cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Review of New Energy Power Generation Part in 2008 IEEE PES General Meeting

IEEE Power Energy Society 2008 general meeting provided an international forum for all attendees to promote, share and discuss a myriad of ongoing developments that relate to today’s power and energy industry. The theme of the meeting is "Conversion and Delivery of Electrical Energy in 21st Century". Comparing with conventional power generations, such as thermal power and hydropower, new energy power generations, such as nuclear power, wind power and distributed generation, attract more international interests. In this paper, present status, problems and methods in new energy power generation and smart grid fields will be introduced, which will be helpful for the research work of domestic scholars and engineers.
Perturbative Superstring Theory Revisited

Perturbative superstring theory is revisited, with the goal of giving a simpler and more direct demonstration that multi-loop amplitudes are gauge-invariant (apart from known anomalies), satisfy space-time supersymmetry when expected, and have the ex- pected infrared behavior. The main technical tool is to make the whole analysis, including especially those arguments that involve integration by parts, on supermoduli space, rather than after descending to ordinary moduli space.
Effects of Dopamine and Dobutamine on Endocrine of Premature Infants with Hypotension

Objective To explore the effects of dopamine and dobutamine on thyroid stimulating hormone(TSH),total thyroxine(T4) and growth hormone(GH) in preterm infants with hypotension.Methods Forty-seven preterm infants with hypotension were enrolled in the stu-dy,and 38 preterm infants remained hypotensive after two dose of isotonic saline solution,who were divided into two groups and assigned to receive dopamine or dobutamine.Drug infusion were all started at 4 μg /(kg·min) and the dose increased by 2 μg /(kg·min) in a stepwise fashion until either the mean blood pressure normalized or a maximal dose 20 μg /(kg·min) was reached.Haemodynamic variables and se-rum levels of TSH,T4,and GH were assessed during the first 72 h of treatment and the first 3 d after stopping treatment.Microplate luminometer was used to test TSH,T4,GH levels.Results Necessary cumulative and mean drug doses and maximum infusion required to normalize blood pressure were significantly higher in the dobutamine group than those in the dopamine group(Pa0.01).Two preterm infants were ad-ded epinephrine in dobutamine group,due to the hypotension persisted after giving the maximum dose of 20 μg/(kg·min).Suppression of TSH and T4 was observed in dopamine treated preterm infants from 12 h of treatment onwards,levels of serum TSH and T4 were significantly lower during the first 72 h of treatment compare with starting treatment [F(TSH)=83.501,F(T4)=3.536 Pa0.01],whereas levels of growth hormone were lower significantly only at 12 h and 36 h of treatment.TSH,T4 and GH rebound was observed from the first day onwards after stopping dopamine.Dobutamine administration did not alter the profile of any hormones and no rebound was observed after stopping treatment[F(TSH)=1.960,F(T4)=1.633,F(GH)=1.683 Pa0.05].Conclusions Dopamine and dobutamine both increase the syste-mic blood pressure,with higher drug doses in dobutamine group.Dopamine reduces levels of serum TSH,T4 and GH in preterm infants but such suppression is quickly reversed after treatment is stopped.
The Effects of Quality and Price on Adoption Dynamics of Competing Technologies.

We study the dynamics and patterns of adoption of two competing technologies as well as the effectiveness and optimal- ity of viral pricing strategies by a technology seller. Our model considers two incompatible technologies of differing quality and a market in which user valuations are heterogeneous and subject to network effects. Taking the perspec- tive of a seller of the higher quality technology with imperfect information about user preferences, we investigate the problem of predicting market equilibrium outcomes. We provide partial characterization results about the structure and robustness of equilibria and give conditions under which the higher quality technology purveyor can make signiﬁcant inroads into the competitor’s market share. We then show that myopic best-response dynamics in our setting are monotonic and convergent, and propose two pricing mechanisms that use this insight to help the entrant technology seller tip the market in its favor. Comparable implementations of both mechanisms reveals that the nondiscriminatory strategy, based on a calculated public price subsidy, is less costly and just as effective as a discriminatory policy. Additionally, we study discriminatory and nondiscriminatory price mechanisms in the context of proﬁt maximization and show that problem is NP-Hard under uncertainty for both regimes. Finally, we use simulations to analyze a game in which the pricing decisions of both competing sellers are endogenous and now show, in contrast to our analytical results with exogenous prices, that a higher quality technology consistently holds a competitive advantage over the lower quality competitor, irrespective of its market share.
Toxicokinetics of perfluorooctane sulfonate in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) confined to respirometer-metabolism chambers were dosed with perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) by intra-arterial injection and sampled to obtain concentration time-course data for plasma and either urine or expired water. The data were then analyzed using a 2-compartment clearance-volume model. Renal and branchial clearance rates (mL/d/kg) determined for all experiments averaged 19% and 81% of total clearance, respectively. Expressed as mean values for all experiments, the steady-state volume of distribution was 277 mL/kg and the terminal half-life was 86.8 d. Additional animals were exposed to PFOS in water, resulting in an average calculated branchial uptake efficiency of 0.36%. The renal clearance rate determined in the present study is approximately 75 times lower than that determined in earlier studies with perfluorooctanoate (PFOA). Previously, it was suggested that PFOA is a substrate for membrane transporters in the trout kidney. The present study suggests that glomerular filtration may be sufficient to explain the observed renal clearance rate for PFOS, although a role for membrane transporters cannot be ruled out. These findings demonstrate that models developed to predict the bioaccumulation of perfluoroalkyl acids by fish must account for differences in renal clearance of individual compounds.
Facial Palsy and Lyme Borreliosis

