cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Development and Feeding Behavior of Clover Root Curculio (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Larvae on Alfalfa

Association of the clover root curculio, Sitona hispidulus (F.), with the alfalfa, Medicago sativa L., rhizosphere remains sketchy. The number of instars of S. hispidulus that develop on alfalfa and their feeding behavior was investigated under laboratory conditions. Larvae of S. hispidulus were exposed to alfalfa roots grown hydroponically on slant-board cultures. Based on the molting process as evidenced by shed exuvia, S. hispidulus developed through five instars. Feeding of specific instars on alfalfa root components grown in the slant-board culture indicated that first and second instars fed primarily on the root nodules. As larvae grew, feeding shifted to the fibrous and lateral roots. The fifth instars preferred to feed on the lateral roots and the taproot. All instars fed on nodules but the propensity to feed in nodules was associated with the first and second instars of S. hispidulus .
Life History of Upis ceramboides at Fairbanks, Alaska

Upis ceramboides (L.) has a circumpolar distribution; it is commonly found in northern forests of Europe, Asia, and North America, but aside from that information, very little is known about it. I made observations on its biology at Fairbanks, Alaska, and present a rough sketch of its life history.
Precision and Accuracy in Debris-Flow Volume MeasurementPrecision and Accuracy in Debris-Flow Volume Measurement

Measurements of debris-flow volumes are important for design and maintenance of retention basins and conveyance structures such as bridges and culverts, for analysis of inundation and run-out, and for input into predictive models. While these uses require accurate volume measurements, reported values in the technical literature do not consistently include estimates of accuracy, precision, and error. The purposes of this study are to systematically quantify these parameters so that they can be optimized, and to identify the most trustworthy types of measurements at different expected volume ranges. The most accurate and inexpensive measurement method uses capacity curves for debris retention basins. Precision of capacity curves is dramatically improved by installing finely graduated height scales in the basin to carefully estimate the contained volume after an event. For small-volume events (a few thousand cubic meters), measurement of channel cross sections to estimate debris-flow scour for runoff-generated flows is an accurate, but labor-intensive, method of estimating debris-flow volume. Map measurement of debris deposit extent typically results in underestimation of volume, with large error ranges resulting primarily from difficulty in accurately estimating the thickness of the deposit. Truck counts typically result in overestimation of volume, but accuracy could be considerably improved by accounting for percentage under- or over-loading rather than rounding the count up or down. Analyses or designs that use measured debris volumes should recognize that there are inherent errors: Even in the best case, error can be expected to be at least ±4 percent. In most cases, regardless of the method of volume measurement, error can be expected to be much higher, typically at least ±10–20 percent.
Implementation and Effect Evaluation of Supplementary Immunization of Measles Vaccine in Beichen District of Tianjin in 2008

[Objective]To summarize and evaluate the effect of supplementary immunization of measles vaccine in Beichen district of Tianjin in 2008.[Methods]Using the measles data from large epidemic report and the information from measles special report network during 2007-2009,the effect of supplementary immunization of measles vaccine was summarized and analyzed.[Results]A total of 71 581 people were surveyed,70 710 people were inoculated,and the coverage rate was 98.78%.The assessment coverage rate was 99.75%,and it accorded with the requirement which the coverage rate of supplementary immunization of measles vaccine among target population should reach 95%.Compared with 2007 and 2008 without supplementary immunization,the incidence of measles in 2009 decreased significantly in Beichen district.[Conclusion]The supplementary immunization of measles vaccine in Beichen district in 2008 achieves the expected overall target.
In vitro kinetics of immunoglobulin synthesis and secretion by nonsecretory human myeloma cells

To characterize the defect in “nonsecretory” myeloma, and to relate it to the secretory phenomenon of human myeloma cells, plasma cells from such a patient were studied in vitro and compared with other myeloma cells. The cells had the morphologic appearance of plasma cells, and contained cytoplasmic IgA-λ, but lacked surface membrane Ig and were PAS-negative. The rough endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus were anatomically intact, but the endoplasmic reticulum was distended with proteinaceous material. Incorporation of 3 H-labeled leucine and carbohydrate precursors into Ig, as determined by immune coprecipitation, was measured for nonsecretory and secretory myeloma cells. Typical myeloma cells synthesized intracellular Ig, then actively secreted the newly synthesized protein into the medium. The nonsecretory cells synthesized Ig, though at a slower rate, but only released a small amount into the medium. The Ig released by these cells had a much higher 3 H-carbohydrate/ 3 H-leucine incorporation ratio than that released by the secretory myeloma cells. The data suggest that these cells have a block at the level of the Golgi apparatus, perhaps related to glycosylation, that prevents secretion. This finding may represent an abnormality induced during the malignant transformation or the clonal proliferation of a cell from a subpopulation of immunocyte precursors present normally in small numbers.
Fixing of the prosthesis to the skeletal part

