cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cardiac-resynchronization therapy for the prevention of heart-failure events.

During a 4.5-year period, we enrolled and followed 1820 patients with ischemic or nonischemic cardiomyopathy, an ejection fraction of 30% or less, a QRS duration of 130 msec or more, and New York Heart Association class I or II symptoms. Patients were randomly assigned in a 3:2 ratio to receive CRT plus an implantable cardioverter– defibrillator (ICD) (1089 patients) or an ICD alone (731 patients). The primary end point was death from any cause or a nonfatal heart-failure event (whichever came first). Heartfailure events were diagnosed by physicians who were aware of the treatment assignments, but they were adjudicated by a committee that was unaware of assignments. Results During an average follow-up of 2.4 years, the primary end point occurred in 187 of 1089 patients in the CRT–ICD group (17.2%) and 185 of 731 patients in the ICD-only group (25.3%) (hazard ratio in the CRT–ICD group, 0.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.52 to 0.84; P = 0.001). The benefit did not differ significantly between patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy and those with nonischemic cardiomyopathy. The superiority of CRT was driven by a 41% reduction in the risk of heart-failure events, a finding that was evident primarily in a prespecified subgroup of patients with a QRS duration of 150 msec or more. CRT was associated with a significant reduction in left ventricular volumes and improvement in the ejection fraction. There was no significant difference between the two groups in the overall risk of death, with a 3% annual mortality rate in each treatment group. Serious adverse events were infrequent in the two groups. Conclusions CRT combined with ICD decreased the risk of heart-failure events in relatively asymptomatic patients with a low ejection fraction and wide QRS complex. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00180271.)
Echocardiography in Pericardial Disease

Echocardiography is used extensively in the diagnosis and management of all forms of pericardial disease spanning from congenital anomalies of the pericardium to acute pericarditis, pericardial effusion, tamponade, constrictive pericarditis and pericardial tumors.
THE EFFECT OF LIGNIN CONTENT OF WOOD FIBERS ON PULP SCREENING/SEPARATION

An experimental investigation of the effect of lignin content of wood fibers on pulp screening is conducted. A non-uniform lignin distribution may exist in wood pulp due to variations in wood chip characteristics, and/or cooking conditions in a digester. Pulp screening was conducted in a modified Williams Freeness tester at different fiber lignin contents and pulp consistencies. The study indicated a large drop in pulp accepts fraction, thus a substantial fiber loss, with an increase in lignin content. The fiber loss was more significant at higher consistencies of pulp. This study suggests that the fiber lignin content should be considered an important process variable affecting the efficiency of pulp screening processes.
Gate-Length-Dependent Strain Effect in n- and p-Channel FinFETs

This brief reports the experimentally measured strain effect on electron and hole transport in (110)-oriented FinFETs. To separate out the series-resistance component, the low drain-bias resistance is differentiated with respect to the gate voltage. It is found that the hole mobility is enhanced while the electron mobility reduced toward short-channel devices. This effect is attributed to the gate-length-dependent strain in FinFET device structures.
Nonlinear observation over erasure channel

In this paper, we study the problem of state observation of nonlinear systems over an erasure channel. Stochastic notions of stability are adopted from ergodic theory of random dynamical systems for the analysis. We use stability with probability one and mean square exponential stability to analyze the stability property of observer error dynamics. The main results of this paper prove that there is no limitation for stabilization with probability one, however fundamental limitation arises for mean square exponential stabilization of the error dynamics. We provide necessary condition for the mean square exponential stability of the error dynamics, expressed in terms of the probability of channel erasure and the positive Lyapunov exponents of the system dynamics. Simulation results are presented to verify the main results of the paper.
State estimation of convective storms with a two-moment microphysics scheme and an ensemble Kalman filter: Experiments with simulated radar data

The ability of the ensemble Kalman filter method to estimate an increased number of state variables associated with a double-moment (DM) microphysics scheme is examined for the first time through observing system simulation experiments, assuming either a perfect or imperfect prediction model and/or observation operators. With the DM scheme, mixing ratios and total number concentrations of hydrometeor species are predicted. It is found that the increased number of state variables can be reasonably well estimated when both radial velocity (Vr) and reflectivity (ZH )o bservations are used and when the prediction model is assumed to be perfect. However, the errors increase significantly when ZH is used alone. In this case, the filter has difficulty in estimating independently-varying mixing ratios and number concentrations, which are both directly involved in the calculation of ZH. The addition of Vr data helps alleviate a problem associated with the solution not being sufficiently constrained by observations. With the DM scheme, the correlations between ZH and model state variables exhibit complex spatial structures that depend on the location of theZH observation. Collocated ZH and vertical velocity show negative correlation when the observation is taken where ice phase hydrometeors are dominant, but positive correlation when it is taken where large quantities of liquid hydrometeors exist. Further study is needed to fully understand the complex correlation structures. Imperfect model experiments were performed, with two types of model errors: (1) microphysical parametrization error due to incorrectly assumed shape parameter of the gamma particle size distribution (PSD), and (2) different ways of calculating hydrometeor scattering. The results show that the model error degrades the state estimation in general. Nevertheless, the estimated states are still reasonably good when both Vr and ZH are assimilated. Perturbing the shape parameter of gamma PSDs within the forecast ensemble improves the overall state estimation. Copyright c
Productivity, Marketing Efficiency, and Price-Support Programs: Alternative Paths to Rural Development in Liberia

