cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Descriptive Epidemiology of Epilepsy: Contributions of Population-Based Studies From Rochester, Minnesota

Studies based on the Rochester Epidemiology Project medical records-linkage system have provided important insights into the epidemiology of epilepsy. The incidence of all convulsive disorders in Rochester, Minnesota, during a 50-year period exceeded 130 per 100,000 person-years. The age-adjusted incidence of epilepsy was 44 per 100,000 person-years; of a first unprovoked seizure, 61; and of acute symptomatic seizures excluding febrile convulsions, 31. In addition, 2% of the population experienced a febrile convulsion before the age of 5 years. The cumulative incidence of epilepsy through age 74 years was 3.0%, of all unprovoked seizures was 4.1% and of any convulsive disorder approached 10%. For epilepsy, single unprovoked seizures, and acute symptomatic seizures, the incidence was significantly higher in males than in females, and it was high in the first year of life but highest in those age 75 years or older. For epilepsy alone, approximately 60% of incidence cases experienced partial seizures, and two-thirds had no clearly identified antecedent. Cerebrovascular disease was the most commonly identified antecedent of epilepsy, accounting for 11 % of cases. Over time, the incidence of epilepsy and of unprovoked seizures decreased in children and increased in the elderly population. The age-adjusted prevalence of active epilepsy on Jan. 1, 1980, was 6.8 per 1,000 residents. Prevalence was low in the first decade of life, increased to a plateau in the adult years, and further increased in the elderly population. Almost 1.5% of the population older than 75 years of age had active epilepsy. About 25% of prevalence cases had an identified cause; 60% experienced partial epilepsy.
Evaluating the Impacts of Real-Time Pricing on the Cost and Value of Wind Generation

One of the costs associated with integrating wind generation into a power system is the cost of redispatching the system in real-time due to day-ahead wind resource forecast errors. One possible way of reducing these redispatch costs is to introduce demand response in the form of real-time pricing (RTP), which could allow electricity demand to respond to actual real-time wind resource availability using price signals. A day-ahead unit commitment model with day-ahead wind forecasts and a real-time dispatch model with actual wind resource availability is used to estimate system operations in a high wind penetration scenario. System operations are compared to a perfect foresight benchmark, in which actual wind resource availability is known day-ahead. The results show that wind integration costs with fixed demands can be high, both due to real-time redispatch costs and lost load. It is demonstrated that introducing RTP can reduce redispatch costs and eliminate loss of load events. Finally, social surplus with wind generation and RTP is compared to a system with neither and the results demonstrate that introducing wind and RTP into a market can result in superadditive surplus gains.
Probability of Collision Between Space Objects

The International Space Station is being designed to perform debris avoidance maneuvers based on certain criteria developed from the probability of collision Pc. Existing methods to determine the Pc are based on the dee nitionofacollision/conjunctionplanethatcontainsallofthepositionuncertaintyassociatedwiththeproblem.In thispaperwedevelopa directand more naturalway of obtaining probability ofcollision and presentanalternative but equivalent dee nition for Pc that leads to the same results obtained earlier. Because debris avoidance is crucial for every orbiting asset in low Earth orbit, a study of this nature helps to establish the equivalence of different methods for risk assessment and evaluation. HE International Space Station (ISS) shall continuously face the threat of collision with orbiting debris. Hence, there needs to be a comprehensive methodology that can assess the risks posed byindividualdebrisencountersand suggestmaneuverswhenneces- sary. Such a study shall not only benee t the ISS, but also any future orbital asset placed in low Earth orbits. Thus, although we refer to the ISS in the rest of our paper, the analysis presented here holds true for any other orbiting asset of size and orbit comparable with that of the upcoming ISS. Space shuttle (SS) maneuvers are commanded to avoid poten- tial collisions with cataloged space objects (maintained by the U.S. Space Command ) whenever the estimated conjunction with an ob- jectfalls within a box centered on the estimated SSposition. The di- mensionsofthisconjunctionboxare §5 kmin thein-track direction and §2kmintheradialandout-of-planedirections.Thedimensions of such a conjunction box are probably based on prior estimates of position error covariances. The determination was made that this simple criterion, or any other known deterministic criterion 1,2 when applied to the ISS, would result in too many maneuvers. 3 In addi- tion, unnecessary maneuvers waste fuel and hamper the micrograv- ity experiments onboard the ISS. Although the size of the conjunc- tion box could be decreased to decrease the manuever rate, such a step clearly increases the risk to unacceptable levels. Therefore, the ISS needs a more rigorous probability-based approach for collision avoidance. 4
Nonopioid Medications for Pain