In many cases the functionality of a prosthesis depends on the stability of the bond established between the prosthesis and bone tissue. There are a variety of circumstances which can affect the relation between the stability of an implant and its liability to loosening. The interdependence between the biological and biomechanical factors that can lead to loosening is a subject which has been studied and summarized by Lee and Ling 1984 (Fig. 12.1). Of course, the problem of loosening is focused in the bone/implant interface area, because it is the progressive deterioration of this area which eventually results in loosening and mechanical failure of either the bone or the device.
Drug Therapy in Pregnant and Nursing Women

Publisher Summary This chapter describes drug therapy in pregnant and nursing women. There are two compelling reasons for studying drugs and drug therapy during pregnancy. The first relates to the changing age of reproduction. The second relates to the physiologic changes that occur with gestation. To accommodate fetal growth and development and provide a measure of safety for the woman, pregnancy alters a woman's underlying physiology. Regional blood-flow changes also occur in pregnant women and can affect drug distribution and elimination. Blood flow increases to the uterus, kidneys, skin, and mammary glands, with a compensatory decrease in skeletal muscle blood flow. Pregnancy is also associated with a partially compensated respiratory alkalosis that may affect the protein binding of some drugs. The clearances of drugs metabolized by cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) have been shown to be consistently increased in multiple studies of pregnant women. The hepatic clearance (CLH) of phenytoin, a restrictively eliminated drug that is predominantly a CYP2C9 substrate, increases during pregnancy, thereby resulting in correspondingly lower total plasma concentrations.
Dominican Dignitaries and Private Preaching at Papal Avignon Part I: The Sermon by Pierre de Palme (12 March 1340)

ABSTRACTPrivate preaching at papal Avignon (or in general, for that matter) has yet to receive much scholarly attention, in part because the texts of private sermons are not always easy to come by. The survival of two private sermons, both by Dominican dignitaries and both delivered to the same audience (a cardinal and his familia) in the same venue during the same Lenten preaching cycle, provide an opportunity to explore the phenomenon of private preaching at the Avignonese curia. In the first article of a three-part series, I present the edited text of the sermon by Pierre de Palme, Prior of the Dominican Province of France; the second text will appear in part II, with analysis and observations in the third and final part.
Prestige and Prestige-Seeking in Universities

Some universities have prestige. Many more aspire to have prestige. However, prestigious schools generally have huge endowments. It is difficult for schools with minimal endowments to compete with those who have $30 billion. Therefore, three general strategies are common to achieve prestige among those aspirants. First, schools can increase their number of students, thereby increasing funds from tuition and—for state supported schools—state allocations. Second, schools can build revenues by securing government grants. However, about 90 % of government grants go to medicine, science, and engineering. Business schools are not positioned to compete for many grants unless they can link to these disciplines. A third general strategy is to build prestige through high-profile athletic teams. Business schools engage in some activities that seem strikingly like athletic department strategies.
Dual Mobility in Complicated Primary and Revision THA: An American Experience

Background: Dual mobility components in total hip arthroplasty have been successfully in use in Europe for greater than 25 years. However, these implants have only recently obtained FDA approval and acceptance among North American arthroplasty surgeons. Both decreased dislocation rate and decreased wear rates have been proposed benefits of dual mobility components. These components have been used for primary total hip arthroplasty in patients at high risk for dislocation, total hip arthroplasty in the setting of femoral neck fracture, revision for hip instability, and revision for large metal-on-metal (MoM) hip articulation. The literature for the North American experience is lacking. Purpose: We report indications, short term outcomes, and complications of a series of subjects who received dual mobility outcomes at one institution. Study Design: Consecutive subjects who received dual mobility total hip arthroplasty components from February 2010 and April 2013 were identified. Charts were retrospectively reviewed for surgical indications, comorbidities, component sizes, and perioperative complications including infection, dislocation, mechanical failure, and reoperation. Results: 86 hips in 83 subjects underwent total hip arthroplasty or revision total hip arthroplasty using dual mobility components. There were 56 primary total hips and 30 revision total hips. Indications included small acetabular components in the setting of AVN (13 hips), DDH (12 hips) or severe inflammatory arthritis (5 hips), femoral neck fracture (5 hips), intraoperative instability (6 hips), recurrent postoperative instability (5 hips), and revision of large MoM articulations in the setting of failed hip resurfacing (10 hips) or failed MoM total hip arthroplasty (6 hips). Mean follow up was 1 year (3 months to 3.3 years). There were no complications in the primary total hip group. In the revision total hip group, only one hip dislocated and this was in a patient with familial dysautonomia and insensitivity to pain. One subject underwent reoperation for acute prosthetic joint infection. No other complications were encountered. Overall dislocation rate was 1.1% and overall complication rate was 2.2%. Conclusions: These results closely mirror that of the European literature. Dual mobility articulations in total hip arthroplasty have a low short term complication rate in this cohort and provide a simple solution to difficult cases. Indications for these implants include primary and revision total hip arthroplasty in patients at high risk for instability and revision of large MoM implants including hip resurfacing.
Sequential One-Pot Multienzyme Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Glycosphingolipid Glycans

