cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Botanicals as topical agents

Botanicals are plant extracts that are popular additives to skin care products. Botanicals formed the basis of all medical treatment when European settlers first came to America. These Europeans learned that the American Indians had an extensive pharmacopeia, based on native plants, that was passed from generation to generation through the wisdom of the medicine man in each community. These plant concoctions were mastered by the settlers, transported back to England, and incorporated into some of the earliest books on medical treatment. When the new English settlers were learning about North American plant extracts, a large body of knowledge utilizing plants from the Orient was also being developed. The richness of plant material in the tropical Orient led to different plant extracts of great diversity that were used in Oriental medicine and religious practices. Today, cosmetic formulators have access to plant materials worldwide for incorporation into topical preparations. This article discusses some of the considerations regarding the use of botanical agents as topical actives and reviews the currently popular botanical additives in the marketplace.
Multiresolution signal processing by Fourier transform time-frequency correlation analysis

In this paper, multiresolution signal processing is described, by the continuous Fourier transform, not the short-time Fourier transform. The inverse Fourier transform is defined by the integral Fourier formula which is referred to as the correlation of the function (signal) with cosine waveforms of various frequencies. This is a direct way to perform the time-frequency analysis of signals. The Fourier transform is described as the sum of wavelet-like transforms with the cosine analyzing function of one period. Properties of such transforms, including the inverse formula of reconstruction of the signal by the described wavelet-like transforms are described. Examples of application of such transforms to detect the exact location of a high-frequency signal are given.
Gas, tubes and flow

Abstract Gases behave as ‘fluids' under flow conditions. There are two main flow patterns: laminar and turbulent. Here, we review the flow characteristics of gases and how they relate to the airway and endotracheal tubes. An understanding of these characteristics can be manipulated to improve flow in clinical situations; for example, using a gas with a lower density than air such as heliox reduces turbulent flow and may be helpful in patients with airway obstruction. The Bernoulli principle and Venturi effect have been used to develop fixed-performance masks, jet ventilators and suction devices.
A Fuzzy Logic Based Intelligent Negotiation Agent (FINA) in Ecommerce

With the evolution of electronic commerce (eCommerce) on the web and the rise of interest in intelligence of software agents, automated negotiation is becoming an increasingly popular method for an eCommerce system to be efficient; however, negotiation, which takes place in transactions, is complicated, time-consuming and costly for participants to reach an agreement. This paper presents a model of an intelligent negotiation agent based on fuzzy logic methodology in order to alleviate the complexity of negotiation. The proposed negotiation agent model is particularly suitable to open environments, such as the Internet. The conventional methods, such as game theory, are incapable of handling an open environment where the information is sparse and full of uncertainty, while the fuzzy approaches are suitable to elegantly deal with this problem. The fuzzy logic based intelligent negotiation agent, presented in this paper, is able to interact autonomously and consequently save human labor in negotiations. The aim of modeling a negotiation agent is to reach mutual agreement efficiently and intelligently. The negotiation agent is able to negotiate with other such agents, over various sets of issues, on behalf of the real-world parties they represent, i.e. it can handle multi-issue negotiation. The reasoning model of the negotiation agent has been implemented partially by using c# based on Microsoft. NET. The reliability and the flexibility of the reasoning model are finally evaluated. The results show that performance of the proposed agent model is acceptable for negotiation parties to achieve mutual benefits.
Durkheim on the Environment: Ex Libris or Ex Cathedra? Introduction to Inaugural Lecture to a Course in Social Science, 1887-1888

Pioneer environmental sociologists, Riley E. Dunlap and William R. Catton Jr., successfully laid the foundation of environmental sociology by pointing out the anthropocentric bias of mainstream sociology. The exemplary intellectual source of this bias could be found in the works of French sociologist Emile Durkheim whose methodological dictum stated that social facts could only be explained by other social facts. Here we call for a re-evaluation of Durkheim's role as perpetrator of the anthropocentric bias behind the Human Exemptionalist Paradigm dominating mainstream sociology. We do this from several directions but mostly by re-visiting his foundational writing on the topic, his inaugural lecture in sociology given at the University of Bordeaux in 1887. Our critical examination of that lecture makes it clear that Durkheim's idea of “social facts” was far richer, more nuanced, and more mindful of biological and other environmental factors than typically recognized in the sociology literature. We conclude...
Landau and dynamical instabilities of the superflow of Bose-Einstein condensates in optical lattices

The superfluidity of Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) in optical lattices is investigated. Apart from the usual Landau instability, which occurs when a BEC flows faster than the speed of sound, the BEC can also suffer a dynamical instability, resulting in period doubling and other sorts of symmetry breaking of the system. Such an instability plays a crucial role in the dissipative motion of a trapped BEC in an optical lattice recently observed [Burger et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 4447 (2001)].
Elevation of one hour plasma glucose during oral glucose tolerance testing.

