cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Diet and atrial fibrillation: does α-linolenic acid, a plant derived essential fatty acid, have an impact?

Many studies in the past 50 years have shown that dietary lipids can modulate the progression of coronary artery disease, heart failure, and cardiac arrhythmogenesis. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are small biologically active lipid molecules that serve as a substrate for metabolic activity, cellular signals, and as precursors for signaling molecules such as prostaglandins, leukotrienes, etc. Small structural changes between PUFAs, especially with respect to chain length and the number and position of double bonds have a significant impact on their biological activities. 1 PUFAs can modulate ion channel activity, cardiac myocyte contractility and Ca 2+ cycling, and cell survival in response to ischemia or mechanical stress. Epidemiologic evidence suggests that dietary consumption of fatty fish (salmon, sardines, and herring) lowers the risk of incident atrial fibrillation (AF). 2 Fish oil contains a complex mix of x3-PUFA, x6-PUFA, x9-PUFA, and other lipids and antioxidant molecules. The most abundant long chain x3PUFAs in fatty fish are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20 carbon) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22 carbon). 1 In an attempt to identify which components of fish oil confer benefi ti n AF prevention, additional studies have sought to separately evaluate the impact of EPA and DHA on risk of AF. In 2 such studies, consumption of DHA, but not EPA was associated with lower risk of AF. 3,4 It is thus plausible that dietary consumption of DHA has a meaningful impact on AF risk. While fish are the most concentrated natural source of EPA and DHA, a-linolenic acid (ALA) is the most abundant plant based x3-PUFA. Can dietary consumption of ALA, an abundant, sustainable and inexpensive x3-PUFA, lower the risk of AF in the same manner that consumption of fish and DHA appear to do? In this issue of the JAHA, Fretts and colleagues 5 directly address this important question. They use an epidemiologic approach to assess the relationship between plasma ALA levels, dietary ALA consumption, and AF risk. In their study of 2899 subjects (65 years or older at study entry), there were 707 cases of incident AF during a 15 to 16 year (nearly 30 000 person-years) follow-up. No relationship was detected between plasma ALA and incident AF after correcting for age, sex, and a variety of clinical and demographic factors. Strengths of the study include the size and age of the population, and the relatively large fraction of incident AF. Their results are consistent with an epidemiologic analysis suggesting that from age 40, there is approximately a 25%
Novel Genomic Loci Influencing Plasma Homocysteine Levels

Background and Purpose— Genetic factors that influence interindividual variation in levels of plasma homocysteine, a risk factor for vascular disease, are not fully understood. We performed linkage analyses to identify genomic regions that influence homocysteine levels in blacks and non-Hispanic whites. Methods— Subjects (n=2283) belonged to hypertensive sibships and included 1319 blacks (63±10 years, 70% women) and 964 non-Hispanic whites (61±7 years, 57% women). Fasting plasma homocysteine was measured by high-pressure liquid chromatography. Genotypes were measured at 366 microsatellite marker loci distributed across the 22 autosomes. Plasma homocysteine adjusted for age, sex, body mass index, serum creatinine, and estrogen use (in women) was used in the genetic analyses. Heritability and linkage analyses were performed using a variance components approach. Results— Mean (±SD) homocysteine levels were 10.4±5.27 μmol/L in blacks and 10.0±2.84 μmol/L in non-Hispanic whites (P=0.58 for difference). Homocys...
Chest percussion and postural drainage in patients with bronchiectasis

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease have been treated routinely with chest physical therapy for many years in spite of a lack of scientific validation of this procedure. Only recently have the indications for chest physical therapy been clarified. It is currently believed that such therapy is especially beneficial in patients with copious secretions, and that it is less effective in patients with scanty secretions. No study has specifically evaluated the efficacy of chest physical therapy in patients with bronchiectasis. We accordingly evaluated 13 patients with stable bronchiectasis to determine the effects of chest physical therapy on pulmonary function, arterial oxygenation, and sputum production and to assess whether this therapy was associated with any significant side-effects. We found that chest physical therapy was safe and well tolerated and assisted the patients in mobilization of their sputum. However, such therapy had no immediate delayed effects on pulmonary function or oxygen saturation.
Consequences of ccmR deletion on respiration, fermentation and H2 metabolism in cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002

