cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Anti-malarials: Are There Benefits Beyond Mild Disease?

Therapeutic applications for hydroxychloroquine, a quinine compound originally used as an anti-malarial, have evolved and expanded over the years to include the treatment of autoimmune rheumatic diseases. In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), hydroxychloroquine has emerged as a cornerstone medication for not only mild disease but also severe disease as adjunctive therapy. With the advent of highly effective biologic disease-modifying agents over the last two decades for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), hydroxychloroquine’s future in RA is less clear. However, hydroxychloroquine’s pleiotropic benefits in rheumatic diseases have been increasingly recognized, supporting its place in the therapeutic armamentarium. These benefits include but are not limited to its beneficial impact on glycemic and lipid profiles and its anti-thrombotic effects. These are of major significance in light of the great burden of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with lupus and RA. This relatively safe, inexpensive, and generally well-tolerated medication’s uncommon but serious risk is retinal toxicity which can be minimized by following screening and monitoring guidelines and using appropriate weight-based dosage. In this review article, we present an overview of hydroxychloroquine’s potential role beyond its anti-rheumatic benefits.
Antagonism to the Diuretic Action of SR 720-22:

SummaryEx 4877 blocked the diuretic effects of SR 720-22, a quinazolinone, indicating a broader spectrum of blocking action for Ex 4877 and a similarity in the mode of action between hydrochlorothiazide and SR 720-22. The results support the findings by Small and Cafruny (2) that Ex 4877 does not block the diuretic effects of furosemide.The authors wish to thank Mr. Frederick Kaiser and Mrs. Bette Van Denburg for technical assistance and Mr. Madhusudan Trivedi for statistical analysis of the data. Ex 4877 was kindly supplied by Dr. John Suh, Lakeside Laboratories, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Dipole-Mediated Rectification of Intramolecular Photoinduced Charge Separation and Charge Recombination

Controlling charge transfer at a molecular scale is critical for efficient light harvesting, energy conversion, and nanoelectronics. Dipole-polarization electrets, the electrostatic analogue of magnets, provide a means for “steering” electron transduction via the local electric fields generated by their permanent electric dipoles. Here, we describe the first demonstration of the utility of anthranilamides, moieties with ordered dipoles, for controlling intramolecular charge transfer. Donor–acceptor dyads, each containing a single anthranilamide moiety, distinctly rectify both the forward photoinduced electron transfer and the subsequent charge recombination. Changes in the observed charge-transfer kinetics as a function of media polarity were consistent with the anticipated effects of the anthranilamide molecular dipoles on the rectification. The regioselectivity of electron transfer and the molecular dynamics of the dyads further modulated the observed kinetics, particularly for charge recombination. The...
Multi-scale Intrinsic Flaws in Composite Materials

In the present, the intrinsic flaw concept introduced by Waddoups is extended to determination of the intrinsic flaw length in the 10-degree off-axis specimen. The intrinsic flaw will be defined as a fracture mechanics-type planar crack. The experimental testing procedures for fabricating, testing and examining the off-axis specimen are overviewed. A fracture mechanics-based methodology is introduced for calculation of the intrinsic flaw length. The intrinsic flaw length on the homogeneous scale and on the micromechanical scale will be determined and compared for unnotched (no hole) specimens and specimens containing a circular-hole. Variation in fiber volume fraction influences the micromechanical stress field; hence the effect of fiber volume fraction variation on the intrinsic flaw length is determined through a multi-scale, integrated computational approach. The effect of the spatial variation in fiber volume fraction, as observed in micrographs of the free-edge, is discussed. The intrinsic flaw lengths on the homogeneous and micromechanical scales, with and without fiber volume fraction variation are compared. The approach not only quantifies the length scale of critical flaws on multiple-scales but demonstrates an approach for treating the stochastic variation in fiber volume fraction.
AGT M235T,AT1RA1166 Cpolymorphism associated with essential hypertension in Yi females of Yunnan province

Objective:To investigate the correlation of polymorphism of angiotensinⅡtype 1receptor(AT1R) gene A1166 Cand angiotensinogen(AGT)gene M235T and essential hypertension(EH)in Yi females of Yunnan province.Method:We recruited 147 hypertensive and 111 normotensive subjects of Yi females from those subjects by questionare and standardized physical examination in Yunnan province.The gene polymorphism was determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment(PCR-RFLP)technique.Then the possible association between the gene polymorphism and EH were analyzed.Result:①The frequencies of 235Tallele(78.6%),AC/CC genotype(8.2%)and 1166Callele(4.4%)in hypertensive were higher than those in normotensive(P0.05).②One Way ANOVA showed that carrying both 235T and 1166 Cincreased the risk of EH.Conclusion:The AT1R A1166 Cpolymorphism may be involved in the pathogenesis of EH in Yi females.There are synergistic effects of AT1R1166 Cand AGT 235 Ton the risk of EH in Yi females.
A MEMS Non-interferometric Differential Confocal Scanning Optical Microscope

