cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regulatory Activities Related to Circumferential Cracking of Reactor Pressure Vessel Head Penetration Nozzles

The recent discoveries of cracked and leaking Alloy 600 vessel head penetration (VHP) nozzles, including control rod drive mechanism (CRDM) and thermocouple nozzles, at four pressurized water reactors (PWRs) have raised concerns about the structural integrity of VHP nozzles throughout the PWR industry. Nozzle cracking at Oconee Nuclear Station Unit 1 in November 2000 and Arkansas Nuclear One Unit 1 in February 2001 was limited to axial cracking, an occurrence deemed to be of limited safety concern in the NRC staff’s generic safety evaluation on the cracking of VHP nozzles dated November 19, 1993. However, the discovery of circumferential cracking at Oconee Nuclear Station Unit 3 in February 2001 and Oconee Nuclear Station Unit 2 in April 2001 particularly the large circumferential cracking identified in two CRDM nozzles at ONS3 has raised concerns about the potential safety implications and prevalence of cracking in VHP nozzles in PWRs. In response to the circumferential cracking identified at the Oconee units, the NRC issued Bulletin 2001–01, “Circumferential Cracking of Reactor Pressure Vessel Head Penetration Nozzles,” on August 3, 2001. This bulletin requests information from licensees related to the structural integrity of the reactor pressure VHP nozzles for their facilities, including the extent of VHP nozzle leakage and cracking that has been found to date, the inspections and repairs that have been undertaken to satisfy applicable regulatory requirements, future plans to inspect VHP nozzles, and a description of how future inspection plans will ensure compliance with applicable regulatory requirements. This paper summarizes the staff’s review and assessment of licensee responses to NRC Bulletin 2001–01.Copyright © 2002 by ASME
Reply to Commentary by Imai, Keele, Tingley, and Yamamoto, concerning Causal Mediation Analysis

Forthcoming: Psychological Methods (2014) with discussion of Interpretation and Identification of Causal Mediation, R-389. TECHNICAL REPORT R-421 November 20132 Reply to Commentary by Imai, Keele, Tingley, and Yamamoto, concerning Causal Mediation Analysis Judea Pearl ∗ Computer Science Department University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1596 judea@cs.ucla.edu (310) 825-3243 Tel / (310) 794-5057 Fax November 18, 2013 I am happy to join Imai, Keele, Tingley, and Yammamoto (henceforth Imai-et al.) in celebrating the full convergence of our respective analyses towards a unified understanding of causal mediation. I am referring to the analysis presented in (Pearl, 2001) (reproduced in (Pearl, 2013)) on the one hand, and the analyses and implementations of (Imai et al., 2010a,b,c), on the other. In fact, when I first read (Imai et al., 2010c), I had no doubt that, despite some dissimilarities in the presentation of the assumptions, the two works would coincide on all fronts: Definitions, basic assumptions, identification and estimation algorithms. The reasons for my confidence was that, in 2001, I approached the mediation problem from the symbiotic mathematical framework of Structural Causal Models (SCM) (Pearl, 2000, Chapter 7) which unifies the graphical, potential outcomes and structural equation frameworks, and according to which, the latter two are logical equivalent; a theorem in one is a theorem in the other. They differ only in the language in which assumptions are cast. This means that even researchers who accept no other interpretation of causation except the one dictated by orthodox potential outcomes can safely use the transparency and inferential power provided by the symbiotic framework, and be assured the validity of the results. Inspired by this assurance, I derived identification conditions in the algebra of counterfactuals and presented them in two languages, counterfactual (or potential outcomes) and graphical. Not surprisingly, the mediation formulas derived in Imai et al. (2010c) coincide precisely with those derived in Pearl (2001, Eqs. (8), (17), (26), (27)). This is to be expected, since the two are but variants of the same mathematical umbrella, differing merely in the type of assumptions one is willing to posit and defend, and the language one chooses to communicate the assumptions. This commentary has benefited from discussions with Kosuke Imai, David Kenny, and Bengt Muth´en. I am grateful to Associate Editor, Patrick Shrout for giving me the opportunity to reply to this commentary. This research was supported in parts by grants from NIH #1R01 LM009961-01, NSF #IIS-0914211 and #IIS-1018922, and ONR #N000-14-09-1-0665 and #N00014-10-1-0933.
A nonlinear scale-space filter by physical computation

Using the maximum entropy principle and statistical mechanics, the author derives and demonstrates a nonlinear scale-space filter. For each datum in a signal, a neighborhood of weighted data is used for scale-space clustering. The cluster center becomes the filter output. The filter is governed by a single scale parameter which dictates the spatial extent of nearby data used for clustering. This, together with the local characteristic of the signal, determine the scale parameter in the output space, which dictates the influences of these data on the output. This filter is thus completely unsupervised and data-driven. It provides a mechanism for a) removing noise; b) preserving edges and c) improved smoothing of nonimpulsive noise. >
Spectral techniques for graph bisection in genetic algorithms

