cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Involvement of endocrinologists in the 2009 to 2010 H1N1 vaccination effort.

ABSTRACT Objective To assess the level of participation of endo crinologists in the United States in the 2009 to 2010 H1N1 vaccination campaign and explore their perspectives on H1N1 vaccination. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional, mailed survey of a national sample of 1,991 endocrinologists in June through September 2010. The extent of the response and the survey responses are reported and analyzed. Results The overall response rate was 59%. The majority of endocrinologists strongly recommended H1N1 vaccine for children, whereas about a third did so for both nonelderly adults and seniors. Just over half (52%) of the responding endocrinologists had agreed to participate in the 2009 to 2010 H1N1 vaccine campaign and received vaccine, in comparison with 73% who offered seasonal influenza vaccine. The supply of H1N1 vaccine was a sig nificant challenge, but otherwise endocrinologists reported few major problems with administration of H1N1 vaccine. Overall, less than half of the respondents thought that they would be “very likely” to provide vaccine in the event of a future influenza pandemic, with a much higher proportion among those endocrinologists who offered seasonal influenza vaccine and H1N1 vaccine. Conclusion Although the experiences of endocri nologists who provided H1N1 vaccine were generally positive, many did not offer the vaccine and indicated that they are hesitant about providing vaccine during a future influenza pandemic. Approaches to increase their participation in future pandemics in an effort to reach persons at high risk for influenza and its complications, such as those with diabetes, should be further explored. (Endocr Pract. 2012;18:464-471)
Geophysics Funding Healthy in FY 1986 Federal Budget

Continued support for many geophysics projects is part of the fiscal year (FY) 1986 budget proposal that President Ronald Reagan sent to Congress earlier this month. Unlike many other programs that took deep cuts or were eliminated, overall funding for science held steady in the proposed budget. This budget proposal, however, did not offer the large increases that had been proposed for FY 1985 (Eos, February 14, 1984, p. 49). Figure 1 shows the trend for science outlays during the past several years.
Control of a Doubly Fed Induction Wind Generator Under Unbalanced Grid Voltage Conditions

Wind energy is often installed in rural, remote areas characterized by weak, unbalanced power transmission grids. In induction wind generators, unbalanced three-phase stator voltages cause a number of problems, such as overcurrent, unbalanced currents, reactive power pulsations, and stress on the mechanical components from torque pulsations. Therefore, beyond a certain amount of unbalance, induction wind generators are switched out of the network. This can further weaken the grid. In doubly fed induction generators (DFIGs), control of the rotor currents allows for adjustable speed operation and reactive power control. This paper presents a DFIG control strategy that enhances the standard speed and reactive power control with controllers that can compensate for the problems caused by an unbalanced grid by balancing the stator currents and eliminating torque and reactive power pulsations
Mechanisms of Venous Thrombosis and Resolution

Venous thromboembolism is a significant health care problem in the US. In this review, the unique role of inflammation to the venous thrombotic process is emphasized as well as the potential role of abnormalities of fibrinolytic mechanisms to the thrombotic process. Inflammation influences not only thrombogenesis but also thrombus resolution and vein wall remodeling, and these interactions are also discussed. Knowledge of molecular and immunologic mechanisms for venous thrombosis and its resolution should allow for the future development of targeted therapies.
¿Un legado histórico?: Symbolic competence and the construction of multiple histories

This paper argues that any approach to the teaching of history in the second language classroom must consider how history is constructed and what is at stake in such representations. Doing so opens up the possibility of developing students’ symbolic competence through critical reflexivity at three interrelated levels: 1) language itself as wielding symbolic power in the construction and representation of history; 2) the subject positions available through language to negotiate or to alter these constructions; and 3) the larger ideologies and structures of power that operate on language use, historical constructions, and options for negotiating subject positions. Using an example from a textbook, I analyze how the history of the Conquest of the Americas is constructed while demonstrating that what is at stake is the reproduction of the colonial narrative and the negation of other historical representations. At the same time students are positioned as tourists and cultural consumers who are positioned outside of history. I then describe classroom activities that can be usedto modify the textbook activities in order to interrogate meaning-making processes that recognize the emotional resonances and embodied histories of the students as they use language to critically engage in the contested spaces of history and memory.
Gasless abdomen in the adult: what does it mean?

