cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Preserved visual evoked potential in infancy cortical blindness: Relationship to blindsight

Sixteen infants with diagnosed cortical blindness from a variety of causes were assessed with the visual evoked potential (VEP). Twelve of 13 cases with eventual visual recovery had measurable though abnormal VEP's provided these were performed within one month of diagnosis. Only one of the three patients whose blindness persisted for the three year follow-up period had a VEP response. The dissociation of the VEP and behaviorally manifest vision is puzzling. We found a surprising lack of primate experimental and human anatomical studies to explain our findings. Nevertheless the VEP did anticipate visual recovery in most of our infants. The value of the VEP here differs from the results of other reports in older children and adults.
Embryonic development of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) system in the chick: a spatio-temporal analysis of GnRH neuronal generation, site of origin, and migration.

We present a quantitative immunocytochemical study of GnRH migration by developmental stage. GnRH peptide was detected in cells of the olfactory epithelium at stage 19. Migration was initiated a few hours later at stage 20. Of interest is the observation that GnRH neurons paused at the central nervous system border for 3 days, entering the brain at stage 29. The major expansions of the GnRH population occurred at two points; stages 26 and 42. In one animal a third population expansion occurred after hatching, with the number of GnRH cells reaching 6600. To determine the site of origin of GnRH cells, embryos were exposed to tritiated thymidine and killed 5 h later. Most GnRH cells incorporated label in the olfactory epithelium; however, some autoradiographically labeled GnRH cells, possessing a neuronal morphology, were found in the olfactory nerve and the forebrain, suggesting that some GnRH neurons divide as they migrate. A cumulative labeling method employing tritiated thymidine was used to examine the ...
Ultrastructure of phagocytosed Paracoccidioides brasiliensis in nonactivated or activated macrophages.

Transmission electron microscopy was used to study ultrastructures in Paracoccidioides brasiliensis yeast cells after ingestion by nonactivated or cytokine-activated murine peritoneal macrophages. Yeast cells ingested by nonactivated macrophages had typical bi- and trilayered cell walls, plasma membranes, mitochondria, nuclei, vacuoles, etc., which remained intact for 24 h of coculture. In contrast, yeast cells ingested by activated macrophages exhibited abnormal mitochondrial ultrastructures within 4 h of interaction. Subsequent events that occurred were the formation of several clear vacuoles per cell, disintegration of the cytoplasm, and development of empty cells with intact walls. These findings provide, for the first time, insights into stepwise damage to fungal cells by activated macrophages (of particular interest in this instance because of prior evidence that the damage is due to nonoxidative mechanisms) and give possible clues regarding fungicidal mechanisms. Images
Statins and Risk Reduction in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Fact or Fiction?

and the Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Patients With Hepatitis B Virus Infection.” In this population-based cohort study that used the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database, the authors reported that statin use may reduce the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Tsan et al 1 followed 33,413 patients with HBV infection from 1997 to 2008, of which 8.3% used statins and noted 1,021 incident HCC cases in this HBV cohort. The incidence rate (per 100,000 person-years) of HCC in patients on statins was 210.9, compared with an incidence rate of 319.5 in nonusers (P .001). The crude and adjusted hazard ratios (95% CIs) for HCC in statin users compared with nonusers was 0.66 (0.51 to 0.86) and 0.47 (0.36 to 0.61), respectively. The authors appropriately adjusted for potential confounders (age, sex, cirrhosis, diabetes, and medications such as anti-HBV treatment, aspirin, and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors) and acknowledged unmeasured confounders (alcohol intake, smoking status, and body mass index) as a limitation of their study. However, in their analysis, Tsan et al 1 failed to account for the impact of antidiabetic medications on altering the risk of HCC. It is now well established that diabetes is an independent risk factor for HCC as reported in several observational studies from Asia, Europe, and North America and subsequent metaanalyses. 2-4 Interestingly, recent studies have reported that antidiabetic medications also alter the risk of multiple cancers, including HCC. Population- and hospital-based observational studies in patients with diabetes have shown that metformin and thiazolidinediones are associated with reduced risk of HCC. 5-7 In a
Sensitivity of tile drainage flow and crop yield on measured and calibrated soil hydraulic properties

