cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Biology of Anagrus giraulti (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae), an egg parasitoid of the beet leafhopper, Circulifer tenellus (Homoptera: Cicadellidae).

Anagrus giraulti Crawford is a common egg parasitoid of the beet leafhopper, Circulifer tenellus (Baker), in California. The ovarian egg is stalked, elongated, and 0.16 mm long. Only two instars were isolated in the host egg. Mean developmental time of both sexes was ca. 20, 15, 11, and 9 d at constant temperatures of 20, 24, 28, and 32°C, respectively. Developmental threshold temperature was estimated to be near 9.8°C, requiring 201 degree-days for development to adult emergence. Sex ratio (male/female) averaged 1:1.4 in the laboratory and 1:1.2 in the field. Females emerged from the pupa with their full egg complement, which averaged 45.9 eggs (range, 34—56). Females laid >50% of these eggs in the first 2 d of adulthood. Longevity of adult females maintained in storage vials averaged 11.4 d at 24°C when fed on water plus honey, but only 2.9 d when provided water only. Females exposed to host eggs lived an average of 4.8 d.
A REVIEW AND NEW PROPOSAL OF SANDSTONE CLASSIFICATION

On the basis of studying foreign and domestic sandstone classification, this paper suggests a new, suitable sandstone classification. Firstly, according to the matrix content, sandstone is divided into two categories: the sandstone with matrix 15% is anenite; matrix15% is wacke. Three end members on the classification triangle chart are quart (Q), feldspar (F) and rock debris(R). Sandstone is divided into three classes. The sandstone that has Q75% is quart sandstone, which has Q75% and FR is feldspathic sandstone, which has Q75% and RF is lithic sandstone. Quart sandstone is divided into four types: pure quartzose sandstone, quartzose sandstone, feldspar quartzite, and lithic quartzite. Feldspathic sandstone is divided into three types: arkoses, lithic arkoses, subarkose. Lithic sandstone is divided into three types: litharenite, feldspar litharenite, sublitharenite.
Identification of Li-Ion Battery SEI Compounds through 7Li and 13C Solid-State MAS NMR Spectroscopy and MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry

Solid-state 7Li and 13C MAS NMR spectra of cycled graphitic Li-ion anodes demonstrate SEI compound formation upon lithiation that is followed by changes in the SEI upon delithiation. Solid-state 13C DPMAS NMR shows changes in peaks associated with organic solvent compounds (ethylene carbonate and dimethyl carbonate, EC/DMC) upon electrochemical cycling due to the formation of and subsequent changes in the SEI compounds. Solid-state 13C NMR spin–lattice (T1) relaxation time measurements of lithiated Li-ion anodes and reference poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) powders, along with MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry results, indicate that large-molecular-weight polymers are formed in the SEI layers of the discharged anodes. MALDI-TOF MS and NMR spectroscopy results additionally indicate that delithiated anodes exhibit a larger number of SEI products than is found in lithiated anodes.
PANTHER-PSEP: predicting disease-causing genetic variants using position-specific evolutionary preservation

UNLABELLED PANTHER-PSEP is a new software tool for predicting non-synonymous genetic variants that may play a causal role in human disease. Several previous variant pathogenicity prediction methods have been proposed that quantify evolutionary conservation among homologous proteins from different organisms. PANTHER-PSEP employs a related but distinct metric based on 'evolutionary preservation': homologous proteins are used to reconstruct the likely sequences of ancestral proteins at nodes in a phylogenetic tree, and the history of each amino acid can be traced back in time from its current state to estimate how long that state has been preserved in its ancestors. Here, we describe the PSEP tool, and assess its performance on standard benchmarks for distinguishing disease-associated from neutral variation in humans. On these benchmarks, PSEP outperforms not only previous tools that utilize evolutionary conservation, but also several highly used tools that include multiple other sources of information as well. For predicting pathogenic human variants, the trace back of course starts with a human 'reference' protein sequence, but the PSEP tool can also be applied to predicting deleterious or pathogenic variants in reference proteins from any of the ∼100 other species in the PANTHER database. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION PANTHER-PSEP is freely available on the web at http://pantherdb.org/tools/csnpScoreForm.jsp Users can also download the command-line based tool at ftp://ftp.pantherdb.org/cSNP_analysis/PSEP/ CONTACT: pdthomas@usc.edu SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Effect of Chemistry on Osteogenesis and Angiogenesis Towards Bone Tissue Engineering Using 3D Printed Scaffolds.

