cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
High-dose-rate intraoperative brachytherapy and radical surgical resection in the management of recurrent head-and-neck cancer.

Abstract Purpose To report long-term outcomes of high-dose-rate (HDR) intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) at the time of radical resection for recurrent head-and-neck cancer and determine potential prognostic factors. Methods and Materials Between 7/1998 and 11/2011, 57 patients with recurrent head-and-neck cancer underwent radical resection with curative intent and single-fraction IORT to 59 sites using a Harrison-Anderson-Mick applicator with remotely after-loaded 192Ir HDR brachytherapy. Results One- and 3-year in-field progression-free survival (IFPFS) was 67% and 57%, respectively. In a multivariate model, IORT dose >15 Gy (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.11; p = 0.02), and prerecurrence disease-free interval >12 months (HR = 0.29; p = 0.04) independently predicted for superior IFPFS; nodal extracapsular extension (HR = 4.62; p = 0.003) predicted for inferior IFPFS. Three-year overall survival (OS) was 50% vs. 32% in those achieving in-field control vs. those not achieving in-field control (p = 0.04). Grade 3+ toxicity occurred in 37% and was unrelated to IORT dose. Conclusions HDR-IORT combined with radical surgical resection is associated with durable IFPFS and long-term overall survival in select patients with acceptable treatment-related morbidity. IORT dose >15 Gy should be used to increase the likelihood of disease control. The ability to achieve in-field local control in this poor prognostic cohort was associated with improved survival outcomes.
F.A.C.E.S. (Faculty Academic Community Education Showcase): Professional Growth Experiences in a Career University.

Institutes of higher education exist for the purpose of developing, fostering, nurturing, and stimulating the intellectual growth and development of students. The core values of a college education provide students conceptual and practical educational opportunities that focus on improving their skills and knowledge. These skills and knowledge translate into purposeful, reallife learning experiences. However, in the academic community, learning is not restricted to students. Faculty, too, must be supported and provided opportunities for personal and professional growth and development. Although professional development is not a novel concept in the education profession, schools often take up the gauntlet, but fall short of running with it. A commitment to share the collective skills, teaching strategies, and experiences of colleagues in the university community should be one of the institution’s core values. The need today for academic rigor and the emphasis on accountability and evidence of professional development of teachers have become key components in faculty performance evaluations in both teaching and research higher educational institutional settings. This paper examines how a career university addresses professional development by embracing change in its faculty orientation process at the start of the academic year through the implementation of a faculty development program and sustainable model for building a teaching and learning showcase of faculty talent. The orientation program - F.A.C.E.S. (Faculty Academic Community Education Showcase) - provides a series of interactive seminars conducted by and for full-time faculty at the Johnson & Wales University (JWU) Providence, Rhode Island, campus that mirrors their professional expertise, educational best practices, and career experiences within and beyond the JWU academic community. It examines the program goals and objectives, evidence of its evaluation by participants and administration, and the follow-up programs in place to provide further opportunities throughout the academic year that meet faculty needs to learn and engage in a learning environment that translates into and enhances the learning experiences of their students.
The role of puberty in red-cell production in hereditary haemolytic anaemias.

Summary. Long-term follow-up of two male siblings with hereditary non-spherocytic haemolytic anaemia revealed marked haematological improvement leading to normal haemoglobin concentration in the older boy undergoing puberty, whereas the younger brother who was prepubescent remained anaemic. While the erythrocyte life-span was the same in both patients, the total nucleated erythron, red-cell volume, and consequently the rate of red-cell production, was significantly higher in the older sibling. This finding suggested that puberty in males may play an important role in the compensation of haemolytic process. This hypothesis was further substantiated by analysis of data in 119 patients with hereditary spherocytic and non-spherocytic haemolytic anaemia. In comparing the haemoglobin concentration it was found that affected adult males had significantly higher haemoglobin concentration than affected children. This haematological discrepancy is thought to be the result of erythroid stimulation by androgens produced endogenously.
Heterogeneity in the developmental potential of motor neuron progenitors revealed by clonal analysis of single cells in vitro

