cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An integrated first-year engineering curricula

The Foundation Coalition (FC) Program at Texas A&M University (USA) includes chemistry, English, engineering, math and physics taught in an integrated two semester sequence using technology and delivered in an active-collaborative environment to students working in teams of three and four. A unique feature of the courses taught at A&M is the close coordination of subject matter maintained by the first-year faculty teaching team. Topics covered in each discipline are discussed in weekly meetings and efforts are made to teach and reinforce concepts across subject lines. The paper addresses some of the challenges encountered in an integrated program (such as, students with previous college credit in one or more area, and students with differing levels of academic preparation). The authors believe that their thrusts of integration, teaming, active learning and technology will produce engineers who can solve increasingly complex problems more effectively.
An Open Framework for Developing, Evaluating, and Sharing Steering Algorithms

There are very few software frameworks for steering behaviors that are publicly available for developing, evaluating, and sharing steering algorithms. Furthermore, there is no widely accepted methodology for how to evaluate results of agent steering simulations. This situation makes it difficult to identify the real underlying challenges in agent simulations and future research directions to advance the state of the art. With the hope of encouraging community participation to address these issues, we have released SteerSuite , a flexible but easy-to-use set of tools, libraries, and test cases for steering behaviors. The software includes enhanced test cases, an improved version of SteerBench, a modular simulation engine, a novel steering algorithm, and more. Care has been taken to make SteerSuite practical and easy-to-use, yet flexible and forward-looking, to challenge researchers and developers to advance the state of the art in steering.
Nonlinear Impact Analysis of Laminated Cylindrical and Doubly Curved Shells

The nonlinear impact response of laminated composite cylindrical and doubly curved shells is analyzed using a modified Hertzian contact law. A finite element model is developed based on Sander's shell theory and includes shear deformation effects and nonlinearity due to large deflection. A nine noded isoparametric quadrilateral element is used to model the curved shell. The nonlinear time dependent equations are solved using an iterative scheme and Newmark's method. Numerical results for the contact force and center deflection histories are presented for various impactor conditions, shell geometry and boundary conditions.
Do you need to operate following recovery from complications of pediatric acute sinusitis

Abstract Objectives There are many studies that evaluate the role of surgery in the treatment of complications of pediatric acute sinusitis; however there are few studies, if any that report the incidence of surgery following recovery from acute complicated sinusitis. The goal of this study was to report the incidence and indications for surgical intervention after recovery from complications of pediatric acute sinusitis. Methods We reviewed the records of all children admitted to a tertiary care children's hospital between January 2005 and September 2010 with a diagnosis of sinusitis and an orbital or intracranial complication. Eighty-six patients met inclusion criteria. Charts were reviewed for type of complication, initial treatment (medical or surgical), type of procedure, secondary procedures, age, and comorbidities. Statistical analysis was completed using independent samples student t-tests and Mann–Whitney tests. Results A total of 86 patients with a mean age of 6.38 years (2 months to 18 years) were identified. Eighty patients had orbital complications while six presented with intracranial complications. Twenty-seven patients (31%) underwent sinus surgery during the acute phase of their illness whereas 59 patients (69%) were treated medically. After hospitalization and recovery for acute complicated sinusitis, surgery was performed on nine patients (mean age 4.86 years) within 1 month to 2 years post hospitalization. Of the nine patients who required secondary surgery following resolution of the initial complicated sinusitis, four patients were following initial surgical intervention and five patients had initially resolved their complication with medical therapy alone. Indications for subsequent surgery included failure of medical therapy for persistent rhinosinusitis (8 patients) and second complication (1 patient). Conclusions This study suggests that following resolution of complicated pediatric rhinosinusitis, very few patients may need further surgical intervention. Subsequent intervention is best guided by clinical judgment, symptoms during outpatient clinic visits, and failure of medical therapy.
Fully planar room-temperature circulator based on magnetized semiconductors

Most nonreciprocal microwave devices use magnetized ferrite materials modeled by a permeability tensor. The performance of such devices starts to degrade above 40 GHz due to the upper limit of the saturation magnetization. Bandwidth and integration into the semiconductor-based MMICs are still issues of concern. The availability of spectrum near the 60–77 GHz range as well as the infrared region has increased the demand for improved performance of devices and systems. Fortunately, advancements in semiconductors technology provide alternative materials for nonreciprocal devices. High mobility semiconductors act like solid-state plasmas, and when exposed to a DC magnetic bias, can be modeled as (gyroelectric) anisotropic material, or magnetoplasma. This gives rise to a permittivity tensor, which might be thought of as the dual to magnetized ferrites. Doped semiconductors like InSb and GaAs are usually employed for this purpose. They can work at higher frequencies; up to THz. Also, the offered bandwidth is huge and well exceeds the available bandwidth of most microwave guiding structures. Being a semiconductor, this material is fully compatible with integration, making it an attractive choice for MMICs applications.
Anti-MET ImmunoPET for Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer Using Novel Fully Human Antibody Fragments

