cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Analyses of Fatigue Crack Growth and Closure Near Threshold Conditions for Large-Crack Behavior

A plasticity-induced crack-closure model was used to study fatigue crack growth and closure in thin 2024-T3 aluminum alloy under constant-R and constant-Kmax threshold testing procedures. Two methods of calculating crack-opening stresses were compared. One method was based on a contact-K analyses and the other on crack-opening-displacement (COD) analyses. These methods gave nearly identical results under constant-amplitude loading, but under threshold simulations the contact-K analyses gave lower opening stresses than the contact COD method. Crack-growth predictions tend to support the use of contact-K analyses. Crack-growth simulations showed that remote closure can cause a rapid rise in opening stresses in the near threshold regime for low-constraint and high applied stress levels. Under low applied stress levels and high constraint, a rise in opening stresses was not observed near threshold conditions. But crack-tip-opening displacement (CTOD) were of the order of measured oxide thicknesses in the 2024 alloy under constant-R simulations. In contrast, under constant-Kmax testing the CTOD near threshold conditions were an order-of-magnitude larger than measured oxide thicknesses. Residual-plastic deformations under both constant-R and constant-Kmax threshold simulations were several times larger than the expected oxide thicknesses. Thus, residual-plastic deformations, in addition to oxide and roughness, play an integral part in threshold development.
Longitudinal Patterns of Negative Relationship Quality Across Adulthood

Some theories suggest that negative relationship quality decreases with age, whereas others suggest that it remains stable. This study examined negative relationship quality over time, by relationship type, and by age. A total of 1,361 adults aged 20-93 years in 1992 and 840 adults in 2005 reported how much their spouse or partner, child, and best friend got on their nerves and made too many demands. Negative child relationship quality decreased over time among younger participants. Negative friend relationship quality decreased over time among people with a different friend but remained stable among people with the same friend. Negative spouse or partner relationship quality decreased over time among those who had a different partner but increased among those with the same partner. This study provides evidence of relationship-specific developmental trajectories in relationship quality.
Nanoscale cryptography: opportunities and challenges

While most of the electronics industry is dependent on the ever-decreasing size of lithographic transistors, this scaling cannot continue indefinitely. To improve the performance of the integrated circuits, new emerging and paradigms are needed. In recent years, nanoelectronics has become one of the most important and exciting forefront in science and engineering. It shows a great promise for providing us in the near future with many breakthroughs that change the direction of technological advances in a wide range of applications. In this paper, we discuss the contribution that nanotechnology may offer to the evolution of cryptographic hardware and embedded systems and demonstrate how nanoscale devices can be used for constructing security primitives. Using a custom set of design automation tools, it is demonstrated that relative to a conventional 45-nm CMOS system, performance gains can be obtained up to two orders of magnitude reduction in area and up to 50 % improvement in speed.
Outsourcing Tasks Online: Matching Supply and Demand on Peer-to-Peer Internet Platforms

We study the growth of online peer-to-peer markets. Using data from TaskRabbit, an expanding marketplace for domestic tasks at the time of our study, we show that growth varies considerably across ...
Responses and Adaptations of Plants to Metal Stress

“Over 200 papers, 3 reviews, a small book, and now a big book. What is it about this curious and unimportant character that has merited such attention?” This is the opening sentence from “The Essential Qualities”, an article discussing the “curious and unimportant character” of how plants adapt to elevated concentrations of trace metals in their environment (Bradshaw et al.,1990). Bradshaw and co-authors found the study of plant metal tolerance to be a valuable tool for the investigation of natural selection in plants (Bradshaw et al., 1990). However, in the proceeding ten years since the publication of this article, the “curious and unimportant character” of metal tolerance has attracted even more attention; and given rise to a new field of study termed phytoremediation. Because of the attractiveness of using plants to remove pollutant metals from the environment, numerous researchers have now begun to investigate phytoremediation, generating over 200 publications and millions of dollars of grant funding. However, at the center of all this new attention is still that “curious and unimportant character” highlighted by Bradshaw and coworkers. What do we know about its physiological, biochemical and molecular nature?
The political economy of tax enforcement: a look at the Internal Revenue Service from 1978 to 2010

This article looks at whether political ideology matters for enforcement of the nation’s tax laws. An analysis of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) budget and personnel suggests that the party affiliation of the President makes no difference to the overall level of IRS resources. However, there are significant increases in the number of IRS employees devoted to criminal investigation and revenue collection under Democratic administrations. Audits of tax returns filed by corporations, individuals and estates are also significantly more likely under Democratic administrations. The body of evidence points in the direction that while Congress has a greater influence in determining the overall level of resources available to the IRS, the President has a more pronounced influence on the allocation of those resources.
Vocal Emphasis in Experimenters' Instruction Reading as Unintended Determinant of Subjects' Responses

