cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Human Capital and Technological Transition - Insights from the U.S. Navy

We explore the effects of human capital on workers during the latter nineteenth century by examining the U.S. Navy. Naval officers belonged either to a regular or an engineer corps and had tasks assigned for their specialized training. We compile education and career data for officers from Naval Academy and navy registers for the years 1858 to 1907. Wage premia for “engineer-skilled” officers deteriorated over their careers; more traditionally skilled officers enjoyed higher gains in earnings and more frequent promotions. This compelled those with engineering skills to leave the service early, hindering the navy's capacity to further technologically develop.
A New Approach to Modeling the Nucleation and Growth Kinetics of Tricalcium Silicate Hydration

The hydration kinetics of tricalcium silicate (C3S), the main constituent of portland cement, were analyzed with a mathematical “boundary nucleation” model in which nucleation of the hydration product occurs only on internal boundaries corresponding to the C3S particle surfaces. This model more closely approximates the C3S hydration process than does the widely used Avrami nucleation and growth model. In particular, the boundary model accounts for the important effect of the C3S powder surface area on the hydration kinetics. Both models were applied to isothermal calorimetry data from hydrating C3S pastes in the temperature range of 10°–40°C. The boundary nucleation model provides a better fit to the early hydration rate peak than does the Avrami model, despite having one less varying parameter. The nucleation rate (per unit area) and the linear growth rate of the hydration product were calculated from the fitted values of the rate constants and the independently measured powder surface area. The growth rate follows a simple Arrhenius temperature dependence with a constant activation energy of 31.2 kJ/mol, while the activation energy associated with the nucleation rate increases with increasing temperature. The start of the nucleation and growth process coincides with the time of initial mixing, indicating that the initial slow reaction period known as the “induction period” is not a separate chemical process as has often been hypothesized.
Controllability of twist maps

We study controllability of a class of discrete-time systems arising in Hamiltonian dynamics. In particular, we consider a two-dimensional integrable twist map with time-dependent (control) perturbation. In contrast to the time independent-perturbation case of the Kolmogorov-Arnold-Moser theorem, no invariant structure survives if the perturbation is made a function of time. Using results from ergodic theory, we show that global controllability is obtained using arbitrary small control input.
Risk Stratification After Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery by a Point-of-Care Test of Platelet Function

Background Aspirin is one of the main therapeutics in prevention of cardiovascular events due to its antiplatelet activity. However, a sufficient inhibition of platelet function by aspirin is not always achieved. This means that the extent of protection from cardiovascular event is limited. Recently, several studies have introduced the concept of residual platelet reactivity during aspirin therapy and suggested that about 40% of aspirin users may not respond adequately. We sought to determine whether the profile and prevalence of residual platelet reactivity, measured with the platelet function analyzer (PFA-100; Dade/Behring, Marburg, Germany) device could predict a recurrent cardiovascular event in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery. Methods A cohort of 202 consecutive patients receiving primary coronary artery bypass surgery during 2004 was prospectively recruited. All patients postoperatively received regular standard daily 100 mg aspirin. Platelet function was analyzed by the PFA-100 at 30 ± 6 days after surgery. A PFA100 closure time less than 190 seconds was defined as residual platelet reactivity. Eighty-six patients (43%) showed residual platelet reactivity. The mean follow-up time was 32 ± 10 months and was 100% complete. Results A total of 75 cardiovascular events have been registered. The majority of these events were among patients with residual platelet activity ( p = 0.001). Out of this number, graft failure was documented in 25 patients. The 42-month freedom from major cardiovascular events was significantly better for patients with adequate platelet inhibition ( p = 0.001). At multivariable analysis residual platelet reactivity ( p = 0.012), incomplete revascularization ( p = 0.029), and diabetes ( p = 0.0009) were independently associated with occurrence of negative events. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that high residual platelet reactivity independently correlates with a worst clinical outcome in patients treated by coronary artery bypass surgery. The PFA-100 point care test could cheaply and simply discover this condition and contribute to improve the outcome of this subset of patients.
The maxicircle of Trypanosoma brucei kinetoplast DNA encodes apocytochrome b

Abstract The region of the maxicircle of Trypanosoma brucei kinetoplast DNA which hybridizes at low stringency with the apocytochrome b gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been identified and cloned. The nucleotide sequence of a 1.7 kb segment of this region is reported. This segment contains a single long open reading frame capable of coding for a 350 amino acid protein with substantial homology to apocytochromes b of other species. The trypanosome protein is considerably more distantly related to other apocytochromes b than they are to each other. Several short unassigned open reading frames (300 nucleotides or shorter) also are described. If polypeptides are synthesized from these regions, they are more hydrophilic than known mitochondrially coded proteins.
Ultraviolet Irradiation of Naphthalene in H2O Ice: Implications for Meteorites and Biogenesis

The polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) naphthalene was exposed to ultraviolet radiation in H2O ice under astrophysical conditions, and the products were analyzed using infrared spectroscopy and high performance liquid chromatography. As we found in our earlier studies on the photoprocessing of coronene in H2O ice, aromatic alcohols and ketones (quinones) were formed. The regiochemistry of the reactions is described and leads to specific predictions of the relative abundances of various oxidized naphthalenes that should exist in meteorites if interstellar ice photochemistry influenced their aromatic inventory. Since oxidized PAHs are present in carbon-rich meteorites and interplanetary dust particles (IDPs), and ubiquitous in and fundamental to biochemistry, the delivery of such extraterrestrial molecules to the early Earth may have played a role in the origin and evolution of life.
Molecular insight into the viral biology and clinical features of trichodysplasia spinulosa

Trichodysplasia spinulosa (TS) is a disfiguring skin disease that occurs most frequently in patients receiving immunosuppressive therapies, and is thus frequently associated with organ transplantation. TS is characterized clinically by folliculocentric papular eruption, keratin spine formation and development of leonine face; and histologically by expansion of the inner root sheath epithelium and high expression of the proliferative marker Ki-67. Recent discovery of the TS-associated polyomavirus (TSPyV) and emerging studies demonstrating the role of TSPyV tumour antigens in cell proliferation pathways have opened a new corridor for research on TS. In this brief review, we summarize the clinical and histological features of TS and evaluate the current options for therapy. Furthermore, we address the viral aetiology of the disease and explore the mechanisms by which TSPyV may influence TS development and progression. As reports of TS continue to rise, clinician recognition of TS, as well as accompanying research on its underlying pathogenesis and therapeutic options, is becoming increasingly important. It is our hope that heightened clinical suspicion for TS will increase rates of diagnosis and will galvanize both molecular and clinical interest in this disease.
Cross-National Educational Inequalities and Opportunities to Learn: Conflicting Views of Instructional Time

Educational reformers use international evidence to argue that increasing the number of days in school and the length of the school day will improve academic achievement. However, the international data used to support these claims (1999 Third International Math and Science Survey and 2000 Program for International Student Assessment) show no correlation between time in school and achievement. In this article, the author re-examines the effects of instructional time using improved measures of instructional time, a more extensive data set (2006 Program for International Student Assessment), and a more nuanced multilevel model. The author finds mixed evidence of a positive effect of subject-specific instructional time on achievement, controlling for socioeconomic status, school characteristics, and country-level traits. The author finds no effect of the length of the school year on academic achievement and that sample selection and the specific uses of time in school have a strong influence on conclusions a...
Earnings Informativeness And Ownership Structure In Japan

This paper investigates the association between institutional ownership structures and the quality of earnings information via changes in earnings response coefficients for a sample of Japanese firms during 1990-1998. From these results we can predict that the greater the percentage of institutional shareholders in Japan, the better the quality of earnings information and the higher the foreign ownership; the quality of earnings information is better during Japan’s recession period of 1990-1998. However, keiretsu membership percentage is not important for the quality of earnings information in Japan even though firm size, leverage ratio, and growth are important factors in earnings information in Japan.
A 2.5 pJ/b Binary Image Sensor as a Pathfinder for Quanta Image Sensors

This paper presents a pathfinder binary image sensor for exploring low-power dissipation needed for future implementation of gigajot single-bit quanta image sensor (QIS) devices. Using a charge-transfer amplifier design in the readout signal chain and pseudostatic clock gating units for row and column addressing, the 1-Mpixel binary image sensor operating at 1000 frames/s dissipates only 20-mW total power consumption, including I/O pads. The gain and analog-to-digital converter stages together dissipate 2.5 pJ/b, successfully paving the way for future gigajot QIS sensor designs.
Bargaining in the Shadow of Precedent: Asymmetric Stakes Revisited

We develop a model of bargaining and litigation in the context of patent licensing (or any contractual setting). Following Priest and Klein (1984)we developed a model that explicitly allows for (1) multiple parties (leading to asymmetry of stakes), (2) binding precedent, and (3) pre-dispute bargaining done in the 'shadow' of precedent-setting courts. The pre-dispute bargaining creates an endogenous opportunity cost of litigation for both plaintiff and defendant; i.e., the harm is endogenous. We show that the effects of asymmetric stakes on the litigation rate and plaintiff win rate are offset by opportunity costs forgone licensing). That is, including the downside of litigation we see that the degree of asymmetry does not appear to substantially impact the rate of litigation or the observed win rate of plaintiffs at trial. This result is in stark contrast to the previous theoretical literature, and has implications for interpreting the empirical literature. We discuss the implications of the model for the value of patent rights.
Comparison of Exposure to Repetitive Upper Arm Motions and Non-neutral Upper Arm Postures between Apple Harvesting with Ladders and Mobile Platforms:

