cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Victimized for Being Different: Young Adults With Disabilities and Peer Victimization in Middle and High School:

Children who are victims of peer aggression can suffer negative emotional, academic and physical consequences that can last into adulthood. Previous research indicates children with disabilities are victimized up to 4 times as often as children without disabilities. However, their unique needs are often not considered in the design and implementation of prevention interventions. The current study examined the perceived effects of family, peer, and school support among children with disabilities to protect them from or help them cope with peer victimization. In this retrospective study, college students registered with a university Disability Resource Center (n = 161) completed an electronic survey about their recollections of peer victimization and of factors that protected them during middle and high school. Three subscales of the Social and Emotional Health Survey measured perception of family, peer, and school support. In open-ended questions, students described instances of peer victimization and of protection. Results indicated that two thirds of participants experienced peer victimization. The most frequently reported type of aggression was relational, followed by verbal. Frequency of victimization did not differ by gender. Most participants experienced victimization related to their disabilities or related to a combination of disability with another personal characteristic. Participants who reported higher levels of family and peer support experienced significantly less peer victimization. Coping with victimization took many forms such as withdrawing from peers, listening to music, and mental health treatment. Unexpectedly, some participants reported disability-related victimization from school staff. Findings highlight the high frequency of victimization and the value of educating parents, school personnel, and other students on strategies to support students with disabilities. These strategies could be incorporated into prevention programs.
Testing Influences on Human Understanding of Software

Eight experienced programmers were each given three FORTRAN programs to memorize and reproduce functionally, without notes. Three levels of complexity of control flow and three levels of mnemonic variable names were independently manipulated. The experimental design was an incomplete split-plot factorial where each programmer was given one version of each program and all levels of the two primary independent variables.The participants correctly recalled significantly more statements when the complexity of control flow was reduced. Differences in recall for the three levels of mnemonic variable names were not significant.A further analysis compared the percent of statements correctly recalled to Halstead's E, a measure of the effort required to code a program. The Pearson correlation coefficient was −0.81, over the 24 data points; thus indicating that Halstead's E is a powerful predictor of one's ability to understand a computer program.
Patient-Physician Agreement Using Summary Outcome Determination Scores

Abstract Objective To determine whether the Summary Outcome Determination (SOD) score had exhibited a high level of physician-patient agreement in surgical patients. Patients and Methods The medical records of 320 postoperative patients were reviewed, of whom 164 patients were included in the study. Patients were included if both physician-assigned and patient-assigned SOD scores had been recorded. The SOD is administered as follows: the patient is asked "Compared to before surgery, is your elbow/shoulder better, worse or no different?" If better: "Is it improved, greatly improved, almost normal or normal?" If worse: "Is it worse or profoundly worse, or as bad as dying?" Each category is associated with a numerical value and definition for further clarification. The patient is asked to assign a category and a numerical value after the physician has already done so. These categories and values were evaluated between raters (ie, physician and patient) to assess reliability. Results The intraclass correlation coefficient of physician-patient numerical ratings was "excellent" (0.93). The Bland-Altman 95% limits of agreement on the differences between the physician and the patient ranged from −1.3 to 1.3. The physician and patient numerical rankings matched exactly in 118 patients (72%) or differed by a factor of no more than 1 (26%) in 161 (98%) patients. Conclusion The SOD score can be used as both a surgeon-based and a patient-based outcome score, given the high level of agreement. Given its brevity, ease of understanding, and high interrater reliability, the SOD has the potential to be used across multiple specialties to rate outcomes.
Transplantation of Amniotic Fluid–Derived Neural Stem Cells

Abstract The developing fetus and its surrounding environment have been discovered to be a rich source of a variety of stem cells, including amniotic fluid–derived mesenchymal and neural stem cells (NSCs), umbilical cord stem cells, and amniotic membrane–derived stem cells. These cells have the ability to differentiate along multiple pathways, with the potential for therapeutic intervention enhanced by the ability for autograft transplantation. Amniotic fluid–derived NSCs have been shown to be beneficial in several animal models of disease, including models of necrotizing enterocolitis and Hirschsprung's disease, with significant potential in stroke and neurodegenerative diseases. In this chapter, we review their origin, derivation and cellular markers, and describe their current and potential future therapeutic uses.
Searching the deep web using proactive phrase queries

This paper proposes ipq, a novel search engine that proactively transforms query forms of Deep Web sources into phrase queries, constructs query evaluation plans, and caches results for popular queries offline. Then at query time, keyword queries are simply matched with phrase queries to retrieve results. ipq embodies a novel dual-ranking framework for query answering and novel solutions for discovering frequent attributes and queries. Preliminary experiments show the great potentials of ipq.
Malic Enzyme 1 (ME1) is pro-oncogenic in Apc Min/+ mice

