cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Anomalous cosmic rays

We review the observed properties of anomalous cosmic rays and the present status of our knowledge of the processes by which they originate. We compiled a comprehensive set of ACR energy spectral data from various spacecraft throughout the heliosphere during the passes of Ulysses over the poles of the Sun and present first results of a detailed modeling effort. In several contributions, we discuss the questions of injection and possible pre-acceleration of pickup ions, summarize new observations on the ionic charge composition, and present new results on the composition of minor ions in ACRs.
Unusual Chemical Composition of Carbides in Rapidly Solidified High Speed Steels

Studies of the elemental composition of carbide phases formed by rapid solidification of a Mo-base high speed steel (M7) have yielded an intriguing finding. Micro-analysis of the extracted carbides (M 2 C, M 23 C 6 and MC) showea that these were unusually rich in refractory elements with values of Mo in the range 46-53 wt.%, corresponding values for Fe and Cr were low (6-12 wt.% Cr and 1.5-13 wt% Fe). This was in marked contrast with analyses of MC, M 6 C, M 7 C 3 and M 23 C 6 in the ‘unglazed’ material where Fe and Cr were major constituents. A distinctive feature was M 23 C 6 in the rapidly solidified material which contained large amounts of Mo and W and very little Cr. It is proposed that this phase, initially formed as M 6 C, underwent solid-state transformation.
Wireless graffiti: data, data everywhere

In this paper, we take a retrospective look at the problem of querying and updating location dependent data in massively distributed mobile environments. Looking forward, we paint our vision of the future dataspace - physical space enhanced with embedded digital information. Finally we describe a few of the applications enabled by dataspace due to the availability of large scale ad-hoc sensor networks, short-range wireless communications, and fine-grain location information.
Multi‐objective optimization of fuzzy structural systems

It is recognized that there exists a vast amount of fuzzy information in both the objective and constraint functions of the optimum design of structures. Since most practical structural design problems involve several, often conflicting, objectives to be considered, a multi-objective fuzzy programming method is outlined in this work. The fuzzy constraints define a fuzzy feasible domain in the design space and each of the fuzzy objective functions defines the optimum solution by a fuzzy set of points. A method of solving a fuzzy multi-objective structural optimization problem using ordinary single-objective programming techniques is presented. The computational approach is illustrated with two numerical examples.
Phylogeography of the diamond turbot ( Hypsopsetta guttulata ) across the Baja California Peninsula

We compared morphology and sequenced nuclear and mitochondrial genes from 11 populations of a previously genetically unstudied “Baja California disjunct” species, the diamond turbot (Hypsopsetta guttulata). This species exhibits very limited adult movement and restriction to soft-bottom habitats but has a moderately long pelagic larval duration. Therefore, if pelagic larval duration is correlated with gene flow between Gulf of California and Pacific populations, we expect a reduced level of genetic and morphological differentiation. However, if adult habitat and ecology have more effect on gene flow, we expect the populations in the two bodies of water to be more highly differentiated. We used logistic regression to compare morphological features and phylogenetic and population genetic analyses to compare nucleotide sequence data. Gulf of California H. guttulata are different from Pacific populations in morphology and both mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences. MtDNA shows reciprocal monophyly, and nuclear sequences from the Gulf of California formed a monophyletic group. Population genetic analyses also suggest further population subdivision within the Pacific and within the Gulf of California. We argue that adult ecology has a significant effect on migration rates among populations in the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California.
Low-hanging fruit? The costs and benefits of reducing fuel burn and emissions from taxiing aircraft

In 2005 aviation was responsible for 3.5% of anthropogenic contributions to increased radiative forcing that year, but its share is expected to grow. At the same time, as energy prices have risen, airlines have struggled to maintain profitability. In this context, it is important to understand the costs associated with different measures to reduce the industry’s environmental footprint. Aircraft are usually powered by their main engines while taxiing between the gate and the runway. This paper estimates the cost and emissions reductions associated with using electric, diesel or gasoline tugs to tow aircraft on the tarmac. It is found that, in the best case, emissions could be cut at a cost of negative $140 per tonne of CO2. The use of tugs could reduce the CO2 emissions from domestic flights in the US by about 2 million tonnes each year, or about 1.4% of the total emissions in 2006. For aircraft that already taxi both in and out with only one engine, additional emissions reductions from using a tug come at a high cost: over $100 per tonne of emissions abated. This suggests that caution needs to be exercised when savings from different approaches are combined: savings are often not independent of each other and cannot simply be added. I. Greenhouse gas emissions from aviation N 2005 aviation was responsible for 3.5% of total anthropogenic contributions to increased radiative forcing. By 2050, its share is expected to rise to 4.0-4.7%. Both numbers exclude the impact of aviation-induced cirrus (AIC), which is highly uncertain. With AIC included, aviation’s contribution to total radiative for cing was between 1.310% in 2005, and is expected to rise to between 2-14% by 2050. 1
The Joy of a Career in Cell Biology