This paper describes a novel microelectromechanical system (MEMS) non-interferometric differential confocal scanning optical microscope. It consists of a single mode fiber aperture, a 450×450 µm2 2-D scanner, and a 1.8-mm-diameter graded index objective lens. We have acheived a lateral resolution of 1.6 µm and a field of view of 60×60 µm2. A depth resolution of 0.6 µm is achieved in differential mode. The MEMS confocal microscpe is very compact and suitable for endoscopic imaging applications.
Sonification of Fish Movement Using Pitch Mesh Pairs

On a traditional keyboard, the actions required to play a consonant chord progression must be quite precise; accidentally strike a neighboring key, and a pleasant sonority is likely to become a jarring one. Inspired by the Tonnetz (a tonal diagram), we present a new layout of pitches defined using low-level harmonic notions. We demonstrate the potential of our system by mapping the random movements of fish in an aquarium to this layout. Qualitatively, we find that this captures the intuition behind mapping motion to sound. Similarly moving fish produce consonant chords, while fish moving in non-unison produce dissonant chords. We introduce an open source MATLAB library implementing these techniques, which can be used for sonifying multimodal streaming data.
Dematiaceous fungal endophthalmitis: report of a case and review of the literature

Pleurostomophora richardsiae (formerly Phialophora richardsiae) is a dematiaceous fungus that is an uncommon cause of ocular infection. Herein, we present a case of endogenous endophthalmitis associated with disseminated P. richardsiae infection. This is a descriptive case report with a brief review of literature. A 43-year-old male admitted to the hospital following an acute cerebellar hemorrhage was found to have a swollen and tender wrist. The patient was afebrile with leukocytosis. Visual acuity was hand motion in the right eye and 20/20 in the left. Right eye examination noted anterior chamber cells and flare, vitreous haze and multiple large, and fluffy retinal infiltrates. Diagnostic vitrectomy revealed a mixed inflammatory cell infiltrate with numerous fungal elements. Blood cultures were negative, multiple transesophageal echocardiography studies revealed no vegetations, and synovial fluid aspiration of the wrist and biopsy of the radius were unremarkable. The patient was treated with intravitreal cefazolin, vancomycin, and amphotericin B, topical ciprofloxacin and natamycin, and intravenous amphotericin B and voriconazole. Visual acuity in the right eye declined to light perception, and examination revealed increasing anterior and posterior chamber inflammation. The patient died several weeks after presentation due to a massive intracranial hemorrhage. Fungal culture results from the vitrectomy were received post mortem and were positive for P. richardsiae. P. richardsiae endophthalmitis is rare, and outcomes are typically poor. Infections typically occur following traumatic skin inoculation; however, a long refractory period may occur before symptoms develop. Early diagnosis and combination antimicrobial therapy are essential to optimize visual outcomes.
A new species of Anagyrus Howard (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) from Puerto Rico (USA), parasitoid of Harrisia cactus mealybug, Hypogeococcus sp. (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), on Pilosocereus royenii (Cactaceae)

A new species of the genus Anagyrus Howard (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae), A. ciomperliki sp. n., is described from Puerto Rico (USA) as a primary parasitoid of the Harrisia cactus mealybug, Hypogeococcus sp. (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), on the native Pilosocereus royenii cactus (Cactaceae).
Aqua-Quad - solar powered, long endurance, hybrid mobile vehicle for persistent surface and underwater reconnaissance, part I - platform design

The development of a novel hybrid autonomous vehicle, Aqua-Quad, is presented, which combines a multi-rotor vertical take off and landing aircraft with environmentally hardened electronics, exchangeable sensor suite and a solar recharge system in order to provide long endurance sensing in aquatic environments in support of a variety of missions. The vehicle is envisioned to perform sensing below the thermocline while silently riding on ocean currents, and flying in the air when required for rapid relocation or local communication (12–20 miles) with similar cooperative nodes. The vehicle instrumentation combines (i) INS/GPS and aircraft control, data processing, and command and control (C2) capabilities of a VTOL aircraft, (ii) sensing and signal processing capabilities of an underwater robot with a vector sensor suspended below the thermocline, and (iii) solar energy harvesting for energy-independent operation. The Aqua-Quad is most effective when multiple cooperative vehicles are deployed in an operational area with heterogeneous sensors. It is envisioned that the extended endurance and quiet operation of the multi-modal sensing vehicles, capable of on-demand communication, higher mobility, and cooperative reaction to potential threats could provide higher operational efficiency of the system in undersurface surveillance and reconnaissance operations than currently employed systems (e.g., Sonobuoy, Wave Glider, etc.).
Compactifications of ℕ and Polishable subgroups of $S_{∞}$

We study homeomorphism groups of metrizable compactifications of N. All of those groups can be represented as almost zero-dimensional Polishable subgroups of the group S∞. As a corollary, we show that all Polish groups are continuous homomor- phic images of almost zero-dimensional Polishable subgroups of S∞. We prove a sufficient condition for these groups to be one-dimensional and also study their descriptive complex- ity. In the last section we associate with every Polishable ideal on N a certain Polishable subgroup of S∞ which shares its topological dimension and descriptive complexity.
Labelling Studies in Biochemistry Using NMR

The use of stable isotope labels combined with NMR spectroscopy for the study of metabolic pathways of both endogenous substances and exogenous chemicals is described. Details of the main NMR methodologies used are given and some typical examples are shown.
Evaluation of FDG-PET in pretreatment staging in locally advanced rectal cancer: A prospective study.