Cytosolic Malic Enzyme (ME1) provides reduced NADP for anabolism and maintenance of redox status. To examine the role of ME1 in tumor genesis of the gastrointestinal tract, we crossed mice having augmented intestinal epithelial expression of ME1 (ME1-Tg mice) with ApcMin/+ mice to obtain male ApcMin/+/ME1-Tg mice. ME1 protein levels were significantly greater within gut epithelium and adenomas of male ApcMin/+/ME1-Tg than ApcMin/+ mice. Male ApcMin/+/ME1-Tg mice had larger and greater numbers of adenomas in the small intestine (jejunum and ileum) than male ApcMin/+ mice. Male ApcMin/+/ME1-Tg mice exhibited greater small intestine crypt depth and villus length in non-adenoma regions, correspondent with increased KLF9 protein abundance in crypts and lamina propria. Small intestines of male ApcMin/+/ME1-Tg mice also had enhanced levels of Sp5 mRNA, suggesting Wnt/β-catenin pathway activation. A small molecule inhibitor of ME1 suppressed growth of human CRC cells in vitro, but had little effect on normal rat intestinal epithelial cells. Targeting of ME1 may add to the armentarium of therapies for cancers of the gastrointestinal tract.
Huntington's Disease and Employment: The Relative Contributions of Cognitive and Motor Decline to the Decision to Leave Work.

BACKGROUND Huntington's disease (HD) presents with motor, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms that impair functional capacity and the ability to maintain employment. The relative contribution of cognitive decline to work disability remains controversial. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the association of cognitive decline, compared with motor decline, with the decision to leave work. METHODS Data from the Enroll-HD observational study were analyzed. The correlation of age of cognitive symptom onset and age of motor symptom onset with age at leaving work was assessed. The association of the Stroop Color Naming Test (SCNT) cognitive assessment and the Total Motor Score (TMS) assessment (reverse scored) with the Total Functional Capacity (TFC) assessment was also assessed. RESULTS For every year delay in cognitive symptom onset, there was a 0.806 year increase in age at leaving work (SE = 0.030, p < 0.001, adj-R2 = 0.628). For every year delay of motor symptom onset, there was a 0.814 year increase in age at leaving work (SE = 0.031, p < 0.001, adj-R2 = 0.603). For every additional correct SCNT response given and for every unit increase in TMS, there was a 0.105 unit increase (SE = 0.006, p < 0.001, adj-R2 = 0.315) and a 0.104 unit decrease in TFC (SE = 0.003, p < 0.001, adj-R2 = 0.640), respectively. CONCLUSIONS Cognitive symptoms have a significant association, comparable to that of motor symptoms, with occupational functioning and the decision to leave work, suggesting that development of therapies for both cognitive and motor decline would be important for allowing people with HD to remain in the workforce longer.
TCR-pMHC bond length controls TCR ligand discrimination

T-cell receptors (TCRs) detect specifically and sensitively a small number of agonist peptide-major histocompatibility complexes (pMHCs) from an ocean of structurally similar self-pMHCs to trigger antigen-specific adaptive immune responses1–4. Despite intense efforts, the mechanism underlying TCR ligand discrimination remains a major unanswered question in immunology. Here we show that a TCR discriminates between closely related peptides by forming TCR-pMHC bonds with different lengths, which precisely control the accessibility of CD3ζ immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motifs (ITAMs) for phosphorylation. Using in situ fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)3,5, we measured the intermolecular length of single TCR-pMHC bonds and the intramolecular distance of individual TCR-CD3ζ complexes at the membrane of live primary T cells. We found that an agonist forms a short TCR-pMHC bond to pull the otherwise sequestered CD3ζ off the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane, leading to full exposure of its ITAMs for strong phosphorylation. By contrast, a structurally similar weaker peptide forms a longer bond with the TCR, resulting in partial dissociation of CD3ζ from the membrane and weak phosphorylation. Furthermore, we found that TCR-pMHC bond length determines 2D TCR binding kinetics and affinity, T-cell calcium signaling and T-cell proliferation, governing the entire process of signal reception, transduction and regulation. Thus, our data reveal the fundamental mechanism by which a TCR deciphers the structural differences between foreign antigens and self-peptides via TCR-pMHC bond length to initiate different TCR signaling for ligand discrimination.
2292 Evaluating the impact of a K-award on clinical and translational research

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Identify the impact of the provision of clinical and translational research training awards on investigators’ pursuit of clinical and translational research careers. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Propensity score matching and qualitative analysis/investigators receiving MICHR’s KL2 research training awards. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: While the evaluations of the impact of this service have shown participants find them to be valuable it is expected that participation in the workshop may be more beneficial to investigators with certain types of prior research experiences and who utilize more CTSA research support. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: Because this evaluation of a research service incorporate data representing investigator’s receipt of different CTSA resources, the findings can be used to inform the ongoing coordination of these services in ways that optimize their impact on the production of clinical and translational research. There is an enduring need for evaluations of CTSA programs to account for investigators’ use of different constellations of research services in order to identify what combinations of services over time are most effective at fostering successful clinical and translational research careers.
The evolution and impact of sarcopenia pre- and post-liver transplantation.

