cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Surveillance and Epidemic Analysis on Focus Groups of Brucellosis of Weidong District in 2013

Objective To provide scientific basis for prevention and control work of brucellosis from now on,epidemic situation of brucellosis was analyzed through active surveillance on focus groups of brucellosis and collecting brucellosis case from medical institutions at all levels in Weidong district. Methods According to the surveillance standard for brucellosis,blood sample of focus groups for cattle and sheep breeding,cattle and sheep meat products processing and sales was collected in Weidong district.Serum was separated for rose-bengal plate agglutination test, and the preliminary screening result that is positive is selected for blood culture to isolate pathogenic bacteria.Brucellosis case of Weidong district is collected for epidemiological analysis in recent years. Results 102 blood samples of person for cattle and sheep breeding were collected, and 125 blood samples of person for cattle and sheep meat products processing and sales were collected. Two positive blood samples were detected, and positive rate was 0.88%. 17 brucellosis cases were reported from medical institutions at all levels cumulatively.The epidemic situation of brucellosis among the crowd develops from nothing in Weidong district, and it need to pay close attention to these situations. Conclusion Cattle and sheep farming development was stimulated for improvement of people's living standard that needs more cattle and sheep meat products.The epidemic situation of brucellosis among the crowds becomes serious more and more.The propaganda for prevention and cure was in need for brucellosis, and clinical doctors of medical institutions at all levels need training in future work. The sbrucellosis should be discovered,reported, cured early. Department of health and livestock sector should notify each other about epidemic situation about brucellosis among the crowds and the animals. The Rising trend should be prevented.
The virtual health economy: telemedicine and the supply of primary care physicians in rural America.

For years, people living in rural areas have struggled unsuccessfully to attract and retain primary care physicians to supply basic medical care to their residents. Rural areas continue to suffer from chronic shortages of physicians and mid-level practitioners, as well as high rates of hospital closures and increased levels of uninsurance and underinsurance, reducing both the physical and financial health of these communities. Physical and economic barriers unique to rural areas block the adequate delivery of health care and contribute to this shortage of health care personnel. Although Congress has made some progress in identifying where health care shortages occur, it has not adequately identified the source of the shortages, and thus, it has not been able to find adequate solutions to rural health care ills. Past legislative action has involved identifying shortage areas and then providing financial incentives to attract physicians and increase the financial health of hospitals by subsidizing the difference between rural America's ability to pay and what physicians are willing to accept.
Cow's milk protein allergy.

Milk protein allergy is overdiagnosed, the prevalence being less than 1 per cent. This presentation focuses on diagnosis by challenge with isolated cow’s milk proteins, associated disorders, and immunologic studies in milk protein allergy.
Retention and Bladder-Emptying Disorders

Incomplete bladder emptying and urinary retention can cause a number of bothersome lower urinary tract symptoms including voiding symptoms (hesitancy, slow stream, incomplete emptying), storage symptoms (frequency, nocturia, incontinence, urgency), and urinary tract infections. In more severe cases of urinary retention and elevated bladder storage pressures, upper urinary tract decompensation can result. To properly understand the myriad of disorders that can cause urinary retention, it is important to have an understanding of the anatomy and voiding physiology. In essence, bladder-emptying disorders can result from bladder outlet obstruction, detrusor underactivity, or a combination of both.
Renal cortical interstitium and renal lymph with remarks on a stochastic conception of the reflexion coefficient of the peritubular capillary wall

SUMMARY The use of renal lymph as a source of information about the process of tubular reabsorption is justified by morphological and functional evidence and a recent demonstration showing that reabsorbed glucose appears to have a direct access to renal lymph. This presentation focuses on the peritubular capillary permeability to albumin as studied by means of renal lymph. The permeability of the peritubular capillaries to albumin has been examined by using measurements of the specific activity of albumin vs time functions in arterial blood plasma and renal lymph. Average values are presented for the computed unidirectional clearance (ψ’) of albumin from plasma to interstitium and for the lower bound of the solvent drag reflexion coefficient (σ) for albumin of the reabsorbing surface of the peritubular capillary wall. In addition to the average values, the density function of transit times of albumin molecules from plasma to lymph is determined. This density function, in conjunction with a new model, allows the introduction of ψ’ as a stochastic variable and suggests that σ is also stochastic. In normal and diabetic rats a positive correlation was demonstrated between a severity score of diabetes (adjusted for age) and the relative dispersion of the turnover rate constants of the interstitial albumin pool. A substantially wider distribution of the lower bound of σ is also seen in some severe cases of experimental diabetes. Lymph flows at a rate of 2–4 μl (min. 1 gm renal tissue)−1 from the kidneys of rats and dogs, ( Pinter, et al., 1975 ), Ulfendahl et al., 1973 , accounting for approximately 1/10th of 1% of the fluid turnover of the organ. Monographs on the lymphatic system ( Rusznyak, Foldi & Szabo, 1967 ; Yoffey & Courtice, 1970 ) devote considerable space to the morphology and physiology of renal lymph. Recently the topic has not been a popular one for renal physiologists, perhaps because of the very small quantitative contribution of renal lymph to the material balance of the kidney.
Some Variables Affecting Boundary Role Behavior

