cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The meaning of default options for potential organ donors

Rates of participation in organ donation programs are known to be powerfully influenced by the relevant default policy in effect (“opt-in” vs. “opt-out”). Three studies provide evidence that this difference in participation may occur in part because the requirement to opt-in or opt-out results in large differences in the meaning that individuals attach to participation. American participants in Study 1 rated participation as a significantly more substantial action when agreement was purportedly obtained under opt-in rather than opt-out conditions, and nonagreement as a greater abrogation of responsibility when that decision was made under opt-out rather than under opt-in conditions. Study 2 replicated these findings with respondents who live in Germany, which employs an opt-in donation policy, and in Austria, which has an opt-out policy. Study 3 required American participants to rate various actions that differ in the effort and self-sacrifice they demand. As predicted, the placement of organ donation on the resulting multidimensional scaling dimension differed significantly depending on whether it purportedly was made in an opt-in country (where it was considered roughly akin to giving away half of one’s wealth to charity upon one’s death) or an opt-out country (where it fell between letting others get ahead of one in line and volunteering some time to help the poor). We discuss the relationship between this change of meaning account and two other mechanisms—behavioral inertia and implicit norms—that we believe underlie the default effect in decision making and other effects of policies designed to influence decision-makers.
Melanocyte colonization of oral squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract This is a report of squamous carcinomas of the oral mucosa which have been colonized by benign melanocytes. In some tumors, melanocytes undergo hyperplasia and are found not only within the in situ portions of tumors but also in the infiltrative portion. Literature is cited which indicates that benign melanocytes may also colonize intravascular tumor emboli and metastatic foci.
Identifying patients at risk for prostate-cancer-specific mortality: implications for clinical trial design.

Identifying patients at risk for prostate-cancer-specific mortality: implications for clinical trial design
Early, continuous, and restorative pain management in injured soldiers: the challenge ahead.

Saving the lives of soldiers who sustain traumatic injuries in military combat tests the ingenuity, resourcefulness, and courage of medical teams on the battlefield and during and after transport to theater hospitals and to military hospitals in the United States. When considering the human meaning of these life-saving interventions, enthusiasm must be tempered by the reality of the enormous challenge of restoring survivors to a meaningful and productive life. Rehabilitation must occur in the face of physical and psychological functional limitations, in some cases catastrophic, for which there are no easy solutions. Blast injuries may cause visual and hearing impairment, severe burns, and cognitive deficits. Even without these comorbidities, soldiers surviving combat injuries are at high risk for developing post-traumatic neurobehavioral consequences of battlefield trauma, such as neuropathic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Thus, the priority of saving lives must be closely followed by the imperative to minimize the incidence and severity of these consequences, with the goal of maximizing the soldier's chances of a useful and rewarding life after recovery, whether as a civilian or in the military. The severest battlefield injuries rightly draw most of our attention. However, a far larger group of soldiers incur noncombat-related day-to-day injuries and psychological trauma when deployed to war theaters, which can themselves lead to disabling chronic pain and psychological morbidity. The day-to-day physical wear and tear of military duty may also be accompanied by emotional stress of daily or episodic exposures to hostile environments and horrendous injuries and death of fellow soldiers and civilians. These soldiers also deserve the longitudinal care that will increase their chances of a successful recovery to a reasonable quality of …
A computational model of aquatic animal locomotion

Abstract A computational model of the swimming of a neutrally buoyant organism undergoing deformations within a region of fluid is presented. The fluid is regarded as viscous and incompressible and the organism as a massless, elastic boundary immersed in this fluid. Fluid quantities are represented on a grid (Eulerian description), and the immersed boundary is represented by a discrete collection of moving points (Lagrangian description). Computed results are presented, along with comparisons with previous asymptotic analysis.
A data flow language for operating systems programming

This paper describes a graphical programming language based on the concept of pure data flow sequencing of computations. Programs in this language are constructed through function definition and composition, and are based on the primitive notions of iteration, recursion, conditional expression, data replication, aggregation and selection, and the usual arithmetic and logical operations. Various useful programming devices such as the DO loop and, surprisingly, the memory cell are defined in terms of these primitives. Programs in this language are determinate in operation unless indeterminism is explicitly introduced. The utility of this language for designing and implementing operating systems is discussed.
Synthesis of variance.