In attempts to improve productivity in agriculture, a harvest-assisting mobile platform has been developed and is being evaluated for use in Washington State apple orchards; however, its ergonomic effect on work postures and repetitive motions has not yet been characterized. The purposes of this study were: 1) to compare physical exposures between two methods of apple harvesting: a conventional ladder and a newlydeveloped mobile platform, and 2) to develop systematic methods for characterizing work repetitions, specifically in the upper arms. Using self-contained tri-axial inclinometers with built-in memory, upper arm inclinations were continuously monitored from twenty male workers over a full day of apple harvesting. At the beginning and the end of work shift, Borg CR10 scales were used as self-report measures of perceived fatigue in the shoulder. Postural exposures were characterized as the percent of time the upper arm postures exceeded specified angle ranges. Repetition was evaluated using changes in upper arm angles ranging from 5 to 30 degrees. In terms of prolonged postural exposures, repetitive work exposure and perceived fatigue in the shoulders, the workers using the mobile platform had less physical stress compared to the workers using the ladders. In addition, the upper arm repetition rates were high (over 15 repetitions per minute) for both harvesting methods. A more systematic study of the harvesting methods is needed to characterize differences in repetition rates and productivity between the mobile platforms and ladders. However, the results indicate that the mobile platform could improve workability and may enable more diverse workers to participate in harvesting activities.
Autonomic and Enteric Nervous System: Apoptosis and Trophic Support During Development

Programmed cell death (PCD) is critical during development and for normal tissue homeostasis. In the nervous system, apoptotic cell death is common during development at the time that neurons innervate their target. This is thought to ensure that neurons with abnormal axon targeting are eliminated and to allow matching of the number of innervating neurons to target size. This strategy, however, is valuable only if the neuron’s target environment is different from that of the neuron’s cell body. Thus, while apoptosis is important for normal sympathetic nervous system development, it is less well documented in the parasympathetic nervous system and only occurs during pathologic circumstances in the enteric nervous system.
A novel security technique to generate truly random and highly reliable reconfigurable ROPUF-based cryptographic keys

Silicon Physically Unclonable Functions (SPUFs) are delay based PUFs that exploit stochastic manufacturing process variations of Integrated Circuits (ICs) on silicon chips to construct unclonable cryptographic secret keys which are unique for each chip. One variant of SPUFs, named Ring Oscillator (RO) PUFs, is typically used for the authentication of silicon technology devices including FPGA chips. Prior research on the area of ROPUF shows that RO frequencies are affected by spatial systematic process variations and hence the generated responses are not statistically random. In addition to the negative effects of systematic variations on overall ROPUF performance, reduced randomness in the generated responses can lead to major hardware security threats. In this paper, Logarithmic and absolute Diverseness Technique (LDT), a novel security technique based on base-10 logarithm and square root of RO deviations from the global RO mean, is proposed to nullify the effects of spatial systematic variation on the response bits of a unique reconfigurable ROPUF design (r-ROPUF) and improve the reliability of the structure. The proposed technique is implemented on the data obtained from 30 Spartan 3E FPGA chips. IBM-SPSS statistical software is used to demonstrate the transformation of RO frequencies to statistically normal frequencies with high reliability through the implementation of the proposed technique. Additionally, it is shown via MATLAB simulation that the technique nullifies the effects of spatial systematic variation on the average RO frequencies extracted from four different r-ROPUF structures. Finally, the response bits generated from each r-ROPUF structure successfully passed the entire National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) statistical tests for randomness and exhibited true randomness and higher reliability comped to earlier techniques.
Prognostic factors, predictive markers and cancer biology: the triad for successful oral cancer chemoprevention

Oral squamous cell carcinomas represent a significant cancer burden worldwide. Unfortunately, chemoprevention strategies investigated to date have failed to produce an agent considered standard of care to prevent oral cancers. Nonetheless, recent advances in clinical trial design may streamline drug development in this setting. In this manuscript, we review some of these improvements, including risk prediction tools based on molecular markers that help select patients most suitable for chemoprevention. We also discuss the opportunities that novel preclinical models and modern molecular profiling techniques will bring to the prevention field in the near future, and propose a clinical trials framework that incorporates molecular prognostic factors, predictive markers and cancer biology as a roadmap to improve chemoprevention strategies for oral cancers.
Getting out of a sticky situation

Sickle cell disease (SCD) affects about 100,000 people in the United States and hundreds of thousands more in Africa and the “malaria belt” worldwide. Homozygosity or compound heterozygosity for a point mutation in the HBB gene causes deoxygenated hemoglobin (Hb) S in red blood cells (RBCs) to
Schanbacer, William D: The Politics of Food: The Global Conflict Between Food Security and Food Sovereignty

