cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tannuolina and Micrina (Tannuolinidae) from the lower Cambrian of eastern Yunnan, South China, and their scleritome reconstruction

The Tannuolinidae includes only two known genera— Micrina Laurie, 1986 and Tannuolina Fonin and Smirnova, 1967, both from the Lower Cambrian. They are phosphatic bimembrate small shelly fossils, consisting of two types of sclerites—the mitral and sellate sclerites. These sclerites show basal-internal accretional growth, spaced growth lamellae, carinae (in mitral sclerites of Tannuolina) or teeth (in mitral sclerites of Micrina), and unevenly distributed pores and canals. The scleritome of tannuolinids is poorly known because they are often preserved as disarticulated sclerites. Here we describe Micrina xiaotanensisnew species and Tannuolina zhangwentangi Qian and Bengtson, 1989 from the Lower Cambrian Shiyantou and Yu'anshan formations (upper Meishucunian to Qiongzhusian stages) at Xiaotan, eastern Yunnan, South China. The new material not only extends the geographic range of Micrina, previously known only in Australia, but also includes two composite specimens of T. zhangwentangi: one with a pair of dextral and sinistral mitrals juxtaposed along the apertural margin of their decrescent sides, and the other with a smaller sellate ontogenetically merged with the sella of a larger sellate. Perhaps as a result of being contacting or imbricating surfaces, the decrescent, sella, and duplicature sides are also characterized by negative allometry (relative to other sides) and a sparse distribution of pores. The new fossils do not support reconstructions that place a sellate and a mitral sclerite, respectively, at the anterior and posterior end of the Tannuolina animal, in a way similar to Halkieria evangelista Conway Morris and Peel, 1995. Instead, they are consistent with the traditional view that the scleritome of Tannuolina consisted of four anterior-posterior files of sclerites: two opposing mitral rows flanked by two imbricated sellate series. The bimembrate Micrina may or may not have had a similar scleritome. If Tannuolina and Micrina form a monophyletic group outside the total group of brachiopods, then Micrina is likely to have had a multisclerite scleritome similar to that of Tannuolina. This implies that microstructural similarities between the tannuolinids and some linguliformean brachiopods are probably symplesiomorphic or convergent. Alternatively, Tannuolina and Micrina may represent stem groups leading to the linguliformeans while Halkieria represents a stem group leading to the calcareous brachiopods—a radical hypothesis that would imply that the two brachiopod groups independently evolved the bivalved body plan.
Guiding scientific discovery with explanations using DEMUD

In the era of large scientific data sets, there is an urgent need for methods to automatically prioritize data for review. At the same time, for any automated method to be adopted by scientists, it must make decisions that they can understand and trust. In this paper, we propose Discovery through Eigenbasis Modeling of Uninteresting Data (DEMUD), which uses principal components modeling and reconstruction error to prioritize data. DEMUD's major advance is to offer domain-specific explanations for its prioritizations. We evaluated DEMUD's ability to quickly identify diverse items of interest and the value of the explanations it provides. We found that DEMUD performs as well or better than existing class discovery methods and provides, uniquely, the first explanations for why those items are of interest. Further, in collaborations with planetary scientists, we found that DEMUD (1) quickly identifies very rare items of scientific value, (2) maintains high diversity in its selections, and (3) provides explanations that greatly improve human classification accuracy.
Regulation of norovirus virulence by the VP1 protruding domain correlates with B cell infection efficiency

UNLABELLED Human noroviruses are a leading cause of gastroenteritis across the globe, but the pathogenic mechanisms responsible for disease are not well established. The availability of a murine norovirus model system provides the opportunity to elucidate viral and host determinants of virulence in a natural host. For example, previous studies have revealed that the protruding domain of the murine norovirus capsid protein VP1, specifically residue 296 of VP1, regulates virulent infection. We identified a panel of nonsynonymous mutations in the open reading frame 2 (ORF2) gene encoding VP1 that arose in persistently infected mice and tested whether these mutations conferred phenotypic changes to viral replication and virulence. Consistent with previous studies, we demonstrate that a glutamic acid at position 296 results in attenuation. For the first time, we also demonstrate that a lysine at this position is sufficient to confer virulence on an otherwise attenuated murine norovirus strain. Moreover, our studies reveal a direct correlation between the efficiency of viral replication in B cells and virulence. These data are especially striking because mutations causing reduced B cell replication and attenuation had minimal effects on the ability of the virus to replicate in macrophages. Thus, norovirus infection of B cells may directly contribute to disease outcome. IMPORTANCE Human noroviruses are a major global cause of disease, yet we know very little about their pathogenic mechanisms. The availability of a murine norovirus model system facilitates investigation of noroviruses in a natural host organism and the identification of viral and host determinants of pathogenesis. We have identified a panel of mutations arising in the viral capsid protein VP1 during persistent infection of mice. Our data reveal that the protruding domain of VP1 regulates the ability of the virus to replicate in B cells, and this directly correlates with virulence. Importantly, mutations impairing B cell infection had minimal effects on macrophage infection, revealing a potentially critical role for B cell infection in norovirus pathogenesis.
PP5: the TPR phosphatase

