cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Restoration of linear motion and out-of-focus blurred images in surveillance systems

Linear motion and out-of-focus blur often coexist in a surveillance system, which degrade the quality of acquired images and thus complicate the task of object recognition and event detection. In this work, we present a point spread function-based (PSF-based) approach considering fundamental characteristics of linear motion and out-of-focus blur based on geometric optics to restore coexisting motion and out-of-focus blurred images without application-dependent parameters selection, where a sharpness measure is employed as a cost function to automatically select optimal parameter values for PSF. To verify the effectiveness of our proposed approach, we compare our approach with existing de-blur approaches. Experimental results shows our proposed method can automatically select optimal parameter values for PSF and outperform existing de-blur approaches.
Renal Malacoplakia Reappraised

Renal malacoplakia is an unusual form of chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis with a predilection for patients with recurrent urinary tract infections and an immunocompromised state. Its characteristic feature is the parenchymal infiltration by macrophages with ample cytoplasm containing abundant periodic acid-Schiff-positive granules, known as von Hansemann cells, and the presence of diagnostic extracytoplasmic or intracytoplasmic calcospherites, known as Michaelis-Gutmann bodies. Renal malacoplakia is more common in women (female to male ratio 3:1), in whom the lesions develop in a younger age group (third to fifth decade) than in men (over 50 years). Enlarged kidneys in the presence of persistent urinary infection should lead to the consideration of this entity. The diagnosis can only be established by pathologic examination of renal tissue. Renal biopsy early in the course of the disease is essential since in an increasing number of cases medical therapy has resulted in resolution of the disease process and preservation of renal function.
Performance of In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As and InP junction field-effect transistors for optoelectronic integrated circuits. II. Optical receiver analysis

The authors have developed an analytical model to study In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As and InP junction field-effect transistors (JFETs) for use in InP-based optoelectronic integrated circuits (OEICs). This model includes the effects of channel resistance and band-to-band tunneling. The agreement between the calculations and experimental results supports the validity of the model. The authors discuss the optimum design for these JFETs and compare their performance quantitatively. In order to prevent device performance from being degraded by the effects of tunneling, the optimum channel dopings of In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As and InP JFETs are found to be 7*10/sup 16/ and 5*10/sup 17/ cm/sup -3/, respectively. In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As JFETs not operated in the tunneling regime show at least a 40% higher efficiency than InP JFETs in terms of the power dissipated per transconductance. The authors conclude that In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As JFETs are well suited for very-high-density monolithic integration, where power efficiency must be high. >
mioC transcription, initiation of replication, and the eclipse in Escherichia coli.

The potential role of mioC transcription as a negative regulator of initiation of chromosome replication in Escherichia coli was evaluated. When initiation was aligned by a shift of dnaC2(Ts) mutants to nonpermissive temperature (40 degrees C), mioC transcript levels measured at the 5' end or reading through oriC disappeared within one mass doubling. Upon return to permissive temperature (30 degrees C), the transcripts reappeared coordinately about 15 min after the first synchronized initiation and then declined sharply again 10 min later, just before the second initiation. Although these observations were consistent with the idea that mioC transcription might have to be terminated prior to initiation, it was found that the interval between initiations at permissive temperature, i.e., the eclipse period, was not influenced by the time required to shut down mioC transcription, since the eclipse was the same for chromosomes and minichromosomes which lacked mioC transcription. This finding did not, in itself, rule out the possibility that mioC transcription must be terminated prior to initiation of replication, since it might normally be shut off before initiation, and never be limiting, even during the eclipse. Therefore, experiments were performed to determine whether the continued presence of mioC transcription during the process of initiation altered the timing of initiation. It was found that minichromosomes possessing a deletion in the DnaA box upstream of the promoter transcribed mioC continuously and replicated with the same timing as those that either shut down expression prior to initiation or lacked expression entirely. It was further shown that mioC transcription was present throughout the induction of initiation by addition of chloramphenicol to a dnaA5(Ts) mutant growing at a semipermissive temperature. Thus, transcription through oriC emanating from the mioC gene promoter is normally inhibited prior to initiation of replication by the binding of DnaA protein, but replication can initiate with the proper timing even when transcription is not shut down; i.e., mioC does not serve as a negative regulator of initiation. It is proposed, however, that the reappearance and subsequent disappearance of mioC transcription during a 10-min interval at the end of the eclipse serves as an index of the minimum time required for the establishment of active protein-DNA complexes at the DnaA boxes in the fully methylated origin region of the chromosome. On this basis, the eclipse constitutes the time for methylation of the newly formed DNA strands (15 to 20 min at 30 degrees C) followed by the time for DnaA protein to bind and activate oriC for replication (10 min).
Endovascular treatment of a left carotid artery "bowtie" pseudoaneurysm with a covered Wallgraft stent.

