cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Effect of Quinidine Sulfate on QRS Duration and QT and Systolic Time Intervals in Man

QRS duration, QT interval, total electromechanical systole (QS(2)), left ventricular ejection time (LVET), and preejection period (PEP) were determined in five male and two female healthy volunteers in a fasting state at hourly intervals for 7 hours during a control period and after administration of 400 mg quinidine sulfate. Changes of QRS duration (delta QRS) and rate-corrected QT interval (delta QTc) were calculated before and after quinidine. Deviations of measured QS(2), LVET, and PEP from the normal were calculated as the differences between the observed interval and those predicted from the normal regression equation. The effect of quinidine on systolic time intervals (delta QS(2), delta LVET, DELTA PEP) were expressed as the differences between the deviations from the normal regression equation during the control period and after the drug administration. After quinidine sulfate delta QRS, delta LVET, delta PEP, and delta PEP, delta LVET were slight and inconsistent. However, delta QTc and delta QS(2) were significant (at P is less than 0.05 or better) from the first hour to the 7th hour and from the 2nd hour to the 5th hour, respectively. The mean maximum delta QTc was 44.8 milliseconds and delta QS(2) was 29.9 milliseconds. The significant changes of QTc and QS(2) seemed to occur at the plasma level range of 0.75-1.9 mug/ml. This study indicates that of the various systolic time interval measurements obtained after quinidine administration, the changes of QT interval and QS(2) are most significant and that these changes seem to occur even at low plasma levels.
Anti-obesity effects of epigallocatechin-3-gallate, orange peel extract, black tea extract, caffeine and their combinations in a mouse model

The anti-obesity effects of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), orange peel extract (OPE), black tea extract (BTE), and caffeine (CF) in female CF-1 mice were studied. Female CF-1 mice were fed high-fat diets containing 0.1% EGCG, 0.2% OPE, 0.2% BTE and 0.05% caffeine alone and in combination for 10 weeks. The body weight gain and weights of abdominal fat and brown adipose tissue were significantly reduced in mice whose diets contained OPE, BTE, caffeine, OPE + BTE and OPE + CF. Notably, mice fed a high-fat diet supplemented daily with 0.2% OPE + 0.2% BTE + 0.05% CF prevented body weight gain by 48.8%, parametrial fat pad weight by 88.2%, retroperitoneal fat pad weight by 82.8% and brown adipose tissue by 63.7% compared with mice fed a high-fat diet. On the basis of these findings, it was concluded that oral feeding of orange peel extract, black tea extract and caffeine had anti-obesity effects by suppressing body weight gain and adipose tissue formation.
Informed Microarchitecture Design Space Exploration Using Workload Dynamics

Program runtime characteristics exhibit significant variation. As microprocessor architectures become more complex, their efficiency depends on the capability of adapting with workload dynamics. Moreover, with the approaching billion-transistor microprocessor era, it is not always economical or feasible to design processors with thermal cooling and reliability redundancy capabilities that target an application's worst case scenario. Therefore, analyzing complex workload dynamics early, at the microarchitecture design stage, is crucial to forecast workload runtime behavior across architecture design alternatives and evaluate the efficiency of workload scenario- based architecture optimizations. Existing methods focus exclusively on predicting aggregated workload behavior. In this paper, we propose accurate and efficient techniques and models to reason about workload dynamics across the microarchitecture design space without using detailed cycle- level simulations. Our proposed techniques employ wavelet- based multiresolution decomposition and neural network based non-linear regression modeling. We extensively evaluate the efficiency of our predictive models in forecasting performance, power and reliability domain workload dynamics that the SPEC CPU 2000 benchmarks manifest on high-performance microprocessors with a microarchitecture design space that consists of 9 key parameters. Our results show that the models achieve high accuracy in revealing workload dynamic behavior across a large microarchitecture design space. We also demonstrate that the proposed techniques can be used to efficiently explore workload scenario-driven architecture optimizations.
National Cultural Distance and Cross-Border Acquisition Performance

Previous theoretical research has argued that national cultural distance hinders cross-border acquisition performance by increasing the costs of integration. This article tests the alternative hypothesis that national cultural distance enhances cross-border acquisition performance by providing access to the target's and/or the acquirer's diverse set of routines and repertoires embedded in national culture. Using a multi-dimensional measure of national cultural distance and controlling for other effects, we examine a sample of 52 cross-border acquisitions that took place between 1987 and 1992, and find a positive association between national cultural distance and cross-border acquisition performance.
Effect of timolol on the sympathetic nervous system in coronary occlusion in cats

