cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
In Memoriam: Karsten Schwan

The Steering Committee dedicates this year's International Conference on Autonomic Computing (ICAC) to the memory of Karsten Schwan, Regents' Professor at Georgia Tech's College of Computing and a founding member of our Steering Committee. This note briefly reflects on the life and professional achievements of Dr. Schwan.
NVSim-CAM: a circuit-level simulator for emerging nonvolatile memory based content-addressable memory

Ternary Content-Addressable Memory (TCAM) is widely used in networking routers, fully associative caches, search engines, etc. While the conventional SRAM-based TCAM suffers from the poor scalability, the emerging nonvolatile memories (NVM, i.e., MRAM, PCM, and ReRAM) bring evolution for the TCAM design. It effectively reduces the cell size, and makes significant energy reduction and scalability improvement. New applications such as associative processors/accelerators are facilitated by the emergence of the nonvolatile TCAM (nvTCAM). However, nvTCAM design is challenging. In addition to the emerging device's uncertainty, the nvTCAM cell structure is so diverse that it results in a design space too large to explore manually. To tackle these challenges, we propose a circuit-level model and develop a simulation tool, NVSim-CAM, which helps researchers to make early design decisions, and to evaluate device/circuit innovations. The tool is validated by HSPICE simulations and data from fabricated chips. We also present a case study to illustrate how NVSim-CAM benefits the nvTCAM design. In the case study, we propose a novel 3D vertical ReRAM based TCAM cell, the 3DvTCAM. We project the advantages/disadvantages and explore the design space for the proposed cell with NVSim-CAM.
Production of Tyrosine and Histidine Decarboxylase by Dairy-Related Bacteria

Manometric and radiometric procedures were used to determine the ability of 38 dairy-related bacteria and four commercial starter preparations to produce tyrosine and histidine decarboxylase. All of the cultures had slight ability to cause release of 14CO2 from carboxyl 14C-tyrosine and most released 14CO2 from labeled histidine; however, because of inherent errors of the assay in detecting low levels of specific decarboxylase activity, the CO2 release was not considered positive for specific decarboxylase activity unless the results were verified by the manometric technique. One strain of Streptococcus lactis , a Micrococcus luteus strain, and two Leuconostoc cremoris strains had active tyrosine decarboxylase systems. Only Clostridium perfringens and an Escherichia coli strain were found to produce histidine decarboxylase. None of the commercial starter cultures produced the enzymes. It was not determined whether tyramine or histamine was produced by the nonspecific decarboxylase activity.
CPU-FPGA Co-Optimization for Big Data Applications: A Case Study of In-Memory Samtool Sorting (Abstract Only)

To efficiently process a tremendous amount of data, today's big data applications tend to distribute the datasets into multiple partitions, such that each partition can be fit into memory and be processed by a separate core/server in parallel. Meanwhile, due to the limited scaling of general-purpose CPUs, FPGAs have emerged as an attractive alternative to accelerate big data applications due to their low power, high performance and energy efficiency. In this paper we aim to answer one key question: How should the multicore CPU and FPGA coordinate together to optimize the performance of big data applications? To address the above question, we conduct a step-by-step case study to perform CPU and FPGA co-optimization for in-memory Samtool sorting in genomic data processing, which is one of the most important big data applications for personalized healthcare. First, to accelerate the time-consuming compression algorithm and its associated cyclic redundancy check (CRC) in Samtool sorting, we implement a portable and maintainable FPGA accelerator using high-level synthesis (HLS). Although FPGAs are traditionally well-known to be suitable for compression and CRC, we find that a straightforward integration of this FPGA accelerator into the multi-threaded Samtool sorting only achieves marginal system throughput improvement over the software baseline running on a 12-core CPU. To improve system performance, we propose a dataflow execution model to effectively orchestrate the computation between the multi-threaded CPU and FPGA. Experimental results show that our co-optimized CPU-FPGA system achieves a 2.6x speedup for in-memory Samtool sorting.
Replicating Portfolios: $$\mathscr {L}^1$$ Versus $$\mathscr {L}^2$$ Optimization

Currently, the major challenge in the life insurance sector is to find a numerically efficient and precise method for the estimation of the fair value of future liability cash flows. Besides least square Monte Carlo algorithms, the construction of replicating portfolios is very popular. However, there has been a debate as to how diversions between future discounted cash flows of the replicating portfolio and liabilities ought to be penalized. A frequently used argument against squared error penalization is that a few scenarios with abnormally high interest rates will cause big discrepancies between future cash flows. These scenarios will therefore dominate in the minimization with the consequence that the replicating portfolio badly approximates liabilities in the average scenario. In this article we undermine this argument by showing that the described observation will not take place when discounting with the appropriate numeraire.
EFFECT OF OPTIMIZATION PRICING STRATEGY ON THE PROFITABILITY OF INSURANCE FIRMS IN KENYA.

