cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cluster Analysis of Smart Metering Data

The introduction of smart meter technology is a great challenge for the German energy industry. It requires not only large investments in the communication and metering infrastructure, but also a redesign of traditional business processes. The newly incurring costs cannot be fully passed on to the end customers. One option to counterbalance these expenses is to exploit the newly generated smart metering data for the creation of new services and improved processes. For instance, performing a cluster analysis of smart metering data focused on the customers’ time-based consumption behavior allows for a detailed customer segmentation. In the article we present a cluster analysis performed on real-world consumption data from a smart meter project conducted by a German regional utilities company. We show how to integrate a cluster analysis approach into a business intelligence environment and evaluate this artifact as defined by design science. We discuss the results of the cluster analysis and highlight options to apply them to segment-specific tariff design.
Fair, efficient and low-latency packet scheduling using nested deficit round robin

In the emerging high-speed integrated-services packet-switched networks, packet scheduling algorithms in switches and routers play a critical role in providing the quality of-service (QoS) guarantees required by many applications. We present a new scheduling discipline called nested deficit round robin (Nested-DRR), which is fair, efficient and in addition has a low latency bound. Nested-DRR splits each DRR round into one or more smaller rounds, within each of which we run a modified version of the DRR scheduling discipline. In this paper, we analytically prove that Nested-DRR results in a significant improvement in the latency bound in comparison to DRR, and in addition preserves the good properties of DRR such as the per-packet work complexity of O(1). Nested DRR also has the same relative fairness bound as DRR.
Influence of Spin Rate on Side Force of an Axisymmetric Body

Results are presented for an experimental study in which a 10-deg half-angle pointed cone model 57.9 cm long and made of magnesium (for lightness and minimization of inertial effects) is spun at several rates about its axis of symmetry. The model is spun in both directions, but most of the data presented are for the counterclockwise rotation. The resulting side force is recorded on an oscillograph. It is shown that the side force observed occurs under conditions of spin about the longitudinal axis, and that the general shape of the side-force curve with roll position does not depend strongly on spin rate. However, the peak-to-peak value of side force decreases substantially with spin rate, suggesting that the vortices producing the side force require a significant amount of time to change position and/or strength.
Network resource planning and management: 1990's

With large-scale requirements for local area networks (LANs) it is increasingly necessary to systematically plan and manage computer resources. To effectively implement and maintain computer network resources one must carefully consider and evaluate the various components like the user skills, hardware/software and management tools. The authors focus the various issues involved in the process from concept to implementation. >
A Mechanistic Model of the Actin Cycle

We have derived a broad, deterministic model of the steady-state actin cycle that includes its major regulatory mechanisms. Ours is the first model to solve the complete nucleotide profile within filaments, a feature that determines the dynamics and geometry of actin networks at the leading edges of motile cells, and one that has challenged investigators developing models to interpret steady-state experiments. We arrived at the nucleotide profile through analytic and numerical approaches that completely agree. Our model reproduces behaviors seen in numerous experiments with purified proteins, but allows a detailed inspection of the concentrations and fluxes that might exist in these experiments. These inspections provide new insight into the mechanisms that determine the rate of actin filament treadmilling. Specifically, we find that mechanisms for enhancing Pi release from the ADP·Pi intermediate on filaments, for increasing the off rate of ADP-bound subunits at pointed ends, and the multiple, simultaneous functions of profilin, make unique and essential contributions to increased treadmilling. In combination, these mechanisms have a theoretical capacity to increase treadmilling to levels limited only by the amount of available actin. This limitation arises because as the cycle becomes more dynamic, it tends toward the unpolymerized state.
Utility of component analyses in subjects undergoing sublingual immunotherapy for peanut allergy

Background Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) with peanut changes clinical and immune responses in most peanut-allergic individuals, but the response is highly variable. Objective We sought to examine the component-specific effects of peanut SLIT and determine whether peanut component testing could predict the outcome of a double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) after 12 months of peanut SLIT. Methods We included 33 subjects who underwent peanut SLIT with a DBPCFC of 2500 mg of peanut protein performed after 12 months on therapy. Plasma samples from baseline and after 12 months of peanut SLIT were assayed using ImmunoCAP for IgE and IgG4 against whole peanut, Ara h 1, Ara h 2, Ara h 3, Ara h 8, and Ara h 9. Results Following 12 months of SLIT, 10 subjects (30%) passed the DBPCFC without symptoms and were considered desensitized. Subjects that failed the DBPCFC tolerated a median of 460 mg peanut protein (range: 10-1710 mg). The desensitized group had significantly lower baseline levels of IgE against peanut (median 40.8 vs 231 kUA/L, p = 0.0082), Ara h 2 (median 17 vs 113 kUA/L, p=0.0082), and Ara h 3 (median 0.3 vs 8.5 kUA/L, p = 0.0396). ROC curves indicated that baseline IgE against peanut and Ara h 2 were equally effective at discriminating between the two groups (AUC = 0.7957, p = 0.007752 for both). Conclusion and Clinical Relevance In this cohort of subjects undergoing SLIT for peanut allergy, lower baseline levels of IgE against Ara h 2, Ara h 3, and peanut were associated with successful desensitization. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Vision-aided inertial navigation with line features and a rolling-shutter camera

