cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Physical activity, sedentary behavior and risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy in Hispanic women

Objective: Prior studies of the association between physical activity and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy have been conflicting; the majority focused on leisure-time activity only, did not use physical activity questionnaires validated for pregnancy, and were conducted in primarily non-Hispanic white populations. Methods: We prospectively evaluated this association among 1240 Hispanic women in Proyecto Buena Salud. The Pregnancy Physical Activity Questionnaire, validated for use in pregnancy, was used to assess pre- and early pregnancy sports/exercise, household/caregiving, occupational and transportation activity. Diagnoses of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were based on medical record abstraction and confirmed by the study obstetrician. Results: A total of 49 women (4.0%) were diagnosed with a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy, including 32 women (2.6%) with pre-eclampsia. In age-adjusted analyses, high levels of early pregnancy household/caregiving activity were associated with reduced risk o...
Pausing at the Threshold

Since about 2003, the notion of threshold concepts—the central ideas in any field that change how learners think about other ideas—have become difficult to escape at library conferences and in general information literacy discourse. Their visibility will likely only increase because threshold concepts figure prominently in the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, still under development by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). Nevertheless, few scholars have critically considered the wider intellectual ramifications of certain assumptions fundamental to threshold concepts in library and information literacy instruction. This paper is an initial attempt to promote such discussions.
Acroneuria kirchneri (Plecoptera: Perlidae), a New Species from Eastern North America

Acroneuria kirchneri sp. nov. is described from male, female, nymphal, and egg specimens collected in Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia. The new species is compared with Acroneuria flinti Stark & Gaufin and Acroneuria kosztarabi Kondratieff & Kirchner, two species that also display a completely punctate egg chorion.
Homologous rat hepatic protease inhibitor genes show divergent functional responses to inflammation

The genes encoding three distinct serine protease inhibitors (Spi) have been cloned from rat liver. These inhibitors are highly homologous with each other and are similar to alpha 1-antitrypsin at the nucleic and amino acid sequence level. Although previous investigators have examined the regulation of the Spi 2 locus by inflammation, the use of various techniques and the complexity of this genetic locus have led to incomplete and somewhat confusing results. Oligonucleotide probes specific for Spi 2.1, Spi 2.2, Spi 2.3, and a 3' mouse cDNA probe for alpha 1-antitrypsin mRNA were used to measure these mRNA after induction of inflammation with subcutaneous turpentine in Fischer rats. alpha 1-Antitrypsin mRNA increased 1.8-fold, and Spi 2.2 increased 7-fold. In contrast, Spi 2.1 and 2.3 mRNA sequences decreased fourfold. The maximal changes occurred between 24 and 48 h after inflammation, with a gradual return toward normal over the next 4 days. Since Spi 2.1, Spi 2.3, and alpha 1-antitrypsin mRNA sequences are responsive to growth hormone, two other growth hormone-responsive mRNA sequences, alpha 2u-globulin and insulin-like growth factor I, were measured, and they also decreased after induction of inflammation. The results of this study show that, despite a marked similarity of nucleotide sequence, Spi 2.1 and 2.3 genes respond very differently from Spi 2.2 and alpha 1-antitrypsin to both growth hormone and inflammation. We speculate that the functions of Spi 2.1 and 2.3 products are different from those of Spi 2.2 and alpha 1-antitrypsin and may involve the regulation of growth.
Artificial time-averaging of marsh foraminiferal assemblages: linking the temporal scales of ecology and paleoecology

Abstract Multiple regression models were developed for seasonal test inputs to, and preservation of, marsh foraminiferal assemblages for a two-year period at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge (BHNWR; Smyrna, Delaware). Seasonal assemblages were quite variable and yielded poor regression models. However, signal/noise ratios were amplified using artificially time-averaged (ATA) assemblages, in which separate dead and live abundances of the most abundant species were summed for all seasons. Regression models that used ATA species abundances to retrodict original sample depths accounted for up to ∼99% (p < 0.0001) and ∼91% (p < 0.023) of the variation of dead and live ATA assemblages, respectively, and usually retrodicted sample depths within 2–3 cm of actual depths. Artificially time-averaged assemblages were also used to extract multidecadal- to centennial-scale sea-level signals from near-surface assemblages at BHNWR formed during the past few centuries. The BHNWR sea-level curve closely resembles one p...
Successful development of a direct observation program to measure health care worker hand hygiene using multiple trained volunteers

