cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Fantastic Phaeacians: Dance and Disruption in the Odyssey

This article analyzes the descriptions of both choral and individualized dance in Odyssey 8, focusing on the unique and disruptive qualities of the virtuosic paired performance of the Phaeacian princes Halius and Laodamas. I explore how this dance is particularly emblematic of Phaeacian culture, and show how the description of dance and movement operates as a means by which Odysseus and Alcinous competitively negotiate their relative positions of status and authority within the poem. I further argue that the Homeric poet uses dance to foreground generic exploration and expansion in a manner consistent with recent understandings of the Odyssey ’s flexible and improvisatory poetics.
The Dirac Equation

For almost 100 years a major goal of physics has been to understand the electron. Although such a desire may not seem excessive, it nevertheless is far from being realized on a fundamental level. A great deal of the effort that has been expended in the classical domain is reviewed in the Appendix, where we see that only the nonrelativistic, finite-size model appears to be completely well behaved. [Some recent progress has been booked, however, in the covariant formulation of an extended model [e.g., Schwinger (1983), Beil (1989).] Yet all experimental evidence still fails to reveal any structure for the particle. Whether or not one has faith in the ultimate existence of point particles, that is what is currently indicated by the data. Lacking any experimental definition or direction to the contrary, that is also the generally accepted model today, and the one we shall continue to follow for the moment in the quantum domain.
Guidelines for the design and control of bio-inspired hovering robots

We study the dynamics of hovering mechanisms inspired by hummingbirds and bats to extract practical guidelines for the design and control of aerial robots. Using a dynamical model that incorporates wing flapping, pronation and folding, we determine the parameters for which hovering is possible. We show that the pronation angle (rotational degree of freedom for the wing about its span) significantly effects energy consumption of the system and demonstrate an optimal wing-beat frequency that minimizes the average power consumption. Furthermore, we show that increased body rotational inertia can significantly increase the energy consumption of hovering and can lead to implausible hovering trajectories. Last, we show that a bat-inspired hovering mechanism that allows for wing folding can generate plausible hovering behavior for larger aerial systems.
Finding the diamond in the rough: Exploring communication and platform in crowdsourcing performance

ABSTRACTIdeas that rise to the top in crowdsourcing platforms are assumed to succeed because they are perceived to be the best ideas, but questions about the factors that influence the outperformance of one solution over another remain underexplored. The Peer Vetted Ideas model is proposed as an explanation of elements that affect performance in crowdsourcing for creative ideation solutions. Using content analysis and hierarchical multiple regression, the study examined the relationship between performance in a public sector crowdsourcing competition and (a) design concepts, (b) communication about the designs, and (c) platform context. Results indicate that crowdsourcing is not always a meritocratic process to produce the objective “best” ideas, but rather also depends on subjective communicative, temporal, and platform factors.
It Happened to Me: A Qualitative Analysis of Boys’ Narratives About Child Sexual Abuse

ABSTRACTPrevious research on children’s narratives about sexual abuse written predominately by girls uncovered several themes, including: (a) memories of the abuse, (b) the disclosure and subsequent events, and (c) the healing journey and a meta-theme titled “fear and safety.” This follow-up study explored how boys describe their life prior to, during, and after sexual abuse in the form of trauma narratives and if there are distinctive features of boys’ experiences that differ from those of girls. Analysis of narratives written by males ages 3 to 17 (N = 19) found that boys ascribe to the same themes as the initial research but also have experiences and perspectives that are unique to being male survivors. This article focuses on the first two themes: memories of the abuse and the disclosure and subsequent events. Gender differences are discussed along with recommendations for prevention of male sexual abuse.
Characteristics of self-inflicted drug overdose deaths in North Carolina.

Abstract Background Drug overdose mortality is a major public health concern in the United States, with prescription opioids contributing substantially to recent increases in drug overdose deaths. Compared to unintentional drug overdose deaths, relatively little data describes intentional self-inflicted drug overdose deaths (i.e., suicide by drug overdose). The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of self-inflicted drug overdose deaths, overall and in comparison to unintentional drug overdose deaths. Methods We linked vital statistics, prescription drug monitoring program, and toxicology data for self-inflicted and unintentional drug overdose deaths among North Carolina residents in 2012. Results Most self-inflicted (79.2%) and unintentional (75.6%) drug overdose decedents had a prescription for a controlled substance within one year of death. Toxicology results revealed that antidepressants contributed to a significantly higher percent of self-inflicted compared to unintentional drug overdose deaths (45.0% vs. 8.1%). Among deaths in which commonly prescribed opioids (oxycodone, hydrocodone) or benzodiazepines (alprazolam, clonazepam) contributed to death, a significantly higher percent of self-inflicted drug overdose decedents had a prescription for the substance within 30 days of death compared to unintentional drug overdose decedents. Conclusions The results highlight the use of prescription opioids, benzodiazepines, and antidepressants among self-inflicted drug overdose decedents. Importantly, the results indicate that self-inflicted drug overdose decedents were more likely than unintentional drug overdose decedents to have potential contact with the health care system in the weeks preceding death, offering an opportunity for professionals to identify and intervene on risk factors or signs of distress and potential for self-harm.
Utilizing Fluorescence Microscopy for Quantifying Mobilization Rate of Aged Asphalt Binder

