cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Patient experience design: expanding usability methodologies for healthcare

Successfully engaging in a health- or medical-related activity is a matter of understanding what one needs to do. This means information used in this context needs to be easy to use. Accomplishing the goals laid out in the essay will facilitate understanding and allow for effective use. Thus, successful medical and health communication are connected to one central concept: usability. But how to achieve this goal? The answer is through patient-focused design practices that help mirror the experiences of patients who are using such materials. This entry overviews such an approach - which I call patient experience design (PXD) - and explains why such an approach is central to best health and medical communication practices.
Electrostatic Polysulfides Confinement to Inhibit Redox Shuttle Process in the Lithium Sulfur Batteries

Cationic polymer can capture polysulfide ions and inhibit polysulfide shuttle effect in lithium sulfur (Li–S) rechargeable batteries, enhancing the Li–S battery cycling performance. The cationic poly[bis(2-chloroethyl) ether-alt-1,3-bis[3-(dimethylamino) propyl]urea] quaternized (PQ) with a high density quaternary ammonium cations can trap the lithium polysulfide through the electrostatic attraction between positively charged quaternary ammonium (R4N+) and negatively charged polysulfide (Sx2–). PQ binder based sulfur electrodes deliver much higher capacity and provide better stability than traditional polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) binder based electrodes in Li–S cells. A high sulfur loading of 7.5 mg/cm2 is achieved, which delivers a high initial areal capacity of 9.0 mAh/cm2 and stable cycling capacity at around 7.0 mAh/cm2 in the following cycles.
On 60 GHz wireless link performance in indoor environments

The multi-Gbps throughput potential of 60 GHz wireless interfaces make them an attractive technology for next-generation gigabit WLANs. For increased coverage, and improved resilience to human-body blockage, beamsteering with high-gain directional antennas is emerging to be an integral part of 60 GHz radios. However, the real-world performance of these state-of-the-art radios in typical indoor environments has not previously been explored well in open literature. To this end, in this paper, we address the following open questions: how do these radios perform in indoor line-of-sight(LOS) and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) locations? how sensitive is performance to factors such as node orientation or placement? how robust is performance to human-body blockage and mobility? Our measurement results from a real office setting, using a first-of-its-kind experimental platform (called Presto), show that, contrary to conventional perception, state-of-the-art 60 GHz radios perform well even in NLOS locations, in the presence of human-body blockage and LOS mobility. While their performance is affected by node (or more precisely, antenna array) orientation, simply using a few more antenna arrays and dynamically selecting amongst them shows potential to address this issue. The implications of these observations is in lowering the barriers to their adoption in next-generation gigabit WLANs.
Intelligent corner synthesis via cycle-consistent generative adversarial networks for efficient validation of autonomous driving systems

Today's automotive vehicles are often equipped with powerful data processing systems for driver assistance and/or autonomous driving. To meet the rigorous safety standard, one critical task is to ensure extremely small failure rate over all possible operation conditions. Such a validation task requires a large amount of on-road testing data to cover all possible corners. In this paper, we describe a novel general-purpose methodology to synthetically and efficiently generate a broad spectrum of corner cases for validation purpose. Our proposed method is based upon cycle-consistent generative adversarial networks (CycleGANs) trained by a small set of image samples to mathematically map a nominal case to other corner cases. By taking STOP sign detection as an example, our numerical experiments demonstrate that the proposed approach is able to reduce the validation error by up to 100× given a limited data set for corner cases.
Copper(II)-Catalyzed Tandem Decarboxylative Michael/Aldol Reactions Leading to the Formation of Functionalized Cyclohexenones.

This work describes the development of a new single-pot copper(II)-catalyzed decarboxylative Michael reaction between β-keto acids and enones, followed by in situ aldolization, which results in highly functionalized chiral and achiral cyclohexenones. The achiral version of this Robinson annulation features a hitherto unprecedented Michael reaction of β-keto acids with sterically hindered β,β′-substituted enones and provides access to all carbon quaternary stereocenter-containing cyclohexenones (11 examples, 43–83% yield). In addition, an asymmetric chiral bis(oxazoline) copper(II)-catalyzed single-pot Robinson annulation has been devised for preparing chiral cyclohexenones, including some products that contain vicinal stereocenters (5 examples, 65–85% yield, 84–94% ee). This latter protocol has been successfully applied to the enantioselective formation of the oxygenated 10-nor-steroid core from readily available starting materials.
The Clinical Dilemma of Cardiac Fibroelastic Papilloma

Cardiac papillary fibroelastomas (CPFEs) are one of the most challenging cardiovascular abnormalities that can be encountered. Although uncommon, some studies have reported them to be more prevalen...
Clinical Impact of Local Progression in Pancreatic Cancer

