cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Estimating Terrestrial Biodiversity through Extrapolation

Both the magnitude and the urgency of the task of assessing global biodiversity require that we make the most of what we know through the use of estimation and extrapolation. Likewise, future biodiversity inventories need to be designed around the use of effective sampling and estimation procedures, especially for 'hyperdiverse' groups of terrestrial organisms, such as arthropods, nematodes, fungi, and microorganisms. The challenge of estimating patterns of species richness from samples can be separated into (i) the problem of estimating local species richness, and (ii) the problem of estimating the distinctness, or complementarity, of species assemblages. These concepts apply on a wide range of spatial, temporal, and functional scales. Local richness can be estimated by extrapolating species accumulation curves, fitting parametric distributions of relative abundance, or using non-parametric techniques based on the distribution of individuals among species or of species among samples. We present several of these methods and examine their effectiveness for an example data set. We present a simple measure of complementarity, with some biogeographic examples, and outline the difficult problem of estimating complementarity from samples. Finally, we discuss the importance of using 'reference' sites (or sub-sites) to assess the true richness and composition of species assemblages, to measure ecologically significant ratios between unrelated taxa, to measure taxon/sub-taxon (hierarchical) ratios, and to 'calibrate' standardized sampling methods. This information can then be applied to the rapid, approximate assessment of species richness and faunal or floral composition at 'comparative' sites.
Hypopituitarism caused by intrasellar aneurysms.

Objective To determine the prevalence, clinical presentation, and outcome of hypopituitarism due to an intrasellar aneurysm. Patients and Methods We performed a retrospective review of Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn, medical records from 1950 through 1995. We calculated the prevalence of hypopituitarism, characterized the clinical presentation, and evaluated postoperative outcomes. Results Of 4087 patients with a diagnosis of hypopituitarism, 7 had hypopituitarism due to an intrasellar aneurysm, accounting for a prevalence of 0.17%. Adrenal, thyroid, and gonadal deficiencies were observed in 7, 6, and 5 patients, respectively. The prolactin level was increased in the 2 patients in whom it was measured. No patient had diabetes insipidus. All had visual impairment. In 5 patients an intrasellar aneurysm of the internal carotid artery was diagnosed preoperatively based on 1 or more imaging procedures. In the other 2 patients (1 with an internal carotid artery aneurysm and 1 with an anterior cerebral artery aneurysm), the diagnosis was made at surgical exploration. Four patients underwent a surgical procedure: 2 had direct packing of the aneurysm, and 2 had a bypass with proximal carotid occlusion or aneurysm trapping. Pituitary function remained unchanged postoperatively. Conclusion An intrasellar aneurysm is a rare cause of hypopituitarism (0.17% of cases). Preoperative diagnosis is essential for successful surgical outcomes. Hypopituitarism is usually permanent.
Gender Differences in the College and Career Aspirations of High School Valedictorians

Valedictorian profiles published in a regional newspaper for the 2003, 2004, and 2005 graduating classes in the Research Triangle area of central North Carolina revealed graduates' aspirations, in terms of intended college major, the selectivity of chosen college, and future labor market earnings in intended careers. Based on 92 profiles, female valedictorians were equally likely to intend to major in a field in the sciences but were more likely to intend to major in fields in the humanities and social sciences; were less likely to intend to major in mathematics, computer science, or engineering; and were planning careers in lower paying occupations. The female valedictorians were also, on average, planning to attend less selective colleges. In examining the future career aspirations of the male and female students, female valedictorians chose, on average, lower paying careers. This difference mimics the current gender gap in pay equity. Although there have been many studies that examined the career inten...
The CNS as a target for peptides and peptide-based drugs

Peptides hold great potential as CNS drugs, but their delivery to the CNS is problematic. However, actual roadblocks to peptide delivery are different from those often perceived. Many peptides cross the blood-brain barrier by saturable and non-saturable mechanisms, and accumulate in brain in amounts sufficient to produce physiological effects. Peripheral factors (e.g., short half-life in blood) can be dominant factors limiting therapeutic use. Production of therapeutics that are enzymatically resistant and have long circulation times, even when the blood-brain barrier penetration is low, can result in substances with significant CNS accumulation. Surprisingly low amounts of peptide in brain can result in CNS effects, and so the dose needed for brain delivery is generally much smaller than for peripheral tissues. Brain-to-blood transporters can greatly limit CNS accumulation of a potential therapeutic. Finally, intranasal and intrathecal routes may be especially useful for substances that are rapidly degraded in blood or are large and hydrophobic, respectively.
Spatially heteroclinic solutions for a semilinear elliptic P.D.E.