BACKGROUND Sarcopenia is associated with both increased wait-list mortality and mortality following liver transplantation. AIMS To determine the course of sarcopenia from transplant evaluation until 1 year post-transplant, and its implications on hospitalisation and mortality following liver transplantation. METHODS Two hundred and ninety-three transplant recipients from 2002 to 2006 had pre-transplant CT scans analysed at the third lumbar region for sarcopenia, myosteatosis and abdominal visceral fat content. Half the recipients had post-transplant CT scan for interpretation (161/293). RESULTS Sarcopenia was present in 146/293 (50%) of the patients pre-transplant. There was a significant decrease in muscle mass (loss 2.0 ± 4.9 cm2 /m2 ; P < 0.001), and an increase in myosteatosis while awaiting liver transplantation. There was no significant change in abdominal visceral fat. For every 1 cm2 /m2 decrease in muscle mass there was an increase in post-transplant length of stay by 0.36 days (P = 0.005). Post-transplant, 98/161 (61%) of patients with CT imaging had sarcopenia (25 de novo and 73 persistent), with continued increase in myosteatosis, lower Hounsfield units (-5.0 [IQR -8.6 to 0.1]; P < 0.001) and an increase in abdominal visceral fat (4.9 [IQR -4.4 to 15.6] cm2 /m2 ; P < 0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in 1-year mortality in patients with de novo sarcopenia compared to patients with sarcopenia both pre- and post-transplant (HR 1.88; P = 0.088). CONCLUSIONS Sarcopenia progresses up to 1 year following liver transplantation and is associated with an increase in post-transplant length of stay.
O15.5 Awareness and interest in pre-exposure prophylaxis (PREP) among young men attending a public sexually transmitted diseases (STD) clinic in a high prevalence urban setting

Introduction Young men who have sex with men (YMSM), especially African Americans, are disproportionately affected by HIV. Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) is a highly effective intervention that could help prevent new HIV infections among YMSM. We assessed awareness and interest in PrEP among young men receiving care at the Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) Clinics. Methods We surveyed a convenience sample of 252 men ages 18–24 who attended BCHD clinics between 4/12/2016 and 10/3/2016. Participants were provided a self-administered survey that assessed awareness and interest in PrEP. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analysis examined predictors of awareness and interest. Data collection will continue in 2017 to determine if awareness and interest change over time. Results Mean age of participants was 21.5 (SD=1.98) and the majority (93.7%) self-identified as African American. Thirty-three participants (13.1%) reported sex with other men. Among all participants,19.4% were aware of PrEP, but 44.4% were interested in learning more about PrEP. Among YMSM, 72.7% were aware of PrEP, 63.6% were interested in learning more about PrEP, and 9.1% reported current PrEP use. None of the young men who did not report prior sex with men reported current PrEP use. In multivariable analysis adjusting for race, YMSM were more likely to be aware (AOR=19.9, p Conclusion YMSM receiving care at the BCHD STD Clinics are likely to be aware and interested in PrEP but fewer than 10% may be taking PrEP. Given that STD Clinics serve primarily minority young males disproportionately affected by HIV, future work should seek to improve youth-friendly services at public health clinics and leverage awareness and interest in PrEP in order to improve uptake in this vulnerable population.
The 2011 National Wetland Condition Assessment: overview and an invitation.

The first National Wetland Condition Assessment (NWCA) was conducted in 2011 by the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and its federal and state partners, using a survey design that allowed inference of results to national and regional scales. Vegetation, algae, soil, water chemistry, and hydrologic data were collected at each of 1138 locations across the conterminous United States (US). Ecological condition was assessed in relation to a disturbance gradient anchored by least disturbed (reference) and most disturbed sites identified using chemical, physical, and biological disturbance indices based on site-level data. A vegetation multimetric index (VMMI) was developed as an indicator of condition, and included four metrics: a floristic quality assessment index, relative importance of native plants, number of disturbance-tolerant plant species, and relative cover of native monocots. Potential stressors to wetland condition were identified and incorporated into two indicators of vegetation alteration, four indicators of hydrologic alteration, a soil heavy metal index, and a nonnative plant indicator and were used to quantify national and regional stressor extent, and the associated relative and attributable risk. Approximately 48 ± 6% of the national wetland area was found to be in good condition and 32 ± 6% in poor condition as defined by the VMMI. Across the conterminous US, approximately 20% of wetland area had high or very high stressor levels related to nonnative plants. Vegetation removal, hardening, and ditching stressors had the greatest extent of wetland area with high stressor levels, affecting 23–27% of the wetland area in the NWCA sampled population. The results from the 2016 NWCA will build on those from the 2011 assessment and initiate the ability to report on trends in addition to status. The data and tools produced by the NWCA can be used by others to further our knowledge of wetlands in the conterminous US.
Bucillamine Inhibits UVB-Induced MAPK Activation and Apoptosis in Human HaCaT Keratinocytes and SKH-1 Hairless Mouse Skin.

Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation is known as a culprit in skin carcinogenesis. We have previously reported that bucillamine (N-[2-mercapto-2-methylpropionyl]-L-cysteine), a cysteine derivative with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory capacity, protects against UVB-induced p53 activation and inflammatory responses in mouse skin. Since MAPK signaling pathways regulate p53 expression and activation, here we determined bucillamine effect on UVB-mediated MAPK activation in vitro using human skin keratinocyte cell line HaCaT and in vivo using SKH-1 hairless mouse skin. A single low dose of UVB (30 mJ cm-2 ) resulted in increased JNK/MAPK phosphorylation and caspase-3 cleavage in HaCaT cells. However, JNK activation and casaspe-3 cleavage were inhibited by pretreatment of HaCaT cells with physiological doses of bucillamine (25 and 100 µm). Consistent with these results, bucillamine pretreatment in mice (20 mg kg-1 ) inhibited JNK/MAPK and ERK/MAPK activation in skin epidermal cells at 6-12 and 24 h, respectively, after UVB exposure. Moreover, bucillamine attenuated UVB-induced Ki-67-positive cells and cleaved caspase-3-positive cells in mouse skin. These findings demonstrate that bucillamine inhibits UVB-induced MAPK signaling, cell proliferation and apoptosis. Together with our previous report, we provide evidence that bucillamine has a photoprotective effect against UV exposure.
An investigation of children's dental fluorosis and intelligence in drinking water-type of endemic fluorosis area in Xi'an

Objective To investigate the dental fluorosis and intelligence level of children in drinking water-type of endemic fluorosis areas in Xi'an, and to provide a scientific basis for development of prevention and control strategies. Methods In 2016, six drinking water-type of endemic fluorosis villages and one non-diseased village were selected as investigation sites in Xi'an. According to the detection rate and prevalence of dental fluorosis in children, six diseased villages were divided into three groups, the disease light-affected areas were Huidong and Xingnan, the moderate-affected areas were Liulin and Xiazhu, and the serious-affected areas were Hetou and Xiaoyang; and the Deng village was the non-diseased. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to collect 3 tap water samples in each village to test the fluorine content in water. For all children aged 8 to 12 years in diseased villages and 100 children aged 8 to 12 years in non-diseased villages, dental fluorosis examination and intelligence test were carried out. Results Mean value of water fluoride in non-diseased village and endemic fluorosis areas were (0.25 ± 0.01), (0.78 ± 0.43) mg/L, and the water fluoride content in two diseased villages was over 1.20 mg/L. The detection rate of dental fluorosis in children aged 8 to 12 (30.32%, 67/221) in diseased areas was significantly higher than that in non-diseased area (2.00%, 2/100; χ2= 31.32, P < 0.01). Children's IQ scores in the four groups were 108.68 ± 10.83, 102.54 ± 12.54, 101.70 ± 14.85, 93.45 ± 10.84, and the IQ scores were decreased with the severity of dental fluorosis, the difference in IQ scores was significant between the endemic fluorosis areas and non-endemic fluorosis area (P < 0.05); the percentage of children with IQ≤89 in endemic fluorosis areas was significantly higher than that innon-endemic fluorosis area (χ2= 22.02, P < 0.01). The IQ scores of children with dental fluorosis was 94.96 ± 13.75, and the IQ was 105.26 ± 10.19 in children with normal condition, the difference was significant (t= 5.61, P < 0.01), the mean value of IQ was decreased with the severity of dental fluorosis (F= 7.42, P < 0.05) , the percentage of children with IQ≤89 in patient was higher than that in normal children, the difference was significant (χ2= 45.70, P < 0.01). Conclusion Low level of water fluoride still has negative influence on children's dental health and intelligence, water improving and surveillance should be strengthened to ensure the health of children. Key words: Fluorosis, Dental; Child; Intelligence
Dark as night: Spelunking for spinal solitary fibrous tumors/hemangiopericytomas in the differential of T2 hypointensity.