Science is a career where you do what you love everyday. Our science is built on the shoulders of those who came before us, and in turn we provide shoulders for our students and colleagues to build upon. Of course, seeing the seeds of ideas that we plant bear fruit as interesting science is why I love being a scientist. Looking back it also has been a particularly gratifying challenge to mentor members of the younger generation in building their careers.
When subjects become objects: The lies behind the Milgram legend:

In her expose of Milgram’s deceptions in obtaining “informed consent” and “dehoaxing” his subjects, Perry reveals Milgram’s deceit and misrepresentation in his dealings with colleagues as well as p...
Conforming a Voluntary Medical Leave of Absence Policy to Recent Interpretations of Disability Law.

ABSTRACTIn 2011, Georgetown University worked to revise its medical leave of absence (MLOA) policy to be in conformity with evolving standards and interpretations of disability law as it pertains to university students. The article describes the new policy, which was reviewed and approved by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. Implications are discussed for both Georgetown University and other institutions.
Category-specific learned attentional bias to object parts.

Humans can selectively attend to information in visual scenes. Learning from previous experiences plays a role in how visual attention is subsequently deployed. For example, visual search times are faster in areas that are statistically more likely to contain a target (Jiang and Swallow in Cognition, 126(3), 378–390, 2013). Here, we examined whether similar attentional biases can be created for different locations on complex objects as a function of their category, based on a history of these locations containing a target. Subjects performed a visual search task in the context of novel objects called Greebles. The target appeared in one half (e.g., top) of the Greebles 89 % of the time and in the other half (e.g., bottom) 11 % of the time. We found a reaction time advantage when the target was located in a “target-rich” region, even after target location probabilities were equated. This indicates that attentional biases can be associated not only with regions of space but also with specific object features, or at least with locations in an object-based frame of reference.
Case Study: Effects Of Colostrum Ingestion on Lactational Performance

Abstract This study was designed to evaluate the effects of feeding two different volumes of colostrum immediately after birth on growth and lactational performance as growing heifers and lactating cows. Brown Swiss heifers were fed 2 L (n = 37) or 4 L (n = 31) of high quality (Grade 1) colostrum within the first hour of birth. Second and subsequent milk feedings were identical for both groups. Each animal received some colostrum daily for 14 d. Veterinary costs were approximately doubled for heifers fed 2 L of colostrum compared with heifers fed 4 L of colostrum. Those animals fed 4 L gained significantly greater daily BW compared with herdmates fed 2 L (1.03 ± 0.03 vs 0.80 ± 0.02 kg; P ME ). Overall, feeding the greater volume of colostrum and then treating animals identically in terms of herd management translated into an advantage of 550 kg of actual milk produced per cow over the first two lactations.Herd managers should encourage the feeding of 4 L of colostrum to newborn calves because, in addition to health advantages that are well documented in past studies, there would be direct economic return to the producer of approximately $160 per cow in additional milk produced over two lactations.
Optimization of genotyping by sequencing (GBS) data in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

Genotyping by sequencing (GBS) is a technique to discover large numbers of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within a sample pool. The standard version of the GBS method uses a pool of relatively large DNA fragments and is typically sequenced at low coverage (1×). This often results in mis-scoring of heterozygotes as homozygotes and a high rate (≥30 %) of missing data points. The purpose of this study was to improve the quality and the coverage of GBS data in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in order to increase the number of SNPs available for genome-wide association studies (GWAS). An improved and Phaseolus-specific GBS method was developed, which utilizes an in silico digest of the bean genome to predict the best fragment density and length, a double digest with the restriction enzymes MseI and TaqαI, and size selection after library preparation to achieve a reduced fragment pool that can be sequenced at higher coverage. The study consisted of 25 diverse common bean genotypes belonging to the Mesoamerican gene pool and compared libraries using ApeKI fragments with MseI/TaqαI double-digest fragments. The new improved bean-specific GBS library provided a 3.8- to 12.5-fold increase in SNPs, based on a minimum coverage (3×, 5× and 8×). These results provide insight for future GBS library constructs, and how to achieve a higher SNP density for GWAS studies.
Integration on Manifolds