W. PENN HANDWERKER s INCE 1950, as Liberian farmers have become increasingly enmeshed in a money economy selling food crops, their ability to supply the staple, rice, to growing urban populations has steadily diminished. Rice imports rose from about 2,000 metric tons in 1948, to 27,000 metric tons in 1960, to an average of about 45,000 metric tons from 1970 through 1974 (see Figure 1). The most frequently cited policy solution to such problems is to make the crop more profitable by increasing its price. The Liberian case suggests that governmentsponsored price-support programs are shortsighted solutions which often defeat the central purpose of economic development, namely enabling people to enjoy increased material standards of living. The Liberian case is not-as one might first suspect (McLoughlin 1970:35)-another instance in which a rising percentage of a declining total product is being sold, accompanied by declining standards of living. On the contrary, after an initial decade or so of classic growth-without-development (Clower et al. 1966), rural living standards in Liberia generally have risen, and there have been regular increases in the volume of food moving from individual farms into market channels.
Intermediate Adjunction with A-Movement

Contrairement a ce qui est generalement accepte, l'A. presente un argument empirique en faveur de l'idee selon laquelle le mouvement vers une position argumentale peut aussi avoir lieu a travers une position intermediaire adjointe au vP
Robustness, Discordance, and Relevance

Robustness is a common platitude: hypotheses are better supported with evidence generated by multiple techniques that rely on different background assumptions. Robustness has been put to numerous epistemic tasks, including the demarcation of artifacts from real entities, countering the “experimenter’s regress,” and resolving evidential discordance. Despite the frequency of appeals to robustness, the notion itself has received scant critique. Arguments based on robustness can give incorrect conclusions. More worrying is that although robustness may be valuable in ideal evidential circumstances (i.e., when evidence is concordant), often when a variety of evidence is available from multiple techniques, the evidence is discordant.
Book Review: Right v. Might: International Law and the Use of Force

This review, reflecting the then youthful skepticism of the reviewer, expressed reservations about the extent to which international law does, can, and should constrain the use of force. The review also contains some incredibly wrongheaded predictions, about, for example, the longevity of the Soviet Union
Metabolic Flux Distribution during Defatting of Steatotic Human Hepatoma (HepG2) Cells

Methods that rapidly decrease fat in steatotic hepatocytes may be helpful to recover severely fatty livers for transplantation. Defatting kinetics are highly dependent upon the extracellular medium composition; however, the pathways involved are poorly understood. Steatosis was induced in human hepatoma cells (HepG2) by exposure to high levels of free fatty acids, followed by defatting using plain medium containing no fatty acids, or medium supplemented with a cocktail of defatting agents previously described before. We measured the levels of 28 extracellular metabolites and intracellular triglyceride, and fed the data into a steady-state mass balance model to estimate strictly intracellular fluxes. We found that during defatting, triglyceride content decreased, while beta-oxidation, the tricarboxylic acid cycle, and the urea cycle increased. These fluxes were augmented by defatting agents, and even more so by hyperoxic conditions. In all defatting conditions, the rate of extracellular glucose uptake/release was very small compared to the internal supply from glycogenolysis, and glycolysis remained highly active. Thus, in steatotic HepG2 cells, glycolysis and fatty acid oxidation may co-exist. Together, these pathways generate reducing equivalents that are supplied to mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation.
Amplitude and Phase Shaping of Ultrafast Laser Pulses with a Single High-Resolution Linear Liquid Crystal Array

A single liquid-crystal array, whose pixel pitch over-samples the spatial resolution of a pulse shaper, is used to simultaneously shape the spectral amplitude and phase of ultrashort laser pulses. A sinusoidal grating controls spectral amplitude.
Defect Equilibration and Stabilization in Two Types of Low-Spin-Density a-Si:H

Relaxation data provide evidence that thermally generated defects with spin observed in thick, undoped hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) films can be stabilized with alternate structural configurations. Some quenched-in metastable spins, equilibrating further at a lower temperature, relax and become more resistant to annealing. Some of these defects take longer to anneal than any of the defects equilibrated only at the higher temperature. An obvious crossing of annealing data curves occurs on one of two differently prepared films. Crossover has important physical implications in deciding between defect models. Such an observation necessitates the use of defect models with more complexity than variations based on two-level energy-configuration coordinate diagrams. Long annealing times may not be controlled simply by high energy barriers; the annealing of a spin may require many dispersive steps with smaller energy barriers. Models that stablize a spin by either hierarchically constrained defect configurations or the trapping of a mobile hydrogen in a distribution of sites can be used to explain this result. The fact that crossover is more obvious on the sample that has an oriented microstructure implicates film structure.
Complex Dynamics of Carbon Nanotube Probe Tips

