cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Computerized tomography-based radiotherapy improves heterotopic ossification outcomes☆

Abstract Purpose To report the impact of computerized tomography (CT) based radiotherapy (RT) on heterotopic ossification (HO) outcomes. Methods This is a single institution, retrospective study of 532 patients who were treated for traumatic acetabular fractures (TAF). All patients underwent open-reduction internal-fixation (ORIF) of the TAF followed by RT for HO prophylaxis. Postoperative RT was delivered within 72 h, in a single fraction of 7 Gy. The patients were divided into 2 groups based on RT planning: CT (A) vs. clinical setup (B). Results At a median follow up of 8 years the incidence of HO was 21.6%. Multivariate regression analysis revealed that group (A) vs. (B) had HO incidence of 6.6% vs. 24.6% (p Conclusion Our data suggest that using CT based RT allowed more accurate delineation of the tissues and better clinical outcomes. Although CT-based RT is associated with additional cost the efficacy of CT-based RT reduces the risk of HO, thereby decreasing the need for additional surgical interventions.
Using elimination methods to compute thermophysical algebraic invariants from infrared imagery

We describe a new approach for computing invariant features in infrared (IR) images. Our approach is unique in the field since it considers not just surface reflection and surface geometry in the specification of invariant features, but it also takes into account internal object composition and thermal state which affect images sensed in the non-visible spectrum. We first establish a non-linear energy balance equation using the principle of conservation of energy at the surface of the imaged object. We then derive features that depend only on material parameters of the object and the sensed radiosity. These features are independent of the scene conditions and the scene-to-scene transformation of the "driving conditions" such as ambient temperature, and wind speed. The algorithm for deriving the invariant features is based on the algebraic elimination of the transformation parameters from the non-linear relationships. The elimination approach is a general method based on the extended Dixon resultant. Results on real IR imagery are shown to illustrate the performance of the features derived in this manner when used for an object recognition system that deals with multiple classes of objects.
Impact of family income and size on per capita solid waste generation: A case study in Manmunai North Divisional Secretariat Division of Batticaloa

The generation of solid waste has become an increasing environmental and public health problem everywhere in the world, especially in developing countries. The rate of generation of solid waste in the society is increasing with an increase of population, technological development, and the changes in the life styles of the people. As family size and income are the most significant factors affecting the quantity of solid waste from household consumption, a study on the relationship among these is vital in the decision making on waste management strategies. Therefore, a study was conducted at Manmunai North Divisional Secretariat areas of Batticaloa district to find out the correlation among residential solid waste generation, family size and income. The household sector is one of the primary sources of solid wastes in the study area. This study covered 100 houses with different socioeconomic levels such as income level and family size. There were six components of solid waste; food waste, paper, polyethylene, plastic, glass and metal which were evaluated in this study. Present study revealed that residential solid waste generation showed non significant positive correlation (r = 0.184, p>0.05) with monthly income whereas significant positive correlation (r = 0.476, p<0.01) was found with t he family size. Based on monthly income, generation of food, paper, plastic and glass waste showed non-significant positive correlation while non-significant negative correlation was found with polyethylene waste. Further, residential waste generation suc h as food, paper, plastic and metal showed significant positive correlation with family size
Factors Affecting the Selection of Business Arrangements by U.S. Hog Farmers

This study examines the influences of risk, transaction costs, autonomy, size, farm demographics, and socioeconomic characteristics on the choice of four business arrangements by U.S. hog producers. Data for this analysis were obtained from a national survey of U.S. hog producers. This research supports other studies that discuss the role of risk in the advent of contracting and transaction costs in the selection of business arrangements. The study results suggest that those who value autonomy less are currently adopters of contracts.
Wavefront diffusion and LMSR: algorithms for dynamic repartitioning of adaptive meshes

Current multilevel repartitioning schemes tend to perform well on certain types of problems while obtaining worse results for other types of problems. We present two new multilevel algorithms for repartitioning adaptive meshes that improve the performance of multilevel schemes for the types of problems that current schemes perform poorly while maintaining similar or better results for those problems that current schemes perform well. Specifically, we present a new scratch-remap scheme called Locally-matched Multilevel Scratch-remap (or simply LMSR) for repartitioning of adaptive meshes. LMSR tries to compute a high-quality partitioning that has a large amount of overlap with the original partitioning. We show that LMSR generally decreases the data redistribution costs required to balance the load compared to current scratch-remap schemes. We present a new diffusion-based scheme that we refer to as Wavefront Diffusion. In Wavefront Diffusion, the flow of vertices moves in a wavefront from overweight to underweight subdomains. We show that Wavefront Diffusion obtains significantly lower data redistribution costs while maintaining similar or better edge-cut results compared to existing diffusion algorithms. We also compare Wavefront Diffusion with LMSR and show that these provide a trade-off between edge-cut and data redistribution costs for a wide range of problems. Our experimental results on a Gray T3E, an IBM SP2, and a cluster of Pentium Pro workstations show that both schemes are fast and scalable. For example, both are capable of repartitioning a seven million vertex graph in under three seconds on 128 processors of a Gray T3E. Our schemes obtained relative speedups of between nine and 12 when the number of processors was increased by a factor of 16 on a Gray T3E.
Understanding and closed-form-formula determination of frequency-dependent bonding-pad characterization

