cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A protocol for adaptive multicast transmission in packet radio networks

Adaptation is required for efficient transmission in a wireless communications network because of the fluctuations in propagation conditions that occur on the links. In a half-duplex packet radio network, the use of unicast transmission typically permits the receiving radio to send packet-by-packet acknowledgments and include a small amount of feedback information in each acknowledgment. For multicast transmission in such a network, it is usually not feasible for all receiving radios to send packet-by-packet acknowledgments, so a receiving radio has fewer opportunities to provide feedback. We present a low-complexity adaptive multicast transmission protocol that compensates for time-varying propagation losses in a packet radio network by adjusting the modulation and coding. Simple receiver statistics furnish the necessary control information for the adaptive protocol; no channel estimation, training, or pilot symbols are needed. The protocol's throughput performance is evaluated for dynamic channels and compared with the throughput of hypothetical ideal protocols that are given perfect channel-state information. We demonstrate that our protocol performs nearly as well as the ideal protocols.
A new linear sweep technique to measure generation lifetimes in thin-film SOI MOSFET's

A new linear sweep technique to measure generation lifetimes (/spl tau//sub g/) in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) material is presented. A detailed analytic formulation is applied to fully-depleted and partially-depleted SOI films and used to simulate the behavior of the SOI devices under linear sweep conditions. A novel algorithm accurately determines the effective generation width in fully depleted SOI films. The measurement technique is experimentally verified by applying the algorithm to fully depleted SIMOX P-channel MOSFET's where observed lifetimes ranged from 0.3 /spl mu/s to 2.4 /spl mu/s. >
Eroticizing Men: Cultural Influences on Advertising and Male Objectification

The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, the model offered by Thomas Rochon is used to examine how ideas, activism, and changing American values have influenced advertiser practices as they relate to sexualized images of men in mainstream media. Previous research has highlighted the importance of economic shifts on advertiser practices, ignoring the importance of cultural factors, such as the influence of the gay liberation movement on representations of masculinity in the post 1960s era. Second, a quantitative analysis of sexualized depictions of masculinity is presented. These data suggest that men in contemporary advertisements increasingly display the visual cues of objectification. After positioning these sexualized images in a larger social, political, and economic context, the implications of male objectification is discussed.
Benign recurrent sixth (abducens) nerve palsies in children

Sixth nerve palsy can occur as a result of elevated intracranial pressure, neoplasm or trauma. Reports from tertiary centres indicate that between 5% and 16% of referred cases have no ascribed aetiology and are classified as benign. Rarely, these benign palsies can recur. A retrospective chart review of a cohort of 253 paediatric patients with sixth nerve palsies was analysed and uncovered 30 cases of benign sixth nerve palsy, nine of which recurred. Our data and review of other studies on the subject imply that a new onset sixth nerve palsy presenting in children can be benign in approximately 13% of cases, so a thorough history and physical examination to evaluate for any other neurological symptoms or signs followed by MRI of the brain with and without contrast is recommended.
The load carrying capacities of circular plates

Abstract This paper is concerned with the load carrying capacities of circular plates made of a perfectly plastic material that obeys the yield condition of Tresca and the associated flow rule. Various conditions of rotationally symmetric loading and support are discussed.
Dynamic contrast-enhanced CT of the liver: comparison of contrast medium injection rates and uniphasic and biphasic injection protocols.

To determine the effect of contrast medium injection rate and biphasic versus uniphasic bolus on hepatic parenchymal enhancement at computed tomography (CT), 105 patients were randomized into four protocols. Hepatic and aortic enhancement curves were measured for each protocol. The optimal scanning interval (the duration between onset of a desired hepatic enhancement threshold and decline of enhancement below the threshold or onset of the equilibrium phase) and contrast enhancement index (CEI) (area under the hepatic enhancement curve above a desired threshold during the nonequilibrium phase) were the primary determinants of merit. Measurements were performed at hepatic enhancement thresholds between 10 and 60 HU. At most thresholds of hepatic enhancement, optimal scanning intervals were significantly longer and CEIs were significantly higher for the biphasic protocols than for the uniphasic protocols (P < .03). A biphasic injection with a high initial flow rate produces high peak contrast enhancement but...
Failure of Sulfanilamide to Prevent Hemolysis, Fibrinolysis, and Production of Erythrogenic Toxin by Hemolytic Streptococci in vitro.

SummarySulfanilamide produced a slight delay of hemolysis in blood-broth cultures of hemolytic streptococci. This effect was probably attributable to modification of the growth-curve. When used in concentration equal to or greater than that induced in the body-fluids therapeutically, sulfanilamide was without apparent effect upon fibrinolysis or formation of erythrogenic toxin in vitro, and was unable to inactivate small amounts of toxin.
Genetic characterization of smg-8 mutants reveals no role in C. elegans nonsense mediated decay.

