cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Preferable Monosodium Glutamate and Sodium Chloride Solutions do not Affect Diurnal Norepinephrine Release in the Rat Lateral Hypothalamus

Rats prefer hypo-osmolar solutions of monosodium glutamate (MSG) to water. The unique taste of MSG, called umami, has been suggested to be involved in protein homeostasis. We have investigated diurnal intake patterns of hypo-osmolar MSG solution (0.06 M) in rats fed a protein sufficient diet. Compared to water intake, animals showed a significant preference for MSG solution during the first part of dark phase (dark phase, 19:00–7:00; first part, 19:00–2:00). In contrast, no preference was found during the final part of dark phase or during light phase. No changes in food intake between the two tested groups were found. Although rats were offered MSG solution for five consecutive days, no day-to-day variations in intake were evident, suggesting that MSG preference is unlearned. Activation of the lateral hypothalamus (LH) was previously detected during of MSG solution intake in rats. Using a microdialysis technique, we evaluated LH norepinephrine (NE) release in rats drinking water, salt solution (0.06 M) a...
XANES study of elemental mercury oxidation over RuO2/TiO2 and selective catalytic reduction catalysts for mercury emissions control

Abstract Linear combination fitting of the X-ray Absorption Near Edge Spectroscopy (XANES) was used to quantify oxidized mercury species over RuO2/TiO2 and Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) catalysts under different simulated flue gas conditions. Halogen gases play a major role in mercury oxidation. In the absence of halogen gas, elemental mercury can react with sulfur that is contained in both the RuO2/TiO2 and SCR catalysts to form HgS and HgSO4. In the presence of HCl or HBr gas, HgCl2 or HgBr2 is the main oxidized mercury species. When both HCl and HBr gases are present, HgBr2 is the preferred oxidation product and no HgCl2 can be found. The formation of HgO and HgS cannot be neglected with or without halogen gas. Other simulated flue gas components such as NO, NH3, SO2 and CO2 do not have significant effect on oxidized mercury speciation when halogen gas is present.
Preliminary analysis of the 2014 snapshot of SUNY computer science gatekeeper courses

Until K-12 fully implements computer science (CS) education nationwide, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) must continue to assume an active, effective, and remedial role in bridging incoming freshmen to computer science. This paper discusses a preliminary work of a focused study that was conducted on the gatekeeper course offerings in CS programs/departments and computing-relevant disciplines at SUNY system. In particular, we analyzed a snapshot of the SUNY CS gatekeeper courses in fall 2014 semester. We investigated the spectrum of gatekeeper courses, studied the descriptions of the courses, recognized the diverse needs of each and classified them into categories. SUNY practices find matches from nationwide HEIs for all categories. We conclude the paper by sharing observations and discussions on the current situations from a holistic perspective and pointing out our future work.
The Elements of Decision Alignment

When one object makes a request of another, why do we expect that the second object's behavior correctly satisfies the first object's wishes? The need to cope with such principal-agent problems shapes programming practice as much as it shapes human organizations and economies. However, the literature about such plan coordination issues among humans is almost disjoint from the literature about these issues among objects. Even the terms used are unrelated. These fields have much to learn from each other---both from their similarities and from the causes of their differences. We propose a framework for thinking about decision alignment as a bridge between these disciplines.
Trajectories of Gliding Filaments on Optically Patterned Myosin Surfaces

Interfaces are ubiquitous in biology. For a sub-cellular component moving inside a cell any change in its local environment across an interface whether chemical concentration, density, or other physical variables can produce novel dynamics. Recent advances in bioengineering allow us to control motor proteins’ velocities when prompted by an optical trigger. Using a photoactive LOV-domain in a myosin-XI construct and an optical diaphragm we can spatially pattern light to create interfaces across which speed of a gliding actin filament can differ as much as by a factor of two. We observe that when a gliding actin filament crosses an interface that has a discontinuous velocity jump, it buckles and changes its angle of orientation due to the velocity mismatch. We tracked the position and orientation of actin filaments using an in-house MATLAB tracking algorithm and measured that, for small angles of incidence, the angle of emergence increases linearly. If we increase the angle of incidence further we observe that the angle of emergence saturates. For actin filaments approaching the interface near-tangentially we observe total internal reflection as they fail to cross over the boundary. We have modeled our system using Cytosim software package and find excellent agreement with experimental data. These results have given insight into the dynamics of actin-myosin mechanics and have resulted in a better understanding of how to control direction changes in filaments and create dynamically programmable gliding trajectories.
John Herschel’s Geology: The Cape of Good Hope in the 1830s

The theme which unites this article came to me as a charge – a charge I brought upon myself, but a charge nevertheless. An international group of historians of geology (INHIGEO) was to meet in Cape Town in 2016. Our group had no active members in South Africa, which presented a problem for the conference organizers: How could we have a history of geology field trip? I volunteered that John Herschel had lived at the Cape in the 1830s and that there must be a story and a field trip to be found there. I did lead a field trip “On the Trail of Charles Darwin and John Herschel: The Cape in the 1830s.” I also discovered an unanticipated depth of archival material, which I will be exploring for some time, and which informs this story of the encounter between John Herschel, the astronomer, and the geology of Cape Town, South Africa, in in the 1830s.
Deterrence and punishment experience impacts on ISP compliance attitudes