Background: The high prevalence of distant metastatic disease among patients with pancreatic cancer often draws attention away from the local pancreatic tumor. This study aimed to define the complications and hospitalizations from local versus distant disease progression among a retrospective cohort of patients with pancreatic cancer. Methods: Records of 298 cases of pancreatic cancer treated at a single institution from 2004 through 2015 were retrospectively reviewed, and cancer-related symptoms and complications requiring hospitalization were recorded. Hospitalizations related to pancreatic cancer were attributed to either local or distant progression. Cumulative incidence analyses were used to estimate the incidence of hospitalization, and multivariable Fine-Gray regression models were used to identify factors predictive of hospitalizations. Results: The 1-year cumulative incidences of hospitalization due to local versus distant disease progression were 31% and 24%, respectively. Among 509 recorded hospitalizations, leading local etiologies included cholangitis (10%), biliary obstruction (7%), local procedure complication (7%), and gastrointestinal bleeding (7%). On multivariable analysis, significant predictors of hospitalization from local progression included unresectable disease (subdistribution hazard ratio [SDHR], 2.42; P<.01), black race (SDHR, 3.34; P<.01), younger age (SDHR, 1.02 per year; P=.01), tumor in the pancreatic head (SDHR, 2.19; P<.01), and larger tumor size (SDHR, 1.13 per centimeter; P=.02). Most patients who died in the hospital from pancreatic cancer (56%) were admitted for complications of local disease progression. Conclusions: Patients with pancreatic cancer experience significant complications of local tumor progression. Although distant metastatic progression represents a hallmark of pancreatic cancer, future research should also focus on improving local therapies.
Acute Myocardial Infarct Imaging with 99mTc Stannous Pyrophosphate

A number of radiopharmaceuticals have been shown to concentrate in acutely infarcted myocardium. These include 203Hg-chlormerodrin,1,2 203Hg-mercurifluorescein,3,4 99mTc-tetracycline,5 67Ga,6 99mTc-glucohepatonate,7 and 99mTcphosphates.7,8 The best images to date have been with 99Tc-stannous pyrophosphate (99mTc-PYP). 9–11
Clinical evaluation of an in vitro test for radiosensitivity of leukemic lymphocytes.

A recently developed slide-chamber method was used to test the radiosensitivity of blood lymphocytes from 80 patients with chronic lymphocytic or lymphosarcoma-cell leukemia. The objective of this study was to determine whether these in vitro tests on sensitivity to x-rays had any clinical significance. Two objective criteria were used to measure the clinical reactions of the leukemic patients. The first was the duration of survival of patients following the in vitro test. The second was the minimal leukocyte count of a patient following x-ray therapy; the minimal count was expressed as a percentage of the count before therapy. The in vitro radiosensitivity was measured by the 10 per cent survival time of lymphocytes irradiated with 1000 r. Blood lymphocytes from non-leukemic individuals were highly radiosensitive with indices of 1.1 to 2.2 days. In initial tests, the lymphocytes of 61 leukemic patients had the same high sensitivity to x-rays as lymphocytes from non-leukemic individuals. In contrast, the lymphocytes of 19 leukemic patients were radioresistant to irradiation with indices of 2.5 to 11 days. The 61 patients with radiosensitive lymphocytes had a median survival time of 22 months after the in vitro test. In contrast, the 19 patients with radioresistant lymphocytes had a median survival time of only 4 months. Clinical x-ray therapy caused a greater decline in leukocyte counts in patients with radiosensitive lymphocytes than in those with radioresistant cells. A significant index of 0.60 was obtained for the correlation of in vitro radiosensitivity of lymphocytes and the in vivo decrease in leukocyte counts of patients after x-ray therapy. It is concluded that an in vitro finding of radioresistant lymphocytes is correlated with a poor response of the leukocyte count to x-ray therapy and a short survival time of the patient.
Analysis of ERG a-wave amplification and kinetics in terms of the G- protein cascade of phototransduction

PURPOSE To test rigorously the hypothesis that the a-wave of the electroretinogram (ERG) is proportional to the rod photocurrent by examining the applicability to a-waves of a recent model of the activation steps in the G-protein cascade of phototransduction. METHODS ERGs were recorded in response to flashes of graded intensity, from six dark-adapted normal subjects and from two patients, one with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and one with cone retinal dystrophy with rod involvement (CRD). The a-wave portions of the responses were analyzed with a model of the activation steps of the G-protein cascade. The model is characterized by a parameter, A, the amplification constant, with units of s-2 (per photoisomerization), which may be expressed as the product of physical and biochemical parameters of the transduction cascade. RESULTS Each a-wave family was well described by the model. For the six normal subjects, we obtained A approximately 7 s-2, about 100-fold greater than in isolated amphibian rods at 22 degrees C, but close to the value for isolated primate rods. For the patient with RP, the maximum a-wave amplitude (amax) was considerably reduced, but the amplification constant was normal (A = 7.5 s-2). In contrast, the patient with CRD had a nearly normal amax but had an amplification constant about sixfold lower than normal (A = 1.1 s-2). CONCLUSIONS The authors conclude that the a-wave is a direct reflection of the rod photo-current and that the rising phase kinetics are accurately described by a simple model of the G-protein cascade. They show that the small volume of the human rod outer segment is crucial to the achievement of high amplification, and they show how their observations constrain the possible pathologies of phototransduction in patients with retinal disease.
Blood Coagulation and Blood - Materials Interactions