Carbon nanotube (CNT) tips in tapping mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) enable very high-resolution imaging, measurements, and manipulation at the nanoscale. We present recent results based on experimental analysis that yield new insights into the dynamics of CNT probe tips in tapping mode AFM. Experimental measurements are presented of the static response, the frequency response and dynamic amplitude-distance data of a high-aspect-ratio multi-walled (MW) CNT tip to demonstrate the nonlinear features including tip amplitude saturation preceding the dynamic buckling of the MWCNT. The differences between the nonlinear tapping mode response of CNT tips are compared with previously known results on the nonlinear response of conventional tips. Surface scanning is performed using a MWCNT tip on a SiO2 grating to verify the imaging instabilities associated with MWCNT buckling when used with normal control schemes in the tapping mode. Lastly, the choice of optimal setpoints for tapping mode control using CNT tip are discussed using the experimental results.© 2003 ASME
Analysis of surveillance data on flies in Zhangye city in 2006-2010

Objective To grasp the population distribution,ecology habit and seasonal fluctuation of flies in Zhangye city,and provide scientific basis for controlling flies.Methods Using cone traps.Results In 2006-2010,totally 2 323 flies were captured which belonged to 13 species,9 genera and 3 families.The total average density was 3.87 pieces per cage.The density was the highest in 2006 which was 5.22 pieces per cage.The second density was in 2009 which was 4.59 picecs per cage.The lowest density was in 2008 which was 2.90 pieces per cage.In 2007 and 2010,the density were 3.50 and 3.15 pieces per cage respectively.The dominant species was Musca domestica.Conclusion The flies density and population are different according to the different season and habitat.Temperature,breeding environment,prevention and control measures are the main influencing factors.It is necessary to take environmental management primarily,chemical counter-measures as the auxiliary prevention measures before early breeding peak occurs,so that control of infectious disease and popular purpose can be achieved.
Kidney syndrome hemorrhagic fever epidemiology and prevention strategy study status

Kidney syndrome hemorrhagic fever is a severe threat to the epidemic area of the people's life and health.With the progress of science and technology,the development of economy,the improvement of cultural quality of the broad masses of the people,as well as the improvement of living standards,health care consciousness enhancement,kidney syndrome hemorrhagic fever disease will be effectively controlled.
Joint Effects: A Pilot Investigation of the Impact of Bipolar Disorder and Marijuana Use on Cognitive Function and Mood

Marijuana is the most widely used illicit substance in those diagnosed with bipolar I disorder. However, there is conflicting evidence as to whether marijuana may alleviate or exacerbate mood symptomatology. As bipolar disorder and marijuana use are individually associated with cognitive impairment, it also remains unclear whether there is an additive effect on cognition when bipolar patients use marijuana. The current study aimed to determine the impact of marijuana on mood in bipolar patients and to examine whether marijuana confers an additional negative impact on cognitive function. Twelve patients with bipolar disorder who smoke marijuana (MJBP), 18 bipolar patients who do not smoke (BP), 23 marijuana smokers without other Axis 1 pathology (MJ), and 21 healthy controls (HC) completed a neuropsychological battery. Further, using ecological momentary assessment, participants rated their mood three times daily as well as after each instance of marijuana use over a four-week period. Results revealed that although the MJ, BP, and MJBP groups each exhibited some degree of cognitive impairment relative to HCs, no significant differences between the BP and MJBP groups were apparent, providing no evidence of an additive negative impact of BPD and MJ use on cognition. Additionally, ecological momentary assessment analyses indicated alleviation of mood symptoms in the MJBP group after marijuana use; MJBP participants experienced a substantial decrease in a composite measure of mood symptoms. Findings suggest that for some bipolar patients, marijuana may result in partial alleviation of clinical symptoms. Moreover, this improvement is not at the expense of additional cognitive impairment.
The SLE in its Historical Context

In the preceding Chapters, numerous doctrines and passages of the SLE were viewed in historical context. On that basis, the SLE was characterized as Aquinas’s statement of what he believed to be the correct moral philosophy that might be legitimately proposed in a commentary on Aristotle’s Ethics. However, the discussions permitting that conclusion, of their nature, militated against seeing in its historical setting the SLE’s moral philosophy as a whole. The present Chapter offers a partial remedy for that situation by proposing in outline form the orderly development of the doctrine offered by Aquinas as he moves through the ten books of his commentary.
Genome-wide association study of prolactin levels in blood plasma and cerebrospinal fluid.

