluster architecture with two characteristics important to high performance—two-level parallelism hierarchy and non-uniform memory access (NUMA)—and hides other architecture details. It simplifies the programming of a GPU cluster while maintaining high performance. We also present three example applications developed using Zippy and show how simulation and visualization modules can be seamlessly integrated on a GPU cluster.
Biological applications of atomic force microscopy

The newly developed atomic force microscope (AFM) provides a unique window to the microworld of cells, subcellular structures, and biomolecules. The AFM can image the three-dimensional structure of biological specimens in a physiological environment. This enables real-time biochemical and physiological processes to be monitored at a resolution similar to that obtained for the electron microscope. The process of image acquisition is such that the AFM can also measure forces at the molecular level. In addition, the AFM can interact with the sample, thereby manipulating the molecules in a defined manner--nanomanipulation! The AFM has been used to image living cells and the underlying cytoskeleton, chromatin and plasmids, ion channels, and a variety of membranes. Dynamic processes such as crystal growth and the polymerization of fibrinogen and physicochemical properties such as elasticity and viscosity in living cells have been studied. Nanomanipulations, including dissection of DNA, plasma membranes, and cells, and transfer of synthetic structures have been achieved. This review describes the operating principles, accomplishments, and the future promise of the AFM.
Social interactions in HRI: the robot view

This paper explores the topic of human-robot interaction (HRI) from the perspective of designing sociable autonomous robots-robots designed to interact with people in a human-like way. There are a growing number of applications for robots that people can engage as capable creatures or as partners rather than tools, yet little is understood about how to best design robots that interact with people in this way. The related field of human-computer interaction (HCI) offers important insights, however autonomous robots are a very different technology from desktop computers. In this paper, we look at the field of HRI from an HCI perspective, pointing out important similarities yet significant differences that may ultimately make HRI a distinct area of inquiry. One outcome of this discussion is that it is important to view the design and evaluation problem from the robot's perspective as well as that of the human. Taken as a whole, this paper provides a framework with which to design and evaluate sociable robots from a HRI perspective.
War Zones and Biological Warfare

The unique settings of the war zone or confrontation with agents of biological warfare create a dynamic and potentially formidable barrier to individual and trauma team performance. Patient care in war zones is challenged by limited resources, threats of combat, and variable team member composition. Biological warfare agents can have a myriad of physiological effects on the patient, and medical precautions and decontamination events can impair individual and team delivery of essential care. Thoughtful appreciation of the obstacles arising in these circumstances can prepare the trauma provider and the trauma team to optimize their delivery of patient care.
Second Wave Animal Law and the Arrival of Animal Studies

Many societies today reflect that animal protectionists are going beyond efforts to establish fundamental protections of the kind signaled by terms like “animal rights,” “animal welfare,” and even “animal liberation.” This Chapter uses four interrelated questions to explore this new stage of animal law: (1) how should animal law courses in law school proceed given the obvious interdisciplinary reach of the larger field of Animal Studies?; (2) what is the place in second wave animal law for answers to the root question “who, what are ‘animals’?”; (3) why is the field of “Animal Studies” important to legal education and, more broadly, education as a whole?; and, (4) What roles have personal connection with and meeting of nonhuman animals played in first wave animal law, and what roles might they play in second wave animal law, the larger field of Animal Studies and its sub-disciplines, and the educational mega-fields we know as “the humanities” and “the sciences”?
Introduction: Action, Thought, Pragmatism

Homer’s Odysseus was a true hero, or so it seems. Tracking his various adventures, one is struck by the craftiness of this mortal able to outwit and control nature at almost every turn. In the Odyssey, our hero struggles with the wide and unstable expanse of the sea in his journey back from Troy to his native Ithaca. The man who is “never at a loss” employs his cleverness to neutralize any foe he encounters, whether Circe, the Cyclops, or Scylla and Charybdis.1 But, curiously, never in all of his sea faring adventures do we hear of Odysseus engaging in what we would consider a rational analysis of his actions: we never hear him weighing in advance his courses of action by a consideration of the morality or even of the advantages and disadvantages of them.2 His singular purpose is to return to Ithaca.3 When he meets the blind seer Tiresias in Hades — a visit demanded by Circe — Odysseus is told that he will indeed return safely to Ithaca and successfully avenge the suitors of his wife. His resignation is clear and terse: “Oh, Tiresias, surely the gods have spun this out as fate.”4 He cannot but obey the indifferent and capricious gods who control his destiny.5
CONVERGENCE OF THE BASIC ITERATIVE METHODS