The authors present an unusual case of a young male patient with a large left common carotid artery pseudoaneurysm in a shape similar to that of a bowtie treated with a covered Wallgraft. The Wallgraft is a covered stent originally designed to be used in the treatment of tracheobronchial fistula and peripheral arterial applications. The favorable out-come of this case illustrates its endovascular application in nonsurgical traumatic injuries of the carotid artery.
The human papillomavirus vaccine and risk of anaphylaxis

In this issue of CMAJ , Brotherton and colleagues[1][1] report a comprehensive investigation revealing higher than expected rates of apparent anaphylaxis following vaccination with the quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine in Australian children. The cause of these reactions remains
Composite transducer with multiple piezoelectric matching layers

Trilaminate transducers have been constructed from fired 0-3 piezoelectric materials and nonvoided thick piezoelectric polymer as two matching layers on ceramic PbTiO/sub 3/. Based on the physical properties of the constituent materials, the equivalent circuit of this composite transducer has been established. The frequency response of transmitting, receiving, and voltage transition gain (VTG) for different layers and their hybrid connection was computed and compared with the experimental results. The frequency response of the composite transducer is considerably improved by changing the connecting modes between the layers. Different layers are shown to make different contributions to the frequency dependence of the sensitivity. The transducer impedence and sensitivity response can be adjusted depending on the application. >
Optimization of large join queries

We investigate the problem of optimizing Select—Project—Join queries with large numbers of joins. Taking advantage of commonly used heuristics, the problem is reduced to that of determining the optimal join order. This is a hard combinatorial optimization problem. Some general techniques, such as iterative improvement and simulated annealing, have often proved effective in attacking a wide variety of combinatorial optimization problems. In this paper, we apply these general algorithms to the large join query optimization problem. We use the statistical techniques of factorial experiments and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to obtain reliable values for the parameters of these algorithms and to compare these algorithms. One interesting result of our experiments is that the relatively simple iterative improvement proves to be better than all the other algorithms (included the more complex simulated annealing). We also find that the general algorithms do quite well at the maximum time limit.
Optimizing 1-μs-Resolution Single-Molecule Force Spectroscopy on a Commercial Atomic Force Microscope

Atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based single-molecule force spectroscopy (SMFS) is widely used to mechanically measure the folding and unfolding of proteins. However, the temporal resolution of a standard commercial cantilever is 50–1000 μs, masking rapid transitions and short-lived intermediates. Recently, SMFS with 0.7-μs temporal resolution was achieved using an ultrashort (L = 9 μm) cantilever on a custom-built, high-speed AFM. By micromachining such cantilevers with a focused ion beam, we optimized them for SMFS rather than tapping-mode imaging. To enhance usability and throughput, we detected the modified cantilevers on a commercial AFM retrofitted with a detection laser system featuring a 3-μm circular spot size. Moreover, individual cantilevers were reused over multiple days. The improved capabilities of the modified cantilevers for SMFS were showcased by unfolding a polyprotein, a popular biophysical assay. Specifically, these cantilevers maintained a 1-μs response time while eliminating cantilever...
The Export of Legal Education: Its Promise and Impact in Transition Countries; Chapter 1, Introduction

This collection is the multifaceted result of an effort to learn from those who have been educated in an American law school and who then returned to their home countries to apply the lessons of that experience in nations experiencing social, economic, governmental, and legal transition. Written by an international group of scholars and practitioners, this work provides a unique insight into the ways in which legal education impacts the legal system in the recipient’s home country, addressing such topics as efforts to influence the current style of legal education in a country and the resistance faced from entrenched senior faculty and the use of U.S. legal education methods in government and private legal practice. This book will be of significant interest not only to legal educators in the United States and internationally, and to administrators of legal education policy and reform, but also to scholars seeking a more in-depth understanding of the connections between legal education and socio-political change.
Creating a Local Environmental Law Program

Local governments are adopting with increasing frequency local laws to facilitate low-impact development, ensure the construction of green buildings, and coordinate land use and transportation planning to lower greenhouse gas emissions. This builds on their progress over the past two decades in adopting an impressive number of local laws to protect natural resources. These include ordinances designed to protect trees, stands of timber, hillsides, viewsheds, ridgelines, stream beds, wetlands, watersheds, aquifers and water bodies, and wildlife habitat. At the same time, provisions designed to protect environmental features from the adverse impacts of development have been added to basic land use documents such as comprehensive plans and zoning ordinances. Traditional land use regulations, such as those governing subdivisions, cluster developments, and site plans, are being amended with environmental protection in mind.
Case Series: Eosinophilic Vasculitis Isolated to the Central Nervous System (P02.053)

