cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Laboratory and Workplace Assessments of Rivet Bucking Bar Vibration Emissions

Sheet metal workers operating rivet bucking bars are at risk of developing hand and wrist musculoskeletal disorders associated with exposures to hand-transmitted vibrations and forceful exertions required to operate these hand tools. New bucking bar technologies have been introduced in efforts to reduce workplace vibration exposures to these workers. However, the efficacy of these new bucking bar designs has not been well documented. While there are standardized laboratory-based methodologies for assessing the vibration emissions of many types of powered hand tools, no such standard exists for rivet bucking bars. Therefore, this study included the development of a laboratory-based method for assessing bucking bar vibrations which utilizes a simulated riveting task. With this method, this study evaluated three traditional steel bucking bars, three similarly shaped tungsten alloy bars, and three bars featuring spring-dampeners. For comparison the bucking bar vibrations were also assessed during three typical riveting tasks at a large aircraft maintenance facility. The bucking bars were rank-ordered in terms of unweighted and frequency-weighted acceleration measured at the hand-tool interface. The results suggest that the developed laboratory method is a reasonable technique for ranking bucking bar vibration emissions; the lab-based riveting simulations produced similar rankings to the workplace rankings. However, the laboratory-based acceleration averages were considerably lower than the workplace measurements. These observations suggest that the laboratory test results are acceptable for comparing and screening bucking bars, but the laboratory measurements should not be directly used for assessing the risk of workplace bucking bar vibration exposures. The newer bucking bar technologies exhibited significantly reduced vibrations compared to the traditional steel bars. The results of this study, together with other information such as rivet quality, productivity, tool weight, comfort, worker acceptance, and initial cost can be used to make informed bucking bar selections.
Transforming the Nation's Health: Next Steps in Mental Health Promotion

The National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine have called for making the healthy mental, emotional, and behavioral development of young people a national priority. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in the US Department of Health and Human Services is uniquely positioned to help develop national mental health policies that promote mental health and prevent mental illnesses. In this article I describe the role of mental health in overall health, I make the case for a public health approach to mental health promotion and mental illness prevention, and I outline a strategy to promote individual, family, and community resilience. I also describe how SAMHSA works to achieve these goals. Ultimately, true health reform will not succeed without a comprehensive, committed focus on the mental health needs of all Americans.
Isolation and Identification of an Esterase from a Mexican Strain of Boophilus microplus (Acari: Ixodidae)

A strain of Mexican Boophilus microplus (Cz) collected near Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico, exhibits a moderate, but significant, level of permethrin resistance. Unlike other highly permethrin resistant strains, the Cz strain does not have a mutation within the sodium channel gene that results in target-site insensitivity. However, the Cz strain possesses a substantial increase in general and permethrin esterase activity relative to highly permethrin resistant and control strains suggesting the involvement of a metabolic esterase(s) in the expression of permethrin resistance. We report the isolation of a 62.8 kDa protein from Cz strain larvae that we think is the esterase previously reported as Cz EST9. In addition, internal amino acid sequence data obtained from the 62.8 kDa protein suggest that it is the gene product of a previously reported B. microplus carboxylesterase cDNA. We propose that the 62.8 kDa protein (Cz EST9) has permethrin hydrolytic activity and as a result plays an important role in Cz strain resistance to permethrin.
“Imperfections and oddities” in the origin of the nucleus

We outline a plausible evolutionary sequence that led from prokaryotes to the origin of the first nucleated cell. The nucleus is postulated to evolve after the archaebacterium and eubacterium merged to form the symbiotic ancestor of amitochondriate protists. Descendants of these amitochondriate cells (archaeprotists) today thrive in organic-rich anoxic habitats where they are amenable to study. Eukaryosis, the origin of nucleated cells, occurred by the middle Proterozoic Eon prior to the deposition in sediments of well-preserved microfossils such as Vandalosphaeridium and the spiny spheres in the Doushantou cherts of China.
Human T cell receptor γδ structure

A subpopulation of peripheral blood T-lymphocytes exists that is distinct from T cells that express the T cell receptor (TCR) αβ. This population of T cells expresses a receptor composed of TCR γ and TCR δ polypeptides that are associated with CD3 (Brenner et al., 1986). The TCR γ gene (Saito et al., 1984; Quertermous et al., 1986) has been extensively examined and is composed of variable (V), joining (J), and constant (C) region gene segments that undergo somatic rearrangement during development (Hayday et al., 1985).
ALDH Enzyme Expression Is Independent of the Spermatogenic Cycle, and Their Inhibition Causes Misregulation of Murine Spermatogenic Processes

