cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Logic of Benchmarking: A Case Against State-of-the-Art Performance

This note marshals arguments for three points. First, it is better to test on small benchmark instances than to solve the largest possible ones. This eases replication and allows a more diverse set of instances to be tested. There are few conclusions that one can draw from running on large benchmarks that can't also be drawn from running on small benchmarks. Second, experimental evaluation should focus on understanding algorithm behavior and forming predictive models, rather than on achieving state-of-the-art performance on toy problems. Third, it is more important to develop search techniques that are robust across multiple domains than ones that only give state-of-the-art performance in a single domain. Robust techniques are more likely be useful to others.
A Note on Using Multiple Singular Value Decompositions to Cluster Complex Intracellular Calcium Ion Signals

Recently (Martinez et al. 2010),we compared calciumion signaling (Ca2+) between two exposures, where the data present as movies, or, more prosaically, time series of images. They described novel uses of singular value decompositions (SVD) and weighted versions of them (WSVD) to extract the signals from such movies, in a way that is semi-automatic and tuned closely to the actual data and their many complexities. These complexities include the following. First, the images themselves are of no interest: all interest focuses on the behavior of individual cells across time, and thus the cells need to be segmented in an automated manner. Second, the cells themselves have 100+ pixels, so that they form 100+ curves measured over time, so that data compression is required to extract the features of these curves. Third, some of the pixels in some of the cells are subject to image saturation due to bit depth limits, and this saturation needs to be accounted for if one is to normalize the images in a reasonably unbiased manner. Finally, theCa2+ signals have oscillations orwaves that vary with time and these signals need to be extracted. Thus, they showed how to use multiple weighted and standard singular value decompositions to detect, extract and clarify the Ca2+ signals. In this paper,we showhow this signal extraction lends itself to a cluster analysis of the cell behavior, which shows distinctly different patterns of behavior.
Abstract 524: Deletion of Methionine Sulfoxide Reductase A in Mice Increases Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation and Neointimal Hyperplasia

Introduction: Neointima formation is the leading cause of restenosis after balloon angioplasty and surgical endarterectomy. ROS production promotes neointimal hyperplasia and causes methionine oxidation. Recent data suggest that oxidation of methionines can alter specific protein activity and induce cell signaling. Methionine Sulfoxide Reductase A (MsrA) reverses methionine oxidation. In humans, two independent genome-wide association studies have found MsrA polymorphisms to correlate with increased ischemic cardiovascular disease. Hypothesis: MsrA protects against neointimal formation. Methods: Immunofluorescence for MsrA was performed in autopsy specimen of arteries with and without neointimal hyperplasia. 12-week old WT and MsrA-/- mice underwent ligation of the left common carotid artery and received two injections of BrdU prior to sacrifice. Fourteen days after ligation, the neointimal area was determined using Image J. Cell proliferation and apoptosis in the neointima were quantified by BrdU and TUNEL staining. Proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) from MsrA-/- and WT mice was determined by cell counts and FACS analysis. Levels of cell cycle proteins, pAkt, pGSK3β were analyzed by immunoblot in MsrA-/- and WT VSMC, mRNA levels by qrtPCR. Results: MsrA was detected in all layers of the vascular wall and in neointima in humans. Neointimal area was significantly increased in MsrA-/- compared to WT mice 14 days post-ligation (n=5-9, p<0.05). Additionally, neointimas from MsrA-/- mice contained a higher percentage of proliferating cells (0.92±1.42% vs 8.89±8.89%, p=0.007). MsrA-/- VSMC displayed significantly increased proliferation compared to WT VSMC (p<0.05). Moreover, the progression to S phase was accelerated and protein levels of the cell cycle regulators Cyclin D and CDK4 were upregulated in MsrA-/- VSMC. However, cyclin D mRNA levels are not increased (p=0.24). This implies that MsrA post-translationally regulates cyclin D. GSK3β, which is inhibited by Akt, promotes cyclin D degradation. An increase in pAkt and pGSK3β was identified in MsrA-/- VSMC. Conclusion: These data indicate that MsrA regulates neointima formation after vascular injury and support a role for MsrA in the regulation of Akt signaling.
Improving face image extraction by using deep learning technique

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has made a collection of over a 1.2 million research articles containing 3.2 million figure images searchable using the Open-iSM multimodal (text+image) search engine. Many images are visible light photographs, some of which are images containing faces (“face images”). Some of these face images are acquired in unconstrained settings, while others are studio photos. To extract the face regions in the images, we first applied one of the most widely-used face detectors, a pre-trained Viola-Jones detector implemented in Matlab and OpenCV. The Viola-Jones detector was trained for unconstrained face image detection, but the results for the NLM database included many false positives, which resulted in a very low precision. To improve this performance, we applied a deep learning technique, which reduced the number of false positives and as a result, the detection precision was improved significantly. (For example, the classification accuracy for identifying whether the face regions output by this Viola- Jones detector are true positives or not in a test set is about 96%.) By combining these two techniques (Viola-Jones and deep learning) we were able to increase the system precision considerably, while avoiding the need to manually construct a large training set by manual delineation of the face regions.
Spectral graph sparsification in nearly-linear time leveraging efficient spectral perturbation analysis

