cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cellular procoagulant activity dictates clot structure and stability as a function of distance from the cell surface

Background— Thrombin concentration modulates fibrin structure and fibrin structure modulates clot stability; however, the impact of localized, cell surface-driven in situ thrombin generation on fibrin structure and stability has not previously been evaluated. Methods and Results— Human fibroblasts were incubated with factors Xa, Va, prothrombin and fibrinogen, or plasma. Fibrin formation, structure, and lysis were examined using laser scanning confocal microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. In situ thrombin generation on the cell surface produced clots with a significantly denser fiber network in a 10-μm region proximal versus distal to (40 to 50 μm) the cell surface. This morphology was not altered by addition of integrin-blocking RGDS peptide and was not apparent in clots made by exogenous thrombin addition, suggesting that spatial morphology was dictated predominantly by localized thrombin generation on the fibroblast surface. The fibrin network lysed more rapidly distal versus proximal to th...
The Choice Axiom after Twenty Years

This survey is divided into three major sections. The first concerns mathematical results about the choice axiom and the choice models that devoIve from it. For example, its relationship to Thurstonian theory is satisfyingly understood; much is known about how choice and ranking probabilities may relate, although little of this knowledge seems empirically useful; and there are certain interesting statistical facts. The second section describes attempts that have been made to test and apply these models. The testing has been done mostly, though not exclusively, by psychologists; the applications have been mostly in economics and sociology. Although it is clear from many experiments that the conditions under which the choice axiom holds are surely delicate, the need for simple, rational underpinnings in complex theories, as in economics and sociology, leads one to accept assumptions that are at best approximate. And the third section concerns alternative, more general theories which, in spirit, are much like the choice axiom. Perhaps I had best admit at the outset that, as a commentator on this scene, I am qualified no better than many others and rather less well than some who have been working in this area recently, which I have not been. My pursuits have led me along other, somewhat related routes. On the one hand, I have contributed to some of the recent, purely algebraic aspects of fundamental measurement (for a survey of some of this material, see Krantz, Lute, Suppes, & Tversky, 1971). And on the other hand, I have worked in the highly probabilistic area of psychophysical theory; but the empirical materials have led me away from axiomatic structures, such as the choice axiom, to more structural, neural models which are not readily axiomatized at the present time. After some attempts to apply choice models to psychophysical phenomena (discussed below in its proper place), I was led to conclude that it is not a very promising approach to, these data, and so I have not been actively studying any aspect of the choice axiom in over 12 years. With that understood, let us begin.
Immunopathogenesis of schistosomiasis

In schistosomiasis mansoni, the chronic egg-induced granulomatous response in the liver and intestines may eventually cause extensive tissue scarring and development of portal hypertension. Indeed, much of the morbidity and mortality associated with this disease is directly attributable to the deposition of connective tissue elements in affected tissues. Elucidating the mechanisms that regulate the severity of schistosomiasis has been a major research objective over the past several years. Research conducted with DNA microarrays as well as investigations with a variety of gene knock-out mice have been particularly helpful in achieving this goal. A notable accomplishment in the past few years was the identification of interleukin-13 (IL-13) and the IL-13 receptor complex as central regulators of disease progression in schistosomiasis. Liver fibrogenesis is severely decreased in infected IL-13-deficient mice as well as in wildtype animals treated with IL-13 antagonists. In contrast, IL-13 effector function increases dramatically in IL-13 receptor alpha2 (IL-13Ralpha2)-deficient mice. These mice develop severe hepatic fibrosis, fail to downregulate granuloma formation in the chronic phase of S. mansoni infection, and succumb to the disease at an accelerated rate; thus, identifying the 'decoy' IL-13 receptor as a critical life sustaining 'off' switch for tissue damaging egg-induced inflammation.
Can ‘‘Men’’ Stop Rape?: Visualizing Gender in the ‘‘My Strength is Not for Hurting’’ Rape Prevention Campaign

The study analyzes the "My Strength is Not for Hurting" rape prevention public media campaign through the lens of feminist visual culture studies, arguing that the campaign sends contradictory and confusing messages to boys and men about rape and sexual assault. It also touches on the implications of the campaign’s appropriation of a commercial advertising aesthetic; the tendency to objectify women and silence their voices; and complications resulting from efforts to include racial and sexual diversity.
A Note on the Use of Ground Cull Pecan Meats in a Finishing Ration for Broilers

ABSTRACT Approximately 1,000,000 pounds of cull pecan meats are available in Georgia each year. Currently there is little or no outlet for these and the bulk is discarded. The high oil content of these nut meats (Table 1) suggested that they might be of value as an ingredient in a finishing ration for broilers and this trial was run to evaluate that possibility. Three groups of day-old chicks (25 White Rock cockerels per group) were placed in electrically-heated, wire-floored batteries, transferred to wire-floored finishing batteries at four weeks of age, and fed ration A (Table 2) until they were five weeks and five days old. At that time one group was changed to ration B (5% ground cull pecan meats) and another group to ration C (10% ground cull pecan meats). The control group was continued on ration A for the duration of the trial. It should be noted that the . . .
Optimal Pricing and Admission Control in a Queueing System with Periodically Varying Parameters

