cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Second primary cancers among individuals with rare skin tumors may provide etiologic clues

B112 Objective: Rare invasive skin cancers such as mixed basal/squamous cell (mixed) carcinomas, Kaposi’s sarcomas, Merkel cell carcinomas, and dermatofibrosarcomas, have poorly defined etiologies. Second primary cancers associated with these skin cancers may provide clues into shared environmental or host risk factors. >Methods: The 2006 update of the Swedish Family-Cancer Database (version VII, MigMed2), which contains data on histologically verified incident cancers diagnosed in the Swedish population (approximately 11.5 million individuals) between 1958 and 2004 was the cohort used for this study. Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated to compare the risk of second primary cancers following a first primary skin cancer to the baseline risk of these primary cancers in a population unaffected by skin cancer. SIRs were also calculated for risk of a second primary skin cancer following all common first primary cancer diagnoses. >Results: 5,405 invasive first primary skin cancers and 892 second primary skin cancers were diagnosed in this cohort, excluding squamous cell carcinomas. Following a mixed skin carcinoma diagnosis, risk was increased for upper aerodigestive tract cancer (SIR=2.00, 95% CI 1.00-3.58), prostate cancer (SIR=1.28, 95% CI 1.00-1.63), skin cancer (SIR=11.45, 95% CI 9.53-13.64) and melanoma (SIR=3.30, 95% CI 1.95-5.22). Similarly, risk of a mixed skin carcinoma was increased following upper aerodigestive tract cancer (SIR=3.57, 95% CI 2.07-5.72) prostate cancer (SIR=1.51, 95% CI 1.11-2.02), skin cancer (SIR=11.38, 95% CI 9.16-13.98), and melanoma (SIR=95% CI 4.61, 3.06-6.67). Mixed skin carcinoma risk was also significantly increased following cancer of the salivary gland, endometrium, and urinary bladder, although these risks were not reciprocated. Following a first primary diagnosis of Kaposi’s sarcoma, risk of skin cancer (13.71, 95% CI 8.86-20.26) and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (SIR=8.10, 95% CI 3.86-14.95) was increased, and similarly Kaposi’s sarcoma risk was increased following skin cancer (11.11, 95% CI 7.18-16.42) and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (6.90, 95% CI 2.74-14.30). Skin cancer risk was increased following Merkel cell carcinoma diagnosis (SIR=6.65, 95% CI 2.10-15.63), and Merkel cell carcinoma risk was increased following a skin cancer diagnosis (SIR=8.40, 95% CI 4.17-15.08). There were no significant increased risks of second cancers associated with dermatofibrosarcoma. Conclusions: The reciprocated risks between mixed skin carcinomas and upperaerodigestive tract cancers suggest that cigarette smoking or alcohol may play a role in the etiology of mixed skin carcinoma. One explanation for the association between Kaposi’s sarcoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma may be a shared host immune susceptibility to these cancers. The reciprocated risks for various skin tumors is probably largely due to increased surveillance and screening, which may also explain the association between mixed skin tumors and prostate cancer.
High Incidence of Extramedullary Relapses Following Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplant (Allo-BMT) in Adults with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Allo-BMT represents a curative therapy for certain patients with ALL. Unfortunately, leukemia relapse still represents a major problem following allo-BMT. Studying the pattern of relapses following allo-BMT may shed some light into the exact mechanisms of such relapses and suggest better ways to prevent them. Extramedullary relapses have been reported following allo-BMT for ALL. We investigated the pattern of ALL relapses in 57 patients after allo-BMT. All donors were HLA matched serologically at HLA A, B, and DR. All patients were treated with high-dose busulfan (16 mg/kg) combined with cyclophosphamide (120 mg/kg) with or without etoposide (50 mg/kg) and all received GVHD prophylaxis, excluding T-cell depletion. We identified 57 patients with ALL treated with BMT between 1987 and 2001. 45 patients (78.9%) had a matched related donor (MRD) and the rest had matched unrelated donors (MUD). 22 patients (39%) relapsed, 8 patients had an isolated extramedullary (IEM) relapse and 14 patients had bone marrow relapse (BM-R) with or without an isolated extramedullary relapse. The median time to relapse for the IEM relapses was 432 days with a range of 139–1422. This was significantly longer than the median time to relapse with BM (median 192 days and range 40–498) P=0.016. The following table shows the characteristics of both groups: IEM relapses occurred in different organs including mastoid sinus, mediastinum, pericardium, nasopharyngeal lymphoid tissue, bone, CNS, and breast. Hematopoietic chimerism was determined utilizing the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of Short Tandem Repeat (STR) loci on DNA extracted from peripheral blood leukocytes compared with Pre-Transplant STR loci of donors and recipients. At the time of relapse all the patients with IEM relapses had 100% donor chimerism. Treatment plans for those IEM relapses included donor lymphocytes infusion (DLI), local radiation therapy, reinduction chemotherapy, imatinib for Ph+ patients, and one patient had an additional Allo-BMT. Only one patient in the IEM relapse group eventually had a relapse in the bone marrow, only 2 patients (25%) were alive more than 2 years following relapse and 3 patients died due to transplant complications. We concluded from our review that IEM relapse following Allo-BMT for ALL is not an uncommon occurrence. These relapses may have a wide-range of clinical presentations depending on the organ affected which makes the diagnosis of this type of relapse challenging. These relapses have, usually, a late occurrence compared to BM-R, and their pathogenesis is poorly understood. Full donor chimerism does not exclude the possibility of IEM relapse.
Design and analysis of a synthetic jet actuator-based fluid atomization device:

High-pressure nozzles and ultrasonic atomizers are the two most common devices used to generate sprays. Each of these has some disadvantages, such as controllability in high-pressure nozzles and fl...
Existence as the Question of Faith: Tillich's Existential Reorientation of the Arguments for God's Existence

Through a close reading of Paul Tillich this article argues that the human being asks questions because its existence is a question, pensive concern with the meaning of its own being. A chief task, then, is to explicate the impossibility of absolute despair and absolute apathy. Even despair and doubt witness to a concern with meaning insofar as it mourns its absence. In this respect, every person has a `god,' namely something regarded as holy, something concerning the individual ultimately or, in Tillich's terms, an object of ultimate concern. Even the atheist who dedicates her life to refuting belief in God testifies to this as her ultimate concern. Ultimate concern is thus Tillich's definition of faith: subjection to the holy. The author convincingly shows that faith, the question of and ultimate concern with the holy, is the primary phenomenon constituting human existence as a human person. Faith is the condition of personhood.
Extracting Knowledge Graphs from Financial Filings: Extended Abstract

Textual corpora, such as financial documents, contain a wealth of knowledge. Recently, knowledge graphs have become a popular approach to capturing structured knowledge of entities and their interrelationships. In this paper, we evaluate open information extraction (IE) and knowledge graph construction techniques for assessing the relevance of textual segments in the Financial Entity Identification and Information Integration Challenge. Our approach is to extract several textual signals, including topics and open IE triples, and combine these in a probabilistic framework to predict the relevance of each potential relationship.
Factors contributing to students and instructors experiencing a lack of time in college calculus

Calculus is a foundational course for STEM-intending students yet has been shown to dissuade students from pursuing STEM degrees. In this report, we examine factors related to students and instructors reporting a lack of time in class for students to understand difficult ideas and relate this to students’ and instructors’ perceptions of opportunities to learn using a hierarchical linear model. This work is part of the US national study on college calculus, which provides an ideal landscape to examine these questions on a large scale. We find a number of student factors associated with students experiencing negative opportunities to learn, such as student gender, lacking previous calculus experience, and reports of poor and non-student-centered teaching. Factors weakly associated with instructor reports of lack of time were a common final and reporting that approximately half of the students lacked the ability to succeed in the course. This analysis offers insight into how we might create more positive opportunities to learn in our own classrooms. This includes preparing students before they enter calculus, so they feel confident in their abilities, as well as weakening the internal framing of the course by engaging in teaching practices that provide students opportunities to communicate and influence their learning (e.g., discussion and group work). We argue that this is especially important in introductory college calculus courses that are packed with material, taught to a diverse population of students in terms of demographics, mathematical preparation, and career goals.
Reproductive risk factor associations with lobular and ductal carcinoma in the Carolina Breast Cancer Study

Invasive lobular breast tumors display unique reproductive risk factor profiles. Lobular tumors are predominantly Luminal A subtype, and it is unclear whether reported risk factor associations are independent of molecular subtype. Polytomous logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for the associations between risk factors and histologic subtype [ductal (n = 2,856), lobular (n = 326), and mixed ductal–lobular (n = 473)] in the Carolina Breast Cancer Study (1993–2013). Three-marker immunohistochemical clinical subtypes were defined as Luminal A (ER+ or PR+/HER2-), Luminal B (ER+ or PR+/HER2+), Triple Negative (ER−/PR−/HER2-), and HER2+ (ER−/PR−/HER2+). In case–case analyses compared to ductal, lobular tumors were significantly associated with lactation duration > 12 months [OR 1.86, 95% CI (1.33–2.60)], age at first birth ≥ 26 years [OR: 1.35, 95% CI: (1.03–1.78)], and current oral contraceptive use [OR: 1.86, 95% CI: (1.08–3.20)]. Differences in risk factor associations between ductal and lobular tumors persisted after restricting to Luminal A subtype. Lobular tumors were associated with older age at first birth, increased lactation duration, and current oral contraceptive use. Etiologic heterogeneity by histology persisted after restricting to Luminal A subtype, suggesting both tumor histology and intrinsic subtype play integral parts in breast cancer risk.
Utilizing social-emotional learning supports to address teacher stress and preschool expulsion