Background Direct observation of health care worker (HCW) hand hygiene (HH) remains the gold standard, but implementation is challenging. Our objective was to develop an accurate HH observation program using multiple HCW volunteers. Methods HH compliance was defined as correct HH performed before and after contact with a patient or a patient's environment. HCW volunteers from each unit at our children's hospital were trained by infection preventionists to covertly collect HH observations during routine care using an electronic tool. Questionnaires sent to observers in February and December 2014 recorded demographic characteristics, observation time, and scenarios assessing accuracy. HCWs were surveyed regarding their awareness that their HH behavior was being recorded. Results There were 146 HH observers. The majority of observers reported making 1-2 observations per shift (65%) and taking ≤10 minutes recording an observation (85%). Between January 2012 and December 2014 there were 22,484 HH observations (average, 622 per month), including nurses (46%), physicians (21%), and other HCWs (33%). Observers correctly recorded HH behavior more than 90% of the time in 5 of the 6 scenarios. Most HCWs (86%) were unaware they were being observed. Conclusion A direct observation program staffed by multiple HCW volunteers can inexpensively and accurately collect HCW HH data.
Three-dimensional architecture of Vibrio cholera biofilms

Inspired by Lord Chesterfield, anthropologist Mary Douglas noted that what is classified as dirt in a given society is matter that is considered out of place. From this premise, Douglas went on to an analysis of ritual and religion, interrelations between perceptions of purity, contamination, defilement, and danger, and our anthropological need for symbolic boundary maintenance (1). (Judaic kosher dietary laws are well-known examples of her analysis.) Douglas probably did not anticipate that these ideas may have an unexpected valence in the way we think about microbial communities. What happens when a microbe is “out of place” and what are the associated dangers? Because microbial communities are found in diverse terrestrial environments, from the earth to the ocean to the atmosphere to environmental niches in hosts, such as humans and other animals, they impact, transform, and sustain life as we know it on the planet. However, this ubiquity also gives plenty of opportunities for microbes to be found out of place, to adapt and precipitate diverse unexpected consequences. Staphylococcus epidermidis is normally an innocuous commensal microbe found on human skin, but it has also become the most common source of infections on implanted biomedical devices, such as vascular catheters (2). There is even evidence that its more virulent cousin, Staphylococcus aureus , became the “superbug” known as methicillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus (MRSA) by acquiring the methicillin-resistance cassettes from S. epidermidis (2). Other examples of misplaced microbes that become dangerous or even lethal include Clostridium difficile infections in the gut, Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections in cystic fibrosis airways, and Vibrio cholera , the aquatic microbe that sometimes finds its way into a human host, and the subject of the present study by Drescher et al. in PNAS (3). Being out of place is not always bad: the commensal microbes in our gastro-intestinal … [↵][1]1Email: gclwong{at}seas.ucla.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
Provision of non-excludable public goods on networks: From equilibrium to centrality measures

We consider the provision of non-excludable public goods on a network of interdependent strategic users. We study three different equilibria of these games, namely the Nash equilibrium, socially optimal, and exit equilibrium profiles. We identify properties of the interdependence graph that guarantee the existence and uniqueness of these equilibria. We further establish a connection between users' centralities in their interdependence network, and their efforts at different interior equilibria of these games. These characterizations separate the effects of incoming and outgoing dependencies, as well as the influence of paths of different length, on users' effort levels. We discuss some conceptual and practical implications of this centrality-effort connection.
European Monetary Problems and the International Monetary System

Until September 1992, the European Monetary System (EMS) was regarded as a big success story by most economists on both sides of the Atlantic (see, for example, Frankel and Phillips [9], Giavazzi and Giovannini [12] and MacDonald and Taylor [16]). It was pointed out that the economies of the large European Union (EU) countries had converged toward lower rates of inflation and that no currency realignments had taken place since 1987. These accomplishments were taken as evidence of irreversible success. There was no need for looking back — only forward toward a single currency and full economic union. Indeed, suggestions were made on how the EMS experience could be used to reform the entire world monetary system.
Brand Networks as the Interplay of Identities, Selves, and Turtles: Commentary on “Interplay between intended brand identity and identities in a Nike related brand community: Co-existing synergies and tensions in a nested system”

Abstract This commentary emphasizes the networked nature of brands. Brands are identities, and identities are meanings. Meanings are always embedded in networks of association. Therefore, all understandings of brands are necessarily vast, complex, and incomplete, especially in the contemporary age of branding.
Gender Differences in Physical Health

There is a gender paradox in health across the lifespan: Men have higher mortality (death) rates than women, but women experience higher morbidity (symptoms and disability). This paradox is complex and includes many physiological, psychological, social, cultural, and behavioral factors that contribute individually or synergistically, to explaining these gender differences in physical health. Keywords: chronic illness; gender; physical health
Sustainable Design and Postindustrial Society: Our Ethical and Aesthetic Crossroads