For Schanbacer, food security epitomizes a neo-liberal approach to development. It suggests dependence on transnational market mechanisms to ship commodities from one place (of food overproduction) to another (of food underproduction). Food sovereignty, on the other hand, symbolizes all manner of movements for liberation from oppression, from the Zapatistas to the women’s movement. This polemic exaggerates each position by narrowing the notion of food security and expanding that of food sovereignty. He uses those sharp distinctions as a way to explore the human rights dimension of access to and control over food in a quite compelling way. The current food system, he asserts, and then logically demonstrates, is governed by the precepts of food security and constitutes a massive violation of human rights. The ethical argument of the justice of the emerging food sovereignty movement and injustice of the dominant food security paradigm constitutes the crux of the book. Schanbacer makes the ethical case for food sovereignty by examining food security and its champions from theoretical and policy lens, although more use of primary documents and less dependence on the interpretations of a variety of advocacy groups would have strengthened his case. His concern is global poverty, hunger, and malnutrition and the role of food in either perpetuating or eliminating them. Food security, he argues is based on dependence masked by ‘‘market forces,’’ which justify the exploitation of land and labor. In contrast, food sovereignty is based on interdependence and respect for the environment. He traces the emergence of the food security doctrine following World War II and Breton Woods, and relates it to the way that international institutions view poverty, as well as to how they attempt to reduce it. He compares how different international institutions frame poverty and hunger and how they then act on that mental model. For example, FAO
Italian firm eyes up space

Alenia Spazio – one of Europe's leading satellite manufacturers – is not like most other Italian companies. It invests about a fifth of its €500m annual turnover in research and development, compared with the national average of just 2%. Meanwhile, qualified graduates – mainly engineers and physicists – make up two-thirds of the company's 3000 staff and work on everything from supercomputers to remote sensing.
Cluster Free Energies from Simple Simulations of Small Numbers of Aggregants: Nucleation of Liquid MTBE from Vapor and Aqueous Phases.

We introduce a global fitting analysis method to obtain free energies of association of noncovalent molecular clusters using equilibrated cluster size distributions from unbiased constant-temperature molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Because the systems simulated are small enough that the law of mass action does not describe the aggregation statistics, the method relies on iteratively determining a set of cluster free energies that, using appropriately weighted sums over all possible partitions of N monomers into clusters, produces the best-fit size distribution. The quality of these fits can be used as an objective measure of self-consistency to optimize the cutoff distance that determines how clusters are defined. To showcase the method, we have simulated a united-atom model of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) in the vapor phase and in explicit water solution over a range of system sizes (up to 95 MTBE in the vapor phase and 60 MTBE in the aqueous phase) and concentrations at 273 K. The resulting size-...
Statistical consensus matching framework for image registration

A common method for image alignment in computer vision is finding the maximum consensus transformation for a set of features in the images. This is commonly done using randomized methods such as RANSAC.
Research on electricity market operation mechanism and its benefit of demand side participation

Demand response plays an important role in maintaining the economic stability of the system, and has the characteristics of high efficiency, low cost, fast response, good environmental benefits and so on. Demand side resource is an important part of electricity market. The research of demand side resources in our country is still in the initial stage, but the opening of the electricity sales side provides a broad prospect for the development of electricity market. This paper summarizes the main types of demand side resources in our country, analyzes the economic principle of demand response from the micro perspective, puts forward some suggestions on the operation mechanism of China's demand side resources participating in the electricity market under the condition of electricity sales side opening, analyzes the current situation of pricing in the electricity wholesale market and sets up the pricing strategy of the centralized wholesale market with the demand side power supply participating in quotation, which makes the social and economic benefits reach the maximum.
Nutritional Therapy in Children

Nutrition and feeding behavior have long been of interest to students of child behavior and development. It is now well recognized that early parental transactions with the child during feeding mediate important aspects of bonding and subsequent personality development. The infant’s response repertoire and reaction to feeding in turn have profound effects on maternal behavior. The very nature of this continuous transaction has made it difficult to isolate food-related variables from other variables in the developmental process (Ricciuti, 1981; Chase and Martin, 1970; Hepner and Maiden, 1971; Read, 1973; Pollitt et al., 1975; Graves, 1976, 1978).
The Hybrid Closed-Loop System: Evolution and Practical Applications

Abstract Achievement of well-controlled blood glucose is essential for preventing complications in patients with type 1 diabetes. Since the inception of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion, the aim has been to develop an artificial pancreas, with the ability to use an automated algorithm to deliver one or more hormones in response to blood glucose with the intent to keep blood sugar as close to a prespecified target as possible. Development and rapid improvement of continuous glucose sensor technology has recently allowed swift progress toward a fully closed-loop insulin delivery system. In 2017, Medtronic began marketing the 670G insulin pump with Guardian 3 sensor. When in auto mode, this is a hybrid closed-loop insulin delivery system that automatically adjusts basal insulin delivery every 5 min based on sensor glucose to maintain blood glucose levels as close to a specific target as possible. Patients receive prandial insulin by entering carbohydrate amount into the bolus calculator. Early studie...
Novel global effector mining from the transcriptome of early life stages of the soybean cyst nematode Heterodera glycines

Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) Heterodera glycines is an obligate parasite that relies on the secretion of effector proteins to manipulate host cellular processes that favor the formation of a feeding site within host roots to ensure its survival. The sequence complexity and co-evolutionary forces acting upon these effectors remain unknown. Here we generated a de novo transcriptome assembly representing the early life stages of SCN in both a compatible and an incompatible host interaction to facilitate global effector mining efforts in the absence of an available annotated SCN genome. We then employed a dual effector prediction strategy coupling a newly developed nematode effector prediction tool, N-Preffector, with a traditional secreted protein prediction pipeline to uncover a suite of novel effector candidates. Our analysis distinguished between effectors that co-evolve with the host genotype and those conserved by the pathogen to maintain a core function in parasitism and demonstrated that alternative splicing is one mechanism used to diversify the effector pool. In addition, we confirmed the presence of viral and microbial inhabitants with molecular sequence information. This transcriptome represents the most comprehensive whole-nematode sequence currently available for SCN and can be used as a tool for annotation of expected genome assemblies.
Metal behavior in the extremes of dynamics

When the rate of loading is faster than the rate at which material absorbs and converts energy to plastic work and damages, then there is an excess of energy that is partly stored in the material’s microstructure and the rest of it triggers micro-dynamic excitations. The additional storage necessitates the development of plastic flow constraints and is directly responsible for the observed dynamic strengthening. At extreme conditions, we find that the micro-excitations contribute to the dynamic behavior. The phenomena are universally observed in metals, frictional materials and polymers. In essence, strong dynamics creates conditions at which materials are pushed from equilibrium and temporarily reside in an excited state of behavior. This study is focused on the behavior of metals. The concept is incorporated into a mechanisms-based constitutive model and is examined for annealed OFHC copper.
Difficulties in Laparoscopic Ureteral and Bladder Reconstruction

Ureteral reconstruction may be required in the setting of iatrogenic injury to the ureter, infectious strictures from tuberculosis, or schistosomiasis, endometriosis, trauma, or malignancy. Injury to the ureter is most commonly iatrogenic in nature. These occur most commonly in gynecological, colorectal, or urological procedures. Mechanism of injury may include transection, ligation, cautery injury, or devascularization. If not recognized and repaired intraoperatively, patients may present postoperatively with a urine leak or fistula.
Listening Like a Theosophist

ABSTRACTThis essay focuses on the Theosophical Society (est. 1875), an occult movement that, through the efforts of Annie Besant, became closely associated with early Indian anticolonial politics. While the Theosophists spread their doctrine through global networks of print, I argue for the importance of another means by which they did so: the lecture. Through a close examination of a range of theosophical lectures and texts, I argue that the act of listening was central to the creation of a theosophical self which, in turn, was the starting point for a spiritually motivated and often very uneven vision of mass politics. By examining the potentials and limits of the intertwined acts of thinking, listening, and speaking, I chart out what it meant to listen like a Theosophist in early twentieth-century India.
Food insecurity and self-reported cholera in Haitian households: An analysis of the 2012 Demographic and Health Survey.

Background Both cholera and food insecurity tend to occur in impoverished communities where poor access to food, inadequate sanitation, and an unsafe water supply often coexist. The relationship between the two, however, has not been well-characterized. Methods We performed a secondary analysis of household-level data from the 2012 Demographic and Health Survey in Haiti, a nationally and sub-nationally representative cross-sectional household survey conducted every five years. We used multivariable logistic regression to evaluate the relationship between household food security (as measured by the Household Hunger Scale) and (1) reported history of cholera since 2010 by any person in the household and (2) reported death by any person in the household from cholera (among households reporting at least one case). We performed a complete case analysis because there were <1% missing data for all variables. Results There were 13,181 households in the survey, 2,104 of which reported at least one household member with history of cholera. After adjustment for potential confounders, both moderate hunger in the household [Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) 1.51, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.30–1.76; p <.0001] and severe hunger in the household (AOR 1.73, 95% CI 1.45–2.08; p <.0001) were significantly associated with reported history of cholera in the household. Severe hunger in the household (AOR 1.85, 95% CI 1.05–3.26; p = 0.03), but not moderate hunger in the household, was independently associated with reported death from cholera in households with at least one case of cholera. Conclusions In this study we identified an independent relationship between household food insecurity and both reported history of cholera and death from cholera in a general population. The directionality of this relationship is uncertain and should be further explored in future prospective research.
Performance of Silicon Photomultipliers for the Dual-Mirror Medium-Sized Telescopes of the Cherenkov Telescope Array

Gamma-ray observations in the very-high-energy domain (E > 30GeV) can exploit the imaging of few-nanoseconds Cherenkov flashes from atmospheric particle showers. Photomultipliers have been used as the primary photosensors to detect gamma-ray induced Cherenkov light for the past 25 years, but they are increasingly challenged by the swift progress of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs). We are working to identify the optimal photosensors for medium-sized SchwarzschildCouder telescopes (SCT), which are proposed to contribute a significant fraction of the sensitivity of the Cherenkov Telescope Array in its core energy range. We present the capabilities of the latest SiPMs from the Hamamatsu, SensL, and Excelitas companies that we have characterized in our laboratory, and compare them to the SiPMs equipping the prototype SCT camera that is under construction.
Cervical Cancer Prevention in Racially Disparate Rural Populations.

