cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Re-Engineering IT Internal Controls: Applying Capability Maturity Models to the Evaluation of IT Controls

Financial and management accounting relies not only on traditional computerized accounting information systems but also on many application systems that feed data to the entries that make up the financial accounting systems. The importance of IT has been recognized by auditing standards setters. In response, a variety of organizations have developed control frameworks for the IT lifecycle. COBIT, published by the IT Governance Institute (ITGI), is a well understood and widely used control framework. An important element of the various elements and tools that make up the COBIT framework is the Capability Maturity Model (CMM) that is included in the COBIT Management Guidelines. The six-level CMM is drawn from the software engineering research community. A given level of the CMM allows managers and others to determine the capacity of the entity to manage its risks and strategic and operational outcomes, for that particular process. Whether a given capability maturity level correlates to a particular level of internal control, under auditing standards, has not been determined. This research is an exploratory attempt to determine the capability maturity of organizations; address metrication issues in measuring capability maturity and correlate capability maturity with the state of internal control over financial reporting.
Update on the treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an important cause of nosocomial pneumonia associated with a high morbidity and mortality rate. This bacterium expresses a variety of factors that confer resistance to a broad array of antimicrobial agents. Empirical antibiotic therapy is often inadequate because cultures from initial specimens grow strains that are resistant to initial antibiotics. Surveillance data, hospital antibiogram and individualization of regimens based on prior antibiotic use may reduce the risk of inadequate therapy. The use of combination therapies for P. aeruginosa pneumonia has been a long-advocated practice, but the potential increased value of combination therapy over monotherapy remains controversial. Doripenem and biapenem are new carbapenems that have excellent activity against P. aeruginosa; however, they lack activity against strains that express resistance to the currently available carbapenems. The polymyxins remain the most consistently effective agents against multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa. Strains that are panantibiotic-resistant are rare, but their incidence is increasing. Antibiotic combinations that yield some degree of susceptibility in vitro are the recourse, although the efficacy of these regimens has yet to be established in clinical studies. Experimental polypeptides may provide a new therapeutic approach. Among these, the anti-PcrV immunoglobulin G antibody that blocks the type III secretion system-mediated virulence of P. aeruginosa has recently entered Phase I/II clinical trials.
Cost-effectiveness of a community-based weight control intervention targeting a low-socioeconomic-status Mexican-origin population.

Introduction. The objective of our study was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a community-based intervention designed to improve physical activity levels and dietary intake and to reduce diabetes risk in a largely Hispanic population residing along the U.S.-Mexico border. Method. We forecasted disease outcomes, quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) gained, and lifetime costs associated with actual and projected attainment of 2% and 5% weight loss taking a societal cost perspective. We extrapolated changes in beverage calorie consumption between baseline and 6-month follow-up to attain projected weight loss measures. Outcomes were projected 5, 10, and 20 years into the future and discounted at a 3.0% rate. Results. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was $57,430 and $61,893, respectively, per QALY gained when compared with usual care for the 2% and 5% weight loss scenarios. The intervention was particularly cost-effective for morbidly obese participants. Cost-effectiveness improves when using 3-yea...
GIANT PAPILLARY CONJUNCTIVITIS

Contact lens wearers with giant papillary conjunctivitis report a variety of symptoms, including decreased lens tolerance, increased lens awareness, excessive lens movement, increased mucus production associated with ocular irritation, redness, burning, and itching. This article reviews the clinical signs and symptoms related to contact lens–induced giant papillary conjunctivitis. The epidemiology, histology, and pathophysiology are reviewed in depth. A variety of treatment strategies are discussed that enable patients with this condition to remain in contact lenses.
Obesity, Hypertension, and Insulin Resistance