Various applications of spectral techniques for enhancing graph bisection in genetic algorithms are investigated. Several enhancements to a genetic algorithm for graph bisection are introduced based on spectral decompositions of adjacency matrices of graphs and subpopulation matrices. First, the spectral decompositions give initial populations for the genetic algorithm to start with. Next, spectral techniques are used to engineer new individuals and reorder the schema to strategically group certain sets of vertices together on the chromosome. The operators and techniques are found to be beneficial when added to a plain genetic algorithm and when used in conjunction with other local optimization techniques for graph bisection. In addition, several world record minimum bisections have been obtained from the methods described in this study.
Automated online monitoring of distributed applications through external monitors

It is a challenge to provide detection facilities for large-scale distributed systems running legacy code on hosts that may not allow fault tolerant functions to execute on them. It is tempting to structure the detection in an observer system that is kept separate from the observed system of protocol entities, with the former only having access to the latter's external message exchanges. In this paper, we propose an autonomous self-checking monitor system, which is used to provide fast detection to underlying network protocols. The monitor architecture is application neutral and, therefore, lends itself to deployment for different protocols, with the rulebase against which the observed interactions are matched, making it specific to a protocol. To make the detection infrastructure scalable and dependable, we extend it to a hierarchical monitor structure. The Monitor structure is made dynamic and reconfigurable by designing different interactions to cope with failures, load changes, or mobility. The latency of the monitor system is evaluated under fault free conditions, while its coverage is evaluated under simulated error injections
Sparse Linear Programming via primal and dual augmented coordinate descent

Over the past decades, Linear Programming (LP) has been widely used in different areas and considered as one of the mature technologies in numerical optimization. However, the complexity offered by state-of-the-art algorithms (i.e. interior-point method and primal, dual simplex methods) is still unsatisfactory for problems in machine learning with huge number of variables and constraints. In this paper, we investigate a general LP algorithm based on the combination of Augmented Lagrangian and Coordinate Descent (AL-CD), giving an iteration complexity of O((log(1/∊))2) with O(nnz(A)) cost per iteration, where nnz(A) is the number of non-zeros in the m x n constraint matrix A, and in practice, one can further reduce cost per iteration to the order of non-zeros in columns (rows) corresponding to the active primal (dual) variables through an active-set strategy. The algorithm thus yields a tractable alternative to standard LP methods for large-scale problems of sparse solutions and nnz(A) ≪ mn. We conduct experiments on large-scale LP instances from l1 -regularized multi-class SVM, Sparse Inverse Covariance Estimation, and Nonnegative Matrix Factorization, where the proposed approach finds solutions of 10-3 precision orders of magnitude faster than state-of-the-art implementations of interior-point and simplex methods.1
Observing the Obvious

The world is full of obvious things, which nobody by any chance ever observes.— Sherlock Holmes [(1)][1] It is fair to say that atrial fibrillation (AF) has reached epidemic proportions. With an aging population and improved survival with concomitant conditions, the prevalence of AF is predicted
Pressurized In-Situ Dynamic Mechanical Thermal Analysis Method for Oilfield Polymers and Composites

Oilfield downhole equipment uses engineered polymers and composites extensively in various operations. The capability of polymers and composites to resist high temperature in downhole hot-wet fluid and gas environment is critical. Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMA) is known as the best analysis technique to determine this capability represented by glass transition temperatures (Tg) of polymeric materials. However, current commercially available DMA analyzers are commonly designed to perform a temperature sweep in a dry atmosphere—even for wet Tg determination of exposed wet samples, where a drying process associated with the analysis gives inaccurate results. Some recent DMA analyzers are equipped with an immersing test fixture; however, they are opened to ambient pressure with a low upper-temperature limit. There is no pressurized DMA analyzer commercially available.
Solid-phase extraction and cleanup procedures for determination of acrylamide in fried potato products by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry.

In response to recent discoveries of acrylamide in heated foods, a solid-phase extraction and cleanup protocol was developed for the determination of acrylamide in fried or baked potato samples by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). The analyte was extracted from the matrix by using 2M NaCI, and an aliquot of the initial extract was loaded onto a reversed-phase cartridge. After the analyte was eluted from the cartridge, the eluate was cleaned up on a mixed-mode cation-exchange cartridge. The eluate was then evaporated, and the residue was reconstituted in mobile phase before LC/MS analysis. Recoveries, based on the recovery of an added internal standard, ranged from 96 to 101% with relative standard deviations (RSDs) of 5-11%. The response was linear for a concentration range of 100-2000 ng/g with a coefficient of determination (R 2 ) of 0.992 (n = 25). An interday study showed good accuracy and precision of the method over a 3-day period with a recovery of 98% and an RSD of 9.5% (n = 15). The analyses of 6 potato chip samples showed concentrations of incurred acrylamide ranging from 260 to 1500 ng/g.
Conditional Expression of the Androgen Receptor Increases Susceptibility of Bladder Cancer in Mice

