cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Temporal trends in motor vehicle fatalities in the United States, 1968 to 2010 - a joinpoint regression analysis

In the past 40 years, a variety of factors might have impacted motor vehicle (MV) fatality trends in the US, including public health policies, engineering innovations, trauma care improvements, etc. These factors varied in their timing across states/localities, and many were targeted at particular population subgroups. In order to identify and quantify differential rates of change over time and differences in trend patterns between population subgroups, this study employed a novel analytic method to assess temporal trends in MV fatalities between 1968 and 2010, by age group and sex. Cause-specific MV fatality data from traffic injuries between 1968 and 2010, based on death certificates filed in the 50 states, and DC were obtained from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (CDC WONDER). Long-term (1968 to 2010) and short-term (log-linear piecewise segments) trends in fatality rates were compared for males and females overall and in four separate age groups using joinpoint regression. MV fatalities declined on average by 2.4% per year in males and 2.2% per year in females between 1968 and 2010, with significant declines observed in all age groups and in both sexes. In males overall and those 25 to 64 years, sharp declines between 1968 and mid-to-late 1990s were followed by a stalling until the mid-2000s, but rates in females experienced a long-term steady decline of a lesser magnitude than males during this time. Trends in those aged <1 to 14 years and 15 to 24 years were mostly steady over time, but males had a larger decline than females in the latter age group between 1968 and the mid-2000s. In ages 65+, short-term trends were similar between sexes. Despite significant long-term declines in MV fatalities, the application of Joinpoint Regression found that progress in young adult and middle-aged adult males stalled in recent decades and rates in males declined relatively more than in females in certain age groups. Future research is needed to establish the causes of these observed trends, including the potential role of contemporaneous MV-related policies and their repeal. Such research is needed in order to better inform the design and evaluation of future population interventions addressing MV fatalities nationally.
Expertise Modeling and Recommendation in Online Question and Answer Forums

Question and answer forums provide a method of connecting users and resources that can leverage both the static and dynamic (live) capabilities of a network of human users. We present a recommender for selecting the most appropriate responders given a question. The goal of this work is to encourage expert participation in QA forums by reducing the time investment needed by an expert to find a suitable question, decrease responder load, and to increase questioner confidence in the responses of others. The two primary contributions of this work are: 1. a generative model for characterizing the production of content in an online question and answer forum and 2. a decision theoretic framework for recommending expert participants while maintaining questioner satisfaction and distributing responder load. We have also developed two new metrics tailored to QA forums: responder load and questioner satisfaction. These metrics are used to evaluate the performance of our recommender system on datasets harvested from Yahoo! Answers. Experiments across several topic domains demonstrate our system’s ability to predict responder identities and suggest new responders that are likely to have the appropriate expertise.
Cost-Benefit Highway Pavement Maintenance

Many methods used in highway maintenance plans are complex, and agencies often exclude components related to user costs in the work zone (such as vehicle operating costs, delay costs, and crash costs) when making project improvement decisions. Highway users are taxpayers, and considering the user costs in project rehabilitation, resurfacing, and reconstruction provides the greatest return on project tax dollars spent. A simple five-step procedure that includes user work zone costs in the selection of highway maintenance projects has been developed and applied to the city of Gainesville, Florida, roadway improvement network projects: (1) collect distress data, (2) prepare inventory forms for the roadway networks, (3) prepare a maintenance cost plan, (4) prepare priority rankings for project improvements, and (5) select and implement project rehabilitation on the basis of priority ranking. These five steps assist highway agencies (public works officials and highway engineers) in simplifying maintenance prog...
Behavioral effects of NMDA receptor agonists and antagonists in combination with nitric oxide-related compounds.

Abstract Responding of rats was maintained under a 120-response fixed ratio (FR) schedule of food delivery, and animals received individual and combined injections of N -methyl- d -aspartic acid (NMDA), phencyclidine hydrochloride, (+)-MK-801 hydrogen maleate (MK-801), (±)-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (AP5), 7-chlorokynurenic acid (7CK), ifenprodil tartrate, N G -nitro- l -arginine methyl ester hydorchloride ( l -NAME), 7-nitroindazole, aminoguanidine hemisulfate, l -arginine, molsidomine, sodium nitroprusside, and 8-(diethylamino)octyl 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzoate hydrochloride (TMB-8). Behavioral suppression after NMDA was completely and dose-dependently reversed by MK-801, phencyclidine, AP5, and aminoguanidine; partially and dose-dependently attenuated by molsidomine, ifenprodil, and 7CK; and not attenuated at all by l -NAME, 7-nitroindazole, or TMB-8. These findings suggested that behavioral suppression after NMDA was associated with nitric oxide from the inducible synthase. In a second series of experiments, comparable behavioral suppression by 0.1 mg/kg MK-801, but not 3 mg/kg phencyclidine, was attenuated by nitroprusside, molsidomine, and l -arginine, suggesting that suppressions from MK-801 and phencyclidine were mediated by different final common pathways, and that behavioral suppression from MK-801, but not phencyclidine, may be associated with Ca 2+ -dependent nitric oxide.
Relationships between water temperatures and upstream migration, cold water refuge use, and spawning of adult bull trout from the Lostine River, Oregon, USA

