cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hilbert-like tight frame wavelets with symmetric envelope

Wavelets based on Hilbert pairs have appealing properties when applied to image denoising and feature detection due to their directional sensitivity. In this paper we propose dual-tree tight frame wavelets and scaling functions {o h , ψh 1 , ψh 2 , ψh 3 } and (Φg, ψg 1 , ψg 2 , ψg 3 } based on FIR filterbanks of four filters, and downsampling by 2. Such wavelets closely approximate shift invariance. Moreover, the resulting complex wavelets are smooth and lead to exactly symmetric envelope. The filters in this paper enjoy vanishing moments property.
Real-time monitoring of atmospheric aerosol at New Haven, CT for fluorescence spectra, particle size and concentration

A real-time aerosol-particle monitoring system is developed to measure size, concentration, and UV-laser-induced-fluorescence spectra. Data for atmospheric particles at New Haven, CT are measured over 48-hours and heirarchically cluster into various categories.
Analysis of Heavy-Duty Diesel Truck Activity and Fuel Economy Based on Electronic Control Module Data

Heavy-duty diesel trucks (HDDTs) are a significant source of on-road carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, primarily because of their low fuel economy and high annual mileage. To design strategies properly to reduce CO2 emissions from HDDTs, a good understanding of their activity and fuel economy is required. The traditional data sources and methods for quantifying HDDT activity and real-world fuel economy have limitations in one way or another. This demonstrated that the onboard electronic control module (ECM) could be another important source of data on HDDT activity and real-world fuel economy. With ECM data from 865 HDDTs, it was found that the total fuel economy was about 6.2 mpg. When adjusted for the fuel used during idle and power take-off (PTO), the driving fuel economy was 6.5 mpg. The mean idle time for this fleet was approximately 33% of the total operating hours, and the mean PTO time was about 12%. The fuel rate during idle averaged 0.6 gal/h, and the fuel rate during PTO averaged 1.3 gal/h. The a...
Bandwidth guaranteed integrated routing and wavelength assignment algorithm in IP over WDM optical networks

In this paper, we have developed an integrated online algorithm for dynamically routing bandwidth guaranteed label switched paths (LSPs) in IP over WDM optical networks. Traditionally, routing at upper layer (e.g., IP layer) is independent of wavelength routing at the optical layer. Wavelength routing at the optical layer sets up a quasi-static logical topology which is then used at the IP layer for IP routing. The coarse-grain wavelength channels and the pre-determined virtual topologies with respect to some {\it a priori} assumed traffic distribution are barriers to efficient resource use and inflexible to changing traffic. We take into count the combined knowledge of resource and topology information in both IP and optical layers. With this added knowledge, an integrated routing approach can extract better network efficiencies, be more robust to changing traffic patterns at the IP layer than schemes that either use dynamic routing information at the IP layer or use a static wavelength topology only. Our proposed algorithm considers not only the importance of critical links, but also their relative importance to routing possible future LSP set-up requests by characterizing their normalized bandwidth contribution to routing future LSP requests. Moreover, link residual bandwidth information that captures the link's capability of routing future LSPs is also incorporated into our algorithm. Simulation results show that our proposed algorithm performs better than both routing algorithms do in terms of LSP set-up request rejection rate and available bandwidths.© (2002) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
WAIS TEST-RETEST RELIABILITY FOR A CLINICAL OUT-PATIENT SAMPLE

WAIS test-retest reliabilities were calculated for a clinical out-patient sample with testing intervals varying from 1 to 10 yr. There was no relationship between test-retest interval and the stability of test scores and the correlations between IQs were quite satisfactory (Full Scale IQ = .897, Verbal IQ = .906, Performance IQ = .876). Reliabilities remained high even when the sample was divided by diagnosis into organic, neurotic, personality disorder, and schizophrenic subgroups.
Direct Detection of Sub-GeV Dark Matter

Direct detection strategies are proposed for dark matter particles with MeV to GeV mass. In this largely unexplored mass range, dark matter scattering with electrons can cause single-electron ionization signals, which are detectable with current technology. Ultraviolet photons, individual ions, and heat are interesting alternative signals. Focusing on ionization, we calculate the expected dark matter scattering rates and estimate the sensitivity of possible experiments. Backgrounds that may be relevant are discussed. Theoretically interesting models can be probed with existing technologies, and may even be within reach using ongoing direct detection experiments. Significant improvements in sensitivity should be possible with dedicated experiments, opening up a window to new regions in dark matter parameter space.
.NET security: lessons learned and missed from Java