The distribution of a linear combination of two statistics distributed as is Chi-square is studied. The degree of approximation involved in assuming a Chi-square distribution is illustrated for several representative cases. It is concluded that the approximation is sufficiently accurate to use in many practical applications. Illustrations are given of its use in extending the Chi-square, the Student “t” and the Fisher “z” tests to a wider range of problems.
Dynamic Cross-linking by α-Actinin Determines the Mechanical Properties of Actin Filament Networks

We used smooth muscle alpha-actinin to evaluate the contribution of cross-linker dynamics to the mechanical properties of actin filament networks. Recombinant actin-binding domain (residues 2-269) binds actin filaments with a Kd of 1 microM at 25 degrees C, 20 times stronger than actin-binding domain produced by thermolysin digestion of native alpha-actinin (residues 25-257). Between 8 and 25 degrees C the rate constants for recombinant actin-binding domain to bind to (0.8-2.7 microM-1 s-1) and dissociate from (0.2-2.4 s-1) actin filaments depend on temperature. At 8 degrees C actin filaments cross-linked with alpha-actinin are stiff and nearly solid, whereas at 25 degrees C the mechanical properties approach those of actin filaments alone. In these experiments, high actin concentrations kept most of the alpha-actinin bound to actin and temperature varied a single parameter, cross-linker dynamics, because the mechanical properties of pure actin filaments (a viscoelastic gel) or biotinylated actin filaments cross-linked irreversibly by avidin (a stiff viscoelastic solid) depend little on temperature. These results show that the rate of exchange of dynamic cross-links between actin filaments is an important determinant of the mechanical properties of the networks.
A look inside the Juno Mission to Jupiter

Juno, the second mission within the New Frontiers Program, is a Jupiter polar orbiter mission designed to return high-priority science data that spans across multiple divisions within NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Juno's science objectives, coupled with the natural constraints of a cost-capped, PI-led mission and the harsh environment of Jupiter, have led to a very unique mission and spacecraft design. The mission and spacecraft design accommodates the required payload suite of instruments in a way that maximizes science data collection and return, maintains a simplified orbital operations approach, and meets the many challenges associated with operating a spin-stabilized, solar-powered spacecraft in Jupiter's high radiation and magnetic environment. The project's efforts during the preliminary design phase have resulted in an integrated design and operations approach that meets all science objectives, retains significant technical, schedule and cost margins, and has retired key risks and challenges. As a result, Juno has been authorized to proceed with the detailed design phase and work toward an August 2011 launch.
Recertification in the United States.

Editorial by Buckley From the creation of the first board (in ophthalmology) in 1917 to the late 1960s, the specialty boards in the United States focused exclusively on initial certification. With its inception in 1969, however, the American Board of Family Practice limited the validity of its certificates to seven years, and since then other boards have followed suit, some after attempting voluntary processes that ultimately failed. Of the 24 boards that are members of the American Board of Medical Specialties all have limited, or plan to limit, the duration of validity of their certificates to seven to 10 years.1 According to Benson, the goals of recertification are to improve the care of patients, to set standards for the practice of medicine, to encourage continued learning, and to reassure patients and the public that doctors remain competent throughout their careers.2 To meet these goals, an ideal programme for recertification should have three components for evaluation.3–5 Firstly, to ensure that doctors are providing good care in practice an assessment of patient outcomes is needed. Secondly, to ensure that doctors are aware of recent advances in medicine and have the potential to treat the broad range of less frequent but medically important problems an evaluation of medical knowledge and judgment is needed. Thirdly, to ensure that doctors exhibit professionalism a review of credentials (for example, a valid licence and attestation of competence from the hospital or other local authorities) and the judgments of peers and patients are needed. The assessment of patient outcomes is the most important component of a recertification programme. It directly reassures the public that doctors are performing well, and it is tailored to practice so it offers evaluation of what doctors actually do, rather than what they do in an artificial testing situation. …
Evaluation of sampling for data mining of association rules

The discovery of association rules is a prototypical problem in data mining. The current algorithms proposed for data mining of association rules make repeated passes over the database to determine the commonly occurring item sets (or set of items). For large databases, the I/O overhead in scanning the database can be extremely high. The authors show that random sampling of transactions in the database is an effective method for finding association rules. Sampling can speed up the mining process by more than an order of magnitude by reducing I/O costs and drastically shrinking the number of transactions to be considered. They may also be able to make the sampled database resident in main-memory. Furthermore, they show that sampling can accurately represent the data patterns in the database with high confidence. They experimentally evaluate the effectiveness of sampling on different databases, and study the relationship between the performance, accuracy, and confidence of the chosen sample.
Influence of Comorbidity on the Outcome of Patients Treated for Out-of-Hospital Ventricular Fibrillation

Background A number of factors have previously been shown to be predictive of survival from out-of-hospital ventricular fibrillation. These include witnessed collapse, prompt initiation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, early application of defibrillation, and younger age. Arrests occurring away from home are also associated with improved survival. Additionally, hospital mortality after successful resuscitation has been related to a history of congestive heart failure as well as to some of the factors noted above. An association of prearrest comorbidity with outcome has not been systematically evaluated. Methods and Results We define here a comorbidity index, which is constructed from histories of chronic conditions as well as a number of recent symptoms in 282 victims of out-of-hospital VF. This indicator of comorbidity is strongly associated with outcome (P=.004). However, when analyzing a comprehensive set of predictors of survival after out-of-hospital ventricular fibrillation, including the index of ...
Nuclear waste disposal and rock mechanics: contributions of the Underground Research Laboratory (URL), Pinawa, Manitoba, Canada