A newly developed method is introduced in this paper to efficiently model frequency-dependent on-die pad capacitance and conductance, which can be easily integrated in computer-aided-design tools. An equivalent lumped circuit is used to model the pad parasitic effect. Three critical frequencies are defined to characterize the pad-frequency characteristics based on this model. A relationship between normalized pad capacitance and normalized frequency is then established to guide practical pad designs. Three different methods are compared to determine the parameters in the equivalent lumped circuit. Our newly developed quasi-static method gives the best agreement with full-wave simulation. In this method, each capacitance in the model is divided into the parallel-plate part and the fringing part. The pad is innovatively treated as transmission lines several times, and a closed-form formula is used to extract the per-unit-length (p.u.l.) capacitance for these transmission lines. The fringing capacitances are then calculated from these p.u.l. capacitances. The substrate conductance can be determined from the substrate capacitance. Simulation results based on our model show good agreement with full-wave simulation results, which justify the validity of our modeling. Such a method with fast computation and good accuracy is very helpful in the early integrated circuit design stage
Internal Migration in Developing Economies: An Overview

An overview is provided of the state of knowledge on internal migration in developing economies, with particular emphasis on recent contributions to the literature. The overview is divided into five sections. The first addresses some of the issues in collecting data on internal migration and some of the stylized facts about internal migration in developing economies, noting the differences between internal and international migrations. Ten elements that act as drivers of both rural-urban and rural-rural migrations are described next. These include the search for improved income opportunities and the development strategies shaping these; the role of education and dispersal of amenities; the underlying effects of climate change, natural disasters and violence; as well as the concern for family unification. Five sets of constraints upon such movements are then outlined: financial constraints, distance, incomplete information and intervening opportunities, mitigated by the influence of social networks. Some of the methodological difficulties in deducing the effects of internal population movements on production and income generation are considered in the third section, as well as the available evidence of these impacts in China, India and Sub-Saharan Africa. In particular, this section looks at productivity gaps between sectors and the links between migration and structural transformation; the selectivity of migration, the commensurate patterns of remittances and hence inclusiveness in any benefits from internal migration; and external costs potentially imposed through internal migration and the growth of mega cities specifically. The final section offers some thoughts on migration-related policies, noting that the most pertinent policies are those which address the drivers and constraints outlined in the earlier sections.
Sliding Mode Control of a Hybrid Fuel cell-Battery Power System

Abstract This paper presents the analysis and design of sliding mode control (SMC) for a hybrid power system, which consists of a fuel cell, a battery, a unidirectional converter, and a bidirectional converter. The fuel cell and the battery are connected to the same voltage bus through a unidirectional converter and bidirectional converter, respectively. Fuel cell has a slow start and a large time delay to respond the transient. Therefore, the battery as an auxiliary energy source provides the power during the system’s start and absorbs the dynamic power when the load varies. A SMC is proposed to control a unidirectional converter for fuel cell and a bidirectional dc/dc converter for a battery. The SMC used in the paper has a capability of robustness to control properly under all operating conditions.
Combating Perceptions of Computer Scientists: A Short-term Intervention (Abstract Only)

Fifty-four middle school girls were a part of weeklong program geared towards encouraging young women in STEM careers. During a two-day computer science intervention, we introduced students to our VEnvI software where students program virtual characters to perform choreography. During this time, students were introduced programming concepts: sequencing, loops, and variables. They also spent time performing to learn some of the movements in VEnvI and discussed different aspects of the VEnvI software design including motion capture & Unity 3D Development. The latter conversations were couched in relation to being a computer scientist. Data were collected from the students on the first day of the camp as well as at the end of the second day. Each student was given a piece of paper that only contained a code corresponding to her. The instructions were to write, "What do computer scientists do?" on one side of the page, and to draw a picture of a computer scientist on the other side. Our findings suggest that, at least in the short term, this type of intervention can impact students' perceptions of computer science as well as broaden their perspectives of computer scientists. More students drew female computer scientists in the post-test and showed computer scientists working in teams rather than alone. Further, students' ideas of what computer scientists "do" shifted from fixing computers and making websites to creating, designing, and inventing with computers.
Psychosocial and Cultural Modeling in Human Computation Systems: A Gamification Approach