This article summarizes material presented at the meeting of the American Society of Hypertension (ASH) in New York, New York, May, 2002, as well as presentations at the American Diabetes Association (ADA) Annual Meeting in San Francisco, California, June, 2002. At a symposium addressing the relationships between obesity, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease at the ASH, Roger Unger (Dallas, TX) discussed lipotoxicity and the metabolic syndrome. He pointed out that over that past 50 years there has been a great change in the food environment, so that the “mechanism for preloading calories, storing them for when a famine occurred,” has led to “hypertrophy and hyperplasia of those adipocytes […]. Famines were eliminated and replaced by a never-ending stream of high-quantity, high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods at the same time that physical exertion dropped to an all-time low.” This has led to a progressive increase in obesity, particularly over the past two decades. “As long as the excess fat remains in the adipocyte,” he stated, “health is not deleteriously affected,” but an “increase in ectopic deposition of lipids” causes the insulin-resistant state, with insulin resistance per se characterized by Unger as “not the proximal cause of the syndrome.” Unger examined monogenic disorders of lack of leptin action to understand “the mechanism of the disorder.” These syndromes, which lead to components of the metabolic syndrome, suggest that leptin resistance or deficiency may be a more central cause than insulin resistance. The normal actions of leptin can be seen in animal models of obesity, with overfeeding leading to hyperleptinemia, which may cause fat to deposit primarily in the adipocyte. Normal islets, as an example, “fill up with triglycerides” when incubated with fatty acids, but this can be prevented by administration of leptin. When leptin action is insufficient, as seen in the fatty/fatty ( fa/fa ) rat with loss-of-function …
Severe Sepsis Caused by Arcanobacterium haemolyticum: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Objective:To describe a case of severe sepsis, cavitary pneumonia, and pyomyositis caused by Arcanobacterium haemolyticum.Case Summary:An 18-year-old male with a medical history significant for mild asthma presented to the emergency department complaining of a 7-day history of fever, diffuse myalgias, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and pain in his right upper quadrant, right shoulder, and left thigh. Cultures of blood, bronchoalveolar fluid, and suriace and surgical swabs from the patient's left lower extremity grew A haemolyticum. The patient was successfully treated with intravenous penicillin G 4 million units every 4 hours and azithromycin 500 mg onca daily for 14 days. Within 36 hours after initiation of focused therapy, he became afebrile, pain decreased, and pulmonary symptoms abated. Oral azithromycin 500 mg/day for an additional 3 weeks was prescribed on discharge, and the patient showed no relapse at 2-month follow-up.Discussion:A. haemolyticum Is a weakly acid-fast, branching gram-positive bacillu...
Tracking development assistance for health to fragile states: 2005-2011

Background Development assistance for health (DAH) has grown substantially, totaling more than $31.3 billion in 2013. However, the degree that countries with high concentrations of armed conflict, ethnic violence, inequality, debt, and corruption have received this health aid and how that assistance might be different from the funding provided to other countries has not been assessed.
A tissue‐culture model for the study of canine vocal fold fibroblasts

A tissue-culture model has been developed for the study of fibroblasts from the canine vocal fold. Laryngeal tissue (lamina propria) obtained from euthanized dogs is rinsed, cut into 1-mm3 pieces, and incubated in 5% carbon dioxide at 37 degrees C. A confluent monolayer is established within several days. Detectable levels of elastin in the tissue culture supernatant are measured by an indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Various external agents have been shown to affect elastin production. The effects of KTP laser irradiation, hydrocortisone (1.3 mumol/L), transforming growth factor-beta (10 ng/mL), and human leukocyte elastase have been measured. Thus the canine vocal fold fibroblast tissue culture is established as a model for further investigations to improve wound healing and to understand the wound-healing process following laryngeal microsurgery.
Positional relevance model for pseudo-relevance feedback

Pseudo-relevance feedback is an effective technique for improving retrieval results. Traditional feedback algorithms use a whole feedback document as a unit to extract words for query expansion, which is not optimal as a document may cover several different topics and thus contain much irrelevant information. In this paper, we study how to effectively select from feedback documents those words that are focused on the query topic based on positions of terms in feedback documents. We propose a positional relevance model (PRM) to address this problem in a unified probabilistic way. The proposed PRM is an extension of the relevance model to exploit term positions and proximity so as to assign more weights to words closer to query words based on the intuition that words closer to query words are more likely to be related to the query topic. We develop two methods to estimate PRM based on different sampling processes. Experiment results on two large retrieval datasets show that the proposed PRM is effective and robust for pseudo-relevance feedback, significantly outperforming the relevance model in both document-based feedback and passage-based feedback.
Method for detection of changes in the EEG induced by the presence of sensory stimuli

The onset and offset of sensory stimuli evoke transient changes in the electroencephalogram (EEG) that can be detected by linear and/or nonlinear analysis. However, there is presently no systematic procedure to quantify the brain-electrical-activity correlate of the presence of a stimulus (as opposed to its onset evoked potential). We describe a method for detecting a stimulus-related change in brain electrical activity that persists while the stimulus is present (presence effect). The method, which is based on phase-space embedding of the EEG time series followed by quantitative analysis of the recurrence plot of the embedded signal, was used to demonstrate the occurrence of a presence effect in separate groups of human subjects exposed to sound, a magnetic field, and light. Any form of law-governed dynamical activity induced in the EEG can be detected, particularly activity that is nonlinearly related to the stimulus. Salient mathematical features of the method were reproduced in a model EEG system containing known nonlinear determinism.
Exploring biological network structure with clustered random networks

