cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Soft-tissue injury as an indication of child abuse

We reviewed the hospital records of 371 children who were suspected of having been physically abused. Our purpose was to determine specific features that might be used to distinguish injuries resulting from abuse from accidental injuries. Soft-tissue injuries were found in 341 (92 per cent) of these children. Ecchymoses were most common, accounting for 555 (62 per cent) of 892 soft-tissue injuries, and very few had a suspicious pattern. Only thirty-four (9 per cent) of the children had a radiographically documented fracture, but radiography was performed for only thirty-seven (10 per cent) of the patients and it rarely was done unless a fracture was clinically obvious. The patterns of injury were age-specific. The forty-four children who were nine months old or less had an average of only one soft-tissue injury; thirty soft-tissue injuries involved the head or face, and seven (16 per cent) of the children had a burn. These children were the most severely injured: two (5 per cent) died and twenty (45 per cent) had a fracture. The sixty-one children who were ten months to two years and eleven months old had an average of two soft-tissue injuries; fifty-four soft-tissue injuries involved the head or face, and nine (15 per cent) of the children had a burn. A fracture was found in eight (13 per cent) of these children.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Bayesian reliability analysis

Bayesian reliability methods permit the formal incorporation of pertinent supplementary information about the parameters of interest in a statistical analysis beyond that contained in the sample data. This additional information is contained in the prior distribution of the parameters. Bayes' theorem is used to combine the prior and sampling distributions to form the posterior distribution of the parameters. Then all the desired inferences are obtained from this joint posterior. In most practical applications, Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling techniques are used to numerically perform the required calculations. A real-world reliability example that illustrates the Bayesian approach is presented. Keywords: Bayes' theorem; prior; posterior; predictive; degree of belief; censoring; credible interval; Markov chain Monte Carlo; Win BUGS ; hierarchical Bayesian
Support for calcium channel gene defects in autism spectrum disorders

Background: Alternation of synaptic homeostasis is a biological process whose disruption might predispose children to autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Calcium channel genes (CCG) contribute to modulating neuronal function and evidence implicating CCG in ASD has been accumulating. We conducted a targeted association analysis of CCG using existing genome-wide association study (GWAS) data and imputation methods in a combined sample of parent/affected child trios from two ASD family collections to explore this hypothesis. Methods: A total of 2,176 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) (703 genotyped and 1,473 imputed) covering the genes that encode the α1 subunit proteins of 10 calcium channels were tested for association with ASD in a combined sample of 2,781 parent/affected child trios from 543 multiplex Caucasian ASD families from the Autism Genetics Resource Exchange (AGRE) and 1,651 multiplex and simplex Caucasian ASD families from the Autism Genome Project (AGP). SNP imputation using IMPUTE2 and a combined reference panel from the HapMap3 and the 1,000 Genomes Project increased coverage density of the CCG. Family-based association was tested using the FBAT software which controls for population stratification and accounts for the non-independence of siblings within multiplex families. The level of significance for association was set at 2.3E-05, providing a Bonferroni correction for this targeted 10-gene panel. Results: Four SNPs in three CCGs were associated with ASD. One, rs10848653, is located in CACNA1C, a gene in which rare de novo mutations are responsible for Timothy syndrome, a Mendelian disorder that features ASD. Two others, rs198538 and rs198545, located in CACN1G, and a fourth, rs5750860, located in CACNA1I, are in CCGs that encode T-type calcium channels, genes with previous ASD associations.
A 51 pW reference-free capacitive-discharging oscillator architecture operating at 2.8 Hz

This paper presents a gate-leakage-based Hz-range oscillator that achieves ultra-low-power frequency-stable operation in a small area via a capacitive-discharging architecture. By pre-charging two capacitors to V DD , and then allowing one to discharge through a temperature stable discharging path, an accurate clock period is generated independent of V DD and without a power-expensive reference. By exploiting the opposite temperature dependencies of different gate-leakage transistors, a stable oscillation frequency is achieved. Implemented in a 65 nm CMOS process, the proposed oscillator consumes 51 pW at 2.8 Hz. Across a temperature range of −40 °C to 60 °C, the oscillator deviates down to ±0.05% /°C, enabling an accurate, low-cost, low-power timing solution at Hz-range frequency.
Numerical Study of Turbulence–Wave Interaction

We develop numerical capabilities of direct numerical simulation and large-eddy simulation for turbulent flows with waving boundaries, which can be coupled with nonlinear surface wave simulation, to study the mechanism of turbulence-wave interaction. Simulation of turbulence in the vicinity of surface waves with various wave conditions reveals strong dependence of the statistics, structures, and dynamics of the turbulent flow on wave characteristics including wave phase, wave age, and wave nonlinearity. Simulation of nonlinear wave evolution provides wave growth quantification in a phase-resolving context, which is valuable for deterministic wavefield prediction. The results obtained in this study suggest the importance of two-way coupling between turbulence and waves in their dynamic evolution.
In-Depth Dissection of the P133R Mutation in Steroid 5β-Reductase (AKR1D1): A Molecular Basis of Bile Acid Deficiency

