cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Impacts of Wind Power Uncertainty on Grid Vulnerability to Cascading Overload Failures

Higher penetration of renewables like wind power generation will introduce an unprecedented amount of uncertainty into the grid that might severely affect the grid vulnerability to cascading failures. In this study, we propose a mixed OPF-stochastic approach to analyze and simulate cascading failures in power grid and to evaluate the impact of wind generation in terms of its penetration and uncertainty level. The proposed approach incorporates both thermal stability model for transmission line outage and automatic power balance algorithms. Numerical simulation results on the IEEE 300 bus system indicate that uncertainty coming from wind energy has severe impacts on grid vulnerability to cascading overload failures under different contingency scenarios. Results also suggest that higher penetration levels of wind energy, if not managed appropriately, will add to this severity because higher uncertainties may be injected into weaker lines in a grid.
Population Estimates, Health Care Characteristics, and Material Hardship Experiences of U.S. Children With Parent-Reported Speech-Language Difficulties: Evidence From Three Nationally Representative Surveys

Purpose To provide estimates for the prevalence of parent-reported speech-language difficulties in U.S. children, and to describe the levels of health care access and material hardship in this popu...
Timing of Intubation in Acute Respiratory Failure Associated With Sepsis: A Mixed Methods Study

Abstract Objective To analyze bedside clinicians' perspectives regarding the decision process to optimize timing of intubation in sepsis-associated acute respiratory failure. Participants and Methods This mixed methods study was conducted from March 1, 2015, through June 30, 2016. Using qualitative research methods, factors that influenced variability in the decision to intubate were organized into categories and used to build a theoretical explanatory model grounded in current practice variance. All coding schemes were independently reviewed for accuracy and consistency. Themes and findings were then refined with member checking by feedback from individuals and from an anonymous questionnaire until saturation was achieved. Results The practice of intubation varied according to 3 domains: (1) patient factors included the nature of the acute illness, comorbidities, clinical presentation, severity, trajectory, and values and preferences; (2) clinician factors included background, training, experience, and practice style; and (3) system factors included workload, policies and protocols, hierarchy, communications, culture, and team dynamics. In different contexts, intubation was considered early (elective), just in time (urgent), or late (rescue). The initial assessment, initial decision, and reassessment mattered. Conclusion Recognizing that the variability in both the decision to intubate and its timing depends on many factors, and not on clinical criteria alone, should render the clinician more attentive to the eventual progression of the acute respiratory failure.
Patch Testing with Decyl and Lauryl Glucoside: How Well Does One Screen for Contact Allergic Reactions to the Other?

Background Alkyl glucoside surfactants, present in many cosmetic products, can cause allergic contact dermatitis. Decyl glucoside has been part of the North American Contact Dermatitis Group standard allergen panel since 2009. Objectives This study aimed to identify rates and relevance of positive patch test reactions to decyl and lauryl glucosides and to determine how well one of these glucosides screens for contact allergic reactions to the other. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on 897 patients suspected of having a cosmetic-related dermatitis and patch tested with both decyl and lauryl glucosides between 2009 and 2016. Results Forty-eight patients (5%) had positive reactions to decyl glucoside and/or lauryl glucoside. Among the alkyl glucoside-allergic patients, 65% had positive reactions to both decyl and lauryl glucosides. In 41% of cases, reactions were of definite or probable relevance. In approximately 55% of cases, reactions were of possible relevance. Conclusions Sixty-five percent of glucoside-allergic patients exhibited co-reactions to decyl and lauryl glucosides. Thus, neither glucoside is an adequate screen for allergy to the other. Given that these reactions are often relevant, clinicians should patch test with decyl, lauryl, and other alkyl glucosides in cases of suspected cosmetic allergy.
Copper and sulfur isotope ratios in Paleozoic-hosted Mississippi Valley-type mineralization in Wisconsin, USA

Abstract We provide the first Cu-isotope data for chalcopyrite in Paleozoic carbonate-hosted Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) mineralization, along with corresponding sulfur isotopes, for eastern Wisconsin, USA. Chalcopyrite in this region occurs mainly as disseminated crystals and is associated with regionally extensive dolomite-hosted subeconomic MVT mineralization on the western edge of the ancestral Michigan Basin. A narrow range in δ65Cu values (0 ± 0.5‰) for chalcopyrite is observed along a large region (125 km) of the western margin of the basin that is consistent with a homogeneous Cu-source in the crust with a δ65Cu composition near 0‰, along with limited redox modification during regional flow or hydrothermal precipitation processes. Cu and S-isotope values, in conjunction with existing lead, strontium, and sulfur isotope data from other sulfide minerals in the region, are consistent with a Precambrian source similar to parts of the Midcontinent Rift System, but distinct from some other Precambrian deposits in the region.
Improving Study Outcomes for College Students With Executive Functioning Challenges

Over the past decade, there has been an increase in postsecondary programs seeking to meet the needs of students with high incidence disabilities (e.g., learning disability, attention deficit hyper...
Chapter II Production Planning

