cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Engineering Students' Intelligence Beliefs and Learning

Background Students' beliefs about their intellectual ability influence their use of learning strategies, learning effort, and response to failure or setbacks. Students with incremental views of intelligence believe that learning is possible with sufficient effort, whereas those with entity views believe that intelligence is a fixed quality and expenditure of effort reflects an insufficient amount of that quality. Purpose This study examined the relationship between engineering students' beliefs about intelligence and their perceived use of active learning strategies such as collaboration and knowledge-building behaviors, self-efficacy for learning and performance, and course grade. The study also examined the extent of entity and incremental beliefs in a sample of engineering students. Design/Method The correlational study analyzed data from 377 engineering students recruited from required engineering courses at a large public university. We used bivariate correlations to examine relationships between study variables and multiple regression analyses to examine predictive ability of the variables on learning strategies and course grade. Results Our results showed that students' intelligence beliefs were correlated with active learning strategies. Self-efficacy, reported use of collaboration, and incremental beliefs about intelligence were predictive of students' reported use of knowledge-building behaviors. Intelligence beliefs were not predictive of course grade. Conclusions Our results demonstrate the utility of these motivational beliefs for understanding university engineering students' learning efforts. Our results also suggest a need for instructors to support incremental views of intelligence among engineering students.
Signal quality pricing: Decomposition for spectrum scheduling and system configuration

Who gets to use radio spectrum, and when, where, and how? Many problems in traditional radio communication, wireless networking, and cognitive radio are variants of this question. Optimization decomposition based on Lagrangian relaxation of signal quality requirements provides a mathematical framework for solving this type of combined problem. This paper demonstrates the technique as a solution to optimal spatial reuse time-division multiple access (STDMA) scheduling with reconfigurable antennas. The joint beam steering and scheduling (JBSS) problem offers both a challenging mathematical structure and significant practical value. We present algorithms for JBSS and describe an implemented system based on these algorithms. We achieve up to 600% of the throughput of TDMA with a mean of 234% in our experiments. The decomposition approach leads to a working distributed protocol which is provably equivalent to our original problem statement while also producing optimal solutions in an amount of time that is at worst linear in the size of the input. This is, to the best of our knowledge, the first actually implemented wireless scheduling system based on dual decomposition. We identify and briefly address some of the challenges that arise in taking such a system from theory to reality.
Calcium antagonists improve cardiac mechanical performance after thermal trauma.

Burn trauma initiates a pathophysiologic cascade, which includes cardiac dysfunction and intramyocyte calcium accumulation. This study examined the hypothesis that therapeutic interventions which limit intracellular cardiac Ca2+ accumulation after burn trauma will improve cardiac function. Guinea pigs were anesthetized (methoxyflurane), burned over 43% of total body surface area, and fluid resuscitated (FR) for 24 h. Burn guinea pigs were randomly divided into three groups: Group 1, FR alone, Group 2, FR plus dantrolene (10 mg/kg body wt, IV, 30 min, 8 and 22 h postburn), a drug which inhibits the Ca2+ release channel (ryanodine receptor) of the cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum, and Group 3, FR plus diltiazem (0.20–0.22 mg/kg given IV as a slow infusion over 6 h postburn), a drug which specifically blocks Ca2+ slow channels; sham burn guinea pigs were given vehicle (Group 4), dantrolene (Group 5), or diltiazem (Group 6) as described above (respective controls). Cardiac dysfunction was impaired in fluid-treated burns (Group 1) compared to sham burns (Group 4) as indicated by reduced developed left ventricular pressure (LVP) (86 ± 2 vs 52 ± 3 mm Hg, P < 0.05), rate of LVP rise, (+dP/dt max, 1379 ± 64 vs 909 ± 44 mm Hg/s, P < 0.05), and LVP fall (−dP/dt max, 1184 ± 31 vs 881 ± 40 mm Hg/s, P < 0.05), and time to peak pressure (110 ± 2 vs 102 ± 2 ms, P < 0.05). In addition, [Ca2+]i rose in cardiomyocytes harvested from fluid-treated burns (Group 1, 307 ± 29 nM) compared to vehicle-treated controls (Group 4, 152 ± 6 nM, P < 0.05). Neither calcium antagonist altered ventricular function or [Ca2+]i in sham burns (Groups 5 and 6). In contrast, antagonists given after burn injury reduced cardiomyocyte [Ca2+]i (Group 2, dantrolene-treated burns: 196 ± 8 nM, and Group 3, diltiazem treated burns: 216 ± 8 nM) and improved cardiac performance compared to that measured in burns given FR alone. Our data suggest that calcium antagonists given after burn trauma restored intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis, decreased cardiac cell injury, and improved cardiac contractile function.
Assessment of the Infraspinatus Spinal Stretch Reflex in the Normal, Athletic, and Multidirectionally Unstable Shoulder