Mid-20th century transitions from industrial product society to postindustrial information society have marked profound but now familiar conversions to service economy, knowledge workers, and cybernetic reasoning. Second order, but equally important consequences of this change involve the transformation from predominantly human-machine heroics to human-human collaboration. Collectively, these events have revolutionized the bases of production and value across the developed world. Less appreciated however, are the more subtle shifts of postindustrialism and their ultimate epochal transformations of contemporary life. The short list of these more elusive transitions includes local scale isolation to macro and global scale interaction, mechanistic routine to systemic reasoning, static to dynamic assumptions, short-termism to scenario planning, profit to value motives, hero to team attribution, intuitive to cybernetic decisions, and a move away from rote procedural expertise in favor of reasoned principle, wisdom, and theory. Our historical perspective thus argues for the relevance of postindustrial society in the emergence of a sustainable future, with particular reference to the built environment and to the complex, collaborative, evidence based and cybernetic processes it involves. The difficulty here is that without a vivid and operational understanding of the aesthetic connections and ethical mandates inherent in these more sublime postindustrial events; it is entirely possible that all the best scientific, technical, and political efforts toward sustainability are hampered by old habits of piecemeal procedures, mechanistic approaches, individual expertise, quick profit, and simplistic short-termism. Postindustrial ethics and aesthetics, on the other hand, offer a new and different apparatus by embracing complexity and dynamic interaction. Within that new aesthetic lies a set of principles and sensitivities towards postindustrial and sustainable era ethics. As such, this present argument attempts to form a cohesive framework contextualizing sustainability, societal trends and nascent evolutions within an aspirational agenda. The underlying theory of this framework describes, explains, and predicts the co-evolution of sustainability and postindustrial events. Finally, the aesthetic basis of the theory is functionally aligned with human cognition. Just as humankind did not quit building with masonry at the end of the Stone Age however, the argument presented here does not demonize the progress of the industrial era that has doubled life expectancy in the last hundred years; nor does it belittle the advent of antibiotics, space travel, telecommunications, rapid transit and the like. It is now necessary however to acknowledge that the pioneer era nature-as-antagonist and industrial era of nature-as-resource have given way to an era of nature-as-model-and-host relation.
Lessons from Sobel sequences

Folklore has it that Sobel sequences favor a variably strict analysis of conditionals over its plainly strict alternative. While recent discussions for or against the lore have focussed on Sobel sequences involving counterfactuals, this paper draws attention to the fact that indicative Sobel sequences are just as felicitous as are their counterfactual cousins. The fact, or so I shall argue here, disrupts the folklore: given minimal assumptions about the semantics and pragmatics of indicative conditionals, a textbook variably strict analysis fails to predict that indicative Sobel sequences are felicitous. The correct lesson to draw from Sobel sequences is that their felicity challenges classical implementations of the variably strict and of the plainly strict analysis alike. In response to this challenge I develop a dynamic strict analysis of conditionals that handles indicative Sobel sequences with grace while preserving intuitive constraints on the semantics and pragmatics of their members. A discussion of how such an analysis may handle the challenge from reverse Sobel sequences is provided. BibTeX info
Searching for Predictors of Learning Outcomes in Non Abstract Eye Movement Logs

We present a study that addressed if providing students with scaffolding about how to “integrate” science text and animations impacts content learning. Scaffolding was delivered by a pedagogical agent and driven by student’s eye gaze movements (compared to controls).We hypothesized that students in the pedagogical agent condition would engage in richer learning as evidence by a more “integrated” pattern from text to animation and back, etc. In addition to eye gazes we collected pre- and post test knowledge about the domain, and open responses to explanation-type questions. We are currently analyzing these data.
Acute mixture toxicity of halogenated chemicals and their next generation counterparts on zebrafish embryos.

Perfluorinated chemicals and flame retardants are halogenated compounds commonly used in food packaging and in clothing and electronics, respectively. Due to the hazardous effects of many of these chemicals, manufacturers are developing next generation potential less toxic alternatives. The objective of this study was to assess the toxicity of potentially “safer” alternatives, singly and in mixtures, in relation to their first generation counterparts. We used zebrafish embryos as our model organism due to its high structural and functional homology to other vertebrates and its suitability for early developmental studies. We tested three well studied halogens, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), tris (1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCPP) and tetrabromobisphenal A (TBBPA), and two less-studied next generation chemicals, 9,10-Dihydro-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene 10-oxide (DOPO) and perfluorobutyric acid (PFBA). First, we identified their lethal concentration (LC50) under 96 h exposures using zebrafish embryos; chemical LC50 values ranged from 1.3 to 13,795 ppm. Next, we tested the toxicity of tertiary mixtures containing the estimated LC50 values for each chemical which ranged from 126 to 5,094 ppm. We found that chemicals within these mixtures displayed concentration addition suggesting a similar mode of toxic action. Importantly, next generation chemicals were less acutely toxic singly and in mixtures than their first generation counterpart.
Online Feedback Exchange: A Framework for Understanding the Socio-Psychological Factors

To meet the demand for authentic, timely, and affordable feedback, researchers have explored technologies to connect designers with feedback providers online. While researchers have implemented mechanisms to improve the content of feedback, most systems for online feedback exchange do not support an end-to-end cycle, from help-seeking to sense-making to action. Building on extant literature in learning sciences, design, organizational behavior, and online communities, we propose a conceptual framework to highlight critical processes that affect online feedback exchange. We contribute research questions for future feedback systems and argue that online feedback systems must be able to support designers through five activities that happen before, during, and after the feedback exchange. Our framework suggests that systems should address broader socio-psychological factors, such as how intent should be communicated online, how dialogue can support the interpretation of feedback, and how to balance the tradeoffs of anonymizing feedback providers.
Impulsivity and Adolescence

