cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY1

Each of us shares a concern for the deterioration of our environment, its abuse, and misuse. And I know that we share a sense of urgency about the need to halt this deterioration and win the struggle for a clean and wholesome relationship between man and his environment. This concern for the condition of the physical world is not a special interest, but cuts across social and economic strata and across generations. It is the product of a nearly universal understanding of the problem and of the deadly consequences of inaction. There is a growing realization among all of us that pollution control must become a way of life in this nation, and that it must remain a way of life. We know now that in exploiting our resources we have been exploiting ourselves. The Environmental Protection Agency, (EPA), was born of public demand for a cohesive, national effort to defend and enhance the environment. Establishment of EPA as an independent agency, with Administrator William Ruckelshaus reporting directly to the Pres...
The Ethics of Business: A Concise Introduction by Al Gini and Alexei Marcoux

The Ethics of Business offers a coherent framework to a wide audience on how to think about and internalize ethical behavior. The authors are two professors of business ethics in the School of Busi...
Flipping the Script: The Dangerous Bodies of Girls of Color:

Girls of color have been left out of discussions on youth participatory action research (YPAR) as well as gender- and race-based scholarship related to school marginalization. How Black girls and o...
Onset of nonlinearity and yield strain of a model soft solid

For soft solids with their low modulus, small stress already results in large strain, which may cause nonlinearity and yielding. These potentially competing effects were studied on a clay/polybutadiene (clay/sPB) composite, which is a soft physical gel. Structural changes were introduced by oscillatory shear using large amplitude (LAOS). LAOS beyond a critical limit reduced the internal connectivity. This softened the already soft solid even further, thereby moving it closer to its physical gel point. For clay/sPB, the shear-induced changes were irreversible so that they could get probed using small amplitude shear (SAOS) frequency sweeps. Sequences of SAOS-LAOS-SAOS (SLS) where repeated with increasing LAOS amplitude and increasing duration. The flow-induced structural changes in the soft solid were attributed to yielding, which began to occur at about the same stress/strain values as found for the onset of nonlinearity in traditional SAOS to LAOS (StL) stress amplitude sweeps. The onset of nonlinearity and the yielding seem to be a strain activated process since the characteristic strain amplitude is independent of frequency and temperature, but not so for the characteristic stress amplitude. The duration of LAOS in a SLS experiment beyond yielding is an important parameter since flow-induced structural changes require time to grow.
Detangling spaghetti: Tracking deep ocean currents in the Gulf of Mexico

ABSTRACTCreation of physical models can help students learn science by enabling them to be more involved in the scientific process of discovery and to use multiple senses during investigations. This activity achieves these goals by having students model ocean currents in the Gulf of Mexico. In general, oceans play a key role in influencing weather patterns and climate. Water movement also affects fisheries through transport of various fish and invertebrate species as well as their predators and prey. Currents also impact the dispersion of pollutants, as in after an oil spill such as the catastrophe of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in 2010. Currents exist deep in the ocean, and they do not always travel in the same direction as currents at the surface. This concept of the existence of ocean currents below the surface can be hard to explain, but we provide methodology for sharing this information in a way that is accessible to K–12 students, including the visually impaired. In addition to the NGSS standards...
Second-Order Schedules: Parametric Variation of Rate of Reinforcement

Pigeons’ responses were maintained under a second-order schedule where behavior controlled by a fixed-interval component was reinforced according to variable-interval schedules. Completion of each fixed interval produced a brief stimulus presentation; this stimulus was paired intermittently with food in some conditions but was not paired in other conditions. While the fixed-interval schedule was held constant, the value of the variable-interval schedule was parametrically varied over a wide range. Response rates decreased in an orderly fashion as the variable-interval value increased, while the degree of response patterning within fixed-interval schedules remained relatively constant. Comparisons of paired and nonpaired brief stimulus procedures failed to show any consistent differences in the control of rates or patterns of responding.
Bacterial Size: Tuning In to a Clearer Connection

Summary An innovative approach to harness cellular dimensions reveals fundamental links between cell size and other cellular processes in the bacterium Escherichia coli .
The Psychology of Terrorism

Psychologists and psychiatrists have long been interested in the study of terrorism. This is not surprising since terrorism fundamentally involves the study of behavior. As Victoroff [1] explains, “it would seem appropriate for the scholarly disciplines of psychology and psychiatry to bring their intellectual resources to bear on the political problems of terrorism, a problem that—stripped to the basics—is one of atypical human behavior” (p. 4). Psychologists and psychiatrists are not the only ones that apply psychological concepts to this complex area of study. Other discipline experts are using psychology to inform their understanding. While psychology cannot answer all questions regarding terrorism, it does provide significant insights that aid in its understanding. Ultimately, it is a blending of psychology with other disciplines that will aid us in providing the best path of analysis.
How Old Are Sunflowers? A Molecular Clock Analysis of Key Divergences in the Origin and Diversification of Helianthus (Asteraceae)