Glycosphingolipids are a diverse family of biologically important glycolipids. In addition to variations on the lipid component, more than 300 glycosphingolipid glycans have been characterized. These glycans are directly involved in various molecular recognition events. Several naturally occurring sialic acid forms have been found in sialic acid-containing glycosphingolipids, namely gangliosides. However, ganglioside glycans containing less common sialic acid forms are currently not available. Herein, highly effective one-pot multienzyme (OPME) systems are used in sequential for high-yield and cost-effective production of glycosphingolipid glycans, including those containing different sialic acid forms such as N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac), N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc), 2-keto-3-deoxy-d-glycero-d-galacto-nononic acid (Kdn), and 8-O-methyl-N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac8OMe). A library of 64 structurally distinct glycosphingolipid glycans belonging to ganglio-series, lacto-/neolacto-series, and globo-/isoglobo-series glycosphingolipid glycans is constructed. These glycans are essential standards and invaluable probes for bioassays and biomedical studies.
A new clustering model for runaway boron pile-up effect

A novel clustering model is proposed to explain the anomalous boron pile-up effect during an RTP anneal. The model assumes that the clustering rate depends on local total concentration causing accelerated clustering at high doping levels. At lower concentrations the model reproduces conventional clustering models.
Humeral Retrotorsion and Glenohumeral Motion in Youth Baseball Players Compared With Age-Matched Nonthrowing Athletes:

Background:Baseball players exhibit a more posteriorly oriented humeral head in their throwing arm. This is termed humeral retrotorsion (HRT) and likely represents a response to the stress of throwing. This adaptation is thought to occur while the athlete is skeletally immature, however currently there is limited research detailing how throwing activity in younger players influences the development of HRT. In addition, it is presently unclear how this changing osseous orientation may influence shoulder motion within young athletes.Purpose:To determine the influence of throwing activity and age on the development of side-to-side asymmetry in HRT and shoulder range of motion (ROM).Study Design:Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:Healthy athletes (age range, 8-14 years) were categorized into 2 groups based upon sports participation; throwers (n = 85) and nonthrowers (n = 68). Bilateral measurements of HRT, shoulder external rotation (ER), internal rotation (IR), and total range of motion (TRO...
The Use of Medroxyprogesterone Acetate to Study Progestin Receptors in Immature, Pregnant, and Adult Rabbit Uterus

Medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA)3, a potent synthetic progestin, was employed as the 3H-ligand to investigate the status of the rabbit uterine progestin receptor under various hormonal conditions. MPA dissociated slowly from the cytosol and nuclear progestin receptor obtained from ovariectomized, estrogen-primed rabbits. This slow rate of dissociation permitted a partial characterization of the receptors in pregnant and immature, un-primed rabbit uteri. High affinity progestin binding to 6–7 S and 4 S macromolecular species was detected in cytosol and nuclear extracts, respectively, from these animals. In contrast to the 3 peaks of cytosol receptor activity from estrogen-primed animals which were eluted stepwise from DEAE-cellulose columns, predominantly 2 peaks were obtained with cytosols from pregnant and immature, unprimed uteri. Further studies are required to determine to what extent progestin action is modified through interaction of these binding components with themselves and other cellular proteins.
The NFkB System Regulates Flt3-Mediated Hematopoiesis

Abstract FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 (Flt3) plays pivotal roles in the survival, proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs). However, how proliferation and differentiation via Flt3 is regulated is poorly understood. In this study, our bioinformatic meta-analysis of existing cancer microarray datasets in Oncomine correlated reduced nfkb1 expression with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The nfkb1 gene products p105 and p50 are not transcriptional activators but regulators of NFκB activators. Examining bone marrow HSPCs, we found that nfkb1-/- mice produce much higher (~5-8X) total cell yields compared to wild type (WT) when cultured with Flt3 Ligand (Flt3L) ex vivo. Cell cycle analysis and apoptosis assay revealed that nfkb1-/- cells have profoundly increased proliferation and enhanced survival compared to WT cells. Nfkb1-/- cells show skewed differentiation towards plasmacytoid DCs and delayed differentiation of conventional DCs. To examine the molecular mechanism, we investigated how the NFκB system is assembled as HSPCs, which have little NFκB, progress through hematopoiesis to become differentiated immune cells with robust NFκB systems. In nfkb1-/- cells, the distribution of NFκB signaling complexes was altered and resulted in overall elevated RelA expression. Reducing RelA expression in compound rela+/- nfkb1-/- HSPCs partially rescued the myelopoiesis phenotype, suggesting that hyper NFκB activity is the cause. Further in vivo studies are underway to further test NFκB's role in a Flt3L injection model and a Flt3-ITD-mediated mouse leukemia model. In conclusion, our work reveals that precisely timed control of NFκB system assembly is a hallmark of hematopoiesis and that its misregulation perturbs normal Flt3-mediated hematopoiesis and can be a cause of myeloid cancer. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Heme Induces Endothelial Tissue Factor Expression: Potential Role in Hemostatic Activation in Patients with Intravascular Hemolysis Including Sickle Cell Disease.