Bladder cancer represents a significant human tumor burden, accounting for about 7.7% and 2.4% of all cancer cases in males and females, respectively. While men have a higher risk of developing bladder cancer, women tend to present at a later stage of disease and with more aggressive tumors. Previous studies have suggested a promotional role of androgen signaling in enhancing bladder cancer development. To directly assess the role of androgens in bladder tumorigenesis, we have developed a novel transgenic mouse strain, R26hARLoxP/+:Upk3aGCE/+, in which the human AR transgene is conditionally expressed in bladder urothelium. Intriguingly, both male and female R26hARLoxP/+:Upk3aGCE/+ mice display a higher incidence of urothelial cell carcinoma (UCC) than the age and sex matched control littermates in response to the carcinogen, N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl) nitrosamine (BBN). We detect expression of the human AR transgene in CK5-positive and p63-positive basal cells in bladder urothelium. Further analyses of UCC tissues from R26hARLoxP/+:Upk3aGCE/+ mice showed that the majority of tumor cells are of urothelial basal cell origin. Positive immunostaining of transgenic AR protein was observed in the majority of tumor cells of the transgenic mice, providing a link between transgenic AR expression and oncogenic transformation. We observed an increase in Ki67 positive cells within the UCC lesions of transgenic AR mice. Manipulating endogenous androgen levels by castration and androgen supplementation directly affected bladder tumor development in male and female R26hARLoxP/+:Upk3aGCE/+ mice, respectively. Taken together, our data demonstrate for the first time that conditional activation of transgenic AR expression in bladder urothelium enhances carciongen-induced bladder tumor formation in mice. This new AR transgenic mouse line mimics certain features of human bladder cancer and can be used to study bladder tumorigenesis and for drug development.
Introduction to Microsurgery of the Third Ventricle, Pineal Region, and Tentorial Incisura

This edition of the Video Supplement entitled "Microsurgery of the Third Ventricle, Pineal Region, and Tentorial Incisura" highlights approaches to accessing the third ventricle for surgical resection of a variety of pathologies. The third ventricle has critical neurovascular anatomy that must always be respected to prevent patient harm. Visualization of critical anatomy in three dimensions from a surgeon' line of sight is important when planning the optimum surgical approach. Some of the keys to safely operating in this region include thoughtful head positioning, limitation of brain retraction, and the use of trajectories which capitalize on CSF cisterns and fissures. Some of the videos included in this volume illustrate standard operations while others depict more unique and innovative approaches that take advantage of these surgical windows. We hope you enjoy the videos included in this supplement.
A novel economic model for price-based demand response

Abstract This paper proposes an economic model for the demand response which can explain the change and the cross-period shift in consumption pattern of individual consumers. The objective of the proposed model is to maximize the customer utility constrained by either the daily budget or daily consumption. To develop the proposed model, first, the customer utility function is described and maximized. Then, the selection of the proper parameters for the model is discussed by sensitivity analysis. Next, an algorithm is proposed to apply the model to a TOU demand response program. Subsequently, the proposed algorithm is employed to apply the model to a case study. The results demonstrate the power of the model in explaining the change and cross-period shift in consumption pattern.
Inotropic Action of Epinephrine, Nor-epinephrine, and N-Isopropyl-Norepinephrine on Heart Muscle.∗†

Summary and Conclusionsd-1 Nor-epinephrine (Arterenol) and the N-isopropylnorepinephrine (Isuprel) exert a powerful inotropic action on mammalian heart muscle.
The influence of anisotropy

We now turn to the study of anisotropic material. It might be thought that the difficulties would be greatly enhanced but in fact, in the mathematical sense, the anisotropic is simpler than the isotropic case, the reason being that in the anisotropic case each term in the expression of the stress function is on the same footing whereas this is not so in the case of isotropy. Nevertheless the algebraic complexity of formulae is much greater. We might put the situation this way; in the anisotropic case formulae are obtained by simpler methods but are more complicated in algebraic structure.
The relationship of disability and employment for veterans from the 2010 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)

BACKGROUND: Veterans with disabilities, especially those with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) have difficulty obtaining and maintaining competitive employment.OBJECTIVE: To determine if there are significant differences in employment between veterans with and without disability, between veterans with a disability and nonveterans with a disability, and to investigate the association of veteran status and disability with employment. METHODS: Chi square analyses were conducted on data obtained from the 2010 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey to determine if significant differences in employment occurred between veterans with disabilities, veterans without disabilities and nonveterans with disabilities. Multivariate regression analyses were used to determine how veteran status and disability are associated with employment.RESULTS: Significant differences in employment were found between veterans with and without a disability; however, no significant differences existed in employment between veterans and nonveterans with a disability. Multivariate analysis showed that veteran status (aOR=1.80), having any disability (aOR=7.29), social disability (aOR=3.47) or a cognitive disability (aOR=3.16) were associated with not being employed.CONCLUSIONS: Veterans with disabilities are more likely not to be employed than veteran populations without disabilities. Veterans; however have unique disabilities, different than nonveterans with disabilities, that need to be addressed, such as social and cognitive disabilities resulting from TBI and PTSD. Future research should focus on evaluating the effectiveness of employment programs and policies designed to address the unique issues faced by veterans with disabilities. Language: en
Surround Suppression in the Responses of Primate SA1 and RA Mechanoreceptive Afferents Mapped with a Probe Array

