cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Prenatal renal parenchymal area as a predictor of early end-stage renal disease in children with vesicoamniotic shunting for lower urinary tract obstruction.

Summary Background Vesicoamniotic shunting (VAS) and other bladder drainage techniques for fetal lower urinary tract obstruction (LUTO) have been proven to ameliorate pulmonary hypoplasia and increase survival in patients with an initial poor prognosis. Currently there are limited prognostic tools available during gestation to evaluate and predict postnatal renal function. Objective The aim was to describe the prenatal growth of the renal parenchymal area (RPA) in patients with LUTO and determine its application as a predictor of renal function at one year of life. Study design The study population comprised a retrospective cohort of all infants who survived the fetal VAS to birth. Renal growth and size were measured using imageJ software to calculate the RPA in sequential prenatal ultrasounds. The parenchymal area was measured from the image of each kidney with the greatest longitudinal length. These measurements were further correlated and analyzed as a predictor of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) within the first year of life. Results Etiologies of LUTO in the 15 male fetuses included eight posterior urethral valves, four Eagle–Barrett/prune belly syndrome, two urethral atresia, and one megacystis microcolon intestinal hypoperistalsis syndrome. All patients had patent shunts, in place, at birth. Furthermore, ultrasonographic parameters such as oligohydramnios, keyhole sign, and bladder wall thickness showed no statistical difference between groups. Renal parenchymal growth correlated with postnatal renal function in both the ESRD (r = 0.409, p = 0.018) and the non-ESRD (r = 0.657, p Table ). Discussion Despite definitive VAS for LUTO, postnatal morbidity and mortality remain high, emphasizing the role of renal dysplasia in postnatal renal failure, in spite of urinary diversion. Renal growth statistically differs between groups in the 3rd trimester of gestation; RPA development appears stagnant in patients that developed ESRD within the first year of life. In contrast, patients that did not develop ESRD continued to have renal parenchymal growth in a linear fashion. This suggests that prenatal RPA may be predictive of postnatal ESRD. Conclusions RPA measurement during the prenatal period could play an important role as a non-invasive tool to predict postnatal renal function and to anticipate postnatal clinical interventions. Table . Prenatal total renal parenchymal growth in children with and without ESRD. ESRD Non-ESRD p 2nd Trimester, cm2 4.76 (3.56–6.15) 4.97 (2.95–8.38) 0.831 3rd Trimester, cm2 7.07 (6.36–8.95) 10.97 (8.78–14.58) 0.002
Comparative Efficacy of Anti IL-4, IL-5 and IL-13 Drugs for Treatment of Eosinophilic Asthma: A Network Meta-analysis.

Several new biologics have been studied in patients with eosinophilic asthma with varying degrees of response on clinical outcomes. No head-to-head trial has directly compared the efficacy of these drugs. To synthesize data on the relative efficacy of benralizumab, dupilumab, lebrikizumab, mepolizumab, reslizumab, and tralokinumab using network meta-analysis. We searched PubMed from inception to December 15th, 2017. We used the ‘frequentist’ methodology with random effect models using primarily ‘netmeta’ function in R to generate network meta-analysis results. Outcomes assessed included changes in forced expiratory volume-in 1 s (FEV1), asthma control questionnaire (ACQ), and asthma quality of life questionnaire (AQLQ). We also separately analyzed the annualized rate ratios for asthma exacerbations for each drug and compared to placebo. For all outcomes assessed, all drugs were superior to placebo except tralokinumab. In terms of magnitude of effect, dupilumab, followed by reslizumab and benralizumab showed the greatest increase in FEV1, 0.16L (95% CIs: 0.08–0.24), 0.13L (0.10–0.17), and 0.12L (0.08–0.17), compared to placebo. While mepolizumab, followed by dupliumab, benralizumab, and reslizumab showed reductions in ACQ scores, in order of magnitude of effect, dupilumab, followed by mepolizumab, benralizumab, and reslizumab showed the greatest increase in AQLQ scores. All drugs decreased asthma exacerbations but the results were only significant for reslizumab and dupilumab. All drugs except for tralokinumab showed improvements in FEV1, ACQ, and AQLQ. Only reslizumab and dupilumab were associated with statistically significant reductions in asthma exacerbation rates.
International Evidence on Effective Early Childhood Care and Education Programs: A Review of Best Practices

In recent years, the United States has made substantial progress in the quality and availability of early childhood education (ECE), especially in the areas of special education and ECE programs for low-income families. Nonetheless, there is room for improvement in terms of access and quality. To improve access and quality in ECE, the United States can look to best practices in ECE in other countries. A total of 49 sources were reviewed to develop an in-depth understanding of both ECE in the United States and international ECE best practices. Sources were chosen based on relevance and quality and included books, articles, and policy reports. These sources covered the ECE best practices in increasing funding, access, and quality. From developed to developing countries, this review provides an understanding of best practices in ECE throughout the world that the United States can learn from to enhance ECE for the wellbeing of children as well as society.
DVR ad-zipping rates over days since live broadcast: Do more ads play when viewing the same day?