This paper uses minimization methods and renormalized functionals to find spatially heteroclinic solutions for some classes of semilinear elliptic partial differential equations
A game of billiards WITH SPATIAL-SOLITARY WAVES IN KTP

A RADICALLY NEW WAY TO THINK OF THE PROBLEM OF MULTI-DIMENSIONAL SELF-TRAPPING HAS COME TO LIGHT IN QUADRATIC NONLINEAR IN TERACTIONS. IN THIS ARTICLE, THE AUTHORS NOT ONLY SHOW THAT THE DIFFRACTION IN SPATIAL WALKOFF CAN BE DEFEATED, BUT THAT A GENUINE GAME OF BILLIARDS CAN BE PLAYED WITH STRONGLY COUPLED FUNDAMENTAL AND HARMONIC FIELDS.
Sensitivity and Resistance to Spectinomycin in Escherichia coli

Inhibition of growth and division of Escherichia coli by spectinomycin is reversible, and the kinetics of its interference with deoxyribonucleic and ribonucleic acid synthesis may be interpreted as secondary effects of inhibition of protein synthesis on the ribosome. Spontaneous mutations to spectinomycin resistance occur in E. coli K-12 at a rate of about 2 x 10(-10). Resistance is transducible with a discrete lag in phenotypic expression, and the kinetics of its development is about the same as that for streptomycin resistance. All spectinomycin-resistant mutants tested contain resistant ribosomes, and all map in a locus (spc) counterclockwise to and 70% cotransducible with the classical str locus. Differences in the residual drug sensitivity of various spectinomycin-resistant mutants, and of their ribosomes, indicate the existence of more than one phenotypic class of resistance.
X-ray production from a kilojoule picosecond laser interaction with an iron target

We will present results for the x-ray production from the irradiation and interaction of a 25 ps, 1-Kj, 1ω laser with a thin Iron target. The conversion efficiency to x-rays, the spectrum as well as the time history will be presented. The usefulness of such an x-ray source for backlighting imploded capsules will also be presented and discussed.
Moving object recognition and guidance of robots using neural networks

The design of a robust guidance system for a robot is discussed. The two major tasks for this guidance system are the online recognition of a moving object invariant to rotation and translation, and tracking the moving object using a neural-network-driven vision system. This system included computer software ported to the IBM PC and interfaced with an IBM 7535 robot. The operation of this guidance system involved recognition of a moving object and the ability to track it till the robot and effector was in close proximity of the object. It was found that the robot was able to track a moving object as long as it did not leave the region visible to the camera. Recognition was successfully demonstrated for objects of arbitrary shapes. Even similarly shaped objects of different sizes were correctly recognized. >
DRILLING ON ENIWETOK ATOLL, MARSHALL ISLANDS

Drilling on Eniwetok Atoll, Marshall Islands, revealed the presence of olivine basalt beneath shallow-water limestone of Eocene age at a depth of 4,154 feet. Two holes were put down on opposite sides of the atoll: F-1 on the northwest where a guyot (flat-topped seamount) adjoins the atoll at 700 fathoms, and E-1 on the southeast where no guyot is present. In F-1, hard basement rock was struck at 4,610 feet, but no sample recovered. In hole E-1, unweathered basalt cuttings were obtained from a depth of 4,154 feet and solid basalt core from 4,208 to 4,222 feet. Each hole penetrated several hundred feet of soft, Quaternary reef limestone before entering a thick, Tertiary section of similar rocks. The Tertiary rocks are mostly limestones with minor amounts of dolomite and dolomitic limestone. Some of the limestones are made up of clay-size and silt-size particles and are carbonaceous. Most of the section is soft or weakly consolidated. The two holes are similar to depths of 1,400 feet; below this point there are striking differences in lithologic characters, organic constitution, and the distribution of hard rock and cavities. The drilling data indicate that the atoll is a thick cap of limestone resting on the summit of a volcano that rises 2 miles above the floor of the ocean.
Preferential binding and structural distortion by Fe2+ at RGGG-containing DNA sequences correlates with enhanced oxidative cleavage at such sequences

Certain DNA sequences are known to be unusually sensitive to nicking via the Fe2+-mediated Fenton reaction. Most notable are a purine nucleotide followed by three or more G residues, RGGG, and purine nucleotides flanking a TG combination, RTGR. Our laboratory previously demonstrated that nicking in the RGGG sequences occurs preferentially 5' to a G residue with the nicking probability decreasing from the 5' to 3'end of these sequences. Using 1H NMR to characterize Fe2+ binding within the duplex CGAGTTAGGGTAGC/GCTACCCTAACTCG and 7-deazaguanine-containing (Z) variants of it, we show that Fe2+ binds preferentially at the GGG sequence, most strongly towards its 5' end. Substitutions of individual guanines with Z indicate that the high affinity Fe2+ binding at AGGG involves two adjacent guanine N7 moieties. Binding is accompanied by large changes in specific imino, aromatic and methyl proton chemical shifts, indicating that a locally distorted structure forms at the binding site that affects the conformation of the two base pairs 3' to the GGG sequence. The binding of Fe2+ to RGGG contrasts with that previously observed for the RTGR sequence, which binds Fe2+ with negligible structural rearrangements.
Doppler Physics and Instrumentation A Review

