cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Prospective study of inhaled corticosteroid use, cardiovascular mortality, and all-cause mortality in asthmatic women.

Background Therapy with inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) decreases the risk of asthma exacerbations. Recent studies have suggested that ICS therapy also may decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease, and perhaps of all-cause mortality. We examined this hypothesis in a large, well-characterized cohort of asthmatic women. Methods In 1976, the Nurses' Health Study enrolled 121,700 registered nurses, who were 30 to 55 years of age. Participants were asked about "physician-diagnosed asthma" on biennial questionnaires. In 1998, asthmatic participants were sent a supplementary questionnaire on asthma diagnosis and management, including ICS use. Mortality was assessed through 2003, without knowledge of the 1998 (baseline) ICS status. The odds ratios (ORs) for death were adjusted for age, asthma severity, smoking, heart disease, cancer, stroke, aspirin, and statin use. Results Among 2,671 eligible women (ie, those who responded to the 1998 supplement [85%], met criteria for persistent asthma, and had not received a prior diagnosis of COPD), 54% reported ICS use. Over the next 5 years, 87 women (3.3%) died (cardiovascular deaths, 22; cancer deaths, 31; other, 34 [including 4 from asthma]). Compared to asthmatic women who did not use ICSs, those receiving therapy with ICSs had lower all-cause mortality (OR, 0.58; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.36 to 0.92). ICS users were at significantly lower risk of cardiovascular death (OR, 0.35; 95% CI, 0.13 to 0.93), but not of death from cancer (OR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.32 to 1.38) or other causes (OR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.30 to 1.27). Conclusions ICS use was associated with significantly lower cardiovascular and all-cause mortality in women with asthma. These observational data suggest that ICSs may indeed have antiinflammatory benefits beyond the airway, which is a possibility that merits further study.
Gabriel García Márquez: entre la pluma, el humor y el fusil

han marginado elementos como el humor y el juego, que a primera vista parecen ligeros, pero que considero claves a la hora de enfrentar dos grandes problemas de ese tiempo: primero, a nivel internacional, la Revolucion cubana imponia a los escritores elegir entre empunar la pluma o el fusil; y segundo, a nivel nacional, estaba vigente la pregunta por como representar la violencia que venia azotando al pais, sin reproducirla ni volver a formulas gastadas que, con un realismo desgarrado, se conformaban con mostrar las visceras de los muertos que habia dejado la violencia. Como intentare demostrar, el humor ludico de
Thermodilution cardiac output studies as a cause of prosthetic valve bacterial endocarditis

The injectate used for thermodilution cardiac output determinations is a potential source for direct bloodstream contamination, resulting in bacterial endocarditis after cardiac operations. An experiment simulating three techniques for obtaining injectate samples showed one of them to be clearly unacceptable.
Production from first-calf beef heifers fed a maintenance or low level of prepartum nutrition and ruminally undegradable or degradable protein postpartum.

Two experiments were conducted in consecutive years to determine the effects of prepartum nutrient level and postpartum ruminally undegraded protein intake on nutrient status, milk production, subsequent calf production, and reproductive performance of 126 crossbred, primiparous beef heifers. Prepartum treatments were low nutrient intake (LN) (approximately 2.5 kg of TDN, .5 kg of CP animal-1.d-1 and maintenance nutrient intake (MN) (5 kg of TDN, 1 kg of CP animal-1.d-1), which were fed for 75 d before parturition. Two postpartum protein supplements were formulated to provide 250 g/d of ruminally degradable protein (RD) and one to supply ruminally undegraded protein (UD) at 250 g/d of additional UD CP compared to the RD supplement. Cholesterol was lower (P less than .01) in heifers given UD than in heifers given RD. Blood urea nitrogen was higher (P less than .01) for UD-fed heifers than for RD-fed heifers and was higher in LN heifers (P less than .06) than in MN heifers. Milk production did not differ (P greater than .11) as a result of LN, MN, UD, or RD. Postpartum cow weight gain was greatest (P less than .01) for UD and LN heifers. The percentage of heifers bred during the first estrous cycle of the breeding season was greater (P less than .02) for UD than for RD. Overall, prepartum nutrition did not interact with postpartum protein supplement, nor did it have any effect on postpartum interval, whereas UD increased cow weight gain postpartum and reduced postpartum interval.
Ad libitum suckling by an unrelated calf in the presence or absence of a cow's own calf prolongs postpartum anovulation.

