cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Religiosity among Igbo people

The religiosity among Igbo people is presented across the analysis of the Chinua Achebe’s novel No longer at Ease. This novel relates a contemporary story lived in Lagos, capital of Nigeria. Sometimes the action is developed in as Igbo Village in Eastern Nigeria, Umuafia the homeland of the protagonist of the novel, Obi OKONKWO. This novel presents the dramatic love story between Obi, an Igbo born free, belonging to the social stratum Diala, and a Women, Clara, nom Dialan born free is considered a taboo. This story shows the troubles the protagonist has to face when he love with a woman from a different religion related to a social stratum stigmatized.
Membrane Distribution of the Pseudomonas Quinolone Signal Modulates Outer Membrane Vesicle Production in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

ABSTRACT The Pseudomonas quinolone signal (PQS) is an important quorum-sensing molecule in Pseudomonas aeruginosa that also mediates its own packaging and transport by stimulating outer membrane vesicle (OMV) formation. Because OMVs have been implicated in many virulence-associated behaviors, it is critical that we understand how they are formed. Our group proposed the bilayer-couple model for OMV biogenesis, where PQS intercalates into the outer membrane, causing expansion of the outer leaflet and consequently inducing curvature. In accordance with the model, we hypothesized that PQS must be transported from the cytoplasm to the outer membrane before it can initiate OMV formation. We initially examined two laboratory strains of P. aeruginosa and found significant strain-dependent differences. PQS export correlated strongly with OMV production, even though equivalent amounts of total PQS were produced by both strains. Interestingly, we discovered that poor OMV producers sequestered the majority of PQS in the inner membrane, which appeared to be the result of early saturation of the export pathway. Further analysis showed that strain-specific PQS export and OMV biogenesis patterns were stable once established but could be significantly altered by changing the growth medium. Finally, we demonstrated that the associations described for laboratory strains also held for three clinical strains. These results suggest that factors controlling the export of PQS dictate OMV biogenesis. This work provides new insight into PQS-controlled virulence in P. aeruginosa and provides important tools to further study signal export and OMV biogenesis. IMPORTANCE Bacterial secretion has been recognized as an essential facet of microbial pathogenesis and human disease. Numerous virulence factors have been found to be transported within outer membrane vesicles (OMVs), and delivery using these biological nanoparticles often results in increased potency. OMV biogenesis is an important but poorly understood process that is ubiquitous among Gram-negative organisms. Our group seeks to understand the biochemical mechanisms behind the formation of OMVs and has developed a model of small-molecule-induced membrane curvature as an important driver of this process. With this work, we demonstrate that PQS, a known small-molecule OMV inducer, must be exported to promote OMV biogenesis in both lab-adapted and clinical strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In supporting and expanding the bilayer-couple model of OMV biogenesis, the current work lays the groundwork for studying environmental and genetic factors that modulate OMV production and, consequently, the packaging and delivery of many bacterial factors.
Aging and Human Rights: a Rights-Based Approach to Social Work with Older Adults

The world is aging, and this demographic shift necessitates social workers with gerontological knowledge and expertise. The physiological, social and economic changes that commonly impact older adults and frequently contribute to dependency make them vulnerable to having their human rights violated. By focusing on needs rather than rights, the human dignity, security, and autonomy of the individual can be easily ignored. Social workers involved at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels can play key roles in ensuring that private problems are perceived as public issues and that rights are recognized. This paper focuses on policies and practice in the USA impacting older adults and the ways in which social work involvement can be critical to ensuring well-being and social justice for those among the most vulnerable in society.
Relative q-Cycles, Hilbert Exponent and Barlet’s Multiplicity

The purpose of this note is to show how the mapping multiplicity can be used to define relative analytic cycles on a complex space Y, which yields, for a system of divisors in general position (in a suitable sense) on Y, an intersection degree which coincides with the “Barlet’s degree of an analytic cycle”, and serves as a global Hilbert exponent for the system. Consequently, conditions are given under which there is a continuous mapping of Y into the Barlet space \(C_{q}^\mathrm{loc}(Y)\) of all q-dimensional analytic cycles in Y. This leads to a generalization of a theorem of Siebert on the analyticity of a family of fiber-cycles on a complex space Y, to relative q-cycles on Y. Also, applications to the analyticity of a family of intersections of Schubert zeroes of an ample holomorphic vector bundle \(W\rightarrow Y\) associated to a multi-Schubert symbol are given.
Disruption of adenylyl cyclase type 5 mimics exercise training

