cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Simulation of Explosion Ground Motions Using a Hydrodynamic‐to‐Elastic Coupling Approach in Three Dimensions

Abstract Near‐field ground motions from explosions are governed by hydrodynamics and nonlinear material response. However, the calculation of the response using hydrodynamic solvers to observational distances, where motions are elastic, is computationally challenging. In order to propagate explosion ground motions from the near‐source region to the far field, we developed a hybrid modeling approach with a hydrodynamic‐to‐elastic coupling in three dimensions. Near‐source motions are computed with a Eulerian hydrodynamics code with adaptive mesh refinement. Motions on a dense grid of points are saved, resampled, and then passed to an elastic finite‐difference code for seismic‐wave modeling. Our coupling strategy is based on the uniqueness theorem, where motions are introduced into the elastic code as time‐dependent boundary sources and propagate as elastic waves at much lower computational cost than with the hydrodynamics code. We developed and verified the methodology to compute the hydrodynamic responses in either 2D or 3D into the elastic region and pass these to the elastic solver as 3D boundary motions. The accuracy of the numerical calculations and the coupling strategy is demonstrated in cases with a purely elastic medium as well as a nonlinear medium. Importantly, we show that our hydrodynamics code can accurately model motions for shallow sources in an elastic medium including surface waves, which is essential to insure that near‐source motions are correct. An application of our hybrid modeling approach is shown for a problem with scattering by 3D heterogeneity. Our strategy is capable of incorporating complex nonlinear effects near the source as well as volumetric and topographic material heterogeneity along the propagation path to receiver, making it very powerful for modeling a wide variety of effects and providing new prospects for modeling and understanding explosion‐generated seismic waveforms.
Blind SIMO channel estimation for CPM using the Laurent approximation

We demonstrate that by employing the main-pulse Laurent approximation, blind second-order-statistics-based channel identification can be performed for partial response CPM signals having modulation indices other than one-half. We use the approximation to formulate the problem in the single-input multiple-output model, permitting fractional sampling of the channel output, and we compare the estimation performance, for several multipath-distorted CPM signals, of several blind channel identification methods. Simulation results demonstrate the efficacy of existing techniques for general CPM signals and highlight the necessity of exploiting the known source statistics and pulses.
The Effect of Vibrato on the Pitch-Matching Accuracy of Certain and Uncertain Singers:

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of vibrato on the pitch-matching accuracy of certain and uncertain singers. Subjects were in kindergarten through Grade 3 (N = 200). They responded to three different models singing a descending minor third from G to E above middle C: (1) a child model with 100% pitch accuracy; (2) an adult female model singing with vibrato and 79.53% pitch accuracy; and (3) the same adult female model singing nonvibrato and with 100%) pitch accuracy. Results demonstrated significant differences between percentages of correct responses by certain (M = 78.48 %) and uncertain singers (M = 40.89%}) and among correct responses to the three models. There were more correct responses to the nonvibrato model than to either the vibrato or child model Further analyses demonstrated that certain singers seemed to produce a high percentage of correct responses regardless of sex, grade level, or model presented. In contrast, uncertain singers | responded most correctly to the nonvib...
Auditing compliance with a Hippocratic database

We introduce an auditing framework for determining whether a database system is adhering to its data disclosure policies. Users formulate audit expressions to specify the (sensitive) data subject to disclosure review. An audit component accepts audit expressions and returns all queries (deemed "suspicious") that accessed the specified data during their execution. The overhead of our approach on query processing is small, involving primarily the logging of each query string along with other minor annotations. Database triggers are used to capture updates in a backlog database. At the time of audit, a static analysis phase selects a subset of logged queries for further analysis. These queries are combined and transformed into an SQL audit query, which when run against the backlog database, identifies the suspicious queries efficiently and precisely. We describe the algorithms and data structures used in a DB2-based implementation of this framework. Experimental results reinforce our design choices and show the practicality of the approach.
On the modeling of the electromagnetic fields induced by MRI fields in patients with a retinal implant

In this work, we consider the interaction between MRI fields and a patient with a retinal prosthesis (RP) implant, which is a restorative device being designed to mimic the function of basic photoreceptor cells in patients suffering from outer retinal degeneration caused by age related macular degeneration (AMD) or retinal pigmentosa. This work uses 3D expanding grid finite difference time domain (FDTD) method to calculate the SAR distribution and estimate the thermal elevation when the human head with the implant is exposed to RF magnetic field at 64 MHz. The advantage of using an expanding grid FDTD algorithm is that computer memory requirements are greatly reduced and more accurate modeling of the region of the implant is possible where a finer grid with cell sizes of the order of micrometers is used. This helps to model the RF birdcage coil and the human head with the implant as a single system and simulate the EM interactions of the tissues even at higher frequencies. The power deposition is computed as the average SAR over any 1 g of tissue in the head.
Performing Marriage: Marriage Renewal Rituals as Cultural Performance