PP5 is unique among protein serine/threonine phosphatases in containing an amino-terminal TPR domain that functions both to maintain low basal activity and to bind to target proteins. Although PP5 can be activated by partial proteolysis or long-chain fatty acyl compounds in vitro, the physiological mechanisms activating this ubiquitous okadaic acid-sensitive protein phosphatase remain unknown. We review the biochemistry and biology of PP5 with an emphasis on putative target proteins. The first genetic studies of PP5 in model organisms are also discussed, as are antisense approaches to determining its function in cultured human cells.
Comparative Diagnostic Utility of Low‐Dose Breast‐Specific Gamma Imaging to Current Clinical Standard

To retrospectively compare low-dose (7-10 mCi) to high-dose (15-30 mCi) breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI) in the detection of breast cancer. A retrospective review of 223 consecutive women who underwent BSGI exam between February 2011 and August 2013 with subsequent pathologic analysis was performed. Women were divided into low-dose and high-dose groups. The results of BSGI and pathology were compared, and the sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) were determined. A subgroup analysis was performed to evaluate specificity using benign follow-up imaging to establish true-negative results. There were 223 women who met inclusion criteria with 109 patients with 153 lesions in the low-dose group and 114 patients with 145 lesions in the high-dose group. Pathologic correlation demonstrates sensitivities of 97.6% (95% CI = 90.9-99.6%) and 94.6% (95% CI = 84.2-98.6%; p = 0.093), PPVs of 62.1% (95% CI = 53.2-70.3%) and 50.5% (95% CI = 40.6-60.3%, p = 0.089), and NPVs of 90.5% (95% CI = 68.2-98.3%) and 92.5% (95% CI = 78.5-98.0%, p = 0.781) in the low-dose and high-dose groups, respectively. Subgroup analysis included 72 patients with 98 lesions in the low-dose group and 116 patients with 132 lesions in the high-dose group, with a specificity of 53.7% (95% CI = 39.7-67.1%) and 66.3% (95% CI = 56.2-75.2%%, p = 0.143), respectively. Low-dose BSGI demonstrated high sensitivity and NPV in the detection of breast cancer comparable to the current standard dose BSGI, with moderate specificity and PPV in a limited subgroup analysis, which was associated with a substantial number of false-positives.
Juergen Schulz (1927–2014)

Generations of Venetian scholars will recall Juergen Schulz, who died on 23 November 2014, as the distinguished figure at the desk by the window in the reading room of the city’s State Archives.1 He arrived early to secure that place, and he worked through the day from his knees, a posture forced on him by the pain in his back that he would not let compromise his research. They will also remember him as the colleague who led study tours through the outback of the city to see the often obscure traces of its early urban fabric. “Venice,” he’d say, in the argot of a 1950s radio detective, “is my beat.” These are the two sides of the man. He was tall and straight, elegant and learned, but he was also down-to-earth and possessed of a lively sense of humor. He knew his way around the libraries, print cabinets, and bookshops of Europe, and he could also fix a carburetor. At home in Providence, Rhode Island, he and his wife, Anne, entertained often and well in their grand early nineteenth-century house on Bowen Street. Beautifully ordered books lined the rooms, and stack space excavated below the house accommodated a collection of Venetian material among the best in the United States. If this sounds, in part, like the description of a German professor of an earlier generation, there is good reason. Juergen was born in Kiel, Germany, in 1927. In 1938, when his mother managed to get her two boys out of the country, he was enrolled in a technical high school (the fact that his maternal grandparents were Jewish dictated that he could not attend the Gymnasium that prepared students for the university). By the end of the year they were settled in Berkeley, invited by his mother’s old …
Analysis of Isothermal Variable Area Flow

In this paper the isothermal flow of perfect gases is discussed following the gas dynamic approach of applying the continuity, momentum and energy equations. Flow functions for isothermal, reversible, one‐dimen‐sional flow are derived and these are represented graphically. Isothermal flow in convergent‐divergent nozzles is analysed and the variation of the derived flow functions is depicted.
Interpreting two-dimensional cuts through broken geologic objects: Fractal and non-fractal size distributions