Evidence of nonopioid analgesic effectiveness exceeds that for long-term opioids in chronic noncancer pain (CNCP), most with lower risk. Non-drug therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy and physical activation are safer and also effective. Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs are useful for inflammatory and nociceptive pain, share renal and variable gastrointestinal, bleeding and cardiovascular side effects. Antidepressants with noradrenergic activity (such as tricyclics and seroton-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors) and neuromodulating anticonvulsant drugs (gabapentinoids and sodium-channel blockers) are proven to be effective for neuropathic and centralized pain. Ketamine and cannabinoids are other studied analgesics but have a less well-proven role in CNCP.
Echocardiographic Prediction of Complications in Patients With Chest Pain

The optimal role of Doppler echocardiography in the evaluation of patients with acute chest pain syndromes is unclear. We prospectively studied a cohort of 466 patients admitted with acute chest pain syndromes to clarify the relation between echocardiographic data and the risk of serious predischarge complications, and to determine if echocardiographic data can provide incremental prognostic information beyond clinical and electrocardiographic variables. Doppler echocardiograms, performed an average of 21 hours after presentation, were independently analyzed by 2 echocardiographers for information on global left and right ventricular function and valvular disease. Regional function was assessed by a wall motion index (WMI). A composite complications end point was positive if significant recurrent myocardial ischemia, heart failure, or arrhythmia developed after the echocardiogram. In univariate analysis, left (odds ratio [OR] 2.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.6, 5.1) and right (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.2, 6.2) ventricular function, left ventricular end-diastolic (OR 1.6/cm, 95% CI 1.1, 2.3) and end-systolic (OR 1.4/cm, 95% CI 1.1, 1.9) dimensions, and WMI (OR 3.0, 95% CI 1.8, 4.8) predicted complications that developed after the echocardiogram. In multivariate analysis, WMI remained an incremental predictor of risk with an OR of 2.2/unit (95% CI 1.2, 3.9) scaled from 1 to 4. Even in the subset of 403 patients without acute myocardial infarction, WMI was associated with an OR of 1.9 (95% CI 1.0, 3.7). We conclude that early echocardiography provides incremental prognostic information concerning risk of subsequent complications in patients hospitalized with chest pain.
Effects of Anaerobic Bacteria on Eimeria tenella Infection in Bacteria-Free, Monofloral, and Conventional Chickens

Bacteria-free, monofloral, and conventional chicks were infected with Eimeria tenella. Monofloral chicks were established by inoculating birds in several gnotobiotic isolators with a single species of Escherichia coli or with one of three Bacteroides sp. isolates (No. 157, No. 202, or No. 366). Daily weights of individual birds were recorded for six days post-infection (PI). On Day 6 PI all birds were sacrificed and cecal lesions were scored. Conventional, infected birds lost weight on days 5 and 6 PI and showed severe lesions. Birds maintained as monofloral groups with isolates of Bacteroides sp. No. 157, No. 202 or E. coli showed equally severe lesions, but lost weight only on day 6 PI. Conventional, uninfected birds with no lesions, birds infected with Bacteroides sp. isolate No. 366 with mild lesions, and bacteria-free birds with mild to severe coccidial lesions all continued to gain weight on each day post-infection.
Substance abuse potential and job stress: a study of pharmacists, physicians, and nurses.

A study was conducted to assess the substance abuse potential of pharmac~sts, nurses, and primary care physicians, as well as the relationship between perceived job stress and substance abuse potential. Data was collected via a questionnaire mailed to 2,951 health professionals randomly selected from across the United States; a 42.1% response rate was achieved. Responses to the Hof- fmann-Lumry substance abuse screening scale indicated that 17.2% of the actively practicing health professionals would be classified as high likelihood substance abusers. For all three professions studied, substance abuse potential was significantly related to scores on the Health Professions Stress Inventory.
Scaling laws for capillary vessels of mammals at rest and in exercise

A general derivation is presented for the scaling laws governing the size and number of capillary blood vessels in mammals. The derivation is based on the assumption of three idealized similarity principles known to apply, at least approximately, to resting mammals: (i) size-invariant blood pressure; (ii) size-invariant fraction of blood in the capillaries; and (iii) size-invariant oxygen consumption and uptake, per unit of body mass, during each heart cycle. Results indicate that the radius and length of capillaries, and the number that are open and active in the resting state, should scale with mammal mass to the powers 1/12, 5/24 and 5/8, respectively, consistent with earlier work by the author. Measurements are presented supporting the results. Physiological changes accompanying strenuous exercise are accounted for by a change in the scaling law for capillary number, from scaling exponent 5/8 to 3/4.
Aircraft and ground-based measurements of hydroperoxides during the 2006 MILAGRO field campaign

Mixing ratios of hydrogen peroxide and hydroxymethyl hydroperoxide were determined aboard the US Department of Energy G-1 Research Aircraft during the March, 2006 MILAGRO field campaign in Mexico. Ground measurements of total hydroperoxide were made at Tecamac University, about 35 km NW of Mexico City. In the air and on the ground, peroxide mixing ratios near the source region were generally near 1 ppbv. Strong southerly flow resulted in transport of pollutants from Mexico City to two downwind surface sites on several flight days. On these days, it was observed that peroxide concentrations slightly decreased as the G-1 flew progressively downwind. This observation is consistent with low or negative net peroxide production rates calculated for the source region and is due to the very high NO x concentrations in the Mexico City plateau. However, relatively high values of peroxide were observed at takeoff and landing near Veracruz, a site with much higher humidity and lower NO x concentrations.
tourrGui: A gWidgets GUI for the tour to explore high-dimensional data using low-dimensional projections

