cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Interobserver and intraobserver reliability of therapist-assisted videotaped evaluations of upper-limb hemiplegia.

Abstract Purpose Therapist-assisted videotaped sessions have been used to augment physical examinations in the evaluation of hand and arm function in patients with spastic hemiplegia. The purpose of this study was to assess the interobserver and intraobserver reliability of standardized videotaped examinations in the evaluation and functional classification of these patients. Methods Three examiners reviewed standardized videotaped examinations of 10 adolescents with spastic hemiplegia on 2 separate occasions. All 10 patients were under consideration for surgical intervention for their upper-extremity dysfunction. Videotapes were used to assess upper-extremity range of motion, finger and thumb deformity, and reach, pinch, and grip function. Upper-extremity function was graded according to the House and Mowery classification systems. Interobserver and intraobserver reliabilities were measured with the kappa coefficient. Results Range of motion, deformity, and upper-extremity functional strategy assessment showed slight to excellent interobserver reliability and good to almost perfect intraobserver reliability. Interobserver and intraobserver reliability of the consolidated House classification system was more reliable than the Mowery or standard House classification systems. Conclusions Evaluations of standardized videotaped examinations in patients with hemiplegia were reliable between and among observers. Such therapist-assisted videotaped evaluations may provide useful data for clinical decision-making and multicenter outcomes studies in patients with upper-extremity involvement with spastic hemiplegia.
Mixed Sodium Chloride Aerosol and Nitrogen Dioxide in Air: Biological Effects on Monkeys and Rats

The biological effects of the addition of 330±110μg/cu m of aerosolized sodium chloride (NaCI) crystals to approximately 2 ppm nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were studied in monkeys (Macaca speciosa) and rats by comparing them with effects of NO2 and NaCI aerosol individually. Following 14 months of continuous exposure, the respiratory bronchiolar epithelium was hypertrophic to similar degrees in monkeys exposed to NO2 with or without the NaCI aerosol, whereas animals exposed to the NaCI aerosol were not different from controls. Marginal results were observed in rats exposed to approximately half the concentrations of NO2 and NaCI. Animals exposed to NO2 with and without NaCI, developed polycythemia, with reduced mean corpuscular volume and approximately normal mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration. Under the conditions of the experiment, the presence of NaCI crystals in the atmosphere did not alter the responses to NO2.
Genetic Analysis of Transcription-Associated Mutation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

High levels of transcription are associated with elevated mutation rates in yeast, a phenomenon referred to as transcription-associated mutation (TAM). The transcription-associated increase in mutation rates was previously shown to be partially dependent on the Rev3p translesion bypass pathway, thus implicating DNA damage in TAM. In this study, we use reversion of a pGAL-driven lys2DeltaBgl allele to further examine the genetic requirements of TAM. We find that TAM is increased by disruption of the nucleotide excision repair or recombination pathways. In contrast, elimination of base excision repair components has only modest effects on TAM. In addition to the genetic studies, the lys2DeltaBgl reversion spectra of repair-proficient low and high transcription strains were obtained. In the low transcription spectrum, most of the frameshift events correspond to deletions of AT base pairs whereas in the high transcription strain, deletions of GC base pairs predominate. These results are discussed in terms of transcription and its role in DNA damage and repair.
Built-in current testing

Built-in current (BIC) testing has proven to be useful through a number of IC fabrication experiments. In this paper the experience gained from these experiments is summarized. >
The role of turbulent mixing in scatter propagation

The Villars-Weisskopf-Wheelon theory describing turbulent mixing of an established gradient is shown to contain a contradiction which necessitates its being discarded. To fill the gap thus created, the theory of isotropic mixing is extended to account for the presence of a gradient. The results indicate that "mixing-ingradient" cannot be employed to explain the wavelength dependence characteristic of much of the radio data. On the other hand, it is shown that experimentally determined spectra of refractive index fluctuations lend strong support to the mixing theory herein set forth. Hence, the conclusion is reached that scatter theory, as it is currently based on atmospheric turbulence, can provide, at best, an incomplete description of transhorizon propagation.
Reactive power compensation controller design utilizing an integrated circuit approach

This paper will discuss the design and implementation of an integrated circuit controller for the development of a three phase reactive power compensator. An integrated circuit approach is desired as it provides for a more streamlined and economically advantageous design to reactive power compensation. Various methods are available to compensate reactive power levels utilizing different sources of reactive power, however this controller will be constructed around an insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) switched capacitor bank designed for reactive power compensation. The primary components considered in the proposed controller design will consist of an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) for signal capture and a robust microcontroller unit (MCU) for data manipulation and logic control.
A low voltage rail-to-rail operational amplifier with constant operation and improved process robustness