The functionality or survival of tissue engineering constructs depends on the adequate vascularization through oxygen transport and metabolic waste removal at the core. This study reports the presence of magnesium and silicon in direct three dimensional printed (3DP) tricalcium phosphate (TCP) scaffolds promotes in vivo osteogenesis and angiogenesis when tested in rat distal femoral defect model. Scaffolds with three different interconnected macro pore sizes were fabricated using direct three dimensional printing. In vitro ion release in phosphate buffer for 30 days showed sustained Mg2+ and Si4+ release from these scaffolds. Histolomorphology and histomorphometric analysis from the histology tissue sections revealed a significantly higher bone formation, between 14 and 20% for 4–16 weeks, and blood vessel formation, between 3 and 6% for 4–12 weeks, due to the presence of magnesium and silicon in TCP scaffolds compared to bare TCP scaffolds. The presence of magnesium in these 3DP TCP scaffolds also caused delayed TRAP activity. These results show that magnesium and silicon incorporated 3DP TCP scaffolds with multiscale porosity have huge potential for bone tissue repair and regeneration.
Infection resistance and tolerance in Peromyscus spp., natural reservoirs of microbes that are virulent for humans

The widely-distributed North American species Peromyscus leucopus and P. maniculatus of cricetine rodents are, between them, important natural reservoirs for several zoonotic diseases of humans: Lyme disease, human granulocytic anaplasmosis, babesiosis, erhlichiosis, hard tickborne relapsing fever, Powassan virus encephalitis, hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, and plague. While these infections are frequently disabling and sometimes fatal for humans, the peromyscines display little pathology and apparently suffer few consequences, even when prevalence of persistent infection in a population is high. While these Peromyscus spp. are unable to clear some of the infections, they appear to have partial resistance, which limits the burden of the pathogen. In addition, they display traits of infection tolerance, which reduces the damage of the infection. Research on these complementary resistance and tolerance phenomena in Peromyscus has relevance both for disease control measures targeting natural reservoirs and for understanding the mechanisms of the comparatively greater sickness of many humans with these and other infections.
The Articulated Alar Rim Graft: Reengineering the Conventional Alar Rim Graft for Improved Contour and Support

Surgical refinement of the wide nasal tip is challenging. Achieving an attractive, slender, and functional tip complex without destabilizing the lower nasal sidewall or deforming the contracture-prone alar rim is a formidable task. Excisional refinement techniques that rely upon incremental weakening of wide lower lateral cartilages (LLC) often destabilize the tip complex and distort tip contour. Initial destabilization of the LLC is usually further exacerbated by "shrink-wrap" contracture, which often leads to progressive cephalic retraction of the alar margin. The result is a misshapen tip complex accentuated by a conspicuous and highly objectionable nostril deformity that is often very difficult to treat. The "articulated" alar rim graft (AARG) is a modification of the conventional rim graft that improves treatment of secondary alar rim deformities, including postsurgical alar retraction (PSAR). Unlike the conventional alar rim graft, the AARG is sutured to the underlying tip complex to provide direct stationary support to the alar margin, thereby enhancing graft efficacy. When used in conjunction with a well-designed septal extension graft (SEG) to stabilize the central tip complex, lateral crural tensioning (LCT) to tighten the lower nasal sidewalls and minimize soft-tissue laxity, and lysis of scar adhesions to unfurl the retracted and scarred nasal lining, the AARG can eliminate PSAR in a majority of patients. The AARG is also highly effective for prophylaxis against alar retraction and in the treatment of most other contour abnormalities involving the alar margin. Moreover, the AARG requires comparatively little graft material, and complications are rare. We present a retrospective series of 47 consecutive patients treated with the triad of AARG, SEG, and LCT for prophylaxis and/or treatment of alar rim deformities. Outcomes were favorable in nearly all patients, and no complications were observed. We conclude the AARG is a simple and effective method for avoiding and correcting most alar rim deformities.
Lick Observatory's Shane telescope adaptive optics system (ShaneAO): research directions and progress

We present a review of the ongoing research activity surrounding the adaptive optics system at the Shane telescope (ShaneAO) particularly the R&D efforts on the technology and algorithms for that will advance AO into wider application for astronomy. We are pursuing the AO challenges for whole sky coverage diffraction-limited correction down to visible science wavelengths. This demands high-order wavefront correction and bright artificial laser beacons. We present recent advancements in the development of MEMS based AO correction, woofer-tweeter architecture, wind-predictive wavefront control algorithms, atmospheric characterization, and a pulsed fiber amplifier guide star laser tuned for optical pumping of the sodium layer. We present the latest on-sky results from the new AO system and present status and experimental plans for the optical pumping guide star laser.
Genetic Testing in Huntington’s Disease

The historical and clinical profiles of Huntington’s disease (HD) presenting in 44 juveniles who were tested for CAG repeat expansions in the gene for HD were defined in a study reported by the US Huntington Disease Genetic Testing Group from the Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN.
Profiling Protease Specificity: Combining Yeast ER Sequestration Screening (YESS) with Next Generation Sequencing.