AbstractThe asphalt paving industry has been increasing the use of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP). There is a concern about the percentage of aged asphalt binder in the RAP that can actually be bl...
Single-stage isolated 48V-to-1.8V point-of-load converter utilizing an impedance control network for wide input range operation

This paper introduces a single-stage isolated 48V-to-1.8V point-of-load converter based on the impedance control network (ICN) resonant converter architecture. This point-of-load ICN converter achieves large step-down while maintaining high efficiency across a wide range of input voltage and output power. Large step-down is achieved through a combination of stacked inverters, a transformer and a resonant current-doubler rectifier. High efficiency is achieved by utilizing the ICN architecture, which enables zero-voltage and near-zero-current switching across wide operating ranges. The power density of the converter is enhanced by combining the three inductors of the ICN into a single integrated magnetic structure. A design methodology based on 3D finite-element-analysis is employed to optimize the magnetic components of the proposed ICN converter. A prototype 90-W ICN converter utilizing planar magnetics, designed to operate over an input voltage range of 36 V to 60 V and an output voltage of 1.8 V is built and tested. The prototyped converter achieves a peak efficiency of 88.7% and maintains efficiencies above 87.6% across its nearly 2:1 input voltage range, and above 86.6% across a 10:1 output power range.
Accuracy of the Finite Element Method in Three Dimensions

As we have seen in the one-dimensional analysis, the essential idea in the finite element method is to select a finite dimensional subspatial approximation of the true solution and form the following weak boundary problem
HIV Care: Prevailing Trends, Barriers and Paradoxes

This chapter investigates black South African women’s opportunities to access health and HIV care as a minimum requirement of justice. It reviews South Africa’s national HIV policy framework; goals and progress in meeting these; and investigates access to and provision of health and HIV care in the public health system. Using the socio-ecological framework, primary barriers to HIV care and factors that influence HIV care linkage, drop out, adherence and retention are identified along four dimensions: intrapersonal; interpersonal; health systems; and structural. A number of key gaps in both the policy and the health system response in relation to HIV in women are brought to light. The analysis reveals that health and HIV care, together with the policy framework, comprise layers within a multi-tiered, larger edifice of enabling or disabling conditions and locations that determine and support women’s health. These, however, offer an inadequate base from which to gain in-depth insight into HIV positive women’s prospects for health and wellbeing and justice in health. I conclude that gaining such insight requires investigation into this population’s opportunities to be healthy or their ‘capabilities’.
Negative Computed Tomography for Acute Pulmonary Embolism: Important Differential Diagnosis Considerations for Acute Dyspnea

Computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) is the principal means of evaluating dyspnea in the emergency department. As its use has increased, the number of studies positive for pulmonary embolism (PE) has decreased to less than 20%. Many of the negative PE studies provide an alternative explanation for dyspnea, most commonly pneumonia, pulmonary edema, pleural effusion, or atelectasis. Nonthrombotic emboli may also be suggested. Airway and obstructive lung disease may be detected on CTPA. Pleural and pericardial disease may also explain the dyspnea, but more detailed evaluation of the serosal surfaces may be limited on the arterial phase of a CTPA.
Visualization of the Intensity Field of a Focused Ultrasound Source In Situ

In an increasing number of applications of focused ultrasound (FUS) therapy, such as opening of the blood–brain barrier or collapsing microbubbles in a tumor, elevation of tissue temperature is not involved. In these cases, real-time visualization of the field distribution of the FUS source would allow localization of the FUS beam within the targeted tissue and allow repositioning of the FUS beam during tissue motion. In this paper, in order to visualize the FUS beam in situ , a 6-MHz single-element transducer ( $f$ /2) was used as the FUS source and aligned perpendicular to a linear array which passively received scattered ultrasound from the sample. An image of the reconstructed intensity field pattern of the FUS source using bistatic beamforming was then superimposed on a registered B-mode image of the sample acquired using the same linear array. The superimposed image is used to provide anatomical context of the FUS beam in the sample being treated. The intensity field pattern reconstructed from a homogeneous scattering phantom was compared with the field characteristics of the FUS source characterized by the wire technique. The beamwidth estimates at the FUS focus using the in situ reconstruction technique and the wire technique were 1.5 and 1.2 mm, respectively. The depth-of-field estimates for the in situ reconstruction technique and the wire technique were 11.8 and 16.8 mm, respectively. The FUS beams were also visualized in a two-layer phantom and a chicken breast. The novel reconstruction technique was able to accurately visualize the field of an FUS source in the context of the interrogated medium.
A novel multimodal approach to treating proximal tracheal obstructions with spray cryotherapy