An operational amplifier is one of the most basic components in analog, mixedsignal, RF, and other integrated circuit designs. Low voltage and low power operational amplifier design has become an increasingly interesting subject as many applications switch to portable battery powered operations. The need for design techniques to allow amplifiers to maintain an acceptable level of performance when the supply voltages are decreased is immense. One of the most important features in low voltage amplifier designs is ensuring that the amplifier maintains constant behavior in the presence of rail-to-rail input commonmode variations while providing a rail-to-rail output to maximize signal-to-noise ratio. In this work a new rail-to-rail low voltage operational amplifier is designed, simulated, and compared against state of the art amplifier designs. The amplifier architecture aims at achieving constant amplifier operation over a rail-to-rail common-mode input voltage range. The concept of constant operation refers to the ability to maintain constant specifications such as gain, gain-bandwidth product, phase margin, slew rate, and power consumption against large variations in input common-mode voltage. The amplifier is additionally designed to be robust with respect to variations in process parameters, supply voltages, and operating temperatures (PVT). A final evaluation of the performance of the proposed design versus that of the state of the art in the open literature is carried out. The intended capabilities and advantages of the new design are verified through extensive simulation.
Dopamine, Learning, and Production Rules: The Basal Ganglia and the Flexible Control of Information Transfer in the Brain

One of the open issues in developing large-scale computational models of the brain is how the transfer of information between communicating cortical regions is controlled. Here, we present a model where the basal ganglia implement such a conditional information routing system. The basal ganglia are a set of subcortical nuclei that play a central role in cognition. Like a switchboard, the model basal ganglia direct the communication between cortical regions by alerting the destination regions to the presence of important signals coming from the source regions. This way, they can impose serial control on the massive parallel communication between cortical areas. The model also incorporates a possible mechanism by which subsequent transfers of information control the release of dopamine. This signal is used to produce novel stimulusresponse associations by internalizing the representation being transferred in the striatum. We discuss how this neural circuit can be seen as a biological implementation of a production system. This comparison highlights the basal ganglia as bridge between computational models of smallsize brain circuits and high-level characterizations of complex cognition, such as cognitive architectures.
Immunologgical self-tolerance in allophenic and embryo-aggregated mice.

Allophenic mice, supposedly containing almost equal numbers of cells derived from embryos of mouse strains C57Bl and FVB, were shown in a recent paper to grow the B16 melanoma, a long transplanted tumor of C57Bl origin, much better than did mice of either the parental C57Bl strain or the C57Bl × FVB F1 hybrid. Mice containing smaller proportions of C57Bl cells rejected the tumor. A reconsideration of these suprising data, in light of the current literature, suggests that the better growth of the tumor in the 50-50% allophenics than in the C57Bl parental strain was almost certainly caused by the tumor stimulation engendered by a weak anti-C57Bl immune reaction in the overtly healthy allophenic mice.
Welcome to SSN 2008

I am happy to welcome everybody to the 4th International Workshop on Security in Systems and Networks, held in conjunction with IPDPS 2008 in Miami, Florida. This workshop covers a number of topics on system and network security, including, but not limited to: ad hoc and sensor network security, cryptographic algorithms and distributed digital signatures, distributed denial of service attacks, distributed intrusion detection and protection systems, firewall and distributed access control, mobile codes security and Internet worms, security in e-commerce, security in peerto-peer and overlay networks, security architectures in distributed and parallel systems, security theory and tools in distributed and parallel systems, etc. We have successfully attracted a good number of high quality submissions from countries all over the world. After careful reviews by the program committee, we have selected eleven of them for the workshop. These papers reflect the current trends and report significant recent results in the research of system and network security. Furthermore, Professor Ninghui Li from Purdue University, a leading researcher in access control, gives an exciting keynote speech on how to make discretionary access control secure against Trojan horse . I would like to take this opportunity to thank Professor Li for his support. I would also like to thank all program committee members for their hard work. Last but not least, I thank all authors for contributing to the workshop and hope them to continue to support the workshop in the future.
Towards Extreme-Scale Simulations with Next-Generation Trilinos: A Low Mach Fluid Application Case Study

Trilinos is an object-oriented software framework for the solution of large-scale, complex multi-physics engineering and scientific problems. While the original version of Trilinos was designed for highly scalable solutions for large problems, the need for increasingly higher fidelity simulations has pushed the problem sizes beyond what could have been envisioned two decades ago. When problem sizes exceed a billion elements even highly scalable applications and solver stacks require a complete revision. The next-generation Trilinos employs C++ templates in order to solve arbitrarily large problems and enable extreme-scale simulations. We present a case study that involves integration of Trilinos with an engineering application (Sierra low Mach module/Nalu), involving the simulation of low Mach fluid flow for problems of size up to nine billion elements. Through the use of improved algorithms and better software engineering practices, we demonstrate good weak scaling for the matrix assembly and solve for the engineering application for up to a nine billion element fluid flow large eddy simulation (LES) problem on unstructured meshes with a 27 billion row matrix on 131,072 cores of a Cray XE6 platform.
SeaWiFS ocean color data archive and distribution system: assessment of system performance