This article explores impulsivity in adolescent populations. It defines impulsive behavior and discusses the multidimensional nature of this construct, along with some of the measures that have been developed to assess these different dimensions. It also explores certain physiological aspects of impulsivity in the context of the developing adolescent brain and how certain developments during this life period may influence impulsive behavior. It considers the period of adolescence as a unique time with its own opportunities and vulnerabilities which can be affected by impulsive behavior. Finally, it discusses how to reduce or utilize impulsive behaviors in clinical populations.
Radiation Brain Moms and Citizen Scientists: The Gender Politics of Food Contamination after Fukushima, by Aya Hirata Kimura

A corporate public relations veteran ostracized for concern over an advertising campaign promoting food from potentially contaminated areas, a spotless citizen-run radiation measuring station dubbe...
The Works of Rosario Ferré: Puerto Rican Hope and Christian Eschatology

This chapter explores selected works of Rosario Ferre, demonstrating how they communicate a reimagining of the colonial relationship with the USA through an examination of hope. After providing a brief biological sketch of Ferre, the chapter proceeds with a literary analysis of her works, demonstrating an emphasis on hope, including its absence, as a central theme which corresponds with the Christian doctrine of the end times (Christian eschatology). This chapter continues with a brief overview of various perspectives on that doctrine, engaging Christopher Morse’s Not Every Spirit: A Dogmatics of Christian Disbelief as a critical guide. This chapter concludes with a vision of a Puerto Rican decolonial eschatology that affirms a radical hope for “things yet unseen” from the Puerto Rican story and pointing toward a future transformed by self-determination. Topics The Works of Rosario Ferre Biographical Sketch Literary Analysis: “Where do I go from here?” Puerto Rican hope in dialogue with the doctrine of eschatology Constructing a prophetic decolonial Puerto Rican eschatology
Polycystic Ovarian Disease, Maturation Arrest of Spermiogenesis, and Klinefelter’s Syndrome in Siblings of a Family with Familial Hirsutism *

A family with hirsutism in five generations in which polycystic or bilaterally enlarged ovaries were documented in three different sibships of two generations is described. Two brothers of one of the women with polycystic ovaries had a low or low-normal plasma follicle-stimulating hormone level and one of these had oligospermia due to maturation arrest of spermiogenesis. A third brother had Klinefelter's syndrome. Other abnormal features in the family included precocious adrenarche, beardless males, eunuchoidism, and prepubertal grand mal seizures.
Reproductive Behavior of Female Propithecus verreauxi at Beza Mahafaly, Madagascar

Prosimian and anthropoid females are generally thought to have divergent reproductive patterns, characterized by circumscribed and situation-dependent receptivity. This dichotomy underpins the traditional view that nonreproductive mating serves a social function in anthropoid females, distinguishing them from prosimians which, like most other mammals, mate only when conception is most probable. Circumscribed estrous cycles differ from anthropoid menstrual cycles by the presence of menstruation, and greater flexibility in timing and longer duration of receptivity in the latter. The degree to which sexual behavior is tightly synchronized to periovulatory events in Propithecus verreauxi was assessed via the behavioral, hormonal, and social correlates of reproduction in a free-ranging population. I collected data from two social groups before and during the 1990–1991 and 1991–1992 breeding seasons at Beza Mahafaly, Madagascar. I also conducted 644 focal-animal hours and collected 485 fecal samples from five marked females in the Vaovao and Vavy Masiaka social groups. Estrus was behaviorally characterized by 0.5–96-h periods of receptivity when females were motivated and willing to mate, the latter not always coincident with periovulatory events. Females exhibited age- and rank-related asynchronous receptivity, and in some cases, periovulatory synchrony within groups. Sifaka were not pair-bonded. Most females mated with multiple males, temporally ordering partners based on male residence and age. Mating was limited by male mate-guarding and sexual aggression by males, female mate competition, and aversions to mating with certain partners. It was facilitated by surreptitious copulations, positive mate choice, and the availability of non-resident mating partners.
Serum Lipase Levels in Nonpancreatic Abdominal Pain versus Acute Pancreatitis