Abstract This paper introduces the Journal's Special Issue on the contributions that Canada's Underground Research Laboratory (URL) has made to rock mechanics. Following an explanation of the nuclear waste background, the technical challenge of disposing of the waste is outlined together with the role of underground research laboratories. The concepts of scale, time and modes of failure are discussed. The contributions of the Canadian URL are then summarized. The paper concludes with a postscript on the conclusions of the Seaborn Panel relating to the technical suitability of granite as a host rock for a waste repository.
Elevation of peripheral blood ammonia following muscular exercise.

Summary1. Peripheral blood ammonia concentrations were elevated following convulsions due to electroshock therapy in patients, convulsions in dogs due to metrazol, and active voluntary exercise in human subjects. 2. The possibility that increase in circulating blood ammonia may be a factor in hyperpnea of muscular exercise is discussed.
Kinetics of Neutrophils in Mice Exposed to Radiation and/or Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor Treatment

Astronauts have the potential to develop the hematopoietic syndrome as a result of exposure to radiation from a solar particle event (SPE) during exploration class missions. This syndrome is characterized by a reduction in the number of circulating blood cells (cytopenias). In the present study the effects of SPE-like proton and γ radiation on the kinetics of circulating neutrophils were evaluated during a one-month time period using mice as a model system. The results revealed that exposure to a 2 Gy dose of either SPE-like proton or γ radiation significantly decreased the number of circulating neutrophils, with two nadirs observed on day 4 and day 16 postirradiation. Low circulating neutrophil count (neutropenia) is particularly important because it can increase the risk of astronauts developing infections, which can compromise the success of the mission. Thus, two granulocyte colony-stimulating factors (G-CSFs), filgrastim and pegfilgrastim were evaluated as countermeasures for this endpoint. Both form...
ICA with multiple quadratic constraints

The independent component analysis (ICA) with a single quadratic constraint on each source signal or column of the mixing matrix is extended to the case of multiple quadratic constraints. The criterion of Joint Approximate Diagonalization of Eigen-matrices (JADE) is used to measure the statistical independence. A new algorithm is derived to maximize the JADE criterion subject to the multiple quadratic constraints, using the augmented Lagrangian method. The extension offers the freedom to design various combinations of quadratic constraints. Examples include simultaneously constraining a source signal and the corresponding column of the mixing matrix, and two-sided constraints on the source signals or columns of the mixing matrix. Example results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the algorithm.
Computational geometry column 58

This column is devoted to opaque sets also known as barriers. A set of curves Γ that meet every line which intersects a given convex body B is called an opaque set or barrier for B. Although the shape and length of shortest barriers for simple bodies, such as a unit equilateral triangle or a unit square are seldom disputed, no proof of optimality is known or appears to be even near in sight.
When Restrictive Constraints Are Nonbinding: Illustrations and Implications

For convex and concave mathematical programs restrictive constraints (i.e., their deletion would change the optimum) will always be binding at the optimum, and vice versa. Less well-known is the fact that this property does not hold more generally, even for problems with convex feasible sets. This paper demonstrates the latter fact using numerical illustrations of common classes of problems. It then discusses the implications for public policy analysis, econometric estimation, and solution algorithms.
Voltage stability and sensitivity analysis of grid-connected photovoltaic systems

Integration of significant amount of solar power challenges the power system stability operation. This paper presents analyses on the static and transient voltage characteristics at the point of common coupling of a grid-connected photovoltaic system. The static voltage response, known as a PV curve, for the photovoltaic system is analyzed. The voltage transient behaviors caused by the disturbance of parameters in photovoltaic generation system are also studied. In particular, we try to find out the impact of system parameters, such as temperature, solar irradiance, and load changes on the voltage stability. In addition, a method of voltage stability sensitivity analysis is presented for comparison between the impacts of different parameters on voltage stability.
On a so‐Called Solution to a Paradox

The mooronic solution to the surprise quiz paradox says students know there will be a surprise quiz one day this week but they lose this knowledge on the penultimate day. This is because ‘there will be a surprise quiz one day this week’ then becomes an instance of Moore's paradox. This view has surprising consequences. Furthermore, even though the surprise quiz announcement becomes an instance of Moore's paradox on the penultimate day, this does not prevent the students from knowing the quiz is coming. I conclude that the first stage of the paradoxical argument succeeds and the mooronic solution fails.
Rational Bezier patch differentiation using the rational forward difference operator