The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of View Sensor (SeaWiFS) Mission has initiated a new era of ocean color remote sensing and has established performance benchmarks that will be emulated by subsequent missions. An integral element of the SeaWiFS mission is the data component, performed by the Goddard Earth Sciences Distributed Active Archive Center (GES DAAC), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. Since the beginning of data distribution in September 1997, the GES DAAC has managed the data archive and improved data distribution capability. SeaWiFS data products are archived in a primary, secondary, and tertiary archive structure, ensuring data preservation. Data distribution utilizes a World Wide Web (WWW)-based ordering interface, allowing distribution either electronically or on magnetic tape media. Automatic data subscriptions, supplying user-tailored data product selections, have yielded a high archive-to-distribution ratio. System improvements have increased efficiency and redundancy. The user interface has added features designed to facilitate data access and data usage, enhanced by WWW information resources and comprehensive online dataset documentation. As SeaWiFS enters the latter half of its five-year mission, a system performance assessment provides useful information for other Earth remote sensing missions and allows consideration of future usage objectives for the SeaWiFS data archive.
Toward a History of Revolution

Revolution, like war, is an historical phenomenon of great importance, and no scholar is likely to argue that revolutions have not had a significant influence on the history of nations and regions, even on the history of the entire world. Unlike war, however, revolution has no coherent chronological history, andthere are no studies of the phenomenon comparable to William McNeill's recent work The Pursuit of Power, or to Theodore Ropp's older but equally important War in the Modem World. Despite volumes written on the subject of revolution by historians, political scientists, sociologists, and others, one searches in vain for a comprehensive history.
Gender and sexuality II There goes the gayborhood

I consider the iconic place of the urban gay neighborhood across the literature. Noting, but also qualifying, its early preponderance, I trace its relative decline as both an empirical concern and also a theoretical one. I argue that this trend reflects a queer pluralization of ‘sexuality’ as well as a growing sophistication of how geographers handle place and scale. There has been a resurgence of interest in the ‘gayborhood’, however, within and beyond geography, and so I consider this counter trend in relation to the changing structurations of sexualities and space, as well as the forces pushing to maintain such zones in the city.
Search for the Ground State of 5 H by means of the 3 H(t,p) Reaction

Proton spectra from the $^{3}\mathrm{H}(t,p)^{5}\mathrm{H}$ and $^{3}\mathrm{He}(t,p)^{5}\mathrm{He}$ reactions have been measured with a triton bombarding energy of 22.25 MeV. Narrow $T=\frac{3}{2}$ states in the $A=5$ system were not observed in either reaction. However, in the $^{3}\mathrm{H}(t,p)$ reaction broad peaks appeared in the proton spectra at energies consistent with a $^{5}\mathrm{H}$ state 1.8 MeV above the $t+2n$ mass. The possibility that this peak can be attributed to the ground state of $^{5}\mathrm{H}$ is discussed.
Surgeon Burnout: A Systematic Review

Burnout is a syndrome characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a decreased sense of personal accomplishment caused by work-related stress.1,2 Physicians are at increased risk for burnout as a result of long work hours, delayed gratification, challenges with work and home balance, and challenges associated with patient care, especially in the changing healthcare environment.1,3-5 In a recent study, more than half of physicians met criteria for burnout. In addition, the prevalence of burnout increased 10% in U.S. physicians between 2011 and 2014.6 The prevalence of burnout was lower in a probability-based sample of the general U.S. working population, with no increase over the same time period. This increase was observed across specialties, with many specialties reporting well over 50% of physicians being burned out.6 This disturbing trend is likely multifactorial, with increasing demands in clinical productivity, difficulty in funding research endeavors, more patients to care for with fewer resources, changes in reimbursement, rising student debt, and difficulty balancing personal and work life.7-10 Burnout is especially prevalent in surgical specialties. In the 2015 Medscape Physician Lifestyle Report, burnout rates ranged from 37-53% across specialties, with general surgeons nearly topping the list at 50%.11 Burnout has severe adverse consequences, including substance abuse, disruptive behavior, absenteeism, attrition, strained personal relationships, divorce, depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide.12-14 Over the past decade, awareness has been raised and the ability to accurately assess and identify physicians suffering from burnout has improved. The aim of this systematic review was to provide a concise review and identify studies reporting on identification, prevention, or intervention for surgeons suffering from burnout.
Fluorescence-on response via CB7 binding to viologen-dye pseudorotaxanes.

