cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Psoriatic arthritis and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

We describe 2 patients who developed psoriatic arthritis during the course of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Both patients developed skin and articular involvement characteristic of psoriatic arthritis; these manifestations were refractory to conventional therapy. Our findings suggest that psoriatic arthritis should be added to the expanding spectrum of musculoskeletal manifestations of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.
Lithium Intercalation in Core-Shell Materials–Theoretical Analysis

Core-shell composite structures are potential candidates for Li-ion battery electrodes as they can take advantage of materials with higher energy density and materials with higher cyclability. This paper derives an analytical solution for isotropic 1-dimensional diffusion with galvanostatic boundary condition in composite slab, cylinder and sphere using separation of variables method. A general interfacial condition has been used to represent the dynamics at the interface of the composite material rendering the solution useful for wide variety of battery materials. Using the derived analytical solution for diffusion, intercalation induced stresses were estimated for spherical core-shell materials. (C) 2014 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.
Working, receiving disability benefits, and access to mental health care in individuals with bipolar disorder.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the extent to which people in a bipolar disorder (BPD) registry were working, factors associated with working and obtaining disability benefits, and the impact disability benefits have on work. Methods: We compared the socio-demographic, disease, treatment, and health insurance characteristics among three work disability groups – working, not working, and not working and receiving disability benefits – using a chi-square statistical test on categorical data, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compare means, and a Kruskal–Wallis non-parametric test of significance with skewed data. Results: Among 1,855 individuals, 49.4% reported they were working. Those working were younger, more frequently self-identified as Caucasian, were more highly educated, had a higher income, were more often married, had a shorter duration of illness, and reported the shortest illness duration, the lowest percentage of suicide attempts, and manic and mixed or rapid symptoms in the past 6 months compared to the two non-working groups. Working individuals least often reported receiving electroconvulsive therapy and being hospitalized and had the longest median duration since last hospitalization and the lowest percentage with treatment in the past 6 months. They were currently likelier to be treated by a primary care physician or other health professional than a psychiatrist compared to non-working groups. Finally, compared to the non-working groups, the working group had the highest percentage with no health insurance and private health insurance, the highest percentage using managed care, and the lowest percent under a fee-for-service plan. All work disability groups had similar perceptions of their mental health care plan in terms of the number of doctors or clinics from which to choose, the location of their health care providers, and the quality of mental health care. Those in the working group were least satisfied with the range of mental health services provided in their health plan. Conclusions: Disability benefits are rarely awarded when a person is working. Moreover, receipt of disability benefits increases the likelihood that a person with BPD will be receiving health care benefits and, in many cases, those benefits provide greater access to treatment compared to health care insurance received through an employer. We conclude that the incentives to work run counter to access to treatment among people with BPD.
Deepening College Students' Engagement with Religion and Theology through Community Service Learning

The Serve Program at Ignatius University combines academic study of theol- ogy with a year-long community service project focused on combating poverty. An analysis of the Serve Program during the 2008-09 academic year revealed that partici- pating students demonstrated a significant increase in their interest in theology; a greater desire to enroll in theology coursework; and a deeper interest in theology than classmates not participating in the service-learning program. Interviews with Serve par- ticipants revealed that their exposure to poverty and inequality through their service placements led them to read the program's assigned theological texts with a particular focus on the authors' messages about individual and social responsibility for struggling fellow citizens.
Air–Sea Fluxes over the Gulf Stream Region: Atmospheric Controls and Trends

The intraseasonal variability of turbulent surface heat fluxes over the Gulf Stream extension and subtropical mode water regions of the North Atlantic, and long-term trends in these fluxes, are explored using NCEP‐NCAR reanalysis. Wintertime sensible and latent heat fluxes from these surface waters are characterized by episodic high flux events due to cold air outbreaks from North America. Up to 60% of the November‐ March (NDJFM) total sensible heat flux and 45% of latent heat flux occurs on these high flux days. On average 41% (34%) of the total NDJFM sensible (latent) heat flux takes place during just 17% (20%) of the days. Over the last 60 years, seasonal NDJFM sensible and latent heat fluxes over the Climate Variability and Predictability (CLIVAR) Mode Water Dynamic Experiment (CLIMODE) region have increased owing to an increased number of high flux event days. The increased storm frequency has altered average wintertime temperature conditions in the region, producing colder surface air conditions over the North American eastern seaboard and Labrador Sea and warmer temperatures over the Sargasso Sea. These temperature changes have increased low-level vertical wind shear and baroclinicity along the North Atlantic storm track over the last 60 years and may further favor the trend of increasing storm frequency over the Gulf Stream extension and adjacent region.
Efficacy of spinal manipulation and mobilisation on trunk flexibility and stiffness in horses: a randomised clinical trial