Abstract The blood coagulation system plays the critical role of maintaining hemostasis in the body by generating thrombus (i.e., a blood clot) to stop the loss of blood when a blood vessel is broken. However, the natural behavior of blood is also to initiate a thrombotic response when it comes in contact with a synthetic material surface. This response is thus problematic when synthetic materials are used in medical devices to treat cardiovascular and vascular problems, which can lead to the failure of the device, blockage of blood flow, or the generation of emboli leading to stroke or organ failure. This chapter addresses these topics by first providing an overview of the blood coagulation system and its connection with the complement and inflammatory systems of the body. An overview of the interactions of blood when it comes in contact with synthetic material surfaces is then provided. This topic is then followed by an overview of the approaches that have been taken in attempts to improve the blood compatibility of medical devices that are used in blood-contacting applications.
Finding Religion, Spirituality, and Flow in Movement: An Ethnography of Value of the Hula Hooping Community

“Moving the body is like religion and moving my body is the portal to that place.” This is one woman’s description of her practice of hoop dancing, a form of hula hooping that combines adult sized hoops and dance music. Her experience is not unique; in fact, the number of descriptions of hooping as a practice that is “like religion” serves as the basis of our research. In this essay, we examine the connection between embodied experiences in the hoop, the identification of those experiences as religious or spiritual, and the communities that are created as hoopers attempt to continually recapture the experiences (of flow) that they deem extraordinary. New religions studies is a field interested in the emergence of new religious paths, and our contribution to this academic discourse is in the form of an ethnography of value of the hoop community as an emerging religious path. Our work attempts to reconceptualize newness in the field through innovations in the hoop community. We examine the ways hoopers deem transformational experiences within the hoop as spiritual or religious and how they construct paths to truth and authenticity through embodied practice. These new religious movements are not institutional nor are they tied to formal creeds; rather, they reflect the ways in which religion has become a category of experience that can create meaningful communities of practice for individuals.
Prevalence rates of substantiated and adjudicated ethics violations

SummaryThis exploratory study examined the ethics violation data from one state’s licensing agency over a 28-year period, from 1985 through 2013. This study used descriptive statistics and chi-squa...
Higher order statistics for anomaly detection in hyper spectral imaging

Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) has become increasingly popular for sensing in defense, commercial, and academic research for its ability to acquire vast amounts of information, relatively quickly, at stand-off distances. As such, the need for rapid or near-real time data reduction is becoming more evident especially when immediate knowledge of the area under investigation is required such as in contested areas, the scene of natural disasters, and other similar scenarios. While analysis of the underlying spectral information may provide specific information about materials present, in HSI determining an anomaly can be just as informative in scenarios such as CB detection for avoidance. Therefore, a rapid, real-time HSI anomaly detection algorithm is merited. In this paper, we present work towards an algorithm for near-real time anomaly detection utilizing higher-order statistics and, in particular, implications due to changes in skewness and kurtosis, the 3rd and 4th central moments. We demonstrate using a visible-SWIR hyperspectral line scanner that anomalies (thiodiglycol and acetaminophen) can be detected in data that is updated to simulate real-time analysis. Changing spectral features result in changes in the probability density function, and can be specifically realized with comparisons of higher order statistics (i.e. skewness and kurtosis), thereby reducing a full spectral analysis at each voxel to a comparison of two values at each pixel. This paper explores utilizing this concept as a means for anomaly detection, evaluating different surfaces that an analyte may be present on, and lastly presents work towards automated background updates for anomaly detection on dynamic surfaces.
A Dynamic Territorializing Approach for Multiagent Task Allocation

In this paper, we propose a dynamic territorializing approach for the problem of distributing tasks among a group of robots. We consider the scenario in which a task comprises two subtasks—detection and completion; two complementary teams of agents, hunters and gatherers, are assigned for the subtasks. Hunters are assigned with the task of exploring the environment, i.e., detection, whereas gatherers are assigned with the latter subtask. To minimize the workload among the gatherers, the proposed algorithm utilizes the center of mass of the known targets to form territories among the gatherers. The concept of center of mass has been adopted because it simplifies the task of territorial optimization and allows the system to dynamically adapt to changes in the environment by adjusting the assigned partitions as more targets are discovered. In addition, we present a game-theoretic analysis to justify the agents’ reasoning mechanism to stay within their territory while completing the tasks. Moreover, simulation results are presented to analyze the performance of the proposed algorithm. First, we investigate how the performance of the proposed algorithm varies as the frequency of territorializing is varied. Then, we examine how the density of the tasks affects the performance of the algorithm. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is verified by comparing its performance against an alternative approach.
6.5 m telescope for multi-object spectroscopy over a 3° field of view.