This paper describes a graphical user interface (GUI) for the tourr package in R. The tour is a dynamic graphical method for viewing multivariate data. The GUI allows users to interact with a tour in order to explore the data for structures like clustering, outliers, nonlinear dependence. Users can pause the tour, choose a subset of variables, color points by other variables, and switch between several different types of tours.
Factors Influencing Larval Survival of the Invasive Browntail Moth (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae) in Relict North American Populations

Scant attention has been paid to invasive species whose range and abundance has decreased after an initial range expansion. One such species is the browntail moth Euproctis chrysorrhoea L, which was discovered in the eastern United States in 1897. Its range expanded until 1914; after 1915, however, its range contracted and now it persists in only two isolated coastal locations. Although a biological control agent has been implicated in this range collapse, cold inland winter temperatures may also help to restrict browntail moth populations. We surveyed coastal versus inland habitats in Maine and Massachusetts for browntail moth overwintering mortality and larval density per web. We also performed an experiment assessing these same variables in coastal versus inland habitats on different host plant species and at different initial larval densities. We also analyzed temperature records to assess whether winter temperatures correlated with changes in the invasive range. Overwintering mortality was lower in coastal populations for both the experimental populations and in the Maine field survey. Experimental populations in Cape Cod coastal areas also had lower rates of fall mortality and higher larval densities, suggesting that coastal areas are better year-round habitats than inland areas. There were no consistent differences between coastal and inland populations in their response to larval density or host plant, although overall survival in both areas was higher at low initial larval densities and affected by host identity. There was also no difference in two measures of the coldest winter temperatures during browntail moth's expansion and contraction. Our results show that climate affects browntail moth, but suggest that winter temperatures cannot explain both the rapid expansion and subsequent collapse of this pest.
Microwave-assisted synthesis of the anticancer drug cisplatin, cis-[Pt(NH3)2Cl2]

A microwave-assisted synthesis of cisplatin, cis-[Pt(NH3)2Cl2], has been developed and optimized on both a 0.2 and 0.05 millimolar scale. The optimized synthetic procedure was modeled after the Lebedinskii–Golovnya method and is suitable for incorporating the radionuclide, 195mPt, into cisplatin for biological studies. Highest yields (47%) and purity are obtained using a K2PtCl4 : NH4OAc : KCl molar ratio of 1 : 4 : 2 at a temperature of 100 °C. The entire synthesis and purification procedure requires approximately 80 min. At a reaction temperature of 150 °C, the trans isomer is the exclusive product, suggesting that complexes of the general form, trans-[Pt(RNH2)2Cl2], can be synthesized directly from K2PtCl4 using [RNH3]OAc (R = alkyl or aryl moieties) via a microwave process. Two novel separation procedures have been developed which efficiently remove the major impurity (1 : 1 Magnus-type salt) from the crude reaction product, yielding a product of purity comparable to that obtained by the Dhara method and suitable for biological studies. These procedures are applicable to both the micro- and macro-scale of synthesis. The question of whether this microwave-assisted synthesis of cisplatin will be a preferred method for incorporating 195mPt into cisplatin is yet to be determined.
What Is Needed to Prove that Chlamydia pneumoniae Does, or Does Not, Play an Etiologic Role in Atherosclerosis?

Summary of a Discussion There is no expectation that one experiment, no matter how innovative, will definitively prove or disprove the hypothesis of an etiologic role for Chlamydia pneumoniae in atherosclerosis. Rather a gradual accumulation of data from many investigators will lead to acceptance or rejection of the hypothesis. Proof will not be absolute but an overwhelming consensus of knowledgeable scientists. Koch’s postulates cannot be expected to be fulfilled. Sir Branford Hill’s criteria will be helpful. They look at the possible etiologic association in terms of strength, consistency, specificity, temporality, plausibility, coherence, analogy, and experimental evidence. There are three stages of atherosclerosis—any or all of which could be potentially caused by C. pneumoniae (table 1): initiation of the disease process, acceleration of the process, and complications of the disease (e.g., myocardial infarction). If C. pneumoniae is involved in initiation of the disease, it would be a cause of atherosclerosis. If it plays a role in the acceleration of the disease that has already been initiated, then it could be considered a risk factor. It is clear that the experiments of greatest interest and significance to cardiologists (a most important constituency) are the large-scale, secondary prevention, antibiotic treatment trials. If the clinical trials clearly show a positive effect of antibiotic treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD), and animal model studies also show a favorable effect of specific treatment of C. pneumoniae, it is likely that the hypothesis will be accepted as true. If the clinical trials fail to show an effect, there will be a significant loss of interest in the basic hypothesis. The reaction to the results of the clinical trials, either positive or negative, will probably be in excess of what is justified. If positive, the results will prove little about the cause of atherosclerosis and much about C. pneumoniae being involved in the cascade of events leading to acute complications of atherosclerosis (table 2). The unlikely possibility will exist that the antibiotic effect is due to inhibition of an unidentified organism other than C. pneumoniae. If the results are negative they will say little about C. pneumoniae in the initiation of atherosclerosis
To Monitor Dabigatran or Not: A Matter of Patient Safety

