cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Construction of Bayesian network structures from data: A brief survey and an efficient algorithm☆

Abstract Previous algorithms for the recovery of Bayesian belief network structures from data have been either highly dependent on conditional independence (CI) tests, or have required on ordering on the nodes to be supplied by the user. We present an algorithm that integrates these two approaches: CI tests are used to generate an ordering on the nodes from the database, which is then used to recover the underlying Bayesian network structure using a non-CI-test-based method. Results of the evaluation of the algorithm on a number of databases (e.g., alarm , led , and soybean ) are presented. We also discuss some algorithm performance issues and open problems.
Stability of shift-variant difference equations with application to adaptive digital filters

This paper describes a sufficient condition for the exponential stability of 1-D polynomials with shift-variant coefficients. The results presented here allow less restrictive regions in the parameter space for the choice of coefficients than do previous results.
Potential Health Risks From Beverages Containing Fructose Found in Sugar or High-Fructose Corn Syrup

Fructose is a sweet tasting sugar that is found naturally in fruits and some vegetables and has been part of the human diet—in modest amounts—for eons. The increasing consumption of sugar has dramatically increased our exposure to fructose (1). Sugar consumption has risen more than 40-fold since the Declaration of Independence was signed 250 years ago, and more than 40% of the added sugars in our diet are in sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit drinks (2,3). Thus, the principal sources of fructose in our diet are now sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, each of which has about 50% fructose. The intake of soft drinks has risen fivefold since 1950 (4,5) (Fig.1) and with it the intake of fructose. The rise in the consumption of high-fructose corn syrup in beverages has paralleled the rise in the prevalence of obesity and the metabolic syndrome and is associated with the appearance of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (6–8). Although association does not prove causation, it has stimulated research to understand whether current levels of fructose intake in beverages pose a health risk. Over the past decade fructose from either sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup has received growing attention as it has been associated with a widening group of health-related problems. Several meta-analyses have shown a relationship between the consumption of sugar-sweetened soft drinks and obesity (9–11). The relation of these beverages to obesity can be attributed to the increased caloric intake and to the …
Powasson virus causing tick-borne encephalitis: a diagnostic dilemma.

### Learning Point for Clinicians We strongly recommend that when patients present with encephalitis with a history suggestive of contact with ticks, POWV must be included in the differential diagnosis, especially if they have thalamus/midbrain or cerebellar symptoms. Powassan virus (POWV) is an extremely rare tick-borne agent causing encephalitis in North America. Although only 40 cases have been reported from 1958 to 2000, its virulence in humans appears to be increasing, resulting in severe neurological consequences and mortality. A 44-year-old afebrile male presented with severe occipital headaches associated with nausea and vomiting for 4 days after a hiking trip in Upstate New York. Vital signs and physical exam were normal. Laboratory studies revealed …
The Genetic Architecture of Reproductive Isolation in Louisiana Irises: Hybrid Fitness in Nature

Negative epistasis in hybrid genomes commonly results in postzygotic isolation between divergent lineages. However, some genomic regions may be selectively neutral or adaptive in hybrids and thus may potentially cross species barriers. We examined postzygotic isolation between ecologically similar species of Louisiana Iris: Iris brevicaulis and I. fulva to determine the potential for adaptive introgression in nature. Line-cross analyses allowed us a general overview of the gene action responsible for fitness-related traits. We then used a QTL mapping approach to detect genomic regions responsible for variation in these traits. Although hybrid classes suffered reduced fitness for many traits, hybrid means were equivalent to at least one of the parental species in overall estimates of maternal and paternal fitness during the two years of the field study. The genetic architecture underlying the fitness-related traits varied across field site and year of the study, thus emphasizing the importance of the environment in determining the degree of postzygotic isolation and potential for introgression across natural hybrid zones.
Surface states in Li and Na

Abstract Surface states have been calculated for the (100) surfaces of Li and Na. The surface state for Li is in agreement with that calculated by Alldredge and Kleinman using a different method.
ORGANIC METAMORPHISM IN THE LOWER MISSISSIPPIAN-UPPER DEVONIAN BAKKEN SHALES II: SOXHLET EXTRACTION *

In this paper, we report on Soxhlet extraction (and subsequent related analyses) of 39 Lower Mississippian- Upper Devonian Bakken shales from the North Dakota portion of the Williston Basin, and analyses of 28 oils from the Basin. Because of the influence of primary petroleum migration, no increase in the relative or absolute concentrations of hydrocarbons or bitumen was observed at the threshold of intense hydrocarbon generation (TIHG), or during mainstage hydrocarbon generation in the Bakken shales. Thus, the maturation indices that have been so useful in delineating the TIHG and mainstage hydrocarbon generation in other studies were of no use in this study, where these events could clearly be identified only by Rock-Eval pyrolysis data.
Handbook of Breast MRI