The differentiation of neural progenitors into distinct classes within the central nervous system occurs over an extended period during which cells become progressively restricted in their fates. In the developing spinal cord, Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) controls neural fates in a concentration-dependent manner by establishing discrete ventral progenitor domains characterized by specific combinations of transcription factors. It is unclear whether motor neuron progenitors can maintain their identities when expanded in vitro and whether their developmental potentials are restricted when exposed to defined extracellular signals. We have generated mice expressing the enhanced green fluorescent protein under the control of the Nkx6.1 promoter, enabling fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), purification and culture of individual spinal progenitors at clonal density, and analysis of their progeny. We demonstrate that cells isolated after progenitor domains are established are heterogeneous with respect to maintaining their identity after in vitro expansion. Most Nkx6.1+ progenitors lose their ventral identity following several divisions in culture, whereas a small subset is able to maintain its identity. Thus, subtype-restricted progenitors from the Nkx6.1+ region are present in the ventral spinal cord, although at a lower frequency than expected. Clones that maintain a motor neuron identity assume a transcriptional profile characteristic of thoracic motor neurons, despite some having been isolated from non-thoracic regions initially. Exposure of progenitors to Bone Morphogenetic Protein-4 induces some dorsal cell type characteristics in their progeny, revealing that lineage-restricted progenitor subtypes are not fully committed to their fates. These findings support a model whereby continuous Shh signaling is required to maintain the identity of ventral progenitors isolated from the spinal cord, including motor neuron progenitors, after in vitro expansion. They also demonstrate that pre-patterned neural progenitors isolated from the central nervous system can change their regional identity in vitro to acquire a broader developmental potential.
Prediction of Multiple Tandem OB-Fold Domains in Telomere End-Binding Proteins Pot1 and Cdc13

The heterodimeric Oxytricha nova telomere end binding protein, the original telomere end binding protein characterized, contains four OB-fold domains used for recognition of single-stranded telomeric DNA. In contrast, only solitary OB-fold domains have been found in the telomere end binding proteins from yeast and higher eukaryotes. Using a sliding-window algorithm coupled with sequence profile-profile analysis, we provide support for the existence of multiple OB-fold domains in two other telomeric ssDNA binding proteins, vertebrate Pot1 and budding yeast Cdc13. This common usage of multiple, tandem OB-fold domains in telomeric end binding proteins extends the known evolutionary conservation of eukaryotic end-protection mechanisms.
Thermal stability of primary amines

Tertiary-amyl amine has been decomposed in single-pulse shock-tube experiments. Rate expressions for several of the important primary steps are This leads to D(CH3H) – D(NH2H) = −10.5 kJ and D[(CH3)3CH] – D[(CH3)2NH2CH] = + 6 kJ. The present and earlier comparative rate single-pulse shock-tube data when combined with high-pressure hydrazine decomposition results-(after correcting for fall off effects through RRKM calculations) gives where kr(…) is the recombination rate involving the appropriate radicals. This suggests that in this context amino radical behavior is analogous to that of alkyl radicals. If this agreement is exact, then Rate expressions for the primary step in the decomposition of a variety of primary amines have been computed. In the case of benzyl amine where data exist the agreement is satisfactory. The following differences in bond energies have been estimated:
In Vivo Neutralization of TNF-α Promotes Humoral Autoimmunity by Preventing the Induction of CTL

Neutralization of TNF-alpha in humans with rheumatoid arthritis or Crohn's disease has been associated with the development of humoral autoimmunity. To determine the effect of TNF-alpha neutralization on cell-mediated and humoral-mediated responses, we administered anti-TNF-alpha mAb to mice undergoing acute graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) using the parent-into-F(1) model. In vivo neutralization of TNF-alpha blocked the lymphocytopenic features characteristic of acute GVHD and induced a lupus-like chronic GVHD phenotype (lymphoproliferation and autoantibody production). These effects resulted from complete inhibition of detectable antihost CTL activity and required the presence of anti-TNF-alpha mAb for the first 4 days after parental cell transfer, indicating that TNF-alpha plays a critical role in the induction of CTL. Moreover, an in vivo blockade of TNF-alpha preferentially inhibited the production of IFN-gamma and blocked IFN-gamma-dependent up-regulation of Fas; however, cytokines such as IL-10, IL-6, or IL-4 were not inhibited. These results suggest that a therapeutic TNF-alpha blockade may promote humoral autoimmunity by selectively inhibiting the induction of a CTL response that would normally suppress autoreactive B cells.
Beyond the river: the benefits of cooperation on international rivers