Spectral graph sparsification aims to find an ultra-sparse subgraph whose Laplacian matrix can well approximate the original Laplacian matrix in terms of its eigenvalues and eigenvectors. The resultant sparsified subgraph can be efficiently leveraged as a proxy in a variety of numerical computation applications and graph-based algorithms. This paper introduces a practically efficient, nearly-linear time spectral graph sparsification algorithm that can immediately lead to the development of nearly-linear time symmetric diagonally-dominant (SDD) matrix solvers. Our spectral graph sparsi-fication algorithm can efficiently build an ultra-sparse subgraph from a spanning tree subgraph by adding a few “spectrally-critical” off-tree edges back to the spanning tree, which is enabled by a novel spectral perturbation approach and allows to approximately preserve key spectral properties of the original graph Laplacian. Extensive experimental results confirm the nearly-linear runtime scalability of an SDD matrix solver for large-scale, real-world problems, such as VLSI, thermal and finite-element analysis problems, etc. For instance, a sparse SDD matrix with 40 million unknowns and 180 million nonzeros can be solved (1E-3 accuracy level) within two minutes using a single CPU core and about 6GB memory.
Biosocial Factors in Infant Mortality: Multivariate Analysis of Rates of Births, Lethal Congenital Defects, and Infant Mortality

The United States is among the 25 large nations with the lowest infant mortality rates but not among the lowest 10 (Wallace et al, 1982), A number of biosocial factors have been associated with these deaths including cigarette smoking. Ionizing radiation may play a role in congenital malformations since radiation is mutagenic and teratogenic at high doses. Background radiation, however, has always been part of, ecosystems within which humans have adapted.
Cytokines as Active Factors in Minimal Change Nephrotic Syndrome

The pathogenesis of proteinuria in minimal change disease (MCD) is unknown. Shalhoub in 1974 proposed that the increased glomerular permeability to plasma proteins was due to a circulating factor released by T cells.
Does playing video games with violent content temporarily increase aggressive inclinations? A pre-registered experimental study

Abstract The current study tested whether participants who played a violent video game (VVG) would exhibit increased aggressive inclinations relative to those who played a non-violent video game (NVG). Participants ( N = 386) were randomly assigned to play a VVG or a NVG prior to presumably interacting with another (non-existent) participant. We then measured participants' aggressive inclinations: Participants reported how many pins they would like to stick into a “voodoo doll” representing their interaction partner, and participants reported how likely they would be to actually harm their interaction partner. We did not detect any differences between conditions for several outcomes: the amount of aggressive inclinations displayed during the interaction, the number of pins participants chose to stick into a representation of their interaction partner, and participants' self-reported likelihood they would harm their interaction partner. Thus, the hypothesis that playing a VVG would increase aggressive inclinations was not supported in this study. Exploratory analyses revealed associations between (1) participants' self-reported likelihood to aggress and perceptions of the game as frustrating or difficult, (2) gender and higher levels of pin selection, and (3) participants' self-identification as a gamer and lower levels of pin selection.
Previously Unknown Early Examples of Y’all in British Literature

Few words in the English language have been the subject of as much research and debate as y’all. Scholars have written on geographical and racial aspects of the word as well as its number (Tillery ...
SRF acceleration for heavy ions: ATLAS decadal operation and evolution

This review paper presents the history and status of superconducting RF at the Argonne Tandem Linac Accelerator System (ATLAS) which is a Department of Energy (DOE) National User Facility for research in nuclear physics with accelerated stable and radioactive ion beams.
Programming Post-Translational Control over the Metabolic Labeling of Cellular Proteins with a Noncanonical Amino Acid

Transcriptional control can be used to program cells to label proteins with noncanonical amino acids by regulating the expression of orthogonal aminoacyl tRNA synthetases (aaRSs). However, we cannot yet program cells to control labeling in response to aaRS and ligand binding. To identify aaRSs whose activities can be regulated by interactions with ligands, we used a combinatorial approach to discover fragmented variants of Escherichia coli methionyl tRNA synthetase (MetRS) that require fusion to associating proteins for maximal activity. We found that these split proteins could be leveraged to create ligand-dependent MetRS using two approaches. When a pair of MetRS fragments was fused to FKBP12 and the FKBP-rapamycin binding domain (FRB) of mTOR and mutations were introduced that direct substrate specificity toward azidonorleucine (Anl), Anl metabolic labeling was significantly enhanced in growth medium containing rapamycin, which stabilizes the FKBP12–FRB complex. In addition, fusion of MetRS fragments t...
Utility of Genomic Analysis in Differentiating Synchronous and Metachronous Lung Adenocarcinomas from Primary Adenocarcinomas with Intrapulmonary Metastasis