Many systems execute untrusted programs in virtual machines (VMs) to limit their access to system resources. Sun introduced the Java VM in 1995, primarily intended as a lightweight platform for execution of untrusted code inside Web pages. More recently, Microsoft developed the .NET platform with similar goals. Both platforms share many design and implementation properties, but there are key differences between Java and .NET that have an impact on their security. This paper examines how .NET's design avoids vulnerabilities and limitations discovered in Java and discusses lessons learned (and missed) from Java's experience with security.
The neurobiology of attachment

It is difficult to think of any behavioural process that is more intrinsically important to us than attachment. Feeding, sleeping and locomotion are all necessary for survival, but humans are, as Baruch Spinoza famously noted, "a social animal" and it is our social attachments that we live for. Over the past decade, studies in a range of vertebrates, including humans, have begun to address the neural basis of attachment at a molecular, cellular and systems level. This review describes some of the important insights from this work.
Network metrics reveal differences in social organization between two fission-fusion species, Grevy's zebra and onager.

For species in which group membership frequently changes, it has been a challenge to characterize variation in individual interactions and social structure. Quantifying this variation is necessary to test hypotheses about ecological determinants of social patterns and to make predictions about how group dynamics affect the development of cooperative relationships and transmission processes. Network models have recently become popular for analyzing individual contacts within a population context. We use network metrics to compare populations of Grevy’s zebra (Equus grevyi) and onagers (Equus hemionus khur). These closely related equids, previously described as having the same social system, inhabit environments differing in the distribution of food, water, and predators. Grevy’s zebra and onagers are one example of many sets of coarsely similar fission–fusion species and populations, observed elsewhere in other ungulates, primates, and cetaceans. Our analysis of the population association networks reveals contrasts consistent with their distinctive environments. Grevy’s zebra individuals are more selective in their association choices. Grevy’s zebra form stable cliques, while onager associations are more fluid. We find evidence that females associate assortatively by reproductive state in Grevy’s zebra but not in onagers. The current approach demonstrates the utility of network metrics for identifying fine-grained variation among individuals and populations in association patterns. From our analysis, we can make testable predictions about behavioral mechanisms underlying social structure and its effects on transmission processes.
Interstitial Thermoradiotherapy for Pelvic Tumors: The Washington University Experience

Hyperthermia has been employed as an adjunct to radiotherapy for many patients with advanced or recurrent disease. Most of the available data concern patients with superficial lesions that are heated with external microwave applicators (Perez et al. 1983, 1989). One limitation of these external applicators is the lack of ability to adequately heat lesions that have a tumor thickness of greater than 3 cm. The potential advantages for the use of interstitial hyperthermia for these large lesions are better uniformity of heat within the tumor volume, improved thermometry, and better sparing of normal tissue (Cosset et al. 1984; Coughlin et al. 1983; Emami et al. 1984; Joseph et al. 1981; Manning et al. 1982; Miller et al. 1978; Vora et al. 1982).
Molecular biology of Drosophila P-element transposition.

Publisher Summary Transposable P elements are a family of mobile genetic elements found in Drosophila. They are responsible for the syndrome of genetic traits known as hybrid dysgenesis. This chapter discusses molecular biology of Drosophila P- element transposition. P elements are a family of transposable elements found in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster . They are the causative agents of a syndrome of correlated genetic traits, known as hybrid dysgenesis, that occurs in the progeny of a cross between males carrying P elements (P-strains) and females that lack them (M-strains). It is known that P-element transposition is controlled genetically and only occurs when a P-strain male is mated to an M-strain female but not in the reciprocal M-male × P-female cross and in a P × P cross. P-element transposition also exhibits tissue specificity, occurring only in the germ line. P elements have been extensively analyzed at the molecular level and are known to encode two proteins: an 87-kDa protein that appears to be the transposase required for the high rates of P-element transposition as well as for the precise and imprecise excision of P elements, and a second, smaller protein of 66-kDa postulated to be a negative regulator of transposition.
Synthesis of a cis 2,5-Disubstituted Morpholine by De-epimerization: Application to the Multigram Scale Synthesis of a Mineralocorticoid Antagonist

A convergent route to multigram quantities of a mineralocorticoid antagonist 3 is described. Starting from (R)-phenylglycinol, the synthesis of cis 2,5-morpholine 2 is accomplished utilizing a de-e...
The role of Chinese names in identity formation: a primer for psychoanalysts and psychotherapists

There have been many important psychoanalytic studies on the importance of names on the development of identity. None of these studies, however, have specifically examined Chinese names and their effect on development of identity in Chinese patients. Chinese names differ in many important ways from names used in Western cultures. This paper provides a basic description of the nature, structure and meaning of Chinese names and suggests ways that these names help form a sense of identity in the Chinese.
Bernard Lonergan at the Service of the Church

[Cardinal Martini, archbishop emeritus of Milan, and currently scholar in residence in Jerusalem, delivered this inaugural address on November 17, 2004, during a three-day international congress he...
Perceived influence and college students' diet and physical activity behaviors: an examination of ego-centric social networks.

