cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Heme oxygenase activity in the internal anal sphincter: effects of nonadrenergic, noncholinergic nerve stimulation.

Abstract Background & Aims: To date, the exact role of carbon monoxide (CO) in the nonadrenergic, noncholinergic (NANC) relaxation is not known. This is partly related to the lack of an appropriate method to measure heme oxygenase (HO) activity in the gastrointestinal tissues. Methods: HO activity of the opossum internal anal sphincter (IAS) smooth muscle was determined using a newly developed assay system that used radiolabeled hemin as a substrate. Enzyme activity of the IAS tissues was measured in the basal state, after electric field stimulation (EFS), ganglionic stimulant dimethyl diphenyl piperazinium iodide (DMPP), and neuropeptide vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP). The presence and localization of HO was examined by Western blot analysis and immunocytochemistry. Results: NANC nerve stimulation of the IAS smooth muscle by EFS (0.25–5 Hz), DMPP, and VIP caused a significant increase in the HO activity of the IAS. The increase in HO activity by EFS was inhibited by the HO inhibitor Tin protoporphyrin (1 × 10 −4 mol/L). Both HO-1 and HO-2 were present in the IAS tissue extracts, and both enzymes were localized in the neurons of the myenteric plexus. The method for HO activity determination used in the present study was found to be reliable and reproducible. Conclusions: The data suggest that the HO pathway may have a role in neurally mediated relaxation of the IAS. The exact site of involvement and the source of HO activity, however, remains to be determined. GASTROENTEROLOGY 2000;118:477-486
What is the Return on Investment Associated with Diabetes Disease Management

In this article, we review the reduction in healthcare costs associated with a health maintenance organization (HMO)-sponsored diabetes disease management program in Pennsylvania, USA. The program emphasizes primary care-based nurse education and case management of patients with diabetes mellitus. We found participants in the program experienced a slight increase in health insurance claims related to diabetes care but a notable decrease in total healthcare claims, with a return on investment that exceeded $US3 saved for every dollar expended. The changes we observed appeared within a year of program entry, and were sustained on a month-to-month basis.
Gabapentin treatment for alcohol dependence: a randomized clinical trial

Importance Approved medications for alcohol dependence are prescribed for less than 9% of US alcoholics. Objective To determine if gabapentin, a widely prescribed generic calcium channel/γ-aminobutyric acid–modulating medication, increases rates of sustained abstinence and no heavy drinking and decreases alcohol-related insomnia, dysphoria, and craving, in a dose-dependent manner. Design, Participants and Setting A 12-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized dose-ranging trial of 150 men and women older than 18 years with current alcohol dependence, conducted from 2004 through 2010 at a single-site, outpatient clinical research facility adjoining a general medical hospital. Interventions Oral gabapentin (dosages of 0 [placebo], 900 mg, or 1800 mg/d) and concomitant manual-guided counseling. Main Outcomes and Measures Rates of complete abstinence and no heavy drinking (coprimary) and changes in mood, sleep, and craving (secondary) over the 12-week study. Results Gabapentin significantly improved the rates of abstinence and no heavy drinking. The abstinence rate was 4.1% (95% CI, 1.1%-13.7%) in the placebo group, 11.1% (95% CI, 5.2%-22.2%) in the 900-mg group, and 17.0% (95% CI, 8.9%-30.1%) in the 1800-mg group ( P = .04 for linear dose effect; number needed to treat [NNT] = 8 for 1800 mg). The no heavy drinking rate was 22.5% (95% CI, 13.6%-37.2%) in the placebo group, 29.6% (95% CI, 19.1%-42.8%) in the 900-mg group, and 44.7% (95% CI, 31.4%-58.8%) in the 1800-mg group ( P = .02 for linear dose effect; NNT = 5 for 1800 mg). Similar linear dose effects were obtained with measures of mood ( F 2 = 7.37; P = .001), sleep ( F 2 = 136; P F 2 = 3.56; P = .03). There were no serious drug-related adverse events, and terminations owing to adverse events (9 of 150 participants), time in the study (mean [SD], 9.1 [3.8] weeks), and rate of study completion (85 of 150 participants) did not differ among groups. Conclusions and Relevance Gabapentin (particularly the 1800-mg dosage) was effective in treating alcohol dependence and relapse-related symptoms of insomnia, dysphoria, and craving, with a favorable safety profile. Increased implementation of pharmacological treatment of alcohol dependence in primary care may be a major benefit of gabapentin as a treatment option for alcohol dependence. Trial Registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier:NCT00391716.
Pessimism and behavioural signs of depression in East versus West Berlin

Quantified behavioural signs of depression in relation to pessimism across cultures. First, by observing workmen in 1985 East and West Berlin bars, we found more behaviour consistent with depression in East Berliners than in West Berliners. We then measured pessimism in both cultures by assessing explanatory style in newspaper reports of the 1984 Winter Olympic Games. Despite having more Olympic victories to report, East Berlin newspaper accounts were more pessimistic than West Berlin reports. We suggest that, with proper controls, convergent measurements of explanatory style and behavioural signs consistent with depression allow to quantify pessimism and depression across culture and time.
Interconnect resource-aware placement for hierarchical FPGAs