In October 2010, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)2 approved dabigatran etexilate (Pradaxa), a new oral, direct thrombin inhibitor, for prevention of stroke and thrombosis in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF). This marked a new era in the development of fixed-dose novel oral anticoagulants (NOACs) with the hope of achieving improved safety and clinical outcomes compared with warfarin. The concept of a fixed-dose anticoagulant that requires no monitoring quickly made the transition from concept to practice, helped partially by the FDA's new approach to innovative therapies. This new approach gave the manufacturer, Boehringer Ingelheim, access to priority reviews and a shorter approval process for its blockbuster drug, dabigatran. Rather than the conventional requirement of at least 2 pivotal trials, only a single large clinical trial was necessary for approval. Fixed-dose dabigatran demonstrated noninferior performance compared with dose-optimized warfarin therapy in the Randomized Evaluation of Long-Term Anticoagulation Therapy (RE-LY) trial for prevention of stroke and thrombosis in patients with nonvalvular AF, thus providing the bulk of support for FDA approval. After approval by the FDA in 2010 and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) a year later, dabigatran's popularity grew quickly, and by the end of 2013 sales approached $2 billion. However, amid litigation in US courts that centered on claims that dabigatran caused severe and fatal bleeding in patients, an investigation by the British Medical Journal revealed that as far back as 2010 Boehringer Ingelheim had knowledge that adjusting the dose of dabigatran might provide patients with superior efficacy and safety compared with a fixed dose (1, 2). This raised serious concerns about what the manufacturer chose not to disclose as it sought regulatory approval. The clinical impetus to explore novel anticoagulants originated from the difficulty in managing anticoagulation in patients receiving the standard-of-care treatment, warfarin. Anticoagulation …
Comments on “Race, Alienation and Consumerism”:

Criticisms are presented of the research findings reported by Pruden and Longman in a recent JOURNAL OF MARKETING article. Attention is focused on the alienation construct and its measurement.
Understanding the Triple Aim.

Nurse leaders today are challenged with understanding the drivers behind quality reporting initiatives and meeting reporting requirements. The Triple Aim is one such driver, with its goal of improving patient outcomes and healthcare delivery. Understanding its components will help healthcare organiz
Abstract 5528: Development and evaluation of cell membrane lipid-extracted nanoliposomes (CLENs) for the treatment of cancer using cellular models of human pancreatic cancer

In 2014, an estimated 46,420 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the United States, and approximately 39,590 will die from the disease. Gemcitabine has been established as the first-line treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer. However, this type of cancer has responded poorly to many therapeutic agents including gemcitabine, mainly due to inadequate drug accumulation at the desired tumor location and drug resistance. Liposomes represent a convenient method to deliver drugs to solid tumors. The drug carrier enhances the accumulation of the drug at the tumor site and has been shown to overcome drug resistance. Liposomes can direct the drug away from normal tissue and minimize unwanted drug side effects. However, more selective tumor targeting of cytotoxic drug-loaded liposomes to pancreatic tumors will further improve efficacy and will likely reduce toxicity. The present study investigated whether the inclusion of extracted lipids derived from pancreatic cancer cells would improve the selective uptake of liposomes by pancreatic cancer cells and formulation effects. We hypothesized that the inclusion of cell membrane lipid-extracted materials in the preparation of nanoliposomes will promote selective cellular uptake and improved cytotoxic drug effects. To test the hypothesis, two different pancreatic cancer cell lines were employed for the study (PANC-1 and Capan-2), and hTERT (a human immortalized normal pancreatic duct cell line) used as a healthy cell control. The human prostate (LNCap) and colorectal cancer (COLO-205) cell lines were used as negative controls. Various nanoliposome preparations were prepared and evaluated in terms of particle size, zeta potential and relative affinity of CLENs for target cells and fluorescence microscopy. The particle size of these nanoliposomes ranged between 92-176 nm and the zeta potential was negatively-charged (-14.07 and -34.95 mV). The Sulforhodamine B cell viability assay showed that CLENs was non-toxic to cells over the full concentration range evaluated when compared to conventional liposomes. The cellular uptake of the five different nanoliposome preparations was highest for the cell line from which the lipid material used to prepare CLENs was extracted (P 0.05). Fluorescence microscopic analyses supported the cellular uptake studies. The incorporation of gemcitabine in CLENs may represent a promising approach for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. Cytotoxic drug studies with gemcitabine are currently underway. Citation Format: Taha Y. Alqahtani, Robert Campbell. Development and evaluation of cell membrane lipid-extracted nanoliposomes (CLENs) for the treatment of cancer using cellular models of human pancreatic cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 5528. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-5528
Retrospective analysis of 130 cases of deep fungal infection in blood samples: fungus identification and drug sensitive test

