cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
ATM networking environment for a multimedia based highway information system

The existing photo logging systems used by the highway agencies are limited in accessibility and usability in the areas of providing engineers information on traffic accidents, design improvement and highway pavement management. For example, traditional computer databases are routinely used for variety of engineering work. But it is impossible to simultaneously examine highway visual frames and analyze related traditional engineering data sets, such as as-built information. The analog nature of the systems also presents difficulties in integrating the visual information with other types of data. This paper presents a distributed multimedia based highway information system (MMHIS). The implementation of a MMHIS involves technologies in digital video and CODEC, and high speed network transmission. This paper discusses the applicability of asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) for digital video transmission over networks. In addition, information relating to the system design and implementation are also presented.
Utility of the Endovascular Stapler for Right-Sided Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy: A 7-Year Experience at Mayo Clinic

Background Management of the renal vasculature during right laparoscopic donor nephrectomy (LDN) to maximize vessel length has been controversial. The endovascular gastrointestinal anastomosis (GIA) stapler has been used for renal vascular control for our donors since the inception of our LDN program. We evaluated and compared the outcomes of right and left LDNs using a single method for hilar control. Study Design A retrospective review was performed of the first 400 LDNs and respective recipients at our institution. Patient demographics, perioperative variables, graft function, and complications were analyzed. Results Four hundred LDNs were performed between 1999 and 2007. Forty-one were on the right. There were no statistically significant differences between the donor groups or their respective recipients. There were 4 (1%) stapler malfunctions, all occurring on the left side; 2 of these procedures were converted to open to obtain hemostasis. There were nearly equal rates of vascular complications, 4.9% and 4.7%, in the right and left groups, respectively. The overall immediate graft failure rate was 2.3%. Right and left recipient creatinine levels up to 24 months demonstrated no statistically significant differences. Conclusions We propose that the endovascular GIA stapler for left and right laparoscopic donor nephrectomy is safe for the donor. It standardizes the process, minimizes the need for additional maneuvers in securing the renal hilum, and produces similar outcomes for the recipient. The transplant team also plays an equally large role in favorable graft outcomes.
All-optical data format conversion between RZ and NRZ based on wavelength converter

We demonstrate high performance all-optical format conversion between RZ and NRZ using a wavelength converter. For the conversion from RZ to NRZ, we use a duplicator to make multiple copies of the input RZ pulses before the injection into the Mach-Zehnder type wavelength converter.
Preservation and metadata

Purpose – To outline the various metadata schemes and digital initiatives undertaken by the library community to preserve material in digital formats.Design/methodology/approach – Surveys a number of library metadata initiatives and digital repositories to illustrate that, even in the ever‐changing technological world, preservation is essential.Findings – Digital technology changes at an ever‐increasing rate, which makes it difficult to preserve digital information. Nonetheless, if information digitally created today is to be useful in the future, it is important to save it in many ways, and migrate it to modern formats when possible.Originality/value – This review reminds us that preservation is key if we are to ensure that information created now is still accessible in the future.
Multilocus population structure of Tapesia yallundae in Washington State.

Population genetic structure of the fungal wheat pathogen Tapesia yallunda e in Washington State was determined using genetically characterized amplified fragment length polymorphic (AFLP) markers and mating-type ( MAT 1-1 or MAT 1-2). Segregation and linkage relationships among 164 AFLP markers and MAT were analysed using 59 progeny derived from an in vitro cross . Alleles at 158 AFLP loci and the mating-type locus segregated in a 1:1 ratio. Ten unlinked markers were chosen to determine genetic and genotypic diversity and to test the hypothesis of random mating and population differentiation among five subpopulations of T. yallundae representative of the geographical distribution of wheat production in eastern Washington. Among 228 isolates collected, overall gene diversity was high ( h = 0.425) and a total of 91 unique multilocus genotypes (MLG) were identified, with 32 MLG occurring at least twice. The overall population genetic structure was consistent with random mating based on the segregation of mating-type, index of association (I A ), parsimony tree length permutation test (PTLPT) and genotypic diversity analyses. However, clonal genotypes were found within each subpopulation and were also distributed among the five subpopulations. No significant differences in allele frequencies were found among the five subpopulations for all 10 loci based on contingency table analysis (G 2 ) and Wier & Cockerham’s population differentiation statistic θ ( θ = - 0.008, P = 0.722). T. yallundae appears to consist of a large homogeneous population throughout eastern Washington with both sexual and asexual reproduction contributing to the observed population genetic structure despite no report of sexual fruiting bodies of T. yallundae occurring under natural field conditions.
Recent Turbulence Model Advances Applied to Multi-Element Airfoil Computations