In this experimental study of boundary role processes, an investigation was made concerning the effect of two independent variables on subjects' bargaining behavior. Subjects believed they had been arbitrarily chosen to represent their dyads in a mixed-motive bargaining situations and would be paid according to the evaluation of their performance by constituents. Independent variables were the perceived visibility of the bargainer's behavior to his constituent and the perceived degree of confidence placed in the bargainer by the constituent; the main dependent variable was the bargainer's deviation from the constituency norm. The effect of visibility was found to be significant: subjects deviated from the constituency norm more often when their bargaining behavior was thought to be unobserved by constituents. The obtained effect of confidence,
Modern Human-Robot Interaction in Smart Services and Value Co-creation

Modern work design must re-examine human-robot interaction and consider ways to effectively utilize emerging industrial capabilities such as collaborative robots and humanoids in the context of usability and our emerging service economy. By incorporating human aspects into technology-based efforts focused on value co-creation, it appears likely that inexpensive collaborative robots and humanoids can serve as integral parts of effective smart service systems designs. Ways to create value through such human-robot interaction are highlighted through recent research. A change in paradigm will need to occur to shift emphasis from ‘block the path’ to ‘design out’ when it comes to effective human-robot interaction in the workplace. It is apparent that smart service development will continue through multi-disciplinary initiatives that are human-centered. Usability and other human factors principles will continue to be central to successes. Organizational aspects that recognize fundamental relationships between job satisfaction and service quality can provide a foundation upon which capabilities of humanoids and collaborative robots can be leveraged in modern industrial and smart operations.
An Examination of the Transformative Learning Potential of Alternative Spring Breaks

As institutions seek to offer students an educational experience equipped with opportunities to develop as not only active learners but also engaged citizens, service-learning initiatives in the form of alternative spring breaks (ASB) have become prevalent. This study examines the potential of ASBs, as service-learning initiatives, to deliver a transformative learning experience. Findings indicate that depth of learning and growth is contingent upon trip type. Implications for practice and recommendations for practitioners are discussed.
Disparities in access to palliative care services among cancer patients in south Texas.

130 Background: Palliative medicine is dedicated to improving quality of life for patients throughout their disease course. The integration of palliative medicine in oncology practice has increased due to growing evidence of benefits for patient. While the collaboration of palliative and oncology care is beneficial, access to palliative services remains an issue for cancer patients. The aim of this project is to evaluate how insurance status impacts palliative care access for cancer patients in South Texas. Methods: During a 5-month study period, 607 patients from medical oncology clinics were evaluated based on their Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS) scores collected during their clinic visit to determine symptom burden and palliative care need. If providers saw a need, palliative care referrals were made. 27 unique patients received a total of 32 referrals over the study period. We examine time to initial palliative care appointment after the first referral was made. We compare time to consult b...
The Role of Telomerase Activity and Telomere Length in Cellular Sensitivity to DNA Damaging Agents.

Dyskeratosis congenita (DC) is a premature aging syndrome characterized by progressive bone marrow failure, abnormal skin pigmentation and nail dystrophy. We have described an autosomal dominant form of DC (AD DC) in a large three-generation kindred that is due to a mutation in the gene encoding human telomerase RNA (hTR). While telomere shortening is a normal consequence of the aging process, DC patients display extremely short telomeres in many somatic cell types, including hematopoietic cells, and they often suffer from bone marrow failure. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) remains the only curative therapy for marrow failure in DC. However, HSCT in DC is generally poorly tolerated and associated with significant morbidity, perhaps as a consequence of increased sensitivity of dividing cells to cytotoxic agents during myeloablative therapy. To test this hypothesis, we characterized lymphocytes from various AD DC patients and age matched controls that had been placed in long term culture following in vitro exposure to irradiation ( 137 Cs) and varying doses of Taxol, Adriamycin, and Etoposide. Cell proliferation and viability were quantified by direct visual counting on a hemocytometer, and flow cytometry was employed to assess apoptosis and cell surface expression of senescent markers. In addition to DC lymphocytes having a decreased proliferative capacity and higher basal apoptotic levels, an increased sensitivity to irradiation, Taxol, Adriamycin, and Etoposide was noted. These results suggest that telomere shortening may be an important factor in determining cellular tolerance to cytotoxic therapy and support the concept of reduced intensity HSCT regimens in both aged individuals and DC patients. Further studies have been initiated to determine whether reconstitution of telomere length in DC cells alters response to cytotoxic agents.
Phylogenetics and comparative morphology of crab spiders (Araneae: Dionycha, Thomisidae)