MET, the receptor of hepatocyte growth factor, plays important roles in tumorigenesis and drug resistance in numerous cancers including non-small cell lung cancer. As increasing numbers of MET inhibitors are being developed for clinical applications, antibody fragment based immuno-positron emission tomography (immunoPET) has the potential to rapidly quantify in vivo MET expression levels for drug response evaluation and patient stratification for these targeted therapies. Here, fully human single-chain variable fragments (scFvs) isolated from a phage display library were re-formatted into bivalent cys-diabodies (scFv-cys dimers) with affinities to MET ranging from 0.7 nM to 5.1 nM. The candidate with the highest affinity, H2, was radiolabeled with 89Zr for immunoPET studies targeting non-small cell lung cancer xenografts: low MET expressing Hcc827 and the gefitinib-resistant Hcc827-GR6 with 4-fold MET over-expression. ImmunoPET at as early as 4 hours post injection produced high contrast images, and ex vivo biodistribution analysis at 20 hours post injection showed about 2-fold difference in tracer uptake levels between the parental and resistant tumors (p < 0.01). Further immunoPET studies using a larger fragment, the H2 minibody (scFv-CH3 dimer) produced similar results at later time points. Two of the antibody clones (H2 and H5) showed in vitro growth inhibitory effects on MET-dependent gefitinib-resistant cell lines, while no effects were observed on resistant lines lacking MET activation. In conclusion, these fully human antibody fragments inhibit MET-dependent cancer cells and enable rapid immunoPET imaging to assess MET expression levels, showing potential for both therapeutic and diagnostic applications.
Emittance variations in current-amplifying ion induction linacs

Since 1985 the Heavy Ion Fusion Accelerator Research program at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory has been studying current amplification and emittance variations in MBE-4, a four-cesium-beam induction linac. This experiment models much of the accelerator physics of the electrostatically focused section of a fusion driver. One of the initial concerns was possible interactions between the beams as they were accelerated or transported through the accelerator. With the exception of a weak interaction in the injector where the beams are at low energy and see each other for some distance, no such effect was observed. At low energy the beams interact primarily through their radial space-charge electric fields. These are easily controlled by radial shorting planes along the accelerator which are present for other reasons. >
Shear wave travel time, amplitude, and waveform analysis for earthquakes in the kurile slab: Constraints on deep slab structure and mantle heterogeneity

Shear wave travel times, amplitudes and broadband waveforms from 16 events in the Kurile slab are analyzed to place further constraints on the seismic velocity heterogeneity associated with the subducted oceanic lithosphere. Several previous studies have proposed that the Kurile slab penetrates into the lower mantle with little deformation other than a steepening of the dip angle, while other studies suggest that strong slab deformations occur with perhaps negligible lower mantle penetration. In an effort to detect any deep slab effects, we compare anomaly patterns covering a 60° azimuthal range straddling the strike of the slab for events in three different depth intervals (> 500 km, 350–500 km, and 100–200 km). S and ScS pulse broadening is used as a measure of waveform complexity. Complexity of broadband shear waves does not vary systematically across our azimuthal range as the propagation direction changes with respect to the postulated lower mantle slab model for this region. Strong residual sphere travel time variations are found for shear waves from events at all depths; however, these variations do not display the depth dependence apparent in previous P wave analysis that has been interpreted as requiring a change in slab geometry and lower mantle penetration. The same S wave residual pattern is apparent in sS depth phases, and is well predicted by a recent model of shear velocity structure beneath North America. A combination of deep mantle and near-receiver aspherical structure can explain most of our observed shear wave travel time patterns, with only a minor source depth-dependent component remaining after correction. Individual amplitude and travel time measurements are poorly correlated; however, ScS/S amplitude ratios and ScS-S differential times are significantly correlated, consistent with geometric focussing and defocussing effects somewhere along the raypaths. The travel time behavior suggests that the responsible velocity heterogeneity is not located near the source. The absence of a strong deep slab effect on the shear waves indicates that deep slab heterogeneity is less pronounced for shear waves than expected on the basis of existing P wave models derived from travel time residual sphere analysis. Various interpretations include: estimates of δVs/δT and compositional effects previously used to predict shear velocity structure of the deep Kurile slab are in error, with actual lower mantle slab anomalies being much weaker than proposed; the Kurile slab is so distorted in the lower mantle that no source depth dependent trends are produced for our limited focal sphere coverage; or the Kurile slab does not penetrate into the lower mantle.
Power dissipation issues in interconnect performance optimization for sub-180 nm designs

This paper addresses the problem of power dissipation during the buffer insertion phase of interconnect performance optimization. It is shown that the interconnect delay is actually very shallow with respect to both the repeater size and separation close to the minimum point. A methodology is developed to calculate the repeater size and inter-buffer interconnect length which minimizes the total interconnect power dissipation for any given delay penalty. This methodology is used to calculate the power-optimal buffering schemes for various ITRS technology nodes for 5% delay penalty. Furthermore, this technique is also used to quantify the relative importance of the various components of the power dissipation for power-optimal solutions for various technology nodes.
On the Interpretation of Survey Propagation

