cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Managing destination brand architecture – The case of Cascais Municipality

Branding is a complex concept to apply to a destination. One of the main challenges is the functional definition of the brand. Which area does the destination brand cover? It is relevant to acknowledge that political borders of a destination are not necessarily the same as the destination brand borders. The present article is a case study, which was a result of a consulting project requested by the Municipality of Cascais. Cascais is located in the Lisbon metropolitan area of Portugal. Described are the challenges faced by the Cascais Municipality in adapting its brand portfolio to a new context and different environment. Quantitative methodology was applied to understand the relevance of four destination brands for the tourism industry in the Cascais Municipality. A questionnaire was developed and applied in Spain and Britain, the two main tourist markets for the Cascais Municipality. From the research, it could be concluded that nationality influences the evaluation of destinations. It was also concluded that the environment where a brand exists is dynamic, not static. Therefore, the strategy developed for a brand has to be adaptable. This means that the brand role and mission might change over the years. Future investments and support for certain destination brands must be constantly questioned.
Cancer Stem Cells and Disease Prognosis

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) represent distinct tumor cells defined by their capacity for tumor formation, self-renewal, and differentiation. In addition, the CSC hypothesis has been extended to suggest that specific tumor cell populations are also responsible for distinct clinical scenarios such as initial tumor formation, disease relapse following initial therapy, and cancer progression including the transformation of indolent to aggressive disease in hematologic malignancies and the development of metastatic disease in solid tumors. However, several questions regarding CSCs remain the subject of intense debate, including their actual clinical relevance and/or whether the eradication of CSCs will actually improve patient outcomes. In this chapter, we will review strategies to identify CSCs and evidence that they play a role in disease prognosis, progression, and therapeutic resistance; as well as discuss potential barriers in designing and interpreting clinical trials studying CSC targeting therapies.
The Feasibility of Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography Grading of Anterior Chamber Inflammation in a Rabbit Model of Anterior Uveitis.

PURPOSE To determine the feasibility and accuracy of spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) based grading of anterior chamber cell, using aqueous sampling as a standard, in a rabbit model of anterior uveitis. METHODS Adult Dutch-belted rabbits were preimmunized with M. tuberculosis (Tb) H37RA antigen, 1 week prior to induction of anterior uveitis with an intracameral injection of Tb antigen. The anterior chamber was imaged with SD-OCT, followed by a slit lamp examination. Two independent, trained graders recorded their estimate of anterior chamber cell count using the Standardization of Uveitis Nomenclature (SUN) scores for each eye prior to performing an anterior chamber tap to determine the aqueous cell density using a hemocytometer. Using the aqueous cell density as a standard, correlation with SD-OCT counts were compared to those with SUN scores. RESULTS Overall, SD-OCT correlated well with the hemocytometer counts (Spearman coefficient = 0.53, P < 0.001) compared with SUN grading and hemocytometer counts (Spearman coefficient = 0.02, P = 0.88). The correlation improved to 0.65 (P < 0.001) when we excluded eyes with corneal thickness ≥ 470 μm. Eyes with corneal thickness ≥ 470 μm exhibited the greatest degree of ocular inflammation and corneal opacity. CONCLUSIONS In our rabbit model, SD-OCT grading of anterior chamber cell correlated significantly better with aqueous cell counts, compared to traditional slit lamp grading. Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography grading of anterior chamber cell may be a good alternative to SUN grading. Although SUN grading remains the clinical gold standard, alternative quantitative methods to assess ocular inflammation could provide insight into disease mechanism and aid in measuring treatment response.
Voltage-Gated P/Q-Type Calcium Channel Antibodies Associated With Cerebellar Degeneration.

Abstract Background Paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration is a rare neurological condition characterized by diffuse cerebellar dysfunction and magnetic resonance imaging evidence of progressive cerebellar atrophy. It has been associated with several autoantibodies and malignancies in adults. To date, only six cases have been described in male children. Patient Description We describe an eight-year-old girl with a prodrome of abdominal pain and vomiting followed by acute onset diplopia, dysarthria, dysmetria, and ataxia. She was found to have cerebellar degeneration in association with P/Q-type calcium channel antibodies. Conclusion This is the first child with documented paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration in association with P/Q-type calcium channel antibodies.
The effect of pharmacotherapy on the effectiveness of exposure therapy

