cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Moth plume-tracing derived algorithm for identifying chemical source in near-shore ocean environments

This paper derives a single chemical sensor based algorithm from the moth-inspired chemical plume strategies for identifying plume sources in fluid-advected environments. We evaluate the algorithm performance using a simulated plume with significant meander and filament intermittency. The in- water test runs demonstrated the algorithm effective and robust to the variation of near-shore ocean environments.
Use of peripheral blood instead of bone marrow to monitor residual disease in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

In children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), response to treatment is assessed by bone marrow aspiration. We investigated whether minimal residual disease (MRD) can be effectively monitored in peripheral blood. We used flow cytometric techniques capable of detecting 1 leukemic cell among 10 000 or more normal cells to compare MRD measurements in 718 pairs of bone marrow and peripheral blood samples collected from 226 children during treatment for newly diagnosed ALL. MRD was detected in marrow and blood in 72 pairs and in marrow but not in blood in 67 pairs; it was undetectable in the remaining 579 pairs. Remarkably, findings in marrow and blood were completely concordant in the 150 paired samples from patients with T-lineage ALL: for each of the 35 positive marrow samples, the corresponding blood sample was positive. In B-lineage ALL, however, only 37 of 104 positive marrow samples had a corresponding positive blood sample. Notably, peripheral blood MRD in these patients was associated with a very high risk for disease recurrence. The 4-year cumulative incidence of relapse in patients with B-lineage ALL was 80.0% +/- 24.9% for those who had peripheral blood MRD at the end of remission induction therapy but only 13.3% +/- 9.1% for those with MRD confined to the marrow (P =.007). These results indicate that peripheral blood may be used to monitor MRD in patients with T-lineage ALL and that peripheral blood MRD may provide strong prognostic information in patients with B-lineage ALL.
Microbial Indicators of Eutrophication in Everglades Wetlands

Nutrient loading has been implicated as a major cause of ecological changes in Everglades wetlands. The main objective of this study was to assess changes in microbial indicators in response to nutrient loading across the Everglades landscape. Soil chemical, physical, and microbial properties were measured for nutrient-impacted and oligotrophic sites within Water Conservation Area (WCA)-1, WCA-2a, WCA-3a, and Taylor Slough of Everglades National Park. Impacts of nutrient loading were most evident by the development of gradients in floc and soil total P from peripheral to interior areas of all wetlands following the paths of surface water flow. Floc was more responsive to nutrient loading than the underlying soil. The sensitive indicators of eutrophication were floc and soil total P, microbial biomass P, and mineralized P. Total P averaged 185 and 140% greater for nutrient-impacted than oligotrophic areas for floc and soil (0-3 cm), respectively. Microbial biomass P averaged 97 and 52% higher at nutrient-impacted than oligotrophic areas for floc and soil, respectively. Mineralized P was the most sensitive indicator of eutrophication, being 689 and 135% higher at nutrient-impacted than oligotrophic areas for floc and soil, respectively. Microbial indicators in WCA-3a and Taylor Slough were more responsive to nutrient loading than in WCA-1 and WCA-2a, which received higher P loads. Delineation of nutrient-impacted and oligotrophic areas in Everglades wetlands may serve as a baseline to assess future impacts of eutrophication. The consistent pattern in the response of microbial processes to nutrient loading across the range of conditions in different Everglades wetlands demonstrates their suitability as sensitive indicators of eutrophication.
The theoretical implications of joint-attention deficits in autism

Deficits in gestural joint-attention behaviors are a prominent feature of young autistic children. Attempts to explain these deficits have called upon the metarepresentational deficit hypothesis (Baron-Cohen, 1988; Leslie & Frith, 1988). However, developmental research suggests that joint-attention skills emerge prior to the cognitive capacity for metarepresentation. Thus, the metarepresentational hypothesis does not appear to provide a parsimonious explanation of autistic joint-attention deficits. An alternative model is proposed that attempts to explain these deficits in terms of the combined negative impact of developmental disturbances in affective, as well as cognitive, processes.
Large Gallstones Resulting in Obstruction

Generally, health care professionals are taught that gallstones found within the gallbladder that are large in size create no potential complications for the patient. However, there are rare instances when a gallstone that is greater than 2 cm can pass from the gallbladder and cause problems. When a large gallstone does pass, a gallstone ileus can occur, forming a fistula and intestinal obstruction. This rare pathology may be difficult to initially detect by sonography, but the use of sonography when comparing with computed tomography can aid in finalizing this unique pathology.
Is routine angiography necessary prior to carotid endarterectomy