Plasma levels of heme in the 20 to 600 μM range are found in clinical conditions associated with intravascular hemolysis including paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria and sickle cell disease, conditions also associated with a thrombotic tendency. Objectives: To investigate whether heme, an inflammatory mediator and a product of intravascular hemolysis in patients with hemolytic anemia including sickle cell disease (SCD), could modulate hemostasis by an effect on endothelial tissue factor (TF) expression. Additionally, in SCD patient-related studies, we assessed whether any association existed between whole blood TF activity (WBTF) and levels of surrogate markers of intra-vascular hemolysis including lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and reticulocyte counts. Methods: Following incubation of human endothelial cells (from umbilical vein and/or lung microvasculature) with heme (1 to 100 μM) for various times (30 minutes to 8 hours), levels of TF protein were assessed using ELISA, flow cytometry and/or Western blotting; and TF mRNA by a semi-quantitative RT-PCR. An assay for TF functional activity was performed using a chromogenic tenase activity kit where specificity of TF activity was tested in antibody-blocking experiments. Three TF-specific antibodies including a rabbit polyclonal and two mouse monoclonal (clones hTF-1 and TF9-10H10) antibodies were used in assays involving TF protein analysis. All experiments were performed in media containing polymyxin B to neutralize any potential endotoxin contamination. In patient-related studies, 81 subjects with SCD (1 to 21 years) were evaluated for levels of WBTF, LDH, and reticulocyte counts and data analyzed for potential relationships. Results: Heme induced TF protein expression on the surface of both macro- and micro-vascular endothelial cells in a concentration-dependent manner with 12- to 50-fold induction noted (ELISA assays) between 1 and 100 μM heme (P Conclusions : Our findings demonstrate that heme induces TF expression in endothelial cells, and that the observed effects occurred at patho-physiologically relevant heme concentrations. Our results suggest that heme-induced endothelial TF expression may provide a pathophysiologic link between the intravascular hemolytic milieu and the hemostatic perturbations previously noted in patients with hemolytic anemia including sickle cell disease.
The Christian Confederalism of Switzerland

This chapter supplies a considerable need for coverage of the influence of Swiss religion upon Swiss politics. Royce first examines the Zwinglian Reformation in Zurich and the other German-speaking Cantons, and finds that the Protestant theology that developed there helped strengthen Cantonal authority. Royce examines how these Reformed ideas shaped the Swiss Constitution, with an emphasis on the teachings of Johannes Althusius (1557–1638), and examines the political theology of all 26 Cantons through Boolean comparative analysis. He then explains how this constitutional foundation has forestalled supranational integration from 1992 to 2014.
Esquemas simbólicos y mito personal: lectura de " Memorial del olvido " de Fernando Operé

Cuando una trayectoria poetica queda condensada en un volumen la critica literaria siempre tiende a buscar claves de continuidad o de ruptura dentro de la misma. El presente trabajo pretende esclarecer algunos de los fundamentos tematicos que han definido la singular obra del poeta Fernando Opere, fijandonos, sobre todo, en la protagonizacion lirica y en el esquema simbolico-mitico que vertebra su obra Memorial del Olvido. Para ello, hemos tomado como referencia las pautas, directas o indirectas, de estudios mitocriticos como los de Gilbert Durand (1986 y 1993), el modelo del monomito de Campbell (1999) y los esquemas simbolico-rituales estudiados por Eliade (1999 y 2002) y Bachelard (2000) principalmente. Asi, podemos comprobar tambien que dichos modelos exegeticos son perfectamente validos y aplicables para el analisis de toda una obra, tal y como postulo Charles Mauron a la hora de tratar el concepto de mito personal dentro de la creatividad humana.
BBR': an implementation of bottleneck bandwidth and round-trip time congestion control for ns-3

The dominant Internet protocol, TCP, does not work as well as it could over the wide-variety of networks facing today's applications. Bottleneck Bandwidth and Round-trip time (BBR) congestion control has been proposed as an improvement, with the promise of higher throughputs and lower delays as compared to other TCP congestion control algorithms. While BBR has been implemented for Linux, unfortunately, there is not yet an implementation for ns-3, a powerful, flexible and popular simulator used for network research. This paper presents BBR', an implementation of BBR for ns-3. BBR' extends ns-3 in a fashion similar to other TCP congestion control algorithms, re-using existing interconnection mechanisms and making BBR' extensible. Preliminary validation shows BBR' behaves and performs similarly to BBR, and preliminary performance evaluation shows BBR' has similar throughputs but significantly lower round-trip times than CUBIC in some wired and 4G LTE wireless scenarios.
IT for Teamwork and Collaboration