Abstract Across the United States, rates of preschool expulsion exceed those in K-12 and relatively little is known of the antecedents and consequences of such disciplinary decisions for both teachers and children. Interventions to reduce expulsion from public preschool additionally benefit teachers' workplace experiences, including reducing stress. The present study explores associations among supports and resources which promote children's social and emotional learning (SEL), teacher stress, and requests for expulsions in community-based preschool classrooms. Surveys and interviews of Chicago area preschool teachers provide rich detail of teachers' experiences accessing and using supports in ways that impact their classroom emotions and disciplinary decisions. Although teachers who utilize SEL supports request fewer expulsions, the association is fully mediated by teachers' stress. Furthermore, qualitative matrix comparisons demonstrate distinct differences in how teachers who request expulsions experience and utilize supports and manage their stress as compared to those who do not make such requests.
Sex and gender in transition in US schools: ways forward

AbstractThis paper examines the current state of law and policy in relation to US transgender youth and their lived experiences. We approach this from different disciplinary backgrounds, identities, and ways of writing terms related to gender identity. We begin with an examination of the current legal climate in the USA and explore how students have pushed back against gender and sexuality norms even in a restrictive climate. Some transformations are already happening in public schools and some backlash, too, is being felt. Laws and policies in some locations are encouraging students, teachers, school leaders and community members to collaborate in making schools more educationally concerned about trans student success and teaching the school community about gender diversity. In shifting among scales and experiences of youth thinking and working on gender, we aim to emphasise youth agency and outline young people’s frustrations at the obstacles related to trans, gender dissidence and sexuality. In conclus...
Determining a Retrogression Heat Treatment to Apply During Warm Forming of a High Strength Aluminum AA7075 Sheet Material

Combining retrogression heat treatment with simultaneous warm forming provides an opportunity to significantly increase the formability of high-strength aluminum alloy AA7075-T6 sheet material while subsequently regaining nearly peak-aged strength through a single reaging treatment. This new technological approach to forming high-strength aluminum alloy sheet is termed retrogression forming. Times and temperatures suitable to the retrogression forming of AA7075-T6 sheet material are examined. Differential scanning calorimetry is used to determine the activation energy associated with precipitate dissolution during retrogression. Heat treating experiments determine the changes in hardness during retrogression as a function of temperature and time. The concept of temperature-compensated time is used to construct a master curve that predicts appropriate retrogression forming conditions.
ACG Clinical Guideline: Diagnosis and Management of Pancreatic Cysts

Pancreatic cysts are very common with the majority incidentally identified. There are several types of pancreatic cysts; some types can contain cancer or have malignant potential, whereas others are benign. However, even the types of cysts with malignant potential rarely progress to cancer. At the present time, the only viable treatment for pancreatic cysts is surgical excision, which is associated with a high morbidity and occasional mortality. The small risk of malignant transformation, the high risks of surgical treatment, and the lack of high-quality prospective studies have led to contradictory recommendations for their immediate management and for their surveillance. This guideline will provide a practical approach to pancreatic cyst management and recommendations for cyst surveillance for the general gastroenterologist.
Thoron exhalation rate in stony materials: A simplified approach

Abstract A significant percentage of the thoron present in indoor environments is often attributable to building materials. It is therefore interesting to estimate the thoron exhalation rate from these materials. However, the detection of thoron is not a simple task: the very short half life of thoron and the lack of strong gamma emissions, prevents the use of the simplest and powerful radiometric techniques normally utilized in radon detection. Specific instruments have thus been developed in order to measure this radionuclide: alpha delayed coincidence counters (measuring the alphas emitted in a short sequence by 220Rn and 216Po) and alpha spectrometry are the most widely used instruments. However, a more simple approach, allowing the evaluation of the thoron (220Rn) exhalation rate by measuring only the radon one (222Rn), would be very welcomed. This goal can be achieved taking into account that a mathematical relationship between the thoron and radon exhalation rates JTh and JRn (Bq/(m2·s)) can be theoretically established. The thoron exhalation rate of any building material can thus be calculated by measuring only the corresponding radon exhalation rate, provided that the activity concentrations of the parents radionuclides (224Ra and 226Ra) are known. Operating in this way, it would be possible to obtain the thoron exhalation rates for the large majority of the building materials normally employed: in fact, the activity concentration data of many building materials are, in general, easily available. Following this approach a formula is proposed as a screening tools for stony materials.
On the Throughput Limit of Multi-Hop Wireless Networks with Reconfigurable Antennas

