cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Applications of predictive environmental strain models.

Researchers at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine have developed and validated numerical models capable of predicting the extent of physiologic strain and adverse terrain and weather-related medical consequences of military operations in harsh environments. A descriptive historical account is provided that details how physiologic models for hot and cold weather exposure have been integrated into portable field advisory devices, computer-based meteorologic planning software, and combat-oriented simulation systems. It is important that medical officers be aware of the existence of these types of decision support tools so that they can assure that outputs are interpreted in a balanced and medically realistic manner. Additionally, these modeling applications may facilitate timely preventive medicine planning and efficient dissemination of appropriate measures to prevent weather- and altitude-related illnesses and performance decrements. Such environmental response modeling applications may therefore be utilized to support deployment preventive medicine planning by field medical officers.
Feto-Maternal Cell Trafficking and Labor

Maternal-fetal cellular trafficking is a complex process in which fetal cells migrate into the maternal circulation and maternal cells migrate into the fetal circulation. This phenomenon can result in long-lived microchimerism within the mother and her progeny. Recently, examination of the levels of trafficking between the mother and fetus has gained momentum with improvements in strategies to detect microchimerism. The long-term consequences of trafficking have been explored in the context of transplant tolerance and autoimmunity. In addition to long-term effects, trafficking may also lead to pregnancy complications, such as preeclampsia, intrauterine growth restriction, and preterm labor, which are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality during pregnancy. Fetal surgery, a strategy that has improved survival in many fetuses with severe congenital anomalies, may enhance cellular trafficking and is often accompanied by pregnancy complications. However, the connection between the two entities remains unknown. In this chapter, we will review current techniques to detect fetal and maternal microchimerism and implications of microchimerism as it relates to maternal and fetal/child health, with a particular emphasis on pregnancy complications. Finally, we will explore the effects congenital abnormalities and fetal surgery on maternal-fetal cellular trafficking.
Investment in Business Broadband in Rural Areas

The tighter price regulation the FCC proposes could lead to large reductions in revenue earned as returns to ILECs’ investment in infrastructure in rural areas. Approximate yet reasonable calculations yield an estimated $1.4B of revenue destroyed by the new price regulation, with a range from $0.8B to $2.2B under alternative assumptions. The FCC betrays evidence in the proposed regulations of a significant blind spot regarding regulation, investment, and the proper role of price caps. As suggested by voluminous empirical evidence from closely related regulatory settings, substantially lowering the price caps will deter investment by ILECs and competitive providers. ILECs will have less incentive and capability to maintain existing levels of service and to expand the location and quality of business broadband. Lowering the price caps will also reduce the incentive for investment and entry by competitive providers offering packet-based business data services on next-generation networks. Using regulation to destroy the returns to an economic activity the FCC states it wants to encourage makes little sense. There will be several detrimental impacts from the forgone investment. Rural businesses will lose out on potential productivity enhancements. The forgone investment will also have direct repercussions in the regional and national economies, because every dollar not invested in communications infrastructure has a multiplied impact in the economy. The FCC should pause long enough to consider the consequences of the proposed regulation, allow industry and other interested parties sufficient time to investigate newly updated data and associated repercussions, and make a wise choice.
Borderlands and Public Violence in a Shadow Polity

Historians have long claimed Central America’s configuration as the Western Hemisphere’s land bridge between the oceans to be the most consequential feature of the region’s physical geography. The history of Central America’s exceptionally complex political geography, however, seems to have attracted much less interest. Among the most politically fragmented areas of the world for the past century and a half, Central America nevertheless can claim an even older and longer history of political unity, which in turn has never ceased to nourish a strong desire for reunification. Just how those legacies of initial unity, subsequent fragmentation, and the longing for reunification have shaped the state formation process in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua is a problem that still awaits its historian. This chapter approaches the problem by analyzing the borderland histories of the five countries, focusing on that of Costa Rica and Nicaragua during the Cold War both to explain and to weigh the results of a tradition of borderland-associated violence and intrigue.
The Impact of Employment Law and Practices on Business and Society: The Significance of Worker Voice

This paper argues that employers should adopt practices that provide employees with opportunities to exercise voice. Time and time again, we see corporate scandals that could have been avoided if employees were encouraged to speak up when they saw problems in the workplace. Recent scandals include Volkswagen cheating on emissions tests and requirements and the Wells Fargo performance incentive scandal scandals that may have been prevented if employees felt safe reporting issues to their supervisors and if the supervisors were receptive to the information. Moreover, employee voice opportunities have been linked to numerous positive psychological, relational and health-related outcomes, including improved justice perceptions, better attitudes, increased satisfaction at work, and improved performance ratings. On the other hand, suppression of voice can lead to stress, and loss of the senses of control and self-efficacy. Unfortunately, the current legal environment together with various provisions in employment contracts may negatively impact an employee’s willingness to exercise voice in the workplace. Our paper discusses the importance and role of employee voice as well as some of the negative consequences associated with stifling voice. It then discusses the legal environment of employment-at-will in the United States, which may play a large part in stifling employee voice. Next, the significance, benefits and perils of whistleblowing as an aspect of voice are discussed and analyzed, and recent efforts to restrict whistleblowing are critiqued. We then offer proposals for positive business practices to encourage worker voice. The exercise of employee voice is important despite the restrictive legal environment in which employees work for the good of the firm, the employees and society.
Synchronous MALT lymphoma of the colon and stomach and regression after eradication of Strongyloides stercoralis and Helicobacter pylori .

Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) is vital for host immunological surveillance against pathogens. MALT lymphoma, also known as extranodal marginal zone B cell lymphoma, is a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma subtype that predominantly arises in the gastrointestinal tract. Chronic Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is a common cause of gastric MALT lymphoma, although other infections are reported in association with extragastric MALT lymphomas. To our knowledge, here we report the first case of synchronous MALT lymphomas of the colon and stomach in the presence of Strongyloides stercoralis and H. pylori infections that resolved after eradication of both organisms.
Production Planning Under Supply and Demand Uncertainty: A Stochastic Programming Approach

In this chapter, we introduce a stochastic programming model for production planning under uncertainty. Our model of uncertainty extends to supply via uncertainties in the production process, and demand via probabilistic descriptors of quantities and due dates even after orders have been received. In contrast to much of the existing literature, our models of uncertainty are dynamic, in that they reflect the evolution of supply through a multistage production process as well as volatility in customer orders as due dates approach. The resulting model is a multistage stochastic linear program that incorporates Markov chains within the probabilistic models.
77 – Evaluation of Drugs in Women: Regulatory Perspective

Although women have been included in drug development in numbers predicted by their disease prevalence whenever this has been examined, the conduct of gender-specific analysis has become standard only in the last decade; these are often referenced in labeling. Pharmacokinetic (PK) differences, by far the most common known gender differences, are readily assessed because gender-specific PK data are now regularly obtained. The chapter discusses the current status of participation of women in clinical trials of new medical products and gender differences and the current status of clinical pharmacology/biopharmaceutic studies of new drugs and gender differences The exclusion of women from early trials in life-threatening conditions because of their childbearing potential was barred by regulation in 1993. During the last 2 decades, the FDA has encouraged inclusion in clinical trials of a reasonable representation of both genders, of people with ethnic profiles similar to the population that will be using the product, and of people at the extremes of age. Current practice should ensure the detection of large gender differences in response, but subtle differences may be undetected until they are specifically sought. The profound gender effects of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants on sexual function in women were significantly underestimated for years because usual clinical trials do not assess this function well. The greater susceptibility of women to drugs that cause TdP arrhythmias also took many years to become recognized, as did the potential of CYP3A inducers to render oral contraceptives ineffective.
OPERATIONAL CONTROL: MERGING GLOBAL OPERATIONS VIA AN ERP SYSTEM

Abstract The development of global supply chains during the last decade of the twentieth century has had a great impact on the apparel industry. Apparel industry firms face a wide array of challenges relating to the proliferation of product variety, changing product styles, shortened lead times, and reduced prices. As a result of these pressures, apparel companies have been forced to redesign their manufacturing and distribution organizations and to build supporting information systems. These tasks are complicated by the need to support widely dispersed and frequently changing manufacturing organizations while maintaining efficient logistic and inventory systems. At the same time, the apparel company is faced with coping with the cost pressures endemic to the apparel industry. This paper presents a synthesis of the global supply chain concept as it applies to the apparel industry and relates how one company is attempting to use an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to provide the basis for operational control of an increasingly complex operating environment.
Distributional Cues to Language Learning in Children With Intellectual Disabilities.

Purpose In typical development, distributional cues—patterns in input—are related to language acquisition processes. Statistical and implicit learning refer to the utilization of such cues. In chil...
An upgraded and integrated large-volume high-pressure facility at the GeoSoilEnviroCARS bending magnet beamline of the Advanced Photon Source

Abstract GeoSoilEnviroCARS (GSECARS) is an earth-science-driven X-ray synchrotron facility at the Advanced Photon Source of the Argonne National Laboratory. As a national user facility, we provide users with access to the high-brilliance hard X-rays from this third-generation synchrotron light source. The multi-anvil, large-volume high-pressure facility at the bending magnet beamline (13-BM-D) runs a unique setup permitting an unusually wide range of high-pressure and high-temperature experiments combined with X-rays and other in-situ probing techniques. It has been a great asset for the high-pressure earth science community since its inception in 1997. A series of upgrades and updates occurred in the 2010s. Here we provide a detailed description of the current large-volume press (LVP) setup at 13-BM-D, including hardware, software, and all experimental capabilities. Examples of scientific studies that were performed at GSECARS utilizing the new LVP system are also reported.
NON-COMPACTION LEFT VENTRICLE: NOVEL RESULTS OF SUBTLE MRI SUB-ANALYSIS