Diverse aspects of production planning and related issues are addressed by the papers in this chapter. A taxonomy of event-driven Al-based expert systems is presented in the first paper. It focuses especially on the synergy between the use of such systems and the issues of deriving parallel algorithms for real-time applications. The second paper compares the new lot sizing policy methodology termed DLIC (Dynamic Least Incremental Cost) for variable demand pattern with the well known policies using a variety of demand patterns. The problem of real-time scheduling is addressed by the third paper. Specifically, the potential application of discrete event computer simulation to aid system control in real-time decision-making is analyzed.
Time-Periodic Systems

Nonlinear dynamical systems with only one space dimension can undergo a transition to chaos if they are driven by a time-periodic force. In this chapter, we focus on the dynamics of quantum systems with time-periodic Hamiltonians as they undergo a transition from a regime in which they exhibit integrable-like behavior to a regime where they exhibit the manifestations of chaos. Time-periodic systems have discrete time-translation invariance, and their dynamics is constrained by conservation laws. For such systems, the Floquet energy (also called quasienergy) is a constant of the motion even in the presence of a transition to chaos in the underlying classical phase space. For intense time-periodic fields, the Floquet states appear to describe coherent photon structures that result from the interaction between the driving field and the nonlinear forces of the driven system.
Train-Level and Car-Level Modeling of Hazardous Materials Release in Railroad Incidents:

This paper quantifies the impacts of incident, railroad, environment. and train/car characteristics on the probability of hazardous material (hazmat) release in a hazmat-carrying train incident and...
Accurate and Efficient Plate and Rod Micro Finite Element Whole Bone Models Based on High-Resolution Peripheral Computed Tomography.

The high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HRpQCT) provides unprecedented visualization of bone microstructure and the basis for constructing patient-specific micro-finite element (µFE) models. Based on HRpQCT images, we have developed a plate rod µFE (PRµFE) method for whole bone segments using individual trabecula segmentation (ITS) and an adaptive cortical meshing technique. In contrast to the conventional voxel approach, the complex microarchitecture of the trabecular compartment is simplified into shell and beam elements based on the trabecular plate-and-rod configuration. Compared to voxel-based µFE models of µCT and mechanical testing, nonlinear analyses of stiffness and yield strength using the HRpQCT-based PRµFE models demonstrated high correlation and accuracy, indicating that the combination of segmented trabecular plate-rod morphology and adjusted cortical mesh adequately captures mechanics of the whole bone segment. Meanwhile, the PRµFE approach reduced model size by nearly 300-fold and shortened computation time for nonlinear analysis from days to within hours, permitting broader clinical application of HRpQCT-based nonlinear µFE modeling. Furthermore, the presented approach was tested using a subset of radius and tibia HRpQCT scans of patients with prior vertebral fracture from a previous study. Results indicated that yield strength for radius and tibia predicted by the PRµFE model was effective in discriminating vertebral fracture subjects from non-fractured controls. In conclusion, the PR µFE model of HRpQCT images accurately predicted mechanics for whole bone segments and can serve as a valuable clinical tool to evaluate musculoskeletal diseases.
Black, Poor, and Gone: Civil Rights Law's Inner-City Crisis

In recent years, academics committed to a new law and sociology of poverty and inequality have sounded a call to revisit the inner city as a site of cultural and socio-legal research. Both advocates in anti-poverty and civil rights organizations, and scholars in law school clinical and university social policy programs, have echoed this call. Together they have embraced the inner city as a context for experiential learning, qualitative research, and legal-political advocacy regarding concentrated poverty, neighborhood disadvantage, residential segregation, and mass incarceration. Indeed, for academics, advocates, and activists alike, the inner city stands out as a focal point of innovative theory-practice integration in the fields of civil and criminal justice. Today, in the post-civil rights era, new socio-legal research on the inner city casts a specially instructive light on the past, present, and future work of community-based advocacy groups, anti-poverty and civil rights organizations, and law school clinical programs. That light illuminates the socioeconomic conditions that cause and perpetuate poverty, and, equally important, the government (federal, state, and local) policies and practices that spawn mass eviction and reinforce residential segregation. Widely adopted by municipalities, those displacement-producing and segregation-enforcing policies and practices—neighborhood zoning, land use designation, building condemnation and demolition, and housing code under- or over-enforcement—have caused and will continue to cause the involuntary removal of low-income tenants and homeowners from gentrifying urban spaces and their forced out-migration to impoverished suburban spaces. Despite more than fifty years of law reform campaigns in the field of fair housing, neither legal advocates nor civic activists in gentrifying neighborhoods across the nation have been able to halt the pace of eviction or reduce the intensity of residential segregation. Moreover, neither advocates nor activists have been able to refocus law reform campaigns on the vital intersection of fair housing, concentrated poverty, and public health in the built environment. As a result of this twin failure, both fair housing advocates and activists bear daily witness to civil rights law’s inner-city crisis. To understand the crisis of civil rights law in failing to alleviate poverty and ameliorate segregation in the nation’s urban and suburban areas and failing to envision fair housing in the broader terms of environmental health and justice, this Article maps the current landscape of poverty, displacement, and segregation in American metropolitan areas, examines fair housing litigation theories of disparate-impact and segregative-effect liability, and evaluates the promise of fair housing law reform campaigns in combating concentrated poverty and residential segregation and in integrating a vision of environmental health and justice.
Lost in translation: Mystery of the missing text solved