Purpose: The objectives of the study were to establish of premium pricing strategy on the profitability of insurance firms in Kenya..Methodology:The descriptive research design was preferred to other research designs because it reports the status of study variables. The population of study was the 45 insurance companies operating in Kenya as at 31st December 2012. Data was drawn from a period of five (5) years that is 2008-2012. The sample of this study was 10% of the sales workforce which comprised of 900 employees from the 45 insurance companies. The sample was generated by purposively sampling two employees from each insurance company.The researcher collected primary data with the help of a questionnaire. The primary data obtained from the questionnaires was summarized and analyzed by use of descriptive and inferential statistical techniques.Results:The descriptive statistics indicated that majority of the respondents agreed that their firm positively influenced consumer’s perception through fair pricing in setting premium prices, when using premium pricing our firm tried to reduce operation costs as much as possible and ensured they are controlled, their firm had successfully adopted effective premium pricing strategies in the recent years, their premium pricing strategy had led to more sales in their insurance products and their firm engaged professional expertise in implementation of their premium pricing strategy. Regression and correlation results indicated that there was a statistically significant and positive relationship between premium pricing strategies and profitability. These results implied that premium pricing has a positive effect on the profitability of insurance companies.Policy recommendation: The study recommends that insurance companies put in place measures assess the most effective premium pricing strategy to reduce product costs and thus increase profitability whenever such a strategy is used.
Conservative Prediction of Time to Clostridium botulinum Toxin Formation for Use with Time-Temperature Indicators To Ensure the Safety of Foods

Integrating-type time-temperature indicators (TTIs) may be utilized to warn food processors and consumers about storage conditions that may have rendered a food potentially hazardous. As an example of how integrated TTIs could be manufactured to emulate an infinite set of time-temperature situations, a set of conditions which have supported C. botulinum growth and toxin production was compiled. The time-temperature curve representing conservative times required for toxin formation was constructed with data from literature relating to toxin formation as a function of temperature in any media or food product. This set of critical time-temperature data is fit by a conservative empirical relationship that can be used to predict combinations of incubation times and storage temperatures that represent a potential health risk from C. botulinum in foods. A TTI could be constructed to indicate deviation from such a given set of conditions to bring attention to foods that may have been exposed to potentially hazardous temperatures with respect to C. botulinum toxin formation.
A Metadata Thesaurus: Report on the Knowledge Organization of the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative Conference Proceedings

2003 Dublin Core Metadata Initiative Proceedings appear in both print and online form. In order to aid search and retrieval of this growing body of research a researchers at the University of Washington and Siderean Software have started a metadata thesaurus. This poster reports on those efforts.
A retrospective study of emergency department potassium disturbances: severity, treatment, and outcomes.

Objective Disturbances in potassium (K) levels are relatively common and may be associated with significant morbidity and mortality; however, treatments vary. Our purpose was to determine the incidence, treatments, and outcomes associated with hyperkalemia and hypokalemia in emergency department (ED) patients. Methods We performed a structured, retrospective review of electronic medical records of consecutive adult ED patients with K measured while in the ED. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data as well as treatments, disposition, and in-hospital complications were collected. Univariate and multivariate analyses, presented as adjusted odds ratios, were used to compare outcomes by K levels. Results Of 100,260 visits in 2014, an ED K level was ordered in 48,827 (49%). A total of 1,738 patients (3.6%) were excluded because of sample hemolysis. The K was low ( 5.0 mEq/L) in 3.6% of patients. Patients with hyperkalemia were older (64 vs. 49 years, P 6 mEq/L. Conclusion Hyperkalemia or hypokalemia occur in 1 of 11 ED patients and are associated with inpatient admission and mortality. Treatment of hyperkalemia varies greatly suggesting the need for evidence-based treatment guidelines.
Detection of carbon monoxide (CO) in sooting hydrocarbon flames using femtosecond two-photon laser-induced fluorescence (fs-TPLIF)

