cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A tire–ice model (TIM) for traction estimation

Abstract Increased traffic safety levels are of highest importance, especially when driving on icy roads. Experimental investigations for a detailed understanding of pneumatic tire performance on ice are expensive and time consuming. The changing ambient and ice conditions make it challenging to maintain repeatable test conditions during a test program. This paper presents a tire–ice contact model (TIM) to simulate the friction levels between the tire and the ice surface. The main goal of this model is to predict the tire–ice friction based on the temperature rise in the contact patch. The temperature rise prediction in the contact patch is based on the pressure distribution in the contact patch and on the thermal properties of the tread compound and of the ice surface. The contact patch is next classified into wet and dry regions based on the ice surface temperature and temperature rise simulations. The principle of thermal balance is then applied to compute the friction level in the contact patch. The tire–ice contact model is validated by comparing friction levels from simulations and experimental findings. Friction levels at different conditions of load, inflation pressure, and ice temperatures have been simulated using the tire–ice contact model and compared to experimental findings.
The Passive Dispersal of Viable Algae, Protozoans, and Fungi by Aquatic and Terrestrial Coleoptera

The relative importance of aquatic and terrestrial beetles as passive overland dispersal vehicles for viable algae and protozoans is elucidated. Twenty-three species of aquatic beetles, representing the families Haliplidae, Dytiscidae, Gyrinidae, and Hydrophylidae, collected aseptically during overland flights, carried 101 different genera of algae, 20 protozoans, 1 rotifer, and unidentified fungal spores and/or mycelia. Of the 204 inoculae (“washings”) made with these beetles, 193 developed populations of algae and/or protozoans. Six of the remainder contained only fungi; only 5 were negative. Sixteen species of terrestrial beetles, representing the families Cicindelidae, Carabidae, Cebrionidae, Meloidae, Scarabaeidae, Trogidae, Cerambycidae, and Curculionidae carried 50 different genera of algae, 15 protozoans, and unidentified rotifers, nematodes, and fungi. Seventy-six of the 93 inoculae developed populations represented by combinations of these organisms. Fifteen inoculae contained only fungi; 2 were negative. The average number of genera of algae and protozoans per individual for all 23 aquatic beetle species was 5.8. The 16 species of terrestrial beetles carried an average of 3.0 genera of algae and protozoa.
Baby, You Are My Religion: Women, Gay Bars, and Theology before Stonewall Marie Cartier. Stocksfield, UK: Acumen Press, 2013.

Baby, You Are My Religion: Women, Gay Bars, and Theology before Stonewall Marie Cartier. Stocks field, UK: Acumen Press, 2013.American butch-femme bar culture, nurtured by gay women from the 1940s to 1980s, has attracted quite a range of valuations: from a scorned population to an ideological battle front between lesbians, then to reclamation, and even queer appropriation. Scholarship from participants in that culture-Lillian Fader man, Joan Nestle, Judy Grahn, Madeline Davis, and Elizabeth Kennedy-gives historians of lesbian experience a rich base from which to discern its significance. Marie Cartier's Baby, You Are My Religion is an impressively multi-faceted meditation on lesbian bar culture. She interviews over one hundred participants (including most of the scholars named above), hearing her informants with empathy and grace. Cartier theorizes the ethical and communal role of bars, articulating parallels with the community formation of religious institutions. Combining this ambitious agenda with an insightful neologism-thee logy-Cartier honors the women whose lives she records and makes a valuable contribution to the study of American religion.The book pursues two intersecting paths. The first stems from the interviews that Cartier conducted from 2005 to 2009. She notes important patterns: an insistence that the bar was "the only place" for meeting other gay women and the more specific discovery that "(o)ne hundred percent of [her] informants prior to 1973 knew that homosexuals were considered mentally ill. None of them felt that they were in need of mental health assistance for being gay, and none of them believed that they themselves were mentally ill" (84).The second pathway through Baby, You Are My Religion focuses on interpreting the lives of pre-Stonewall women theologically, using theoretical tools as disparate as postmodern deviant historiography (24), Mary Daly's Radical Lesbian-Feminism (199-200), and Gordon Kaufman's theological structures (189-193). Cartier's eclectic methodology is more cumulative than meticulous. But she teases out how butch-femme bar culture generated a spirituality based in relational self-de finition: women found themselves in each other. Cartier recognizes two religious constraints on the working-class women of the bars: they were living in a world where no institutional religions accepted homosexuals (189) and where creating one's own spirituality independently of religious institutions was not yet possible (40-41): "The women who entered the bar were not necessarily without religion. They all came from religions that had kicked them out by signaling they were sinners" (189, emphasis Cartier).Recognizing these structural limitations, Cartier reads theology back into the situation, knowing that doing so might even strike her informants as odd (115). …
Responses of Lygus hesperus to Chemically Defined Diets

