cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Design and evaluation of FPGA based hardware accelerator for elliptic curve cryptography scalar multiplication

Embedded systems find applications in fields such as defense, communications, industrial automation and many more. For majority of these applications, security is a vital issue. Over the last decade, security has become the primary concern when discussing e-commerce. The rapid development in the field of information technology has led to the increase in need of techniques capable of providing security. Cryptography plays an important role in providing data security. Until recently, symmetric key encryption schemes were used for a majority of these applications. Now however, asymmetric key encryption schemes such as Elliptic curve cryptography are gaining popularity as they require less computational power and memory and are still capable of providing equivalent security when compared to their counterparts. Elliptic curve cryptography was first introduced in 1985 and has always been around since. Scalar or point multiplication in elliptic curve cryptography has been a topic of research interest. Improving the performance of scalar multiplication can improve the overall performance of elliptic curve cryptography. One popular method to improve scalar multiplication is by means of hardware accelerators. The authors of this paper have implemented scalar multiplication, the most time consuming operation in elliptic curve cryptography using binary non-adjacent form algorithm. The results of the software implementation have been presented in section- 4. Methodology to improve the performance of the scalar multiplication by use of hardware accelerators has also been presented in this paper.
Analysis of Proximal and Distal Muscle Activity During Handwriting Tasks

OBJECTIVE. In this study we sought to describe upper-extremity proximal and distal muscle activity in typically developing children during a handwriting task and to explore the relationship between muscle activity and speed and quality of writing. METHOD. We evaluated 35 third- and fourth-grade Israeli children using the Alef�Alef Ktav Yad Hebrew Handwriting Test. Simultaneously, we recorded the participants� upper trapezius and thumb muscle activity by surface electromyography. Using the coefficient of variation (standard deviation divided by mean amplitude) as a measure of variability within each muscle, we analyzed differences in muscle activity variability within and between muscles. RESULTS. The proximal muscle displayed significantly less variability than the distal muscles. Decreased variability in proximal muscle activity was associated with decreased variability in distal muscle activity, and decreased variability in the distal muscles was significantly associated with faster speed of writing. CONCLUSION. The lower amount of variability exhibited in the proximal muscle compared with the distal muscles seems to indicate that the proximal muscle functions as a stabilizer during a handwriting task. In addition, decreased variability in both proximal and distal muscle activity appears to be more economical and is related to faster writing speed. Knowledge of the type of proximal and distal muscle activity used during handwriting can help occupational therapists plan treatment for children with handwriting disabilities.
Estimation of shear-velocity profiles by imaging of surface waves

Summary Shear velocity profiles are imaged by wavefield transformations of Love and Rayleigh wave data. The processing sequence starts with slant stacking a common-shot profile to separate phase velocities followed by a 1-D Fourier transform over time-intercept to image dispersion curves in slowness-frequency space. Then, iterative imaging maps all the data from the slowness-frequency domain to the slowness-depth domain. The principle involved in the latter is similar to time-domain p—τ velocity estimation from body waves. Each frequency penetrates to a different depth, which is specified through computation of the dispersion curve for an estimated earth model. Differences between the input model and the output image are minimized by changing the model through convergent iterations. The method is illustrated with synthetic data and applied to two real dispersed-wave data sets from a crustal array experiment performed in Southwestern Oklahoma in 1985 by The University of Texas at E1 Paso and The University of Texas at Dallas.
Depth-dependent anisotropies of amides and sugar in perpendicular and parallel sections of articular cartilage by Fourier transform infrared imaging.

Full thickness blocks of canine humeral cartilage were microtomed into both perpendicular sections and a series of 100 parallel sections, each 6 μm thick. Fourier Transform Infrared Imaging (FTIRI) was used to image each tissue section eleven times under different infrared polarizations (from 0° to 180° polarization states in 20° increments and with an additional 90° polarization), at a spatial resolution of 6.25 μm and a wavenumber step of 8 cm −1 . With increasing depth from the articular surface, amide anisotropies increased in the perpendicular sections and decreased in the parallel sections. Both types of tissue sectioning identified a 90° difference between amide I and amide II in the superficial zone of cartilage. The fibrillar distribution in the parallel sections from the superficial zone was shown to not be random. Sugar had the greatest anisotropy in the upper part of the radial zone in the perpendicular sections. The depth-dependent anisotropic data were fitted with a theoretical equation that contained three signature parameters, which illustrate the arcade structure of collagens with the aid of a fibril model. Infrared imaging of both perpendicular and parallel sections provides the possibility of determining the three-dimensional macromolecular structures in articular cartilage. Being sensitive to the orientation of the macromolecular structure in healthy articular cartilage aids the prospect of detecting the early onset of the tissue degradation that may lead to pathological conditions such as osteoarthritis.
Planar forcing of floating ice sheets