A discovered letter explains the loss of key paragraphs during the translation of one of Georges Lemaitre's papers about the expanding Universe, shows Mario Livio.
Long Noncoding RNA H19 Impairs the Intestinal Barrier by Suppressing Autophagy and Lowering Paneth and Goblet Cell Function.

Background & Aims The protective intestinal mucosal barrier consists of multiple elements including mucus and epithelial layers and immune defense; nonetheless, barrier dysfunction is common in various disorders. The imprinted and developmentally regulated long noncoding RNA H19 is involved in many cell processes and diseases. Here, we investigated the role of H19 in regulating Paneth and goblet cells and autophagy, and its impact on intestinal barrier dysfunction induced by septic stress. Methods Studies were conducted in H19-deficient (H19-/-) mice, mucosal tissues from patients with sepsis, primary enterocytes, and Caco-2 cells. Septic stress was induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP), and gut permeability was detected by tracer fluorescein isothiocyanate–dextran assays. The function of Paneth and goblet cells was examined by immunostaining for lysozyme and mucin 2, respectively, and autophagy was examined by microtubule-associated proteins 1A/1B light chain 3 II immunostaining and Western blot analysis. Intestinal organoids were isolated from H19-/- and control littermate mice and treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Results Intestinal mucosal tissues in mice 24 hours after exposure to CLP and in patients with sepsis showed high H19 levels, associated with intestinal barrier dysfunction. Targeted deletion of the H19 gene in mice enhanced the function of Paneth and goblet cells and promoted autophagy in the small intestinal mucosa. Knockout of H19 protected Paneth and goblet cells against septic stress, preserved autophagy activation, and promoted gut barrier function after exposure to CLP. Compared with organoids from control littermate mice, intestinal organoids isolated from H19-/- mice had increased numbers of lysozyme- and mucin 2–positive cells and showed increased tolerance to LPS. Conversely, ectopic overexpression of H19 in cultured intestinal epithelial cells prevented rapamycin-induced autophagy and abolished the rapamycin-induced protection of the epithelial barrier against LPS. Conclusions In investigations of mice, human tissues, primary organoids, and intestinal epithelial cells, we found that increased H19 inhibited the function of Paneth and goblet cells and suppressed autophagy, thus potentially contributing to barrier dysfunction in intestinal pathologies.
Identifying and Evaluating Schein's Three Layers of Culture: The Texas A&M Culture Exercise.

Organizational culture is a popular topic in management classes, but teaching about culture in a way that undergraduate students can relate to can be a challenge. In this article, we describe the T...
Data Analytics and Skeptical Actions: The Countervailing Effects of False Positives and Consistent Rewards for Skepticism

We investigate if varying rates of false positives impact auditor skepticism toward red flags identified by data analytic tools. We also examine the extent to which consistent rewards for skepticism can improve the application of skepticism on audits employing data analytics. Using an experiment with practicing auditors we observe that, when false positive rates are higher, skepticism levels are low. Importantly, both our lower and higher false positive conditions reflect well calibrated analytic tests. We also find that consistent rewards for skepticism significantly improve the skepticism of our auditors. However, the positive effect of rewards is limited, in that we do not see improvements in skepticism when the false positive rate is higher. Our findings highlight the importance of improving the calibration of analytic tests to reduce false positives and the need for a culture change where appropriate skepticism is consistently rewarded in order for audit firms to effectively use analytic tools to enhance audit quality.
Is School Racial/Ethnic Composition Associated With Content Coverage in Algebra?

This brief utilizes data from the U.S. Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study of 2011 (TIMSS) to investigate the extent to which teacher reports of content coverage in eighth grade a...
Organizational Solutions to the Moral Risks of Policing.

In addition to the physical and emotional challenges faced by law enforcement professionals, the job confronts officers with numerous moral risks. The moral risks include moral distress, moral injury, ethical exhaustion, compassion fatigue, and practices that lead to lapses in ethical decision-making. The paper focuses on what police agencies can do to better address the moral risks of policing. These moral risks are central to officer wellness and, thus, a crucial component of officers’ operational readiness. Strategies are presented that will improve prevention efforts, including recruiting and hiring, training, supervision, and promotional practices. Additionally, the paper offers recommendations for effective approaches to intervention with officers who have displayed the effects of these moral risks. Finally, the paper highlights the kind of law enforcement leaders who are best able to implement strategies designed to prevent negative outcomes associated with the moral risks of policing.
The Influence of State Policies on the Relationship Between Minority Stressors and Suicide Attempts Among Transgender and Gender-Diverse Adults.