Objective 1) To determine whether serum lipase is elevated in patients with nonpancreatic abdominal pain, and 2) to compare the levels of serum lipase and serum amylase found in patients with nonpancreatic abdominal pain with those found in acute pancreatitis in order to differentiate between the two groups. Methods Serum lipase and amylase levels were estimated in 95 patients with nonpancreatic abdominal pain (group A). These levels were then compared with those found in 75 patients with acute pancreatitis (group P). Results Serum amylase in group A ranged from 11 to 416 U/L [mean 58 +/- 46 (SD)]. Three patients (3.3%) had raised amylase levels. The maximum elevation noted in this group was 416 U/L. Serum amylase in group P ranged from 124 to 13,000 U/L (mean 1620 +/- 1976). Twenty of the 75 patients (27%) in group P had levels that overlapped those found in group A. The serum lipase in group A ranged from 3 to 680 U/L (mean 111 +/- 101). Ten of the 93 patients (11%) had elevated lipase levels. The maximum elevation noted was roughly 3 times normal (680 U/L). Serum lipase in group P ranged from 711 to 31,153 (mean 6705 +/- 7022). None of the patients in group P had levels that overlapped those found in group A. The sensitivity of a serum lipase level > 3 normal in detecting acute pancreatitis was 100% and the specificity was 99%. The corresponding figures for serum amylase were 72% and 99%, respectively. Conclusion A serum lipase level > 3 normal has a better diagnostic accuracy than serum amylase in differentiating nonpancreatic abdominal pain from acute pancreatitis.
Multi-Institutional and Multidisciplinary Research Collaboration

Over the 30 years since the formal establishment of the field of pediatric psychology, a number of transformations have occurred that have affected the nature and focus of research in this field, some of which also are applicable to the field of clinical child psychology. Early publications in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology were based on observations described in case reports or single-subject designs. These reflected the growing awareness of the potential unexplored relationships between the behavioral and medical aspects of various diseases and the procedures used to treat them. As the field matured, research drifted away from the focus on individual cases and began to rely more on group designs and methodology. This focus resulted in a new set of difficulties, characterized by small, potentially nonrepresentative samples, broadband research with little consideration of specific disease, treatment, or developmental variations and restrictions on the types of research possible due to limited access to populations. In an effort to solve these problems, current efforts in pediatrics, including pediatric psychology, are moving toward increased research collaboration, both across institutions and across disciplines, although at a somewhat slow pace. Of the 186 empirical articles published in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology between January 1993 and August 1997, only 10 (5%) involved collaborations that included data collection at multiple institutions. Thus, while there is evidence of multisite collaboration occurring in the field, it is still in its relative infancy. To promote a better understanding of this approach, it is our intention to identify several models of multisite collaborative research, pointing out the benefits and pitfalls that may be encountered.
Membrane potential measurements of transitional cells from the crista ampullaris of the gerbil. Effects of barium, quinidine, quinine, tetraethylammonium, cesium, ammonium, thallium and ouabain.

Transitional cells of the crista ampullaris were impaled with microelectrodes in order to record the membrane potential (PD) and to investigate membrane properties. In control solution the PD was −87±1 mV (n=103). This value is not significantly different from −83±2 mV (n=24) measured in Cl− free solution. [Cl−] steps from 150 to 15 mmol/l (n=24) depolarized the membrane by about 2 mV, indicating a minor Cl− conductance. The transference number for K+ was 0.75±0.01 (n=79) obtained from the PD responses to K+ steps from 3.6 to 25 mmol/l. The cell membrane depolarized and the amplitude of PD responses to [K+] steps was reduced by Ba2+ (2·10−6 to 10−3 mol/l), quinidine (10−3 mol/l), quinine (10−3 mol/l), Rb+ (20 mmol/l), Cs+ (20 mmol/l), NH4+ (20 mmol/l) and Tl+ (0.5 mmol/l), whereas tetraethylammonium (TEA, 20 mmol/l) had no effect. The dose-response curve for Ba2+ in the presence of 3.6 mmol/l K+ was shifted to the right by approximately three decades in the presence of 25 mmol/l K+ and by a factor of about 4 in the presence of 135 mmol/l gluconate as a substitute for Cl−. Transitional cells were depolarized by ouabain, suggesting the presence of (Na++K+-ATPase.
Spastin is a dual-function enzyme that severs microtubules and promotes their regrowth to increase the number and mass of microtubules.

The remodeling of the microtubule cytoskeleton underlies dynamic cellular processes, such as mitosis, ciliogenesis, and neuronal morphogenesis. An important class of microtubule remodelers comprises the severases—spastin, katanin, and fidgetin—which cut microtubules into shorter fragments. While severing activity might be expected to break down the microtubule cytoskeleton, inhibiting these enzymes in vivo actually decreases, rather increases, the number of microtubules, suggesting that severases have a nucleation-like activity. To resolve this paradox, we reconstituted Drosophila spastin in a dynamic microtubule assay and discovered that it is a dual-function enzyme. In addition to its ATP-dependent severing activity, spastin is an ATP-independent regulator of microtubule dynamics that slows shrinkage and increases rescue. We observed that spastin accumulates at shrinking ends; this increase in spastin concentration may underlie the increase in rescue frequency and the slowdown in shortening. The changes in microtubule dynamics promote microtubule regrowth so that severed microtubule fragments grow, leading to an increase in the number and mass of microtubules. A mathematical model shows that spastin’s effect on microtubule dynamics is essential for this nucleation-like activity: spastin switches microtubules into a state where the net flux of tubulin onto each polymer is positive, leading to the observed exponential increase in microtubule mass. This increase in the microtubule mass accounts for spastin’s in vivo phenotypes.
Characteristics of Radiologists' Clinical Practice Patterns by Career Stage.