In this paper, we utilize Rent's rule as an empirical measure for efficient clustering and placement of circuits on hierarchical FPGAs. We show that careful matching of design complexity and architecture resources of hierarchical FPGAs can have a positive impact on the overall device area. We propose a circuit placement algorithm based on Rent's parameter and show that our clustering and placement techniques can improve the overall device routing area by as much as 21% for the same array size, when compared to a state-of-art FPGA placement and routing tool.
EE at work: At home in the lab with semiconductor lasers: A journey that began in the oil fields of Burma has brought this EE home to the lab researching and building “different kinds of lasers”

From Sweden to Burma to the Philippines to New Jersey — with a variety of stops along the way — electrical engineer Anders Olssen has traveled a long and winding road to reach his current position as an MTS (member of the technical staff), with AT&T Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, N.J.
The Mixed-Order BCGS-FFT Method for the Scattering of Three-Dimensional Inhomogeneous Anisotropic Magnetodielectric Objects

This paper presents the first FFT-based fast volume integral equation solver for inhomogeneous anisotropic magnetodielectric objects. The volume integral equations are formulated by employing mixed-order basis functions that expand the flux densities and vector potentials in the coupled field integral equations in terms of different sets of basis functions with different orders. Volumetric roof-top basis functions are used for flux densities whereas second-order curl conforming basis functions are used for vector potentials. A fast volume integral equations solver namely the BCGS-FFT method is then applied to accelerate the solution of this mixed-order weak-form formulation. Examples show that the mixed-order BCGS-FFT method has high accuracy compared to both analytical and numerical solutions. Examples also show the mixed-order BCGS-FFT method has high computational efficiency compared to commercial software.
Cover Crops Can Improve Potato Tuber Yield and Quality

ADDITIONAL INDEX WORDS. tuber size distribution, tuber external defects SUMMARY. There is the need to develop potato (Solanum tuberosum) cropping systems withhigheryieldsand cropquality.Field studieswereconducted withcover crops grown under limited irrigation (<8 inches) to assess the effects of certain types of cover crops on potato tuber yield and quality. On a commercial farm operation before the 2006 and 2007 potato season, mustard (Brassica sp.), canola (Brassica napus), and two cultivars of sorghum-sudangrass (Sorghum bicolor · S. sudanense) were planted. A wet fallow ground treatment where no cover crop was planted was used as a control. Before the 2008 season, barley (Hordeum vulgare), barley plus applied compost, sunflower (Helianthus annus), pea (Pisum sativum), and annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) cover crops were added. The results of these 2006‐ 08 studies showed that cover crops have the potential to increase potato tuber yield and quality, as measured by tuber size (larger tubers) and appearance (e.g., tubers with reduced defects such as cracks, knobs, and misshapes). In 2 of the 3 years, most of the cover crops, especially sorghum-sudangrass, increased yields and tuber quality. Positive results from sorghum-sudangrass suggest there is potential to harvest hay from cover crops and still obtain tuber benefits.
Passive Transport and Facilitated Diffusion

This chapter describes passive transport using a microporous model or a lipid bilayer model of biological membranes. The derived equations define a permeability for either type of membrane as the transmembrane flux divided by the concentration difference across the membrane. This chapter considers facilitated diffusion that produces a saturable flux across the membrane with concentration. It discusses the mechanism of action of ionophores and voltage- and ligand-gated channels.
Detection of Proteins Binding to the EBV EBNA-2 Promoter

Although studies of the regulation of EBV gene expression focusing on analysis of promoter action in vitro have gained momentum recently, identification of specific regulatory factors that may interact by binding to the promoter regulatory sequences have lagged in EBV systems. Here we summarize the main points of new studies that are the first to detect proteins binding to a key EBV promoter. We selected for our initial studies the presumptive promoter for the gene encoding the EBV nuclear antigen-2 (EBNA-2) (1). We selected this promoter because of the probable importance of the gene product as a contributor to EBV cell transformation (2) and because of our work showing that the function of this promoter is down-regulated by the phorbol ester, TPA (3).
Encouraging physician adoption of genetic testing for precision medicine.

