cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Deep Learning-Assisted Diagnosis of Cerebral Aneurysms Using the HeadXNet Model

Importance Deep learning has the potential to augment clinician performance in medical imaging interpretation and reduce time to diagnosis through automated segmentation. Few studies to date have explored this topic. Objective To develop and apply a neural network segmentation model (the HeadXNet model) capable of generating precise voxel-by-voxel predictions of intracranial aneurysms on head computed tomographic angiography (CTA) imaging to augment clinicians’ intracranial aneurysm diagnostic performance. Design, Setting, and Participants In this diagnostic study, a 3-dimensional convolutional neural network architecture was developed using a training set of 611 head CTA examinations to generate aneurysm segmentations. Segmentation outputs from this support model on a test set of 115 examinations were provided to clinicians. Between August 13, 2018, and October 4, 2018, 8 clinicians diagnosed the presence of aneurysm on the test set, both with and without model augmentation, in a crossover design using randomized order and a 14-day washout period. Head and neck examinations performed between January 3, 2003, and May 31, 2017, at a single academic medical center were used to train, validate, and test the model. Examinations positive for aneurysm had at least 1 clinically significant, nonruptured intracranial aneurysm. Examinations with hemorrhage, ruptured aneurysm, posttraumatic or infectious pseudoaneurysm, arteriovenous malformation, surgical clips, coils, catheters, or other surgical hardware were excluded. All other CTA examinations were considered controls. Main Outcomes and Measures Sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, time, and interrater agreement were measured. Metrics for clinician performance with and without model augmentation were compared. Results The data set contained 818 examinations from 662 unique patients with 328 CTA examinations (40.1%) containing at least 1 intracranial aneurysm and 490 examinations (59.9%) without intracranial aneurysms. The 8 clinicians reading the test set ranged in experience from 2 to 12 years. Augmenting clinicians with artificial intelligence–produced segmentation predictions resulted in clinicians achieving statistically significant improvements in sensitivity, accuracy, and interrater agreement when compared with no augmentation. The clinicians’ mean sensitivity increased by 0.059 (95% CI, 0.028-0.091; adjustedP = .01), mean accuracy increased by 0.038 (95% CI, 0.014-0.062; adjustedP = .02), and mean interrater agreement (Fleiss κ) increased by 0.060, from 0.799 to 0.859 (adjustedP = .05). There was no statistically significant change in mean specificity (0.016; 95% CI, −0.010 to 0.041; adjustedP = .16) and time to diagnosis (5.71 seconds; 95% CI, 7.22-18.63 seconds; adjustedP = .19). Conclusions and Relevance The deep learning model developed successfully detected clinically significant intracranial aneurysms on CTA. This suggests that integration of an artificial intelligence–assisted diagnostic model may augment clinician performance with dependable and accurate predictions and thereby optimize patient care.
Bilateral nerve conduction studies in the evaluation of distal symmetric polyneuropathy.

Introduction Nerve conduction studies are used to aid in the diagnosis of distal symmetric polyneuropathy (DSP). It is unclear whether bilateral lower extremity nerve conduction studies (NCS) are needed when evaluating for suspected DSP. Methods We retrospectively analyzed NCS from patients who presented to the University of Michigan electromyography laboratory between July 1, 2016 and December 31, 2017 with symptoms of DSP to assess agreement and correlation between left and right lower extremity NCS parameters. Results We found significant agreement between abnormalities in individual nerve parameters of the left and right lower extremities of 105 patients, most notably in the sural nerve. In the 53 patients with bilateral sural, peroneal, and tibial studies, there was also significant agreement between whether the left and right met electrodiagnostic criteria for DSP (κ = 0.77). Discussion Bilateral lower extremity NCS may have limited utility in the evaluation of suspected DSP. Muscle Nerve, 2019.
Energy-Efficient On-Demand Resource Provisioning in Cloud Radio Access Networks

By leveraging the elasticity of cloud computing, cloud radio access network (C-RAN) facilitates flexible resource management and is one of the key techniques of enabling 5G. In this paper, we study the energy-efficient on-demand resource provisioning in C-RAN by dynamically provisioning the radio and computing resources according to network traffic demands. The network energy consumption of C-RAN is minimized by jointly optimizing the cooperative beamforming, remote radio head (RRH) selection, and virtual baseband units (vBBUs) provisioning. It is challenging to resolve the optimization problem because of the interdependence between the RRH selection and vBBU provisioning. We propose the energy-efficient on-demand C-RAN virtualization (REACT) algorithm to solve the problem in two steps. First, we cluster RRHs into groups by using the hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) algorithm and assign a vBBU to each RRH group for the baseband signal processing. Second, we determine the RRH selection by optimizing the cooperative beamforming. The performance of the proposed algorithm is validated through extensive simulations, which show that the proposed algorithm significantly reduces the network energy consumption.
Identifying diverse concepts of discharge failure patients at emergency department in the USA: a large-scale retrospective observational study