In this paper, we unify survey propagation (SP) for constraint-satisfaction problems as "probabilistic token passing" algorithms. We show that the reduction of SP from belief propagation (BP) for general problems requires a modification of the BP message-passing rule, namely, introducing what we call a state-decoupling operation on the BP messages. This raises a question mark on the recent "folk belief" that SP is BP.
Volumetric ablation rendering

In this paper, we propose a physically-based method for simulating the process of ablation on volumetric models. We demonstrate the visual effect of ablative processes, such as a beam of heat emitted from a blow torch or a pencil of sand expelled from a sandblaster. Users are able to control ablative properties, such as energy propagation, absorption, and material evaporation, via a simple transfer function interface, while the effect of different beam shapes can be modeled by ways of weighting functions.Continuous evaporation of material to expose interior object features can eliminate smooth object boundary layers required for good gradient estimation. To prevent this adverse effect, our method leaves the original volume intact and instead operates on a smooth energy volume. The renderer then uses the energy volume to determine the current, smooth object boundaries, for the opacity and gradient calculations, while the original volume provides the visual material properties, such as color and shading coefficients.
Fatty Acids Enhance Vascular α-Adrenergic Sensitivity

Abstract Hypertensive patients are heavier and have a more centralized body fat distribution, which is associated with risk factor clustering and resistance to insulin’s actions, including suppression of plasma nonesterified fatty acids. We postulated that abnormalities of nonesterified fatty acids contribute to the increased vascular α-adrenergic reactivity and tone observed in our previous studies of obese hypertensive subjects. To test this hypothesis, in two separate protocols 10% Intralipid was infused into a dorsal hand vein with heparin to activate lipoprotein lipase and raise fatty acid levels locally. In protocol 1, the effects of Intralipid/heparin compared with those of 5% dextrose/heparin on dorsal hand vein sensitivity to phenylephrine were assessed by use of the linear variable differential transformer technique in 8 normotensive subjects. In protocol 2, the effects of Intralipid/heparin were compared with those of saline/heparin on hand vein responses to both phenylephrine and angiotensin II in 11 normotensive African American women. Intralipid/heparin reduced the dose of phenylephrine required to produce 50% of the maximal venoconstrictor response from 582 to 137 ng/min (compared with dextrose/heparin, P P
237Np aND 239Pu Solution Behavior During Hydrothermal Testing of Simulated Nuclear Waste Glass with Basalt and Steel

A series of hydrothermal experiments were carried out on 237Np- and 239Pu-doped PNL 76–68 glass, synthetic basalt groundwater, basalt, and cast steel. These hydrothermal experiments are part of the Basalt Waste Isolation Project investigation of the interactions of waste package components in a basalt repository. Experiments of three months duration were conducted in Dickson-type rocking autoclaves at 200°C and 30 MPa, with an initial fluid to solid weight ratio of 10:1. All solid materials were ground and sieved to a narrow size fraction. The experiments carried out were: glass and groundwater; glass, basalt, and groundwater; glass, steel, and groundwater; and glass, steel, basalt, and groundwater. Unfiltered, 4000 Â filtered, and 18 A filtered solutions were analyzed to determine the concentrations of radionuclides in solution and those associated with colloids. The quantities of 237Np and 239Pu in solution were very small. Worstcase calculations indicate that 0.01% or less of the total radionuclide inventories were present in solution. The highest solution concentrations of the actinide dopants were observed in the experiments with basalt, even though smaller amounts of glass were dissolved than in the experiments without basalt. The observed differences in the solution concentrations of 237Np and 239Pu were probably controlled by differences in the reaction products, which were clinoptilolite in the experiments with basalt, and an Fe-Zn smectite clay in the experiments without basalt.
Teflon® FEP frontsheets for photovoltaic modules: Improved optics leading to higher module efficiency

Increasing the amount of light that reaches the cell is one approach to improved photovoltaic (PV) module efficiency. In current designs using weathering layers of glass or poly(co- ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene) (Teflon® ETFE), some light is lost due to reflection and scattering due to haze. Teflon® FEP, poly(co- tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene), offers both a lower index of refraction and higher transparency than existing front sheet materials for modules, leading to improved efficiency and greater output of current and power. In precise optical measurements, we showed that FEP delivers more light to the underlying PV cells. By modeling the optical transmission data for front sheets of glass, ETFE, and FEP, one can demonstrate an improvement of 1.5–3% in short circuit current output when using FEP, depending on the cell technology. Initial module experiments have confirmed model predictions and demonstrate the power output performance enhancement when using FEP.
Incentivizing Multiple Revisions Improves Student Writing without Increasing Instructor Workload.