Premise of research. For many questions in evolutionary ecology, it is quite valuable to have an estimate of the span of geologic time over which a group of species has arisen and diversified. This study uses a molecular clock approach to generate a first estimate of key divergences in the evolutionary history of the genus Helianthus, which to date has lacked such an estimate.Methodology. Divergence time analysis was performed with well-resolved phylogenies of Asteraceae and Helianthus in a stepping-stone manner using the RelTime maximum likelihood method with a variety of available macrofossil, fossil pollen, and molecular clock calibrations derived from the literature.Pivotal results. Mean estimates from nine individual calibration scenarios time the divergence of Helianthus from the sister genus Phoebanthus at between 2.47 and 5.41 Ma. Composite calibration incorporating all literature estimates time this divergence at 3.63 Ma, with a 95% confidence interval spanning 0–8.26 Ma. Subsequent diversificati...
Agents, Virgins, Sluts, and Losers: The Sexual Typecasting of Young Heterosexual Women

In a 2015 contribution to Sex Roles’s Feminist Forum, Bay-Cheng argued that contemporary social evaluations of young women hinge not only on their apparent adherence to gendered moralist norms of sexual activity, but also on their performance of a neoliberal script of sexual agency. We used a mixed method approach to test this proposal, specifically its alignment with the evaluative dimensions of the Stereotype Content Model (SCM; Fiske 2013). We asked 186 U.S. adults (aged 19–64) to imagine four “sexual types” of young heterosexual women: sexually active and agentic Agents; sexually abstinent and agentic Virgins; sexually active but not agentic Sluts; and Losers, who are sexually abstinent and not agentic. Qualitative analysis of open-ended responses and quantitative analysis of personality attribute ratings indicated that participants evaluated the types differently and in ways that often mapped onto the SCM. We also conducted post-hoc inductive thematic analysis of the qualitative data, finding meaningful differences among participants’ impressions of the types in relation to their sociability, femininity, and vulnerability. Alongside signs of progress toward the affirmation of young women’s sexual agency, we also found that social evaluations of young women continue to hinge on their sexuality and traditionally gendered norms.
Plant Water Relations in Montane and Tussock Tundra Vegetation Types in Alaska

The objective of this study was to measure plant water potentials and related environmental factors in different montane tundra types occurring in a gradient of snow accumulation and in tussock tun...
Surgical Treatment for Patients with Thoracic Spinal Metastasis

Although most spinal lesions respond well to radiotherapy, radioresistant tumors and those causing fracture and bony compression of the spinal cord often require direct surgical decompression. In the upper thoracic spine, the surgical approach can be challenging in the best of circumstances. Anterior decompression successfully treats spinal cord compression caused by fracture and tumor mass. Performed for lesions located ventral to the cord, 80% of the vertebrectomy patients retained or regained the ability to walk, compared to only 40% of the laminectomy patients. Posterior stabilization significantly improves pain relief compared to laminectomy alone but requires a second major operation after the anterior tumor surgery.
Authorless Topic Models: Biasing Models Away from Known Structure

Most previous work in unsupervised semantic modeling in the presence of metadata has assumed that our goal is to make latent dimensions more correlated with metadata, but in practice the exact opposite is often true. Some users want topic models that highlight differences between, for example, authors, but others seek more subtle connections across authors. We introduce three metrics for identifying topics that are highly correlated with metadata, and demonstrate that this problem affects between 30 and 50% of the topics in models trained on two real-world collections, regardless of the size of the model. We find that we can predict which words cause this phenomenon and that by selectively subsampling these words we dramatically reduce topic-metadata correlation, improve topic stability, and maintain or even improve model quality.
Low Cycle Fatigue Behavior of Types 304 and 316 Stainless Steel Tested in Sodium at 550°C

Fatigue tests were conducted in sodium to investigate the influence of an elevated temperature sodium environment on the low cycle fatigue behavior of Types 304 and 316 stainless steel. The fatigue tests were conducted at 550/sup 0/C in sodium of controlled purity, namely, 1 ppM oxygen and 0.3 ppM carbon, at a strain rate of 4 x 10/sup -3/ s/sup -1/. The fatigue life of annealed Type 316 stainless steel was substantially greater when tested in sodium than when tested in air, whereas the test environment had little influence on the fatigue life of Type 304 stainless steel. The effects of long-term sodium preexposure were also investigated. An 18-Ms (5000-h) preexposure to sodium produced little effect on the fatigue life of Type 316 stainless steel tested in sodium. However, a similar sodium exposure had a significant effect on the fatigue behavior of Type 304 stainless steel.
A study of reddit-user's response to rape

