cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Obesity promotes PhIP-induced small intestinal carcinogenesis in hCYP1A-db/db mice: involvement of mutations and DNA hypermethylation of Apc

Obesity is associated with an increased risk of cancer. To study the promotion of dietary carcinogen-induced gastrointestinal cancer by obesity, we employed 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) to induce intestinal tumorigenesis in CYP1A-humanized (hCYP1A) mice, in which mouse Cyp1a1/1a2 was replaced with human CYP1A1/1A2 Obesity was introduced in hCYP1A mice by breeding with Lepr(db/+) mice to establish the genetically induced obese hCYP1A-Lepr(db/db) mice or by feeding hCYP1A mice a high-fat diet. PhIP induced the formation of small intestinal tumors at the ages of weeks 28-40 in obese hCYP1A mice, but not in lean hCYP1A mice. No tumors were found in colon and other gastrointestinal organs in the lean or obese mice. Using immunohistochemistry (IHC), we found strong positive staining of NF-κB p65, pSTAT3 and COX2 as well as elevated levels of nuclear β-catenin (Ctnnb1) in small intestinal tumors, but not in normal tissues. By sequencing Apc and Ctnnb1 genes, we found that most PhIP-induced small intestinal tumors in obese mice carried only a single heterozygous mutation in Apc By bisulfite-sequencing of CpG islands of Apc, we found DNA hypermethylation in a CpG cluster located in its transcription initiation site, which most likely caused the inactivation of the wild-type Apc allele. Our findings demonstrate that PhIP-induced small intestinal carcinogenesis in hCYP1A-db/db mice is promoted by obesity and involves Apc mutation and inactivation by DNA hypermethylation. This experimental result is consistent with the association of obesity and the increased incidence of small intestinal cancer in humans in recent decades.
Rethinking Chaco as a System

ABSTRACTArchaeologists working inside and outside of Chaco Canyon have tended to consider all communities exhibiting Chacoan architecture as participating in some kind of regional system. This article considers exactly what it means to be a “system” and evaluates whether or not the evidence from great house communities and Chaco Canyon meet the criteria of regular interaction, interdependency, and unification. Based on assessments of the Chaco World database and the evaluations by the other contributors to this issue, this article concludes that only a small portion of the “Chaco World” closest to Chaco Canyon likely fit the profile of a systemic entity. Most great house communities, however, did not participate in a region-wide system of any kind. The concluding section considers how the shared material culture seen across the Chaco World could have emerged without the accompanying development of an integrated regional system.
The Synergy of Scientometric Analysis and Knowledge Mapping with Topic Models: Modelling the Development Trajectories of Information Security and Cyber-Security Research

An important part of an organisation’s mission is protecting its information assets from inside or outside threats. As the information environment has become more diverse and inclusive, security concern has shifted from information assets resided in the organisation to information assets and networked devices exposed to broader cyberspace, such as cloud or Internet of things environment and mobile Internet. Organisations have to keep up with the knowledge and trends in information security and cyber-security to safeguard their information assets. Knowledge mapping will aid in this sort of knowledge management process. Mandatory standards and government regulations help industries establish best practices in cyber-security. Knowledge mapping and scientometric analysis across disciplines also provide a tracking system to notify researchers and practitioners should the new solutions and technology facilitating threat detection emerge. While various topics in information security and cyber-security have been extensively investigated in academia, identifying salient themes and development trajectories in information security and cyber-security research is relatively unexplored. This study employs scientometric analysis and topic modelling to develop knowledge maps that visualise core concepts associated with information security and cyber-security research over time and across disciplines. With scientometric analysis and knowledge mapping using topic models, this study identifies the commonality, difference, and relationship between information security and cyber-security research domains. This approach could gain insights into how these research areas have evolved and might be improved concerning learning and teaching cyber-security. The proposed approach to developing the knowledge map may be extended to other research areas.
Economic Analysis of Bisphosphonate Use after Distal Radius Fracture for Prevention of Hip Fracture.

Background: Osteoporosis is a common condition among the elderly population, and is associated with an increased risk of fracture. One of the most common fragility fractures involve the distal radius, and are associated with risk of subsequent fragility fracture. Early treatment with bisphosphonates has been suggested to decrease the population hip fracture burden. However, there have been no prior economic evaluations of the routine treatment of distal radius fracture patients with bisphosphonates, or the implications on hip fracture rate reduction. Methods: Age specific distal radius fracture incidence, age specific hip fracture rates after distal radius fracture with and without risendronate treatment, cost of risendronate treatment, risk of atypical femur fracture with bisphosphonate treatment, and cost of hip fracture treatment were obtained from the literature. A unique stochastic Markov chain decision tree model was constructed from derived estimates. The results were evaluated with comparative statistics, and a one-way threshold analysis performed to identify the break-even cost of bisphosphonate treatment. Results: Routine treatment of the current population of all women over the age of 65 suffering a distal radius fracture with bisphosphonates would avoid 94,888 lifetime hip fractures at the cost of 19,464 atypical femur fractures and $19,502,834,240, or on average $2,186,617,527 annually, which translates to costs of $205,534 per hip fracture avoided. The breakeven price point of annual bisphosphonate therapy after distal radius fracture for prevention of hip fractures would be approximately $70 for therapy annually. Conclusion: Routine treatment of all women over 65 suffering distal radius fracture with bisphosphonates would result in a significant reduction in the overall hip fracture burden, however at a substantial cost of over a $2 billion dollars annually. To optimize efficiency of treatment either patients may be selectively treated, or the cost of annual bisphosphonate treatment should be reduced to cost-effective margins.
Using voice to create hospital progress notes: Description of a mobile application and supporting system integrated with a commercial electronic health record

