cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The limited impact that cocaine use patterns have on neurocognitive functioning in individuals with cocaine use disorder

It is well-documented in the literature that cocaine use is associated with neurocognitive impairment. The manner in which patterns of cocaine use, such as years of use, recent use over the past month, and daily amount of cocaine use, moderate neurocognition has been studied in a relatively piecemeal manner. Hence, the purpose of the study was to evaluate whether cocaine use patterns modulate neurocognition in individuals with cocaine use disorder. Cocaine users who were cocaine-negative ( n=125) were divided into tertiles based on cocaine use patterns and the performances of the highest and lowest groups were compared on the following cognitive measures: Continuous Performance Task-II, n-back, and Hopkins Verbal Learning Task-Revised. Participants with cocaine use disorder who used for more years (25.2±0.6 versus 10.1±0.6 years; mean±standard error of the mean) and who had more recent cocaine use over the past month (26.3±0.5 versus 6.0±0.6 days) did not differ significantly on any of the neurocognitive variables when compared to those with use patterns of shorter duration and less frequency (all p's >0.05). Lastly, participants reporting the greatest amount daily cocaine use (1.8±0.0 g) demonstrated better performance on an auditory working memory task when compared to those with the lowest daily use (0.7±0.0 g; p=0.04). While one might expect that individuals who used greater amounts of cocaine over longer periods of time would demonstrate relatively poorer performance on measures of neurocognition, particularly in the initial phase of abstinence, our findings did not confirm this. While speculative, a potential explanation for these findings is that after an individual uses cocaine for a certain number of years, or uses a specific amount over time, then the deleterious effects of cocaine on neurocognition stabilizes, and increased duration of cocaine use does not further exacerbate those impairments.
Workers’ Active Consent

This chapter constructs a typology of worker susceptibility towards legal hegemony. The author contends that the labor law system has exercised varying degrees of hegemonic effects on workers. The affirmative workers have granted active consent to legal hegemony whereas the indifferent, ambivalent, and critical workers have conferred passive consent. The radical workers have given no consent to legal hegemony at all. Furthermore, this chapter studies the affirmative workers in great depth. It concludes that the labor law system exercises double hegemony on state–labor and capital–labor relations in such ways that the affirmative workers have not come to challenge the capitalist economy and party-state fundamentally.
Minimally Invasive Surgery in Infants and Children

The evolution of minimally invasive surgical techniques for adults has been among the most important surgical developments of the last century. Much of the morbidity, stress, and pain of an operation are due to the trauma of the access wound. By decreasing the size of the incision, the postoperative morbidity and pain should be diminished. The potential advantages of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) have been documented in many adult and animal studies. The application of minimally invasive techniques to infants and children has advanced more slowly than in adults. This delay in development has multiple causes. Surgical instruments developed for adults are cumbersome and less safe when used in infants and children. No single procedure propelled the evolution of MIS in neonates like laparoscopic cholecystomy in adults. Medical practitioners have frequently underestimated the importance of pain and stress caused by surgical incisions in children who are less able to articulate their distress. The absolute length of an open surgical incision in a neonate is short and thought to be less traumatic. However, these incisions are proportionally as long as incisions for similar surgical procedures in adults. Due to the small size of neonates and young children, the intracavitary working space for endoscopic procedures is small, making procedures in this age group more technically diffi cult. Development of smaller instruments and documentation of the safety of endoscopic techniques have allowed pediatric surgeons to apply thoracoscopy and laparoscopy to infants and children. Over the last 15 years, there has been a virtual explosion in neonatal minimally invasive surgical procedures. This chapter will outline the current procedures commonly performed 12
Carbohydrate Pyrolysis. II. Formation of Furfural and Furfuryl Alcohol during the Pyrolysis of Selected Carbohydrates with Acidic and Basic Catalysts

The pyrolysis of five major carbohydrates, glucose, maltose, cellobiose, amylose and cellulose was studied in an inert atmosphere using a thermogravimetric system coupled with a mass spectrometer. The mass spectra of the evolving gaseous mixture were taken at regular intervals and, utilizing a special computerized evaluation program, the composition of the gases was determined as function of time and decomposition temperature. The results obtained with these five carbohydrates showed considerable qualitative and quantitative differences between their pyrolytic decomposition. This confirms that molecular weight and the type of glucosidic coupling greatly affect the pyrolytic reaction mechanism. Acidic catalysts increased the amount of pyrolytic residue at 450° and the composition of the evolving gaseous mixture was simpler. Basic catalysts did not influence considerably the solid residue, but more complex volatile mixtures were obtained. The products contained a wide variety of alcohols, ketones, aldehydes and other oxychemicals in all cases, among them furfural and furfuryl alcohol as the major components.
Democracy and the Internet: Cass R. Sunstein, Republic.Com. Princeton, Nj. Princeton University Press. Pp. 224. 2001