Clinical studies have shown that treatment with chronic timolol after a myocardial infarction decreases the incidence of reinfarction and mortality. It also limits the size of infarction when it is given IV during the acute phase of an infarction and followed by chronic oral dosing. It has been postulated that beta blockers work not only by a direct mechanism on the heart, but by altering neural discharge to the heart and depressing the sympathetic overactivity seen in 35% of patients immediately after an infarction. Our study examined the effect of timolol on sympathetic cardiac neural discharge, blood pressure, heart rate, and rhythm during acute coronary occlusion produced by ligation of the left anterior descending artery 10 to 14 mm below its origin in alpha-chloralose-anesthetized cats. Timolol or normal saline 5 mg/kg IV was given five minutes post coronary occlusion. The infusion of timolol significantly decreased the mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate. Sympathetic cardiac neural discharge in the group treated with timolol five minutes post coronary occlusion did not differ from that in the saline group. Thus there was a nonuniform (an increase, a decrease, or no change) sympathetic cardiac neural discharge associated with the production of occlusion-induced arrhythmia. These data suggest that the action of timolol on the sympathetic cardiac neural discharge is not its major mode of protection.
Drug Interactions with Rivaroxaban following Total Joint Replacement Surgery

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate potential drug-drug interactions with rivaroxaban in patients undergoing total hip replacement (THR) and total knee replacement (TKR) surgeries.DATA SOURCES:PubMed; January 2009-April 2012 abstract databases of major congresses for hematology and cardiovascular medicine.STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION:Searches were performed using the key words rivaroxaban and drug interaction. Studies were included if they evaluated interactions with drugs that are commonly used in patients undergoing THR or TKR, based on our clinical experience.DATA SYNTHESIS:A Phase 1 study found that coadministration of rivaroxaban and the nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) naproxen significantly increased bleeding time. However, in a retrospective analysis of 4 large trials evaluating rivaroxaban in patients undergoing THR or TKR, the difference between major and clinically relevant nonmajor bleeding was not significantly different between NSAID users and nonusers. In addition, proton pump inhibitors...
A Genome-Wide Association Study Identifies Variants Underlying the Arabidopsis thaliana Shade Avoidance Response

Shade avoidance is an ecologically and molecularly well-understood set of plant developmental responses that occur when the ratio of red to far-red light (R:FR) is reduced as a result of foliar shade. Here, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in Arabidopsis thaliana was used to identify variants underlying one of these responses: increased hypocotyl elongation. Four hypocotyl phenotypes were included in the study, including height in high R:FR conditions (simulated sun), height in low R:FR conditions (simulated shade), and two different indices of the response of height to low R:FR. GWAS results showed that variation in these traits is controlled by many loci of small to moderate effect. A known PHYC variant contributing to hypocotyl height variation was identified and lists of significantly associated genes were enriched in a priori candidates, suggesting that this GWAS was capable of generating meaningful results. Using metadata such as expression data, GO terms, and other annotation, we were also able to identify variants in candidate de novo genes. Patterns of significance among our four phenotypes allowed us to categorize associations into three groups: those that affected hypocotyl height without influencing shade avoidance, those that affected shade avoidance in a height-dependent fashion, and those that exerted specific control over shade avoidance. This grouping allowed for the development of explicit hypotheses about the genetics underlying shade avoidance variation. Additionally, the response to shade did not exhibit any marked geographic distribution, suggesting that variation in low R:FR-induced hypocotyl elongation may represent a response to local conditions.
An Active Site Water Network in the Plasminogen Activator Pla from Yersinia pestis

The plasminogen activator Pla from Yersinia pestis is an outer membrane protease (omptin) that is important for the virulence of plague. Here, we present the high-resolution crystal structure of wild-type, enzymatically active Pla at 1.9 A. The structure shows a water molecule located between active site residues D84 and H208, which likely corresponds to the nucleophilic water. A number of other water molecules are present in the active site, linking residues important for enzymatic activity. The R211 sidechain in loop L4 is close to the nucleophilic water and possibly involved in the stabilization of the oxyanion intermediate. Subtle conformational changes of H208 result from the binding of lipopolysaccharide to the outside of the barrel, explaining the unusual dependence of omptins on lipopolysaccharide for activity. The Pla structure suggests a model for the interaction with plasminogen substrate and provides a more detailed understanding of the catalytic mechanism of omptin proteases.
Patient-therapist attachment in the treatment of borderline personality disorder

