cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Analysis of the set of trajectories of nonlinear dynamics: Equations with causal robust operator

We present the results of dynamic analysis of equations and sets of equations with a causal robust operator. We obtain conditions for the local and global existence of solutions of the regularized equation, bracketing estimates for the solution set, and stability conditions for the set of stationary solutions. To this end, we use Lyapunov’s direct method and the comparison principle with a matrix Lyapunov function.
Experimental Use of Fluorescein for Visualization of Coronary Arteries

Intraoperative delineation of the coronary anatomy during coronary bypass operations is critical for suc cessful revascularization. Two tech niques utilizing fluorescein to en hance the visualization of the coro nary arteries were evaluated in a ca nine model. A previously described method using fluorescent cardiople gia to arrest the heart produced sub- optimal contrast. Excellent visualiza tion of the coronary circulation was obtained when the heart was arrested with crystalline cardioplegia and then reinjected with fluorescein cardiople gia.
Social Responsibility in Community Colleges: Rethinking the Commitment to Alternative Education

Because high school dropouts are among the least advantaged members of American society, the educational system that has failed them has the social responsibility for remediating their educational and developmental needs. The community college is proposed as the institution most able to develop policies and programs that will enable these least advantaged members of American society to overcome the educational system that has failed them. This paper discusses the responsibility of providing a quality education to all individuals, examines the role the community college can play in meeting the educational and social needs of dropouts, and presents an innovative program at a community college that has been particularly effective in meeting the needs of dropouts.
Dental x-rays and risk of meningioma: response to Drs. Calnon, Jorgensen, and White.

Report of past dental x-rays has been reported to be associated with the diagnosis of intracranial meningioma. The authors respond to commentary regarding their recent case/control study of the topic.
Non-indigenous woody invasive plants in a rural New England town

We investigated the abundance of non-indigenous woody invasive plants in Farmington, Maine, a rural New England town in a forested landscape. We found 12 invasive species and more than 7 patches per km from surveys on 33 transects (54.3 km) along field edges, abandoned railroad right-of-ways, roadsides, and riparian zones. Invasive abundance was apparently lower than for more developed areas of the northeastern US, where, in contrast to western Maine, invasives have extensively penetrated forest interiors. Invasive abundance increased with the amount of landscaping and proximity to town, suggesting a close association between local horticulture and the spread of woody invasives. Invasive abundance and diversity were highest in riparian areas, probably due to relatively high levels of propagule pressure. Species differed in the extent of invasiveness, ranging from those still dependent on planted parent trees to fully invasive populations. The invasive species recorded in this study have caused environmental and economic damage elsewhere. The lower levels of invasiveness in Farmington are likely a result of the isolation, small human population, and forested landscape rather than low levels of invasibility. This suggests the potential for future risks, and the importance of intervention while populations can still be eradicated or controlled.
A study of the kinetics of anation of trans-[Co(AO)2-H(NO2)(H2O)]+

Abstract A kinetic study of the anation of an α-amino-oxime rans -nitro-aquo-cobalt complex shows a behavior similar to that of [Co(CN) 5 OH 2 ] 2− . For NO 2 − , SCN − and N 3 − the rate law is rate = k [ R OH 2 ][ X − ]. No contribution from the hydroxy complex was observed. The 18 O water exchange rate of the aquo complex is considerably faster than the rates of anation. The rates of anion substitution for water may be described as a competition between anion and water in the second coordination sphere for the vacated metal inner sphere site.
MO-G-18A-01: Radiation Dose Reducing Strategies in CT, Fluoroscopy and Radiography

Advances in medical x-ray imaging have provided significant benefits to patient care. According to NCRP 160, there are more than 400 million x-ray procedures performed annually in the United States alone that contributes to nearly half of all the radiation exposure to the US population. Similar growth trends in medical x-ray imaging are observed worldwide. Apparent increase in number of medical x-ray imaging procedures, new protocols and the associated radiation dose and risk has drawn considerable attention. This has led to a number of technological innovations such as tube current modulation, iterative reconstruction algorithms, dose alerts, dose displays, flat panel digital detectors, high efficient digital detectors, storage phosphor radiography, variable filters, etc. that are enabling users to acquire medical x-ray images at a much lower radiation dose. Along with these, there are number of radiation dose optimization strategies that users can adapt to effectively lower radiation dose in medical x-ray procedures. The main objectives of this SAM course are to provide information and how to implement the various radiation dose optimization strategies in CT, Fluoroscopy and Radiography. Learning Objectives: 1. To update impact of technological advances on dose optimization in medical imaging. 2. To identify radiation optimization strategies in computed tomography. 3. To describe strategies for configuring fluoroscopic equipment that yields optimal images at reasonable radiation dose. 4. To assess ways to configure digital radiography systems and recommend ways to improve image quality at optimal dose.
APPLICATION OF FOURIER ANALYSIS TO DIGITAL IMAGING FOR PARTICLE SHAPE ANALYSIS