Objectives Identifying patients who are at high risk for discharge failure allows for implementation of interventions to improve their care. However, discharge failure is currently defined in literature with great variability, making targeted interventions more difficult. We aim to derive a screening tool based on the existing diverse discharge failure models. Design, setting and participants This is a single-centre retrospective cohort study in the USA. Data from all patients discharged from the emergency department were collected from 1 January 2015 through 31 December 2017 and followed up within 30 days. Methods Scoring systems were derived using modified Framingham methods. Sensitivity, specificity and area under the receiver operational characteristic (AUC) were calculated and compared using both the broad and restricted discharge failure models. Results A total of 227 627 patients were included. The Screening for Healthcare fOllow-Up Tool (SHOUT) scoring system was derived based on the broad and restricted discharge failure models and applied back to the entire study cohort. A sensitivity of 80% and a specificity of 71% were found in SHOUT scores to identify patients with broad discharge failure with AUC of 0.83 (95% CI 0.83 to 0.84). When applied to a 3-day restricted discharge failure model, a sensitivity of 86% and a specificity of 60% were found to identify patients with AUC of 0.79 (95% CI 0.78 to 0.80). Conclusion The SHOUT scoring system was derived and used to screen and identify patients that would ultimately become discharge failures, especially when using broad definitions of discharge failure. The SHOUT tool was internally validated and can be used to identify patients across a wide spectrum of discharge failure definitions.
“They don’t know what it’s like in here”: Incarcerated individuals’ communication with family members

The incarcerated population is large and growing. Maintaining family connections during confinement is linked to positive outcomes, yet the family communication of incarcerated individuals is under...
153. A Review of Ten Cases of Pulmonic Valve Infective Endocarditis

Background Pulmonic valve (PV) infective endocarditis (IE) is a rare entity, accounting for ~1.5–2% of all cases of IE. As a result, published literature describing the diagnosis and management of patients with PVIE is limited.
Epstein-Barr virus induces adhesion molecule CD226 (DNAM-1) expression during primary B cell transformation into lymphoblastoid cell lines

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), an oncogenic herpesvirus associated with Burkitt’s lymphoma and other AIDS-related B cell malignancies, transforms primary human B cells into lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) ex vivo. As LCLs express viral gene products similar to those found in EBV-mediated cancers, LCLs provide a practical model for tumorigenesis. Previous unpublished findings from our lab indicate that LCLs constitutively express the adhesion molecule CD226 (DNAM-1), found on virtually all peripheral blood NK cells, T cells, and monocytes, but only a small subset (~3%) of B cells. Although CD226 is known to mediate T-cell differentiation and cytotoxicity, NK cell cytotoxicity, NKT cell apoptosis, and monocyte extravasion, CD226 function in B cells remains relatively unstudied. Biochemically, CD226 functions to support the interaction between the intracellular adhesion molecules LFA-1 and ICAM-1. Here, we demonstrate that EBV specifically induces CD226 expression in primary human B cells and EBV-negative B lymphoblasts during viral-mediated proliferation and outgrowth. EBV infection of primary B cells increased CD226 surface expression 5-fold during early proliferation and approximately 30-fold upon transformation into LCLs. EBV-converted Burkitt’s lymphoma cells constitutively express CD226, while EBV-negative B cell lymphomas do not. Additionally, we demonstrate that LMP-1, an EBV latency III membrane oncoprotein, induces CD226 expression in EBV-negative Burkitt’s lymphoma cells. Finally, we demonstrate that the NFκB pathway regulates CD226 expression. Indeed, B cell lymphomas with high NFκB activity (activated B cell-like diffuse large B-cell lymphomas) express CD226 at higher levels than B cell lymphomas with low NFκB activity (germinal center B cell-like diffuse large B cell lymphomas). As CD226 supports the interaction between LFA-1 and ICAM-1, which is critical to maintain the constitutive aggregation of EBV-transformed B cells, we propose that EBV-mediated induction of CD226 drives cell-cell contact ensuring B cell survival. These data suggest that CD226, a newly identified EBV-induced cell adhesion molecule, may play a key role in the pathogenesis of AIDS-associated and other B cell lymphomas.
Surfactant-enhanced DNA accessibility to nuclease accelerates phenotypic β-lactam antibiotic susceptibility testing of Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) for Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ng) is critically needed to counter widespread antibiotic resistance. Detection of nucleic acids in genotypic AST can be rapid, but it has not been successful for β-lactams (the largest antibiotic class used to treat Ng). Rapid phenotypic AST for Ng is challenged by the pathogen’s slow doubling time and the lack of methods to quickly quantify the pathogen’s response to β-lactams. Here, we asked two questions: (1) Is it possible to use nucleic acid quantification to measure the β-lactam susceptibility phenotype of Ng very rapidly, using antibiotic-exposure times much shorter than the 1- to 2-h doubling time of Ng? (2) Would such short-term antibiotic exposures predict the antibiotic resistance profile of Ng measured by plate growth assays over multiple days? To answer these questions, we devised an innovative approach for performing a rapid phenotypic AST that measures DNA accessibility to exogenous nucleases after exposure to β-lactams (termed nuclease-accessibility AST [nuc-aAST]). We showed that DNA in antibiotic-susceptible cells has increased accessibility upon exposure to β-lactams and that a judiciously chosen surfactant permeabilized the outer membrane and enhanced this effect. We tested penicillin, cefixime, and ceftriaxone and found good agreement between the results of the nuc-aAST after 15–30 min of antibiotic exposure and the results of the gold-standard culture-based AST measured over days. These results provide a new pathway toward developing a critically needed phenotypic AST for Ng and additional global-health threats.
Transcriptomics reveal immune downregulation of newts overwhelmed by chytrid co-infection.