This chapter describes some convergence theorems for the basic iterative methods. It presents a few general convergence theorems. The chapter highlights cases where A has particular properties such as irreducibility, weak diagonal dominance, positive definiteness, etc. It provides an overview of convergence of Jacobi and Gauss–Seidel methods for the model problem —their convergence is unacceptably slow. The chapter describes irreducible matrices with weak diagonal dominance, positive definite matrices, L -matrices and related matrices. It also focuses on the SOR method with varying relaxation factors and rates of convergence of the J and GS methods for the model problem.
Scaling Fluid Flow

This chapter presents methods for scaling fluid flow from model to prototype. These scaling methods are based on dimensional analysis and model theory. Of course, these methods can be used in reverse, to downscale from commercial plant to pilot plant or laboratory scales.
The impact of treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors on primate cardiovascular disease, behavior, and neuroanatomy

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) use is ubiquitous because they are widely prescribed for a number of disorders in addition to depression. Depression increases the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). Hence, treating depression with SSRIs could reduce CHD risk. However, the effects of long term antidepressant treatment on CHD risk, as well as other aspects of health, remain poorly understood. Thus, we undertook an investigation of multisystem effects of SSRI treatment with a physiologically relevant dose in middle-aged adult female cynomolgus monkeys, a primate species shown to be a useful model of both depression and coronary and carotid artery atherosclerosis. Sertraline had no effect on depressive behavior, reduced anxious behavior, increased affiliation, reduced aggression, changed serotonin neurotransmission and volumes of neural areas critical to mood disorders, and exacerbated coronary and carotid atherosclerosis. These data suggest that a conservative approach to prescribing SSRIs for cardiovascular or other disorders for long periods may be warranted, and that further study is critical given the widespread use of these medications.
Anorectal and Pelvic Pain.

Although pelvic pain is a symptom of several structural anorectal and pelvic disorders (eg, anal fissure, endometriosis, and pelvic inflammatory disease), this comprehensive review will focus on the 3 most common nonstructural, or functional, disorders associated with pelvic pain: functional anorectal pain (ie, levator ani syndrome, unspecified anorectal pain, and proctalgia fugax), interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome, and chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome. The first 2 conditions occur in both sexes, while the latter occurs only in men. They are defined by symptoms, supplemented with levator tenderness (levator ani syndrome) and bladder mucosal inflammation (interstitial cystitis). Although distinct, these conditions share several similarities, including associations with dysfunctional voiding or defecation, comorbid conditions (eg, fibromyalgia, depression), impaired quality of life, and increased health care utilization. Several factors, including pelvic floor muscle tension, peripheral inflammation, peripheral and central sensitization, and psychosocial factors, have been implicated in the pathogenesis. The management is tailored to symptoms, is partly supported by clinical trials, and includes multidisciplinary approaches such as lifestyle modifications and pharmacological, behavioral, and physical therapy. Opioids should be avoided, and surgical treatment has a limited role, primarily in refractory interstitial cystitis.
Philosophy and Rhetoric in Vico’s Thought*

Vico’s thought is an attempt to discover a method, that is, a new science, whereby rhetoric and philosophy, politics and knowledge, would complement and inform one another. His method refuses to su...
Meta-Analysis of Clinical Factors Affecting Synovial Structure Infections and Prognosis

Abstract Synovial structures–joints, tendon sheaths and bursa–infections carry a poor prognosis and are career limiting for the equine athlete if prompt recognition and treatments are delayed. Early rigorous intervention and targeted therapy is required when any of these synovial structures are affected. Treatment includes large-volume lavage and local and/or regional antimicrobials in addition to systemic antimicrobial therapy.
Particle Swarm Optimization for high-DOF inverse kinematics

The inverse kinematics (IK) problem is a fundamental problem in robotic manipulation. Traditional, Jacobian-based solutions to this problem are known to scale poorly with the number of degrees of freedom (DOF) in the manipulator, necessitating novel IK solutions for high-DOF manipulators. Metaheuristic optimization algorithms such as Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) are a promising alternative approach to traditional IK techniques due to their strong performance on difficult and high-DOF problems in many diverse domains. Previous applications of PSO to the IK problem have focused on specific classes (e.g., planar) or models of manipulators or specific IK subproblems (e.g., position only IK). Furthermore, the experimental validation of these techniques has considered only manipulators with seven or fewer degrees of freedom and taken place almost exclusively in simulation. In this paper, we (1) generalize previous work to derive a fitness function that can be minimized to solve the full position and orientation IK problem for any serial manipulator while respecting joint limits and avoiding self-collisions, (2) present the first statistical analysis of PSO as a high-DOF IK solver on simulated manipulators with up to 180 DOF using this fitness function, and (3) present an important validation of PSO-based IK using this fitness function on real-world hardware on a difficult precision manipulation task.
Health History and Physical Exam