Purpose The paper aims to examine the inconclusive impacts of sanction-related deterrence on employee information security policy (ISP) compliance from the extant literature. It proposes that the disparate findings can be partially explained by two factors: investigating the mediating impact of attitudes on sanction effects instead of directly on behavioral intentions and examining employees with and without previous punishment experiences separately. Design/methodology/approach The paper relied upon survey data from 239 employees of a large governmental organization with a robust ISP and security education and training awareness program. Findings The paper provides empirical evidence that the rational estimation of sanction effects impacts the cognitive component of attitudes to develop a positive or negative attitude toward performing the ISP directed behavior. Furthermore, this attitudinal effect (created by sanction threats) will be biased depending on whether the employee has experienced, personally or vicariously, any previous punishment for violating the ISP. Research limitations/implications Because of the chosen research approach (self-reported survey data) and context (single hierarchical organization and a very specific security threat), the research results may lack generalizability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further in different organizational and threat contexts. Practical implications Organizations should have a thorough understanding of how their employees’ perceive sanctions in relationship to their prior experiences before implementing such policies. Originality/value The paper addresses previous research calls for examining possible mediation variables for deterrence effects and impacts of punishment experiences on employee ISP compliance.
Heavy precipitation is highly sensitive to the magnitude of future warming

Heavy precipitation exerts strong societal and economic impacts, including flooding, and these precipitation events are projected to increase under anthropogenic warming. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Paris Agreement signed in December 2015 aims to limit the global average temperature rise to below 2 °C above preindustrial levels, with an added goal of limiting temperature increases to 1.5 °C. There remains a major knowledge gap related to our understanding of changes in heavy precipitation under the 1.5 and 2 °C warming targets. Here, we investigate the changes in heavy precipitation events with the Community Earth System Model (CESM) climate experiments using the scenarios consistent with the 1.5 and 2 °C temperature targets. We find that the frequency of annual heavy precipitation at a global scale increases in both 1.5 and 2 °C scenarios until around 2070, after which the magnitudes of the trend become much weaker or even negative. Overall, the annual frequency of heavy precipitation across the globe is similar between 1.5 and 2 °C for the period 2006–2035, and the changes in heavy precipitation in individual seasons are consistent with those for the entire year. The frequency of heavy precipitation in the 2 °C experiments is higher than for the 1.5 °C experiment after the late 2030s, particularly for the period 2071–2100. While the results of both experiments indicate that the warming targets in the Paris Agreement, if met, would be effective in reducing the frequency of heavy precipitation (2 °C target minus 1.5 °C target), they also suggest a lower risk of global heavy precipitation under the 1.5 °C target of about 33% for the period 2071–2100.
Managing Stress to Manage Heart Disease

Five psychosocial risk factors have been consistently linked with the development of heart disease and worse prognosis for those with the disease (1,2): depression, anxiety, social isolation, hostility, and unmanaged stress. Leaders in the field of behavioral cardiology group these psychosocial risk factors into emotional factors (depression, anxiety, anger, or hostility) and chronic stressors (including low social support, low socioeconomic status, work stress, marital stress, and caregiver strain) (3). Others describe the psychosocial factors as stressors themselves (4). However, all agree that they are important in managing cardiovascular disease because they contribute to both the pathogenesis of heart disease and its aggravation by mechanisms independent from those of traditional risk factors (2). The specific roles of depression and anxiety in heart disease are discussed elsewhere in this text, while the significance of hostility and social support are important to mention before delving further into the role of stress.
Reference values for luteal progesterone measured by salivary radioimmunoassay

Objective To establish age-stratified reference values for salivary luteal P levels. Design One hundred thirty-six regularly menstruating women (18 to 48 years of age), screened for weight, exercise, and steroid medication use, collected daily saliva samples for one complete menstrual cycle. Luteal P levels were measured by 3 H-RIA, and data were aligned by day of next menstrual onset. Means (±1 SD range) and percentiles, calculated using both untransformed and log transformed data, were calculated for each luteal day and for indices of luteal P production. Results Reference values for salivary daily luteal P levels and indices of luteal P are presented for three age groups (18 to 24 years, 25 to 39 years, and 40 to 48 years). Conclusion The age-stratified reference values presented here can be used, without collateral clinical procedures, to assess salivary luteal P levels. Salivary monitoring is ideally suited for research and long-term clinical observation, but the characteristics of salivary P data may limit the usefulness of these values for individual diagnosis.
Deep Brain Stimulation of the Hypothalamus Leads to Increased Metabolic Rate in Refractory Obesity.

