cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
JPL technology readiness assessment guideline

New capabilities in spaceflight missions are enabled by new technologies. Transitioning new technology to spaceflight elements is difficult and introduces risk, but finding the right balance between benefit and risk leads to scientific advancements and novel space missions. A clear understanding of the risks of new technology can create an environment where innovation is nurtured rather than avoided. The Technology Readiness Level (TRL) was developed as a metric for the maturity of new technology, but, in the past, assessing the TRL was often done informally and inconsistently. This frequently led to discrepancies between the TRL as perceived by the technologist and that perceived by a project. JPL has developed a guideline for their projects to provide a basis for a consistent Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA). Highlights of this guideline are presented here. It is anticipated that the implementation of this guideline will enable the hand-off from technologists to project engineers leading to greater acceptance of technologies by flight projects. On completion of a satisfactory TRA, an agreement can be made between the parties on the maturation plan required for successful infusion of the technology into a flight mission.
Cardiac neural crest ablation results in early endocardial cushion and hemodynamic flow abnormalities

Cardiac neural crest cell (CNCC) ablation creates congenital heart defects (CHDs) that resemble those observed in many syndromes with craniofacial and cardiac consequences. The loss of CNCCs causes a variety of great vessel defects, including persistent truncus arteriosus and double-outlet right ventricle. However, because of the lack of quantitative volumetric measurements, less severe defects, such as great vessel size changes and valve defects, have not been assessed. Also poorly understood is the role of abnormal cardiac function in the progression of CNCC-related CHDs. CNCC ablation was previously reported to cause abnormal cardiac function in early cardiogenesis, before the CNCCs arrive in the outflow region of the heart. However, the affected functional parameters and how they correlate with the structural abnormalities were not fully characterized. In this study, using a CNCC-ablated quail model, we contribute quantitative phenotyping of CNCC ablation-related CHDs and investigate abnormal early cardiac function, which potentially contributes to late-stage CHDs. Optical coherence tomography was used to assay early- and late-stage embryos and hearts. In CNCC-ablated embryos at four-chambered heart stages, great vessel diameter and left atrioventricular valve leaflet volumes are reduced. Earlier, at cardiac looping stages, CNCC-ablated embryos exhibit abnormally twisted bodies, abnormal blood flow waveforms, increased retrograde flow percentage, and abnormal cardiac cushions. The phenotypes observed in this CNCC-ablation model were also strikingly similar to those found in an established avian fetal alcohol syndrome model, supporting the contribution of CNCC dysfunction to the development of alcohol-induced CHDs.
Reduced shrinkage stress via photo-initiated copper(I)-catalyzed cycloaddition polymerizations of azide-alkyne resins

Abstract Objectives Polymerization shrinkage stress and factors involved in the stress development such as volumetric shrinkage and modulus were investigated in photo-CuAAC (photo-initiated copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition) polymerization and compared with conventional BisGMA-based methacrylate polymerization for their use as alternative dental resins. Methods Tri-functional alkyne and di-functional azide monomers were synthesized for photo-CuAAC polymerization. Conversion kinetics, stress development and polymerization shrinkage were determined with FTIR spectroscopy, tensometery, and with a linometer, respectively, for CuAAC and BisGMA-based monomer mixtures using a camphorquinone/amine visible light photoinitiator system. Thermo-mechanical properties for the cured polymer matrices were characterized by dynamic mechanical analysis and in three-point bending on a universal testing machine. Polymerization kinetics, polymerization shrinkage stress, dynamic volumetric shrinkage, glass transition temperature (Tg), flexural modulus, flexural strength, and flexural toughness were compared between the two different resin systems. Results A glassy CuAAC polymer (Tg = 62 °C) exhibited 15–25% lower flexural modulus of 2.5 ± 0.2 GPa and flexural strength of 117 ± 8 MPa compared to BisGMA-based polymer (Tg = 160 °C) but showed considerably higher energy absorption around 7.1 MJ × m−3 without fracture when strained to 11% via three-point bend compared to the flexural toughness of 2.7 MJ × m−3 obtained from BisGMA-based polymer. In contrast to BisGMA-based polymers at 75% functional group conversion, the CuAAC polymerization developed approximately three times lower shrinkage stress with the potential to achieve quantitative conversion under ambient temperature photocuring conditions. Moreover, relatively equivalent dynamic volumetric shrinkage of around 6–7% was observed via both CuAAC and dimethacrylate polymerization, suggesting that the low shrinkage stress of CuAAC polymerization was due to delayed gelation along with slower rate of polymerization and the formation of a more compliant network structure. Significance CuAAC crosslinked networks possessed high toughness and low polymerization shrinkage stress with quantitative conversion, which eliminated obstacles associated with BisGMA-based dental resins including limited conversion, unreacted extractable moieties, brittle failure, and high shrinkage stress.
Validity assessment of grading scales predicting complications from embolization of cerebral arteriovenous malformations