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the effects of pharmacotherapy on the effectiveness of exposure therapy. Exposure therapy is the psychological treatment of choice for the anxiety disorders. Exposure involves confronting feared stimuli while eliminating safety-seeking behaviors so that individuals learn the negative consequences they fear are unlikely to occur. Although cognitive interventions are combined with exposure in current treatment packages, exposure alone elicits powerful reductions in fear and produces cognitive changes similar to those observed in more cognitively focused treatment. Despite the well-established efficacy of exposure therapy, many individuals with anxiety disorders do not benefit from this treatment. Approximately 45% of patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) drop out, fail to respond acutely, or relapse after treatment. This observation has spurred the development of modifications to exposure therapy, and it has also led to interest in the effects of augmenting exposure with pharmacotherapy. Most patients who participate in exposure therapy take medication for their anxiety symptoms. Unfortunately, relatively little is known about how concurrent pharmacotherapy affects the outcome of exposure for most anxiety disorders. The randomized controlled trials literature suggests that combined treatment is no more effective in the short term than exposure therapy alone.
Biased Signaling and Conformational Dynamics in Nuclear Hormone Receptors

Nuclear receptors (NR) plieotropically regulate a number of physiological processes including metabolism, immune function, reproduction, and development. Therefore NRs have significant roles in the pathology of human diseases including diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disease, and aging. As a result, targeted modulation of NR activity has tremendous pharmacological utility. Receptor ligands can be classified into two prototypical categories: 1) agonists, which promote receptor transcriptional activity above basal levels; and 2) antagonists, which essentially block receptor–ligand interactions. Recent emphasis in the nuclear receptor field has focused on producing functionally selective nuclear receptor modulators which deviate from those of the classical agonist or antagonist. These selective modulators direct receptor activity toward desired/therapeutic pathways or “biased signaling.” Understanding the molecular mechanism of action of these selective modulators has and will continue to provide significant insight toward the development of the next generation of NR modulators. Although most nuclear receptor structural studies have traditionally focused on obtaining ligand–receptor co-crystal structures, recent studies implicate an important role for protein dynamics in the mechanism of action of nuclear receptor ligands. Here we will discuss biased nuclear receptor signaling and the techniques used to study conformational dynamics of the nuclear receptor ligand-binding domain (LBD).
Genetic Risk for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Is a Determinant of Crohn's Disease Development in Chronic Granulomatous Disease.

BACKGROUND Approximately, one-third to one-half of children with chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) develop gastrointestinal inflammation characteristic of idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), usually Crohn's disease. We hypothesized that the overall IBD genetic risk, determined by IBD genetic risk score (GRS), might in part determine IBD development in CGD. METHODS We reviewed medical records to establish IBD diagnoses in CGD subjects seen at NIAID. IBD risk single nucleotide polymorphism genotypes were determined using the Immunochip, and GRS were estimated by Mangrove. RESULTS Among 157 white patients with CGD, 55 were confirmed, 78 excluded, and 24 were uncertain for IBD. Two hundred one established, independent European IBD risk single nucleotide polymorphisms passed quality control. After sample quality control and removing non-IBD CGD patients with perianal disease, mean GRS for 40 unrelated patients with CGD-IBD was higher than 53 CGD non-IBD patients (in log2-scale 0.08 ± 1.62 versus -0.67 ± 1.64, P = 0.026) but lower than 239 IBD Genetics Consortium (IBDGC) young-onset Crohn's disease cases (0.76 ± 1.60, P = 0.025). GRS for non-IBD CGD was similar to 609 IBDGC controls (-0.69 ± 1.60, P = 0.95). Seven established IBD single nucleotide polymorphisms were nominally significant among CGD-IBD versus CGD non-IBD, including those near LACC1 (P = 0.005), CXCL14 (P = 0.007), and TNFSF15 (P = 0.016). CONCLUSIONS The weight of the common IBD risk alleles are significant determinants of IBD in CGD. However, IBD risk gene burden among CGD children with IBD is significantly lower than that in nonsyndromic pediatric Crohn's disease, congruent with the concept that defective superoxide production in CGD is also a major IBD risk factor. Individual IBD genes might interact with the CGD defect to cause IBD in CGD.
HACC: extreme scaling and performance across diverse architectures

Supercomputing is evolving toward hybrid and accelerator-based architectures with millions of cores. The Hardware/Hybrid Accelerated Cosmology Code (HACC) framework exploits this diverse landscape at the largest scales of problem size, obtaining high scalability and sustained performance. Developed to satisfy the science requirements of cosmological surveys, HACC melds particle and grid methods using a novel algorithmic structure that flexibly maps across architectures, including CPU/GPU, multi/many-core, and Blue Gene systems. In this Research Highlight, we demonstrate the success of HACC on two very different machines, the CPU/GPU system Titan and the BG/Q systems Sequoia and Mira, attaining very high levels of scalable performance. We demonstrate strong and weak scaling on Titan, obtaining up to 99.2% parallel efficiency, evolving 1.1 trillion particles. On Sequoia, we reach 13.94 PFlops (69.2% of peak) and 90% parallel efficiency on 1,572,864 cores, with 3.6 trillion particles, the largest cosmological benchmark yet performed. HACC design concepts are applicable to several other supercomputer applications.
Parallel Stent Graft Techniques to Facilitate Endovascular Repair in the Aortic Arch