The value of CSF examinations for intrathecal antibody production to Borrelia burgdorferi in the diagnosis of neuroborreliosis in children with peripheral facial palsy (PFP) was examined at the University Children’s Hospital of Zurich, Switzerland.
Efficient Screening of CRISPR/Cas9-Induced Events in Drosophila Using a Co-CRISPR Strategy

Genome editing using the Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) and associated nuclease (Cas9) enables specific genetic modifications, including deletions, insertions, and substitutions in numerous organisms, such as the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster One challenge of the CRISPR/Cas9 system can be the laborious and time-consuming screening required to find CRISPR-induced modifications due to a lack of an obvious phenotype and low frequency after editing. Here we apply the successful co-CRISPR technique in Drosophila to simultaneously target a gene of interest and a marker gene, ebony, which is a recessive gene that produces dark body color and has the further advantage of not being a commonly used transgenic marker. We found that Drosophila broods containing higher numbers of CRISPR-induced ebony mutations ("jackpot" lines) are significantly enriched for indel events in a separate gene of interest, while broods with few or no ebony offspring showed few mutations in the gene of interest. Using two different PAM sites in our gene of interest, we report that ∼61% (52-70%) of flies from the ebony-enriched broods had an indel in DNA near either PAM site. Furthermore, this marker mutation system may be useful in detecting the less frequent homology-directed repair events, all of which occurred in the ebony-enriched broods. By focusing on the broods with a significant number of ebony flies, successful identification of CRISPR-induced events is much faster and more efficient. The co-CRISPR technique we present significantly improves the screening efficiency in identification of genome-editing events in Drosophila.
Dickkopf-1 promotes hematopoietic regeneration via direct and niche-mediated mechanisms.

The Wnt pathway inhibitor Dkk1, which is produced by bone marrow osteolineage cells, promotes hematopoietic recovery after radiation injury by both direct effects on hematopoietic cells and indirect effects on bone marrow endothelial cells.
Prevention of HPV-related cancers through immunization.

CS21-01 Results from six randomized controlled trials of monvalent (HPV16), bivalent (HPV16/18) and quadrivalent (HPV6/11/16/18) prophylactic HPV recombinant vaccines demonstrated high-level protection from infection and lesions caused by the targeted HPV types. The vaccines were found to be generally safe and well-tolerated. The quadrivalent HPV6/11/16/18 vaccine (Gardasil®, Merck, USA), has been licensed in many countries for use among females between 9 and 26 years of age. The bivalent HPV16/18 vaccine (Cervarix™, GlaxoSmithKline, Belguim) is currently under review for licensure in Europe and soon will be submitted for review in other countries. Both vaccines, which are composed of empty viral capsids called virus-like-particles (VLP), have the potential to substantially reduce HPV-related morbidity and mortality. HPV16 and HPV18 cause about 70% of cervical cancers, 80% to 90% of anal cancers, 40% of vulvar cancers, 15% to 20% of head and neck cancers and an uncertain proportion of penile, vaginal, and urethral cancers worldwide. HPV6 and HPV11 cause at least 80% of genital warts and over 95% of a rare, but highly morbid condition called recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. Additional vaccine trial findings show that protection is durable for at least 4 to 5 years. Evidence of vaccine efficacy among young men and women older than 26 years will be available within the next couple of years. Now that prevention of many HPV-related cancers and intraepithelial lesions through vaccination has become a possibility, it is important to develop recommendations that are based on current and evolving knowledge of the optimal ages for routine and "catch-up vaccination, need for boosters, role of herd immunity, barriers to implementation, and impact on cervical cancer screening programs.
Understanding Perceptions of School Administrators Related to School Breakfast in a Low School Breakfast Participation State.

BACKGROUND The National School Breakfast Program (SBP) is a federally funded program that allows states to offer nutritious breakfast to K-12 students. However, rates of SBP participation are low in some rural states, and the reasons are not well understood. The purpose of the study was to explore administrators' perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs related to the SBP, and factors they identify as barriers or facilitators to increased participation. METHODS Data were collected from a cross-sectional, online survey of K-12 school administrators (N = 152) in a rural, midsized Midwestern state fielded over an academic year. Descriptive statistics were calculated and open-ended questions were coded and analyzed for relevant themes. RESULTS Administrators identified busing schedules, time constraints, and a lack of flexibility within the school schedule to accommodate breakfast as primary structural barriers to SBP participation. Administrators described family-centered norms as reasons for low participation in rural areas. Administrators are at varying stages of readiness to work on improving participation. CONCLUSIONS Low SBP participation can be explained in part by a convergence of factors related to access, community norms, and structural barriers. Results may be used to inform ways in which administrators at the state, district, and school level can work to increase participation.
Using Google Docs to Enhance the Teacher Work Sample: Building e-Portfolios for Learning and Practice