Multi-object spectroscopy via independently positioned optical fibers is of growing importance in many research areas in astronomy. Currently the most powerful instrument of this type is the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), now being commissioned at the 3.8 m Mayall telescope. It has a 3.2° field of view where spectra of 5000 different objects may be recorded simultaneously. Here we present an optical design for a two-mirror 6.5 m telescope with 3.0° field of view, for an etendue 2.6 times larger than for DESI. The images are at f/3.7 for fiber matching, and -averaged over the field and elevations down to 40°-have a diameter of 0.53 arcsec for 80% encircled energy. We outline methods capable of polishing and testing the 1.56 m diameter gull-wing lens of the wide field corrector. If a 2 m diameter lens could be made, the same design could be scaled up to an 8.4 m primary for a 4.3-fold etendue advantage.
Social Media Research

The use of the social media by people around the globe is widespread. This chapter discusses the contribution which social media research can offer to pharmacovigilance and medicinal product risk communication research. While the use of the social media itself and the development of social media strategies are important topics for research, this chapter focusses on the methods of social media listening and crowdsourcing of information, and provides examples of their utility. It highlights opportunities, limitations, challenges as well as ethical and legal aspects that need to be addressed for future research.
Baseline Oral Microbiome and All-cancer Incidence in a Cohort of Nonsmoking Mexican American Women.

Given the increasing evidence that the oral microbiome is involved in obesity, diabetes, and cancer risk, we investigated baseline oral microbiota profiles in relation to all-cancer incidence among nonsmoking women enrolled in a Texas cohort of first- and second-generation immigrants of Mexican origin. We characterized the 16Sv4 rDNA microbiome in oral mouthwash samples collected at baseline from a representative subset of 305 nonsmoking women, ages 20–75 years. We evaluated within- (alpha) and between-sample (beta) diversity by incident cancer status and applied linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect size analysis to assess differentially abundant taxa. Diversity and candidate taxa in relation to all-cancer incidence were evaluated in multivariable-adjusted Cox regression models. Over 8.8 median years of follow-up, 31 incident cancer cases were identified and verified. Advanced age, greater acculturation, and cardiometabolic risk factors were associated with all-cancer incidence. Higher alpha diversity (age-adjusted Pdifference 8-fold increase in all-cancer and obesity-related cancer risk [multivariable-adjusted HR (95% confidence interval), 8.11 (3.14–20.94) and 10.72 (3.30–34.84), respectively] with similar findings for the inverse Simpson index. Streptococcus was enriched among women who did not develop cancer, while Fusobacterium, Prevotella, Mogibacterium, Campylobacter, Lachnoanaerobaculum, Dialister, and Atopobium were higher among women who developed cancer (LDA score ≥ 3; q-value Prevention Relevance: Mexican American women suffer a disproportionate burden of chronic health conditions that increase cancer risk. Few investigations of the microbiome, a key determinant of host health, have been conducted among this group. Oral microbiota profiles may provide early and accessible cancer biomarker data on invasive bacteria or community disruptions.
Regional disparities in emissions reduction and net trade from renewables

Operational constraints of the power system and inter-regional trade of electricity make it challenging to predetermine the reduction in emissions from the integration of solar and wind power. Using spatially resolved historical data for solar and wind generation, fossil fuel-based generation, emissions and exports, we isolate the impacts of renewable integration for multiple regions spanning the United States. Here we show regional differences for the reduction of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions, with a wider range of outcomes for regional wind power. Given the heterogeneity in transmission infrastructure, some regions have limited capacity to increase electricity exports to neighbouring regions. For both solar and wind generation, we identify the regions that retain nearly all of the emissions reductions locally and those that increase net exports, reducing emissions in neighbouring regions. Our results show lower rates of emissions mitigation than previous studies that relied on less-contemporary data or utilized simulated renewable generation. These differences may reflect the longer-term trends in power-sector emissions reductions and the importance of utilizing observed renewable generation data. An analysis of spatially explicit historical data shows notable regional differences in the benefits in reduced emissions from integrating renewable energy across the United States.
The Conflict Between Stare Decisis and Overruling in Constitutional Adjudication

Neither Supreme Court Justices, nor scholars who have written on the subject, take the view that the Constitution constrains the Court’s power to overrule its constitutional precedents. This essay argues that the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause requires a constitutional law of overruling. Moreover, it proposes such a law on the basis of a conjunction of Marbury v. Madison, Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee, and Cohens v. Virginia, together with Article III’s “case or controversy” requirement. I suggest that the Court should ask whether a precedent in question significantly impairs the constitutionalized Rule of Law. If it does, stare decisis would lapse for the Court, which then could freely consider whether to overrule. I argue that this approach provides due process, is conceptually sound, and is normatively attractive in the constitutional context.
Impacts of alternate wetting and drying and delayed flood rice irrigation on growing season evapotranspiration