To examine neural aspects of motor control in the glenohumeral joint, this study evaluates utilization of an innate spinal segmental pathway, the spinal stretch reflex, as an investigational tool that reflects neural circuitry. The purpose of this study was to determine if this reflex could be evoked from the infraspinatus muscle, if the testing apparatus and protocol for elicitation were reliable, and if the reflex response varies between groups of subjects and therefore could be useful clinically. These reflex characteristics were evaluated in the infraspinatus muscle, since rotator cuff muscle activity in subjects with glenohumeral instability exhibits differences in electromyographic activity and coordination patterns, implicating its role in dynamic stability. Normal shoulders were compared with athletic shoulders and shoulders with multidirectional instability. The spinal stretch reflex was elicited in a controlled and reliable manner. Shoulders with multidirectional instability exhibited a more-prominent spinal stretch reflex response than normal shoulders, whereas athletic shoulders exhibited a more-quiescent spinal stretch reflex response. As the spinal stretch reflex probably plays a role in motor control, variation in this reflex profile may reflect some differences in development that contribute to the variable expression of dynamic glenohumeral stability. This study suggests that the spinal stretch reflex profile may be a useful clinical tool to assist in discriminating between the normal and pathologic state. This information may also be useful in the evaluation of new treatment approaches exploiting spinal cord plasticity and spinal stretch reflex mutability through neuromuscular training.
Ethnic Differences in Posttraumatic Distress: Hispanics' Symptoms Differ in Kind and Degree.

This longitudinal study of physical injury survivors examined the degree to which Hispanic and non-Hispanic Caucasians reported similar posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Adult physical trauma survivors (N = 677) provided information regarding posttraumatic distress by completing an interview-administered version of the PTSD Symptom Checklist (Civilian version) at 3 time points: within days of trauma exposure and again at 6 and 12 months posttrauma. Structural equation modeling with propensity weights was used in analyzing data. Results replicated prior research indicating that Hispanics report greater overall PTSD symptom severity. However, the size of this effect varied significantly across the 17 individual PTSD symptoms, and several symptoms were not reported more highly by Hispanics. Relative to non-Hispanic Caucasians, Hispanics tended to report higher levels of symptoms that could be regarded as exaggerated or intensified cognitive and sensory perceptions (e.g., hypervigilance, flashbacks). In contrast, few differences were observed for symptoms characteristic of impaired psychological functioning (e.g., difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbance). Findings suggest that the pattern of PTSD symptoms experienced most prominently by Hispanics differs in kind and not merely in degree. Results have implications for theory aimed at explaining this ethnic disparity in posttraumatic psychological distress as well as for clinical intervention with trauma-exposed Hispanics.
Comment: What Rights do Infants Have? Response to “Proxy Consent in the Medical Context: The Infant as Person”

There is an ambiguity in Dr. Bartholome’s position on the rights of infants. It is an ambiguity that is not uncommon and it goes to some of the most fundamental issues about rights. In order to show the distinction which is missed four different sorts of entities will be considered: a rock, a cat, an infant, and an adult. I will examine each one of them in a hypothetical situation concerning the question of their location at a given time.
Understanding and reducing barriers to collaboration by academics with agencies and community organizations: a commentary

In Reflections on a Half Century of Injury Control , Julian Waller addressed directly the need for collaboration.1 He noted that organizations, as they age, tend to become insular and look inward instead of toward others for new ideas. Yet, as Waller emphasizes, a multidisciplinary approach is critical to our ability to understand and reduce injuries, particularly as problems and solutions become more complex. For the field to advance, collaboration between academically based researchers and public agencies (for example, local health departments) or community organizations (for example, non-governmental service groups or neighborhood associations) is essential. Despite ample opportunities for collaboration among academicians, public agencies, and community organizations, different emphases in these potential partners result in barriers to collaborative ventures. These barriers arise from differences in: Understanding the perspectives of communities, agencies, and academicians on these barriers will enable these potential partners to overcome impediments to effective collaboration. The purpose of this commentary is to explore how these barriers impede academic researchers in the collaborative process. In any collaboration, there must be agreement about what problem is to be addressed and how multiple problems are to be prioritized. A variety of agencies and disciplines play unique, but overlapping, roles in injury control—for example, health, transportation, criminal justice, education, and labor. Some emphasize engineering approaches to prevention, while others may focus on health behaviors or on enforcement. Though all these approaches have their places, the tendency to cling to traditional perspectives can create barriers to collaboration. Community members may bring different perspectives on research needs from those in academic research and public agency settings. Further, it is not infrequent that different individuals or groups may claim to …
Factors Controlling the Input of Electrical Energy into a Fish (Cyprinus carpio L.) in an Electrical Field1

The presence of a fish distorts the electrical field established initially in the water. This distortion, which changes the voltage gradient affecting the fish, and hence the electrical energy-input, is dependent upon the resistivity of the fish as compared to that of the surrounding water. These resistivities depend upon the temperature and chemical content of both water and fish. The criterion of electrical energy-input into the fish may be more important than voltage gradient in the water as an index to fish reactions to electrical fields. A method of measuring fish resistivity is described, and the results of an investigation of the effects of temperature and resistivity on water-to-fish resistivity ratio is presented. The idea is discussed that variation of these conditions may cause changes in energy-input to the fish by factors of ten or twenty even though voltage gradient in the fish-free water remains constant.
ANTS PREYING ON PUPAE OF THE WESTERN SPRUCE BUDWORM, CHORISTONEURA OCCIDENTALIS (LEPIDOPTERA: TORTRICIDAE), IN EASTERN OREGON AND WESTERN MONTANA