Objective Obesity has become a worldwide epidemic, with very few long-term successful treatment options for refractory disease. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the bilateral lateral hypothalamus (LH) in refractory obesity has been performed safely. However, questions remain regarding the optimal settings and its effects on metabolic rate. The goals of our experiment were to determine the optimal DBS settings and the actual effect of optimal stimulation on energy expenditure. Methods After bilateral LH DBS implantation, 2 subjects with treatment refractory obesity underwent 4 days of metabolic testing. The subjects slept overnight in a respiratory chamber to measure their baseline sleep energy expenditure, followed by 4 consecutive days of resting metabolic rate (RMR) testing at different stimulation settings. On day 4, the optimized DBS settings were used, and sleep energy expenditure was measured again overnight in the room calorimeter. Results During daily testing, the RMR fluctuated acutely with changes in stimulation settings and returned to baseline immediately after turning off the stimulation. Optimal stimulation settings selected for participants showed a 20% and 16% increase in RMR for the 2 participants. Overnight sleep energy expenditure measurements at these optimized settings on day 4 yielded a 10.4% and 4.8% increase over the baseline measurements for the 2 participants. Conclusions These findings have demonstrated the efficacy of optimized DBS of the LH on increasing the RMR acutely and maintaining this increase during overnight sleep. These promising preliminary findings have laid the groundwork for the possible treatment of refractory obesity with DBS.
Exploring the Use of a Multiple-Gating Screening Process to Identify Preschool-Age Children for Multitiered Instructional Support:

Many recent studies about preschool early language and literacy skills utilize multiple assessments to identify young children who require additional multitiered instructional support. Although the...
Intentions of Kentucky School Nurses to Delegate Diabetes-Related Tasks to Unlicensed Assistive Personnel:

Many children have diagnosed diabetes that must be safely managed at school. New laws have created the potential for school systems to rely more heavily on unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) than on nurses to deliver health services, including administration of insulin injections. Using the theory of planned behavior as a framework, aims were to (1) determine the nature and extent to which health services related to diabetes were being delegated to UAP in Kentucky schools, (2) describe the attitudes of Kentucky school nurses regarding the delegation of diabetes health services to UAP, and (3) examine the relationship of selected variables to school nurses' intentions to delegate diabetes health services. Survey results revealed that school nurses in Kentucky intended to delegate some diabetes-related tasks despite their lack of support for delegation of those tasks.
Multi-Level Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) Using the Data Distribution Services (DDS) for Synchronized Three-Phase Measurement Data Transfer

This paper presents the design and implementation of a Multi-level Time Sensitive Networking (TSN) protocol based on a real-time communication platform utilizing Data Distribution Service (DDS) middleware for data transfer of synchronous three phase measurement data. To transfer ultra-high three phase measurement samples, the DDS open-source protocol is exploited to shape the network's data traffic according to specific Quality of Service (QoS) profiles, leading to low packet loss and low latency by synchronizing and prioritizing the data in the network. Meanwhile the TSN protocol enables time-synchronization of the measured data by providing a common time reference to all the measurement devices in the network, making the system less expensive, more secure and enabling time-synchronization where acquiring GPS signals is a challenge. A software library was developed and used as a central Quality of Service (QoS) profile for the TSN implementation. The proposed design and implemented real-time simulation prototype presented in this paper takes in consideration diverse scenarios at multiple levels of prioritization including publishers, subscribers, and data packets. This allows granular control and monitoring of the data for traffic shaping, scheduling, and prioritization. The major strength of this protocol lies in the fact that it's not only in real time but it's time-critical too. The simulation prototype implementation was performed using the Real Time Innovation (RTI) Connext connectivity framework, custom-built MATLAB classes and DDS Simulink blocks. Simulation results show that the proposed protocol achieves low latency and high throughput, which makes it a desired option for various communication systems involved in microgrids, smart cities, military applications and potentially other time-critical applications, where GPS signals become vulnerable and data transfer needs to be prioritized.
Flotillin and AP2A1/2 Promote IGF-1 Receptor Association with Clathrin and Internalization in Primary Human Keratinocytes.

IGF-1 receptor (IGF1R) signaling promotes keratinocyte proliferation, migration, and survival. However, the mechanism of IGF1R endocytosis in normal keratinocytes remains unclear. Confocal, super resolution structured illumination microscopy, total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy, and coimmunoprecipitation studies reveal that IGF1R associates with flotillin-1 (Flot-1), which currently has no known role in normal receptor tyrosine kinase endocytosis, under basal conditions in monolayer keratinocyte cultures. Ligand stimulation of IGF1R promotes its clathrin-dependent endocytosis, mediated by two distinct adaptors, Flot-1 in noncaveolar lipid rafts and the AP2A1/2 complex in clathrin vesicles. Concurrent, but not individual, short hairpin RNA knockdown of FLOT1/2 and AP2A1/2 reduced IGF1R association with clathrin, internalization, and pathway activation by more than 50% (of phosphorylated IGF1R, phosphorylated protein kinase B, and phosphorylated MAPK kinase), suggesting the complementarity of these two adaptor-specific pathways. The Flot-1 pathway is more responsive to low IGF-1 concentrations, whereas the AP2A1/2 pathway predominates at higher IGF-1 concentrations. Selective association of IGF1R–Flot-1–clathrin with Rab4, but IGF1R–AP2A1/2–clathrin with Rab11, implicates Flot-1 as the adaptor for faster recycling and AP2A1/2 as the adaptor for slower IGF1R recycling. These dual pathways, particularly flotillin-dependent, clathrin-mediated endocytosis, provide a new avenue for drug targeting in disorders with aberrant regulation of IGF1R signaling.
Germline epigenetic inheritance: Challenges and opportunities for linking human paternal experience with offspring biology and health