We consider congestion control in a nonstationary queueing system. Assuming that the arrival and service rates are bounded, periodic functions of time, a Markov decision process (MDP) formulation is developed. We show under the infinite horizon discounted and average reward optimality criteria, for each fixed time, optimal pricing and admission control strategies are nondecreasing in the number of customers in the system. This extends stationary results to the nonstationary setting. Despite this result, the problem still seems intractable. We propose an easily implementable pointwise stationary approximation (PSA) to approximate the optimal policies, suggest a heuristic to improve the implementation of the PSA and verify its usefulness via a numerical study.
State-to-state differential cross sections from photoinitiated bulb reactions

We consider a mixture of a diatomic photolytic precursor AX and a reagent BC that undergoes the photoinitiated reaction AX + hν → A + X followed by A + BC → AB + C. In the limit that AX is stationary relative to BC, we show that the three-dimensional velocity distribution of the AB product in a specified quantum state can be related to the differential cross section of the A + BC reaction by a simple, invertable, closed-form expression. With a favorable choice of kinematics, we demonstrate that it is possible to extract the full state-to-state differential cross section from a measurement of the velocity distribution of the AB product in the laboratory frame.
Teachers' experiential learning about learning

Objective: An experiential model of learning suggests that changing a learner's understanding will lead to the learner choosing to change behavior. A workshop was designed for medical educators to examine their understanding of learning in order to change their behavior as teachers. This article describes that workshop which was presented as part of a conference on successful techniques for education of primary care practitioners. Method: Eighteen medical educators participated in the workshop. The educators were instructed to reflect on a recent personal learning experience. Group discussion led to production of a list of components of effective learning. These learning components were then applied in small groups to three hypothetical tasks related to mental health education. Results: Essential characteristics of three generic features of learning were identified: characteristics of the teacher, learner, and learning experience. When these characteristics were then applied to the hypothetical tasks, a major theme that emerged was a focus on the importance of learner motivation. Conclusions: The essential components of learning and their application demonstrate the importance of adult learning theory in which it is more important for the learner than for the teacher to determine what, when, and how to learn. This is in contrast to traditional medical education in which the teacher decides what to learn and if it has been learned. To improve education for practicing primary care providers, a shift from a teaching paradigm to a learning paradigm is indicated.
Con: colloids should not be added to the pump prime.

Abstract It is concluded that there is good scientific basis for an approach that avoids colloid priming solutions as routine for all adult CPB patients. There may be selected individual who might benefit from colloid therapy; for instance, patients who are predicted to require high left atrial pressure postbypass, those who are borderline for getting through their surgical experience without a homologous red cell transfusion, and patients coming for surgery with a clinically important lung water elevation. In this time of cost constraints there are many more scientifically worthy therapies that could be made available to patients. We should focus on these and resist “luxury items” like routine colloid CPB priming solutions.
Temperature Dependent Complex Band Structure and Electron-Phonon Coupling in Ag

The band dispersion and lifetime width for the $\mathrm{sp}$ valence electrons in Ag are determined with unprecedented accuracy as a function of temperature. The resulting Fermi wave vector challenges the venerable de Haas--van Alphen value, and shows the latter to be off by 1%. The electron-phonon mass enhancement parameter is deduced for the first time for a bulk state, and it is significantly larger than theoretical estimates. These measurements are made by photoemission from quantum well states in atomically uniform films of Ag.
Performance of hippocampectomized rats in a reference/working-memory task: Effects of preoperative versus postoperative training

Hippocampectomized and sham-operated male rats were pre- or postoperatively trained to perform a reference/working-memory task in a standard radial eight-arm maze. On each trial, three arms were baited. These “correct” arms formed one of two configurations, which changed between conditions. The remaining arms were never baited. The rats’ task was to enter each of the baited arms only once, and to refrain from entering any of the unbaited arms. Incorrect choices were punished with a brief period of confinement. Preoperatively trained groups were tested postoperatively for retention, and then trained on a new reference-memory task in which the baited arms formed the second configuration. Postoperatively trained groups were also trained on two such tasks in succession. Order of training on the two configurations was counterbalanced between groups. Postoperatively trained hippocampal groups were severely impaired in acquisition of the tasks. Preoperatively trained hippocampal groups were unimpaired, relative to sham-operated groups, in all measures of performance.
Allophanate Hydrolase, Not Urease, Functions in Bacterial Cyanuric Acid Metabolism