Spray cryotherapy (SCT) ablation of airway obstructions is an evolving field of clinical practice and research in thoracic disease (1). The third generation truFreeze System (CSA Medical, Lexington, MA) is the only SCT device approved for airway use. Using a series of valves to regulate the flow of the liquid nitrogen cryogen from the storage dewar to the exit point at the catheter tip, this current system creates a more even flow of liquid nitrogen without nitrogen gas pocket development. This regulated liquid nitrogen release enables greater stability during the transition to nitrogen gas at the treatment site than prior systems and facilitates uniform elastic recoil of the lung for safe nitrogen gas evacuation.
Neural network radiative transfer for imaging spectroscopy

Abstract. Visible–shortwave infrared imaging spectroscopy provides valuable remote measurements of Earth's surface and atmospheric properties. These measurements generally rely on inversions of computationally intensive radiative transfer models (RTMs). RTMs' computational expense makes them difficult to use with high-volume imaging spectrometers, and forces approximations such as lookup table interpolation and surface–atmosphere decoupling. These compromises limit the accuracy and flexibility of the remote retrieval; dramatic speed improvements in radiative transfer models could significantly improve the utility and interpretability of remote spectroscopy for Earth science. This study demonstrates that nonparametric function approximation with neural networks can replicate radiative transfer calculations and generate accurate radiance spectra at multiple wavelengths over a diverse range of surface and atmosphere state parameters. We also demonstrate such models can act as surrogate forward models for atmospheric correction procedures. Incorporating physical knowledge into the network structure provides improved interpretability and model efficiency. We evaluate the approach in atmospheric correction of data from the PRISM airborne imaging spectrometer, and demonstrate accurate emulation of radiative transfer calculations, which run several orders of magnitude faster than first-principles models. These results are particularly amenable to iterative spectrum fitting approaches, providing analytical benefits including statistically rigorous treatment of uncertainty and the potential to recover information on spectrally broad signals.
Design Methodology of a One-Turn Inductor With Significant DC and AC Fluxes—Demonstration in a Resonant Cross-Commutated Buck Converter

One-turn inductors must cope with high dc flux in conventional hard-switched point-of-load converters. These inductors need to handle both high dc and ac fluxes in soft-switched converters with high current ripple, for example, resonant cross-commutated buck (rccBuck) converters. In order to understand the losses associated with those fluxes, the winding loss in megahertz range is modeled in this paper through calculating the fringing field in the window area. The dc-biased core loss for resonant waveforms is modeled by the equivalent elliptical loop (EEL) method. According to the loss models, winding and core dimensions are designed systemically to minimize the total loss within a volume smaller than that of a commercial product. Four 1-turn inductors were fabricated for a 12 to 1.2 V rccBuck converter switched at 2 and 2.5 MHz. The designed one-turn inductors demonstrated 2.1% higher efficiency at 20 A output and 50% lower total magnetic volume than commercial inductors with similar inductances, on the same rccBuck converter.
Case 3: The Hypothermic Newborn.

A 2-day-old male infant born at 38 weeks to a gravida 1, para 1 woman is brought to the emergency department secondary to concerns for hypothermia, poor feeding, and decreased urine output. Prenatal laboratory results are unremarkable, with the exception of group B Streptococcus colonization that was adequately treated with penicillin prophylaxis before delivery. The delivery course was notable for thick meconium for which the infant underwent intubation and suctioning with subsequent extubation. The infant’s Apgar scores were 4 and 9 at 1 and 5 minutes, respectively. In the nursery, the infant was noted to be breastfeeding well and had passed stools and voided appropriately. He was discharged on day 2 after birth. After discharge, the parents contacted the infant’s physician to report decreased interest in feeding, decreased activity, and low rectal temperature of 93.9°F (34.4°C). The family was instructed to take the infant to the emergency department for further evaluation and treatment. On arrival at the emergency department, the infant was noted to have a temperature of 96.9°F (36.1°C) and to be listless, and was thus taken to a resuscitation bay. Initial physical examination showed an ill-appearing infant with tacky mucous membranes and an exaggerated Moro reflex. He was given a 10-mL/kg normal saline bolus and a 15-mL/kg normal saline bolus. Initial laboratory findings include the following: white blood cells 22,000/μL(22×109/L); hemoglobin 13.3 g/dL (133 g/L); hematocrit 36.5%; platelet count, 565×103/μL (565×109/L); neutrophils 80%; bands 1%; lymphocytes 12%; monocytes 5%; sodium 154 mEq/L (154 mmol/L); potassium 5.1 mEq/L (5.1 mmol/L); chloride 115 mEq/L (115 mmol/L); bicarbonate 20 mEq/L (20 mmol/L); blood …
UPPER GASTROINTESTINAL BLEEDING IS ASSOCIATED WITH SIGNIFICANT MORTALITY IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING PERCUTANEOUS CORONARY INTERVENTION FOR STABLE ISCHEMIC HEART DISEASE