Lygus hesperus Knight lived as many as 49 days on a chemically defined diet. Nymphs moulted 3 times to the adult stage with some increasing their weight as much as 800%. Irradiation of the feeding membranes, filtration of the diet, and addition of streptomycin sulfate excluded microbial contamination from the diet. Nymphs grew best on a sucrose concentration of 3–5%, while 0, 20, and 35% sucrose reduced growth and increased mortality. Survival was enhanced at a diet p H of 5–6, although comparable weight gains were made on more alkaline diets. An amino acid concentration of 2.915% without L -glutamine and DL -homoserine gave better growth and increased survival over diets containing higher amino acid concentrations with or without L -glutamine and DL -homoserine. The insects were larger, and more survived on a complete diet than on one containing only the 10 amino acids considered essential for the rat and for most insects. This is the first instance of a hemipterous plant-sucking insect being maintained on a chemically defined diet enclosed in a membrane.
Adaptation to Ethanol-Induced Fluidization of Brain Lipid Bilayers: Cross-Tolerance and Reversibility

Apparent tolerance to the ability of ethanol to increase membrane lipid thermal motions or membrane fluidity of artificial membranes formed from the lipid extracts of tolerant mice synaptosomal membranes has recently been observed by us. We attempted to determine whether this apparent tolerance was correlated with tolerance to the anesthetic actions of ethanol. We, consequently, measured the ability of ethanol to "fluidize" artificial membranes prepared from the membrane lipid extracts from pentobarbital, from morphine, and from pre- and postwithdrawal ethanol-tolerant mice. Membrane fluidity was assessed by measuring the fluorescence polarization of 1,6-diphenyl-l,3,5-hexatriene incorporated into the membranes. We observed that ethanol showed cross-tolerance with pentobarbital but not with morphine. Also, after withdrawal the effects of chronic ethanol treatment were reversible. The data suggest that the change in brain membrane lipid composition responsible for the apparent tolerance to the membrane "fluidizing" effects of ethanol is related to tolerance to the anesthetic actions of ethanol. ACKNOWLEDGMENT We would like to acknowledge the editorial and typing assistance of Kaye Welch.
Ureteroneocystostomy versus Ureteropyelostomy: A Comparison in the Same Renal Allograft Series

AbstractOf the 132 transplants in our series 44 patients underwent reconstruction by ureteropyelostomy (group 1) and 88 underwent reconstruction by ureteroneocystostomy (group 2). The rates of major urologic complications were 11 per cent in group 1 and 4 per cent in group 2. These results support the widely held opinion that ureteroneocystostomy is the superior method for urinary reconstruction in renal allograft cases. However, the alternative of ureteropyelostomy should be part of every transplant surgeons’ armamentarium, especially for cadaver transplants when ureteral blood supply may be compromised.
Alteration of the gross dimensions of the heart and its structures by formalin fixation. A quantitative study.

The alteration of cardiac size and shape by formalinfixation have been investigated with and without pretreatment to lyse the rigor mortis. Twenty-one exterior and interior measurements were taken in hearts a) dissected before immersion fixation, b) dissected after immersion fixation c) fixed by controlled pressure perfusion. Rigor mortis could not be lysed by soaking in cold saline or freezing and thawing of the specimen. The previously recommended pressure fixation could be simplified to pressure perfusion of the great arteries in the submerged specimen. This method produced a better preservation of the specimen for quantitative and qualitative evaluation, with less variation than introduced by conventional methods of fixation.
Profiles of Consumer Recyclers and Nonrecyclers

This paper reports the findings of a systematic exploratory study on the profiles of consumer recyclers and nonrecyclers. The profiles attempt to illustrate the attitudes of consumers towards recycling on selected sociopsychological variables, recycling knowledge, incentive adequacy, governmental intervention, currently operative and hypothetical reverse channel mechanisms, and socioeconomic variables.
Arm, Leg, and Foot Skin Water in Persons With Diabetes Mellitus (DM) in Relation to HbA1c Assessed by Tissue Dielectric Constant (TDC) Technology Measured at 300 MHz.

Background:DM is associated with structural skin changes. However, few studies have investigated changes in dermal water and specifically its relationship to glucose control as measured by HbA1c. Our goal was to test the hypothesis that skin water, assessed by its tissue dielectric constant (TDC), is inversely related to HbA1c.Methods:Water content of 3 skin sites (forearm, lower leg, and foot dorsum) of 50 persons with DM was estimated by measuring TDC at 300 MHz. TDC is the ratio of tissue dielectric constant to vacuum and depends on free and bound water in the measured volume. TDC was measured in triplicate to 4 depths, 0.5. 1.5, 2.5, and 5.0 mm to include different skin components.Results:At each site increased measurement depth showed (1) a significant decrease in absolute TDC values and (2) a significant increase in foot-to-arm TDC ratios. TDC values at forearm were shown to be greater than at either leg or foot. However, testing of these 50 patients at 3 sites and 4 skin depths did not show any sig...
Status and Trends of Land Change in Selected U.S. Ecoregions - 2000 to 2011

