cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Innervation of the vibrissae of the California sea lion, Zalophus californianus.

The vibrissae of the California sea lion are richly innervated with myelinated fibers that terminate in three distinctly different endings. Large nerve bundles enter the base of the follicle and immediately branch into smaller bundles that traverse the connective tissue trabeculae below the large ring sinus. Some neurons terminate in a lamellated corpuscle in close relationship to the venous sinuses of the proximal cavernous tissues. The remainder of the nerves continue distally parallel to the glassy membrane terminating in two specific types of endings arranged in a ring about the shaft of the vibrissae at the level of the upper portion of the ring sinus. One type of ending is on the outer surface of the glassy membrane where the myelin sheath terminates abruptly and the sensory ending is flattened into a thick, lancet-shaped structure. An extension of cytoplasm from a specialized supportive cell covers this terminal segment of the nerve on two sides, while numerous finger-like extensions protrude into the connective tissue from the narrow, uncovered sides. The second type of ending penetrates the glassy membrane, branches, and terminates in close apposition to the Merkel cells in the outer root sheath. Amyelinated nerves of various sizes are frequently observed in the same bundles as the larger myelinated fibers, but to date, the position of their termination has not been established.
Global Climate Change: The Immediate Past

The climate changes during the last deglaciation were very large. Conditions for the growth of trees often changed faster than the plants could migrate resulting in forest types with no modern analog. Ice cores from Greenland show sudden short-term temperature changes called ‘Dansgaard-Oeschger events’ that affected the northern North Atlantic. Massive iceberg discharges into the North Atlantic through the Labrador Sea, ‘Heinrich events’ occurred periodically. Attempts to reconstruct the Earth’s temperature history over the past two millennia that showed the warming taking place in the last century were greeted with skepticism by politicians, as exemplified by the ‘hockey stick controversy’ which bore uncanny resemblance to the trial of Galileo Galilei.
Nrf2 and Cardiovascular Defense

The cardiovascular system is susceptible to a group of diseases that are responsible for a larger proportion of morbidity and mortality than any other disease. Many cardiovascular diseases are associated with a failure of defenses against oxidative stress-induced cellular damage and/or death, leading to organ dysfunction. The pleiotropic transcription factor, nuclear factor-erythroid (NF-E) 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), regulates the expression of antioxidant enzymes and proteins through the antioxidant response element. Nrf2 is an important component in antioxidant defenses in cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, and heart failure. Nrf2 is also involved in protection against oxidant stress during the processes of ischemia-reperfusion injury and aging. However, evidence suggests that Nrf2 activity does not always lead to a positive outcome and may accelerate the pathogenesis of some cardiovascular diseases (e.g., atherosclerosis). The precise conditions under which Nrf2 acts to attenuate or stimulate cardiovascular disease processes are unclear. Further studies on the cellular environments related to cardiovascular diseases that influence Nrf2 pathways are required before Nrf2 can be considered a therapeutic target for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
Anticoagulation Management in the Ambulatory Surgical Setting

Many people receiving maintenance anticoagulation therapy require surgery each year in ambulatory surgery centers. National safety organizations focus attention toward improving anticoagulation management, and the American College of Chest Physicians has established guidelines for appropriate anticoagulation management to balance the risk of thromboembolism when warfarin is discontinued with the risk of bleeding when anticoagulation therapy is maintained. The guidelines recommend that patients at high or moderate risk for thromboembolism should be bridged with subcutaneous low-molecular-weight heparin or IV unfractionated heparin with the interruption of warfarin, and low-risk patients may require subcutaneous low-molecular-weight heparin or no bridging with the interruption of warfarin. The guidelines recommend the continuation of warfarin for patients who are undergoing minor dermatologic or dental procedures or cataract removal. The literature reveals, however, that there is not adequate adherence to these recommendations and guidelines. Management of anticoagulation therapy by a nurse practitioner may improve compliance and safety in ambulatory surgery centers.
Collaborative Performance Measurement: Examining and Explaining the Prevalence of Collaboration in State and Local Government Contracts

Viewing collaboration as an imperative for public managers, scholars are calling for a better understanding of its origins, prevalence, and impact on organizational performance. The objective of this study is to explore the prevalence and the determinants of collaboration pursued in the course of monitoring government contracts. The theoretical framework proposed in this study explores the effect of several categories of collaboration determinants pertaining to government agencies, contractors, contractual relationships, services, and markets. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews administered to 69 state and local contract managers as well as nonprofit and for-profit contractors in five jurisdictions. Qualitative analysis identifies a variety of collaborative strategies used by agencies seeking vendors’ input and by vendors proposing and negotiating performance monitoring arrangements. Regressions analysing the determinants of collaboration suggest that the latter is more often pursued by nonprofit contractors and vendors with a unique expertise and higher resource dependency. Governments with advanced in-house professional capacity and willingness to collaborate are also more likely to rely on the contractors’ input. Meanwhile, high service measurability, long-term relationships, and dynamic markets reduce the likelihood of collaboration. This study suggests that collaborative performance evaluation presents both challenges and opportunities for effective contract implementation. The responsibilities of monitoring officers appear to extend beyond specifying and enforcing performance standards—they require the skills and motivation to empower contractors and to learn from their input and the professional capacity to evaluate their
Consensus and Structure in Legislative Norms: Party Discipline in the House of Commons

