cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Clinical applications of esophageal manometry and pH monitoring

In summary, GERD patients are usually well managed using a careful medical history, endoscopy, and empirical trials of antireflux medications. Extended esophageal pH monitoring is unnecessary in most patients but can be of considerable value in managing patients with typical or atypical symptoms who are refractory to standard therapy for GERD. Furthermore, the test can be useful in documenting abnormal reflux in an individual without esophagitis being evaluated for antireflux surgery. The test is done with compact, portable data loggers, miniature pH electrodes, and computerized data analysis. The pH electrode should be positioned 5 cm above the manometrically defined upper limit of the LES, and patients should undergo the test on an unrestricted diet. In terms of data analysis, the total percentage time of pH < 4 provides as much information as any other scheme of quantifying esophageal acid exposure, but symptom association is essential when evaluating atypical or sporadic symptoms. Enthusiasm for 24-h pH monitoring must, however, be tempered with an analysis of its proven clinical utility in patient management with its utility rightfully compared with that of an empirical trial of anti-reflux therapy. Ambulatory pH monitoring is probably most useful in examining patients without typical reflux symptoms or patients who have either partially or completely failed a trial of anti-reflux therapy. To date, there have not been any prospective, controlled clinical trials evaluating these uses. Suggested clinical indications for ambulatory pH monitoring are listed in Table 5 (53).
Eye signs and tic disorders: Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome.

Background Eye tics are among the most common manifested symptoms of tic disorders, including Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome (GTS). Methods A review of medical literature or ocular signs and symptoms of tic disorders was conducted. Results Tic disorders are characterized by repetitive and often disabling movements that primarily involve the eyes, face, neck, and voice apparatus. In addition, patients with tics may have eye problems related to medications used to control tics. Some eye signs are atypical in tic disorders and their presence may suggest alternate diagnoses. Conclusion Eye tics can be disabling and a optometrist should be familiar with ocular manifestations of tics and ocular dysfunction related to tic treatment, and also be aware of other neurologic conditions confused with tics.
Blue-sky bifurcation of ion energies and the limits of neutral-gas sympathetic cooling of trapped ions

Sympathetic cooling of trapped ions with neutral buffer gases is a widespread technique, but its limitations are not entirely understood. Here, the authors examine barion ions immersed in a gas of calcium atoms, and observe nonequlibrium behaviour through bifurcations in the ions steady-state temperatures.
Presenting a New, Non-Hormonally Mediated Cyclic Headache in Women: End-Menstrual Migraine.

Background This retrospective observational study describes what appears to be a not-uncommon yet not previously typified headache disorder, “end-menstrual migraine” (EMM) named for its proximate occurrence with the terminal days of menstrual bleeding each month. Methods Our menstrual migraine (MM) clinic's database was queried for patients with migraine, regular menses, and the locally used diagnostic code of EMM, signifying the patient's assertion that she had migraine at the end of menses as well as calendar data confirming that association. Serum ferritin levels were available for all subjects with EMM. Results Among the most recently seen 119 women in the clinic, 85 had both regular menses and a diagnosis of migraine, and were thus appropriate for evaluation. In this selected population, 30 women (35.3%) were confirmed to have EMM. Twenty-eight of those 30 patients (93.3%) had ferritin levels that fell below the generally accepted lower desirable limit of 50 ng/mL (mean = 21.9 ng/mL) – half of whom fell below 18 ng/mL, the established minimum levels for women. Conclusions EMM is a common complaint in women evaluated for menstrual-related migraine (MRM), yet these migraines occur many days after the estrogen withdrawal that precipitates MRM. The authors do not believe that EMM is hormonally mediated, but rather that it is causally related to menstrual blood loss, resulting in a brief relative anemia with consequent migraine. Further study is needed to substantiate this association, search for confounders, and evaluate response to iron therapy.
From Submission to Subversion? The Aidaoyuan Boarding School for Chinese Girls in Qingdao, 1904–1914

This chapter focuses on the Aidaoyuan, a boarding school for girls jointly run by two German Protestant missionary societies, the Berlin Mission and the Morgenlandischer Frauenverein fur Mission in the German Leasehold of Kiaochow (Jiaozhou) in Shandong Province between 1904 and 1914. Based on published and archival materials from both societies, it argues that without explicitly challenging the patriarchal framework informing both the missionary community and the traditional Chinese multigenerational household, the school prepared students to navigate the complexities of the equally conservative Chinese Confucian and German Lutheran visions of proper behavior for women. By supporting students in choosing a life that encompassed both family and teaching, it empowered them to envision their own lives beyond the duality of submission and individual agency.
Statistical analysis of transmission line capacities in electric power grids