OBJECTIVE. The objective of this article is to illustrate the causes of a gasless abdomen in an adult.CONCLUSION. The gasless abdomen in the adult is often interpreted as nonspecific, which does not provide useful information for the patient's physician. There are at least six causes of the gasless abdomen in the adult. A specific cause of the gasless abdomen can usually be made when the patient's history is known. The most serious cause of the gasless abdomen is small-bowel obstruction with or without ischemia.
Microarray Analysis of Gene Expression Reveals that Cyclo-oxygenase-2 Gene Therapy Up-regulates Hematopoiesis and Down-regulates Inflammation During Endochondral Bone Fracture Healing

BACKGROUND Cyclo-oxygenase-2 (Cox-2) is an inflammatory mediator that is necessary for the tissue repair, including bone fracture healing. Although the application of Cox-2 gene therapy to a murine closed femoral fracture has accelerated bony union, but the beneficial effect was not observed until the endochondral stage of bone repair that is well after the inflammatory stage normally subsides. METHODS To identify the molecular pathways through which Cox-2 regulates fracture healing, we examined gene expression profile in fracture tissues in response to Cox-2 gene therapy during the endochondral bone repair phase. Cox-2 gene therapy was applied to the closed murine femur fracture model. Microarray analysis was performed at 10 days post-fracture to examine global gene expression profile in the fracture tissues during the endochondral bone repair phase. The entire repertoire of significantly expressed genes was examined by gene set enrichment analysis, and the most up-regulated individual genes were evaluated further. RESULTS The genes that normally promote inflammation were under-represented in the microarray analysis, and the expression of several inflammatory chemokines was significantly down-regulated. There was an up-regulation of two key transcription factor genes that regulate hematopoiesis and erythropoiesis. More surprisingly, there was no significant up-regulation in the genes that are normally involved in angiogenesis or bone formation. However, the expression of two tissue remodeling genes was up-regulated. CONCLUSIONS The down-regulation of the inflammatory genes in response to Cox-2 gene therapy was unexpected, given the pro-inflammatory role of prostaglandins. Cox-2 gene therapy could promote bony union through hematopoietic precursor proliferation during endochondral bone repair and thereby enhances subsequently fracture callus remodeling that leads to bony union of the fracture gap.
Recent Advances In Underwater Mateable Electrical Connectors

Over the past several years, a system of wet-mateable connectors has been developed which permits reliable, repeated undersea use. The basic design consists of a fluid filled, pressure compensated chamber, which houses receptacle sockets. Male contacts penetrate the chamber through sealed openings; connections are made within the dielectric fluid, removed from the hostile outside environment. The advantages of such connectors are that they may be mated and unmated repeatedly underwater, at any pressure... even with power on. At present, connectors of this type are available both for impedance matched 50 and 75 ohm coaxial signal transmission cables and for up to 5 contact power connections.
Fractionation considerations for boron neutron capture therapy: the perspective of a clinician.

Fractionation is the cornerstone of modern megavoltage photon therapy. The sparsely ionizing nature of x-ray therapy seems to necessitate fractionation for successful sterilization of malignant tumors. However, high-LET, densely ionizing radiations such as neutrons or alpha particles are less dependent on fractionation for their success. In this context, I will weigh the advantages and disadvantages of fractionation for boron neutron capture therapy for malignant gliomas.
A novel detection scheme for herbicidal residues

It is relatively simple to determine the growth rate of a microorganism culture, minute-by-minute, by monitoring the CO2 content of an air stream that has passed through the culture at a constant rate. Any change in the growth rate caused by the addition of a toxicant is readily detectable. This is the basis of a procedure for detecting sulfonylurea herbicides on vegetation. A freshwater alga (Chlorella pyrenoidosa sorokiniana) and baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) were the test organisms evaluated in this study. The alga was the more sensitive to sulfonylureas, and the effect of 0.01 μg of a sulfonylurea that had been simply leached from an apple leaf was evident in 15 min. Triazine herbicides inhibit the Chlorella even more rapidly than the sulfonylureas.
Design and Dynamic Simulation of Five Phase Interior Permanent Magnet Machine for Series Hybrid Electric Vehicles

Dynamic behavior analysis of electric motors are required in order to accurately evaluate the performance, energy consumption and pollution level of hybrid electric vehicles. Due to high torque to inertia ratio, high reliability, high efficiency and power density, five phase interior permanent magnet machines (IPMs) are good candidate for hybrid electric vehicles. In this paper dynamic performance of a five phase IPM machine for series hybrid electric vehicles application is discussed. For this purpose a high torque density five phase IPM machine with low torque pulsation is designed. The mathematical model of the proposed IPM motor is given. A vector control strategy based on the space vector pulse width modulation (SVPWM) technique is provided to control the machine over a wide speed range. Finally the system is simulated for different operating modes of a typical drive cycle. Extensive simulation results show the accurate performance of the proposed machine
Hydrocarbon Migration and Diagenesis in Miocene Marine-Shelf Deposits: ABSTRACT