Consumers skip a majority of ad messages in DVR playback. However, viewers may let more normal-speed ads play in popular ‘same day’ playback viewing versus viewing on later days. More ads may play ...
Transanal Minimally Invasive Surgery (TAMIS): Operative Technique, Pitfalls, and Tips

Management of benign and malignant rectal tumors is challenging through traditional transanal techniques, resulting in substandard results. Ongoing evolution of transanal platforms to perform these procedures has allowed transanal minimally invasive surgery (TAMIS) to develop. TAMIS has improved access and visibility in the rectum allowing for the safe and oncologically sound resection of rectal neoplasms. It has also allowed the development of complex and innovative procedures such as transanal total mesorectal resections TME (TaTME). TAMIS is associated with a relatively short learning curve for those already facile with laparoscopic skills, and its ease of use mandates that it should be in every colorectal surgeon’s armament.
Longitudinal data on family forest owners: The US Forest Service’s National Woodland Owner Survey

Abstract Although a rich history of scholarship exists on the attitudes, past behaviors, and behavioral intentions of family forest owners, little is known about how these social factors change over time. Furthermore, linking behavioral intentions with actual behaviors of family forest owners will require a longitudinal design that re-measures behaviors of the same respondents over time to match with earlier surveys of intention to behavior. Previous attempts to measure behavioral and attitudinal change over time have been largely opportunistic and have not followed a true longitudinal study design. Additionally, previous attempts to measure change in family forest owner behavior have been limited in geographic scope. This research note briefly describes data management considerations for analyzing the U.S. Forest Service’s National Woodland Owner Survey (NWOS) longitudinally for the past three iterations of the survey and describes the potential changes in family forest ownership to demonstrate the approach. Forty-one percent of commonly-sampled points remained in the same ownership type between the first two survey iterations, and interesting shifts in ownership type were observed. For example, 30% of resampled locations changed ownership between the two survey iterations. As the NWOS continues to be implemented, the value of this longitudinal dataset will continue increasing, even as respondents are lost to follow-up, or as land changes hands.
Turning gangsters into allies: the American way of war in Northern Afghanistan

ABSTRACTThe American way of war in Afghanistan presents a conundrum for proponents of 21st-century state-building projects. How can liberal peace proponents engage in efficient state building without sacrificing their ideals? The US learned that state-building allocates a degree of command and control to powerbrokers operating in the shadows to launder aid money, traffic illicit narcotics, and engage in extrajudicial punishments. These clients failed to represent the liberal values foreign patrons endorsed, because the latter not only offered resources without conditions but also rewarded bad behavior. This issue is examined by looking at the case of post-2001 northern Afghanistan, where powerful warlords should have held greater control over their paramilitary forces, limited predatory behavior, and built stronger relationships with the community. Instead, warlords-turned-statesmen expanded their material and social influence in the north, while holding onto the informal instruments of racketeering and p...
Use of a theoretical framework to examine declines in clinical trial enrollment.

e18037Background: Clinical trial enrollment at a group of community oncology sites dropped significantly surrounding acquisition by an academic medical center. While previous research used empirica...
Patient Factors Systematically Influence Hospital Length of Stay in Common Orthopaedic Procedures.

Introduction As the United States healthcare system evolves towards improved value delivery, patient outcomes and healthcare costs are increasingly used to evaluate physicians and provider organizations. One such metric is hospital length of stay, which has the potential to be influenced by a variety of patient characteristics and comorbidities. Determining factors influencing length of stay represents an opportunity to increase value in healthcare delivery. Methods The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database (2006-2012) was utilized to identify a cohort of 92,266 patients having one of 14 common orthopaedic procedures. A generalized linear model was utilized to identify patient factors that increase hospital length of stay. Results During the six-year study period, length of stay decreased significantly in the total joint arthroplasty population. Nine variables were independently associated with increased length of stay. Congestive heart failure and underweight status increased length of stay the most, at 1.46 and 1.01 days, respectively. Other factors increasing length of stay include: non-white race (0.69 days), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (0.50 days), diabetes mellitus (0.25 days), morbid obesity (0.23 days), hypertension (0.10 days), and patient age (0.02 days for each additional year). Discussion In conclusion, congestive heart failure and underweight status are the greatest predictors of increased length of stay. COPD, diabetes, morbid obesity, and hypertension represent other modifiable risk factors that increase length of stay. This data can be used to counsel patients and their families regarding anticipated duration of hospitalization. Systematic targeting of patient factors known to increase length of stay represents an opportunity for cost reduction and improved value delivery. When utilizing hospital length of stay as a metric for evaluation, it is important to incorporate the factors that increase length of stay, so that orthopaedic surgeons and provider organizations can be evaluated based on representative patient population characteristics.
A 63-Year-Old Man with Progressive Limb Weakness and Slurred Speech