Process-based agricultural system models require detailed description of soil hydraulic properties that are usually not available. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the sensitivity of model simulation results to variability in measured soil hydraulic properties and to compare simulation results using measured and default soil parameters. To do so, we measured soil water retention curves and saturated soil hydraulic conductivity (Ksat) from intact soil cores taken from a long-term experimental field near Nashua, Iowa for the Kenyon–Clyde–Floyd–Readlyn soil association. The soil water retention curves could be well described using the pore size distribution index (λ). Measured λ values from undisturbed soil cores ranged from 0.04 to 0.12 and the measured Ksat values ranged from 1.8 to 14.5 cm/h. These hydraulic properties were then used to calibrate the Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM) for simulating soil water content, water table, tile drain flow, and crop yield (corn and soybean) by optimizing the lateral Ksat (LKsat) and hydraulic gradient (HG) for subsurface lateral flow. The measured soil parameters provided better simulations of soil water storage, water table, and N loss in tile flow than using the default soil parameters based on soil texture classes in RZWQM. Sensitivity analyses were conducted for λ, Ksat, saturated soil water content (θs) or drainable porosity, LKsat, and HG using the Latin Hypercubic Sampling (LHS) and for LKsat and HG also using a single variable analysis. Results of sensitivity analyses showed that RZWQMsimulated yield and biomass were not sensitive to soil hydraulic properties. Simulated tile flow and N losses in tile flow were not sensitive to λ and Ksat either, but they were sensitive to LKsat and HG. Further sensitivity analyses using a single variable showed that LKsat in the tile layer was a more sensitive parameter compared to LKsat in other soil layers, and HG was the most sensitive parameter for tile flow under the experimental soil and weather conditions. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Post-offer, pre-placement testing in industry

Background Pre-placement testing was implemented during World War II. Its current use has been reshaped by economic factors, litigation, legislation, and advances in medicine. In response to a request from a local industry intent upon lowering their work-related injuries, a post-offer screening program was developed and implemented. The aim of this study was to develop a testing protocol for determining physical capacity that could be adapted for a post-offer, pre-placement program. Methods Functional capacity evaluation (FCE) testing was used to determine the physical capacity of 2,482 uninjured, healthy prospective new employees of a large food production plant. A comprehensive medical history and 20 different anthropometric, fitness, strength, and lifting tests were administered to all new hires in the first phase of this study to determine if injury incidence could be estimated through functional screening testing. The second study was designed to determine the effectiveness of the application of a post-offer, pre-placement program in an electrical equipment manufacturing facility. Results Strength testing alone was of no predictive value for work injury incidence. There was a strong correlation of physical capacity to physical job requirements. If an employee had the physical capability to perform the essential functions of the job, there was a lower injury rate as compared to the employee not demonstrating the physical strength or ability to perform the essential functions of the job. The incidence of low back injuries in those workers with the physical capabilities to perform the required functions of their job was 3%. However, among those workers who did not demonstrate the strength or physical abilities to perform their job, there was a 33% incidence of low back injuries. Conclusions This study indicates that physical capacity testing that compares lifting ability to job lifting requirements correlates to work injury incidence. The application of appropriate post-offer, pre-placement testing is shown to be a cost-effective method to lower the incidence of work-related injuries. Am. J. Ind. Med. 47:296–307, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation and white matter changes in major depression

White matter abnormalities are implicated in major depressive disorder (MDD). As omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are low in MDD and affect myelination, we hypothesized that PUFA supplementation may alleviate depression through improving white matter integrity. Acutely depressed MDD patients (n = 16) and healthy volunteers (HV, n = 12) had 25-direction diffusion tensor imaging before and after 6 weeks of fish oil supplementation. Plasma phospholipid omega-3 PUFAs eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and omega-6 PUFA arachidonic acid (AA) levels were determined before and after supplementation using high-throughput extraction and gas chromatography and expressed as a percentage of total phospholipids (PUFA%). Fractional anisotropy (FA) was computed using a least-squares-fit diffusion tensor with non-linear optimization. Regression analyses were performed with changes in PUFA levels or Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores as predictors, voxel-wise difference maps of FA as outcome, covariates age and sex, with family-wise correction for multiple comparisons. Increases in plasma phospholipid DHA% (but not EPA% or AA%) after fish oil predicted increases in FA in MDD but not HV, in a cluster including genu and body of the corpus callosum, and anterior corona radiata and cingulum (cluster-level p < 0.001, peak t-score = 8.10, p = 0.002). There was a trend for greater change in FA in MDD responders over nonresponders (t = -1.874, df = 13.56, p = 0.08). Decreased depression severity predicted increased FA in left corticospinal tract and superior longitudinal fasciculus (cluster-level p < 0.001, peak t-score = 5.04, p = 0.0001). Increased FA correlated with increased DHA% and decreased depression severity after fish oil supplementation suggests therapeutic effects of omega-3 PUFAs may be related to improvements in white matter integrity.
Predicting the Size of Spring Network Swarm in Quadratic Potential Fields

Formation control of multiple autonomous agents or a swarm of robots have become popular in robotics. Formation control is to maintain specific connections among multiple autonomous robots while performing tasks such as traversing trajectories, exploring environments, or covering spaces. We assume that robots are virtually connected by Delaunay triangulation, which is a general form of acute angle connection. This virtual connection forms a spring network, and we find tight upper bounds of the swarm size when we apply quadratic potential fields to the group of robots for the position and formation control. We present a method of Delaunay triangulation using circle bounds. By assuming hexagonal shape of each cell of swarm connection, we present a method of predicting a tight size of an ellipse that encircles the swarm.
Fiber-based saturable-absorber action based on a focusing Kerr effect

