cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The late seventeenth-century crises

By the seventeenth century the Kingdom or Auditencia of Quito had emerged from over a century of turmoil. It took the Inca state (Tawan-tinsuyu) until 1495 to conquer the region's six independent indigenous chiefdoms. Only forty years later the conquering forces of Sebastian de Belalcazar, Diego de Almagro, Juan de Salinas, and Gonzalo Pizarro established Spanish rule in the region. After founding a town council ( cabildo ) in their provincial capital of Quito in 1534, the new invaders started distributing the Amerindian settlements into grants of encomienda. This system allowed the Europeans to collect taxes and labor from the Andeans, in return for military protection and religious instruction. A generation of civil war among the conquistadors and periodic indigenous rebellions, however, impeded the consolidation of Spanish rule. It was not until 1563 that the crown established a high court ( audiencia ) in the city of Quito to head the newly implanted imperial bureaucracy. By then a stable Spanish society had formed in the region, laying the foundations for a vibrant regional economy based on the production of woolen textiles. The Kingdom of Quito's textile sector was linked to a series of prosperous, integrated regional economies extending throughout the Viceroyalty of Peru during the seventeenth century. While silver mining connected the Spanish Andean colonies and the international economy, smaller regional markets supplied foodstuffs, wine and liquor, cloth, and labor for the burgeoning mining zones. Quito's textile economy played an important role among these evolving secondary regional markets for most of the seventeenth century.
Effect of Solids, Caloric Content on Dual-Phase Gastric Emptying

The dual-phase gastric emptying technique is routinely employed to determine the differential emptying of solids and liquids in a wide spectrum of gastrointestinal diseases. Composition, acidity, volume, caloric density, physical form and viscosity of the test meals have been shown to be important determinants for the quantitative evaluation of gastric emptying. In this study, we have evaluated the effect of increasing the caloric content of the solid portion of a physiologic test meal on both solid and liquid emptying kinetics in healthy male volunteers. We observed that increasing solid caloric content delayed emptying of both solids and liquids. For the solid phase, the delay was accounted for by a longer lag phase and decrease in emptying rate; for liquids a longer emptying rate was also obtained. We conclude that modification of the caloric content of the solid portion of a meal not only affects the emptying of the solid phase but also alters the emptying of the liquid component of the meal.
Evaluating a “wicked problem”: A conceptual framework on seaport resiliency in the event of weather disruptions

Abstract Seaport infrastructure by virtue of its location can be severely impacted from disruptive adverse weather events. Disruptive adverse events range from long-term changes such as sea level rise caused by climate change to short-term impacts such as hurricanes. This paper proposes a new conceptual framework for evaluating how ports currently strategize against the risks associated with these potential events and how they plan to ensure port resiliency. Resiliency is defined as the port's ability to resume normal operations at pre-disruptive performance levels after a disruptive adverse event. Further, port resiliency also includes a port's ability to maintain normal operations and performance over a long period of disruptive adverse change. Protecting ports from the impact of adverse weather events is a “wicked problem.” A wicked problem is one where the planning for adverse events is difficult or impossible to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements that are often difficult to recognize. This “wicked problem” context helps port managers to view decisions made on port resiliency in terms of mitigation and minimization of the extent and duration of the negative consequences associated with major disruptions rather than a solution mindset. To achieve this goal, we propose a four step framework: (1) collecting and analyzing historical records on past events, (2) recognizing and managing stakeholders' expectations, (3) developing ever changing resilience strategies, and (4) implementing these strategies with flexibility.
Discriminant color texture descriptors for diabetic retinopathy recognition

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common eye disease that could lead to irreversible vision loss but hard to be noticed by carriers in early stages. Instead of isolating DR signs for DR recognition, this paper examines discriminant texture features obtained by color multi-scale uniform local binary pattern (LBPs) descriptors on five common color spaces and two proposed hybrid color spaces. The extracted features are evaluated by the enhanced Fisher linear discriminant, EFM. Experiments are done on a large dataset of 35,126 training images and 53,576 testing images that have been taken by different devices with high variance in dimensions, quality and luminance. The best performance is above 71.45% by HSI-LBPs, a*SI-LBPs, and bSI-LBPs descriptors.
Evaluation of Correlation between Pretest Probability for Clostridium difficile Infection and Clostridium difficile Enzyme Immunoassay Results.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of hospitalized patients tested for Clostridium difficile and determine the correlation between pretest probability for C. difficile infection (CDI) and assay results. Patients with testing ordered for C. difficile were enrolled and assigned a high, medium, or low pretest probability of CDI based on clinical evaluation, laboratory, and imaging results. Stool was tested for C. difficile by toxin enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and toxigenic culture (TC). Chi-square analyses and the log rank test were utilized. Among the 111 patients enrolled, stool samples from nine were TC positive and four were EIA positive. Sixty-one (55%) patients had clinically significant diarrhea, 19 (17%) patients did not, and clinically significant diarrhea could not be determined for 31 (28%) patients. Seventy-two (65%) patients were assessed as having a low pretest probability of having CDI, 34 (31%) as having a medium probability, and 5 (5%) as having a high probability. None of the patients with low pretest probabilities had a positive EIA, but four were TC positive. None of the seven patients with a positive TC but a negative index EIA developed CDI within 30 days after the index test or died within 90 days after the index toxin EIA date. Pretest probability for CDI should be considered prior to ordering C. difficile testing and must be taken into account when interpreting test results. CDI is a clinical diagnosis supported by laboratory data, and the detection of toxigenic C. difficile in stool does not necessarily confirm the diagnosis of CDI.
Validation of model-based brain shift correction in neurosurgery via intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging: preliminary results