Complex biological systems are often modeled as networks of interacting units. Networks of biochemical interactions among proteins, epidemiological contacts among hosts, and trophic interactions in ecosystems, to name a few, have provided useful insights into the dynamical processes that shape and traverse these systems. The degrees of nodes (numbers of interactions) and the extent of clustering (the tendency for a set of three nodes to be interconnected) are two of many well-studied network properties that can fundamentally shape a system. Disentangling the interdependent effects of the various network properties, however, can be difficult. Simple network models can help us quantify the structure of empirical networked systems and understand the impact of various topological properties on dynamics. Here we develop and implement a new Markov chain simulation algorithm to generate simple, connected random graphs that have a specified degree sequence and level of clustering, but are random in all other respects. The implementation of the algorithm (ClustRNet: Clustered Random Networks) provides the generation of random graphs optimized according to a local or global, and relative or absolute measure of clustering. We compare our algorithm to other similar methods and show that ours more successfully produces desired network characteristics. Finding appropriate null models is crucial in bioinformatics research, and is often difficult, particularly for biological networks. As we demonstrate, the networks generated by ClustRNet can serve as random controls when investigating the impacts of complex network features beyond the byproduct of degree and clustering in empirical networks. ClustRNet generates ensembles of graphs of specified edge structure and clustering. These graphs allow for systematic study of the impacts of connectivity and redundancies on network function and dynamics. This process is a key step in unraveling the functional consequences of the structural properties of empirical biological systems and uncovering the mechanisms that drive these systems.
Screening SOI substrates for radiation resistant space electronics applications

Total device isolation, speed, density, and radiation hardness (SEU) are significant advantages of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates over bulk Si substrates. Taking advantage of these properties, we have been manufacturing partially depleted SOI/CMOS VLSI SRAMs (256K and 1M) and high density digital ASIC (>400K usable gates) chips for space electronics application in radiation harsh environments using full dose SIMOX (1.7-1.8/spl times/10/sup 18/ cm/sup -2/ dose at 190-200 keV) materials for some time. The full dose SIMOX wafers have been supplied with and without oxide caps from the manufacturers. The thickness of the top silicon and the thickness of the buried oxide after annealing are approximately 200-230 nm and 380 nm respectively. During the preparation of SIMOX wafers for production, practically all yield limiting issues of SIMOX technology were addressed: particles, HF defects, pipes (BOX pinholes), roughness, dislocations, thickness uniformity of top silicon and buried oxide, buried oxide pipes, Si islands in the buried oxide and unintentional background doping contamination on top silicon of the SOI materials. Poor functional yield has been correlated with particles on incoming materials. A nondestructive particle screening method was proposed and a database has been kept for every incoming SIMOX wafer. In addition, high standby currents were found to be associated with various defects (metallic contamination, dislocations, HF defects, buried oxide pipes, etc.) and unintentional impurity contamination.
Production of Ξ− and Ξ+ particles in K+p collisions at 12.7 GeV/c☆

Abstract The cross section for the production of Ξ + particles in K+p interactions at 12.7 GeV/c is 10 ± 3μb; the Ξ− production cross section is 2.5 ± 1.0 μb; the upper limit on Ω− or Ω + production is 0.4 μb. The Ξ− are produced preferentially in the backward direction in the CM system while the Ξ + are produced mainly forward. The mass and lifetime of the Ξ + agree with the accepted values for the Ξ− hyperon.
p-Toluenethiol as an Initiator of Autolysis in Bakers' Yeast

Cysteine or dithiothreitol enhances the rate of autolysis in toluene-treated yeast. p-Toluenethiol alone is even more effective and is recommended for the isolation of β-fructofuranosidase. This suggests a more general application of p-toluenethiol in the isolation of enzymes from yeast.
Expression of glypican 3 in placental site trophoblastic tumor.

Background Glypican-3 (GPC3) is a membrane-bound heparan sulfate proteoglycan that functions in embryonic cell growth and differentiation and is highly expressed in the placenta. GPC3 is mutated in Simpson-Golabi-Behmel syndrome, which is characterized by tissue overgrowth and an increased risk of embryonal malignancies. GPC3 has also been implicated in sporadic cancer, particularly hepatocellular carcinoma, for which it has been shown to be a useful diagnostic marker. Although GPC3 expression has been studied in non-neoplastic placental tissue, its presence in gestational trophoblastic diseases has not been previously explored. The purpose of this study was to investigate the immunohistochemical expression of GPC3 in placental site trophoblastic tumor (PSTT), a very rare gestational trophoblastic neoplasm which may be morphologically confused with non-trophoblastic tumors, and to assess its possible utility as a diagnostic marker.
Does a network of monotone resistors have an operating point

This work is a sequel to a prior work that established a procedure for determining whether or not a series parallel network of continuous strictly monotonically increasing resistors with restricted domains and ranges has an operating point. Herein we accomplish the same thing, but this time for networks with arbitrary graphs. That is, the series-parallel restriction is now removed. This substantially expands the applicability of our result. Moreover, our procedure is highly efficient for the following reasons: We characterize each resistor by only four numbers (-/spl infin/ and +/spl infin/ allowed) determined by the asymptotes to which the resistor's characteristic curve approaches. It is only these numbers that are added or subtracted to test for the existence of an operating point. Furthermore, the numerical complexity of our procedure increases only linearly with the number of branches in the network. All this is accomplished without a computation of the operating point, which can be an onerous task that will perforce end in failure if the operating point does not exist.
Fabrication and Optimization of a-Si:H n-i-p Single-junction Solar Cells with 8 Å/s Intrinsic Layers of Protocrystalline Si:H Materials