Endovascular repair has been widely applied to treat acute and chronic aortic arch pathology. Placement of endografts in the aortic arch requires revascularization of the supra-aortic trunks, which can be achieved by debranching techniques, fenestrated or branched endografts, and parallel stent grafts. This chapter describes various chimney and parallel stent graft techniques that are being used increasingly to facilitate endograft repair in the aortic arch. The focus is on the techniques themselves, but it also offers a brief discussion of historical origins and controversies.
Distribution of Breeding Ducks Relative to Habitat Characteristics in the Prairie Pothole Region of North Central Montana

Continental waterfowl population declines in the early 1980s led to the development and implementation of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan. The plan identified wetland and grassland losses in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of Canada and the United States as the major causes of low continental duck populations. Until 2008, north central Montana was the only remaining PPR area in the United States without a ground-based annual survey to monitor breeding duck populations and quantify breeding duck habitat. The purpose of this study was to establish an annual breeding duck survey in north central Montana to 1) develop species-specific breeding pair predictive models, and 2) apply the models to estimate the distribution of breeding ducks and identify priority areas for conservation. We observed 10539 indicated breeding duck pairs on approximately 675 wetland basins surveyed annually from 2008-2014. A competing models analysis was used to identify local- and landscape-scale habitat characteristics to predict breeding duck pair abundance on wetland basins. The five most commonly observed species were modeled separately; those species were mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), northern pintail (A. acuta), gadwall (A. strepera ), northern shoveler (A. clypeata) and blue-winged teal (A. discors). At the local scale, wetland basin area, the square root transformation of wetland basin area, and wetland basin class were important predictors for all species. Important model predictors varied by species at the landscape scale. We applied the models in a GIS to develop a decision support tool for conservation actions funded by the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund.
The Impact of Three Cognitive Training Interventions on Older Adults' Physical Functioning Across 5 Years

Objective: Physical functioning is closely associated with cognition. The current study assessed the impact of three cognitive training programs on objective measures of physical functioning across...
Pathological Features of Three Cases of Rapid Progressive Multifocal Infarcts (P02.034)

OBJECTIVE: Inflammation can lead to increased thrombogenecity and plaque instability patients with intracranial atherosclerosis. BACKGROUND: Intracranial atherosclerosis is a thought to account to most ischemic strokes worldwide .with a high annual stroke recurrence rate of about 15% and a variable clinical course. Whereas cerebral vasculitis is rare disorder with an annual incidence of 2.4 per million per year. DESIGN/METHODS: We present 3 cases of rapidly evolving multiterritorial infarcts with a challenging clinical diagnosis, marked by rapid clinical evolution, suggesting inflammatory etiology, however subsequent postmortem pathological examination proved intracranial atherosclerosis to be the cause of strokes. We provide pertinent radiographic findings with correlated cross sectional pathologic images. RESULTS: Case#1: MA 55-years-old white man with diabetes and hyperlipidemia, had multivessel ischemic infarcts, angiography showed multivascular narrowing, suggesting intracranial atherosclerosis verses CNS vasculitis, brain biopsy was none-diagnostic. The patient was treated with systemic steroids. Clinically, he showed initial neurological improvement followed by deterioration due to biopsy site abscess and gastric aneurysmal rupture leading to death. Case#2: LK: 74-years-old Asian hypertensive woman , presented with successive bilateral hemispheric infarcts over 5 weeks , had elevated inflammatory markers and an angiographic of multiple intracranial vessel stenosis, treated with IV steroids for presumed vasculitis, course progressed to death due to central herniation. Case#3 RM: 71-year-old white woman with hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes ,presented bilateral cerebral infarcts, elevated inflammatory markers and an angiographic evidence of multiple intracranial stenotic lesions, treated for vasculitis with steroids , her course progressed to death over 2 weeks due to severe brain injury. CONCLUSIONS: Rapidly progressive simultaneous strokes, in the presence of multifocal intracranial stenosis, and elevated inflammatory markers, can mislead to the diagnosis of vasculitis. Subsequent treatments might contribute to patient9s demise, by adversely affecting hemodynamic and metabolic factors which are particularly important in such clinical settings. Disclosure: Dr. El-Andary has nothing to disclose. Dr. Lee has nothing to disclose. Dr. Ciesielski has nothing to disclose.
Novel spiking neural network utilizing short-term and long-term dynamics of 3-terminal resistive crossbar arrays