The growth of social media has created an open web where people freely share their opinion and even discuss sensitive subjects in online forums. Forums such as Reddit help support seekers by serving as a portal for open discussions for various stigmatized subjects such as rape. This paper investigates the potential roles of online forums and if such forums provide intended resources to the people who seek support. Specifically, the open nature of forums allows us to study how online users respond to seeker's queries or needs; through their response, we attempt to assess the range of topics covered by responders in regards to the issues, concerns and, obstacles faced by the victims of rape and sexual abuse, using rape-related posts from Reddit. We employ natural language processing techniques to extract topics of responses, examine how diverse these topics are to answer research questions such as whether responses are limited to emotional support; if not, what other topics are; what the diversity of topics manifests; and how online response differs from traditional response found in a physical world.
Roles of K+ and cation channels in ORL-1 receptor-mediated depression of neuronal excitability and epileptic activities in the medial entorhinal cortex.

Abstract Nociceptin (NOP) is an endogenous opioid-like peptide that selectively activates the opioid receptor-like (ORL-1) receptors. The entorhinal cortex (EC) is closely related to temporal lobe epilepsy and expresses high densities of ORL-1 receptors. However, the functions of NOP in the EC, especially in modulating the epileptiform activity in the EC, have not been determined. We demonstrated that activation of ORL-1 receptors remarkably inhibited the epileptiform activity in entorhinal slices induced by application of picrotoxin or by deprivation of extracellular Mg2+. NOP-mediated depression of epileptiform activity was independent of synaptic transmission in the EC, but mediated by inhibition of neuronal excitability in the EC. NOP hyperpolarized entorhinal neurons via activation of K+ channels and inhibition of cation channels. Whereas application of Ba2+ at 300 μM which is effective for the inward rectifier K+ (Kir) channels slightly inhibited NOP-induced hyperpolarization, the current-voltage (I-V) curve of the net currents induced by NOP was linear without showing inward rectification. However, a role of NOP-induced inhibition of cation channels was revealed after inhibition of Kir channels by Ba2+. Furthermore, NOP-mediated augmentation of membrane currents was differently affected by application of the blockers selective for distinct subfamilies of Kir channels. Whereas SCH23390 or ML133 blocked NOP-induced augmentation of membrane currents at negative potentials, application of tertiapin-Q exerted no actions on NOP-induced alteration of membrane currents. Our results demonstrated a novel cellular and molecular mechanism whereby activation of ORL-1 receptors depresses epilepsy.
Understanding variants of uncertain significance in the era of multigene panels: Through the eyes of the patient

Variants of uncertain significance (VUSs) are often disclosed to patients despite ambiguous association with disease risk and lack of clinical actionability. It is important to understand how patients understand a VUS result, but few studies have assessed this. Our qualitative study explored patient recall, reaction to, and interpretation of a VUS in the context of multigene panels. We conducted 11 semi-structured phone interviews with adults who had a VUS identified on multigene panel testing in a hereditary oncology clinic, with questions focusing on the VUS result, personal and family history, and motivations for and expectations of genetic testing. Transcripts were coded iteratively, using both deductive and inductive codes. Overall, participants usually recalled that they had a VUS, despite variation in the vocabulary used. Participants responded both emotionally and intellectually to receiving information about having a VUS, which was often a result of their expectations and motivations prior to testing. Overall, participants understood the lack of clinical significance of a VUS, yet often interpreted the etiologic significance of a VUS within the context of the personal and family history. Our study provides insight into a process by which patients translate uncertain genetic testing results into a construct that fits within their current belief framework and which may be facilitated by a genetic counselor.
Reduction in The Metabolic Cost of Human Walking Gaits Using Quasi-Passive Upper Body Exoskeleton

Human walking gait is considered to be the most efficient biped walking gait. There are various types of gait human follows during locomotion and arm swing is one of the most important factors which controls and differentiates human gaits. Earlier studies declared a 7% reduction in the metabolic cost due to the arm swing. In this research, we compared different types of arm swings in terms of metabolic cost reduction and then suggested, designed, fabricated and tested a passive and then a quasi-passive upper body exoskeleton to study the metabolic cost reduction in the folded arm walking gate scenarios. Our experimental results with the quasi-passive one validate a 10% reduction in the metabolic cost of walking aided by the application of the proposed exoskeleton.
Financial Conflicts of Interest Among Authors of Clinical Practice Guidelines for Routine Screening Mammography.