J. Price Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 2011, 213 pages, $80 Breast MRI has firmly established its place as a mainstream imaging technique in the last decade, particularly in the screening of high-risk women and in the preoperative assessment of patients with known breast cancer.
Nanoindentation of explosive polymer composites to simulate deformation and failure

Crack initiation and propagation is a common concern for molecular composites such as plastic bonded explosives (PBXs) and pharmaceutical tablets. Under compressive stresses, cracks form at contacts between crystals and propagate along crystal-binder interfaces, causing composite failure. To investigate this process, crystal-binder interfaces have been characterised and their mechanical properties tested. Here, samples were created with interfaces representative of those in PBXs and characterised with surface energy measurements and neutron reflectometry (NR). Nanoindentation was performed to simulate the deformation and cracking that occurs at crystal–crystal contacts through the binder. NR revealed that use of a plasticiser disrupts typical crystal–binder intermixing and results in a mechanically weaker interface. During nanoindentation, a plasticised binder was observed by atomic force microscopy to delaminate around indentation impressions, whereas a non-plasticised binder did not. Differences in inte...
Synthesis and Characterization of Sulfonated and Poly(Ethylene Glycol)-Calix[4]Arene Tertiary Phosphines

Abstract Sulfonation of triphenylphosphine with a 30% oleum solution gave phenyl-di-(3-sulfonatophenyl) phosphine. The structure was confirmed by a combination of 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. A pair of calix[4]arenes with a tertiary phosphine group on one rim and a methoxy ethylene glycol group on the other were prepared and characterized. One had the phosphine moiety on the narrow rim, and the other had the phosphine on the wide rim. Structural characterization was again by a combination of 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy.
MDockPP: A hierarchical approach for protein-protein docking and its application to CAPRI rounds 15–19

A hierarchical approach has been developed for protein-protein docking. In the first step, a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)-based docking algorithm is used to globally sample all putative binding modes, in which the protein is represented by a reduced model, that is, each side chain on the protein surface is represented by its center of mass. Compared to conventional FFT docking with all-atom models, the FFT docking method with a reduced model is expected to generate more hits because it allows larger side-chain flexibility. Next, the filtered binding modes (normally several thousands) are refined by an iteratively derived knowledge-based scoring function ITScorePP and by considering backbone/loop flexibility using an ensemble docking algorithm. The distance-dependent potentials of ITScorePP were extracted by a physics-based iterative method, which circumvents the long-standing reference state problem in the knowledge-based approaches. With this hierarchical protocol, we have participated in the CAPRI experiments for Rounds 15-19 of 11 targets (T32-T42). In the predictor experiments, we achieved correct binding modes for six targets: three are with high accuracy (T40 for both distinct binding modes, T41, and T42), two are with medium accuracy (T34 and T37), and one is acceptable (T32). In the scorer experiments, of the seven target complexes that contain at least one acceptable mode submitted by the CAPRI predictor groups, we obtained correct binding modes for four targets: three are with high accuracy (T37, T40, and T41) and one is with medium accuracy (T34), suggesting good accuracy and robustness of ITScorePP.
Three-dimensional analytical models suitable for gaseous and particulate pollutant transport, diffusion, transformation and removal

Abstract Atmospheric diffusion models for particulate and gaseous pollutants emitted from an elevated continuous point source have been developed. The models are analytical and obtained from the solutions of steady state three-dimensional atmospheric transport-diffusion equations associated with the primary pollutant and with the secondary pollutant converted chemically from the primary pollutant. The surface dry deposition and the gravitational settling are taken into account in the models. The conversion of gaseous species to paniculate pollutant, the role of settling velocity and the effects of dry deposition velocity of gaseous species on the paniculate pollutant are analyzed.
A Woman and Her Father with Calcium-Sensing Receptor Mutation and Autosomal Dominant Hypocalcemia

ABSTRACT Objective: To discuss the case of a woman and her father with autosomal dominant hypocalcemia (ADH), a rare disorder caused by an activating mutation of the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR). Methods: Previous ADH case reports were obtained by Medline search and from an updated CaSR database. Results: A 37-year-old female presented with intermittent leg cramps and hypocalcemia. Her father had been previously diagnosed with asymptomatic hypocalcemia at age 54. Genetic analysis in both individuals revealed identical missense mutations in nucleotide c.2489G>A that resulted in a glycine to aspartic acid change at codon 830 (G830D) in the CaSR. Conclusion: The same mutation of the CaSR gene was identified in a woman and her father. This warrants the need for genetic testing in adults with mild hypocalcemia and a family history of hypocalcemia.
Differentially private multi-dimensional time series release for traffic monitoring

Sharing real-time traffic data can be of great value to understanding many important phenomena, such as congestion patterns or popular places. To this end, private user data must be aggregated and shared continuously over time with data privacy guarantee. However, releasing time series data with standard differential privacy mechanism can lead to high perturbation error due to the correlation between time stamps. In addition, data sparsity in the spatial domain imposes another challenge to user privacy as well as utility. To address the challenges, we propose a real-time framework that guarantees differential privacy for individual users and releases accurate data for research purposes. We present two estimation algorithms designed to utilize domain knowledge in order to mitigate the effect of perturbation error. Evaluations with simulated traffic data show our solutions outperform existing methods in both utility and computation efficiency, enabling real-time data sharing with strong privacy guarantee.
The "Knife-Cut Sign" Revisited: A Distinctive Presentation of Linear Erosive Herpes Simplex Virus Infection in Immunocompromised Patients.