Human steroid-5β-reductase (aldo-keto reductase 1D1, AKR1D1) stereospecifically reduces Δ(4)-3-ketosteroids to 5β-dihydrosteroids and is essential for steroid hormone metabolism and bile acid biosynthesis. Genetic defects in AKR1D1 cause bile acid deficiency that leads to life threatening neonatal hepatitis and cholestasis. The disease-associated P133R mutation caused significant decreases in catalytic efficiency with both the representative steroid (cortisone) and the bile acid precursor (7α-hydroxycholest-4-en-3-one) substrates. Pro133 is a second shell residue to the steroid binding channel and is distal to both the cofactor binding site and the catalytic center. Strikingly, the P133R mutation caused over a 40-fold increase in Kd values for the NADP(H) cofactors and increased the rate of release of NADP(+) from the enzyme by 2 orders of magnitude when compared to the wild type enzyme. By contrast the effect of the mutation on Kd values for steroids were 10-fold or less. The reduced affinity for the cofactor suggests that the mutant exists largely in the less stable cofactor-free form in the cell. Using stopped-flow spectroscopy, a significant reduction in the rate of the chemical step was observed in multiple turnover reactions catalyzed by the P133R mutant, possibly due to the altered position of NADPH. Thus, impaired NADPH binding and hydride transfer is the molecular basis for bile acid deficiency in patients with the P133R mutation. Results revealed that optimal cofactor binding is vulnerable to distant structural perturbation, which may apply to other disease-associated mutations in AKR1D1, all of which occur at conserved residues and are unstable.
Edge functionalization and doping effects on the stability, electronic and magnetic properties of silicene nanoribbons

Through density functional theory calculations the impact of edge functionalization on the structural stabilities, electronic and magnetic properties of silicene nanoribbons (SiNRs) are investigated. –H, –F, –Cl, –Br, and –I edge functionalization of armchair, zigzag, Klein, reconstructed Klein, reconstructed pentagon–heptagon edge types, and their combinations are examined. It is found for the first time that trifluorinated Klein edge SiNR is the most stable edge structure among all edge structures of SiNRs. Furthermore, the stability of trihydrogenated Klein edge SiNR, which is periodically replaced by a dihydrogenated zigzag edge, approaches that of dihydrogenated armchair edge SiNR as the most stable hydrogenated SiNR. It is revealed that asymmetry in edge functionalization or combining different edge types can transform symmetric edge functionalized zigzag SiNRs from antiferromagnetic semiconductors to various magnetic states, such as bipolar spin gapless semiconductors (SGS), ferromagnetic metals and semiconductors, and antiferromagnetic metals. Furthermore, the effects of N or B doping on the stability, electronic and magnetic properties of hydrogenated and fluorinated SiNRs are studied. It is discovered that the mono-fluorinated armchair SiNR shows SGS behavior with 100% spin polarized currents around the Fermi level, when the Si edge atom is substituted by an N or B atom. The remarkable SGS and half-metal characters, and ferromagnetic metals are also observed in N- or B-doped asymmetric edge functionalized zigzag SiNRs, fully functionalized Klein edge SiNRs, and combinations of zigzag SiNRs with reconstructed Klein edge SiNRs. These results encourage further experimental investigations in the development of SiNR-based nanoelectronics with spin tuning.
The Determination of the Blood Volume of Insect Larvæ.

In physiological and toxicological studies of insects it is often desirable to know the volume occupied by the blood. Dry weight determinations of the whole insect furnish information upon the total quantity of body water, but tell nothing of its distribution, i.e., the quantity present in the blood and that held in the tissues. Furthermore, it is often important to measure the total quantity of a substance like glucose, uric acid, or of a poison like arsenic, that may be dissolved in the blood. A simple method for blood volume will afford this information.
Theodore J. Lowi and Juridical Democracy

By selecting Theodore J. Lowi to serve as its President, the American Political Science Association has recognized his extraordinary scholarly and professional contributions. Indeed, Lowi's work has played a singularly important role in the intellectual development of the profession during the past two decades. He was recognized in an American Political Science Association survey as the most significant political scientist of the 1970s, and continues in every study to be the single most frequently cited member of the profession. At the same time, as a truly gifted teacher, Lowi has inspired large numbers of graduate and undergraduate students, many of whom have followed in his professional footsteps.Lowi was born in Gadsden, Alabama in 1931. Much of his family lived in Marks, Mississippi (a city named for Lowi's great-uncle), and Lowi may be said to have considered—but rejected—Marksism in his youth. He chose, instead, to enter Michigan State University on a music scholarship. At Michigan State, Lowi played the oboe in both the marching band and orchestra before receiving his B.A.
Lithographically Defined Plasmonic Graphene Antennas for Terahertz-Band Communication