Purpose: We examined whether the relationship between minority stressors (victimization and discrimination) and suicide attempts (SAs) was moderated by gender identity-specific protective state pol...
An Empire on Trial: Race, Murder, and Justice under British Rule, 1870-1935

An Empire on Trial is the first book to explore the issue of interracial homicide in the British Empire during its height – examining these incidents and the prosecution of such cases in each of seven colonies scattered throughout the world. It uncovers and analyzes the tensions of empire that underlay British rule and delves into how the problem of maintaining a liberal empire manifested itself in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The work demonstrates the importance of the processes of criminal justice to the history of the empire and the advantage of a trans-territorial approach to understanding the complexities and nuances of its workings. An Empire on Trial is of interest to those concerned with race, empire, or criminal justice, and to historians of modern Britain or of colonial Australia, India, Kenya, or the Caribbean. Political and post-colonial theorists writing on liberalism and empire, or race and empire, will also find this book invaluable.
Ortega and Germany

This chapter will also try to expound the aims of Ortega’s three travels to Germany, where he studied Kant was trained in and Neokantian philosophy, and, at the end of the third journey, discovered the new philosophical “continent” represented by Husserlian phenomenology. As a young Neokantian, Ortega reinforced his conviction that European science and philosophy were the solutions for the evils affecting Spanish culture: as a backward nation, Spain had not yet attained the level of the universality of higher culture. However, the apparent difficulties of Neokantian-inspired thinkers to understand Spanish art caused in Ortega a change of mind. (His essays on the paintings of Ignacio Zuloaga will be analyzed in these contexts.) The chapter will end with a short approach to the “Prologue to Germans,” from 1934, where Ortega makes a mature appraisal of his indebtedness to German culture.
Christian functional views of suffering: a review and theoretical overview

We argue that advancing our understanding of religious meaning-making in the face of trauma and suffering requires greater attention to the specific meanings of suffering that religions offer, and ...
Working Against Gender-Based Violence in the American South: An Analysis of Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Sexuality in Advocacy:

Non-profit organizations that address gender-based violence must create diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplaces for advocates so that they can adequately serve diverse survivors. Despite recen...
Analyzing the demographic, spatial, and temporal factors influencing social contact patterns in U.S. and implications for infectious disease spread.

Background Diseases such as COVID-19 are spread through social contact. Reducing social contacts is required to stop disease spread in pandemics for which vaccines have not yet been developed. However, existing data on social contact patterns in the United States (U.S.) is limited. Method We use American Time Use Survey data from 2003-2018 to describe and quantify the age-pattern of disease-relevant social contacts. For within-household contacts, we construct age-structured contact duration matrices (who spends time with whom, by age). For both within-household and non-household contacts, we also estimate the mean number and duration of contact by location. We estimate and test for differences in the age-pattern of social contacts based on demographic, temporal, and spatial characteristics. Results The mean number and duration of social contacts vary by age. The biggest gender differences in the age-pattern of social contacts are at home and at work; the former appears to be driven by caretaking responsibilities. Non-Hispanic Blacks have a shorter duration of contact and fewer social contacts than non-Hispanic Whites. This difference is largely driven by fewer and shorter contacts at home. Pre-pandemic, non-Hispanic Blacks have shorter durations of work contacts. Their jobs are more likely to require close physical proximity, so their contacts are riskier than those of non-Hispanic Whites. Hispanics have the highest number of household contacts and are also more likely to work in jobs requiring close physical proximity than non-Hispanic Whites. With the exceptions of work and school contacts, the duration of social contact is higher on weekends than on weekdays. Seasonal differences in the total duration of social contacts are driven by school-aged respondents who have significantly shorter contacts during the summer months. Contact patterns did not differ by metro status. Age patterns of social contacts were similar across regions. Conclusion Social contact patterns differ by age, race and ethnicity, and gender. Other factors besides contact patterns may be driving seasonal variation in disease incidence if school-aged individuals are not an important source of transmission. Pre-pandemic, there were no spatial differences in social contacts, but this finding has likely changed during the pandemic.
Intraoperative Bile Culture in Pancreaticoduodenectomy: Teaching Old Dogma New Tricks.