3563 Background: The utility of adding 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose-Positron Emission Tomography (PET) to the pre-treatment staging of patients with locally advanced rectal cancer has not been well evalu...
SWOT dalam Menentukan Strategi Pemasaran pada PT Gojek Indonesia

Trends motorcycle online has increased in recent years with the increasing need for fast transportation in Jakarta. Ease and speed of motorcycles message via applications and the speed of travel (travel time) becomes a key factor many motorcycle enthusiasts online. Gojek as pioneers face challenges in maintaining quality service and win the competition. The marketing strategy is one way to determine the competitiveness of each force. Effective Use of SWOT can play an important role in determining the marketing strategy, in order to know the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats faced by enterprise IT in maintaining the viability and continuity of the company. Issues to be resolved in this research is How to determine the internal and external factors which will affect the company's strategy and determine appropriate marketing strategy planning for Gojek? The research was conducted using the method of analysis of IFAs to analyze the internal factors, the analysis of EFAS to external factors, then, input into the model kuantittif ie SWOT matrix. Results of the analysis showed that, based on internal strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and external threats, four sets of strategic alternatives that may be taken by the manager of the company in the face of increasingly competitive. Standard nomenclature should be used and abbreviations should be avoided. No literature should be cited. The keyword list provides the opportunity to add keywords, used by the indexing and abstracting services, in addition to those already present in the title. Judicious use of keywords may increase the ease with which interested parties can locate our article Keywords: Marketing Strategy, SWOT
An objective assessment of the variability in number of drops per bottle of glaucoma medication

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the number of eyedrops available per bottle of a variety of commonly prescribed glaucoma medications. Six bottles of each glaucoma medication were tested: three each in the vertical and horizontal orientations. Bottles were housed in a customized force gauge apparatus designed to mimic ballpoint fingertip contact with a bottle. At a standard rate, all drops were expressed from each bottle and counted with an automated drop counter. Simultaneously, bottle volume was measured and drop size and number were also estimated. The main outcome measures were: total number of drops, volume per bottle and drops per milliliter (mL) of glaucoma medication. A total of 192 bottles from 32 bottle designs and manufacturers were tested. Twenty-two of the 32 bottle designs had a significantly different mean number of drops in the vertical and horizontal positions, with 10 designs have more drops dispensed in the horizontal orientation and 12 in the vertical orientation. Six of the 32 bottle designs had a significantly different mean total bottle volume in the vertical and horizontal positions, with all designs having greater volume in the vertical position. An adjusted ratio of mean number of drops/mean bottle volume demonstrated a range from 20.9 drops/mL to 40.8 drops/mL. There is significant variability in drops and volume available per bottle of glaucoma medication depending on both the bottle position and manufacturer. These data point to the need for circumspection in prescribing glaucoma medications and caution in evaluating therapeutic outcomes.
An artificial fish lateral line sensory system composed of modular pressure sensor blocks

The lateral line sensory system found in fish and other aquatic organisms is believed to aid in various behavioral activities such as station keeping and wall detection. This paper presents results for an artificial lateral line designed for use in an underwater vehicle. Algorithms for leveraging this system to estimate hydrodynamic forces and for wall detection are presented and experimentally validated. Three sensor setups were built, two with fixed sensor positions and one with a novel, modular sensor block approach. The modular realization allows for flexibility in testing and can be integrated into the control system of the autonomous underwater vehicle built by our group. These lateral line sensory systems were experimentally validated and the results are presented.
Local Discontinuous Galerkin Methods for the Boussinesq Coupled BBM System

Nonlinear dispersive wave equations model a substantial number of physical systems that admit special solutions such as solitons and solitary waves. Due to the complex nature of the nonlinearity and dispersive effects, high order numerical methods are effective in capturing the physical system in computation. In this paper, we consider the Boussinesq coupled BBM system, and propose local discontinuous Galerkin (LDG) methods for solving the BBM system. For the proposed LDG methods, we provide two different choices of numerical fluxes, namely the upwind and alternating fluxes, as well as establish their stability analysis. The error estimate for the linearized BBM system is carried out for the LDG methods with the alternating flux. To present a time discretization that conserves the Hamiltonian numerically, the midpoint rule with a nontrivial nonlinear term in the discretization is proposed. Both Hamiltonian conserving and dissipating time discretizations are implemented, with multiple combinations of numerical flux and time discretization tested numerically. Numerical examples are provided to demonstrate the accuracy, long-time simulation, and Hamiltonian conservation properties of the proposed LDG methods for the coupled BBM system.
Passive Crowd Speed Estimation and Head Counting Using WiFi