Graphene-based plasmonic antennas could enable ultrabroadband communication among nanodevices in the Terahertz band (0.1–10 THz). Despite significant progress in graphene synthesis, the fabrication, manipulation, and placement of precisely formed graphene-based nanostructures still pose many practical challenges. In this letter, by comparing analytical solutions with numerical simulations, we show that lithographically defined graphene antennas, circumscribed by a focused ion beam (FIB), should behave as though they were electromagnetically isolated provided the width of the surrounding cut is comparable to the plasmonic wavelength. This result opens the door to practical and more advanced antenna designs.
Beyond Psychopharmacology: Emerging Psychosocial Interventions for Core Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Psychiatrists who work with patients with severe mental illness often are more focused on diagnosis, medical management, and psychopharmacology than on psychosocial treatments. Furthermore, many psychosocial interventions that show great promise may not be available locally, making it harder for psychiatrists to recognize emerging trends. Finally, there has not been an update in the American Psychiatric Association's Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Schizophrenia for many years, and the most recent Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT) review of evidence-based psychosocial treatments for schizophrenia was published eight years ago. This article reviews a selection of psychosocial interventions that have shown success in treating some of the more vexing and persistent core schizophrenia symptoms that often continue despite optimal pharmacologic treatment; formerly these had been considered too risky or out of reach for psychosocial intervention. The interventions reviewed include cognitive-behavioral therapy for psychosis (CBTp), which aims to reduce distress and disability from psychotic symptoms; CBT and other behavioral interventions focused for comorbid posttraumatic stress syndrome; cognitive training (remediation) interventions that use computerized training programs to reduce the severity and consequence of cognitive impairment associated with schizophrenia; clubhouse and peer support models that address the social alienation and social defeat endemic to persons with severe mental illness; and supported employment interventions that are effective in helping patients get back to work in a competitive job environment. The interventions are reviewed with the needs of the prescribing mental health clinician in mind. Each intervention's strengths and weaknesses are described, as well as their role in recovery-oriented treatment services.
Distributed Photovoltaic Grid Transformers

The demand for alternative energy sources fuels the need for electric power and controls engineers to possess a practical understanding of transformers suitable for solar energy. Meeting that need, Distributed Photovoltaic Grid Transformers begins by explaining the basic theory behind transformers in the solar power arena, and then progresses to describe the development, manufacture, and sale of distributed photovoltaic (PV) grid transformers, which help boost the electric DC voltage (generally at 30 volts) harnessed by a PV panel to a higher level (generally at 115 volts or higher) once it is inverted to the AC voltage form by the inverter circuit. Packed with real-life scenarios and case studies from around the globe, Distributed Photovoltaic Grid Transformers covers the key design, operation, and maintenance aspects of transformers suitable for solar energy. Topics include islanding, voltage flicker, voltage operating range, frequency and power factor variation, and waveform distortion. Multiple homework questions are featured in each chapter. A solutions manual and downloadable content, such as illustrated examples, are available with qualifying course adoption.
Methodology for Increasing the Measurement Accuracy of Image Features

We present an optimization methodology for improving the measurement accuracy of image features for low signal to noise ratio (SNR) images. By superimposing known background noise with high quality images in various proportions, we produce a degraded image set spanning a range of SNRs with reference feature values established from the unmodified high quality images. We then experiment with a variety of image processing spatial filters applied to the degraded images and identify which filter produces an image whose feature values most closely correspond to the reference values. When using the best combination of three filters and six kernel sizes for each feature, the average correlation of feature values between the degraded and high quality images increased from 0:6 (without filtering) to 0:92 (with feature-specific filters), a 53% improvement. Selecting a single filter is more practical than having a separate filter per feature. However, this results in a 1:95% reduction in correlation and a 10% increase in feature residual root mean square error compared to selecting the optimal filter and kernel size per feature. We quantified the tradeoff between a practical solution for all features and featurespecific solution to support decision making.
Information sharing between the child welfare and behavioral health systems: Perspectives from four stakeholder groups

ABSTRACTThis qualitative study articulates the challenges, best practices, and facilitators to information sharing when addressing the behavioral health needs of children in out-of-home care. 13 interviews and nine focus groups were conducted to illuminate the perspectives of foster parents, mental health clinicians, provider agency social workers, and city-employed child welfare professionals. In total, 65 individuals participated in this qualitative study and data were analyzed using a modified grounded theory approach. Results indicate that challenges and best practices in cross-system information sharing articulated across the four stakeholder groups are attributed to variation in information accessibility, clarity in roles and protocols, ability in obtaining signatures for consent/release forms, and attitudinal differences towards collaboration. Implications to improve policy and practice are discussed.
Importance of Heat and Pressure for Solubilization of Recombinant Spider Silk Proteins in Aqueous Solution