Exciting discoveries in genetics and genomics continue to translate into novel predictions of disease susceptibility and increasing use of targeted therapeutics. BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene testing provide timely opportunities for breast and ovarian cancer prevention strategies [1]. CYP1A1 gene testing to assess favorable therapeutic response to imatinib, a targeted therapy for chronic myelogenous leukemia, is improving survival rates [2]. The cost–effectiveness of KRAS gene testing for colorectal cancer has been demonstrated [3]. Our own research with the Coriell Personalized Medicine Collaborative (CPMC) has shown genetic information to be a motivating factor for positive health behavior change in melanoma prevention [4] and coronary artery disease prevention [ Scheinfeldt LB, Schmidlen TJ, Gharani N et al. Unpublished Data ], identified genes associated with sleep duration [5], and generated new models for genomic counseling and education [6,7]. Pharmacogenomics (PGx) to predict and optimize therapeutic response and reduce risk of adverse events is rarely utilized in the clinic despite that as of May 2015, 137 US FDA-approved drugs have PGx information in their labeling [8]. The opportunity to practice meaningful patientcentric care is here; seizing that opportunity could mean easing the chronic disease burden consuming 86% of our nation’s healthcare resources [9]. Genetic testing is a central element of precision medicine. The myriad challenges in moving diagnostics from development to clinical application are many and complex. Physician adoption is one such challenge, frequently highlighted by the startling finding that intervention discovery to utilization takes on average 17 years [10]. It is hardly surprising that genetic testing is experiencing a similar adoption timeline. Acronyms such as genome-wide association studies (GWAS), variant call format (VCF) file and SNP, terms such as haplotype and amplification or the prospect of deciphering analytic algorithms are unlikely to motivate physicians. Moreover, the range of testing available, the steady entrance of new tests and controversies such as FDA warning letters and the use of secondary findings complicate this nascent field of medicine. Do physicians perceive the adoption learning curve for genetic testing to be overwhelming? Learning curves demonstrate performance as a function of volume of training. The upward trajectory of ‘learning’ along the vertical axis before it curves right and plateaus across the horizontal axis of ‘experience’ represents the speed at which the knowledge is acquired and not ‘difficulty’ of knowledge as often supposed. In short, a steep learning curve exhibits one’s rapid movement from low to high performance. Our genetic testing learning curve is composed of six practical learning points to acquire a working knowledge of genetic testing. It begins simply: what is genetic testing? No need for a deep dive in molecular biology; physicians should understand that genetic testing is the analysis of human DNA, RNA Encouraging physician adoption of genetic testing for precision medicine
NUCLEAR VOLUMES AND DNA CONTENT OF THREE STAGES IN THE LIFE CYCLE OF ARMILLARIA BULBOSA

(1986). Nuclear Volumes and Dna Content of Three Stages in the Life Cycle of Armillaria Bulbosa. Mycologia: Vol. 78, No. 6, pp. 967-968.
New Species and Strains of Aphytis (Hymenoptera, Eulophidae) Parasitic on the California Red Scale, Aonidiella Aurantii (Mask.), in the Orient

This paper deals primarily with the Aphytis species or lesser categories considered to be definite and regular parasites of the California red scale, Aonidiella aurantii (Mask.), in the Orient. The importance of species of Aphytis as parasites of diaspine scale insects is discussed and the potential value of strains or other subspecific categories in biological control is emphasized. Pupal pigmentation is described for four species or groups and is shown to be of taxonomic importance. A key is given to five species (or forms) of Oriental Aphytis parasitic on the California red scale. Two new species, Aphytis melinus and A. fisheri , are described, as are two forms whose status is in doubt, the Assam form of A. hispanicus and the Kagoshima form of A. citrinus. The adult females of A. melinus and A. fisheri are very similar, if not indistinguishable, morphologically, but they do not interbreed and the pupae are quite distinct. The known distribution of these species in the Orient is given.
Not Christopolis but Christ and Caesar: Baptist Leadership in Liberia

T here have been few societies in which Baptist ministers have played a more formidable political role than in Liberia. While Liberia is officially declared to be "a Christian state," the constitu tion of this veteran African republic provides that "no religious test whatever shall be required as a qualification for civil office."1 This latter constitutional provision did not prevent, however, the devel opment of a close bond between church and state. Perhaps the late President William Tubman expressed this as succinctly as anyone in a speech given in Ohio in 1954. In reference to the closeness of church and state the president said he wished to leave "the impres sion that their respective fabrics are indissolubly interwoven."2 This was expressed to the author at the grass-roots level by an expe rienced Baptist missionary couple when they exclaimed, ' ' Y ou can not get anywhere politically unless you are a member of the right church."3 In an important study, Merran Fraenkel pointed out that the exact nature of this close relationship between church and state in Liberia has "never been made very clear."4 In the search for further clarity some of the roots of this relationship may be noted. The story of Liberia's founding by the American Colonization Society as an African home for free American blacks is well known and need not be repeated here. Not so well known, however, is the fact that its patrons seriously considered naming this African colony "Christo polis" but in the final analysis decided otherwise.5 Endorsement of
Size Dependence of the Plasmon Ruler Equation for Two-Dimensional Metal Nanosphere Arrays

We have utilized the discrete dipole approximation to study the localized surface plasmon resonance in infinite, periodic two-dimensional arrays of gold nanospheres with the nanospheres arranged according to the {100} face of an fcc crystal. Specifically, we have performed a systematic study of the sensitivity of both the plasmon resonance wavelength shift and extinction properties considering nanosphere diameters ranging from 20 to 100 nm, and for nanosphere gap distances ranging from 0.5 to 6 times the nanosphere diameter. In doing so, we find that the same universal decay length of the plasmon resonance wavelength shift of about 0.2 units of the nanosphere size that was previously found by Jain et al.(1) for nanoparticle dimers is also operant for two-dimensional arrays. However, we also find that the universality of the plasmon ruler is only valid for arrays with nanospheres smaller than a critical nanosphere diameter of about 70 nm, whereas for larger nanosphere diameters, a decrease in the extinctio...
In Response: Reporting recommendations to ensure reliability and reproducibility of ecotoxicity studies--A tripartite initiative.