Abstract Spinal solitary fibrous tumor/hemangiopericytoma (SFT/HPC) is a rare mesenchymal malignancy. Radiographically, SFT/HPCs have a mutable appearance, with irregular borders, heterogeneous contrast enhancement, and variable but frequently hypointense T2 signal. We report a series of 5 neurosurgically managed spinal SFT/HPCs treated at our institution, with particular attention to 3 lesions demonstrating marked T2-hypointensity and differential diagnosis for the unusual finding of a “T2 dark” spinal lesion. Retrospective chart review of prospectively maintained surgical database, queried by diagnosis and site codes, 2002–2017. Retrospective radiographic review, with initial screening via keyword search of MR reports for “T2” and “hypointense.” Four primary and one metastatic spinal SFT/HPCs were operatively treated during the study period (median follow-up 12 months; range 10–92). Three demonstrated marked T2 hypointensity on preoperative MRI, underwent primary resection—GTR in two, STR in one—and have remained progression-free on routine postoperative surveillance. Two patients with isointense lesions recurred within the follow-up period. Radiographic review identified a host of predominantly rare T2-hypointense lesions, including arteriovenous malformation, disk fragmentations, calcific arachnoiditis, calcifying pseudoneoplasm of the neuraxis, cavernoma, cord hemorrhage/acute blood, desmoid, granulocytic sarcoma, pigmented villonodular synovitis, Edheim-Chester, extramedullary hematopoiesis, IgG4-negative inflammatory pseudotumor, idiopathic hypertrophic pachymeningitis, B-cell lymphoma, primary melanoma neoplasm, melanotic schwannoma, meningioma, opacification of the posterior longitudinal ligament, osteoblastoma, osteochondroma, osteosarcoma, and synovial cyst. T2 hypointensity is associated with SFT/HPC, and may be an indicator relative indolence. “Dark” T2 spinal lesions are rare, with a narrow differential populated predominantly by rare entities.
Postoperative pain with or without nasal splints after septoplasty and inferior turbinate reduction

Abstract Purpose To determine the effect of intranasal Doyle splints on postoperative pain following septoplasty and inferior turbinate reduction (ITR). Changes in Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation (NOSE) scores were also evaluated. Materials and methods A prospective cohort study conducted from January 2017 to January 2019. Patients were recruited if they experienced nasal obstruction due to septal deviation and inferior turbinate hypertrophy, and failed a one-month trial of intranasal corticosteroids. All patients underwent septoplasty with ITR, and either had Doyle splints or no splints placed. Patients were prescribed hydrocodone-acetaminophen 5–325 mg and asked to keep a daily log of pain medication use and visual analog scale (VAS) scores. Pain logs and NOSE scores were compared between patients who had splints versus patients who had no splints placed after septoplasty and ITR over the first postoperative week. NOSE scores were also collected at every postoperative visit (1 week, 1 month, and 6 months). Results Fifty-seven patients were enrolled (37 splints, 20 no-splints). The median postoperative pain VAS score was 3.0 (interquartile range [IQR] 2.0–5.0) for the splint group and 4.0 (IQR 2.0–5.0) for the no-splint group (P = 0.906). The median postoperative pain medication requirement in morphine equivalents at the first postoperative visit was 5.4 mg/day (IQR 2.0–13.3) for the splint group and 8.4 mg/day (IQR 1.8–15.3) for the no-splint group (P = 0.833). Conclusions There were no statistically significant differences in postoperative pain VAS scores or pain medication use between the two groups. All patients experienced significant reductions in NOSE scores postoperatively.
No time to delay with large vessel occlusions: Every minute counts.

Every 40 seconds, a stroke occurs in the United States. Strokes both disable patients and cause substantial cost to society, remaining among the top causes of long-term disability and costing an estimated $45.5 billion annually, of which $17.5 billion are due to indirect costs from lost productivity and mortality.1 Large vessel occlusions account for the majority of acute ischemic strokes that result in moderate to severe disability or death.2 For eligible patients with large vessel occlusions, endovascular treatment with mechanical thrombectomy, established as standard of care, has proven safe and efficacious up to 16–24 hours out from last known well.3,4 Within the 6-hour window, multiple studies have found better functional outcomes and lower degrees of disability with earlier intervention.5,6
Other agricultures of scale: Social and environmental insights from Yakima Valley hop growers

Abstract Hop farmers in Yakima are expanding acreage while vertically integrating research, development, and product marketing at an unprecedented rate. Insights from these rapidly concentrating hop farms are useful to better studying the social and environmental contexts of other agricultures of scale along with the potential environmental outcomes for agriculture more broadly. Drawing on interview and field data collected on 11 farms with 15 farmers I suggest that their approach represents a novel agricultural practice that has the potential to yield incremental improvements in environmental adaptation and industry sustainability. These farmers describe their goal as “decommodifying” hops. This term is used by farmers as a discursive catch-all to describe the way these farmers have vertically integrated to use taste, genetic innovation, and scalability to produce an unusually profitable arrangement for the immediate term. By critically examining the range of farming conducted in this region, including those hop growers which contradict this trend, I examine a case study into a new agriculture of scale. This research yields insights into alternative pathways by which power, innovation, technology, and social relationships may appear in the changing biological economies for other agricultures of scale.
Understanding stigma and food inequity: a conceptual framework to inform research, intervention, and policy

