cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mycotic aneurysms following purulent meningitis. Report of a case with recovery and review of the literature.

We have presented a case of a myoctic aneurysm occurring after purulent meningitis, in which the aneurysm was successfully excised. Current theories of etiology and treatment are reviewed and discussed.
Economic Cost Evaluation of a Generated Low-Oxygen Atmosphere as an Alternative Fumigant in the Bulk Storage of Raisins

The cost of low-oxygen atmosphere consisting of ≤0.5% O2/10–13% CO2 with the balance mainly N2 was compared with the cost of methyl bromide and phosphine for application to stored raisins for insect control. Methyl bromide was the most cost effective, at $8.39/metric ton, followed by low-oxygen atmosphere at $9.66 to $10.64/metric ton and phosphine at $10.76/metric ton. A low-oxygen atmosphere is cost competitive with phosphine for insect control in bulk-stored raisins.
Bonded excimer formation in π-stacked 9-methyladenine dimers.

The interaction of DNA with UV radiation is an area of intense interest not only because of its biological implications but also because of the complicated excited state dynamics. To channel the excess energy associated with the absorption of UV radiation, the nucleobases undergo ultrafast nonradiative decay facilitated by conical intersections. In this work we extend the role of conical intersections in π-stacked dimers of nucleobases. We present a novel conical intersection between the excited state and the ground state for a π-stacked 9-methyladenine homodimer system, where a bond is partially formed between the two bases, and the wave function shows charge-transfer character between the monomers. These characteristics lead us to assign this state to a bonded excimer, a model that has been proposed in the past to explain the observed electron transfer in systems where this process is not thermodynamically favored. Gas-phase excited state calculations are carried out using perturbation theory corrected ...
Clinical Application of Digital X-ray Radiography of Full-spine Imaging in the Adolescents With Scoliosis

Objective To evaluate the clinical value of the digital X-ray radiography(DXR) in full-spine imaging technology in adolescent scoliosis.Methods Seventy patients with scoliosis were collected in the affiliated hospital from 2010 to 2011.Full-spine imaging techniques were used for original images with 2-3 times of exposure in the order of cervical to sacral the times of exposure were based on the height of the full-spine;and then original images were post-processed and followed by the evaluation of image quality.Results All full-spine images of 70 patients showed the structures of spine clearly.And 68 cases were stitched successfully by automatical software,two cases failed to automatically stitch were manually adjusted to achieve the qualifying images.Conclusion With the convenient technique and qualified images,the DXR technique of full-spine imaging can meet the requirements of clinical diagnosis and treatment and has a wide-range applicable value.
Measurement instrument of lower percentage of water content in petroleum

A measurement equipment for lower percentage of water content in petroleum, with very high resolution and measurement precision is described. The intensity of γ ray will be reduced when it passes through the petroleum medium, therefore the value of water percentage in petroleum can be obtained by measuring the transmission counts of γ rays. The instrument makes use of nuclear technology,electronics,machining and computer, so it is a kind of new advanced product. It has very strong functions and can measure percentage of water content, pressure,temperature and flow simultaneously. So far it has been used in many oil fields for measuring the amount of oil automatically.
Expression of a Wilms tumor gene in porcine kidney during compensatory renal growth.

AbstractExpression of the putative Wilms tumor gene (WT-1) was studied to investigate its role in renal growth. Compensatory renal growth was induced in 35-day-old Yorkshire swine by unilateral nephrectomy. The contralateral kidney was removed 0.5 to 72 hours following the initial operation and analyzed for WT-1 gene expression by Northern analysis. Compensatory renal growth was detectable by wet weight measurements at 12 hours following contralateral nephrectomy. WT-1 gene expression was detectable in the contralateral kidney as early as 0.5 hours following unilateral nephrectomy. Expression of this gene was not detected in normal kidney from swine of this age group or from sham operated swine. In addition, we demonstrated the expression of this gene in newborn rat, pig and human kidneys, as well as human fetal kidney, indicating its role in nephrogenesis. These data suggest that expression of the WT-1 gene is involved in the regulatory mechanisms that control different types of renal growth.
Using GSPNs for Performance Analysis of a New Admission Control Strategy with Retrials and Guard Channels

The Small Cell Networks (SCNs) based on the idea of employing much smaller size cells cause the mobile subscribers to cross several cells during an ongoing conversation resulting in frequent handovers. Most of works dealing with Call Admission Control (CAC) problems based on guard channels scheme in cellular mobile networks, consider models without retrials (repeated calls). On the other hand, almost all existing works which take into account retrial phenomenon, consider a multi-servers retrial queueing model for which the analytical solution is not available. In this paper, we propose to use the Generalized Stochas-tic Petri Nets (GSPNs) formalism as a novel alternative for modeling and evaluating performances of a new CAC strategy with retrial policy of fresh and handover calls generated by a _nite source of subscribers, based on prioritization of retrial calls and adopting a guard channels borrowing concept, operating in SCNs. A performance study shows that our approach is more efficient compared to basic guard channel scheme with better blocking probability, especially for low to medium handover calls rates.
An Agent-Based Simulation of Heterogeneous Games and Social Systems in Politics, Fertility and Economic Development