Sound motion pictures were made of three male experimenters administering an experiment in person perception to 10 subjects. The task called for subjects to rate the degree of success or failure of people pictured in photographs. An analysis of the experimenters' suprasegmental phonemes and paralanguage from the sound track showed that no subject was exposed to identical vocal emphases of those portions of the instructions listing the subject's response alternatives. All subjects (5) who heard greater emphasis on the rating alternatives associated with success subsequently rated the photos as being of more successful people than the subjects (5) who heard greater emphasis on the failure alternatives (p = 0.004). The correlation between differential vocal emphasis and subjects' subsequent ratings was +0.72 (p < 0.01). The way in which the experimenter reads instructions to subjects, even when instructions are read accurately, can serve as a significant determinant of the subjects' responses to an experimen...
An H∞-suboptimal Fault Detection Filter for Bilinear Systems

We address the problem of fault detection and isolation in presence of noisy observations for bilinear systems. Our solution rests on results derived in the geometric theory of fault detection.
NE-induced contraction, alpha 1-adrenergic receptors, and Ins(1,4,5)P3 responses in cerebral arteries

Adrenergic-mediated responses in cerebral vessels in vitro differ with vessel segment. We performed this study to test the hypothesis that these vessel-specific cerebral artery norepinephrine (NE)-induced contractility changes are mediated in part by differences in alpha 1-adrenergic receptor (alpha 1-R) density (Bmax) or antagonist dissociation constant (KD), and/or inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate [Ins(1,4,5)P3] synthesis. In common carotid (Com), circle of Willis (Wil), and middle cerebral arteries (MCA) from adult sheep we measured NE-induced contractions. We also quantified alpha 1-R in these, and in anterior, middle, and posterior (AMP) cerebral arteries and cerebral microvessels (Micro). In addition, we quantified NE-induced Ins(1,4,5)P3 synthesis. pD2 values of Com and MCA were 5.2 +/- 0.1 and 6.3 +/- 0.1, respectively. In contrast, the MCA maximum response to NE compared with K+ was much lower than that of the Com. In the Com, Wil, AMP, and Micro, alpha 1-R Bmax was 54 +/- 3, < 5 +/- 2, 23 +/- 3, and 35 +/- 3 fmol/mg protein, respectively. KD averaged 0.20 +/- 0.05 nM in the several vessel groups. In Com and in AMP cerebral arteries, NE produced a rapid increase in Ins(1,4,5)P3 with a peak at 45 s, and 50% effective concentration of 5.5 +/- 0.2 microM. NE stimulated a 240% increase of Ins(1,4,5)P3 in both Com and AMP, whereas Wil showed essentially no response. The ovine MCA was more sensitive to NE than was the Com. In contrast, MCA showed a much lower maximum contractile response to NE compared with K+. Cerebral arteries (AMP) had only about half the alpha 1-R density of the Com. In AMP cerebral arteries, both the basal and NE-stimulated Ins(1,4,5)P3 values were much less than those of the Com. In MCA, the ratio of Ins(1,4,5)P3 response to alpha 1-R Bmax was much greater than in Com. These findings suggest important artery-to-artery differences in components of the cerebrovascular alpha 1-R-mediated contractile pathway. They also suggest considerable potential for modulation of pharmacomechanical coupling and homeostatic regulation of cerebrovascular tone.
Modifications in Bowie's Staining of pepsinogen granules

Modifications of Bowie's technic for staining the pepsinogen granules of the body chief cells in the gastric glands, and a method of preparing the stomach of small rodents (e.g. the rat) for histo-topographical studies are described. The modifications involve counter-staining with aqueous alum hematoxylin, the use of the neutral synthetic mounting medium Permount, and changes in the timing of fixation, staining and differentiation.
Gamma knife stereotactic radio-surgery and BRAF inhibition in metastatic melanoma.

9088 Background: Gamma knife radio-surgery (GK) is an effective approach to treating brain metastases in patients with metastatic melanoma. BRAF inhibition with vemurafenib produces a median progre...
Invited - Specification and modeling for systems-on-chip security verification

This paper describes a methodology for system-level security verification of modern Systems-on-Chip (SoC) designs. These designs comprise interacting firmware and hardware modules which makes verification particularly challenging. These challenges relate to (i) specifying security verification properties, and (ii) verifying these properties across firmware and hardware. We address the latter through raising the level of abstraction of the hardware modules to be similar to that of instructions in software/firmware. This abstraction, referred to as an instruction-level abstraction (ILA), plays a similar role to the instruction set architecture (ISA) definition for general purpose processors and enables high-level analysis of SoC firmware. In particular, the ILA can be used instead of the cycle-accurate bit-precise hardware implementation for scalable verification of system-level security properties in SoCs. We introduce techniques to semi-automatically synthesize the ILA using a template abstraction and directed simulations of the SoC hardware. We describe techniques to ensure that the ILA is a correct abstraction of the underlying hardware implementation. We then show how the ILA can be used for SoC security verification by designing a specification language for security properties and an algorithm based on symbolic execution to verify these properties. Our case studies apply ILA-based verification to an example SoC built out of open source components as well as part of a commercial SoC. The methodology discovers several bugs in the hardware implementation, simulators and firmware.
Democracy More or Less: Raising the Political Ethics Bar

