cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Treatment options for rotator cuff tear arthropathy

Abstract Rotator cuff tear arthropathy is characterized by massive and irreparable rotator cuff tears associated with shoulder arthritis. Symptoms include varying degrees of pain, loss of motion, and loss of function, or "pseudo-paralysis" alone. Nonoperative modalities are the treatment mainstay for mildly symptomatic patients, and there are viable medical and surgical treatment options for those whose symptoms are not severe enough to warrant shoulder arthroplasty. The trend toward using reverse total shoulder arthroplasty as the only treatment for this highly variable patient group does not allow a cautious approach to this disease nor recognize the high potential complication rate of the reverse prosthesis.
Dust Morphology and Composition in FU Orionis Systems

FU Orionis stars are a small group of pre–main-sequence stars known for large-amplitude optical variability. These objects also exhibit multiwavelength phenomena suggestive of active accretion from a circumstellar disk. We present high spatial resolution mid-IR imaging and spectroscopy, submillimeter photometry, and 3–4 μm photometry of four FU Ori–class objects, RNO 1B and C, Z CMa, and Par 21, and one object classified as a pre–FU Ori star, V380 Ori. We resolve multiple IR sources and extended emission in the RNO 1B/C system, and we discuss in detail their association with disk activity and the source of the Infrared Astronomical Satellite far-IR and radio maser emission in this field. We derive dust temperatures and masses for all sources and discuss how dust composition and morphology is related to the evolutionary stage of these objects.
Carnivory and resource‐based niche differentiation in anuran larvae: implications for food web and experimental ecology

SUMMARY 1. Food webs represent the paths of material and energy flow through organisms in an ecosystem. Anuran larvae are important components of pond food webs: they are abundant, consume large quantities of food and serve as prey for many organisms. However, there are very basic uncertainties about the feeding ecology of anuran larvae; for instance, as to which trophic level they belong and whether species differ in resource use. Because anuran larvae have been employed in model systems in experimental ecology for decades, these uncertainties could lead to misinterpretation of published experiments, or inadequate designs of experiments directed at general, conceptual issues in ecology. 2. Using 13 Ca nd 15 N stable isotope and gut content analyses of free-ranging and enclosed tadpoles of four ranid species (Lithobates sylvaticus, L. pipiens, L. clamitans, L. catesbeianus) in the food webs of six wetlands, we tested the following null hypotheses: (i) that anuran larvae are strict primary consumers; (ii) that they are non-selective feeders and therefore exhibit little feeding niche differentiation; (iii) that they are opportunistic consumers and (iv) that their diet remains unchanged through ontogeny. 3. All four species consumed and assimilated substantial amounts of animal food; bullfrog larvae, in particular, appear to be predatory. Significant feeding niche differentiation among species occurred with respect to the sources of carbon, consumption of animal matter and nutritional quality of food ingested. We further documented opportunistic feeding habits and ontogenetic shifts in diet. 4. Collectively, these studies revealed complex trophic relationships that might require a reconsideration of the role of anuran larvae in pond food webs, as well as a reinterpretation of results of previous studies employing anuran larvae in model experimental systems.
Empirical study of a hybrid algorithm based on Clonal Selection and Small Population Based PSO

In this paper, a hybrid algorithm, based on clonal selection algorithm (CSA) and small population based particle swarm optimization (SPPSO) is introduced. The performance of this new algorithm (CS2P2SO) is observed for four well known benchmark functions. The SPPSO is a variant of conventional PSO (CPSO), introduced by the second author of this paper, where a very small number of initial particles are used and after a few iterations, the best particle is kept and the rest are replaced by the same number of regenerated particles. On the other hand, CSA belongs to the family of artificial immune system (AIS). It is an evolutionary algorithm, where, during evolution, the antibodies which can recognize the antigens proliferate by cloning. With the hybridization of these two algorithms, the strength of CPSO is enhanced to a great extent. The concept of SPPSO helps to find the optimum solution with less memory requirement and the concept of CSA increases the exploration capability and reduces the chances of convergence to local minima. The test results show that CS2P2SO performs better than CPSO and SPPSO for the Sphere, Rosenbrockpsilas, Rastriginpsilas and Griewankpsilas functions.
Observing the continuous transformation of a four level laser into a two level system

Pumping the Cs 852.1nm laser by photoassociating Cs-rare gas atomic pairs allows one to observe a four-level system morph into a two-level system. This occurs when the state 3-state 2 energy defect falls below ∼2kT/3.
Role of the Adenovirus DNA-Binding Protein in In Vitro Adeno-Associated Virus DNA Replication