From e-mails to mobile video-conferencing, Information systems play an important role in enabling communication among individuals. A significant amount of IS research is devoted to understanding the effect of the IT on communication and collaboration, including communication between individuals, teamwork, and the creation and development of larger virtual communities.
THE BASIS FOR IMMUNITY TO INFLUENZA IN MAN

I. ABSTRACT Infection or vaccination with an influenza virus induces a variety of humoral and cellular immune responses. Among these, the subtype specificity and duration of antibody responses most closely match related characteristics of infection-induced immunity in man. Furthermore, in vitro and in vivo animal studies suggest that the most probable mediator of resistance to influenza is antibody to the hemagglutinin (HA), either in serum or respiratory secretions. A role for anti-HA antibody in secretions was sought in human studies utilizing immunization followed by virus challenge and sensitive radio-immunoprecipitation assays for detection of antibody. Serum IgG antibody was more consistently and more strongly related to resistance to challenge than was antibody in secretions. Moreover, passive immunization of infants has been recently shown to be associated with immunity to influenza. Thus, we believe currently available evidence favors the concept that serum IgG antibody to the influenza virus hemagglutinin is not only the best correlate but is probably the primary mediator of immunity to influenza.
Influence of Cultivation Conditions on Glycosylation Pattern-a Fed-Batch and Continuous Culture Study

This project focused on the relationship between cultivation conditions and glycosylation pattern of a recombinant fusion protein produced by a CHO derived cell line. During the investigation it was found that the glycosylation pattern changed during fed-batch cultivation: sialic acid content and antennary complexity increased with cultivation time although ammonium concentration and most likely glycosidase activities — two factors which reportedly can decrease sialic acid concentration-increased simultaneously. Continuous cultures were performed to identify which environmental and kinetic variables impact the glycosylation process. A change in glycosylation pattern was only found when the specific productivity during a continuous culture was increased transiently by an increase in ferric citrate concentration. This indicated that it is a kinetic variable which influences the glycosylation of the studied fusion protein. Further experiments focused on the glycosylation of intracellular fusion protein and support the hypothesis that specific productivity, or rather the residence time of the protein in the Golgi apparatus, is crucial to the extent of glycosylation. Notably, concentration, molecular weight, and sialic acid content of the fusion protein increased with cultivation time, suggesting that a prolonged residence time in the Golgi apparatus leads to more complete glycosylation.
Creating building ground plans via robust K -way union: A step toward large-scale simulation in urban environment

Due to collaborative efforts and advances in data acquisition technology, a large volume of geometric models describing urban buildings has become available in public domain via “Digital Earth” software like ESRI ArcGlobe and Google Earth. As a consequence, almost every major international city has been reconstructed in the virtual world. Although mostly created for visualization, we believe that these urban models can benefit many applications beyond visualization including video games, city scale evacuation plans, traffic simulations, and earth phenomenon simulations. However, before these urban models can be used in these applications, they require tedious manual preparation that usually takes weeks, if not months. In this paper, we present a framework that produces disjoint 2D ground plans from these urban models, an important step in the preparation process. Designing algorithms that can robustly and efficiently handle unstructured urban models at city scale is the main technical challenge. In this work, we show both theoretically and empirically that our method is resolution complete, efficient, and numerically stable.
Guidelines for Bestowing of Medals

The Founders’ Medal is presented in honor of the initiators of the International Skeletal Society and its former Presidents, Harold Jacobson, Ronald O. Murray and Jack Edeiken, that they may be preserved in memory for future generations.
Voluntary dislocation of the shoulder. A preliminary report on a clinical, electromyographic, and psychiatric study of twenty-six patients.

Clinical, roentgenographic, electromyographic, and psychiatric studies of twenty-six patients with voluntary dislocation of one or both shoulders revealed that dislocation was produced by suppression of one element of one of the muscle force-couples responsible for normal shoulder motion, that most patients responded well to muscle-strengthening exercises, that patients with significant psychiatric problems did poorly after all types of surgical and non-operative treatment unless their psychiatric problem had been resolved, and that if surgical treatment was undertaken, a combination of procedures was necessary rather than one of the standard operations.
Is the Universal Consensus on ‘Technology Drives Development’ Analytic or Synthetic?