Kennedy’s disease, also known as spinobulbar muscular atrophy, is a rare X-linked recessive hereditary motor neuron disease. It is caused by an expansion of the CAG tandem repeat in the androgen receptor gene. The disease affects lower motor neurons in the brainstem and spinal cord that results in slowly progressive facial, bulbar, and limb weakness. Distal sensory neuropathy is also common. The diagnosis of Kennedy’s disease is made by genetic testing. However, a muscle biopsy is still done sometimes due to the lack of a high suspicion or awareness. As seen with other types of motor neuron diseases, muscle biopsy in Kennedy’s disease often shows prominent chronic active denervation changes and pseudomyopathic changes. Here, we present a case of Kennedy’s disease to illustrate its features.
Mercury-Free Automated Synthesis of Guanidinium Backbone Oligonucleotides.

A new method for synthesizing deoxynucleic guanidine (DNG) oligonucleotides that uses iodine as a mild and inexpensive coupling reagent is reported. This method eliminates the need for the toxic mercury salts and pungent thiophenol historically used in methods aimed at preparing DNG oligonucleotides. This coupling strategy was readily translated to a standard MerMade 12 oligonucleotide synthesizer with coupling yields of 95% and has enabled the synthesis of a 20-mer DNG oligonucleotide, the longest DNG strand to date, in addition to mixed DNA–DNG sequences with 3–9 DNG inserts. Importantly, DNG oligonucleotides exhibit robust unaided cellular uptake as compared to unmodified oligonucleotides without apparent cellular toxicity. Taken together, these findings should greatly increase the accessibility of cationic backbone modifications and assist in the development of oligonucleotide-based drugs.
Predictive Value of the Get With The Guidelines Heart Failure Risk Score in Unselected Cardiac Intensive Care Unit Patients.

Background The cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) population is no longer composed of only patients with acute coronary syndromes, and includes those with acute heart failure and multiple comorbidi...
Gross “Inaccuracies, Misrepresentations, and Exaggerations”: The Motion Picture Industry’s Clean-up of Movie Fan Magazines in 1934

While the establishment of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors Association (MPPDA)’s Production Code Administration (PCA) in 1934 is the subject of multiple books and dozens of articles, the attempts of the MPPDA and the AMPP (Association of Motion Picture Producers) to curb a number of practices of the movie fan magazines in that same year are often ignored or barely examined in Hollywood film histories. Mary Desjardins focuses on the incidents surrounding the studios’ attempts to control the fan magazines in 1934—the attacks and counter-attacks among the studios, their trade organizations, and fan magazine editors that took place in a number of meetings in August 1934—as well as the discourses produced by trade publications and the general press about these meetings.
Association of Chronic Kidney Disease Stage with 24-Hour Urine Values Among Patients with Nephrolithiasis

Introduction: Nephrolithiasis is a known risk factor for chronic kidney disease (CKD); however, it is unknown how CKD affects urinary parameters related to stone risk. The purpose of this study was...
Outcomes and complications of operative versus non-operative management of distal radius fractures in adults under 65 years of age.

To compare the outcomes of non-operative versus operative treatment for distal radius fractures in patients aged from 18 to 64 years, we performed a retrospective analysis using the OptumLabs® Data...
IAS Versus U.S. GAAP: Information Asymmetry–Based Evidence from Germany's New Market

Motivated by the debate about globally uniform accounting standards, this study investigates whether firms using U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) vis-a-vis international accounting standards (IAS) exhibit differences in several proxies for information asymmetry. It exploits a unique setting in which the two sets of standards are put on a level playing field. Firms trading in Germany's New Market must choose between IAS and U.S. GAAP for financial reporting, but face the same regulatory environment otherwise. Thus, institutional factors such as listing requirements, market microstructure, and standards enforcement are held constant. In this setting, differences in the bid-ask spread and share turnover between IAS and U.S. GAAP firms are statistically insignificant and economically small. Subsequent analyses of analysts' forecast dispersion, initial public offering underpricing, and firms' standard choices corroborate these findings. Thus, at least for New Market firms, the choice between IAS and U.S. GAAP appears to be of little consequence for information asymmetry and market liquidity. These findings do not support widespread claims that U.S. GAAP produce financial statements of higher informational quality than IAS.
Metal Foreign Object Detection in Electric Vehicle Wireless Power Transmission

