cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A Simple Distribution-Free Test for Trend in One-Way Layouts.

Behavioral researchers are often interested in testing for trend effects in completely randomized designs. Since the usual analysis of variance procedures were designed for testing against more general alternatives, significant trend effects are sometimes undetected. For those situations in which the researcher desires to test for trend a distribution-free test procedure developed by Puri provides a suitable substitute. This paper then describes the simple but highly powerful Puri test. Critical values are derived and a schematic diagram is given so that a computer package could be implemented. In addition, an application demonstrating the usefulness of the technique is presented.
Parameter estimation of spiral waves from atrial electrograms

The problem of retrieving spiral wave parameters (frequency, radial velocity, and center location) using a minimal number (4) of spatial sensors is considered. The problem has the important application of localization of spiral wave sources of atrial fibrillation from basket catheter electrograms. Numerical simulations demonstrate that our algorithm works effectively for a wide range of parameters, and for spiral waves generated by a cellular automaton model of cardiac wave propagation.
A SIMPLIFIED TIME‐SERIES ANALYSIS FOR EVALUATING TREATMENT INTERVENTIONS

Abstract Time-series analysis procedures for analyzing behavior data are receiving increasing support. However, several authorities strongly recommend using at least 50-100 points per experimental phase. A complex mathematical model must then be empirically developed using computer programs to extract serial dependency from the data before the effects of treatment interventions can be evaluated. The present discussion provides a simple method of evaluating intervention effects that can be used with as few as 8 points per experimental phase. The calculations are easy enough to do by hand.
Labor market competition and nurses' earnings: an economic analysis.

Two hypotheses concerning the earnings of professional nurses were tested: () that increased competition among hospitals for the services of nurses will increase nurses' earnings; () that adoption of collective bargaining arrangements will lead to higher nursing salaries. Data for the study were obtained mainly from the 1-in-100 public use sample of the 1970 U.S. Census of Population and the 1970 American Hospital Association annual survey of hospitals. The sample consisted of 694 married registered nurses who worked full time in hospitals and resided in the 123 largest metropolitan areas of the United States in 1969. Multivariate regression analysis of these data yielded evidence supporting both hypotheses. Nursing salaries in one-hospital metropolitan areas were found to be 10%–11% less than those in areas with many hospitals, other things being equal. In addition, the presence of collective bargaining agreements appeared to enhance nursing salaries.
Energy and Semiotics: The Second Law and the Origin of Life

After deconstructing the thermodynamic concepts of work and waste, I take up Howard Odum’s idea of energy quality, which tallies the overall amount of energy needed to be dissipated in order to accomplish some work of interest. This was developed from economic considerations that give obvious meaning to the work accomplished. But the energy quality idea can be used to import meaning more generally into Nature. It could be viewed as projecting meaning back from any marked work into preceding energy gradient dissipations that immediately paved the way for it. But any work done by an abiotic dissipative structure, since it would be without positive economic significance, would also be difficult to mark as a starting point for the energy quality calculation. Furthermore, any (for humans) destructive work as by hurricanes or floods, with negative economic significance, would not seem to merit the quality calculation either. But there has been abiotic work of keen interest to us—that which mediated the origin of life. Some kind(s) of abiotic dissipative structures had to have been the framework(s) that fostered this process, regardless of how it might come to be understood in detail. Since all dissipative structures have the same thermodynamic and informational organization in common, any of them might provide the material context for the origin of something. So we can pick any starting point we wish, and calculate backward what sequence of energy usages would have been necessary to set it up. Given such an open ended project, we could not find an obvious place in any sequence to stop and start the forward the calculation, and so we would need to take it right back to an ultimate beginning, like the insolation of some area, or the outpouring of Earth’s thermal energy. Any energy dissipation might be the beginning of something of importance, and so Nature is as replete with potential meanings as it is with energy gradients.
A computational platform for gas explosion venting

Abstract Explosions occurring in enclosures can be found in many technological applications such as internal combustion engines and typical chambers contacting combustibles. However, it is also possible to reach these events in facilities and buildings because of the leakage of a flammable gas, with usually devastating consequences. In this respect, vents are designed to relief the explosion-associated overpressures by allowing part of the fuel mixture gas to evacuate as the flame propagates. In the present work, a computational model is developed to analyse such vented explosion scenarios. The model solves the corresponding governing equations in a single-zone approximation, including the external explosion produced once the vented mixture is ignited by the expanding flame, to calculate the attained overpressures in relation to the domain geometry and burning conditions. A parametric study is performed varying the container dimensions and shapes, given by cuboids and cylinders with central and rear ignition locations, as well as the concentrations of a hydrogen-air fuel mixture. Moreover, different flame velocity expressions are employed to account for a variety of effects influencing the flame dynamics. A mitigating effect of the vent on the enclosure explosion intensity is demonstrated, thereby relating the different conditions to the attained burning regime, essential for the establishment of safety considerations in these partially confined enclosures.
Recent Important Decisions by the Brazilian Supreme Court