An enzyme engineering technology involving yeast endoplasmic reticulum (ER) sequestration screening (YESS) has been recently developed. Here, a new method is established, in which the YESS platform is combined with NextGen sequencing (NGS) to enable a comprehensive survey of protease specificity. In this approach, a combinatorial substrate library is targeted to the yeast ER and transported through the secretory pathway, interacting with any protease(s) residing in the ER. Multicolor FACS screening is used to isolate cells labeled with fluorophore-conjugated antibodies, followed by NGS to profile the cleaved substrates. The YESS-NGS method was successfully applied to profile the sequence specificity of the wild-type and an engineered variant of the tobacco etch mosaic virus protease. Proteolysis in the yeast secretory pathway was also mapped for the first time in vivo revealing a major cleavage pattern of Ali/Leu-X-Lys/Arg-Arg. Here Ali is any small aliphatic residue, but especially Leu. This pattern was ...
The Anterior Prefrontal Cortex and the Hippocampus Are Negatively Correlated during False Memories

False memories commonly activate the anterior/dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (A/DLPFC) and the hippocampus. These regions are assumed to work in concert during false memories, which would predict a positive correlation between the magnitudes of activity in these regions across participants. However, the A/DLPFC may also inhibit the hippocampus, which would predict a negative correlation between the magnitudes of activity in these regions. In the present functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, during encoding, participants viewed abstract shapes in the left or right visual field. During retrieval, participants classified each old shape as previously in the “left” or “right” visual field followed by an “unsure”–“sure”–“very sure” confidence rating. The contrast of left-hits and left-misses produced two activations in the hippocampus and three activations in the left A/DLPFC. For each participant, activity associated with false memories (right–“left”–“very sure” responses) from the two hippocampal regions was plotted as a function of activity in each A/DLPFC region. Across participants, for one region in the left anterior prefrontal cortex, there was a negative correlation between the magnitudes of activity in this region and the hippocampus. This suggests that the anterior prefrontal cortex might inhibit the hippocampus during false memories and that participants engage either the anterior prefrontal cortex or the hippocampus during false memories.
Potential dietary outcomes of changing relative prices of healthy and less healthy foods: The case of ready-to-eat breakfast cereals

Abstract Many prevalent and costly health disorders in the U.S. can be attributed in part to poor diets, overconsumption of calories, and physical inactivity. Taxing less healthy foods and subsidizing healthy foods as a strategy to improve diet and health has attracted growing interest among policy makers and researchers. We test this strategy by using national household purchase data to estimate a censored, price and expenditure endogenous demand system for 12 food groups that are commonly consumed at breakfast: low- and high-nutrition ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, eggs, breads, hot cereals, breakfast bars, juice, whole and reduced-fat milk, yogurt, meats, and coffee. The estimated demand elasticities are applied to nationally representative food intake data to simulate—under the assumption of perfectly price elastic supply—the potential dietary improvement from taxing low-nutrition and subsidizing high-nutrition ready-to-eat breakfast cereals. We find that the demand for both types of cereals is own-price inelastic, suggesting that consumers are not likely to make large shifts in consumption of cereals if the price changes. Thus only limited dietary improvement can be expected from taxes and subsidies. Furthermore, when the healthfulness of breakfast foods is evaluated using a comprehensive list of nutrients and food components, a price intervention strategy may result in unintended, adverse impacts. Our simulation results suggest that the hypothetical price intervention actually increases the calorie content of foods consumed at breakfast.
Effects of the Full Service Family Practice Incentive Program.

I am responding to the letter to the editor by Lavergne and colleagues.[1][1] They note similar findings to ours for the overall Full Service Family Practice Incentives Program (FSFPIP) when they note that “We observed that patients with incentives had lower costs and hospitalizations on average,
The ventral disc is a flexible microtubule organelle that depends on domed ultrastructure for functional attachment of Giardia lamblia

The parasite Giardia lamblia interacts with its host by directly attaching the lumen of the small intestine. Attachment is mediated by a cytoskeletal structure termed the ventral disc and proceeds in four distinct stages: skimming, seal formation, cell body contacts, and bare area contacts. The precise mechanism of disc-mediated attachment is unclear and attachment models rely heavily on whether or not the ventral disc is a dynamic structure. We sought to investigate the second stage of attachment in which a seal is formed beneath the ventral disc. Three-dimensional, live imaging of Giardia expressing specific ventral disc markers to the lateral crest, ventral groove, and disc body indicate dynamic movement in all of these regions. We observe seal formation by the lateral crest and determine that movement of the ventral groove region aids lateral crest seal formation. We also report the discovery of a new protein that is necessary for ventral disc formation and functional attachment (DAP_7268). Lastly, we observed that attachment largely depends on ventral disc ultrastructure as flattened discs display hindered attachment proficiency whether or not they retain the ability to form a seal. We propose a synthesized mechanism for attachment that includes flagellar hydrodynamic flow to help generate suction as well as disc conformational dynamics to aid in both hydrodynamic flow and the maintenance of negative pressure.
Evaluation of Tissue Fixation Methods to Inactivate Mycobacterium bovis Under Routine Laboratory Conditions

Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis) is the etiologic agent of tuberculosis in mammals, including humans. The seriousness of disease and low infective dose require that the agent be handled under biosafe...
EPA's SF6 Emission Reduction Partnership: Maximizing the Benefits of SF6 Emission Reductions for Electric Utilities