Miocene marine-shelf deposits typically found in the Gulf Coast basin are composed of thin (0.1-10.0 cm), horizontally bedded or cross-stratified quartzarenites to subarkoses, laminated silty clays up to 50 cm thick, and bioturbated admixtures of these 2 end members. Some of the coarser grained sand units may contain appreciable quantities (up to 50%) of shell fragments. These lithotypes exert a significant control on the diagenetic mineral products and amount of secondary porosity observed in specimens that have been subjected to temperatures in excess of 120°C. Low-magnesian calcite, maximum microcline, high albite, and a kaolin mineral (possibly dickite) are the major diagenetic products in the sandstones. A regular mixed-layered illite/smectite (rectorite) is dom nant in the clay-rich materials. Secondary porosity is most common in those rocks that originally contained numerous shell fragments. Quartz overgrowths are ubiquitous. The diagenetic differences are striking when the closeness of the sand and clay association is considered. The thin clay seams may have obtained small quantities of potassium from some of the associated sands. The sands illustrate considerable reaction with connate fluids, during the albitization process. Kaolinitic minerals are most abundant in the sand with the highest original porosity. The original composition and diagenetic products define the optimum conditions for hydrocarbon migration. End_of_Article - Last_Page 254------------
Prolonging the return visit interval in primary care

Abstract Purpose Extending the scheduled return visit interval has been suggested as one means to improve clinic access to the provider. However, prolonging the return visit interval may affect quality of care if prevention measures and chronic disease management receive less attention as clinic visits become less frequent. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a comprehensive education program could encourage providers to lengthen their return visit interval without compromising performance on key quality indicators. Subjects and methods This was a prospective cohort study monitoring scheduling and performance data of primary care providers at the Milwaukee Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Following collection of baseline data (January through June 1999), providers were encouraged to lengthen the return visit interval while increasing reliance on nurses and other clinic staff for interim management of chronic disease. Provider-specific feedback of return visit interval and performance data was utilized to motivate behavioral change. Scheduling and clinical data were abstracted from random medical record audits performed at baseline and from July through December in the years 2000 and 2001. Results Compared with the baseline period, the percent of patients scheduled ≥6 months was significantly increased among staff providers and medicine residents at 2 years (Staff providers: 31% vs. 62%, P P Conclusions Educational interventions can successfully retrain providers to extend the return visit interval and reduce the scheduling of routine and perhaps unnecessary appointments. This can be accomplished without compromising important performance monitors for diabetes, lipid disorders, hypertension, and prevention.
Crossing new borders: computers, mobile phones, transportation, and English language among Hispanic day laborers in Seattle, Washington

Here we present an investigation of the use of computers and mobile phones by Hispanic day laborers at Casa Latina, a community-building nonprofit organization for Latino immigrants in Seattle, Washington. Drawing from 95 structured interviews, 6 in-depth interviews, a focus group, and a series of participatory observations of computer training classes at Casa Latina, we find that information and communication technologies (ICT) help immigrant day laborers remain connected with their families and their employers and facilitate their navigation of, and integration into, the society in which they have precarious social and economic standing. ICT help immigrant day laborers maintain links with their past and their roots, offer tools to navigate their present needs, and help them build future plans and aspirations. Hispanic day laborers experience ICT mostly through mobile phones used to communicate with employers and families; they use computers and the Internet to communicate with family and friends. In addition, the experience of the immigrant day laborers is strongly influenced by their English-language proficiency—which helps them navigate daily life in the United States and communicate with employers—and their use of transportation to move around the city for work and daily life. The results of this study offer new insight into the ways in which day laborers in Seattle use ICT to help them meet personal and employment needs and realize their long-term goals.
Possibility-Based Models

This chapter will continue the description of the application of fuzzy set theory to the relational database model. In the previous chapter, chapter 3, we surveyed approaches that used the concept of similarity or proximity relationships. These representations capture the imprecision in distinction of elements of domain sets of attributes in relations. Here we will overview a number of different approaches that have utilized possibility theory to represent uncertainty in the relational database models.
Global Epidemiology of West Nile Virus

West Nile virus (WNV) exists in a bird–mosquito–bird cycle, with humans and horses as incidental hosts. The global epidemiology follows several patterns (1) widespread enzootic transmission throughout tropical Africa, the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South America without significant human or equine morbidity; (2) periodic human and equine outbreaks in the Mediterranean Basin, Russia, and South Africa separated by years of low-level enzootic activity; (3) sporadic human disease in India; (4) little or no WNV enzootic activity in Southeast and East Asia and no human cases; (5) sporadic human disease and small outbreaks in Australia; and (6) repeated annual outbreaks in North America. The biology underlying these patterns is poorly understood, but probably results from a complex interaction of climate and weather, mosquito vectors, avian hosts, viral strain, other circulating flaviviruses, and other undefined factors. The virus was first detected in the Americas in New York City in 1999 and spread to Argentina within 7 years. The high infection incidence in North America has resulted in new modes of transmission, such as blood transfusion and organ donation. Older age and certain immunosuppressive conditions confer a high risk of neuroin-vasive disease after infection.
Dedication to Orson L. Anderson