The physical principles of continuous-wave and pulsedwave Doppler as well as the processing methods to detect the direction of flow are reviewed. An overview of Doppler instrumentation, including duplex, zero crossing, range-gated, and color flow imaging detection systems is presented. The technique of spectral analysis is explained with multiple illustrative examples. Aliasing, which arises from the limited sampling rate of pulsed wave instruments, is discussed in detail.
Fisheries observers as enforcement assets: Lessons from the North Pacific

Abstract Fisheries observers can both collect scientific data and report on compliance with fisheries regulations. Observers are used only for scientific purposes in most US fisheries. However, North Pacific groundfish fisheries observers are required to report violations of fisheries regulations that they witness. Based on evaluation of historical enforcement incidents and survey data, this paper considers the effects of mandatory reporting in the North Pacific. The goal of this analysis is to determine whether and how observer enforcement in the North Pacific differs from observer enforcement in other US fisheries and to determine what benefits observer enforcement might yield if adopted in other fisheries. Mandatory observer reporting increases incident reports compared to fisheries without mandatory reporting requirements. Observers also report violation types, including illegal discard and retention, that otherwise are rarely identified by traditional dockside or at-sea enforcement resources. However, observer-reported cases are prosecuted less often than cases directly identified by fisheries enforcement officers. The reasons for lower prosecution rates are unclear but do not appear to result from incorrect identification of violations. In the light of recent studies indicating that noncompliance with fisheries regulations is an increasing concern in some fisheries due to decreasing total catch limits, this paper concludes that observers represent a unique enforcement resource that can facilitate detection and penalization of violations. However, increased prosecution of observer-reported data is needed to reduce incentives for noncompliance when observers are onboard. The substantial benefits of observer enforcement may outweigh concerns regarding data biases and observer safety that have limited observer reporting to date.
How we use social media to supplement a novel curriculum in medical education

Background: The millennial learner is reliant on technology to gain knowledge. Social media in the form of Twitter and Facebook provide a unique way to reach these learners. Aims: To demonstrate a supplement to a curriculum using ‘‘push technology’’ via Twitter and Facebook to deliver educational content to mobile devices. Methods: A curriculum consisting of high-yield ultrasound concepts was developed and posted to Twitter @EDUltrasound daily. Followers received tweets ‘‘pushed’’ directly to their mobile devices. Following the year-long program, followers were surveyed regarding the program’s effectiveness. To determine the ways in which tweets were reaching users, followers were categorized demographically. Results: Daily ‘‘tweets’’ were posted each morning beginning on July 1, 2010. By the end of the year, there were 87 followers on Twitter and 78 on Facebook. The majority of followers (55.6%) had not previously used Twitter. The majority of followers (88.9%) found Twitter user-friendly, while most (81.5%) found the information useful. Conclusions: Due to ease of use and widespread applicability, Twitter and Facebook are excellent applications of ‘‘push technology’’ as a means to deliver educational content. This pilot project demonstrates the potential of social media to both supplement and enhance traditional educational methods.
Bone sialoprotein—a mucin in disguise?

Connective Tissue Biology Group, The Department of BiomedicalEngineering, The Research Institute of The Cleveland Clinic Foundation,Cleveland, OH 44195, USA'To whom correspondence should be addressed at: Department ofBiomedical Engineering/Wb3, Research Institute of the Cleveland ClinicFoundation, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44195
The Doomed, the Post-, and the Exact Curve of the Thing: Tao Lin in the After

This article reads the potential of the literary text to challenge and exceed the limits of the conventionally literary, moving toward the realm of what we might understand, in fact, as the countertextual or post-literary. It locates this post-literary potential in Tao Lin's post-9/11 collection Bed, which itself focuses on periods of postness as affectively marked. Following recent work in theories of affect, this paper reads Bed as invested in art's potential to transform negative affects into productive action. In the case of Lin's text, this work lies both in its content and in a form characterised by a distinctive brand of metaphor that heeds T. E. Hulme's modernist call ‘to get out the exact curve of the feeling or thing’, alongside a devotion to a conspicuously anti-literary flatness Lin has described as the ‘concrete slash literal’.
The Multifaceted Roles of PRDM16: Adipose Biology and Beyond

The PRDM [PRDI-BFI (positive regulatory domain I-binding factor 1) and RIZ1 (retinoblastoma protein-interacting zinc finger gene 1) homologous domain containing] protein family is involved in a spectrum of biological processes including cell fate determination and development. These proteins regulate transcription through intrinsic chromatin-modifying activity or by complexing with histone-modifying or other nuclear proteins. Studies have indicated crucial roles for PRDM16 in the determination and function of brown and beige fat as well as in hematopoiesis and cardiac development, highlighting the importance of PRDM16 in developmental processes in different tissues. More recently, PRDM16 mutations were also identified in humans. The substantial progress in understanding the mechanism underlying the action of PRDM16 in adipose biology may have relevance to other PRDM family members, and this new knowledge has the potential to be exploited for therapeutic benefit.
Nest building is a novel method for indexing severity of alcohol withdrawal in mice.