At the University of Toledo (UT), we have investigated hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) n-i-p solar cells with intrinsic layers deposited at high rates, ~ 8 A/s, using a multi-chamber load-locked PECVD system. a-Si:H i-layers were grown with a VHF plasma density of ~ 0.2 W/cm2 and a frequency of 70 MHz using various hydrogen dilution levels. It is observed from the current-voltage (I-V) device performance characteristics that the open-circuit voltage (Voc) increases with increasing hydrogen dilution, reaches a maximum, and then decreases. This drop in Voc can be attributed to the transition region (or protocrystalline regime) from an amorphous phase into a mixed amorphous+nanocrystalline (a + nc) phase for the i-layer. An initial efficiency of η = 9.99% (Voc = 0.986 V, Jsc = 13.98 mA/cm2, FF = 72.5%) was obtained. Quantum efficiency (QE) measurement has shown that the blue light response increases as the hydrogen dilution increases. High blue light spectral response with QE values over 0.7 at λ = 400 nm has been obtained for a-Si:H cells made under specific deposition conditions in which tailored protocrystalline silicon materials were incorporated at the i/p interface region. A stabilized efficiency of ~ 8.2% has been achieved for the cells with protocrystalline or (a+nc)-mixed Si:H of a small portion being evolved at the top-most i-layer near p/i interface.
Kinetics of chemi-ionization reactions of lanthanide metals (Nd, Sm) from 150 to 450 K.

The kinetics of chemi-ionization reactions of neodymium and samarium atoms with an oxygen atom to yield a metal monoxide cation and electron were studied using a flow tube apparatus over a temperature range of 150–450 K. Nd reacts efficiently with O, near the hard-sphere collision limit at all temperatures, with a rate constant of 3 × 10−10 cm3 s−1 at 300 K and a slight positive temperature dependence. No chemi-ionization of Nd with N2O was observed, despite the reaction being exothermic. Chemi-ionization of Sm with O is slow, with a rate constant at 300 K determined to be 7 × 10−12 cm3 s−1, although with large uncertainty. The Sm reaction also shows a slightly positive temperature dependence, described by a small activation energy of 60 meV. Although not definitive, the data suggest that excited states of Sm react efficiently whereas ground state Sm reacts inefficiently.
The right attitude: Gender, conservatism, and career choice

Despite reductions in overt sexism and structural barriers to the advancement of women in the workforce, differences in the representation of women and men in various careers remain. Specifically, women tend to be overrepresented in traditionally feminine careers, which also tend to be lower in prestige and pay. The present study explored potential gender-related barriers to women’s advancement through examination of the perceptions of the femininity and masculinity of the RIASEC types (Holland, 1959; 1997). Specifically, the study sought to determine the role that the gender of the person portrayed in a career plays in the perceptions of the RIASEC types, as well as the contribution of the covariates right-wing authoritarianism, religious fundamentalism, and attitudes toward women. Participants were 334 university students who completed questionnaires and a card sort in which they sorted adjectives from the Bem Sex Role Inventory (Bem, 1981) to job descriptions representative of the RIASEC types. MANOVA and MANCOVA were used and gender and condition were found to have significant effects on the perceptions of the RIASEC types, while no significant covariates emerged. Implications of these results are discussed, including the fact that perceptions of the RIASEC types may be somewhat influenced by the gender of the person seen in the representative career.
Pharmacotherapy for Pediatric Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A Systematic Evaluation of Efficacy, Safety and Tolerability

Randomized controlled trials consistently support the efficacy of antidepressants in treating youth with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), although integrated examinations of efficacy, safety, and tolerability of psychotropic medications in GAD, specifically, are rare. With this in mind, we sought to describe the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of psychopharmacologic interventions in pediatric patients with GAD. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, prospective trials of psychopharmacologic interventions in youth with GAD were identified through a PubMed/Medline (1966–2015) search. Both authors manually reviewed trials and, to evaluate comparative efficacy and tolerability across medications, numbers needed to treat (NNT) [based on Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale (PARS) remission criteria (PARS ≤8)] and number needed to harm (NNH) for selected treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were calculated. Finally, treatment-emergent suicidality and taper-emergent/post-study adverse events are reported descriptively. Five trials that involved 1186 patients and evaluated four medications were reviewed and efficacy data were extracted with regard to dimensional measures of anxiety. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) demonstrated efficacy in the reduction of anxiety symptoms with NNTs ranging from 2.8 to 9.3. TEAEs varied considerably between studies but tended to be mild and generally did not lead to discontinuation. Data from five trials of SSRI/SNRI in youth with GAD, many of whom had co-occurring separation and social anxiety disorders, suggest superiority to placebo and favorable tolerability profiles.
Alpha-adrenergic effects on relative refractory period in Purkinje system of intact canine left ventricles.