Summary Reasons for performing the study: Spinal mobilisation and spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) are being applied to horses; however, there are limited objective measures of their effects on spinal mobility or stiffness in actively ridden horses. Objectives: To quantify passive spinal movements induced during dorsoventral mobilisation of the trunk and to identify any potential effects of SMT on measures of spinal mobility within the thoracolumbar region in standing horses. We hypothesise that displacement amplitudes will be significantly increased across vertebral levels after SMT, compared to spinal mobilisation only within the control group. Methods: Passive spinal mobility was assessed in 24 actively ridden mature horses once a week for 3 weeks. Peak vertical displacement, loading and unloading velocities, applied force, stiffness and the frequency of truncal oscillations induced during dorsoventral spinal mobilisation were measured at 5 thoracolumbar sites and compared between treatment (n = 12) and control (n = 12) groups. Each week, outcome parameters were measured pre- and post intervention, 10 min apart. Treatment consisted of manually-applied, high-velocity, low-amplitude (HVLA) thrusts directed at the 5 intervertebral sites. Control horses received no additional intervention. A mixed-effects linear regression model was used to assess the interactive effects of treatment group, vertebral level, week and pre-/post intervention. Results: Post intervention displacement amplitudes of the trunk and applied forces were significantly higher in the SMT group, compared to the control group. A similar trend was found for increased spinal stiffness within the SMT group. Across vertebral levels, SMT induced a 40% increase in displacement, a 20% increase in applied force and a 7% increase in stiffness. Conclusions and potential relevance: SMT increased dorsoventral displacement of the trunk, which is indicative of producing increased passive spinal flexibility in actively ridden horses. Further clinical research is needed on the effectiveness of manual therapies in horses with objective measures of back pain, stiffness and poor performance.
An optimizing compiler for parallel chemistry simulations

Well designed domain specific languages have three important benefits: (1) the easy expression of problems, (2) the application of domain specific optimizations (including parallelization), and (3) dramatic improvements in productivity for their users. In this paper we describe a compiler and parallel runtime system for modeling the complex kinetics of rubber vulcanization and olefin polymerization that achieves all of these goals. The compiler allows the development of a system of ordinary differential equations describing a complex vulcanization reaction or single-site olefin polymerization reaction--a task that used to require months--to be done in hours. A specialized common sub-expression elimination and other algebraic optimizations sufficiently simplify the complex machine generated code to allow it to be compiled--eliminating all but 8.0% of the operations in our largest program and enabling over 60 times faster execution on our largest benchmark codes. The parallel runtime and dynamic load balancing scheme enables fast simulations of the model.
Contact urticaria and anaphylaxis to latex

Contact urticaria and anaphylaxis to latex is reported in two patients. One case was associated with oral and vaginal exposure to a condom and the other with rectal exposure to a latex glove. Both patients had positive reactions to scratch or prick tests to pieces of latex, as well as latex radioallergosorbent test (RAST). The diagnosis of contact urticaria to latex is difficult to make on the basis of history alone.
Lung Scleroproteins in Age and Emphysema

This study was undertaken to determine if alterations of lung connective tissue proteins occurred with age or emphysema. Collagen decreased and elastin increased with age, but changes were not found to be associated with emphysema per se. Connective tissue minerals were increased in emphysema, but lipid content was not related to either factor. Nearly identical collagen values were obtained with autoclave and collagenase techniques indicating that lung reticulin, if present in any significant amount, is unlike the autoclave resistant, collagenase-susceptible reticulin of the kidney. In addition, this work plus hydroxyproline assays of residues failed to confirm reported accumulation of collagenase-resistant, autoclave-susceptible collagen with age. Amino acid analysis of lung collagen gelatins showed little variation between individuals and no changes with age or emphysema.
Switching adaptive systems

Summary form only given. The general problem of switching in adaptive systems is discussed. The author distinguishes between different situations in adaptive control theory in which switching control has been used. In addition, the specific problem of switching adaptive control is considered when prior information concerning the plant transfer function is limited. >
The nucleation and growth of graphite—the modification of cast iron

Abstract It is considered that all forms of graphite, precipitating from a metallic solution, must evolve from a basic hexagonal ring structure, growing into an open monolayer sheet. Subsequent growth of this precursor can lead to multi-layer sheets—flake graphite, to rolled or wrapped concentric shells—spheroidal graphite, or, possibly, to saturated fullerene units. The molecular attachment kinetics which might favor these alternatives are briefly discussed and compared with experimental evidence. Spheroidal graphite is the preferred morphology in a clean melt, flake graphite is an impurity modified form and growth to form fullerenes is presently unpredictable, but is considered to be improbable.
Dollar-Sterling Mint Parity and Exchange Rates, 1791–1834

