cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Pancreatic Disease in the Elderly Patient

Pancreatic disease represents a significant health-care problem in elderly patients. Although the entire spectrum of benign and malignant disease of the pancreas can occur in elderly patients, acute gallstone pancreatitis and pancreatic carcinoma are by far the most common pancreatic disorders seen in this age group. Although the management of both of these conditions is no different in elderly patients, aggressive evaluation and therapy are essential for optimal results. Specifically, the evidence supports an aggressive attitude towards surgical intervention for patients with pancreatic cancer.
High temperature hydrothermal synthesis of rare-earth titanates: synthesis and structure of RE5Ti4O15(OH) (RE = La, Er), Sm3TiO5(OH)3, RE5Ti2O11(OH) (RE = Tm-Lu) and Ce2Ti4O11.

Reactions of rare-earth oxides with TiO2 were performed in high temperature (650–700 °C) hydrothermal fluids. Two different mineralizer fluids were examined, 20 M KOH and 30 M CsF, and their respective products analyzed. When concentrated KOH fluids were used, single crystals of a variety of new OH− containing species were isolated and structurally characterized: RE5Ti4O15(OH) (RE = La, Er) I, Sm3TiO5(OH)3II and RE5Ti2O11(OH) (RE = Tm–Lu) III. La5Ti4O15(OH) I crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Pnnm with unit cell dimensions of a = 30.5152(12) A, b = 5.5832(2) A, c = 7.7590(3) A and V = 1321.92(9) A3, Z = 4. Sm3TiO5(OH)3II crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P21/m with unit cell parameters of a = 5.6066(2) A, b = 10.4622(4) A, c = 6.1258(2) A and β = 104.7390(10)°, V = 347.50(2) A3, Z = 2. Lu5Ti2O11(OH) III crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/m with unit cell dimensions of a = 12.1252(9) A, b = 5.8243(4) A, c = 7.0407(5) A, β = 106.939(3)° and V = 475.65(6) A3, Z = 2. When concentrated fluoride solutions are used, mostly RE2Ti2O7 type compounds were isolated in either cubic or monoclinic phases. In the case of cerium, Ce2Ti4O11IV was isolated that crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/c with unit cell parameters of a = 13.6875(7) A, b = 5.0955(3) A, c = 12.8592(7) A, β = 108.964(2)° and V = 848.18(8) A3, Z = 4. The synthesis, structural characterization, and supporting characterization are reported for all compounds. The work highlights the complementary nature of hydroxide and fluoride fluids in studying the reactivity of refractory oxides.
STAT3 and transactivation of steroid hormone receptors.

Publisher Summary The group of transcription factors named signal transducers and activators of transcription (STATs) have been identified as a part of a signaling pathway that initiates in the plasma membrane but quickly translocates to the cytoplasm and to the nucleus to activate transcription of target genes. Steroid hormone receptors (SHRs) are members of a family of ligand-activated transcription factors that regulate many biological processes, including metabolism, reproduction, and development. The SHRs include androgen receptor (AR), estrogen receptor (ER), glucocorticoid receptor (GR), and progesterone receptor (PR). Several groups have demonstrated a role of activated STAT3 in the proliferation and survival of prostate cancer cells by a mechanism that involves the androgen receptor (AR). The constitutively active form of STAT3 stimulates transcriptional activity of SHRs in a hormone-dependent manner. Active STAT3 can act synergistically with other coactivators to stimulate SHRs transcriptional activity. While STAT3 did not affect specificity of AR to other steroid hormones rather than androgen, or binding of AR to other HREs, STAT3 significantly increased the sensitivity of AR to androgen. These results can shed more light on the mechanism by which SHRs (AR in particular) regulate gene expression. Constitutively active STAT3 enhances transcriptional activity of SHRs, including AR, GR, PR, and ER, in a comparable extent to the stimulation elicited by other coactivators and, even more, in a synergistic manner to these other coactivators.
Proposal for a New Theory of Molecular Transport Across Membranes: Implications for Lung Gas Transference

It has been proposed that water insoluble nonpolar gases are solubilized by lung surfactants. To test this hypothesis, aqueous dog lung preparations were made which contained increasing concentrations of surfactant. Solubilization was followed by placing samples in a Tonometer, admitting a nonpolar vapor, extracting gas samples and analyzing by gas chromatographic methods. Using oxygen, halothane, ether, and trichloroethylene, the results indicate that surfactant preparations in the micellar and coacervate states can readily solubilize the nonpolar gases. Little gas is dissolved by dilute aqueous lung or dilute synthetic surfactant solutions. The effect of powder particles accumulating on lung surfactant solutions was studied. The results showed that solid particles on the concentrated surfactant suspension reduced the ability to solubilize gas. From the above and from film balance studies of lung surfactant, a molecular mechanism of gas transfer across the aqueous alveolar film is proposed.
The Equivocation Defense of Cognitive Relativism