This article shows the complexity of judicial review in Brazil under the oft-amended 1988 Constitution, which has made the Supreme Court one of the most powerful in the world. The Supreme Court operates not only as a constitutional tribunal, but also a court of last resort for appeals from state and federal courts and a trial court for criminal prosecutions of the President, members of Congress, and other important officials. In the process of resolving a truly astronomical caseload (averaging nearly 110,000 cases annually between 2000 and 2011), the Supreme Court has produced a substantial body of judge-made constitutional law. This article focuses on five recent significant cases of the Supreme Court, dealing with: (1) curbing political corruption, (2) decriminalization of anencephalic abortion, (3) legalization of same-sex civil unions, (4) affirmative action in higher education, and (5) the former military government's Amnesty Law. These cases illustrate Brazil's hybrid system of judicial review, which combines features of the German centralized model with features of the U.S. diffuse model. These cases also show how the Brazilian Supreme Court has coped with a system that regularly forces it into the "political thicket" without the benefit of a safety net like the political question doctrine or an institution like certiorari that enables it to decline to hear cases it does not wish to decide.
The Chemical Basis for Climate Change

It is obvious that the climate of the planet earth has undergone many rather drastic changes in the past, and there is every reason to believe that there will be other changes in the future. The question is not whether our climate will change, but rather: What causes it to change? If we knew the answer, perhaps we would be able to foresee the future climates in store for us.
Diamond and silicon carbide thin films: present status and potential as wide band gap semiconducting materials

The extreme thermal and electronic properties of diamond and of silicon carbide provide multiplicative combinations of attributes which lead to the highest figures of merit for any semiconductor materials for possible use in high–power, high–speed, high– temperature and high–frequency applications. The deposition of monocrystalline diamond. at or below 1 atm total pressure and at a temperature T < 1273 K has been achieved on diamond substrates; the deposited film has been polycrystalline on all other substrates but the achievement is no less significant. For electronic applications, heteroepitaxy of single–crystal films of diamond, an understanding of mechanisms of nucleation and growth methods of impurity introduction and activation, and further device development must be achieved. By contrast, all of these problems have already been solved for silicon carbide, including the operation of a MOSFET at 923 K – the highest operating temperature ever reported for a field–effect device. However, considerable research remains to be done regarding the development of large silicon carbide substrates of ohmic and rectifying contacts, of new types of devices, and of low temperature techniques for the deposition of insulating layers. Fugitive donor and acceptor species in unintentionally doped samples must also be identified and controlled.
Joint Earthquake–Snow Hazard Characterization and Fragility Analysis of Wood-Frame Structures

AbstractThis paper presents a study to statistically characterize the joint earthquake–snow hazard and subsequently develop maximum interstory drift fragility curves for a series of archetype engineered light-frame wood structures. Of particular focus are structures built in moderate-seismic, heavy-snow regions. For these light-frame structures, the additional seismic mass due to the presence of roof snow may be significant. Although load standards such as ASCE 7 provide guidance on combining design loads when considering life safety (e.g., flexural and shear limit states), guidance is not yet available for other performance levels (limit states with specified nonexceedance probabilities), performance (rather than safety) based limit states or damage indicators (e.g., maximum interstory drift), and hazard levels other than those implied in life safety design (e.g., 2%/50 years). All of these are expected to become more relevant as performance-based design procedures continue to evolve and gain acceptance...
El potencial de la enseñanza del vocabulario basada en corpus: optimismo con precaución

Recientemente, una gran parte de la discusion entre especialistas en linguistica aplicada se ha centrado en el potencial de la ensenanza del vocabulario basada en corpus (tambien conocida como “aprendizaje basado en datos” [ABD]; Boulton 2010a). La investigacion en esta area se sirve de la linguistica aplicada de corpus y es relevante para ella, asi como para la adquisicion y pedagogia de una segunda lengua (L2). Aun cuando ciertamente hay potencial para que el ABD guie la practica de vocabulario en la L2, como explicamos en detalle en este articulo, los estudios empiricos del ABD presentan limitaciones tanto teoricas como metodologicas. A pesar de estas limitaciones, vemos potencial en el ABD para orientar la pedagogia y contribuir a la teoria de adquisicion de la L2. Por estas razones, este articulo tambien incluye una discusion de como y cuando los profesores de espanol como L2 pueden considerar la adopcion de tecnicas del ABD en sus clases.
Toward a General Model of Rangeland Grasshopper (Orthoptera: Acrididae) Phenology in the Steppe Region of Montana

