cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Diagnostics for conformity of paired quantitative measurements

Matched pairs data arise in many contexts - in case-control clinical trials, for example, and from cross-over designs. They also arise in experiments to verify the equivalence of quantitative assays. This latter use (which is the main focus of this paper) raises difficulties not always seen in other matched pairs applications. Since the designs deliberately vary the analyte levels over a wide range, issues of variance dependent on mean, calibrations of differing slopes, and curvature all need to be added to the usual model assumptions such as normality. Violations in any of these assumptions invalidate the conventional matched pairs analysis. A graphical method, due to Bland and Altman, of looking at the relationship between the average and the difference of the members of the pairs is shown to correspond to a formal testable regression model. Using standard regression diagnostics, one may detect and diagnose departures from the model assumptions and remedy them - for example using variable transformations. Examples of different common scenarios and possible approaches to handling them are shown.
Noise and conversion efficiency of aluminum superconducting hot-electron bolometer mixer

We report on microwave measurements of superconducting aluminum hot-electron bolometers (Al HEBs). Diffusion-cooled Al HEB mixers are good candidates for space-borne applications in the Terahertz frequency range since they are predicted to have small local oscillator (LO) power requirements, intermediate frequency (IF) bandwidths /spl gsim/10 GHz, and a noise temperature lower than that of Nb and NbN HEB mixers. Mixer measurements were made at an LO frequency /spl sim/30 GHz, with an IF in the range 0.1 to 7.3 GHz. For T<0.8 K, a magnetic field H=0.1-0.3 T was applied to suppress the superconductivity in the contact pads, and partly in the bridge. For a 0.6 /spl mu/m long device, we measure an IF bandwidth of 4 GHz, a conversion efficiency /spl eta/=-8 dB, and a mixer noise temperature T/sub M//spl gsim/4 K, DSB (T/sub mixer/=T/sub output noise//2/spl eta/). These results are shown to be in quantitative agreement with simple theoretical predictions.
Impaired Insulin Signaling Accelerates Cardiac Mitochondrial Dysfunction After Myocardial Infarction

Abstract Diabetes increases mortality and accelerates left ventricular (LV) dysfunction following myocardial infarction (MI). This study sought to determine the impact of impaired myocardial insulin signaling, in the absence of diabetes, on the development of LV dysfunction following MI. Mice with cardiomyocyte-restricted knock out of the insulin receptor (CIRKO) and wildtype (WT) mice were subjected to proximal left coronary artery ligation (MI) and followed for 14 days. Despite equivalent infarct size, mortality was increased in CIRKO-MI vs. WT-MI mice (68% vs. 40%, respectively). In surviving mice, LV ejection fraction and d P /d t were reduced by > 40% in CIRKO-MI vs. WT-MI. Relative to shams, isometric developed tension in LV papillary muscles increased in WT-MI but not in CIRKO-MI. Time to peak tension and relaxation times were prolonged in CIRKO-MI vs. WT-MI suggesting impaired, load-independent myocardial contractile function. To elucidate mechanisms for impaired LV contractility, mitochondrial function was examined in permeabilized cardiac fibers. Whereas maximal ADP-stimulated mitochondrial O 2 consumption rates ( V ADP ) with palmitoyl carnitine were unchanged in WT-MI mice relative to sham-operated animals, V ADP was significantly reduced in CIRKO-MI (13.17 ± 0.94 vs. 9.14 ± 0.88 nmol O 2 /min/mgdw, p
Drug-eluting stents: will the transformation to bioabsorption make durable polymers obsolete?

It's been over a decade since drug-eluting stents (DES) were introduced into the clinical practice of percutaneous coronary intervention for the treatment of coronary artery lesions. With significant reductions in restenosis rates and the need for repeat revascularizations, the technology was disseminated globally at an unprecedented rate [1]. Soon after, reports of early and late stent thrombosis curbed the enthusiasm and mandated selective DES uses and prolonged dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) for at least 12months [2]. This strategy significantly reduced stent thrombosis rates, albeit at the price of bleeding, which has often led to premature DAPT discontinuation [3]. Additionally, first-generation DES, Cypher and Taxus, reported a stent thrombosis increasing hazard of 0.6 per year up to 5 years and even higher rates of target lesion failure [4]. Firstgeneration DES were then replaced with second-generation DES that utilize a thinner cobalt chromium or platinum chromium alloy, sirolimus analogue drugs, such as everolimus and zotarolimus, and a thinner and more biocompatible polymer layer. Despite these iterations, the requirement for prolonged DAPT did not change. At the same time, the hazard ratios for stent thrombosis and target vessel failure were attenuated, but not eliminated, especially in the more complex patient and lesion subsets [5,6]. The question remains, “What factors contribute to the development of the late events seen in second-generation DES?” Is it the metal? The polymer? Or is it the drug? For BMS, target vessel failure occurs within the first 6–12 months, and events beyond that are rare. With second-generation DES, the drug is gone within the first 6 months and complete healing is usually attained at 12 months. This suggests that the culprit for these late events (N12 months) is most likely the polymer, which continues to irritate the vessel wall causing low grade inflammation and subsequently neoatherosclerosis. The polymers used in first-generation DES were associated with a high degree of inflammation, which often resulted in vessel wall toxicity, target lesion failure, and late stent thrombosis. Nevertheless, the polymers used in the second-generation DES, such as BioLinx and fluoropolymer, are proven to be more biocompatible. More specifically, the fluoropolymer used in Xience V (Abbott Vascular) and Promus Element stents (Boston Scientific) have further claimed to have antithrombotic properties and protection from stent thrombosis when compared to BMS [7]. However, the data to support this claim are rather weak and did not result in a change in the recommended duration of DAPT for such stents. Further, in the Prospective, Randomized, Multicenter Trial to Assess
Magnetic-field induced inequivalent vortex zero modes in strained graphene