Abstract Purpose Financial conflicts of interest (FCOIs) may influence or undermine the credibility of clinical practice guidelines or society recommendations. Given the wide regard of such publications, understanding the prevalence and extent of FCOIs among their authors is essential. Methods The most current guidelines containing recommendations for breast cancer screening from the US Preventive Services Task Force, American Cancer Society, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, International Agency for Research on Cancer, ACR, and American College of Physicians were retrieved from their respective organizational websites. Industry payments received by authors were then extracted using CMS Open Payments database (OPD), and the values and types of these payments were evaluated. Finally, financial disclosures were compared with open payments. Results Among a total of 43 authors and 7 guideline documents, 14 authors (33%) received at least one industry payment according to OPD payment records, whereas a majority of 29 authors (67%) had none. The median total payment from all sources across all breast imaging guidelines was $0 (interquartile range, $0-$84). Four authors (9%) declared at least one significant FCOI, five (12%) received more than $5,000 from a single company in a single year, and one author had a significant FCOI (2%) identified from OPD records but not disclosed within the guideline document. Conclusions These findings suggest that FCOIs likely have little to no influence on the adoption of consensus recommendations regarding routine screening mammography for all cohorts of women.
Exploring Access, Intersectionality, and Privilege in Undergraduate Music Education Courses:

Music teacher educators often work to prepare preservice music teachers to be socially conscious and adopt dispositions toward teaching in socially just ways. Preservice teachers’ beliefs, attitude...
My Unintentional Journey Into Distance Education Leadership

A journey begins with a single step. My unintentional journey into distance education leadership began in 2001, one year after I had finished my undergraduate degree and was working in the field of Christian education at a church in central Wisconsin. Sensing the need to deepen my understanding of curriculum development, I began looking for options for pursing a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. Unfortunately, the closest available graduate programs were residential programs over 2 h away, and there was no way I could complete such an on-campus program while maintaining my full-time job and other professional and personal commitments.
PREVALENCE, PROGNOSIS AND CHARACTERISTICS ASSOCIATED WITH FALSE-POSITIVE ST-SEGMENT ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION ACTIVATIONS AT A LARGE TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is the recommended reperfusion therapy for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) when readily available. In order to facilitate timeliness of PCI, some degree of false activation (FA) of the cardiac catheterization laboratory is accepted. Prior
The role of social justice frameworks in an era of neoliberalism: Lessons from youth activism

The onslaught of neoliberal policies, practices, and thinking has resulted in the privatization of many public goods and services, a reframing of systemic inequities as individual failings, and a w...
Robust Multi-Product Newsvendor Model With Substitution Under Cardinality-Constrained Uncertainty Set

This work studies a Robust Multi-product Newsvendor Model with Substitution (R-MNMS), where the demand and the substitution rates are stochastic and are subject to cardinality-constrained uncertainty sets. The goal of this work is to determine the optimal order quantities of multiple products to maximize the worst-case total profit. To achieve this, we first show that for given order quantities, computing the worst-case total profit, in general, is NP-hard. Therefore, we derive the closed-form optimal solutions for the following three special cases: (1) if there are only two products, (2) if there is no substitution among different products, and (3) if the budget of demand uncertainty is equal to the number of products. For a general R-MNMS, we formulate it as a mixed-integer linear program with an exponential number of constraints and develop a branch and cut algorithm to solve it. For large-scale problem instances, we further propose a conservative approximation of R-MNMS and prove that under some certain conditions, this conservative approximation yields an exact optimal solution to R-MNMS. The numerical study demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed approaches and the robustness of our model.
CancerEmo: A Dataset for Fine-Grained Emotion Detection

Emotions are an important element of human nature, often affecting the overall wellbeing of a person. Therefore, it is no surprise that the health domain is a valuable area of interest for emotion detection, as it can provide medical staff or caregivers with essential information about patients. However, progress on this task has been hampered by the absence of large labeled datasets. To this end, we introduce CancerEmo, an emotion dataset created from an online health community and annotated with eight fine-grained emotions. We perform a comprehensive analysis of these emotions and develop deep learning models on the newly created dataset. Our best BERT model achieves an average F1 of 71%, which we improve further using domain-specific pre-training.
Obesity-Activated Lung Stomal Cells Promote Myeloid-Lineage Cell Accumulation and Breast Cancer Metastasis

SUMMARY Obesity is correlated with increased incidence of breast cancer metastasis, however the mechanisms underlying how obesity promotes metastasis are unclear. In a diet-induced obesity mouse model, obesity enhanced lung metastases in both the presence and absence of primary mammary tumors and increased recruitment of myeloid lineage cells into the lungs. In the absence of tumors, obese mice demonstrated increased numbers of myeloid lineage cells and elevated collagen fibers within the lung stroma, reminiscent of pre-metastatic niches formed by primary tumors. Lung stromal cells isolated from obese non-tumor-bearing mice showed increased proliferation, contractility, and expression of extracellular matrix, inflammatory markers, and TGFβ1. Conditioned media from lung stromal cells from obese mice promoted myeloid lineage cell migration in vitro in response to CSF2 expression and enhanced invasion of tumor cells. Together, these results suggest that prior to tumor formation, obesity alters the lung microenvironment, creating niches conducive for metastatic growth.
Disparities in Utilization and Outcomes With Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin Infusion in Young Adults With Type 1 Diabetes.