The quality of brain tumor resection surgery is dependent on the spatial agreement between preoperative image and intraoperative anatomy. However, brain shift compromises the aforementioned alignment. Currently, the clinical standard to monitor brain shift is intraoperative magnetic resonance (iMR). While iMR provides better understanding of brain shift, its cost and encumbrance is a consideration for medical centers. Hence, we are developing a model-based method that can be a complementary technology to address brain shift in standard resections, with resource-intensive cases as referrals for iMR facilities. Our strategy constructs a deformation ‘atlas’ containing potential deformation solutions derived from a biomechanical model that account for variables such as cerebrospinal fluid drainage and mannitol effects. Volumetric deformation is estimated with an inverse approach that determines the optimal combinatory ‘atlas’ solution fit to best match measured surface deformation. Accordingly, preoperative image is updated based on the computed deformation field. This study is the latest development to validate our methodology with iMR. Briefly, preoperative and intraoperative MR images of 2 patients were acquired. Homologous surface points were selected on preoperative and intraoperative scans as measurement of surface deformation and used to drive the inverse problem. To assess the model accuracy, subsurface shift of targets between preoperative and intraoperative states was measured and compared to model prediction. Considering subsurface shift above 3 mm, the proposed strategy provides an average shift correction of 59% across 2 cases. While further improvements in both the model and ability to validate with iMR are desired, the results reported are encouraging.
Cost Comparison of Outpatient Versus Inpatient Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty

Background:Outpatient unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) has been shown to be safe and feasible when compared with inpatient surgery; however, no studies have evaluated the cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit of performing outpatient versus inpatient UKA.Hypothesis:Significant cost savings can be achieved by transitioning UKAs from an inpatient to an outpatient procedure in an outpatient surgical facility, with no appreciable difference in complication or readmission rates.Study Design:Economic and decision analysis; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:A retrospective chart review of 25 consecutive medial UKAs was performed. A total of 10 inpatient UKAs with a mean length of stay of 1.6 days (range, 1-4 days) and 12 outpatient UKAs were included in the final analysis. A simple difference in costs incurred, reimbursements, and percentage difference between inpatient and outpatient surgery in an outpatient surgical facility was calculated. Charges were subdivided into surgical facility fees, inpatient room c...
Fast Method for an Accurate and Efficient Nonlinear Signaling Analysis

Conventional methods for signaling analysis are based on linear time invariant (LTI) assumptions. In this paper, we develop a method for efficient and accurate signaling analysis of nonlinear circuits. This method retains the nonlinear simulation as it is instead of linearizing the original nonlinear problem or adopting a simplified nonlinear model, thereby ensuring accuracy. Meanwhile, it does not suffer from the drawbacks of the brute-force nonlinear simulation in computational efficiency. Being a generic method for signaling analysis, the method is applicable to all kinds of nonlinearities as well as the LTI systems. Simulations of realistic industry nonlinear circuits have demonstrated the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method.
Consumer Choice and Market Expansion: Modeling, Optimization and Estimation

Market size, measured by the number of people who are interested in products from the same category, may be highly influenced by assortment planning and pricing decisions. This effect is referred to as market expansion. In this paper, we incorporate the market expansion effects into consumer choice models and investigate assortment and pricing problems. In particular, we take the widely used multinomial logit model as a showcase to examine the market expansion effects on assortment planning and pricing, and also propose an alternating-optimization expectation-maximization method, which separates the estimation of consumer choice behavior and the market expansion effects, to calibrate the new model. Our empirical study on a real data set shows the efficiency of our estimation method and the importance of incorporating the market expansion effects into consumer choice models. Failure to account for the market expansion effects may lead to substantial losses in demand estimation and operations management.
Sentiment analysis methods for understanding large-scale texts: a case for using continuum-scored words and word shift graphs