Abstract Objective Endovascular embolization, though initially approved as an adjunctive therapy for surgical excision of cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), has found extensive use in the management of these lesions. A number of systems have been proposed to stratify AVMs by the procedural risk of embolization, including the Buffalo score and AVM Neuroendovascular grade. An external validity assessment of these systems has not been performed. Patients and methods A retrospective review of all patients who underwent embolization of cerebral AVMs at a single institution, between 2010 and 2016, was performed. Data including patient demographics, AVM characteristics, procedural details, complications, and outcomes were collected. Results Fifty-five embolization procedures in 39 patients (median age 53.1 years) were identified. Ten (25.6%) patients underwent more than 1 embolization procedure. A triaxial catheter system for support was used in 48 (87.3%) of the embolization procedures and a detachable tip microcatheter was used in 28 (50.9%). Complete obliteration of the AVM was achieved in 10.9% of the cases. There was one (2.6%) mortality unrelated to the procedure. Three minor (5.5%) and 2 major (3.6%) clinical complications occurred. Neither Spetzler-Martin grade, Buffalo score, or AVM Neuroendovascular grade correlated with complications. Conclusion Neither Buffalo score nor AVM Neuroendovascular grade predicted complications from embolization in the present study. Given the relative infrequency of complications, the number of factors that may influence AVM treatment, recent advancements in endovascular technologies, and the subjectivity inherent in these grading systems, the relative utility of risk stratification scales in the embolization of AVMs remains largely unknown.
Complex regional pain syndrome associated with hyperattention rather than neglect for the healthy side : a comprehensive case study

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a dehabilitating chronic condition occurring with peripheral lesions. There is growing consensus for a central contribution to CRPS. Although the nature of this central body representation disorder is increasingly debated, it has been repeatedly argued that CRPS results in motor neglect of the affected side. The present article describes a comprehensive and quantitative case report demonstrating that: (1) not all patients with chronic CRPS exhibit decreased spatial attention for the affected side and (2) patients may actually exhibit a substantial, broad and reliable attentional bias toward the painful side, akin to spatial neglect for the healthy side. This unexpected result agrees with the idea that patients can be hyper-attentive toward their pathological side as a manifestation of lowered pain threshold, allodynia and kinesiophobia.
COHOMOLOGY OF ARITHMETIC GROUPS AND PERIODS OF AUTOMORPHIC FORMS

We recall some unusual features of the cohomology of arithmetic groups, and propose that they are explained by a hidden action of certain motivic cohomology groups.
Online learning of Contextual Hidden Markov Models for temporal-spatial data analysis

The problem of mining a network of time series data naturally arises in many research areas including energy system, quantitative finance, bioinformatics, environmental monitoring, traffic monitoring, etc. Among others, two emerging challenges shared by manifold applications are (1) the modeling of temporal-spatial dependence with contextual information and (2) the design of efficient learning algorithms for big data (exceedingly long sequence) analytics. In this paper, we study a Contextual Hidden Markov Model (CHMM) that describes infinite temporal dependence and contextual spatial relations in an unified framework. More importantly, to make model training feasible for growing number of data samples, we develop an Online Expectation-Maximization (OEM) algorithm that avoids the usual forward-backward pass of the entire time sequence. Two typical applications, missing value recovery and novelty detection, are considered to test CHMM and the online algorithm. Experiments are conducted on real world data collected from power distribution network monitoring. We compare CHMM with other popular methods and the results not only justify the benefit of incorporating temporal-spatial and contextual information, but also demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed OEM algorithm.
Conocimiento occidental y saberes indígenas en la educación intercultural en el Ecuador

This article analyzes the relationships between indigenous and Western forms of knowledge in intercultural bilingual education (EIB) in Ecuador. The work shows that the tensions between both forms of knowledge reflect differences in the ways that indigenous leaders and communities understand the role of formal education. The article also argues that the allies of indigenous movements (religious groups, academics, NGOs, and others) and indigenous communities have different educational aims. Whereas allies and indigenous leaders see EIB as a tool to preserve indigenous language and culture, indigenous parents and students seek access to western forms of knowledge such as Spanish literacy, English, and computers. Communities do not underestimate indigenous knowledges based on oral narratives and elder wisdom. However, the article argues that indigenous individuals do not think that the school system is the right place for the reproduction of this wisdom. These knowledges are typically shared outside of school premises in the domains of the family and community. The author gathered the data for this article with a group of indigenous researchers through a collaborative methodology. Thus, this study contributes with internal and critical points of view that complement those of other studies.
Incidence of postpartum endomyometritis following single-dose antibiotic prophylaxis with either ampicillin/sulbactam, cefazolin, or cefotetan in high-risk cesarean section patients.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of single-dose antibiotic prophylaxis against postpartum endomyometritis in high-risk cesarean section patients. DESIGN: Patients were administered one of three single-dose antibiotic regimens following umbilical cord clamping after cesarean section delivery. SETTING: Prospective randomized trial at a university-based hospital. PATIENTS: The study evaluated 293 consenting women undergoing cesarean section who had either experienced labor for a duration of > or = 6 hr or rupture of amniotic membranes. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Development of postpartum endomyometritis. RESULTS: The incidence of postpartum endomyometritis was 7/95 (7.4%) following the ampicillin/sulbactam regimen, 14/98 (14.3%) after the cefazolin regimen, and 11/99 (11.1%) after the cefotetan regimen. There was no significant difference in postpartum infection among the three study arms. In addition, the incidence of endomyometritis in the three single-dose study arms was not higher than previously noted in studies where three doses of antibiotic were administered. CONCLUSION: Single-dose antibiotic prophylaxis should replace the standard triple-dose therapy for uninfected women undergoing cesarean section who are at risk for postoperative endomyometritis. Ampicillin/sulbactam, cefazolin, and cefotetan are all reasonable antibiotic choices for single-dose therapy.
Evaluation of a Residential Scale Hybrid Co-Generation System

