cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Homoplasy and the evolution of ontogeny in papionin primates

Recent advances in developmental biology reveal that patterns of morphological development, even during early phases, may be highly susceptible to evolutionary change. Consequently, developmental data may be uninformative with regard to distinguishing homology and homoplasy. The present analysis evaluates postnatal ontogeny in papionin primates to test hypotheses about homology and homoplasy during later periods of development. Specifically, the analysis studies the allometric bases of craniometric resemblances among four papionin genera to test the hypothesis that homoplasy in adult cranial form, particularly of baboons (Papio) and mandrills (Mandrillus), is underwritten by divergent patterns of development. Bivariate and multivariate allometric analyses demonstrate that the developmental patterns in Papio baboons diverge markedly from ontogenetic allometric trajectories in other papionin species. The resemblances between Papio and Mandrillus (assuming that patterns of development in smaller papionins are ancestral) are largely consequences of perinatal increases in relative brain size in juvenile Papio. Postnatal growth to large size and strong negative allometry of neurocranial form results in shape similarities because developmental pathways for large papionin genera intersect. Analyses show that allometric data may not be particularly informative in revealing homoplasy. However, placed into proper phylogenetic context, such data illustrate derived patterns of development that may reflect critically important life-history or ontogenetic adaptations.
Measurement of dimensionless soot extinction constant using a gravimetric sampling technique

Abstract The dimensionless extinction constant, Ke, of post-flame soot from rich acetylene/air premixed flames was measured using a simultaneous gravimetric-sampling and light extinction technique at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. The average value of Ke is 8.5 with a standard deviation of 0.5. An important improvement in the present method include the reduction in the uncertainty of the extinction pathlength and uniformity of the soot concentration in the probed region. Several aspects of the experimental procedure which can potentially introduce errors in the measured Ke were evaluated. Results indicate that Ke is only moderately influenced by the sampling flowrate and that the variation is minimized when flowrates are maintained close to isokinetic conditions. It is demonstrated that moisture condensation within the sampling probe, if disregarded, can produce large errors in Ke.
Magnetoconductance of a disordered interacting 2-D electron gas

Abstract We calculate the corrections to the resistance R and Hall resistance R H of a two-dimensional disordered electronic system due to interactions in the strong field limit ω c , ω F , e F τ > 1, where localisation effects are suppressed. We find that Δσ xy = 0. With the result that ( δR H / R H )/( δR / R ) = 2/(1 − ( ω c τ ) 2 ) oscillating with field because of the field dependence of τ and eventually diverging when ω c τ = 1. δR / R decreases with increasing field going through zero when ω c τ = 1.
Observations of spectroscopic binaries at ultraviolet and red wavelengths

The use of IUE-satellite and ground-based-Reticon observations for the study of spectroscopic binaries is examined, and sample data from the Reticon are presented. IUE radial-velocity determinations with uncertainties as low as 2-5 km/sec should be possible for binaries with early-type secondary components, using UV spectral lines where contamination by the later-type primary is reduced. The Reticon solid-state photodiode-array detector has been used at the coudefocus of the 2.7-m telescope at McDonald Observatory for observation of complex multiple systems in the 400-950-nm range with a quantum efficiency of 40-80 percent and resolution of 20-30 pm at 440 pm/mm. The fundamental parameters of 15 systems observed with this apparatus are listed in a table, and two sample spectra are shown.
Male Advertisement and Female Choice in Frogs: Recent Findings and New Approaches to the Study of Communication in a Dynamic Acoustic Environment

SYNOPSIS. Typically, anuran amphibians communicate in a complex acoustic environment to which the calls of many males contribute. Although research has demonstrated that male vocal behavior is responsive to changes in this environment, a more thorough understanding of male-male interactions should benefit from the use of computer based systems for data acquisition and interactive playback. I discuss how I have used such systems in studies of note timing behavior, unison bout singing, aggressive behavior and female choice. In addition, I indicate how energetic constraints may be involved in shaping the temporal dynamics of chorusing
Predictors of Smoking Cessation: The Framingham Study

The relation of demographic, behavioral, and health-related variables to smoking cessation was studied in 1,178 women and 1,506 men cigarette smokers enrolled in the Framingham Heart Study. Smoking cessation was defined as abstinence from all tobacco products for at least 1 year. Proportional hazard models were used to identify baseline variables associated with long-term cessation. In order to identify factors predictive of cessation in the following 2 years, logistic regression models on person-examination data were used. Recent hospitalization and development of coronary heart disease were predictive of smoking cessation, while diagnosis of cancer or changes in pulmonary function were not. Overall, women were as likely to quit as men; however, women who smoked heavily were the least likely to quit. Secular trends were noted in men only; men were more likely to quit after the release of the 1964 Surgeon General's report on smoking. The relation of illness development and sex to smoking cessation should be considered in developing smoking cessation programs.
The science of common sense: integrating health and human services in the hospital emergency department.