Abstract The records of 111 consecutive patients undergoing evaluation for possible carotid endarterectomy at the University of Rochester were reviewed. All patients had noninvasive evaluation (oculoplethysmography-Gee and direct, continuous-wave Doppler ultra-sonography) as well as selective carotid angiography. Patients were grouped by clinical presentation to ascertain the relative importance of angiography in determining the need for surgery. Arteriography added nothing to clinical and noninvasive evaluation in over two thirds of patients with hemispheric cerebral symptoms or asymptomatic carotid bruits. In contrast, we found that almost all patients with nonhemispheric symptoms required angiography for adequate evaluation prior to surgery. The implication of these findings on preoperative evaluation of patients with carotid surgery is discussed. (J VASC SURG 1984;1:96-102.)
ON SERIES EXPANSIONS FOR THE RENEWAL MOMENTS

SUMMARY Given a renewal situation specified by a 'lifetime' distribution function F(t), let H(t) be the renewal function and qS.(t) the nth 95-moment. Then two (integral) recurrence equations are developed for OSn. The first expresses 0. in terms of On-, and H, and the second is an integral equation involving On, On-, and F. It is then shown that if H(t) can be represented by an integral function of tm (for some m > 0), then so can Obn(t) for any n. Further, the coefficients in the series expansion of qS.(t) (in powers of tm) may be calculated either from the coefficients in the series expansion for F(t), or that for H(t).
A 2.2GHz PLL using a phase-frequency detector with an auxiliary sub-sampling phase detector for in-band noise suppression

Tri-state digital phase-frequency detectors (PFDs) are widely used for the large capture and locking range that they enable, but suffer from relatively large in-band phase noise. Sub-sampling phase detectors have recently been demonstrated to offer very low in-band noise but with only a very small capture range. We show how a PFD and a sub-sampling phase detector can be combined to maintain the phase-frequency detection capabilities while simultaneously obtaining in-band noise suppression. A 2.2GHz PLL is demonstrated in a 65nm CMOS process with an on-chip loop filter area of 0.04mm2. The measured in-band phase noise improves from −110dBc/Hz to −122dBc/Hz when the auxiliary sub-sampling phase detector is active.
Identification of 2,4-Dichlorophenol in Females of the American Dog Tick, Dermacentor variabilis (Acari: Ixodidae), and Its Possible Role as a Component of the Attractant Sex Pheromone

Presence of 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) in extracts of fed and nonfed adult female Dermacentor variabilis (Say) by gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy (GC/MS) is reported. 2,4-DCP was detected as part of a mixture with 2,6-dichlorophenol, which is the attractant sex pheromone in this species in a 1:9 ratio, respectively. Extracts did not contain the monochlorinated phenols, 2-chlorophenol and 4-chlorophenol. None of these chlorophenols were detected in eggs. 2,4-DCP is comparable in efficacy to 2,6-DCP as an attractant sex pheromone, prompting attraction, arrestment and feeding posture behavior by fed males. It is also present in the female adult.
Regional wave propagation in China and its surrounding regions

A comprehensive study of the gross characteristics of high-frequency seismic-wave propagation in China and its surrounding regions was accomplished to learn more about how regional geology affects high-frequency phases. Amplitudes of the regional seismic waves Sn and Lg relative to P coda were used to map lateral variations of shear-wave attenuation in the crust and upper mantle. Over 7000 digital seismograms from 13 broadband stations of the Chinese Digital Seismic Network and Global Seismic Network in the frequency range 0.5 to 5.0 Hz were visually examined. Propagation efficiencies of Sn and Lg were qualitatively analyzed by ranking their amplitudes relative to the P -wave coda. Efficient Sn propagation is observed in the Tien Shan, Tarim Platform, southern Tibet, Yangzi Paraplatform, and Sino-Korean Platform. We have confirmed results of previous studies by finding a lack of Sn transmission in north central Tibet, the Ryukyu and Japan Arcs, Burma, and the Baikal Rift. An important observation, which has not been previously reported, is that Sn does not propagate across Mongolia. The elimination of Sn and the occurrence of recent volcanism in north central Tibet and Mongolia suggest that there is partial melt in the uppermost mantle beneath those regions. High-frequency Lg waves propagate efficiently for most of China, Indochina, and Mongolia. Lg signals are attenuated within central Tibet as well as along its southern boundary. Crustal structure variations along with an anomalously low- Q crust are primarily responsible for weakened Lg amplitudes in Tibet. Propagation paths across oceanic crust in the Sea of Japan and the Andaman Sea show blockage of the Lg phase as well. This investigation has relevance to Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty monitoring by showing where certain regional phases will or will not propagate efficiently.
A Transition-based Algorithm for AMR Parsing

We present a two-stage framework to parse a sentence into its Abstract Meaning Representation (AMR). We first use a dependency parser to generate a dependency tree for the sentence. In the second stage, we design a novel transition-based algorithm that transforms the dependency tree to an AMR graph. There are several advantages with this approach. First, the dependency parser can be trained on a training set much larger than the training set for the tree-to-graph algorithm, resulting in a more accurate AMR parser overall. Our parser yields an improvement of 5% absolute in F-measure over the best previous result. Second, the actions that we design are linguistically intuitive and capture the regularities in the mapping between the dependency structure and the AMR of a sentence. Third, our parser runs in nearly linear time in practice in spite of a worst-case complexity ofO(n 2 ).
Zinc-Catalyzed Highly Isoselective Ring Opening Polymerization of rac-Lactide