Prevalence of abnormal structure of left ventricle (LV) named Non-compaction left ventricle (NCLV) has been discovered to be un-expectedly frequent in adolescents studied by screening MRI (about 19% by Petersen's criteria; LVEF = 61.8%, mean) Out of 959 cases of NCLV, we carried out exact
Mean field contributions to spectral line shifts

Abstract Calculations of spectral line shifts produced by the plasma mean field, or plasma polarization shift, often neglect perturbing ion contributions assuming that the strong Coulomb repulsion prevents their penetration of the emitting or absorbing ion. It is shown, however, that the ion mean field contribution can be significant under certain conditions; for example, diagnostic lines from highly ionized ions in inertial confinement fusion targets.
Kant’s “I think” and the agential approach to self-knowledge

This paper relates Kant’s account of pure apperception to the agential approach to self-knowledge. It argues that his famous claim ‘The I think must be able to accompany all of my representations’ ...
The influence of enhanced recovery after cardiac surgery on 30-day readmission rate, hospital and ICU length of stay

Introduction Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) pathways have been proven to increase patient satisfaction scores, decrease the complication rate, decrease the length of stay (LOS), and decrease cost for many surgical specialties. Recently, ERAS for cardiac surgery guidelines have been published and are being implemented in many centers. However, few data are reported on clinically important outcomes. We examined the effect of ERAS for cardiac patients on the duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU and hospital LOS.¹ Methods We retrospectively analyzed prospectively collected outcome data of patients undergoing cardiac surgery enrolled in the ERAS pathway (n = 115) compared to a historical standard care group (n = 188). The ERAS pathway included pre-operative patient education, multimodal pain management to minimize opioid usage, carbohydrate loading 2-4hrs before induction of anesthesia, minimizing crystalloid infusions, tight glucose control, early postoperative invasive access and chest tube removal, early extubation, and early mobilization. The standard care group was treated per preexisting institutional guidelines. Data were compared using univariate analysis: parametric and non-parametric data were analyzed with Student's t-test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test, respectively. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results The median (25th, 75th) intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (LOS) was 1 day (1, 2) in the ERAS group and 2 days (1, 3) in the standard care group (p Discussion The Enhanced Recovery Pathway after Surgery pathway uses a standardized approach to perioperative patient care. Implementation of ERAS for cardiac surgery results in shorter ICU and hospital LOS, comparable ICU and 30-day readmission rates, without a noticeable increase in 30-day mortality. Further studies focusing on other relevant outcome parameters are warranted.
Axiological Foundation: Emancipation of Values, National Prayers, and Same-Sex Marriage

Alexis de Tocqueville’s travels through America gave him greater appreciation for the political institutions and civic activism of its citizens. His critical insights revealed the presence of cultural influences having originated with the Protestant Reformation and Enlightenment, especially with regard to popular attitudes toward the role of religion in society. The axiological foundation of the religious axis had emerged from the dissolution of Roman Catholic hegemony, which in turn inspired novel rationales for moral and religious pluralism. Contemporaneously, the disentanglement of religious final causes or ends from theological speculation ushered in new scientific investigative techniques based on hypothetical-deductive methods. Built on the axiological foundation, the containment structure of American political architecture afforded protections for the competitive dynamics as well coalition building of diverse religious denominations and sects and opposing political interests. Evangelical Christianity and Mormon Christianity exemplify two Christianities with incompatible theologies yet compatible moral views in the culture wars.
Palliative Care Training for Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Fellows: A National Survey Project.

Background Provision of palliative care is part of the standard of care for patients with serious, life-limiting medical illnesses. Patients in the palliative care setting have high rates of psychiatric co-morbidity. However, integration of mental health care into palliative care remains a significant gap. With appropriate training, consultation-liaison (C-L) psychiatrists are well-positioned to improve integration of mental health into palliative care. Purpose To understand current palliative care training practices for C-L psychiatry fellows in the United States. Method We invited all U.S. C-L psychiatry fellowship program directors to participate in a 17-item online structured survey aimed at understanding palliative care training in their fellowship programs. Results 37/61 (61%) of C-L psychiatry fellowship program directors responded to the survey. Eighty-six percent of programs provide some palliative care didactics, but the topics covered vary widely. Programs are closely split between offering a required, elective, or no clinical palliative care experiences. Only about half (45%) of programs identify formal opportunities for interaction between palliative care and C-L psychiatry fellows. Program directors identified topics such as goals-of-care discussions, systems issues in end-of-life care, and pain management as important for fellows to learn. Barriers to teaching these topics included time, lack of teaching faculty, and disciplinary siloes. Conclusions Although C-L psychiatry fellowship program directors identify a number of key teaching topics in palliative care for C-L psychiatry fellows, there are wide discrepancies in the depth and content of existing palliative care didactic and clinical experiences in C-L psychiatry fellowships.
Love, Reasons, and Desire