Numerical simulations and physical fragmentation experiments confirm the theoretical prediction that the fractal dimension of a two-dimensional (2-D) cut through a set of three-dimensional objects with fractal dimension D is approximately equal to D – 1. This leads to a size distribution in two-dimensional cuts that is skewed strongly toward larger objects compared to the three-dimensional distribution. Three-dimensional shape (aspect ratio) does not significantly affect the resulting 2-D size distribution except for highly nonequant objects, such as prolate ellipsoids with aspect ratios of 10 or more. In contrast, fragmentation of an object by breakage along persistent fractures results in a non-fractal distribution of sizes and far fewer small objects than predicted by fractal statistics. Powdering a rock by extensive crushing also results in non-fractal size distributions because particles are reduced to sizes on the order of 1 μm, a comminution limit below which further brittle fracture is difficult. Natural examples of fragmental objects observed in two-dimensional cuts, such as crushed rocks, breccias, and xenoliths, are generally consistent with a three-dimensional fractal dimension near 2.5 over one or two orders of magnitude in size. However, a limestone breccia from Death Valley exhibits a nonfractal size distribution consistent with fragmentation of a strongly jointed rock. Mafic enclaves in Yosemite National Park have a restricted size range of about one order of magnitude and a three-dimensional fractal dimension of ∼3.1, consistent with other enclave swarms. The restricted size range of enclaves may reflect the apertures of mafic dikes that fed them.
Fertility excess necessary for gene substitution in regulated populations.

IOCHEMICAL studies of certain proteins have recently shown that the rate of evolution or gene substitution is much higher than that previously thought (KIMURA 1968; DAYHOFF 1969). This high rate of gene substitution has aroused a great deal of controversy about HALDANE’S (1957; 1960) theory of the cost of natural selection. HALDANE postulated that the genetic deaths needed to secure gene substitution by natural selection lower the average fitness of a population, so that there is an upper limit to the number of gene substitutions per unit length of time, depending on the fertility of the species in question. In this case the fitness of a genotype was assumed to be constant. HALDANE’S theory was accepted by KIMURA (1960; 1967) and CROW (1968) but questioned by a number of authors. Among others, SVED (1968) and MAYNARD SMITH (1968) have argued that if the population size is regulated in a density-dependent manner and gene substitution occurs by competitive selection, the mean fitness of the population would not necessarily be reduced. They produced a model of threshold selection in which gene substitutions may occur at a much higher rate than HALDANE’S computation allows. Recently, MATHER (1969) developed an interesting model of competitive selection and showed that many classical formulae for the change in gene frequency hold true under competitive selection. He, however, argued that the cost of natural selection should be re-examined, taking into account competitive selection and the effect of selection on population size. He thought that the cost of selection would be much less than HALDANE’S computation suggests. Another type of model for competitive selection was developed by SCHUTZ and UZANIS (1969). In this model, however, neither the cause and process of competition nor the mechanism of population regulation was studied in detail. The purpose of the present paper is first to develop mathematical models for natural selection in regulated populations and then examine the adequacy of the theory of the cost of natural selection. The cost of natural selection will be looked at from a slightly different angle, and the fertility excess or genetic variance of fitness necessary for a given rate of gene substitution will be studied. It will be shown that competition itself does not lead to threshold selection and HALDANE’S conclusion is essentially correct.
Identification of Partial Discharge in Gas Insulated Switchgears With Fractal Theory and Support Vector Machine

The internal insulation defects in gas-insulated switchgear(GIS) can be reflected by partial discharge,so it is significant to recognize the type of partial discharge(PD) in GIS correctly.The extraction of discharge signal features and the design of the identifier greatly influence the final judgment result,thus it is necessary to apply fractal theory and support vector machine(SVM) in PD type identification to improve identification effect.The discharge data caused by four insulation defects is collected and by use of fractal theory the discharge characteristics are extracted from ?-q-n grayscale,and six binary SVM identifiers are constructed,then the PD type is identified by voting method.Experimental results show that using the proposed method the PD type within GIS can be correctly recognized and the proposed method is stable and possesses higher recognition rate than back propagation network method.
Time sensitive analysis of independent and stationary increment processes

Abstract We study the behavior of independent and stationary increments jump processes as they approach fixed thresholds. The exact crossing time is unavailable because the real-time information about successive jumps is unknown. Instead, the underlying process A ( t ) is observed only upon a third-party independent point process { τ n } . The observed time series { A ( τ n ) } presents crude, delayed data. The crossing is first observed upon one of the observations, denoted τ ν . We develop and further explore a new technique to revive the real-time paths of A ( t ) for all t belonging to an interval before the pre-crossing observation, [ 0 , τ ν − 1 ) , or between the observations just before and just after the crossing, [ τ ν − 1 , τ ν ) , as a joint Laplace–Stieltjes transform and probability generating function of A ( t ) , A ( τ ν − 1 ) , A ( τ ν ) , τ ν − 1 , and τ ν . Joint probability distributions are obtained from the transforms in a tractable form and they are applied to modeling of stochastic networks under cyber attacks by accurately predicting their crash.
Demonstrating the need for precision to freshmen: nifty assignment