A family of chiral zinc amido-oxazolinate complexes are shown to be highly active and isoselective initiators for the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of rac-lactide, yielding isotactic stereoblock polylactides (PLA) with Pm up to 0.91. This represents the highest isoselectivity observed with zinc-based catalysts for ROP of rac-lactide.
Thinking Like a Wolverine: The Ecological Evolution of Olaus Murie

One day in February, 1922, Olaus Murie, then a 32-year-old field biologist for the U.S. Biological Survey, killed two mountain sheep in the high country southwest of Mt. McKinley in Alaska. It was late in the day and he had to return to his camp, so he knew he must leave one of the sheep behind. But he had seen wolverine tracks in the area, and he knew the wolverine would help himself to the sheep. And so, as he wrote,
Affect recognition in traumatic brain injury: responses to unimodal and multimodal media.

OBJECTIVES To compare affect recognition by people with and without traumatic brain injury (TBI) for (1) unimodal and context-enriched multimodal media; (2) positive (happy) and negative emotions; and (3) neutral multimodal stimuli. PARTICIPANTS A total of 60 people with moderate to severe TBI and 60 matched controls. MEASURES (1) facial affect, (2) vocal affect, and (3) multimodal affect. RESULTS Compared with controls, people with TBI scored significantly lower on both unimodal measures but not on the multimodal measure. Within- group comparisons for people with TBI revealed that they were better at recognizing affect from multimodal than unimodal stimuli. As a group, participants with TBI who were categorized as having impaired facial/vocal affect recognition were less accurate at recognizing all emotions, including happy, than unimpaired participants. Neutral stimuli were more poorly identified by participants with TBI than by those with controls. CONCLUSION Context-enriched multimodal stimuli may enhance affect recognition for people with TBI. People with TBI who have impaired affect recognition may have problems identifying both positive (happy) and negative expressions. Furthermore, people with TBI may perceive affect when there is none.
Bundle Branch Blocks and Hemiblocks

The conduction system beyond the atrioventricular (AV) node normally runs in the interventricular septum. The normal route for electrical depolarization is through the AV node into the bundle of His, which bifurcates into the right bundle branch and the left bundle branch. The right bundle branch does not divide again, but the left bundle branch does divide into the left anterior fascicle and the left posterior fascicle. Thus, there are three identifiable conduction paths at the end portion of the ventricular bundle system: (1) the right bundle branch, (2) the left anterior fascicle, and (3) the left posterior fascicle. Any one or combination of these fascicles may have an abnormal delay in conduction, causing a bundle branch block, a hemiblock, or even trifascicular block. This chapter describes the typical electrocardiographic features associated with each of these conduction disturbances.
Adjunctive Measures in Rhinoplasty

Modern day rhinoplasty demands more than a plan for a new nose. It requires consideration of the individual in terms of a new facial image. Adjacent skeletal and soft tissue weaknesses must be evaluated along with the primary nasal deformity. Frequently facial disharmonies may be corrected with relatively simple operative procedures or with cosmetics. When the procedure does not measurably increase the operative time, postoperative morbidity, or financial cose of the rhinoplasty, it will be more readily accepted by the patient. These criteria are considered in the suggested methods of chin augmentation with alloplastic implants and reduction mentoplasty, utilizing the intraoral subapical horizontal osteotomy of the mandible. At times, simple methods of camouflage will be inadequate. Significant jaw disharmony with unacceptable occlusion requires the interdisciplinary teamwork of the orthodontist, the surgeon, and possibly the prosthodontist. In these cases rhinoplasty waits upon skeletal and dental realignment. Almost without exception, the rhinoplasty patient appreciates and profits from the surgeon's concern over her general appearance. Advice regarding skin care, makeup, hair styling, and facial rejuvenation frequently aids that person in attaining a happy and satisfying rhinoplastic experience.
Electroencephalographic Observations of Medical Marijuana for Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy: A Case Report (P6.368)

