cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Studies on the etiology of Marek's disease. I. Propagation of the agent in cell culture.

SummaryA focal cytopathic effect (CPE) was observed in duck embryo fibroblast (DEF) cultures 11-25 days postinoculation with blood from the JM strain of Marek's disease (MD). All cell suspensions from such cultures reproduced MD when inoculated into chicks, while all of the morphologically normal DEF cultures were noninfectious. The CPE and infectivity were maintained in DEF cultures for 182 days. Both the induction of CPE in cell cultures and MD in chickens required intact cells in the inoculum. These data indicate that the JM strain of MD was successfully propagated in DEF cultures and produced a characteristic CPE.
Making Modern Mothers: Ethics and Family Planning in Urban Greece

Making Modern Mothers: Ethics and Family Planning in Urban Greece. Heather Paxson. University of California Press: Berkeley and Los Angeles. 2004. 335 pp. ISBN 0520-22371-2 (cloth), 0-520-23820-6 (paper).
Strong Evidence from Studies with Brachymorphic Mice and Pentachlorophenol That 1′-Sulfoöxysafrole Is the Major Ultimate Electrophilic and Carcinogenic Metabolite of 1′-Hydroxysafrole in Mouse Liver

The role of sulfation of 1'-hydroxysafrole in the formation of hepatic macromolecular adducts and in hepatic tumor formation in mice given 1'-hydroxysafrole was investigated by the use of: (a) mice treated with the specific sulfotransferase inhibitor pentachlorophenol; and (b) brachymorphic mice, which are characterized by a deficiency in the hepatic synthesis of 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phosphosulfate. Cytosolic sulfotransferase activity for 1'-hydroxysafrole in both mouse and rat liver was significantly inhibited by 10 microM pentachlorophenol, usually by greater than 90%. Prior administration of nontoxic amounts of pentachlorophenol, either in the diet of adult female CD-1 mice or by i.p. injection of 12-day-old male C57BL/6 X C3H F1 (hereafter called B6C3F1) mice, resulted in an 85% decrease in the level of adducts formed from 1'-hydroxysafrole in hepatic DNA and RNA as compared to those of non-pentachlorophenol-treated animals. Likewise, the chronic administration of a nontoxic level of pentachlorophenol in the diet of adult female CD-1 mice strongly inhibited hepatic tumor induction by long-term dietary administration of either safrole or 1'-hydroxysafrole. Initiation of hepatic tumors by a single i.p. injection of 1'-hydroxysafrole to 12-day-old male B6C3F1 mice was strongly inhibited by prior treatment with pentachlorophenol. Under these conditions, the hepatocarcinogenicity of diethylnitrosamine was not inhibited by pentachlorophenol. Supplementation with adenosine triphosphate and sulfate of hepatic cytosols from adult female or 12-day-old brachymorphic progeny of a B6C3 background outbred to B6C3F1 mice (B6C3F2), of either sex, resulted in 5- to 10-fold less binding of 1'-hydroxysafrole to added RNA than when cytosols from phenotypically normal B6C3F2 mice were used. On administration of [3H]-1'-hydroxysafrole to adult female or 12-day-old brachymorphic B6C3F2 mice of either sex, the levels of hepatic DNA and RNA adducts were 7- to 12-fold lower than those obtained in phenotypically normal B6C3F2 mice of the same age and sex. Brachymorphic mice were also much less responsive than their phenotypically normal littermates to the induction of liver tumors by 1'-hydroxysafrole; lower incidences were observed both when the carcinogen was fed chronically to adult females and when it was administered to males only prior to weaning. Thus, all of these data strongly support the conclusion that 1'-sulfooxysafrole is the major ultimate electrophilic and tumor-initiating metabolite of 1'-hydroxysafrole.
Long Time Coming: The Repatriation of Afghan Refugees

Abstract The return of several million Afghans, in the years following the complete Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in February 1989, will be one of the largest refugee repatriations in history. Refugees are a unique category of international migrants, protected and assisted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Afghan refugees, like those in other Third World regions, are caught in a complex and rapidly changing political and military environment. Over five million Afghans live in exile; three million reside in refugee camps in Pakistan near the Afghanistan border where they have formed a “refugee warrior community”fighting to retake control of their country. This paper focuses on four repatriation variables: the number of returning refugees and displaced persons, military and public stability, infrastructural conditions, and agricultural productivity. The discussion is based on incomplete and sometimes confusing data, a common problem in extremely poor and unstable regions. Nonetheles...
Mitochondrial Genome Maintenance: Roles for Nuclear Nonhomologous End-Joining Proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) deletions are associated with sporadic and inherited diseases and age-associated neurodegenerative disorders. Approximately 85% of mtDNA deletions identified in humans are flanked by short directly repeated sequences; however, mechanisms by which these deletions arise are unknown. A limitation in deciphering these mechanisms is the essential nature of the mitochondrial genome in most living cells. One exception is budding yeast, which are facultative anaerobes and one of the few organisms for which directed mtDNA manipulation is possible. Using this model system, we have developed a system to simultaneously monitor spontaneous direct-repeat–mediated deletions (DRMDs) in the nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. In addition, the mitochondrial DRMD reporter contains a unique KpnI restriction endonuclease recognition site that is not present in otherwise wild-type (WT) mtDNA. We have expressed KpnI fused to a mitochondrial localization signal to induce a specific mitochondrial double-strand break (mtDSB). Here we report that loss of the MRX (Mre11p, Rad50p, Xrs2p) and Ku70/80 (Ku70p, Ku80p) complexes significantly impacts the rate of spontaneous deletion events in mtDNA, and these proteins contribute to the repair of induced mtDSBs. Furthermore, our data support homologous recombination (HR) as the predominant pathway by which mtDNA deletions arise in yeast, and suggest that the MRX and Ku70/80 complexes are partially redundant in mitochondria.
Rethinking CCS – Moving Forward in Times of Uncertainty