Zero energy states in the Dirac spectrum with U(1) symmetric massive vortices of various underlying insulating orders in strained graphene are constructed in the presence of the magnetic field. An easy-plane vortex of antiferromagnet and quantum spin Hall orders host two zero energy states, however, with two different length scales. Such inequivalent zero modes can lead to oscillatory charge and magnetization, and their usual quantizations get restored only far from the vortex core. Otherwise, these zero modes can be delocalized from each other by tuning the mutual strength of two fields. One can, therefore, effectively bind a single zero mode in the vortex core. A possible experimental setup to capture signature of this theory in real graphene as well as in optical honeycomb lattices is mentioned. Generalization of this scenario with underlying topological defects of Kekul\'e superconductors can localize a single Majorana mode in the vicinity of the defect core.
Surgical Repair of Metacarpal Condylar Fractures with Palmar Osteochondral Comminution in Two Thoroughbred Horses

Complete displaced lateral condylar fractures of the metacarpus with triangular osteochondral fragments at the palmar articular surface occurred in two Thoroughbred horses. The condylar fractures were repaired with cortical bone screws following removal of the osetochondral fragments via a dorsal arthrotomy and distraction of the condyles. One horse raced successfully after surgery, and the other is being used successfully as an English pleasure mount.
Public Choice Theory Applied to National Energy Policy: The Case of France

Public choice theory offers a conceptually important means of examining policy decisions and their social and economic consequences in the field of natural resources. Through a public choice analysis of France's ambitious program to nuclearize its electrical industry by the year 2000, I examine the origins, merits and deficiencies of French nuclear policy. Public choice theory's major assumptions – that a policy's costs and benefits are a function of resource abundance and level of development and that a resource's management is shaped by its character and availability – are largely valid. However, the need to reconcile competing social values and to distribute policy benefits fairly may be insufficiently accounted for by current public choice approaches, a fact exemplified by French experience with nuclear power.
“The Next Best Thing”: A Study of Problem Gambling

Traditionally, gamblers whose repeated losses have resulted in serious financial, psychological, and social problems have been labeled “compulsive.” The prevailing “illness model” of compulsive gambling was developed by clinicians from the reports of those seeking treatment to stop gambling. However, researchers working in natural gambling settings generally have disavowed a compulsion model. Concerns over the efficacy of the traditional model and the therapeutic approach it produces are particularly salient since the proliferation of legalized gambling is expected to fuel a dramatic increase in problem gambling. Drawing upon empirical observations of ongoing gambling groups, a unique and comprehensive model of problem gambling is presented. Treatment plans generated from the new model, unlike prevailing programs, are compatible with a “controlled” regimen.
Exploring Sustainable Development and Its Interpretation in the Built Environment

Building industry is a significant contributor to a majority of environmental issues. Design, construction, operation and disposal of buildings and cities also impact social and economic standards. Building industry’s triple and high interaction with the human development requires professionals within the industry to reevaluate their development approaches. This requires designers such as architects and engineers, as well as the builders to understand the basics of sustainable development and how it has been and can be incorporated into their professions. Many resources in this area focus on the technical aspect of sustainability as an effort to train professionals in sustainable applications. However, sustainability is a more complicated concept that evolves based on time, location, and intent. Thus it is critical for building professionals to evaluate sustainability and sustainable development at a conceptual level, which can allow them to make better decisions in a continuously changing global world. This paper introduces the philosophical concepts behind sustainability in the built environment and specifically focuses on the role of builders, designers, and owners in the implementation of these concepts.
Acute toxicity of aflatoxin B1 in monkeys.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine the acute toxicity of aflatoxin B 1 in monkeys ( Macaca irus ). The single oral LD50 was 2.2 mg/kg. Antemortem elevations in the serum concentrations of glutamic-pyruvic transaminase, glutamicoxaloacetic transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, bilirubin, and isocitric dehydrogenase were indicative of the effect of aflatoxin B 1 on the liver. The latency required for both discernible and maximal changes in these parameters to occur suggests that the hepatotoxic activity of aflatoxin is delayed but persistent. The concentration of serum cholesterol was decreased. The prominent gross pathologic and histopathologic changes in the liver were hemorrhage, necrosis, and massive accumulation of lipid. It is concluded that the syndrome of acute aflatoxin B 1 poisoning in primates is essentially like that in other species.
An accurate electromagnetic modeling of the die-to-die interconnect link for gigabit systems applications