This paper introduces the rational forward difference operator for differential computation on a rational Bezier patch based on its control mesh. With this rational version of the forward difference operator, and by ignoring the appropriate dependent (on lower order derivatives) terms of various derivatives, the derivatives themselves have the same expressions as their polynomial counterparts; the curvature and torsion, and the first and second fundamental forms, all have very similar expressions as those equations from classical differential geometry. This new approach also allows straightforward generalization to higher dimensional rational Bezier patches, the special co-dimension 1 case of which is treated with the result of the first and second fundamental forms.
Francisella tularensis in the United States

The causative agent of tularemia, Francisella tularensis, is a formidable biologic agent that occurs naturally throughout North America. We examined genetic and spatial diversity patterns among 161 US F. tularensis isolates by using a 24-marker multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) system. MLVA identified 126 unique genotypes. Phylogenetic analyses showed patterns similar to recently reported global-scale analyses. We observed clustering by subspecies, low genetic diversity within F. tularensis subsp. holarctica, and division of F. tularensis subsp. tularensis into 2 distinct subpopulations: A.I. and A.II. The 2 F. tularensis subsp. tularensis subpopulations also represent geographically distinct groups; A.I. occurs primarily in the central United States, and A.II. occurs primarily in the western United States. These spatial distributions are correlated with geographic ranges of particular vectors, hosts of tularemia, and abiotic factors. These correlates provide testable hypotheses regarding ecologic factors associated with maintaining tularemia foci.
Leveraging higher education consortia for institutional advancement

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore conceptually the role of higher education consortia in facilitating the operational advancement of member institutions, and in enabling their development as learning organizations in a changing and competitive higher education environment.Design/methodology/approach – This article synthesizes the literature on higher education consortia and organizational learning and develops propositions to support future inquiry.Findings – While some institutions of higher education do indeed learn, the power that consortia hold to extend, expand, and exploit this learning may represent a vast, untapped resource. Through a better understanding of the role that consortium participation may play in organizational learning, a roadmap may be generated for higher education institutions to achieve the cultural and strategic shifts necessary to develop new directions for the delivery of educational content. This enhanced understanding also may help sustain the culture of, and ...
Effects of association on enthalpy of coal‐derived liquids: Cryoscopic molecular weight as a function of concentration

A major difficulty in estimating physical and thermophysical properties of petroleum fractions and coal-derived liquids is the fact that such mixtures represent an essentially infinite continua of components and as such they cannot be defined by component mole or mass fraction. In the petroleum industry, this problem has been overcome by the use of easy to measure characterization variables such as density (or API gravity) and the Watson Characterization Factor, K, which this paper defines.
Dynamics of pathological motion: Applied to the anterior cruciate deficient knee

The analysis of the dynamics of pathological motion can provide new and meaningful knowledge about musculoskeletal disorders. The application of the study of pathological ambulation to the analyses of clinical problems is analyzed and discussed. The importance of the selection of appropriate measurement protocols and variable selection is illustrated using an example of the evaluation of patients with an anterior cruciate deficient knee. In particular, the importance of the joint moment as a measure of normal and pathological ambulation is described. An example is provided from a study based on the analysis of 16 patients with unilateral anterior cruciate deficiency. Patients were studied during walking, jogging and ascending and descending stairs. The results are used to demonstrate the importance of testing activities of the knee (e.g. walking, jogging, stair-climbing) that stress the knees during different ranges of motion in order to differentiate functional adaptation associated with the anterior cruciate deficient knee. Results demonstrate that functional abnormalities occur during low stress activities such as level walking. Further, it appears that the functional adaptation occurring during these activities is associated with the anterior force generated on the tibia when the quadriceps contract and the knee is near full extension. It appears that locomotion patterns are reprogrammed to produce an adaptive gait in the majority of patients with anterior cruciate deficient knees.
Identity, Race and the State: Policing Black Sexuality

In contemporary news there have been several highly salient incidents where a black person has been shot and or killed by a police officer, security guard, or vigilante. But in actuality, in 2012 alone, there were 313 African American killed by police, security guards and vigilantes (Eisen, 2014). That is a rate of one African American killed every 28 hours (Eisen, 2014). With this in mind it is the oppressive state, that minority communities should be suspicious of. It is not the politics of the right or left that minorities should be leery of, it is white racist mythology manifested through state action. In order to control a group of people the state must use two things: law and force. We see the force in that there are roughly six blacks to every one white person incarcerated in the U.S and the extrajudicial killings but we do not focus enough on the law itself and the rationales and assumptions connected to them (Sentencing Project, 2012; Eisen, 2014). Cohen, Brown and Organski (1981) find that the expansion of state power is highly correlated with collective violence. I will show how these and other extralegal forms of policing black sexuality have persisted throughout history and how even today these extralegal killing of blacks have a sexual undertone and how public memory has been altered to [re]signify what these incidents mean. But most importantly I will show how the state has supported and continues to support the policing of black sexuality though public policy.
Single Crystal TaN Thin Films on TiN/Si Heterostructure