What happens when two emergent diseases infect the same host? In a From the Cover article in this issue of Molecular Ecology, McDonald et al. (2020) compare transcriptomic responses to co-infection by the two chytrid fungi in the skin, liver and spleen of Eastern newts (Notophthalmus viridescens). Novel molecular tools, such as high-throughput DNA sequencing for genome discovery and transcriptomics, have revolutionized our understanding of host-pathogen interactions and disease ecology (Guimil et al. 2005; Rosenblum et al. 2012). For example, epidemiologists are using genomic data to track the spread of the emergent SARS-CoV-2 in real time, both locally and globally. RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) is routinely employed to study response to disease in humans, improving disease diagnostics, profiling and development of intervention strategies. Transcriptomic profiles may be particularly informative for emergent diseases, whose pathologies and effect on host phenotype are poorly known. Fungal pathogens increasingly threaten a variety of wild and domesticated organisms (Fisher et al. 2012), and two chytrid fungi attacking amphibians are causing one of the worst losses of vertebrate biodiversity ever recorded (Scheele et al. 2019).
Implementation and experimental evaluation of Mega-voltage fan-beam CT using a linear accelerator.

Mega-voltage fan-beam Computed Tomography (MV-FBCT) holds potential in accurate determination of relative electron density (RED) and proton stopping power ratio (SPR) but is not widely available. To demonstrate the feasibility of MV-FBCT using a medical linear accelerator (LINAC) with a 2.5 MV imaging beam, an electronic portal imaging device (EPID) and multileaf collimators (MLCs). MLCs were used to collimate MV beam along z direction to enable a 1 cm width fan-beam. Projection data were acquired within one gantry rotation and preprocessed with in-house developed artifact correction algorithms before the reconstruction. MV-FBCT data were acquired at two dose levels: 30 and 60 monitor units (MUs). A Catphan 604 phantom was used to evaluate basic image quality. A head-sized CIRS phantom with three configurations of tissue-mimicking inserts was scanned and MV-FBCT Hounsfield unit (HU) to RED calibration was established for each insert configuration using linear regression. The determination coefficient ( $${R}^{2}$$ ) was used to gauge the accuracy of HU-RED calibration. Results were compared with baseline single-energy kilo-voltage treatment planning CT (TP-CT) HU-RED calibration which represented the current standard clinical practice. The in-house artifact correction algorithms effectively suppressed ring artifact, cupping artifact, and CT number bias in MV-FBCT. Compared to TP-CT, MV-FBCT was able to improve the prediction accuracy of the HU-RED calibration curve for all three configurations of insert materials, with $${R}^{2}$$ > 0.9994 and $${R}^{2}$$ < 0.9990 for MV-FBCT and TP-CT HU-RED calibration curves of soft-tissue inserts, respectively. The measured mean CT numbers of blood-iodine mixture inserts in TP-CT drastically deviated from the fitted values but not in MV-FBCT. Reducing the radiation level from 60 to 30 MU did not decrease the prediction accuracy of the MV-FBCT HU-RED calibration curve. We demonstrated the feasibility of MV-FBCT and its potential in providing more accurate RED estimation.
Roles of the tumor suppressor inhibitor of growth family member 4 (ING4) in cancer

Inhibitor of growth family member 4 (ING4) is best known as a tumor suppressor that is frequently downregulated, deleted, or mutated in many cancers. ING4 regulates a broad array of tumor-related processes including proliferation, apoptosis, migration, autophagy, invasion, angiogenesis, DNA repair and chromatin remodeling. ING4 alters local chromatin structure by functioning as an epigenetic reader of H3K4 trimethylation histone marks (H3K4Me3) and regulating gene transcription through directing histone acetyltransferase (HAT) and histone deacetylase (HDAC) protein complexes. ING4 may serve as a useful prognostic biomarker for many cancer types and help guide treatment decisions. This review provides an overview of ING4's central functions in gene expression and summarizes current literature on the role of ING4 in cancer and its possible use in therapy.
Learning From Youth: Using Positive Outcomes to Evaluate Summer Youth Employment Programs:

Summer Youth Employment Programs (SYEPs) help connect youth to opportunities for career exploration, skill development, and mentorship. Despite heightened investment in SYEPs, research regarding po...
Experiencing nature in special places: surveys in the North-Central Region.