The nonsense mediated decay (NMD) pathway degrades mRNAs bearing premature translation termination codons. In mammals, SMG-8 has been implicated in the NMD pathway, in part by its association with SMG-1 kinase. Here we use four independent assays to show that C. elegans smg-8 is not required to degrade nonsense-containing mRNAs. We examine the genetic requirement for smg-8 to destabilize the endogenous, natural NMD targets produced by alternative splicing of rpl-7a and rpl-12. We test smg-8 for degradation of the endogenous, NMD target generated by unc-54(r293), which lacks a normal polyadenylation site. We probe the effect of smg-8 on the exogenous NMD target produced by myo-3::GFP, which carries a long 3′ untranslated region that destabilizes mRNAs. None of these known NMD targets is influenced by smg-8 mutations. In addition, smg-8 animals lack classical Smg mutant phenotypes such as a reduced brood size or abnormal vulva. We conclude that smg-8 is unlikely to encode a component critical for NMD.
Efficient utilization of spare capacity for fault detection and location in multiprocessor systems

One scheme for detecting faults at the processor level in a multiprocessor system (see A. Dahbura et al., 1989) works by running secondary versions of jobs on the unused, or spare, processors of the system. The authors build upon this scheme and propose three new multiprocessor allocation strategies that run a viable number of versions per job. These schemes permit online detection and, in some cases, location of faulty processors in a system, without degrading its delay/throughput performance. Two new metrics, the fault detection capability and the fault location capability, are introduced to evaluate these schemes. Extensive simulation results are provided to show that these schemes utilize spare capacity more efficiently, thereby improving upon the fault detection and location capabilities of the system. >
Crystal structure of the YchF protein reveals binding sites for GTP and nucleic acid.

The bacterial protein encoded by the gene ychF is 1 of 11 universally conserved GTPases and the only one whose function is unknown. The crystal structure determination of YchF was sought to help with the functional assignment of the protein. The YchF protein from Haemophilus influenzae was cloned and expressed, and the crystal structure was determined at 2.4 A resolution. The polypeptide chain is folded into three domains. The N-terminal domain has a mononucleotide binding fold typical for the P-loop NTPases. An 80-residue domain next to it has a pronounced α-helical coiled coil. The C-terminal domain features a six-stranded half-barrel that curves around an α-helix. The crablike three-domain structure of YchF suggests the binding site for a double-stranded nucleic acid in the cleft between the domains. The structure of the putative GTP-binding site is consistent with the postulated guanine specificity of the protein. Fluorescence measurements have demonstrated the ability of YchF to bind a double-stranded nucleic acid and GTP. Taken together with other experimental data and genomic analysis, these results suggest that YchF may be part of a nucleoprotein complex and may function as a GTP-dependent translation factor.
From Functional Architecture to Functional Connectomics

"Receptive Fields, Binocular Interaction and Functional Architecture in the Cat's Visual Cortex" by Hubel and Wiesel (1962) reported several important discoveries: orientation columns, the distinct structures of simple and complex receptive fields, and binocular integration. But perhaps the paper's greatest influence came from the concept of functional architecture (the complex relationship between in vivo physiology and the spatial arrangement of neurons) and several models of functionally specific connectivity. They thus identified two distinct concepts, topographic specificity and functional specificity, which together with cell-type specificity constitute the major determinants of nonrandom cortical connectivity. Orientation columns are iconic examples of topographic specificity, whereby axons within a column connect with cells of a single orientation preference. Hubel and Wiesel also saw the need for functional specificity at a finer scale in their model of thalamic inputs to simple cells, verified in the 1990s. The difficult but potentially more important question of functional specificity between cortical neurons is only now becoming tractable with new experimental techniques.
76 Föderalismus im Spiegel der Demoskopie

Deutschland ist historisch durch den Partikularismus gepragt, der bis heute in der foderalen Verfasstheit des Landes fortlebt. Strukturen beeinflussen Identitatsgefuhle und die Vorstellungen von der „richtigen“ Organisation und Machtverteilung in einem Staat. Auch das jahrzehntelange Fehlen einer strahlkraftigen Kapitale befestigte in Deutschland uber Jahrzehnte die partikularen Identitatsgefuhle, wurde doch mehreren Landeshauptstadten eine grosere Attraktivitat und Bedeutung beigemessen als der provisorischen Hauptstadt Bonn. Mit der Verlagerung der Hauptstadt nach Berlin hat sich die Republik in vielfacher Hinsicht verandert und dies betrifft gerade auch die Wertschatzung foderaler Strukturen. Auch wenn sich an der Bedeutung der Lander in dem Zusammenspiel zwischen Bund und Landern in den letzten Jahren objektiv nur begrenzt Veranderungen ergeben haben, verliert die Landerebene im Bewusstsein der Bevolkerung an Bedeutung. Das Interesse an Landespolitik geht seit der Mitte der 1990er Jahre kontinuierlich zuruck. In der Mitte der 1990er Jahre interessierten sich noch 39 % der Bevolkerung ausgepragt fur die Politik ihres Bundeslandes, 2004 noch 33 %, 2008 30 %. In den neuen Bundeslandern ist das Interesse noch starker verfallen als im Durchschnitt der Republik.
p-Adic Dynamics and Sullivan's No Wandering Domains Theorem