In 1981 and 1982, the following ant species and numbers were detected preying on pupae of the western spruce budworm, Choristoneura occidentalis Freeman, in eastern Oregon and western Montana: Formica obscuripes Forel, 174; Camponotus modoc Wheeler, 160; C. laevigatus Smith, 53; C. vicinus Mayr, 48; F. podzolica Francoeur, 43; F. accreta Francoeur, 32; F. neorufibarbis Emery, 12; F. lasioides Emery, 1; and Formica sp. (microgyna group). The Camponotus species and F. obscuripes were detected preying on budworm on one-third or more of the trees they foraged.
Privacy, accuracy, and consistency too: a holistic solution to contingency table release

The contingency table is a work horse of official statistics, the format of reported data for the US Census, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Internal Revenue Service. In many settings such as these privacy is not only ethically mandated, but frequently legally as well. Consequently there is an extensive and diverse literature dedicated to the problems of statistical disclosure control in contingency table release. However, all current techniques for reporting contingency tables fall short on at leas one of privacy, accuracy, and consistency (among multiple released tables). We propose a solution that provides strong guarantees for all three desiderata simultaneously.Our approach can be viewed as a special case of a more general approach for producing synthetic data: Any privacy-preserving mechanism for contingency table release begins with raw data and produces a (possibly inconsistent) privacy-preserving set of marginals. From these tables alone-and hence without weakening privacy--we will find and output the "nearest" consistent set of marginals. Interestingly, this set is no farther than the tables of the raw data, and consequently the additional error introduced by the imposition of consistency is no more than the error introduced by the privacy mechanism itself.The privacy mechanism of [20] gives the strongest known privacy guarantees, with very little error. Combined with the techniques of the current paper, we therefore obtain excellent privacy, accuracy, and consistency among the tables. Moreover, our techniques are surprisingly efficient. Our techniques apply equally well to the logical cousin of the contingency table, the OLAP cube.
Influence of liquid supplement delivery method on forage and supplement intake by grazing beef cows

Abstract In Experiment 1, 28 heifers were individually fed on low quality hay ad libitum along with one of seven levels of liquid supplement (0, 0.23, 0.45, 0.68, 0.90, 1.13, and 1.36 kg/day) during a 24-day trial to evaluate the use of YbCl 3 and Cr 2 O 3 as external markers to estimate forage and supplement intake. A linear relationship was found between supplement DM intake predicted by the dual marker technique and actual supplement DM fed ( p r 2 = 0.92). In Experiment 2, 60 crossbred 2- and 3-year-old pregnant cows were assigned to one of the three native range pastures to evaluate forage and supplement intake, and supplement feeding behavior as affected by cow age (2 versus 3 years) and liquid supplement delivery method. Treatments were: (1) no supplement (control); (2) ad libitum access to a liquid supplement feeder (ADLIB); and (3) ad libitum access to Regulate ® liquid feed delivery system (REGULATE; Agri-Beef, Boise, Idaho, USA). The REGULATE feeder was computer controlled to dispense 18 kg/day liquid supplement. Liquid supplement (28.5% CP as-fed) used in both feeders contained ytterbium chloride. Chromic oxide boluses were used to estimate fecal output (FO). Forage intake was estimated from FO, and 48 h DM indigestibility of extrusa samples collected using ruminally cannulated cows, and incubated in situ. Forage 48 h DM and NDF digestibility values were greater ( p p p > 0.10) were significant when expressed on a g/kg body weight basis. Cows receiving REGULATE and ADLIB consumed 49% more ( p p
Accelerated elimination of ultraviolet-induced DNA damage through apoptosis in CDC25A-deficient skin