Objective To analyze the species and drug sensitivity of the fungi in blood samples of deep fungal infection patient in our hospital. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on 130 cases of deep fungal infection cases collected from Jan,2007 to Dec,2010 in our hospital. Results Among the 130 cases,the dominant pathogenic fungi in decreasing order were Candida albicans(41,31.54%),Candida tropicalis(29,22.31%),Candida parapsilosis(26,20.00%),Penicillium marneffei(14,10.77%) and Candida glabrata(13,10.00%). Meanwhile,Cryptococcus neoformans(4,3.08%) and Aspergillus fumigatus(1,0.77%),and Fusarium(1,0.77%),Candida guilliermondii(1,0.77%) were identified. The department of Intensive Care Unit(ICU),pediatrics,surgery and hematology were predominate departments that fungi were frequently isolated. The blood diseases,malignant tumors and lung infections posed the majority of the diseases of the patients in this study. No resistant strains were identified among the tested antifungal drugs including amphotericin B,voriconazole,and itraconazole except one isolate was resistant to fluconazole. Conclusion Candida albican,Candida tropicalis and Candida parapsilosis were the main pathogens among the 130 cases. No serious resistance isolates were found in this study. The department of ICU,pediatrics,surgery and hematology should pay more attention to deep fungal infection of the patients and provide prompt antifungal therapy.
Crowdsourcing program preconditions via a classification game

Invariant discovery is one of the central problems in software verification. This paper reports on an approach that addresses this problem in a novel way; it crowdsources logical expressions for likely invariants by turning invariant discovery into a computer game. The game, called Binary Fission, employs a classification model. In it, players compose preconditions by separating program states that preserve or violate program assertions. The players have no special expertise in formal methods or programming, and are not specifically aware they are solving verification tasks. We show that Binary Fission players discover concise, general, novel, and human readable program preconditions. Our proof of concept suggests that crowdsourcing offers a feasible and promising path towards the practical application of verification technology.
Morphology and Cytochemistry of the Granule-Vacuole Body of Leukemic Cells

A rare and hitherto undescribed vacuole-like structure, the granule-vacuole body, found in the cytoplasm of certain cells of granulocytic and monocytic leukemia has been described morphologically and cytochemically. This inclusion has been compared with the cytoplasmic granules and Auer bodies occurring in leukemic cells.
A Network Approach to Population Modeling

Now we have the basic equipment with which to construct network models of a very wide variety of populations of organisms on the basis of their life cycles. Even when these life cycles are relatively simple, it very often is quite difficult without networks to keep track of the conservation and constitutive relationships implied in them and to develop appropriate state equations. As we soon shall see, not all life cycles are amenable to network modeling; but for those that are, the network models provide a simple, heuristic mechanism by which constitutive and conservation relationships can be represented. Furthermore, the rather well-developed analytical techniques for networks provide straightforward algorithms by which the networks themselves can be converted directly into state equations. When the state equations themselves promise to be too complex for useful, general solution, the network provides a ready-made flow chart for the construction of a digital-computer program for simulation of the population. If an analog computer with time delays or a digitally simulated analog computer is available, the network is more than a flow chart, it is essentially the program itself. Every key parameter and variable is conspicuously apparent and accessible in the network model. Therefore, modifications usually are extremely easy to make; and this in turn greatly facilitates the construction of the model itself.
Embattled animals in a theatre of species

The theatre season in the fall of 2011 was an interesting time in New York for someone who (like me) works on both Theatre and Animal Studies. Just about everyone I knew or met asked me if I’d seen War Horse, and if I’d loved it as much as they had. In time I learned to couch my answer in terms that would make it less disappointing to my interlocutor, by saying that, actually, the animal play that I’d been really impressed by was Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. This 2010 Pulitzer Prize Finalist by the American playwright Rajiv Joseph reached nowhere near the huge audience numbers as the London-bred War Horse, nor did it garner anything like the English play’s accolades (War Horse won the Tony Award for Best New Play, among numerous other prizes). Nevertheless, most people I talked to had at least heard of it, if only because the Broadway production starred Robin Williams in the title role.
Mechanical performance of poly(propylene carbonate)-based blends and composites