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is often needed in patients with stable ischemic heart disease (SIHD). After PCI, patients need dual antiplatelet therapy which puts them at an increased risk of major bleeding especially in the GI tract. We aimed to evaluate the incidence of upper
Diet Induced Obesity Alters Intestinal Cytoplasmic Lipid Droplet Morphology and Proteome in the Postprandial Response to Dietary Fat

Dietary fat absorption by the small intestine is an efficient, multistep process that regulates the uptake and delivery of essential nutrients and energy. Fatty acids taken up by enterocytes, the absorptive cells of the small intestine, are resynthesized into triacylglycerol (TAG) and either secreted in chylomicrons or temporarily stored in cytoplasmic lipid droplets (CLDs). Proteins that associate with CLDs are thought to regulate the dynamics of TAG storage and mobilization. It is currently unclear what effect diet induced obesity (DIO) has on the balance between dietary fat storage and secretion. Specifically, there is limited knowledge of how DIO affects the level and diversity of proteins that associate with CLDs and regulate CLD dynamics. In the current study, we characterize CLDs from lean and DIO mice through histological and proteomic analyses. We demonstrate that DIO mice have larger intestinal CLDs compared to lean mice in response to dietary fat. Additionally, we identified 375 proteins in the CLD fraction isolated from enterocytes of lean and DIO mice. We identified a subgroup of lipid related proteins that are either increased or unique to the DIO CLD proteome. These proteins are involved in steroid synthesis, TAG synthesis, and lipolysis. This analysis expands our knowledge of the effect of DIO on the process of dietary fat absorption in the small intestine (D'Aquila, 2016).
Effect of Polymer Architecture on the Nanophase Segregation, Ionic Conductivity, and Electro-Osmotic Drag of Anion Exchange Membranes

Anion exchange membranes (AEMs) are considered an attractive alternative to proton exchange membranes in fuel cell applications because they can operate with nonprecious metal electrodes. However, ...
Evaluating crisaborole as a treatment option for atopic dermatitis.

Introduction: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic and recurrent disease presenting with eczematous lesions and pruritus. It impacts patient and family quality of life, increases morbidity, and acco...
A Reconfigurable Layered-Based Bio-Inspired Smart Image Sensor

This paper presents a hardware architecture to extract features from an image using the concepts of bio-inspired computing and a method of converting sequential image processing to parallel computational processing units that can execute on the sensor. These computational units are oriented on vertically integrated hierarchical planes and enabled with a region based Attention Module which separates the Regions of Interest (ROIs) from the image. In each layer, the computational units work in parallel and introduce massive parallelism at the pixel level. At the same time, the design saves dynamic power by dynamically enabling and disabling the computational units which ensure high-performance and high-throughput. Moreover, the units are made reconfigurable to support a wide range of machine vision applications by forming a basic structure that is common to all operations and reconfigurable parts for a specific application. Our simulation result shows the design achieves 4.852X power savings on ROIs while processing at 465 Kfps with 800 MHz clock frequency.
Capillary Assembly of Liquid Particles

Capillary assembly is a versatile method for depositing colloidal particles within templates, resulting in nano/microarrays and colloidal superstructures for optical, plasmonic, and sensory applications. Liquid particles (LPs), comprised of oligomerized 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate, are herein shown to deposit into patterned cavities via capillary assembly. In contrast to solid colloids, LPs coalesce upon solvent evaporation and assume the geometry of the template. Incorporating small molecules such as dyes followed by LP solidification generates fluorescent polymer microarrays of any geometry. The LP size is inversely proportional to the quantity of deposited material and the convexity of the final polymer array. Cavity filling can be tuned by increasing the assembly temperature. Extraction of the polymerized regions produces solidified particles with faceted shapes including square prisms, trapezoids, and ellipsoids with sizes up to 14 µm that retain the shape of the cavity in which they are initially held. LP deposition thus presents a highly controllable fabrication scheme for geometrically diverse polymer microarrays and anisotropic colloids of any conceivable polygonal shape due to space filling of the template. The extension of capillary assembly to LPs that can be doped with small molecule dyes and analytes invaluably expands the synthetic toolbox for top-down, scalable, hierarchically engineered materials.
Extrapolating acute bee sensitivity to insecticides using a phylogenetically informed interspecies scaling framework

Plant protection products, including insecticides, are important for global food production. Historically, research of the adverse effects of insecticides on bees has focused on the honeybee (Apis mellifera), while non-Apis bee species remained understudied. Consequently, sensitivity assessment of insecticides for the majority of bees is lacking, which in turn hinders accurate risk characterization and consequently bee protection. Interspecies sensitivity extrapolation based on body weight offers a potential solution to this problem, but in the past such approaches have often ignored the phylogenetic background and consequently non independence of species used in such models. Using published data on the sensitivity of different bee species to commonly used insecticides, their body weight and phylogenetic background I build interspecies scaling models (ISMs) applying a phylogenetically informed framework. In addition, I compared, the relative sensitivity of the standard test species Apis mellifera to other bee species to evaluate their protectiveness when used as standards screening bee species in the risk assessment process. I found that overall 1) body weight is a predictor of bee sensitivity to insecticides for a range of insecticide classes and 2) A. mellifera is the most sensitive standard test species currently available and consequently a suitable surrogate species for ecotoxicological risk assessment.
Model-Based Evaluation of Linear Limited and Bayesian Sparse Sampling for Therapeutic Monitoring of Recombinant Coagulation Factor IX.