While in early 2009 strict climate policies were expected to be put in place, today the course of climate policy worldwide is certain. While there is no worldwide policy in place, the future of CCS should be considered. CCS is a technology that can help manage the concentration of CO2 and thus have an impact on the climate change. This paper describes the status quo and provides an outlook on possible future developments.
Air Medical Rapid Sequence Intubation: How Can We Achieve Success?

Airway management is an essential component of the air medical transport of critically ill or injured patients. Many controversies surround the use of rapid sequence intubation (RSI) in the prehospital setting. The challenges of establishing an airway in this environment may exceed those in the hospital. However, it is clear that the same high standards for success demanded in the hospital must be applied to RSI in the prehospital setting for the practice to be accepted and result in positive outcomes. Given their volume of high acuity patients, air medical providers are ideal candidates for performing prehospital RSI. Undertaking this responsibility requires commitment to training and quality improvement. We present the components required to establish and maintain a successful air medical RSI program.
Lethal Mutagenesis Failure May Augment Viral Adaptation

Lethal mutagenesis, the attempt to extinguish a population by elevating its mutation rate, has been endorsed in the virology literature as a promising approach for treating viral infections. In support of the concept, in vitro studies have forced viral extinction with high doses of mutagenic drugs. However, the one known mutagenic drug used on patients commonly fails to cure infections, and in vitro studies typically find a wide range of mutagenic conditions permissive for viral growth. A key question becomes how subsequent evolution is affected if the viral population is mutated but avoids extinction—Is viral adaptation augmented rather than suppressed? Here we consider the evolution of highly mutated populations surviving mutagenesis, using the DNA phage T7. In assays using inhibitory hosts, whenever resistance mutants were observed, the mutagenized populations exhibited higher frequencies, but some inhibitors blocked plaque formation by even the mutagenized stock. Second, outgrowth of previously mutagenized populations led to rapid and potentially complete fitness recovery but polymorphism was slow to decay, and mutations exhibited inconsistent patterns of change. Third, the combination of population bottlenecks with mutagenesis did cause fitness declines, revealing a vulnerability that was not apparent from mutagenesis of large populations. The results show that a population surviving high mutagenesis may exhibit enhanced adaptation in some environments and experience little negative fitness consequences in many others.
FOURIER ANALYSIS OF X‐RAY PATTERNS OF SODA‐SILICA GLASS

X-ray diffraction patterns were obtained for five compositions of soda-silica glass. The patterns were made in an evacuated camera, using MoKα radiation monochromated by reflection from rock salt. The patterns show a perfectly continuous change in appearance with increasing soda content. From a Fourier analysis of the X-ray scattering curves, radial distribution curves for the five glasses were obtained. The distribution curves uniquely establish several important points. Each silicon atom is surrounded by 4 oxygens at a distance of about 1.62A and each sodium by about 6 oxygens at 2.35A. The existence in the glass of simple discrete molecules, such as SiO2, NaaO, Na2Si2O6, and Na2SiO3, is uniquely ruled out by the distribution curves. The X-ray results lead to the following picture of soda-silica glass. Each silicon is tetrahedrally surrounded by 4 oxygens at a distance of about 1.62A. Part of the oxygens are bonded to 2 silicons and part only to 1 silicon. The sodium ions Na+ are arranged in various holes in the silicon-oxygen network, being surrounded on the average by about 6 oxygens at a distance 2.35A. Although this is a definite scheme of structure, it does not repeat identically at regular intervals, and the material, therefore, is noncrystalline.
Average-Case Performance Evaluation of Online Algorithms for Routing and Wavelength Assignment in WDM Optical Networks

We investigate the problem of online routing and wavelength assignment and the related throughput maximization problem in wavelength division multiplexing optical networks. It is pointed out that these problems are highly inapproximable. We evaluate the average-case performance of several online algorithms, which have no knowledge of future arriving connection requests when processing the current connection request. Our experimental results on a wide range of optical networks demonstrate that the average-case performance of these algorithms is very close to optimal.
Payment for Quality in End-Stage Renal Disease