This paper studies both the macro and micro level, as well as the linkage between the two, to answer the question of how economic, political, and demographic factors impact a country’s development trajectory. Combining system dynamics, agent-based modeling, and evolutionary games in a complex adaptive system, I formalize a simulation framework of Politics of Fertility and Economic Development (POFED) to understand the relationship between those factors over time. I validate the original system dynamics model with updated data and measure, fuse the endogenous attributes with non-cooperative game theory in an agent-based framework, and simulate the heterogeneous interactions between individuals. This paper demonstrates the linkage between macro environment and micro behavior. Simulations of real world scenarios show network emergence under different environments. The results suggest policy implications for societies at different stages of development.
Chapter 2 Soft Tissue Response

Soft tissue responses to biomaterials for medical devices are generally viewed from the inflammation and wound healing perspectives and are usually considered as parts of the tissue or cellular host responses to injury. Placement of a biomaterial or medical device in the soft tissue environment involves injection, insertion, or surgical implantation, all of which injure the tissues or organs involved. Early host responses are dynamic and change with time (Table 2.1). It is important to consider this time variable in determining the host response or biocompatibility of a material.
The thermally-developing region in metal foam with open pores and high porosity

Abstract The thermal development phenomenon in foam-like conductive porous media, e.g. open-cell metal foam, is investigated via simulation. A typical cell of commercial metal foam was geometrically idealized while maintaining its actual structural features as much as possible. Then, clones of the idealized cell were virtually connected to each other to form a sizable vertical sheet representing a slice of metal foam. This one-cell thick sheet had a length of 33 cells (flow direction) and a height of 15 cells. Because of symmetry, this sheet could represent flow and heat transfer in a semi-infinite metal-foam channel sandwiched between two heated parallel plates separated by a distance twice the sheet’s height. The pertinent mass, momentum and heat equations were solved directly at the microscopic level; and the temperature fields were obtained for various approach velocities using a commercial numerical package. The results provided insight into the thermal development region in general, and the thermal entry lengths were determined for air flow at various speeds. The thermally fully-developed Nusselt number was correlated with Reynolds number. To substantiate the results, comparisons were made to analytical predictions; and qualitative contrasts were made to experimental data from the literature.
Bohm criterion and plasma particle/power exhaust to and recycling at the wall

Abstract The plasma particle and power exhaust to the divertor surface drives both particle and power recycling at the surface, which in return constrains the plasma density and temperature at the target and their profile further upstream. Both particle and power exhaust fluxes are mediated by the plasma sheath next to the divertor surface. In particular, the Bohm criterion constrains the ion exit flow speed, which enters directly into the particle flux and the kinetic flow energy component of the ion power flux, and indirectly into the electron power flux through the sheath potential drop. Here we give an overview on how the Bohm speed is set in a general plasma and how it enters power exhaust and power recycling at the divertor surface, and the implication on the correct implementation of sheath boundary conditions in numerical codes. The cases of ideal and non-ideal Bohm speed are distinguished as a result of the physics discussion.
How Often Is End-of-Life Care in the United States Inconsistent with Patients' Goals of Care?

Abstract Background: Despite its importance, little is known about the prevalence of, and factors associated with, end-of-life care that is consistent with patients' wishes. Objective: To document the proportion of bereaved respondents who reported care inconsistent with patients' wishes and characterize the predictors of end-of-life care associated with inconsistent care. Design: Retrospective analysis of nationally representative survey data of persons aged >65 years. Settings/Subjects: Bereaved family members responding to the last month of life component of the National Health and Aging Trends Study. Methods/Measurements: Bereaved family members assessed treatment decisions and their consistency with patients' wishes, unmet needs, and quality of care. We examined differences between patients receiving inconsistent versus consistent care. Results: A total of 1212 family members were interviewed, representing (when weighted) 4.8 million decedents. Thirteen percent stated that care was inconsistent with ...
A prospective analysis of the role of cognition in three models of aging and schizophrenia.