Abstract U.S. Geological Survey scientists developed a dataset of 2006 and 2011 land-use and land-cover ( lulc ) information for selected 100-km2 sample blocks within 29 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Level III ecoregions across the conterminous United States. The data can be used with the previously published Land Cover Trends Dataset: 1973 to 2000 to assess land-use/land-cover change across a 37-year study period. Results from analysis of these data include ecoregion-based statistical estimates of the amount of lulc change per time period, ranking of the most common types of conversions, rates of change, and percent composition. Overall estimated amount of change per ecoregion from 2001 to 2011 ranged from a low of 370 km2 in the Northern Basin and Range Ecoregion to a high of 78,782 km2 in the Southeastern Plains Ecoregion. The Southeastern Plains continues to encompass one of the most intense forest harvesting and regrowth regions in the country, with 16.6 percent of the ecoregion changing between 2001 and 2011. These lulc change statistics provide a new, valuable resource that complements other reference data and field-verified lulc data. Researchers can use this resource to independently validate other land change products or to conduct regional land change assessments.
Changing the Stability of Macromolecular Surfaces by Manipulating the Aqueous Environment.

An important article by Cheng et al. (1) in this issue of the Biophysical Journal provides quantitative new insights into how physiologically and biochemically significant solvent additives alter the stability of folded proteins and macromolecular complexes, as well as regulate the osmotic balance of bacterial cells under various growth conditions. This article adds a new chapter to the continuing research efforts of the Record laboratory to provide data sets of thermodynamic parameters that quantitate the effects of small molecule perturbants of the solvent environment on the stability of folded proteins and protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid complexes.
A technique for individual atom delivery into a crossed vortex bottle beam trap using a dynamic 1D optical lattice

We describe a system for loading a single atom from a reservoir into a blue-detuned crossed vortex bottle beam trap using a dynamic 1D optical lattice. The lattice beams are frequency chirped using acousto-optic modulators, which causes the lattice to move along its axial direction and behave like an optical conveyor belt. A stationary lattice is initially loaded with approximately 6000 atoms from a reservoir, and the conveyor belt transports them 1.1 mm from the reservoir to a bottle beam trap, where a single atom is loaded via light-assisted collisions. Photon counting data confirm that an atom can be delivered and loaded into the bottle beam trap 13.1% of the time.
Social-ecological system resonance: a theoretical framework for brokering sustainable solutions

Sustainability science is a solution-oriented discipline. Yet, there are few theory-rich discussions about how this orientation structures the efforts of sustainability science. We argue that Niklas Luhmann’s social system theory, which explains how societies communicate problems, conceptualize solutions, and identify pathways towards implementation of solutions, is valuable in explaining the general structure of sustainability science. From Luhmann, we focus on two key concepts. First, his notion of resonance offers us a way to account for how sustainability science has attended and responded to environmental risks. As a product of resonance, we reveal solution-oriented research as the strategic coordination of capacities, resources, and information. Second, Luhmann’s interests in self-organizing processes explain how sustainability science can simultaneously advance multiple innovations. The value logic that supports this multiplicity of self-organizing activities as a recognition that human and natural systems are complex coupled and mutually influencing. To give form to this theoretical framework, we offer case evidence of renewable energy policy formation in Texas. Although the state’s wealth is rooted in a fossil-fuel heritage, Texas generates more electricity from wind than any US state. It is politically antagonistic towards climate-change policy, yet the state’s reception of wind energy technology illustrates how social and environmental systems can be strategically aligned to generate solutions that address diverse needs simultaneously. This case demonstrates that isolating climate change—as politicians do as a separate and discrete problem—is incapable of achieving sustainable solutions, and resonance offers researchers a framework for conceptualizing, designing, and communicating meaningfully integrated actions.
Continuum of care with anti-angiogenic therapies in metastatic colorectal cancer

Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis has emerged as an important therapeutic component in the management of metastatic colorectal cancer. Three anti-angiogenic agents are currently approved in this clinical setting: bevacizumab, ziv-aflibercept, and regorafenib. Bevacizumab, a monoclonal antibody that targets the angiogenesis-driving ligand vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), is the only anti-angiogenic agent approved in first-line therapy for metastatic colorectal cancer, where it can be used in combination with intravenous 5-fluorouracil-containing chemotherapy regimens. In conjunction with second-line chemotherapies, bevacizumab also has anti-cancer activity, both for the management of metastatic colorectal cancer in patients who received it as a part of their first line therapy and for those who are naive to it. Ziv-aflibercept also has demonstrated clinical activity in conjunction with the chemotherapeutic regimen FOLFIRI in the second line management of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer; it functions by binding VEGF-A to the vascular endothelial growth factor proteins VEGF-B and PIGF (placental growth factor). Regorafenib, which inhibits multiple tyrosine kinases, including the VEGF receptors, has proven clinical benefit in the management of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer refractory to all other therapies. For patients’ whose cancers are refractory to all other therapies, there is also evidence for the use of bevacizumab with fluoropyrimidine monotherapy, but only in the bevacizumab-naive patient subset. Presently, it is not clear if any one agent as more activity in a particular line of therapy than another, has greater efficacy when paired with a particular chemotherapy backbone, or if a particular patient subset is more likely to benefit from these agents. Given the present benefit and tolerance data, an anti-angiogenic agent should be considered in all lines of therapy in the management of metastatic colorectal cancer, with the evidence for the use of these agents in each specific line of therapy and in specific chemotherapeutic combinations driving agent selection.
Care of Acute Gastrointestinal Conditions in the Observation Unit