Taking a complete health history is the health care practitioner’s opportunity to establish a relationship with the family and the child, begin to understand the family dynamics, as well as obtain relevant health information. The family-centered approach is demonstrated by asking parents and children about their concerns, having the physical exam that follows reflect these concerns, reviewing appropriate screenings, identifying child and family needs, and developing strength-based approaches to them, including services, preventive strategies, and physical and emotional supports. The health care provider observes if the parents respond to and recognize their children’s needs and whether they are comfortable in caring for their child. See the box below, Taking the Health History, for details of the questions to be included in the health history.
Bone Health and Endocrine Comorbidities in Pediatric Epilepsy

Antiseizure medications and dietary therapies have associated effects on the endocrine system. We provided an overview of the relationship between epilepsy treatment and bone health in children with epilepsy. Additionally, we discussed the effects of epilepsy treatment on other endocrine systems including thyroid function, growth, reproduction, and weight. The effect of epilepsy on bone health is multifactorial; there are direct and indirect effects of medication and dietary treatments as well as a decrease in physical activity, decreased sunlight exposure, decreased vitamin D levels, and additional comorbidities. Some medications have a greater effect on vitamin D and bone health than others, however all antiseizure medical treatments are associated with lower vitamin D levels in pediatric patients. We have provided practical suggestions for vitamin D surveillance in children with epilepsy as well as replacement strategies. Children with epilepsy have an increased likelihood of additional endocrine disorders including subclinical hypothyroidism, decreased growth, weight abnormalities, reproductive and sexual dysfunction. To a great extent, this is medication specific. Though more studies are needed to elucidate optimal treatment and monitoring of bone health and other endocrinopathies in children with epilepsy, it is critical that caregivers pay close attention to these issues to provide optimal comprehensive care to their patients.
Proposing a Behavioral Taxonomy of Priest Sexual Grooming

Sexual grooming is generally thought of as the way that would-be abusers build trust and camaraderie with their victims in order to lower the victims’ inhibitions and eventually take advantage of the situation. Minimal levels of empiricism have focused on the sexual grooming patterns of abusive Catholic priests in the United States. In order to help close this gap, we conducted a retrospective content analysis of publicly available documents of credibly accused priests from one diocese in Illinois. Findings suggest that accused priests from this diocese used any of eight grooming techniques in order to abuse their victims; one of these tactics is specific to priest offenders. Using that knowledge, we propose and discuss a behavioral taxonomy of priest sexual grooming as well as the direction that future research should take in assessing this potential taxonomy.
Pokémonikers: A study of sound symbolism and Pokémon names

Sound symbolism flouts the core assumption of the arbitrariness of the sign in human language. The cross-linguistic prevalence of sound symbolism raises key questions about the universality versus language-specificity of sound symbolic correspondences. One challenge to studying cross-linguistic sound symbolic patterns is the difficulty of holding constant real-world referents across cultures. In this study, we address the challenge of cross-linguistic comparison by utilising a rich, cross-linguistic dataset drawn from the Pokemon game franchise. Within this controlled universe, we compare the sound symbolisms of Japanese and English Pokemon names ( pokemonikers ). Our results show a tendency in both languages to encode the same attributes with sound symbolism, but also reveal key differences rooted in language-specific structural and lexical constraints.
Dispersion forces play a role in (Me2IPr)Fe(NAd)R2 (Ad = adamantyl; R = neoPe, 1-nor) insertions and Fe–R bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs)

The effects of dispersion on migratory insertion reactions and related iron–carbon bond dissociation energies pertaining to (Me2IPr)FeR2 (R = neoPe, 1-nor), and the conversion of (Me2IPr)Fe(NAd)R2 to (Me2IPr)Fe{N(Ad}R)R are investigated via calculations and structural comparisons. Dispersion appears to be an underappreciated, major contributor to common structure and reactivity relationships.
Design and Fabrication of Monolithic Photonic Crystal Fiber Acoustic Sensor