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Program has served as a model for health care policy innovation because of several unique features: the program provides dialysis and kidney transplantation services where the alternative to renal replacement therapy
3D reconstruction from 2D images with hierarchical continuous simplices

This paper presents an effective framework for the reconstruction of volumetric data from a sequence of 2D images. The 2D images are first aligned to generate an initial 3D volume, followed by the creation of a tetrahedral domain using the Carver algorithm. The resulting tetrahedralization preserves both the geometry and topology of the original dataset. Then a solid model is reconstructed using simplex splines with fitting and faring procedures. The reconstructed heterogenous volumetric model can be quantitatively analyzed and easily visualized. Our experiments demonstrated that our approach can achieve high accuracy in the data reconstruction. The novel techniques and algorithms proposed in this paper can be applied to reconstruct a heterogeneous solid model with complex geometry and topology from other visual data.
A new health-related quality of life instrument for leukemia: will it be widely adopted soon?

The rapid escalation in the treatment costs of cancer, as well as modest survival gains of the treatment, drive an emerging need to determine the value of cancer therapy from the perspectives of stakeholders such as patients, payers, and health care administrators. Despite the fact that global health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is not considered as the primary efficacy endpoint for cancer therapy approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) [1], there is an increasing role of HRQoL evidence in guiding a clinician’s treatment decision and influencing a payer’s coverage decision. In the field of leukemia research, there has been a paucity of validated leukemia-specific measurement tools to assess HRQoL [2], and consequently limited patient-reported outcome (PRO) studies involving leukemia patients [3]. News that might be of interest to researchers developing novel HRQoL tools or leukemia treatment therapies is that the void for a leukemia-specific HRQoL instrument has recently been filled by FACT-Leu [4]. This instrument is a new pharmacoeconomics tool that will help address part of the question of the value of leukemia therapy. The FACT-Leu questionnaire was developed largely in conjuction with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G), a general instrument with 27 items. Items are typically specific questions or descriptions associated with each dimension of the overall functional assessment of the PRO instrument [5]. For example, the items associated with the measurement of emotional wellbeing could include ‘frustration with activity limitation’, ‘discouraged by illness’, ‘worry about illness’, and ‘emotional ups and downs’. FACT-Leu retained a total of 17 items specific to leukemia after a process of validation. As a disease specific instrument with a relatively short list of questions, FACT-Leu will significantly reduce the administration time on the part of patients and clinicians. Will this new instrument be widely accepted and easily adopted in different settings? In this paper, we attempt to shed some light on this specific question by providing an overview of several strengths and weaknesses of the development process of the instrument.
Computer design of optimum variable sampling plans

Abstract The University of Dayton, School of Engineering, has developed a series of interactive computer programs that solve most of the traditional and many special quality control problems. This paper shows practical applications for eight of these programs (SL.F.DEF, SL.2P.OC, SL.OC.5, DL.2P.FD, SU.2P.OC, DU.2P.FD, SXB.OC and DXB.OC), all associated with variable sampling plans. Since each program is written in FORTRAN IV and is as computer-independent as possible, each is easily compilable on most companies' computers. Further, since all programs are interactive, they may be used by any quality control person who has access to a teletype terminal. The paper discusses how to design and evaluate variable sampling plans for special conditions not covered in standard sampling schemes such as MIL-STD-414. Actual examples are given, showing step-by-step procedures to design and/or evaluate sampling plans that meet defined producer and consumer risks for both fraction defective and X plans for either single or double specification limits and with or without known sigmas.
Silicon carbide platelet/alumina composites: II. Mechanical properties

The mechanical properties, i.e., Young's modulus, fracture toughness, and flexural strength, of SiC-platelet/Al[sub 2]O[sub 3] composites with two different platelet sizes were studied. Both Young's modulus and the fracture toughness of composites using small platelets (12 [mu]m) increased with increasing SiC volume fraction. Maximum values for toughness and Young's modulus of 7.1 MPa [center dot] M[sup 1/2] and 421 GPa were obtained for composites containing 30 vol% platelets. Composites fabricated using larger platelets (24 [mu]m), however, showed spontaneous microcracking at SiC volume fractions of [>=] 0.15. The presence of microcracks decreased Young's modulus and the fracture toughness substantially. Two types of radial microcracks were identified by optical microscopy and found to be consistent with a residual stress analysis. Anisotropy in fracture toughness was identified with a crack length identification technique. Cracks propagating in a plane parallel to platelet faces experienced the least resistance, which was the lowest toughness plane in platelet composites with preferred orientation. Enhanced fracture toughness was found in the plane parallel to the hot-pressing direction, but no anisotropy in toughness was observed in this plane. The flexural strength of alumina showed a decrease from 610 to 480 MPa for a 30 vol% composite and was attributed tomore » the presence of the platelets.« less
Comparison of metoprolol succinate versus carvedilol in time to cardiovascular admission in a Veterans Affairs healthcare system: An observational study.