Recently, novel experimental approaches and molecular techniques have demonstrated that a male's experiences can be transmitted through his germline via epigenetic processes. These findings suggest that paternal exposures influence phenotypic variation in unexposed progeny-a proposal that runs counter to canonical ideas about inheritance developed during the 20th century. Nevertheless, support for paternal germline epigenetic inheritance (GEI) in nonhuman mammals continues to grow and the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are becoming clearer. To what extent do similar processes operate in humans, and if so, what are their implications for understanding human phenotypic variation, health, and evolution? Here, we review evidence for GEI in human and nonhuman mammals and evaluate these findings in relation to historical conceptions of heredity. Drawing on epidemiological data, reproductive biology, and molecular embryology, we outline developments and opportunities for the study of GEI in human populations, emphasizing the challenges that researchers in this area still face.
Acute Delirium Induced by Ciprofloxacin in a Patient With Chronic Kidney Disease: A Case Report.

Case Ciprofloxacin is increasingly used as oral suppressive therapy for musculoskeletal infections. Delirium and acute hypoglycemia are little-known, severe potential adverse drug reactions. We report here on a patient who experienced both complications. The patient is a 56-year-old woman with no psychiatric history who was managed for left lower extremity chronic osteomyelitis after fracture fixation. She developed significant, prolonged delirium and intermittent hypoglycemia within 24 hours of starting ciprofloxacin; both symptoms remitted within 24 hours of drug discontinuation. Conclusions The neuropsychiatric complications of ciprofloxacin are under-discussed, given its frequency of use, and merit greater awareness for the prevention of postoperative delirium.
A phase transition and a quadratic time unbiased estimator for network reliability

We improve the time for approximating network (un)reliability to (n 2). We do so not with a new algorithm, but with a deeper analysis and tweaking of algorithms from our previous work. In particular, we show that once a graph’s failure probability shrinks below 1/2, the graph rapidly transitions to a regime where even the expected number of cut failures is small, and in fact is almost exactly the same as the graph’s failure probability. That is, we are very unlikely to ever see more than one cut fail. This lets us treat these cut failures as essentially independent, making it easier to estimate their likelihood. The contribution of this paper is not just the improved time bound, but also this clearer understanding of the evolution of a graph’s reliability. Our results rely on some new methods for analyzing the distribution of cut failures conditioned on the failure of a particular cut, as well as new insights into the evolution of a graph’s connectivity as edges are randomly added over time. Some of our results apply more broadly, to all monotone reliability systems.
Impact of control structures on hydrologic restoration within the Great Dismal Swamp

Abstract The Great Dismal Swamp (GDS) is a 45,000-ha state and federally protected Coastal Plain peatland located on the border of North Carolina and Virginia that contains stands of Bald cypress and the globally threatened Atlantic white cedar. Centuries of drainage and logging have substantially altered the hydrology of the GDS, negatively affecting its ecosystem structure and function. To restore a seasonally flooded, saturated hydrologic regime to portions of the swamp, adjustable water control structures (WCS) were installed at strategic locations within existing drainage ditches. The objective of this study was to determine if the installation of the WCSs significantly altered the hydropatterns of two target restoration areas, resulting in hydrologic conditions comparable to nearby reference sites with desired forest communities. The water table (WT) was monitored for three years prior to WCS installation (pre-WCS) and three years after WCS installation (post-WCS). Comparison of WT data from the pre and post-WCS periods, using jurisdictional wetland criteria and empirical cumulative distribution functions (ECDFs), indicated increased saturated conditions within the target restoration areas following installation of the WCS. Paired Before-After Control-Impact (BACIP) statistical analysis revealed the WCS installation had a significant positive impact on WT levels in the target restoration areas relative to the reference sites. Hydrologic restoration will aid the effort to restore target forest communities within the swamp, reduce fire susceptibility, prevent peat oxidation, maintain carbon storage, and reduce non-target vegetation competition.
Uniformization of Sierpiński carpets in the plane

Let S i , i∈I, be a countable collection of Jordan curves in the extended complex plane $\widehat{\mathbb{C}}$ that bound pairwise disjoint closed Jordan regions. If the Jordan curves are uniform quasicircles and are uniformly relatively separated, then there exists a quasiconformal map $f\colon\widehat{\mathbb{C}}\rightarrow\widehat{\mathbb{C}}$ such that f(S i ) is a round circle for all i∈I. This implies that every Sierpinski carpet in $\widehat{\mathbb{C}}$ whose peripheral circles are uniformly relatively separated uniform quasicircles can be mapped to a round Sierpinski carpet by a quasisymmetric map.
Real-space renormalization of randomly vacated lattices: a renormalization group for jamming?