The desire to make politics more democratic has shaped the ethical standards of public office in distinctive ways. Over time, Americans have raised the bar with respect to appropriate government behavior. Actions by public officials that were once thought to be normal and appropriate such as accepting personal gifts, letting lobbyists pick up the tab at restaurants, profiting from public projects, accepting honoraria, and the like are now prohibited and more strictly regulated at all levels. Corruption reform typically emerges from a familiar, repeating cycle of public scandals followed by tighter controls followed by subsequent rounds of scandals and reforms. The revelation that Richard Nixon received a $2 million contribution from the Associated Milk Producers of America in exchange for increasing milk price subsidies helped pass the 1971 and 1974 campaign finance reforms. More recently, Jack Abramoff’s cynical manipulation of revolving-door opportunities for congressional staff prompted the 2007 congressional lobbying reforms. Material political corruption – using public office for financial gain – violates both governance and democratic values. When officials place their own personal gains ahead of constituent interests, it can undermine the strength of the electoral mandate and democratic accountability. It can also seriously weaken government effectiveness, efficiency, and ultimately even stability by diverting resources to private gain for those in power at the expense of the broader constituent community. I use the word “can” purposely, because, as we shall see, the prospects of personal gain can also sometimes serve larger political purposes such as facilitating cooperation and limiting stalemate, particularly in a political system with highly fractured and decentralized power. A rigidly pure democratic system can be more politically accountable and less effective at the same time. Such trade-offs make institutional choices harder.
Preliminary study of acute changes in emotion processing in trauma survivors with PTSD symptoms

Accumulating evidence suggests traumatic experience can rapidly alter brain activation associated with emotion processing. However, little is known about acute changes in emotion neurocircuits that underlie PTSD symptom development. To examine acute alterations in emotion circuit activation and structure that may be linked to PTSD symptoms, thirty-eight subjects performed a task of appraisal of emotional faces as their brains were functionally and structurally studied with MRI at both two weeks and three months after motor vehicle collision (MVC). As determined by symptoms reported in the PTSD Checklist at three months, sixteen survivors developed probable PTSD, whereas the remaining 22 did not meet criteria for PTSD diagnosis (non-PTSD). The probable PTSD group had greater activation than the non-PTSD group in dorsal and ventral medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC and vmPFC) while appraising fearful faces within two weeks after MVC and in left insular cortex (IC) three months after MVC. dmPFC activation at two weeks significantly positively correlated with PTSD symptom severity at two weeks (R = 0.462, P = 0.006) and three months (R = 0.418, p = 0.012). Changes over time in dmPFC activation and in PTSD symptom severity were also significantly positively correlated in the probable PTSD group (R = 0.641, P = 0.018). A significant time by group interaction was found for volume changes in left superior frontal gyrus (SFG, F = 6.048, p = 0.019) that partially overlapped dmPFC active region. Between two weeks and three months, left SFG volume decreased in probable PTSD survivors. These findings identify alterations in frontal cortical activity and structure during the early post-trauma period that appear to be associated with development of PTSD symptoms.
A Study to Determine if Addition of Palatal Petechiae to Centor Criteria Adds More Significance to Clinical Diagnosis of Acute Strep Pharyngitis in Children

Objective. A study to determine if addition of palatal petechiae to Centor criteria adds more value for clinical diagnosis of acute strep pharyngitis in children. Hypothesis. In children, Centor Criteria does not cover all the symptoms and signs of acute strep pharyngitis. We hypothesize that addition of palatal petechiae to Centor Criteria will increase the possibility of clinical diagnosis of group A streptococcal pharyngitis in children. Methods. One hundred patients with a complaint of sore throat were enrolled in the study. All the patients were examined clinically using the Centor Criteria. They were also examined for other signs and symptoms like petechial lesions over the palate, abdominal pain, and skin rash. All the patients were given rapid strep tests, and throat cultures were sent. No antibiotics were given until culture results were obtained. Results. The sample size was 100 patients. All 100 had fever, sore throat, and erythema of tonsils. Twenty of the 100 patients had tonsillar exudates, 85/100 had tender anterior cervical lymph nodes, and 86/100 had no cough. In total, 9 out of the 100 patients had positive throat cultures. We observed that petechiae over the palate, a very significant sign, is not included in the Centor Criteria. Palatal petechiae were present in 8 out of the 100 patients. Six out of these 8 with palatal petechiae had positive throat culture for strep (75%). Only 7 out of 20 with exudates had positive strep culture. Sixteen out of the 100 patients had rapid strep test positive. Those 84/100 who had negative rapid strep also had negative throat culture. Statistics. We used Fisher's exact test, comparing throat culture positive and negative versus presence of exudates and palatal hemorrhages with positive and negative throat cultures and the resultant P value <.0001. Conclusion. Our study concludes that addition of petechiae over the palate to Centor Criteria will increase the possibility of diagnosing acute group A streptococcal pharyngitis in children.
An investigation into mature adults' attitudinal reluctance to register as organ donors.