Previous research has shown that when students are required to submit a draft and a revision of their writing, large proportions of students do not improve across drafts. We implemented a writing a...
Understanding Your Library’s Financial Audit

This article is intended to help libraries face routine financial audits. Public libraries fall into three categories: departments of local government, nonprofits, and “special district governments” (U.S. Census Bureau 2012). When libraries that are “special district governments” undergo financial audit, they are subject to rigorous standards, known as generally accepted accounting principles, of the Governmental Accounting Standards Board. The independent auditors who perform financial audits are also subject to standards, known as generally accepted government auditing standards, of the Government Accountability Office. The author shows librarians how to use the audit to promote their reputation as first-rate public library money managers.
Inflammation in prostate cancer progression and therapeutic targeting

Chronic inflammation contributes to the onset and progression of human cancer, via modifications in the tumor microenvironment by remodeling the extracellular matrix (ECM) and initiating epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT). At the biological level, chronically inflamed cells release cytokines that are functionally dictating a constitutively active stroma, promoting tumor growth and metastasis. In prostate cancer, inflammation correlates with increased development of “risk factor” lesions or proliferative inflammatory atrophy (PIA). Chronic inflammation in benign prostate biopsy specimens can be associated with high-grade prostate tumors in adjacent areas. In this article, we discuss the current understanding of the incidence of inflammation in prostate cancer progression and the significance of the process in therapeutic targeting of specific inflammatory signaling pathways and critical effectors during tumor progression. Further understanding of the process of chronic inflammation in prostate tumor progression to metastasis will enable development and optimization of novel therapeutic modalities for the treatment of high-risk patients with advanced disease.
Discovery and Analysis of Coordinated Earth Observations from Joint Observing Assets

In the current age of rapid climate change, analysis of coincident or near-coincident Earth Science data taken from different observing platforms will provide critical knowledge both to scientists and to policy makers. At Draper Laboratory, we are pursuing efforts aimed at overcoming challenges to this type of research. In this paper we present a developed web portal framework that would allow investigators to easily and quickly visualize available Earth Science and related socio-economic data as a function of time and space. Thus, scientists and policy makers wishing to fuse coordinated data into a single study could make use of all available data within a domain of interest without knowing a priori which observations were taken. We also overview in this work research aimed at fusing large numbers of heterogeneous signals into data driven models capable of describing effects of climate change on natural and anthropogenic systems. The first model we developed predicts the short-term spread of wildfires up to two days in advance and can be used to aid in the allocation of disaster recovery resources.
The Mind-Body Connection: An Integrated Approach to the Diagnosis of Colonic Trichobezoar:

The relationship between trichophagia, the compulsive eating of hair, and trichobezoar, the accumulation of hair within the gastrointestinal tract, illustrates the importance of the mind-body connection. Physicians ought to be cognizant of this association in the evaluation of colonic obstruction as colonic trichobezoars, though uncommon, carry a high mortality rate. Incorporation of the psychiatric and dermatological examinations is a simple way to raise clinical suspicion for the presence of a trichobezoar, and to prompt early and appropriate surgical treatment. Even after resolution, treatment of the underlying trichophagia is highly recommended to prevent future complications.
Analysis on influential factors of cure rate of pulmonary tuberculosis and drug resistance

Objective To analyze the influential factors of the cure rate for pulmonary tuberculosis(TB) and to monitor drug resistance in uncured patients.Also to explore reasons of low cure rate of TB.Methods Uncured newly registered TB patients with smear positive are selected from six cities during January 2009 to December 2010.Epidemiological investigations of cases were applied,and we study the treatment,course and management of patients,and also take drug resistance and strains cultured.A Case-control study were also applied,320 cases were studied of regular treatment,supervisory management and household register.Results Regular treatment(χ2=107.31,P0.01),supervisory management(χ2=68.55,P0.01),and floating population(χ2=52.21,P0.01)were the main dangerous factors of failure treatment.The strains of uncured newly registered TB patients with A total of 239 were Mycobacterium tuberculosis(97.95%),5 were non-tuberculous mycobacteria(2.05%).A total of 180 strains were sensitive to drugs,and the proportion was 73.77%;64 strains were drug resistance,and the proportion was 26.23%.Conclusions We should treat TB patients according to the requirements of standard chemotherapy based on "National TB Control Manual" strictly.First-line TB drugs are better than second-line drugs or bulk drug.The management of full supervision is certainly adopted in the treatment of TB patients.At the same time,it is necessary to strengthen the treatment and management of TB patients in the floating population.
Axial heterogeneity of rabbit proximal tubule luminal H+ and basolateral HCO3- transport.