The production of recombinant spider silk proteins continues to be a key area of interest for a number of research groups. Several key obstacles exist in their production as well as in their formulation into useable products. The original reported method to solubilize recombinant spider silk proteins (rSSp) in an aqueous solution involved using microwaves to quickly generate heat and pressure inside of a sealed vial containing rSSp and water. Fibers produced from this system are remarkable in their mechanical ability and demonstrate the ability to be stretched and recover 100 times. The microwave method dissolves the rSSPs with dissolution time increasing with higher molecular weight constructs, increasing concentration of rSSPs, protein type, and salt concentration. It has proven successful in solvating a number of different rSSPs including native-like sequences (MaSp1, MaSp2, piriform, and aggregate) as well as chimeric sequences (FlAS) in varied concentrations that have been spun into fibers and formed into films, foams, sponges, gels, coatings, macro and micro spheres and adhesives. The system is effective but inherently unpredictable and difficult to control. Provided that the materials that can be generated from this method of dissolution are impressive, an alternative means of applying heat and pressure that is controllable and predictable has been developed. Results indicate that there are combinations of heat and pressure (135 °C and 140 psi) that result in maximal dissolution without degrading the recombinant MaSp2 protein tested, and that heat and pressure are the key elements to the method of dissolution.
Neutrophil cathepsin G modulates the platelet surface expression of the glycoprotein (GP) Ib-IX complex by proteolysis of the von Willebrand factor binding site on GPIb alpha and by a cytoskeletal-mediated redistribution of the remainder of the complex

The effects of neutrophil cathepsin G on the glycoprotein (GP) Ib-IX complex of washed platelets were examined. Cathepsin G resulted in a concentration- and time-dependent decrease in the platelet surface GPIb- IX complex, as determined by flow cytometry, binding of exogenous von Willebrand factor (vWF) in the presence of ristocetin, and ristocetin- induced platelet agglutination. Cathepsin G resulted in proteolysis of the vWF binding site on GPIb alpha (defined by monoclonal antibody [MoAb] 6D1), as determined by increased supernatant glycocalicin fragment (a proteolytic product of GPIb alpha); decreased total platelet content of GPIb; and lack of effect of either cytochalasin B (an inhibitor of actin polymerization), prostaglandin I2 (an inhibitor of platelet activation), or prior fixation of the platelets. However, cathepsin G resulted in minimal decreases in the binding to fixed platelets of MoAbs TM60 (directed against the thrombin binding site on GPIb alpha) and WM23 (directed against the macroglycopeptide portion of GPIb alpha). In contrast to its proteolytic effect on GPIb alpha, the cathepsin G-induced decrease in platelet surface GPIX and the remnant of the GPIb-IX complex (defined by MoAbs FMC25 and AK1) was via a cytoskeletal-mediated redistribution, as determined by lack of change in the total platelet content of GPIX and the GPIb-IX complex; complete inhibition by cytochalasin B, prostaglandin I2, and prior fixation of platelets. Experiments with Serratia protease-treated and Bernard- Soulier platelets showed that neither platelet surface GPIb nor cathepsin G-induced proteolysis of GPIb were required for the cathepsin G-induced redistribution of the remnant of the GPIb-IX complex or the cathepsin G-induced increase in platelet surface P-selectin. In summary, neutrophil cathepsin G modulates the platelet surface expression of the GPIb-IX complex both by proteolysis of the vWF binding site on GPIb alpha and by a cytoskeletal-mediated redistribution of the remainder of the complex. Prior studies show that, although thrombospondin 1, antiserine proteases, and plasma are all inhibitors of cathepsin G, the effects of cathepsin G on platelets, including an increase in surface GPIIb-IIIa, occur during close contact between neutrophils and platelets in a protective microenvironment (eg, thrombosis and local inflammation).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS).
Parametric resonance of a repulsive force MEMS electrostatic mirror

Abstract We investigate the nonlinear dynamic behavior of an electrostatic MEMS mirror. The MEMS mirror is driven by repulsive force actuators, which avoid pull-in instability and enable large travel ranges. In parallel-plate actuators, the force on the structure is toward the substrate limiting the range of motion to the capacitor gap. Unlike parallel-plate, repulsive force actuators push the mirror away from the substrate not limiting the motion. The highly nonlinear nature of the repulsive force and the large motions create unique characteristics that differ from parallel-plate actuators. Repulsive force actuators show linear natural frequency hardening with increased DC voltages unlike parallel-plate ones that have frequency softening. A large parametric resonance is another attribute of repulsive force actuators as the limitations of a small gap and pull-in instability are eliminated. To simulate the system response, we use a lumped parameter model with linear and cubic stiffness modulated by the excitation voltage that causes parametric resonances. Using the shooting technique, we obtained simulations that agree well with the nonlinear responses observed in our experiments. As the limitation of a small gap is overcome, the electrostatic force triggers large principal parametric resonances with amplitudes as large as the primary resonance. The parametric resonance is more pronounced at low DC excitation levels when geometric nonlinearities are not significant (axial stress is low). While the initial gap is only 2 μm, under parametric resonance, our one-millimeter diameter mirror reaches ±43 μm at 1.2 kHz when the excitation level is as low as VDC = 40 V, VAC =1 V in a vacuum. The ability to achieve parametric resonances with repulsive force actuation can serve and improve the signal-to-noise ratio and speed in various applications such as confocal microscopy.
Evolving Centromeres and Kinetochores.