A 4-yr study was conducted to examine the phenology of rangeland grasshoppers at 12 sites throughout Montana. A six-species complex of common and economically important rangeland grasshoppers was selected to facilitate comparisons between sites in this environmentally heterogeneous state. Results showed that a published phenology model (developed by Dennis, B., W. P. Kemp & R. C. Beckwith. 1986. A stochastic model of insect phenology: estimation and testing Environ. Entomol. 15: 540–546, and Dennis, B. & W. P. Kemp. 1988. Further statistical inference methods for a stochastic model of insect phenology. Environ. Entomol. 17: 887–893) provided good estimates of “general” grasshopper phenology for each site and year. Comparisons of developmental “signposts” (75% first instar, peak second to fifth instars, and 75% adults) for grasshoppers between sites and years indicated that they can be used by resource managers for estimating when development stages of rangeland grasshoppers are likely to occur. The developmental signposts were separated, on average, by 8–12 d. Implications of these results for rangeland insect pest management are discussed.
Synthesizing and evaluating data-driven motion transitions

The ubiquity of computer animation in games, films, and virtual environments encourages us to think about ways to re-use existing animation. One approach to re-using animation is to collect motion capture data and pre-process it to form a structure that can be traversed in various orders. In such an approach identifying the location of good transition points in the motion stream and generating visually compelling transitions are critical. This thesis first investigates the evaluation of a cost function for determining good transition points by computing a set of optimal weights using a constrained least-squares technique. The weights are then evaluated in two ways: first, through a cross-validation study and second through a medium-scale user study. Secondly, this thesis develops two methods for determining a visually appealing length for a motion transition. These methods are suited to different types of motion. They are empirically evaluated through user studies to see whether users prefer these methods over a generic fixed-length blend and prefer one method over another on different types of motion. Thirdly, this thesis presents a study for determining the sensitivity of subjects to changes in blend length of motion transitions for two transition specifications. These methods developed and studies presented give guidance to those concerned with creating virtual humans with a rich repertoire of behaviors.
Multiple-choice pretesting potentiates learning of related information

Although the testing effect has received a substantial amount of empirical attention, such research has largely focused on the effects of tests given after study. The present research examines the effect of using tests prior to study (i.e., as pretests), focusing particularly on how pretesting influences the subsequent learning of information that is not itself pretested but that is related to the pretested information. In Experiment 1, we found that multiple-choice pretesting was better for the learning of such related information than was cued-recall pretesting or a pre-fact-study control condition. In Experiment 2, we found that the increased learning of non-pretested related information following multiple-choice testing could not be attributed to increased time allocated to that information during subsequent study. Last, in Experiment 3, we showed that the benefits of multiple-choice pretesting over cued-recall pretesting for the learning of related information persist over 48 hours, thus demonstrating the promise of multiple-choice pretesting to potentiate learning in educational contexts. A possible explanation for the observed benefits of multiple-choice pretesting for enhancing the effectiveness with which related nontested information is learned during subsequent study is discussed.
Sperm-specific isoantibodies and autoantibodies inhibit the binding of human sperm to the human zona pellucida

Heterologous antisperm antibodies induced by immunization with Freund's adjuvants are known to inhibit sperm-zona binding. We have tested whether spontaneously occurring sperm-directed isoantibodies and autoantibodies inhibit the binding of human sperm to the human zona pellucida. Zonae pellucidae were obtained from the ovaries of a woman of reproductive age undergoing surgery for uterine malignancy. Couples at risk for immunity to spermatozoa were screened for humoral antisperm antibodies by immunobead binding. Sera containing head-directed antibodies of IgA and/or IgG classes were selected for passive antibody transfer. Populations of spermatozoa exhibiting differing proportions of antibody-bound sperm were obtained by exposure of antibody-negative sperm of a fertile donor to untreated sera or sera depleted of head-directed antisperm antibodies by prior absorption. Each zona pellucida was challenged sequentially with two populations of sperm. an inverse relationship was found between the number of spermatozoa adherent to the zona and the proportion of sperm exhibiting binding of IgA or IgG immunoglobulins over the head, indicating that the presence of these antibodies in the acrosomal region of the sperm head inhibited their ability to attach to the zona pellucida.
The Marketing-Financial Interface: A Path Analytical Analysis of Direct, Indirect, and Interaction Effects on Corporate Performance

This paper presents the initial results of an empirical examination of the effects of the marketing and financial functions on corporate performance. The study specifically investigates the importance of the interactions between these two functional units in the strategic planning process. Implications for decision making and additional research needs are presented.
You can't go home again: War, women and domesticity in Aristophanes' 'Peace'