OBJECTIVE: Case series: eosinophilic vasculitis in an isolated CNS distribution. BACKGROUND: Eosinophilic vasculitis has been described as part of the Churg-Strauss syndrome, but affects the CNS in only 6-7% of cases. Presentation in an isolated CNS distribution is rare, with only one case previously reported in the literature by these authors. Here we present a new case of isolated CNS eosinophilic vasculitis, and exhibit it alongside the original case. RESULTS: A 55 year old woman with no past medical history presented to an outside institution with headache and right visual field changes. Over several days she developed non-fluent aphasia and simple partial seizures followed by right hemiparesis. CSF evaluation showed elevated protein and WBCs; MRI brain showed focal areas of leptomeningeal enhancement, EEG was unremarkable. She was started on levetiracetam and discharged, then was admitted to our institution after several weeks of decline. Two CSF analyses again showed elevated protein and WBCs with atypical lymphocytes. Repeat MRI showed focal leptomeningeal and gyral enhancment in the left hemisphere which had expanded. Brain biopsy showed transmural, predominanly eosinophilic inflammatory infiltrates of medium-sized leptomeningeal arteries without granulomas. Elevated ESR and CRP were the only remarkable serum studies, without elevation of serum eosinophils. There were no systemic manifestations of vasculitis. She was started on high dose corticosteroids with rapid improvement of her symptoms. Clinical course and diagnostic findings are similar to a prior case previously reported by these authors in 2007 which is also detailed here. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, these are the only two cases of non-granulomatous eosinophlic vasculitis isolated to the CNS. No etiology for the vasculitic process has yet been identified. Spontaneous resolution without recurrence with corticosteroid therapy may suggest an environmental epitope with immune reaction as the cause. Disclosure: Dr. Wright has nothing to disclose. Dr. Lewis has nothing to disclose. Dr. Noble has nothing to disclose. Dr. Vonsattel has nothing to disclose. Dr. Khandji has nothing to disclose. Dr. Sommerville has nothing to disclose. Dr. Wright has received personal compensation for activities with Abali, Milne and Faegre, Baker, Daniels, Merck and the NIH. Dr. Wright has received royalty payments from UpToDate.
Virtuous states and virtuous traits: How the empirical evidence regarding the existence of broad traits saves virtue ethics from the situationist critique:

A major objection to the study of virtue asserts that the empirical psychological evidence implies traits have little meaningful impact on behavior, as slight changes in situational characteristics...
Interest Group Ratings and Regression Inconsistency

This article uses spatial voting theory to analyze the properties of linear regressions that employ interest group ratings as measures of legislator policy preferences. Such regres sions, in general, yield inconsistent results. In particular, least-squares estimation of a bivariate regression which contains an interest group rating as a regressor produces an inflated slope estimate. Instrumenting for the rating with a second rating, as proposed by Brunell et al. (1999), does not fix this problem, and this is because errors in both sets of ratings are correlated. Finally, estimation of a trivariate regression that contains an interest group rating and a party indicator on its right-hand side yields inconsistent slope estimates and, in particular, a party coefficient estimate of unreliable sign. Hence, regressions in cluding both ratings and party indicators are not useful tools in the debate on whether party affiliation has an independent impact on legislator behavior.
Infrared spectroscopy of narrow gap donor-acceptor polymer-based ambipolar transistors

Donor-acceptor (D-A) copolymers have recently emerged as versatile materials for use in a large variety of device applications. Specifically, these systems possess extremely narrow band gaps, enabling ambipolar charge transport when integrated in solution-processed organic field-effect transistors (OFETs). However, the fundamentals of electronic transport in this class of materials remain unexplored. We present a systematic investigation of ambipolar charge injection in narrow-gap D-A conjugated polymers polybenzobisthiadiazole-dithienopyrrole (PBBTPD) and polybenzobisthiadiazole-dithienocyclopentane (PBBTCD) using infrared (IR) spectroscopy. We observe a significant modification of the absorption edge in both PBBTPD- and PBBTCD-based OFETs under the applied electric field. The absorption edge reveals hardening under electron injection and softening under hole injection. Additionally, we register localized vibrational resonances associated with injected charges. Our findings indicate a significant self-doping of holes that is modified by charge injection. Observations of both electron and hole transport with relatively high carrier mobility strongly suggest an inhomogeneous, phase-separated conducting polymer.
Temporal and spatial temperature measurement in insulator-based dielectrophoretic devices.