The higher-level phylogenetic relationships of crab spiders (Thomisidae) are studied from morphological data. 33 taxa are coded for 74 characters (53 binary and 21 multistate). Several analyses using equal, successive and implied weights were carried out. The most parsimonious tree obtained by analysis with successive and implied weights is put forward as the preferred hypothesis of thomisid relationships (length 222 steps, CI 0.74, RI 0.83). Thomisidae emerge monophyletic in all analyses, supported by four unambiguous synapomorphies. It is now apparent that thomisid taxa have been mostly defined on the basis of plesiomorphic character states. A number of taxonomic changes, including the description of new taxa are proposed and the evolution of diverse behaviors of thomisids is studied in light of the new phylogenetic result. Color change behavior evolved once within the family, but eye arrangement patterns of the median ocular quadrangle, thought to be diagnostic for many genera, evolved as much as 10 times independently. The following new species are described: Borboropactus nyerere sp. nov., Cebrenninus srivijaya sp. nov., Geraesta lehtineni sp. nov. and Geraesta mkwawa sp. nov. The following new generic synonymies are proposed: Bucranium O. P.-Cambridge, 1881 = Aphantochilus O. P.-Cambridge, 1870; Sanmenia Song and Kim, 1992 = Pharta Thorell, 1891 and Cupa Strand, 1906 = Epidius Thorell, 1877. The following species are synonymized: Regillus divergens Hogg, 1914 and Borboropactus hainanus Song, 1993 = Borboropactus bituberculatus Simon, 1884 syn. nov., Epidius ganxiensis (Yin, Peng & Kim, 1999) = Epidius rubropictus Simon, 1909 syn. nov., Geraesta bilobata Simon, 1897 = Geraesta hirta Simon, 1889 syn. nov., Sanmenia kohi Ono, 1995 = Pharta bimaculata Thorell, 1891 syn. nov. and Sanmenia zhengi (Ono & Song, 1986) = Pharta brevipalpus (Simon, 1903) syn. nov. The following new combinations are proposed: Aphantochilus taurifrons (O. P.-Cambridge, 1881) comb. nov., Epidius typicus (Bosenberg & Strand, 1906) comb. nov., Pharta brevipalpus (Simon, 1903) comb. nov., Pharta gongshan (Yang, Zhu and Song, 2006) comb. nov., Pharta nigra (Tang, Griswold & Peng, 2009) comb. nov. and Pharta tengchong (Tang, Griswold & Yin, 2009) comb. nov.
Experimental Methods for Mobility and Surface Operations of Microgravity Robots

We propose an experimental method for studying mobility and surface operations of microgravity robots on zero-gravity parabolic flights—a test bed traditionally used for experiments requiring strictly zero gravity. By strategically exploiting turbulence-induced “gravity fluctuations,” our technique enables a new experimental approach for testing surface interactions of robotic systems in micro- to milli-gravity environments. This strategy is used to evaluate the performance of internally-actuated hopping rovers designed for controlled surface mobility on small Solar System bodies. In experiments, these rovers demonstrated a range of maneuvers on various surfaces, including both rigid and granular. Results are compared with analytical predictions and numerical simulations, yielding new insights into the dynamics and control of hopping rovers.
Abstract 272: Reduced Uterine Perfusion Pressure Stimulated T-helper 17 Cells Cause Hypertension during Pregnancy

Preeclampsia (PE), new onset hypertension with proteinuria during pregnancy, is associated with chronic inflammation and an imbalance among T-helper cell subtypes. Adoptive transfer of all CD4+ T cells from Reduced Uterine Perfusion Pressure (RUPP) rats into Normal Pregnant (NP) rats caused elevations in blood pressure and Angiotensin II type I receptor autoantibody (AT1-AA) and inflammatory cytokines. We have shown that chronic IL-17 infusion increases blood pressure and AT1-AA during pregnancy. Furthermore, we have shown that blockade of IL-17 decreases blood pressure and AT1-AA in the RUPP rat model of PE. The objective of this study was to determine a role for the elevated autoimmune associated T-helper 17 (T H 17) cells from RUPP rats to cause hypertension and chronic inflammation during pregnancy. CD4 + CD25 - T cells were isolated from RUPP rat spleens using biotinylated antibody. Isolated cells were then stimulated on CD3 and CD28 magnetic beads and cultured in T-helper media to differentiate cells into T H 17 cells. Differentiation of isolated cells into T H 17 cells was verified via flow cytometry. On day 12 of gestation, 1x10 6 T H 17 cells from RUPP rats were adoptively transferred into NP rats. Carotid catheters were inserted on gestation day18, and on day 19 blood pressure (MAP) was recorded, serum and plasma were collected. One-way ANOVA was used for statistical analysis. MAP increased from 99 ±2 mmHg in NP (n=8), to 128±4 mmHg in RUPP (n=9, P H 17 cell into NP (NP + RUPP T H 17) significantly increased MAP to 111±3 mmHg (n=11, P H 17 rats (p H 17 rats (p H 17; IL-17increased from 0.49±0.32 pg/ml in NP to 5.46±5 pg/mL in NP +RUPP T H 17. In conclusion, RUPP T H 17 cells increased blood pressure, AT1-AA, and inflammatory cytokines when transferred to NP rats, indicating a role for autoimmune associated T H 17 cells, to cause much of the pathophysiology associated with PE.
Evolution of macro capabilities and the corresponding update process for the MMS S/C cluster

