cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Engineering Value Propositions: Professional and Personal Needs

Simply put, engineers create value. Engineers play a key role in transforming ideas and inventions into innovations that, by definition, create value for users. Engineering sits at the fertile intersection of science and business that drives high-tech economies. But why do businesses exist? According to Peter Drucker, “There is only one valid definition of business purpose: to create a customer.”
Using Skyline to Analyze Data-Containing Liquid Chromatography, Ion Mobility Spectrometry, and Mass Spectrometry Dimensions

Recent advances in ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) have illustrated its power in determining the structural characteristics of a molecule, especially when coupled with other separations dimensions such as liquid chromatography (LC) and mass spectrometry (MS). However, these three separation techniques together greatly complicate data analyses, making better informatics tools essential for assessing the resulting data. In this manuscript, Skyline was adapted to analyze LC-IMS-CID-MS data from numerous instrument vendor datasets and determine the effect of adding the IMS dimension into the normal LC-MS molecular pipeline. For the initial evaluation, a tryptic digest of bovine serum albumin (BSA) was spiked into a yeast protein digest at seven different concentrations, and Skyline was able to rapidly analyze the MS and CID-MS data for 38 of the BSA peptides. Calibration curves for the precursor and fragment ions were assessed with and without the IMS dimension. In all cases, addition of the IMS dimension removed noise from co-eluting peptides with close m/z values, resulting in calibration curves with greater linearity and lower detection limits. This study presents an important informatics development since to date LC-IMS-CID-MS data from the different instrument vendors is often assessed manually and cannot be analyzed quickly. Because these evaluations require days for the analysis of only a few target molecules in a limited number of samples, it is unfeasible to evaluate hundreds of targets in numerous samples. Thus, this study showcases Skyline's ability to work with the multidimensional LC-IMS-CID-MS data and provide biological and environmental insights rapidly. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.
Ethnoecology and Medicinal Plants of the Highland Maya: An Introduction

Plants play a central role in human existence and medicinal plants, in particular, have allowed for the continued survival of the species. As the field of medical ethnobotany has grown, many studies have indicated that indigenous peoples have a comprehensive, empirically based knowledge of their environments. There has been much less research on the interaction between cultural knowledge and the use of medicinal plants in relation to the biophysical environment. This chapter introduces a long term ethnoecological study of medicinal plants of the Highland Maya in Chiapas with three main objectives: (1) identifying which medicinal plants are actually used; (2) determining the role of environmental variation on use and selection of medicinal plants; and (3) identifying which habitats are preferred for medicinal plant procurement. A theoretical background and framework is presented. Issues of prior informed consent are discussed along with a summary of subsequent chapters.
Microextraction sample preparation techniques in forensic analytical toxicology

Sample preparation is a critical step in forensic analytical toxicology. Different extraction techniques are employed with the goals of removing interferences from the biological samples, such as blood, tissues and hair, reducing matrix effects and concentrating the target analytes, among others. With the objective of developing faster and more ecological procedures, microextraction techniques have been expanding their applications in the recent years. This article reviews various microextraction methods, which include solid-based microextraction, such as solid-phase microextraction, microextraction by packed sorbent and stir-bar sorptive extraction, and liquid-based microextraction, such as single drop/hollow fiber-based liquid-phase microextraction and dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction, as well as their applications to forensic toxicology analysis. The development trend in future microextraction sample preparation is discussed.
Primary Residency Training and Clinical Practice Profiles Among Board-Certified Hand Surgeons.

Purpose This study seeks to identify the relationship between the type of residency training (general, plastic, or orthopedic surgery) and the clinical practice profiles of hand surgeons in the United States. Methods Membership applications to the American Society for Surgery of the Hand (ASSH) from 2011 to 2015 were analyzed. Data on type of residency training, practice type, the percentage of hand surgery in practice, and the time to application were collected. Total cases and the number of cases in each key clinical category were collected from surgical case logs. Results From 2011 to 2015, a total of 451 hand surgeons applied for ASSH membership. Of these, 73.8% were orthopedic surgeons , 16.0% plastic surgeons, and 10.2% general surgeons. The median times to application after fellowship graduation and completion of the Certificate of Added Qualifications (CAQ) were 5 and 1 years, respectively and were similar between groups. Orthopedic surgeons are more likely to be in a private practice and perform the highest volume of cases. Plastic surgeons are most likely to be in an academic practice but perform nearly 20% of their cases outside of the field of hand surgery. Failure to meet the minimum case requirement in the joint contracture (40.7%), congenital (80.5%), and microvascular surgery (47.6%) categories were the most common for all applicants. Orthopedic surgeons were most likely to perform bone and joint, nerve, tendon and muscle, and tumor cases. Plastic surgeons were the most likely to perform skin and wound, congenital, and microvascular cases. Conclusions Orthopedic-, plastic-, and general surgery–trained hand surgeons early in their career have varied practice types and have different clinical case profiles. Differences in case profiles may be due to surgeon interest and/or training experience. Clinical relevance Promoting a collaborative relationship between hand surgeons of varied backgrounds is crucial to the training of future hand surgeons and the continued advancement of the field.
Real-world lung cancer screening decision-making: Barriers and facilitators