The vast majority of existing methods for vision-aided inertial navigation rely on the detection and tracking of point features in the images. However, in several man-made environments, such as indoor office spaces, straight line features are prevalent, while point features may be sparse. Therefore, developing methods that will enable the use of straight-line features for vision-aided inertial navigation can lead to improved performance. While limited prior work on the subject exists, it assumes the use of a global-shutter camera, i.e., a camera in which all image pixels are captured simultaneously. Most low-cost cameras, however, use rolling-shutter (RS) image capture, which renders the existing methods inapplicable. To address these limitations, we here present an algorithm for vision-aided inertial navigation that employs both point and line features, and is capable of operation with RS cameras. The two key contributions of this work are (i) a novel parameterization for 3D lines, which is shown to exhibit better linearity properties than existing ones, and (ii) a novel approach for the use of line observations in images. This approach forgoes line-fitting and does not assume that a straight line in 3D projects to a straight line in the image, and is thus suitable for use with RS cameras. Our results demonstrate that our proposed estimator formulation leads to improved precision, in point-feature-poor environments.
Implications for current regulatory waste toxicity characterisation methods from analysing metal and metalloid leaching from photovoltaic modules

The appropriateness of regulatory methods to characterise the toxicity of photovoltaic (PV) modules was investigated to quantify potential environmental impacts for modules disposed of in landfills. Because solar energy is perceived as a green technology, it is important to ensure that end-of-life issues will not be detrimental to solar energy's success. United States Environmental Protection Agency Method 1311, California waste extraction test, and modified versions of both were performed on a multi-crystalline silicon module and cells and a copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) module. Variations in metal leachate concentrations were found with changes in testing parameters. Lead concentrations from the multi-crystalline module ranged from 16.2 to 50.2 mg/L. Cadmium concentrations from the CIGS module ranged from 0.1 to 3.52 mg/L. This raises doubt that regulatory methods can adequately characterise PV modules. The results are useful for developing end-of-life procedures, which is a positive step towa...
Changes in circadian rhythms of body temperature and sleep in old rats

We examined the relationship between circadian rhythms of body temperature (CTR) and sleep in adult and old female rats. Body temperature was recorded telemetrically for months and sleep for 24 h in a 12:12-h light-dark cycle at 23 degrees C. Some old rats had robust CTRs (old good), and some had unstable or absent CTRs (old unstable). Old unstable rats had lower daily mean body temperatures, smaller daily amplitudes, and a more advanced CTR phase than adult rats and old good rats. Old good rats matched adult rats in all measures. In old good rats, circadian parameters of sleep were normal, whereas in old unstable rats the amplitudes of slow-wave and rapid eye movement sleep were decreased, although the amounts were equivalent. Rhythmic parameters of sleep correlate well with the stability or instability of the CTR, whereas homeostatic regulation of rapid eye movement and slow-wave sleep do not seem to be impaired during aging and are independent of the stability of the CTR.
Preserving nonnegativity of an affine finite element approximation for a convection-diffusion-reaction problem

An affine finite element scheme approximation of a time dependent linear convection-diffusion-reaction problem in 2D and 3D is presented. For these equations which do not satisfy an underlying maximum principle, sufficient conditions are given in terms of the coefficient functions, the computational grid and the discretization parameters to ensure that the nonnegativity property of the true solution is also satisfied by its approximation. Numerical examples are given which confirm the necessity and sufficiency of the discretization conditions to guarantee the nonnegativity of the approximation. We present a monotone FEM scheme for a convection-diffusion-reaction problem in 2, 3D.The considered equation does not possess an underlying maximum principle.Sufficient conditions are given to ensure the nonnegativity of the approximations.Numerical examples confirm the necessity and sufficiency of the conditions.
Anticommercial Purposes: New Methods in Graphic Design and Radical Environmental Change