‘‘Physicians are the natural attorneys of the poor and social problems should largely be solved by them.’’dRudolf Virchow (1829-1902) In the hospital emergency department (ED), physicians serve at the very crossroads of humanity. Victims of every conceivable circumstance present here, seeking a broad range of comfort and healing. Although inextricably linked in the modern ED, medical issues are often addressed without substantive attention to relevant public health and social welfare concerns. Attempts to bring ‘‘social medicine’’ into the mainstream of medical practice have been hampered by artificial divisions between medical and social care, a philosophic gap made even wider as society struggles with basic health care financing. In recent years, there have been many attempts to ‘‘heal the schism’’ between medicine and public health, but such efforts have been hampered by the perceived cost of ‘‘additional’’ services in a health care setting. There has been a long-standing debate over the value of social outreach workers in a medical setting. Many argue that the moral imperative of social work outreach in an emergency setting is invaluable, and advocate for dedicated ED social services as a common-sense component of the overall health care mission. Others demand documentation of economic benefits before adopting such programs, struggling to keep the health care enterprise fiscally viable. This struggle often manifests as a debate between common sense and data. Such a conversation is, of course, the heart of the scientific enterprise, forcing careful thought over limited choices. Sometimes, however, common sense can be overshadowed by strict empiricism, hampering rather than encouraging broad experimentation. A sensible refrain such as ‘‘we can’t provide that service because it’s too expensive’’doffered without a willingness to experimentdoften stymies the very research that would provide evidence to the contrary. In my view, ideas that resonate with shared community values should be explored and evaluated simultaneously; evaluation data, although essential, must not be an absolute prerequisite to common-sense innovation (a point made recently in the spirited British Medical Journal editorial, ‘‘Parachute use to prevent death and major trauma related to gravitational challenge: systematic review of randomised controlled trials’’ [of course, there are none]).
The Impact of the New Montreal Convention on International Air Transportation

This paper presents the genesis of international aviation law and discusses the provisions of the 1999 Montreal Convention, which amended earlier international air carrier agreements. In the early days of international air travel many far-sighted individuals recognized that commercial aviation had enormous potential but unless the liability issues concerning the loss of passengers and cargo were resolved this potential would never be fully realized. As a result of these concerns the Warsaw Convention was drafted in 1929 and ratified in 1933. The Warsaw Convention protected the rights of passengers by requiring the payment of damages while at the same time capping liability limits for the airlines that caused their loss. In 1966 a meeting was held in Montreal that became known as the Montreal Convention and a bilateral agreement was consummated that effectively increased the damages awarded to passengers who suffered losses as the result of an accident. The 1999 Montreal Convention further amended the damage awards to persons who had suffered losses as the result of an accident. The provisions of the 1999 Montreal Convention are much fairer to the consumer and thus will result in less litigation for the loss of life, baggage and cargo.
Architectures and Circuit Techniques for Multi-Purpose Digital Phase Lock Loops

This paper discusses novel architectures and circuit techniques for DPLLs. These include: methods to have a wide temperature range in the digitally controlled oscillator (DCO) for ring-oscillator based DPLLs, re-circulating time to digital converter (TDC) architecture to support a large input phase error range, efficient, modular, divider architectures that provide 50% output duty cycle, while allowing dynamic programmability of the division ratio, and fractional DPLL approaches for spur cancellation and low power operation. The techniques described in the paper have been used to build DPLLs for serializer-deserializer (SerDes), processor clock generation, and wireless connectivity applications in 65 nm and 45 nm CMOS. These implementations are briefly discussed and representative silicon results are presented.
The N-Terminal Domain of the IP3 Receptor Gates Store-Operated hTrp3 Channels

In the present work, we studied the interaction and effect of several IP3 receptor (IP3R) constructs on the gating of the store-operated (SOC) hTrp3 channel. Full-length IP3R coupled to silent hTrp3 channels in intact cells but did not activate them until stores were depleted of Ca2+. By contrast, constructs containing the IP3-binding domain activated silent hTrp3 channels in unstimulated cells and restored gating of hTrp3 by IP3 in excised plasma membrane patches. We conclude that the N-terminal domain of the IP3R functions as a gate and is sufficient for activation of SOCs. The sensing and transduction domains of the IP3R are required to maintain SOCs in an inactive state.
The Scientific Graphics Toolkit

The Scientific Graphics Toolkit (sgt), a set of java graphics classes, was developed to allow a NOAAServer user to interactively preview and overlay plots. Sgt was designed to allow a graphics developer a great deal of flexibility and freedom in producing graphics applications. Support for multiple transformations, X-Y plots, contour and "pixel" plots, and vector plots are part of Sgt. Sgt also provides developer support to allow users to zoom a graph, select graphical elements using a mouse, and interactively edit graphical elements. The first sgt applications include the NOAAServer Prototype data browser (Brazille et al., 1997) and a collaborative tool for the visualization of distributed data sets (Denbo and Windsor, elsewhere in these proceedings). Sgt enables a user to preview and overlay plots from multiple datasets that are stored on different servers. Sgt is currently implemented using the Java JDK 1.1. Future plans include porting Sgt to JDK 1.2 and the Java2D AP1. The new features of Java2D will enable sgt to support line styles (e.g. dashed, line widths), rotation of text at arbitrary angles, and improved font capabilities.
Net Uptake of Potassium in Neurospora Exchange for sodium and hydrogen ions