The experience people have in natural environments can be very important to them, even though these experiences are sometimes hard to categorize and measure. In a series of qualitative surveys, I asked people to describe special outdoor places and explain in their own words what these places meant to them. Their responses revealed many similarities in the highly valued experiences that occurred across diverse respondents and places. By treating special places with care, managers and planners can help ensure that opportunties for such experiences will continue to be available to people.
Mathematical Structures of Data and Their Implications for Visualization

We have briefly investigated how mathematical structures on data can be used to define conditions on the visualization mapping from data to displays. The first three conditions that we discussed are that D: U → V map: The algebraic structure of U to the algebraic structure of V (i.e., D is linear). The metric structure of U to the metric structure of V (i.e., D is isometric). The lattice structure of U to the lattice structure of V (i.e., D is a lattice isomorphism).
Effective Curriculum for Teaching L2 Writing: Principles and Techniques

Preface. Acknowledgements. Part I. Curriculum Foundations for L2 Writing and Language. Chapter 1. Introduction: Effective Teaching and the Curriculum. Chapter 2. What's Valued in School Writing and Language. Chapter 3. What's Valued in College and University Academic Writing. Chapter 4. Second Language Writing and Language Learning. Part II. Curriculum Design for L2 Writing and Language Building. Chapter 5. How to Design Effective Curricula for Language and Writing Courses. Chapter 6. Choosing Teaching Materials and Adapting Textbooks. Part III. Language-focused Curriculum Elements. Chapter 7. Language Focus: Teaching Academic Vocabulary, Collocations, and Pre-Fabs. Chapter 8. Language Focus: Teaching Academic Grammar for Writing. Chapter 9. Language Focus: From Text to Discourse. Appendix.
Evaluation of monthly precipitation forecasting skill of the National Multi‐model Ensemble in the summer season

As a test bed, the National Multi-model Ensemble (NMME) comprises seven climate models from different sources, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the International Research Institute for Climate and Society. It provides 89 ensemble members of precipitation forecasts at different lead times. Precipitation forecasting from climate models has been applied to provide streamflow forecasts, and its utility in water resource system operation has been demonstrated in the literature. In this study, 1-month-ahead precipitation forecasts from NMME are evaluated for 945 grid points of 1°-by-1° resolution over the continental USA using mean square error and rank probability score. The temporal and spatial variabilities of the forecasting skill over different months of the summer season are discussed. The relation between forecasting uncertainty and observed precipitation is investigated. Such analyses have implications for monthly operational forecasts and water resource management at the watershed scale. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
School- and Group-Based Pay: Introduction to the Special Issue

It has been difficult to improve teacher performance in schools through incentive-based pay models. Two overarching questions that this volume addresses are (1) why attempts to improve teaching and schools through incentive-based pay models have been so difficult to implement in schools and (2) whether some new teacher pay models are promising enough to move in newer directions. This volume focuses on school- and group-based pay. Over the past fifty years, most experimentation with alternative compensation approaches has focused on individual performance-based pay (teacher merit pay), which establishes a link between the salaries of individual teachers and evaluations of their performance. Studies of states and school districts that have implemented teacher merit pay plans and later abandoned them suggest that teacher rivalry and dissension, administrative problems (such as record keeping), and issues of personnel evaluation (such as problems in determining who deserved extra pay) were among the primary reasons for discontinuing such pay plans. Therefore, numerous scholars (Johnson, 1986; Malen, Murphy & Hart, 1987; Murnane, 1986) have questioned the appropriateness of linking the compensation of teachers to the system of personnel evaluation, at least as a basis for determining individual teacher pay. Recently, Odden and Kelley (1997) maintained that problems with previous efforts to institute merit pay reside in the fact that these plans were attempting to calculate ‘‘merit’’ on an individual basis. Thus, they have suggested that school- and group-based performance awards are a promising alternative teacher compensation strategy. Groupbased performance awards, or collective incentive pay plans, do not focus on individual performance. The quality of education, proponents contend, may be enhanced to the extent that teachers ‘‘act as a group, evaluating each other’s performance, disseminating new ideas, and working together to solve common problems’’ (Bacharach, Lipsky & Shedd, 1984, p. 49). Currently, school-based performance award programs allocate monetary awards to teachers for their performance during a specified period of time (typically one year). The amount of the bonus is normally divided equally among the teachers in the school and is provided in addition to the teachers’ base salaries. Variations of plans that allocate monetary benefits to teachers in individual schools are being developed and implemented in several states. 1 School-based performance award programs are viewed as ways of encouraging schools, and people who work within them, to accept and implement new state-level student achievement standards and assessments. Although the concept of group-based pay has recently been applied to individual schools, it could be applied to work groups within a school as well. Indeed, as the concept of
Cooperative Learning: Building a Democratic Community