Perturbations in the vitamin A metabolism pathway could be a significant cause of male infertility, as well as a target toward the development of a male contraceptive, necessitating the need for a better understanding of how testicular retinoic acid (RA) concentrations are regulated. Quantitative analyses have recently demonstrated that RA is present in a pulsatile manner along testis tubules. However, it is unclear if the aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzymes, which are responsible for RA synthesis, contribute to the regulation of these RA concentration gradients. Previous studies have alluded to fluctuations in ALDH enzymes across the spermatogenic cycle, but these inferences have been based primarily on qualitative transcript localization experiments. Here, we show via various quantitative methods that the three well-known ALDH enzymes (ALDH1A1, ALDH1A2, and ALDH1A3), and an ALDH enzyme previously unreported in the murine testis (ALDH8A1), are not expressed in a stage-specific manner in the adult testis, but do fluctuate throughout juvenile development in perfect agreement with the first appearance of each advancing germ cell type. We also show, via treatments with a known ALDH inhibitor, that lowered testicular RA levels result in an increase in blood-testis barrier permeability, meiotic recombination, and meiotic defects. Taken together, these data further our understanding of the complex regulatory actions of RA on various spermatogenic events and, in contrast with previous studies, also suggest that the ALDH enzymes are not responsible for regulating the recently measured RA pulse.
Effect of 25 hydroxy vitamin D status on serological response to influenza vaccine in cancer patients

e20575 Background: Increasing epidemiologic data suggest association of vitamin D deficiency with influenza epidemic. Vitamin D acts as an immune modulator and stimulates the expression of protecti...
Beyond Dispersity: Deterministic Control of Polymer Molecular Weight Distribution

The breadth of the molecular weight distributions (MWD) of polymers influences their physical properties; however, no synthetic methods allow precise control of the exact shape and composition of a distribution. We report a modular strategy that enables deterministic control over polymer MWD through temporal regulation of initiation in nitroxide-mediated polymerization reactions. This approach is applicable to any controlled polymerization that uses a discrete initiator, and it allows the use of MWD composition as a parameter to tune material properties.
SEASONAL CHANGES IN BEACHES OP THE NORTH ATLANTIC COAST OF THE UNITED STATES

Seasonal changes of eight Atlantic Ocean beaches along the East Coast of the United States from southern New Jersey to Rhode Island have been under study since September 1962. These beaches are surveyed at frequent intervals repeating profile lines perpendicular to the shoreline, spaced to indicate any major changes occurring to the beach shape or dimensions with as much assurance as is reasonably possible. Correlation of changes in beach profile with tide and wave data is being made. Changes in the beach profiles to date indicate variations on a seasonal basis.
Comparative taphonomy of echinoderms in carbonate facies; Fort Payne Formation (Lower Mississippian) of Kentucky and Tennessee

Taphonomic analysis of more than 3000 specimens of crinoids and blastoids from 14 localities from south-central Kentucky and north-central Tennessee reveals differences in preservational style among five carbonate and associated clastic facies. Collections from each locality were sorted on the basis of a 9-point taphonomic scale ranging from fully articulated specimens with arms and column to isolated plates. Degree of skeletal articulation is used as a relative measure of burial rate and autochthony. Preservational style of a pelmatozoan assemblage is the product of both depositional processes and differential taphonomic behavior of different morphotypes. The taphonomic profile for an assemblage is strongly influenced by the preservational style of its dominant pelmatozoan taxa. Taking this taxonomic and morphologic bias into account, both autochthonous and allochthonous pelmatozoan-rich facies are recognized in the Fort Payne Formation. Carbonate facies judged to be chiefly autochthonous are 1) crinoidal packstone buildups showing a full range of preservation including articulated specimens, and 2) wackestone buildups dominated by complete calyxes lacking arms and column. Green shales associated with carbonate buildups are dominated by disarticulated specimens but include complete calyxes and arm segments, suggesting slow background deposition punctuated by periodic rapid influxes. Allochthonous carbonates include 1) sheetlike packstones dominated by complete and partial calyxes, and 2) channelform packstones dominated by disarticulated skeletal debris with occasional fully articulated crinoids. Fort Payne carbonate facies in north-central Tennessee are exclusively allochthonous, sheetlike packstones, whereas both allochthonous and autochthonous facies occur in Kentucky proximal to the Borden Front. The taphonomic character and distribution of pelmatozoan-rich facies in the Fort Payne in Kentucky and Tennessee are consistent with a progradational, basin-filling depositional model.
Retargeted oncolytic adenovirus displaying a single variable domain of camelid heavy-chain-only antibody in a fiber protein