This assignment has been used in our Orientation to Computing course to show first-time college students the extent to which their usual narrative is imprecise: their usual descriptions omit crucial details and convey others ambiguously. Demonstrating that tangible discrepancies inevitably follow motivates them to pay more attention to detail.
Sensor Network Integration with Streaming Database Systems

Recent advances in computing technology have led to the production of a new class of computing device: the wireless, battery powered, smart sensor. Traditional sensors deployed throughout buildings, labs, and equipment are passive devices that simply modulate a voltage based on some environmental parameter. In contrast, these new sensors are active, full fledged computers, capable not only of sampling real world phenomena but also filtering, sharing, and combining those sensor readings with each other and nearby Internet-equipped endpoints. Over the past several years, we have designed and implemented a query processor for such sensor networks called TinyDB. TinyDB is a distributed query processor that runs on each of the nodes in a sensor network that is explicitly designed to simplify many of the data collection applications described above. TinyDB runs on the Berkeley mote platform, on top of the TinyOS operating system. TinyDB has many of the features of a traditional query processor (e.g. the ability to select, join, project, and aggregate data), but also incorporates a number of other optimization features designed to minimize power consumption. In this chapter, we review of many of the features of TinyDB and other sensor network query processing systems. We also discuss how TinyDB interfaces with a data stream management system (DSMS), examples of which are discussed elsewhere in this book.
Lossy Transmission Lines

In Chap. 6, the concepts of a transmission line, reflections, and terminations were unveiled. Transmission lines have the very desirable property that they carry signals nearly completely intact, and that is why they are widely used. However, if you go all the way back to the beginning of the chapter, one assumption was made: that, in a coaxial cable or on a twisted-pair cable, there is no loss of signal energy. This turns out to be false, but the source of the loss is surprising. This chapter discusses dielectric loss, explains how it manifests itself, and explains how it affects signals on real circuit boards.
Predicting the impact of combined therapies on myeloma cell growth using a hybrid multi-scale agent-based model.

// Zhiwei Ji 1 , Jing Su 1 , Dan Wu 1 , Huiming Peng 1 , Weiling Zhao 1 , Brian Nlong Zhao 1 , Xiaobo Zhou 1 1 Division of Radiologic Sciences and Center for Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC, USA 27157 Correspondence to: Xiaobo Zhou, email: xizhou@wakehealth.edu Keywords: agent-based model, ODE, modeling, multiple myeloma, immune Received: April 15, 2016 Accepted: November 30, 2016 Published: December 09, 2016 ABSTRACT Multiple myeloma is a malignant still incurable plasma cell disorder. This is due to refractory disease relapse, immune impairment, and development of multi-drug resistance. The growth of malignant plasma cells is dependent on the bone marrow (BM) microenvironment and evasion of the host’s anti-tumor immune response. Hence, we hypothesized that targeting tumor-stromal cell interaction and endogenous immune system in BM will potentially improve the response of multiple myeloma (MM). Therefore, we proposed a computational simulation of the myeloma development in the complicated microenvironment which includes immune cell components and bone marrow stromal cells and predicted the effects of combined treatment with multi-drugs on myeloma cell growth. We constructed a hybrid multi-scale agent-based model (HABM) that combines an ODE system and Agent-based model (ABM). The ODEs was used for modeling the dynamic changes of intracellular signal transductions and ABM for modeling the cell-cell interactions between stromal cells, tumor, and immune components in the BM. This model simulated myeloma growth in the bone marrow microenvironment and revealed the important role of immune system in this process. The predicted outcomes were consistent with the experimental observations from previous studies. Moreover, we applied this model to predict the treatment effects of three key therapeutic drugs used for MM, and found that the combination of these three drugs potentially suppress the growth of myeloma cells and reactivate the immune response. In summary, the proposed model may serve as a novel computational platform for simulating the formation of MM and evaluating the treatment response of MM to multiple drugs.
Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors: Sorafenib, Sunitinib, Axitinib, and Pazopanib

Over the last 10 years, the progress in our understanding of the molecular basis of RCC has led to the development of targeted therapies with significant improvement in patient outcomes. To date, targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) has been shown to lead to improved clinical outcomes in metastatic RCC. Currently, four VEGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of metastatic RCC: sunitinib, sorafenib, axitinib, and pazopanib. Here, we summarize the clinical data of efficacy, safety, and tolerability of those agents in patients with metastatic RCC.
Examining the Relationship Between Diversity Exposure and Students’ Color-Blind Racial Attitudes and Awareness of Racial Oppression

ABSTRACTThis cross-sectional study surveyed graduate-level social work and undergraduate psychology students (N = 409) at a large university to explore the association of diversity exposure (diversity of undergraduate institution, diversity of childhood neighborhood, previous diversity courses), and color-blind racial attitudes and awareness of racial oppression. White students scored significantly higher on level of color-blind racial attitudes compared to racial/ethnic minorities. Students who attended predominantly White undergraduate institutions had greater awareness of racial oppression than students who attended racially balanced or institutions comprised exclusively of one racial/ethnic group other than White. Understanding how diversity exposure influences color-blind racial attitudes and awareness of racial oppression will better inform multicultural training and curricular delivery.
Role of microgrids in enhancing power system resilience