Dosing of coagulation factor products is mainly determined based on a patient's body weight; however, several studies have reported high interindividual variability in their pharmacokinetics (PK). The objective of this study was to develop and evaluate 2 sparse sampling methods for the estimation of AUC of recombinant factor IX (BeneFIX) as proof of concept for dose individualization. A population pharmacokinetic model was used to generate the plasma factor IX activity-versus-time data. The linear limited sampling model (LLSM) was developed based on the correlation of factor IX activity versus AUC0-72 hours following screening of several blood sampling times in adolescent and adult subjects (n = 90 subjects). Factor IX trough concentrations were predicted from a relationship established from AUC versus factor IX activity measured 72 hours postdosing. Using the best selected sampling time, the LLSM and Bayesian model were validated in separate data sets (n = 75 subjects). Using the LLSM and Bayesian analysis, a blood sample at 24 hours predicted AUC with bias and root mean square error < 5% and < 15%, respectively. The predicted trough concentrations were ≥1 IU/dL in 99% and 100% of subjects by the LLSM and Bayesian model, respectively. The average factor IX dose for a target AUC of 800 IU·h/dL was 61, 60, and 63 IU/kg using the extensive (reference), LLSM and Bayesian model, respectively. Overall, the AUC, trough concentrations and individualized dosing of recombinant factor IX could be reasonably predicted using the LLSM and Bayesian model.
Embodiment and Oppression: Reflections on Haslanger

In ‘Cognition as a Social Skill’, Sally Haslanger enhances her theory of oppression with new concepts: ‘mindshaping,’ ‘doxa,’ ‘heterodoxy,’ and ‘hidden transcripts.’ This essay examines these new c...
Weak and Strong Gradient Directions: Explaining Memorization, Generalization, and Hardness of Examples at Scale

Coherent Gradients (CGH) [Chatterjee, ICLR 20] is a recently proposed hypothesis to explain why over-parameterized neural networks trained with gradient descent generalize well even though they have sufficient capacity to memorize the training set. The key insight of CGH is that, since the overall gradient for a single step of SGD is the sum of the per-example gradients, it is strongest in directions that reduce the loss on multiple examples if such directions exist. In this paper, we validate CGH on ResNet, Inception, and VGG models on ImageNet. Since the techniques presented in the original paper do not scale beyond toy models and datasets, we propose new methods. By posing the problem of suppressing weak gradient directions as a problem of robust mean estimation, we develop a coordinate-based median of means approach. We present two versions of this algorithm, M3, which partitions a mini-batch into 3 groups and computes the median, and a more efficient version RM3, which reuses gradients from previous two time steps to compute the median. Since they suppress weak gradient directions without requiring per-example gradients, they can be used to train models at scale. Experimentally, we find that they indeed greatly reduce overfitting (and memorization) and thus provide the first convincing evidence that CGH holds at scale. We also propose a new test of CGH that does not depend on adding noise to training labels or on suppressing weak gradient directions. Using the intuition behind CGH, we posit that the examples learned early in the training process (i.e., "easy" examples) are precisely those that have more in common with other training examples. Therefore, as per CGH, the easy examples should generalize better amongst themselves than the hard examples amongst themselves. We validate this hypothesis with detailed experiments, and believe that it provides further orthogonal evidence for CGH.
Evolution of leaf and habit characters in Opuntioideae (Cactaceae): reconstruction of ancestral form

Evolution of habit in Cactaceae is of much recent interest, especially with regard to leaf form and below ground storage. Recent study of Opuntioideae provides a phylogenetic framework for considering morphological evolution in that subfamily. Four main lineages exist within the Opuntioideae. The deepest lineage consists of early deciduous, globular-stemmed, diminutive, often geophytic plants (Maihueniopsis). The second deepest lineage consists of early deciduous, globular- or cylindricalstemmed geophytes (Pterocactus). Persistent leaves are a derived, iterative character state in Opuntioideae. Diversity in Opuntioid morphological features (below ground storage organs, stem shape, and leaf persistence) in the phylogenetic context shows a trend towards increased size and surface area. Parsimonious reconstruction of ancestral character states suggests that early Opuntioideae may have been diminutive, early-deciduous, possibly geophytic plants. The polyphyletic genera Maihueniopsis and Puna (= Maihueniopsis s.l.) possess many characters plesiomorphic for Opuntioideae.
Using a False Memory Paradigm to Understand the Cognitive Effects of Meditation