In this paper, we propose a framework to sense occupancy attributes of an area, such as speed of a crowd traversing through the area, the total number of people in the area, and the rate of arrival of people into the area, using only the received power measurements (RSSI) of two WiFi links, and without relying on people to carry any device. We first show that the cross-correlation between the two WiFi link measurements and the probability of crossing a link implicitly carry key information about the occupancy attributes and develop a mathematical model to relate these parameters to the occupancy attributes of interest. Based on this, we then propose a system to estimate the occupancy attributes and validate it with 51 experiments in both indoor and outdoor areas, where up to (and including) 20 people walk in the area with different possible speeds, and show that our framework can accurately estimate the occupancy attributes. For instance, our framework achieves a Normalized Mean Square Error (NMSE) of 0.047 (4.7%) when estimating the speed of a crowd, an NMSE of 0.034 (3.4%) when estimating the arrival rate to the area, and a Mean Absolute Error (MAE) of 1.3 when counting the total number of people. We finally run experiments in an aisle in Costco, showing how we can estimate the key attributes of buyers' motion behaviors.
Acetaminophen: Pathology and Clinical Presentation of Hepatotoxicity

Acetaminophen toxicity is a major health problem in the United States today because of its contribution to the development of acute liver failure, coupled with the ubiquity of the drug in the US formulary. While significant progress has been achieved since 2000 in better defining mechanisms of toxicity in experimental models, our understanding of factors that are important to the development of toxicity in the clinical setting is poor. Very little research has attempted to translate new understandings of the mechanism of toxicity to the clinical setting. In addition, the treatment of acetaminophen overdose has not significantly changed since recognition of the role of metabolism and glutathione depletion to the development of toxicity in the 1970s. The chapter reviews the history of acetaminophen, our understanding of its human pharmacology and toxicity, and current approaches and challenges in the recognition and treatment of toxicity in various clinical settings.
Economic perspectives in the management of Helicobacter pylori infections.

The infection with Helicobacter pylori contributes to the occurrence of at least four diseases, that is, gastric ulcer, duodenal ulcer, gastric cancer and gastric mucosa-associated lymphoma tissue lymphoma. Many gastroenterologists believe that infection with H. pylori can also result in epigastric symptoms and nonulcer dyspepsia. The health economics of H. pylori infection relates to the cost-benefit relationship of preventing, treating or curing these various conditions through medical measures directed against the infectious organism. In addition, economic analyses have addressed various other aspects of diagnosis and management of patients infected with H. pylori. A minority of analyses were based on real data generated from prospective clinical trials or retrospective analysis of utilization of health care resources, while the majority of studies used economic modeling to predict the influence of various medical measures. The models used mostly decision trees, Markov chains, the declining exponential approximation of life expectancy (DEALE), and the accounting technique of net present value. The following three sections of the present chapter are focused towards the management of the three most common conditions associated with H. pylori, that is, peptic ulcer, gastric cancer, and nonulcer dyspepsia. In a subsequent section we discuss the workup of patients with upper abdominal symptoms and a few other economic issues related to the management of patients infected with H. pylori.
Factors That Affect Quality of Life in Young Adults With Type 1 Diabetes.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine in young adults (18-35 years) with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) factors known to be associated with quality of life: fear of complications (including hypogl...
Validating the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale for Pediatric Nurses.

Background and purpose Secondary traumatic stress is a state of mental distress resulting from indirect exposure to the traumatic situation of another individual. The literature indicates that secondary traumatic stress is a problem in some areas of nursing and may cause nurses to leave the profession. This article examines the psychometrics of the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale (STSS) with a sample of pediatric nurses. Methods The STSS was completed by a random sample of 350 Certified Pediatric Nurses. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were completed to assess the STSS and its subscales. Results Cronbach's αs ranged from 0.81 to 0.87 for each factor, and was 0.92 for the STSS as a whole. Fit indices were similar for all models. Conclusions Reliability statistics and fit indices support the previous psychometric studies.
On the inference of viscoelastic constants from stress relaxation experiments

Several constitutive theories have been proposed in the literature to model the viscoelastic response of materials, including widely used rheological constitutive models. These models are characterized by certain parameters (“time constants”) that define the time scales over which the material relaxes. These parameters are primarily obtained from stress relaxation experiments using curve-fitting techniques. However, the question of how best to estimate these time constants remains open. As a step towards answering this question, we propose an optimal experimental design approach based on ideas from information geometry, namely Fisher information and Kullback–Leibler divergence. The material is modeled as a spring element in parallel with multiple Maxwell elements and described using a one- or two-term Prony series. Treating the time constants as unknowns, we develop expressions for the Fisher information and Kullback–Leibler divergence that allow us to maximize information gain from experimental data. Based on the results of this study, we propose that the largest time constant estimated from a stress relaxation experiment for a linear viscoelastic material should be at most one-fifth of the total time of the experiment in order to maximize information gain. Our results also provide confirmation that the equilibrium modulus of the material cannot be reliably determined from curve-fitting to data from a stress relaxation experiment.
Robust Manifold Learning via Conformity Pursuit