The use of teaching portfolios in teacher education programs is a widely accepted practice. This article describes how a traditional teacher work sample was transformed using the online platform, G...
Telephone-based collaborative care is an effective approach for treating anxiety in primary care patients

Commentary on: Rollman BL, Belnap BH, Mazumdar S, et al . Telephone-delivered stepped collaborative care for treating anxiety in primary care: a randomized controlled trial. J Gen Intern Med 2017;32:245–55. Collaborative care (CC) or care management involves longitudinal monitoring plus pharmacological and/or behavioural interventions based on evidence-based, stepped care treatment protocols.1 CC is delivered by a care manager (often a registered nurse) working in close collaboration with a primary care provider (PCP) and mental health specialist (often a psychiatrist). Whereas CC for depression in primary care has strong empirical support, CC for anxiety has not been studied extensively.1 CC interventions for anxiety would help address the high …
Trends in diagnoses after implementation of the Chicago classification for esophageal motility disorders (V3.0) for high-resolution manometry studies.

To determine trends in the diagnostic distribution of esophageal motility disorders after implementation of the Chicago Classification Version 3.0 (CC V3.0) for interpretation of high-resolution manometry (HRM) studies compared to non-Chicago Classification criteria. Retrospective trends analysis of patients with an HRM study conducted at a single center from January 1, 2013 to September 30, 2015. The implementation of the CC V3.0 for manometry interpretation occurred in September 2014. Patient charts were manually reviewed for data collection including demographics and HRM diagnoses. The prevalence and relative risks (RR) of CC V3.0 diagnostic categories (i.e. normal, indeterminate, achalasia, and EGJ outflow obstruction [EJGOO], and major and minor motility disorders) were calculated before and after CC V3.0 implementation. Four hundred sixty-five HRM studies were included in the study including 268 before and 179 after CC V3.0 implementation. The mean ± SD age was 54 ± 15.4 years and 59.8% were female (n = 278). The percentage with indeterminate diagnosis decreased from 35.3% before CC V3.0 implementation to 16.8% after implementation (adjusted RR 0.5, 95%CI 0.30-0.70, p < 0.001). The percentage with a major motility disorders decreased from 13.9% to 7.3% (adjusted RR 0.5, 95%CI 0.2-1.0, p < 0.001). The percentage with EJGOO and minor diagnoses increased from 1.4% to 14.5% and 11.9% to 22.9%, respectively. The percentage with achalasia and normal diagnosis did not change over the study period. Implementation of CCV3.0 was associated with changes in the distribution of esophageal motility diagnoses in clinical practice. The percentage of indeterminate and major diagnosis decreased and EGJOO and minor diagnoses increased. The decrease in the number of indeterminate studies suggests that the CC V3.0 may clarify the criteria for the interpreting physician. The increase in studies with a diagnosis of EGJ outflow obstruction may reflect the heterogeneity of disorders with clinically relevant outflow obstruction.
What Violations of the Null Energy Condition Tell us About Information Exchange Between Prior to Present Universes? How to Obtain Spectral Index Confirmation?

The universe is now dominated by DE leading to renewed acceleration, so what we can do is to examine how DE arose in the first place, and what role cosmologies not obeying the null energy condition play in terms of facilitating information exchange from a prior to the present universe. So how do we test for this, and what are the data collection protocols? Based upon a Rencontres De Moriond, 2008 article, we present a glimpse as to how to ascertain data collection procedures via inputs into a spectral index model.
A model-free framework for coverage evaluation in device-to-device heterogeneous networks

Consider a decentralized device-to-device (D2D) network consisting of K different types of D2D pairs in which the D2D pairs of each specific type form an independent homogeneous Poisson point process (PPP) and the transmitter (TX) of each D2D pair has a unique intended receiver (RX). For this heterogeneous network model, we develop a model-free tractable framework to analyze the coverage probability without any specific model assumptions for channel fading, stochastic transmit power and distance. First we device a novel approach to finding the Laplace transform of the reciprocal of the SIR which is used to characterize the model-free coverage probability of the D2D pair of each type. Our main analytical findings show that the model-free bounds of the coverage probability can be obtained and they reduce to a closed-form result as long as the received signal power has an Erlang distribution. These findings are applied to expound when the randomness of the received signal power benefits/jeopardizes the coverage probability and how to use the distributed stochastic power control to improve the coverage probability of each D2D pair.
Mechanisms of chemical injury of thyroid gland.