Exercise training is key to healthful longevity. Since exercise training compliance is difficult, it would be useful to have a therapeutic substitute that mimicked exercise training. We compared the effects of exercise training in wild-type (WT) littermates with adenylyl cyclase type 5 knock out (AC5 KO) mice, a model of enhanced exercise performance. Exercise performance, measured by maximal distance and work to exhaustion, was increased in exercise-trained WT to levels already attained in untrained AC5 KO. Exercise training in AC5 KO further enhanced their exercise performance. The key difference in untrained AC5 KO and exercise-trained WT was the β-adrenergic receptor signaling, which was decreased in untrained AC5 KO compared to untrained WT but was increased in WT with exercise training. Despite this key difference, untrained AC5 KO and exercise-trained WT mice shared similar gene expression, determined by deep sequencing, in their gastrocnemius muscle with 183 genes commonly up or down-regulated, mainly involving muscle contraction, metabolism and mitochondrial function. The SIRT1/PGC-1α pathway partially mediated the enhanced exercise in both AC5 KO and exercise-trained WT mice, as reflected in the reduced exercise responses after administering a SIRT1 inhibitor, but did not abolish the enhanced exercise performance in the AC5 KO compared to untrained WT. Increasing oxidative stress with paraquat attenuated exercise performance more in untrained WT than untrained AC5 KO, reflecting the augmented oxidative stress protection in AC5 KO. Blocking nitric oxide actually reduced the enhanced exercise performance in untrained AC5 KO and trained WT to levels below untrained WT, demonstrating the importance of this mechanism. These results suggest that AC5 KO mice, without exercise training, share similar mechanisms responsible for enhanced exercise capacity with chronic exercise training, most importantly increased nitric oxide, and demonstrate more reserve with the addition of exercise training. A novel feature of the enhanced exercise performance in untrained AC5 KO mice is their decreased sympathetic tone, which is also beneficial to patients with cardiovascular disease.
The blossoming of the blockchain

When bitcoin was unleashed on the world eight years ago, it filled a specific need, for a digital currency that wasn't under anybody's control. But it wasn't long before people realized the technology behind Bitcoin-the blockchain-could do much more than record monetary transactions. That realization has lately blossomed into a dazzling and often bewildering array of startup companies, initiatives, corporate alliances, and research projects. Collectively, they're facing a question that will have an enormous impact: What can the blockchain do better than conventional databases? Billions of dollars will hinge on the answer in the next several years. Can the technology link neighborhood buyers and sellers of rooftop-generated solar electricity? Can it keep track of property titles, academic transcripts, energy market credits, and state licenses for health care providers? Can it check the status of airline flights-and make reparations to weary travelers if their flights are delayed? We'll soon see: All of those proposals have been embodied in blockchain-based agreements called smart contracts, which are being tested right now.
Composite carcinoma-carcinoid tumors of the gastrointestinal tract. A morphologic, histochemical, and immunocytochemical study.

A morphologic, histochemical, and immunocytochemical study of 20 cases of pure gastrointestinal carcinoids, adenocarcinomas, and mixed neoplasms composed of both elements, so-called composite carcinoma-carcinoid tumors (CCC), was undertaken in order to correlate the morphologic patterns with the immunocytochemical localization of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), serotonin, and a battery of polypeptide hormones (calcitonin, glucagon, insulin, gastrin, somatostatin, and adrenocorticotropin [ACTH]). Paraffin sections from five pure carcinoids, seven pure adenocarcinomas, and eight CCC from the stomach, small bowel, appendix, and colon were studied with mucicarmine, silver impregnation stains, and a peroxidase-anti-peroxidase technic. Of the eight CCC, all were mucin positive, four were argyrophilic, and three were argentaffin positive. CEA was present in all eight, serotonin in seven, and calcitonin in one. No other neurohormonal peptides were demonstrated. The distribution of serotonin and CEA generally corresponded to the morphologic pattern, but discordance was observed in two cases, i.e., serotonin was not always localized to areas of carcinoid and CEA not always confined to areas of carcinoma. All five pure carcinoids demonstrated intracytoplasmic localization of serotonin, whereas none contained intracytoplasmic CEA. In two cases, CEA was present within acinar lumens only. The seven colonic adenocarcinomas were argyrophil and argentaffin negative. All contained CEA within the cytoplasm and in gland lumens. None contained serotonin. None of the neurohormonal peptides was localized in either pure adenocarcinomas or carcinoids. This study reveals that among gastrointestinal neoplasms displaying morphologic patterns of adenocarcinoma and carcinoid, immunocytochemical localization of CEA and serotonin confirms their bidirectional differentiation and justifies the designation "composite carcinoma-carcinoid."
S-phase Specific Downregulation of Human O6-Methylguanine DNA Methyltransferase (MGMT) and its Serendipitous Interactions with PCNA and p21cip1 Proteins in Glioma Cells

Whether the antimutagenic DNA repair protein MGMT works solo in human cells and if it has other cellular functions is not known. Here, we show that human MGMT associates with PCNA and in turn, with the cell cycle inhibitor, p21cip1 in glioblastoma and other cancer cell lines. MGMT protein was shown to harbor a nearly perfect PCNA-Interacting Protein (PIP box) motif. Isogenic p53-null H1299 cells were engineered to express the p21 protein by two different procedures. Reciprocal immunoprecipitation/western blotting, Far-western blotting, and confocal microscopy confirmed the specific association of MGMT with PCNA and the ability of p21 to strongly disrupt the MGMT-PCNA complexes in tumor cells. Alkylation DNA damage resulted in a greater colocalization of MGMT and PCNA proteins, particularly in HCT116 cells deficient in p21 expression. p21 expression in isogenic cell lines directly correlated with markedly higher levels of MGMT mRNA, protein, activity and greater resistance to alkylating agents. In other experiments, four glioblastoma cell lines synchronized at the G1/S phase using either double thymidine or thymidine-mimosine blocks and subsequent cycling consistently showed a loss of MGMT protein at mid- to late S-phase, irrespective of the cell line, suggesting such a downregulation is fundamental to cell cycle control. MGMT protein was also specifically degraded in extracts from S-phase cells and evidence strongly suggested the involvement of PCNA-dependent CRL4Cdt2 ubiquitin-ligase in the reaction. Overall, these data provide the first evidence for non-repair functions of MGMT in cell cycle and highlight the involvement of PCNA in MGMT downregulation, with p21 attenuating the process.
Partisan follow-ups