This interpretive study examined how the marriage renewal ritual reflects the social construction of marriage in the U.S. Two culturally prominent ideologies of marriage were interwoven in our interviews of 25 married persons who had renewed their marriage vows: (a) a dominant ideology of community and (b) a more muted ideology of individualism. The ideology of community was evidenced by a construction of marriage featuring themes of public accountability, social embeddedness, and permanence. By contrast, the ideology of individualism constructed marriage around themes of love, choice, and individual growth.
Cross-Selling the Right Product to the Right Customer at the Right Time:

Abstract Firms are challenged to improve the effectiveness of cross-selling campaigns. the authors propose a customer-response model that recognizes the evolvement of customer demand for various products; the possible multifaceted roles of cross-selling solicitations for promotion, advertising, and education; and customer heterogeneous preference for communication channels. they formulate cross-selling campaigns as solutions to a stochastic dynamic programming problem in which the firm's goal is to maximize the long-term profit of its existing customers while taking into account the development of customer demand over time and the multistage role of cross-selling promotion. the model yields optimal cross-selling strategies for how to introduce the right product to the right customer at the right time using the right communication channel. applying the model to panel data with cross-selling solicitations provided by a national bank, the authors demonstrate that households have different preferences and res...
A Guide to the Financial Bailout Legislation

This paper summarizes and comments on the major provisions of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, grouping the subjects covered as follows: (1) General Nature and Scope of the Bailout Program; (2) Procedures for Purchase and Sale of Assets; (3) Insurance Program; (4) Executive Compensation; (5) FDIC-Related Provisions; (6) Foreclosure Mitigation/Management Guidelines; (7) General Regulatory Reform; (8) Oversight; (9) Additional Provisions.
Binding of Phosphorylated Sp1 Protein to Tandem Sp1 Binding Sites Regulates α2 Integrin Gene Core Promoter Activity

The α2β1 integrin, a collagen/laminin receptor, is expressed by a variety of cell types, including epithelial cells, mesenchymal cells, and hematopoietic cells. To understand the molecular mechanisms that regulate expression of the α2β1 integrin in cells with megakaryocytic differentiation, we characterized the 5′ flanking region of the α2 integrin gene and identified three distinct regulatory regions, including a core promoter, a silencer, and megakaryocyte enhancers in the distal 5′ flank (Zutter et al, Blood 96:3006, 1995 and Zutter et al, J Biol Chem 269:463, 1994). We now focus on the core promoter of the α2 integrin gene located between bp −30 and −92 that is required for transcriptional activity of the α2 integrin gene. Sequence analysis identified two Sp1 consensus sites and a potential AP2 site. Gel retardation assays showed that nuclear proteins from uninduced K562 cells and K562 cells induced to become megakaryocytic bound specifically to the core promoter region (bp −30 to bp −92) producing two DNA-protein complexes. In addition, nuclear extracts from cells induced along the megakaryocyte lineage produced a selective increase in the slower migrating complex. Site-directed mutagenesis of the 5′, the 3′, or both Sp1 binding sites suggested that both Sp1 binding sites are required for full promoter activity and for DNA-protein complex formation. DNA footprinting also showed specific protection of the 5′ Sp1 site by nuclear extracts from uninduced K562 cells and protection of both the 5′ and the 3′ Sp1 sites by nuclear extracts from induced K562 cells. Sp1 protein-DNA complex formation was dependent on Sp1 phosphorylation. The faster migrating DNA-protein complex was enhanced by dephosphorylation; the slower migrating DNA-protein complex was diminished or lost.
TREATMENT OF BENIGN GIANT-CELL TUMORS

The treatment of benign giant-cell tumors varies, but the physician in charge has at his disposal the means of establishing an accurate diagnosis, following which a choice of methods is determined by the condition of the patient, the site (Fig.9) and size of the lesion, the degree of joint damage, fracture, and the perforation or non-perforation and penetration of periosseous tissues. Surgery has demonstrated its ability to cope with the majority of giant-cell tumors and, in the hands of the experienced, has proved its value in bringing about a high percentage of cures. Roentgen therapy has a definite place in the treatment, and in the future, the author believes, will be found of increasing value. In this report of sixty-one cases, the lack of surgical complications, the duration of life after operation (ten and three-tenths years), and the high percentage of satisfactory results would indicate that cooperation between the clinician, the roentgenologist, the pathologist, and the surgeon makes possible the accurate diagnosis and cure of most benign giant-cell tumors of bone.
Generalized data reduction strategy for rocket engine applications