The "knife-cut sign" is a distinctive presentation of linear erosive herpes simplex virus infection in immunocompromised patients.To describe a man whose herpes simplex virus infection-related skin lesions demonstrated the "knife-cut sign" and to review the characteristics of reported immunosuppressed individuals with "knife-cut" cutaneous herpes simplex virus lesions.A man with multiple myeloma and post-stem cell transplant cutaneous graft-versus-host disease managed with systemic prednisone and sirolimus developed disseminated cutaneous herpes simplex virus infection with virus-associated linear ulcers of the inguinal folds and the area between his ear and scalp; the lesions at both sites had a distinctive "knife-cut" appearance. Using the PubMed database, an extensive literature search was performed on herpes simplex virus, immunocompromised patient, and "knife-cut sign".Herpes simplex virus infection-associated skin lesions that demonstrate the "knife-cut sign" present in patients who are immunosuppressed secondary to either an underlying medical condition or a systemic therapy or both. The distinctive virus-related cutaneous lesions appear as linear ulcers and fissures in intertriginous areas, such as the folds in the inguinal area, the vulva, and the abdomen; in addition, other sites include beneath the breast, within the gluteal cleft, and the area between the ear and the scalp. Not only herpes simplex virus-2, but also herpes simplex virus-1 has been observed as the causative viral serotype; indeed, herpes simplex virus-1 has been associated with genital and inframammary lesions in addition to those above the neck. Direct fluorescent antibody testing is a rapid method for confirming the clinically suspected viral infection; however, since false-negative direct fluorescent antibody testing occurred in some of the patients, it may be prudent to also perform viral cultures and possibly lesional skin biopsies to establish the diagnosis. The herpes simplex virus infection-related skin lesions clinically improve once systemic antiviral therapy is initiated.In immunosuppressed individuals, the "knife-cut sign" is a distinctive presentation of cutaneous linear erosive herpes simplex virus infection. Recognition of the linear ulcers in intertriginous areas and body folds should prompt the clinician to consider herpes simplex virus infection-associated skin lesions in an immunocompromised patient and to initiate systemic antiviral treatment while awaiting the results of laboratory evaluation to confirm the suspected diagnosis.
Frequency Prediction of Synchronous Generators in a Multi-Machine Power System with a Photovoltaic Plant Using a Cellular Computational Network

Power systems with synchronous generators and solar photovoltaic (PV) experience frequency and power fluctuations due to high variability of PV power. Automatic generation control is implemented to control power outputs of the generators and stabilize the system frequency. It is desirable with increasing levels of PV penetration to have foresight of frequency fluctuations to empower advanced control systems. A new methodology is presented in this paper for predicting frequency of synchronous generators in a power system with solar PV. A cellular computational network (CCN) is used to perform the frequency prediction over multi-time scale. CCNs are decentralized and distributed computing paradigms. Thus, CCNs are suitable for fast prediction of frequency of synchronous generators distributed spatially across a power system. The inputs to cells of the CCN are derived from phasor measurement unit (PMU) measurements of frequency and voltage phasor at the respective generator buses. Past, current and predicted measurements enable multi-timescale predictions of synchronous generator frequencies in a power system. Typical multi-time scale frequency predictions using the CCN are illustrated on a two-area four machine power system with solar PV integrated.
ABSOLUTE REQUIREMENT FOR FREE STEROL FOR ABSORPTION BY RAT INTESTINAL MUCOSA.

SummaryAn enzymatically unhydrolyzable ester of cholesterol, cholesterol-4-C14 α,α-methyl ethyl caproate, has been synthesized. This ester was infused in micellar dispersion into the duodenum of lymph fistula rats. After 12 hours, 98.1% of the administered ester was recovered unaltered from the feces and intestinal contents. There was none of this ester in intestinal tissue or lymph. The data provide convincing evidence that the initial transfer of cholesterol into mucosal cells is specific for free cholesterol, and that cholesterol esters are not absorbed from the intestinal lumen prior to hydrolysis.
Is a full bladder still necessary for pelvic sonography