In this chapter, we define the integral of a k-form over a compact oriented k-manifold, and prove the important generalized Stokes’ theorem, which can be regarded as a far-reaching generalization of the fundamental theorem of calculus. We also define the integral of a function over a (not necessarily oriented) manifold, and describe the integral of a form in terms of the integral of a function. The classical theorems of vector analysis (Green’s theorem, divergence theorem, Stokes’ theorem) appear as special cases of the general Stokes’ theorem. Applications are made to topology (the Brouwer fixed point theorem) and to the study of harmonic functions (the mean value property, the maximum principle, Liouville’s theorem, and the Dirichlet principle).
Insulin Resistance in Pregnancy Is Correlated with Decreased Insulin Receptor Gene Expression in Omental Adipose: Insulin Sensitivity and Adipose Tissue Gene Expression in Normal Pregnancy

Aims: To determine correlations of insulin sensitivity to gene expression in omental and subcutaneous adipose tissue of non-obese, non-diabetic pregnant women. Methods: Microarray gene profiling was performed on subcutaneous and omental adipose tissue from 14 patients and obtained while fasting during non-laboring Cesarean section, using Illumina HumanHT-12 V4 Expression BeadChips. Findings were validated by real-time PCR. Matusda-Insulin sensitivity index (IS) and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were calculated from glucose and insulin levels obtained from a frequently sampled oral glucose tolerance test, and correlated with gene expression. Results: Of genes differentially expressed in omental vs. subcutaneous adipose, in omentum 12 genes were expressed toward insulin resistance, whereas only 5 genes were expressed toward insulin sensitivity. In particular, expression of the insulin receptor gene (INSR), which initiates the insulin signaling cascade, is strongly positively correlated with IS and negatively with HOMA-IR in omental tissue (r = 0.84). Conclusion: Differential gene expression in omentum relative to subcutaneous adipose showed a pro-insulin resistance profile in omentum. A clinical importance of omental adipose is observed here, as downregulation of insulin receptor in omentum is correlated with increased systemic insulin resistance.
Grid Resolution and Turbulence Model Effects on Space Capsule Navier-Stokes Simulations

†. A computational fluid dynamic analysis using the unsteady Reynolds-averaged NavierStokes equations is performed on the Apollo space capsule for subsonic to supersonic flow. The purpose of this analysis is to determine the methods and requirements of grid generation and flow solver execution that will produce high quality aerodynamic coefficients for similar space capsule geometries. A systematic approach is used to determine the grid resolution required to obtain grid-resolved results within reasonable force and moment tolerances. Different turbulence models are evaluated, and the results are compared with wind-tunnel data.
How voters hold the European People’s Party accountable in European Parliament elections

The established consensus is that voters do not hold European Union leaders accountable for their management of the economy in European Parliament elections, which contributes to the EU’s democratic deficit. However, the existing research misses a comparison between those who feel that the national government is responsible for their economic situation and those who feel the EU is responsible. The analysis is based on surveys of the 28 EU members. I find that when one assigns more responsibility to the EU than the national government for national economic conditions, satisfaction with the economy increases the likelihood of voting for the European People’s Party, the dominant party group in the EU. This study presents the first evidence of individuals’ accountability-holding behaviour towards the EPP.
Toll-like receptor 4 modulates the cochlear immune response to acoustic injury

Acoustic overstimulation traumatizes the cochlea, resulting in auditory dysfunction. As a consequence of acoustic injury, the immune system in the cochlea is activated, leading to the production of inflammatory mediators and the infiltration of immune cells. However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for initiating these immune responses remain unclear. Here, we investigate the functional role of Toll-like receptor 4 (Tlr4), a cellular receptor that activates the innate immune system, in the regulation of cochlear responses to acoustic overstimulation. Using a Tlr4 knockout mouse model, we examined how Tlr4 deficiency affects sensory cell pathogenesis, auditory dysfunction and cochlear immune activity. We demonstrate that Tlr4 knockout does not affect sensory cell viability under physiological conditions, but reduces the level of sensory cell damage and cochlear dysfunction after acoustic injury. Together, these findings suggest that Tlr4 promotes sensory cell degeneration and cochlear dysfunction after acoustic injury. Acoustic injury provokes a site-dependent inflammatory response in both the organ of Corti and the tissues of the lateral wall and basilar membrane. Tlr4 deficiency affects these inflammatory responses in a site-dependent manner. In the organ of Corti, loss of Tlr4 function suppresses the production of interleukin 6 (Il6), a pro-inflammatory molecule, after acoustic injury. By contrast, the production of inflammatory mediators, including Il6, persists in the lateral wall and basilar membrane. In addition to immune molecules, Tlr4 knockout inhibits the expression of major histocompatibility complex class II, an antigen-presenting molecule, in macrophages, suggesting that Tlr4 participates in the antigen-presenting function of macrophages after acoustic trauma. Together, these results suggest that Tlr4 regulates multiple aspects of the immune response in the cochlea and contributes to cochlear pathogenesis after acoustic injury.
Chimera states in a Hodgkin-Huxley model of thermally sensitive neurons