Abstract As rice production is water intensive, establishing an accurate field–scale water budget is paramount for sustainable use of local water resources. This study’s goal was to quantify and characterize half-hourly and seasonal evapotranspiration (ET) in two commercial, zero–grade rice fields in the U.S. Mid–South over three growing seasons. During each growing season, irrigation regimes for the studied fields differed between alternate wetting and drying (AWD) and delayed flooding (DF). The 2015 growing season enabled a direct comparison of the effects of AWD and DF on ET, while during the 2016 and 2017 seasons both fields were simultaneously under AWD and DF, respectively. The DF method is the region’s most common irrigation practice, and it prescribes a continuous flood to be maintained for the majority of the growing season after the plants have reached the 5-leaf growth stage (40–50 days after planting). In contrast, after holding this initial flooding for 3 weeks, AWD allows for field drying to promote the capture of seasonal rains to reduce irrigation water withdrawal and associated water pumping costs. In this study, ET was estimated using gap–filled eddy covariance observations and two variations of the Penman–Monteith equation. These methods determined growing season ET values between 560 mm and 636 mm. This study found that there were no significant differences in cumulative ET or yield when comparing AWD to DF practices. Furthermore, AWD elicited no change in ET during periods of drying when compared to DF. By this metric, AWD did not induce drought stress within the plants. We conclude that the main benefit of the AWD practice is to take advantage of seasonal rainfall to offset pumping costs and pressure on irrigation water requirements while maintaining yields comparable to conventional irrigation practices.
Nutritional and dietary interventions to prolong renal allograft survival after kidney transplantation.

Purpose of review Diet plays an important role in slowing progression of chronic kidney disease in native and transplanted kidneys. There is limited evidence on the association on dietary intake with renal allograft function. Mechanisms of major nutrients and dietary patterns with focusing on a plant-based diet related to kidney transplant health and longevity are reviewed. Recent findings High dietary protein intake may adversely affect renal allograft. Low protein plant-focused diets such as Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, plant-dominant low-protein diet and Mediterranean diets appear associated with favorable outcomes in slowing renal allograft function decline. The mechanism may be related to a change in renal hemodynamic by decreasing glomerular hyperfiltration from low dietary protein intake and plant-based ingredients. Recent observational studies of association between dietary protein intake and kidney allograft outcomes are conflicting. Although strong evidence is still lacking, a low protein diet of 0.6-0.8 g/kg/day with at least 50% of the protein source from plant-based components in kidney transplant recipients with stable kidney allograft function should be considered as the dietary target. Summary Dietary intervention with low-protein plant-focused meals may improve outcomes in kidney transplant recipients, but the evidence remains limited and further studies are warranted.
Predicting Vehicle Recalls with User-Generated Contents: A Text Mining Approach

Vehicle safety issues and component defects result in property losses and fatalities. Our study proposes a new method to predict vehicle recalls based on user generated contents in online discussion forums. Vehicle defects can cause bodily injuries and sometimes deadly consequences. However, vehicle recalls will not be issued until damage has occurred. Online vehicle discussion forums usually contain traits of vehicle defects long before manufacturers and government agencies take investigative actions. We find overlapping components in user generated contents and official recall notices. Our proposed recall prediction method can correctly predict vehicle recalls once in every two recall events. It is our hope that our proposed technique can be used to monitor online vehicle discussion forums and prompt the manufacturers and government agencies to issue recalls before catastrophic accidents occur. Our research has significant practical implications to vehicle and transportation safety.
Copy Elimination for Parallelizing Compilers

Techniques for aggressive optimization and parallelization of applications can have the side-effect of introducing copy instructions, register-to-register move instructions, into the generated code. This preserves program correctness while avoiding the need for global searchand-update of registers. However, copy instructions only transfer data between registers while requiring the use of system resources (ALUs) and are essentially overhead operations which can potentially limit performance. Conventional copy propagation and copy removal techniques are not powerful enough to remove these copies as, during loop parallelization, the lifetimes of the values copied may span over loop boundaries. In this paper, we present a technique for copy removal that incrementally unrolls a loop body and re-allocates registers to values so that no copy operations are required. We also present a heuristic version that limits the amount of unrolling and present experimentation that demonstrates the necessity of copy removal in gaining improved code performance.
Are stock prices excessively sensitive to current information

Abstract Joerding (1988) tests excess market volatility using unconditional population variances, but incorrectly equates a population moment with a finite sample statistic without adequate consideration of the sampling distribution. Finite sample statistics are particularly likely to be biased estimators of population parameters in this setting, as is well documented in this literature. Providing point estimates without an indication of the finite sample distribution is inadequate as evidence that the stock market is excessively volatile.
Tissue-specific forms of type IX collagen-proteoglycan arise from the use of two widely separated promoters.