The process of calibrating component hardware characteristics based on system level test data is termed data reduction. Typical problems associated with conventional data reduction methods used in rocket engine diagnostics include numerical instability and the inability to access plausible hardware operating states. A new, robust data reduction strategy has been developed that addresses these problems. The new strategy, termed Generalized Data Reduction (GDR), was developed specifically for rocket engine applications. Although GDR employs a traditional linearization process to decouple data reduction from performance analysis, no artificial constraints are placed on the candidate hardware states. Stability is achieved through a systematic subset selection process that eliminates redundant parameters from the reduction process. The operating state solution is obtained by solving an equalityconstrained, weighted least squares problem. Detailed mathematical development and representative computational results based on initial GDR analyses of Fastrac engine mainstage operation are presented.
Wear Behavior of Silicon Nitride Ball

The ball-on-disk method was applied to measure the wear behavior of Si3N4 balls sliding on SiC disk at the load of 10kgf and velocity of 20cm/s. Four kinds of Si3N4 balls from different sources were named A, B, C, D, in increasing order of their hardness or fracture toughness. The large grain structure and large porosity of Si3N4 (A) will explain its low hardness and low fracture toughness. The fine fibrous structure without porosity of Si3N4 (D) may be the reason of its high hardness and high fracture toughness. The wear volume calculated from the wear scar on a Si3N4 ball sliding on the SiC disk was proportional to the weight loss and to the sliding distance. The wear of Si3N4 ball decreased with increasing hardness or fracture toughness, but on the contrary, the wear of SiC disk increased sharply. The Si3N4 (C) ball, which has crystallized grain boundary phases, showed very low wear of ball but high wear of SiC disk.
In vitro effects of interleukin-12 on the growth of blast progenitors in acute myelogenous leukemia.

In vitro effects of interleukin-12 on the growth of blast progenitors in acute myelogenous leukemia
Electrochemical preparation of metal chloride-sulfuric acid-graphite bi-intercalation compound

Stage-2 metal chloride-GICs (metal chloride: AlCl3, BiCl3 and CuCl2) prepared in the standard two-zone method were oxidized galvanostatically in H2SO4.The electrode potential vs. electric quantity curves observed during the electrochemical treatment and the X-ray powder patterns of the products showed clearly the intercalation of H2SO4 into metal chloride-GICs and the formation of the graphite biintercalation compounds (GBCs) of metal chloride and H2SO4.The c axis repeat distance Ic of the GBCs was equal to the sum of those of metal chloride-GIG and of H2SO4-GIC.
Effects of Deep Hypothermic Circulatory Arrest and Selective Antegrade Cerebral Perfusion in Neonates and Infants

OBJECTIVE To analyze changes of cerebral oxygen saturation during using deep hypothermic circulatory arrest(DHCA)and selective antegrade cerebral perfusion(SACP)in neonates and infants aortic surgery,and evaluate the cerebral protective effects as well.METHODS24 patients diagnosed coarctation of aorta(CoA)or interrupted aortic arch(IAA)with congenital heart defects,aged 6 to 197 days average(78±58)days,weighed 2.3 to 5.6 kg average(4.0±0.8)kg,were randomly divided into DHCA group(n=15)and SACP group(n=9).Continuous SACP was established via the innominate artery cannulation after reaching target temperature,the flow rate was kept 15-30 ml/(kg·min).Near-infrared spectroscopy(NIRS)was used to continuously monitor the cerebral tissue oxygenation index(TOI)percutaneously.RESULTSAll patients recovered from anaesthesia within 24 hours and none appeared temporary neurologic complications,3 died in hospital.There was no significant difference of the baselines of TOI between these two groups(62%±6% and 61%±7%,P﹥0.05).After DHCA beginning,TOI decreased continuously and reached a nadir ranged 29% to 55% average(42±8)% at the end of DHCA.Comparing to the baseline,the maximum decrease of TOI was from 16.8% to 48.2% average(32.5±9.8)%.The TOI of SACP group at 5 min,10 min and the end of SACP was similar to the baseline(P0.05).At the three time points,but the TOI of DHCA group decreased significantly than that of SACP group(P﹤0.05).CONCLUSIONDHCA can cause to obviously decrease in cerebral tissue oxygenation,but in a certain time period,there are no differences between DHCA and SACP in postoperative neurological outcomes for neonates and infants.
Psycholinguistics and the evaluation of language function.

The range of communication problems observed in children of different ages is great, and the need to assess and provide appropriate therapies for such children is increasing by large proportions. A practical model of language function and human communication emphasizes the developmental sequence of language abilities. Problems involved in the identification of communication-handicapped children are discussed, and questions to be asked about communicative skills are presented as aids to the pediatrician in referring children with language disorders to the most appropriate evaluation and therapy services.
Investigating the impact of differences in kind upon resource consumption in web-based social networks