A one-equation linear turbulence model and two-equation nonlinear explicit algebraic stress model (EASM) are applied to the flow over a multielement airfoil. The effect of the K-epsilon and K-omega forms of the two-equation model are explored, and the K-epsilon form is shown to be deficient in the wall-bounded regions of adverse pressure gradient flows. A new K-omega form of EASM is introduced. Nonlinear terms present in EASM are shown to improve predictions of turbulent shear stress behind the trailing edge of the main element and near midflap. Curvature corrections are applied to both the one- and two-equation turbulence models and yield only relatively small local differences in the flap region, where the flow field undergoes the greatest curvature. Predictions of maximum lifts are essentially unaffected by the turbulence model variations studied.
Failure of the ILD to determine data combinability for slow loris phylogeny.

Tests for incongruence as an indicator of among-data partition coneict have played an im- portant role in conditional data combination. When such tests reveal signiecant incongruence, this has been interpreted as a rationale for not combining data into a single phylogenetic analysis. In this study of lorisiform phylogeny, we use the incongruence length difference (ILD) test to assess coneict among three independent data sets. A large morphological data set and two unlinked molecular data sets—the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and the nuclear interphotoreceptor retinoid binding pro- tein (exon 1)—are analyzed with various optimality criteria and weighting mechanisms to determine thephylogeneticrelationshipsamong slowlorises (Primates, Loridae).When analyzed separately, the morphological data show impressive statistical support for a monophyletic Loridae. Both molecular data sets resolve the Loridae as paraphyletic, though with different branching orders depending on the optimality criterion or character weighting used. When the three data partitions are analyzed in various combinations, an inverse relationship between congruence and phylogenetic accuracy is observed. Nearly all combined analyses that recover monophyly indicate strong data partition incon- gruence (P D 0:00005 in the most extreme case), whereas all analyses that recover paraphyly indicate lack of signiecant incongruence. Numerous lines of evidence verify that monophyly is the accurate phylogenetic result. Therefore, this study contributes to a growing body of information aferming that measuresofincongruenceshouldnotbeusedasindicatorsofdatasetcombinability.(Conditionaldata combination; galagos; incongruence length difference; lorises; molecules and morphology; partition homogeneity test.)
Afghanistan and its Economy

Afghanistan is one of the least developed countries of the world. United States of America and several other nations spent hundreds of billions of dollars during the last 13 years to strengthen her economy and security but due to pervasive corruption the country could not absorb the aid effectively. As long as Afghanistan remains resistant to change, and corruption and lawlessness continue to hurt the country, the badly needed foreign assistance, no matter how colossal, will not make much difference. In this paper, the author explains the historical, geographical and political factors that have plagued and still hinder economic development of Afghanistan. The paper briefly explains land, population, resources and economic aggregates in addition to the historical events that have caused the progress to remain slow. Some recommendations are made at the end.
Histologic and Microradiographic Evaluation of Textured and Nontextured Aluminum Oxide Dental Implants

This paper reports the histological and microradiographical observations of macroscopically textured and nontextured aluminum oxide dental implants. Ion beam bombardment was used to produce a wafflelike pattern of surface undulations approximately 35 μ m deep. Twelve nontextured and eight textured implants were placed in the healed extraction sites of the second and forth mandibular premolars of adult mongrel dogs. Eight nontextured and five textured implants remained in situ for six months. Results consistent with previously reported clinical and radiographic findings, indicated a decreased incidence of an interposed fibrous tissue-implant interface associated with the textured implants. Texturing was not found to influence the amount of vertical bone loss. Secondarily, delayed tissue fixation due to post-retrieval mechanical testing procedures resulted in loss of valuable cellular information.
Processing of ZrW2O8-ZrO2 Continuous Functionally Graded Materials by Co-Sintering ZrO2 and ZrO2+WO3 Multi-Layer Compacts

A powder mixture of ZrO2 +WO3 and ZrO2 powder were stacked, co-compacted and co-sintered in the processing steps commonly used to fabricate multi-layer materials. However, the observation of the cross-sectional microstructures as well as the measurement of the radial thermal expansion provided the evidence that the sintered samples are continuous Functionally Graded Materials (FGMs) made of ZrW2 O8 and ZrO2 , Because of the discrepancy in the sintering potentials between two materials, the sintered samples do not retain the original cylindrical shapes of the green compacts. This problem has been resolved by choosing the appropriate powder mixture for each layer of the compacts. The formation of the continuous FGM structure is due to three factors: 1) the diffusion of WO3 , 2) the sublimation of WO3 and 3) the reaction between ZrO2 and WO3 . The continuous variation in the radial coefficient of thermal expansion can be utilized to reduce the thermal stress induced from a thermal gradient loading within a material system. This study shows that the processing steps typically used in processing stepwise FGMs can also be used to create continuous FGMs for some special powder mixtures.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Predator Exclusion Cage for Turtle Nests: A Novel Design