The authors report preliminary findings from a longitudinal study on the impact of attachment state of mind and reflective function on therapeutic process and outcome with borderline patients in Transference-Focused Psychotherapy (TFP). TFP is a manualized, psychoanalytically oriented treatment based on an object relations model of understanding patients with severe personality disorders. The attachment theory constructs of internal working models of attachment and mentalization or reflective function provide an important means of both conceptualizing borderline disorders and assessing therapeutic process and change. In the Personality Disorders Institute at New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Medical College of Cornell University, the authors have been using the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) to assess changes in state of mind with respect to attachment and reflective function over the course of 1 year in borderline patients in TFP treatment. As part of the authors' investigations of the impact of patients' attachment status on the therapeutic process, they have adapted the AAI to evaluate states of mind with respect to attachment within the therapeutic relationship through an interview called the Patient-Therapist Adult Attachment Interview (PT-AAI). The AAI is given at 4 months and 1 year, and the PT-AAI is given to patients after 1 year of TFP, and both interviews are scored for attachment classification and reflective function. The authors present preliminary findings on change in both attachment classification and reflective function ratings at 4 months and 1 year for a subsample of 10 patients and therapists. They also present two cases that illustrate how the quality of mentalization or reflective function in the therapeutic dyad may be seen as a bidirectional process in that therapists' and patients' levels of reflective function are mutually and reciprocally influential. In one case, the patient's and therapist's reflective function mirrored each other directly and remained at a low or rudimentary level for the treatment year. Such a pattern of direct imitation does not necessarily promote intrapsychic change. In the second case, the patient moved from a rejecting or bizarre stance toward mentalization on the AAI to some rudimentary consideration of mental states after 1 year of treatment with a therapist who showed a full and nuanced awareness of mental states, but who adjusted his level of mentalization to that of the patient. These findings suggest that optimally the therapist ought to be one step ahead of the patient in the capacity for mentalization.
The Impact of Presidential Speeches on the Bureaucracy

Objective. Scholars have long held that presidents use various tools to control the federal bureaucracy. Yet, despite their importance to presidents in achieving their policy goals in Congress, few scholars have examined the impact of presidential speeches on bureaucratic activity. This article analyzes the impact of both positive and negative policy signals on civil rights policy in the bureaucracy. Method. I test this hypothesis using speeches coded from the Public Papers of the Presidents and their impact on criminal cases filed by the Civil Rights Division over time. Given heteroskedasticity in the dependent variable, log-linear time-series methods are appropriate. Results. The president's positive speeches increase the number of criminal civil rights cases filed in U.S. District Court. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 also has had a significant, positive impact on bureaucratic activity. Conclusions. In part because bureaucrats have discretion to resist presidential preferences that oppose an agency's core task, negative signals do not affect the implementation of civil rights policy. Yet, positive presidential speeches are available to presidents who may wish to influence the bureaucracy.
Purification and characterization of novel transglutaminase from Bacillus subtilis spores

Transglutaminase activity was detected in suspensions of purified spores prepared from lysozyme-treated sporulating cells of Bacillus subtilis AJ 1307. The enzyme was easily solubilized from the spores upon incubation at pH 10.5 at 37°C. The transglutaminase activity was separated into two fractions upon purification by hydrophobic interaction chromatography (TG1 and TG2). Each enzyme was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity (about 1,000-fold). Both enzymes had the same molecular weight of 29,000 as estimated by SDS-PAGE, had the same N-terminal 30 amino acid sequence, and also showed the same optimal temperature (60°C) and pH (8.2). The purified enzyme catalyzed formation of cross-linked e-(γ-glutamyl)lysine isopeptides, resulting in the gel-formation of protein solutions such as αs-casein and BSA.
Historia mundial y perspectiva mundial | World History and World Outlook

La historia mundial es una forma particularmente adecuada para hacer frente al etnocentrismo. Los textos sobre historia general existentes hasta la fecha mencionan a China en uno o dos capitulos, mientras que dedican el resto de su tiempo a Europa. ?Es esto debido a que solo Europa ha cambiado, a que solo han tenido lugar acontecimientos en Europa? Cualquiera que haya estudiado la historia de China le dira que esto no es cierto. La historia de la cultura china es para la humanidad mundial moderna practicamente tan importante, desde un punto de vista internacional, como lo es la historia de Europa. Sin embargo, cuando leemos “historia mundial”, leemos principalmente sobre Europa. World history has a value in breaking down our ethnocentrism. The up-to-date general histories mention China in one or two chapters, whereas they spend all the rest of their time on Europe. Is this because only Europe has changed, only Europe has had things happen? Anyone who has studied the history of China will tell you this is not true. The history of Chinese culture is as important, from an international point of view, to modern world humanity as is the history of Europe. Yet when we read “world history” we read chiefly of Europe.
Bounded-reversal multihead finite automata languages

A well-known open problem in computational complexity is to find an easily specified language not recognized by any log2 n tape-bounded Turing machine. It is known that the log2 n family is identical to the family of languages recognized by two-way multihead finite automata. Attention here is restricted to those multihead automata which may only reverse each head a fixed constant number of times. It is shown that every bounded language recognized by an automaton from this family satisfies the semilinear property. Thus, easily specified languages which are too complex to be recognized by these restricted multihead automata are obtained.
Effects of cylindrical curvature on radiation from a microstrip antenna with a thick cover layer

The fundamental radiation characteristics of a microstrip antenna on a cylindrical substrate with a thick cover layer is investigated by using a magnetic line source model. Numerical results for the radiation pattern and conductance are presented. It is found that certain combinations of curvature radius and cover-layer thickness could result in significant distortions in the pattern. Lossy dielectric material may be used to reduce these undesired effects. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The Providing of Well-Baby Care within Parent-Infant Groups "Pediatricians Are Encouraged to Explore the Parent-Infant Group Model in Their Practices"