Growth substrates containing an s-triazine ring are typically metabolized by bacteria to liberate 3 mol of ammonia via the intermediate cyanuric acid. Over a 25-year period, a number of original research papers and reviews have stated that cyanuric acid is metabolized in two steps to the 2-nitrogen intermediate urea. In the present study, allophanate, not urea, was shown to be the 2-nitrogen intermediate in cyanuric acid metabolism in all the bacteria examined. Six different experimental results supported this conclusion: (i) synthetic allophanate was shown to readily decarboxylate to form urea under acidic extraction and chromatography conditions used in previous studies; (ii) alkaline extraction methods were used to stabilize and detect allophanate in bacteria actively metabolizing cyanuric acid; (iii) the kinetic course of allophanate formation and disappearance was consistent with its being an intermediate in cyanuric acid metabolism, and no urea was observed in those experiments; (iv) protein extracts from cells grown on cyanuric acid contained allophanate hydrolase activity; (v) genes encoding the enzymes AtzE and AtzF, which produce and hydrolyze allophanate, respectively, were found in several cyanuric acid-metabolizing bacteria; and (vi) TrzF, an AtzF homolog found in Enterobacter cloacae strain 99, was cloned, expressed in Escherichia coli, and shown to have allophanate hydrolase activity. In addition, we have observed that there are a large number of genes homologous to atzF and trzF distributed in phylogenetically distinct bacteria. In total, the data indicate that s-triazine metabolism in a broad class of bacteria proceeds through allophanate via allophanate hydrolase, rather than through urea using urease.
Ordo ab Chao: framework for an integrated disease report.

Context.— The volume of information that must be assimilated to appropriately manage patients with complex or chronic disease can make this task difficult because of the number of data points, their variable temporal availability, and the fact that they may reside in different systems or even institutions. Objective.— To outline a framework for building an integrated disease report (IDR) that takes advantage of the capabilities of electronic reporting to create a single, succinct, interpretative report comprising all disease pertinent data. Design.— Disease pertinent data of an IDR include pathology results, laboratory and radiology data, pathologic correlations, risk profiles, and therapeutic implications. We used cancer herein as a representative process for proposing what is, to our knowledge, the first example of standardized guidelines for such a report. The IDR was defined as a modular, dynamic, electronic summary of the most current state of a patient in regard to a particular illness such as lung ...
The Painter and the Cameraman: An Interesting Construct for Considering Educational Change

F ollowing extensive research, analysis, and deliberation by our governing agencies, our profession is facing a profound change in the educational preparation of athletic trainers. The recent declaration by the Strategic Alliance in support of the entry-level master’s degree has created an opportunity for change in the professional preparation of our future students. As often happens following a call for change, concern and anxiety prompt expeditious change action by programs to meet reform standards without careful consideration of the long-term impact on the profession as a whole. As an advocate for purposeful change, I challenge you to reflect upon educational reform through the lens of the painter and the cameraman.
Copyright as an Incentive for Musical Creation: An Examination of the Effects of Copyright Law Changes On Registrations, 1978-2006

This paper examines the effect of changes in United States copyright legislation on the quantity of musical copyright registrations between the years 1978-2006. The legislative amendments examined herein are: (1) the Bern Convention Implementation Act of 1988, (2) the Uruguay Round Agreements Act of 1994, (3) the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998, (4) the Digital Millennium Copyright Act also of 1998, and (5) the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005. The author manipulated Library of Congress data in order to carry out said analysis, since no prior data set of musical copyright registrations had been previously compiled. Although federal copyright legislation regulates all cultural industries, the properties of musical compositions are sharply distinct from those of the literary works upon which copyright legislation was crafted. Additionally, music has undergone a drastic evolution with respect to its primary methods of consumption since the establishment of U.S. copyright legislation in 1790. These facts warrant analysis of the efficacy of copyright legislation specifically as an incentive for musical creation. This paper finds significant evidence that the Sonny Bono and Digital Millennium Acts, and the Family and Entertainment Act all provide statistically significant positive incentive for the creation of musical works. This paper further establishes that the above amendments exert a greater influence on the magnitude of monthly musical copyright registrations by the Big Four record labels than other musical copyright owners.
Cornea and external disease