This study examines patterns of demand statement distribution in newspaper editorials during the 2013 Japanese House of Councillors (i.e., Upper House) election in anticipation that their ideological slant will become salient in the skewed patterns of certain linguistic forms. Distribution patterns in this study contradict the predictions inferable from the ideological slant of newspapers. In particular, this study finds that a conservative newspaper distributes its demands equally at both sides of the political spectrum. However, this study finds that this newspaper frequently – and exclusively – employs partisan follow-ups (wherein a demand statement directed at all parties or candidates is followed by an example of concrete action/inaction by a certain party) in an implicit attempt to express its view in favor of the ruling coalition of conservative parties.
Rebuilding the US Beef Herd: Rethinking the Way Industry Develops Replacements

Use of existing and emerging management technologies enable beef producers to improve breeding performance of heifers during the first breeding season and during subsequent calving and rebreeding periods as 2 year olds. These practices ensure that heifers that enter the herd as raised or purchased replacements contribute to the general performance and productivity of an entire cowherd immediately, and cumulatively long-term. Rebuilding the US cowherd requires careful consideration and use of these newer management technologies. Veterinarians will play a crucial role in influencing the technologies used during the rebuilding process.
Waterborne Outbreaks of Giardiasis

Giardiasis is endemic in many countries of the world including the United States, and in recent years, Giardia lamblia has been identified as the etiologic agent in numerous common-source outbreaks. The waterborne transmission of G. lamblia was suggested as early as 1946 by an epidemiologic investigation of an outbreak of amebiasis attributed to sewage contamination of a water supply in a Tokyo apartment building (Davis and Ritchie, 1948). Entamoeba histolytica and G. lamblia were recovered from 96 (64%) and 116 (77%) occupants, respectively; G. lamblia was isolated from 86% of the occupants who experienced diarrhea with abdominal discomfort and had stools that were negative for E. histolytica.
Jerome Cornfield: Lungenkrebs und Herzinfarkt

In der Medizin hielt das Bayes-Theorem durch die Anstrengungen eines einzigen Wissenschaftlers Einzug: Jerome Cornfield. Er hatte nichts weiter als einen Bachelor in Geschichte und versuchte mit dem Theorem die Ursachen von Lungenkrebs und Herzinfarkten herauszufinden.
Primary Care Nurse Practitioners and Physicians in Low-Income and Rural Areas, 2010-2016.

This study analyzes trends in the distribution of nurse practitioners and primary care physicians in low-income and rural areas.
Consequences of interaural decorrelation of speech temporal fine structure