Purpose To assess characteristics of radiologists’ clinical practice patterns by career stage. Methods Radiologists’ 2016 billed services were extracted from the Medicare Physician and Other Supplier Public Use File. Billed clinical work was weighted using work relative value units. Medical school graduation years were obtained from Medicare Physician Compare. Practice patterns were summarized by decades after residency. Results Among 28,463 included radiologists, 32.7% were ≤10 years postresidency, 29.3% 11–20 years, 25.0% 21–30 years, 10.5% 31–40 years, 2.4% 41–50 years, 0.1% ≥51 years. Billed clinical work (normalized to a mean of 1.00 among all radiologists) ranged 0.92–1.07 from 1 to 40 years, decreasing to 0.64 for 41–50 years and 0.43 for ≥51 years. Computed tomography represented 34.7%–38.6% of billed clinical work from 1 to 30 years, decreasing slightly to 31.5% for 31–40 years. Magnetic resonance imaging represented 13.9%–14.3% from 1 to 30 years, decreasing slightly to 11.2% for 31–40 years. Ultrasonography represented 6.2%–11.6% across career stages. Nuclear medicine increased steadily from 1.7% for ≤10 years to 7.0% for 41–50 years. Mammography represented 9.9%–12.9% from 1 to 50 years. Radiography/fluoroscopy represented 15.1%–29.8% from 1 to 50 years, but 65.9% for ≥51 years. Conclusion The national radiologist workforce declines abruptly by more than half approximately 30 years after residency. Radiologists still working at 31–40 years, however, contribute similar billed clinical work, both overall and across modalities, as earlier career radiologists. Strategies to retain later-career radiologists in the workforce could help the specialty meet growing clinical demands, mitigate burnout in earlier career colleagues, and expand robust patient access to both basic and advanced imaging services.
On Value of Knowledge and Understanding

This chapter begins by introducing some Qur’ānic distinctions relevant to the value problem. It is noted that value of knowledge for the Qur’ān is rooted in its practical value. Relevance of the Qur’ānic view of taqwā as reflective and motivational epistemic conscience for a solution to the value problem is noted. The bulk of the chapter deals with discussions of the value problem between contemporary virtue epistemologists. It is argued that Zagzebsky correctly criticizes the machine-product model of knowledge assumed by process reliabilism. Brogaard’s criticism of Zagzebsky’s position regarding its Moorean conception of value is evaluated and it is argued that the Zagzebsky motive-action model for knowledge effectively addresses the value problem rather than a simple shift to a different (Korsgaardian) model of value as suggested by Brogaard. Pritchard’s criticism of Zagzebsky and other robust virtue epistemologists is evaluated. It is argued that knowledge, while valuable as shown by Zagzebsky’s model, is correctly claimed by Pritchard to be not finally valuable. Kvanvig’s and Pritchard’s positions are combined to underscore why understanding is finally valuable.
The Effects of Temporal and Topographic Decorrelation on Forest Height Retrieval Using Airborne Repeat-Pass L-Band Polarimetric SAR Interferometry

We have explored the effects of temporal baseline and terrain slope on forest height estimation using L-band repeat-pass polarimetric-interferometric synthetic aperture radar (PolIn-SAR). Data were collected using NASA’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar instrument over a study area exhibiting high slope topography in the Laurentides Wildlife Reserve of Quebec, Canada. We used lidar-derived canopy height and terrain slope maps to quantify the decorrelation effects, in both magnitude and phase, that distort the observed coherences compared to the random volume over ground forest model. We derived forest height maps for a number of different temporal baselines using both fixed model parameters and model parameters that varied with slope, and compared the results. Further work is necessary to develop improved slope correction methods, and to see if slope corrections derived from lidar data for this study area can be applied to other study areas, or generalized to a theoretical model.
Mapping Viral Susceptibility Loci in Mice.

Genetic alleles that contribute to enhanced susceptibility or resistance to viral infections and virally induced diseases have often been first identified in mice before humans due to the significa...
What Is New in Candida Infections? T2Candida, Antifungal Stewardship, and Candida auris