Distinguishing synchronous and metachronous primary lung adenocarcinomas from adenocarcinomas with intrapulmonary metastasis is essential for optimal patient management. In this study, multiple lung adenocarcinomas occurring in the same patient were evaluated using comprehensive histopathologic evaluation supplemented with molecular analysis. The cohort included 18 patients with a total of 52 lung adenocarcinomas. Eleven patients had a new diagnosis of multiple adenocarcinomas in the same lobe (n=5) or different lobe (n=6). Seven patients had a history of lung cancer and developed multiple new tumors. The final diagnosis was made in resection specimens (n=49), fine needle aspiration (n=2), and biopsy (n=1). Adenocarcinomas were non-mucinous, and histopathologic comparison of tumors was performed. All tumors save for one were subjected to ALK gene rearrangement testing and targeted Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). Using clinical, radiologic, and morphologic features, a confident conclusion favoring synchronous/metachronous or metastatic disease was made in 65% of patients. Cases that proved challenging included ones with more than three tumors showing overlapping growth patterns and lacking a predominant lepidic component. Genomic signatures unique to each tumor were helpful in determining the relationship of multiple carcinomas in 72% of patients. Collectively, morphologic and genomic data proved to be of greater value and achieved a conclusive diagnosis in 94% of patients. Assessment of the genomic profiles of multiple lung adenocarcinomas complements the histological findings, enabling a more comprehensive assessment of synchronous, metachronous, and metastatic lesions in most patients, thereby improving staging accuracy. Targeted NGS can identify genetic alterations with therapeutic implications.
New bounds for the probability that at least k-out-of-n events occur with unimodal distributions

Abstract The contribution of the shape information of the underlying distribution in probability bounding problem is investigated and a linear programming based bounding methodology to obtain robust and efficiently computable bounds for the probability that at least k -out-of- n events occur is developed. The dual feasible basis structures of the relaxed versions of linear programs involved are fully described. The bounds for the probability that at least k -out-of- n events occur are obtained in the form of formulas and as the customized algorithmic solutions of the LP’s formulated. An application in finance is presented.
On-demand microbicide products: design matters

Sexual intercourse (vaginal and anal) is the predominant mode of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission. Topical microbicides used in an on-demand format (i.e., immediately before or after sex) can be part of an effective tool kit utilized to prevent sexual transmission of HIV. The effectiveness of prevention products is positively correlated with adherence, which is likely to depend on user acceptability of the product. The development of an efficacious and acceptable product is therefore paramount for the success of an on-demand product. Acceptability of on-demand products (e.g., gels, films, and tablets) and their attributes is influenced by a multitude of user-specific factors that span behavioral, lifestyle, socio-economic, and cultural aspects. In addition, physicochemical properties of the drug, anatomical and physiological aspects of anorectal and vaginal compartments, issues relating to large-scale production, and cost can impact product development. These factors together with user preferences determine the design space of an effective, acceptable, and feasible on-demand product. In this review, we summarize the interacting factors that together determine product choice and its target product profile.
Blood pressure reactivity to psychological stress is associated with clinical outcomes in patients with heart failure.

Introduction Cardiovascular (CV) reactivity to psychological stress has been implicated in the development and exacerbation of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although high CV reactivity traditionally is thought to convey greater risk of CVD, the relationship between reactivity and clinical outcomes is inconsistent and may depend on the patient population under investigation. The present study examined CV reactivity in patients with heart failure (HF) and its potential association with long-term clinical outcomes. Methods One hundred ninety-nine outpatients diagnosed with HF, with ejection fraction ≤40%, underwent an evaluation of blood pressure (BP) and heart rate reactivity to a laboratory-based simulated public-speaking stressor. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to examine the prospective association between BP and heart rate reactivity on a combined end point of death or CV hospitalization over a 5-year median follow-up period. Results Both systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) reactivity, quantified as continuous variables, were inversely related to risk of death or CV hospitalization (Ps Conclusions For HF patients with reduced ejection fraction, a robust increase in BP evoked by a laboratory-based psychological challenge was associated with lower risk for adverse CVD events and may be a novel and unique marker of left ventricular systolic reserve that is accompanied by a more favorable long-term prognosis.
Adoption by Same-Sex Couples: The Relationship Between Adoption Worker and Social Work Student Sex-Role Beliefs and Attitudes

The current study investigated the relationship between sex-role beliefs and attitudes toward same-sex couple adoptions as suggested by Feminist and Queer theory. A mailed questionnaire was used to collect data from a purposive sample of adoption workers and social work students. The questionnaire included an abbreviated version of the Sex-Role Egalitarianism Scale and the newly created Attitudes Toward Same-Sex Couples as Adoptive Parents Scale. Findings supported the existence of a positive, linear relationship between sex-role beliefs and attitudes. Implications of the results, limitations of the investigation, and directions for future research are presented.
Vascular-Access Infections in Hospitalized Patients