The objective was to determine whether a full bladder is routinely necessary for a complete sonographic evaluation of the female pelvis. Over the course of 1 month, all women having a gynecologic sonogram were scanned initially transabdominally through a full bladder by the sonographer (standard images taken). A physician then joined the sonographer and scanned the patient transvaginally without prior knowledge of the findings seen transvesically. The physician finished the examination transabdominally, with the bladder empty. The physician and sonographer then determined (1) whether the scan was sufficient transvaginally only, (2) whether the scan was sufficient transvaginally and transabdominally with an empty bladder, or (3) or whether a full bladder was necessary. Two hundred and six consecutive patients were scanned prospectively. The transvaginal scan alone was sufficient to demonstrate all findings for 172 (83.5%) patients. The transvaginal and transabdominal scans through an empty bladder were needed for 31 (15.1%) patients. Three patients (1.5%) required a full bladder in addition to the other two techniques to visualize one normal ovary each. In conclusion, transvaginal scanning with an adjunctive transabdominal empty bladder approach can replace the full bladder technique for routine pelvic sonography. The transabdominal scan with an empty bladder is necessary, particularly for patients with enlarged uteri. It is no longer reasonable, however, to subject all patients undergoing pelvic sonography to bladder distention.
Effects of Tranquilizers on the Glutamate Dehydrogenase- Glutamate-Oxalacetate Transaminase Complex

Perphenazine and haloperidol have been shown to be potent inhibitors of the reactions of keto or amino acids with glutamate dehydrogenase. These drugs do not significantly inhibit amino acid dehydrogenase reactions catalyzed by the complex formed between glutamate dehydrogenase and glutamate-oxalacetate transaminase, even though, in the presence of transaminase, they can still bind to glutamate dehydrogenase. Apparently, when these drugs are bound to glutamate dehydrogenase in the enzyme-enzyme complex, they cannot alter the conformation of this enzyme in the same manner that results in inhibition of the free enzyme. The transaminase-glutamate dehydrogenase complex catalyzes many amino acid dehydrogenase reactions with substrates such as tyrosine and aspartate. Since the enzyme-enzyme complex is not inhibited by these drugs, the amounts of transaminase and glutamate dehydrogenase in mitochondria are an important determinant of the degree of inhibition produced by these tranquilizers. If the levels of both enzymes are low, amino acid dehydrogenation would not be catalyzed by the complex, and perphenazine and haloperidol would be quite potent inhibitors. If the levels of both enzymes are high, the amino acid dehydrogenase reaction would be catalyzed mainly by the enzyme-enzyme complex, and these drugs would not be significant inhibitors.
Analysis on death from malignant tumors and potential years of life lost among residents in Shouguang City from 2008-2012

[Objective]To understand the death from malignant tumors and potential years of life lost( PYLL) among residents in Shouguang City,provide a scientific basis for effectively implementing the prevention and control of malignant tumors.[Methods] The data of death from malignant tumors in Shouguang City from 2008-2012 were statistically analyzed.[Results]The mortality rate of malignant tumors among residents in Shouguang City from 2008-2012 was 190. 45 / lakh,and the standardized mortality rate was 157. 92 / lakh,which ranked in second place of the causes of death. The mortality rate in males and females was 239. 90 / lakh and 140. 04 / lakh respectively,while the standardized mortality rate in males and females was 200. 62 / lakh and 115. 17 / lakh respectively. The mortality rate increased with age. The rate of PYLL was 30. 17%. The top five malignant tumors with the highest PYLL were lung cancer,liver cancer,gastric cancer,leukemia and brain tumors,which caused life lost of 114 865 years,and accounted for 73. 44% of total PYLL that caused by the malignant tumors( 156 417 years).[Conclusion]The malignant tumors have become the important cause of death among residents in Shouguang City,and the lung cancer has the highest PYLL. It is necessary to carry out the comprehensive intervention measures,which include strengthening health education and forming the healthy life style,to prevent the malignant tumors,reduce the mortality rate,and improve the life expectancy.
Veto Players and Technologies of Rebellion – Determinants of Civil War Duration

Why do some civil wars continue for decades, while others end within months? Two factors have recently been identified as major predictors of the duration of intrastate conflicts. 1. The presence of a greater number of “veto players,” actors who must approve a settlement or cease-fire, contributes to longer civil wars. 2. The relative capacities of states and rebels. Irregular, or “guerrilla wars,” between weak rebels and a superiorly armed state tend to last significantly longer than symmetrical conflicts where rebels and the state are more evenly matched. Additionally, wars where both rebels and the state are matched at a low level and rely predominantly on small arms (symmetrical non-conventional or SNC wars), also tend to last longer than conventionally fought civil wars. This paper attempts to answer the question: are irregular and SNC wars longer because they tend to have more veto players? My findings show that irregular and SNC wars do not tend to produce more veto players than conventional wars. Variations in civil war duration across these categories cannot be explained by differences in the number of veto players that emerge.
Outpatient continuity of care and 30-day readmission after spine surgery