Abstract Objective To explore 1) attitudes and priorities among physicians and patients that inform shared decision-making about lung cancer screening in real-world settings and 2) physician and patient perceptions of shared decision-making in real-world lung cancer screening (LCS) practice. Materials and methods We conducted a qualitative study of 12 physicians and 30 patients meeting LCS screening criteria established by the US Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) from two academic primary care practices; one university clinic and one safety net clinic. Interview guides focused on knowledge and attitudes about LCS and experiences with patient-physician communication. Results Physicians offered LCS inconsistently and were ambivalent about screening because of potential harms, including false positive results, incidental findings, and radiation exposure. Physicians felt that they were incorporating shared decision-making into screening, although they acknowledged that challenges with screening communication posed barriers to shared decision-making. Patients were generally accepting of lung cancer screening. They expressed fewer concerns about screening-related harms but more personal or emotional concerns related to lung cancer. Patients perceived limited shared decision-making in their encounters, but were generally satisfied with the more physician-directed decision-making process. Conclusion Physicians and patients expressed different concerns about LCS and different perceptions about the use of shared decision-making. Findings from this real-world population of screening-eligible patients can be used to inform the design of future interventions to facilitate communication and decision-making tailored to perspectives of both physicians and patients.
A case report of disseminated histoplasmosis and concurrent cryptococcal meningitis in a patient treated with ruxolitinib

Ruxolitinib is a highly potent janus kinase inhibitor that places its users at risk for various bacterial infections and viral reactivation. However new reports are also emerging that suggest greater immunosuppression and risk for fungal disease. We report the case of a 51 year-old veteran from Guam, treated with ruxolitinib for polycythemia vera, who developed disseminated histoplasmosis and concurrent cryptococcal meningitis. This case draws attention to the degree of immunosuppression that may be seen with this drug and the need for heightened vigilance for opportunistic infections in those treated with inhibitors of janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription (JAK/STAT) such as ruxolitinib.
Tumors of Head and Neck

Experience in the use of 67-Ga for tumors of the head and neck has been limited at NIH; however, an increasing number of patients with tumors in this region are being studied. The use of 67-Ga scintigraphy for the detection of metastases from these tumors appears encouraging.
A Novel Two-Step Fall Detection Method Using Smartphone Sensors

A smartphone-based fall detection system has two major advantages over a traditional fall detection system that comes as a separate device: (1) the phone can automatically send messages to or call the emergency contact person when a fall is detected and (2) a user does not need to carry an extra device. This paper presents a novel two-step fall detection method which uses data extracted from smartphone sensors to detect falls. A fall can happen in many ways. A person can fall while he/she is walking, jogging, sitting, or even sleeping. Patterns of all falls are not the same. It is important to identify the type of falls to precisely distinguish it from non-falls (normal activities). Hence, our method first identifies the correct type of falls by performing multi-class classification. In the second step, this method produces a binary decision based on the multiclass prediction. We collected data from 10 users to evaluate our proposed fall detection method. Each user performed five normal activities–namely, walking, jogging, standing, sitting, lying, and also fell after performing each activity. We performed experiments with five common smartphone sensors: accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, gravity, and linear acceleration. We tested five machine learning classifiers–namely, Support Vector Machine, K-Nearest Neighbor, Decision Tree, Random Forest, and Naive Bayes. Our two-step fall detection method achieved the maximum accuracy of 95.65% and the maximum area under ROC curve (AUC) of 0.93, both with the gyroscope sensor and Support Vector Machine classifier.
Human-in-the-loop Planning and Monitoring of Swarm Search and Service Missions

In many anticipated applications of swarms, vehicles will work together to simultaneously search an area while servicing tasks (or jobs) as they appear. We call these Swarm Search and Service (SSS) missions.
βWave: an EEG-based self-awareness curriculum

At the junction between social emotional learning (SEL) and neuroscience research, there is a dynamic interplay where electroencephalography (EEG) Brain Computer Interface (BCI) technology can allow users to gain an understanding of their mental states. Students are often told to concentrate and pay attention, but they are not actively shown what is internally occurring when they lose focus. We present a curriculum that addresses this issue and that could be important for students' self-awareness. Self-awareness, a subcategory of SEL, can be used as a tool to unpack neuroscience topics for middle schoolers, who often deal with short attention spans. The objective of our design is to help students understand and reflect on how concentration affects brainwaves and how it can strengthen their neural connections. By enabling them to experience and visualize this mental state, middle schoolers can become self-aware of how their cognitive functions change throughout this critical stage of development.
Decoding incidental ovarian lesions: use of texture analysis and machine learning for characterization and detection of malignancy