Summary Objectives In cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, elevations in 1 hr plasma glucose (PG1) during a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test are common, but of unclear long-term clinical relevance. Thus, we examined associations of PG1 with percent-predicted forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1% predicted), CF exacerbations, and CF related diabetes (CFRD) development. Study Design We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 80 pediatric patients with CF (43 males) followed over 5 years in a single CF center. We considered the association between elevated versus normal PG1 (greater vs. no greater than 160 mg/dl) and linear changes in FEV1% predicted over time for males and female, as well as the odds of a CF exacerbation and the odds of developing CFRD. Results No significant difference in FEV1% predicted between normal versus elevated PG1 was found at baseline, or over time in males or females. However, males with elevated PG1 tended to have worse FEV1% predicted over time than those with normal PG1 (reduction of 0.9 FEV1% predicted/year, 95%CI: −2.5, 0.6). Subjects with PG1 > 160 mg/dl were more likely to develop CFRD (OR 4.5, 95%CI: 1.7, 18.7, P = 0.04) but CF exacerbation risk was similar in both groups. Conclusion The risk of CFRD increases with PG1 > 160 mg/dl. No statistically significant evidence of an association between elevated PG1 and pulmonary function was found, yet our results do not exclude the possibility that in males, elevated PG1 may signal adverse changes in FEV1% predicted over time. This possibility requires further study with a larger sample size. Pediatr Pulmonol. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2015; 50:963–969. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Coronary Venous Interventions Failed Strategy or Inadequately Explored

Coronary revascularization can salvage ischemic myocardium, relieve symptoms, and prolong life in patients with high-risk acute coronary syndrome and in patients with severe coronary artery disease. It is no wonder that coronary artery bypass surgery and percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) were preformed on nearly 900 000 patients in the United States in 2010.1 Despite the advances with both revascularization techniques, there are many situations where improvement is still needed. For instance, myocardial salvage in ST-segment–elevation myocardial infarction with primary PCI averages only 40% to 50% of the area at risk despite timely reperfusion and many patients with multivessel disease continue to have severe angina and ischemia because of anatomy that is not amenable to revascularization. As many as 7% or 1.8 million individuals are estimated to be unrevascularizable and the treatment options for these patients are limited and often unsuccessful.2,3 Recently, several articles have been published suggesting that retrograde perfusion via the coronary sinus may have promise as a treatment option for these patients. In a study by Verheye et al,4 104 patients with severe angina who were not candidates for revascularization were randomized to partial coronary venous occlusion accomplished by placement of an hourglass stent in the coronary sinus or to a sham operation. The stent partially obstructs the coronary sinus leading to increased retrograde flow into the ischemic territory. At 6 months, angina and quality-of-life measures were significantly improved during exercise time and wall motion index during dobutamine stress imaging were not. The study demonstrated feasibility and safety accompanied by symptomatic improvement but it failed to show improvement on functional testing. Given …
Understanding complex situations

Natural language texts often refer to complex situations. Many of these situations involve relationships between people's goals. In order to build a program that understands texts, it is necessary to give the program knowledge about goal relationships and the situations to which they give rise. This knowledge constitutes a theory of planning about real world situations. We have incorporated this theory of planning into a program called PAM (Plan Applier Mechanism). As a result we now have a natural language processing system that can comprehend many complicated dramatic situations.
Urea-associated oxidative stress and Gadd153/CHOP induction

Urea treatment (100-300 mM) increased expression of the oxidative stress-responsive transcription factor, Gadd153/CHOP, at the mRNA and protein levels (at >/=4 h) in renal medullary mIMCD3 cells in culture, whereas other solutes did not. Expression of the related protein, CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP-beta), was not affected, nor was expression of the sensor of endoplasmic reticulum stress, grp78. Urea modestly increased Gadd153 transcription by reporter gene analysis but failed to influence Gadd153 mRNA stability. Importantly, upregulation of Gadd153 mRNA and protein expression by urea was antioxidant sensitive. Accordingly, urea treatment was associated with oxidative stress, as quantitated by intracellular reduced glutathione content in mIMCD3 cells. In addition, antioxidant treatment partially inhibited the ability of urea to activate transcription of an Egr-1 luciferase reporter gene. Therefore oxidative stress represents a novel solute-signaling pathway in the kidney medulla and, potentially, in other tissues.
Testing the suitability of geologic frameworks for extrapolating hydraulic properties across regional scales