Background Mature adults (age 50–64) make up a large proportion of organ transplant recipients, and waiting list candidates yet are underrepresented in terms of actual donors. Understanding the reasons why mature adults fail to register as deceased organ donors is critical in achieving the goal of increasing the actionable supply of organs available for transplant. Conceptual models propose certain factors such as bodily integrity, ick (i.e., disgust), jinx (i.e., superstition), medical mistrust, salience, self-efficacy, and stake are associated with organ donation registration attitudes. Moreover, the age myth, or the belief that one's age prevents them from becoming an organ donor, was examined among mature adults between the ages of 50–64. Method An online survey was disseminated to mature adults (N=709). Results Results indicated jinx, salience, self-efficacy, and stake each predicted organ donation attitudes among mature adults. Moreover, results indicated that age myth accounted for attitudes toward registering as an organ donor among non-registered mature adults after controlling for non-cognitive and vested interest constructs. Conclusion This study demonstrates the age myth is negatively associated with attitudes toward registering as organ donors. The results are discussed with an emphasis on both the theoretical and practical implications of study findings.
IBM Deutschland GmbH: Mathematik – Baustein für Innovation

Panta rhei – alles fliest. Kein klassisches Zitat trifft besser auf die Informations- und Kommunikationsbranche zu, die sich in einem standigen Wandel befindet: Ganz gleich ob Hardware, Software, Service- oder Beratungsangebote – permanente Veranderungen bestimmen den Wettbewerb und seine Rahmenbedingungen.
Botulism in Commercially Canned Foods

Occasionally, a problem thought to be well under control returns to plague us. This is the case with botulism in commercially canned foods. These foods have had a remarkably good record over the last 45 years with approximately 775 billion cans of commercially canned foods being consumed with only four known deaths through 1971. Beginning in 1971, however, botulinal toxin and/or Clostridium botulinum has been found in commercially canned vichyssoise, chicken vegetable soup, peppers, marinated mushrooms, tuna fish, beef stew, and in 41 cans of mushrooms from 20 lots packed by seven domestic and two foreign producers. The typical cause of botulism in canned foods is underprocessing which may result from inadequate equipment, improper operating procedures, and scheduled processes which are not appropriate for the actual operating conditions being used.
Dissident Political History: Social Movements in North America

This essay focuses upon social movements in the United States, with comparisons to other North American countries that illuminate general themes. It considers the usefulness of distinctions between ‘old’ and ‘new’ social movements derived from other national and continental histories, finding that the language of social movement has been used in the U.S. almost exclusively in reference to movements scholars from other regions would call ‘new’. The language itself came into wide use only with the New Left or non-Left, non-trade-union-based grassroots politics of the 1960s and 1970s.
Identification and characterization of a histamine‐binding lipocalin‐like molecule from the relapsing fever tick Ornithodoros turicata

Lipocalins are low molecular weight membrane transporters that are abundantly expressed in the salivary glands and other tissues of ticks. In this study, we identified a lipocalin-like molecule, designated as otlip, from the soft ticks Ornithodoros turicata, the vector for the relapsing fever causing spirochete Borrelia turicatae. We noted that the expression of otlip was developmentally regulated, with adult ticks expressing significantly higher levels in comparison to the larvae or nymphal ticks. Expression of otlip was evident in both fed and unfed O. turicata ticks, with significantly increased expression in the salivary glands in comparison to the midgut or ovary tissues. High conservation of the biogenic amine-binding motif was evident in the deduced primary amino acid sequence of Otlip. Protein modelling of Otlip revealed conservation of most of the residues involved in binding histamine or serotonin ligand. In vitro assays demonstrated binding of recombinant Otlip with histamine. Furthermore, prediction of post-translational modifications revealed that Otlip contained phosphorylation and myristoylation sites. Taken together, our study not only provides evidence for the presence of a lipocalin-like molecule in O. turicata ticks but also suggests a role for this molecule in the salivary glands of this medically important vector.
The Plate Impact Configuration for Determining Mechanical Properties of Materials at High Strain Rates

A review of the latest free surface motion and stress measuring instrumentation is presented along with a description of the plate impact one-dimensional strain configuration for determining mechanical properties under stress wave propagation conditions. A discussion is included of results of some other investigators who have used this configuration to determine dynamic yield stress and the degree of strain rate sensitivity.
New Functions for Niacin Imply a Role in Cancer Prevention

A new focus for studies of the relationship between niacin and cancer has evolved from the discovery that the principal form of this vitamin, NAD, is consumed as a substrate in ADP-ribose transfer reactions. Four unique classes of ADP-ribosyltransferases that are responsible for the turnover of NAD have been identified, although their functions are yet poorly understood. One of these, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, generates polymers of ADP-ribose by the successive transfer of ADP-ribose groups from NAD. This enzyme is activated by DNA strand breaks and functions in repair of DNA. The biochemical characterization of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase has shown that the Km of the enzyme for NAD is in the same range as the intracellular concentration of NAD in tissues. The significance of this finding is increased by the observations that: nutritional deprivation of nicotinamide in model in vitro systems readily results in decreased intracellular NAD, and limiting niacin intake in humans to levels found in the lowest quartile in the US population also results in a decrease of up to 70% of intracellular NAD [Fu, et al., J. Nutr 119: 1949 (1989)].
“Green” UV‐LED gel nail polishes from bio‐based materials