Obesity is partially a social phenomenon, with college students particularly vulnerable to changes in social networks and obesity-related behaviors. Currently, little is known about the structure of social networks among college students and their potential influence on diet and physical activity behaviors. The purpose of the study was to examine social influences impacting college students’ diet and physical activity behaviors, including sources of influence, comparisons between sources’ and students’ behaviors, and associations with meeting diet and physical activity recommendations. Data was collected from 40 students attending college in Hawaii. Participants completed diet and physical activity questionnaires and a name generator. Participants rated nominees’ influence on their diet and physical activity behaviors as well as compared nominees' behaviors to their own. Descriptive statistics were used to look at perceptions of influence across network groups. Logistic regression models were used to examine associations between network variables and odds of meeting recommendations. A total of 325 nominations were made and included: family (n = 116), college friends (n = 104), high school friends (n = 87), and significant others (n = 18). Nearly half of participants were not from Hawaii. Significant others of non-Hawaii students were perceived to be the most influential (M(SD) = 9(1.07)) and high school friends the least influential (M(SD) = 1.31(.42)) network. Overall, perceived influence was highest for diet compared to physical activity, but varied based on comparisons with nominees’ behaviors. Significant others were most often perceived has having similar (44 %) or worse (39 %) eating behaviors than participants, and those with similar eating behaviors were perceived as most influential (M(SD) = 9.25(1.04)). Few associations were seen between network variables and odds of meeting recommendations. Among the groups nominated, high school friends were perceived as least influential, especially among students who moved a long distance for college. Intervention strategies addressing perceived norms and using peer leaders may help promote physical activity among college students, while diet interventions may need to involve significant others in order to be successful. Testing of these types of intervention strategies and continued examination of social networks and their influences on diet and physical activity behaviors are needed.
Afterword: Protocols and Moral Life in Institutions

This is a difficult time to propose public protocols to address ethical issues. We do not have a public consensus on a single set absolute moral principles (McIntyre, 1979). Our institutions are corporate entities whose conduct and interests seem to transcend those of the people who work in or are served by them. Health facility “ethics” protocols address a changing se of intimate relationships between morally diverse strangers: physicians, nurses, patients and families. Finally, many of the ethical dilemmas pertaining to the use of life-sustaining technologies do not present a clear choice between right and wrong but rather offer tragic, and to some degree unsolvable, questions of how to live when life is at one precious and mortal.
Financial well-being in family-based foster care: Exploring variation in income supports for kin and non-kin caregivers in California

Kinship foster parents have the same responsibilities as nonrelative foster parents and are held to the same standards of rehabilitative care. Nonetheless, their rights to financial supports and their access to other services vary across states depending on the federal eligibility of the child, and/or the licensing criteria caregivers may or may not meet. We know little about the financial supports, well-being, or services of kinship caregivers receiving differential payment schemes and whether or not these financial supports and services make any difference. More fundamentally, in states that operate two- or more -tiered funding schemes for kinship foster parents, we currently cannot even estimate what proportion of kin caregivers receive more, less, or nothing from the government, even though all are entitled to something. Kin and non-kin caregivers in two California counties responded to a written survey focused on the financial wellbeing and income supports available to families. Sources of support were associated with the availability and utilization of other child welfare services for caregivers and for children.
On the geometric conditions for multiple stable equilibria in clamped arches

Abstract Curved structures, such as beams, arches, and panels are capable of exhibiting snap-through buckling behavior when loaded laterally, that is they can exhibit multiple stable equilibria, sometimes after any external loading is removed. This is a consequence of highly nonlinear force-deflection relations with perhaps multiple crossings of the zero-force axis for typical equilibrium paths. However, the propensity to maintain a stable snapped-through equilibrium position (in addition to the nominally unloaded equilibrium configuration) after the load is removed depends on certain geometric properties. A number of clamped arches are used to illustrate the relation between geometry (essentially the shape) and corresponding equilibrium configuration(s), and especially those conditions for which the initial equilibrium configuration is the only stable shape possible. Furthermore, related results are obtained when a change in the thermal environment may cause a system to exhibit a stable snapped-through equilibrium even when the system at ambient thermal conditions does not. Some representative examples are produced using a 3D printer for verification purposes.
Synthesis of Saturated Heterocycles via Metal-Catalyzed Allylic Alkylation Reactions

Over the past 10 years, significant progress has been made in the field of metal-catalyzed allylic alkylation reactions. Intramolecular variants forming saturated heterocycles comprise a well-known class of reactions that are often utilized in the syntheses of biologically active natural products. Selected recent advances in this area between the years 2002 and 2012 and their applications toward total syntheses are reviewed herein.
Scalable Kernel Density Classification via Threshold-Based Pruning