We have successfully grown epitaxial cubic (B1-NaCl structure) tantalum nitride films on Si (100) and (111) substrate using a pulsed laser deposition technique. A thin layer of titanium nitride was used as a buffer medium. We characterized these films using X-ray diffraction, high resolution transmission electron microscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy (Zcontrast). X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy confirmed the single crystalline nature of these films with cubic-on-cubic epitaxy. The epitaxial relations follow TaN(100)//TiN(100)//Si(100) on Si(100) and TaN(111)//TiN(111)//Si(111) on Si(111). We observed sharp interfaces of TaN/TiN and TiN/Si without any indication of interfacial reaction. Rutherford backscattering experiments showed these films to be slightly nitrogen deficient (TaN0.95). High precision electrical resistivity measurements showed excellent metallic nature of these films. We also tried to deposit TaN directly on silicon, the films were found to be polycrystalline. In our method, TiN plays a key role in facilitating the epitaxial growth of TaN. This method exploits the concept of lattice matching epitaxy between TaN and TiN and domain matching epitaxy between TiN and Si. We studied the diffusion barrier properties of these films by growing a thin layer of copper on the top and subsequently annealing the films at 500°C and 600°C in vacuum. Cu diffusion layer was about 2nm after 600°C annealing for 30min. This work explores a promising way to grow high quality TaN diffusion barrier on silicon for copper interconnection.
Effects of star‐shaped poly(alkyl methacrylate) arm uniformity on lubricant properties

Star-shaped poly(alkyl methacrylate)s (PAMAs) were prepared and blended into an additive-free engine oil to assess the structure property relationship between macromolecular structure and lubricant performance. These additives were designed with a comparable number of repeating units per arm and the number of arms was varied between 3 and 6. Well-defined star-shaped PAMAs were synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) via a core-first strategy from multi-functional headgroups. Observations of the polymer-oil blends suggest that stars with less than four arms are favorable as a viscosity index improver (VII), and molecular weight dominates viscosity-related effects over other structural features. Star-shaped PAMAs, as oil additives, effectively reduce the friction coefficient in both mixed and boundary lubrication regime. Several analogs outperformed commercial VIIs in both viscosity and friction performance. Furthermore, increased wear rates were observed for these star-shaped PAMAs in the boundary lubrication regime suggesting pressure-sensitive conformations may exist.
Overemphasized Costs and Underemphasized Benefits of Income Contingent Financing

Asymmetric information and moral hazard are often emphasized prominently in the literature studying income contingent financing, such as income contingent loans, graduate taxes, and, human capital contracts. I argue that both issues need not be as relevant in certain contexts. For instance, young students have information about themselves that those providing financing do not, but those financing likely have much more information about the job market and career prospects than young students. As for moral hazard, a short or medium horizon of payments need not be as distortionary as a lifelong horizon because the trade-off between leisure and work at the beginning of a graduate’s career should consider the impact of today’s work on the lifelong value of future earnings. Furthermore, some benefits of income contingent financing, in particular of human capital contracts, are not emphasized often enough. The biggest is the information — and consequent impact in behavior — that a competitively priced contract would provide regarding the future income prospects of studying at different higher education institutions, or following different fields of study.
Dual growth factor delivery from biofunctionalized allografts: Sequential VEGF and BMP-2 release to stimulate allograft remodeling.

Autografts have been shown to stimulate osteogenesis, osteoclastogenesis, and angiogenesis, and subsequent rapid graft incorporation. Large structural allografts, however, suffer from limited new bone formation and remodeling, both of which are directly associated with clinical failure due to non-unions, late graft fractures, and infections, making it a priority to improve large structural allograft healing. We have previously shown the osteogenic ability of a polymer-coated allograft that delivers bone morphogenetic protein-2 both in vitro and in vivo through both burst release and sustained release kinetics. In this study, we have demonstrated largely sequential delivery of bone morphogenetic protein-2 and vascular endothelial growth factor from the same coated allograft. Release data showed that loading both growth factors onto a polymeric coating with two different techniques resulted in short-term (95% release within 2 weeks) and long-term (95% release within 5 weeks) delivery kinetics. We have also demonstrated how released VEGF, traditionally associated with angiogenesis, can also provide a stimulus for allograft remodeling via resorption. Bone marrow derived mononuclear cells were co-cultured with VEGF released from the coated allograft and showed a statistically significant (p < 0.05) and dose dependent increase in the number of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive multinucleated osteoclasts. Functionality of these osteoclasts was assessed quantitatively and qualitatively by evaluating resorption pit area from both osteo-assay plates and harvested bone. Data indicated a statistically significant higher resorption area from the cells exposed to VEGF released from the allografts over controls (p < 0.05). These results indicate that by using different loading protocols temporal control can be achieved when delivering multiple growth factors from a polymer-coated allograft. Further, released VEGF can also stimulate osteoclastogenesis that may enhance allograft incorporation, and thus mitigate long-term clinical complications. © 2017 Orthopedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 35:1086-1095, 2017.
Educational assessment of the adult with congenital heart disease