'Peace' was performed at the City Dionysia in 421 BCE, just days before the signing of the fifty-year treaty known as the Peace of Nikias, which brought an end to the first ten years of the Peloponnesian War. The negotiations that led up to this definitive moment for Athens and Sparta had been initiated the previous summer by the simultaneous deaths of Cleon and Brasidas at Amphipolis, who had been, according to Thucydides, 'the two principal opponents of peace on either side' (5.16.1). These unexpected deaths created a power vacuum which was filled by more moderate politicians on both sides of the conflict - Nikias and Pleistoanax, respectively - each of whom had his own personal reasons for desiring peace, apart from alleviating the battle fatigue felt keenly throughout the Greek world by this point. At Athens, the break in military action occasioned by this transference of power put the focus back on the political situation at home, and it was during this break that Aristophanes produced his cautiously optimistic play 'Peace', which, in its celebration of this fortuitous turn of events, also displayed a renewed interest in the well-being of the Athenian home front at this time.
A Meta-Analysis of the Social Communication Questionnaire: Screening for Autism Spectrum Disorder

The current meta-analysis examines the previous research on the utility of the Social Communication Questionnaire as a screening instrument for autism spectrum disorder. Previously published reports have highlighted the inconsistencies between Social Communication Questionnaire-screening results and formal autism spectrum disorder diagnoses. The variations in accuracy resulted in some researchers questioning the validity of the Social Communication Questionnaire. This study systematically examined the accuracy of the Social Communication Questionnaire as a function of the methodological decisions made by researchers screening for autism spectrum disorder over the last 15 years. Findings from this study suggest that the Social Communication Questionnaire is an acceptable screening instrument for autism spectrum disorder (area under the curve = 0.885). Variations in methodological decisions, however, greatly influenced the accuracy of the Social Communication Questionnaire in screening for autism spectrum disorder. Of these methodological variations, using the Current instead of the Lifetime version of the Social Communication Questionnaire resulted in the largest detrimental effect ( d = -3.898), followed by using the Social Communication Questionnaire with individuals younger than 4 years of age ( d = -2.924) and relying upon convenience samples ( d = -4.828 for clinical samples, -2.734 for convenience samples, and -1.422 for community samples). Directions for future research and implications for using the Social Communication Questionnaire to screen for autism spectrum disorder are discussed.
Performance analysis of the least squares based LTI channel identification algorithm using random matrix methods

This paper presents a performance analysis of the least squares (LS) based estimation of a linear time-invariant (LTI) channel. Given the inputs to a finite impulse response (FIR) channel and the channel outputs corrupted by noise, the channel impulse response is estimated using the Recursive LS (RLS) algorithm. The analysis found in the literature relies on the assumption that the expectation of the inverse of the sample covariance matrix is approximately equal to the scaled inverse of the true covariance matrix, which holds true when the number of observations is very large. To characterize the performance of the algorithm when the number of observations is small to moderate, some results from the theory of large dimensional random matrices are exploited. The expressions for the mean square value of the channel estimation and signal prediction errors are derived. These expressions closely match the results obtained from the simulations. It is also shown that at lower signal-to-noise ratios (SNR), a deterioration in the performance appears when the number of observations is around the channel length. This effect, which owns its manifestation to the very nature of the RLS algorithm, is explained and theoretically characterized.
Short communication: Dieback of rose caused by Acremonium sclerotigenum as a new causal agent of rose dieback in Iran

Severe dieback of rose has been recently observed in several rose greenhouses in Fars province of Iran. During 2014 and 2015, stems of rose plants showing yellow to brown discoloration and dieback were collected from rose greenhouses. Coniothyrium fuckelii , Botrytis cinerea and Acremonium were subsequently isolated from the margin between healthy and symptomatic tissue. B. cinerea and C. fuckelii isolates were similar to those previously reported for dieback of rose worldwide. Morphological and cultural characters along with molecular analysis based on partial sequences of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal RNA genome allowed confirming the affiliation of the Acremonium isolates, corresponding to A. sclerotigenum as a new causal agent of rose dieback. To determine its pathogenicity on rose, Koch's postulates were fulfilled by stem inoculation of nine rose cultivars under greenhouse conditions. While A. sclerotigenum is considered as a soil-born pathogen, and produces sclerotia that are resistant to adverse conditions enables the fungus to survive extended period in soil, propagule trapping in our study revealed that conidia can become airborn, imply that an aerial phase, forms an important component of the disease cycle.
Detecting, Exposing, and Classifying Sequential Consistency Violations