The Magnetospheric MultiScale Mission requires periodic updates to on-board stored command sequences, also referred to as macros, to support the Fast Plasma Investigation (FPI) and Fly's Eye Energetic Particle Sensor (FEEPS) Investigation. The needs for these macros changed from an expectation that they could be achieved using the spacecraft's processor relative time sequence capability to the addition of a macro capability within the Central Instrument Data Processor (CIDP) for the Instrument Suite (IS). In addition to the basic function of loading a command after a given time, changes to the complexity of the macros required providing the ability to chain them into more complex sequences, achieve precise timing, and vastly increase the number of commands armed for execution. The periodic update process evolved from an activity performed by the CIDP Instrument Team Facility (ITF) to one sufficiently encapsulated to permit routine update by the FPI and FEEPS ITFs and the Science Operations Center without the need for CIDP ITF participation. This paper describes the evolutionary process of the macro capability and its corresponding upload process and gives considerations for future macro implementations on other missions.
Professional Learning Communities: Leadership, Purposeful Decision Making, and Job-Embedded Staff Development:

This article reports the results of a preliminary study of how schools involved in a national project are developing structures critical to becoming professional learning communities. The study inv...
Byron and Ecocriticism

Hubbell shows how Byron’s poetics reflects his understanding of nature as a bioregional cultural ecology, and his aggressive dispute with Wordsworth over aesthetics encoded an epistemological debate over nature. As that contest intensified, “Wordsworth” and “Byron” became useful markers in canonical battles stretching from the nineteenth to the twenty-first centuries, influencing New Historicism as well as the emergence of Ecocriticism. Early ecocriticism’s investment in Heidegger, Deep Ecology, and localist dwelling also contributed to why Byron continued to be misrecognized as a poet of culture, not nature. Recognizing Byron’s “panarchist” eco-cosmopolitanism reveals the broad, contested spectrum of theory about nature during the Romantic period, which fed the equally broad array of contemporary environmental theory.
Joule Heating-Induced Dispersion in Open Microfluidic Electrophoretic Cytometry

While protein electrophoresis conducted in capillaries and microchannels offers high-resolution separations, such formats can be cumbersome to parallelize for single-cell analysis. One approach for realizing large numbers of concurrent separations is open microfluidics (i.e., no microchannels). In an open microfluidic device adapted for single-cell electrophoresis, we perform 100s to 1000s of simultaneous separations of endogenous proteins. The microscope slide-sized device contains cells isolated in microwells located in a ∼40 μm polyacrylamide gel. The gel supports protein electrophoresis after concurrent in situ chemical lysis of each isolated cell. During electrophoresis, Joule (or resistive) heating degrades separation performance. Joule heating effects are expected to be acute in open microfluidic devices, where a single, high-conductivity buffer expedites the transition from cell lysis to protein electrophoresis. Here, we test three key assertions. First, Joule heating substantially impacts analyti...
Atrial Fibrillation and Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Beyond the Pulmonary Veins

See Article by Anter et al Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with an increase in morbidity and mortality and has been linked to the development and progression of atrial fibrillation (AF).1 Although AF shares important risk factors and comorbidities with OSA, such as obesity, hypertension, and diastolic dysfunction, recent advances in the understanding of direct effects of OSA on cardiac structure and function suggest a more causal link between OSA and AF independent of other comorbidities.2,3 Human and animal studies have reported adverse structural and electric changes in the atria, including left atrial (LA) stretch, voltage reduction, conduction slowing, diffuse distribution of complex atrial electrograms, and altered atrial tissue refractoriness in patients with OSA out of proportion to age, AF chronicity, and other risk factors. The common denominator is atrial fibrosis, which promotes arrhythmogenesis. Dysautonomia has also been suggested to play a role in apnea-induced AF. OSA is predictive of AF recurrences after catheter ablation (CA) of AF.4,5 The poor ablation outcome in this group of patients seems to be independent of comorbid obesity and LA size. However, the precise mechanisms underlying the association between OSA and higher probability of recurrent AF after CA have not been well understood. The prospective, observational study by Anter et al6 in this issue of Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology provides important mechanistic insights. This rigorously designed investigation sought to characterize the atrial substrate, and the frequency and significance of non–pulmonary vein (PV) triggers in patients with paroxysmal AF and OSA referred for CA. The study group consisted of 43 patients with paroxysmal AF and recently diagnosed, previously untreated, moderate-to-severe OSA who underwent PV isolation (PVI) and …
Detection and Avoidance of Wormhole Attacks in Connected Vehicles