Abstract Over the past few years, the field of renewable polymers has attracted wide interest across the scientific community especially owing to their bionature properties such as biobased, biodegradable, biocompatible, and biorenewable. In fact, biopolymers help to reduce the global dependence on petroleum-based polymers, reduce the accumulation of persistent plastic waste, and balance greenhouse gases by sequestrating or better controlling the emission of CO2 in the environment. Among the many different biopolymers available, polyalkylene carbonates (PAC) occupy a special place as they are synthesized from CO2, thereby leveraging enhanced sustainability compared to other biopolymers that are usually made from sugar resources. Polypropylene carbonate (PPC) is one such PAC that is synthesized from CO2 and propylene oxide in the presence of a metal catalyst. Compared to other PACs, the primary advantage of PPC is its wide range of tunable mechanical properties obtained by controlling the amount of ether linkage. This chapter provides a general overview of PACs and their synthesis mechanisms especially focusing on PPC, its blends (with bio- and synthetic polymers) and composites (with macro-, micro-, and nanoreinforcements) with special emphasis on the mechanical properties of PPC-based blends and composites. Finally, a summary of the static mechanical performance of PPC-based blends and composites is presented with criteria for designing these materials with enhanced properties.
Letter by Saad et al Regarding Article, “Outcomes With Intravascular Ultrasound-Guided Stent Implantation: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials in the Era of Drug-Eluting Stents”

Elgendy et al1 performed a meta-analysis of randomized trials to evaluate the cardiovascular outcomes with routine use of intravenous ultrasound (IVUS) during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) using drug-eluting stents (DES). The authors concluded that IVUS-guided PCI can reduce the risk of major adverse cardiac events compared with angiography-guided PCI, primarily by reducing the risk of target vessel revascularization. Reduction in stent thrombosis was also observed. Most of the patient population had diffuse coronary lesions (>30 mm). Unfortunately, the conclusion of this meta-analysis cannot be generalized …
Physical Mapping of Amplified Copies of the 5-Enolpyruvylshikimate-3-Phosphate Synthase Gene in Glyphosate-Resistant Amaranthus tuberculatus.

Recent and rapid evolution of resistance to glyphosate, the most widely used herbicides, in several weed species, including common waterhemp (Amaranthus tuberculatus), poses a serious threat to sustained crop production. We report that glyphosate resistance in A. tuberculatus was due to amplification of the 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-P synthase (EPSPS) gene, which encodes the molecular target of glyphosate. There was a positive correlation between EPSPS gene copies and its transcript expression. We analyzed the distribution of EPSPS copies in the genome of A. tuberculatus using fluorescence in situ hybridization on mitotic metaphase chromosomes and interphase nuclei. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis mapped the EPSPS gene to pericentromeric regions of two homologous chromosomes in glyphosate sensitive A. tuberculatus. In glyphosate-resistant plants, a cluster of EPSPS genes on the pericentromeric region on one pair of homologous chromosomes was detected. Intriguingly, two highly glyphosate-resistant plants harbored an additional chromosome with several EPSPS copies besides the native chromosome pair with EPSPS copies. These results suggest that the initial event of EPSPS gene duplication may have occurred because of unequal recombination mediated by repetitive DNA. Subsequently, gene amplification may have resulted via several other mechanisms, such as chromosomal rearrangements, deletion/insertion, transposon-mediated dispersion, or possibly by interspecific hybridization. This report illustrates the physical mapping of amplified EPSPS copies in A. tuberculatus.
Using adult learning concepts to assist patients in completing advance directives.

Background Despite the fact that advance directives are legal documents that allow people to direct their future health care, few Americans have enacted them. Because lack of knowledge about what they are, and confusion regarding the process needed to complete one are the primary barriers for completion, patient education can be the key element in promoting the use of advance directives. Conclusion This article offers some teaching strategies nurses may use to address patients' ignorance and confusion and help patients understand that, although advance directives do not help people make end-of-life decisions, they serve as a mechanism by which a person's wishes may be carried out.
Visual cognitive algorithms for high-dimensional data and super-intelligence challenges

Abstract In the long run the cognitive algorithms intend to make super-intelligent machines and super-intelligent humans. This paper presents a technical process to reach specific aspects of super-intelligence that are out of the current human cognitive abilities. These aspects are inabilities to discover patterns in large numeric multidimensional data with a naked eye. This is a long-standing problem in Data Science and Modeling in general. The major obstacle is in human inability to see n-D data by a naked eye and our needs in visualization means to represent n-D data in 2-D losslessly. While these means exist their number and abilities are limited. This paper expands the class of such lossless visual methods, by further developing a new concept of Generalized Shifted Paired Coordinates. It shows the advantages of proposed reversible lossless technique by representing real data and by proving mathematical properties.
A Theoretical Study of Velocity SAR Imaging of a Moving, Nonstationary Scene