Chimera states occur when identically coupled groups of nonlinear oscillators exhibit radically different dynamics, with one group exhibiting synchronized oscillations and the other desynchronized behavior. This dynamical phenomenon has recently been studied in computational models and demonstrated experimentally in mechanical, optical, and chemical systems. The theoretical basis of these states is currently under active investigation. Chimera behavior is of particular relevance in the context of neural synchronization, given the phenomenon of unihemispheric sleep and the recent observation of asymmetric sleep in human patients with sleep apnea. The similarity of neural chimera states to neural “bump” states, which have been suggested as a model for working memory and visual orientation tuning in the cortex, adds to their interest as objects of study. Chimera states have been demonstrated in the FitzHugh-Nagumo model of excitable cells and in the Hindmarsh-Rose neural model. Here, we demonstrate chimera s...
Evolution of cognitive-behavioral therapy for eating disorders.

The evolution of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for the treatment of bulimic disorders is described in this review. The impacts of successive attempts to enhance CBT such as the addition of exposure and response prevention; the development of enhanced CBT; and broadening the treatment from bulimia nervosa to binge eating disorder are considered. In addition to developing advanced forms of CBT, shortening treatment to guided self-help was the first step in broadening access to treatment. The use of technology such as computer-based therapy and more recently the Internet, promises further broadening of access to self-help and to therapist guided treatment. Controlled studies in this area are reviewed, and the balance of risks and benefits that accompany the use of technology and lessened therapist input are considered. Looking into the future, more sophisticated forms of treatment delivered as mobile applications (“apps”) may lead to more personalized and efficacious treatments for bulimic disorders, thus enhancing the delivery of treatments for eating disorders.
Differential 3D Scanning

During the creative process, designers use various techniques and strategies to move from the abstract to the concrete, utilizing different physical and virtual means to represent form. The changes between virtual and physical models are not always fluent, however. Differential 3D scanning can detect the differences between a scanned model (point cloud) and a reference model (polygon mesh or CAD model) and then reflect those changes in the reference model. This can save designers time by reconstructing only the small changed regions rather than the entire object.
Prognostic factors in breast cancer patients evaluated by PET/CT prior to neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

e12113Background: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) is an important modality in breast cancer treatment. We sought to identify pre-treatment prognostic factors in patients who had positron emission to...
Mapping fluids to subduction megathrust locking and slip behavior

In subduction zones, high fluid content and pore pressure are thought to promote aseismic creep, whereas well-drained conditions are thought to promote locking and failure in earthquakes. However, observations directly linking fluid content and seismic coupling remain elusive. Heise et al. [2017] use a magnetotelluric survey to image the electrical resistivity structure of the northern Hikurangi subduction thrust to ~30 km depth, as an indicator of interconnected fluid content. The authors document a clear correlation between high resistivity and a distinct geodetically locked patch, and between conductive areas and weak coupling. Their study, together with other recent geophysical investigations, provides new evidence for the role of fluids in governing subduction thrust locking.
Meaning, Sense, and Reference

The topic of meaning is deeply embedded in language and linguistics in general and semiotics in particular. In this entry, we try to particularize the meaning of meaning for semiotics by examining some of the distinctions that have been drawn in past attempts to characterize it. Sense and reference are two aspects of meaning that are widely recognized. The semiology of Saussure emphasizes sense while Peirce integrates both sense and reference into his account of sign process. To these definitions, we add the concepts rhizome and Umwelt to round out a semiotic view of meaning.
A nanoscale pn junction in series with tunable Schottky barriers

PN junctions in nanoscale materials are of interest for a range of technologies including photodetectors, solar cells, and light-emitting diodes. However, Schottky barriers at the interface between metal contacts and the nanomaterial are often unavoidable. The effect of metal-semiconductor interfaces on the behavior of nanoscale diodes must be understood, both to extract the characteristics of the pn junction, and to understand the overall characteristics of the final device. Here, we study the current-voltage characteristics of diodes that are formed in fully suspended carbon nanotubes (CNTs). We utilize tunable Schottky barrier heights at the CNT-metal interface to elucidate the role of the Schottky barriers on the device characteristics. We develop a quantitative model to show how a variety of device characteristics can arise from apparently similar devices. Using our model we extract key parameters of the Schottky barriers and the pn junction, and predict the overall I-V characteristics of the device....
Collaborative analytics for biological facility characterization