In this paper we study dynamics on the Fatou set of a rational function ϕ ∈ \(\overline {\mathbb {Q}} _P (z)\). Using a notion of ‘components’ of the Fatou set defined by Benedetto, we state and prove an analogue of Sullivan's No Wandering Domains Theorem for p-adic rational functions which have no wild recurrent Julia critical points.
Bayesian parametric GLRT for knowledge-aided space-time adaptive processing

In this paper, the problem of detecting a multichannel signal in the presence of spatially and temporally colored disturbance is considered. By modeling the disturbance as a multichannel auto-regressive (AR) model and treating the spatial covariance matrix as a random matrix, a parametric generalized likelihood ratio test (P-GLRT) is developed based on a Bayesian framework. The resulting P-GLRT, which is denoted as the knowledge-aided P-GLRT (KA-PGLRT), employs a fully Bayesian principle and performs a jointly spatio-subtemporal whitening process. The KA-PGLRT detector is able to utilize some prior knowledge through a colored loading step between the prior spatial covariance matrix and the conventional estimate of the P-GLRT. Simulation results verify that the KA-PGLRT detector yields better detection performance over other parametric detectors.
Numerical simulation of endocytosis

The formation of membrane vesicles from a larger membrane that occurs during endocytosis and other cell processes is typically orchestrated by curvature-inducing molecules attached to the membrane. Recent reports demonstrate that vesicles can form de novo in a few milliseconds. Membrane dynamics at these scales are strongly influenced by hydrodynamic interactions. To study this problem, we develop new diffuse interface models for the dynamics of inextensible vesicles in a viscous fluid with stiff, curvature-inducing molecules. The model couples the Navier-Stokes equations with membrane-induced bending forces that incorporate concentration-dependent bending stiffness coefficients and spontaneous curvatures, with equations for molecule transport and for a Lagrange multiplier to enforce local inextensibility. Two forms of surface transport equations are considered: Fickian surface diffusion and Cahn-Hilliard surface dynamics, with the former being more appropriate for small molecules and the latter being better for large molecules. The system is solved using adaptive finite element methods in 3D axisymmetric geometries. The results demonstrate that hydrodynamics can indeed enable the rapid formation of a small vesicle attached to the membrane by a narrow neck. When the Fickian model is used, this is a transient state with the steady state being a flat membrane with a uniformly distributed molecule concentration due to diffusion. When the Cahn-Hilliard model is used, molecule concentration gradients are sustained, the neck stabilizes and the system evolves to a steady-state with a small, compact vesicle attached to the membrane. By varying the membrane coverage of molecules in the Cahn-Hilliard model, we find that there is a critical (smallest) neck radius and a critical (fastest) budding time. These critical points are associated with changes in the vesicle morphology from spherical to mushroom-like as the molecule coverage on the membrane is increased.
Chromosomal localization of the interferon-inducible human gene encoding mRNA 561.

Treatment of human cells with interferon-α transiently increases the rate of transcription of mRNA 561, which encodes a 56-kD protein of unknown function. Using a cDNA probe specific for this mRNA, we determined the chromosomal localization of the corresponding gene. Southern blot analyses of genomic DNA samples isolated from 19 independent mouse-human and hamster-human cell hybrids, each of which contained all rodent chromosomes and several human chromosomes, indicated that this gene is located on human chromosome 10. The same conclusion was drawn independently from studies using in situ hybridization of the probe to human metaphase chromosomes. Furthermore, the latter approach enabled us to conclude that the gene is situated most likely at the junction of 10q25-q26.
Photoemission Investigation on the Effect of H2S Plasma Exposure of InP

Synchrotron radiation soft x-ray photoemission spectroscopy was used to characterize the surface chemistry and the electronic structure of InP(100) before and after exposure to an H 2 S plasma. The low power plasma was generated with an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma source, using H 2 S, with the plasma exposure being performed at two temperatures. In-situ photoemission measurements were acquired after each plasma exposure in order to observe changes in the valence band electronic structure and in the In4d, P2 p and S2 p core lines. The results revealed changes in surface chemistry and electronic properties and indicate that the H 2 S plasma exposure type converts the ptype InP(100) surface to an n-type surface. The magnitude of the band bending is dependent on the substrate temperature, resulting in a homojunction interface.
Myospherulosis—Further Observations

Myospherulosis has recently been shown to be composed of altered erythrocytes. Mysopherules have been produced in vivo and in vitro using a petrolatum-based tetracycline antibiotic ointment (Achromycin®). In the reported study, myospherules were produced in vitro using either lanolin or petrolatum, the two components of the vehicle of this ointment. Additionally, human fat produced myospherules in vitro .
The KCC2 Cotransporter and Human Epilepsy Getting Excited About Inhibition