Howell PJ, Dunham JB, Sankovich PM. Relationships between water temperatures and upstream migration, cold water refuge use, and spawning of adult bull trout from the Lostine River, Oregon, USA. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 2010: 19: 96–106. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA Abstract – Understanding thermal habitat use by migratory fish has been limited by difficulties in matching fish locations with water temperatures. To describe spatial and temporal patterns of thermal habitat use by migratory adult bull trout, Salvelinus confluentus, that spawn in the Lostine River, Oregon, we employed a combination of archival temperature tags, radio tags, and thermographs. We also compared temperatures of the tagged fish to ambient water temperatures to determine if the fish were using thermal refuges. The timing and temperatures at which fish moved upstream from overwintering areas to spawning locations varied considerably among individuals. The annual maximum 7-day average daily maximum (7DADM) temperatures of tagged fish were 16–18 °C and potentially as high as 21 °C. Maximum 7DADM ambient water temperatures within the range of tagged fish during summer were 18–25 °C. However, there was no evidence of the tagged fish using localized cold water refuges. Tagged fish appeared to spawn at 7DADM temperatures of 7–14 °C. Maximum 7DADM temperatures of tagged fish and ambient temperatures at the onset of the spawning period in late August were 11–18 °C. Water temperatures in most of the upper Lostine River used for spawning and rearing appear to be largely natural since there has been little development, whereas downstream reaches used by migratory bull trout are heavily diverted for irrigation. Although the population effects of these temperatures are unknown, summer temperatures and the higher temperatures observed for spawning fish appear to be at or above the upper range of suitability reported for the species.
Spurious Sidebands of Signal Carriers in Fiber-optic - Interferometric Sensors

Baseband low-frequency signals up-converted to sidebands of signal carriers can mask out the detection of intended signals[1]. For example, laser source intensity noise up-converted to the sideband of the magnetic carrier can limit the detection of small low-frequency magnetic signals[2]. In this paper, we present experimental results which demonstrate the up-conversion of three types of baseband signals: 1) the interferometer optical input intensity fluctuation from laser intensity noise, 2) the frequency noise of the optical source or equivalent low-frequency interferometer phase noise, and 3) the input polarization fluctuation. Also, the dependence of the strength of these up-converted signals on the interferometer quadrature condition and on the frequency contents of these baseband signals are presented.
Re-evaluating the neck injury index (NII) using experimental PMHS tests.

Objective: The neck injury index, NII, developed in ISO 13232 (2005) as a testing and evaluation procedure for assessing the risk of injury to the AO/C1/C2 region of the cervical spine in motorcycle riders is reevaluated using an existing postmortem human subjects (PMHS) data set and resulting in a reformulated NII criterion applicable to PMHS tests. Methods: A recent series of 36 PMHS head/neck component tests was used to examine the risk of neck injury in frontal impacts and to assess the predictive capability of NII for impacts of various orientations. Using force and moment load cell PMHS experimental data, injury risk was assessed using NII evaluated with the ISO 13232-5 algorithms. Results: The injury risk predictions are compared with the injury outcomes from the head/neck PMHS. The NII criterion underestimated the injury incidence of the PMHS experimental group. The average predicted risk of injuries for the experimental injury tests based on NII across the MAIS levels was 0.7 percent, though ther...
A Prospective Comparison of Molecular Diagnostic Techniques for the Early Detection of Cytomegalovirus in Liver Transplant Recipients

Forty-one consecutive liver transplant recipients were studied by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of serum and peripheral blood mononuclear cells, reverse transcription (RT)-PCR of peripheral blood mononuclear cells, and viral blood culture for symptomatic cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. The techniques were also used to predict the occurrence of CMV infection. For diagnosis of symptomatic CMV infection, the sensitivity and specificity of the different techniques were as follows: PCR of serum, 100% and 45%; RT-PCR, 25% and 97%; PCR of peripheral blood mononuclear cells, 83% and 35%; and blood culture, 83% and 86%, respectively. PCR of serum was positive in 83% of subjects with symptomatic infection before onset compared with 17% positive by blood culture. While viral blood culture was the best technique for the diagnosis of symptomatic CMV infection, PCR of serum was best at predicting the development of symptomatic CMV infection.
Neurobiology of Aggression and Violence