First manufactured in 1902, sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is a fluorinated compound with an extremely stable molecular structure. This structure makes it far superior to oil or air in its insulation properties, dielectric strength, and arc quenching abilities. Electric equipment manufacturers and utilities therefore rely heavily on SF6 in transmission systems. In 2001, electric utilities and electrical equipment manufacturers (OEMs), taken together, purchased over 80 percent of all SF6 produced worldwide (1). Under ideal conditions, SF6 would remain contained within transmission equipment. In reality, however, SF6 is inadvertently emitted into the atmosphere as leaks develop during various stages of the equipment’s lifecycle. SF6 can also be accidentally released during equipment installation, servicing, or de-commissioning.
Critical Management of Severe Hypotension Caused by Amlodipine Toxicity Managed With Hyperinsulinemia/Euglycemia Therapy Supplemented With Calcium Gluconate, Intravenous Glucagon and Other Vasopressor Support: Review of Literature

Calcium channel blocker (CCB ) overdose, whether intentional or accidental, is a common clinical scenario and can be very lethal. Conventional treatments for CCB overdose include intravenous (IV) fluids, calcium salts, dopamine, dobutamine, norepinephrine, phosphodiesterase inhibitors, and glucagon. However, the conventional therapies are unsuccessful in reversing the cardiovascular toxicity of CCB, so they commonly fail to improve the hemodynamic condition of the patient. Blockade of the L-type calcium channels that mediate the antihypertensive effect of CCBs also decreases the release of insulin from pancreatic β-islet cells and reduces glucose uptake by tissues (insulin resistance). By targeting this insulin-mediated pathway, hyperinsulinemia/euglycemia therapy (HIET) appears to have a distinct role, and its clinical potential is underrecognized in the management of severe CCB toxicity. We present a case of young man with amlodipine toxicity successfully managed with high dose of IV insulin therapy.
Solar Particle Events

Solar particle events occur when activity on the Sun such as a solar flare and/or a coronal mass ejection accelerates and releases particles into the interplanetary medium. The actual process of solar particle acceleration is still under debate although it is most likely some type of shock acceleration process. The frequency of solar particle events is correlated with the solar activity cycle although there is a large variance in the distribution. Major solar particle events consist primarily of sizable fluxes of energetic electrons and energetic protons with a small and variable flux of heavier elements. Protons are the most abundant ions. While most solar protons have energies less than 100 MeV, energies greater than 25 GeV have been identified. The flux and spectrum of solar particle events are not well correlated with solar activity parameters. Typical spectral slopes of solar particle events have values of 3, with a large variation between events. Simple power laws or exponentials are generally not adequate to depict spectra over many orders of magnitude. There are two general types of solar particle events frequently delineated by the duration of the associated solar X-ray emission. Solar particle events associated with solar flare impulsive X-ray events are generally small events detectable only over a limited range of heliolongitudes from the solar active region site. The elements in these events have an ionization state that is consistent with a ten million
Normalization of high density lipoprotein cholesterol following cessation from cigarette smoking.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is recognized as the chief cause of death in the industrialized world. Epidemiological data have revealed several factors which correlate highly with the incidence of this disease. Some of the most meaningful predictors of CAD are blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and serum cholesterol levels. Recent evidence suggests that in addition to the plasma concentration of cholesterol the manner in which cholesterol is distributed is of importance.
SPIN MANUALS: EMPIRICAL LOGIC TALKS QUANTUM MECHANICS

Publisher Summary This chapter presents the language of Empirical Logic that is constructed with the aim of allowing maximum freedom regarding what it can describe while at the same time continuing to discriminate among conceptually distinct ideas. It describes a particular collection of experiments called the spin experiments. The chapter is not about physics but it illustrates how to use the concepts of Empirical Logic to discuss a theory and explains how Empirical Logic can be used to make fine distinctions that would otherwise be obscured. Empirical Logic is general enough to describe any experimental arrangement that can be characterized by a collection of operations and it is tight enough to keep from confusing certain distinct ideas.
Unsupervised Machine Learning by Graph Analytics on Heterogeneous Network Device Data

Abstract We explored unsupervised machine learning algorithms, specifically graph analytics, applied to behaviors observed in heterogeneous network sensor data for discovering anomalous behavior that could include novel attacks. In addition, we explored the potential difficulties with applying unsupervised machine learning approaches to anomaly detection in a network-defense context to understand how to integrate inherently imperfect anomaly-detection approaches into the workflow of a cyber defense infrastructure. Two general approaches can be used to discover anomalies: (1.) detecting rarity, i.e., finding those activities that are observed the least frequently in a set of observations, and (2.) detecting novelty, i.e., finding activities with the lowest estimated probability of observation based on prior observations of baseline (presumably “normal”) data. This effort will describe the case of detecting rarity. In this paper, we describe the entire pipeline starting from explaining the data used, the data ingest, the quantization of features, application of graph analytics to the data, post-processing to reduce results, and measuring the performance. A network-penetration experiment was setup to conduct the network attacks and generate the data that is the input to this work. Baseline methods are proposed and compared to the main method that is described in this paper.
Quadriceps Recovery After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction With Quadriceps Tendon Versus Patellar Tendon Autografts