Abstract We report numerical simulations on a fiber compatible, self-focusing, saturable absorber device. Two fiber ends are separated by a bulk, nonlinear medium. An optical beam transmitted from one tapered fiber end, propagates through the nonlinear medium and couples back into the other tapered fiber end. The fiber mode distributions at the ends of the tapered fibers are calculated using a Finite Difference Method (FDM). We apply the beam propagation method to simulate the diffraction and nonlinearity in the nonlinear medium. As a function of initial beam power and the fiber mode design, the coupling efficiency plots are calculated and compared for different nonlinear mediums. Our simulations identify the optimum contrast between low and high input powers.
Clinical Relevance of Endotoxemia

Endotoxins are in the outer cell wall of gram-negative bacteria. While endotoxins contain protein, the toxic portion is composed of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and the terms are often used interchangeably. The innermost portion is lipid A and this moiety demonstrates all the biological effects of this potent material, and is similar in structure among most endotoxins. Endotoxin is formed by death of bacteria as well as by vesicle formation and release by the living bacterium.
Conceptual Design of an N+2 Supersonic Airliner

History has shown that the design of a successful supersonic airliner capable of meeting performance, economic, and environmental goals simultaneously is an extraordinary challenge. The difficulties associated with designing a successful supersonic civil airliner are magnified due to the tight coupling associated with the physics of the problem that lead to conflicting requirements. For example, the demand for a high Mach number conflicts with the critical environmental requirements including: low sonic boom sound levels, reduced airport noise and minimum cruise emissions. It has been shown that the difficulties of managing these requirements increase significantly beyond the barrier of Mach 2.0 . Over the years, many concepts have been developed, but no consensus exists as to the optimal airframe and engine configuration. The tradeoffs and sensitivities that are discovered during the process of exploring a vast design space provide valuable conclusions that lead to more informed decisions on the part of the designer. For instance, the selection of an airframe taxonomy that represents an adequate compromise of performance efficiency, environmental impact, and economic operability remains an open issue strongly dependent on requirements and mission definition. The matter of airframe-engine integration and selection of an adequate engine architecture based on requirements and mission definition is yet another prevailing issue. This report outlines the overall design process of a 35-70 PAX supersonic concept. The process focuses on the conceptual design phase, including an exploration of a vast design space and visualization of fundamental tradeoffs across discrete aircraft taxonomy. Specifically, over 25,000 design concepts were analyzed with the use of a Modeling and Simulation environment based on the physics and empirical relationships of the problem. The environment uses a nested analysis and design (NAND) approach where the analysis tools for each discipline are linked together. This integration of all the disciplines within a single environment allows for the application of a multidisciplinary optimization scheme.
Smart Coatings for Autonomous Corrosion Detection and Control

Corrosion is the degradation of a material that results from its interaction with the environment. The environment at the Kennedy Space Center’s (KSC) Beachside Atmospheric Exposure Test Site near the launch pads have been documented by ASM International (formerly American Society for Metals) as the most corrosive in the United States. The 70 tons of highly corrosive hydrochloric acid that are generated by the solid rocket boosters during a launch exacerbate the natural corrosiveness of the coastal environment at the pads. Numerous failures at the pads are caused by corrosion of stainless steels, rebar corrosion, and the degradation of refractory concrete. Corrosion control of launch pad structures relies on the use of coatings and materials that can withstand the marine atmosphere as well as the launch conditions. Coatings are selected from the qualified products list (QPL) of the NASA Standard 5008A for Protective Coating of Carbon Steel, Stainless Steel, and Aluminum on Launch Structures, Facilities, and Ground Support Equipment. This standard was developed to establish uniform engineering practices and methods and to ensure the inclusion of essential criteria in the coating of ground support equipment (GSE) and facilities used by or for NASA. This standard is applicable to GSE and facilities that support space vehicle or payload programs or projects and to critical facilities at all NASA locations worldwide. In recent years, environmental regulation changes have dramatically reduced the availability of conventional corrosion protective coatings. Current attrition rate of qualified KSC coatings will drastically limit the number of commercial off the shelf (COTS) products available for future ground operations in support of launch operations at KSC. For this reason, corrosion detection and control technologies have been identified as a critical, initial capability technology need for ground processing of future launch vehicles, reduced ground processing complexity, streamlined integrated testing, and operations phase affordability and sustainability. Researchers at NASA’s Corrosion Technology Laboratory at KSC are developing a smart, environmentally friendly coating system for early corrosion detection, inhibition, and self healing of mechanical damage without external intervention. This coating is being developed using corrosion sensitive microcapsules and particles designed to deliver corrosion indicators, corrosion inhibitors, and self healing agents on demand when corrosion or mechanical damage to the coating occurs. This paper presents the results from progress made to date in developing a coating for the smart corrosion control of launch pad structures and GSC.
Review of the guidance for industry:dosage and administration section of labeling for human prescription drug and biological products