Acts of violence account for an estimated 1.43 million deaths worldwide annually. While violence can occur in many contexts, individual acts of aggression account for the majority of instances. In some individuals, repetitive acts of aggression are grounded in an underlying neurobiological susceptibility that is just beginning to be understood. The failure of “top-down” control systems in the prefrontal cortex to modulate aggressive acts that are triggered by anger provoking stimuli appears to play an important role. An imbalance between prefrontal regulatory influences and hyper-responsivity of the amygdala and other limbic regions involved in affective evaluation are implicated. Insufficient serotonergic facilitation of “top-down” control, excessive catecholaminergic stimulation, and subcortical imbalances of glutamatergic/gabaminergic systems as well as pathology in neuropeptide systems involved in the regulation of affiliative behavior may contribute to abnormalities in this circuitry. Thus, pharmacol...
Inpatient utilization of medical services associated with peripheral arterial disease-related inpatient procedures in the Department of Defense

The objective of this study was to describe the inpatient procedural medical care utilization the first 10 years after initial inpatient confirmation of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). A retrospective review was carried out of the computer records of all the army beneficiaries of the Department of Defense healthcare system since 1971. Over 8000 subjects with an initial inpatient confirmation of PAD between January 1, 1980 and December 31, 1985 were reviewed for 10 years following the initial visit. The utilization of PAD-related invasive procedures gradually increased over the first 8 years, and rose sharply in the ninth and tenth years after initial diagnosis, while the utilization of examination procedures was highest in the first, fifth to seventh, ninth and tenth years. Procedures involving bypass and amputation had the highest utilization among invasive procedures, while procedures involving arteriography and ultrasonography accounted for 88% of all examination procedures. Bypass and repair of vessel procedures gradually rose throughout the 10 years after initial diagnosis, while amputations and skin grafts remained relatively constant. Procedures involving arteriography rose until year 5 and then tapered off, while utilization of ultrasonography rose in year 7 and tapered off. These results suggest that PAD-related studies should consider the progression of the disease past the fifth year after the initial inpatient visit for PAD when measuring a change in outcomes.
Atmospheric Reentry Disposal for Low-Altitude Spacecraft

We explored four different options for atmospheric reentry of spacecraft from a circular low Earth orbit, below 2000 km in initial altitude, within 25 years: 1) chemical propulsion maneuvers, 2) low-thrust propulsion transfer, 3)balloon(drag enhancementdevice)deployment,and4)a combinationofoptions1and3.This atmosphericreentry approach satis es the recent set of NASA guidelines on the disposal of space structures. The additional required deorbitweight for each of these options is examined as a functionof the initial altitude and ballisticcoef cient of the spacecraft. The results of this study show that the additionalweight required for deorbit usinga low-thrust transfer is signi cantly less than the additional weight required for the other options. The balloon deployment option is competitive with the chemical propulsion option for low initial altitudes with regard to additionalrequired weight fordeorbit.The combineduse of chemicalpropulsionwith balloondeploymentresults in a lower required additional deorbit weight than for either option alone but only for cases with a small ballistic coef cient (area-to-mass ratio below 0.009 m2 /kg). The  nal disposal strategy chosen will also depend on other factors, such as cost, simplicity, reliability, and launch vehicle weight margin. The advantages and disadvantages of each option are discussed.
Synthetic biodegradable elastomers for drug delivery and tissue engineering

Synthetic biodegradable elastomers are an emerging class of materials with many potential clinical applications including drug delivery and tissue engineering. Biodegradable elastomers offer advantages of structure diversity, tunable properties, and a wide range of processing capabilities. This review highlights some recent developments in various aspects of biodegradable materials synthesis, characterization, and processing with a specific focus on structure-processing-property relationships. Biodegradation mechanisms and issues regarding tissue biocompatibility of these materials are discussed. Applications of synthetic biodegradable elastomers, including use as a materials platform for controlled release sys- tems, tissue engineering scaffolds, and engineered substrates for in vitro cell-biomaterials inter actions will also be presented.
Vascular cambium necrosis in forest fires: using hyperbolic temperature regimes to estimate parameters of a tissue-response model

Hyperbolic temperature exposures (in which the rate of temperature rise increases with time) and an analytical solution to a rate-process model were used to characterise the impairment of respiration in samples containing both phloem (live bark) and vascular-cambium tissue during exposures to temperatures such as those experienced by the vascular cambium in tree stems heated by forest fires. Tissue impairment was characterised for red maple (Acer rubrum), chestnut oak (Quercus prinus), Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), and ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) samples. The estimated temperature dependence of the model’s rate parameter (described by the Arrhenius equation) was a function of the temperature regime to which tissues were exposed. Temperatures rising hyperbolically from near ambient (30°C) to 65°C produced rate parameters for the deciduous species that were similar at 60°C to those from the literature, estimated by using fixed temperature exposures. In contrast, samples from all species showed low rates of impairment, conifer samples more so than deciduous, after exposure to regimes in which temperatures rose hyperbolically between 50 and 60°C. A hypersensitive response could explain an early lag in tissue-impairment rates that apparently caused the differences among heating regimes. A simulation based on stem vascular-cambium temperature regimes measured during fires shows how temperature-dependent impairment rates can be used to predict tissue necrosis in fires. To our knowledge, hyperbolic temperature exposures have not been used to characterise plant tissue thermal tolerance and, given certain caveats, could provide more realistic data more efficiently than fixed-temperature exposures.
Welding Adaptive Functions Performed Through Infrared Simplified Vision Schemes