This letter presents an effective and simple method, termed Global Conformity Pursuit (GCP), for robust manifold learning. Data points lying on a union of low-dimensional nonlinear manifolds are expected to be highly conforming. On the other hand, outliers do not typically adhere to low-dimensional structures or otherwise do not exist in large numbers. Hence, they can be identified by their low overall resemblance to the rest of the data. Our kernel-based setting allows us to capture the underlying nonlinear structure of the manifold data, while avoiding the construction of local neighborhood regions which typically causes extreme sensitivity to noise and outliers. Aside from its significantly simple structure-involving only a matrix evaluation and multiplication-GCP is the first manifold learning approach that is simultaneously noniterative and capable of tolerating a large number of outliers, dependent outliers, and noise components. Theoretical analysis guarantees a large gap between conformity values of inliers and outliers. Experimental results showcase potential uses of the proposed framework on benchmark datasets.
Vortioxetine for Depression in Adults.

An estimated 300 million people worldwide are affected by major depressive disorder. The severity of symptoms associated with depression varies considerably affecting the entire person. Major depre...
Synthesis and Preliminary Evaluation of a [89Zr]-Labeled Elastin-Specific PET Tracer for Targeting Pulmonary Fibrosis

265 Objectives: Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) involves scarring of the lung tissue. This scarring is essentially buildup of the deposition of extracellular matrices such as collagen, elastin and glycoproteins. Over time this buildup results in decreased pulmonary function and usually proves to be a fatal condition. Causes of PF are wide ranging but most cases are idiopathic, having no known cause. In this study, we aimed to assess the use of a novel 89Zr PET imaging agent, [89Zr]JLB-01, to monitor the progression of the disease on a weekly basis in mice whose lungs were injured with bleomycin, an agent known to induce PF in animal models. Methods: D-Hphe-AMBH-DFO was synthesized in 6 steps starting with N-boc-homo-phenylalanine and 4-aminobenzoic acid. D-Hphe-AMBH-DFO was dissolved into DMSO and incubated in a solution with 89Zr at a pH of 7.2 in HEPES buffer to yield the desired compound of [89Zr]JLB-01. Specific activity was calculated based off the starting compound and radiochemical purity was determined via instant thin layer chromatography. At T0 (week 1), a group of mice (n=6/group) were injured accordingly, with either bleomycin or saline, injected with ~225 μCi of [89Zr]JLB-01 via tail vein, then imaged at 1 h and 4 h post injection. Each group was studied on subsequent days. Four weeks post injury, 3 mice per group were sacrificed post PET imaging for biodistribution purposes. The remaining mice were injected, imaged and sacrificed during week 5. Results: Synthesis of the precursor D-Hphe-AMBH-DFO proved challenging with the lowest yielding step being the coupling between the hydrazide and the carboxylic acid of 4-aminobenzoic acid (scheme not shown). The final synthetic yield over 6 steps was ~5% For radiolabeling purposes, [89Zr]JLB-01, was easily synthesized within 15 min at 95oC resulting in >95% purity, and acceptable specific activity at 4 mCi/μg. The preliminary biodistribution studies showed that at week 4 (the week expected to have the most fibrotic tissue), 3.4 + 0.1% ID/g was observed in the bleomycin injured lungs vs. just 1.0 + 0.2 % ID/g in the saline injured lungs (p = .0007). At week 5, when the lungs were expected to start recovering from the injury, the uptake of [89Zr]JLB-01 was just 0.6 + 0.1 %ID/g in the bleomycin injured group vs. 0.4 + 0.3 %ID/g in the saline injured group. Conclusion: The synthesis of the radiolabeling precursor, D-Hphe-AMBH-DFO, was short and low yielding however radiolabeling proved to be high yielding with good radiochemical purity and specific activity. Overall the compound [89Zr]JLB-01 showed that it is possible to study the progression of the development of pulmonary fibrosis in mice injured with bleomycin.
The effect of sociodemographic factors on outcomes and time to discharge after bariatric operations.

Abstract Introduction Bariatric surgery is an effective treatment for obesity resulting in both sustained weight loss and reduction in obesity-related comorbidities. It is uncertain how sociodemographic factors affect postoperative outcomes. Methods The National Inpatient Sample was queried for patients undergoing Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) or sleeve gastrectomy (SG) from 2005 to 2014. Factors associated with selection of SG over RYGB, increased postoperative length of stay (LOS) greater than 3 days, and inpatient mortality were compared by race, insurance status, and other clinical and hospital factors. Results The database captured 781,413 patients, of which 525,986 had a RYGB and 255,428 had SG. There was an increase in the incidence of SG over RYGB over time. Among the self-pay/uninsured, the increased incidence began several years earlier than other groups. Black patients had greater odds of increased postoperative LOS (OR 1.40) and in-hospital mortality (OR 2.11). Conclusion Sociodemographic factors are associated with differences in temporal trends in the adoption of SG versus RYGB for surgical weight loss.
Online Education in STEM