Ultrashort-pulse, femtosecond (fs)-duration, two-photon laser-induced fluorescence (fs-TPLIF) measurements of carbon monoxide (CO) are reported in rich, sooting hydrocarbon flames. CO-TPLIF detection using conventional nanosecond or picosecond lasers are often plagued by photochemical interferences, specifically under fuel-rich flames conditions. In the current study, we investigate the commonly used CO two-photon excitation scheme of the B1Σ+ ← X1Σ+ electronic transition, using approximately 100-fs-duration excitation pulses. Fluorescence emission was observed in the Angstrom band originating from directly populated B1Σ+ upper state, as well as, in the third positive band from collisionally populated b3Σ+ upper state. The current work was focused on the Angstrom band emission. Interference from nascent C2 emissions originating from hot soot particles in the flame could be reduced to a negligible level using a narrower detection gate width. In contrast, avoiding interferences from laser-generated C2 Swan-band emissions required specific narrowband spectral filtering in sooting flame conditions. The observed less than quadratic laser pulse energy dependence of the TPLIF signal suggests the presence of strong three-photon ionization and stimulated emission processes. In a range of CH4/air and C2H4/air premixed flames investigated, the measured CO fluorescence signals agree well with the calculated equilibrium CO number densities. Reduced-interference CO-TPLIF imaging in premixed C2H4/O2/N2 jet flames is also reported.
Process Quality Control, 3rd Ed.

(2000). Process Quality Control, 3rd Ed. Journal of Quality Technology: Vol. 32, No. 4, pp. 470-471.
Stabilized Vanadium Catalyst for Olefin Polymerization by Site Isolation in a Metal-Organic Framework.

Vanadium catalysts offer unique selectivity in olefin polymerization, yet are underutilized industrially owing to their poor stability and productivity. Reported here is the immobilization of vanadium by cation exchange in MFU-4l, thus providing a metal-organic framework (MOF) with vanadium in a molecule-like coordination environment. This material forms a single-site heterogeneous catalyst with methylaluminoxane and provides polyethylene with low polydispersity (PDI≈3) and the highest activity (up to 148 000 h-1 ) reported for a MOF-based polymerization catalyst. Furthermore, polyethylene is obtained as a free-flowing powder as desired industrially. Finally, the catalyst shows good structural integrity and retains polymerization activity for over 24 hours, both promising attributes for the commercialization of vanadium-based polyolefins.
A Linguistic Resource for Discovering Event Structures and Resolving Event Coreference

In this paper, we present a linguistic resource that annotates event structures in texts. We consider an event structure as a collection of events that interact with each other in a given situation. We interpret the interactions between events as event relations. In this regard, we propose and annotate a set of six relations that best capture the concept of event structure. These relations are: subevent, reason, purpose, enablement, precedence and related. A document from this resource can encode multiple event structures and an event structure can be described across multiple documents. In order to unify event structures, we also annotate inter- and intra-document event coreference. Moreover, we provide methodologies for automatic discovery of event structures from texts. First, we group the events that constitute an event structure into event clusters and then, we use supervised learning frameworks to classify the relations that exist between events from the same cluster
Pial arteriolar constriction to alpha 2-adrenergic agonist dexmedetomidine in the rat

Dexmedetomidine (Dex) is an alpha 2-adrenergic agonist that decreases cerebral blood flow (CBF) when administered systemically. It is unclear whether cerebral vasoconstriction is mediated by a loca...
Cotton Rat Mortality during Severe Winter

This paper discusses the cold weather starvation of cotton rats which were being studied in the White Oak Lake Bed study are No. 3. The lake bed was a site for ecological studies at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, TN. Long-term studies on field populations of small mammals began in 1958. This incident took place in the winter of 1959-1960. 11 references.
Tumor Growth and Metastasis

The platelet/tumor cell interaction points to another example supporting the multi-functional properties of the platelet. Long recognized as central players in hemostasis and thrombosis, platelets can be essentially hijacked to participate in a wide range of pathological events central to tumor growth and the spread of tumor cells. The platelet can be particularly advantageous to a tumor cell storing a wide range of cytokines and growth factors that normally support a fundamental platelet role in wound repair. However, in the cancer cell setting these same factors can support angiogenesis and tumor growth giving a distinct advantage to the tumor cell. Decades of effort to understand platelet biology in hemostasis and thrombosis has positioned platelet studies to provide key mechanistic insights to cancer biology. In addition, this work is identifying previously untested therapeutic targets for the management of tumorigenesis and malignancy. Ultimately, outcomes from these efforts may improve prognosis for the cancer patient.
Dynamic Symmetry and Fibonacci Numbers

Draw an agreeable looking rectangle: Choose whatever dimensions you like, but avoid drawing a square. Going around the rectangle clockwise, label the vertices A, B, C, and D respectively, taking care that the distance between A and B is greater than that between B and C. Then draw diagonal AC, and drop a line perpendicularly from B onto AC, extending this perpendicular until it intersects CD at a point which you will label E. Draw a line through E parallel to BC, and label its intersection with AB F.
Why the Second Amendment Has a Preamble: Original Public Meaning and the Political Culture of Written Constitutions in Revolutionary America