Conditionally replicative adenoviruses are promising agents for oncolytic virotherapy. Various approaches have been attempted to retarget adenoviruses to tumor-specific antigens to circumvent deficiency of receptor for adenoviral binding and to provide an additional level of tumor specificity. Functional incorporation of highly specific targeting molecules into the viral capsid can potentially retarget adenoviral infection. However, conventional antibodies are not compatible with the cytoplasmic adenovirus capsid synthesis. The goal of this study was to evaluate the utility of single variable domains derived from heavy chain camelid antibodies for retargeting of adenovirus infection. We have combined transcriptional targeting using a tumor-specific promoter with transductional targeting through viral capsid incorporation of antihuman carcinoembryonic antigen single variable domains. Obtained data demonstrated that employment of a single variable domain genetically incorporated into an adenovirus fiber increased specificity of infection and efficacy of replication of single variable domain-targeted oncolytic adenovirus. The double targeting, both transcriptional through the C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 promoter and transductional using the single variable domain, is a promising means to improve the therapeutic index for these advanced generation conditionally replicative adenoviruses. A successful strategy to transductional retargeting of oncolytic adenovirus infection has not been shown before and therefore we believe this is the first employment of transductional targeting using single variable domains derived from heavy chain camelid antibodies to enhance specificity of conditionally replicative adenoviruses.
3-D Intestinal Scaffolds for Evaluating the Therapeutic Potential of Probiotics

Biomimetic in vitro intestinal models are becoming useful tools for studying host–microbial interactions. In the past, these models have typically been limited to simple cultures on 2-D scaffolds or Transwell inserts, but it is widely understood that epithelial cells cultured in 3-D environments exhibit different phenotypes that are more reflective of native tissue, and that different microbial species will preferentially adhere to select locations along the intestinal villi. We used a synthetic 3-D tissue scaffold with villous features that could support the coculture of epithelial cell types with select bacterial populations. Our end goal was to establish microbial niches along the crypt–villus axis in order to mimic the natural microenvironment of the small intestine, which could potentially provide new insights into microbe-induced intestinal disorders, as well as enabling targeted probiotic therapies. We recreated the surface topography of the small intestine by fabricating a biodegradable and biocom...
Availability of pre-admission information to prospective graduate students in speech-language pathology

ABSTRACTAn extensive Internet search was conducted to obtain pre-admission information and acceptance statistics from 260 graduate programmes in speech-language pathology accredited by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) in the United States. ASHA is the national professional, scientific and credentialing association for members and affiliates who are audiologists; speech-language pathologists; speech, language and hearing scientists; audiology and speech-language pathology support personnel and students. Data were collected for analysis from Internet websites of individual academic programmes and ASHA’s EdFind, an online directory for undergraduate and graduate programmes in communication sciences and disorders in the United States. Frequency counts were used to analyse the data. Since graduate programmes are not required by ASHA to report or publish entrance requirements, the information included on the individual websites and ASHA’s EdFind varies widely among the programmes with som...
Primary MicroRNA Processing Assay Reconstituted Using Recombinant Drosha and DGCR8

In animals, the Microprocessor complex cleaves primary transcripts of microRNAs (pri-miRNAs) to produce precursor microRNAs in the nucleus. The core components of Microprocessor include the Drosha ribonuclease and its RNA-binding partner protein DiGeorge critical region 8 (DGCR8). DGCR8 has been shown to tightly bind an Fe(III) heme cofactor, which activates its pri-miRNA processing activity. Here we describe how to reconstitute pri-miRNA processing using recombinant human Drosha and DGCR8 proteins. In particular, we present the procedures for expressing and purifying DGCR8 as an Fe(III) heme-bound dimer, the most active form of this protein, and for estimating its heme content.
China’s Emerging Capital Market

The capital market enables a country to mobilize liquid savings for investment in suitable projects. When operating efficiently, capital markets allocate capital to sectors where investment will enjoy the highest productivity. China is in the earliest stage of developing its capital market. Nevertheless, this market is evolving rapidly, and exhibiting continuous structural adjustment and improvement.
Cybercrime and Cybersecurity in Sub-Saharan African Economies

The advanced nature and falling costs of information and communications technologies (ICTs) have fuelled rapid digitization of economies in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The Internet has helped realize a fundamental transformation in the continent’s economic, political and social lives. Especially impressive have been the digitization’s benefits to disadvantaged consumers, such as those without bank accounts or the lack of electricity access. Major drivers of the continent’s digitization include the newly launched submarine cables in East and West Africa and the rapid diffusion of mobile phones.
P100 Understanding the Determinants of Health-Related Quality of Life in Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQL) is impaired among patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD). Less is understood about HRQL in specific subtypes of ILD. The aim of this study was to characterize HRQL among patients with rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) compared to patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and …
Single spin read out in quantum dots