The Emergency Department Observation Unit (EDOU) provides a viable alternative to inpatient admission for the management of many acute gastrointestinal conditions with additional opportunities of reducing resource utilization and reducing radiation exposure. Using available evidence-based criteria to determine appropriate patient selection, evaluation, and treatment provides higher-quality medical care and improved patient satisfaction. Discussions of factors involved in creating an EDOU capable of caring for acute gastrointestinal conditions and clinical protocol examples of acute appendicitis, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, and acute pancreatitis provide a framework from which a successful EDOU can be built.
Chapter 50 – Neoplastic meningitis

Neoplastic meningitis (NM) is a common problem in neuro-oncology, occurring in approximately 5% of all patients with cancer, and is the third most common site of central nervous system (CNS) metastasis. NM is a disease affecting the entire neuraxis and thus clinical manifestations are pleomorphic, affecting the spine, cranial nerves, and cerebral hemispheres. Because of craniospinal disease involvement, staging and treatment need to encompass all cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) compartments. Treatment of NM utilizes involved-field radiotherapy of bulky or symptomatic disease sites and intra-CSF drug therapy. The inclusion of concomitant systemic therapy may benefit patients with NM and may obviate the need for intra-CSF chemotherapy. At present, intra-CSF drug therapy is confined to three chemotherapeutic agents (methotrexate, cytosine arabinoside, and thiotepa), administered in a variety of schedules by either intralumbar or intraventricular drug delivery. Although treatment of NM is palliative with an expected median patient survival of 2–6 months, it often affords stabilization and protection from further neurological deterioration in patients with NM.
An examination of real activities management and corporate cash holdings

Abstract I examine the relation between aggressive income increasing real activities management (RAM) and corporate cash holdings. Motivated by Jensen's (1986) concerns about free cash flows, I investigate whether aggressive cuts in discretionary expenditures are associated with higher levels and changes of cash holdings. Using empirical models from prior research, I document that aggressive income increasing RAM is associated with higher cash holdings and this positive association is stronger in weakly governed firms. I also find that weakly governed firms with aggressive income increasing RAM and high levels of cash tend to spend more on future investments, suggesting an effort to reduce accumulated cash and increase real assets under control. My results are robust to endogeneity, additional control variables, and alternative design choices. Evidence in this study provides a link between corporate cash holdings and aggressive cuts in discretionary expenses that allow managers to report higher earnings, indicating that efforts to achieve financial reporting objectives have implications for cash management.
Ramp and Pbis: "They Definitely Support One Another": The Results of a Phenomenological Study (Part One)

Scholars have explored the impact of comprehensive school counseling programs on student outcomes, including those programs that garnered the RAMP (Recognized ASCA [American School Counselor Associ...
Removal Roulette: Secure Communities and Immigration Enforcement in the United States (2008–2012)

Secure Communities (SComm) is a federal immigration enforcement program in the United States. The program enjoys support as a nationwide, neutral, and rational vehicle for enforcement. Yet place may make a difference in SComm enforcement outcomes. SComm figures reveal a divergence between places where removals target serious criminals versus places where removals cast a more universal net. Moreover, rates of removals vary greatly by location. Such divergence suggests that stated SComm priorities function less as a dam (as intended) and more as a water mill, whereby federal authorities place as many removable immigrants into removal proceedings as capacity allows. Uneven enforcement can propel a “removal roulette” whereby deportation can hinge on an immigrant detainee’s location and the type of offense committed. The resulting life as provisional existence means trying to stay out of trouble by erring on the side of caution at all times.
Turning back time with emerging rejuvenation strategies

Ageing is associated with the functional decline of all tissues and a striking increase in many diseases. Although ageing has long been considered a one-way street, strategies to delay and potentially even reverse the ageing process have recently been developed. Here, we review four emerging rejuvenation strategies-systemic factors, metabolic manipulations, senescent cell ablation and cellular reprogramming-and discuss their mechanisms of action, cellular targets, potential trade-offs and application to human ageing.
Effectiveness of the discrete generalized multigroup method based on truncated, POD-driven basis sets