The suitability of geologic frameworks for extrapolating hydraulic conductivity (K) to length scales commensurate with hydraulic data is difficult to assess. A novel method is presented for evaluating assumed relations between K and geologic interpretations for regional-scale groundwater modeling. The approach relies on simultaneous interpretation of multiple aquifer tests using alternative geologic frameworks of variable complexity, where each framework is incorporated as prior information that assumes homogeneous K within each model unit. This approach is tested at Pahute Mesa within the Nevada National Security Site (USA), where observed drawdowns from eight aquifer tests in complex, highly faulted volcanic rocks provide the necessary hydraulic constraints. The investigated volume encompasses 40 mi3 (167 km3) where drawdowns traversed major fault structures and were detected more than 2 mi (3.2 km) from pumping wells. Complexity of the five frameworks assessed ranges from an undifferentiated mass of rock with a single unit to 14 distinct geologic units. Results show that only four geologic units can be justified as hydraulically unique for this location. The approach qualitatively evaluates the consistency of hydraulic property estimates within extents of investigation and effects of geologic frameworks on extrapolation. Distributions of transmissivity are similar within the investigated extents irrespective of the geologic framework. In contrast, the extrapolation of hydraulic properties beyond the volume investigated with interfering aquifer tests is strongly affected by the complexity of a given framework. Testing at Pahute Mesa illustrates how this method can be employed to determine the appropriate level of geologic complexity for large-scale groundwater modeling.
Use of single nucleotide polymorphisms in candidate genes associated with daughter pregnancy rate for prediction of genetic merit for reproduction in Holstein cows

We evaluated 69 SNPs in genes previously related to fertility and production traits for their relationship to daughter pregnancy rate (DPR), cow conception rate (CCR) and heifer conception rate (HCR) in a separate population of Holstein cows grouped according to their predicted transmitting ability (PTA) [≤-1 (n = 1287) and ≥1.5 (n = 1036)] for DPR. Genotyping was performed using Sequenom MassARRAY(®) . There were a total of 39 SNPs associated with the three fertility traits. The SNPs that explained the greater proportion of the genetic variation for DPR were COQ9 (3.2%), EPAS1 (1.0%), CAST (1.0%), C7H19orf60 (1.0%) and MRPL48 (1.0%); for CCR were GOLGA4 (2.4%), COQ9 (1.8%), EPAS1 (1.1%) and MRPL48 (0.8%); and for HCR were HSD17B7 (1.0%), AP3B1 (0.8%), HSD17B12 (0.7%) and CACNA1D (0.6%). Inclusion of 39 SNPs previously associated with DPR in the genetic evaluation system increased the reliability of PTA for DPR by 0.20%. Many of the genes represented by SNPs associated with fertility are involved in steroidogenesis or are regulated by steroids. A large proportion of SNPs previously associated with genetic merit for fertility in Holstein bulls maintained their association in a separate population of cows. The inclusion of these genes in genetic evaluation can improve reliabilities of genomic estimates for fertility.
P-004 US Multicenter experience with the Wingspan stent system for the treatment of intracranial atherosclerosis: 1 year results

Background and purpose Symptomatic intracranial stenosis is a significant cause of stroke in the USA. No prospective data on long term outcomes have been reported in the literature. Methods All patients (n=158) undergoing angioplasty and stenting at five US centers with the Gateway balloon and Wingspan stent delivery system were prospectively tracked in a formalized central database. Primary end points were major ipsilateral stroke or major ipsilateral stroke and death. Secondary end points were restenosis, minor stroke or transient ischemic attacks. Results 158 patients with 168 stenosis were treated over a 16 month period. Stents were successfully placed in 96% of cases. Periprocedural (within 30 days) were encountered in 5.7% of cases. Long term clinical follow-up was possible on 91% (143 of 158) of patients and angiographic follow-up on 84% (133 of 158) of patients. Further ipsilateral stroke or death was 9% at an average follow-up time of 14.2 months. In-stent restenosis was 31.6% (n=42) but only 9.7% (n=13) were symptomatic. Conclusion Intracranial angioplasty and stenting with the Wingspan system is safe and is effective at reducing the risk of stroke. This data reinforces the necessity of the ongoing randomized SAMMPRIS trial.
The Health Significance of Families Seen through the Recent Measles Outbreak

The recent rise of measles demonstrates the importance of our families’ social characteristics for a host of infectious and non-infectious diseases. We need to recognize that families are more than their shared genes; families are distinctive health environments and our family relationships affect our health and health behaviors. Although families are a relatively understudied health context, I recommend several avenues by which we can grow this exciting field within social epidemiology. With a greater understanding of how families’ social characteristics influence health, we can inform clinical and public health practices and better meet our public health goals.
Encapsulating nanoemulsions inside eLiposomes for ultrasonic drug delivery.