A model has been described for the practice of pediatrics using parent-infant groups. In a one year experience, three parent-infant groups met at monthly intervals. A one-hour parent discussion was followed by examination of the infants within the group setting. Among the benefits observed were much more attention of well-baby care and infant development, and the surfacing and alleviation of parental concerns and anxieties.
Review: The English Castle, 1066–1650 by John Goodall

John Goodall. The English Castle, 1066–1650 New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2011, 480 pp., 250 color and 100 b/w illus. $75, ISBN 97803001105 John Goodall has written what is perhaps the most important, authoritative, and scholarly book on English castles for a generation. It is a large tome (weighing seven pounds) with an incredible amount of information, marshaled in great detail and presented with deep understanding, clarity, and command. Additionally, Goodall proposes a series of exciting new ideas here that, taken together, mark a watershed in castle studies. The author states his aim in The English Castle thus: “this book is an architectural study that aims to set this legion of buildings in historical context. … It is intended to be a provocative work, challenging received opinions, and, hopefully, formulating many new ones” (xiii). Goodall organizes the book chronologically: after an introductory discussion, we get successive chapters organized around royal reigns, with titles such as “The Early Angevin Castle: Henry II and Richard I” and “The Lion of England: Edward III.” Its chronological scope extends over six centuries, from buildings prior to the Norman Conquest to the English Civil War, and it examines buildings from across England and Wales and beyond (more on this below). Goodall’s ostensible objective is to focus on four great castles in particular: Dover, Durham, Kenilworth, and Windsor. Although he gives these four castles their own subsections in the bibliography, this claimed focus is not particularly noticeable as one reads through the text itself, so rich is the detail on literally hundreds of castles of all areas and periods. To understand the importance of Goodall’s arguments, one must …
Interfacial Reactions and Electrical Properties of Ti/n-GaN Contacts

The phase equilibria in the ternary Ti-Ga-N have been investigated. Interfacial reactions in Ti/GaN contacts have been studied by diffusion couple experiments. The ternary phase Ti2GaN was confirmed by x-ray diffraction in bulk samples as well as in massive Ti/GaN diffusion couples and annealed Ti thin films on GaN. The diffusion path in samples, annealed at 85CP C in Ar gas, is GaN/TiN/Ti2GaN/Ti3Ga/Ti. A planar TiN layer forms in direct contact to GaN and governs the electrical properties of annealed Ti/GaN contacts. Thin film contacts were fabricated by sputtering Ti on MOVPE grown n-GaN (5×1017cm-3) and subsequent rapid thermal annealing in an Argon atmosphere. Initially non-linear current-voltage characteristics become ohmic after annealing and a specific contact resistance of approximately 10-2 Ω cm2, measured with the circular transmission line method, was found after annealing at 900°C for 1 min.
The Synaptonemal Complex in Meiosis: Significance of Induced Perturbations

The synapsis of homologous chromosomes in meiosis is generally accepted to be a prerequisite for crossing-over. Moreover, there is evidence that both synapsis and crossing-over are determinants of the normal disjunction and segregation that lead to the reduction process by which haploid chromosome complements of germ cells are derived. It follows that perturbations in homologous synapsis are prime candidates for causing non- or abnormal disjunction and malsegregation of homologs, that could, among other consequences, lead to aneuploidy. But, visualizing the intimate morphological details of normal and abnormal synapsis, especially in mammalian gametocytes, is difficult at best with most commonly used cytological techniques.
A Bayesian approach for characterizing uncertainty in declaring a population collapse

Abstract Detecting rapid and substantial population declines (collapses) is of considerable importance to many applied ecological fields. Published definitions of a population collapse describe a decline in abundance over time (e.g., 90% decline within 10 years or less). We develop a flexible, rigorous method to account for uncertainty in the magnitude and period of a collapse, and provide a way to estimate the probability of a collapse having occurred. Using Bayesian approaches we quantify uncertainty in the maximum abundance obtained in a time series and the time step in which this maximum is realized. We then use this estimate of uncertainty as a way to set a confidence interval around a specified percentage decline from the maximum, and as a way to acknowledge uncertainty in how many time steps it took for the decline to occur. We apply this method to evaluate the prevalence of collapses among 12 declining native Hawaiian birds, and show a high probability that six of these 12 have declined by ≥90% within 10 years. Our procedure advances current methods for identifying collapses within time series of abundance data by explicitly and transparently accounting for uncertainty in the key component of any definition of a collapse; the maximum abundance.
Philosophical Thoughts of Studying Cognitive Linguistics

Philosophy is a footstone and cradle of linguistics studying,and various schools of linguistics originate from different outlooks of cognition as well as that of philosophy of language.Essentially,language philosophy discusses the relations between language and objective world.Cognitive linguistics,providing a brand-new approach to researching linguistics in the 21st century,is a booming interdisciplinary field and front edge of linguistic studying.Represented by George Lakoff and M.Johnson,it realized a change from view of objectivism philosophy to that of experimentalism philosophy,marking a progress in human ideology and language philosophy.
Effects of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) on the cochlear nucleus in cats deafened as neonates.