International rivers can elicit cooperation or conflict. The choice between the two will in large part be determined by perceptions of their relative benefits. In this paper, we explore the dynamics that drive the choice between conflict and cooperation, and present a simple framework for examining the extent of potential benefits that could underlie these choices. The paper seeks to broaden the range of perceived benefits, as some are obvious and some are much less apparent. The framework categorizes four types of cooperative benefits. First, cooperation will enable better management of ecosystems, providing benefits to the river, and underpinning all other benefits that can be derived. Second, efficient, cooperative management and development of shared rivers can yield major benefits from the river, in increased food and energy production, for example. Third, cooperation on an international river will result in the reduction of costs because of the river, as tensions between co-riparian states will always be present, to a greater or lesser extent, and those tensions will generate costs. And finally, as international rivers can be catalytic agents, cooperation that yields benefits from the river and reduces costs because of the river can pave the way to much greater cooperation between states, even economic integration among states, generating benefits beyond the river. While each of these four types of benefits could potentially be obtained in all international river basins, the extent and relative importance of each type will vary greatly between basins, reflecting a wide range of political, geographic, economic and cultural circumstances. In some cases, the scale of benefits may not justify the costs of cooperative actions, in others the sum of benefits could be very high. The paper concludes that identifying and understanding the range of often inter-related benefits derived from the cooperative management and development of international rivers is central both to better management of the world's rivers, and to relations among the nations sharing those rivers.
Effects of aging and working memory demands on prospective memory

The current study used event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to examine the effects of aging, increasing the working memory demands of the ongoing activity, and a prospective memory load on the neural correlates of prospective remembering and target recognition. The behavioral data revealed that the success of prospective memory was sensitive to working memory load in younger, but not older, adults and that a prospective memory load had a greater effect on the performance of older adults than that of younger adults. The ERP data revealed age-related differences in the neural correlates of the detection of prospective cues, post-retrieval processes that support prospective memory, and target recognition. Our results support the hypothesis that there are age-related differences in the ability to recruit preparatory attentional processes that underlie prospective memory, and demonstrate that younger and older adults may recruit somewhat different neural generators to support prospective memory and working memory.
Managing Equivocality and Relational Paradox in the Oslo Peace Negotiations

The purpose of this article is to more clearly understand the role of equivocality in the conflict and negotiation setting. 7b accomplish this goal, Relational Order Theory was described and used t...
Para onde foram os bebês?: Em busca de uma Antropologia de bebês (e de seus cuidadores)

En casi toda la literatura antropologica, los bebes son a menudo negligenciados, como si estuvieran fuera del ambito del concepto de cultura, asi como de los metodos de la disciplina. Este articulo propone seis razones para esa exclusion de los bebes del debate antropologico: las memorias y el status parental del propio antropologo, la cuestion problematica de la agencia de los bebes y su supuesta dependencia de otras personas, sus rutinas vinculadas a las mujeres, su aparente incapacidad de comunicacion, su inconveniente propension a fluir por varios agujeros, y su aparente bajo grado de racionalidad. La investigacion de como los bebes son concebidos fuera del mundo occidental industrializado puede llevarnos a percibir los bebes de una forma bastante distinta de la comprendida en el Occidente (incluso por antropologos). El confronto de esos dados comparativos sugiere la importancia de considerarlos sujetos relevantes y beneficos para objetivos de la Antropologia.
Effect of packing on the catalytic isomerization of cyclopropane in fixed and fluidized beds

An experimental study with fixed and fluidized beds in the isomerization of cyclopropane on a silica alumina catalyst is reported for a temperature range of 150° to 250°C. and of 5 to 150 W/F (g-catalyst, hr./g.-mole). The effects of various cylindrical screen packing, 0.2-, 0.4-, and 1.0-in. diameter, and 1.0-in. diameter pall ring, on final conversion were determined. Reactor scale effects were also considered with reactors of 0.9-, 1.8-, and 6.0-in. diameter and bed heights 1.8 to 11.0 in. Overall conversions were higher in a fluidized bed with packing than in a normal fluidized bed but were less than in a fixed bed, though approaching it in some cases. Rate data from the fixed bed closely followed first-order kinetics. When the same catalyst was tested in a normal fluidized bed, the rate was dependent on linear gas velocity and catalyst bed height. With packing present in the fluidized bed, this dependency was much less, but packing size and shape had some effect. Several previously proposed reactor models were considered for correlating the data.
Contemporary clinical management of isolated high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia

High-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN) is a premalignant lesion associated with increased risk of coexistent cancer or delayed progression to carcinoma. Extended biopsy schemes have improved the ability to rule out concurrent cancers, increased the detection of isolated HGPIN and removed the routine necessity for immediate repeat biopsy. As the natural history of HGPIN is poorly defined, and no non-invasive marker allows monitoring of progression to cancer, routine delayed interval biopsy should be considered in all patients. In this article, we present an overview of the existing literature on HGPIN and a proposed strategy for clinical management.
Robust Background-Subtraction for Person Detection in Thermal Imagery