The shape of aggregates has an important influence on the behavior of civil engineering materials. Digital imaging techniques provide unique opportunities for describing these features in an automated fashion. Shape analysis of fine and coarse aggregate particles is investigated in this study using Fourier transform of digital images. The geometric signature of each shape is extracted by measuring the distance between its centroid and the boundary at constant increment of angles, and Fourier transforms are used to evaluate its spectral information. The number of highest amplitude harmonics required for accurate profile regeneration is evaluated. Shape of a given aggregate particle is reconstructed using inverse Fourier transforms considering a limited number of significant harmonics. A parameter that can quantify the error between regenerated and original profiles is proposed. Using this value, two shape parameters are defined to describe the overall shape and the ruggedness of a particle. A procedure of quantitatively describing the roundness/angularity of aggregate shape is presented and extended to three dimensions using orthogonal views.
LESBIAN IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT: An Examination of Differences Across Generations

Lesbian identity is an achieved, not an ascribed, status. Family, social, and historical circumstances affect the timing, sequence, and outcome of this developmental process. The life stories of 31 women, identified within three eras of lesbian history, demonstrate the critical role of history in understanding lesbian identity and experience today.
Ligation with Nucleic Acid Sequence–Based Amplification

This work presents a novel method for detecting nucleic acid targets using a ligation step along with an isothermal, exponential amplification step. We use an engineered ssDNA with two variable regions on the ends, allowing us to design the probe for optimal reaction kinetics and primer binding. This two-part probe is ligated by T4 DNA Ligase only when both parts bind adjacently to the target. The assay demonstrates that the expected 72-nt RNA product appears only when the synthetic target, T4 ligase, and both probe fragments are present during the ligation step. An extraneous 38-nt RNA product also appears due to linear amplification of unligated probe (P3), but its presence does not cause a false-positive result. In addition, 40 mmol/L KCl in the final amplification mix was found to be optimal. It was also found that increasing P5 in excess of P3 helped with ligation and reduced the extraneous 38-nt RNA product. The assay was also tested with a single nucleotide polymorphism target, changing one base at the ligation site. The assay was able to yield a negative signal despite only a single-base change. Finally, using P3 and P5 with longer binding sites results in increased overall sensitivity of the reaction, showing that increasing ligation efficiency can improve the assay overall. We believe that this method can be used effectively for a number of diagnostic assays.
Precursor Cell Biology and the Development of Astrocyte Transplantation Therapies: Lessons from Spinal Cord Injury

This review summarizes current progress on development of astrocyte transplantation therapies for repair of the damaged central nervous system. Replacement of neurons in the injured or diseased central nervous system is currently one of the most popular therapeutic goals, but if neuronal replacement is attempted in the absence of appropriate supporting cells (astrocytes and oligodendrocytes), then the chances of restoring neurological functional are greatly reduced. Although the past 20 years have offered great progress on oligodendrocyte replacement therapies, astrocyte transplantation therapies have been both less explored and comparatively less successful. We have now developed successful astrocyte transplantation therapies by pre-differentiating glial restricted precursor (GRP) cells into a specific population of GRP cell-derived astrocytes (GDAs) by exposing the GRP cells to bone morphogenetic protein-4 (BMP) prior to transplantation. When transplanted into transected rat spinal cord, rat and human GDAsBMP promote extensive axonal regeneration, rescue neuronal cell survival, realign tissue structure, and restore behavior to pre-injury levels on a grid-walk analysis of volitional foot placement. Such benefits are not provided by GRP cells themselves, demonstrating that the lesion environment does not direct differentiation in a manner optimally beneficial for the restoration of function. Such benefits also are not provided by transplantation of a different population of astrocytes generated from GRP cells exposed to ciliary neurotrophic factor (GDAsCNTF), thus providing the first transplantation-based evidence of functional heterogeneity in astrocyte populations. Moreover, lessons learned from the study of rat cells are strongly predictive of outcomes using human cells. Thus, these studies provide successful strategies for the use of astrocyte transplantation therapies for restoration of function following spinal cord injury. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13311-011-0071-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Regulation of the osteoblast‐specific transcription factor Osterix by NO66, a Jumonji family histone demethylase