Vascular catheters are a common source of nosocomial infections, although many of these infections are potentially preventable. A long duration of catheterization, multiple catheter manipulations, the inexperience of some inserters, use of transparent plastic dressings, violations of aseptic technique, the use of multilumen catheters, and inadequate sterilization of reusable pressure transducers all increase the risk of these infections. The only interventions that have been proved to reduce the risk are standardized insertion and maintenance technique by an intravenous-therapy team, preinsertion skin preparation with chlorhexidine gluconate, and the use of topical antibiotics at the insertion site. The goal of the physician should be to prevent catheter infection, because the treatment of established infection can be difficult and costly. Treatment must be individualized for each patient on the basis of the clinical presentation and the causative organism.
Use of Functionalized Poly(Ethylene Glycol)s for Modification of Polypeptides

The unique properties of poly(ethylene glycol) (or PEG) and its general compatibility with polypeptide materials facilitated development of a variety of different applications of this polymer.1–11 A marked proportion of these applications involve the use of covalently linked polypeptide-PEG adducts (reviewed elsewhere5–11). For example, a number of PEG-enzymes were shown to be useful as catalysts, soluble and active in organic solvents.7 Due to the affinity to the upper phase of PEG/Dextran and PEG/salt two-phase systems, PEG-modified proteins were proven useful both as diagnostic tools8 and in preparative separations of biological cells.9
Intestinal Calcium Transport In Utero. Clinical Implications for the Newborn Infant

Calcium requirements for growth and for skeletal mineralization during fetal life and in early postnatal development are substantial. During fetal life, significant active transfer of calcium occurs from mother to fetus via the placenta.1 At birth, the connection between mother, placenta, and infant is severed and the intestinal tract becomes the major organ of calcium acquisition for the infant. Early studies in newborn animals demonstrated increased rates of intestinal calcium absorption compared to adult animals.2 However, recent studies of vitamin D deficient and vitamin D-replete rat pups showed that intestinal calcium transport during the first two weeks of life is not meditated by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D as is true for adult animals.3 In these studies, a vitamin D-sensitive intestinal calcium transport system developed late in the suckling and in the early weanling period. In light of developmental changes taking place in the intestinal tract and the apparent lack of absolute dependence on vitamin D mediated intestinal calcium transport in the immediate postnatal period, we began studies on the ontogeny of intestinal calcium transport in utero. This paper reports the results of preliminary experiments carried out in fetal lambs.
Speculations: providing fault-tolerance and recoverability in distributed environments

Building safe and reliable programs is an important but difficult endeavor. The challenge is even greater in the context of distributed environments, which may involve complex synchronization operations in the presence of process and network failures. Transactions are one of the earliest and simplest abstractions for reliable concurrent programming [2]. They provide fault-isolation by guaranteeing the atomicity, the consistency and the durability of the actions performed as part of the transaction. Traditional transactions also provide isolation, which prevents the independent actions inside of a transaction from being visible to the outside world until the transaction either aborts or commits. In this paper we consider the case where multiple processes may cooperate in a transaction, using message passing for communication. We relax the transactional isolation property to permit inter-process communication while executing inside the transaction. This model can improve performance and provide fault-tolerance for distributed applications. We call these transactions with relaxed isolation speculations, and we introduce them as programming language primitives. Traditional checkpointing and rollback mechanisms used to provide recoverability are also similar to our approach. However, there are a few differences, as follows. Speculations can provide programs with alternate execution paths upon rollback. Speculations are lightweight checkpoints that are stored in memory and can be coupled with real checkpointing mechanism for increased reliability. Speculations are exposed as programming language primitives that have a semantics closer to that of transactions than that of checkpoints. Our system adapts mechanisms designed for checkpointing/rollback systems [1] to ensure safe recovery lines in case of distributed speculation rollback. While speculations are similar to the concept of lookahead-rollback introduced by the TimeWarp [3] mechanism, we extend the concept by allowing both explicit and implicit speculations through programming language extensions. The main contributions of this paper include: (1) the introduction of a new programming model based on speculations, (2) the definition of new speculative programming language constructs for distributed applications, (3) the description of a prototype implementation of speculations in the Linux kernel where speculative operations, including distributed commit and rollback, are transparent.
Quantification of Catalytic Activity for Electrostatically Enhanced Thioureas via Reaction Kinetics and UV–vis Spectroscopic Measurement

Charged thiourea derivatives containing one and two methylated or octylated pyridinium ion centers and a tetraarylborate or triflate counteranion are reported. These novel catalysts are much more active in the Friedel–Crafts reactions of trans-β-nitroalkenes with N-methylindoles than the privileged N,N′-bis(3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)thiourea (i.e., Schreiner’s thiourea) by up to 2–3 orders of magnitude. A previously reported UV–vis spectroscopic method by Kozlowski et al. was exploited to rationalize their reactivity order along with noncharged analogues. These results offer a new design strategy for organocatalysts by introducing positively charged centers without adding additional N–H, O–H, or S–H hydrogen bond donor sites.
Investigation of limestone and dolomite clast alteration in petrocalcic horizons, southern Nevada, USA