In Response: Reporting recommendations to ensure reliability and reproducibility of ecotoxicity studies—A tripartite initiative
Surgery and the Fundamental Theorem

In this chapter we develop the techniques of surgery for constructing normal cobordisms and use them to prove the Fundamental Theorem.
Establishing and analysising mosquito hazard warning mode in a military activity area

Objective To investigate the area of a military mosquito hazard warning to establish modes and analysis of the mosquito hazard warning level.Methods Based on three indicators degree of the density of resident mosquitoes,mosquito bites rates and symptoms and the incidence of local mosquito-borne infectious diseases,the establishment of no threat,smaller threat,the greater threat,a threat of serious four harmful levels of warning level.Results The military activities area,the regional mosquito-borne diseases sporadic threat occurs,the mosquito density exceeded 3 times,the main hazards of mosquito vampire biting harassment the mosquito hazard warning level of the region,according to the warning level to determine mosquito harmful levels of design,it was compared big level.Conclusion Military exercises or training of the troops stationed in the region should be guaid to take effective integrated control measures based on the the mosquito hazard warning level.
Rationale and design for an investigation to optimize selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor treatment for pregnant women with depression

The physiological changes of pregnancy can affect the pharmacokinetics of a drug, thereby affecting its dose requirements. Because pharmacokinetic (PK) studies in pregnant women have rarely been conducted, evidence-based dosing adjustments are seldom available. In particular, despite the fact that the use of antidepressants has become increasingly common, pregnancy-associated PK changes of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are largely unknown.
Legacies of Inequity: How Hometown Political Participation and Land Distribution Shape Migrants’ Paths into Wage Labor

Summary While scholars have examined how migration impacts development, this paper asks the opposite question, examining how local development conditions shape patterns of migration. Specifically, I consider how political institutions in rural sending communities create economic opportunities and constraints for their members, channeling potential migrants into farm or urban jobs. To date, scholars have explained differences in the migration paths of similar communities by looking at features on the receiving end, or at the development of social networks tied to migration. I add to this work by showing how hometown conditions influence out-migration. I compare the histories of two rural villages in Southern Mexico whose members migrated at similar times and volumes, first within Mexico beginning in the 1960s, and then to the United States in the 1980s and 1990s. I find that in the village I call “Disposeo,” hierarchical power structures dispossessed members, drove them into debt, and limited their access to urban areas. As a result, when agricultural recruiters came to the village, most potential migrants accepted. By contrast, in “Igualdad,” communal landholding enabled members to reject farm labor. At the same time, rotating political posts helped them build networks into more desirable urban service jobs. As other research underscores, such labor market insertion has long-term consequences: migrants’ first job niches shaped their destinations, social networks, patterns of movement, and social mobility. Thus, even as rural villages erode in the face of emigration, they structure migrants’ prospects in the contemporary economy. In particular, participatory governance and resource redistribution can insulate members from the worst agricultural jobs.
Core Biopsy of the Liver

This section provides a comprehensive procedural report for core biopsy of the liver procedure with up-to-date explanatory notes, synopsis of the indications, and contraindications and potential complications in an organized and practical format.
A Variable State Dimension Approach to Meal Detection and Meal Size Estimation: In Silico Evaluation Through Basal-Bolus Insulin Therapy for Type 1 Diabetes

Objective: This paper aims to develop an algorithm that can detect unannounced meals and estimate meal sizes to achieve a robust glucose control. Methods: A variable state dimension (VSD) algorithm is developed to detect unannounced meals and estimate meal sizes, where a Kalman filter operates on a quiescent state model when no meal is detected, and switches to a maneuvering state model to estimate meal information once the meal-induced glucose variability is statistically significant. Results: Through evaluation using 30 subjects of the UVa/Padova simulator, a basal-bolus (BB) control using the VSD-estimated meal size for each meal can achieve mean blood glucose (BG) of 142 mg/dl with an average 17.7% of time in hypoglycemia. In terms of 20 Monte–Carlo simulations for each subject over a two-day scenario, where each meal/snack has a probability of 0.5 not to be announced, the BB control using VSD for unannounced meals can achieve an average mean BG of 143 mg/dl with 8% of time in hypoglycemia, in contrast to mean BG of 180 mg/dl with 8% of time in hypoglycemia obtained by BB with missing boluses. Additionally, VSD is able to detect a meal within 45 (±14) min since its start with a 76% success rate and 16% false alarm rate. Conclusion: The addition of VSD to the BB control improves glucose control when meal announcements are missed. Significance: The VSD can be used as a complementary tool to detect meal and estimate meal size in absence of a meal announcement.
Interview with Steve Parks