A spiking neuron and 3-terminal Resistive RAM (RRAM) model are proposed and simulated as a neural network. The system is analyzed as a complex network of spiking neurons connected by synapses to demonstrate a biologically-inspired associative memory. In recent years, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence have become popular fields due to readily available high performance computing systems such as GPUs. Contrary to CPU and GPU machines, biologically-inspired neuromorphic hardware systems represent a distributed, in-memory computing alternative to solving complex problems. In this paper, we describe and simulate a process of training a crossbar of generalized 3-terminal RRAM devices to store and classify digits represented by matrices of analog currents.
Machine learning approaches for estimating commercial building energy consumption

Abstract Building energy consumption makes up 40% of the total energy consumption in the United States. Given that energy consumption in buildings is influenced by aspects of urban form such as density and floor-area-ratios (FAR), understanding the distribution of energy intensities is critical for city planners. This paper presents a novel technique for estimating commercial building energy consumption from a small number of building features by training machine learning models on national data from the Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS). Our results show that gradient boosting regression models perform the best at predicting commercial building energy consumption, and can make predictions that are on average within a factor of 2 from the true energy consumption values (with an r 2 score of 0.82). We validate our models using the New York City Local Law 84 energy consumption dataset, then apply them to the city of Atlanta to create aggregate energy consumption estimates. In general, the models developed only depend on five commonly accessible building and climate features, and can therefore be applied to diverse metropolitan areas in the United States and to other countries through replication of our methodology.
An Analysis of Performance in a Two Object Arrival Time Task

Three experiments investigated factors affecting performance in relative arrival time judgments. Male and female subjects predicted which of two moving objects in a computer controlled display would arrive first at a target. The relative arrival time of the objects, speed ratios, and path relations were varied. Results of the first experiment included a systematic pattern of error associated with an apparent distance bias. The second and third experiments added relative speed and distance judgment tasks. It was found that the levels of relative speed and distance employed in the arrival time task were discriminable and that performance in the speed and distance tasks was moderately predictive of performance in the arrival time task. It was also found that despite the evidence of a distance bias subjects did attempt to integrate speed related information in their decisions. The third experiment assessed the stability of performance in each of the tasks over time and provided evidence of individual differen...
Effectiveness of motor skill intervention varies based on implementation strategy

Background: Young children from disadvantaged settings often present delays in fundamental motor skills (FMS). Young children can improve their FMS delays through developmentally appropriate motor ...
Treatment preferences and treatment satisfaction among psoriasis patients: a systematic review

A critical gap exists in determining treatment preferences and treatment satisfaction from patient perspectives, which is paramount to achieving therapeutic success. The objective of this systematic review is to determine factors influencing treatment preferences and treatment satisfaction among psoriasis patients. PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases were searched between November 1, 2010, and December 1, 2017. Observational and interventional research studies published in the English language that discussed patient preferences and patient satisfaction in the treatment of psoriasis were reviewed and synthesized. We utilized data on treatment preferences and treatment satisfaction from 35,388 psoriasis patients based on 60 articles from the years 2010 to 2017. Treatment preferences were heterogeneous and changed over time among psoriasis patients. Across all treatment modalities, the most important treatment attributes were treatment location, probability of improvement, and delivery method. For biologics specifically, the most important attributes were risk of adverse events and probability of treatment benefit. Factors that influenced patients’ preferences for certain treatments included age, sex, comorbidities, disease duration, and prior treatments. Notably, some psoriasis patients placed higher importance on a treatment’s process attributes (e.g., access and delivery) over its outcome attributes (e.g., efficacy). Overall, patient satisfaction with existing therapies remains modest; however, those treated with biologic agents exhibited highest treatment satisfaction over oral therapy, phototherapy, and topical therapy.
Disorders of Magnesium Homeostasis and Magnesium in Therapy

Magnesium, atomic weight 24.3, is the fourth most abun­dant metal in living organisms; next to potassium, it is the most prevalent intracellular cation. Magnesium is abun­dant in all living organisms. In plants, magnesium occupies a position in chlorophyll that is somewhat analogous to that of iron in hemoglobin. In animals, magnesium is criti­cal for vast numbers of metabolic processes, including the production and utilization of energy. Magnesium held a dominant position in the oceans of the Precambrian era, a time when life is believed to have evolved. This fact may account for importance of Mg in a multitude of intracellu­lar processes; for example, Mg is a cofactor in almost every step of anaerobic glycolysis, a very primitive pathway in energy metabolism.
Investigating an evolving leisure experience: antecedents and consequences of spectator affect during a live sporting event.