An eLiposome is a liposome encapsulating an emulsion nanodroplet and can be used for drug delivery. For example, therapeutic agents are encapsulated inside the eLiposomes, and the application of ultrasound can cause the emulsion droplet to change from liquid to gas, thus increasing the volume inside the vesicle and causing rupture and the release of the drug. In this research, two different methods were used to prepare eLiposomes. In the first method, emulsion droplets were made of perfluorohexane or perfluoropentane and stabilized with 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate. A layer of 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine was dried in a round-bottomed flask. Then the emulsion suspension was added to the flask. As the suspension hydrated the phospholipids, they formed liposomes around the emulsions. In the second method, emulsions and liposomes were made separately, and then they were mixed using ultrasound. The advantage of this second method compared to the previous one is that eLiposomes can be ...
On merging identity theory and stress research

In this paper I develop and discuss the concept of «identity-relevant stressors.» Identities refer to individuals' conceptions of themselves in terms of the social roles that they enact (e.g., spouse, parent, worker, churchgoer, friend). An identity-relevant experience is one that threatens or, alternatively, enhances an identity that the individual values highly; identity-irrelevant experiences occur in roles that the individual does not value highly. This concept can help solve a problem in the stress literature, namely the inability of stress theory to account parsimoniously for social status differences in psychological distress
Abstract SY29-03: Following single mRNAs from birth to death in living cells and tissues.

Imaging has been an essential tool to analyze the dynamic properties of RNA. New technologies in optical microscopy and tagging methods have allowed us to detect and track individual mRNA molecules in single living cells, yielding insights that could not have been obtained through any ensemble measurement: for instance in measuring the time for transcription elongation or nuclear pore transport. We have been dedicated to developing and implementing these technologies to further the understanding of dynamics of mRNA regulation in cells. We have utilized various microscopic approaches to analyze the components of real-time transcription of endogenous genes in living tissues of a transgenic mouse where the mRNAs are labeled by a fluorescent RNA binding protein. These approaches employ a plethora of imaging techniques, ranging from confocal and multiphoton microscopy, long-term cell imaging, high-speed real-time widefield microscopy, single molecule tracking, super-registration microscopy and fluorescence fluctuation analysis. The kinetics of the key elements of RNA metabolism: initiation, elongation, termination, as well as nuclear pore export, cytoplasmic trafficking, localization, translation and decay are now tractable at the single molecule level in vivo. By using mathematical modeling to extract the quantitative parameters of these kinetics, we can describe these processes precisely in living cells, leading to an understanding of the regulatory events governing gene expression-fundamental to the mechanism of disease. Supported by NIH GMS Grants to RH Singer. Citation Format: Robert Singer. Following single mRNAs from birth to death in living cells and tissues. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr SY29-03. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-SY29-03
Polychromasia capsulare: Determining the cause of multicolored iridescence of the anterior lens capsule.

Polychromasia capsulare is a rare condition in which the anterior lens capsule exhibits an extraordinary array of colors during biomicroscopy that change with the incident angle of direct illumination consistent with iridescence. We present the case of a 59-year-old man with bilateral polychromasia capsulare who had successful cataract surgery. Routine light microscopy of the patient’s capsulorhexis specimen was normal; however, transmission electron microscopy showed an unusual pattern of polygonal profiles with a periodicity estimated to be approximately 400 to 500 nm. This was not found in a control sample of normal lens capsule, which was relatively uniform in structure and significantly more osmiophilic. The iridescence in this patient's lens capsule is thought to be derived from a complex interplay between light and the abnormal nanoarchitecture of the lens capsule, producing an iridescent appearance. Thus, polychromasia capsulare is evidence of the phenomenon known as structural color in human biology. Financial Disclosure None of the authors has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned.
MLL-Rearrangements Result in Upregulation of Mir-9 and Subsequent Inhibition of the Tumor Suppressor TGFBI

Abstract 2453 Acute Leukemia represents one of the most deadly cancers in the United States. Clinical treatments in leukemia have progressed significantly through the use of therapies targeted specifically to chromosomal translocations. The success of these therapies has provided a model for future treatment in various cancers. However, there are various subtypes of leukemia where five-year survival and relapse rates have poor clinical outcome, indicating that new therapies are needed. A particular leukemia subtype, namely mixed lineage leukemia (MLL)-rearranged leukemia that is a result of chromosomal rearrangements leading to fusions between MLL and partner genes, is associated with a dismal outcome. Therapeutic targeting of MLL rearrangements has proven challenging as there have been dozens of described rearrangements. We have performed both messenger RNA (mRNA) and microRNA (a class of small non-coding RNA) microarray analyses on over 100 leukemia patient samples and have identified that microRNA-9 (miR-9) is highly upregulated in MLL-associated leukemias. Through correlating expression of miR-9 and those of its predicted target genes, we identified TGFbeta-induced protein (TGFBI) as a potential target of miR-9 that exhibited a significantly (P Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Women with epilepsy initiating a progestin IUD: A prospective pilot study of safety and acceptability.