Jennifer Hitchcock interviews community activist and director of Syracuse University’s Composition and Cultural Rhetoric doctoral program, Steve Parks. They discuss Parks’s working-class background, career path, influences, and activism. Parks also considers the direction of the field of composition and rhetoric and expresses optimism for the future.
Predictors of operative failure in parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism

Abstract Introduction Many adjuncts guide surgical decision making in parathyroidectomy, yet their independent associations with outcome are poorly characterized. We examined a broad range of perioperative factors and used multivariate techniques to identify independent predictors of operative failure (persistent disease) after parathyroidectomy. Methods This was a retrospective review of 2239 patients with primary hyperparathyroidism who underwent parathyroidectomy at a single-center from 1999 to 2014. We used multivariate logistic regress to measure associations between multiple perioperative factors and an operative failure (persistent hypercalcemia). Results Operative failure was identified in 67 patients (3.0%). The following variables were independently associated with operative failure on multivariate analysis: IOPTH criteria met (protective, OR = 0.22, P Conclusion In addition to the well-established IOPTH criteria, we suggest that consideration of the above independent perioperative risk factors may further inform surgical decision-making in parathyroidectomy.
Advances in Vibration, Buckling and Postbuckling Studies on Composite Plates

Advances in the understanding of vibration and buckling behavior of laminated plates made of filamentary composite material are summarized in this survey paper. Depending upon the number of laminae and their orientation, vibration and buckling analyses of composite plates may be treated with: (7) orthotropic theory, (2) anisotropic theory, or (3) more complicated, general theory involving coupling between bending and stretching of the plate. The emphasis of the present overview is upon the last. Special consideration is given to the complicating effects of: inplane initial stresses, large amplitude (nonlinear) transverse displacements, shear deformation, rotary inertia, effects of surrounding media, inplane nonhomogeneity and variable thickness. Nonclassical buckling considerations such as initial imperfections are included, as well as postbuckling behavior.
The Complexities of Family Health: Predicting Women’s Employment:

There is a well-documented relationship between health and employment, and among women in particular, research ties health of the workers themselves and their family members to employment outcomes....
The Impacts of Outreach Efforts by Research Computing at the University of Colorado Boulder

An evaluation1 of services offered by Research Computing at the University of Colorado Boulder is presented. This evaluation is attempting to determine the impact of existing services, as well as of new services introduced based on user feedback and research on equivalent HPC groups at other institutions. The available user feedback suggests that most of these services have been well-received.
Supporting English Language Learners in Social Studies: Language-focused Strategies

With the significant enrollment increase of English Language Learners (ELLs) nationwide, social studies teachers face challenges to educate these students. As a response to the literature of prepar...
Quantifying the housing recovery: which MSAs are experiencing bubbles?

The housing market is one of the most cyclical parts of the U.S. economy and played a leading role in the Great Recession. While house prices have recovered, the extent of the recovery varies considerably across markets. We evaluate housing prices in 20 MSAs and find that 12 out of them show a consistent pattern of behavior relative to the nation, while eight cities’ house price indices (HPIs) are characterized as having inconsistent behavior. Our analysis found breaks in the time series behavior of all HPIs. Furthermore, some MSAs, such as New York and Miami, began to recover much sooner than others. Granger causality test results suggest that some MSAs lead the national average and most of the other MSAs. Thus, our study suggests that changes in housing prices in a number of MSAs would provide an early warning for price moves at the national and regional levels.
Reliability of CSF turbulence and choroid plexus visualization on fast-sequence MRI in pediatric hydrocephalus

OBJECTIVE Endoscopic third ventriculostomy with choroid plexus cauterization for the treatment of neonatal and infant hydrocephalus has gained popularity in the past decade. Identifying treatment failure is critically important. Results of a pilot study of 2 novel imaging markers seen on fast-sequence T2-weighted axial MRI showed potential clinical utility. However, the reliability of multiple raters detecting these markers must be established before a multicenter validation study can be performed. METHODS Two sets of de-identified single-shot T2-weighted turbo spin-echo axial images were prepared from scans of patients before and after they underwent endoscopic third ventriculostomy with choroid plexus cauterization between March 2013 and January 2016. The first set showed the lateral and third ventricles for visualization of turbulent CSF dynamics, and the second set showed the lateral ventricular atria for choroid plexus glomus detection. Three raters (Group 1) received written instructions before evaluating each image set once and then again 1 week later. Another 8 raters (Group 2) evaluated both image sets after oral instruction and group training on a pretest image set. Fleiss' kappa coefficients with 95% CIs were calculated for intrarater and interrater reliability in Group 1 and interrater reliability in Group 2. RESULTS Intrarater reliability kappa coefficients for Group 1 were ≥ 0.74 for turbulence and ≥ 0.80 for choroid plexus; their interrater kappa coefficients at the initial assessment were 0.50 (95% CI 0.37-0.62) and 0.56 (95% CI 0.43-0.69), respectively. The Group 2 interrater kappa scores were 0.82 (95% CI 0.78-0.86) for turbulence and 0.62 (95% CI 0.58-0.66) for choroid plexus. CONCLUSIONS With minimal training, intrarater reliability on visualization of turbulence and the choroid plexus was substantial, but interrater reliability was only moderate. After modestly increasing training, interrater reliability improved to near perfect and to substantial reliability for visualization of turbulence and choroid plexus, respectively. Given adequately trained observers, a multicenter investigation into the validity and potential clinical utility of the imaging markers seems feasible.
Fast and Accurate Satellite Multi-view Stereo Using Edge-Aware Interpolation