This paper mainly focuses on statistical analysis of transmission line capacities in terms of both topology and electrical parameters. We expand our earlier work on random-topology power grid modeling as a way to generate synthetic grid data to test new concepts and designs. We examine transmission line capacities based on both network topology metrics and a newly proposed electrical index called “neighboring capacity ratio”. The obtained results show that the issue of transfer capacity assignment not only emerges as an electrical optimization concern, but some topological metrics must be considered to find the best line capacity assignment that is consistent with what is manifested in real-world grid. Statistical experiments conducted on the ERCOT and WECC system data help appropriately characterize the transmission line capacity. And the results can be utilized to improve our synthetic power grid models in the future.
Tie-Dye! An Engaging Activity To Introduce Polymers and Polymerization to Beginning Chemistry Students

A stand-alone polymer unit, centered on a tie-dye activity, was used to introduce the concept of polymers and the process of polymerization to three different groups of beginning-level chemistry students. This polymer unit consists of three parts. First, each student used a molecular model kit to construct the monomer units, β-d-glucose. Students combined these monomer units to learn the polymerization process and visualize the formation of the cellulose polymer in conjunction with writing the balanced equation for the polymerization reaction. Second, students tie-dyed cotton t-shirts made of cellulose fibers using dyes purchased from local craft stores. Finally, a primary literature exercise engaged students in understanding the chemical reactions that bind the cellulose fibers to the dye molecules permanently, producing a colorfast tie-dyed t-shirt. This stand-alone polymer unit can be used in any beginning college or high school chemistry course to introduce students to polymer chemistry and the proces...
Race, Place, and the Power of Interactions

The young women who live in or come to Mayfair to go to school have much to teach their fellow students, teachers, administrators, and town residents. Through implicit and explicit lessons, they counteract academic, economic, geographic, and social stereotypes tied to race. Residents require their white counterparts to see that even though they may not have the same skin tone, they can be neighbors. Commuters and boarders teach their white counterparts that even though they are not neighbors, they are not that different. These interactions are critical in the education of elite white Mayfair, but come at a significant social and emotional cost to the young women who simply sought a high school education and did not ask to be racial educators.
Robotic Assisted Radical Prostatectomy

Radical prostatectomy is one of the gold standard treatments for clinically localized prostate cancer. Since introduced in 2001 robotic assistance has significantly changed the surgical management of clinically localized prostate cancer. Within a decade, robot assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALP) is being utilized worldwide. In the USA, more than 80 % of radical prostatectomies are performed with robot assistance [1]. Several technical modifications evolved with the principle of achieving trifecta. Our group introduced the concept of pentafecta with key components of local tumor control with negative surgical margins, less perioperative morbidity while preserving continence and sexual function [2].
Abstract 66: Discovery of a Novel Pharmaceutical Class as Potential Heart Failure Treatment

Utilizing an unbiased in vivo phenotypic chemical screening platform in zebrafish embryos, our laboratory has identified a number of novel compounds with high selectivity for a wide range of cellular targets, including kinases (CK2a, DRAK2, DYRK2 and bone morphogenetic protein receptors), GPCRs (lysophosphatidic acid receptor 1, and extracellular proton sensor), p300 histone acetyltransferase, and phosphodiesterase-4 (PDE4). While the compounds we discovered have therapeutic implications for a wide range of diseases, our translational work has focused on addressing the cardiovascular diseases. Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of disability and mortality in US, affecting about 6 million Americans, and the incidence of heart failure is anticipated to increase substantially in the coming decades. Yet, current HF pharmaceuticals are palliative, and the outlook for HF drug pipeline is uncertain. Within this backdrop, we recently discovered eggmanone, an extraordinarily selective PDE4 inhibitor which has no known off-target. An usual feature of eggmanone is that it increases cAMP levels specifically in distinct cellular microdomains, without raising the total cellular cAMP content. In isolated mouse cardiomyocytes and human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC-CMs), eggmanone increases cardiac contractility by targeting a discrete myocyte microdomain without causing significant changes in myocyte calcium cycling. Importantly, eggmanone enhances systolic function in mice with failing hearts without increasing the heart rate. These results raise the exciting possibility that a microdomain-specific PDE4 inhibitor like eggmanone may be useful as an inotropic therapy for HF which avoids the pitfalls of traditional PDE inhibitors, whose utility has been limited by proarrhythmia, tachyphylaxis and cardiotoxicity.
Calibration of stochastic biochemical models against behavioral temporal logic specifications