SummaryObjective Effective contraception enables women with epilepsy (WWE) to plan their pregnancies and improve outcomes for themselves and their children. Although popular among all women, complex drug interactions limit the efficacy and safety of oral contraceptives (OCs) for WWE. We sought to explore the safety, acceptability, and pharmacokinetic impact of a progestin-containing intrauterine device (IUD) in WWE. Methods We enrolled 20 women with well-controlled epilepsy and a stable antiepileptic drug (AED) regimen and who were initiating a progestin-containing IUD (levonorgestrel 52 mg) in a prospective, observational study. For each AED, we compared the trough concentration before IUD insertion to the trough concentration 3 weeks, and 3 and 6 months later. Participants recorded seizures in a daily paper diary. We compared seizures that occurred during the month before IUD insertion to those occurring in the 6 months thereafter. Participants completed an acceptability questionnaire at 3 and 6 months. Results Participants’ average age was 28 years; 60% were nulligravid. They reported a history of multiple seizure types. During the baseline month, 75% were seizure-free and the remainder reported between one and three seizures. Fourteen received monotherapy and six received polytherapy. Lamotrigine use was most common (n = 12). AED trough concentrations remained stable during the 6 months after IUD insertion, without clinically meaningful deviations from baseline. Diary data showed that seizure frequency worsened in 3, and remained unchanged in 13 and improved in 4 after IUD insertion. Subjectively, no participant believed the IUD worsened her seizure control. All participants were either somewhat or very satisfied with the IUD throughout the study. All participants continued the IUD use at 6 months. No pregnancies occurred. Significance This pilot study suggests that the progestin-containing IUD is a safe and acceptable long-acting contraceptive for WWE.
Higher Education Reform—From Recovery to Bologna

An emerging democracy needs a vibrant higher education system (Saltmarsh & Zlotkowski, 2011). Unfortunately, in the immediate post-war years, university research was almost nonexistent and university instruction was poor. In the last ten years, higher education has improved, but it has struggled to meet the requirements of the Bologna Process and has seen an explosion of private higher education institutions. In a 2010 report, the Human Rights Center (HRC) of the University of Sarajevo summarized the state of higher education in BiH: ‘The post-war Higher Education System in Bosnia and Herzegovina is strongly marked by the following characteristics: decentralization and ethnic divisions; growing number of education institutions and students; overlap between intellectual and political elites; corruption; “brain-drain”; and diminished research potential’ (p. 8). Before the war, the state directed higher education in BiH and predominately prepared students for highly specialized technical trades, as was typical in socialist countries (Spaulding, 1998). After initial recovery efforts were completed, Western European interests, such as the Council of Europe Trans-European Programme for Co-operation in Higher Education in Central and Eastern Europe, began providing assistance to BiH in an effort to modernize and integrate higher education in BiH into the European community (Benedek, 1997), often offering financial incentives for cooperation and collaboration (Sambunjak & Simunovic, 2007).
Privacy-preserving aggregation in life cycle assessment

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is the standard technique used to make a quantitative evaluation about the ecological sustainability of a product or service. The life cycle inventory (LCI) data sets that provide input to LCA computations can express essential information about the operation of a process or production step. As a consequence, LCI data are often regarded as confidential and are typically concealed through aggregation with other data sets. Despite the importance of privacy protection in publishing LCA studies, the community lacks a formal framework for managing private data, and no techniques exist for performing aggregation of LCI data sets that preserve the privacy of input data. However, emerging computational techniques known as “secure multiparty computation” enable data contributors to jointly compute numerical results without enabling any party to determine another party’s private data. In the proposed approach, parties who agree on a shared computation model, but do not trust one another and also do not trust a common third party, can collaboratively compute a weighted average of an LCA metric without sharing their private data with any other party. First, we formulate the LCA aggregation problem as an inner product over a foreground inventory model. Then, we show how LCA aggregations can be computed as the ratio of two secure sums. The protocol is useful when preparing LCA studies involving mutually competitive firms.
Bounded action machines II: The basic structure of Tapeless computers

This paper presents mathematical results concerning the basic structure of computers without tapes. We start by introducing a simple and very general axiomatic model of a computer without tapes (The “Tapeless” Bounded Action Machine). We then impose additional conditions (axioms) upon this basic structure and employ them to characterize such structural properties as: the existence of a processor; the modifiability of a processor; the relationship between the contents of the set of active locations at a given step (the memory locations whose contents are accessed or changed at that step) and the selection of the active locations at the given and following step; and the existence of control registers. The bulk of the paper consists of results concerning the relationships between these properties. In particular the paper shows that the basic structure of “conventional computers” is a consequence of the existence of control registers. Finally these results are generalized to computers with one-step indirect addressing.
Radial Flow between Porous and Solid Disks

In preparation for an experimental investigation for the case in which the solid disk rotates while the porous disk remains stationary, theoretical calculations similar to Dorfman's have been carried out, and pressure distributions for the simpler case in which both disks are stationary have been measured. The comparison of the theoretical and experimental results for the case of stationary disks is summarized herein.
SOME HARMLESS DELAYS