Abstract Presented is the evaluation of the discrete generalized multigroup (DGM) method using a truncated basis constructed from proper orthogonal decomposition (POD). The DGM method uses an orthogonal basis to collapse fine-group fluxes and cross sections to a coarse-group structure with higher order modes in each coarse-group. By solving the course-group equation, an approximation to the fine-group flux can be reconstructed from the course-group flux. This approximation is used to recollapse the cross sections, which leads to an improved approximation. Past development of the DGM method used the discrete Legendre polynomials (DLPs), which do not perform well under truncation, for approximating the spectral shape of the flux. In this work, basis sets constructed using POD were used for the DGM method for several fine-group structures. The POD basis incorporates spectral information from small, representative problems, which are designed to capture spectral information from the full problem. The most effective, practical POD basis approximated the fission density with an error of less than 0.01% relative to a reference problem using approximately 6 degrees of freedom per coarse-group for all fine-group structures. The reference chosen was a 1-D, repeating lattice of 10 pins of UO2 fuel cells adjacent to 10 pins of 7.0% MOX fuel pins. The DGM method when subject to truncation performed far better using POD basis sets than when used with the DLP basis.
Transit System Resilience: Quantifying the Impacts of Disruptions on Diverse Populations

Abstract The resilience of a community to disruptions in a public transportation system depends not only on the technical system's ability to maintain service levels, but also on the ability of individuals to cope with and adapt to disruptions. This paper proposes a reliability-based methodology for conceptualizing and evaluating resilience of a socio-technical system in the context of diverse populations of passengers who experience the system differently, but share its resources. Considering a transit network as a socio-technical system induces coupling with other technical systems, such as communication networks and other transportation modes, which support user adaptability in disruption. Extending concepts from fault trees and binary decision diagrams (BDDs), a multi-valued dependency graph framework is developed and used to quantify the resilience of the system. Various notions of resilience are explored. Techniques for identifying which mechanisms, whether technically or socially driven, are critical to the resilience of each population are discussed. Sensitivity to various factors through the study of improvement potential provides practical insight into policies and technical improvements that can increase system or user resilience.
Detect, Understand and Fix Starburst Defect at Via Litho Film Stacks

In advanced technology nodes, Multi-color back end of line self-aligned via (SAV) integration involves a stack of dielectric and metallic thin films to memorize the pattern transferred from different color lithography masks. We see intermittent so-called “starburst” nuisance defects which causes yield loss and/or wafer scrap. We develop a hammer test method to enhance the detectability by inserting a higher stress metallic film and stressing the film stack in a repeated thermal cycle environment on hot plate. Physical failure analysis identifies the defect originates from the interface between spin on hard mask and dielectric thin film. Material analysis points the root cause of the issues are the marginal adhesion energy within the film stack, the thermal outgassing from the spin on lithography materials and the high compressive stress of the top metallic layer. Finally, through detailed material screening process, we narrow down to optimal film stack combinations and demonstrate positive results on patterned wafers.
Ebullition of oxygen from seagrasses under supersaturated conditions

Gas ebullition from aquatic systems to the atmosphere represents a potentially important fraction of primary production that goes unquantified by measurements of dissolved gas concentrations. Although gas ebullition from photosynthetic surfaces has often been observed, it is rarely quantified. The resulting underestimation of photosynthetic activity may significantly bias the determination of ecosystem trophic status and estimated rates of biogeochemical cycling from in situ measures of dissolved oxygen. Here, we quantified gas ebullition rates in Zostera marina meadows in Virginia, U.S.A. using simple funnel traps and analyzed the oxygen concentration and isotopic composition of the captured gas. Maximum hourly rates of oxygen ebullition (3.0 mmol oxygen m-2 h-1) were observed during the coincidence of high irradiance and low tides, particularly in the afternoon when oxygen and temperature maxima occurred. The daily ebullition fluxes (up to 11 mmol oxygen m-2 d-1) were roughly equivalent to net primary production rates determined from dissolved oxygen measurements indicating that bubble ebullition can represent a major component of primary production that is not commonly included in ecosystem-scale estimates. Oxygen content comprised 20-40% of the captured bubble gas volume and correlated negatively with its δ18O values, consistent with a predominance of mixing between the higher δ18O of atmospheric oxygen in equilibrium with seawater and the lower δ18O of oxygen derived from photosynthesis. Thus, future studies interested in the metabolism of highly productive, shallow water ecosystems, and particularly those measuring in situ oxygen flux, should not ignore the bubble formation and ebullition processes described here.
Eulerian and Lagrangian statistics in an exactly solvable turbulent shear model with a random background mean

We study the Lagrangian statistics of passively advected particles in an elementary velocity model for turbulent shear. The stochastic velocity model is exactly solvable and includes features that highlight the important differences between Lagrangian and Eulerian velocity statistics, which are not equal in the present context. A major element of the velocity model is the presence of a random, spatially uniform background mean, which is superimposed on a turbulent shear with a spectrum that typically follows a power law. We directly solve for the Eulerian and Lagrangian statistics and show how the sweeping motion of the background mean affects the Lagrangian velocity statistics with faster decaying correlations that oscillate more rapidly compared to the Eulerian velocity. This arises due to interaction of the cross-sweeps of the mean flow with the shear component, which determines Lagrangian tracer transport rates. We derive explicit expressions for the tracer dispersion that demonstrate how the dispersion rate depends on model parameters. We validate the predictions with numerical experiments in various test regimes that also highlight the behavior of Lagrangian particles in space. The proposed exactly solvable model serves as a test problem for Eulerian spectral recovery via Lagrangian data assimilation and parameter estimation methods.
The Assessment of Long-Term-Care, its Quality Assurance and Results -The German Perspective-