Reconfigurable antenna (RA) has emerged as a disruptive antenna technology with the potential of significantly improving the capacity of wireless links, by agilely reconfiguring its antenna states. Through jointly optimizing antenna state selection, routing and scheduling, it offers another dimension of opportunity to enhance end- to-end (E2E) throughput in multi-hop wireless networks (MWNs). However, the throughput limit of MWNs with RAs has not been well understood, due to challenges in theoretical modeling and computational intractability caused by a large number of states. In this work, we endeavor to systematically study this problem. We first propose a general antenna state-link conflict graph model to capture the intricate state-link association and corresponding interference relationship in the network. Based on this model, we formulate a max-flow based optimization framework to derive the throughput bound of a given MWN. As this problem is NP-hard, we explore column generation to solve it more efficiently, and propose a heuristic algorithm which can also accelerate the optimal solution. Simulation results show that our proposed algorithms can efficiently approach or compute the optimal throughput, and validate the advantage of antenna reconfigurability in MWNs.
Clinical Studies of Immunotherapy With Rituximab (Rituxan®) and Radioimmunotherapy With Ibritumomab Tiuxetan (Zevalin®) in B-Cell Lymphoid Malignancies

The introduction of the monoclonal antibody rituximab has expanded the treatment options for patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL). In patients with indolent B-cell lymphomas, rituximab is highly effective both as a single agent and in combination with chemotherapy regimens. Ongoing studies evaluating maintenance rituximab therapy and new combinations suggest clinical outcomes defined primarily by improvements in progression-free survival. In chronic leukemia, the use of rituximab in combination with chemotherapy has led to improved response rates and durable remissions. Studies in aggressive NHL indicate that the addition of rituximab to first-line chemotherapy is associated with improved clinical benefit, and ongoing studies are better defining the optimal use of rituximab in this setting.
Symmetrical palatal fibromatosis: Five new cases and a review of the literature.

Objective To present five cases of symmetrical palatal fibromatosis (SPF), a lesion reported very rarely in the English language literature, under more than a dozen different names, and to recommend the most appropriate name. Methods Five SPF cases are characterized with a literature review. Results Three females and two males, aged 20-39 years, presented with bilateral, symmetrical, asymptomatic, sessile, moderately firm, or soft (n = 2) masses of the lateral posterior hard palate; two were isolated to the tuberosities. All masses were normal in color, with smooth, non-ulcerated surfaces and occasional surface nodularity. Underlying bone was radiographically normal, and adjacent teeth were asymptomatic. All masses originated from supra-periosteal tissues over palatal bone, only secondarily extending to gingivae and/or crestal tuberosity. Cases were present between 4 months and 15 years, with no familial or environmental etiologies identified. Histopathologically, masses were comprised of dense, avascular fibrous tissue with scattered thick bands of collagen. Surface epithelium showed occasional long, thin, sometimes pointed rete processes, and subepithelial stroma contained scattered large, angular fibroblasts. Conservative surgical excision appeared curative in all cases. Conclusions The present investigators propose SPF as the most accurate name for this rare entity.
Affordable Homeownership: An Evaluation of the Near-Term Effects of Shared Equity Programs

ABSTRACTWe estimate the effect of nine shared equity programs on the short-term financial health and loan performance outcomes of participating households. Using both difference-in-difference and p...
Daily Locomotor Movement Recognition with a Smart Insole and a Pre-defined Route Map: Towards Early Motor Dysfunction Detection *

Motor dysfunction, a well-known early sign of neurodegenerative diseases, is occurring to seniors at a growing rate and affects their physical capability of independent living if not treated effectively. The symptoms of motor dysfunction are hard to notice at early stages and can deteriorate in the long term. Thus, it is desirable to detect motor function changes in daily life in a noninvasive manner. This paper aims to accomplish this goal by proposing a method to auto-recognize nine types of daily activities from continuous movements with the use of a smart insole and a pre-designed route map. The route map creates a semi-controlled environment to help the subjects take actions comfortably and behave in experiments as they do in real life. The nine types of highly similar activities are selected from the motor examination and the balance evaluation system test. Preliminary experiments were done with four subjects with controlled and uncontrolled data collection. Four supervised machine learning classifiers are evaluated and compared for classification performance with a 2s window and different overlaps. With regards to the performance and robustness of classifiers, the Random Forest classifier trained with Mix Dataset shows the best results with an averaged classification accuracy of 98.19% in model training, 92.67% in cross-validation and 83.87% in prediction. The results show that it is feasible to recognize these nine activities from daily locomotor movement and further extract parameters of interest from activity periods for early motor dysfunction detection.
A Truthful Mechanism For Mobility Management In Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Networks

We study the task allocation strategy in a UAV swarm sensing platform for performing location estimation. In particular, we design a reverse auction mechanism where the fusion center (FC) selects a subset of UAVs, and instructs them to move to particular positions to take measurements regarding a target. Based on the measurements, the FC estimates the location of the target and reimburses the UAVs for their participation in performing the sensing tasks. The auction mechanism addresses participatory concerns of the UAVs that arise due to energy consumption, while ensuring that the UAVs truthfully report their participation costs. Our mechanism maximizes the utility of the FC to achieve desired sensing objectives and numerical results are provided for illustration.
Ecological Specialization and Diversification in Birds