What makes arguments from self-refutation particularly attractive to many philosophers is that they seem specially decisive in philosophical controversies. Arguments from self-refutation eliminate positions as untenable without appeal to any claims other than those made in the position attacked in that way; nothing other than what is contained within the self-refutating position is used to show its inadequacy. The danger of begging the question is thus circumvented, and the proponent of a position successfully attacked in this way has no further philosophical moves he can make from within his position; he must alter or abandon it. Arguments from self-refutation, if successful, are thus conclusive stopping points in the dialectic of philosophic controversy. They establish limits beyond which that dialectic cannot go, beyond which significant philosophic controversy is impossible.
On a Class of Learning Algorithms with Symmetric Behavior under Success and Failure

Learning algorithms have been extensively studied in Mathematical Psychology [13] [14] [18] for decades and more recently in Learning Automata Theory and Mathematical Statistics [1] [2] [8] [11] [16]. In Mathematical Psychology the interest in learning stems from the desire to understand the observed animal learning and associated changes in their behavior. However, in Learning Automata Theory and Mathematical Statistics the aim is to build algorithms that exhibit prespecified behaviour. Our interests, in this paper, are in the latter approach.
The Real Issues of Judicial Ethics

The Canons of Judicial Ethics remind me of the old joke about the drunk who’s crawling around on all fours under a lamp-post one night. A policeman comes along and asks him his business and the drunk explains that he’s looking for a lost quarter. So the policeman offers to help and pretty soon they’re both crawling around looking for the coin. After about a half hour of this, the policeman gets fed up and asks: “Are you sure you lost the quarter around here?” “Oh, no,” answers the drunk, “I dropped it over in the alley, but it’s too dark to look there.” So, too, it is with the Canons of Judicial Ethics. The Canons focus on the tensions and potential conflicts that are most easily detected by an outside observer. For example, pretty much everyone agrees that a judge should not sit in judgment on a case on appeal if he participated in the decision below. Similarly, everyone agrees that a judge may not sit in judgment in a case where he participated as a party or a lawyer. Of course, those are just two of the most obvious examples; we have plenty of rules and precedents saying that a judge may not participate in a case where doing so would create the appearance of impropriety. I should mention at the outset that I’m not a fan of this approach to judicial ethics, nor do I believe that it’s necessary or inevitable. Take the two examples I’ve given. As you will recall, in the early days of the Republic the justices rode circuit, and some of the cases they heard in
Development and Validation of the Lymphedema Symptom Intensity and Distress Survey-Lower Limb

Abstract Background: Lymphedema is a chronic, incurable condition that occurs most commonly in lower limbs (legs and feet). Increased morbidity is seen with this form of lymphedema, but there are f...
A Comparison of REBT with Other Cognitive Behavior Therapies

In a paradigm shifting presentation at the American Psychological Association’s conference in Chicago in 1956, Albert Ellis argued for addressing the important role cognition plays in the creation and maintenance of emotional and behavioral disturbance. This presentation then appeared in a 1958 article in the Journal of General Psychology titled “Rational Therapy”. This marked his official departure from psychoanalysis and earned Ellis the distinction of being the field’s first cognitive behavior therapist. His work welded ancient and modern philosophy, especially Stoicism, with clinical strategies and techniques from behavior therapy. Ellis proposed that attitudes, beliefs, and philosophical ideas, what we now commonly refer to as cognitions, were at the core of emotional and behavioral disturbance. Over the next 60 years, Ellis developed, refined, and disseminated the theory and practice of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT: Ellis, 1962, 1994). Subsequent to and independent of Ellis’s work, Aaron T. Beck published “Thinking and Depression” in the Archives of General Psychiatry in 1963. By this time, he also had come to appreciate the important role thinking played in clinical depression. Due to Ellis’s pioneering work and Beck’s subsequent empirical research, it is fair to consider Ellis and Beck the founding fathers of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT).
Anti-VEGF drug interference with VEGF quantitation in the R&D systems human quantikine VEGF ELISA kit

Aim: To evaluate the accuracy of the Quantikine Human VEGF Immunoassay (R&D Systems) in the presence of VEGF inhibitors. Materials & Methods: Quantikine VEGF ELISA (R&D), anti-VEGF165 mAb (R&D), VE...
The impact of diabetic peripheral neuropathy on pinch proprioception.