The performance and thermoeconomics of a residential co-generation with fuel cell system were simulated and demonstrated that there is a significant energy, exergy and cost advantage to it over the base solution. Three different operational strategies were investigated. The thermoeconomic value of electricity production and the thermal load is $0.081, $0.2613 and $0.085/KWh for strategies a), b) and c), respectively, as compared to that for the baseline solution of purchasing from the utility, $0.2615. All three strategies significantly outperformed the utility based solution. At the present time only few people are using onsite cogeneration system. Even though this project has economic competitiveness, people may not be willing to use it, because of the complexity of the system itself, the maintenance time and the site location. The issue is a tradeoff of the above disadvantages and the cost factors and independence of operating off grid.Copyright © 2016 by ASME
Centralized multi-node repair in distributed storage

In distributed storage systems, multiple storage node failures are frequent and efficiently recovering them is crucial for high system performance. In this work, we consider the problem of repairing multiple failures in a centralized way, which can be desirable in many data storage configurations. We first establish the tradeoff between the repair bandwidth and the storage size for functional repair. Using a graph-theoretic approach, the optimal tradeoff is identified as the solution to an integer optimization problem, for which we derive a closed-form expression. When the number of erasures e satisfies e ≥ k, k being the minimum number of nodes needed to reconstruct the entire data, the tradeoff reduces to a single point, for which we provide an explicit code construction. Expressions of the extreme points, namely the minimum storage multi-node repair (MSMR) and minimum bandwidth multi-node repair (MBMR) points, are also derived. Furthermore, we prove that functional MBMR point is not achievable for linear exact repair codes. Finally, for e | k and e | d, where d is the number of helper nodes during repair, we show that the functional repair tradeoff is not achievable under exact repair, except for maybe a small portion near the MSMR point, which parallels the results for single erasure repair by Shah et al.
Mucosal Thickening Occurs in Contralateral Paranasal Sinuses following Sinonasal Malignancy Treatment.

Objective To investigate the incidence and degree of contralateral sinus disease following treatment of sinonasal malignancy (SNM) using radiological findings as an outcome measure. Study Design Retrospective case series. Setting Tertiary referral academic center. Participants Patients with SNM treated with surgical and adjuvant radiotherapy with or without concurrent chemotherapy. Main Outcome Measures Pre- and posttreatment computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging scans, Lund–Mackay (LM) score, date of diagnosis, chemotherapy, and dosage of radiation therapy (RT). Results There was a significant difference between pre- and posttreatment LM scores (p Conclusions Following treatment of SNM with surgical resection and RT, there was a significant increase in incidence and degree of mucosal thickening of the contralateral sinus by LM grading that persisted after the completion of treatment. This indicates the need for long-term follow-up to monitor for chronic rhinosinusitis as a delayed complication following treatment of SNM.
The Market for Factors of Production: Commercial Loans, Slavery, and Land Consolidation

In contemporary societies interest-bearing commercial loans play a key role in allocating scarce resources to the most valuable of their alternative uses. Did ancient Israel know such loans? Unfortunately, neither the Bible nor archaeology provides definitive answers. The Bible does make numerous references to loans and interest but the motives of the borrower are not explained. When, rarely, we are told something of the debtor’s circumstances (for instance, the impoverished widow of 2 Kings 4:1)1, they seem so dire that we are inclined to assume the loan could only have been for the purpose of consumption.
Opportunities and Challenges for Environmental Exposure Assessment in Population-Based Studies

A growing number and increasing diversity of factors are available for epidemiological studies. These measures provide new avenues for discovery and prevention, yet they also raise many challenges for adoption in epidemiological investigations. Here, we evaluate 1) designs to investigate diseases that consider heterogeneous and multidimensional indicators of exposure and behavior, 2) the implementation of numerous methods to capture indicators of exposure, and 3) the analytical methods required for discovery and validation. We find that case-control studies have provided insights into genetic susceptibility but are insufficient for characterizing complex effects of environmental factors on disease development. Prospective and two-phase designs are required but must balance extended data collection with follow-up of study participants. We discuss innovations in assessments including the microbiome; mass spectrometry and metabolomics; behavioral assessment; dietary, physical activity, and occupational exposure assessment; air pollution monitoring; and global positioning and individual sensors. We claim the the availability of extensive correlated data raises new challenges in disentangling specific exposures that influence cancer risk from among extensive and often correlated exposures. In conclusion, new high-dimensional exposure assessments offer many new opportunities for environmental assessment in cancer development. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(9); 1370–80. ©2017 AACR .
IDENTIFYING RISK FACTORS FOR MASSIVE RIGHT VENTRICULAR DILATION IN PATIENTS WITH REPAIRED TETRALOGY OF FALLOT