A basic question in adeno-associated virus (AAV) biology has been whether adenovirus (Ad) infection provided any function which directly promoted replication of AAV DNA. Previously in vitro assays for AAV DNA replication, using linear duplex AAV DNA as the template, uninfected or Ad-infected HeLa cell extracts, and exogenous AAV Rep protein, demonstrated that Ad infection provides a direct helper effect for AAV DNA replication. It was shown that the nature of this helper effect was to increase the processivity of AAV DNA replication. Left unanswered was the question of whether this effect was the result of cellular factors whose activity was enhanced by Ad infection or was the result of direct participation of Ad proteins in AAV DNA replication. In this report, we show that in the in vitro assay, enhancement of processivity occurs with the addition of either the Ad DNA-binding protein (Ad-DBP) or the human single-stranded DNA-binding protein (replication protein A [RPA]). Clearly Ad-DBP is present after Ad infection but not before, whereas the cellular level of RPA is not apparently affected by Ad infection. However, we have not measured possible modifications of RPA which might occur after Ad infection and affect AAV DNA replication. When the substrate for replication was an AAV genome inserted into a plasmid vector, RPA was not an effective substitute for Ad-DBP. Extracts supplemented with Ad-DBP preferentially replicated AAV sequences rather than adjacent vector sequences; in contrast, extracts supplemented with RPA preferentially replicated vector sequences.
On Rupture and Rhyme: Perspectives on the Past, Present, and Future of Same-Sex Marriage

This piece appears in the anthology TO HAVE AND TO HOLD: THE MAKING OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN SOUTH AFRICA. It considers the Fourie judgment and the Civil Unions Act in South Africa from the personal perspective of a United States lesbian legal academic and activist. Beginning in 1979, the piece sets the stage for the inconceivability of the developments of the South Africa Constitution and same-sex marriage. The article then briefly discusses the judgment and act, including personal reactions. Turning to the future, the style becomes that of a judgment from the South African Constitutional Court, set in the year 2027, and analyses a hypothetical challenge to some hypothetical legislation.
Beyond Heroes and Villains: Examining Explanatory Mechanisms Underlying Moral Disengagement

In recent years, theorizing regarding the role and importance of media entertainment in everyday life has garnered much serious attention by media effects scholars. The role of moral judgments, sanctions, and lack thereof are areas in which theoretical development has expanded. The present study examines narrative exposure, identification, and moral judgment as indicators of the degree to which individuals may morally disengage during mediated entertainment experiences. In addition, this study attempts to further expand disposition theory and theorizing about the role of moral disengagement by moving beyond conceptualizations of good, bad, and morally ambiguous characters to explore more subtle moral distinctions between characters as they exist within the same narrative and along a continuum. Results suggest that identification and moral judgment serve as important mediators predicting moral disengagement; however, the nature of these relationships are moderated by the perception of the character’s moral...
i-Vector Algorithm with Gaussian Mixture Model for Efficient Speech Emotion Recognition

Emotions constitute an essential part of our existence as it exerts great influence on the physical as well as mental health of people. Emotions often play the role of a sensitive catalyst, which fosters lively interaction between human beings. Over the past few decades the focus of researchers on study of the emotional content of speech signals, has progressively increased. Many systems have been proposed to make the Speech Emotion Recognition (SER) process more correct and accurate. The objective of our research is to classify speech emotion implementing a comparatively new method-i-vector model. i-vector model has found much success in the areas of speaker identification, speech recognition and language identification. But it has not been much explored in recognition of emotion. This paper discusses the design of a speech emotion recognition system considering three important aspects. Firstly, i-vector model was implemented in processing extracted features for speech representation. Secondly, an appropriate classification scheme was designed using Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM), Maximum A Posteriori (MAP) adaptation and i-vector algorithm. Finally, the performance of this new system was evaluated using emotional speech database. Speech emotions were identified with this novel system and also with a conventional system and results were compared, which proved that our proposed system can identify speech emotions with less error and more accuracy.
Turbulence-Driven Bootstrap Current in Low-Collisionality Tokamaks

Neoclassical bootstrap current is expected to provide a significant fraction of the equilibrium plasma current in tokamak reactors. Here we report a novel mechanism through which a bootstrap current may be driven even in a collisionless plasma. In analogy with the neoclassical mechanism, in which the collisional equilibrium established between trapped and passing electrons produces a steady state current, we show that resonant scattering of electrons by drift wave microturbulence provides an additional means of determining the equilibrium between trapped and passing electrons and thus driving a bootstrap current. Employing a linearized Fokker-Planck collision operator, the plasma current in the presence of both collisions and resonant electron scattering is computed, allowing for the relative strength of these two mechanisms to be quantified as a function of collisionality and fluctuation amplitude.
Surface Hardening of Titanium with CO2 Laser