New developments in cornea and external disease therapy are frequent and influence many aspects of the management of eye disease, including infectious disease, ocular surface disease, corneal surgery, and correction of refractive errors. Although media attention often highlights the novelty or potential impact of any advance, putting the new developments into proper perspective requires a more judicious and critical appraisal. The contributors to this issue of the Ophthalmology Clinics of North America provide that appraisal with respect to anti-infectious therapy, management of ocular surface disease, contact lens wear, novel surgical management of endothelial disease, and options for correction of refractive errors. The Charles T. Campbell Ophthalmic Microbiology Laboratory of the Eye and Ear Institute of the University of Pittsburgh provides a review of present-day ophthalmic microbiology. Regis Kowalski, MS, is the Technical Director of the Campbell Laboratory and reviews the experience of the laboratory with respect to antimicrobial sensitivity and emerging resistance; Francis Mah, MD, is the Associate Medical Director and reviews the scope of antibiotics and outlines new developments in antimicrobial options. A review of the present understanding of ocular surface disease summarizes dry eye therapy and management of meibomian gland disease. A summary of the new surgical approaches to treating ocular surface disease includes an overview of amniotic membrane transplantation by Thomas John, MD, and the options for limbal stem cell resurfacing by Drs. Kim and Holland. Perry Rosenthal, MD, describes the results of silicone scleral contact lens therapy for ocular surface disorders. New developments in contact lens therapy include the new generation of extended and continuous wear high-Dk materials, which are described by Peter Donshik, MD. An overview of the options for the use of therapeutic contact lenses completes an update of the evolving contact lens armamentarium. Finally, there is a presentation of novel innovations in surgical treatment of the cornea, which includes discussion and comparison of the flap (anterior) and limbal pocket (posterior) approaches to endothelial replacement. The issue concludes with a review of developments in LASIK and LASEK refractive surgery. To the authors who contributed to this issue, I extend my thanks and appreciation. To the reader, I express my hope that this review of the new developments in corneal and external disease treatment proves useful and provides perspective for optimal patient care.
Transfer of Listeria monocytogenes during mechanical slicing of onions

Abstract A series of recalls in 2012 involving diced yellow onions contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes from one manufacturer has heightened public health concerns surrounding the preparation, handling and use of raw onions. In response, this study aimed to quantify the extent of L. monocytogenes transfer during mechanical slicing of onions. Spanish yellow onions (Allium cepa) were dip-inoculated in a 3-strain avirulent L. monocytogenes cocktail (M3, J22F and J29H) to contain ∼8.6, 6.8, or 5.9 log CFU/onion. After air-drying, one inoculated onion was sliced using a mechanical hand slicer, followed by twenty uninoculated onions with the first, fourth, and last slices collected for Listeria analysis. Each sample was added to UVM medium, homogenized by stomaching, appropriately diluted and then plated, with or without prior membrane filtration, on Modified Oxford Agar with the plates incubated at 35 °C for 48 h. All UVM samples were enriched for 48 h and then streaked to MOX if Listeria was not quantifiable by direct plating. After slicing one onion inoculated at 8.6 log CFU/onion followed by 20 uninoculated onions, onions 1, 10 and 20 yielded average Listeria populations of 6.7, 3.8, and 2.7 log compared to 3.2, 1.6, and 1.7 log CFU/onion and 3.6, 1.3, and 0.9 log CFU/onion when the initial onion contained 6.8 and 5.9 CFU/onion, respectively. Listeria transfer during onion slicing was best described using an exponential decay model which should help to further the understanding of Listeria transfer during onion processing and provide the industry with guidelines to improve end product safety.
Pressure-induced velocity gradient: An alternative to a Pg refractor in the Gabilan Range, central California

abstract Seismic refraction experiments carried out in central California show that a wedge of fractured rock characterized by unusually low P -wave velocities extends at least 1 km into the Gabilan Range south and west of the San Andreas fault. Lateral refraction of seismic waves by this low-velocity wedge precludes standard inversion of travel-time data obtained from sources or stations located near the San Andreas fault. Granitic rocks in the Gabilan Range exhibit near-surface P -wave velocities higher than velocities measured near the fault, but which are still significantly lower than P -wave velocities measured in saturated laboratory specimens of crystalline rock. These low velocities are also attributed to the presence of large in situ fractures. Travel-time data are fit with a velocity-depth function of the same form used to fit pressure-velocity behavior of laboratory rocks. This relation suggests that a velocity gradient is a realistic alternative to the Pg refracting interface for explaining travel-time data in the Gabilan Range. This velocity gradient is probably caused by the closing of macrocracks at shallow depths. If these low velocities are due to large fractures, the P -wave velocity sensitivity of these rocks to stress changes in the upper 4 km of the crust should be higher than the sensitivity of saturated laboratory specimens.
Radiation Defects in Nonlinear Optical Materials Used for Space-Based Applications

The Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) and simultaneous EPR/optical study of defects in crystals irradiated by gamma photons, electrons, protons and neutrons is presented. Among investigated materials are congruent and stoichiometric LiNbO3, Li2B4O7, and KTiOPO4.
Cognitive effects of deceptive advertising.

Although much has been written about deception in advertising, no studies have been reported in which a deception and its impact on consumers were demonstrated empirically. The authors present a be...
Binary diamondoid building blocks for molecular gels.