Density estimation forms a critical component of many analytics tasks including outlier detection, visualization, and statistical testing. These tasks often seek to classify data into high and low-density regions of a probability distribution. Kernel Density Estimation (KDE) is a powerful technique for computing these densities, offering excellent statistical accuracy but quadratic total runtime. In this paper, we introduce a simple technique for improving the performance of using a KDE to classify points by their density (density classification). Our technique, thresholded kernel density classification (tKDC), applies threshold-based pruning to spatial index traversal to achieve asymptotic speedups over naive KDE, while maintaining accuracy guarantees. Instead of exactly computing each point's exact density for use in classification, tKDC iteratively computes density bounds and short-circuits density computation as soon as bounds are either higher or lower than the target classification threshold. On a wide range of dataset sizes and dimensions, tKDC demonstrates empirical speedups of up to 1000x over alternatives.
Robotic longitudinal pancreaticojejunostomy for chronic pancreatitis: Comparison of clinical outcomes and cost to the open approach

Background This study compares clinical and cost outcomes of robot-assisted laparoscopic (RAL) and open longitudinal pancreaticojejunostomy (LPJ) for chronic pancreatitis. Methods Clinical and cost data were retrospectively compared between open and RAL LPJ performed at a single center from 2008–2015. Results Twenty-six patients underwent LPJ: 19 open and 7 RAL. Two robot-assisted cases converted to open were included in the open group for analysis. Patients undergoing RAL LPJ had less intraoperative blood loss, a shorter surgical length of stay, and lower medication costs. Operation supply cost was higher in the RAL group. No difference in hospitalization cost was found. Conclusions Versus the open approach, RAL LPJ performed for chronic pancreatitis shortens hospitalization and reduces medication costs; hospitalization costs are equivalent. A higher operative cost for RAL LPJ is mitigated by a shorter hospitalization. Decreased morbidity and healthcare resource economy support use of the robotic approach for LPJ when appropriate.
Does ethno-cultural betrayal in trauma affect Asian American/Pacific Islander college students' mental health outcomes? An exploratory study.

Objectives: Interpersonal trauma has deleterious effects on mental health, with college students experiencing relatively high rates of lifetime trauma. Asian American/Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have...
Ministry to Persons with AIDS: A Family Systems Approach. By Robert J. Perelli: Augsburg Fortress, 1991, 112 pages

(1995). Ministry to Persons with AIDS: A Family Systems Approach. By Robert J. Perelli. The Hospice Journal: Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 71-73.
The Role of Psychoneuroimmunology in Personalized and Systems Medicine

Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) may provide the scientific basis for personalized and systems medicine. The exploration of the extensive interactions among psychological and behavioral factors, the nervous system, the immune system, and the endocrine system may help understand the mechanisms underlying health, wellness, and diseases. PNI theories based on systems biology methodologies may contribute to the identification of patient patterns for establishing psychological and physiological profiles for personalized medicine. A biopsychosocial model will help elucidate the systemic interrelationships between psychosocial and bio-physiological factors for the development of systems medicine. Many evidences have supported the close relationships between stress, depression, inflammation, and disorders including obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, arthritis, skin diseases, infectious diseases, and sleep disorders. As inflammation is a critical connection among different diseases, the elucidation of the associations may contribute to the findings of systemic therapeutic targets. With the understanding of the translational implications of PNI, integrative interventions in multiple dimensions can be applied to modulate stress responses and promote healthier behaviors. These interventions include combination drug therapies, diets, nutritional supplements, meditation, and other behavioral and mind-body strategies.
Human Factors in Network Reliability Engineering

Network administration and management tasks play an integral role in Information Technology (IT) operations; which are utilized across a diverse set of organizations. The reliability of networks is therefore of crucial importance for ensuring effective business processes. All IT networks are administered and managed by human administrators. As the process of administration becomes increasingly complex, human limitations can amplify challenges to network reliability and security. Despite researchers' agreement that the human factor becomes increasingly significant as the network becomes more reliable, efforts to design reliability measures have remained largely separate from considerations of the human component. We examined the question of whether joint consideration of these two components would be useful in designing reliability of enterprise networks. We interviewed and surveyed networking professionals to understand their impact on network reliability. The result is a discussion of specific demographic, organizational, and technical factors that contribute to network reliability issues. For demographic factors, academic background was a notable factor associated with network instability. For organizational factors, a notable factor was the number of devices assigned per administrator. Finally, for technical factors, a notable factor was misconfiguration of networking devices, which contributed significantly to the unreliability of the studied networks. Based on this research, we concluded that the future of network reliability engineering will benefit substantially from actively addressing the human role in network administration and management.
Medicine, Computers, and Linguistics