Cell division cycle 25A (CDC25A) is a dual-specificity phosphatase that removes inhibitory phosphates from cyclin-dependent kinases, allowing cell-cycle progression. Activation of cell-cycle checkpoints following DNA damage results in the degradation of CDC25A, leading to cell-cycle arrest. Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, which causes most skin cancer, results in both DNA damage and CDC25A degradation. We hypothesized that ablation of CDC25A in the skin would increase cell-cycle arrest following UV irradiation, allowing for improved repair of DNA damage and decreased tumorigenesis. Cdc25a fl/fl /Krt14-Cre recombinase mice, with decreased CDC25A in the epithelium of the skin, were generated and exposed to UV. UV-induced DNA damage, in the form of cyclopyrimidine dimers and 8-oxo-deoxyguanosine adducts, was eliminated earlier from CDC25A-deficient epidermis. Surprisingly, loss of CDC25A did not alter epidermal proliferation or cell cycle after UV exposure. However, the UV-induced apoptotic response was prolonged in CDC25A-deficient skin. Double labeling of cleaved caspase-3 and the DNA damage marker γH2A.X revealed many of the apoptotic cells in UV-exposed Cdc25a mutant skin had high levels of DNA damage. Induction of skin tumors by UV irradiation of Cdc25a mutant and control mice on a skin tumor susceptible to v-ras Ha Tg.AC mouse background revealed UV-induced papillomas in Cdc25a mutants were significantly smaller than in controls in the first 6 weeks following UV exposure, although there was no difference in tumor multiplicity or incidence. Thus, deletion of Cdc25a increased apoptosis and accelerated the elimination of DNA damage following UV but did not substantially alter cell-cycle regulation or tumorigenesis. Abbreviations: 8-oxo-dG 8-oxo-deoxyguanosine ATR ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related BrdU bromodeoxyuridine CDC25A cell division cycle 25A CDK2 cyclin-dependent kinase 2 CPD cyclopyrimidine DAPI 4ʹ,6-diamidino-2 phenylindole TBS-T Tris-buffered saline Tween 20 TUNEL terminal dUTP nucleotide end-labeling UV ultraviolet
Learning and memory during aggression in Drosophila: handling affects aggression and the formation of a “loser” effect

Aggressive behavior in Drosophila melanogaster serves to acquire or defense vital resources such as food, territory or access to mates. Flies learn from previous fighting experience and modify and adapt their behavior to new situations, suggesting that learning and memory play a major role in agonistic encounters. Prior fighting experience influences the outcome of later contests: losing a fight increases the probability of losing second contests, revealing the formation of a “loser” effect. In a recent publication, we developed a new behavioral arena that eliminates handling of flies prior to, during and after fights to study the learning and memory associated with aggression. We compared two handling procedures commonly used in laboratories to study aggression with the new chambers and demonstrated that handling negatively influences aggression and prevents “loser” effect formation. In addition, we observed new aspects of behavior such as the formation of robust winner effects. Journal of Nature and Science, 1(3):e56, 2015.
A Stability Interpretation of Rawls’s The Law of Peoples

In this essay, I propose an interpretation of John Rawls’s The Law of Peoples that puts the stability of liberal societies as the central organizing idea of its principles. I start by critically ex...
Optical lever recording of displacements from activated lobster nerve bundles and Nitella internodes

An optical lever was designed for studying physical displacements associated with electrophysiological activation of lobster nerve bundles. Stimulation current pulses generated a compound action potential volley, and upward physical displacements of <1 nm were recorded. The swelling displacement propagated in the same direction as the action potential volley, occurred simultaneously with the action potentials, and required 10 ms to relax after the electrical potential was restored. For comparison with previous reports, we also recorded the displacement of Nitella internodes associated with electrical stimulation. We found that a rapid swelling displacement (∼10 nm) was followed by a larger, slow-shrinking displacement (∼100 nm).
Immunogenicity and Safety of Defective Vaccinia Virus Lister: Comparison with Modified Vaccinia Virus Ankara

Potent and safe vaccinia virus vectors inducing cell-mediated immunity are needed for clinical use. Replicating vaccinia viruses generally induce strong cell-mediated immunity; however, they may have severe adverse effects. As a vector for clinical use, we assessed the defective vaccinia virus system, in which deletion of an essential gene blocks viral replication, resulting in an infectious virus that does not multiply in the host. The vaccinia virus Lister/Elstree strain, used during worldwide smallpox eradication, was chosen as the parental virus. The immunogenicity and safety of the defective vaccinia virus Lister were evaluated without and with the inserted human p53 gene as a model and compared to parallel constructs based on modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA), the present "gold standard" of recombinant vaccinia viruses in clinical development. The defective viruses induced an efficient Th1-type immune response. Antibody and cytotoxic-T-cell responses were comparable to those induced by MVA. Safety of the defective Lister constructs could be demonstrated in vitro in cell culture as well as in vivo in immunodeficient SCID mice. Similar to MVA, the defective viruses were tolerated at doses four orders of magnitude higher than those of the wild-type Lister strain. While current nonreplicating vectors are produced mainly in primary chicken cells, defective vaccinia virus is produced in a permanent safety-tested cell line. Vaccines based on this system have the additional advantage of enhanced product safety. Therefore, a vector system was made which promises to be a valuable tool not only for immunotherapy for diseases such as cancer, human immunodeficiency virus infection, or malaria but also as a basis for a safer smallpox vaccine.
Self-service financial control and organizational governance in cloud

Cloud computing touts the benefits of self service and auto scaling, but its negative impact on an enterprise's business process and culture change is often neglected. This paper addresses two risks introduced by Cloud, i.e., losing financial control in IT spending and losing organizational governance. The root cause of these risks is due to the fact that the account structure in today's Cloud does not reflect the typical hierarchical organization structure in an enterprise. Therefore, it is hard to implement in Cloud the traditional business processes that enforce IT financial control and organizational governance. We propose a solution where the Cloud provider offers mechanisms to enforce financial control and organizational governance, while the policies are provided by customers through self service in the Cloud portal. Intuitively, we extend the concept of self service from resource provisioning into the area of financial control and organizational governance. Specifically, we introduce the concept of credit token in Cloud to resemble how budget allocation trickles down in a traditional organization, and introduce a hierarchical structure among Cloud accounts so that an ancestor account has privileges over a descendant account to enforce governance.
A Reinforcement Learning Variant for Control Scheduling