Some previous research has determined that mindfulness meditation improves cognitive abilities, whereas other research has observed impairments in cognitive processes after mindfulness meditation. The purpose of our study was to investigate the effects of mindfulness (guided body scan), mind-wandering, and breathing-focused meditation on susceptibility to false memories. Participants studied 6 Deese-Roediger-McDermott word lists and completed a recall test after each list. They then received one of the three meditation interventions and then studied 6 more DRM word lists, again with a recall test after each. Twenty-four hours later, participants completed a recognition test. Our results suggest that the meditation intervention reduced delayed correct and false recognition, but had no effect on immediate correct or false recall. Despite following a similar procedure, we failed to replicate findings of previous research. Potential explanations for this discrepancy are discussed, including adoption of a conservative response strategy and possible mood influence of the presented list items.
Xerostomia symptoms and treatment strategies associated with salivary flows

Objectives We sought to analyze the types and quantity of dry mouth products patients use as well as the reported dry mouth symptom severity and frequency in relation to salivary flows. We hypothesized that respondents with higher stimulated flow would report better responses to products that stimulate flow. Methods Patients with complaints of dry mouth who had documented unstimulated and stimulated whole salivary flows (UWS and SWS, respectively) completed a questionnaire to assess dry mouth products used, current symptoms, and response to therapy. Statistical analyses included descriptive analyses and associations between dichotomized (low/normal) salivary flow levels, and symptom severity was assessed using nonparametric Wilcoxon rank-sum tests. Results Eighty-seven patients completed the questionnaire; 38 patients had a diagnosis of Sjogren syndrome. More than half of patients (55%; n = 48) reported using 4 or more dry mouth products. The most common product used was water (n = 78), followed by rinses (n = 54) and lozenges (n = 48). Twenty-five patients (29%) reported use of parasympathomimetics. More than half (56%) of patients using parasympathomimetics reported that their mouth felt “much better” compared with less than one-third of patients using other methods: water (29%), gum (23%), lozenges (27%), candies (4%), rinse (26%), spray (24%), or gel (20%). Among parasympathomimetic users with normal SWS, 71% reported their mouth felt “much better” compared with 36% of those with low SWS. For water, gum, lozenges, candies, and sprays, greater than 50% of respondents reported improvement lasting less than 1 hour. Regarding rinses, gels, and parasympathomimetics, greater than 50% of respondents reported improvement lasting greater than or equal to 1 hour. The dichotomized level of UWS rate was not associated with any measures of symptom severity, whereas the low SWS rate was associated with the following measures: dryness of the mouth (P = .004), difficulty speaking due to dryness (P = .03), and difficulty swallowing due to dryness (P = .004). Conclusions Different treatment categories for dry mouth symptoms provided varying degrees of relief. Patients with normal vs low stimulated flow who used parasympathomimetics reported the greatest treatment response and longest relief of dry mouth symptoms. Assessment of salivary flow levels may be a useful guide for more targeted recommendations of dry mouth products.
Outcomes of COVID-19 in Patients with Skin Cancer.

The effect of skin cancer diagnosis on the risk of adverse outcomes from COVID-19 remains unknown. Few studies have shown cancer patients with COVID-19 have higher rates of mortality and hospitalizations compared to those without cancer, perhaps due to a combination of delayed diagnosis and pre-existing comorbidities from chemotherapy and radiation treatments.1.
Not streaming near you: FilmStruck’s failure and the demise of the cinema-specific model

This article charts the rise and fall of FilmStruck – Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Criterion Collection’s cinema-specific streaming service. Despite its premier specialty film catalog (e.g., art...
Short- and mid-term outcomes in percutaneous mitral valve replacement using balloon expandable valves

BACKGROUND Due to elevated surgical risk, transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR) is used as an alternative for treating failed bioprosthetic valves, annuloplasty repairs and mitral annular calcification (MAC). We report the procedural and longitudinal outcomes for each subtype: Mitral valve-in-valve (MVIV), mitral valve-in-ring (MViR), and valve-in-MAC (ViMAC). METHODS Consecutive patients undergoing TMVR from October 2013 to December 2019 were assessed. Patients at high risk for left ventricular outflow tract obstruction had either alcohol septal ablation or intentional laceration of the anterior leaflet (LAMPOON). RESULTS Eight-eight patients underwent TMVR; 38 MViV, 31 MViR, and 19 ViMAC procedures were performed. The median Society of Thoracic Surgery 30-day predicted risk of mortality was 8.2% (IQR 5.2, 19.9) for all. Sapien 3 (78%) and transseptal access (98%) were utilized in most cases. All-cause in-hospital mortality, technical, and procedural success were 8%, 83%, and 66% respectively. Median follow up was 1.4 years (IQR 0.5-2.9 years) and overall survival was 40% at 4 years. Differential survival rates were observed with MViV doing the best, followed by MViR and ViMAC having a <20% survival at 4 years. After adjusting for co-variates, MViV procedure was the strongest predictor of survival (HR 0.24 [95% CI 0.079-0.7]). CONCLUSION TMVR is performed in at high-risk patients with attenuated long-term survival. MViV has the best success and survival rate, but long-term survival in MViR and ViMAC is guarded.
Design and Application of Distribution Network Operation Control System Based on Synchronous Phasor Measurement Information