This paper explores the ways in which graphic design has approached and interacted with sustainability throughout the last quarter of the 20th century and into today. Following two collaborative manifestos of graphic designers discussing design's potential outside of the commercial realm, this paper examines the way that graphic design has assisted with environmentalism thus far and makes a proposal for the way that graphic design should be used in an environmentally sustainable context into the future. Using the tenets of the new scholarly realm of Transition Design, this paper dissects how graphic design can assist a transition away from a centralized, fossil-fuel based economy toward a radically localized sustainable system using information design, persuasive design, and future-oriented visualizations. “I am ready to revitalize the argumentative and confrontational traditions of design. I am ready to move from the margins to centre stage in the ethical, ecological and political debates of our time.” Kalle Lasn, Adbusters
The West Adapts the Automobile: Technology, Unemployment, and the Jitney Phenomenon of 1914–1917

n the winter of 1914-1915 a group of innovative westerners gave Americans something to talk about besides the Great War in Europe. These men and women were the pioneers of the jitney movement, adapting the automobile for use as a common carrier. The result, if not actually a revolution in urban transportation, nonetheless permanently altered the thinking of the electric railway industry and its patrons. The jitney represented a perfect marriage between changing technology and public perceptions and desires especially pronounced in the West. Here was a manifestation of the region's resentment of eastern financial interests, the "trolley trust" in particular. Although dismissed as a fad by some, the jitney was a technological innovation of social significance, introducing many an urban dweller to the pleasures of an automobile ride. For the jobless worker it represented a form of self-help and a continuation of the western tradition of active responses to unemployment-in this case the recession of 1914, which hit the West harder than other regions. The jitney movement ultimately reached far beyond the Pacific Slope where it originated, appearing in eastern seaboard cities like Providence and Norfolk and becoming a topic of conversation second only to the war as well as a fascinating etymological riddle, but its greatest impact remained in the urban areas of the transMissouri West. The phenomenon thus constitutes yet another example of how the West served as a pacesetter for the rest of the nation.'
Longitudinal Component Resistivities of Multifilamentary Composite Strands — Influences of Size Effect and Filament/Matrix Interdiffusion

Longitudinal resistivity measurements were performed on the electrolytically separated components (shell, interfilamentary matrix, and filaments) of two pairs of un-heat-treated Nb-46.5 wt. %Ti multifilamentary strands (matrices Cu and Cu-0.5 wt. % Mn, respectively) at 295 and 12 K. The measurements were also repeated on the Cu-matrix pair after annealing at 150, 245, and 415°C. It was observed that: (1) The residual resistivity ratio and ρ 12K of the Cu shell of the annealed NbTi/Cu strands ( ≈170 and ≈ 10 nΩcm, respectively) agreed with typical bulk values of OFHC Cu. (2) The Cu-shell resistivities of as-received strands (un-heat-treated) had been enhanced by drawing-induced deformation microstructure. (3) The residual resistivity of the Cu matrix was 4 to 6 times larger than that of the corresponding Cu shell — an enhancement attributable to size effect. (4) Size effect makes a negligible contribution to the resistivity of the Cu-Mn matrix. (5) Annealing at moderate temperatures reduces the shell resistivity; conversely, that of the matrix increases as the annealing temperature is raised above 300°C, presumably as a result of filament/matrix interdiffusion.
Electron Microscopy of Macromolecular Assemblies

This chapter explains the formation of a three-dimensional (3D) image of a macromolecule in its entirety, at the highest possible resolution. Specimen preparation methods perform the seemingly impossible task of stabilizing the initially hydrated molecule so that it can be placed and observed in the vacuum. The contrast generated by the molecule itself is normally inadequate for direct observation in the electron microscope. Various contrasting methods have been developed. Negative staining with heavy metal salts such as uranyl acetate produces a high contrast and prevents the molecule from collapsing. Instead of the molecule, with its interior density variations, only a cast of the exterior surface of the molecule is imaged and only its shape can be reconstructed. To some extent, a stain may penetrate into crevices, but this does not change the fact that only the boundary of the molecule is visualized. As sophisticated averaging methods were developed, it became possible to make sense of the faint images produced by the molecule itself, but biologically relevant information could be obtained only after methods were found to sustain the molecule in a medium that closely approximates the aqueous environment; these methods are embedment in glucose, tannic acid, and vitreous ice. The chapter also describes gold-labeling techniques that are crucial in 3D electron microscopy.
Glut-1 Deficiency Syndrome and Familial Epilepsy

A family with autosomal dominant Glut-1 deficiency syndrome (DS) affecting 5 members over 3 generations is reported from the University of Goettingen, Germany; and Columbia University, New York.
An in Silico Evaluation of Data‐Driven Optimization of Biopharmaceutical Processes