“Gamification”, the application of gameplay to real-world problems, enables the development of human computation systems that support decision-making through the integration of social and machine intelligence. One of gamification’s major benefits includes the creation of a problem solving environment where the influence of cognitive and cultural biases on human judgment can be curtailed through collaborative and competitive reasoning. By reducing biases on human judgment, gamification allows human computation systems to exploit human creativity relatively unhindered by human error. Operationally, gamification uses simulation to harvest human behavioral data that provide valuable insights for the solution of real-world problems.
An Improved Three-Level Direct Torque Control Method of Brushless Doubly-Fed Machine

To solve the problem of high amplitude ripples of stator flux linkage and torque in the traditional three-level direct torque control( DTC) algorithm for brushless double-fed machine( BDFM),an improved three-level direct torque algorithm for brushless doubly-fed machines based on fixed synthesizing vectors w as presented. The selectivity of voltage vector w as added in order to deduce the torque ripple and the flux linkage ripple. A simulation model of three-level DTC algorithm for BDFM w as established in Matlab / Simulink softw are environment and the effectiveness of the proposed control algorithm w as testified in this model. The simulation results show that the torque ripples and the flux linkage ripples w ere effectively reduced,the locus of the stator flux linkage w as better and the rotor speed w as more stable by this improved control method. In addition,the advantage of fast torque response in the DTC algorithm w as maintained. The dynamic performance and robustness w as improved in this DTC system.
The Power of Love in Chimera and V

False self and false elements of the self haunt John Barth's Chimera and Thomas Pynchon's V. In both is the ultimate betrayal of the body, the sexual self; in both is the false, unnatural, substitution of the false for the true limbs, eyes, teeth; in both is the betrayal of the body unused, the atrophying of the self.
Municipal Investment and Property Value Appreciation in Chicago’s Tax Increment Financing Districts:

To determine whether Tax Increment Financing (TIF) triggers or captures growth, we examine the relationship between expenditures and property value change in Chicago’s TIF districts. A regression model relates spending type, which varies from infrastructure to developer subsidies, to a district’s property value growth between 2002 and 2012. Results show variation in the impact of spending, with subsidies for commercial development having the clearest positive relationship while infrastructure spending has a negative effect. Although trends are less clear over the long run, these differences underscore how the effectiveness of TIF cannot be surmised without accounting for variations in spending.
From Here to There and Back Again: Transnational Perspectives on Diversity in Organizations

This chapter draws boundaries to define the contours of the contemporary transnational diversity in organizations scholarly literature. It is not intended as an exhaustive review of what may have now become an incommensurable literature; rather, it delineates a temporary holding space for understanding this shifting territory while exploring a few relevant examples. As a taxonomical exercise, it follows the formation and transformation of the subject of "diversity in organizations" as it traveled beyond the original literature from the USA. It articulates four modes of diffusion occurring over time: internationalizing diversity; provincializing diversity; the simultaneity of diversity; and the formation of mobile subjectivities. The conclusion forwards the Incommensurability of these perspectives as independent contributions, suggesting that anyone intending to represent "diversity and organizations" in the contemporary world should consider the value of maintaining in view a repertoire of very different ontological perspectives on diversity, as well as a post identitarian transnational understanding.
Long-term Outcomes After Osteochondral Allograft: A Systematic Review at Long-term Follow-up of 12.3 Years

Purpose To (1) evaluate long-term outcomes of osteochondral allograft (OCA) with regard to clinical outcome scores, reoperation and failure rates, and (2) examine if certain factors predispose patients to worse outcomes. Methods A comprehensive review was performed with specific inclusion criteria for studies with long-term outcomes after OCA. Studies reported on patient clinical scores such as Hospital for Special Surgery score, Knee Society Score (knee and function score), and Lysholm score. Reoperation and failure rates were recorded for each study. Modified Coleman Methodology Scores assessed study methodological quality. Results Five studies with a total of 291 patients (55% male, 45% female) and average age of 34.8 years (range, 15 to 69 years) were included. Of all lesions, 67% were on the femoral condyles, 29% on the tibial plateau, and 4% were patellofemoral. All scores (Knee Society Function Score, Knee Society Knee Score, and Lysholm score) have significant mean improvement from preoperative to final follow-up. The mean postoperative Hospital for Special Surgery score was 84.1. The mean failure rate was 25% at 12.3 years with a reoperation rate of 36%. A total of 72% of the failures were conversion to total (68%) or unicompartmental (4%) knee arthroplasty and 28% involved graft removal, graft fixation, and graft revision. Patellofemoral lesions (83%) had a significantly higher reoperation rate than lesions involving the tibial plateau or the femoral condyles (34%, P = .01). Conclusions Overall, OCA demonstrated significant improvements in clinical outcome scores and good durability with successful outcomes in 75% of the patients at 12.3 years after surgery. Patellofemoral lesions are associated with decreased clinical improvement and more frequent reoperations. The orthopaedic literature is limited by heterogeneity in surgical technique, lesion and patient characteristics, and reporting of nonstandardized outcome measures. Level of Evidence Level IV, systematic review of Level II and IV studies.
Treatment of cervical pregnancy with cerclage, curettage and balloon tamponade. A report of three cases.