Adults with congenital heart disease (CHD) have specific educational needs that are influenced by a variety of factors. This article identifies and discusses learning needs and factors that impact educational outcomes for the adult CHD patient population. Assessment techniques and an assessment tool are presented to guide the nurse through the process of assessing an adult patient seeking health care for this disease.
Deeper Insights into the Allosteric Modulation of Ionotropic Glutamate Receptors

Two articles in this issue of Neuron (Yelshanskaya et al., 2016; Yi et al., 2016) explore the structural basis of allosteric inhibition in ionotropic glutamate receptors, providing key insights into how iGluRs function in the brain as well as how they might be pharmacologically modulated in neurological disorders and disease.
Latent classes of polydrug use and associations with HIV risk behaviors and overdose among people who inject drugs in Tijuana, Mexico

Author(s): Meacham, Meredith C; Roesch, Scott; Strathdee, Steffanie; Gonzalez-Zuniga, Patricia; Gaines, Tommi
Spectrum of disease associated with partial lipodystrophy: lessons from a trial cohort

SummaryContext Partial lipodystrophy (PL) is associated with metabolic co-morbidities but may go undiagnosed as the disease spectrum is not fully described. Objective The objective of the study was to define disease spectrum in PL using genetic, clinical (historical, morphometric) and laboratory characteristics. Design Cross-sectional evaluation. Participants Twenty-three patients (22 with familial, one acquired, 78·3% female, aged 12–64 years) with PL and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Measurements Genetic, clinical and laboratory characteristics, body composition indices, liver fat content by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), histopathological and immunofluorescence examinations of liver biopsies. Results Seven patients displayed heterozygous pathogenic variants in LMNA. Two related patients had a heterozygous, likely pathogenic novel variant of POLD1 (NM002691·3: c.3199 G>A; p.E1067K). Most patients had high ratios (>1·5) of percentage fat trunk to percentage fat legs (FMR) when compared to reference normals. Liver fat quantified using MR Dixon method was high (11·3 ± 6·3%) and correlated positively with haemoglobin A1c and triglycerides while leg fat by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) correlated negatively with triglycerides. In addition to known metabolic comorbidities; chronic pain (78·3%), hypertension (56·5%) and mood disorders (52·2%) were highly prevalent. Mean NAFLD Activity Score (NAS) was 5 ± 1 and 78·3% had fibrosis. LMNA-immunofluorescence staining from select patients (including one with the novel POLD1 variant) showed a high degree of nuclear atypia and disorganization. Conclusions Partial lipodystrophy is a complex multi-system disorder. Metabolic parameters correlate negatively with extremity fat and positively with liver fat. DEXA-based FMR may prove useful as a diagnostic tool. Nuclear disorganization and atypia may be a common biomarker even in the absence of pathogenic variants in LMNA.
Theories of Adult Development: Creating a Context for Practice:

The assumptions of life-cycle theorists can serve as a basis for reappraising the theoretical underpinnings of practice and establishing a larger context for intervention with adults. A theory of a...
Media exposure and political participation in a transitional African context

Abstract Legal changes in the 1990s resulted in greater pluralism in African media, particularly FM radio. Theorists have long argued that media freedoms are necessary for democratic development, but effects on individual-level orientations and behaviors have not been fully explored. Specifically, there has been limited work on the effects of radio exposure on political participation in Africa, and individuals’ self-selection of the media they consume complicates the measurement of causal effects. However, the fact that access to FM radio signals is largely exogenously determined provides a possible identification strategy. Here, data on station technicalities and local topography are used to predict FM propagation in Uganda soon after the implementation of media liberalization. Analyses of results from an Afrobarometer survey demonstrate that radio exposure is significantly associated with higher self-reported political participation. With regard to mechanisms, there is no evidence that exposure is associated with significantly greater efficacy, interest in politics, attitudinal extremism, or perceptions about distributional politics or violence, but those who listened to the radio with greater frequency were more knowledgeable about politics.
Scala Tympani Vasculature and Possible Vascular Injury During Cochlear Implantation

The venous blood vessels of the scala tympani are largely unprotected by bone and therefore vulnerable to injury during cochlear implantation. Mechanical trauma to those vessels during implant surgery may contribute to loss of residual hearing.
Saudi novice undergraduate nursing students' perception of satisfaction and self-confidence with high-fidelity simulation: A quantitative descriptive study