Simplified 3-D vision schemes in a restricted bandpass of the infrared spectrum are used to fulfill welding adaptive functions in real time. A laboratory prototype able to seam track most of the 3-D joints encountered in welding is described, along with its performance as it applies to welding technology and to promoting better quality welds. Modules based on this prototype are of importance to expand the use of robotic arc welding since the latter can only be done reliably if real-time minute corrective actions on specific welding parameters (generalized torch coordinates and heat and mass balance) can be incorporated into a robotic welding station.
Transformable liquid-metal nanomedicine

To date, numerous inorganic nanocarriers have been explored for drug delivery systems (DDSs). However, the clinical application of inorganic formulations has often been hindered by their toxicity and failure to biodegrade. We describe here a transformable liquid-metal nanomedicine, based on a core-shell nanosphere composed of a liquid-phase eutectic gallium-indium core and a thiolated polymeric shell. This formulation can be simply produced through a sonication-mediated method with bioconjugation flexibility. The resulting nanoparticles loaded with doxorubicin (Dox) have an average diameter of 107 nm and demonstrate the capability to fuse and subsequently degrade under a mildly acidic condition, which facilitates release of Dox in acidic endosomes after cellular internalization. Equipped with hyaluronic acid, a tumour-targeting ligand, this formulation displays enhanced chemotherapeutic inhibition towards the xenograft tumour-bearing mice. This liquid metal-based DDS with fusible and degradable behaviour under physiological conditions provides a new strategy for engineering theranostic agents with low toxicity.
What can fear and reward learning teach us about depression

The precise neural substrates of major depressive disorder (MDD) remain elusive, and FDA-approved antidepressants fail at least one-third of treatment-seeking patients. It is imperative, therefore, to identify novel research strategies to tackle the factors impeding progress. In this chapter we propose that the knowledge derived from computational investigations of associative learning might offer new insights into the neurobiology of MDD.
Alaysis of image features of histograms of edge gradient for false positive reduction in lung nodule detection in chest radiographs

A computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) scheme could improve radiologists' diagnostic performance in their detection of lung nodules on chest radiographs if the computer output were used as a `second opinion'. The current CAD scheme that we have developed achieved a performance of 70% sensitivity and 1.7 false positives per image for our database. This database consisted of two hundred PA chest radiographs, including 100 normals and 100 abnormals (containing 122 confirmed nodules). Our purpose in this study was to improve our scheme further by incorporating new features derived from analysis of the histogram of radial edge gradients on nodule candidates.
Protein Crystal Shape and Size Control in Batch Crystallization: Comparing Model Predictive Control with Conventional Operating Policies

In this paper, we focus on a batch protein crystallization process used to produce tetragonal hen egg white lysozyme crystals and present a comparative study of the performance of a model predictiv...
Rosette and Granule-Hyaline Phagocytes in Tissue Cultures Stained Supravitally with Neutral Red.

The rosette and the diffuse granule types of phagocytes were observed by Sabin, Doan and Cunningham1 in peritoneal exudates stained supravitally with neutral red. The latter type may contain few dye granules or none whatever,2, 3 and is therefore called the diffuse granule-hyaline type. There is no proof that either of these phagocytes is related to the peroxydase-reacting monocyte of Naegeli.4 In the human blood there is some evidence that the Naegeli monocyte is neither the rosette nor the diffuse granule-hyaline cell.3 In the human, the epithelioid cells of the tubercle of lymph glands contain the largest and most characteristic rosettes seen, but these cells in smears do not react to the peroxydase test that colors intensely the Naegeli monocytes in the blood smears of the same individual.6 The final conclusion of Cunningham, Sabin and Doan5 is that the rosette type arises from the reticulum, and that the diffuse granule cell comes from endothelium. These investigators did not find the rosette cell in...
Spectacular Death: Sheng Xuanhuai's Funeral Procession in 1917

This article focuses on the extravagant funeral procession of Sheng Xuanhuai (1844–1916) in November 1917. This mile-long procession attracted over a million spectators and, thereby, lent the residents and sojourners in Shanghai of the day a unique visual sensibility of the modern urban milieu. Various parties to the funeral procession—namely the colonial authorities, the bereaved family, businessmen, and lower-class spectators—developed various tactics to manipulate the spectacle of the procession for political control, commercial gains, and visual pleasure. The author argues that the spectacularization of daily life, as exemplified by the 1917 funeral procession, and a collective will to look and to be looked at in early twentieth-century China, contributed to binding together otherwise segregated people, thus restructuring interpersonal relationships in the modernized city of Shanghai.
Terrain shape index: quantifying effect of minor landforms on tree height