This special issue of American Mineralogist is dedicated to Orson L. Anderson, marking 35 years of outstanding research in academic geosciences. The collection of papers in this volume represents topics of interest to Orson, as well as contributions from former students, postdoctoral associates, colleagues, and friends throughout the world. Orson received all of his degrees from the University of Utah, earning his Ph.D. in Physics in 1951 under the supervision of Henry Eyring and Walter Elsasser. He joined Bell Telephone Laboratories where he spent nine years working in the …
Modifiable Factors Associated With Aging Phenotypes Among Adult Survivors of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

PurposeSurvivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) are at risk for low bone mineral density (BMD) and frail health, outcomes potentially modifiable by altering health behaviors and/or treating endocrine abnormalities. We evaluated associations between lifestyle and hormonal deficits with risk of low BMD and frailty among survivors of ALL.Patients and MethodsParticipants included 862 survivors of ALL (median age, 31.3 years [range, 18.4 to 59.7 years]) enrolled in the St Jude Lifetime Cohort study. Bone density was measured using quantitative computed tomography of L1 through L2 vertebrae; low BMD was defined as an age- and sex-standardized z score < −1. The presence of frailty or prefrailty was defined as having at least two of the following: low muscle mass, self-reported exhaustion, low energy expenditure, slow walking speed, and weakness. Hormonal deficiencies were determined according to medical history, medications, and laboratory findings (insulin-like growth factor 1, follicle-stimula...
Early Formative Pottery from the Tuxtla Mountains and Implications for Gulf Olmec Origins

This paper explores patterning in ceramic data from an Early Formative component at the site of La Joya, located in southern Veracruz, Mexico. The discussion uses ceramic paste characteristics, in addition to vessel form and decoration data, to suggest that this Early Formative pottery assemblage undergoes an in situ transformation between the “pre-Olmec” Tulipan phase and the “Olmec” Coyame phase. This conclusion is then used to revisit the hypothesis of a Chicharras phase (ca. 1250 B.C.) immigration of Pacific coastal groups into the southern Gulf lowlands (e.g., Clark 1990, 1997; Clark and Blake 1989; Coe and Diehl 1980). A consideration of ceramics from several Isthmian lowland contexts does not support this scenario. The discussion suggests that an over-reliance on the surface characteristics of ceramics at San Lorenzo may have encouraged an erroneous Gulf Olmec origin story.
Subvolcanic subsidence and caldera formation during subaerial seafloor spreading in Iceland

Many caldera systems worldwide are interpreted to form as a result of catastrophic subsidence into space vacated by eruption. Some basaltic calderas, however, both associated with modern active volcanoes and in ancient, deeply eroded terranes, lack evidence for catastrophic formation and thus may have formed incrementally. The Vatnsdalur structural basin in northern Iceland is one such caldera-like volcanic depression. The Vatnsdalur structural basin is an elliptical depression with dimensions of ∼6 km × ∼3 km and a structural depth of ∼1.5 km. It occurs within the gently west-dipping, Tertiary basaltic lava sequences of the Skagi region, northern Iceland. Tilted basaltic to rhyolitic lava flows define a large-scale, rim monocline surrounding the basin. Exposures that form the southern rim of the Vatnsdalur structural basin reveal details of the pre-, syn-, and postsubsidence volcanic and tectonic processes during basin evolution. In these exposures, the dips of lava flows steepen continuously from horizontal to as much as 60°W, toward the center of the basin. Basaltic lava flows and mass-flow breccia units were deposited unconformably over the dipping lava flows and thicken substantially downdip, toward the basin center. The dip of bedding and flow contacts in these overlying units decreases up section, gradually becoming conformable with the regional lava-flow stratigraphy. Brittle folding of the lava flows within the rim monocline occurred by a combination of slip on minor faults and syntectonic dike intrusion. Based on structural evidence and comparisons to worldwide caldera systems, we conclude that the Vatnsdalur structural basin formed as a result of either (1) loading of the subsurface by dense, intrusive material or (2) shallow crustal magma redistribution accommodating many small subsidence events. In the context of crustal construction in Iceland, the Vatnsdalur structural basin and adjacent areas demonstrate significant along-strike variability in the mechanism(s) of crustal construction that occurs during subaerial seafloor spreading.
Topology, Algebra, Diagrams:

Starting from Poincare’s assignment of an algebraic object to a topological manifold, namely the fundamental group, this article introduces the concept of categories and their language of arrows th...
Malinowski in Oaxaca: Implications of an unfinished project in economic anthropology, part I:

Malinowski’s unpublished and long unavailable field notebooks from 1940 are examined to show how his fieldwork influenced the organization and content of the co-authored preliminary report (with Julio de la Fuente) of his unfinished Oaxaca Valley, Mexico project. The personal and diplomatic background of Malinowski’s Oaxaca project is reviewed, together with the origins and development of his views on economics before, during, and after his fieldwork in Melanesia. The reasons for the fitful nature of the handling of Malinowski’s Oaxaca project materials following his death in 1942 are explored, and the themes and content of his work on Trobriand economics are systematically compared with those of his work in Oaxaca. Implications of his incomplete Oaxaca project, and of other late-career writings, for his place in the history of economic anthropology are considered.
Brownfields Capital—Unlocking Value in Environmental Redevelopment