Ecological specialization is widely thought to influence patterns of species richness by affecting rates at which species multiply and perish. Quantifying specialization is challenging, and using only one or a small number of ecological axes could bias estimates of overall specialization. Here, we calculate an index of specialization, based on seven measured traits, and estimate its effect on speciation and extinction rates in a large clade of birds. We find that speciation rate is independent of specialization, suggesting independence of local ecology and the geographic distributions of9 populations that promote allopatric species formation. Although some analyses suggest that more specialized species have higher extinction rates, leading to negative net diversification, this relationship is not consistently identified across our analyses. Our results suggest that specialization may drive diversification dynamics only on local scales or in specific clades, but is not generally responsible for macroevolutionary disparity in lineage diversification rates.
Government Financial Management and the Coronavirus Pandemic: A Comparative Look at South Korea and the United States

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is an infectious respiratory illness afflicting people to a degree not seen since the flu pandemic of 1968 when approximately one million lives were lost worldwide. What makes COVID-19 distinct is the rate at which it spread throughout the world, stress-testing health care systems and stymieing global economies. To confront this unprecedented crisis, nearly every country has been developing a wide range of policy responses, including fiscal measures. This study aims to discuss government fiscal responses to the pandemic from a financial management perspective. The core question is, “How does each country’s financial management system support its fiscal responses to the crisis?” We are particularly interested in reexamining commonly accepted norms about fiscal federalism and the fiscal condition of national and local governments heading into this pandemic. This study takes a comparative approach to the question, focusing on South Korea and the United States. Our findings suggest that the ability to respond to this pandemic in a comprehensive and effective manner is challenged by each nation’s financial management system that generates variation in policy coordination and responsiveness.
Deep learning model for the prediction of microsatellite instability in colorectal cancer: a diagnostic study.

Summary Background Detecting microsatellite instability (MSI) in colorectal cancer is crucial for clinical decision making, as it identifies patients with differential treatment response and prognosis. Universal MSI testing is recommended, but many patients remain untested. A critical need exists for broadly accessible, cost-efficient tools to aid patient selection for testing. Here, we investigate the potential of a deep learning-based system for automated MSI prediction directly from haematoxylin and eosin (HE internal dataset) between Jan 1, 2015, and Dec 31, 2017. We internally validated the model on a holdout test set (15 HE seven cases with MSS and eight with MSI) and externally validated the model on 484 HE 479 patients) from The Cancer Genome Atlas, containing WSIs scanned at 40× and 20× magnification. Performance was primarily evaluated using the sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value (NPV), and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC). We compared the model's performance with that of five gastrointestinal pathologists on a class-balanced, randomly selected subset of 40× magnification WSIs from the external dataset (20 with MSS and 20 with MSI). Findings The MSINet model achieved an AUROC of 0·931 (95% CI 0·771–1·000) on the holdout test set from the internal dataset and 0·779 (0·720–0·838) on the external dataset. On the external dataset, using a sensitivity-weighted operating point, the model achieved an NPV of 93·7% (95% CI 90·3–96·2), sensitivity of 76·0% (64·8–85·1), and specificity of 66·6% (61·8–71·2). On the reader experiment (40 cases), the model achieved an AUROC of 0·865 (95% CI 0·735–0·995). The mean AUROC performance of the five pathologists was 0·605 (95% CI 0·453–0·757). Interpretation Our deep learning model exceeded the performance of experienced gastrointestinal pathologists at predicting MSI on H&E-stained WSIs. Within the current universal MSI testing paradigm, such a model might contribute value as an automated screening tool to triage patients for confirmatory testing, potentially reducing the number of tested patients, thereby resulting in substantial test-related labour and cost savings. Funding Stanford Cancer Institute and Stanford Departments of Pathology and Biomedical Data Science.
Court Enforcement, Bank Loans and Firm Investment: Evidence from a Bankruptcy Reform in Brazil

I exploit variation in the congestion of civil courts across Brazilian municipalities, together with a bankruptcy reform increasing secured creditors' protection, to estimate the effect of enforcement on firm access to finance, investment and size. I find that firms operating in municipalities with less congested courts experienced larger increase in the use of secured loans, as well as a larger increase in investment and value of output in the years following the reform. To establish the direction of causality I use an instrumental variable strategy and focus on differences in court congestion across otherwise similar neighboring municipalities located across judicial district borders within the same state. Together, the evidence suggests that differences in court enforcement affect the impact of financial reform in developing countries.
RFI Mitigation Using a New Comb Filter for Wideband Autocorrelation Radiometry

This paper presents a new method to suppress radio frequency interference (RFI) for a recently developed microwave radiometer technique, known as wideband autocorrelation radiometry (WiBAR). WiBAR is a method which can measure directly the thickness of a low-loss layer like lake ice or snow on the ground. However, the RFI in the received signal increases the noise floor and results in a decreased signal to noise ratio (SNR) of the WiBAR delay peak in the autocorrelation function. We propose a new filter which acts like a Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) in optics and has the frequency response of a comb filter with many evenly spaced alternating pass and stop bands. The response of an ideal comb filter applied to the polluted spectrum captured by WiBAR's receiver to mitigate the RFI in the received signal.
The Justiciability of Cancelled Patents