Net uptake of potassium by low K, high Na cells of Neurospora at pH 5.8 is accompanied by net extrusion of sodium and hydrogen ions. The amount of potassium taken up by the cells is matched by the sum of sodium and hydrogen ions lost, under a variety of conditions: prolonged preincubation, partial respiratory inhibition (DNP), and lowered [K]o. All three fluxes are exponential with time and obey Michaelis kinetics as functions of [K]o. The Vmax for net potassium uptake, 22.7 mmoles/kg cell water/min, is very close to that for K/K exchange reported previously (20 mmoles/kg cell water/min). However, the apparent Km for net potassium uptake, 11.8 mM [K]o, is an order of magnitude larger than the value (1 mM) for K/K exchange. It is suggested that a single transport system handles both net K uptake and K/K exchange, but that the affinity of the external site for potassium is influenced by the species of ion being extruded.
Approaches to psychiatric assessment in epidemiological studies of children

An assessment protocol for the longitudinal measurement of developmental psychopathology in a population-based study of children and adolescents is proposed. The protocol is designed for use in a large cohort of up to 100,000 individuals followed from early gestation to 21 years of age. Although the protocol was constrained by specified methodological parameters, the recommendations may apply to other psychiatric epidemiological research designs. The issues and challenges inherent with psychiatric assessments in longitudinal epidemiological studies of children and adolescents are discussed.
Cavity backed printed dipole arrays with substrate mode control using via-hole technology

An efficient planar antenna structure is investigated which is compatible with high-speed solid-state devices. The antenna consists of a cavity-backed strip-dipole printed on a Si or GaAs wafer. The cavity behind the dipole can either be a rectangular machined cavity or a pyramidal cavity which is anisotropically etched in silicon and metallized with gold. Numerical results are presented for an element of aperture size 0.6/spl lambda/-square printed on a GaAs wafer of thickness 0.15 dielectric wavelengths. The backing cavity is assumed to be anisotropically etched in silicon and therefore its flare angle is fixed to 70/spl deg/. >
Factors Influencing Model Skill for Hindcasting Shallow Water Currents during Hurricane Andrew

Abstract Hurricane Andrew made landfall in the Gulf of Mexico after crossing directly over several moored current meter arrays deployed on the Louisiana–Texas shelf. The resulting three-dimensional current, temperature, and salinity time series are used in a quantitative analysis of the factors affecting the hindcast skill of ocean circulation models. This paper describes parameters for quantifying a model’s skill at matching both maximum currents and time series at specific locations and depths. It then briefly discusses the following factors with respect to currents hindcast with the Princeton Ocean Model: 1) model domain size; 2) horizontal resolution, including the bathymetry and coastline; 3) vertical resolution (i.e., number of model levels); 4) the surface drag formulation;5) the bottom drag coefficient; 6) turbulent mixing parameters and sources of turbulence; and 7) the initial temperature field. Model performance is found to be most dependent on parameters within the turbulent energy closure sch...
On the measurement of dislocation core periods by nanodiffraction

Abstract Multiple-scattering calculations are used to demonstrate that the periodicity of dislocation cores may be measured from coherent convergent beam patterns obtained using a subnanometre probe with the electron beam aligned with the dislocation core. The resulting ‘half-order’ high-order Laue zone ring which results from a double-period core reconstruction is shown to be detectable above the background of thermal diffuse scattering. Multiple-scattering calculations which include thermal scattering are used to show the temperature and thickness dependences of this ring. Activation energies for core processes may be obtained by this method.
Linear positivity and virtual probability

We investigate the quantum theory of closed systems based on the linear positivity decoherence condition of Goldstein and Page. The objective of any quantum theory of a closed system, most generally the universe, is the prediction of probabilities for the individual members of sets of alternative coarse-grained histories of the system. Quantum interference between members of a set of alternative histories is an obstacle to assigning probabilities that are consistent with the rules of probability theory. A quantum theory of closed systems therefore requires two elements: (1) a condition specifying which sets of histories may be assigned probabilities and (2) a rule for those probabilities. The linear positivity condition of Goldstein and Page is the weakest of the general conditions proposed so far. Its general properties relating to exact probability sum rules, time neutrality, and conservation laws are explored. Its inconsistency with the usual notion of independent subsystems in quantum mechanics is reviewed. Its relation to the stronger condition of medium decoherence necessary for classicality is discussed. The linear positivity of histories in a number of simple model systems is investigated with the aim of exhibiting linearly positive sets of histories that are not decoherent. The utility of extending themore » notion of probability to include values outside the range of 0-1 is described. Alternatives with such virtual probabilities cannot be measured or recorded, but can be used in the intermediate steps of calculations of real probabilities. Extended probabilities give a simple and general way of formulating quantum theory. The various decoherence conditions are compared in terms of their utility for characterizing classicality and the role they might play in further generalizations of quantum mechanics.« less
Does midtrimester cervical length ≥25 mm predict preterm birth in high-risk women?