The ability to understand a target speech signal against a background of interfering speech signals is typically improved when the interfering signals are spatially separated (spatial release from masking; SRM). Swaminathan et al. (2016) found a significant reduction in SRM when the temporal fine structure (TFS) across the left and right ears was decorrelated, suggesting that binaural TFS provides important cues that support SRM. One interpretation is that degrading binaural TFS prevents the extraction of reliable interaural time differences (ITDs), which in turn leads to a reduction in SRM. We tested this hypothesis by systematically decorrelating the binaural TFS, and measuring the effects on both ITD discrimination for speech stimuli and SRM in normal hearing listeners. We show that decorrelation leads to a systematic increase in ITD discrimination thresholds, as well as a systematic decrease in SRM. This supports the idea that binaural TFS is needed to access ITD information in speech, which is in turn required for SRM. Additionally, the relationship between these two tasks provides a framework for determining the extent to which reduced SRM in listeners with hearing loss can be attributed to reduced sensitivity to binaural TFS. The ability to understand a target speech signal against a background of interfering speech signals is typically improved when the interfering signals are spatially separated (spatial release from masking; SRM). Swaminathan et al. (2016) found a significant reduction in SRM when the temporal fine structure (TFS) across the left and right ears was decorrelated, suggesting that binaural TFS provides important cues that support SRM. One interpretation is that degrading binaural TFS prevents the extraction of reliable interaural time differences (ITDs), which in turn leads to a reduction in SRM. We tested this hypothesis by systematically decorrelating the binaural TFS, and measuring the effects on both ITD discrimination for speech stimuli and SRM in normal hearing listeners. We show that decorrelation leads to a systematic increase in ITD discrimination thresholds, as well as a systematic decrease in SRM. This supports the idea that binaural TFS is needed to access ITD information in speech, which is in tu...
Abstract LB-103: Defining oncogenic SWI/SNF complex mediated immune reprogramming in squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) remains among the most treatment-refractory of human cancers, reflecting in part a limited understanding of the key pathways and mechanisms that drive this disease. The p53-related transcription factor p63 is a central tumor maintenance factor subject to overexpression and/or genomic amplification in a high fraction of SCCs. Loss-of-function mutations in SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling subunit genes are observed in many cancers, but an oncogenic role for SWI/SNF is not well established. We reveal that ACTL6A, encoding a SWI/SNF subunit linked to stem and progenitor cell function, is frequently co-amplified and highly expressed together with p63 in head and neck, and lung squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC & LUSC). ACTL6A and p63 physically interact and cooperatively control a transcriptional program that promotes proliferation and suppresses differentiation, in part through activation of the Hippo-YAP pathway via regulators including WWC1. Consequently, loss of ACTL6A or p63 in tumor cells induces YAP phosphorylation and inactivation, associated with growth arrest and terminal differentiation, all phenocopied by WWC1 overexpression. In vivo, ectopic ACTLC6A/p63 expression promotes tumorigenesis, while ACTL6A expression and YAP activation are highly correlated in primary HNSCC and predict poor patient survival. More recently, we show the major cell-autonomous pathway repressed by ACTL6A is the interferon response in vitro, while we find ACTL6A amplification in HNSCC is associated with immunologically “cold” tumors despite a high mutation burden in vivo. Collectively, these findings reveal that ACTL6A orchestrates a tumor cell-intrinsic mechanism of immune evasion and define ACTL6A as a potent driver of human SCC.These findings establish a fundamental mechanism for ACTL6A and p63 to alter epigenetic states, and uncover a critical oncogenic function for SWI/SNF, which has been largely viewed as a tumor suppressor in human cancer. Furthermore, by revealing the Hippo-YAP pathway as a major target of ACTL6A/p63 linked to tumor behavior, this work suggests potential therapeutic approaches for refractory HNSCC cases. Citation Format: SrinivasVinod Saladi, Robert Morris, Kenneth Ross, mihriban Karaayvaz, Purushothama Rao Tata, hongmei mou, Jayaraj Rajagopal, Michael Lawrence, Leif Ellisen. Defining oncogenic SWI/SNF complex mediated immune reprogramming in squamous cell carcinoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-103.
Health care utilization and steroid‐refractory toxicities from immune checkpoint inhibitors

BACKGROUND Anti-programmed death protein 1 (anti-PD-1) agents have transformed the treatment of advanced melanoma and other cancers, but the rates of steroid-refractory toxicities and health care utilization are not well described. This study assessed these endpoints in patients with melanoma treated with anti-PD-1 with or without ipilimumab. METHODS This study retrospectively evaluated 344 patients with metastatic melanoma treated with anti-PD-1 or a combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab at Vanderbilt University Medical Center from 2009 to 2018. The incidence, types, grades, management, and outcomes of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) and hospitalizations for irAEs and disease progression were assessed. RESULTS Patients on combination therapy were more likely to develop irAEs than those on monotherapy (72% vs 37%; P < .001) and were more likely to require systemic steroids (61% vs 20%; P < .001), steroid dose re-escalation (23% vs 6%; P < .001), and second-line immunosuppressive use (17% vs 2%; P < .001) and to suffer high-dose steroid-refractory toxicities (23% vs 3%; P < .001). Combination-treated patients were more likely to have any hospitalization (32% vs 7%; P < .001) or multiple hospitalizations for irAEs (11% vs 3%; P = .001) and had a longer average time of hospitalization (mean, 1.92 vs 0.62 days; P = .002). Among 176 hospitalizations related to disease progression in patients who died during evaluable follow-up, 69% occurred within the 90 days before death. Early hospitalizations for disease-related reasons portended a very poor prognosis (median time from admission to death, 58 days). CONCLUSIONS Patients treated with a combination of ipilimumab and nivolumab had higher rates of hospitalization and steroid-refractory toxicities than those treated with anti-PD-1 monotherapy. Disease-associated hospitalizations were similar between the 2 groups, portended a poor prognosis, and mostly occurred in the last months of life.
Coal Smoke, City Growth, and the Costs of the Industrial Revolution

This article provides the first rigorous estimates of how industrial air pollution from coal burning affects long-run city growth. I introduce a new theoretically grounded strategy for estimating this relationship and apply it to data from highly polluted British cities from 1851 to 1911. I show that local industrial coal use substantially reduced long-run city employment and population growth. Moreover, a counterfactual analysis suggests that plausible improvements in coal-use efficiency would have led to a higher urbanisation rate in Britain by 1911. These findings contribute to our understanding of the effects of air pollution and the environmental costs of industrialisation.
Microsolvation in V+(H2O)n Clusters Studied with Selected-Ion Infrared Spectroscopy

Gas-phase ion–molecule clusters of the form V+(H2O)n (n = 1–30) are produced by laser vaporization in a supersonic expansion. These ions are analyzed and mass-selected with a time-of-flight mass sp...
First-in-Human Report of MitraClip G4 Implantation for Torrential Tricuspid Regurgitation and Severe Secondary Mitral Regurgitation