CcmR, a LysR-type transcriptional regulator, represses the genes encoding components of the high-affinity carbon concentration mechanism in cyanobacteria. Unexpectedly, deletion of the ccmR gene was found to alter the expression of the terminal oxidase and fermentative genes, especially the hydrogenase operon in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002. Consistent with the transcriptomic data, the deletion strain exhibits flux increases (30-50%) in both aerobic O2 respiration and anaerobic H2 evolution. To understand how CcmR influences anaerobic metabolism, the kinetics of autofermentation were investigated following photoautotrophic growth. The autofermentative H2 yield increased by 50% in the CcmR deletion strain compared to the wild-type strain, and increased to 160% (within 20 h) upon continuous removal of H2 from the medium ("milking") to suppress H2 uptake. Consistent with this greater reductant flux to H2 , the mutant excreted less lactate during autofermentation (NAD(P)H consuming pathway). To enhance the rate of NADH production during anaerobic metabolism, the ccmR mutant was engineered to introduce GAPDH overexpression (more NADH production) and LDH deletion (less NADH consumption). The triple mutant (ccmR deletion + GAPDH overexpression + LDH deletion) showed 6-8-fold greater H2 yield than the WT strain, achieving conversion rates of 17 nmol 10(8) cells(-1) h(-1) and yield of 0.87 H2 per glucose equivalent (8.9% theoretical maximum). Simultaneous monitoring of the intracellular NAD(P)H concentration and H2 production rate by these mutants reveals an inverse correspondence between these variables indicating hydrogenase-dependent H2 production as a major sink for consuming NAD(P)H in preference to excretion of reduced carbon as lactate during fermentation. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2016;113: 1448-1459. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Maintaining composure and credibility as an expert witness during cross-examination

Abstract Attorneys are of ten passionately devoted to thenotion that truth will emerge only if they clearly state their position and challenge the opposition. This often leads attorneys to dispute and/or discredit expert witness' opinions that threaten their po si-tion. Tes tifying dur ing cross-ex am i nation can be a very in tense and anxiety-pro vokingexperiencefornovice, as well as seasoned mental health professionals with varying levels of experience in a courtroom. The pur pose of this ar ti cle is to offer sev eral brief rec om men-dations for maintaining composure and credibility during cross-examination when called to testify as a psychological expert witness. The recommendations are based upon information gathered from the professional literature, consultation with mental health pro fes sion als (e.g., psy chol o gists, and psy chi atrists) involved in the le gal arena, and the au thors'ob servations of court room drama. The recommendations address pre-trial preparations, verbal and non-ver bal ...
A Review of 2004 CIGRE on Application Status and Perspective in HVDC and Power Electronics

Application status and perspective of high voltage direct current (H VDC) and power electronics technology in 2004 CIGRE are introduced. The issues covered include: the technical and economic challenges in HVDC and flexible AC transmission system (FACTS) application for large power and energy transfer, some new transmission projects based on HVDC and FACTS, and power electronics application and innovations in new areas.
A Study on the Quality Control of the Overlapping of Automobile Face Plate Assembly

The article analyzes and summarizes the methods for quality control during the development and production of automobile face plate assembly,and concludes the ideas and methods of the quality control of the overlapping of automobile face plate assembly,for the reference of its quality control.
Surgical management of fungal diseases of the chest.

The surgeon becomes concerned with mycotic diseases of the chest in three ways: endoscopy and biopsy techniques are often necessary to establish a diagnosis, the surgeon may treat patients with pulmonary mycoses that are unresponsive to medical therapy, or the surgeon may encounter fungal disease in the search for neoplasm. Surgical treatment usually consists of drainage or resection.
Bony cranial ornamentation linked to rapid evolution of gigantic theropod dinosaurs.

Exaggerated cranial structures such as crests and horns, hereafter referred to collectively as ornaments, are pervasive across animal species. These structures perform vital roles in visual communication and physical interactions within and between species. Yet the origin and influence of ornamentation on speciation and ecology across macroevolutionary time scales remains poorly understood for virtually all animals. Here, we explore correlative evolution of osseous cranial ornaments with large body size in theropod dinosaurs using a phylogenetic comparative framework. We find that body size evolved directionally toward phyletic giantism an order of magnitude faster in theropod species possessing ornaments compared with unadorned lineages. In addition, we find a body mass threshold below which bony cranial ornaments do not originate. Maniraptoriform dinosaurs generally lack osseous cranial ornaments despite repeatedly crossing this body size threshold. Our study provides novel, quantitative support for a shift in selective pressures on socio-sexual display mechanisms in theropods coincident with the evolution of pennaceous feathers. Many of the theropod dinosaurs, the group including Tyrannosaurus rex, had bony ornamentation on their skulls. Here, Gates et al. show that such ornaments are associated with greater body size and accelerated body size evolution in theropods; however, these relationships are absent in the maniraptoriform dinosaurs, which had evolved pennaceous feathers.
Selective ophthalmic artery chemosurgery (SOAC) for retinoblastoma: fluoroscopic time and radiation dose parameters. A baseline study