In Republic.com Professor Cass Sunstein argues that despite its many advantages the Internet may have a deleterious effect on deliberative democracy. This effect might arise through the increasing use of filtering software to select only that information that is consistent with the user's predispositions and beliefs. The great informational advantages of the Internet will not broaden users' horizons; they may narrow them. Moreover, users will begin to form groups on the Internet only with those who share their views, and this will lead to the fractionation known as group polarization. Professor Sunstein, in a companion e-book, Echo Chambers, cites the controversies over Bush v. Gore and the impeachment of President Clinton as examples of the polarization that have plagued our public life and that the Internet fosters. Professor Sunstein considers a range of regulations of Internet use that might ameliorate its adverse effects on democracy, such as requiring websites that advocate a particular point of view to provide hyperlinks to websites that tout an alternative view. I take issue with Professor Sunstein on three grounds. First, I believe that, so far, the democracy-enhancing aspects of the new communications media are much, much greater than the democracy-threatening aspects. Interestingly, the empirical literature on who uses the Internet and what its effects on them have been suggests that far from narrowing their perspective, Internet use has fostered users' civic engagement and broadened their views. Second, I find that the particular reforms that Professor Sunstein proposes are impracticable and unlikely to work effectively even if practicable. And third, I believe that, conceding for the sake of argument that Professor Sunstein's problems with the Internet are real, the best hope for correction consists of more speech on the Internet through encouraging vigorous competition and broad access.
P030 : THE EFFECTS OF HYPOTONIC DIALYSIS AND SPIN COLUMNS ON SERUM ANTI-HLA IgG LEVELS

Aim Our laboratory recently noticed an influx in positive allo- and auto-crossmatches presumably due to non-HLA interfering factors. We investigated the use of hypotonic dialysis (HD) and size exclusion spin columns (SC) to remove these factors while mitigating the effects on IgG antibodies. Methods 50 kDa dialysis membranes and 300 kDa size exclusion spin columns were used to remove IgM and other interfering factors from serum. Sera from six patients with moderate-titer antibody were treated three ways: DTT (5 mM @ 37 °C for 30 min), HD using Spectra/Por® Float-a-lyzer G2 according to the product insert, and NanoSep 300 SC (Pall Life Sciences) according to product insert. The IgG fractions of these separation methods were tested for IgG levels using OneLambda LabScreen single antigen (SA) bead kits. Class I (CI) and Class II (CII) antibody levels were analyzed separately using a two-tailed t -test, due to the inherent variability seen in the CI SA assay. Only allele specificities above our laboratory’s positive cutoff (MFI > 1000) were investigated. Results Luminex SA CI results showed variability between patients tested. No significant change in MFI was seen for CI DTT vs dialyzed samples ( p = 0.128) or for DTT vs SC-treated samples ( p = 0.209). CII samples showed a significant change for both methods: DTT vs dialyzed ( p = 0.016) and DTT vs SC ( p = 1.38x10-6). Spin columns decreased the MFI for all 181 CII specificities investigated for the six patients tested. Fig. 1 illustrates how the MFI for one patient’s CII sample was affected by all studied methods. Conclusions We have determined that SC treatment alters patient serum too significantly for our laboratory to use. HD appears to be potentially useful, though it does often raise the MFI of some existing specificities and may increase the amount of unacceptable antigens detected. More testing is required to determine the clinical relevance of MFI increases. Flow XMs will also need to be performed with dialyzed serum to determine if sera treated in such a way may be used in crossmatches.
Gender Differences in the Criminogenic Consequences Associated with Intergenerational Educational Mobility

The present study examines gender differences in the relationship between intergenerational educational mobility and crime using data from The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Drawing on recent trends in college completion among men and women, as well as theories of social control and general strain, it also examines whether these relationships are mediated by prosocial bonds (i.e., familial and employment status), economic stressors, and social-psychological measures in adulthood. Results suggest that upward mobility is associated with decreases in crime for both gender groups; however, downward mobility is associated with increases in crime only for women. Findings are discussed in the context of the relative importance of a college degree for men’s and women’s life chances.
Sexually divergent changes in select brain proteins and neurosteroid levels after a history of ethanol drinking and intermittent PTSD-like stress exposure in adult C57BL/6J mice