Abstract Objectives This study uses longitudinal data from a sample of older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder (OAS) to examine the role of cognition in 3 models of aging and schizophrenia–accelerated aging, paradoxical aging, and heterogeneity of course—and their clinical relevance. Methods The sample consisted of 103 community-dwelling persons aged 55 and over (mean = 61 years) with early-onset schizophrenia. Mean follow-up was 52.5 months (range: 12–116 months); 55% were men; 55% were white. We identified 21 potential predictor variables and used the Dementia Rating Scale (DRS) to assess cognition. Results There were no significant differences in the DRS at baseline (T1) and follow-up (T2). However, 20%, 22% and 58% of persons exhibited > 0.5 effect size increase or decrease, or no change in their DRS scores, respectively; 19% were rapid decliners (>− 2.11 pts/year) and 19% were rapid improvers (>+ 2.11 pts/year). In multivariable analysis, there were 3 predictors of higher DRS (T2): DRS (T1), decline in anxiety score, and race (white). Conclusions The heterogeneity model best characterized the trajectory of cognition in later life. The accelerated aging model did not represent typical cognitive trajectories since most individuals were stable or improved. The heterogeneous trajectories made it difficult to generalize about cognition's role in the paradoxical aging model. Despite the paucity of predictors, our findings suggested that it may be clinically productive to enlist remediation strategies that target anxiety and cognition, and direct more attention to non-white OAS.
An open-source code to generate carbon nanotube/graphene junctions

Abstract Carbon nanotube (CNT)/graphene nanostructure has the potential to extend the superior mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of graphene from two dimensions to three. While the theoretical investigation of CNT/graphene nanostructure based on atomistic modeling is garnering great attention, an open-source numerical tool to generate covalently bonded CNT/graphene junctions is still in lack for material scientists. In this work, a pathfinding algorithm is used to exhaust all possible configurations on graphene to seamlessly connect to a given CNT. The least squares approach method follows to sort out the configuration with minimum energy. The combined methods are able to generate CNT/graphene junction for any CNT type (m, n). Molecular dynamics simulation further reveals that the formed junctions are thermodynamically stable, and thus ready to serve as basic block for a CNT/graphene network. By providing an easy-to-use numerical tool in the form of MATLAB code, the intention is to free material scientists from the tedious preparation of atomic configuration.
Prostaglandins and divalent cation metabolism.

When von Euler (1) first described the prostaglandins thirty years ago, he could not have imagined that these lipids would be implicated in so many physiologic roles. With the rediscovery of these lipids and the elucidation of their chemical structure by Bergstrom and Samuelsson (2), a considerable volume of information has been generated. The prostaglandins are a group of 20-carbon acidic lipids generally resembling prostanoic acid. They are derived from the enzymatic conversion of either linolenic acid (the 1-series) or arachidonic acid (the 2-series) (3,4). During their synthesis, numerous short-lived cyclic endoperoxide intermediates are formed which by themselves are frequently more active than the prostaglandins (5). Almost every cell in the body has the capacity to synthesize prostaglandins although in the adult, the major organs of synthesis are the renal medulla, seminal vesicles, and uterus. The prostaglandins that are synthesized in the microsomes are probably not stored by the cell (6), but released into the cytoplasm and eventually into the extracellular fluid. The lung, liver, and renal cortex among other tissues, have the enzymatic ability to degrade prostaglandins (7). Although dozens of prostaglandins, intermediates, and metabolites have been identified, prostaglandin-E2 (PGE2) and prostaglandin-F2∝ (PGF2∝) appear to be implicated as the active naturally occurring agents. The prostaglandins can be identified and measured by various techniques with considerable variation in sensitivity and specificity (8). These methods include gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, thin layer chromatography, radioimmunoassay, membrane receptor assay, and bioassay.
Cerebral Parenchymal Lesions: II. Primary Tumors

The most common primary tumor of the central nervous system is astrocytoma, and in particular glioblastoma. The focus of this chapter is to discuss tumors that are most likely to arise in the cerebral hemispheres (in addition to metastatic neoplasms which were addressed in Chap. 4) (Table 5.1). Most of these tumors represent fibrillary or diffuse astrocytomas. These lesions can arise at any age; most present in adults between the third and seventh decades of life. These tumors are notoriously heterogeneous in nature, which means that different areas of the tumor may have a different histologic appearance. Features that are used to grade a diffuse astrocytoma include the degree of cellularity, mitotic activity, vascular proliferative changes, and necrosis. Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) grading system is the most widely employed. Attempts at providing some information regarding possible tumor grade should be made at the time of frozen section consultation. Any grade that is assigned, of course, is preliminary and hinges on the evaluation of the permanent sections.
Necrotizing enterocolitis: factors affecting mortality in 101 surgical cases

One hundred one infants requiring operative treatment for necrotizing enterocolitis were evaluated for prenatal, perinatal, therapeutic, clinical, laboratory, radiographic, and operative factors as they relate to mortality. Infants less than 28 weeks gestation and those with birth weight less than 1500 gm had an increased mortality rate. The use of umbilical arterial catheters, high-density premature formulas, and aminophylline (for apnea) had an adverse effect on survival. Persistent acidosis, oliguria, and abdominal wall erythema resulted in a significantly worse outcome. The presence of portal vein air on abdominal radiograph was associated with a 71% mortality rate. The survival rate in infants with localized involvement was 70%. Thirty-eight percent of patients had extensive bowel involvement and a greater than 95% mortality rate. Avoidance of enteral feedings, cautious use of umbilical artery catheters, and judicious application of pharmacologic agents in infants at risk for necrotizing enterocolitis is of importance with regard to prevention. While medical management is feasible in some cases, persistent acidosis, oliguria, abdominal wall erythema, and portal vein air are associated with advanced disease. Infants with these risk factors should be candidates for prompt operative intervention.
Regulation of Fatty Acid Biosynthesis