Many goitrogenic xenobiotics that increase the incidence of thyroid tumors in rodents exert a direct effect on the thyroid gland to disrupt one of several steps in the biosynthesis and secretion of thyroid hormones. This includes 1) inhibition of the iodine-trapping mechanism (thiocyanate or perchlorate), 2) blockage of organic binding of iodine and coupling of iodothyronines to form thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) (e.g., sulfonamides, thiourea, methimazole, and aminotriazole, among others), and 3) inhibition of thyroid hormone secretion by an effect on proteolysis of active hormone from the colloid (lithium or an excess of iodide). Another large group of goitrogenic chemicals disrupts thyroid hormone economy by increasing the peripheral metabolism of thyroid hormones through an induction of hepatic microsomal enzymes. This group includes CNS-acting drugs (phenobarbital, benzodiazepines), calcium channel blockers (nicardipine, nifedipine), steroids (spironolactone), retinoids, chlorinated hydrocarbons (chlordane, DDT, TCDD), polyhalogenated biphenyls (PCB, PBB), and enzyme inducers. Thyroid hormone economy also can be disrupted by xenobiotics that inhibit the 5'monodeiodinase, which converts T4 in peripheral sites (e.g., liver and kidney) to biologically active T3. Inhibition of this enzyme by FD&C Red No. 3, amiodarone, and iopanoic acid lowers circulating T3 levels, which results in a compensatory increased secretion of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), follicular cell hypertrophy and hyperplasia, and an increased incidence of follicular cell tumors in 2-year or lifetime studies in rats. Physiologic perturbations alone such as the feeding of an iodine-deficient diet, partial thyroidectomy, natural goitrogens in certain foods, and transplantation of TSH-secreting pituitary tumors in rodents also can disrupt thyroid hormone economy and, if sustained, increase the development of thyroid tumors in rats. A consistent finding with all of these goitrogens, be they either physiologic perturbations or xenobiotic chemicals, is the chronic hypersecretion of TSH, which by receptor-mediated events places the rodent thyroid gland at greater risk of developing tumors through a secondary mechanism of thyroid oncogenesis.
THE MAGNETIC FORM FACTOR OF TERBIUM

The magnetic form factor of terbium has been measured with polarized neutrons using single crystals held in an applied magnetic field of 24 kOe at room temperature. Except for the low angle reflections the experimental points lie on a smooth curve approximately 14 % below the theoretical form factor. These results suggest that the Hartree-Fock 4 f-electron wavefunctions are too contracted in real space.
On certain siegel modular varieties of genus two and levels above two

In general, M A is a three-dimenslonal complex projective variety. It is usually non-singular, though for some choices of A it has finite quotient singularities. (In Satake's language, it is then a V-manifold). It is the Igusa compactification of the variety M A = S2/A , the quotient of $2, the Siegel space of • 0 where degree 2, under the action of A. Further, M A m M A m MA, 0 (a Zariski open set in M A) is the moduli space of nonM A singular curves of genus 2 with level A structure.
Functional nanofibers for tissue engineering applications

Abstract: Tissue engineering aims to restore function or replace damaged tissue through biological principles and engineering. Electrospinning is a scaffold fabrication technique that produces continuous nanofiber meshes that mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM) of native tissue. This chapter briefly introduces various tissues and their respective ECM structure and composition. It then discusses the use of electrospun scaffolds intended for tissue engineering of each tissue, specifically focusing on cell response/growth to various electrospun nanofibers (natural/synthetic polymers, composites, incorporation of biological factors, effects of surface modifications, etc.).
Reactions of chrome tannery sludge with organic and mineral soils

Chrome tannery sludge applied to agricultural land may have benefits in terms of added N for crop growth. An experiment was designed to compare tannery waste with commercial N fertilizer and investigate the potential of the waste as an alternative or supplement to commercial fertilizer.
Platelet Glycoprotein VI Haplotypes and the Presentation of Paediatric Sepsis.

Sepsis triggers a complex series of pathophysiologic events involving inflammatory responses and coagulation abnormalities. While circulating blood platelets are well-characterized for their contributions to coagulation, increasingly platelet-dependent effects on inflammation are being recognized. Here, we focus on the platelet membrane receptor, glycoprotein VI (GPVI), and its role in platelet microparticle (pMP) release. The GPVI receptor is a platelet-specific collagen membrane receptor that, upon ligand binding, facilitates the release of pMPs. As membrane-bound platelet fragments of less than 1 μm, pMPs are known to have both pro-inflammatory and pro-coagulant properties. Thus, pMPs are potentially impacting sepsis at multiple stages of the inflammatory response. Studies are presented documenting the impact of the most common GPVI haplotypes, GPVIa and GPVIb, on pMP levels and release in healthy individuals (n = 49). The GPVIa haplotype corresponds to an approximately twofold increase in circulating pMPs as a percentage of total microparticles in healthy individuals along with a heightened in vitro release of pMPs. Additionally, patients admitted to a paediatric intensive care unit (ICU) (n = 73) with an initial diagnosis of sepsis were recruited and their GPVI haplotypes determined. Septic patients of the GPVIa haplotype (n = 59) were statistically more likely to present with a diagnosis of severe sepsis or septic shock, as compared with GPVIb individuals (n = 14). Independent disease classification via PELOD-2 and Pediatric Risk of Mortality III scores confirmed individuals with the GPVIa haplotype were more likely to have significant organ failure. Thus, GPVI haplotypes influence pMP levels in the circulation and are predictive of sepsis severity when presenting to the ICU.
Abstract 032: Somatic Editing of Ldlr with AAV-CRISPR for Atherosclerosis Studies