Whether technological progress amplifies or mitigates inequality remains a subject of heated debate. On the one hand, technological innovation has improved our lives, and many have undoubtedly benefitted from such innovation. In addition, the poorer segments of society have been partly able to escape from poverty by becoming more efficient and productive. On the other hand, some innovations have largely replaced human tasks, and many have indeed lost their jobs as a result thereof. In effect, those who do not benefit from technological advancements are taken away from substantive economic activities while the beneficiaries become wealthier. Given the complicated role (i.e., double-sidedness) of technology for growth and inequality dynamics, the objective of this chapter is to integrate these complexities into a broad S-curve paradigm. Developmental S-Curve is proposed to systematically explain how these three dimensions (i.e., technology, development, and inequality) interact under the S-curve framework. This proposed framework is used to attempt to challenge a universal consensus, namely that ‘technology advancement drives economic growth’ and concludes that such a utilitarian belief may not always be proved right.
Hybrid control system in an efficient LED driver

This paper presents a unique hybrid control system arising from an efficient multi-string LED driver with pulse-width-modulated (PWM) dimming scheme. The LED driver is based on a single inductor multiple output boost converter. It has two levels of switching, a high frequency switching whose duty cycle is the control input of the boost converter, and a low frequency switching whose duty cycle adjusts the dimming ratio. Due to the time-sharing scheme for multi-channels, feedback control for one channel is applied during only a portion of the dimming period. The switching and the control scheme yield several operation modes which are described by continuous-time systems. As a result of PWM dimming, one of the states periodically jumps to a fixed value and the stability needs to be examined as that of a discrete-time system. The control objective is to ensure stability and to minimize the deviation of LED current from the rated value by choosing circuit and feedback control parameters. Through detailed state-space analysis in continuous-time and discrete-time, this paper examines conditions for stability, evaluates the LED current deviation and utilizes the relationships for the design of circuit and control parameters. Computational results, simulation and experimental waveforms validate the analytical results and effectiveness of the control scheme.
Should Physicians New to a Case Counsel Patients and Their Families to Change Course at the End of Life

Although new cancer therapies have changed the prognosis for some patients with advanced malignancies, the potential benefit for an individual patient remains difficult to predict. This uncertainty has impacted goals-of-care discussions for oncology patients during critical illness. Physicians need to have transparent discussions about end-of-life care options that explore different perspectives and acknowledge uncertainty. Considering a case of a new physician’s objections to an established care plan that prioritizes comfort measures, we review physician practice variation, clinical momentum, and possible moral objections. We explore how to approach such conflict and discuss whether and when it is appropriate for physicians new to a case to challenge established goals of care.
ASTROCOM: A Global Astronomy Community for Telescopes in Education and Outreach

For 20+ years robotic telescopes in education have been the subject of many programs which have come and gone over the years. Long-term sustainability has yet to be achieved. However we are now at a point in technological development and global communication abilities where sustainable programs can be developed and implemented and the community can gather to communicate successes and failures and to share knowledge and ideas. As education is changing with the rapid growth in technology, working actively within the new paradigm to bring together the various stakeholders in a sustainable manner is important. Stakeholders include telescope network owners and operators interested in providing telescopes for education, the educators, the curriculum designers, and the program evaluators. There is a need for an active and dynamic online community meeting space, as the developing community constructs its collective knowledge base and networks of people, technologies and pedagogies. This paper presents a framework and rationale for such an endeavor.
Undergraduate Computer Science Student Perceptions of their Own Field

It is not just K-12 students that have misconceptions about computer science. Undergraduate students entering into a post-secondary computer science major also have significant misconceptions about what a computer scientist actually does on a day-to-day basis, even at the end of their four-year undergraduate computer science program. While the Draw-A-Scientist Test (DAST) investigates student perceptions of scientists in general (Chambers, 1983) and the Draw-An- Engineer Test (DAET) examines student perceptions of engineers (Knight and Cunningham, 2004), there have been few adaptations investigating student perceptions of computer scientists (Martin, 2004). Based on previous research, our study assessed undergraduate computer science student perceptions of computer scientists at both a mid-size research university and a small liberal arts college. Students (n=120) were asked to describe computer scientists in both a visual format and a written format using an adaptation of the DAST. The authors share comparative results for computer science students (pre-test, post-test) perceptions when 1) exposed to an intentional but not explicit curriculum with diverse representation of computer scientist images and a broad range of computer science research areas, and 2) exposed to a regular curriculum without intentional messages about the diversity of computer scientists and the diversity of research areas within the discipline. The poster describes additional scoring measures introduced beyond those in previous instruments which help to better categorize and interpret perceptions of computer science students about their own discipline.
Segmenting the Health Care Market

There is a large body of literature on market segmentation but little of it deals with segmentation for social products, even though the theory applies to a service or a concept as much as a tangible product. The segmentation technique can be illustrated by an ideational product such as health care. Market segmentation refers to dividing the total market into segments consisting of customers with homogeneous needs/wants and resources. Once these segments are identified, it is up to the supplier to decide whether to cater to one segment or all of them. The market is becoming more and more segmented in the health care industry. This is happening because patient needs/wants are not homogeneous, and neither are their time and money resources. Three types of patient characteristics are useful for segmenting the health care market: patient demographics, patient psychographics, and patient frequency of health care utilization.
Pac1/LIS1 promotes an uninhibited conformation of dynein that coordinates its localization and activity