Two methodological improvements of the design of dynamic experiments (C. Georgakis, Ind Eng Chem Res. 2013) for the modeling and optimization of (semi-) batch processes are proposed. Their effectiveness is evaluated in two representative classes of biopharmaceutical processes. First, we incorporate prior process knowledge in the design of the experiments. Many batch processes and, in particular, biopharmaceutical processes are usually not understood completely to enable the development of an accurate knowledge-driven model. However, partial process knowledge is often available and should not be ignored. We demonstrate here how to incorporate such knowledge. Second, we introduce an evolutionary modeling and optimization approach to minimize the initial number of experiments in the face of budgetary and time constraints. The proposed approach starts with the estimation of only a linear Response Surface Model, which requires the minimum number of experiments. Accounting for the model's uncertainty, the proposed approach calculates a process optimum that meets a maximum uncertainty constraint. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 2796–2805, 2017
Are Breast Cancer Survivors at Risk for Developing Other Cancers

Second primary cancers occur in ∼ 12% of women with an initial breast cancer diagnosis. This study assessed predictors of the risk of developing a second primary cancer after breast cancer. The analysis included 335,191 females, registered in the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database, who had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Observed numbers of subsequent cancers in the SEER database with a first breast cancer diagnosed from 1973 to 2000 were compared with the expected numbers based on age-adjusted incidence rates to calculate standardized incidence ratios. Kaplan-Meier curves were conducted to determine the median time until the second primary cancer diagnosis.
Assessment Issues in Adolescent Drug Abuse Treatment Research

Experimentation with alcohol and other drugs (AOD) is commonplace among American adolescents. Despite reduction efforts, the use of AOD by adolescents has increased over the past decade. A number of youth experience significant negative personal, societal, economic, and health ramifications, but continue to abuse AOD and develop substance use disorders (SUD). Accurate assessment of adolescent AOD use is essential in determining the prevalence of SUDs, the development of effective interventions, and the implementation of beneficial prevention initiatives. Developmental considerations are significant factors in the validity of youth AOD assessment and are detailed in this chapter.
An Interactive Web System for Group Project Management and Peer Evaluation

In this paper, we describe the design and development of a web-based project management and evaluation system for group work and peer learning. Using this system, the instructor can dynamically manage projects submitted from students and form student groups, while the students are allowed to peer-evaluate and leave comments on the in-class group presentations. Each student group will be able to check their own performance and review the feedback made by their peer learners. In addition to the conventional tabular reports, the system also provides visualizations to better present the final evaluation results. Both parties agree that the system provides more interactive features that give them greater control in managing the group projects.
Understanding the Neuroscience of Clients with Asian Heritage

Clinical neuroscience involves the assessment of emotional and cognitive processing, and its relation to the brain. Results are interpreted as a gauge of neurological integrity. Understanding differences in neuroscience functioning due to cultural and linguistic factors is necessary for accurate interpretation of neuropsychological data. This chapter will provide a primer on research techniques in neuroscience and discussion of results from findings of fMRI studies, including functional neuroanatomy and the impact of bilinguialism.
An integrated informatics infrastructure for pre-clinical research-it support

Modern scientific research is inherently multi-leveled and multidisciplinary. High-throughput scanners and powerful, new generations of equipment operating at core facilities are essential tools for advancing research in disciplines such as bioscience and medicine. They produce large and complex data that must be safely archived and at the same time easily accessible. Together with administrative management tasks, core facilities face a crushing burden in research-IT support. This dissertation introduces a Multi-modality Multi-resource Information Integration (MIMI) system that combines scientific and administrative support in a seamlessly integrated environment. MIMI captures a complete set of raw information about people, projects, resources, materials, accounting, scheduling, and scientific data. It replaces the existing piece-meal and disintegrated approach to research-IT support by a single comprehensive package. No other system in the market today provides such a complete set of features to meet the informatics infrastructure challenge. MIMI is created from object-oriented data models that represent the flow of information at core facilities and capture a high-level view of their daily operations. MIMI contributes to the design and implementation of interacting workflows that account for the scientific and administrative logics of a core facility. Implemented in the open source content-management system Plone, MIMI has been developed in a style that translates to certain practices of the extreme programming paradigm. MIMI employs the latest techniques in web-based systems such as DHTML, CSS, and AJAX. Additional features include semi-automated dataflow, personalized experimental workflow management, and a dynamic programming approach for optimizing the scheduling of multi-step studies. MIMI has been deployed at the Case Center for Imaging Research and is being deployed at the Case Center for Proteomics. Cost-benefit analysis shows that substantial financial savings can be accrued long term. Given the magnitude of research performed at core facilities, MIMI not only indirectly impacts research by reducing management overhead, it may also directly impact bioscience and medicine by enabling a more system-oriented approach, now that a greater variety of relevant data and information becomes readily available at the fingertips of researchers.
Automatic mixed pixel classification (AMPC): Linear spectral random mixture analysis (LSRMA)