Understanding factors that encourage membership is becoming critically important in the success of web-based social networks. Web-based social structures provide various resources designed to encourage membership, such as mechanisms for finding individuals, posting and receiving messages, joining groups, promoting oneself or events, sharing news or photos, and protecting personal information. However, resources in the web-based social structure deviate quite drastically from resources in the traditional world being equally available to all societal members, reproduced at near zero cost, where consumption does not reduce supply but increases societal value of the resource, and where resource consumption requires trust of the consumer and affects privacy of the social network population. This paper uses the sociological view that clusters of individuals who exhibit similar patterns of behavior will emerge in social structures. Given that trust and privacy have long been established as important concepts in understanding behaviors in the online environment, we endeavor in this study to determine whether trust and privacy emerge as critical factors in the environment of the web-based social network. We use social network analysis to cluster individuals who exhibit both high and low tendencies toward trust and privacy, and then examine patterns of consumption of resources across these networks.
British Naval Supremacy and Anglo-American Antagonisms, 1914–1930

During World War I, Britain's naval supremacy enabled it to impose economic blockades and interdiction of American neutral shipping. The United States responded by building 'a navy second to none', one so powerful that Great Britain could not again successfully challenge America's vital economic interests. This book reveals that when the United States offered to substitute naval equality for its emerging naval supremacy, the British, nonetheless, used the resulting two major international arms-control conferences of the 1920s to ensure its continued naval dominance.
Integrating genomic information with protein sequence and 3D atomic level structure at the RCSB protein data bank

The Protein Data Bank (PDB) now contains more than 120,000 three-dimensional (3D) structures of biological macromolecules. To allow an interpretation of how PDB data relates to other publicly available annotations, we developed a novel data integration platform that maps 3D structural information across various datasets. This integration bridges from the human genome across protein sequence to 3D structure space. We developed novel software solutions for data management and visualization, while incorporating new libraries for web-based visualization using SVG graphics. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION The new views are available from http://www.rcsb.org and software is available from https://github.com/rcsb/. CONTACT andreas.prlic@rcsb.orgSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Biocrude from pretreated sorghum bagasse through catalytic hydrothermal liquefaction

Abstract For the purpose of producing biocrude from pretreated and washed sweet sorghum bagasse, hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) was conducted with six different catalysts at two temperatures. The six catalysts were: K2CO3, KOH, formic acid, Ni/Si Al, Ni2P and zeolite. The two temperatures were 300 and 350 °C. Based on two selection criteria, high yield of biocrude and low yield of biochar, K2CO3, KOH, and Ni/Si Al were identified as the best catalysts which led to biocrude yields of 61.8%, 42.3% and 45.0% at 300 °C, respectively. As the best catalyst, K2CO3 led to biocrude samples with higher heating values (HHVs) of 33.1 MJ/kg. This biocrude had high carbon content and low contents of nitrogen and sulfur based on elemental analysis. However, the relatively high content of oxygen around 15% requires the biocrudes to be upgraded before refinery ready. Key compounds identified in these biocrudes will assist future effort in upgrading. Overall, this study proved that the pretreated bagasse is a suitable feedstock for HTL for generating biocrude. Through a simple dilute acid pretreatment step and HTL of the resulting solid, every component of sorghum bagasse can be used for producing biofuels.
DTI Fiber Clustering in the Whole Brain

References [1] Ding et al. Classification and quantification of neuronal fiber pathways using diffusion tensor MRI. Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 49:716–721, 2003. [2] Corouge et al. Towards a shape model of white matter fiber bundles using diffusion tensor MRI. In International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging, pages 344–347, 2004. [3] Zhang et al. Visualizing diffusion tensor MR images using streamtubes and streamsurfaces. IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, 9(4):454–462, October 2003. [4] Duda et al. Pattern Classification. Wiley-Interscience Publication, 2000. Introduction
Clec11a/osteolectin is an osteogenic growth factor that promotes the maintenance of the adult skeleton

Bone marrow stromal cells maintain the adult skeleton by forming osteoblasts throughout life that regenerate bone and repair fractures. We discovered that subsets of these stromal cells, osteoblasts, osteocytes, and hypertrophic chondrocytes secrete a C-type lectin domain protein, Clec11a, which promotes osteogenesis. Clec11a-deficient mice appeared developmentally normal and had normal hematopoiesis but reduced limb and vertebral bone. Clec11a-deficient mice exhibited accelerated bone loss during aging, reduced bone strength, and delayed fracture healing. Bone marrow stromal cells from Clec11a-deficient mice showed impaired osteogenic differentiation, but normal adipogenic and chondrogenic differentiation. Recombinant Clec11a promoted osteogenesis by stromal cells in culture and increased bone mass in osteoporotic mice in vivo. Recombinant human Clec11a promoted osteogenesis by human bone marrow stromal cells in culture and in vivo. Clec11a thus maintains the adult skeleton by promoting the differentiation of mesenchymal progenitors into mature osteoblasts. In light of this, we propose to call this factor Osteolectin.
Fiscal Governance, Information Capacity, and Subnational Capital Finance:

This study posits a theory that a country’s capacity to resolve information problems directly relates to the development of subnational government (SNG) capital markets. Based on a sample of fifty-...
INVOLVEMENT OF HEAT SHOCK PROTEINS IN PROTECTION OF TUMOR CELLS FROM GENOTOXIC STRESSES