This study aims to investigate the impact of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) on pinch proprioception and to establish the correlations with sensory impairments. We collected data from a total of 36 participants (healthy, n = 12; T2D without DPN, n = 11; and T2D + DPN, n = 13), all matched for age, 60 ± 6 years. Pinch proprioception was determined through 3 trials of attempts to actively reproduce 15° of pinch position without visual feedback. Target accuracy and precision was compared between groups using Kruskal–Wallis test. Sensation was tested through the two-point discrimination and Semmes–Weinstein monofilaments applied on the fingers. Sensory measures were correlated with pinch proprioception measures via Spearman’s rank test. The T2D + DPN group showed significant decrements in accuracy and precision as compared to the T2D-only (p = 0.003 and p = 0.006, respectively) and the healthy groups (both p = 0.002); no significant differences were found between T2D-only and healthy. Spearman’s rank showed moderate (r = 0.45–0.66, p < 0.001) correlations between pinch proprioception and sensory measures. Our results showed pinch proprioception disruption in people with T2D + DPN, but not in people with T2D-only. The awareness of pinch proprioceptive deficits is paramount for the safety of individuals with T2D and DPN. Moderate correlations between sensory impairments and pinch proprioceptive deficits suggest that not only superficial/discriminative sensation is implicated in proprioceptive decrements. Other mechanisms such as damage to muscle spindles or central nervous system associated with T2D + DPN warrant further investigations.
Brief Amici Curiae of 82 Law, Economics, Business, and Medical Professors in Support of Respondent

In FTC v. Actavis, the Supreme Court issued one of the most important antitrust rulings in the past generation, finding that settlements by which brand firms pay generics to delay entering the market could violate antitrust law. In March, the FTC applied Actavis for the first time, issuing a comprehensive ruling that offered a ringing bipartisan (5-0) condemnation of this behavior. Impax has appealed to the Fifth Circuit, seeking to overturn this ruling. This brief, filed on behalf of 82 professors of law, economics, business, and medicine, highlights Impax's four erroneous foundations, which seek to (1) overturn Actavis; (2) downplay Impax’s concession that Endo made a reverse payment to delay entry; (3) ignore its role in delayed competition; and (4) remake antitrust law to immunize blatantly anticompetitive behavior. The brief requests that the Fifth Circuit affirm the FTC’s opinion, which is supported by Actavis, real-world evidence, and longstanding antitrust principles.
Hydrothermal Stability of Titanium/Epoxy Adhesive Joints

γ-Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (γ-APS) was shown to be an extremely effective primer for improving the hydrothermal stability of titanium/epoxy adhesive joints when applied to the adherends by adsorption from dilute aqueous solutions prior to adhesive bonding. The breaking strength of lap joints prepared from unprimed adherends decreased slowly during immersion in water at 60°C and was only about 960 psi after 60 days. The breaking strength of joints prepared from adherends primed with γ-APS at pH 10.4 and 8.0 decreased very little during similar hydrothermal aging and was about 1750 psi after 60 days. Joints prepared from adherends primed with γ-APS at pH 5.5 were somewhat less durable and had a breaking strength of about 1180 psi after 60 days in water at 60°C. The performance of γ-APS as a primer was very different for titanium and iron adherends even though the molecular structures of the primer films formed on the two substrates were very similar. As a result, the performance of γ-APS primer films could not be related to the overall molecular structure of the films but was related to acid/base interactions between γ-APS and the oxidized surfaces of titanium and iron.
Exploring the Time-Varying Determinants of State Spending on Corrections

The current study examines the percentage of a state’s total expenditures that is allocated for corrections in an attempt to untangle how the influence of key determinants helped to shift state resources in ways likely to aid prison expansion. This study further attempts to address how the salience of crime, partisan politics, and racial and social threats may have shifted over time and across regions. The study employs a pooled time-series analysis of 49 states from 1971 through 2008, with a final sample size of N = 1862 cases, to examine the factors that help to predict the log-transformed percent of total state expenditures allocated for the total direct expenditures on corrections. The current study finds that determinants of state-level corrections spending vary across time. Violent crime had a positive and significant influence on corrections spending during the 80s, while Republican strength was similarly associated with increases in spending from the 80s through the 90s. Further, beginning in the 80s, percentage African-American were negatively associated with the proportion of budget allocated for corrections. The findings presented in this study emphasize the importance of time and place when trying to untangle trends in correctional budget decision-making.
Who Benefits? Race, Immigration, and Assumptions About Policy

Existing scholarship suggests that attitudes about the real or imagined beneficiaries or targets of public policies shape public opinion about those policies, with racial and ethnic stereotypes driving policy evaluations for many Americans. Despite the importance of these assumptions, we lack strong evidence about how and why people form such assumptions in the first place. In a pre-registered survey experiment, I demonstrate that elements of policy design (e.g., a work requirement) significantly affect the assumptions that individuals make about policy beneficiaries (their race and national origin). These assumptions shape individuals’ evaluations of the policy, conditional on existing attitudes (e.g., racial resentment). Importantly, existing attitudes do not condition the effects at the assumption stage: even those who profess not to believe in racial stereotypes about work ethic still assume that the absence of a work requirement makes a policy more likely to benefit blacks and immigrants.
Lower preseason reactive strength index scores are associated with injury in female collegiate volleyball players but not male collegiate basketball players.