BACKGROUND: Cervical pregnancy is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy, historically requiring hysterectomy to control life-threatening hemorrhage. However, with early diagnosis, conservative procedures can preserve the uterus and fertility. CASES: Three cases of cervical pregnancy were treated successfully with curettage. Two cases utilizing precurettage and postcurettage hemostatic techniques were treated with curettage alone. A third case, not employing precurettage hemostatic maneuvers, required uterine artery embolization to control bleeding and avoid hysterectomy. CONCLUSION: Curettage alone, when preceded by cervical infiltration with a vasoconstricting agent, placement of a cerclage suture high on the cervix and followed by cervical canal tamponade with a Foley catheter balloon, can successfully treat early cervical pregnancy.
Population genetics of Penstemon albomarginatus (Plantaginaceae), a rare Mojave Desert species of conservation concern

Penstemon albomarginatus is a psammophytic endemic of the Mojave Desert, found only in deep sand and dune habitats of San Bernardino County, California, Mohave County, Arizona, and Clark and Nye Counties in Nevada. We used six microsatellite loci to assess genetic differentiation and diversity for 228 individuals across the 12 known populations of this rare species. A slight heterozygote deficiency was found in two populations, but most populations show no signs of inbreeding. Results show a geographic pattern of northern populations being more closely related to one another compared to all other geographic regions. Genetic diversity was greatest in the southern populations, with decreasing amounts of diversity observed with latitude. In general, the geographic pattern of genetic diversity among all populations suggests a post-glacial dispersal from south-to-north. Our results are discussed in the framework of anthropogenic pressures on deep sand habitats of the Mojave Desert.
Tubulointerstitial Injury and Drugs of Abuse

Drug abuse is widespread in many populations, and patients abusing illicit substances are at a significantly increased risk of kidney injury. The tubulointerstitial compartment is a common target of these nephrotoxic agents. This review will cover some of the common illicit drugs and will focus on the tubulointerstitial injuries seen in the setting of drug abuse. Agents addressed in this review are synthetic cannabinoids, "bath salts," ecstasy, anabolic steroids, inhaled solvents, heroin, and cocaine. The most frequent biopsy findings are those of acute tubular necrosis and acute interstitial nephritis. Unfortunately, histology is often unable to sufficiently narrow the differential diagnosis and point to a single likely cause. A high suspicion for drug abuse as a potential cause of kidney injury is needed to identify the patients for whom this is the cause of their kidney failure. Toxicology screens are often of little use in identifying patients using emerging drugs of abuse.
Neurodesign: Optimal Experimental Designs for Task fMRI

A recent stream of alarming publications questions the validity of published neuroimaging findings. As a consequence, fMRI teams worldwide are encouraged to increase their sample sizes to reach higher power and thus increase the positive predictive value of their findings. However, an often-overlooked factor influencing power is the experimental design: by choosing the appropriate experimental design, the statistical power of a study can be increased within subjects. By optimizing the order and timing of the stimuli, power can be gained at no extra cost. To facilitate design optimization, we created a python package and web-based tool called Neurodesign to maximize the detection power or estimation efficiency within subjects, while controlling for psychological factors such as the predictability of the design. We implemented the genetic algorithm, introduced by Wager and Nichols (2003) and further improved by Kao et al. (2009), to optimize the experimental design. The toolbox allows more complex experimental setups than existing toolboxes, while the GUI provides a more user-friendly experience. The toolbox is accessible online at www.neuropowertools.org.
Electronic structure and ultrafast charge carrier dynamics of Zn clusters supported on a p-Si(100) surface

Femtosecond XUV photoemission spectroscopy is employed to monitor the non-metal to metal transition of Zn clusters grown on p-Si(100) as well as the ultrafast charge migration, trapping, and recombination at the surface.
The Receptivity of a Laminar Boundary Layer to External Disturbances

We present experimental results on the excitation of a laminar boundary layer to stream turbulence sound and plate vibration. Excitations by sound can be cancelled using leading edge vibration. An adverse pressure gradient near the leading edge is shown to be a powerful mechanism for increasing the receptivity of the boundary layer to sound excitation.
“Aristotelian” Themes in Husserl’s Logical Investigations