Fluorescence-on sensors typically rely on disrupting photoinduced electron transfer quenching of the excited state through binding the electron donor. To provide a more general fluorescence-on signaling unit, a quencher–fluorophore dyad has been developed in which quenching by electron transfer to a tethered viologen acceptor can be disrupted through complexation of the viologen by cucurbit[7]uril (CB7). Dyads of benzyl viologen–rhodamine B or a BODIPY fluorophore gave upon CB7 complexation 14- and 30-fold fluorescence enhancement, respectively.
Physiological spaces and multicompartmental pharmacokinetic models

The idea of body compartments has its origins in physiology and antedates their use in both physio logically-based predictive pharmacokinetic models and in the simpler compartmental models used to analyze pharmacokinetic data. Whereas physiologically-based pharmacokinetics has evolved to use increasingly sophisticated organ-based models, most compartmental models for data analysis are used without regard for their underlying physiological basis. However, detailed analysis of inulin and urea kinetics has offered some understanding of the physiological basis underlying some three-compartment pharmacokinetic models. In addition, these simple models have yielded new insight into physiological phenomena.
Commentary on: Outpatient-based massive weight loss body contouring: a review of 260 consecutive cases.

The study titled “Outpatient-Based Massive Weight Loss Body Contouring: A Review of 260 Consecutive Cases,” by Dr. Sepehr Egrari, demonstrates excellent clinical outcomes with a low incidence of significant complications. The clinical results support the author’s statement that body-contouring operations, previously thought to be best managed as inpatient procedures, may be successfully performed in accredited outpatient surgical facilities. As the author also notes, observance of a strict perioperative management regimen is of paramount importance to safety and success in the outpatient venue. In the study, a single surgeon performed 544 procedures on 260 patients in an accredited surgery facility, and 150 patients underwent multiple concurrent procedures. All patients received general anesthesia administered by a board-certified anesthesiologist. The length of the procedures averaged approximately 5.5 hours, with a range of one to 9.25 hours. All patients were discharged …
Polylogarithm-Based Computation of Fano Resonance in Arrayed Dipole Scatterers

Efficient descriptions for Fano resonant properties of plasmonic arrays of nanoparticles could support selection of particle and array characteristics to achieve specific spectral outcomes. In cont...
Construction of complementary systems relative to registration of generics

In order to match the effective implementation of Drug Regulatory Laws,complementary systems relative to registration of generics are proposed by taking international regulatory experience into consideration,and the constructive modes are discussed.
Altered vasoactive intestinal peptides expression in irritable bowel syndrome patients and rats with trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid-induced colitis.

AIM: To investigate the vasoactive intestinal peptides (VIP) expression in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) induced colitis. METHODS: The VIP gene expression and protein plasma levels were measured in adult participants (45.8% male) who met Rome III criteria for IBS for longer than 6 mo and in a rat model of colitis as induced by TNBS. Plasma and colons were collected from naive and inflamed rats. Markers assessing inflammation (i.e., weight changes and myeloperoxidase levels) were assessed on days 2, 7, 14 and 28 and compared to controls. Visceral hypersensitivity of the rats was assessed with colo-rectal distension and mechanical threshold testing on hind paws. IBS patients (n = 12) were age, gender, race, and BMI-matched with healthy controls (n = 12). Peripheral whole blood and plasma from fasting participants was collected and VIP plasma levels were assayed using a VIP peptide-enzyme immunoassay. Human gene expression of VIP was analyzed using a custom PCR array. RESULTS: TNBS induced colitis in the rats was confirmed with weight loss (13.7 ± 3.2 g) and increased myeloperoxidase activity. Visceral hypersensitivity to colo-rectal distension was increased in TNBS treated rats up to 21 d and resolved by day 28. Somatic hypersensitivity was also increased up to 14 d post TNBS induction of colitis. The expression of an inflammatory marker myeloperoxidase was significantly elevated in the intracellular granules of neutrophils in rat models following TNBS treatment compared to naive rats. This confirmed the induction of inflammation in rats following TNBS treatment. VIP plasma concentration was significantly increased in rats following TNBS treatment as compared to naive animals (P < 0.05). Likewise, the VIP gene expression from peripheral whole blood was significantly upregulated by 2.91-fold in IBS patients when compared to controls (P < 0.00001; 95%CI). VIP plasma protein was not significantly different when compared with controls (P = 0.193). CONCLUSION: Alterations in VIP expression may play a role in IBS. Therefore, a better understanding of the physiology of VIP could lead to new therapeutics.
States of maintenance: Power, politics, and Egypt’s irrigation infrastructure

Egypt’s irrigation infrastructure comprises a vast network of dams, canals, offtakes, and ditches, which direct water from the Nile throughout the Nile Valley and Delta to millions of farmers who r...
Internal Social Media at Marshall Space Flight Center - An Engineer's Snapshot