Abstract Objective To evaluate which factors determine utilization patterns and outcomes of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) in young adults with type 1 diabetes. Methods Utilizing the Optum deidentified electronic health record data set between 2008 to 2018 to perform a retrospective cohort study, we identified 2104 subjects with type 1 diabetes aged 18 to 30 years. We evaluated the effect of race on determining CSII utilization, HbA1c (%), and hospital admission for diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Crude and adjusted estimates were computed using logistic regression and linear mixed models. Results There was low CSII utilization among individuals who were Black, Hispanic, male, and those with governmental insurance. These groups also demonstrated higher HbA1c levels. Subjects who were Black, Hispanic, and those with governmental insurance had higher odds of DKA. Even when commercially insured, Black and Hispanic subjects demonstrated higher HbA1c levels, and Black individuals had higher odds of DKA. Conclusion In a large electronic health record database in the U.S., there was low CSII utilization overall, particularly in Black and Hispanic minorities, despite CSII showing superior HbA1c control without an increase in DKA events.
Low Intracellular Calcium is an Essential Feature of Hematopoietic Stem Cells

The specific cellular physiology of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) is underexplored and their maintenance in vitro remains challenging. We discovered that culture of HSC in low calcium increased their maintenance as determined by phenotype, function and single cell expression signature. HSCs are endowed with low intracellular calcium conveyed by elevated activity of glycolysis-fueled plasma membrane calcium efflux pumps and a low bone marrow interstitial fluid calcium concentration. HSC maintenance in low calcium conditions was mediated by inhibition of calpain proteases. Consistent with the fact that TET enzymes are targets of calpains, low calcium increased TET protein expression and 5-hydroxymethyl cytosine deposition and maintained TET2-asssociated single cell gene signature. Deletion of the TET homologue required for normal HSC function and identity, TET2, rendered HSC impervious to the effect low calcium conditions. These observations reveal a physiological feature of HSCs than can be harnessed to improve their maintenance in vitro.
Chemokines mediate ethanol-induced exacerbations of murine cockroach allergen asthma.

Asthma imposes considerable patient and economic burdens, with the most severe cases causing the greatest affliction. Identifying stimuli that worsen asthma severity is an essential step to controlling both disease morbidity and the lessening economic impact. This study provides the first mechanistic investigation into how acute ethanol exposure will increase asthma severity in a murine model of mild cockroach allergen (CRA)-induced asthma. Outbred mice were sensitized to induce mild allergic asthma, with intratracheal CRA exposures on days 0 and 14. On day 21 mice were gavaged with water or 32% ethanol, and the third allergen exposure was given 30 min post-gavage. Asthmatic responses were measured at several time-points up to 42 h after the third allergen challenge. Ethanol-gavaged mice showed increased asthma severity within 90 min post-allergen challenge, with exacerbations lasting for 24 h. Ethanol caused greater airways obstruction, including an eightfold increase in epithelial cell mucin and increased mucus plugs, resulting in a 50% reduction in bronchiole patency. Ethanol gavage also induced significant increases in airways hyperreactivity. While T helper type 1 (Th1) and Th2 cytokines were not altered by ethanol gavage, pulmonary neutrophil and eosinophil recruitment were augmented. This increase was associated with increased chemokine production. Administration 2 h prior to ethanol gavage of a neutralizing antibody cocktail to keratinocyte-derived chemokine, macrophage inflammatory protein-2, eotaxin-1 and eotaxin-2 prevented ethanol-induced eosinophil recruitment and airways hyperreactivity. These data provide evidence that acute alcohol exposure immediately prior to a mild allergen-triggered asthmatic episode will exacerbate asthma severity mediated by increased production of chemokines.
Competing Cultural Narratives: Gender and the Representation of US K–12 Teachers in Contemporary School Reform Policies

Cultural narratives about the proper scope and focus of teaching are embedded in contemporary school reform policies. This review examines literature related to two competing cultural narratives about US primary and secondary teachers: that “good teachers” are autonomous saviors, defined by their abilities to act independently and against great odds to improve academic outcomes for low-income and minority students, and that “good teachers” are disempowered technicians who follow the guidance of externally-recognized experts in their efforts to reduce educational inequalities. A review of literature critiquing these narratives finds that scholars have often analyzed these narratives using theoretical frameworks associated with race, class, and/or neoliberalism. This review examines what historians of education and feminist scholars can contribute to a critical analysis of the representation of US teachers in political speech and popular culture. It demonstrates that gender, as part of an intersectional approach, is important to understanding how White middle-class women teachers can be positioned simultaneously as “autonomous saviors” and as “disempowered technicians” and how these narratives influence the professional status and autonomy associated with the work of teaching.
Mechanistic models of multicellular computation