Jamming occurs in granular materials, emulsions, dense suspensions, and other amorphous, particulate systems. When the packing fraction $$\phi$$, defined as the ratio of particle volume to system volume, is increased past a critical value $$\phi _c$$, a liquid–solid phase transition occurs, and grains are no longer able to rearrange. Previous studies have shown evidence of spatial correlations that diverge near $$\phi = \phi _c$$, but there has been no explicit spatial renormalization group (RG) scheme that has captured this transition. Here, I present a candidate for such a scheme, using a block-spin-like transformation of a randomly vacated lattice of grains. I define a real-space RG transformation based on local mechanical stability. This model displays a critical packing fraction $$\phi _c$$ and gives estimates of critical exponents in two and three dimensions.
Novel Asaia bogorensis Signal Sequences for Plasmodium Inhibition in Anopheles stephensi .

Mosquitoes vector many pathogens that cause human disease, such as malaria that is caused by parasites in the genus Plasmodium. Current strategies to control vector-transmitted diseases are hindered by mosquito and pathogen resistance, so research has turned to altering the microbiota of the vectors. In this strategy, called paratransgenesis, symbiotic bacteria are genetically modified to affect the mosquito's phenotype by engineering them to deliver antiplasmodial effector molecules into the midgut to kill parasites. One paratransgenesis candidate is Asaia bogorensis, a Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterium colonizing the midgut, ovaries, and salivary glands of Anopheles sp. mosquitoes. However, common secretion signals from E. coli and closely related species do not function in Asaia. Here, we report evaluation of 20 native Asaia N-terminal signal sequences predicted from bioinformatics for their ability to mediate increased levels of antiplasmodial effector molecules directed to the periplasm and ultimately outside the cell. We tested the hypothesis that by increasing the amount of antiplasmodials released from the cell we would also increase parasite killing power. We scanned the Asaia bogorensis SF2.1 genome to identify signal sequences from extra-cytoplasmic proteins and fused these to the reporter protein alkaline phosphatase. Six signals resulted in significant levels of protein released from the Asaia bacterium. Three signals were successfully used to drive the release of the antimicrobial peptide, scorpine. Further testing in mosquitoes demonstrated that these three Asaia strains were able to suppress the number of oocysts formed after a blood meal containing P. berghei to a significantly greater degree than wild-type Asaia, although prevalence was not decreased beyond levels obtained with a previously isolated siderophore receptor signal sequence. We interpret these results to indicate that there is a maximum level of suppression that can be achieved when the effectors are constitutively driven due to stress on the symbionts. This suggests that simply increasing the amount of antiplasmodial effector molecules in the midgut is insufficient to create superior paratransgenic bacterial strains and that symbiont fitness must be considered as well.
The Long, Hot Summer: Active Duty Support to Wildland Fire Fighting Operations

Primer on US Department of Defense Support to Wildland Firefighting Operations, including a basic overview of wildland fire suppression operations and common legal issues arising from defense support to civil authorities.
Absorbed radiation dosimetry of the D1 ligand 11C-NNC 112 as determined by whole-body PET imaging of baboons

1815 Objectives: 11C-NNC 112 is useful for PET measurement of D1-like dopamine receptor binding in vivo. We have determined the absorbed radiation dosimetry of i.v.-administered 11C-NNC 112 to facilitate the design of human imaging protocols. Methods: Whole-body PET imaging of two baboons (1 male, 1 female) was performed twice following i.v. injection of 10-15 mCi of 11C-NNC 112. Imaging at several bed positions covered body regions from the head to the pelvis, and was performed at 8 time points over 2 hours using a CTI/Siemens ECAT EXACT 953B. ROI were drawn on the entire organ for the brain, striatum, eyes and myocardium. Other major organs (liver, lungs, kidneys, lower large intestine, gallbladder and urinary bladder) were sampled by drawing representative circular regions within the organ space. Time-activity curves were created from combined data from the four studies, and organ residence times were calculated by analytical integration of a multi-exponential fit on the time-activity curves. Human radiation dose estimates were then calculated according to the MIRD technique using the OLINDA/EXM 1.0 program and the standard human male model. Results: The highest retention was observed in the liver with a total residence time of 5.6 min (19%). This was followed by kidneys (3.4%) and brain (2.6%). The highest absorbed radiation doses were to the kidneys (61.9 mrem/mCi) and liver (61.0 mrem/mCi). A kidney absorption of 5 rad would result from an injected dose of 81 mCi of C-11 NNC 112. The total body dose is 10.7 mrem/mCi, and the effective dose is 14.3 mrem/mCi. Conclusions: The critical organs for C-11 NNC 112 are kidneys and liver, and in excess of 81 mCi of the tracer can be safely administered to human subjects. Multi-tracer human imaging protocols can thus be designed to evaluate changes in D1 receptor binding that occur with brain pathology and interventions, including Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, schizophrenia and Tourette’s syndrome.
Ultrasound-Guided Knee Injections Are More Accurate Than Blind Injections: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Purpose To review the current literature to determine which injection technique and needle portal placement provide the greatest accuracy for intra-articular access to the knee. Methods This study followed Preferred Reporting Items and Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. A comprehensive literature search was conducted in March 2020 and repeated in May 2020 using electronic databases PubMed, MEDLINE, and the Cochrane Library. Data on the accuracy of intra-articular knee injection (successful injections/total number of injections) were collected. Only Level I studies were included. Study design, demographic variables, needle sizes, and method of validating accuracy were recorded. The Jadad score was used to assess methodologic quality, and a risk-of-bias assessment was performed. Results A total of 12 Level I human studies (1431 patients, 1315 knees) were included in this review. Seven of the studies did a direct comparison between ultrasound-guided and blind knee injections. Ultrasound-guided injections were more accurate compared with blinded knee injections in every study. The most accurate anatomical approach was an isometric quadricep contraction method with the superolateral approach. Conclusions This study showed that ultrasound-guided knee injections were more accurate across every anatomical needle injection site compared with blind injections. Injections made by a blind/anatomically guided method had inconsistent accuracy rates that seemed highly dependent on the portal of entry. Level of Evidence Level I, systematic review of Level I studies.
Temozolomide and IL13-Pseudomonas exotoxin act synergistically in eliminating human glioblastoma tumors in nude mice