Background:Quadriceps tendon (QT) autografts are being increasingly used for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). A paucity of studies exist that compare QT autografts with alternative...
Effect of Prenatal Repair of Myelomeningocele on Urological Outcomes at School Age

Purpose:We investigated longer term urological outcomes in patients enrolled in the Management of Myelomeningocele Study (MOMS).Materials and Methods:Women who participated in the original trial we...
Simulations of a W-Band Circular TWT

We are exploring the amplification of W-band electromagnetic radiation using a dielectric-loaded traveling wave tube (TWT) by employing several particle-in-cell (PIC) codes. We are seeking to replicate recent results obtained by a Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL‘s) dielectric-loaded TWT design [1] consisting of a solid circular electron beam (26 kV, 100 mA and 0.185 mm beam radius) surrounded with dielectric material, $\pmb\varepsilon_{\mathbf{r}}\pmb{=13.5}$ , and coupled to a $\mathbf{TM}_{\pmb{01}}$ electromagnetic wave at a frequency of 94 GHz. NRL used a finite-difference-time-domain (FDTD) formulation in a 2-D cylindrical coordinate system to perform the dielectric-loaded TWT simulations. In our work, we have opted for PIC simulations comparing three different software tools-a 3-D Cartesian coordinate system ‘FDTD-PIC method-based MAGIC’, ‘CST Electromagnetic and Multiphysics Simulation Studio Suite’, and ‘Improved Concurrent Electromagnetic Particle-In-Cell (ICEPIC)‘. This paper summarizes our results from these studies.
Temporal Causality of Social Support in an Online Community for Cancer Survivors

Online health communities (OHCs) constitute a useful source of information and social support for patients. American Cancer Society’s Cancer Survivor Network (CSN), a 173,000-member community, is the largest online network for cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers. A discussion thread in CSN is often initiated by a cancer survivor seeking support from other members of CSN. It captures a multi-party conversation that often serves the function of providing social support e.g., by bringing about a change of sentiment from negative to positive on the part of the thread originator. While previous studies regarding cancer survivors have shown that members of OHC derive benefits from their participation in such communities, causal accounts of the factors that contribute to the observed benefits have been lacking. This paper reports results of a study that seeks to address this gap by discovering temporal causality of the dynamics of sentiment change (on the part of the thread originators) in CSN. The resulting accounts offer new insights that the designers, managers and moderators of an online community such as CSN can utilize to facilitate and enhance the interactions so as to better meet the social support needs of the community participants. The proposed methodology also has broad applications in the discovery of temporal causality from big data.
Identification of a Novel Exosite (Glu634-Arg639) in the Spacer Domain of ADAMTS13 Required for Recognition of Von Willebrand Factor.

Abstract 2214 Exosite binding plays a key role in cleavage of VWF by ADAMTS13 (A Disintegrin And Metalloprotease with ThromboSpondin type 1 repeats, 13). Two exosites that are evolutionarily conserved from zebra fish to mammals have been identified in the spacer domain by sequence alignment. Previous studies have shown that exosite 3 in the spacer domain plays a critical role for substrate recognition ( Blood 115:2300–10, 2010), and modification of this exosite generates ADAMTS13 variants with improved specific activity but reduced autoantibody binding (Blood 119:3836–43, 2012 ). In the present study, using a site-directed mutagenesis approach, we identified a novel exosite near exosite 3 in the spacer domain, termed exosite 4, a region between residues Glu 634 and Arg 639 . A partial (ΔEx4a:deletion of Leu 632 -Asp 635 or ΔEx4b:deletion of Arg 636 -Arg 639 ) or complete deletion of the exosite (ΔEx4) significantly impaired proteolytic activity towards peptidyl VWF73 and multimeric VWF. Moreover, substitution of all surface exposed residues in Ex4A (LTED/AAAA) or Ex4b (RLPR/AAAA) with alanine had a similarly detrimental effect on proteolytic activity. Further studies demonstrated that the residues Asp 635 and Arg 636 in exosite 4 play a critical role for substrate recognition. We conclude that the region between residues Glu 634 and Arg 639 is a novel exosite necessary for recognition and cleavage of VWF. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Non-invasive diagnostic criteria of hepatocellular carcinoma: Comparison of diagnostic accuracy of updated LI-RADS with clinical practice guidelines of OPTN-UNOS, AASLD, NCCN, EASL-EORTC, and KLSCG-NCC.