This essay defends subjectivism about reasons of love. These are the normative reasons we have to treat those we love especially well, such as the reasons we have to treat our close friends or life partners better than strangers. Subjectivism about reasons of love is the view that every reason of love a person has is correctly explained by her desires. I formulate a version of subjectivism about reasons of love and defend it against three objections that have been made to this kind of view. Firstly, it has been argued that the phenomenology of our focus when we have reasons of love does not fit with subjectivism about those reasons. Secondly, it has been argued that the phenomenology of our motivations when we have reasons of love does not fit with subjectivism about those reasons. Thirdly, it has been argued that subjectivism about reasons of love has deeply counterintuitive implications about what our reasons of love are. I argue that none of these objections succeeds.
Situational Experience around the World: A Replication and Extension in 62 Countries

Author(s): Lee, Daniel I; Gardiner, Gwendolyn; Baranski, Erica; Members of the International Situations Project; Funder, David C | Abstract: ObjectiveThe current study seeks to replicate and extend principal findings reported in The World at 7:00, a project that examined the psychological experience of situations in 20 countries.MethodData were collected from participants in 62 countries (Nn=n15,318), recruited from universities by local collaborators to complete the study via a custom-built website using 42 languages.ResultsSeveral findings of the previous study were replicated. The average reported situational experience around the world was mildly positive. The same countries tended to be most alike in reported situational experience (rn=n.60) across the two studies, among the countries included in both. As in the previous study, the homogeneity of reported situational experience was significantly greater within than between countries, although the difference was small. The previously reported exploratory finding that negative aspects of situations varied more across countries than positive aspects did not replicate. Correlations between aspects of reported situational experience and country-level average value scores, personality, and demographic variables were largely similar between the two studies.ConclusionThe findings underscore the importance of cross-cultural situational research and the need to replicate its results, and highlight the complex interplay of culture and situational experience.
I Pay, therefore I Am (An A): Co-Creation of Value in Higher Education: An Abstract

Higher education is a service that has adopted the marketing discourse. Market principles position academia as an institution that offers a professional service for payment. Yet, there might be some tensions between intellectual goals (the core academic principles) and these principles. Some believe that this process leads to sovereign and rational students who would request and attain greater educational capital. Whereas most others view this process as one that results in lower intellectualism and academic standards, commodification of knowledge, elitism, and universities as professional degree, rather than knowledge, providers.
Teacher leadership for social change in bilingual and bicultural education, by Deborah K. Palmer

This is a book about an innovative professional development program for teachers at a Texas university, written by one of the professors who led the program. The author’s central argument is that t...
Limiting masses and radii of neutron stars and their implications

We combine the equation of state of dense matter up to twice nuclear saturation density ${n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$ obtained using chiral effective field theory $(\ensuremath{\chi}\mathrm{EFT})$ and recent observations of neutron stars to gain insights about the high-density matter encountered in their cores. A key element in our study is the recent Bayesian analysis of correlated EFT truncation errors based on order-by-order calculations up to next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order in the $\ensuremath{\chi}\mathrm{EFT}$ expansion. We refine the bounds on the maximum mass imposed by causality at high densities and provide stringent limits on the maximum and minimum radii of $\ensuremath{\sim}1.4\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{M}}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ and $\ensuremath{\sim}2.0\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{M}}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ stars. Including $\ensuremath{\chi}\mathrm{EFT}$ predictions from ${n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$ to $2\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$ reduces the permitted ranges of the radius of a $1.4\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{M}}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ star, ${R}_{1.4}$, by $\ensuremath{\sim}3.5\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\text{km}$. If observations indicate ${R}_{1.4}l11.2\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\text{km}$, then our study implies that either the squared speed of sound ${c}_{s}^{2}g1/2$ for densities above $2\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$ or that $\ensuremath{\chi}\mathrm{EFT}$ breaks down below $2\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$. We also comment on the nature of the secondary compact object in GW190814 with mass $\ensuremath{\simeq}2.6\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{M}}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ and discuss the implications of massive neutron stars $g2.1\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{M}}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}(2.6\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{M}}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}})$ in future radio and gravitational-wave searches. Some form of strongly interacting matter with ${c}_{s}^{2}g0.35\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}(0.55)$ must be realized in the cores of such massive neutron stars. In the absence of phase transitions below $2\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$, the small tidal deformability inferred from GW170817 lends support for the relatively small pressure predicted by $\ensuremath{\chi}\mathrm{EFT}$ for the baryon density ${n}_{\mathrm{B}}$ in the range $1\text{--}2\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$. Together they imply that the rapid stiffening required to support a high maximum mass should occur only when ${n}_{\mathrm{B}}\ensuremath{\gtrsim}1.5\text{--}1.8\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{n}_{\mathrm{sat}}$.
Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic Extravascular Stent Placement for Treatment of Nutcracker Syndrome