In repaired tetralogy of Fallot (rTOF), pulmonary insufficiency and volume overload result in varying degrees of right ventricular (RV) dilation. A subset of patients are diagnosed at initial cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) with a massively dilated RV, far beyond published pulmonary valve
Chronic Wounds of the Upper Extremity and Their Management

Chronic wounds represent a significant burden to patients, health-care professionals, and the US health-care system. Identifying and treating the underlying etiology of a chronic wound of the upper extremity are key to success. Diabetes, ischemia (caused by connective tissue diseases, arteriosclerosis, or arterial steal syndrome), osteomyelitis, and intravenous drug abuse are the main causes of chronicity of wounds of the upper extremity in patients seen at our institution. In these patients with multiple comorbidities, a team approach with the collaboration of the radiologist, infectious disease specialist, rheumatologist, vascular surgeon, and plastic surgeon is key to successful wound treatment. Improvement of the vascularization of the upper extremity, radical debridement of the necrotic tissue, and appropriate antibiotic treatment are essential. In this chapter, we review the clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and treatment of chronic upper extremity wounds.
Device Closure of Patent Foramen Ovale Versus Medical Therapy in Cryptogenic Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objectives This study sought to perform a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials comparing device closure with medical therapy in the prevention of recurrent neurological events in patients with cryptogenic stroke and patent foramen ovale. Background The optimal strategy for secondary prevention of cryptogenic stroke with a patent foramen ovale is unclear. Methods Several databases were searched from their inception to March 2013, which yielded 3 eligible studies. The results were pooled as per the different patient populations defined in the studies:—intention-to-treat, per-protocol, and as-treated cohorts. A generic inverse method was used based on time-to-event outcomes in a fixed-effect model. A supplementary analysis pooled the results from only 2 trials (RESPECT [Randomized Evaluation of Recurrent Stroke Comparing PFO Closure to Established Current Standard of Care Treatment] and PC Trial [Randomized Clinical Trial Comparing the Efficacy of Percutaneous Closure of Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) With Medical Treatment in Patients With Cryptogenic Embolism]) as a similar device was used in them. Results Our meta-analysis yielded effect-estimate hazard ratios of 0.67 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.44 to 1.00, I2 = 0%) in the intention-to-treat cohort, 0.62 (95% CI: 0.40 to 0.95). I2 = 0%) in the per-protocol cohort, and 0.61 (95% CI: 0.40 to 0.95, I2 = 38%) in the as-treated cohort, showing beneficial effects of device closure. The results became more robust with pooled results from RESPECT and the PC Trial: The effect-estimate hazard ratios being 0.54 (95% CI: 0.29 to 1.01, I2 = 0%), 0.48 (95% CI: 0.24 to 0.94, I2 = 26%), and 0.42 (95% CI: 0.21 to 0.84, I2 = 26%) in the intention-to-treat, per-protocol, and as-treated populations, respectively. Conclusions Our meta-analysis suggests that PFO closure is beneficial as compared to medical therapy in the prevention of recurrent neurological events. This meta-analysis helps to further strengthen the role of device closure in cryptogenic stroke.
Insulin sensitivity and secretion in Arab Americans with glucose intolerance.

Abstract Background: This study examined the pathophysiological abnormalities in Arab Americans with impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and/or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). Subjects and Methods: Homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), homeostasis model assessment of insulin secretion (HOMA-%β), and the Matsuda Insulin Sensitivity Index composite (ISIcomposite) were calculated from the fasting and stimulated glucose and insulin concentrations measured during the oral glucose tolerance test in a population-based, representative, cross-sectional sample of randomly selected Arab Americans. Results: In total, 497 individuals (42±14 years old; 40% males; body mass index [BMI], 29±6 kg/m2) were studied. Multivariate linear regression models were performed to compare HOMA-IR, HOMA-%β, and ISIcomposite among individuals with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) (n=191) versus isolated IFG (n=136), isolated IGT (n=22), combined IFG/IGT (n=43), and diabetes (n=105). Compared with individuals with NGT...
Sequential lung, liver and bone scans following a single injection of one radiopharmaceutical.

The behavior of intravenously injected /sup 87m/Sr-labeled strontiumcalcium-phosphate complex in dogs and rabbits is described. The particles passed through stages of macroaggregates, colloids, and finally free ions. A possible biological and biophysical explanation was attempted. (auth)
Thermal ablation versus wedge or segmental resection in patients with early stage hepatocellular carcinoma: a population survival analysis.