Our objective was to determine whether onset of first postpartum ovulation would be altered in suckled cows nursing an unrelated calf in the presence or absence of their own nonsuckling calf. In a 2-yr study, Angus x Hereford cows were assigned randomly to five treatments between d 13 and 18 postpartum for 4 wk: 1) own calf was weaned (OCW, n = 9); 2) own calf was present continuously (OCP, n = 12); 3) own calf was present continuously but restricted from udder contact (OCR, n = 9); 4) unrelated calf was present continuously after own calf was removed (UCP, n = 10); and 5) unrelated calf was present continuously and own calf was present but restricted as in the OCR treatment (OCR+UCP, n = 10). Interval to the first increase in progesterone (ovulation) was less (P <.05) in OCW (14.7 ± 3.4 d) and OCR (19.9 ± 3.4 d) than in the OCP (35.0 ± 2.9 d), UCP (38.0 ± 3.4 d), and OCR+UCP (37.6 ± 3.4 d) treatments. The OCW cows showed no maternal bond with their own calves after 4 wk of treatment, whereas OCR, OCP, and OCR+UCP cows were bonded to their own natural calves. Cows in the UCP treatment, suckled by unrelated calves, formed new maternal bonds with those calves, resulting in prolonged anovulation. Further, OCR+UCP cows had prolonged anovulation because maternal bonds were maintained with their own restricted calves while milk was removed by unrelated calves. We conclude that milk removal preceded by a continuously reinforced cow-calf bond (original or reestablished) is essential to prolong anovulation in beef cows.
Interventions to Promote Adherence: Innovations in Behavior Change Strategies

Only in recent years has a large enough body of research on adherence-promoting interventions been amassed so that systematic reviews and meta-analyses of their impact can reliably be evaluated. Overall, these reviews indicate that interventions tend to result in modest improvements in adherence to treatment recommendations and medications, with effect sizes typically in the small to medium range across various chronic condition populations and intervention types. Positive effects on health outcomes have also been reported. This chapter reviews the literature on interventions for pediatric nonadherence, paying special attention to recent innovations that have the potential to expand interventions’ reach and effectiveness.
The Algebraic Eigenvalue Problem

The chapter begins with three applications to show the importance of the eigenvalue problem. The problems deal with resonance, the Leslie matrix, and column buckling. The power method is the first eigenvalue solver to be discussed. It computes the largest eigenvalue in magnitude as long as it is simple. The inverse power iteration computes the eigenvalue of smallest magnitude by computing the largest eigenvalue of the inverse. Both the methods actually compute the eigenvector associated with the desired eigenvalue, and then the Rayleigh quotient finds the eigenvalue. The basic QR iteration is the foundation for most eigenvalue solvers. By itself, it is not very useful, but when applied to an orthogonal transformation of the matrix to upper Hessenberg form using a single shift, it improves considerably. There is an unshifted Hessenberg QR iteration, but the shifted version is preferred. Schur’s triangularization takes any matrix and shows it can be written as an orthogonal similarity transformation to an upper-triangular matrix. This theorem can be used to easily prove the important spectral theorem. The Francis QR iteration, or the implicit QR iteration, is the primary method used to compute eigenvalues. It performs single and double shifts of the QR iteration without actually computing the QR decomposition. This greatly speeds up computation. A double shift is used for a nonsymmetric matrix in order to compute complex eigenvalues using real arithmetic, but a symmetric matrix requires the use of only the implicit single shift. Once a simple eigenvalue is known, the Hessenberg inverse iteration can be used to compute a corresponding eigenvector. The problem is more complex if the algorithm deals with a multiple eigenvalue. By putting the Francis algorithm together with the Hessenberg inverse iteration, a general eigenproblem solver can be built. The Bauer-Fike theorem relates the sensitivity of the whole set of eigenvalues of a matrix to the matrix condition number. It is possible for some eigenvalues to be ill-conditioned and others well-conditioned, and this is determined by computing the eigenvalue condition number that depends on a right and a left eigenvector corresponding to the eigenvalue. The analysis of eigenvector conditioning is more complex and depends on the entire set of eigenvalues. If the eigenvalues are spread out, the eigenvectors will be well-conditioned, but if some eigenvalues are clustered close together, the corresponding eigenvectors will be ill-conditioned.
PowerChop: identifying and managing non-critical units in hybrid processor architectures

On-core microarchitectural structures consume significant portions of a processor's power budget. However, depending on application characteristics, those structures do not always provide (much) performance benefit. While timeout-based power gating techniques have been leveraged for underutilized cores and inactive functional units, these techniques have not directly translated to high-activity units such as vector processing units, complex branch predictors, and caches. The performance benefit provided by these units does not necessarily correspond with unit activity, but instead is a function of application characteristics.This work introduces PowerChop, a novel technique that leverages the unique capabilities of HW/SW co-designed hybrid processors to enact unit-level power management at the application phase level. PowerChop adds two small additional hardware units to facilitate phase identification and triggering different power states, enabling the software layer to cheaply track, predict and take advantage of varying unit criticality across application phases by powering gating units that are not needed for performant execution. Through detailed experimentation, we find that PowerChop significantly decreases power consumption, reducing the leakage power of a hybrid server processor by 9% on average (up to 33%) and a hybrid mobile processor by 19% (up to 40%) while introducing just 2% slowdown.
Upon the altar of British prestige: a re-evaluation of Dunsterforce’s exploits and legacy