Wireless power transfer technology has developed rapidly as a novel technology for its safe operation, flexibility, convenience and low maintenance cost. The electric vehicle wireless power transfer system transmit energy relying on high-frequency electromagnetic field. However, it may cause the hidden danger of temperature rise and fire, and even affect the parameters of the coupling structure, leading to the deviation of the working point, if any metal foreign objects accidentally entering the energy transmission area. In view of the above problem, the metal foreign object detection technology of electric vehicle wireless charging system was systematically discussed in this paper. The influence of metal foreign matter entering the magnetic coupling mechanism was analyzed. Then the technical route of foreign object detection at home and abroad was summarized. This paper also focused on the analysis of the detection method based on the characteristic parameters of the detection coil. Finally, the technical challenges including coil offset and points picking were discussed.
IOT Based Parking Lot

Automated parking systems can provide parking space easily with the help of a smart way with the help of IoT. Wireless access to the system is provided by this IoT technology. In metropolitan cities, the number of vehicles is increasing day by day which needs to be maintained by proper management. IoT based parking systems provide knowledge about the management system. Normally users waste their time finding out any parking space, IoT based parking space can reduce this problem and save time, cost, and effort of users. To avoid car theft RFID cards are used. All information about users is stirred in a cloud database.
Keeping Consumers in the Dark: Addressing 'Nagging' Concerns and Injury

In the digital context, companies often use "dishonest design"—commonly known as "dark patterns"—to trick or push consumers into doing things they wouldn't necessarily have done otherwise. Existing scholarship has focused on developing a taxonomy and definitions for different categories of dark patterns, conducting empirical research to better understand the effectiveness of dark patterns, and broadly surveying the legal and regulatory landscape for legal theories, existing and new, through which to curb these practices. This Note offers a deep dive into one category of dark patterns—"nagging"—and the unique legal issues the practice raises. While the FTC has started to use its Section 5 “unfair or deceptive” authority to combat some other types of dark patterns, particularly practices that mislead consumers, nagging practices are especially elusive—but just as insidious as the more commonly discussed categories of dark patterns. This Note identifies the direct and indirect harms nagging poses to consumers, argues for the regulation of the nagging category of dark patterns, and proposes a “do not nag” feature, modeled after the federal “do not call” list, as a solution.
A simulation study to assess fluid leakage through the glove-gown interface in isolation settings.

Background Isolation gowns are recommended to protect healthcare personnel, patients, and visitors from transfer of microorganisms and body fluids in patient isolation situations. Standards provide limited information about barrier performance of isolation gowns for possible exposure scenarios. One of the most vulnerable areas of the personal protective equipment ensemble is considered the glove-gown interface. However, current isolation gown classification standards do not consider the interface regions of the personal protective equipment system while assessing the level of protection. The purpose of this study was to quantitatively evaluate the fluid leakage through the glove-gown interface by simulating exposures and healthcare personnel arm movements in patient care for isolation settings. Methods We tested fluid leakage of two examination gloves with different cuff lengths and seven isolation gown models designed with varying levels of barrier resistance and multiple cuff types. Results Our results demonstrated that leakage through the glove-gown interface depends on multiple factors, including glove cuff length and gown cuff design. Gowns with the thumb loop design provided better protection than the elastic cuff design, and the elastic cuff design provided better protection compared to the knit cuff design for a given AAMI PB70 level. More importantly, a substantial penetration through gown fabrics was observed. Conclusions This research identifies a need to develop a standardized method to evaluate leakage at the glove-gown interface to improve worker protection.
Development of Hydrogen Energy Storage Industry and Research Progress of Hydrogen Production Technology

Hydrogen energy storage is considered as a promising technology for large-scale energy storage technology with far-reaching application prospects due to its low operating cost, high energy density, clean and pollution-free advantages. It has attracted intensive attention of government, industry and scholars. This article reviews the development and policy support of the domestic hydrogen energy industry in recent years in China, summarizes the technology development process and progress of hydrogen production from electrolysis of water. It briefly describes the principle of hydrogen production from electrolysis of water, and analyzes the cost and efficiency of catalytic materials and electrode structures electrode structures and forecast the development trend of hydrogen production technology from electrolysis of water.
Sex differences in outcomes following coronary artery bypass grafting: a meta-analysis.