Introduction Biliary stents increase surgical site infections (SSIs) following pancreaticoduodenectomy due to bactibilia and contaminated intraoperative bile spillage. Intraoperative bile culture (IOBC) is performed to guide empiric therapy for SSIs; however, its utility is poorly studied. We sought to evaluate IOBC and the interplay between stenting, bactibilia, and SSI following pancreaticoduodenectomy. Methods Patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy from January 2008 to April 2020 were identified through our institutional National Surgical Quality Improvement Project (NSQIP) database; patients without IOBC were excluded. Odds of SSI were analyzed with multivariable logistic regression. Results Four-hundred-eighty-three patients were identified. One-hundred-eighty-nine (39%) patients had plastic stents and 154 (32%) had metal stents. Three-hundred-twenty-nine (96%) patients with stents had bactibilia versus 18 (13%) without stents (P 0.1); however, stent type was not (P > 0.5). Of the 73 speciated SSI cultures, an IOBC-identified organism was present in 42 (58%), while at least one organism not found in the IOBC was present in 49 (67%). Conclusion Bactibilia is associated with incisional but not organ space SSI following pancreaticoduodenectomy and is strongly associated with stent presence. Stent type does not independently influence the biliary microbiome or SSI risk. IOBC has a poor ability to predict causative organisms in SSIs following pancreaticoduodenectomy and is not recommended for routine use.
Obesity and Cancer: Epidemiology

The increase in overweight and obesity in the past few decades is well documented [1]. Observational epidemiologic studies have consistently shown associations between obesity and increased risk of cancer [2, 3]. Studies have also consistently shown associations between obesity at or before the time of cancer diagnosis and increased risk of cancer mortality [4]. Less known is whether weight gain or weight loss affects cancer prognosis [5, 6].
Zinc uptake in vitro by human retinal pigment epithelium

Zinc, an essential trace element, is present in unusually high concentrations in the chorioretinal complex relative to most other tissues. Because little has been known about the interactions between the retinal pigment epithelium and free or protein-associated zinc, we studied 65Zn uptake by human retinal pigment epithelium in vitro. When monolayers were exposed to differing concentrations from 0 to 30 microM 65Zn in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium with 5.4 gm/l glucose at 37 degrees C and 4 degrees C, we observed a temperature-dependent saturable accumulation of the radiolabel. With 15 microM 65Zn, we saw a biphasic pattern of uptake with a rapid first phase and a slower second phase over 120 min. Uptake of 65Zn was inhibited by iodacetate and cold, and reduced approximately 50% by the addition of 2% albumin to the labelling medium. Neither ouabain nor 2-deoxyglucose inhibited uptake. Cells previously exposed to 65Zn retained approximately 70% of accumulated 65Zn 60 min after being changed to radiolabel-free medium. Following removal of cells from the extracellular matrix adherent to the dish bottom, a variable amount of nonspecific binding of 65Zn to the residual matrix was demonstrated. These observations are consistent with a facilitated type of transport and demonstrate the ability of human retinal pigment epithelium in vitro to accumulate and retain zinc.
Membrane fusion: SNARE the rod, coil the complex

Cellular cargo is transported around the cell in small vesicles that are pinched off the donor membrane and then fuse with the target cell. Fusion is mediated by the interaction of proteins -- found on both the vesicle and target membranes -- called SNAREs. The structure of the core fusion complex has now been solved, and changes our ideas about how this process occurs.
Radioactivity in total diet.

Total diet samples collected in 1961 from 10 to 25 major cities were analyzed for radionuclides arising from nuclear debris (Sr/sup 90/, Cs.syo 137/, Ce/sup 144/, Pu/sup 239/, Zn/sup 65/), for natu ral radioactivity (Ra/sup 226/, Pb/sup 210/, K/sup 40/), and for the stable nuclides of Ca and K. The variability arising from collection of samples was not greater than that due to analytical procedures. Levels of Sr/sup 90/ in the total diet ranged from 2 to 15 mu mu c/gm of Ca. Vaules in the West, with the exception of the Far Northwest,-tended to be lower, but no marked differences were observed among other geographical regions. The Sr/sup 90//gm Ca values for adult diets, presumably because of their lower milk content, were higher than for infant and teenage diets. The values of Sr/sup 90//gm of Ca for the total diet were about 1.6 times those for the milk contained in the diet. It was calculated that 54% of the total Sr/sup 90/ intake came from dairy products, on the assumption that 75% of the Ca originated from this source. The daily intake of Ra/sup 226/ was estimated to be about 2 mu mu c in teenage and adult diets,more » and about 1 mu mu c in infant diets. Average daily intakes of the various radionuclides expressed in micromicrocuries, were as follows; K/sup 409/, 4,000; Cs/sup 137/, 50; Sr/sup 90/, 10; , 2; Pu/sub 239/, 0.1. (auth)« less
Gingival and Periodontal Problems in Children

This review will concentrate on the gingival and periodontal problems which the pediatrician may see as part of his care of the child patient. The age period covered is from the time of first tooth erruption to the middle teens. In considering specific conditions, the clinical appearance will be described, together with etiology and recommended management. Although the majority of gingival and periodontal problems are chronic in nature, a section is included on acute conditions. The periodontium is the investing and supporting structure of the tooth. It comprises the gingiva, periodontal ligament, alveolar bone and cementum. The tooth is suspended in the alveolar bone socket through the periodontal ligament fibers which are embedded at one end in the cementum covering the root surface and in the alveolar bone at the other end. The gingiva is that portion of the oral masticatory mucosa which surrounds the teeth and is attached to the alveolar process of the jaws. In order to recognize pathological changes in the gingiva it is necessary to know how the normal appears (Fig. 1). The gingival tissues which extend into and fill the interdental or interproximal area form the gingival papillae. The gingiva has a thin edge where it meets and surrounds the tooth in a collar-like fashion. There is a potential space between the tooth and the marginal gingiva into which a blunt probe may be passed to a depth of 1 to 2 mm. The gingiva in health is pale pink and firm, and does not bleed on probing, brushing, mastication or spontaneously.
Design: the future of engineering and engineering technology education