This article seeks to apply careful analysis to the preamble of the Second Amendment, sensitive to the linguistic usages of the time and to the historical context of the prevailing political culture. This approach does not entirely reject Justice Scalia’s announced method of giving an original meaning to the amendment as understood by the public in 1791. This article, however, includes an analysis of post-ratification meaning in order to contrast nineteenth-century sources with the more proper object of analysis, that of the eighteenth century. Part I of the article revisits the emergence of original public meaning jurisprudence. Part II examines the ways that the American public between 1776 and 1800 struggled to use the language of written law to articulate what it meant in establishing republican government. Part III looks at the constitutional mechanisms created to give meaning to the American public’s ideas on the restraint of power, especially the many nonjudicial mechanisms, including the “well regulated militia,” that mobilized or enlisted public participation in checking arbitrary government. Part IV turns to the use of preambles in the new state constitutions and in the Second Amendment, showing the preamble to the Second Amendment to be inseparable from “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms” and narrowing its meaning to service in state constituted militias. A brief final concluding section sees the 1790s as a liminal decade in American constitutionalism — one in which ideas were being overtaken by political changes occurring so fast that the political community had trouble recognizing the powerful historical forces that the community itself was propelling. Within a generation, a new political culture gave rise to a public understanding of an individual right to keep and bear arms that overtook the “original public meaning” of a collective right and buried what the “public” actually had meant when it ratified the amendment in 1791. What the clear articulation of that right meant in 1830, therefore, illuminates what it did not mean in 1791.
Developmental and social-contextual origins of depressive control-related beliefs and behavior

This research investigated the precursors and emotional consequences of maladaptive control-related beliefs and behavior during early adolescence. Two cohorts of fifth and sixth graders (Ns = 471 and 587) participated in a short-term longitudinal design. Adolescents completed measures that examined multiple aspects of family disruption and recent stress, and reported on their perceptions of control and depressive symptoms. Teachers reported on adolescents' display of helpless behavior in the classroom. Results supported the proposal that both family disruption and recent stress contribute to concurrent and future deficits in perceptions of control and helplessness. Family disruption generally exerted domain-nonspecific effects, whereas recent stress generally exerted domain-specific effects, although this pattern varied somewhat across the specific predictors. Decreased perceptions of control and increased helplessness in turn were associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. This study advances cognitive models of depression by identifying processes underlying the development of control-based vulnerability during childhood.
High methionine, low folate and low vitamin B6/B12 (HM-LF-LV) diet causes neurodegeneration and subsequent short-term memory loss.

Methionine is an essential amino acid found in rich quantities in average American diet such as meats, fish and eggs. Excessive consumption of such food often exceeds the normal requirement of the methionine in our body; which found to be related to the development of neurodegenerative disorders. However, the mechanistic pathways of methionine’s influence on the brain are unclear. The present study is focus on the effects of high methionine, low folate and low vitamin B6/B12 (HM-LF-LV) diet on the dysfunction of neuronal and vascular specific markers in the brain. C57BL6/J male mice (8–10 week old) were fed with HM-LF-LV diet for a 6 week period. Cognitive function of mice was determine by measuring short-term memory using a Novel Object Recognition test (NORT). Neuronal dysfunction were evaluate by measuring the levels of Neuronal nuclear antigen (NeuN), Neuron-specific-enolase (NSE) and Fluoro-jade C(FJC) fluorescence; while cerebrovascular disruption were evaluate by assessing levels of endothelial junction proteins Vascular Endothelial-Cadherin (VE-Cadherin) and Claudin-5 in harvested brain tissue. Cerebrovascular permeability was assess by evaluating microvascular leakage of fluorescently labeled albumin in vivo. Endothelial and Neuronal Nitric Oxide Synthase (eNOS, nNOS) regulation and vascular inflammation (ICAM: intercellular adhesion molecules) were also evaluate in brain tissue. All assessments were conduct at weekly intervals throughout the study duration. NORT showed a significant temporal decrease in short-term memory of mice fed on HM-LF-LV diet for 6 weeks compared to the wild-type control group. Our experimental data showed that neuronal dysfunction (decreased NeuN levels and increased FJC positive neurons in brain) was more prominent in HM-LF-LV diet fed mice compared to normal diet fed control mice. In experimental mice, cerebrovascular disruption was found to be elevated as evident from increased pial venular permeability (microvascular leakage) and decreased in VE-Cadherin expression compared to control. Slight decrease in nNOS and increase in eNOS in experimental mice suggest a trend towards the decrease in potential for neuronal development due to the long-term HM-LF-LV diet fed. Collectively, our results suggest that a diet containing high methionine, low folate and low vitamin B6/B12 results in increased neuronal degeneration and vascular dysfunction, leading to short-term memory loss. Interestingly, significant neuronal damage precedes vascular dysfunction.
Ovarian Cancer in Pregnancy