Background: Current methods to study genetic contributions to atherosclerosis are time-consuming and expensive. The Ldlr and Apoe knockout (KO) models are currently the gold-standard, but require e...
The Program Evaluation Committee in the Adult Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology Fellowship – Harnessing Opportunities for Program Improvement

The Program Evaluation Committee has an essential role in the quality improvement process of the adult cardiothoracic anesthesiology fellowship. The annual program evaluation presents all stakeholders with an opportunity to evolve with the changing needs and opportunities of the fellowship milieu. The active engagement of the program in this process is a high-quality approach to successful planning, preparation and conduct of the self-study and site visit that are important extensions of the annual program evaluation and the program evaluation committee.
Employing PEG crosslinkers to optimize cell viability in gel phase bioinks and tailor post printing mechanical properties

The field of 3D bioprinting has rapidly grown, yet the fundamental ability to manipulate material properties has been challenging with current bioink methods. Here, we change bioink properties using our PEG cross-linking (PEGX) bioink method with the objective of optimizing cell viability while retaining control of mechanical properties of the final bioprinted construct. First, we investigate cytocompatible, covalent cross-linking chemistries for bioink synthesis (e.g. Thiol Michael type addition and bioorthogonal inverse electron demand Diels-Alder reaction). We demonstrate these reactions are compatible with the bioink method, which results in high cell viability. The PEGX method is then exploited to optimize extruded cell viability by manipulating bioink gel robustness, characterized by mass flow rate. Below a critical point, cell viability linearly decreases with decreasing flow rates, but above this point, high viability is achieved. This work underscores the importance of building a foundational understanding of the relationships between extrudable bioink properties and cell health post-printing to more efficiently tune material properties for a variety of tissue and organ engineering applications. Finally, we also develop a post-printing, cell-friendly cross-linking strategy utilizing the same reactions used for synthesis. This secondary cross-linking leads to a range of mechanical properties relevant to soft tissue engineering as well as highly viable cell-laden gels stable for over one month in culture. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: We demonstrate that a PEG crosslinking bioink method can be used with various cytocompatible, covalent cross-linking reactions: Thiol Michael type addition and tetrazine-norbornene click. The ability to vary bioink chemistry expands candidate polymers, and therefore can expedite development of new bioinks from unique polymers. We confirm post-printed cell viability and are the first to probe, in covalently cross-linked inks, how cell viability is impacted by different flow properties (mass flow rate). Finally, we also present PEG cross-linking as a new method of post-printing cross-linking that improves mechanical properties and stability while maintaining cell viability. By varying the cross-linking reaction, this method can be applicable to many types of polymers/inks for easy adoption by others investigating bioinks and hydrogels.
The effects of acute and repeated methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) administration on striatal transcriptome networks in male long evans rats

Abstract The psychoactive drug methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) elicits feelings of euphoria and hyperexcitability, but can also result in paranoia, agitation, and depression by unknown mechanisms. We identified molecular networks in the rat striatum that were affected by single or repeated exposure to MDPV. Male Long Evans rats were injected with either saline or MDPV (1 mg/kg) (single or repeated MDPV) over 5 days. To distinguish the effects of repeated MDPV from a single exposure, an additional group received saline over 4 days and then MDPV on the 5th day. Twenty-four hours after the final injection, the left dorsal striatum was processed for transcriptomics. The transcriptome response was subtle after 24 h, and a single gene passed an FDR correction (LOC103691845) following repeated MDPV treatment. Gene set and subnetwork enrichment analyses were conducted to improve data interpretation from a network perspective. Consistent with the mode of action of MDPV, networks related to the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system were altered in the rat striatum. Transcriptional networks related to cognition, short and long-term memory, and synaptic transmission were over-represented in the striatum of rats repeatedly injected with MDPV. This study identifies potential transcriptional networks altered by single or repeated MDPV exposure, which can be interrogated further to elucidate molecular mechanisms underlying cathinone abuse.
Processing for destruction.

Phenotypic screening is an engine of discovery for bioactive small molecules and can unravel novel mechanisms and pathways controlling cellular physiology. A recent study reveals the CPSF complex as a pharmacologically tractable target of JTE-607 and context-specific cancer dependency.
Attitudes Towards Teaching Computational Thinking and Computer Science: Insights from Educator Interviews and Focus Groups