Calibrating stochastic biochemical models against experimental insights remains a critical challenge in biological design automation. Stochastic biochemical models incorporate the uncertainty inherent in the system being modeled, thus demanding meticulous calibration techniques. We present an approach for calibrating stochastic biochemical models such that the calibrated model satisfies a given behavioral temporal logic specification with a given probability. Model calibration is defined as an optimization problem that aims to minimize a cost function that computes either a qualitative or a quantitative measure of distance between the parameterized stochastic biochemical model and the expected behavioral specification. To minimize this distance, our approach combines various statistical hypothesis testing methods with automated runtime monitoring of high-level temporal logic specifications against time-series data obtained by simulating stochastic models. We apply sequential probability ratio test (SPRT) and Bayesian statistical model checking (BSMC) when the distance between the model and the behavioral specification is a qualitative value. Alternatively, when the distance is a quantitative value describing how well a specification is satisfied by the model, we use a hypothesis test to sequentially select between two distributions of the distance metric that has the larger mean. Such tests describe the stopping condition to reduce the number of samples required for discovering the correct parameter values. We demonstrate the potential of our approach on two examples using agent-based models implemented in SPARK and rule-based models implemented in BioNetGen modeling languages. The distance between a candidate biochemical model and an expected behavior encoded in temporal logic can be used to drive a local or global search technique during the model calibration process. Our approach follows Simulated Annealing as the global search algorithm that avoids local minima by accepting inferior solutions, at high temperatures, with a very low probability. The problem of stochastic model calibration against behavioral temporal logic specifications has numerous applications in science and engineering and has been widely studied. Our algorithmic approach towards this problem may be an important component of future biological design automation software suite.
Abstract 13707: Resting Heart Rate and Incident Atrial Fibrillation: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Background: The evidence on the association between resting heart rate and incident atrial fibrillation (AF) is conflicting. Whether temporal change in resting heart rate is associated with incident AF is unknown. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that high baseline resting heart rate and temporal increase in heart rate are associated with incident AF. Methods: We evaluated 11,545 participants (age: 57 ± 5.7 years) free of AF at baseline (1990-1992) and not taking medications affecting heart rate. Resting heart rates were obtained from 10-second ECGs at baseline and 3 years later. AF was diagnosed by visit ECGs, discharge records, and death certificates through 2013. High and low resting heart rates were defined as ≥ 80 and 15 and Results: After a mean of 22.5-years of follow-up, 1746 (15%) participants developed AF. After adjusting for traditional AF risk factors, baseline high resting heart rate, compared to normal, was associated with incident AF (hazard ratio [HR]=1.2, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.0-1.5). Temporal increase in heart rate, compared to stable heart rate, was also associated with incident AF (HR = 1.4, 95% CI: 1.1-1.9). However, this association disappeared after further adjustment for incident heart failure. Compared to their counterparts, increase in heart rate was only associated with incident AF in participants Conclusions: In a middle-aged population, baseline high resting heart rate is associated with incident AF. Temporal increase in heart rate is also associated with incident AF, especially in individuals at lower baseline risk of AF.
Skepticism as a political orientation factor: A moderated mediation model of online opinion expression

This study examines the role of skepticism as a source of news media use and online opinion expression. Data from a national online panel of participants show that skepticism is related to increase...
The importance of understanding children’s lived experience

Abstract We argue that the field of developmental research needs a course-correction, to focus more on describing the cultural paradigms of children’s lived experience — children’s participation in the settings of their lives. This is essential information for understanding child development. We describe a sociocultural theoretical perspective that focuses on children’s participation in the everyday practices and settings of their lives, and examine the field’s efforts over the past half-century to understand children’s lives in context. Several emphases are needed for the field to understand lived experience: It is crucial to examine (rather than assume) generality of findings across populations and situations; to interpret findings based on knowledge of children’s lives rather than researchers’ intuitions; and to study children’s development in the ecologies in which it occurs. We call for research on how children everywhere learn to navigate across and participate in the distinct cultural settings of their everyday lives.
Datatypes with Shared Selectors

We introduce a new theory of algebraic datatypes where selector symbols can be shared between multiple constructors, thereby reducing the number of terms considered by current SMT-based solving approaches. We show that the satisfiability problem for the traditional theory of algebraic datatypes can be reduced to problems where selectors are mapped to shared symbols based on a transformation provided in this paper. The use of shared selectors addresses a key bottleneck for an SMT-based enumerative approach to the Syntax-Guided Synthesis (SyGuS) problem. Our experimental evaluation of an implementation of the new theory in the SMT solver cvc4 on syntax-guided synthesis and other domains provides evidence that the use of shared selectors improves state-of-the-art SMT-based approaches for constraints over algebraic datatypes.
Vector Quantization I:Structure and Performance