The emergence and global adoption of social media has rendered possible the real-time estimation of population-scale sentiment, an extraordinary capacity which has profound implications for our understanding of human behavior. Given the growing assortment of sentiment-measuring instruments, it is imperative to understand which aspects of sentiment dictionaries contribute to both their classification accuracy and their ability to provide richer understanding of texts. Here, we perform detailed, quantitative tests and qualitative assessments of 6 dictionary-based methods applied to 4 different corpora, and briefly examine a further 20 methods. We show that while inappropriate for sentences, dictionary-based methods are generally robust in their classification accuracy for longer texts. Most importantly they can aid understanding of texts with reliable and meaningful word shift graphs if (1) the dictionary covers a sufficiently large portion of a given text’s lexicon when weighted by word usage frequency; and (2) words are scored on a continuous scale.
Temporal Effects of Acute Walking Exercise on Learning and Memory Function

Purpose:To evaluate the temporal effects of acute exercise on episodic memory.Design:A quasi-experimental study.Sample:Eighty-eight college students (N = 22 per group).Measures:Four experimental gr...
The Difference between Heroes and Monsters: Marvel Monsters and Their Transition into the Superhero Genre

The monster is an amorphous and ambiguous manifestation of social values, representing fear and revulsion of a cultural Other while engendering escapist power fantasies. The monster era of Marvel Comics from the late 1950s to the early 1960s created a new mediation of the monster based heavily on the comic book industry's desire for a model of mass producible creative content. Graphic narrative's hybridization of verbal and visual rhetoric captures the cultural fluidity of the monster by using multimedia signifiers of ambiguity and reiterating popular visual archetypes. However, Marvel monster categories are as much a result of economic and visual limitations of the comic book medium. Marvel monster rhetoric, in turn, transformed the dichotomy of fear and desire at the heart of the monster into a new superheroic archetype. This article explores the verbal and visual rhetoric of the monster era and what rhetorics transferred to Marvel's silver age superheroes of the 1960s.
The Impact of Sourcing on the IT Workforce Pipeline

The increasingly global sourcing of information technology (IT) work is prompting fundamental changes in the availability of IT skills needed in both client and vendor organizations. In the summer of 2005 the Society for Information Management (SIM) sponsored of an international data collection effort by 20 researchers, is, who investigated how these factors affect the skills, capabilities and experience available to the IT organization within firms, that the IT workforce pipeline. This paper uses that data to conduct an analysis of the IT skills and capabilities that are valued by top management of IT organizations and understand how those skills and capabilities are acquired. The analysis focuses on: • Skills and capabilities hired in house versus those acquired through sourcing • Trends in full-time equivalent (FTE) numbers through 2008 looking at how FTEs are distributed among in-house, independent contractors and service providers
The alpha 1, alpha 2, and alpha 3 subunits of GABAA receptors: comparison in seizure-prone and -resistant mice and during development.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in brain, opens chloride channels through actions on GABAA receptors. We now report base and amino acid sequences of the α1, α2, and α3 subunits from GABAA receptors of audiogenic seizure-prone (DBA/2J) and -resistant (C57BL/6J) inbred strains of mice. Inbreeding had fixed different alleles of the α1 subunit in the two strains, giving five base differences in the cDNAs. None of these affected amino acid sequence, but one did create a NsiI restriction site potentially useful in mapping genomic DNA. No base or amino acid sequence differences between the strains were detected for the other two subunits. Northern blots revealed no apparent strain differences in message levels for these three subunits in whole brains of the mice at 3 weeks of age, the peak of seizure susceptibility in DBA/2J, but did reveal distinct regional and developmental patterns of expression among the subunits in mouse brain.
Nuclear Technology for Frontier Advances in the Natural Gas Industry

This paper presents selected liquid natural gas (LNG) industry-specific applications of tools and techniques developed for the nuclear technology discipline. A mechanistic, frequency domain stability analysis framework is presented for understanding and predicting LNG-water system behavior concerning rapid phase transition (RPT) explosions; the framework well-predicts data and trends of small and large-scale LNG-water tests. A physics-based methodology is presented to prevent RPT explosions in LNG-water systems. A high fidelity real-time neutron based interrogation for molecular level identification of LNG constituents is discussed along with a radioisotope source based method for tracking LNG at femto gram levels. LNG in deuterated form is proposed as a thermonuclear fusion fuel for deriving “green” energy at levels that are several million times greater than that from fossil fuels.
Teaching Chemistry Effectively with Engineering Majors: Teaching Beyond the Textbook

The teaching of chemistry to non-chemistry engineering majors has proven to be a challenge, not only because it needs to prepare these students for the new standards and requirements outlined by the U.S. Accreditation Board of Engineering & Technology (ABET), but also because these students have different interests and preferences than chemistry. Further complicating the situation, these engineering majors often take only one semester of chemistry at the general chemistry level and do not consider chemistry as a significant contribution to their knowledge and/or to their major. In order to remedy the current deficiency in students’ interest and meet the requirements from ABET, a new chemistry course with specially designed pedagogy was formulated and implemented for engineering majors. A team of undergraduate students and an instructor were assembled to introduce the essential chemistry concepts and skills to freshmen engineering majors. Several approaches were used to assist students with learning chemistry: hands-on demonstration, technology-concentrated online learning tools, and Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning setup. The combination of these approaches allows students to construct, visualize, and correlate the chemical concepts into engineering applications. The results and students’ responses are reported in this study.
Origin and Continuity of Polar Granules

