cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Myriapodous arthropods from the Viséan of East Kirkton, West Lothian, Scotland

Several specimens of myriapodous arthropods have been discovered at the early Carboniferous East Kirkton site near Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland. None is particularly well preserved, but they are the earliest known Carboniferous myriapods, filling the time gap between the Old Red Sandstone of the early Devonian and the abundant myriapod faunas of the late Carboniferous (Pennsylvanian). One of the specimens, a milliped, provides the earliest evidence for both ozopores (repugnatorial gland openings) and spiracles. A second milliped specimen has some characteristics of the living Order Glomeridesmida, and hence of Enghoff's (1990) «ground plan» of chilognathan millipeds. Aspects of these forms and a third suggest a novel early Carboniferous fauna clearly different from both earlier and later ones
Criteria for superconducting transition temperatures

Crystallographic instabilities seem to be a necessary condition for high superconducting transition temperatures in multicomponent phases.
29Si superhyperfine interactions of the E′ center: a potential probe of range-II order in silica glass

Abstract An electron spin resonance study has been carried out on E′ γ centers in γ-irradiated silica glasses of various 29 Si enrichments, with the object of measuring superhyperfine splittings due to 29 Si nuclei at the three closest silicon neighbors to the silicon of the unpaired spin. Experimental spectra obtained at X band (9.1 GHz) in the absorption mode and at Ka band (35.0 GHz) in the rapid-passage dispersion mode are compared with computer lineshape simulations based on a simple tight-binding model anchored to literature values of the so-called ‘weak’ 29 Si hyperfine splittings of the E′ 1 center in α-quartz. Surprisingly few E′ γ sites are found in the glasses to exhibit such ‘weak’ splittings. To reconcile this result with the model assumption made by Mozzi and Warren and the supporting analyses of Galeener, it is suppose that dihedral angles in glassy silica might be relatively uniformly distributed and uncorrelated with the SiOSi angle distribution in the undamaged glass but that backward puckering relaxations (similar to that calculated by Rudra et al. for the E′ 2 center in quartz) may be pervasive at E′ γ (oxygen vacancy) sites in glassy silica, causing dihedral angles in the range 100 ≲ α 1 ≲ 140° to be ‘read out’ in the present experiment as falling in the range 80 ≳ α 1 ≳ 40°
Academic and professional career outcomes of medical school graduates who failed USMLE Step 1 on the first attempt

This study sought to determine the academic and professional outcomes of medical school graduates who failed the United States Licensing Examination Step 1 on the first attempt. This retrospective cohort study was based on pooled data from 2,003 graduates of six Midwestern medical schools in the classes of 1997-2002. Demographic, academic, and career characteristics of graduates who failed Step 1 on the first attempt were compared to graduates who initially passed. Fifty medical school graduates (2.5 %) initially failed Step 1. Compared to graduates who initially passed Step 1, a higher proportion of graduates who initially failed Step 1 became primary care physicians (26/49 [53 %] vs. 766/1,870 [40.9 %]), were more likely at graduation to report intent to practice in underserved areas (28/50 [56 %] vs. 419/1,939 [ 21.6 %]), and more likely to take 5 or more years to graduate (11/50 [22.0 %] vs. 79/1,953 [4.0 %]). The relative risk of first attempt Step 1 failure for medical school graduates was 13.4 for African Americans, 7.4 for Latinos, 3.6 for matriculants >22 years of age, 3.2 for women, and 2.3 for first generation college graduates. The relative risk of not being specialty board certified for those graduates who initially failed Step 1 was 2.2. Our observations regarding characteristics of graduates in our study cohort who initially failed Step 1 can inform efforts by medical schools to identify and assist students who are at particular risk of failing Step 1.
Screening colonoscopy before prostate cancer treatment can detect colorectal cancers in asymptomatic patients and reduce the rate of complications after brachytherapy

Abstract Purpose To investigate the incidence of undiagnosed, asymptomatic synchronous colorectal cancer (CRC) by using screening colonoscopy before brachytherapy, and to compare the subsequent rates of CRC and rectal toxicity in this screened population with those rates in unscreened patients after brachytherapy. Methods and Materials Patient, disease, and treatment characteristics, including history of colonoscopy and CR malignancy, were extracted from the medical records of all men who had undergone brachytherapy as monotherapy for low- or intermediate-risk prostate cancer at a single tertiary cancer care center between January 2000 and December 2009. The frequency of biopsy or polypectomy at screening colonoscopy, incidence of CR malignancy before and after prostate cancer diagnosis, and rate of brachytherapy toxicity including rectal bleeding were compared between men who had had screening colonoscopy before brachytherapy and men who had not. Results Of the 451 men identified, 268 had undergone screening colonoscopy during the 36 months before brachytherapy and 183 had not. Of the 268 men who had had screening colonoscopy, 117 (44%) underwent biopsy or polypectomy, and 6 (3.2%) were found to have asymptomatic CRC. After brachytherapy, CRC was diagnosed in 3 (1.6%) of the 183 men who had not had screening colonoscopy before treatment versus 0 of the 268 men who had had screening colonoscopy ( P = 0.035). Rectal toxicity was more common and more severe among men who had not undergone screening colonoscopy compared with those who had had screening colonoscopy before brachytherapy (14% vs 6%, P = 0.003). More unscreened patients (18% vs 5%) underwent postbrachytherapy colonoscopy ( P Conclusions More than 3% of men with newly diagnosed prostate cancer in this study presented with undiagnosed, asymptomatic CRC, and the rate of postbrachytherapy rectal complications was higher among unscreened than among screened patients. We recommend screening colonoscopy for men who have not had CRC screening within the 3 years preceding prostate cancer diagnosis before radiation therapy to avoid unnecessary rectal biopsies and the associated risk of major complications.
Fast progressive image coding without wavelets