We present a new contour-based background-subtraction technique to detect people in widely varying thermal imagery. Statistical background-subtraction is first used to identify local regions-of-interest. Within each region, gradient information in the foreground and background are combined to form a contour saliency map. After thinning, an A* path-constrained search along watershed boundaries is used to complete any broken contour segments. Lastly, the contour image is flood-filled to produce silhouettes. Results are presented that demonstrate the robustness of the approach to detect people across a wide range of thermal imagery using a fixed set of parameters.
Electronic Waste Recycling Preferences in California: The Role of Environmental Attitudes and Behaviors

The growing stockpiles of electronic waste (e-waste) pose a threat to human and environmental health if improperly disposed because of the hazardous materials in e-waste. The number of recycling programs across the U.S. is increasing, yet little is known about household e-waste recycling preferences. Our survey of California households indicates that most prefer curbside recycling, but drop-off recycling at regional collection centers also has widespread support. Most importantly, we find that it is important to include information on environmental attitudes and behaviors when estimating willingness to pay (WTP) for e- waste recycling; neglecting environmental attitudes can result in a biased WTP. Other key predictors of WTP include age, gender, ethnicity, and attitudes toward the role of business in protecting the environment.
Perceived Facilitators and Inhibitors of Effectiveness in Organizational Work Teams

This study investigated the factors that members of organizational work teams believe facilitate and inhibit group performance effectiveness. This objective was pursued via two research questions: (1) What do group members identify as facilitative and inhibitive influences on group progress? and (2) Are these perceived factors associated with actual group effectiveness? The study found that compatible work schedules, motivated group members, adequate informational resources, competent group leadership, and organizational assistance were the factors that best distinguished volunteer-based, work-team effectiveness. The findings of this study suggest that management must pay attention to a variety of individual, group, and organizational factors in order to facilitate the progress and effectiveness of organizational work teams.
RAGE (Receptor for Advanced Glycation Endproducts), RAGE Ligands, and their role in Cancer and Inflammation

The Receptor for Advanced Glycation Endproducts [RAGE] is an evolutionarily recent member of the immunoglobulin super-family, encoded in the Class III region of the major histocompatability complex. RAGE is highly expressed only in the lung at readily measurable levels but increases quickly at sites of inflammation, largely on inflammatory and epithelial cells. It is found either as a membrane-bound or soluble protein that is markedly upregulated by stress in epithelial cells, thereby regulating their metabolism and enhancing their central barrier functionality. Activation and upregulation of RAGE by its ligands leads to enhanced survival. Perpetual signaling through RAGE-induced survival pathways in the setting of limited nutrients or oxygenation results in enhanced autophagy, diminished apoptosis, and (with ATP depletion) necrosis. This results in chronic inflammation and in many instances is the setting in which epithelial malignancies arise. RAGE and its isoforms sit in a pivotal role, regulating metabolism, inflammation, and epithelial survival in the setting of stress. Understanding the molecular structure and function of it and its ligands in the setting of inflammation is critically important in understanding the role of this receptor in tumor biology.
Continuous conditional random fields for efficient regression in large fully connected graphs

When used for structured regression, powerful Conditional Random Fields (CRFs) are typically restricted to modeling effects of interactions among examples in local neighborhoods. Using more expressive representation would result in dense graphs, making these methods impractical for large-scale applications. To address this issue, we propose an effective CRF model with linear scale-up properties regarding approximate learning and inference for structured regression on large, fully connected graphs. The proposed method is validated on real-world large-scale problems of image denoising and remote sensing. In conducted experiments, we demonstrated that dense connectivity provides an improvement in prediction accuracy. Inference time of less than ten seconds on graphs with millions of nodes and trillions of edges makes the proposed model an attractive tool for large-scale, structured regression problems.
A pilot project to understand medical rounds implications for information technology

This pilot research project examined the many purposes and activities of medical rounds. Crucial for teaching and patient care in an academic medical center, rounds were categorized against the framework of distributed cognition, a theory of cognition grounded in cognitive anthropology. Through a series of observations of interdisciplinary rounds in academic medical intensive care settings, supplemented by interviews with participants, the multiple purposes and perspectives of rounds were organized into a categorical list to aid future work on the topic, especially as they apply to technology development and the field of medical informatics. The theory of distributed cognition focuses on the idea of an activity system composed of a common body of knowledge that organizes the interactions of many actors and their tools around a common purpose. Applied first in educational and social settings, the theory is being applied to the healthcare arena. This work explores the application of such diffuse knowledge in an intensive care setting. The results of this pilot observation and interview study is a tentative taxonomy of types of medical rounds, as well as their characteristics and key facilitators. By first creating a clear conception of the types of rounds themselves, the path is cleared for future work on how distributed cognition can improve understanding of cognitive performance in the intensive care setting. This can allow the biomedical informatics community to incorporate aspects of this model into future information tool design, as well as improved teaching and patient safety. Careful attention should be given to the diverse needs represented in different types of rounds, and a modular approach employed to address them.
A Conversation with Eugene Wigner by J. Walsh

Eugene Wigner is one of the scientific emigres who left Europe in the 1920’s and 1930’s and settled in the United States, providing a crucial leavening of American science. Wigner is now 70 and living in active retirement in Princeton.
Some context for understanding the place of the general educational development degree in the relationship between educational attainment and smoking prevalence.