ooperation is an important human accomplishment. People who are willing to come together and organize themselves in a group to accomplish a task are more likely to be successful in any effort, whether it is in business, sports, government, or school (Thomas 1957). Social scientists who have studied the subject of cooperation have found that several things happen when people work toward a common goal. They frequently, for example, express support for doing whatever helps the group to achieve its goals (Thomas 1957). Thomas found that, as groups work together, members actually assist one another with goals to the degree that the efforts of each member serve to move others toward their respective goals. In addition, Thomas noted that the cooperative group produces more and better ideas than do individuals working alone or competitively. In essence, cooperation reinforces the point that two (or more) heads are better than one. One area in which cooperation has typically not been of primary focus is the classroom. In many classrooms, in fact, students are in direct competition with each other and may view the idea of sharing or working in cooperation with each other as cheating. In a typical scenario, the teacher calls on a student to answer a question. If the student answers incorrectly, the teacher asks other class members to provide the answer. Another student gives the correct answer and, in so doing, will probably embarrass the student who answered incorrectly. The student who provided the correct answer, however, will experience elation that he or she has given the right answer and won the approval of the teacher. That student may also feel a sense of superiority in regard to the other student. That kind of competitive environment can discourage students in their academic efforts. The structure of the competitive classroom environment, however, changes tremendously when a teacher implements cooperative learning. In this article, I examine cooperative
Reactions at the 3' Terminus of Transfer Ribonucleic Acid V. SUBCELLULAR LOCALIZATION AND EVIDENCE FOR A MITOCHONDRIAL TRANSFER RIBONUCLEIC ACID NUCLEOTIDYLTRANSFERASE

Abstract The subcellular localization in rat liver of tRNA nucleotidyltransferase has been examined. The major portion of the activity in untreated subcellular fractions was present in the high speed supernatant fraction. Treatment of the liver homogenate with Triton X-100 or subjecting it to freezing and thawing increased tRNA nucleotidyltransferase activity about 50 to 70% suggesting that a substantial portion of the enzyme was present within organelles and unavailable for assay. Extraction of the various subcellular fractions revealed that mitochondria contained tRNA nucleotidyltransferase amounting to about one-third of the total activity in liver. Microsomes and nuclei were essentially devoid of activity. The activity in the mitochondrial fraction was shown not to be due to bacterial contamination. The distribution of tRNA nucleotidyltransferase upon isopycnic centrifugation in sucrose gradients was identical with the mitochondrial marker enzyme, cytochrome oxidase. Fractionation of mitochondria by digitonin treatment indicated that the enzyme was localized in the mitochondrial matrix. The catalytic properties of the tRNA nucleotidyltransferase activity in mitochondrial extracts were very similar to those of the homogeneous enzymes described previously in that it had an unusually alkaline pH optimum and was active with either ATP, CTP, or UTP. The enzyme required tRNA for activity and was essentially inactive with rRNA or in the absence of added RNA. These results suggest that mitochondria may contain a system for the maturation of tRNA molecules.
Reduction in Fear of Falling Through Intense Tai Chi Exercise Training in Older, Transitionally Frail Adults

Objectives: To determine whether an intense Tai chi exercise program could reduce fear of falling better than a wellness education (WE) program in older adults who had fallen previously and meet criteria for transitioning to frailty. Design: Cluster-randomized, controlled trial of 48 weeks' duration. Setting: Ten matched pairs of congregate living facilities in the greater Atlanta area. Participants: Sample of 291 women and 20 men, aged 70 to 97. Measurements: Activity-related fear of falling using the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC) and the Fall Efficacy Scale at baseline and every 4 months for 1 year. Demographics, time to first fall and all subsequent falls, functional measures, Centers for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, medication use, level of physical activity, comorbidities, and adherence to interventions. Results: Mean ABC was similar in both cohort groups at the time of randomization but became significantly higher (decreased fear) in the tai chi cohort at 8 months (57.9 vs 49.0, P<.001) and at study end (59.2 vs 47.9, P<.001). After adjusting for covariates, the mean ABC after 12 months of intervention was significantly greater in the tai chi group than in the WE group, with the differences increasing with time (mean difference at 12 months=9.5 points, 95% confidence interval=4.8-14.2, P<.001). Conclusion: Tai chi led to a significantly greater reduction in fear of falling than a WE program in transitionally frail older adults. The mean percentage change in ABC scores widened between tai chi and WE participants over the trial period. Tai chi should be considered in any program designed to reduce falling and fear of falling in transitionally frail older adults.
Linkage Mapping of Resistance to Reniform Nematode in Cotton following Introgression from Gossypium longicalyx (Hutch. & Lee)

Reniform nematodes (Rotylenchulus reniformis Linford & Oliveira) decrease U.S. production of Upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L., 2n = 52, 2[AD] 1 ) by more than US$100 million yr -1 . We report here on the mapping of a gene for extreme resistance that was introgressed from the African species G. longicalyx (Hutch. & Lee, 2n = 2x = 26; 2F 1 ). The responsible allele, designated Ren lon , was localized to chromosome 11 by first screening A-subgenome simple sequence repeat (SSR) marker loci for parental polymorphism and then for association with resistance. The three most strongly coupled SSRs and a G. longicalyx gene conferring green seed fuzz, designated Fzg lon , were screened against 984 resistant and susceptible individuals of multiple backcross generations. We used marker data and pedigrees to identify nonrecombinant heterozygous parents and thereby avoid bias from repeated sampling of a recombination event. We constructed linkage maps after progeny testing a small population (147) and after implementing three alternative approaches better suited to larger populations― marker-assisted genotyping analysis, applying a cut-off value as population-wide genotyping criterion, and genotype-selective sampling. The maps concordantly indicated the order to be Fzg lon ―Ren lon ―BNL3279_114-BNL1066_156-BNL836_215, with most Ren-proximal bilaterally flanking markers within 6 cM of each other. The results will clearly facilitate use of Ren lon in breeding, additional mapping, genomics, and prospective cloning.
Biased-Coin Randomization