In 1981 Richard Feynman speculated that a computer operating via the laws of quantum mechanics would be exponentially more powerful than a classical computer. His idea was that by exploiting the principle of superposition, whereby a particle can be in a combination of two or more different states at the same time, such a device would, in effect, operate like a massive array of more conventional computers.
The Settlement as a Factor in the Labor Movement (1895)

One man or group of men sometimes reveal to their contemporaries a higher conscience by simply incorporating into the deed what has been before but a philosophic proposition. By this deed the common code of ethics is stretched to a higher point.
Combining NOMA and mmWave Technology for Cellular Communication

Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) is a major technique that is expected to lead towards the fifth generation (5G) wireless communication networks, as it involves the sharing of space resources among users in a given scenario. In this paper, we propose an uplink (UL) NOMA setup that utilizes the multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) infrastructure. As performed in related literature, K clients are placed in 'weak' and 'strong' categories, depending on the channel state information (CSI). The base station (BS) uses successive interference cancellation (SIC) to overcome interference experienced by users forming the weak set from their counterparts in the strong set. The paper goes on to compare the performance of this NOMA system with that of a conventional orthogonal multiple access (OMA) setting, with the scope being extended to include both ultra high frequency (UHF) and millimeter wave (mmWave) networks. The performance evaluation is carried out in terms of, among other metrics, average sum- rate and outage probability.
Making the transition to co-management governance arrangements in Hawai‘i: a framework for understanding transaction and transformation costs

Co-management has shown great promise in achieving social and ecological goals worldwide. Despite its potential, significant challenges are faced during governance transformations shifting from traditional approaches to fisheries management to co-management systems. Several factors make Hawai‘i an excellent opportunity to study the barriers associated with implementing co-management systems. Hawai‘i implements many of the same types of regulatory and fisheries programs found elsewhere in the U.S., yet it also possesses a unique legacy of customary management systems. In addition, a legal pathway has existed for nearly two decades that allows communities to partner with the State of Hawai‘i to co-manage nearshore coral reef fisheries. Despite the presence of this enabling legislation, extensive community interest in this approach across the archipelago, and significant NGO/Foundation support, co-management implementation remains limited. This study uses a mixed methods approach that relies on semi-structured interviews and archival data sources to conduct an institutional analysis of transaction and transformation costs. These costs serve as barriers to co-management implementation. The study identifies several social and organizational barriers preventing co-management implementation including: governmental structure and operations; planning and administrative processes; organized opposition from special interests; and consensus building processes. The institutional analysis further reveals a wide range of transaction and transformation costs associated with this governance transformation that prevent adoption of co-management. We conclude by identifying some actions that can help reduce these implementation barriers to co-management transitions and prevent conservation stalemates.
The impact of pharmacy monitoring and intervention in patients receiving intravenous heparin.

Background Intravenous unfractionated heparin (IV UFH) has a narrow therapeutic index and poses a high risk of bleeding. Objective To determine the impact of pharmacy monitoring and intervention on adherence to and appropriate implementation of IV UFH protocol. Setting A 438 bed hospital specializing in cardiac services. Methods This is a retrospective chart review study. Pre-pharmacy intervention data were collected from November 2013 to January 2014 and compared to post-pharmacy intervention data obtained between August 2014 and October 2014. Patients were included if they received IV UFH for at least 24 hours. The first three daytime laboratory draws were collected for each patient and analyzed using generalized estimating equations to quantify the association between pharmacy monitoring and adherence to the institution’s protocol. Main outcome measures Designation of appropriate protocol, accurate selection of initial infusion rate, timing of anti-Xa levels within 60 min of anticipated due time, change of infusion rate within 120 min of laboratory result, and appropriate adjustment of infusion rates. Results A total of 195 data points were included. The initial selection of infusion rate and subsequent adjustments were more appropriate in the post-intervention period with an odds ratio of 8.36 (95% CI 2.41–29.01, p value = 0.0008), and 4.66 (95% CI 1.41–15.43, p value = 0.0118), respectively. Conclusion The results of this study indicate that pharmacy monitoring of IV UFH therapy has improved adherence to an institution’s protocol and is associated with more accurate selection of initial infusion rates and adjustment of infusions based upon laboratory results.
Malala: the story of a Muslim girl and a Muslim nation

ABSTRACTIn this article, we analyze the coverage of Malala in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal to explore how these influential media sources characterize Islam and Pakistan to tell Malala’s story. Our discourse analysis reveals how these newspapers construct Malala’s status as a global icon as an embodiment of her subject position as a girl. This media discourse mobilizes Malala’s agency in relation to her potential as an individual whereas her vulnerability as a young girl is presented in reference to her Muslim heritage and culture. Malala’s image as a global icon, thus, is produced through approaching her as an agent in a culture where girls are vulnerable victims of patriarchy. Through focusing on this media discourse, this article argues that Malala’s image as a global icon of girls’ education has become a site to reinsert, rather than challenge, the dominant images about Islam and Muslim societies.
The United States: Perjury, The Public, and The Passport