Ovarian cancer is extremely rare in pregnancy, but should be always considered when complex cysts are present and persist, especially when ascites and extra-ovarian nodularity are present. While epithelial cancer of the ovary is most common, germ cell and stromal cancers may also arise. In the absence of a true emergency, such as torsion, surgery should be delayed until the second trimester. If a cancer is discovered, a full staging should be carried out unless, in the opinion of the surgeon, certain procedures would be too dangerous at that time. The additional surgery can always be done if a cesarean section is indicated, or electively after a vaginal delivery and following the conclusion of chemotherapy. If chemotherapy is indicated, it should be started during the pregnancy, using the same regimen and doses that would be given in the nonpregnant state. Carboplatin and paclitaxel are the drugs most often used, and complications of these drugs are not more common in patients who are pregnant. Although there are case reports of the harmful effects of chemotherapy on the fetus, most of the time the drugs are well tolerated by the baby, who is usually born without any side effects secondary to chemotherapy.
Perception of Boredom: Students' Resistance to a Secondary Physical Education Curriculum

From the perspective that perceived boredom is a type of emotional resistance to learning, this investigation examined students' perceptions of boredom derived from learning in physical education in secondary schools. A group of physically active university students (N = 35) who completed their entire secondary education in a U.S. Pacific state constructed their perceived boredom in physical education on a Q scale. Data, consisting of students' ranking scores and oral reflections on the content perceived as boring, were analyzed using Q analysis and inductive analysis. Four response patterns were revealed. Four types of conflict between the students' learning expectations and the learning realities accounted for the perceived boredom. The findings suggest that feeling bored is a form of resistance resulted when students are the party with little power or control in the learning process.
Lab-based radiometric concepts for undergraduate and graduate students

Radiometry is formally defined as the science of characterizing or measuring how much electromagnetic energy is present at, or associated with, some location or direction in space. It involves the measurement and quantification of optical flux. It has evolved separately in the fields of physics, illumination or vision, and engineering, and as a result a host of terms are used to describe various radiometric concepts. Over the years there have been various texts on the subject to help demystify some of these concepts with less emphasis on “practical" radiometry (i.e., meaning laboratory examples). At the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), an entire course has been devoted to the subject along with a dozen or so hands-on laboratory exercises. This paper will discuss our approach to the dissemination of “practical" radiometry through exercises that talk about construction of radiometers, inverse square law, radiometric and spectral calibration (of a spectrometer), diffraction gratings, blackbodies and sources, spectral transmission and reflectance measurements, detector spectral responsivity measurements, transfer calibration, and more.
Physiology of arousal

Abstract The discoveries of the presence of (1) electric coupling and (2) intrinsic membrane gamma oscillations in the reticular activating system (RAS) have led to a new understanding of the control of arousal. The physiological mechanisms of the control of arousal states such as waking and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep include the generation of gamma oscillations through high-threshold P/Q-type calcium channels modulated by CaMKII, and physiological mechanisms of the control of REM sleep include the generation of gamma oscillations through high-threshold N-type calcium channels modulated by cAMP/PKA. This brain stem activity has been termed “bottom-up gamma” and has been proposed to participate in the process of preconscious awareness. Thus the maintenance of gamma band activity in the RAS underlies the process necessary to support the critical state capable of reliably assessing the world around us on a continuous basis.
Assessment of Diagnostic Yield of Nonculture Infection Testing on Cerebrospinal Fluid in Immune-Competent Children.

Importance Nonculture infection tests of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples using polymerase chain reaction and antigen or antibody assays are frequently ordered on lumbar puncture specimens concurrently with routine CSF cell counts, but the value of CSF infection testing in otherwise healthy children is unknown. Objective To determine the value of nonculture CSF infection testing in immune-competent children with normal CSF cell counts. Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional study reviewed screening and diagnostic tests in the electronic medical record system of a large academic tertiary care children’s hospital. Records of children aged 0.5 to 18.9 years (n = 4083) who underwent lumbar puncture (n = 4811 procedures) in an inpatient or outpatient facility of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia between July 1, 2007, and December 31, 2016, were reviewed. Those with indwelling CSF shunts or catheters; those with active or past oncologic, immunologic, or rheumatologic conditions; or those taking immune-suppressing medications were excluded from analysis. This study was conducted from July 20, 2017, to March 13, 2019. Main Outcomes and Measures Outcome variables included frequency of nonculture CSF infection testing and frequency of positive results in the entire cohort, and among those with normal cell counts. Normal cell counts were defined as CSF white blood cell counts lower than 5 cells/μL and CSF red blood cell counts lower than 500 cells/μL. Results In total, 4811 lumbar puncture procedures were performed on 4083 unique children, with a median (range) age of 7.4 (0.5-18.9) years, 2537 boys (52.7%), and 3331 (69.2%) with normal CSF cell counts. At least 1 nonculture CSF infection test was performed on 1270 lumbar puncture specimens with normal cell counts (38.1%; 95% CI, 36%-40%), and more tests were performed in the summer months. Only 18 (1.4%; 95% CI, 0.9%-2.2%) of 1270 lumbar puncture specimens with normal cell counts had at least 1 nonculture infection test with a positive result; 2 of these 18 children required clinical intervention for their positive results, but each also had other clear clinical signs of infection. Conclusions and Relevance Nonculture CSF infection testing appeared to be common in immune-competent children with normal CSF cell counts, but positive results were uncommon and were not independently associated with clinical care; delaying the decision to send nonculture infection tests until CSF cell counts are available could reduce unnecessary diagnostic testing and medical costs, which may improve value-based care.
Trends in the Price per Median and Mean Life-Year Gained Among Newly Approved Cancer Therapies 1995 to 2017