Publisher Summary The scientific progress and growth of the biomedical excellence at hand correlate directly with the growth of modern technology and the incorporation of modern engineering concepts into biomedical research and training. There has been an increasing availability of instruments in the laboratories and clinics for the study of complex life phenomena plus a growing scientific cadre capable of exploiting the available instrumentation and related techniques. It is this purposeful aggregation of intellect and instrumentation that constitutes technology and forges the inseparable linkage of science and technology. Modern medicine is basically an information industry; the currency of the science, substance, and support of the professional guilds and crafts housed in the modern medical center are data and derivative information suitable for decision-making or instruction by the many scientific professionals and managers involved. For example, even putting aside the considerable amount of data involved in the management support of clinical care, the conduct of clinical care entails an immense amount of data handling.
Improving content area reading comprehension of Spanish speaking English learners in Grades 4 and 5 using web-based text structure instruction

Reading and comprehending content area texts is important for academic and professional success as well as life skills necessary to maintain good health and quality lifestyle. Spanish speaking English language learners have shown poor performance on high-stakes assessments in reading comprehension. The number of Spanish speaking English learners (ELs) in our schools continues to increase at a fast pace, and therefore it is imperative that we address their reading comprehension needs swiftly and effectively. The text structure strategy has shown positive results on comprehension outcomes in many research studies with students at Grades 2, 4, 5, and 7. This study is the first implementation of instruction about the text structure strategy expressly designed to accommodate the linguistic and comprehension needs of Spanish speaking ELs in Grades 4 and 5. Strategy instruction on the web for English learners (SWELL) was designed to deliver instruction about the text structure strategy to Spanish speaker English learners. A randomized controlled study with pre and post-tests was conducted with 14 classrooms at fourth-grade and 17 classrooms at fifth-grade in high poverty schools where over 85% of students were Spanish speaking bilinguals or ELs. Analysis of data using multi-level models show moderate to large-effects favoring the students in the SWELL classrooms over the business as usual control classrooms on important measures such as a standardized reading comprehension test and main idea and cloze tasks. This research has practical implications for the use of web-based tools to provide high-quality and supportive instruction to improve Spanish speaking ELs reading comprehension skills.
Decarbonylative thioetherification by nickel catalysis using air- and moisture-stable nickel precatalysts.

A general, highly selective method for decarbonylative thioetherification of aryl thioesters by C–S cleavage is reported. These reactions are promoted by a commercially-available, user-friendly, inexpensive, air- and moisture-stable nickel precatalyst. The process occurs with broad functional group tolerance, including free anilines, cyanides, ketones, halides and aryl esters, to efficiently generate thioethers using ubiquitous carboxylic acids as ultimate cross-coupling precursors (cf. conventional aryl halides or pseudohalides). Selectivity studies and site-selective orthogonal cross-coupling/thioetherification are described. This thioester activation/coupling has been highlighted in the expedient synthesis of biorelevant drug analogue. In light of the synthetic utility of thioethers and Ni(II) precatalysts, we anticipate that this user-friendly method will be of broad interest.
Management of vascular complications of extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation

Extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a well-established treatment for cardiopulmonary failure. Based on the requirement for cardiac and or respiratory support different configurations of ECMO circuits are utilized. Vascular complication of ECMO constitutes the most important determinant of treatment outcomes. The complications are primarily related to limb ischemia, vascular injury, hemorrhage, and infection. Endovascular and surgical treatment options are the cornerstone for managing vascular complications of ECMO.
Non-response to Communication Technology Outreach for Beta-agonist Overuse in a Pragmatic Randomized Trial of Patients with Asthma.

Evidence suggests that communication technology applications can improve treatment adherence.1 However, a recent Cochrane Review concluded insufficient evidence exists to determine the effects of automated communication on managing chronic conditions such as asthma.2 Because not all patients are receptive to communication technology interventions, defining factors associated with non-response to electronic outreach can inform tailoring future interventions to increase effectiveness. As part of a pragmatic trial targeting asthma patients with too frequent refills of inhaled beta-agonists (“overfill”),3 the objective of this work was to describe and compare patients who did versus did not respond to a communication technology outreach. A higher asthma medication ratio (AMR), defined as the ratio of asthma controller medications (numerator, e.g., inhaled corticosteroids) to total controller medications plus inhaled beta-agonists (denominator), is associated with better asthma outcomes.4 We hypothesized that patients who did not respond to outreach would have a lower AMR than patients who did respond.
Comparing methane emissions estimated using a backward-Lagrangian stochastic model and the eddy covariance technique in a beef cattle feedlot