We review T2Candida panel performance in diagnosing invasive candidiasis, potential roles of T2Candida, and other culture-independent tests in patient management and antifungal stewardship, and diagnosis and treatment of infections by Candida auris, which has emerged globally as a cause of nosocomial outbreaks. In 2 multicenter trials, T2Candida was 90% sensitive and 98% specific for diagnosing candidemia directly from whole blood samples. A subsequent study demonstrated T2Candida sensitivity/specificity of 45%/96% for diagnosing deep-seated candidiasis. Other studies have shown that ongoing T2Candida positivity was associated with poor patient outcomes, and T2Candida targeted to patients at risk for invasive candidiasis was useful in guiding antifungal treatment and stewardship decisions. C. auris is misidentified by commercial biochemical and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry systems that do not include the species in their databases. In different studies, a T2Candida research assay was 89% sensitive and 98% specific in identifying C. auris in clinical axilla or groin swab samples, and serum β-D-glucan sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing invasive infections by C. auris and other species were comparable. Fluconazole, amphotericin B, and echinocandin resistance rates among C. auris isolates are > 90%, ~ 30%–40%, and ~ 3%–10%, respectively. Echinocandins are agents of choice against most C. auris infections. Since T2Candida results assign a probability of invasive candidiasis based on pre-test disease likelihood, the test will only have value if directed toward at-risk patients. Rapid and accurate tests for detecting C. auris are needed for surveillance and diagnostic purposes.
Effect of Louisiana sweet crude oil on a Pacific coral, Pocillopora damicornis

Abstract Recent oil spill responses such as the Deepwater Horizon event have underscored the need for crude oil ecotoxicological threshold data for shallow water corals to assist in natural resource damage assessments. We determined the toxicity of a mechanically agitated oil-seawater mixture (high-energy water-accommodated fraction, HEWAF) of a sweet crude oil on a branched stony coral, Pocillopora damicornis. We report the results of two experiments: a 96 h static renewal exposure experiment and a “pulse-chase” experiment of three short-term exposure durations followed by a recovery period in artificial seawater. Five endpoints were used to determine ecotoxicological values: 1) algal symbiont chlorophyll fluorescence, 2) a tissue regeneration assay and a visual health metric with three endpoints: 3) tissue integrity, 4) tissue color, and 5) polyp behavior. The sum of 50 entrained polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (tPAH50) was used as a proxy for oil exposure. For the 96 h exposure dose response experiment, dark-adapted maximum quantum yield (Fv/Fm) of the dinoflagellate symbionts was least affected by crude oil (EC50 = 913 μg/L tPAH50); light-adapted effective quantum yield (EQY) was more sensitive (EC50 = 428 μg/L tPAH50). In the health assessment, polyp behavior (EC50 = 27 μg/L tPAH50) was more sensitive than tissue integrity (EC50 = 806 μg/L tPAH50) or tissue color (EC50 = 926 μg/L tPAH50). Tissue regeneration proved to be a particularly sensitive measurement for toxicity effects (EC50 = 10 μg/L tPAH50). Short duration (6−24 h) exposures using 503 μg/L tPAH50 (average concentration) resulted in negative impacts to P. damicornis and its symbionts. Recovery of chlorophyll a fluorescence levels for 6−24 h oil exposures was observed in a few hours (Fv/Fm) to several days (EQY) following recovery in fresh seawater. The coral health assessments for tissue integrity and tissue color were not affected following short-term oil exposure durations, but the 96 h treatment duration resulted in significant decreases for both. A reduction in polyp behavior (extension) was observed for all treatment durations, with recovery observed for the short-term (6−24 h) exposures within 1–2 days following placement in fresh seawater. Wounded and intact fragments exposed to oil treatments were particularly sensitive, with significant delays observed in tissue regeneration. Estimating ecotoxicological values for P. damicornis exposed to crude oil HEWAFs provides a basis for natural resource damage assessments for oil spills in reef ecosystems. These data, when combined with ecotoxicological values for other coral reef species, will contribute to the development of species sensitivity models.
Does how you pay influence the share of healthy items that you Buy? Assessing differences in nutritional quality of food purchases by payment type

Abstract Shoppers that use cash as a form of payment are more likely to evaluate the necessity of an item they purchase than shoppers that pay with other forms of payment, such as credit cards. In this paper, we hypothesize that the use of cash may nudge shoppers to buy more healthful food items. We empirically evaluate whether the payment method affects the nutritional quality of food purchases. We also test whether the effect of payment type differs between food-at-home and food-away-from-home events. Specifically, we test whether shoppers purchase a higher share of nutritious food items when they pay with cash compared to when they use credit and debit cards. We use the National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey (FoodAPS) data that tracks individual’s food purchases over one week. Using the Guiding Stars Program (GSP) algorithm to measure the nutritional quality of food items, we calculate the share of healthy items purchased at each event. We find that shoppers using cash purchase a higher share of healthy items than when they use credit or debit cards, and this nudging effect is primarily driven by food-away-from-home purchases.
Energy spectrum of two-particle scattering in a periodic box

We aim to compute the discrete energy spectrum for two-body scattering in a three-dimensional box under periodic boundary conditions. The spectrum in the center of mass is obtained by solving the S...
Mediating Students’ Fixation with Grades in an Inquiry-Based Undergraduate Biology Course