The present in vitro microperfusion study examined whether the rates of the apical membrane Na+-H+ antiporter and basolateral membrane Na(HCO3)3 symporter vary along the length of the proximal tubule. Initial proximal convoluted tubules (PCT obtained within 0.5 mm from the glomerulus), mid-PCT (PCT without glomerular attachments) and cortical proximal straight tubules were examined. The rate of either the apical or basolateral membrane acidification mechanism was measured from the initial rate of change of intracellular pH after a change in either the luminal or bathing solution. Intracellular pH was measured fluorometrically using the pH-sensitive dye (2',7')-bis(carboxyethyl)-(5,6)-carboxyfluorescein. The rate of bicarbonate exit across the basolateral membrane was examined by imposing either a sodium or bicarbonate gradient. There was no difference between initial and mid-PCT, but the rate of change in cell pH was 30% slower in PST in both series. The rate of sodium-dependent apical proton secretion wa...
Advances in Numerical Methods for Convective Hydrodynamic Model of Semiconductor Devices

The convective hydrodynamic model of semiconductor devices is analyzed employing parallel and stabilized finite element methods. The stabilized finite element method for the two-carrier hydrodynamic equations and the parallel computational model are briefly described. Numerical results are shown for a bipolar transistor. A comparison of drift-diffusion, energy-transport and the hydrodynamic models is presented for a 0.1µm channel n +-n-n + silicon diode.
The evaluation of syncope in a predominantly black population: Focus on neuroimaging

Background: Current guidelines do not support the routine use of computed tomography (CT) scan of the head in the diagnostic workup of syncope. There is a lack of research to support whether these guidelines apply to the Black population. Aims: This study aims to evaluate the yield of neuroimaging in the evaluation of Syncope in a predominantly Black patient population and to test whether current guidelines based on studies conducted in other populations hold true in this group. Material and Methods: A retrospective review of records of 151 patients admitted to a University Hospital with Syncope from 2011 to 2014 was performed. Data collected include CT head, magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, magnetic resonance angiogram, electroencephalogram, and orthostatic vital signs. Demographic data, admitting service, and comorbid conditions were identified. Syncope was classified as cardiogenic, orthostatic, vasovagal, situational, or undetermined. Statistical analysis was performed to determine which diagnostic tools were useful in identifying the potential causes of syncope. Data analysis was conducted using the Statistical Analysis System software 9.3 (SAS Institute, Cary, NC) and Statistical Analysis and Graphics (NCSS 9.0.7, Kaysville, UT). Results: One hundred and twenty eight (84.8%) of the patients were Black. The average age was 56.62 ± 18.78 standard deviation and 68.2% (103) were female. One hundred and fourteen patients (75.5%) had a CT brain. Five out of 114 patients had an acute abnormality on CT (4.4%). Only 1 of these 5 patients had an abnormality that was related to syncope. CT brain (P = 0.978) was not found to be predictive of underlying etiology of syncope despite high frequency of use. Conclusions: CT head was not useful in determining the etiology of syncope in a predominantly Black population. Current guidelines and studies conducted in other populations have detected similar findings.
Risk Factors for Fractures in Men

Publisher Summary There is a paucity of research on skeletal determinants of fracture in men. Men who smoke cigarettes have higher rates of fracture in most studies. In the past, the prevalence of cigarette smoking was greater in men than women in cohort studies of older men. Hence, the attributable risk of fractures associated with cigarette smoking may actually be higher in men than women. However, the prevalence of smoking has been declining in men so there may be a cohort effect with respect to smoking. Little is known about cigar, pipe, smokeless tobacco, or passive smoking and the risk of fracture in men. Heavy alcohol use or alcohol abuse may increase the risk of fractures. Moderate intakes appear to have little effect on fractures. Higher levels of leisure time physical activity have been associated with reduced hip fracture risk, but essentially nothing is known about historical physical activity. Occupational activity may also be an important risk factor for fractures in men, and this effect may differ by fracture site.
The Riddle of the Pine Cones

The male cones of modern pines appear to be simple structures composed of microsporophylls arranged spirally on an axis (Fig. 8-3). The axis of the female cone, in contrast, bears what appear to be megasporophylls, but each of them is subtended by a leaflike structure (Fig. 8-2). The female cone therefore appears to be a compound structure. Morphologists’ repeated attempts to understand the difference have been interesting and instructive. But the solution provided by paleobotanical studies deserves special attention here. The leafy twigs and the cones of modern pines should be viewed first, though, to introduce sufficient terminology for understanding the fossils. The modern plants have the added advantage of being readily available to supplement diagrams of extinct forms.
Graphical Techniques for Ranked Data

Exploratory graphical methods are critically needed for displaying ranked data. Fully and partially ranked data are functions on the symmetric group of n elements, S n , and on the related coset spaces. Because neither S n nor its coset spaces have a natural linear ordering, graphical methods such as histograms and bar graphs are inappropriate for displaying ranked data. However, a very natural partial ordering on S n and its coset spaces is induced by two reasonable measures of distance: Spearman’s p and Kendall’s τ. Graphical techniques that preserve this partial ordering can be developed to display ranked data and to illustrate related probability density functions by using permutation polytopes. A polytope is the convex hull of a finite set of points in ℜ n−1, and a permutation polytope is the convex hull of the n! permutations of n elements when regarded as vectors in ℜ n (see, for example, Yemelichev, et. al.[9]). This concept is closely related to the observation by McCullagh [7] that the n! elements of S n lie on the surface of a sphere in ℜ n−1.
Understanding How Algorithms Work Persuasively Through the Procedural Enthymeme