This paper aims at identifying the role of microgrids in enhancing the resilience of power supplies. The paper first distinguishes resilience from reliability so as to strengthen the need for resilience in the process of building Smart Grid. The paper then discusses in detail how microgrids are capable of eliminating the impact of power disruptions in the wake of extreme events. Given the unique benefits of microgrids in sustaining local power supplies, an integrated decision framework is finally developed for determining and coordinating measures to prepare for, respond to and recover from potential extreme events.
Classification of Pancreatic Cancer - Ready for Practical Application?

There is great interest in an ability to categorize pancreatic cancer, and understand and classify the significant heterogeneity that exists in this disease. Such classifications based on morphologic, genetic, and immunologic features are emerging, and the application of this information to provide both prognostic and predictive information is highly desired. Clin Cancer Res; 24(18); 4355-6. ©2018 AACRSee related article by Wartenberg et al., p. 4444.
Dietary Green Tea Extract Prior to Spinal Cord Injury Prevents Hepatic Iron Overload but Does Not Improve Chronic Hepatic and Spinal Cord Pathology in Rats

Abstract Spinal cord injury (SCI) disrupts autonomic regulation of visceral organs. As a result, a leading cause of mortality in the SCI population is metabolic dysfunction, and an organ central to...
Impact of Chronic Opioid Therapy Risk Reduction Initiatives on Opioid Overdose

We assessed the effects of opioid dose and risk reduction initiatives on opioid overdose rates among patients on chronic opioid therapy (COT). Using an interrupted time series design, we compared trends in overdose rates. We compared patients on COT in settings that implemented a COT dose reduction initiative and then a COT risk stratification/monitoring initiative to similar patients on COT from control settings. From 2006 to 2014, 31,142 patients on COT (22,673 intervention, 8,469 control) experienced 311 fatal or nonfatal opioid overdoses. In primary analyses, changes in opioid overdose rates among patients on COT did not differ significantly between intervention and control settings with the implementation of either dose reduction or risk stratification/monitoring. In planned secondary analyses, overdose rates decreased significantly (17% per year) during the dose reduction initiative among patients on COT in intervention settings (relative annual change, 0.83; 95% confidence interval, 0.70-0.99), but not in control settings (0.98. 95% confidence interval, 0.70-1.39). We conclude that overdose rates among patients on COT were not decreased by risk stratification and monitoring initiatives. Results were inconsistent for COT dose reduction, with no significant difference between intervention and control settings (primary hypothesis test), but a significant decrease in overdose rates within the intervention setting during dose reduction (secondary hypothesis test). PERSPECTIVE: Risk stratification/monitoring interventions among patients on COT did not decrease opioid overdose rates. The effects of COT dose reduction on opioid overdose rates were inconsistent. Greater decreases in COT dose, a larger control group, or both may have been needed to identify conclusive reductions in opioid overdose rates.
China’s monetary policy since 1948

Abstract. China’s monetary policy has evolved from obscurity into spotlight due to its torrid economic expansion in recent times, as well as its exchange rate regime that has been under constant scrutiny of its trading partners. While China’s economy is centrally-planned, it is veering more towards a market-based system with goals of stability and growth. With this in mind, this paper is an introspection of China’s monetary policy since the establishment of the People’s Bank of China (PBC) to the present. Additionally, this paper surveys empirical literature on the effectiveness of policy tools undertaken by the PBC. Recommendations are made to Chinese monetary authority on how to navigate the turbulent waves of economic fluctuations with a managed exchange rate, within its borders and beyond. Keywords. Community tourism, Households, Island, Logistic regression, Income, Traditional trades. JEL. I13, I20, I30.
Designing Highly Crystalline Multifunctional Multicolor Luminescence Nanosystem for Tracking Breast Cancer Heterogeneity.