Objective Gel nail polishes represent an advanced class of nail polishes, with the ability to cure under ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and consequently demonstrate improved properties and greater durability compared to conventional nail polishes. Most gel nail polishes available today are based on petrochemical resources, making them unsustainable. Bio-based materials are excellent renewable resources, with high potential for meeting final-product performance, cost, and environmental needs. In addition, bio-based materials can be modified to make them amenable to being cured by advanced Light Emitting Diode (LED) resources that consume low energy and are safer for human exposure compared to conventional UV-mercury lamps. Consumer preference for use of products made from bio-based sources has been clearly growing. On the other hand, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) technology roadmap, a considerable amount of basic chemical building blocks should be derived from plant-based renewable materials in near future. However, to the best of our knowledge, bio-based nail products have not been sufficiently explored. Therefore, to keep pace with environmental regulations and consumer preference, there is an unmet opportunity to develop novel, sustainable nail gel polishes with considerable bio-renewable content. In this study, two sustainable UV-LED curable gel nail polish prototypes-one high-solids zero-volatile organic content (VOC) and the other waterborne, both with considerable bio-renewable content, were designed. Methods Both formulations were cured under both UV-mercury and UV-LED radiation sources in order to evaluate their curing efficiency under a UV-LED source. Also, their performance was compared with a commercial petro-based benchmark. Results The high-solids formulation demonstrated promising performance, exceeding that of the benchmark in opacity, chemical properties, gloss, and pendulum hardness, while the waterborne formulation met most of the desirable requirements with some significant technical benefits, including low odour and higher renewable raw material content. Conclusion These novel gel nail polishes are greener alternatives to the current products in the market with high potential for promising consumer acceptance.
Targeted Subcutaneous Vibration With Single-Neuron Electrophysiology As a Novel Method for Understanding the Central Effects of Peripheral Vibrational Therapy in a Rodent Model.

Very little is known about the effects of whole body vibration on the supraspinal central nervous system. Though much clinical outcome data and mechanistic data about peripheral neural and musculos...
Prejudice Against Immigrants Symptomizes a Larger Syndrome, Is Strongly Diminished by Socioeconomic Development, and the UK Is Not an Outlier: Insights From the WVS, EVS, and EQLS Surveys.

Public attitudes towards immigrants in the UK, especially prejudice against them, form a strong theme in retrospective media postmortems emphasizing the uniqueness of Brexit, yet similarly hostile public opinion on immigrants forms a recurrent theme in populist politics in many European Union nations. Indeed, if UK residents are not uniquely hostile, then the UK's exit from the EU may be only the first symptom of proliferating conflicts over immigration that will plague EU nations in future years. A well-established symptom (or consequence) of prejudice – aversion to outgroups as a neighbours – shows that prejudice against immigrants, other races, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, and Gypsies are all relatively low in the UK. This is as expected from the general decline of prejudice and social distance with socioeconomic development, demonstrated here in broad perspective across many countries. Indeed, UK residents are about as prejudiced against each of these ethno-religious outgroups as are their peers in other advanced EU and English-speaking nations, and much less prejudiced than their peers in less prosperous countries. Confirmatory factor analysis supports the view that a single latent ethno-religious prejudice generates all these specific prejudices, so it is not specific experiences with any one of these groups, nor their specific attributes, that are the wellspring of this deep-seated underlying prejudice. Replication using other measures of prejudice and another cross-national dataset confirms these findings. Data are from the pooled World and European Values Surveys (over 450,000 individuals, 300 surveys, and 100 nations for this analysis) and from the well-known European Quality of Life surveys. Analysis is by descriptive, multilevel (random intercept, fixed effects), and structural equation methods.
Effect of Agency Problems on RTC Hotel Appraisals

Agency problems that helped cause the banking crisis in the United States in the 1980s impacted hotel appraisals competed for the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC). Lower appraised values would help make more bids acceptable, helping to sell more assets quickly. The results indicate appraised hotel values were much lower than sales prices in states with a high number of bank failures. This article is available in Hospitality Review: http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/hospitalityreview/vol21/iss1/5 Effect of agency problems on RTC hotel appraisals by Michael C. Dalbor Agency problems that helped cause the bankmg industry were so severe banking crisis m the United States in the that fie ~ ~ d ~ ~ ~ l savings and L~~ 1980s impacted hotel appraaals completed forlhe Resolut,on Just Co~poration (RJC). Insurance CO~Ora t iOn (FS1,TC) Lower appra~sed values wwld help make went bankrupt and the Federal mwe bids acceptable, helping to sell more I~~~~~~~~ corporation assets quickly. The results indicafe appraised hotel values were much lower losses in the than sales ~ t h z s in states wrth a hiah late 1980s. number of bank failures. gency problems such as moral hazard and regulatory forbearance contributed to the banking crises in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Moral hazard can generally be defined as agents taking actions to the detnment of thcir employers. In terms of the banking industry, this cccumed as bank officials took actions that were not in the best interest of depositors. Regulatory forbearance was the practice of government regulators foregoing disciplinary actions against troubled banks in the hope that the banks would turn themselves around. The problems with the Some of the major causes of the crises were practices used by many lenders at the time. In order for borrowers to quality for a loan, an appraisal had to be completed. This led to a number of problems in the loan process. For one, commercial properties are often more specialized and complex than single-family residences, requiring more specialized skills and training. However, at the time, appraisers were designated by a wide variety of organizations that were not organized under the auspices of state governments. Therefore, the educational background and experience of these appraisers varied significantly. Another major factor in the pmcess was the ability of borrowers to hire appraisers directly. This
Effect of ancient grains and grain-free carbohydrate sources on extrusion parameters and nutrient utilization by dogs