Abstract Background The aim of this retrospective review was to evaluate the long-term survival benefits of thermal ablation versus wedge or segmental resection in solitary HCC lesions using tumor size and clinical factors. Methods Survival analysis was performed on 43,601 patients from 2004 to 2015 in the National Cancer Database with solitary HCC lesions ≤5 cm with further stratification by tumor size, fibrosis score, and type of resection. Results In patients with moderate fibrosis or less, survival benefit was seen with one-segment resection over ablation in tumors 1.1–3 cm (HR 0.54, p = 0.03) while tumors of 3.1–5 cm received survival benefit from wedge (HR 0.44, p = 0.04), one (HR 0.28, p = 0.001) and two-segment (HR 0.20, p = 0.001) resections over ablation. In patients with severe fibrosis to cirrhosis, wedge resection demonstrated survival benefit over ablation in patients with tumors 1.1–3 cm (HR 0.48, p = 0.01) with no survival benefit of any resection type in patients with tumors of 3.1–5 cm. Conclusion These findings suggest that the decision to utilize thermal ablation versus resection to extend survival in solitary HCC lesions should include tumor size, fibrosis score, and type of resection.
PPARγ is required for CD4+ T cell proliferation, survival, and disease-mediation in lymphopenia-associated autoimmunity. (101.21)

Ligands for the nuclear hormone receptor PPARγ ameliorate many autoimmune conditions in both mice and humans. Recent reports have also suggested that PPARγ is important in regulatory T cell function and in preventing the development of pathogenic Th17 cells. In contrast to this role of PPARγ in suppressing autoimmunity, we now find that CD4+ T cell PPARγ expression is required for development of autoimmunity under lymphopenic conditions. PPARγ-deficient (PPARγ-/-) CD4+ T cells are unable to mediate disease in both murine graft-versus-host disease and an adoptive transfer model of colitis. In the colitis model, PPARγ is required for the accumulation and cytokine production of CD4+ T cells in the spleen, mesenteric lymph nodes, and colonic lamina propria. This defect is specific for CD4+ T cells as PPARγ-/- CD8+ T cells accumulate equally to wild type CD8+ T cells. Mechanistically, PPARγ-/- CD4+ T cells show diminished in vivo proliferation as assessed via Ki67 staining, but no difference in activation marker expression demonstrating that PPARγ is required for proliferation and cytokine production but not for activation. Endogenous PPARγ-/- CD4+ T cells recover normally after mice are sub-lethally irradiated demonstrating that loss of proliferative potential requires antigen-induced activation as well as lymphopenia. Our results identify a novel function for PPARγ in the proliferation and survival of CD4+ T cells in lymphopenia-associated autoimmunity.
15 Electric Circuits

This chapter introduces the analysis and design of linear circuits. It reviews basic direct-current (DC) analysis using traditional circuits theorems with application to circuit analysis and design. Using node voltage instead of element voltages as circuit variables can greatly reduce the number of equations that must be treated simultaneously. The chapter treats the analysis and design of circuits containing active devices such as transistors or operational amplifiers (op amps). It also discusses alternating current (AC) circuits. Those ac circuits that are excited by a single frequency, for example, power systems, can be easily and effectively analyzed using sinusoidal steady-state techniques. Linear circuits are often characterized by their behavior to sinusoids, in particular, how they process signals versus frequency. Audio, communication, instrumentation, and control systems all require signal processing that depends at least in part on their frequency response. Keywords: active devices; alternating current (AC) circuits; direct-current (DC) analysis; frequency response; linear circuits; sinusoidal steady-state techniques; transient response
Universal Energy Dependence of Sputtering Yields At Low Ion Energy

Sputtering yields Y(E)at ion energies E keV are shown to be described by the equation Y(E) = A(E n - ) where A, n, and the threshold energy E th are constants characteristic for a particular projectile/target combination. Examination of a wide variety of systems reveals that n = 0.5 provides an excellent universal representation of a large body of data, including physical sputtering of metals by noble gas ions, selfsputtering of metals, as well as physical and chemical sputtering of Si and SiO 2 . The above value for n is consistent with a 1/r 4 power law atom-atom interaction potential within Sigmund's theory of sputtering. Another conclusion is that the effect of E th on Y(E) must be taken into account at ion energies as high as 1 keV, not just near the sputtering threshold.
The effect of cyclopiazonic acid on the development of pale, soft, and exudative pork from pigs of defined malignant hyperthermia genotype.

Malignant hyperthermia (MH) and the mycotoxin cyclopiazonic acid (CPA) are each associated with abnormal calcium homeostasis in skeletal muscle, a key underlying factor in the development of pale, soft, and exudative (PSE) pork. To determine whether the natural presence of CPA in livestock feed ingredients contributes to the varying incidence of PSE in the pork industry, various levels of CPA (.1 to 50 mg/kg of diet) were included in the diets of market weight hogs (n = 52) of defined malignant hyperthermia genotype (NN = normal, Nn = a MH carrier, and nn = MH-positive). Animals with two copies of the MH mutation (nn) displayed improved live animal performance compared with NN and Nn animals (increased feed intake, average daily gain, and feed efficiency) but yielded lower quality loin chops as indicated by lower 45-min pH (P .2) on either live animal performance or meat quality. During the second trial, conducted under extreme outside temperatures (-18 degrees C), CPA-dependent reductions (P<.05) in feed intake, average daily gain, and 45-min pH in nn hogs support the possibility of interactions between malignant hyperthermia and dietary CPA on skeletal muscle calcium homeostasis and the development of PSE pork. These results suggest that this interaction may require stressful environmental conditions or the ingestion of CPA doses much higher than occur under natural conditions.
Pharmaceutical Prescribing Patterns and Costs During Hurricane Harvey Shelter Operations in Dallas, Texas