Adamantane is a type of diamondoid molecules that has a cage or globular shape with a diameter of 6.34 ± 0.04 A.8 Anisotropic interactions between these truly nanoscopic particles can be induced through the derivatization of the diamondoid cage. Here we explore the gelation of paired systems of adamantane where attractions are introduced through van der Waals forces and hydrogen bonding. Gels are produced through the mixing of 1-adamantanecarboxylic acid (A1C) and 1-adamantylamine (A1N). Upon mixing dimethyl sulfoxide solutions of these molecules at vanishing concentrations, these diamondoid molecules rapidly precipitate. A space-filling gel of the resulting aggregates is observed at approximately 3% by weight. These resulting gels have elastic moduli of 102–104 Pa in the 3–7 wt % concentration range. At a 1:1 mol ratio of 1-adamantanecarboxylic acid (A1C) and 1-adamantylamine (A1N), the gel’s elastic modulus and yield stress increase as volume fractions ϕx and ϕy with x ≈ 4.2 and y ≈ 3.5. The dependencie...
Roadmap for the Development of at-Home Telemonitoring Systems to Augment Occupational Therapy

While the literature supports the potential to provide occupational therapy through telemedicine, there are several design challenges embedded in creating an at-home telemonitoring system that can visualize the complex biomechanical data required for clinical decision making. The challenge highlighted here is the development of measures that align with current decision making methods, which will support the integration and translation of the technology. A modified cognitive task analysis methodology is presented that is composed of three segments: characterizing the subject matter, defining relevant information, and formalizing requirements. This method was implemented through observations of eight therapists over 21 patient sessions. There were nine unique modes of interaction observed between the clinician and patient. Embedded within these interactions were 14 different features monitored. Relevant performance measures were defined from these interactions to provide perception and comprehension situation awareness (SA) to the clinician about the patients task performance. Using specific activities observed during therapy sessions, sample metrics and a visualization are presented that followed from the SA requirements. Finally, the technological challenges associated with making these measurements were identified.
Indigenous Environmental Movements and the Function of Governance Institutions

Indigenous environmental movements have been important actors in twentieth- and twenty-first-century global environmental politics and environmental justice. Their explicit foci range from the protection of indigenous environmental stewardship systems to upholding and expanding treaty responsibilities to securing indigenous rights in law and policy. This chapter suggests that these movements open important intellectual spaces for thinking about the function of environmental governance institutions in addressing complex environmental issues such as clean water and forest conservation. Different from institutional functions based on market mechanisms or appeals to human psychological tendencies, a variety of indigenous environmentalists suggest that institutions should function to convene reciprocal responsibilities across relatives as diverse as humans, non-human beings such as plants, entities such as water, and collectives such as forests.
Standard and Targeted Biopsy During Follow-up for Active Surveillance.

Many patients diagnosed with prostate cancer have low-risk disease that is unlikely to harm them during their lifetimes. Active surveillance (AS) has emerged as a crucial treatment option for patients with favorable-risk prostate cancer. Although its use continues to expand globally, there remains a lack of consensus on the optimal follow-up strategy.1 Many studies have evaluated predictors of progression during AS in an effort to provide insight into the appropriate timing of repeat prostate biopsy.2 Some AS programs incorporate a confirmatory biopsy because early reclassification often represents sampling error from the initial biopsy.3 A relatively new addition to AS is the use of MRI-targeted biopsy (MRI-TB).
A Proposal for Expanding Endarkened Transnational Feminist Praxis Creating a Database of Women’s Scholarship and Activism to Promote Health in Zimbabwe

Western researchers often do not incorporate the voices of African women in their research endeavors; and a serious engagement in women’s health activism in Zimbabwe cannot happen without this prel...
Epithelial ovarian cancer and type of peritoneal insult: a case-control study.

Abstract Objective To evaluate the association between different types of peritoneal insults and the development of sporadic epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) subtypes in the general population. Study design Hospital based case control study comparing sporadic cases of EOC with age matched control group between 2003 and 2008. Medical, surgical, and gynecological histories were compared between 208 women with histological diagnosis of EOC and 224 women in the control group matched for age at presentation for well woman examination. Results 18% patients in the study population and 5% patients in the control group had history of diverticulosis (OR 7.3, 95% CI 2.8–19.1). 10% patients in the study populations and 39% patients in the control group had history of diabetes mellitus (OR 0.41, 95% CI 0.23–0.75). Sub classification of EOC into type 1 and type 2 further revealed 12% patients (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.22–0.87) in type 1 group, 35% patients (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.27–0.69) in type 2 group, and 71% patients in the control group had no prior surgical history. Furthermore, 3% patients (OR 0.27; 95% CI 0.08–0.9) in the type 1 group, 48% patients (OR 2.0, CI 95% 1.24–3.24) in the type 2 group, and 41% patients in the control group had history of bilateral tubal ligation (BTL). Conclusion A significant association was found between diverticulosis, hysterectomy and endometriosis increasing the likelihood of type 1 EOC; while diverticulosis, exploratory laparotomy and hysterectomy increased the likelihood of type 2 EOC. BTL was significantly associated with decreasing the likelihood of type 1 EOC, but increasing the likelihood of type 2 EOC. Diabetes mellitus and no prior surgical history were found to significantly decrease the likelihood of all EOC.
The Role of Galectin-1 in Cancer Progression, and Synthetic Multivalent Systems for the Study of Galectin-1