In the southern Appalachians, the distribution and growth of trees are highly correlated with local topography, but the relationships have been difficult to de- scribe quantitatively. A quantitative expression of the geometric shape of the land sur- face (terrain shape index) is described and correlated with overstory tree heights and site quality. Application of the index in three even-aged stands of yellow-popular (Lirioden- dron tulipifera L.) on high-quality uniform sites shows that it is highly correlated with total height of trees in a stand, with t e ranging from 0.45 to 0.74. In comparisons among stands, the index accounted for an average of 51% of the variation in site index. The relationship was validated in two supplementary stands and accounted for about 49% of variation in site index. The terrain shape index was more accurate in predicting tree height than was lateral shape class, a subjective measure of slope shape occasionally used in soil-site studies. FOR. ScI. 35(1):91-104. ADDITIONAL KEY WORDS. Site quality, height growth, site index, Liriodendron tulipi- fera. IN MANY STUDIES IN UNDULATING TERRAIN, height growth of forest trees has been correlated with variables that describe landform. Significant ones have included slope azimuth, slope gradient, position on the slope, length of slope, and geometric shape of the site. The landform variables associated with tree growth, however, have been inconsistent among studies. For ex- ample, Doolittle (1957) and Hannah (1968) reported that total height of black oak (Quercus velutina Lam.), was correlated with position on the slope but not with shape of the slope. However, Carmean (1967), working with black oak, and Auchmoody and Smith (1979), working with upland oaks, found that tree height was related to both factors. Where surface shape was in- cluded in soil-site studies of other eastern hardwoods, it was correlated with total height of white oak (Quercus alba L.) (Hannah 1968) but not yellow- poplar (Munn and Vimmerstedt 1980, Brown and Marquard 1988). Part of the inconsistency among studies may arise from different methods in field measurement. Typically, land surface geometry is described as a discrete variable and sites are grouped into three perceived classes of shape: convex, linear, or concave. Surface shape, however, varies continuously and if expressed as a quantitative variable, it may be found to be more closely and consistently correlated with tree growth. Little has been reported in the forestry literature on expressing surface shape as an objectively measured, continuous variable. Attempts to de- scribe and quantify the effects of land surface geometry have been made in other disciplines, including geomorphology (Hack and Goodlett 1960), cli- matology (Grafton and Dickerson 1969), ecology (CallawayS), and forestry
Creativity in Medical Education: The Value of Having Medical Students Make Stuff

What is the value of having medical students engage in creative production as part of their learning? Creating something new requires medical students to take risks and even to fail--something they tend to be neither accustomed to nor comfortable with doing. “Making stuff” can help students prepare for such failures in a controlled environment that doesn’t threaten their professional identities. Furthermore, doing so can facilitate students becoming resilient and creative problem-solvers who strive to find new ways to address vexing questions. Though creating something new can be fun, this is not the main outcome of interest. Rather, the principle reason we recommend devoting precious curricular time to creative endeavors is because it helps medical students become better doctors.
An Implicit Gradient Meshfree Formulation for Convection-Dominated Problems

Meshfree approximations are ideal for the gradient-type stabilized Petrov–Galerkin methods used for solving Eulerian conservation laws due to their ability to achieve arbitrary smoothness, however, the gradient terms are computationally demanding for meshfree methods. To address this issue, a stabilization technique that avoids high order differentiation of meshfree shape functions is introduced by employing implicit gradients under the reproducing kernel approximation framework. The modification to the standard approximation introduces virtually no additional computational cost, and its implementation is simple. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated in several benchmark problems.
Cobalt and iron segregation and nitride formation from nitrogen plasma treatment of CoFeB surfaces

Cobalt-iron-boron (CoFeB) thin films are the industry standard for ferromagnetic layers in magnetic tunnel junction devices and are closely related to the relevant surfaces of CoFe-based catalysts. Identifying and understanding the composition of their surfaces under relevant processing conditions is therefore critical. Here we report fundamental studies on the interaction of nitrogen plasma with CoFeB surfaces using infrared spectroscopy, x-ray photoemission spectroscopy, and low energy ion scattering. We find that, upon exposure to nitrogen plasma, clean CoFeB surfaces spontaneously reorganize to form an overlayer comprised of Fe2N3 and BN, with the Co atoms moved well below the surface through a chemically driven process. Subsequent annealing to 400 °C removes nitrogen, resulting in a Fe-rich termination of the surface region.
Effect of genioglossus, geniohyoid, and digastric advancement on tongue base and hyoid position