The biased coin randomisation is introduced as a procedure to minimize study bias whilst maintaining treatment balance throughout the trial. The range of biased coin randomizations are described for 2 and more than 2 treatment groups, and also for equal and unequal randomization. Biased coin randomizations are described which use both fixed and adaptive levels of coin ‘bias’. The well-known urn model is described as a special representation of the biased coin randomization, and the link is discussed. Finally, the use of the biased coin randomization procedure for balance within covariate strata, and the application to response adaptive randomizations are described. Keywords: Randomisation; biased coin; balance; urn model; adaptive design
Sex differences in postabsorptive plasma vitamin A transport.

This study examined postabsorptive plasma vitamin A after doses of retinyl palmitate in healthy men (n = 28) and women (n = 31). On consecutive days one physiologic [3000 retinol equivalents (RE)] and one pharmacologic dose (105,000 RE) were administered and blood samples collected. Plasma retinol and retinyl esters were measured by HPLC. Tolerance curves were constructed by plotting plasma retinyl ester concentration vs time. Postprandial retinyl ester response was measured as peak rise in retinyl ester concentration and area under the curve (AUC). Peak plasma retinyl ester concentration occurred earlier for females but the earlier peak was significant only for younger subjects ( 50 y, P < 0.02) given the high dose. Peak rise and AUC were lower in females than in males, but this difference was significant for the high dose only (P < 0.05). In the high-dose experiment, when each age group was evaluated for sex differences the peak rise was significantly greater in males than in females in the older subjects (P < 0.05). Postabsorptive plasma retinol did not change from fasting concentrations. A lower plasma response in retinyl esters in women could be due to a more efficient chylomicron-remnant clearance.
SlideFinder: a tool for browsing presentation graphics using content-based retrieval

An application of CBIR (content based image retrieval) technology to desktop presentation and business graphics is described. The application, SlideFinder, allows a user to index and browse Microsoft PowerPoint and Lotus Freelance Graphics by image similarity, as well as by text and keywords. The image similarity matching uses the IBM QBIC engine (M. Flickner et al., 1995).
Hospitalizations and Mortality in the United States for Adults With Down Syndrome and Congenital Heart Disease

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is common in patients with Down syndrome (DS), and these patients are living longer lives. The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiology of hospitalizations in adults with DS and CHD in the United States. Hospitalizations from 1998 to 2009 for adults aged 18 to 64 years with and without DS with CHD diagnoses associated with DS (atrioventricular canal defect, ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, and patent ductus arteriosus) were analyzed using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample. Outcomes of interest were (1) in-hospital mortality, (2) common co-morbidities, (3) cardiac procedures, (4) hospital charges, and (5) length of stay. Multivariate modeling adjusted for age, gender, CHD diagnosis, and co-morbidities. There were 78,793 ± 2,653 CHD admissions, 9,088 ± 351 (11.5%) of which were associated with diagnoses of DS. The proportion of admissions associated with DS (DS/CHD) decreased from 15.2 ± 1.3% to 8.5 ± 0.9%. DS was associated with higher in-hospital mortality (odds ratio [OR] 1.8, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.4 to 2.4), especially in women (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.7 to 3.4). DS/CHD admissions were more commonly associated with hypothyroidism (OR 7.7, 95% CI 6.6 to 9.0), dementia (OR 82.0, 95% CI 32 to 213), heart failure (OR 2.2, 95% CI 1.9 to 2.5), pulmonary hypertension (OR 2.5, 95% CI 2.2 to 2.9), and cyanosis or secondary polycythemia (OR 4.6, 95% CI 3.8 to 5.6). Conversely, DS/CHD hospitalizations were less likely to include cardiac procedures or surgery (OR 0.3, 95% CI 0.2 to 0.4) and were associated with lower charges ($23,789 ± $1,177 vs $39,464 ± $1,371, p
Familial aggregation of stroke. The Framingham Study.