Cytoplasmic dynein is a minus end-directed microtubule motor that transports myriad cargos in various cell types and contexts. How dynein is regulated to perform all these activities with a high degree of spatial and temporal precision is unclear. Recent studies have revealed that human dynein-1 and dynein-2 can be regulated by a mechanism of autoinhibition, whereby intermolecular contacts limit motor activity. Whether this autoinhibitory mechanism is conserved throughout evolution, whether it can be affected by extrinsic factors, and its precise role in regulating cellular dynein activity remain unknown. Here, we use a combination of negative stain EM, single molecule motility assays, genetic, and cell biological techniques to show that the autoinhibitory conformation is conserved in budding yeast, and it plays an important role in coordinating dynein localization and function in cells. Moreover, we find that the Lissencephaly-related protein, LIS1 (Pac1 in yeast) plays an important role in regulating this autoinhibitory conformation of dynein. Specifically, our studies demonstrate that rather than inhibiting dynein motility, Pac1/LIS1 promotes dynein activity by stabilizing the uninhibited conformation, which ensures appropriate localization and activity of dynein in cells.
Real-Time Locating Systems and the Effects on Efficiency of Anesthesiologists.

Objective To investigate the impact of Real Time Locating System (RTLS) technology on the perioperative efficiency of anesthesiologists. Methods A retrospective chart review was performed for all outpatient and short-stay patients who received General Anesthesia care at our institution between January 2016 and October 2017. Patients included were over 18 years and had ASA classification scores of 1, 2, and 3. Only first cases of the day for individual anesthesiologists were included. Duration between two perioperative time points was collected and used as a measure of efficiency. Two groups of anesthesiologists were compared Group 1: Anesthesiologists at Main Campus who do not use RTLSGroup 2: Anesthesiologists at Josie Robertson Surgery Center who use RTLSThe outcome measure collected from patient electronic medical records was defined as DUR: Duration from when patient is admitted to the operating room and initiation of induction only for first case of the day by attending anesthesiologist. The outcome was compared between the two groups using Wilcoxon rank sum test. Results The duration between admission to the OR and initiation of induction was significantly shorter in JRSC (with RTLS) than main campus (without RTLS); specifically, median (25th, 75th percentile) of the duration was 7.0 (5.0, 10.0) at JRSC vs. 8.0 (6.0, 11.0) at main campus (p < 0.0001, Table 1). Conclusion In our initial study, we found that anesthesiologists who had access to RTLS at JRSC performed more efficiently in their preoperative evaluation of patients as well as time to induction for general anesthesia cases. Because of various confounding factors that potentially influenced the increase in efficiency of anesthesiologists with access to RTLS, this follow-up study aims to eliminate several confounding factors by assessing only time to induction of general anesthesia for all first cases of the day by anesthesiologists. We continue to find a small yet statistically significant difference in time to induction of anesthesiologists with access to RTLS. This translates directly into increased efficiency in perioperative workflow. Additional investigation and application can help elucidate the true value of RTLS on workflow efficiency in the healthcare setting.
The unequal distribution of sibling and parent deaths by race and its effect on attaining a college degree.

Abstract Purpose Examine (1) the distribution of experiencing the death of a parent or sibling (family death) by race/ethnicity and (2) how a family death affects attaining a college degree. Methods Participants (n = 8984) were from National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 aged 13–17 at baseline in 1997 and 29–32 in 2013. We examined the prevalence of family deaths by age group and race/ethnicity and used covariate-adjusted logistic regression to assess the relationship between a family death and college degree attainment. Results A total of 4.2% of white youth experienced a family death, as did 5.0% of Hispanics, 8.3% of Blacks, 9.1% of Asians, and 13.8% of American Indians (group test P Conclusions Young people of color are more likely to have a sibling or parent die; and family death during college years is associated with reduced odds of obtaining a college degree. Racial disparities in mortality might affect social determinants of health of surviving relatives, and college policies are a potential intervention point.
Prevalence of financial and health insurance literacy and their association with financial hardship in cancer patients.

70Background: The prevalence of health insurance literacy (HIL) and financial literacy (FL) in cancer patients is not well described. Further, a better understanding of the association between thes...
Inner Peace–Global Impact: Tibetan Buddhism, Leadership, and Work (Advances in Workplace Spirituality: Theory, Research and Application). Charlotte, NC: IAP—Information Age Publishing, 2012 (380 pp., ISBN: 978-1-61735-918-7): Schuyler, Katherine Goldman (Ed.).