Independent component analysis (ICA) has shown much success in blind source separation and channel equalization. Its applications to remotely sensed images are investigated in recent years. Linear spectral mixture analysis (LSMA) has been widely used for subpixel detection and mixed pixel classification in remote sensing image processing and already studied in Chapters 3, 8–10, . It models the spectral signature of an image pixel vector as a linear mixture of spectral signatures of targets present in the image data and the target abundance fractions are assumed to be unknown, but nonrandom constants. This chapter combines these two approaches to one, called ICA-based linear spectral random mixture analysis (LSRMA), which describes an image pixel vector as a random process resulting from a random composition of multiple spectral signatures of distinct targets in the image data. It differs from LSMA in that the abundance fractions of the target signatures in LSRMA are considered to be unknown random independent signal sources. Two major advantages can be benefited from LSRMA. First, LSRMA does not require any prior knowledge of the targets used in the linear mixture model. Second and most importantly, LSRMA models each of target signatures as an independent random signal source so that the spectral variability of target signatures can be captured more effectively in a stochastic manner. The only required knowledge for LSRMA is the number of signal sources, p assumed to be present in the image data. This number is estimated by Neyman-Pearson detection theory-based eigen-thresholding methods to be investigated in Chapter 17.
The Optimal Interior Regularity for the Critical Case of a Clamped Thermoelastic System with Point Control Revisited

In the case of clamped thermoelastic systems with interior point control defined on a bounded domain Ω, the critical case is n = dim Ω = 2. Indeed, an optimal interior regularity theory was obtained in [Triggiani, Discrete Contin. Dyn. Syst., 2007] for n = 1 and n = 3. However, in this reference, an ‘є-loss’ of interior regularity has occurred due to a peculiar pathology: the incompatibility of the B.C. of the spaces H3/2 0 (Ω) and H3/2 00 (Ω). This problem for n = 2 was rectified in [Triggiani, J. Differential Equations, 2008]: this establishes the sought-after interior regularity of the thermoelastic problem through a technical analysis based on sharp boundary (trace) regularity theory of Kirchhoff and wave equations. As an additional bonus, a sharp boundary regularity of the elastic displacement is also obtained. In the present paper, we revisit that problem using a technique developed by these authors to circumvent the pathology of the incompatible boundary conditions. This yields a more direct proof of the optimal interior regularity (but not of the boundary regularity).
Principles of energy and material exchange in ecosystems

Ecological systems are conceived as energy-processing units, ordinarily not radiant energy-limited, but regulated by the availability of essential nutrient elements and water, and constrained by climate. Energy is the fuel through which ecological processes operate, but the rates at which processes occur are controlled in natural systems by nutrient availability. It is hypothesized that ecosystems function to expend readily available energy to minimize the constraints imposed by limiting nutrients and water. Ecosystems display adaptive control mechanisms associated with heterotrophic activities (e.g. grazing and decomposition) that lead to conservation of nutrient capital. Therefore, patterns of energy flow and element cycling in ecological systems cannot be interpreted independently without the chance of introducing erroneous conclusions about ecosystem function.
A Linear Programming Duality Approach to Analyzing Strictly Nonblocking d-ary Multilog Networks under General Crosstalk Constraints

In an optical crossconnect architecture, two routes sharing a common switching element suffer from crosstalk. Vaez and Lea [16] introduced a parameter cwhich is the maximum number of distinct switching elements a route can share with other routes in the crossconnect. We present a new method of analyzing strictly nonblocking d-ary multilog networks under this general crosstalk constraint using linear programming duality. We improve known results on several fronts: (a) our sufficient conditions are better than known sufficient conditions for log d (N,0,m) to be nonblocking under the general crosstalk constraint, (b) our results are on d-ary multilog networks while known results are on binary networks, and (c) for several ranges of the parameter c, we give the first known necessary conditions for this problem which also match our sufficient conditions from the LP-duality approach.
Queues in Service Systems: Some Unusual Applications

Queues can exist in unusual places, often very different from the traditional standing line of customers. Here, we visit some of these less obvious queues, some fun and some quite serious, with the intent to open our eyes to the fact that at any given time, each of us is waiting in multiple queues. Our tour of queues includes: (1) the Hypercube Queue model for emergency services such as ambulance and police services; (2) queues of PhDs waiting as postdoctoral fellows, hoping to obtain a tenure-track faculty position; (3) a university’s faculty as a large queue, where “service” is leaving the academic ranks; (4) queues of moving cars trying to find inexpensive on-street parking in cities; (5) queues of homeowners waiting for the restoration of electrical service following a Nor’easter; (6) queues of individuals awaiting human organ transplants; (7) human behavior in queues, often with culturally dependent rules for behavior; and (8) smart phone apps for managing or avoiding queues.
Single-Polymer–Single-Cargo Strategy Packages Hydrophobic Fluorophores in Aqueous Solution with Retention of Inherent Brightness