Anti-apoptotic functions of heat shock proteins Hsp70 and Hsp27 are well established. However, radiation and genotoxic antineoplastic drugs at clinically relevant doses induce apoptosis mostly in lymphoid cells, while in epithelial tumors they evoke different type of response, mainly senescence and mitotic catastrophe, which leads to loss of clonogenic potential of cells. Here we review old and new data showing that upregulation of Hsp27 or Hsp70 levels protect various tumor cell lines from gamma- and UV-radiation and genotoxic anti-neoplastic drugs. Accordingly, downregulation of Hsp27 or Hsp70 levels by antisense or siRNA sensitizes tumor cells to these agents. Importantly, protection and sensitization by modulation of Hsp27 or Hsp70 levels were manifested not only by modulation of apoptosis, but by clonogenic survival as well, and recent data indicate that these Hsps can suppress also drug-induced senescence. Several studies demonstrated that intrinsic and acquired chemo- and radioresistance in tumor cell lines and in patients with certain forms of cancers can be associated with upregulation of Hsp27 and/or Hsp70. Possible mechanisms of Hsp-induced protection, in particular, modulation of p53-dependent and p53-independent DNA-damaging signaling pathways, are discussed
Semiclassical theory of Landau levels and magnetic breakdown in topological metals

The Bohr-Sommerfeld quantization rule lies at the heart of the semiclassical theory of a Bloch electron in a magnetic field. This rule is predictive of Landau levels and quantum oscillations for conventional metals as well as for a host of topological metals, which have emerged in the recent synergy between band theory, crystalline symmetries, and topology. Here, the authors systematically formulate quantization rules that apply to energy-degenerate bands and to orbits that intersect at saddle points and type-II Dirac points where quantum tunneling is unavoidable. The formulation extends previous work by incorporating the orbital magnetic moment and the geometric Berry phase. The latter is an indispensable property of topological metals.
‘No ordinary lawsuit’: will Juliana v United States put the judiciary at the centre of US climate change policy?

Barring any late successful procedural challenges, on 29 October 2018 in Eugene, Oregon,1 United States District Judge Ann Aiken will begin presiding over a case the like of which has never been ad...
Which Closed Convex Subsets of an Inner Product Space are Chebyshev

In a certain class of convex sets (including the subspaces of finite-codimension), a precise characterization is given of those convex sets which are Chebyshev.
Access to Genetic Resources in the Practices of States

Before the entry into force of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), in 1992, access to genetic resources was free for all mankind. The article 15.1 of the Convention states that: “Recognizing the sovereign rights of States over their natural resources, the authority to determine access to genetic resources rests with the national governments and is subject to national legislation.” In the same article, the CBD sets out principles and obligations of Parties related to access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources, on the basis of prior informed consent and mutually agreed terms. An analysis of the national legal instruments relating access to genetic resources showed some common elements: the establishment of competent national authorities, prior informed consent and compliance measures.
Aggressive Slack Recycling via Transparent Pipelines

In order to operate reliably and produce expected outputs, modern architectures set timing margins conservatively at design time to support extreme variations in workload and environment. Unfortunately, the conservative guard bands set to achieve this reliability create clock cycle slack and are detrimental to performance and energy efficiency. To combat this, we propose Aggressive Slack Recycling via Transparent Pipelines. Our proposal performs timing speculation while allowing data to flow asynchronously via transparent latches, between synchronous boundaries. This allows timing speculation to cater to the average slack across asynchronous operations rather than the slack of the most critical operation - maximizing slack conservation and timing speculation efficiency. We design a slack tracking mechanism which runs in parallel with the transparent data path to estimate the accumulated slack across operation sequences. The mechanism then appropriately clocks synchronous boundaries early to minimize wasted slack and maximize clock cycle savings. We implement our proposal on a spatial fabric and achieves absolute speedups up to 20% and relative improvements (vs. competing mechanisms) of up to 75%.
Cardiomyopathy in Cancer Patients with Chronic Thrombocytopenia: To Cath or not to Cath?