Human studies reported that the number of past-year stressors was positively related to current drinking patterns, including binge drinking. In animal models, exposure to predator odor stress (PS), considered a model of traumatic stress, consistently increased ethanol intake. Recently, we reported that repeated PS significantly increased ethanol intake and had a synergistic interaction with prior binge drinking (binge group) in male but not in female C57BL/6J mice, when compared to mice without prior binge exposure (control group). The current studies utilized plasma and dissected prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampal tissue from these animals and from age-matched naive mice (naive group). Western blots assessed relative protein levels of P450scc (an enzyme involved in the first step of steroidogenesis), of GABAA receptor α2 and α4 subunits, and of two proteins involved in synaptic plasticity - ARC (activity-regulated cytoskeletal protein) and synaptophysin. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry simultaneously quantified 10 neurosteroid levels in plasma. A history of ethanol drinking and PS exposure produced brain regional and sex differences in the changes in proteins examined as well as in the pattern of neurosteroid levels versus (vs.) values in naive mice. For instance, P450scc levels were significantly increased only in binge and control female PFC and hippocampus vs. naive mice. Some neurosteroid levels were significantly altered by binge treatment in both males and females, whereas others were only significantly altered in males. These sexually divergent changes in neurosteroid and protein levels add to evidence for sex differences in the neurochemical systems influenced by traumatic stress and a history of ethanol drinking.
Development of an anti-dysphotopic IOL

Dysphotopsia is the term commonly applied to patient reported undesired optical phenomena following cataract/IOL surgery. Indeed, dysphotopsia is the chief cause of patient dissatisfaction after ot...
Anesthesia and ventilation options for flex robotic assisted laryngopharyngeal surgery

Abstract Background Transoral treatment of benign and malignant lesions of laryngopharynx has limitations in exposure and access, partially due to the endotracheal tube (ETT). With a proper airway control to tailor ventilation and maximize exposure, transoral Flex robotic surgery (FLEX), using its 3D camera and instruments, can expand its ability. Choosing the right ETT, including a novel concept of using jet ventilation (JV) in FLEX, and placement technique can allow augmentation of the advantages that robotic surgery offers. Methods Chart review of FLEX assisted procedures was performed. Attention was given to demographics, all events of airway manipulation and ventilation type, procedures performed and outcomes including adverse effects. Results Fifty-two patients underwent eighty procedures. The airway was manipulated sixty-four times to include 8 JV. All possible FLEX instruments including CO2 laser were used. Three novel possible indications for trans-oral robotic surgery including the feasibility of JV in FLEX procedures were shown. Conclusions Lesions of the tongue base, hypopharynx, larynx and trachea have the possibility to be managed with adequate exposure with minimal obstruction from ETT. Robotic HD camera permits both the surgeon and anesthesiologist to observe surgery and safely monitor the airway. An algorithm was developed for selecting ideal ventilation method for different procedures. The FLEX and the utilization of JV allows flexibility of two instruments without obstruction.
Sport Scandal Investigations: An ‘Independent’ Solution or Part of the Problem?

This study investigated the use and content of sports scandal investigation reports. Many such reports are self-described as “independent.” This paper serves to elucidate some of the issues around “independence” and limitations of these investigations. The analysis is discussed in connection to the unique context of sport governance structures and policy, along with the related issues of autonomy, transparency, and accountability. A content analysis method was employed to analyze a purposive sample of post-scandal reports from the past decade pertaining to international professional sport. The results revealed the efforts to portray independence in the reports and identified potential threats to independence. The analysis and corresponding discussion provide recommendations for future report procedure, interpretation, evaluation, and legal policymaking.
Out-Group Animus and Punitiveness in Latin America:

The social threat perspective anticipates that members of racial/ethnic out-groups might be perceived as socially, politically, or economically threatening; criminally inclined; and in need of soci...
Short-term Outcomes Following Cervical Laminoplasty and Decompression and Fusion With Instrumentation

Study Design.Retrospective review of the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database years 2010 to 2015.Objective.Investigate which short-term outcomes differ for cervical laminoplasty and laminectomy and fusion surgeries.Summary of Background Data
Using mouse tracking to investigate auditory taboo effects in first and second language speakers of American English.

Researchers have argued that bilingual speakers experience less emotion in their second language. However, some studies have failed to find differences in emotionality between first and second lang...
Using Bedside Tvs to Improve Pediatric Pain Management – Feedback from Nurses and Patients

PURPOSE: Our hospital uses an Interactive Patient Care (IPC) tool to provide entertainment, education, and communication through the patient's television. In 2014, we implemented a pain management interface (PMI) connecting the IPC, Electronic Health Record (EHR), nurse's phone, and pharmacy inventory management system. This interface allows for the timed reassessment of pain through the patient's television by triggering a pop-up question about pain level at a pre-defined time after medication is administered. The patient's pain rating is immediately communicated to the nurse and documented in the EHR. We aimed to …
A method for representing periodic functions and enforcing exactly periodic boundary conditions with deep neural networks