Lastly, the comparatively belated response of the United States is assessed in Chapter Six. Only in the late 1970s did the necessary alignment of political and social factors emerge to trigger a revisitation of Nazi crimes by American justice authorities: the devalorization of the victims of Communism amid a population growing weary of the Cold War and the roughly simultaneous breakthrough of the Holocaust into public consciousness. In the 1980s, in concert with native right-wing allies, the American Latvian exile community pushed back against efforts to try and deport immigrants who had falsely claimed not to have taken part in Nazi persecution. The result was illustrative of the relationship between the public and the judiciary in a free and pluralistic society.
Low Beam Energy SEM

The incident beam energy is one of the most useful parameters over which the microscopist has control because it determines the lateral and depth sampling of the specimen properties by the critical imaging signals. The Kanaya–Okayama electron range varies strongly with the incident beam energy: $$ {R}_{K-O}(nm)=\left(27.6\ A/{Z}^{0.89}\rho \right){E_0}^{1.67} $$ where A is the atomic weight (g/mol), Z is the atomic number, ρ is the density (g/cm3), and E0 (keV) is the incident beam energy, which is shown graphically in Fig. 11.1a–c.
Water Quality and Brain Function

In the United States, regulations are in place to ensure the quality of drinking water. Such precautions are intended to safeguard the health of the population. However, regulatory guidelines may at times fail to achieve their purpose. This may be due to lack of sufficient data regarding the health hazards of chronic low dose exposure to contaminants or the introduction of new substances that pose a health hazard risk that has yet to be identified. In this review, examples of different sources of contaminants in drinking water will be discussed, followed by an evaluation of some select individual toxicants with known adverse neurological impact. The ability of mixtures to potentially cause additive, synergistic, or antagonistic neurotoxic responses will be briefly addressed. The last section of the review will provide examples of select mechanisms by which different classes of contaminants may lead to neurological impairments. The main objective of this review is to bring to light the importance of considering trace amounts of chemicals in the drinking water and potential brain abnormalities. There is continued need for toxicology studies to better understand negative consequences of trace amounts of toxins and although it is beyond the scope of this brief overview it is hoped that the review will underscore the paucity of studies focused on determining how long-term exposure to minute levels of contaminants in drinking water may pose a significant health hazard.
CDS in Disk-Containment Graphs

Disk-containment graphs are generalizations of the unit disk graphs. Consider a finite planar set V of nodes. Each node v is associated with a disk of radius r v centered at v. The disk-containment graph (DCG) of V is the undirected graph \(G = \left (V,E\right )\) in which uv ∈ E if and only if the disk-associated u contains v and disk-associated v contains u. In other words, uv ∈ E if and only if the Euclidean distance between u and v is no more than \(\min \left \{{r}_{u},{r}_{v}\right \}\). When all the disks associated with the nodes in V have unit radius, then the DCG of V is exactly the UDG of V. The DCG arises naturally from communication topologies of multihop wireless networks with disparate communication ranges [102, 124]. Indeed, if V represents the set of nodes in a multihop wireless network and each r v represents the communication radius of the node v, the DCG of V is exactly the symmetric communication topology of the multihop wireless network.
Estuarine abandoned channel sedimentation rates record peak fluvial discharge magnitudes

Abstract Fluvial sediment deposits can provide useful records of integrated watershed expressions including flood event magnitudes. However, floodplain and estuarine sediment deposits evolve through the interaction of watershed/marine sediment supply and transport characteristics with the local depositional environment. Thus extraction of watershed scale signals depends upon accounting for local scale effects on sediment deposition rates and character. This study presents an examination of the balance of fluvial sediment dynamics and local scale hydro-geomorphic controls on alluviation of an abandoned channel in the Salinas River Lagoon, CA. A set of three sediment cores contained discrete flood deposits that corresponded to the largest flood events over the period of accretion from 1969 to 2007. Sedimentation rates scaled with peak flood discharge and event scale sediment flux, but were not influenced by longer scale hydro-meteorological activities such as annual precipitation and water yield. Furthermore, the particle size distributions of flood deposits showed no relationship to event magnitudes. Both the responsiveness of sedimentation and unresponsiveness of particle size distributions to hydro-sedimentological event magnitudes appear to be controlled by aspects of local geomorphology that influence the connectivity of the abandoned channel to the Salinas River mainstem. Well-developed upstream plug bar formation precluded the entrainment of coarser bedload into the abandoned channel, while Salinas River mouth conditions (open/closed) in conjunction with tidal and storm surge conditions may play a role in influencing the delivery of coarser suspended load fractions. Channel adjacent sediment deposition can be valuable records of hydro-meteorological and sedimentological regimes, but local depositional settings may dominate the character of short term (interdecadal) signatures.
NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE IS ASSOCIATED WITH ONSET OF ATRIAL FIBRILLATION AT A YOUNGER AGE: A NATIONWIDE STUDY

The incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been rising partly in consequence to the rising obesity epidemic. Previous studies support the link between NAFLD and the onset of atrial fibrillation (AF). We aim to assess the impact of NAFLD on patients with AF, as data is limited on
Label-free bacteria detection using controllable microporous polyelectrolyte coated long-period fiber gratings (Conference Presentation)

A novel application of a highly sensitive biosensor based on long-period fiber gratings (LPFG) coated with microporous polyelectrolyte coating for Gram-negative bacteria detection was investigated. The uniform microporous coating with large surface area was fabricated with weak polyelectrolytes poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) via layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly, followed by a brief exposure to acidic aqueous solutions at pH=4. The diameter of the micropores could be adjusted in a wide range by thermal treatment and ionic etching. The effect of pore size and surface topography on bacteria adhesion was examinged. Optofluidic LPFG platform for real-time monitoring of the bacteria binding/ adhesion in a flowing condition was investigated by measuring the spectral shift in the resonance wavelength. The coated LPFG platform was further functionalized with covalently immobilized bacteria antibody for specific bacterial detection with a concentration as low as 104 CFU/ml. Comparing with the widely used biosensors based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR), no moving part or metal deposition is required in our biosensor, making it highly sensitive, accurate, compact and cost effective.
Die normale und gestörte Bakteriologie der Vagina

Die Literatur uber die normale und gestorte Mikrobiologie der Vagina ist schier unubersehbar, und trotzdem ist uber die Funktion der sog. Doderlein-Bakterien wenig Genaues bekannt, wie erst kurzlich von Spitzbart (1994) in einer Ubersicht dargestellt wurde.
Scatterometer-Derived Winds Over the QE II Storm

During the period 11, 12 September 1978 an intense extratropical storm carrying hurricane-force winds (≥ 64 kts) moved northeasterly from West Central through North Atlantic waters. Concurrently, the oceanliner Queen Elizabeth II (QE II) was inadvertently transiting this same area enroute on a westbound transatlantic crossing. Figure 1, a portion of the 11 September 78/1100 GMT Full Disk Visible image from the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES - East, gives an overall synoptic view of the cloud system associated with the QE II storm. Note the script-tau (г) cloud system configuration that typically is the signature of a well-developed, mature extratropical cyclone, now termed the QE II storm. To the south, tropical Storm Flossie, centered near 30.5N 47.5W, has just begun to merge with the tail of a wide-banded cold front that trails in a southwesterly spiral from the QE II storm. Figure 2, a portion of the Northern Hemisphere Surface Analysis Chart valid 1200 GMT, shows the analyzed structure of the storm and the ship’s position near 48.5N 39.3W. With waves at or above 50 feet and winds of 60 – 65 knots, damage to the starboard bow rails and port platform amounting in excess of $50,000 was incurred.
Stance and Transition Movement Effects on Marksmanship Performance of Expert Shooters During a Simulated Multiple Target Engagement Task

A primary Soldier skill is the ability to quickly and effectively acquire and engage threats. This research evaluates shooting stances and transition movements of expert shooters when conducting mu...
Clinical Cancer Advances 2005: Major Research Advances in Cancer Treatment, Prevention, and Screening—A Report From the American Society of Clinical Oncology

This year, for the first time, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is publishing Clinical Cancer Advances 2005: Major Research Advances in Cancer Treatment, Prevention, and Screening, an annual review of the most significant clinical research presented or published over the past year across all cancer types. ASCO embarked on this project to provide the public, patients, policymakers, and physicians with an accessible summary of the year's most important research advances. While not intended to serve as a comprehensive review, this report provides a year-end snapshot of research that will have the greatest impact on patient care. As you will read, there is much good news from the front lines of cancer research. These pages report on new chemotherapy regimens that sharply reduce the risk of recurrence for very common cancers; the "coming of age" of targeted cancer therapies; promising studies of drugs to prevent cancer; and improvements in quality of life for people living with the disease, among many other advances. Survival rates for cancer are on the rise, increasing from 50% to 64% over the last 30 years. Cancer still exacts an enormous toll, however. Nearly 1.4 million Americans will be diagnosed this year, and some 570,000 will die of the disease. Clearly, more research is needed to find effective therapies for the most stubborn cancer types and stages. We need to know more about the long-term effects of newer, more targeted cancer therapies, some of which need to be taken over long periods of time. And we need to devote far greater attention to tracking and improving the care of the nearly 10 million cancer survivors in the United States today. Despite these and other challenges, the message of this report is one of hope. Through the dedicated, persistent pursuit of clinical research and participation in clinical trials by people with cancer, we steadily uncover new and better ways of treating, diagnosing, and preventing a disease that touches the lives of so many. I want to thank the Editorial Board members, the Specialty Editors, and the ASCO Cancer Communications Committee for their dedicated work to develop this report, and I hope you find it useful.
Do Simpler Models Exist and How Can We Find Them