Abstract The objective of this study is to investigate the plane dynamic response of a floating plate supported by a fluid. The fluid underneath the plate is modeled using two-dimensional incompressible potential flow theory. The fundamental solutions are obtained first. Once the solution for the plate displacement is obtained, the other physical quantities of interest—the temporal and spatial distributions of the slope, moment, shear and even the buoyant force, the inertial force of the fluid and the inertial force of the plate—can be evaluated numerically. Advantageously, using superposition and the fundamental solutions presented in this paper, the solution for various loading cases can be readily obtained. As an application, the dynamic behavior of a forced sub-surface uplift problem is studied. Comparisons are then made with an added mass model. The results reveal that the true hydrodynamic model increases the mass and damping of the plate significantly.
A Multi-Wavelength Study of Parent Volatile Abundances in Comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN)

Volatile organic emissions were detected post-perihelion in the long period comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN) in October and November 2006. Our study combines target-of-opportunity, observations using the infrared Cryogenic Echelle Spectrometer (CSHELL) at the NASA-IRTF 3-m telescope, and millimeter wavelength observations using the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO) 12-m telescope. Five parent volatiles were measured with CSHELL (H2O, CO, CH3OH, CH4, and C2H6), and two additional species (HCN and CS) were measured with the ARID 12-m. These revealed highly depleted CO and somewhat enriched CH3OH compared with abundances observed in the dominant group of long-period (Oort cloud) comets in our sample and similar to those observed recently in Comet 8P/Tuttle. This may indicate highly efficient H-atom addition to CO at very low temperature (approx.10-20 K) on the surfaces of interstellar (pre-cometary) grains. Comet C12006 M4 had nearly "normal" C2H6, and CH4, suggesting a processing history similar to that experienced by the dominant group. When compared with estimated water production at the time of the millimeter observations, HCN was slightly depleted compared with the normal abundance in comets based on 1R observations but was consistent with the majority of values from the millimeter. The ratio CS/HCN in C/2006 M4 was within the range measured in ten comets at millimeter wavelengths. The higher apparent H-atom conversion efficiency compared with most comets may indicate that the icy grains incorporated into C/2006 M4 were exposed to higher H-atom densities, or alternatively to similar densities but for a longer period of time.
Adaptive filtering algorithms

System identification (SI) is the task of specifying an unknown system's model in terms of the available experimental evidence, that is a set of input-desired output response signal samples. System identification is a central issue in a large number of application areas, such as control, channel equalization, echo cancellation. This state-of-the-art article focuses on systems that can be modeled in terms of a Finite Impulse Response (FIR) and its goal is to present the available palette of adaptive SI algorithms in a unifying way.
Tyrone Werts Reflections on the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program

The Inside Out Prison Exchange Program housed at Temple University is an International educational program that brings together outside college and university students and inside incarcerated stude...
MuSK-antibody positive myasthenia gravis: clinical and electrodiagnostic patterns.

Abstract Objective To examine the clinical manifestations and patterns of electromyographic abnormalities in MuSK-Ab positive myasthenia gravis. Methods The clinical evaluations and electrodiagnostic testing results of 20 MuSK-Ab positive myasthenia gravis patients were retrospectively reviewed and compared with matched AChR-Ab positive ( N =72) and MuSK-Ab negative/AChR-Ab negative ( N =24) patients. Results MuSK-Ab positive patients were younger and more frequently female and African-American, and compared to the AChR-Ab positive patients, were more likely to present with respiratory symptoms or neck extension weakness. MuSK-Ab positive patients were less likely to have abnormal jitter in a limb muscle: only 59% had abnormal jitter in the extensor digitorum communis muscle, compared to 80% of the AChR-Ab negative/MuSK-negative patients and 91% of the AChR-Ab positive patients. Conclusions Our MuSK-Ab positive patients not only differ demographically from our MuSK-Ab negative cohort, but they also appear to have a more limited distribution of SFEMG abnormalities. Significance The possibility that electrophysiologic abnormalities may not be widely distributed should be considered during electrodiagnostic evaluation of suspected MuSK-Ab positive MG and in selecting muscles for molecular, morphologic, or microphysiologic studies in this condition.
Interview with Bryan R Cullen

Bryan R Cullen1: Bryan R Cullen obtained a BSc in biochemistry from Warwick University (UK) and a MSc in virology from the University of Birmingham (UK) before moving to the USA, where he obtained a PhD in microbiology from Rutgers University (NJ, USA). In 1987, he was recruited to Duke University Medical Center (NC, USA) as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and Assistant Professor. He currently holds a James B Duke Professorship in the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, and serves as Director of the Center for Virology at Duke. Bryan Cullen’s interests have historically revolved around the use of viruses as genetic tools to understand aspects of the biology of the eukaryotic cell, focusing particularly on RNA sequence-mediated gene regulation. Currently, his laboratory is studying the biogenesis and function of miRNAs, in particular virus-encoded miRNAs, and also works on human factors that act as innate inhibitors of both retrovirus infection and retrotransposon mobility. Bryan Cullen has published over 280 research papers and is on the editorial board of 11 prominent journals.
Size distribution analysis of polymer latex systems by use of the extrema in the angular light scattering pattern. III. Unpolarized and horizontally polarized scattered light