By reviewing the product labeling currently proposed by the new drug applicants,the quality of product labeling seems to vary in different levels.On March 2010,US FDA issued " Guidance for industry:dosage and administration section of labeling for human prescription drug and biological products" and provided guidance in details on what categories of information should be included in the section of dosage and administration.In China,there are some basic requirements on product labeling format and content in the version 2 of "Guidance on the product labeling of chemical drugs and biological drugs" as well the "Details of guidance on the product labeling of chemical drugs and treatment biologic drugs".However,there is no guidance in such details for Chinese product labeling in comparison with the captioned US FDA guidance.The objective of this paper is to summarize the key messages of the captioned US FDA guidance in order to provide reference information for the development and administration of Chinese product labeling.
How Does Pepper Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Become an Important Pepper Pest in New Jersey?

The pepper weevil ( Anthonomus eugenii Cano) is a significant insect pest of peppers across the southern United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean. In New Jersey, it has been a sporadic pest, occasionally causing severe economic loss. Since 2004, economic infestations of pepper weevil have been occurring almost annually, suggesting that some dynamic of its behavior or biology has changed. Grant funding allowed us to investigate how the weevil spreads from farm to farm and how the weevil arrives in New Jersey. We found numerous ways that the weevils can be spread from farm to farm in 2012, and in 2013 we determined that shipments of infested produce from southern climes to repacking and processing facilities in New Jersey were the most important means of bringing pepper weevils into New Jersey.
Elevated luteinizing hormone on the day of human chorionic gonadotropin administration does not reduce cycle fecundity in a low-dose flare-up in vitro fertilization protocol * †

Objective To determine if elevated LH at the time of hCG administration occurs and adversely affects success in a low-dose gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogue (GnRH-a) flare-up protocol in hMG-stimulated IVF cycles. Design Pearson correlation matrix analysis of hormonal, gamete, and clinical data derived from 203 consecutive IVF cycles was performed. All patients were treated with low-dose GnRH-a (250 μ g SC leuprolide acetate) and hMG. In 203 consecutive IVF cases, serum was obtained on the day of hCG administration and assayed for E 2 , LH, and P. These data were correlated with peak E 2 , number of follicles, oocytes, embryos, and conceptions. Additionally, patients with elevated LH were compared with the nonelevated LH group. Results Twenty six women had LH>35 mIU/mL (mean±SEM; 51.1±1.9) and five pregnancies (cycle fecundity 19.2% per retrieval). One hundred seventy-seven patients had LH 2 (1,672±144 pg/mL, conversion factor to SI unit, 3.671) of the former group compared with the P (1.1±0.07 ng/mL) and E 2 (1,456±69 pg/mL) of the latter group. There was no correlation with the number of follicles, oocytes, embryos, pregnancies, E 2 , or P to LH concentration ( r max =0.132). Conclusion In a low-dose, GnRH-suppression, IVF induction protocol, elevated LH occurs in a small subset (13%) of women at the time of hCG administration. This event does not appear to alter cycle fecundity nor induce premature luteinization.
The Bounds of Nationalism

(1997). The Bounds of Nationalism. Canadian Journal of Philosophy: Vol. 26, Supplementary Volume 22: Rethinking Nationalism, pp. 463-504.
User Experience Design Based on Eye-Tracking Technology: A Case Study on Smartphone APPs

With the rapid development of mobile technology, smartphone has been becoming a part of our daily life. There are amounts of applications (APPs) developed for smartphone in the market, in order to meet the various needs of users. Recently, the user experience evaluation research of smartphone APPs is mainly based on subjective questionnaires, which might be relatively simple and lacking of the supporting evidence from objective data. This study aims at integrating subjective questionnaires and objective eye-tracking technology to evaluate user experience on instant message (IM) APPs. This study proposed that eye-tracking data could be used as objective criteria to evaluate user experience for smartphone APPs. A correlation model between smartphone APPs design variables and user experience was built based on Quantification Theory I.
Coronal mode ultrasound guided hemodialysis cannulation: A pilot randomized comparison with standard cannulation technique