Abstract We describe the development and design of a smartphone app-based system to create inpatient progress notes using voice, commercial automatic speech recognition software, with text processing to recognize spoken voice commands and format the note, and integration with a commercial EHR. This new system fits hospital rounding workflow and was used to support a randomized clinical trial testing whether use of voice to create notes improves timeliness of note availability, note quality, and physician satisfaction with the note creation process. The system was used to create 709 notes which were placed in the corresponding patient’s EHR record. The median time from pressing the Send button to appearance of the formatted note in the Inbox was 8.8 min. It was generally very reliable, accepted by physician users, and secure. This approach provides an alternative to use of keyboard and templates to create progress notes and may appeal to physicians who prefer voice to typing.
Understanding Our Groups, Understanding Ourselves: The Importance of Collective Identity Clarity and Collective Coherence to the Self

The multiple group identities we all maintain (gender, cultural, religious, or professional) are critical to both self-knowledge and self-understanding. However, consideration of self-concept clarity at the collective level is in its infancy. The current chapter introduces two constructs that are integral to collective self-concept clarity. First, “collective identity clarity” refers to one’s understanding of the norms and values of each of the individual groups to which they belong. Second, “collective coherence” refers to the process of integrating all of one’s distinct group identities in a coherent structure. We review research relevant to each of these two components, highlight evidence linking collective self-concept clarity to psychological well-being, and outline avenues for future study.
Correction to: Hypervigilance to a Gluten-Free Diet and Decreased Quality of Life in Teenagers and Adults with Celiac Disease.

The original version of the article unfortunately contained formatting errors in Table 3. The correct version of Table 3 is given in the Correction article.
Assessment of tumor hypoxia with radiolabeled metronidazole

3823 Introduction: This study was aimed to develop 99mTc- and 68Ga-labeled metronidazole (MN) using ethylenedicysteine (EC) as a chelator and evaluate their potential use to assess tumor hypoxia. 99mTc (6hr, 140 keV) is for SPECT and 68Ga (68 min, 511 keV) is for PET. Methods: EC-MN was labeled with 99mTc in the presence of tin (II) chloride. Labeling EC-MN with 68Ga was achieved by adding 68GaCl3 (2 mCi with 3.4 μg cold GaCl3). In vitro cellular uptakes of 99mTc- and 68Ga-EC-MN were obtained in various types of tumor cells at 0.5-4 hrs. Tissue distribution and PET imaging of 99mTc and 68Ga-EC-MN were evaluated in breast tumor-bearing rats at 0.5-4 hrs. Tumor oxygen tension was measured using an oxygen probe. In a pilot study, cancer patients were administered 30 mCi 99mTc-EC-MN and SPECT images were acquired at 3 hrs. Results: There were similar cellular uptakes (2-10%) between 99mTc- and 68Ga-EC-MN at 0.5-4 hrs. In vivo biodistribution of 99mTc- and 68Ga-EC-MN in breast tumor-bearing rats showed increased tumor-to-blood and tumor-to-muscle count density ratios as a function of time. Planar, SPECT and PET images confirmed that the tumors could be visualized clearly with 99mTc- and 68Ga-EC-MN. Oxygen tension in tumor tissue was determined to be 6-10 mmHg compared to 40-50 mmHg in normal muscle tissue. Conclusions: The results indicated that it is feasible to noninvasively use 99mTc- and 68Ga-EC-MN for the assessment of tumor hypoxia by PET or SPECT. These agents may be useful in selecting and evaluating cancer therapy.
Whole-Genome mRNA Gene Expression Differs Between Patients With and Without Delirium.

Objective:To identify differences in gene expression between patients with in-hospital delirium from a known etiology (urinary tract infection [UTI]) and patients with delirium from an unknown etio...
Examining the Impacts of Rater Effects in Performance Assessments

Rater effects such as severity, centrality, and misfit are recurrent concerns in performance assessments. Despite their persistence in operational assessment settings and frequent discussion in res...
Acute Thrombosis of Bioprosthetic Mitral Valve Secondary to Peri-Operative VA-ECMO; The Dangers of Flow Stasis in the Left Atrium