Osterix (Osx) is an osteoblast-specific transcription factor required for osteoblast differentiation and bone formation. Osx null mice develop a normal cartilage skeleton but fail to form bone and to express osteoblast-specific marker genes. To better understand the control of transcriptional regulation by Osx, we identified Osx-interacting proteins using proteomics approaches. Here, we report that a Jumonji C (JmjC)-domain containing protein, called NO66, directly interacts with Osx and inhibits Osx-mediated promoter activation. The knockdown of NO66 in preosteoblast cells triggered accelerated osteoblast differentiation and mineralization, and markedly stimulated the expression of Osx target genes. A JmjC-dependent histone demethylase activity was exhibited by NO66, which was specific for both H3K4me and H3K36me in vitro and in vivo, and this activity was needed for the regulation of osteoblast-specific promoters. During BMP-2-induced differentiation of preosteoblasts, decreased NO66 occupancy correlates with increased Osx occupancy at Osx-target promoters. Our results indicate that interactions between NO66 and Osx regulate Osx-target genes in osteoblasts by modulating histone methylation states.
Applications of QCD Factorization in Hadronic B Decays

We review recent advances in the theory of strong-interaction effects and final-state interactions in hadronic weak decays of heavy mesons. In the heavy-quark limit, the amplitudes for most nonleptonic, two-body B decays can be calculated from first principles and expressed in terms of semileptonic form factors and light-cone distribution amplitudes. We summarize the main features of this novel QCD factorization and discuss its phenomenological applications to B -> D^(*) L decays (with L a light meson), and to the rare charmless decays B -> pi K and B -> pi pi.
Trends in adherence to secondary prevention medications in elderly post-myocardial infarction patients†

Background Poor levels of medication adherence for patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) have been documented but it is unclear whether adherence has improved over time. Methods We assembled a retrospective cohort of lower-income Medicare beneficiaries who were discharged from the hospital after their first acute myocardial infarction (MI) between 1 January 1995 and 31 December 2003. For patients prescribed a statin, ACEI/ARB, beta-blocker, and all 3 of these medications after the hospital discharge, we evaluated medication adherence by determining the proportion of days covered (PDC) for each medication in the subsequent year. Results Our cohort consisted of a total of 33 646 patients. Adherence rates for statins and beta-blockers, but not ACEI/ARB, increased significantly over time but remained suboptimal. For example, among those patients that received a statin after discharge, 38.6% were fully adherent with therapy in 1995 in contrast to 56.2% in 2003 (p value for trend <0.001). Of patients prescribed all 3 of statin, beta-blocker, and ACEI/ARB, 29.1% and 46.4% were fully adherent in 1995 and 2003, respectively (p value for trend <0.001). Conclusions Our analysis demonstrates statistically significant but modest improvements in medication adherence for statins and beta-blockers, but not ACEI/ARBs, among patients discharged from hospital after acute MI. Despite these improvements, rates of non-adherence to these highly effective therapies remain extremely high. Given the health and economic consequences of non-adherence, the development of cost-effective strategies to improve medication adherence should be a clear priority. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Computational methods for predicting intramolecular G-quadruplexes in nucleotide sequences

Guanine-rich sequences, including those that form G-quadruplexes, are abundant in regions of biological significance. In order to map putative G-quadruplex elements within mammalian genes we have created a suite of computational tools. This suite contains algorithms to search genes for occurrences of the G-quadruplex motif and determine their distribution near RNA processing sites.
The effect of fluphenazine decanoate on glucocorticoid production, reproductive cyclicity, and the behavioral stress response in the Persian onager (Equus hemionus onager).

Artificial insemination, performed to maximize genetic diversity in populations of zoo-housed animals, requires intensive management and has been associated with low success rates in fractious species. In these species, stressors, such as frequent handling, may impact fertility. Long-acting neuroleptic pharmaceuticals (LANs) can attenuate the stress response to handling, but may also disrupt ovulation in some species, compromising their use for artificial insemination. Therefore, the goal of this study was to determine whether LANs may be used to mitigate stress during reproductive management in wild equids without inhibiting ovulation. Six female Persian onagers (Equus hemionus onager) were treated with fluphenazine decanoate (FD; 0.1 mg/kg IM) or saline control in a random crossover design study. Urinary cortisol, progesterone, estrogen metabolites and behavior were monitored, and follicular dynamics were examined using ultrasonography until ovulation. Onagers demonstrated significantly lower cortisol concentrations (P = 0.03) when treated with FD (6.61 ± 3.26 ng/mg creatinine) compared to saline (9.73 ± 3.19 ng/mg creatinine). Overall, there were no differences in peak estrogen (P = 0.51) or progesterone (P = 0.38) concentrations between the two groups, and all animals ovulated within the expected time frame following FD treatment. However, some onagers exhibited only minor reductions in cortisol secretion and one treated female demonstrated a suppressed luteal progesterone peak, indicating a possible reproductive cost to FD administration. While FD may be useful for highly fractious equids for which the stress of handling delays or inhibits ovulation, these results warrant further investigation of dosing.
Racial Measurement in the American Census: Past Practices and Implications for the Future