Insulator-based dielectrophoresis is a relatively new analytical technique with a large potential for a number of applications, such as sorting, separation, purification, fractionation, and preconcentration. The application of insulator-based dielectrophoresis (iDEP) for biological samples, however, requires the precise control of the microenvironment with temporal and spatial resolution. Temperature variations during an iDEP experiment are a critical aspect in iDEP since Joule heating could lead to various detrimental effects hampering reproducibility. Additionally, Joule heating can potentially induce thermal flow and more importantly can degrade biomolecules and other biological species. Here, we investigate temperature variations in iDEP devices experimentally employing the thermosensitive dye Rhodamin B (RhB) and compare the measured results with numerical simulations. We performed the temperature measurement experiments at a relevant buffer conductivity range commonly used for iDEP applications unde...
Transparent and Flexible Polarization-Independent Microwave Broadband Absorber

We present an optically transparent, flexible, and polarization-independent broadband microwave absorber. It is designed to possess two spectrally overlapped resonances of a bow-tie array, which or...
Frailty Status and Outcomes After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation

Frailty is a syndrome of older adults associated with increased morbidity and mortality. We aimed to assess the impact of frailty status on outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). We reviewed all 191 patients who underwent a modified Fried frailty assessment before TAVI between February 2012 and September 2015 at a single academic medical center, and we assessed the impact of preoperative frailty status on morbidity, mortality, and health care utilization after TAVI. Frailty, pre-frailty, and nonfrailty were present in 33% (n = 64), 37% (n = 70), and 30% (n = 57) of patients, respectively. Slowness (75% vs 54%, p = 0.003) and low physical activity (55% vs 31%, p = 0.001) were more common in women than men. With increasing frailty status, the proportion of women increased (35% nonfrail, 44% pre-frail, and 66% frail, p = 0.002) and stature decreased (1.68 ± 0.11 m nonfrail, 1.66 ± 0.11 m pre-frail, 1.62 ± 0.12 m frail, p = 0.028). There was no difference in post-TAVI 30-day mortality, stroke, major vascular injury, major or life-threatening bleeding, respiratory failure, mean hospital length of stay, 30-day hospital re-admission, or overall survival between groups. The rate of discharge to a rehabilitation facility increased with increasing frailty status (14% nonfrail, 22% pre-frail, and 39% frail, p = 0.005). Frailty was independently associated with discharge to a rehabilitation facility (odds ratio 4.80, 95% confidence interval 1.66 to 13.85, p = 0.004). In conclusion, the safety of TAVI is not affected by frailty status, but patients with frailty are less likely to be discharged directly home after TAVI.
Analysis of INS-Assisted GPS Receiver and Its Influence on Anti-Jamming Capability

In the light of the characteristics that the signal of GPS satellites is easily losing lock under the condition of high dynamic or low signal-to-noise ratio,this paper analyzes the principle of GPS receivers with the assistance of INS and its influence on anti-jamming capability of receivers according to the characteristics of tracking loop of PN code-carrier of GPS receivers.Under the condition of intricate electromagnetic environment,INS assisted GPS receiver is the future developing direction of integrated navigation,especially the integrated mode of close coupling INS/GPS.
A STUDY OF THERMAL FATIGUE BEHAVIOR OF THE ALUMINOSILICATE SHORT FIBRE REINFORCED ZL109 COMPOSITES

In this paper the thermal fatigue behavior of ZL109 matrix composites which are fabricated by alu-minosilicate short fibre reinforcement bonded by aluminagel or silicagel was studied. The results show that the ther-mal fatigue resistance of the composite with aluminagel as the only binder is the best, and that of the composite with silicagel as the only binder is the worst. The thermal fatigue cracks propagated either along the interface or passing through the fibre, depending on the relative orientation between the crack and the fibre. As the number of thermal cycles increased. the hardness of above composites gradually decreased.
Incomplete information in larger games: a model of negotiations

Introduction In section 1.4 I suggested that the moves and countermoves of TOM might be thought of as modeling a bargaining process, in which states are either accepted (no move occurs) or rejected (move occurs); if the latter, the process moves on. Although this interpretation could be developed further, I take a different approach to modeling moves in games in this chapter, retaining some ideas of TOM but relinquishing others in order to develop a model of negotiation applicable to larger games. Information in larger games, especially with more players, is likely to be harder to come by and utilize effectively. In addition, as I showed in chapter 6, the effects of information may be double-edged, sometimes benefiting players while at other times hurting them. An appreciation of this double-edged effect has ramifications for learning. In particular, because information is generally costly to acquire, it is useful to know when it may be worthwhile to do so. For example, when new information dictates changing course, players may find it rational to backtrack , or reverse the direction of their moves, in games. Although backtracking is prohibited by the rules of TOM, it can be accommodated within TOM by making play of a game a function of the information players have about it at different times.
Menopausal Hot Flashes