In 1683, Nicolas Malebranche and Antoine Arnauld began an extended and sometimes acrimonious debate about the viability of Aristotle’s claim in the De Anima that in its cognitive function “the soul is somehow all things.” According to Malebranche, the principle of physics that there can be no action at a distance applies also to the domain of cognitive activity. It is therefore unreasonable to believe, he observes, that our minds are literally in the sky when we contemplate the stars: “It is not likely that the soul should leave the body to stroll about the heavens, as it were, in order to behold these objects.”1 Neither is it believable that our minds are capable of “walking about” even in more familiar spaces, for example, that they leave our bodies in order to see houses at a near distance. In defense of Aristotle, Arnauld responds that it is inappropriate to construe intentional presence in terms of spatial or local presence. Were God to allow our mind to leave our body and to travel to the sun in order to see it, our mind would have made, Arnauld says, “a great and very useless voyage.” It makes no difference whether bodies are present or absent, nearby or distant: “... it is for the mind the same thing.”2 Malebranche then responds that Arnauld, lacking a sense of irony, had taken his criticism too literally. The critique of the “walking-mind” had been intended only as a “good-natured ridicule” whose target was really the notion that the mind can know better what is closer, i.e., things that its body touches, or even the body itself. His point, he adds, was that the objects of the mind are intelligible, not material. The mind is not extended; it operates only within the realm of rationality, a purely intelligible realm which excludes everything material. Arnauld retorts that an intelligible sun is nothing other than the material sun as known. The point of Aristotle’s claim, he insists, was that the primary objects of our cognition are things and persons in the world around us, be they nearby or distant, present or absent.3
Representing Sudden Shifts in Intensive Dyadic Interaction Data Using Differential Equation Models with Regime Switching

A growing number of social scientists have turned to differential equations as a tool for capturing the dynamic interdependence among a system of variables. Current tools for fitting differential equation models do not provide a straightforward mechanism for diagnosing evidence for qualitative shifts in dynamics, nor do they provide ways of identifying the timing and possible determinants of such shifts. In this paper, we discuss regime-switching differential equation models, a novel modeling framework for representing abrupt changes in a system of differential equation models. Estimation was performed by combining the Kim filter (Kim and Nelson State-space models with regime switching: classical and Gibbs-sampling approaches with applications, MIT Press, Cambridge, 1999) and a numerical differential equation solver that can handle both ordinary and stochastic differential equations. The proposed approach was motivated by the need to represent discrete shifts in the movement dynamics of [Formula: see text] mother-infant dyads during the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP), a behavioral assessment where the infant is separated from and reunited with the mother twice. We illustrate the utility of a novel regime-switching differential equation model in representing children's tendency to exhibit shifts between the goal of staying close to their mothers and intermittent interest in moving away from their mothers to explore the room during the SSP. Results from empirical model fitting were supplemented with a Monte Carlo simulation study to evaluate the use of information criterion measures to diagnose sudden shifts in dynamics.
A Bootstrap Attack on Digital Watermarks in the Frequency Domain

In this paper, we propose five simple algorithms to execute a collusion attack given several watermarked documents. Each document considered is a picture represented as a matrix of two dimensional Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT2) coefficients. Our algorithm is independent of media type. Bootstrap methods are used to construct confidence intervals for each DCT2 coefficient and determine its uncertainty. Using simulation studies we show that Bootstrap procedures are highly efficient with respect to the number of iterations and sample size per iteration while maintaining stellar probabilistic coverage, providing results at least as good as averaging or taking the median of signals. Most importantly, a set of simulation studies suggest that the precision of our heuristic methodology increases quickly when the number of watermarked copies are increased, but good probabilistic coverage is achieved with a low number of independently watermarked copies. We conjecture that the Bootstrap methodology will be highly effective in reconstructing the original signal for documents with high redundancy.
Prescription Opioid Epidemic: Do Veterinarians Have a Dog in the Fight?

The author discusses efforts to education Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)-licensed prescribers of controlled substances on guidelines for managing pain and modifying opioid prescribing practices in an effort to end the epidemic of opioid abuse in the U.S., despite the tendency for DEA-licensed veterinarians to be overlooked.
Surgeries and Health Outcomes Among Patients With Spina Bifida.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Patients with spina bifida (SB) typically develop serious secondary conditions and undergo surgical procedures related to neurologic disorders, orthopedic abnormalities, bladder and bowel dysfunction, and skin breakdown. In this study, we describe the age distribution of common surgical procedures and health outcomes in patients with SB. METHODS: Using serial cross-sectional data from the National Spina Bifida Patient Registry (2009–2013; n = 4664), we examined surgical procedures (gastrointestinal, neurologic, orthopedic, skin, urologic, and other) and health outcomes (fecal continence, urinary continence, skin breakdown, and ambulation status) of patients with SB by age and SB type (myelomeningocele and nonmyelomeningocele). RESULTS: All patients who were enrolled had available health outcome data, and 81.5% (n = 3801) of patients had complete surgical procedure data, which totaled 18 891 procedures across their lifetimes. Almost all procedures (91.4%) occurred among participants with myelomeningocele SB. For both types of SB, the distribution of procedures varied by age. The most frequent procedures were neurologic, with approximately half (53%) occurring in patients CONCLUSIONS: Understanding the surgical procedures and health outcome variations by age and SB type can help clinicians and populations that are affected set expectations regarding the occurrence of these procedures and the outcomes throughout the patients’ life spans.
A case of disseminated tuberculosis mimicking metastatic cancer.