The routing protocol in connected vehicles (CVs) is vulnerable to wormhole attacks where attackers can deceive legitimate nodes and purport them as if they are immediate or close neighbors. The Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector (AODV) protocol is a routing packet protocol designed for mobile nodes. However, AODV may not have been explicitly developed with security issues, specifically wormhole attacks, in mind, thereby requiring a detection algorithm to secure route establishment. This paper introduces the Wormhole-Protocol-Detector ( WPD ), a lightweight protocol for detecting and mitigating wormhole attacks. WPD is designed to work on a highway that is clustered into equal segments and equipped with road side units (RSUs) in predefined locations to monitor each segment. WPD consists of three phases: monitoring and detection of out-of-range packets, estimating the hop count between source and destination nodes, and identification of nodes participating in a wormhole connection. Together, these phases enable legitimate nodes to avoid the wormhole link and obtain secure routing paths between CVs. To validate our approach, we apply WPD to a CVs simulation where different types and lengths of wormhole, including a new wormhole attack method, can be applied to the CV network. Our experimental results suggest that WPD can detect wormhole attacks with a high detection rate and minimum false positives.
Over-the-Counter Supplement Interventions to Prevent Cognitive Decline, Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Clinical Alzheimer-Type Dementia: A Systematic Review.

This systematic review discusses the effects of over-the-counter supplements on cognitive performance and incident dementia outcomes for adults with normal cognition or mild cognitive impairment.
Leisure Motives and Sex Roles

This research investigated the relationship between sex role and nine motives for pursuing leisure activities. It was found that the motives of seeking fun/pleasure, escaping reality, seeking adventure, seeking excitement, and deep involvement were significantly related to psychological androgyny. Psychologically masculine individuals were found to be significantly inclined toward perfection, alertness and competitiveness during leisure activities. Sex role was found to consistently explain more variance in leisure activity motives, than was biological gender.
Proteinases in Wound Repair

The purpose of this brief discussion is to remind the reader that proteinases are not only involved in tissue remodeling, but that they have a broad range of roles in the process of tissue repair. Many of these enzymes are not stored, suggesting that their expression and activity can be modulated at the level of gene expression. Given the complexity and multiplicity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP), much interest has developed toward understanding the activation pathways of these proteinases. Control of activation and inhibitor pathways offer additonal levels of manipulation. Although there has been some success in targeted deletions of metalloproteinase genes, these studies have not determined a precise biological role for the MMPs in wound repair. Crucial experiments will be necessary to determine when these molecules turn from friend to foe in the wound healing process.
Binary Floating-Point Unit Design

Since 1990 many floating-point units have been designed using a fused multiply-add dataflow. This type of design has a huge performance advantage over a separate multiplier and adder. With one compound operation, effectively two dependent operations per cycle can be achieved. Even though a fused multiply-add dataflow is now common in today’s microprocessors, there are many details which have never been discussed in papers. This chapter shows the implementation of the different parts of the fused multiply-add dataflow including the counter tree, suppression of sign extension encoding, leading zero anticipation, and end around carry adder design. This chapter illustrates algorithms and implementation details used in today’s floating-point units that have been passed down from designer to designer, becoming the folklore of floating-point unit design.
A Theory of Clear-Air Turbulence

An effort is made to understand the occurrence of clear-air turbulence in the atmosphere and the general properties of the turbulence. Attention is directed toward turbulence in fluid systems like the oceans and atmosphere in which the Richardson number is generally large. Use is made of a theory for turbulent flow of a liquid over a flat plate which is moved and cooled in such a way as to produce constant, finite fluxes of momentum and heat. The theory indicates that in a coordinate system fixed in the plate the mean velocity increases linearly with height z above a turbulent boundary layer, and the mean density decreases as z3, so that the Richardson number is large far from the plate. Near the plate, the results reduce to those of Monin and Obukhov.
Microcoining ripples in metal foils

Abstract Experiments, upper bound models, and finite element simulations are used to determine forming loads needed to microcoin surface ripples in thin metal foils. Coining is traditionally performed in a closed die, however enclosing all non-patterned surfaces is difficult to directly scale down to sub-millimeter foils. We find different forming regimes can exist at this small scale in an open pressing configuration. We explore the effects of the metal foil thickness and its work hardening behavior, two primary factors controlling the microcoining ripple forming load. For very thin foils, the load needed to coin a ripple pattern is lower than the load needed to compress the foil so that the open pressing configuration behavior is effectively closed with pattern formation without thickness change. For moderate thickness foils, the load needed to coin significantly drops as the entire foil compresses. For thick foils approaching bulk materials, the pattern will not completely form as the die macroscopically indents into the metal. Work hardening is found to raise the forming load for the thin, effectively closed die scenario, however it is a secondary effect at moderate thickness. This insight is used to microcoin patterns in extremely hard, thin metal foils.
The relationship between mesorectal grading and oncological outcome in rectal adenocarcinoma