▪ Abstract In 1977, the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) established an official classification standard for the measurement of race in the American population. In so doing, the OMB authorities created what amounted to a racial cosmology that spread throughout American society, affecting public perceptions about the racial hierarchy of American society. In 1997, the OMB issued a revised version of this classification in which small changes may profoundly affect the way policymakers and the American public think about race. At the very least, these revisions present significant challenges to social scientists who study race and ethnicity. This review begins with a brief historical overview of racial data collected by the federal government. It subsequently examines the circumstances leading up to the 1997 revisions of OMB Directive No. 15 and discusses how these revisions may affect social scientific research on the subject of race and ethnicity.
ELIMINATE RESIDENCY RESTRICTIONS FOR SEX OFFENDERS

Sometimes legislation is passed based on the support of research or the results of successful programming. More often, however, legislation is passed based on the demands of a constituency group or public outcry. Perhaps the clearest instances of legislation being passed in response to public outcry are laws involving sex offenders. The initial passage of many sex offender laws was in response to high-profile sexual attacks on children. To calm and reassure the public and to mourn the lost children, many of these laws were passed quickly without fully understanding the consequences (Fein, 1995; Freeman-Longo, 1996). Research has determined that many provisions of these laws do little to control reoffending and that many create unintended consequences that may do more harm than good. This article addresses a particular type of sex offender law: residency restrictions. It examines the research that shows problems with residency restrictions. It discusses efforts to repeal sex offender residency restrictions and the rationale behind doing so. It ends with a call to modify residency restriction laws and to create more effective ways of controlling sexual reoffending.
Comparison of arthroscopic approaches and accessible anatomic structures during arthroscopy of the caudal pouches of equine femorotibial joints.

Objective—To (1) describe a caudal approach to equine medial and lateral femorotibial (FT) jointsand (2) illustrate the complex anatomic detail of the caudal compartments of the lateral FT joint.Study Design—Prospective experimental study.Animals—Cadaveric equine hindlimbs (n¼36; 26 horses) and 6 horses (11 hind limbs).Methods—Stiﬂes (n¼8) were dissected and 10 FT joints were injected with silicone. Arthroscopicexploration (n¼29) was performed, followed by dissection to determine sites and structures pen-etrated during entry.Results—A more caudal approach to the caudal pouch of the medial FT improved anatomicobservation. A more caudal approach to the caudal pouch of the lateral FT joint occasionallycaused damage to the common peroneal nerve; however, after reverting to the previously describedapproach, damage was avoided.Conclusion—Arthroscopy of the caudal pouch of the medial FT joint was facilitated using a morecaudomedial approach, which improved observation of intrasynovial structures, most importantly,the caudal cruciate ligament and caudal horn of the medial meniscus. A more caudal approach tothe caudal pouch of the lateral FT joint cannot be safely performed without risk to the commonperoneal nerve and therefore the standard caudal approach is described in detail.Clinical Relevance—A caudomedial arthroscopic approach allows improved surgical assessment ofmeniscal or caudal cruciate ligament injury. Care should be exercised when exploring the caudalpouch of the lateral FT joint because the common peroneal nerve is variably located and couldeasily be damaged during arthroscope or instrument insertion, especially if the limb is minimallyﬂexed.r Copyright 2006 by The American College of Veterinary Surgeons
The Role of Parents in Public Views of Strategies to Address Childhood Obesity in the United States

Policy Points: The American public—both men and women and those with and without children in the household—holds parents highly responsible and largely to blame for childhood obesity. High attributions of responsibility to parents for reducing childhood obesity did not universally undermine support for broader policy action. School-based obesity prevention policies were strongly supported, even among those viewing parents as mostly to blame for childhood obesity. Americans who viewed sectors outside the family (such as the food and beverage industry, schools, and the government) as helping address childhood obesity were more willing to support a wider range of population-based obesity prevention policies. Context The public's views of parents’ behaviors and choices—and the attitudes held by parents themselves—are likely to influence the success of efforts to reverse obesity rates. Methods We analyzed data from 2 US national public opinion surveys fielded in 2011 and 2012 to examine attributions of blame and responsibility to parents for obesity, both among the general public and parents themselves, and we also explored the relationship between views of parents and support for obesity prevention policies. Findings We found that attribution of blame and responsibility to parents was consistently high, regardless of parental status or gender. Support for policies to curb childhood obesity also did not differ notably by parental status or gender. Multivariable analyses revealed consistent patterns in the association between public attitudes toward parents’ responsibility and support for policies to curb childhood obesity. High parental responsibility was linked to higher support for school-targeted policies but generally was not associated with policies outside the school setting. Attribution of greater responsibility to entities external to children and their parents (schools, the food and beverage industry, and the government) was associated with greater support for both school-targeted and population-based obesity prevention policies. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the high attribution of responsibility to parents for reducing childhood obesity does not universally undermine support for broader policy action. But appealing to parents to rally support for preventing obesity in the same way as for other parent-initiated social movements (eg, drunk driving) may be challenging outside the school setting.
The impact of popular literature study on literacy development in EFL: more evidence for the power of reading