A strategy for encapsulating hydrophobic organic entities in aqueous solution has been developed through use of a self-assembling heterotelechelic amphiphilic random copolymer. The polymer (∼40 kDa...
UNIT 12.4 Adenoviral Vectors

Adenoviral vectors have been widely used as efficient gene delivery vehicles for gene therapy and vaccine development, as well as gene function studies. The recently developed AdEasy system is a simple and efficient method for rapid generation of recombinant adenoviruses. Unlike traditional adenoviral vectors, the viral backbone described here is supplied as a supercoiled plasmid rather than as a linear viral DNA, facilitating backbone amplification. The recombination step is performed in E. coli rather than in mammalian cells, taking advantage of the high efficiency of homologous recombination in bacteria. This unit includes the complete set of protocols needed to generate recombinant adenoviruses using the AdEasy system.
The “ickiness factor”: Stigma as a barrier to exiting prostitution

Exiting prostitution is an often complicated, arduous process. Many barriers constrain women’s movement out of prostitution. Factors such as stigma are rarely examined. Utilizing a case study appro...
Shared Reading Practices and Early Literacy Promotion in the First Year of Life.

Limited research exists on family reading practices, the impact of counseling, and book distribution in the first 6 months of life, despite recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and Reach Out and Read promoting shared reading from birth. Objective To describe infant home reading trajectories and environments in the first year and to assess whether receiving books starting in the newborn period, compared with starting at 6 months, alters these trajectories. Methods Two study groups were enrolled in a quasi-experimental sequential cohort study; both groups received shared reading counseling starting in the newborn period and completed surveys throughout the first year. The Standard group received books starting at 6 months, whereas the Early Books group received books starting at 2 weeks. Reading trajectories were assessed both overall and between the study groups. Results At the 2-week visit, less than half of families in each group had started shared reading with their infant, which rose to >97% by 12 months. Approximately two-thirds of families owned >10 children's books at 2 weeks, which increased to >80% at 12 months. Incorporating shared reading into bedtime routines also increased during the first year. Early versus standard book distribution did not alter these trajectories. Conclusion Over the first year of life, families almost universally initiated shared reading and increased the number of books in the home. Reading habits established during this time were maintained in both groups. Literacy promotion beginning at the earliest well-child visits may help establish routines that will persist throughout childhood.
Using Machine Learning Algorithms to Detect Suicide Risk Factors on Twitter

The goal from this study is to identify suicide risk factors on Twitter. We propose a machine learning framework that could be potentially useful for suicide prevention interventions. We applied search terms from the suicidal ideation tracking framework pro-posed by Jashinsky et al. and downloaded 12,066 public tweets from 3,873 users via Twitter's application programming interface (API). We created "HighRisk" or "AtRisk" labels for users based on their suicidal ideation terms' usage and applied three topic discovery algorithms to find underlying suicide risk factors among users, which were subsequently used to classify users into "HighRisk" or "AtRisk". Algorithms applied included Latent Semantic Analysis, Latent Dirichlet Allocation, Non-negative Matrix Factorization, Decision Tree and K-means Clustering. Our topic discovery approach detected 7 out of 12 suicide risk factors proposed by Jashinsky et al. Using a decision tree classification model that utilized these factors, we achieved 0.844 in precision, 0.912 in sensitivity, and 0.829 in specificity in classifying users into "HighRisk" and "AtRisk" groups. The development of this framework supplements suicide researchers and suicide preven-tion efforts, with a potential to be employed at run-time.
Nephrotoxicity of Antimicrobials and Antibiotics

Medication-induced nephrotoxicity remains one of the most common causes of acute kidney injury (AKI) among hospitalized patients. Within the extensive group of medications associated with AKI, antibiotics and other antimicrobials are well recognized triggers of structural and functional renal impairment. Clinical manifestations range from mild forms of tubular injury to significant deterioration of kidney function requiring acute renal replacement therapy. Several mechanisms are described, although the most frequent are acute interstitial nephritis, acute tubular necrosis, intratubular crystal deposition, and proximal/distal tubulopathy with electrolyte wasting abnormalities. General risk factors for antimicrobial-induced AKI include pre-existing chronic kidney disease, and concomitant use of medication with nephrotoxic potential. Prevention and early recognition of AKI represent the standard approach to mitigate AKI and avoid morbidity.
DeepTaxi: Teaching an Autonomous Car with Social Scaffolding