Abstract Three predator exclusion devices were designed and deployed with the goal of denying raccoons access to simulated turtle nests (n = 116) for 48 hrs. A novel design, a roughly conical cage constructed using wooden dowels for bars, protected nests through 3 trials at rates of 100% (n = 4), 100% (n = 8), and 70% (n = 84). This new cage design offers a portable, inexpensive, and reusable alternative for protecting nests of diamondback terrapins and potentially other emydid species.
Agents teaching agents in reinforcement learning (Nectar Abstract)

Using reinforcement learning [4] (RL), agents can autonomously learn a control policy to master sequential-decision tasks. Rather than always learning tabula rasa, our recent work [5,7,8] considers how an experienced RL agent, the teacher, can help another RL agent, the student, to learn. As a motivating example, consider a household robot that has learned to perform tasks in a household.When the consumer purchases a new robot, she would like the student robot to quickly learn to perform the same tasks as the teacher robot, even if the new robot has different state representation, learning method, or manufacturer. Our goals are to: 1) Allow the student to learn faster with the teacher than without it, 2) Allow the student and teacher to have different learning methods and knowledge representations, 3) Not limit the student's performance when the teacher is sub-optimal, 4) Not require a complex, shared language, and 5) Limit the amount of communication required between the agents.
Hand-Assisted versus Straight-Laparoscopic versus Open Proctosigmoidectomy for Treatment of Sigmoid and Rectal Cancer: A Case-Matched Study of 100 Patients

To assess the efficacy of laparoscopic proctosigmoidectomy for cancer treatment, 25 patients who underwent hand-assisted laparoscopic resection during the study period (9/2006 - 7/2012) were matched to 25 straight-laparoscopic and 50 open-surgery cases. The patients who underwent hand-assisted resection had higher rates of preoperative cardiac disease and hypertension than did the straight-laparoscopy and open-surgery groups. Straight-laparoscopic surgery seems to provide faster convalescence compared with open surgery and hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery.
Policy (Mis) Representation and the Cost of Ruling: U.S. Presidential Elections in Comparative Perspective

The cost of ruling effect on electoral support is well established. That is, governing parties tend to lose vote share the longer they are in power. Although we know this to be true, we do not know why it happens. This research examines whether the cost of ruling results at least in part from the tendency for governing parties to shift policy further away from the average voter. It first considers differences in political institutions and how they might influence cost of ruling owing to policy drift, and then tests the hypothesis focusing on U.S. presidential elections, which is an unfavorable case to find such an effect. Results confirm a clear cost of ruling effect in these elections and demonstrate that policy misrepresentation is an important mechanism. That is, the policy liberalism of presidents from different parties diverges over time as their tenure in the White House increases, and the degree to which it does matters for the presidential vote. Policy is not the only thing that matters, and other...
Non-Linear Optical Flow Cytometry Using a Scanned, Bessel Beam Light-Sheet

Modern flow cytometry instruments have become vital tools for high-throughput analysis of single cells. However, as issues with the cellular labeling techniques often used in flow cytometry have become more of a concern, the development of label-free modalities for cellular analysis is increasingly desired. Non-linear optical phenomena (NLO) are of growing interest for label-free analysis because of the ability to measure the intrinsic optical response of biomolecules found in cells. We demonstrate that a light-sheet consisting of a scanned Bessel beam is an optimal excitation geometry for efficiently generating NLO signals in a microfluidic environment. The balance of photon density and cross-sectional area provided by the light-sheet allowed significantly larger two-photon fluorescence intensities to be measured in a model polystyrene microparticle system compared to measurements made using other excitation focal geometries, including a relaxed Gaussian excitation beam often used in conventional flow cytometers.
Adiabatic Approximation Applied to N-State System at One-Photon Resonance

