cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Randomized prospective evaluation of nephrostomy tube configuration: impact on postoperative pain

OBJECTIVE: Conduct a prospective randomized single-blind comparison of two nephrostomy catheter designs, evaluating specifically intraoperative placement and postoperative comfort. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The single-blind, prospective randomized trial was conducted with institutional review board approval. All patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy who gave informed consent were randomized to placement of either a Boston Scientific Flexima 8.3F pigtail nephrostomy tube #27-180 (PIG) or a Boston Scientific 8.2F nephroureteral stent #410-126 (NUS). Randomization was concealed from the surgeon until time of placement. Subjective intraoperative placement characteristics were rated by the surgeon on a scale of 1 = excellent, 2 = fair, 3 = good and 4 = poor. The patient's postoperative pain intensity was evaluated with a Visual Analog Pain Score (0 = no pain to 10 = worst pain). RESULTS: Nine patients were randomized to each group. The PIG group was rated significantly better than the NUS group with regards to ease of placement (p = 0.007) and radiopacity of the tube (p = 0.007) by surgeon. Visual analog pain scores on postoperative day one, was significantly lower in the PIG group (mean = 2+/-2) than the NUS group (mean = 5+/-1) (p = 0.004). The mean amount of intra-venous morphine equivalent given in the PIG group (mean = 1+/4 Eq morphine) was less on average compared to the NUS group (mean = 6+/13 Eq morphine), but the differences did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.06). CONCLUSIONS: Following percutaneous nephrolithotomy, use of a small pig-tail nephrostomy tube results in greater ease of placement and less postoperative pain than a nephroureteral catheter.
Fabrication of size scalable three-dimensional photonic structures via dual-beam multiple exposure and its robustness study

We theoretically designed dual-beam triple exposure interference lithography to fabricate three-term diamond-like structures in SU-8 photoresist with scalable size and investigated the robustness of the optical setup against potential experimental errors. Minimal distortion could be achieved by careful selection of the angle between the bisector of the two beams and the normal of the sample surface to precompensate the anisotropic shrinkage. A small deviation of incident beam angles, however, would lead to a significant change in structural size when the angle between the two incident beams was small for a large sized structure, whereas the translational symmetry of the SU-8 structure remained reasonably close to face-centered cubic. We then experimentally demonstrate size scalable diamond-like photonic structures with the lattice symmetry and size close to the theoretical design.
General choice of the regularization functional in regularized image restoration

The determination of the regularization parameter is an important issue in regularized image restoration, since it controls the trade-off between fidelity to the data and smoothness of the solution. A number of approaches have been developed in determining this parameter. In this paper, a new paradigm is adopted, according to which the required prior information is extracted from the available data at the previous iteration step, i.e., the partially restored image at each step. We propose the use of a regularization functional instead of a constant regularization parameter. The properties such a regularization functional should satisfy are investigated, and two specific forms of it are proposed. An iterative algorithm is proposed for obtaining a restored image. The regularization functional is defined in terms of the restored image at each iteration step, therefore allowing for the simultaneous determination of its value and the restoration of the degraded image. Both proposed iteration adaptive regularization functionals are shown to result in a smoothing functional with a global minimum, so that its iterative optimization does not depend on the initial conditions. The convergence of the algorithm is established and experimental results are shown. >
Failure to Thrive and the Economically Depressed Community

Failure to thrive (FTT) that has occurred outside of institutions, has typically been viewed as a disorder involving the growth retarded infant and the mother (Elmer, 1960; Patton & Gardner, 1962; Ainsworth, 1969; Fischhoff et al., 1971). Recently Roberts and Maddux (1982) have proposed that additional causative factors within the family system need to be identified and used as a guide to the complex management of this common pediatric disorder. Specifically, they suggest that situational, infant and paternal variables should also be considered as important in understanding the causes of FTT. We further propose that growth failure in young children may result, indirectly, from factors that are present in the larger community system. The study reported here was initiated to address this issue.
Dynamic strength evaluation/crashworthiness of self-piercing riveted joints

Abstract: This chapter discusses the dynamic SPR strength evaluation procedures and the measured dynamic strength data for various joint populations of self-piercing rivets (SPR) joining similar and dissimilar metals. A state-of-the-art review of the current practice for conducting dynamic tensile/ compressive strength tests in different strain rate regimes is presented, and the generic issues associated with dynamic strength testing are addressed. The joint strength testing procedures and fixture designs used in the current study are then described, and the typical load versus displacement curves under different loading configurations are presented. Detailed static and dynamic strength data and the associated energy absorption levels for all the samples in the joint populations are also included.
Zinc improves postischemic recovery of isolated rat hearts through inhibition of oxidative stress