The cost-effective design of gigabit per second signaling (Gb/s) for the interconnect systems requires optimizing components with accurate full channel simulations. The gigabit system performance is often defined in the time-domain (TD), but the modeling and characterization for the interconnect structures are done in the frequency-domain (FD). Due to non-linear behavior of the devices, the relation between FD and TD performances is not intuitively obvious, and therefore it is necessary to perform accurate analysis in both domains. To achieve an accurate modeling of the complex packaging structure often used a full-wave modeling tool that analyzes the propagation of electromagnetic waves through a three-dimensional model. In addition to the needs of characterization of the extended packaging boundaries, the accurate modeling utilizes a frequency-dependant material characterization. This paper describes the electromagnetic modeling methods, such as use of the frequency-dependent material properties, the method of discontinuity segmentation, and the validation technique. The vector network analyzer (VNA) where used for validation and choosing the best modeling method. Using measured and modeled data, we provide simulation in the time and the frequency domain, with comparison results. Good correlation between the modeling and measurement is reported in this paper.
Imbroglios of Viral Taxonomy: Genetic Exchange and Failings of Phenetic Approaches

The practice of classifying organisms into hierarchical groups originated with Aristotle and was codified into nearly immutable biological law by Linnaeus. The heart of taxonomy is the biological species, which forms the foundation for higher levels of classification. Whereas species have long been established among sexual eukaryotes, achieving a meaningful species concept for prokaryotes has been an onerous task and has proven exceedingly difficult for describing viruses and bacteriophages. Moreover, the assembly of viral "species" into higher-order taxonomic groupings has been even more tenuous, since these groupings were based initially on limited numbers of morphological features and more recently on overall genomic similarities. The wealth of nucleotide sequence information that catalyzed a revolution in the taxonomy of free-living organisms necessitates a reevaluation of the concept of viral species, genera, families, and higher levels of classification. Just as microbiologists discarded dubious morphological traits in favor of more accurate molecular yardsticks of evolutionary change, virologists can gain new insight into viral evolution through the rigorous analyses afforded by the molecular phylogenetics of viral genes. For bacteriophages, such dissections of genomic sequences reveal fundamental flaws in the Linnaean paradigm that necessitate a new view of viral evolution, classification, and taxonomy.
The Impact of Drivers’ Race, Gender, and Age During Traffic Stops Assessing Interaction Terms and the Social Conditioning Model

Recent research has demonstrated that minority drivers receive disparate traffic stop outcomes compared with similarly situated White drivers. This research, however, is often not grounded within a theoretical framework and fails to examine specific combinations of driver demographics. This study addresses those shortcomings by examining research questions based on the social conditioning model and investigating the relationship between specific combinations of drivers’ race/ethnicity, gender, and age, and traffic stop outcomes. Using alternative measures of stop outcomes and robust official traffic stop data collected from a state law enforcement agency, the results demonstrate that warnings and citations, but not arrests, are differentially issued to young, Black male drivers. The findings also confirm the influence of legal factors on police decision making during traffic stops. Research and policy implications are discussed.
Early formulation model‐centric engineering on NASA’s Europa mission concept study

By leveraging the existing Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) infrastructure at JPL and adding a modest investment, the Europa Mission Concept Study made striking advances in mission concept capture and analysis. This effort has reaffirmed the importance of architecting and successfully harnessed the synergistic relationship of system modeling to mission architecting. It clearly demonstrated that MBSE can provide greater agility than traditional systems engineering methods. This paper will describe the successful application of MBSE in the dynamic environment of early mission formulation, the significant results produced and lessons learned in the process.
Modeling of multi-strata forest fire severity using Landsat TM data