Introduction:Hurricane Harvey made landfall in southeast Texas in August 2017, causing unprecedented flooding throughout the Texas coastal region. Residents of affected regions were forced to evacuate to nearby unaffected areas, including Dallas, TX, where a large shelter operation was opened for 23 days to care for those evacuees. Retrospective evaluation of pharmaceutical prescribing patterns for the evacuees who self-presented to the Megashelter Medical Clinic (MMC) established in the shelter contributes to developing evidence-based planning strategies for healthcare delivery in the post-disaster setting.Aim:To describe the pharmacy needs of a displaced population following a large-scale evacuation after a hurricaneMethods:De-identified prescription records written and filled at a shelter pharmacy were reviewed, looking at both cost and category of medications dispensed over time.Results:Approximately 41% of evacuees with a total of 2,654 visits utilized the MMC clinic, resulting in 1,590 prescriptions filled with an associated cost of $78,039. The most commonly prescribed drug categories were cardiovascular (21.2%), neuropsychotropic (15.6%), infectious disease (12.5%), and endocrine (9.6%). While the most commonly dispensed were antihypertensives, diabetes treatment-related prescriptions, antibacterials, antidepressants, and NSAIDs, the costliest individual prescriptions were antiretrovirals and antipsychotics.Discussion:Prescribing patterns for the MMC differed from normal prescribing patterns of a general population. Of the prescriptions dispensed at the MMC, pharmaceutical prescription patterns suggest the immediate needs of evacuees differ from later needs. There is a greater need for chronic disease management in the early phase of shelter operations, and an increasing need for neuropsychotropic and infectious disease prescriptions over time. Understanding overall patterns of drug utilization over the duration of the shelter provides valuable insight on post-disaster medical resource utilization in evacuee populations.
CrowdMuse: Supporting Crowd Idea Generation through User Modeling and Adaptation

Online crowds, with their large numbers and diversity, show great potential for creativity. Research has explored different ways of augmenting their creative performance, particularly during large-scale brainstorming sessions. Traditionally, this comes in the form of showing ideators some form of inspiration to get them to explore more categories or generate more and better ideas. The mechanisms used to select which inspirations are shown to ideators thus far have not taken into consideration ideators' individualities, which could hinder the effectiveness of support. In this paper, we introduce and evaluate CrowdMuse, a novel adaptive system for supporting large-scale brainstorming. The system models ideators based on their past ideas and adapts the system views and inspiration mechanism accordingly. We evaluate CrowdMuse over two iterative large online studies and discuss the implication of our findings for designing adaptive creativity support systems.
Combined exposure to lead, cadmium, mercury, and arsenic and kidney health in adolescents age 12–19 in NHANES 2009–2014

Abstract Background Occupational and environmental exposures to toxic metals are established risk factors for the development of hypertension and kidney disease in adults. There is some evidence of developmental metal nephrotoxicity in children and from animal studies; however, to our knowledge no previous studies have examined associations between co-exposure to nephrotoxic environmental metals and children's kidney health. Objective The objective of this study was to assess the association between co-exposure to lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As), measured in urine and blood, and kidney parameters in US adolescents. Methods We performed a cross-sectional analysis of a subsample of 2709 children aged 12–19 participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 2009 and 2014. We analyzed urine levels of 4 nephrotoxic metals selected a priori (As, Cd, Pb and Hg), U mix , and 3 nephrotoxic metals in blood (Cd, Pb, and Hg), B mix , using a weighted quantile sum (WQS) approach. We applied WQS regression to analyze the association of B mix and U mix with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), serum uric acid (SUA), urine albumin, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and systolic blood pressure (SBP), adjusting for sex, race/ethnicity, age, head of household's education level, height, BMI, serum cotinine, and NHANES cohort year. U mix and urine albumin models were also adjusted for urine creatinine, and B mix models were also adjusted for fish consumption. Subanalyses included stratification by sex and an arsenic-only model including six speciated forms of As measured in urine. Results In WQS regression models, each decile increase of U mix was associated with 1.6% (95% CI: 0.5, 2.8) higher BUN, 1.4% (95% CI: 0.7, 2.0) higher eGFR, and 7.6% (95% CI: 2.4, 13.1) higher urine albumin. The association between U mix and BUN was primarily driven by As (72%), while the association with eGFR was driven by Hg (61%), and Cd (17%), and the association with urine albumin was driven by Cd (37%), Hg (33%), and Pb (25%). There was no significant relationship between U mix and SUA or SBP. In WQS models using the combined blood metals, B mix , each decile increase of B mix was associated with 0.6% (95% CI: 0.0, 1.3) higher SUA; this association was driven by Pb (43%), Hg (33%), and Cd (24%) and was marginally significant ( p = 0.05). No associations were observed between B mix and urine albumin, eGFR, BUN, or SBP. Conclusions The findings suggest metals including As, Pb, Hg, Cd and their combinations may affect renal parameters, although potential reverse causation cannot be ruled out due to the cross-sectional study design. Implications of early life low-level exposure to multiple metals on kidney function may have far-reaching consequences later in life in the development of hypertension, kidney disease, and renal dysfunction. Longitudinal studies should further evaluate these relationships.
Inoculation Period and Citrus Host Effect Establishment of New Infections of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ Transmitted via Vegetative Grafting