Abstract Background The prices of newly approved cancer drugs have risen over the past decades. A key policy question is whether the clinical gains offered by these drugs in treating specific cancer indications justify the price increases. Objectives To evaluate the price per median and mean life year gained among newly approved cancer therapies from 1995 to 2017. Methods We collected data on the price (in 2017 USD) per life-year gained among cancer drug-indication pairs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) between 1995 and 2017. We modeled trends using fractional polynomial and linear spline regression models that controlled for route of administration and cancer type fixed effects. Results We found that between 1995 and 2012, price increases outstripped median survival gains, a finding consistent with previous literature. Nevertheless, price per mean life-year gained increased at a considerably slower rate, suggesting that new drugs have been more effective in achieving longer-term survival. Between 2013 and 2017, price increases reflected equally large gains in median and mean survival, resulting in a flat profile for benefit-adjusted launch prices in recent years. Conclusions Although drug costs have been rising more rapidly than median survival gains, they have been rising at about the same rate as mean survival gains. This suggests that when accounting for longer-term survival gains, the benefits of new drugs are roughly keeping pace with their costs, despite rapid cost growth.
Hazards of Hospitalization

Hospitalizations can be potentially hazardous for older patients, even once the acute medical issue or complication that led to the admission is resolved. Special considerations should be taken for the care of elders in the hospital, especially those with advanced age, baseline cognitive impairment, functional limitations, or frailty. While older adults make up 13% of the population, they account for nearly 40% of hospitalizations (Boyd et al. J Am Geriatr Soc. 56(12):2171–2179, 2008; Landefeld. Hospital care. Current Geriatric Diagnosis & Treatment. Lange Medical Books. 2004). They are three times as more likely to require hospital admission as compared to younger adults with similar presentations and, once admitted, typically have longer lengths of stay. Older hospitalized adults tend to have more complex medical comorbidities, greater illness severity, and limited cognitive and functional reserves to overcome the stress of an acute illness and a hospitalization. Vulnerable older adults are at greater risk for decline in healthcare quality of life after an acute hospitalization. Hospitalization for older adults is associated with greater morbidity and mortality, as the severity of illness is often greater. More than 80% of deaths in hospitals are accounted for by older adults. For those patients that are discharged, nearly 25–30% of these patients are rehospitalized due to preventable complications; 49% of patients experience at least one medical error, and close to 20% of older patients discharged from the hospital suffer an adverse event. While the hospital has been seen as the traditional model for the delivery of acute medical care, it is not an ideal care environment for many patients. Older adults are at greater risk for hazards of hospitalizations including iatrogenic events such as nosocomial infections, pressure sores, delirium, functional decline, medication side effects, physical and pharmacologic restraints, and complicated care transitions. While hospitalization in this population is often necessary, it is difficult to ignore the major risk this entails for the patients. Many elderly patients are susceptible to other complications not directly related to the illness or injury for which they were hospitalized or the specific treatment of the problem.
Teaching software engineering with Lego serious play: conference workshop

Lego Serious Play (LSP) is an experiential and highly creative process that has been designed to facilitate strategic planning, team building, and problem solving by using specialized sets of Lego bricks. In the LSP methodology, team members use their intelligence both as individuals and as a group to build simple models representing various concepts in response to a question posed by the faculty facilitator. Discussing the models helps students communicate valuable aspects of their own understanding and interpretation of the problem at hand, explore the team dynamics, and reduce the complexity of many projects.
Neighborhood context and non-small cell lung cancer outcomes in Florida non-elderly patients by race/ethnicity