While the trend in machine learning has tended towards more complex hypothesis spaces, it is not clear that this extra complexity is always necessary or helpful for many domains. In particular, models and their predictions are often made easier to understand by adding interpretability constraints. These constraints shrink the hypothesis space; that is, they make the model simpler. Statistical learning theory suggests that generalization may be improved as a result as well. However, adding extra constraints can make optimization (exponentially) harder. For instance it is much easier in practice to create an accurate neural network than an accurate and sparse decision tree. We address the following question: Can we show that a simple-but-accurate machine learning model might exist for our problem, before actually finding it? If the answer is promising, it would then be worthwhile to solve the harder constrained optimization problem to find such a model. In this talk, I present an easy calculation to check for the possibility of a simpler model. This calculation indicates that simpler-but-accurate models do exist in practice more often than you might think. I then briefly overview several new methods for interpretable machine learning. These methods are for (i) sparse optimal decision trees, (ii) sparse linear integer models (also called medical scoring systems), and (iii) interpretable case-based reasoning in deep neural networks for computer vision.
Significance of myeloid-derived suppressor cells in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

6070 Background: Patients with advanced stage squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) have less than 50% 5-year survival rate Human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated SCCHN in oropharynge...
Ask about smoking, not quitting: a chronic disease approach to assessing and treating tobacco use.

Tobacco use is a chronic relapsing disease, and remains the leading cause of preventable death in much of the world. Increasingly, tobacco use, chiefly cigarette smoking, is being framed as a chronic disease, with periods of use and periods of abstinence. An implicit component of this conceptualization is that treatment—both counseling and pharmacotherapy—may be needed at various intervals for extended periods of time, perhaps over an individual’s lifetime. This would mirror the treatment of other chronic conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension, or hyperlipidemia. Yet, clinical trials of tobacco dependence treatment still generally model outcome measures in terms of cessation, abstinence, or quitting, measured at discrete time points. This reinforces the notion that smoking, or tobacco dependence, is a dichotomous condition, and that one is either “cured,” or not. Although the goal of treating tobacco dependence is to ensure long-term abstinence (i.e. “quitting”), this model is discordant with clinical reality, in which of periods of tobacco use are interspersed with periods of abstinence. Hence, the goal of treatment is to lengthen the duration of the latter, while shortening the duration of the former. In the clinical arena, this dichotomous model of tobacco use is reflected in electronic health records, where smoking is generally categorized as current, former, or never. We propose that clinicians move away from the dichotomous categorization of tobacco use, and adopt methods used to categorize the status of other chronic conditions. Specifically, biomarkers such as carbon monoxide, cotinine, and anabasine, measured at regular intervals, can provide clinicians with much clearer, clinically relevant and actionable assessments of current tobacco use by their patients. This can be done without making reference to dichotomous states such as current or former use of tobacco. In psychological terms, one can frame tobacco use in terms of states, attributes in specific situations at discrete moments in time, rather than the more durable traits.
Analysis and Comparison of the LDPC and Reed Solomon Encodings in Mitigating the Impact of Clipping Noise in OFDM-Based VLC

The linear error-correcting codes are known to be well suited for battling and correcting the burst errors caused by noise in the wireless data transmission system. However, different types of codes offer different decoding and burst-error-correcting capabilities. This paper compares the Low-Density-Parity Check (LDPC) and Reed Solomon (RS) encoding schemes in battling and correcting the burst error caused by the clipping distortion occurred due to the dynamic range constraints in an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) based Visible Light Communication (VLC). The unipolar conversion applied to the output of the multiplexer in this system results in a clipping noise which distorts the data symbols on the subcarriers in OFDM block. Considering that such distortion impacts the data symbol on each subcarrier differently, RS and LDP are used to encode the data block before being modulated for mapping the OFDM block. In order to control the extreme value of the output of the multiplexer, the transmitter applies puncturing to the generated codeword before mapping OFDM subcarriers, leaving the corresponding subcarriers of the punctured symbols empty. This will lead to the reduction of clipping events in the optical front-end and will mitigate the impact of nonlinear distortion on the modulated symbols for the occupied subcarriers. The redundancy in the codeword generated by the encoder is used not only to control the clipping probability by shortening the number of active subcarriers but also for the reconstruction of the original codeword and correction of the errors caused by channel noise. This work investigates the ability of LDCP and RS encoders in battling the effects of clipping noise in the frequency domain and compares their performances in improving the bit error ratio (BER) performance of an OFDM-based VLC.
High-Sensitivity Magnetic Sensors Based on GMI Microwire-SAW IDT Design