Background Infiltrations from cannulation result in significant morbidity including loss of hemodialysis (HD) vascular access (VA). Cannulation is dependent on personnel skill and VA characteristics. Surface marking of VA lacks real-time information and traditional ultrasound (US) devices are large, expensive, requiring skilled operators. Sonic Window© (Analogic Ultrasound, Peabody, MA, USA) is a coronal mode ultrasound device (CMUD) approved for VA cannulation. Methods Single center randomized, prospective pilot study comparing handheld US-guided cannulation of new arteriovenous fistula (AVF) to standard cannulation practices. Patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) on in-center HD who had a new AVF cleared for cannulation and dialysis were enrolled. Patients with new AVF received either standard cannulation (control group) or image guidance using CMUD (study group) for 3 weeks. Ultrasound characteristics of VA, cannulation practices and complications end points were obtained. Results An infiltration rate of 9.7% was noted during the study. Slightly lower odds ratio (OR) of infiltration was observed in the study group (OR 0.94, 95% CI: 0.26–3.41, P value = 0.93). Study group yielded longer time for assessment (101.8 ± 80.2 vs. 22.3 ± 22.5 seconds, P = < 0.001), increased cannulation time (41.1 ± 70.6 vs. 25.0 ± 27.9 seconds, P = 0.04), and increased patient satisfaction (94.6% vs. 82%, P = 0.04) compared to control group. Number of cannulation attempts, needle size, arterial or venous needle insertion, and tourniquet usage between groups were not statistically different. Conclusion Handheld ultrasound is a safe and useful aid in cannulation of dialysis access.
Bicarbonate reduces HT-29 cell death by preventing SN-38-induced intracellular acidification

2005 Background and Hypothesis: Sodium bicarbonate reduces the apoptotic effect of irinotecan (CPT-11) and its active metabolite SN-38 in cultured HT29 cells, and abrogates diarrhea in the golden Syrian hamster model receiving seven daily IP injections of CPT-11 (Cancer. Res., 62:179-187, 2002). We have proposed that one of the actions of bicarbonate was to increase the conversion of CPT-11/SN-38 lactone to its less toxic carboxylate form. The present hypothesis is that the protective action of bicarbonate is due, at least in part, to reduced CPT-11/SN-38-induced intracellular acidification. Methods: Cytotoxicity was determined by MTT assay. Intracellular pH (pHi) was determined using Snarf-1 and an ACAS 570 interactive laser cytometer. Results: SN-38 (0.5uM) lactone and carboxylate were prepared overnight at pH 6.2 and 7.6, respectively. SN-38 was added to the HT29 cell culture medium maintained either at pH 6.2 or 7.4 for 2h and the cells were washed and further incubated in fresh medium for an additional 96h. SN-38 lactone decreased cell viability by 55+1.5% whether the culture medium was maintained at pH 6.2 or 7.4, suggesting little conversion from lactone to carboxylate in the 2h incubation period. However, under the same conditions the cell toxicity induced by SN-38 carboxylate was only 33+4%, supporting a more toxic effect of the lactone than carboxylate form of SN-38. Subsequently, HT29 cells were incubated with 0.5 uM SN-38 for 2h. Cells were treated with increasing concentrations (5, 20, 44 and 100 mM) of bicarbonate either 1) before (2h), during, and after SN-38 exposure until 96h, or 2) only after SN-38 exposure up to 96h. SN38 alone induced ∼65% cell death. The cytotoxic effect of SN-38 was proportionally reduced by 0, 20, 60 and 80% with increasing concentrations of bicarbonate. The effect of bicarbonate was similar whether added before or after SN-38, suggesting that bicarbonate did not alter the cellular uptake of SN-38 and that the protective effect of bicarbonate was significant (p
I do not believe you: how providing a source corrects health misperceptions across social media platforms

Social media are often criticized as serving as a source of misinformation, but in this study we examine how they may also function to correct misperceptions on an emerging health issue. We use an ...
Statistical mechanics of kinks and central peak phenomena in phi/sup 4/ theory for T< or =T/sub c/

The statistical mechanics of a system of kinks condensed from a ${\ensuremath{\varphi}}^{4}$ field theory in one space and one time dimension is studied with a functional-path-integral formulation of field theory in a coherent-state basis. The kink-kink and phonon-phonon parts of the two-point correlation function and the dynamical structure function are calculated in lowest order. All the qualitative features of the usual free-kink-gas phenomenology are recapitulated in lowest order and quantitative values of the thermodynamic observables agree better with the molecular-dynamics computer-simulation results. The free energy of the kink gas is lower than previously calculated values. Our analysis leads to a double-peak feature in the dynamical structure function as is characteristic of a relativistic boson gas and which agrees with the results of the computer-simulation studies. Our calculation of the dynamical structure function applies for temperatures below a transition temperature ${T}_{c}$ which is defined as that temperature at which the kink velocity vanishes. The numerical values that we calculate for ${T}_{c}$ are somewhat larger than those obtained from computer-simulation studies but they agree well with the results of Hartree calculations. Below ${T}_{c}$ the temperature dependence of the soft-mode frequency is $\ensuremath{\omega}=q{[1\ensuremath{-}{(\frac{T}{{T}_{c}})}^{2}]}^{\frac{1}{2}}$ in reasonable agreement with observations on SrTi${\mathrm{O}}_{3}$. We emphasize that the path integral is dominated by the whole class of all classical configurations which extremize the classical action and satisfy classical periodic boundary conditions, both spatial and thermal. Boundary conditions are essential in our formulation and these lead to a new statistical mechanics for the condensate (kinks) and the fluctuations (phonons).
Handoffs: what's good for residents is good for nurses…so what's next?