Objective To evaluate fluoroscopic time and radiation dose parameters, and factors affecting these parameters, during selective ophthalmic artery chemosurgery (SOAC) for retinoblastoma. Materials and methods Retrospective review from the prospective database of all patients with retinoblastoma treated with SOAC over a 5-year period (September 2009–January 2015) at a single institution after receiving institutional review board approval. Patient demographics, arterial approach, access device, side of treatment, number of SOAC cycles/patient, number of drugs/SOAC, and radiation parameters (outcome variables), including the fluoroscopic time, dose–area product (DAP), and total radiation dose, were obtained from the database. Generalized linear regression was used for univariate and multivariate analysis of the outcome variables. Results In 218 patients (M:F=94:124), 272 eyes were treated by 833 SOAC infusions during 792 procedures. Mean age, weight, SOAC cycle/patient, and drugs/cycle were 19±19.5 months, 11.4±6.4 kg, 2.72±1.6, and 2.48±0.8, respectively. Mean fluoroscopic time, DAP, and doses were 10.2±8.4 min, 218.7±240.8 cGy.cm 2 , and 42.3±41.4 mGy, respectively. Radiation parameters (fluoroscopic time, DAP, and dose) were significantly lower (p Conclusions In SOAC for retinoblastoma, the OA approach, microcatheter access, and unilateral treatment were associated with significantly lower radiation parameters. We established benchmark radiation parameters for retinoblastoma SOAC in our patient cohort.
Fast-ion transport by Alfvén eigenmodes above a critical gradient threshold

Experiments on the DIII-D tokamak have identified how multiple simultaneous Alfven eigenmodes (AEs) lead to overlapping wave-particle resonances and stochastic fast-ion transport in fusion grade plasmas [C. S. Collins et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 095001 (2016)]. The behavior results in a sudden increase in fast-ion transport at a threshold that is well above the linear stability threshold for Alfven instability. A novel beam modulation technique [W. W. Heidbrink et al., Nucl. Fusion 56, 112011 (2016)], in conjunction with an array of fast-ion diagnostics, probes the transport by measuring the fast-ion flux in different phase-space volumes. Well above the threshold, simulations that utilize the measured mode amplitudes and structures predict a hollow fast-ion profile that resembles the profile measured by fast-ion Dα spectroscopy; the modelling also successfully reproduces the temporal response of neutral-particle signals to beam modulation. The use of different modulated sources probes the details of phase-space transport by populating different regions in phase space and by altering the amplitude of the AEs. Both effects modulate the phase-space flows.
The influence of Involvement and participation, compensation, communication and work-life balance on Employee Engagement: A Case of Insurance Companies in Batticaloa District

Employee engagement is a fulfilling work-related state of mind characterized by feelings of energy, dedication, and more concentration towards role performance. This concept is rapidly gaining popularity and is used in workplace to retain quality employees. This study examines the factors that influence employee engagement and measures the overall level of employee engagement in insurance sector. Four main factors were identified such as involvement and participation; compensation; communication and work-life balance. To attain the objectives, the quantitative method was used and data were collected through questionnaires. A total of 210 questionnaires were distributed to the employees who are in marketing and distribution level in insurance companies in Batticaloa District. Only 202 questionnaires were received and used for further analysis. The data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis. The findings exhibited that, there were relationship between factors and employee engagement and also employee engagement of employees is in high level in insurance companies in Batticaloa District. However, all factors are positively and significantly correlated with employee engagement. Lastly, the regression analysis between factors and employee engagement indicated that only 48% of total variance of employee engagement was explained by factors of employee engagement. In conclusion, it is observed that involvement and participation, compensations and communication have influence on the employee engagement. This shows that employers need to develop a proper and well-structured engagement policies and practices in attaining high level of engagement among the employees. KEYWORDS: Employee Engagement, Involvement and Participation, Compensation, Communication and Work-life Balance
Animal Attributes Exploited by Humans (Nonfood Uses of Animals)

Summary There are many nonfood uses of animals some of which are for leather and furs, go back to almost a million years of human development. This chapter discusses the multiple nonfood uses of vertebrate animals by people. Live animals are the sources of wool; hair; some hormones; antitoxins; animal toxins; muscle power for riding, pulling, and carrying; higher odor senses, such as odor detection in dogs; and innate and learned behaviors, such as those in working dogs together with service and therapy animals. Postslaughter tissues employed by people include the following: hides for leather; pelage for furs; tissues, such as heart valves for transplanting as xenografts; animal macromolecules such as heparin, collagen, and hyaluronic acid for biomedical applications; animal by-products for fertilizers and additions to livestock feeds; and fats from adipose tissue for nonfood uses, such as biodiesel, soaps, lubricants, cosmetics, paints, and explosives.
Imagining the Supernatural North

The introduction to Imagining the Supernatural North invokes Margaret Atwood's “True North,” and in some ways this book is a long and colorful coda to that definitive essay. It explores the notion ...
Positive, and Transfer, Operators on Measurable Spaces: General Properties

The notions of positive operators and transfer operators are central objects in this book. We will discuss various properties of these operators and their specific realization in the subsequent chapters. Here we first focus on the most general properties and basic definitions related to these operators.
Assay method comparison studies