Abstract Withdrawal after chronic ethanol (EtOH) affects body temperature, goal-directed behavior and motor function in mice and increases general central nervous system excitability. Nest-building tests have been used to assay these states but to this point have not been employed as measures of EtOH withdrawal severity. We first refined nest-scoring methods using a genetically heterogeneous stock of mice (HS/Npt). Mice were then made physically dependent following three days of chronic EtOH vapor inhalation to produce average blood EtOH concentrations (BECs) of 1.89 mg/mL. EtOH withdrawal affected the progression of nest building over time when mice were tested 2–4 days after removal from three days of chronic exposure to EtOH. In a separate group of mice, chronic EtOH vapor inhalation (BECs 1.84 mg/mL) suppressed nest building over days 1–2 but not days 2–3 of withdrawal. In a following experiment, EtOH withdrawal dose-dependently slowed recovery of nest building for up to 32 h. Finally, we determined that long-lasting nest-building deficits extend to mice undergoing withdrawal from a high dose (4 g/kg) of acute EtOH. Sex differences for nest building were absent following EtOH exposure. In mice naive to EtOH treatments, male mice had lower pre-test body temperatures and increased nest scores across a two-day testing period compared to females. These results suggest that nest building can be used to assess chronic and acute EtOH withdrawal severity in mice.
Physicians Stalked by Patients: Implications for Family Medicine Resident Education and Practice

Health care professionals are at increased risk for harassment and stalking compared with the general population. This report examines the problem of family physician stalking and recommends strategies for family medicine residency training about harassment. The authors completed a literature review of publications on physician and resident harassment and stalking and publications related to harassment training methods. Evidence from US and international surveys and qualitative studies suggest that one in 10 family physicians will encounter patient stalking during their careers. Stalked physicians report consistently underestimating the seriousness of stalking but confirm that stalking is professionally disruptive and personally distressing. Few stalked physicians recall any formal training for managing harassing patients. Harassment and stalking occur frequently enough in practice that residents should be educated about stalker types, harassment dynamics, and the strain that results from being targeted. Harassment education should emphasize the principles of timely consultation, strategies for safety and containment, and methods for confrontation.
Model Similarity, Model Selection, and Attribute Classification:

Selecting the most appropriate cognitive diagnosis model (CDM) for an item is a challenging process. Although general CDMs provide better model-data fit, specific CDMs have more straightforward interpretations, are more stable, and can provide more accurate classifications when used correctly. Recently, the Wald test has been proposed to determine at the item level whether a general CDM can be replaced by specific CDMs without a significant loss in model-data fit. The current study examines the practical consequence of the test by evaluating whether the attribute-vector classification based on CDMs selected by the Wald test is better than that based on general CDMs. Although the Wald test can detect the true underlying model for certain CDMs, it is yet unclear how effective it is at distinguishing among the wider range of CDMs found in the literature. This study investigates the relative similarity of the various CDMs through the use of the newly developed dissimiliarity index, and explores the implications for the Wald test. Simulations show that the Wald test cannot distinguish among additive models due to their inherent similarity, but this does not impede the ability of the test to provide higher correct classification rates than general CDMs, particularly when the sample size is small and items are of low quality. An empirical example is included to demonstrate the viability of the procedure.
Metabolic Effects of a Commonly Used Combined Hormonal Oral Contraceptive in Women With and Without Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.

Abstract Background: Data on combined hormonal oral contraceptives' (OCs) effects on metabolic changes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have been conflicting and were predominantly based on OCs with cyproterone acetate (unavailable in the United States) Most studies did not include normal women as controls. We compared metabolic changes before and after an OC commonly used in the United States between women with and without PCOS. Methods: Ten PCOS and 20 control women took ethinyl estradiol 35 μg and norgestimate 0.18/0.215/0.25 mg. Fasting glucose and insulin, area-under-the-curve (AUC) glucose and insulin, insulin sensitivity (homeostatic model assessment of insulin sensitivity index [HOMA-ISI] and Matsuda index), insulinogenic index (Δinsulin0–30 minutes/Δglucose0–30 minutes), blood pressure, and lipids were evaluated at baseline and after three cycles of OC. Results: At baseline, PCOS women had lower insulin sensitivity (Matsuda index p = 0.0093, HOMA-ISI p = 0.0397), higher fasting insu...
Dehydration of the brain of intra-peritoneal injections of hyper-osmotic solutions of -aminobutyric acid and DL- -alanine.