We introduce a new image compression algorithm that allows progressive image reconstruction - both in resolution and in fidelity, with a fully embedded bit-stream. The algorithm is based on bit-plane entropy coding of reordered transform coefficients, similar to the progressive wavelet codec (PWC) previously introduced. Unlike PWC, however, our new progressive transform coder (PTC) does not use wavelets; it performs the space-frequency decomposition step via a new lapped biorthogonal transform (LBT). PTC achieves a rate distortion performance that is comparable (within 2%) to that of the state-of-the-art SPIHT (set partitioning in hierarchical trees) codec. However, thanks to the use of the LBT, the space-frequency decomposition step in PTC reduces the number of multiplications per pixel by a factor of 2.7, and the number of additions by about 15%, when compared to the fastest possible implementation of the "9/7" wavelet transform via lifting. Furthermore, since most of the computation in the LBT is in fact performed by a DCT, our PTC codec can make full use of fast software and hardware modules for 1D and 2D DCT.
Robust transparent image watermarking system with spatial mechanisms

Abstract A very robust against JPEG compression, difficult for collusion attack, and transparent secret key digital watermarking system, which takes a spatial-domain approach, is presented in this paper. The unique watermark that consists of both the owner's logo and the user's licence number provides the ownership protection and traceability of illicit dissemination. The technique of block-oriented and modular-arithmetic–based watermark embedding and extraction achieves the robustness against image processing such as lossy compression, filtering, and cropping. The random perturbation of the pixels within the marked block as well as the unique and fused watermark information result in difference images with irregular-shape and uneven-luminance blobs, hence greatly increase the difficulty of collusion attack. Transparency is further fulfilled by means of embedding the information bits around but not on the exact edges of the features to avoid edge sharpening or smoothing, which effectively magnifies the contrast among the distributed images. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed watermarking system is superior to Voyatazis and Pitas's scheme with respect to image processing, and is much more secure than the method of Cox et al.'s method.
Modal frequency degeneracy in thermally loaded optical resonators

We observe power coupling from the fundamental mode to frequency-degenerate higher-order spatial modes in optical resonators illuminated with a 30 W laser. Thermally-induced modal frequency degeneracy facilitates power transfer from the fundamental mode to higher-order modes, reduces power coupling into the cavity, and triggers power fluctuations. Modeling thermoelastic deformation of a mirror's surface shows predicted modal frequency degeneracy to be in reasonable agreement with experimental observations. Predictions for the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) show that the circulating fundamental-mode power necessary for gravitational-wave detection is compromised at coating absorptions of 3.8 and 0.44 ppm for Enhanced and Advanced LIGO Fabry-Perot cavities, respectively.
Fast algorithm for the solution of large-scale non-negativity-constrained least squares problems

Algorithms for multivariate image analysis and other large-scale applications of multivariate curve resolution (MCR) typically employ constrained alternating least squares (ALS) procedures in their solution. The solution to a least squares problem under general linear equality and inequality constraints can be reduced to the solution of a non-negativity-constrained least squares (NNLS) problem. Thus the efficiency of the solution to any constrained least square problem rests heavily on the underlying NNLS algorithm. We present a new NNLS solution algorithm that is appropriate to large-scale MCR and other ALS applications. Our new algorithm rearranges the calculations in the standard active set NNLS method on the basis of combinatorial reasoning. This rearrangement serves to reduce substantially the computational burden required for NNLS problems having large numbers of observation vectors.
Ultra-high resolution single photon emission tomography imaging of the mouse striatum

1. Acton PD, Choi SR, Plossl K, Kung HF. Quantification of dopamine transporters in the mouse brain using ultra-high resolution single photon emission tomography. Eur J Nucl Med 2002; DOI 10.1007/s00259-002-0776-7 2. Rosen GD, Williams AG, Capra JA, Connolly MT, Cruz B, Lu L, Airey DC, Kulkarni K, Williams RW. The Mouse Brain Library @ www.mbl.org. Int Mouse Genome Conference 2000; 14: 166 Paul D. Acton (✉) Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA e-mail: pacton@sunmac.spect.upenn.edu Tel.: +1-215-349-8374, Fax: +1-215-349-5035 Image of the month
Nonlinear Equalization of Binary Signals in Gaussian Noise