Publisher Summary The de novo synthesis of saturated fatty acids, studied in a variety of biological systems, is catalyzed by two enzyme systems, acetyl-CoA carboxylase and fatty acid synthetase. These enzyme complexes are found in the cell cytoplasm when cells are ruptured and the cellular components are fractionated by usual techniques. All the carbon atoms of the fatty acids are derived from acetyl-CoA. Although palmitate is the major fatty acid that is produced by most biosynthetic systems, the chain length of the fatty acid that is produced varies in different biological sources and under different experimental conditions. Examination of the substrates of fatty acid synthesis, acetyl-CoA, adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-oxidase (NADPH), suggests that this biosynthetic pathway can be controlled by regulation of the availability of these substrates. Acetyl-CoA carboxylase catalyzes the first reaction in the synthesis of fatty acids, which is unique to this biosynthetic pathway, and, therefore, this enzyme is regulated.
Performance of the MasSpec Pen for Rapid Diagnosis of Ovarian Cancer

BACKGROUND: Accurate tissue diagnosis during ovarian cancer surgery is critical to maximize cancer excision and define treatment options. Yet, current methods for intraoperative tissue evaluation can be time intensive and subjective. We have developed a handheld and biocompatible device coupled to a mass spectrometer, the MasSpec Pen, which uses a discrete water droplet for molecular extraction and rapid tissue diagnosis. Here we evaluated the performance of this technology for ovarian cancer diagnosis across different sample sets, tissue types, and mass spectrometry systems. METHODS: MasSpec Pen analyses were performed on 192 ovarian, fallopian tube, and peritoneum tissue samples. Samples were evaluated by expert pathologists to confirm diagnosis. Performance using an Orbitrap and a linear ion trap mass spectrometer was tested. Statistical models were generated using machine learning and evaluated using validation and test sets. RESULTS: High performance for high-grade serous carcinoma (n = 131; clinical sensitivity, 96.7%; specificity, 95.7%) and overall cancer (n = 138; clinical sensitivity, 94.0%; specificity, 94.4%) diagnoses was achieved using Orbitrap data. Variations in the mass spectra from normal tissue, low-grade, and high-grade serous ovarian cancers were observed. Discrimination between cancer and fallopian tube or peritoneum tissues was also achieved with accuracies of 92.6% and 87.9%, respectively, and 100% clinical specificity for both. Using ion trap data, excellent results for high-grade serous cancer vs normal ovarian differentiation (n = 40; clinical sensitivity, 100%; specificity, 100%) were obtained. CONCLUSIONS: The MasSpec Pen, together with machine learning, provides robust molecular models for ovarian serous cancer prediction and thus has potential for clinical use for rapid and accurate ovarian cancer diagnosis.
Consistency of survey opinions and external data

The Soul of the Community Survey was conducted in twenty-six communities in the United States in the years 2008, 2009, and 2010. Respondents were asked to rate their community in terms of quality of life, social offerings, and other aspects to determine the qualities that cause people to be most attached to their community. This paper focuses on describing the geographic distribution of responses to several of the questions within one of the communities, Long Beach, CA. We first provide a general description of the city and compare the geographic distribution of population, income, and race of survey respondents with external data. With this demographic profile in mind, we analyze respondents’ ratings of local safety, availability of green spaces, and quality of local public schools to see if they are consistent with external data sources. In the case of public school quality, where these ratings appear inconsistent, we propose an explanation to resolve this.
STEM Language can be the Stem of the Problem

Engineering collaboration requires successful interdisciplinary communication between professionals who have highly specialized, content specific vocabularies. STEM language research has shown that people encounter barriers to communication due to different understandings of particular words. Additionally, linguistics research has shown that confusion over specific words can be due to many causes such as alternate meanings or senses associated with that word. However, very little research has studied interdisciplinary task collaboration within a linguistics-based framework. This study identified and categorized patterns of words and phrases that caused confusion during an engineering task at a STEM summer camp for secondary teachers. The results demonstrated that confusion over meanings of words inhibited the participants’ progress toward completing the task. When two participants had a common or shared vocabulary, they were able to negotiate meaning, resulting in greater success on the task.
Advances in Targeted Therapies for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