Vegetative grafting is a common method of transmitting and propagating 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus', the bacterial species accepted as the causal agent of the citrus disease huanglongbing (HLB). Generally, infected tissue that is grafted to a receptor tree remains in place indefinitely to ensure transmission. In this study, individual HLB-symptomatic leaves were grafted as 'Ca. L. asiaticus' inoculum sources to receptor trees of six citrus types and removed after an inoculation period (IP) of 21, 51, or 81 days. The goal was to assess the effect of varying IPs on transmission of bacteria to the receptor tree and on the successful establishment of a new infection. Survival analysis of data from three trials showed a significantly reduced proportion of infected trees with an IP of 21 days compared with IPs of 51 and 81 days but that there was no significant difference in the proportion of infected trees between IPs of 51 and 81 days. In addition, the time to first detection of pathogen DNA in an infected tree was delayed significantly for the 21-day IP when compared with the 51- and 81-day IPs. Survival analysis showed that the probability of infection of sweet orange trees was significantly higher than for trees of five other citrus types throughout the experiment. There was no significant difference between the infection probabilities of these latter five citrus types. The data from this study show that successful infection by grafting is dependent upon the time of exposure to the inoculum, that shorter IPs increase the time needed to establish a systemic infection, and that citrus types vary in their overall susceptibility to infection by 'Ca. L. asiaticus'.
Exploring the Impact of Exposing CS Majors to Programming Concepts using IDE Programming vs. non-IDE Programming in the Classroom

Due to the increased demand for computer scientists in the, the importance to improve the retention rate of CS majors who could potentially fill such positions has been ongoing. Literature has produced many efforts for increasing the engagement of CS majors in the field while also exploring ways to improve their ability to develop the ideal skill sets for success. In such efforts, our research explores the impact of visual and/or command-line based programming editors and their ability to shape the students' mental model as they learn to program. This abstract discusses a "think-aloud" protocol assessment that was conducted on two entry level programming courses at a university in the United States during the 2018-2019 school year. The objective of this assessment was to determine whether Repl.IT, a web-based IDE, and Cygwin/Nano Editor, a command line-based tool, impacted student performance while being used for programming. Our preliminary results showed that 41% of the students using Repl.IT completed the assigned task for the assessment, while 53% of the students using the Cygwin/Nano editor did the same. The results concerning assignment incompletion revealed that students who did not complete their assignment and used Repl.IT did so because of assignment complexity and programming language difficulty, whereas assignment complexity and tool usage difficulty lead to assignment incompletion for students using Cygwin/Nano. This assessment also revealed that Repl.IT students exhibited a higher comfort, confidence, and fondness for using their editor than the Cygwin/Nano students.
More to the Story: The Unforeseen Impacts of the 2018 Midterms

Unforeseen Impacts assembles six chapters by respected and emerging scholars in political science, computer and data science, and sociology to produce a sustained look at the 2018 midterm election. These chapters emerged from papers presented at the American Elections Symposium held at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College. They apply an impressive diversity of theoretical explanations and methodological approaches to explore the factors that shaped an American election and what impact it could have in the future.
Fourth Annual Pediatric Interagency Registry for Mechanical Circulatory Support (Pedimacs) Report

Background The Pediatric Interagency Registry for Mechanical Circulatory Support (Pedimacs), originally a National Institutes of Health–sponsored U.S. database, provides a platform to understand the population of children supported with ventricular assist devices (VADs) during this time of increasing numbers, new devices, expanding indications, and improved outcomes. Methods Between September 19, 2012, and December 31, 2019, 44 hospitals implanted 1031 devices in 856 patients under 19 years of age. Results Overall, diagnosis was cardiomyopathy in 497 (58%) patients, congenital heart disease (CHD) in 216 (25%), myocarditis in 85 (10%), and other in 58 (7%). Positive outcome (alive on device or bridge to transplantation and recovery) occurred in 82% at 6 months. The patient cohort for implantable continuous (IC) pumps (n = 365) (age 13.2 ± 3.9 years, 18% Interagency Registry for Mechanically Assisted Circulatory Support [Intermacs] profile 1, 23% intubated at implantation, 16% with CHD) was significantly different from the paracorporeal continuous (PC) pump cohort (n = 212) (age 3.6 ± 4.9 years, 46% Intermacs profile 1, 81% intubated, 42% CHD) and the paracorporeal pulsatile (PP) pump cohort (n = 230) (age 2.7 ± 3.5 years, 31% Intermacs profile 1, 76% intubated, 26% CHD). Consistent with their cohort composition, positive outcomes at 6 months based on device type were the following: IC, 92%; PC, 68%; and PP, 81%. The incidence of cerebrovascular accidents in the IC, PC, and PP cohorts was 7%, 14%, and 15%, respectively. Conclusions IC VADs, the most common VAD type placed in children, are associated with improved outcomes compared with PP and PC devices, though PP and PC devices are limited to supporting our most challenging patients. Noteworthy, the incidence of cerebrovascular accidents for pediatric VADs has significantly decreased and is now 11% overall. This report demonstrates again that although often attributed to age, size, or device type, much of the burden in mortality and adverse events is correlated to the patient’s overall state at VAD implantation.
High-Throughput Bin Packing: Scheduling Jobs With Random Resource Demands in Clusters