A maximum a posteriori probability (MAP) approach is used to derive the optimal equalizer for binary signals transmitted at a constant rate over a dispersive and noisy channel. The optimal equalizer is shown to consist of a matched filter followed by a very complex nonlinear transversal filter. Various approximations are made to simplify the transversal filter. Thus the optimal linear equalizer and two suboptimal nonlinear equalizers are obtained. The performance characteristics of these equalizers are compared in terms of eye patterns and error probabilities. These investigations exhibit a clear superiority of the nonlinear equalizers. Up to a certain peak distortion, intersymbol interference can be eliminated by nonlinear equalization With negligible noise enhancement. The error probability then closely approaches the error probability in the case of noninterfering signals.
Managing dairy-crop production systems for zero-excess phosphorus: a multi-criteria optimization approach

Dairying in Michigan is a major industry, accounting for half of all livestock receipts and one-fifth of all farm cash receipts. However, industry expansion is constrained by the challenging task of disposing of phosphorus-rich manure without it becoming a nuisance and a liability. A multi-criteria optimization-based phosphorus balance model for a dairy-crop operation is described in this paper. A typical medium-sized dairy farm with sufficient land area for crop production to support dairy feed production was analysed. In the model, manure is used as a fertilizer nutrient source in crop production; animal weight gain, reproduction, and import and export of nutrients through fertilizer, purchased feed, milk, and animal sales are accounted for. Rations for animals leading to zero excess manure phosphorus at best economic return are identified by simultaneously minimizing excess manure phosphorus, feed cost and cropland requirement.
Cryptic female choice by female control of oviposition timing in a soldier fly

There is substantial evidence that cryptic female choice (CFC) is present in numerous taxa. Several mechanisms have been proposed for CFC; however, we only have experimental evidence for a few of them. Female control of oviposition timing is a potentially widespread mechanism of CFC, but it has never been experimentally demonstrated. The aims of this study are to test 2 critical predictions of the hypothesis that CFC through control of oviposition timing occurs in the soldier fly Merosargus cingulatus: 1) to determine if M. cingulatus females are less likely to oviposit immediately after mating when the male does not perform copulatory courtship than when he does and 2) to determine if failure to immediately oviposit by the female results in lower reproductive success for the male she just mated with. To answer the first question, I compared the oviposition behavior of females that mated with control males versus females that mated with manipulated males that could not perform copulatory courtship. I showed that M. cingulatus females fail to oviposit immediately after copulation when males do not perform copulatory courtship. To answer the second question, I showed that there is last male sperm precedence in M. cingulatus. Because the last male to mate fertilizes most of the female’s eggs, a male will benefit when females oviposit immediately after mating with him and before remating with another male. Key words: copulatory courtship, cryptic female choice, oviposition timing, postcopulatory sexual selection, soldier fly, Stratiomyidae. [Behav Ecol]
Sex education. The dissemination of family planning services and contraceptives in public school.

PIP: After introducing the magnitude and costs of the problem of teenage pregnancy in the U.S., this review discusses the most important legal issues and court challenges against sex education and contraceptive services in schools. The U.S. teen pregnancy rate, even among whites, is the highest in the developed world, amounting to over 250,000 teen single parents yearly, with high costs in maternal mortality, welfare support, lost educational and occupational opportunities. Some of the court challenges to sex education include the claims that it prevents free exercise of religion, that it establishes a new religion, that it invades the parent-child relationship, and that it is a genocidal plot to control black population. None of these claims have held up in court, generally because children are not coerced to attend sex education classes. In-school sex counseling or contraceptive services have been challenged on the issue of consent, either of the youth or the parent. The courts have generally held that minors have the right to privacy and consent over their own childbearing, the Title X projects are intended to prevent unwanted pregnancies. In 1981 Congress amended Title X adding a section intended to encourage family participation in the projects. The Secretary of Health and Human Services proposed that parents be notified of contraceptive prescriptions. Some states have restricted school-based programs.
Learning Unambiguous Reduced Sequence Descriptions

Do you want your neural net algorithm to learn sequences? Do not limit yourself to conventional gradient descent (or approximations thereof). Instead, use your sequence learning algorithm (any will do) to implement the following method for history compression. No matter what your final goals are, train a network to predict its next input from the previous ones. Since only unpredictable inputs convey new information, ignore all predictable inputs but let all unexpected inputs (plus information about the time step at which they occurred) become inputs to a higher-level network of the same kind (working on a slower, self-adjusting time scale). Go on building a hierarchy of such networks. This principle reduces the descriptions of event sequences without loss of information, thus easing supervised or reinforcement learning tasks. Alternatively, you may use two recurrent networks to collapse a multi-level predictor hierarchy into a single recurrent net. Experiments show that systems based on these principles can require less computation per time step and many fewer training sequences than conventional training algorithms for recurrent nets. Finally you can modify the above method such that predictability is not defined in a yes-or-no fashion but in a continuous fashion.
Heterolytic Cleavage of Hydrogen by an Iron Hydrogenase Model: An Fe‐H⋅⋅⋅H‐N Dihydrogen Bond Characterized by Neutron Diffraction