In the brief span of about six years (2004-2010), social media radically enhanced people's ways of maintaining recreational friendships. Social media's impact on public affairs (PAO) and community engagement is equally striking: NASA has involved millions of non-NASA viewers in its activities via outward-facing social media, often in a very two-way street fashion. Use of social media as an internal working tool by NASA's tens of thousands of civil servants, onsite contractor employees, and external stakeholders is evolving more slowly. This paper examines, from an engineer's perspective, Marshall Space Flight Center s (MSFC) efforts to bring the power of social media to the daily working environment. Primary emphasis is on an internal Social Networking Service called Explornet that could be scaled Agency-wide. Other topics include MSFC use of other social media day-to-day for non-PAO purposes, some specialized uses of social techniques in space flight control operations, and how to help a community open up so it can discover and adopt what works well.
Smallpox and Vaccinia

In 1971, the U.S. Public Health Service accepted the recommendation of its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices that routine smallpox vaccination in the United States be discontinued. This recommendation was based on two considerations. The risk of contracting smallpox in the United States was small, and the risk of complications from vaccinia outweighed the potential benefits. 1
A Case Study: Learning Gardens in an Urban Indigenous Community: Expanding the Scope of Learning

Gardens and learning in gardens are increasingly a focus in education, restoration, and community development. In this chapter I consider gardens and the opportunities for learning they afford from an expansive view of culture, learning and socio-historical practice. At their core, gardens are broadly about the cultivation of plants and land, however, gardening reflects complex variations, goals, and values affording various forms of identity and meaning. Indeed throughout history human communities have cultivated and harvested plants for food, for medicine, for aesthetics, for material resources, and much more. The specifics of these practices have evolved and shifted over time and varied across cultural communities, however, regardless of their specific form gardening practices are foundational reflective of the relations between humans and the natural world. The rise of learning gardens is perhaps a resilient response and remembering given the erosion of people from land that has emerged in the technologically saturated twentieth century. Given this expanded view of gardens in human communities and the present socio-historical dynamics, what might the possibilities for learning gardens be? What opportunities for learning do learning gardens afford? What are the variations in learning gardens? How do the particulars of gardens (their design, their goals, the plants grown, the programs and practices associated with them) impact learning? Largely, the answers to these questions are unknown or under-explored.
Agnes de Bossones’s Origins, Marriage, and Litigation

Agnes de Bossones and her husband Petrus are introduced. Their place in the Montpellier social hierarchy is examined as background for their marriage alliance. Their likely difference in age is highlighted on the occasion of Petrus’s death and Agnes’s widowhood. The connections Agnes enjoyed as a member of the Montpellier elite are particularly in evidence in the litigation she must undertake to defend Petrus’s estate against challenges. As guardian of her three minor daughters, Agnes’s skilled and informed use of the complex court systems of Montpellier leads to a successful defense of the rights of her wards. The groundwork is laid for an examination of Agnes’s family networks.
Empowering Pediatricians to Prevent Chronic Disease Across Generations.

Most chronic diseases are diagnosed late in life; however, the roots of chronic diseases, including many cancers,1 begin much earlier.2 As many chronic disease risk factors, including obesity, unhealthy diets, and lack of physical activity, are patterned early in life, infancy and childhood are the optimal developmental windows to establish health behaviors to reduce chronic disease later in life. Thus, the pediatrician is essential for addressing immediate health concerns in infancy and childhood and lifelong chronic disease prevention for the child. At the child’s visit, the pediatrician also has the opportunity to disseminate chronic disease prevention messages directed to the parents. Although chronic disease susceptibility can begin much earlier in life, chronic disease risk can also be modified by many adult factors. For example, a women’s risk of cardiovascular disease and breast cancer is influenced by her reproductive history, diet, body size, hormonal use, physical activity, smoking, and alcohol consumption before menopause. A man’s risk of cardiovascular disease and cancers is also influenced by similar factors in early adulthood through midlife. Waiting until after midlife, when most cancers and cardiovascular diseases are diagnosed, to start chronic disease prevention messages is too late. Thus, physicians, and in particular pediatricians, can play an important role in influencing health behavior. Contact with physicians increases with age but coverage is incomplete in early and middle adulthood. Consider that at least 24% of adults … Address correspondence to Mary Beth Terry, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, 722 West 168th St, New York, NY 10032. E-mail: mt146{at}columbia.edu
The Influence of Negative Life Events and Problem Behavior on Grades in Early Adolescence: Pathways to Academic Risk in the Middle Grades

AbstractYounger adolescents demonstrate a greater vulnerability to negative life events than do older adolescents and adults. The authors examined whether this heightened vulnerability includes a greater likelihood for participating in problem behaviors associated with poor academic outcomes and receiving lower grades. The study was conducted using data from essentially the whole population of Iceland in the specified age group. Thus, the researchers were able to understand this relationship within traditionally high-risk populations as well as all young people representing the full range of possible risk. All middle grades and high school students who attended school at the time of the study completed a cross-sectional survey that included self-reports of negative life events (NLEs), participation in problem behaviors, and grades (n = 7,291, ~ 86% of population). Structural equation modeling indicated a strong pathway between NLEs, problem behaviors, and grades. For boys in the middle grades experiencing...
Variable neighborhood search for reverse engineering of gene regulatory networks