Single-crystal silicon is an excellent optical and mechanical material, but its properties are compromised by the incorporation of other materials required for functionality or structural support. Here, we describe a monolithic silicon acoustic sensor based on a sensing diaphragm with an integrated photonic crystal (PC) mirror. Diaphragm deflection is measured in a Fabry–Perot resonator formed between the PC mirror and a gold coated single-mode fiber. The sensors are fabricated on standard silicon wafers by standard CMOS processing technologies, yielding monolithic, low-stress sensing diaphragms. The packaged sensor exhibits a minimum detectable pressure of $10~\mathrm {\mu }$ Pa/ $\mathrm {\sqrt {Hz}}$ in the 8–17-kHz frequency range.
Radiographic Diagnosis of Eosinophilic Esophagitis

The diagnosis of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) continues to evolve as we gain a better understanding of this fascinating disease. EoE initially was diagnosed pathologically by a high number of intraepithelial eosinophils in the esophagus, but the diagnosis is now based on several histologic parameters in combination with key demographic, clinical, and endoscopic features. Despite numerous endoscopic studies on EoE, the role of barium esophagography in diagnosing this disease has received little attention in the gastroenterology literature. Lack of interest in esophagography is related to recognized advantages of endoscopy for directly visualizing the esophageal mucosa and obtaining biopsy specimens as well as the desire to avoid ionizing radiation in patients with dysphagia. We believe, however, that endoscopy and barium esophagography should be regarded as complementary rather than competitive techniques for the evaluation of patients with dysphagia and possible EoE. In such cases, the barium study provides a global examination that can be used not only to detect esophagitis or strictures, but also to assess swallowing function, esophageal motility, and the presence and degree of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in patients with other conditions masquerading as EoE based on the clinical presentation.
SECONDARY LICENSING AND THE NONDOMINANT HAND IN ASL PHONOLOGY

Publisher Summary This chapter presents an analysis of ASL, the signed language of the American Deaf., phonology, which focuses on the information structure of the sign. General phonological theory should operate in a uniform fashion across modalities and provide theoretical units that play similar, though not identical, roles in the various modalities that may underlie human language. The chapter focuses on analogy that should be established between the coda of a spoken language syllable and the second/weak hand of a two-handed sign. If the proposal is correct, then the cross-modality analogies that are to be made by the theory of phonology are, in a sense, more abstract than previous researchers had been led to believe. If there is in sign language something analogous to the syllable of spoken language, then it does not carry over the sequential character of the syllable of spoken language.
Lithium-ion Battery Management Using Physics-based Model Predictive Control and DC-DC Converters

This paper presents a novel application of model predictive control (MPC) to the problem of managing lithiumion cell performance using reduced-order physics-based electrochemical cell models and implemented via individual cell-mounted dual active bridge DC-DC converters. The proposed method uses MPC to safeguard cell-level electrochemical limits and has the potential to extend lifetime by mitigating certain mechanisms of cell degradation leading to capacity fade. The modular architecture is described and the control concepts are developed and demonstrated on an identified physics-based model of a 25 Ah lithium ion battery cell.
2H/1H fractionation in microalgal lipids from the North Pacific Ocean: Growth rate and irradiance effects

Abstract The hydrogen isotope ratio (2H/1H) of microalgal lipids has become a useful tool for reconstructing hydrologic conditions in the geologic past from marine and lacustrine sediments. Culture studies have shown that, in addition to the 2H/1H ratio of growth water, parameters such as salinity, growth rate, and irradiance, can have a large effect on lipid 2H/1H ratios. But aside from salinity, these effects have not been well studied in the field. In this work, hydrogen isotope fractionation relative to growth water was measured in four algal lipids - C37:3 and C37:2 methyl alkenones, (3β,4α,5α,22E)-4,23-Dimethylergost-22-en-3-ol (dinosterol), and 24-methylcholesta-5,22E-dien-3β-ol (brassicasterol) – in the upper water column of two North Pacific Ocean locations. By comparing lipid 2H/1H variations as a function of depth at tropical Station ALOHA (22°45′N, 158°00′W) and mid-latitude Gyre (41°30′N, 132°00′W in the Transition Zone) it was possible to evaluate the H isotope effects of nutrient limitation and irradiance on natural phytoplankton populations by comparing measured fractionation factors (αlipid) with those derived from laboratory-based empirical relationships. Significant distinctions were observed between the inferred causes of H isotope fractionation in different algal lipids at the two locations. At Station Aloha, 2H/1H fractionation in coccolithophorid-derived alkenones was primarily caused by nutrient-limited growth, while at Gyre it was caused by light limitation. Distinctions were less clear for the two sterols. 2H/1H fractionation in dinosterol was possibly influenced by nutrient-limited growth or light limitation at greater depths at both stations, while 2H/1H fractionation in brassicasterol matched values expected for nutrient-limited growth at both locations. Although systematic trends with depth in αlipid on the order of 10–30‰ were observed for each lipid, inter-day variability was some 3–7‰ depending on the lipid and site, and the magnitude of αlipid changes observed in the field were much less than those expected based on culture studies. This implies that the effects of nutrient and light limitation on natural phytoplankton populations in the ocean may not have a large influence on hydroclimate reconstructions based on 2H/1H ratios of microalgal lipids in marine sediments.
Drinking water lead and socioeconomic factors as predictors of blood lead levels in New Jersey's children between two time periods.