Abstract Introduction: Nutcracker syndrome (NCS) is a rare syndrome, where symptoms can be debilitating, severely affecting quality of life. Patients who fail conservative management can be offered...
The Impact of Nancy Chodorow’s The Reproduction of Mothering and Its Implications for the Future

Nancy Chodorow’s The Reproduction of Mothering altered the landscape and trajectory of second-wave feminism. Most feminists at this time identified psychoanalysis with Freud, rejecting him and his theories as a means of analyzing women’s oppression. Chodorow argued, in contrast, that psychic structures are social, rather than natural/biological phenomena. Bypassing Freud, she made use of post-Freudian object relations theory to make the case that exclusive female mothering engenders the psychic structures in boys and girls that reproduce themselves over time. Changing the social structure that ensured women’s mothering, she maintained, would lead to more flexible roles for women in society and a diminishment (if not end) of women’s oppression. She made a compelling case for gender equality, which, in combination with other social movements in succeeding decades, transformed the status of women in society. In this essay, I trace my indebtedness to her core insight that psychic structures derive from social structures and how that conception has informed my own critique of the Oedipus complex, how psychoanalytic theory has evolved post-Freud, and how these altered conditions may better serve women and the cause of women’s equality.
Coherently amplifying photon production from vacuum with a dense cloud of accelerating photodetectors

An accelerating photodetector is predicted to see photons in the electromagnetic vacuum. However, the extreme accelerations required have prevented the direct experimental verification of this quantum vacuum effect. In this work, we consider many accelerating photodetectors that are contained within an electromagnetic cavity. We show that the resulting photon production from the cavity vacuum can be collectively enhanced such as to be measurable. The combined cavity-photodetectors system maps onto a parametrically driven Dicke-type model; when the detector number exceeds a certain critical value, the vacuum photon production undergoes a phase transition from a normal phase to an enhanced superradiant-like, inverted lasing phase. Such a model may be realized as a mechanical membrane with a dense concentration of optically active defects undergoing gigahertz flexural motion within a superconducting microwave cavity. We provide estimates suggesting that recent related experimental devices are close to demonstrating this inverted, vacuum photon lasing phase. The interplay between relativity and the uncertainty principle predicts the production of photons from vacuum by accelerating photodetectors. The authors propose a method to enhance photon-emission from a microwave cavity vacuum by using many photodetectors undergoing oscillatory motion within the cavity and show that when a critical detector number is exceeded, there is a coherent enhancement in the vacuum photon production, akin to Dicke superradiance.
Proton pump inhibitor use is associated with increased rates of post-TIPS hepatic encephalopathy: Replication in an independent patient cohort

Abstract Purpose Proton pump inhibitor (PPI) use is a potential risk factor for hepatic encephalopathy (HE), but few studies have examined the effect on post-TIPS HE. The purpose of this study was to determine whether PPIs are associated with increased rates of post-TIPS HE in an independent patient cohort. Materials and methods This single-institution retrospective study analyzed 86 patients (54 male, mean age 58.2) following TIPS from 1/1/2017 to 12/31/2019. Dates of PPI usage and episodes of new or worsening HE were recorded. Poisson regression with generalized estimating equations was used to test for association between PPI use and post-TIPS HE and to test for dose dependence. Post-TIPS HE was also analyzed using the Andersen-Gill survival model for recurrent events. Results There were 1.88 episodes of new or worsening post-TIPS HE per person-year among 35 patients on uninterrupted PPIs therapy, 1.95 on PPIs and 0.94 off PPIs among 35 patients on intermittent therapy, and 0.47 among 16 patients never on PPIs. PPI use was significantly associated with post-TIPS HE in both univariable (incidence rate ratio (IRR) = 2.62; CI = 1.41–4.84; p = 0.002) and multivariable (IRR = 2.31; CI = 1.37–3.89; p = 0.002) regression. Analysis of only those patients on PPIs showed increased rates of HE with higher doses (IRR = 1.17 per 10 mg omeprazole equivalent; CI = 1.04–1.33; p = 0.011). Recurrent events survival analysis supported the association between PPI use and HE in univariable (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.17; CI = 1.19–3.95; p = 0.011) and multivariable (HR = 1.87; CI = 1.12–3.13; p = 0.017) analysis. Conclusion In an independent patient cohort PPI use was associated with increased rates of new or worsening post-TIPS HE.
Training parents via telepractice to implement dialogic reading strategies with children with developmental disabilities shows promise but additional research is needed

Q (1) What are the effects of parent training and coaching via telepractice on parent implementation of dialogic reading (DR) strategies with young children with developmental disabilities?(2) What...
Direct Measurement of VCSEL Transverse Mode Correlation and $k_{\mathrm {mpn}}$

