cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Elementary schoolchildren's use of alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana and classmates' attribution of socialization.

Abstract In each of 2 years beginning in fourth and fifth grades, urban elementary public schoolchildren completed surveys about abusable substance use and health promoting behaviors and completed an instrument that permitted each child to have a socialization score attributed by classmates. A factor weighted 12-item scale was developed from 15 items in three domains (personal, interpersonal and school). The scale was positively correlated over the 2 years and positively correlated with a healthful activities scale in both years. Conditional multiple logistic regression, matching on school classroom, indicated that socialization was negatively associated with use of alcohol without parental permission and cigarettes in both years (grades 4–5, grades 5–6) and with use of marijuana in year 1. Socialization measured in year 1 was negatively associated with cigarette use in year 2 and with onset of use from year 1 to year 2. Shyness, a non-socialization scale item, was negatively associated with use of cigarettes in both years and with use of alcohol without permission and use of marijuana in year 2. Being ‘good at sports’ was an attribute positively associated with alcohol use without permission and cigarette use in year 2. Results suggest that elementary schoolchildren can ascribe social characteristics to their classmates that are associated with and predict health related behaviors.
The Next Public Health Revolution: Public Health Information Fusion and Social Networks

Social, political, and economic disruptions caused by natural and human-caused public health emergencies have catalyzed public health efforts to expand the scope of biosurveillance and increase the timeliness, quality, and comprehensiveness of disease detection, alerting, response, and prediction. Unfortunately, efforts to acquire, render, and visualize the diversity of health intelligence information are hindered by its wide distribution across disparate fields, multiple levels of government, and the complex interagency environment. Achieving this new level of situation awareness within public health will require a fundamental cultural shift in methods of acquiring, analyzing, and disseminating information. The notion of information "fusion" may provide opportunities to expand data access, analysis, and information exchange to better inform public health action.
N‐n‐alkylnicotinium and N‐n‐alkylpyridinium analogs inhibit the dopamine transporter: Selectivity as nicotinic receptor antagonists

N-n-Alkylnicotinium and N-n-alkylpyridinium analogs act as antagonists at nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) mediating nicotine-evoked [ 3 H]dopamine (DA) overflow from superfused rat striatal slices in the presence of a DA transporter (DAT) inhibitor. However, the potential interaction of these nAChR antagonists with DAT has not been evaluated. In the present study, analog inhibition of [ 3 H]DA uptake into striatal synaptosomes and inhibition of [ 3 H]GBR 12935 binding to striatal membranes was determined. N-n-Alkylnicotinium analogs with n-alkyl chains of C 6-12 and N-n-alkylpyridinium analogs with n-alkyl chains of C 7-20 inhibited [ 3 H]DA uptake with a wide affinity range. With the exception of the C 20 N-n-alkylpyridinium, a linear relationship between chain length and inhibition of [ 3 H]DA uptake was found in both analog series. Similarly, these analogs inhibited [ 3 H]GBR 12935 binding (K j =5.7-250 μM), and a linear relationship with chain length was observed, with the exception of the C 8 N-n-alkylnicotinium analog. Kinetic analyses of inhibition of [ 3 H]DA uptake and [ 3 H]GBR 12935 binding using representative C 12 analogs from each series revealed decreases in maximal [ 3 H]DA transport velocity and maximal [ 3 H]GBR 12935 binding without alterations in affinity, indicating noncompetitive interactions with DAT. In comparison, classical nAChR antagonists (mecamylamine, dihydro-β-erythroidine and methyllycaconitine) did not inhibit [ 3 H]DA uptake or [ 3 H]GBR 12935 binding. Moreover, inhibition of DAT function occurred at analog concentrations 10-120-fold higher than those inhibiting nAChR function. Taken together with the inability of these analogs to inhibit field-stimulation-evoked [ 3 H]DA overflow, the results indicate that these analogs act selectively as antagonists at nAChRs mediating nicotine-evoked [ 3 H]DA overflow.
Model Predictive Control of a Microgrid With Plug-In Vehicles: Error Modeling and the Role of Prediction Horizon

We demonstrate the use of model predictive control (MPC) for a microgrid with plug-in vehicles. A predictive model is developed based on a hub model of the microgrid, and the control is optimized for minimum generator fuel usage. A variety of horizons and levels of prediction error are used in the optimization. A new method to model expected load and error is presented based on radial basis functions. Results show that for a given prediction horizon, as the level of prediction error increases, the amount of fuel used increases. Results also show that in some cases there is little benefit in extending the prediction horizon. While an extended prediction horizon does result in increased use of battery storage, this does not necessarily produce significant decreases in fuel usage. This result is analyzed and explained in terms of battery charging and discharging limitations.Copyright © 2011 by ASME
Underemployment/Unemployment and the Public Placebo of Educational Failure