Thousands of facilities worldwide are engaged in biological research activities. One of DTRA’s missions is to fully understand the types of facilities involved in collecting, investigating, and storing biological materials. This characterization enables DTRA to increase situational awareness and identify potential partners focused on biodefense and biosecurity. As a result of this mission, DTRA created a database to identify biological facilities from publicly available, open-source information. This paper describes an on-going effort to automate data collection and entry of facilities into this database. To frame our analysis more concretely, we consider the following motivating question: How would a decision maker respond to a pathogen outbreak during the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea? To address this question, we aim to further characterize the existing South Korean facilities in DTRA’s database, and to identify new candidate facilities for entry, so that decision makers can identify local facilities properly equipped to assist and respond to an event. We employ text and social analytics on bibliometric data from South Korean facilities and a list of select pathogen agents to identify patterns and relationships within scientific publication graphs.
The Relationship Between Violence, Antisocial Personality Disorder and Psychopathy

This section discusses the pattern of behaviors that may indicate an individual meets the criteria for antisocial personality disorder (ASPD). Although psychopathy is not a formal diagnosis, the lack of remorse, narcissism and low autonomic arousal may indicate overlapping symptoms and behaviors with ASPD, and only 14–25% of people diagnosed with ASPD meet the criteria of psychopathy. The section also examines the similarities between predatory violence and psychopathy.
Boot-Strapping Language Identifiers for Short Colloquial Postings

There is tremendous interest in mining the abundant user generated content on the web. Many analysis techniques are language dependent and rely on accurate language identification as a building block. Even though there is already research on language identification, it focused on very 'clean' editorially managed corpora, on a limited number of languages, and on relatively large-sized documents. These are not the characteristics of the content to be found in say, Twitter or Facebook postings, which are short and riddled with vernacular. In this paper, we propose an automated, unsupervised, scalable solution based on publicly available data. To this end we thoroughly evaluate the use of Wikipedia to build language identifiers for a large number of languages 52 and a large corpus and conduct a large scale study of the best-known algorithms for automated language identification, quantifying how accuracy varies in correlation to document size, language model profile size and number of languages tested. Then, we show the value in using Wikipedia to train a language identifier directly applicable to Twitter. Finally, we augment the language models and customize them to Twitter by combining our Wikipedia models with location information from tweets. This method provides massive amount of automatically labeled data that act as a bootstrapping mechanism which we empirically show boosts the accuracy of the models. With this work we provide a guide and a publicly available tooli¾?[1] to the mining community for language identification on web and social data.
Visual Roots of Mathematical Cognitive Activity

Fischbein (1977) in the opening epigraph is certainly correct in pointing out our natural predisposition toward constructing images in order to make sense of some knowledge that appears to us perhaps initially in either linguistic or alphanumeric form. In the case of Gemiliano, he liked mathematics despite his many struggles with its symbolic aspect because in most cases he understood what was happening, at least visually. I should note that visualizing facts and images does not necessarily imply the use of pictures alone. They could also be routed propositionally, that is, in either linguistic or algebraic form. But whether those images take the shape of pictures or language, I underscore a basic problem some learners have in the case of school mathematical objects, concepts, and processes, that make sense despite the absence of any natural mapping with the real world.
A Sporting Alternative

Sport cattle may help cattle growers round up their profits. DOI:10.2458/azu_rangelands_v28i6_hawkes
Gas phase infrared spectroscopy of the H2CNH2+ methaniminium cation

Abstract The methaniminium ion (H2C NH2+) was produced in a pulsed electrical discharge supersonic expansion of argon saturated with ethylenediamine vapor. It was identified and mass selected in a time-of-flight spectrometer. Its infrared spectrum was measured in the region of 2100–4100 cm−1 by photodissociation of the argon-tagged complex with a tunable infrared OPO/OPA laser system. The observed infrared spectrum was not described well by scaled harmonic theory, but could be assigned by comparison to second order vibrational perturbation theory computations at the B2PLYP/def2-QZVPP level.
The Effects of Leadership Styles on Innovative Work Behavior and the Role of Locus of Control in the Manufacturing Environment

With the decline of manufacturing in the United States, there is a need for increased employee innovation. This survey research examined the role of locus of control, leadership style, and innovative work behavior in the manufacturing industry using variance-based structural equation modeling. We tested the moderating roles of both internal and external locus of control on the leadership style and innovative work behavior and found positive significant relationships for transformational and transactional leadership styles and innovative work behavior.
Patient decision‐making in severe inflammatory bowel disease: the need for improved communication of treatment options and preferences