An 84-year-old woman with a remote history of breast cancer treated with mediastinal radiation presented with New York Heart Association functional class IV symptoms. Transesophageal echocardiogram showed severe mitral regurgitation ([Figures 1A and 1B][1], [Video 1][2]), with a mean transmitral
High-Performance Fully Integrated Silicon Photonic Microwave Mixer Subsystems

We experimentally demonstrate two silicon photonic based mixer subsystems for applications in next gen fronthaul networks, defense, and communications for space, avionics, and vehicles. The mixer subsystems leverage emerging integrated microwave photonics technology through the AIM Photonics foundry. Our work demonstrates the potential for full integration of spectrally agile functions to enable seamless upconversion and downconversion over wide instantaneous bandwidths. Characterization of the frequency converting architectures focuses on analog metrics including gain, linearity, and noise figure. The first architecture represents the simplest architecture for practical frequency conversion on-chip using a single dual-drive Mach–Zehnder modulator and single photodetector. The second architecture, using dual parallel single-drive Mach–Zehnder modulators and balanced detection, represents the first silicon photonic downconverter with electrical-in, electrical-out frequency conversion fully on-chip; additionally, this architecture demonstrates the widest bandwidth reported among mixers of similar integration level on any material platform. Simulations using characterized parameters of components are performed and demonstrate accurate prediction of analog metrics for both mixer architectures. Using these simulations, we predict the performance of improved, fully integrated implementations of the characterized architectures using state-of-the-art platforms, demonstrating that high performance integrated microwave photonic frequency conversion is achievable.
Intraday Intermedia Agenda-Setting in the Manic World of Online News Reporting

This research explores the changing landscape of intermedia agenda-setting as it occurs over the course of a single day. Specific attention is given to the attenuated influence of elite legacy medi...
RLDRM: Closed Loop Dynamic Cache Allocation with Deep Reinforcement Learning for Network Function Virtualization

Network function virtualization (NFV) technology attracts tremendous interests from telecommunication industry and data center operators, as it allows service providers to assign resource for Virtual Network Functions (VNFs) on demand, achieving better flexibility, programmability, and scalability. To improve server utilization, one popular practice is to deploy best effort (BE) workloads along with high priority (HP) VNFs when high priority VNF's resource usage is detected to be low. The key challenge of this deployment scheme is to dynamically balance the Service level objective (SLO) and the total cost of ownership (TCO) to optimize the data center efficiency under inherently fluctuating workloads. With the recent advancement in deep reinforcement learning, we conjecture that it has the potential to solve this challenge by adaptively adjusting resource allocation to reach the improved performance and higher server utilization. In this paper, we present a closed-loop automation system RLDRM11RLDRM: Reinforcement Learning Dynamic Resource Management to dynamically adjust Last Level Cache allocation between HP VNFs and BE workloads using deep reinforcement learning. The results demonstrate improved server utilization while maintaining required SLO for the HP VNFs.
Covid-19 in Patients with Connective Tissue Disease-Related Interstitial Lung Disease.

Infection with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), manifests in a myriad of ways ranging from asymptomatic disease to pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Advanced age and underlying cardiovascular/pulmonary conditions appear to increase the risk for Covid-19 complications [1,2]. Patients with connective tissue disease-related interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD) may represent a vulnerable patient population for Covid-19 given their diminished pulmonary reserve. To our knowledge, there are no prospective data reporting outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with CTD-ILD. We herein present all known cases (n = 4) of Covid-19 in CTD-ILD patients at UCLA between January 2020 and August 2020.
Comparing age at cancer diagnosis between hispanics and non-hispanic whites in the United States

Background: Population age structure may confound the comparison of age at cancer diagnosis across racial/ethnic groups. We compared age at cancer diagnosis for U.S. Hispanics, a population that is younger on average, and non-Hispanic whites (NHW), before and after adjustment for the age structure of the source population. Methods: We used Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results data from 18 U.S. regions in 2015 for 34 cancer sites to calculate crude and adjusted (using age- and sex-specific weights) mean ages at diagnosis. Differences in age at diagnosis comparing Hispanics to NHWs (δ) were assessed using independent sample t tests. Results: Crude mean ages at diagnosis were lower among Hispanic males and females for all sites combined and for most cancer sites. After age-adjustment, Hispanic (vs. NHW) males remained younger on average at diagnosis of chronic myeloid leukemia [δ = −6.1; 95% confidence interval (CI), −8.1 to −4.1 years], testicular cancer (δ =−4.7; 95% CI, −5.4 to −4.0), Kaposi sarcoma (δ =−3.6; 95% CI,−6.3 to −0.8), mesothelioma (δ =−3.0; 95% CI,−4.3 to −1.7), and anal cancer (δ =−2.4; 95% CI, −3.9 to −0.8), and older at diagnosis of gallbladder cancer (δ = +3.8; 95% CI, 1.8 to 5.7) and Hodgkin9s lymphoma (δ = +7.5; 95% CI, 5.7 to 9.4), and Hispanic (vs. NHW) females remained younger at diagnosis of mesothelioma (δ = −3.7; 95% CI, −6.7 to −0.7) and gallbladder cancer (δ = −3.0; 95% CI, −4.3 to −1.7) and older at diagnosis of skin cancer (δ = +3.8; 95% CI, 3.1 to 4.5), cervical cancer (δ = +4.1; 95% CI, 3.3 to 4.8), and Hodgkin9s lymphoma (δ = +7.0; 95% CI, 5.0 to 9.1). Conclusions: On average, Hispanics are diagnosed with cancer at younger ages than NHWs; however, for many cancers these differences reflect the younger age structure in Hispanics. Impact: Population age structure should be considered when comparing age at cancer diagnosis across racial/ethnic groups.
Managing Complexity with Explicit Mapping of Gestures to Sound Control with OSC