Decisions about which attitudes toward legislative behavior should be treated as institutional norms depend on the method used to identify these attitudes and how consensus is measured. One result is that these decisions are sometimes inconsistent. They also may not be compatible with the generally held definition of the legislative norm as a rule governing behavior, which has been accepted by a majority of legislators. This study examines parliamentary attitudes toward breaches of discipline in the British House of Commons to identify those which should be treated as norms. Consensus on behavioral attitudes among MPs is measured with a technique which can be applied in any legislative setting, and the widespread agreement on party discipline norms is evidence of a stable structure of expectations maintained by effective communication and enforcement mechanisms.
The situational stream hypothesis: A unifying view of behavior with special emphasis on adaptive and maladaptive personality patterns

Abstract In response to a growing need for unifying perspectives on behavior, the situational stream hypothesis is proposed. The foundation notions of the hypothesis are (1) that a basic requirement of living things is ongoing activity in the form of a continuous stream of behavior and (2) that this continuing stream of behavior may be seen as a continuous stream of reactions wholly in response to a continuing stream of situations. Four types of situations comprise the stream matrix—externally produced “external” situations, externally produced “internal” situations, internally produced “internal” situations and internally produced “external” situations. The dynamics of the situational stream matrix are discussed with special emphasis on the role of “personality” as a situation generating system and on several commonly observed behavior patterns (e.g., emotions and defense mechanisms) as stream maintenance devices. Following the exposition of the situational stream hypothesis, the conceptualization is applied to an understanding of adaptive and maladaptive patterns of personality. New methodologies based upon the stream perspective are also presented.
Can the Epstein Model of Parental Involvement Work in a High-Minority, High-Poverty Elementary School? A Case Study

The literature has lauded parental involvement as an effective strategy to increase student achievement, but schools still struggle with how to effectively involve parents of color and low-income families. In an effort to assess the effectiveness of the Epstein Model of Parental Involvement in high-poverty, high-minority schools, the authors conducted a case study of an urban elementary school that uses parental involvement practices stipulated in the model. This article provides implications for school counselors and suggestions for future research.
Clinical use of the self-expanding metallic stent in the management of colorectal cancer

Abstract Purpose: This report describes our experience with the use of self-expanding metallic stents (SEMS) in the management of obstructing colorectal cancer. Methods: A retrospective chart review of all patients undergoing placement of SEMS between May 1997 and January 2000 was performed. Results: Insertion of SEMS was attempted in 12 patients. Successful stent placement was achieved in 10 of the 12 patients. The locations of lesions were hepatic flexure (2), splenic flexure (1), left colon (1), sigmoid colon (4) and rectum (4). The intended uses of SEMS were for palliation in 3 patients and as a bridge to elective surgery in 9. In the latter group, SEMS placement allowed for preoperative bowel preparation in 4 patients and administration of neoadjuvant therapy prior to elective surgery in 2 patients. One patient died prior to definitive surgery. Stent placement was unsuccessful in 2 patients. Three SEMS-related complications occurred; 1 stent migrated and 1 stent obstructed secondary to tumor ingrowth. One patient died 13 days after stent placement and colonic decompression. Conclusions: SEMS represent a useful tool in the management of obstructing colorectal neoplasms. As a bridge to surgery, SEMS provide time for a complete preoperative evaluation and a mechanical bowel preparation and may obviate the need for fecal diversion or on-table lavage. It may also allow for time to administer neoadjuvant therapy when indicated. As a palliative measure, SEMS can eliminate the need for an operation.
A Virtual Village Network Architecture for improving the elderly people quality of life

Elder people often feel pushed to the margins by the generational shift and suffer from loss of identity and hence they lose motivation, recognition and self-esteem: they are often considered to be no longer capable of performing any service. This paper proposes an ICT network architecture oriented to improve the quality of life of elderly people and their caregivers focused on the user need satisfaction and reducing negative feelings like insecurity, vulnerability, loneliness and depression. This Virtual Village Network architecture is organized on 3 levels: 1. the Virtual Service Centre (VSC) that, through a proper home interface, carries out the support, the monitoring, the prevention and the social facilitation; 2. the Intelligent Domotic Health Networks (DHN) a domotic modular network with high local evaluation ability through which the VSC can monitor the home and/or the user’s state of wellness and of health ; 3. the Dynamical Village Network (DVN) that is an ICT network of users. The idea is to build an ICT network of “virtual social neighbours” facilitating user relationships, able to have positive influences on the interactive abilities and self-image of the elderly, and to prevent or overcome solitude, isolation and their negative effects on the elderly person’s overall quality of life and health. The whole architecture is pervaded by strict attention paid to security and privacy.
Using medical student observers of infection prevention, hand hygiene, and injection safety in outpatient settings: A cross-sectional survey