Utilisant une technique radioactive avec le3HOH, nous avons montre que les injections i.p. des solutions hyperosmotiques de l'acideγ-aminobutyrique et dedl-α-alanine, deshydratent de maniere significative les cerveaux des souris.
High Efficiency Thin Upgraded Metallurgical-Grade Silicon Solar Cells on Flexible Substrates

We present a thin film ( 8%. In addition, the solar cells are flexible and semitransparent so as to reduce balance of systems costs and open new applications for conformable solar cell arrays on a variety of surfaces. Detailed studies on the optical and electrical properties of the resulting solar cells suggest that both antireflective and light-trapping mechanisms are key to the enhanced efficiency.
Relationships between Ca2+, myosin light chains, and ATPase in bovine aortic actomyosin: presence of Ca2+-requiring inactivation factor.

SummaryPhosphorylation of the myosin light chains occurs in Ca2+-sensitive aortic actomyosin. This phosporylation specifically requires ATP and is essentially completed before significant release of Pi by actomyosin ATPase can be detected. Progressive loss of Ca2+ sensitivity in preparations stored at 4° is associated with progressive loss of phos-phorylatable light chains so that phosphorylation no longer occurs. Although Ca2+ -activated ATPase is depressed in these light chain-deficient preparations, basal ATPase measured in the absence of Ca2+ is increased. These data suggest that the unphosphorylated light chains inhibit actin-stimulated myosin ATPase, whereas phosphorylation of the light chains relieves the inhibition and amplifies actin stimulation of myosin ATPase. During storage there is a parallel loss of the Ca2+ sensitivity and phosporylatable light chains. Both losses are prevented when actomyosin is stored in the presence of EGTA. These findings suggest that aortic actomyosin contains a Ca2+-...
Dissociation of NSC606985 induces atypical ER-stress and cell death in prostate cancer cells

Castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) is a major cause of prostate cancer (Pca) death. Chemotherapy is able to improve the survival of CRPC patients. We previously found that NSC606985 (NSC), a highly water-soluble camptothecin analog, induced cell death in Pca cells via interaction with topoisomerase 1 and activation of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. To further elucidate the role of NSC, we studied the effect of NSC on ER-stress and its association with NSC-induced cell death in Pca cells. NSC produced a time- and dose-dependent induction of GRP78, CHOP and XBP1s mRNA, and CHOP protein expression in Pca cells including DU145, indicating an activation of ER-stress. However, unlike conventional ER-stress in which GRP78 protein is increased, NSC produced a time- and dose-dependent U-shape change in GRP78 protein in DU145 cells. The NSC-induced decrease in GRP78 protein was blocked by protease inhibitors, N-acetyl-L-leucyl-L-leucylnorleucinal (ALLN), a lysosomal protease inhibitor, and epoxomicin (EPO), a ubiquitin-protease inhibitor. ALLN, but not EPO, also partially inhibited NSC-induced cell death. However, both 4-PBA and TUDCA, two chemical chaperons that effectively reduced tunicamycin-induced ER-stress, failed to attenuate NSC-induced GRP78, CHOP and XBP1s mRNA expression and cell death. Moreover, knockdown of NSC induction of CHOP expression using a specific siRNA had no effect on NSC-induced cytochrome c release and NSC-induced cell death. These results suggest that NSC produced an atypical ER-stress that is dissociated from NSC-induced activation of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway and NSC-induced cell death in DU145 prostate cancer cells.
Crystal structure of N,N'-[(thio-phene-2,5-di-yl)bis-(methanylyl-idene)]di-p-toluidine.

The title compound, C20H18N2S, was synthesized by the condensation reaction between p-tolu­idine and thio­phene-2,5-dicarboxaldehye in refluxing toluene with p-toluene­sulfonic acid added as catalyst. The mol­ecule lies on a twofold rotation axis and adopts an E orientation with respect to the azomethine bonds. The dihedral angle between the unqiue benzene ring and the least-squares plane [maximum deviation = 0.0145 (14) A] containing the azomethine and thio­phene groups is 32.31 (6)°.
Towards cost-effective and high-performance caching middleware for distributed systems

One performance bottleneck of distributed systems lies on the hard disk drive (HDD) whose single read/write head has physical limitations to support concurrent I/Os. Although the solid-state drive (SSD) has been introduced for years, HDDs are still dominant storage due to large capacity and low cost. This paper proposes a caching middleware that manages the underlying heterogeneous storage devices in order to allow distributed file systems to achieve both high performance and low cost. Specifically, we design and implement a user-level caching system that offers SSD-like performance at a cost similar to a HDD. We demonstrate how such a middleware improves the performance of distributed file systems, such as the HDFS. Experimental results show that the caching system delivers up to 7X higher throughput and 76X higher IOPS than Linux Ext4 file system, and accelerates HDFS by 28% on 32 nodes.
EARLY OUTCOMES OF OBESE PATIENTS UNDERGOING DIRECT ANTERIOR TOTAL HIP REPLACEMENT