This chapter presents assay methods comparison study. The evaluation of new assay methods or test-kits is a common exercise in the clinical laboratory. Among the many technical and economic points that have to be considered in assessing the characteristics of a new assay method will be the degree of correspondence between the test results delivered by the new assay method and those obtained by a reference assay method for the same analyte. In the development and evaluation of a new assay method, one of the primary concerns of the analyst will be the verification of the method's accuracy. For many analytes, particularly those that are of ill-understood or heterogeneous molecular composition, no such consensus reference framework exists. The accuracy of assay methods for such analytes cannot, therefore, be established in terms of an assay comparison study. An assay comparison study provides the most direct approach to assessing this question, any systematic discrepancy between the results delivered by the new and existing assay methods indicating the need for a new clinical reference framework for the results of the new assay method. In this situation, any systematic disparity between the test results is of an entirely relative nature. As neither method has any valid claim to represent the true amount of analyte present in a test specimen, they could of course agree completely about the wrong results, one method being as biased as the other.
Herpes zoster infections in systemic lupus erythematosus: risk factors and outcome.

OBJECTIVE To determine factors that influence the frequency and outcome of herpes zoster infection in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS In this case-central retrospective study, patients with a history of zoster infection were identified from our computerized database of 348 patients with SLE. Medical records were reviewed to establish activity of SLE at the time of zoster, as well as complications of the zoster infection. RESULTS Fifty-five episodes of zoster occurred among 47 (13.5%) patients, at a rate of 16 episodes/1000 patient-years of followup. Dissemination occurred in 6 episodes (11%), and was more frequent during immunosuppressive therapy [odds ratio (OR) = 4.0]. Bacterial superinfection occurred in 5 (9%), resulting in one death from sepsis, and was increased among patients receiving prednisone > or = 60 mg daily (OR = 4.1). Compared to those without zoster, patients with zoster were significantly more likely to have previously had serious disease manifestations including nephritis, thrombocytopenia or hemolytic anemia, and to have received treatment with cyclophosphamide (all p < or = 0.05). However, 65% of zoster episodes occurred during mild or inactive SLE, when the majority of patients were receiving less than 20 mg prednisone daily and no immunosuppressive therapy. CONCLUSION Herpes zoster infections occur at increased frequency among patients with SLE compared to the general population, and carry significant morbidity. Patients who have had severe manifestations of lupus are at greatest risk of zoster, though not necessarily at the time of disease flare or immunosuppressive therapy. If disease activity allows, a reduction in prednisone dosage may reduce the risk of bacterial superinfection during zoster episodes.
Abstract 2870: A specific pan-FGFR inhibitor has antitumor activity against prostate cancer patient derived xenografts, PDX, expressing high FGFR1

Prostate Cancer (PCa) is one of the most commonly diagnosed malignancies in men. Patients with advanced metastatic PCa have effective treatment options, but none of them are curative. Androgen deprivation is the most effective therapy, but growth of the cancer resumes over time in most cases, and the disease progresses to castration-resistant PCa (CRPC). Bone is the main site of CRPC progression. Acquired (or inherent) resistance mechanisms to second line therapy options for CRPC eventually lead to disease recurrence and, ultimately, death. The underlying mechanisms of PCa progression to first or second line therapy options are diverse and include fibroblast growth factor (FGF) axis activation. Indeed, we previously reported that blockade of FGFRs with dovitinib (TKI258) (Novartis Pharmaceuticals), a receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) with potent activity against FGFR1-3 and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) has clinical activity in men with CRPC and bone metastases (PMID: 25186177), thus providing direction for therapy development of FGFR blockade in PCa. Because dovitinib was withdrawn from the clinic by Novartis, we seek to identify an alternative agent with activity against FGFR1 as a candidate for therapy development. With that goal, we tested the antitumor activity of a specific pan-FGFR TKI, JNJ-42756493 (JNJ) (Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of JohnsonJ 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2870.
'Breast cancer won't kill ya in the breast': Broaching a rationale for chemotherapy during the surgical consultation for early-stage breast cancer.

Abstract Objective To examine how, and for what interactional purpose, a surgeon raises the risk of death with an early-stage breast cancer patient. Method Single-case analysis of a recorded surgical consultation, using conversation analysis. Results The surgeon not only negotiates the surgical treatment decision with the patient, she provides an overview of what her non-surgical treatment is likely to entail. Analysis reveals how the surgeon addresses interactional challenges when providing this overview, including how to broach the rationale for administering chemotherapy, the possibility that cancer could spread to vital organs and prove fatal. To do this, the surgeon orients to the possibility that the patient has misconceptions about her risk of dying from breast cancer. She uses negatively-formulated assertions to invoke these possible misconceptions, making correction relevant and providing a point of entry into delicate interactional territory. Conclusion The surgeon draws upon possible patient misconceptions to broach the rationale for administering adjuvant chemotherapy. Practice Implications The surgical consultation is typically the first treatment-related consultation newly-diagnosed breast cancer patients have and represents an opportunity to educate patients and prepare them for future treatment decisions. The challenges of providing and receiving such overviews, and how they may influence future treatment decisions, merit consideration.
Using an Experiential Learning Assignment to Teach BSW Students about Culture and End-of-Life Care Planning.