The cation-Cl- cotransporter KCC2, encoded by SLC12A5, is required for the emergence and maintenance of GABAergic fast synaptic inhibition in organisms across evolution. These findings have suggested that KCC2 deficiency might play a role in the pathogenesis human epilepsy, but this has only recently been substantiated by two lines of genetic evidence. The first is the discovery of heterozygous missense polymorphisms in SLC12A5, causing decreased KCC2-dependent Cl- extrusion capacity, in an Australian family with inherited febrile seizures and in a French-Canadian cohort with severe genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE). The second is the discovery of recessive loss-of-function mutations in SLC12A5 in patients with a severe, early-onset Mendelian disease termed "epilepsy of infancy with migrating focal seizures" (EIMFS). These findings collectively support the paradigm that precisely regulated KCC2 activity is required for synaptic inhibition in humans, and that genetically encoded impairment of KCC2 function, due to effects on gene dosage, intrinsic activity, or extrinsic regulation, can influence epilepsy phenotypes in patients. Accordingly, KCC2 could be a target for a novel antiepileptic strategies that aims to restore GABA inhibition by facilitating Cl- extrusion. Such drugs could have relevance for pharmaco-resistant epilepsies and possibly other diseases characterized by synaptic hyperexcitability, such as the spectrum autism disorders.
Using predictions for planning and modeling in stochastic environments

The problem of defining and working with models of systems that change with time is common to many disciplines. Within artificial intelligence, it is common to provide a computer-based agent with models---or the facility for building models---so that it can learn about, and make informed decisions about, the environment within which it exists. This is especially challenging when the environment exhibits both stochasticity and partial-observability. A commonality among many different types of models is that they are able to make predictions---probabilistic or otherwise---about future outcomes. These predictions play a central role in the agent's methods for decision-making (planning) and learning. This thesis develops a recently introduced approach to modeling, in which predictions serve as the model's representation of its current state. A general framework for building models, called the predictive state representation (PSR) is examined in depth, and theoretical results and algorithms are developed for PSRs, laying the foundation for building models using predictive representations of state. PSRs are examined in terms of their expressive power, by examining the class of environments that can be modeled using PSRs as compared to other common approaches for building models. It is shown that PSRs are at least as expressive as many other common approaches. Algorithms are developed that leverage the predictive representation of state in order to learn a PSR model based on the agent's experience with the environment. Furthermore, techniques are developed to allow an agent to make optimal decisions about its behavior, in the context of sequential decision problems---where any choice may have far-reaching consequences. In addition, an extension of PSRs is presented, which incorporates a memory of the past with predictions about the future. Learning and decision-making algorithms are also developed for these memory-PSRs. The work in this dissertation lays the groundwork for how predictive representations of state may be used for building models, by examining the expressive power of these models, and by developing algorithms and the necessary theoretical results for learning and planning.
Using Calculus to Model Epidemics

This chapter discusses the study of model epidemics using calculus. Calculus is the language of change and that language allows studying change in significant ways that plain English will not allow. The change model involves simple, but tedious arithmetic. The formulas for this arithmetic look awfully messy, but one will easily be able to make computations in the short tables contained in exercises. The computer will carry out much longer computations based on the same idea; the electronic exercises show how to program the appropriate computations. Moreover, Mathematica provides with numerical and graphical results very conveniently so one can analyze the results and begin to develop insight into the model epidemics.
George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart

Between 1918 and 1945, chiefly in tandem with other writers, including Edna Ferber and Marc Connelly, George S. Kaufman had thirty-five plays and musicals produced on Broadway. Probably his most successful collaborator, the one with whom the public usually associates him, Moss Hart worked on eight. At least once, Kaufman called him his favourite collaborator.1
Theoretical Implications and Conclusions

This study has examined the NZS, Poland’s most notable student movement. Students were found to play a key role in the events leading up to the Polish renewal or odnowa. Workers’ and students’ organizations came to work together towards democracy and justice. Provocations against the NZS seemed crafted to provoke Solidarity, and were correctly viewed by August 1980 as a foreshadowing of the fate of Solidarity itself.
The Management Factor in Commercial Agriculture: The Influence of Values and Goals

By what means do farmers' values and goals influence the management of farm and ranch resources and what is the result? These are the questions toward which this paper is directed. However, let us first establish some working definitions of the terminology used in the question. Following Sol W. Ginsburg, I shall define values as essential parts of our self-regulating system, reflecting our needs, standards, and interests, which are inevitably tested in specific life situations. Values affect our personal systems of choices. They are influenced by our cultural system and its sanctions and disapprovals.1 Values guide us toward goals which I shall define as things we intend to accomplish. Goals may occur at various levels, with some merely stepping stones to more ultimate goals. Management can be considered as the process of defining and solving problems relative to a specified entrepreneurial unit. However, we shall find it useful to define management in terms of its seven functional components, viz., (1) Problem identification, (2) Observation, (3) Analysis, (4) Decision, (5) Action, (6) Responsibility, and (7) Evaluation.
Markov chain decision model for urinary incontinence procedures