We studied the cardiac protective qualities of zinc in the postischemic isolated rat heart. Hearts, perfused with Krebs-Henseleit buffer with or without zinc-bis-histidinate, were subjected to 20 min of "no-flow" normothermic global ischemia. Pre- and postischemic treatment with 0, 10, 20, or 30 microM zinc resulted in concentration-dependent enhancement of postischemic function as evidenced by decreased end-diastolic pressure (37 +/- 3, 25 +/- 5, 17 +/- 5, and 8 +/- 2 mmHg, respectively) and increased recovery of developed systolic pressure (41 +/- 6, 59 +/- 17, 76 +/- 18, and 87 +/- 16 mmHg, respectively) and maximum rate of rise in pressure (+dP/dtmax; 823 +/- 141, 1,413 +/- 396, 1,700 +/- 450, and 2,157 +/- 407 mmHg/s, respectively) as well as decreased lactate dehydrogenase efflux from the hearts (peak: 1,002%, 840%, 580%, and 440%, respectively). Only preischemic treatment resulted in an intermediate protective effect, whereas treatment starting at reperfusion worsened postischemic damage. In hearts perfused with zinc throughout the experiment, prolongation of the preischemic treatment interval further enhanced postischemic recovery. With the use of salicylate as a trap for .OH, it was determined that zinc virtually eliminated the early postischemic "burst" of this species normally observed in this preparation. Atomic absorption studies demonstrated that hearts treated with 30 microM zinc contained 27% less copper than control hearts by the end of the reperfusion period. In control hearts, electron microscopy revealed swollen mitochondria with marked loss of inner matrix density, whereas morphology of postischemic zinc-treated hearts was essentially normal. These studies indicate that zinc possesses cardiac cytoprotective qualities and support the concept that this metal can decrease .OH formation by affecting copper reactivity.
Is Lilly Written Description a Paper Tiger?: A Comprehensive Assessment of the Impact of Eli Lilly and its Progeny in the Courts and PTO

In University of California v. Eli Lilly, decided by the Federal Circuit in 1997, the court established for the first time a new form of patent law's written description requirement, apparently targeted specifically at biotechnology. To this day, the conventional wisdom is that the so-called Lilly written description requirement (LWD) exists as a biotechnology-specific super-enablement requirement, substantially more stringent than the enablement requirement (the conventional standard for patentability), and standing as an impediment to effective patent protection for biotechnology inventions. My objective in writing this article was to test this conventional wisdom, by conducting a comprehensive search for all LWD decisions of the federal courts and the U.S. Patent Office's Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI), and collecting and individually analyzing each case. The analysis focuses on the extent to which LWD is actually functioning as a biotechnology-specific super-enablement requirement. For many, the results of this study will likely come as a surprise, because the empirical evidence demonstrates that the impact of LWD in the courts and BPAI has been minimal - for the most part, LWD does not function as a super-enablement requirement but merely as a redundant surrogate for the enablement requirement. The article ultimately concludes that LWD's main impact has been one of doctrinal confusion, rather than imposing any substantial barrier to the patenting of biotechnology inventions, and recommends that the courts effectively discard LWD as redundant and unnecessary. It suggests alternative approaches for addressing the valid policy concerns that implicitly drove the original Lilly decision.
NDBC wave measurement initiatives

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) provides wave spectral and bulk, sea state parameters from its fleet of Weather observation buoys. NDBC has focused on initiatives to (1) document and improve its wave measurements and (2) make these measurements more cost-effective. This paper describes these recent initiatives, as well as plans for the future.
Improving scalability and dependability of stochastic MAS analyses

When studying stochastic multiagent system models, it is currently most common to perform analysis using Monte Carlo simulations. However, this approach can be prohibitively expensive in certain settings. When system behavior is highly variable, a large number of simulations is needed to understand its behavior for even a single parameter configuration. Simulation performance can also scale poorly with certain parameter values, such as the number of agents and time steps. Working over a parameter space increases costs even further. We present an analytical approach to characterizing stochastic multiagent systems with (a) runtime independent of system variability, logarithmic in the number of time steps, and dependent on interaction size rather than population size; and (b) hard, non-probabilistic, error bounds. This method is applied in a sociodynamics setting, illustrating how an analytical approach can produce exact predictions quickly when a simulation approach could perform poorly. We also demonstrate how to characterize behavior across a parameter space and perform approximate inference and optimization tasks when using this analytical approach.
Incidence of and Factors Associated With the Decision to Undergo Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction 1 to 10 Years After Injury