In view of the large-scale distributed generation and interactive load in distribution network, the introduction of synchronous phasor measurement technology can improve the observability of distribution network. This paper designs a distribution network operation control system based on synchronous phasor measurement information, fully considers the type and processing method of synchronous phasor measurement data in the system, designs a reasonable hardware and software architecture, sets up a mass data bus network and a high-speed data bus network according to the functional distribution on the hardware, and layers the distributed frame on the software. In the architecture design, the data flow direction and information exchange scheme of external system are proposed, and the integration mode of functional modules is designed according to the application requirements. Through the application of the distribution network operation control system based on synchronous phasor measurement information, the access problems of large-scale distributed generators, electric vehicles and interactive loads are solved, which provides a platform basis for the future upgrading and transformation of distribution network automation.
Imaging Manifestations and Interventional Treatments for Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia is an autosomal dominant disorder that causes multisystem vascular malformations, and early diagnosis, screening, and multidisciplinary treatment are important...
Atomistic simulations of the local slip resistances in four refractory multi-principal element alloys

Abstract The design and development of structural materials, which can survive under the extreme conditions of operation, are critical to next generation aerospace and energy technologies. Selectively designed multi-principal element alloys (MPEAs), which are solid solution phases with three or more principal elements on simple underlying lattices, are expected to fulfill such requirements. The combination of refractory metals with elements known for enhancing oxidation resistance, high temperature strength, and thermal stability makes them ideal candidates for high temperature applications. Due to their unique microstructures and chemical compositions, MPEAs may exhibit excellent mechanical properties, such as high strength at elevated temperatures and improved hardness. Improving the mechanical properties of MPEAs requires knowledge of their plastic deformation mechanisms, at the core of which is dislocation slip, which is intimately connected to the local slip resistances (LSRs). In this work, atomistic calculations are conducted to obtain LSRs of edge and screw dislocations on three slip planes – {110}, {112}, and {123} – in four refractory MPEAs, CrMoNbTa, CrNbTaW, MoNbTaV, and MoNbTaW, that attain high melting temperatures and have been previously studied for their oxidation resistance. Many candidate MPEAs have been identified as promising for their oxidation resistance; however, it is also important that they are at the same time strong. The goal of this work is to determine the LSR and the role that lattice distortion has. We find that the two MPEAs containing Cr bear an increased lattice distortion and achieve the highest LSR values and lowest anisotropy in LSR. It is also shown that the MPEAs possess much lower slip resistance anisotropy than pure metals.
Web client programming with Perl

On the World Wide Web, people are accustomed to using graphical browsers such as Netscape Navigator or Mosaic as their only interface for visiting remote sites, accessing up-to-date documents, and filling out forms. But graphical browsers can be limiting: the very interactivity that makes them so intuitive to use also makes them clumsy for automating tasks. If you want to get the latest weather report every few hours, track a Federal Express package online, or use a dictionary server repeatedly throughout the day, using your browser to perform the same task over and over can become cumbersome. As with any repetitive task, these applications are best done by writing a script."Web Client Programming with Perl" shows you how to extend scripting skills to the Web. This book teaches you the basics of how browsers communicate with servers and how to write your own customized Web clients to automate common tasks. It is intended for those who are motivated to develop software that offers a more flexible and dynamic response than a standard Web browser.Using this book, you'll learn how to: Automate repetitive queries on the WebDetect broken hyperlinks on your siteWrite simple "robots" that traverse hyperlinks across a site, and across the Web in generalThis book will be of interest to: Web administrators who need to automate repetitive tasks or reduce maintenance timeUNIX shell programmers who want to interface their scripts to the WebCommercial software developers and consultants who need reference material for technical Web specifications and proof-of-concept examplesMost of the examples in this book use Perl, a versatile and portable language that is already familiar to many CGI programmers and UNIX power users. The book does not teach Perl, but the techniques used in the book should be easily followed by anyone with some programming background and can be adapted to whatever language you choose.
The evolution of a subaqueous delta in the Anthropocene: A stratigraphic investigation of the Brazos River delta, TX USA