Display Omitted A search heuristic is proposed for reverse engineering of gene regulatory networks.The approach is based on the variable neighborhood search metaheuristic.Search neighborhood structures are defined based on permissible move types.Empirically it outperforms greedy techniques in both speed and solution quality. A new search heuristic, Divided Neighborhood Exploration Search, designed to be used with inference algorithms such as Bayesian networks to improve on the reverse engineering of gene regulatory networks is presented. The approach systematically moves through the search space to find topologies representative of gene regulatory networks that are more likely to explain microarray data. In empirical testing it is demonstrated that the novel method is superior to the widely employed greedy search techniques in both the quality of the inferred networks and computational time.
Perceptions of ethnic Albanians in New York City and the role of stereotypes in fostering social exclusion and criminality

If I awake to look out my window, walk out my front door and to my right, left and for as far as my eyes can see, my once tranquil city is plagued with carnage, bloodshed, strife and civil war would I not seek a safer life just over the mountains or across the sea? The idea of migration being a human right is far too often overlooked in the domains of international security organizations, as domestic governments and global policy makers attempt to fortify parts of the world to populations they have deemed undesirable. In the literature, it is suggested by sociologists that migrants tend to follow a pattern of South-North movement trajectories, abandoning a life of fear for a sense of freedom, democracy and sustained peace which is otherwise foreign to them. Once the person has transitioned from a third to first world country, often times they are the subject of unjust stigmatization and discrimination due to their ethnic origins.
A Sterile 20 Family Kinase and Its Co-factor CCM-3 Regulate Contractile Ring Proteins on Germline Intercellular Bridges.

Germ cells in most animals are connected by intercellular bridges, actin-based rings that form stable cytoplasmic connections between cells promoting communication and coordination [1]. Moreover, these connections are required for fertility [1, 2]. Intercellular bridges are proposed to arise from stabilization of the cytokinetic ring during incomplete cytokinesis [1]. Paradoxically, proteins that promote closure of cytokinetic rings are enriched on stably open intercellular bridges [1, 3, 4]. Given this inconsistency, the mechanism of intercellular bridge stabilization is unclear. Here, we used the C. elegans germline as a model for identifying molecular mechanisms regulating intercellular bridges. We report that bridges are actually highly dynamic, changing size at precise times during germ cell development. We focused on the regulation of bridge stability by anillins, key regulators of cytokinetic rings and cytoplasmic bridges [1, 4-7]. We identified GCK-1, a conserved serine/threonine kinase [8], as a putative novel anillin interactor. GCK-1 works together with CCM-3, a known binding partner [9], to promote intercellular bridge stability and limit localization of both canonical anillin and non-muscle myosin II (NMM-II) to intercellular bridges. Additionally, we found that a shorter anillin, known to stabilize bridges [4, 7], also regulates NMM-II levels at bridges. Consistent with these results, negative regulators of NMM-II stabilize intercellular bridges in the Drosophila egg chamber [10, 11]. Together with our findings, this suggests that tuning of myosin levels is a conserved mechanism for the stabilization of intercellular bridges that can occur by diverse molecular mechanisms.
Dynamical downscaling improves upon gridded precipitation products in the Sierra Nevada, California

Uncertainties in gridded and regional climate estimates of precipitation are large at high elevations, where observations are sparse and spatial variability is substantial. We explore these uncertainties for water year 2008 across California’s Sierra Nevada in 10 datasets: 6 regional climate downscalings generated using the weather research and forecasting (WRF) model at convection-permitting resolution with differing lateral boundary conditions and microphysical parameterizations, and four gauge-based, interpolation-gridded precipitation datasets. Precipitation from these 10 datasets is evaluated against 95 snow pillows and a precipitation dataset inferred from stream gauges using a Bayesian inference method. During water year 2008, the gridded datasets tend to underestimate frozen precipitation on the windward slope of the Sierra Nevada, particularly in the vicinity of Yosemite National Park. The WRF simulations with single-moment microphysics tend to overestimate precipitation throughout much of the region, whereas the WRF simulations with double-moment microphysics tend to better agree with both the snow pillows and inferred precipitation estimates, although they somewhat overestimate the windward/leeside precipitation contrast in the northern Sierra Nevada. WRF simulations, in particular those with single-moment microphysics, better distinguish spatial patterns of wet-versus-dry pillows and watersheds over the water year than the gridded estimates. Our results suggest treating gauge-based datasets as ‘truth’ may give a misleading representation of model accuracy, since these gauge-based datasets often have issues of their own.
Panax ginseng and Panax quinquefolius: From pharmacology to toxicology.