Purpose Urinary incontinence (UI) is a common chronic health condition, a problem specifically among elderly women that impacts quality of life negatively. However, UI is usually viewed as likely result of old age, and as such is generally not evaluated or even managed appropriately. Many treatments are available to manage incontinence, such as bladder training and numerous surgical procedures such as Burch colposuspension and Sling for UI which have high success rates. The purpose of this paper is to analyze which of these popular surgical procedures for UI is effective. Design/methodology/approach This research employs randomized, prospective studies to obtain robust cost and utility data used in the Markov chain decision model for examining which of these surgical interventions is more effective in treating women with stress UI based on two measures: number of quality adjusted life years (QALY) and cost per QALY. Treeage Pro Healthcare software was employed in Markov decision analysis. Findings Results showed the Sling procedure is a more effective surgical intervention than the Burch. However, if a utility greater than certain utility value, for which both procedures are equally effective, is assigned to persistent incontinence, the Burch procedure is more effective than the Sling procedure. Originality/value This paper demonstrates the efficacy of a Markov chain decision modeling approach to study the comparative effectiveness analysis of available treatments for patients with UI, an important public health issue, widely prevalent among elderly women in developed and developing countries. This research also improves upon other analyses using a Markov chain decision modeling process to analyze various strategies for treating UI.
Prospects and challenges of nanomaterial engineered prepregs for improving interlaminar properties of laminated composites—a review

In the recent years, several investigators are incorporating nanotechnology, one of the most powerful trendsetters in material research, to conventional polymer prepregs to enhance mechanical properties of composite strucutures. The current paper outlines the role of nanotech-nology in reinforcing resin and challenges for fabricating nanomaterial reinforced prepregs. As delamination is the most critical problem for composite materials, the current study only focuses the application nanotechnology as a possible solution to alleviate delamination problems in laminated composites. The importance of nanoengineered prepregs is discussed in a viewpoint of improvement in interlaminar properties of the laminated composite materials.
Immunological Aspects of Rheumatic Diseases

Throughout this century there have been major advances in our understanding of the pathophysiological basis of the rheumatic diseases. Most of these discoveries have underscored the importance of the immune response in the aetiology of such diseases. Although our understanding of the rheumatic diseases is far from complete, evidence from a variety of sources highlights the pivotal role of immune dysregulation. In some cases, significant strides in delineating the immunopathological basis of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis have provided a blueprint for defining mechanisms of action of present therapeutic agents as well as a paradigm for the development of newer therapies. It may be possible, using the ever developing tools of molecular biology, to design therapeutic interventions that specifically target only those parts of the immune response whose aberrant function is responsible for the initiation and propagation of systemic inflammatory diseases. As a prelude to what promises to be specific types of therapy, various investigators have already begun using varied biological agents that target distinct components of the immune response known to be relevant to autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Determination of soluble sugar profile in rice

Soluble sugars in rice are the main components affecting sweetness taste of rice. In this paper, an accurate, precise and rapid method for simultaneous determination of multi soluble sugars in rice by using ion chromatography equipped with pulsed amperometric detector was presented. Pretreatment and parameters of ion chromatography and pulsed amperometric detector were optimized. Regression coefficients (R) of 0.9998, 1.0000, 0.9979, 0.9998 and 0.9998 were obtained for glucose, fructose, sucrose, raffinose and maltose, respectively. The recovery ranges of five sugars were 92.9-112.0% for milled rice matrix. Repeatability and reproducibility of the method were 0.8-9.7% and 1.9-7.6%, respectively. Method LODs of 3.1-34.6μgg-1 were obtained for soluble sugars in milled rice matrix.
Salmones Puyuhuapi Part Iii

This case series is appropriate for undergraduate, MBA, executive education, and MBA Exec audiences but is specifically designed for decision analysis, a first-year MBA core course. In the Part I case, Osvaldo Correa, CEO of Salmones Puyuhuapi (SP), must decide how to respond to news that the ISA virus has infected a competitor's salmon farming site. The alternatives include harvesting SP's 900,000 salmon two months early, waiting for the fish to grow and risk losing fish to the virus, and vaccinating the fish. The "harvest now" alternative is evaluated using normally distributed fish weights. It is necessary to account for monthly growth of the fish and mortality to value the ends of the decision tree. Other alternatives (e.g., testing the water, fish, and marine life) can be studied with the expected value of perfect information. Vaccination is an example of the value of perfect control. Excerpt UVA-QA-0776 Sept. 15, 2011 Salmones Puyuhuapi PART I Osvaldo Correa, CEO of Salmones Puyuhuapi (SP), was in a tense meeting with bank officials, negotiating the terms of his firm's line of credit, when he received a text on his BlackBerry. The news was not good. Correa tried to remain calm in front of the bankers as he read the terse message about a suspected outbreak of the infectious salmon anemia (ISA) virus in a competitor's salmon farm. Correa knew that if the virus were to spread to his firm's Jacaf Fjord site in northern Patagonia, Chile, it could wipe out his nearly one million salmon two months before they were to be harvested. That would have a devastating impact on his firm's cash flows. Excusing himself to go to “los servicios” (the only excuse he could come up with), Correa e-mailed his assistant to set up a meeting later that day with Jorge Richards, his operations manager, and Sergio Rivas, the company's veterinarian. Salmon Farming in Chile Chile was a relatively small country of nearly 16 million inhabitants whose economy was driven principally by mining, agribusiness, forestry, and aquaculture. In particular, the salmon industry, although relatively new, had been wildly successful. The industry was established in the early 1980s to take advantage of natural conditions in the south of the country (moderate sea temperatures, sheltered sites, and ideal salinity levels). It achieved nearly 20 years of 42% annualized growth, allowing it to join Norway as the world's largest salmon producers. In 2006, these two countries shared 78% of global production. Salmon farms, which thrived in the southern regions of Chile, dominated the local economies and led to high rates of employment. . . .
35. Laparoscopy for Crohn’s Colitis