Use of hydrogen as a fuel by [FeFe]-hydrogenase enzymes in nature requires heterolytic cleavage of the H-H bond into a proton (H+) and hydride (H-), a reaction that is also a critical step in homogeneous catalysts for hydrogenation of C=O and C=N bonds. An understanding of the catalytic oxidation of H2 by hydrogenases provides insights into the design of synthetic catalysts that are sought as cost-effective alternatives to the use of the precious metal platinum in fuel cells. Crystallographic studies on the [FeFe]-hydrogenase enzyme were critical to understanding of its reactivity, but the key H-H cleavage step is not readily observed experimentally in natural hydrogenases. Synthetic biomimics have provided evidence for H2 cleavage leading to hydride transfer to the metal and proton transfer to an amine. Limitations on the precise location of hydrogen atoms by x-ray diffraction can be overcome by use of neutron diffraction, though its use is severely limited by the difficulty of obtaining suitable crystals and by the scarcity of neutron sources. Here we show that an iron complex with a pendant amine in the diphosphine ligand cleaves hydrogen heterolytically under mild conditions, leading to [CpC5F4NFeH(PtBu2NtBu2H)]+BArF4-, [PtBu2NtBu2 = 1,5-di(tert-butyl)-3,7-di(tert-butyl)-1,5-diaza-3,7-diphosphacyclooctane; ArF = 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]. The Fe-H- - - H-Nmore » moiety has a strong dihydrogen bond, with a remarkably short H • • • H distance of 1.489(10) A between the protic N-Hδ+ and hydridic Fe-Hδ-. The structural data for [CpC5F4NFeH(PtBu2NtBu2H)]+ provide a glimpse of how the H-H bond is oxidized or generated in hydrogenase enzymes, with the pendant amine playing a key role as a proton relay. The iron complex [CpC5F4NFeH(PtBu2NtBu2H)]+BArF4- is an electrocatalyst for oxidation of H2 (1 atm) at 22 °C, so the structural data are obtained on a complex that is a functional model for catalysis by [FeFe]-hydrogenase enzymes. This research was supported as part of the Center for Molecular Electrocatalysis, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is operated by Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy.« less
On Multipath Propagation in Electrically Large Reflective Spaces

A simple model for predicting the characteristic energy decay time of wireless RF emissions in confined, reflective spaces is presented. Based on this cavity decay time, accurate estimates of room quality factor, diffuse (multipath propagation) insertion loss, and statistical electric field coverage can be easily obtained. Spaces of interest for model applications include aircraft cabins, below-deck compartments in ships, metallic storage buildings and reflective room enclosures. Decay time predictions are shown to be in excellent agreement with measured data in a reverberant test chamber over the 110 GHz frequency range.
Hydrovolcanic features on Mars: Preliminary observations from the first Mars year of HiRISE imaging

Abstract We provide an overview of features indicative of the interaction between water and lava and/or magma on Mars as seen by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera during the Primary Science Phase of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission. The ability to confidently resolve meter-scale features from orbit has been extremely useful in the study of the most pristine examples. In particular, HiRISE has allowed the documentation of previously undescribed features associated with phreatovolcanic cones (formed by the interaction of lava and groundwater) on rapidly emplaced flood lavas. These include “moats” and “wakes” that indicate that the lava crust was thin and mobile, respectively [Jaeger, W.L., Keszthelyi, L.P., McEwen, A.S., Dundas, C.M., Russel, P.S., 2007. Science 317, 1709–1711]. HiRISE has also discovered entablature-style jointing in lavas that is indicative of water-cooling [Milazzo, M.P., Keszthelyi, L.P., Jaeger, W.L., Rosiek, M., Mattson, S., Verba, C., Beyer, R.A., Geissler, P.E., McEwen, A.S., and the HiRISE Team, 2009. Geology 37, 171–174]. Other observations strongly support the idea of extensive volcanic mudflows (lahars). Evidence for other forms of hydrovolcanism, including glaciovolcanic interactions, is more equivocal. This is largely because most older and high-latitude terrains have been extensively modified, masking any earlier 1–10 m scale features. Much like terrestrial fieldwork, the prerequisite for making full use of HiRISE’s capabilities is finding good outcrops.
The hardness of approximate optima in lattices, codes, and systems of linear equations

We prove the following about the Nearest Lattice Vector Problem (in any l/sub p/ norm), the Nearest Code-word Problem for binary codes, the problem of learning a halfspace in the presence of errors, and some other problems. 1. Approximating the optimum within any constant factor is NP-hard. 2. If for some /spl epsiv/>0 there exists a polynomial time algorithm that approximates the optimum within a factor of 2/sup log(0.5-/spl epsiv/)/ /sup n/ then NP is in quasi-polynomial deterministic time: NP/spl sube/DTIME(n/sup poly(log/ /sup n)/). Moreover, we show that result 2 also holds for the Shortest Lattice Vector Problem in the l/sub /spl infin// norm. Improving the factor 2/sup log(0.5-/spl epsiv/)/ /sup n/ to /spl radic/(dim) for either of the lattice problems would imply the hardness of the Shortest Vector Problem in l/sub 2/ norm; an old open problem. Our proofs use reductions from few-prover, one-round interactive proof systems, either directly, or through a set-cover problem. >
Motor Control and Aging: Links to Age-Related Brain Structural, Functional, and Biochemical Effects