Background Health care-associated infection outbreaks have occurred in outpatient settings due to lapses in infection prevention. However, little is known about the overall infection prevention status in outpatient environments. Methods A cross-sectional design was employed to assess infection prevention policies and practices at 15 outpatient sites across New Mexico in 2014 during a medical student outpatient rotation. A standardized infection prevention checklist was completed via staff interview; observations of injection safety practices and hand hygiene behavior were conducted. Aggregate data were analyzed using Excel (Microsoft, Redmond, WA) and Stata (version 12.1, Stata Corp, College Station, TX) statistical software. Results Medical practice staff interviews reported a mean of 92.8% (median, 96.7%; range, 75.0%-98.9%) presence of recommended policies and practices. One hundred sixty-three injection safety observations were performed that revealed medication vial rubber septums were disinfected with alcohol 78.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 71.1%-84.7%) of the time before piercing. Three hundred thirty hand hygiene observations revealed 33.9% (95% CI, 28.8%-39.1%) use of alcohol-based handrub, 29.1% (95% CI, 24.2%-34.0%) use of soap and water, and 37.0% (95% CI, 31.8%-42.4%) use of no hand hygiene. Discussion and Conclusion These findings support the need for ongoing infection prevention quality improvement initiatives in outpatient settings and underscore the importance of assessing both self-report and observed behavior of infection prevention compliance.
Scaling laws for large earthquakes: Consequences for physical models

abstract It is observed that the mean slip in large earthquakes is linearly proportional to fault length and does not correlate with fault width. This observation is interpreted in the light of the two possible classes of models for large earthquakes: W models, in which stress drop and slip are determined by fault width, and L models, in which these parameters are fundamentally determined by fault length. In the W model interpretation, stress drop systematically increases with L/W , the aspect ratio, and, as a consequence, seismic moment. The correlation of slip with length means that the rupture length is determined by the dynamic stress drop. This conflicts with the observation that the length of large earthquakes is often controlled by adjacent rupture zones of previous earthquakes or by tectonic obstacles. It also conflicts with the observations for small earthquakes that stress drop is nearly constant and does not correlate with source radius over a broad range. In the L model interpretation, the correlation between slip and length means that stress drop is constant, namely about 7.5, 12, and 60 bars for interplate strike-slip, thrust, and Japanese intraplate earthquakes, respectively. L models require that the fault be mechanically unconstrained at the base. W models predict that mean particle velocity increases with fault length, but rise time is constant. L models predict the opposite.
Senior Capstone Design Project for Preparing Undergraduate Students for Work in a Research and Engineering Environment

This paper describes the experience of student-faculty research on the combustion of nonconventional bio-derived fuels in a lab-scale Hybrid Propellant Rocket Engine (HPRE) performed in the framework of senior capstone design project. The long-term goal of the project, which was started in 2010, is the study of the peculiarities of the combustion of nonconventional bio-derived hybrid propellant rocket fuels such as paraffin, beeswax, lard and fuels with an additive (aluminum powder) which are non-toxic and non-explosive with conventional oxidizers. The 2014/15 study was focused on obtaining regression rates for pure beeswax and beeswax with 10% aluminum flake powder (CAS 7429-90-5), and investigating the losses of melted unburned fuel. Such fuels could replace conventional fuels and are going to be used on NASA’s sounding rockets. A lab-scale HPRE, test fixture and instrumentation system have been designed, manufactured, assembled and used for the research and analysis of combustion. The results of the research were presented at the 50 and 51 AIAA Meeting and Exhibits, and SciTech, 52 and 53 Aerospace Sciences Meetings. The paper presents senior capstone design team research previously done and this year’s new findings, such as regression rate formulas for pure beeswax and beeswax with 10% aluminum powder along with the study of losses of unburned melted fuel.
Nonadiabatic Dynamics of Charge Transfer and Singlet Fission at the Pentacene/C60 Interface

Charge carrier multiplication in organic heterojunction systems, a process known as singlet fission (SF), holds promise for development of solar cells with enhanced photon-to-electron yields, and therefore it is of substantial fundamental interest. The efficiency of photovoltaic devices based on this principle is determined by complex dynamics involving key electronic states coupled to particular nuclear motions. Extensive experimental and theoretical studies are dedicated to this topic, generating multiple opinions on the nature of such states and motions, their properties, and mechanisms of the competing processes, including electron–phonon relaxation, SF, and charge separation. Using nonadiabatic molecular dynamics, we identify the key steps and mechanisms involved in the SF and subsequent charge separation, and build a comprehensive kinetic scheme that is consistent with the existing experimental and theoretical results. The ensuing model provides time scales that are in excellent agreement with the e...
Psychosocial functioning in Barth syndrome: Assessment of individual and parental adjustment