Objective We sought to assess pregnancy outcome along a continuum of cervical lengths (CLs) ≥25 mm. Study Design We conducted planned secondary analysis of a randomized cerclage trial of women with prior spontaneous preterm birth 17 0 -34 6/7 weeks. Outcomes of women who maintained CLs ≥25 mm were analyzed. Women with CLs Results Of 1014 screened, 153 had CL P = .15). In the P P = .17). Conclusion The continuum of CLs ≥25 mm measured between 16 0/7 -22 6/7 weeks does not predict gestational length in women with prior spontaneous preterm birth.
Marilyn Quayle meets the press: Marilyn Loses

Analysis of forty newspaper articles appearing in major daily newspapers about Marilyn Quayle, wife of the vice‐presidential candidate and then, wife of the vice‐president reveals the difficulties facing contemporary political spouses as they attempt to break through an established paradigm in which women belong in the private sphere while men are placed in the public sphere. As Marilyn Quayle combined a political and public role with a traditional domestic role, she found herself facing highly critical media reports. These reports focused on the themes of Quayle's clothing, her intelligence and her advisory position to Dan Quayle. Descriptions of her clothing, hairdo, skirt size etc. served to confine her to a traditional role, but when Quayle stepped into a public role appearing as highly intelligent and an influential adviser to her candidate husband, media reports were critical. Additionally, Marilyn Quayle's publicly stated dislike of the press and its coverage violated political protocol and hence b...
The effect of party mobilization, group identity, and racial context on Asian Americans’ turnout

This study examines the effects of party mobilization, racial group identity, and racial context in accounting for Asian Americans’ voter turnout. Existing studies on minority group members’ voter turnout suggest that third party mobilization is one of the most important factors that motivates citizens’ participation in voting. This study expands these studies by elaborating the mechanisms of how party mobilization affects Asian Americans’ voter turnout in connection with racial identity and racial context. Specifically, I propose that belief in pan-ethnic Asian identity and racial context condition the effect of party mobilization in predicting Asian Americans’ voter turnout. The National Asian American Survey of 2008 is used to test this hypothesis. Analysis shows that party mobilization, group identity, and racial context work together in accounting for Asians’ voter turnout. The effect of existing parties’ mobilization efforts on Asians’ political participation is stronger among Asians who do not have...
Human Capital Investment, Migration Strategy, Self Selection, and the Brain Drain

This research was motivated by the increasing number of foreign students and scientists who are in the United States on temporary visas who are able to change their status to permanent immigrant. Origin countries, among them industrialized western European nations, are concerned about losing many of their best educated and most talented citizens. This article modifies and extends a theoretical model of optimal human capital investment before and after migration to shed new light on the emigration/immigration of the highly skilled, and explores some possible implications for the study of the so-called brain drain phenomenon.
A Perturbation Mechanism for Investigations of Phase-Dependent Behavior in Human Locomotion

Bipedal locomotion is a popular area of study across multiple fields (e.g., biomechanics, neuroscience, and robotics). Different hypotheses and models have tried explaining how humans achieve stable locomotion. Perturbations that produce shifts in the nominal periodic orbit of the joint kinematics during locomotion could inform about the manner in which the human neuromechanics represent the phase of gait. Ideally, this type of perturbation would modify the progression of the human subject through the gait cycle without deviating from the nominal kinematic orbits of the leg joints. However, there is a lack of publicly available experimental data with this type of perturbation. This paper presents the design and validation of a perturbation mechanism and an experimental protocol capable of producing phase-shifting perturbations of the gait cycle. The effects of this type of perturbation on the gait cycle are statistically quantified and analyzed in order to show that a clean phase shift in the gait cycle was achieved. The data collected during these experiments will be publicly available for the scientific community to test different hypotheses and models of human locomotion.
Localization of anatomic structures before endodontic surgery with tomograms

Tomograms taken before endodontic surgery can demonstrate the location of root apices relative to adjacent anatomic structures. This buccolingual perspective is not depicted on conventional periapical or panoramic radiographs. Accurate length determination from the root apex to the inferior alveolar canal is simplified, and the relationship of root surfaces to the buccal and lingual plates is well visualized on the tomographic images.
Surface force measurements and simulations of mussel-derived peptide adhesives on wet organic surfaces