Although connections between cognitive deficits and age-associated brain differences have been elucidated, relationships with motor performance are less well understood. Here, we broadly review age-related brain differences and motor deficits in older adults in addition to cognition-action theories. Age-related atrophy of the motor cortical regions and corpus callosum may precipitate or coincide with motor declines such as balance and gait deficits, coordination deficits, and movement slowing. Correspondingly, degeneration of neurotransmitter systems—primarily the dopaminergic system—may contribute to age-related gross and fine motor declines, as well as to higher cognitive deficits. In general, older adults exhibit involvement of more widespread brain regions for motor control than young adults, particularly the prefrontal cortex and basal ganglia networks. Unfortunately these same regions are the most vulnerable to age-related effects, resulting in an imbalance of “supply and demand”. Existing exercise, pharmaceutical, and motor training interventions may ameliorate motor deficits in older adults.
A Comparison of the Mechanical Strength of Two Stapled Anastomosis Techniques for Equine Small Intestine

Objective— To compare bursting strength, time of construction, and cost of a closed one-stage, stapled functional end-to-end jejunojejunostomy (FEE) with a stapled side-to-side jejunojejunostomy (STS). Study design— Experimental, randomized block design. Animals— Seven adult horses without gastrointestinal disease. Methods— The jejunum was isolated, and three FEE, three STS, and three control segments were created in each horse using a randomized block design. Anastomosis time was recorded. The intraluminal pressure at failure and mode of failure were recorded. Length at failure was measured on digitized images. Bursting pressure (BP), bursting wall tension (BWT), anastomosis time, and cost were compared. Results— Control jejunal segments were stronger (P≤ .0001) in bursting strength and bursting wall tension (P≤ .0001) than either anastomosis type; no difference was found between anastomosis types for either variable. Functional end-to-end jejunojejunostomy was significantly quicker and less costly than STS (P≤ .0001). Conclusions— Mechanically there were no significant differences between the FEE and STS techniques. The FEE technique maintained the physiologic direction of peristalsis of the segments, required less tissue manipulation, and was faster and more economical to create. Clinical relevance— The FEE is a clinically viable technique.
Estrogen Decreases Infarct Size After Temporary Focal Ischemia in a Genetic Model of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Background and Purpose—It is unclear how genetic type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) influences infarct size when blood glucose is tightly controlled. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of genetic type 1 DM, as occurs in BB rats, on infarct size after transient unilateral middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in male and female rats. In addition, studies suggest that male type 1 DM rats have a higher incidence of end-organ complications than do females. A second aim of this study was to determine the effect of chronic 17β-estradiol (E2) administration on infarct size in male BB rats. Methods—Diabetic male (MDiab, n=14) and female (FDiab, n=8) BB rats were studied and compared with background strain Wistar rats (MWist, n=16; FWist, n=14). Two additional male cohorts (MWist+E2, n=15; MDiab+E2, n=14) received subcutaneous 25 μg E2 implants 7 to 10 days before MCAO. Rats underwent 1 hour of MCAO followed by 22 hours of reperfusion. Physiological variables were controlled among groups, and the intra...
Segmenting special interest visitors to a destination region based on the volume of their expenditures: an application to rail-trail users:

Various general tourist markets have been successfully segmented based on the volume of tourists’ expenditures in destination areas. However, the approach has been rarely employed in more narrowly defined ‘special interest’ tourist markets. This study tested the viability of expenditure-based segmentation in the case of a special interest market comprised of visitors to a rail-trail in the Black Hills of South Dakota, USA. Nonresident visitors were classified as light, medium, and heavy spenders based on their total expenditures in the region. Although heavy spenders comprised only 33% of the Trail’s market, their spending accounted for 65% of the expenditures of the market as a whole. Compared to their counterparts, heavy spenders were more likely to have been mountain biking aficionados, to have had higher incomes, and to have had longer lengths of stay and greater involvement with recreation in the study region. Findings suggest how heavy spenders can be successfully reached, attracted, and served.
Should we treat heart failure with phosphatase inhibitors? Better to start at the end

Heart failure (HF) is a syndrome characterized by the inability of the heart to pump sufficient blood to meet the metabolic demands of the body. Due to the fact that HF is the leading cause of death in Western society with limited medical treatment options, novel therapeutic agents for its treatment are desperately needed.
Mobile technology habits: patterns of association among device usage, intertemporal preference, impulse control, and reward sensitivity