Objective: To analyze the effect of marijuana on electroencephalography (EEG) in a patient with medically intractable idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE). Background: Following reports of seizure control with marijuana use among patients with intractable epilepsy, marijuana-based treatment for epilepsy has gained attention. There is limited literature marijuana efficacy for treatment of epilepsy and no literature on their EEG effects. Design/Methods: We performed a retrospective review of three EEGs in a 24 year-old woman with intractable IGE. The first study was a 24-hour video EEG performed while patient was only on antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). The second study was a 72-hour EEG with mixed Cannabis sativa and indica use on days one and three in addition to traditional AEDs. The third study was a 48-hour EEG with higher concentration C. indica use on day two in addition to her AEDs. Generalized spike-wave discharges (GSW) were categorized as interictal and ictal, based on duration of less than 10 seconds or greater respectively. Data from these studies were concatenated to form a contiguous time series with a period of one hour. Regression analysis was used as initial test of correlation between cannabis use (time dependent independent variable) and EEG activity (dependent variables), which was followed by time series analysis. Results: Regression analysis showed significant negative correlation between marijuana use and interictal events (p=0.01) but not for rate of ictal events (p=0.075). Time series analysis showed significant inverse correlation for marijuana use with interictal (p<0.004) and ictal (p=0.007) events. Upon auto-regression, ictal events were not statistically significant (p=0.7). Conclusions: In this single patient study with intractable IGE, marijuana appears to have significant effect in reducing interictal discharges and possibly ictal events in IGE. Although a novel report, studies involving large number of patients with standardized strains of cannabis will be needed to further validate our findings. Disclosure: Dr. Sivakumar has nothing to disclose. Dr. Zutshi has nothing to disclose. Dr. Seraji-Bozorgzad has nothing to disclose. Dr. Shah has received personal compensation from UCB Pharma.
The Effect of Partition Dependence on Assessing Accounting Estimates

SUMMARY: When auditors evaluate accounting estimates by testing management's estimation process, both current and proposed guidance call on auditors to review management's consideration of alternative assumptions and outcomes. Using partition dependence theory, a psychological bias that occurs when decision makers review a set of potential outcomes, we hypothesize that management's presentation of alternative estimate outcomes can bias auditors toward a management-preferred estimate. We demonstrate this result in a case-based experiment using senior auditor participants. We also perform two follow-up experiments, using student participants, to rule out competing rationales for our findings. In a final supplemental experiment, we test partition dependence predictions in a risk assessment setting and find results consistent with partition dependence. Our results have audit quality implications and, therefore, should be of interest to both regulators and audit firms. JEL Classifications: M40; M41; M42.
The Effect of Information and Severity on Perception of Speakers With Adductor Spasmodic Dysphonia.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of severity of adductor spasmodic dysphonia (ADSD) and information about it on unfamiliar listeners' attitudes about speakers' personal c...
INCIDENCE AND FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH NEW-ONSET CARDIOMYOPATHIES FOLLOWING LIVER TRANSPLANTATION

Background: Orthotopic liver transplantation (LT) is the only curative treatment for end-stage liver disease, and is a resource-intense, high-risk surgery. While cardiovascular events are the second highest cause of post-LT morbidity, data regarding the development of post-LT cardiomyopathy (CMY)
Fast finite element calculation of effective conductivity of random continuum microstructures: The recursive Poincaré–Steklov operator method

Abstract The effective conductivity of a block of composite can be extracted from the Dirichlet-to-Neumann Poincare–Steklov operator (PSO) for that block. In this paper, a domain decomposition method for computing the PSO over a finite element mesh is discussed. A new numerical strategy is introduced to accelerate the computation of this operator, using the Schur complement to calculate the PSO for the smallest subdomains, then recursively merging subdomain PSOs up to the full domain. At each step of the algorithm, information extraneous to the PSO is discarded. The effective conductivity values computed by this method are identical to those obtained from a basic Finite Element Method, an order of magnitude faster and with much less computer memory consumed. As proof of concept, effective conductivity measurements are presented for a percolating random fractal-like microstructure across a range of phase fractions.
Flexoelectricity, strain gradients, and singularities in ferroelectric nanostructures:

The effect of flexoelectricity on the formation and evolution of domain structures in ferroelectric materials is developed by integrating strain gradient theory into a finite element phase field mo...
Applicability of Subsampling Bootstrap Methods in Markov Chain Monte Carlo

Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods allow exploration of intractable probability distributions by constructing a Markov chain whose stationary distribution equals the desired distribution. The output from the Markov chain is typically used to estimate several features of the stationary distribution such as mean and variance parameters along with quantiles and so on. Unfortunately, most reported MCMC estimates do not include a clear notion of the associated uncertainty. For expectations one can assess the uncertainty by estimating the variance in an asymptotic normal distribution of the Monte Carlo error. For general functionals there is no such clear path. This article studies the applicability of subsampling bootstrap methods to assess the uncertainty in estimating general functionals from MCMC simulations.
Palliative Care and Hospice: A Paradigm for End-of-Life Care in Developing Nations