There is increasing understanding that stigma associated with poverty, race, nationality, gender, obesity, and other intersecting, socially devalued characteristics is a key social determinant of health that plays a role in food inequities; yet, the processes linking stigma with food inequities are poorly defined. Building on prior conceptual and empirical stigma research in public health, this paper introduces The Stigma and Food Inequity Framework. Supporting empirical evidence for the associations proposed by the framework is reviewed. The framework proposes that stigma is manifested at the structural (e.g., neighborhood infrastructure and targeted marketing) and individual (e.g., internalized stigma and stereotypes) levels. These stigma manifestations are associated with food inequities via a series of mediating mechanisms, including access to resources, the home food environment, and psychosocial and behavioral processes, which ultimately undermine healthy food consumption, contribute to food insecurity, and impact diet quality. The framework further proposes that processes linking stigma with food inequities are situated within contexts of history, culture, and human development. Future directions to address stigma and enhance food equity include the value of addressing the broad range of underlying structural stigma manifestations when creating policy to promote food equity.
The effect of chronic kidney disease on intraoperative parathyroid hormone: A linear mixed model analysis

Abstract Background Reduced creatinine clearance is an indication for surgery in asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism, and a significant proportion of patients undergoing parathyroidectomy have chronic kidney disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the kinetics of intraoperative parathyroid hormone decline during parathyroidectomy in patients who have chronic kidney disease compared with those with who have normal renal function. Methods This is a single-center, retrospective study of patients with primary hyperparathyroidism undergoing parathyroidectomy (n = 646). Patients were grouped based on estimated glomerular filtration rate greater than (normal renal function) or less than (chronic kidney disease) 60 mL/min/1.73m2. All patients had intraoperative parathyroid hormone monitoring and ≥6-month postoperative serum studies to confirm surgical cure. Intraoperative parathyroid hormone kinetic curves were analyzed using a linear mixed model. Results Despite similar pre-excision values, patients with chronic kidney disease had significantly higher intraoperative parathyroid hormone values at 5 minutes (76 vs 58 pg/mL, P = .02) and 10 minutes (54 vs 37 pg/mL, P = .004) postexcision. No significant difference was observed in whether patients met Miami criterion by 5 minutes (chronic kidney disease 71%, normal renal function 78%, P = .255) or by 10 minutes (chronic kidney disease 95%, normal renal function 96%, P = .751) postexcision. Using a linear mixed model, glomerular filtration rate did not have a significant effect on the change in intraoperative parathyroid hormone over time. Conclusion Patients with chronic kidney disease had significantly higher postexcision intraoperative parathyroid hormone levels. However, renal function did not affect the change in intraoperative parathyroid hormone over time, nor did renal function ultimately affect the likelihood of meeting the Miami criterion. Intraoperative parathyroid hormone monitoring remains useful in this population, although additional time points may be needed to observe normalization of values.
Care of Sexual Minority Women

Sexual minority women, or women who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB), are a diverse and individually unique group of women; however, at a population level, they face unique health challenges and are affected by health disparities. Compared to heterosexual adults, LGB adults appear to experience mood disorders at a higher rate and may be at increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Individuals who identify as LGB are also at increased risk for discrimination, stigmatization, and violent crimes compared to their heterosexual counterparts. In this chapter, we discuss ways to improve the experience of women who identify as LGB have with healthcare providers, as well as ways to improve preventative care and counseling on population-specific topics.
ABOLISH THEANTIDUMPING LAWS

Antidumping laws protect consumers from low prices. Since the creation of the WTO and the declining importance of tariffs and quotas, antidumping laws have become the protectionist tool of choice for an increasing number of countries. Domestic producers use them to prevent foreigners from selling their products to willing consumers. There is no way to reform antidumping laws because they are structurally deficient. They must be abolished, the sooner the better.
Soft X-Ray Spectral Studies of Solar Flare Plasmas

Many interesting astrophysical problems are concerned with the interaction of partially ionized gases with magnetic fields. The discovery of pulsars, and the sub-sequent interpretation of these objects as neutron stars surrounded by a relativistic plasma, is an example of such a problem. The origin of cosmic rays, the nuclei of Seyfert galaxies, and the newly discovered X-ray sources such as Sco XR-1 are other obvious problems requiring at least a partial interpretation in terms of plasma physics. It is therefore important that nearby astrophysical plasmas, which can be studied in far greater detail than their more distant counterparts, be investigated as intensively as possible; because at present these plasmas provide the only astrophysical possibility of subjecting the theories of plasma interaction to direct observational tests.
Templates for synthesis from VHDL

Two templates for synthesizable VHDL description styles and their corresponding hardware are presented. One style is at the dataflow level with an explicit clocking scheme. The other uses behavioral VHDL for describing functionality and dataflow for architectural specification. >
Characteristics of a Bacteriocin Derived from Streptococcus faecalis var. zymogenes Antagonistic to Diplococcus peumoniae