Background: Undergoing a timely Pap smear, high-risk human papilloma virus (HPV)- and colposcopy-based testing can reduce HPV-associated cervical cancer (CC) development in women. However, in rural areas, women and minorities without insurance do not undergo periodic assessment and remain at greater risk of HPV infection and CC. Methods: In this study, 173 women from rural East Texas with various ethnic backgrounds were examined thorough HPV/Pap-based testing and colposcopic assessment. Results: Of the 113 informative cases, 77% (87/113) were positive for high-risk HPV infection and 23% of subjects (26/113) were negative. Associations between HPV positivity with young age (p = 0.002), and a low number of pregnancy (p = 0.004) and births (p = 0.005) were evident. Women with long-term use of contraceptives (OR 1.93, 95% CI, 0.80–4.69) were associated with increased risk of HPV infection. African-American women had a higher risk of abnormal Pap outcome compared to Caucasians (OR 5.31, 95% CI, 0.67–42.0). HPV seemed to be a predictor of abnormal Pap outcome (OR 1.77, 95% CI, 0.48–6.44) in these subjects. Unmarried/widowed/divorced women had an increased abnormal Pap test outcome compared to married women or women living with a partner (p = 0.01), with over 278% increased odds (OR 3.78 at 95% CI, 1.29–11.10). Insured women undergoing periodic checkups were detected early with high-risk HPV infection and abnormal Pap test/colposcopic outcome. Conclusions: Comprehensive and timely screening of uninsured women and minorities in rural East Texas are warranted, which could potentially prevent the onset of HPV-associated CC.
GAPcare: The Geriatric Acute and Post‐Acute Fall Prevention Intervention in the Emergency Department: Preliminary Data

OBJECTIVES We aimed to describe a new multidisciplinary team fall prevention intervention for older adults who seek care in the emergency department (ED) after having a fall, assess its feasibility and acceptability, and review lessons learned during its initiation. DESIGN Single-blind randomized controlled pilot study. SETTING Two urban academic EDs PARTICIPANTS: Adults 65 years old or older (n = 110) who presented to the ED within 7 days of a fall. INTERVENTION Participants were randomized to a usual care (UC) and an intervention (INT) arm. Participants in the INT arm received a brief medication therapy management session delivered by a pharmacist and a fall risk assessment and plan by a physical therapist (PT). INT participants received referrals to outpatient services (eg, home safety evaluation, outpatient PT). MEASUREMENTS We used participant, caregiver, and clinician surveys, as well as electronic health record review, to assess the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. RESULTS Of the 110 participants, the median participant age was 81 years old, 67% were female, 94% were white, and 16.3% had cognitive impairment. Of the 55 in the INT arm, all but one participant received the pharmacy consult (98.2%); the PT consult was delivered to 83.6%. Median consult time was 20 minutes for pharmacy and 20 minutes for PT. ED length of stay was not increased in the INT arm: UC 5.25 hours vs INT 5.0 hours (P < .94). After receiving the Geriatric Acute and Post-acute Fall Prevention Intervention (GAPcare), 100% of participants and 97.6% of clinicians recommended the pharmacy consult, and 95% of participants and 95.8% of clinicians recommended the PT consult. CONCLUSION These findings support the feasibility and acceptability of the GAPcare model in the ED. A future larger randomized controlled trial is planned to determine whether GAPcare can reduce recurrent falls and healthcare visits in older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:198-206, 2019.
Predicting metal-metal interactions. I. The influence of strain on nanoparticle and metal adlayer stabilities.