Abstract Background Context The value of continuity of care in preventing 30-day readmissions after surgical procedures remains an issue of debate. Purpose This study aimed to investigate the association of being evaluated in the emergency room (ER) of the hospital where the original procedure was performed with 30-day readmissions for spine surgery patients. Study Design/Setting This is a cohort study. Patient Sample A total of 16,483 spine surgery patients were evaluated in the emergency department within 30-days postoperatively. Outcome Measures A 30-day post-discharge readmission was the outcome measure. Methods We performed a cohort study involving patients who were evaluated in the ER within 30-days after discharge following spine surgery from 2009 to 2013, and were registered in the Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System database. A propensity score adjusted model was used to control for confounding. Results From our patients, 11,638 (70.6%) were seen in a hospital different from the one where the original procedure was performed (12.0% readmitted), and 4,845 (29.4%) were evaluated at the original hospital (10.9% readmitted). In a multivariable analysis, we demonstrated that being evaluated in the original hospital was associated with decreased rate of 30-day readmission (odds ratio [OR], 0.87; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.77–0.97). We found similar associations in a propensity score adjusted model (OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.78–0.97). This corresponded to seven patients who needed to be evaluated in the hospital where the original procedure was performed to prevent one readmission. Conclusions Using a comprehensive all-payer cohort of patients in New York State, who were evaluated in the ER after spine surgery, we identified an association of assessment in the hospital where the original procedure was performed with lower rate of 30-day readmissions. This underscores the potential importance of continuity of care in readmission prevention for these patients.
Study of the formation of native oxide on copper at room temperature

Native oxide grown on copper has been a nuisance in electrical devices due to extra electrical resistance added to copper electrodes. However, copper oxide, known to have two primary stable phases, cuprous oxide (Cu2O) and cupric oxide (CuO), is a material worth investigating for electronic applications. These two phases exhibiting distinctive electrical characteristics, would make copper oxide a prospective material for resistive switches. Cu2O and CuO often form concurrently within the native oxide. Because of their similar refractive index and extinction coefficient, optically differentiating these two phases is a challenge, yet it is critical for designing devices. In this study, thin copper films were deposited using electron-beam evaporation and sputtering. A native oxide was grown on the prepared copper films over 250 days in air and periodically evaluated with reflectometry-ellipsometry. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was also performed on the samples aged for 7 months to obtain their chemical characteristics. A comprehensive analysis on the progressive formation of native oxide on copper is discussed.
Deep State Space Models for Computational Phenotyping

The widespread availability of electronic health records (EHR) promises to usher in the era of personalized medicine. However, the problem of extracting useful clinical representations from longitudinal EHR data, sometimes called computational phenotyping, remains challenging, owing to the heterogeneous, longitudinally irregular, noisy and incomplete nature of such data. In this paper, we explore flexible deep state space models for phenotyping longitudinal EHR data. These models explicitly account for the longitudinal nature of the data and are able to seamlessly deal with noise, heterogeneity and missing data issues. Our initial experiments produce promising results, and demonstrate the effectiveness of the learned representations in better discriminating between controls and cases in cohorts of congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients.
ErgoPART: A Computerized Observational Tool to Quantify Postural Loading in Real-Time During Surgery

OCCUPATIONAL APPLICATIONS Ergonomics postural assessment in real-time (ErgoPART) is a new job analysis tool designed to systematically characterize the postural demands of performing surgery. Tasks, equipment, and procedures that require ergonomic intervention can be identified. ErgoPART can also be used to quantify the benefits of ergonomic interventions that reduce the frequency and duration of non-neutral postures. Preliminary tests, conducted in the context of vaginal surgery, indicate that the tool is easy to learn and may allow broad categories of neck, shoulder, and trunk postures to be coded reliably. ErgoPART is freely available for use.TECHNICAL ABSTRACT Background: Little quantitative information exists regarding the postural demands placed on surgeons in the operating room. One reason for this is the lack of minimally invasive tools available to characterize the duration and frequency of non-neutral postures during surgery. Purpose: The objective of this study was to develop an ergonomics job ...
Managing Climate Change Under Uncertainty: Recursive Integrated Assessment at an Inflection Point

Uncertainty is critical to questions about climate change policy. Recently developed recursive integrated assessment models have become the primary tools for studying and quantifying the policy implications of uncertainty. We decompose the channels through which uncertainty affects policy and quantify them in a recursive extension of a benchmark integrated assessment model. The first wave of recursive models has made valuable, pioneering efforts at analyzing disparate sources of uncertainty. We argue that frontier numerical methods will enable the next generation of recursive models to better capture the information structure of climate change and to thereby ask new types of questions about climate change policy.
Multispecies Extensions to a Nonequilibrium Length-Based Mortality Estimator