In this paper, we present DeepTaxi, an extension to an existing autonomous RC car platform that allows for the dynamic learning of an environment. DeepTaxi employs a social scaffolding approach where a human user supervises and initially provides feedback to the car so that it can learn the names and order of various objects located around a track. Once it sufficiently learns about the environment, DeepTaxi can then autonomously navigate to any desired location without the need for human assistance. We test DeepTaxi with human participants on a custom made track with a variety of objects/orders. We find that it can successfully learn about and navigate the track with the participants expressing appreciation for the timeliness of the car's communication.
Spot urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio is a marker for acid-base status in chronic kidney disease

Due to multiple compensating mechanisms, the serum bicarbonate concentration is a relatively insensitive marker of acid-base status; especially in chronic kidney disease (CKD). This is a major drawback that impairs the ability to diagnose acid excess or monitor alkali therapy. We postulated that it is more logical to measure the compensatory defense mechanism(s) rather than the defended parameter, which remains normal if the compensation is successful. Therefore, a retrospective cross-sectional study was performed in 1733 stone formers along with a prospective cross-sectional study of 22 individuals with normal kidney function and 50 patients in different stages of CKD. While serum bicarbonate was flat and did not fall below the reference range until near CKD stage 5, citrate excretion (24-hour urinary citrate excretion rate; urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio, in the retrospective analysis, and spot urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio in the prospective study) progressively and significantly declined starting from CKD stage 2. Following an acute acid load in 25 participants with a wide range of estimated glomerular filtration rates, the urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio inversely and significantly associated with acid accumulation, whereas serum bicarbonate did not. We compared changes in serum bicarbonate and urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio in response to alkali therapy in patients with CKD stage 3 or 4 started on potassium citrate in our kidney stone database. With alkali therapy, there was no change in serum bicarbonate, but the urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio rose consistently in all patients adherent to potassium citrate therapy. Thus, the urinary citrate-to-creatinine ratio (the defense mechanism) is a potential easily implementable, pragmatic, and a superior parameter to serum bicarbonate (the defended entity) to assess acid-base status, and monitor alkali therapy. Additional studies are needed before a clinical test can be devised.
A Pilot Study of An Intervention to Increase Family Member Involvement in Nursing Home Care Plan Meetings.

Background and Objectives:Many family members struggle to negotiate their aging relative’s care with nursing home staff, potentially leading to depression and other negative outcomes for residents’...
Rethinking the Weakness of Stream Ciphers and Its Application to Encrypted Malware Detection

One critical vulnerability of stream ciphers is the reuse of an encryption key. Since most stream ciphers consist of only a key scheduling algorithm and an Exclusive OR (XOR) operation, an adversary may break the cipher by XORing two captured ciphertexts generated under the same key. Various cryptanalysis techniques based on this property have been introduced in order to recover plaintexts or encryption keys; in contrast, this research reinterprets the vulnerability as a method of detecting stream ciphers from the ciphertexts it generates. Patterns found in the values (characters) expressed across the bytes of a ciphertext make the ciphertext distinguishable from random and are unique to each combination of ciphers and encryption keys. We propose a scheme that uses these patterns as a fingerprint, which is capable of detecting all ciphertexts of a given length generated by an encryption pair. The scheme can be utilized to detect a specific type of malware that exploits a stream cipher with a stored key such as the DarkComet Remote Access Trojan (RAT). We show that our scheme achieves 100% accuracy for messages longer than 13 bytes in about 17 $\mu $ sec, providing a fast and highly accurate tool to aid in encrypted malware detection.
Skin Deep: Perception of Scars After Cranial Vault Reconstruction.

Purpose:Children with craniosynostosis are vulnerable to stigmatization and social withdrawal. Cranial vault reconstruction (CVR) results in large bicoronal scars, which may trigger further insult ...
Simulation Scenario Development and Design in Emergency Medicine

Effective use of simulation requires high quality scenario development and design. Simulation aids emergency physicians who want to teach new curriculum and skills, to improve team performance, to practice high stakes but low frequency events without risk to patients, and to assess and improve systems. These are varied goals and require different simulation scenario designs to meet these goals. Simulation scenarios perform most effectively when they are thoughtfully developed with consideration of the goals of the scenario, the type of learner involved, and the scenario environment. Scenarios also require differing levels of fidelity and reproducibility depending on the unique circumstances in which they will be used. A scenario development template can facilitate a stepwise approach to developing new scenarios. Case banks of existing scenarios can also be useful resources.
Trade-Induced Job Turnover and Unemployment: The Role of Variable Demand Elasticity