Abstract Many previous studies have shown significant neurotrophic effects of intracochlear delivery of BDNF in preventing degeneration of cochlear spiral ganglion (SG) neurons after deafness in rodents and our laboratory has shown similar results in developing cats deafened prior to hearing onset. This study examined the morphology of the cochlear nucleus (CN) in a group of neonatally deafened cats from a previous study in which infusion of BDNF elicited a significant improvement in survival of the SG neurons. Five cats were deafened by systemic injections of neomycin sulfate (60 mg/kg, SQ, SID) starting one day after birth, and continuing for 16–18 days until auditory brainstem response (ABR) testing demonstrated profound bilateral hearing loss. The animals were implanted unilaterally at about 1 month of age using custom-designed electrodes with a drug-delivery cannula connected to an osmotic pump. BDNF (94 μg/ml; 0.25 μl/hr) was delivered for 10 weeks. The animals were euthanized and studied at 14–23 weeks of age. Consistent with the neurotrophic effects of BDNF on SG survival, the total CN volume in these animals was significantly larger on the BDNF-treated side than on the contralateral side. However, total CN volume, both ipsi- and contralateral to the implants in these deafened juvenile animals, was markedly smaller than the CN in normal adult animals, reflecting the severe effects of deafness on the central auditory system during development. Data from the individual major CN subdivisions (DCN, Dorsal Cochlear Nucleus; PVCN, Posteroventral Cochlear Nucleus; AVCN, Anteroventral Cochlear Nucleus) also were analyzed. A significant difference was observed between the BDNF-treated and control sides only in the AVCN. Measurements of the cross-sectional areas of spherical cells showed that cells were significantly larger in the AVCN ipsilateral to the implant than on the contralateral side. Further, the numerical density of spherical cells was significantly lower in the AVCN ipsilateral to the implant than on the contralateral side, consistent with the larger AVCN volume observed with BDNF treatment. Together, findings indicate significant neurotrophic effects of intracochlear BDNF infusion on the developing CN.
A General Approach for Obtaining Wrapped Circular Distributions via Mixtures

We show that the operations of mixing and wrapping linear distributions around a unit circle commute, and can produce a wide variety of circular models. In particular, we show that many wrapped circular models studied in the literature can be obtained as scale mixtures of just the wrapped Gaussian and the wrapped exponential distributions, and inherit many properties from these two basic models. We also point out how this general approach can produce flexible asymmetric circular models, the need for which has been noted by many authors.
Potential Impacts of Everglades Restoration on Lobster and Hard Bottom Communities in the Florida Keys, FL (USA)

The Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) is intended to restore the Everglades ecosystem (FL, USA) by altering its hydrology, with likely consequences for “downstream” estuarine and marine communities in Florida Bay and the Florida Keys. Spiny lobsters (Panulirus argus) are among several species of special concern with respect to CERP because they are of economic and ecological importance and because their nursery habitat may be impacted. We used agent-based, spatially explicit modeling to evaluate the possible impacts of changing water quality (temperature, salinity, harmful algal blooms (HABs)) on spiny lobsters and sponges, the latter of which provide shelter for juvenile lobsters. In our simulations, lobster abundance declined 6–24% in scenarios where salinity either decreased alone or in combination with HABs that kill sponges and are associated with changing water quality. The most severe decline in lobsters occurred when salinity was lowest and HABs occurred annually. One third of this decline was attributable to decreased salinity that increased lobster mortality and movement. However, the greatest impacts on lobsters were indirect. CERP-associated changes in salinity along with HABs caused a die-off of large sponges, resulting in higher predatory mortality on lobsters that depend on sponges for shelter in hard bottom nursery habitats. Sponges declined by ∼50% in simulations with HABs, whereas decreased salinity alone led to sponge mortality of 9–18%. In contrast, higher temperatures increased juvenile lobster growth and eventual recruitment by approximately 7%. Our results suggest that returning Florida Bay to more estuarine, pre-development conditions is likely to result in an ecosystem reversal that is detrimental to stenohaline marine taxa, a scenario with significant socioeconomic implications.
50 years of loving: A reflection on seeking justice through love and relationships