Introduction The direct anterior (DA) approach for total hip arthroplasty has demonstrated successful short term outcomes. However, debate remains about which patients are candidates fo this approach. To our knowledge, there are no studies which specifically investigate short-term outcomes in obese versus non-obese patients undergoing THA through a DA approach. The purpose of this study was to evaluate complication rates and short term outcomes of obese, pre-obese, and normal BMI patients undergoing THA through DA approach. Methods A retrospective review of 151 consecutive patients who underwent unilateral THA through a DA approach for osteoarthritis or avascular necrosis was performed after IRB approval. Forty patients had a normal BMI, 54 were pre-obese, and 57 were obese by WHO classification (37 class I obese, 12 class II obese, and 8 class III obese). Electronic and paper charts were reviewed to determine differences in surgical time, length of stay, disposition, wound and major complications, and short term outcome measures. Results When comparing normal and pre-obese patients to a combined group of WHO class I, II, and III obese patients, surgical time was increased by 15.8 minutes (P Conclusions This study demonstrated significantly increased surgical time and higher use of narcotics and assistive devices in obese patients. Trends toward increased wound and major complications, and a higher likelihood of rehabilitation placement were found. This study helps determine appropriate candidates for THA through a DA approach as obese patients may have more complicated postoperative courses.
Potential Approaches to Chemotherapy of Thyroid Cancer in the Future

Molecular studies have led to an increased appreciation for the heterogeneity of thyroid neoplasms, and recent work has outlined the importance of hereditary predisposition, somatic mutation, epigenetic modulation, and tumor microenvironment and their contributions to tumor histology, clinical presentation, and prognosis. Preclinical data has supported the role of several new targets in the advanced thyroid cancer, which are summarized in Table 105.1. Clinical trials in advanced thyroid cancer are outlined in Table 105.2. Selected targets are discussed below.
V+jets from CMS

Abstract The production of vector bosons (V = W, Z, or γ) in association with jets is a stringent test of perturbative QCD and is a background process in searches for new physics. Total and differential cross-section measurements of vector bosons produced in association with jets (and heavy flavour quarks) are presented. The data have been recorded with the CMS detector at the LHC and are compared to next-to(-next-to)-leading-order calculations and event simulations that devise matrix element calculations interfaced with parton showers.
Designing an intelligent low power residential PV-based Microgrid

In this work a bi-level (Supervisory-Local) PV-based Microgrid configuration is proposed for low power residential applications. In the supervisory level a long-term control scheme is assigned to define the set points for local controllers. The local level is mainly formed from a set of controllers which are basically responsible to control the power electronic interfaces and converters. Within the supervisory level a dynamic price scheduling framework with load and solar energy forecasting is implemented using time series-based regression technique. In the local level, adaptive double mode controllers are developed to realize intelligent inverters with smart grid-tied (GT) capabilities and smooth transition between GT and stand-alone modes. The effectiveness of the proposed architecture is examined using simulation in PSIM software. Next, hardware in the loop is implemented using the real time simulator OPAL-RT with DSP module as a controller for a board range of conditions and within different practical scenarios.
Hirschsprung’s Disease

Hirschsprung’s disease (HD), first described by Ruysch in 1691 and Hirschsprung in 1886, is a functional obstruction of the lower intestine due to lack of intrinsic enteric innervations, caused by failed migration of colonic ganglion cells during gestation. The absence of ganglion cells results in the failure of relaxation and non-transmission of peristalsis with dilatation of the intestinal tract upstream from the altered section. HD is also called colonic aganglionosis or congenital megacolon also if the last term should be abandoned because it refers to the effect, the enlarged intestine is the healthy section, while the pathological tract is the restricted one (Inserra et al. 1984). HD causes 15–20 % of neonatal bowel obstruction, varies in length but always extends proximally from the anal canal, and most commonly involves the rectosigmoid region of the colon (80 %) but can affect the entire colon and, rarely, the small intestine. Ultrashort segment disease, limited to the region of the internal sphincter, is very rare (Berrocal et al. 1999; Buonomo 1997; Kleinhaaus et al. 1979).
Bayesian probabilistic sensitivity analysis of Markov models for natural history of a disease: an application for cervical cancer

Background : parameter uncertainty in the Markov model’s description of a disease course was addressed. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA) is now considered the only tool that properly permits parameter uncertainty’s examination. This consists in sampling values from the parameter’s probability distributions. Methods : Markov models fitted with microsimulation were considered and methods for carrying out a PSA on transition probabilities were studied. Two Bayesian solutions were developed: for each row of the modeled transition matrix the prior distribution was assumed as a product of Beta or a Dirichlet. The two solutions differ in the source of information: several different sources for each transition in the Beta approach and a single source for each transition from a given health state in the Dirichlet. The two methods were applied to a simple cervical cancer’s model. Results : differences between posterior estimates from the two methods were negligible. Results showed that the prior variability highly influence the posterior distribution. Conclusions : the novelty of this work is the Bayesian approach that integrates the two distributions with a product of Binomial distributions likelihood. Such methods could be also applied to cohort data and their application to more complex models could be useful and unique in the cervical cancer context, as well as in other disease modeling.
Quantifying the particulate matter accumulation on leaf surfaces of urban plants in Beijing, China