The consequences of demographic aging caused an impulse for German politics to establish an independent Social Long-Term-Care Insurance in 1995. Since then the assessment for long-term-care became stepwise more comprehensive to cover the bio-psycho-social needs of an increasing part of the population. Nowadays, about 3.3 Million persons receive benefits from this social insurance which help to cover a great part (but not in full) of financial and material support to overcome the impacts of long-term-care. About 2.5 Million persons are assessed every year with continuously increasing tendency by nursing experts working for the Statutory Medical Service mostly performing home visits. They assess the appropriate scores for mobility, cognitive and communicative abilities, behavior, attitudes, habits and psychic problems, self-sufficiency, coping and handling of requirements due to disease and therapy, management of everyday life and maintaining social contacts, adding up to one of 5 grades, the need for technical aids, flat conversion, therapeutic procedures, rehabilitation and educative support. The assessment guidelines and the monitoring of the quality of their realization are presented as well as the outcome for the Long-Term-Care Insurance on the federal level. Twenty-five years of Long-Term-Care Insurance have led to a well established and steadfast insurance but with increasing expenses as well as rising social security contributions to face the challenges of a human and dignified evening of life for an increasing part of the population.
Association of long-term change and variability in glycemia with risk of incident heart failure among patients with type 2 diabetes: A secondary analysis of the ACCORD trial

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the associations between long-term change and variability in glycemia with risk of heart failure (HF) among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Among participants with T2DM enrolled in the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) trial, variability in HbA1c was assessed from stabilization of HbA1c following enrollment (8 months) to 3 years of follow-up as follows: average successive variability (ASV) (average absolute difference between successive values), coefficient of variation (SD/mean), and SD. Participants with HF at baseline or within 3 years of enrollment were excluded. Adjusted Cox models were used to evaluate the association of percent change (from baseline to 3 years of follow-up) and variability in HbA1c over the first 3 years of enrollment and subsequent risk of HF. RESULTS The study included 8,576 patients. Over a median follow-up of 6.4 years from the end of variability measurements at year 3, 388 patients had an incident HF hospitalization. Substantial changes in HbA1c were significantly associated with higher risk of HF (hazard ratio [HR] for ≥10% decrease 1.32 [95% CI 1.08–1.75] and for ≥10% increase 1.55 [1.19–2.04]; reference CONCLUSIONS Substantial long-term changes and variability in HbA1c were independently associated with risk of HF among patients with T2DM.
Radiation Exposure to Visitors to Nuclear Medicine Department Waiting Areas

2157 Objectives: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) limits the amount of radiation exposure that members of the general public receive from non-patient radioactive sources, and this limit is 20 microsievert (µSv) in any one hour. Visitors to nuclear medicine department waiting areas receive radiation exposure from radioactive patients. The purpose of this research was to prospectively determine if visitors receive radiation exposure greater than 20 µSv from patient sources, which are currently unregulated by the NRC. Methods: Luxel optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dosimeters (n=18) were placed on the walls of nuclear medicine department waiting areas in three hospitals, two per waiting area, over the course of three months. At the end of each month the area monitors were sent to Landauer to have their radiation exposure determined, and were replaced with the next set of area monitors. The exposure rate was calculated by dividing the radiation exposure readings received from Landauer by the number of hours the departments were open each month. The average amount of time visitors spent in the waiting areas was observed over one day. The total visitor exposure was calculated by multiplying the average visitor waiting time by the exposure rate. The total visitor exposures for all three hospitals were averaged and compared to the 20 µSv limit for the general public. Results: The average visitor exposure for all three hospitals was 0.783 µSv and the highest exposure was 2.793 µSv. The average visitor exposure and the maximum exposure were less than the limit for the general public of 20 µSv in any one hour. Conclusions: Visitors to nuclear medicine department waiting areas do not receive radiation exposure greater than the limit for the general public of 20 µSv for non-patient sources.
Special Educators as Coaches to Support Paraprofessional Implementation of Functional Communication Training

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of special educators’ delivery of training that included an initial training session and follow-up coaching on paraprofessional implementation o...
Limitations of Detecting Genetic Variants from the RNA Sequencing Data in Tissue and Fine-Needle Aspiration Samples

Background: Genetic profiling of resected tumor or biopsy samples is increasingly used for cancer diagnosis and therapy selection for thyroid and other cancer types. Although mutations occur in cel...
Correlations between available primary amines, endospore coat thickness, and alkaline glutaraldehyde sensitivity for spores of select Bacillus species