Abstract Accurate methodologies to measure emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) from livestock systems are necessary to improve the emission coefficients used in national GHG inventories and to evaluate mitigation strategies. The objective of this study was to compare methane (CH4) emissions estimated using the eddy covariance (EC) technique and a backward-Lagrangian stochastic (bLS) model. A closed-path EC system was used to measure CH4 fluxes in a commercial beef cattle feedlot. The EC fluxes were scaled from the feedlot to the animal scale using a footprint analysis. The EC measurements of CH4 concentration and wind data were used with the bLS model to infer CH4 emissions. The average CH4 emissions (±standard deviation) during the experiment were 87 (±30) g animal−1 d−1 and 85 (± 27) g animal−1 d−1 for EC and bLS techniques, respectively. These values are consistent with the results from previous studies with similar animal and feed characteristics. Both techniques were able to capture a pronounced daytime and nighttime variation in CH4 emissions, with higher CH4 emissions during the day and lower emissions at night. Our results indicate that the eddy covariance technique combined with footprint models can be successfully used to accurately measure enteric CH4 from cattle.
The design of multiaxial force/moment transducers with particular emphasis on the problem of cross-talk

There is a great need for multiaxial force/moment transducers. The complexity of these transducers increases with the number of components they must measure. One of the major problems with these transducers relates tocross-talk. A large part of the cross-talk and other errors can be eliminated by putting great care into the design, manufacture and gaging procedures. However, cross-talk usually cannot be completely eliminated. By using precision calibration fixtures and techniques, the magnitude of the cross-talk can be determined accurately for every possible combination of conditions. Once the cross-talk is known, the error functions representing the cross-talk can be developed. Analog circuits can then be built to represent these mathematical error functions and operate on the output voltage of the transducer to greatly improve the accuracy. The object of this paper is to describe the essence of the cross-talk problems and the techniques developed to eliminate them. The technique is illustrated through the description of two recently developed multiaxial (3-component and 5-component) transducers.
Phospholipase A2 Modification Enhances Lipoprotein(a) Binding to the Subendothelial Matrix

Lipoprotein(a), Lp(a), is found in the extracellular matrix in atherosclerotic plaques, but with a different localization than LDL. A two- compartment system, with a monolayer of endothelial cells forming a barrier, was used to compare the transport, cell binding, and retention of Lp(a) and LDL into the subendothelial matrix. Baseline values for transport and retention of Lp(a) and LDL were not significantly different. Incubation with lipoprotein lipase or sphingomyelinase caused modest and similar increases in transport and retention of the two lipoproteins. In contrast, incubation with phospholipase A 2 (PLA 2 ) resulted in a marked (4-fold) increase in retention of Lp(a) on the subendothelial matrix, but a lesser (2-fold) increase in LDL retention. Moreover, PLA 2 treatment of Lp(a) enhanced its binding to individual matrix proteins (fibronectin, laminin, or collagen) by 4-10 times above that of LDL. The enzymatic activity of PLA 2 was responsible for its effect on Lp(a) binding. The lysine binding sites of Lp(a) contributed to the increased binding of PLA 2 -modified Lp(a) to the matrix, and the enhanced lysine binding functions of PLA 2 -modified Lp(a) was demonstrated by two independent approaches. Thus, PLA 2 modification leads to enhanced interactions of lipoproteins with the extracellular matrix, and this effect is more pronounced with Lp(a).
Financial Impact of Minor Injury Transfers on a Level 1 Trauma Center.

Abstract Background Trauma centers frequently accept patients from other institutions who are being sent due to the need for a higher level of care. We hypothesized that patients with minor traumatic injuries who are transferred from outside institutions would impart a negative financial impact on the receiving trauma center. Methods We performed a retrospective review of all trauma patients admitted to our urban level I trauma center from October 1, 2011, through September 30, 2013. Patients were categorized as minor trauma if they did not require operation within 24 h of arrival, did not require ICU admission, did not die, and had a hospital length of stay Results A total of 6951 trauma patients were identified (transfer n = 2228, nontransfer n = 4724). Minor injury transfers (n = 440) were compared to nontransfers (n = 689). Hospital net margin of transferred patients and nontransferred patients were $2227 and $2569, respectively (P = 0.22). Percentages of uninsured/underinsured for transfers and nontransfers were 27.3% and 36.1%, respectively (P = 0.002). Conclusions During our study period, 19.7% of transfers and 14.6% of nontransfers can be categorized as having minor trauma. Minor trauma transfer patients are associated with a positive hospital net margin for the trauma center that is similar to that of the nontransfer group. The data also demonstrate a lower percentage of uninsured/underinsured in the transferred group.
Advising Women Undergoing Treatment for Breast Cancer: A Narrative Review