We consider N bound states in a molecule or atom. They are connected by a chain of N-1 laser-driven transitions. Transfer of population from one end of the chain to the other can be done by applying N-1 laser pulses in the obvious (intuitive) order. The counterintuitive pulse order can be used if the first and last laser pulses overlap. Its advantages have been demonstrated1, and its generalization to any odd value of N is known2. For the case of N=4, counterintuitive pulse sequences have been treated in refs. 3 and 4, where non-zero laser detunings are considered to be essential. Here, we consider the special case of laser frequencies that are not detuned from the Bohr frequencies. We consider both intuitive and counterintuitive pulse orders, and both odd N and even N. We use a classical description of each laser pulse, and assume that it drives only its own transition. The rotating-wave approximation is used, and all optical frequencies can then be eliminated from the Hamiltonian and the probability amplitudes. The resulting Hamiltonian matrix is a symmetric tridiagonal matrix. Each off-diagonal matrix element is minus half of a Rabi frequency. The maximum Rabi frequency is ΩM for each laser-driven transition. We use N-1 Gaussian laser pulses having the same width, and a uniform spacing between their peaks. Each Rabi frequency has the form ΩM exp[−(t−tp)2] where t is the time and tp is a linear function of position in the matrix. Since all laser detunings are zero, diagonal elements in the Hamiltonian matrix are zero. The initial condition is that only state one is occupied at early times, so that all probability amplitudes but the first vanishast →−∞. Values of the probability amplitudes can he found by numerical integration of the coupled differential equations, and the occupation probabilities can be computed for any time t. If we use a counterintuitive pulse sequence to transfer most of the occupation probability from one end of the chain to the other, the occupation probabilities of states 3 to N-3 remain somewhat low at all times, in agreement with refs. 1 and 5.
The reader-oriented scholarly edition

Recent attempts to computer-model the scholarly edition so as to permit the crowd-sourcing of its production have misunderstood its nature. Scholarly editions are, in their methodology and form, not unchanging, nor are their underlying conceptions simple. This essay is, in response, a reflection on the opportunities that the digital form potentially offers editors about how they may gain traction by taking advantage of the capacities and logic of the new medium. The main proposal stems from leaving the representational question on hold (how the edition represents the work and the methodologies used to achieve that) and instead considering the edition primarily as a transaction with its readers—those print-counterparts of the digital crowd. The history of post-war scholarly editions is reviewed for its evolving understandings of the reader-user. Then a conceptual separation between the archive and the edition is proposed so that a new, more reader-oriented definition of editorial responsibilities can be envisaged for digital scholarly editions—something that the logic of the print medium forbade.
Abstract P259: Novel Risk Factors and Management Strategies for Transient Ischemic Attack and Stroke: The Inova Fairfax Stroke Database

INTRODUCTION Several studies suggest that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a novel risk factor for cerebrovascular and cardiovascular disease. The Berlin Questionnaire (BQ) which is an inexpensive screen for OSA was used in the current study to examine potential associations between OSA (as measured by BQ), stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA). METHODS During the 2008 calendar year 1,434 stroke and/or TIA patients were evaluated by the stroke response nurses at Inova Fairfax Hospital. Although the original sample size provided by the Inova staff was 1,433, not all of the patients responded to the BQ. Of the 1,433 cases, 113 were eliminated because they had non-unique responses. Of the remaining cases, 60 cases were left that provided complete responses to the BQ and had no missing values. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS We focused only on two outcomes, ischemic stroke and TIA. Demographic variables: Gender, race (white and non-white), and age. Descriptive statistics were performed for all variables. Univariate analyses were performed and associations between the dependent variables and the predictors were analyzed using exact tests. Logistic regression models were built to identify any potential risk factors for TIA and ischemic stroke. RESULTS In this sample, approximately 28.3% were females and 71.6% were male. The sample was composed of 65% white and 35% non-white patients. The average age of the entire sample was 65.6 years (SD= 13.2 years). Further, 23.3% were identified as having TIA, 55.5% had suffered ischemic stroke while 21.6% had other type of stroke or no diagnosis. Exact tests of significance failed to detect any significant associations between stroke type and OSA as measured by BQ. Furthermore, we did not find any significant associations or differences between age, race, gender, OSA and the outcome variables. Findings from the binary logistic regression models did not identify any significant predictors of TIA and ischemic stroke. CONCLUSIONS Although in this study we did not find a significant association between OSA, TIA and ischemic stroke, we recommend that this study be replicated with larger samples. An analysis of the cause of such low number of complete responses will follow as well.
'Our Children Made Enterluders': Choristers, Actors, and Students in St Paul's Cathedral Precinct

This essay explores the relationship between theatre and neighbourhood in early modern England with a focus on St Paul’s Cathedral precinct, demonstrating that the boys who performed as the Children of Paul’s were necessarily shaped by their time there in multiple ways. The seemingly discrete places of the cathedral that the boys inhabited, such as their singing school, the residence hall, the cathedral choir, the churchyard, and the grammar school, were as porous as the activities that took place there. We cannot, then, disentangle the boys’ lives as actors from their lives as denizens of Paul’s.
Diode-based additive manufacturing of metals using an optically-addressable light valve