AbstractRecent advances in methodology allow the history of the total mortality rate experienced by a population to be estimated from periodic (e.g., annual) observations on the mean length of the population. This approach is generalized to allow data on several species that are caught together to be analyzed simultaneously based on the theory that changes in fishing effort are likely to affect several species; thus, the estimation of times when the mortality rate changes for one species borrows strength from data on other, concurrently caught species. Information theory can be used to select among models describing the degree of synchrony (if any) in mortality changes for a suite of species. This approach is illustrated using data on Puerto Rican handline fishery catches of three snapper species: Silk Snapper Lutjanus vivanus, Blackfin Snapper L. buccanella, and Vermilion Snapper Rhomboplites aurorubens. We identified the best model as the one that provided for simultaneous decreases in mortality rate ar...
Unraveling the Relationship Between Aging and Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction: The Importance of Exercise and Normative Reference Standards.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), the most common form of heart failure (HF) in the general adult population, is inextricably related to aging. It is rare in persons younger than 55 years of age and increases linearly with age thereafter. Among women >65 years of age, 85% of
Quantification of PIR protocols privacy

In current era the best way to find the information over the internet is search engine. Web search engines maintains user profile for better search results which could raise serious privacy issues. In order to intact the users privacy in front of a web search engines Private information retrieval (PIR) protocols are used which hide the identity of the user by submitting his/her query through other group member. A basic problem is related with these protocols are their predictability. This paper is the extension of previous work in which a person with anonymous query was successfully identified. This paper aims to find all queries submitted by the target user using UPIR and UUP protocols. For experimentation purpose a machine learning based adversarial model is proposed to find the actual queries of user of interest based on the previous profile. The results shows that the precision, recall and f-measure of J48 in finding user's real queries is more then 0.70 on the average. Similarly J48 reported highest trues positive rate of above 0.7 and lowest false positive rate of 0.006. It was also observed that the size of training data has very little effect on accuracy according to this experiment.
Runx1 Deficiency and MDS-Associated U2af1 Mutation Cooperate for Leukemia Development in a New Mouse Model

The pathogenesis of hematopoietic malignancies, including acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), is very complicated with mutiple genetic alterations required for full-blown disease. Mutations of splicing factor genes, including U2AF1 , are found in overal half of MDS patients and 5~10% de novo AML patients. U2AF1 mutations, occuring in roughly 10% of patients with MDS and 3% in de novo AML, are heterozygous and localized almost exclusively in two codons, S34 and Q157, suggesting they are gain-of-function mutations. In addition, our recent studies suggest retention of the wild type U2AF1 allele is required for cell viability (Fei et al., BioRxiv, 2016). Interestingly, RUNX1 is the most commonly co-mutated gene in MDS patients with U2AF1 mutations, and U2AF1 and RUNX1 are also co-mutated in some AML patients. These findings suggest RUNX1 deficiency and U2AF1 mutation cooperate in the pathogenesis of MDS and AML. To test this hypothesis, we crossed Cre-based conditional Runx1 knockout mice ( Runx1 f/f ) with mice carrying a newly developed Cre-based conditional U2af1 -S34F mutation ( U2af1 +/S34F ) to generate Runx1 f/f , Mx1-Cre, U2af1 +/S34F mice, which express U2af1-S34F and deficient-Runx1 after inducing Cre from the Mx1 promoter with poly (I:C). We found that U2af1-S34F attenuated the Runx1 -/- - induced increase of myeloid cells in spleen and bone marrow, as well as the increase of progenitor (lineage - /Sca1 - /C-kit + ) and stem cells (lineage - /Sca1 - /C-kit + ). Competitive repopulation assays showed that combining the U2af1 mutation and Runx1 deficiency impaired the transplantation capacity of bone marrow progenitor cells, especially for the myeloid lineage. We further aged these mice to examine the cooperative effects of U2af1-S34F and Runx1 deficiency in disease progression, upon the treatment of a one time, low-dose N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea. Mx1-Cre, U2af1 +/S34F mice didn9t show survival defect when compared to control mice, while the Runx1 f/f , Mx1-Cre mice developed MDS, as previously reported . Interestingly, of fourteen Runx1 f/f , Mx1-Cre, U2af1 +/S34F mice, two developed AML, and the rest developed MDS. Moreover, transplanted spleen and bone marrow cells from one of four MDS Runx1 f/f , Mx1-Cre, U2af1 +/S34F mice also developed AML in the recipients. Although Runx1 f/f , Mx1-Cre mice also had MDS, their MDS cells did not develop into leukemia after transplantation. Our data therefore suggest that Runx1 deficiency and MDS-associated U2af1 mutation can cooperate in the genesis of AML from MDS. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Not Your Average Flake: A Morphological and Functional Analysis of an Expedient Flake Tool Industry from the Mussel Beach Site (40MI70)

ABSTRACTAlthough simple in form and design, flakes are extremely efficient tools. With multiple working edges, flake tools may be used to complete a myriad of tasks; however, their use-life tends to be shorter than that of formally retouched implements. While expedient flakes may constitute a large component of lithic assemblages, their identification requires that individual debitage specimens be analyzed at macroscopic and microscopic levels. The identification and analysis of flake tool assemblages may offer insight into site activities that might otherwise have been overlooked. The goal of this study was to examine lithic debitage from the Mussel Beach site in Marion County, Tennessee, to identify, describe, and classify expedient flake tools based on morphology and function. This study also combines ethnographic, experimental, and ethnoarchaeological methods to explore the relationship between flake tools and plant materials for the purpose of preparing plants for use in the manufacture of perishable...
SPARCT: A STEM Professional Academy to Reinvigorate the Culture of Teaching