Vector quantization (VQ) is a generalization of scalar quantization to the quantization of a vector, an ordered set of real numbers. The jump from one dimension to multiple dimensions is a major step and allows a wealth of new ideas, concepts, techniques, and applications to arise that often have no counterpart in the simple case of scalar quantization. While scalar quantization is used primarily for analog-to-digital conversion, VQ is used with sophisticated digital signal processing, where in most cases the input signal already has some form of digital representation and the desired output is a compressed version of the original signal. VQ is usually, but not exclusively, used for the purpose of data compression. Nevertheless, there are interesting parallels with scalar quantization and many of the structural models and analytical and design techniques used in VQ are natural generalizations of the scalar case.
Combined nitroprusside-dopamine therapy in severe chronic congestive heart failure: Dose-related hemodynamic advantages over single drug infusions☆

To assess the circulatory effects of afterload reduction and inotropism individually and in combination as rational therapy for refractory heart failure, nitroprusside and dopamine were administered to 13 patients with severe cardiac decompensation. Dopamine at average doses of 3 and 7 microgram/kg per min produced increases in cardiac output and reductions in peripheral resistance. At doses of 15 microgram/kg per min, dopamine increased heart rate, peripheral arterial pressure and side effects. Nitroprusside alone decreased left-sided filling pressures and increased cardiac output. When the agents were administered together, the increases in cardiac output were significantly greater than with either agent alone and there was physiologic improvement in overall circulatory function. The relations among changes in afterload (systemic impedence), preload (filling pressures) and cardiac index help to explain the salutary effects of combined therapy in patients with refractory heart failure.
Cows in the Corn Grazing Project

Corn is the most productive grass grown in Iowa with dry matter yields often exceeding 6 t/a. Harvesting corn by grazing can provide abundant pasture in mid- to late-summer when pastures in southern Iowa normally make little growth. This approach eliminates harvesting, drying, storage, and transportation costs associated with marketing the grain and leaves almost all of the surplus or waste nutrients in the field. Objectives of this project were to measure animal performance when standing corn crop was the sole feed source for pregnant diary heifers and to increase our understanding of the management practices necessary to optimize the use of this feed source.
Binaural Interaction Models and Mechanisms

Binaural interaction models can be developed at the psycho-acoustic level or at the level of a single nerve cell with inputs from both cochleae. Our goal is to encompass both levels of modeling within a single framework, or at least to develop models on both levels that are compatible.
Role of Phosphatidylinositol Turnover in the Contraction of the Rat Aorta

The contraction of vascular smooth muscle in the rat aorta has been shown to be mediated exclusively by αl-adrenoceptors located on the cell membrane. These αl-adrenoceptors mediate vasoconstriction by stimulating both the influx of extracellular calcium through membrane calcium channels and the release of intracellular calcium stores (1,2). Recently, it has been hypothesized that full αl-adrenoceptor agonists can activate αl-adrenoceptors and stimulate both the influx of extracellular calcium and the release of intracellular calcium, whereas, partial αl-adrenoceptor agonists may only cause the influx of extracellular calcium (1,3).
Investigation of a Large Mode Area Pulsed 1550 nm Laser System

An Ultra Large Mode Area (ULMA) erbium doped optical fiber having a 52 micron core was investigated as the high power stage of a 1550 nm pulsed fiber laser system. The ULMA fiber was seeded with 1550 nm light from a 4 stage all fiber pulsed laser system with pulse energies of 11.35 and 6.25 μJ at pulse widths of 300 ns and repetition rates of 2 and 10 kHz, respectively. The ULMA fiber stage was counterpumped continuous wave in-band with a 1480 nm Raman laser. Maximum pulse energies (and amplifications) of 360 (15 dB) and 130 μJ (13.2 dB) at 2 and 10 kHz, respectively, were found when pumped with approximately 50 W of 1480 nm pump.
Evaluation of the performance of the oceanic hydrate accumulation at site NGHP-02-09 in the Krishna-Godavari Basin during a production test and during single and multi-well production scenarios

Abstract The objective of this study is to quantify, by means of numerical simulation, the response of the complex system of gas hydrate accumulations at Site NGHP-02-09, Krishna-Godavari Basin, Indian Ocean, to different production conditions, and to determine the technical feasibility of gas production through depressurization-induced dissociation. The study assesses the suitability of the site for a long-term production test involving a single vertical well, and the long-term potential of the deposit under full-field production using a system of multiple vertical wells. We simulate gas and water flow, estimate the production performance of the accumulation and separately investigate the corresponding geomechanical response of the system. Results indicate that production from Site NGHP-02-09 under the conditions of a long-term field test involving a single vertical well is technically feasible and can yield high gas production rates. However, an inability to fully isolate the water bearing zones results in production that is largely from dissolved gas rather than hydrate dissociation and is thus burdened by excessive water production. Given the estimated physical properties of the reservoir system, Site NGHP-02-09 does not appear to be a promising location for a single-well field test of gas production, but may be a promising production target for full-field production operations using a multi-well system in which exterior wells can mitigate water inflows to allow interior wells to more effectively depressurize the formation and capture methane from gas hydrate dissociation. Geomechanical issues need to be carefully considered as significant displacements are possible, which can be challenging to well construction and stability.
Gravity field recovery from geodetic altimeter missions