Selective Laser Melting (SLM) of metal powder bed layers, whereby 3D metal objects can be printed from a digital file with unprecedented design flexibility, is spurring manufacturing innovations in medical, automotive, aerospace and textile industries. Because SLM is based on raster-scanning a laser beam over each layer, the process is relatively slow compared to most traditional manufacturing methods (hours to days), thus limiting wider spread use. Here we demonstrate the use of a large area, photolithographic method for 3D metal printing, using an optically-addressable light valve (OALV) as the photomask, to print entire layers of metal powder at once. An optical sheet of multiplexed ~5 kW, 20 ms laser diode and ~1 MW, 7 ns Q-switched laser pulses are used to selectively melt each layer. The patterning of near infrared light is accomplished by imaging 470 nm light onto the transmissive OALV, which consists of polarization-selective nematic liquid crystal sandwiched between a photoconductor and transparent conductor for switching.
BIM-based model for quantifying the design change time ripple effect

Design changes by owners are common to many construction projects and can cause severe delays if owners do not consider that a change in one part of the project may cause a series of changes in oth...
Disinfection of bacteriophage MS2 by copper in water.

Households that lack piped water supply are often forced to meet water needs by storing in the home, leaving water vulnerable to contamination by viruses. Storage in copper containers can potentially prevent this type of contamination, but the inactivation kinetics of viruses by copper need to be described to make appropriate storage recommendations. This work characterized inactivation kinetics of bacteriophage MS2 as a surrogate for enteric viruses by dissolved ionic copper in water. Reduction of MS2 increased with increasing doses of copper. At 0.3 mg/L, there was a 1.8-log10 reduction of MS2 within 6 h. At 1 and 3 mg/L, 2–2.5 log10 inactivation could be achieved between 6 and 24 h. Parameters for the Chick-Watson, Hom, and One Hit-Two Population models of inactivation were calculated and evaluated, all of which demonstrated strong goodness-of-fit and predictability at various contact times. Copper inactivates MS2 under controlled conditions at doses between 0.3 and 3 mg/L. Although requiring longer contact times than conventional disinfectants, it is a candidate for improving the safety of stored drinking water.
Lung Cancer Staging Methods: A Practical Approach

The goal in evaluating patients suspected of having lung cancer is the accurate determination of the extent of the disease in a timely manner since this is crucial for determining whether therapy should be initiated with curative intent or palliation for more advanced disease.
Effects of Positive End-Expiratory Pressure on the Risk of Postoperative Pulmonary Complications in Patients Undergoing Elective Craniotomy.

Background Intraoperative use of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) has a protective effect in patients with acute lung injury and is recommended during anesthesia to minimize postoperative pulmonary complications. However, high levels of pressure might also cause harm to the lung because of overdistension. This retrospective study was designed to compare the effect of low and high levels of PEEP on the risk of postoperative pulmonary complications in patients with normal lung function who were undergoing an elective craniotomy. Methods Two thousand four hundred thirty-seven patients without any pre-existing respiratory disease, who underwent an elective craniotomy, were hospitalized from January 1, 2008, to December 31, 2012. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to the application of an intraoperative PEEP Results One thousand twenty-three (42%) of 2437 patients were in the low group, and 1414 patients (58%) were in the high group. Patients in the low group did not show any difference in the incidence of postoperative pneumonia (P = 0.523) or the requirement of postoperative reintubation and MV (P = 0.999) compared with those in the high group. The incidence of reintubation and MV is significantly associated with postoperative pneumonia (P Conclusions Low and high levels of PEEP show similar incidences of postoperative pneumonia and requirement of postoperative NIV or invasive MV in patients with normal function of the lungs undergoing elective craniotomy.
Development of a Novel Ultrasound-guided Peritonsillar Abscess Model for Simulation Training

Introduction: Peritonsillar abscess (PTA) is the most common deep space infection of the head and neck presenting to emergency departments.1 No commercial PTA task trainer exists for simulation training. Thus, resident physicians often perform their first PTA needle aspiration in the clinical setting, knowing that carotid artery puncture and hemorrhage are serious and devastating complications. While several low-fidelity PTA task trainers have been previously described, none allow for ultrasound image acquisition.6-9 We sought to create a cost-effective and realistic task trainer that allows trainees to acquire both diagnostic ultrasound and needle aspiration skills while draining a peritonsillar abscess. Methods: We built the task trainer with low-cost, replaceable, and easily cleanable materials. A damaged airway headskin was repurposed to build the model. A mesh wire cylinder attached to a wooden base was fashioned to provide infrastructure. PTAs were simulated with a water and lotion solution inside a water balloon that was glued to the bottom of a paper cup. The balloon was fully submerged with ordnance gelatin to facilitate ultrasound image acquisition, and an asymmetric soft palate and deviated uvula were painted on top after setting. PTA cups were replaced after use. We spent eight hours constructing three task trainers and used 50 PTA cups for a total cost <$110.Results: Forty-six emergency medicine (EM) residents performed PTA needle aspirations using the task trainers and were asked to rate ultrasound image realism, task trainer realism, and trainer ease of use on a five-point visual analog scale, with five being very realistic and easy. Sixteen of 46 (35%) residents completed the survey and reported that ultrasound images were representative of real PTAs (mean 3.41). They found the model realistic (mean 3.73) and easy to use (mean 4.08). Residents rated their comfort with the drainage procedure as 2.07 before and 3.64 after practicing on the trainer.Conclusion: This low-cost, easy-to-construct simulator allows for ultrasound image acquisition while performing PTA needle aspirations and is the first reported of its kind. Educators from EM and otolaryngology can use this model to educate inexperienced trainees, thus ultimately improving patient safety in the clinical setting.
Impact of Sleep Breathing Disorders in Obese Critically Ill Patients