To compare CT texture features of benign and malignant ovarian lesions and to build a machine learning model to detect malignancy in incidental ovarian lesions. In this IRB-approved, HIPAA-compliant, retrospective study, 427 consecutive patients with incidental ovarian lesions detected on contrast-enhanced CT (348, 81.5% benign and 79, 18.5% malignant) were included. The following CT texture features were analyzed using commercially available software (TexRAD, Feedback Plc, Cambridge, UK): total pixel, mean, standard deviation (SD), entropy, mean value of positive pixels (MPP), skewness, kurtosis and entropy. Three machine learning models were created by combining texture features and patients’ age, and performance of these models was assessed using tenfold cross-validation. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) were constructed to assess sensitivity and specificity. The cutoff value was picked using a cost-weighted method. Total pixels, mean, SD, entropy, MPP, and skewness were significantly different between benign and malignant groups (p < 0.05). With a selected 10 as a cost factor to optimize cutoff value selection, sensitivity 92%, specificity 60% in the random forest (RF) model, sensitivity 91%, specificity 69% in SVM model, and sensitivity 92%, specificity 61% in the logistic regression, respectively. CT texture analysis could provide objective imaging analysis of incidental ovarian lesions and ML models using CT texture features and age demonstrated high sensitivity and moderate specificity for detection of malignant lesions.
Family stories: sentimentality in the narrative lives of Óscar, Tania, and Valeria Martínez

In this essay I examine the brief narrative life of Oscar Ramirez Martinez and his daughter Valeria, arguing that we understand the stories told by their surviving family and sympathetic members of...
Temporal Dietary Patterns Are Associated with Obesity in US Adults.

BACKGROUND The integration of time with dietary patterns throughout a day, or temporal dietary patterns (TDPs), have been linked with dietary quality but relations to health are unknown. OBJECTIVE The association between TDPs and selected health status indicators and obesity, type 2 diabetes (T2D), and metabolic syndrome (MetS) was determined. METHODS The first-day 24-h dietary recall from 1627 nonpregnant US adult participants aged 20-65 y from the NHANES 2003-2006 was used to determine timing, amount of energy intake, and sequence of eating occasions (EOs). Modified dynamic time warping (MDTW) and kernel k-means algorithm clustered participants into 4 groups representing distinct TDPs. Multivariate regression models determined associations between TDPs and health status, controlling for potential confounders, and adjusting for the survey design and multiple comparisons (P <0.05/6). RESULTS A cluster representing a TDP with evenly spaced, energy balanced EOs reaching ≤1200 kcal between 06:00 to 10:00, 12:00 to 15:00, and 18:00 to 22:00, had statistically significant and clinically meaningful lower mean BMI (P <0.0001), waist circumference (WC) (P <0.0001), and 75% lower odds of obesity compared with 3 other clusters representing patterns with much higher peaks of energy: 1000-2400 kcal between 15:00 and 18:00 (OR: 5.3; 95% CI: 2.8, 10.1), 800-2400 kcal between 11:00 and 15:00 (OR: 4.4; 95% CI: 2.5, 7.9), and 1000-2600 kcal between 18:00 and 23:00 (OR: 6.7; 95% CI: 3.9, 11.6). CONCLUSIONS Individuals with a TDP characterized by evenly spaced, energy balanced EOs had significantly lower mean BMI, WC, and odds of obesity compared with the other patterns with higher energy intake peaks at different times throughout the day, providing evidence that incorporating time with other aspects of a dietary pattern may be important to health status.
De-novo acute myeloid leukemia in a BRCA positive female with locally treated ductal carcinoma in situ

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is primarily a disease of older adults and can arise de novo, in relation to previous treatment or in the setting of underlying hematological disease. While it is known to arise from chemoradiation in the setting of breast cancer, little is known about the association between BRCA carriers and AML. We report a case of a young female BRCA carrier who develops de novo AML without prior chemoradiation treatment, and examine if there is a link between BRCA and developing leukemia.
What motivates highly trained child welfare professionals to stay or leave

Abstract This mixed-methods study used an integrated approach to investigate the drivers that impact the transition from student to child welfare professional and factors that motivated a highly trained cohort of child welfare professionals to stay or leave the child welfare workforce (post one–year employment). The concept of transfer of learning and self-determination theory guided the analysis of emergent themes and quantitative data, where appropriate. Results suggest it is essential that child welfare agencies cultivate an organizational culture and climate of support and that some of the most intrinsically motivated child welfare workers are likely to leave.
The risk of preterm birth among women with a history of leukemia or lymphoma

Leukemia and lymphoma are top cancers affecting children, adolescents and young adults with high five-year survival rates. Late effects of these cancers are a concern in reproductive-age patients, ...
Microrheology analysis in molecular dynamics simulations: Finite box size correction