Abstract Satellite radar altimetry collected during a number of geodetic missions has provided a new understanding of the topography and tectonics of the deep oceans. As altimeter performance and coverage improves, smaller structures are revealed. Here we investigate the contribution of six altimeter missions that have been placed into geodetic mapping phases for more than one year. Two types of evaluations are performed. We first compare the composite (all six altimeters) grids of east and north vertical deflection to matching grids where one altimeter has been omitted evaluate their contribution versus latitude. We then estimate the noise in each altimeter by computing the median absolute deviation of the profiles with the best composite grid. Both analyses show that SARAL/AltiKa provides the greatest contribution and ERS-1 no longer provides any significant improvement. The major limitation for recovering small scale gravity features is the sea surface roughness from ocean waves. There have been steady improvements in instrumentation and processing methods that will continue into the future with higher frequency radars and interferometric swath altimeters planned for future missions.
API Misuse Correction: A Fuzzy Logic Approach

Modern software development relies heavily on Application Programming Interface (API) libraries. However, there are often certain constraints on using API elements in such libraries. Failing to follow such constraints (API misuse) could lead to serious programming errors. Many approaches have been proposed to detect API misuses, but they still have low accuracy and cannot repair the detected misuses. In this paper, we propose FAMI, a novel approach to detect and repair API misuses automatically. FAMI uses fuzzy set theory to represent usage rules of five factors involving in any API method call: related method calls, exceptions, pre-conditions, post-conditions, and values of arguments. These fuzzy sets are trained from a large repository of high-quality production code. Then, given a piece of code, FAMI verifies each of its method calls with the trained fuzzy sets. If a factor violates a usage rule defined by a fuzzy set, the corresponding call is considered as an API misuse. FAMI performs an optimal search for editing operations to apply on the code until it has no API issue.
Dr. Elfishawi, et al reply

To the Editor: We thank Huang and colleagues1 for their interest in our study on the changes in the presentation of incident gout and the risk of subsequent flare1. We reported changes over time in gout presentation with podagra becoming less frequent, whereas hyperuricemia and chronic kidney disease were predictors of future flares … Address correspondence to Dr. M.M. Elfishawi, Mayo Clinic, Division of Rheumatology, 200 1st St. SW, Rochester, Minnesota 55905-0002, USA. Email: Elfishawi.Mohanad{at}mayo.edu.
GeoLink Cruises: A Non-Synthetic Benchmark for Co-Reference Resolution on Knowledge Graphs

Since over a decade coreference resolution systems have been developed in order to find simple 1-to-1 equivalent mapping (sameAs relations) between instances of different linked datasets and knowledge graphs. Comparative evaluations of instance matching systems can inform us about the performance of such systems regarding artificial benchmarks or real-world data challenges. However, the lack of real data for evaluating these systems is currently a bottleneck. In this paper, we propose the use of the Cruise entities in the GeoLink data repository as a real-world instance matching benchmark for linked data and knowledge graphs. The GeoLink project has brought together seven datasets related to geoscience research. Both the ontology (T-box) and the instance data (A-box) of GeoLink are significantly larger than current benchmarks, and they have particularly interesting challenges, such as geospatial and temporal data. The benchmark we propose here consists of two real-world datasets in GeoLink called R2R data and BCO-DMO which includes manual curated owl:sameAs links between more than 900 Cruise entities of these two datasets. The reference alignment was discussed and generated by domain experts from different institutions and is expressed in the Alignment API format.
COMPARAÇÃO DO CONHECIMENTO ENTOMOLÓGICO ENTRE ALUNOS DE ZONA URBANA E RURAL

Insetos sao os animais mais abundantes do planeta e fundamentais para o equilibrio do ecossistema, embora pouco compreendidos. Objetivou-se compreender o conhecimento sobre insetos de 49 estudantes de uma escola de ensino fundamental rural e uma urbana. Verificou-se que nao ha definicao clara sobre quais animais sao insetos, visto metade das mencoes referiam-se a animais de outras categorias taxonomicas, tais como escorpioes, aranhas, sapos e ratos. Os criterios utilizados para categorizacao foram caracteristicas comportamentais ou visuais de acordo com relacoes emocionais ja estabelecidas, principalmente repudio. Ha desconhecimento sobre importância ecologica e beneficios dos insetos para o homem. Alunos de zona rural detem mais conhecimento sobre insetos que causam danos ao homem. O jogo ludico foi importante ferramenta para coleta de dados, alem de promover discussoes e despertar interesse sobre o tema. Foi possivel identificar que desde muito cedo ha contato com conceitos equivocados sobre os insetos.
Management and treatment of toxicosis in cattle