The significance of the fiftieth anniversary of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Loving v. Virginia can be neither underestimated nor underappreciated by the members of the lesbian and gay community presently in, or aspiring to be in, legally-recognized marriages. The thematic overlaps between Loving and the Supreme Court’s more recent decision in Obergefell v. Hodges are inescapable. Both cases involve the marital rights of two individuals who society viewed as non-traditional and, thus, inappropriate marital partners. In both cases, the court system and a segment of society, in varying degrees, evolved to accept the marital rights of interracial and same-sex couples, contrary to another segment of society that did not condone and protested the conferral of such rights. Mildred Loving, one of the plaintiffs in Loving, clearly saw the connection between her and her husband’s fight for racial equality in marriage and the struggle for same-sex marriage recognition. She endorsed equal marriage for all couples, regardless of their race, sex, or sexual orientation in a statement entitled “Loving for All,” issued for the fortieth anniversary of the landmark decision. This essay is a reflection on the effects of the Loving decision on same-sex legal relationships in general, and on my legal relationship in particular. This reflection is one of a number of essays and articles published as part of a Creighton University symposium held on March 24, 2017.
Fundus autofluorescence imaging in hereditary retinal diseases

Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) is a non-invasive retinal imaging modality used in clinical practice to non-invasively map changes at the level of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)/photoreceptor complex and alterations of macular pigment distribution. This imaging method is based on the visualization of intrinsic fluorophores and may be easily and rapidly used in routine patient care. Excessive accumulation of lipofuscin granules in the lysosomal compartment of RPE cells represents a common downstream pathogenic pathway in various hereditary and complex retinal diseases. The clinical applications of FAF continue to expand. It is now an essential tool for evaluating macular dystrophies and various hereditary retinal disorders. Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) may detect abnormalities beyond those detected on funduscopic examination, fluorescein angiography (FA) or optical coherence tomography (OCT). Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging is particularly helpful for differential diagnosis, detection and extent delineation of involved retinal areas, genotype-phenotype correlations and monitoring of changes overtime. Given its ease of use, non-invasive nature and value in characterizing retinal disease, FAF enjoys increasing clinical relevance. This review summarizes basic principles and FAF findings in various hereditary retinal diseases.
Xenophobic Trumpeters: A corpus-assisted discourse study of Donald Trump's Facebook conversations

Immigration has been and remains a conspicuous topic in American political debate, and the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe, exasperated by the Syrian conflict, has brought the issue of Muslim immigration into focus. The topic has been exploited, among others, by the presidential candidate Donald J. Trump. His proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. achieved great resonance and stimulated passionate discussion. This discussion, which displayed a high degree of xenophobia and verbal aggression, is the target of this paper’s investigation. Material was collected from Trump’s official Facebook page and was analyzed using Critical Discourse Analysis and Corpus Linguistic methods. The results highlight the strategies employed in discourse that aims to posit Muslims as “Others” and as incompatible with American society, as well as dangerous, aggressive, and inferior, through the choice of semantic, syntactic, and rhetorical discursive structures.
Genes and Virtue: Exploring How Heritability Beliefs Shape Conceptions of Virtue and Its Development.

In this paper, we provide an overview of our ongoing project in the Genetics and Human Agency Initiative sponsored by the John Templeton Foundation. Our project focuses on the ways that lay beliefs about the heritability of virtue influence reasoning about the nature of virtue, parenting behaviors, and the development of virtue in children. First, we provide philosophical perspectives on the nature of virtue and suggest that viewing virtue as a malleable skill may have important advantages. Next, we review theory and research that highlights the ways that lay heritability beliefs potentially undermine conceptualizations of virtue as a malleable skill. Finally, we discuss how lay heritability beliefs might ultimately affect parent–child interactions and child virtue development. The paper thus provides a brief description our project’s theoretical foundation and a general look at the empirical questions it will tackle.
Including Individual Participant Data in Meta-analysis

This chapter introduces methods for including individual participant data in a traditional meta-analysis. Since meta-analyses use data aggregated to the study, there is potential for aggregation bias, finding relationships between the effect size and study characteristics that may hold only at the level of the study. The potential of aggregation bias may limit the application of meta-analysis results to practice and policy. This chapter provides an example of including publicly available data in a traditional meta-analysis.
Structural Studies of Guest–Host Interactions in Dianin's Clathrates

Dianin's compound(4-p-hydroxyphenyl-2,2,4-trimethyl chroman) forms isostructural clathrates and a clathrand which can be systematically studied to determine the microscopic origins of bulk physical properties. Due to the large number of guests that can be enclathrated in the Dianin's system, experiments in which systematic changes of guest size and functionality can be used to probe guest–host interactions. Herein we report the structures for the1,6-hexanediol, 1,5-pentanediol, and 1-heptanol Dianin's clathrates deduced by X-ray crystallography. In the hexanediol, pentanediol, and heptanol clathrates, the guests' hydroxyl groups hydrogen bond with the host cage's hydrogen-bonded hexamer ring.The two terminal alcohol groups in the diols have different spatial orientations within the cage that result from gauche bonds between atoms in the guest's backbone.
Are we witnessing the start of a therapeutic revolution in acute myeloid leukemia