Sleep breathing disorders affecting the obese, critically ill population include obesity hypoventilation syndrome and obstructive sleep apnea; they pose a serious risk and are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the intensive care unit. Obese patients are at increased risk of sleep-disordered breathing and its complications. OHS and OSA in the ICU are usually underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed.
A cross-sectional study of the influence of neighborhood environment on childhood overweight and obesity: variation by age, gender, and environment characteristics.

To examine the influence of neighborhood environment on childhood overweight and obesity in Shelby County Schools, Tennessee, and whether and to what extent that influence varies by age, gender, and the specific environment characteristics. 41,283 students were surveyed covering both individual-level covariates and several objective measures of neighborhood environment. Multilevel logistic regressions were used to examine the influence of neighborhood-level variables on overweight+obesity and obesity with adjustment of individual-level covariates. Further, a stratified analysis for each of the six groups by school level and gender. For both overweight+obesity and obesity, younger children were less sensitive to neighborhood characteristics than older children, and boys are less sensitive than girls. For girls in middle and high schools, the risk of overweight+obesity and obesity were positively associated with population density, and negatively associated with percent of poverty and percent of unhealthy food. Boys' risk of overweight+obesity and obesity were positively associated with distance to park. Neighborhood environment plays an important role in childhood overweight and obesity, and the effects vary by age, gender, and the specific neighborhood characteristic. Intervention programs tailored to specific groups may be more effective than ones targeted to children as a whole.
Safety concerns in composite manufacturing and machining

Because of the superior properties, composites have been used in many industrial applications, including aerospace, wind turbines, ships, cars, fishing rods, storage tanks, swimming pool panels, and baseball bats. Each application may require different combinations of reinforcements and matrices, which make the manufacturing safety even more challenging while working on these substances. In this study, safety issues in composite manufacturing and machining were investigated in detail, and latest developments were provided for workers. The materials most frequently used in composite manufacturing, such as matrix (polyester, vinylester, phenolic, epoxies, methyl ethyl ketone peroxide, benzoil peroxide, hardeners, and solvents), and reinforcement materials (carbon, glass and Kevlar fibers, honeycomb and foams) can be highly toxic to human body. These materials can also be very toxic to the environment when dumped out uncontrollably, creating major future health and environmental concerns. Throughout the manufacturing process, workers inhale vapors of the liquid matrix, hardeners and solvents / thinners, as well as reinforcement materials (chopped fibers and particles) in airborne. Milling, cutting and machining of the composites can further increase the toxic inhalations of airborne composite particles, resulting in major rashes, irritation, skin disorders, coughing, severe eye and lung injury and other serious illnesses. The major portions of these hazardous materials can be controlled using appropriate personal protective equipment for the chemicals and materials used in composite manufacturing and machining. This study provides best possible safety practices utilized in composite manufacturing facilities for workers, engineers and other participants.
The Community Patent

Even before the European Patent Convention came into force, there were proposals for a Community Patent. However, the political will has not been there to implement this. Recently, with the EU falling behind the US in innovation, and this being blamed on the high cost of obtaining comprehensive patent cover in the EU, the Community Patent has surfaced to near the top of the political agenda. While business wants the Community Patent, several Member States are finding it difficult to give up on language and local jurisdiction. The Community Patent is wanted by the pharmaceutical industry, for both research-based and generic categories, for different reasons. However, ‘Big Pharma’ will probably not want it to supplant a local patent system, although it might in time supplant the European bundle of patents. Much of the analysis concerning the Community Patent is general, but there are some issues which are of special concern to the pharmaceutical industry, particularly in the infringement area and in the area of cross-licensing. These include whether to obtain a Community Patent or to continue with the existing European or national patents.
The Nutrition Transformation: From Undernutrition to Obesity