Over the last several decades there has been a series of national economic/trade policies which has had a negative impact on employment, the middle class, organized labor, upward mobility, and the American Dream. This effort suggests that in order to compensate for economic/trade decisions which has led to a tremendous loss of all forms of employment in the USA, the power elite (both economic and political) have used the myth that the American Educational system has failed to educate, hence creating a skill gap and unemployment/underemployment.
Early binocular vision in human infants: limitations on the generality of the Superposition Hypothesis

The Superposition Hypothesis states that the binocular vision of newborn infants blends together the monocular visual responses of the two eyes, even when the visual stimulus evokes binocular rivalry in adults. According to the Superposition Hypothesis, this blending is replaced by binocular rivalry after the emergence of stereopsis [Neonate Cognition: Beyond the Blooming, Buzzing Confusion, Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ, 1985, p. 37; Early Visual Development Normal and Abnormal, Oxford University Press, New York, 1993, p. 201]. The main evidence for the Superposition Hypothesis is a preferential looking experiment [Vision Res., 26 (3) (1986) 501], in which 8-12-week-old infants fixated a rivalrous (for adults) dichoptic plaid, in preference over a fusible grating of parallel lines. This report describes our attempt to repeat that important experiment. Infant stereopsis emerged at 8.6 weeks under our conditions, but infants did not preferentially fixate the dichoptic plaid at any age between age 5 and 16 weeks. Control experiments showed that our result was not due to technical differences between their experiment and ours (red/green vs. polarizing glasses, the use of a fixation point, or the infant observation apparatus). Therefore, blending of the visual responses to rivalrous (for adults) stimuli is not a general feature of the pre-stereoptic infant visual system.
Diet of second-generation Japanese-American men with and without non-insulin-dependent diabetes

Second-generation Japanese-American (Ni- sei) men have rates ofnon-insulin-dcpendent diabetes mcllitus four times higher than men in Japan, suggesting a role for envi- ronmental factors in the etiology ofthis disease. Dietary intake was assessed for 229 Nisei men with diabetes (DM, n = 78), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT, n = 72), and normal glucose tolerance (NGT, n = 79). The diet ofNisei men with DM com- pared with men with IGT or NGT was similar in kilocaborics but higher in fat and protein. Absence of diabetes was self-re- ported by 153 men (N-entry) of which 76 were confirmed to have NGT and 17 were discovered to have DM. Animal-pro- tein and -fat intakes were significantly higher in N-entry DM men than in N-entry NGT men. Overall the Nisei diet, particu- larly that of Nisei men with DM, resembled more the diet ofUS men than men in Japan. Am J C/in Nutr l990;52: 73 1-8.
The Nature-Nurture Debate is Over, and Both Sides Lost! Implications for Understanding Gender Differences in Religiosity

In the debate about biological dispositions or differential sex-role socialization, too much emphasis is given to an either- or dichotomy. We argue that the higher religiosity of women is likely the product of both biological and environmental influences by discussing: (1) the fallacy of nature “versus” nurture; (2) biological influences on religious outcomes; (3) biological influences on the predictors of religious involvement; (4) causality and confounding in social science; and (5) interdisciplinary models of biology-environment interplay.
#111 Assessing and improving the quality of cancer surveillance data for american indians in the surveillance, epidemiology, and end results (Seer) Program

Abstract PURPOSE: Previous studies have shown that a high proportion of American Indians were misclassified as non-Indian in central cancer registries. Such misclassification could have profound effects on cancer surveillance statistics for American Indians. Many American Indians in the United States receive medical care that is provided or paid for by the Indian Health Service (IHS). Linking records from central cancer registries and IHS has been used to correct for such misclassification in some registries. METHODS: We linked records from eight population-based cancer registries in the SEER Program (cases diagnosed 1988–98) with administrative records from IHS (cases seen since 1985). Records were linked at a central location according to a standardized algorithm based on patient name, birth date, sex, social security number, and place of residence. RESULTS: We identified 1,094 American Indians with cancer that had been misclassified as non-Indian and thereby increased the number of Indian cases overall by 25.8 percent (range 7.4–92.1 percent among individual registries). Preliminary results indicate that such misclassification varied by geographic area of the country and was more common among urban residents than rural residents. However, we also found that not all cases identified as Indian in central registries were registered in IHS files: Overall, 26.5 percent of cases identified as American Indians in participating registries were not linked with IHS records (range 4.8–92.8 percent among individual registries). CONCLUSION: Record linkages between central registries and IHS can be an effective, but imperfect, method for improving cancer surveillance data for American Indians.
Parallel Lattice Basis Reduction - The Road to Many-Core

This paper introduces a new parallel algorithm that allows for an efficient LLL reduction using today's emerging many-core systems. This work develops suitable methods that efficiently implement the idea of splitting a lattice basis into smaller sub problems, LLL reducing the sub problems, and recombining the sub problems afterwards to obtain an overall LLL reduced basis. The new many-core algorithm outperforms any current parallel LLL algorithm. Experiments on a 48-core test system show a speed-up of approximately 10 for SVP challenge type lattice bases and a remarkable speed-up of approximately 50 for knapsack type lattice bases.
Poverty Estimates: Political Implications and Other Issues