Breast tumor heterogeneity was responsible for the death of ∼40 000 women in 2017 in the USA. Triple-negative breast cancers (TNBCs) are very aggressive, and this is the only subgroup of breast cancers that still lacks effective therapeutics. As a result, the early-stage detection of TNBCs is vital and will have huge significance in clinical practice. Driven by this need, we here report the design of highly crystalline antibody-conjugated multifunctional multicolor-luminescence nanosystems derived from the naturally available popular tropical fruits mangoes and prunes, which have the ability to detect breast cancer heterogeneity via the selective separation and accurate identification of TNBC and HER-2(+) or ER/PR(+) breast cancer cells selectively and simultaneously. The detailed synthesis and characterization of the multifunctional multicolor nanosystems derived from tropical fruits have been reported. Experimental results show that by changing the fruits multicolor-luminescence carbon dots (LCDs) can be developed, which is mainly due to the formation of highly crystalline nanodots with different heavy metal dopants and is also due to the presence of different types of surface functional group. Experimental data that are presented show that the multifunctional multicolor nanoprobe can be used for the highly selective and simultaneous capture of targeted TNBC and HER-2(+) or ER(+) breast cancer cells, and the capture efficiency can be as high as 98%. Reported data indicate that multicolor fluorescence imaging can be used for mapping heterogeneous breast cancer cells simultaneously and can distinguish targeted TNBC from non-targeted HER-2(+) or ER/PR(+) breast cancer. Our finding suggests the excellent potential of the design of multicolor nanosystems derived from natural fruits for detecting cancer heterogeneity in clinical practice.
National Multicenter and Multiyear Review of Complications Following Fluoroscopic Gastrostomy in Patients Covered by Medicare and Medicaid

Objective This study aims to assess the postoperative complication rates associated with fluoroscopically placed gastrostomy tubes. Background Fluoroscopically placed gastrostomy tubes are a relatively common procedure performed by interventional radiologists. Few studies have been performed in the United States to access the complication profile of fluoroscopically placed gastrostomy tubes. Methods Total 51 million Medicare Standard Analytic Patient Records derived from Medicare parts A and B records from 2007 to 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. Only the patients undergoing fluoroscopic gastrostomy were included in this study. Patient demographics were stratified by age, sex, comorbidities, and peri- and postoperative complications as defined by International Classification of Diseases (ICD) 9 codes. Results Total 30,327 patients undergoing fluoroscopic gastrostomy were analyzed. Perioperative complications following these procedures were low, with 61 (0.02%) patients experiencing pneumoperitoneum, 130 (0.43%) experiencing ileus, 16 (0.05%) experiencing esophageal/gastric perforation, and 30 (0.09%) patients experiencing intra-abdominal injury. Most common postoperative complications included abdominal wall pain (n = 2,808, 9.25%), bleeding (n = 1,353, 4.46%), and mechanical complications (n = 1,435, 4.73%). Conclusion Fluoroscopic guidance is a safe method for gastrostomy placement, with exceedingly low rates of peri- and postoperative complications.
A Simplified PLL-Like Observer for Sensorless PMSM Applications

Control of synchronous AC motors requires accurate knowledge of the orientation of the rotor magnetic field. This could most directly be obtained via measurement of the rotor mechanical angle, but the sensors required for this approach introduce cost and reliability issues to the system. Phase-locked loops (PLLs) are commonly utilized in conjunction with measured or observed back EMF signals to achieve a sensorless implementation. The stability of such systems, especially in the presence of unknown back EMFs, is difficult to prove. An observer design is proposed in this work which seeks to observe the rotor electrical angle without the need for intermediate observation of the back EMFs or a PLL. This holistic design is motivated by a Lyapunov stability analysis which proves boundedness of all observer signals and convergence of the observed rotor electrical angle. This analysis is further validated by experimental results.
Opening Wedge Osteotomy for the Correction of Adolescent Tibia Vara.

Background Tibia vara, or Blount's disease, is a pathologic angular deformity of upper tibial physis causing a bow leg deformity. Adolescent Blount's disease may be unilateral or bilateral and is diagnosed during or just before the adolescent growth spurt. In addition to predisposing genetic factors, biomechanical overload of the proximal tibial physis causes asymmetric growth leading to a varus deformity.Surgical intervention is usually required for adolescent Blount's disease. Hemiepiphysiodesis has had some success in arresting or correcting the deformity. Tibial osteotomy can achieve correction acutely with internal or external fixation or gradually with external fixation.This article reports the outcomes of correcting adolescent tibia vara with a proximal opening wedge osteotomy (POWO) and internal fixation in nine patients with a primary diagnosis of Adolescent Blount's Disease. Methods We conducted a retrospective review of patients treated with POWO between April 2007 and July 2015. Fifty charts were selected using ICD9 codes for tibia vara and CPT codes for osteotomy. Nine patients (11 tibia) meeting eligibility criteria were identified. In addition to pre-operative data; operative factors, such as blood loss; and post-operative outcomes such as radiographic accuracy of correction, time to healing, time to full weight-bearing, number of office visits and complication rates were collected. Results Pre-operative radiographic measurements showed the varus deformity was primarily tibial. Post-operative correction demonstrated a mean correction of 17.64° (range, 7°-26°). Patients returned to full weight bearing status around 67 days after surgery and required very few follow-up visits during the course of treatment. Three of nine patients experienced complications including seroma requiring drainage, metallosis mistaken for infection leading to hardware removal, and a wound abscess treated with antibiotics (one patient each). No patients lost correction, experienced nerve palsy, compartment syndrome nor complained of leg length discrepancy. Conclusions Proximal opening wedge osteotomy (POWO) is a reproducible, safe and effective technique for correction of adolescent tibia vara, with potential advantages of fewer return visits and sooner return to weight bearing than external fixation. In select patients, it is a useful alternative to external fixation or closing wedge osteotomy.Level of Evidence: IV.
Designing Worship Services to Support African-American Persons Living with Dementia.