Translating sticky biological molecules-such as mussel foot proteins (MFPs)-into synthetic, cost-effective underwater adhesives with adjustable nano- and macroscale characteristics requires an intimate understanding of the glue's molecular interactions. To help facilitate the next generation of aqueous adhesives, we performed a combination of surface forces apparatus (SFA) measurements and replica-exchange molecular dynamics (REMD) simulations on a synthetic, easy to prepare, Dopa-containing peptide (MFP-3s peptide), which adheres to organic surfaces just as effectively as its wild-type protein analog. Experiments and simulations both show significant differences in peptide adsorption on CH3-terminated (hydrophobic) and OH-terminated (hydrophilic) self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), where adsorption is strongest on hydrophobic SAMs because of orientationally specific interactions with Dopa. Additional umbrella-sampling simulations yield free-energy profiles that quantitatively agree with SFA measurements and are used to extract the adhesive properties of individual amino acids within the context of MFP-3s peptide adhesion, revealing a delicate balance between van der Waals, hydrophobic, and electrostatic forces.
The Book Thief: Through the Eyes of Death

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay's first paragraph. "Introduction In Brian Percival’s film, The Book Thief, an ominous narrator pops in and out throughout the movie narrating the protagonist, Liesel's, tragic life story. It is not until the dreary end of the film that we find out the narrator's true identity, Death. It is only appropriate the film and novel would have such a narrator, as Liesel's life has been rattled by death on many circumstances. Many film reviews and essays do not believe Death to be an appropriate narrator. These reviewers feel that Death as a narrator almost pokes fun at the very serious time period the movie focuses on. I, however, do feel that Death is an appropriate narrator." Cover Page Footnote Selected for the Essays on Religion Prize This essay on religion is available in Verbum: http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/verbum/vol13/iss2/11
ICOS promotes the function of CD4+ effector T cells during anti-OX40 mediated tumor rejection

ICOS is a T-cell coregulatory receptor that provides a costimulatory signal to T cells during antigen-mediated activation. Antitumor immunity can be improved by ICOS-targeting therapies, but their mechanism of action remains unclear. Here, we define the role of ICOS signaling in antitumor immunity using a blocking, nondepleting antibody against ICOS ligand (ICOS-L). ICOS signaling provided critical support for the effector function of CD4(+) Foxp3(-) T cells during anti-OX40-driven tumor immune responses. By itself, ICOS-L blockade reduced accumulation of intratumoral T regulatory cells (Treg), but it was insufficient to substantially inhibit tumor growth. Furthermore, it did not impede antitumor responses mediated by anti-4-1BB-driven CD8(+) T cells. We found that anti-OX40 efficacy, which is based on Treg depletion and to a large degree on CD4(+) effector T cell (Teff) responses, was impaired with ICOS-L blockade. In contrast, the provision of additional ICOS signaling through direct ICOS-L expression by tumor cells enhanced tumor rejection and survival when administered along with anti-OX40 therapy. Taken together, our results showed that ICOS signaling during antitumor responses acts on both Teff and Treg cells, which have opposing roles in promoting immune activation. Thus, effective therapies targeting the ICOS pathway should seek to promote ICOS signaling specifically in effector CD4(+) T cells by combining ICOS agonism and Treg depletion. Cancer Res; 76(13); 3684-9. ©2016 AACR.
Materials and Processes for CAD/CAM Complete Denture Fabrication

The motive of this article is to single out the materials and processes available for the fabrication of CAD/CAM complete dentures. CAD/CAM complete denture fabrication has become accessible for complete dentures with a variety of techniques available for the fabrication of the prostheses. The majority of the manufacturers use subtractive manufacturing for the fabrication of their dentures while only one manufacturer proposes an additive technique. Several digital systems are available for the fabrication of CAD/CAM dentures. The integration of CAD/CAM technology into complete denture design and fabrication helps improve the quality of the dentures and simplify the laboratory work. Time-consuming laboratory procedures are reduced or eliminated allowing the dental technician to ensure reproducible, efficient, and accurate prostheses.
Continuum directions for supervised dimension reduction

Abstract Dimension reduction of multivariate data supervised by auxiliary information is considered. A series of basis for dimension reduction is obtained as minimizers of a novel criterion. The proposed method is akin to continuum regression, and the resulting basis is called continuum directions. With a presence of binary supervision data, these directions continuously bridge the principal component, mean difference and linear discriminant directions, thus ranging from unsupervised to fully supervised dimension reduction. High-dimensional asymptotic studies of continuum directions for binary supervision reveal several interesting facts. The conditions under which the sample continuum directions are inconsistent, but their classification performance is good, are specified. While the proposed method can be directly used for binary and multi-category classification, its generalizations to incorporate any form of auxiliary data are also presented. The proposed method enjoys fast computation, and the performance is better or on par with more computer-intensive alternatives.
Initial Performance Assessment of a Control Interface for Unmanned Ground Vehicle Operation Using a Simulation Platform

The successful navigation of Unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) is important as UGVs are being increasingly integrated into tactical and reconnaissance operations. Not only is there the possibility of winding environments but also the narrow passage of obstacles. This study investigated a participant’s ability to navigate a maze environment incorporating narrow hallways, with two different user interfaces, using human in the loop simulation. Participants used a game controller and customized user interface to navigate a simulated UGV through a simulated maze environment. Results indicated that the video-plus-map interface displaying both video and LiDAR data required more time to complete compared to an interface displaying video-only data.
Anti-GP2 IgA: a biomarker for disease severity and/or cholangiocarcinoma in primary sclerosing cholangitis?