This review discusses the role of galectin-1 in the tumor microenvironment. First, the structure and function of galectin-1 are discussed. Galectin-1, a member of the galectin family of lectins, is a functionally dimeric galactoside-binding protein. Although galectin-1 has both intracellular and extracellular functions, the defining carbohydrate-binding role occurs extracellularly. In this review, the extracellular roles of galectin-1 in cancer processes are discussed. In particular, the importance of multivalent interactions in galectin-1 mediated cellular processes is reviewed. Multivalent interactions involving galectin-1 in cellular adhesion, mobility and invasion, tumor-induced angiogenesis, and apoptosis are presented. Although the mechanisms of action of galectin-1 in these processes are still not well understood, the overexpression of galectin-1 in cancer progression indicates that the role of galectin-1 is significant. To conclude this review, synthetic frameworks that have been used to modulate galectin-1 processes are reviewed. Small molecule oligomers of carbohydrates, carbohydrate-functionalized pseudopolyrotaxanes, cyclodextrins, calixarenes, and glycodendrimers are presented. These synthetic multivalent systems serve as important tools for studying galectin-1 mediated cancer cellular functions.
Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors improve membrane stability and change gene-expression profiles in dystrophic skeletal muscles

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonists are FDA-approved drugs that inhibit the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) and are used to treat heart failure. Combined treatment with the ACEi lisinopril and the nonspecific MR antagonist spironolactone surprisingly improves skeletal muscle, in addition to heart function and pathology in a Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) mouse model. We recently demonstrated that MR is present in all limb and respiratory muscles and functions as a steroid hormone receptor in differentiated normal human skeletal muscle fibers. The goals of the current study were to begin to define cellular and molecular mechanisms mediating the skeletal muscle efficacy of RAAS inhibitor treatment. We also compared molecular changes resulting from RAAS inhibition with those resulting from the current DMD standard-of-care glucocorticoid treatment. Direct assessment of muscle membrane integrity demonstrated improvement in dystrophic mice treated with lisinopril and spironolactone compared with untreated mice. Short-term treatments of dystrophic mice with specific and nonspecific MR antagonists combined with lisinopril led to overlapping gene-expression profiles with beneficial regulation of metabolic processes and decreased inflammatory gene expression. Glucocorticoids increased apoptotic, proteolytic, and chemokine gene expression that was not changed by RAAS inhibitors in dystrophic mice. Microarray data identified potential genes that may underlie RAAS inhibitor treatment efficacy and the side effects of glucocorticoids. Direct effects of RAAS inhibitors on membrane integrity also contribute to improved pathology of dystrophic muscles. Together, these data will inform clinical development of MR antagonists for treating skeletal muscles in DMD.
Subsets of F q x free of 3-term geometric progressions

Several recent papers have considered the Ramsey-theoretic problem of how large a subset of integers can be without containing any 3-term geometric progressions. This problem has also recently been generalized to number fields, determining bounds on the greatest possible density of ideals avoiding geometric progressions. We study the analogous problem over F q x , first constructing a set greedily which avoids these progressions and calculating its density, and then considering bounds on the upper density of subsets of F q x which avoid 3-term geometric progressions. This new setting gives us a parameter q to vary and study how our bounds converge to 1 as it changes, and positive characteristic introduces some extra combinatorial structure that increases the tractability of common questions in this area.
The Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events behavioral health intervention: Design, rationale, and preliminary feasibility of a factorial design study.

Background:Positive psychological constructs, such as optimism, are associated with greater participation in cardiac health behaviors and improved cardiac outcomes. Positive psychology interventions, which target psychological well-being, may represent a promising approach to improving health behaviors in high-risk cardiac patients. However, no study has assessed whether a positive psychology intervention can promote physical activity following an acute coronary syndrome.Objective:In this article we will describe the methods of a novel factorial design study to aid the development of a positive psychology-based intervention for acute coronary syndrome patients and aim to provide preliminary feasibility data on study implementation.Methods:The Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events III study is an optimization study (planned N = 128), subsumed within a larger multiphase optimization strategy iterative treatment development project. The goal of Positive Emotions after Acute Coronary Events III is to ...
Hierarchical rank and principled dissent: How holding higher rank suppresses objection to unethical practices

Abstract When unethical practices occur in an organization, high-ranking individuals at the top of the hierarchy are expected to stop wrongdoing and redirect the organization to a more honorable path—this is, to engage in principled dissent . However, in three studies, we find that holding high-ranking positions makes people less likely to engage in principled dissent. Specifically, we find that high-ranking individuals identify more strongly with their organization or group, and therefore see its unethical practices as more ethical than do low-ranking individuals. High-ranking individuals thus engage less in principled dissent because they fail to see unethical practices as being wrong in the first place. Study 1 observed the relation between high-rank and principled dissent in an archival data set involving more than 11,000 employees. Studies 2 and 3 used experimental designs to establish the causal effect of rank and to show that identification is one key mechanism underlying it.
Effects of a technology-enriched learning environment on student development of higher order thinking skills