ABSTRACTBarth syndrome is a rare, x-linked genetic disorder. Few studies have examined psychosocial functioning in this population. The current study examined the psychosocial adjustment in individuals with Barth syndrome, as well as their parents. A secondary aim was to examine demographic as well as psychological correlates and predictors of poorer adjustment in order to identify relevant areas for intervention. Individuals with Barth syndrome completed measures of psychosocial functioning, health-related quality of life, and attitudes toward their illness. Parents completed measures relating to their child’s psychosocial functioning and reported on their own psychological functioning and coping. Results indicated that the majority of individuals and parents reported normative levels of psychological functioning. Younger age was associated with poorer health-related quality of life in some domains. Increased levels of internalizing symptoms were associated with poorer psychosocial functioning in individ...
Delta Theory and Psychosocial Systems: The Practice of Influence and Change

Delta Theory establishes the foundation for a true scientific applied psychology, a theory of how human influence induces change in others. Delta Theory is unified and universal, applying to all cultures, historical periods and goals for change. It integrates concepts and research from psychology, sociology, anthropology, evolution theory, philosophy, psychoneurology, cognitive science and cultural-historical-activity theory. Yet Delta Theory is clear, economical and elegant, with a full exposition of tactics for its practices. Rich examples are drawn from professional practices, but also from the creation and operations of criminals, healing ceremonies of indigenous peoples, and cross-species comparisons. This book ultimately seeks to describe how influence works, how it could be improved and how it can be resisted.
Mental Stress and Myocardial Ischemia: Young Women at Risk

Women with obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) have poor outcomes relative to otherwise comparable men. More women than men die after a first myocardial infarction.[1][1] Younger women (<55 years) have a particularly unfavorable prognosis after myocardial infarction relative to male
Project Tidy: Ranking Time Series for Smart Energy Systems: Poster Abstract

With the decreasing cost of data collection and storage and advances in analytics, companies have begun prioritizing deep analysis of data from their buildings and energy systems. Many of these systems already contain large sensor deployments monitoring their health and operation. However, a reliable analysis pipeline can be difficult to set up initially. The data generated is often dirty and it can take significant resources -- days to months of manual inspection -- to find traces or segments that can be used for analysis and modeling. In this poster, we present some initial attempts to address this problem by identifying and ranking the most useful traces, with respect to application-level relevance.
Classifying PML risk with disease modifying therapies

Abstract Objective To catalogue the risk of PML with the currently available disease modifying therapies (DMTs) for multiple sclerosis (MS). Background All DMTs perturb the immune system in some fashion. Natalizumab, a highly effective DMT, has been associated with a significant risk of PML. Fingolimod and dimethyl fumarate have also been unquestionably associated with a risk of PML in the MS population. Concerns about PML risk with other DMTs have arisen due to their mechanism of action and pharmacological parallel to other agents with known PML risk. A method of contextualizing PML risk for DMTs is warranted. Methods Classification of PML risk was predicated on three criteria:: 1) whether the underlying condition being treated predisposes to PML in the absence of the drug; 2) the latency from initiation of the drug to the development of PML; and 3) the frequency with which PML is observed. Results Among the DMTs, natalizumab occupies a place of its own with respect to PML risk. Significantly lesser degrees of risk exist for fingolimod and dimethyl fumarate. Whether PML will be observed with other DMTs in use for MS, such as, rituximab, teriflunomide, and alemtuzumab, remains uncertain. Discussion A logical classification for stratifying DMT PML risk is important for both the physician and patient in contextualizing risk/benefit ratios. As additional experience accumulates regarding PML and the DMTs, this early effort will undoubtedly require revisiting.
Saving the Market from Itself: The Politics of Financial Intervention

The 2007–9 financial crisis threatened economic disaster on a scale not seen since the Great Depression, but rapid state action prevented the widely feared devastation. The German response was considerably more generous to banks than the American or British bailouts. Drawing on interviews and primary sources in government, private firms, and media, Mitchell explains how the structure of national financial systems and interbank relationships produced extensive private rescues and pressure on different states. Mitchell explores the different responses and results in Germany, the UK and the US using a combination of detailed case study analyses of the three countries' responses to the crisis and a quantitative analysis of patterns of state responses to financial crises. This book will be essential reading for scholars and advanced students of political economy, comparative politics, economic sociology, economics, and public policy.
MyHEART: A Non Randomized Feasibility Study of a Young Adult Hypertension Intervention.