Laparoscopic colectomy for Crohn’s Disease (CD) is a safe and effective technique in experienced hands and offers all of the advantages seen with laparoscopic surgery. However, Crohn’s Disease poses unique challenges that must be overcome, making laparoscopic approach more complex and challenging.
A Prospective Single Center Study to Evaluate Safety and Short-term Efficacy of Angioplasty and Stent Placement for Intracranial Atherosclerotic Disease

P240 Background and Purpose: Intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD) is associated with a 7% to 10% annual incidence of ischemic stroke. Although percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) has been introduced for revascularization of ICAD, the treatment experience is limited. We prospectively studied the safety and efficacy of PTA and/or stent placement for ICAD at a tertiary-care referral hospital. Methods: Each patient was evaluated by a neurologist prior to, immediately following and 24 hours after the procedure. PTA and/or stent placement were performed using routine techniques as either single or multiple procedures. Any complications related to the procedure in 1-month interval were recorded. Pre- and post-angiograms were analyzed to evaluate response to endovascular revascularization. Results: A total of 25 patients (29 procedures) were treated (mean age 62.6 ± 12.6 years) for ≥ 50% stenosis in the internal carotid artery (n=4), middle cerebral artery (n=8), vertebral artery (n=11), or basilar artery (n=2). The procedures included PTA (n=20), primary stenting (n=8), or combination of both (n=1). There was an improvement in stenosis (mean ±SD) from 85 ±13% to 23.8 ±23.4%. The overall stroke rate per procedure was 6%; all strokes were minor. One patient died from post-procedural intracerebral hemorrhage. Systemic bleeding complications were observed in 6% of the procedures (3% major and 3% minor). Conclusions: Endovascular revascularization for treatment of ICAD appears to be feasible with a low complication rate. Further studies are required to evaluate the long-term efficacy of these procedures in reducing the risk of ischemic stroke in patients with ICAD.
Correlation between pulmonary functions and respiratory muscle activity in patients with forward head posture

[Purpose] The purpose of this study is to determine the effect that secondary postural deformities and chronic postural abnormalities have on lung capacity, as well as correlate the activity of the respiratory muscles. The results provide basic objective data about the forward head posture and respiratory muscle activity that can be used in clinical situations. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects used in this study were 24 patients aged 25 to 35 years old who visited a hospital in Jeollanam-do Province, Korea, between September 2015 and January 2016. The patients were diagnosed with forward head posture because the vertical line between the acromion process and the external acoustic meatus was at least 5 cm. We measured the craniovertebral angle, pulmonary functions, and respiratory muscle activity of the subjects for correlation analysis. [Results] A positive correlation was found between the craniovertebral angle and the forced vital capacity (r=0.63), while a negative correlation was found between the craniovertebral angle and the sternocleidomastoid muscle (r=-0.77). The craniovertebral angle and the anterior scalene muscle showed a negative correlation (r=-0.65). There were positive correlations between the forced vital capacity and the sternocleidomastoid muscle (r=0.71), and between the forced vital capacity and the anterior scalene muscle (r=0.59). [Conclusion] Severe forward head posture increased the activities of the sternocleidomastoid muscles and the anterior scalene muscles, and decreased the forced vital capacity. Thus, it is necessary to develop more efficient interventions for managing forward head posture based on pulmonary function and the activity of the respiratory synergist muscles.
Usefulness of the Surprise Question on an Inpatient Oncology Service

Background:Prognostication of survival in patients with advanced cancer has been challenging and contributes to poor illness understanding. Prognostic disagreement occurs even among providers and is a less studied phenomenon.Objective:We introduced the surprise question (SQ), “Would I be surprised if this patient died in the next 1 year, 6 months, and 1 month?,” at multidisciplinary rounds to increase palliative care referrals through the introduction of this prognostic prompt.Design, Setting, Patients:This quality improvement project took place from March 2016 to May 2016 on the medical oncology service at a tertiary academic medical center. The question was asked 3 times a week at multidisciplinary rounds which are attended by the hospital medicine provider, palliative care provider, and consulting oncologist. Primary oncologists and bedside nurses were also asked the SQ.Measurements:Referral rates to outpatient palliative care clinic, community-based palliative care clinic, inpatient palliative care co...
Retinoids and Chemoprevention of Cancer