The paper explores the temporal nature of an evolving leisure experience. A model is proposed that investigates the antecedents and consequences of attribution-dependent emotions in the performance...
Hall Currents in the Aurora

In the eighteenth century, Anders Celsius noted that magnetic disturbances occurred during periods of auroral displays. At the end of the nineteenth century, Kristian Birkeland established magnetic observatories in northern Scandinavia, and determined that the “auroral” magnetic disturbances were caused by intense electric currents flowing horizontally above the earth’s surface in the as yet undiscovered ionosphere. These currents are now known to be Hall currents that flow perpendicular to both the earth’s magnetic field and intense electric fields which are generated at great distances from the earth. These Hall Auroral currents can be as large as one million amperes during periods when more power is deposited in the auroral zones than is generated in the entire United States. Numerous satellite, rocket, and ground-based observational programs are presently being directed toward an understanding of the auroral currents and how they are coupled to interplanetary space. Progress in understanding some of these phenomena is reviewed.
Spinal Cord Patterning

This chapter describes the extracellular and intracellular signaling cascades that control neuronal specification in the spinal cord. The embryonic spinal cord is exposed to an array of inductive factors that instruct the cell fate of the undifferentiated multipotential neuroepithelial precursors comprising the immature neural tube. Some of these signals act locally in a binary fashion between adjacent cells, whereas others are secreted factors that act over longer distances in a concentration-dependent manner. Thus, cells at different locations within the neural tube encounter distinct combinations of signals that are then integrated and converted into coherent intracellular readouts in the form of transcription factor codes. The cell-specific profile of transcription factors ultimately dictates which effector genes become activated and establishes the unique characteristics of the mature neuronal and glial subtypes. As development progresses these distinct cells then assemble into larger circuit structures important for coordinated body movement and proper sensory perception.
Coaches Column: Spectators—A Part of Gymnastics Meets?

(1958). Coaches Column. Journal of Health, Physical Education, Recreation: Vol. 29, No. 9, pp. 44-45.
Teacher's Aide: Geologic Characteristics of Hole-Effect Variograms Calculated from Lithology-Indicator Variables

Variograms calculated from binary variables, such as from two lithologies, tend to show sinusoidal forms with decreasing amplitudes for increasing lag distances. This cyclicity is observed often when analyzing drill-hole data for rock sequences with alternating lithologies, and the variograms are thus labeled “hole-effect variograms.” Such variograms show a variety of forms: (1) Low to moderate variation in lithologic-body dimensions causes variograms to have strong cyclicity with decaying amplitude. (2) Variograms with one or more peaks and troughs usually result from a binary variable for which lithologies are about equally abundant but possibly large variations exist in the size of lithologic bodies. (3) Variograms show poor cyclicity if one lithology has highly variable body sizes and the other has moderately variable body dimensions. (4) Variograms that attain a plateau at short lag distances represent extremely high or low sandstone fraction, high variability in size of the most abundant lithology, and low variability in the other. Information about the dimensions of lithologic bodies makes it possible to approximate characteristics of the variogram of the lithology variable without numerous wells. Conversely, a hole-effect variogram of lithology may be used to estimate lithologic dimensions.
Cerebrospinal fluid amines and peptides in affective illness

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses cerebrospinal fluid amines and peptides in affective illness. In a study described in the chapter, 42 normal volunteers were carefully screened for the absence of medical and psychiatric illness, and were studied with a profile of biological and psychological tests. Baseline levels and probenecid-induced accumulations of the serotonin metabolite 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, measured by fluorometric techniques, were not significantly different among depressed, manic, schizophrenic, and neurological control populations. Almost all of the newly discovered central nervous system peptide substances appeared to be measurable in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The CSF strategy also appears to be an appropriate tool in assessing possible neurotransmitter and peptide alterations associated with the positive psychotropic effects of the anticonvulsant carbamazepine in patients with manic-depressive illness.
Is the Sum Greater than its Parts? Variations in Substance-Related Consequences by Conjoint Alcohol-Marijuana Use Patterns

Alcohol and marijuana are the most commonly used substances for college-attending young adults. This study evaluated differences in substance-specific consequence attribution by alcohol-marijuana use patterns (concurrent alcohol and marijuana [CAM; use of both substances, not at same time] and simultaneous [SAM; use of both, at same time]) as well as alcohol-only (AO). First-year college students with prior alcohol use (N = 610, 50.9% women, 71% White, Mage = 18) completed an online assessment of past-three-month substance use, including SAM, and related consequences. Results indicated that polydrug (SAM and CAM) users reported greater alcohol involvement and earlier alcohol initiation than AO, and polydrug use was associated with more alcohol-related problems, including sexual risk taking and alcohol-related blackouts. When restricted to SAM/CAM users, logistic regressions indicated that SAM users reported an increased incidence in two marijuana-related problems relative to CAM (driving after using and academic difficulties), but lower rates of social problems. SAM users were also less likely to attribute substance-related social problems to alcohol. Overall, findings highlight variations that exist within alcohol-marijuana polydrug users and show areas to consider for intervention development and future research.
Control of quantum cascade laser sources in stand-off detection of trace explosives