Publisher Summary Hot flashes are the most common symptom associated with menopause, although prevalence estimates are lower in some rural and non-Western areas. The symptoms are characteristic of a heat-dissipation response and consist of sweating on the face, neck, and chest, as well as peripheral vasodilation. Although hot flashes clearly accompany the estrogen withdrawal at menopause, estrogen alone is not responsible because levels do not differ between symptomatic and asymptomatic women. Recently obtained evidence, using a rapidly responding ingested telemetry pill shows that the thermoneutral zone, within which sweating, peripheral vasodilation, and shivering do not occur, is virtually nonexistent in symptomatic women but normal in asymptomatic women. Thus, small temperature elevations preceding hot flashes acting within a reduced thermoneutral zone constitute the triggering mechanism. Central sympathetic activation is elevated in symptomatic women, which, in animal studies, reduces the thermoneutral zone. Clonidine reduces central sympathetic activation, widens the thermoneutral zone, and ameliorates hot flashes. Estrogen virtually eliminates hot flashes and widens the thermoneutral zone, but the pathway through which this occurs is not known. Behavioral relaxation procedures reduce hot flash frequency to the same extent as clonidine, but their mechanism of action is also not understood.
Hybrid Approach to Pulmonary Artery Stenosis

Since its description nearly 25 years ago [1, 2], endovascular stent therapy has become the procedure of choice in many settings involving pulmonary artery stenosis. Early descriptions suggested this therapy was only suitable for larger children and adults; however, advances in technique and technology have allowed pulmonary artery stent therapy to be safely and effectively performed in younger children and infants [3–5]. While improvements in delivery technique, balloon, stent, and sheath technology have made percutaneous stent implantation a more accomplishable procedure, there are numerous clinical scenarios where hybrid stent implantation may be preferable.
Cold, Painful Right Lower Extremity

A 65-year-old female presents to the emergency department with a 4 h history of sudden onset of right leg pain, coolness, weakness, and numbness. She has no prior similar history. The pain began while she was sitting watching television. She has a history of hypertension and hypercholesterolemia and takes medication for both. She denies smoking. On review of systems, she has no prior history of pain in her right leg with walking. On physical examination, her lungs are clear to auscultation. Her heart rate is irregularly irregular without murmurs, rubs, or gallops. Her abdomen is soft and non-tender without a pulsatile mass. On the left side, the femoral, popliteal, dorsalis pedis, and posterior tibial pulses are 2+, with biphasic handheld Doppler signals. On the right side, femoral, popliteal, dorsalis pedis and posterior tibial pulses are absent, with faint monophasic Doppler signals. Her right calf is tender to palpation but is not edematous. She has normal appearing, supple skin in her legs with normal hair pattern. The left foot is pink and warm with 2 s capillary refill and normal motor and sensory function. Her right foot is pale and feels much colder than the left; capillary refill time is 6 s. The toes have decreased sensation to touch. Her strength is diminished in both plantar flexion and dorsiflexion of the ankle at 4+/5.
Discussion of HIV control and prevention strategies

Expansion of HIV testing and ART treatment are core strategies for achieving the ambitious global goal of ending the HIV epidemic by the end of 2030, and achieving the "90-90-90" target by 2020. In China, great progress in HIV control and prevention has been made; however, there is room to enhance the effectiveness of HIV-related strategies. In addition, some implemented strategies have not achieved their expected output. To confront the challenge of sexual transmission of HIV, which is the main route of transmission in China, more targeted HIV prevention strategies that lead to their expected outcomes are essential. It is important to strengthen existing strategies that have been proved effective. However, it is also critical to create innovative strategies, and there are five approaches to achieve this. First, a holistic perspective should be adopted, to better understand the current situation and problems. This means intervention strategies should give serious consideration of how to meet the sociocultural needs of target populations rather than merely carry out behavioral interventions. Second, community-based HIV prevention settings should have more important roles in providing HIV-related health care services. Moreover, to improve the effectiveness of these strategies, a problem-led working style should be integrated into HIV prevention measures overall. Third, thoroughly analyzing characteristics of the current HIV epidemic using more evidence-based considerations must be undertaken, to better control HIV sexual transmission. Fourth, continued improvement of AIDS prevention and control mechanisms is needed, to ensure their sustainable development. Last, it is necessary to involve more NGOs in HIV prevention work by strengthening their management and working capacities to provide HIV-related services. Also needed is further improvement in both technical and management capacities, so as to build a stable basis for effective response.
Comparing Automatic CME Detections in Multiple LASCO and SECCHI Catalogs

With the creation of numerous automatic detection algorithms, a number of different catalogs of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) spanning the entirety of the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) Large Angle Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) mission have been created. Some of these catalogs have been further expanded for use on data from the Solar Terrestrial Earth Observatory (STEREO) Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation (SECCHI) as well. We compare the results from different automatic detection catalogs (Solar Eruption Event Detection System (SEEDS), Computer Aided CME Tracking (CACTus), and Coronal Image Processing (CORIMP)) to ensure the consistency of detections in each. Over the entire span of the LASCO catalogs, the automatic catalogs are well correlated with one another, to a level greater than 0.88. Focusing on just periods of higher activity, these correlations remain above 0.7. We establish the difficulty in comparing detections over the course of LASCO observations due to the change in the instrument image cadence in 2010. Without adjusting catalogs for the cadence, CME detection rates show a large spike in cycle 24, despite a notable drop in other indices of solar activity. The output from SEEDS, using a consistent image cadence, shows that the CME rate has not significantly changed relative to sunspot number in cycle 24. These data, and mass calculations from CORIMP, lead us to conclude that any apparent increase in CME rate is a result of the change in cadence. We study detection characteristics of CMEs, discussing potential physical changes in events between cycles 23 and 24. We establish that, for detected CMEs, physical parameters can also be sensitive to the cadence.
Starvation-Survival of Heterotrophs in the Marine Environment