Executive Summary. Brownfields Capital has an investment process that uses special purpose vehicles to contain environmental liabilities for any site and to distribute redevelopment profits to the investors, developers, remediators and site owner. The process can help owners of polluted sites address their legal liabilities of cleanup without undue financial burden. This unique process overcomes many hurdles of today's environmental laws and investment practices—hurdles that make brownfield properties unmarketable. The process uses a financial instrument and transactional structure to transfer (or “securitize”) risks and create a liability shield acceptable to institutional investors and attractive investment economics.
Antireflexivization as a Causativization Strategy

This paper is concerned with the causativization pattern of transitive verbs that denote actions of eating and drinking (ingestives), and verbs that denote self-directed action, like wash, dress, shave, and bathe (middles). In some languages, these verbs causativize as though they were intransitive (Shibatani, 2002). Middle verbs have been analyzed as reflexives (Kemmer, 1993), which could explain why they do not always pattern with canonical transitives. I argue that ingestives can be analyzed in a similar way, as lexically reflexive, with internally complex event structures. I show that these classes of verbs have analogous meaning differences between their lexical and periphrastic causative variants, suggesting that the two types of causatives are derived from the basic variants via different operations. Instead of being derived by causer addition, lexical causatives may be derived via an antireflexivization operation that delinks two co-indexed arguments in the verb’s event structure.
Fostering Safe and Inclusive Spaces for LGBTQ Students: Phenomenographic Exploration of High School Administrators' Perceptions about GSAs.

ABSTRACTThe U.S. secondary school environment often is hostile and exclusionary toward LGBTQ students. Queer theoretical perspectives have served as the conceptual foundation for a phenomenographic study exploring seven high school administrators' perceptions of their experiences with Gay-Straight Alliances. The study results support prior research that although Gay-Straight Alliances facilitate a reduction in discrimination and victimization against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer student population, these clubs have achieved limited transformative power to challenge and change existing school practices and antigay attitudes that foster intolerance and marginalization of students not conforming to the heteronormative ideal.
What we talk about when we talk about intimacy

Abstract This essay develops a theory of interpersonal intimacy. It argues that intimacy is made up of four interrelated feeling-states: curiosity, vulnerability, empathy, and a recognition of irreducibility—that is, a recognition that one cannot ever fully know the Other, that one cannot ever completely ‘become one with the object adored’ (Woolf, 1992b, p.69). These four feeling-states operate as a carefully calibrated series of affective checks and balances; curiosity without empathy can become aggression, vulnerability without curiosity can become selfishness, empathy without uninhabitability can become self-congratulation. However, when these affects coexist, they allow for a generous orientation towards the Other, and for the Other's openness in return—in other words, they lay the groundwork for interpersonal proximity.
Hydraulic Robotic Surgical Tool Changing Manipulator

Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) is a surgical technique to perform "scarless" abdominal operations. Robotic technology has been exploited to improve NOTES and circumvent its limitations. Lack of a multitasking platform is a major limitation. Manual tool exchange can be time consuming and may lead to complications such as bleeding. Previous multifunctional manipulator designs use electric motors. These designs are bulky, slow, and expensive. This paper presents design, prototyping, and testing of a hydraulic robotic tool changing manipulator. The manipulator is small, fast, low-cost, and capable of carrying four different types of laparoscopic instruments.
Chimerism May Prolong Islet Allograft Acceptance through the Preservation of CD4 + CD25 + FoxP3 + T reg in Diabetic NOD Mice.