Case report Veno-Arterial (VA) ECMO has been used to help patients recover from cardiogenic shock. VA-ECMO can complicate recovery due to the increase in afterload and decreased flow through the left sided chambers. We present a case of acute bioprosthetic mitral valve (MV) thrombosis in a patient who developed peri-operative cardiogenic shock. A 63 year-old male admitted for acute systolic heart failure found to have coronary artery disease and valvular heart disease underwent MV replacement, tricuspid valve repair and three vessel coronary artery bypass grafting. He developed intraoperative mediastinal bleeding requiring fresh frozen plasma, cryoprecipitate, and factor VII. The patient was unable to be weaned off cardiopulmonary bypass secondary to right ventricular failure. The patient remained centrally cannulated for VA-ECMO and had placement of a femoral intra-aortic balloon pump. The patient was transferred to the ICU in shock and on multiple vasopressors. Due to ongoing mediastinal bleeding, initiation of systemic anticoagulation was delayed by 48 hours. The intraoperative transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) initially demonstrated a normally functioning bioprosthetic MV. The final intraoperative TEE images following conversion to VA-ECMO showed a poorly opening bioprosthetic MV, Image 1 . A TEE on postoperative day (POD) 2 demonstrated abnormal mobility of the bioprosthetic MV leaflets, left appendage thrombus and smoke-like echogenicity in the left atrium, Image 2 . On POD 5, a TEE demonstrated mean MV gradient of 22 mmHg and worsening of MV mobility secondary to thrombus, Image 3 . Because of concern for MV thrombosis, the patient was taken to the catheterization lab for placement of LV catheter to confirm MV stenosis. A thrombolytic agent was infused via a pulmonary artery (PA) catheter in order to attempt lysis of the MV thrombus. On POD 9, the PA systolic pressures reduced from 50 mmHg to 30 mmHg and the VA-ECMO flow requirements were reduced from 5 to 3.5 Liters per minute. Despite this small improvement in hemodynamics his overall clinical status did not improve. Ultimately the family decided to withdraw care. A post-mortem examination confirmed MV stenosis secondary to thrombosis of the valve extending into the left atrial appendage. Patients in cardiogenic shock who are placed on VA-ECMO are extremely sensitive to the high afterload created by retrograde arterial flow. Our patient developed severe thrombotic MV stenosis secondary to left atrial circulatory stasis when VA-ECMO was initiated. Maintaining adequate left sided flow is crucial to reduce the risk of thrombosis.
Diffusion of pro- and anti-false information tweets: the Black Panther movie case

Much has been made of the importance of the speed at which disinformation diffuses through online social media and this speed is an important aspect to consider when designing interventions. An additional complexity is that there can be different types of false information that travel from and through different communities who respond in various ways within the same social media conversation. Here we present a case study/example analysis exploring the speed and reach of three different types of false stories found in the Black Panther movie Twitter conversation and comparing the diffusion of these stories with the community responses to them. We find that the negative reaction to fake stories of racially-motivated violence whether in the form of debunking quotes or satirical posts can spread at speeds that are magnitudes higher than the original fake stories. Satire posts, while less viral than debunking quotes, appear to have longer lifetimes in the conversation. We also found that the majority of mixed community members who originally spread fake stories switched to attacking them. Our work serves as an example of the importance of analyzing the diffusion of both different types of disinformation and the different responses to it within the same overall conversation.
Dynamic origin-destination matrix calibration for large-scale network simulators

Abstract This paper considers offline dynamic OD (origin-destination) calibration problems for large-scale simulation-based network models. We formulate the problem as a simulation-based optimization (SO) problem and propose a scalable and efficient metamodel SO algorithm. For a network with n links and a problem with T time intervals and Z OD pairs per time interval, the corresponding SO problem is a high-dimensional problem of dimension T · Z . At each iteration of the SO algorithm, we solve a set of T independent analytical and differentiable metamodel optimization problems, each of dimension Z. The T analytical problems are constrained by n nonlinear equality constraints. Hence, they scale linearly with the number of links in the network and independently of other network attributes, such as the dimension of the route choice set or the link lengths. The temporal correlation, of the link performance metrics across time intervals, is approximately captured through the parameters of the metamodel. Since the T analytical optimization problems are decoupled and can be solved independently, the proposed approach scales independently of the number of calibration time intervals, making it suitable for the calibration of demand over numerous time periods. The approach is efficient and scalable. It is suitable to address high-dimensional calibration problems for large-scale network models. It is benchmarked on both a toy network and a Singapore network versus two general-purpose algorithms: SPSA and a derivative-free pattern search algorithm. The validation experiments indicate that the proposed method identifies points with objective function estimates that outperform the benchmark methods by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude. As the problem dimension and the temporal correlation, across time intervals, increase, so does the magnitude by which the proposed method outperforms the benchmark methods. The Singapore case study considers a problem of dimension 16,200. This is 2 orders of magnitude higher than what is currently considered high-dimensional for continuous SO problems. The proposed method identifies solutions with an estimated objective function that is 1 order of magnitude better than those of the benchmark methods. It yields solutions that provide an average, across time intervals, improvement to link counts of 77%, compared to the benchmark methods. The case study also illustrates the robustness of the method to the quality of the initial points.
Are Bail Amounts Racially Discriminatory? Theory and Evidence Using Outcome Analysis