ABSTRACTDunsterforce, known alternatively as the Hush Hush Army, set off from Baghdad in January of 1918, with the aim of defending Persia from the Ottoman Army. Though operating at first in Persia, General Dunsterville accepted a request from the Central Caspian Dictatorship of Baku to help defend the city against the attacking Ottoman Army of Islam. Dunsterville was cognizant of Baku’s importance as an oil city and role as a potential gateway to Central Asia and deployed his force to Baku in August 1918, withdrawing in September in defeat. This paper re-evaluates the Dunsterforce expedition, arguing that Dunsterville’s decision to deploy at Baku was militarily sound, but that Dunsterforce’s most significant achievements occurred not in Baku, but in Persia.
Self-Contained Statistical Analysis of Gene Sets

Microarrays are a powerful tool for studying differential gene expression. However, lists of many differentially expressed genes are often generated, and unraveling meaningful biological processes from the lists can be challenging. For this reason, investigators have sought to quantify the statistical probability of compiled gene sets rather than individual genes. The gene sets typically are organized around a biological theme or pathway. We compute correlations between different gene set tests and elect to use Fisher’s self-contained method for gene set analysis. We improve Fisher’s differential expression analysis of a gene set by limiting the p-value of an individual gene within the gene set to prevent a small percentage of genes from determining the statistical significance of the entire set. In addition, we also compute dependencies among genes within the set to determine which genes are statistically linked. The method is applied to T-ALL (T-lineage Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) to identify differentially expressed gene sets between T-ALL and normal patients and T-ALL and AML (Acute Myeloid Leukemia) patients.
26. Milton’s Lycidas, Lines 164 and 183-185

(1947). 26. Milton’s Lycidas, Lines 164 and 183-185. The Explicator: Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 51-53.
The Social Psychology of Groups and Group Psychotherapy: One View of the Next Century

Will fields that study groups in general, such as social psychology, and fields that use groups to achieve therapeutic goals, such as group psychotherapy, move toward unification in the future or will they drift apart? One possible future assumes that these two approaches to groups will become better integrated as (a) societal changes increase individuals' reliance on groups; (b) research and theory on group processes become more sophisticated; and (c) basic and applied researchers work together more closely in examining groups. Such unification requires, however, changes in the training, outlook, and procedures used by both practitioners and researchers.
Strongly nonlinear theory of rapid solidification near absolute stability

We investigate the nonlinear evolution of the morphological deformation of a solid-liquid interface of a binary melt under rapid solidification conditions near two absolute stability limits. The first of these involves the complete stabilization of the system to cellular instabilities as a result of large enough surface energy. We derive nonlinear evolution equations in several limits in this scenario and investigate the effect of interfacial disequilibrium on the nonlinear deformations that arise. In contrast to the morphological stability problem in equilibrium, in which only cellular instabilities appear and only one absolute stability boundary exists, in disequilibrium the system is prone to oscillatory instabilities and a second absolute stability boundary involving attachment kinetics arises. Large enough attachment kinetics stabilize the oscillatory instabilities. We derive a nonlinear evolution equation to describe the nonlinear development of the solid-liquid interface near this oscillatory absolute stability limit. We find that strong asymmetries develop with time. For uniform oscillations, the evolution equation for the interface reduces to the simple form ${f}^{\ensuremath{'}\ensuremath{'}}+{(\ensuremath{\beta}{f}^{\ensuremath{'}})}^{2}+f=0$, where $\ensuremath{\beta}$ is the disequilibrium parameter. Lastly, we investigate a distinguished limit near both absolute stability limits in which the system is prone to both cellular and oscillatory instabilities and derive a nonlinear evolution equation that captures the nonlinear deformations in this limit. Common to all these scenarios is the emergence of larger asymmetries in the resulting shapes of the solid-liquid interface with greater departures from equilibrium and larger morphological numbers. The disturbances additionally sharpen near the oscillatory absolute stability boundary, where the interface becomes deep-rooted. The oscillations are time-periodic only for small-enough initial amplitudes and their frequency depends on a single combination of physical parameters, including the morphological number, as well as the amplitude. The critical amplitude, at which solutions loose periodicity, depends on a single combination of parameters independent of the morphological number that indicate that non-periodic growth is most commonly present for moderate disequilibrium parameters. The spatial distribution of the interface develops deepening roots at late times. Similar spatial distributions are also seen in the limit in which both the cellular and oscillatory modes are close to absolute stability, and the roots deepen with larger departures from the two absolute stability boundaries.
Photonic compressed sensing nyquist folding receiver

We demonstrate how integrated photonic components can be used to generate frequency modulated optical pulses below the Nyquist criteria in order to compress a wideband radio frequency environment for sampling. The compressed signals can be analyzed and extracted using digital signal processing techniques.
Conclusion: Lessons Drawn from Norm Contestation’s Insights