We pursue the development of an eye-safe stand-off technique suitable for the detection of trace explosives. As the active illumination sources, tunable quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) are employed in Mid-LWIR (long-wave infrared) in the range of 6 to 11 μm, which contains many spectral features from analytes of interest. Any fluctuation of the laser beam direction and/or beam profile is amplified at the sample position, which would lead to diminished performance of the detection technique, both in sensitivity and selectivity. Several beam stabilization approaches were conducted to overcome this challenge: 1) Using a KBr/diamond pellet as a diffuser in combination with a multimode fiber 2) Feedback stabilization of quantum cascade laser beam steering. The purpose of the first method is to make a temporally and spatially incoherent laser beam source through the multimode fiber and KBr/diamond pellet. The second approach is to stabilize the beam position by using an active feedback loop. We have demonstrated that beam wander and speckle noise were successfully suppressed by these approaches. Independently, we have developed a custom-built broadband laser source in the Mid-LWIR range consisting of several high power Fabry Perot (FP)-QCLs. The FP-QCLs were operated in both CW and pulsed modes at different diode temperatures, and the emission spectra were collected by a FTIR. For our future work, the output beams will be collimated to spectrally combine multi-QCLs and aligned toward the same target. Also, a spatial heterodyne spectrometer (SHS) will be applied to discriminate spectral and spatial information from a single snapshot.
Primary Extracranial Meningioma of Mastoid in a Patient With History of Skin Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Lung Adenocarcinoma and Prostatic Carcinoma.

Background Meningiomas are the most common benign intracranial tumors and frequently develop in the parasagittal region, but can also present extracranially. Rarely, meningiomas may involve the middle ear and mastoid, resulting from contiguous spread of adjacent intracranial tumor, or extremely rarely, as an isolated primary tumor, which is frequently misdiagnosed and unrecognized, resulting in inappropriate clinical management. Case report Herein we report such a case of an 80-year-old man with history of multiple cancer who presented with ear pain, vertigo and hearing loss. Audiometry demonstrated bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. Contrast-enhanced temporal bone computed tomography revealed a soft-tissue mass in the right epitympanum without bone erosion or any intracranial involvement. Radiological and operative findings were suspicious for cholesteatoma. Histological examination showed an epithelial neoplasm arranged in nests and whorls with intranuclear inclusions. No psammoma bodies, mitotic figures, or tumor necrosis were identified. The tumor cells were positive for epithelial membrane antigen, vimentin, progesterone receptor and CD56; and negative for synaptophysin, chromogranin, pancytokeratin (AE1/AE3), cytokeratin 7, prostate-specific antigen, inhibin, S100, P63, and P40. Ki67 highlighted about 2% of the tumor cells. Based on the morphological features and immunohistochemical profile, the tumor was diagnosed as primary extracranial meningioma of the mastoid, meningothelial subtype, World Health Organization grade 1. Conclusion To the best of our knowledge, primary mastoid meningioma clinically mimicking a cholesteatoma presenting in a patient with a history of multiple primary carcinomas has not been previously reported. The pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of this entity are discussed.
The Dynamics and Structure of Liquids Revealed by the Homogeneous and Inhomogeneous Broadening of Liquid Vibrational Transitions

Vibrational linesnapes observed by isotropic spontaneous Raman scattering are broadened by homogeneous and inhomogeneous processes. Consequently, the vibrational correlation function must be expressed as a product of two correlation functions: $$ \phi \,\left( t \right)\,{\text{ }} = {\text{ }}\,\phi _H \left( t \right)\,\phi \,_{INH} \left( t \right) $$ (1)
Silver‐Promoted Benzannulations of Siloxyalkynes with Pyridinium and Isoquinolinium Salts.

The title reaction proceeds under mild conditions via a formal inverse-electron demand Diels—Alder reaction, followed by fragmentation of the initially formed bicyclic intermediates to produce naphthol and phenol derivatives.
Endogenous family outbreak of Plasmodium falciparum in winter.

This paper reported an endogenous outbreak of Plasmodium falciparum in winter. The husband and wife sickened at the same time, and were confirmed as Plasmodium falciparum by microscopic examination. Patients were treated by artemether, mannitol, primaquine, as well as symptomatic treatment, and the patients were cured.
Fed-batch cultivation and adding supplements to increase yields of polyhydroxybutyrate production by Cupriavidus necator from corn stover alkaline pretreatment liquor

Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production and productivity with supplements under fed-batch cultivation at bioreactor scale (1.3 L). In this study, multiple supplements including oxidative enzyme, mediators, surfactants and silicon nanoparticles were added to Cupriavidus necator culture growing on alkaline pretreatment liquor (APL). At 1.3 L bioreactor scale, PHB production reached 3.3 g/L. To further enhance PHB production, fed-batch cultivation with two different feeding strategies were applied. Under single pulse feeding of 300 mL medium, PHB production reached 4.0 g/L. Under 4 pulses feeding of 75 mL medium each time, PHB production reached 4.5 g/L. This is the highest PHB production from lignin that the authors are aware of in literature.
Democracy, Truth, and Understanding: An Epistemic Argument for Democracy

Epistemic arguments for democracy claim that democratic institutions are epistemically and not just morally superior to non-democratic alternatives. Democratic institutions do a better job at discovering the truth, at justifying decisions and policies, and at gathering and creating knowledge. But epistemic arguments have also faced serious criticism that questions whether political decisions are best framed in terms of truth and, if they are, whether democracy is actually the best way of arriving at the truth. I argue here that these concerns can be addressed by making two modifications to epistemic arguments. The first is that we attend to other epistemic concepts—notably understanding—which are often left out of the equation. The second is that we also revisit and revise the concept of truth in which the epistemic argument is typically framed.
COVID-19 Barriers to Care for Pregnant Patients in Prolonged Isolation

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the agent responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), continues to have a devastating impact on healthcare systems worldwide, and many questions remain unanswered. The effect of COVID-19 on the pregnant population is widely debated, and the unique risks in pregnancy have not yet been elucidated. What has been established, however, is the recommendation for healthcare workers to use personal protective equipment (PPE) for both contact and airborne precautions to prevent transmission of the pathogen-adding another barrier to care for vulnerable populations. We report a case of a young woman from Haiti during her first pregnancy, who was admitted to the antepartum service at 22 weeks of gestation with preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) and remained admitted in isolation, though asymptomatic, for over six weeks due to persistent positive SARS-CoV-2 testing. Our case highlights the unique barriers to care that COVID-19 poses to antepartum patients, particularly in the setting of pregnant women with persistent positive testing.
Revealing defective nanostructured surfaces and their impact on the intrinsic stability of hybrid perovskites

The instability of metal halide perovskites (MHPs) remains to be one major obstacle for the commercialization of perovskite solar cells. Here we report the observation of nanocrystals and some amorphous phases at the surface of apparent single crystalline grains in polycrystalline films deposited by almost all known solution deposition methods, which accelerate the degradation of MHPs. By removing the defective surface layer through mechanical polishing, the stability of perovskite films is significantly enhanced. Encapsulated solar cells based on polished MHPs retain 93% of their initial efficiency after continuous illumination for 2180 hours at 1 sun intensity and with ultraviolet radiation at 65 °C. Removing the defective surface layers restores the mechanical hardness to be comparable to that of single crystals, which suppresses ion migration and permeation of detrimental species into perovskite grains. This study narrows down the stability gap between the MHP polycrystalline films and single crystal perovskites which represents the upper limit for the stability of MHPs.
Multicultural Competence and Other Considerations

Healthcare providers interact with individuals from a wide range of social, ethnic, and geographic backgrounds. We must be competent in treating disease, but also in understanding and providing compassionate care for each patient. Our success in the latter depends in part on recognizing that inherent differences exist between how patients from different cultures access and receive care. Barriers such as cost of service and proximity to facilities may limit access to physicians. When care is delivered, a provider’s lack of familiarity with different cultural norms and beliefs can result in less effective care. These same concepts can be applied to many vulnerable populations such as the disabled, the elderly, and the incarcerated. Interventions can be utilized to reduce these disparities. Cultural education and training for providers alongside individual and community-based health outreach programs have the potential for universally improving care for all patients.
Individual investor ownership and the news coverage premium

Abstract If widely-circulated news providers cater to the information demands of individual investors, stocks with high individual ownership should receive more news coverage, theoretically resulting in lower volatility and a lower cost of capital. In this paper, I explore this hypothesis by utilizing the extensive news sources available in Bloomberg Terminals to construct a monthly panel dataset of S&P 500 firms between 2012 and 2019. I verify that companies with a higher percentage of individual investor ownership receive more news coverage, and that this effect is strongest among larger firms. In order to quantify the importance of this mechanism for stock prices, I estimate a panel VAR model and conduct a counterfactual analysis where the news coverage response to exogenous shifts in ownership composition is effectively “shut off”. The counterfactual analysis implies that an increase in news coverage triggered by a one standard deviation rise in individual ownership reduces annual stock volatility by 0.51% and annual returns by 0.135%, suggesting that the individual investor-news coverage channel partially offsets the more well-documented informational advantages of institutional ownership.
Bilateral idiopathic corneal opacity: A report of Ascher ring and a review of the literature