Embryonic development is not totally an epigenetic phenomenon but is clearly dependent upon the cytoplasmic organization present in the egg at the inception of development. While the general acceptance of the theory of differential gene activity as the basic epigenetic mechanism is an important advance in our understanding of development, it is only more recently that the presence of organized cytoplasmic “information” in the egg is recognized to be one of the key mechanisms for establishing the sequence of differential gene action that characterizes development (the argument for this understanding of development has been thoroughly and brilliantly explained by Davidson, 1968). The best example of such developmentally significant localizations of the egg cytoplasm are the polar granules or “germ cell determinants” of insects. These organelles are found in a variety of species principally within the insect orders Diptera, Hymenoptera, and Coleoptera. Their developmental significance was indicated morphologically, in that they were incorporated into one or more cells which then gave rise to the primordial germ cells of the embryo, and then experimentally, by Hegner (1911) who found that if the posterior pole plasm was destroyed by cauterization, normal embryos were formed except that they lacked germ cells. Hegner termed these organelles “germ cell determinants” and the search was begun to find other examples of organ determinants in other embryonic systems.
The Development Aid Situation in Malawi

In this chapter, I demonstrate the powerful and influential role that international donors (bilateral and multilateral agencies and INGOs) play in constructing AIDS policies and programmes. Additionally, this chapter emphasises that aid conditionality can fail to respond effectively to the AIDS epidemic by demonstrating how funding is often donor led. For example, if donors disagree with policies being implemented in the country to which they are supplying aid, whether it is the way money is being spent or the type of policies the government implements, then they will withdraw funds. I provide an example of the British Government suspending aid because it was unhappy with the President of Malawi’s autocratic management style. The paradox of such policies in practice is that they reduce the ability of nation states to be self-sufficient and instead put them in a dependency relationship with international donors. In this chapter, I also show how the AIDS epidemic was considered to be exceptional, thus requiring exceptional efforts at prevention and mitigation. That HIV requires a response above ‘normal’ health interventions began as a Western response to the virus. I also look at the influence the national elite in Malawi have in shaping international perceptions of sexual cultural practices and AIDS.
Resilience and Essential Public Infrastructure

This chapter begins with a commentary on resilience as the meta-concept for organizational preparedness for disruptive events, and the factors that influence the implementation of a resilience agenda. This is followed by an analysis of resilience in the special context of essential public infrastructure wherein priority is given to reliability and continuity of service, and interdependencies between infrastructures must be dealt with. The resilience agenda of a major public water supply system is then presented to illustrate the broad range of initiatives needed to ensure its resilience. Finally, policy issues are discussed regarding adaptations of resilience to meet concerns about security and sustainability.
“It All Starts With the Parents”: A Qualitative Study on Protective Factors for Drug-Use Prevention Among Black and Hispanic Girls:

Using intersectionality theory as a theoretical framework, this qualitative study uncovered the protective factors present among black and Hispanic adolescent girls living in an urban, underresourc...
Quantitative authenticity testing of buffalo mozzarella via αs1-Casein using multiple reaction monitoring mass spectrometry

Abstract We address the detection and quantitation of bovine milk in ‘buffalo’ mozzarella cheese using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mass spectrometry (MS). Focussing on the abundant protein α s1 -casein, present in both species but with 10 amino acid sequence differences, we extract a list of marker peptides specific to each species. ‘Identical’ peptides, exactly the same in both species, are used for relative quantitation of α s1 -casein in each milk type, whereas ‘similar’ peptides, present in both species but differing typically by one amino acid, are used to demonstrate relative quantitation in binary cheese mixtures. In addition, we report a pilot survey of UK supermarket and restaurant products labelled as ‘buffalo mozzarella’, finding that 2/3 of restaurant meals and supermarket pizzas are either mislabelled or adulterated.
The Slow-Growing Pigmented Water Bacteria: Problems and Sources

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the problems and sources of slow-growing pigmented water bacteria. The extent to which water can serve as a bacterial growth medium is one of the least recognized facets of bacteriology. Many bacteria reproduce in water; among the genera that will grow in water of unquestioned potable quality are: Pseudomonas; Xanthomonas; Achromobacter; Escherichia; Aerobacter; Streptococcus; Desulfouibrio; and Crenothrix. The slow-growing pigmented water bacteria that are thus often missed are usually those nonfermentative rods that may require up to 15 days at room temperature, and grow best on agar surface. Lactose broth tubes when held for 15 days at room temperature may produce a pigmented growth, often quite mucoid. Most of the pigments associated with many of the slow-growing water bacteria appear to belong to the group of unsaponifiable fat-soluble natural pigments usually yellow to red in color and are most common among marine bacteria, where over half of the organisms isolated to date are considered to be chromogenic. The chapter discusses the infection hazards with pigmented water bacteria in great detail.
Queering critical literacy and numeracy for social justice: Navigating the course

In Queering Critical Literacy and Numeracy for Social Justice, S. M. Pennell answers the question posed by scholars as to whether “queer pedagogy” can exist. In her interdisciplinary study, Pennell...
Clinical Comparison of New Generation 0.071-inch and 0.072-inch Aspiration Catheters.