Abstract Objectives Functional tests are used by sports medicine professionals to discriminate injury risk in athletes. One test that has shown promise is the drop vertical jump (DVJ); however, it is primarily used to evaluate measures associated with anterior cruciate ligament injury. The DVJ test can also be used to calculate the reactive strength index (RSI); a measure used to assess an athlete’s power. The ability of the RSI to discriminate injury risk is unknown. The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the ability of preseason RSI scores to identify athletes at risk for a noncontact time-loss injury to the low back or lower extremities. Design Prospective cohort. Methods One hundred and fifty-five male collegiate basketball (BB) players and 117 female collegiate volleyball (VB) players were recruited for this study. DVJ tests were performed in a motion capture lab. Results Female VB players with a RSI 0.9125 m/s or less (30.48 cm box) were 4 times (relative risk = 4.2 [95% CI: 1.0, 17.7]; p-value = 0.024) more likely to be injured. There was no association between preseason scores and injury in the male BB athletes. Conclusion RSI scores should be collected for female collegiate VB players as part of a preseason screen.
Characterization of a Murine Model System to Study MicroRNA-147 During Inflammatory Organ Injury.

Inflammatory organ injury and sepsis have profound impacts on the morbidity and mortality of surgical and critical care patients. MicroRNAs are small RNAs composed of 20–25 nucleotides that have a significant contribution to gene regulation. MicroRNA-147 (miR-147), in particular, has been shown to have an emerging role in different physiological functions such as cell cycle regulation and inflammatory responses. However, animal model systems to study tissue-specific functions of miR-147 during inflammatory conditions in vivo are lacking. In the present study, we characterize miR-147 expression in different organs and cell types. Next, we generated a transgenic mouse line with a floxed miR-147 gene. Subsequently, we used this mouse line to generate mice with whole-body deletion of miR-147 (miR-147 −/−) by crossing “floxed” miR-147 mice with transgenic mice expressing Cre recombinase in all tissues (CMVcre mice). Systematic analysis of miR-147 −/− mice demonstrates normal growth, development, and off-spring. In addition, deletion of the target gene in different organs was successful at baseline or during inflammation, including the heart, intestine, stomach, liver, spleen, bone marrow, lungs, kidneys, or stomach. Moreover, miR-147 −/− mice have identical baseline inflammatory gene expression compared to C57BL/6 mice, except elevated IL-6 expression in the spleen (7.5 fold, p < 0.05). Taken together, our data show the successful development of a transgenic animal model for tissue and cell-specific deletion of miR-147 that can be used to study the functional roles of miR-147 during inflammatory organ injury.
Full-Wave Simulations of Scattering in Vegetation for Microwave Remote Sensing of Soil Moisture

The vegetation layer effects play an important role on microwave remote sensing of soil moisture. The classical Radiative Transfer Equation (RTE) and Distorted Born Approximation (DBA) model assume that the position of scatterers in vegetation is statistically homogeneous in 3D space. Such assumptions are incorrect because the scatterers in vegetation are in clusters and also in the form of extended cylinders. In this paper, we develop a new hybrid method that makes the Numerical Maxwell Model of 3D (NMM3D) full-wave simulation possible for vegetation. A geometry setup is introduced to account for the gap effects and vegetation structure. The T-matrix of a single plant composed of multiple cylinders in a cluster is extracted using Huygen's principle and the vector cylindrical wave (VCW) expansions. Foldy-Lax multiple scattering (FL) equations are used to solve for the transmissivity of the vegetation layer. The convergence and accuracy of the hybrid method are verified using Ansys High Frequency Structure Simulator (HFSS). Transmission through wheat is calculated using the hybrid method and compared with those of RTE/DBA.
Multimodal Data Collection Made Easy: The EZ-MMLA Toolkit: A data collection website that provides educators and researchers with easy access to multimodal data streams.

While Multimodal Learning Analytics (MMLA) is becoming a popular methodology in the LAK community, most educational researchers still rely on traditional instruments for capturing learning processes (e.g., click-stream, log data, self-reports, qualitative observations). MMLA has the potential to complement and enrich traditional measures of learning by providing high frequency data on learners’ behavior, cognition and affects. However, there is currently no easy-to-use toolkit for recording multimodal data streams. Existing methodologies rely on the use of physical sensors and custom-written code for accessing sensor data. In this paper, we present the EZ-MMLA toolkit. This toolkit was implemented as a website that provides easy access to the latest machine learning algorithms for collecting a variety of data streams from webcams: attention (eye-tracking), physiological states (heart rate), body posture (skeletal data), hand gestures, emotions (from facial expressions and speech), and lower-level computer vision algorithms (e.g., fiducial / color tracking). This toolkit can run from any browser and does not require special hardware or programming experience. We compare this toolkit with traditional methods and describe a case study where the EZ-MMLA toolkit was used in a classroom context. We conclude by discussing other applications of this toolkit, potential limitations, and future steps.
Biodiversity at the global scale: the synthesis continues