Today most engineering programs have some kind of design course at the freshman or sophomore level to introduce students to the process of solving real problems in the face of uncertainty. The trends have been positive changes for engineering and technology students and engineering education. Now that most engineering and engineering technology programs have at least two major design experiences, what is the next step? Although the development of major design courses has changed the overall educational experience for students, it has yet to change much about their experiences in traditional engineering science classes. The basic application and content of these courses are being altered in some programs through the use of integrated curricula, but even those programs could benefit from thinking about the role of design in traditional engineering science classes. The author suggests that the next goal of engineering and technology education should be to truly integrate the traditional engineering science classes with engineering design. There are two primary reasons to include a design component in the majority of engineering science classes: design provides a necessary link from theoretical material to its application in the real world, and design presents a clear avenue for achieving other student learning objectives beyond the development of analytical skills and basic engineering knowledge.
Anterior Spinal Artery Syndrome in a Patient with Vasospasm Secondary to a Ruptured Cervical Dural Arteriovenous Fistula

BACKGROUND Spinal dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVF) in the cervical spine are known to cause subarachnoid hemorrhage. Vasospasm after rupture of a DAVF, however, has not previously been reported. CASE PRESENTATION A 48-year-old woman who presented with the sudden onset of altered mental status. Imaging demonstrated extensive subarachnoid hemorrhage and spinal DAVF at C1 to C2. The patient underwent a suboccipital craniotomy for DAVF ligation. On post-operative day three, she began having acute weakness in all her extremities with proprioception and vibration preserved, whereas pain and temperature sensation was lost. An angiogram demonstrated bilateral vertebral artery vasospasm with no filling of the anterior spinal artery. Bilateral angioplasty of the vertebral arteries was performed successfully and post-angioplasty, the right vertebral artery was filling the anterior spinal artery. The patient clinically improved. She subsequently required treatment with n-butyl cyanoacrylic acid (nBCA) embolization and gamma knife radiosurgery to achieve obliteration of the lesion. CONCLUSIONS For patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage of unknown origin, differential diagnosis should include DAVF. This patient also presented with vasospasm in the context of ruptured DAVF, a complication previously unreported in the literature. This finding suggests that close monitoring for vasospasm after rupture of DAVF is warranted.
Low-Temperature Properties of Expanded Polyurethane and Polystyrene

Two materials being used extensively as cryogenic insulations are the expanded plastics polyurethane (PU) and polystyrene (PS). These cellular plastics are excellent thermal insulators with measured values of apparent thermal conductivity at a mean temperature of 112 K being 0.013 to 0.016 w/m.K. The effect of aging and conditions of aging are critical factors in determining the ultimate conductivity. The major component of the overall conductivity, gas conductivity, is affected by permeation of gases through the cell walls. The reasonably high strength-to-density ratio for PU and PS at room temperature, 8 to 9 kPa/kg/m 3 compared with -50 for aluminum alloys and - 25 for stainless steels, allows these insulations to be self-supporting and to lend structural support to the system. The thermal, elastic, and mechanical properties are functions of several nonindependent parameters such as density, cell size, composition, and method of processing. The properties of these expanded plastics are also anisotropic. The large variations found in existing data reflect these complex dependencies. Expected behavior and experimentally determined data are discussed for the following properties: tensile, compressive, and shear strengths and the associated moduli, thermal conductivity, linear thermal expansion, specific heat, and thermal diffusivity. Temperatures below 300 K are considered.
True process variation aware optical proximity correction with variational lithography modeling and model calibration

Optical proximity correction (OPC) is one of the most widely used resolution enhancement techniques (RET) in nanometer designs to improve subwavelength printability. Conventional model-based OPC assumes nominal process conditions without considering process variations because of the lack of variational lithography models. A simple method to improve OPC results under process variations is to sample multiple process conditions across the process window, which requires long run times. We derive a variational lithography model (VLIM) that can simulate across the process window without much run-time overhead compared to the conventional lithography models. To match the model to experimental data, we demonstrate a VLIM calibration method. The calibrated model has accuracy comparable to nonvariational models, but has the advantage of taking process variations into consideration. We introduce the variational edge placement error (VEPE) metrics based on the model, a natural extension to the edge placement error (EPE) used in conventional OPC algorithms. A true process-variation aware OPC (PVOPC) framework is proposed used the VEPE metric. Due to the analytical nature of VLIM, our PVOPC is only about 2 to 3× slower than the conventional OPC, but it explicitly considers the two main sources of process variations (exposure dose and focus variations) during OPC. Thus our post-PVOPC results are much more robust than the conventional OPC ones, in terms of both geometric printability and electrical characterization under process variations.
Short- and long-term outcomes after arthroscopic treatment of young large breed dogs with medial compartment disease of the elbow.