Abstract We demonstrate that the gene encoding an extracellular matrix component contains two widely separated promoters controlling the generation of different transcripts in a tissue-specific fashion. Two transcription start sites, about 20 kilobase pairs apart, in the alpha 1(IX) collagen gene are utilized to generate different forms of a collagen-proteoglycan (collagen IX) in chicken cartilage and cornea. Transcripts from the upstream site encode a large (266 amino acid residues) globular domain at the amino terminus of alpha 1(IX) chains, whereas the transcripts from the downstream site encode chains that lack this globular domain and contain a short alternative sequence. Transcripts from the upstream site are predominantly present in cartilage, and transcripts from the downstream site are predominantly used in cornea. The structural differences in collagen IX molecules that are synthesized as a consequence of the use of these two alternative transcription start sites in the alpha 1(IX) gene are likely to contribute to the differences in the macromolecular organization of the extracellular matrix in cartilage and cornea. Our finding provides a novel clue to answering the general question of what mechanisms are used to generate unique fibrillar patterns in different tissues.
TGFβ produced by IL-10 redirected astrocytes attenuates microglial activation.

While there clearly is an intimate relationship between astrocytes and microglia, few studies have examined these potentially dynamic interactions. In this study, cytokine-mediated communication between microglia and astrocytes under inflammatory conditions was investigated. We have previously shown that activated microglia produce Interleukin (IL)-10, a regulatory cytokine that plays an important role in resolving neuroinflammation. Nonetheless, the mechanism by which IL-10 attenuates pro-inflammatory cytokine expression in the brain is unclear. Here, we show that IL-10 redirected astrocytes regulate the activation of microglia in a transforming growth factor (TGF)-β dependent manner. In support of this concept, astrocytes in the brain maintained higher IL-10 receptor (IL-10R1) expression and primary astrocytes in culture were markedly more sensitive to the anti-inflammatory effects of IL-10 compared with microglia. Moreover, studies using primary cultures and an astrocyte-microglia coculture system revealed that astrocytes mediated the anti-inflammatory effects of IL-10 on microglia through the production of TGFβ. For instance, only when astrocytes were present did IL-10 stimulation reduce the expression of IL-1β and increase expression of anti-inflammatory mediators fractalkine receptor (CX3CR1) and interleukin 4 receptor-α (IL-4Rα) in microglia. Importantly, these IL-10-astrocyte dependent effects on microglia were blocked by a TGFβ inhibitor. Furthermore, inhibition of TGFβ signaling in the brain resulted in prolonged sickness behavior and amplified pro-inflammatory cytokine expression in mice challenged with lipopolysaccharide. Taken together, IL-10 stimulated the production of TGFβ by astrocytes, which in turn, attenuated microglial activation. Overall, these findings provide novel insight into the mechanisms by which astrocytes modulate microglia under inflammatory conditions. GLIA 2014;62:881–895
Acquired Glanzmann's thrombasthenia associated with Hodgkin's lymphoma: a case report and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND Acquired Glanzmann's thrombasthenia is a rare hemorrhagic diathesis resulting from impaired adhesive function of the platelet receptor GPIIb/IIIa (αIIbβ3). Typically, this disorder develops during adulthood, with patients manifesting fluctuating clinical and laboratory findings. To date, the underlying defect of most if not all cases of acquired Glanzmann's thrombasthenia results from an autoantibody or plasma protein inhibitor directed toward a demonstrably normal GPIIb/IIIa glycoprotein. METHODS In this report, a patient with a history of treated Hodgkin's lymphoma presented with a severe hemorrhagic diathesis characterized by mild thrombocytopenia, a prolonged bleeding time, and defective platelet aggregation. RESULTS Examination of the patient's platelet GPIIb/IIIa by Western blot analysis revealed no abnormality. Mixing studies demonstrated a non-immunoglobulin G plasma inhibitory factor, whereas flow cytometry analysis revealed elevated platelet-associated immunoglobulin (Ig) M. After an emergency colectomy for severe hemorrhage, the patient's qualitative and quantitative platelet parameters significantly improved. Pathology of the resected colonic segment demonstrated atypical lymphoid hyperplastic lesions. CONCLUSIONS To the authors' knowledge, this is the first reported case of acquired Glanzmann's thrombasthenia associated with a putative IgM autoantibody. Furthermore, this report verifies the association of acquired thrombasthenia with lymphoproliferative disease. Although rare, awareness of this hemorrhagic diathesis as a possible sequelae of active or treated lymphoid disorders should encourage clinical vigilance of these patients. Cancer 1998;82:1764-8. © 1998 American Cancer Society.
Discovering the Densest Subgraph in MapReduce for Assortative Big Natural Graphs