Abstract The genetic material, contained on chromosomes, is often described as the “blueprint for life.” During nuclear division, the chromosomes are pulled into each of the two daughter nuclei by the coordination of spindle microtubules, kinetochores, centromeres, and chromatin. These four functional units must link the chromosomes to the microtubules, signal to the cell when the attachment is made so that division can proceed, and withstand the force generated by pulling the chromosomes to either daughter cell. To perform each of these functions, kinetochores are large protein complexes, approximately 5 MDa in size, and they contain at least 45 unique proteins. Many of the central components in the kinetochore are well conserved, yielding a common core of proteins forming consistent structures. However, many of the peripheral subcomplexes vary between different taxonomic groups, including changes in primary sequence and gain or loss of whole proteins. It is still unclear how significant these changes are, and answers to this question may provide insights into adaptation to specific lifestyles or progression of disease that involve chromosome instability.
The Many Colors Children See: Development and Intervention of Children’s Social Prejudices

In light of the current socio-political situation that magnifies the majority-minority group division in the country, it is essential for parents and other elements of the society to discuss about how this situation may affect the development of the next generation. Both explicit and implicit information on social categorization provided by adults and other resources assist in the formation of children’s stereotype and prejudice towards various social groups. This paper reviews empirical studies on the development of prejudice across childhood and the strategy that can potentially facilitates the reduction of prejudice among children. It is evident that children have begun to use social categories to describe different social groups from a very young age and promoting intergroup contact may be used as a promising solution to lower prejudice among children.
Comparison of cross-country measures of sigma-convergence in per-capita income, 1960–2010

The evidence on sigma-convergence in income indicated by (a) coefficient of variation (CV) and (b) SD of logarithms (SDLOG) is considered for a large cross-country sample covering the period 1960–2...
TASPDetect: Reviving Trust in 3PIP By Detecting TASP Trojans

Abstract Trustworthiness is an emerging concern in the development of Multi-Processor System-on-Chip (MPSoC) systems, which often include Third-Party Intellectual Property (3PIP) cores. Malicious hardware trojans in these 3PIP components can create a plethora of system vulnerabilities. In this paper, we explore an imminent threat that originates from a 3PIP core: architectural state preserving trojans (TASP). We illustrate that a malicious TASP can affect the performance of a core without altering its architectural state, thereby disrupting the availability of on-chip resources in a MPSoC system. We propose three complementary techniques to detect active TASPs in a 3PIP core with overheads of less than 5%.
Urban Unemployment, Multinational Firms and the Environment

This article presents that strict environmental tax in the host country on multinational firms increases the rate of urban unemployment, whereas it decreases (increases) the level of urban unemployment—the unemployed population different from the rate of unemployment—depending on the low (high) rural workers’ sensitiveness to the change in the rural wage rate.
Art Law & the Law of the Horse

At a 1996 conference on the “Law of Cyberspace,” Judge Frank Easterbrook famously criticized “cyberlaw” as the equivalent of “The Law of the Horse”: superficial and unilluminating. He argued that we should study general legal principles and apply them to cyberspace and horses alike. Easterbrook’s genial jeremiad provoked a litany of responses defending the worthiness of cyberlaw, typically arguing that cyberspace regulation is sui generis and studying it illuminates general legal principles. “Art law” is arguably analogous to “cyberlaw.” Or at least the “law of the horse.” While precious little law is specific to art, a rich and complex body of social norms and customs effectively governs artworld transactions and informs the resolution of artworld disputes. In any case, a smattering of scholars study art law and a similar number of lawyers practice it. In this essay, I will provide a brief overview of art law from three different perspectives: the artist, the art market, and the art museum.
Learning Transfer: The Missing Link to Learning among School Leaders in Burkina Faso and Ghana

Every year billions of dollars are spent on development aid and training around the world. However, only 10% of this training results in the transfer of knowledge, skills, or behaviors learned in the training to the work place. Ideally, learning transfer produces effective and continued application by learners of the knowledge and skills they gained through their learning activities. Currently, there is a limited body of research examining the factors that hinder and promote learning transfer in professional development, particularly the professional development of school leaders in developing countries. This qualitative exploratory study sought to address the gap in the literature by examining 6 schools: 3 in Burkina Faso and 3 in Ghana, West Africa. This investigation explored what promoted and hindered learning transfer in both countries. The sample consisted of 13 West African school leaders (6 in Burkina Faso and 7 in Ghana) who attended a three-day leadership training workshop. Data collection included in-depth interviews, document analysis, post-training site visits, and text messages to ascertain whether this mobile technology intervention enhanced learning transfer. The findings demonstrated that learning transfer occurred in both countries in all six schools. Data indicated that most of the transfer of learning happened in areas not requiring mindset and behavioral changes. Data suggested that the facilities in which the trainings took place, the facilitators’ dispositions and knowledge, the adequacy of the materials as well as the testimonials and certificate of completions enhanced the transfer of learning. Participants also indicated some inhibitors to the transfer of learning, such as financial, cultural, and human behavior constraints. This study helps increase our understanding of what promotes and inhibits learning transfer in educational settings in Burkina Faso and Ghana and provides suggestions for trainers and teachers who facilitate trainings.
Humility & Humiliation: The Transformation of Franciscan Humour, c.1210–1310