The recent expansion of the Patent Office’s power to invalidate issued patents raises a coordination problem when there is also concurrent litigation, particularly where the federal courts have already upheld the patent’s validity. The Federal Circuit has concluded that Patent Office cancellation extinguishes litigation pending at any stage and requires vacating prior decisions in the case. This rule is widely criticized on doctrinal, policy, and separation of powers grounds. Yet, the Federal Circuit has reached (almost) the right outcome, except for the wrong reasons. Both the Federal Circuit and its critics overlook that the Federal Circuit’s rule reflects a straight-forward application of the justiciability limits on the power of the federal courts. Patent cancellation eliminates the exclusive rights that form the basis for the plaintiff’s suit, mooting the infringement case no matter how belated in the litigation. Courts typically vacate prior judgments and decisions when a pending case becomes moot, exactly as the Federal Circuit requires. Properly rooting the effects of Patent Office cancellation in mootness addresses critics’ doctrinal and policy concerns. It also demonstrates that critics’ separation of powers concerns are exactly backwards. The Federal Circuit’s rule is not a threat to the constitutional structure or the role of federal courts but rather a necessary result of Article III’s limits on federal judicial power. Courts and Congress each have potential ways to mitigate policy concerns from allowing Patent Office cancellation to trump litigation, while respecting mootness, but these ways introduce their own problems. Courts may have some discretion to decline to vacate prior judgments but doing so would have limited impact and could be an unwarranted departure from generally applicable procedural rules. Congress could limit the retroactive effect of patent cancellation, but this would be historically novel and raise its own policy concerns.
Development and Preliminary Evaluation of a Patient-facing Educational Video About Live Kidney Donor Surgical Complications.

Background Living kidney donation (LKD) improves transplant access; however, its use is compromised, in part, by individuals' unaddressed concerns about perioperative complications. Methods We developed an animated, patient-centered educational video about LKD surgical complications, with input from experts in transplantation, communication, and anthropology, 35 patients/care partners (5 LKD candidates, 5 prior LKDs, 10 kidney transplant recipients, 10 kidney transplant candidates, 5 care partners), and 1 community advocate. We then conducted an online pre-post study with 24 potential kidney donors and recipients to measure the video's acceptability and feasibility to improve donation complication knowledge and concerns. Results Knowledge of LKD surgical complications increased 23% (mean 5.7 to 7.0, P < 0.01) from pre- to post- animation viewing. Large knowledge effect size increases were observed for different levels of age, race, health literacy, and technology access. The frequency of positive responses about donation safety increased from 88% preanimation to 96% postanimation. Concerns about surgical complications remained at 17% before and after exposure. After viewing the animation, over 90% indicated positive ratings on ease of watching, understanding, and engaging. Conclusions An animated educational video about LKD surgical complications was developed in collaboration with multiple stakeholders. The video was well received and promised to positively impact individuals' knowledge and concerns.
How do receptors activate G proteins

Heterotrimeric G proteins couple the activation of heptahelical receptors at the cell surface to the intracellular signaling cascades that mediate the physiological responses to extracellular stimuli. G proteins are molecular switches that are activated by receptor-catalyzed GTP for GDP exchange on the G protein alpha subunit, which is the rate-limiting step in the activation of all downstream signaling. Despite the important biological role of the receptor-G protein interaction, relatively little is known about the structure of the complex and how it leads to nucleotide exchange. This chapter will describe what is known about receptor and G protein structure and outline a strategy for assembling the current data into improved models for the receptor-G protein complex that will hopefully answer the question as to how receptors flip the G protein switch.
Lipocalin produced by myelofibrosis cells affects the fate of both hematopoietic and marrow microenvironmental cells

Myelofibrosis (MF) is characterized by cytopenias, constitutional symptoms, splenomegaly, and marrow histopathological abnormalities (fibrosis, increased microvessel density, and osteosclerosis). The microenvironmental abnormalities are likely a consequence of the elaboration of a variety of inflammatory cytokines generated by malignant megakaryocytes and monocytes. We observed that levels of a specific inflammatory cytokine, lipocalin-2 (LCN2), were elevated in the plasmas of patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MF > polycythemia vera or essential thrombocythemia) and that LCN2 was elaborated by MF myeloid cells. LCN2 generates increased reactive oxygen species, leading to increased DNA strand breaks and apoptosis of normal, but not MF, CD34+ cells. Furthermore, incubation of marrow adherent cells or mesenchymal stem cells with LCN2 increased the generation of osteoblasts and fibroblasts, but not adipocytes. LCN2 priming of mesenchymal stem cells resulted in the upregulation of RUNX2 gene as well as other genes that are capable of further affecting osteoblastogenesis, angiogenesis, and the deposition of matrix proteins. These data indicate that LCN2 is an additional MF inflammatory cytokine that likely contributes to the creation of a cascade of events that results in not only a predominance of the MF clone but also a dysfunctional microenvironment.
Robust localization using relative and absolute position estimates