Abstract University level EFL students in Hong Kong who participated in a popular literature class that emphasized reading for content and enjoyment, including some self-selected reading, made superior gains on measures of vocabulary and reading rate, when compared to students enrolled in a traditional academic skills class. Eighty-eight percent of the literature students felt that what they learned from the course would help them in other university courses, but only 12% of the traditional academic skills students had this opinion about their class. These results are consistent with previous studies showing that meaningful reading is an important source of literacy competence.
“Gender Symmetry” in Domestic Violence A Substantive and Methodological Research Review

Despite numerous studies that report the preponderance of domestic violence is perpetrated by men against women, other empirical studies suggest that rates of domestic violence by women and men are equivalent. This article explores these claims of gender symmetry in intimate partners'use of violence by reviewing the empirical foundations of the research and critiquing existing sources of data on domestic violence. The author suggests methods to reconcile the disparate data and encourages researchers and practitioners to acknowledge women's use of violence while understanding why it tends to be very different from violence by men toward their female partners.
Empirical treatment of low-level leukocytospermia with doxycycline in male infertility patients.

The treatment of low-level leukocytospermia with doxycycline did not show statistically significant differences in the semen parameters among the treated patients. Although the therapy did not alter the semen parameters, low-level leukocytospermia resolved in 56% of the treatment group, well above the spontaneous resolution rate of 25% observed in historic controls. The natural pregnancy rate among the treatment group (15 of 32 [47%]) was significantly greater than that among the controls (5 of 25 [20%]). The odds ratio for pregnancy outcome was 3.7 (95% confidence interval 1.1-11.7; P .04). CONCLUSION Low-level leukocytospermia might have deleterious effects on male fertility, and antibiotic therapy for such a condition might improve the natural pregnancy rate among infertile couples. UROLOGY 78: 1320‐1325, 2011. © 2011 Elsevier Inc.
The lag–luminosity relation in the GRB source frame: an investigation with Swift BAT bursts

Spectral lag, which is defined as the difference in time of arrival of high and low energy photons, is a common feature in Gamma-ray Bursts (GRBs). Previous investigations have shown a correlation between this lag and the isotropic peak luminosity for long duration bursts. However, most of the previous investigations used lags extracted in the observer-frame only. In this work (based on a sample of 43 Swift long GRBs with known redshifts), we present an analysis of the lag-luminosity relation in the GRB source-frame. Our analysis indicates a higher degree of correlation -0.82+/-0.05 (chance probability of approx 5.5 X 10(exp -5) between the spectral lag and the isotropic peak luminosity, L(sub iso), with a best-fit power-law index of -1.2 +/- 0.2, such that L(sub iso) varies as lag(exp -1.2). In addition, there is an anti-correlation between the source-frame spectral lag and the source-frame peak energy of the burst spectrum, E(sub pk)(1 + z).
Genistein‐induced G2‐m arrest, P21WAF1 upregulation, and apoptosis in a non‐small‐cell lung cancer cell line

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the world, with increasing incidence in many developed countries. Epidemiological data suggest that consumption of soy products (the isoflavone genistein) may be associated with a decreased risk of breast and prostate cancer; however, such studies are not available for lung cancer. We investigated cell growth inhibition, modulation in gene expression, and induction of apoptosis by genistein in H460 non-small lung cancer cells. Genistein inhibited H460 cell growth in a dose-dependent manner. Flow-cytometric analysis showed that 30 microM genistein arrested cell cycle progression at the G2-M phase. 4,6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole staining, flow-cytometric analysis, and DNA laddering were used to investigate apoptotic cell death, and the results show that 30 microM genistein can cause typical DNA laddering, a hallmark for apoptosis. In addition, flow cytometry and 4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole staining showed induction of apoptosis by genistein. Our investigation also demonstrated the modulation of p21WAF1 by Western blot analysis of cell lysates obtained from cultured cells treated with 30 and 50 microM genistein for 24, 48, and 72 hours. Simultaneously, immunocytochemical staining was conducted for the expression of p21WAF1 protein. Our results showed that genistein can upregulate p21WAF1 expression in genistein-treated cells. From these results, we conclude that genistein may act as an anticancer agent, and further studies may prove its efficacy in non-small lung cancer cells. Thus the biological effects of genistein may, indeed, be due to the modulation of cell growth, cell death, and cell cycle regulatory molecules.
Improvements in non-aseptic methods for fungal cultivation on corn-ethanol thin stillage and continuous hydrothermal liquefaction of fungal biomass feedstock