In the last three years, integration of both computational thinking (CT) and computer science (CS) into K-12 instruction has become a focus of many schools throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States. With this new widespread demand, educational leaders and educators are focusing efforts on understanding the core concepts and practices of CT and CS, looking for logical connections for integrating across curriculum, and seeking strategies for implementing a wide variety of educational technology tools (apps and devices). This phenomenological research study was designed to gather depth information from 14 K-16 educators through both semi-structured interviews and two focus groups. Participants were asked open-ended questions about their self-efficacy, confidence, and prior experiences with teaching and learning CS. Moreover, each educator described his or her most significant concern for seeking appropriate professional development for building their CT/CS teaching and learning competencies in meaningful and relevant ways. Overall, nine themes emerged from the data: attitudes about CT/CS, access to industry experts, understanding CT/CS concepts, understanding CT/CS practices, use of relevant technology tools, alignment of CT/CS to current standards, teacher confidence, time to develop their own mastery for CT/CS, and access to appropriate professional development (PD) as the main connector.
Implementation Guide for Rapid Integration of an Outpatient Telemedicine Program During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background In the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, social distancing has been necessary to help prevent disease transmission. As a result, medical practices have limited access to in-person visits. This poses a challenge to maintain appropriate patient care while preventing a substantial backlog of patients once stay-at-home restrictions are lifted. In practices that are naive to telehealth as an alternative option, providers and staff are experiencing challenges with telemedicine implementation. We aim to provide a comprehensive guide on how to rapidly integrate telemedicine into practice during a pandemic. Methods We built a toolkit that details the following 8 essential components to successful implementation of a telemedicine platform: provider and staff training, patient education, an existing electronic medical record system, patient and provider investment in hardware, billing and coding integration, information technology support, audiovisual platforms, and patient and caregiver participation. Results Rapid integration of telemedicine in our practice was required to be compliant with our institution's COVID-19 task force. Within 3 days of this declaration, our large specialty-care clinic converted to a telemedicine platform and we completed 638 visits within the first month of implementation. Conclusions Effective and efficient integration of a telemedicine program requires extensive staff and patient education, accessory platforms to facilitate video and audio communication, and adoption of new billing codes that are outlined in this toolkit.
Evaluation of Random Forest for short-term daily streamflow forecast in rainfall and snowmelt driven watersheds

Abstract. In the past decades, data-driven Machine Learning (ML) models have emerged as promising tools for short-term streamflow forecasts. Among other qualities, the popularity of ML for such applications is due to the methods' competitive performance compared with alternative approaches, ease of application, and relative lack of strict distributional assumptions. Despite the encouraging results, most applications of ML for streamflow forecast have been limited to watersheds where rainfall is the major source of runoff. In this study, we evaluate the potential of Random Forest (RF), a popular ML method, to make streamflow forecast at 1-day lead time at 86 watersheds in the Pacific Northwest. These watersheds span climatic conditions and physiographic settings and exhibit varied contributions of rainfall and snowmelt to their streamflow. Watersheds are classified into three hydrologic regimes: rainfall-dominated, transisent, and snowmelt-dominated based on the timing of center of annual flow volume. RF performance is benchmarked against Naive and multiple linear regression (MLR) models, and evaluated using four metrics Coefficient of determination, Root mean squared error, Mean absolute error, and Kling-Gupta efficiency. Model evaluation metrics suggest RF performs better in snowmelt-driven watersheds. Largest improvement in forecasts, compared to benchmark models, are found among rainfall-driven watersheds. We obtain Kling–Gupta Efficiency (KGE) scores in the range of 0.62–0.99. RF performance deteriorates with increase in catchment slope and increase in soil sandiness. We note disagreement between two popular measures of RF variable importance and recommend jointly considering these measures with the physical processes under study. These and other results presented provide new insights for effective application of RF-based streamflow forecasting.
Shear Stress Increases V–H $$^{+}$$ + -ATPase and Acidic Vesicle Number Density, and p-mTORC2 Activation in Prostate Cancer Cells

Cells in the tumor microenvironment experience mechanical stresses, such as compression generated by uncontrolled cell growth within a tissue, increased substrate stiffness due to tumor cell extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling, and leaky angiogenic vessels which involve low fluid shear stress. With our hypothesis that shear stress increases V–H $$^+$$ -ATPase number density in prostate cancer cells via activation of the mTORC1 and mTORC2 pathways, we demonstrated and quantified such a mechanism in prostate cancer cells. Moderately metastatic DU145 and highly metastatic PC3 prostate cancer cells were subjected to 0.05 dynes $$\hbox {cm}^{-2}$$ wall shear stress for 24 h, followed by immunocytochemistry and fluorescence measurements of $$\beta$$ 1 integrin, endosome, lysosome, V–H $$^{+}$$ -ATPase proton pump, mTORC1, and p-mTORC2 antibodies. Post shear stress migration assays, and the effects of vacuolar proton pump inhibitor Bafilomycin A1 (60 nM, 24 h) as well as shear stress on the ICC fluorescence intensity of the proteins of interest were conducted with DU145 cells. Low fluid shear stress increases the fluorescence intensity of $$\beta$$ 1 integrin, endosome, lysosome, V–H $$^{+}$$ -ATPase, mTORC1, and p-mTORC2 antibodies in PC3 and DU145 cells, and also increased cell migration. However, Bafilomycin A1 decreased fluorescence intensity of all of these proteins in DU145 cells exposed to shear stress, revealing that V–H $$^+$$ -ATPase controls the expression of these proteins. Prostate cancer cell mechanotransduction increases endosomes, lysosomes, and proton pumps—where increases have been associated with enhanced cancer aggressiveness. We also show that the prostate cancer cell’s response to force promotes the cancer drivers mTORC1 and mTORC2.
US-Syria relations in the shadow of Cold War and détente