Abstract Petrocalcic horizons formed on Quaternary surfaces in southern Nevada contain altered limestone and dolomite clasts in the enveloping carbonate matrix. Three profiles from two geomorphic surfaces contain pebble to cobble clasts with distinct voids and alteration textures at their tops. Clast and alteration zone characteristics were analyzed with scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, electron microprobe analysis, and with an inductively-coupled plasma spectrophotometer. Limestone and dolomite clasts display considerable top-down alteration marked by vertical tubular voids and an increase in neoformed fibrous clay in the altered regions. Downward percolating soil waters moved through the cemented horizon and contacted the upper clast boundaries as evidenced by selective alteration and void development at the tops of clasts. The preservation of voids indicates that alteration and void development began no earlier than initial petrocalcic formation when soil matrix pore spaces were largely filled with pedogenic carbonate. Undersaturation of soil fluids with respect to primary clast components (Ca and/or Mg) and/or increased pCO2 under conditions enhanced during wetter (pluvial) climates is interpreted to drive dissolution and alteration of clasts in these horizons. Resulting morphological and mineralogical changes in these petrocalcic horizons may mark past climate and geomorphic influence on their development over time. Misinterpretation of parent material provenance as a result of selected removal of individual clast lithologies may occur.
Understanding Parents' Concerns with Smart Device Usage in the Home.

Several studies have been conducted to determine parenting strategies in the age of digital technology. However, we are not aware of any qualitative research regarding parents’ safety and privacy concerns about their children’s use of smart devices in the home. Given the rise in use of smart devices within the home in general, and among children in particular, we wanted to explore the privacy and safety concerns that parents have about their children’s device use, their experiences using devices with their children, children’s independent use, and restrictions parents place on device use. In this paper, we present findings from an exploratory study of 29 participants through three focus groups and 14 semi-structured interviews. Our study revealed that encouraging device usage may help build familial relationships and foster open communication between parents and children. We also discovered that parents feel it is their responsibility to keep their children from harm when they use smart devices, and that parents do not trust applications, devices, smart device manufacturers or Internet providers to do so. Our findings can help researchers better understand the different device usage scenarios, parents’ concerns about their kids’ device use, and parent-child relationships, which will help them design better tools that encourage parents and children to work together to develop device usage rules and better safety and privacy practices.
Creative Approaches to Person-Centered Dementia Care.

Fellow Clinical Gerontologists, in this second issue of 2020 we focus on clinical practice with persons with dementia or memory complaints. Our eight articles include two practical review papers, f...
COVID-19 Contact-Tracing Apps: How to Prevent Privacy from Becoming the Next Victim

Contact-tracing apps to combat the COVID-19 pandemic have increasingly been mentioned as useful tools to accompany and contribute to a return to normality despite the many ethical and legal questions they raise. The pressure exerted by business circles and lobbies to restart and ‘save the economy’ has been intense. What started as a public health crisis morphed into an economic crisis and we are now faced with a ‘trick-or-treat’ choice: accept to ‘pay the price’ and use invasive tracing apps, and by so doing facilitate a gradual reopening of business, or fight for privacy and delay the return to normality.
Potenziale der Digitalisierung: Die Intelligenz der Vielen im Unternehmen nutzen

Die Intelligenz der Vielen ist eine unschatzbare Ressource fur Unternehmen: Sie sichert Partizipation und Zustimmung, sie bringt Expertise kurzfristig und nach Bedarf ins Unternehmen und sorgt fur valide Meinungs- und Stimmungsbilder. Doch um sie zu nutzen, sind bestimmte Voraussetzungen notwendig. Diese lassen sich am besten mit einem agilen Modell wie dem ETC etablieren. Der vorliegende Beitrag zeigt, wie eine digitalisierungsfreundliche geschaffen werden kann und wie die Intelligenz der Vielen auf den Unternehmenserfolg einzahlt. Ein Fallbeispiel illustriert das Thema aus einer praktischen Sicht.
Self-Reported Awareness of Retinopathy Severity in Diabetic Patients