This paper contends that the official poverty estimates of the federal government reflect a conservative bias. The argument is supported mainly by a review of the evidence on the shortcomings of the government's procedures in measuring and estimating poverty. Five limitations of the procedures are highlighted and discussed, and the general conclusion is that the government's approach leads to a substantial under‐estimation of poverty. Given the historical and contemporary government policies toward the poor, there is little reason to be optimistic about any significant change in the government's procedures, unless they are changes that have the effect of further increasing the under‐estimation.
Software Architecture Evaluation and Analysis Session Report

We began by considering the broad vision for analysis and evaluation of architectures: to provide an engineering discipline that allows architects to make principled architectural decisions, evaluate the impact of those decisions, determine the conformance between architectures and other artifacts (code, requirements, etc.), and extract architectural representations from implementations.
Micromechanics: an emerging technology

Summary form only given, substantially as follows. Micromechanics deals with sensors and actuators. Sensors are devices which measure some property of their environment. They should do this non-invasively. This implies small physical size and low power transfer with large sensitivity. These requirements demand very stable material characteristics which are available in single crystal silicon. Smallness can be accommodated via surface rather than bulk micromachining. In this procedure three-dimensionality is achieved by using a sacrificial layer which supports the sensor structure temporarily and is eventually removed by lateral etching. Silicon systems in which n-doped silicon is removed and p/sup +/-doped silicon is retained have been used successfully. The most commonly used material system consists of silicon dioxide as a sacrificial layer with single crystal silicon and deposited polycrystalline silicon as the construction material. Actuators are devices which interfere with their environment. They fundamentally use energy storing volumes and therefore are 3-dimensional devices. Construction techniques must recognize this and are evaluated by computing the output force per unit chip area. Deep X-ray lithography, the LIGA process, has many of the required attributes for actuator construction. This process can be further extended by combining it with surface micromachining which leads to assembled structures such as fully integrated magnetic micromotors and linear motors. These structures can be fabricated on most planar substrates.
Complementary, Holistic, and Integrative Medicine: Eating Disorders

1. Cora Collette Breuner, MD, MPH* 1. *Department of Pediatrics, Division of Adolescent Medicine, Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, Wash. A 15-year-old girl presents to your office with a history of a 35-lb weight loss, which began when she was told by her gymnastics coach that she needed to “slim down a bit.” She was originally 140 lb and 5 ft. She has had no menses for 3 months. In addition to her 90-minute gymnastics practice 3 days per week, she has been running 5 miles every day and working out at her parents' gym for 60 minutes 3 days per week. She admits to feeling depressed and occasionally out of control in that she cannot stop “worrying about things.” She admits to drinking “lots of coffee” and takes ginseng for energy and melatonin because she cannot sleep. She is in your office with her parents, who realize that their daughter is ill and have pulled her out of gymnastics. They realize that they need to put together a multidisciplinary team to help treat their daughter. They clearly understand that the initial management and, indeed, the standard of care for the treatment of eating disorders includes a clinician, nutritionist, and mental health professional who strictly monitor the physical and mental health manifestations of this disorder. They also have read that alternative treatments may be helpful as adjunctive therapy, in particular yoga and massage, and want to know what you think. A 14-year-old wrestler is in your office for a preparticipation sports physical. He has been trying to make the 100-lb weight category. He is 5 ft 4 in and has been told that some day he could go to the Olympics. In your office, he weighs 105 lb and expresses frustration that he …
West Nile virus infection in American Robins: new insights on dose response.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a vector-borne pathogen that was first detected in the United States in 1999. The natural transmission cycle of WNV involves mosquito vectors and avian hosts, which vary in their competency to transmit the virus. American robins are an abundant backyard species in the United States and appear to have an important role in the amplification and dissemination of WNV. In this study we examine the response of American robins to infection with various WNV doses within the range of those administered by some natural mosquito vectors. Thirty American robins were assigned a WNV dosage treatment and needle inoculated with 10 0.95 PFU, 10 1.26 PFU, 10 2.15 PFU, or 10 3.15 PFU. Serum samples were tested for the presence of infectious WNV and/or antibodies, while oral swabs were tested for the presence of WNV RNA. Five of the 30 (17%) robins had neutralizing antibodies to WNV prior to the experiment and none developed viremia or shed WNV RNA. The proportion of WNV-seronegative birds that became viremic after WNV inoculation increased in a dose dependent manner. At the lowest dose, only 40% (2/5) of the inoculated birds developed productive infections while at the highest dose, 100% (7/7) of the birds became viremic. Oral shedding of WNV RNA followed a similar trend where robins inoculated with the lower two doses were less likely to shed viral RNA (25%) than robins inoculated with one of the higher doses (92%). Viremia titers and morbidity did not increase in a dose dependent manner; only two birds succumbed to infection and, interestingly, both were inoculated with the lowest dose of WNV. It is clear that the disease ecology of WNV is a complex interplay of hosts, vectors, and viral dose delivered.
A Step by Step Look at UARG v. EPA: A New Layer of Greenhouse Gas Regulation