Mobile electronic devices are playing an increasingly pervasive role in our daily activities. Yet, there has been very little empirical research investigating how mobile technology habits might relate to individual differences in cognition and affect. The research presented in this paper provides evidence that heavier investment in mobile devices is correlated with a relatively weaker tendency to delay gratification (as measured by a delay discounting task) and a greater inclination toward impulsive behavior (i.e., weaker impulse control, assessed behaviorally and through self-report) but is not related to individual differences in sensitivity to reward. Analyses further demonstrated that individual variation in impulse control mediates the relationship between mobile technology usage and delay of gratification. Although based on correlational results, these findings lend some backing to concerns that increased use of portable electronic devices could have negative impacts on impulse control and the ability to appropriately valuate delayed rewards.
Wealth and Renting in Prerevolutionary Philadelphia

Wealth has long fascinated historians and economists because both are concerned with how individuals fare in an economy-what economists call "welfare. " Colonial American historians have adopted a variety of approaches to the study of wealth and welfare. Some have derived the general standard of living from the kind, quantity, and value of personal possessions. Others have described the purchasing power of money or the ways personal possessions reflect different styles of life. Many of those efforts refine earlier studies that concentrated on the structure of wealth and focused on the extent of inequality. The problems involved in the search for a better understanding of colonial economic welfare are not only practical (what evidence is best?) but also conceptual (what do we mean by welfare?) and theoretical (how can we deepen our understanding from the perspectives of existing theory?). An exploration of renting provides a fresh view of colonial wealth and welfare. Wealth is generally considered to be anything with a market value and is measured either as a stock of assets or as a flow of income from those assets. Capital stock includes tangible assets such as land and man-made goods, and intangible assets such as claims against others. There is also human capital,
Interventional radiology in the acute pediatric abdomen

This article addresses the most common types of interventional procedures performed in the pediatric abdomen. Nonvascular interventions are stressed because they are more common than vascular interventions.
Birth-associated injury.

The author presents an approach to the recognition of factors predisposing to birth injury so that the physician may reevaluate strategies, such as fetal monitoring and methods of delivery, in order to decrease the occurrence of these injuries. Management of soft tissue, bony, visceral, and nerve injuries in the neonate is reviewed.
Meta-theoretical Passage

This passage is a locus classicus for methodology in ancient mathematics. It is perhaps the best-known passage in Coll. IV. A doublet can be found in Coll. III, and a shorter version in Coll. VII. There are to be three kinds of mathematics: plane, solid, linear, corresponding to three kinds of basic curves. In addition, a homogeneity requirement holds: only arguments that use means from the mathematical kind to which the problem belongs are fully valid mathematically. The passage is referred to in Descartes’ Geometrie (Descartes 1637, p. 315, pp. 40/41 Smith/Latham). Newton also quotes it with approval, and employs it against the Cartesian program in geometry. Up until relatively recently, it was taken to be the communis opinio for mathematics throughout antiquity, and quoted or referred to in secondary literature in this way. In fact, it is, at least in this generality, only to be found in Pappus. For him, it is obviously important. He is committed to this view in the following sense: he uses it to structure his material to give a representative survey of ancient mathematics, to give a coherent methodologically oriented picture of the geometrical tradition. It is not certain, and in fact not all that relevant for the understanding of Coll. IV itself, whether this meta-theoretical position was shared, in this full generality, by the mathematicians. Pappus may very well be generalizing a feature to be found in Apollonius’ analytical works on locus problems: separate plane problems from solid ones. Still, he is well-informed, competent, and manages to tell a reasonably coherent story. It should be appreciated as a whole. An extensive discussion will not be given here (for the full text, see the translation in Part I). In the present edition, I have taken this passage quite literally, and propose a reading of the whole of Coll. IV in light of it. In what follows, I will comment on the two main items in the passage: the mathematical kinds, and the homogeneity criterion, and briefly indicate how the different parts of Coll. IV relate to remarks in the passage.
CD19 CAR immune pressure induces B-precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia lineage switch exposing inherent leukaemic plasticity

Adoptive immunotherapy using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) expressing T cells targeting the CD19 B lineage receptor has demonstrated marked success in relapsed pre-B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). Persisting CAR-T cells generate sustained pressure against CD19 that may drive unique mechanisms of resistance. Pre-B ALL originates from a committed pre-B cell or an earlier progenitor, with potential to reprogram into other hematopoietic lineages. Here we report changes in lineage markers including myeloid conversion in patients following CD19 CAR therapy. Using murine ALL models we study the long-term effects of CD19 CAR-T cells and demonstrate partial or complete lineage switch as a consistent mechanism of CAR resistance depending on the underlying genetic oncogenic driver. Deletion of Pax5 or Ebf1 recapitulates lineage reprogramming occurring during CD19 CAR pressure. Our findings establish lineage switch as a mechanism of CAR resistance exposing inherent plasticity in genetic subtypes of pre-B-cell ALL.
A Humanistic Perspective for Management Theory: Protecting Dignity and Promoting Well-Being