680 Malignant gliomas in particular glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) are the most insidious types of brain tumor. Because of their infiltrative nature and migrating phenotype, they cause nearly 14,000 deaths in the US alone. We have previously reported that IL13-PE, a chimeric protein composed of human IL-13 and a mutated form of Pseudomonas exotoxin specifically targets the receptor for immune cytokine, interleukin-13 (IL-13) abundantly expressed on glioma cells. Convection-enhanced delivery of IL13-PE is currently studied in a Phase 3 PRECISE trial in patients with recurrent GBM. Temozolomide (TMZ), an approved drug for anaplastic astrocytoma, acts by methylating guanosine nucleotides of DNA. The combination of TMZ (25 μg/mL) and IL13-PE (0.1 ng/mL) inhibited protein synthesis in U251MG cells by 31%, however each drug alone could inhibit 0.8% and 4.9% synthesis, respectively. In U87MG cells, TMZ (1 μg/mL) in combination with IL13-PE (62.5 ng/mL) inhibited 50% of protein synthesis. The same concentration of individual TMZ and IL13-PE inhibited synthesis by only 20% and 35%, respectively. Daily (qd) oral (p.o.) administration of one half of the clinical dose of either TMZ (2.5 mg/kg) or sub-optimal intratumoral (IT) IL13-PE (10 or 25 μg/kg) did not produce any complete responder (CR) in nude mice bearing subcutaneous 251MG tumors. Nevertheless, a combination of TMZ with 10 μg/kg IL13-PE produced 1/6 CR and 25 μg/kg gave 2/6 CRs. A similar combination of TMZ (2.5 mg/kg, qd x 5, p.o) and IL13-PE (100 μg/kg, qd x 5, IT) produced 2/5 CRs in U87MG xenografts. IT injections of IL13-PE alone did not display any CR, but oral TMZ alone produced 1/6 CR. Data clearly indicate that the combination of sub-optimal concentration of each drug acts synergistically to produce CRs and reduce tumor burden in mice with partial response. Therapy using a combination of these drugs, which act through different mechanisms, may be a beneficial treatment option for patients with brain tumor.
Enhanced Robustness of RZ WDM Systems Using Tunable Pulse-Width Management at the Transmitter

We demonstrate single channel and 4times10-Gb/s WDM system optimization using tunable pulse width management for RZ formatted signals. Varying the pulse width from 50 ps to 10 ps using a phase modulator and a tunable dispersion element at the transmitter can double the transmission distance with a 4% variation in the residual link dispersion
Evolution of an adaptive sleep response in digital organisms

Adaptive responses to resource availability are common in natural systems. In this paper we explore one possible evolutionary cause of adaptive sleep/wake behavior. We subjected populations of digital organisms to an environment with a slowly diminishing resource and recorded their ability to adapt to the changing environment using sleep. We also quantified the selective pressure not to sleep in this competitive environment.We observed that diminishing resource availability can promote adaptive sleep responses in digital organisms even when there is an opportunity cost associated with sleeping.
Femtocomputing: new architectural ideas for procedural and evolutionary computers whose components switch in femto-seconds

This paper presents some tentative ideas on how future procedural and evolutionary computers might compute, when nanotechnology gives us the possibility to store a bit of information on a single atom. At such tiny scales, switching times are likely to be in femtoseconds, i.e. quadrillionths of a second (Walls, 1994). Since electrical signals travel about 30 cm (a foot) in a nanosecond, a femtosecond will correspond to a millionth of this distance, i.e. a length of about 300 molecules. Traditional computing methodologies, using a centralized memory to store program instructions, and a centralized ALU to perform calculations, will no longer be appropriate, due to the time delays involved in fetching instructions from the program memory to the ALU. In the time this would take, the ALU would have changed its state (switching in femtoseconds). Hence both the program instructions and the means used to execute them, need to be distributed throughout the 3D space of the computational medium, whatever form it takes. This paper discusses new and preliminary architectural ideas on how "femto-computers" can compute in both a procedural and in an evolutionary style.
Myoadenylate deaminase deficiency--muscle biopsy and muscle culture in a patient with gout.