Abstract We present a simple and effective method for representing periodic functions and enforcing exactly the periodic boundary conditions for solving differential equations with deep neural networks (DNN). The method stems from some simple properties about function compositions involving periodic functions. It essentially composes a DNN-represented arbitrary function with a set of independent periodic functions with adjustable (training) parameters. We distinguish two types of periodic conditions: those imposing the periodicity requirement on the function and all its derivatives (to infinite order), and those imposing periodicity on the function and its derivatives up to a finite order k ( k ⩾ 0 ). The former will be referred to as C ∞ periodic conditions, and the latter C k periodic conditions. We define operations that constitute a C ∞ periodic layer and a C k periodic layer (for any k ⩾ 0 ). A deep neural network with a C ∞ (or C k ) periodic layer incorporated as the second layer automatically and exactly satisfies the C ∞ (or C k ) periodic conditions. We present extensive numerical experiments on ordinary and partial differential equations with C ∞ and C k periodic boundary conditions to verify and demonstrate that the proposed method indeed enforces exactly, to the machine accuracy, the periodicity for the DNN solution and its derivatives.
In vitro fertilisation with preimplantation genetic testing: the need for expanded insurance coverage.

Technological advances in genetic testing have enabled prospective parents to learn about their risk of passing a genetic condition to their future children. One option for those who want to ensure that their biological children do not inherit a genetic condition is to create embryos through in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and use a technique called preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) to screen embryos for genetic abnormalities before implantation. Unfortunately, due to its high cost, IVF-with-PGT is out of reach for the vast majority of Americans. This article addresses an issue that has been underexplored in the medical ethics literature: the lack of insurance coverage for IVF-with-PGT.Within the US system, a key concept in insurance is that of medically necessary care, which broadly consists of diagnostic services and treatment services. In this article, I argue that IVF-with-PGT could be classified as either a diagnostic service or as a treatment service. To make this case, I show that IVF-with-PGT is similar to other types of services that are often covered by US insurance providers. In light of these similarities, I argue that the current system is inconsistent with respect to what is—and is not—covered by insurance. To promote consistency and fairness in coverage, like cases should be treated alike—starting with greater coverage for IVF-with-PGT.
54. DEVELOPING COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN PEDIATRIC RESIDENTS: HOW DO PARENTS THINK WE ARE DOING?

Background Clear family-centered communication is a foundation of practicing effective pediatric medicine. Formal communications training during residency is often limited and experience is mostly observational. Publications have shown that communication skills of trainees improve after a standardized curriculum, but family representatives were not included. In July 2019 we launched a communications curriculum for pediatric residents anchored in tenants of family-centered care that incorporates Family Faculty (FF), trained parents of patients cared for at our children's hospital. Objective To investigate how FF assessment of learners in an objective structured clinical exam (OSCE) differs from the gold standard of Standardized Patient (SP) assessment. Methods We designed an OSCE in which the resident disclosed a medical error to a SP (playing a patients parent). The SP was trained in character portrayal and checklist completion. The 10-minute encounter was observed by an experienced clinician (EC) and FF through one-way glass, followed by a 20 minute debrief with the learner, SP, EC and FF. The SP, EC and FF all completed a 23-item behavioral anchored checklist that reflected 5 core competencies of family centered communication. Items were rated as not done, partly done or well-done, with well-done indicating mastery. Results 52 residents participated in the OSCE and 42 consented to study participation. The overall average % of learners considered to achieve mastery in each competency was lower as assessed by the FF vs SP: respect and value (50%vs.70%), information sharing (48%vs.67%), participation in care and decision making (40%vs.70%), follow-up (47%vs.60%), and team work (33%vs.52%). Conclusion Across all 5 competencies a lower % of learners reached skill mastery when assessed by FF as compared to SP. Involving FF in the evaluative and instructive components of the curriculum offers a more holistic approach and integrates true stakeholders in parent-physician communication. This initial data suggests that the resources needed to include FF in communications training is likely worthwhile.
Shifting Influences on Corporate Governance: Capital Market Completeness and Policy Channeling

Corporate governance scholarship is typically portrayed as driven by single factor models, for example, shareholder value maximization, director primacy or team production. These governance models are Copernican; one factor is or should be the center of the corporate governance solar system. In this essay, we argue that, as with binary stars, the shape of the governance system is at any time the result of the interaction of two central influences, which we refer to as capital market completeness and policy channeling. In contrast to single factor models, which reflect a stable normative statement of what should drive corporate governance, in our account the relation between these two governance influences is dynamic. Motivated by Albert Hirschman’s Shifting Involvements, we posit that all corporate governance systems undergo repeated shifts in the relative weights of the two influences on the system. Capital market completeness determines the corporate ownership structure and privileges shareholder governance and value maximization by increasing the capacity to slice risk, return, and control into different equity instruments. The capability to specify shareholder control rights makes the capital market more complete, tailoring the character of influence associated with holding particular equity securities and its reciprocal, the exposure of management to capital market oversight. Policy channeling, the real government’s instrumental use of the corporation for distributional or social ends, pushes the corporate governance gravitational center toward purposes other than maximizing shareholder value. We show that this pattern is not limited to a particular country, and illustrate our argument by tracing the cyclical reframing of Berle and Means’ thesis in the U.S., Japan’s sluggish shift from policy channeling in its postwar heyday toward capital market completeness under the Abenomics reforms, and the distinctive case of China, where capital market completeness has itself been used as a policy channeling instrument under the pervasive influence of the Chinese Communist Party, creating the world’s most stakeholder-oriented system of corporate governance. We close by examining the means through which the current shift toward policy channeling in U.S. and U.K. corporate governance is taking place – the “stewardship” movement and the debate over “corporate purpose.” We view both as a reaction to the reduced managerial discretion caused by the reconcentration of ownership in the hands of institutional investors, and analyze factors suggesting that this reform movement, like others before it, is likely destined to result in a disappointment-driven shift in the opposite direction, what we label a shifting influence.
Responding to the 2020 Magna, Utah, Earthquake sequence during the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown

Two days after the University of Utah Seismograph Stations (UUSS) staff were required to leave campus and work remotely, an Mw 5 7 earthquake struck the Salt Lake Valley near the town of Magna, Utah This event was the largest instrumentally recorded earthquake in the Salt Lake Valley and the largest earthquake ever felt by most residents The timing of this event-at the start of a lockdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic-made the UUSS response to this earthquake an extra challenge Other factors such as a toxic plume caused by the ground shaking, inclement weather, and a mountain lion also impacted the work The response tested the continuity of operations plan that had been in place since 2007, response protocols, and communications with partners and the public Overall, the UUSS earthquake response was successful: A valuable and arguably unprecedented dataset of strong ground motions from normal faulting was generated, magnitudes and locations of thousands of earthquakes were shared in a timely fashion, unfounded rumors and general questions were promptly responded to via traditional and social media, and initial scientific results were submitted for publication © Seismological Society of America
Book Review: Aging Behind Prison Walls: Studies in Trauma and Resilience: by Tina Maschi and Keith Morgen

In Aging Behind Prison Walls, Tina Maschi and Keith Morgen offer evidence-based knowledge and compassionate analysis of the lives of incarcerated older people. These research scholars take a streng...
54. Evaluation and Management Considerations of Gynecologic Issues in Adolescents with Anorectal Malformations

Background Girls born with anorectal malformations (ARMs) and bladder exstrophy have a greater incidence of Mullerian and genital anomalies requiring early gynecologic assessment and frequent surgical intervention. As early childhood surgical and medical management of children with ARMs and bladder exstrophy has improved over recent decades, there remains little guidance or framework for recognizing and managing gynecologic and pubertal concerns in the adolescent and young adult years. Case A retrospective review was performed for 10-25-year-old female patients born with ARMs, cloaca, or exstrophy that presented to our multidisciplinary clinic between 2009 and 2019. This resulted in twelve unique patients who presented with gynecologic concerns at an average age of 14.6 years. Nine patients had ARMs (including 2 with cloaca and 4 with cloacal exstrophy). The most common presenting symptom was dysmenorrhea (n=8). Six were identified as having an obstructed Mullerian anomaly and 3 had a gynecologic obstruction due to stenosis from prior surgery. Compared to the younger children with ARMs, this population had concerns about vaginal and introital cosmesis, fertility, gender identity, sexuality, and mental health. An overarching theme was the need for a cohesive multidisciplinary team including the surgical subspecialists, gastroenterologists, and psychologists with a heightened awareness of increasing patient autonomy in the adolescent period. Comments Patients with ARMs, cloaca, or exstrophy may re-present during adolescence with a unique set of gynecologic concerns. The adolescent should be actively involved in the decision making, and the physician team should have a heightened awareness of psychological and reproductive issues and considerations of long-term concerns and needs.
Financial Reporting and Consumer Behavior

We show that financial reporting spurs consumer behavior. Using granular GPS data, we show that foot-traffic to firms’ commerce locations significantly increases in the days following their earnings announcements. Foot-traffic increases more for announcements with extreme earnings surprises, that correspond to firms’ fiscal year-ends, that occur outside of Fridays, and that elicit greater internet search volume, consistent with earnings announcements spurring consumer behavior by garnering attention. Consumer activity also rises with reductions in solvency risk among firms selling durable goods, consistent with consumers responding to information about firms’ longevity conveyed by their earnings. Using demographic information, we show financial reporting disproportionately affects foot-traffic in populations more likely to consume financial news. Collectively, these results suggest earnings announcements serve a marketing function by drawing attention to firms, and that a byproduct of the financial reporting process is that it shapes consumer behavior.
Intake of Calcium, Magnesium, and Phosphorus and Risk of Pancreatic Cancer in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial.