Two series of the dollar-sterling exchange rate are presented for the 1791–1834 period, both series based on actual transactions and corrected for the component of interest in bills of exchange and for episodes of floating exchange rates. Expressed as deviations from a true parity measure and conjoined with existing data for 1835–1900, the series permit an examination of the stability of the gold points over the entire nineteenth century. The steady narrowing of metallic points, previously found for 1835–1900 and confirmed here, does not apply to the earlier period; but evidence suggests that movement to an integrated market in foreign exchange developed in the 1820s.
Transient atrioventricular block after open-heart surgery for congenital heart disease

The records of 22 patients with transient atrioventricular (AV) block after open-heart surgery for congenital heart disease from 1972 to 1978 were reviewed to determine the natural history of this entity. Preoperatively, no patient had AV block; 3 had right bundle branch block (BBB), 1 had left BBB and 5 had nonspecific intraventricular conduction delay. Complete AV block developed in 20 patients and Mobitz II AV block in 2. Transient AV block occurred intraoperatively in 14 patients and within 48 hours postoperatively in 8; AV block persisted for greater than or equal to 48 hours postoperatively in all patients, for a mean of 7.3 days (range 2 to 28). During a follow-up of 5.5 years (range 2.5 to 10), late AV block developed in 2 patients. None of the 18 patients whose escape QRS complex morphology during AV block was similar to the final QRS complex during normal sinus rhythm or atrial fibrillation with AV conduction had late AV block, whereas 2 of the 4 in whom it differed did (p less than 0.01). There was no difference in the escape rate between the 2 groups. Thus, late development of high-grade AV block is infrequent among patients with transient postoperative AV block. An escape QRS complex during postoperative AV block that differs from the QRS complex seen on recovery of normal sinus rhythm or atrial fibrillation with anterograde conduction may identify those at high risk of late AV block.
Hot-water immersion quarantine treatment against Mediterranean fruit fly and Oriental fruit fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) eggs and larvae in litchi and longan fruit exported from Hawaii.

Immersion of litchi fruit in 49°C water for 20 min followed by hydrocooling in ambient (24 ± 4°C) temperature water for 20 min was tested as a quarantine treatment against potential infestations of Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann); and oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel, eggs or larvae in Hawaiian litchi, Litchi chinensis Sonnerat. The 49°C hot-water immersion of litchi provided probit 9 (99.9968% mortality with >95% confidence) quarantine security against eggs and first instars. There were no survivors from 15,000 each feeding and nonfeeding Mediterranean fruit fly or oriental fruit fly third instars immersed in a computer-controlled water bath that simulated the litchi seed-surface temperature profile during the 49°C hot-water immersion treatment. Litchi served as the model for longan, Dimocarpus longan Lour., a closely related fruit that is smaller and also has commercial potential for Hawaii. Modified fruit infestation and holding techniques used to obtain adequate estimated treated populations from poor host fruit, such as litchi and longan, are described. Data from these experiments were used to obtain approval of a hot-water immersion quarantine treatment against fruit flies for litchi and longan exported from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland.
A High-Temperature Folded-Cascode Operational Transconductance Amplifier in 0.8-μm BCD-on-SOI

The rapid growth of the hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) has been driving the demand of high temperature automotive electronics target for the engine compartment, power train, and brakes where the ambient temperature normally exceeds 150°C. An operational transconductance amplifier (OTA) is an essential building block of various analog circuits such as data converters, instrumentation systems, linear regulators, etc. This work presents a high temperature folded cascode operational transconductance amplifier designed and fabricated in a commercially available 0.8-μm BCD-on-SOI process. SOI processes offer several orders of magnitude smaller junction leakage current than bulk-CMOS processes at temperatures beyond 150°C. This amplifier is designed for a high temperature linear voltage regulator; the higher open-loop gain of this amplifier will enhance the overall performance of a linear regulator. In addition, the lower current consumption of the OTA is critical for improving the current efficiency of the lin...
Distinction between cerebral blood flow and vascular activity by PET tracer kinetic analysis: practical and physiologic considerations.

Quantitative measurement of cerebral blood flow using PET dates back more than 20 y. The emergence of PET as a clinical experimental tool permitted 3-dimensional measurement of radioactivity within the brain and applications of tracer kinetic analyses to estimate quantitatively various physiologic
Implementation Processes and Pay for Performance in Healthcare: A Systematic Review.