Abstract We present a novel use of the OpenSound Control (OSC)protocol to represent the output of gestural controllers aswell as the input to sound synthesis processes. With thisscheme, the problem of mapping gestural input into soundsynthesis control becomes a simple translation from OSCmessages into other OSC messages. We provide examplesof this strategy and show benefits including increasedencapsulation and program clarity. 1. Introduction We desire expressive real-time control of computersound synthesis and processing from many differentgestural interfaces such as the Boie/Mathews Radio Drum(Boie, et al., 1989), the Buchla Thunder (Buchla, 2001),Wacom Tablets (Wright, et al., 1997), gaming joysticks, etc.Unlike acoustic instruments, these gestural interfaces haveno inherent mapping between the gestures they sense andthe resulting sound output. Indeed, most of the art ofdesigning a real-time-playable computer music instrumentlies in designing the mapping between sensed gestures andcontrol of the sound generating and processing.We believe that OpenSound Control (OSC) (Wright andFreed, 1997, Wright, 1998) provides many benefits to thecreators of these gesture-to-sound-control mappings. It isgeneral enough to represent both the sensed gestures fromphysical controllers and the parameter settings needed tocontrol sound synthesis, so it provides a uniform syntax andconceptual framework for this mapping. The symbolicnames for all OSC parameters make explicit what is beingcontrolled and can make programs easier to read andunderstand. An OSC interface to a gestural-sensing orsignal-processing subprogram is a powerful form ofabstraction that can expose all of the important featureswhile hiding the implementation.We will present a paradigm for using OSC for thismapping task and give a series of examples culled fromseveral years of live performance with a variety of gesturalcontrollers and performance paradigms.
An Intelligent Observer

This paper describes an integrated mobile robotic system dubbed the intelligent observer (IO). The IO is a mobile robot which moves through an environment (such as an office building or a factory) while autonomously observing moving targets selected by a human operator. The robot carries one or more cameras which allow it to track objects while at the same time sensing its own location. It interacts with a human user who issues task-level commands, such as indicating a target to track by clicking in a camera image. The user could be located far away from the observer itself, communicating with the robot over a network. As the IO performs its tasks, the system provides real-time visual feedback to the user. We have implemented a prototype of the IO which integrates basic versions of five major components: landmark detection, target tracking, motion planning, motion control, and user interface. We have performed initial experiments using this prototype, which demonstrate the successful integration of these components and the utility of the overall systems.
Abstract P300: Cardiovascular Risk Inequality in Subjects with Chronic Kidney Disease by Age, Race and Ethnicity in the United States

Objectives: Adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) carry an extraordinarily excess risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The present study aimed to test two hypotheses: (1) Non-Hispanic black (NHB) with CKD have significantly higher CVD risk profiles than non-Hispanic white (NHW). (2) This difference significantly contributes to the excess risk of CVD in NHB versus NHW. Methods: A total of 3,939 participants aged 21-74 years old in the baseline Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort Study, a multiethnic population-based study supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, were analyzed. CKD was classified using estimate glomerular filtration rate. A sum weighted CVDRisk score was developed from multiple CVD risk factors. Differences in CVDRisk score by race/ethnicity were tested using quantile regression (QR), a novel data mining approach to identify distribution of risk factors and outcomes. Results: The prevalence of CVD was 30.7 and 38.2% in NHW and NHB with CKD (p<0.001). The means (SD) of CVDRisk score were 12.6 (5.7) in NHW and 14.6 (6.4) in NHB (p<0.001). QR analysis indicated that NHB had significantly higher CVDRisk score in all quantile (Qs) of CVDRisk score than NHW. This race/ethnicity difference was even worse among younger NHB (aged <65). An estimated 32% of the excess CVD prevalence for NHB versus NHW may be attributable to a higher CVDRisk score in those aged<65 years old. Conclusion: The study highlights an excess and disproportionate distribution of CVD risk factor profile in subjects with CKD for NHB versus NHW. An estimated one third of the excess CVD prevalence in younger NHB with CKD could be explained by their higher CVD risk factor profiles.
When the end is the beginning