Family history is perceived to be an important risk factor for stroke despite conflicting published data. We examined patterns of familial aggregation of stroke among three generations using data from the Framingham Study.Cox proportional hazards analyses, adjusting for known stroke risk factors, were used to examine familial concordance in three groups: (1) members of the original Framingham cohort using reported parental stroke death; (2) members of the Framingham Offspring Study and their parents (members of the original Framingham Study); and (3) sibships within the original Framingham cohort.We found no association between stroke or transient ischemic attack among original cohort members and their reported parental stroke death (n = 4933; relative risk [RR] = 1.07). Using verified cases of parental stroke or transient ischemic attack, the Offspring analyses revealed that both paternal (n = 1762; RR = 2.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.96 to 6.03) and maternal (n = 2074; RR = 1.4; 95% CI, 0.60 to 3....
Developing a Case-Based Reasoning Knowledge Repository To Support a Learning Community--An Example from the Technology Integration Community

People have long relied on storytelling for communicating ideas, transferring knowledge, and consequently making decisions. This paper describes the design and development of a case-based reasoning (CBR) knowledge repository including its case library and the search engine to support the technology integration community. CBR assumes that community knowledge can be captured in the form of stories (cases) so that the community members learn and solve problems by applying the lessons preserved in the stories to the current situation. The process and results of formative evaluation following the concept of participatory design are reported to set the context for further research and development.
Comments on Rangel et al., "Racial and ethnic disparities in influenza vaccination...".

To the Editor:— The article in the May issue entitled “Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Influenza Vaccination among Elderly Adults” described decreased immunization rates among Hispanic and non-Hispanic black patients. Rangel et al.1 used NHIS data to investigate factors impacting access to care and found that, even after controlling for access to care and socioeconomic factors, racial/ethnic disparities remained. The authors hypothesized that there may be attitudes and perceptions specific to African Americans, which affect their willingness to be vaccinated. A recent study done at our institution had very different results. Denver Health is a vertically and horizontally integrated system of an urban public hospital and 11 community health centers. We analyzed rates of immunization for pneumococcus and influenza among our patients who are 66 years of age and older and who are regular users of our system. Hispanic and African-American patients had rates of immunization equal to or higher than our Caucasian patients. This remained true after controlling for insurance status, medical comorbidities, age and site of greatest uses. Language was also not found to be a barrier for our monolingual Spanish-Speaking Hispanic patients. There are a few possible reasons that explain why ethnic minorities have equal rates of immunization when compared to Caucasians at Denver Health. Personnel who staff our community health centers are hired from within the communities, which access care at a particular clinic site. This leads to a great deal of racial concordance between staff and patients and establishes a sense of trust in the community with regards to the medical care the center offers. Many of our providers also speak Spanish and there is a significant amount of language concordance between the provider and their patients. All immunization data sheets are in both Spanish and English and interpreter services are readily available for those providers not proficient in Spanish. Furthermore, all providers and staff undergo cultural sensitivity training. Thus, while it is clear that racial disparities continue to exist in health care, additional efforts should be focused on analytical work that helps to understand those disparities and on the implementation of interventions to reduce them.
Thermoregulatory behaviour limits local adaptation of thermal niches and confers sensitivity to climate change

Summary Thermoregulation buffers environmental variation, which enables a species to persist during climate change but ultimately hinders adaptation of thermal tolerance by weakening selective pressure. We used a model of optimal thermal physiology to demonstrate how thermoregulatory behaviour limits local adaptation of thermal physiology in a widespread group of lizards, the Sceloporus undulatus complex. Empirical data for seven populations demonstrates conservatism of thermal tolerance, consistent with the model's prediction in the case of effective thermoregulation. In an eighth population, from a region where thermoregulation should be less effective, we observed greater heat tolerance and poorer cold tolerance, as predicted by our model. Biophysical modelling indicates that lizards can avoid heat stress through thermoregulation in the coming decades but will ultimately experience an abrupt decline in the effectiveness of thermoregulation. In this scenario, thermoregulators will suffer a greater loss of performance in future climates than thermoconformers will, unless heat tolerance can evolve in a few generations. Our analyses raises a concern that behavioural plasticity, while beneficial in the short term, will ultimately limit the physiological adaptation required to endure a warming climate.
Development of a Dynamometer to Study the Performance of Plastic Gears

A testing facility has been developed to explore the failure modes of plastic gears. The overall goal is the prediction of gear tooth failure for a given set of operating conditions and to classify failure modes of plastic gears. The initial investigation is centered on the testing of plastic spur gears placed on a parallel-shaft drive train between a variable-speed, reversible DC motor and an eddy current dynamometer. The testing apparatus has been designed, fabricated, and refined to deliver consistent results. The dynamometer places two plastic spur gears in mesh, one being the drive gear and the other the driven. Most of the test gear pairs were injection molded, 40-tooth, 0.8 module gears. These gears were molded using Delrin™ 311DP, a polyoxymethylene polymer which is made by the DuPont Company. Optical encoders were attached to the input and output shafts to sense the shaft position providing a measurement of the deflection and wear of the gear teeth. In addition, an infrared temperature sensor was retrofitted to the dynamometer apparatus to measure the tooth-flank surface temperature. All of the tests where the gear flank temperature reached 250°F resulted in a catastrophic failure. The apparatus was also fitted with a high-speed digital camera system capable of sampling 1000 frames per second. The camera recorded the failure of the plastic gears.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Effect of Field Stress Variance on Test to Field Correlation in Accelerated Reliability Demonstration Testing