In single-particle microrheology, the viscoelastic properties of a complex fluid can be extracted using the generalized Stokes–Einstein (GSE) relation by embedding a micrometer-sized particle and tracking its motion through the fluid. Applying the same analysis to molecular dynamics simulations can result in overestimated G∗ values because of the hydrodynamic interaction between the probe bead and its periodic images. We derive a simple correction to the GSE equation by implementing an analytical solution for Stokes drag on a periodic array of spheres, which allows smaller box sizes to be simulated while still retaining accuracy. Fluid and particle inertia are neglected, although the approach used here might be generalized to include them. The correction is applied to molecular dynamics simulations of a coarse-grained polymer melt. For several bead-to-box-size ratios R/L and two probe sizes, we measure the mean squared displacement and calculate G∗ using both the original GSE and the corrected hydrodynamic Stokes–Einstein (HSE) equations. These results are compared to small amplitude oscillatory non-equilibrium molecular dynamics (NEMD) simulations, which show that the HSE analysis correctly predicts the G∗ values at low frequencies but breaks down when either fluid inertia is important or the bead size is too small to “see” a continuum. For small R/L, the GSE and HSE results are similar, although a small correction is still required for the finite box size and computational cost is significantly larger. The HSE equation allows the use of smaller box sizes, reducing computational costs by more than an order of magnitude.
Resident self-assessment of common endocrine procedures.

Abstract Background General surgery residency graduates are expected to be proficient in straightforward endocrine operations. This study aimed to elucidate residents’ self-assessment of their ability to perform common endocrine procedures. Methods A fourteen-question survey was emailed to general surgery residents from seven U.S. residency programs regarding their self-assessed ability to perform each step of a straightforward thyroidectomy and parathyroidectomy. Demographics and perceived ability to perform the various procedures were collected. Results A minority of respondents (17, 27.9%) agreed they could complete a straightforward thyroidectomy for benign disease, with only 11.7% (n = 7) agreeing they could complete a straightforward thyroidectomy for malignant disease. 26.2% (n = 16) of respondents agreed they could complete a straightforward parathyroidectomy. Completed number of cases was significantly associated with greater self-assessed ability to perform the endocrine operations (p = 0.02). Conclusions Most general surgery residents surveyed did not feel capable of performing common, straightforward endocrine procedures. Although confidence in operative ability increased with PGY-level and number of cases completed, the majority of PGY-5 residents still did not feel able to perform a thyroidectomy for malignant disease unassisted.
Flatness-based Quadcopter Trajectory Planning and Tracking with Continuous-time Safety Guarantees

This work presents a convex optimization framework for the planning and tracking of quadcopter trajectories with continuous-time safety guarantees. Using B-spline basis functions and the differential flatness property of quadcopters, a second-order cone program is formulated to generate optimal trajectories that respect safe state and input constraints in the continuous-time sense. A quadratic program (QP) based on control barrier functions is proposed to guarantee bounded trajectory tracking in continuous time by filtering a nominal controller, where the QP is shown to be always feasible. Furthermore, conditions that ensure the safe tracking controller respects thrust, roll angle, and pitch angle constraints are also proposed. The effectiveness of the proposed framework is demonstrated by real-world experiments using a Crazyflie2.1 nano quadcopter.
The Identification of Impurities in Illicit Methamphetamine Exhibits by Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Methamphetamine, a drug frequently abused in the United States, is often manufactured illicitly. One method commonly employed for this purpose is the Leuckart reaction, which is initiated with methyl benzyl ketone (IV) and either methylamine (I) and formic acid (II) or N-methylformamide (III), producing N-formylmethamphetamine (IX) as an intermediate [1]. Hydrolysis of IX with a strong acid such as hydrochloric acid produces methamphetamine (VI). (See Table 1 for a list of abbreviations and Fig. 1 for corresponding structures.) As the synthesis proceeds, various impurities are accumulated: reactants, byproducts, and intermediates, as well as contaminants arising from within the reagents themselves. The identification of such impurities thus far encountered in this laboratory by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy will be the subject of this discussion.
The Measurement of Comentropy Transfer Rates

Most people have heard of a game that children play called “Hangman.” Each player tries to guess serially at the letters in the word that the other player has chosen, and every letter guessed incorrectly contributes to a penalty. But most of the time, the letters are correctly guessed. Given a good familiarity with a language, say American, most people would guess that the letter “n” would usually follow, if “a” were the preceding letter. Not only that, but the more letters that we know in a word, the easier it becomes to guess at the succeeding letters. Thus, if we are shown the following, “Experi,” most people would easily guess that what followed would be “ment,” since there are only a few logical choices. So it seems that there is a lot of redundancy built into a language such as American, or for that matter, any other language. But the problem remains in how to obtain a good measurement of this level of redundancy. How can it be measured?
Designing and implementing a user-focused web based database system

The goal of this project is to create a system with an interface designed with usability in mind as well as a strong interweaving of the web and a database to create the ideal freshman orientation online registration site.
Immunodeficiency Disorders due to Antibody Deficiency (B‐lymphocyte Disorders)