Background In the United States, young adults (18-39 year-olds) have the lowest hypertension control rates (35%) compared to middle-aged (58%) and older (54%) adults. Ambulatory care for hypertension management often focuses on medication with little time for self-management and behavioral counseling. This study was designed to evaluate the feasibility of MyHEART, a telephone-based health coach self-management intervention for young adults. The goals were to determine the intervention's ability to: 1) recruit young adults with uncontrolled hypertension, 2) maintain ongoing communication between the coach and participants, 3) increase participants' engagement in self-management, 4) document coach-patient communication in the electronic health record, and 5) assess patient acceptability. Methods Eligible participants were identified through the electronic health record. Inclusion criteria included 18-39 year-olds, with ICD-9 hypertension diagnoses and uncontrolled hypertension (≥ 140/90 mmHg), receiving regular primary care at a large multispecialty group practice. The intervention consisted of 6 telephone self-management sessions by a health coach targeting lifestyle modifications. Patients completed an open-ended acceptability survey. Results Study uptake was 47% (9 enrolled/19 eligible). Mean (SD) age was 35.8 (2.6) years, 78% male, and 33% Black. Over 85% of enrolled young adults maintained communication with their health coach. At baseline, 11% reported checking their blood pressure outside of clinic; 44% reported blood pressure monitoring after the study. All coach-patient encounters were successfully documented in the electronic health record for primary care provider review. Open-ended responses from all surveys indicated that participants had a positive experience with the MyHEART intervention. Conclusions This study demonstrated that MyHEART was feasible and acceptable to young adults with uncontrolled hypertension. Health coaches can effectively maintain ongoing communication with young adults, document communication in the electronic health record, and increase engagement with home blood pressure monitoring. The results of this study will inform a multi-center young adult randomized controlled trial of MyHEART.
Discrete uncertainty principles on graphs

This paper advances a new way to formulate the uncertainty principle for graphs, by using a non-local measure based on the notion of sparsity. The uncertainty principle is formulated based on the total number of nonzero elements in the signal and its corresponding graph Fourier transform (GFT). By providing a lower bound for this total number, it is shown that a nonzero graph signal and its GFT cannot be arbitrarily sparse simultaneously. The theoretical bound on total sparsity is derived. For several real-world graphs this bound can actually be achieved by choosing the graph signals to be appropriate eigenvectors of the graph.
Building Pre-service Teacher Capacity to Use External Assessment Data: An Intervention Study

In recent years, the use of data to inform instructional decision making has become a particularly prominent facet of K–12 educators' professional practice. However, research estimates limited oppo...
Ufs Corporation (a)

A new credit analyst for a bank has received the consolidated balance sheet of a conglomerate and the balance sheet of its intended target company. The bank wants her to consider the credit risk at UFS Corporation (UFS), but she realizes that she needs information that wasn't included in the balance sheets. Students will be able to examine the information she obtains from the loan officer responsible for UFS. Excerpt UVA-C-2323 Rev. Oct. 2, 2013 UFS Corporation (A) On her first day at her job at the bank, instead of getting a simple company balance sheet, Connie Likert received the consolidated balance sheet of a conglomerate and the balance sheet of its intended target company (Exhibit 1). She stared at the balance sheets, completely overwhelmed. The bank wanted her to consider the credit risk at UFS Corporation (UFS) after an impending acquisition. Likert, having recently received her MBA degree, had just started as a new credit analyst for the First National Bank in Bruceton Mills, West Virginia. She realized that she needed information that wasn't included in the balance sheets, so she tracked down the loan officer responsible for UFS and learned the following information about each of its companies. UFS Corporation's Current Organizational Structure . . .
Reverse saturable absorption (RSA) in fluorinated iridium derivatives

The photophysical properties of cyclometallated iridium compounds are beneficial for nonlinear optical (NLO) applications, such as the design of reverse saturable absorption (RSA) materials. We report on the NLO characterization of a family of compounds of the form [Ir(pbt)2(LX)], where pbt is 2-phenylbenzothiazole and LX is a beta-diketonate ligand. In particular, we investigate the effects of trifluoromethylation on compound solubility and photophysics compared to the parent acetylacetonate (acac) version. The NLO properties, such as the singlet and triplet excited-state cross sections, of these compounds were measured using the Z-scan technique. The excited-state lifetimes were determined from visible transient absorption spectroscopy.
Physical, Social, and Political Inequities Constraining Girls' Menstrual Management at Schools in Informal Settlements of Nairobi, Kenya.

Access to adequate water and sanitation is limited in informal settlements, contributing to girls’ challenges managing menstruation at school, especially when they cannot access materials to absorb menstrual blood and appropriate facilities for hygiene. This study documents differences between girls’ experience of menstruation at public schools (where the Kenyan government provides menstrual pads) and private schools (where pads are not provided) in two informal settlements of Nairobi, Kenya. Results showed that supply chains to public schools were not reliable, and equitable pad provision was not assured. Girls in private schools struggled to access pads because they were not provided. Sanitation facilities were physically available, but Muslim girls were unable to practice ablution due to the design of toilets in our study schools. Girls experienced fear and anxiety due to harassment from male peers and had incomplete information about menstruation from teachers. Findings suggest that practitioners and policy-makers should acknowledge the diversity of school populations and monitor programs to ensure efforts do not contribute to inequity.
20 – Postmortem Anatomy