Abstract Background Disseminated tuberculosis (TB) or miliary TB is defined as lymphohematogenous dissemination of Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacilli, which may then affect virtually any organ system. The multiple organ involvement in disseminated TB can mimic metastatic cancer and can make the diagnosis challenging. False negatives are common therefore repeating microbiologic and histologic samples is essential. Case report We report the case of a young immunocompetent patient presenting with multiple atypical extra-pulmonary TB involvement. The patient presented with pulmonary, pleural, bilateral testicular and multiple bone involvement including calcanerium abscesses. These lesions were initially described as metastasis by the radiologist. Therefore lymphoma and metastatic testicular cancer as well as TB were high on the differential in this young foreign-born male. Pleural, broncho-alveolar lavage, bone marrow and cerebrospinal fluid acid-fast bacilli smear and microbiologic culture were all negative. However the histologic examination of the trans-bronchial biopsy and pleural biopsy showed necrotizing granuloma and helped to narrow down the diagnosis. The patient improved with RIPE therapy. Conclusion This case illustrates the diagnostic difficulty of disseminated TB with atypical organ involvement. Culture is the gold standard for diagnosing TB but is a long process and with 23% of culture negative TB in the United-States, the diagnosis sometimes relies on thoroughly ruling-out differential diagnosis and histologic examination.
“Out of the Dark” Cavefish Are Entering Biomedical Research

The emergence of cheaper sequencing platforms and more widely applicable genome editing techniques is empowering new model organisms to emerge in the field of biomedical science. A promising branch of such organisms are the so-called evolutionary mutant models. To be covered by this definition, an animal must display phenotypes reminiscent of human pathologies, but these phenotypes must be part of the animal’s natural condition. In other words, these animals are not considered sick, but rather they have evolved disease-like traits as part of their strategy to survive in the wild. The cavefish Astyanax mexicanus is such an animal species. A. mexicanus displays many traits resembling a variety of human pathologies including retinal degenerations, diabetes-like phenotypes, and even psychiatric diseases. The study of evolutionary mutant models, such as the cavefish, promises to provide important new insights into human pathologies by offering a different perspective compared to the classical model systems. Here, I introduce the cavefish model system Astyanax mexicanus to the reader and provide an overview of the latest efforts to establish this species as a valid member of animal models that are successfully used in biomedical research.
Step frequency patterns of elite ultramarathon runners during a 100-km road race.

Stride frequency (SF; or the synonymous “cadence”) has become a popular point of monitoring and manipulation in runners. Advances in wearable technology have enabled continuous monitoring of SF. Th...
Bounds for the Linearly Perturbed Eigenvalue Problem

A self-adjoint family of operators of type (A), depending linearly on the perturbation parameter, is considered. Some Taylor series coefficients in the expansion(s) of one (or more) eigenvalues are supposed to be given. Theorems are presented showing how such local data can provide best possible bounds on eigenvalues of the family. The bounds apply globally in the perturbation parameter.
A path model of psychosocial constructs predicting future Zika vaccine uptake intent.

Abstract Objective The recent Zika virus outbreak, while no longer an international public health emergency, is still a serious threat, particularly to pregnant women and babies born to pregnant women infected with the virus. This study examined the predictive effects of psychosocial constructs on self-reported intent to get a future Zika vaccine among women of reproductive age. Methods Data were collected using an online survey with a representative sample of 339 women ages 18–49 from the continental United States. The survey addressed variables originating with the Extended Parallel Processing Model (EPPM) as related to future Zika vaccine uptake intent. Results Three quarters of all respondents reported intention to get a future Zika vaccine. Path modeling revealed a direct effect of perceived susceptibility, self-efficacy, and response efficacy on future Zika vaccine uptake intent, as well as an indirect effect of perceived susceptibility through both self-efficacy and response efficacy. In addition, the final model showed an indirect effect of perceived severity on Zika vaccine uptake intent through self-efficacy and response efficacy and accounted for 54.6% of the variance in vaccination intent. Conclusions These findings have implications for future Zika vaccine promotion campaigns. This study confirms the importance of perceived susceptibility, self-efficacy, and response efficacy for use in Zika vaccine uptake campaigns; in addition, when using perceived severity, both self-efficacy and response efficacy should be considered in message design.
Comparison of Trajectory Tracking Control of a Stewart Platform in 20-Sim and MATLAB