AIM The prognostic association between mesorectal grading and oncological outcome in patients undergoing resection for rectal adenocarcinoma is controversial. The aim of this retrospective chart review was to determine the individual impact of mesorectal grading on rectal cancer outcomes. METHOD We compared oncological outcomes in patients with complete, near-complete and incomplete mesorectum who underwent rectal excision with curative intent from 2009 to 2014 for Stage cI-III rectal adenocarcinoma. We also assessed the independent association of mesorectal grading and oncological outcome using multivariate models including other relevant variables. RESULTS Out of 505 patients (339 men, median age of 60 years), 347 (69%) underwent a restorative procedure. There were 452 (89.5%), 33 (6.5%) and 20 (4%) patients with a complete, near-complete and incomplete mesorectum, respectively. Local recurrence was seen in 2.4% (n = 12) patients after a mean follow-up of 3.1 ± 1.7 years. Unadjusted 3-year Kaplan-Meier analysis by mesorectal grade showed decreased rates of overall, disease-free and cancer-specific survival and increased rates of overall and distant recurrence with a near-complete mesorectum, while local recurrence was increased in cases of an incomplete mesorectum (all P 0.05). CONCLUSION Mesorectal grading is independently associated with oncological outcome. It provides unique information for optimizing surgical quality in rectal cancer.
Morphometry of the size of the capillary-to-fiber interface in muscles.

Capillary-to-fiber (C/F) perimeter ratio in transverse sections is an index of capillary surface per fiber surface, i.e. it allows one to incorporate the increased surface area due to capillary tortuosity and branching into the estimate of a muscle potential for O2 transfer. This is important considering the role of the capillary-to-fiber interface in determining O2 flux rates in red muscles (Gayeski and Honig, 1986; Groebe and Thews, 1990). A greater capillary surface per fiber surface can allow adequate flux rates to be maintained at a lower PO2 at the red cell surface, or higher fluxes to be achieved at a similar red cell PO2 (rev. Honig et al, 1991).
A vision and learning-based indoor localization and semantic mapping framework for facility operations and management

Abstract Recent research on facility management has focused on leveraging location-based services (LBS) to assist on-demand access to model information and on-site documentation. Fast and robust indoor localization is of great importance for location-based facility management services, such as the ones used in mobile computing settings. However, there are several challenges in achieving fast and robust indoor localization: 1) Signal-based indoor localization methods, such as WIFI, RFID, Bluetooth and Ultrasound, require installation of extra infrastructures in a building to support localization; 2) Visual-based indoor localization methods, such as LiDAR and camera, depend on feature point detection and matching, which require heavy computation and can also be impacted by environmental conditions, such as lighting and texture richness. In addition to these, existing localization methods do not support semantic understanding which is of great importance when associating a component with its digital twin. To address the stated problems above, this paper presents a vision and learning-based framework that utilizes a shared convolutional neural network to perform localization and semantic segmentation simultaneously. The proposed framework can support facility management by locating facility components within a building and associate them with their digital twins in an information repository. Compared to conventional methods, the developed image-based indoor localization and semantic mapping framework has the following advantages: 1) It only requires image as input to support localization, semantic understanding, and association, which eliminates the need for extra infrastructure, such as deployment of RFID tags, etc.; 2) It reuses the feature extraction network for simultaneous localization and semantic understanding, which saves computing resources; 3) With 6-DoF poses and semantic labels, it supports component-level association. The authors evaluated the proposed framework on publicly available data sets using three metrics: localization accuracy, semantic segmentation accuracy, and association success rate. The results show that the proposed image-based method can achieve 6-DoF localization and semantic segmentation concurrently. Also, formalized experiments on a synthetic data set with different noise levels introduced to localization and semantic segmentation showed that a main factor affecting the performance of association of an image to its digital twin is the accuracy of its localization.
Monopoly, Legitimacy, Force: DDR-SSR Liberia

Security matters a great deal, especially to the most vulnerable members of a society. Yet the measures or processes that can most effectively achieve security are valid points of contention. The Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) and Security Sector Reform (SSR) programs in Liberia pose rich cases for the delineation of lessons learned as well as the identification of curious contradictions and potential paradoxes in the way these kinds of large-scale, postconflict reconstruction initiatives are designed, implemented, and measured. This chapter is a candid, down-range assessment by two practitioner-scholars who were closely involved with different aspects of the programs. While the DDR–SSR efforts in Liberia could be regarded as a success simply because they have persisted and there has not been a renewed outbreak of violence, at this stage it is safe to surmise that they have consolidated peace and security as well as contributed to the reconstruction of that country. This chapter describes the programs, highlights best practices, and identifies a number of areas for improvement, as well as important lessons and observations relevant to similar efforts in other countries.
Elevated polygenic burden for ASD is associated with the broad autism phenotype

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a multifactorial, neurodevelopmental disorder that encompasses a complex and heterogeneous set of traits. Subclinical traits that mirror the core features of ASD, referred to as the broad autism phenotype (BAP) have been documented repeatedly in unaffected relatives and are believed to reflect underlying genetic liability to ASD. The BAP may help inform the etiology of ASD by allowing the stratification of families into more phenotypically and etiologically homogeneous subgroups. This study explored polygenic scores related to the BAP. Methods: Phenotypic and genotypic information were obtained from 2,614 trios from Simons Simplex Sample. Polygenic scores of ASD (ASD-PGS) were generated across the sample to determine the shared genetic overlap between the BAP and ASD. Maternal and Paternal ASD-PGS was explored in relation to BAP traits and their child ASD symptomatology. Results: Maternal pragmatic language was related to childs social communicative atypicalities. In fathers, rigid personality was related to increased repetitive behaviors in children. Maternal (but not paternal) ASD-PGS was related to the pragmatic language and rigid BAP domains. Conclusions: Domain- and sex-specific associations emerged between parent and child phenotypes. ASD-PGS associations emerged with BAP in mothers only, highlighting the potential for a female protective factor, and implicating the polygenic etiology of ASD-related phenotypes in the BAP.
The influence of personality traits on attitudes towards climate change – An exploratory study