The criminal justice system is a complex institution with a great deal of power over the lives of the individuals who enter that system as defendants. There is justifiably a great deal of concern both in policy circles and the academic literature about unwarranted disparity in general, and racial discrimination in particular. Often research on this question focuses on differences in treatment across racial groups. However, differential treatment may in fact be warranted by unobserved differences in individuals. A common approach is to control for observables, an approach that is limited by the relatively sparse information available to researchers. An alternative approach to this question, outcome analysis, has recently risen to prominence in the economics literature in the context of racial profiling by police. The approach, founded on the rational choice theory of behavior, starts with a clear statement of the objective function of the criminal justice actor. Outcome analysis claims that the outcome of the objective function - hit rates for police searches - should be constant across racial groups if the actor in question is in fact unbiased. In this paper, we extend this approach to study racial differences in bail setting by judges. We provide a theoretical justification of the use of outcome analysis approach, and we also illustrate why in general what we call standard outcome analysis provides neither necessary or sufficient evidence against discrimination. We then propose an alternative test of the rationality of the actors based on the first order conditions. We implement this test using the State Court Processing Statistics dataset. Preliminary results indicated that judges do appear to be acting in a rational manner when setting bail in a sense made precise in the paper. We also present some evidence that there may be bias against blacks.
Crystal and molecular structure of N-(bicyclo[5.1.0]octa-3,5-dien-2-yl)phthalimide, C16H13NO2

Single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis of the title compound revealed that the phthalimide substituent was endo with respect to the bicyclic ring system.
SAU-Net: A Universal Deep Network for Cell Counting

Image-based cell counting is a fundamental yet challenging task with wide applications in biological research. In this paper, we propose a novel Deep Network designed to universally solve this problem for various cell types. Specifically, we first extend the segmentation network, U-Net with a Self-Attention module, named SAU-Net, for cell counting. Second, we design an online version of Batch Normalization to mitigate the generalization gap caused by data augmentation in small datasets. We evaluate the proposed method on four public cell counting benchmarks - synthetic fluorescence microscopy (VGG) dataset, Modified Bone Marrow (MBM) dataset, human subcutaneous adipose tissue (ADI) dataset, and Dublin Cell Counting (DCC) dataset. Our method surpasses the current state-of-the-art performance in the three real datasets (MBM, ADI and DCC) and achieves competitive results in the synthetic dataset (VGG). The source code is available at https://github.com/mzlr/sau-net.
Cocaine use and overdose mortality in the United States: Evidence from two national data sources, 2002-2018.

Abstract Background Cocaine-involved overdose mortality has recently risen in the United States (US), yet it is unclear to what extent patterns in cocaine-involved overdose mortality parallel patterns in cocaine use. This study: examined time trends (2002–2018) in past-year cocaine use and cocaine-involved overdose mortality in the US; and compared demographics and drug involvement of adults who reported past-year cocaine use versus adults who died of a cocaine-involved overdose. Methods Data from two sources were utilized: (1) the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (n = 1,334 adults self-reporting cocaine use in 2018); and (2) the Multiple Cause of Death dataset of the National Center for Health Statistics (N = 14,630 adults who died of a cocaine-involved overdose in 2018). The study examined prevalence of past-year cocaine use, mortality rates for cocaine-involved overdose, 2002–2018 trends, demographic characteristics, and involvement of other drugs. Results Results of Joinpoint Regression indicated that the prevalence of past-year cocaine use increased after 2011, with an annual percent change of 5.13, while age-adjusted cocaine-involved overdose mortality rates escalated after 2012, with an annual percent change of 26.54. In 2018, prevalence of past-year cocaine use did not significantly differ (p = 0.09) by racial/ethnic group, yet Non-Hispanic Blacks had an age-adjusted cocaine-involved overdose mortality rate more than double the rate in Non-Hispanic Whites and significantly higher (p Conclusions While the prevalence of cocaine use has increased modestly, cocaine-involved overdose mortality has risen dramatically. Cocaine-involved overdose mortality is disproportionately affecting individuals who are Black, older, or with lower educational attainment.
Exploring Mucin as Adjunct to Phage Therapy.

Conventional phage therapy using bacteriophages (phages) for specific targeting of pathogenic bacteria is not always useful as a therapeutic for gastrointestinal (GI) dysfunction. Complex dysbiotic GI disorders such as small intestinal bowel overgrowth (SIBO), ulcerative colitis (UC), or Crohn’s disease (CD) are even more difficult to treat as these conditions have shifts in multiple populations of bacteria within the microbiome. Such community-level structural changes in the gut microbiota may require an alternative to conventional phage therapy such as fecal virome transfer or a phage cocktail capable of targeting multiple bacterial species. Additionally, manipulation of the GI microenvironment may enhance beneficial bacteria–phage interactions during treatment. Mucin, produced along the entire length of the GI tract to protect the underlying mucosa, is a prominent contributor to the GI microenvironment and may facilitate bacteria–phage interactions in multiple ways, potentially serving as an adjunct during phage therapy. In this review, we will describe what is known about the role of mucin within the GI tract and how its facilitation of bacteria–phage interactions should be considered in any effort directed at optimizing effectiveness of a phage therapy for gastrointestinal dysbiosis.
Endoscopic through-the-scope suturing