Most of fire severity studies use field measures of composite burn index (CBI) to represent forest fire severity and fit the relationships between CBI and Landsat imagery derived differenced normalized burn ratio (dNBR) to predict and map fire severity at unsampled locations. However, less attention has been paid on the multi-strata forest fire severity, which represents fire activities and ecological responses at different forest layers. In this study, using field measured fire severity across five forest strata of dominant tree, intermediate-sized tree, shrub, herb, substrate layers, and the aggregated measure of CBI as response variables, we fit statistical models with predictors of Landsat TM bands, Landsat derived NBR or dNBR, image differencing, and image ratioing data. We model multi-strata forest fire in the historical recorded largest wildfire in California, the Big Sur Basin Complex fire. We explore the potential contributions of the post-fire Landsat bands, image differencing, image ratioing to fire severity modeling and compare with the widely used NBR and dNBR. Models using combinations of post-fire Landsat bands perform much better than NBR, dNBR, image differencing, and image ratioing. We predict and map multi-strata forest fire severity across the whole Big Sur fire areas, and find that the overall measure CBI is not optimal to represent multi-strata forest fire severity.
Bariatric surgery outcomes in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract Background Obesity is common among systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. An increased perioperative risk after major surgery in SLE has been reported. The aim of this study was to describe postoperative outcomes among SLE patients undergoing bariatric surgery. Methods Charts were reviewed to identify patients with an active diagnosis of SLE before bariatric surgery. Demographic variables, perioperative data, and SLE-related parameters were extracted. Results Thirty-one morbidly obese patients who underwent bariatric surgery between 2005 and 2013 had a SLE diagnosis. Twenty-three patients had laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP), 3 underwent laparoscopic revisional surgery for failed bariatric procedure, 3 had laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy and 1 underwent laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding. Mean age, body mass index, and excess weight (kg) at baseline were 52.8±9.4 years, 44.3±9 kg/m 2 , and 52.5±25.7 kg, respectively. Of these 31 patients, 24 (77.4%) were taking immunosuppressive medications at the time of surgery. Early major postoperative complications occurred in 4 patients (12.9%), with 3 requiring reoperation (9.6%). Multivariate analysis identified immunosuppressive therapy to be significantly associated with postoperative complications ( P = .05). At a mean follow-up of 3 years, 13 patients (42%) showed reduction in the number of immunosuppressive medications and 6 (19.3%) were off steroids completely. After bariatric surgery, mean body mass index decreased to 34.2±8.2 kg/m 2 ( P Conclusion Results suggest that weight loss after bariatric surgery is associated with decreased SLE immunosuppression medication requirements; however, the risks are higher. Bariatric surgery in this patient population should be approached with caution.
New Data on Small Theropod Footprints from the Early Jurassic (Hettangian) Hartford Basin of Massachusetts, United States

ABSTRACT A Portland Formation Lower Jurassic (Hettangian) dinosaur tracksite in Granby, Massachusetts, USA, has yielded a diverse dinosaur footprint assemblage. The tracksite preserves 140 theropod dinosaur footprints, ranging in length from 15 to 35 cm; the ichnofauna includes Anchisauripus, Eubrontes, Grallator and other extremely small theropod dinosaur footprints. The small tracks are compared with similar ichnites from the Lower Jurassic of western North America and central Poland. The small theropod footprints, which are described in detail, show some resemblance to the poorly known ichnogenus Stenonyx (Lull, 1904), which is considered an invalid ichnotaxon by many other workers. The footprints exhibit a distinct morphology of the metatarsophalangeal area, suggesting that these small ichnites are closely related to Kayentapus and Grallator. These small tracks are the first reported from the Hartford Basin of Granby, Massachusetts.
Development of a brief questionnaire for screening for multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome

The objective of this study was to identify a parsimonious set of questions that has high sensitivity and specificity for screening for individuals with multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) syndrome. We performed a cross-sectional survey using a case-control design. Subjects were derived from patients seen at an academically based Occupational and Environmental Medicine Clinic. Cases consisted of patients who fulfilled the Cullen definition for MCS. Controls were patients who had diagnoses excluding MCS and asthma and who were matched to cases by age and sex. Cases and controls filled out a screening questionnaire that, among things, elicited responses as to whether and how subjects reacted to 122 different types of environmental exposures. Data from 44 pairs of cases and controls were available for analysis. The average age of cases was 50.2 years, and 91% was female. Among cases, the most common exposure that was purported to incite MCS was 'indoor air quality contaminants (unspecified)' (59%), followed by solvents (27.3%). After randomly excluding five cases and controls, a stepwise selection procedure for two-group discriminant analysis revealed that the main contributors to the discrimination of the remaining cases and controls were self-reported reactions to copy machine emissions, marking pens, aftershave, window cleaner, nylon fabric, pine-scented products, and rayon material. When a positive response to these factors was used as the sole method for discriminating cases from controls, only one of 41 cases was misclassified as a control while none of the controls was misclassified as a case. When the same method was applied to the five excluded cases and five excluded controls, only one of the five cases was misclassified while none of the five controls was misclassified as a case. Among patients with MCS defined by the Cullen criteria in this clinical setting, having a reaction to these seven common potential exposures comprised a parsimonious set of factors that discriminated between MCS patients and age- and sex-matched normal controls. These questions may have utility in screening for individuals with MCS in general population survey studies.
A new structural property of statistical data forks