Over the last three decades, policy interventions have resulted in a decrease in undernourishment by at least ten percentage points. However, undernutrition and micronutrient deficiency remain a critical public health challenge, especially in less developed states, while the number of overweight individuals has increased drastically in more developed states over the same period. This increase in the triple burden of malnutrition is a matter of great concern due to its impacts on health and welfare. In this chapter, we present evidence that diversifying diets and increasing income is vital for reducing all types of malnutrition. Within households, improving education and information, behavior change, empowering women and improving access to water, sanitation and health infrastructure are essential to tackle undernutrition, hidden hunger and obesity.
Reducing Streptococcal Testing in Patients <3 Years Old in an Emergency Department

BACKGROUND: Although pharyngitis is common, group A Streptococcus is an uncommon etiology, and sequelae are rare in patients METHODS: We initiated this project in October 2016 at an urban, tertiary pediatric ED. We surveyed pertinent multidisciplinary stakeholders to identify factors leading to RSTs in children RESULTS: The mean number of RSTs ordered per month in patients aged CONCLUSIONS: Our interventions led to a successful and sustained reduction of RSTs in patients aged
Abstract P151: Race/ethnic Differences in Six Minute Walk Distance Among Older Adults: The Multi-ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis

Introduction: Data about race/ethnic differences in functional capacity among U.S. minority groups is limited, although some studies suggest blacks have a shorter six minute walk distance (6MWD), a...
Risk Taking, Diversification, and U.S. Bank Size Anomalies

The equity of too-big-to-fail banks could be deemed less risky due to implicit government guarantees. However, such guarantees could also amplify a moral hazard problem that induces large banks to take excessive risk. If such risk is mispriced by the market due to the increased complexity of large banks, then cross-sectional differences in realized stock returns should reflect corrections in market expectations rather than differences in the cost of capital. Proposing a novel diversification index to account for complexity, we find robust evidence consistent with mispricing among the most diversified large banks and attribute it to greater channels of uncertainty and interconnectedness.
Ce5AuxGe4−x [x = 0.43 (2)] with the orthorhombic Sm5Ge4 structure type

Single crystals of the title compound, penta­cerium gold tetra­germanium, were synthesized from the corresponding elements using a eutectic Au/Ge mixture as solvent. Structure determination of a crystal from that reaction revealed the composition Ce5AuxGe4−x (x = 0.43). The compound is a new ternary derivative of the Sm5Ge4 structure type that crystallizes in the space group Pnma of the orthorhombic system. There are six atoms in the asymmetric unit, one Ce in Wyckoff site 4c, two Ce in 8d, two Ge in 4c and one Ge in 8d. Two of the Ge sites are statistically occupied by Ge and Au atoms, with a lack of long-range ordering. The results are consistent with an earlier report on the structure of the fully stoichiometric analog Ce5Ge4.
Network enhancement as a general method to denoise weighted biological networks.

Networks are ubiquitous in biology where they encode connectivity patterns at all scales of organization, from molecular to the biome. However, biological networks are noisy due to the limitations of measurement technology and inherent natural variation, which can hamper discovery of network patterns and dynamics. We propose Network Enhancement (NE), a method for improving the signal-to-noise ratio of undirected, weighted networks. NE uses a doubly stochastic matrix operator that induces sparsity and provides a closed-form solution that increases spectral eigengap of the input network. As a result, NE removes weak edges, enhances real connections, and leads to better downstream performance. Experiments show that NE improves gene–function prediction by denoising tissue-specific interaction networks, alleviates interpretation of noisy Hi-C contact maps from the human genome, and boosts fine-grained identification accuracy of species. Our results indicate that NE is widely applicable for denoising biological networks. Technical noise in experiments is unavoidable, but it introduces inaccuracies into the biological networks we infer from the data. Here, the authors introduce a diffusion-based method for denoising undirected, weighted networks, and show that it improves the performances of downstream analyses.
Transferability of migration licences and the distribution of potential rents

Abstract This paper compares the effects of migration restrictions under transferability and non-transferability of licenses. There is reason to expect that a policy of making licenses non-transferable will not only affect production efficiency, but also allow producers to capture more of the potential migration rents.
Quantitative modeling to understand cell signaling in the tumor microenvironment

Abstract Tumor cells play a central role in multiple processes associated with cancer progression. They continuously interact with surrounding cells and the extracellular matrix, displaying various behaviors collectively known as hallmarks of cancer. Considering the complexity of the interactions between cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME), mathematical models of intracellular signaling within the multi-cellular environment in tumors are useful. In this review, we first give an overview of the TME, motivating the need for mathematical modeling, followed by a presentation of salient models of signaling in tumor cells, immune cells, and stromal cells. We posit that these published models provide exactly the foundation needed to build more comprehensive models that represent the multi-cellular TME and its rich network of intercellular interactions.
Injection of desalination brine into the saline part of the coastal aquifer; environmental and hydrological implications.