Populations of cells exhibit a remarkable diversity of behaviors, from the reliable development of multicellular structures to complex coding in neural ensembles. Proper characterization of these phenomena requires an understanding of how dynamics at the single-cell level, when combined with intercellular signaling and environmental cues, give rise to the collective behaviors observed in populations. First, I will present results characterizing the universal signaling dynamics in individual cells of social amoebae, and discuss cell density-dependent transitions to collective, synchronized oscillations. I will then consider population coding in retinal ganglion cells. Recent experiments have shown that the distribution of spiking activity in these cells is poised near a unique critical point where the extensive parts of the entropy and energy are exactly equal. I will demonstrate how such behavior robustly arises due to shared stimulus input. Connections to the statistical mechanics of learning will also be discussed.
Substance abuse relapse in Oxford House recovery homes: A survival analysis evaluation

ABSTRACTBackground: This study used survival analysis to examine risk factors for substance abuse relapse among residents in Oxford Houses (OH), a national network of self-run, self-financed aftercare homes for individuals recovering from substance use disorders. Methods: Participants who entered OH within 60 days of a 1-year longitudinal study (N = 268) were selected from of a nationally representative US sample. Discrete-time survival analysis compared baseline risk of relapse with 4 hypothesized survival models that included time-invariant and time-varying factors across 3 subsequent time periods. Results: The model predicting higher risk for more severe substance use disorders and psychiatric problems was supported. The hypothesized model that predicted time-varying increases in alcohol (but not drug) abstinence self-efficacy significantly affected risk of relapse. Hypothesized demographic and employment variables did not significantly predict relapse risk. Conclusions: Results suggested that OH recov...
Aquifer Storage Determination

A new method of determining aquifer storage coefficients has been developed for use in operations involving ground-water recharge through wells. This work evolved from a research project dealing with the fate of DDT and nitrate in the Ogallala Aquifer in the High Plains of Texas. A tritium tracer was used to determine the detention time of the recharge water passing through a saturated volume of the aquifer. Tracer behavior was formulated ‘mathematically and verified by model simulation. The formulations provide a graphical solution for the detention time from which the storage coefficient may be calculated. The method will have immediate value in establishing storage coefficients of aquifers, such as the Ogallala, where plans for importation and distribution of supplemental water involve utilization of underground storage. Regarding water-table conditions, this method promises to produce more reliable storage values than have been obtained from pumping tests.
Application of signal reconstruction techniques to shot count reduction in simulation driven fracturing

Traditionally, Variable Shape Electron Beam (VSEB) mask writing tools generate pixel-based optical proximity correction (OPC) or inverse lithography technology (ILT) masks by first simplifying them into a rectilinear polygon, and then partitioning the rectilinear polygon into shots. However, as these masks are complex and curvilinear, this approach results in an explosion of shot count and mask write time, and a loss of optimality of the OPC solution. In this work we propose an alternative fracturing approach to minimize mask write time in which the shot location, size, and dose are determined using the mask fabrication model. In doing so we allow shots to overlap in order to reduce the shot count while maintaining mask and wafer quality. Our approach is based on overcomplete signal expansion algorithms which have traditionally been used for sparse representation and compression of images and videos. Our simulation results on a 45nm random logic and contact hole circuit show shot count reduction by as much as 50%.
RATIONALITY IN POLITICS

. This essay examines current decision-making procedures in politics, especially those employed in parliamentary procedure, with a view to determining the extent to which they contribute to the making of rational political decisions. It concludes that political decision-making procedures are, on the whole, inferior to court-trial procedures, and proceeds to exploit this conclusion by describing a new method of political decision-making based on the concept of a political jury. This method, it is claimed, is more likely than present methods to produce sound legislation.
Nearest-neighbor analysis of microhabitat partitioning in stream insect communities

Sampling and statistical techniques are presented to identify nonrandom distributional patterns resulting from microhabitat selection by stream insects. The method is based on the frequency of conspecific combinations in a series of nearest-neighbor pairs. Its use is demonstrated with data from a Rocky Mountain caddisfly community.
How an optical coating alters the path of a ray

In numerous instances a ray propagating through an optical system penetrates a multilayer coating such a bandpass filter, polarizer, beamdivider or antireflection coating. The additional retardance that the coating adds to that ray is, to a first approximation, the optical thickness of the multilayer. Several examples are given.
Methyl gallate, methyl-3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoate, is a potent and highly specific inhibitor of herpes simplex virus in vitro . II. Antiviral activity of methyl gallate and its derivatives