The concept of the “velocity synthetic aperture radar” (VSAR)—a multiaperture sensor capable of measuring radial velocities in the scene and utilizing this information to correct motion-induced imaging distortions inherent to SAR—was proposed two decades ago. Lately, with the emergence of truly multichannel systems featuring antenna arrays with dozens of elements, the approach has been enjoying a renewed interest. The viability and effectiveness of the algorithm were successfully demonstrated in a series of airborne field campaigns that involved imaging both man-made targets and natural maritime features. These experiments and the wealth of resulting data also underscored the need for comprehensive mathematical descriptions of expected target signatures in the collected “image stacks” and for further refinements of the VSAR imaging theory. This paper addresses both tasks by building upon the available mathematical results developed for the along-track interferometric SAR imagery of distributed evolving targets. The approach allows simultaneous accounting for all essential effects known to impact SAR imagery of a target or an extended feature: its azimuth velocity, radial velocity and acceleration, as well as finite coherence time. The emphasis is on obtaining closed-form expressions that could readily illustrate the structure and behavior of the VSAR stack spectrum of such a target and help gauge anticipated focusing improvement stemming from the VSAR image correction. In particular, it is rigorously shown that the VSAR algorithm is successful in situations when SAR defocusing arises predominantly from radial motion and short coherence times—the resulting resolution is generally no worse than that of the corresponding real-aperture radar. On the other hand, strong defocusing due to azimuth translation may be problematic to compensate within the VSAR approach framework.
A continuum model for concrete informed by mesoscale studies

The paper describes a novel computational approach to refine continuum models for penetration calculations which involves two stages. At the first stage, a trial continuum model is used to model penetration into a concrete target. Model parameters are chosen to match experimental data on penetration depth. Deformation histories are recorded at few locations in the target around the penetrator. In the second stage, these histories are applied to the boundaries of a representative volume comparable to the element size in large scale penetration simulation. Discrete-continuum approach is used to model the deformation and failure of the material within the representative volume. The same deformation histories are applied to a single element which uses the model to be improved. Continuum model may include multiple parameters or functions which cannot be easily found using experimental data. We propose using mesoscale response to constrain such parameters and functions. Such tuning of the continuum model using ...
Self-seeding in cancer.

Despite significant progress in our understanding and treatment of metastatic cancer, nearly all metastatic cancers are incurable. In this Review, we use breast cancer as a model to highlight the limitations and inconsistencies of our existing treatment paradigms for metastatic disease. In turn, we offer a new theory of metastasis, termed “self-seeding. ” The self-seeding paradigm, well validated in mathematical, experimental and animal models, challenges the notion that cancers cells that leave a primary tumor cell, unidirectionally seed metastases in regional lymph nodes and/or distant sites. In contrast, there is mounting evidence that circulating tumor cells can move multi-directionally, seeding not only distant sites but also their tumors of origin. Here, we show that the self-seeding model may answer many of the quandaries intrinsic to understanding how cancer spreads and ultimately kills. Indeed, redirecting our research and treatment efforts within the self-seeding model may offer new possibilities for eradicating metastatic cancer.
Personality and online environment factors differ for posters, trolls, lurkers, and confessors on Yik Yak

Abstract Anonymous social media applications, such as Yik Yak, continue to rise in popularity, but little research has examined the individual differences and influence of online environment on different posting behaviors. 173 undergraduate students completed an anonymous online survey assessing the dark-triad, sadism, the five-factor model, online environmental factors, and different behaviors on Yik Yak (i.e., posting, trolling, confessing, lurking). Results suggested different personality and environmental factors were associated with the various posting behaviors. Trolls scored significantly higher on psychopathy, online acceptability of prejudiced comments, and lower on agreeableness; confessors scored significantly higher on neuroticism, Machiavellianism, feelings of reduced accountability online, and lower on social moral values. In contrast, lurkers scored significantly higher on conscientiousness and lower on Machiavellianism. By examining these different posting behaviors, it may be possible to identify and deter at-risk youth through education on being a good digital citizen.
Modeling for Biological Resource Management

In a management context, analytical models of biological populations can be used to develop a theory of resource conservation and exploitation, or detailed simulation models can be used to evaluate the performance of various management policies with respect to particular resource systems. Both activities can benefit by developing as strong a connection between them as possible. This problem is discussed especially with reference to stage (age, size, etc.) structured resources that encompass fisheries, forests, insect rearing, and wildlife management problems. Other questions dealt with are: evaluating and comparing solutions to narrowly defined problems in more broadly defined contexts; parameter uncertainty in the context of deterministic models; boundary conditions that accompany planning over finite time horizons; the effects of environmental stochasticity in management analyses.
Flame resistant wool and wool blends