This study demonstrates how a norm contestation framework can provide useful insights to norm-related behavior. In doing so, it argues that this framework can supplement explanations offered by other frameworks or step in when their theoretical mechanisms unsatisfactorily help us understand empirical puzzles. The norm contestation framework can offer this assistance because it appreciates norms’ dynamism. Rather than viewing norms as “things” whose content remains unchanged, norm contestation’s use of the logics of appropriateness, contestedness, and practicality enables it to notice how different social contexts contribute to variations in how actors interpret norms, even long-established, foundational norms. As Antje Wiener (2004: 190), puts it, “analysis of social practices in context provide additional leverage when it comes to explaining cases that otherwise seem puzzling…” These variations in interpretations are then employed to help explain differences in norm-related behavior.
Breaking Institutional Habits: A Critical Paradigm for Social Change Agents in Psychology:

There is a growing concern in counseling psychology that the field is not matching its commitment to social justice with adequate preparation of social change agents. Compiling and building off of a uniquely interdisciplinary framework, this article offers an alternative way forward for psychologists and trainees. Recommendations include a reorientation to institutions in which psychologists are immediately embedded and a legitimization of direct-action methods.
The Latino/a audience unbound: Intra-ethnic social hierarchies and Spanish-language television news

Many US Spanish-language television producers, marketers and academics construct Latino/a identity in Spanish-language media narrowly, despite numerous scholarly critiques of the pan-Latino label. Examining how Latino/a immigrants in metropolitan Miami interpret representations of immigrants, immigrant communities, and urban services in Spanish-language news, I argue that diverse Latino/a audiences emerge according to how the media representations evoke participants’ subjective positioning in locally and nationally embedded social hierarchies. The study reveals how intra-Latino/a factors affect audience formation, and discusses implications for audience studies and journalism practice.
Coagulation assays in a case of apixaban overdose

Intentional overdose of apixaban is rare and minimal data exist regarding the usefulness of routinely available laboratory tests to predict drug levels. A 50-year-old man was admitted after ingestion of 200-mg apixaban. Serial blood samples were obtained over a 54-h period for assessment of the fall
Is physician self-disclosure ever appropriate?

Physicians should be mindful of the choice to self-disclose to a patient. Self-disclosure can be a useful tool, but only if it is intended to serve the patient and not the doctor.
Rabies in Wildlife and Tropical Canines—A Population Problem

The past 25 years has seen major advances in the protection of man against rabies with the development of rabies immune globulin, safer and more potent vaccines for man, excellent vaccines for animals, the separation of rabies virus strains through the use of monoclonal antibody, more intense observation as to the host-parasite relationship, etc. In developed countries stray dog control has been an essential ingredient for the elimination of urban rabies, but it is an extremely expensive procedure. The control of rabies in wildlife has lagged significantly behind other research areas primarily because it has been more difficult to deal with. The classic population reduction methods of trapping, poisoning, gassing and hunting have proven expensive, objectionable, often not effective and, even where effective, requiring periodic repetition. The use of antifertility compounds although conceptually sound has not received the sustained effort required to make it useful. The use of chemosterilants to control wildlife populations has seen its greatest use with the rat but has not achieved success with larger mammals where experimentation has been only minimal. Oral vaccines for wildlife are currently under experimentation, but have only been developed for the fox. Whether this method will prove practical for wide area field populations is yet to be determined. As rabies is a density-dependent disease the real problem in wildlife rabies is one of population control and is identical to the problem seen in tropical countries with the roaming “owned” and “not owned” dog populations. Methods developed for control of rabies in wildlife will be directly applicable to the urban rabies seen in tropical countries. This paper will review the conceptual basis and the existing research data for wildlife population control using antifertility and chemosterilant compounds and will indicate promising areas for new research.
Phase Coherent Laser Multiple-Pulse Spectroscopy

Complex multiple-pulse sequences have proven extremely valuable in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) as probes of intermolecular and intramolecular interactions. Optical analogs of many of these sequences can be useful in elucidating the effects of collisional perturbations in gases, guest-guest and guest-host interactions in mixed molecular crystals, or any general perturbations that make the usual two-level approximations invalid.1 But all of these sequences require phase coherence (the phase of each pulse must be specified relative to the first), which was more difficult to achieve in optical spectroscopy than at radio frequencies.
Cytochrome P450 Isoforms

Pesticides, like other xenobiotics, are metabolized in both target and non-target spe cies by a number of different enzymes, including several isoforms of cytochrome P450 (P450) and the flavin-containing monooxygenase (FMO).1-3 While P450 and FMO can both as activation as well as detoxication enzymes for xenobiotics, P450 is the most im portant activating enzyme, producing electrophilic metabolites that react with endogenous cellular nucleophiles, including substituents on both proteins and nucleic acids.
A RAMS Life Support Model Through Design Optimization