Background Over the last decade, various pay-for-performance (P4P) programs have been implemented to improve quality in health systems, including the VHA. P4P programs are complex, and their effects may vary by design, context, and other implementation processes. We conducted a systematic review and key informant (KI) interviews to better understand the implementation factors that modify the effectiveness of P4P.
A Conceptual Evaluation of Regional Ground-Water Flow, Southern Nevada–California, USA

We use a mixing-cell model, calibrated with the spatial distribution of corrected 14 C ages of the ground water, to simulate steady-state flow in the regional ground-water flow system underlying the Nevada Test Site and environs in southern Nevada-California. Thirty-five cells covering 12,400 km 2 are used. Total annual inflow to the system averages 5,300 × 10 4 m 3 and is approximately equally divided between subsurface inflow from outside the system and recharge derived from within the system. Almost 23 percent of the total flow originates in the Spring Mountains; subsurface inflow from regions to the north and east of the system accounts for 11 percent and 15 percent of the total flow, respectively. Approximately 10–12 percent of the total flow is derived from recharge in the Fortymile Canyon/Wash area, which corresponds to a range in the average annual areally-distributed recharge rate of 25.6 to 31.7 mm. Rainier Mesa is recharged at an average annual rate of 8.2 mm. The range in long-term average annual recharge to the cell representing Yucca Mountain, the site for a proposed high-level nuclear waste repository, is 15 to 32 × 10 4 m 3 , equivalent to areally-distributed annual rates of approximately 1.9 to 4.2 mm. Approximate age of the ground water beneath Yucca Mountain is 12,000 years old. Minimum mean ground-water ages in the system range from 2,200 years to almost 100,000 years old. Our work suggests that the Ash Meadows subbasin is distinguishable as a somewhat independent unit but that the Oasis Valley and Alkali Flat-Furnace Creek Ranch subbasins can probably be treated as one unit.
Comparison of advanced optical imaging techniques with current otolaryngology diagnostics for improved middle ear assessment (Conference Presentation)

Otolaryngologists utilize a variety of diagnostic techniques to assess middle ear health. Tympanometry, audiometry, and otoacoustic emissions examine the mobility of the tympanic membrane (eardrum) and ossicles using ear canal pressure and auditory tone delivery and detection. Laser Doppler vibrometry provides non-contact vibrational measurement, and acoustic reflectometry is used to assess middle ear effusion using sonar. These technologies and techniques have advanced the field beyond the use of the standard otoscope, a simple tissue magnifier, yet the need for direct visualization of middle ear disease for superior detection, assessment, and management remains. In this study, we evaluated the use of portable optical coherence tomography (OCT) and pneumatic low-coherence interferometry (LCI) systems with handheld probe delivery to standard tympanometry, audiometry, otoacoustic emissions, laser Doppler vibrometry, and acoustic reflectometry. Comparison of these advanced optical imaging techniques and current diagnostics was conducted with a case study subject with a history of unilateral eardrum trauma. OCT and pneumatic LCI provide novel dynamic spatiotemporal structural data of the middle ear, such as the thickness of the eardrum and quantitative detection of underlying disease pathology, which could allow for more accurate diagnosis and more appropriate management than currently possible.
Research and Implementation of Distributed Task Scheduling Based on PI3000 Platform

PI3000 platform in the task scheduling is a very important part in the application system,application environment complexity leads to every kind of scheduling framework and algorithms.In this paper a new distributed load balancing scheduling framework,to solve tasks in parallel in the specific application environment and task scheduling problem.This framework is dynamic,reusable,by providing various resources environment corresponding to the interface,to cross service scheduling.The whole framework focused on the actual application environment,resource assignment and dynamic instability of task computing fast response.
Chairman and CEO: The Controversy Over Board Leadership Structure

One of the most controversial issues in corporate governance is whether the CEO of a corporation should also serve as chairman of the board. In theory, an independent board chair improves the ability of the board to oversee management. However, an independent chairman is not unambiguously positive, and can lead to duplication of leadership, impair decision making, and create internal confusion — particularly when an effective dual chairman/CEO is already in place.In this Closer Look, we examine in detail the leadership structure of publicly traded corporations and the circumstances under which they are changed. We ask:• What factors should the board consider in deciding whether to combine or separate board leadership?• How can the board weigh the tradeoffs between stability of leadership, efficient decision making, and decreased oversight?• What structure should be the default setting for a corporation?• Why do activists advocate that corporations strictly separate the roles when there is little research support for this position?The Stanford Closer Look series is a collection of short case studies through which we explore topics, issues, and controversies in corporate governance and executive leadership. In each study, we take a targeted look at a specific issue that is relevant to the current debate on governance and explain why it is so important. Larcker and Tayan are co-authors of the books Corporate Governance Matters and A Real Look at Real World Corporate Governance.
Model predictive, adaptive, and neural net controllers

This chapter briefly introduces general types of controllers, beginning with model predictive controllers. A very powerful control methodology is model predictive control (MPC) that was first developed for the chemical process industries and is now being applied to a rapidly expanding range of technologies. The basic idea of MPC is to use a model to predict the output response of a system at various points in time in the future, and based on this, control inputs are computed to yield the desired response. In model predictive control, optimal constraints can be included in the solution for the control. Unlike proportional (P), proportional-plus-integral (PI), and proportional-plus-integral-plus-derivative (PID) control, the MPC approach considered in the chapter extends to the case when the system to be controlled has multiple inputs and outputs. In indirect adaptive control, the coefficients or parameters of the system model are estimated by first using input-output data, and the estimates are then used to generate the control.
A dual mechanism of cellulose deficiency in shv3svl1