Abstract Purpose To present a case of a rare entity of Ascher ring, a bilateral corneal stromal opacification. Observation A 70-year-old male with no ocular history who presented for cataract evaluation was found to have idiopathic bilateral circular stromal corneal rings. Conclusions After completion of extensive history, examination, imaging analyses, and laboratory studies for workup of corneal opacities, we arrived at a diagnosis of Ascher corneal ring, an extremely rare entity. Importance A rare entity should be considered after excluding other etiologies.
Students are Humans First: Advancing Basic Needs Security in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly exacerbated the challenging situation facing many students in colleges and universities in the United States. To promote student success and address equity issues in higher education, there is an urgent need to treat students as humans first and attend to their basic needs. In this essay, I present evidence pointing to the fact that the pandemic has made student basic needs insecurity even worse. However, well designed and successfully implemented emergency aid programs and other innovative interventions with equity at the center can help address problems in student basic needs insecurity. I present successful examples in addressing student basic needs insecurity and call for sustained and bold actions.
The political economy of fiscal policy and economic management in oil exporting countries

Despite massive oil rent incomes since the early 1970s, the economic performance of oil-exporting countries - with notable exceptions - is poor. While there is extensive literature on the management of oil resources, analysis of the underlying political determinants of this poor performance is more sparse. Drawing on concepts from the comparative institutionalist tradition in political science, Eifert, Gelb, and Tallroth develop a generalized typology of political states that is used in analyzing the political economy of fiscal and economic management in oil-exporting countries with widely differing political systems. In assessing performance, the authors focus on issues of long-term savings, economic stabilization, and efficient use of oil rents. The comparisons of country experiences suggest that countries with strong, mature, democratic traditions have advantages in managing oil rents well because of their ability to reach consensus, their educated and informed electorates, and a high level of transparency that facilitates clear decisions on how to use rents over a long horizon. Yet even these systems, ensuring cautious use of oil income is a continuing struggle. Traditional and modernizing autocracies have also demonstrated their ability to sustain long decision horizons and implement developmental policies. But resistance to transparency and the danger of oil-led spending and expenditure commitments becoming the major legitimizing force behind the state may pose risk to the long-term sustainability of their current development strategies. In contrast, little positive effect can be expected from the politically unstable, predatory autocracies, which typically have very short policy horizons and sometimes the characteristics of "roving bandit" regimes. Factional democracies, with weak political parties and highly personalized politics, present particular challenges because they lack a sufficiently effective political system to create a consensus among strong competing interests. Special attention will be needed to increase transparency and raise public awareness in these countries. And oil rent makes it more difficult to sustain a constituency in favor of sound, longer-run economic management because it weakens incentives for agents to support checks and balances that impinge on their individual plans to appropriate the rents. The country comparisons further demonstrate that technical solutions - such as the establishment of oil stabilization funds and budgetary reforms - to enhance transparency and efficiency in the use of oil rents will not work well unless constituencies can be developed in support of such measures. This paper - a product of the Office of the Chief Economist, Africa Region -is part of a larger effort in the region to improve the management of public finance, including revenues from natural resources.
Territorial Behavior in Belted Kingfishers, Ceryle alcyon , During Fall Migration

The Belted Kingfisher ( Ceryle alcyon ) exhibits territorial behavior during breeding and on the wintering grounds. However, behavior during migration is poorly documented. Here, I report on kingfishers exhibiting territorial behavior during fall migration along the shoreline of northern Lake Huron, Michigan.
Effects of Maternal Prenatal Smoking and Birth Outcomes Extending into the Normal Range on Academic Performance in Fourth Grade in North Carolina, USA

Background Research has documented the adverse relationship of child cognitive development with maternal prenatal smoking and poor birth outcomes. The potential, however, for maternal prenatal smoking to modify the association between birth outcomes and cognitive development is unclear. Methods We linked statewide North Carolina birth data for non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black children to end-of-grade test scores in reading and mathematics at fourth grade (n = 65 677). We fit race-stratified multilevel models of test scores regressed on maternal smoking, birth outcomes (as measured by continuous and categorical gestational age and birthweight percentile for gestational age), and their interaction, controlling for maternal- and child-level socio-economic factors. Results Smoking was consistently associated with decrements in test scores, and better birth outcomes were associated with improvements in test scores, even in clinically normal ranges. Test scores increased quadratically with improving birth outcomes among smoking and non-smoking mothers. Among non-Hispanic white children, the magnitude of the association between gestational age and test scores was larger for children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy compared with the non-smoking group. However, among non-Hispanic black children, birth outcomes did not appear to interact with maternal smoking on test scores. Conclusions Maternal prenatal smoking may interact with birth outcomes on reading and mathematics test scores, particularly among non-Hispanic white children. Improvements in birth outcomes, even within the clinically normal range, may be associated with improved academic performance. Pregnancy-related exposures and events exert a significant and long-term impact on cognitive development.