Traditionally, medical care has had two mutually exclusive goals: either to cure disease and to prolong life or to provide comfort care. Given this dichotomy, the decision to focus on reducing suffering is made usually only after life-prolonging treatment has been ineffectual and death is imminent, usually by days or hours. As a result, one of the best kept secrets in a hospital today in the United States is palliative care and hospice care. We estimate that of the 2.4 million Americans that die each year, about 80% end their lives in hospitals attached to the latest advances in technology; 300,000 die at home under hospice care. The reasons why more people do not receive palliative or hospice care range from the patient’s fear of abandonment and the unknown, the family’s denial of the inevitability of death of their loved one, and physician’s denial of medicine’s limitations. Unless the options of palliative or hospice care are given to patients the fears that people have of dying--fear of dying alone and fear of dying in pain--will continue to make the dying process one that lacks dignity and respect. In this review article we have reviewed the state of palliative and hospice care in the United States through a historical, ethical and legal perspective. We have discussed its scope in the developing world and the potential challenges.Journal of Advances in Internal Medicine 2017;06(02):38-44.
Behavior Factors in Coronary Heart Disease

Such large-scale prospective epidemiological studies as the Framingham Heart Study have identified certain characteristics or lifestyles which predict the subsequent occurrence of clinical manifestations of coronary heart disease (GHD). High levels of serum cholesterol and blood pressure and the habit of cigarette smoking have been termed “risk factors” for CHD. However, the best combination of these risk factors do not allow for the identification of which specific individual will develop CHD, and appear to account for no more than 50% of the variance in CHD rates in any population studied thus far. Thus it has become evident that additional risk factors must exist, and the search for these has led naturally to a consideration of the role of behavioral factors as potential risk factors for CHD. There is extensive evidence that stressful life events may be playing a role in the precipitation of acute clinical events related to CHD, and the role of the social milieu—particularly the availability of social support—also appears of key importance in modulating the impact of stressful life events. Most impressive of all has been the recent emergence of a specific behavior pattern, termed the type A (coronary-prone) behavior pattern, as an established risk factor for CHD of equal magnitude to the traditional physical risk factors (cholesterol, high blood pressure, and cigarette smoking).
Generalizing stopping rule research: Development of scales

ABSTRACTThe information search process has been of interest for several decades and across several disciplines of research. Of importance here, every decision-making process must involve a step of ...
Passive metamaterial-based acoustic holograms in ultrasound energy transfer systems

Contactless energy transfer (CET) is a technology that is particularly relevant in applications where wired electrical contact is dangerous or impractical. Furthermore, it would enhance the development, use, and reliability of low-power sensors in applications where changing batteries is not practical or may not be a viable option. One CET method that has recently attracted interest is the ultrasonic acoustic energy transfer, which is based on the reception of acoustic waves at ultrasonic frequencies by a piezoelectric receiver. Patterning and focusing the transmitted acoustic energy in space is one of the challenges for enhancing the power transmission and locally charging sensors or devices. We use a mathematically designed passive metamaterial-based acoustic hologram to selectively power an array of piezoelectric receivers using an unfocused transmitter. The acoustic hologram is employed to create a multifocal pressure pattern in the target plane where the receivers are located inside focal regions. We conduct multiphysics simulations in which a single transmitter is used to power multiple receivers with an arbitrary two-dimensional spatial pattern via wave controlling and manipulation, using the hologram. We show that the multi-focal pressure pattern created by the passive acoustic hologram will enhance the power transmission for most receivers.
Solution of hydrogen in palladium/copper alloys

The solution of hydrogen in PdCu fcc substitutional alloys has been examined in the region of low hydrogen contents. Relative partial molar enthalpies of absorption at infinite dilution are found to be somewhat less exothermic for the alloys than for palladium but the change with XCu is small. Partial excess entropies of absorption decrease with XCu but not as markedly as for the other Pd/group IB alloys. Relative electrical resistance relationships for PdCu alloys have been determined as a function of their hydrogen contents. Interstitial hydrogen increases the relative electrical resistance to a lesser extent with increase of XCu, but the absolute increase of resistance is nearly invariant with XCu.
Intestinal Tolerance, with a Little Help from Our Microbial Friends.

The intestinal immune system performs a tightrope walk between anti-pathogen immunity and tolerance to innocuous luminal antigens. In this issue of Immunity, Kim et al. (2018) demonstrate that the microbiota is driving tolerance to food antigens and dampening inflammatory responses through CX3CR1+ mononuclear phagocytes.
Robust, Accurate Systems-based Power Electronic Circuit Models in Simulink

This paper presents robust and accurate systems-based modelling of power electronic circuits in Simulink. The $\boldsymbol{i}-\boldsymbol{v}$ characteristics of a generic half-bridge consisting of practical power semiconductor devices are shown to have properties which guarantee the resulting nonlinear equations can be uniquely solved using the MATLAB command fzero. The proposed systems-based technique is more accurate than circuit-based techniques currently available in Simulink, which use piecewise-linear representations of $\boldsymbol{i}-\boldsymbol{v}$ characteristics, due to its ability to capture nonlinear $\boldsymbol{i}-\boldsymbol{v}$ relationships. As a result, the proposed technique features more accurate conduction loss estimation.
Management of Congenital Pseudoarthrosis of the Tibia and Fibula