A low cost strategy based on well calibrated odometry is presented for localizing mobile robots. The paper describes a two-step process for correction of 'systematic errors' in encoder measurements followed by fusion of the calibrated odometry with a gyroscope and GPS resulting in a robust localization scheme. A Kalman filter operating on data from the sensors is used for estimating position and orientation of the robot. Experimental results are presented that show an improvement of at least one order of magnitude in accuracy compared to the un-calibrated, un-filtered case. Our method is systematic, simple and yields very good results. We show that this strategy proves useful when the robot is using GPS to localize itself as well as when GPS becomes unavailable for some time. As a result robot can move in and out of enclosed spaces, such as buildings, while keeping track of its position on the fly.
Internal Contradictions of Judicial Mediation in China

Judicial mediation in China represents an extreme case of integration between adjudication and mediation. Based on ethnographic work and extensive interviews, this article studies how judicial mediation actually works in China. It finds that the incorporation of mediation as part of the official trial process creates a set of internal contradictions. In addition to the inherent role conflict of a judge acting also as a mediator, adjudication and mediation stages are organized by different principles. When the rather rigid format of adjudication is carried over to in-trial mediation, it curtails the flexible, non-legalistic approach that mediation is meant to promote. Challenged authority, uncontrolled process, narrowed issues, and weakened norms all make a settled outcome difficult to achieve. In comparison with judicial mediation in other jurisdictions, this case study from China bears important theoretical implications on the limit of informal justice.
Variability in College Student Suicide: Age, Gender, and Race

ABSTRACT The research on college student suicide is discussed, with emphasis on variability in base rates, the operating assumptions regarding reported base rates, and methodological difficulties in studying suicide. Variability in suicide among schools and among different types of students is examined, and the effects of changing demographics and cultural influences on rates and patterns of college student suicide and suicidality are reviewed. Recommendations for therapists and others promoting mental health on campus are made, suggestions for future research are outlined, and the need for required reporting of suicide statistics is asserted.
On correlation of seismoscope response with earthquake magnitude and Modified Mercalli Intensity

A quantitative measure of the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale for earthquakes in the western United States has been developed by correlating the peak seismoscope relative displacement response, S_d, with the reported site intensity, I_(MM). This correlation can be approximated by S_d(cm) ≈ 1/49.2(10^(0.288 I_MM)) for I_(MM) ≦ VIII and is characterized by one standard deviation of about 0.7 S_d. The data used in this study do not indicate an obvious type of dependence of S_d on local site conditions. A method for computing the analog of the local earthquake magnitude, M_(seismoscope), has been presented for possible use in strong-motion seismology and for scaling earthquakes by close-in measurements, when other seismological instruments may go off scale.
System considerations of aerial infrared imaging for wide-area persistent surveillance

Wide field-of-view infrared sensor and data acquisition and exploitation systems are being developed and tested for detecting activity and threats over extended areas. Limitations on the total number of pixels available in infrared arrays precipitate sensor design discussions on achieving the widest total field-of-view while achieving small ground sample distance to allow automated tracking and activity detection. In order to allow accurate imagery geo-location, the sensors optical characteristics as well as its location and orientation must be accurately recorded with each image. This paper will discuss system considerations of infrared imaging sensors for wide area persistent surveillance. We will present some uses of an advanced day/night sensors for wide area persistent surveillance that use large, high quality mid-wave infrared (MWIR) staring arrays in a fast step-stare stabilized mount and a Windows based data acquisition and exploitation system.
The ultraviolet markings on Venus: An analysis of the Venera 9 data

The results of Venera 9 measurements of the emergent intensity from the cloud tops of Venus are surveyed. It is reported that these radiance distributions at 3500 A contain information on the vertical and horizontal structure of the clouds and show the effects of the small and large scale ultra violet markings. Attention is given to model calculations with a Mie phase function for 1.05 micron sulfuric acid aerosols which indicate that the clouds have a layered structure. It is stressed that large-scale horizontal inhomogeneities (in excess of 1000 km) must be considered to supplement any analysis based on a horizontally homogeneous model. It is shown that the shape of the observed radiance distributions is affected by the ultraviolet 'Y' feature and the equatorial band.
Retrieving Forest Inventory Variables with Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) in Urban Heterogeneous Forest