Background and Aims There is growing interest in closure of larger mucosal defects, given the increasing use of endoscopic resection for early GI neoplasia and the advent of submucosal endoscopy, including peroral endoscopic myotomy. Existing closure methods include through-the-scope clips, over-the-scope clips, and over-the-scope suturing. Although over-the-scope clips and over-the-scope suturing allow closure of large defects, both require endoscope removal for device application and may have difficulty in treating lesions in the proximal colon or the small intestine. Hence, a significant gap exists for a through-the-scope device capable of closing larger defects. The novel X-Tack system (Apollo Endosurgery, Austin, Tex, USA) offers through-the-scope suturing (TTSS), which eliminates the need to withdraw the endoscope from the patient before applying therapy. Methods We demonstrate the possible indications for endoscopic mucosal adhesion with TTSS through a video case series. We present 5 cases to illustrate the use of TTSS in the closure of a duodenal EMR defect, a cecal EMR defect, mucostomy after esophageal and gastric peroral endoscopic myotomy, and, finally, for primary closure of a gastrogastric fistula. Results All defects were successfully closed with 1 to 2 TTSS systems. There were no postprocedure adverse events, including bleeding or perforation, at a median of 30 (range 14-30) days of follow-up. Conclusions TTSS is a valuable addition to mucosal closure devices, which allows closure through a gastroscope or a colonoscope, without requiring endoscope removal for device application. Likely applications include larger or more distant defects and those located within tight spaces. Pending further clinical evaluation, important areas for research include assessment of the learning curve, comparative trials with other closure devices, and cost-effectiveness analysis.
Market-Based Regulation of Milk Quota Transfer in Québec

Publisher Summary The dairy industry in Canada and Quebec is one of the best organized agricultural sectors under statutory provisions and the farmers' union administers a joint scheme conferring on it extensive powers over the marketing of the product and the regulation of quota transfer between producers. Under statutory provisions, the marketing of agricultural produce, the farmers' union can exercise administrative control over the production sector through a “joint scheme” under supervision of a government agency. Ever since the introduction of dairy quotas, responsibility for managing and distributing individual quotas between dairy producers has been exclusively in the hands of the farming unions. The farmers in are in direct competition with each other to obtain the right to expand, and it is primarily the rationale of a market of perfect competition, that of quotas and not of the product, that determines the pace of structural change in the productive sector.
The end of the beginning for pluripotent stem cells

Pluripotent stem cells can be expanded seemingly indefinitely in culture, maintain a normal karyotype and have the potential to generate any cell type in the body. As such they represent an incredible resource for the repair of diseased or damaged tissues in our bodies. These cells also promise to open a new window into the embryonic development of our species.
Her Best Shot: Women and Guns in America

Reviewed Medium: book Authors: Laura Browder Year: 2006 Pages: 304 Publisher: University of North Carolina Press ISBN: 978-0-8078-3050-5 (hard cover). Prices: $29.95 USD(hard cover).
Thermal control of the Lidar In-Space Technology Experiment

The Lidar In-Space Technology Experiment (LITE) will employ lidar techniques to study the atmosphere from space. The LITE instrument will be flown in the Space Shuttle Payload Bay with an earth directed orientation. The experiment thermal control incorporates both active and passive techniques. The Laser Transmitter Module (LTM) and the system electronics will be actively cooled through the Shuttle pallet coolant loop. The receiver system and experiment platform will be passsively controlled through the use of insulation and component surface properties. This paper explains the thermal control techniques used and the analysis results, with primary focus on the receiver system.
IN THE SHADOW OF INNOVATION

We are in the midst of the intellectual property wars. Scholars, judges, legislators, corporations, creators and inventors disagree about the role of intellectual property rights. Yet, surprisingly everyone agrees about innovation - everyone loves innovation. Innovation appears everywhere: In legal scholarship, case law, legislative hearings, newspapers, and blogs. It is uniformly admired and aspired to - though almost never questioned. Innovation is often assumed to have historically held a central role in the technology regulating legal regime. The Article presents a study of case law, which demonstrates that contrary to common belief, the celebration of innovation is, in fact, a relatively recent trend originating in the mid-1980s - at the advent of the intellectual property wars. The Article critically examines this celebration of innovation. It argues that while innovation is promoted as the key to progress and advancement of human welfare, the exclusive status it obtained frustrates the very same goals. While innovation draws our attention to the beginning of the technological life cycle, the legal regime dedicates sparse attention and few resources to the cycle’s subsequent stage: the diffusion process of new technologies. Yet, the promotion of progress and human welfare is just as dependent on the technology’s diffusion - its social adoption process - as it is reliant on its innovation. To support this argument, the Article presents the case-studies of digital music and genetic testing. It shows that while the legal regime focuses on the effects of copyright enforcement on digital music innovation and the ramifications of gene patents for innovation in the field of genetics, it fails to invest its resources to resolve the social adoption problems of these very same technologies. The Article concludes by proposing ways toward resolving the diffusion delays of genetic testing and digital music technologies.
When Do Auditors Use Specialists’ Work to Develop Richer Problem Representations of Complex Estimates?