Purpose To retrospectively compare the diagnostic performance of different noninvasive diagnostic criteria of HCC including LI-RADS, OPTN-UNOS, AASLD, NCCN, EASL-EORTC, KLCSG-NCC. Materials and methods We reviewed the medical records of 3,491 pathologically examined liver lesions from January-2011 to January-2015 in our institution. 195 lesions in 133 patients (M:F = 100:33) with chronic hepatitis B/C and/or cirrhosis for any etiology were finally included in our study, with 98 lesions ≥ 2 cm, 72 lesions between 1–2 cm, and 25 lesions < 1 cm. The main comparison was made with the largest nodules of each patient (n = 133). The lesions were retrospectively evaluated for the diagnosis of HCC on DCE-CT or MR using different noninvasive diagnostic criteria including LI-RADS, OPTN-UNOS, AASLD, NCCN, EASL-EORTC, and KLCSG-NCC. With pathological evaluation serving as a gold-standard, sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV as well as accuracy of the diagnostic criteria were calculated. Results There was no statistically significant differences in diagnostic accuracy among noninvasive diagnostic criteria. For 133 lesions of the largest lesion per patient, the overall accuracy was highest with LI-RADS criteria (89.3%) and the overall sensitivity was highest with LI-RADS, AASLD, NCCN criteria (all 89.5%). For 1–2 cm lesions, sensitivity decreased for all criteria in the following order: EASL-EORTC (59.1%), KLCSG-NCC (58.3%), LI-RADS, AASLD, NCCN (all 56.5%), and OPTN-UNOS (22.7%) criteria. OPTN-UNOS had the highest specificity in cirrhotic livers, 91.7%. Conclusions The current noninvasive diagnostic criteria of HCC have no statistically significant difference in diagnostic accuracy. Overall, LI-RADS had the highest sensitivity and accuracy among the guidelines. OPTN had the highest specificity for cirrhotic livers.
Social Dominance Orientation

Social dominance orientation (SDO) is an individual's preference for group-based inequality and dominance versus equality and inclusion. SDO has multiple origins, including status, gender, socialization, and temperament and personality. SDO is a strong predictor of intergroup ideologies and behaviors, making it indispensable for studying intergroup relations.
An Ontology-based Approach to Guide and Document Variable and Data Source Selection and Data Integration Process to Support Integrative Data Analysis in Cancer Outcomes Research

Abstract Background To reduce cancer mortality and improve cancer outcomes, it is critical to understand the various cancer risk factors (RFs) across different domains (e.g., genetic, environmental, and behavioral risk factors) and levels (e.g., individual, interpersonal, and community levels). However, prior research on RFs of cancer outcomes, has primarily focused on individual level RFs due to the lack of integrated datasets that contain multi-level, multi-domain RFs. Further, the lack of a consensus and proper guidance on systematically identify RFs also increase the difficulty of RF selection from heterogenous data sources in a multi-level integrative data analysis (mIDA) study. More importantly, as mIDA studies require integrating heterogenous data sources, the data integration processes in the limited number of existing mIDA studies are inconsistently performed and poorly documented, and thus threatening transparency and reproducibility. Methods Informed by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) research framework, we (1) reviewed existing reporting guidelines from the Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research (EQUATOR) network and (2) developed a theory-driven reporting guideline to guide the RF variable selection, data source selection, and data integration process. Then, we developed an ontology to standardize the documentation of the RF selection and data integration process in mIDA studies. Results We summarized the review results and created a reporting guideline—ATTEST—for reporting the variable selection and data source selection and integration process. We provided an ATTEST check list to help researchers to annotate and clearly document each step of their mIDA studies to ensure the transparency and reproducibility. We used the ATTEST to report two mIDA case studies and further transformed annotation results into sematic triples, so that the relationships among variables, data sources and integration processes are explicitly standardized and modeled using the classes and properties from OD-ATTEST. Conclusion Our ontology-based reporting guideline solves some key challenges in current mIDA studies for cancer outcomes research, through providing (1) a theory-driven guidance for multi-level and multi-domain RF variable and data source selection; and (2) a standardized documentation of the data selection and integration processes powered by an ontology, thus a way to enable sharing of mIDA study reports among researchers.
Effects of Long-Term Meditation Practices on Sensorimotor Rhythm Based BCI Learning

Abstract Sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) provide an alternative pathway for users to perform motor control using motor imagery (MI). Despite the non-invasiveness, ease of use and low cost, this kind of BCI has limitation due to long training times and BCI inefficiency— where a subpopulation cannot generate decodable EEG signals to perform the control task. Meditation is a mental training method to improve mindfulness and awareness, and is reported to have a positive effect on one’s mental state. Here we investigate the behavioral and electrophysiological differences between experienced meditators and meditation naive subjects in 1-dimensional and 2-dimensional cursor control tasks. We found that within subjects who have room for improvement, meditators outperformed control subjects in both tasks, and there were fewer BCI insufficient subjects in the meditator group. Finally, we also explored the neurophysiological difference between the two groups, and showed that meditators had higher SMR predictor and were better able to generate decodable EEG signals to achieve SMR BCI control.
An Evolving-Dynamic Network Activity Approach to Epileptic Seizure Prediction using Machine Learning