Prolactin is a polypeptide hormone secreted by the anterior pituitary gland that plays an essential role in lactation, tissue growth, and suppressing apoptosis to increase cell survival. Prolactin serves as a key player in many life-critical processes, including immune system and reproduction. Prolactin is also found in multiple fluids throughout the body, including plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). In this study, we measured prolactin levels in both plasma and CSF, and performed a genome-wide association study. We then performed meta-analyses using METAL with a significance threshold of p < 5 × 10−8 and removed SNPs where the direction of the effect was different between the two datasets. We identified 12 SNPs associated with increased prolactin levels in both biological fluids. Our efforts will help researchers understand how prolactin is regulated in both CSF and plasma, which could be beneficial in research for the immune system and reproduction.
Lipid modifications of proteins

Publisher Summary Lipid modifications of proteins are widespread and functionally important in eukaryotic cells. Intracellular proteins such as the signal-transducing heterotrimeric GTP-binding proteins (G proteins) and the Ras superfamily of G proteins are modified by 14- or 16-carbon fatty acids and/or 15- or 20-carbon isoprenoids. Numerous cell surface glycoproteins such as acetylcholinesterase and the folate receptor are modified at their C-terminus by a structurally complex glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor. Even some secreted protein ligands are lipid modified: the morphogen Hedgehog has a covalently attached cholesterol moiety at its C-terminus and an amide-linked C16 fatty acid at its N-terminus. In most cases, the lipid moiety is crucial to protein function as it can regulate the interaction of an otherwise water-soluble protein with membranes. In some instances, the covalent lipid acts as a functional switch resulting in membrane association of certain protein conformations but not of others. The lipid moiety also aids in the sorting of the protein to membrane domains that promote lateral and transbilayer protein-protein interactions that are critical for cell function.
A regret-based autonomy allocation scheme for human-robot shared vision systems in collaborative assembly in manufacturing

In human-robot collaboration (HRC) for assembly, a robot needs to use its onboard vision systems to perform many sensing tasks. The robot's observations may not be always reliable due to erroneous sensing caused by limitations of the detection systems and disturbances. Hence, additional observations made by the robot or the human co-worker seem to be necessary. However, too much human involvement may increase human workload. Hence, allocation of autonomy through switching between autonomous and manual sensing (observation) modes seems to be reasonable. Bayesian sequential decision-making may be an approach to determine the optimal allocation of these modes in the presence of sensing uncertainties. However, optimal decision-making approaches such as the Bayesian approach may not necessarily fit with human's decision style. It has been shown that human regret plays a critical role in decision-making under uncertainty. It is rational for humans to make suboptimal choices to avoid regret. In this paper, we include human regret analysis in Bayesian decision-making in the automated allocation of sensing modes for detection of right assembly parts. We evaluate this approach in a human-robot collaborative assembly task. The experimental results show that regret-based human-like suboptimal allocation of autonomous and manual sensing modes improves human-robot interaction and assembly performance.
Myocardial fibrosis in asymptomatic degenerative mitral regurgitation: what does T1 mapping tell us?

Degenerative mitral regurgitation (MR), defined as that because of mitral prolapse or flail on the basis of underlying myxomatous disease or fibroelastic deficiency, is common. There is consensus that intervention is appropriate in the setting of symptoms and impaired left ventricular (LV) systolic function as gauged by LV ejection fraction (LVEF) or LV end-systolic volume, and these carry class I recommendations in the current American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association and European Society of Cardiology Guidelines.1,2 There is also support for intervening in the asymptomatic patient with atrial fibrillation or pulmonary hypertension (class II).1,2 However, in the absence of randomized control trials, there is ongoing debate as to the best approach to the management of the patient who meets none of these triggers. Those who advocate close medical follow-up with the use of stress testing to confirm the asymptomatic state until triggers develop (watchful waiting) argue that accurate identification of patients with truly severe degenerative MR can be challenging and that, even in those with unequivocally severe regurgitation, the short- and long-term risks of surgery are not outweighed by the risks of waiting until triggers develop.3 Those who favor prophylactic surgical intervention argue that for patients likely to undergo successful repair, waiting puts them at risk for poorer longer term outcomes.4 Article see p 946 In an environment where the limitations of LVEF as a measure of systolic function are well recognized, new tools for identifying subclinical abnormalities that might be precursors to overt LVEF reduction or symptoms might prove valuable in clinical decision making. Better still would be a means of reliably identifying the onset of irreversible LV changes of which fibrosis is arguably one. In this issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging , Edwards et al5 report a study in …
Prescribing of Clozapine and Antipsychotic Polypharmacy for Schizophrenia in a Large Medicaid Program