The church has played an integral role in the African-American community for a number of years. With the growth in population of African-American older adults living with dementia, it is critical for the church to understand how they can support these individuals in continuing their engagement in meaningful religious activities. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how to design or modify worship services to support African-Americans living with dementia. Interviews were conducted with church leaders, current and former caregivers, and service providers (n = 12). Analysis of their responses revealed worship services should include components in relation to the following categories: “simplicity,” “support,” “imagery and sound,” and “music.” Although participants held different views on the delivery of worship services for persons living with dementia, interview results provided key elements on how worship services can be meaningful and supportive of African-Americans living with dementia.
Instructional Modalities and Perspective Transformation: How Academic Librarians’ Experiences in Face-to-Face, Blended/Hybrid, and Online Instruction Influence Their Teaching Identities

As librarians’ instructional responsibilities diversify, it is useful to consider what factors influence how they see themselves as educators. In this research, the author used a survey instrument ...
On looking versus leaping: A situated multilevel approach to trait anger and the anger-aggression relationship

Abstract Prominent emotion theories contend that feelings prime actions, but such links have been challenged. To investigate potential dynamics of this type in a relatively structured manner, participants in three studies (total N = 466) indicated their levels of felt anger as well as their likelihoods of engaging in an aggressive action (unlabeled as such) in response to 10 provocation event descriptions. Multilevel modeling analyses revealed robust within-subject relationships between anger and aggression, such that aggressive behaviors were considerably more likely if anger had been aroused. In addition, such slopes varied by trait anger, such that anger arousal was a more potent trigger of corresponding behaviors at higher, relative to lower, levels of the trait continuum. Further results, which revealed differences between proactive and reactive forms of aggression, point to the utility of feeling-action probes in understanding the social cognitive processes that contribute to individual differences in emotional impulsivity.
Clinical Samples for SARS-CoV-2 Detection: Review of the Early Literature

In January 2020, a cluster of pneumonia cases was reported in Wuhan, China. A global pandemic followed. The infection, called novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Common symptoms of COVID-19 illness included fever, cough, and abnormal findings on chest computed tomography. Nucleic acid testing, in the form of real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, is essential for diagnosing COVID-19 from respiratory samples from infected patients. Still, many questions remain surrounding the optimization of pre-analytical factors, such as specimen selection, collection, and transport. This review summarizes the current publications that describe viral density and specimen suitability for molecular detection methods. Of note, many of the reports represent studies with small sample sizes, and information may change as more is learned about specimen types as the pandemic continues.
Impact of Mental Stress and Anger on Indices of Diastolic Function in Patients With Heart Failure.

Abstract Background Under controlled conditions, mental stress can provoke decrements in ventricular function, yet little is known about the effect of mental stress on diastolic function in patients with heart failure (HF). Methods and Results Twenty-four HF patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF; n=23 men; mean LVEF=27±9%; n=13 with baseline elevated E/e’) completed daily assessment of perceived stress, anger, and negative emotion for 7 days, followed by a laboratory mental stress protocol. 2D Doppler echocardiography was performed at rest and during sequential anger recall and mental arithmetic tasks to assess indices of diastolic function (E, e’, and E/e’). Fourteen patients (63.6%) experienced stress-induced increases in E/e', with an average baseline to stress change of 6.5±9.3, driven primarily by decreases in early LV relaxation (e’). Age-adjusted linear regression revealed an association between 7-day anger and baseline E/e’; patients reporting greater anger in the week prior to mental stress exhibited higher resting LV diastolic pressure. Conclusions In patients with HFrEF, mental stress can provoke acute worsening of LV diastolic pressure, and recent anger is associated with worse resting LV diastolic pressure. In patients vulnerable to these effects, repeated stress exposures or experiences of anger may have implications for long-term outcomes.
Preferential Flow in Riparian Groundwater: Gateways for Watershed Solute Transport and Implications for Water Quality Management

Riparian zones are key gateways for solutes in watersheds, including nutrients and pollutants moving toward the stream network. In human‐dominated landscapes, they are widely used as buffers to remove pollutants at substantial cumulative cost yet vary widely in their effectiveness, and much is unknown about the detailed processes involved and their controls. Preferential flow is widespread in riparian zones, oriented both horizontally toward the channel (often bypassing beneficial reactions in the soil during baseflow) or vertically (enhancing beneficial reactions by infiltrating surface flow during storms). Preferential flow thus contributes to widespread variability of riparian zone/buffer function, with implications for legacy nutrients stored in upland soils and aquifers. This creates a disconnect between functional riparian definitions based on flow and transport processes and common operational ones based on buffer width. Enhanced field characterization of preferential flow path spatial distribution and connectivity, together with developments in simulating preferential solute transport in soils, would allow better prediction of spatial and temporal variation in riparian zone function. Such prediction in turn would allow improved buffer function by tailoring buffer design to site specific conditions, thereby reconciling functional and operational viewpoints.
Mm-Wave Beam Steering Antenna Based on Extended Hemispherical Lens Antenna Subarrays