This chapter describes the procedures involved in brain mapping in the wet lab and the strategies for visualization and analysis of the structures resolved by histological methods. It analyzes the technicalities associated with the preparation of a brain specimen and explains the histological procedures that are intended to gather as much anatomical information as possible from the specimen. Brain-specimen banking can provide access to postmortem brain tissue that has been prepared and stored to satisfy most research requirements. If the brain is received fresh by the bank it is split midsagittally by a cut through the corpus callosum and other transhemispheric commissures. The cut also severs the brain stem and the cerebellum into two symmetrical halves. One side is prepared for research while the other is sunk in 10% formalin and kept for classic neuropathological evaluation. Different neuroanatomical techniques may require mutually exclusive fixation procedures, and careful consideration is often required in choosing a fixation method in order to target the widest spectrum of anatomical information possible. The introduction of true serial sectioning was largely dependent on the newly discovered properties of embedding materials. The observation that paraffin blocks could be cut into uninterrupted ribbons of sections led to the design of the first automatic microtome and consequentially to the rapid and economical production of sections of known constants.
Secure the city, revitalize the zone: Smart urbanization in Camden, New Jersey:

“Smart city” agendas of information technology-driven governance are often aligned with neoliberal urban revitalization efforts, including the creation of new districts to attract multinational kno...
SARGS method for distributed actionable pattern mining using spark

Actionability is a mode of revealing actionable knowledge in the form of Action Rules from large datasets. Action rule imparts in the form of recommendations as how a data object can change from one value to another more desirable value. The towering production of data in the recent years, due to increased usage of web, social media and IoT, has led to the age of big data. Also, abundant usage of cloud storages and cloud based services causes the data to be spread around the globe. This requires more time and space for a single computer to cope with such widespread data. Ecosystems like Hadoop MapReduce, Spark have been introduced to store, process and retrieve back the data efficiently in a distributed fashion. Data mining finds substantial improvements over such distributed frameworks to process huge volume of data and acquire knowledge from them in a short span of time. In this paper, we present an approach SARGS: Specific Action Rule discovery based on Grabbing Strategy, to build more specific Action Rules using Apache Spark framework and evaluate the results with our previous Hadoop MapReduce system (MR-Random Forest Algorithm for Distributed Action Rules Discovery). Also, we propose a novel approach to distribute data in a distributed environment to get more optimal Action Rules and upgraded ARoGS algorithm to get more specific Action Rules.
Applications of Multivariate Analysis

As pointed out in Section 5 of Chapter 1, the standard regression problem is related to the problem of finding the maximum correlation between a scalar and a vector random variable. Indeed, the formulation of the problem is in terms of finding a linear combination of the elements of the vector random variable exhibiting maximum correlation with the given scalar variable. In this section we deal with a natural generalization in which we seek to define the correlation (or set of correlations) between two vector random variables. Specifically, the problem dealt with is as follows: Let (x 1, x 2, …, x m1 and x m1+1 , …, x m1+m2 be two sets of variables, (m 1≤m 2).
Methodologies for Reflective Practice and Museum Educator Research

We argue in this chapter that research focused on learners and learning, as well as on teaching, has sharpened our insights about how museum educators, in the process of becoming increasingly reflective practitioners and teacher researchers, can learn to both ‘notice’ learners in new ways and respond to these learners with flexible scaffolding rather than with predetermined disciplinary content, scripts or standardized questions. We base this argument on research conducted over the past five years using a sociocultural theoretical framework to inform methodological decisions. Our work and that of others (Tran & King, 2007, for example) and Kisiel’s and Tal’s chapters in this book have underscored the need for theoretically grounded practices for those teaching in informal science institutions (ISIs).
Sulfonylurea signal transduction

In the pancreatic beta cells the proximal step in sulfonylurea signal transduction is the binding of these clinically important drugs to high-affinity receptors in the beta cell membrane. Using HIT cells as a model system, we have established an extremely close correlation between the affinity of binding of glyburide and its analog, iodoglyburide, and the activation of various steps in stimulus-secretion coupling--inhibition of 86Rb+ efflux, increase in [Ca2+]i resulting from gating of voltage-gated calcium channels by cell depolarization, and the exocytosis of insulin. Two different L-type channel cDNAs have been identified in an HIT cell library, one neuroendocrine in type and one more cardiac-like. A HIT cell membrane protein of Mr 140,000, which we believe to be the high-affinity sulfonylurea receptor, can be covalently linked to 5(125)-iodo-2-hydroxyglyburide by ultraviolet irradiation. The receptor has been solubilized and retains binding activity and the same rank order of displacement of the 5(125)-iodo-2-hydroxyglyburide as observed with the native receptor. The Mr 140,000 protein has been partially purified and the amino acid sequences of three proteolytic fragments have been used to design oligonucleotides to screen HIT cell cDNA libraries. Since the binding constant of glyburide or iodoglyburide is closely correlated with the ability of these compounds to inhibit the ATP-sensitive K+ channel, increase [Ca2+]i, and elicit insulin secretion, we have identified the Mr 140,000 protein as the sulfonylurea receptor. Expression of the cloned cDNA should allow us to test this hypothesis directly.
Mutually Enticing Opportunities and Durable Settlements