Background:Among patients treated nonoperatively for 1 year after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) disruption, little is known about the frequency of ACL reconstruction within the first year of injury and the effect of age range, sex, and meniscal tears on the incidence of ACL reconstruction between 1 and 10 years after injury.Purpose:To (1) define the rate of delayed ACL reconstruction (between 1 and 10 years after injury) in a population-based cohort of isolated ACL tears and (2) evaluate predictive factors associated with delayed reconstruction.Study Design:Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:The study included a population-based cohort of 1841 patients with new-onset, isolated ACL tears that occurred between January 1, 1990, and December 31, 2010. The complete medical records were reviewed to confirm diagnosis and collect data on clinical characteristics and details of subsequent ACL surgery. To evaluate the incidence of ACL reconstruction between 1 and 10 years after injury, landmark sur...
Recursive Implementation of the Gaussian Filter Using Truncated Cosine Functions

This paper proposes a new recursive implementation of the Gaussian filter. Previous recursive implementations of the Gaussian filter suffer from one or several drawbacks. Some methods require employment of both causal and anti-causal filters. Implementing such filters requires both forward and backward recursions, and thus, significant amounts of memory, in the case of long sequences, to store and combine both recursion results. Moreover, most existing techniques do not ensure that the sum of impulse response weights equals unity, or that the standard deviation of the filter is exactly the desired one. The proposed technique is based on a recursive implementation of cosine-based finite impulse response filters and only requires forward recursions. The sum of filter weights and the standard deviation of the filter are constrained to the desired values during the design process. Experimental results confirm that the proposed filter provides a more suitable tradeoff between computational efficiency and filtering accuracy compared to existing recursive implementations. The performance and advantages of the proposed filter are demonstrated on signal and image processing examples.
Some Practical Methods for the Application of 5-Metallo-1-benzyl-1H-tetrazoles in Synthesis

Nucleophilic reagents such as 5-lithiotetrazoles are synthetically powerful tools for the installation of tetrazole functional groups, but they are of limited utility due to the instability of tetrazole-derived carbanions. Herein, we report practical methods for the generation and use of new 5-metallo-1-benzyl-1H-tetrazoles (M = K, MgX, ZnX) derived from either 1-benzyl-1H-tetrazole or 1-benzyl-5-bromo-1H-tetrazole. By varying the metal counterion, the tetrazole carbanion stability was improved. Potassium- and magnesium-derived reagents underwent additions to carbonyl ­compounds at –30 and –20 °C, respectively. The isolated yields (41–85%) from these and other reactions were comparable to those reported for 5-lithiotetrazoles at much lower temperatures (–78 to –98 °C).
Imagined Post-Coloniality and “Natural” Coloniality: The Production of Space in Phillis Wheatley's “Niobe in Distress For Her Children Slain by Apollo”

(2001). Imagined Post-Coloniality and “Natural” Coloniality: The Production of Space in Phillis Wheatley's “Niobe in Distress For Her Children Slain by Apollo”. a/b: Auto/Biography Studies: Vol. 16, Remembered Lives, pp. 90-108.
Computer-assisted concurrent antibiotic review in a community hospital

A computer-assisted program that monitors the appropriateness of antibiotic prescribing by matching microbiology reports and patient drug profiles is described. An antibiotic review committee in conjunction with the quality assurance department developed the computer-assisted antibiotic review program. An antibiotic order sheet was incorporated into the physicians9 order form. Automatic stop dates were assigned according to the reason the antibiotic was ordered, e.g., surgical prophylaxis or documented infection. Numerous reports are generated from the data gathered from the physicians9 order form. A drug/microbiology report is used to match patients9 antibiotic drug profiles with their microbiology culture and sensitivity results. This report identifies all patients who have been receiving antibiotics for 72 hours or longer with sensitivities on file and mismatched sensitivity results. All mismatches that are considered important are investigated. Any actions taken are reported to the antibiotic review committee for peer review. The computer-assisted program has helped this hospital screen large populations of inpatients receiving antibiotics. The concurrent review of the drug/microbiology report has made it possible to detect within 24 hours, patients who are receiving antibiotics inappropriately. A computer can be used to perform daily concurrent antibiotic use review as a by-product of order entry by both the pharmacy and laboratory.
Der Aufbau eines Superorganismus