The extrema in the unpolarized and the horizontally polarized angular scattering patterns are used as a basis for size-distribution analysis of polymer latex systems composed of single, spherical, optically isotropic particles. The method of analysis is similar to that recently proposed for vertically polarized scattered light and the polarization ratio, where the modal diameter and a distribution width parameter are determined from the experimental angular scattering pattern and prepared theoretical diagrams obtained by Mie theory calculations. The method of analysis, based on all four scattering functions, is illustrated by use of a Dow polystyrene latex sample.
Localizing transient faults using dynamic bayesian networks

Transient faults are a major concern in today's deep sub-micron semiconductor technology. These faults are rare but they have been known to cause catastrophic system-level failures. Transient errors often occur due to physical effects on deployed systems and hence, diagnosis of transient errors must be performed over manufactured chips or systems assembled from black-box components where arbitrary instrumentation of the system is not possible and hence, the system state is only partially observable. Further, these systems are often composed of components that are third party IP which further adds opaqueness to the system. In this paper, we propose a probabilistic approach to localize transient faults in space and time for such partially observable systems. From a set of correct traces and a failure trace, we seek to locate the faulty component and the cycle of operation at which the fault occurred. Our technique uses correct system traces over monitored components of the system to learn a dynamic Bayesian network (DBN) summarizing the temporal dependencies across the monitored components. This DBN is augmented with different error hypotheses allowed by the fault model. The most probable explanation (MPE) among these hypotheses corresponds to the most likely location of the error. We evaluated the effectiveness of our technique on a set of ISCAS89 benchmarks and a router design used in on-chip networks in a multi-core design.
Inelastic impact dynamics of ships with one-sided barriers. Part II: experimental validation

This paper is the second part of a two-part study of impact interaction of a ship roll motion with one-sided ice barrier. The first part was devoted to analytical and numerical simulations for the case of inelastic impact. The analytical approach was based on Zhuravlev and Ivanov non-smooth coordinate transformations. Extensive numerical simulations were carried out for all initial conditions covered by the ship grazing orbit for different values of excitation amplitude and frequency of external wave-induced roll moment. The basins of attraction of safe operation revealed the coexistence of different response regimes such as non-impact periodic oscillations, modulated impact motion, period added impact oscillations, chaotic impact motion and roll-over dynamics. This part presents an experimental investigation conducted on a small ship model in a tow tank. In particular, the experimental tests reveal complex dynamic response characteristics such as multi-frequency wave motion caused by the wave reflection from the tank end wall. Measured results show a good agreement with the predicted results by for small angles of the barrier relative to the ship unbiased position. However, deviation becomes significant as the angle increases. This deviation is mainly attributed to the uncertainty of the coefficient of restitution, which is found to depend on the velocity of impact in addition to the geometry and material properties of the model and barrier.
Statistical circuit characterization for deep-submicron CMOS designs

Aggressive scaling of CMOS MOSFET gate lengths is halving minimum device channel lengths every 4 to 6 years. This brings an increase in deep-submicron device performance sensitivity to manufacturing variations. Its impact on highly-integrated, system-on-a-chip designs needs assessment to ensure first-pass silicon and adequate yield.
Numerical Study of Penetrative and “Solid Lid” Nonpenetrative Convective Boundary Layers

Abstract A large eddy simulation model was used to generate and compare statistics of turbulence during nonpenetrative and penetrative dry convection. In penetrative convection dimensionless vertical velocities in updrafts were found to have almost the same values as in the nonpenetrative case. The countergradient transport of heat and moisture was found to be present during nonpenetrative convection at z/zi > 0.6. For penetrative convection the countergradient transport of heat occurred only in a layer 0.5 < z/zi < 0.75, while the countergradient transport of humidity was not present. During nonpenetrative convection, temperature and humidity were perfectly correlated. In penetrative convection the correlation coefficient was found to be less than unity, varying from about 0.9 near the surface to about −0.7 at the top of the mixed layer.
CNS angiitis as a brain tumor mimic with a branching vascular abnormality on T2* MRI.

A 24-year-old woman with slowly progressive altered mental status and fevers was found to have multiple brain mass lesions. A characteristic branching vascular pattern on T2* MRI (figure 1D) was key to identifying these mass lesions as vascular in origin. CSF was inflammatory and serologic testing supported the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus with concomitant CNS angiitis affecting deep medullary and ependymal veins, with resulting inflammation, hemorrhage, and infarct. Symptoms and mass effect/edema improved with steroid treatment and time. CNS angiitis can present as an intracranial mass lesion.1,2 The branching venous pattern on T2* MRI (figures 1D and 2D) is key to distinguishing from neoplasm.
Psychological reactions to machine dependency: hemodialysis.