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a heterogeneous and complex syndrome with highly variable disease progression and unknown etiopathogenesis, the latter perhaps influenced by the microbiome.1 ,2 Moreover, it is a premalignant disease in that it confers a significant risk for the development of cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) in a subset of patients.3 Detection of CCA in PSC poses a major diagnostic dilemma as inflammation-related dominant strictures in PSC may mimic malignant strictures.3 Contemporary diagnostic modalities for early detection of CCA in patients with PSC remain suboptimal although innovative approaches are emerging.4 Hence, there is a critical need for the development of a biomarker which may identify the subgroup of patients with PSC at risk for CCA. Such a biomarker would enable earlier CCA detection which in turn increases the likelihood of having curative treatment options. Biomarkers, in general, are analytes which can be detected in tissues, cells or body fluids, and signify either the presence of a disease or its outcome.5 The ideal biomarker should be readily detected in a non-invasive manner, and be highly sensitive and specific in its diagnostic, predictive and prognostic capability.5 In this issue, Jendrek et al report a potential biomarker, antiglycoprotein 2 (anti-GP2), in PSC, CCA, as well as secondary sclerosing cholangitis (SSC).6 Autoantibodies against glycoproteins of the pancreatic acini (PABs) are reported to have a high specificity …
Implications of “Too Good to Be True” for Replication, Theoretical Claims, and Experimental Design: An Example Using Prominent Studies of Racial Bias

In response to concerns about the validity of empirical findings in psychology, some scientists use replication studies as a way to validate good science and to identify poor science. Such efforts are resource intensive and are sometimes controversial (with accusations of researcher incompetence) when a replication fails to show a previous result. An alternative approach is to examine the statistical properties of the reported literature to identify some cases of poor science. This review discusses some details of this process for prominent findings about racial bias, where a set of studies seems “too good to be true.” This kind of analysis is based on the original studies, so it avoids criticism from the original authors about the validity of replication studies. The analysis is also much easier to perform than a new empirical study. A variation of the analysis can also be used to explore whether it makes sense to run a replication study. As demonstrated here, there are situations where the existing data suggest that a direct replication of a set of studies is not worth the effort. Such a conclusion should motivate scientists to generate alternative experimental designs that better test theoretical ideas.
Slow Gait Speed and Risk of Long-Term Nursing Home Residence in Older Women, Adjusting for Competing Risk of Mortality: Results from the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures.

Objectives To determine whether slow gait speed increases the risk of costly long-term nursing home residence when accounting for death as a competing risk remains unknown. Design Longitudinal cohort study using proportional hazards models to predict long-term nursing home residence and subdistribution models with death as a competing risk. Setting Community-based prospective cohort study. Participants Older women (mean age 76.3) participating in the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures who were also enrolled in Medicare fee-for-service plans (N = 3,755). Measurements Gait speed was measured on a straight 6-m course and averaged over two trials. Long-term nursing home residence was defined using a validated algorithm based on Medicare Part B claims for nursing home–related care. Results Participants were followed until long-term nursing home residence, disenrollment from Medicare plan, death, or December 31, 2010. Over the follow-up period (median 11 years), 881 participants (23%) experienced long-term nursing home residence, and 1,013 (27%) died before experiencing this outcome. Slow walkers (55% of participants with gait speed <1 m/s) were significantly more likely than fast walkers to reside in a nursing home long-term (adjusted hazards ratio (aHR) = 1.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.54–2.09). Associations were attenuated in subdistribution models (aHR = 1.52, 95% CI = 1.30–1.77) but remained statistically significant. Conclusion Older community-dwelling women with slow gait speed are more likely to experience long-term nursing home residence, as well as mortality without long-term residence. Ignoring the competing mortality risk may overestimate long-term care needs and costs.
Long-Term Material Characterization of a Cured In Place Plastic (CIPP) Sewer Rehabilitation Liner Material

Publisher Summary Cured-In-Place-Plastic (CIPP) pipeline rehabilitation liners are designed to prevent creep-induced collapse caused by external groundwater pressure. Current liner design models account for the time dependent response of liner materials using estimates of the creep modulus at 50 years. Room and elevated temperature creep testing of a CIPP material are reported here in an attempt to more accurately determine the value of the creep modulus at 50 years. The compressive creep modulus predicted at 50 years is found to be 275 ksi. CIPP pipe liners are commonly employed to rehabilitate deteriorated sewer and water lines. Such liners are often installed below the water table and are consequently subjected to external hydrostatic pressure that may lead to creep-induced buckling of the liner within the host pipe before the anticipated service life of 50+ years is achieved. Insufficient understanding of this buckling phenomenon is regarded as a significant limitation of the technology and a barrier to more costeffective sewer rehabilitation.
Organic salt photovoltaics