While the outcomes for patients diagnosed with hormone receptor positive (HR+) and/or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive (HER2+) breast cancers have continued to improve with the development of targeted therapies, the same cannot be said yet for those affected with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Currently, the mainstay of treatment for the 10–15% of patients diagnosed with TNBC remains cytotoxic chemotherapy, but it is hoped that through an enhanced characterization of TNBC biology, this disease will be molecularly delineated into subgroups with targetable oncogenic drivers. This review will focus on recent therapeutic innovations for TNBC, including poly-ADP-ribosyl polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway inhibitors, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors.
Constraints on the spin-pole orientation, jet morphology, and rotation of interstellar comet 2I/Borisov with deep HST imaging

We present high resolution, deep imaging of interstellar comet 2I/Borisov taken with the Hubble Space Telescope/Wide Field Camera 3 (HST/WFC3) on 2019 December 8 UTC and 2020 January 27 UTC (HST GO 16040, PI Bolin) before and after its perihelion passage in combination with HST/WFC3 images taken on 2019 October 12 UTC and 2019 November 16 UTC (HST GO/DD 16009, PI Jewitt) before its outburst and fragmentation of March 2020, thus observing the comet in a relatively undisrupted state. We locate 1-2\arcsec~long (2,000 - 3,000 km projected length) jet-like structures near the optocenter of 2I that appear to change position angles from epoch to epoch. With the assumption that the jet is located near the rotational pole supported by its stationary appearance on $\sim$10-100 h time frames in HST images, we determine that 2I's pole points near $\alpha$ = 322$\pm$10$^\circ$, $\delta$ = 37$\pm$10$^\circ$ ($\lambda$ = 341$^\circ$, $\beta$ = 48$^\circ$) and may be in a simple rotation state. Additionally, we find evidence for possible periodicity in the HST time-series lightcurve on the time scale of $\sim$5.3 h with a small amplitude of $\sim$0.05 mag implying a lower limit on its $b/a$ ratio of $\sim$1.5 unlike the large $\sim$2 mag lightcurve observed for 1I/`Oumuamua. However, these small lightcurve variations may not be the result of the rotation of 2I's nucleus due to its dust-dominated light-scattering cross-section. Therefore, uniquely constraining the pre-Solar System encounter, pre-outburst rotation state of 2I may not be possible even with the resolution and sensitivity provided by HST observations.
Effective and efficient top-k query processing over incomplete data streams

Abstract Nowadays, efficient and effective stream processing has become increasingly important in many real-world applications such as sensor data monitoring, network intrusion detection, IP network traffic analysis, and so on. In practice, stream data often encounter the problem of having some data attributes missing, due to reasons such as packet losses, network congestion/failure, and so on. In such a scenario, it is rather important, yet challenging, to accurately and efficiently monitor top-k objects over incomplete data stream, which may potentially indicate some dangerous and critical security events (e.g., fire, network intrusion, or denial-of-service attack). In this paper, we formally define the problem of top-k query over incomplete data stream (Topk-iDS), which continuously detects top-k objects with the highest ranking scores over an incomplete data stream. Due to unique characteristics such as incompleteness and stream processing, we propose a cost-model-based data imputation approach, design effective pruning strategies to reduce the Topk-iDS search space, and carefully devise dynamically updated data synopses to facilitate Topk-iDS query processing. We also propose an efficient algorithm to perform the data imputation and incremental Topk-iDS computation at the same time. Finally, through extensive experiments, we evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of our proposed Topk-iDS query answering approach over both real and synthetic data sets..
Dying to know: prognosis communication in heart failure

Prognosis communication in heart failure is often narrowly defined as a discussion of life expectancy, but as clinical guidelines and research suggest, these discussions should provide a broader understanding of the disease, including information about disease trajectory, the experiences of living with heart failure, potential burden on patients and families, and mortality. Furthermore, despite clinical guidelines recommending early discussions, evidence suggests that these discussions occur infrequently or late in the disease trajectory. We review the literature concerning patient, caregiver, and clinician perspectives on discussions of this type, including the frequency, timing, desire for, effects of, and barriers to their occurrence. We propose an alternate view of prognosis communication, in which the patient and family/caregiver are educated about the nature of the disease at the time of diagnosis, and a process of engagement is undertaken so that the patient's full participation in their care is marshalled, and the care team engages the patient in the informed decision making that will guide care throughout the disease trajectory. We also identify and discuss evidence gaps concerning (i) patient preferences and readiness for prognosis information along the trajectory; (ii) best practices for communicating prognosis information; and (iii) effects of prognosis communication on patient's quality of life, mental health, engagement in critical self-care, and clinical outcomes. Research is needed to determine best practices for engaging patients in prognosis communication and for evaluating the effects of this communication on patient engagement and clinical outcomes.
Visual Arts in Nursing Education: An Inventive Interprofessional Initiative to Cultivate Metacognitive Awareness in Beginning Nursing Students.