Patients on hemodialysis face many stresses: dependency-independency conflicts, chronic illnesses, the procedure itself, unrealistic expectations made on them, and the stress resulting from multiple losses. Psychological complications include depression, suicide, sexual dysfunction, problems in rehabilitation, and uncooperativeness.
Theorizing Transnational Legal Ordering

This article categorizes three approaches to theorizing transnational legal ordering that respectively address private legal ordering; provide a framework for the study of the interaction of lawmaking and practice at the transnational, national, and local levels; and reconfigure the concept of law. The first approach develops theories of private legal ordering, involving lawmaking, adjudication, and enforcement through nonstate actors and institutions. The second approach provides a theoretical framework for sociolegal study of the transnational processes through which legal norms are constructed, flow, and settle across national borders. The third develops theory to critique and reformulate the concept of law in transnational terms that include nonstate processes.
Identification of septin-interacting proteins and characterization of the Smt3/SUMO-conjugation system in Drosophila.

The septins are a family of proteins involved in cytokinesis and other aspects of cell-cortex organization. In a two-hybrid screen designed to identify septin-interacting proteins in Drosophila , we isolated several genes, including homologues ( Dmuba2 and Dmubc9 ) of yeast UBA2 and UBC9 . Yeast Uba2p and Ubc9p are involved in the activation and conjugation, respectively, of the ubiquitin-like protein Smt3p/SUMO, which becomes conjugated to a variety of proteins through this pathway. Uba2p functions together with a second protein, Aos1p. We also cloned and characterized the Drosophila homologues of AOS1 ( Dmaos1 ) and SMT3 ( Dmsmt3 ). Our biochemical data suggest that DmUba2/DmAos1 and DmUbc9 indeed act as activating and conjugating enzymes for DmSmt3, implying that this protein-conjugation pathway is well conserved in Drosophila . Immunofluorescence studies showed that DmUba2 shuttles between the embryonic cortex and nuclei during the syncytial blastoderm stage. In older embryos, DmUba2 and DmSmt3 are both concentrated in the nuclei during interphase but dispersed throughout the cells during mitosis, with DmSmt3 also enriched on the chromosomes during mitosis. These data suggest that DmSmt3 could modify target proteins both inside and outside the nuclei. We did not observe any concentration of DmUba2 at sites where the septins are concentrated, and we could not detect DmSmt3 modification of the three Drosophila septins tested. However, we did observe DmSmt3 localization to the midbody during cytokinesis both in tissue-culture cells and in embryonic mitotic domains, suggesting that DmSmt3 modification of septins and/or other midzone proteins occurs during cytokinesis in Drosophila .
Born Sinner, Fashioned Divine: The Criminalization, Commodity and Creativity of Young Black Males

This article explores how a community struggling to survive systemic marginalization may imagine a liberating future. Black scholars have pressed the realm of science fiction in efforts to interrogate how Black youth may construct a sense of worth from Afrodiasporic experiences to the world for a promising Black future. The Nashville Team of the Children's Defense Fund explores the relevance of Mark Dery's cultural criticism for young Black males who find themselves cradled in a school-to-prison pipeline that in twenty-first-century American society not only functions as an oppressive and death-dealing institution, but also an extremely lucrative financial enterprise. Drawing from Black religious philosopher Victor Anderson and his philosophy of race, the Children's Defense Fund Nashville Team will explain how we engage narrative and the arts in assisting young men of color to reconstruct identity from foundational positions of unrestricted space and interactions in order to imagine new possibilities.
The Influence of Alkali Metal Hydroxides on Silica Condensation Rates: The Role of Ion Pairing

The condensation kinetics and the role of Ion pairing are investigated for silicate anions in alkaline solutions. Selective, and non-selective inversion recovery experiments are performed using the Si NMR spectrum of alkali metal silicate solutions. In this way the rates of condensation of silicate monomers is studied as a function of the nature of the base. These rates exhibit maxima with increasing cation size. The maxima are interpreted in terms of the concentration and activity of ion pair intermediates of the Si exchange reaction. Interactions between alkali metal cations and larger silicate anions in silicate solutions are investigated using NMR spectroscopy of the cations. The chemical shift and the resonance llnewidths are used to estimate the concentration of cation-silicate ion pairs. The concentration of pairs involving large anions increases with increasing cation size. Thus it is expected that condensation kinetics are influenced by the size of the silicate fragment.
Analysis on Dynamic Characteristics of 500 kV Four-circuit on One Large Crossing Transmission Tower

The project of 500 kV four-circuit on one large crossing transmission tower in Xijiang was introduced. This paper analyzed and compared the dynamic characteristics of single tower and tower-line system. Both in the single tower and tower-line system, the first modal is x-axis bending vibration, the second modal is y-axis bending vibration, and the third modal is z-axis torsional vibration. The y-axis bending vibration frequency and z-axis torsional vibration frequency of the single tower are smaller than those of the tower-line system. The results show that the structural system layout of large crossing transmission tower is reasonable and the wire can improve the bending stiffness of y-axis and the torsional stiffness of z-axis.
Analysis Of Detecting Results For 404 Suspected HIV Samples