Traditionally, the generation and use of biodiversity data and their associated specimen objects have been primarily the purview of individuals and small research groups. While deposition of data and specimens in herbaria and other repositories has long been the norm, throughout most of their history, these resources have been accessible only to a small community of specialists. Through recent concerted efforts, primarily at the level of national and international governmental agencies over the last two decades, the pace of biodiversity data accumulation has accelerated, and a wider array of biodiversity scientists has gained access to this massive accumulation of resources, applying them to an ever-widening compass of research pursuits. We review how these new resources and increasing access to them are affecting the landscape of biodiversity research in plants today, focusing on new applications across evolution, ecology, and other fields that have been enabled specifically by the availability of these data and the global scope that was previously beyond the reach of individual investigators. We give an overview of recent advances organized along three lines: broad-scale analyses of distributional data and spatial information, phylogenetic research circumscribing large clades with comprehensive taxon sampling, and data sets derived from improved accessibility of biodiversity literature. We also review synergies between large data resources and more traditional data collection paradigms, describe shortfalls and how to overcome them, and reflect on the future of plant biodiversity analyses in light of increasing linkages between data types and scientists in our field.
Smart Auto Insurance: High Resolution, Dynamic, Privacy-Driven, Telematic Insurance.

Data driven approaches to problem solving are, in many regards, the holy grail of evidence backed decision making. Using first-party empirical data to analyze behavior and establish predictions yields us the ability to base in-depth analyses on particular individuals and reduce our dependence on generalizations. Modern mobile and embedded devices provide a wealth of sensors and means for collecting and tracking individualized data. Applying these assets to the realm of insurance (which is a statistically backed endeavor at heart) is certainly nothing new; yet doing so in a way that is privacy-driven and secure has not been a central focus of implementers. Existing data-driven insurance technologies require a certain level of trust in the data tracking agency (i.e. insurer) to not misuse, mishandle, or over-collect user data. Smart contracts and blockchain technology provide us an opportunity to re-balance these systems such that the blockchain itself is a trusted agent which both insurers and the insured can confide in. We propose a "Smart Auto Insurance" system that minimizes data sharing while simultaneously providing quality-of-life improvements to both sides. Furthermore, we use a simple game theoretical argument to show that the clients using such a system are disincentivized from behaving adversarially.
Observations on Niccolò Tornioli's The Astronomers.

Our discussion of Niccolo Tornioli's The Astronomers questions some of the traditional identifications of its characters, although we cannot claim to have solved these figures' identities and several remain a mystery. We do present new iconographic interpretations of particular scientific instruments, diagrams, and natural phenomena in the canvas. These novel readings occasionally remain conjectural in part because Tornioli represents these entities in a way that makes it clear that he did not fully comprehend them. The errors and obscurities in Tornioli's painting lead us to two conclusions. First, that his erudite patron Virgilio Spada was unlikely to have been involved in the definition of the painting's iconographies, as he would have objected to Tornioli's crass mistakes and obscure imagery. Second, that these errors and indistinct details should be taken at face value, insofar as they accentuate the difficulties of astronomical observation. Beyond highlighting these challenges, we argue that the painting also visualizes techniques for countering them. Specifically, the canvas would have focused early modern observers' attention on the edifying powers of civil conversations and communal observations with scientific instruments as well as images-including diagrams, celestial maps, and paintings.
Nonlinear Coupling of Whistler Waves to Oblique Electrostatic Turbulence Enabled by Cold Plasma

Whistler waves are electromagnetic plasma modes with frequency between the lower hybrid and the electron cyclotron frequency. Famous for their characteristic dispersion relation, whistler waves are frequently observed in the solar wind and are ubiquitous in the Earth's magnetosphere. They play a major role in the dynamics of the latter [1] , where they appear either as "chorus", discrete emissions typically in two distinct bands, or "hiss", broadband emissions found predominantly in the plasmasphere. The chorus waves are associated with local energization of energetic particles as well as electron precipitation in the form of diffuse and pulsating aurora, or microbursts. Observations suggest that whistler waves in the Earth's magnetosphere can reach large amplitudes.
Perceptual Development and Physiology

This chapter is concemed with the relationship of some simple visual perceptual capacities to the development of specific nervous system components and processes. The paralle1s that have been discovered between sensory experience and nervous system anatomy and physiology yield insights not only into the development of perception but, more basically, into its neural basis. Thus, this brief review is as much about development as about the neural basis of visual experience. Because almost any biological or psychological data related to sensory systems is relevant to the basic theme of this chapter, some limits have been arbitrarily set to permit the development of several specific ideas. Thus, many possibly relevant areas will not be incIuded here: (1) the development of nonvisual perception; (2) the embryological development of the nervous system; (3) the development of language; (4) physiological development not directly related to sensory behavior; and (5) the development of sensory integration. Numerous recent and excellent reviews and symposia are available on some of these subjects. In particular, the following sources are highly recommended: general CNS development (Jacobson, 1978; Reinis & Goldman, 1980; Gottlieb, 1974); the development ofthe nonvisual components ofthe nervous system (Aslin, Alberts, & Petersen, 1981; Gottlieb, 1976); the development of vision (Freeman, 1979; Gottlieb, 1976; Rosinski, 1977; Lund, 1978; Aslin et al., Vol. 2, 1981). These sources represent easily available, integrated sources that provide both background material and an excellent entrance point to the vast experimentalliterature.
Computations of time-dependent photon migration for biomedical optical imaging.