Absence epilepsy is a neurological condition characterized by abnormally synchronous electrical activity within two mutually connected brain regions, the thalamus and cortex, that results in seizures and affects more than 6.5 million people. Epilepsy is commonly studied through the use of the electroencephalogram (EEG), a device that monitors brain waves over time. In this study, we introduced machine learning models to predict epileptic seizures in two ways, one to train logistic regression models to provide an accurate decision boundary to predict based off frequency features, and second to train convolutional neural networks to predict based off spectral power images from EEG. This pipeline employed a two model approach, using logistic regression and convolutional neural networks to predict seizures. The evaluation, performed on data from 9 mice, achieved prediction accuracies of 98%. The proposed methodology introduces a novel aspect of looking at predicting absence seizures, which are known to be short events, in addition to the comparison between a time-dependent and time-agnostic seizure prediction classifier. The overall goal of these experiments were to build a model that can accurately predict whether or not a seizure will occur.
The Physical Context of Child Development

Child development reflects interactions between personal characteristics and the physical and social environment. Psychology, however, lacks analysis of physical features that influence child devel...
Stem cell therapy in Alzheimer’s disease

Abstract This chapter presents the scientific rationale and evidence for using stem cells to treat Alzheimer’s disease. There is sufficient evidence that these cells are effective in reducing inflammation as well as in promoting regeneration. The authors outline the preclinical work that justifies stem cell therapeutic trials in humans. The various stem cell types used in preclinical studies are discussed. Their mechanism of action in in vivo animal studies and the results of these studies are discussed. Then, the human experience in using transplanted stem cells is reviewed. We examine what cell properties are necessary to treat Alzheimer’s disease. We describe what cell types have the most compelling evidence today for their safe use in clinical trials. Some of these lessons have been learned from the experiences of treating other neurological diseases with stem cells.
Outpatient Shoulder Arthroplasty—A Systematic Review:

ObjectiveRecent reports have shown that outpatient shoulder arthroplasty (SA) may be a safe alternative to inpatient management in appropriately selected patients. The purpose was to review the lit...
Microscale dynamics of electrophysiological markers of epilepsy.

Abstract Objective Interictal discharges (IIDs) and high frequency oscillations (HFOs) are established neurophysiologic biomarkers of epilepsy, while microseizures are less well studied. We used custom poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) microelectrodes to better understand these markers’ microscale spatial dynamics. Methods Electrodes with spatial resolution down to 50 µm were used to record intraoperatively in 30 subjects. IIDs’ degree of spread and spatiotemporal paths were generated by peak-tracking followed by clustering. Repeating HFO patterns were delineated by clustering similar time windows. Multi-unit activity (MUA) was analyzed in relation to IID and HFO timing. Results We detected IIDs encompassing the entire array in 93% of subjects, while localized IIDs, observed across Conclusions Overall, these data suggest that irritable cortex micro-domains may form part of an underlying pathologic architecture which could contribute to the seizure network. Significance These results, supporting the possibility that epileptogenic cortex comprises a mosaic of irritable domains, suggests that microscale approaches might be an important perspective in devising novel seizure control therapies.
Quantifying the Local Structure of Nanocrystals, Glasses, and Interfaces Using TEM-Based Diffraction

Although order is a defining characteristic of crystals, disordered structures─especially near interfaces─often govern a material’s performance. For example, the interfaces in batteries, coatings, ...
Chapter 12 Estimation and management of health and safety risks

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the estimation and management of health and safety risks. To achieve public desires for lower health and safety risks and to lower needless costs, a more systematic approach is needed to estimate and manage risks. The approach must sort out factors because of individual preferences, social preferences, externalities, and inept management. The chapter identifies the most important disputes and shows their consequences. The acute versus chronic nature of the risks leads to quite different methods for identifying the qualitative and quantitative risks. The chapter discusses the methods used to estimate risks qualitatively and quantitatively and then manage them. The estimation and management of risks is illustrated with several controversial examples. Lowering all risks in a setting can only be done at the cost of eliminating the activity or spending inordinate amounts of resources. The chapter includes the case studies for managing health and safety risks. The formal analysis of risks to health and safety has contributed to decreasing risks. An array of analytic tools is available to address a wide variety of concerns. The further development of these tools and their application to improving the management of death and safety risks has much to offer.
Earnings-related information transfers and revisions in earnings expectations

This paper examines the revisions in earnings expectations for non-announcing firms following the earnings announcements of related firms. Specifically, using quarterly earnings data I examine whether such revisions are predictable based on the information released by the announcing firm. Results of the study indicate that the correlation in forecast errors of announcing and non- announcing firms from previous quarters can be used to predict the revisions in earnings expectations of financial analysts and investors around the earnings announcement dates of related firms. Consistent with prior research documenting analyst under-reaction to publicly available information, I also find that analysts' forecast revisions that follow the early announcements do not seem to completely incorporate earnings-related information available from early-announcers in the group. An additional finding is that grouping firms based on patterns in analyst following yields more homogenous sets of firms than classifications based on four-digit SIC codes.
Multimedia Experience on Web-Connected CE Devices