The 5-year overall survival rate of AML patients remains 25-40%. The prognosis is even more dismal for older patients who are ineligible for intensive chemotherapy and patients with secondary or relapsed/refractory AML. In 2017, 4 new drugs were approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for AML treatment: The FLT3 inhibitor midostaurin, the isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-2 inhibitor enasidenib, a liposomal formulation of cytarabine and daunorubicin (CPX-351), and the anti-CD33 antibody gemtuzumab ozogamicin. Additionally, the IDH1 inhibitor ivosidenib has received FDA approval in July 2018. However, all these drugs were approved in certain settings and/or for certain subsets of AML patients. Herein, we review the mechanisms of actions and preclinical data, highlight pivotal clinical trial data, and discuss future directions and challenges for further development of these 5 novel therapeutics. Finally, we briefly overview some of the highly promising agents that are currently in advanced stages of clinical development.
Medievalia: a Place Where Archival Science and History Meet and Then Separate Again

This paper seeks to present some aspects from the experience of Medievalia Project, undertaken by University of Bucharest - Faculty of History and National Archives of Romania, aiming to offer a national portal for medieval records. The paper will offer a presentation of some strategic approach taken for digitization and for retrieval of “documents”.
Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic Excision of C-Section Scar Ectopic Pregnancy with Bipolar Coagulation of Uterine Vessels

Video Objective To describe a technique of robotic-assisted laparoscopic excision of c-section scar ectopic pregnancy (CSP) with bipolar coagulation of uterine vessels. Setting CSP occurs when a gestational sac (GS) is located in the anterior uterine wall with diminished myometrium between the sac and the bladder, and a discontinuity in the anterior wall of the uterus adjacent to the GS, with an empty uterus and cervical canal. It is estimated that 4.2% of ectopic pregnancies are CSP. Laparoscopic bipolar coagulation of uterine vessels is mostly described in myomectomies: it aids in decreasing blood loss, preserves the uterus, and there are pregnancies and term pregnancies post-procedure reported in the literature, with approximately 40% early miscarriage rate. This is a video case report of a 35yo G6P3023 7weeks pregnant with CSP on sonogram, failed multidose regimen methotrexate and developed lower abdominal pain with vaginal bleeding. She was counseled on surgical treatment of CSP. Interventions In this video, we describe the surgical approach opted for this patient. The minimally invasive surgery was recommended considering decreased blood loss, postoperative pain and hospital stay. Considering her history of prior 3 c-sections, the robotic approach would offer better visualization for lysis of adhesions and greater instruments range of motion. In anticipation of bleeding of difficult control, bipolar coagulation of uterine vessels was planned preoperatively. Preoperative imaging was also crucial. It was noted firm adhesions from the bladder to the lower uterine segment, carefully dissected off until identification and removal of GS, confirmed with frozen section. The hysterotomy was repaired with barbed suture. Excellent hemostasis with minimal blood loss (EBL 20ml) noted. Patient did well postoperatively, with beta HCG followed to zero. Conclusion Robotic-assisted laparoscopic excision of CSP should be considered as a valuable treatment option, and preparedness is paramount.
Complement and coagulation cascades are potentially involved in dopaminergic neurodegeneration in alpha-synuclein-based mouse models of Parkinson's disease

Parkinson9s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder that results in motor dysfunction and eventually, cognitive impairment. alpha-Synuclein protein has been known to be the most culprit protein, but the underlying pathological mechanism still remains to be elucidated. As an effort to clarify the pathogenesis mechanism by alpha-synuclein, various PD mouse models with alpha-synuclein overexpression have been developed. However, the systemic analysis of protein abundance change by the overexpressed alpha-synuclein in the whole proteome level has been still lacking. To address this issue, we established two sophisticated mouse models of PD by injecting alpha-synuclein preformed fibrils (PFF) or by inducing overexpression of human A53T alpha-synuclein to discover overlapping pathways, which could be altered in the two different types of PD mouse model. For more accurate quantification of mouse brain proteome, stable isotope labeling with amino acid in mammal-based quantification was implemented. As a result, we have successfully identified a total of 8,355 proteins from both of the mouse models; ~6,800 and ~7,200 proteins from alpha-synuclein PFF injected mice and human A53T alpha-synuclein transgenic mice, respectively. From the pathway analysis of the differentially expressed proteins in common, the complement and coagulation cascade pathway were determined as the most enriched ones. This is the first study that highlights the significance of the complement and coagulation pathway in the pathogenesis of PD through proteome analyses with two sophisticated mouse models of PD.
Massive-Scale I/Q Datasets for WiFi Radio Fingerprinting

Abstract Recent research has proved the effectiveness of neural networks (NNs) in “fingerprinting” (i.e., identifying) wireless radios, by determining the hardware impairments emitted from the transmitter during the waveform transmission process. The artificial neurons of the NN layers are employed to identify and track the radios’ unique impairments by training a large amount of raw data released from these radios. Today, the radio fingerprinting field lacks such a large-scale waveform database that can provide a standard benchmark for researchers working on this field. In this paper, we publicly share 2TB of IEEE 802.11 a/g (WiFi) data obtained from 20 bit-similar Software-Defined-Radios (SDRs).
An immersed phase field fracture model in fluid-infiltrating porous media with evolving Beavers-Joseph-Saffman condition