ObjectiveFew epidemiological studies have investigated the associations between calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus intake and pancreatic cancer. We examined these associations in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial.MethodsDiet was assessed using the Dietary Questionnaire (DQX) at baseline in the intervention arm and the Dietary History Questionnaire (DHQ) in 1999 or around the third anniversary of randomization in both the intervention and control arms. During a median follow-up of 12.2 years, 279 cases of pancreatic cancer occurred from 58,477 participants who completed DQX; 380 cases arose from 101,622 participants who responded to DHQ over a median follow-up of 8.9 years. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).ResultsTotal calcium intake was inversely associated with pancreatic cancer [HR (95% CI) for the fourth vs. the first quartiles in the DHQ cohort: 0.67 (0.47, 0.96); p-trend: 0.035]. An inverse association was also observed for total magnesium intake [HR (95% CI) for the fourth vs. the first quartiles in the DQX cohort: 0.61 (0.37, 1.00); p-trend: 0.023]. Reduced risk associated with total calcium intake was confined to subjects with a high fat intake (>73 g/day) in the DHQ cohort (p-interaction: 0.16).ConclusionsThere was not a significant association between dietary phosphorus intake and pancreatic cancer risk in both cohorts. Total intake of calcium and magnesium are associated with a lower pancreatic cancer risk. The effect of total calcium intake was modified by fat intake.
Photocurable alumina and silver suspensions: Cure depth in highly agglomerated and dispersed systems

Photocurable systems are used in solid freeform fabrication by vat photopolymerization. This process requires a photopolymerization reaction to form layers selectively. The light interaction with the reactive medium results in scattering and absorption governing cure depth. This is further modeled in Jacob's equation. This study examined the cure depth model for alumina and silver suspensions as a function of compositional variables and energy dose. It included studying the effect of agglomeration, which showed that the cure depth reduces with fewer coarse agglomerates. Furthermore, in highly dispersed systems, the role of particle sizes, solid contents, refractive indices, and extinction coefficients were examined. The key results show that the cure depth has a proportional relationship with particle size. It is also independent of solid content for systems with smaller refractive index differences and extinction coefficients, which was explained through depth attenuation and critical energy dose.
Carbon dioxide capture using various metal oxyhydroxide–biochar composites

Abstract Innovative and cost-effective methods are needed to capture and store CO2 to reduce anthropogenic impact on global warming. This work produced and characterized aluminum hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, and iron oxide–biochar composites, and evaluated their ability to capture CO2 at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. Biomass feedstocks were treated with metal ions of a variety of concentrations, and were then pyrolyzed at 600 °C. Characterization experiments showed that the process not only turned the biomass into biochar, but also converted the metal ions into metal oxyhydroxide nanoparticles onto the carbon surfaces with the biochar matrix. As a result, the composites, particularly the ones with optimal metal to biomass ratios, had higher CO2 capture capacity than the unmodified biochar. All the composites had relatively large surface area and captured CO2 mainly through physical adsorption. Although Fe2O3–biochar composites had the highest surface area, the AlOOH–biochar composite showed the largest sorption. Thus, both the characteristics of the metal oxyhydroxides and the surface area contributed to the CO2 capture capacity. The maximum adsorption capacity (71 mg g−1 at 25 °C) by AlOOH–biochar is comparable to commercial adsorbents. The samples had between 90% and 99% desorption at 120 °C, so they required low cost regeneration. All these results suggested that biochar-based composites could be a high efficiency and cost-effective adsorbent for CO2 capture.
Relevance, Connectivity, and Productivity

into cross-currents that are transforming traditional paradigms for research and higher education—not to mention the relationships among academia, industry, government, and the public. In this challenging context, it is intriguing to contemplate how innovation will change the nature of U.S. higher education. Indeed, we should not be afraid to ask what the academic equivalent will be of mergers and acquisitions, of managed health-care plans, and of the emerging private-practice corporations. What new and innovative forms of outsourcing will be considered? What alliances and coalitions will emerge to consolidate and expand market share? What comparative and competitive advantages will be expressed as a new generation of research universities emerges in the years ahead? Despite the fact that research universities have continued to evolve in many significant ways (as documented, for example, by Roger Geiger and Graham and Diamond), they now face a time of great challenge and opportunity. Vast innovations are underway in higher education around the world. This essay examines the innovation framework at The University of Akron, which focuses on three strategic areas: relevance, connectivity, and productivity.
Negotiating to Agreement: Experiential Exercises

(1991). Negotiating to Agreement: Experiential Exercises. Hospitality & Tourism Educator: Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 34-78.
Air filters for germ-free isolators.