Titanium has a high specific strength and corrosion resistance. Surface treatment or coating is often required to improve surface hardness, however, because of titanium's low durability. In this study, a CO2 laser beam was irradiated in nitrogen to form a hard nitride coating on a pure titanium plate. The hard layer formed by the reaction between titanium and nitrogen consisted of TiN and Ti2N. The surface hardness produced by the treatment exceeded Hv 7.5GPa.
Compact, multiterawatt laser systems: an ultrashort pulse approach

Chirped pulse amplification (CPA) has become a common technique for circumventing optical damage and nonlinear effects during the amplification of ultrashort optical pulses in solid state laser media.1 Ter- awatt level pulses with durations ranging from ~1 ps to ~100 fs have been produced by a number of systems. Although much shorter pulse oscillators exist, the implementation of CPA with pulses on the order of 10 fs has not been accomplished. In conventional CPA systems, uncompensatable phase errors in the expansion and recompression process and distortions due to refractive optics produce broadenings which are much greater than 10 fs. In order to alleviate these problems, a novel expander/ compressor design has been developed and a lens-free amplification system has been constructed. The result is a laser system which is presently capable of producing —135-mJ, ~30-fs, 800-nm pulses with near diffraction limited beam quality at a 10-Hz repetition rate. It is the first system to produce sub-50-fs multiterawatt pulses and the first to control femtosecond timescale phase and amplitude distortions during terawatt level amplification.
Persistent Trigeminal Artery of the Sellar Region

A persistent trigeminal artery (PTA) is a remnant structure from the fetal vasculature that may fail to regress during development.
On the resilience to node capture attacks of secure wireless sensor networks

Despite much research on probabilistic key predistribution schemes for wireless sensor networks over the past decade, few formal analyses exist that define schemes' resilience to node-capture attacks precisely and under realistic conditions. In this paper, we analyze the resilience of the q-composite key predistribution scheme, which mitigates the node capture vulnerability of the Eschenauer-Gligor scheme in the neighbor discovery phase. We also show that this scheme can be easily enhanced to achieve the same “perfect resilience” property as in the random pairwise key pre-distribution for attacks launched after neighbor discovery. Despite considerable attention to this scheme, much prior work explicitly or implicitly uses an incorrect computation for the probability of link compromise under node-capture attacks. Based on our rigorous results, we provide guidelines on the design of secure sensor networks for resilience against node capture.
Misgivings about dismantling the opportunity construct

Abstract The concept of entrepreneurial opportunity has become a fundamental entity organizing entrepreneurship research. Recently, however, the validity of the construct has come into question with scholars noting definitional fragmentation as highly problematic and advocating for dismantling the construct in favor of replacement concepts. This paper articulates misgivings over this movement by identifying several stumbling blocks it creates for the future of entrepreneurship research. These realizations are followed by the notion that agreeing the construct is representationally valuable and accepting systematic variation in construct definition as a function of clarified conceptualizations of the process underpinning entrepreneurship is a more advantageous equilibrium state. Specific benefits associated with a move in this direction are identified.
Immune Checkpoint Blockade Biology in Mouse Models of Glioblastoma

Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM) is a highly malignant primary brain cancer that is associated with abysmal prognosis. The median survival of GBM patients is ∼15 months and there have not been any significant advance in therapies in over a decade, leaving treatment options limited. There is clearly an unmet need for GBM treatment. Immunotherapies are treatments based on usurping the power of the host's immune system to recognize and eliminate cancer cells. They have recently proven to be a successful strategy for combating a variety of cancers. Of the various types of immunotherapies, checkpoint blockade approaches have thus far produced significant clinical responses in several cancers including melanoma, non small-cell lung cancer, renal cancer, and prostate cancer. This review focuses on the biological rationale for using checkpoint blockade immunotherapeutic approaches in primary brain cancer and an up-to-date summary of current and ongoing checkpoint inhibitors-based clinical trials for malignant glioma. In addition, we expand on new concepts for further improving checkpoint blockade treatments, with a particular focus on the advantages of using genetically engineered mouse models for studies of immunotherapies in GBM. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 2516-2527, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
High-Performance Black Phosphorus MOSFETs Using Crystal Orientation Control and Contact Engineering

We report high performance, orientation-controlled, and locally back-gated black phosphorus (BP) n-MOSFETs and p-MOSFETs with titanium and permalloy contacts, respectively. Devices with channel length ranging from 0.3 to $0.7~\mu \text{m}$ are analyzed. Armchair-oriented BP p-MOSFETs (n-MOSFETs) display 3.5 times (1.5 times) higher maximum current compared with zigzag devices. Saturated transconductance values up to 4.8 times (1.6 times) higher for BP p-MOSFETs (n-MOSFETs) oriented along the armchair direction compared with the zigzag direction are observed. Using this orientation control and contact engineering, n-MOSFETs with transconductance of $110~\mu \text{S}/\mu \text{m}$ and p-MOSFETs with contact resistance as low as 0.31 $\text{k}\Omega \cdot \mu \text{m}$ are demonstrated.
Management of Residual Neuromuscular Blockade Recovery: Age-Old Problem with a New Solution