Publisher Summary This chapter describes some of the harmless delays involved in ordinary differential equations. Under the hypothesis kτ 0. In practical applications, one generally ignores delays; thus, it is of interest to determine when this simplification is justified. If, in some sense, a delay differential equation exhibits the same properties as the corresponding differential equation without delay, one might consider the delay to be harmless. If the total variation of n on [;-τ, 0] is L > 0, and Lτe < 1, then in the interval (-l/τ, l/τ) the characteristic equation, has a unique root. For a delay differential equation, one generally expects to specify an initial function on some interval [;-τ, 0] and then satisfy the differential equation only for t ≥ 0. However, for some delay differential equations, a well-posed problem results if one specifies point data, that is, x(0) = x0, and then seeks a solution for t ≤ 0, as well as t ≥ 0. In such cases, the delay differential equations are exhibiting a property characteristic of ordinary differential equations.
The Mechanisms and Analysis of Sperm Migration Through Cervical Mucus

The migration of spermatozoa through cervical mucus has been studied extensively by physiologists and clinicians. Yet our understanding of this biological phenomenon remains superficial. This has been due at least in part to a lack of scientific objectivity in the experimental procedures employed, as well as a tendency to rely upon phenomenological thinking rather than fundamental principles of chemistry and physics. In this chapter our attention will be directed initially to the biophysical context within which the mechanisms of sperm transport in cervical mucus should be considered. Our current knowledge of those mechanisms will be summarized, and some of the applicable experimental techniques and mathematical models of analysis will be discussed. Finally, some new strategies for future investigation will be suggested. We will bring the reader’s attention to a number of scientifically sound and biologically relevent studies, but we will not attempt a comprehensive survey of the research in this area. For this information the reader is referred to a number of recent reviews on sperm transport1 and cervical mucus.2,3,4,5 In beginning this chapter it should be emphasized that among mammals it is primarily the ruminants and primates which produce substantial amounts of cervical mucus, and it is to these species that our comments will apply. The human is by far the best studied of these species and most of the specifics of our discussion will refer to human sperm-cervical mucus interaction.
Efficacy and Safety of Lumen Apposing Self-Expandable Metal Stents for EUS Guided Cholecystostomy: A Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review

Background. Patients with acute cholecystitis are treated with early cholecystectomy. A subset of patients are unfit for surgery due to comorbidities and late presentation. Prompt gall bladder drainage (GBD) with percutaneous or endoscopic approach remains a viable therapeutic option for nonoperative candidates. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) guided transluminal gall bladder drainage (EUS-GBD) continues to evolve as an alternative approach to percutaneous drainage. With continued refinement in stent technology, lumen apposing self-expandable metal stent (LAMS) offers several advantages. We performed a pooled analysis on the efficacy and safety of EUS-GBD with LAMS in nonoperative candidates with acute cholecystitis. Methods. Extensive English language literature search was performed in Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central, and Google Scholar using keywords “endoscopic ultrasound“, “stent“, “gallbladder“, “acute cholecystitis“, and “cholecystostomy“ from Jan 2000 to Dec 2016. Fixed and random effects models were used to calculate the pooled proportions. Results. Data was extracted from 13 studies that met the inclusion criteria . Pooled proportion of technical success was 93.86% (95% CI = 90.56 to 96.49) and clinical success was 92.48% (95% CI = 88.9 to 95.42). Overall complication rate was 18.31% (95% CI = 13.49 to 23.68) and stent related complication rate was 8.16% (95% CI = 4.03 to 14.96) in the pooled percentage of patients. Pooled proportion for perforation was 6.71% (95% CI 3.65 to 10.6) and recurrent cholangitis/cholecystitis was noted in 4.05% (95% CI = 1.64 to 7.48). Publication bias calculated using Harbord-Egger bias indicator gave a value of −0.61 (95%CI = −1.39 to 0.16, ). The Begg-Mazumdar indicator for bias gave Kendall’s tau value of −0.42 . Conclusions. EUS-GBD with LAMS is a safe and alternative treatment modality for patients needing gallbladder drainage, with acceptable intraprocedural and postprocedural complications. However, due to the limited data and lack of direct comparison with other methods, further controlled trials are necessary to estimate the overall efficacy and safety and the role of EUS-GBD with LAMS in management of nonoperative patients with acute cholecystitis.
Exitus: an agent-based evacuation simulation model for heterogeneous populations