This paper presents a partial solution to how the Department of Defense (DoD) should face acquisition challenges caused by increasingly constrained budgets for weapon systems. The early life cycle decisions of current acquisition programs inaccurately quantify Life Cycle Cost (LCC) impacts as a function of preliminary system design and support system design. Cost As an Independent Variable (CAIV), the underlying philosophy that guides the defense acquisition trade-space, emphasizes keeping the LCC within an established cost range by trading cost with performance metrics and schedule variables. Major system design decisions are made without a holistic understanding of system sustainability impacts when programs are forced to prioritize the three high-level program variables of cost, performance, and schedule. The disconnect between acquisition objectives and sustainability objectives results in poorly defined sustainment Key Performance Parameters (KPPs), ultimately ensuring the acquisition of systems that meet technical performance KPPs yet fail to meet sustainment KPPs. Rather than limiting programs to the CAIV trade-space, programs should decompose LCC into manageable components such as Life Acquisition Cost (LAC), Life Support Cost (LSC), and Life Operating Cost (LOC). Programs should then optimize each LCC component for system sustainability over a trade-space consisting of the operational concept, the technical system design, and the support system design. This analytical RAMS process optimizes LSC over a trade-space of sustainment variables, such as system performance, system readiness, operational capability, and operational readiness. Since the LSC traditionally comprises 60%-80% of a weapon system's LCC, this process enables programs to find support solutions that optimize sustainability by maximizing the efficiency and effectiveness of a system. Analysts first model a DoD weapon system using commercial modeling and simulation tools. This easily manipulated system model is a vehicle for design optimization as a means of controlling future LSC. Then, once the system is fielded, analysts can validate and verify the predictive power of a model built in the early acquisition phase against actuals as part of a life cycle Failure Reporting and Corrective Action System (FRACAS) process. Applications include, but are not limited to, asset availability prediction, probability of mission success estimation, and optimal preventative maintenance or tech refresh scheduling across the DoD enterprise.
The Eighth Nerve Guitar: A Personal Reflection on Instrument Design and Computer-Mediated Performance

This paper describes the Eighth Nerve Guitar, a combined hardware / software instrument designed for computer-mediated improvisational performance. Key conceptual, aesthetic, and technical concerns will be discussed and multiple projects that utilize this live performance instrument will be referenced. A new instrument, the Guitar-Like Object (in development) will also be introduced.
Gray zone fractional flow reserve 0.81–0.85 is associated with an increased risk of cardio-vascular events

Aims Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR) is a widely accepted prognostic tool to estimate the risk of myocardial ischemia in coronary stenosis. Values above 0.80 are considered as an indication for medical therapy only. Whether intermediate values ranging from 0.81 to 0.85 are associated with an increase cardio-vascular (CV) risk is unknown. Methods In a prospective study, 91 patients with FFR > 0.80 were enrolled and followed up for at least 1 year. Clinical outcomes of the subgroup with FFR > 0.85 (N = 67) were compared with those of the subgroup with intermediate values of 0.81–0.85 (N = 24). The outcome was a composite of cardio-vascular death/myocardial infarction/CV hospitalization/target lesion revascularization. Results There was significant difference in baseline demographic data or medical therapy between the two groups ( Table 1 ). The average follow-up is 2.505 ± 0.6 years. We observed a significantly higher number of events in patients with FFR between 0.81 and 0.85 than in those with FFR > 0.85. These events occurred respectively in 45.9% and 13.4% of patients (P = 0.01) and were mostly the result of revascularizations and CV hospitalizations ( Fig. 1 ). Conclusion FFR values in the gray zone of 0.81–0.85 are correlated with an increased CV risk compared to FFR values > 0.85. Appropriately powered trials are needed to assess the potential benefit of revascularization in this subset of patients.
A Comparison of Comorbidities and their Contribution to Medical Resource Utilization for Matched HIV-Infected and Uninfected Individuals: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

HIV long-term survivorship is characterized by higher rates of comorbidities compared to uninfected groups. Aging with HIV involves complex interactions of factors (e.g., Individual Characteristics, Infections) that result in a 20% increase in comorbidity risk. With over half of the 1.1 million people living with HIV in the US age 50 and over, the need exists to further understand this interplay and differences in aging-related outcomes. Electronic health record data was analyzed for HIV infected (N=208) and uninfected (N=208) adult inpatients, propensity score matched by age and gender. Diagnostic codes were extracted that comprise the factors of Individual Characteristics, High Risk Behaviors, Chronic Conditions, Mental Health Conditions and Infections. Identified codes were assessed for their contributions to medical resource utilization, based on Charlson Comorbidity scores. Significant contributors to high Charslon scores for HIV infected patients were age ({beta}=0.116; [95% CI 0.077, 0.155]) and admission frequency ({beta}=0.159; [95% CI 0.114, 0.205]) in addition to the comorbidities of acute kidney failure ({beta}=3.27; [95% CI 1.76, 4.78]), hypertension ({beta}= -1.77; [95% CI -2.99, -0.551]). Significant contributors for HIV uninfected patients were age ({beta}=0.110; [95% CI 0.087, 0.133]), length of hospital stay ({beta}=0.006; [95% CI 0.003, 0.009]), acute kidney failure ({beta}=1.556; [95% CI 0.611, 2.50]), heart failure ({beta}= 1.713; [95% CI 0.717, 2.71]), and diabetes mellitus II ({beta}= 1.385; [95% CI 0.634, 2.14]). Our findings enhance the understanding of the contributions to medical resource utilization based on HIV status and can inform intervention efficacy for improved HIV aging outcomes.
Long Term Impact of Childhood Exposure to Pollution on Children’s Test Scores