Objective:Underuse of clozapine and overuse of antipsychotic polypharmacy are both indicators of poor quality of care. This study examined variation in prescribing clozapine and antipsychotic polypharmacy across providers, as well as factors associated with these practices.Methods:Using 2010–2012 Pennsylvania Medicaid data, prescribers were identified if they wrote antipsychotic prescriptions for ten or more nonelderly adult patients with schizophrenia annually. Generalized linear mixed models with a binomial distribution and a logit link were used to examine prescriber-level annual percentages of patients with clozapine use and with long-term (≥90 days) antipsychotic polypharmacy and associated characteristics of prescribers’ patient caseloads, prescriber characteristics, and Medicaid payer (fee-for-service versus managed care plans).Results:The study cohort included 645 prescribers in 2010, 632 in 2011, and 650 in 2012. In 2012, the mean prescriber-level annual percentage of patients with any clozapine ...
Hear My Sad Story: The True Tales that Inspired Stagolee, John Henry, and Other Traditional American Folk Songs: Polenberg, Richard, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press 304 pp., $26.00 ISBN 978-1-5017-0002-6 Publication Date: November 2015

In Hear My Sad Story, veteran Cornell historian Richard Polenberg explores the stories behind specific American folk songs, contextualizing their introduction into commercial recording in the early...
High-efficiency high-power-density 380V/12V DC/DC converter with a novel matrix transformer

Isolated high output current DC/DC converters are critical for future data center power architecture. LLC converters with matrix transformer are suitable for these applications due to its high efficiency and high power density. Different matrix transformer structures are investigated. Flux cancellation can be utilized to reduce core size and loss. Synchronous rectifiers and output capacitors can be integrated into the secondary windings to minimize leakage and termination loss. To further improve the current design practice, several efforts have been made and a detailed design procedure is provided in this paper. A novel matrix transformer structure is proposed to integrate four elemental transformers into one magnetic core with simple four-layer PCB windings, fully utilize the available PCB copper and space, and further reduce core loss. The proposed matrix transformer is superior to the state-of-art, due to the much reduced core loss, integrated magnetics and simple four-layer PCB winding. With the proposed matrix transformer, LLC converter can achieve both high efficiency and high power density by operating at MHz. A 1MHz 380V/12V 800W LLC converter with GaN devices is demonstrated. The prototype can fit into the quarter-brick footprint and achieves a peak efficiency of 97.6% and a power density of 900W/inch3.
A clinicopathological approach to the diagnosis of dementia

The most definitive classification systems for dementia are based on the underlying pathology which, in turn, is categorized largely according to the observed accumulation of abnormal protein aggregates in neurons and glia. These aggregates perturb molecular processes, cellular functions and, ultimately, cell survival, with ensuing disruption of large-scale neural networks subserving cognitive, behavioural and sensorimotor functions. The functional domains affected and the evolution of deficits in these domains over time serve as footprints that the clinician can trace back with various levels of certainty to the underlying neuropathology. The process of phenotyping and syndromic classification has substantially improved over decades of careful clinicopathological correlation, and through the discovery of in vivo biomarkers of disease. Here, we present an overview of the salient features of the most common dementia subtypes - Alzheimer disease, vascular dementia, frontotemporal dementia and related syndromes, Lewy body dementias, and prion diseases - with an emphasis on neuropathology, relevant epidemiology, risk factors, and signature signs and symptoms.
Potent competitive inhibition of human ribonucleotide reductase by a nonnucleoside small molecule.

Human ribonucleotide reductase (hRR) is crucial for DNA replication and maintenance of a balanced dNTP pool, and is an established cancer target. Nucleoside analogs such as gemcitabine diphosphate and clofarabine nucleotides target the large subunit (hRRM1) of hRR. These drugs have a poor therapeutic index due to toxicity caused by additional effects, including DNA chain termination. The discovery of nonnucleoside, reversible, small-molecule inhibitors with greater specificity against hRRM1 is a key step in the development of more effective treatments for cancer. Here, we report the identification and characterization of a unique nonnucleoside small-molecule hRR inhibitor, naphthyl salicylic acyl hydrazone (NSAH), using virtual screening, binding affinity, inhibition, and cell toxicity assays. NSAH binds to hRRM1 with an apparent dissociation constant of 37 µM, and steady-state kinetics reveal a competitive mode of inhibition. A 2.66-A resolution crystal structure of NSAH in complex with hRRM1 demonstrates that NSAH functions by binding at the catalytic site (C-site) where it makes both common and unique contacts with the enzyme compared with NDP substrates. Importantly, the IC50 for NSAH is within twofold of gemcitabine for growth inhibition of multiple cancer cell lines, while demonstrating little cytotoxicity against normal mobilized peripheral blood progenitor cells. NSAH depresses dGTP and dATP levels in the dNTP pool causing S-phase arrest, providing evidence for RR inhibition in cells. This report of a nonnucleoside reversible inhibitor binding at the catalytic site of hRRM1 provides a starting point for the design of a unique class of hRR inhibitors.
Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide Transport