Auditors must recognize problematic patterns among the assumptions underlying complex estimates to identify misstatements. Pattern recognition requires rich problem representations of complex estimates that auditors may be unable to develop given their lack of valuation expertise. I predict and find that a relational cue in a specialist’s work showing how assumptions relate to each other can improve auditors’ problem representations and subsequent judgments about estimates. However, this improvement only occurs when auditors are motivated by low client source credibility to incorporate this cue into their problem representations. This suggests auditors do not always respond to cues in their specialists’ work and suggests avenues for research to improve auditors’ use of specialists’ work. More generally, my findings highlight the role of motivational factors like client source credibility in auditors’ development of problem representations. This has implications for the design of training, decision aids, and other interventions aimed at improving auditors’ problem representations.
Electromagnetic scattering from multiple Carbon Nanotubes with experimentally determined shapes and distributions

Electromagnetic scattering from Carbon Nanotubes (CNT) has received wide interest in the past decade. Many different CNT configurations have been computationally investigated such as single CNTs, infinite planar arrays of CNTs, finite arrays with simple distributions, and bundles of CNTs. In all of the previously reported configurations, the CNTs were perfectly straight and they were arranged in a uniform distribution. However, in commercial CNT composites the CNTs typically exhibit highly complex shapes and distributions. The goal of this work is to simulate and characterize the electromagnetic scattering from multiple CNTs with realistic shapes and distributions that resemble those found in commercial composites.
The Human Rh50 Glycoprotein Gene: STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION AND ASSOCIATED SPLICING DEFECT RESULTING IN Rhnull DISEASE

The Rh (Rhesus) protein family comprises Rh50 glycoprotein and Rh30 polypeptides, which form a complex essential for Rh antigen expression and erythrocyte membrane integrity. This article describes the structural organization of Rh50 gene and identification of its associated splicing defect causing Rhnulldisease. The Rh50 gene, which maps at chromosome 6p11–21.1, has an exon/intron structure nearly identical to Rh30 genes, which map at 1p34–36. Of the 10 exons assigned, conservation of size and sequence is confined mainly to the region from exons 2 to 9, suggesting thatRH50 and RH30 were formed as two separate genetic loci from a common ancestor via a transchromosomal insertion event. The available information on the structure of RH50facilitated search for candidate mutations underlying the Rh deficiency syndrome, an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by mild to moderate chronic hemolytic anemia and spherostomatocytosis. In one patient with the Rhnull disease of regulator type, a shortened Rh50 transcript lacking the sequence of exon 7 was detected, while no abnormality was found in transcripts encoding Rh30 polypeptides and Rh-related CD47 glycoprotein. Amplification and sequencing of the genomic region spanning exon 7 revealed a G → A transition in the invariant GT motif of the donor splice site in both Rh50 alleles. This splicing mutation caused not only a total skipping of exon 7 but also a frameshift and premature chain termination. Thus, the deduced translation product contained 351 instead of 409 amino acids, with an entirely different C-terminal sequence following Thr315. These results identify the donor splicing defect, for the first time, as a loss-of-function mutation at theRH50 locus and pinpoint the importance of the C-terminal region of Rh50 in Rh complex formation via protein-protein interactions.
Hepatocellular carcinoma: Low risk of HCC in patients who have PSC and cirrhosis

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is understood to be associated with an increased risk of malignancy in the bile ducts, gallbladder and colon. The risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in the setting of PSC, however, is not well defined. Zenouzi et al. provide an analysis of their experience in a recent article.
Delayed hemolytic transfusion reaction caused by anti-LebH antibody

. A major delayed hemolytic transfusion reaction produced by an antibody to Lewisb is reported. Delayed hemolysis following transfusion with Leb-positive red cells was not reported to the blood bank. Severe hemolysis recurred following a second transfusion with Leb-positive cells, but was avoided thereafter with Leb-negative red cells. This is the first reported case of a serious delayed hemolytic transfusion reaction caused by anti-Leb.
Medicare payments for noninvasive diagnostic imaging are now higher to nonradiologist physicians than to radiologists.