A majority of women undergoing conventional treatment for breast cancer also undertake complementary and integrative approaches. Practitioners knowledgeable about the evidence base behind common integrative approaches can help patients attain improved quality of life, and at times, improved survival. Evidence-based recommendations include the following: a plant-based diet for general health after diagnosis, and carbohydrate restriction for patients with estrogen receptor-positive postmenopausal breast cancer may be prudent. Other dietary recommendations include a 13-h daily overnight fast. Carefully selected patients may choose to fast the day before and the day of chemotherapy to decrease side effects. Specific food recommendations include avoidance or limitation of alcohol, and liberal culinary use of cruciferous vegetables, coffee, green tea, soy, and flaxseed. Promising supplements include diindolylmethane and melatonin. Omega 3 fatty acids may help with bone density in patients on aromatase inhibitors, but may increase chemotherapy resistance. Findings regarding the usefulness of multivitamins, vitamin D, vitamin C, and vitamin E are weak and/or mixed different exercise modalities may have different effects and thus play different roles in breast cancer therapy. Aerobic and resistance training combined during breast cancer chemotherapy may confer a survival benefit, while yoga may improve outcome in lymphedema patients. Current evidence suggests that meditation, yoga, breathing, music therapy, guided imagery, and hypnosis may improve mood and quality of life during breast cancer treatment. Acupuncture is useful for treating side effects of breast cancer therapies, including hot flushes, aromatase inhibitor-induced joint pain, chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, and vulvodynia. Vaginal moisturizers and vaginal rings supplying low-dose estrogen can be useful in the treatment of symptoms of estrogen-deprivation states caused by breast cancer treatments; such symptoms include vaginal dryness, dyspareunia, and sexual dysfunction. Carbon dioxide laser technology can rejuvenate atrophied vaginal mucosa and relieve dyspareunia, allowing avoidance of estrogen therapy. Tertiary sexual health centers are available for referral.
Own-Age Bias and Positivity Effects in Facial Recognition

Background/Study Context - In the current study, we evaluated two age-related differences in recognition memory: the own-age bias, wherein older and younger adults best recognize those of their own age group, and an age-related positivity effect, wherein older adults recall positive emotional information better than negative information relative to younger adults. We sought to extend previous research that jointly investigated these variables in recognition memory. Methods - Younger (age 18 - 27) and older (age 62 - 80) adults completed an incidental encoding task on a sequence of 50 positive, negative, or neutrally valenced images of older and younger adult faces. After a distractor task, participants made forced-choice recognition judgments and rated their decision confidence for images that were repeated with the same or a different emotional expression, and for novel, previously unseen faces. Results - Older and younger adults' recognition discriminability did not differ significantly between age groups. Notably, the data indicated an own-age bias in young adults, but not in older adults, and both age groups' recognition accuracy was greatest for faces that had originally been shown with a positive emotional expression. Conclusion - To our knowledge, this research is the first to demonstrate an own-age recognition bias in younger adults for emotional faces. Although our predictions of a differential impact by emotional faces on recognition of same and other-age faces were not supported, we identify a number of factors that contextualize these findings in the recent literature.
Application of the scaling approach to particles having simple, fundamental shapes, in the Rayleigh–Debye–Gans diffraction limit

Abstract Presented is a scaling approach for understanding features, such as power laws and crossover points, of the light scattered in the m → 1, ρ = 2kRveq|m − 1|
Migrant Farmworkers' Exposure to Pesticides in Sonora, Mexico

Expanding agribusiness in Sonora, a state in Northern Mexico, has increased the demand for temporary migrant agricultural workers. Sonora is one of the top states in Mexico for pesticide utilization. We conducted an exploratory study to evaluate exposure to organophosphate (OP) and pyrethroid pesticides among migrant farmworkers. A sample of 20 migrant farmworkers was recruited from a large commercial grape farm during the harvest season. We administered a questionnaire on work activities, exposure characteristics, and socio-demographics. We collected urine samples to quantify pesticide metabolite concentrations. Most participants were originally from the state of Chiapas, Mexico, none had completed high school, and about half spoke an indigenous language as well as Spanish. The majority of participants had detectable concentrations of pyrethroid and organophosphate biomarkers. Geometric mean creatinine-adjusted concentrations for 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (1.83 µg/g), trans-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane carboxylic acid (0.88 µg/g), 4-fluoro-3-phenoxybenzoic acid (0.94 µg/g), 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (3.56 µg/g), and para-nitrophenol (0.63 µg/g) were significantly higher than in the general United States' population and Mexican Americans. Our results also suggest that migrant farmworkers in this region are exposed to pesticides at higher levels than other farmworkers' studies. Farmworkers' age, language, training on personal protective equipment, time at the farm, and season, were significant exposure determinants.
Microcirculatory and mast cell changes in restraint stress: role of gastric acid.