Inner Peace–Global Impact: Tibetan Buddhism, Leadership, and Work. The title says it all— leadership is an inside job and the Tibetans seem to have cornered the market on a genuine approach to deve...
Glaucoma and Diabetes: A Sweet Connection

Background/Objective: Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the world. In the United States alone, a little more than three million people live with this disorder which is caused by damage to the optic nerve found in the back of the eye. This is most commonly caused by an increase in the intraocular pressure, or the fluid that maintains the shape and provides nutrients to the eye. Diabetes mellitus (DM), an age-related disorder, is a risk factor for glaucoma. Post-meal, the sugar one eats is managed in the body by the hormone insulin. However, the excess sugar found in diabetics, can exhaust the production of insulin and lead to many adverse complications in the body as well as increase risk of disease. Although some studies suggest a correlation between diabetes and glaucoma, the mechanisms of this association has not been thoroughly investigated. Our objective is to further explore this connection and provide the mechanisms that link diabetes to glaucoma. Results: From retrospective literature review, we find that diabetes is known to have an additive effect on neural apoptosis and in the generation of reactive oxygen in patients with high intraocular pressure. DM also impairs retrograde axonal transport, causes an accumulation of fibronectin in trabecular meshwork, changes eye vasculature, causes dysregulation in lipid metabolism, and malabsorption of vitamins. Conclusion & Scientific/Clinical Policy Impact and Implications: This study sheds light on one of the most troubling eye conditions worldwide. The symptoms of diabetes described here increase ones’ risk of developing glaucoma. These pathways result in obstruction of aqueous humor drainage or direct damage to the optic nerve cells leading to glaucoma. Diabetes is a common disease that involves many body systems. With knowledge of the relationship between diabetes and glaucoma, measures can be taken to prevent irreversible eye damage in the diabetic population.
Doxylamine Overdose in Teenager with Incidental Pituitary Apoplexy: Case Report

Altered mental status and fever in a teenager can be a challenging diagnostic dilemma and thus requires a detailed history and a broad differential diagnosis and workup. A teenager presented with altered mental status and fever was found incidentally to have a pituitary hemorrhage (pituitary apoplexy) but ultimately diagnosed with doxylamine intoxication. Doxylamine, an antihistamine commonly included in sleep aids, toxicity may present with fever and altered mental status and may result in a false positive methadone result on urine toxicology studies due to interference with immunoassay-based drug kits. Pituitary apoplexy is a rare complication of pituitary tumors, usually presenting with headache, visual impairment, and corticotropic abnormalities but not typically associated with altered mental status or impaired consciousness. Although it has the potential for serious sequelae, presentations in pediatric patients have been more subacute.
Fibrosis Regression After Eradication of Hepatitis C Virus: From Bench to Bedside

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and its complications have been the major cause of cirrhosis and its complications for several decades in the Western world. Until recently, treatment for HCV with interferon-based regimens was associated with moderate success but was difficult to tolerate. More recently, however, an arsenal of novel and highly effective direct-acting antiviral (DAA) drugs has transformed the landscape by curing HCV in a broad range of patients, including those with established advanced fibrosis, cirrhosis, comorbidities, and even those with complications of cirrhosis. Fibrosis is a dynamic process comprising both extracellular matrix deposition, as well as its degradation. With almost universal sustained virologic response (SVR) (ie, elimination of HCV), it is timely to explore whether HCV eradication can reverse fibrosis and cirrhosis. Indeed, fibrosis in several types of liver disease is reversible, including HCV. However, we do not know with certainty in whom fibrosis regression can be expected after HCV elimination, how quickly it occurs, and whether antifibrotic therapies will be indicated in those with persistent cirrhosis. This review summarizes the evidence for reversibility of fibrosis and cirrhosis after HCV eradication, its impact on clinical outcomes, and therapeutic prospects for directly promoting fibrosis regression in patients whose fibrosis persists after SVR.
Integrating ultrasound directed self-assembly and additive manufacturing to fabricate engineered materials

Engineered materials comprising specifically designed patterns of particles embedded in a matrix material can display exotic physical properties when interacting with an external field, such as metamaterials (electromagnetic wave field) and structural materials (force field), to only name a few. Altering the pattern of particles that constitutes the microstructure of the engineered material enables tuning its properties. We describe a fabrication process to implement macroscale engineered materials layer-by-layer using additive manufacturing, where in each layer we organize a user-specified pattern of particles using ultrasound directed self-assembly to tailor the microstructure of the material. In contrast with previous demonstrations of fabricating engineered materials that are limited to laboratory-scale and/or 2D implementations, this process enables fabricating macroscale specimens with complex 3D geometry required for engineering applications. Hence, this platform technology has significant implications for fabricating engineered materials relevant to a wide range of applications including manufacturing of composite materials, engineered materials for acoustic and electromagnetic cloaking and sub-wavelength imaging, and 3D printing structures with embedded electrical wiring, among others.