We consider a natural scheduling problem which arises in many distributed computing frameworks. Jobs with diverse resource demands (e.g. memory requirements) arrive over time and must be served by a cluster of servers. To improve throughput and delay, the scheduler can pack as many jobs as possible in each server, however the sum of the jobs’ resource demands cannot exceed the server’s capacity. Motivated by the increasing complexity of workloads in shared clusters, we consider a setting where jobs’ resource demands belong to a very large set of diverse types, or in the extreme case even infinitely many types, i.e. resource demands are drawn from a general unknown distribution over a possibly continuous support. The application of classical scheduling approaches that crucially rely on a predefined finite set of types is discouraging in this high (or infinite) type setting. We first characterize a fundamental limit on the maximum throughput in such setting. We then develop oblivious scheduling algorithms, based on Best-Fit and Universal Partitioning , that have low complexity and can achieve at least 1/2 and 2/3 of the maximum throughput respectively, without the knowledge of the resource demand distribution . Extensive simulation results, using both synthetic and real traffic traces, are presented to verify the performance of our algorithms.
Inter-vendor variability and reproducibility of subcostal left ventricular longitudinal strain.

Left ventricular longitudinal strain (LVLS) performed using subcostal windows is a novel alternative for patients who require strain imaging but have poor apical windows. We investigated the reproducibility and inter-vendor variability of subcostal LVLS. One hundred and twenty-four echocardiographic studies were analysed from 73 women with early stage HER2-positive breast cancer. Speckle tracking strain was performed offline using EchoPAC and TomTec on subcostal 4-chamber and 3-chamber views to obtain subcostal 4-chamber (SC4_LS) and 3-chamber (SC3_LS) LVLS which was then averaged (SCav_LS). Reproducibility of subcostal single chamber and averaged LVLS were assessed. Measurements between platforms were compared. Strain was reported in absolute magnitude. EchoPAC measurements of SC3_LS (20.5 ± 2.4% vs. 21.2 ± 2.5%, p = 0.002) and SCav_LS (20.9 ± 2.1% vs. 21.2 ± 2.1%, p = 0.02) were lower than TomTec measurements while SC4_LS was similar (21.3 ± 2.7% vs. 21.3 ± 2.5%, p = 0.94). Mean differences between EchoPAC and TomTec were ≤ 0.6% strain units for all subcostal LVLS measurements; SCav_LS showed the narrowest limits of agreement (LOA) (mean difference − 0.3%, LOA − 3.2 to 2.6%). EchoPAC and TomTec measurements of SCav_LS showed good correlation (r = 0.76, p < 0.001). Intra-observer and inter-observer analysis showed good reproducibility. Inter-observer variability was lower than inter-vendor variability; SCav_LS was most reproducible: inter-observer relative mean error was 3.6% for EchoPAC and 4.3% for TomTec and inter-observer LOA were ± 2.1% for EchoPAC and ± 2.6% for TomTec. Averaged subcostal LVLS was highly reproducible with inter-observer variability comparable to GLS. Inter-vendor differences in averaged subcostal LVLS were small but statistically significant.
Role of synergy and antagonism in designing multidrug adaptive chemotherapy schedules

Chemotherapeutic resistance via the mechanism of competitive release of resistant tumor cell subpopulations is a major problem associated with cancer treatments and one of the main causes of tumor recurrence. Often, chemoresistance is mitigated by using multidrug schedules (two or more combination therapies) that can act synergistically, additively, or antagonistically on the heterogeneous population of cells as they evolve. In this paper, we develop a three-component evolutionary game theory model to design two-drug adaptive schedules that mitigate chemoresistance and delay tumor recurrence in an evolving collection of tumor cells with two resistant subpopulations and one chemosensitive population that has a higher baseline fitness but is not resistant to either drug. Using the nonlinear replicator dynamical system with a payoff matrix of Prisoner's Dilemma (PD) type (enforcing a cost to resistance), we investigate the nonlinear dynamics of this three-component system along with an additional tumor growth model whose growth rate is a function of the fitness landscape of the tumor cell populations. A key parameter determines whether the two drugs interact synergistically, additively, or antagonistically. We show that antagonistic drug interactions generally result in slower rates of adaptation of the resistant cells than synergistic ones, making them more effective in combating the evolution of resistance. We then design evolutionary cycles (closed loops) in the three-component phase space by shaping the fitness landscape of the cell populations (i.e., altering the evolutionary stable states of the game) using appropriately designed time-dependent schedules (adaptive therapy), altering the dosages and timing of the two drugs. We describe two key bifurcations associated with our drug interaction parameter which help explain why antagonistic interactions are more effective at controlling competitive release of the resistant population than synergistic interactions in the context of an evolving tumor.