This article examines the course of US-Syrian relations since the Six Day War of 1967 and it demonstrates how they began deteriorating as the Cold War between the superpowers intensified. The autho...
Falconer’s $(K, d)$ distance set conjecture can fail for strictly convex sets $K$ in $\mathbb R^d$

For any norm on Rd with countably many extreme points, we prove that there is a set E⊂Rd of Hausdorff dimension d whose distance set with respect to this norm has zero linear measure. This was previously known only for norms associated to certain finite polygons in R2. Similar examples exist for norms that are very well approximated by polyhedral norms, including some examples where the unit ball is strictly convex and has C1 boundary.
Assessing Interobserver Variability of Cosmetic Outcome Assessment in Breast Cancer Patients Undergoing Breast-Conservation Surgery

Inter-rater reliability between breast surgical oncologists and reconstructive surgeons using cosmesis scales, and the correlation between their observations and patients’ own subjective assessments, is poorly understood. Patients undergoing BCS in a prospective trial rated their cosmetic outcome on a Likert scale (poor/fair/good/excellent) at the postoperative and 1-year time points; photographs were also taken. Three breast surgical oncologists (not involved in these cases) and two reconstructive surgeons were asked to independently rate cosmesis using the Harvard/NSABP/RTOG scale. Overall, 55 and 17 patients had photographs and Likert self-evaluations at the postoperative and 1-year time points, respectively. There was poor agreement between surgeon and patient ratings postoperatively [kappas − 0.042 (p = 0.659), 0.069 (p = 0.226), and 0.076 (p = 0.090) for the breast surgical oncologists; and 0.018 (p = 0.689) and 0.112 (p = 0.145) for the reconstructive surgeons], and poor interobserver agreement between surgeons of the same specialty (kappa − 0.087, 95% confidence interval [CI] − 0.091 to − 0.082, p = 0.223 for breast surgical oncologists; and kappa − 0.150, 95% CI − 0.157 to − 0.144, p = 0.150, for reconstructive surgeons). At 1 year, the interobserver agreement between breast surgical oncologists was better (kappa 0.507, 95% CI 0.501–0.512, p < 0.001); however, there was still poor correlation between the reconstructive surgeons (kappa − 0.040, 95% CI − 0.049 to − 0.031, p = 0.772). Agreement between surgeon and patient ratings remained poor at this time point [kappas − 0.115 (p = 0.477), 0.177 (p = 0.245), and 0.101 (p = 0.475) for breast surgical oncologists; and 0.335 (p = 0.037) and −0.118 (p = 0.221) for reconstructive surgeons]. Despite gradation scales for measuring cosmesis after BCS, high levels of agreement between surgeons is lacking and these do not always reflect patients’ subjective assessments.
Phosphorus Management Strategies for Potato Production in Florida: a Review

Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient for potato growth and development. In Florida’s Tri-County Agricultural Area (TCAA) P is applied annually at high rates to ensure yields. This practice has led to a buildup of soil P with Mehlich-3 soil nutrient P levels as high as 475 mg/kg. Potato farmers customarily apply P fertilizers despite their soil likely already containing high levels of this nutrient. Current fertilization programs do not account for legacy P fixed by minerals in the soil making it unavailable to crops. Published articles show that soil amendments such as biochar, compost, gypsum, and humic acid could increase bioavailable P by decreasing the amount of the nutrient that is fixed to soil minerals. Cover cropping or mulching could also be beneficial. To increase bioavailable P and maximize fertilizer utilization, re-evaluation and revision of current farm practices and fertilizer recommendations for potato production in the TCAA is required.
Adolescent cadmium exposure impairs cognition and hippocampal neurogenesis in C57BL/6 mice.

Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy metal and a significant public health concern. Epidemiological studies suggest that Cd is a potential neurotoxicant, and its exposure is associated with cognitive deficits in children, adults, and seniors. Our previous study has found that adulthood-only Cd exposure can impair cognition in mice. However, few studies have addressed the effects of Cd exposure during adolescence on cognitive behavior in animals later in life. In the present study, we exposed 4-week-old male C57BL/6 mice to 3 mg/L Cd via drinking water for 28 weeks and assessed their hippocampus-dependent learning and memory. Cd did not affect anxiety or locomotor activity in the open field test. However, Cd exposure impaired short-term spatial memory and contextual fear memory in mice. A separate cohort of 4-week-old mice was similarly exposed to Cd for 13 weeks to investigate the potential mechanism of Cd neurotoxicity on cognition. We observed that Cd-treated mice had fewer adult-born cells, adult-born neurons, and a reduced proportion of adult-born cells that differentiated into mature neurons in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus. These results suggest that Cd exposure from adolescence to adulthood is sufficient to cause cognitive deficits and impair key processes of hippocampal neurogenesis in mice.
An update on mammography.