Purpose Radiologists have always been considered the physicians who “control” noninvasive diagnostic imaging (NDI) and are primarily responsible for its growth. Yet nonradiologists have become increasingly aggressive in their performance and interpretation of imaging. The purpose of this study was to track overall Medicare payments to radiologists and nonradiologist physicians in recent years. Methods The Medicare Part B files covering all fee-for-service physician payments for 1998 to 2008 were the data source. All codes for discretionary NDI were selected. Procedures mandated by the patient's clinical condition (eg, supervision and interpretation codes for interventional procedures, radiation therapy planning) were excluded, as were nonimaging radionuclide tests. Medicare physician specialty codes were used to identify radiologists and nonradiologists. Payments in all places of service were included. Overall Medicare NDI payments to radiologists and nonradiologist physicians from 1998 through 2008 were compared. A separate analysis of NDI payments to cardiologists was conducted, because next to radiologists, they are the highest users of imaging. Results In 1998, overall Part B payments to radiologists for discretionary NDI were $2.563 billion, compared with $2.020 billion to nonradiologists (ie, radiologists' payments were 27% higher). From 1998 to 2006, payments to nonradiologists increased by 166%, compared with 107% to radiologists. By 2006, payments to nonradiologists exceeded those to radiologists. By 2008, the second year after implementation of the Deficit Reduction Act, payments to radiologists had dropped by 13%, compared with 11% to nonradiologists. In 2008, nonradiologists received $4.807 billion for discretionary NDI, and radiologists received $4.638 billion. Payments to cardiologists for NDI increased by 195% from 1998 to 2006, then dropped by 8% by 2008. Conclusions The growth in fee-for-service payments to nonradiologists for NDI was considerably more rapid than the growth for radiologists between 1998 and 2006. Then, by the end of 2008, 2 years after the implementation of the Deficit Reduction Act, steeper revenue losses had been experienced by radiologists. The result was that by 2008, overall Medicare fee-for-service payments for NDI were 4% higher to nonradiologists than they were to radiologists.
WE‐A‐BRA‐04: Characterization of Cubic Spline Path Estimate for Quantitative Proton Stopping Power Reconstruction and Bragg Peak Location Prediction

Purpose: To characterize the cubic spline path (CSP) estimate for quantitative reconstruction of protoncomputed tomography (pCT) image, compared with those using the most‐likely path (MLP) estimate and the real path. Method and Materials:Monte Carlo simulation of proton projections onto a Shepp‐Logan phantom was performed using the GEANT4 simulation toolkit. The real proton paths were recorded during the simulation. Entrance and exit information of each proton were stored and used for CSP and MLP estimation. A Bayesian inference‐based probability map was generated to evaluate the relative probability of CSP and real path, which are compared with that of MLP. Inter‐path distance between CSP and the real path was evaluated at different depths. Protonstopping powerimages were reconstructed using CSP, MLP, and the real path, respectively. The quantitative accuracy of the reconstructed images was evaluated. Integral depth dose and Bragg peak were predicted on the stopping powerimagereconstructed using CSP. Results: CSP performs almost identically to the real path in terms of its relative probability. Specifically, probabilities of more than 80% of all CSP pixels fall within 90% of the MLP probability. 75% of the CSP pixels at maximum inter‐distance to MLP are within 90% of MLP probability. The direct comparison between CSP and the simulated real path shows that 95% of the CSP pixels are within one pixel of the simulated real path. Reconstruction using the path estimates or the real path shows no significant difference in average stopping power or noise. Bragg peak location as predicted on imagesreconstructed using CSP agrees with that from simulation within 1 mm accuracy. Conclusion: As verified from relative path probability distribution, inter‐path distance distribution, and Bragg peak prediction, CSP as a proton path estimate is sufficient for quantitative pCT reconstruction at even very low imaging dose levels.
Koenigs et al. reply

Replying to: G. Kahane & N. Shackel , doi:10.1038/nature06785 (2008) Kahane and Shackel argue1, on the basis of a re-classification of the moral scenarios used in our study2, that our conclusion of a utilitarian bias among patients with ventromedial–prefrontal–cortex (VMPC) damage is unwarranted. Here we provide a re-analysis of our data based on precisely the classification scheme that Kahane and Shackel suggest. This re-analysis confirms our conclusion that damage to the VMPC results in an increase in utilitarian judgements.
The galactic distribution of free electrons

Various radioastronomical measurements are synthesized here to derive a large-scale Galactic model for the distribution of free electrons and for microstructure in the distribution that seems to be caused by turbulence in the ISM. A two-component axisymmetric model fitted on all scales from 100 km to a few pc, accounts for most of the data. A population of dense, discrete clouds is also needed, and there is some evidence for spiral structure. The model allows better distance estimates for pulsars to be made. The implications of the model for the structure and ionization of the ISM and for the distribution of interstellar turbulence and the diffusion of cosmic rays are discussed.
Because it Needs to be Done

M arquette University School o f D entistry re ­ cently com pleted a year o f community service involvement in Wisconsin. T he overall success o f this program is a result o f the excellent co ­ operation between the agencies involved, and the dedication, enthusiasm, and commitment of the dental students, faculty, and many practicing dentists in the state. The first o f these program s was initiated in the summer o f 1970 by the cooperative efforts o f M arquette dental school students, the depart­ m ent o f pedodontics, the members o f the W is­ consin Pedodontic Society, and the Wisconsin State Division o f Dental Health.
Influence of water activity on the enantioselective esterification of (R,S)‐ibuprofen by Candida antarctica lipase B in solventless media

The lipase-catalyzed enantioselective esterification of ibuprofen has been studied in a media, composed only of substrates. When racemic ibuprofen is used, the alcohol-chain length affects the esterification rates of individual enantiomers, but it does not affect the enantioselectivity. Water activity affects the esterification rates of (R)- and (S)-ibuprofen differently, leading to higher enantioselectivity at lower water activities. Experiments were also conducted at various (R)- to (S)-ibuprofen ratios. It appears that the esterification rate of (R)-ibuprofen is always proportional to its concentration, whereas at low water activity the esterification rate of (S)-ibuprofen shows a saturation at higher concentrations. Other 2-phenyl carboxylic acids were studied, and the increase in apparent enantioselectivity at low-water activity was not observed for the molecules tested.
Short Communication New 5-HT1A receptor antagonist: [3H]p-MPPF