Hailed by many as the most important environmental law decision, the U.S. Supreme Court in Massachusetts v. EPA held that greenhouse gases (GHGs) are “air pollutants” that the United State Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can regulate under the federal Clean Air Act (CAA). This groundbreaking conclusion soon led EPA to promulgate a series of related GHG regulations to address climate change. The cascading effect of the Supreme Court’s holding in Massachusetts that GHGs were covered by the Clean Air Act, however, remained to be seen. One pivotal question was whether EPA’s post-Massachusetts promulgation of GHG emission standards for new motor-vehicles, in turn, required EPA to also regulate certain stationary sources of GHG emissions, such as power plants, industrial sources, as well as even smaller non-industrial sources, like small businesses and apartment buildings. And if the CAA did not compel EPA to regulate these sources, was EPA allowed to do so as a matter of its discretion under the CAA?The Supreme Court, however, in UARG v. EPA has now resolved many of these questions that lingered in the wake of the Massachusetts v. EPA decision. Accordingly, this Article examines the very recent case of UARG v. EPA, which was decided by the Court in June of 2014. It first gives a very brief background on greenhouse gases and climate change, as well as sets forth the provisions of the federal Clean Air Act at issue. The Article then summarizes the Supreme Court’s foundational holding in Massachusetts v. EPA that EPA has the authority to regulate GHGs under the CAA to address climate change. Next, it addresses the key challenge to EPA’s post-Massachusetts authority to regulate GHGs by exploring the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Coalition for Responsible Regulation v. EPA, where the court rejected various petitioners’ attempts to derail EPA’s ambitious and creative plan to cut GHGs emissions from both mobile and stationary sources. The Article then details the Supreme Court’s June 2014 decision in UARG v. EPA. Specifically, it examines Justice Scalia’s opinion on behalf of a majority of the Court; Justice Breyer’s opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part; and Justice Alito’s opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part. Finally, the last section of the Article then analyzes the potential impact of the Court’s opinions, concluding that the decision is an important step forward in developing comprehensive greenhouse gas regulation.
The Nameless Shakespeare

This article describes the origin, principles, practices, and potential of The Nameless Shakespeare electronic edition.
Reshaping the chromatin and epigenetic landscapes with quantitative mass spectrometry

The solving of the structure of DNA by Watson and Crick is arguably one of the major breakthroughs in all of science during the 20th century (1). Subsequent feverish research led to the discovery of a DNA genetic code, and that this code was utilized by living cells to encode proteins, the workhorse molecules of most cellular functions (2). The fundamental idea of genetic information transfer encoded by a DNA code has revolutionized the biological sciences and has led to the creation of new related fields and industries such as genomics, proteomics and biotechnology. However, not all gene expression patterns and subsequent phenotype changes can be explained by changes in this genetic code (DNA sequence). Epigenetics refers to stable heritable changes in gene expression that are not due to changes in DNA sequence, caused by DNA methylation, RNA interference and histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) 1 (3). These epigenetic changes are responsible for modulating transcriptional states that in part generate different cell types originating from identical genomes. Additionally, even though all genes exist in every cell, only a small number of genes are expressed in any given cell type and these expression patterns can be “memorized.” Inheritance of transcription patterns through DNA replication and chromatin remodeling that accompanies each cell division is critical for cell proliferation, but the mechanisms for maintenance of epigenetic memory remain unclear (4). Additionally, many epigenetic processes are involved in several aspects of human physiology such as cellular differentiation and DNA damage repair. Most importantly, growing evidence has linked alterations to epigenetic mechanisms with various human diseases such as autoimmune, neurological disorders and various cancers (5–7). Evidence for epigenetic origins of
A New Technique to Analyze Tourist Markets

One phase of recreation of increasing importance is tourism or travel. An increasing percentage of the consumer dollar is going into travel; and new and expanding business opportunities exist for t...
CALCIFICATION IN VITRO AND PHOSPHATASE ACTIVITY

The alkaline phosphatase activity of pre-osseous tibial cartilage of rachitic bone stored in the deep freeze for two weeks at -25 degrees centigrade was only slightly less than that of fresh controls from the same animals. The deep frozen pre-osseous tissue did not calcify in in vitro calcifying media containing either inorganic phosphorus or organic phosphate ester. The fresh controls calcified equally well in both media. In addition, after deep-freeze storage the tissue hydrolysed the organic phosphate to the same degree as did the fresh tissue. Bones heated at 65 degrees centigrade will calcify in vitro after calcium chloride treatment despite the destruction of phosphatase activity. It appears unlikely that a relationship exists between alkaline phosphatase and the minimal system required for calcification of pre-osseous cartilage in vitro. These findings do not exclude the possibility that alkaline phosphatase plays some critical role in vivo.
Syntactic and Functional Variability of a Million Code Submissions in a Machine Learning MOOC.