Objective To determine if metoprolol succinate or carvedilol is more effective in delaying the time to first cardiovascular disease hospital admission in systolic heart failure patients. As a secondary objective, to determine the most effective dose of each agent in delaying first cardiovascular disease hospital admission, including but not limited to heart failure exacerbation, myocardial infarction, ischemic heart disease, cardiac arrhythmias, or death. Methods This study was a retrospective chart review of 272 veterans at the VA Boston Healthcare System newly started on metoprolol succinate ( n = 157) or carvedilol ( n = 115) between January 2000 and December 2008. After an 8-week study medication titration period, subjects were subcategorized into low-, medium-, and high-dose ranging groups and followed until the first cardiovascular disease hospitalization, death, or 365 days. The main outcome measure was time to first cardiovascular hospitalization or death. Results The mean age (69.9 years vs. 67.9 years) and ejection fraction (26% vs. 25%) were comparable between study arms at baseline. Mean time to first cardiovascular disease hospitalization was significantly different ( p = 0.001) between study groups with 330.6 days with in metoprolol succinate group vs. 282.6 days in the carvedilol groups. High-dose carvedilol significantly delayed time to first hospitalization in comparison to medium or low carvedilol doses ( p = 0.015, p = 0.005). Low- and high-dose metoprolol succinate were not significantly different ( p = 0.509) in time to first event, and both dosing groups fared better compared to medium dose metoprolol succinate ( p = 0.046). Conclusion In this veteran patient population in need of additional heart failure treatments, metoprolol succinate use resulted in a delayed time to first cardiovascular disease hospitalization or death compared to carvedilol. Both low and high doses of metoprolol succinate showed a significant delay of time to first cardiovascular hospitalization compared to medium doses of metoprolol succinate. Higher doses of carvedilol showed a significant delay of time to cardiovascular hospitalization than lower carvedilol doses.
The teaching commons: using a short story to discuss capitalism, property rights, public goods, power, justice and class

This article suggests using a short story to elucidate the concepts of power, class and property rights, and as a springboard for class discussion. I feel there is no better primer on the diversity of the human condition than fiction. The article starts with a formal definition of property rights, then introduces Ivan Turgenev's 'The Loner' - a powerful short story depicting mid-19th century Russia. The article concludes with several questions to precipitate class discussion.
A matter of Time

Response to HAU Symposium on Obarrio, Juan. 2014. The spirit of the laws in Mozambique . Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
A Paradox of Prediction: The ICC's Effect on US Humanitarian Policy in The Sudan

United States opposition to the ICC is deep-seated and has led scholars to predict that the establishment of the Court will lead the U.S. away from human rights interventions. U.S. policy during the Darfur crisis challenges this view. In many ways, United States policy and rhetoric on Darfur have been stronger than during any other human rights crisis in recent memory. This paper examines U.S. policy during the Darfur crisis, compares that policy to past interventions, and links the policy to ICC opposition. In doing so, the paper discovers a surprising consequence: the establishment of the ICC, in stark contrast to early predictions, may actually be partly responsible for the strength of the U.S.'s Darfur policy. That this rhetorical resolve has yet sparked no direct intervention, however, is a separate and troubling issue.
Preferences for cardiopulmonary resuscitation - Physician-patient agreement and hospital resource use

OBJECTIVE: To describe the association between hospital resource utilization and physicians’ knowledge of patient preferences for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) among seriously ill hospitalized adult patients.
The nuclear-polyhedrosis virus of Heliothis zea (boddie) and Heliothis virescens (fabricius): IV. Bioassay of virus activity

Abstract A bioassay for determining the insecticidal activity of the nuclear polyhedrosis of Heliothis is described. Heliothis zea larvae are fed on a semisynthetic diet surface-contaminated with polyhedral inclusion bodies (PIBs) of the virus. The LD 50 and 95-percent fiducial limits were 32.0 and 26.2–39.0 PIBs/mm 2 of diet, respectively. The LT 50 values for 29,200, 292, 146, 58, and 29 PIBs/mm 2 were 3.8, 3.8, 4.3, 5.3, and 6.5 days, respectively. No direct correlation could be made between pupal weight and adult emergence of survivors and the virus dose the larvae fed upon.
Evaluation of Heliothis nuclear polyhedrosis virus in a cottonseed oil bait for control of Heliothis virescens and H. zea on cotton.

In the summers of 1971 and 1972, small plot field experiments were conducted to evaluate the performance of Heliothis nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) for control of the tobacco budworm, Heliothis virescens (F.), and the bollworm, H. zea (Boddie), in cotton. In 1971, an NPV cottonseed oil bait preparation was compared to an NPV preparation applied in a conventional water diluted spray, an insecticide control, and an untreated control. In 1972, the NPV cottonseed oil bait preparation was compared at spray volumes of 1 gal/acre and 5 gal/acre. In weeks when control plots show maximum damage, the bait-NPV treatments and the conventional virus treatments using 50 and 100 larval equivalents (LE/acre) (1 LE = 6×109 polyhedral inclusion bodies, PIB) of Heliothis NPV protected squares and bolls as well as the standard insecticide treatment. This evaluation shows that control of the bollworms was attained with the bait-NPV formulation equal to our present method of control.
Serologic response of school children to delayed second inoculation of poliomyelitis vaccine.