Abstract Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between neighborhood environment and lung cancer outcomes among Florida residents younger than 65 years of age. Methods and materials This was a retrospective cohort study that included patients diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Florida from January 2005 to December 2014 (n = 22,750). Multi-level, mixed-effect logistic regression models were used for two outcomes: receipt of treatment and receipt of surgery. Survival analyses, using proportional subdistribution hazard models, were conducted to examine the impact of neighborhood characteristics on risk of death due to lung cancer with adjustment for individual-level variables. Neighborhood exposures of interest were census tract level black and Hispanic segregation combined with economic deprivation. Results White patients who lived in low black segregation/high deprivation areas had 15 % lower odds of receiving surgery (95 % CI: 0.76-0.93). However, the likelihood of receiving surgery for black patients who lived in high black segregation/low deprivation and high black segregation/high deprivation was lower than for black patients who lived in low black segregation/low deprivation neighborhoods (level 3 AOR = 0.56 [0.38-0.85]; level 4 AOR = 0.69 [0.54-0.88]). Living in suburban and rural areas increased the risk of lung cancer death for white patients by 14 % (95 % CI: 1.05–1.24) and 26 % (95 % CI: 1.08–1.46), respectively. Living in rural areas increased the risk of death for black patients by 54 % r (SHR = 1.54 [1.19–2.0]). Black patients who live in high Hispanic segregation/high deprivation had 36 % increased risk of death compared to black patients who lived in low Hispanic segregation/low deprivation areas. Conclusion This study suggests that when investigating cancer disparities, merely adjusting for race/ethnicity does not provide sufficient explanation to understand survival and treatment variations. Lung cancer outcomes are impacted by neighborhood environments that are formed based on the distribution of race, ethnicity and class.
Art therapy with couples: integrating art therapy practices with sex therapy and emotionally focused therapy

This paper highlights the benefits of art therapy with couples, integrating sex therapy and Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) premises, and illustrating the use of creative and expressive tools to ...
Minimum wage and restaurant hygiene violations: Evidence from Seattle

We study the association between the minimum wage and food establishment hygiene violations between Seattle (the treated city) and Bellevue (the control city), both cities located in King County and sharing the same health inspection department. An increase in the real minimum wage of $0.25 is associated with an increase of at least 8% in total and less severe (blue) hygiene violation scores for food establishments in Seattle. We find mixed support for the increase in more severe (red) violations. A decline in employment with an increase in minimum wage could be driving the increases in hygiene violations.
Abstract 14035: Renal Tubular Secretion and Cardiac Distribution of Dofetilide is Dependent on MATE1 Function

Introduction: Dofetilide is a delayed rectifier potassium channel inhibitor used to treat patients with atrial fibrillation and flutter, and its use is associated with a risk of QT prolongation and...
Economic model predictive control for robust optimal operation of sparse storage networks

Abstract A tube-based robust economic model predictive control scheme is proposed for sparse, linear storage network systems under bounded disturbances. We present a modeling framework that reflects conservation principles, and for which a centralized controller optimizes a performance metric for the entire network over a finite time horizon. Our main result is a computationally efficient projection-based approach that exploits the sparse structure of the system dynamics for tightening state and input constraints, in the meantime ensuring that average performance, recursive feasibility, and asymptotic stability of the system are maintained. An inventory control problem under demand uncertainty is presented to illustrate the advantages of the proposed framework and benchmark against nominal economic model predictive control.
Case Studies with Sar Data for Assessing the Utility of Manual Feature Selection in Machine Learning

An important question in the application of machine learning models to SAR ATR is the degree to which data is processed prior to training and testing. This work examines performance at two classification tasks when data features are manually-selected as model inputs and compares the performance at the same task when unprocessed, complex-valued pixel data is used as the input. First, the ability of a convolutional neural net to classify subaperture behavior in a SAR image was compared when spatial versus frequency data was given as the input. Second, the effect of super-resolving point targets in SAR imagery was investigated when used as input to a convolutional neural net trained to identify the number of targets in a scene. Using manually-selected features in the subaperture experiment show no benefit in classification accuracy, but it did show improvement in learning rate. However, super-resolving point targets showed a significant accuracy benefit.
The Power of Belief

Our beliefs shape our lives and relationships in many powerful ways. They represent what we hold to be true and are often supported by statements, observations, and events that we have experienced in our environments. Beliefs can be categorized into spheres, such as political, religious, societal, ideological, and, most importantly, core self-beliefs. Our belief system informs our perception of reality, our choices, and our experiences of the world, which cumulatively inform our perception of ourselves. Experiences create thoughts, which become metabolized into memory, perception, and identity. Beliefs become stronger and even more deeply rooted when they are repeatedly affirmed by our environment. This chapter begins by reviewing how core negative beliefs form in the unconscious mind, before reviewing the role that bias plays in shaping an individual’s perceptions of reality. Subsequently this chapter explores how beliefs contribute to the psychological phenomenon in which individuals display inclination to re-enact traumatic or painful events; how beliefs impact experiences in close relationships also is considered. Finally, this chapter reviews how blocking beliefs can be linked to memories from which they are formed, in addition to exploring how self-determination impacts the clinical process.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to Sustain the Antidepressant Effects of Ketamine in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