In the first offering of Stanford’s Machine Learning Massive Open-Access Online Course (MOOC) there were over a million programming submissions to 42 assignments — a dense sampling of the range of possible solutions. In this paper we map out the syntax and functional similarity of the submissions in order to explore the variation in solutions. While there was a massive number of submissions, there is a much smaller set of unique approaches. This redundancy in student solutions can be leveraged to “force multiply” teacher feedback. Fig. 1. The landscape of solutions for “gradient descent for linear regression” representing over 40,000 student code submissions with edges drawn between syntactically similar submissions and colors corresponding to performance on a battery of unit tests (red submissions passed all unit tests).
Update on the inherited platelet disorders.

Purpose of reviewThe inherited platelet disorders have witnessed a surge in our understanding of molecular mechanisms of disease in the past few years due in large to part to the introduction of next-generation sequencing for discovery of novel genes. The purpose of this review is to update the read
Geometry of the word problem for 3-manifold groups

Abstract We provide an algorithm to solve the word problem in all fundamental groups of 3-manifolds that are either closed, or compact with (finitely many) boundary components consisting of incompressible tori, by showing that these groups are autostackable. In particular, this gives a common framework to solve the word problem in these 3-manifold groups using finite state automata. We also introduce the notion of a group which is autostackable respecting a subgroup, and show that a fundamental group of a graph of groups whose vertex groups are autostackable respecting any edge group is autostackable. A group that is strongly coset automatic over an autostackable subgroup, using a prefix-closed transversal, is also shown to be autostackable respecting that subgroup. Building on work by Antolin and Ciobanu, we show that a finitely generated group that is hyperbolic relative to a collection of abelian subgroups is also strongly coset automatic relative to each subgroup in the collection. Finally, we show that fundamental groups of compact geometric 3-manifolds, with boundary consisting of (finitely many) incompressible torus components, are autostackable respecting any choice of peripheral subgroup.
MEMS shear stress sensors for cardiovascular diagnostics

Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the industrialized nations. Both biochemical and biomechanical stimuli modulate the pathogenesis of coronary artery diseases. Shear stress acting on the lumen of blood vessels intimately modulates the biological activities of vascular endothelial cells (ECs). We hereby develop microelectro mechanical system (MEMS)-based sensors at the dimension comparable to a single EC to monitor realtime shear stress in fluidic channel. Our goal is to fabricate sensors for ex vivo or in vivo shear stress measurement at Reynolds number commonly encountered in human circulation. The MEMS sensors were designed based on the previously described heat transfer principles. The polysilicon was doped with phosphorous to render the sensing element a high resistivity at 2.5 K/spl Omega/. The development of backside wire bonding enabled the application for the vascular geometry. The small dimension (80/spl times/2 /spl mu/m) and the gain amplitude at 71 KHz offered an entry point to measure shear stress with high spatial and temporal resolution.
Considering disparities: How do nurse practitioner regulatory policies, access to care, and health outcomes vary across four states?

Abstract Background Health disparities persist among morbidity and mortality rates in the United States. Contributing significantly to these disparities are the ability to pay for health care (largely, access to health insurance) and access to, and capacity of, the primary care health workforce. Purpose This article examines key determinants of health (DOH) including demographics, public and regulatory policies, health workforce capacity, and primary health outcomes of four states of the United States. The context of this study is the potential association among health care disparities and myriad DOH, among them, the restrictive nurse practitioner (NP) scope of practice (SOP) regulatory environment, which are documented to influence access to care and health outcomes. Methods This descriptive study explores current NP SOP regulations, access to primary care, and health outcomes of key chronic disease indicators—diabetes, hypertension, and obesity in Alabama, Colorado, Mississippi, and Utah. These states represent both the greatest disparity in chronic disease health outcomes (obesity, diabetes, and hypertension) and the greatest difference in modernization of their NP SOP laws. The Affordable Care Act has greatly expanded access to health care. However, it is estimated that 23 million Americans, 7% of its total population, will remain uninsured by 2019. Discussion Restrictive and inconsistent NP SOP policies may continue to contribute to health workforce capacity and population health disparities across the country, with particular concern for primary care indicators. The study findings bring into question whether states with more restrictive NP SOP regulations impact access to primary care, which may in turn influence population health outcomes. These findings suggest the need for further research. NPs are essential for meeting the increasing demands of primary care in the United States, and quality-of-care indicator research supports their use.
Clinical Context and Mechanism of Functional Tricuspid Regurgitation in Patients With and Without Pulmonary Hypertension