Abstract Introduction Individuals with a General Educational Development (GED) degree have the highest smoking prevalence of any education level, including high school dropouts without a GED. Yet little research has been reported providing a context for understanding the exception that the GED represents in the otherwise graded inverse relationship between educational attainment and smoking prevalence. We investigated whether the GED may be associated with a general riskier profile that includes but is not limited to increased smoking prevalence. Method Data were obtained from three years (2011–2013) of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health ([NSDUH], N = 55,940]). Prevalence of risky repertoire indicators (e.g., ever arrested, seldom/never wears a seatbelt), indicators of social instability (e.g., frequent relocations), and risky demographic characteristics (e.g., male gender) were compared among high school dropouts, GED holders, and high school graduates using Rao–Scott chi square goodness-of-fit tests and multiple logistic regression. Results Those with GEDs differed significantly between both high school dropouts and high school graduates across 19 of 27 (70.4%) risk indicators. Controlling for risky profile characteristics accounted for a significant but limited (25–30%) proportion of the variance in smoking prevalence across these three education levels. Conclusion GED holders exhibit a broad high-risk profile of which smoking is just one component. Future research evaluating additional risk indicators and mechanisms that may underpin this generalized risky repertoire are likely needed for a more complete understanding of GED's place in the important relationship between educational attainment and smoking prevalence.
Misplaced Certainty and The Onset of War

Realist scholarship tends to focus on the baleful consequences of uncertainty. In anarchy uncertainty about present and future intentions generates conflict – balancing, arms spirals, and war. Realists do not claim these always result from uncertainty, but uncertainty is generally considered a foundational starting point. We think certainty, not uncertainty, plays a much greater role in conflict than is recognized. In this paper we challenge realism’s implicit assumption by developing certainty, particularly misplaced certainty, as a distinct and common pathway to war. By misplaced certainty we mean cases where decision-makers are confident that they know each other’s capabilities and intentions or both, but they are wrong; and the sense of being right persists even in the face of disconfirming evidence. The paper has two parts. First, we conceptualize misplaced certainty by contrasting two models of the uncertainty/certainty relationship: the risk model, which captures our conventional way of talking about uncertainty and certainty in terms of probabilities; and what we call a confidence model, which draws on the idea that decision-makers might reach certainty as a result of a fear of uncertainty. The confidence model highlights an affective dimension of certainty, and suggests scope conditions for applying the risk model. In the second part of the paper we take two examples of conflict pathways that often are thought to depend on uncertainty – spirals and appeasement – and show that the real driver is misplaced certainty. Combining the logic we develop here of motivated misplaced certainty with cognitivist and domestic politics explanations of misplaced certainty already in the literature, the several dynamics of certainty would seem to challenge the privileged role of uncertainty in IR thinking.
Abstract LB-418: A live-cell miRNA reporter library for identifying non-genetic drug resistance networks at single-cell resolution

The effectiveness of targeted cancer therapies is limited by cellular resistance. Emerging research has demonstrated that a major source of drug resistance is non-genetic: pre-existing heterogeneity in protein expression levels, or induction of adaptive feedback loops, can protect cells from the effects of kinase inhibitors and other drugs. Traditional genomic or proteomic techniques may fail to identify key resistance pathways because they do not stem from changes in genetic sequences, are often transient in nature, and may operate in only a subset of cells within a population. To address this challenge, we have developed a library of over 80 live-cell reporters that, in combination with high-throughput automated microscopy, enable the identification of transiently active resistance pathways in drug-treated cells. These reporters are based on miRNA regulatory sequences since numerous miRNAs have been implicated in drug resistance and because miRNAs can act as surrogate indicators for the activation of signaling pathways in which they participate. We have developed and validated a novel ratiometric reporter design for optimal detection of miRNA expression changes at single-cell resolution and have constructed retroviral reporters for miRNAs involved in apoptosis, cell proliferation, cancer stem cells, metabolism, and stress response. Live imaging of mammary epithelial cells treated with inhibitors targeting EGFR, PI3-K, mTOR, and Bcl-2 identified a set of 20-30 miRNA reporters with significant expression level alterations in surviving cells that are consistent with miRNA expression changes characteristic of cancer cells. Bioinformatic analyses of these miRNAs revealed commonly regulated pathways and downstream targets, including Bcl-2 and Cyclin-D. Thus, the reporter library is capable of identifying, in living cells, pathways involved in the cellular response to targeted cancer therapies. By identifying components of the signaling networks controlling inhibitor resistance, we hope to discover new drug targets that can be used to sensitize tumor cells to existing targeted therapies. The reporter library can be easily expressed in most cell lines of interest and should have broad utility for identifying transiently regulated pathways. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-418. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-LB-418
Experimental Stress Characterization and Numerical Simulation for Copper Pumping Analysis of Through-Silicon Vias