The paper analyzes focus group data to explore student perceptions of an inquiry-based undergraduate biology course. Though the course was designed to mimic the scientific process by incorporating uncertainty, peer review, and self-reflection, students came to class focused on getting As and with a developed schema for didactic instruction and passive learning. They perceived the autonomy and self-directedness of the learning experience as a threat to their grades, and responded with strategies that protected their grades and ego, but were deleterious to learning. Students could identify merits of the inquiry-based approach; however, they made clear: they prioritized grades, and were unwilling to trust an unfamiliar pedagogy if they perceived it jeopardized their grades. In the framework of self-regulated learning, the discussion considers how to scaffold students to foreground learning over achievement.
A 1H-NMR approach to myocardial energetics

Understanding the energetic state of the heart is essential for unraveling the central tenets of cardiac physiology. The heart uses a tremendous amount of energy and reductions in that energy supply can have lethal consequences. While ischemic events clearly result in significant metabolic perturbations, heart failure with both preserved and reduced ejection fraction display reductions in energetic status. To date, most cardiac energetics have been performed using 31P-NMR, which requires dedicated access to a specialized NMR spectrometer. This has limited the availability of this method to a handful of centers around the world. Here we present a method of assessing myocardial energetics in the isolated mouse heart using 1H-NMR spectrometers that are widely available in NMR core facilities. In addition, this methodology provides information on many other important metabolites within the heart, including unique metabolic differences between the hypoxic and ischemic hearts. Furthermore, we demonstrate the correlation between myocardial energetics and measures of contractile function in the mouse heart. These methods will allow a broader examination of myocardial energetics providing a valuable tool to aid in the understanding of the nature of these energetic deficits and to develop therapies directed at improving myocardial energetics in failing hearts.
Alterations in the Magnetoencephalography Default Mode Effective Connectivity following Concussion.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Magnetoencephalography is sensitive to functional connectivity changes associated with concussion. However, the directional influences between functionally related regions remain unexplored. In this study, we therefore evaluated concussion-related magnetoencephalography-based effective connectivity changes within resting-state default mode network regions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Resting-state magnetoencephalography was acquired for 8 high school football players with concussion at 3 time points (preseason, postconcussion, postseason), as well as 8 high school football players without concussion and 8 age-matched controls at 2 time points (preseason, postseason). Time-series from the default mode network regions were extracted, and effective connectivity between them was computed for 5 different frequency bands. The default mode network regions were grouped into anterior and posterior default mode networks. The combined posterior-to-anterior and anterior-to-posterior effective connectivity values were averaged to generate 2 sets of values for each subject. The effective connectivity values were compared using a repeated measures ANOVA across time points for the concussed, nonconcussed, and control groups, separately. RESULTS: A significant increase in posterior-to-anterior effective connectivity from preseason to postconcussion (corrected P value = .013) and a significant decrease in posterior-to-anterior effective connectivity from postconcussion to postseason (corrected P value = .028) were observed in the concussed group. Changes in effective connectivity were only significant within the delta band. Anterior-to-posterior connectivity demonstrated no significant change. Effective connectivity in the nonconcussed group and controls did not show significant differences. CONCLUSIONS: The unidirectional increase in effective connectivity postconcussion may elucidate compensatory processes, invoking use of posterior regions to aid the function of susceptible anterior regions following brain injury. These findings support the potential value of magnetoencephalography in exploring directional changes of the brain network following concussion.
Anemia and Long-term cardiovascular outcomes in women with suspected ischemia – The Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE)

Abstract Background Anemia is associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes in patients with ischemic heart disease and is more prevalent in women as compared to men. Prior studies have evaluated short-term outcomes in women with stable angina and relatively low rates of obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). We investigated the long-term clinical significance of baseline anemia in this cohort. Methods We studied 885 women enrolled in the Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE) undergoing clinically indicated coronary angiography for suspected ischemia. Anemia at enrollment was defined as hemoglobin (Hgb) level Results Overall, the women, mean age 58.4 ± 11.7 years, were followed for an average of seven years (range 0–11 years). Anemia was present in 21.1%. They had higher creatinine levels with more frequent history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and HF (p Conclusions Among women evaluated for symptoms of ischemia, anemia is associated with and independently predicts long-term MACE. Further research targeting anemia management in women to mitigate these adverse outcomes is warranted.
Chapter 12. Antifungal Agents

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the various aspects of antifungal agents. The changing clinical setting and etiology of fungal endocarditis is reviewed, with particular reference being made to the changing pattern of this disease as seen in narcotic addicts and following cardiac surgery. The renal toxicity of antibiotics, including that of amphotericin B is analyzed. Miconazole, a β-substituted l-phenethyl-imidazole with broad spectrum antifungal activity was evaluated both in normal individuals and clinically. It is effective topically in treatment of both dermatophytic infections and locally in treatment of vaginal candidiasis. Pharmacological studies showed that oral miconazole, 3 g/day, produced no hematologic, biochemical, or cardiac abnormalities and was capable both of reducing the fungal flora of sputum and feces and of producing moderate blood levels; it was not absorbed through skin or mucous membranes. A series of polyhalophenyl esters of p -sulfamoylcarbanilic acid were tested against yeast and fungi and were found to be active against C. albicans , Penicillium notatum, and Aspergillus fumigatus .