Abstract This study used a trait-level approach to understanding pro-environmental behavior in the context of climate change. We asked 194 adult participants to report their belief in climate change and their risk perception and then tested the correlation between self-reported Big Five traits, trait-level anxiety, and empathy. Our analysis revealed that Openness, Perspective Taking, sex, and age correlate with climate change attitudes. These results increase our understanding of environmental challenges to the general public and offer implications for future research on how to execute pro-environmental strategies.
Filling the holes in the CaFe 4 As 3 structure: Synthesis and magnetism of CaCo 5 As 3

Here, we investigate single crystals of ${\mathrm{CaCo}}_{5}{\mathrm{As}}_{3}$ by means of single-crystal x-ray diffraction, microprobe, magnetic susceptibility, heat capacity, and pressure-dependent transport measurements. ${\mathrm{CaCo}}_{5}{\mathrm{As}}_{3}$ shares the same structure of ${\mathrm{CaFe}}_{4}{\mathrm{As}}_{3}$ with an additional Co atom filling a lattice vacancy and undergoes a magnetic transition at ${T}_{M}=16$ K associated with a frustrated magnetic order. ${\mathrm{CaCo}}_{5}{\mathrm{As}}_{3}$ displays metallic behavior and its Sommerfeld coefficient ($\ensuremath{\gamma}=70$ mJ/mol ${\mathrm{K}}^{2}$) indicates a moderate enhancement of electron-electron correlations. Transport data under pressures to 2.5 GPa reveal a suppression of ${T}_{M}$ at a rate of $\ensuremath{-}0.008$ K/GPa. First-principles electronic structure calculations show a complex three-dimensional band structure and magnetic moments that depend on the local environment at each Co site. Our results are compared with previous data on ${\mathrm{CaFe}}_{4}{\mathrm{As}}_{3}$ and provide a scenario for a magnetically frustrated ground state in this family of compounds.
Expanding mandatory healthcare personnel immunization beyond influenza: Impact of a broad immunization program with enhanced accountability.

Objective: Evaluation of a mandatory immunization program to increase and sustain high immunization coverage for healthcare personnel (HCP). Design: Descriptive study with before-and-after analysis. Setting: Tertiary-care academic medical center. Participants: Medical center HCP. Methods: A comprehensive mandatory immunization initiative was implemented in 2 phases, starting in July 2014. Key facets of the initiative included a formalized exemption review process, incorporation into institutional quality goals, data feedback, and accountability to support compliance. Results: Both immunization and overall compliance rates with targeted immunizations increased significantly in the years after the implementation period. The influenza immunization rate increased from 80% the year prior to the initiative to >97% for the 3 subsequent influenza seasons (P 99% by January 2017, rubella vaccination compliance increased from 93% to 99.5%, and hepatitis B vaccination compliance from 95% to 99% (P < .0001 for all comparisons). An associated positive effect on TB testing compliance, which was not included in the mandatory program, was also noted; it increased from 76% to 92% over the same period (P < .0001). Conclusions: Thoughtful, step-wise implementation of a mandatory immunization program linked to professional accountability can be successful in increasing immunization rates as well as overall compliance with policy requirements to cover all recommended HCP immunizations.
Enabling aqueous processing for LiNi0.80Co0.15Al0.05O2 (NCA)-based lithium-ion battery cathodes using polyacrylic acid

Abstract Replacing N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) with water in the production of lithium-ion battery cathodes is critical to realizing process cost savings and improved worker safety. LiNi0.80Co0.15Al0.05O2 (NCA) is a poor fit for aqueous processing due to destructive Al current collector corrosion resulting from highly basic slurries and detrimental surface reconstruction reactions that occur in water. In this study, polyacrylic acid (PAA, MW = 450,000 g·mol−1) is examined as a corrosion-mitigating and surface-stabilizing agent. Adding PAA to an aqueous NCA slurry can provide a stable pH (4.0–8.5) for at least 4 h, since the carboxyl groups from PAA dissociate and increase the proton concentration in the slurry. These groups can also adsorb to the surface of NCA particles and provide electrostatic stability from active material particle agglomeration, as revealed by zeta potential measurements. Minor cracking does occur at the electrode surface; this cracking likely caused poorer adhesion to the Al current collector in the aqueous-processed film when compared to the NMP-processed baseline. Electrochemically, the leached Li does cause a lower initial capacity for the aqueous-processed cathode, though the capacity retention of the aqueous-processed cathode is better than the baseline. The cracks in the coating led to a rise in charge transfer resistance that hindered rate capability above 1C.
Caught in the Crosswinds: The Experiences of Selected Economies Responding to External Volatility with Multiple Policy Levers

A case study approach is used to assess the multi-pronged policy response of seven small financially open economies with flexible exchange rate regimes to external shocks following the global financial crisis. FX intervention was frequently used- including during outflow episodes to prevent disorderly depreciation and preserve financial stability. Monetary policy often considered both financial and external stability. Capital flow management measures were sometimes calibrated symmetrically over the cycle while macroprudential measures were mostly deployed during inflow episodes. Assessment of the macroeconomic conditions paints an inconclusive picture on the benefits or costs of such policies, suggesting the need for further analysis.
Evaluation of Parent-Researcher Agreement on the Vocal Development Landmarks Interview.