Because microbes are the principal catalysts in the ocean, the preservation of the catalytic ability of bacteria is an important aspect of the cycles of matter. As long as the genome is preserved, it will be expressed when the environmental conditions become appropriate, and in many instances, this depends on the availability of suitable energy-yielding substrates.
Tobacco Industry Research on Nicotine Replacement Therapy: “If Anyone Is Going to Take Away Our Business It Should Be Us”

Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is recommended for tobacco cessation on the basis of pharmaceutical industry research showing its effectiveness when combined with counseling. The tobacco industry opposed NRT when it first appeared in the 1980s but by 2016 was marketing its own NRT products. We used internal tobacco industry documents dated 1960 through 2010 to identify the industry's perceptions of NRT. As early as the 1950s, tobacco companies developed nonsmoked nicotine replacements for cigarettes, but they stopped out of concern that marketing such products would trigger Food and Drug Administration regulation of cigarettes. In the 1990s, after pharmaceutical companies began selling prescription NRT, tobacco companies found that many smokers used NRT to supplement smoking rather than to quit. In 2009, once the Food and Drug Administration began regulating tobacco, tobacco companies restarted their plans to capture the nicotine market. Although the tobacco industry initially viewed NRT as a threat, it found that smokers often combined NRT with smoking rather than using it as a replacement and began marketing their own NRT products.
Development of Design Requirements for a Cognitive Assistant in Space Missions Beyond Low Earth Orbit

This study describes the development of requirements for a cognitive assistant (CA) for use onboard a space vehicle/station. For missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO), delayed communication will limit mission control’s ability to support the space crew in real time. During off-nominal situations, where no procedures have been developed prior to missions, crews must develop responses in real time and may increasingly rely on automation. A systematic approach was used to model the domain knowledge of the collaborative decision-making process of current space operations, extrapolate to missions beyond LEO, and develop the design requirements for a CA. Document analysis and interviews were conducted to create an abstraction hierarchy and a decision-action diagram of the cognitive functions currently performed by space crew, mission control, and onboard automation. These domain models were extrapolated to missions beyond LEO by identifying the breakpoints where current decision-making processes would break dow...
Cerebral amyloid angiopathy: diagnosis and potential therapies.

Introduction: Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) is characterized by the pathologic deposition of amyloid-beta within cortical and leptomeningeal arteries, arterioles, capillaries and, in rare cases...
Carcinoma in situ.

Carcinoma in situ is a high-grade and aggressive manifestation of transitional-cell carcinoma of the bladder that has a highly variable course. The treatment of CIS has undergone dramatic changes since this malignancy was first recognized. While cystectomy was once recommended as the initial treatment of choice, recognition of the highly variable prognosis and the uniformly high response rate to intravesical BCG has prompted a more conservative approach to management. While it is recommended that patients be offered the option of radical cystectomy, data do not currently exist to confirm that cystectomy provides a superior survival or quality of life compared with an initial trial of BCG immunotherapy followed by salvage cystectomy if needed. With current optimal BCG immunotherapy regimens, which consist of a 6-week course of BCG followed by three weekly instillations at 3 months, 6 months, and every 6 months for 3 years, the complete response rate is 82%; and it is estimated that more than 75% of patients having a complete response will remain continuously disease free for 5 or more years. Patients who fail BCG immunotherapy without evidence of progression may yet be candidates for intravesical chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy, or alternative immunotherapies such as alpha-2b interferon, bropirimine, or keyhole limpet hemocyanin.
The significance of sinusoidal fetal heart rate pattern during labor and its relation to fetal status and neonatal outcome.