The role of retinol and its esters in determining normal epithelial cell differentiation has been known for over 50 years since the classical studies of Wolbach and Howe (1925) who observed the differentiated cells of various specialized epithelia throughout the body were replaced by squamous, keratinizing cells during retinoid* deficiency.
Combined Control Charts for Forecast-Based Monitoring Schemes

The problem of monitoring autocorrelated process data is discussed. Several forecast-based monitoring schemes are evaluated using a Markov chain approach to determine types of process shift and evaluation criteria. A combined exponentially weighte..
Serving Others at the Expense of Self: The Relationship between Nonprofit CEO Compensation and Performance in Trade and Professional Associations

This paper investigates the organizational importance of relative CEO compensation in trade associations and professional societies. It is known that there is variation in how much pay is tied to performance in different subcategories of nonprofit organizations. However, instead of looking at how performance affects pay, we investigate how CEO compensation affects organization performance when CEOs are aware of their peer compensation and are able to influence their own. We hypothesized that CEOs who knowingly earn less will be associated with both greater financial and nonfinancial organizational performance. This altruistic perspective draws on theories from leadership and psychology rather than the more typical agency perspective and focuses on the alignment between CEO and stakeholders in a nonprofit setting. We find strong support for the relationship between lower relative CEO compensation and organization performance, while results for the moderating effect of organizational size are mixed.
Using Skype to Beat the Blues: Longitudinal Data from a National Representative Sample

Abstract Objectives This study aimed to determine whether use of certain types of online communication technology is associated with subsequent depressive symptoms. Design Nationally representative, population-based prospective cohort. Setting Data were obtained from the 2012 and 2014 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Participants 1,424 community-residing older adults (mean age, 64.8) in the United States. Measurements We examined associations between use of four communication technologies (email, social networks, video chat, and instant messaging) in 2012 and depressive symptoms (eight-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale) at two-year follow-up. Results 564 participants (39.6%) did not use any communication technologies, 314 (22.1%) used email only, and 255 (17.9%) used video chat (e.g., Skype). Compared to non-users (13.1%, 95% CI: 9.5-16.7%) or those who used only email (14.3%, 95% CI: 10.1-18.5%), users of video chat had approximately half the probability of depressive symptoms (6.9%, 95% CI: 3.5-10.3%, Wald Chi2 test, Chi2(1)=13.82, p Conclusions Older adults who use video chat such as Skype, but not other common communication technologies, have a lower risk of developing depression.
Are Trump’s Trade Policies Fit for Purpose?

I ask whether President Donald Trump's tariffs are fit for purpose: that is, whether they are appropriately designed to advance his goals. My answer is negative.
Stereotactic body radiation therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma: Practice patterns, dose selection and factors impacting survival.

BACKGROUND Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is an emerging option for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) without consensus regarding optimal dose schemas. This analysis identifies practice patterns and factors that influence dose selection and overall survival, with particular emphasis on dose and tumor size. MATERIALS/METHODS Query of the National Cancer Database (NCDB) identified patients with unresectable, nonmetastatic HCC who received SBRT from 2004 to 2013. Biological Effective Dose (BED) was calculated for each patient in order to uniformly analyze different fractionation regimens. RESULTS A total of 456 patients met the inclusion criteria. The median BED was 100 Gy (22.5-208.0), which corresponded to the most common dose fractionation (50 Gy in five fractions). Various factors influenced dose selection including tumor size (P 2 to ≤4 months, HR 1.456, P = 0.048; >4 months, HR 2.192, P < 0.001) were associated with worse survival. CONCLUSION SBRT use is increasing for HCC, and multiple regimens are clinically employed. Although high BED was associated with improved outcomes, multiple factors contributed to the dose selection with favorable patients receiving higher doses. Continued efforts to enhance radiation planning and delivery may help improve utilization, safety, and efficacy.
THE ASSOCIATION OF SLEEP APNEA WITH INVASIVE CARDIOPULMONARY HEMODYNAMICS

Sleep apnea increases pulmonary artery pressure at night, but whether sleep apnea causes persistent daytime pulmonary hypertension is less clear. Adults who underwent an overnight sleep study within our large heath care system between 3/1999 and 12/2017 were eligible for inclusion if they also
Participatory Research and Advocacy

Linguists who study language in various social contexts have frequently commented on the plight of those whom they have studied. Linguistic acts of human advocacy intersect with many scholarly disciplines with overt relevance to language policies in business, education, government, the law, and medicine among others. Scholars who study linguistic variation, discourse, and literacy have at times attempted to advance causes of social justice, particularly for less fortunate people who frequently lack adequate control of their destiny.
Within-individual differences in plasma ferritin, retinol-binding protein, and zinc concentrations in relation to inflammation observed during a short-term longitudinal study are similar to between-individual differences observed cross-sectionally.