The notion of dignity as that which has intrinsic value has arguably been neglected in economics and management despite its societal importance and eminent relevance in other social sciences. While management theory gained parsimony, this paper argues that the inclusion of dignity in the theoretical precepts of management theory will: (a) improve management theory in general, (b) align it more directly with the public interest, and (c) strengthen its connection to social welfare creation. The paper outlines the notion of dignity, discusses its historical understanding, and explains its relevance in the context of management theory. Furthermore, it proposes a framework of paradigmatic assumptions along two dimensions: (a) understanding human dignity as unconditional or conditional and (b) understanding social welfare as wealth creation or well-being creation. I propose alternative management theory archetypes and discuss these archetypes’ theoretical implications for management research. I also suggest how management theory can be shifted to contribute toward social welfare creation more directly.
Incorporating Demand Dynamics in Multi-Period Capacitated Fast-Charging Location Planning for Electric Vehicles

Abstract We develop a multi-period capacitated flow refueling location problem for electric vehicles (EVs) as the EV market responds to the charging infrastructure. The optimization model will help us determine the optimal location of level 3 chargers as well as the number of charging modules at each station over multiple time periods. Our model can also be applied to fast-filling gaseous alternative fuel vehicles under similar assumptions. We define a number of demand dynamics, including flow demand growth as a function of charging opportunities on path as well as natural demand growth independent of charging infrastructure. We also present an alternative objective function of maximizing electric vehicle demand in addition to maximizing flow coverage. A case study based on a road network around Washington, D.C., New York City, and Boston is presented to provide numerical experiments related to demand dynamics, showing the potential problems in multi-period planning.
«Para Inglês Ver»: Translations of Contemporary Brazilian Literature in the Age of the Megaevents

Since 2007, when it was announced that Brazil would host the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games, the country has become the focus of international attention. This was an excellent opportunity to counter stereotypes and present a more authentic version of Brazilian culture. Indeed, several anthologies of contemporary texts translated into English were published over this period; more than ever before. This article provides a survey and a quantitative reading of five such anthologies, in order to consider how Brazil (and its literature) is portrayed for a British audience.
Voting and the Ideal of American Democracy

This paper discusses the evolution of voting in America and its use around the world as prima facie evidence of democracy. It includes an analysis of the point made by some scholars and commentators that the ideal of American democracy is not supported by the evidence when one considers the many ways in which the vote has been withheld from various classes of Americans. The paper concludes with a discussion of the impact of the vote on African American political and social progress.
Metagenome Assembly and Functional Annotation

This chapter reviews metagenome de novo assembly and currently available assembly algorithms and tools. Challenges and opportunities from metagenomic assembly are presented, with a summary of a typical metagenomic assembly workflow. Finally, approaches to reduce large datasets and identify the functions of assembled genes are also discussed.
Population-Based Analysis of Patient Age and Other Disparities in the Treatment of Ovarian Cancer in Central Appalachia and Kentucky.

OBJECTIVES Adherence to National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines for ovarian cancer treatment improves patient outcomes. The aim of this study was to assess disparities associated with ovarian cancer treatment in the state of Kentucky and central Appalachia. METHODS Data on patients diagnosed as having ovarian cancer from 2007 through 2011 were extracted from administrative claims-linked Kentucky Cancer Registry data. NCCN compliance was defined by stage, grade, surgical procedure, and chemotherapy. Selection criteria were reviewed carefully to ensure data quality and accuracy. Descriptive analysis, logistic regression, and Cox regression analyses were performed to examine factors associated with guidelines compliance and survival. RESULTS Most women were aged 65 years or older (62.5%) and had high-grade (65.9%) and advanced-stage (61.0%) ovarian cancer. Two-thirds of cases (65.9%) received NCCN-recommended treatment for ovarian cancer. The hazard ratio of death for women who did not receive NCCN-compliant care was 62% higher compared with the women who did receive NCCN-compliant treatment. Results from the logistic regression showed that NCCN-compliant treatment was more likely for women aged 65 to 74 years compared with women aged 20 to 49 years, late-stage compared with early-stage cancers, receipt of care at tertiary care hospitals, and privately insured compared with Medicaid or Medicare. CONCLUSIONS When the treatment of ovarian cancer did not follow NCCN recommendations, patients had a significantly higher risk of death. Women were less likely to receive NCCN-compliant care if they were younger (20-49 years), had early-stage disease, did not have private insurance, or had care provided at a nontertiary care hospital.
Determination of heat transfer coefficient maps using an inverse bem algorithm

Publisher Summary This chapter provides an algorithm designed to extract accurate multidimensional heat transfer coefficient maps from surface temperature measurements, which are provided by non-invasive techniques, such as infrared tomography or thermo chromic liquid crystals. Determination of convective heat transfer coefficients is important in the design and analysis of thermal systems exposed to convective heat transfer. The approach is based on a boundary element method (BEM) which uses either transient or steady temperature inputs, and incorporates a smoothing technique borrowed from inverse problem methods to provide robustness to input temperature uncertainties. As it requires only surface mesh, the method is flexible and easy to implement for examination of arbitrarily complex geometries encountered in engineering practice. Following this, a common approach for measurements of convective heat transfer coefficients relies on thermochromic liquid crystal (TLC) thermography, thermographic phosphor (TOP) thermography, and temperature-sensitive paints (TSP). Temperature levels are indicated by: color (for TLC), intensity of fluorescent emissions (for TGP and TSP). These methods can provide a broadband response or narrow-band response. Diagnostic applications of TLC, TGP, or TSP-based methods usually rely on transient measurements where the temperature is measured twice by detection of color or fluorescence intensity, in quick succession at two different times over such a short interval from the beginning of the transient process that heat conduction into the surface is assumed as one-dimensional.
Modeled replacement of traditional soybean and canola oil with high-oleic varieties increases monounsaturated fatty acid and reduces both saturated fatty acid and polyunsaturated fatty acid intake in the US adult population