The paper presents a method of controlling the pattern of packet flow in the statistical data fork (SDF), such that the output channels are assigned to a channel group based only on their addresses and this assignment is maintained independently of the offered load to the SDF. The proposed method is realized by using a structural property of the SDF which is derived in the paper. It is shown that a sufficient condition for this property to hold is for the probabilities of packets destined for different channel groups to be certain permutations of each other. It is shown, using this property, that the flow of packets in the SDF can be governed by a two phase process wherein in the first phase, packets are routed in different subnetworks to result in the probability patterns that match the requirement of the structural property, and in the second phase, these packets are delivered to the channel groups which are partitioned only according to their addresses. >
Design of portable biometric authenticators - energy, performance, and security tradeoffs

Biometrics have become a popular means for access control and authentication. As the processing power of embedded systems has grown, efforts have been made to perform biometrics locally on constrained devices such as smart cards. This paper presents the design and consumer application of a portable fingerprint biometric authenticator with the form factor of a key dongle (as an alternative to biometric smart cards). A thorough investigation has been performed to determine the tradeoffs between security, performance, and energy and to determine the secure partitioning between dongle and server. Such a device could be used for applications such as automotive access control, secure credit card payments, and related authentication scenarios.
Letter to the Editor---Useful Properties of the Poisson Distribution

Presented below is a table of properties of the Poisson distribution that have been found useful in working with a variety of operational models.
The Effects of Chlorophyll Photooxidation on Nuclear-Encoded Plastid Ribosomal Protein Mrnas in Norflurazon-Treated Pea Seedlings

The development of functional chloroplasts from etioplasts or proplastids requires the expression of both nuclear and plastid genomes. Transcripts from genes located in the nucleus that encode proteins destined for the plastid are translated on cytosolic 80S ribosomes. To localize these proteins to the plastid these polypeptides contain an amino terminal transit sequence. The proteins are transported into the plastid where they are processed to their mature size through loss of their transit sequences. Messenger RNAs derived from plastid DNA are translated in the plastid compartment on 70S ribosomes. To form functional complexes, many of the plastid-encoded proteins associate with nuclear-encoded proteins and often all of these proteins accumulate in a coordinate manner. For example, the plastid ribosome is composed of equal numbers of approximately 55 different proteins, one-third of which are encoded in the plastid itself and the remaining two-thirds are encoded in the nucleus. The mechanisms responsible for the coordinate expression of genes located in different compartments are unknown.
Cross-Modal Aesthetics from A Feature Extraction Perspective: A Pilot Study.

This paper investigates perceptual relationships between art in the auditory and visual domains. First, we conduct- ed a behavioral experiment asking subjects to assess simi- larity between 10 musical recordings and 10 works of abstract art. We found a significant degree of agreement across subjects as to which images correspond to which audio, even though neither the audio nor the images pos- sessed semantic content. Secondly, we sought to find the relationship between audio and images within a defined feature space that correlated with the subjective similarity judgments. We trained two regression models using leave- one-subject-out and leave-one-audio-out cross- validation respectively, and exhaustively evaluated each model's ability to predict features of subject-ranked simi- lar images using only a given audio clip's features. A re- trieval task used the predicted image features to retrieve likely related images from the data set. The task was evaluated using the ground truth of subjects' actual simi- larity judgments. Our results show a mean cross-validated prediction accuracy of 0.61 with p<0.0001 for the first model, and a mean prediction accuracy of 0.51 with p<0.03 for the second model.
Regulated lysosomal exocytosis mediates cancer progression

Department of Genetics, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105, USA. Department of Veterinary Pathology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA. Department of Computational Biology, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA. Department of Surgery, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USA. *These authors contributed equally to this work. †Present address: Hollings Cancer Center Tumor Registry, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29403, USA. ‡These authors contributed equally to this work. §Corresponding author. E-mail: sandra.dazzo@stjude.org
Recollection and the Mathematician's Method in Plato's Meno

I argue that recollection, in Plato’s Meno, should not be taken as a method, and, if it is taken as a myth, it should not be taken as a mere myth. Neither should it be taken as a truth, ap riorior metaphorical. In contrast to such views, I argue that recollection ought to be taken as an hypothesis for learning. Thus, the only methods demonstrated in the Meno are the elenchus and the hypothetical, or mathematical, method. What Plato’s Meno demonstrates, then, is that we cannot be philosophers if we fail to make use of the mathematician’s hypothetical method. I wouldn’t support every aspect of the argument [for recollection] with particular vigour, but there’s one proposition that I’d defend to the death, if I could, by argument and by action: that as long as we think we should search for what we don’t know we’ll be better people — less faint-hearted and less lazy — than if we were to think that we had no chance of discovering what we don’t know and that there’s no point in even searching for it. [Meno, 86b–c] 1
Analysis of multidrug-resistance tuberculosis patients in Ningbo