ABSTRACTIn response to needs identified by the Institute of Medicine and the National Association of Social Workers, this article describes an experiential assignment to increase BSW students’ skil...
Living probes as calibration standards for acoustic microfluidics

Acoustic microfluidics is promoted as an enabling technology for numerous applications in medicine and biology; however, adoption of these solutions in clinical and industrial settings is hampered by inconsistent performance and poor reproducibility. Though computational modeling and laboratory-scale demonstrations anticipate significant advantages for acoustofluidic unit operations including mixing, sorting/separation, and isolation, few technologies have realized this potential. A lack of standard tools and methods for assessing and comparing device performance represents a critical barrier to progress in the field. Here, we introduce a living probe that allows accurate and dynamically responsive measurement of the acoustic pressure within a device. Motile unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (CR) probe their environment and naturally swim against an imposed force field to fill complicated shapes. Steady-state distributions of swimming cells can be related to the field shape and strength to more completely describe the pressure field (versus passive particles that reach terminal distributions at nodal locations). Significantly, CR cells continuously respond to their environment, which enables real-time observation of the system response to varying operating conditions (e.g., frequency and/or drive voltage). We present the results that demonstrate correlation of CR cell distributions with pressure fields in simple one- and two-dimensional shapes, as well as more complex architectures.
Proof and argumentation in K-12 mathematics: a review of conceptions, content, and support

Current international curriculum frameworks and research advocate for K-12 mathematics to emphasize proof and argumentation. This review synthesizes literature related to conceptions, content, and ...
U.S. adults' attitudes toward lowering nicotine levels in cigarettes.

Introduction This study assessed U.S. adults’ attitudes toward lowering the nicotine levels in cigarettes to make them less addictive. Methods Data from the 2018 SummerStyles, a web-based panel survey of U.S. adults aged ≥18 years (n=4,037) fielded in June–July, were analyzed in 2018. Respondents were asked: Do you favor or oppose requiring cigarette makers to lower the nicotine levels in cigarettes so that they are less addictive? Responses were strongly favor, somewhat favor, somewhat oppose, and strongly oppose. Sociodemographic correlates of favorability (strongly favor or somewhat favor) were assessed using multivariable Poisson regression. Results Eighty-one percent of adults in 2018 strongly or somewhat favored requiring cigarette makers to lower the nicotine levels in cigarettes to make them less addictive, including 80.6% of current cigarette smokers, 84.3% of former smokers, and 81.3% of never smokers. Favorability was 71.5% among current noncigarette tobacco product users and 81.9% among nonusers. Following adjustment, slight variations in favorability existed by sex, age, race/ethnicity, and other tobacco product use. Conclusions Most adults favor requiring cigarette makers to lower the nicotine levels in cigarettes, including 8 in 10 current cigarette smokers. These findings can help inform the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recent proposal to pursue a nicotine reduction standard for cigarettes.
Challenges To Medicare For All Remain Daunting

Medicare for All plans have many advantages over the status quo. Yet the challenges facing such plans are immense, reflecting their ambitions to achieve universal coverage through a single federal ...
Hemodynamic and Laboratory Changes during Incremental Transition from Twice to Thrice-Weekly Hemodialysis.

Objective: Incremental hemodialysis (HD) is a strategy utilized to gradually intensify dialysis among patients with incident end-stage renal disease. However, there are scarce data about which patients’ clinic status changes by increasing treatment frequency. Methods: We retrospectively examined statistically de-identified data from 569 patients who successfully transitioned from twice- to thrice-weekly HD (2007–2011) and compared the differences in monthly-averaged values of hemodynamic and laboratory indices during the 3 months before and after the transition with the values at 1 month prior to transition serving as the reference. Results: At 3 months after transitioning from twice- to thrice-weekly HD, ultrafiltration volume decreased by 0.5 (95% CI 0.3–0.6) L/session among 189 patients (33%) with weekly interdialytic weight gain (IDWG) ≥5.4 kg/week, and increased by 0.4 (95% CI 0.3–0.5) L/session among 186 patients (33%) with weekly IDWG <3.3 kg/week. Weekly IDWG consistently increased after the transition irrespective of baseline values (1.7 [95% CI 1.5–1.9] kg/week). Pre-HD systolic blood pressure (SBP) decreased by 12 (95% CI 9–14) mm Hg among 177 patients (31%) with baseline pre-HD SBP ≥160 mm Hg, which coincided with a decreasing trend in post-HD body weight (1.3 [95% CI 0.8–1.7] kg). Discussion: In conclusion, patients who increased HD frequency from twice to thrice weekly treatment experienced increased weekly IDWG and better pre-HD SBP control with lower post-HD body weight.
Chekhov, intelligentsia, and the ethics of small deeds: a biocritical essay*