Communicating patient information at shift change is a time-honoured nursing tradition. Historically referred to as ‘giving report’, the methods and information shared during nursing handoffs varied widely in modality (eg, face to face or through audio recordings), location (eg, in the break room, unit work centre or bedside) and format (eg, notes, formatted document or electronic health record). Although the shift change handoff process has evolved to increasingly emphasise face-to-face exchange and required data elements, variability persists,1 and the shift transition remains a vulnerable time for patients. Shift changes generally, and the nursing handoff specifically, create gaps in care where errors may occur. In this issue of BMJ Quality and Safety , Starmer and colleagues2 describe a framework, IPASS, to bridge this gap. IPASS stands for I llness severity; P atient summary, A ction list; S ituation awareness and contingency planning; and S ynthesis by receiver. IPASS is a handoff improvement bundle that provides a standardised structure to the information exchanged at shift change. This work joins a growing literature that demonstrates the positive effects gained from standardising communication content and delivery methods.3 The IPASS bundle was initially studied in paediatric residents across the USA4 and was adapted by Starmer et al 2 for use by nurses in a paediatric intensive care unit. These researchers found that implementation of this bundle increased the frequency, quality and efficiency of key handoff elements, including fewer interruptions during nursing shift change.2 Collectively, these findings suggest that …
ASIA, SOUTH | Indus Civilization

The Indus civilization is the first urban society to emerge in northwestern South Asia, between 2600–1900 BC. This article provides an overview of the important features of this civilization including its geographical and climatic context, subsistence and crafts, settlement and city planning, trade and economy, its undeciphered writing system, as well as socio-political and ideological organization.
Vigilance for threat accounts for inter-individual variation in physiological responses to adversity in rhesus macaques: A cognition × environment approach.

Early life adversity (ELA) can lead to poor health later in life. However, there is significant variation in outcomes, with some individuals displaying resilience even in the face of adversity. Using longitudinal data collected from free-ranging rhesus macaques between birth and 3 years, we examined whether individual variation in vigilance for threat, an early emerging attentional bias, can account for variation in long-term outcomes between individuals reared in similar environments. We found that ELA and vigilance during infancy interact to predict physiological dysregulation in Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) and Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) stress responses during juvenility. During high stress periods, High ELA juveniles with high vigilance exhibit less asymmetry than High ELA juveniles with low vigilance. This suggests that although increased vigilance is viewed as a negative consequence of ELA, it might also be a mechanism by which vulnerable individuals proactively buffer themselves from negative outcomes in unstable or threatening environments.
Metaphors of Democratization

Where democracy comes from, the stages by which it develops, the direction it takes, the efforts needed to build it, democracy’s density, and the absence of democratic accountability, all involve conceptual metaphors that imply theories of how democracy emerges and exists as a system of governance. This chapter examines a range of metaphorical concepts and the ways in which they lead scholars to make certain assumptions about democracy, devise hypotheses about processes of democratization, and contribute to theories that offer explanations for how democracy develops over time. The chapter concludes that democratization is not an unambiguous process, but, rather, is most often understood through the same sorts of metaphors that frame the study of other aspects of international relations (IR).
TIR Domain Proteins Are an Ancient Family of NAD+-Consuming Enzymes

Summary The Toll/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domain is the signature signaling domain of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and their adaptors, serving as a scaffold for the assembly of protein complexes for innate immune signaling [1, 2]. TIR domain proteins are also expressed in plants, where they mediate disease resistance [3, 4], and in bacteria, where they have been associated with virulence [5–9]. In pursuing our work on axon degeneration [10], we made the surprising discovery that the TIR domain of SARM1 (sterile alpha and TIR motif containing 1), a TLR adaptor protein, has enzymatic activity [11]. Upon axon injury, the SARM1 TIR domain cleaves nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD + ), destroying this essential metabolic co-factor to trigger axon destruction [11, 12]. Whereas current studies of TIR domains focus on their scaffolding function, our findings with SARM1 inspired us to ask whether this enzymatic activity is the primordial function of the TIR domain. Here we show that ancestral prokaryotic TIR domains constitute a new family of NADase enzymes. Using purified proteins from a cell-free translation system, we find that TIR domain proteins from both bacteria and archaea cleave NAD + into nicotinamide and ADP-ribose (ADPR), with catalytic cleavage executed by a conserved glutamic acid. A subset of bacterial and archaeal TIR domains generates a non-canonical variant cyclic ADPR (cADPR) molecule, and the full-length TIR domain protein from pathogenic Staphylococcus aureus induces NAD + loss in mammalian cells. These findings suggest that the primordial function of the TIR domain is the enzymatic cleavage of NAD + and establish TIR domain proteins as a new class of metabolic regulatory enzymes.
Fluorescence photobleaching of microplastics: A cautionary tale.