Objective To understand the age distribution characteristics and drug resistance situation of primary and acquired MDR-TB patients,and provide a scientific basis for prevention and treatment of MDR-TB. Methods A retrospective analysis of MDR-TB cases( 196 primary cases and 109 acquired cases) was conducted between 2008 and 2012. Patients were divided into 4 groups,17 cases under 20 years old,144 cases in 20 ~ age group,106 cases in 40 ~ age group,and 38 cases in 60~ age group,respectively,to analyze the status of TB drug-resistance. Results In 196 primary MDR-TB cases and 109acquired MDR-TB cases,20 ~ age group ranked the first place. The distribution difference of primary and acquire MDR-TB cases among different age groups was statistically significant( Fisher exact test,P = 0. 043). The distribution of the first-line drug resistance( HR,HRE,HRS and HRSE) had statistical difference among different age groups of primary MDR cases( χ2=34. 28,P 0. 05),While that had no statistical difference among different age groups of acquired MDR cases( Fisher exact test,P 0. 05). Conclusion The primary and acquired MDR-TB cases were frequent in young people,with serious MDR situation. The diagnosis and treatment of TB patients should be strengthened to reduce the incidence of multidrug-resistance.
Ancient China and the Yue: Perceptions and Identities on the Southern Frontier, c.400 BCE–50 CE

In this innovative study, Erica Fox Brindley examines how, during the period 400 BCE–50 CE, Chinese states and an embryonic Chinese empire interacted with peoples referred to as the Yue/Viet along its southern frontier. Brindley provides an overview of current theories in archaeology and linguistics concerning the peoples of the ancient southern frontier of China, the closest relations on the mainland to certain later Southeast Asian and Polynesian peoples. Through analysis of warring states and early Han textual sources, she shows how representations of Chinese and Yue identity invariably fed upon, and often grew out of, a two-way process of centering the self while de-centering the other. Examining rebellions, pivotal ruling figures from various Yue states, and key moments of Yue agency, Brindley demonstrates the complexities involved in identity formation and cultural hybridization in the ancient world, and highlights the ancestry of cultures now associated with southern China and Vietnam.
Sparse Large-Scale Nonlinear Dynamical Modeling of Human Hippocampus for Memory Prostheses

In order to build hippocampal prostheses for restoring memory functions, we build sparse multi-input, multi-output (MIMO) nonlinear dynamical models of the human hippocampus. Spike trains are recorded from hippocampal CA3 and CA1 regions of epileptic patients performing a variety of memory-dependent delayed match-to-sample (DMS) tasks. Using CA3 and CA1 spike trains as inputs and outputs respectively, sparse generalized Laguerre-Volterra models are estimated with group lasso and local coordinate descent methods to capture the nonlinear dynamics underlying the CA3-CA1 spike train transformations. These models can accurately predict the CA1 spike trains based on the ongoing CA3 spike trains during multiple memory events, e.g., sample presentation, sample response, match presentation and match response, of the DMS task, and thus will serve as the computational basis of human hippocampal memory prostheses.
Academic Conference 3: What Is the Self?

This Conference provides an opportunity to integrate the major learnings since the last Conference. The theme of the Conference is the human self and its relationship to both society and the body. Students complete an assigned reading at home which contains all the themes explored in the past three units. They then compose an imaginative dialogue between Socrates and various psychologists. When we meet on Conference day, students work together to compose a role-play to enact for the whole class.
Circumventing limitations of tilted-pulse-front terahertz generation using a stair-step echelon

Ultrafast terahertz (THz) transients are of great interest for linear and nonlinear THz spectroscopy and compact particle acceleration. Tilted-pulse-front (TPF) [1] THz generation in lithium niobate (LN) has become ubiquitous due to its compatibility with easily accessible high-power 800 nm/1 µm laser technology. However, the use of diffraction grating (DG) based TPFs (DG-TPFs) present formidable imaging challenges, particularly for large pump bandwidths and beam sizes. Furthermore, as the optical pump spectrum red-shifts and broadens due to repeated down-conversion to THz frequencies (referred to as cascading), a spatio-temporal break-up of the pump pulse results [2]. This limits the energy conversion efficiency (η) and produces THz pulses with spatio-temporal distortions.
Anisotropic phantom to calibrate high-q diffusion MRI methods

A silicon oil-filled glass capillary array is proposed as an anisotropic diffusion MRI phantom. Together with a computational/theoretical pipeline these provide a gold standard for calibrating and validating high-q diffusion MRI experiments. The phantom was used to test high angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI) and double pulsed-field gradient (d-PFG) MRI acquisition schemes. MRI-based predictions of microcapillary diameter using both acquisition schemes were compared with results from optical microscopy. This phantom design can be used for quality control and quality assurance purposes and for testing and validating proposed microstructure imaging experiments and the processing pipelines used to analyze them.
A Tactile-visual Conditional Discrimination Task for Testing Spatial Working Memory in Rats