SummaryThe serologic response of school children receiving the second inoculation of poliomyelitis vaccine 5 months after the first injection was studied. Thirteen percent had no demonstrable antibodies to any of the 3 types of virus prior to the second stimulus and many others were lacking in antibodies to one or two types. Only 33% had antibodies to all 3 types. Two weeks following the delayed second injection none was without antibodies to any type, and 85% had antibodies to all 3 types. The antibody levels attained by these children were at least as good if not better than those of other age groups following 2 injections at an interval of one month. The conclusion is made that a delay of 5 months between the first and second injections of poliomyelitis vaccine, although not normally recommended, actually proves advantageous in terms of serologic response.
Operation of Mobile Sensors for Monitoring Municipal Drinking Water Distribution Systems

Tremendous advances have been recently made in inline, mobile sensors (IMS)technology for monitoring water distribution systems at unprecedentedly high spatial resolutions. Once fully matured, IMSs can be applied to obtain previously inaccessible information about the critical water quality parameters, faults, and leakages inside the pipeline networks. Timely, costefficient, and effective application of IMSs during normal and emergency conditions, however, requires development of models that are able to accurately simulate and optimize their operation in complex and dynamic environment of municipal drinking water networks. This paper describes an ongoing project for development of decision support models for design, planning and operation of mobile sensor networks. They help understanding how modifying different design parameters such as sensors’ measurement sensitivity and battery life enhance system monitoring performance. The models will aid water utilities to identify the best configuration and operation of mobile sensor networks for their systems through informing the cost-benefit analyses.
Effect of clonidine on gastrointestinal transit time.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Orocecal time can be measured by lactulose H 2 breath test. Duodenal entry time can be evaluated by measuring D-xylose; the duodeno-cecal time can be derived by subtracting duodenal entry time from orocecal time. In this study we established the normal value of these parameters for our laboratory in males and also evaluated the effect of clonidine on these parameters. METHODOLOGY: In 9 healthy male volunteers orocecal time was measured by the lactulose H 2 breath test. Duodenal entry time was established by measuring blood D-xylose. Duodenocecal time was derived by subtracting duodenal entry time from orocecal time. RESULTS: The mean orocecal time was 54.44 + 3.77 minutes; the mean duodenal entry time was 17.22 + 3.15 minutes and the mean duodenocecal time was 37.22 + 3.16 minutes. CONCLUSIONS: Oral clonidine prolonged orocecal, duodenal entry and duodenocecal times in only 33% of the subjects.
Comparison of graphical analysis methods for VT estimation of a novel kappa opioid receptor tracer in humans

1184 Objectives To assess the utility of the relative equilibrium-based (RE) graphical analysis method [1] and RE plot with the Gjedde-Patlak correction (RE-GP) for estimation of total distribution volume (VT) for the novel kappa-opioid receptor antagonist tracer, [11C]LY2795050[3] because RE [1] developed VT image with high signal-to-noise. Methods Dynamic [11C]LY2795050 PET scans on the HRRT were acquired for 90 min in 4 healthy human subjects. Arterial blood samples were obtained and plasma input functions were constructed based on HPLC-determined parent fraction. Brain regional time-activity curves were fitted using the two-tissue compartment model (2TCM). Pixel-by-pixel and ROI based graphical methods were used for calculation of VT according to Zhou et al [1, 2]. Results RE plot results were highly dependent on the choice of relative equilibrium time (t*). Regional VT estimates from the RE plot increased with t*. Throughout the scan duration, the ratio of tissue to plasma concentration continuously increased in high binding regions (amygdala and anterior cingulate). In addition, the apparent t* varied by region and subject. By comparison, the RE-GP plot showed consistent and reliable VT estimates if time points with very low plasma activity concentration (Cp) were avoided. The correlation with 2TCM was high (y=0.979x+0.047, r2=0.98). VT images by the modified RE-GP method had high signal-to-noise. Conclusions The RE plot does not appear to be an appropriate method for calculating VT estimates of the new kappa-opioid antagonist ligand, [11C]LY2795050. This is probably due to the inability of the tracer to reach transient equilibrium within 90 min in all regions. The RE-GP plot appears to be valid for [11C]LY2795050 because the VT(RE-GP) method is robust to the choise of t* and because the VT(RE-GP) values are highly correlated with VT(2TCM)
Investigation of species, temporal and spatial distribution of ticks in Henan province, China

Objective To investigate the species, geographic distribution, and seasonalality of ticks in Henan province,China.Methods The specimens of free ticks and ectoparasitic ticks were collected with white cloth from grassland and picked from animals' body surfaces, respectively, throughout Henan province from 2011 to 2012.Results Eight species of ticks belonging to 6 genera and 2 families were found in the province. These ticks were Haemaphysalis longicornis, H. phasiana, H. flava, Rhipicephalus microplus, Dermacentor sinicus, Ixodes sinensis, Hyalomma detritum, and Argas reflexus. H. longicornis was distributed throughout the whole province and was the dominant species of ticks in Henan. It was found first in March or April, achieved the highest density in July or August, and became dormant after October. After winter, it reappeared in March or April of the next year.ConclusionThere are relatively abundant species of ticks in Henan and they are widely distributed in the province. The activity peak of H. longicornis is in summer and autumn.
The safety of intrauterine contraception initiation among women with current asymptomatic cervical infections or at increased risk of sexually transmitted infections.