Introduction Three new 0.071-inch and 0.072-inch aspiration catheters have been introduced for stroke thrombectomy. Their comparative efficacy has not been clinically evaluated. Methods We reviewed a prospectively maintained thrombectomy database for cases using 1 of these 3 catheters for proximal large vessel occlusion from September 2018 to February 2019. Clinical and angiographic information was extracted. Results Of 145 thrombectomies performed over the time period, 49 utilized 1 of the 3 new large-bore catheters (React 71, n = 21; Vecta 71, n = 19; Jet 7, n = 9) on the first pass. Mean patient age was 73 years (SD: 15). Mean presenting National Institute of Health Stroke Scale score was 19 (SD: 6, range: 5–33). Clot location was middle cerebral artery first segment in 59% of cases, internal carotid artery in 31%, and basilar in 10%. With or without a stentriever, clot access with the initially selected aspiration catheter was achieved in 47 of 49 (96%) cases. Excluding empiric stentriever usage, the aspiration catheter could be delivered to the clot without needing a stentriever in 87% of cases: 100% with React 71, 93% with Vecta 71, and 43% with Jet 7 (P = 0.002). Final Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction score 2b/3 was achieved in 92% of cases overall: 95% with React 71, 89% with Jet 7, and 89% with Vecta 71. Median procedure time was 28 minutes; mean total number of passes was 2.4 (SD: 1.6) with 39% of cases being single-pass cases. These rates did not significantly differ between aspiration catheters. Conclusions In comparing the newest large bore aspiration catheters, similar angiographic efficacy is achieved.
Mobile health (mHealth)

Abstract Mobile health (mHealth), the use of mobile devices such as cell phones to support health, is poised to greatly impact healthcare in many ways. Smartphones are ubiquitous in developed countries and are rapidly being adopted in developing countries. Since they are highly portable and very powerful computing and communication devices with large storage and excellent graphic capabilities, they have the capability to provide clinical decision support, deliver media-rich medical advice, and support documentation of care even when there is no connectivity. The emerging discipline of persuasive technology provides a conceptual framework for developing effective smartphone systems for healthcare. In developing countries, smartphones can serve as powerful support tools for healthcare professionals including community health workers. Google, Apple, and other third parties provide systems for the development of smartphone systems. There are many new mobile technologies for the health including activity sensors and smartwatches.
A new metal transfer process for van der Waals contacts to vertical Schottky-junction transition metal dichalcogenide photovoltaics

Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides are promising candidates for ultrathin optoelectronic devices due to their high absorption coefficients and intrinsically passivated surfaces. To maintain these near-perfect surfaces, recent research has focused on fabricating contacts that limit Fermi-level pinning at the metal-semiconductor interface. Here, we develop a new, simple procedure for transferring metal contacts that does not require aligned lithography. Using this technique, we fabricate vertical Schottky-junction WS2 solar cells, with Ag and Au as asymmetric work function contacts. Under laser illumination, we observe rectifying behavior and open-circuit voltage above 500 mV in devices with transferred contacts, in contrast to resistive behavior and open-circuit voltage below 15 mV in devices with evaporated contacts. One-sun measurements and device simulation results indicate that this metal transfer process could enable high specific power vertical Schottky-junction transition metal dichalcogenide photovoltaics, and we anticipate that this technique will lead to advances for two-dimensional devices more broadly.
The Impact of Incentives on Weight Control in Men: A Randomized Controlled Trial:

Overweight and obese men were recruited to a 6-month, randomized controlled weight loss trial, which compared the Gutbusters weight loss program alone to the Gutbusters program with incentives for successful weight loss. The intervention was delivered primarily online, with weekly in-person weight collections. Gutbusters was designed using a template from the REFIT intervention and encouraged participants (N = 102, 47.0 ± 12.3 years, 32.5 kg/m2) to make six 100-calorie changes to their typical daily diet for a total of 42 changes per week. Weight loss was significantly greater in the Gutbusters+Incentive group compared to the Gutbusters alone group at both 12 and 24 weeks (p's = < .01). The Gutbusters+Incentive group's a mean weight loss was 9.9 pounds at 12 weeks (95% CI: 6.9, 12.9) and 8.4 pounds at 24 weeks (95% CI: 3.9, 13.0). The Gutbusters alone group mean weight loss was 3.7 pounds at 12 weeks (95% CI: -.06, 7.5) and 3.4 pounds at 24 weeks (95% CI: -2.2, 9.0). This study adds to the literature of behavioral weight programs that are designed for men. Unlike the majority of previous male weight loss interventions, which were designed with an intervention comparison to a no treatment or waitlist control, Gutbusters was implemented as a comparative effectiveness trial, which will help bolster the evidence base for real-world application.
The FOXM1 Inhibitor RCM-1 Decreases Carcinogenesis and Nuclear β-catenin