AbstractHumiliation and self-ridicule worked as surprisingly important tools of evangelical outreach in the first decades of the Franciscan Order (c.1210–50). According to early Franciscan texts su...
Underutilization and disparities in access to EGFR testing among Medicare patients with lung cancer from 2010 - 2013.

Tumor testing for mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene is indicated for all newly diagnosed, metastatic lung cancer patients, who may be candidates for first-line treatment with an EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor. Few studies have analyzed population-level testing. We identified clinical, demographic, and regional predictors of EGFR & KRAS testing among Medicare beneficiaries with a new diagnosis of lung cancer in 2011–2013 claims. The outcome variable was whether the patient underwent molecular, EGFR and KRAS testing. Independent variables included: patient demographics, Medicaid status, clinical characteristics, and region where the patient lived. We performed multivariate logistic regression to identify factors that predicted testing. From 2011 to 2013, there was a 19.7% increase in the rate of EGFR testing. Patient zip code had the greatest impact on odds to undergo testing; for example, patients who lived in the Boston, Massachusetts hospital referral region were the most likely to be tested (odds ratio (OR) of 4.94, with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.67–14.62). Patient demographics also impacted odds to be tested. Asian/Pacific Islanders were most likely to be tested (OR 1.63, CI 1.53–1.79). Minorities and Medicaid patients were less likely to be tested. Medicaid recipients had an OR of 0.74 (CI 0.72–0.77). Hispanics and Blacks were also less likely to be tested (OR 0.97, CI 0.78–0.99 and 0.95, CI 0.92–0.99), respectively. Clinical procedures were also correlated with testing. Patients who underwent transcatheter biopsies were 2.54 times more likely to be tested (CI 2.49–2.60) than those who did not undergo this type of biopsy. Despite an overall increase in EGFR testing, there is widespread underutilization of guideline-recommended testing. We observed racial, income, and regional disparities in testing. Precision medicine has increased the complexity of cancer diagnosis and treatment. Targeted interventions and clinical decision support tools are needed to ensure that all patients are benefitting from advances in precision medicine. Without such interventions, precision medicine may exacerbate racial disparities in cancer care and health outcomes.
Direct-detection synthetic-aperture coherent imaging by phase retrieval

This paper describes a way to synthesize a larger coherent aperture from smaller apertures combined with motion, when only intensities are measured. It relies on collecting intensity patterns in two planes for each aperture, for example, the aperture plane and an image plane, and using a phase-retrieval algorithm to reconstruct the optical field in the aperture plane. As the sensor moves forward, a larger two-dimensional aperture is synthesized, allowing a much finer resolution image to be reconstructed. An algorithm to correct for the relative pointing (tip and tilt phases) and piston errors between different apertures and at different times is needed to phase up the synthetic aperture. Results of simulations, including the effects of speckle, are shown, and practical considerations are evaluated.
Effects of protein depletion on NK cell cytotoxicity and bone marrow cellularity.

Tumor bearing patients have repeatedly been shown to develop states of protein depletion (PD). PD has frequently been associated with depression of acquired immunity. In contrast, little is known about the effects of PD on natural killer (NK) cell cytotoxicity and on bone marrow cellularity and how modulation of these parameters by maleic anhydride divinyl ether copolymer (MVE-2) would be affected.
Public Health Approaches to the Cocaine Problem: Lessons from the Bahamas

We are witnessing the unprecedented spread of a relatively new form of cocaine called freebase or “crack” cocaine, which is smoked or inhaled rather than being snorted or injected, as is the powdered cocaine hydrochloride. For most North Americans, the first awareness of the new form of cocaine came with Richard Pryor’s burning himself in 1980, allegedly while making freebase cocaine from powder using ether. General awareness of the availability of “crack” became news on the east and west coasts of the U.S. during 1985, although many drug users in North America had been making their own freebase cocaine from powder for as long as a decade. Most Americans only began to appreciate the danger of cocaine in 1986, due to intense media coverage and the sudden deaths of two young athletes from the use of cocaine in June, 1986. The cocaine hotline started by Gold and Washton (1-800-COCAINE) has been receiving a rapidly increasing proportion of calls about the freebase form of cocaine. (1)
Commentary: The Hague Draft Convention on Jurisdiction: An Introduction to the Intellectual Property Issues