Background High-oleic (HO) seed oils are being introduced as replacements for trans fatty acid (TFA)-containing fats and oils. Negative health effects associated with TFAs led to their removal from the US Generally Recognized As Safe list. HO oils formulated for use in food production may result in changes in fatty acid intake at population levels. Objectives The purposes of this study were to 1) identify major food sources of soybean oil (SO) and canola oil (CO), 2) estimate effects of replacing SO and CO with HO varieties on fatty acid intake overall and by age and sex strata, and 3) compare predicted intakes with the Dietary Reference Intakes and Adequate Intakes (AIs) for the essential fatty acids (EFAs) α-linolenic acid (ALA) and linoleic acid (LA). Design Food and nutrient intakes from NHANES waves 2007-2008, 2009-2010, 2011-2012, and 2013-2014 in 21,029 individuals aged ≥20 y were used to model dietary changes. We estimated the intake of fatty acid with the replacement of HO-SO and HO-CO for commodity SO and CO at 10%, 25%, and 50% and evaluated the potential for meeting the AI at these levels. Results Each modeling scenario decreased saturated fatty acids (SFAs), although intakes remained greater than recommended for all age and sex groups. Models of all levels increased the intake of total monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), especially oleic acid, and decreased the intake of total polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), particularly LA and ALA. Replacement of traditional with HO oils at 25-50% places specific adult age and sex groups at risk of not meeting the AI for LA and ALA. Conclusions The replacement of traditional oils with HO varieties will increase MUFA intake and reduce both SFA and PUFA intakes, including EFAs, and may place specific age and sex groups at risk of inadequate LA and ALA intake.
Customizable Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Haptic Feedback Interface: Theory and Test

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be challenging to operate due to remote control environments and unstable system dynamics. A haptic control strategy is introduced to improve the UAV’s stability...
Hydrogen: Driving Renewable Energy

Hydrogen can be found in many organic compounds other than water. It is the most abundant element on Earth, but it does not occur naturally as a gas. It is always combined with other elements, such as with oxygen to make water. Once separated from another element, hydrogen can be burned as a fuel or converted into electricity. A fuel cell uses the chemical energy of hydrogen or another fuel to cleanly and efficiently produce electricity. If hydrogen is the fuel, electricity, water, and heat are the only products. Fuel cells are unique in terms of the variety of their potential applications; they can provide power for systems as large as a utility power station and as small as a laptop computer.
Q-switched and gain-switched Fe:ZnSe lasers tunable over 3.60-5.15 µm.

We report on room temperature gain-switched and Q-switched Fe:ZnSe lasers tunable over 3.60–5.15 µm pumped by radiation of an 2.94 µm Er:YAG laser. The maximum output energy was measured to be 5 mJ under 15 mJ of pump energy in gain-switched regime. We also demonstrated a mechanically Q-switched regime of oscillation of Fe:ZnSe lasers. This approach could be attractive for the development of high-energy short-pulse solid-state mid-IR systems operating over 3.6–5.2 µm spectral range.
The Urgent Need for Molecular Imaging to Confirm Target Engagement for Clinical Trials of Fragile X Syndrome and Other Subtypes of Autism Spectrum Disorder

: Promising therapeutic agents for the symptoms in animal models of fragile X syndrome (FXS) have not resulted in similar advances in clinical trials of humans with FXS due to the dearth of tools to quantify their key cognitive and behavioral outcome measures with optimal validity and reliability. Therefore, experts strongly recommended an effort to develop and implement use of biomarkers in unfolding clinical trials in FXS. Molecular imaging provides a spectrum of agents to serve as biomarkers to confirm that humans with FXS exhibit the molecular abnormalities of animal models of FXS. Thus, molecular imaging provides the mechanism to establish target engagement in humans for clinical trials of novel agents for FXS.
Term Length and the Role of Independent Directors in Acquisitions

This paper shows that boards impact acquisition decisions. To identify a causal effect, I exploit variation in the time remaining to terms of directors in tri-class staggered boards, where exogenous cycles determine directors’ insulation from electoral pressures, thereby moderating their incentives to allocate resources. I find that long remaining terms are associated with lower returns around acquisition announcements and with a higher likelihood of undertaking acquisitions. Within an acquiring board, the independent directors with longer terms are more likely to have had preexisting network ties to the target firms through their professional network. While there are competing theoretical predictions about whether longer appointments strengthen or weaken directors’ incentives to serve shareholders, these findings are consistent with a detrimental effect of long terms, and imply that directors’ actions have real consequences for acquisitions.