Background— Functional tricuspid regurgitation (FTR) with structurally normal valve is of poorly defined mechanisms. Prevalence and clinical context of idiopathic FTR (Id-FTR) (without overt TR cause) are unknown. Methods and Results— To investigate prevalence, clinical context, and mechanisms specific to FTR types, Id-FTR versus pulmonary hypertension-related (PHTN-FTR, systolic pulmonary pressure ≥50 mm Hg), we analyzed 1161 patients with prospectively quantified TR. Id-FTR (prevalence 12%) was associated with aging and atrial fibrillation. For mechanistic purposes, we measured valvular and right ventricular (RV) remodeling in 141 Id-FTR matched to 140 PHTN-FTR and to 99 controls with trivial TR for age, sex, atrial fibrillation, and ejection fraction. PHTN-FTR and Id-FTR were also matched for TR effective-regurgitant-orifice (ERO). Id-FTR valvular alterations (versus controls) were largest annular area (3.53±0.6 versus 2.74±0.4 cm2, P <0.0001) and lowest valvular/annular coverage ratio (1.06±0.1 versus 1.45±0.2, P <0.0001) but normal valve tenting height. PHTN-FTR had mild annular enlargement but excessive valve tenting height (0.8±0.3 versus 0.35±0.1 cm, P <0.0001). Valvular changes were linked to specific RV changes, largest basal dilatation, and normal length (RV conical deformation) in Id-FTR versus longest RV with elliptical/spherical deformation in PHTN-FTR. With increasing FTR severity (ERO ≥40 mm2), changes specific to each FTR type were accentuated, and RV function (index of myocardial performance) was consistently reduced. Conclusions— Id-FTR is frequent, linked to aging and atrial fibrillation, can be severe, and is of unique mechanism. In Id-FTR, excess annular and RV-basal enlargement exhausts valvular/annular coverage reserve, and RV conical deformation does not cause notable valvular tenting. Conversely, PHTN-FTR is determined by valvular tethering with tenting linked to RV elongation and elliptical/spherical deformation. These specific FTR-mechanisms may be important in considering surgical correction in FTR.
Attacked from All Sides: RNA Decay in Antiviral Defense.

The innate immune system has evolved a number of sensors that recognize viral RNA (vRNA) to restrict infection, yet the full spectrum of host-encoded RNA binding proteins that target these foreign RNAs is still unknown. The RNA decay machinery, which uses exonucleases to degrade aberrant RNAs largely from the 5′ or 3′ end, is increasingly recognized as playing an important role in antiviral defense. The 5′ degradation pathway can directly target viral messenger RNA (mRNA) for degradation, as well as indirectly attenuate replication by limiting specific pools of endogenous RNAs. The 3′ degradation machinery (RNA exosome) is emerging as a downstream effector of a diverse array of vRNA sensors. This review discusses our current understanding of the roles of the RNA decay machinery in controlling viral infection.
Algorithms for the Reduction of Surface Evolution Discretization Error

This paper investigates numerical error due to time and spatial discretization. The relative error contributions of each discretization scheme is examined. Two algorithms are then introduced to control the error due to each modelling discretization scheme.
Intraseasonal Variations of Winter Wind Chill Temperatures across Canada and the United States

AbstractWind chill temperature (WCT) is a measure of the human sensation of cold and also is a parameter used to represent the severity of winter weather. This study provides a unique investigation to quantify the spatial patterns of monthly mean, extreme, and severe WCTs across Canada and the United States. WCT was examined across 45 winters (December–February) spanning 1969/70–2013/14 using 156 surface locations reporting hourly meteorological conditions. Intraseasonal analyses of WCT showed that January had 1) the coldest mean WCTs, 2) the most extreme WCTs as statistically represented by the coldest 1% of the monthly WCT frequency distribution at each surface location, and 3) the greatest frequency of severe WCT hours that were ≤ −32°C. The most extreme WCTs were most often located in the Hudson Bay region of Canada, and north-central and northeastern North America experienced the largest monthly changes in WCT during the winter season. Results suggest that intraseasonal changes of air temperature are...
Ex vivo gut culture for studying differentiation and migration of small intestinal epithelial cells

Epithelial cultures are commonly used for studying gut health. However, due to the absence of mesenchymal cells and gut structure, epithelial culture systems including recently developed three-dimensional organoid culture cannot accurately represent in vivo gut development, which requires intense cross-regulation of the epithelial layer with the underlying mesenchymal tissue. In addition, organoid culture is costly. To overcome this, a new culture system was developed using mouse embryonic small intestine. Cultured intestine showed spontaneous peristalsis, indicating the maintenance of the normal gut physiological structure. During 10 days of ex vivo culture, epithelial cells moved along the gut surface and differentiated into different epithelial cell types, including enterocytes, Paneth cells, goblet cells and enteroendocrine cells. We further used the established ex vivo system to examine the role of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) on gut epithelial health. Tamoxifen-induced AMPKα1 knockout vastly impaired epithelial migration and differentiation of the developing ex vivo gut, showing the crucial regulatory function of AMPK α1 in intestinal health.
Circulating inflammatory biomarkers are related to cerebrovascular disease in a non-demented elderly population (P2.231)