FOXM1, a member of the Forkhead box (FOX) family of transcription factors, has previously been shown to play a critical role in carcinogenesis by inducing cellular proliferation in multiple types o...
Predicting Breast Cancer Treatment Response using Diffuse Optical Tomography and Ultrasound

This clinical study validates an early treatment window for predicting complete or near-complete pathological response of breast cancer patients based on pretreatment total-hemoglobin level (THb), early changes of THb and ultrasound measurements following neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
Power Sets and Implication Operators Revisited: A Retrospective Look at the Foundational and Conceptual Issues in Bandler and Kohout's Paper After 29 Years.

In our case study we look at one of the early papers that interrelates the concept of fuzzy set inclusion, power set and many-valued implication operators, namely the paper of Bandler and Kohout [3]. This is followed by discussion of the subsequent related work by the fuzzy community.
Inhibition of a cortico-thalamic circuit attenuates cue-induced reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior in “relapse prone” male rats

Relapse often occurs when individuals are exposed to stimuli or cues previously associated with the drug-taking experience. The ability of drug cues to trigger relapse is believed to be a consequence of incentive salience attribution, a process by which the incentive value of reward is transferred to the reward-paired cue. Sign-tracker (ST) rats that attribute enhanced incentive value to reward cues are more prone to relapse compared to goal-tracker (GT) rats that primarily attribute predictive value to such cues. The neurobiological mechanisms underlying this individual variation in relapse propensity remains largely unexplored. The paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) has been identified as a critical node in the regulation of cue-elicited behaviors in STs and GTs, including cue-induced reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior. Here we used a chemogenetic approach to assess whether “top-down” cortical input from the prelimbic cortex (PrL) to the PVT plays a role in mediating individual differences in relapse propensity. Chemogenetic inhibition of the PrL-PVT pathway selectively decreased cue-induced reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior in STs, without affecting behavior in GTs. In contrast, cocaine-primed drug-seeking behavior was not affected in either phenotype. Furthermore, when rats were characterized based on a different behavioral phenotype—locomotor response to novelty—inhibition of the PrL-PVT pathway had no effect on either cue- or drug-induced reinstatement. These results highlight an important role for the PrL-PVT pathway in vulnerability to relapse that is consequent to individual differences in the propensity to attribute incentive salience to discrete reward cues.
The Executive Compensation Threat to Retirement

In recent years a new phenomenon has appeared on the retirement savings landscape: the expansion into middle management ranks of a traditional tool of executive compensation, the so-called “top hat” pension plan. Top hat plans are unfunded deferred compensation programs for a “select group of management or highly compensated employees.” Properly structured, top hat plans amass retirement resources that are taxed to employee-participants only when distributed. From the participant’s viewpoint, that delayed inclusion appears comparable to the tax deferral accorded qualified retirement plan savings, yet top hat plans are exempt from all of the Code’s qualification conditions. They are likewise excused from virtually all of ERISA’s pension plan participant protections, including vesting, funding, and fiduciary responsibilities. This regulatory immunity licenses three interconnected pathologies that undermine core retirement policy objectives. The inapplicability of ERISA’s worker protections, combined with preemption of state law, relegates top hat plan participants to a uniquely precarious position: their retirement savings are more exposed to depredation and vulnerable to loss than if ERISA had never been enacted. The inapplicability of the Code’s qualified plan nondiscrimination requirements allows employers to offer additional retirement savings to highly-paid managerial, technical, and professional employees without having to pay comparable benefits to rank-and-file workers. And the dramatic disparity, post-2017, between income tax rates applicable to corporations and high-income individuals incentivizes that favoritism with a substantial tax subsidy that’s unmeasured and generally overlooked. This article explores the unresolved ambiguity that has enabled top hat plan metastasis into upper-middle compensation ranges. It documents the sources of the pathologies associated with the expansion of top hat pensions and traces their consequences. And it surveys the leading responses to these developments, some of which offer only partial solutions, while others could be accomplished only by legislation.
The Annual Flows of the Mississippi River