The use of Panax ginseng and Panax quinquefolius in traditional Chinese medicine dates back to about 5000 years ago thanks to its several beneficial and healing properties. Over the past few years, extensive preclinical and clinical evidence in the scientific literature worldwide has supported the beneficial effects of P. ginseng and P. quinquefolius in significant central nervous system, metabolic, infectious and neoplastic diseases. There has been growing research on ginseng because of its favorable pharmacokinetics, including the intestinal biotransformation which is responsible for the processing of ginsenosides - contained in the roots or extracts of ginseng - into metabolites with high pharmacological activity and how such principles act on numerous cell targets. The aim of this review is to provide a simple and extensive overview of the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of P. ginseng and P. quinquefolius, focusing on the clinical evidence which has shown particular effectiveness in specific diseases, such as dementia, diabetes mellitus, respiratory infections, and cancer. Furthermore, the review will also provide data on toxicological factors to support the favorable safety profile of these medicinal plants.
Viewer Experience of Obscuring Scene Elements in Photos to Enhance Privacy

With the rise of digital photography and social networking, people are sharing personal photos online at an unprecedented rate. In addition to their main subject matter, photographs often capture various incidental information that could harm people's privacy. While blurring and other image filters may help obscure private content, they also often affect the utility and aesthetics of the photos, which is important since images shared in social media are mainly for human consumption. Existing studies of privacy-enhancing image filters either primarily focus on obscuring faces, or do not systematically study how filters affect image utility. To understand the trade-offs when obscuring various sensitive aspects of images, we study eleven filters applied to obfuscate twenty different objects and attributes, and evaluate how effectively they protect privacy and preserve image quality for human viewers.
Status and Prospects of the EDELWEISS-III Direct WIMP Search Experiment

The EDELWEISS collaboration is performing a direct search for WIMP dark matter using an array of up to twenty-four 820–890 g cryogenic germanium detectors equipped with a full charge and thermal signal readout. The experiment is located in the ultra-low-radioactivity background environment of the Modane underground laboratory, in the French–Italian Frejus tunnel. We present the analysis of data obtained in extended data taking periods. WIMP limits, background rejection factors and measurements of cosmogenic activation are used to assess the performance of the third generation of EDELWEISS detectors in view of the search for WIMPs in the mass range from 1 to $$20~\hbox {GeV}/\hbox {c}^{2}$$ . The developments in progress to pursue this goal in the coming years are also presented.
Cargo Cults and the Ethics of Active SETI

Abstract The story of the cargo cult is one of contact between different groups of people with different types of technologies who interpret and construct a framework of interaction and communication that involves colonial officials, indigenous people, anthropologists, and military personnel. In this article, I use the idea of the cargo cult as a way of thinking about contact with an advanced extraterrestrial civilization. The cargo cult idea represents a useful tool in thinking about how contact with a civilization from another planet might unfold, particularly if we assume that there is some level of commonality in the epistemological frameworks guiding thoughts and behaviors on both sides. I conclude that careful consideration of the cargo cult phenomenon suggests that from a policy perspective groups interested in active SETI should be cautious about both the construction and sending of interstellar messages and that from a moral perspective it may be prudent to refrain from active SETI for the time being. Given the fact that a variety of groups and individuals are undertaking active SETI projects, this is a topic that needs to enter the radar of government organizations.
Tokyo Electron Ltd.

Tokyo Electron Ltd. operates in a constrained innovation environment, defined by modular boundaries that are long standing in the industry that it serves, the global semiconductor manufacturing industry. While the original motivation for these boundaries was division of labor and partitioning of a complex problem into manageable pieces, the company is now faced with a new innovation that crosses these boundaries and offers the opportunity to significantly improve the yield and performance of the manufacturing process. While the technical solution is straightforward, it is not clear that the company's customers are prepared to accept such a change because it would cross organizational lines that manufacturers have established for control purposes. The case frames the technical question and poses the organizational question.
Observation of a Photogenerated Rh2 Nitrenoid Intermediate in C-H Amination.

Rh2-catalyzed C–H amination is a powerful method for nitrogenating organic molecules. While Rh2 nitrenoids are often invoked as reactive intermediates in these reactions, the exquisite reactivity and fleeting lifetime of these species has precluded their observation. Here, we report the photogeneration of a transient Rh2 nitrenoid that participates in C–H amination. The developed approach to Rh2 nitrenoids, based on photochemical cleavage of N–Cl bonds in N-chloroamido ligands, has enabled characterization of a reactive Rh2 nitrenoid by mass spectrometry and transient absorption spectroscopy. We anticipate that photogeneration of metal nitrenoids will contribute to the development of C–H amination catalysis by providing tools to directly study the structures of these critical intermediates.
A single-center multidisciplinary approach to managing the global Erwinia asparaginase shortage

The availability of Erwinia Asparaginase has been limited across the world due to manufacturing shortages or for some countries due to the high acquisition cost, putting patients at risk for inferi...
The presence of multinucleated giant cells: Noninvasive follicular thyroid neoplasm with papillary-like nuclear features vs the follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma.