Aim Patients with inflammatory bowel disease and their physicians must navigate ever-increasing options for treatment. The aim of this study was to elucidate the key drivers of treatment decision-making in inflammatory bowel disease. Methods We conducted qualitative semi-structured in-person interviews of 20 adult patients undergoing treatment for inflammatory bowel disease at an academic medical centre who either recently initiated biologic therapy or underwent an operation or surgical evaluation. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, iteratively coded, and discussed to consensus by five researchers. We used thematic analysis to explore factors influencing decision-making. Results Four major themes emerged as key drivers of treatment decision-making: perceived clinical state and disease severity, the patient-physician relationship, knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about treatment options, and social isolation and stigma. Patients described experiencing a clinical turning point as the impetus for proceeding with a previously undesired treatment such as infusion medication or surgery. Patients reported delays in care or diagnosis, inadequate communication with their physicians, and lack of control over their disease management. Patients often stated that they considered surgery to be the treatment of last resort, which further compounded the complexity of making treatment decisions. Conclusion Patients described multiple barriers to making informed and collaborative decisions about treatment, especially when considering surgical options. Our study reveals a need for more comprehensive communication between the patient and their physician about the range of medical and surgical treatment options. We recommend a patient-centred approach toward the decision-making process that accounts for patient decision-making preferences, causes of social stress, and clinical status.
Revisiting the Relationship Between Hospital Case Volume and Outcomes in Abdominally Based Free Flap Breast Reconstruction.

BACKGROUND Increased operative volume has been associated with benefits in patient outcomes for a variety of surgical procedures. In autologous abdominally based breast reconstruction, however, there are few studies assessing the association between procedure volume and patient outcomes. The objectives of this study are to evaluate the associations between abdominal-based free flap breast reconstruction and patient outcomes. METHODS The 2013-2014 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample was queried for all female patients with a diagnosis of breast cancer who underwent mastectomy and immediate abdominally based breast reconstruction (deep inferior epigastric perforator or transverse rectus abdominus muscle free flaps). Outcomes included occurrence of major or surgical site in-hospital complications, hospital cost, and length of stay (LOS). High-volume (HV) hospitals were defined as the 90th percentile of annual case volume or higher (>18 cases/y). Multivariate regressions and generalized linear modeling with gamma log-link function were performed to access the outcomes associated with HV hospitals. RESULTS Overall, 7145 patients at 473 hospitals were studied; of these, 42.4% of patients were treated at HV hospitals. There were significant differences in unadjusted major complications (2.1% vs 4.3%; P < 0.001) and unadjusted surgical site complications (3.5% vs 6.1%; P < 0.001) between HV and non-HV hospitals. After adjustments for clinical and hospital characteristics, patients treated at HV hospitals were less likely to experience a major complication (odds ratio, 0.488; 95% confidence interval, 0.353-0.675; P < 0.001) or surgical site complication (odds ratio, 0.678; 95% confidence interval, 0.519-0.887; P = 0.005). There was no difference in inpatient cost between HV and non-HV hospitals ($26,822 vs $26,295; marginal cost, $528; P = 0.102); however, HV hospitals had a shorter LOS (4.31 vs 4.40 days; marginal LOS, -0.10 days; P = 0.005). CONCLUSIONS Hospitals that perform a larger volume of immediate abdominal-based breast reconstructions after mastectomy, when compared with those that perform a lower volume of these procedures, seem to have an associated lower rate of major complications and a shorter LOS. However, these same HV centers demonstrate no decrease in costs. Further research is needed to understand how these HV centers can reduce hospital costs.
Clinical and Sociodemographic Factors Associated With Human Donor Milk Supplementation in Term Newborns

OBJECTIVES: To identify differences between healthy term newborns supplemented with human donor milk (HDM) and those supplemented with infant formula. We hypothesized that sociodemographic and clinical distinctions exist between newborns receiving different milk types. METHODS: This retrospective study included term newborns admitted to the postpartum unit between March 2017 and April 2019 with ≥1 supplemental feeding with HDM or formula for indications other than hypoglycemia. Maternal and newborn data were abstracted from the electronic medical record. RESULTS: Five hundred eighty-four dyads met inclusion criteria. More newborns received supplementation with formula than with HDM (57.7% vs 42.3%; P CONCLUSIONS: There are clinical and sociodemographic differences between healthy term newborns supplemented with HDM and formula. These findings reveal that there are disparities in current supplementation practices for healthy newborns.
Recent advances in starch-based films toward food packaging applications: Physicochemical, mechanical, and functional properties