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of ancient grain and grain-free carbohydrate sources on extrusion process, nutrient utilization, and palatability by dogs. Two maintenance dog diets were formulated with same proportions of carbohydrates: 1) ancient grain diet (AG) with spelt, millet, and sorghum; and 2) grain-free diet (GF) which had potato, peas, and tapioca starch. Experimental diets were extruded over 5 replicates in a completely randomized experimental design. Digestibility was carried out with 12 dogs in a switch-back experimental design. The GF diet required 22.6 and 25.9% more (P 0.05). After drying, GF kibbles were less dense and more expanded, but harder than AG kibbles (P 0.05). However, total dietary fiber (TDF) digestibility was 31.9% greater for dogs fed GF (P < 0.05). Moreover, wet fecal output was higher, and fecal dry matter was lower for dogs under GF (P < 0.05). The results demonstrated that GF and AG diets behaved differently during extrusion, but were similarly utilized by dogs, with exception of TDF. Thus, fiber content of grain-free diets should be monitored to maximize fecal quality.
Vibration at structural resonance frequency of hydrophilic substrates enhances biofilm removal

Abstract Biological fouling damages both human health and industry by causing infection, corrosion, structural failure, and drag on marine ships. Current efforts to clean bio-fouled surfaces by externally applying intensive mechanical energy often result in relapsed cell growth. Therefore, this study examines the extent that cell-structure interactions are orchestrated by vibration frequency, voltage-induced energy input mode, and surface energy to clean bio-fouled surfaces. This study was conducted with a tough polyacrylamide gel-coated polypropylene substrate attached to a flexible dielectric actuator that can vibrate when an oscillatory voltage is applied. We found that the maximum biofilm removal occurs by vibrating the gel-coated surface at the structural resonance frequency using a square wave input voltage. In addition, tuning the surface energy of the substrate was necessary for biofilm removal by decreasing the bacterial adhesive force. The findings from this study can be broadly applicable to assembling various advanced anti-fouling medical and industrial devices.
Massive labial lipomatous hypertrophy in familial partial lipodystrophy seen on computed tomographic angiography.

Abstract We present a 28-year-old female with a rare familial partial lipodystrophy. Originally presenting at the age of 14, she began experiencing hypertrophy of the fat in the mons pubis and labia majora regions. By the age of 24 she had disfiguring hypertrophy of these areas with severe fatty overgrowth, similar in nature to that experienced by her father and paternal grandmother. During her workup and planning for suction lipectomy, she underwent computed tomography angiography with the imaging manifestation of severe massive subcutaneous fat hypertrophy; the imaging appearance was only able to be explained after a thorough review of the patient's history and medical literature.
Water dynamics in deuterated gypsum, CaSO4⋅2D2O, investigated by solid state deuterium NMR.

Abstract NMR relaxation theory and NMR lineshape calculations were used to characterize the rates of C2 symmetry jumps of deuterium nuclei in partly deuterated gypsum powder. The experimental data consisted of variable temperature deuterium NMR powder line shapes and deuterium T1 relaxation times. All of the Mathematica© notebooks used to simulate the spectra and match the experimental T1 values are included as supplementary material , and are suitable templates for similar calculations on other systems. Our simulations show that the deuterium nuclei of D2O in Gypsum undergo a two-site C2 180° jump about the D-O-D bisector angle of 54.8°. The jump rate stays in the fast motion regime down to about 218 K. Below 193 K the powder lineshapes change, the spectral intensities drop significantly, and the motion slows into the intermediate motion regime. The best fit quadrupole coupling constants (QCC’s) vary between 216 kHz at the highest temperatures to 235 kHz at the lowest temperatures. The asymmetry parameters (ɳ) vary between 0.11 at the highest temperatures to 0.15 at the lowest temperatures. Knowledge of the C2 jump rates allowed us to calculate activation parameters for the jumps, namely ΔH‡ = 22 kJ/mol, and ΔS‡ = −10 J/mol·K which indicate a non-spontaneous activation process, an activation energy of Ea = 23 kJ/mol, and a pre-exponential factor of A = 3.6 × 1012. As expected, there was no evidence of quantum tunneling.
Romantic Paganism: The Politics of Ecstasy in the Shelley Circle / Romantic Hellenism and the Philosophy of Nature / The Radical Ecology of the Shelleys: Eros and Environment