In the past several years, novel insights into the role of costimulatory molecules in generating adaptive immune responses have led to the development of new approaches for tolerance induction. We previously demonstrated that preconditioning of diabetes-prone NOD mice with anti-CD8 and combined with blockade of CD40L (anti-CD154) allowed chimerism to be established with 550 cGy TBI. Here, we investigated whether combined costimulatory blockade of CD40L, inducible co-stimulator (ICOS) and OX40L (CD134L) would enhance bone marrow chimerism and promote islet allograft survival in diabetic NOD mice. We also determined whether CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 + regulatory T-cells (T reg ) play an important role in maintenance of tolerance. Spontaneously diabetic NOD mice (blood glucose levels >350 mg/dL) were treated with anti-CD8 antibody (day -3). After 500 cGy TBI (day 0), NOD mice were transplanted with 30 × 10 6 B10.BR bone marrow cells (day 0) followed by transplantation of 300–400 B10.BR islets under the renal capsule and administered anti-CD154, anti-OX40L, and anti-ICOS mAbs IP (day 0, 1, 2, 3). Chimerism and peripheral blood CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 + T reg cell expression were quantitated by flow cytometry. Urine and blood glucose levels were monitored. Nonmyeloablatively conditioned mice transplanted with islet allografts and infused with bone marrow (BM) demonstrated acceptance and continued function of islet allografts, with hyperglycemic reversal ≥ 45 (A) and 95 (B) days (Figure 1). Recipients of islet allografts and BM (∼5–12 days), islet allografts and antibody treatment (∼20 days) or islet allografts alone (∼5 days) rejected their grafts. Blood glucose returned to pretreatment hyperglycemic levels in the rejected islet allograft recipient (C) treated in the same manner as the acceptors (A and B) as well as in the control recipients. Donor chimerism at one month post-BMT was 58.5% (A), 89.7% (B) and 0% (C), respectively. Although CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 + T reg expression was similar between the islet allograft acceptor and rejector recipients, the ratio of CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 + T reg to CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 − T-effector cells was 2-fold greater in the islet acceptors (3.6 vs. 1.8) (Figure 2). Taken together, our data suggest that prolongation of donor-specific chimerism is associated with tolerance to islet allografts and that CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 + T reg may be important in maintaining peripheral tolerance. Studies are underway to determine if CD4 + /CD25 + /FoxP3 + T reg may prevent intra-islet infiltration by autoimmune effector cells, thereby maintaining tolerance to islet allografts.
EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF EDOXABAN IN PATIENTS WITH ATRIAL FIBRILLATION AND ACTIVE MALIGNANCY: AN ANALYSIS OF ENGAGE AF – TIMI 48 RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL

Background: Anticoagulation in cancer pts with AF is a challenge due to the prothrombotic state and potential for bleeding associated with malignancy. Data on NOACs in cancer are sparse. Our aim is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of edoxaban in AF pts with active malignancy. Methods: ENGAGE AF
Interplay Between Growth Factor Receptors, Small GTPases, and Mechanical Stress in the Maintenance of Kidney Glomerular Homeostasis

Following injury, the damaged organ undergoes a repair process that results in the replacement of the injured tissue, with no lasting evidence of damage. A physiological process that occurs during tissue repair is fibroplasia, characterized by the replacement of normal parenchymal tissue with extracellular matrix (ECM) components. In normal conditions, the synthesis and degradation of ECM components are finely regulated by many different factors, including matrix and growth factor receptors, reactive oxygen species, hormones, and cytokines. When fibroplasia goes unchecked, the final product is unwanted and irreversible tissue scarring, with consequent organ damage, organ failure, and in the certain cases death. In the kidneys, glomerulosclerosis is a general term for scarring of the glomerulus, the filtering unit of the kidney. Glomerulosclerosis is an irreversible event and as ECM accumulates the diseased kidney progresses to end stage renal disease. Many factors such as matrix and growth factor receptors, small GTPases, and mechanical stress play a role in the development of glomerulosclerosis. The generation of animal models overexpressing and/or lacking key factors thought to regulate glomerular matrix homeostasis has improved our understanding of molecular mechanisms and pathways controlling matrix remodeling in health and disease. In this chapter, we outline the molecular mechanisms whereby growth factor receptors, small GTPases, and mechanical stress contribute to glomerulosclerosis and highlight how targeting these factors might be beneficial in the setting of glomerular injury.
Premenstrual Symptom Patterns and Behavioral Risk Factors in Young Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Background: Approximately 80% of reproductive age women experience physical or emotional symptoms before onset of menses. Of these women, ∼20% experience symptoms severe enough to interfere with social functioning and life activities, and meet clinical criteria for premenstrual syndrome (PMS). More than 100 different symptoms are associated with PMS. Symptom groupings tend to be stable within an individual, but vary distinctly between women. Potential differences in the etiology of symptoms suggest that PMS may have subtypes that represent distinct entities. Methods: The goal of this study was to identify symptom patterns using factor analysis. We then used linear regression to evaluate relations between PMS risk factors with factor scores for the symptom patterns. Analysis included: (1) 414 healthy women aged 18–30 years; (2) the subgroup of these women meeting established criteria for PMS (n = 80). All participants provided information on the occurrence and severity of 26 premenstrual symptoms ...
Soils Determine Early Revegetation Establishment with and without Cover Crops in Northern Mixed Grass Prairie after Energy Development

Cover crops have been used to build soil health and improve ecosystem services in agricultural fields and pastures, but they have not been tested in restoration contexts. We conducted two experiments in interim oilfield reclamations at Ft. Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota: in 2014 two different perennial grass mixes, with and without an oat cover crop and, in 2015, a single grass mix with and without a cover crop cocktail. To determine whether cover crops speeded site recovery or whether they competed with perennial grasses, all sites were assessed for plant establishment and rangeland health in August 2015. Sites planted in 2014 ranged from 20 (± 10 SD) to 38 (± 0.5) perennial grass plants/m2. Sites planted in 2015 ranged from 6 (± 1.8) to 29 (± 11) plants/m2. Cover crop treatment and grass mix treatments were not significant determinants of perennial grass establishment ( p 0.05). Soil nutrients appeared to drive early revegetation establishment: sites with poor perennial grass establishment had lower levels of phosphorous and higher levels of calcium, iron and manganese. Rangeland health trended towards being greater when a cover crop was planted, but the effect was very small. We will eventually test whether the long-term benefits of cover crops in agricultural systems transfer to restoration, but when cover crops establish at low densities, as we observed in these studies, they may only have small effects in reclamations.
Scanning system for angle-resolved low-coherence interferometry.