Publisher Summary The continued development of the photon migration techniques depend on assessing performance through experimental measurements and simulations of photon migration in tissuelike phantoms. This chapter reviews the mechanisms that govern the transport of light in tissues, the experimental methods by which it is measured, and the computational tools used to solve the forward imaging problem for time-dependent measurements of photon migration. The formulation of the forward imaging problem must account for five primary mechanisms that govern local photon migration in tissues: (1) the elastic scattering of photons owing to microscopic variations in the tissue dielectric constant; (2) the flight of photons between scattering events; (3) the absorption of photons by naturally present chromophores or those present following injection; (4) the internal reflection, which occurs when the photon transit occurs across boundaries of differing refractive indices; and (5) the generation of photons from exogenous fluorescent and phosphorescent dyes.
Conservative Ideologies and the World Educational Culture

One core belief of modern society is that schooling is a basic right of all children. Regardless of the actual eff ects of schooling, we have a fundamental belief in the positive outcomes related to school. Schooling, along with family, is our main institution for promoting cognitive development and societal membership, and the expansion and massifi cation of schooling represents a basic change in how we prepare children for adult life.
Dance Education in an Era of Racial Backlash: Moving Forward as We Step Backwards

ABSTRACT The field of dance education is not immune to conflicted discourses about race in the United States. This article investigates the subject of race, education, and dance, and problematizes current postracial discourses in postsecondary education. It examines the implications of race and ethnicity in a number of critical areas, such as faculty and student populations in dance, dance content and curriculum, access and equity, and the ways in which dominant ideas continue to situate dance practices, primarily in a Western theatrical paradigm.
A Review of “Women and depression: Recovery and resistance”

A recent addition to the Women and Psychology series edited by Jane Ussher, Women and depression: Recovery and resistance, highlights the sociopolitical context of women's experiences with both dep...
Legendrian Grid Number One Knots and Augmentations of Their Differential Algebras

In this article we study the differential graded algebra (DGA) invariant associated to Legendrian knots in tight lens spaces. Given a grid number one diagram for a knot in L(p,q), we show how to construct a special Lagrangian diagram suitable for computing the DGA invariant for the Legendrian knot specified by the diagram. We then specialize to L(p,p−1) and show that for two families of knots, the existence of an augmentation of the DGA depends solely on the value of p.
Clustering Ensembles Using Ants Algorithm

Cluster ensembles combine different clustering outputs to obtain a better partition of the data. There are two distinct steps in cluster ensembles, generating a set of initial partitions that are different from one another, and combining the partitions via a consensus functions to generate the final partition. Most of the previous consensus functions require the number of clusters to be specified a priori to obtain a good final partition. In this paper we introduce a new consensus function based on the Ant Colony Algorithms, which can automatically determine the number of clusters and produce highly competitive final clusters. In addition, the proposed method provides a natural way to determine outlier and marginal examples in the data. Experimental results on both synthetic and real-world benchmark data sets are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in predicting the number of clusters and generating the final partition as well as detecting outlier and marginal examples from data.
Exploiting constraints in transformation-based verification

The modeling of design environments using constraints has gained widespread industrial application, and most verification languages include constructs for specifying constraints. It is therefore critical for verification tools to intelligently leverage constraints to enhance the overall verification process. However, little prior research has addressed the applicability of transformation algorithms to designs with constraints. Even when addressed, prior work lacks optimality and in cases violates constraint semantics. In this paper, we introduce the theory and practice of transformation-based verification in the presence of constraints. We discuss how various existing transformations, such as redundancy removal and retiming, may be optimally applied while preserving constraint semantics, including dead-end states. We additionally introduce novel constraint elimination, introduction, and simplification techniques that preserve property checking. We have implemented all of the techniques proposed in this paper, and have found their synergistic application to be critical to the automated solution of many complex verification problems with constraints.
Porphyrins: XVI. Vapor absorption spectra and redox reactions: Octalkylporphins

Abstract Vapor absorption spectra in the range 800-200 mμ are given for free base octaethylporphin (H 2 OEP), Mg etioporphyrin-I, VOOEP, CoOEP, NiOEP, ZnOEP, PdOEP, MnClOEP, MnAcOEP, and FeClOEP. Electronic bands Q , B , N , and M characteristic of the ring are found in the regions 570 mμ (17 500 cm −1 ), 390 mμ (25 500 cm −1 ), 325 mμ (30 800 cm −1 ), and 213 mμ (47 000 cm −1 ), respectively. All compounds show at least one “extra” band between N and M of variable intensity and energy. Based on spectroscopic measurements, we found all compounds show p ∼ 0.1 Torr at 330°C and heat of vaporization, Δ H ∼ −23 kcal/more. Vacuum UV spectra of H 2 OEP and CuOEP down to 145 mμ are presented which show absorption across the entire range with more intense bands at 194 mμ (51 500 cm −1 ), 162 mμ (62 000 cm −1 ), and 150 mμ (75 000 cm −1 ) and no evidence of Rydberg structure. The vapors of the Mn and Fe complexes show unusually different spectra from their solutions. Similar spectra to the vapor are obtained when solutions of MnAcOEP and FeClOEP are subject to electrolytic reduction, suggesting that the vapor species are the reduced forms. Spectra of H 2 OEP, CuOEP, and MnClOEP in silicone oil at T ∼ 300°C are given. Broadening comparable to the vapor spectra is observed. Also the visible bands shift to the red while the Soret band shows no change.
Marketing in the 21st Century