Abstract Objective The objective was to assess risk of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) among women with current asymptomatic undiagnosed cervical infection or who are at high risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), comparing those who have a copper-bearing (Cu-) or levonorgestrel (LNG-) intrauterine device (IUD) placed with women who do not. Study design We searched PubMed and Cochrane Library for articles from January 1984 through January 2016 addressing our objective. We assessed study quality using the United States Preventive Services Task Force evidence grading system. Results Our search strategy yielded 2220 articles, of which 10 met inclusion criteria. Two studies provided direct evidence of PID rates in women with undiagnosed gonococcal or chlamydial (GC/CT) infection or at high risk for STIs initiating IUDs versus other contraceptive methods (level II-2, fair to poor), and neither study found a difference. Eight studies provided indirect evidence (II-2 to II-3, fair to poor). One study found no difference in PID rates between initiators of Cu- versus LNG-IUDs. Five studies compared algorithms based on patient factors with laboratory GC/CT screening to predict cervical infection. Based on likelihood ratios, none of these algorithms adequately identified women at high risk of asymptomatic cervical infection who should not undergo IUD placement. Two studies compared IUD placement on the same day as STI screening with delayed placement after screening and found no difference in PID rates. Conclusion Limited evidence suggests that IUD placement does not increase the risk of PID compared with no IUD placement among women with asymptomatic undiagnosed cervical infection or at high risk of STIs. Algorithms based on patient characteristics to identify women with asymptomatic GC/CT may be overly restrictive, leading to missed opportunities for IUD initiation. Historical concerns about higher PID risk among women at risk for STIs who use IUDs may not be relevant with modern devices and STI screening and treatment practices.
Understanding and responding to chronic neglect: A mixed methods case record examination

Abstract Neglect is the most prevalent form of maltreatment, and thus comprises the bulk of cases for Child Protective Service (CPS) agencies, yet it remains under-studied. Cases in which children experience repeated or “chronic” neglect are particularly concerning. A growing body of research indicates that the effects of chronic neglect create a harmful accumulation of problems for child well-being, including detrimental impact on early brain development, emotional regulation, and cognitive development. The aim of this retrospective case record review study was to examine risk and protective factors of chronic neglect and relevant CPS agency responses and practices. Results demonstrated that families experiencing chronic neglect had multiple significant stressors (four or more stressors for all families in this study), such as domestic violence, poverty, children with behavioral problems, and/or substance abuse, indicating chaotic and toxic living environments. Key implications are outlined for strengthening CPS response to cases of chronic neglect, including the need for comprehensive assessment of families, more effective and consistent use of standardized risk assessment tools, and better recognition of past patterns of neglect to mitigate the risk of accumulation of harm.
Revolution in Thought and Social Organization: The Legal Hegemony of Jeffersonian Liberalism, 1776–1828

Americans generally may think of their Revolution almost exclusively as a process of winning independence from Great Britain. In doing so, they vastly underestimate the transformative nature of the Revolution on American society. Americans expressed a widespread acceptance of natural rights, profoundly changing the nature of Americans’ religious beliefs and restructuring the role of the individual in society, especially relative to the authority of the government and the churches. The idea of natural rights derived from the Newtonian construct, an intellectual understanding of the world as governed by natural laws. Natural laws applied not only in the realms of physics and biology but also to all earthly activity. People, as inherently reasonable and rational and possessed of an innate benevolence permitting the formation of society, could discover and conform to the natural laws in shaping human laws and institutions. Natural law vested humanity with inherent rights. Creating a civil society that recognized and protected these rights required reconceptualizing the nature of the state and ultimately delineating public and private spheres, with the public or governmental sphere limited in its ability to interfere with the rights of individuals in the private sphere. Inevitably, the existence of the private sphere produced a more individualistic, even an atomistic society. Thinkers during the intellectual age known as the Enlightenment (roughly the late 1600s to the early 1800s), though captivated by the exercise of their minds in scientific experimentation and discovery, also could accept dogmatic truths spawned entirely through intuitive reasoning and use those truths as bases for deducing governing principles consistent with them. Thomas Jefferson and the signatories to the Declaration of Independence could boldly assert that they held certain “truths to be self-evident,” needing no further elucidation or substantiation. The Revolution accordingly could be fought for both equality and individual freedom, with only a slight awareness of the tension that may exist between these two goals. Ultimately, adoption of free-enterprise capitalism, initially perceived as a means of achieving both goals, focused attention on the tension between them and simultaneously resolved it in favor of personal freedom, endorsing a high degree of individualism. Law, through its protection of private rights rather than the public welfare, limited the idea of equality to legal considerations, deeming social equality inconsistent with American ideas of liberty.
A PNN- Jensen-Bregman Divergence symmetrization for a WLAN Indoor Positioning System