Sequential Consistency (SC) is the most intuitivememory model for parallel programs. However, modern architectures aggressively reorder and overlap memory accesses, causing SC violations. An SC violation is virtually always abug. Most prior schemes either search the entire state spaceof a program, or use a constraint solver to find SC violations. A promising recent scheme uses active testing technique butfails to be effective for SC violations involving larger numberof threads and variables, and larger codebases. We proposeOrion, the first active testing technique that can detect, expose, and classify any arbitrary SC violations in any program. Orionworks in two phases. In the first phase, it finds potentialSC violation cycles by focusing on racing accesses. In thesecond phase, it exposes each SC violation cycle by enforcingthe exact scheduling order. We present a detailed design ofOrion in the paper. We tested different concurrent algorithms, bug kernels, SPLASH2, PARSEC applications, and an opensource program, Apache. We experimented with TSO and PSOmemory models. We detected and exposed 60 SC violationsof which 15 violations involve more than two processorsand variables. Orion exposes SC violations quickly and withhigh probability. Compared to a state-of-the-art active testingtechnique, it has a much better SC violation detection ability.
Flexible and Stretchable Microwave Microelectronic Devices and Circuits

Electronic systems built on flexible plastic films and stretchable rubber sheets have attracted new applications in many emerging fields. Integration of high-speed electronics such as microwave power amplifiers and switches can extend the applications even further with wireless capabilities. As such, flexible and stretchable microwave electronics represent opportunities for future electronics where remote capabilities are desired. Here, we review advances in numerous types of microelectronic devices used for fast, flexible, and stretchable electronic devices, as well as flexible and stretchable passive elements and circuitries. We first introduce the challenges associated with design and fabrication, and the characteristics required for high-frequency operation of the devices on foreign substrates. Second, we review the recent efforts that were made utilizing different types of high-performance semiconductors, which are ideal for high-speed flexible and stretchable electronics, such as silicon, compound semiconductors, and 1-D and 2-D materials. Third, passive electronic components fabricated on such substrates, including inductors, capacitors, and transmission lines, are reviewed. Finally, we discuss the flexible and stretchable microwave electronics at the circuit level and review the recent advances in making numerous types of flexible and stretchable microwave circuits for diverse applications.
Total Synthesis of Avrainvilleol

The first total synthesis of the marine natural product avrainvilleol is reported. The total synthesis features the first application of the transition-metal-free coupling of a tosyl hydrazone and a boronic acid to the preparation of a complex natural product, and the first example of this coupling with a hindered diortho substituted hydrazone substrate.
Endometrial blood perfusion as assessed using a novel laser Doppler technique in Angus cows

Abstract Previous studies have characterized ovarian steroid synthesis which directly affects uterine environment and blood flow. Clearance of steroids occurs primarily in hepatic tissues, however, it was discovered that there is an abundant activity of the phase II steroid metabolizing enzyme UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) in uterine biopsies. No minimally invasive techniques for collecting endometrial perfusion, which is affected by steroids and indicative of reproductive health, have been developed for livestock. The objective of the present study was to characterize UGT activity and endometrial blood perfusion during a normal estrous cycle of cattle. It was hypothesized that there would be increased steroid metabolism during the luteal phase of the estrous cycle and in the uterine horn ipsilateral to the corpus luteum (CL). During the first synchronized estrous cycle, progesterone and UGT activity increased on Day 6 compared with 0 and 3, with the first day of estrus being considered Day 0 of the study. Endometrial perfusion was greater ipsilateral to the CL compared with contralateral on Day 12, and was less ipsilateral to the CL compared with contralateral on Day 18. Similar to perfusion results, nitric oxide metabolites (nitrites) were greatest in the endometrium ipsilateral as compared with contralateral to the CL. Moreover, there was a positive correlation (r = 0.28; P = .04) between endometrial perfusion and nitrite concentration. It is concluded that activity of UGT within the endometrium is affected by the contralateral or ipsilateral location of the CL, and collection of endometrial perfusion data using a laser Doppler probe could be a viable measurement technique as indicated by associated nitrite concentrations in the present study.
An Investigation Into Force Sense at the Shoulder.

Proprioception is assessed more often through joint position sense and kinesthesia than force sense. The purpose of this study is to investigate force sense at the shoulder. A total of 12 subjects were recruited. An ipsilateral force reproduction protocol at the shoulder at 50°, 70°, and 90° and 120%, 140%, and 160% baseline torque. Dependent variables were constant error (CE) and root mean square error. An effect was found for load on absolute (p = .001) and normalized CE (p < .001). CE decreased with increased load. An effect for angle was found for absolute root mean square error (p = .002), more accurate at 50° (p = .01), but no effect when normalized (p = .19). With increased loads, subjects undershot the target and CE approached zero. Because of the differing behavior in CE and root mean square error, and absolute and normalized data, force sense studies should examine error from these perspectives.
CFRL: A language for specifying the causal functionality of engineered devices