This paper discusses the effect of field stress variance on the value of demonstrated reliability. In many cases, the acceleration factor for a reliability demonstration test is calculated based on a high percentile field stress level, typically corresponding to severe user or environmental conditions. In those cases, the actual field reliability for the population will be higher than that demonstrated by the test. This paper presents a mathematical approach to estimating ‘true’ field reliability based on the acceleration model and stress variable distribution over the product field population. This method is illustrated by an example of automotive electronics reliability demonstration testing and has a wide range of practical applications. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Wind-reworked carbonates, Permo-Pennsylvanian of Arizona and Nevada

Several workers have suggested that calcareous wind-blown dunes are genetically related to rapid, glacio-eustatic fluctuations of sea level. Although such Pleistocene and Holocene deposits are widespread along low-latitude coasts, older eolian limestones are either extremely rare or have been misinterpreted as subaqueous in origin. Medium- to large-scale cross-laminated limestones of the Callville Limestone (Pennsylvanian) of southern Nevada, the correlative Manakacha and Wescogame Formations (Supai Group), and the Pakoon Limestone (Permian) of western Grand Canyon, although considered marine by earlier workers, contain several diagnostic structures indicative of an eolian origin. Cross-strata are dominantly composed of thin, inverse-graded laminae produced by the migration and climb of wind ripples. Sets of cross-strata commonly have irregular upper surfaces produced by differential wind erosion of damp or lightly cemented laminae. Southward-dipping cross-strata in these rocks are the earliest record of a paleowind system that persisted in this region well into Jurassic time. Mechanical breakage of shells, fitted fabrics, and microstylolites indicate that marine beds that are cyclically interbedded with the eolian deposits did not undergo early lithification. Echinoderm grains with abraded over-growths within eolian deposits indicate, however, that some wind-transported grains were reworked from beds, that had previously undergone fresh-water phreatic diagenesis. Gravel lags composed of macrofossils and hardground lithoclasts at the contacts between marine and eolian beds and between eolian coasts give further evidence for deflation of subaerially exposed marine deposits. Where marine units underwent extensive early lithification, there are no gravel lags or interbedded eolian deposits. Subaerially exposed marine strata were the primary source of eolian sediment. During eustatic highstands, onshore winds probably drove beach sediment landward, but, in contrast to Quaternary examples, the eolian deposits of this study do not cap shallowing-upward sequences. Beach facies are rare. During lowstands, uncemented beach facies were first to be removed by deflation. Material too coarse to be wind-transported accumulated as gravel lags. Deflation was facilitated by the lack of widespread sea-floor cementation (hardgrounds) and by an arid paleoclimate, which limited the extent of meteoric diagenesis.
A new synthesis of bis-aminoethanethiol (bat) chelating agents containing a gamma carboxylate

Abstract A new synthesis of bis(aminoethanethiols) containing a long-chain fatty acid moiety is described. The procedure described offers an advantage over literature methods since the use of strong reducing agents such as lithium aluminum hydride is avoided.
Probabilistic analysis of energy exchange processes for automotive hybrid powertrain

Abstract In this paper a statistical method for establishing the minimum energy reservoir needed for a hybrid-electric vehicle (HEV) is proposed. This method is based on real world data and investigates the statistical properties of the charge and discharge events for a variety of driving profiles. The distribution of the magnitude of discharge and charge events was found to be exponentially distributed. Using an exponential distribution assumption, the probability distribution for the energy stored in the battery was calculated. This distribution is a function of only two parameters, the average discharge energy (μd), and the ratio of the average discharge energy to the average charge energy(ζ). These parameters are functions of the drive profiles of interest and the power-level of the HEV power supply. Based on this, a strategy HEV battery capacity and the power-level of the primary power supply was proposed. This strategy is of particular importance for fuel cell based HEVs because the cost of the fuel cell stack directly scales with the power level.
Shakedown satellites near LIII absorption edges

Abstract By using a spectrum subtraction method we are able to exhibit directly the 4f n →4f n+1 shakedown satellite near the L III edge (in LaPd 3 , PrPd 3 , NdPd 3 and LaNi 5 ). We demonstrate that such shakedown effects are sufficiently small that they may be ignored in (mixed) valence determinations based on the L III method.
An introduction to ATM

Networks have become a common feature in the office environment, allowing access to e-mail and the Internet, linking computers together and allowing several computers to access one printer. As more people want to be linked electronically, how are network technologies going to cope with the increased demand? This article looks at asynchronous transfer mode as one possible solution to this problem.
The semantics of respective Readings, conjunction, and filler-gap dependencies

We provide a semantic analysis of respective readings, including butnot limited to the interpretation of examples containing the adverbrespectively, which accounts for a number of facts that haveeither proven difficult for previous studies or heretofore goneunnoticed in the literature. The analysis introduces the new notionsof property sum and proposition sum which integrate smoothly with existing analyses of plurals and distributivity. The analysis also admits of a straightforward account of previouslyunacknowledged examples involving filler-gap dependencies that areproblematic for contemporary syntactic theories. Ramifications anddirections for future research are discussed.