Whether through allusions, translations, adaptations, or appeals to classical models of sexuality, Romantic authors have a long, rich history of embracing and rewriting classical models. These thre...
University archives in India: issues, challenges and future trends, an analytical review

Archives are the custodians of their organization’s memory and are preserved as authentic sources of information about past events and activities. As with other types of organization, university ar...
Clinical and genetic analysis of a case with Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome

Objective To explore the genetic etiology of a girl featuring epilepsy, speech delay and mild mental retardation. Methods Peripheral blood samples of the child and her parents were collected. Genomic DNA was extracted and subjected to next generation sequencing. Suspected variant was confirmed by Sanger sequencing. Results The child was found to carry a de novo heterozygous c. 3592G>A (p.V1198M) variant of the SMARCA2 gene, which was predicted to be pathogenic by bioinformatic analysis. Conclusion The child was diagnosed with Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome due to heterozygous variant of the SMARCA2 gene. Key words: Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome; SMARCA2 gene; Next generation sequencing
The Moral Distress of Patients and Families.

When we think of the phenomenon of moral distress, we are immediately reminded of the ethical challenges that clinicians encounter in their day-to-day work life that affect their overall sense of w...
Persistent and resurgent Na+ currents in vestibular calyx afferents.

Action potential firing patterns differ between groups of afferent neurons innervating vestibular epithelia. We investigated the biophysical properties of Na+ currents in specialized vestibular cal...
Unstable Lumbar Spine Osteomyelitis Caused by Trans-Foraminal Migration of Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band Connection Tubing: A Case Report.

Background Disconnection of the tubing between the port and LAGB is a well-known complication in general surgery and accounts for up to 17% of LAGB complications. Typically, when this complication occurs patients present with abdominal or pelvic complaints. A complication of spinal infection due to trans-foraminal migration has not been previously reported. The aim of this study is to highlight an unusual infection of the thoracolumbar spine due to laparoscopic adjustable gastric band (LAGB) intragastric erosion, and migration into the lumbar spine causing epidural abscesses, discitis, and osteomyelitis. This case underscores the importance of a thorough surgical history, complete imaging, and multi-disciplinary approach in management of complex spine infections. Methods We report a case of LAGB tubing migration into the spinal canal through the left L2/L3 neural foramen resulting in symptomatic epidural abscesses and osteomyelitis. Results Although dislodgement and migration of LAGB tubing has been reported previously, this is the first report of trans-foraminal migration and erosion of lumbar vertebrae, causing osteomyelitis of the spine and epidural abscess formation, subsequent instability and neurologic deficit requiring urgent operative intervention. Conclusions Dislodgement and migration of LAGB tubing is a known complication. While it most commonly leads to abdominal and pelvic sequelae, in rare circumstances it may acutely affect the spine. Careful history, imaging, and multidisciplinary approach are paramount for the successful management.Level of Evidence: V.
Hollywood Renaissance Noir, 1969–1979

A group of directors, different than those of the Transitional Noir, redefined Hollywood in the 1970s and created a distinct neo-noir movement in the process. Many of the directors, like Martin Scorsese, Terrence Malick, or Robert Altman, dabbled in noir as they moved through and destabilized multiple genres. These directors knew the dark side of cinema, as many of them were film students or had worked their way up through television. Their reaction to the 1970s intermingles with their reaction to noir cinema, forming their neo-noir movement. The Driver (Walter Hill 1978) offers one approach by recreating noir within the 1970s. The Long Goodbye (Robert Altman 1973) redefines noir by overtly manipulating genre tropes to fit the 1970s.
A Deep Learning Approach to Short-Term Quantitative Precipitation Forecasting

Short-term, spatially distributed quantitative precipitation forecasting (SD-QPF), or ‘precipitation nowcasting’, is important for hydrological and water resources applications, such as flash flood warning systems and operations of dams and reservoirs. The state-of-the-art methods in SD-QPF include radar extrapolations, numerical weather prediction (NWP) models, and hybrid methods that combine the two. Despite the diversity of methods that have been used, SD-QPF remains difficult: even sophisticated methods may not be able to consistently outperform relatively simple baselines such as Persistence. Methods in Deep Learning (DL) have demonstrated significant and often unexpected improvements across a wide variety of domains ranging from image and video processing to machine translation and speech recognition. Emerging research has suggested that that DL may improve point predictions in the context of very short-term - 0-2 hours - distributed QPF (VSD-QPF) by taking advantage of growing data from in-situ weather sensors as well as remote sensors such as radar and satellites, along with advances in computing. Here we examine the hypothesis that DL can improve VSD-QPF, specifically point predictions, based on observed hourly precipitation data over the contiguous United States, by leveraging a Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) recurrent neural network for 1-hour precipitation nowcasting. We find the DL approach performs better than the baseline method of Persistence and a state-of-the-art method using Optical Flow.
All Aboard! ‘Social’ and Nonsocial Priming are the Same Thing*