Objective To analyze the detecting results for 404 suspected HIV samples,and provide scientific basis for better control ing of AIDS.Methods According to the national technical standard of AIDS detection,404 suspected samples were screened and confirmed by using Western blot and Enzyme Linked Immunosobent Assay(ELISA).Results Among 404 samples,HIV was positive in 157 cases and negative in 227 cases,and 20 cases without definition.The medical institutions and drug users were the main sources of the positive samples,there were 54 cases in the former and 43 cases in the latter respectively.And sexual transmission and drug-addiction were the main routs of transmission,there were 66 cases infected by sexual transmission,and 53 cases infected by taking drugs.Conclusion Propaganda and monitoring works for HIV/AIDS prevention and control should be done well in future.
Self-authentication in medical device software: An approach to include cybersecurity in legacy medical devices

The FDA recommends that medical device manufacturers take steps to assure that appropriate safeguards are in place to reduce the risk of failure due to cyberattack, which could be initiated by the introduction of malware into the medical equipment. However, including safeguards into legacy devices in the field is not easy. One approach is to make software changes that are then distributed into the field. The problem with software-only changes is that they are easy to defeat by malicious attackers. This paper explores an approach that provides incremental security to software that is distributed in the field. Specifically, this paper describes an approach to "self-authenticate" software so that it is robust in detecting attempts to defeat security safeguards that are programmed into the compiled software code. Self-authentication relies on encrypting certain critical functions of the software so that decryption of those portions is necessary for proper operation of the device. The decrypted portions also include integrity-checking and/or authentication functions that confirm that the software has not been modified.
Validity of the Samsung Phone S Health application for assessing steps and energy expenditure during walking and running: Does phone placement matter?:

BackgroundThe emergence of mHealth and the utilization of smartphones in physical activity interventions warrant a closer examination of validity evidence for such technology. This study examined t...
American health care paradox—high spending on health care and poor health

Background: for decades, U.S. taxpayers have been lamenting the high cost of health care. Since the mid-1980s, Americans have had double-digit spending on health care. Despite this investment, Americans are less healthy than their European and Scandinavian counterparts across an array of health measures. Aim: We sought to explore how inadequate attention to the social, behavioral, and environmental determinants of health may contribute to the American health care paradox of high health care spending and poor health outcomes. Design: Mixed methods Methods: We report previous findings related from a 10-year analysis of national-level health and social service spending and health outcome data from the Organisation of Economic and Cooperation and Development (OECD). We also put forth case studies representing different socioeconomic strata to illustrate the relationship between health care and social service spending and health. Results: Although the U.S. spending more of its GDP on health care than any other country, it is not a high spender when one sums spending on both health care and social services. The U.S. however has the lowest ratio of our social service spending to health care spending in the OECD, and countries with lower ratios on average have worse health outcomes. Cases from diverse socioeconomic strata demonstrate how limited attention to the social determinants of health can result in extremely high health care costs and poor health outcomes. Conclusions: Greater investment in addressing the social, behavioral, and environmental determinants of health may foster better health without accelerating health care costs in America.
The Optimal Code Rate vs. a Partial Band Jammer

We take an abstract view of the problem of coding vs. a jammer on a binary symmetric channel, and conclude that either: coding can completely newtralize the jammer, i.e. render him no worse than uniform background noise; or: the best code rate is exactly r = .3790. Here "best" is with respect to channel capacity as a figure of merit. If the channel cutoff rate is used instead, the best rate is .247. We also give some extensions to M-ary channels, M ? 2.
Nucleophosmin Regulates Differentiation, Cell Cycle Progression, and Stress Response in Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells.

Abstract Nucleophosmin (NPM) is a multifunctional protein frequently overexpressed in actively proliferating cells including tumor and hematopoietic stem cells. Strong evidence indicates that NPM is involved in hematopoiesis and leukemic development. Here we report that NPM enhances the proliferative potential of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells and increases cell survival upon stress challenge. Specifically, lin-Sca1+c-kit+ bone marrow cells transduced with retroviral vector expressing NPM exhibited higher proliferative rates in both short-term liquid culture and clonogenic progenitor cell assays, compared to the cells transduced with empty vector. Interestingly, NPM overexpression appears to inhibit differentiation of myeloid progenitors. Hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells infected with the NPM retrovirus expressed significantly lower levels of mature cell markers Gr-1 and Mac-1 compared to empty vector transduced cells, and majority of the NPM-overexpressing cells remained Sca1+C-Kit+ during the 5-day culture. Bone marrow transplantation experiments demonstrated that NPM overexpression increases long-term multi-lineage repopulating capacity of hematopoietic progenitors. We have not observed any evidence of proliferative disorders or leukemia in recipients transplanted with NPM-expressing progenitors thus far (4 months posttransplantation). Through cell-cycle profile analysis and single-cell division experiments, we showed that NPM overexpression induces rapid entry of hematopoietic progenitors into the cell cycle, probably via promoting G0/G1 to S transition. Furthermore, immunocytochemical and Western-blot analyses demonstrated that NPM-transduced cells expressed higher level of cyclin A compared to vector-transduced cells. Finally, overexpression of NPM significantly increased the survival of hematopoietic progenitors exposed to mitomycin C or hydrogen peroxide, suggesting that NPM can protect cells from DNA damage and oxidative stress. Together, these results indicate that NPM plays an important role in hematopoiesis via mechanisms involving modulation of progenitor differentiation, cell cycle progression, and stress response.
Pediatric Vascular Access Peripheral IV Algorithm Success Rate.