Objective: This investigation aimed to determine whether circulating inflammatory biomarkers c-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL6), and alpha 1-antichymotrypsin (ACT) are related to cerebrovascular disease (CVD) assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Background: Presence of silent CVD are associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment and dementia in the elderly. The role of inflammation in CVD remains unclear. Design/Methods: Among 680 non-demented elderly participants of a community-based cohort who received MRI scans, 508, 435, and 357 subjects had CRP, ACT, and IL6 detected, respectively, using ELISA on blood samples collected 4.5 years prior to the first MRI. Approximately half of the participants received repeated MRI scans 4.5 years later. Silent infarct and white matter hyperintensities (WMH) were assessed at the first and follow-up MRI visits. Cerebral microbleeds was assessed at the follow-up MRI visit only. We examined the cross-sectional association of inflammatory biomarkers with infarcts, WMH volume (intracranial volume adjusted and log-transformed), and microbleeds, as well as longitudinal association of inflammatory biomarkers with risk of developing incident infarcts and change of WMH (difference between baseline and follow-up WMH volumes) using models adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity, education, APOE genotype, and intracranial volume. Results: Compared to the lowest IL6 tertile, the highest IL6 tertile was associated with a higher odds of infarcts at the first MRI-visit [OR(95%CI)=1.75(0.99–3.08), p=0.05]. Compared to the lowest ACT tertile, the highest ACT tertile was associated with an increased odds of having microbleeds [OR(95%CI)=4.87(1.81–13.1), p=0.002] and larger WMH volume (b=0.263, p=0.01) at the follow-up MRI-visit. Longitudinally, compared to the lowest ACT tertile, the highest ACT tertile accumulated 0.157(p=0.03) more WMH volume during the follow-up. Conclusions: Our study shows that among older adults, circulating inflammatory biomarkers were positively associated with CVD. Further larger longitudinal studies are needed to elucidate the relationship between peripheral inflammatory processes and vascular injury in the brain of older adults. Study Supported by: National Institutes of Health grants PO1AG007232, R01AG037212, RF1AG054023, UL1TR001873, AG042483, AG034189, and AG045334. Disclosure: Dr. Schupf has nothing to disclose. Dr. Gutierrez has nothing to disclose. Dr. Meier has nothing to disclose. Dr. Guzman has nothing to disclose. Dr. Manly has nothing to disclose. Dr. Schupf has nothing to disclose. Dr. Brickman has nothing to disclose. Dr. Mayeux has nothing to disclose.
Treatment of Acute Ischaemic Stroke

The elements of successful treatment for acute stroke are: (1) Rapid evaluation and decision making, (2) Careful patient selection, and (3) Rapid and effective pharmacologic or mechanical thrombolysis. Approach any potential candidate for endovascular therapy with an eye towards first administering IV t-PA, or getting the patient on the angio suite table as soon as possible. The overall strategy consists of the following steps: make the correct diagnosis and focus on the patient examination.
Asymptotics and Computation for Spatial Statistics

Asymptotics describe large sample properties of statistical inferences. Useful asymptotics are those that can help with the statistical inferences. For example, asymptotics can help identify statistically and computationally efficient estimators. The study of asymptotics in spatial statistics is complicated by the fact there are more than one asymptotic frameworks in spatial statistics and the asymptotic results are very different under the different asymptotic frameworks. This chapter reviews some results under these asymptotic frameworks and shows how the asymptotic results can help alleviate the computational challenges in the analysis of massive spatial data.
Surface Ultrastructural Changes in the Tegument of Cysticercus Fasciolaris and Schistosoma Mansoni Following In Vitro Low Doses of the Antihelminthic Drug, Oltipraz

Cysticercus fasciolaris is the larval form of the adult cat tapeworm, Hydatigera taeniaeformis (Taenia taeniaeformis). It is of increasing interest because of the considerable pathological conditions produced in a rat or mouse host in which it is normally found. The larvae encapsulate and develop on the liver of rats and mice and as a result of this infection, a serious cancer-like growth may develop (Noble and Noble, 1974).
Food-Chain Contamination From Testing Nuclear Devices

Our more than 42 years of experience in dealing with radioactive contamination of our environment produced by fallout from the testing of nuclear devices began in 1945 in the desert near Alamagordo, NM. This first nuclear test was detonated on a 100-ft steel tower and resulted in radioactive fallout that was tracked and measured some few thousand miles across the United States toward the northeast.
Exercise Precautions for the Female Athlete: Signs of Overtraining

Athletes are constantly aiming to be the best they can be by incorporating a strict nutritional and training schedule into their daily lives. When athletes push themselves further than their bodies will allow, a state of staleness will occur. Overreaching, overtraining, and the overtraining syndrome are three different levels of staleness possible if an athlete does not take the proper precautions to prevent these conditions from occurring. Within these conditions, functional, metabolic, psychological, and physiological limitations are commonplace. A full recovery can last anywhere from a few days to years in the most extreme cases. In the past, these three terms were considered one and the same; however, recent research findings have split them into three distinct conditions with defining signs and symptoms. Some of these signs and symptoms overlap with those of clinical depression, so it is imperative for an athlete to be medically evaluated in order to determine the actual cause of their symptoms. If an athlete is diagnosed with overtraining, their symptoms can be used to determine which physiological pathway is causing the condition. Research has discovered a couple of possible new mechanisms for overtraining: the negative feedback system and protein deficiency. It is important to catch overreaching and overtraining in their early stages so that athletes and their coaches can implement a plan of prevention rather than treatment. Coaches and parents need to regularly communicate with their athletes and help maintain a safe and healthy training regimen.
Neuroimaging Studies of Pediatric Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder: Special Emphasis on Genetics and Biomarkers

Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (or OCD) is a severe and chronically debilitating disorder that affects over 3 million people in the United States. People with OCD have distressing obsessions and compulsions that cripple their functioning in every day life. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the only FDA approved medications for OCD. However, SSRIs are typically only effective in 40–60% of patients, leaving a substantial number still ill. Indeed, as treatment response is defined by a 20–40% reduction in symptoms, many “responders” are still markedly symptomatic. Approximately 2 million people are not sufficiently served by current medication remedies. Hence, advancement in our understanding of the neurobiology of OCD is sorely needed. The emergence of newer, non-invasive neu-roimaging approaches offers great promise in enhancing our understanding of normative brain development and the developmental neurobiologic underpinnings of childhood onset neuropsychiatric disorders. In this chapter, we describe an approach combining comprehensive assessment and treatment with sophisticated neuroimaging studies to elucidate a mechanistic understanding of the pathogenesis and treatment response of pediatric OCD. Our neuroimaging studies have implicated the cortical—striatal—thalamic—corti-cal (CSTC) loop in the pathophysiology of pediatric OCD. This has led to a focus on the neurotransmitter glutamate. Indeed, our work using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) has shown regionally specific alterations of glutamate/glutamine (or Glx) that resolve with effective treatment. This finding has been supported by other neuroimaging and cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) studies. Genetic studies have noted increased susceptibility to OCD in those expressing alterations in the neuronal glutamate transporter gene (SLC1A1) and certain glutamate receptor genes (GRIK2 and GRIN2B). Additionally, a transgenic animal model of OCD has also noted a high level of glutamatergic excitation as well. Hence, 1H-MRS, CSF, genetic and animal studies have all implicated glutamate in OCD. This has led to the application of the glutamate modulating agents, such as riluzole, to treat OCD symptoms. The approach of bringing neuroimaging and genetic methods to bear on the study of the disorder serves as a model for increasing our understanding of other neuropsychiatric illness.
Microtexture and the Cell/Biomaterial Interface: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Capsular Contracture and Prosthetic Breast Implants.

BACKGROUND The use of textured breast implants over smooth implants has been widely shown to have a lower incidence of capsular contracture. However, the impact of micropatterning techniques on the incidence of postoperative patient morbidity has not been comprehensively investigated. OBJECTIVES The authors sought to examine the incidence of capsular contracture, seroma, and implant rippling among the 3 major micropatterning techniques applied in the manufacturing of textured breast implants. METHODS Literature searches of PubMed/Medline and Embase between 1995 and 2017 were performed, and 19 studies were selected for analysis. Data from each study were extracted into a form including mean age, study design, population size, mean follow-up, number of capsular contracture cases, number of seroma cases, and number of rippling cases. Meta-analysis was performed separately for studies that included capsular contracture rates for foam textured implants, imprinted textured implants, and salt-loss textured implants. RESULTS The pooled rate of capsular contracture rates in primary augmentation patients was 3.80% (95% CI, 2.19-5.40) for imprinted textured implants, 4.90% (95% CI, 3.16-6.64) for foam textured implants, 5.27% (95% CI, 3.22-7.31) for salt-loss textured implants, and 15.56% (95% CI, 13.31-18.16) for smooth implants. The results of each meta-analysis were summarized on a forest plot depicting the distribution of capsular contracture rates from each study. CONCLUSIONS Micropatterning of prosthetic implants could drastically reduce postoperative patient morbidity given the advent of recent technologies that allow for more detailed texturing of implant surfaces. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4
The Harasser's Toolbox: Investigating the Role of Mobility in Street Harassment.

This study investigates the role of physical mobility in street harassment by analyzing a stratified random sample of 334 cases posted to Hollaback!, an online community documenting experiences of ...
Some highs and lows of hylomorphism: on a paradox about property abstraction

We defend hylomorphism against Maegan Fairchild’s purported proof of its inconsistency. We provide a deduction of a contradiction from SH+, which is the combination of “simple hylomorphism” and an innocuous premise. We show that the deduction, reminiscent of Russell’s Paradox, is proof-theoretically valid in classical higher-order logic and invokes an impredicatively defined property. We provide a proof that SH+ is nevertheless consistent in a free higher-order logic. It is shown that the unrestricted comprehension principle of property abstraction on which the purported proof of inconsistency relies is analogous to naive unrestricted set-theoretic comprehension. We conclude that logic imposes a restriction on property comprehension, a restriction that is satisfied by the ramified theory of types. By extension, our observations constitute defenses of theories that are structurally similar to SH+, such as the theory of singular propositions, against similar purported disproofs.
Lattice Simulation of Interface Dynamics in Eutectic Solidification

A two dimensional lattice model with random walkers is used to investigate eutectic solidification of a thin film. The instabilities and dynamical mechanisms underlying the formation of a wide variety of eutectic patterns ranging from orderly to chaotic are discussed.