This brief chapter discusses the Hague Convention in general terms and compares it to the Brussels Convention. The chapter notes that Article 3 provides information about where a person can be sued and Article 12 discusses instances of “local action,” where an issue can only be deal with in a particular place. The current draft of the Hague Convention does not indicate whether patent infringement cases will be tried under regular rules or only by the local courts. Finally, the Convention does not mention conflicts of law and is different than the Brussels Convention in that “it does not permit game playing with respect to forum shopping through the use of declaratory judgments.”
The Naturalistic Versus the Intuitionistic School of Values

The first part of this paper analyzes general foundational questions. It is maintained that naturalistic or behavioristic value theory is based on the idea of an order preserving representation of empirically given regular preferences of the past in a cognitive, passive sense. On the other hand, it is claimed that intuitive value theory holds that value orders, in mente, may actively influence and determine, in particular, future preferences. Behavioristic value theory was formalized and axiomatized very early. But the important question persists: what is the proper function of these axioms for making predictions concerning preference behavior? When an answer is sought for this question the difficulties inherent in behavioristic value theory are clearly revealed.
Ordered Residue Class Rings

We saw in the preceding chapter that every residue class field of C or C* modulo a fixed maximal ideal is isomorphic with the real field R. The present chapter initiates the study of residue class fields modulo arbitrary maximal ideals. Each such field has the following properties, as will be shown: it is a totally ordered field, whose order is induced by the partial order in C, and the image of the set of constant functions is an isomorphic copy—necessarily order-preserving—of the real field.
IDIOPATHIC DYSERYTHROPOIETIC JAUNDICE.

1. The term "dyserythropoietic jaundice" is used to designate a peculiar abnormality characterized by marked overproduction of bilirubin and associated with unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia and great excesses of fecal urobilinogen. Labeling with N15 glycine revealed that these excesses were mainly unrelated to destruction of mature circulating red cells, which had only a slightly shortened life span. 2. The hyperplastic, normoblastic bone marrow exhibited considerable phagocytosis of red cells and normoblasts and marked hemosiderosis with many iron-laden phagocytes. Siderocytes were relatively rare in the peripheral blood, which also exhibited consistent reticulocytosis, 3-10 per cent, but normal erythrocyte porphyrin concentrations. There was increased plasma iron turnover but decreased appearance of Fe59 in the circulating red cells. 3. The possibility is considered that there is a basic abnormality in hemoglobin synthesis in the normoblasts, with excessive production of hemoglobin or heme which is then converted to bilirubin either within the normoblast or after excretion into the blood. The observed phagocytosis of normoblasts and erythrocytes may be a secondary rather than basic disturbance of the disease. 4. This case appears to represent a unique form of chronic jaundice due to a remarkable overproduction of bilirubin without evidence of hemolysis in the ordinary sense. The extent to which this is related to intramedullary destruction of young red cells or to a basic abnormality in hemoglobin synthesis in the normoblasts, as above, cannot be determined. It is considered less likely that the overproduction is due to a true shunt—that is, bilirubin formation from porphyrin precursors. The marked dyserythropoiesis suggests that the overproduction of bilirubin was medullary rather than hepatic, although the latter is not excluded.
Weighted and Constrained Consensus Control with Performance Optimization for Robust Distributed UAV Deployments with Dynamic Information Networks

A team of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in surveillance operations aims to achieve fast deployments, robustness against uncertainties and adversaries, and adaptability when the team expands or reduces. All these must be achieved under time-varying and local communication connections. This paper introduces a new framework for UAV control based on the emerging consensus control for networked systems. Due to unique features of UAV tasks, the consensus control problem becomes weighted and constrained, beyond the typical consensus formulation. Using only neighborhood communications among UAV members, the consensus control achieves global desired deployment. Algorithms are introduced and their convergence properties are established. It is shown that the algorithms achieve asymptotically the Cramer-Rao lower bound, and hence is asymptotically optimal among all algorithms. Examples and case studies demonstrate convergence, robustness, and scalability of the algorithms.
Charlson comorbidity index scores before and after prostate cancer diagnosis among a racially diverse cohort of men.

e18631Background: We examined racial/ethnic differences in Charlson comorbidity index scores (CCI) pre and post prostate cancer (PC) diagnosis among Non-Hispanic White (NHW), Hispanic, and African-...
Osteoclast differentiation assay

Osteoclasts are highly specialized multinucleated cells derived from the monocyte/macrophage hematopoietic lineage that are uniquely capable of adhering to bone matrix and resorbing bone. The tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) assay is the most common method to detect osteoclasts population in vitro. Here we described a general protocol of inducing osteoclast differentiation from the murine macrophage cell line, RAW264.7, and identification of osteoclasts with the classical TRAP assay.
How Blockchain Will Change Marketing As We Know It