Abstract A germ-free isolator must have a perfect bacterial filter. This paper describes a new, relatively inexpensive, stainless-steel filter frame, which is easily and quickly assembled and protects the enclosed filter material at all times. Resistance to the flow of air was less than 4 inches of water at an airflow of 30 ft3/min through the filter frame with 204 inches2 of surface area and four, one-half inch thick pieces of fiberglass filter material. This filter performed satisfactorily in our gnotobiotic laboratory and was found to be consistently 100% efficient in removing an aerosol containing Serratia marcescens from an air stream under a variety of operating conditions.
Lithographic approach to pattern multiple nanoparticle thin films prepared by Layer-by-Layer self-assembly for microsystems

We report a lithographic approach to pattern multiple types of Layer-by-Layer self-assembled nanoparticle thin films. 150 nm and 64 nm polystyrene particles are separated in desired patterns with a feature size 5 to 20 microns. The process is quite simple, consisting of only two consecutive lift-offs, and there is no high requirement for the equipments. This method can be applied to various types of nanoparticles. Since it is based on the conventional lithographic technique, it provides a simple, reliable, and cheap method for complex microsystem fabrication which is composed mainly of functional nanoparticles for the applications to sensing and actuation in micro/nano scale.
Fallow water storage in tilled vs. untilled soils in the Pacific Northwest

Information concerning soil water storage with no-tillage fallow in the semiarid winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production areas of the Pacific Northwest is limited. Soil water storage in a long-term tillage experiment comparing no-tillage, stubble mulch tillage, and hare soil (moldboard plow) tillage was measured during two 14-mo fallow periods in an 11.4-in. annual precipitation area in north-central Oregon. The greatest precipitation storage efficiency during both years was achieved with stubble mulch tillage, followed by the bare soil and no-tillage systems. Residue cover in the no-tillage treatment retarded evaporation during periods of frequent precipitation and low potential evaporation during the spring, but water loss from no-tillage fallow occurred at the fastest rate during the dry summer due to uninterrupted capillary flow [...]
Suicide gene therapy for prostate cancer using a replication-deficient adenovirus containing the herpesvirus thymidine kinase gene

Current therapies for localized prostate cancer include radical prostatectomy, local radiation therapy, and cryoablation and are associated with a high rate of cure and acceptable morbidity. However, for men who have failed primary curative attempts or have metastatic disease, no effective therapy associated with acceptable morbidity exists. "Suicide" gene therapy delivered alone or in combination with other forms of treatment could potentially provide simultaneous efficacy against localized and systemic disease via the generation of cytotoxic activity and/or systemic immunity to the cancer. In this article we discuss our preclinical and clinical experience with a herpes-simplex-virus thymidine kinase/ganciclovir gene-therapy protocol for prostate cancer.
Dimensional change in motor learning

Bernstein (The Co-ordination and Regulation of Movements, Pergamon, London, 1967) outlined a theoretical framework for the degrees of freedom problem in motor control that included a 3-stage approach to the reorganization of the peripheral biomechanical degrees of freedom in motor learning and development. We propose that Bernstein's conception of change through the stages of learning is too narrow in its consideration of the degrees of freedom problem and the actual pathways of change evident in motor learning. It is shown that change in both the organization of the mechanical degrees of freedom and the dimension of the attractor dynamic organizing motor output can either increase or decrease, according to the confluence of constraints imposed on action. The central issue determining directional change in dimension is whether the dimensionality of the task relevant intrinsic dynamic needs to be increased or decreased to realize new task demands.
Skin Electroporation Causes Molecular Transport Across the Stratum Corneum through Localized Transport Regions

High voltage pulsing of human skin (≈100 V across the skin, 1 ras pulses) has been hypothesized to cause electroporation of the stratum corneum, and to cause large fluxes of drugs and other molecules across the skin, through newly created aqueous pathways. In contrast, iontophoresis (
Econometrics for Policy Analysis: Progress and Regress

Progress, regress, and continuity in quantitative analysis for policy are discussed. We look at the present from the perspective of Tinbergen, Haavelmo, and Keynes. Probability modeling has been in retreat at central banks and elsewhere. New computational methods, though, are making Bayesian analysis of previously intractable problems possible, and at the same time appreciation of the clarity with which Bayesian data analyis integrates with decison-making is spreading.
Prototype Development Of A Microcontroller Based Field Optical Density Tester

A portable spectrometer has been designed that measures the transmission of tank periscopes in the field. The purpose of the instrument is to measure optical density to 4.0 over the range from 380 to 1100nm with lnm resolution. A motorized monochromator scans the desired test band. Data is acquired by silicon photodiodes, amplified by a programmable gain amplifier (PGA) and processed using a 12-bit A/D converter. A chopped input beam removes background signal. Ratio detection between measurement and reference arms compensates for input light intensity variation. Innovations in optical, mechanical and signal processing design are described. The precision of measurements made at various wavelengths and angles of incidence is discussed.
Arsenic fractionation and bioaccessibility in two alkaline Texas soils incubated with sodium arsenate.