Congenital pseudoarthrosis of the tibia and fibula are rare conditions that share common treatment strategies. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the recent developments in treatments for both conditions. Recent literature has focused on the use of BMP and on gait analysis as a tool for measuring long-term functional outcomes. Recent study has indicated rhBMP-2 may shorten the time to initial healing of pseudoarthroses, but not guarantee bony union. Children with initial fractures before the age of four have been shown to have long-term gait outcomes that may be ultimately comparable to children with prostheses. Both congenital pseudoarthrosis of the tibia and fibula are challenging conditions to treat, which require comprehensive approaches to account for both the biological and mechanical components of the conditions.
Sarcoidosis-Associated Hypercalcemia and Calciphylaxis in a Patient on Dialysis with Left Ventricular Assist Device - A Tale of Caution

Introduction Sarcoidosis is a systemic disease that is difficult to diagnose in the absence of biopsy-proven non-caseating granulomas. We report a rare case of sarcoidosis-associated hypercalcemia and calciphylaxis in a patient on hemodialysis (HD) with left ventricular assist device (LVAD). Case A 53-year-old man with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy, poorly controlled diabetes, and chronic kidney disease (CKD) presented with decompensated heart failure and ventricular tachycardia. Positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) of the heart suggested myocardial inflammation and sarcoidosis. He developed cardiogenic shock despite steroids and received an LVAD. Apical core biopsy showed normal myocardium. His CKD progressed to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) requiring HD six months later. He developed bilateral lower extremity pain thought to be diabetic neuropathy. He had hypercalcemia with normal parathyroid and thyroid hormones, but high angiotensin-converting enzyme level. Whole body PET-CT showed increased fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake in the spleen, liver, and small lung nodules. Biopsy of supraclavicular node with increased FDG uptake was negative for granulomas or malignancy. Serum protein electrophoresis did not yield monoclonal protein, and bone marrow biopsy showed no lymphoma. Bilateral calves and glans penis developed painful plaques with sharp borders and thick eschar (Figure A). Punch biopsy showed vascular calcifications in subcutaneous tissue, consistent with calciphylaxis (Figure B-D). Sodium thiosulfate was started with resultant shrinkage of lesions. Hypercalcemia resolved with prednisone and hydroxychloroquine. Unfortunately, the patient developed sepsis from the skin lesions and suffered a hemorrhagic stroke. His family decided to withdraw care. Discussion In this case, the diagnosis of sarcoidosis was made based on indirect evidence, and supported by resolution of hypercalcemia with prednisone. Hypercalcemia in sarcoidosis stems from calcitriol overproduction by monocytes, leading to increased intestinal calcium absorption. High calcium and phosphate levels, often found in patients with ESRD, have been implicated in the pathogenesis of calciphylaxis. For his LVAD, the patient was on warfarin, a known risk factor for calciphylaxis. Previous studies reported
Predictive Validity of Tobacco Product Advertising and Retail Availability.

Objectives Measurement properties of key constructs used in tobacco retailer audit studies are infrequently examined. We used diagnostic testing metrics to assess the predictive validity of product advertising and availability. Methods In 2017, we documented tobacco product advertising and availability in a sample of New York City and New Jersey retailers (N = 987). We calculated positive predictive values (PPV, ie, probability of availability given advertising is present) and sensitivity scores (ie, probability of advertising given product is available) for cigarettes, cigars, smokeless tobacco, and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS). Results Advertising presence was an imprecise indicator of availability for ENDS (PPV: 82.3%) and smokeless tobacco (PPV: 88.2%), particularly in non-chain convenience stores. Cigars were least likely to be advertised, if available (sensitivity: 27.8%), compared to other product types (sensitivity range: 43.8% - 57.9%). Conclusions The suboptimal predictive validity of advertising for certain products suggests that this measure does not necessarily reflect product accessibility in communities. Moreover, differences in sensitivity scores suggest that some product classes rely on strategies other than physical ads to recruit and retain consumers. A better understanding of these constructs and their influence on behavior can help inform more effective retail-based regulatory approaches.
Many of the kids are not alright: Material hardship among children in the United States

Abstract The material well-being of children has profound implications for a variety of social and health outcomes. This paper provides estimates of the prevalence and intensity of material hardship among children by various demographic groups and reveals stark disparities by race and educational attainment. According to a pooled sample of the nationally-representative Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) 36.5% of children lived in households reporting at least one form of material hardship, such as food insecurity, inability to pay essential household bills, inability to access medical care due to cost, or substandard and overcrowded housing. This is well above the proportion considered to be below the income poverty line (18.4%). Children were more likely to live in households experiencing material hardship than seniors.
An Evaluation of the Effect of Pharmacist-Led Comprehensive Chemotherapy Consultation Services on Outpatient Appointment Adherence.