Alkaline glutaraldehyde (GTA) is a high-level chemical disinfectant/sterilant and has a broad microbial kill spectrum. The precise antimicrobial mechanism of GTA remains debated. GTA kill times are extremely variable across different organisms, illustrating the need for a better understanding of GTA kill mechanisms related to different organisms. A commonly proposed GTA kill mechanism suggests that it works by cross-linking accessible primary amines on important surface proteins. If true, the antimicrobial activity of GTA may directly correlate to the number of these available functional groups. Bacillus species form highly resistant bacterial endospores that are commonly used as one of the most stringent test organisms for disinfection and sterilization. In this study, we compared the log reduction times of alkaline GTA on spores from 4 Bacillus species to fluorescent profiles generated using Alexa Fluor™ amine-reactive dyes. GTA kill times were also compared to mean spore coat thicknesses as measured with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Fluorescence values generated from bound amine-reactive dye showed a strong, positive correlation to GTA susceptibility, as measured by GTA 6-log10 reduction times. Spore coat thickness also showed a strong, positive correlation to reduction time values. Results support the hypothesis that GTA kill times are directly related to the number of available primary amines on bacterial endospores. Results also indicated that the killing efficacy of GTA may be influenced by its ability to penetrate the spore coat to reach additional targets, suggesting that damaging important biomolecules beyond surface proteins may be involved in GTA killing mechanisms.
Self‐organization of the Earth's climate system versus Milankovitch‐Berger astronomical cycles

The Late Pleistocene Antarctic temperature variation curve is decomposed into two components: “cyclic” and “high frequency, stochastic.” For each of these components, a mathematical model is developed which shows that the cyclic and stochastic temperature variations are distinct, but interconnected, processes with their own self-organization. To model the cyclic component, a system of ordinary differential equations is written which represent an auto-oscillating, self-organized process with constant period. It is also shown that these equations can be used to model more realistic variations in temperature with changing cycle length. For the stochastic component, the multifractal spectrum is calculated and compared to the multifractal spectrum of a critical sine-circle map. A physical interpretation of relevant mathematical models and discussion of future climate development within the context of this work is given.
Manual Annotation of Genes within Drosophila Species: the Genomics Education Partnership protocol

Annotating the genomes of multiple organisms allows us to study their genes as well as the evolution of those genes. While many eukaryotic genome assemblies already include computational gene predictions, these predictions can benefit from review and refinement through manual gene annotation. The Genomics Education Partnership (GEP; thegep.org) has developed an annotation protocol for protein-coding genes that enables undergraduate students and other researchers to create high-quality gene annotations that can be utilized in subsequent scientific investigations. For example, this protocol has been utilized by the GEP faculty to engage undergraduate students in the comparative annotation of genes involved in the insulin signaling pathway in 28 Drosophila species, using D. melanogaster as the informant genome. Students construct gene models using multiple lines of computational and experimental evidence including expression data (e.g., RNA-Seq), sequence similarity (e.g., BLAST, multiple sequence alignments), and computational gene predictions. For quality control, each gene is annotated by at least two students working independently, followed by reconciliation of the submitted gene models by a more experienced student. This article provides an overview of the annotation protocol and describes how discrepancies in student submitted gene models are resolved to produce a final, high-quality gene set suitable for subsequent analyses. This annotation protocol can be adapted to other scientific questions (e.g., expansion of the Drosophila Muller F element) and other species (e.g., parasitoid wasps) to provide additional opportunities for undergraduate students to participate in genomics research. These student annotation efforts can substantially improve the quality of gene annotations in publicly available genomic databases.
Independent Predictors for Surgical Site Infections in Patients Undergoing Complex Abdominal Wall Reconstruction.

Introduction Complex abdominal wall reconstruction (CAWR) in patients with large abdominal defects have become a common procedure. The aim of this study was to identify independent predictors of surgical site infections (SSI) in patients undergoing CAWR. Materials and methods This was an ambidirectional cohort study of 240 patients who underwent CAWR with biologic mesh between 2012 and 2020 at an academic tertiary/quaternary care center. Prior superficial SSI, deep SSI, organ space infections, enterocutaneous fistulae, and combined abdominal infections were defined as prior abdominal infections. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were performed to determine independent risk factors for SSI. Results There were a total of 39 wound infections, with an infection rate of 16.3%. Forty percent of patients who underwent CAWR in this study had a history of prior abdominal infections. In the multivariable regression models not weighted for length of stay (LOS), prior abdominal infection (odds ratio [OR]: 2.49, p=0.013) and higher body mass index (BMI) (OR: 1.05, p=0.023) were independent predictors of SSI. In the multivariable regression model weighted for LOS, prior abdominal infection (OR: 2.2, p=0.034), higher BMI (OR: 1.05, p=0.024), and LOS (OR: 1.04, p=0.043) were independent predictors of SSI. Conclusion The history of prior abdominal infections, higher BMI, and increased LOS are important independent predictor of SSI following CAWR.
How Does B Cell Antigen Presentation Affect Memory CD4 T Cell Differentiation and Longevity