In this paper, we propose a fast and accurate approach for 3D reconstructions from satellite images. Compared with traditional images, satellite imagery features enormous pixel count, inaccurate camera calibration, and low ground sampling rate, all of which makes multi-view stereo for satellite images more challenging. Our approach first computes sparse but reliable 2D feature matches between image pairs. Such feature matches are used to compensate the extrinsic calibration errors. Preliminary dense correspondences are obtained via edge-aware interpolation of sparse feature matches. We rely on fast bilateral smoothing to refine such initial dense matches, which greatly improves the computational efficiency of our method. The smoothed dense correspondences and the refined camera model are then used to obtain dense 3D point clouds via triangulation. Our proposed method outperforms state-of-the-art baseline methods in both efficiency and accuracy on real-world datasets.
Constitutive Relationships from Impact Studies

It was discovered through free flight impact tests using specimens traveling at a constant velocity prior to impact that one form of the deformation curve for high purity aluminum and copper single crystals could be represented as a 1/4 power law. This particular deformation law as found to be predictable using the stress and strain ratios of the aggregate theory of Taylor. These predictions were made on the basis of the deformation of polycrystalline metals.
Mining multivariate time-series sensor data to discover behavior envelopes

This paper addresses large-scale regression tasks using a novel combination of greedy input selection and asymmetric cost. Our primary goal is learning envelope functions suitable for automated detection of anomalies in future sensor data. We argue that this new approach can be more effective than traditional techniques, such as static red-line limits, variance-based error bars, and general probability density estimation.
Why men get or don’t get treated for locally advanced prostate cancer: Physicians’ perspectives.

e16068 Background: Locally advanced prostate cancer treatment can improve survival. Yet, African American are more likely than white prostate cancer patients to go untreated. We found that 13% of b...
Potential for additional government spending on HIV/AIDS in 137 low-income and middle-income countries: an economic modelling study.

Summary Background Between 2012 and 2016, development assistance for HIV/AIDS decreased by 20·0%; domestic financing is therefore critical to sustaining the response to HIV/AIDS. To understand whether domestic resources could fill the financing gaps created by declines in development assistance, we aimed to track spending on HIV/AIDS and estimated the potential for governments to devote additional domestic funds to HIV/AIDS. Methods We extracted 8589 datapoints reporting spending on HIV/AIDS. We used spatiotemporal Gaussian process regression to estimate a complete time series of spending by domestic sources (government, prepaid private, and out-of-pocket) and spending category (prevention, and care and treatment) from 2000 to 2016 for 137 low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Development assistance data for HIV/AIDS were from Financing Global Health 2018, and HIV/AIDS prevalence, incidence, and mortality were from the Global Burden of Disease study 2017. We used stochastic frontier analysis to estimate potential additional government spending on HIV/AIDS, which was conditional on the current government health budget and other finance, economic, and contextual factors associated with HIV/AIDS spending. All spending estimates were reported in 2018 US$. Findings Between 2000 and 2016, total spending on HIV/AIDS in LMICs increased from $4·0 billion (95% uncertainty interval 2·9–6·0) to $19·9 billion (15·8–26·3), spending on HIV/AIDS prevention increased from $596 million (258 million to 1·3 billion) to $3·0 billion (1·5–5·8), and spending on HIV/AIDS care and treatment increased from $1·1 billion (458·1 million to 2·2 billion) to $7·2 billion (4·3–11·8). Over this time period, the share of resources sourced from development assistance increased from 33·2% (21·3–45·0) to 46·0% (34·2–57·0). Care and treatment spending per year on antiretroviral therapy varied across countries, with an IQR of $284–2915. An additional $12·1 billion (8·4–17·5) globally could be mobilised by governments of LMICs to finance the response to HIV/AIDS. Most of these potential resources are concentrated in ten middle-income countries (Argentina, China, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Russia, South Africa, and Vietnam). Interpretation Some governments could mobilise more domestic resources to fight HIV/AIDS, which could free up additional development assistance for many countries without this ability, including many low-income, high-prevalence countries. However, a large gap exists between available financing and the funding needed to achieve global HIV/AIDS goals, and sustained and coordinated effort across international and domestic development partners is required to end AIDS by 2030. Funding The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Collective petition and local state responses in rural China