Background Noninvasive follicular thyroid neoplasm with papillary-like nuclear features (NIFTP) is a newly described entity with an indolent clinical course as compared to the follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma (FVPTC). As the cytologic features of NIFTP overlap those of the FVPTC, distinction between the two on FNA cytology poses diagnostic difficulties. This study analyzes the presence of multinucleated giant cells (MGCs). Methods Twenty histologically confirmed NIFTP cases and 17 FVPTC cases each with a prior FNA and performed over a 2-year period were reviewed, the cytologic diagnoses compared and the number of MGCs counted. Results Of the 20 NIFTP cases, 55% were diagnoses as FLUS on FNA, 25% as FN/SFN and 10% as SPTC. Of the 17 FVPTC cases, 12% were diagnosed as FLUS, 53% as FN/SFN and 35% as SPTC. Fifteen (88%) FVTPC cases contained MGCs, whereas none of the 20 NIFTP cases contained MGCs. Conclusion The presence or absence of MGCs may serve as an additional finding to differentiate NIFTP cases from FVTPC cases.
Medição e modelagem de raça e saúde no Brasil: continuando a discussão

Recentes revisoes tem discutido a conceitualizacao da raca em estudos sobre saude no Brasil. Esta revisao descreve e discute temas especificos de medicao e modelizacao de raca e como isso pode impactar a interpretacao de resultados. Tres bases de dados cientificas foram usadas para buscar a literatura sobre raca e tres resultados em saude. A pesquisa encotnrou 38 estudos empiricos sobre os resultados do parto, auto-avaliacao da saude e peso. Os resultados sugerem que, embora existam padroes raciais na literatura em geral, os desafios conceituais e metodologicos podem ser abordados para esclarecer as formas em que a adesao ao grupo racial esta ligada a saude.
The intra- and inter-observer reliability of X-ray radiological measurements for patellar instability

Background Patellar instability is a complex, multi-factorial disorder. Radiological assessment is regarded as an important part of the management of this population. The purpose of this study was to determine the intra- and inter-rater reliability of common radiological measurements used to evaluate patellar instability. Methods One hundred and fifty x-rays from 51 individuals were reviewed by five reviewers: two orthopaedic trainees, a radiological trainee, a consultant radiologist and an orthopaedic physiotherapist. Radiological measurements assessed included patellar shape, sulcus angle, congruence angle, lateral patellofemoral angle (LPA), lateral patellar displacement (LPD), lateral displacement measurement (LDM), boss height, and patellar height ratios (Caton-Deschamps, Blackburne-Peel, Insall-Salvati). All assessors were provided with a summary document outlining the method of assessing each measurement. Bland-Altman analyses were adopted to assess intra- and inter-rater reliability. Results The results indicated generally low measurement error on intra-rater reliability assessment, particularly for LPD (within-subject variance 0.7mm to 3.7mm), LDM (0.7mm to 3.5mm) and boss height (0.4mm to 1.6mm) for all assessors. There was greater measurement error for the calculation of sulcus angle (0.7° to 10.6°), congruence angle (0.8° to 18.4°) and LPA (0.8° to 16.5°). Whilst the inter-rater reliability between assessors indicated a low mean difference for assessments of patellar height measurements (0.0° to 0.6°), there was greater variability for LPA (0.1° to 3.6°), LPD (0.2mm to 4.6mm) and LDM (0.1mm to 4.0mm), with wide 95% limits of agreement for all measurements indicated poor precision. Conclusions Many of the standard measurements used to assess the patellofemoral joint on plain radiographs have poor precision. Intra-rater reliability may be related to experience but it seems likely that to achieve good inter-rater reliability, specific training may be required to calibrate observers. More formal training in the technique of radiological measurement for those who were inexperienced might have improved the inter-rater reliability.
Freud in Many Contexts

Freud was a major cultural and intellectual influence in the twentieth century, whose significance waned. Kaye’s exposition argues that part of the reason is that his presentation of himself as a medical scientist obscured his true interest in society and thus the social theory that informed his commentary on culture. In support of this argument he reconstructs the social theory. The reconstruction exhibits some familiar problems: the question of how deep motivations relating to the parricide hypothesis are transmitted over millennia, the plausibility of the family drama itself, the question of the cultural origins of Freud’s own perspective, and the plausibility and historical specificity of his cultural diagnosis. The paper comments on some of the prehistory of these problems to contextualize Freud, and to discuss the problem of resonance: the dependence of acceptance of his arguments on seeing the mechanisms in oneself.