The transport of O 2 as dissolved O 2 is small because the solubility of O 2 is small. Most O 2 is bound to hemoglobin. The oxygen saturation curve is shown, along with the Hill equation to fit the data to an equation. Oxygen binds to hemoglobin in the lungs, nearly saturating it, and desorbs in the tissue but only partially deoxygenating the blood. Oxygen delivery to the tissues is calculated as the cardiac output times the arteriovenous difference in total oxygen content of the blood. The oxygen consumption calculated from the respiratory rate times the difference in oxygen content of inspired and expired air match. The oxygen gradients to the tissues are discussed. Temperature, decreased pH, increased P CO 2 P CO 2 P CO 2 P CO 2 , and increased 2,3-diphosphoglycerate all shift the O 2 saturation curve to the right. CO 2 is carried as dissolved CO 2 (10%), HCO 3 − (85%), and as carbaminohemoglobin (5%).
Student Independent Investigations for Authentic Learning.

Including opportunities for students to conduct independent investigations is a mainstay of gifted education programs and services. When carefully designed and skillfully facilitated, students’ int...
WHITE BLOOD CELL COUNT TO PLATELET RATIO: A NOVEL BIOMARKER FOR PREDICTING OUTCOMES IN PATIENTS ON CIRCULATORY SUPPORT DEVICES

White Blood Cell (WBC) count is a marker of systemic inflammation and increased numbers are found to be associated with overall increased cardiovascular risk. Increased platelet reactivity is also seen in systemic inflammation. In this study, we aimed to determine whether WBC to platelet count ratio
Action and Reaction: The Impact of Consequences of Intervening in Situations of Interpersonal Violence.

Previous research has examined barriers to helping in situations involving interpersonal violence, though little has investigated the outcomes of interventions that actually do take place. The purp...
Malignant ovarian neoplasms: With a report of the end-results in a series of 93 cases

Abstract The present study is a brief review of all cases of malignant disease of the ovary which have been observed in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. From a former survey 1 of the Hospital records it was found that ovarian neoplasms constituted 7.7 per cent of all gynecologic lesions. Fourteen per cent of all newgrowths of the ovary were malignant. Clinical and pathologic records of 125 patients, operated upon in the Department form the basis for the study. These are supplemented by records of 28 tumors removed at other clinics, which were sent to the Departmental laboratory for diagnosis. The results of the treatment of 93 patients, traced for three years or longer, are recorded.
Production of metal-organic framework-bearing polystyrene fibers by solution blow spinning

Abstract Solution blow spinning (SBS) is examined in this work as a platform method for creating MOF-bearing fiber composites for application in separations and catalysis. Composite fibers were produced from MOF suspensions in polymer solutions and examined for both MOF stability and accessibility. The composites were found to have more MOF accessibility than bulk polymers, but adsorption was hindered by the formation of a glassy polymer skin. The fibers were found to have better accessibility to water vapor and carbon dioxide at room temperature compared to nitrogen adsorption at 77 K, suggesting that they may be applicable for gases that have high permeability in the polymer. MOF-polymer fibers produced by SBS provide an interesting platform for delivery of different MOFs to target a variety of applications, particularly those requiring scale-up or in-situ production. Ultimately, this system combines a low-hazard, low-cost polymer and a highly stable MOF to enable a systematic evaluation of the effects of the process on the accessibility of active materials. Going forward, an examination of a broader set of polymers and MOFs is necessary to further characterize and optimize this method and to create and refine synergy between the MOF and the polymer.
Health systems performance in managing tuberculosis: analysis of tuberculosis care cascades among high-burden and non-high-burden countries.

Background Tuberculosis (TB) is a major global health burden, which has been inadequately addressed. This study aims to analyze different patterns and gaps of care along the care cascade across countries and to develop a model to examine the relationship between performance of tuberculosis programmes in high and low burden countries along the tuberculosis care cascade and tuberculosis disease burden. Methods We used the World Health Organization's Global TB Database for the year 2016 to construct tuberculosis care cascade consisting of four steps: incidence, diagnosed, treatment started and treatment completed. Based on the constructed care cascades, we analyzed the relationship between health system performance indicators and tuberculosis cascades performance: diagnosed rate, treatment started rate, and treatment completed rate. Results There are wide differences in access to diagnosis and treatment between high-burden countries and non-high-burden countries. The largest gap was found between incidence and diagnosed rate, with 65% of diagnosed rate for high burden countries and 80% of diagnosed rate for non-high burden countries. We found variations in care performance among high-burden countries. We found a negative relationship between the population health indicators related to the mortality rate and TB care cascade performance. There was a positive relationship between immunization coverage rate and antenatal care indicators and TB care cascade performance. Conclusions Well-functioning tuberculosis care cascades and effective health systems are important for the successful management of tuberculosis. While improving screening performance is essential for tuberculosis control especially for high-burden countries, resource should be allocated to improve health system performance, which is weak in high-burden countries. Performance of TB programmes across care cascade could be used as a useful tracer to measure performance of health systems.
Incidence of bacteriuria at presentation and resulting from urinary catheterization in feline urethral obstruction