OBJECTIVES To report short- and long-term outcomes after arthroscopic treatment in young large breed dogs affected by medial coronoid process disease (MCPD) and identify variables affecting outcome. STUDY DESIGN Prospective observational case series. ANIMALS Large breed dogs <3 years old (n = 15; 23 elbows). METHODS MCPD was confirmed by radiography, computed tomography, and arthroscopy. Dogs were treated by arthroscopy. Variables recorded at time of treatment included radioulnar incongruity (RUI) and degree of cartilage erosion. Variables recorded before, 6 weeks, and ≥23 months after surgery included radiographic score for osteoarthritis, trochlear notch sclerosis, muscle circumference, range of motion (ROM), and the load distribution of vertical ground reaction forces between thoracic and pelvic limbs. RESULTS A greater load distribution to the pelvic limbs was identified preoperatively in dogs with RUI than in dogs with congruent elbows. Load distribution was not significantly improved at 6 weeks compared with preoperatively. Muscle circumference and vertical impulse distributions were improved at long-term evaluation despite an increased osteoarthritis score. This improvement was more obvious in dogs with RUI or a high degree of cartilage erosion at initial presentation. CONCLUSION Some evidence of improvement in long-term function was found in dogs with MCPD after arthroscopic treatment. RUI and cartilage erosion at the time of diagnosis were associated with more lameness preoperatively but did not affect the final gait assessment or osteoarthritis score in this small cohort.
An Examination of the Costs and Critical Characteristics of Electric Utility Distribution System Capacity Enhancement Projects

This paper classifies and analyzes the capital and total costs for 172 electricity distribution system capacity enhancement projects undertaken during 1995-2002 or planned in the 2003-2011 time period by three electric power utilities in the Western United States. Projects were sorted into eight categories: capacitors, load transfer, new feeder, new line, new substation, new transformer, reconductoring, and substation capacity increase. Capital cost and total cost frequency distributions were constructed along with descriptive statistics for each project type. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis was performed to determine how various project variables (e.g., project location and primary customer served by the project) impact the unit costs. Distribution system capital costs averaged $51/kVA of additional capacity and varied significantly by project type. New substations and new transformers were the most costly, $112/kVA and $87/kVA respectively, while reconductoring and substation capacity increase were found to be the least expensive ($21/kVA). Using the full costs of delivering electricity over the 30-year life of a project increased the mean project cost to $100/kVA. The OLS analysis revealed that the primary determinant of total project cost is project type. Other variables, such as the geographic location of the project and primary customer served, did not yield statistically significant results
Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor-γ Agonists Suppress the Production of IL-12 Family Cytokines by Activated Glia

The IL-12 family of cytokines, which include IL-12, IL-23, and IL-27, play critical roles in the differentiation of Th1 cells and are believed to contribute to the development of multiple sclerosis (MS) and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of MS. Relatively little is known concerning the expression of IL-12 family cytokines by cells of the CNS, the affected tissue in MS. Previously, we and others demonstrated that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-γ agonists suppress the development of EAE, alter T cell proliferation and phenotype, and suppress the activation of APCs. The present studies demonstrated that PPAR-γ agonists, including the naturally occurring 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-PGJ2 and the synthetic thiazoladinedione rosiglitazone, inhibited the induction of IL-12p40, IL-12p70 (p35/p40), IL-23 (p19/p40), and IL-27p28 proteins by LPS-stimulated primary microglia. In primary astrocytes, LPS induced the production of IL-12p40, IL-23, and IL-27p28 proteins. However, IL-12p70 production was not detected in these cells. The 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-PGJ2 potently suppressed IL-12p40, IL-23, and IL-27p28 production by primary astrocytes, whereas rosiglitazone suppressed IL-23 and IL-27p28, but not IL-12p40 in these cells. These novel observations suggest that PPAR-γ agonists modulate the development of EAE, at least in part, by inhibiting the production of IL-12 family cytokines by CNS glia. In addition, we demonstrate that PPAR-γ agonists inhibit TLR2, MyD88, and CD14 expression in glia, suggesting a possible mechanism by which these agonists modulate IL-12 family cytokine expression. Collectively, these studies suggest that PPAR-γ agonists may be beneficial in the treatment of MS.
Vowel Acoustics in Dysarthria: Speech Disorder Diagnosis and Classification

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which vowel metrics are capable of distinguishing healthy from dysarthric speech and among different forms of dysarthria. Method A v...
Hepatic “intravenous fat pigment” in infants and children receiving lipid emulsion