This study presents a phase field model for brittle fracture in fluid-infiltrating vuggy porous media. While the state-of-the-art in hydraulic phase field fracture considers Darcian fracture flow with enhanced permeability along the crack, in this study, the phase field not only acts as a damage variable that provides diffuse representation of cracks or cavities, but also acts as an indicator function that separates the domain into two regions where fluid flows are governed by Stokes and Darcy equations, respectively. Since the phase field and its gradient can be respectively regarded as smooth approximations of the Heaviside function and Dirac delta function, our new approach is capable of imposing interfacial transmissibility conditions without explicit interface parametrizations. In addition, the interaction between solid and fluid constituents is modeled by adopting the concept of mixture theory, where the fluid velocities in Stokes and Darcy regions are considered as relative measures compared to the solid motion. This model is particularly attractive for coupled flow analysis in geological materials with complex microstructures undergoing brittle fracture often encountered in energy geotechnics problems, since it completely eliminates the needs to generate specific enrichment function, integration scheme, or meshing algorithm tailored for complex geological features.
Promoting Resilience to Food Commercials Decreases Susceptibility to Unhealthy Food Decision-Making

Children are vulnerable to adverse effects of food advertising. Food commercials are known to increase hedonic, taste-oriented, and unhealthy food decisions. The current study examined how promoting resilience to food commercials impacted susceptibility to unhealthy food decision-making in children. To promote resilience to food commercials, we utilized the food advertising literacy intervention intended to enhance cognitive skepticism and critical thinking, and decrease positive attitudes toward commercials. Thirty-six children aged 8-12 years were randomly assigned to the food advertising literacy intervention or the control condition. Eighteen children received four brief intervention sessions via video over 1 week period. In each session, children watched six food commercials with interspersed embedded intervention narratives. While watching food commercials and narratives, children were encouraged to speak their thoughts out loud spontaneously ("think-aloud"), which provided children's attitudes toward commercials. Eighteen children in the control condition had four control sessions over 1 week, and watched the same food commercials without intervention narratives while thinking aloud. The first and last sessions were held in the laboratory, and the second and third sessions were held at the children's homes. Susceptibility to unhealthy food decision-making was indicated by the decision weights of taste attributes, taste perception, food choices, ad libitum snacking, and cognitive and affective attitudes toward food commercials. As hypothesized, the intervention successfully decreased susceptibility to unhealthy food decision-making evidenced by reduced decision weights of the taste in food decisions, decreased tasty perception of unhealthy foods, and increased cognitive skepticism and critical thinking toward food commercials. In addition, as children's opinions assimilated to intervention narratives, their cognitive skepticism and critical thinking toward commercials increased. The aforementioned results were not shown in the control condition. However, this brief intervention was not enough to change actual food choices or food consumption. Results of this study suggest that promoting resilience to food commercials by enhancing cognitive skepticism and critical thinking effectively reduced children's susceptibility to unhealthy food-decision making.
Comment on M.G. Sciffer, L.B. Perry, & A.M. McConney, “critiques of socio-economic school compositional effects: are they valid?”

In a recent article in this journal, Sciffer, Perry, and McConney identify the risk of relying on insufficient within-unit variation as a serious flaw in a number of studies using student fixed eff...
Retrievable Inferior Vena Cava Filters

Venous thromboembolisms constitute a significant cause of death among the critically ill patients, multiple injured trauma patients, patients undergoing lower extremity catheter-related venous thrombolysis for DVT, selected orthopedic, bariatric, and pregnant patients. The use of retrievable inferior vena cava filters can have the advantage of preventing a fatal pulmonary embolus in those patients at inherent risk without the long-term morbidity associated with its continued presence. Careful patient selection and technique can ensure proper placement and successful retrieval. In addition, a stringent patient follow-up can translate into higher retrieval rates.
An approximation tour

In signal processing, orthogonal bases are of interest because they can efficiently approximate certain types of signals with just a few vectors. Two examples of such applications are image compression and the estimation of noisy signals. Approximation theory studies the error produced by different approximation schemes in an orthonormal basis. A linear approximation projects the signal over M vectors chosen a priori. In Fourier or wavelet bases, this linear approximation is particularly precise for uniformly regular signals. However, better approximations are obtained by choosing the M basis vectors depending on the signal. Signals with isolated singularities are well approximated in a wavelet basis with this non-linear procedure. A further degree of freedom is introduced by choosing the basis adaptively, depending on the signal properties. From families of wavelet packet bases and local cosine bases, a fast dynamical programming algorithm is used to select the best basis that minimizes a Schur concave cost function. The approximation vectors chosen from this best basis outline the important signal structures, and characterize their time-frequency properties. Pursuit algorithms generalize these adaptive approximations by selecting the approximation vectors from redundant dictionaries of time-frequency atoms, with no orthogonality constraint.