Objectives Previous reports have found females are a higher risk of morbidity and mortality following isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Here, we describe the differences in outcomes following isolated CABG between males and females. Methods Following a systematic literature search, studies reporting sex-related outcomes following isolated CABG were pooled in a meta-analysis performed using the generic inverse variance method. The primary outcome was operative mortality. Secondary outcomes included rates of stroke, repeat revascularization, myocardial infarction, major adverse cardiac events, and late mortality. Subgroup analyses were performed for studies published before and after the year 2000 and for the type of risk adjustment. Results Eighty-four studies were included with a total of 903 346 patients. Females were at higher risk for operative mortality (odds ratio: 1.77, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.64-1.92, P 0.001) but not repeat revascularization (IRR: 0.99, 95% CI: 0.76-1.29, P = 0.95). The use of the off-pump technique or multiple arterial grafts was not associated with the primary outcome. Conclusions Females undergoing CABG are at higher risk for operative and late mortality as well as postoperative events including major adverse cardiac events, myocardial infarction and stroke. Prospero registration CRD42020187556.
The effect of SrFeO2.5 native point defects on its electrical properties: First principles investigations

Abstract Determining microscopic origin of electronic conductivity in strontium ferrites is a pivotal step toward accomplishing control of a reversible topotactic phase transformation. This functionality is essential for use of these oxides in resistive switching non-volatile memory devices and future neuromorphic computing. Here, we use first principles computations for in-depth study of native defects and their effect on electronic structure in SrFeO2.5. We elucidate the role native defects play and show that an uptake of oxygen in diluted concentrations leads to a p-type conductivity in the SrFeO2.5. We identify two acceptor defect transition states at 0.25 eV for atomic and 0.1 eV for molecular oxygen interstitials.
Static Deformation Analysis for Structural Health Monitoring of a Large Dam

The structural health monitoring of a dam is important for maintaining the safe operation and the longevity of the dam system. The damage of a structure can be detected from the variation of structural features, such as structural vibration and static deformation. The structural health of a large dam cannot be continuously monitored from structural vibration since vibration is insignificant except when earthquakes happen. The use of the daily measured static deformation can be an alternative way to continuously monitor the long-term structural health of a dam. This paper presents an investigation with the use of the measured static deformation for the structural health monitoring of Fui-Tsui dam, which is located in a very active seismic zone of Taiwan. A modeling technique is applied to characterize the measured static deformation as a function of the measured physical parameters. The proposed technique can also be used for the prediction of the long-term deformation for the structural health monitoring of Fui-Tsui dam.
Green’s Theorem

Suppose we are given a vector field on some open setUin the plane. Then this vector field has two components i.e. we can write $$F\left( {x,y} \right) = \left( {p\left( {x,y} \right),q\left( {x,y} \right)} \right)$$ , where p, q are functions of two variables (x, y). In everything that follows, we assume that all functions we deal with are C’, i.e. that these functions have continuous partial derivatives, and similarly for vector fields and curves.
Dynamic hierarchical self-organizing neural networks

In this paper, we integrate the concept of self-organizing feature maps and the architecture of dynamic trees to develop dynamic hierarchical self-organizing neural networks. The proposed network is capable of allocating new neurons dynamically during the learning process and then determining its own topology. A fuzzy membership function which measures the similarity of the input data is employed in the weight updating procedure and used as an criterion to allocate new neurons. Unlike the conventional self-organizing neural networks, the training samples are not input in sequence to update the weights. Instead, the weight updating procedure takes into account all the training data at one time. All these provide the proposed networks several advantages including revelation of hierarchical structure in data, dynamic allocation of neurons, short learning time, and short search time. To demonstrate their capabilities, the proposed networks are applied to solve the image segmentation problems. >
Collaborative Law: A Critical Reflection on Whether a Collaborative Orientation Can Be Ethically Incorporated into the Practice of Law

What is collaborative law? It is an emerging model of dispute resolution that could possibly be a promising alternative to other models of practice. However, this new area of law does come with some limitations and dilemmas. This article discusses the ethical issues that surround this new practice of law.
Clinical Genetics and Genetic Counseling Professionals: Attitudes to Contentious Issues

Clinical genetics includes patient education, psychosocial counseling, genetic testing and screening, prenatal diagnosis and treatment. Providers include medical doctors, PhDs and specially trained genetic counselors with Master's degrees, who face ethically controversial situations in interactions with patients. Keywords: ethics; international surveys; patient attitudes; counseling approaches; disclosure to family; sex selection; deaf selection; disability
LEAFY expression and flower initiation in Arabidopsis