A bacteriocin-producing strain of Streptococcus faecalis var. zymogenes (E-1) was isolated from clinical material (conjunctiva). The active substance differed from bacteriocins described by other investigators primarily in its spectrum of antibacterial activity, especially by its marked inhibition of Diplococcus pneumoniae. The E-1 bacteriocin also inhibited nonhemolytic strains of enterococci as well as one-third of the Viridans group of streptococcal strains investigated. The degree of inhibition, however, as indicated by the size of the zones against the latter organisms, was significantly reduced. No activity was detected against any of the strains belonging to the following groups of bacteria: hemolytic enterococci, beta-hemolytic streptococci, nonhemolytic streptococci, staphylococci, and various gram-negative species. Similarly, three strains each of Bacillus cereus and Listeria monocytogenes and one strain of Erysipelothrix insidiosa were not inhibited. The bacteriocin was able to diffuse through bacterial membranes as well as cellulose dialyzer tubing. It was inactivated by heating to 80 C for 20 min but resisted inactivation by either trypsin or chloroform.
Common Gateway Interface (CGI) Scripts

Common gateway interface (CGI) is the first technology that has been created to enable interactivity on the World Wide Web. Despite its relative age and a number of competing technologies, CGI remains a viable tool for creating dynamic Web pages. This chapter introduces CGI technology from a historic perspective. Further, this chapter examines the architecture of a CGI script and illustrates it with several examples written in Perl. The chapter concludes with an overview of different applications of CGI scripts and future prospects of this technology. Keywords: active server pages; application programming interface (API); CGI script; dynamic web pages; Perl
Analysis of Finger PIP Implants

Total joint arthroplasty (TJA) is implemented primarily for the relief of pain, and secondarily for achieving better function by increasing the joint’s strength and motion. In order to keep health costs low, it is desirable that the TJA achieves and maintains a long-term and secure fixation of the implanted components. Unfortunately, clinical follow-up shows that the prosthetic finger implant components have long-term complications including bone resorption, wear, loosening, and failure of the implant components. Although the mechanism of complications is not fully understood, it is well known that the wear and failure of prostheses are highly related to the mechanical forces or stresses of implant components. It is therefore desirable that reliable 3-D computational finite element analysis (FEA) models can be developed and used for the stress analysis of implants. In this study, the finger proximal interphalangeal (PIP) prosthetic components were analyzed using a nonlinear finite element method. Implant components under different joint flexion angles as well as different forces were studied. The stress distribution on the contact surface of the implant component was obtained. The developed FEA models can be used to examine the contact situations (contact stress, contact region, and stress distribution), which are critical to the wear and potential failure of the implant components. Based on FEA results, the design of the current finger PIP implants can be improved for optimum performance and a long-term fixation.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
High-resolution photography of the retinal nerve fiber layer

Abnormalities in the appearance of the retinal nerve fiber layer can indicate the presence of optic nerve atrophy, but a major problem has been the difficulty of visualizing the nerve fiber layer in some individuals. By selectively illuminating the white nerve fiber layer in comparison with the red retinal pigment epithelium and choroidal background, red-free light increases the visibility of the nerve fiber layer. Compared with the standard red-free photographic technique, a 560-nm short-pass cut-off filter, used with extended-range, high-resolution, extremely fine-grain film (Kodak No. 2415 Technical Pan film), considerably enhanced the ability to resolve nerve fiber bundles.
The Synthesis, Characterization, and Photochemical Crosslinking of an NLO Epoxy Polymer.

A photocrosslinkable second order nonlinear optical (NLO) epoxy polymer, Bisphenol A-Nitroaminotolane, containing covalently attached cinnamate side chain substituents (BisA-NAT-CM), was synthesized. After corona poling Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) is used to measure the relaxation of the anisotropy after the electric field is removed. Upon photolysis at 260 nm the cinnamoyl side chains undergo photochemical dimerization to crosslink the NLO polymer. Photobleaching is not a problem under these conditions. The photocrosslinked NLO polymer shows virtually no relaxation over a period of 500 hours at room temperature and good temporal stability at temperatures as high as 110°C.
A jack pine survival model for spring-lifting and planting delays in Ontario.

The general problem of developing a model capable of exploring the survival response of seedlings to tradeoffs in the timing of spring lifting, planting and cold storage was investigated. After the construction of an overall model framework, one general and three specific functions to predict first-year survival for batches of 2 + 0 jack pine seelings were developed. The independent variables required by the functions include: cold storage duration (days), average air and soil temperature during planting (°C), cumulative degree days at time of planting (°C), ratio of terminal-to-top length at time of lifting, and cumulative degree days at time of lifting (°C). A brief example of the type of use to which such functions could be put, and an indication of the expected level of confidence that may be placed in such a prediction, is presented. The survival functions developed in this study were not designed for widespread use throughout the Province of Ontario. At most they should be limited to 2 + 0 jack pine planting stock originating from Swastika Nursery, and planted nearby.
Category O for the rational Cherednik algebra associated to the complex reflection group G 12