Background Diabetic retinopathy (DR) may be asymptomatic in both mild and advanced stages. A patient's accurate perception of their DR severity may therefore be critical for effective self-management behaviors and understanding the need for timely intervention and follow-up. Purpose To evaluate the relationship between self-reported and actual retinopathy severity in diabetic patients. Methods This study was a single-center cross-sectional survey. Diabetic patients identified by enterprise data warehouse were sent an online questionnaire where they were asked to self-assess for presence of DR and grade their severity. Actual DR grading was determined via chart review. The primary outcome measures were patient-assessed DR severity and agreement with actual DR severity. Results Of 3208 invitations sent, 324 (10%) patients responded and 319 responses were analyzed. The data showed that 39 of 253 (15%) with no DR, 26 of 40 (65%) with mild/moderate DR, and 24 of 26 (92%) with severe DR believed they had DR (p<0.001). Of those with no DR, 214 of 253 (85%) accurately assessed absence of DR. Of those with mild/moderate DR, 25 of 40 (63%) accurately assessed their severity, 14 of 40 (35%) believed they had no DR, and 1 of 40 (3%) believed they had severe DR. In patients with severe DR, 9 of 26 (35%) correctly assessed their severity, 15 of 26 (58%) believed they had mild/moderate DR, and 2 of 26 (8%) believed they had no DR. Conclusion Patients with severe DR were the most likely to report presence of DR, but often underestimated their disease severity. Many with mild/moderate DR did not realize they had DR. This consistent underestimation of severity across all a significant barrier to timely follow-up and treatment necessary to prevent future visual impairment.
Nest density and competing risks: A long-term investigation of Black Brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) nest survival

Many species of seabirds and waterfowl are predominantly colonial breeders, suggesting that colonial breeding is beneficial in some way. For Arctic nesting geese, colonial breeding may be an adaptive approach to minimize the risk of nest failure through predator swamping. Yet evidence for predator swamping is inconclusive. Species in low-lying coastal zones may have to manage tradeoffs between historical (e.g., predation) and increased frequency of other threats (e.g., coastal flooding associated with storm events). As the climate continues to change, coastal obligates will be subject to rising sea levels and an increase in extreme weather events, which could exacerbate the tradeoff between flooding and predation risk. We studied the effect of nest density on nest success in the colonial nesting Black Brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) on the Tutakoke River Colony in western Alaska and explored how density effects change during years of heavy Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) predation and coastal flooding associated with storm events. We classified the colony as containing 2 strata that differed in elevation and vegetation, and were separated by the Tutakoke River. The stratum north of the Tutakoke River was 0.25 m lower in elevation and subject to periodic tidal flooding, while the southern stratum never flooded. Nest density positively affected brant nest success in years with high levels of fox predation. Nest success was greatest at the highest density during Normal years (low levels of fox predation and no flooding; northern stratum nest success 0.81 ± 0.01, southern stratum nest success 0.81 ± 0.01) and lowest in areas of low density during Fox years (northern stratum nest success 0.38 ± 0.01, southern stratum nest success 0.31 ± 0.01). Nest success was routinely higher during Normal years at all densities compared to Flood and Fox years. Our results support the hypothesis that colonial nesting, at least in tundra habitats, may have developed as a defense mechanism to swamp mammalian predators.
Review of the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus (COVID-19) Self-Checker: An Interactive Consumer Health Information Experience

The abundance and rapid evolution of COVID-19 information on the internet can make navigating consumer health resources related to the pandemic difficult and altogether confusing. However, online t...
Design of a Two-Week Organic Chemistry Course for High School Students: “Catalysis, Solar Energy, and Green Chemical Synthesis”

A two-week summer camp was designed, implemented, and then updated for high school students focusing on organic chemistry, solar energy, and green chemistry principles. Students learn about laboratory safety, perform organic reactions, go on field trips, and take part in interactive lessons that focus on both fundamental chemistry topics as well as green chemistry. Each lab experiment implements at least one green chemistry principle by reducing waste or reagent use while employing additional safety measures. The course has been edited and modified on the basis of student feedback to include additional lessons, field trips, a student presentation, and other activities. Responses to postcourse surveys provided feedback on each component and also indicated that student interest in STEM increased as students gained physical laboratory and research skills.
Coloring triangles and rectangles

It is consistent that ZF+DC holds, the hypergraph of rectangles on a given Euclidean space has countable chromatic number, while the hypergraph of equilateral triangles in two-dimensional Euclidean space does not.
A Method for Deaerating Water

In using hot-film anemometry for turbulence studies in water and in studying reaeration in water with no oxygen demand, there is a need to remove dissolved gases from water. This may be accomplished by putting the water into an environment in which it is supersaturated. For example, the water may be heated or sprayed through an evacuated air space, so that it tends toward saturation in the altered environment. The same principle may be applied in another relatively inexpensive and convenient method which has the advantage that it can be used continuously while experiments are under way.
Air embolus to arachnoid cyst as a rare delayed complication of intrathecal medication delivery.

Introduction: Intrathecal (IT) medication delivery is a commonly used technique for the treatment of chronic intractable pain. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) loculation at the catheter tip has been described as a cause of progressive loss of drug effect that can often be difficult to diagnose. Methods: The clinical course of a 56-year-old woman was reviewed, including past imaging studies. Results: The patient presented with acute lower extremity paresis secondary to air trapped within an arachnoid cyst thought to be due to long-term use of IT morphine and an undiagnosed CSF loculation. She rapidly recovered after surgical decompression. Discussion: Symptomatic pneumorachis is rare. In this case, because of radiographically impressive compression and severe deficit, we felt that the trapped air was equivalent to a mass lesion and treated it aggressively. The arachnoid cyst was near the level of the catheter tip prior to revision, and we have retrospectively inferred a causal relationship.
An effective clinical approach to abnormal uterine bleeding.