Background The systemic inflammatory and hypercoagulable states, as well as the cardiotoxic effects of chemo-radiation therapies, expose cancer patients to a wide spectrum of cardiovascular comorbidities that may require cardiac catheterization. The presence of thrombocytopenia increases the risk for significant bleeding during endovascular procedures. We sought to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcomes of cancer patients with chronic thrombocytopenia undergoing cardiac catheterization for evaluation of cardiomyopathy. Methods We performed a retrospective study of patients with preprocedural thrombocytopenia undergoing cardiac catheterization indicated for cardiomyopathy (chemotherapy-induced, myopericarditis, Takotsubo, or other cardiomyopathies) between November 2009 and November 2015 at our institution. Preprocedural platelet counts were classified into 3 groups: mild thrombocytopenia (>50 K/µL), moderate thrombocytopenia (30-50 K/µL), and severe thrombocytopenia ( Results Out of a total of 148 patients that underwent coronary angiography, 50 (33.8%) had cardiomyopathy as the indication (Table). Mean platelet count on admission was 44.1 ± 29.2 K/µL. Severe thrombocytopenia was identified in 22 patients (44%), moderate thrombocytopenia in 7 patients (14%), and mild thrombocytopenia in 21 patients (42%). No periprocedural bleeding or major adverse cardiovascular events were noted. Median overall survival (OS) was 6.9 months. Patients who had congestive heart failure had significantly decreased OS (p = 0.01). Decreased hemoglobin (p = 0.08), moderate thrombocytopenia (p = 0.03), severe thrombocytopenia (p = 0.09), and LVEF Conclusions Thrombocytopenia should not represent an absolute contraindication for cardiac catheterization in cancer patients with cardiomyopathy and can be considered when hemodynamic data or information obtained invasively may impact clinical care.
Perovskite Nanoparticles Toxicity Study on Airway Epithelial Cells

Research on the toxicity of nanoparticles has developed over recent years due to their increasing prevalence in common everyday materials. Various nanoparticles have been reported to promote and induce mucus secretion, which could potentially lead to airway damages and respiratory complications. Lanthanum strontium manganite (LSM) is a nanoparticle widely used in solar oxidized fuel cells (SOFCs) due to its high electrical conductivity, high electrochemical activity for O2 reduction reaction, high thermal stability and compatibility of SOFC electrolytes, and most importantly, its microstructural stability and long-term performance. Very few studies have been conducted on LMS’s toxicity, thus its effect on airway cells was investigated in this study. After treating trachea cells with increasing concentrations of LSM ranging up to 500 μg/ml, we found that it has a moderate effect on cell viability, ROS production, cytochrome C, and caspase 3 expression. Despite its minimal impact on stated apoptosis-inducing characteristics, LSM illustrated an inhibiting effect on mucus secretion. We obtained a decreasing trend in mucus secretion with an increased concentration of the LSM treatment. Overall, LSM’s advancement in SOFCs necessitated a toxicity study, and although it does not show a significant toxicity to trachea cells, LSM reduces mucus secretion, and can potentially interfere with airway clearance.
Temperature-Induced transition

A nitrogen-strengthened austenitic stainless steel was tested in uniaxial tension at room temperature (295 K) and in liquid nitrogen (76 K). A transition in ductile fracture appearance from a cup-cone fracture at room temperature to shear fracture at cryogenic temperature is observed and correlated to deformation behavior and micromechanisms (void nucleation and strain localization) of fracture. The flow stresses, fracture stresses, and strain hardening rates are all higher at liquid nitrogen temperature compared to those at room temperature, and the significant increases in plastic flow stresses are accompanied by planar deformation mechanisms. At both temperatures, primary void nucleation is observed mainly at scattered, large patches of sigma phase, and initial primary void growth is associated with tensile instability (necking) in the specimen. Postuniform elongation at 295 K leads to secondary void nucleation from small, less than 1 μm in diameter, microalloy particles, leading directly to failure; the strain required for secondary void growth and coalescence is highly localized and does not contribute to macroscopic elongation. At 76 K, uniform strain increases, total strain decreases, and strain localization into shear bands between the primary voids and the surface of the neck leads directly to failure. Secondary void nucleation, growth, and coalescence are limited to shear bands and also do not contribute to the macroscopic elongation. The observations of void nucleation are characterized in terms of a continuum analysis for the interfacial stress at voidnucleating particles. The critical interfacial stress for void nucleation at the lower temperature correlates with the increased flow properties of the matrix.
Applications Beyond Local Excision

Transanal minimally invasive surgery (TAMIS) is an advanced videoscopic endoluminal platform that blends single-incision laparoscopy with local excision techniques. Since its inception, TAMIS has been used increasingly worldwide as an alternative to traditional transanal excision and transanal endoscopic microsurgery for local excision of benign and early-stage rectal cancers in the distal and mid rectum. With the benefits and success of rectal lesion excision, the applications have continued to evolve. In this chapter, we review several applications of TAMIS beyond local excision, for performing established procedures in a minimally invasive transanal approach, facilitating new technology and the development of new approaches, and managing complications.
The impact of medical comorbidities on the quality of care for patients with head and neck cancer.

e16030 Background: Objectively assessing the treatment of patients with cancer offers a basis for raising the standard of care. Quality indicators provide criteria by which the safety of care can b...
Ideas and perspectives: enhancing the impact of the FLUXNET network of eddy covariance sites