Blockchain is a special type of database that cannot be easily manipulated or hacked. Sometimes called distributed ledger technology, the database is shared by many computers, called nodes. The components of the database are broken up into blocks or sheets. One of the ingenious ideas is that the end of each block contains a cryptographic signature. This signature (sometimes called a digest or a hash) summarizes all the information in the block, and any trivial change in the data in the block causes the signature to be completely different. This last line of the block is then repeated as the first line of the next block — which is where the “chain” comes in. This feature makes a blockchain immutable. If anyone tries to edit an old block (rewrite history), the block signature will change, and the network will see that the block signature does not match the first line of the next block. The network throws out the corrupted block and automatically replaces it with the original. Hence, it is practically infeasible to alter history to commit fraud or unwind unwanted transactions. Given that most of the blockchain applications have been focused in finance, the technology has been largely under the radar screen in marketing. We argue that blockchain will fundamentally impact the practice of marketing. There are potentially large rewards for the early adopters in marketing — and costs for those left behind by this innovation.
Twenty Years of Men and Masculinities by the Numbers: An Analysis of Publications and Article Keywords:

In this article we begin to map the field of Men and Masculinities Studies by examining 20 years of publications in the journal of Men and Masculinities. We conduct a content analysis of 458 articl...
CompAct: On-chip Compression of Activations for Low Power Systolic Array Based CNN Acceleration

This paper addresses the design of systolic array (SA) based convolutional neural network (CNN) accelerators for mobile and embedded domains. On- and off-chip memory accesses to the large activation inputs (sometimes called feature maps) of CNN layers contribute significantly to total energy consumption for such accelerators; while prior has proposed off-chip compression, activations are still stored on-chip in uncompressed form, requiring either large on-chip activation buffers or slow and energy-hungry off-chip accesses. In this paper, we propose CompAct, a new architecture that enables on-chip compression of activations for SA based CNN accelerators. CompAct is built around several key ideas. First, CompAct identifies an SA schedule that has nearly regular access patterns, enabling the use of a modified run-length coding scheme (RLC). Second, CompAct improves compression ratio of the RLC scheme using Sparse-RLC in later CNN layers and Lossy-RLC in earlier layers. Finally, CompAct proposes look-ahead snoozing that operates synergistically with RLC to reduce the leakage energy of activation buffers. Based on detailed synthesis results, we show that CompAct enables up to 62% reduction in activation buffer energy, and 34% reduction in total chip energy.
NCOA4-Mediated Ferritinophagy Is Essential for HT22 Neuronal Cell Survival During Iron Deficiency (OR15-07-19)

Objectives Iron is essential for proper cell function and development. However, mishandled iron may lead to ferroptotic cell death. NCOA4 manages the cellular labile iron pool by controlling the release of ferritin iron via ferritinophagy. The present studies examined the capacity of hippocampal cells in handling iron fluctuation, with particular focus on NCOA4 and ferritin.
Impact of Environmental Conditions on Secondary Organic Aerosol Production from Photosensitized Humic Acid.

Recent studies have shown the potential of the photosensitizer chemistry of humic acid, as a proxy for humic-like substances in atmospheric aerosols, to contribute to secondary organic aerosol mass...
Coccidioidal Endophthalmitis: Excellent Recovery of Vision with Aggressive Use of Intravitreal Antifungals and Vitrectomy.

Purpose To report a case of Coccidioides immitis endophthalmitis with severe vision loss and a return to excellent vision following aggressive intervention. Methods Case report. Results A 41-year-old male with a history of solid organ transplantation who complained of floaters and decreased vision in the setting of disseminated Coccidioides infection was found to have presumed coccidioidal endophthalmitis with visual acuities (VA) of 20/20 in the right eye and 20/200 in the left eye. The patient was managed with intravenous amphotericin B, oral voriconazole, and intravitreal injections of amphotericin B and voriconazole in the left eye every three days. Five weeks after presentation, VA remained 20/20 in the right eye and improved to 20/40 in the left eye. The patient was transitioned to twice weekly intravitreal injections and oral voriconazole upon hospital discharge. One week later, vision in the left eye decreased to 20/500 with worsening vitritis, prompting vitrectomy. Vision in the left eye subsequently improved to 20/30. Five weeks later, the patient developed a macula-on inferior rhegmatogenous retinal detachment in the left eye and underwent a second vitrectomy, with scleral buckle, laser, and gas injection. Vision in the left eye returned to 20/25. In total, the patient received 22 amphotericin B and 17 voriconazole intravitreal injections in the left eye with two vitrectomies. Vision in the right eye remained 20/20 throughout his treatment course. At four months after presentation, the patient remained on oral voriconazole with no evidence of active intraocular infection on exam. Conclusions Aggressive medical and surgical management can be successful in ocular conservation and restoration of vision in coccidioidal endophthalmitis. Very mild disease may be conservatively monitored and managed with systemic antifungal therapy alone. In severe disease, early diagnosis and prompt and aggressive use of systemic and intravitreal antifungals may spare panophthalmitis and preserve vision.
Addressing chronic noncommunicable diseases is essential to strengthen urban resilience to communicable pandemic diseases

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the fragility and vulnerability of urban systems and populations across the world. Yet while the infection is the focus of attention, the chronic noncommunicable d...