The novelty of the paper is the design and comparison of the reference trajectories for an automobile vehicle on Stewart platform in 20-Sim simulation program and in MATLAB. In the rural areas, where the roads are not flat, car driving is difficult task. In this paper the reference trajectory for the “car drives on dirt road” scenario is developed. Firstly we design the reference trajectory in 20-Sim based on the inverse kinematics. The constraints are defined under which the reference trajectories give the results without violating the physical constraints. Then the reference trajectory for the simMechanics model is designed in MATLAB which is also based on inverse kinematics. The PID controller is used in both 20-Sim and simMechanics models with same gains which derives the manipulator along the desired trajectory. At the end of the paper, the comparison of leg errors is also done by designing the same reference trajectories in both models which shows that simMechanics model gives more accurate and efficient results.
HPVs Vaccination among Racial/Ethnic Minority College Students: Current Status and Future Direction.

Abstract Objectives College is an important period for catch-up vaccination for Human Papillomaviruses (HPVs), but HPVs vaccination rates are low among college students. Given that racial/ethnic minorities are disproportionately affected by HPVs-related cancers, the aim of the present study is to conduct a scoping review about HPVs and HPVs vaccination conducted among racial/ethnic minority college students. Specifically, we examined: 1) the prevalence of HPVs vaccination among racial/ethnic minority college students in the US and 2) the correlates of HPVs vaccination or vaccination intention/interest. Methods We searched three database (PubMed, PsycINFO, and CINAHL) for relevant articles. Of 58 articles initially identified, 23 articles met all inclusion/exclusion criteria. Results Racial/ethnic minority college women (especially Black and Asian/Pacific Islander) were less likely to be vaccinated compared to their non-Hispanic white counterparts. Racial/ethnic minority college men reported lower knowledge of HPVs and HPVs vaccination compared with their women counterparts. However, overall, a majority of racial/ethnic minority college students appeared to have high knowledge about HPVs and intention to vaccinate. Age, doctor recommendation, and psychosocial and cultural factors (e.g., HPVs/HPVs vaccine knowledge, perceived benefits of vaccination, social norms and values, mistrust of health care providers, and cultural norms) were associated with vaccination and individuals’ intention to be vaccinated. Discussion Significant racial/ethnic disparities in HPVs vaccination exist among both college men and women. Interventions to increase vaccine awareness, access, and uptake among racial/ethnic minority college students are lacking and warranted. Interventions targeting only knowledge and/or intention might not be sufficient. Theory-based studies that examine unique factors involved in vaccine uptake during college across multiple levels of influence including psychosocial, provider, health care, and culture are needed.
Cost-effectiveness of levofloxacin prophylaxis against bacterial infection in pediatric patients with acute myeloid leukemia

Background Infections are the leading cause of therapy-related mortality in pediatric patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Although effectiveness of levofloxacin antibacterial prophylaxis in oncology patients is recognized, its cost-effectiveness is unknown. This study evaluated epidemiologic data regarding levofloxacin use and the cost-effectiveness of this strategy as the cost per bacteremia episode, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and death avoided in children with AML. Procedure A retrospective cohort study using the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) database compared demographic and clinical characteristics and receipt of levofloxacin prophylaxis in children with AML admitted for chemotherapy from January 1, 2014, through December 31, 2018. We then developed a decision analysis model in this population that compared costs associated with bacteremia, ICU admission, or death secondary to bacteremia to levofloxacin prophylaxis cost from a healthcare perspective. Time horizon is one chemotherapy cycle. Probabilistic and one-way sensitivity analyses evaluated model uncertainty. Results Prophylaxis cost $8491 per bacteremia episode prevented compared with an average added hospital cost of $119 478. Prophylaxis cost $81 609 per ICU admission avoided, compared with an average added hospital cost of $94 181. Prophylaxis cost $220 457 per death avoided. In sensitivity analysis, at a willingness-to-pay threshold of $100 000 per bacteremia episode avoided, prophylaxis remained cost-effective in 94.6% of simulations. Prophylaxis use was more common in recent years in patients with relapsed disease and with chemotherapy regimens considered more intensive. Conclusion Prophylaxis is cost-effective in preventing bacterial infections in patients with AML. Findings support increased use in patients considered at high risk of bacterial infection secondary to myelosuppression.
The Viscoelastic Inflation Response of the Sclera Varies between Preconditioning Protocols