In this paper, a 3-D thermomechanical model of through-silicon vias (TSVs) has been analyzed and verified with in situ microscale strain measurements by synchrotron X-ray microdiffraction. Thereafter, a comprehensive stress/strain analysis on copper pumping and back-end-of-line (BEOL) cracking issues has been carried out. In addition, a design-of-experiments-based approach has been used to understand the effect of various parameters on copper pumping and BEOL stress. The results show that the smaller TSV diameter and thinner silicon die help reduce the copper pumping and thus mitigate BEOL stress.
Gut microbiota: How to build healthy growth-promoting gut communities.

Altered patterns of gut microbiota maturation are associated with impaired growth and undernutrition in early childhood. A closer look at historical contingency and the ecological processes that determine microbial community assembly might enlighten strategies to restore a health-promoting gut ecosystem.
Medical management of esophageal reflux.

Gastroesophageal reflux of varying severity is a common disorder for which medical attention is sought at all levels, from pharmacists to specialist physicians and surgeons. This brief overview represents my current understanding of reflux, its effects on the esophagus and my personal approach to treatment of these disorders. Of necessity, because the literature is so extensive (a Medline search on reflux from 1966 to 1993 yielded over 1500 papers.), I have relied in places on the extensive review by Marks and Richter [1]. My paper emphasizes the evaluation and treatment of patients with symptomatic reflux, esophagitis and its complications. It describes why it is important to grade the disorders so that the treatment used is appropriate to the severity of the disease. The more severe the disease, the more specific the diagnostic information needed and the more exacting the treatment. Various treatments and outcomes of therapy are discussed, and a role for surgery is defined. The essence of effective medical treatment of esophagitis is to reduce acidity of the refluxate to a level outside the optimum proteolytic pH range of pepsin, i.e. greater than pH 3.5.
Comparing the Effects of Three Online Cognitive Reappraisal Trainings on Well-Being

This experimental training study examined which of three brief online cognitive reappraisal training protocols best enhances well-being and emotion regulation in response to stressful events. Participants were randomly assigned to learn positive reframing, self-distancing, or temporal distancing, and were asked to practice these techniques in their daily lives as interpersonal stressors arose naturally. The control group was instructed to continue regulating their emotions as they naturally would. Compared to the control, all training groups showed decreased negative emotional reactivity to the visualization of a recent stressful event 2 weeks post-training. They also showed a significant increase in general well-being from baseline to post-training. Participants’ change in reappraisal accounted for the training groups’ increased well-being.
Hydrothermal Alteration of Glass from Underground Nuclear Tests: Formation and Transport of Pu-clay Colloids at the Nevada National Security Site