Understanding the design of an engineered device requires both knowledge of the general physical principles that determine the behavior of the device and knowledge of what the device is intended to do (i.e., its functional specification). However. the majority of work in modelbased reasoning about device behavior has focused on modeling a device in terms of general physical principles or intended functionality. but not both. In order to use both functional and behavioral knowledge in understanding a device design. it is crucial that the functional knowledge is represented in such a way that it has a clear interpretation in terms of actual behavior. We propose a new formalism for representing device functions with well-defined semantics in terms of actual behavior. We call the language CFRL (Causal Functional Representation Language). CFRL allows the specification of conditions that a behavior must satisfy. such as occurrence of a temporal sequence of expected events and causal relations among the events and the behavior of device components. We have used CFRL as the basis for a functional verification program which determines whether a behavior achieves an intended function.
The Gospel According to the Model Minority?: Hazarding an Interpretation of Asian American Evangelical College Students.

(1996). The Gospel According to the Model Minority?: Hazarding an Interpretation of Asian American Evangelical College Students. Amerasia Journal: Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 133-148.
Susceptible Populations: Lessons from Controlled Exposure Studies of Inhaled Pollutants

With the persistent concerns about adverse effects of polluted air on the lungs, a new emphasis is pervasive; the focus has shifted from the avoidance of clinical disease among highly exposed individuals toward the protection of the general population from an unacceptable burden of disease at much lower exposures, and an attempt to ensure that even the most susceptible persons are not adversely affected (Samet and Utell 1991). These concerns extend equally to other environmental exposures and to diseases other than those affecting the lungs. This shift in emphasis from higher exposures producing clinical disease to lower levels projected to increase population risks has raised difficult questions and challenges for research on environmental lung disease. In assessing risks from exposure to low-level environmental pollutants, the need to more thoroughly identify and characterize susceptible populations has assumed increasing importance.
Hepatocellular carcinoma surgical therapy: perspectives on the current limits to resection

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients often present with late stage disease, which removes surgical resection from the therapeutic treatment options. Only patients with very early disease are recommended for a potentially curative surgical resection. These guidelines have been broadly challenged due to the lack of evidence supporting the use of local therapies over surgery for resectable disease. This review highlights the role of surgical resection for HCC by disease stage, and reports data that supports treatment outside of the accepted Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) treatment algorithm. As such, the role for surgery in advanced disease is also reviewed. We also highlight the limitations of surgical resection for HCC. With the available data, it is crucial that an update of the current clinical guidelines be introduced, as the current guidelines prohibit the benefit of surgical resection to patients who may be able to achieve a survival benefit.
Association of Genetic Variants With Warfarin-Associated Bleeding Among Patients of African Descent.

Importance Major warfarin-related bleeding occurs more frequently in African Americans than in other populations. Identification of potential genetic factors related to this adverse event may help identify at-risk patients. Objective To identify genetic factors associated with warfarin-related bleeding in patients of African descent at an international normalized ratio (INR) of less than 4. Design, Setting, and Participants A case-control genome-wide association study involving patients of African descent taking warfarin was conducted in a discovery cohort (University of Chicago [2009-2011] and the University of Illinois at Chicago [2002-2011]), and associations were confirmed in a replication cohort (University of Chicago [2015-2016]). Potential population stratification was examined in the discovery cohort by principal component analysis. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs were computed for bleeding risk by logistic regression analysis. Summary statistics from the discovery and the replication cohorts were analyzed with a fixed effects meta-analysis. The potential influence of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on gene expression was studied by luciferase expression assays. Exposures Single-nucleotide polymorphisms associated with warfarin-related bleeding. Main Outcomes and Measures Major bleeding—defined as bleeding requiring hospitalization, causing a decrease in hemoglobin level of more than 2 g/dL, requiring blood transfusion, or any combination of the 3—while taking warfarin at an INR of less than 4. Results The discovery cohort consisted of 31 cases (mean age, 60.1 years [SD, 14.9 years], 26 women [83.9%]) and 184 warfarin-treated controls (mean age, 57.1 years [SD, 15.7 years]) with no documented bleeding. The replication cohort consisted of 40 cases (mean age, 55.6 years [SD, 17.3 years], 27 women [67.5%]), and 148 warfarin-treated controls (mean age, 55.4 years [SD, 17.1 years]; 98 women [66.2%]) with no documented bleeding. In the discovery cohort, 4 SNPs in linkage disequilibrium on chromosome 6 (rs115112393,rs16871327,rs78132896, andrs114504854) were associated with warfarin-related bleeding but did not reach genome-wide significance. The SNPrs78132896occurred in 11 cases (35.5%) and 9 controls (4.9%) in the discovery cohort (OR, 8.31; 95% CI, 3.2-21.5;P Conclusions and Relevance In this preliminary study involving patients of African descent taking warfarin, 4 single-nucleotide polymorphisms in linkage disequilibrium on chromosome 6 were associated with an increased risk of major bleeding at INR of less than 4. Validation of these findings in an independent prospective cohort is required.
The "Real" Number of Washington State Adolescents Using Marijuana, and Why: A Misclassification Analysis.