Abstract Globally, deltas are increasingly threatened by anthropogenic activities. As a result, deltas now evolve through the combined effects of natural and human-induced processes occurring throughout the fluvial–deltaic system. The Brazos River delta, located along the Texas coast in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, and its watershed have been impacted by direct and indirect human activities since the late 19th century. This provides an opportunity to investigate how such alterations have shaped the evolution of a delta in the Anthropocene, a time when humans are drivers of geological change. Historic alteration to the delta and watershed include extensive agricultural activity, jetty construction at the mouth in the late 1890s, mouth diversion ~10 km to the southwest in 1929, and reservoir construction throughout the early and mid 20th Century. Three subaerial deltaic geometries provided the framework to connect subaerial deltaic responses, to the anthropogenic alterations, to the resulting stratigraphic characteristics observed in the subaqueous delta. This study utilized high-resolution geophysical data (swath bathymetry, side scan sonar, CHIRP subbottom profiling) on the subaqueous delta to investigate the subaqueous delta stratigraphy and infer the processes that shaped the deltaic record over time. The results showed distinct areas across the subaqueous delta that were dominated by erosion and deposition. Erosional areas corresponded to earlier growth phase depocenters being exposed at the surface, while the depositional areas corresponded to areas with the most recent growth phase depocenter overlying the earlier depocenters. These results highlight that the subaqueous depocenter has migrated westward over time, consistent with the observed changes to the subaerial delta. Additionally, the data showed that evidence for these past growth phases and depocenters may be preserved within the subaqueous delta, even after subaerial portions of the delta returned to pre-Anthropocene configurations. In general, this study showed that the subaqueous delta, similar to the subaerial delta, is impacted by human-driven alterations to the fluvial–deltaic system, and may preserve a more complete record of the evolution of deltas during the Anthropocene.
The Structure of Spatial Receptive Fields of Neurons in Primary Auditory Cortex of the Cat

Transient broad-band stimuli that mimic in their spectrum and time waveform sounds arriving from a speaker in free space were delivered to the tympanic membranes of barbiturized cats via sealed and calibrated earphones. The full array of such signals constitutes a virtual acoustic space (VAS). The extra-cellular response to a single stimulus at each VAS direction, consisting of one or a few precisely time-locked spikes, was recorded from neurons in primary auditory cortex. Effective sound directions form a virtual space receptive field (VSRF). Near threshold, most VSRFs were confined to one quadrant of acoustic space and were located on or near the acoustic axis. Generally, VSRFs expanded monotonically with increases in stimulus intensity, with some occupying essentially all of the acoustic space. The VSRF was not homogeneous with respect to spike timing or firing strength. Typically, onset latency varied by as much as 4-5 msec across the VSRF. A substantial proportion of recorded cells exhibited a gradient of first-spike latency within the VSRF. Shortest latencies occupied a core of the VSRF, on or near the acoustic axis, with longer latency being represented progressively at directions more distant from the core. Remaining cells had VSRFs that exhibited no such gradient. The distribution of firing probability was mapped in those experiments in which multiple trials were carried out at each direction. For some cells there was a positive correlation between latency and firing probability.
Leo Strauss and the Conservative Movement in America: A Critical Appraisal

1. Introduction 2. A significant life 3. Constructing a methodology 4. The method under assault 5. Politics as practice 6. Political theory as political practice 7. Conclusion.
Evaluating Hierarchical Discourse Segmentation

Hierarchical discourse segmentation is a useful technology, but it is difficult to evaluate. I propose an error measure based on the word error rate of Beeferman et al. (1999). I then show that this new measure not only reliably distinguishes baseline segmentations from lexically-informed hierarchical segmentations and more informed segmentations from less informed segmentations, but it also offers an improvement over previous linear error measures.
Exploring the brain's structural connectome: A quantitative stroke lesion-dysfunction mapping study

The aim of this work was to quantitatively model cross-sectional relationships between structural connectome disruptions caused by cerebral infarction and measures of clinical performance. Imaging biomarkers of 41 ischemic stroke patients (72.0 ± 12.0 years, 20 female) were related to their baseline performance in 18 cognitive, physical and daily life activity assessments. Individual estimates of structural connectivity disruption in gray matter regions were computed using the Change in Connectivity (ChaCo) score. ChaCo scores were utilized because they can be calculated using routinely collected clinical magnetic resonance imagings. Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) was used to predict various acute impairment and activity measures from ChaCo scores and patient demographics. Statistical methods of cross-validation, bootstrapping and multiple comparisons correction were implemented to minimize over-fitting and Type I errors. Multiple linear regression models based on lesion volume and lateralization information were constructed for comparison. All models based on connectivity disruption had lower Akaike Information Criterion and almost all had better goodness-of-fit values (R(2) : 0.26-0.92) than models based on lesion characteristics (R(2) : 0.06-0.50). Confidence intervals of PLSR coefficients identified brain regions important in predicting each clinical assessment. Appropriate mapping of eloquent functions, that is, language and motor, and replication of results across pathologies provided validation of this method. Models of complex functions provided new insights into brain-behavior relationships. In addition to the potential applications in prognostication and rehabilitation development, this quantitative approach provides insight into the structural networks underlying complex functions like activities of daily living and cognition. Quantitative analysis of big data will be invaluable in understanding complex brain-behavior relationships.
Genetic analysis of the Hippo signaling pathway in mammalian liver development and disease (210.2)

The Hippo signaling pathway is an emerging growth control and tumor suppressor pathway. Our laboratory has been using a genetic approach in mice to study the role of Hippo signaling in regulating l...