From a series of visits to the leading online learning centers during the “year of the MOOC” in 2013, the roots of the online learning phenomenon are explored, and their applications to STEM disciplines are described. Site visits to the headquarters of Coursera, edX, Udacity, and HarvardX are combined with an overview of their history and current programs, including interviews with the founders and leaders of all of these major online education centers. The evolution of online learning from its early days into the present is described, along with new types of online learning that include “stackable micro-credentials,” hybrid courses, and online degree programs. The future of online learning and its impacts on colleges and universities is also described, with examples of possible new types of online learning environments in STEM fields.
Transfacet Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion With an Expandable Interbody Device-Part I: 2-Dimensional Operative Video and Technical Report.

Background Advances in operative techniques and minimally invasive technologies have evolved to maximize patient outcomes and radiographic results, while reducing morbidity and recovery time. Objective To describe the operative technique for a transfacet minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) as a proposed modification to the standard approach MIS-TLIF. Methods We present the case of a 72-yr-old man with left-sided lumbar radiculopathy. Preoperative imaging demonstrated degenerative lumbar anterolisthesis at L4-5, with associated canal and neuroforaminal stenosis. The patient underwent transfacet MIS-TLIF at L4-L5. We describe the preoperative planning, patient positioning, incision and dissection, pedicle screw insertion, transfacet approach to the working access corridor, discectomy, interbody device placement, fixation, and closure. Results The transfacet MIS-TLIF utilizes 3 key techniques to safely maximize surgical correction: (1) a limited bony resection based on the superior articular process, leaving the medial inferior articular process, lateral superior articular process, and rostral pars intact, providing a working bony corridor that protects the traversing and exiting nerve roots; (2) decortication and release of the contralateral facet joint to provide additional capacity for indirect decompression and provide the first point of osseous fusion; and (3) placement of an expandable interbody device that provides additional indirect decompression to the working side and contralateral foramen. Conclusion The transfacet MIS-TLIF uniquely leverages a bony working corridor to access the disc space for discectomy and interbody placement. Transfacet MIS-TLIF is a feasible solution for lumbar spinal reconstruction to maximize direct and indirect decompression of the neuroforamina and central spinal canal in patients with lumbar degenerative diseases and low-grade spondylolisthesis.
Identifying resources available to physicians for management of financial toxicity: A Fellow-driven QI initiative.

294Background: Insufficient patient-physician cost communication stems in part from limited physician awareness of actionable interventions when cost issues arise. Oncologists report low awareness ...
Financial Analysis for Principal Investigators of Nonprofit Research

Principal investigators in nonprofit research organizations often play the role of project managers. Although nonprofit grant writing and technical reporting are covered well in the literature, there is a lack of published insight into financial analysis for young principal investigators. This technical manager's notebook article aims to provide insights for financial analysis of principal investigators who perform research in nonprofit organizations. This article also provides simple but often overlooked best practices on nonprofit research financial planning, tracking, and reporting. The exercises presented in this article can aid young principal investigators.
A Distributed Algorithm for Computing a Common Fixed Point of a Finite Family of Paracontractions

A distributed algorithm is described for finding a common fixed point of a family of $m>1$ nonlinear maps $M_i:\mathbb {R}^n\rightarrow \mathbb {R}^n$ assuming that each map is a paracontraction and that at least one such common fixed point exists. The common fixed point is simultaneously computed by $m$ agents assuming each agent $i$ knows only $M_i$ , the current estimates of the fixed point generated by its neighbors, and nothing more. Each agent recursively updates its estimate of a fixed point by utilizing the current estimates generated by each of its neighbors. Neighbor relations are characterized by a time-varying directed graph $\mathbb {N}(t)$ . It is shown under suitably general conditions on $\mathbb {N}(t)$ , that the algorithm causes all agent estimates to converge to the same common fixed point of the $m$ nonlinear maps.
Thick multiculturalism: a viable project?: Book Review of Essays on Secularism and Multiculturalism, by Tariq Modood, Reviewed by Krishan Kumar

Tariq Modood has for many years been an eloquent and persuasive spokesman for the theory and politics of multiculturalism. As attacks on it have mounted in recent years – ‘multiculturalism is dead’...
Security and Privacy Aspects in 5G Networks

The future mobile 5G networks are envisioned to support billions of devices, higher data rate, and omnipresent connectivity, with the help of a diverse set of technologies, e.g., network densification, mMIMO, mm-Wave, full-duplex radios, network slicing, visual-light communication, cognitive radio networks, device-to-device communications, machine-to-machine communications, and satellite-based communication. While 5G will assist in a wide range of applications, heterogeneous devices and technologies impose significant threats to 5G networks as compared to the previous generation of the communication networks. In this article, we discuss the need of new security techniques for 5G networks and the key research challenges related to security/privacy in 5G networks.
Developments on two lithium vapor-box linear test-stand experiments