Abstract In 23 patients who received fat emulsion (Intralipid) intravenously and had subsequent necropsy, the deposition of pigment in the liver was evaluated quantitatively. Pigment was found in hepatic cells (HC) in 14 of 23 patients as well as reticuloendothelial cells (REC) in 22 of 23 patients. There was more pigment deposition in HC in younger children. HC pigment deposition occurred most frequently in patients with acute inflammatory processes within the abdomen. Patients infused with emulsion at rates less than 0.5 g/kg body wt/hr had less pigment deposition than patients infused at faster rates. Neonates infused at rates less than 0.2 g/kg body wt/hr for 24 hr had less HC pigment than neonates infused at higher rates. The quantity of REC pigment bore no apparent relationship to age, clinical diagnosis, rate or total dose of fat emulsion, but was increased in groups infused more than 14 days.
Guest Editor's Introduction: Special Section on the Symposium on Interactive 3D Graphics and Games (I3D)

This special section presents new work that expands on ideas first presented at the Symposium on Interactive 3D Graphics and Games (I3D) in 2009. Four expanded versions of submitted papers are presented here.
Misturas de herbicidas para o controle de plantas daninhas anuais na cultura de citrus (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck)

Com o objetivo de se avaliar a eficiencia das misturas de glyphosate com diuron ou simazine para o controle de plantas daninhas anuais na cultura de citrus, foram conduzidos dois experimentos durante o ano agricola 83/84, sendo um em Jaguariuna e outro em Catanduva, ambos no estado de Sao Paulo. Os resultados obtidos mostraram que, embora todos os tratamentos tenham sido altamente eficientes, o controle de Digitaria horizontalis, Brachiaria plantaginea e portulaca oleracea aos 10 DAT foi um pouco inferior quando se aplicou as misturas de tanque (glyphosate + diuron ou simazine), em relacao a aplicacao sequencial desses mesmos produtos. A adicao do sulfato de amonio nas misturas de tanque minimizou esse problema, o qual nao foi observado na avaliacao realizada aos 30 DAT. Ainda com relacao as misturas, o controle das gramineas foi superior quando se utilizou diuron em relacao a simazine. As misturas de herbicidas residuais com glyphosate proporcionaram melhor controle aos 60 DAT quando comparados as aplicacoes de glyphosate isoladamente.
An evaluation of intravenous, subcutaneous, and in vitro activity of new agmatine analogs of growth hormone-releasing hormone hGH-RH (1-29)NH2.

Abstract The effects of new Agmatine (Agm) analogs of human growth hormone-releasing hormone (GH-RH) were compared to GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 and to (D-Ala 2 )GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 after intravenous (IV) and subcutaneous (SC) administration to pentobarbital-anesthetised male rats and in vitro using superfused rat pituitary cell system. After IV administration, the analogs: (D-MeAla 2 , Nle 27 )GH-RH(1–28)Agm(JG-75), (desamino-Tyr 1 , D-Ala 2 , Nle 27 )GH-RH(1–28)Agm(JG-77), (D-Ala 2 , Nle 27 )GH-RH(1–28)Agm(JG-73) and (D-Ala 2 )GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 showed a potency 2.6–3.9 times greater than GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 at 5 min and 1.6–2.7 times higher at 15 min. After SC administration these analogs were 30–74 times more potent than GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 . The ratio between the IV and SC GH-releasing activity of the analogs ranged from 2 to 5, while GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 was about 50 times more active IV than SC. This indicates that 20–50% of the analogs can be absorbed from SC tissues, but only 2% of GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 . The in vitro activity of the agmatine analogs on GH release closely paralleled their IV potency and was 2.8–3.9 times greater than that of GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 . No significant difference in potency was found between (D-Ala 2 )GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 and JG-75 after IV administration and in vitro, although JG-75 contained only 28 amino acids. We conclude that the reason for the large discrepancies between the previously reported activities of (D-Ala 2 )GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 was simply due to the different ways of administration of this analog, SC vs IV, and not to species specificity. The replacement of Arg 29 by Agmatine in (D-Ala 2 , Nle 27 )GH-RH(1–29)NH 2 causes a 3 fold increase in SC potency, but the replacement of D-Ala 2 with D-MeAla 2 reduces the SC, but not the IV and in vitro activity in half.
Economic analysis of a magnetic fusion production reactor

The magnetic fusion reactor for the production of nuclear weapon materials, based on a tandem mirror design, is estimated to have a capital cost of $1.5 billion and to produce 10 kg of tritium/year for $22,000/g or 940 kg/year of plutonium in the plutonium mode for $250/g plus heavy metal processing. A tokamak-based design is estimated to cost $1.5 billion and to produce 10 kg of tritium/year for $29 thousand/g. For comparison, a commercially sized tandern mirror fusion breeder selling excess electricity and fissile material to commercial markets is estimated to cost $3.6 billion and to produce tritium for $2.6 thousand/g and plutonium for $34/g plus heavy metal processing.