Neostigmine has been traditionally used as the agent of choice to reverse Neuromuscular Blockade (NMB) after muscle paralysis during general anesthesia. However, the use of neostigmine has not been without untoward events. Sugammadex is a novel drug that selectively binds to aminosteroid nondepolarizing muscle relaxants and reverses even a deep level of NMB. Controversy exists regarding the optimal dose of sugammadex that is effective in reversing the NMB after the incomplete reversal with neostigmine and glycopyrrolate. We discuss a case where sugammadex reduced the time of the recovery from NMB in a patient who had incomplete antagonisms following adequate treatment with neostigmine, aiding timely extubation without persistent residual NMB, and hence prevented the requirement of postoperative ventilation and the improvement in patient care. More randomized control studies are needed in order to conclude the appropriate dose of sugammadex in cases of incomplete reversal.
Identity, Materials, and Pedagogy: Girls in Primary Science Classrooms in Wales

Girls’ achievement in science has caught up with boys’ in the UK and the USA, yet girls do not choose careers in science at the same rate as boys. Understanding more about the multiple and sometimes contradictory ways that girls experience science in a classroom context will help shed light on the larger problem of girls’ retention in science.
Tax-Advantaged Pre-IPO Trusts and Private Information

We examine the prevalence and determinants of CEOs’ use of tax-advantaged trusts prior to their firm’s IPO. Twenty-three percent of CEOs use tax-advantaged pre-IPO trusts, and share transfers into tax-advantaged trusts are positively associated with CEO equity wealth, estate taxes, and dynastic preferences. We project that pre-IPO trust use increases CEOs’ dynastic wealth by approximately $830,000 on average. We next examine a simple model’s prediction that trust use will be positively related to IPO-period stock price appreciation. We find that trust use is associated with twelve percent higher one-year post-IPO returns, but is not significantly related to the IPO’s valuation, filing price revision, or underpricing. This evidence is consistent with CEOs’ personal finance decisions prior to the IPO containing value relevant information that is not immediately incorporated into market prices.
Empirical Riccati covariance matrices for closed-loop model order reduction of nonlinear systems by balanced truncation

Model order reduction for nonlinear systems has been a challenging problem with limited methods and tools available. One approach is balanced truncation of empirically obtained Gramians (Lall et al., 1999) or controllability/ observability covariance matrices (Hahn et al., 2002). Empirical Gramians provide information about the controllability/ observability which is then used to transform a system so that only the subspaces that are most important to the input-to-output behavior are retained. While this provides an open-loop reduced order model, it may not be the best choice for robust controller and estimator (compensator) design. In this paper, an approach for obtaining empirical control and filter Riccati covariance matrices is proposed, and the empirical Riccati covariance matrices are used to obtain a reduced order model for systematic closed-loop compensator design. The proposed reduction method is demonstrated on a spatially discretized catalytic rod model, for which a constrained nonlinear model predictive controller and an extended Kalman filter are designed with the reduced order model. The efficacy of the proposed approach is established by comparing input and output responses of the resulting closed-loop system to those of the full order compensator and reduced compensators designed using other common balanced truncations methods.
Identification of changing melanocytic lesions in patients on BRAF inhibitor therapy.

9018 Background: Patients treated with BRAF inhibitors (BRAFi) have been observed to develop new primary melanomas. In addition, these patients often develop new nevi and involuting nevi. It remains a challenge to detect clinically subtle and histopathologically early melanomas in a background of such increased nevus volatility. In this study, we sought to quantify and describe the new, changing, and involuting melanocytic lesions observed in these patients. Methods: A retrospective chart and image analysis was conducted for all BRAFi treated patients referred to the Dermatology service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Initial overview and follow-up images were compared in MIRROR Body Mapping image system, DermaGraphiX software (Canfield Imaging Systems, Fairfield, NJ). A total count of new, changing, and involuting melanocytic lesions was determined in four anatomic areas: upper back, lower back, chest, and abdomen. Dermoscopy images of all changing lesions that were biopsied were evaluated for...
REDOR NMR Reveals Multiple Conformers for a Protein Kinase C Ligand in a Membrane Environment

Bryostatin 1 (henceforth bryostatin) is in clinical trials for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and for HIV/AIDS eradication. It is also a preclinical lead for cancer immunotherapy and other therapeutic indications. Yet nothing is known about the conformation of bryostatin bound to its protein kinase C (PKC) target in a membrane microenvironment. As a result, efforts to design more efficacious, better tolerated, or more synthetically accessible ligands have been limited to structures that do not include PKC or membrane effects known to influence PKC–ligand binding. This problem extends more generally to many membrane-associated proteins in the human proteome. Here, we use rotational-echo double-resonance (REDOR) solid-state NMR to determine the conformations of PKC modulators bound to the PKCδ-C1b domain in the presence of phospholipid vesicles. The conformationally limited PKC modulator phorbol diacetate (PDAc) is used as an initial test substrate. While unanticipated partitioning of PDAc between an ...
The Management of Painful Procedures in Children