A mm-wave beam steering antenna based on ${L}$ lens antenna subarrays (LASs) is presented. Different from the recent work, the antenna employs extended hemispherical dielectric lenses and achieves 2D beam steering. To maximize the scan range with minimum number of antennas $(M)$ , the solution of the disk covering problem is employed to find initial positions of the feed antennas. A new design procedure is developed to maximize the scan range and reduce side lobes with systematically employed 3D full-wave simulation based parametric sweeps on lens geometry and feed antenna positions. Compared to the conventional planar phased array antenna occupying the equivalent aperture ( $L*M$ elements), the presented antenna utilizes a single phase shifter per lens $(L)$ to reduce the hardware complexity. It is demonstrated that the presented antenna performs with the largest scan range and low side lobe level (SLL) compared to previous subarray-based antenna arrays. Specifically, the antenna operates at 38 GHz with $L=7,\ M=17$ and provides ${12.8\%\ \mathrm{S}_{11} dBi peak realized gain, a scan range of ${80^{\mathrm{o}}}$ and SLL below −9 dB.
Challenges and opportunities of unmanned aerial vehicles in agriculture in the next decade

Unmanned aerial vehicles have been available for more than a decade and have been part of tests and efforts to be incorporated in agricultural applications, which was achieved to a minor degree. Still, advancements in science and technology in the same period have achieved maturity allowing the transition of this found knowledge into farming decision-making agents. Still, challenges are present towards the “last mile problem” or the seamless integration of UAV products into farming activities. Besides, having addressed the fundamental questions about UAV technology in the last decade, UAVs can answer questions that have been challenging to respond to in agriculture and open opportunities to advance the technification and automation of farming further. This presentation will provide a personal view of unmanned aerial vehicles’ challenges, and opportunities as regulation, technology, and algorithms evolve for the next decade.
Improving rangeland climate services for ranchers and pastoralists with social science

Rangeland climate services — knowledge resources that integrate information on climate to facilitate decision-making for ranchers and pastoralists — have the potential to facilitate sustainable decisions under variable climate conditions. Yet the design of climate services often fails to fully address the behavioral, cultural, social, and institutional factors that motivate or disincentivize end-users. Thus, we review how research on risk and uncertainty preferences, different ways of knowing, social relations, and institutional arrangements affect the use of these services. We focus on web-based climate services and provide two case examples of services used in the United States and globally. We conclude with considerations for improving rangeland climate services, for instance, by including end-users in the development process.
Impact of Nonspecific Adsorption to Metal Surfaces in Ion Pair-RP LC-MS Impurity Analysis of Oligonucleotides.

Abstract Nonspecific adsorption has been a consistent challenge in the analysis of oligonucleotides. Nonspecific adsorption is a result of interactions between charged acidic analytes and adsorption sites present in metallic surfaces located in the fluidic path of chromatography systems. Due to their high surface area, adsorption to column frits is especially concerning. Poor peak shape, low recovery and compromised LOQ have been associated with this phenomenon. Alternative methods including substitution of stainless steel for different hardware materials and mobile phase additives have been explored in an attempt to minimize this issue. Chemical modification of metal surfaces using hybrid surface technology (HST) by-passes the limitation of stainless steel construction material by forming a hybrid organic/inorganic layer that acts as a barrier and limits nonspecific interactions. In this study we explore the implications of this new technology in sensitive analysis and determination of relative impurity levels of oligonucleotides. Higher relative impurity levels and better reproducibility were obtained with columns using HST.
Value added data archiving

Researchers in the Molecular Sciences Research Center (MSRC) of Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) currently generate massive amounts of scientific data. The amount of data that will need to be managed by the turn of the century is expected to increase significantly. Automated tools that support the management, maintenance, and sharing of this data are minimal. Researchers typically manage their own data by physically moving datasets to and from long term storage devices and recording a dataset's historical information in a laboratory notebook. Even though it is not the most efficient use of resources, researchers have tolerated the process. The solution to this problem will evolve over the next three years in three phases. PNL plans to add sophistication to existing multilevel file system (MLFS) software by integrating it with an object database management system (ODBMS). The first phase in the evolution is currently underway. A prototype system of limited scale is being used to gather information that will feed into the next two phases. This paper describes the prototype system, identifies the successes and problems/complications experienced to date, and outlines PNL's long term goals and objectives in providing a permanent solution.