We examined three years of data from the STEM Professional Academy to Reinvigorate the Culture of Teaching (SPARCT) program. SPARCT consists of a year-long professional development opportunity in evidence-based teaching practices for STEM faculty teaching introductory STEM courses at XXX. The expected outcomes for the program include: (1) improving evidence-based practices targeting the introductory STEM classroom, (2) developing professional peer-observation strategies for the STEM classroom, (3) enhancing scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) by SPARCT faculty, (4) developing long-term Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) in STEM instruction and (5) enhancing student learning in introductory STEM courses as a result of this faculty development. Here we briefly describe the features of SPARCT and discuss our findings as aligned with the outcomes over three cohorts of SPARCT program participants (2014-2016). By engaging at least 25% of XXX's STEM faculty over the three years, SPARCT is creating a community of STEM scholars, reinvigorating interdisciplinary connections, developing learning threads, and increasing the community’s potential to transform the teaching culture of the university.
Cardinality Bundling with Spence–Mirrlees Reservation Prices

We study the pricing of cardinality bundles, where firms set prices that depend only on the size of the purchased bundle, a practice that is increasingly being adopted by industry. The model we stu...
The Upper Critical Field

According to GLAG theory, valid near t= 1, the lower and upper critical fields are given by Hc1 = H c In κGL/√2κGL, (13–52), and H*c2 = √2κGL H c , (18–53), where the asterisk notes that the effect of normal-state Pauli paramagnetism has not yet been taken into consideration.
ACTH-Independent Cushing’s Syndrome: Primary Pigmented Nodular Adrenal Disease in the Context of Carney’s Complex

In this chapter, we discuss clinical and molecular findings of micronodular adrenal hyperplasias (MAHs) that lead to ACTH-independent Cushing syndrome. We focus on the role of genetic defects in cyclic AMP (cAMP) signaling-related molecules, namely PRKAR1A, GNAS, PDE11A, and PDE8B; molecular defects in the phosphodiesterases (PDE) family are the most recently discovered genetic defects predisposing to adrenocortical tumor formation. The prototype of these disorders was Carney complex (CNC) in the context of which the first MAH was described: primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease or PPNAD. PPNAD is due to defects in PRKAR1A, the gene that functions as a receptor for the cAMP. In contrast to GNAS and PRKAR1A, defects in PDE genes are associated more frequently with incomplete penetrance. Identifying low-penetrance mutations in more than one PDE in patients with MAHs is suggestive for a complementary role of the different PDEs in the adrenal gland, and possible involvement of other members of this gene family in adrenocortical tumors and ACTH-independent Cushing syndrome.
An adaptive physics-based reduced-order model of an aged lithium-ion cell, selected using an interacting multiple-model Kalman filter

Abstract Reduced-order physics-based models of lithium-ion cells provide the opportunity for a battery-management system to define battery-pack operational limits in terms of cell internal electrochemical processes in order to mitigate degradation and to avoid failure modes. For these physics-based models to be relevant over the lifetime of the battery pack, they must somehow adjust to describe the internal processes accurately at every stage of battery life. Two possible approaches to do so suggest themselves. First, an algorithm might somehow adapt the parameter values of the model during operation to match presently observed current–voltage behaviors; but, this must be done very carefully to avoid making the model unstable or physically nonmeaningful. Alternately, a set of models could be pre-computed at different feasible aging points and the model from this set that most closely predicts presently observed current–voltage dynamics could be selected from the set. This second approach guarantees stable and physically meaningful models since all models in the pre-computed set meet these criteria. We propose such an approach here. To do so, we first present a method for calculating a priori the changes to cell parameter values that will be produced by aging due to side reactions and/or material loss. These aged parameter values are utilized to produce reduced-order physics-based models at different stages of cell life. The reduced-order models are then used within a nonlinear interacting multiple-model Kalman filter to select the pre-computed model whose voltage predictions most resembles present measured voltage, so providing an estimate of the aged parameter values of a cell via the parameter values of this model. The selected model may then be used for state-of-charge estimation, state-of-power estimation, state-of-energy estimation, and other model-based battery-management tasks.
Evaluating the accessibility of online library guides at an academic library