The problem for this study was to enhance the development of higher order thinking skills and improve attitudes toward computers for fifth and sixth grade students. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of a Technology Enriched Classroom on student development of higher order thinking skills and student attitudes toward the computer. A sample of 80 sixth grade and 86 fifth grade students was tested using the Ross Test of Higher Cognitive Processes. The Ross Test was selected because of its stated purpose to judge the effectiveness of curricula or instructional methodology designed to teach the higher-order thinking skills of analysis, synthesis and evaluation as defined by Bloom. The test consisted of 105 items grouped into seven subsections. In addition, the students were surveyed using the Computer Attitude Questionnaire developed by the Texas Center for Educational Technology. The questionnaire assessed sixty-five questions combined to measure eight attitudes.
Recent pulsed-power technology advances in the pulsed power sciences center at Sandia National Laboratories

In the presentation we present a survey of the application driven development of new high-current (25+ MA), fast risetime (~ 100 ns) pulsed-power technology at the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), but this paper only focuses on megagauss magnetic field driver development in order to preserve first-publication rights for the co-authors with the other technologies. Thus in the presentation we note that the Z accelerator has fired nearly 200 shots since the upgrade, and is now being operated at 4 to 5 shots per week. Initial failures after the upgrade have been resolved with improvements in the 6-MV laser-triggered switches, the oil water barriers, and the insulator stack. With the upgrade Z is also able to produce tailored current profiles for isentropic compression of materials using staggered timing of the laser triggered switches. We also describe the Linear Transformer Driver (LTD) technology that is being investigated as a potential follow-on pulsed power technology for the design of the next larger machine that has a high repetition-rate (up to 0.1 Hz) capability. Ten 1-MA LTD modules have been fabricated and are being setup as a 1 MV, 1 MA sub-module prototype. A lower-current, more compact LTD design is also being tested for radiography applications. For both of these designs 200-kV, 25-kA gas switches are being developed and tested to both increase switch lifetime and to minimize cost. A compact, portable, 2-MA, 2 μsec driver, which we describe in this paper, is being developed to drive single-turn magnetic field coils for laser-plasma experiments in vacuum. (4 pages)
Spontaneous regression of epithelial downgrowth from clear corneal phacoemulsification wound.

Abstract Purpose To report a case of spontaneous regression of optical coherence tomography (OCT) and confocal microscopy-supported epithelial downgrowth associated with clear corneal phacoemulsification wound. Observations A 66-year-old Caucasian male presented two years after phacoemulsification in the left eye with an enlarging cornea endothelial lesion in that eye. His early post-operative course had been complicated by corneal edema and iris transillumination defects. The patient presented to our clinic with a large geographic sheet of epithelial downgrowth and iris synechiae to the temporal clear corneal wound. His vision was correctable to 20/25 in his left eye. Anterior segment OCT showed a hyperreflective layer on the posterior cornea with an abrupt transition that corresponded to the clinical transition zone of the epithelial downgrowth. Confocal microscopy showed polygonal cells with hyperreflective nuclei suggestive of epithelial cells in the area of the lesion with a transition to a normal endothelial cell mosaic. Given the lack of glaucoma or inflammation and the relatively good vision, the plan was made to closely monitor for progression with the anticipation that he may require aggressive surgery. Over course of subsequent follow-up visits at three, seven and ten months; the endothelial lesion receded significantly. Confocal imaging in the area of the previously affected cornea showed essentially normal morphology with anan endothelial cell count of 1664 cells/mm2. Conclusions and importance Epithelial downgrowth may spontaneously regress. Though the mechanism is yet understood, contact inhibition of movement may play a role. Despite this finding, epithelial downgrowth is typically a devastating process requiring aggressive treatment.
Locally Differentially Private Frequent Itemset Mining

The notion of Local Differential Privacy (LDP) enables users to respond to sensitive questions while preserving their privacy. The basic LDP frequent oracle (FO) protocol enables an aggregator to estimate the frequency of any value. But when each user has a set of values, one needs an additional padding and sampling step to find the frequent values and estimate their frequencies. In this paper, we formally define such padding and sample based frequency oracles (PSFO). We further identify the privacy amplification property in PSFO. As a result, we propose SVIM, a protocol for finding frequent items in the set-valued LDP setting. Experiments show that under the same privacy guarantee and computational cost, SVIM significantly improves over existing methods. With SVIM to find frequent items, we propose SVSM to effectively find frequent itemsets, which to our knowledge has not been done before in the LDP setting.
X-Chromosome Analysis