The neutralization of gastric acid by the instillation of sodium bicarbonate did not prevent the previously reported vascular engorgement and degranulation of mast cells in the superficial mucosa of rats subjected to restraint stress. It is concluded that these mucosal changes are not due to a local acid irritation, but, as previously reported, vagal stimulation appears to be responsible for the microcirculatory change and adrenal corticosteroid secretion for the mast cell change.
Biometric Distinctiveness of Brain Signals Based on EEG

Electroencephalography (EEG)brain signals have been utilized in various pattern recognition applications such as biometrics and emotion detection. EEGsignals provide the relevant information of individual differences which can be potentially used as salientfeatures for user recognition. The majority of previous studies on the brain signal biometric had been conducted with subjects in resting states with eyes closed or opened. In this paper, the brain signal biometric distinctiveness is evaluated under subjects ’active states, i. e.,different emotional states. The EEG signal sample was obtained from 32 channels. Each sample differs depending on subjects ’emotional states. This research is conducted to evaluate which channel is most effective for the purpose of biometric verification. We observe that channels with high biometric distinctiveness in the active state differfrom those in resting state and provide those respects mappings.
vH+-ATPase-induced intracellular acidification is critical to glucose-stimulated insulin secretion

Swelling of secretory vesicles is critical for the regulated expulsion of intra-vesicular contents from cells during secretion. At the secretory vesicle membrane of the exocrine pancreas and neurons, GTP-binding G proteins, vH+-ATPase, potassium channels and AQP water channels, are among the players implicated in vesicle volume regulation. Here we report in insulin secreting MIN6 cells, the requirement of vH+-ATPase-mediated intracellular acidification, on glucose-stimulated insulin release. MIN6 cells exposed to the vH+-ATPase inhibitor Bafilomycin A show decreased acidification of the cytosolic compartment that include insulin-carrying granules. Additionally, a loss of insulin granule association with the cell plasma membrane is demonstrated and results in a decrease in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and accumulation of intracellular insulin. These results suggest that vH+-ATPase-mediated intracellular acidification is required both at the level of secretory vesicles and the cell plasma membrane for cell secretion.
The Phenomenon of Man, Revised: Evolution and I.T. versus Extinction in the Years to Come

In his seminal manifesto, The Phenomenon of Man , Teilhard de Chardin proposed a new vision of humanity and of our destiny, intended to reconcile the core principles of his Catholic beliefs with the core facts proven by science. He fully embraced the fact of biological evolution over billions of years, but proposed that this process of evolution includes the earth as a whole, the "noosphere", as previously described by Vernadsky. He proposed that the omega point prophesied in the Bible refers to that time in the future when we, components or cells of that larger noosphere, become more united, and reach out like a single organism to the larger cosmos. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language:EN-US; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}
Understanding Primary Care Providers' Perceptions and Practices in Implementing Confidential Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Services.

Abstract Purpose Substantial gaps exist between professional guidelines and practice around confidential adolescent services, including private time between health-care providers and adolescents. Efforts to provide quality sexual and reproductive health services (SRHS) require an understanding of barriers and facilitators to care from the perspectives of primary care providers working with adolescents and their parents. Methods We conducted structured qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of pediatricians, family physicians, and nurse practitioners (n = 25) from urban and rural Minnesota communities with higher and lower rates of adolescent pregnancy. Provider interviews included confidentiality beliefs and practices; SRHS screening and counseling; and referral practices. Results The analysis identified two key themes: (1) individual and structural factors were related to variations in SRH screening and counseling and (2) a wide range of factors influenced provider decision-making in initiating private time. A nuanced set of factors informed SRHS provided, including provider comfort with specific topics; provider engagement and relationship with parents; use of adolescent screening tools; practices, policies, and resources within the clinic setting; and community norms including openness with communication about sex and religious considerations regarding adolescent sexuality. Factors that shaped providers’ decisions in initiating private time included adolescent age, developmental stage, health behaviors and other characteristics; observed adolescent-parent interactions; parent support for private time; reason for clinic visit; laws and professional guidelines; and cultural considerations. Conclusions Findings suggest opportunities for interventions related to provider and clinic staff training, routine communication with adolescents and their parents, and clinic policies and protocols that can improve the quality of adolescent SRHS.
Weight Gain and/or Obesity

Accumulation of excess adipose tissue or fat is defined as obesity. Body mass index (BMI) is used as a reliable tool for the assessment of the severity of obesity. There are a multitude of causes of weight gain, including endocrinologic diseases, neurologic conditions, psychological concerns, medication-induced weight gain, and the rare causes of monogenic obesity in which single genes are involved. It is critical for a pediatrician to understand the interpretation of growth data as well as associated symptoms and signs for clear elucidation of the underlying etiology of weight gain. This well help in targeting therapy to the underlying cause. In addition, the assessment of the microenvironment effectors – the patient’s lifestyle and circumstances – is of paramount importance for creating an appropriate management strategy. The main parameters guiding the intensity of therapy are the age of the child, severity of obesity, associated comorbidities, and prior failed attempts of weight loss by behavioral therapy.