We present an algorithm based on reinforcement and state recurrence learning techniques to solve control scheduling problems. In particular, we have devised a simple learning scheme called "handicapped learning", in which the weights of the associative search element are reinforced, either positively or negatively, such that the system is forced to move towards the desired setpoint in the shortest possible trajectory. To improve the learning rate, a variable reinforcement scheme is employed: negative reinforcement values are varied depending on whether the failure occurs in handicapped or normal mode of operation. Furthermore, to realize a simulated annealing scheme for accelerated learning, if the system visits the same failed state successively, the negative reinforcement value is increased. In examples studied, these learning schemes have demonstrated high learning rates, and therefore may prove useful for in-situ learning.
Simple multiwavelength time-division multiplexed laser for H 2 O absorption measurements

We present a multiwavelength, time-division multiplexed laser that continuously cycles through 10 stable, tunable and spectrally narrow wavelengths at 30 kHz for absorption measurements in the R-branch of the v1+n3 band of H2O (1330-1380 nm).
Nonlinear interaction of acoustic surface waves in epitaxial gallium arsenide

A technique is described for obtaining the nonlinear interaction between two surface waves propagating in a piezoelectric semiconductor. The coupling between the waves is associated with the transverse electric fields of the surface wave and the carriers in the semiconductor. The effective carrier concentration for the interaction has been altered by forming a surface-depletion region beneath a metal–semiconductor contact. This scheme has been used to produce the convolution of two oppositely travelling acoustic waves in epitaxial gallium arsenide, and it has been found that a strong nonlinearity can be obtained at small acoustic-power levels.
OPTIMAL VEHICLE MOTION CONTROL TO MITIGATE SECONDARY CRASHES AFTER AN INITIAL IMPACT

Typical drivers are not ready to react to unexpected collisions from other vehicles. The initial impact can startle the driver who then fails to maintain control. Since a loss of control leads to intense skidding and undesirable lateral motions, more severe subsequent events are likely to occur. To reduce the severity of possible subsequent (secondary) crashes, this paper considers both vehicle heading angle and lateral deviation from the original driving path. The research concept here is different from today’s electronic stability control systems in that it activates the differential braking even when the magnitude of yaw rate or vehicle slip angle is very high. In addition, the lateral displacement and yaw angle with respect to the road are part of the control objective. The Linear Time Varying Model Predictive Control (LTV-MPC) method is used, with the key tire nonlinearities captured through linearization. We consider tire force constraints based on the combined-slip tire model and their dependence on vehicle motion. The computed high-level (virtual) control signals are realized through a control allocation problem which maps vehicle motion commands to tire braking forces considering constraints. Numerical simulation and analysis results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the control algorithm.
CD4+Foxp3+ regulatory T cell therapy in transplantation

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are long-lived cells that suppress immune responses in vivo in a dominant and antigen-specific manner. Therefore, therapeutic application of Tregs to control unwanted immune responses is an active area of investigation. Tregs can confer long-term protection against auto-inflammatory diseases in mouse models. They have also been shown to be effective in suppressing alloimmunity in models of graft-versus-host disease and organ transplantation. Building on extensive research in Treg biology and preclinical testing of therapeutic efficacy over the past decade, we are now at the point of evaluating the safety and efficacy of Treg therapy in humans. This review focuses on developing therapy for transplantation using CD4(+)Foxp3(+) Tregs, with an emphasis on the studies that have informed clinical approaches that aim to maximize the benefits while overcoming the challenges and risks of Treg cell therapy.
Block and Graft Copolymers of Polypivalolactone : Poly(Acrylate-g-Pivalolactone)

Abstract Thermoplastic poly(acrylate-g-pivalolactone) elastomers depend upon the crystallization of polypivalolactone side chains into discrete domains for the reversible formation of elastomeric networks. The high crystallinity of the grafted polyPVL chains and their chemical inertness leads to a highly reinforced, effectively crosslinked copolymer of unusual stability. The physical properties of the graft copolymer are similar to those of elastomeric polyacrylates compounded with carbon black and chemically crosslinked. At high deformation, as on a two-roll mill, the crystalline domains are sufficiently disrupted to allow the polymer to flow easily. At low deformation, for example in the compression-set test, there is very little flow, as shown by resistance to compression set fully equivalent to that of covalently crosslinked elastomers. The synthesis of polyacrylate-g-PVL copolymers is remarkably simple and subject to few limitations. Grafting efficiency is high and should approach 100% under slightly...
You Want a Successful Bundle: What About Post-discharge Care?