Abstract A plan is presented for the clinical management of women who complain of abnormal uterine bleeding. This is based on the use of a simplified classification of the causes of bleeding, a scheme which attempts to separate menstrual aberrations from nonmenstrual bleedings by means of accurate historical and histological data. Curettage is advised both as a diagnostic and therapeutic device when the bleeding in itself is of clinical importance from the standpoint of quantity or duration, or when there is great likelihood that the bleeding, however insignificant, may point the way to a malignant process. In a period of six years, 99 women were assessed in this manner and curetted on 104 occasions at times selected with a view to disclosing specific endometrial lesions. By correlation of history and gross pelvic findings with histologic details, it was possible to reach definitive diagnoses in 98 instances, and thus to proceed intelligently when further therapy was indicated. The lesions found most commonly were endometrial hyperplasia, endometrial polyps, irregular shedding of the endometrium, and submucous myomas.
Continuum Modeling of Large Lattice Structures: Status and Projections

The status and some recent developments of continuum modeling for large repetitive lattice structures are summarized. Discussion focuses on a number of aspects including definition of an effective substitute continuum; characterization of the continuum model; and the different approaches for generating the properties of the continuum, namely, the constitutive matrix, the matrix of mass densities, and the matrix of thermal coefficients. Also, a simple approach is presented for generating the continuum properties. The approach can be used to generate analytic and/or numerical values of the continuum properties.
Carcinoma of prostate

Abstract The sixth case of perineal extension of adenocarcinoma of the prostate apparently following needle biopsy is reported, with a brief review of the literature. The treatment of choice is total surgical excision of the tumor followed with supervoltage irradiation, if the excision appears incomplete. The incidence of this complication is extremely low considering the thousands of biopsies which have been performed.
Efficacy of azithromycin 1% ophthalmic solution for treatment of ocular surface disease from posterior blepharitis.

Background: Posterior blepharitis is an eyelid disease primarily of the meibomian glands. Bacteria and chronic inflammation are contributing factors for meibomian gland disease, which leads to ocular surface and tear film alterations and chronic patient symptoms. Azithromycin 1.0% ophthalmic solution is a broad spectrum topical antibiotic with anti-inflammatory properties. The present study evaluates the efficacy of azithromycin 1.0% ophthalmic solution in the treatment of the clinical signs and symptoms, including vision-related function, associated with meibomian gland dysfunction. Methods: In an open label study, 33 patients with meibomian gland dysfunction were treated with azithromycin 1.0% ophthalmic solution twice a day for two days, then every evening for a total of 30 days. Tear break-up time, corneal staining, conjunctival staining, Schirmer scores with anaesthetic, meibomian gland score and patient's symptom scores were evaluated at baseline and after 30 days of treatment. The Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) was administered at baseline, after two weeks of treatment and after 30 days of treatment. Results: Twenty-six of 33 patients completed the study. Tear break-up time and Schirmer score increased by 52.7 per cent (p < 0.0001) and 24 per cent (p < 0.05), respectively. There was a reduction in corneal and conjunctival staining by 83.2 and 67.9 per cent, respectively (p < 0.0001). Lid margin scores were reduced by 33.9 per cent (p < 0.0001). The patient's symptom score improved from 2.73 at baseline to 2.21 after 30 days of treatment (p < 0.01). The mean OSDI at baseline was 34.44. After two weeks and 30 days of treatment, the ODSI was 14.51 and 13.15 respectively (p < 0.0001). Conclusion: These results demonstrate clinically and statistically significant improvement in the signs and symptoms associated with posterior blepharitis. Based on these results, azithromycin 1% ophthalmic solution offers a viable option for the treatment of posterior blepharitis.
The impact of shipping, agricultural, and urban emissions on single particle chemistry observed aboard the R/V Atlantis during CalNex

[1] The Research at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change (CalNex) field campaign was undertaken to obtain a better understanding of the regional impacts of different pollution sources in California. As part of this study, real-time shipboard measurements were made of the size-resolved, single-particle mixing state of submicron and supermicron particles (0.2–3.0 µm aerodynamic diameter) along the California coast where major differences were noted between Southern and Northern California. In Southern California, particles containing soot made up the largest fraction of submicron particles (~38% on average and up to ~89% by number), whereas organic carbon particles comprised the largest fraction of submicron number concentrations (~29% on average and up to ~78% by number) in Northern California including the Sacramento area. The mixing state of these carbonaceous particle types varied during the cruise with sulfate being more prevalent on soot-containing particles in Southern California due to the influence of fresh shipping and port emissions in addition to contributions from marine biogenic emissions. Contributions from secondary organic aerosol species, including amines, and nitrate were more prevalent in Northern California, as well as during time periods impacted by agricultural emissions (e.g., from the inland Riverside and Central Valley regions). These regional differences and changes in the mixing state and sources of particles have implications for heterogeneous reactivity, water uptake, and cloud-nucleating abilities for aerosols in California.
Acid–Base Disturbances