Introduction: High-fidelity simulation (HFS) has recently been used for undergraduate nursing students to simplify their learning. The aim of the current study was to explore Saudi novice nursing students perceptions of satisfaction and self-confidence with HFS and to determine if there is any correlation between participants' demographic characteristics and satisfaction and self-confidence learning scale. Methods: A descriptive quantitative study was performed to recruit Saudi participants through Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission (SACM). Data were collected over a 3-month period from February, 2017 to May, 2017 through online survey was posted on SACM's official Facebook page. The survey used the Student Satisfaction and Self-Confidence in Learning tool. A total of (n = 76) Saudi undergraduate nursing students were participated. Data were analyzed using SPSS. Results: The findings revealed that satisfaction and self-confidence had a high mean score which indicates that the majority of the students were satisfied and self-confidence with the HFS experience. No significant correlations were found between the demographic characteristics and student satisfaction and self-confidence except that those who are in the prelicensure program had a significantly higher satisfaction score (P = 0.03) than students who had a bachelor or other degrees. Furthermore, a strong correlation between students' satisfaction and self-confidence in learning was found (P
How do geriatric patients recover from surgery

ABSTRACT:Age is often a marker for comorbid illnesses that may complicate attempts at surgical intervention. Careful selection is important in deciding to recommend surgery for geriatric patients, but selected elderly patients may even benefit from major surgery. Ancillary services, such as nutritio
Blood-building foods in contemporary Chinese populations.

According to ancient Chinese medicine, “weak blood” is a yin condition that occurs during growth, pregnancy, the postpartum period, and old age. Treatment requires use of special foods that are “yang” in nature. This article investigated the use of such blood-building foods in seven contemporary Chinese populations throughout the world. Analysis of questionnaires from 379 respondents indicated that high-protein foods, such as pork liver and other meats, were recommended most often. Although these and other foods recommended were primarily yang, only 8.1% of respondents considered weak blood a “yin” condition. Comparison of 717 responses concerning foods that should be used to treat weak blood showed more similarities than differences between Chinese populations in different parts of the world. Strong adherence to cultural practices was also evident. Self-diagnosis and self-prescription are common modes of treating symptoms in the Chinese and other cultures. Knowledge of beneficial food-related health practices can enable practitioners to counsel their clients more effectively and to develop bilingual educational materials that incorporate familiar cultural practices. J Am Diet Assoc 89:1122-1124, 1989.
Streamlining Control Flow Graph Construction with DCFlow

A control flow graph (CFG) is used to model possible paths through a program, and is an essential part of many program analysis algorithms. While programs to construct CFGs can be written in meta-programming languages such as Rascal, writing such programs is currently quite tedious. With the goal of streamlining this process, in this paper we present DCFlow, a domain-specific language and Rascal library for defining control flow rules and building control flow graphs. Control flow rules in DCFlow are defined declaratively, based directly on the abstract syntax of the language under analysis and a number of operations representing types of control flow. Standard Rascal code is then generated based on the DCFlow definition. This code makes use of the DCFlow libraries to build CFGs for programs, which can then be visualized or used inside program analysis algorithms. To demonstrate the design of DCFlow we apply it to Pico—a very simple imperative language—and to a significant subset of PHP.
Averaging the Closest Two out of Three Observations

The average of 3 observations is the standard method of estimating the location of their distribution. The average of the closest 2 out of 3 observations, although often used, has more variability than the average of all 3 observations for a standard normal distribution. One statistic uses a threshold to decide when to use the average of all 3 observations rather than the closest 2. With the standard normal, this statistic still has more variability than the average of all 3 observations.
Impact of Medical Scribes on Provider Efficiency in the Pediatric Emergency Department.