Painful procedures are a source of considerable distress for children. The types of procedures to which children are subjected vary greatly in intensity and often must be repeated many times. Unfortunately, many procedures in children are still performed using methods of restraint, without the potential benefits of pharmacologic or behavioral assistance. This article reviews procedural pain, with emphasis on the pharmacologic methods available to help children undergo the innumerable painful procedures they may face in sickness and in health.
Social Informatics: Principles, Theory, and Practice

Through this paper we make two contributions to social informatics: the interdisciplinary study of the design, development, uses and consequences of information and communication technologies that takes into account their interaction with institutional and cultural contexts. Our first contribution is to make a connection from social informatics to general principles of socio-technical theories. We do this to both connect social informatics scholarship more directly to the large and growing literature(s) that engage socio-technical theorizing and to advance these principles more directly through social informatics. Our second contribution to social informatics is to engage two contemporary theoretical approaches that draw on social informatics principles: socio-technical interaction networks and principles of social actors and apply them to current practice. We do so to demonstrate that these analytic approaches are the needed tools to help scholars and reflective professionals in practice engage social informatics analyses. By doing this we highlight the potential of social informatics while honouring Rob Kling’s legacy in helping to establish this transdiscipline.
Training Issues Faced by Both Psychoanalysis and Family Therapy: Discussion of Dr. Gottlieb’s Paper

When Dr. Flomenhaft asked me to discuss Dr. Gottlieb’s paper, he must have anticipated my response. He must have guessed that giving this paper to me, a person trained at length in psychoanalysis, and a person, who, in his own professional identity, struggles most exclusively with psychoanalytic theory, would generate a few sparks of enthusiastic response. For I do have a deep and abiding respect for psychoanalysis and for the legacy of genius that Sigmund Freud and others gave to our field. I am not a family therapist. It is an understatement to say that what I do not know about family therapy or general systems theory would fill volumes. Hence, I am at a decided disadvantage when compared to Dr. Gottlieb, who is obviously familiar with many issues in dynamic theories and therapy—as indicated by his careful and thoughtful paper.
Assessment of Hemodynamics in DeBakey Type III Aortic Dissections for Planning Surgical Interventions and to Understand Post-Treatment Changes

Aortic dissections are a lethal disease affecting thousands of people in the USA each year. This chapter illustrates the application of personalized computational fluid dynamics (CFD) in understanding the hemodynamics of DeBakey type III/Stanford B aortic dissections (dissections confined to the descending aorta), pre- and post-surgical interventions, and simulating hemodynamic changes as a pretreatment planning tool. In this regard, CFD simulations using patient-derived data may be useful for gaining a conceptual understanding of the hemodynamic factors for a particular aortic dissection before intervention and how these factors change with treatment or disease progression. CFD simulations have a potential role in evaluating a number of scenarios and configurations, guiding therapy, and providing a basis for outcome prediction.
Reliably Republican? Shifts in U.S. Veterans’ Political Party Affiliation from 1974 to 2016

Assumptions of veteran affiliation with the Republican Party are widespread, but the extent to which veteran status constitutes a social cleavage patterning political alignment remains understudied...
Cognitive abilities and antisocial behavior in prison: A longitudinal assessment using a large state-wide sample of prisoners

Abstract Cognitive abilities have been shown to have both direct and indirect effects on antisocial behavior in a wide variety of contexts, including inmate misconduct. Nevertheless, although the findings have been robust, no assessments have offered an examination of the association between cognitive abilities and longitudinal variation in the frequency of inmate misconduct during imprisonment. In an effort to address this gap within the literature, the current study directly examines the longitudinal association between cognitive abilities and the frequency of inmate misconduct during imprisonment. Analyses were conducted using data collected during the state-wide Evaluation of Ohio's Prison Programs. The analytical sample of N = 88,145 and the 5 ½ year period represent one of the largest and longest assessments of the frequency of inmate misconduct clusters within prison and the first to examine the influence of cognitive abilities on such clustering. The results of growth curve analyses (GCA) indicated that higher cognitive abilities were associated with a lower intercept and a more gradual decline in the frequency of misconduct over time when compared to individuals with lower cognitive abilities. This pattern was also partially supported by the misconduct clusters estimated during latent class growth analysis (LCGA). Overall, the findings indicate that cognitive abilities affect both the clustering and the frequency of prison misconduct.
Immersogeometric analysis of compressible flows with application to aerodynamic simulation of rotorcraft