Intoxications in domestic livestock continue to confront practitioners with therapeutic and prophylactic problems. The current widespread and necessary use of pesticides in American agriculture continues to cause accidental intoxications in animals. Because of the continued likelihood of intoxications in animals, it is imperative that veterinarians continue their attempt to educate their clients to use proper handling and storage techniques. Only when the actual users and applicators of toxic chemicals control these chemicals properly will the incidence of intoxications be lowered. The increased incidence of intoxications in domestic animals makes necessary the continued emphasis on treating disease conditions caused by toxicants. Consequently, the purpose of this communication is to briefly identify some of the more common toxicants which cause intoxications in animals, and describe the therapeutic and management procedures which should be instituted to treat the resulting disease states.
The Role of Case Merits in Audit Litigation: Interview Evidence

Prior research is unclear on the role of case merits in resolution of legal audit disputes. Using the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) as a lens, we examine their role based on interviews of 42 audit litigation attorneys and trial consultants. Our results indicate that the role of case merits systematically differs between the two sides of audit litigation. Auditors’ (plaintiffs’) litigators believe they can achieve favorable outcomes by increasing the role of merit-relevant (merit-irrelevant) information in juror resolutions using trial venues, jurors, arguments, and argument delivery tactics. Litigators emphasize that this difference arises from the unique features of audit litigation. Our results validate a framework we developed based on ELM. The framework outlines how litigators believe they could increase the likelihood that jurors will use merit-relevant (merit-irrelevant) information in case resolutions. We discuss implications and suggest multiple venues for future research.
PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE SAFETY OF AUTOMOBILE TRAVEL

The study examines individual differences among full-probability samples of the general population (from the Northeast and the Southwest) with regard to their perception of the safety of automobile travel. More specifically, the study explores how individuals differ in their: 1) perceptions of the technology's positive and negative consequences; 2) perceptions of safety standards which regulate automobile travel; and 3) personal involvement in activities (for and against) developing, maintaining, or utilizing this form of transportation. The analyses of perceptions for this mature technology are compared to perceptions of another form of transportation (air travel), and two more recently controversial technologies (industrial chemicals and handguns).
The poly(dA-dT) of crab.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the crab poly(dA-dT). The symbols reflect only about 93% of the structure, of which 4% is irregularly occurring A and T, and 3% is C and G. The noun-adjective “crab” is therefore an essential part of the name of this substance, distinguishing it from the enzymatically synthesized poly(dA-dT) that is composed entirely of alternating A and T residues. Even the designation “crab poly(dA-dT)” is not entirely precise because it is now established that the content of C + G varies from one species of crab to another. The chapter reviews that the crab d(A-T) n belongs to a group of “light satellites” of DNA and constitutes an extreme richest in alternating A and T. The chapter explores that crab d(A-T) n has been further subfractionated. The chapter also discusses that a very long homogeneous molecule of d(A-T) n exists in vivo , but is so fragile that all methods presently available lead to partial degradation and hence to subfractions. However, such a hypothesis cannot be proved experimentally. Therefore, the focus of the chapter is to evaluate the methods that are used to prepare crab d(A-T), and to ascertain its purity.
Effect of Laminar Orthotropic Myofiber Architecture on Regional Stress and Strain in the Canine Left Ventricle

Recent morphological studies have demonstrated a laminar (sheet) organization of ventricular myofibers. Multiaxial measurements of orthotropic myocardial constitutive properties have not been reported, but regional distributions of three-dimensional diastolic and systolic strains relative to fiber and sheet axes have recently been measured in the dog heart by Takayama et al. [30]. A three-dimensional finite-deformation, finite element model was used to investigate the effects of material orthotropy on regional mechanics in the canine left ventricular wall at end-diastole and end-systole. The prolate spheroidal model incorporated measured transmural distributions of fiber and sheet angles at the base and apex. Compared with transverse isotropy, the orthotropic model of passive myocardial properties yielded improved agreement with measured end-diastolic strains when: (1) normal stiffness transverse to the muscle fibers was increased tangent to the sheets and decreased normal to them; (2) shear coefficients were increased within sheet planes and decreased transverse to them. For end-systole, orthotropic passive properties had little effect, but three-dimensional systolic shear strain distributions were more accurately predicted by a model in which significant active systolic stresses were developed in directions transverse to the mean fiber axis as well as axial to them. Thus the ventricular laminar architecture may give rise to anisotropic material properties transverse to the fibers with greater resting stiffness within than between myocardial laminae. There is also evidence that intact ventricular muscle develops significant transverse stress during systole, though it remains to be seen if active stress is also orthotropic with respect to the laminar architecture.
Aligning boundary in kernel space for learning imbalanced dataset