Betrachten Sie eine Biene, die in einem Blumenbeet Nektar sammelt. Es sieht so einfach aus, und doch ist die Leistung, die dahinter steht, bravouros zu nennen. Die Nahrungssammlerin wurde durch Tanze ihrer Bienenstockgefahrtinnen, die ihr in symbolischer Form uber Richtung, Entfernung und Qualitat der Nektarquelle Aufschluss gaben, an diesen Fleck geleitet. Um ans Ziel zu kommen, hat sie in Bienenmasstaben Hunderte von Meilen zuruckgelegt, und zwar in Bienen-Uberschallgeschwindigkeit. Sie hat die Blumen zu einem Zeitpunkt erreicht, an dem der Nektar wahrscheinlich in Stromen fliest. Nun untersucht sie die bereit stehenden Bluten mit ihrem Tast- und Geruchssinn und entzieht ihnen den Nektar mit fein abgestimmten Bewegungen der Beine und des Russels. Dann fliegt sie in gerader Linie nach Hause. All dies leistet sie mit einem Gehirn von der Grose eines Sandkorns und wenig oder gar keiner vorherigen Erfahrung.
Quantitative Research Methods Training in Education Leadership and Administration Preparation Programs as Disciplined Inquiry for Building School Improvement Capacity

The quantitative research methods course is a staple of graduate programs in education leadership and administration. Historically, these courses serve to train aspiring district and school leaders in fundamental statistical research topics. This article argues for programs to focus as well in these courses on helping aspiring leaders develop skills as practitioner-scholars, including deepening their practice around data analytics, providing opportunities to read and evaluate peer-reviewed research, analyzing data using current methods, and applying findings to facilitate building evidence-based improvement cycles in their schools. Additional data leadership training should be offered for the practicing administrator, educational quantitative analyst, research specialist, and district data scientist.
An update on the developmental status of the Spin-Light Polarimeter for the Electron Ion Collider

Precision experiments in the parity violating electron scattering (PVES) sector is one the leading methods to probe physics beyond the standard model (SM). A large part of the physics program being envisioned for future facilities such as the Electron Ion Collider (EIC) includes searching for physics beyond SM. Here, we present a novel technique which uses spacial asymmetry of synchrotron radiation produced by an electron beam passing through a wiggler magnet to trace the changes in beam polarization. Such a relative polarimeter could be vital if the goal of <0.5% polarimetry is to be achieved at EIC. In this paper, we update the discussion on the development of this technique supported by a Geant4 simulation. The polarimeter apparatus along with the underlying basic ideas are briefly introduced. As a part of the simulation, the effects of electron beam current and beam energy were studied which were found to be manageable over a wide range of electron beam energies and beam currents. It was found that such a relative polarimeter works best in the 4-20 GeV regime.
Utah obstetricians' opinions of planned home birth and conflicting NICE/ACOG guidelines: A qualitative study

Background The United Kingdom's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recently published recommendations that support planned home birth for low-risk women. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) remains wary of planned home birth, asserting that hospitals and birthing centers are the safest birth settings. Our objective was to examine opinions of obstetricians in Salt Lake City, Utah about home birth in the context of rising home birth rates and conflicting guidelines. Methods Participants were recruited through online searches of Salt Lake City obstetricians and through snowball sampling. We conducted individual interviews exploring experiences with and attitudes toward planned home birth and the ACOG/NICE guidelines. Results Fifteen obstetricians who varied according to years of experience, location of medical training, sex, and subspecialty (resident, OB/GYN, maternal-fetal medicine specialist) were interviewed. Participants did not recommend home birth but supported a woman's right to choose her birth setting. Obstetrician opinions about planned home birth were shaped by misconceptions of home birth benefits, confusion surrounding the scope of care at home and among home birth providers, and negative transfer experiences. Participants were unfamiliar with the literature on planned home birth and/or viewed the evidence as unreliable. Support for ACOG guidelines was high, particularly in the context of the United States health care setting. Conclusion Physician objectivity may be limited by biases against home birth, which stem from limited familiarity with published evidence, negative experiences with home-to-hospital transfers, and distrust of home birth providers in a health care system not designed to support home birth.
50th Anniversary Perspective: Polymer Brushes: Novel Surfaces for Future Materials

Polymer brushes have become a significant focus of polymer research with the need for straightforward and versatile surface modification. With the development of controlled radical polymerization from surfaces, new theoretical models, and sophisticated characterization tools, the resulting ability to control brush density and brush thickness gives unparalleled control over surface properties and functionality. By increasing brush density, a stretched brush conformation is formed as a result of constraining the cross-sectional area of that brush strand which thereby influences the interactions of molecules with the brush surface. The associated residual stress also gives polymer brushes properties distinct from an equivalent layer of coated polymer chains. Examples of uncharged and charged “grown from” polymer brushes, the effect of architecture on physical behavior, and the influence of nanoscale patterning will be described. The use of brush surfaces in biology relevant applications will be discussed and...
Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Gastric Emptying and Motility in Rats