The majority of patients with primary immunodeficiency have a defect in their ability to make sufficient quantities of specific antibodies. This lack of specific antibodies is due to the lack of B lymphocytes, defects in B-lymphocyte function, or inability of B lymphocytes to interact with T lymphocytes. Patients born with only antibody deficiency usually appear normal at birth due to maternal antibodies that crossed the placenta. They usually start developing more infections at around six months of age when maternal antibodies have been depleted, and they cannot make their own antibodies. Treatment may include prophylactic antibodies until diagnosis is confirmed or infusion of immunoglobulin, either by intravenous route or subcutaneously. When patients have antibody deficiency plus defects in T lymphocytes, the disease is usually more severe and will be further discussed in other articles. Key Concepts: The most severe form of antibody deficiency, Bruton's, requires regular infusions of IVIG starting in infancy. Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is often associated with autoimmune disease as well as malignancies. Less severe forms of B-cell deficiency may be managed with prophylactic antibiotics. Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) requires stem cell transplantation for treatment. Early diagnosis is essential in preventing long-term disability or early death Keywords: antibody deficiency; B lymphocytes; Bruton agammaglobulinaemia; immunoglobulins
Iranian Women's One Million Signatures Campaign for Equality: The Inside Story by Noushin Ahmadi Khorasani

This book is essential reading for anyone interested in Iranian women's history, contemporary Iranian society, and the emergence of Iran's Green Movement. The book is a compilation and translation ...
Estimating Conditional Distributions of Scores on an Alternate Form of a Test

Quantitative information about test score reliability can be presented in terms of the distribution of equated scores on an alternate form of the test for test takers with a given score on the form taken. In this paper, we describe a procedure for estimating that distribution, for any specified score on the test form taken, by estimating the joint distribution of equated scores on two forms of the test. The procedure requires as input the score distribution and the reliability coefficient, estimated for the test-taker population. In tryouts, the procedure performed well for score distributions like those commonly encountered in large-scale testing situations.
Chronic opioid use during pregnancy: maternal and fetal implications.

Current trends in the United States suggest that chronic narcotic use has increased in reproductive aged women over the past 10 years. Regular exposure to such substances during pregnancy has maternal and fetal implications. Appropriate prenatal care is critical to optimizing outcomes. Management options for narcotic dependence should be patient-specific and may include discontinuation of narcotics with careful observation, limitation of prescription dispensing, or substitution therapy with methadone or buprenorphine. A multidisciplinary, collaborative approach is highly recommended. This review discusses usage of narcotic medications, associated maternal and fetal risks, and management strategies for the antepartum, intrapartum, and postpartum periods.
A Metric for Evaluating Base Station Anonymity in Acknowledgement-Based Wireless Sensor Networks

In recent years, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have become valuable assets to both the commercial and military communities with applications ranging from industrial automation and product tracking to intrusion detection at a hostile border. A typical WSN topology allows sensors to act as data sources that forward their measurements to a central sink or base station (BS). The unique role of the BS makes it a natural target for an adversary that desires to achieve the most impactful attack possible against a WSN. An adversary may employ traffic analysis techniques to identify the BS based on network traffic flow even when the WSN implements conventional security mechanisms. This motivates a need for WSN operators to achieve improved BS anonymity to protect the identity, role, and location of the BS. Although a variety of countermeasures have been proposed to improve BS anonymity, those techniques are typically evaluated based on a WSN that does not employ acknowledgements. In this paper we propose an enhanced evidence theory metric called Acknowledgement-Aware Evidence Theory (AAET) that more accurately characterizes BS anonymity in WSNs employing acknowledgements. We demonstrate AAET's improved robustness to a variety of configurations through simulation.
The Role of Gender and Ethnicity in Perceptions of Rape and Its Aftereffects

Caucasian-, Hispanic-, and Asian-American male and female students (n = 764) attending a California (USA) public university reported their perceptions of sexual assault. After reading a rape vignette, participants gave their impressions of the victim; estimated time needed for recovery and treatment; and recommended a sentence for the assailant. Half of the sample received information regarding state sentencing guidelines. Relative to female participants, males perceived the victim as more responsible. Caucasian-American males had stronger reservation about the victim’s judgment. Males were less inclined to assign blame than were females. Ethnicity was the only factor influencing perceptions of recovery. Ethnicity and sentencing guidelines, but not gender, impacted imprisonment decisions. Issues impeding a unified theoretical understanding of perceptions of rape victims were considered.
Do Concerns About More Advanced Pathological Features Increase the Likelihood of Neurovascular Bundle Resection in Black Men Undergoing Radical Prostatectomy