Abstract Procedure, when discussed in regards to rhetoric, and to “digital rhetoric” in particular, is framed overwhelmingly in regards to game play (and to video games most frequently). We argue that this view needs to be expanded if scholars of rhetoric are to realize how complex human-computer rhetor systems function in diverse contexts. Such systems do so through procedural enthymemes, which persuade audience agents to action through the apparent logic of a given system. Procedural persuasion occurs most often via strategies that facilitate the agent to assume an active role in “self-persuasion” in order to complete a given enthymeme. In this text, we explore the procedural enthymeme as a rhetorical tactic for human and nonhuman persuasion by looking at three case studies of commonly used technological “matching” systems—search engines (Google), online matchmaking (Match.com), and social networking (Facebook)—that employ procedural enthymemes in order to persuade users toward particular engagements with those systems.
Predictors of Antiestrogen Recommendation in Women With Estrogen Receptor-Positive Ductal Carcinoma In Situ.

BACKGROUND Antiestrogen (anti-e) use in estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) has been shown to reduce the incidence of noninvasive and invasive breast cancer. Few studies have evaluated factors associated with anti-e recommendation in ER+ DCIS. METHODS The California Cancer Registry was queried for female patients diagnosed with ER+ DCIS and treated with lumpectomy or unilateral mastectomy from 2004 to 2011. Patient demographics, comorbidities, and clinical characteristics were analyzed for association with anti-e recommendation. RESULTS Of 5,527 patients identified, 76.4% patients underwent lumpectomy and 23.6% underwent unilateral mastectomy. Of the total cohort, 31.6% patients were recommended anti-e therapy, 60.4% were not, and the remaining 8.0% were recommended anti-e, but administration was not documented. Performance of lumpectomy predicted anti-e use compared with mastectomy (odds ratio [OR], 2.08; 95% CI, 1.77-2.43). Asian/Pacific Islanders were more often recommended anti-e therapy when compared with whites (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.10-1.49). Patients younger than 70 years were more often recommended anti-e (age, 18-49 years: OR, 1.38; CI, 1.12-1.71; and age, 50-69 years: OR, 1.43; CI, 1.20-1.71). CONCLUSIONS Despite current guidelines to consider the use of anti-e therapy, recommendation of anti-e after surgical treatment of DCIS is low, having been recommended to 40% of patients, and used by fewer than one-third. Significant predictors include lumpectomy compared with unilateral mastectomy, Asian/Pacific Islander race, younger age, and number of comorbidities. Further work is merited to understand patterns of anti-e therapy recommendation by providers in patients with DCIS.
Evaluation of outcomes associated with trial of labor after cesarean delivery after a change in clinical practice guidelines in an academic hospital.

AbstractObjective: To evaluate maternal–neonatal morbidity for women undergoing trial of labor after cesarean (TOLAC) following clinical practice changes based upon ACOG’s 2010 VBAC guideline.Study design: Four-year retrospective cohort analysis around implementation of a hospital guideline in women undergoing TOLAC with a live, cephalic, singleton without lethal anomaly ≥24 weeks and ≥1 prior cesarean. Maternal–neonatal outcomes pre- and post-guideline implementation were compared. Primary outcome was composite maternal morbidity (uterine rupture or dehiscence, hysterectomy, transfusion, thromboembolism, operative/delivery injury, chorioamnionitis/endometritis, shoulder dystocia, death). Secondary outcomes included neonatal morbidity.Results: Four hundred and fifty women underwent TOLAC before and 781 after guideline implementation. Post-guideline, there was a significant increase in age, body mass index, labor length, women with >1 cesarean, comorbid condition and induced labor. Composite maternal morbi...
Hybrid Integrated Microfluidic Channels on Multilayer Organic Substrate and on Copper for Tuning and Cooling an RF Reconfigurable S-/C-Band GaN-Based Power Amplifier

In this paper, a gallium nitride (GaN)-based power amplifier (PA) is cooled and tuned thanks to multifunctional hybrid microfluidic channels integrated on a multilayer organic substrate composed of liquid crystal polymer and ceramic-filled polytetrafluoroethylene. The tuning microchannels are integrated in the organic materials, while the cooling microchannels are micromachined in a copper carrier. The tuning allows the PA to switch the frequency of operation from 2.4 to 5.8 GHz and vice versa. Heat removal is achieved by the motion of distilled water below the GaN die, while tuning is achieved by swapping air and acetone inside the source and load matching network microchannels. The novel idea behind the design of such tunable PAs relies on the design of microfluidically tunable matching networks. For the first time, tunability parameters are introduced and a generic methodology is described for the design of microfluidically tunable matching networks for any dies, frequencies, fluids, or stackups. The measured power added efficiency (PAE) and output power (P out ) are: 1) PAE = 33.9% and P out = 37.1 dBm at 2.4 GHz with acetone and 2) PAE = 51.1% and P out = 37.9 dBm at 5.8 GHz with air. The liquid cooling seems to have no effect on P out for all measurements but shows a 1.5% increase in PAE for the 5.8-GHz measurements.
Redefining the Gold Standard of Myocardial Infarction Using Troponin T