The testing of nuclear weapons at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS), formerly the Nevada Test Site (NTS), has led to the deposition of substantial quantities of plutonium into the environment. Approximately 2.8 metric tons (3.1×104 TBq) of Pu were deposited in the NNSS subsurface as a result of underground nuclear testing. While 3H is the most abundant anthropogenic radionuclide deposited in the NNSS subsurface (4.7×106 TBq), plutonium is the most abundant from a molar standpoint. The only radioactive elements in greater molar abundance are the naturally occurring K, Th, and U isotopes. 239Pu and 240Pu represent the majority of alpha-emitting Pu isotopes. The extreme temperatures associated with underground nuclear tests and the refractory nature of Pu results in most of the Pu (98%) being sequestered in melted rock, referred to as nuclear melt glass (Iaea, 1998). As a result, Pu release to groundwater is controlled, in large part, by the leaching (or dissolution) of nuclear melt glass over time. The factors affecting glass dissolution rates have been studied extensively. The dissolution of Pu-containing borosilicate nuclear waste glasses at 90oC has been shown to lead to the formation of dioctahedral smectite colloids. Colloid-facilitated transport of Pu at the NNSS hasmore » been observed. Recent groundwater samples collected from a number of contaminated wells have yielded a wide range of Pu concentrations from 0.00022 to 2.0 Bq/L. While Pu concentrations tend to fall below the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for drinking water (0.56 Bq/L), we do not yet understand what factors limit the Pu concentration or its transport behavior. To quantify the upper limit of Pu concentrations produced as a result of melt glass dissolution and determine the nature of colloids and Pu associations, we performed a 3 year nuclear melt glass dissolution experiment across a range of temperatures (25-200 °C) that represent hydrothermal conditions representative of the underground nuclear test cavities (when groundwater has re-saturated the nuclear melt glass and glass dissolution occurs). Colloid loads and Pu concentrations were monitored along with the mineralogy of both the colloids and the secondary mineral phases. The intent was to establish an upper limit for Pu concentrations at the NNSS, provide context regarding the Pu concentrations observed at the NNSS to date and the Pu concentrations that may be observed in the future. The results provide a conceptual model for the risks posed by Pu migration at the NNSS.« less
Partial reconstitution of the RNAi response in human cells using Drosophila gene products

While mammalian somatic cells are incapable of mounting an effective RNA interference (RNAi) response to viral infections, plants and invertebrates are able to generate high levels of viral short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) that can control many infections. In Drosophila, the RNAi response is mediated by the Dicer 2 enzyme (dDcr2) acting in concert with two cofactors called Loqs-PD and R2D2. To examine whether a functional RNAi response could be mounted in human somatic cells, we expressed dDcr2, in the presence or absence of Loqs-PD and/or R2D2, in a previously described human cell line, NoDice/ΔPKR, that lacks functional forms of human Dicer (hDcr) and PKR. We observed significant production of ∼21-nt long siRNAs, derived from a cotransfected double stranded RNA (dsRNA) expression vector, that were loaded into the human RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) and were able to significantly reduce the expression of a cognate indicator gene. Surprisingly, dDcr2 was able to produce siRNAs even in the absence of Loqs-PD, which is thought to be required for dsRNA cleavage by dDcr2. This result may be explained by our finding that dDcr2 is able to bind the human Loqs-PD homolog TRBP when expressed in human cells in the absence of Loqs-PD. We conclude that it is possible to at least partially rescue the ability of mammalian somatic cells to express functional siRNAs using gene products of invertebrate origin.
The Impact of the Sepsis-3 Septic Shock Definition on Previously Defined Septic Shock Patients.

Objective:The Third International Consensus Definitions Task Force (Sepsis-3) recently recommended changes to the definitions of sepsis. The impact of these changes remains unclear. Our objective was to determine the outcomes of patients meeting Sepsis-3 septic shock criteria versus patients meeting
Surface segregation and compositional instability at the surface of half-metal ferromagnets and related compounds

Interface engineering in order to exploit the possibilities of the interface electronic structure may be a route to a good spin injector. Nonetheless, for many potential half metallic systems, the stoichiometric surface is generally not in thermodynamic equilibrium with the bulk and the surface Debye temperature is often quite low. Several such classes of materials are currently under investigation as potential high spin polarization materials. These include the half metallic systems such as the semi-Heusler alloys, the manganese perovskites and the "simpler" oxides like chromium dioxide and magnetite. But all these materials suffer from a tendency of the surface to adopt a different composition than the bulk. Surface segregation and surface composition for three classes of potential half metallic systems: NiMnSb(100), La 0 . 6 5 (M=Ca,Pb,Sr) 0 . 3 5 MnO 3 (100) and CrO 2 will be explored. The surface compositional stability and different surface terminations will be compared with the results from recent electronic structure calculations.
COMPASS| New Media, Work Boundaries, and Privacy

This article, situated in the current trend toward integrating work and nonwork, analyzes how 100 Fortune 500 companies address employee privacy in the use of new media technologies. It seeks to answer two primary questions: (1) Do companies articulate an awareness of the tendency toward the simultaneous use of devices for work and nonwork? (2) What approaches are employed in an attempt to control such use? The findings reveal that 66% of corporate codes articulate some level of tolerance for integration. Despite this general trend toward permitting employees to use company-issued devices for nonwork and personal devices for work, 53% of the companies in this study nonetheless disclaim privacy expectations by employees while 67% engage in monitoring employees’ activities. The article goes on to critique these approaches for failing to reflect social realities of work and proposes an alternative approach to employee privacy in the simultaneous use of electronic devices for work and nonwork.
Factors Associated with Academic Performance in Physician Assistant Graduate Programs and National Certification Examination Scores. A Literature Review