To investigate the electrophysiological effects of alpha-agonists, we studied 23 chloralose-anesthetized sinoaortic and vagotomized dogs, measuring epicardial and endocardial effective refractory period and relative refractory period of the Purkinje system during graded infusions of norepinephrine and phenylephrine. In group 1, epicardial and endocardial effective refractory periods shortened equivalently with norepinephrine. These effects were blocked with metoprolol. In group 2, epicardial and endocardial refractory periods did not prolong with phenylephrine despite addition of metoprolol. In group 3, phenylephrine, after the addition of metoprolol, prolonged the relative refractory period of Purkinje only at the highest phenylephrine dose of 50 micrograms.kg-1.min-1. In group 4, these latter effects were not produced by raising pressure with descending aortic occlusion. However, the effects of phenylephrine were blocked with prazosin (1.0 mg/kg). Taken together, these data demonstrate that alpha-adrenergic influences prolong Purkinje but not muscle refractory period in the intact canine ventricle. The high dose of phenylephrine and resulting hypertension suggest that this may be a pharmacological and not a physiological response.
Will Pollution Kill the Revolution

Bilina, Czechoslovakia — a nightmarish panorama spreads out from a hillock near this Bohemian town. A gigantic, coal-black pit, the Gorky strip mine, runs on the left all the way to the horizon. In the middle of the scene stand power plants and grimy factories. Their tall stacks spew effluent into the hazy air. On the right, filling the rest of the picture, lies an expanse of bare earth.
A Dual-Stream Neuroanatomy of Singing

Singing requires effortless and efficient use of auditory and motor systems that center around the perception and production of the human voice. Although perception and production are usually tightly coupled functions, occasional mismatches between the two systems inform us of dissociable pathways in the brain systems that enable singing. Here I review the literature on perception and production in the auditory modality, and propose a dual-stream neuroanatomical model that subserves singing. I will discuss studies surrounding the neural functions of feedforward, feedback, and efference systems that control vocal monitoring, as well as the white matter pathways that connect frontal and temporal regions that are involved in perception and production. I will also consider disruptions of the perception-production network that are evident in tone-deaf individuals and poor pitch singers. Finally, by comparing expert singers against other musicians and nonmusicians, I will evaluate the possibility that singing training might offer rehabilitation from these disruptions through neuroplasticity of the perception-production network. Taken together, the best available evidence supports a model of dorsal and ventral pathways in auditory-motor integration that enables singing and is shared with language, music, speech, and human interactions in the auditory environment.
Images in clinical medicine. Polycystic liver and kidney disease.

Figure 1. Polycystic Liver and Kidney Disease. An asymptomatic 63-year-old man was found on routine physical examination to have palpable hepatic nodules and ballotable kidneys. Contrast-enhanced abdominal computed tomography showed many hepatic masses of various sizes (arrows, Panel A), whose measured density was consistent with that of water. Both kidneys (arrows, Panel B) also contained numerous cystic masses similar to those in the liver. The patient had microscopic hematuria and a serum creatinine concentration of 1.9 mg per deciliter (168 micromoles per liter). The results of other laboratory studies, including liver-function tests, were normal. The patient had no family history . . .
RESEARCH ON PHYSIQUE STATUS OF STUDENTS OF PRIMARY SCHOOL & MIDDLE SCHOOL AND THE EXPECTED VALUE OF SPORTS IN CHONGQING——A Case Study of Primary & Middle School Students in Chongqing

Physical test questionnaire of students of primary school middle school in Chongqing had been carried out for 3.5 months. 1) From the physique of students in different grades, in various physical index, the vital capacity of boys grows the fastest with the biggest difference between boys and girls(P0.01). In exercise quality index, sitting position body anteflexion of girls grows the fastest with the biggest difference between boys girls(P0.01). In body-shape index, the weight of boys grows the fastest, which is also the biggest differencebetween boys girls(P0.01). During the chain research, the weight and height of boys girls had the decreased tendency. 2) The exercise time of students in different grades: students usually take 30-60 minutes to exercise and the time increases when the grade is higher. The exercise place: students of grade three five are focused at community while those of grade two in junior middle school senior middle school mainly do in their schools. Exercise intensity: for the students of grade three five in primary school, it is lower and for the students of grade two in junior middle school senior middle school, it is higher, especially for students of grade two in junior middle school. 3)The exercise expectation: exercise effect factor is the biggest difference among grade five,grade two in junior middle school senior middle school(P0.05). Interpersonal relationship factor only differ in boys girls from grade two of senior high school(P0.05). 4) From the exercise expectation factors of students,exercise consciousness contributes the most(β=0.127,(P0.01)) and exercise interpersonal relationship contributes the least(β=-0.009, P0.05).
Structural Health Monitoring Methods for the Evaluation of Prestressing Forces and Prerelease Cracks