Preconditioning by repeated cyclic loads is routinely used in ex vivo mechanical testing of soft biological tissues. The goal of preconditioning is to achieve a steady and repeatable mechanical response and to measure material properties that are representative of the in vivo condition. Preconditioning protocols vary across studies, and their effect on the viscoelastic response of tested soft tissue is typically not reported or analyzed. We propose a methodology to systematically analyze the preconditioning process with application to inflation testing. We investigated the effect of preconditioning on the viscoelastic inflation response of tree shrew sclera using two preconditioning protocols: (i) continuous cyclic loading-unloading without rest and (ii) cyclic loading-unloading with 15-min rest between cycles. Scleral surface strain was measured using three-dimensional Digital Image Correlation (3D-DIC). We used five variables of characterizing features of the stress-strain loop curve to compare the two preconditioning protocols. Our results showed protocol-dependent differences in the tissue response during preconditioning and at the preconditioned state. Incorporating a resting time between preconditioning cycles significantly decreased the number of cycles (10.5 ± 2.9 cycles vs. 3.1 ± 0.5 cycles, p<0.001) but increased the total time (15.8 ± 4.4 min vs. 51.2 ± 8.3 min, p<0.001) needed to reach preconditioned state. At the preconditioned state, 2 of 5 characteristic variables differed significantly between protocols: hysteresis loop area (difference=0.023 kJ/m 3 , p=0.0020) and elastic modulus at high IOP (difference=0.240 MPa, p=0.0238). Our results suggest that the analysis of the preconditioning process is an essential part of inflation experiments and a prerequisite to properly characterize the tissue viscoelastic response. Furthermore, material properties obtained at the preconditioned state cannot be directly compared across studies with different preconditioning protocols.
Ultrasound Imaging of Plantarflexor Muscles During Robotic Ankle Assisted Walking: Effects on Muscle Tendon Dynamics and Application Towards Improved Exoskeleton and Exosuit Control

Ankle exosuits/exoskeletons can improve gait but the assistance needs to be tuned to the individual. We suspect that ankle assistance can affect underlying muscle-tendon dynamics and should be accounted for in the control design. We highlight two complementary studies that begin to address these issues. First, we use ultrasound imaging to directly measure the effect of ankle exoskeleton rotational stiffness on soleus contractile dynamics. With increasing stiffness, the soleus operating length and muscle economy increased in early stance, but this was offset by increased shortening velocity and reduced muscle economy in late stance. Second, we demonstrate an approach to rapidly estimate muscle contractile state and its application in prescribing assistance profiles. These results provide evidence for the importance of muscle dynamics and how it can be used to inform design of wearable devices.
Characterizing eating disorder diagnosis and related outcomes by sexual orientation and gender identity in a national sample of college students.

Abstract Objective In a national sample of college students, the current study aimed to: 1) examine differences in probable diagnoses of EDs (i.e., anorexia nervosa (AN), clinical/subthreshold bulimia nervosa (BN), or binge eating disorder (BED)) and weight and shape concerns by sexual orientation and gender identity, and 2) examine differences in ED chronicity and probable comorbid psychiatric diagnoses by sexual orientation and gender identity. Method Students across nine U.S. universities completed an online screener for DSM-5 clinical or subthreshold ED diagnoses, comorbid depression and anxiety disorders, and self-reported ED chronicity. Self-reported sexual orientation and gender identity were also collected. Tukey-corrected logistic and linear regressions examined differences in outcomes separately by sexual orientation and gender identity, adjusting for age, race, and ethnicity. Results A total of 8,531 students (24% sexually diverse (SD); 2.7% gender diverse (GD)) were studied. Students who identified as bisexual or other sexual orientation reported significantly greater odds of a probable ED diagnosis and greater elevations in weight and shape concerns compared to heterosexual students. Cisgender female students and GD students reported significantly greater odds of a probable ED diagnosis and greater elevations in weight and shape concerns compared to cisgender male students. Some SD students and GD students who met criteria for probable EDs were also more likely to report chronic ED symptoms and probable comorbid psychiatric diagnoses compared to heterosexual students and cisgender males, respectively. Discussion Some SGD students may be at heightened risk for EDs, highlighting the need to identify mechanisms that contribute to disparities.
Study the Impact of Gamification on Career Selection for Graduation—A Review

Gamification takes the best parts of games, such as competition, entertainment, and all the fun, and applies them to various real-world business processes, including learning and development. This paper emphasizes using serious games and the science of games to help young students figure out their interests, preferences, aptitude, and make significant career decisions. Subject matter experts, design engineers, instructional scientists, students can come together to develop a comprehensive game that facilitates career decision-making. It is proposed that an interactive, immersive, attractive, and thoroughly engaging game will help elucidate an optimistic and enthusiastic response from students. The use of games can significantly contribute to several aspects of career choice implementation, such as stress-free decision-making, good academic performance, commitment to the chosen study, and increased satisfaction and confidence. A detailed review of the literature is presented in this paper.