We present an immersogeometric analysis (IMGA) approach for the simulation of compressible flows around complex geometries. In this method, compressible flow simulations are performed directly on v...
An Examination of Message Elaboration as a Moderator of Psychological Reactance

The current study advances the literature on psychological reactance theory by examining the moderating role of message elaboration on the reactance process. Participants (N = 512) were randomly as...
Intraovarianism. Local mechanisms that affect follicle and luteal dynamics in heifers and women

Intraovarianism is represented by greater follicle activity in right ovary (RO) than left ovary (LO) during the two or three follicular waves per interovulatory interval in heifers and the ovulatory wave in women. In each species, selection between the dominant follicle (DF or F1) and future largest subordinate follicle (F2) is manifested by diameter deviation. The RO has more ≥6 mm predeviation follicles in heifers, more 2–10 mm predeviation follicles in women, and greater frequency of ovulation in each species. The RO propensity for ovulation likely develops before birth or at least before sexual maturity as indicated by (1) heavier RO with more follicles in recently born calves and heavier right fetal gonad with more DNA content in humans and (2) greater RO frequency for largest follicle of a wave in sexually immature heifers and for first ovulation of puberty. In heifers, intraovarianism is also expressed by (1) two-way enhancement effect between DF and corpus luteum (CL) when in same ovary, (2) regression of predeviation follicles when adjacent to the regressing CL, (3) more frequent location of F2 during predeviation in ovary that contains F1, (4) greater diameter increase during recovery of subordinate follicles when in RO with the future DF, and (5) effect of an intraovarian pattern on the pattern in the next wave. The nature of these forms of intraovarianism is not known but may be physical rather than from local passage of factors between structures. Intraovarianism should be considered when studying systemic hormonal effects on ovarian dynamics.Summary sentenceAn intraovarian system of physical mechanisms affects follicle and luteal dynamics in heifers and women.
Exploring the effect of Colorado's recreational marijuana policy on opioid overdose rates

Abstract Objectives Opioid overdose death rates have continued to spike exponentially from the start of the 21st century, creating what is known to be one of the worst public health crises in the United States. Simultaneously, as more states began passing medical cannabis laws (MCLs), the idea that marijuana was the solution to the opioid crisis began to spread nationwide. As some states have maintained strict medical marijuana policies, others—such as Colorado—have expanded their statutes to allow recreational marijuana sales within their state. Researchers have been able to provide sense of the public health implications resulting from MCLs, but little is known about the effects of this marijuana policy expansion. This preliminary study will focus on exploring the statewide effects of Colorado's recreational marijuana policy on the state's opioid overdose death rates. Study design Because Colorado has existing panel data for opioid overdose death rates, we can use statistical software to define and create an optimal control group to adequately resemble Colorado's outcome variable of interest. This process known as the synthetic control method can provide a valid counterfactual for Colorado's opioid overdose outcomes in the absence of this policy—a Colorado that did not expand marijuana policy to the point recreational dispensaries were established. Methods Opioid overdose death rate data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (WONDER) will be used to construct a synthetic control unit composed of a donor pool of states resembling Colorado's regulatory environment pertaining to marijuana before legalization. The synthetic control unit allows for a comparative observation of overdose rate trends in Colorado and its synthetic counterpart for the years 1999–2017, all while including a set of predictor variables for robustness checks. A difference-in-difference estimate will then help us observe the effects of the treatment given to Colorado. Inference tests will be conducted to evaluate the method's predictive power and significance of the results. Results The results of the synthetic control model and its outcomes showed that the estimated negative 5% drop in overdose death rates was deemed insignificant on conducting a placebo in-space analysis, meaning there is not enough evidence to prove that opening recreational dispensaries as a result of recreational marijuana legislation was instrumental in reducing Colorado's ongoing opioid crisis depicted through opioid overdose deaths. Conclusion Owing to the lack of additional post-treatment data and captured lagged effects, it is too soon to dismiss this policy as inadequate in combating the opioid epidemic. Once additional post-treatment data become available, the study can be reproduced to obtain more robust results and achieve a clearer understanding of the policy implications shown.
Surrogate decision-making: Clinical uncertainty, rational apathy, and the problem of trust