OBJECTIVES Today's emergency department (ED) providers spend a significant amount of time on medical record documentation, decreasing clinical productivity. One proposed solution is to utilize medical scribes who assist with documentation. We hypothesized that scribes would increase provider productivity and increase provider satisfaction without affecting patient experience or nursing satisfaction. METHODS We conducted an observational pre-post study comparing ED prescribe and postscribe clinical productivity metrics for 18 pediatric emergency medicine physicians, two general pediatricians, and two nurse practitioners working in the 12-bed nonurgent area of the pediatric ED. Productivity metrics included patients per hour (pts/hr), work relative value units per hour (wRVUs/hr), and visit duration measured for 1 year pre- and postscribe implementation. Cross-sectional satisfaction surveys were administered to patient families, providers, and nurses during the initial scribe rollout. RESULTS Overall, 24,518 prescribe and 27,062 postscribe visits were analyzed. Following scribe implementation, overall provider efficiency increased by 0.24 pts/hr (11.98%, p < 0.001) and 0.72 wRVUs/hr (20.14%, p < 0.001). The largest efficiency increase (0.36 pts/hr, 0.96 wRVUs/hr) occurred in January-March, when ED census peaked. Patient visit duration was 53 minutes in both the prescribe and the postscribe periods. During initial scribe implementation, 80% of parents of patients without a scribe rated the visit as very good/great compared to 84% with a scribe (p = 0.218). Of the 34 providers surveyed, 88% preferred working with a scribe. A majority of providers (82%) felt that their skills were used more effectively when working with a scribe, decreasing their likelihood of experiencing burnout. Of the 43 nurses surveyed, 51% preferred scribes and 47% were indifferent. CONCLUSIONS Medical scribes increased ED efficiency without decreasing patient satisfaction. Providers strongly favored the use of scribes, while nurses were indifferent. The next steps include a cost analysis of the scribe program.
Survival disparities in pediatric acute lymphocytic leukemia and acute myeloid leukemia: Analysis of population-based Florida cancer registry (1981-2009).

e21000 Background: Leukemia is the most common cancer in children and teenagers. Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL) is more common than Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML)...
Genomic Resources for Darters (Percidae: Etheostominae) Provide Insight Into Postzygotic Barriers Implicated in Speciation

Comparative genomic approaches are increasingly being used to study the evolution of reproductive barriers in nonmodel species. Although numerous studies have examined prezygotic isolation in darters (Percidae), investigations into postzygotic barriers have remained rare due to long generation times and a lack of genomic resources. Orangethroat and rainbow darters naturally hybridize and provide a remarkable example of male-driven speciation via character displacement. Backcross hybrids suffer from high mortality, which appears to promote behavioral isolation in sympatry. To investigate the genomic architecture of postzygotic isolation, we used Illumina and PacBio sequencing to generate a chromosome-level, annotated assembly of the orangethroat darter genome and high-density linkage maps for orangethroat and rainbow darters. We also analyzed genome-wide RADseq data from wild-caught adults of both species and laboratory-generated backcrosses to identify genomic regions associated with hybrid incompatibles. Several putative chromosomal translocations and inversions were observed between orangethroat and rainbow darters, suggesting structural rearrangements may underlie postzygotic isolation. We also found evidence of selection against recombinant haplotypes and transmission ratio distortion in backcross hybrid genomes, providing further insight into the genomic architecture of genetic incompatibilities. Notably, regions with high levels of genetic divergence between species were enriched for genes associated with developmental and meiotic processes, providing strong candidates for postzygotic isolating barriers. These findings mark significant contributions to our understanding of the genetic basis of reproductive isolation between species undergoing character displacement. Furthermore, the genomic resources presented here will be instrumental for studying speciation in darters, the most diverse vertebrate group in North America.
Sustained and self-terminating atrial fibrillation induced immediately after pulmonary vein isolation exhibit differences in coronary sinus electrical activity from onset.

INTRODUCTION Little data exists on the electrophysiological differences between sustained atrial fibrillation (sAF; >5 minutes) vs self-terminating nonsustained AF (nsAF; <5 minutes). We sought to investigate the electrophysiological characteristics of coronary sinus (CS) activity during postpulmonary vein isolation (PVI) sAF vs nsAF. METHODS AND RESULTS We studied 142 patients post-PVI for paroxysmal AF (PAF). In a 50-patient subset, CS electrograms in the first 30 seconds of induced AF were analyzed manually. A custom-made algorithm for automated electrogram annotation was derived for validation on the whole patient set. In patients with sAF post-PVI, CS fractionated potentials were ablated. Manual analysis showed that patients with sAF exhibited higher activation pattern variability (2.1 vs 0.5 changes/sec; P < .001); fewer proximal-to-distal wavefronts (25 vs 61%; P < .001); fewer unidirectional wavefronts (60 vs 86%; P < .001); more pivot locations (4.3 vs 2.1; P < .001); shorter cycle lengths (190 vs 220 ms; P < .001); and shorter cumulative isoelectric segments (35 vs 44%; P = .045) compared to nsAF. These observations were confirmed on the whole study population by automated electrogram annotation and sample entropy computation (SampEn: 0.29 ± 0.15 in sAF vs 0.15 ± 0.05 in nsAF; P < .0001). The derived model predicted sAF with 78% sensitivity, 88% specificity; agreement with manual model: 88% (Cohen's kappa= 0.76). CS defragmentation resulted in AF termination or noninducibility in 49% of sAF. CONCLUSION In PAF patients post-PVI, induced sAF shows greater activation sequence variability, shorter cycle length, and higher SampEn in the CS compared to nsAF. Automated electrogram annotation confirmed these results and accurately distinguished self-terminating nsAF episodes from sAF based on 30-second recordings at AF onset.