Angle-resolved low-coherence interferometry (a/LCI) detects precancer by enabling depth-resolved measurements of nuclear morphology in vivo. A significant limitation of a/LCI is the point-probe nature of the method, sampling 100 mm2 without repositioning. By utilizing a reflection-only three-optic rotator prism and a two-axis scanning mirror, we demonstrate radial scans of a sample with a linear range of 12 mm and a full rotational range of 180°. Use of this design will improve the diagnostic utility of a/LCI for wide-area screening of tissue health.
Analysis of Luby’s Algorithm

In the previous lecture we proved that for each good vertex υ, the probability that υ is deleted in the current stage is at least 1/36. Recall that a vertex υ is good if $$ \sum\limits_{u \in N\left( \upsilon \right)} {} \;\frac{1}{{2d\left( u \right)}}\; \ge \;\frac{1}{6} $$ (60) (intuitively, if it has lots of neighbors of low degree), and that an edge is good if it is incident to at least one good vertex. Since the probability that a good edge is deleted is at least as great as the probability that its good endpoint is deleted (if both its endpoints are good, so much the better), a good edge is deleted with probability at least 1/36.
Functional Maps in Visual Cortex: Topographic, Modular, and Columnar Organizations

Visual cortex of primates consists of a large number of discrete cortical areas and less well-defined cortical zones that are organized according to a number of principles including (1) topographic organization, (2) horizontal segregation of functionally distinct cortical connections, (3) horizontal segregation of functional properties, and (4) columnar homogeneity of function. Overall, these organizing principles of visual cortical areas are expressed as multiplexed functional maps within each cortical subdivision. An understanding of the types of information that are systematically mapped within a cortical area provides insight into the local computations performed within a given area and provides insight into how these local computations are communicated to functionally higher and lower cortical areas.
ALTERNATIVE MODES OF ORGANOGENESIS IN HIGHER PLANTS

This article examines the question of alternative modes of organ development in higher plants, taking its examples from convergences in dissected leaf form that are produced by different morphogenetic programs. In Araceae leaf dissection occurs either by conventional marginal lobing, as in the pinnate leaf of Zamioculcas , or by localized tissue death as in the perforated leaf of Monstera. In the palms, both palmate and pinnate leaves originate by a process of intralaminar corrugation followed by a cleavage of the resultant pleats into the free lobes or leaflets. The origin of plications has been the most controversial aspect of palm leaf development. Some workers suggested that this pleating arises by differential growth or meristem folding while others have supported a tissue cleavage process. By a detailed, comparative morphological and histogenetic analysis of plication inception and early growth in the pinnate leaf of Chrysalidocarpus lutescens and the palmate leaf of Rhapis excelsa , it could be shown that plication origin in both taxa occurs by differential growth rather than by tissue cleavage. It is concluded that the principal reason for this difference in past interpretation was the reliance of previous workers on matters of plication shape for the determination of the developmental mechanism involved. By using a quantitative evaluation of the cellular basis of plication origin we were able to transcend matters of shape and show that plication configuration in the respective species is a consequence of physical constraints within the leaf itself or between leaves in the bud rather than different morphogenetic mechanisms. It is emphasized that in future researches greater attention should be directed toward the determination of the common denominators of such different developmental programs rather than the mere cataloging of their superficial differences.
Comprehensive experimental analyses of automotive attack surfaces

Modern automobiles are pervasively computerized, and hence potentially vulnerable to attack. However, while previous research has shown that the internal networks within some modern cars are insecure, the associated threat model--requiring prior physical access--has justifiably been viewed as unrealistic. Thus, it remains an open question if automobiles can also be susceptible to remote compromise. Our work seeks to put this question to rest by systematically analyzing the external attack surface of a modern automobile. We discover that remote exploitation is feasible via a broad range of attack vectors (including mechanics tools, CD players, Bluetooth and cellular radio), and further, that wireless communications channels allow long distance vehicle control, location tracking, in-cabin audio exfiltration and theft. Finally, we discuss the structural characteristics of the automotive ecosystem that give rise to such problems and highlight the practical challenges in mitigating them.
Electronic Structure and Fermi Level Pinning Obtained with Spatially Resolved Electron Energy Loss Scattering