Surround suppression in the responses of primate SA1 and RA mechanoreceptive afferents mapped with a probe array. Twenty-four slowly adapting type 1 (SA1) and 26 rapidly adapting (RA) cutaneous mec...
Bernoulli Trials and Mahonian Statistics: A Tale of Two q's

Any casual comparison of the topic of Bernoulli trials with that of Mahonian statistics would lead one to the superficial observation that the letter q is common to both subjects: As is well known, the q of the Bernoulli coin-tossing scheme denotes the probability that tails occurs. Somewhat less well known is the fact that Mahonian statistics give rise to a branch of combinatorics that in some circles is referred to as q-combinatorics. Of course, the use of the same symbol in these two contexts is mere coincidence. However, as will be explained, there is a surprising natural connection between these two famous q's of mathematics. Our discovery of this connection was sparked by a comment made by Professor Jim Delany. Following a colloquium talk on permutation statistics [8], Delany quizzically remarked that there were some striking similarities between the talk and an article by Moritz and Williams [6] that had just appeared in this MAGAZINE. In brief, Moritz and Williams considered the problem of determining the probability that a given permutation would be the result of a certain coin-tossing game. It is their game that forms the link between the Bernoulli coin-tossing scheme and the subject of Mahonian statistics. Beyond being just a curiosity, there are a few practical aspects of our discovery. For starters, the relationship between Bernoulli trials and Mahonian statistics immediately provides the answers to some of the questions posed by Moritz and Williams. We will also make use of the combinatorics of a certain Mahonian statistic, known as the comajor index, to give alternate proofs to some of the results in [6]. We begin our "tale of two q's" with a short review of Moritz' and Williams' work. Before proceeding, the reader may find it helpful to peruse their article.
Cryptococcal cellulitis in renal transplant recipients

Cellulitis is an unusual presentation of cryptococcal infection in renal allograft recipients. In such patients, disseminated cryptococcal infection can result in significant morbidity and mortality. Patients are often treated with antibiotics before a definitive diagnosis is made, delaying appropriate therapy. We present 3 post-transplant patients who presented with cellulitis and whose final diagnosis was cryptococcal infection. We also review 18 similar cases from the English literature.
The Army as Guardian and as Ruler, 1934–57

The period between 1934 and 1957 encompasses the institutionalization of new forms of civil-military relations in modern Haiti, brought on by the reorganization of the army initiated during the US occupation (1915–34). In this new era, the US Marines were no longer around to coach the Haitian army, and both government officials and military officers were testing each other and experimenting with new vistas as a way of developing mutually acceptable forms of relationships. The new Constitution of 1935, by proclaiming the president as the supreme head of the army, provided a legal framework within which these relationships could be worked out. However, the law is not a good guide to an understanding of everyday practices in the field of civil-military relations in Haiti.
A Classification Model for Predicting Heart Failure in Cardiac Patients

Today the most significant public health problem is Heart Failure (HF). There are a lot of raw medical data available to healthcare organizations in the form of structured and unstructured datasets, but the need is to analyze this data to get information and to make intelligent decisions. By using data mining, classification tool on a real dataset of cardiac patients we propose a model which classified these patients into four major classes. This model will help to identify the risk of HF and patients who have no HF signs but structural irregularities. We can also identify the patients having HF signs and irregularities and those having the critical stage of HF. This paper provides a detailed summary of modern strategies for management and analysis of HF patients by classes (1 to 4) that have appeared in the past few years.
Pericardiectomy to Treat Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction: Unrestrained Enthusiasm?

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a major public health problem and a therapeutic conundrum—various pharmacological treatment strategies have failed to achieve substantial improvement in outcomes.1–4 Thus, novel approaches to its treatment are badly needed. There are many alterations in cardiac function in HFpEF that constitute potential therapeutic targets, the details of which are beyond the scope of this editorial. However, reduced passive or end-diastolic chamber compliance seems to be the norm and is almost certainly an important component of its pathophysiology.5–7 The mechanisms of reduced chamber compliance include both increased myocardial stiffness because of changes in titin phosphorylation7–9 and increased content and cross-linking of extracellular matrix collagen,7,10 as well as an increase in mass to volume ratio in the many HFpEF patients with concentric left ventricular (LV) remodeling.11 However, there is no clinical evidence that reversing this abnormality leads to improvement in HFpEF outcomes; indeed, improvement in chamber compliance has never actually been documented in HFpEF patients subjected to various treatment strategies. Such an approach was shown to be efficacious in a mouse model of HFpEF in which genetic manipulation was used to produce a greater proportion of large, highly compliant titin isoforms with resultant improvement in chamber compliance and marked amelioration of the HFpEF phenotype.12 Clearly, TAC in mice is far removed from patients with HFpEF, but this result at least offers the promise that a strategy directly targeted at chamber compliance might have benefit. See Article by Borlaug et al The notion that pericardiectomy might be beneficial in HFpEF has been bandied about informally for some time and is based on the idea that relief of the restraining effect of the pericardium on cardiac volume would be expected to improve diastolic …
Radiative corrections to quantum sticking on graphene