PurposeTo test an interdisciplinary art-based educational program for beginning baccalaureate traditional and accelerated nursing students.DesignLongitudinal study (Pretest–Posttest) of nursing stu...
Quantification of Body Fluid Compartmentalization by Combined Time-Domain Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Bioimpedance Spectroscopy

The measurement of fluid compartmentalization, or the distribution of fluid volume between extracellular (ECF) and intracellular (ICF) spaces, historically requires complicated, burdensome, and oft...
Marginalized and Intervening: Review of LGBTQ Health Research: Theory, Methods, Practice: Edited by Ron Stall, Brian Dodge, José Bauermeister, Tonia Poteat and Chris Beyrer, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020

The participatory planning process can help the team learn more about the communities being served while empowering members of the LGBTQ community to become active agents in research and interventi...
High T </i≯ Correlations of γ and Charged Hadrons at RHIC

Prompt photon production in ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions provides a calibrated probe for the study of the properties of high energy density QCD matter. Especially interesting are the measurements of γ-tagged jets where the hard scattering scale is known and can be used to determine the partonic energy loss in the dense matter. We discuss the potential of γ-jet measurements at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) and argue that the observed suppression of the away-side correlations for di-jet production in central Au+Au collisions at $$\sqrt {s_{NN} } = 200$$ GeV should significantly reduce the backgrounds for the γ-jet coincidence measurements.
Testing, Monitoring, and Treatment of Thyroid Dysfunction in Pregnancy

Both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can have adverse effects in pregnancy. The most common causes of thyrotoxicosis in pregnancy are gestational transient thyrotoxicosis and Graves' disease. It is important to distinguish between these entities as treatment options differ. Women of reproductive age who are diagnosed with Graves' disease should be counseled regarding the impact of treatment options on a potential pregnancy. Although the absolute risk is small, antithyroid medications can have teratogenic effects. Propylthiouracil appears to have less severe teratogenicity compared to methimazole and is therefore favored during the first trimester if a medication is needed. Women should be advised to delay pregnancy for at least 6 months following radioactive iodine to minimize potential adverse effects from radiation and ensure normal thyroid hormone levels prior to conception. As thyroid hormone is critical for normal fetal development, hypothyroidism is associated with adverse obstetric and child neurodevelopmental outcomes. Women with overt hypothyroidism should be treated with levothyroxine (LT4) to a thyrotropin (thyroid-stimulating hormone; TSH) goal of <2.5 mIU/L. There is mounting evidence for associations of maternal hypothyroxinemia and subclinical hypothyroidism with pregnancy loss, preterm labor, and lower scores on child cognitive assessment. Although there is minimal risk of LT4 treatment to keep TSH within the pregnancy-specific reference range, treatment of mild maternal thyroid hypofunction remains controversial, given the lack of clinical trials showing improved outcomes with LT4 treatment.
Marx’s inquiry and presentation: The pedagogical constellations of the Grundrisse and Capital

This paper reads Marx’s distinction between the method of inquiry and presentation as distinct and Marxist pedagogical logics that take the form of learning and studying. After articulating the dif...
Tourism, Development, and Sustainability

This chapter approaches sustainable tourism by first conceptualizing tourism as a form of development that depends on conservation of the resources that attract tourists. With this lens, sustainability becomes a top priority as tourism destinations attempt to maintain and enhance their attractiveness to tourists. Concurrently, tourism is an economic activity and is a driver of and is driven by global capitalism. As such, there exists a tension between tourism and sustainability. That tension is explored in this chapter through the question: What is to be sustained? The answer to this question is explored in the context of socio-ecological systems and ideas of resilience. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how re-framing sustainable tourism could be implemented through a set of tools.
Does halting make hardware trace collection inaccurate? A study using Pentium 4 performance counters and SPEC2000

Processor address traces are invaluable for characterizing workloads and testing proposed memory hierarchies. Long traces are needed to exercise modern cache designs and produce meaningful results, but are difficult to collect with hardware monitors because microprocessors access memory too frequently for disks or other large storage to keep up. The small, fast buffers of the monitors fill quickly; in order to obtain long contiguous traces, the processor must be stopped while the buffer is emptied. This halting may perturb the traces collected, but this cannot be measured directly, since long uninterrupted traces cannot be collected. We make the case that hardware performance counters, which collect runtime statistics without influencing execution, can be used to measure halting effects. We use the performance counters of the Pentium 4 processor to collect statistics while halting the processor as if traces were being collected. We then compare these results to the statistics obtained from unhalted runs. We present our results in terms of which counters are affected, why, and what this means for trace-collection systems.
Fluence, Dosimetry, and Steel-Dpa Rates in EBR-II

Sensitivities of steel displacements-per-atom (dpa) rates to fluence-rate spectra in regions of the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II) are presented. Low sensitivities in EBR-II of ratios of dpa-to-fission rates assuming 240Pu as a dosimeter suggests its possible use for adjusting calculated dpa-rates for effects of errors in calculated fluence-spectra. Extension of the method to outer regions, having more degraded spectra, by use of 10B-shielded 240pu dosimeters is also suggested.
Risk of hyperkalemia in nondiabetic patients with chronic kidney disease receiving antihypertensive therapy.