This work presents a design approach for a highly sensitive, miniaturized magnetic sensor. The design makes use of GMI microwires and a multi-electrode SAW IDT. The use of SAW IDTs allows for the magnetic effect of the GMI microwire to be measured through the transduction process. This approach permits simultaneous measurement at different frequencies of operation, enabling highly sensitive measurement over a wide range of magnetic fields. This technique may find application in magnetic sensing for non-invasive battery SOC measurement.
Tests of Acoustic Target Strength and Bubble Dissolution Models Using a Synthetic Bubble Generator

AbstractTo test methods used for converting observations of acoustic backscatter to estimates of the volume and transport of free gas escaping the seabed, a bubble generator has been constructed an...
DATA COLLECTION SYSTEM FOR TRANSIT BUSES

A breadboard of an Operational Data Collection System (ODCS) was constructed to collect passenger, revenue, mileage, and identification data from onboard transit buses. The data was stored on standard Phillips magnetic cassettes for later processing. The collection and storage unit (data collector) was assembled with off-the-shelf microprocessor components and some interface circuitry. The software was organized as a group of independent processors that were simulated via the interrupt system of the microprocessor Central Processor Unit. Each processor was associated with one of the physical units of ODCS, such as the registering fare box or the automatic passenger counter, and may be perceived as an extension to the physical unit.
The physiological control of durational differences between vowels preceding voiced and voiceless consonants in English

Abstract: A series of two electromyographic experiments was designed to determine the nature of the muscular activity underlying the articulation of CVC syllables in which identical vowels differed in duration because of the voicing characteristic of the consonant which followed them. Results indicate that the most reasonable hypothesis explaining the durational differences is the one which posits a sustention of muscular activity in the articulatory gesture of the vowel preceding voiced consonants, relative to the gesture for vowels preceding voiceless consonants. It is noted that the acoustically determined differences between vowels, the differences between the durations of the muscular-articulatory gestures for the vowels, and the temporal displacement of the final consonant peaks generally show remarkably similar values.
Building Explainable Predictive Analytics for Location-Dependent Time-Series Data

There are increasing numbers of online sources of real-time and historical location-dependent time-series data describing various types of environmental phenomena, e.g., traffic conditions and air quality levels. When coupled with the information that characterizes the natural and built environments, these location-dependent time-series data can help better understand interactions between and within human social systems and the ecosystem. Nevertheless, these data are still limited by their spatial and temporal resolution for downstream use (e.g., generating residential-level environmental exposures for human health studies). In this paper, we present a vision of a general machine learning framework for explainable predictive analytics for location-dependent time-series data. The framework will effectively deal with data-and model-related challenges for general scientific predictive analytics on spatiotemporal environmental phenomena. The challenges include how to identify the main features driving the phenomena, how to handle complex spatiotemporal variations in the phenomena, and how to utilize sparse ground truth measurements for training and validation. The resulting framework will enable fine spatial and temporal scale environmental exposure assessment and allow researchers to carry out unprecedented inquiries, such as understanding relationships between health outcomes and long-term air pollution exposures.
How very massive atrocities end: A dataset and typology:

Understanding how the most severe mass atrocities have historically come to an end may aid in designing policy interventions to more rapidly terminate future episodes. To facilitate research in thi...
MRECN: mixed representation enhanced (de)compositional network for caption generation from visual features, modeling as pseudo tensor product representation

Semantic feature composition from image features has a drawback because it is unable to capture the content of the captions and failed to evolve as longer and meaningful captions. In this paper, we have proposed improvements on semantic features that can generate and evolve captions through the new approach called mixed fusion of representations and decomposition. Semantic works on the principle of using CNN visual features to generate context-word distribution and use that to generate captions using language decoder. Generated semantics are used for captioning, but have limitations. We have introduced a far better and newer approach with an enhanced representation-based network known as mixed representation enhanced (de)compositional network (MRECN), which can help produce better and different content for captions. As denoted from the results (0.351 BLUE_4), it has outperformed most of the state of the art. We defined a better feature decoding scheme using learned networks, which establishes an incoherence of related words into captions. From our research, we have come to some important conclusions regarding mixed representation strategies as it emerges as the most viable and promising way of representing the relationships of the sophisticated features for decision making and complex applications like the image to natural languages.