Abstract Purpose Determine if the pediatric peripheral vascular access algorithm (PPVAA) led to differences in first-attempt and overall peripheral intravenous (PIV) success, staff attempting PIV access per episode and overall attempts and first PIV attempt success by provider. Design/Methods A two-cohort pre-/post-implementation comparative design involved pediatric nurses and patients. The PPVAA included four components: a patient comfort plan, PIV grading score, nurses' self-assessed IV access capability and nurse decision to stop-the-line. Two sample t-test or Wilcoxon rank sum test and Pearson's chi-square test were used to evaluate differences between groups and measures. Results Healthcare providers (N = 96) attempted 721 PIV insertions (pre-PPVAA, n = 419 and post-PPVAA, n = 302). Of 78 nurse providers, mean (SD) age was 37.4 (11.0) years and 20.0% self-assessed PIV capability as expert. Of children, mean age was 8.3 (7.0) years. Post-PPVAA, first-attempt (p = 0.86) and overall (p = 0.21) success did not change, though fewer staff were needed per episode to initiate PIV; p = 0.017. Overall rate of success after one attempt in the post-PPVAA period compared to pre-PPVAA was reduced (p = 0.002), reflecting greater awareness to stop-the-line. Compared to pre-PPVAA, advanced practice nurses and non-clinician providers were more likely to achieve success on first attempt. Conclusions The PPVAA did not increase first-attempt or overall PIV success; however, it decreased overall IV attempts and the number of staff attempting access per episode. Practice Implications The multi-component PPVAA provided a guide for nurses during PIV and assisted decision making to stop attempts in difficult cases.
Relationships Among Meditation, Perfectionism, Mindfulness, and Performance Anxiety Among Collegiate Music Students:

I examined the use of meditation practices among collegiate-level musicians (N = 255), along with the degree to which these practices contributed to music performance anxiety (MPA) when controlling...
The enhancer-like sequence 3' to the A gamma gene is polymorphic in human populations.

Cloning and sequencing of the enhancer 3′ of the A gamma globin gene of a particularly low G gamma and HbF sickle cell anemia (SCA) patient unexpectedly revealed three base changes (T----C, C----A, and A----G at sites +2285, +2460, and +2676) previously associated with the Seattle- type HPFH, thus leading the authors to suspect that the three mutations were polymorphic. The determination of the incidence of the mutations among various ethnic groups allowed the authors to conclude that this is a widely spread polymorphism, thus excluding any role of these base changes in the determination of the hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH) phenotype. The origin of these three mutations is not clear because they appear linked, and the same bases (C, A, G) are found in homologous position in the 3′ of the normal G gamma gene. As C, A, G at positions +2285, +2460, and +2676 are found with a 100% frequency in African SS patients and presumably among normal Africans (to explain the extremely high frequency among normal American blacks), it is likely that this was the sequence preceding the division of races. The presence of T, C, and A at the same positions apparently occurred after the divergence between blacks and the other races, that is, within the last 1 million years.
Capturing the Transdisciplinary Dragon: Creating a Crossover Natural History-Art Exhibit

Although transdisciplinarity has been in practice for decades, its use as a methodology in higher education is limited. In addition, the need to connect academe to the community outside its walls has never been more pronounced. Working within the gaps created between disciplinary boundaries gives researchers an opportunity to create new ways of understanding the common, yet complex problems of the world. In this article we explain how a group of student researchers, scholars, and other community members came together to create a transdisciplinary exhibit that explains how plant fossils and dragon folklore are connected worldwide. We provide evidence of how the creation and implementation of the exhibit facilitated learning across wide cross-sections of stakeholders and how the project continues to develop new avenues of inquiry.
Richard Smardon, Sharon Moran, and April Karen Baptiste. Revitalizing urban waterway communities: streams of environmental justice

Revitalizing Urban Waterway Communities presents the challenges and opportunities in engaging local residents in transforming the rivers and streams that run through their neighborhoods. The theme of environmental justice is woven throughout this volume with a strong emphasis on solutions that benefit local residents, as well as provide ecological improvements. International case studies highlight innovative urban waterway revitalization projects that address environmental justice issues.
From behavior to physiology and back again: The role of auditory cortex in vocal production and control