Twenty-seven cases of sinusoidal fetal heart rate were studied. This group had a mean scalp pH of 7.288, significantly lower (p < 0.005) than that of the control group. The mean one-minute Apgar score was 7.148, significantly lower (p < 0.001) than the control group's mean score. Almost half (48.15%) of the fetuses had a one-minute Apgar score of 7 or less. Every fetus was viable. Amplitude of the pattern was found to correlate with neonatal depression, the larger the amplitude, the more profound the depression. Over 96% of the fetuses had cord-related deceleration patterns, and nearly 63% had obvious cord complications. It is postulated that sinusoidal patterns are an umbilical cord-related phenomenon, resulting from an alternating hypovolemia and hypervolemia. Clinicians are urged to scrutinize carefully any cases of this pattern, and perform an immediate fetal scalp blood pH determination. If the pH determination obtained is less than 7.25, the authors suggest intervention and operative delivery.
TCT-518 Drug Eluting Stents Versus Bare Metal Stents in Saphenous Vein Graft Interventions: Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Drug eluting stents (DES) are superior to bare metal stents (BMS) in the treatment of native coronary artery disease. But the outcome results of percutaneous intervention of saphenous vein grafts (SVG) are mixed while comparing DES with BMS. There are only few randomized controlled trials (RCTs)
Effect of the addition of temsirolimus to cetuximab in cetuximab-resistant head and neck cancers: Results of the randomized PII MAESTRO study.

6089 Background: Patients with cetuximab resistant HNC have a median PFS of only 1.8 months (deSouza 2012). Preclinical/computational modelling suggests synergy between mTOR and EGFR, and potential...
Cell-free DNA analysis in renal cell carcinoma: Comparison with tumor sequencing and correlation with response to therapy.

655Background: Massively parallel sequencing (MPS) of circulating-free DNA (cfDNA) is seeing increasing use in multiple cancer types. There is little data on its use in metastatic renal cell carcin...
Nuclear estrogen receptor activation by insulin-like growth factor-1 in Neuro-2A neuroblastoma cells requires endogenous estrogen synthesis and is mediated by mutually repressive MAPK and PI3K cascades

Non-canonical mechanisms of estrogen receptor activation may continue to support women's cognitive health long after cessation of ovarian function. These mechanisms of estrogen receptor activation may include ligand-dependent actions via locally synthesized neuroestrogens and ligand-independent actions via growth factor-dependent activation of intracellular kinase cascades. We tested the hypothesis that ligand-dependent and ligand-independent mechanisms interact to activate nuclear estrogen receptors in the Neuro-2A neuroblastoma cell line in the absence of exogenous estrogens. Transcriptional output of estrogen receptors was measured following treatment with insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the presence of specific inhibitors for mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), phosphoinositde-3 kinase (PI3K), and neuroestrogen synthesis. Results indicate that IGF-1-dependent activation of nuclear estrogen receptors is mediated by MAPK, is opposed PI3K, and requires concomitant endogenous neuroestrogen synthesis. We conclude that both cellular signaling context and endogenous ligand availability are important modulators of ligand-independent nuclear estrogen receptor activation.
Assessing Protein Sequence Database Suitability Using De Novo Sequencing

The analysis of samples from unsequenced and/or understudied species as well as samples where the proteome is derived from multiple organisms poses two key questions. The first is whether the proteomic data obtained from an unusual sample type even contains peptide tandem mass spectra. The second question is whether an appropriate protein sequence database is available for proteomic searches. We describe the use of automated de novo sequencing for evaluating both the quality of a collection of tandem mass spectra and the suitability of a given protein sequence database for searching that data. Applications of this method include the proteome analysis of closely related species, metaproteomics, and proteomics of extinct organisms.
In Vitro Thrombolytic Efficacy of Single- and Five-Cycle Histotripsy Pulses and rt-PA

Although primarily known as an ablative modality, histotripsy can increase the efficacy of lytic therapy in a retracted venous clot model. Bubble cloud oscillations are the primary mechanism of action for histotripsy, and the type of bubble activity is dependent on the pulse duration. A retracted human venous clot model was perfused with and without the thrombolytic recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA). The clot was exposed to histotripsy pulses of single- or five-cycle duration and peak negative pressures of 0-30 MPa. Bubble activity within the clot was monitored via passive cavitation imaging. The combination of histotripsy and rt-PA was more efficacious than rt-PA alone for single- and five-cycle pulses with peak negative pressures of 25 and 20 MPa, respectively. For both excitation schemes, the detected acoustic emissions correlated with the degree of thrombolytic efficacy. These results indicate that rt-PA and single- or multicycle histotripsy pulses enhance thrombolytic therapy.
What's New in Percutaneous Ablative Strategies for Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Colorectal Hepatic Metastases? 2020 Update.