Background Cross-sectional (CS) surveys indicate that individuals with acute inflammation have higher plasma ferritin (pF), and lower retinol-binding protein (RBP) and zinc (pZn) concentrations than those without. In populations with a high burden of infection, correction factors (CFs) or regression corrections (RCs) are applied to biomarkers to estimate the prevalence of micronutrient (MN) deficiencies adjusted for inflammation. This assumes that individuals with and without inflammation have the same nutritional status, which may not be the case. Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate relations between short-term, longitudinal within-individual changes in acute phase proteins (C-reactive protein [CRP], α-1-acid glycoprotein [AGP]) and biomarkers of MN status (pF, soluble transferrin receptor [sTfR], RBP, and pZn), and compare them to CS differences. Methods Two blood samples were obtained 21 d apart from 451 asymptomatic Burkinabe children aged 6-23 mo. To calculate CFs, inflammation was defined as CRP >5 mg/L or AGP >1 g/L, or both. The RC approach adjusted MN biomarkers to a presumably healthy reference point within the study population (10th percentile CRP or AGP concentration). CS CFs and RCs were estimated from a naive regression model, treating observations from the same children as independent. Longitudinal CFs and RCs, to estimate effects of within-individual changes in CRP and/or AGP, were estimated from general linear models, accounting for repeated measures. Results In CS models, geometric mean pF and sTfR concentrations were 8-340% greater, and RBP and pZn 2-18% lower, in children with inflammation than those without. Except for sTfR, biomarker concentrations differed in the same direction and by similar magnitude within individuals whose inflammation status changed during the observation period. Although geometric mean MN concentrations differed significantly when adjusted with CS compared with longitudinal models, the estimated prevalence of MN deficiencies in CS and longitudinally adjusted models was similar. Conclusions The CF and RC approaches to adjust MN biomarkers for inflammation between individuals in CS surveys are valid approaches for data collection and programmatic decisions in comparable populations. This study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00944853.
Extracting fast targets from an EO sensor

This work describes a method for measurement extraction of fast point targets leaving an extended signature in the pixelated focal plane array of an EO sensor. The extraction method and subsequent statistics are derived from a physics based model where the spatial quantization regions, or pixels, are separated by dead zones. Furthermore, the intensity in a pixel is corrupted by approximately Gaussian noise which exhibits a variance proportional to the pixel area. This noise model is based on a Poisson assumption, in reference to the number of photons that contribute to the noise intensity. The signal portion of the image is a spatially quantized version of the target’s point spread function (PSF) that is modeled as a Gaussian PSF that moves at a constant velocity, a realistic assumption during an exposure time that may have been adjusted (and lengthened) to enhance target SNR. The measurement extraction is done using a Maximum Likelihood (ML) method for which we provide an appropriate Cramer-Rao Lower Bound (CRLB) on the estimation error of the target’s 2-D starting and ending positions. We then provide a definition for the signal to noise ratio (SNR) in an image using a matched filter (MF). Next, we present Monte Carlo simulations to confirm the derived results and find that the measurement extractor is efficient for SNRs .≥ 12dB (using our SNR definition). Finally, we develop a solution to the problem of detecting fast targets in images. We present approximate distributions for the test statistic under the null (H0 — target absent) and alternative (H1 — target present) hypotheses that can be used to set a threshold for specific probabilities of detection PD and false alarm PFA. Finally, we verify these distributions with Monte Carlo simulations.
The Tyrannies of the In-Between: Liminality in Antonio Buero Vallejo’s Historia de una escalera

Scholars of Spanish theater have often interpreted Antonio Buero Vallejo’s Historia de una escalera (1949) as an allegory for the prison-like atmosphere of postwar Spain. This article expands that ...
Analysis of spatial yield variability and economics of prescriptions for precision agriculture: a crop modeling approach

Past efforts to correlate yield from small field plots to soil type, elevation, fertility, and other factors have been only partially successful for characterizing spatial variability in com {Zea mays L.) yield. Furthermore, methods to determine optimum nitrogen rate in grids across fields depend upon the ability to accurately predict yield variability and com response to nitrogen. In this paper, we developed a technique to use the CERES-Maize crop growth model to characterize com yield variability. The model was calibrated using 3 years of data from 224 grids in a 16 ha field near Boone, lA. The model gave excellent predictions of yield trends along transects in the field, explaining approximately 57% of the yield variability. Once the model was calibrated for each grid cell, optimum nitrogen rate to maximize net return was computed for each location using 22 years of historical weather data. Results show high spatial distribution of optimum nitrogen fertilizer prescription for grids across the field. Grid-level nitrogen fertilizer management used lower amounts of fertilizer, produced higher yields and was more profitable than either transector field-level (single rate) fertilizer application. ' Agricultural Systems 61:69-75 (1999)
Gender Goals: Defining Masculinity and Navigating Peer Pressure to Engage in Sexual Activity

A significant part of hegemonic masculinity is proving one’s heterosexuality though sexual experiences. Peer pressure to conform is particularly acute for adolescent boys and young men. We analyze ...