Abstract. In the last 20 years, the FLUXNET network provided unique measurements of CO2, energy and other greenhouse gases exchange between ecosystems and atmosphere measured with the eddy covariance technique. These data have been widely used in different and heterogeneous applications and FLUXNET became a reference source of information not only for ecological studies but also in modeling and remote sensing applications. The data are in general collected, processed and shared by regional networks or by single sites and for this reason it is difficult for users interested to analysis involving multiple sites to easily access a coherent and standardized dataset. For this reason, periodic FLUXNET collections have been released in the last 15 years, every 5 to 10 years, with data standardized and shared under the same data use policy. However, the new tools available for data analysis and the need to constantly monitor the relations between ecosystem behaviour and climate change, require a reorganization of FLUXNET in order to increase the data interoperability, reduce the delay in the data sharing and facilitate the data use. All this keeping in mind the large effort made by the site teams to collect these unique data and respecting the different regional and national networks organization and data policies. Here a proposal for a new organization of FLUXNET is presented, where the regional and national networks become the pillars of the global initiative, organizing clusters and becoming responsible for the processing and preparation of datasets that users will be able to access real time and with a machine-to-machine tool, obtaining always the most updated collection possible but keeping high standardization and common data policy. This will also lead to an increase of the FAIRness (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability and Reusability) of the FLUXNET data that would ensure a larger impact of the unique data produced and a proper data management and traceability.
A randomized prospective comparison of maxillomandibular fixation (MMF) techniques: "SMARTLock" hybrid MMF versus MMF screws.

Objective The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of the “SMARTLock” hybrid system and determine whether it results in fewer intraoperative and postoperative complications compared with placement of intermaxillary fixation (IMF) screws in trauma patients. Study Design This prospective study, which was approved by the institutional review board, compared the results of MMF in mandibular fractures by using the Stryker “SMARTLock” hybrid system versus traditional IMF screws. Patients were recruited and assigned randomly to either group. The 2 groups were compared for placement time, intraoperative complications, loosening of hardware, postoperative complications, and time to device removal. Results We enrolled 32 patients in the study, with 13 patients randomized to the group receiving hybrid MMF (HMMF) with the SMARTLock system and 19 to the group of patients receiving MMF with traditional IMF screws. The mean application time for HMMF was 25.92 minutes compared with 18.28 minutes for IMF screws. After removal, the HMMF was associated with gingival overgrowth and gingival edema. Conclusions This is the first study to compare HMMF with MMF with the use of IMF screws. Hybrid arch bars do require more manipulation for ideal placement compared with individually placed bone screws to achieve ideal MMF. Compared with IMF screws, the hybrid device was associated with gingival edema and overgrowth, but there was decreased incidence of loosening in the postoperative period.
The Authenticity Paradox: Why the Returns to Authenticity on Audience Appeal Decrease in Popularity and Iconicity:

A great deal of research has argued for authenticity as a key firm-level attribute and source of competitive advantage. But we know very little about the boundary conditions related to organization...
Understanding and embracing the complexities of the molecular communication channel in liquids

Molecular communication has recently gained a lot of interest due to its potential to enable micro-implants to communicate by releasing molecules into the bloodstream. In this paper, we aim to explore the molecular communication channel through theoretical and empirical modeling in order to achieve a better understanding of its characteristics, which tend to be more complex in practice than traditional wireless and wired channels. Our study reveals two key new characteristics that have been overlooked by past work. Specifically, the molecular communication channel exhibits non-causal inter-symbol-interference and a long delay spread, that extends beyond the channel coherence time, which limit decoding performance. To address this, we design, μ-Link a molecular communication protocol and decoder that accounts for these new insights. We build a testbed to experimentally validate our findings and show that μ-Link can improve the achievable data rates with significantly lower bit error rates.
Working Memory and Impulsivity and Artificial Neural Networks

Abstract Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. The treatment of ADHD could potentially be improved with the development of combination therapies targeting multiple systems. Both the number of children diagnosed with ADHD and the use of stimulant medications for its treatment have been rising in recent years, and concern about side-effects and future problems that medication may cause have been increasing. An alternative treatment strategy for ADHD attracting wide interest is the targeting of neuropsychological functioning, such as executive function impairments. Computerized training programs (including video games) have drawn interest as a tool to train improvements in executive function deficits in children with ADHD. Our lab is currently conducting a pilot study to assess the effects of the online game Minecraft as a therapeutic video game (TVG) to train executive function deficits in children with ADHD. The effect of the TVG intervention in combination with stimulants is being investigated to develop a drug-device combination therapy that can address both the dopaminergic dysfunction and executive function deficits present in ADHD. Although the results of this study will be used to guide the clinical development process, additional guidance for the optimization of the executive function training activities will be provided by a computational model of executive functions built with artificial neural networks (ANNs). This model uses ANNs to complete virtual tasks resembling the executive function training activities that the study subjects practice in the Minecraft world, and the schedule of virtual tasks that result in maximum improvements in ANN performance on these tasks will be investigated as a method to inform the selection of training regimens in future clinical studies.
Increasing Length of Stay in the NICU for Premature Newborns: Good or Bad?