AbstractBackground: Although causality is difficult to establish, the regular use of marijuana has been associated with many adverse physiological and sociological consequences. There is considerable concern regarding marijuana use among adolescents, as the likelihood of adverse consequences increases significantly for this age group. The most comprehensive data for identifying risk factors for adolescent marijuana use is typically self-report, which may be over- or under-reported for a variety of reasons, including stigmatization, peer-pressure, or fear of being discovered. Objectives: To identify the prevalence of adolescent marijuana use in Washington State, and the associated risk and protective factors, while controlling for and estimating the extent of misreporting, and its determinants. Method: Data came from the 2014 Washington State Healthy Youth Survey. We accounted for missingness using chained multivariate imputation equations, resulting in 33,320 complete observations. Our model was estimated...
Exercise as a Candidate Antitumor Strategy: A Window into the Future.

Observational findings suggest exercise is associated with improved outcomes in early-stage breast cancer. However, whether exercise has biological activity in patients with breast cancer has not been investigated. Preoperative window of opportunity studies provide a setting in which to test the short-term effects of novel treatment strategies on validated surrogates. See related article by Ligibel et al., p. 5398
Breast Cancer Biomarkers: Challenges in Routine Estrogen Receptor, Progesterone Receptor, and HER2/neu Evaluation.

Context.— Evaluation of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and HER2/neu (HER2) biomarkers is standard of care for all cases of newly diagnosed invasive, recurrent, and metastatic b...
Sensitivity of hypothetical purchase task indices when studying substance use: A systematic literature review.

Abstract Hypothetical Purchase Tasks (HPTs) simulate demand for a substance as a function of escalating price. HPTs are increasingly used to examine relationships between substance-related correlates and outcomes and demand typically characterized using a common battery of indices (Intensity, Omax, Pmax, Breakpoint, Elasticity). This review examines the relative sensitivity of the HPT indices. Reports were identified using the search term “purchase task” in PubMed and Web of Science. For inclusion, reports had to be original studies in English, examine relationships between HPT indices and substance-related correlates or outcomes, and appear in a peer-reviewed journal through December 2017. Indices were compared using effect sizes (Cohen's d) and the proportion of studies in which statistically significant relationships were observed. The search identified 1274 reports with 114 (9%) receiving full-text review and 82 (6%) meeting inclusion criteria. 41 reports examined alcohol, 34 examined cigarettes/nicotine products, and 10 examined other substances. Overall, statistically significant relationships between HPT indices and substance-related correlates and outcomes were most often reported for Intensity (88.61%, 70/79), followed by Omax (81.16%, 56/69), Elasticity (72.15%, 57/59), Breakpoint (62.12%, 41/66), and Pmax (48.08%; 25/52). The largest effect sizes were observed for Intensity (0.75 ± 0.04, CI 0.67–0.84) and Omax (0.64 ± 0.04, CI 0.56–0.71), followed by Elasticity (0.44 ± 0.04, CI 0.37–0.51), Breakpoint (0.30 ± 0.03, CI 0.25–0.36), and Pmax (0.25 ± 0.04, CI 0.18–0.33). Patterns were largely consistent across substances. In conclusion, HPTs can be highly effective in revealing relationships between demand and substance-related correlates and outcomes, with Intensity and Omax exhibiting the greatest sensitivity.
Clinical predictors of acute hyponatremia following LARIAT ligation of the left atrial appendage.

INTRODUCTION Hyponatremia commonly follows percutaneous exclusion of the left atrial appendage (LAA) with the LARIAT suture delivery device. The aim of this study was to evaluate for clinical predictors hyponatremia following ligation of the appendage with the LARIAT device. METHODS AND RESULTS A retrospective analysis was conducted on 61 consecutive patients (average age 69.7 ± 9.8 years, 55.7% male) who underwent successful appendage ligation with the LARIAT device. Acute hyponatremia (AH) was defined as a drop in serum sodium (Na) by greater than or equal to 4 mmol/L within 48 hours of ligation while exaggerated acute hyponatremia (EAH) was defined as a drop greater than or equal to 10 mmol/L. Among all patients, there was a significant decrease in [Na] at 24 hours (3.26 ± 2.77 mmol/L) and 48 hours (4.98 ± 3.74 mmol/L). Thirty-two patients (52.4%) had AH while six patients (9.8%) experienced EAH. A body mass index (BMI) of less than 28.4 kg/m2 was associated with AH (P = .037) while a BMI < 25 kg/m2 was associated with EAH (P = .021). A linear regression analysis comparing the maximum sodium decrease to the indexed left atrial (LA) diameter found that for every 1 cm/m2 increase in indexed LA diameter, there was a 2.5 mEq/L decrease in serum sodium (P = .04). CONCLUSIONS Hyponatremia frequently occurs following LAA ligation with the LARIAT device. A low BMI < 25 kg/m2 is associated with a drop in serum sodium of greater than 10 mmol/L while increasing indexed LA diameter predicts any AH. AH is also associated with a significantly lower systolic blood pressure 48 to 72 hours post LAA exclusion with the LARIAT device.
Civic Tenderness as a Response to Child Poverty in America