Abstract Fluorescence microscopy is an important step in visual identification of microplastics and is used to highlight white and transparent plastics that are otherwise easily missed or misidentified. Investigators using fluorescence must proceed with caution, however, as fluorescence photobleaching can significantly reduce the fluorescence output of samples within experimentally relevant time frames. We report on the photobleaching rate and subsequent lack of fluorescence recovery of five common plastics. Our results reveal statistically different photobleaching rates across plastic types. In the best-case scenario of low illumination intensity and a robust plastic, initial fluorescence intensity decayed by 10% in just 11(3) s and by 33% in 230(40) s. In all cases, fluorescence failed to recover more than 13(8)% in 3 h. These results indicate that significant bleaching can occur while searching a sample for plastics to identify and that the lack of recovery can compromise samples for further study.
Jury Selection and the Coase Theorem

The thesis of this article is that jury selection is unique among the components of the litigation process, in that zero negotiation or bargaining occurs between the parties over the substantive or procedural events that unfold – despite the absence of any prohibitions on such negotiation. This lack of bargaining is particularly striking given that the litigants are in the same room, where they could discuss things face to face. Negotiation, whether over the ultimate outcome or over specific issues within the case, pervades every other segment of litigation, from the pre-filing phase until after the verdict. It is therefore odd that all negotiation abruptly stops when the parties meet in the courtroom for hours or days of jury selection; but this is merely an accident of history in how voir dire evolved. Viewed through the lens of the Coase Theorem, which connects the import of legal rules to the availability (or lack thereof) of negotiation between the parties – the "transaction costs" involved – the zero-negotiation aspect of jury selection gives special significance to the legal rules governing voir dire, as well as the interplay between those rules. Such rules include the number, timing, and sequencing of peremptory strikes, the rules governing Batson challenges, and "for cause" removal of jurors. In other words, the Coase Theorem provides a fresh framework for analyzing our jury selection procedures, and may suggest some modest reforms.
Arthropod Resistance to Crops

This chapter describes different attempts by agriculturalists and entomologists to manage the resistance by host plants to deal with the real or potential evolution of counteracting resistance by arthropods. There are a wide variety of cases in which an arthropod species has overcome host plant resistance (HPR) designed by humans to control crop pests. Resistance by arthropods to HPR can occur to both traditionally bred crops and transgenic insecticidal crops. Much of the focus of HPR is on antibiosis, and more recently, production of extremely high doses of toxins in transgenic insecticidal crops. IRM will be needed whether the HPR is caused by antibiosis or by antixenosis. Major resistance genes have been identified, most notably in insects that are targets of transgenic insecticidal crops. These genes and the resistant insect colonies based upon them can be used to study the dynamics of resistance and the efficacy of various management strategies. Examples of this are M. destructor on wheat and P. xylostella on broccoli. The behavior of the arthropod influences how quickly it will evolve resistance to either antibiosis or antixenosis. An HPR variety that deters an herbivore is expected to exert less selection pressure for resistance than one in which the herbivore has no preference between it and the susceptible variety. This does not mean, however, that an herbivore will not evolve behavioral resistance. Indeed, T. urticae still evolved resistance to morphological features of tomatoes and broccoli previously shown to deter mites. S. graminum has evolved resistance to many sorghum and wheat cultivars, most of which have some level of antixenotic effect.
Building Collaboration through Project-Based Theater Design.

With the economic collapse of 2008, there has been a dramatic increase in government emphasis on the value of science and technology-based study in the nation’s high schools as a means for the United States to remain competitive in the world economic market. Financial, political and societal support for the hard sciences, coupled with evertightening budget restrictions for education, have contributed to the devaluing, underfunding, and elimination of the performing arts as a viable and valued academic pursuit (Whitman, 2011). The arts play an important role in secondary school education, developing a broad range of widely applicable social and organizational skills that strengthen a student’s ability to pursue any course of study, while fulfilling the recent emphasis on 21st century skills. This study documents a theater design curriculum and the experiences of a sample group of students who have completed two to four years enrolled in this project-based performing arts program in a Northern California public secondary school. The literature supports the theory that the 21st century skills of creative problem solving and collaboration, crucial to success in today’s global society, are effectively developed through project-based arts curricula. High school students in a theater arts class were asked to reflect upon their experiences in a theatrical design process. Findings indicate that students developed and refined a method for collaboration and could articulate that process in a discussion about their experience.
Instructional designers guided by external representations in a design process