Dendritic cells are the antigen presenting cells that process antigens effectively and prime the immune system, a characteristic that have gained them the spotlights in recent years. B cell antigen presentation, although less prominent, deserves equal attention. B cells select antigen experienced CD4 T cells to become memory and initiate an orchestrated genetic program that maintains memory CD4 T cells for life of the individual. Over years of research, we have demonstrated that low levels of antigens captured by B cells during the resolution of an infection render antigen experienced CD4 T cells into a quiescent/resting state. Our studies suggest that in the absence of antigen, the resting state associated with low-energy utilization and proliferation can help memory CD4 T cells to survive nearly throughout the lifetime of mice. In this review we would discuss the primary findings from our lab as well as others that highlight our understanding of B cell antigen presentation and the contributions of the MHC Class II accessory molecules to this outcome. We propose that the quiescence induced by the low levels of antigen presentation might be a mechanism necessary to regulate long-term survival of CD4 memory T cells and to prevent cross-reactivity to autoantigens, hence autoimmunity.
Postoperative Calcium Management

Postoperative hypoparathyroidism/hypocalcemia is the most prevalent complication following thyroid and parathyroid surgeries. Endocrine surgeons should be cognizant of patient and surgical risk factors for postoperative hypoparathyroidism/hypocalcemia. The clinical spectrum ranges from mild symptoms to life-threatening complications. The vast majority of cases are temporary and resolve within days to several weeks, but hypoparathyroidism can be prolonged and even permanent. The mainstay of treatment is calcium and vitamin D supplementation with interval monitoring of calcium and PTH serum levels.
Relationship between Human Immunodeficiency Virus Neuroretinal Disorder and Vision-Specific Quality of Life among People with AIDS.

Purpose Some human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–infected individuals have evidence of optic nerve or retinal dysfunction that manifests as decreased contrast sensitivity, even with good best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA). This condition, termed HIV-related neuroretinal disorder (HIV-NRD), is a risk factor for vision impairment (BCVA Design Cross-sectional analysis of data from a prospective, observational study. Participants Individuals from the Longitudinal Study of the Ocular Complications of AIDS cohort who completed the National Eye Institute 25-item Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25), had BCVA of 20/40 or better, and had no evidence of ocular opportunistic infection or cataract. Methods We compared QOL by HIV-NRD status, adjusting for potential confounding variables, using multiple linear regression. Among those with HIV-NRD, we assessed the relationship between VFQ-25 and the logarithm of contrast sensitivity (logCS), using Spearman correlation. We defined a minimum clinically important difference (MCID) as 1 standard error of measurement from a well-characterized, historical population of individuals with a variety of ophthalmic disorders. Main Outcome Measures Subscales and composite VFQ-25 scores (0 = worst, 100 = best). Results A total of 813 individuals met study criteria. Those with HIV-NRD (n = 39 [4.8%]) had a lower mean composite score than those without HIV-NRD (81 vs. 89; P = 0.0002) and lower mean scores in the following subscales: near activities (77 vs. 86; P = 0.004), distance activities (85 vs. 91; P = 0.01), social functioning (89 vs. 96; P = 0.0005), mental health (75 vs. 87; P = 0.0001), dependency (81 vs. 94; P P = 0.02), color vision (90 vs. 97; P P = 0.0496). Score differences for each of these subscales met criteria for MCID. Among those with HIV-NRD, there was a positive correlation between logCS and composite score ( r = 0.36; 95% confidence interval, 0.04–0.60). Conclusions HIV-NRD has a statistically significant and clinically meaningful association with decreased vision-specific QOL among people with AIDS and good BCVA.
THE GENUS DERMATOPHILUS

Gordon, M. A. (New York State Department of Health, Albany). The genus Dermatophilus . J. Bacteriol. 88: 509–522. 1964.—Seventeen strains of Dermatophilus originating in skin lesions of cattle, sheep, horses, deer, and man were compared as to conditions for growth, colonial characteristics under varying conditions, microscopic morphology, and biochemical reactions. All grew well aerobically at 37 C and were facultatively anaerobic. They were morphologically similar in both gross and microscopic appearance, and most produced motile spores. Stable gray variants often appeared among the orange-yellow “wild-type” colonies. Acid without gas was produced consistently from glucose and fructose, and transitorily from galactose, but was produced from none of eight other carbohydrates except belatedly by some strains from maltose. Almost all strains hydrolyzed casein, most of them digested BCP milk with varying rapidity, and the majority liquefied gelatin, but there was considerable variation in this last property. Differences crossed both host and geographic lines. It is concluded that all isolates can be accommodated in the species D. congolensis Van Saceghem 1915, emend. 1916, 1934, with D. dermatonomus and D. pedis falling into synonymy. Images