The assessment of gastric emptying and motility in humans and animals typically requires radioactive imaging or invasive measurements. Here, we developed a robust strategy to image and characterize gastric emptying and motility in rats based on contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computer-assisted image processing. The animals were trained to naturally consume a gadolinium-labeled dietgel while bypassing any need for oral gavage. Following this test meal, the animals were scanned under low-dose anesthesia for high-resolution T1-weighted MRI in 7 Tesla, visualizing the time-varying distribution of the meal with greatly enhanced contrast against non-gastrointestinal (GI) tissues. Such contrast-enhanced images not only depicted the gastric anatomy, but also captured and quantified stomach emptying, intestinal filling, antral contraction, and intestinal absorption with fully automated image processing. Over four postingestion hours, the stomach emptied by 27%, largely attributed to the emptying of the forestomach rather than the corpus and the antrum, and most notable during the first 30 min. Stomach emptying was accompanied by intestinal filling for the first 2 h, whereas afterward intestinal absorption was observable as cumulative contrast enhancement in the renal medulla. The antral contraction was captured as a peristaltic wave propagating from the proximal to distal antrum. The frequency, velocity, and amplitude of the antral contraction were on average 6.34 ± 0.07 contractions per minute, 0.67 ± 0.01 mm/s, and 30.58 ± 1.03%, respectively. These results demonstrate an optimized MRI-based strategy to assess gastric emptying and motility in healthy rats, paving the way for using this technique to understand GI diseases, or test new therapeutics in rat models.
Automated lead time estimation for manufacturing networks with dynamic demand

Efficient algorithms are essential for reliable lead time forecasting as they are often the basis for subsequent activities such as planned order releases and shop scheduling. Dynamic conditions are prevalent in modern manufacturing systems and reliable lead time forecasts can provide a competitive edge operationally. In this paper, we explore the use of efficient algorithms for steady state analysis to develop approximate estimates of lead times under dynamic conditions.
Desarrollo de hábitos de seguridad en el estudiante

Aunque no soy una experta en seguridad y salud en la quimica, me siento profundamente responsable, como educadora en la especialidad, de proporcionar a mis estudiantes experiencias educacionales que les permitan aprender en un ambiente seguro. Mi objetivo es proporcionar las herramientas de seguridad que los estudiantes necesitan para vivir y para desempenarse en condiciones de seguridad cuando utilicen la quimica. De hecho, soy la persona indicada para proporcionarle a usted la informacion que compartimos en este simposio.1 En los talleres entro en contacto, anualmente, con cientos de participantes, la mayoria de los cuales labora desde preescolar hasta la educacion media, asi como educadores de nivel universitario.
A cage test for the evaluation of house finch repellents for grapes

A cage test is described for determining the median effective treatment level (ED 5 0 ) of a house finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) repellent for grapes. The basic design can be adapted for use with other small birds and clustered fruits. Five problems encountered during the study are discussed. They are aviary mortality of house finches, having to induce the finches to eat grapes by withholding other food, damage caused by finches "testing" treated grapes, probable nonidentical responses of all finches in one cage, and treatment or handling problems with grapes used for residue analysis.
Horizontal Gene Transfer

In my view, it is no longer a matter of sensible dispute that HGT is a defining process in the evolution of prokaryotes that affects all aspects of bacterial and archaeal biology.
Teacher-Centered Mentorship as Meaningful Professional Development

A real-time, multidimensional, professional-development program that is connected to both practice and school culture was delivered to a group of Montessori teachers with the goal of improving teaching practices and increasing student success by exploring the potential benefits of mindfulness, structured reflective practice, and teacher-centered mentorship (i.e., clinical supervision), A case study of each participant and of the cocreated professional-development learning communities revealed that the program supported teacher growth and efficacy. Four themes emerged from participants’ experiences: the importance of mindfulness as a precursor to reflection and mentorship, the creation of communities of trust, the benefits of structure and focus, and the role of supportive accountability in improved practices. The study provides preliminary evidence for the use of multidimensional and teacher-centered professional-development programs to improve teaching practices. The research study has implications for administrators, teachers, and future research.
Technical Change and the Decentralization Penalty

We consider the organizer of a firm who compares a decentralized arrangement where divisions are granted total autonomy with a centralized arrangement where perfect monitoring and policing guarantee that all divisions make the choices the organizer wants them to make. We ask: when does improvement in the divisions’ technology strengthen the case for decentralization and when does it weaken it? In a simple one-division model with complete information and linear contracts we obtain conditions under which the welfare loss due to decentralizing rises (falls) when technology improves.
RTB101 and immune function in the elderly: Interpreting an unsuccessful clinical trial