Responding to a call to create an authentic learning environment where instructional design students find meaning in what is being designed, we asked student design teams to respond to: give us something to react to and make it rich. Student designers took stock in, reacted to, and reflected on rich external representations, for three class projects in different instructional design classes. Following specific definitions of rich external representations and elements of context, our study aimed to answer the question: in what ways did student designers take stock in, react to, and reflect on their rich external representations in an authentic learning environment? Student designers openly interpreted their external representations, received information from their external representations, and stimulated a reflective conversation, which sparked an iterative design process. The instructor was an active participant who observed firsthand the progress of each design and, ultimately, the final design interventions. We conclude that constructing an authentic learning environment where students interacted with external representations drove design processes that resulted in feasible and effective interventions.
Neuroepigenetics of arousal: Gamma oscillations in the pedunculopontine nucleus

Four major discoveries on the function of the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) have significantly advanced our understanding of the role of arousal in neurodegenerative disorders. The first was the finding that stimulation of the PPN-induced controlled locomotion on a treadmill in decerebrate animals, the second was the revelation of electrical coupling in the PPN and other arousal and sleep-wake control regions, the third was the determination of intrinsic gamma band oscillations in PPN neurons, and the last was the discovery of gene transcription resulting from the manifestation of gamma activity in the PPN. These discoveries have led to novel therapies such as PPN deep brain stimulation (DBS) for Parkinson's disease (PD), identified the mechanism of action of the stimulant modafinil, determined the presence of separate mechanisms underlying gamma activity during waking versus REM sleep, and revealed the presence of gene transcription during the manifestation of gamma band oscillations. These discoveries set the stage for additional major advances in the treatment of a number of disorders.
Impact of Cognitive Distractions on Drivers’ Hazard Anticipation Behavior in Complex Scenarios:

Distraction is one of the main causes of traffic crashes. The effect of cell phones, a major contributor to cognitive distraction, on response time has tested in many simulator studies. Response ti...
Shared control–based bimanual robot manipulation

Human-centered environments provide affordances for and require the use of two-handed, or bimanual, manipulations. Robots designed to function in, and physically interact with, these environments have not been able to meet these requirements because standard bimanual control approaches have not accommodated the diverse, dynamic, and intricate coordinations between two arms to complete bimanual tasks. In this work, we enabled robots to more effectively perform bimanual tasks by introducing a bimanual shared-control method. The control method moves the robot's arms to mimic the operator's arm movements but provides on-the-fly assistance to help the user complete tasks more easily. Our method used a bimanual action vocabulary, constructed by analyzing how people perform two-hand manipulations, as the core abstraction level for reasoning about how to assist in bimanual shared autonomy. The method inferred which individual action from the bimanual action vocabulary was occurring using a sequence-to-sequence recurrent neural network architecture and turned on a corresponding assistance mode, signals introduced into the shared-control loop designed to make the performance of a particular bimanual action easier or more efficient. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method through two user studies that show that novice users could control a robot to complete a range of complex manipulation tasks more successfully using our method compared to alternative approaches. We discuss the implications of our findings for real-world robot control scenarios.
Sensory Processing Predicts Social Responsiveness in Adults With Autism

Date Presented 04/04/19 This study evaluated the relationship between sensory processing and social responsiveness in young adults with ASD and age-matched neurotypical controls. Compared to controls, young adults with ASD had significant differences on all four quadrants of the sensory profile. However, low registration and sensory gating (the ability to filter irrelevant information) appear to be key predictors of social responsiveness. Primary Author and Speaker: Jewel Crasta Additional Authors and Speakers: Patricia Davies Contributing Authors: William Gavin
Site preparation for longleaf pine restoration on hydric sites: Stand development through 15 years after planting

Abstract Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) restoration is an important land management goal throughout the southeastern U.S. On hydric sites within the Atlantic Coastal Plain, restoration may involve site preparation prior to planting to overcome challenges to seedling establishment, such as abundant competition and poor soil drainage. Investment in site preparation assumes that treatments will result in long-term benefits to stand development, yet lasting impacts of site preparation on longleaf pine are not well understood. We sampled longleaf pine plantations in Onslow County, North Carolina through three years and at 15 years after site preparation and planting. The eight study treatments we tested include an untreated control, six combinations of two vegetation control treatments (chopping or herbicide) with three soil manipulation treatments (mounding, bedding, or flat-planting [no treatment]), and a chopping-herbicide-bedding treatment. Our findings indicate that site preparation significantly improved survival and growth of longleaf pine through 15 years. Herbicide resulted in greater growth, higher survival, and earlier grass stage emergence than chopping. Similarly, soil manipulation treatments resulted in improved stand establishment outcomes relative to flat-planting (no treatment). Effects of site preparation treatments on diameter growth were observed early and maintained through the end of the study period, while effects on survival were not observed within the first three years. Differences in stand height among treatments were more strongly driven by growth rates following grass stage emergence than timing of emergence. Our results demonstrate that site preparation improves longleaf pine stand establishment on hydric sites, although the intensity of site preparation treatments recommended for restoration depends on management objectives.