Discovering the densest subgraph is important in graph analysis, which has wide-ranging applications from social network community mining to the discovery of biological network modules. However, the previous algorithms neglect the connectivity of the dense subgraph since it is a challenge to give consideration to both subgraph structure and time efficiency. As a result, it may lead to isolated subgraphs in the output though they aim to find one connected dense subgraph. Also, there are lacking of efficient algorithms for big natural graphs, especially considering datasets become increasingly larger in this era of Big Data. Furthermore, previous algorithms fail to take advantage of various features of natural graphs (e.g., power-law degree distribution, homophyly of vertices, and power-law community size) which can be applied to improve the efficiency and precision of the densest subgraph discovery. To handle these problems, we design a heuristic algorithm for discovering the connected densest subgraph for massive undirected graphs in a MapReduce framework by taking advantage of the features of natural graphs. Experimental results show that our algorithm is capable of discovering the connected densest subgraph. Also, it can reduce the running times by 62\% for average and discover denser subgraphs in 50\% of the real datasets and 88\% of the simulated datasets comparing with previous algorithm in a MapReduce framework.
A decentralized control scheme for a high performance turbine

The problem of improving the performance and stability of a gas turbine engine operating throughout the whole flight envelope in the presence of predominantly destructive dynamical interactions is addressed in this paper. The controller structure aimed for in this work is decentralized, thus making the system tolerant to soft and/or hard failures while at the same time allowing the tuning of every loop separately. >
Fallacies of the Public Goods Theory and the Production of Security

In 1849, at a time when classical liberalism was still the dominant ideological force and “economist” and “socialist” were generally — and rightly so — considered antonyms, Gustave de Molinari, a renowned Belgian economist, wrote, “If there is one well-established truth in political economy, it is this: That in all cases, of all commodities that serve to provide for the tangible or intangible need of the consumer, it is in the consumer’s best interest that labor and trade remain free, because the freedom of labor and trade have as their necessary and permanent result the maximum reduction of price. And this: That the interest of the consumer of any commodity whatsoever should always prevail over the interests of the producer. Now, in pursuing these principles, one arrives at this rigorous conclusion: That the production of security should in the interest of consumers of this intangible commodity remain subject to the law of free competition. Whence it follows: That no government should have the right to prevent another government from going into competition with it, or require consumers of security to come exclusively to it for this commodity.” 1 And he comments on this whole argument by saying, “Either this is logical and true, or else the principles on which economic science is based are invalid.”2
Physiology and pathophysiology of skeletal muscle contractions. Part II. Static activity.

An overview is presented of the physiology and pathophysiology of dynamic skeletal muscle contractions in the intact living organism. Dynamic muscle activities are divided into concentric contractions with shortening of muscle fibres and the production of positive work, and eccentric contractions with lengthening of muscle fibres and the production of negative work. In positive work, muscle tension overcomes external forces. In negative work, external forces overcome muscle tension. The latter phenomenon, with relatively few active motor units, explains the injuries induced by eccentric contractions. Both the contractile and non-contractile elements are involved in the muscle injuries and, clinically, they are referred to as myofibrositis.
An indirect, quantifiable assay for cytophilic antibody.

Abstract An indirect, quantifiable method for in vitro measurement of anti-SRBC antibody cytophilic for macrophages is described. The procedure consists of adding dilutions of normal or immune serum to 4 × 106 macrophages in 35 mm plastic petri dishes for 1 h at 4°C. The plates are thoroughly washed to remove unbound antibody and 2 × 10751Cr-SRBC are added for 2 h at 4°C. Total cpm in the plates is determined, non-bound 51Cr-SRBC are removed by washing and the plates are re-counted. Percent binding is calculated from these two values. The assay provides data consistent with visual determinations of number of SRBC/100 macrophages but has less variability and is performed more rapidly and easily than the visual method.
Na+ channels must deactivate to recover from inactivation.

Abstract We studied the kinetics of recovery from inactivation of voltage-dependent Na + channels in rat hippocampal CA1 neurons. Recovery proceeded exponentially after an initial delay and was accompanied by a tiny ionic current. Both the delay and the time constant of recovery became shorter with increasing hyperpolarization. Negative to −170 mV, the rate of recovery saturated at ∼4 ms −1 (22°C). Recovery from block by the anticonvulsant drug diphenylhydantoin was far slower, but the pattern of voltage dependence was very similar. Our results suggest that, analogous to the coupling between Na + channel activation and the development of inactivation, recovery from inactivation is coupled to channel deactivation. Such coupling ensures very little "leak" Na + current during recovery and a highly voltage-sensitive repriming of Na + channels for the next impulse.
The Genetics of Hypodontia

A large body of family data was analyzed to explain the genetics of hypodontia. Two multiple threshold models that were developed for quasicontinuous traits were used. The data fit the polygenic model much better than they fit the single major gene model.
Hamiltonian and action principle formalisms for spin-1/2 magnetohydrodynamics