Interest in starch-based films has increased precipitously in response to a growing demand for more sustainable and environmentally sourced food packaging materials. Starch is an optimal candidate for these applications given its ability to form thermoplastic materials and films with affordable and often sustainably sourced plasticizers like those produced as waste byproducts by biodiesel and agricultural industries. Starch is also globally ubiquitous, affordable, and environmentally benign. Although the process of producing starch films is relatively straightforward, numerous factors, including starch source, extraction method, film formulation, processing methods, and curing procedures, drastically impact the ultimate material properties. The significant strides made from 2015 to early 2020 toward elucidating how these variables can be leveraged to improve mechanical and barrier properties as well as the implementation of various additives or procedural modifications are cataloged in this review. Advances toward the development of functional films containing antioxidant, antibacterial, or spoilage indicating components to prevent or signal the degradation of food products are also discussed.
Pain Management in Burn Patients

This review focuses on the characteristics of pain following burn injury, methods of assessment, multimodal pharmacological treatment, and non-pharmacological adjuncts. Opioid medications are the cornerstone of burn pain management protocols. Given the current opioid epidemic, current research focuses on other analgesic, anxiolytic, and sedative medications including gabapentin, ketamine, and dexmedetomidine. Non-pharmacological interventions discussed include music, massage, and more recently virtual reality and hypnosis. Further study addresses psychosocial contributions to the pain experience and associated symptoms of anxiety, sleep disturbance, and pruritus. Optimization of burn pain management requires a holistic approach and development of protocols utilizing multimodal pharmacological therapy as well as adjunctive non-pharmacological therapies. Many barriers to improved pain control exist, including inadequate education and provider bias. There is a growing need for the incorporation of mental health professionals and pain management specialists into multidisciplinary care teams.
Analysis of Factors Affecting Peak to Average Ratio and Mean Power in a Slider Crank Wave Energy Converter

This paper investigates the factors that affect the Peak to Average Ratio (PTAR) and Mean Power (MP) for the Slider Crank Wave Energy Converter (SCWEC). The goal study is to reduce the PTAR while maximizing the MP. The PTAR needs to be reduced, because the generator that converts wave energy to electricity for the grid would become more efficient and less costly. During the process of minimizing the PTAR, the impact on MP production should be minimized, since producing usable power is the main purpose of any generation mechanism. In this paper, a few system parameters affecting the PTAR and the MP are investigated. In this analysis, these parameters are applied to multiple models of the system, and the results are recorded and compared. It is observed that the best combination of the PTAR and the MP can be determined under regular wave conditions.
The properties and prospects of chemically exfoliated nanosheets for quantum materials in two dimensions

The aim of this review is to elucidate the potential of chemically exfoliated sheets for the field of quantum matter. Quantum materials are loosely defined as materials that do not follow the laws of classical physics; the family commonly includes complex magnets, topological materials, or superconductors. Two-dimensional (2D) materials have been key in driving the field of quantum matter forward due to the high degree of tunability they offer. However, progress has largely been made with mechanically exfoliated sheets while chemically exfoliated sheets have been mostly ignored. The latter offer a wide range of advantages, for example, chemical exfoliation gives access to 2D materials that are unobtainable with other methods. In this review, we highlight the progress that has been made in exploring properties that can be associated with quantum materials of chemically exfoliated nanosheets. We will cover magnetic chemically exfoliated sheets, their use in transistors, their potential as 2D topological insulators, and opportunities that arise for the emerging field of twistronics. We will highlight both the advantages and current shortcomings of chemically exfoliated quantum materials and address how shortcomings might be overcome in the future. We conclude that while the prospects of chemically exfoliated sheets for quantum materials are still underexplored, they offer a large potential for having an impact in that field.
Race, Ethnicity and Disparities in Rheumatology Educational Materials

Objective To characterize the representation of dark skin color in clinical images across four major rheumatology training resources. Methods We gathered images of patients with rheumatic diseases from the American College of Rheumatology Image Library, UpToDate, the New England Journal of Medicine Images in Clinical Medicine and Clinical Cases filtered by "Rheumatology," and the 9th edition of Kelley's Textbook of Rheumatology. Investigators used Fitzpatrick's skin phototypes to independently code images depicting visible skin as "light" (skin types I to IV), "dark" (skin types V to VI), or "indeterminate." The representation of dark skin in clinical images was compared to the representation of Asian, Native American, and Black individuals within the U.S. Census population and within lupus cases nationally. Results Of the 1,043 patient images included in the study, 13.4% had dark skin, 84.0% light skin, and 2.6% indeterminate skin color. Dark skin was underrepresented significantly in rheumatology educational materials and lupus images when compared with the representation of Asian, Native American, and Black individuals within the U.S. Census population (13.4% vs 20.6%; X2 = 32.8, P Conclusion Darker skin tones are significantly underrepresented in major rheumatology clinical image banks. Improving representation of racial and ethnic minorities in rheumatology education materials can better equip trainees to recognize and diagnose cutaneous manifestations of rheumatic diseases in these groups.
Multinephron Segment Diuretic Therapy to Overcome Diuretic Resistance in Acute Heart Failure: A Single-Center Experience