Cultivation of Rhizopus oligosporus and Mucor circinelloides on corn-ethanol thin stillage has been reported to significantly remove COD, TSS, glycerol and organic acids; making in-plant water reuse much more viable while producing a protein-rich animal feed biomass with a high oil content and valuable fatty acids. As fungal biomass cultivation is scaled up from lab to bench and pilot scale, aseptic methods become difficult and cost prohibitive. Non-aseptic fungal cultivation on thin stillage has been reported to have fungal and bacterial contaminants resulting in reduced biomass yields. Chemical oxidizers sodium hypochlorite, chlorine dioxide, iodophor and ozone along with antibiotics penicillin-streptomycin were tested as potential selective disinfectants to enhance fungal biomass yields. Fungal biomass grown on thin stillage also has the potential to be a promising feedstock for advanced biofuels due to its short 2-3 day fermentation period and high oil content. Drop-in biofuel consumption is projected to more than double from 2014-2019. Fungal biomass feedstock for thermochemical processing to produce bio-crude oil that is upgradable to drop-in renewable diesel could help to meet this increasing demand. Suspended growth fungal biomass cultivated in thin stillage has a high moisture content making aqueous-phase processing through hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) a favorable thermochemical process for generating biofuels compared to dry feedstock required for traditional gasification and pyrolysis. Continuous HTL of fungal biomass using a 1.5L supercritical flow reactor to produce bio-crude oil was accomplished. The fungal bio-crude oil was then analyzed and compared with microalgae biocrude oil produced by like methods.
REH2C Helicase and GRBC Subcomplexes May Base Pair through mRNA and Small Guide RNA in Kinetoplastid Editosomes

Mitochondrial mRNAs in Trypanosoma brucei undergo extensive insertion and deletion of uridylates that are catalyzed by the RNA editing core complex (RECC) and directed by hundreds of small guide RNAs (gRNAs) that base pair with mRNA. RECC is largely RNA-free, and accessory mitochondrial RNA-binding complex 1 (MRB1) variants serve as scaffolds for the assembly of mRNA-gRNA hybrids and RECC. However, the molecular steps that create higher-order holoenzymes ("editosomes") are unknown. Previously, we identified an RNA editing helicase 2-associated subcomplex (REH2C) and showed that REH2 binds RNA. Here we showed that REH2C is an mRNA-associated ribonucleoprotein (mRNP) subcomplex with editing substrates, intermediates, and products. We isolated this mRNP from mitochondria lacking gRNA-bound RNP (gRNP) subcomplexes and identified REH2-associated cofactors 1 and 2 ((H2)F1 and (H2)F2). (H2)F1 is an octa-zinc finger protein required for mRNP-gRNP docking, pre-mRNA and RECC loading, and RNP formation with a short synthetic RNA duplex. REH2 and other eukaryotic DEAH/RHA-type helicases share a conserved regulatory C-terminal domain cluster that includes an oligonucleotide-binding fold. Recombinant REH2 and (H2)F1 constructs associate in a purified complex in vitro. We propose a model of stepwise editosome assembly that entails controlled docking of mRNP and gRNP modules via specific base pairing between their respective mRNA and gRNA cargo and regulatory REH2 and (H2)F1 subunits of the novel mRNP that may control specificity checkpoints in the editing pathway.
Aza-Michael Reaction for an Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory

A green, aza-Michael reaction is described that can be used to teach undergraduate students conjugate addition of nitrogen nucleophile to an α,β-unsaturated ester. Students analyze spectral data of the product obtained from the assigned reaction to determine product structure and propose the mechanism of its formation. The experiment requires simple glassware and can be performed during a 3 to 4 h laboratory period in the second semester of introductory organic chemistry after acyl substitution and conjugate addition have been covered in a lecture class.
Emerging Trends in Quality Purchasing Through Pay for Performance in the Hospital Sector in the United States

Pay-for-performance (P4P) has emerged in the US as a key strategy for improving quality of care. The basic concept is to give providers, typically hospitals or physicians, financial incentives to achieve assigned quality goals. This paper compares and contrasts a broad set of quantitative and qualitative analyses that my research team and I have conducted on the impact and implementation of the P4P strategy in hospital settings as well as physician organizations to set the context for P4P in the US at present. For example, in one such analysis, we conducted site visits to a sample of hospitals that were participating in the P4P program sponsored by the largest health plan in the state of Michigan. The site visits were designed to obtain information about the role of the financial incentives in motivating higher quality performance, facilitators/barriers to responding to such financial incentives, changes in clinical systems to achieve the assigned goals, and what (if any) internal arrangements were created to distribute incentive money to individual physicians and other health providers for purposes of achieving the goals. Study results indicated that the motivating effect of the incentives differed substantially across hospitals in relation to such characteristics as mission, market position, and financial status. We also found that hospitals seeking to achieve the goals did so largely without developing internal incentive arrangements for members of their own clinical staff. Quantitative analyses of P4P in other settings suggest that the impact of these programs may often be quite modest in the form of a one-time gain on a given measure (i.e., increase of 5 or less percentage points) without changing the long-term trend for improvement. Large-scale surveys and interviews to assess the attitudes of providers toward P4P programs reveals that providers by and large are comfortable with the concept of P4P but have substantial concerns about the way many programs have been designed and implemented regarding the structure of financial incentives, communication about the program itself and the extent to which assigned goals are within their scope of control. The paper also highlights our recent work with officials for the Medicare program to design a plan that will establish P4P as a central feature of hospital reimbursment with the the country's largest health insurance program.
Age Effects in Adaptive Criterion Learning