Abstract Older theologies and histories of the OT relegate the Persian/post‐exilic age to places of minor importance, a curious practice given the fact that the significance these same works give to the exile can only be realized after 539. More recent attempts to write a history of ancient Israel point to the Persian period as the earliest in which the biblical traditions could have been written down. An examination of biblical references in indisputably post‐exilic historical material which treats of the return shows that in the late Persian‐early Hellenistic period very little of the OT has reached the form in which it is known today. This absence implies the necessity of viewing the late 6th‐late 4th centuries as the period of the collection of traditions that only later will be arranged into the various collections/ editions (Samaritan Pentateuch, LXX, MT). The Persian period ought not be understand as the time of the final editing or writing of the OT; this process belongs rather to the Hellenistic ...
In Vitro Perfusion of Human Placenta

The workshop on in vitro perfusion of human placenta concentrated on recent advances that might influence the use of the techniques. Presentations were made by Henning Schneider, Nicholas Illsley, and Richard Miller. Maurice Panigel and Heinz-Peter Leichtweiss introduced the discussion The allotted time passed quickly, with questions and conversations overflowing into the corridors during the rest of the conference. In the following, we shall review briefly the workshop and attempt to summarize the ensuing conversations in a form that we hope will be useful to the reader.
cAMP inhibition of murine intestinal Na/H exchange requires CFTR-mediated cell shrinkage of villus epithelium.

Abstract Background & Aims: Unlike the intestine of normal subjects, small-intestinal epithelia of cystic fibrosis patients and cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator protein-null (CFTR − ) mice do not respond to stimulation of intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate with inhibition of electroneutral NaCl absorption. Because CFTR-mediated anion secretion has been associated with changes in crypt cell volume, we hypothesized that CFTR-mediated cell volume reduction in villus epithelium is required for intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate inhibition of Na + /H + exchanger (primarily Na + /H + exchanger 3) activity in the proximal small intestine. Methods: Transepithelial 22 Na flux across the jejuna of CFTR + , CFTR − , the basolateral membrane Na + /K + /2Cl − co-transporter protein NKCC1 + , and NKCC1 − mice were correlated with changes in epithelial cell volume of the midvillus region. Results: Stimulation of intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate resulted in cessation of Na + /H + exchanger-mediated Na + absorption (J ms NHE ) in CFTR + jejunum but had no effect on J ms NHE across CFTR − jejunum. Cell volume indices indicated an approximately 30% volume reduction of villus epithelial cells in CFTR + jejunum but no changes in CFTR − epithelium after intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate stimulation. In contrast, cell shrinkage induced by hypertonic medium inhibited J ms NHE in both CFTR + and CFTR − mice. Bumetanide treatment to inhibit Cl − secretion by blockade of the Na + /K + /2Cl − co-transporter, NKCC1, of stimulated CFTR + jejunum prevented maximal volume reduction of villus epithelium and recovered approximately 40% of J ms NHE . Likewise, J ms NHE and cell volume were unaffected by intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate stimulation in NKCC1 − jejuna. Conclusions: These findings show a previously unrecognized role of functional CFTR expressed in villus epithelium: regulation of Na + /H + exchanger 3-mediated Na + absorption by alteration of epithelial cell volume.
Resource Requirements and Costs of Developing and Delivering MOOCs

Given the ongoing alarm regarding uncontrollable costs of higher education, it would be reasonable to expect not only concern about the impact of MOOCs on educational outcomes, but also systematic efforts to document the resources expended on their development and delivery. However, there is little publicly available information on MOOC costs that is based on rigorous analysis. In this article, we first address what institutional resources are required for the development and delivery of MOOCs, based on interviews conducted with 83 administrators, faculty members, researchers, and other actors in the MOOCspace. Subsequently, we use the ingredients method to present cost analyses of MOOC production and delivery at four institutions. We find costs ranging from $38,980 to $325,330 per MOOC, and costs per completer of $74-$272, substantially lower than costs per completer of regular online courses, by merit of scalability. Based on this metric, MOOCs appear more cost-effective than online courses, but we recommend judging MOOCs by impact on learning and caution that they may only be cost-effective for the most self-motivated learners. By demonstrating the methods of cost analysis as applied to MOOCs, we hope that future assessments of the value of MOOCs will combine both cost information and effectiveness data to yield cost-effectiveness ratios that can be compared with the cost-effectiveness of alternative modes of education delivery. Such information will help decision-makers in higher education make rational decisions regarding the most productive use of limited educational resources, to the benefit of both learners and taxpayers.
A high accuracy predictive logarithmic motion estimation algorithm for video coding

A new logarithmic block-matching algorithm for motion estimation is proposed. The algorithm exploits the motion correlation of spatially neighboring blocks to reduce the possibility of an inappropriate choice in the search's first stage and thus alleviate the local minimum phenomenon. Compared to existing fast block-matching algorithms, this method achieves significant improvements in both estimation accuracy and performance reliability while maintaining comparable computational complexity and regularity.
Implicit finite-difference simulations of steady and unsteady transonic flows

Implicit methods for several fluid dynamic formulations have been developed and applied to steady-state and low-frequency transonic flows. The basic steps involved in the construction of implicit schemes include: selection of linearly stable accurate implicit difference operators, time-linearization of nonlinear terms, and approximate factorization of the implicit operators into easily solved systems of equations. The proposed schemes are found very efficient for the simpler formulations.
Curriculum planning and computer-assisted instruction (CAI) within clinical nursing education.