Abstract The biopharmaceutical company resTORbio, Inc. Recently announced termination of a phase 3 clinical trial evaluating the ability of the drug RTB101 to improve immune function in the elderly. The company reported that the first stage of the PROTECTOR1 trial did not meet its primary endpoint for reducing clinically symptomatic respiratory illness in healthy older adults. Although RTB101 has been described as an inhibitor of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), the PROTECTOR1 trial was not a test of the geroscience hypothesis. Unlike the geroprotective compound rapamycin, RTB101 has not been found to increase lifespan or delay age-related functional or molecular phenotypes in pre-clinical animal models. RTB101 was first developed as an inhibitor of phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K) with secondary inhibitory effects on mTOR. It’s ATP-competitive mechanism of action is distinct from the allosteric inhibition by rapamycin and does not specifically target mTOR complex 1 over mTOR complex 2. Clinical development of rapamycin and other specific mTOR complex 1 inhibitors to target age-related indications continues to be robust, and there is growing momentum for translational geroscience, with numerous clinical trials planned or ongoing in this area.
Post-polymerization modification of polymethacrylates enabled by keto–enol tautomerization

We report a post-polymerization modification strategy to functionalize methacrylic copolymers through enol-ester transesterification. A new monomer, vinyl methacryloxy acetate (VMAc), containing both enol-ester and methacryloyl functionality, was successfully copolymerized with methyl methacrylate (MMA) by selective reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. Post-polymerization modification of pendent enol esters proceeded through an “irreversible” transesterification process, driven by the low nucleophilicity of the tautomerization product, to result in high conversion under mild conditions.
Can Australia transition to an agroecological future

Australia faces seemingly impossible barriers to transitioning to agroecology. Nonetheless, many possibilities for a distinctively Australian agroecology exist. Some Australian farmers have helped ...
Rapid transfer of knowledge for multiple sclerosis clinical care during COVID-19: ECHO MS.

Abstract Background Healthcare providers caring for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) have had significant concerns about the intersection of MS and COVID-19. As a result, there has been an urgency to understand and share information about how to best provide MS clinical care during COVID-19. The Project ECHO model is well-suited for this challenge, as it provides a uniquely efficient and effective approach to sharing information in real-time using real cases. We report on the translation of the Project ECHO model for the rapid sharing of knowledge among MS clinical providers during COVID-19. Methods The ECHO MS COVID-19 Response Clinic was a videoconference-based education and case consultation program offered to providers in the U.S. who care for individuals with MS. The Response Clinic was offered as four sessions, each delivered by three regional hubs. Data were collected on participation and the self-reported impact of the program. Results A total of 132 unique providers participated in the Response Clinic, which consisted of 11 didactic modules and 43 case consultations. Participant providers overwhelmingly indicated that the program improved their knowledge, attitude, and skills for providing healthcare for people with MS during the COVID-19 pandemic. Discussion The Project ECHO model was successfully adapted to serve the needs of the MS community during COVID-19, suggesting the program could be continued or could be expanded to other disease areas for a similar purpose. More research is needed to objectively measure the impact of the program on patient outcomes.
Intergenerational music teaching and learning among preservice music teachers and senior adult musicians

The purpose of this study was to examine the intergenerational interactions between preservice music teachers and senior adult musicians engaged in music teaching and learning in a New Horizons ens...
Demystifying Sovereign ESG

The evolution of sustainable finance to mainstream finance has been motivated by a growing demand for the financial sector to play a greater role in the transformation of the current economic model into a more sustainable one. The introduction of the United Nation’s (UN) Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on climate change in 2015 have helped galvanize a societal shift to ensure a sustainable future and to fight climate change in particular. As a result, the pace of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) integration, which has become the most prevalent form of sustainable finance, has accelerated in recent years. Market participants continue to grapple with adapting the ESG framework to the sovereign context, despite significant progress of ESG integration in the corporate bond and equity asset class. This challenge is due to the multifaceted nature of ESG-related issues facing governments in relation to corporate entities, as well as a more complex transmission mechanism of the sovereign debt asset class to sustainable outcomes in the real economy. This paper demystifies sovereign ESG as a distinct segment of the ESG sector by assessing the major sovereign ESG providers that have laid the foundation for the operationalization of ESG investing in sovereign fixed income markets.
Data driven patterns of nutrient intake and coronary artery disease risk in adults with type 1 diabetes.