During the initial vegetative phase, the Arabidopsis shoot meristem produces leaves with associated lateral shoots at its flanks, while the later reproductive phase is characterized by the formation of flowers. The LEAFY gene is an important element of the transition from the vegetative to the reproductive phase, as LEAFY is both necessary and sufficient for the initiation of individual flowers. We have analyzed in detail the expression of LEAFY during the plant life cycle, and found that LEAFY is extensively expressed during the vegetative phase. In long days, Arabidopsis plants flower soon after germination, and this is paralleled by rapid upregulation of LEAFY. In short days, Arabidopsis plants flower several weeks later than in long days, but LEAFY expression increases gradually before flowering commences. Application of the plant hormone gibberellin, which hastens flowering in short days, enhances the gradual change in LEAFY expression observed in short days. Changes in LEAFY expression before the transition to flowering suggest that the time point of this transition is at least partly controlled by the levels of LEAFY activity that are prevalent at a given time of the life cycle. This assumption is borne out by the finding that increasing the copy number of endogenous LEAFY reduces the number of leaves produced before the first flower is formed. Thus, LEAFY combines properties of flowering-time and flower-meristem-identity genes, indicating that LEAFY is a direct link between the global process of floral induction and the regional events associated with the initiation of individual flowers.
Iatrogenic Cushing syndrome and adrenal insufficiency during concomitant therapy with ritonavir and fluticasone

Ritonavir is a potent inhibitor of the cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP3A4 and is subject to multiple drug–drug interactions. This becomes especially important when the patient is also taking medications metabolized through CYP3A pathway as increased and potentially toxic drug levels may ensue. Herein we present one such interaction wherein a 57 year old gentleman with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection on highly active antiretroviral therapy that included ritonavir, had addition of fluticasone inhaler to his medication repertoire for treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. This resulted in severe osteoporosis, iatrogenic Cushing syndrome and adrenal insufficiency due to the potentiated systemic glucocorticoid effect of inhaled fluticasone by ritonavir. This case emphasizes the need for pharmacovigilance when managing patients on complex drug regimens for physicians treating HIV infected patients.
Toward Evaluation that Leads to Best Practices: Reconciling Dialog Evaluation in Research and Industry

Dialog evaluation is approached in different ways by research and industry. While researchers have sought commensurable evaluation metrics that allow for comparison of disparate systems with varying tasks and domains, industry engineers have focused mostly on best practices and delivering a return-on-investment to customers. In this paper, we contend that the problem of finding commensurable metrics also applies to commercial evaluation, and critically survey four candidate metrics for commensurability. Finally, in light of the problems faced by the candidate metrics, we advocate a collaborative agenda for dialog evaluation based on using statistical meta-analysis for empirically establishing best practices from any evaluation metric.
The many roles of an information technology section

The Information Technology Section (ITS) of the Albert R. Mann Library at Cornell University is introduced, focusing on key roles regarding the public services, technical services, and preservation and collection development divisions. Six key roles, or functions, are discussed: 1) maintainer—ITS is responsible for maintenance and support of all computer and network hardware and software; 2) interpreter—the section interprets the information access needs as expressed by patrons and staff to create useful software application programs for their use; 3) trainer—ITS plays a key role in training staff to effectively use those applications; 4) enabler—the section provides staff with the technical background that enables them to translate the challenges to information access they see firsthand into insightful and meaningful suggestions; 5) liaison—ITS exploits its technical expertise to effectively communicate the library's requirements to the campus technical support unit; and 6) advisor—ITS represents the library, both its needs and its offerings, participating in the strategic planning done by academic units for the incorporation of electronic technologies into instruction, research, and extension.
Grain Shape Analysis--Application to Problems of Sediment Source and Transport: ABSTRACT

The shapes of quartz grains contain a valuable record of their source and transport history. Grain shape can be measured with a Fourier series in closed form, which calculates the relative contribution, or amplitude, of 20 separate shape components (harmonics) to the total grain shape. Subsequent analysis of these grain shape data can determine the number of grain shape types (end members) present in a suite of samples and their relative contribution in percentages to each sample; a knowledge of the nature and mixing proportions of end members, contributes to a better understanding of the source, transport history, depositional environment, and stratification of basin fill. Two studies have been used to illustrate this technique. The first is a study of the Pleistocene sediments of the Hatteras basin, in which grain shape was used to monitor the input of sediments from two sources. The second is a study of the St. Peter Sandstone of Minnesota, in which grain shape was used to map eolian and aqueous beds in three massive, homogeneous sections of the formation. End_of_Article - Last_Page 1433------------
Managing cardiovascular risk in overweight children and adolescents

The scientific, medical, and lay communities are currently confronted with a serious medical and public health problem related to the marked non-remitting worldwide epidemic of obesity. This ever-increasing prevalence of obesity is accompanied by a host of inherently associated co-morbidities. As a result, obesity is fast becoming the major cause of premature death in the developed world. As pediatric and adult cardiologists, we have seen a dramatic increase in office referrals of overweight and obese children and adolescents, who already have obesity-related degenerative disease processes such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, the metabolic syndrome, and type 2 diabetes mellitus, as well as manifestations of early preclinical atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, not previously observed in this age group. This article presents a review of the literature and recent scientific statements and recommendations issued by the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) regarding the metabolic abnormalities associated with obesity, including newer identification and treatment strategies for obesity, dyslipidemia, and early subclinical coronary artery disease seen in high-risk children and adolescents.
Risk of sperm competition moderates the relationship between men's satisfaction with their partner and men's interest in their partner's copulatory orgasm