We study the sticking rate of atomic hydrogen to suspended graphene using four different methods that include contributions from processes with multiphonon emission. We compare the numerical results of the sticking rate obtained by: (i) the loop expansion of the atom self-energy; (ii) the noncrossing approximation (NCA); (iii) the independent boson model approximation (IBMA); and (iv) a leading-order soft-phonon resummation method (SPR). The loop expansion reveals an infrared problem, analogous to the infamous infrared problem in QED. The two-loop contribution to the sticking rate gives a result that tends to diverge for large membranes. The latter three methods remedy this infrared problem and give results that are finite in the limit of an infinite membrane. We find that for micromembranes (sizes ranging 100 nm to $10\phantom{\rule{0.222222em}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m})$, the latter three methods give results that are in good agreement with each other and yield sticking rates that are mildly suppressed relative to the lowest-order golden rule rate. Lastly, we find that the SPR sticking rate decreases slowly to zero with increasing membrane size, while both the NCA and IBMA rates tend to a nonzero constant in this limit. Thus, approximations to the sticking rate can be sensitive to the effects of soft-phonon emission for large membranes.
Effectiveness of Care Farming on Veterans' Life Satisfaction, Optimism, and Perceived Loneliness

Military veterans are increasingly using care farms to heal their psychological wounds and reconnect socially. The authors examined the effectiveness of care farming using a smartphone data collection app to determine its effect on veterans' life satisfaction, optimism, and perceived loneliness. Findings support care farming as a treatment for veterans.
Abstract 419: MetabocinTM Increases Lipolytic Pathways to Counter High Fat Diet-Induced Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFDLD) is a comorbidity of high fat diet-induced obesity. NAFLD leads to steatohepatitis and hepatic steatosis, which progress into cirrhosis and liver cancer. C...
Phosphorus recycling by zebra mussels in relation to density and food resource availability

Using flow-through microcosms, we examined phosphorus (P) recycling by zebra mussels under conditions of nearly constant food resource supply and varying zebra mussel population densities (600–5200 ind./m2). At all density levels, zebra mussels filtered substantial algae, measured as chlorophyll biomass. Because chlorophyll biomass inputs were low throughout the study, zebra mussel biomass-specific rates of chlorophyll filtration declined with increasing density, suggesting food resource limitation at the higher densities. We observed net total P export and high zebra mussel biomass-specific rates of P recycling over time in microcosms at high zebra mussel densities. In systems with a low zebra mussel density, net total P export did not occur over time. Our results suggest the occurrence of P remineralization by zebra mussels and net loss associated with emaciation during periods of temporary starvation. These findings have implications for P dynamics since zebra mussels can be subjected to periods of starvation over seasonal and annual time scales.
Lessons From An Emerging Economy, An Analysis Of Sunlight Use In Chilean Public Housing

Given the importance of sunlight on human health and how the built environment influences human interaction with sunlight, how can the design profession incorporate sunlight more robustly into public housing design projects? I try to answer this question by looking at the last thirty years of the Chilean public housing development. My methodological approach was divided into two parts. The first part focused in unraveling the historical precedents that led to the current public housing typology, so prevalent in Chilean public housing projects today. The second part consisted of fieldwork done along the length of the Chilean geography. Chile spans a North to South length of 4,270 km (2,653 mi) and has an average sunshine variation that more then doubles between the Northern most city of Arica compared to the Southern most city of Punta Arenas. Preliminary data from these two research approaches, reveal what steps can be taken in order to increase the relevance of sunlight in public housing design. On an urban scale, careful consideration of grid layout, location of green areas, sidewalks and transportation. On the housing scale, window location as it relates to issues of privacy, safety and accessibility, need careful consideration.
Emergency department boarding and adverse hospitalization outcomes among patients admitted to a general medical service.