We present the point cloud slicing (PCS) algorithm, to post process point cloud data (PCD) from terrestrial laser scanning (TLS). We then test this tool for forest inventory application in urban heterogeneous forests. The methodology was based on a voxel data structure derived from TLS PCD. We retrieved biophysical tree parameters including diameter at breast height (DBH), tree height, basal area, and volume. Our results showed that TLS-based metrics explained 91.17% (RMSE = 9.1739 cm, p < 0.001) of the variation in DBH at individual tree level. Though the scanner generated a high-density PCD, only 57.27% (RMSE = 0.7543 m, p < 0.001) accuracy was achieved for predicting tree heights in these very heterogeneous stands. Furthermore, we developed a voxel-based TLS volume estimation method. Our results showed that PCD generated from TLS single location scans only captures 18% of the total tree volume due to an occlusion effect; yet there are significant relationships between the TLS data and field measured parameters for DBH and height, giving promise to the utility of a side scanning approach. Using our method, a terrestrial LiDAR-based inventory, also applicable to mobile- or vehicle-based laser scanning (MLS or VLS), was produced for future calibration of Aerial Laser Scanning (ALS) data and urban forest canopy assessments.
Studies in Vitro on the Role of αv and β1 Integrins in the Adhesion of Human Dermal Fibroblasts to Provisional Matrix Proteins Fibronectin, Vitronectin, and Fibrinogen

Fibroblasts that migrate into a wound during the early stages of repair use cell surface integrins to interact with extracellular molecules as they move away from the interstitial matrix of normal tissue and into the provisional matrix of the wound. Therefore, to understand a critical phase of wound healing, it is necessary to understand the details of integrin involvement. Normal adult human dermal fibroblasts in culture express many receptors for the provisional matrix proteins fibronectin, vitronectin, and fibrinogen, including the integrins α 3 β 1, α 4 β 1, α 5 β 1, α v β 1, α v β 3, and α v β 5. We used quantitative flow cytometry to estimate the relative numbers of these receptors and immunoprecipitation to confirm the expression of α v β 1. Adult human dermal fibroblasts primarily use β 1 integrins, α 4 β 1, α 5 β 1, and possibly α v β 1, for attachment to fibronectin. α v β 3 and perhaps other integrins containing the α v subunit serve fibroblasts as secondary or auxiliary receptors for fibronectin. In contrast, these cells use α v integrins but probably not β 1 integrins for attachment to vitronectin. α v β 3 and α v β 5 apparently act in concert to mediate attachment to vitronectin, and these two integrins may perform different functions during wound repair. Fibroblast adhesion to certain preparations of fibrinogen occurs, at least partially, through the small amount of fibronectin present in the preparations. Fibroblast attachment to fibrinogen purified free of fibronectin also occurs, and that was demonstrated with a sensitive new assay called electrical cell-substrate impedance sensing. Fibroblast attachment to pure fibrinogen can be inhibited by RGD peptide, suggesting that integrins are involved.
The Effect of Homogenization, Condensation and Variations in the Fat’ Content of a Milk upon the Keeping Quality of its Milk Powder

There is considerable difference of opinion with respect to the relative keeping quality of milk powders manufactured by dit~erent processes. Coutts (1), also Palmer and Dahle (2), have noted that the drum process produced powders superior in keeping quality to powders manufactured by the spray processes. Palmer and Dahle have attempted to explain these results on the basis of the physical structure of the powders, Showing that in a spray powder air is occluded in the milk particles and therefore the fat in this powder is subjected to the action of oxygen from within as well as upon the outer surface. These authors also suggest that homogenized fat in a powder produces a condition favorable for accelerated oxidizing action of air due to the increase surface area. The present writers (3), though having no experiments to prove that drum powders had a better keeping quality than spray powders, accepted the observations made by the above mentioned authors, but maintained also that the quality of the fat largely determined the keeping quality of the powder manufactured. Later experiments by Dahle and Palmer (4) do not fully substantiate their former conclusions. They maintain that a spray powder, which contains its fat in a finer state of division, and therefore exposes the greatest surface to the action of air, seems to possess the best keeping quality in this case. They also intimate that a spray powder owes its superior keeping quality to closer pacldng because of its fineness, and also to the smaller air cells occluded within the granules. The lack of the latter condition
Initiated chemical vapor deposition of polymer films on nonplanar substrates

Abstract Thin polymer films are deposited on nonplanar geometries via initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD). Films in microtrenches exhibit step coverage of 0.85 for the highest aspect ratio trench studied here. An analytical model shows that the sticking probability of the initiating radical is a function of monomer surface concentration and takes values between 1.1 × 10 − 2 and 5.0 × 10 − 2 for the conditions studied here. These results indicate that iCVD proceeds via reaction of a vapor phase initiating radical with a surface adsorbed monomer. The high degree of conformality allows iCVD to be used to create patterns with features less than 10 µm by physically masking the substrate.
Exploring the Consequences of Erratic Data Reporting for Cross-National Research on Homicide

This paper examines the common practice in cross-national research on homicide of using crime estimates for a multiyear period based on a smaller number of years than theoretically desired because of erratic data reporting for selected nations. Correlations between hypothetical baseline rates and various alternative estimates are examined to simulate the potential consequences of using temporally incomplete data rather than data for the full multiyear period of interest. The results reveal that this common practice is likely to be highly acceptable for certain national samples but less acceptable for others. The paper concludes with suggestions for dealing with potentially problematic cases.