The potential benefits of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) within nursing education have been reiterated in the literature. There have been many studies that have attempted to validate these benefits by measuring the effectiveness of CAI on a variety of variables, such as, student learning. Some educators have voiced a concern that if studies measuring the effectiveness of CAI within higher education have not been based upon a planned approach to the implementation, then the results of these studies may be suspect [1, 2],
A procedural approach to synthesis by rule

A synthesis by rule system has been implemented using a computational mechanism termed the augmented finite state machine. This mechanism is a restricted form of the augmented transition network used in natural language processing. In this technique, the rules take the form of conditionally executed procedures which describe contextual effects. In a single linear pass the technique converts a phonetic string into synthesizer commands handling contact as well as distant assimilations. The technique may be expanded to handle general phonological rules at the expense of providing for recursive entry into an augmented finite state machine.
Vitamin D Deficiency in Pediatric Critical Illness.

Introduction The potential role for vitamin D in infection has been well described in adults. The objective of our study was to determine the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency and to evaluate the relationship between vitamin D status and markers of innate immunity and infection in critically ill children.
Prophylactic Activity of a Phenanthrene Methanol (WR 33063) and a Quinoline Methanol (WR 30090) in Human Malaria

Abstract WR 33063 (3-bromo-10-[α-hydroxy-β-(n, n-diheptylamino)ethyl]-phenanthrene hydrochloride) and WR 30090 (6,8-dichloro-2,3,4-dichlorphenyl-di-n-butylaminoethyl-4- quinolinemethanol hydrochloride) were tested for suppressive prophylactic effect on induced malaria in nonimmune volunteers living in an area where malaria is not naturally transmitted. Doses of 800 mg of WR 33063 and 690 or 460 mg of WR 30090 were given at weekly intervals to men exposed on the day of the first dose to mosquitoes heavily infected with chloroquine- and pyrimethamine-resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum. WR 33063 did not interfere with early development of infection, but WR 30090 given for 8 weeks provided suppressive cures in 20 of 26 men. P. vivax infections similarly induced broke through WR 30090 treatment in 4 of 15 men, and most of the remainder experienced malaria after completion of the prophylactic course. No side effects of treatment were observed.
Interaction of human papillomavirus type 11 E7 protein with TAP-1 results in the reduction of ATP-dependent peptide transport.

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) cause benign and malignant epithelial tumors of the respiratory and genital mucosa. We previously reported that recurrent respiratory papillomas caused by HPV 6/11 express low levels of antibody-detectable TAP-1, the protein that transports peptides into the endoplasmic reticulum for assembly and presentation by MHC Class I, and that the extent of TAP-1 immunostaining is inversely related to the frequency of disease recurrence. We have now determined a mechanism for the reduction in TAP-1 detection. Anti-TAP-1 antibody immunoprecipitated very low amounts of protein from papilloma cells. However, immunoprecipitation of calreticulin, another member of the MHC I assembly complex, coprecipitated TAP-1 at levels comparable to those of uninfected cells. Immunoprecipitation of an HPV-positive cell line with either anti-TAP-1 or anti-calreticulin coprecipitated HPV E7 protein. Finally, purified HPV 11 E7 protein inhibited ATP-dependent peptide transport in vitro. We propose that the interaction of E7 with TAP-1 prevents TAP-1 antibody detection and efficient peptide transport, resulting in poor presentation of viral antigen on HPV-infected cells and thus failure to mount an effective immune-mediated prevention of disease recurrence.
Generating program inputs for database application testing

Testing is essential for quality assurance of database applications. Achieving high code coverage of the database application is important in testing. In practice, there may exist a copy of live databases that can be used for database application testing. Using an existing database state is desirable since it tends to be representative of real-world objects' characteristics, helping detect faults that could cause failures in real-world settings. However, to cover a specific program code portion (e.g., block), appropriate program inputs also need to be generated for the given existing database state. To address this issue, in this paper, we propose a novel approach that generates program inputs for achieving high code coverage of a database application, given an existing database state. Our approach uses symbolic execution to track how program inputs are transformed before appearing in the executed SQL queries and how the constraints on query results affect the application's execution. One significant challenge in our problem context is the gap between program-input constraints derived from the program and from the given existing database state; satisfying both types of constraints is needed to cover a specific program code portion. Our approach includes novel query formulation to bridge this gap. Our approach is loosely integrated into Pex, a state-of-the-art white-box testing tool for .NET from Microsoft Research. Empirical evaluations on two real database applications show that our approach assists Pex to generate program inputs that achieve higher code coverage than the program inputs generated by Pex without our approach's assistance.
Quantitative Aspects of the Effects of Halide and Azide Ions on the Acid-Catalyzed Hydrolysis of (±)-7β,8α-Dihydroxy-9α,10α-Epoxy-7,8,9,10-Tetrahydrobenzo[a]Pyrene

Abstract Mechanisms of the acid-catalyzed reactions of (±)-7β,8α-dihydroxy-9α,10α-epoxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydrobenzo[a]pyrene (1) in 1:9 dioxane-water solutions containing varying concentrations of KCl, KBr, NaI, NaN3 and NaClO4 are discussed.