Abstract Background The postacute care strategies after total joint arthroplasty, including the use of postacute rehabilitation centers and home therapy services are associated with different costs. Providers in bundled payment programs are incentivized to use the most cost-effective strategies while maintaining quality and value for patients. Methods We discuss the impact of postacute care on a bundled payment program and strategies for optimizing the value of this component of the care episode using the experience of a large academic urban medical center participating in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Initiative. Results The results of this analysis show that efforts to increase the use of home discharge and decrease the use of postacute facilities after elective primary total hip and knee arthroplasties can lead to cost-effective quality care with a high degree of patient satisfaction. Conclusion The postdischarge period is a significant part of a bundled payment episode. To manage a successful bundled payment program in total joint arthroplasty, significant efforts to coordinate care during this episode are needed for patients to receive quality care that meets their expectations.
Effects of adjuvants on benzpyrene tumorigenesis in hamsters.

SummaryThe effects of adjuvants (Freund's complete and incomplete, BCG, and pertussis) on the development of benzpyrene-induced tumors were studied in hamsters. Two opposite effects were observed, depending on experimental design. In the first instance, prior treatment of adult pregnant or non-pregnant female hamsters with adjuvants appeared to suppress tumor development. On the other hand, prior treatment of mothers with adjuvants during pregnancy greatly enhanced the development of tumors in their progeny. A possible explanation of these antithetical results is suggested.The helpful criticism and assistance of Dr. Kenneth S. K. Tung in preparing this paper for publication is gratefully acknowledged.
OBSERVATION ON THE GERMICIDAL EFFICACY OF CHLORINE-CONTAINING DISINFECTANT TO LEGIONELLA PNEUMOPHILA ISOLATED FROM WATER,SILT AND BIOFILM

Objective To observe the germicidal efficacy of chlorine-containing disinfectant to Legionella pneumophila isolated from water,silt and biofilm.Methods Suspension quantitative bactericidal test was carried out to observe the killing efficacy of chlorine-containing disinfectant.Results The disinfectant containing 500 mg/L and 1 000 mg/L available chlorine with 10 min and 15 min contact time respectively killed L.pneumophila from water,silt and biofilm completely.And the antibacterial capability could be improved obviously with increasing the concentration of available chlorine or prolonging the contact time.Conclusion It was convenient and rapid to kill L.pneumophila from water,silt and biofilm by chlorine-containing disinfectant.
Liquid-Metal-Bonded Gap for Light Water Reactor Fuel Rods

As a means of improving the gap-thermal conductance, a liquid metal (LM) is proposed as the gap-filling material replacing helium gas in the conventional light water reactor fuel rod. The potential...
Racial/ethnic disparities in hepatocellular carcinoma treatment and survival in California, 1988-2012.

Racial/ethnic disparities in hepatocellular carcinoma treatment and survival in California, 1988-2012
Coupling analysis & preliminary MIMO control design for wide-area damping using HVDC

The high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line known as the Pacific DC Intertie (PDCI) has shown to be a potentially important actuator for retaining small-signal stability of the western North American Power System (wNAPS) for large contingencies. However, certain wNAPS damped oscillatory line flows and generator rotor speeds may be adversely affected by PDCI modulation subject to particular system configurations. Thus, a secondary, similar actuator is investigated to improve these characteristics, and potentially provide additional damping for burdensome contingencies. The Intermountain HVDC (IMDC) line provides less rated capacity than the PDCI, but has the ability to impact troublesome oscillatory modes insufficiently responsive to the PDCI, and is chosen as the secondary actuator for this reason. Inspection of Gershgorin bands of the loop transmission transfer matrix suggests coupling between the PDCI and IMDC channels, and thus care must be taken when introducing multi-input, multi-output (MIMO) feedback. Initial results for the IMDC closed-loop system are provided, as well as a MIMO controller employing a gain-adjusted compensator developed for the SISO PDCI approach.
BIOMARKER PROFILE IN ADULTS WITH FONTAN CIRCULATION

Background: Fontan palliation causes systemic changes in hemodynamics resulting in multi-organ co-morbid conditions. We evaluated biomarker levels representative of various systemic pathways in stable Fontan patients in comparison with healthy controls. Methods: We compared 23 stable Fontan
Management of Low-Grade Cervical Müllerian Adenosarcoma in a 14-Year-Old Girl.

Abstract Background Mullerian adenosarcomas of the cervix are composed of benign epithelial and malignant stromal components. The purpose of this report is to describe the clinical and histologic difficulties in diagnosis and to propose fertility-preserving management of low-grade lesions. Case A 14-year-old girl presented with a friable lesion found to originate from the anterior cervical lip. Initially, clinical suspicion was for sarcoma botryoides, however, pathologic evaluation revealed a low-grade cervical Mullerian adenosarcoma. Cold knife conization was performed, and the mass was resected with clear margins. Summary and Conclusion Mullerian adenosarcoma of the cervix is difficult to diagnose in adolescents because of features more commonly associated with alternative diagnoses. For patients with low-grade lesions desiring future fertility, local excision with close follow-up is reasonable.
High milk production decreases cow-calf productivity within a highly available feed resource environment.