Strain-engineering of bimetallic nanomaterials is an important design strategy for developing new catalysts. Herein, we introduce an approach for including strain effects into a recently introduced, density functional theory (DFT)-based alloy stability model. The model predicts adsorption site stabilities in nanoparticles and connects these site stabilities with catalytic reactivity and selectivity. Strain-based dependencies will increase the model’s accuracy for nanoparticles affected by finite-size effects. In addition to the stability of small nanoparticles, strain also influences the heat of adsorption of epitaxially grown metal-on-metal adlayers. In this respect, we successfully benchmark the strain-including alloy stability model with previous experimentally determined trends in the heats of adsorption of Au and Cu adlayers on Pt (111). For these systems, our model predicts stronger bimetallic interactions in the first monolayer than monometallic interactions in the second monolayer. We explicitly quantify the interplay between destabilizing strain effects and the energy gained by forming new metal–metal bonds. While tensile strain in the first Cu monolayer significantly destabilizes the adsorption strength, compressive strain in the first Au monolayer has a minimal impact on the heat of adsorption. Hence, this study introduces and, by comparison with previous experiments, validates an efficient DFT-based approach for strain-engineering the stability, and, in turn, the catalytic performance, of active sites in bimetallic alloys with atomic level resolution.
Geometric and Material Variability Influences Stress States Relevant to Coastal Permafrost Bluff Failure

Scientific knowledge and engineering tools for predicting coastal erosion are largely confined to temperate climate zones that are dominated by non-cohesive sediments. The pattern of erosion exhibited by the ice-bonded permafrost bluffs in Arctic Alaska, however, is not well explained by these tools. Investigation of the oceanographic, thermal, and mechanical processes that are relevant to permafrost bluff failure along Arctic coastlines is needed. We conducted physics-based numerical simulations of mechanical response that focus on the impact of geometric and material variability on permafrost bluff stress states for a coastal setting in Arctic Alaska that is prone to toppling mode block failure. Our three-dimensional geomechanical boundary-value problems output static realizations of compressive and tensile stresses. We use these results to quantify variability in the loci of potential instability. We observe that niche dimension affects the location and magnitude of the simulated maximum tensile stress more strongly than the bluff height, ice wedge polygon size, ice wedge geometry, bulk density, Young’s Modulus, and Poisson’s Ratio. Our simulations indicate that variations in niche dimension can produce radically different potential failure areas and that even relatively shallow vertical cracks can concentrate displacement within ice-bonded permafrost bluffs. These findings suggest that stability assessment approaches, for which the geometry of the failure plane is delineated a priori, may not be ideal for coastlines similar to our study area and could hamper predictions of erosion rates and nearshore sediment/biogeochemical loading.
Reflection-free Transmission in Reciprocal Slot Line Waveguide

A slot line waveguide that incorporates an enclosure in the form of a perfect-magnetic conductor (PMC) is presented. The configuration exclusively supports the propagation of a quasi-transverse electromagnetic (TEM) mode that is shown to be immune to reflections associated with bends in the propagation pathway. This is due to the mode forming time-reversal symmetry-warranted pseudospin states (decoupled polarizations), which are locked to the wavevector like in photonic topological insulators (PTIs). Unlike PTIs, however, the proposed structure does not demand a periodic system with a tailored wavefunction behavior. Here, the pseudospin property is intrinsic to the quasi-TEM mode and is simply enforced by eliminating all other modes including plane waves through the use of the PMC cover. We present a proof-of-concept design and full-wave simulation results, proving attractive for numerous microwave, millimeter-wave and terahertz applications.
Biomass supply chain equipment for renewable fuels production: A review

Abstract The production of renewable fuels is a critical component of global strategies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Moreover, the collection of raw materials for its production can provide added benefits such as reduction of wildfire risk, additional income for farmers, and decreased disposal costs. Although there is substantial literature on design and modeling of supply chains, the authors were unable to find a single reference with the information needed for the selection and cost estimation of each type of equipment involved in the supply chain. Therefore, the goal of this research is to gather information necessary for the construction and utilization of models that might drive the identification of a feasible supply chain to produce renewable fuels at a commercial scale. The primary objectives are to 1) understand the supply chain of critical feedstocks for renewable fuels production; 2) identify the equipment commercially available for collection and adequation of feedstock; and 3) consolidate information regarding equipment cost, energy consumption, and efficiency, as well as feedstock storage and transportation systems. This paper provides a compilation for five feedstock types studied for sustainable aviation fuel production: 1) agricultural residues and grasses, 2) forest residues, 3) urban wood waste, 4) oilseeds, 5) fats, oils & greases. All the technologies involved from the field to the gate of the preprocessing or conversion unit were reviewed. The information on fats, oils & greases supply chains and equipment purposely designed for forest thinning and pruning was very limited.
Reliability of Plain Radiographs Versus Magnetic Resonance Imaging to Measure Tibial Slope in Sports Medicine Patients: Can They Be Used Interchangeably?

Background:The slope of the tibial plateau has been proposed as a reason for failure of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.Purpose:To evaluate the interobserver reliability of measurements o...
Non-linear relationships between central cardiovascular variables and VO2 during incremental cycling exercise in endurance-trained individuals.