Prestressed concrete bridges currently account for 45% of bridges built in the last five years in the United States. This has resulted in an increase in the number of deficient bridges composed of prestressed concrete, which requires a better understanding of the on-site performance of this building material. The use of new materials, such as high performance concrete, in conjunction with prestressing provides additional motivation for the creation of structural health monitoring (SHM) methods for prestressed concrete. This paper identifies two parameters relevant to prestressed concrete, along with methods for their evaluation. The parameters evaluated are the prestressing force value at transfer and the width of pre-release cracks, both of which are indicators of structural performance. Improper transfer of the prestressing force can result in tensile stresses in the concrete that exceed capacity and result in cracks and/or excessive deflections. Pre-release cracks occur in the concrete prior to transfer of the prestressing force and are mainly caused by autogenous shrinkage and thermal gradients. Closure of the cracks is expected by virtue of prestressing force transfer. However, the extent of crack closure is important in order to guarantee durability and structural integrity. This paper presents an integral overview of two novel methods for the statistical evaluation of the two monitored parameters: prestressing forces and the width of pre-release cracks. Validation of the methods is performed through application to two structures, both of which are components of Streicker Bridge on the Princeton University campus. Uncertainties are evaluated and thresholds for unusual behavior are set through the application.
ON REPORTING THE SPEEDUP OF PARALLEL ALGORITHMS: A SURVEY OF ISSUES AND EXPERTS

ABSTRACT Perhaps the most commonly used performance measure for implementations of parallel algorithms is speedup, a ratio of the serial to parallel solution time for a given problem. We probe the difficulties in using this statistic for computational reporting, including: definitional ambiguities, testing biases, machine influence, and the effects of tuning parameters. Some of these difficulties were explored further in a survey sent to leading computational mathematical programming researchers for their reactions and suggestions. A summary of the survey and proposals for conscientious reporting are presented.
Identifying the Face of Hate

Previous research by Borgeson and Valeri (2004) suggests that individuals may not recognize the intolerance of hate web sites. The present study examines the impact of content-warning notices on both an individual's ability to detect the intolerance of a hate site and the specific target of a hate site.
Topiramate Adjunctive Therapy for Partial Seizures

The efficacy and safety of topiramate (TPM) (6 mg/kg/day) in children age 2 to 16 years, as adjunctive therapy for uncontrolled partial-onset seizures (75% complex partial), with or without secondarily generalized seizures, were evaluated in a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, organized by the Topiramate YP Study Group.
Neighborhood deprivation and depression in adult twins: genetics and gene×environment interaction.

Background Depression is a significant problem and it is vital to understand its underlying causes and related policy implications. Neighborhood characteristics are implicated in depression but the nature of this association is unclear. Unobserved or unmeasured factors may confound the relationship. This study addresses confounding in a twin study investigating neighborhood-level effects on depression controlling for genetics, common environment, and gene×environment (G × E) interactions. Method Data on neighborhood deprivation and depression were gathered from 3155 monozygotic twin pairs and 1275 dizygotic pairs (65.7% female) between 2006 and 2013. The variance for both depression and neighborhood deprivation was decomposed into three components: additive genetic variance (A); shared environmental variance (C); and non-shared environmental variance (E). Depression was then regressed on neighborhood deprivation to test the direct association and whether that association was confounded. We also tested for a G × E interaction in which the heritability of depression was modified by the level of neighborhood deprivation. Results Depression and neighborhood deprivation showed evidence of significant A (21.8% and 15.9%, respectively) and C (13.9% and 32.7%, respectively) variance. Depression increased with increasing neighborhood deprivation across all twins ( p = 0.009), but this regression was not significant after controlling for A and C variance common to both phenotypes ( p = 0.615). The G × E model showed genetic influences on depression increasing with increasing neighborhood deprivation ( p Conclusions Neighborhood deprivation is an important contributor to depression via increasing the genetic risk. Modifiable pathways that link neighborhoods to depression have been proposed and should serve as targets for intervention and research.
Alan Berkowitz: Scholarly Works

This list is divided into three categories: Published Works, Papers and Lectures, and Unpublished Works/Works in Progress. It is important to include Alan's works in progress to acknowledge his ong...
sGraSP: A graph-based method for the derivation of subject-specific functional parcellations of the brain