The electron microscope has made great strides towards obtaining direct structural images of buried defects and interfaces in metals and semi-conductors. In principle, electronic structure may also be obtained directly from the same areas by observing the electron energy loss scattering. Currently at IBM, the high resolution electron spectrometer on the HB501 scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is producing core loss spectra which show directly changes in electronic structure at defects and interfaces. This report describes briefly the basis for the technique, and an application to the Al/Si(111) interface. At this interface, new electronic states appear within the Si gap and the Si conduction bandstructure a few eV above the conduction band minimum is modified. These modifications are intimately related to the establishment of the Schottky Barrier, allowing a direct measurement of the local pinning of the Fermi level.
Contaminants at U.S. DOE Sites and Their Susceptibility to Bioremediation

Contaminants at DOE sites encompass a range of common industrial pollutants. However, the prevalence of contaminant mixtures including organics, metals, and radionuclides is relatively unique to DOE`s facilities. Bioremediation has been shown to be effective for destruction of many of the organic pollutants. The technology also has promise for application to many of the metals and radionuclides; however, field demonstrations for these applications have not yet been attempted. Because of the complexity of biodegradation of even a single-compound class, little has been done to develop or demonstrate in situ bioremediation technologies for multicompound combinations. The current bioremediation demonstration on CCl{sub 4} and nitrates within the VOC-Arid Integrated Demonstration is one the first efforts to address inorganic and organic co-contaminants simultaneously. Additional research, technology development, and field demonstrations are needed to evaluate the applicability of in situ bioremediation to DOE`s most common contaminant mixtures.
A Survey of Bahamian and Jamaican Teachers' Level of Motivation and Job Satisfaction

The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of self-reported job satisfaction and motivation among teachers in the Bahamas and Jamaica. A total of 168 Bahamian (n =75) and Jamaican (n = 93) teachers completed the Teacher Motivation and Job Satisfaction Survey. Overall results indicate that teachers in the Bahamas reported higher levels of job satisfaction as compared to teachers in Jamaica. Other findings relating to job satisfaction and motivation are discussed, and various aspects of job satisfaction are discussed in relationship to the principles of Invitational Education. Work occupies a central position in people's lives, and with the problems of inflation, outsourcing, shrinking labor supply, and slowdowns in the economic expansion, etc., the role that a job plays in a person's life takes a high priority. Additionally, the level of satisfaction that a person experiences as a result of his or her job can have a significant effect not only on the individual, but on those he or she interacts with as well. This is especially true for teachers, who have an immeasurable influence on their students. Thus, it is important to study the many variables relating to job satisfaction in an attempt to identify those variables or conditions that could be modified, leading to increased feelings of job satisfaction, motivation, and well being.
Learning of Holism-Landmark Graph Embedding for Place Recognition in Long-Term Autonomy

Place recognition plays an important role to perform loop closure detection of large-scale, long-term simultaneous localization and mapping in loopy environments. The long-term place recognition problem is challenging because the environment appearance exhibits significant long-term variations across various times of the day, months, and seasons. In this letter, we introduce a novel place representation approach that simultaneously integrates semantic landmarks and holistic information to achieve place recognition in long-term autonomy. First, a graph is constructed for each place. The graph nodes encode all landmarks and the holistic image of the place scene recorded in different scenarios. The edges connecting the nodes indicate that these nodes represent the same landmark or place, even though places and landmarks encoded by the nodes may exhibit different appearances in the long-term periods. Then, a graph embedding is learned to preserve the locality in the feature descriptor space, i.e., finding a projection such that the same landmark and place have the identical representation in the new projected descriptor space, no matter in what scenarios they are recorded. We formulate the embedding learning as an optimization problem and implement a new solver that provides a theoretical convergence guarantee. Extensive evaluations are conducted using large-scale benchmark datasets of place recognition in long-term autonomy, which has shown our approach's promising performance.
Thalassia testudinum as a potential vector for incorporating microplastics into benthic marine food webs

Seagrasses are among the most productive shallow water ecosystems, serving a diverse assemblage of fish and invertebrates. Tropical seagrass communities are dominated by the turtle grass Thalassia testudinum, whose wide, flattened blades host diverse epibiont communities. Amidst its epibionts, T. testudinum may also be accumulating microplastics, which are a ubiquitous marine pollutant even in remote locales. To assess the extent of microplastic accumulation, seagrass samples were collected from Turneffe Atoll, which lies offshore but parallel with a major urban center. Seventy-five percent of Thalassia blades had encrusted microplastics, with microfibers occurring more than microbeads and chips by a ratio of 59:14. Grazers consumed seagrasses with higher densities of epibionts. Potential mechanisms for microplastic accumulation include entrapment by epibionts, or attachment via biofilms. This study is the first to document microplastics on marine vascular plants, suggesting that macroherbivory is a viable pathway for microplastic pollution to enter marine food webs.