Step 1: Is there an acid–base disorder? Look at the PaCO2 and the HCO3 to determine whether they are in the normal range (see Table 43-1). If abnormal, go to step 2; if normal, go to step 5.
High-voltage-compatible, fully depleted CCDs

We describe charge-coupled device (CCD) developmentactivities at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL).Back-illuminated CCDs fabricated on 200-300 mu m thick, fully depleted,high-resistivity silicon substrates are produced in partnership with acommercial CCD foundry.The CCDs are fully depleted by the application ofa substrate bias voltage. Spatial resolution considerations requireoperation of thick, fully depleted CCDs at high substrate bias voltages.We have developed CCDs that are compatible with substrate bias voltagesof at least 200V. This improves spatial resolution for a given thickness,and allows for full depletion of thicker CCDs than previously considered.We have demonstrated full depletion of 650-675 mu m thick CCDs, withpotential applications in direct x-ray detection. In this work we discussthe issues related to high-voltage operation of fully depleted CCDs, aswell as experimental results on high-voltage-compatible CCDs.
Walsh transforms and signal detection

The detection of signals using Walsh power spectral estimates is analyzed. In addition, a generalization of this method of estimation is evaluated. The conclusion is that Walsh transforms are not suitable tools for the detection of weak signals in noise.
Biomechanics or necromechanics? Or how to interpret biomechanical studies.

The field of biomechanics is inextricably linked with orthopaedic surgery: loads and load distribution play a major role in the problems we treat and in the success and failure of many of our treatments. Nonetheless, despite powerful investigational tools, I would argue biomechanics has made a relatively minor impact in clinical practice primarily because most studies fail to account for the major distinction between living and nonliving systems: adaptability. While any study requires a clear question or hypothesis or goal, without accounting for adaptability and tissue tolerance, these studies might well be termed "necromechanical." These studies will always have limited clinical relevance unless they contain several key features: 1.) A choice of a mechanical parameter which is arguably a surrogate for relevant biological behavior; 2.) A set of loading regimens which arguably represent the entire range of loadings experienced in vivo; 3.) An explicit discussion of tissue tolerance to the mechanical perturbations of the study; 4.) When appropriate (i.e., the question relates to longer-term effects), an explicit exploration of tissue adaptation over time. Without meeting these requirements, any biomechanical study is suspect and requires interpretation with great caution. When meeting these requirements, biomechanics can provide powerful tools to explain the function of the body and to predict the success or failure of treatments prior to using them on patients.
Synthesis and properties of weakly coupled dendrimeric multiporphyrin light-harvesting arrays and hole-storage reservoirs

A convergent synthesis employing porphyrin building blocks has afforded dendrimeric multiporphyrin arrays containing n Zn-porphyrins (n = 4, 8, or 20) and one free base- (Fb-) porphyrin joined via diarylethyne linkers. Size exclusion chromatography was used extensively for purification. The arrays have sufficient solubility in toluene or other solvents for routine handling. With increasing size, the intense near-UV Soret (S0 → S2) absorption band broadens, splits, and red shifts due to inter-porphyrin exciton coupling. In contrast, the weaker visible bands (S0 → S1) remain essentially unchanged in position or width in proceeding from the monomer all the way to the 21-mer; however, the molecular extinction coefficients of the visible bands scale with the number of porphyrins. Similarly, the one-electron oxidation potentials of the porphyrins are virtually unchanged as the arrays get larger. These results are indicative of relatively weak (but significant) electronic coupling between ground states and between the photophysically relevant lowest-excited-singlet states of the diarylethyne-linked porphyrins; thus, the characteristic properties of the individual units are retained as the architectures increase in complexity. Efficient excited-singlet-state energy transfer occurs among the Zn-porphyrins and ultimately to the sole Fb-porphyrin in each of the arrays, with the overall arrival time of energy at the trapping site increasing modestly with the number of Zn-porphyrins = 1 (45 ps), 2 (90 ps), 8 (105 ps), and 20 (220 ps). The overall energy-transfer efficiencies are 98%, 96%, 96%, and 92% in the same series. The ground-state hole-storage properties of the 21-mer (Zn20Fb) were examined. Bulk electrolysis indicates that 21 (or more) electrons can be removed from this array (e.g., one hole resides on each porphyrin) to yield a stable “super-charged” π-cation radical. Taken together, these results indicate that the convergent building-block synthesis approach affords dendrimeric multiporphyrin arrays with favorable properties for light-harvesting and hole storage.