Abstract Background Resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) has emerged as a prominent tool for the study of functional connectivity. The identification of the regions associated with the different brain functions has received significant interest. However, most of the studies conducted so far have focused on the definition of a common set of regions, valid for an entire population. The variation of the functional regions within a population has rarely been accounted for. New method In this paper, we propose sGraSP, a graph-based approach for the derivation of subject-specific functional parcellations. Our method generates first a common parcellation for an entire population, which is then adapted to each subject individually. Results Several cortical parcellations were generated for 859 children being part of the Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort. The stability of the parcellations generated by sGraSP was tested by mixing population and subject rs-fMRI signals, to generate subject-specific parcels increasingly closer to the population parcellation. We also checked if the parcels generated by our method were better capturing a development trend underlying our data than the original parcels, defined for the entire population. Comparison with existing methods We compared sGraSP with a simpler and faster approach based on a Voronoi tessellation, by measuring their ability to produce functionally coherent parcels adapted to the subject data. Conclusions Our parcellations outperformed the Voronoi tessellations. The parcels generated by sGraSP vary consistently with respect to signal mixing, the results are highly reproducible and the neurodevelopmental trend is better captured with the subject-specific parcellation, under all the signal mixing conditions.
Use of paclitaxel (Taxol) in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Preparative regimens used prior to bone marrow transplantation (BMT) in patients with malignancies must mediate engraftment and eradicate malignant cells without producing significant extramedullary toxicities. The first agents to be tested in BMT preparative regimens, total body irradiation (TBI) and cyclophosphamide (Cy), were ineffective as single agents, but resulted in long-term disease-free survival in some leukemic patients when combined. However, Cy/TBI regimens are associated with significant acute and chronic toxicities as well as technical constraints involving the administration of radiation. Accordingly, a nonradiation-based regimen consisting of Cy and busulfan (Bu) was developed. Regimens using either a 4-day course (BuCy4) or a 2-day course (BuCy2) of Cy have been shown to have significant antileukemic effects. In general, however, BuCy regimens do not appear to result in greater antileukemic activity or lower treatment-related toxicity than Cy/TBI regimens. New preparative regimens are currently being developed to lower the incidence of disease recurrence after BMT. One such regimen consists of BuCy plus etoposide. At our institution, we are currently testing the efficacy and toxicity of regimens in which cytarabine or diaziquone are administered in combination with Bu and Cy. It is hoped that these new preparative regimens will enhance the antileukemic effects of BMT without significantly increasing treatment-related toxicity.
Counter-monumentality and the vulnerability of memory:

Monuments have been a staple of archaeology since the beginning of the discipline and have been used as case-studies for a diverse range of topics. In recent years, monuments have been considered p...
The relationship between chronic musculoskeletal pain, anxiety and mindfulness: Adjustments to the Fear-Avoidance Model of Chronic Pain.

Abstract Background and purpose The Fear-Avoidance Model of Chronic Pain proposed by Vlaeyen and Linton states individuals enter a cycle of chronic pain due to predisposing psychological factors, such as negative affectivity, negative appraisal or anxiety sensitivity. They do not, however, address the closely related concept of anxious rumination. Although Vlaeyen and Linton suggest cognitive-behavioral treatment methods for chronic pain patients who exhibit pain-related fear, they do not consider mindfulness treatments. This cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP), ruminative anxiety and mindfulness to determine if (1) ruminative anxiety is a risk factor for developing chronic pain and (2) mindfulness is a potential treatment for breaking the cycle of chronic pain. Methods Middle-aged adults ages 35–50 years ( N = 201) with self-reported CMP were recruited online. Participants completed standardized questionnaires assessing elements of chronic pain, anxiety, and mindfulness. Results Ruminative anxiety was positively correlated with pain catastrophizing, pain-related fear and avoidance, pain interference, and pain severity but negatively correlated with mindfulness. High ruminative anxiety level predicted significantly higher elements of chronic pain and significantly lower level of mindfulness. Mindfulness significantly predicted variance ( R 2 ) in chronic pain and anxiety outcomes. Pain severity, ruminative anxiety, pain catastrophizing, pain-related fear and avoidance, and mindfulness significantly predicted 70.0% of the variance in pain interference, with pain severity, ruminative anxiety and mindfulness being unique predictors. Conclusions The present study provides insight into the strength and direction of the relationships between ruminative anxiety, mindfulness and chronic pain in a CMP population, demonstrating the unique associations between specific mindfulness factors and chronic pain elements. Implications It is possible that ruminative anxiety and mindfulness should be added into the Fear-Avoidance Model of Chronic Pain, with ruminative anxiety as a psychological vulnerability and mindfulness as an effective treatment strategy that breaks the cycle of chronic pain. This updated Fear-Avoidance Model should be explored further to determine the specific mechanism of mindfulness on chronic pain and anxiety and which of the five facets of mindfulness are most important to clinical improvements. This could help clinicians develop individualized mindfulness treatment plans for chronic pain patients.
Continuity and Uniform Continuity