Abstract As blood lead levels have decreased over time, the relative contributions of alternative lead sources warrant further examination. Much attention has been paid to the relative contribution of lead in drinking water, particularly after the discovery of contaminated drinking water in Flint, Michigan which has also renewed interest in the persistent socioeconomic and racial disparities in children's exposure to lead. As the environmental sources of lead exposure are shifting in importance over time, we decided to examine how demographic, socioeconomic, and environmental factors may confound or interact with each other, and whether these relationships have changed over time. The study population included all New Jersey resident children aged 6–26 months with at least one blood lead specimen collected between 2000 and 2004 (n = 288,758) or 2010 and 2014 (n = 326,530). Reported 90th percentile water lead data (in parts per billion) was summarized annually for each water system statewide. Children's blood lead levels have decreased over time from a statewide geometric mean of 2.47 µg/dL (95% CI 2.46, 2.48) between 2000 and 2004 to 1.57 µg/dL (95% CI 1.57, 1.57) between 2010 and 2014. Individual-level factors of child's age and season of blood draw and area-based measures of race, older housing, and poverty were predictors of children's blood lead levels. Conclusions regarding area-based measure of Hispanic ethnicity are limited and require further research. The narrow range and low levels of area-based lead concentrations in drinking water limits the ability to detect associations with blood lead levels. Racial disparities in blood lead continue to persist but economic disparities may be narrowing as blood lead concentrations continue to decline.
On the Observed Inverse Relationship between Rainfall Amount and Dissolved Mineral Content

AbstractRainfall samples collected on the high plains of West Texas exhibit a high degree of variability with respect to the concentration of dissolved solids. That such variations should occur is ...
Dim Light Exposure or Melatonin Ingestion Lowers a Type 2 Diabetic's Blood Glucose Removal Rate: A Single Case.

The purpose of this case study is to compare a Type 2 diabetic's postprandial glucoregulatory ability under two different room lighting conditions. The subject was a 56-year-old physically active male with well controlled blood glucose levels (HbA1c ≤ 6% for 5 y) from a combination of diet, exercise, and medication. Two hours post evening meal (380 kcal, 18 g fat, 44 g carbohydrate, 12 g protein), a 45 g carbohydrate challenge was given, and blood glucose was measured every 30 minutes for 2.5 hours under three conditions: dim light ( 40000 lux) (BL), and bright light plus 6 mg melatonin (BLM). Each condition was repeated 3 times over a period of 6 months with each trial a minimum of seven days apart. The area under the average glucose concentration vs. time plot was different between the three conditions (BL = 909 ± 76; DL = 1078 ± 106; and BLM = 1130 ± 45 mmol·min·l-1). Visual inspection of the average blood glucose vs. time plot suggested that DL and BLM displayed very similar patterns and magnitude, with both DL and BLM having the blood glucose concentrations at each time point that are noticeably greater than BL. Additionally, the average (± standard deviation) blood glucose concentrations for DL (8.8 ± 0.9 mmol·l-1) and BLM (9.1 ± 1.1 mmol·l-1) were respectively 18% and 22% greater than BL (7.5 ± 0.5 mmol·l-1). Melatonin and/or dim light can reduce a Type 2 diabetic's glucoregulatory ability.
A battle of words

The stripped-down, laboratory-like setting of Netflix's international whodunnit series Criminal is the perfect foil for scripts that focus with clinical precision on the mind, says Chelsea Whyte