Particulate matter is potentially harmful to human health but green tree species act as air filters to adhere these particulates. The elemental composition, number density, and size fractions of particles on leaf surfaces of 14 urban green from Xizhimen overpass and the Olympic Forest Park in Beijing, China were examined by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray energy dispersive spectrometry. Particles that accumulated on leaves were comprised mainly of C, O, Si, Ca, Fe, and Pb. The number density of particles was 50,961.5 mm−2, and 52.9% and 25% of the particles were submicron (<1 μm) and fine (<2.5 μm), respectively. The densities and size fractions of the particles deposited on the adaxial and abaxial side of leaves were significantly different, and 24% of the particles were deposited on the abaxial side of leaves. The densities of the particles in four size fractions differed significantly among the species at the two sampling sites. Salix matsudana, Euonymus japonicus, Magnolia denudate, Sophora japonica, Amygdalus persica, and Salix babylonica efficiently captured all particle sizes on their leaf surfaces. S. matsudana, E. japonicus, M. denudate, S. japonica, Fraxinus chinensis, and Ginkgo biloba efficiently captured submicron and fine particles, which can have serious effects on human health. These differences among species provide more insight into the sink capacity of green tree species, and the efficiencies of plant species for trapping particulates can be used to guide urban tree planning and decrease air pollution.
The Curricular Soundtrack: Designing Interdisciplinary Music Technology Degrees Through Cognitive Apprenticeship and Situated Learning

Twenty-first-century music technology now intersects many disciplines, including sound engineering, computing, interactive media, networked performance, composition, gaming, and the digital humanities. For colleges and universities thinking of offering new interdisciplinary music technology degrees, this landscape can be intimidating. What does “interdisciplinary” even mean? Students, faculty, and administrators all have different perspectives. So do educators in STEM, liberal and performing arts, and the humanities. Addressing such questions requires an inclusive culture that sees music and computing as complementary, forming a single discipline. Coming to an agreement on a list of technology and art competencies—a collaborative task many academic stakeholders are not used to—complicate the “degree identity” challenges. Once ascertained, that vision forms the basis of a new curricular model that shows how the program readies students to face employment. This chapter uses cognitive apprenticeship and situated learning as theoretical structures to establish and assess critical relationships between the music technology industry and higher education. It describes a holistic organization in which faculty, administration, and business partners adopt a common language to support the pedagogical mission of music technology programs in the twenty-first century. It reflects on theoretical aspects of decision-making that affect music technology pedagogy and curriculum. The chapter then offers suggestions on how to use a balanced approach in advancing theory, praxis, and collaboration between music technology and STEM-related disciplines in higher education.
Diagnosing Human-Induced Dynamic and Thermodynamic Drivers of Extreme Rainfall

AbstractFactors responsible for extreme monthly rainfall over Texas/Oklahoma during May 2015 are assessed. The event had a return period of at least 400 years, compared to the prior record which was roughly a 100-year event. The event challenges attribution science to disentangle factors because it occurred during a strong El Nino, a natural pattern of variability that affects the region’s springtime rains, and during the warmest global mean temperatures since 1880. Effects of each factor are diagnosed, as is the interplay between El Nino dynamics and human-induced climate change.Analysis of historical climate simulations reveals El Nino was a necessary condition for monthly rains to occur having the severity of May 2015. Our model results further reveal that a 2015 magnitude event, whether conditioned on El Nino or not, was made neither more intense nor more likely due to human-induced climate change over the past century.The intensity of extreme May rainfall over Texas/Oklahoma, analogous to the 2015 ev...
Influence of Air Impurities on the Performance of Nanostructured PEMFC Catalysts

This chapter provides an overview of proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) performance issues that stem from exposure to airborne pollutants. The PEMFCs must adapt to various functional environments and operate within well-established air quality thresholds in order to become commercially viable. Ambient air is the most convenient oxidant for PEMFCs; however, it may contain various contaminants that can cause significant performance loss in these energy conversion systems. The discussion focuses on the effects of organic and inorganic impurities on nanostructured electrocatalysts, such as Pt and novel material alternatives. This chapter compares different contamination mechanisms, electrochemically driven impurity evolution and transformation on catalyst nanoparticles, and the effects of these processes on the oxygen reduction reaction and PEMFCs’ subsequent performance. Finally, the chapter highlights possible PEMFC performance recovery and contaminant mitigation strategies. The discussion presents an overview of the experimental and computational approaches and efforts to reconcile observed performance with phenomenological modeling.
Defect dynamics and damage of cement-based materials, studied by electrical resistance measurement