Recent studies examined relationships between childhood exposure to pollution and long-term outcomes, such as schooling. The literature, however, has yet to address the underlying mechanism of these relationships. In this study, I estimated a production function of skill formation for children aged 3 to 15 years old and simultaneously accounted for their exposure to pollution using a structural model. I used the Letter-Word (LW) test scores from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, as a measure of children’s skills and ozone, as a measure of pollution. I found that a one standard deviation increase in ozone led to a 0.07 standard deviation reduction in the LW test scores on average. This negative effect varied with a child’s age: the LW test score of 3 year olds dropped by 0.10 standard deviation in response to one standard deviation increase in pollution levels, whereas for the 14 year olds this effect was about half as much, 0.04 standard deviation. I also found that households exhibited compensatory behavior and mitigated the negative effect of pollution by investing more in their children. I demonstrated that reduction of pollution levels or income transfers to families could remediate the negative impact of childhood exposure to pollution on adult outcomes.
Proximity Prediction of Mobile Objects to Prevent Contact-Driven Accidents in Co-Robotic Construction

AbstractRobotic solutions have garnered increased attention from the construction industry as an effective means of improving construction safety and productivity. However, in deploying such robots...
The importance of including ethnically diverse populations in studies of quantitative trait evolution

For many traits, human variation is less a matter of categorical differences than quantitative variation, such as height, where individuals fall along a continuum from short to tall. Most recent studies utilize large population-based samples with whole-genome sequences to study the evolution of these traits and have made significant progress implementing a broad spectrum of techniques. However, relatively few studies of quantitative trait evolution include ethnically diverse populations, which often harbor the highest levels of genetic and phenotypic diversity. Thus, our ability to draw inferences about quantitative trait adaptation has been limited. Here, we review recent studies examining human quantitative trait adaptation, and argue that including ethnically diverse populations, particularly from Africa, will be especially informative for our understanding of how humans adapt to the world around them.
Student veteran engagement in online education

This chapter is a case study of how a community college located in the Midwestern United States has worked to increase student veterans' engagement with the campus community while simultaneously being enrolled in online degree programs. Student veterans experience unique transition challenges from the military into college. Moreover, the transition issues can be unintentionally exacerbated when student veterans enroll in degree programs offered entirely online. We consider strategies colleges can use to increase engagement of veterans primarily enrolled in online degree programs and outline their implementation. In addition, a discussion and corresponding challenges are outlined to help higher education administrators implement the engagement strategies with student veterans on their own campus. By developing a structured engagement system, higher education administrators can alleviate some of the transition issues plaguing student veterans and in turn improve engagement, retention, and graduation rates.
Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches

There are a variety of counseling techniques that correctional workers can employ. Perhaps the most effective of these approaches is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Rather than a unitary technique, CBT is an approach that uses a number of different techniques grounded in behaviorism, cognitive theory, and social learning theory. CBT’s goal is to change how people view situations and appropriate responses to those situations. Overall, CBT approaches behavioral change by acknowledging that behavior is not a direct response to some condition but rather is influenced by our beliefs about those conditions. Correctional counselors using CBT first strive to get clients to cognitively recognize their reactions to certain situations and ultimately strive to alter those beliefs or responses to be more in line with rationality. As part of this, counselors can diminish negative thinking errors or “MUSTurbations” that lead clients toward offending due to thinking that is irrational or removes the client from responsibility.
γ-Secretase Modulatory Proteins: The Guiding Hand Behind the Running Scissors.

Described as the "proteasome of the membrane" or the "scissors in the membrane," γ-secretase has notoriously complicated biology, and even after decades of research, the full extent of its regulatory mechanism remains unclear. γ-Secretase is an intramembrane aspartyl protease complex composed of four obligatory subunits: Nicastrin (NCT), Presenilin (PS), Presenilin Enhancer-2 (Pen-2), and Anterior pharynx-defective-1 (Aph-1). γ-Secretase cleaves numerous type 1 transmembrane substrates, with no apparent homology, and plays major roles in broad biological pathways such as development, neurogenesis, and cancer. Notch and the amyloid precursor protein (APP) and are undoubtedly the best-studied γ-secretase substrates because of their role in cancer and Alzheimer's disease (AD) and therefore became the focus of increasing studies as an attractive therapeutic target. The regulation of γ-secretase is intricate and involves the function of multiple cellular entities. Recently, γ-secretase modulatory proteins (GSMPs), which are non-essential subunits and yet modulate γ-secretase activity and specificity, have emerged as an important component in guiding γ-secretase. GSMPs are responsive to cellular and environmental changes and therefore, provide another layer of regulation of γ-secretase. This type of enzymatic regulation allows for a rapid and fine-tuning of γ-secretase activity when appropriate signals appear enabling a temporal level of regulation. In this review article, we discuss the latest developments on GSMPs and implications on the development of effective therapeutics for γ-secretase-associated diseases such as AD and cancer.
Response of soil organic carbon and soil health indicators to treated wastewater irrigation in bioenergy sorghum production on an arid soil