Abstract Objective Overcrowding in the emergency department (ED) has been associated with patient harm, yet little is known about the association between ED boarding and adverse hospitalization outcomes. We sought to examine the association between ED boarding and three common adverse hospitalization outcomes: rapid response team activation (RRT), escalation in care, and mortality. Method We conducted an observational analysis of consecutive patient encounters admitted from the ED to the general medical service between February 2013 and June 2015. This study was conducted in an urban, academic hospital with an annual adult ED census over 90,000. We defined boarding as patients with greater than 4 h from ED bed order to ED departure to hospital ward. The primary outcome was a composite of adverse outcomes in the first 24 h of admission, including RRT activation, care escalation to intensive care, or in-hospital mortality. Results A total of 31,426 patient encounters were included of which 3978 (12.7%) boarded in the ED for 4 h or more. Adverse outcomes occurred in 1.92% of all encounters. Comparing boarded vs. non-boarded patients, 41 (1.03%) vs. 244 (0.90%) patients experienced a RRT activation, 53 (1.33%) vs. 387 (1.42%) experienced a care escalation, and 1 (0.03%) vs.12 (0.04%) experienced unanticipated in-hospital death, within 24 h of ED admission. In unadjusted analysis, there was no difference in the composite outcome between boarding and non-boarding patients (1.91% vs. 1.91%, p = 0.994). Regression analysis adjusted for patient demographics, acuity, and comorbidities also showed no association between boarding and the primary outcome. A sensitivity analysis showed an association between ED boarding and the composite outcome inclusive of the entire inpatient hospital stay (5.8% vs. 4.7%, p = 0.003). Conclusion Within the first 24 h of hospital admission to a general medicine service, adverse hospitalization outcomes are rare and not associated with ED boarding.
Evaluation of an Indian Student Placement Program

An evaluation of an Indian student placement program revealed that the educational attainment of participants was significantly higher than that of nonparticipants. Little difference was observed i...
Biomass Conversion of Municipal Solid Waste

Abstract The amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) produced annually is increasing at an alarming rate. The potential hazards, lack of available landfill sites, and the increasingly strict regulations placed upon existing sites present serious problems in the disposal of solid wastes. Environmentalists and government regulations are forcing city and county governments to actively seek alternatives to landfilling. Unfortunately, direct incineration of MSW has not proved to be an adequate alternative due to the financial unfeasibility of this process and the additional contribution to our environment of unwanted by products, i.e., polyaromatic hydrocarbons. We are developing a cost-effective and profitable process for the biocon-version of MSW by selecting and evaluating various existing technologies. Our selected process involves in part the efficient separation of the inorganic fraction of MSW (ferrous, non-ferrous, etc.) from the organic fraction. In addition, both fractions are sterilized, which greatly reduces the health hazards associated with MSW handling and landfilling. The inorganic fraction is then separated further for recycling. The organic fraction, which is 50 wt% cellulose, is readily converted to glucose by hydrolysis and subsequently to ethanol by fermentation. At present, we are achieving approximately 80 gallons of ethanol per dry ton of organics.
Thermal Stress in Pin-Grid Arrays: Primary Analysis of Pins

A differential in-plane thermal expansion between a module and circuit card tends to induce flexural stress in the pins bridging them in the pin-grid array (PGA) structure. We shall treat the uniform temperature rise (or fall) ΔT of the assembly. It is understood from Eqs. (1.51) and (1.52) that the thermal strain terms (α1 ΔT 1 − α2 ΔT 2) for nonuniform and (α1 − α2)ΔT for uniform temperature pose no difference to mathematical handling.
Chronology of Range Expansion of the Coyote, Canis latrans , in New York

Coyotes ( Canis latrans ) were historically restricted to central North America. In less than two centuries, however, Coyotes have colonized most of the continent, including much of northeastern North America. Better understanding causes and proximate mechanisms of this expansion requires a detailed understanding of how Coyotes colonized areas on a fine scale. We examined the establishment of Coyotes in the State of New York by collecting and analyzing reports of their first occurrence throughout the state over the past century, and creating a detailed map of range expansion. Coyotes first entered New York from the north, circled the Adirondack region prior to colonizing it, and then expanded southward and westward at ca. 78-90 km/decade. The revealed pattern lends little support to the hypotheses that the range expansion is attributable to translocations and releases, or that Coyotes were historically present in the region and only recently expanded in numbers. Rather, the data suggest a correlative relationship between anthropogenic land use and Coyote range expansion.
Partial Proportional Odds Models for Ordinal Response Variables

SUMMARY The ordinal logistic regression model that McCullagh calls the proportional odds model is extended to models that allow non-proportional odds for a subset of the explanatory variables. The maximum likelihood method is used for estimation of parameters of general and restricted partial proportional odds models as well as for the derivation of Wald, Rao score and likelihood ratio tests. These tests assess association without assuming proportional odds and test proportional odds against various alternatives. Simulation results compare the score test for proportional odds with tests suggested by Koch, Amara and Singer that are based on a series of binary logistic models.
Material-Independent Mechanochemical Effect in the Deformation of Highly-Strain-Hardening Metals

``Gummy'' metals that are both soft and highly strain-hardening, like aluminum, iron, nickel, and stainless steels, are quite difficult to cut, owing to very large deformation forces and poor surface quality. The authors show how this difficulty, a consequence of unsteady plastic flow, can be overcome using a mechanochemical effect: changes in deformation promoted by a suitable coating. From glues to inks, applying any of a host of household media to the metal's surface induces a change in flow mode via a local ductile-to-brittle transition, which strongly enhances cutting. These results have wide-ranging implications for industrial machining and forming processes.
A Tumor-Promoting Phorbol Ester Causes a Large Increase in APOBEC3A Expression and a Moderate Increase in APOBEC3B Expression in a Normal Human Keratinocyte Cell Line without Increasing Genomic Uracils

Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) promotes skin cancer in rodents. The mutations found in murine tumors are similar to those found in human skin cancers, and PMA promotes proliferation of human skin cells. PMA treatment of human keratinocytes increases the synthesis of APOBEC3A, an enzyme that converts cytosines in single-stranded DNA to uracil, and mutations in a variety of human cancers are attributed to APOBEC3A or APOBEC3B expression. We tested here the possibility that induction of APOBEC3A by PMA causes genomic accumulation of uracils that may lead to such mutations. When a human keratinocyte cell line was treated with PMA, both APOBEC3A and APOBEC3B gene expression increased, anti-APOBEC3A/APOBEC3B antibody bound a protein(s) in the nucleus, and nuclear extracts displayed cytosine deamination activity. Surprisingly, there was little increase in genomic uracils in PMA-treated wild-type or uracil repair-defective cells. In contrast, cells transfected with a plasmid expressing APOBEC3A acquired more genomic uracils. Unexpectedly, PMA treatment, but not APOBEC3A plasmid transfection, caused a cessation in cell growth. Hence, a reduction in single-stranded DNA at replication forks may explain the inability of PMA-induced APOBEC3A/APOBEC3B to increase genomic uracils. These results suggest that the proinflammatory PMA is unlikely to promote extensive APOBEC3A/APOBEC3B-mediated cytosine deaminations in human keratinocytes.
Quantification, Inequality, and the Contestation of School Closures in Philadelphia.

Public education relies heavily on data to document stratified inputs and outcomes, and to design interventions aimed at reducing disparities. Yet despite the promise and prevalence of data-driven ...
Early Detection of Pancreatic Cancer: Opportunities and Challenges

Most patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) present with symptomatic, surgically unresectable disease. Although the goal of early detection of PDAC is laudable and likely to result in significant improvement in overall survival, the relatively low prevalence of PDAC renders general population screening infeasible. The challenges of early detection include identification of at-risk individuals in the general population who would benefit from longitudinal surveillance programs and appropriate biomarker and imaging-based modalities used for PDAC surveillance in such cohorts. In recent years, various subgroups at higher-than-average risk for PDAC have been identified, including those with familial risk due to germline mutations, a history of pancreatitis, patients with mucinous pancreatic cysts, and elderly patients with new-onset diabetes. The last 2 categories are discussed at length in terms of the opportunities and challenges they present for PDAC early detection. We also discuss current and emerging imaging modalities that are critical to identifying early, potentially curable PDAC in high-risk cohorts on surveillance.
There Is Virtually No Excuse: The Frequency and Predictors of College Students’ Bystander Intervention Behaviors Directed at Online Victimization:

Research shows that a large percentage of college students have experienced online victimization. However, bystander intervention behaviors directed at online contexts are absent from both the online victimization and bystander intervention research. With a sample of undergraduate college students, the current study explores the frequency and predictors of bystander intervention behaviors in response to online situations. Results show that a majority of students intervened during the past academic year when faced with the opportunity. Individuals with high self-control, who previously experienced online victimization, and/or witnessed positive peers' norms offline are more likely to intervene.
Morettia kilianii (Brassicaceae, Anastaticeae), a new species from Yemen

Morettia kilianii is described from Yemen, and its relationships to the other three species of the genus is discussed. It is readily distinguished from them by the subshrubby habit, lack of valve partitions between the seeds, connivent stigmas, and petals 0.3–0.5 mm wide. A key to the species of Morettia is presented.Citation: Al-Shehbaz I. A. 2019: Morettia kilianii (Brassicaceae, Anastaticeae), a new species from Yemen. — Willdenowia 49: 143 – 146. doi: https://doi.org/10.3372/wi.49.49201Version of record first published online on 20 May 2019 ahead of inclusion in August 2019 issue.
Point-to-Grid Conversion in Flux Footprints: Implications of Method Choice and Spatial Resolution for Regional-Scale Studies

Flux-footprint modelling is commonly used for determining source areas of land–atmosphere gas-exchange observations from a single meteorological tower to determine the relative flux contribution of different areas within the station fetch. In doing so, a conversion from a continuous function to a two-dimensional spatial representation takes place prior to the interpretation of results. This interpreted result is commonly used to validate satellite regional-scale, remote-sensing-based, gas-exchange models. However, little attention has been paid to exactly how the conversion is performed. The conversion to a raster data model can result in the loss of information. This loss can be cell size dependent. Therefore, it is important that the spatial-conversion method used is appropriate for the specific application. We present here an assessment of the influence of spatial resolution (i.e., cell size) and conversion method on the accuracy of modelled flux footprints using tower-based flux instrumentation. Five methods for aggregating flux footprints to a two-dimensional grid are presented and a sensitivity analysis is performed. Two well-validated flux-footprint models are used at spatial resolutions ranging from 10 m to 1000 m. Results indicate significant data loss, change of apparent maximum location, and change in the representative fetch of the point measurement. Furthermore, these results are measurement site dependent. This often-overlooked step in the conversion of a flux-footprint model to a grid is important. These results provide guidelines for those utilizing a flux-footprint model to validate spatial models for assessing gas exchange.
The Contributions of Positive and Negative Affect to Emotional Well-Being