The correlation properties of vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) transverse modes determine the noise impairments of VCSEL-based high-speed links. The cross-correlation statistics between VCSEL mode pairs and the autocorrelation statistics for each VCSEL mode are directly measured using real-time 40GSs synchronous observations of spatially separated modes. Anticorrelation was found to be different for different mode pairs along with some positive correlations between modes, contradicting the assumptions of the IEEE model for mode partition noise in VCSEL multimode fiber links. These correlation results are used to estimate the mode partition parameter $k_{\mathrm { {mpn}}}$ yielding different values of $k_{\mathrm { {mpn}}}$ for the same VCSEL at the same bias, again in contrast with the IEEE model assumption.
Activity of Telithromycin (HMR 3647) against Anaerobic Bacteria Compared to Those of Eight Other Agents by Time-Kill Methodology

Time-kill studies examined the activities of telithromycin (HMR 3647), erythromycin A, azithromycin, clarithromycin, roxithromycin, clindamycin, pristinamycin, amoxicillin-clavulanate, and metronidazole against 11 gram-positive and gram-negative anaerobic bacteria. Time-kill studies were carried out with the addition of Oxyrase in order to prevent the introduction of CO2. Macrolide-azalide-ketolide MICs were 0.004 to 32.0 μg/ml. Of the latter group, telithromycin had the lowest MICs, especially against non-Bacteroides fragilis group strains, followed by azithromycin, clarithromycin, erythromycin A, and roxithromycin. Clindamycin was active (MIC ≤ 2.0 μg/ml) against all anaerobes except Peptostreptococcus magnus and Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, while pristinamycin MICs were 0.06 to 4.0 μg/ml. Amoxicillin-clavulanate had MICs of ≤1.0 μg/ml, while metronidazole was active (MICs, 0.03 to 2.0 μg/ml) against all except Propionibacterium acnes. After 48 h at twice the MIC, telithromycin was bactericidal (≥99.9% killing) against 6 strains, with 99% killing of 9 strains and 90% killing of 10 strains. After 24 h at twice the MIC, 90, 99, and 99.9% killing of nine, six, and three strains, respectively, occurred. Lower rates of killing were seen at earlier times. Similar kill kinetics relative to the MIC were seen with other macrolides. After 48 h at the MIC, clindamycin was bactericidal against 8 strains, with 99 and 90% killing of 9 and 10 strains, respectively. After 24 h, 90% killing of 10 strains occurred at the MIC. The kinetics of clindamycin were similar to those of pristinamycin. After 48 h at the MIC, amoxicillin-clavulanate showed 99.9% killing of seven strains, with 99% killing of eight strains and 90% killing of nine strains. At four times the MIC, metronidazole was bactericidal against 8 of 10 strains tested after 48 h and against all 10 strains after 24 h; after 12 h, 99% killing of all 10 strains occurred.
Speaker recognition via nonlinear phonetic- and speaker-discriminative features

We use a multi-layer perceptron (MLP) to transform cepstral features into features better suited for speaker recognition. Two types of MLP output targets are considered: phones (Tandem/HATS-MLP) and speakers (Speaker-MLP). In the former case, output activations are used as features in a GMM speaker recognition system, while for the latter, hidden activations are used as features in an SVM system. Using a smaller set of MLP training speakers, chosen through clustering, yields system performance similar to that of a Speaker-MLP trained with many more speakers. For the NIST Speaker Recognition Evaluation 2004, both Tandem/HATS-GMM and Speaker-SVM systems improve upon a basic GMM baseline, but are unable to contribute in a score-level combination with a state-of-the-art GMM system. It may be that the application of normalizations and channel compensation techniques to the current state-of-the-art GMM has reduced channel mismatch errors to the point that contributions of the MLP systems are no longer additive.
Access Control Policy Evolution: An Empirical Study

Access control policies (ACPs) are necessary mechanisms for protection of critical resources and applications. As operational and security requirements of a system evolve, so do access control policies. It is important to help policy authors in effectively managing access control policies by providing insights into historical trends and evolution patterns of access control policies. We analyzed ACP evolution in three systems: Security Enhanced Linux (SELinux) operating system, Virtual Computing Laboratory (VCL) cloud, and a network intrusion detection (Snort) application. We propose an approach, which extracts evolution patterns based on the analysis of ACP historical change data. An evolution pattern indicates an abstraction of change in the permissions/privileges assigned to a group or a user. We then developed a model of ACPs evolution. We found eight frequently occurring evolution patterns across the three systems. In our context this model can predict evolution patterns in ACPs with a precision of 50-80%, a recall of 70-90% and an F-measure of 65-75%.
Measurements of optic disk size with HRT II, Stratus OCT, and funduscopy are not interchangeable.