For at least 7°% of breast cancers there are no known causal factors other than gender and aging. Other possible risk factors include hormonal, genetic, nutritional, morphologic, environmental (chemical, pesticides, food additives), irradiation, and viruses. Japanese women have much less breast cancer than women in the U.S.A., and after age 45, their incidence levels off or falls, whereas ours continues to rise. Furthermore, within a generation or two of moving to the U.S.A., Japanese women have a similar incidence to ours! What are we doing that increases our risk for this disease? It would certainly suggest that the other risk factors are involved and much research continues to explore this. Screening with mammography and breast physical examination is the cornerstone of earlier detection, improved survival and reduced mortality from breast cancer. A variety of studies and improvement in stage trends support this. Despite this, overall mortality from breast cancer remains unchanged. However, increasing incidence with stable mortality would suggest there is some reduction in overall mortality. Some other reasons for no reduction in overall mortality include: I. The variable biological forms and natural history of the disease. Assuming an average 100 days doubling time, cancer has been present in a woman's breast if not elsewhere for 6-7 years or longer before it is potentially detectable by mammography or breast physical examination. The extent of disease, cell type and grade, and host resistance are all important survival factors. Not enough breast cancers are at an early stage when diagnosed and treated. Not enough eligible women are being routinely screened with optimum mammography and breast physical examination. There is too much reliance on breast self-examination and breast physical examination alone for detection.
Electroencephalographic Monitoring of Infants during Repair of Complex Cardiac Defects

ABSTRACT.Congenital cardiac defects occur commonly in children, with many requiring surgical intervention. Advances in the surgical support methods have reduced operative mortality and morbidity, but seizures remain one of the most commonly associated sequelae. Seizures are an important indicator of neurologic injury in infants, and may be an indicator of a poorer outcome. In this randomized study, 171 neonates underwent surgical correction of D-transposition of the great arteries. According to the study design, EEG monitoring was performed preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively to assess EEG seizures in every infant. In this paper we describe in detail the method of EEG monitoring used. The incidence of clinical seizures has been reported in previous studies to be between 4 and 10%. In the present study, the incidence of clinical seizures was similar. In contrast, the incidence of EEG seizures was approximately twice that of clinical seizures. Detection of EEG seizures occurred from a few ...
Modeling XBRL-based Applications with UML: Developing Balanced-Scorecard Management Appraisal Systems

This paper focuses on object modeling of eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) applications using Unified Modeling Language (UML) diagrams in the context of developing management appraisal systems based on balanced scorecard concepts. An overview of theses technologies and the benefits associated with their integration is explored. The potential offered by reverse-engineered XBRL financial reporting (FR) and general ledger (GL) taxonomies and schemas into UML diagrams is demonstrated. The class attributes and implied relationships reflecting XBRL elements and relationships is exploited in the development of the methods necessary to implement a management appraisal application using balanced scorecard concepts. In so doing, both hierarchical and process-oriented structures implied by object modeling are utilized. The usefulness of these models and techniques is demonstrated in using financial, customer, internal process and learning aspects of the balanced scorecard system.
Voluntary helpful organizational behavior: Recognition of individual attributes

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to examine employee-helpful behavior that is voluntary and given freely without anticipation of reward or recognition. The authors have labeled this voluntary behavior in all its forms as v-hob, or voluntary helpful organizational behavior. They seek to define and explain the behavior and attempt to discern measures that will help to discover individual’s predispositions to offer v-hob. Design/methodology/approach – The authors examine current theory/constructs and offer a detailed empirical study in identifying measures that may provide some means for assessing employee predisposition toward helpful, voluntary behavior on the job. The format of the work is reflective of a typical research study with hypotheses. Findings – The authors learned that, within limits, it is possible and practical to identify direct measures to discover one’s predisposition toward v-hob. They also have identified regression equations that use several variables to help predict one’s predispo...
Evidence for multiple binding sites for several components of human lymphoblastoid interferon-alpha

Abstract The antiproliferative and competitive binding activities of 20 purified components of human lymphoblastoid interferon (IFN)-alpha were compared with that of recombinant human IFN-alpha 2b on Daudi and AU937 cells. We observed broad ranges of antiproliferative activities of the IFN-alpha components on these cell lines. Daudi cells were more sensitive to the IFN-alpha components than AU937 cells; the concentrations of the components that resulted in 50% inhibition of cell growth ranged from 0.003 ng/ml to > 10 ng/ml on Daudi cells and 0.05 ng/ml to > 200 ng/ml on AU937 cells. Component o was the most active human IFN-alpha on both cell lines. Scatchard analysis demonstrated that the number of IFN-alpha 2b binding sites is greater on Daudi cells (12,700 binding sites/cell) than AU937 cells (3,300 binding sites/cell); however, their receptor affinities were similar. Component o, which exhibited high antiproliferative activity on both cell lines, had low affinity for the IFN-alpha 2b binding site on AU937 and Daudi cells. Several human IFN-alpha s (components b', b", and e) appeared to have high affinity binding sites but low antiproliferative activity on both Daudi and AU937 cells. These data suggest that there may be more than one binding site or receptor for human IFN-alpha, and/or there may be a multicomponent receptor involved in the biological actions of these molecules.