Abstract AMP deaminase activity was undetectable by a sensitive spectrophotometric assay in the muscle biopsy of a 37-year-old man with gout and exercise-related cramps and myalgia. Venous ammonia failed to rise after ischemic exercise, but the diagnostic value of this test is uncertain because changes of plasma ammonia after exercise varied greatly in different normal individuals. In the patient, AMP deaminase activity was normal not only in erythrocytes, leukocytes and cultured fibroblasts but also in muscle cultures. Presence of AMP deaminase in muscle cultures was probably due to the expression of a fetal isoenzyme under separate genetic control from adult muscle AMP deaminase.
Efficiently Adapting Java Binaries in Limited Memory Contexts

This paper presents a compilation framework that allows executable code to be shared across different Java Virtual Machine (JVM) instances. Current compliant JVMs for servers are burdened with large memory footprints (because of the size of the increasingly complicated compilers) and high startup costs, while compliant JVMs for embedded devices typically rely on interpretation. This paper describes a quasi-static approach that allows execution of a read-only version of the code, enabling compiled Java binaries to be embedded in ROM in an embedded environment or shared across multiple applications in a server environment. We have implemented this approach in the Quicksilver quasi-static compiler for the Jikes RVM (Jikes Research Virtual Machine). On the SPECjvm98 benchmark suite, our approach gives writable memory space savings of between 82–89% over that of our previous (non-sharable, non-ROMable) quasi-static approach, while delivering performance that is typically within 1–7% of that approach, and is competitive with the performance of the Jikes RVM adaptive optimization system.
Metric Spaces and the Topology of ℂ

A metric space is a pair (X, d) where X is a set and d is a function from X × X into ℝ, called a distance function or metric, which satisfies the following conditions for x, j, and z in X: $$\matrix{ {d\left( {x,y} \right) \ge 0} \cr {d\left( {x,y} \right) = 0\;{\rm{if}}\;{\rm{and}}\;{\rm{only}}\;x = y} \cr {d\left( {x,y} \right) = d\left( {y,x} \right)\left( {{\rm{sysmetry}}} \right)} \cr {d\left( {x,z} \right) \le \;d\left( {x,y} \right) + d\left( {y,z} \right)\left( {{\rm{triangle}}\;{\rm{inequality}}} \right)} \cr } $$ If x and r < 0 are fixed then define $$\matrix{ {B\left( {x;r} \right) = \{ y \in X:\;d\left( {x,y} \right)\; < r\} } \cr {\bar B\left( {x;r} \right) = \{ y \in X:\;d\left( {x,y} \right)\; \le r\} .} \cr } $$ B(x; r) and B(x; r) are called the open and closed balls, respectively, with center x and radius r.
Sterilization by Cryosurgery: A Report of Animal Fertility Studies*,†,‡

The results of an investigation by which the uterotubal junction (UTJ) of the human uterus could be occluded with crosurgery as the physical agent are reported. A uterine cryoprobe patterned after the uterine sound was introduced through the vagina and cervix to reach the UTJ. The healing process after such treatment was studied by freezing UTJs of 12 rabbits at surgery under direct view for 2 minutes at -35 degrees to -50 degrees C with freon gas. The rabbits were sacrificed in groups of 3 at 4 7 14 and 21 days. Saline was injected to obtain gross evidence of occlusion and histological sections were also studied. Potential harm was evaluated by intentionally freezing bowel femoral artery nerve and veins of the inguinal area. To minimized recanalization of depo form of progesterone was given. To study the effect of cryosurgery on fertility 31 mature sows of proven fertility underwent cyrosurgery of the UTJ under direct vision. The sows were mated twice during each subsequent estrus. Temperatures achieved at the end of the probe were -30 to -35 degrees C with a rate of thaw of 2-4 minutes. Grossly 50% of the tubes appeared occluded. Histologically they were all patent. Subsequent fertility of the pigs although imparied was similar to controls. Dramatic bowel lesions were produced with the instrument indicating that even if occlusion could be produced monitoring the cryosurgery with fluoroscopic safeguards would be necessary. Thus elaborate equipment would make this method impractical for field use.
Synthesis and properties of useful metal hydrides. A review of recent work at Brookhaven National Laboratory

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the synthesis and properties of useful metal hydrides. The properties of intermetallic hydrides have found to be of interest for convenient and economic storage of hydrogen. It is rather difficult to predict a priori whether an intermetallic compound will react with hydrogen or as to which reaction path will be followed and what products will form. However, some empirical predictive theories have been developed, of which the most notable is the theory of reversed stability. This theory has been quite useful in systems involving AB5 alloys, but it has enjoyed only limited success in those involving first row transition intermetallic compounds. It is found, however, that intermetallic-hydrogen systems, without exception, will obey three rather simple rules: (1) in order for an intermetallic compound to react directly and reversibly with hydrogen to form a distinct hydride phase, it is necessary that at least one of the metal components be capable of reacting directly and reversibly with hydrogen to form a stable binary hydride, (2) if a reaction takes place at a temperature at which the metal atoms are mobile, the system will assume its most favored thermodynamic configuration, and (3) if the metal atoms are not mobile, only hydride phases can result that are structurally very similar to the starting intermetallic compound.
Activity of fatty acyl CoA-lysophospholipid acyltransferases in liver microsomes of rats fed a choline-deficient diet