A new 5-HT1A receptor antagonist ligand, [3H]p-MPPF, 4-(2′-methoxy-)-phenyl-1-[2′-(N-2′-pyridyl)-p-fluorobenzamido]ethyl-piperazine, was prepared and characterized. It demonstrated high affinity and selectivity toward 5-HT1A receptors (Kd = 0.34 ± 0.12 nM and Bmax = 145 ± 35 fmol/mg protein in rat hippocampal membrane homogenates). The binding is not sensitive to 100 μM Gpp(NH)p. Initial autoradiography studies of rat brain sections exhibit regional localization consistent with the known 5-HT1A receptor distribution. This potential 5-HT1A antagonist ligand may provide a powerful tool for 5-HT1A receptor pharmacology studies in the central nervous system. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Modulated pair condensate of p -orbital ultracold fermions

We show that an interesting kind of pairing occurs for spin-imbalanced Fermi gases under a specific experimental condition---the spin up and spin down Fermi levels lying within the ${p}_{x}$ and $s$ orbital bands of an optical lattice, respectively. The pairs condense at a finite momentum equal to the sum of the two Fermi momenta of spin up and spin down fermions and form a $p$-orbital pair condensate. This $2{k}_{F}$ momentum dependence has been seen before in spin- and charge-density waves, but it differs from the usual $p$-wave superfluids such as $^{3}\mathrm{He}$, where the orbital symmetry refers to the relative motion within each pair. Our conclusion is based on the density matrix renormalization group analysis for the one-dimensional (1D) system and mean-field theory for the quasi-1D system. The phase diagram of the quasi-1D system is calculated, showing that the $p$-orbital pair condensate occurs in a wide range of fillings. In the strongly attractive limit, the system realizes an unconventional BEC beyond Feynman's no-node theorem. The possible experimental signatures of this phase in molecule projection experiment are discussed.
Simulation of the prompt energization and transport of radiation belt particles during the March 24, 1991 SSC

We model the rapid (about 1 min) formation of a new electron radiation belt at L about or = 2.5 that resulted from the Storm Sudden Commencement (SSC) of March 24, 1991 as observed by the Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES) satellite. Guided by the observed electric and magnetic fields, we represent the time-dependent magnetospheric electric field during the SSC by an asymmetric bipolar pulse that is associated with the compression and relaxation of the Earth's magnetic field. We follow the electrons using a relativistic guiding center code. The test-particle simulations show that electrons with energies of a few MeV at L greater than 6 were energized up to 40 MeV and transported to L about or = 2.5 during a fraction of their drift period. The energization process conserves the first adiabatic invariant and is enhanced due to resonance of the electron drift motion with the time-varying electric field. Our simulation results, with an initial W(exp -8) energy flux spectra, reproduce the observed electron drift echoes and show that the interplanetary shock impacted the magnetosphere between 1500 and 1800 MLT.
Effects of cadmium and Aroclor 1254 on lipid peroxidation, glutathione peroxidase activity, and selected antioxidants in Atlantic croaker tissues

Abstract Malondialdehyde production (an index of lipid peroxidation), glutathione peroxidase activity and the concentrations of two antioxidants, glutathione and ascorbic acid, were measured in Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) hepatic and ovarian tissues after exposure to representatives of two major classes of environmental contaminants, a polychlorinated biphenyl mixture (Aroclor 1254) or a metal (cadmium). One group of croaker was exposed to 5 mg Cd/l seawater for 6 days, followed by exposure to 1 mg Cd/l seawater for 33 days. Another group of croaker was fed 0.42 mg Aroclor 1254/100 g body wt./day for 17 days, followed by 7 days feeding with uncontaminated food. Both xenobiotics caused increased lipid peroxidation. Exposure to cadmium resulted in increased malondialdehyde production in incubates of homogenates and microsomes from both hepatic and ovarian tissues. Aroclor 1254 administration caused increased malondialdehyde production in croaker livers in vivo and in vitro and also in incubates of ovarian homogenates in vitro. Cadmium exposure also caused a decrease in glutathione peroxidase activity and the ascorbic acid content of both tissues. In contrast, glutathione peroxidase activity was increased in both tissues from Aroclor 1254-fed croaker. However, Aroclor 1254 administration did not affect the ascorbic acid content of the tissues. The glutathione status of the liver and ovary was not changed by either treatment, whereas both the gonadosomatic and hepatosomatic indices were altered after xenobiotic exposure. Thus, exposure of a marine fish to either a heavy metal or a polychlorinated biphenyl mixture by environmentally realistic routes of administration can result in increased lipid peroxidation, although these toxicants exert different effects on the activity of glutathione peroxidase, an important protective mechanism against oxidative damage.