Various techniques have been developed for Indoor Positioning Systems (IPS), a method that fingerprints the Received Signal Strength (RSS) of WiFi at specific places that can achieve high accuracy of about one meter at the exact location. A large range of indoor navigation needs and user services can be provided by using IPS, especially in unusual conditions such as being in large complex buildings or emergency healthcare needs, etc. In this paper, a framework that incorporates the probabilistic neural network (PNN) and Jensen-Bregman Divergence (JBD) is proposed. To validate our algorithm, the results were compared with PNN and kNN nearest neighbor. Where implemented inside an academic building, the algorithm results have high accuracy with an error of less than 1m distance.
The Eric Garner Case: Statewide Survey of New York Voters’ Response to Proposed Police Accountability Legislation

The Eric Garner case was unique because this police-induced death was caught on video from before the moment of physical confrontation. A mixed-methods representative household survey and Garner's ...
Role of Upstream cAMP Response Element (CRE) in γ-Globin Gene Regulation.

Abstract 4076 Poster Board III-1011 The reactivation of fetal hemoglobin has been shown to ameliorate symptoms of sickle cell disease. Previous work from our laboratory demonstrated that histone deacetylase inhibitors such as Trichostatin A and sodium butyrate activate γ-globin gene expression via p38 MAPK signaling. Using a transient luciferase genetic reporter system, the trans-factors cAMP response element binding protein 1 (CREB1) and activating transcription factor-2 (ATF-2) were shown to trans-activate the Gγ-globin CRE, located upstream at nucleotide -1222. To study this regulatory element in a native chromatin conformation, we cloned the Gγ-globin promoter (-1500 to +36) into pGL4.17 Luc2/neo to produce the pGγLuc2 reporter construct. In addition, three mutant plasmids were created by site directed mutagenesis including the -1225 G/A mutation (pGγLuc2m1), -1227 AC/TG mutations (pGγLuc2m2) and a scrambled G-CRE, 59-TCTATGTA-39 (pGγLuc2m3S). Each reporter along with the empty vector control (pGL4.17 Luc2/neo) was transfected into K562 cells and five stable lines including KLuc2, KGγLuc2, KGγLuc2(m1), KGγLuc2(m2) and KGγLuc2(m3s) were established using the G418 selectable marker. Luciferase activity in KGγLuc2 was 700-fold higher than the promoterless Kluc2 stable line. When the G-CRE element was mutated, we observed a 70 to 80 % decrease (p Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
An OpenMP 3.1 validation testsuite

Parallel programming models are evolving so rapidly that it needs to be ensured that OpenMP can be used easily to program multicore devices. There is also effort involved in getting OpenMP to be accepted as a de facto standard in the embedded system community. However, in order to ensure correctness of OpenMP's implementation, there is a requirement of an up-to-date validation suite. In this paper, we present a portable and robust validation testsuite execution environment to validate the OpenMP implementation in several compilers. We cover all the directives and clauses of OpenMP until the latest release, OpenMP Version 3.1. Our primary focus is to determine and evaluate the correctness of the OpenMP implementation in our research compiler, OpenUH and few others such as Intel, Sun/Oracle and GNU. We also aim to find the ambiguities in the OpenMP specification and help refine the same with the validation suite. Furthermore, we also include deeper tests such as cross tests and orphan tests in the testsuite.
Acoustic evaluation of concrete delaminations using ball-chain impact excitation

This letter presents an automated acoustic sensing device for rapid detection of delamination in concrete. The device consists of ball-chains for continual impact excitation and multi-channel microphones for acoustic sensing. A ball-chain is formed by multiple metal balls connected by flexible ropes and is dragged on concrete surface to excite vibration of delaminations. Compared to the conventional chain drag test, the ball-chain generates acoustic signals with higher signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) because the balls give isolated but continual impacts on concrete surface during dragging. The proposed method was validated on a concrete specimen with artificial delaminations.
Participation of women in spacecraft science teams

There is an ongoing discussion about the participation of women in science and particularly astronomy. Demographic data from NASA's robotic planetary spacecraft missions show women scientists to be consistently under-represented.
A Diversity of Schools: The Danish School Acts of 1814 and the Emergence of Mass Schooling in Denmark

During the nineteenth century, national systems of mass schooling were established in western Europe. In Denmark, King Frederik VI passed a set of five schools’ laws in 1814: one for the village schools, one for the market town schools, one for Copenhagen, one for the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein and one for Jews, in order to create and regulate a system of mass schooling within his realms. This study aims to analyse the impact of the 1814 School Acts and thereby, the emergence of mass schooling in Denmark in the nineteenth century. Three aspects of the 1814 Acts are analysed in this article: firstly, how a local school administration was established; secondly, how new school buildings were built and thirdly, how a new form of teacher and a new teachers’ education was enacted at different stages across the King’s realm and countries, and with very different consequences.
Nonmedical Opioid Use in Relation to Recency of Heroin Use in a Nationally Representative Sample of Adults in the United States