Methyl gallate (MG), methyl-3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoate, was highly active against herpes viruses as determined by plaque reduction assay. Herper simplex virus type 2, MS strain, was sensitive to MG at a mean 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 0.224 μg/ml in monkey kidney cells. MG was specific for herpes viruses with the relative sensitivity HSV-2>HSV-1>CMV. Two RNA viruses tested were significantly less sensitive to MG. The structural components of MG which modulate the anti-herpetic activity were identified by analysis of chemical analogues. Our structural analyses indicated that three hydroxyl groups were required but were not sufficient for the anti-herpetic action of MG. The presence and chain length of the alkyl ester were also important to the anti-herpetic activity of MG. Methyl gallate may interact with virus proteins and alter the adsorption and penetration of the virion.
Mass spectrometric evidence for the existence of the He2H+ ion

Abstract Studies of the ionic composition of room temperature plasmas produced in helium-hydrogen mixtures have shown the existence of the He 2 H + ion.
Wireless performance of a fully passive neurorecording microsystem embedded in dispersive human head phantom

This paper reports the wireless performance of a biocompatible fully passive microsystem implanted in phantom media simulating the dispersive dielectric properties of the human head, for potential application in recording cortical neuropotentials. Fully passive wireless operation is achieved by means of backscattering electromagnetic (EM) waves carrying 3rd order harmonic mixing products (2f 0 ±f m =4.4−4.9 GHz) containing targeted neuropotential signals (f m ≈1−1000 Hz). The microsystem is enclosed in 4 µm thick parylene-C for biocompatibility and has a footprint of 4 mm × 12 mm × 500 µm. Preliminary testing of the microsystem implanted in the lossy biological simulating media results in signal-to-noise ratio's (SNR) near 22 (SNR≈38 in free space) for millivolt level neuropotentials, demonstrating the potential for fully passive wireless microsystems in implantable medical applications.
Recombinant vaccines against Marek's disease

Novel approaches to vaccination against very virulent (vv) strains of Marek's disease virus (MDV) are discussed. Fowlpox virus (FPV) and herpesvirus of turkeys (HVT) recombinants expressing MDV antigens have been constructed. It has been shown that glycoprotein B of MDV serotype 1 (gB1) is an effective immunogen which is particularly important for conferring protective immunity in genetically susceptible chickens. However, maternal antibodies against MDV diminished the efficacy of vaccination with recombinant FPV‐gB1. HVT recombinants expressing antigens of MDV and Newcastle disease virus have been constructed and have been shown to be effective in preventing Marek's disease as well as systemic Newcastle disease. Maternal antibodies against MDV and Newcastle disease virus did not affect significantly the efficacy of vaccination with cell‐associated HVT recombinants. The potential of retroviral insertion mutagenesis and other means of delivering MDV antigens for immunization are discussed.
Conventional bridgework has a higher complication rate than other types of fixed prosthetics

Original Article Goodacre CJ, Bernal G, Rungcharassaeng K, Kan JY. Clinical complications in fixed prosthodontics. J Prosthet Dent. 2003 Jul;90(1):31-41. Purpose To quantify the frequency of complications of various prosthetic procedures Source of Funding Information not available Type of Study/Design Narrative review
Assessment of the dose reduction potential of a model-based iterative reconstruction algorithm using a task-based performance metrology.

Purpose: Different computed tomography (CT) reconstruction techniques offer different image quality attributes of resolution and noise, challenging the ability to compare their dose reduction potential against each other. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the task-based imaging performance of CT systems to enable the assessment of the dose performance of a model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) to that of an adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction (ASIR) and a filtered back projection (FBP) technique. Methods: The ACR CT phantom (model 464) was imaged across a wide range of mA setting on a 64-slice CT scanner (GE Discovery CT750 HD, Waukesha, WI). Based on previous work, the resolution was evaluated in terms of a task-based modulation transfer function (MTF) using a circular-edge technique and images from the contrast inserts located in the ACR phantom. Noise performance was assessed in terms of the noise-power spectrum (NPS) measured from the uniform section of the phantom. The task-based MTF and NPS were combined with a task function to yield a task-based estimate of imaging performance, the detectability index (d′). The detectability index was computed as a function of dose for two imaging tasks corresponding to the detection of a relatively small and a relatively large feature (1.5 and 25 mm, respectively). The performance of MBIR in terms of the d′ was compared with that of ASIR and FBP to assess its dose reduction potential. Results: Results indicated that MBIR exhibits a variability spatial resolution with respect to object contrast and noise while significantly reducing image noise. The NPS measurements for MBIR indicated a noise texture with a low-pass quality compared to the typical midpass noise found in FBP-based CT images. At comparable dose, the d′ for MBIR was higher than those of FBP and ASIR by at least 61% and 19% for the small feature and the large feature tasks, respectively. Compared to FBP and ASIR, MBIR indicated a 46%–84% dose reduction potential, depending on task, without compromising the modeled detection performance. Conclusions: The presented methodology based on ACR phantom measurements extends current possibilities for the assessment of CT image quality under the complex resolution and noise characteristics exhibited with statistical and iterative reconstruction algorithms. The findings further suggest that MBIR can potentially make better use of the projections data to reduce CT dose by approximately a factor of 2. Alternatively, if the dose held unchanged, it can improve image quality by different levels for different tasks.
Reoccupation of floodplains by rivers and its relation to the age structure of floodplain vegetation