Abstract The lithium vapor-box divertor is a possible fusion power exhaust solution. It uses condensation pumping to create a gradient of vapor density in a divertor slot; this should allow a stable detachment front without active feedback. As initial explorations of the concept, two test stands which take the form of three connected cylindrical stainless steel boxes are being developed: one without plasma at PPPL, to test models of lithium evaporation and flow; and one for the linear plasma device Magnum-PSI (at DIFFER in Eindhoven, The Netherlands) to test the ability of a lithium vapor cloud to induce volumetric detachment and redistribute the plasma power. The first experiment uses boxes with diameters of 6 cm, joined by apertures with diameters of 2.2 cm. Up to 1 g of Li is placed in one box, which is heated to up to 600 ° C . The Li evaporates, then flows to and condenses in the two other, cooler boxes over several minutes. The quantity of Li transported is assessed by weighing the boxes before and after the heating cycle, and is compared to the quantity predicted to flow for the box at its measured temperature using a Direct Simulation Monte Carlo code, SPARTA. With good experimental conditions, the two values agree to within 15%. The experiment on Magnum-PSI is in the conceptual design stage. The design is assessed by simulations using the code B2.5-Eunomia. They show that when the H + plasma beam, with n e = 4 × 10 20 m −3 , T e = 1.5 eV , and r = 1 cm , is passed through a 16 cm long, 12 Pa, 625 ° C Li vapor cloud, the plasma heat flux and pressure on the target are significantly reduced compared to the case without Li. With the Li present, the plasma is cooled by excitation of Li neutrals followed by radiation until it volumetrically recombines, lowering the heat flux from 3.7 MW m−2 to 0.13 MW m−2, and the pressure is reduced by 93%, largely by collisions of H + with Li 0 .
Late Venous Thoracic Outlet Syndrome After Anatomic Fixation of a Diaphyseal Clavicle Fracture: A Case Report.

CASE We report the case of a 29-year-old man with a displaced mid-diaphyseal clavicle fracture that healed in anatomic position without fracture callus after surgical treatment but developed symptoms of late venous thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) 19 months postoperatively. He was diagnosed with proximal subclavian vein thrombosis and was treated with urgent thrombolysis and staged first rib resection with resolution of symptoms. CONCLUSIONS Late venous TOS is a potential complication of clavicle fracture, even in the setting of anatomic reduction and primary bone healing. This entity has previously only been described in the setting of nonunion and malunion.
Broad Spectrum Polyphenol Supplementation from Tart Cherry Extract on Markers of Recovery from Intense Resistance Exercise.

BACKGROUND Tart cherry supplementation has been shown to enhance recovery from strenuous exercise due to its antioxidant properties. The majority of these studies used tart cherry juice, with a significant calorie content. The primary purpose of this study was to assess whether powdered tart cherry extract with minimal calorie content reduces oxidative stress and enhances recovery following intense resistance exercise. METHODS Thirteen men (mean age: 26.2 ± 5.3 years; height: 184.3 ± 8.2 cm; weight: 92.9 ± 15.6 kg) performed a demanding resistance exercise protocol consisting of 6 sets of 10 repetitions of barbell back squat with 80% 1RM. The protocol was performed once following 7 days of 500 mg of tart cherry extract and once following placebo. Serum protein carbonyl (PC) content, creatine kinase activity (CK) and creatine kinase myocardial band content (CK-MB) were used to assess oxidative stress, skeletal and cardiac muscle damage respectively. Muscle soreness was assessed by visual analog scale. Physical performance was measured by countermovement jump power and handgrip dynamometer strength. RESULTS There was a significant increase in PC in the placebo (PL) condition when compared to the Tart Cherry (TC) condition at Immediate Post (IP) (PL: 0.4 ± 0.3 vs. TC: - 0.4 ± 0.2 nmol∙mg- 1; p < 0.001), 1 h (PL: 0.3 ± 0.3 vs. TC: - 0.7 ± 0.3 nmol∙mg- 1; p < 0.001) and 24 h (PL: 0.1 ± 0.4 vs. TC: - 0.3 ± 0.5 nmol∙mg- 1; p = 0.010). There was a significant increase in CK activity in PL when compared to the TC at IP (PL: 491.1 ± 280 vs. TC: 296.3 ± 178 U∙L- 1; p = 0.008) and 3 h (PL: - 87 ± 123 vs. TC: 43.1 ± 105.3 U∙L- 1; p = 0.006). There was a significant (p = 0.003) increase in CKMB concentration in PL when compared to the TC (PL: 21.6 ± 12.4 vs. TC: - 0.3 ± 11.8 ng∙ml- 1; p = 0.006) at 1 h post. There was a significant increase in handgrip strength in TC when compared to PL (PL: - 2 ± 5.1 vs. TC: 1.7 ± 3 kg; p = 0.017) at 24 h post. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrated that tart cherry extract reduced oxidative stress and markers of muscle and cardiac damage following intense resistance exercise. This occurred along with a prevention of the decrease in handgrip strength seen following the intense exercise protocol, indicating a potential reduction in central fatigue. These benefits were seen with minimal energy intake.
Out for Blood: Tyler Shultz and Theranos (A)