ABSTRACTPurpose: Traditionally black men undergoing radical prostatectomy have presented with higher serum prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels, Gleason grade and pathological stage compared to white men. We evaluated men undergoing radical prostatectomy at our institutions to determine if race was an independent predictor of neurovascular bundle resection and if racial differences existed with regard to clinical and pathological outcomes in men undergoing a nerve sparing procedure.Materials and Methods: Between July 1995 and March 2000, 316 men underwent radical retropubic prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer. Patient data were gathered prospectively and reviewed with regard to age, race, preoperative serum PSA, operative procedure, pathological findings and patient followup. Racial differences were analyzed by the chi-square test or student's t statistic. Predictors of neurovascular bundle resection were evaluated using multiple logistic regression.Results: Of the 316 men who underwe...
A 260mV 468GOPS/W 256b 4-way to 32-way vector shifter with permute-assisted skip in 22nm tri-gate CMOS

A 4-way to 32-way reconfigurable 256b vector shifter with measured 2.3GHz operation consuming 41mW is fabricated in 0.9V, 22nm tri-gate CMOS. Byte-wise any-to-any permute-assisted skip for coarse-grained byte shifts, rotate-back shifter, reconfigurable mask bit generation/decoder and ultra-low voltage circuits enable 38% area reduction and 240mV-1.1V wide dynamic voltage range with a measured 8.2x higher energy efficiency at 260mV compared to nominal 0.9V operation.
Economic analysis of risks in fruit and vegetable farming in Osun state, Nigeria.

The study analyzed the risks involved in fruit and vegetable farming in Osun state, Nigeria. Specifically, the study examined the risk attitude of farmers, factors influencing risk attitude as well as farmer’s perception on major sources of production and market risks. The study was based on a survey of 150 farmers, comprising 75 predominantly fruit and vegetable farmers, respectively, and covering 12 communities within the six agro-ecological zones in the state. Data were collected using a well structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, discriminant analysis and Kruskal–Wallis ranking analysis were used in the study. The study revealed that the average age of the fruit and vegetable respondent was 58.5 and 40.1, respectively, with the male respondents outnumbering the females in each case. The average year of experience was 30.8 and 15.3 for fruit and vegetable respondent, respectively. An average area of (5.36 and 2.21) ha was cultivated by the fruit and vegetable farmers, while orange and okra are the most widely grown fruit and vegetable crops. Damage by pest and disease, traditional methods of farming and weather dependency were the most perceived sources of production risk by the fruit and vegetable farmers. Perishability of produce, low price of produce, poor product handling and packaging as well as exploitation by middlemen were the most perceived sources of market risk. The study also revealed that maintaining good relationship with traders, selling at low prices due to perishability, selling within the locality and non-farm businesses were the major risk management strategies employed by the farmers. Based on the study findings, it is recommended that introduction of a more comprehensive agricultural insurance scheme and introduction of improved technology can ameliorate the effect of risks on fruit and vegetable farmers. Also, public intervention can facilitate better risk management through improved information system. Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 37(3): 473-491, September 2012 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjar.v37i3.12125
Weight concerns affect motivation to remain abstinent from smoking postpartum

Background: Although many women quit smoking during pregnancy, most resume smoking postpartum. One factor that may be important in postpartum relapse is a pregnant woman's motivation to remain abstinent after delivery.Purpose: We assessed motivation for postpartum abstinence among pregnant women who had quit smoking and examined the relationship of weight concerns and mood to abstinence motivation.Methods: Pregnant former smokers, recruited between February 2000 and November 2004, completed assessments of smoking, weight concerns, depressive symptoms, and perceived stress.Results: Sixty-five percent were highly motivated to remain abstinent postpartum.Women who were and were not motivated were similar in age, race, and nicotine dependence. However, motivated women reported more stress, greater self-efficacy for weight management, less hunger, and less smoking for weight control than did less motivated women. After controlling for intention to breast-feed, nicotine dependence, years of smoking, partner smoking, and race, self-efficacy for weight control was related to motivation to maintain postpartum abstinence.Conclusions: These data suggest that weight concerns are associated with motivation for postpartum smoking abstinence, and interventions designed to prevent postpartum smoking relapse may need to target eating, weight, and shape concerns.
Targeting the gyrase of Plasmodium falciparum with topoisomerase poisons

Drug-resistant malaria poses a major public health problem throughout the world and the need for new antimalarial drugs is growing. The apicoplast, a chloroplast-like organelle essential for malaria parasite survival and with no counterpart in humans, offers an attractive target for selectively toxic new therapies. The apicoplast genome (plDNA) is a 35 kb circular DNA that is served by gyrase, a prokaryotic type II topoisomerase. Gyrase is poisoned by fluoroquinolone antibacterials that stabilize a catalytically inert ternary complex of enzyme, its plDNA substrate, and inhibitor. We used fluoroquinolones to study the gyrase and plDNA of Plasmodium falciparum. New methods for isolating and separating plDNA reveal four topologically different forms and permit a quantitative exam of perturbations that result from gyrase poisoning. In keeping with its role in DNA replication, gyrase is most abundant in late stages of the parasite lifecycle, but several lines of evidence indicate that even in these cells the enzyme is present in relatively low abundance: about 1 enzyme for every two plDNAs or a ratio of 1 gyrase: 70 kb DNA. For a spectrum of quinolones, correlation was generally good between antimalarial activity and gyrase poisoning, the putative molecular mechanism of drug action. However, in P. falciparum there is evidence for off-target toxicity, particularly for ciprofloxacin. These studies highlight the utility of the new methods and of fluoroquinolones as a tool for studying the in situ workings of gyrase and its plDNA substrate.
Interactive Feature Space Construction using Semantic Information