Objective To determine the incidence of bacteriuria at the time of presentation and as a result of indwelling urethral catheterization in naturally occurring feline urethral obstruction (UO). Design Prospective observational study. Setting University teaching hospital. Animals A population of 34 male cats with UO admitted for standard medical care. Interventions A presenting urine sample was obtained by cystocentesis (precatheterization). After catheterization (performed under strict aseptic technique), a urine sample was obtained through the urinary catheter every 24 hours, as well as just prior to catheter removal. Urine was applied to culture media within 30 minutes of collection or refrigerated immediately at 4°C for subsequent culture the following morning. Samples positive for growth (defined as > 104 colony forming units/mL) had bacterial identification and susceptibility testing performed. Measurements and main results All 34 cats enrolled had initial culture performed. Of these, 1 patient died and 2 were euthanized within 24 hours and therefore subsequent cultures were obtained. The remaining 31 cats had median catheterization time of 42 hours (range 20-110 hours). No urine cultures yielded growth at presentation (0/34). A total of 4 of 31 patients (13%) subsequently had bacterial cultures that yielded growth. In these cases, all yielded growth by the 24-hour time point, and all had the same organism identified on subsequent cultures. Identified bacteria included Streptococcus spp. (3) and Pasteurella spp. (1). Conclusions The male cats with UO in this study did not have bacteriuria at the time of presentation. The overall incidence of acquired bacteriuria was found to be 13% and could represent a transient bacterial population or true bacterial urinary tract infection. Based on these findings, empirical administration of antibiotics is not warranted in male cats with UO.
Discussion of Memory During Primary Care Visits of Older Adults with Cognitive Impairment and Accompanying Family

OBJECTIVES Cognitive impairment is underdiagnosed in primary care. Understanding factors that precipitate memory-related discussion could inform strategies to improve diagnosis and counseling. We assessed whether: 1) having a cognitive impairment or dementia diagnosis, 2) ratings of cognition by clinicians, or 3) ratings of cognition by family companions were associated with memory-related discussion during primary care visits. METHODS We examined audio-recorded primary care visits of cognitively impaired patients aged 65 years and older, family companions (n = 93 dyads), and clinicians (n = 14). Cognitive impairment and dementia diagnoses were extracted from the electronic health record. Clinicians and family rated patient cognition on a 10-point scale in postvisit surveys. We measured memory-related discussion using a ratio of memory-related discussion episodes to total visit statements. RESULTS We observed more memory-related discussion during primary care visits of patients with a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (+7.8% episodes; P < .001) or dementia (+26.3% episodes; P < .001) than no diagnosis. Clinician and family ratings of cognition varied by diagnosis: among patients with no diagnosis, family rated worse impairment than clinicians (average: 2.4 versus 1.3; P = .004) while for patients with a dementia diagnosis, clinicians rated worse impairment than family (average: 7.1 versus 5.5; P = .006). Each unit increase in clinician-rated severity of cognitive impairment was associated with more memory-related discussion (+2.6% episodes; P < .001); this association was attenuated for family (+0.7% episodes; P = .095). CONCLUSIONS Discussion of cognitive impairment appears largely driven by clinician ratings of cognition and presence of an established diagnosis. Findings suggest potential benefit of engaging family to improve cognitive impairment detection in primary care.
Energy Expenditure and Protein Requirements Following Burn Injury

Severe burn injuries have long been known to have a profound effect on metabolic equilibrium that can persist after resolution of the cutaneous injuries. Following burn injury, metabolism is a dynamic state resulting in the need for frequent interval reassessment over the course of the care continuum. The acute phase of injury transitions to chronic alterations in macronutrient utilization characterized by futile energy cycling and disproportionate catabolism of skeletal muscle. Protein supplementation appears to be preferentially distributed to the burn wound rather than the skeletal muscle pool. Accurate assessment of caloric and protein requirements is extremely difficult in these patients but is an essential step in efforts to attenuate functional impairment. Indirect calorimetry should be utilized to determine caloric requirements, but trophic feeding strategies are preferred in the initial resuscitative phase to prevent overfeeding while maintaining enteric and immune function. Controversy persists regarding optimal protein targets, and weight-based estimates remain the norm. Exogenous protein and caloric provision performed in isolation is insufficient to optimize outcomes and should be incorporated within a multidisciplinary approach to include muscle loading and pharmaceutical adjuncts.
Anthropomorphizing AlphaGo: a content analysis of the framing of Google DeepMind’s AlphaGo in the Chinese and American press