Evacuation planning for private-sector organizations is an important consideration given the continuing occurrence of both natural and human-caused disasters that inordinately affect them. Unfortunately, the traditional management approach that is focused on fire drills presents several practical challenges at the scale required for many organizations but especially those responsible for national critical infrastructure assets such as airports and sports arenas. In this research we developed Exitus, a comprehensive decision support system that may be used to simulate large-scale evacuations of such structures. The system is unique because it considers individuals with disabilities explicitly in terms of physical and psychological attributes. It is also capable of classifying the environment in terms of accessibility characteristics encompassing various conditions that have been shown to have a disproportionate effect upon the behavior of individuals with disabilities during an emergency. The system was applied to three unique test beds: a multi-story office building, an international airport, and a major sports arena. Several simulation experiments revealed specific areas of concern for both building managers and management practice in general. In particular, we were able to show (a) how long evacuations of heterogeneous populations may be expected to last, (b) who the most vulnerable groups of people are, (c) the risk engendered from particular design features for individuals with disabilities, and (d) the potential benefits from adopting alternate evacuation strategies, among others. Considered together, the findings provide a useful foundation for the development of best practices and policies addressing the evacuation concerns surrounding heterogeneous populations in large, complex environments. Ultimately, a capabilities-based approach featuring both tactical and strategic planning with an eye toward the unique problems presented by individuals with disabilities is recommended.
Realizing Green Symbol Detection via Reservoir Computing: An Energy-Efficiency Perspective

Reservoir Computing (RC) is a class of machine learning approaches that is suitable for prediction tasks with low computational complexity. In this paper, an RC-based symbol detection for MIMO- OFDM systems is presented where RC is realized through the echo state network (ESN). Detailed energy-efficiency analysis is conducted to characterize the energy-efficiency of the introduced symbol detector. To be specific, the transmit power, the circuit power, and the computational power at both transmitter and receiver are jointly considered for the energy-efficiency analysis. The overall system energy-efficiency as well as the receiver energy-efficiency of the introduced RC-based symbol detector are compared with those of the popular linear minimum mean squared error (LMMSE)-based approach. Simulation and numerical results show that the RC-based symbol detector is a ``green'' solution compared to the traditional LMMSE-based method with lower energy consumption per information bit.
The neuroprotective effects of curcumin are associated with the regulation of the reciprocal function between autophagy and HIF-1α in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury

Purpose The beneficial, neuroprotective effects of curcumin against ischemia-reperfusion injury have been demonstrated. In the present study, whether curcumin exerts neuroprotective effects associated with the inhibition of autophagy and hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) was investigated. Materials and methods PC12 cellular model of oxygen glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R) has been developed to mimic cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. Cell viability was evaluated using the CellTiter 96® AQueous One Solution Cell Proliferation Assay. Apoptosis was assessed using flow cytometry. The expression levels of HIF-1α and autophagy-associated proteins, LC3 and P62, were examined using Western blot. The autophagy flux was quantitatively estimated based on the number of autophagic compartments using fluorescence microscopy. In addition, 3-methyladenine (3-MA) was administered to PC12 cells to investigate how autophagy affects HIF-1α. Moreover, the inhibitory effects of HIF-1α on autophagy activation level were examined. Results In this study, curcumin decreased the death and apoptosis of cells, and inhibited autophagy and HIF-1α under OGD/R conditions, consistent with 3-MA treatment or HIF-1α downregulation. Moreover, inhibition of autophagy caused a decrease in HIF-1α, and the attenuation of HIF-1α induced autophagy suppression under OGD/R conditions. Conclusion The results of this study showed that curcumin exerts neuroprotective effects against ischemia-reperfusion, which is associated with the regulation of the reciprocal function between autophagy and HIF-1α.
Far-Term Exploration of Advanced Single-Aisle Subsonic Transport Aircraft Concepts

Far-term single-aisle class aircraft concepts for potential entry-into-service of 2045 were investigated using an Interactive Reconfigurable Matrix of Alternatives (IRMA) approach. The configurations identified through this design space exploration were then distilled into three advanced aircraft concepts best characterizing the prominent features identified through the IRMA exploration. These three aircraft concepts were then configured and sized for a 150-passenger capacity and a 3,500 nautical mile design mission. Mission block fuel burn was estimated and compared to a far-term conventional configuration baseline concept and a 2005 l. These comparisons suggest considerable potential improvements in fuel efficiency from the investigated advanced concepts.
Model-based Assessment of the Effect of Contact Precautions Applied to Surveillance-detected Carriers of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in Long-term Acute Care Hospitals

Background An intervention that successfully reduced colonization and infection with carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) in Chicago-area long-term acute-care hospitals included active surveillance and contact precautions. However, the specific effects of contact precautions applied to surveillance-detected carriers on patient-to-patient transmission are unknown, as other, concurrent intervention components or changes in facility patient dynamics also could have affected the observed outcomes. Methods Using previously published data from before and after the CPE intervention, we designed a mathematical model with an explicit representation of postintervention surveillance. We estimated preintervention to postintervention changes of 3 parameters: β, the baseline transmission rate excluding contact precaution effects; δb, the rate of a CPE carrier progressing to bacteremia; and δc, the progression rate to nonbacteremia clinical detection. Results Assuming that CPE carriers under contact precautions transmit carriage to other patients at half the rate of undetected carriers, the model produced no convincing evidence for a postintervention change in the baseline transmission rate β (+2.1% [95% confidence interval {CI}, -18% to +28%]). The model did find evidence of a postintervention decrease for δb (-41% [95% CI, -60% to -18%]), but not for δc (-7% [95% CI, -28% to +19%]). Conclusions Our results suggest that contact precautions for surveillance-detected CPE carriers could potentially explain the observed decrease in colonization by itself, even under conservative assumptions for the effectiveness of those precautions for reducing cross-transmission. Other intervention components such as daily chlorhexidine gluconate bathing of all patients and hand-hygiene education and adherence monitoring may have contributed primarily to reducing rates of colonized patients progressing to bacteremia.
Age Differences in Dream Reports