Specifying an appropriate feature space is an important aspect of achieving good performance when designing systems based upon learned classifiers. Effectively incorporating information regarding semantically related words into the feature space is known to produce robust, accurate classifiers and is one apparent motivation for efforts to automatically generate such resources. However, naive incorporation of this semantic information may result in poor performance due to increased ambiguity. To overcome this limitation, we introduce the interactive feature space construction protocol, where the learner identifies inadequate regions of the feature space and in coordination with a domain expert adds descriptiveness through existing semantic resources. We demonstrate effectiveness on an entity and relation extraction system including both performance improvements and robustness to reductions in annotated data.
Flat dose-response curves for efficacy: what do they mean to the clinician?

The call was from a primary care physician with the following question: "If desvenlafaxine (Pristiq) has a flat dose-response curve, with 50 mg/day being as efficacious as 400 mg/day,1-4 is there any reason to try a higher dose in my patient who has not responded or should I switch to another a
Elevated temperature alters the ionic dependence of amine-induced pacemaker activity in a conditional burster neuron.

The anterior burster neuron of the lobster (Panulirus interruptus) stomatogastric ganglion is a conditional burster that functions as the primary pacemaker for the pyloric motor network. When modulatory inputs to this cell are blocked, it loses its bursting properties and becomes quiescent. Applications of the monoamines, dopamine, octopamine or serotonin restore rhythmic bursting in this cell (Flamm and Harris-Warrick 1986). At 15 °C, serotonin- and octopamine-induced oscillations depend critically upon sodium entry (blocked by low sodium saline or tetrodotoxin); dopamine-induced oscillations depend upon calcium entry (blocked by reduced extracellular calcium; Harris-Warrick and Flamm 1987). We show here that the ionic dependence of amine-induced oscillations in the anterior burster cell differs at 15 and 21 °C. At 21 °C, all amines have the potential to induce rhythmic oscillations in saline containing tetrodotoxin. At the elevated temperature and in tetrodotoxin, both calcium and sodium currents are essential for the maintenance of dopamine-induced oscillaions; serotonin-induced oscillations do not depend upon either calcium or sodium alone; octopamine-induced oscillations do not depend upon calcium and show a variable dependence upon sodium. Thus, multiple ionic mechanisms, which vary with both the modulator and the ambient temperature, can be recruited to support rhythmic activity in a conditional burster neuron.
Water content in the anodization electrolyte affects the electrochemical and electronic transport properties of TiO2 nanotubes: a study by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

Abstract The TiO 2 nanotube system has attracted much interest for applications in photoelectrochemical water splitting. Optimization of their photoelectrochemical properties may be carried out by modifying the water content of the anodization electrolyte, but a rigorous understanding of the underlying electronic and electrochemical properties responsible for the differences in the photocurrent efficiency remain elusive. In this paper, we used electrochemical impedance methods to determine that while TiO 2 nanotubes formed in low (2 vol%) and high (11 vol%) water content electrolytes have similar electrical conductivity and charge transfer resistances, the presence of a lower density of deep level defect states contributes to increase the photoelectrochemical performance of TiO 2 nanotubes formed from high water content electrolytes. Passivation of these defect states may lead to an improved photoelectrochemical performance.
Noncompact simplexes in Banach spaces with the Radon-Nikodým property

Abstract It is well known that a compact convex subset C of a locally convex topological vector space is a simplex if and only if each point x of C admits a unique probability measure on the extreme points of C with barycenter x . An exact analog of this result is proved for a closed and bounded separable convex subset of a Banach space with the Radon-Nikodým Property, and a weaker analog is proved in the nonseparable case.
Response of Inconel 617 to sea salt and re-entry conditions

Inconel 617 is a nickel-based superalloy being considered for heat-shield applications because of its hightemperature strength, good oxidation resistance, and high emittance of oxidized surfaces. While the effects of simulated re-entry conditions on emittance and oxidation of Inconel 617 have been studied, the combined effects of the ground-based environment with sea salt exposure and the re-entry environment have not been evaluated. Experimental results are presented to show the effects of environmental simulation including ground-based and re-entry exposure on the emittance and oxidation of Inconel 617. Specimens were exposed to simulated re-entry at a surface temperature of 1370 K in the Langley Research Center Hypersonic Materials Environmental Test System Facility with and without alternate exposures to an atmospheric seashore environment or a laboratory sea salt environment. This paper presents emittance, mass loss, oxide chemistry, and alloy composition data for the specimens.
Measurement of atomic oxygen and nitrogen oxides in jet-stirred combustion