Vocal communication plays an important role in the lives of both humans and many animal species. Ensuring accurate communication, however, requires auditory self-monitoring to control vocal production and rapidly compensate for errors in vocal output. Despite the importance of this process, the underlying neural mechanisms are relatively unknown. Previous work has demonstrated that neurons in the auditory cortex are suppressed during vocal production, while simultaneously maintaining their sensitivity to vocal feedback, suggesting a role in auditory self-monitoring. The behavioral role of auditory cortex in vocal control, however, remains unclear. We investigated the function of auditory cortical activity during vocal self-monitoring and feedback-dependant vocal control in marmoset monkeys. Using real-time frequency-shifted feedback during vocalization, we demonstrate that marmosets exhibit rapid compensatory changes in vocal production, a feedback-dependent behavior that is predicted by the activities of neurons in auditory cortex. We further establish the role of auditory cortex in vocal control using electrical microstimulation to evoke rapid changes in produced vocalizations. These findings suggest a causal role for the auditory cortex in vocal self-monitoring and feedback-dependent vocal control, linking mechanisms of production and perception, and have important implications for understanding human speech motor control.
Peptide Nanosponges Designed for the Delivery of Perillyl Alcohol to Glioma Cells

Peptide nanosponges of low polydispersity are spontaneously formed from trigonal supramolecular building blocks in aqueous buffers, which feature cationic and/or anionic oligopeptides (n = 5–20) and a hydrophobic unit. In contrast to classical liposomes/vesicles, nanosponges feature interwoven hydrophilic and hydrophobic nanodomains and are readily taken up by mammalian cells. Perillyl alcohol is known to be a simple, but effective small molecule drug against glioma multiforme. However, its efficacy is limited by a poor bioavailability. In order to make perillyl alcohol bioavailable, two nanosponges consisting of 10 aspartates, to which perillyl alcohol is attached by means of an ester bond, and 20 lysines or arginines (type (D-POH)10K20 and (D-POH)10R20) were synthesized, purified, and characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). These nanosponges were then tested in cell cultures of murine glioma cells (GL26) and murine neural progenitor cells (NPC) because the latt...
Secondhand smoke, obesity, and risk of type II diabetes among California teachers.

Abstract Purpose To examine if secondhand smoke (SHS) is associated with elevated risk of type II diabetes among California teachers. We also aim to determine if overall and central obesity are mediators or effect modifiers of this association. Methods Using data from the California Teachers Study, conducted in 1995–2013 in California public schools, we obtained information on SHS exposure among 39,887 lifetime nonsmokers. The association between SHS and incident diabetes after 17 years of follow-up was assessed using Cox regression models. The mediation and modification effects of BMI and waist circumference on this association were tested. Results At baseline, 70.2% of the nonsmokers reported exposure to SHS. Higher intensity, duration, and intensity-years of exposure to SHS were associated with higher multivariate adjusted risk of incident diabetes in a dose-response manner (hazard ratio = 1.28; 95% confidence interval, 1.11–1.48 for highest quartile vs. lowest quartile of exposure; P = .001 for trend). Participant's waist circumference (measured 2 years after baseline) could explain greater than 50% of the association between SHS and diabetes. Conclusions SHS exposure is associated with increased risk of type II diabetes among nonsmokers of California teachers with obesity being a potentially important mediator but not an effect modifier for this association.
β-Lactoglobulin and α-lactalbumin as potential modulators of mammary cellular activity.

It has been observed that β-lactoglobulin of cow's milk inhibits the hydrolysis of p-nitrophenyl phosphate by phosphoprotein phosphatases from bovine spleen and lactating mammary gland. Kinetic studies indicate that the inhibition of p-nitrophenyl phosphate hydrolysis involves binding to the enzyme by β-lactoglobulin. Alkaline denaturation of the β-lactoglobulin molecule decreases the inhibition. This inhibition is reversed by Ca2+-binding to sites on β-lactoglobulin with KD equal to 3 mM, or by salt concentration >100 mM. α-Lactalbumin functions in a similar fashion with both the mammary and spleen enzymes. Since both these whey proteins and the milk phosphatase are secreted by Golgi, this in vitro reaction may serve as a model system for enzyme regulation in mammary secretory vesicles where the [Ca2+]free concentration approaches 5 to 8 mM. Formation of enzyme-protein complexes in Golgi could in turn be effected by the binding of a ligand such as Ca2+ to “weak” sites. Thus protein—protein interactions which limit the activity of an enzyme may in turn be modulated by Ca2+ binding to the protein.
Merchants of Death: Media Violence and American Empire.