Defect dynamics, as studied by DC electrical resistance measurement during repeated compression of cement paste, mortar and concrete in the elastic regime, are characterized by defect generation that dominates during the first loading, defect healing that dominates during subsequent loading, and defect aggravation that dominates during subsequent unloading. The interface between sand and cement, that between silica fume and cement, and that between coarse aggregate and mortar contribute to the defect dynamics, particularly the defect healing. Electrical resistance measurement is also effective for monitoring damage, which causes the resistance to increase. Defect generation results in an irreversible increase in the baseline resistance as stress cycling progresses, whereas defect healing results in a reversible decrease in the resistivity upon compression within a stress cycle. Defect generation is relatively significant in the early cycles and diminishes upon cycling. As the cumulative damage increases, the extent of defect healing within a cycle also increases.
Perspectives in neuropathology

During the meeting of the IVth International Congress in Munich on 4–8 September, the status of neuropathology around the world was reviewed by the International Committee of Neuropathology, consisting of the Vice Presidents from 46 nations, with ProfessorJacob (of Germany) the Secretary-General. The review indicated that neuropathology flourishes in relatively few world centres and that in numerous other geographical areas neuropathology exists merely as a diagnostic service or is, in other ways, subsidiary to clinical departments. In still other areas the neuropathologist belongs to no school, but, like a waif, has to plot his own course.
Input Sharing and Efficiency

In recent times competition has been most intense in the modern technology-intensive industries and R&D investment in knowledge capital has played a pivotal role. Increasingly this type of investment has been subject to inter-firm cost sharing. By pooling R&D resources the firms can exploit economies of scale due to higher scale and then share the productivity gains. Network investment is another area. As Lu (2001) has recently discussed that for many small and medium-size companies the network sharing of resources with similar needs has become critical to business success. Sharing R&D in the Internet economy has also become very common. Sharing communications through satellite systems by different carriers has also been a common phenomenon in the communications industry. In modem growth theory in macroeconomics Lucas (1993) and others have emphasized the scale economies at the industry level e.g., R&D investment and how it spreads through transmission of new knowledge across firms, which then enjoy productivity gains as external economies.
Positive Airway Pressure Therapy Is Challenging for Patients With Epilepsy

Study Objectives:To investigate whether patients with epilepsy and comorbid obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are more likely to be nonadherent to positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy than adults wit...
More than A1C: Types of success among adults with type-2 diabetes participating in a technology-enabled nurse coaching intervention.

Abstract Objective Success in diabetes research and self-management is often defined as a significant decrease in glycated hemoglobin (A1C). The aim of this article is to explore different types of successes experienced by adults with type-2 diabetes participating in a health technology and nurse coaching clinical trial. Methods A qualitative analysis was conducted using surveys and documentation from motivational interview-based coaching sessions between study nurses and intervention participants. Results Of the 132 cases reviewed, types of success predominantly fell into five categories: 1) change in health behaviors; 2) change in mindset or awareness; 3) change in engagement with healthcare resources; 4) change in physical or emotional health; and 5) change in health indicators. Conclusion Experiences of success in diabetes are more varied than traditional A1C-based outcome models. Our findings suggest coaching and technology can assist patients to achieve a range of successes in diabetes management through goal setting, health tracking, resolving barriers, and aligning goals with factors that impact change. Practice implications While A1C reduction is a critical factor in decreasing risk of diabetes-related complications, when healthcare professionals focus on A1C as the main indicator of diabetes management success, important changes in individuals’ health and well-being may be overlooked or undervalued.
Cyber Network Design for Secondary Frequency Regulation: A Spectral Approach

We present a preliminary theoretical framework based on spectral graph theory that captures how the cyber topology of a distributed secondary frequency control scheme impacts the stability, optimality, and transient performance of our power system as a cyber-physical network. We show that a collection of polynomials defined in terms of the cyber and physical Laplacian eigenvalues encode information on the interplay between cyber and physical networks. It is demonstrated that to understand the impact of adding cyber connectivity, one should separate the low-damping and high-damping regimes. Although adding cyber connectivity always improves the performance for high-damping systems, it is not the case for low-damping scenarios. Based on the theoretical study, we discuss how a good cyber network should be designed. Our empirical study shows that for practical systems, the number of communication channels that is needed to achieve near-optimal performance is usually less than twice the number of buses.
Understanding the Development of Leadership Complexity Through Latent Growth Modeling

Growth . . . change . . . development. These concepts are fundamental for much of the thinking and writing about leadership. However, little attention has been given to explicitly describing or explaining the leadership growth process. This is surprising because growth is endemic to life. All living organisms grow from birth through maturity. Humans even demonstrate cognitive gains and improvements well into adulthood and old age (Baltes, 1987). However, what is meant by the term growth? How is growth related to development? What is known about how to conceptualize and model growth? Furthermore, what is the relevance of growth and development to enhancing organizational leadership? These are key questions that this chapter will address. The overarching purpose is to expound on the concept of growth and to link it to the meaning, measurement, and modeling of leadership development. The chapter concludes with three speciﬁc examples of how sophisticated modeling efforts could be used to understand and evaluate the leader development process.