SHAVEN3 (SHV3) and its homolog SHAVEN3-like 1 (SVL1) encode glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins (GAPs) that are involved in cellulose biosynthesis and hypocotyl elongation in Arabidopsis thaliana. In a recent report, we showed that the cellulose and hypocotyl elongation defects of the shv3svl1 double mutant are greatly enhanced by exogenous sucrose in the growth medium. Further investigation of this phenomenon showed that shv3svl1 exhibits a hyperpolarized plasma membrane (PM) proton gradient that is coupled with enhanced accumulation of sucrose via the PM sucrose/proton symporter SUC1. The resulting high intracellular sucrose concentration appears to favor starch synthesis at the expense of cellulose synthesis. Here, we describe our interpretation of these results in terms of 2 potential regulators of cellulose synthesis: intracellular sucrose concentration and a putative signaling pathway that involves SHV3-like proteins.
ICAROUS: Integrated configurable algorithms for reliable operations of unmanned systems

NASA's Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Traffic Management (UTM) project aims at enabling near-term, safe operations of small UAS vehicles in uncontrolled airspace, i.e., Class G airspace. A far-term goal of UTM research and development is to accommodate the expected rise in small UAS traffic density throughout the National Airspace System (NAS) at low altitudes for beyond visual line-of-sight operations. This paper describes a new capability referred to as ICAROUS (Integrated Configurable Algorithms for Reliable Operations of Unmanned Systems), which is being developed under the UTM project. ICAROUS is a software architecture comprised of highly assured algorithms for building safety-centric, autonomous, unmanned aircraft applications. Central to the development of the ICAROUS algorithms is the use of well-established formal methods to guarantee higher levels of safety assurance by monitoring and bounding the behavior of autonomous systems. The core autonomy-enabling capabilities in ICAROUS include constraint conformance monitoring and contingency control functions. ICAROUS also provides a highly configurable user interface that enables the modular integration of mission-specific software components.
Critical Theory and the Historical Transformations of Capitalist Modernity

By analyzing the interrelated approaches formulated in the late 1930s and early 1940s by Friedrich Pollock, Max Horkheimer, and Theodor Adorno, this chapter demonstrates that, in spite of the richness of their attempts to formulate a critical theory more adequate than traditional Marxism to the transformations of the twentieth century, these thinkers retained some of its political–economic presuppositions and, as a result, reached a theoretical impasse: in attempting to deal with a new configuration of capitalism, their approach lost its reflexivity; it no longer could account for itself as a historical possibility. This chapter examines the complex relation of classical critical theory to traditional understandings of capitalism in order to clarify the trajectory of the former and also illuminate the limits of the latter. In so doing, it points to a fundamentally different analysis of capitalism, one that—if integrated with the rich concerns of the Frankfurt School—could serve as the point of departure for a critical theory that could both be reflexive and elucidate the nature and dynamic of our global social universe.
Algorithms for finding knight’s tours on Aztec diamonds

A knight’s tour is a sequence of knight’s moves such that each square on the board is visited exactly once. An Aztec diamond is a square board of size 2n where triangular regions of side length n − 1 have been removed from all four corners. We show that the existence of knight’s tours on Aztec diamonds cannot be proved inductively via smaller Aztec diamonds, and explain why a divide-and-conquer approach is also not promising. We then describe two algorithms that aim to efficiently find knight’s tours on Aztec diamonds. The first is based on random walks, a straightforward but limited technique that yielded tours on Aztec diamonds for all n≠22 apart from n = 17,21. The second is a path-conversion algorithm that finds a solution for all n ≤ 100. We then apply the path-conversion algorithm to random graphs to test the robustness of our algorithm. Online supplements provide source code, output and more details about these algorithms.
Identification of a Thioesterase Bottleneck in the Pikromycin Pathway through Full-Module Processing of Unnatural Pentaketides

Polyketide biosynthetic pathways have been engineered to generate natural product analogs for over two decades. However, manipulation of modular type I polyketide synthases (PKSs) to make unnatural metabolites commonly results in attenuated yields or entirely inactive pathways, and the mechanistic basis for compromised production is rarely elucidated since rate-limiting or inactive domain(s) remain unidentified. Accordingly, we synthesized and assayed a series of modified pikromycin (Pik) pentaketides that mimic early pathway engineering to probe the substrate tolerance of the PikAIII-TE module in vitro. Truncated pentaketides were processed with varying efficiencies to corresponding macrolactones, while pentaketides with epimerized chiral centers were poorly processed by PikAIII-TE and failed to generate 12-membered ring products. Isolation and identification of extended but prematurely offloaded shunt products suggested that the Pik thioesterase (TE) domain has limited substrate flexibility and function...
Pediatric heart transplantation-Preparation and education

Abstract Pediatric heart transplantation is a complex endeavor with a large amount of knowledge requirements and preparation. Success of the decision making leading up to the transplant and readiness for discharge post-transplant relies on adequate education and preparation [1]. The population is at high risk for medical non-adherence which is directly linked to poor patient outcomes [2]. Discrepancies in patient and family education and preparation lead to unmet care needs, medication errors, increased risk for complications and readmissions. This article will review the importance of preparation, assessment of education needs, and effective transfer of knowledge in pediatric heart transplantation.
Usefulness of a novel, slim long syringe-like device for applying surgical mesh through a 5-mm trocar.