Abstract This paper briefly lays out the well-known obstacles to surrogate decision-making that comports with incapacitated patients’ wishes, but then focuses primarily on exploring an additional layer of complexity that makes surrogate decision-making even more challenging. Health care agents face particularly vexing obstacles to making decisions for their incapacitated family members. A combination of factors impact the objectivity and reliability of the process. In addition, there is another decision-making realm in which the added complexities of bounded rationality, clinical uncertainty and overall Knightian uncertainty provide insurmountable, unalterable barriers to confident rational surrogate decision-making. The combination of all of these factors often leads health care agents to consent to more care than the incapacitated patient might have chosen. Even in situations in which the medical decision itself is simple to comprehend, the broader ethical and cognitive challenges inherent in such a decision are daunting. Recognition of the role of clinical uncertainty and resultant rational apathy in health care decision-making may help physicians to more effectively guide surrogate decision-making. This in turn may help surrogate decision-makers in their quest to make good decisions on behalf of patients and may provide surrogates with some comfort that they have done well in the face of an emotionally and morally challenging dilemma. Finally, it is important to recognize that there are two worlds of end-of-life care—one for low-income, uninsured patients, and another for the well-off, educated, well-insured patients. Empirical research demonstrates that minority race and lower socioeconomic status are associated with poorer patient ratings of health care quality and provider communication at the end of life.
Risk assessment of postoperative pneumonia among children undergoing otolaryngologic surgery: Derivation and validation of a preoperative risk profiling.

Abstract Background Postoperative pneumonia is a serious complication because it may be associated with morbidity, mortality and substantially increased cost of surgical care. Risk of postoperative pneumonia varies across surgical specialties, although its incidence and risk factors in pediatric otolaryngology have not been comprehensively elucidated. Objective To identify factors associated with postoperative pneumonia and determine whether a subset of children with a disproportionate risk of pneumonia can be identified. Methods Using the National Surgical Quality Improvement- Pediatric (NSQIP-P) database, we first selected children (N = 17,776; age under 18 years) who underwent inpatient pediatric otolaryngology procedures between 2012 and 2017. Using a random subset of 80% of the study population (derivation cohort), we next developed a multivariable logistic regression model to identify independent risk factors for postoperative pneumonia. We then divided children into risk groups and evaluated whether the Pareto principle applied to distribution of postoperative pneumonia across the risk groups. Results Among the 12,443 children in the derivation cohort, 177 (1.4%) developed postoperative pneumonia. A multivariable risk model identified patients who developed postoperative pneumonia with good accuracy in both the derivation and validation cohorts. Stratification of patients into five mutually exclusive risk groups showed that 71% of postoperative pneumonia occurred in the highest risk group representing 20% the study cohort. Children who developed postoperative pneumonia were 18 times more likely to require an extended hospital length of stay (OR: 18.6; 95%CI: 12.3–28.2), and 7 times more likely to die compared to children without pneumonia (OR: 7.40, 95%CI: 3.53–15.48). Conclusions We identified key preoperative risk factors for postoperative pneumonia in children undergoing otolaryngology surgery. A small proportion (20%) of high-risk patients accounted for a large proportion (71%) of postoperative pneumonia indicating an underlying Pareto distribution and underscoring the need for targeted interventions for this “vital few”. Postoperative pneumonia in pediatric otolaryngology surgical inpatients was associated with longer hospital stay and a higher risk of mortality. Clinical trial number and registry Not applicable.
Bertha: Tunneling through the Network API

Network APIs such as UNIX sockets, DPDK, Netmap, etc. assume that networks provide only end-to-end connectivity. However, networks increasingly include smart NICs and programmable switches that can implement both network and application functions. Several recent works have shown the benefit of offloading application functionality to the network, but using these approaches requires changing not just the applications, but also network and system configuration. In this paper we propose Bertha, a network API that provides a uniform abstraction for offloads, aiming to simplify their use.
Data Systems Models

This chapter describes the three data models that we study in this text: tabular, relational, and hierarchical. We also describe how we will study each model: via its structure, operations, and constraints. For each of the three models, we give a high-level summary of its design, common operations (e.g., to access, mutate, or aggregate data), and rules that data in the model must satisfy.
Simultaneous Single-Cell Genome and Transcriptome Sequencing of Termite Hindgut Protists Reveals Metabolic and Evolutionary Traits of Their Endosymbionts

Abstract Different protist species which colonize the hindguts of wood feeding Reticulitermes termites are associated with endosymbiotic bacteria belonging to the genus Endomicrobium. In this study, we focused on the endosymbionts of three protist species from Reticulitermes flavipes, which included Pyrsonympha vertens, Trichonympha agilis, and Dinenympha species II. Since these protist hosts represented members of difference taxa which colonize different niches within the hindguts of their termite hosts, we investigated if these differences translated to differential gene content and expression in their endosymbionts. Following assembly and comparative genome and transcriptome analyses, we discovered that these endosymbionts differed with respect to possible niche specific traits such carbon metabolism. Our analyses supported that genes related to carbon metabolism were acquired by horizontal gene transfer (HGT) from donor taxa which are present in termite’s hindgut community. In addition, our analyses supported that these endosymbionts have retained and expressed genes related to natural transformation (competence) and recombination. Taken together, the presence of genes acquired by HGT and a putative competence pathway supported that these endosymbionts are not cut-off from gene flow and that competence may be a mechanism by which members of the Endomicrobium can acquire new traits. Importance The composition and structure of wood, which contains cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, prevents most organisms from using this common food source. Termites are a rare exception among animals, and they rely on a complex microbiome housed in their hindguts to use wood as a source of food. The lower termite R. flavipes houses a variety of protist and prokaryotes that are the key players the disassembly of lignocellulose. In this paper we describe the genomes and the gene expression profiles of five Endomicrobium endosymbionts living inside three different protist species from R. flavipes. Data from these genomes suggest that these Endomicrobium species have different mechanisms for using both carbon and nitrogen. In addition, they harbor genes that may be used to import free DNA from their environment. This process of DNA-uptake may cntribute to the high levels of horizontal gene transfer often seen in the Endomicrobium species.
Abstract MP28: Social Isolation, Loneliness, And Cardiovascular Disease Among Older Women In The Women’S Health Initiative