Sherman and Rivers make a laudable effort to reconcile and heal a divide within psychology (see also Klatzky & Creswell, 2014) and we are all indebted to their initiative. The goal of this commenta...
A critical review and assessment of 3D columnar silicon electrode architectures and their performance as negative electrodes in Li-ion cells

Abstract A critical review and assessment of 3D columnar Si electrode architectures, as negative electrodes for Li-ion cells, has been undertaken to provide insight on the structure parameters that enable high specific and total Li-storage capacities and high cycling performance. The selected set represents a sufficiently wide variety of columnar architectures, covering most of the possible routes of fabrication, including etching, patterning, photolithography and micromachining. The outcome of this evaluation identifies the structural factors that determine the best performing 3D electrode architecture. Specifically, electrodes with a high mass loading have been shown to correlate very well with high total capacities for Li-storage. Thus, the preferred 3D electrode structures are identified as those with columns of Si with an optimum porosity giving high enough mass loading, but with a balanced column depth and spacing providing effective volume accommodation during cell cycling. The review also provides details of experimental validations of the optimum electrode architecture, which effectively accommodates the volume change, and enables cycling for a larger number of cycles.
Association of External Ventricular Drain Wean Strategy with Shunt Placement and Length of Stay in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Prospective Multicenter Study.

Survivors of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) face a protracted intensive care unit (ICU) course and are at risk for developing refractory hydrocephalus with the need for a permanent ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS). Management of the external ventricular drain (EVD) used to provide temporary cerebrospinal fluid diversion may influence the need for a VPS, ICU length of stay (LOS), and drain complications, but the optimal EVD management approach is unknown. Therefore, we sought to determine the effect of EVD discontinuation strategy on VPS rate. This was a prospective multicenter observational study at six neurocritical care units in the United States. The target population included adults with suspected aneurysmal SAH who required an EVD. Patients were preassigned to rapid or gradual EVD weans based on their treating center. The primary outcome was the rate of VPS placement. Secondary outcomes were EVD duration, ICU LOS, hospital LOS, and drain complications. A rapid EVD wean protocol was associated with a lower rate of VPS placement, including a delayed posthospitalization shunt, in an adjusted Cox proportional analysis (hazard ratio 0.52 [p = 0.041]) and adjusted logistic regression model (odds ratio 0.43 [95% confidence interval 0.18–1.03], p = 0.057). A rapid wean was also associated with 2.1 fewer EVD days (p = 0.007) and saved an estimated 2.5 ICU days (p = 0.049), as compared with a gradual wean protocol. There were fewer nonfunctioning EVDs in the rapid group (odds ratio 0.32 [95% confidence interval 0.11–0.92]). Furthermore, we found that the time to first wean and the number of weaning attempts were important independent covariates that affected the likelihood of receiving a VPS and the duration of ICU admission. A rapid EVD wean was associated with decreased rates of VPS placement, decreased ICU LOS, and decreased drain complications in survivors of aneurysmal SAH. These findings suggest that a randomized multicentered controlled study comparing rapid vs. gradual EVD weaning protocols is justified.
A Qualitative Study Describing Nurses' Experiences With Presenteeism

Objective The aim of this study was to understand nurse awareness of coping and decision making regarding presenteeism and the consequences thereof. Background Nurses report high levels of presenteeism or not being able to fully function in the workplace, but we currently lack understanding of nurse perceptions of presenteeism and its consequences. Methods A qualitative descriptive method was used to evaluate the perceptions of nurses from medical surgical units at 2 different hospitals. Findings For purposes of the study, presenteeism was defined as being present at work when not fully engaged. Most respondents experienced presenteeism in the month before data collection. Five categories of themes were identified: 1) factors leading to presenteeism, 2) awareness and symptoms of presenteeism, 3) coping with presenteeism on and off shift, 4) decision making regarding presenteeism, and 5) consequences of presenteeism. Conclusions Both personal and work factors contribute to presenteeism. To decrease presenteeism, healthcare leaders and systems should consider reviewing and changing sick/leave polices, unit cultures, and a lack of resources that contribute to and encourage an awareness of presenteeism, thereby decreasing nurse fatigue.
Roles of eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase (eEF2K) in neuronal plasticity, cognition, and Alzheimer disease.

Understanding the molecular signaling mechanisms underlying cognition and neuronal plasticity would provide insights into the pathogenesis of neuronal disorders characterized with cognitive syndromes such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). Phosphorylation of the mRNA translational factor eukaryotic elongation factor 2 (eEF2) by its specific kinase eEF2K is critically involved in protein synthesis regulation. In this review, we discussed recent studies on the roles of eEF2K/eEF2 signaling in the context of regulation/dysregulation of cognitive function and synaptic plasticity. We specifically focus on the discussion of recent evidence indicating suppression of eEF2K signaling as a potential novel therapeutic avenue for AD and related dementias (ADRDs).