Abstract In this paper, we describe the irreducible representations in category O of the rational Cherednik algebra H c ( G 12 , h ) associated to the complex reflection group G 12 with reflection representation h for an arbitrary complex parameter c . In particular, we determine the irreducible finite dimensional representations and compute their characters.
Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography of an intraventricular craniopharyngioma

The computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) appearances of an intraventricular craniopharyngioma are discussed. The unusual CT appearance of our case is compared to the previous 13 cases in the CT literature. The MRI scan represents the only known description of an intraventricular craniopharyngioma in the current literature. The characteristics of our case are compared to the MRI appearance of suprasellar craniopharyngiomas.
Using a biarc filter to compute curvature extremes of NURBS curves

A method to compute curvature minima and maxima of parametric curves (represented in NURBS format) is presented in this paper. Since the curvature changes vary rapidly along the path of (even smooth) curves, a biarc filter is employed to approximate the curvature function with a piecewise constant function. This allows the isolation of curvature extreme values that are found within-engineering tolerances via repeated biarc approximation followed by golden section search. Because the derivative of the curvature is numerically very unstable, only optimization without derivatives is feasible. However, given the excellent isolation property of biarc filters, curvature extremes are found within 10–20 steps even for high accuracy requirements ranging from 10−4 to 10−6.
Two-photon Lb vapor spectra of 1- and 2-fluoronaphthalenes

Abstract Two-photon vapor fluorescence excitation spectra of 1- and 2-fluoronaphthalenes derived from the 1 1B2u(Lb−1) ← 1Ag− forbidden two-photon transition in naphthalene show considerable allowed character. 2-fluoronaphthalene has the largest intensity, the 0-0 strength approaching that of 2101, the principal vibronic coupling band. Several possible mechanisms for the large intensification effect, which has no counterpart in fluorobenzene spectra, are discussed.
Thalamo-cortical projections in the tree shrew (Tupaia glis).

Cortical lesions were placed in 18 hemispheres, and thalamic degeneration was studied after a survival period of at least six weeks. Very small lesions within the striate area produced complete degeneration of neurons in a column through the lateral geniculate, from medial to lateral borders and comprising all of the laminae. Lesions of various loci within the striate area reveal a precise topographic projection, with the rostral lateral geniculate sending fibers to the caudal extremity of the striate area and the caudal lateral geniculate projecting to the rostral extremity of the striate; further, the dorso-ventral dimension in the lateral geniculate projects to the medio-lateral dimension in the striate area. Finally, the evidence from striate area lesions suggests that the lateral geniculate projections are confined to the striate area as defined by cytoarchitecture, which in turn corresponds precisely with visual area I as defined by electrophysiological recording. This conclusion is supported by the failure to find retrograde degeneration after lesions of the belt of cortex adjacent to the striate area. The temporal area which occupies an extensive section from V II to the rhinal fissure and the auditory cortex and which has been shown to be a visual receiving area, is the target of essential projections from the pulvinar. The pulvinar also sends sustaining collaterals within the temporal area and probably outside as well, especially to V II. However, the very crude topographic organization apparent in the pulvinar projections does not seem to be sufficiently refined to account for the organization of V II. A suggestion was made in closing that V II may be the result of convergent evolution in different mammalian lines of descent.
Strand separation of DNA fragments and their isolation from nondenaturing polyacrylamide gels

A technique for rapidly and quantitatively denaturing double-stranded DNA employing urea and moderate heat is described. The single DNA strands are resolved on high-percentage nondenaturing polyacrylamide gels from which they can be recovered for Maxam-Gilbert sequence analysis.
Model study of evolution and diurnal variations of rainfall in the North American monsoon during June and July 2002

Abstract Rainfall evolution and diurnal variation are important components in the North American monsoon system (NAMS). In this study these components are numerically studied using the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research (PSU–NCAR) Mesoscale Model (MM5) with high resolution (12-km grids) in contrast to most previous model studies that used relatively coarse spatial resolutions (>25 km grids). The model was initialized at the start of each month and allowed to run for 31 days. The study shows that, in general, the model results broadly matched the patterns of satellite-retrieved rainfall data for monthly rainfall accumulation. The rainfall timing evolution in the monsoon core region predicted by the model generally matched the gauge observations. However, the differences among the three precipitation estimates (model, satellite, and gauge) are obvious, especially in July. The rainfall diurnal cycle pattern was reproduced in the monsoon core region of west...
The development of an instrument to evaluate treatment intrusiveness for individuals with severe and challenging behavior

The current study examined the use of an instrument designed to evaluate the intrusiveness of treatments for addressing problem behaviors. Participants read case vignettes with proposed treatments and then completed a checklist of factors that could influence the degree of treatment intrusiveness. Results indicated that the participants were capable of using the instrument to differentiate among treatments that were considered to have varying levels of treatment intrusiveness. Implications of using a systematic method for evaluating the intrusiveness of treatments are discussed.