Nonmedical opioid use has been linked to lifetime heroin use; however, research is needed to examine associations between nonmedical opioid use and current or recent heroin use, as current users appear to be at highest risk for harm. Data were from a nationally representative sample of non-institutionalized adults (age 18-64) in households participating in the National Survey of Drug Use and Health who reported lifetime heroin use (2005-2014, N = 7,111). We examined associations between frequency and recency of nonmedical opioid use and recency of heroin use. Most (86.7%) lifetime heroin users reported no heroin use in the last 12 months, while 6.1% reported current use (use in the last 30 days). The majority of the sample (69.3%) reported lifetime nonmedical opioid use; 14.3% reported nonmedical use in the last 30 days. Adjusted odds for current heroin use increased as frequency of past-year nonmedical opioid use increased, with a quarter (24.7%) of current heroin users reporting nonmedical opioid use on 157-365 days in the last year. Over half (54.7%) of current heroin users reported current nonmedical opioid use. Prevention efforts should consider that high-frequency and current nonmedical opioid use is a robust correlate of continued heroin use.
Minimally Invasive Cardiac Output Monitor

Monitoring of hemodynamic parameters including cardiac output can positively affect outcomes both in surgical and nonsurgical populations. Data that used to be measured by thermodilution method via a pulmonary catheter are now obtained by using less invasive user-friendly devices. Different tools have been made available for this purpose, but one must be familiar with their setup and limitations. Erroneous results and misinterpretation of data may affect decision making. We review the available minimally invasive cardiac output monitors, their characteristics, and limitations.
Advocating for Behavior Change With Education

Education is ubiquitous with clinical care. However, not all education supports behavioral change. Education is a broad term that encompasses the process of obtaining general knowledge, personal awareness, and skills training. Although not sufficient, education is a necessary component for behavior change. This article outlines the role of education in behavior change and offers practical suggestions for how clinicians can provide education to their patients to help them change behavior.
French Studies: Plus de souvenirs que d'avenir?

Author(s): Tobin, Ronald W | Abstract: Since France and the French language are demonstrably prominent in a variety of significant global initiatives, I believe that there is widespread agreement about the important role that France continues to play in the world. It brings strengths to international affairs and serves as a counterpoise to what Claude Hagege, in his recent book Contre la pensee unique, sees as the unhealthy predominance of English and its commercial values. Finally, and most significant to North-American francophones and francophiles, a strong program of French studies contributes to our linguistic, cultural, and literary enlightenment.
The Case of Moshe

Moshe Goshen-Gottstein defied all odds. He suddenly went from being a worldfamous scholar to a helpless comatose patient who, according to doctors, had no chance of recovery, only to recuperate fully and return to his previous level of competence. It is a story with a happy ending, one that every family with a comatose member dreams will be their story. Yet the issues raised by his case go beyond the “miracle” of his seeming rebirth to why all those involved in his care continued to hope and to provide him with treatment and attention and affection for months, with little hope of any, let alone a complete, recovery. It is a case whose happy ending does not completely explain the beginning or the middle of this miraculous event involving this incredible man.
Comparison of robotic magnetic navigation-guided and manual catheter ablation of ventricular arrhythmias arising from the papillary muscles.

Aims Due to the complex anatomy of the left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) papillary muscles (PMs), PM ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) can be challenging to target with ablation. We sought to compare the outcomes of robotic magnetic navigation-guided (RMN) ablation and manual ablation of VAs arising from the LV and RV PMs. Methods and results We evaluated 35 consecutive patients (mean age 65 ± 12 years, 69% male) who underwent catheter ablation of 38 VAs originating from the LV and RV PMs as confirmed by intracardiac echocardiography. Catheter ablation was initially performed using RMN-guidance in 24 (69%) patients and manual guidance in 11 (31%) patients. Demographic and procedural data were recorded and compared between the two groups. The VA sites of origin were mapped to 20 (53%) anterolateral LV PMs, 14 (37%) posteromedial LV PMs, and 4 (11%) RV PMs Acute successful ablation was achieved for 20 (74%) VAs using RMN-guided ablation and 8 (73%) VAs using manual ablation (P = 1.000). Fluoroscopy times were significantly lower among patients undergoing RMN ablation compared to patients undergoing manual ablation [median 7.3, interquartile range (IQR) 3.9-18 vs. 24 (16-44) min; P = 0.005]. Retrograde transaortic approach was used in 1 (4%) RMN patients and 5 (46%) manual patients (P = 0.005). No procedural complications were seen in study patients. Conclusion Use of an RMN-guided approach to target PM VAs results in comparable success rates seen with manual ablation but with lower fluoroscopy times and decreased use of transaortic retrograde access.
A Modified Random Survival Forests Algorithm for High Dimensional Predictors and Self-Reported Outcomes.

We present an ensemble tree-based algorithm for variable selection in high-dimensional datasets, in settings where a time-to-event outcome is observed with error. This work is motivated by self-rep...