It is likely that your first calculus class included a discussion of continuity. Many students find the definition hard to understand, and in many calculus classes the fine details are skipped. One of the rewards of mastering the kind of mathematics discussed in this book is that items like \(\varepsilon - \delta\) the definition of continuity are suddenly revealed as quite easy.
Formulas Giving Buildup Factor for Double-Layered Shields

Formulas that give absorbed dose buildup factors for two-layered shields have been developed based on gamma-ray absorption buildup factors computed with the Monte Carlo Neutral Particle Transport Code System (MCNP). The shielding materials considered were water, lead, steel, concrete, and some of their combinations for two-layered shields with thicknesses between 1 to 10 mfp. Gamma energy considered ranged from 0.5 to 6 MeV. The formulas reproduce MCNP results with a difference of <10%, in most cases <3%.
Utilizing naturalistic driving data for in-depth analysis of driver lane-keeping behavior in rain: Non-parametric MARS and parametric logistic regression modeling approaches

Abstract It is known that adverse weather conditions can affect driver performance due to reduction in visibility and slippery surface conditions. Lane keeping is one of the main factors that might be affected by weather conditions. Most of the previous studies on lane keeping have investigated driver lane-keeping performance from driver inattention perspective. In addition, the majority of previous lane-keeping studies have been conducted in controlled environments such as driving simulators. Therefore, there is a lack of studies that investigate driver lane-keeping ability considering adverse weather conditions in naturalistic settings. In this study, the relationship between weather conditions and driver lane-keeping performance was investigated using the SHRP2 naturalistic driving data for 141 drivers between 19 and 89 years of age. Moreover, a threshold was introduced to differentiate lane keeping and lane changing in naturalistic driving data. Two lane-keeping models were developed using the logistic regression and multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) to better understand factors affecting driver lane-keeping ability considering adverse weather conditions. The results revealed that heavy rain can significantly increase the standard deviation of lane position (SDLP), which is a very widely used method for analyzing lane-keeping ability. It was also found that traffic conditions, driver age and experience, and posted speed limits have significant effects on driver lane-keeping ability. An interesting finding of this study is that drivers have a better lane-keeping ability in roadways with higher posted speed limits. The results from this study might provide better insights into understanding the complex effect of adverse weather conditions on driver behavior.
Thematic analysis of qualitative research data: Is it as easy as it sounds?

Abstract Issue We are seeing the use of qualitative research methods more regularly in health professions education as well as pharmacy education. Often, the term “thematic analysis” is used in research studies and subsequently labeled as qualitative research, but saying that one did this type of analysis does not necessarily equate with a rigorous qualitative study. This methodology review will outline how to perform rigorous thematic analyses on qualitative data to draw interpretations from the data. Methodological Literature Review Despite not having an analysis guidebook that fits every research situation, there are general steps that you can take to make sure that your thematic analysis is systematic and thorough. A model of qualitative data analysis can be outlined in five steps: compiling, disassembling, reassembling, interpreting, and concluding. My Recommendations and Their Applications Nine practical recommendations are provided to help researchers implement rigorous thematic analyses. Potential Impact As researchers become comfortable in properly using qualitative research methods, the standards for publication will be elevated. By using these rigorous standards for thematic analysis and making them explicitly known in your data process, your findings will be more valuable.
Effect of Young Consumers’ Self-Concept on Hedonic/Utilitarian Cool Attitudes

Understanding the self-concept of young consumers is crucial for apparel marketers because such consumers prefer to purchase products with images congruent with their self-images (i.e., one dimension of self-concept) (Runyan, 1988). Apparel marketers strive to attach target consumers’ perceived self-images to products as a marketing strategy to spur a greater probability of being purchased (Ataman & Ulengin, 2003). Thus, commercial marketers need to understand the projected or ideal self-image of their consumers to increase product sales.
Low Temperature Sulfur Deposition for High-Performance Lithium/Sulfur Cells

Author(s): Kawase, A; Han, DD; Cairns, EJ | Abstract: Sulfur deposition is an effective method for creating composites of sulfur with various conductive materials. In this study we investigated the details of the deposition process of sulfur onto graphene oxide (GO). It was revealed that just mixing a polysulfide solution and a GO suspension resulted in the deposition of sulfur onto the GO under alkaline conditions. The combination of the alkaline deposition and subsequent acidic deposition at different temperatures yielded materials with various morphologies. The sulfur deposition rate influenced the morphology of the S deposit and the resulting Li/S cell performance. By controlling the process with a moderate time for the alkaline deposition and subsequent acidic deposition at a decreased temperature, a preferred morphology of the sulfur/GO composite with a high sulfur utilization was successfully synthesized. This preferred morphology of SGO provides for a high-performance Li/S cell.