This is an inquiry into Anton Chekhov’s embodied existence and the interfaces between his biography and intellectual pursuits. Chekhov’s art serves here as a clue to his affective life and performa...
CHAPTER 25 – Power Series

Publisher Summary This chapter provides an overview of the power series. Power series are series built from power functions in the following way, sum = a0 +a1x + a2x2 + … + anxn + …, where the sequence a0, a1, a2… may depend on the index n but not on x. One importance of power series is that it gives the freedom to calculate with them as if they are polynomials. The chapter explains how to use Mathematica's built-in formal Taylor series and presents the Taylor Series approximation of Bessel function. The absolute value function has a series that can be built up from powers; however, this is not in the form to call power series.
Patient with an Autoimmune Disease

There are almost 100 distinct autoimmune diseases that have been discovered at this time, some of which can cause significant pain. Autoimmune disease can be a challenge in inpatient management given the complex nature of the myriad of disorders. While in the hospital, these disorders can be challenging to treat. This chapter will focus on some of the more common autoimmune diseases and the diagnosis and treatment in the hospital setting. A short introduction to the specific pathophysiology and diagnosis of the most common disorders will be followed by a discussion of treatment. The focus will be on established and novel treatments for “flares” that often occur in these patients and can be the focus of hospitalization. Challenges to pain control will also be discussed including interactions with autoimmune drug treatments. Finally, this chapter will lightly touch on the pain assessment tools relevant to these diseases and then focus on challenges in treatment and transition of care.
A Place for Persons: The Formal Systems of Smedslund and Ossorio

Jan Smedslund of the University of Oslo and the late Peter G. Ossorio of the University of Colorado both created innovative conceptual systems for use by behavioral scientists. Smedslund named his system “Psycho-logic” and described it as an axiomatization of “what persons take for granted about every person” (2012c, p. 661). Ossorio called his system the “Person Concept” and characterized it as a formal system providing access to all the facts and possible facts concerning persons and their behavior. My aim is to show the similarities and differences between these systems with respect to methodology, primary concept, and universality, and to place them in a wider, historical context. Hopefully the paper will contribute to an appreciation of the value of systematic delineation of fundamental concepts in behavioral science, as well as an understanding of two different ways of going about the task.
Hydrogen Supply: Cost Estimate for Hydrogen Pathways--Scoping Analysis, January 22, 2002--July 22, 2002

A report showing a comparative scooping economic analysis of 19 pathways for producing, handling, distributing, and dispensing hydrogen for fuel cell vehicle applications.
The Epistemic Significance of Emotional Experience

Some philosophers claim that emotions are, at best, hindrances to the discovery of evaluative truths, while others omit them entirely from their epistemology of value. I argue, however, that this i...
Why Physical Barriers Backfire: How Immigration Enforcement Deters Return and Increases Asylum Applications:

What, if any, effect do physical barriers have on cross-border population movements? The foundational claim that barriers reduce migration flows remains unsupported. We conceptualize barriers as a ...
The performance of foreign owned, minority owned, and holding company owned banks in the U.S.

Abstract The regulatory and legal environment shaping the constantly evolving U.S. bank structure is pervasive, making it necessary for regulators to simultaneously consider interrelated aspects of that structure. This paper investigates the simultaneous effects of foreign, minority and holding company ownership upon bank performance with both aggregated and disaggregated models. The aggregated results suggest that foreign owned bank performance is similar to non-attribute banks, but that the performance of minority and holding company owned banks provides some cause for concern. The disaggregated results provide additional insights particularly with respect to U.S. banks owned by foreign banks and black owned banks. Policy implications are discussed.
Device Pocket Challenges in Elderly and Thin Individuals.

Aging results in loss of subcutaneous body fat as well as lean body mass. Elderly patients are also more likely to require cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIED) due to rising cardiovascular disease prevalence. A majority of the currently available devices require placement in a pocket created in the subcutaneous space between the subcutaneous fat tissue and the underlying chest wall muscle. Deficient subcutaneous fat tissue can result in device protrusion and even erosion through the skin. This can lead to significant morbidity and mortality especially when associated with device infection and need for device system extraction. This article reviews the scope of the problem and some of the strategies that can be employed to address the lack of subcutaneous soft tissue at the time of device implant.
Designing and Development of a Handheld Portable Electrochemical Analyzer for Flexible Hybrid Electronics