Abstract Aims Dietary intake provides a potential intervention target to reduce the high risk for coronary artery disease (CAD) in type 1 diabetes. This effort aimed to identify patterns of nutrient intake in young/middle-aged adults with type 1 diabetes and to examine associations between those patterns and development of CAD. Methods Principal component analysis was used to derive nutrient intake patterns among 514 individuals with childhood-onset ( Results Three nutrient principal components (PC) were identified: PC1 (high caffeine and saccharin intake), PC2 (high alcohol and caffeine, lower intake of essential nutrients) and PC3 (higher fiber/micronutrients, low alcohol). In unadjusted Cox models, only PC1 (negatively) and PC2 (positively) were associated with CAD risk. These associations were no longer significant after adjusting for diabetes duration. Conclusions Important dietary components underlying the three patterns identified may have been influenced by diabetes duration or age. Future research can continue to explore patterns of nutrient intake over time and CAD development in type 1 diabetes.
Exploiting long-distance interactions and tolerating atom loss in neutral atom quantum architectures

Quantum technologies currently struggle to scale beyond moderate scale prototypes and are unable to execute even reasonably sized programs due to prohibitive gate error rates or coherence times. Many software approaches rely on heavy compiler optimization to squeeze extra value from noisy machines but are fundamentally limited by hardware. Alone, these software approaches help to maximize the use of available hardware but cannot overcome the inherent limitations posed by the underlying technology. An alternative approach is to explore the use of new, though potentially less developed, technology as a path towards scalability. In this work we evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of a Neutral Atom (NA) architecture. NA systems offer several promising advantages such as long range interactions and native multiqubit gates which reduce communication overhead, overall gate count, and depth for compiled programs. Long range interactions, however, impede parallelism with restriction zones surrounding interacting qubit pairs. We extend current compiler methods to maximize the benefit of these advantages and minimize the cost. Furthermore, atoms in an NA device have the possibility to randomly be lost over the course of program execution which is extremely detrimental to total program execution time as atom arrays are slow to load. When the compiled program is no longer compatible with the underlying topology, we need a fast and efficient coping mechanism. We propose hardware and compiler methods to increase system resilience to atom loss dramatically reducing total computation time by circumventing complete reloads or full recompilation every cycle.
Resilience-Based seismic design of buildings through multiobjective optimization

Abstract The growing concern for resilience among engineers and other stakeholders is rapidly expanding the range of performance objectives imposed on buildings subjected to seismic ground motion, underscoring the need for multi-objective optimization in design. Genetic algorithms have received widespread attention in the literature as a powerful tool for multi-objective optimization of complex engineering systems, making them a prime candidate for this application. Using models of 4, 7, 10, and 15-story reinforced concrete moment frame office buildings (i.e. Risk Category II), this paper applies a resilience-based performance evaluation procedure using a genetic algorithm in order to take advantage of the potential of multi-objective optimization in designing buildings for resilience. Building models are parameterized by design variables of stiffness, strength, and deformation capacity, which are altered during optimization to enhance building performance in terms of resilience. Moreover, optimization is performed in terms of both life span performance and conditional performance at 2% and 50% probability of exceedance in 50 years and the design hazard level. In order to facilitate translation of multi-objective optimization outcomes to a final, manageable set of design alternatives to be considered by stakeholders, a pruning approach is proposed based on the existing literature and combined with the chosen genetic algorithm. Additionally, comparison of optimized Risk Category II designs with code-based Risk Category IV designs (i.e. essential facilities) facilitates assessment of the effectiveness of the more stringent stiffness and strength criteria required by building codes of essential facilities. The proposed methodology is found to be effective at identifying optimal designs given a set of constraints. The Risk Category IV criteria are generally found to be effective in terms of optimizing both loss of function and total cost.
Identifying The “Core” Transcriptome of SARS-CoV-2 Infected Cells

In 2019, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) first emerged, causing the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, ongoing research has focused on better understanding the mechanisms underlying the symptoms of this disease. Although COVID-19 symptoms span a range of organ systems, the specific changes in gene regulation that lead to the variety of symptoms are still unclear. In our study, we used publicly available transcriptome data from previous studies on SARS-CoV-2 to identify commonly regulated genes across cardiomyocytes, human bronchial epithelial cells, alveolar type II cells, lung adenocarcinoma, human embryonic kidney cells, and patient samples. Additionally, using this common "core" transcriptome, we could identify the genes that were specifically and uniquely differentially regulated in bronchial epithelial cells, embryonic kidney cells, or cardiomyocytes. For example, we found that genes related to cell metabolism were uniquely upregulated in kidney cells, providing us with the first mechanistic clue about specifically how kidney cells may be affected by SARS-CoV-2. Overall, our results uncover connections between the differential gene regulation in various cell types in response to the SARS-CoV-2 infection and help identify targets of potential therapeutics.
All Students Need an Entrepreneurial Mindset

This chapter provides motivation and urgency for why the development of an entrepreneurial mindset is important for all students, regardless of educational disciplinary focus area or career functional area. As a mindset is a mental attitude or inclination, an entrepreneurial mindset is thus defined as “the inclination to discover, evaluate, and exploit opportunities” (Bosman and Fernhaber, Teaching the entrepreneurial mindset to engineers. Springer, 2018, p. 13). While an entrepreneurial mindset can be used to start a business, it can also be applied to acting strategically within an organization. The purpose of this chapter is to define the entrepreneurial mindset and explain the four primary ways students can leverage the entrepreneurial mindset are highlighted including starting a business, acting strategically within an organization, addressing societal grand challenges, and improving one’s personal life. Whether it be large or small undertakings, an entrepreneurial mindset is relevant and needed for all students—regardless of major or career path.
Case 35-2021: A 50-Year-Old Woman with Pain in the Left Upper Quadrant and Hypoxemia.