This article conducts a mixed-method content analysis of Chinese and American news media coverage of Google DeepMind’s Go playing computer program, AlphaGo. Drawing on humanistic approaches to artificial intelligence, combined with an empirically rigorous content analysis, it examines the differences and overlap in coverage by the Chinese and American press in their accounts of AlphaGo, and its historic match with Korea’s Lee Sedol in March, 2016. The event was not only followed intensely in China, but also made the front page of The New York Times. This article finds that the Chinese press was more likely than the American press to frame AlphaGo as non-threatening, which the authors attribute to cultural differences and the two countries' different understandings of Go. In addition to quantitatively identifying similarities and differences in the framing of AlphaGo, this paper also investigates the underlying and evolving contestations over what constitutes the “human” and the “machine.” It concludes by discussing the implications of the study’s findings as well as outlining avenues for further research.
Improved photometric redshifts with colour-constrained galaxy templates for future wide-area surveys

Cosmology and galaxy evolution studies with LSST, Euclid, and WFIRST, will require accurate redshifts for the detected galaxies. In this study, we present improved photometric redshift estimates for galaxies using a template library that populates three-color space and is constrained by HST/CANDELS photometry. For the training sample, we use a sample of galaxies which have median photometric redshifts derived by combining the results of different redshift-fitting codes. It allows us to train on a large, unbiased galaxy sample having deep, unconfused photometry at optical-to-mid infrared wavelengths. Galaxies in the training sample are assigned to cubes in three-dimensional color space, V-H, I-J, and z-H. We then derive the best-fit spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of the training sample at the fixed CANDELS median photometric redshifts to construct the new template library for each individual color cube (i.e. color-cube-based template library). We derive photometric redshifts (photo-z) of our target galaxies in the GOODS-S and -N fields using our new color-cube-based template library. We find that our method yields σ_(NMAD) of 0.026 and an outlier fraction of 6% using only photometry in the LSST and Euclid/WFIRST bands. This is an improvement of 10% on σ_(NMAD) and a reduction in outlier fraction of 13% compared to other techniques. In particular, we improve the photo-z precision by about 30% at 2 < z < 3. We also assess photo-z improvements by including K or mid-infrared bands to the ugrizY JH photometry. Our color-cube-based template library is a powerful tool to constrain photometric redshifts for future large surveys.
Spontaneous Perforation of Anterior Choroidal Artery with Resultant Pseudoaneurysm Formation: Unusual Cause of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

Background Subarachnoid hemorrhage resulting from spontaneous perforation of a small intracranial vessel, with resultant pseudoaneurysm formation, has not been widely reported in the literature. Case Description We present the case of a 71-year-old patient with rupture of a small aneurysm of a duplicated left anterior choroidal artery causing an acute third nerve palsy. The aneurysm was not able to be treated endovascularly without sacrifice of the parent vessel. At surgery, a pseudoaneurysm was seen completely separate from the parent vessel, which was actively bleeding through a hole in the vessel. The pseudoaneurysm was indenting the oculomotor nerve. After confirmation of adequate collateral flow, the abnormal segment of vessel was trapped and the pseudoaneurysm removed with surrounding clot. The patient's cranial nerve palsy resolved. Conclusions This case illustrates an unusual sequela of subarachnoid hemorrhage presenting a unique challenge in surgical management.
Enhanced degradation of organic contaminants using catalytic activity of carbonaceous structures: A strategy for the reuse of exhausted sorbents

Generation of hydroxyl radicals (⋅OH) is the basis of advanced oxidation process (AOP). This study investigates the catalytic activity of microporous carbonaceous structure for in-situ generation of ⋅OH radicals. Biochar (BC) was selected as a representative of carbon materials with a graphitic structure. The work aims at assessing the impact of BC structure on the activation of H2O2, the reinforcement of the persistent free radicals (PFRs) in BC using heavy metal complexes, and the subsequent AOP. Accordingly, three different biochars (raw, chemically- and physiochemically-activated BCs) were used for adsorption of two metal ions (nickel and lead) and the degradation of phenol (100 mg/L) through AOP. The results demonstrated four outcomes: (1) The structure of carbon material, the identity and the quantity of the metal complexes in the structure play the key roles in the AOP process. (2) the quantity of PFRs on BC significantly increased (by 200%) with structural activation and metal loading. (3) Though the Pb-loaded BC contained a larger quantity of PFRs, Ni-loaded BC exhibited a higher catalytic activity. (4) The degradation efficiency values for phenol by modified biochar in the presence of H2O2 was 80.3%, while the removal efficiency was found to be 17% and 22% in the two control tests, with H2O2 (no BC) and with BC (no H2O2), respectively. Overall, the work proposes a new approach for dual applications of carbonaceous structures; adsorption of metal ions and treatment of organic contaminants through in-situ chemical oxidation (ISCO).