The Mississippi River drains two thirds of the lower United States plus 13,000 square miles of Canada. When North America was being colonized by Europeans, the river overflowed its banks about once every 3 years and spread onto the floodplain, which today covers 34,600 square miles of the valley. A natural levee formed alongside the river where the silt was dropped when water left the channel; the levee now slopes away from the river at about 7 feet per mile. This high ground was settled first by the white man at New Orleans in 1717. The spring floods barely topped the natural levee and the original town was protected by a ring levee 3 feet high. As more overflow areas were cut off from the river, the levees increased in height to about 40 feet. The hydraulics of the river became better and today more water and silt flows out to sea. About three fourths of the floodplain is closed off from the river, but in 1882 and 1927, the river took that band back, and in 1973 almost 60% of the 22-million-acre area was flooded. Nevertheless, there have been no levee breaks since the Corps of Enginecrs took over flood control in 1928. The mean flow of the river since 1900 has been 646,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) moment to moment. The mode, median, quartiles and deciles of annual flows are given, and the measurements of dispersion, the standard deviation and coefficient of variation are given. The Atchafalaya River distributary hasincreased considerably at the expense of the Mississippi River since 1858. During the flood year of 1973, the Atchafalaya carried 37% of the total flow. It is estimated that unless it is brought under control, in about 60 years the Atchafalaya will equal the Mississippi. Flood years are not especially associated and in several cases low flows and flood years are close together. Measurements of river flows before 1900 are unreliable or absent. Since then, however, careful measurements of the daily flows of both distributaries have been taken by the Corps of Engineers and used to compile mean flows in cfs by years. The data extend for a series of 79 years. They were furnished to the author by the New Orleans District of the Corps. These data were used for all calculationsgiven here on flows. The lowest flow recorded for the Atchafalaya was 13,300 cfs on September 22, 1925. The lowest flow for the Mississippi was 75,000 cfs on November 4, 1939. The highest for the Atchafalaya was 781,000 cfs at Simmesport on May 12, 1973; the highest for the Mississippi was at Tarbert Landing on February 19, 1937, at 1,977,000 cfs. Subjectively described floods of 1782,1828, and 1882 tie in with 1927 and 1973 as 50-year floods. The 1927 and 1973 floods were remarkably similar; the former was the larger. The largest known flow of the river is only 25% less than the maximum which meteorologists say could be generated. Presumably such a flood could be handled without catastrophe.
The Right of African Americans to Self-Determination

I want to briefly discuss the nine charges that I filed against the United States government for committing international crimes against African Americans. I believe that these nine charges succinctly state the fundamental principles of international law and human rights concerning African Americans. Obviously, these nine charges of my Indictment cannot answer all the questions African Americans might have with respect to their rights under international law and human rights law. But I do submit that these nine charges provide a solid foundation for providing guidance to African Americans as to their basic rights under international law that can be used in the future in order to navigate problems and issues as they arise to confront them today.
Reaction of diethyl pyrocarbonate with nucleic acid components. Adenosine-containing nucleotides and dinucleoside phosphates.

Abstract Reactions of diethyl pyrocarbonate with adenine-containing nucleotides and dinucleoside phosphates have been explored in order to assess both chemical and biochemical effects of this reagent upon adenosine units in nucleic acids. 5′-AMP and 3′(2′)-AMP were converted, by imidazole ring opening, to corresponding 4,5- dicarbethoxyamino -6-N- ribofuranosylamino-pyrimidine phosphates, characterized as the disodium salts. Dinucleoside phosphate model compounds A-A, A-U and U-A were converted in high yields to N- carbethoxy derivatives VII, VIII and IX, respectively, in which the imidazole ring of each adenosine unit has been opened. Ultraviolet absorption spectra of the dinucleoside phosphate products were compared with those predicted by additive combination of the spectra of the “half” molecules in each case. Modified compounds VIII and IX from A-U and U-A were digested, if at all, more slowly than the unmodified counterparts by venom phosphodiesterase, ribonuclease T2, bovine pancreatic ribonuclease A and bovine spleen phosphodiesterase; product VII from A-A was not hydrolyzed by any of the enzymes under the conditions employed. Potential hazards to structural integrity of nucleic acids in presence of excess diethyl pyrocarbonate are discussed, as well as possible applications to structure determination.
U.S./U.S.S.R. seismological network developing

In the spirit of glasnost, the first stage of a state-of-the-art seismological network for global research on Earth structure, earthquakes, and seismic monitoring of nuclear testing is now operating in the Soviet Union, thanks to cooperation between several U.S. and Soviet groups and agencies. Digitally recorded seismic data have been generally unavailable from the Soviet Union prior to the new agreement, leaving an essentially uninstrumented hole in the largest continent on Earth. In 1988 the Soviet Academy agreed to a joint research program with the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) and the U.S. Geological Survey that called for the establishment of 20–25 permanent seismic stations and the operation of portable seismic networks in each country. The U.S. State Department approved the incorporation of the seismic program, now called the Eurasian Seismic Studies Program, under Area IX (Earthquake Prediction) of the Bilateral U.S./U.S.S.R. Environmental Protection Agreement. The network is operated by IRIS, a consortium of over 60 American universities, the USGS, and the Institute of Physics of the Earth (IPE) of the Soviet Academy of Sciences. Principal project scientists are Jonathan Berger, a geophysicist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and John Filson, a seismologist at USGS.
Aspirin-stimulated intestinal electrolyte transport in rabbit ileum in vitro.