We developed a device for introducing surgical mesh through a 5-mm trocar during transabdominal preperitoneal hernia repair. This device is like a slim long syringe; it has a polypropylene outer sheath (outer diameter, 5.8 mm; inner diameter, 5.6 mm; length, 2500 mm) and inner rod, and is made in a similar manner to a drinking straw. Therefore, the manufacturing costs are low. To use the device, folded mesh is placed inside it with a grasper before surgery. The device is then inserted through the trocar, and the mesh is pushed out by the inner rod and applied. The folded mesh extrudes smoothly pubis side to lateral side along the inguinal curve. It reinforces the area without any contamination and expands in a manner that makes it easy for the surgeon to place and fix the mesh. Our device allows mesh to be applied smoothly, comfortably, and economically, and it may reduce the risk of infection.
Being suspicious: critiquing problem specifications

One should look closely at problem specifications before attempting solutions: we may find that the specifier has only a vague or even erroneous notion of what is required, that the solution of a more general or more specific problem may be of more use, or simply that the problem as given is misstated. Using software development as an example, we present a knowledge-based system for critiquing one form of problem specification, that of a formal software specification.
Antithrombotic Drugs and Their Complications

Antithrombotic drugs (also known as antiplatelet drugs or antiplatelet agents) are used for the prevention of platelet-associated thrombotic complications including myocardial infarction and stroke. Clinical complications associated with the use of currently available antithrombotics warrant the development of safer and more effective therapies. A better understanding of the molecular signaling mechanisms involved in platelet activation and a better appreciation of the pharmacologic and pathophysiologic variables that may alter the anticipated clinical outcomes in given patients are essential. This article provides an overview of the signaling mechanisms involved in platelet activation and discusses the available antiplatelet agents with a focus on their mechanisms of action, complications associated with, and limitations on their use. In addition, the platelet function tests and the experimental animal models of thrombosis that may be used for testing the antiplatelet agents are described.
Evaluation of Research on Control of Prolactin Secretion

Before the era of modern neuroendocrinology appeared on the scene about 20 years ago, when almost nothing was known about hypothalamic regulation of prolactin secretion and radioimmunoassay methods were unavailable, there already was considerable knowledge of the control of prolactin secretion, particularly in animals. Pioneer work in the laboratories of Turner, Lyons, Reece, Riddle and Bates, Foley and Cowie, in our laboratory, and others had demonstrated that estrogen was a potent stimulator of prolactin from the anterior pituitary (AP), that changes occurred in pituitary prolactin content during the estrous cycle (highest on days of proestrus and estrus), that pituitary prolactin in animals was low during most of pregnancy, but increased at parturition, that thyroidectomy or thiouracil administration reduced pituitary prolactin content, and that newborn human infants had high amounts of prolactin in the urine. All of these early observations have been corroborated recently by the more sensitive and quantitative radioimmunoassays for prolactin.
Dynamic tensile failure of rolled magnesium: Simulations and experiments quantifying the role of texture and second-phase particles

Abstract The widespread use of magnesium alloys in applications that require high specific strength and stiffness has been hindered by its relatively low ductility. The hexagonal close-packed crystalline structure of magnesium alloys causes strong anisotropy in the mechanical response, which is reasonably well understood; however, the failure behavior is more complex. It is not clear whether the plastic anisotropy or the existence of second phase particles control failure, and to date, more attention has been given to the former than the latter. In this work, a series of high-rate tension experiments were performed on thin foil specimens of hot rolled magnesium alloy AZ31B using a miniaturized tensile Kolsky bar along an array of angles in the normal-rolling plane at strain rates of nominally 10 4 s − 1 . These experiments are compared with a set of finite element computations employing crystal plasticity and direct numerical simulation of void-nucleating second phase particles measured using micro-CT. Simulations are used to quantify the relative role that plastic anisotropy and second phase particle morphology play in dictating the failure response of rolled magnesium. Results indicate that plastic anisotropy dictates the way that voids grow and coalesce, and that in some cases, the pronounced plastic anisotropy of magnesium increases, rather than decreases, the maximum strain to failure. In all cases, the large second phase particles in rolled magnesium AZ31B greatly reduce the maximum failure strain as compared with an equivalent volume fraction of randomly distributed spherical particles. Additionally, it is shown that simulations lacking a proper description of orientation-dependent plastic anisotropy and particle morphology do not correlate well with measured failure behavior.
U.S. Public Health Service STD Experiments in Guatemala (1946-1948) and Their Aftermath