Normal males possess one X-chromosome and one Y-chromosome while females possess two X-chromosomes. Inheritance patterns of the X-chromosome (ChrX) enable application of ChrX markers in specific human identity testing situations including complex kinship cases involving at least one female. Over 40 X-STR markers have been characterized and a number of assays developed for their analysis. Dozens of population studies have been published describing X-STR allele frequencies from groups around the world. The Investigator Argus X-12 kit amplifies the sex-typing marker amelogenin along with 12 X-STR loci from four linkage groups: Group 1 (DXS10148, DXS10135, DXS8378), Group 2 (DXS7132, DXS10079, DX10074), Group 3 (DXS10103, HPRTB, DXS10101), and Group 4 (DXS10146, DXS10134, DXS7423).
Physics and Narrative

I present a very simple thought experiment—which has somehow been overlooked in the literature—that has surprising consequences about the Lorentz-transformation properties of the quantum states of multiple-particle systems. [Editors note: for a video of the talk given by Prof. Albert at the Aharonov-80 conference in 2012 at Chapman University, see quantum.chapman.edu/talk-29.]
Convexity, Optimization, and Inequalities

Convexity is one of the key concepts of mathematical analysis and has interesting consequences for optimization theory, statistical estimation, inequalities, and applied probability. Despite this fact, students seldom see convexity presented in a coherent fashion. It always seems to take a backseat to more pressing topics. The current chapter is intended as a partial remedy to this pedagogical gap.
Asad and Benjamin: Chronopolitics of tragedy in the anthropology of secularism:

Divergent theories of tragedy in the anthropology of secularism have been articulated with reference to the work of Talal Asad, yet he himself disavows a tragic sensibility. In seeking to understan...
Chronic Liver Disease Patients have Worse Outcomes and Increased Postoperative Complications After Orthopedic Fractures.

INTRODUCTION Cirrhotic patients are at a higher risk for sustaining orthopedic fractures with a reported prevalence of 5% to 20%. Cirrhosis also affects wound healing and bleeding risk, and hence, impacts the postoperative outcomes after fracture repair. However, there is limited data available on the postoperative risk factors and clinical outcomes of fractures in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD). METHODS Data from the National Inpatient Sample for the years 2012 to 2015 were analyzed. Patients were identified using ICD-9 codes for any fracture. ICD-9 codes for CLD were used to categorize patients into CLD and non-CLD groups. Primary outcomes included inpatient mortality, length of stay (LOS), and total hospital charges. Secondary outcomes included complications such as postoperative infection, prosthetic failure, bleeding, and improper wound healing. RESULTS A total of 931,193 patient encounters for orthopedic fractures were identified and divided into 17,388 with CLD and 913,806 without CLD (non-CLD). The inpatient mortality in patients with CLD was almost twice that of non-CLD patients (odds ratio, 1.95; 95% confidence interval, 1.8-2.1). Patients with CLD also had a longer mean LOS at 7.4±8.6 days versus 5.6±7.2 days (P<0.001) and higher total hospital charges at $76,198±99,494 versus $64,294±95,673 (P<0.001). CLD patients also had higher rates of infections, improper wound healing, and bleeding. DISCUSSION In this large retrospective study, CLD patients with fractures had significantly higher mortality, LOS and hospital charges. These findings correlate with the higher rates of infection, bleeding, and poorer wound healing in this population. Increased clinician awareness of these risks is a key to improving the care of CLD patients.
Nishitani Keiji: Nihilism, Buddhism, Anontology

Is there such a thing as a Buddhist philosophy, a specifically Japanese Buddhist philosophy? The question calls for a complex answer, involving a discussion of what is “Buddhist” and what is “philosophy.” If one were to answer “yes,” for the twentieth century, the Kyoto School of philosophy comes to mind. But for the most part, although the writings of the Kyoto School founder, NISHIDA Kitarō 西田幾多郎 (1870–1945), were replete with Buddhist inspired ideas, their Buddhist origins were not always made explicit until in his very last works. Nishida’s most famous disciple NISHITANI Keiji 西谷啓治 (1900–1990), on the other hand, never seemed to have any qualms about discussing certain elements in his thinking as Buddhist, in particular, Mahāyāna or Zen-inspired. Yet the issue is not a simple one and it would be reductive to identify Nishitani as nothing but a Buddhist thinker. He certainly was not sectarian or dogmatic in his use of Buddhist concepts, and he also proves himself to be a global thinker in his use of non-Buddhist, i.e., Christian or western ways of thinking. His major concern throughout his career was nihilism and modernity, and we see in his works the unfolding of a philosophical conversation between western philosophy, Christianity, and Buddhism in dealing with the issues of nihilism and modernity. In this essay, I begin with a short biographical introduction to Nishitani the philosopher. I then discuss his views on nihilism, and the various Mahāyāna Buddhist motifs he appropriates and employs in developing his own response to nihilism and the perennial questions of human existence. I also argue that his appropriation of Buddhist concepts in his response to nihilism leads him to what I call “anontology.”
Chronic Gastrointestinal and Joint-Related Sequelae Associated with Common Foodborne Illnesses: A Scoping Review

To strengthen the burden estimates for chronic sequelae of foodborne illness, we conducted a scoping review of the current literature for common foodborne pathogens and their associated sequelae. W...