Featured Article: Ohman EM, Armstrong PW, Christenson RH, Granger CB, Katus HA, Hamm CW, et al. Cardiac troponin T levels for risk stratification in acute myocardial ischemia. N Engl J Med 1996;335,1333–41.2 Sir William Osler taught us that observations from patients could inform us. In my case, an event during my internship in 1981 led me to question how accurate the diagnosis of myocardial infarction (MI)3 was. A 28-year-old man was admitted after he collapsed at the end of the Dublin marathon race. His electrocardiogram (ECG) was very abnormal. Myocardial biomarkers were increased, with high total creatine kinase (CK) and CK-MB activities. Later coronary angiograms demonstrated normal coronary arteries. I followed this up by a formal study showing that the prior “gold standard” markers of MI, CK, and CK-MB were frequently increased in marathon runners, while infarct-avid scanning failed to detect any MI (1). At the time, troponin testing was in its infancy and a standardized test was not available. This interest in biomarkers continued after I came to Duke University in 1987, but focused more on the kinetics and the relationship to the ECG. Collaboratively with Galen Wagner and Rob Christensen, we performed several studies on a small cohort of patients with established MI who received fibrinolytic therapy to establish reperfusion (2). I enjoyed digesting the data together and exploring it in several …
Associations Between Food-Related Parenting Behaviors and Adolescents' Engagement in Unhealthy Eating Behaviors

Food-related parenting behaviors have the potential to impact youth eating behaviors and nutrition knowledge. The present study examined associations between parental behaviors specific to eating (...
Human Factors Considerations in the Design and Evaluation of Bathroom Fixtures for the Handicapped

The bathroom is an area of critical importance in the design of housing for the handicapped. For a number of reasons, building standards for the handicapped have fallen short of specifying optimal ...
Highly conductive and strong graphite-phenolic resin composite for bipolar plate applications

Composite materials for bipolar plate applications in proton exchange membrane fuel cells were fabricated from synthetic graphite (SG), natural graphite (NG), or expanded graphite (EG) and novolac phenolic resin using compression molding. In comparing the resultant samples, the EG composite exhibited the best properties with a density of ∼1.55 g/cm3, flexural strength of 109 MPa, and modulus of 24 GPa even with a high graphite loading of 80 wt % and a low plate thickness of ∼0.9 mm, as well as in-plane conductivity of 182 S/cm. The EG content was further varied to find the optimal composition. The effects of using carbon nanotube sheets (buckypapers) or multiwalled carbon nanotubes as reinforcements to the EG-resin composite were investigated. A modified approach of measuring through-plane electrical conductivity capable of separated analysis of bulk resistance and interfacial contact resistance was attempted. The corrosion resistance, thermal conductivity, and gas permeability of EG-based composites were...
Management of Recurrent Vestibular Neuritis in a Patient Treated for Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Purpose This clinical report is presented to describe how results of vestibular function testing were considered along with other medical history to develop a management plan that was ultimately su...
Mechanisms of synaptic transmission.

Publisher Summary Generally, the mechanisms of synaptic transmission can be divided into three types of transmission. At most junctions, the synaptic transmitter has been found to increase the permeability of the postsynaptic membrane to certain ions. At a few junctions, however, particularly in invertebrates and in lower vertebrates, transmission is not chemically mediated but is clearly electrical. Recently, a third type of transmission mechanism has been recognized, namely, chemical transmission that activates metabolic systems in the postsynaptic neuron without increasing the ion permeability of the postsynaptic membrane. The chapter discusses the various mechanisms of synaptic transmission. It illustrates the basic mechanisms of synaptic transmission by discussing those junctions where the mechanism of transmission has been most clearly elucidated. Communication between nerve cells—synaptic transmission—may be accomplished in several different ways. There may be direct electrical coupling between neural elements that transmit information in either direction or in one direction only. Alternatively, a chemical transmitter may be released presynaptically that may increase the postsynaptic ion permeability or may activate metabolic systems requiring cellular energy. The recent reports show that late, slow synaptic potentials increase the duration of synaptic action manifold but the durations of these synaptic potentials are still only in the range of seconds and, thus, do not bridge the gap to the long-term changes of memory. Nevertheless, the possibility that a synaptic transmitter may be able to activate metabolic systems of a nerve cell may provide a fruitful field for the future investigation of possible long-term changes resulting from synaptic activity.
Meeting Family Housing Needs: Experiences of Rural Women in the Midst of Welfare Reform

Though sometimes overlooked, the availability, affordability, and quality of housing in rural communities are a potential barrier to transitioning from welfare to work. In this investigation we examine housing issues confronting 17 rural women and their families who were recipients of welfare benefits in 1997. Respondents' housing accounts illustrate the significance of reliance on both government housing subsidies and informal subsidies supplied by friends, family, and more distant relatives. The study focuses on concerns women have in meeting their families shelter needs and the complexities involved in doing so. The findings of the research suggest that additional housing policy initiatives, as well as a targeted research agenda are needed, especially for families whose welfare benefits are nearing termination.
Gelenkwellen und Kreuzgelenke