The U.S. Public Health Service's sexually transmitted disease (STD) experiments in Guatemala are an important case study not only in human subjects research transgressions but also in the response to serious lapses in research ethics. This case study describes how individuals in the STD experiments were tested, exposed to STDs, and exploited as the source of biological specimens-all without informed consent and often with active deceit. It also explores and evaluates governmental and professional responses that followed the public revelation of these experiments, including by academic institutions, professional organizations, and the U.S. federal government, pushing us to reconsider both how we prevent such lapses in the future and how we respond when they are first revealed.
The lung-enriched p53 mutants V157F and R158L/P regulate a gain of function transcriptome in lung cancer

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the USA, and alterations in the tumor suppressor gene TP53 are the most frequent somatic mutation among all histologic subtypes of lung cancer. Mutations in TP53 frequently result in a protein that exhibits not only loss of tumor suppressor capability but also oncogenic gain-of-function (GOF). The canonical p53 hotspot mutants R175H and R273H, for example, confer upon tumors a metastatic phenotype in murine models of mutant p53. To the best of our knowledge, GOF phenotypes of the less often studied V157, R158 and A159 mutants-which occur with higher frequency in lung cancer compared with other solid tumors-have not been defined. In this study, we aimed to define whether the lung mutants are simply equivalent to full loss of the p53 locus, or whether they additionally acquire the ability to drive new downstream effector pathways. Using a publicly available human lung cancer dataset, we characterized patients with V157, R158 and A159 p53 mutations. In addition, we show here that cell lines with mutant p53-V157F, p53-R158L and p53-R158P exhibit a loss of expression of canonical wild-type p53 target genes. Furthermore, these lung-enriched p53 mutants regulate genes not previously linked to p53 function including PLAU. Paradoxically, mutant p53 represses genes associated with increased cell viability, migration and invasion. These findings collectively represent the first demonstration that lung-enriched p53 mutations at V157 and R158 regulate a novel transcriptome in human lung cancer cells and may confer de novo function.
Angular dependence of strong field ionization of N2 by time-dependent configuration interaction using density functional theory and the Tamm-Dancoff approximation

The ionization of N2 serves as an important test case for computational methods for strong field ionization. Because Koopmans’s theorem fails for Hartree-Fock calculations of N2, corrections for electron correlation are needed to obtain the proper ordering of ionization energies of N2. Lopata and co-workers found that real-time integration of time-dependent Hartree-Fock (rt-TD-HF) gave a ratio for strong field ionization parallel and perpendicular to the molecular axis that was too small compared to experiment, but real-time integration of time-dependent density functional theory (rt-TD-DFT) with an appropriately tuned long-range corrected functional, lc-ωPBE*, was in good agreement with experiment. The present study finds that time-dependent configuration interaction (TDCI) with single excitations based on a Hartree-Fock reference determinant (TD-CIS) has the same problems as rt-TD-HF. These problems can be overcome within the TDCI framework by calculating the excitation energies and transition dipole moments with density functional theory using linear response TD-DFT in the Tamm-Dancoff approximation (TDA) with suitably tuned long-range corrected functionals (TD-TDA). The correct angular dependence of the total ionization rate is obtained with TD-TDA using tuned lc-ωPBE*, lc-BLYP*, and ωB97XD* functionals. Partitioning of the total ionization rate into orbital components confirms that the larger ionization rate perpendicular to the molecular axis found for TD-CIS is due to greater π orbital contributions than those seen in TD-TDA. The use of density functional theory corrects this problem. At higher fields, both the TD-CIS and TD-TDA simulations show an increased ionization rate perpendicular to the molecular axis because of increased ionization from the π orbitals.
Guest Editorial: Conceptualizing Justice and Counter-Expertise

Systemic injustices exclude counter-experts from telling their stories and influencing the collective imagination. Four papers and some discussant essays illustrate the ways in which counter-expert...
Mad dephosphorylation at the nuclear envelope is essential for asymmetric stem cell division

Summary Stem cell niche signals act over a short range so that only stem cells but not the differentiating daughter cells receive the self-renewal signals. Drosophila female germline stem cells (GSCs) are maintained by short range BMP signaling; BMP ligands Dpp/Gbb activate receptor Tkv to phosphorylate Mad (phosphor-Mad or pMad) which accumulates in the GSC nucleus and activates the stem cell transcription program. pMad is highly concentrated in the nucleus of the GSC, but is immediately downregulated in the nucleus of the pre-cystoblast (preCB), a differentiating daughter cell, that is displaced away from the niche. Here we show that this asymmetry in the intensity of pMad is formed even before the completion of cytokinesis. A delay in establishing the pMad asymmetry leads to germline tumors through conversion of differentiating cells into a stem cell-like state. We show that a Mad phosphatase Dullard (Dd) interacts with Mad at the nuclear pore, where it may dephosphorylate Mad. A mathematical model explains how an asymmetry can be established in a common cytoplasm. It also demonstrates that the ratio of pMad concentrations in GSC/preCB is highly sensitive to Mad dephosphorylation rate. Our study reveals a previously unappreciated mechanism for breaking symmetry between daughter cells during asymmetric stem cell division.
Peace of mind among adolescents and young adults with cancer.