The four-volume Marketing in the 21st Century is a unique reference work that covers the major topics of interest in marketing in the new economic, political, and cultural climate of this century. ...
Powdered tart cherry supplementation surrounding a single bout of intense resistance exercise demonstrates potential attenuation of recovery strength decrement with no definitive oxidative or inflammatory effect

Background Consumption of tart cherry juice has been reported to increase subsequent resistance exercise performance by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress that cause secondary muscle damage following initial bouts of resistance exercise. The purpose of this study was to determine if consumption of a powdered form of tart cherries derived from tart cherry skins (CherryPURE Freeze Dried Tart Cherry Powder) prior to and following intense resistance exercise increases subsequent performance while attenuating markers of inflammation and oxidative stress.
Lysosomal injury in murine viral hepatitis.

Summary Lysosomal injury has been studied in mice following MHVS virus infection employing biochemical and histochemical techniques. In animals inoculated with virus, anatomical lesions were not detected until 48 hr, and consisted of randomly distributed foci of necrosis infiltrated with neutrophils. However, at 24 hr, increases in acid phosphatase activity could be detected in 40% of the livers. These early changes were most readily detected by histochemical methods or by a combination of histochemical and biochemical techniques. Biochemical measurement alone did not show a significant increase of acid phosphatase until 36 hr, and of β-glueuronidase and acid ribonuclease until 48 hr. These changes progressed for 7 days and thereafter tended to return to normal. The demonstration of early changes in the lysosomes prior to evidence of necrosis raises the possibility that lysosomal injury may play some role in the initiation or perpetuation of hepatic necrosis following MHVS viral infection.
Racial and ethnic disparities in health care–associated Clostridium difficile infections in the United States: State of the science

Background Among health care-associated infections (HAIs), Clostridium difficile infections (CDIs) are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. As national progress toward CDI prevention continues, it will be critical to ensure that the benefits from CDI prevention are realized across different patient demographic groups, including any targeted interventions. Methods Through a comprehensive review of existing evidence for racial/ethnic and other disparities in CDIs, we identified a few general trends, but the results were heterogeneous and highlight significant gaps in the literature. Results The majority of analyzed studies identified white patients as at increased risk of CDIs, although there is a very limited literature base, and many studies had significant methodological limitations. Conclusion Key recommendations for future research are provided to address antimicrobial stewardship programs and populations that may be at increased risk for CDIs.
Why Quotas Are Needed to Improve Women's Access to Services in Clientelistic Regimes

Using data from a survey of 200 Moroccan and Algerian parliamentarians, this article assesses the relationship between parliamentarian gender, quotas, and constituency service provision to females. The findings suggest that while electing women increases service provision to females, quotas are needed to create mandates in clientelistic, patriarchal settings, where serving women is a less effective electoral strategy than serving men. Deputies elected through quotas are more responsive to women than members of either sex elected without quotas. The article extends a theory of homosocial capital to explain gender gaps in parliamentarians' supply of and citizens' demand for services. By demonstrating a novel mandate effect and framing mandates in a positive light, the article extends the literature on gender, representation, and clientelism; urges scholars to examine service representation; and supports quotas to promote women's access to services, political participation, and electability.
Neuroimaging of the aging brain

The elderly now constitute a very rapidly growing proportion of the population. It has been estimated that by the year 2020, more than 30% of the population in the United States will be more than 55 years of age. 1 This demographic change necessitates imaging analysts to be aware of the imaging changes seen in normal aging of the brain. Meaningful interpretation of brain imaging studies necessitates understanding of the appearance of "normal" physiologic changes and the variety of neurodegenerative disorders that present in brain images of late middle-aged and elderly patients. Advances in brain imaging technology have resulted in a growing understanding of the imaging appearance of the aging process, although exact mechanisms are not well understood. In the brain, the normal aging process and some of the neurodegenerative disorders share the same imaging findings, although those associated with the neurodegenerative disorders occur more prematurely. Sulcal and ventricular enlargement seen on computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance (MR) images, periventricular and subcortical hyperintensities on MR images, and iron accumulation in certain areas of the brain are considered to represent neurodegenerative changes in neurologically intact elderly people. Significant gender differences exist in age-related brain degeneration. 82
Strategic investment analysis for migration beyond 3G wireless networks