Objectives/Hypothesis To assess the effect of genioglossus, geniohyoid, and anterior digastric muscle advancement on base of tongue and hyoid position. Study Design Cadaver experiments. Methods In fresh cadavers, the mandibular attachments of the genioglossus, geniohyoid, and anterior digastric muscles were advanced anteriorly by 6, 10, or 14 mm, and the anterior displacement of the base of tongue and hyoid was measured. The degrees of displacement of the tongue base and hyoid by the individual muscles and combinations of muscles were compared to one another. Results In 11 cadavers, 462 measurements were taken. Genioglossus advancement alone produced significantly greater tongue base advancement than any other muscle (P < .001). No combination of muscles produced significantly more tongue base advancement than the genioglossus alone. Geniohyoid (P < .001) and anterior digastric muscle (P < .001) advancement both produced significantly greater hyoid advancement than the genioglossus, but there was no difference between the two (p = .615). No combination of muscles produced significantly more hyoid advancement than the geniohyoid or anterior digastric alone. Conclusions Genioglossus muscle advancement produces the greatest base of tongue advancement. Geniohyoid or anterior digastric muscle advancement produces the greatest hyoid advancement. Advancement of neither base of tongue nor hyoid was superior when combinations of muscles were moved. Level of Evidence NA Laryngoscope, 127:1938–1942, 2017
Polyvalent Folate-Dendrimer-Coated Iron Oxide Theranostic Nanoparticles for Simultaneous Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Precise Cancer Cell Targeting.

The low therapeutic index of conventional chemotherapy and poor prognosis of patients diagnosed with metastatic cancers are prompting clinicians to adopt newer strategies to simultaneously detect cancer lesions at an early stage and to precisely deliver anticancer drugs to tumor sites. In this study, we employed a novel strategy to engineer a polyvalent theranostic nanocarrier consisting of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticle core (SPIONs) decorated with folic acid-polyamidoamine dendrimers surface (FA-PAMAM). In addition, a highly potent hydrophobic anticancer agent 3,4-difluorobenzylidene-curcumin (CDF) was coloaded in the FA-PAMAM dendrimer to increase its solubility and assess its therapeutic potentials. The resulting targeted nanoparticles (SPIONs@FA-PAMAM-CDF) exhibited high MR contrast. When tested on folate receptor overexpressing ovarian (SKOV3) and cervical (HeLa) cancer cells, the CDF loaded targeted nanoformulations showed higher accumulation with a better anticancer activity as compared...
Understanding Trends in Kidney Function 1 Year after Kidney Transplant in the United States

Lower eGFR 1 year after kidney transplant is associated with shorter allograft and patient survival. We examined how practice changes in the past decade correlated with time trends in average eGFR at 1 year after kidney transplant in the United States in a cohort of 189,944 patients who received a kidney transplant between 2001 and 2013. We calculated the average eGFR at 1 year after transplant for the recipient cohort of each year using the appropriate Modification of Diet in Renal Disease equation depending on the prevailing methodology of creatinine measurement, and used linear regression to model the effects of practice changes on the national post-transplant eGFR trend. Between the 2001-2005 period and the 2011-2013 period, average 1-year post-transplant eGFR remained essentially unchanged, with differences of 1.34 (95% confidence interval, 1.03 to 1.65) ml/min per 1.73 m2 and 0.66 (95% confidence interval, 0.32 to 1.01) ml/min per 1.73 m2 among deceased and living donor kidney transplant recipients, respectively. Over time, the mean age of recipients increased and more marginal organs were used; adjusting for these trends unmasked a larger temporal improvement in post-transplant eGFR. However, changes in immunosuppression practice had a positive effect on average post-transplant eGFR and balanced out the negative effect of recipient/donor characteristics. In conclusion, average 1-year post-transplant eGFR remained stable, despite increasingly unfavorable attributes in recipients and donors. With an aging ESRD population and continued organ shortage, preservation of average post-transplant eGFR will require sustained improvement in immunosuppression and other aspects of post-transplant care.
Deep sub-micron stud-via technology of superconductor VLSI circuits

A fabrication process has been developed for fully planarized Nb-based superconducting interlayer connections (vias) with minimum size down to 250 nm for superconductor very large scale integrated (VLSI) circuits with 8 and 10 superconducting layers on 200-mm wafers. Instead of etched contact holes in the interlayer dielectric it employs etched and planarized Nb pillars (studs) as connectors between adjacent wiring layers. Detailed results are presented for one version of the process that utilizes Nb/Al/Nb trilayers for each wiring layer instead of single Nb wiring layers. Nb studs are etched in the top layer of the trilayer to provide vertical connections between the wires etched in the bottom layer of the trilayer and the next wiring layer that is also deposited as a Nb/Al/Nb trilayer. This technology makes possible a dramatic increase in the density of superconducting digital circuits by reducing the area of interconnects with respect to presently utilized etched contact holes between superconducting layers and by enabling the use of stacked vias. Results on the fabrication and size dependence of electric properties of Nb studs with dimensions near the resolution limit of 248-nm photolithography are presented in the normal and superconducting states. Superconducting critical current density in the fabricated stud-vias is about 0.3 A μm−2 and approaches the depairing current density of Nb films.
Radiotherapy for juvenile ossifying fibroma of the maxillary sinus: Case report and literature review.