[1] River channel dynamics over many decades provide a physical control on the age structure of floodplain vegetation as a river occupies and abandons locations. Floodplain reoccupation by a river, in particular, determines the interval of time during which vegetation can establish and mature. A general framework for analyzing floodplain reoccupation and a time series model are developed and applied to five alluvial rivers in the United States. Channel dynamics in these rivers demonstrate time-scale dependence with short-term oscillations in active channel area in response to floods and subsequent vegetation growth and progressive lateral movement that accounts for much of the cumulative area occupied by the rivers over decades. Rivers preferentially reoccupy locations recently abandoned causing a decreasing probability of reoccupation with time since abandonment. For a typical case, a river is 10 times more likely to reoccupy an area it abandoned in the past decade than it is to reoccupy an area it abandoned 30 yrs ago. The decreasing probability of reoccupation over time is consistent with observations of persistent stands of late seral stage floodplain forest. A power function provides a robust approach for estimating the cumulative area occupied by a river and the age structure of riparian forests resulting from a specific historical sequence of streamflow in comparison to either linear or exponential alternatives.
Food selection changes under stress

Two studies investigate the effect of stress on food choice. Experiment 1 demonstrates experimentally that stress causes changes in food choice away from healthy low fat foods (grapes) to less healthy high fat foods (M&Ms), confirming previous survey research. Experiment 2, a survey study, finds that more females than males report increasing food consumption when stressed. A much larger percentage of those who report increasing their food consumption when stressed (71%) are restrained eaters (i.e., dieters) than are people who undereat or who do not change the amount they eat when stressed (35%). The foods that they report overeating when stressed are foods they normally avoid for weight-loss or health reasons (i.e., highly caloric high fat snack foods). They report eating these foods to feel better. Both studies show that stress not only increases consumption in certain individuals but also shifts their food choice from lower fat to higher fat foods.
Large-N lattice QCD with fundamental and adjoint action terms

Abstract Recently, Chen, Tan and Zheng have qualitatively obtained in the large-N limit the phase diagram of the lattice Yang-Mills theory with fundamental and adjoint action terms. In this letter, this model is solved exactly in terms of the N=∞ pure Wilson theory. This enables the author to obtain the phase diagram quantitatively. Finally, large but finite N is discussed.
Energy cost-accounting of Louisiana fishery production

A quantitative relationship between gross primary production and secondary production of aquatic upper level consumers was derived for the inshore portion of the Louisiana coastal zone. We estimate that 1,700 units of gross primary production are required to produce one unit of upper level consumers. Lower and mid-level consumers are estimated to require lesser amounts, 300 and 600 units, respectively. Harvested fishery groups in the inshore ecosystem represent a total average of about 23,000 metric tons (dry wt) or about 1.2×1011 Kcal (5.0×1011 KJ) annually. This harvest “costs” the system about 7×1013 Kcal (3.3×1014 KJ) of gross primary production, or an equivalent of 4×1014 Kcal (1.7×1015KJ) of fossil fuel.
Recent Subsidence-Rate Reductions in the Mississippi Delta and Their Geological Implications

Abstract The Mississippi Delta has long been characterized as an area of rapid subsidence; however, recent subsidence rates are substantially lower than previously reported. Tide-gauge records indicate that rates of relative sea-level rise were slow from 1947 until the mid-1960s, relatively fast from the mid-1960s until the early 1990s, and then slow since the early 1990s. These trends and rates are independently verified by repeat benchmark surveys and height monitoring at continuously operating geographic positioning system stations. Subsidence rates for the slow periods were a few millimeters per year, comparable to rates averaged over geological time scales that are attributed to natural processes such as shallow sediment compaction and deep crustal loading. The decadal pattern of slow, then rapid, then slow subsidence may be caused by natural deep-basin processes (e.g., gravity gliding and salt migration), but it is more likely related to rates of hydrocarbon production that followed the same tempora...