Abstract: Wool is naturally flame retardant. It does not ignite easily, burns with a self-extinguishing flame, and forms a soft dissipating ash residue whereas synthetic fibers form a hard, molten bead residue with melt-drip behavior. Wool is preferred since it presents fewer hazards for industrial and military uses in furnishings and apparel. Many and varied chemistries were developed historically for improving fire performance of wool fibers. They include zirconium, phosphonate, halogenated compounds, generally applied by exhaust similar to conventional mordant dyeing. Increasing commercial demands coupled with environmental and toxicological concerns over the materials and treatments led to including high performance (HP) heat-resistant fibers in wool blended yarns and fabrics but with limitations including negative impact on fabric hand, dyeing, cost, and comfort. A novel HP poly-imidesiloxane (PISi) was synthesized for application to all-wool fabrics. Burning inhibition of PISi-treated wool as measured by char length, matched that of fabric blended of 50% wool, 48% Nomex®, 1% Kevlar®, 1% conducting fiber but PISi-treated wool was superior in maintaining a dissipating ash residue. A survey is provided of conventional and modern approaches to improving flame resistance (FR) of wool and wool blends.
Categorization and the parsing of objects

Several models of categorization suggest that fixed inputs (features) are combined together to create categorization rules. It is also possible that categorization influences what features are perceived and used. This experiment explored the possibility that categorization training influences how an object is decomposed into parts. In the first part of this experiment, subjects learned to categorize objects based on particular sets of line segments. Following categorization training, subjects were tested in a whole-part decomposition task, making speeded judgments of “does whole X contain probe Y.” All diagnostic and nondiagnostic category parts were used as parts within the whole objects, and as probes. Categorization training in the first part of the experiment affected performance on the second task. In particular, subjects were faster to respond when the whole object contained a part that was diagnostic for categorization than when it contained a nondiagnostic part. When the probe was a diagnostic category part subjects were faster to respond that it was present than absent, and when the probe was a nondiagnostic part, subjects were faster to respond that it was absent than that it was present. These results are discussed in terms of perceptual sensitivity, response bias, and the modulating influence of experience.
Standards for Psychological Measurement

Three generations of the documents informally known as “testing standards” have been published (American Psychological Association, American Educational Research Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education, 1954, 1966, 1974). The first two documents described the proper content of manuals provided by publishers to accompany tests; they were primarily standards of information. The third added requirements for test users.
Comparative Assessment of Utilization and Hospital Outcomes of Veterans Receiving VA and Non-VA Outpatient Dialysis.

OBJECTIVE Growing demand for VA dialysis exceeds its supply and travel distances prohibit many Veterans from receiving dialysis in a VA facility, leading to increased use of dialysis from non-VA providers. This study compared utilization and hospitalization outcomes among Veterans receiving chronic dialysis in VA and non-VA settings in 2008-2013. DATA SOURCES VA, Medicare, and national disease registry data. STUDY DESIGN National cohort of 27,301 Veterans initiating dialysis, observed for a period of 2 years after treatment initiation. We used multinomial logistic regression to examine associations between patient characteristics and dialysis use in VA, non-VA community settings via VA Purchased Care (VA-PC), community settings via Medicare, or Dual settings. Zero-inflated negative binomial regression was used to compare risk of hospitalization and days spent in the hospital across dialysis settings. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Sixty-seven percent of Veterans obtained community-based dialysis exclusively via Medicare, 11 percent in the community via VA-PC, 4 percent in VA, and 18 percent in Dual settings. Financial and geographic access factors were important predictors of dialysis setting, but days spent in the hospital and risk of hospitalization did not differ meaningfully across settings. CONCLUSIONS Most Veterans obtained dialysis in the community. Dialysis setting appeared to have little impact on risk of hospitalization among Veterans.
Do Voters Discount Political Scandals over Time

This paper explores how political scandals are discounted over time. Previous research has shown that voters respond disproportionately to recent economic conditions when evaluating incumbents. We ...
Atypical proliferating epidermoid cyst with xanthomatous reaction

Abstract Proliferating epidermoid cysts, or proliferating epidermal inclusion cysts, are rare tumors characterized by epidermal keratinization and a cyst wall lined by epithelium typically seen in an epidermoid cyst. Though proliferating trichilemmal cysts have been well described in the literature, little has been written about proliferating epidermoid cysts. We report a unique case of a proliferating epidermoid cyst with malignant transformation and associated exuberant xanthomatous reaction. Our case highlights the importance of close histologic evaluation of typically benign cysts.
332 PROMOTION OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE THROUGH MAINSTREAM ATHLETIC PUBLICATIONS.

The opportunity to educate and encourage practices of preventive medicine has proven to be an arduous task with respect to populations of athletes. There is often a lack of contact with health care professionals and an attitude of invincibility among athletic populations concerning health maintenance. I present a situation of advocating such practices through the publication of performance-related articles in a popular triathlon magazine, Inside Triathlon. Articles published deal with scientifically related performance issues and have the underlying theme of practical implications for established health maintenance practices, including alcohol abuse, sun exposure, smoking, and performance-enhancing drugs. The quantity of “hits” totaling nearly 25,000 per article on the publication9s Web site and the quality of feedback from readers have both been promising and showed that the underlying preventive medical themes of the articles are well elucidated by readers. The use of such prominent athletic publications as an instrument of health promotion has not been documented in the medical literature and should be further investigated through the use of other well-known periodicals.