In this article we review the development of organic salts integrated in organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and the potential capabilities that organic salts enable in OPV devices. Organic salts are ionic compounds composed of either organic cations, anions, or a combination of both. These organic salt semiconductors can exhibit highly tunable properties with absorption throughout the visible and deep into the near-infrared. These characteristics have enabled their integration into traditional OPV cells, multijunctions, and transparent photovoltaic devices with unique applications for windows and similar surfaces. We discuss the tunable properties of these salts that make them desirable for use in a range of applications and the historical development of salt based OPVs to provide an overview of the progress made in efficiencies and device architectures. Among their most exciting properties, organic salts have the ability to enable high efficiency transparent photovoltaics (TPVs), tunable energetics, and highly efficient ultra-deep infrared harvesting.
Quality of Life in Hepatic Encephalopathy

Assessment of health-related quality of life (HRQL) has become an increasingly important outcome for patients with chronic liver diseases and clinical trials for the development of various treatment regimens. In this chapter, we will define quality of life (QoL) and health-related quality of life, and cover the various instruments used for the measurement of HRQL. Descriptions and current use of generic, disease-specific, combination, and health utility instruments are included. In addition, we will review the literature for the implementation of these HRQL instruments in patients with minimal and overt hepatic encephalopathy.
Alternative bedding materials and litter depth impact litter moisture and footpad dermatitis

Abstract A function of bedding material in poultry houses is to absorb and release moisture. New bedding is commonly placed at inadequate depths in houses. Pine shavings are the industry standard for bedding material in the majority of the United States, but can be hard to obtain or costly. Alternative materials were tested for moisture absorption and retention. Peat moss and chopped wheat straw were found to absorb nearly 8× and 7× their own weight in moisture, respectively. Peat moss was then used in a broiler study and compared to fresh and used pine shavings for 6 weeks. Body weight was lower at d 7 for the used litter and peat moss treatment compared to fresh shavings with no differences at d 42. No differences in ammonia generation or litter pH were observed. Litter moisture was higher for peat moss through d 14. Paws were better in the fresh shaving and peat moss pens than used shaving pens at both d 21 and 42. Next, different depths of used and fresh shavings on footpad dermatitis (FPD) were examined. Trials 1 and 2 compared 2.5, 7.6, and 12.7 cm of fresh shavings or used litter, respectively. In Trial 1, 2.5 cm had higher litter moisture than 7.6 and 12.7 cm at d 21, 28, and 35 (P
P167 A case of positive virtual crossmatch and negative crossmatch: Role of fetal calf serum

Case A 69-year-old male with chronic progressive renal failure was evaluated for living donor kidney transplantation. Two prior donors were turned down due to donor specific anti-HLA antibodies (DSA) resulting in a positive flow crossmatch (FXM). Laboratory Testing Low to medium resolution HLA typing was performed on the donor-recipient pair by reverse SSO method. Recipient serum was screened for anti-HLA antibodies by single antigen beads (SAB, LabTYPE, One Lambda) and FXM was performed using donor lymphocytes. Results Donor is 4/6 mismatch with the recipient at HLA-A,B and DR (Donor DR 4,11 and recipient DR 11,13). SAB demonstrated antibodies to HLA-DR4 (DSA) and DR16 with MFI >2000 which is predicted to result in positive FXM at our center. However, FXM was T and B cell negative. Investigations To understand the clinical significance of this DSA, additional investigations were performed. Donor typed as DRB1∗04:04. Surrogate crossmatches with two additional DRB1∗04:04 donors using the same recipient sera were negative. To rule out the possibility of rare donor null allele, crossmatch with the donor cells and surrogate sera with high DRB1∗04:04 MFI, resulted in a positive crossmatch. As the HLA antigens on the beads are derived from cell lines that have been cultured in fetal calf serum (FCS), one could speculate that this reactivity maybe due to binding of naturally occurring heterophile antibodies to beads. To test this hypothesis serum was tested after pre-treating the beads with FCS. Indeed testing recipient sera after FCS treatment resulted in removal of the ‘spurious’ anti-HLA reactivity (figure). Download : Download high-res image (416KB) Download : Download full-size image Conclusions With increasing use of VXM to screen donors, this case adds another exception when positive VXM does not result in positive FXM due to spurious bead reactivity. Such false positive VXM may result in declining a donor for transplantation. Pre-treating the beads with FCS provides target antigens that block this spurious reactivity. We have observed this reactivity specifically to DR4-DR16 beads only.
Power Electronics Building Block (PEBB) design based on 1.7 kV SiC MOSFET modules