China has experienced a dramatic increase in citizen protests and civil unrest in the past two decades. As aggrieved citizens grow more assertive in their demands, government officials increasingly worry about social instability. Stability maintenance has become an obsession of the Chinese state, a focal point of attention for its political-legal apparatus—namely the party committee, the police, the courts and China’s unique petition system. This chapter draws on a unique dataset of collective petitions in a provincial capital in a largely rural province to offer a description of Chinese citizens’ collective petition activities (defined by government regulations as involving five or more people) around the time of the petitions surge in the early 2000s. Specifically, the chapter analyzes how the size of petitions, the petitioners’ social status, and the adoption of disruptive tactics influenced the way that petition officials dealt with the petitioners.
Subcontracting Network Formation Among US Airline Carriers

In this paper, we use Bayesian estimation to study subcontracting network formation and pricing decisions in the US airline industry. We find that, a major carrier is more likely to enter a route in subcontracting services if its rivals have already subcontracted while regional carriers prefer to avoid competition. For existing major carriers per-route, self-service and use of subsidiaries are complementary to subcontracting, while code-sharing is a substitute. Carrier similarity and previously formed networks have significant impacts on new network formations. Taking potential endogeneity issues into account, we find that major carriers’ subcontracting behaviors decrease ticket prices by 3.4%.
Figural Agency: Reading the Child in Amis and Amiloun

Julie Nelson Couch explores the function of the poem’s child heroes and their relation to the genre of Middle English romance. What the author terms the figural agency of the child protagonists opens a rhetorical space that allows an expected romance experience of hero veneration and a spiritual experience of God’s radical mercy. The child protagonists serve both as agents who actively plight troth and adhere to their oath despite all obstacles and as figures who embody Christological suffering. Ultimately, the chapter demonstrates that the reader of Amis and Amiloun experiences a romance discourse that opposes adult and child, stringent legalism and excessive mercy, as inflected through the figural and agential use of childhood.
r.sim.terrain 1.0: a landscape evolution model with dynamic hydrology

Abstract. While there are numerical landscape evolution models that simulate how steady-state flows of water and sediment reshape topography over long periods of time, r.sim.terrain is the first to simulate short-term topographic change for both steady-state and dynamic flow regimes across a range of spatial scales. This free and open-source Geographic Information Systems (GIS)-based topographic evolution model uses empirical models for soil erosion and a physics-based model for shallow overland water flow and soil erosion to compute short-term topographic change. This model uses either a steady-state or unsteady representation of overland flow to simulate how overland sediment mass flows reshape topography for a range of hydrologic soil erosion regimes based on topographic, land cover, soil, and rainfall parameters. As demonstrated by a case study for the Patterson Branch subwatershed on the Fort Bragg military installation in North Carolina, r.sim.terrain simulates the development of fine-scale morphological features including ephemeral gullies, rills, and hillslopes. Applications include land management, erosion control, landscape planning, and landscape restoration.
The Power of a Story: Reading Live and Electronic Storybooks to Young Children

Stories play a critical role in the literacy development of young children, providing them with rich experiences that support their growth as readers. In this chapter, we first describe the landscape of stories in e-books and educational media. We then move to examine the potential for media to reach preschoolers from low-income communities, presenting two case studies of children who read stories in both live and digital media. The research question guiding these case studies was: How effectively can digital books reach young children from underserved populations? Findings from the first case study revealed no differences between the digital or live platform. Preschool children were able to learn from digital platforms and had similar early literacy gains as children who experienced live presentations of storybooks. Findings from the second case study demonstrated that the content of the storybook actually had a stronger influence over a child’s comprehension than the medium did itself, suggesting children’s interest in stories are critical for early literacy. Accordingly, this book chapter does not recommend against the use of digital storybooks, but pushes for a both-and agenda between digital- and live-story use to cultivate emergent literacy among young children and unlock the power of a story.
Driven to comment: Learning from older drivers impressions of in-vehicle technologies:

Many challenges associated with aging faced by older drivers may be attenuated by advancements of in-vehicle technologies. One class in particular, In Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS), refers to ...
MATE: A Memory-Augmented Time-Expansion Approach for Optimal Trip-Vehicle Matching and Routing in Ride-Sharing

Spurred by increasing fuel shortage and environmental concerns, ride-sharing systems have attracted a great amount of attention in recent years. Lying at the heart of most ride-sharing systems is the problem of joint trip-vehicle matching and routing optimization, which is highly challenging and results in this area remain rather limited. This motivates us to fill this gap in this paper. Our contributions in this work are three-fold: i) We propose a new analytical framework that jointly considers trip-vehicle matching and optimal routing; ii) We propose a linearization reformulation that transforms the problem into a mixed-integer linear program, for which moderate-sized instances can be solved by global optimization methods; and iii) We develop a memory-augmented time-expansion (MATE) approach for solving large-sized problem instances, which leverages the special problem structure to facilitate approximate (or even exact) algorithm designs. Collectively, our results advance the state-of-the-art of intelligent ride-sharing and contribute to the field of sharing economy.
Electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) digital microfluidic device for in-line workup in organic reactions: A critical step in the drug discovery work cycle