This paper analyzes investment alternatives for cellular operators who deploy either universal mobile telecommunications systems (UMTS) with high speed data packet access (HSDPA) networks or UMTS with Wi-Fi networks, for moving beyond 3G-networks. The evaluated business scenarios focus on two different deployment alternatives: UMTS with HSDPA and UMTS integrated with Wi-Fi. HSDPA deployment targets the overlay on the existing UMTS cells, whereas Wi-Fi covers only indoor hot spot areas where data demand is high. Capital investments and operational costs as well as revenue streams have been analyzed for the two types of network architectures. Techno-economic methodologies have been applied for this study and results are derived that are presented and discussed for two types of wireless networks.
The Impact of Soldiers’ Deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan: Secondary Traumatic Stress in Female Partners

Research traditionally has focused on the development of symptoms in those who experienced trauma directly but has overlooked the impact of trauma on the families of victims. More recently, researchers have begun to examine how individual exposure to traumatic events affects the spouses/partners of trauma survivors. The current study reports data from male Army soldiers who recently returned from a deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan and their spouses/partners. The results indicated that increased trauma symptoms in the soldiers significantly predicted traumatic stress symptoms in the female partners, particularly soldiers’ avoidance symptoms. Areas for future research and clinical implications also are identified.
Chondrules in H3 chondrites: textures, compositions and origins

Compositional and textural variations among chondrules in unequilibrated (type 3) H-group chondrites are examined in order to determine possible relations between chondrule compositions and textures. Bulk compositions of polished thin sections of 90 individual chondrules and 16 compound chondrule sets from the Sharps, Tieschitz and Bremervorde chondrites were measured by broad-beam electron probe analyses; the chondrules were also classified petrographically as barred olivine, porphyritic olivine, porphyritic pyroxene, barred pyroxene, radiating pyroxene or fine-grained. The mean compositions of each type are found to be distinct as verified by discriminant analysis, despite a large scatter, with the olivine-rich chondrules characterized by low SiO2 and high FeO and MgO contents, greater concentrations of TiO2, Al2O3, Na2O and K2O, and lower Cr2O3 and MnO relative to pyroxene-rich chondrules. Data suggest that composition, together with cooling rate, has played a conspicuous role in producing observed chrondrule textures, and are consistent with chondrule formation from mixtures of differing fractions of high-, intermediate- and low-temperature nebular condensates that underwent melting in space.
Isolated resection of segment I (caudate lobe): is it justified?

Background: Isolated caudate lobectomy is a challenging surgical procedure for which safe and reliable techniques have yet to be developed.Methods: Isolated caudate lobectomy was performed by initial inflow control of the caudate lobe, full mobilization of the liver from the inferior vena cava by dividing all short hepatic veins, and parenchymal division dorsal to the major hepatic veins with a clockwise rotation of the liver while the liver was selectively devascularised by Pringle's maneuver and occlusion of the confluence of the major hepatic veins flush with the inferior vena cava.Results: Two patients with cirrhosis underwent this procedure successfully without intraoperative hemodynamic instability or postoperative liver dysfunction.Conclusions: This technique allows safe and truly selective excision of the caudate lobe without the need for occlusion of the inferior vena cava or venovenous bypass.
Honey v. vinegar: Testing compliance-gaining theories in the context of freedom of information laws

Freedom of information laws are useful to the extent that they are followed. This study, based on compliance-gaining theories, employs two field experiments to examine the effect of persuasion tactics and litigation threats on agency adherence to public records laws. In Study 1, a journalist requested use-of-force reports from all police agencies in a state, mailing agencies either friendly or threatening letters, randomly assigned. In Study 2, a journalist requested superintendent contracts from school districts, mailing agencies randomly assigned versions of friendly, neutral or threatening letters. In both experiments the threatening letter resulted in slightly higher response rates, lower copy fees and faster response times, however, the friendly letter resulted in more helpful behavior from agencies. The article concludes by discussing implications for journalists, compliance-gaining theory in a legal realm, and freedom of information.
Mechanical properties of high-temperature titanium intermetallic compounds

A suite of 36 alloys has been tested that is based on titanium-containing ordered intermetallic compounds. Microhardness and tendency toward formation of cracks are reported as a function of temperature; room-temperature Young’s moduli are summarized; and results of simple roomtemperature toughness tests are given. Using toughness, low specific gravity, and hardness at 1000 °C as figures of merit, Ti-Cr-Nb alloys are recognized as deserving of more intense study. Certain Ti-Sn-Al and Ti-Re compositions may also be of continuing interest.
Exercise testing and training: Clinical applications

The application of exercise in clinical cardiology continues to progress because of research findings. Advances have occurred in the applications, methodology and interpretation of exercise testing. Exercise training has been documented to have a place in the primary prevention of coronary heart disease. In regard to cardiac rehabilitation, both early ambulation and early discharge are safe and beneficial in patients with uncomplicated infarction, and a subsequent exercise program is at least as effective as other interventions. High intensity exercise training in the patient with heart disease may be necessary to cause changes in myocardial perfusion and performance, but it carries an increased risk.