This paper is focused on the design and fabrication of a fully functional handheld and portable electrochemical analyzer for flexible hybrid electronics applications. A three-electrode sensor was fabricated from copper tape using laser etching process. The sensor was connected to a custom designed and programmed printed circuit board to measure the sensor response through electrochemical techniques for a large variation of chemical ion concentrations. The electronic circuit can perform cyclic voltammogram and chronoamperogram tests. After calibration, the measurements can be wirelessly transmitted to a smartphone and enables the user to view post analysis results including the analyte concentrations. The system is power efficient running off a 3.7V lithium polymer battery pulling ~2.8 mA.
The Role of Negligence Duty Analysis in Employment Discrimination Cases

In a concurring opinion in the 1989 decision Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, Justice O’Connor first referred to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act as a "statutory employment 'tort.'" Since then, the Supreme Court and federal courts generally have reified Justice O’Connor’s words, gradually altering the legal perception of employment discrimination legislation from its intended nature as a set of civil rights statutes aimed at ridding the nation of a pernicious social problem to a narrowly tailored provision of compensation for private wrongs. Courts have done so, in part, by importing doctrine from the common law of torts — particularly in the realm of factual causation and scope of liability — to interpret and fill supposed gaps in the statutes. This Article asserts that courts’ embrace of tort concepts runs even deeper than they have expressly stated — that courts have drawn not only upon the concepts of causation and scope of liability (proximate cause), but also engaged the question of whether employers owe a duty not to take allegedly discriminatory actions. The Article urges that use of duty reasoning is problematic for two torts-internal reasons. First, the nature of wrongfulness in employment discrimination cases is not analogous to negligence or, indeed, to any tort. It is therefore improper for courts to apply tort conceptions of wrongfulness to answer questions of liability in employment discrimination cases. Second, if employment discrimination claims are, as the Supreme Court has referred to them, statutory torts, then drawing upon common-law duty reasoning is improper, as it is an incorrect application of the law of statutory torts.
Knowledge sharing practices and technology use norms in dispersed development teams

Dispersed, cross-functional development teams—a particular type of virtual team—confront a wide range of knowledge-based challenges in their dispersed work. Encompassing diverse sources of task-relevant knowledge, such teams present rich opportunities for exchanging and combining knowledge—activities at the heart of an organization’s ability to innovate (Grant 1996; Schumpeter 1934). Yet empirical studies from distinct research streams indicate that both knowledge diversity and geographic separation also challenge the effective exchange and ability to leverage knowledge. This study explored how such teams interact to overcome the barriers and reap the benefits of their “built-in” knowledge diversity. In particular, we sought to understand (1) how teams use various collaborative technologies at their disposal to share knowledge and (2) whether shared—or disparate—expectations around the use of those technologies influenced knowledge sharing practices. In-depth, multi-method field research of dispersed new product development teams in a multinational company forms the empirical basis of this work.
Experimental investigation of subsonic turbulent separated boundary layers on an airfoil

Detailed measurements of flow fields associated with low-speed turbulent boundary layers have been made for the 17% thick GA(W)-1 airfoil section at nominal angles of attack of 10, 14, and 18 deg; Reynolds number 2.2 million; and Mach number 0.13. The data include extensive pressure and velocity surveys of the pre- and post-separated regions on the airfoil and the associated wake. Integrated boundary-layer characteristics, including regions of separation on the airfoil, are also presented. The results indicate steep gradients of displacement thickness, momentum thickness, shape factor, and the separation streamline from the point of separation to the trailing edge of the airfoil. The present tests reveal that the region of flow reversal terminates within a suprisingly short distance of less than 20% chord downstream from the trailing edge for the test range of angle of attack.
Brown Adipose Tissue Thermogenesis During Aging and Senescence

We have found that cold- and norepinephrine-induced brown adipose tissue (BAT) nonshiveringthermogenesis (NST) is significantly lower in old male Fischer 344 rats and is associatedwith the decreased ability of these animals to maintain homeothermy. This decline in BATthermogenesis is not as great in females. Although the mechanism(s) underlying this genderdifference in the age-related decrease in brown fat NST are not completely elucidated, theydo not appear to reflect decreased sympathetic neural activity of BAT in the older males vs.females. Rather, our investigations, strongly suggest that the blunted cold-induced heatproduction of BAT reflects less functional BAT. The fact that the older animals have less functionalBAT than do their younger counterparts may predispose them to the accumulation of excessbody fat. Our studies have also found that near the end of the natural life of these rats, theyenter a state of senescence that can be identified by spontaneous rapid body weight loss,resulting from decreased food intake. In this state, the rats are considerably more susceptibleto cold than are comparably aged presenescent (body weight stable) rats of the samechronological age. The greater hypothermia exhibited by the senescent vs. presenescent rats during coldexposure is associated with a significant reduction in the amount of functional brown fat andin the amount of heat each brown fat cell can generate. It is the intent of this review to discussthe findings of these investigations.
The Inefficiency of Mens Rea