Abstract Sperm competition occurs when the sperm of multiple males concurrently occupy a female’s reproductive tract and compete for fertilization. Sperm competition may have been a recurrent adaptive problem over human evolutionary history ( Shackelford & Pound, 2006 ). Women’s orgasm may facilitate selective uptake and retention of a particular man’s sperm ( Thornhill & Gangestad, 2008 ). Men who are more satisfied with and invested in their relationship may experience greater costs in the event of sperm competition and potential cuckoldry. Therefore, these men may be especially interested in ensuring their partner’s copulatory orgasm. We hypothesized that men’s relationship satisfaction and investment would predict interest in their partner’s copulatory orgasm, and that sperm competition risk would moderate the association between relationship satisfaction and interest in partner’s copulatory orgasm. Using structural equation modeling on self-report data secured from 229 men in a committed heterosexual relationship, we tested and found support for these hypotheses.
Cross-Boundary Enterprise Security Monitoring

The cyber threat landscape is evolving at a much faster rate than corporate cyber defenses are. Malicious actors have become more audacious in their exploit attempts during the past two years as evidenced by the growing number of publicly acknowledged breaches in the commercial and industrial sectors. Motivations range the gamut from “hacktivism” to corporate espionage. This paper will discuss one possible approach to defending against malicious actors at an enterprise level. The proposed approach is based on cross-boundary information security management and the fusion of enterprise-wide security data.
The Role of Creation in Enūma eliš

AbstractThe seven tablets of Enūma elis, “The Chaldean Genesis,” contain multiple creations artfully woven in a story that has the god Marduk as the hero. Most creation accounts found in Enūma elis are reminiscent of earlier traditions. Former narratives as well as related themes and motives are adopted and adapted by means of intentional alterations to suit the purpose of the new text. In this paper I study the ways in which various creations are included, tailored, and arranged to promote Marduk’s position as the head of the Babylonian pantheon.
Effects of serum lipid content on the binding of minocycline.

Minocycline was added to normal and hyperlipemic serum samples in concentrations of 1-10 mcg/ml. These specimens had similar protein contents. Chemically extractable minocycline was quantitated fluorometrically. Hyperlipemic serum (cholesterol 480 mg/ 100 ml; triglycerides 321 mg/100 ml) yielded an average of 50% less minocycline than did normal serum (cholesterol 170 mg/100 ml; triglycerides 114 mg/100 ml). When ultrafiltrates of serum containing 6, 12 and 20 mcg/ml minocycline were assayed microbiologically, it was evident that variations in serum triglyceride and cholesterol levels did not alter the ratioof bound to free drug. Minocycline appears to be reversibly associated with, and/or soluble in, triglyceride-cholesterol components of serum.
Biomedical applications of microprocessors

A discussion of current microprocessor-based biomedical systems is presented. Applications covered include: methods and instruments for the measurement of blood pressure in ambulatory patients and at bedside; two approaches to limited automatic summarization of EEG data for diagnostic purposes; two developmental approaches to a microprocessor controller for an artificial arm; and a complex physiological monitoring system for the cardiac catheterization laboratory. A number of issues in the current state of technological development are also mentioned.
Defining specificities, genes, antigens, and antibodies- A matrix approach.

We study the consequences of assigning single letter symbols to operationally defined entities such as genes, antigens, specificities, and antibodies. If this is to be done and if reagents are not specific in recognizing the products of single genes or single antigens, then these entities must be defined by a ‘definition matrix’ to avoid mislabeling a matrix of data. A method is given whereby for a given matrix of data all possible definition matrices consistent with this data can be obtained. In particular, all the ways of labeling by the complex-complex code of Hirschfeld can be so obtained.
Assembly Coplanner: co-operative assembly planner based on subassembly extraction

Most of the automatic assembly planners developed up to date are concerned mainly about generating assembly sequences or assembly partial orders based on reasoning of geometric interference among parts and subassemblies during assembly. Although geometric reasoning should be a fundamental mechanism for automatic assembly planning, and a considerable advancement has been made in this regard[11,12,13,14], there still remains a number of important problems to be resolved, in order to bring automatic assembly planning closer to reality.
Special Education Policy, Response to Intervention, and the Socialization of Youth