An imbalanced training dataset poses serious problem for many real-world supervised learning tasks. In this paper, we propose a kernel-boundary-alignment algorithm, which considers training-data imbalance as prior information to augment SVMs to improve class-prediction accuracy. Using a simple example, we first show that SVMs can suffer from high incidences of false negatives when the training instances of the target class are heavily outnumbered by the training instances of a nontarget class. The remedy we propose is to adjust the class boundary by modifying the kernel matrix, according to the imbalanced data distribution. Through theoretical analysis backed by empirical study, we show that our kernel-boundary-alignment algorithm works effectively on several datasets.
Combinations and Permutations

January 5. In his first lecture, Polya discussed in general terms what combinatorics is about: The study of counting various combinations or configurations. He stated with a problem based on the mystical sign known, appropriately, as an “abracadabra”.
Can we manage tropical landscapes? – an answer from the Caribbean perspective

Humans have used Caribbean island landscapes for millennia. Theconversion of wild lands to built-up lands or to agricultural lands in thesetropical countries follows predictable patterns. Conversion of moist forestlifezones and fertile flatlands is faster than conversion of wet and rain forestlife zones and low fertility steep lands. In Puerto Rico, these trends areleading to increased built-up areas, environmental surprises, and increaseddependence on external subsidies. Changes over the past 50 yr alsoinclude a reversal in deforestation and increase in forest patch size in spiteof increasing human population density. Present forests have different speciescomposition than the original ones but are indistinguishable in physiognomy andbasic function. The reversal of deforestation and forest fragmentation trends,if accompanied by an understanding of the forces that cause the reversal, canresult in the development of tools for landscape management. Tropical landscapemanagement requires understanding and application of natural resiliencemechanisms of ecosystems, greater use of ecological engineering approaches toinfrastructure development, enforcement of zoning laws, enlightened economicdevelopment policies, and an understanding and agreement of a conservationvision among all sectors of society. Mixing species in new combinations to formnew ecosystems is a necessary step in the development of future landscapes.“Landscapes have always changed over time, but we sense,somewhat uneasily, that the processes now at work are more powerfully focusedand possibly irreversible.”“Our present assumption is that generally tropical lands aremuch more sensitive and less resilient than those in the temperatezones.”“...the long-term world trend in land uses is a cascadingloss in capacity (i.e., degradation) in every broad category of landuse.” J.F. Richards 1990, p 176 and 177.
High wavenumber thermal convection enhanced in regions of partial ionization

The linear stability of a compressible hydrogen fluid undergoing thermal ionization is examined. The ionization formulation consistently includes particle number, latent heat and specific heat effects. It is found that the eigenfunctions of the convective modes are strongly peaked in the region of partial ionization. This tendency increases with increasing horizontal wavenumber. In addition, thermal diffusion is least effective in this region due to the increased specific heat of the fluid. Both these effects combine to yield elevated growth rates at high wavenumbers. This work implies the possible existence of shells of very high wavenumber convection embedded in stellar envelopes. Such shells may determine the depth of the peak source of acoustic emission and may mask large scale coherent flows below. Two-dimensional nonlinear simulations are in progress and are briefly discussed as well.
Crustal structure in eastern New Mexico interpreted from the gnome explosion

The GNOME underground nuclear explosion was recorded at 11 locations ranging from 31 to 431 km north of ground zero near Carlsbad, New Mexico. The seismograms are characterized by the arrival of many phases within a few seconds of the first arrivals. Interpretation of the first arrivals and the more prominent later arrivals indicates that the earth's crust is about 50 km thick in eastern New Mexico. Several arrivals were tentatively identified as reflections from crustal layers and from the base of the crust. A prominent later arrival was identified as a mantle shear phase with a velocity of 4.45 km/sec. (auth)
Crime in the Classroom: An Economic Analysis of Undergraduate Student Cheating Behavior

A logit model is used to study the cheating behavior of students in two large principles of microeconomics classes: cheating is inversely related to GPA and directly related to the perception of the number of students who routinely cheat.
Optimizing CT radiation dose based on patient size and image quality: the size-specific dose estimate method