There is much debate these days about the reasons for the durability of some negotiated settlements and not others. It is generally noted that negotiated settlements are not the most likely outcomes of internal wars (the most frequent kind of wars at the moment), one-sided victory being more common, and that even negotiated settlements are not very durable. Current studies indicate that external guarantors make such settlements last, since parties are loathed to disarm and return to peaceful politics lest the opponent not do so and take advantage of their weakness before full reconciliation has taken hold. But that explanation leaves the conflict or its resolution in the hands of an outside agent, a secondary actor, and begs the question why the parties are not on their own road to reconciliation after their negotiated settlement. A growing literature also looks at incentives and implementation and emphasizes their importance as another reason why settlements succeed or fail. Procedural and substantive grievances tend to have been downplayed or not even measured in many explanations of durability.
Primary care physicians’ perceptions of barriers and facilitators to management of chronic kidney disease: A mixed methods study

Author(s): Sperati, C John; Soman, Sandeep; Agrawal, Varun; Liu, Yang; Abdel-Kader, Khaled; Diamantidis, Clarissa J; Estrella, Michelle M; Cavanaugh, Kerri; Plantinga, Laura; Schell, Jane; Simon, James; Vassalotti, Joseph A; Choi, Michael J; Jaar, Bernard G; Greer, Raquel C; National Kidney Foundation Education Committee | Abstract: BackgroundGiven the high prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD), primary care physicians (PCPs) frequently manage early stage CKD. Nonetheless, there are challenges in providing optimal CKD care in the primary care setting. This study sought to understand PCPs' perceptions of barriers and facilitators to the optimal management of CKD.Study designMixed methods study.Settings and participantsCommunity-based PCPs in four US cities: Baltimore, MD; St. Louis, MO; Raleigh, NC and San Francisco, CA.MethodologyWe used a self-administered questionnaire and conducted 4 focus groups of PCPs (n = 8 PCPs/focus group) in each city to identify key barriers and facilitators to management of patients with CKD in primary care.Analytic approachWe conducted descriptive analyses of the survey data. Major themes were identified from audio-recorded interviews that were transcribed and coded by the research team.ResultsOf 32 participating PCPs, 31 (97%) had been in practice for g10 years, and 29 (91%) practiced in a non-academic setting. PCPs identified multiple barriers to managing CKD in primary care including at the level of the patient (e.g., low awareness of CKD, poor adherence to treatment recommendations), the provider (e.g., staying current with CKD guidelines), and the health care system (e.g., inflexible electronic medical record, limited time and resources). PCPs desired electronic prompts and lab decision support, concise guidelines, and healthcare financing reform to improve CKD care.ConclusionsPCPs face substantial but modifiable barriers in providing care to patients with CKD. Interventions that address these barriers and promote facilitative tools may improve PCPs' effectiveness and capacity to care for patients with CKD.
Effectiveness, Safety, and Economic Comparison of Inhaled Epoprostenol Brands, Flolan and Veletri, in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome:

Background: No previous studies exist examining 2 inhaled epoprostenol formulations in an acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patient population. Objective: The study aim was to evaluate a formulary conversion from inhaled Flolan to Veletri to determine the impact on effectiveness, safety, and cost in patients with ARDS. Methods: This was a single-center, retrospective, matched cohort observational study at a tertiary care academic medical center. Patients included were mechanically ventilated, adult patients with ARDS receiving inhaled Flolan or Veletri for ≥1 hour in the intensive care unit. Results: A total of 132 patients were included in the matched cohort. There was no difference detected in change in partial pressure of arterial O2/fraction of inspired O2 (PaO2/FiO2) ratio after 1 hour of therapy between the inhaled Flolan and Veletri groups (27.2 ± 46.2 vs 30 ± 68 mm Hg, P = 0.78). Significant differences in secondary outcomes included incidence of hypotension (83% vs 95.5%, P = 0.04) and thrombocytopenia (9.1% vs 29.5%, P < 0.01) in the inhaled Flolan and Veletri groups, respectively, with no difference in cost per duration of therapy (P = 0.29). Conclusions and Relevance: There was no difference in the change in PaO2/FiO2 ratio after 1 hour of therapy between inhaled Flolan and Veletri in an ARDS patient population. The formulary conversion from inhaled Flolan to Veletri was likely justified.
Outage Throughput Capacity of Hybrid Wireless Networks Over Fading Channels