A Woman with Pain in the Left Upper Quadrant and Hypoxemia A 50-year-old woman with sarcoidosis presented with pain in the left upper quadrant and hypoxemia. The oxygen saturation was 85% while she...
Flexible and Optimized IDL Compilation for Distributed Applications

The author of a distributed system is often faced with a dilemma when writing the system's communication code. If the code is written by hand (e.g., using Active Messages) or partly by hand (e.g., using mpi) then the speed of the application may be maximized, but the human effort required to implement and maintain the system is greatly increased. On the other hand, if the code is generated using a high-level tool (e.g., a corba idl compiler) then programmer effort will be reduced, but the performance of the application may be intolerably poor. The tradeoff between system performance and development effort arises because existing communication middleware is inefficient, imposes excessive presentation layer overhead, and therefore fails to expose much of the underlying network performance to application code. Moreover, there is often a mismatch between the desired communication style of the application (e.g., asynchronous message passing) and the communication style of the code produced by an idl compiler (synchronous remote procedure call). We believe that this need not be the case, but that established optimizing compiler technology can be applied and extended to attack these domain-specific problems. We have implemented Flick, a flexible and optimizing idl compiler, and are using it to explore techniques for producing high-performance code for distributed and parallel applications. Flick produces optimized code for marshaling and unmarshaling data; experiments show that Flick-generated stubs can marshal data between 2 and 17 times as fast as stubs produced by other idl compilers. Further, because Flick is implemented as a "kit" of components, it is possible to extend the compiler to produce stylized code for many different application interfaces and underlying transport layers. In this paper we outline a novel approach for producing "decomposed" stubs for a distributed global memory service.
Survivability in layered networks

In layered networks, a single failure at the lower (physical) layer may cause multiple failures at the upper (logical) layer. As a result, traditional schemes that protect against single failures may not be effective in layered networks. This thesis studies the problem of maximizing network survivability in the layered setting, with a focus on optimizing the embedding of the logical network onto the physical network. In the first part of the thesis, we start with an investigation of the fundamental properties of layered networks, and show that basic network connectivity structures, such as cuts, paths and spanning trees, exhibit fundamentally different characteristics from their single-layer counterparts. This leads to our development of a new cross-layer survivability metric that properly quantifies the resilience of the layered network against physical failures. Using this new metric, we design algorithms to embed the logical network onto the physical network based on multi-commodity flows, to maximize the cross-layer survivability. In the second part of the thesis, we extend our model to a random failure setting and study the cross-layer reliability of the networks, defined to be the probability that the upper layer network stays connected under the random failure events. We generalize the classical polynomial expression for network reliability to the layered setting. Using Monte-Carlo techniques, we develop efficient algorithms to compute an approximate polynomial expression for reliability, as a function of the link failure probability. The construction of the polynomial eliminates the need to resample when the cross-layer reliability under different link failure probabilities is assessed. Furthermore, the polynomial expression provides important insight into the connection between the link failure probability, the cross-layer reliability and the structure of a layered network. We show that in general the optimal embedding depends on the link failure probability, and characterize the properties of embeddings that maximize the reliability under different failure probability regimes. Based on these results, we propose new iterative approaches to improve the reliability of the layered networks. We demonstrate via extensive simulations that these new approaches result in embeddings with significantly higher reliability than existing algorithms. (Copies available exclusively from MIT Libraries, Rm. 14-0551, Cambridge, MA 02139-4307. Ph. 617-253-5668; Fax 617-253-1690.)
CAPE: continuous query engine with heterogeneous-grained adaptivity

This chapter presents CAPE—Continuous Adaptive Query Processing Engine. It is designed to efficiently evaluate continuous queries in highly dynamic stream environments with the following characteristics: the input data may stream into the query engine at widely varying rates; meta knowledge such as punctuations may dynamically be embedded into data streams; as queries are registered into or removed from the query engine, the computing resources available for processing an individual operator may vary greatly over time; and different users may impose different quality of service (QoS) requirements. CAPE employs an optimization framework with heterogeneous-grained adaptivity for effectively coping with such dynamic variations. CAPE differs from other continuous query systems in many ways. It aims to deliver exact query answers by making the best effort through heterogeneous-grained adaptations with the goal to meet users' QoS requirements.