This article describes an exploratory research study assessing the level of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance and general accessibility of online information resources at a mid-sized, 4-year, public institution in the state of Ohio. A rubric, available freely online as a living document, was developed based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and web design best practices. From 2015-2016, the authors used the rubric containing 14 criteria (12 criteria from the WCAG 2.0, a criterion from Section 508, and a criterion related to universal web design best practices) to assess a random sample of online library guides (18 guides) at this institution. The authors found that the template developed by the administrator and used by all library guides at the study institution caused 70% of the applicable criteria to fail. The content contributed by individual library guide authors did not pass all of the criteria, but generally performed better than the template. Library guide author contributed content failed an average of seven rubric criteria. Many of the common library guide author errors in this study coincide with those reported by other institutions. Combining the WCAG 2.0 criteria with additional universal web design best practices criteria within the rubric eliminated most of the universal accessibility concerns that remained after applying the WCAG 2.0; a concern that had been identified in previous literature examining WCAG 2.0 applications to online information resources. It was concluded that the rubric was sufficiently comprehensive and that further exploration of its utility was warranted. This includes asking a heterogeneous group of users to assess the usefulness of the rubric by applying it to library guides outside of this study.
Forest Fire Severity Affects Host Plant Quality and Insect Herbivore Damage

Abstract Climate change models predict increased forest fire occurrence and severity in the near future. Forest fire disturbance affects multiple ecological interactions, but there is little evidence for how naturally-occurring fires affect plant quality and herbivore damage, which is important because plants and herbivorous insects comprise most of the diversity in natural ecosystems and are responsible for a variety of ecosystem services. We surveyed three fires in the Rocky Mountains to investigate the effects of fire severity on wax currant (Ribes cereum), an important source of food and cover for wildlife in Colorado. We measured plant quality and herbivore damage; we found that fire severity had a significant negative effect on both measures. Notably, high severity fires decreased herbivore damage by about 50%. Furthermore, we found that the effect of fire on insect herbivore damage is mostly direct, but that indirect effects mediated through changes in plant quality are also significant. Our results have important implications for the effects of climate-driven increases in fire severity on plant-insect interactions, illustrating strong direct and weaker indirect negative effects of fire severity in a forest ecosystem.
Evaluating the Natural Variability in Generative Models for Complex Networks

Complex networks are used to represent real-world systems using sets of nodes and edges that represent elements and their interactions, respectively. A principled approach to understand these network structures (and the processes that give rise to them) is to formulate generative models and infer their parameters from given data. Ideally, a generative model should be able to synthesize networks that belong to the same population as the observed data, but most models are not designed to accomplish this task. Due to the scarcity of data in the form of populations of networks, generative models are typically formulated to learn parameters from a single network observation, hence ignoring the natural variability of network populations. In this paper, we evaluate four generative models with respect to their ability to synthesize networks that belong to the same population as the observed network. Our empirical analysis quantifying the ability of network models to replicate characteristics of a population of networks highlights the need for rethinking the way we evaluate the goodness of fit of new and existing network models.
Efficient and Asymptotically Optimal Kinodynamic Motion Planning via Dominance-Informed Regions

Motion planners have been recently developed that provide path quality guarantees for robots with dynamics. This work aims to improve upon their efficiency, while maintaining their properties. Inspired by informed search principles, one objective is to use heuristics. Nevertheless, comprehensive and fast spatial exploration of the state space is still important in robotics. For this reason, this work introduces Dominance-Informed Regions (DIR), which express both whether parts of the space are unexplored and whether they lies along a high quality path. Furthermore, to speed up the generation of a successful successor state, which involves collision checking or physics-based simulation, a proposed strategy generates the most promising successor in an informed way, while maintaing properties. Overall, this paper introduces a new informed and asymptotically optimal kinodynamic motion planner, the Dominance-Informed Region Tree (DIRT). The method balances exploration-exploitation tradeoffs without many explicit parameters. It is shown to outperform sampling-based and search-based methods for robots to significant dynamics.
Mergers and Acquisitions in 2007

The widely respected UCLA Anderson economic forecast for 2007 reports that real gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2006 was 3.2% and forecasts 2.0% for 2007. Since business investments and M&A are sensitive to economic conditions, a question is raised about their levels for 2007. Growth rates in real GDP beginning in the third quarter of 2006 through the second quarter of 2007 are estimated at about 1.7% per quarter at annual rates. Real GDP rates for subsequent quarters are expected to rise to over 3.5% per quarter through the end of 2008. These data raise the question of whether M&A activities will decline during 2007.
Assessment of the defect stability for large structures submitted to thermal shock loading through the Gfr criterion

Abstract This paper proposes a formulation and a numerical protocol to allow the application of the Gfr criterion for thick stainless steel components submitted to thermal shock loading. In a first part of the paper, a short description of the criterion initially defined in the S. Marie's PhD is proposed. The proposition to extend the criterion to thermal loading is then made based on the elastic-plastic stresses determined on the crack free model and the classical influence function formulation. Following this description and proposition of extension, two numerical applications are proposed in order to illustrate the applicability of the modified protocol and its coherence with already existing schemes. In a third part, a validation through the comparison to a large scale test performed on CF8M cast stainless steel material is made. This test was chosen since the Gfr criterion is a candidate for defect stability evaluation in cast components. It is then shown that the parameter can be determined on standard specimen, then used to predict the ductile crack growth in large component made of complex materials such the duplex cast stainless steel.