Purpose To assess the interchangeability of optic disk size measurements using slit-lamp funduscopy, optical coherence tomography (OCT-3), and confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (HRT-II) in clinical practice. Design Prospective nonrandomized clinical study. Methods Measurements of vertical disk diameter (VDD) were obtained with the three methods. Disk area was obtained from OCT and HRT printouts. True agreement between methods in measuring VDD was assessed using Bland-Altman graphs and 95% limits of agreement (LoA). Disks were classified as small, average, or large, and agreement between methods in this classification was assessed using κ statistics. Results Forty-eight patients were enrolled (mean age 53.4 ± 14.3 years). VDD (mean ± SD) was 1.58 ± 0.15, 1.70 ± 0.22, and 1.90 ± 0.24 mm with funduscopy, HRT, and OCT, respectively. Very large LoA were observed: −0.29 to 0.70 mm for OCT and HRT, −0.07 to 0.71 mm for OCT and funduscopy, and −0.29 to 0.53 mm for HRT and funduscopy. There was poor agreement (κ Conclusions We observed a large range of differences in estimating disk size with HRT, OCT, and funduscopy. This precludes interchangeable use of these measurements in clinical practice, and does not allow simple conversion formulas to be proposed. In addition, there is poor agreement between these methods in classifying disk size as small, average, or large. At present, estimation of both absolute and relative disk size can only be defined separately for each measurement modality.
Exploring the role of histidines in the catalytic activity of duck δ-Crystallins using site-directed mutagenesis

The duck δ2-crystallin gene encodes an enzymatically-active argininosuccinate lyase while the δ1-crystallin gene product, although 94% identical, is enzymatically inactive. Four histidine residues in the duck δ2-crystallin, His91, His110, His162 and His178, were converted to asparagine residues in an effort to define the role of histidines in the catalytic process of this enzyme-crystallin and to explain the lack of enzyme activity in the δ1-crystallin protein. The recombinant mutant proteins were expressed in E. coli and purified to homogeneity for analysis. These four residues were chosen because they fall within highly conserved regions of argininosuccinate lyases from several species. This analysis revealed that change of His91 or His162 for asparagine resulted in complete loss of activity. The His110 enzyme had a reduced Vmax and the His178 enzyme was near normal in its kinetic properties. These data confirm the roles of histidine in the catalytic process of this enzyme-crystallin and suggest that the change of His91 to Gln91 observed in the duck and chicken δ1-crystallin molecules may be sufficient to account for the lack of enzymatic activity of those proteins.
Spinning Carbon Nanotube Nanothread under a Scanning Electron Microscope

Abstract: Nanothread with a diameter as small as one hundred nanometers was manufactured under a scanning electron microscope. Made directly from carbon nanotubes, and inheriting their superior electrical and mechanical properties, nanothread may be the world’s smallest man-made fiber. The smallest thread that can be spun using a bench-top spinning machine is about 5 microns in diameter. Nanothread is a new material building block that can be used at the nanoscale or plied to form yarn for applications at the micro and macro scales. Preliminary electrical and mechanical properties of nanothread were measured. The resistivity of nanothread is less than 10 −5 Ω·m. The strength of nanothread is greater than 0.5 GPa. This strength was obtained from measurements using special glue that cures in an electron microscope. The glue weakened the thread, thus further work is needed to obtain more accurate measurements. Nanothread will have broad applications in enabling electrical components, circuits, sensors, and tiny machines. Yarn can be used for various macroscale applications including lightweight antennas, composites, and cables.
CW Operation of InGaN MQW Laser Diodes

The performance characteristic of continuous-wave (cw) InGaN multiple-quantum-well (MQW) laser diodes with optimized design parameters is reported. Room temperature, cw operation of InGaN MQW laser diodes was demonstrated with threshold current densities as low as 7 kA/cm2 and emission wavelength near 400 nm. For 2 μm × 300 μm ridge waveguide nitride laser with reflection-coated mirrors cw threshold currents of 60 mA have been obtained. CW operation was observed up to temperatures of 60 °C. The transverse and lateral optical modes of nitride lasers, toward optimization of the layer structure and ridge waveguide parameters have been analyzed. Incorporation of a thick, superlattice n-cladding layer led to a considerable improvement in the transverse beam quality. Thermal modeling indicated the importance of lowering the diode voltage and efficient heat dissipation; and specifically, the benefit of thinning the sapphire substrate for achieving room temperature cw operation.
Mechanics of coherent and dislocated island morphologies in strained epitaxial material systems