Purpose Parent report was compared to judgments made by a trained researcher to determine the utility of the Vocal Development Landmarks Interview (VDLI) for monitoring development of vocal behavio...
A Single Institution Experience with Standardized Objective and Subjective Scar Evaluation While Undergoing Fractional Ablative Carbon Dioxide Laser Treatment.

Laser treatment of burn scar has increased in recent years. Standard components of scar evaluation during laser scar revision have yet to be established. Patients who began laser scar revision from January 2018-2020, underwent at least three treatments, and completed evaluations for each treatment were included. Patients underwent fractional ablative carbon dioxide laser scar revision and pre- and post-procedure scar evaluations by a burn rehabilitation therapist, including Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale, Vancouver Scar Scale, our institutional scar comparison scale, durometry, and active range of motion measurements. Twenty-nine patients began laser scar revision and underwent at least three treatments with evaluations before and after each intervention. All patients improved in at least one scar assessment metric after a single laser treatment. After second and third treatments, all patients improved in at least three scar assessment metrics. Range of motion was the most frequently improved. Durometry significantly improved after a third treatment. Patients and observers showed some agreement in their assessment of scar, but observers rated overall scar scores better than patients. Patients acknowledged substantial scar improvement on our institutional scar comparison scale. Burn scar improves with fractional ablative laser therapy in a range of scar ages and skin types, as early as the first session. Improvements continue as additional sessions are performed. This work suggests baseline evaluation components for patients undergoing laser, and a timeline for expected clinical improvements which may inform conversations between patients and providers when considering laser for symptomatic hypertrophic scar.
Low-dose CT reconstruction with Noise2Noise network and testing-time fine-tuning

PURPOSE Deep learning-based image denoising and reconstruction methods demonstrated promising performance on low-dose CT imaging in recent years. However, most existing deep learning-based low-dose CT reconstruction methods require normal-dose images for training. Sometimes such clean images do not exist such as for dynamic CT imaging or very large patients. The purpose of this work is to develop a low-dose CT image reconstruction algorithm based on deep learning which does not need clean images for training. METHODS In this paper, we proposed a novel reconstruction algorithm where the image prior was expressed via the Noise2Noise network, whose weights were fine-tuned along with the image during the iterative reconstruction. The Noise2Noise network built a self-consistent loss by projection data splitting and mapping the corresponding filtered backprojection (FBP) results to each other with a deep neural network. Besides, the network weights are optimized along with the image to be reconstructed under an alternating optimization scheme. In the proposed method, no clean image is needed for network training and the testing-time fine-tuning leads to optimization for each reconstruction. RESULTS We used the 2016 Low-dose CT Challenge dataset to validate the feasibility of the proposed method. We compared its performance to several existing iterative reconstruction algorithms that do not need clean training data, including total variation, non-local mean, convolutional sparse coding, and Noise2Noise denoising. It was demonstrated that the proposed Noise2Noise reconstruction achieved better RMSE, SSIM and texture preservation compared to the other methods. The performance is also robust against the different noise levels, hyperparameters, and network structures used in the reconstruction. Furthermore, we also demonstrated that the proposed methods achieved competitive results without any pre-training of the network at all, that is, using randomly initialized network weights during testing. The proposed iterative reconstruction algorithm also has empirical convergence with and without network pre-training. CONCLUSIONS The proposed Noise2Noise reconstruction method can achieve promising image quality in low-dose CT image reconstruction. The method works both with and without pre-training, and only noisy data are required for pre-training.
The cosmogenic production of phosphorus in the atmosphere of venus

Abstract A model of the Venusian atmosphere examines the production of phosphorus via interactions of cosmic rays and solar particles with sulfur and argon. It is estimated that the stable isotope Phosphorus-31 has been generated between 23.7 and 67.7 micrograms per day given the present atmosphere of Venus and the variability in the flux of cosmic rays. If the maximum amount of phosphorus were converted into phosphine, the corresponding cosmogenic upper limit for phosphine production would be 74.3 +/− 0.8 micrograms per day. Assuming the maximum phosphorus is converted into phosphine with no losses over time, our simulations show that the cosmogenic production of phosphine cannot account for the 20 ppb concentrations reported by Greaves et al. (2020) . Gamma rays and neutrons resulting from cosmic ray interactions are also examined just after they leave the planet.