How much information can be transported, i.e., the transmission rate, is a subject of great interest in hybrid wireless networks. The main focus of this paper is the effect of channel fading in hybrid wireless network, in which a wired network of base stations is deployed to support long-range communications between wireless nodes. Two types of transmission mode in hybrid wireless network, i.e., intra-cell mode and infrastructure mode, are considered. To effectively overcome fading impairment, optimal multiple access technique is applied, allowing opportunistic sources to transmit concurrently with the scheduled source. Those different sources, much like in wideband CDMA system, share the entire bandwidth. A successive interference cancellation (SIC) strategy is then introduced at receiver side to limit the intra-cell interference and achieve the maximum capacity. Meanwhile, frequency reuse scheme is employed to minimize the inter-cell interference. Since the outage capacity over different fading channels will exhibit different asymptotic behaviors, in this paper we examine the Rayleigh, Rician and Nakagami-m models, which are the most commonly used fading models. Close-form solutions for outage throughput capacity at high signal-to-noise-plus-interference ratio (SNIR) are derived. It is showed that, with opportunistic sources, the intra-cell mode effectively combats fading as wireless nodes increases; however, the infrastructure mode is bottlenecked by the downlink transmission since base station is the only transmitter in the cell during the downlink phase. The theoretical bounds obtained and proofs are instrumental to the future network modeling and design.
Nrf2 activation through the PI3K/GSK-3 axis protects neuronal cells from Aβ-mediated oxidative and metabolic damage

Mounting evidence points to a crucial role of amyloid-β (Aβ) in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a disorder in which brain glucose hypometabolism, downregulation of central elements of phosphorylation pathways, reduced ATP levels, and enhanced oxidative damage coexist, and sometimes precede, synaptic alterations and clinical manifestations. Since the brain has limited energy storage capacity, mitochondria play essential roles in maintaining the high levels of energy demand, but, as major consumers of oxygen, these organelles are also the most important generators of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Thus, it is not surprising that mitochondrial dysfunction is tightly linked to synaptic loss and AD pathophysiology. In spite of their relevance, the mechanistic links among ROS homeostasis, metabolic alterations, and cell bioenergetics, particularly in relation to Aβ, still remain elusive. We have used classic biochemical and immunocytochemical approaches together with the evaluation of real-time changes in global energy metabolism in a Seahorse Metabolic Analyzer to provide insights into the detrimental role of oligAβ in SH-SY5Y and primary neurons testing their pharmacologic protection by small molecules. Our findings indicate that oligomeric Aβ induces a dramatic increase in ROS production and severely affects neuronal metabolism and bioenergetics. Assessment of global energy metabolism in real time demonstrated Aβ-mediated reduction in oxygen consumption affecting basal and maximal respiration and causing decreased ATP production. Pharmacologic targeting of Aβ-challenged neurons with a set of small molecules of known antioxidant and cytoprotective activity prevented the metabolic/bioenergetic changes induced by the peptide, fully restoring mitochondrial function while inducing an antioxidant response that counterbalanced the ROS production. Search for a mechanistic link among the protective small molecules tested identified the transcription factor Nrf2—compromised by age and downregulated in AD and transgenic models—as their main target and the PI3K/GSK-3 axis as the central pathway through which the compounds elicit their Aβ protective action. Our study provides insights into the complex molecular mechanisms triggered by oligAβ which profoundly affect mitochondrial performance and argues for the inclusion of small molecules targeting the PI3K/GSK-3 axis and Nrf2-mediated pathways as part of the current or future combinatorial therapies.
Ionization induced dynamic alignment of water.

Two-body dissociation resulting from strong-field double ionization of water is investigated. Two distinct features are seen in the alignment of the fragment momenta with respect to the laser polarization. One feature shows alignment of the H–OH axis with the laser polarization, while the other indicates polarization alignment normal to the H–OH axis. By analyzing kinematic differences between the OH+/D+ and OD+/H+ channels of HOD, these two alignment features are shown to result from dissociation from different states in the dication. Only dissociation from one of these states has an alignment dependence consistent with predictions of sequential strong-field tunneling ionization models. The alignment dependence of dissociation from the other state can only be explained by dynamic alignment launched by the unbending of the molecule during ionization.
Das Haus Europa

Das Bild vom „Haus Europa“ gehort spatestens seit den KSZE-Verhandlungen der 1970er Jahre zum Metaphernschatz beim Nachdenken und Reden uber Europa und wurde durch Michail Gorbatschow.
D-branes on non-abelian threefold quotient singularities

Abstract We investigate the classical moduli space of D-branes on a non-abelian Calabi-Yau threefold singularity and find that it admits topology-changing transitions. We construct a general formalism of world-volume field theories in the language of quivers and give a procedure for computing the enlarged Kahler cone of the moduli space. The topology changing transitions achieved by varying the Fayet-Iliopoulos parameters correspond to changes of linearization of a geometric invariant theory quotient and can be studied by methods of algebraic geometry. Quite surprisingly, the structure of the enlarged Kahler cone can be computed by toric methods. By using this approach, we give a detailed discussion of two low-rank examples.