The beef cattle industry tends to focus on selecting production traits with the purpose of maximizing cow-calf performance. One such trait is milking ability, which is considered the primary influence on weaning weight of the calf. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of actual milk yield on reproductive performance, circulating blood metabolites, and calf performance in beef cows in the Southeastern US. Over a 2 yr period, data were collected from 237, 3- to 9-yr-old Angus-sired beef cows on 3 research stations in Tennessee. On approximately d 58 and 129 postpartum, 24-hr milk production was measured with a modified weigh-suckle-weigh technique using a milking machine. Subsamples of milk were collected for analysis of milk components. Milk yield data were used to retrospectively classify cows on actual milk yield as High ( ≥ 10 kg/d), Mod (8 to 9 kg/d), or Low ( 0.05) between Low and Mod milk cows. In addition, overall pregnancy rate continued to be the lowest (P = 0.04) in High milk producing cows with the greatest pregnancy rate in Mod milk cows. Calf mid-weight at ∼d 58 was increased (P < 0.001) in calves from Mod and High milking cows. However, calf BW at weaning was not different (P = 0.22) among calves from different milk treatment groups. Results from this study suggest that even in management systems that modify the grazing environments with harvested feedstuffs, high milk production decreases reproductive efficiency. In addition, increasing milk production up to d 129 postpartum did not result in increased calf BW at weaning, indicating that the genetic potential for calf BW at weaning could not be improved with increased genetic potential for milk production.
The application of remote ischemic conditioning in cardiac surgery

Perioperative myocardial ischemia and infarction are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality following anesthesia and surgery. The discovery of endogenous cardioprotective mechanisms has led to testing of new methods to protect the human heart. These approaches have included ischemic pre-conditioning, per-conditioning, post-conditioning, and remote conditioning of the myocardium. Pre-conditioning and per-conditioning include brief and repetitive periods of sub-lethal ischemia before and during prolonged ischemia, respectively; and post-conditioning is applied at the onset of reperfusion. Remote ischemic conditioning involves transient, repetitive, non-lethal ischemia and reperfusion in one organ or tissue (remote from the heart) that renders myocardium more resistant to lethal ischemia/reperfusion injury. In healthy, young hearts, many conditioning maneuvers can significantly increase the resistance of the heart against ischemia/reperfusion injury. The large multicenter clinical trials with ischemic remote conditioning have not been proven successful in cardiac surgery thus far. The lack of clinical success is due to underlying risk factors that interfere with remote ischemic conditioning and the use of cardioprotective agents that have activated the endogenous cardioprotective mechanisms prior to remote ischemic conditioning. Future preclinical research using remote ischemic conditioning will need to be conducted using comorbid models.
Nepali private schools and tolerated illegality: A Foucauldian analysis of privatisation of education in Nepal

The Education Act 1971 is the main policy document under which schools in Nepal are operated. With the change in political regime, this policy has been amended as per the ideology of the incoming r...
Sleep Efficiency Modulates Associations Between Family Stress and Adolescent Depressive Symptoms and Negative Affect.

Abstract Purpose The goal of this study was to determine whether sleep moderates the associations between family-related stress and depressive symptoms and negative affect outcomes during adolescence. We combined traditional survey measures of stress and depressive symptoms with daily assessments of stress and negative affect to examine whether sleep differentially impacts the link between chronic and acute experiences of stress and affect. Methods Participants were 316 adolescents from ethnically diverse backgrounds. Primary caregivers and adolescents reported on stressful family events during the past 12 and 3 months, respectively. Adolescents also reported on their daily experiences of family demands for 15 days and wore actigraph watches for the assessment of sleep during the first eight nights. Results Regression analyses revealed that more stressful family events were related to more depressive symptoms. This relation was stronger among adolescents with lower sleep efficiency. The same pattern emerged for the relation between daily family demands and negative affect aggregated across the 15 days. Daily-level analyses indicated that daily negative affect was related to daily family demands when sleep efficiency was higher than usual, but only among European American adolescents. Conclusions These findings suggest that chronic experiences of lower sleep efficiency, but not sleep duration, may render adolescents more vulnerable to the negative effects of family stress on emotional adjustment. A more complex picture emerged for the role of prior night's sleep in the day-to-day variation in negative affect reactivity to family stress.
Clinical Factors to Decide Between Sacral Neuromodulation and Onabotulinum Toxin—When Is One Clearly Better?

This article provides a review of the current literature on the applicability of each treatment for OAB, as well as unique clinical scenarios. In addition, the authors provide their own practical insight on how to approach third-line therapies for OAB. The treatment of overactive bladder (OAB) is increasingly common amongst specialists. OnabotulinumtoxinA and sacral neuromodulation are both highly effective third-line therapies for OAB, but work via very different mechanisms. The differences between the two are associated with potential benefits and complications unique for each. The OAB clinician must account for several clinical and personal factors in counseling patients on options.
The First Occurrence of Cynognathus crateronotus (Cynodontia: Cynognathia) in Tanzania and Zambia, with Implications for the Age and Biostratigraphic Correlation of Triassic Strata in Southern Pangea