Abstract As microfluidic systems play important roles to advance chemical synthesis applications in pharmaceutical and life science fields, the demand for fully-automated chemical synthesis work cycles grows. A successful automation of chemical synthesis with high yields requires not only executing sequential steps of organic chemical reactions, but also simple and adaptive purification (i.e., workup) techniques in each step. Despite recent advances in microreactor technologies, seamlessly integrating reactions and work-up toward a fully-automated chemical synthesis platform is an unmet challenge. In this study, we have demonstrated an electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) digital microfluidic device (DMF) as an efficient in-line work-up tool for organic chemical synthesis reactions. The model protocol performed on EWOD DMF involves an acid-base workup, liquid-liquid extraction (LLE), and in-line solvent-swap. Device operation parameters of each reactant and unit process have been optimized. This study manifests the capacity of an EWOD device to transform into a drug discovery platform, particularly by hosting synthetically important reactions that require complicated work-up sequences.
Exogenous Ketones as Therapeutic Signaling Molecules in High-Stress Occupations: Implications for Mitigating Oxidative Stress and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Future Research.

High-stress occupations (ie, firefighters, military personnel, police officers, etc.) are often plagued by cardiometabolic diseases induced by exposure to chronic stressors. Interrupted sleep cycles, poor dietary patterns, lack of physical activity, and smoke exposure along with simultaneous psychological stressors promote chronic low-grade inflammation and excessive oxidative stress. Collectively, these data suggest that practical interventions which might mitigate the underlying pathologies of these cardiometabolic diseases are warranted. Ketones, specifically R-βHB, modulates intracellular signaling cascades such as the cellular redox ratios of NAD+/NADH, the activity of NAD dependent deacetylases SIRT1 and SIRT3, and promotes a robust mitochondrial environment which favors reductions in oxidative stress and inflammation. To date, the literature examining R-βHB as a signaling metabolite has mostly been performed from endogenous R-βHB production achieved through nutritional ketosis or cell culture and mouse models using exogenous R-βHB. To the authors knowledge, only 1 study has attempted to report on the effects of exogenous ketones and the mitigation of oxidative stress/inflammation. Therefore, the scope of this review is to detail the mechanisms of R-βHB as a signaling metabolite and the role that exogenous ketones might play in mitigating diseases in individuals serving in high-stress occupations.
Initial phase of Pu-238 production in Idaho National Laboratory.

The initial phase of Plutonium-238 (Pu-238) production for radioisotope thermal generation is described here in detail. Two dosimeters with/without cadmium sleeve containing Neptunium-237 (Np-237) and other neutron sensors were inserted into the low power Advanced Test Reactor Critical (ATRC) for Pu-238 production testing. The gamma-ray energy measurements from Np-238, the short-lived intermediate product, confirmed that sizable amount of Pu-238 can be produced in the full power Advanced Test Reactor (ATR). The Pu-238 production determined from the irradiation experiment was in accord with the modelling predictions. Detailed studies of the Au/Cu sensors for thermal and epithermal flux analysis and their consistency for sensors in different locations, bare and in Cd-sleeve, provided confidence in the Pu-238 production data.
Key metrics to expanding the pipeline of successful antibody–drug conjugates

Although the recent FDA approval of six new antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) is promising, attrition of ADCs during clinical development remains high. The inherent complexity of ADCs is a double-edged sword that provides opportunities for perfecting therapeutic action while also increasing confounding factors in therapeutic failures. ADC design drives their pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, and requires deeper analysis than the commonly used Cmax and area under the curve (AUC) metrics to scale dosing to the clinic. Common features of current FDA-approved ADCs targeting solid tumors include humanized IgG1 antibody domains, highly expressed tumor receptors, and large antibody doses. The potential consequences of these shared features for clinical pharmacokinetics and mechanism of action are discussed, and key design aspects for successful solid tumor ADCs are highlighted.
Decentralized Makespan Minimization for Uniformly Related Agents

We consider a set of indivisible operations and a set of uniformly related agents, i.e., agents with different speeds. Our aim is to develop a task allocation algorithm that minimizes the makespan in a decentralized manner. To achieve this, we first present the Operation Trading Algorithm. We show that the algorithm guarantees a worst case approximation factor of 1.618 for the 2 agent case and $\frac{1+\sqrt{4n-3}}{2}$ for the general n agent case. Further, we prove that the algorithm guarantees a near-optimal makespan for real-life scenarios with large number of operations under the assumption of a fully connected network of agents. The algorithm also guarantees an approximation factor less than 2 for any number of identical agents. Following this, we present a Decentralized random Group Formation protocol which enables the agents to implement OTA(n) in a decentralized manner in presence of communication failures. Finally, using numerical results, we show that the algorithm generates near optimal allocations even in the presence of communication failures. Additionally, the algorithm is parameter free and allows fast re-planning, making it robust to machine failures and changes in the environment.