INTRODUCTION Ketamine has emerged as a rapid-acting antidepressant. While ongoing treatment can prevent relapse, concerns exist regarding long-term exposure. OBJECTIVE We conducted a randomized trial to examine the feasibility and efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) following intravenous ketamine in treatment-resistant depression (TRD). METHODS Subjects with TRD were recruited and treated with 6 intravenous infusions of ketamine over 3 weeks. Subjects who experienced a clinical response (≥50% improvement in depression severity) were then randomized to receiving CBT or treatment as usual (TAU) for an additional 14 weeks, using a sequential treatment model. RESULTS Of the 42 patients who signed consent, 28 patients achieved a response and were randomized to CBT or TAU. When measured using the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (primary outcome measure), the effect size at the end of the study was moderate (Cohen d = 0.65; 95% CI -0.55 to 1.82), though the group-by-time interaction effect was not significant. There was a significant group-by-time interaction as measured by the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (F = 4.58; p = 0.033), favoring a greater sustained improvement in the CBT group. This corresponded to a moderate-to-large effect size of the Cohen d = 0.71 (95% CI -0.30 to 1.70) at the end of the study (14 weeks following the last ketamine infusion). In a subset of patients (N = 20) who underwent cognitive testing using the emotional N-back assessments before and after ketamine, ketamine responders showed improvement in the accuracy of emotional N-back (t[8] = 2.33; p < 0.05) whereas nonresponders did not (t[10] <1; p ns). CONCLUSIONS This proof-of-concept study provides preliminary data indicating that CBT may sustain the antidepressant effects of ketamine in TRD. Further study and optimization of this treatment approach in well-powered clinical trials is recommended.
Formative Assessment as an Effective Leadership Learning Tool

Formative assessment can be a critical and creative practice in leadership education and significantly enhance student learning, leader development, and leadership development. This chapter seeks to frame the use of assessment as both a best practice in leadership education and as an integral component to effective leadership learning pedagogy.
The Evolution of Bank Lending Patterns in China: A Post-1994 Province-By-Province Analysis

Disaggregated province-by-province analysis appears to confirm the importance of ongoing redistributive lending by the big four Chinese banks together with lending to state-owned enterprises that is especially pronounced amongst the poorer provinces. Agricultural Bank of China’s own allocation of loans to the weaker provinces surges after 2000. This may well reflect its greater presence in the poorer areas of the country and the potential damage exerted if its lending there were cut back. On the other hand, such lending patterns also make it unsurprising that Agricultural Bank of China has not yet followed the other big banks into public ownership.
Levels of 209Tl and 211Pb populated in the 210Pb(t, α)209Tl and 210Pb(t, d)211Pb reactions

Abstract The reactions 210 Pb(t , α) 209 Tl and 210 Pb(t, d) 211 Pb have been studied with 20 MeV tritons. Seven levels in 209 Tl have been identified in the 210 Pb(t , α) 209 Tl reaction. Level spins have been suggested by comparing the observed spectrum with that of the corresponding reaction on 208 Pb. Nineteen levels in 211 Pb were identified in the 210 Pb(t, d) 211 Pb reaction. Angular distributions were measured and l n values and spectroscopic factors were extracted by DWBA calculations. In both cases the spectra are very similar to the spectra obtained with 208 Pb as a target. The deviations from these simple spectra would appear to be amenable to a description in terms of a coupling of the extra particle or hole to the 210 Pb core.
High Compressive Axial Strain Effect on the Critical Current and Field of Nb3Sn Superconductor Wire

The axial strain dependence of the critical current Ic and effective upper critical field Bc2* have been measured on a series of Nb3Sn wire superconductors having initial compressive strain as large as -0.95% arising from thermal contraction of the conductor matrix. Results include data for binary Nb3Sn and ternary Nb3Sn with Ti additions. The effective upper critical field Bc2* is obtained using a general form of the pinning expression, since the data show that the Kramer method is not generally applicable to ternary Nb3Sn superconductors. The Ic and Bc2* data fit the strain scaling law well. The results are also consistent with earlier-published Tc vs. strain data for Nb3Sn at compressive strain as large as -0.85% and with Ic vs. strain data for stainless-steel reinforced Nb3Sn superconductors at compressive strain as large as -0.65%. The data contradict, however, recently reported Bc2* data obtained on multifilamentary Nb3Sn wires where high compressive strain was applied by soldering the wires to a bending beam and then flexing the beam.