Die im Vorhergehenden behandelten Kupplungen lassen sich nur anwenden, wenn die beiden zu verbindenden Wellen genau ausgerichtet sind und es auch bleiben. Bei elastischen Kupplungen sind gewisse, aber nur geringfugige. Abweichungen zulassig.
Damnable Practises: Witches, Dangerous Women, and Music in Seventeenth-Century English Broadside Ballads

Contents: Introduction Witches, Catholics, scolds, and wives: noisy women in context 'The hanging tune': feminizing and stigmatizing broadside trade melodies 'A swearing and blaspheming wretch': acoustic disorder and verbal excess in ballad texts 'Auditories are like fairies': seeing, hearing, selling, and singing ballads Conclusion: 'chronicled in ditty': ephemera, permanence, and the broadside ballad's legacy into the 18th century Appendices Select bibliography Index.
Financial Conflicts of Interest Among Authors of Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guidelines.

Context There has been a proliferation of clinical practice guidelines in endocrinology and a coincident increased interest in transparency regarding relationships between physicians and industry. Evidence Acquisition We collected self-reported disclosures and Open Payments data for 169 authors of 26 clinical practice guidelines published between 2010 and 2017 by the Endocrine Society. Conflicts of interest in which pharmaceutical and device companies manufactured drugs or products pertinent to an author's specific clinical practice guideline(s) were deemed relevant. Open Payments data were grouped into research and nonresearch (consultancies, honoraria, travel, food) categories. Evidence Synthesis We compared the policies of the Endocrine Society regarding seven conflict of interest recommendations issued by the National Academy of Medicine in 2011. Conclusion Relevant nonresearch financial conflicts of interest were self-reported by 42% of authors of clinical practice guidelines. Open Payments were recorded for 74% (84 of 113) of US authors between 2013 and 2016. Payments to 84 US authors totaled $5.5 million for nonresearch activities and $30.9 million for research. The nonresearch payments were divided into consulting (46%), honoraria (26%), travel (25%), and food (3%). The Endocrine Society partially follows the National Academy of Medicine recommendations to limit conflicts of interest. Readers should be aware of how clinical practice guidelines are developed and the policies of the organizations and journals that publish them. Professional societies and journal editors should strive to ensure that their policies and practices promote objective and unbiased clinical practice guidelines.
Comparison of Outcomes After Partial Versus Complete Mesh Excision.

Objective Evaluate outcomes of patients undergoing mesh explantation following partial mesh excision (PME) and complete mesh excision (CME). Background Ventral hernia repair (VHR) with mesh remains one of the most commonly performed procedures worldwide. Management of previously placed mesh during reexploration remains unclear. Studies describing PME as a feasible alternative have been limited. Methods The AHSQC registry was queried for VHR patients who underwent mesh excision. Variables used for propensity-matching included age, BMI, race, diabetes, COPD, OR time>2 hours, immunosuppressants, smoking, active infection, ASA class, elective case, wound classification, and history of abdominal wall infection. Results A total of 1904 VHR patients underwent excision of prior mesh. After propensity matching, complications were significantly higher (35% vs 29%, P = 0.01) after PME, including SSI/SSO, SSOPI, and reoperation. No differences were observed in patients with clean wounds, however in clean-contaminated, PME more frequently resulted in SSOPI (24% vs 9%, P = 0.02). In mesh infection/fistulas, higher rates of SSOPI (46% vs 24%, P = 0.04) and reoperation (21% vs 6%, P = 0.03) were seen after PME. Odds-ratio analysis showed increased likelihood of SSOPI (OR 1.5, 95% CI 1.05-2.14; P = 0.023) and reoperation (OR 2.2, 95% CI 1.13-4.10; P = 0.015) with PME. Conclusions With over 350,000 VHR performed annually and increasing mesh use, guidelines for management of mesh during reexploration are needed. This analysis of a multicenter hernia database demonstrates significantly increased postoperative complications in PME patients with clean-contaminated wounds and mesh infections/fistulas, however showed similar outcomes in those with clean wounds.
Common Knowledge and Sequential Team Problems

We consider a general sequential team problem based on Witsenhausen's intrinsic model. Our formulation encompasses all teams in which the uncontrolled inputs can be viewed as random variables on a finite probability space, the number of control inputs/decisions is finite and the decisions take values in finite spaces. We define the concept of common knowledge in such teams and use it to construct a sequential decomposition of the problem of optimizing the team strategy profile. If the information structure is classical, our common knowledge based decomposition is identical to classical dynamic program. If the information structure is such that the common knowledge is trivial, our decomposition is similar in spirit to Witsenhausen's standard form based decomposition [17] . In this case, the sequential decomposition is essentially a sequential reformulation of the strategy optimization problem and appears to have limited value. For information structures with nontrivial common knowledge, our sequential decomposition differs from Witsenhausen's standard form based decomposition because of its dependence on common knowledge. Our common knowledge based approach generalizes the common information based methods of [12] – [14] .