Ablation techniques are now well-established treatment options available for the management of primary and secondary hepatic malignancies. Currently available ablative techniques include radiofrequency ablation (RFA), microwave ablation (MWA), cryoablation, and irreversible electroporation (IRE). Along with advances in navigational devices and targeting technologies, ablation combined with other therapies may be the next therapeutic option in thermal ablation. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the current status of ablative technologies in interventional and medical oncology for management of liver malignancies. With the use of combination techniques (i.e., ablation and transarterial embolization procedures), thermal ablation is now moving toward treating tumors larger than 3 cm in size or tumors with macrovascular invasion. Ongoing trials are examining the optimum timing of combination therapies. Thermal ablation combined with hepatic resection may increase the number of patients with metastatic colorectal carcinoma to the liver who qualify for curative surgery. Combination therapies of thermal ablation and transarterial embolization allow for promising treatment responses for larger HCC. Surgery combined with thermal ablation can potentially increase the number of patients with metastatic colon cancer to the liver who qualify for curative surgery.
Incorporating the creative arts in an educational presentation about play: a novel strategy for enhancing communication and engagement with parents

To engage parents more fully and enhance communication with them about the benefits of play, as well as the importance of play in their own lives, a novel strategy of incorporating the creative art...
Sequential Model Optimization for Software Effort Estimation

Many methods have been proposed to estimate how much effort is required to build and maintain software. Much of that research tries to recommend a single method - an approach that makes the dubious assumption that one method can handle the diversity of software project data. To address that drawback, we apply a configuration technique called “ROME” (Rapid Optimizing Methods for Estimation), which uses sequential model-based optimization (SMO) to find what configuration settings of effort estimation techniques work best for a particular data set. We test this method using data from 1161 classic waterfall projects and 120 contemporary projects (from GitHub). In terms of magnitude of relative error and standardized accuracy, we find that ROME achieves better performance than the state-of-the-art methods for both classic and contemporary projects. In addition, we conclude that we should not recommend one method for estimation. Rather, it is better to search through a wide range of different methods to find what works best for the local data. To the best of our knowledge, this is the largest effort estimation experiment yet attempted and the only one to test its methods on classic and contemporary projects.
Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Writing Systems: All East-Asian but Different Scripts

The three East-Asian scripts—Chinese (characters and Pinyin), Japanese (multi-scripts), and Korean (alphabetic Hangul)—are discussed. Under each script, a brief historical account of the given writing system, the key features of the script, and the strengths and weaknesses as a script are described. The commonalities and differences among the three scripts are next discussed. Since it is claimed that Asian orthography, particularly Chinese characters, curbs Asians’ creativity (Hannas, 1997, 2003), East-Asian students’ performance in international comparison tests is reviewed in comparison to that of American counterparts. Finally discussed are the implications of script differences among the three writing systems for script relativity.
Ethnic/Racial Bias in Medical School Performance Evaluation of General Surgery Residency Applicants.

Objective Differential use of communal terms (caring/unselfish traits) versus agentic terms (goal-oriented/leadership/achievement traits) may reveal bias and has been extensively reported in letters of recommendation for residency. We evaluated bias in medical student performance evaluations (MSPE) of general surgery residency applicants. Design This is a retrospective study evaluating ethnic/race bias, as measured by differential use of agentic and communal terms, in MSPEs of residency applicants. 50% of MSPEs were randomly selected. An ethnic bias calculator derived from an open-source online gender bias calculator was populated with a list of validated agentic and communal terms. Relative frequency of communal and agentic terms was used to estimate bias. Multivariable regression was used to assess the association between the terms and ethnicity/race. Participants US medical students applying for a categorical surgery residency position at a single academic institution for a single Match cycle. Results A total of 339 MSPEs were reviewed from 119 US medical schools. Genders were equally represented (women, 51.6%); most participants were white and Asian applicants (79.1%). Overall, MSPEs were more agency biased (65.2%) than communal biased (16.2%) or neutral (18.6%). MSPEs for Black and Hispanic/Latinx applicants were more likely to contain communal rather than agentic terms (adjusted OR: 3.02, 95% CI: 1.52-6.02) when compared to white and Asian applicants. This finding was independent of MSPE writer's gender or rank. Conclusions Surgery residency applicants self-identifying as Black and Hispanic/Latinx were more likely to be described using communal traits compared to white and Asian applicants, suggesting ethnic/racial bias. Such differences in language utilized in MSPEs may impact residency opportunities for applicants who are under-represented in medicine. Educational efforts aimed at MSPE writers may help to reduce bias.
Toward a theory of alienation: futurelessness in financial capitalism

There is an extensive body of literature detailing the forces behind and experiences of alienation in a modern capitalist world. However, social scientific interest in alienation had become parochial and balkanized by the 1970s. To reconstruct a unifying theory of alienation that addresses general features of capitalism, such as compulsory growth and commodification, and particular phases like financialized capitalism, we begin with the notion of futurelessness. Futurelessness refers to a deficient relationship to the future in which people’s senses of possibility ossify, narrow, or dissipate. It may result from inclusion in and exclusion from capitalist mechanisms or processes. Moreover, processes of inclusion and exclusion may appear more voluntary or involuntary. With these general terms, we identify four manifestations of futurelessness in financial capitalism: commercial exhaustion, imaginative marginalization, therapeutic nowism, and pragmatic denialism. The conclusion addresses future-sustenance in an alienating world and the prospects of a more systemic and synthetic approach to alienation.