This article discusses special education policy with a specific focus on response to intervention (RTI), as proponents suggest that this approach meets the goals of both the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act and No Child Left Behind. Although there are legitimate concerns about the validity and reliability of the measures and interventions used in RTI frameworks (in addition to other challenges), limited research suggests positive outcomes associated with RTI, and the benefits of the conceptual pillars of this framework, namely high-quality instruction, research-based interventions, and systematic screening and progress monitoring, are unequivocal. In addition to reviewing the core features of RTI, this article discusses implications of special education eligibility processes for the socialization of youth. The population targeted by this article includes students in K–12 settings who are at risk for special education placement due to learning disabilities and/or behavioral difficulties.
The relationship of problems in biomedical MRI to the study of porous media

The NMR methods that are used to characterize inanimate porous media measure relaxation times and related phenomena and material transport, fluid displacement and flow. Biological tissues are comprised of multiple small, fluid-filled compartments, such as cells, that restrict the movement of the bulk solvent water and whose constituents influence water proton relaxation times via numerous interactions with macromolecular surfaces. Several of the methods and concepts that have been developed in one field of application are also of great value in the other, and it may be expected that technical developments that have been spurred by biomedical applications of MR imaging will be used in the continuing study of porous media. Some recent specific studies from our laboratory include the development of multiple quantum coherence methods for studies of ordered water in anisotropic macromolecular assemblies, studies of the degree of restriction of water diffusion in cellular systems, multiple selective inversion imaging to depict the ratios of proton pool sizes and rates of magnetization transfer between proton populations, and diffusion tensor imaging to depict tissue anisotropies. These illustrate how approaches to obtain structural information from biological media are also relevant to porous media. For example, the recent development of oscillating gradient spin echo techniques (OGSE), an approach that extends our ability to resolve apparent diffusion changes over different time scales in tissues, has also been used to compute surface to volume measurements in assemblies of pores. Each of the new methods can be adapted to provide spatially resolved quantitative measurements of properties of interest, and these can be efficiently acquired with good accuracy using fast imaging methods such as echo planar imaging. The community of NMR scientists focused on applications to porous media should remain in close communication with those who use MRI to study problems in biomedicine, to their mutual benefits.
Irregular menses: an independent risk factor for gestational diabetes mellitus.

Abstract Objective: Our purpose was to determine whether a history of irregular menses predicts gestational diabetes mellitus independently of traditional risk factors. Study Design: We analyzed demographic characteristics, body mass index, and menstrual history of 85 pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus and compared them with 85 systematically selected control subjects who were matched for age, race, and delivery year. Subjects with pregestational diabetes mellitus, previous gestational diabetes mellitus, family history of diabetes mellitus, weight >200 pounds, previous macrosomic infants, or previous stillbirth were excluded. Results: Demographic characteristics between case and control groups were similar. Mean body mass index was higher among cases (26.5 kg/m 2 ) versus control subjects (24.5 kg/m 2 , P =.004). Irregular cycles were more prevalent in the cases (24% vs 7%, P =.006). With the use of body mass index as a stratification factor, menstrual irregularity maintained a strong association with gestational diabetes mellitus ( P =.014). Conclusion: A history of irregular menstrual cycles was a significant independent predictor of gestational diabetes mellitus. If selective screening is implemented for gestational diabetes mellitus, such history should be considered in the decision of whom to test. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2003;188:1189-91.)
Structural basis of VDR–DNA interactions on direct repeat response elements

The vitamin D receptor (VDR) forms homo‐ or heterodimers on response elements composed of two hexameric half‐sites separated by 3 bp of spacer DNA. We describe here the crystal structures at 2.7–2.8 A resolution of the VDR DNA‐binding region (DBD) in complex with response elements from three different promoters: osteopontin (SPP), canonical DR3 and osteocalcin (OC). These structures reveal the chemical basis for the increased affinity of VDR for the SPP response element, and for the poor stability of the VDR–OC complex, relative to the canonical DR3 response element. The homodimeric protein–protein interface is stabilized by van der Waals interactions and is predominantly non‐polar. An extensive α‐helix at the C‐terminal end of the VDR DBD resembles that found in the thyroid hormone receptor (TR), and suggests a mechanism by which VDR and TR discriminate among response elements. Selective structure‐based mutations in the asymmetric homodimeric interface result in a VDR DBD protein that is defective in homodimerization but now forms heterodimers with the 9‐ cis retinoic acid receptor (RXR) DBD.
Characteristics and Effects on a Machine-Tool Due to Grazing Motions of a Friction Boundary

The machine-tool interactions are studied with respect to the chip/tool friction boundary on the tool-piece rake face. The grazing motions with this chip/tool friction boundary are the focus of the study and how the effects are identified quantitatively. This study considers the transient motion of the machine-tool and will provide a framework for prediction of such grazing motions. The proposed study will include prediction through a range of excitation and system parameters. The significance of this lay within the application and the general approach to the definition of grazing via discontinuous systems theory.Copyright © 2010 by ASME