Background Juvenile ossifying fibroma (JOF) is a benign fibro-osseous lesion that can be locally aggressive. It is typically treated with surgical excision. A few cases using adjuvant radiotherapy have been reported in the literature. Methods We report a case of JOF treated with surgical excision and adjuvant radiotherapy to minimize the risk of local recurrence. We also review the literature. Results Our patient tolerated radiotherapy without complication and had not experienced a local recurrence at the time of writing this manuscript. Conclusions This is one of the first reports of adjuvant radiotherapy after surgical excision to improve local control in patients with JOF. Radiotherapy should be considered in patients for whom reexcision after a recurrence would result in unacceptable morbidity.
Biolistic Transformation of Cotton Embryogenic Cell Suspension Cultures

Genetic transformation of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is highly dependent on the ability to regenerate fertile plants from transgenic cells through somatic embryogenesis. Induction of embryogenic cell cultures is genotype dependant. However, once embryogenic cell cultures are available, they can be effectively used for transformation by Agrobacterium or biolistic bombardment methods. Here I describe a detailed procedure to transform cotton embryogenic cell suspension cultures by biolistic bombardment. A commercially available, helium-driven biolistic device (Bio-Rad PDS1000/He) was used to bombard gold particles coated with plasmid DNA (for visual identification of transformed cells and/or selection) into embryogenic cells. Stable transformation at a high frequency (up to 4% of the transiently expressing cells) is possible. Regeneration of fertile transgenic plants from embryogenic cells takes only about 2 months. Another advantage of the embryogenic cell suspension cultures is that they are amenable for cryopreservation and long-term storage. It is highly preferable to transform commercial varieties of choice than obsolete varieties to avoid the genetic drag due to backcrossing.
Emigrating on the Fly: a Novel Method of Army Ant Colony Movement Observed in Eciton mexicanum

We describe an emigration of the Neotropical army ant Eciton mexicanum where the head of the emigration column was separated in time from previous raid column activity, and the emigration was not connected to the new bivouac site by a column of workers. Over 12 h elapsed between raid activity and the onset of emigration, suggesting the emigration followed a long-lasting pheromone trail. We suggest the bivouac site had been selected the night before the emigration by foraging workers.
Traumatic brain injury among refugees and asylum seekers.

Background: Refugees and asylum seekers face many challenges in their pursuit of a safe home. The journey for displaced individuals can be extremely dangerous and many do not survive or go missing....
Comparison of a foam rolling session with active joint motion and without joint motion: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract Background Foam rolling has become a popular form of self-myofascial release or roller massage among health and fitness professionals. Due to this popularity, foam roller devices can be found in many clinical and fitness settings. Despite the popularity, there are still several unknowns regarding foam rolling such the optimal technique. Specifically, there is a lack of research analyzing different foam roll techniques such as combining active joint motion with foam rolling. Purpose The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a foam rolling session to the left quadriceps with active joint motion and without joint motion on passive knee flexion range of motion (ROM) and pressure pain thresholds (PPT). Methods Thirty healthy adults were randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups: active joint motion and no joint motion. Each foam roll intervention to the left quadriceps lasted a total of 2 min. Dependent variables included passive knee flexion ROM and pressure pain threshold measures (PPT). Statistical analysis included subject demographic calculations and appropriate parametric and non-parametric tests to measure changes within and between intervention groups. Results For left knee ROM, the active joint motion group demonstrated the greatest immediate increase in passive ROM (8°, p Conclusion A short session of foam rolling with active joint motion appears to have a greater effect on passive joint ROM and PPT than rolling without motion. These observed changes may be influenced by the agonistic muscle activity during active motion. This activity may modulate activity of the antagonist muscle through reciprocal inhibition and other neural pathways. Future research is needed to confirm these findings.
Piwi Proteins and piRNAs Step onto the Systems Biology Stage

Animal germ cells are totipotent because they maintain a highly unique and specialized epigenetic state for its genome. To accomplish this, germ cells express a rich repertoire of specialized RNA-binding protein complexes such as the Piwi proteins and Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs): a germ-cell branch of the RNA interference (RNAi) phenomenon which includes microRNA and endogenous small interfering RNA pathways. Piwi proteins and piRNAs are deeply conserved in animal evolution and play essential roles in fertility and regeneration. Molecular mechanisms for how these ribonucleoproteins act upon the transcriptome and genome are only now coming to light with the application of systems-wide approaches in both invertebrates and vertebrates. Systems biology studies on invertebrates have revealed that transcriptional and heritable silencing is a main mechanism driven by Piwi proteins and piRNA complexes. In vertebrates, Piwi-targeting mechanisms and piRNA biogenesis have progressed, while the discovery that the nuclease activity of Piwi protein is essential for vertebrate germ cell development but not completely required in invertebrates highlights the many complexities of this pathway in different animals. This review recounts how recent systems-wide approaches have rapidly accelerated our appreciation for the broad reach of the Piwi pathway on germline genome regulation and what questions facing the field await to be unraveled.
21st century technologies: Opportunities or threats for Africa☆