Objective. Although prior work has examined age-related c hanges to criterion placement and flexibility, no study tested these constructs through a paradigm that employs adaptive feedback to encourage specific criterion changes. The goal of this study was to assess age differences in how young and older adults adapt and shift criteria in recognition memory decisions based on trial-bytrial feedback. Method. Y oung and older adults completed an adaptive criterion learning paradigm. Over 3 study/ test cycles, a biased feedback technique at test encouraged more liberal or strict responding by false-positive feedback toward false alarms or misses. Results. Older adults were more conservati ve than young, even when feedback first encouraged a liberal response bias, and older adults adaptively placed criteria in response to biased feedback, much like young adults. After first being encouraged to respond conservatively, older adults shifted criteria less than young when feedback encouraged more lenient responding. Discussion. These findings evidence labile adaptive criteria placement and criteria shifting with age. However, age-related tendencies toward conservative response biases may limit the extent to which criteria can be shifted in a lenient direction.
0403 An Exposure Assessment Model for Long Working Hours

Objectives To operationalize a definition of long working hours that overcomes limitations of existing heterogeneous definitions and to examine the temporal trends of long working hours across worker characteristics in the US. Method We examined 25 years (1985–2010) of repeated working hour measures from a representative sample of workers in the US Panel Study of Income Dynamics. Self-reported working hours included total annual hours worked, total annual overtime worked, jobs worked, and weekly hours worked by job. An exposure assessment model was produced through the creation of a directed acyclic graph, and a corresponding multivariate model was constructed for purposes of examining long working hours as an independent risk factor for various health outcomes, including cardiovascular disease. Results An improved measure of working hours was produced in the form of a model that included dimensions of working hour intensity and duration. Descriptive analyses evaluating the frequency and temporal trends of long working hours across demographic and occupational strata were calculated on 31 136 participants employed during this study period, with 66.8% and 32.0% who worked more than 40 and 50 h per week on average, respectively, for any year. Conclusions The longitudinal nature of this study in a large representative sample of US workers using repeated measures of working hours allowed us to operationalize a more comprehensive definition of long working hours, addressing methodological issues identified in previous research and providing enhanced generalizability. We examined the relationship of long working hours with health outcomes while considering participants demographic and occupational characteristics.
Autologous Fat Grafting in Breast Reconstruction

There has been some controversy about the use of autologous fat transfer to the breast. The Fat Graft Task Force of the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons in their recent consensus statement, found no evidence in the literature that autologous fat grafting into the breast interferes with breast cancer detection. Currently, autologous fat grafting is being used widely in patients undergoing breast reconstruction. The authors discuss indications, donor site selection, infiltration solution, harvesting technique, isolating adipocyte fraction, injection technique, and complications.
Rectangular jet with shear layer swirl: Rotation & mixing enhancement:

A rectangular jet emerging from a nozzle with embedded swirl vanes in its exit boundary layer is studied. The swirling shear layer imposes an external torque on the jet boundary where it causes jet...
A comparative study of selected handball techniques.

Abstract This study compared the effectiveness of the two most commonly used handball arm-hand actions in relation to (a) handball velocity, (b) time required to execute each stroke and (c) distance the striking hand travels during the propulsive phase of each stroke. Handball velocity was measured with the Hale Reaction-Performance Timer. The data for the remaining variables were obtained through cinematographical analysis. Eleven experienced handball players at Springfield College were selected as subjects. Velocity results indicated that significant differences existed between the flexion-extension and straight arm techniques. Differences between the two stroking techniques for execution time and hand distance traveled were found, although the data for these two variables were not scrutinized statistically.
The thermodynamic and kinetic interactions of He interstitial clusters with bubbles in W

Due to its enviable properties, tungsten is a leading candidate plasma facing material in nuclear fusion reactors. However, like many other metals, tungsten is known to be affected by the high doses of helium atoms incoming from the plasma. Indeed, the implanted interstitial helium atoms cluster together and, upon reaching a critical cluster size, convert into substitutional nanoscale He bubbles. These bubbles then grow by absorbing further interstitial clusters from the matrix. This process can lead to deleterious changes in microstructure, degradation of mechanical properties, and contamination of the plasma. In order to better understand the growth process, we use traditional and accelerated molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the interactions between interstitial He clusters and pre-existing bubbles. These interactions are characterized in terms of thermodynamics and kinetics. We show that the proximity of the bubble leads to an enhancement of the trap mutation rate and, consequently, to the nucleation of satellite bubbles in the neighborhood of existing ones. We also uncover a number of mechanisms that can lead to the subsequent annihilation of such satellite nanobubbles.
Stereological Interpretation of Measurement Data