OBJECTIVE Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer have high rates of psychological distress and unmet support needs. Peace of mind is an important construct among older cancer patients and parents of children with cancer but has not been explored in AYAs. We sought to evaluate the extent to which AYAs with cancer experience peace of mind and to identify factors associated with greater peace of mind. METHODS We surveyed 193 AYAs with cancer aged 15 to 29 years within 12 weeks of diagnosis; 137 patients completed the same measures again 4 and 12 months after diagnosis. Patients were asked to report peace of mind, measured using items from the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness, Spiritual Well-being scale (FACIT-Sp); anxiety and depression, using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS); and experiences surrounding medical communication and decision making. RESULTS Mean scores for peace of mind were 3.59 at diagnosis (range 1-5, standard deviation 0.84), with similar scores at 4 (3.53, P = .34) and 12 (3.59, P = .94) months. In a multivariable model adjusted for age and gender, patients who reported receiving high-quality information about their cancer had greater peace of mind at diagnosis (β = .25, P = .03), whereas those who reported holding a passive role in treatment decision making (β = -.47, P < .0001) or who had anxiety (β = -.64, P = .0003) or depression (β = -.51, P = .04) had lower peace of mind. CONCLUSION Peace of mind did not improve significantly over time for AYAs with cancer. While high-quality communication may be associated with heightened peace of mind, further study is needed to clarify relationships between peace of mind and other psychological variables.
Soul work in social work

The field of social work has seen an increasing interest in approaches that utilize the integration of the physical, cognitive, and spiritual components of practice. Social workers are looking for ...
Assessing Tissue-Specific Autophagy Flux in Adult Caenorhabditis elegans.

The cellular recycling process of autophagy is essential for survival, development, and homeostasis. Autophagy also plays an important role in aging and has been linked to longevity in many species, including the nematode C. elegans. Study of the physiological roles of autophagy during C. elegans aging requires methods for the spatiotemporal analysis of autophagy. Here we describe a method for assessing autophagic flux in multiple tissues of C. elegans by quantifying the pool of autophagic vesicles using fluorescently labelled Atg8/LGG-1 reporters upon autophagy inhibition using bafilomycin A1 (BafA). This methodology has revealed that autophagic activity varies in different cell types of C. elegans during aging.
Advances in Observing and Understanding Small-Scale Open Ocean Circulation During the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative Era

Prediction of the distribution of buoyant oil, plastics, flotsam and marine organisms near the ocean surface is a long-standing fundamental problem of practical importance. Here, progress in this area during the time of the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) (2012-2019) is synthesized, emphasizing the well-known accumulation of floating material into highly concentrated streaks on horizontal scales of meters to 10’s of kilometers. In the pre-GoMRI period, two new paradigms were developed: the importance of submesoscale frontal dynamics on the larger scales and of surface-wave-driven Langmuir turbulence on the smaller scales, with a broad transition occurring near 100 m. Rapid progress resulted from the combination of high resolution numerical modeling tools, mostly developed before GoMRI, and new observational techniques developed during GoMRI. New designs for inexpensive and biodegradable satellite tracked surface drifters and new techniques for aerial tracking of surface drift cards enabled the deployment of thousands of such drifters to measure surface currents and to act as calibrated surrogates for oil. Progress in using radar and optical remote sensing of surface waves enabled mapping of surface currents from ships and aircraft. These new tools, combined with traditional oceanographic tools, enabled a set of coordinated measurement programs which supported and expanded the new paradigms. Floating material was found to both accumulate at submesoscale fronts and to disperse by following these fronts as they moved, leading to both higher concentrations and increased dispersion. Analyses confirmed the distinct submesoscale dynamics of this process and complexity of the resulting fields. Existing tools could be developed into predictive models of submesoscale statistics; prediction of individual submesoscale features is limited by data. Away from fronts, measured rates of accumulation of material in and beneath surface windrows was found to be consistent with Langmuir turbulence, but highly dependent on the rise rate of the material and thus, for oil, on the droplet size. Models of this process were developed and tested and could be further developed into predictive tools. Both the submesoscale and Langmuir processes are sensitive to coupling with surface waves and air-sea flux processes; this is a promising area for future studies.