Treated urban wastewater (WW) reuse for crop irrigation is seen as an way to mitigate prolonged drought effects and reduced freshwater (FW) availability for agriculture in arid west Texas. However, the impacts of WW on arid soil health are not clearly understood. This field study evaluated the effects of WW irrigation on soil health indicators including soil organic carbon (SOC), permanganate oxidizable carbon (POXC), mineralizable carbon (MC), and soil protein under bioenergy sorghum production. Water type and gypsum + sulfur application were used as main and subplot factors in a split‐plot experimental design with growth year as a repeated measure. Results across time and soil amendments showed that the SOC of WW‐irrigated soils (3.26 g kg⁻¹) was significantly higher than that of FW‐irrigated soils (2.96 g kg⁻¹). This signifies the positive impact of WW to contribute to soil carbon with no associated priming effects. Wastewater and soil amendment application by themselves did not affect other soil health indicators, given their soil salinization potential. Irrespective of the water type and amendment application, soil POXC significantly increased from 245 to 262 mg kg⁻¹ over time, indicating that a labile pool of C was added to the soil. Soil protein concentrations significantly decreased from 1.31 to 1.23 g kg⁻¹ after 2 years, possibly due to mineralization of organic nitrogen. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that WW application did not adversely affect soil health in the short term. Long‐term studies could provide more insight into the sustained effects of WW irrigation on arid soil health.
The reliability of the Akaike information criterion method in cosmological model selection

The Akaike information criterion (AIC) has been used as a statistical criterion to compare the appropriateness of different dark energy candidate models underlying a particular data set. Under suitable conditions, the AIC is an indirect estimate of the Kullback–Leibler divergence D(T∥A) of a candidate model A with respect to the truth T. Thus, a dark energy model with a smaller AIC is ranked as a better model, since it has a smaller Kullback–Leibler discrepancy with T. In this paper, we explore the impact of statistical errors in estimating the AIC during model comparison. Using a parametric bootstrap technique, we study the distribution of AIC differences between a set of candidate models due to different realizations of noise in the data and show that the shape and spread of this distribution can be quite varied. We also study the rate of success of the AIC procedure for different values of a threshold parameter popularly used in the literature. For plausible choices of true dark energy models, our studies suggest that investigating such distributions of AIC differences in addition to the threshold is useful in correctly interpreting comparisons of dark energy models using the AIC technique.
Embracing discomfort and resisting a return to "the good old days": a call to communication educators

The postpandemic world will look quite different than the one we knew before March 2020. In our quest to move past this moment, we must take stock of what must change in our classrooms, institution...
Epidemiological survey on a family aggregation COVID-19 in Y County, Chenzhou City, Hunan

Objective To investigate epidemic characteristics of a family aggregation COVID-19, and to provide scientific basis for prevention and control of family aggregation epidemic. Methods] Field epidemiological methods were used to investigate the cases and close contacts of a family aggregation COVID-19 in Y County, Chenzhou City, Hunan Province. Descriptive statistical analysis was used on epidemiological data . The 2019-nCoV nucleic acid was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative RT-PCR. Results It was found that Ms. Deng was infected with COVID-19 and became the infectious source of the family aggregation epidemic , who had lived in Wuhan Hubei Province. Her boyfriend Mr. Cao became a second-generation case of COVID-19..Another two asymptomatic but infected persons were family members living with Ms.Deng . Conclusion COVID-19 easily spreads within families. The awareness of family members' protection, the education of new coronavirus pneumonia prevention and control in key groups should be strengthened to avoid the occurrence and spread of family aggregation epidemic. Key words: novel coronavirus pneumonia; family aggregation; investigation and analysis
The use of person-first language in scientific literature focused on drug-seeking behavior: a cross-sectional analysis.