In early 2014, recent Stanford University graduate Tyler Shultz was in a quandary. He had been working at Theranos, a blood-diagnostic company founded by Elizabeth Holmes, a Stanford-dropout wunderkind, for almost a year. Shultz had learned enough about the company to realize that its practices and the efficacy of its much-touted finger-prick blood-testing technology were questionable and that the company was going to great lengths to hide this fact from the public and from regulators. Theranos and Holmes were Silicon Valley darlings, enjoying positive press and lavish attention from potential investors and technology titans alike. Just as companies like PayPal had revolutionized the stagnant payments industry and Uber had upended the for-hire transportation sector, Theranos had been positioned as the latest technology firm to substantially disrupt yet another mature sector: the medical laboratory business. By the start of 2014, the company had raised more than $400 million in funding, and had an estimated market valuation of $9 billion. Shultz's situation was exacerbated by the fact that his grandfather, the highly respected former US Secretary of State George Shultz, was on the Theranos board and was one of Elizabeth Holmes's biggest supporters. But Tyler Shultz worried about the customers he was convinced were receiving highly unreliable and often inaccurate blood-test results. With so much at stake, Shultz wondered how he should proceed. Should he raise his concerns with the firm's investors? Blow the whistle externally? Report to industry regulators? Go away quietly? This case and its subsequent four brief follow-up cases are based largely on interviews with Tyler Shultz, and outline the dilemma he faced and the various steps he would take both to extricate himself from his unsavory position and let the public know the full extent of the deception at Theranos. Five optional handouts are available to instructors to further discussion after the case has been debriefed. The handouts serve as additional decision points for the students if your class time permits. Excerpt UVA-E-0440 Rev. Feb. 9, 2021 Out for Blood: Tyler Shultz and Theranos (A) Elizabeth Holmes' is a story that could only happen in America. Henry Kissinger Toward the end of my internship when I was telling people, Yeah, I'm definitely coming back, one senior scientist told me not to, which I thought was kind of weird. That was the first time I had any inkling that something was up. She said, You shouldn't come back here. We don't do real science here. You should go learn how to do real science somewhere else. . . .
An Empirical Analysis of the ApplyTexas Postsecondary Application

Since its writing into Texas state law, only one empirical study has been published which compares the relative ease or difficulty of ApplyTexas against other national-level postsecondary applications of which ApplyTexas competes with. Taylor’s (2019) cross-analysis of ApplyTexas versus the Common Application, Coalition for College Application, and Universal College Application was revealing, as ApplyTexas was longer (by word count) and more difficult to read (14.6th grade reading level) than the other applications in the study. This new study integrates several new metrics for evaluating the difficulty of postsecondary applications. To address emergent research suggesting Internet speed can affect students’ ability to access postsecondary education (Dettling et al., 2018), this study employs Sitechecker Pro’s page size tool (Sitechecker, 2021), which measures the byte size of a webpage, informing the website developer as to how quickly or slowly a webpage may load depending on the speed of an Internet user’s connection. Moreover, given the progress toward migrating the ApplyTexas application to Amazon Web Services to increase its technological capacity, this study evaluated the auto-save features of each application system to learn if technological safeguards are being written into application systems to save application progress in the event of a device shutdown, Internet outage, or user error. Applications were completed using a high-speed, 100mbps Wi-Fi connection. Regarding metrics related to how the application is written at the question- or fillable form-level, additional metrics were added to the current study to provide further insight as to how long or complicated the application may be for the average student. First, this study captures both the number of fillable forms required to create an application profile and the application itself, providing a measurement of how many questions or “blanks” a student needs to fill in order to complete the application. This study also evaluates the overall number of webpages required to complete the application, again providing a measure of how long the application is and how difficult it may be for a person with a low-speed Internet connection to load and complete each page of the application.
Numerical Simulation of Laser Generated Photoacoustic Ultrasound Using COMSOL Multiphysics

Laser generated ultrasound (LGU) is being widely studied as an alternative method to piezoelectric based ultrasound. In this study, a two-dimensional axisymmetric finite element model has been developed to investigate the laser induced ultrasound.
Adaptive Scheduling Algorithms for the Dynamic Distribution and Parallel Execution of Spatial Agent-Based Models

In previous work [7], we proposed a general framework for defining agent-based models (ABMs) and introduced two algorithms for the automatic parallelization of agent-based models: a general version P-ABM G for all ABMs definable in the framework and a more specific variant P-ABM S for “spatial ABMs”, which can utilize the additional spatial information to obtain performance improvements. Both algorithms can automatically distribute ABMs over multiple processors and dynamically adjust the degree of parallelization based on available computational resources throughout the simulation runs. However, they are not sensitive to inefficiencies in the sequence in which agents in each parallel simulation instance are updated.