Abstract New and emerging technologies are rapidly expanding, and will greatly enhance the productive capabilities and wealth of those countries and entities that are making judicious and appropriate investments in them. These technologies will govern future human interactions worldwide and dominate global economic activities in the 21st century. This article examines the implications of these developments, and the strategies which have led to technological dominance and competitive advantage. The article outlines the fundamental steps that Africa and its peoples must take, both nationally and regionally, to ensure that these technologies are catalysts to the development and economic growth of the continent. Such steps include specifying policy objectives and priorities, essential infrastructural developments, and recognition, utilization and further development of indigenous talents.
CLOUDS AND FOG | Noctilucent Clouds

Noctilucent clouds are the highest clouds on Earth, and are located in the coldest part of planet Earth, the high-latitude summertime mesopause region (80–90 km). Composed of water-ice particles, they are nucleated by meteoric smoke particles. This article discusses brief history since their discovery in 1885, occurrence patterns, the nature of the cold mesopause, methods of active and remote sounding, polar mesospheric summertime radar echoes, theory and modeling of mesospheric ice, and long-term changes of mesospheric ice clouds, possibly related to upper atmospheric climate change.
Dissecting the tracking performance of regular and leveraged VIX ETPs

VIX exchange-traded products (ETPs) provide tracking on the return of a constant-maturity VIX futures index, instead of the uninvestable VIX spot index. In this paper, we develop a comprehensive framework to dissect the tracking performance of regular and leveraged VIX ETPs. In this framework, naive investors in VIX ETPs expect to achieve the ETP’s leverage ratio multiplied by the VIX return during their holding period, but the actual ETP return can deviate dramatically from this naive expected return due to four components of return deviation. The index substitution deviation is shown to be the primary driver of the bull (inverse) VIX ETPs’ return erosion (enhancement), which can be explained by the negative roll-yield as a result of the contango term structure of underlying VIX futures index. For leveraged VIX ETPs over multiple holding days, the compounding deviation due to the “constant-leverage trap” can be sizable. In addition, the NAV deviation due to expense ratio and fund management issues is negative, and the inefficiency deviation doesn’t accumulate over long holding periods due to the creation/redemption feature. Our return deviation framework can be generalized to other ETPs tracking indices that are either uninvestable or unrealistic to replicate.
Effects of flood inundation, invasion by Phalaris arundinacea, and nitrogen enrichment on extracellular enzyme activity in an Upper Mississippi River floodplain forest

The community structures and ecosystem functions of floodplains are primarily driven by variation in flood inundation. However, global changes, such as invasive species and nutrient enrichment, may alter the effects of flooding in these systems. We added nitrogen (N) to correspond with twice the annual atmospheric deposition rate of the south-west Wisconsin, USA region within mature floodplain forest plots and patches of an invasive grass (reed canarygrass, Phalaris arundinacea) along a floodplain elevation gradient in an Upper Mississippi River floodplain forest. We measured soil physicochemical properties and the activity of six extracellular enzymes during 3 months that varied in flooding conditions. Multivariate analyses (distance-based redundancy analysis) revealed that floodplain elevation, month of sampling, and vegetation type were all significant predictors of variation in soil physicochemical properties, while elevation and month were significant predictors of multivariate extracellular enzyme activity (EEA). The best model for predicting EEA consisted of nitrogen availability, soil porosity, and water filled pore space. Although the categorical fertilization and invasion treatments were not significant predictors of EEA, our results suggest that their effects depend on the degree to which they modify N availability and soil moisture. In this system, spatial and temporal patterns in flooding appear to be the main driver of these properties, but N enrichment and invasion may have the potential to further modify them.
“Normal for His Culture”: Appalachia and the Rhetorical Moralization of Class

ABSTRACTThis essay explores how class distinctions can rhetorically shift from issues of income to social stratification in the United States. This process depends upon and affects particular regio...
SHOULD CARDIOLOGIST PRESCRIBE AN SGLT-2 INHIBITOR?

Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors are a new class of diabetes medications with significant cardiovascular benefit. There is uncertainty regarding the appropriate prescribing service. This survey assessed the practice patterns of cardiologists, endocrinologists and primary care
An Economic Evaluation of a Comprehensive School-Based Caries Prevention Program.

Introduction:Current economic evaluations of school-based caries prevention programs (SCPPs) do not compare multiple types of SCPPs against each other and do not consider teeth beyond permanent fir...
Clinical and molecular factors predicting resistance to first-line (1L) FOLFOX in patients (pts) with advanced esophagogastric cancer (EGA) and patterns of subsequent therapy.

4047Background: In the US, FOLFOX is the most widely used 1L treatment for advanced EGA. We evaluated if FOLFOX resistance (FR) impacted subsequent therapy and characterized the clinical and molecu...