Age is a defining issue in the waking lives of all Americans. It is now time to see if this is also the case in their dreaming lives. Reversing the usual order for discussions of age, we will start with adults and end with children. The chapter begins by comparing college-age findings with those for postcollege groups. It next turns to teenagers (defined as ages 13–17) and then to children (defined as ages 2 to 12). The longest section of the chapter concerns a detailed comparison of conflicting findings on the dream reports of young children. This discussion shows how important the adoption of a common coding system could be in avoiding misunderstandings, but it also shows that with children there are likely to be larger differences between dreams collected in the home and laboratory than we think is the case with adults.
Dietary Intake and Diet Quality of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Survivors.

ABSTRACT Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) survivors are burdened by a high prevalence and early onset of chronic diseases. Healthy dietary patterns have been associated with lower risks of chronic health conditions in the general population. HCT survivors are susceptible to multiple complications that may result in chronic illness. Unfortunately, no study to date has comprehensively documented the adherence of HCT survivors to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), which are designed specifically to provide guidance for making healthy food choices. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate diet quality and nutrient intake adequacy of HCT survivors. A secondary aim was to assess these survivors' willingness to take part in a future dietary intervention. The dietary intake of adults who had undergone autologous or allogeneic HCT for a hematologic disease and were at least 1 year post-transplantation was assessed using the Block 2014 food frequency questionnaire, and diet quality was estimated using the Healthy Eating Index 2015. Nutrient intake adequacies of the group were estimated by the estimated average requirement cutpoint method. Survivors' (n = 90) HEI-2015 scores averaged 61.6 ± 1.1. Adherence to a good-quality diet was reported by only 10% of survivors. Intakes of vitamins A, C, and D, as well as magnesium and calcium, suggested inadequacy. Fiber intake at 8.9 g per 1000 kcal/day fell below the recommended adequate intake. "Change in taste" was associated with lower quality of diet (P = .02). HCT survivors within 2 years post-transplantation were more receptive than survivors beyond 2 years to participating in a dietary intervention (95% versus 65%; P = .0013). Adult HCT survivors reported less-than-optimal adherence to the 2015-2020 DGA and had numerous shortfall nutrient intakes; however, their willingness to participate in a dietary intervention was relatively high. These findings reinforce the need to incorporate nutrition into HCT survivor care.
Addressing Anonymous Abuses: Measuring the Effects of Technical Mechanisms on Reported User Behaviors

Anonymous networks intended to enhance privacy and evade censorship are also being exploited for abusive activities. Technical schemes have been proposed to selectively revoke the anonymity of abusive users, or simply limit them from anonymously accessing online service providers. We designed an empirical survey study to assess the effects of deploying these schemes on 75 users of the Tor anonymous network. We evaluated proposed schemes based on examples of the intended or abusive use cases they may address, their technical implementation and the types of entities responsible for enforcing them. Our results show that revocable anonymity schemes would particularly deter the intended uses of anonymous networks. We found a lower reported decrease in usage for schemes addressing spam than those directly compromising free expression. However, participants were concerned that all technical mechanisms for addressing anonymous abuses could be exploited beyond their intended goals (51.7%) to harm users (43.8%). Participants were distrustful of the enforcing entities involved (43.8%) and concerned about being unable to verify (49.3%) how particular mechanisms were applied.
Below Knee Amputation (BKA)

A below knee amputation must be planned in advance with the two flaps carefully designed to avoid wound complications and a faster recovery so the patient may get their prosthesis fitted as soon as possible. Care must be taken to individually identify and ligate all neurovascular bundles. Avoidance of neuromas is important. The present chapter discusses a below the knee amputation.
Patient Positioning for Operative Laparoscopy in Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecologic Surgery

Purposeful positioning of the pediatric and adolescent patient is critical for successful operative laparoscopy as it facilitates visualization of the abdominopelvic anatomy, optimizes anatomic mobilization, and decreases operative time. For diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis, dorsal lithotomy positioning with modified Trendelenburg is often preferred. Despite the appreciable benefit of this positioning during these operations, there is an inherent risk of iatrogenic injury secondary to nerve compression and decreased compartment perfusion. Care must be taken to minimize these risks during every operation to avoid nerve injury and compartment syndrome.