BACKGROUND: The North Carolina Cancer Hospital at the University of North Carolina Medical Center serves patients with a variety of malignant conditions and discharges more than 130 patients each m...
Topological Properties for Harmonic τ-Uniformly Convex Functions of Order ρ Associated with Wanas Differential Operator

The purpose of the present paper is to establish some topological properties for a certain family of harmonic τ-uniformly convex functions of order ρ associated with Wanas differential operatordefined in the open unit disk U.
Associations of Loneliness and Social Isolation with Healthspan and Lifespan in the US Health and Retirement Study

ABSTRACT Background Loneliness and social isolation are emerging public health challenges for aging populations. Methods We followed N=11,305 US Health and Retirement Study (HRS) participants aged 50-95 from 2006-2014 to measure persistence of exposure to loneliness and social isolation. We tested associations of longitudinal loneliness and social-isolation phenotypes with disability, morbidity, mortality, and biological aging through 2018. Results During follow-up, 18% of older adults met criteria for loneliness and, for 6%, symptoms persisted across two or more follow-up assessments. For social isolation, these fractions were 21% and 8%. HRS participants who experienced loneliness and social isolation were at increased risk for disease, disability, and mortality. Older adults experiencing persistent loneliness were at a 59% increased hazard of mortality compared to those who were never lonely. For social isolation, the increase was 28%. Effect-sizes were somewhat larger for counts of prevalent activity limitations and somewhat smaller for counts of prevalent chronic diseases. Covariate adjustment for socioeconomic and psychological risks attenuated but did not fully explain associations. Older adults who experienced loneliness and social isolation also exhibited physiological indications of advanced biological aging (Cohen’s-d for persistent loneliness and social isolation=0.26 and 0.21, respectively). For loneliness, but not social isolation, persistence of symptoms was associated with increased risk. Conclusion Deficits in social connectedness prevalent in a national sample of older adults in the US were associated with morbidity, disability, and mortality and with more advanced biological aging. Bolstering social connection to interrupt experiences of loneliness may promote healthy aging.
Counter-Narratives of Crime and Punishment

In this chapter, we first define counter-narratives as a theoretical construct. We argue that counter-narratives are uniquely distinguished by an illocutionary force intended to challenge background assumptions supporting an intertextually related alternative narrative. However, whether narratives are ‘mastering’ or ‘countering’ is not to be determined on universal grounds, but contingent upon the structure of social, cultural, and political power of interactive and contextual conditions. Next, we detail the narrative practice approach (Bamberg 2020) and exemplify it with an analysis of two opposing closing arguments of a defense lawyer and a district attorney for a murder case. Analyzing the two statements as narratives (small stories) helps us to reveal two alternative positioning strategies—one identifiable as aligning with the master narrative of care, the other of justice (cf. Gilligan 1980). In our concluding section, we make use of these two positioning strategies to demonstrate the power of the master narrative of justice for the construction of a criminal identity, and the problems this poses for counter-narratives that facilitate the social reintegration of offenders and lowering rates of re-offending.
Design Considerations and Experience of the RHIC Dual Magnet Cryostat Installation

The first RHIC Dual Magnet installation, of eight (8) cold masses in one vacuum vessel, has been completed. Design of the system included the requirement for assembly on location, the need for individual three-direction alignment capability at each cold mass cradle, a fixed position cradle for the entire assembly, longitudinal slide capability for all other cradles, two thermally isolated heat shields, accessible electrical splice boxes, removable interconnects, removability of individual cold mass sections, flexible supply lines for electrical power and cryogenic services and external loads imposed from the supply services. Initially two of the twelve total assemblies were fabricated for the Sextant Test of the RHIC ring. This paper covers an overview of that effort from initial design considerations, fabrication/installation techniques, initial installation problems and the final design solutions.
Reward systems promote high-performance work teams achieving library mission

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss that development and recognition of human capital is a shared responsibility reflecting a delicate balance with employees on one side and the organization on the other. Conveying the message that employees matter, are valued contributors and will be rewarded improves morale, builds trust and expands opportunities for growth, through challenging assignments, improving performance and furthering skill development. Design/methodology/approach – The typical organizational structure in a library is made up of three key components: formal reporting relationships, the identification of groupings of individuals into departments or teams and the design of systems that ensures effective communication, coordination and integration of efforts across units. What steps can a library administrator take to reimagine and implement a responsive rewards system? Findings – There are five recommendations for library administrators to develop and implement a rewards system. Ori...
Some aspects of head-variance evaluation

We compare two methods of evaluating head covariance for two-dimensional steady-state flow in mildly heterogeneous bounded rectangular aquifers. The quasi-analytical approach, widely used in stochastic subsurface hydrology, is based on the Green’s function representation, and involves numerical four-fold integration. We compare this approach with a numerical solution of the two-dimensional boundary-value problem for head covariance. We show that the finite differences integration of this problem is computationally less expensive than numerical four-fold integration of slowly-convergent infinite series.
Aquaporins and water transport across the tonoplast