Direct spectroscopic measurement of continuum chemiluminescence at 3500 A, due presumably to the reaction CO+O→CO 2 + hv , was used to determine super-equilibrium atomic oxygen concentrations in situ for near-homogeneous, continuous-combustion of either carbon monoxide or methane with 133% theoretical air in a jet-stirred reactor operated near blowout, at atmospheric pressure. Reactor CO and NO x concentrations were measured by gas sampling. The motivation for this initial optical spectroscopic examination of the jet-stirred reactor was the elucidation of NO x formation in high-intensity, backmixed combustion. Measured gas temperatures were in the ranges T =1350 to 1500°K for carbon monoxide combustion, and T =1400° to 1800°K for methane combustion. Peak atom oxygen concentrations occurred just prior to reactor blowout. Partial equilibrium was indicated for the reactions CO+OH⇆CO 2 +H and O 2 +H⇆O+OH, at throughput rates sufficiently less than reactor blowout. Atomic oxygen measurements were used to compare NO x measurements with values predicted for plausible NO x kinetic formation mechanisms, considering only O, OH, and H as reaction radical intermediates. Agreement between the comparisons was obtained only for carbon monoxide combustion, indicating that nitrous oxide probably acts as an intermediate in NO x formation in the presence of super-equilibrium concentrations of atomic oxygen.
Solitary cerebellar metastasis of malignant pleural mesothelioma: case report.

Abstract Background Malignant pleural mesothelioma is an uncommon malignancy that rarely metastasizes to the central nervous system and even less frequently occurs as a solitary lesion. Case description We present a 71-year-old white female, nonsmoker, with no occupational exposure to asbestos. She presented with a 15-lb. weight loss over several months and persistent right subscapular pain radiating to her anterior chest. Imaging studies revealed a pleural mass, and biopsy confirmed fibrous type malignant pleural mesothelioma. During a metastatic workup, computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the head demonstrated a 1 cm subcortical, contrast-enhancing lesion without surrounding edema in the right posterior cerebellum. Surgical resection of the solitary cerebellar mass revealed fibrous-type metastatic malignant mesothelioma. Postoperatively, the patient received a combined chemotherapy regimen of Adriamycin and Cisplatin and underwent whole brain radiation therapy. Conclusions We report the first resection of a solitary cerebellar metastasis of malignant pleural mesothelioma. We also review past cases of intracranial metastasis of this malignancy, its histologic subtypes, outcome, and recent treatment modalities.
Effect of Gamma Radiation on the Ripening of Bartlett Pears

Gamma radiation at doses of 300 Krad or more inhibits the ripening of Bartlett pears ( Pyrus communis L.). Immediately after irradiation there is a transitory burst of C 2 H 4 , which subsequently declines in fruits subjected to inhibitory doses. Ethylene production associated with ripening begins at the same time in unirradiated fruits and those subjected to noninhibitory doses, but the latter produces much more C 2 H 4 at the climacteric peak. Fruits subjected to inhibitory doses produce low levels of C 2 H 4 unless subjected to exogenously applied C 2 H 4 , whereupon they produce enough of the gas to induce ripening in unirradiated fruits. Pears subjected to 300 and 400 Krad of gamma rays did not ripen even when held in a flowing atmosphere containing 1000 ppm of C 2 H 4 for 8 days at 20°. It is concluded that the action of gamma rays on Bartlett pears involves both an inhibition of C 2 H 4 production and a decreased sensitivity of the fruit to the ripening action of the gas. Ripening of Bartlett pears is inhibited by gamma radiation only when applied to preclimacteric fruit.
Social status of boys with both academic problems and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Research findings regarding the impact of low achievement (LA) on the social status and social behavior of learning-disabled (LD) children have been equivocal. Reported findings suggested that a failure of previous studies to control for the impact of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may account for the lack of consensus among previous studies. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the relative contributions of LA, LD, and ADHD to problems in social status and social behavior. This was accomplished by assigning second-through sixth-grade boys to one of six groups: ADHD/LD,ADHD/LA, ADHD, LD, LA, and control. Results indicated that serious problems with peer rejection, peer popularity, and social behavior were the most strongly related to the combination of ADHD and LD. Discussion of the implications of current findings includes the importance of identifying appropriate behavioral and academic subgroups when investigating social status and behavior problems.
Heterogeneous Path Ensembles for Conformational Transitions in Semiatomistic Models of Adenylate Kinase

We performed “weighted ensemble” path-sampling simulations of adenylate kinase, using several semiatomistic protein models. The models have an all-atom backbone with various levels of residue interactions. The primary result is that full statistically rigorous path sampling required only a few weeks of single-processor computing time with these models, indicating the addition of further chemical detail should be readily feasible. Our semiatomistic path ensembles are consistent with previous biophysical findings: the presence of two distinct pathways, identification of intermediates, and symmetry of forward and reverse pathways.