Abstract Seawater desalination, specifically reverse osmosis (RO), has become an important water resource, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. The desalination process generates a brine solution that is usually discharged to the nearshore environment, negatively impacting the marine ecosystem. A different method of disposing of the brine solution is needed to restore and maintain the marine environment. One such method is injecting the desalination brine into the saline part of the coastal aquifer. This study aims to investigate the hydrological and environmental impacts of such injection using groundwater flow and solute transport numerical models, showing the fresh-saline water interface (FSI) response at different injection rates, depths, and distances from shore. Moreover, this study investigates the recovery evolution of the aquifer after injection stops. We also analyze the hydrological response when pumping saline groundwater (SGW) (for desalination) or freshwater (for water supply) simultaneously with brine injection. Results show that brine injection creates a high salinity plume that pushes the FSI landward and salinizes the aquifer. After 20 years of injecting 5 million m3 y−1, 17 million m3 of freshwater are lost due to salt contamination. It is also shown that by injecting further offshore and in shallower depths, the impact on the FSI and the aquifer is reduced. Furthermore, pumping SGW simultaneously with brine injection negates the brine plume effect on the FSI and results in a more stable interface. It is noted that aquifer recovery is a long process and even after 100 years of recovery, the aquifer is not fully rehabilitated. This paper shows for the first time the hydrological implications of brine injection into the saline part of the coastal aquifer and demonstrates its potential utility for desalination plants in protecting the environment.
Denial of Service: A Perspective

The scope of “denial-of-service protection” can be limited by comparing it and contrasting it with related concepts. The objectives and general concepts that drive current research have already been clarified to some extent by prior work. We summarize the general conclusions that have emerged, and assess their implications for the development of denial-of-service protection requirements and the guidance of future research.
Path loss slope based cell selection and handover in heterogeneous networks

This paper presents a new strategy for Cell Selection and Handover in a Heterogeneous Networks based on the estimated Path Loss Slope value. It is shown that, there exists a free space propagation medium in all propagation environments due to Fresnel Zones and path loss slope within this zone is similar to free space propagation medium. This forms the basis of our development of the present work. The salient feature of the proposed work has two main considerations (a) The cell radius of Small Cells must be within the first Fresnel zone break point and the minimum inter-cell distance must be greater than twice of small cell radius, and (b) Optimum cell will be the one which path loss slope minimum. A prompt handover will take place when User Equipment (UE) crosses the cell boundary, because it will experience a rapid attenuation of signals due to a large attenuation slope (greater than free space). Once the handover is successful, a Ping-Pong effect is unlikely, since the difference in the receive signal level between the old and new cell increases rapidly. This will also reduce improper cell selection and call drop probability, thus enhancing the quality of service of the network as well.
TU-F-CAMPUS-I-05: Semi-Automated, Open Source MRI Quality Assurance and Quality Control Program for Multi-Unit Institution

Purpose: Phantom measurements allow for the performance of magnetic resonance (MR) systems to be evaluated. Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Report No. 100 Acceptance Testing and Quality Assurance Procedures for MR Imaging Facilities, American College of Radiology (ACR) MR Accreditation Program MR phantom testing, and ACR MRI quality control (QC) program documents help to outline specific tests for establishing system performance baselines as well as system stability over time. Analyzing and processing tests from multiple systems can be time-consuming for medical physicists. Besides determining whether tests are within predetermined limits or criteria, monitoring longitudinal trends can also help prevent costly downtime of systems during clinical operation. In this work, a semi-automated QC program was developed to analyze and record measurements in a database that allowed for easy access to historical data. Methods: Image analysis was performed on 27 different MR systems of 1.5T and 3.0T field strengths from GE and Siemens manufacturers. Recommended measurements involved the ACR MRI Accreditation Phantom, spherical homogenous phantoms, and a phantom with an uniform hole pattern. Measurements assessed geometric accuracy and linearity, position accuracy, image uniformity, signal, noise, ghosting, transmit gain, center frequency, and magnetic field drift. The program was designed with open source tools, employing Linux, Apache, MySQL database and Python programming language for the front and backend. Results: Processing time for each image is <2 seconds. Figures are produced to show regions of interests (ROIs) for analysis. Historical data can be reviewed to compare previous year data and to inspect for trends. Conclusion: A MRI quality assurance and QC program is necessary for maintaining high quality, ACR MRI Accredited MR programs. A reviewable database of phantom measurements assists medical physicists with processing and monitoring of large datasets. Longitudinal data can reveal trends that although are within passing criteria indicate underlying system issues.