This chapter presents a portrait of American children as situationally vulnerable and introduces the public emotion of civic tenderness as a response to the indifference that is routinely directed toward this vulnerability. Discussions of pro-social empathic emotions typically prioritize emotions like sympathy and compassion. While they are important in their own right, these pro-social emotions are responses to situations of current need. Civic tenderness is a response to situations of vulnerability. Insofar as a person or group is now in a situation of need, they had to have first been vulnerable to experiencing that need. Since vulnerability is conceptually prior to need, civic tenderness is prior to these other pro-social emotions. Through the process that I call tenderization, I explain how tenderness for poor and impoverished children’s vulnerability can be expanded to a society’s members, institutions, and systems.
Angiotensin II Type-1 Receptor Antibodies Are Associated With Active Allograft Dysfunction Following Pediatric Liver Transplantation.

BACKGROUND Angiotensin II type-1 receptor (AT1R) antibodies have been associated with rejection and allograft loss in solid organ transplantation and may act synergistically with HLA donor-specific antibodies (DSA). Our aims were to assess the prevalence of AT1R antibodies and determine if they were associated with allograft dysfunction in pediatric liver transplant recipients. METHODS We performed a retrospective, cross-sectional study of HLA DSA and AT1R antibodies in 2 cohorts of pediatric liver transplant recipients: a stable control cohort with normal allograft function (n = 70) who consented to have serum samples collected for research purposes during a routine clinic visit and a cohort with active allograft dysfunction (n = 9) whose serum samples were collected as part of clinical care. RESULTS AT1R antibodies >17 U/mL were detected in 29% of stable control patients and 89% of patients with active allograft dysfunction (P = 0.001). In stable control patients, AT1R antibodies were associated with younger age at transplant (P = 0.010), younger age at time of sample collection (P < 0.001), shorter interval since transplant (P = 0.090), and presence of HLA DSA (P = 0.003). AT1R antibodies in stable control patients were not associated with rejection or allograft loss. However, AT1R antibodies combined with HLA DSA in patients with active allograft dysfunction were associated with rejection and allograft loss. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that AT1R antibodies are more common in patients with active allograft dysfunction and may be a risk factor for worse outcomes. Further research is needed to longitudinally assess the clinical impact of HLA DSA and AT1R antibodies.
Whom should you screen for abdominal aortic aneurysm

Most patients with AAA are asymptomatic until the situation is dire. Ultrasound screening in older patients can reduce the risk of death, but recommendations vary.
The antireflux mechanism - Angiographic anatomy and clinical implications.

BackgroundEarly anatomists suspected that the radiculomedullary veins draining the spinal cord had valves preventing their retrograde filling with anatomical casting material. Modern investigations...
Set operations and order reductions for constrained zonotopes.

This paper presents methods for using zonotopes and constrained zonotopes to improve the practicality of a wide variety of set-based operations commonly used in control theory. The proposed methods extend the use of constrained zonotopes to represent sets resulting from operations including halfspace intersections, convex hulls, robust positively invariant sets, and Pontryagin differences. Order reduction techniques are also presented that provide lower-complexity inner-approximations of zonotopes and constrained zonotopes. Numerical examples are used to demonstrate the efficacy and computational advantages of using zonotope-based set representations for dynamic system analysis and control.
Validation of plasma-derived small extracellular vesicles as cancer biomarkers.

A role for extracellular vesicles and particles (EVPs) as cancer biomarkers has been elusive. A mass spectrometry-based comparative analysis of EVPs from individuals with or without cancer has now enabled the identification of tumour-associated protein profiles in EVPs in plasma and paired tumour tissues, validating the role of EVPs as a novel liquid biopsy approach in cancer diagnosis.
Basel IV: The Challenges

The Basel IV accords that were introduced in late December 2017 was the first set of Basel accords that was not introduced against the backdrop of a global financial crisis. While Basel IV addresses most of the shortfalls of Basel III, it has failed to address the issue of risk-weights that are attached to sovereign debt, which is a significant shortcoming under the Basel Accords. This paper analyses the Basel accords, particularly in light of the economic impact of the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic, which has proven to be surprise test on the resilience of the revamped Basel Accords.