Background The incidence and factors associated with hyperkalemia in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) treated with angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and other antihypertensive drugs was investigated using the African American Study of Kidney Disease and Hypertension (AASK) database. Methods A total of 1094 nondiabetic adults with hypertensive CKD (glomerular filtration rate [GFR], 20-65 mL/min/1.73 m 2 ) were followed for 3.0 to 6.4 years in the AASK trial. Participants were randomly assigned to ACEI, β-blocker (BB), or dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker (CCB). The outcome variables for this analysis were a serum potassium level higher than 5.5 mEq/L (to convert to millimoles per liter, multiply by 1.0), or a clinical center initiated hyperkalemia stop point. Results A total of 6497 potassium measurements were obtained, and 80 events in 51 subjects were identified (76 events driven by a central laboratory result and 4 driven by a clinical center–initiated hyperkalemia stop point). Compared with a GFR higher than 50 mL/min/1.73 m 2 , after multivariable adjustment, the hazard ratio (HR) for hyperkalemia in patients with a GFR between 31 and 40 mL/min/1.73 m 2 and a GFR lower than 30 mL/min/1.73 m 2 was 3.61 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.42-9.18 [ P = .007]) and 6.81 (95% CI, 2.67-17.35 [ P 2 . Use of ACEIs was associated with more episodes of hyperkalemia compared with CCB use (HR, 7.00; 95% CI, 2.29-21.39 [ P P = .001]). Diuretic use was associated with a 59% decreased risk of hyperkalemia. Conclusions In nondiabetic patients with hypertensive CKD treated with ACEIs, the risk of hyperkalemia is small, particularly if baseline and follow-up GFR is higher than 40 mL/min/1.73 m 2 . Including a diuretic in the regimen may markedly reduce risk of hyperkalemia.
Principles and Practice of Dialysis

Principles and practice of dialysis , Principles and practice of dialysis , کتابخانه مرکزی دانشگاه علوم پزشکی ایران
Efficient reasoning in qualitative probabilistic networks

Qualitative Probabilistic Networks (QPNs) are. an abstraction of Bayesian belief networks replacmg numerical relations by qualitative influences and synergies [Wellman, 1990b]. To reason in a QPN is to find the effect of new evidence on each node in terms of the sign of the change in belief (increase or decrease). We introduce a polynomial time algorithm for reasoning in QPNs, based on local sign propagation. It extends our previous scheme from singly connected to general multiply connected networks. Unlike existing graph-reduction algorithms, it preserves the network structure and determines the effect of evidence on all nodes in the network. This aids meta-level reasoning about the model and automatic generation of intuitive explanations of probabilistic reasoning.
'Qualified' Notice-and-Demand Statutes Unconstitutionally Eliminate a Criminal Defendant’s Sixth Amendment Right to 'True' Confrontation: Live Testimony from Witnesses

This Article contends that "qualified" notice-and-demand statutes, enacted in many states, violate a criminal defendant's Sixth Amendment right to confrontation. Plain notice-and-demand statutes allow a prosecutor to introduce a witness' testimony in written form unless the defendant demands live testimony. Qualified statutes require some showing above a timely demand before requiring that the witness testify in person. These statutes are unconstitutional because the Confrontation Clause, properly understood, protects a defendant's right to "true" confrontation - live testimony from prosecution witnesses - as well as the right to cross-examination. This interpretation is well supported by case law and the history of confrontation at common law, and furthers the reasoning of and principles behind Crawford v. Washington. Further, this Article argues that qualified notice-and-demand statutes are invalid because they conflict with the current interpretation of the Confrontation right, by forcing waiver of objections that would be unquestionably valid under Crawford.
Emotion and Deliberation: The Autonomous Citizen in the Social World

The study of emotion’s role in politics has been hampered by the tendency to view emotion reductively, mainly as a set of quick, intense, uneducable and unreflective bursts of feeling. It has been hampered by the failure to distinguish among several different sorts of emotional phenomena, including immediate emotional reactions, long-term affective commitments, and complex emotional and moral appraisals. It has also been hampered by the tendency to view democratic participation as something that happens only at the ballot box. This approach overlooks formalized participation in electoral politics and legislative or administrative lawmaking, as well as more informal deliberative practices such as community organizing, social networks, and myriad other sites for argument, persuasion and mobilization. The optimal cognitive and affective tools for effective democratic participation may be as varied as the contexts in which that participation occurs.The use of rhetoric and persuasion to convey political ideas is too often dismissed as an emotional, manipulative set of practices directed at the easily led. The populace is depicted as reaching political conclusions by way of emotion and intuition; elites and experts by way of reasoned deliberation. The reductive understanding of emotion also takes the form of a failure to distinguish the inquiry into individual, internal emotions from a set of macro-level questions about how emotion interacts with social structure. The notion of collective decision-making is too often equated with groupthink and herd mentality, and contrasted with the presumably thoughtful, deliberative behavior of the autonomous individual actor. In order to address these assumptions and their impact on political philosophy it is helpful to distinguish individual from collective dynamics, the question of how persuasion and reasoning work from the question of what public reasons ought to look like, and the concept of emotion from the concept of intuition. In this commentary, which was written for the American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy’s 2010 meeting on the topic “Passions and Emotions” and published in the subsequent symposium volume PASSIONS AND EMOTIONS at NOMOS LIII, I develop these critiques in response to the paper George Marcus presented at the meeting, entitled Reason, Passion, and Democratic Politics.
Lateral ventricular enlargement associated with persistent unemployment and negative symptoms in both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