This protocol describes a novel dual task comparison across two variants of a tactile-visual conditional discrimination (CD) T-maze task, one is dependent upon spatial working memory (SWM; CDWM) and the other one (CDSTANDARD) is not. The task variants are equivalent in their sensory and motor requirements and overt behavior of the rat. Therefore, differences between the two task variants in the dependent variables such as choice accuracy, neural firing patterns, and the effects of pharmacological or optogenetic inactivation in brain regions of interest can be attributed to SWM, ruling out confounding sensorimotor variables, such as tactile, visual and self-motion cues. The CDWM task protocol is published in Hallock et al., 2013b and Urban et al., 2014.
Home Surveillance System Using Internet of Things

In recent years, lots of research have been done in computer vision domain. Video surveillance in real-time scenario, especially for humans, like tracking and behavior analysis is one of the most active research topics in computer vision and artificial intelligence in present situation. The main focus is providing the low-cost and efficient video surveillance system for home application and can have wide scope in other areas such as elevator monitoring and server room monitoring. As the traditional surveillance system requires huge storage capacity and consumes lot of network bandwidth, hence it becomes necessary to provide solution for such design issues. This paper presents the implementation of motion detection algorithm for live camera streaming and thus allows analyzing incoming image stream, and recognizing any movement occurs in the area and if so then triggers video recorder to save the information-contained video clip.
Re-excision After Lumpectomy for Breast Cancer

The frequency of positive margins after lumpectomy for breast cancer ranges from 18 to 50 %. Negative margins are necessary in order to minimize the risk of local recurrence after breast-conserving therapy. Many approaches have been described to reduce re-excision rates, including tumor localization techniques, surgical techniques, intraoperative imaging, and intraoperative pathologic assessment. Localization of nonpalpable tumors is possible with single or bracketed wires and with radioactive seeds. Surgical techniques such as shaved cavity margins and intraoperative specimen inking are advocated by some surgeons as a way to reduce margin positivity. Intraoperative imaging with ultrasonography, mammography, micro-computed tomography, and radiofrequency spectroscopy may have a role in decreasing re-excision rates after lumpectomy. Intraoperative pathologic evaluation of margins by frozen section or touch preparation cytology may also be beneficial. This chapter reviews these approaches in detail.
Product Differentiation, Sanitary Barriers, and Arbitrage in World Poultry Markets

World poultry markets are one of the most rapidly growing sectors of the food industry. Poultry production rose from 11 million tons in 1965 to over 63 million tons in 1999. Consumption increases have exceeded population growth, with world per capita supplies of poultry meat tripling from 3.3 kilograms in 1965 to 9.9 kilograms in 1997. International trade has more than kept pace with this industry growth. World exports of poultry meat rose from 375,000 tons in 1965 to 6.4 million tons in 1999. Trade now accounts for about 10 percent of world consumption.
Some Aspects of Categorical Semantics: Sheaves and Glueing

Two uses of sheaf models in functional analysis and in computable analysis are given. A new proof of the numerical instantiation property of intuitionistic ZF set theory is presented.
Data management practices of cone beam computed tomography volumes: An exploratory user survey

Objective The aim of this study was to query cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) users about their storage and transfer practices to identify trends in the handling of CBCT data in dentistry. Study Design A computer-based survey was distributed to 2 CBCT user groups. The survey consisted of 18 questions on settings for data capture, data storage, archiving strategies, bit depth/compression, monitoring user access to patient information, and dissemination to end users. All information was anonymously collected. Descriptive data and frequency patterns were collected and discussed. Results A total of 68 surveys were returned, with 56 fully completed. Results reflected a low consensus about usage and management of radiographic data sets. Some preferential usage patterns, however, were noted along with the following trends: (1) 53% of respondents utilized Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine volumetric data sets for initial storage. (2) 46% of respondents saved data in raw or native file formats. (3) 60% of storage sites were in onsite servers. (4) 35% of volumes saved were in a “Zip” compression format. (5) 37% of respondents used a picture archiving and communication system for storage. Conclusions The absence of consensus on postcapture management of volumetric data sets indicates that a dentistry-wide data management standard would benefit patient care while mitigating information technology storage issues.
SIGCHI Lifetime Research Award Talk: Making Digital Tangible