Cynognathus crateronotus is a species of large carnivorous cynodont, first named and best known from the Triassic Burgersdorp Formation (Beaufort Group, Karoo Basin) of South Africa. Fossils of the genus have also been reported from the upper Fremouw Formation of Antarctica, the Upper Omingonde Formation of Namibia, and the Rio Seco de la Quebrada Formation of Argentina. Without associated cranial material, however, distinguishing the postcrania of Cynognathus from that of the closely related cynognathian, Diademodon tetragonus, has proven difficult. Here we provide a more comprehensive diagnosis for Cynognathus crateronotus and describe two novel occurrences. First, parts of a medium-sized individual were recovered from a scrambled mass of dental and semiarticulated postcranial material from the lower Ntawere Formation of Zambia, a horizon that previously produced fossils of Diademodon and Kannemeyeria. Second, a large individual was collected from a recently discovered locality within the lower part of the Lifua Member of the Manda Beds of Tanzania. A large proportion of the postcranial skeleton, along with some craniodental remains, was found ex situ in a sandy streambed just downstream from a quarry that has produced the dicynodont Dolichuranus, an azendohsaurid archosauromorph, and the avemetatarsalian Teleocrater rhadinus. The widespread occurrence of Cynognathus across southern Pangea demonstrates its utility as a biostratigraphic marker, but recently published radiometric age estimates from Argentina suggest that either the genus persisted for over 10 million years or African strata traditionally interpreted as Middle Triassic are better understood as Late Triassic in age.
Sepsis Management: Importance of the Pathogen

The nature of the pathogen responsible for initiating the septic process has a major impact on the host: pathogen interaction and the ultimate outcome for the patient. Potential pathogens must first evade an impressive array of innate and adaptive host defense mechanisms to invade and disseminate within a previously healthy human. Such a pathogen-derived pathophysiologic feat is only possible if the invasive microorganism expresses an array of virulence factors capable of overwhelming the host. However, considerably less virulent microorganisms can still successfully disseminate within patients who manifest a number of immune defects and comorbid conditions which functionally impair antimicrobial defenses and disrupt microbial clearance capacities. Pathogens can injure the host by at least three different mechanisms: (1) rapidly replicate and overwhelm the host by an uncontrolled microbial burden or load of organisms, (2) express toxins that directly or indirectly induce cellular injury, or (3) induce collateral damage to normal host tissues through generation of an excessive and damaging host inflammatory response to the presence of pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) substances. In this chapter we will examine these mechanisms in detail and emphasize the need to rapidly initiate antimicrobial therapies with antibiotics and source control strategies to limit pathogen damage in septic patients. Treatment has become much more difficult by the spread of antibiotic resistance genes among bacterial as well as viral, fungal, and even protozoan pathogens that can cause sepsis.
Effects of prosodic boundaries on ambiguous syntactic clause boundaries in Japanese.

We report the results of experiments designed to investigate the effects of prosodic boundaries on resolving ambiguous syntactic clause boundaries in Japanese. The head-final, prodrop nature of this language generates abundant syntactic attachment ambiguity for sentences that contain relative clauses. Two types of sentences with differing head nouns modified by relative clauses were examined. Syntactic attachment preferences for these two types of sentences in the absence of overt prosody were assessed in a written study. Results indicated that readers retrieved one clear meaning for one type whereas ambiguity was not clearly resolved for the other type. A sentence comprehension study was conducted using auditory versions of both sentence types, each produced with two prosodic structures. Results demonstrated the crucial use of prosodic boundary information in retrieving syntactic clause boundary information. Most importantly, prosodic boundaries affected the way listeners posited empty pronouns for the subject of main or subordinate predicates. These results demonstrated the fundamental importance of prosodic phrasal structure to the assignment of syntactic constituency during sentence comprehension, particularly in the case of a headfinal, pro-drop language.
The system Pb-As-S

Silica-tube quenching experiments and gold-tube pressure experiments were used to study phase relations in the PbS-rich portion of the system Pb-As-S. Emphasis was placed on determining the P-T-X stability relations of jordanite, the most Pb-rich of the synthetic Pb-As-S compounds. Jordanite, Pb9As4S15, is stable below 549 ± 3° C, at which temperature it melts to galena, liquid, and a sulfur-rich vapor phase. Confining pressures of up to 2 Kb do not measurably change this reaction temperature. Density measurements on synthetic material show that the jordanite cell contains 3 (Pb9As4S15); space group P21/m requires that the cell content be expressed as either Pb28−xAs12S46−x or Pb26+xAs12S44+x, with the former much more probable from a structural point of view. In both cases 0.8 < x < 1.4 and the situation is thus quite different from the usual case of defect structures, such as pyrrhotite, Fe1−xS, which shows considerable range of solid solution. Heating experiments on natural gratonite (Pb9As4S15) show that this mineral is most probably a low-temperature dimorph of jordanite, the inversion occurring below 250° C. Experiments have also confirmed the extensive substitution of Sb for As in jordanite, as suspected from chemical analyses of the isostructural mineral geocronite (Pb28−x(As,Sb)12S46−x).