Stereology is a coined word, in use now for nearly three decades to describe the study of relationships between three-dimensional structure and the measurement parameters that can be obtained from conventional two-dimensional images. Many of the fundamental relationships and principles of stereology come from the mathematical field of geometrical probability which has deep roots (Buffon, 1777), but it is not essential to be comfortable with the derivations of the tools to be able to utilize them. (For comprehensive references to stereological interpretation, see DeHoff & Rhines, 1968; Underwood, 1970; Weibel, 1979; Russ, 1986).
Regional variation of Lg coda Q in the continental United States and its relation to crustal structure and evolution

Records from broadband digital stations have allowed us to map regional variations of Lg coda Q across almost the entire United States. Using a stacked ratio method we obtained estimates of Q 0 (Lg coda Q at 1 Hz) and its frequency dependence, η, for 218 event-station pairs. Those sets of estimates were inverted using a back-projection method to obtain tomographic images showing regional variations of Q 0 and η. Q 0 is lowest (250–300) in the California coastal regions and the western part of the Basin and Range province, and highest (650–750) in the northern Appalachians and a portion of the Central Lowlands. Intermediate values occur in the Colorado Plateau (300–500), the Columbia Plateau (300–400), the Rocky Mountains (450–550), the Great Plains (500–650), the Gulf Coastal Plain and the southern portion of Atlantic Coastal Plain (400–500), and the portions of the Central Lowlands surrounding the high-Q region (500–550). The pattern of Q 0 variations suggests that the United States can be divided into two large Q provinces. One province spans the area from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic coast, is technically stable, and exhibits relatively high Q 0. The other extends westward from the approximate western margin of the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coast, is tectonically active, and exhibits low Q 0. The transition from high to low Lg coda Q in the western United States lies further to the west than does an upper mantle transition for Q and electrical resistivity found in earlier studies. The difference in Q 0 between the western and eastern United States can be attributed to a greater amount of interstitial crustal fluids in the west. Regions of moderately reduced Q within the stable platform often occur where there are accumulations of Mesozoic and younger sediments. Reduced Q 0 in the southeastern United States may not be due to anelasticity but may rather be explained by a gradational velocity increase at the crust-mantle boundary that causes shear energy to leak into the mantle.
Cancer Survivorship, Models, and Care Plans: A Status Update

This article provides a synopsis of the status of cancer survivorship in the United States. It highlights the challenges of survivorship care as the number of cancer survivors has steadily grown over the 40 years since the signing of the National Cancer Act in 1971. Also included is an overview of various models of survivorship care plans (SCPs), facilitators and barriers to SCP use, their impact on patient outcomes, and implications for clinical practice and research. This article provides a broad overview of the cancer survivorship, including models of care and survivorship care plans.
Abstract ES8-2: ES8-2 Energy balance: The new adjuvant therapy?

Obesity affects the risk of breast cancer development and the risk of recurrence and death from breast cancer. Furthermore, weight gain after diagnosis of breast cancer (independent of BMI at diagnosis) is associated with higher all-cause mortality rates compared with maintaining body weight. The American Cancer Society (ACS) recommends cancer survivors achieve and maintain a healthy weight, follow a dietary pattern high in vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, engage in 150 minutes per week of aerobic exercise plus two strength training sessions per week, and avoid physical inactivity. Despite these recommendations, over 65% of breast cancer survivors are overweight or obese, and fewer than 30% engage in recommended levels of physical activity. Recently, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) published a position statement on obesity and cancer with a multipronged initiative to reduce the impact of obesity on cancer, with one of the initiatives focused on determining best methods to help cancer survivors make effective changes in lifestyle behaviors. The impact of weight loss and exercise trials on breast cancer outcomes, as well as future research opportunities and the role of clinical and community-based weight management programs, will be discussed. Citation Format: Irwin ML. ES8-2 Energy balance: The new adjuvant therapy? [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr ES8-2.
Session Duration Based Feature Extraction for Network Intrusion Detection in Control System Networks

The use and deployment of Industrial Control Systems (ICS) have become standard across many industries, though the security of these important systems have not kept pace with their current Internet focused deployment technologies. This technology gap has exposed an exploitable vector for would be attackers as ICS protocols do not have security mechanisms in place to handle Internet connectivity. This paper focuses on a critical component of a Network Telemetry based Intrusion Detection system (IDS) that can help eliminate this exploitable vector. This component is a method for extracting features using session duration based instantiation. After integrating this feature extraction method into the telemetry based IDS, it is able to achieve 99.98% accuracy when distinguishing between an engineer and an attacker on the same network.