Abstract Background The concept of multinephron segment diuretic therapy (MSDT) has been recommended in severe diuretic resistance with only expert opinion and case-level evidence. The purpose of this study was to investigate the safety and efficacy of MSDT, combining 4 diuretic classes, in acute heart failure (AHF) complicated by diuretic resistance. Methods and Results A retrospective analysis was conducted in patients hospitalized with AHF at a single medical center who received MSDT, including concomitant carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, loop, thiazide, and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist diuretics. Subjects served as their own controls with efficacy evaluated as urine output and weight change before and after MSDT. Serum chemistries, renal replacement therapies, and in-hospital mortality were evaluated for safety. Patients with severe diuretic resistance before MSDT were analyzed as a subcohort. A total of 167 patients with AHF and diuretic resistance received MSDT. MSDT was associated with increased median 24-hour urine output in the first day of therapy compared with the previous day (2.16 L [0.95–4.14 L] to 3.08 L [1.74–4.86 L], P = .003) in the total cohort and in the Severe diuretic resistance cohort (0.91 L [0.43–1.43 L] to 2.08 L [1.13–3.96 L], P .05 for all). Conclusions In an AHF cohort with diuretic resistance, MSDT was associated with increased diuresis without changes in serum chemistries or kidney function. Prospective studies of MSDT in AHF and diuretic resistance are warranted.
Maize root-associated microbes likely under adaptive selection by the host to enhance phenotypic performance

The root-associated microbiome (rhizobiome) plays a non-negligible role in determining plant health, stress tolerance, and nutrient use efficiency. However, it remains unclear to what extent the composition of the rhizobiome is governed by intraspecific variation in host plant genetics in the field and the degree to which host plant selection can reshape the composition of the rhizobiome. Here we quantify the rhizosphere microbial communities associated with a replicated diversity panel of 230 maize (Zea mays L.) genotypes grown in agronomically relevant conditions under high N (+N) and low N (-N) treatments. We show that the abundance of many root-associated microbes within a functional core microbial community of 150 abundant and consistently reproducible microbial groups is explainable by natural genetic variation in the host plant, with a greater proportion of microbial variance attributable to plant genetic variation in low N conditions. Population genetic approaches identify signatures of purifying selection in the maize genome associated with the abundance of several groups of microbes in the maize rhizobiome. Genome-wide association studies conducted using rhizobiome phenotypes identified n = 467 microbe-associated plant loci (MAPLs) in the maize genome linked to variation in the abundance of n = 115 microbial groups in the maize rhizosphere. In 62/115 cases, which is more than expected by chance, the abundance of these same microbial groups was correlated with variation in plant vigor indicators derived from high throughput phenotyping of the same field experiment. This study provides insights into harnessing the full potential of root-associated microbial symbionts in maize production.
CT accuracy of percutaneous versus open pedicle screw techniques: a series of 1609 screws

Introduction Traditional open exposure for posterior instrumentation requires significant soft tissue mobilization and causes significant blood loss and increased recovery time. Mal-placed screws can injure nerve roots, the spinal cord, viscera, vasculature and the cardiopulmonary system. Placement of pedicle screws using a minimally invasive technique can decrease bleeding risk, damage to soft tissues, and post-operative pain. The purpose of this study is to compare the radiographic accuracy of open free-hand versus percutaneous technique for pedicle screw placement. Methods Consecutive patients undergoing thoracolumbar surgery from September 2006 to October 2011 with postoperative CT imaging were included in this study. Threedimensional screw positioning within the pedicle and the vertebral body was assessed on CT. The magnitude and location of violations were measured and recorded. Facet breaches at the cephalad and caudad ends of the construct were documented and graded. Results Two-hundred and twenty-three patients met the inclusion criteria for a total of 1609 pedicle screws. Sevenhundred and twenty-four screws were placed using a standard open free-hand technique and 885 were placed percutaneously. There was a significant difference in overall pedicle breach rates: 7.5 % for open and 4.7 % for percutaneous techniques. The magnitude of breach was greater for the percutaneous technique compared to the open technique: 5.4 versus 3.7 mm, respectively. The difference in vertebral body breaches was also significant: 11.3 % for open and 3.6 % for percutaneous. The rates of facet breach did not significantly differ. Discussion and conclusion This is the largest series comparing the accuracy of percutaneous to open pedicle screw placement. The rates of pedicle, vertebral body, and facets breaches in the percutaneous group were similar to the rates in the open technique group as well as rates reported in the literature. This demonstrates that the percutaneous technique described here is an accurate alternative to standard open free-hand technique.