* Abbreviations: AOP — : apnea of prematurity CPO — : continuous pulse oximetry LOS — : length of stay PMA — : postmenstrual age In this issue of Pediatrics , Edwards et al1 present convincing evidence that the postmenstrual age (PMA), weight, and weight z score at discharge for preterm newborns increased between 2005 and 2018. It would be reasonable to speculate that the longer length of stay (LOS) might be attributed to rising survival rates and increasingly fragile survivors. However, the researchers’ analyses suggest the opposite: the burdens of morbidities associated with prematurity appear to have decreased over time. The researchers did not have data that allowed the investigation of alternative causes of longer LOS or potential benefits that could justify longer LOS (decreasing rates of readmission, for example). The authors make the noncontroversial observation that there was a substantial monetary cost associated with the increased PMA at discharge: crude increase in median PMA of 8 days (estimated cost: $28 576) and 12 days (95% confidence interval: 11–12) when adjusted for exposure to surgery, mechanical ventilation, and morbidities associated with prematurity (estimated cost: $42 864). The increase in PMA at discharge was inversely related to gestational age at birth, … Address correspondence to Cody Arnold, MD, MSc, 6413 Fannin St, University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston McGovern Medical School, Houston, TX 77030. E-mail: cody.c.arnold{at}uth.tmc.edu
Low-Value Diagnostic Imaging in Children with Medicaid

Objectives To estimate rates and settings of low-value imaging among pediatric Medicaid beneficiaries and estimate the associated expenditures. Study design Retrospective longitudinal cohort study from 2014 to 2016 of children Results Of the 645 767 encounters for the 5 conditions, there were 37 525 (5.8%) low-value imaging services. Per 1000 encounters, there were 246.0 radiographs for bronchiolitis, 174.0 head computed tomography (CT) studies for minor head trauma, 155.0 and 33.3 neuroimaging studies for headache and simple febrile seizure, respectively, and 19.5 abdominal CT scans (without prior ultrasound examination) for abdominal pain. Rates of low-value imaging were highest in non-Hispanic White children and those in rural areas. In adjusted analysis, non-Hispanic White children were more likely to receive a CT scan for abdominal pain, and Black children were more likely to have imaging for bronchiolitis and minor head trauma. For individual conditions, up to 87.9% of low-value imaging (CT scan for minor head trauma) was in the emergency department (ED), with most imaging across all conditions occurring in nonpediatric EDs, up to 42.2% was in the outpatient setting (neuroimaging for headache), and up to 20.7% was during inpatient encounters (neuroimaging for febrile seizure). Outpatient and ED low-value imaging resulted in more than $7 million in Medicaid expenditures. Conclusions Among the studied conditions, more than 1 in 20 encounters included low-value imaging, mostly in nonpediatric EDs and for bronchiolitis, head trauma, and headache. Interventions are needed to decrease the future performance of these low-value services.
Rotavirus vaccines: progress and new developments.

Rotavirus is the primary cause of severe acute gastroenteritis among children under the age of five globally, leading to 128,500 to 215,000 vaccine-preventable deaths annually. There are six licens...
Induced and Complete Multinets

Multinets are certain configurations of lines and points with multiplicities in the complex projective plane \(\mathbb{P}^{2}\). They appear in the study of resonance and characteristic varieties of complex hyperplane arrangement complements and cohomology of Milnor fibers. In this paper, two properties of multinets, inducibility and completeness, and the relationship between them are explored with several examples presented. Specializations of multinets plays an integral role in our findings. The main result is the classification of complete 3-nets.
Estimating Tail Dependence and Testing for Contagion Using Tail Indices

This paper introduces a measure of extremal correlation. Our measure of tail dependence does not require parametric specification of a copula (or dependence) function. It relies instead on the fact that moments of co-exceedances can be written in terms of tail indices. This simplifies the calculation of extremal dependence considerably for the tail index requires only an assumption on the asymptotic form of the tails rather than the full distribution. Furthermore, the distributional properties of extreme value estimators for the tail index are well known. This enables us to derive the distributional properties of our extremal correlation estimator, unlike the methods that rely on the specification of a copula where a closed form solution for the tail dependence parameter does not exist. Our estimator is Normally distributed so inference is straightforward. We illustrate the use of our statistic to testing for contagion in Asian markets and find a lack of a significant change in the extremal correlation before and after the crisis.
The Role of Water Vapor and Clouds in the Climate System

The exchanges of water between the different water reservoirs on Earth establishes the so-called hydrological cycle. The influence of this cycle on the energy budget of Earth is central to understanding and predicting climate change. In fact, those processes that characterize the smallest of the water reservoirs - namely the atmospheric branch of the hydrological cycle - play an especially critical role in regulating climate change through feedbacks processes. Two key feedback processes are described. The first deals with the feedback associated with the relation between water vapor, radiation and temperature and the second concerns feedbacks associated with clouds and radiation. Keywords: climate; water vapor; clouds; climate feedbacks