A Hamiltonian and Action Principle formulation of spin-1/2 magnetohydrodynamics is presented via a first-principles derivation of the underlying Lagrangian, and the associated Hamiltonian. The derivation invokes the notion of “frozen-in” constraints, symmetry breaking, and similarities with Ginzburg-Landau theory to arrive at the relevant terms in the Hamiltonian. The model thus obtained includes the effects of spin and other quantum corrections and is shown to be in full agreement with existent models in the literature. It is also indicated how two-fluid effects, gyroviscosity, and anisotropic pressure can be included in the model, in addition to incorporating higher-order (nonlinear) quantum spin corrections. An interesting analogy with the theory of liquid crystals is also highlighted.
Hardware acceleration of multi-deme genetic algorithm for the application of DNA codeword searching

A large and reliable DNA codeword library is key to the success of DNA based computing. Searching for sets of reliable DNA codewords is an NP-hard problem, which can take days on state-of-art high performance cluster computers. This work presents a hybrid architecture that consists of a general purpose microprocessor and a hardware accelerator for accelerating the multi-deme genetic algorithm (GA) for the application of DNA codeword searching. The presented architecture provides more than 1000X speed-up compared to a software only implementation. A code extender that uses exhaustive search to produce locally optimum codes in about 1.5 hours for the case of length 16 codes is also described. The experimental results demonstrate that the GA can find ~99% of the words in locally optimum libraries. Finally, we investigate the performance impact of migration, mating and mutation functions in the hardware accelerator. The analysis shows that a modified GA without mating is the most effective for DNA codeword searching.
SU‐FF‐T‐222: Evaluation of Commercial QA Software for Independent IMRT Dose Calculations

Purpose: To evaluate the use of IMSure QA software for IMRT dose calculations by comparison with experimental ion chamber measurements. Method and Materials: IMSure QA software (Standard Imaging) was used to calculate dose to isocenter for 80 dynamic IMRT patient plans: 50 prostate IMRT plans and 30 head and neck IMRT plans. The results were compared with patient‐specific QA measurements where dose was measured in a 16×30×30cm solid water phantom using an Exradin A14 ion chamber. Plans were specifically chosen to include as large a fraction as possible that either failed our 3% criteria for agreement with ion chamber, or marginally passed it. Results: Agreement between IMSure and ion chamber measurements was −0.8% ± 1.5% (overall agreement range −3.7% – +3.6%) and 0.2 ± 2.0% (range: −4.2% – +5.6%) for the prostate and head and neck cases, respectively. This is similar to agreement between Eclipse and ion chamber for the same patient group, which was 1.0±1.5% and 0.1±2.1%. Based on 3% pass/fail criteria, IMSure correctly identified 5 of 9 prostate cases that failed the ion chamber measurement, and 1 of 5 head and neck cases. This gives an overall true positive rate (failures correctly identified) of 43%. IMSure also incorrectly identified 1 prostate and 2 head and neck cases (from 66 cases which passed the ion chamber QA) as failures, giving a false positive rate (passes identified as failures) of 5% for this set of plans. Conclusion: Agreement between IMSure and ion chamber is sufficiently good that IMSure may be useful as a first check of the treatment planningdosimetry, but care is needed in determining an appropriate action level. Ion chamber or similar QA measurements will still be needed.
Demonstration of psychometric soundness of the Dietary Sodium Restriction Questionnaire in patients with heart failure.

Purpose Recommendation of a low-sodium diet is the most common nonpharmacologic intervention used in patients with heart failure (HF). However, nonadherence to this recommendation is extremely high. There are no instruments available for the specific measurement of patients' perceptions of their barriers to, and attitudes toward, following a low-sodium diet. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of a new instrument, the Dietary Sodium Restriction Questionnaire (DSRQ). Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), the DSRQ assesses adherence through the use of 3 subscales. Each subscale represents a construct of the TPB: attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control. Methods The sample consisted of 174 patients with HF (age 62.4 ± 13.5 years, 56.1% were male, 83.8% were white, and 86.9% had New York Heart Association class II/III). Factorial validity was tested using principal component analysis. Reliability was tested using Cronbach's alpha to assess the internal consistency of the 3 subscales. Reliability was further evaluated with item-total correlations and inter-item correlations. Results Principal component analysis of the DSRQ resulted in the extraction of 3 factors, each factor corresponding to a construct of the TPB. The 3-factor solution explained a total of 54.2% of the variance, with Attitude contributing 23.4%, Perceived Behavioral Control contributing 18.1%, and Subjective Norm contributing 12.7%. The Cronbach's coefficient alpha for each subscale was Attitude .88, Subjective Norm .62, and Perceived Behavioral Control .76. Conclusions The DSRQ is a valid and reliable tool for measuring patients' attitudes, beliefs, and barriers related to following a low-sodium diet in adult, white patients with New York Heart Association class II/III HF.