Aim. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between the central cardiovascular variables (cardiac output, stroke volume and heart rate) and oxygen uptake (VO 2 ) during continuous, incremental cycle exercise to maximal aerobic capacity (VO 2max ). Methods. Twenty-one moderately to highly trained males (n=19) and females (n=2) participated in the study. A baseline maximal exercise test was performed to measure VO 2max . Following the initial VO 2max test, cardiac output was measured (CO 2 rebreathing technique) at rest and 3 times during each of 4 exercise trials (2 submaximal tests to 90% VO 2max and 2 maximal tests). Stroke volume and arteriovenous O 2 difference were calculated using standard equations. Results. Significant non-linear relationships were found between all central cardiovascular variables and VO 2 (P<0.01). A plateau in cardiac output at VO 2max was identified in 3 subjects. Stroke volume plateaued at an average of 37±12.5% of VO 2max in 18 subjects and increased continuously to VO max in 3 subjects. The arteriovenous O 2 difference progressively increased to VO 2max in 17 subjects and revealed a plateau response in 4 subjects. Conclusion. Our data suggest that there is a significant non-linear relationship between the central cardiovascular variables and VO 2 during incremental exercise to VO 2max . Furthermore, depending on the person, VO 2max may be limited by cardiac output (evidence of cardiac output[Q] plateau) or peripheral factors (continued increase in Q).
High-dimensional similarity search using data-sensitive space partitioning

Nearest neighbor search has a wide variety of applications. Unfortunately, the majority of search methods do not scale well with dimensionality. Recent efforts have been focused on finding better approximate solutions that improve the locality of data using dimensionality reduction. However, it is possible to preserve the locality of data and find exact nearest neighbors in high dimensions without dimensionality reduction. This paper introduces a novel high-performance technique to find exact k-nearest neighbors in both low and high dimensional spaces. It relies on a new method for data-sensitive space partitioning based on explicit data clustering, which is introduced in the paper for the first time. This organization supports effective reduction of the search space before accessing secondary storage. Costly Euclidean distance calculations are reduced through efficient processing of a lightweight memory-based filter. The algorithm outperforms sequential scan and the VA-File in high-dimensional situations. Moreover, the results with dynamic loading of data show that the technique works well on dynamic datasets as well.
THE PATHOLOGY OF INFECTIOUS MONONUCLEOSIS

This pathologic study is based on 9 autopsies and many biopsies in cases of infectious mononucleosis. The gross changes were almost exclusively confined to enlargement of lymphoid tissues, especially the spleen. Nasopharyngeal lymphoid hyperplasia was constant, in one instance suggesting tumor. Other tissues presented no significant gross features related to the primary disease except for (1) rather consistent enlargement of the liver, (2) infrequent icterus, and (3) occasional cutaneous rash. Histologic observations revealed more or less generalized lesions resembling those of certain known virus diseases, notably perivascular aggregates of normal and abnormal lymphocytes. Reaction of this type inconstantly involved all tissues studied except the bone marrow; here lymphocytes were virtually absent in sections, but were present in aspirated marrow because of dilution with peripheral blood. More specific changes were invariably noted in lymphoid tissues. The abnormal lymphocyte characteristic of the disease could be identified in thin, lightly stained sections. Lymph node reactions varied from a predominantly follicular hyperplasia to a blurred pattern simulating a malignant lymphoma; the latter was due to a lymphocytic and reticulo-endothelial proliferation in the medullary cords. The spleen displayed a lymphocytic infiltration in the thinned capsule and trabeculae, frequently dissolving the latter and rendering the organ liable to rupture. The pattern was partially effaced in most instances and the follicles widely spaced. Blood sinuses contained considerable numbers of normal and abnormal lymphocytes, and accumulations of these cells constantly cuffed intratrabecular arteries and lay beneath the intima of veins. Tonsils displayed ulceration and necrosis in several cases, and the lymphocytic proliferation closely resembled malignant tumor in a tonsil that enlarged rapidly. A pneumonic exudate in 1 case was almost exclusively of round cell type, while in another the pneumonia was of the usual lobular type with a neutrophilic exudate. Small myocardial infiltrates which we noted probably explain the electrocardiographic changes described in infectious mononucleosis. Other findings of particular interest were the periportal lymphoid collars in the liver which sometimes attained the proportions seen in leukemia, and the presence of meningo-encephalitis in 4 of the 6 brains examined. We believe that the majority of cells in the lymphocytic "infiltrates" of connective tissues and the perivascular collars are metaplastic rather than inwandering, i.e., that they are formed in situ and stem from cells of the reticulo-endothelial system.
Conformationally restricted TRH analogues: constraining the pyroglutamate region.

Abstract A modified synthetic route has been developed so that the steric size of constraints added to the pyroglutamate region of TRH (pGluHisProNH 2 ) can be varied. Both an analogue with a smaller ethylene bridge and a larger, more flexible propane bridge in this region have been synthesized. These analogues were synthesized in order to probe why the initial incorporation of an ethane bridge into this region of the molecule had led to an analogue with a binding constant and potency three times lower than that of an directly analogous unconstrained analogue. The data for both analogues indicated that the fall off in activity caused by the ethane bridge in the initial analogue was not caused by the size of the bridge.