Elevated arsenic (As) concentrations in urban soils with prolonged arsenical pesticide application history have increased the risk associated with accidental hand-to-mouth soil ingestion by children. Earlier work by the authors suggested that the conservative statement of 100% As bioaccessibility in soils was not valid for a set of acidic soils incubated with sodium arsenate. In this study, two alkaline Texas soils incubated with a commonly used As pesticide (sodium arsenate) were evaluated for their potential in reducing soil As bioaccessibility. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of incubation time and As load on soil As fractionation and bioaccessibility. Soils were subjected to a sequential As fractionation scheme, and bioaccessible As was quantified using an in vitro stomach phase test. Results showed a reduction in the water-soluble As fraction with incubation time (after 4 months), which remained unchanged after 12 months. This reduction with time was accompanied by an increase in the NaOH- and H2SO4-extractable As fractions, suggesting As sorption by amorphous Fe/Al hydroxides and/or Ca/Mg compounds, respectively. Organic/sulfides-bound As increased with incubation time after 12 months but not after 4 months of incubation. The aging effect was also observed with the amount of bioaccessible As at all As loads, showing significant positive correlations with the water-extractable and exchangeable As fractions. Bioaccessible As concentrations even after 12 months of incubation were not significantly reduced, suggesting that natural attenuation might prove inadequate to control As bioaccessibility in these alkaline soils.
Promoting college student development through collaborative learning: A case study of hevruta

Inger Bergom, Mary C. Wright, Marie Kendall Brown, and Michael Brooks describe an innovative academic approach to collaborative learning in a large lecture class.
A Reply to Austin C. Archer

(1994). A Reply to Austin C. Archer. Journal of Research on Christian Education: Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 147-150.
Temperature Dependence in Air of Fe2+ Concentration and Its Relation to Electrical Conductivity in a Natural Eastern Coal Slag

Ferrous iron concentration in a coal slag obtained from Bow, New Hampshire, was studied as a function of heat treatment in air. Results indicate that the concentration varies continuously between 1300° and 1600°C, the slag becoming more oxidized as the temperature drops from 1600°C. For lower temperatures at which the slag is solid or highly viscous, oxidation still occurs between 1300° and 900°C when the coal slag is cooled slowly from temperatures above 1300°C. No such change is observed for fast quenches. This interpretation is consistent with observed dc electrical conductivity data obtained from similar samples.
Growth of the adult goldfish eye. III. Source of the new retinal cells

The manner in which new cells are added to the growing adult goldfish retina was examined using 3H-thymidine radioautography. Cell proliferation leading to the formation of neurons is restricted to the retinal margin at the ora terminalis. New retina is added in concentric rings, with slightly more growth dorsonasally. The rate of cell addition is variable, averaging 12,000 cells/day. These new cells account for about 20% of the total increase in retinal area; the remaining 80% is due to hypertrophy, or expansion, of the retina. In contrast to all of the other retinal cells, the rods do not appear to participate in the retinal expansion. This hypothesized immobility of the rods would create a shearing strain between the retinal layers resulting in a shift in their position relative to the other cells. Were they to maintain synaptic contacts with the same horizontal and bipolar cells, the rod axons would have to be elongated peripherally or the post-synaptic cell dendrites displaced centrally. Since neurons with this morphology have not been found in the goldfish retina, these observations suggest that the rods must be changing their synaptic connections as the retina grows.
PEG using a preexisting abdominal surgical incision in an obese patient with situs inversus

Since its introduction by Gauderer et al.,1 PEG has become a popular method for providing enteral nutrition in patients who are unable to eat but have a functioning GI tract. However, the procedure is usually aborted in the absence of adequate transillumination of the anterior abdominal wall. This may occur in patients with morbid obesity or secondary to altered anatomy because of prior abdominal surgery or congenital anomalies. In such cases, surgical gastrostomy with its associated morbidity and mortality is usually recommended.2 We report a case of PEG tube placement in a morbidly obese patient with situs inversus. The procedure was facilitated by opening the subcutaneous layer of a recent surgical incision.
Computerized Grading of Anatomy Laboratory Practical Examinations

At the Medical College of Wisconsin, a procedure was developed to allow computerized grading and grade reporting of laboratory practical examinations in the Clinical Human Anatomy course. At the start of the course, first year medical students were given four Lists of Structures. On these lists, numbered items were arranged alphabetically; the items were anatomical structures that could be tagged on a given lab practical examination. Each lab exam featured an anatomy laboratory component and a computer laboratory component. For the anatomy lab component, students moved from one question station to another at timed intervals and identified tagged anatomical structures. As students identified a tagged structure, they referred to a copy of the list (provided with their answer sheet) and wrote the number corresponding to the structure on their answer sheet. Immediately after the anatomy lab component, students were escorted to a computer instruction laboratory where they typed their answer numbers into a secured testing component of a learning management system that recorded their answers for automatic grading. After a brief review of examination scores and item analysis by faculty, exam scores were reported to students electronically. Adding this brief computer component to each lab exam greatly reduced faculty grading time, reduced grading errors and provided faster performance feedback for students without changing overall student performance.