In "The Decline of Innocence," Sanford Kadish presents an eloquent defense of the notion of mens rea against Lady Wooton's famous call for its elimination. His basic thought is that the criminal law's mental state requirement reflects our commitment to values of autonomy. He writes: Much of our commitment to democratic values, to human dignity and self-determination, to the value of the individual, turns on the pivot of a view of man as a responsible agent entitled to be praised or blamed depending upon his free choice of conduct. A view of men "merely as alterable, predictable, curable or manipulatable things" is the foundation of a very different social order indeed.'
Potential DSM-5 and RDoC Synergy for Mental Health Research, Treatment, and Health Policy Advances

In the context of the recent 2013 publication of the fifth edition of the American Psychiatric Association's (APA's) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5; APA, 2013), there ...
The influence of contraception, abortion, and natural family planning on divorce rates as found in the 2006–2010 National Survey of Family Growth

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of contraception, abortion, and natural family planning (NFP) on divorce rates of US women of reproductive age. The variables of importance ...
Differences in Cancer Information-Seeking Behavior, Preferences, and Awareness Between Cancer Survivors and Healthy Controls: A National, Population-Based Survey

Background. No research has examined how cancer diagnosis and treatment might alter information source preferences or opinions. Methods. We examined data from 719 cancer survivors (CS group) and 2012 matched healthy controls (NCC group) regarding cancer-related information-seeking behavior, preferences, and awareness from the population-based 2003 Health Information National Trends Survey. Results. The CS group reported greater consumption of cancer-related information, but the CS and NCC groups did not differ in information source use or preferences. The CS group was more confident of their ability to get cancer information, reported more trust in health care professionals and television as cancer information sources, but evaluated their recent cancer information-seeking experiences more negatively than the NCC group. Awareness of cancer information resources was surprisingly low in both the CS and NCC groups. Conclusions. Cancer diagnosis and treatment subtly alters cancer information-seeking preferences and experience. However, awareness and use of cancer information resources was relatively low regardless of personal history of cancer.
A SYSTEMS APPROACH TO STUDIES OF CREATIVITY AND CONSCIOUSNESS

Carl Gustav Jung envisioned the human personality as a system with vertical and horizontal dimensions. The former had to do with depth, while the latter can be understood as a coordinate system with four quadrants, or functions, each representing both a psychological process and a personality type in which it is dominant. These functions are termed sensation, thinking, feeling and intuition. Several investigators have found that pairs of these functions are useful to describe four typical types of social scientists. These are termed the sensing–thinking or Analytical Scientist, the intuition–thinking or Conceptual Theorist, the intuition–feeling or Conceptual Humanist, and the sensing–feeling or the Particular Humanist. Each is described using examples of scientists from the fields of creativity and consciousness studies, and suggestions are offered for the implementation of this model. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Blood flow velocity quantification using split-spectrum amplitude-decorrelation angiography with optical coherence tomography

The split-spectrum amplitude-decorrelation angiography (SSADA) algorithm was recently developed as a method for imaging blood flow in the human retina without the use of phase information. In order to enable absolute blood velocity quantification, in vitro phantom experiments are performed to correlate the SSADA signal at multiple time scales with various preset velocities. A linear model relating SSADA measurements to absolute flow velocities is derived using the phantom data. The operating range for the linear model is discussed along with its implication for velocity quantification with SSADA in a clinical setting.
Finite-Element Simulations and Probabilistic Fracture Assessments of the Response of Alternate Rifling Geometries

A 3-D finite-element model was used to simulate the severe and localized thermal/pressure transients and the resulting stresses experienced by a rifled ceramic-barrel with a steel outer-liner; the focus of the simulations was on the influence of non-traditional rifling geometries on the thermoelastic- and pressure-stresses generated during a single firing event. In order to minimize computational requirements, a twisted segment of the barrel length based on rotational symmetry was used. Using this simplification, the model utilized uniform heating and pressure across the ID surface via a time-dependent convective coefficient and pressure generated by the propellant gasses. Results indicated that the unique rifling geometries had only a limited influence on the maximum circumferential (hoop) stresses and temperatures when compared with more traditional rifling configurations because of the compressive thermal stresses developed at the heated (and rifled) surface.
Diagnostic Evaluation and Management of Hoarseness

Hoarseness is a common symptom that can result from a wide spectrum of underlying causes ranging from the common cold to a malignancy. A framework for diagnostic evaluation is presented based on categorizing the myriad of causes by how they interfere with the voice production mechanism. Triaging of cases by necessity or urgency of laryngoscopy is assisted by forming a global index of suspicion based on targeted history taking. Laryngoscopy is required in most cases to obtain a diagnosis for the hoarseness. Treatments commonly prescribed for hoarseness are critically examined in this article. To listen to audio clips of patients with different types of hoarseness, please visit our website, www.medical.theclinics.com.