This paper presents the design of a Power Electronics Building Block (PEBB) based on 1.7 kV SiC MOSFET power modules. The PEBB is an H-bridge converter module that can be cascaded to construct multilevel converters. Novel designs including gate driver with Rogowski shortcircuit protection, powerful distributed controller, isolated A/D sensor with high common-mode noise rejection, double-side cooling mechanical layout have been achieved. The paper begin with the evolution of PEBB architectures and the specifications of the designed PEBB. It then presents detailed design considerations and solutions of all the critical components. Finally, experimental results demonstrate the excellent performance of the individual components and the PEBB as a unity in various operation modes.
Models Identifying the Determinants Of Investment Spending And Borrowing

Two models were developed to test the sensitivity of government spending to economic events: a total spending model which included goods, services, and transfers spending in total, and a separate goods and services only model. Results indicated that the total spending model was driven by the unemployment rate (transfer spending), the Reagan and Iraq military build ups, and the deep recession of 2009. Goods and services spending, by comparison was more driven by GDP growth, population size growth, and the same shocks as previously noted.
Using Qualtrics Web-based Research Survey Software for Undergraduate Research Projects in aSocial-psychological Aspects of Clothing Course with Millenials

University classrooms are populated by Millennials and generational theory offers insights on teaching them (Strauss & Howe, 2000; Wilson & Gerber, 2008). Generational theory holds that students learn best when faculty consider and adapt to salient characteristics of students’ generation. Since today’s freshmen were typically born in 1994, they grew up being Internet savvy. Millennials expect the world to be customizable and dynamic in terms of access to information (Sweeney, 2006). They expect communication and information to be accessible on-demand, which translates to facility with learning management systems that can be easily accessed for information posted online.
Bilateral chylothorax following reoperative central neck dissection for metastatic papillary thyroid cancer

Locoregional recurrence of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) can occur in up to 30% of patients within 10 years after initial treatment. Reoperative surgery can be challenging due to scarring, fibrosis and distorted anatomy and may be associated with increased complications compared with initial operations. Chylothorax is an extremely rare and potentially life-threatening complication that can be associated with neck dissections and thyroid surgery. In this report, we describe an unusual case of bilateral chylothorax following a left central neck dissection for recurrent PTC.
Light Scattering Experiments in a Gel Saturated with a Liquid Mixture

When a binary mixture is quenched through its critical point, domains of differing composition grow in composition contrast and in spatial size. As the process proceeds, droplets form and coalesce. Finally gravity separates the two phases and a sharp interface appears between them. Our concern here is how this scenario is modified when the liquid mixture is saturating a gel. Light scattering results are discussed in this paper†; in the following one, S. Satija describes neutron scattering experiments which probe phase separation in the gel at smaller length scales. Both sets of experiments suggest that the gel in effect imposes a static random field, or chemical potential, on the mixture.
Methadone Metabolism and Drug-Drug Interactions: In Vitro and In Vivo Literature Review

Abstract Methadone is utilized for the treatment of individuals with opiate dependence. Methadone undergoes N-demethylation by multiple cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes including CYP3A4, CYP2B6, CYP2C19, CYP2D6, CYP2C9, and CYP2C8. In vivo, polymorphism effects on methadone systemic exposure have been noted for CYP2B6, CYP3A4, and CYP2D6. Clinical drug interaction studies with antiviral drugs in methadone maintenance treatment patients yield varying results on methadone pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. In general, CYP inhibitors altered methadone exposure with no adverse effects. CYP inducers generally decreased methadone exposure with some reports of withdrawal symptoms in the subjects. Interaction studies with antiviral drug combinations yielding differing results depend on the enzyme(s) affected. For certain antiviral medicines which are dual inhibitor(s) and inducer(s) for CYP enzymes, their effect on methadone pharmacokinetics can change with time since the effect of induction is usually delayed compared to the effect of inhibition.
The Ethical Implications of Social Media: Issues and Recommendations For Clinical Practice

The Internet and electronic communication technologies have taken the psychological field by storm. From the innovations of new web interventions for easier access to care to the increased ease of ...
Neighborhood Social Integration and Psychological Well-Being Among African Americans and Afro-Caribbeans

Using the National Survey of American Life, this study examines the impact of neighborhood social integration (i.e., contact with neighbors, participation in neighborhood organizations) on mental health (i.e., depressive symptoms, life satisfaction), and the extent to which these associations vary between African Americans (N = 3191) and Afro-Caribbeans (N = 1416). Results reveal that contact with neighbors was associated with greater life satisfaction for both African Americans and Afro-Caribbeans. However, for depressive symptoms, the two groups diverged. Among African Americans, neighbor contact was also associated with fewer depressive symptoms. However, for Afro-Caribbeans, participation in neighborhood groups was associated with fewer depressive symptoms. Thus, it appears that participation in neighborhood organizations is particularly salubrious for Afro-Caribbeans, while frequent contact with neighbors is health-protective for African Americans. This study contributes to a growing literature elucidating how ethnicity shapes the social experiences and psychological well-being of black Americans. In addition, these findings suggest that the neighborhood is a key socio-spatial context that should be included in the broader literature on social integration and health.