Abstract Purpose A physician assistant (PA) is a state-licensed, nationally certified healthcare professional who practices medicine on healthcare teams with physicians and other providers. PAs practice medicine across the US (all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the US territories). In recent years, the demand for clinicians has increased dramatically which has led to an increase in the number of practicing PAs. To meet this growing demand for healthcare providers, identifying applicants capable of overcoming the challenges associated with the PA educational track in addition to the corresponding clinical training is crucial. Method In this paper, we reviewed the literature and discuss preadmission factors and their relationship toward completion of PA graduate programs and successfully passing the national certification examination (PANCE). Results Previous studies indicated a weak positive association between verbal GRE scores and success on the PANCE. Moreover, undergraduate GPA, and taking a variety of undergraduate science prerequisites correlates with passing the PANCE. Discussion Investigations of success correlates of other professional programs indicated that psychological factors may have potential for use in predicting whether an applicant would be successful in PA school. These include tests for emotional intelligence and particular personality characteristics.
Some Numerical Techniques for Maxwell’s Equations in Different Types of Geometries

Almost all the difficulties that arise in finite difference time domain solutions of Maxwell's equations are due to material interfaces (to which we include objects such as antennas, wires, etc.) Different types of difficulties arise if the geometrical features are much larger than or much smaller than a typical wave length. In the former case, the main difficulty has to do with the spatial discretisation, which needs to combine good geometrical flexibility with a relatively high order of accuracy. After discussing some options for this situation, we focus on the tatter case. The main problem here is to find a time stepping method which combines a very low cost per time step with unconditional stability. The first such method was introduced in 1999 and is based on the ADI principle. We will here discuss that method and some subsequent developments in this area.
Reactions at the A-ring of Proanthocyanidins

The most common reactions at the A-ring of proanthocyanidins (condensed tannins) are examples of electrophilic aromatic substitution where an electrophile displaces a hydrogen (i.e., at C-6 and/or C-8 of procyanidins and profisetinidins). Other types of displacements include dehalogenation, procyanidin degradation, and oxidative free-radical coupling. The hydroxylation pattern of the A-ring controls both reactivity and orientation of substitution, partially by steric effects, but electronic factors have more influence. Examples of A-ring reactions include those of commercial interest (methylolation, condensation) and of diagnostic interest (halogenation, alkylation, hydrogen/deuterium exchange). C- and O-glycosylation are further types of A-ring reactions leading to natural products.
My committment to veganism as responsible consumption in reference to SDG 12

Autorka clanku odhaluje svůj zavazek k veganstvi, a to v souvislostech SDG 12 „Odpovědna spotřeba a výroba“. Volbu sveho životniho stylu rozebira ve vztahu ke třem oblastem uceni: kognitivni, socialně-emocionalni a behavioralni; tuto osobni zkusenost reflektuje ve struktuře kompetenci navržených pro vzdělavani k cili SDG 12 v publikaci Vzdělavani pro cile udržitelneho rozvoje: cile uceni (UNESCO, 2017, vedouci autor Marco Rieckmann).
Toxicity of radiation and immunotherapy combinations.

Abstract Purpose Although immunotherapy is a rapidly emerging modality for cancer care, there have been multiple reports of fatal toxicities. There have also been cases of treatment-related deaths with combined non-immunotherapeutic biologic compounds with radiation therapy. Thus, provision of summative information appraising the safety of combinatorial immunotherapy and radiation therapy (iRT) is imperative. Because this has not been well characterized, this review summarizes the available evidence to date. Methods and materials Owing to the heterogeneity and relatively low quantity of published reports, this review was conducted in a narrative rather than systematic format. Results The results of combined iRT, both concurrent and sequential, are discussed for oncologic therapy of the brain, lung, liver, and prostate. Most evidence is from small samples and shorter follow-up but does consist of multiple prospective publications. Most data exist for ipilimumab, with programmed cell death -1 inhibitors emerging in more recent years. With 2 large phase 3 trials as exceptions, there were no instances of iRT-related deaths across all discussed studies. Altogether, grade 3 to 4 toxicities were relatively low in frequency; of the studies that compared iRT with an “immunotherapy only” or “RT only” cohort, none documented a clear increase in high-grade adverse events with combined-modality management. Conclusions Despite the low quantity of data, combined iRT offers encouraging safety profiles. There is no evidence that iRT produces an overt increase in high-grade toxicities. Further data, especially on concurrent iRT, are anticipated from numerous iRT trials that are currently ongoing worldwide.