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses aquaporins and water transport across the tonoplast. The membranes of living cells are differentially permeable to water and solutes: water passes more easily through a membrane than solutes, whose passage depends on the presence of specific channels and carriers. It was assumed for a long time that osmotic water movement occurs strictly by diffusion of water molecules across the lipid bilayer. When it was noticed that certain membranes permitted a water flux that was greater than expected, the existence of water–filled pores was proposed as an explanation. The nature of these membrane pores has long been a mystery, and it was postulated that water could pass either through proteinaceous pores (water channel protcins) or through locally disorganized regions of the phospholipid bilayer. These water channel proteins are referred to as aquaporins. Demonstration of aquaporin–mediated water permeability was first accomplished by the injection of Xenopus oocytes with aquaporin cRNA, followed by measurements of the osmotic permeability of the oocytes. Proof that a membrane protein has arrived at the plasma membrane of the oocyte can be obtained by immunofluorescence microscopy if antibodies to the protein are available, or by fractionating the oocyte membranes. New methods are now being developed to assay the activity of aquaporins by expressing them in yeast or in E. coli.
Probing Shear‐Banding Transitions of Entangled Liquids Using Large Amplitude Oscillatory Shearing (LAOS) Deformations

We explore the dynamical response, under Large Amplitude Oscillatory Shear (LAOS) deformation, of a new class of constitutive models (denoted generically VCM) designed to describe entangled solutions of wormlike micellar solutions or concentrated polymer solutions. The goal is to investigate the applicability of LAOS as a test protocol for determining the rheological properties of entangled fluids and the onset of shear banding events that are observed experimentally. The VCM family of models show that shear‐banding transitions will develop in LAOS experiments at a frequency‐dependent critical strain. The velocity and stress field exhibit a complex dynamical response that varies with both the frequency and amplitude of the forcing. The rheological response of the different states that are observed can be represented in terms of a Pipkin diagram together with Lissajous figures (phase plane portraits).
The testing procedures of thermal performance of solar collector at Solar Research Lab., G.I.R.I.

ABSTRACT The testing apparatus which is similar to NBS type was installed in order to obtain the thermal performance characteristics of two collectors with different specification simultaneously. The collector efficiency was measured by following NBS procedures and the direct measurement of heat losses through the collector was also carried out after the sunset. Two collectors were tested. The factor F'UL of single glazing collector with black paint absorber evaluated from both experiments show the remarkable dependency on the wind speed around the collector as expected from the heat transfer theory on the collector. It is finally concluded that NBS procedure can be acceptable to describe the performance characteristics of a collector.
Normalized joint transform correlation for target recognition

We propose the implementation of normalized correlation in the space domain to achieve real-time discrimination. Two new joint transform correlator configurations are proposed for this purpose. Compared to the filter normalization method, the proposed schemes are more suitable for real-time processing and are robust in terms of system alignment. Computer simulation results are given.
Recovering Mesh Geometry from a Stiffness Matrix

We introduce the following class of mesh recovery problems: Given a stiffness matrix A and a PDE, construct a mesh M such that the finite-element formulation of the PDE over M is A. We show, under certain assumptions, that it is possible to reconstruct the original mesh for the special case of the Laplace operator discretized on an unstructured mesh of triangular elements with linear basis functions. The reconstruction is achieved through a series of techniques from graph theory and numerical analysis, some of which are new and can find application in other scientific areas. Finally, we discuss extensions to other operators and some open questions related to this class of problems.
Results on the Influence of Crack Tip Plasticity During Dynamic Crack Growth.

Abstract : Dynamic fracture processes in structural materials are often described in terms of the relationship between a measure of the crack driving force and the crack tip speed. In this article, ongoing research directed toward establishing a basis for such a relationship in terms of crack tip plastic fields is described. In particular, the role of material inertia on a small scale as it influences the perceived fracture resistance of a rate independent material is discussed. Also, the influence of material strain rate sensitivity on the development of crack tip plastic deformations, and the implications for cleavage propagation and arrest in a material that can undergo a fracture mechanism transition, is considered. The discussion is concluded with mention of a few outstanding problems in the study of dynamic fracture, including some recent experimental evidence that the traditional crack tip characterization viewpoint of fracture mechanics may be inadequate under very high rate loading conditions. Keywords: Dynamic fracture, Dynamic crack propagation, Elastic-plastic fracture, High strain rate fracture, Crack arrest.
From Sword to Shield: The Transformation of the Corporate Income Tax, 1861 to Present

Introduction Chapter 1: The Roots of a Corporate Tax Chapter 2: From Industry Taxes to Corporate Taxes Chapter 3: Corporate Tax at the Turn-of-the-Century Chapter 4: The Rise of the Separate Corporate Tax Chapter 5: Nonrecognition and the Corporate Tax Shield Chapter 6: The Origins of Double Taxation Chapter 7: The Lost Moment in Corporate Tax Reform Chapter 8: The Present and Future of Corporate Income Taxation