This paper develops an open economy dynamic general equilibrium model to quantify a new mechanism that substantially magnifies trade-induced changes in labor market outcomes. The model features matching frictions in the labor market and variable demand elasticities in product markets. Because openness increases demand elasticities in product markets, it makes firms' employment decisions more responsive to their idiosyncratic shocks. This in turn raises aggregate job turnover, unemployment, and residual wage inequality in steady state. Fitted to Colombian plant-level data, my model explains the rise in these labor market variables that accompanied Colombia's trade liberalization, while a restricted version of the model that imposes constant demand elasticities fails to do so.
Light alters the impacts of nitrogen and foliar pathogens on the performance of early successional tree seedlings

Light limitation is a major driver of succession and an important determinant of the performance of shade-intolerant tree seedlings. Shade intolerance may result from a resource allocation strategy characterized by rapid growth and high metabolic costs, which may make shade-intolerant species particularly sensitive to nutrient limitation and pathogen pressure. In this study, we evaluated the degree to which nitrogen availability and fungal pathogen pressure interact to influence plant performance across different light environments. To test this, we manipulated nitrogen availability (high, low) and access by foliar fungal pathogens (sprayed with fungicide, unsprayed) to seedlings of the shade-intolerant tree, Liquidambar styraciflua, growing at low and high light availability, from forest understory to adjacent old field. Foliar fungal damage varied with light and nitrogen availability; in low light, increasing nitrogen availability tripled foliar damage, suggesting that increased nutrient availability in low light makes plants more susceptible to disease. Despite higher foliar damage under low light, spraying fungicide to exclude pathogens promoted 14% greater plant height only under high light conditions. Thus, although nitrogen availability and pathogen pressure each influenced aspects of plant performance, these effects were context dependent and overwhelmed by light limitation. This suggests that failure of shade-intolerant species to invade closed-canopy forest can be explained by light limitation alone.
Navigational tunnel technique for gastric peroral endoscopic pyloromyotomy: getting straight to the point (pylorus)

Background and Aims Gastric peroral endoscopic pyloromyotomy (G-POEM) is emerging as a treatment option for patients with gastroparesis. The most technically difficult part of the procedure is creating a submucosal tunnel in the gastric antrum, which can be directionally challenging. We describe a novel navigational tunneling method that guides submucosal dissection in the direction of the pylorus and helps to identify the pyloric landmarks. Methods Consecutive patients from September to December 2020 who underwent G-POEM for symptomatic gastroparesis were included. All cases were confirmed by prolonged gastric emptying study. The navigational tunnel technique was performed as follows: (1) mucosal cautery markings were made to outline the tunnel starting 3 to 4 cm proximal to the pylorus, (2) submucosal injection was done at the level of the pylorus and extended backward to the incision point, and (3) submucosal dissection was carried out after the prior submucosal injection straight to the pylorus. Results Six patients with gastroparesis underwent G-POEM with the navigational tunneling technique. The average time for submucosal injection was 2 minutes and 42 seconds, and the average tunnel time was 15 minutes and 36 seconds. There were no adverse events. All patients reported significant improvement (50%-85%) in symptoms. Conclusions This novel navigational tunneling technique appears to guide and facilitate G-POEM by providing a visual path for submucosal dissection straight to the pylorus. It may increase efficiency, decreasing the need to repeatedly exit the tunnel to check direction and preventing nonproductive wandering. It may also help identify the pyloric ring within the tunnel.
Methenamine for Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections in Solid Organ Transplantation.

INTRODUCTION Recurrent urinary tract infections remain a challenge in solid organ transplant and have a negative impact on morbidity/mortality. PROJECT AIM The purpose of this program evaluation was to determine the impact of methenamine on recurrent urinary tract infection in kidney and liver-kidney transplant recipients. DESIGN This retrospective review included patients > 18 years of age who received a kidney or liver-kidney transplant. Patients were divided into the following groups: (1) Methenamine therapy initiation received methenamine for ≥ 180 days or (2) Non-methenamine therapy: did not receive recurrent urinary tract infection prophylaxis. A total of 60 patients were included. RESULTS When comparing outcomes between methenamine therapy initiation and non-methenamine therapy group, a significant reduction in the rate of recurrent urinary tract infection was reported in the methenamine therapy initiation group (0.6 vs 1.3 per 180 patient days follow-up, P = 0.0005). A significant reduction was also noted with rate of asymptomatic bacteriuria, treatment failures, bacteremia, hospitalizations due to recurrent urinary tract infection, multi-drug resistant organism isolated, and the average duration of antibiotic use. A significant difference in the time to failure of methenamine therapy initiation versus non-methenamine therapy is noted up to 180 patient-days follow-up (RR 1.56, P = 0.0019). CONCLUSION This evaluation supported methenamine therapy for recurrent urinary tract infection in kidney and liver-kidney transplant. The most significant impact of methenamine recurrent urinary tract infection was seen in the first 30 days after initiation.