CONTEXT Person first language (PFL) - a way of referring to individuals with medical conditions or disability that emphasizes the person over their condition or disability - is important in reducing the stigma surrounding individuals who exhibit drug-seeking behavior. Drug-seeking behavior is generally associated with a negative connotation by healthcare professionals, which may create poor provider perceptions of these individuals and potentially impact patient care. Therefore, to reduce stigmatization surrounding drug-seeking behavior and to improve patient care in these individuals, the use of PFL should be promoted. OBJECTIVES The primary objective of this study is to investigate how frequently research articles focused on drug-seeking behavior adhere to PFL. METHODS We performed a cross-sectional analysis systematically searching PubMed for articles published between May 1, 2011, and April 30, 2020, focused on drug-seeking behavior. To be included, the article must have met the following criteria: (1) published in a peer-reviewed journal; (2) relevant to drug-seeking behavior; and (3) must include human subjects and be retrievable in English. All articles were screened and data were extracted independently in a masked, duplicate fashion. Each article was reviewed for 19 predefined non-PFL terms with certain terms adopted from the American Medical Association Manual of Style. RESULTS Our search returned 699 articles related to drug-seeking behavior, of which 390 articles met inclusion criteria and were analyzed for non-PFL. Our analysis found only 13.6% (53/390) of articles adhered to PFL while 86.4% (337/390) of articles contained at least some form of non-PFL. There was no association between PFL adherence and extracted study characteristics. CONCLUSIONS PFL adherence is uncommon among research literature focused on drug-seeking behavior. The power of language can be profound, and should be understood by researchers, health care providers, and educators alike, specifically when dealing with known and exhibited characteristics of substance use disorders. This is relevant because of the high prevalence of substance use disorders, limited amount of prior research, and the impact stigma has on patients and healthcare providers.
Manipulations of Student Evaluations: No Laughing Matter

Abstract There is serious question about the validity of student evaluations of faculty. There is also increasing evidence that evaluations are susceptible to manipulation by faculty who must depend heavily on them for favorable personnel action. A tongue-in-cheek list of behaviors to improve one's evaluations suggests that manipulation is both common and a serious threat to quality social work education. A reduced emphasis on student evaluations is strongly advocated.
Reclaiming the Diaspora: Law and the Problems of Cultural Identity

Debates over the nature of group rights to cultural survival have not sufficiently addressed the extent to which cultural groups may invoke legal authority over members of a diasporic population. This issue is directly raised under the Indian Child Welfare Act granting Indian tribes authority to determine the adoption and foster care placement of diasporic Indian children. The Act contains no provisions for resolving disputes over a child's identity, which is problematic when cultural identity is contingent on a variety of factors outside of the control of any particular group. Ceding legal authority to one or another cultural group ignores perplexing questions about identity itself, and reveals problems in the law's status based conception of identity. Justice in this context is complicated and contingent; this article explores the inadequacy of the law when dealing with issues of cultural identity and argues that such situations demand political rather than legal negotiation.
Gonadotropin induced stimulation and desensitization of cyclic 3', 5' -adenosine monophosphate dependent protein kinase(s) in the rat ovary.

Incubation of rat ovarian slices with choriogonadotropin resulted in stimulation of cyclic AMP dependent protein kinase activity in a time and dose dependent manner. However, prior exposure of animals to choriogonadotropin in vivo resulted in a decreased sensitivity to subsequent in vitro stimulation by the same hormone. This decreased sensitivity was due to a lesion in the hormone receptor adenylate cyclase system rather than a change in the property of protein kinase with respect to its stimulation by cyclic AMP. Unchanged levels of cyclic AMP formation in these ovaries were evidenced by the lack of inhibition of [3H] cyclic AMP binding. In the untreated controls, however, choriogonadotropin in vitro resulted in inhibition [3H] cyclic AMP binding activity suggesting endogenous occupation parallel to protein kinase activation. These results are indicative of the linear coupling of hormone receptor-adenylate cyclase-protein kinase system and point out the in vivo role of protein kinase activation in chori...
Incorporation of risk and updating in inspection of fatigue-sensitive details of ship structures

Abstract Fatigue cracks, as a structural deterioration mechanism, may lead to unanticipated out of service of naval ships. Consequently, risk assessment and effective inspection planning of naval ships under fatigue damage are needed to achieve economic and sustainable performance of these structures. This paper presents a probabilistic framework for fatigue risk and updating assessment and updating through inspection events. The computation associated with fatigue damage is performed using fracture mechanics and uncertainties are considered within this process. Furthermore, a quantitative risk assessment model using rating functions is presented to identify inspection priority among multiple fatigue-sensitive details. Bayesian techniques are adopted for reliability and risk updating of both inspected and uninspected fatigue-sensitive details at component and system levels. Additionally, correlation of fatigue damage among different critical details is considered and incorporated within risk assessment and updating. A number of analyses are performed to investigate the fatigue risk ranking assessment and updating. Applications are presented on an existing tanker with multiple fatigue-sensitive details.
Conceptualizing Research-Driven Practice and the Wabash National Study

This chapter explores the concept of research-driven practice in student affairs and provides an overview of the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education.
Maximum likelihood estimation of affine-modeled image motion

This paper is concerned with the estimation of the image motion field from a pair of consecutive noisy frames. The maximum likelihood principle is invoked for estimating the nonrandom but unknown displacement function. In our developments, we consider processing both of the observed images (jointly) through a 2 X 2 noncausal matrix filter. The design of this matrix filter depends on the assumed values of the parameters for the displacement function. The analysis presented is the extension and generalization of the work originally established by Stuller who studied the problem of maximum likelihood estimation of variable time delay. The developments are specialized to the case for which the motion field is modeled by an affine transformation. Simulations are performed which indicate the validity of the estimator in the presence of noise. Results of the simulations are presented.