Abstract Because aspirin and the heavy metal salts of related anions have effects on intestinal ion transport and on diarrheal states, we have studied the effect of aspirin (ASA) on the in vitro rabbit ileum in an attempt to understand its mechanism of action. Ten millimolar of aspirin increased the conductance of rabbit ileum by 10–50% but did not change the permselectivity of the shunt path as determined by measurement of diffusion potentials. In Cl-free and HCO 3 -free solutions, aspirin reduced both Na absorption and the short-circuit current (I sc ), which suggests an effect on electrogenic Na transport. Such an effect was not unexpected, since aspirin interferes with ATP production. However, in Ringer solution, aspirin in concentrations as little as 1 mM in the serosal solution reduced the I sc as before but also stimulated Na and Cl absorption and reduced J net R (? HCO 3 secretion) to zero. Aspirin had no effect on Na transport in the absence of Cl and no effect on Cl transport in the absence of Na, which suggests that aspirin stimulated a coupled transport process. Although these effects of ASA resemble those of α-adrenergic agents, ASA's effect was not blocked by α-adrenergic blockers such as phentolamine or phenoxybenzamine. The exact mechanism of ASA-stimulated NaCl absorption remains to be determined.
Grammar, Gesture, and Meaning in American Sign Language: Indicating verbs and real space

Chapter 3 treats an ASL pronoun's directionality toward its physically present referent as a mental space mapping instruction. The resulting mapping connects an element of semantic space with an element of real space. More specifically, it connects the conceptual entity profiled in the pronoun's semantic pole with the entity in real space the pronoun is directed toward. Singular pronouns are directed toward single entities while plural pronouns are directed toward groups of entities. The directionality of an indicating verb toward an element of real space serves the same function as the directionality of a pronoun toward an element of real space. It provides a mapping instruction between an element of the verb's semantic pole and an element of real space. In traditional terms, a pronoun's directionality leads to its referent or referents. Although the directionality of indicating verbs serves the same function, we do not normally talk about a verb's referents. The semantic structure of verbs is considerably more variable than the semantic structure of pronouns. Verbs, for example, can be transitive or intransitive. A transitive verb typically involves one entity acting upon another. The directionality of some ASL verbs can indicate one of those entities while the directionality of others can indicate both. In addition, the semantic poles of some verbs contain locative or directional meanings while the semantic poles of others do not.
Municipal Waste Disposal: Unit Pricing and Recycling Opportunities:

This article examines, theoretically and empirically, the impact of municipal waste management policies such as unit pricing and recycling on the demand for residential municipal solid waste disposal. Using a unique cross-sectional data set for 149 municipalities from five New Jersey counties, the empirical analysis estimates the demand for household municipal waste disposal. In the presence of recycling opportunities, the estimated demand elasticity is higher than that found in previous studies. This suggests that bag or tag unit pricing programs, combined with curbside recycling, will improve social welfare and reduce municipal expenditures on waste disposal services. Mandatory government-supported recycling programs throughout New Jersey afford an opportunity to consider both the direct impact of recycling and the interaction between unit pricing and such recycling programs on municipal waste disposal.
Effect of charged impurities on the thermoelectric power of graphene near the Dirac point

In graphene devices with a varying degree of disorders as characterized by their carrier mobility and minimum conductivity, we have studied the thermoelectric power along with the electrical conductivity over a wide range of temperatures. We have found that the Mott relation fails in the vicinity of the Dirac point in high-mobility graphene. By properly taking account of the high temperature effects, we have obtained good agreement between the Boltzmann transport theory and our experimental data. In low-mobility graphene where the charged impurities induce relatively high residual carrier density, the Mott relation holds at all gate voltages.
The Firm Growth Pattern in the Restaurant Industry : Does Gibrat's Law Hold?

This study tests the relationship between firm size and rate of growth, based on Gibrat's Law. The core idea of Gibrat's Law is that firm growth rates should be independent of firm size. The minimum efficient scale (MES) of level of output and merger and acquisition (M&A) are also considered in analyzing the relationship. Overall, this study shows that Gibrat's Law does not hold in the restaurant industry. Firm growth patterns reveal that small firms are expected to grow faster than their larger competitors. However, larger firms grow faster when they remain below MES, whereas smaller firms show higher growth rates when they are operated at a point above MES. Firms executing M&A show that firm growth rate is independent of firm size, supporting Gibrat's Law. This study does not evidence persistent growth after M&A for those firms above MES. Nevertheless, M&A is still an effective growth strategy for those who are below MES.