Today's mainstream Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research primarily addresses functional concerns - the needs of users, practical applications, and usability evaluation. Tangible Bits and Radical Atoms are driven by vision and carried out with an artistic approach. While today's technologies will become obsolete in one year, and today's applications will be replaced in 10 years, true visions - we believe - can last longer than 100 years. Tangible Bits (3, 4) seeks to realize seamless interfaces between humans, digital information, and the physical environment by giving physical form to digital information and computation, making bits directly manipulatable and perceptible both in the foreground and background of our consciousness (peripheral awareness). Our goal is to invent new design media for artistic expression as well as for scientific analysis, taking advantage of the richness of human senses and skills we develop throughout our lifetime interacting with the physical world, as well as the computational reflection enabled by real-time sensing and digital feedback. Radical Atoms (5) leaps beyond Tangible Bits by assuming a hypothetical generation of materials that can change form and properties dynamically, becoming as reconfigurable as pixels on a screen. Radical Atoms is the future material that can transform its shape, conform to constraints, and inform the users of their affordances. Radical Atoms is a vision for the future of Human-Material Interaction, in which all digital information has a physical manifestation, thus enabling us to interact directly with it.
Acute Diverticulitis: Imaging and Percutaneous Drainage

Acute diverticulitis attacks are frequently seen in modern healthcare facilities. The disease presents with a spectrum of symptoms from mild inflammation and abdominal pain to life-threating bowel perforation, sepsis, and peritonitis. Clinical evaluation and medical imaging play an important role in stratifying the disease into different categories based on severity which help guide specific therapies ranging from supportive outpatient care to image-guided percutaneous drainage, to emergent surgery, and to intensive care unit admissions. Antibiotic selection plays an important role in the treatment and prevention of infection and sepsis. Percutaneous drainage is a low-risk technique to achieve source control in most patients with diverticular abscess formation, facilitating a more rapid recovery. Historically many patients with complicated diverticular disease were treated with surgery; however, a better understanding of the pathophysiology and innovative therapies such as percutaneous drainage has allowed patients to be stabilized in the acute setting and undergo a one-stage elective surgery later on.
Solitary Waves and N‐Particle Algorithms for a Class of Euler–Poincaré Equations

We study a class of partial differential equations (PDEs) in the family of the so-called Euler–Poincare differential systems, with the aim of developing a foundation for numerical algorithms of their solutions. This requires particular attention to the mathematical properties of this system when the associated class of elliptic operators possesses nonsmooth kernels. By casting the system in its Lagrangian (or characteristics) form, we first formulate a particle system algorithm in free space with homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions for the evolving fields. We next examine the deformation of the system when nonhomogeneous “constant stream” boundary conditions are assumed. We show how this simple change at the boundary deeply affects the nature of the evolution, from hyperbolic-like to dispersive with a nontrivial dispersion relation, and examine the potentially regularizing properties of singular kernels offered by this deformation. From the particle algorithm viewpoint, kernel singularities affect the existence and uniqueness of solutions to the corresponding ordinary differential equations systems. We illustrate this with the case when the operator kernel assumes a conical shape over the spatial variables, and examine in detail two-particle dynamics under the resulting lack of Lipschitz continuity. Curiously, we find that for the conically shaped kernels the motion of the related two-dimensional waves can become completely integrable under appropriate initial data. This reduction projects the two-dimensional system to the one-dimensional completely integrable Shallow-Water equation [1], while retaining the full dependence on two spatial dimensions for the single channel solutions. Finally, by comparing with an operator-splitting pseudospectral method we illustrate the performance of the particle algorithms with respect to their Eulerian counterpart for this class of nonsmooth kernels.
On the stability of a liquid layer bordering plasma

The surface of a liquid wall (cathode) in contact with plasma is subjected to the electric field and to the bombardment of plasma particles, mostly ions. The stability of electrocapillary waves at the wall surface is considered. In the first part of the paper, the motion of ions inside the sheath and its influence on the electric field distribution are considered in a self-consistent way. The stress exerted on the liquid surface by ions and the electric field is found. This stress is used to describe the liquid motion in the second (hydrodynamic) part of the paper. It allows us to obtain the dispersion relation of the electrocapillary waves and to find the most dangerous wavenumbers and corresponding instability increments. It is shown that disturbances with wavenumbers less than some critical value κ0 = kλ (λ is the Debye length) do not grow. Shorter disturbances grow if E, the electric field, at the wall exceeds a specific Ecrit number. Expressions for κ0 and Ecrit are obtained. The increment of instability for κ > κ0 and E > Ecrit is calculated. It is shown that the instability takes place within an interval of wavenumbers. The higher the electric field, the wider this interval and the higher the increment of the most dangerous instability. Calculations were performed for the liquid wall at floating potential bordering hydrogen and deuterium plasmas. It is shown that the instability takes place in a wider range of wavelengths and has a higher increment in the case of deuterium plasma than in the case of hydrogen plasma.
Precrastination and the cognitive-load-reduction (CLEAR) hypothesis.

ABSTRACTPrecrastination is the tendency many individuals have to complete a task as soon as possible in order to get it out of the way [Rosenbaum, D. A., Gong, L., & Potts, C. A. (2014). Pre-crasti...