Background: Now more than ever is a critical time to understand the independent contributions social isolation and loneliness have on cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. This study examined the un...
Detection and Localization of Disconnections in a Large-Scale String of Photovoltaics Using SSTDR

In this article, we explore the possibility of using spread spectrum time domain reflectometry (SSTDR) for detecting disconnections in a large-scale photovoltaic (PV) array. We discuss the importance, role, and trade-offs of SSTDR resolution, frequency, and attenuation in detecting disconnects in the system. Our results show that if the proper system parameters are chosen, disconnections can be detected in a 1-kV system consisting of twenty-six 60-cell PV panels and located within 1.52 m for the first 22 modules.
Association between specific antiarrhythmic drug prescription in the post-procedural blanking period and recurrent atrial arrhythmias after catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation.

Author(s): Malladi, Chaitanya L; Darden, Douglas; Aldaas, Omar; Mylavarapu, Praneet S; Eskander, Michael; Lupercio, Florentino; Han, Frederick T; Hoffmayer, Kurt S; Raissi, Farshad; Ho, Gordon; Krummen, David; Feld, Gregory K; Hsu, Jonathan C | Abstract: PurposeTo evaluate if specific AADs prescribed in the blanking period (BP) after catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) may be associated with reduced risk of early recurrence (ER) and/or late recurrence (LR) of atrial arrhythmias.MethodsA total of 478 patients undergoing first-time ablation at a single institution were included. Outcomes were: ER, LR, discontinuation of AAD less than 90 days post-ablation, and second ablation. ER was defined as AF, atrial flutter (AFL), or atrial tachycardia (AT) g 30 seconds within BP. LR was defined as AF/AFL/AT g 30 seconds after BP.ResultsOf 478 patients, 14.9% were prescribed no AAD, 26.4% propafenone/flecainide, 34.5% sotalol/dofetilide, 10.7% dronedarone, and 13.6% amiodarone. Patients prescribed amiodarone were more likely to have persistent AF, hypertension, diabetes, and other comorbidities. In unadjusted analyses, there were no differences between groups in relation to ER (log rank P = 0.171), discontinuation of AAD before ninety days post-ablation (log rank P = 0.235), or freedom from second ablation (log rank P = 0.147). After multivariable adjustment, patients prescribed amiodarone or dronedarone were more likely to experience LR than those prescribed no AAD [Adjusted Hazard Ratio (AHR) 1.83, 95% CI 1.10-3.04, p = 0.02; AHR 1.79, 95% CI 1.05-3.05, p = 0.03, respectively].ConclusionFollowing first-time catheter ablation, there were no differences between specific AAD prescription and risk of ER, while those prescribed amiodarone or dronedarone in the BP were more likely to experience LR than those prescribed no AAD, which may represent an association due to confounding by indication.
Building Energy Performance Research – Current Approaches and Future Trends

Energy is a central issue in the sustainability debate affecting all three of its components, environmental, social, and economic sustainability. Buildings account for about 30% of global energy use and more than 55% of global electricity consumption. In the US, the building sector, including both residential and commercial buildings, accounts for 39% of the total US primary energy use. While significant improvements have been achieved in building energy efficiency, societal use of energy in the US and across the world is still projected to increase due to a combination of population and economic growth. A strong need exists for building energy performance research to better define and understand existing challenges and barriers facing the needed evolution to net-zero energy buildings and to develop methods of overcoming them. Building energy performance research methodologies can be categorized into four main categories: lab experiments, simulation, field experiments, and field studies. Each of these methodological approaches offers a range of opportunities and limitation. This chapter provides an overview of these different methodologies and offers guidance on how to select an appropriate methodology for research projects. The chapter also provides an overview of important and emerging areas of energy performance research, as well as a discussion of the tools and equipment typically used in these projects. Three case studies representing applied examples of each of these methodological approaches are also presented to further illustrate the advantages and disadvantages of each.