In this paper, the definitions of subjective well-being have been reviewed with a focus on its emotional core, which we consider to be the ratio of positive to negative affect over time. The reviewed evidence showed that negative emotions tend to be of longer duration than positive and that the NA system produces stronger emotional responses than the PA system. Also, a variety of experimental results show that negative stimuli make unique demands on cognitive resources (particularly perception and attention) compared to positive stimuli. The evidence that the negative affect system produces stronger affective output, per unit input, than the positive affect system, is a phenomenon known as negativity bias. I also went so far as to argue that negativity exceeds positivity by a factor of pi (3.14) and that efforts to speed adaptation to negative events may be more important to overall SWB then efforts to prolong responses to positive events (Larsen and Prizmic, 2008). The fact that negativity is stronger than positivity, combined with the notion of differential adaptation (people adapt faster to good events than to bad events), creates the conditions that drive the hedonic treadmill. However, most people are, to some degree, able to overcome the psychological forces of the hedonic treadmill and maintain at least a modicum of emotional well-being (Biswas-Diener, Vitterso, & Diener, 2005). It is likely that the ability called "emotional intelligence" refers in large part to the capacity to manage negative affect following unpleasant or stressful events (Larsen & Learner, 2006). Moreover, such an ability is likely to be made up of particular behaviors and strategies that each contributes specifically to the management of negative emotions (Larsen & Prizmic, 2004).
Effects of ex vivo ionizing radiation on collagen structure and whole-bone mechanical properties of mouse vertebrae

Bone can become brittle when exposed to ionizing radiation across a wide range of clinically relevant doses that span from radiotherapy (accumulative 50 Gy) to sterilization (~35,000 Gy). While irradiation-induced embrittlement has been attributed to changes in the collagen molecular structure, the relative role of collagen fragmentation versus non-enzymatic collagen crosslinking remains unclear. To better understand the effects of radiation on the bone material without cellular activity, we conducted an ex vivo x-ray radiation experiment on excised mouse lumbar vertebrae. Spinal tissue from twenty-week old, female, C57BL/6J mice were randomly assigned to a single x-ray radiation dose of either 0 (control), 50, 1000, 17,000, or 35,000 Gy. Measurements were made for collagen fragmentation, non-enzymatic collagen crosslinking, and both monotonic and cyclic-loading compressive mechanical properties. We found that the group differences for mechanical properties were more consistent with those for collagen fragmentation than for non-enzymatic collagen crosslinking. Monotonic strength at 17,000 and 35,000 Gy was lower than that of the control by 50% and 73% respectively, (p < 0.001) but at 50 and 1000 Gy was not different than the control. Consistent with those trends, collagen fragmentation only occurred at 17,000 and 35,000 Gy. By contrast, non-enzymatic collagen crosslinking was greater than control for all radiation doses (p < 0.001). All results were consistent both for monotonic and cyclic loading conditions. We conclude that the reductions in bone compressive monotonic strength and fatigue life due to ex vivo ionizing radiation are more likely caused by fragmentation of the collagen backbone than any increases in non-enzymatic collagen crosslinks.
Pre- and peri-implantation Zika virus infection impairs fetal development by targeting trophectoderm cells

Zika virus (ZIKV) infection results in an increased risk of spontaneous abortion and poor intrauterine growth although the underlying mechanisms remain undetermined. Little is known about the impact of ZIKV infection during the earliest stages of pregnancy, at pre- and peri-implantation, because most current ZIKV pregnancy studies have focused on post-implantation stages. Here, we demonstrate that trophectoderm cells of pre-implantation human and mouse embryos can be infected with ZIKV, and propagate virus causing neural progenitor cell death. These findings are corroborated by the dose-dependent nature of ZIKV susceptibility of hESC-derived trophectoderm cells. Single blastocyst RNA-seq reveals key transcriptional changes upon ZIKV infection, including nervous system development, prior to commitment to the neural lineage. The pregnancy rate of mice is >50% lower in pre-implantation infection than infection at E4.5, demonstrating that pre-implantation ZIKV infection leads to miscarriage. Cumulatively, these data elucidate a previously unappreciated association of pre- and peri-implantation ZIKV infection and microcephaly.
Hybrid Permanent Magnet Motors Allow for the Development of High Efficiency Screw Compressors

Air compressors that use variable speed drives to improve overall compressor performance and efficiency have been commercially available since the early 1990’s.