Forty-six patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder and 46 individually matched normal volunteers underwent computed tomographic (CT) scans of the head. The ventricular-to-brain ratio was strongly associated with persistent unemployment and negative symptoms in both patient groups. Previous findings of relative lateral ventricular enlargement in a proportion of schizophrenic and bipolar patients were also replicated. Implications of the relationship between CT changes and chronic unemployment among the patients are discussed.
The effect of insulin on aromatase activity in isolated human endometrial glands and stroma

Hyperinsulinemic states have been associated with an increased incidence of estrogen-dependent endometrial neoplasia. To study the effect of insulin on the ability of endometrium to aromatize androgens to estrogens, late proliferative endometrium was obtained from normally cycling women at the time of indicated surgery, separated into component glands and stroma, and grown to confluence. Separated gland and stromal cultures were incubated in triplicate with increasing insulin concentrations and epidermal growth factor. Aromatase activity was assayed by the production of tritiated water from tritium-labeled androstenedione. The activity was noted to increase proportionally with increasing concentrations of insulin >10 U/ml, and the effect was specific. These data suggest the following conclusions: (1) Insulin stimulates aromatase activity in both endometrial glands and stroma; (2) hyperinsulinemia may predispose to endometrial neoplasia by enhancing endogenous endometrial estrogen production.
Monetary policy and the credit channel in an open economy

Abstract This paper extends Bernanke and Blinder's [Am. Econ. Rev. 78 (1988) 435] “credit-channel” model to the open economy. In particular, it examines whether the monetary policy results predicted by the popular textbook Mundell–Fleming model [e.g., Can. J. Econ. Polit. Sci. 29 (1963) 475; IMF Staff Pap. 9 (1962) 369] change with the open-economy version of the Bernanke and Blinder credit-channel model. This examination is important to consider in light of the popularity of the Mundell–Fleming model at the policymaking level and in light of recent empirical findings giving strong support to the credit channel as a monetary policy transmission mechanism. The main conclusion is that monetary policy is much more potent under the open-economy version of the Bernanke and Blinder model than under the standard Mundell–Fleming model.
Robot Task Space Analyzer System Calibration

Sensors such as cameras and range finders provide flexibility and safety to telerobotic manipulations. However, in order to use their supportive features, sensor-based telerobotic control requires that both the sensors and the robot arm be calibrated so that the manipulator can target and articulate objects in the environment easily and effectively. The scope of this paper is to define the sensor-manipulator calibration issue, outline the system errors, describe the calibration methods, and explain the algorithms necessary to provide compensation. The problem was divided into three steps: acquisition of calibration data of the sensor and the arm, numerical analysis and determination of needed parameters, and validation of obtained results. Since the task is to find parameters that represent the object position accurately, the problem is treated as multidimensional least squares optimization problem with simple bounds. The function to minimize is the distance between the target and its calculated position. Two approaches are applied to represent kinematics parameters: Euler angles and quaternions. Solutions are analyzed to determine the best method for future planned online calibration checks as well as to perform teleoperation tasks on the calibrated system.
Alterations in serum thrombospondin in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Abstract Thrombospondin (TSP), an endogenous extracellular matrix (ECM) glycoprotein, is secreted from platelet α-granules after thrombin stimulation. Alterations in blood TSP levels occur in different pathologic conditions, suggesting it is a marker for certain disorders. We previously found a marked increase in TSP deposition in the muscle ECM of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in comparison with controls. Because the mechanism for this increase is unknown, we compared serum TSP levels in 11 patients to 15 controls using three different site-specific monoclonal antibodies (MA-I, MA-II and A6.1). We found mean serum TSP concentrations by indirect ELISA to be significantly decreased in the ALS patients. Using laser densitometry we calculated the ratio of fragmented to native TSP from Western immunoblots probed with A6.1, where a higher ratio corresponds to increased fragments. Mean values for this ratio were 6.3 ± 4.9 and 18.3 ± 8.2 for controls and patients, respectively. Thus significant decrease in native TSP and increase in its proteolytic fragments in ALS is consistent with increased proteolytic enzyme activity. Dysregulation of the protease: inhibitor balance in this degenerative condition may be reflected in the quantitative and qualitative changes in TSP.