Feeding a choline-deficient diet to rats has no effect on the activity of fatty acyl CoA-lysophospholipid acyltransferases, even though liver microsomes are severely depleted of lecithins. Thus lecithins appear to have no functional role in the activity of these transferases. It can be excluded that the latter enzymes are involved in the production of the changes in the fatty acid composition of liver phospholipids occurring in choline-deficient rats. These changes result most likely from alterations in the biosynthesis of liver lecithins and cephalins.
Personalized trip planning by integrating multimodal user-generated content

We address the problem of record linkage and semantic integration in the context of large collections of user-generated content. These datasets are often large since it contains the contributions of millions of Internet users. We present an approach based on approximate string matching between the metadata associated with such data. The discovered linkages are stored in an ontology for answering queries on the integrated data sources. We demonstrate this approach in Photo Odyssey, an interactive web application which integrates multimodal content from image hosting and travel websites to create a user interface with a graphical trip plan and personalization options.We discuss several practical challenges faced in building such an application - integrating and mining large-scale multimodal user-generated data, resolving semantic heterogeneity, and machine learning for matching and ranking items. Photo Odyssey operates in an online manner without using any previously stored knowledge base. We also describe methods to compute relevance of images, remove bad data instances and duplicates, perform contextual filtering, and assign a category to uncatalogued images which enable an interactive application even on Big Data with real-world characteristics.
Management Strategies for Ensuring Adequate Analgesia in Children

Pain is a complex phenomenon. Ensuring adequate analgesia in children presents a challenge for paediatric healthcare providers. Multiple factors, including cognitive, emotional, environmental, cultural and behavioural, influence the childs’s pain perception. Anxiety and fear compound the intensity of the pain experience.
Effect of masker level on infants’ detection of tones in noise

In adult listeners, the signal-to-noise ratio at masked threshold remains constant with increases in masker level over a wide range of stimulus conditions. This relationship was examined in 7-month-old infants by obtaining masked thresholds for .5- and 4-kHz tones presented in four levels of continuous masking noise. Adults were also tested for comparison. Masker spectrum levels ranged from 5 to 35 dB/Hz for .5-kHz tones, and from −5 to 25 dB/Hz for 4-kHz stimuli. Thresholds were determined for stimuli of both 10 and 100 msec in duration. The results indicated that infants’ performance was more adultlike for 4-kHz stimuli. Although mean thresholds for both 10- and 100-msec, 4-kHz tones were approximately 7 dB higher in infants than in adults, E/N0 at threshold remained essentially constant over the 30-dB range of maskers employed. By contrast, infants’ thresholds for .5-kHz tones were exceptionally high at lower levels of the masker. Threshold E/N0 decreased significantly as masker level increased from 5 to 35 dB/Hz, and this decrease was significantly greater for 10- than for 100-msec stimuli. Temporal summation of .5-kHz tones, measured as the difference between thresholds obtained at the two signal durations, was greater for infants than for adults at low levels of the masker. However, because infants’ thresholds improved more rapidly with level for 10- than for 100-msec tones, age differences in temporal summation were no longer significant when masker spectrum level was 35 dB/Hz. These results suggest that the relationship between signal-to-noise ratio at masked threshold and level of the masker is dependent on both signal frequency and duration during infancy.
Knowledge and Misconceptions About the Food Label Among Women With Non-Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus:

Women on restricted diets are reportedly among the most frequent readers of nutrition information on food labels. However, the specific label information that women with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) comprehend and use has not been determined. The purpose of this study was to explore the attitude toward, use, and knowledge of information on the food label among rural women with NIDDM age 40 to 60 years. Focus groups and in-depth interviews were conducted. Participants reported that they referred to the nutrition information on the label when grocery shopping and preferred the newly revised format. Yet, comprehension of the terms and percentages on the label was poor (eg, the majority of participants could not explain the difference between total carbohydrate and sugars). Misconceptions also were noted about nutrients listed on the label and the percent daily value. Further education is needed to help people with NIDDM understand and apply the nutrition information on food labels to meet their individual needs.
Cyclic voltammetry at shallow recessed microdisc electrode : Theoretical and experimental study

This study focuses on the cyclic voltammetry behavior at shallow recessed microdisc electrode, particularly on the transition from cottrellian behavior to steady state behavior. Diffusion to the inlaid and recessed microdisc electrode is simulated. From the shape of the CVs, for a given radius and potential scan rate, the transition time from planar diffusion to hemispherical diffusion presents a minimum as the recess increases. Theoretical prediction was confirmed by fitting the simulated CVs with experimental results. Dimensionless transition scan rate has been defined and determined by simulation for inlaid and recessed microdisc electrodes.