The principle of ALARA (dose as low as reasonably achievable) calls for dose optimization rather than dose reduction, per se. Optimization of CT radiation dose is accomplished by producing images of acceptable diagnostic image quality using the lowest dose method available. Because it is image quality that constrains the dose, CT dose optimization is primarily a problem of image quality rather than radiation dose. Therefore, the primary focus in CT radiation dose optimization should be on image quality. However, no reliable direct measure of image quality has been developed for routine clinical practice. Until such measures become available, size-specific dose estimates (SSDE) can be used as a reasonable image-quality estimate. The SSDE method of radiation dose optimization for CT abdomen and pelvis consists of plotting SSDE for a sample of examinations as a function of patient size, establishing an SSDE threshold curve based on radiologists' assessment of image quality, and modifying protocols to consistently produce doses that are slightly above the threshold SSDE curve. Challenges in operationalizing CT radiation dose optimization include data gathering and monitoring, managing the complexities of the numerous protocols, scanners and operators, and understanding the relationship of the automated tube current modulation (ATCM) parameters to image quality. Because CT manufacturers currently maintain their ATCM algorithms as secret for proprietary reasons, prospective modeling of SSDE for patient populations is not possible without reverse engineering the ATCM algorithm and, hence, optimization by this method requires a trial-and-error approach.
The Combination Test for Multivariate Normality

A basic graphical approach for checking normality is the Q - Q plot that compares sample quantiles against the population quantiles. In the univariate analysis, the probability plot correlation coefficient test for normality has been studied extensively. We consider testing the multivariate normality by using the correlation coefficient of the Q - Q plot. When multivariate normality holds, the sample squared distance should follow a chi-square distribution for large samples. The plot should resemble a straight line. A correlation coefficient test can be constructed by using the pairs of points in the probability plot. When the correlation coefficient test does not reject the null hypothesis, the sample data may come from a multivariate normal distribution or some other distributions. So, we use the following two steps to test multivariate normality. First, we check the multivariate normality by using the probability plot correction coefficient test. If the test does not reject the null hypothesis, then we...
Interfacial thermocapillary vortical flow for microfluidic mixing.

We present a method for the mixing of fluids in a quasi two-dimensional system with low Reynolds number by means of generating a vortical flow. A two-dimensional cavitation bubble is induced in liquid-expanded phase by locally heating a Langmuir monolayer at the air/liquid interface with an IR laser. The laser-induced cavitation bubble works as a microfluidic pump and generates a thermocapillary flow around the pump. As a result, the surrounding liquid-expanded phase flows in one direction. Perturbing the thermocapillary flow with solid folds that are created by compression and reexpansion of the monolayer induces the vortical flow behind the folds. Applying the equation of creeping flow, we find a torque halfway from the center causing the vortical flow. The vorticity created in this way stretches the liquid-expanded and gaseous phase in the azimuthal direction and at the same time thins both phases in the radial direction. If the vortical flow could be maintained long enough to reach a radial thinning t...
C2-2: Impact of Patient-Centered Medical Home Transformation on Process and Outcome of Care

Background/Aims We evaluated changes in care processes and outcomes associated with various care-redesign initiatives toward a Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH) at an outpatient care delivery system. Care delivery practices and the extent of the implementation of PCMH components varied widely across clinics and physicians at the organization, thereby providing a natural experiment of PCMH evaluation.
Three-dimensional morphometric analysis of cricoarytenoid subluxation.

Summary Objectives To create a high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of a case of cricoarytenoid subluxation and perform quantitative analysis to understand its anatomy and functional consequence. Study Design Computational, with image processing and analysis. Methods High-resolution axial computed tomography images of the larynx of a patient with an anteriorly subluxed arytenoid were processed with custom MATLAB routines to create a versatile 3D reconstruction. The geometries of the subluxed and nonsubluxed arytenoids were quantitatively compared. Results The anteriorly subluxed arytenoid has an inferoposteriorly displaced vocal process (VP), resulting in an elongated and inferiorly positioned vocal fold. The paradoxical posterior displacement of the VP with elongation of the vocal fold has not been described previously. Quantitative analysis reveals significant rotational components and a unidirectional translational component in anterior arytenoid subluxation. Conclusions Quantitative 3D analysis yielded insight into the biomechanics of anterior arytenoid subluxation. Subluxation in this case appeared to involve more pure rotational than translational motion. Overrocking of the subluxed arytenoid can produce paradoxical elongation of the involved vocal fold.
The mechanism of venom secretion from Duvernoy's gland of the snake Thamnophis sirtalis

The venom glands of snakes of the families Elapidae and Viperidae are thought to have evolved from Duvernoy's gland of colubrid ancestors. In highly venomous snakes elements of the external adductor musculature of the jaw insert fibers directly onto the capsule of the venom gland. These muscles, upon contraction, cause release of contents by increasing intraglandular pressure. In Thamnophis sirtalis, a colubrid, there is no direct connection between Duvernoy's gland and the adductor musculature. The anatomical arrangement of the gland, skull, adductor muscles, and the integument is such that contraction of the muscles may facilitate emptying of the gland. This hypothesis was tested by electrical stimulation of the muscles, which resulted in significantly greater release of secretion than elicited by controls. The results suggest a possible early step in the evolution of a more intimate association between venom glands and adductor musculature in highly venomous snakes.