Consumer electronics (CE) are changing from stand-alone single-function devices to products with increasing connectivity, convergence of functionality, and a focus on customer experience. We discuss the features that characterize the new generation of CE and illustrate this new paradigm through an examination of how web services can be integrated with CE products to deliver an improved user experience. In particular, we focus on one aspect of the CE segment, digital photography. We introduce AutoPhotobook, an automatic photobook creation service and provide a detailed look at how it addresses the complexity of photobook authoring through a portfolio of automatic photo analysis and composition technologies. We then show how this collection of technologies is integrated into a larger ecosystem with other web services and web-connected CE devices to deliver an enhanced user experience.
Immunoregulation in experimental schistosomiasis. III: Role of macrophages in soluble egg antigen-induced chronic spleen cell augmentation of baseline lymphocyte reactivity

Abstract Spleen cells from mice infected for 20 weeks with Schistosoma mansoni, exposed in vitro to soluble schistosomal egg antigens (SEA), treated with mitomycin C (Mc), and cocultured with syngeneic responder spleen cells increased the baseline proliferation of the otherwise unstimulated responder cells in cocultures. The role of macrophages in this “spontaneous” thymidine incorporation was studied directly by removal of macrophages on Sephadex G-10 columns. Removal of esterase-positive, Sephadex G-10-adherent cells (macrophages) greatly reduced the amount of SEA-induced, chronically infected spleen cell-mediated stimulation observed in cocultures. It also reduced an elevated background of spontaneous DNA synthesis seen with control cultures of spleen cells from infected animals. Depletion of T lymphocytes from chronic spleen cell populations by treatment with anti-Thy 1.2 serum and complement prior to exposure to SEA partially abrogated the augmentation effect. Comparison of these results with mitogen (concanavalin A)induced spleen cell-mediated stimulation (which is elevated, rather than reduced, by macrophage removal) and with known alterations in splenic T- and B-lymphocyte ratios in chronic murine Schistosomiasis suggests that antigen-stimulated, chronically infected splenic macrophage-de-pendent baseline augmentation may depend on specific T-lymphocyte-derived lymphokine induction. These results may reflect a general mechanism whereby animals harboring a persistent, chronic infection can respond quickly to a second or challenge infection or a flareup of the primary infection.
Boundary Condition with Mass Loss: The Radiatively-Driven Wind Model

A brief summary of the current status of radiatively driven wind models for early-type stars is given. A critique of these models is made both on theoretical and observational grounds, and it is concluded that a pure radiatively driven wind is probably not a realistic approximation for O-star winds. It is argued that probably the wind structure must have an initial high-temperature (“coronal”) region through which the trans-sonic flow takes place, followed by radiative accelerations to very high terminal velocities. Full details of the discussion can be found in Stellar Atmospheres, 2nd Edition, by D. Mihalas, to be published by W. H. Freeman and Company, San Francisco, in Fall 1977.
Clinical Relevance of Orthostatic Hypotension in Neurodegenerative Disease

The autonomic nervous system appears to be uniquely susceptible to degeneration in disorders of α-synuclein pathology. Clinically, autonomic dysfunction in these disorders manifests as neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (nOH), a condition that results in substantial morbidity and mortality. nOH results from pathology affecting either the central autonomic pathways or peripheral autonomic nerve fibers. Determining the localization and pathophysiology of nOH is critical in effectively managing this disorder and selecting appropriate treatment options. In this review, we discuss the pathophysiology of nOH with respect to the various α-synuclein-related neurodegenerative conditions. We highlight the associated clinical features, including gait instability, rapid eye movement behavior disorder, and hyposmia. We also review the current pharmacologic treatment options for nOH. Overall, the goals of therapy are to improve symptoms and prevent syncope and falls. Non-pharmacologic interventions should be introduced first, followed by carefully selected pharmacologic therapies. Treatment decisions should be directed by an understanding of the underlying pathophysiology, as well as the comorbidities and potential contributing factors present in each individual patient.
Practical issues in high-speed cell sorting

Modern flow cytometric cell sorters are all capable of so-called "high-speed sorting." However, there is confusion about exactly how fast a "high-speed" cell sorter can sort cells. There are many considerations in achieving the fastest sorting speed, as well as the highest quality sort results--cell recovery, purity, and functionality. This requires the same considerations required for "slow-speed sorting"; however, a more precise implementation is required for high-speed sorting. The modern cell sorters enable high-speed sorting because of advances in high-speed electronics and data processing. We discuss the practical considerations of high-speed sorting in terms of the theory and practical aspects of the mechanical and software components of sorting, statistics of sorting, cell preparation and viability, instrument setup, sort strategies, and biosafety.
Analytical vibration analysis of non-isolated chain saws

Abstract An analytical model which describes the vibration characteristics of a non-isolated chain saw has been developed. The chain saw was treated as a rigid body and only the forces due to the dynamic properties of the engine slider-crank mechanism, clutch and flywheel were included in the model. The non-rigid structural characteristics 0f the chain saw body and the impulse forces due to the exploding gas-air mixture of the engine were not included. The resulting differential equations were programmed for use 0n a digital computer and the predicted results were obtained in terms of the frequency spectra of the acceleration signals at the chain saw handles. The acceleration spectra predicted by the model correlated very well with the measured spectra at the chain saw handles for the frequencies corresponding to the chain saw operating speeds.