A combined analytical and computational model is developed to study the mechanics of strained epitaxial island growth in typical semiconductor systems. Under certain growth conditions in systems with a film/substrate lattice mismatch, deposited material is known to aggregate into islandlike shapes with geometries having arc shaped cross-sections. A two-dimensional model assuming linear elastic behavior is used to analyze an isolated arc shaped island with elastic properties similar to those of the substrate. The substrate is assumed to be much larger than the island. Finite element analysis shows that in order to minimize the total energy, which consists of strain energy, surface energy, and film/substrate interface energy, a coherent island will adopt a particular height-to-width aspect ratio that is a function of only the island volume. It is then shown that for an island with volume greater than a certain critical size, the inclusion of a mismatch strain relieving edge dislocation is favorable. The criterion for the critical size is based on a comparison of the configurational forces acting on the edge of the island in the presence of an edge dislocation. Finally, a finite element calculation combined with an analytical treatment of the singular dislocation fields is used to determine the minimum energy island aspect ratio for the dislocated island/substrate system. The combination of the minimum energy morphology studies for the coherent and dislocated systems with the dislocation nucleation criterion gives a complete model for strained epitaxial island growth which can serve as a basis for interpretation of experiments.
Polarization Modulation Infrared Reflection Absorption Spectroscopy at Elevated Pressures: CO Adsorption on Pd(111) at Atmospheric Pressures

CO adsorption on a Pd(111) single-crystal surface was investigated using in situ polarization modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRAS) within the pressure range 10-6−800 mbar. The coverage-dependent CO overlayer structures found on the Pd(111) surface are identical throughout this pressure regime, that is, no new surface species at elevated pressures or adsorbate-induced substrate reconstructions were observed. The transition from an adsorbate superstructure dominated by bridged-bound CO to an adsorbate overlayer having 3-fold/atop CO sites was followed by varying the adsorbate pressure over 9 orders of magnitude. The derived phase diagram indicates an apparent activation energy of 44.35 ± 1.63 kJ/mol for the bridged-to-3-fold-hollow/atop transition. A comparison between these data and recent sum frequency generation (SFG) results is made.
CEDER: Accurate Detection of Differentially Expressed Genes by Combining Significance of Exons Using RNA-Seq

RNA-Seq is widely used in transcriptome studies, and the detection of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between two classes of individuals, e.g., cases versus controls, using RNA-Seq is of fundamental importance. Many statistical methods for DEG detection based on RNA-Seq data have been developed and most of them are based on the read counts mapped to individual genes. On the other hand, genes are composed of exons and the distribution of reads for the different exons can be heterogeneous. We hypothesize that the detection accuracy of differentially expressed genes can be increased by analyzing individual exons within a gene and then combining the results of the exons. We therefore developed a novel program, termed CEDER, to accurately detect DEGs by combining the significance of the exons. CEDER first tests for differentially expressed exons yielding a p-value for each, and then gives a score indicating the potential for a gene to be differentially expressed by integrating the p-values of the exons in the gene. We showed that CEDER can significantly increase the accuracy of existing methods for detecting DEGs on two benchmark RNA-Seq data sets and simulated datasets.
Optical and electrical characterization of surface passivated GaAs nanostructures

GaAs nanostructures are used in different optoelectronic applications including solar cells, LEDs and fast electronics. Although GaAs shows outstanding optical properties, it suffers from surface states and consequently high surface recombination velocity. The surface depletion effects lead to semi-insulating behaviors in GaAs devices. Passivation of GaAs nanostructures (AlGaAs or ionic liquid) lead to surface stability and improvement in optoelectronic properties. We provide a systematic study to compare the optical and electrical improvement after passivation (AlGaAs or ionic liquid) of GaAs nanostructure including nanowires and nanosheets. Both room temperature and low temperature photoluminescent (PL) spectra indicate increase in optical activity of GaAs nanostructures after passivation. Electron beam induced current (EBIC) measurements reveal the diffusion length of carries in different GaAs nanostructures.
Family support: The roles of early years' centres

The development of children and the welfare of their parents are closely inter-linked. The study outlined below uses a longitudinal, ecological approach to explore links between different models of early years' centres and the expansion of parents support networks. Over time, parenting stress reduced and well-being improved. Sources of informal and formal support developed and extended. It is argued that all types of centres need to develop a comprehensive approach to child development in which child care and education, as well as family support, are explicit functions. This can promote family resilience as well as social inclusion in communities. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Electrochemical investigations of platinum phenylethynyl complexes

Abstract We report the electrochemical characterization of a family of five platinum phenylethynyl complexes by cyclic voltammetry, bulk electrolysis, and spectroelectrochemistry. All have irreversible oxidations near +1.2 V vs. Ag∣AgCl. None has any reductive electrochemistry within the potential window of 50/50 benzene + acetonitrile. trans -Bis(tri- n -butylphosphine)bis(phenylethynyl)platinum(II) undergoes reduction in THF at −2.786 V vs. Ag∣AgCl. The number of electrons passed during the oxidation ranges from 1.15 to 2.29. Photophysical measurements show that as the phenylethynyl chain length increases, the absorbance wavelength increases and the emission wavelength shows a weak but similar trend. Spectroelectrochemistry illustrates the loss of the absorbance band over successive oxidative sweeps. Results indicate that the oxidation takes place at the Pt(II) center and is followed by chemical reactions that generate a new species.