In this article, David Trend illuminates the centrality of violent narratives in U.S. popular culture. He describes the ubiquity of violent imagery and the popular discourse it has generated. Trend argues that research on media violence has created a large academic subculture that has done little to advance our understanding of who is watching violent media and why. He draws on multidisciplinary sources and calls for scholars to collaborate across fields to reframe the discussion. He concludes that the mass production of violent media may be wasting an enormous resource that might otherwise be used for tremendous public good.
Calling, Compassionate Self, and Cultural Norms in Medicine

Physicians start their careers with better than average mental health indices. During their careers, however, physicians have higher than average work-specific distress indicated by burnout and higher associated suicide risk. Factors of medical training and practice culture that contribute to physician burnout include (1) a work ethos that demands deferral of self-care to care for patients and (2) a shame-and-blame response to errors. Both of these factors are addressable via an individual and organizational compassionate self-improvement mind-set. Specifically, addressing these cultural contributors to burnout requires understanding the clinical performance benefits of (1) self-care and (2) focus on compassionate learning to mitigate future suffering rather than a shame-and-blame response to errors. Cognitive therapy methods are effective for physicians interested in cultivating a compassionate self-improvement mind-set. A compassionate organizational improvement mind-set that supports provider well-being is consistent with sound quality-improvement principles that acknowledge “to err is human.” Quality and safety of health care will improve, along with health-care providers’ well-being, as health-care providers become intrinsic beneficiaries of systems intended to prevent and alleviate suffering.
Skirting the Instrumental Paradox: Intentional Belief Through Narrative in Latin American Pentecostalism

Research on the dramatic growth of Pentecostal Christianity in Latin America has centered on the idea that participation in Pentecostalism is a cultural strategy with which poor Latin Americans overcome substance abuse, step out of crime and violence, and address conjugal conflict. However, such “intentional” belief violates the idea of the relative autonomy of culture, and sociologists have generally thought that such an attempt would be self-defeating—falling to what is referred to as the “instrumental paradox.” Here I argue, with reference to data from fieldwork with Pentecostal men in Caracas, that three aspects of narrative—the play of canonicity and particularity, the predication of intention and agency, and the predication of temporality—permit actors to skirt the instrumental paradox.
Distributed Ledger for Spammers' Resume

Unsolicited, and most likely spoofed, robot calls are not just an annoyance, but also carry a potential threat with the onset of automation, impersonation, and even voice manipulation technologies as malicious elements attempt to use deception to steal sensitive information or invoke action. Despite steps taken to protect consumers, the issue appears to be far from under control. In this paper, we propose a solution to use blockchain as a platform to share spam transactions through a peer-to-peer mechanism that will maintain a global database of reported spam transactions in order to identify and trace spam activity effectively. Storing spam transactions on a distributed ledger with consensus-based approval of transactions adds reliability to the data and can optimize the data points that will be available to spam detection algorithms in order to fight spam effectively. As this is peer to peer-based sharing, there is no need to rely on third-party providers for storing and sharing this data to the users. Every spam call received will be added as a detailed transaction on the blockchain to execute a smart contract that will calculate the trustworthiness of the caller. Call records are used to identify spam transactions while the blockchain ledgers store this data. We discuss the relevance and advantages of a distributed ledger to store these transactions. This paper does not aim at solving the spam problem with an optimized detection algorithm but evaluates the characteristics and performance of the blockchain as a distributed ledger and its relevance to serve as a platform for peer-to-peer spam detection mechanisms. We evaluate different blockchain metrics like transaction processing rates, gas costs and ledger sizes and discuss how they scale in order to store the spam reports data on the blockchain.
Correlation of surgeon radiology assessment with laparoscopic disease site scoring in patients with advanced ovarian cancer.

Objectives To determine the correlation between surgeon radiology assessment with laparoscopic scoring in patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer. Methods Following IRB approval, 14 gynecologic oncology surgeons from a single institution performed a blinded review of radiology imaging from 20 patients with advanced ovarian cancer. All patients previously underwent laparoscopic scoring using a validated scoring method from April 2013 to December 2017. Surgeons viewed contrasted CT imaging reports and images in a blinded fashion and recorded PIV scores using the validated scoring method. Linear mixed models (LMM) were conducted to calculate the correlation between radiology and laparoscopic score for each surgeon and the group, and the inter-class correlation (ICC) was calculated. Results The kappa inter-rater agreement was −0.017 (95% CI 0.023 to −0.005), indicating low inter-rater agreement between radiology and actual laparoscopic score. The ICC was 0.06 (0.02–0.21), indicating that surgeons do not score the same across all images. When using a PIV cutoff of 8, the probability of agreement between radiology and actual laparoscopic score was 0.56 (95% CI 0.49–0.73). When looking at disease site subscales, the probability of agreement was (95% CI): peritoneum 0.57 (0.51–0.62), diaphragm 0.54 (0.48–0.60), mesentery 0.51 (0.45–0.57), omentum 0.61 (0.55–0.67), bowel 0.54 (0.44–0.64), stomach 0.71 (CI 0.65–0.76), and liver 0.36 (CI 0.31–0.42). Conclusions Surgeon radiology review did not highly correlate with actual laparoscopy findings. By subscale, the best agreement is seen when evaluating for stomach involvement, and the worst with liver involvement. Our study highlights the benefits of laparoscopic assessment to determine resectability over radiology alone.