cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Using Information Systems to Improve a Mid-Sized Local Health Department's Effectiveness in a Time of Rapid Change.

BACKGROUND Informatics capacity building is resource and personnel intensive. Many local health departments (LHDs) face tradeoffs between using their resources to carry out existing mandates and using resources to build their capacity, for example, through informatics, to deliver essential services in a more effective and efficient manner. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this case study is to describe how a mid-sized LHD built and used information systems to support its strategic objectives, clinical services, and surveillance. METHODS The mid-sized LHD described here was chosen for its "best practices" in informatics capacity building and use by NACCHO's study advisory committee. To conduct the case study, authors reviewed departmental documents and conducted semistructured interviews with key informants in the agency. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, thematically coded, and analyzed. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS Findings from the case study suggest that including capacity building in informatics as a strategic priority is one of the most effective ways to ensure that informatics are assessed, updated, and included in resource decisions. Leadership at all levels is critical to the successful implementation of informatics as is proactive partnership with community partners who have overlapping goals. The efficiency and effectiveness of LHDs rely on informatics capacity, especially when resources are challenged.
Deep learning assessment of tumor proliferation in breast cancer histological images

Current analysis of tumor proliferation, the most salient breast cancer prognostic biomarker, is limited to subjective mitosis counting by pathologists in localized regions of tissue images. This study presents the first data-driven integrative approach to characterize the severity of tumor growth and spread on a categorical and molecular level, utilizing multiple biologically salient deep learning classifiers to develop a comprehensive prognostic model. Our approach achieves pathologist-level performance on three-class categorical tumor severity prediction. It additionally pioneers prediction of molecular expression data from a tissue image, obtaining a Spearman's rank correlation coefficient of 0.60 with ex vivo mean calculated RNA expression. Furthermore, our framework is applied to identify over two hundred unprecedented biomarkers critical to the accurate assessment of tumor proliferation, validating our proposed integrative pipeline as the first to holistically and objectively analyze histopathological images.
MRI features of perianal fistulas: is there a difference between Crohn’s and non-Crohn’s patients?

Though perianal fistulas are commonly seen in patients with Crohn’s disease, they can also be seen in patients without inflammatory bowel disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate MR imaging differences of perianal fistulas in patients with and without Crohn’s disease. Our retrospective search from January 2012 to December 2015 of the Radiology database for perianal fistula yielded 207 patients. Only patients with dedicated MR fistula protocol studies were included, whereas patients with previous anal surgery or anastomosis, anorectal tumors, and equivocal findings that could not be definitely assessed as a fistula were excluded. The following features were assessed: anatomic type of fistula (Parks Classification), luminal origin (hour clock position), anal verge distance, signs of acute inflammation, circumference of anus involved by inflammation, presence of rectal inflammation. and abscess. One hundred and twenty six of 207 patients met inclusion criteria. Of these, 96 (76.2%) had Crohn’s disease and 30 (23.8%) did not. The most common fistulas identified were transphincteric (38.5% of Crohn’s and 50% of non-Crohn’s) and intersphincteric (33.3% of Crohn’s and 35.4% of non-Crohn’s). An abscess was associated in 41 cases, 32 (33.3%) in the Crohn’s group and 9 (30.0%) in the non-Crohn’s group. Rectal inflammation was present in 29 patients with Crohn’s disease (29.2%) and in 2 without Crohn’s (6.7%). This finding was statistically significant (p = 0.0009). Our study demonstrates that while both groups can have similar MR imaging features, accompanying rectal inflammation was more commonly seen in Crohn’s disease.
A clinicopathologic study on SS18 fusion positive head and neck synovial sarcomas.

Objective To determine clinicopathologic factors on survival in patients with head and neck synovial sarcoma.
Associations Between Platelet Count and Survival and Disease Progression In Thrombocytopenic Patients with Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Abstract 2905 Introduction: Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a group of malignant bone marrow stem cell disorders characterized by a predisposition for transformation to acute myelogeneous leukemia (AML). MDS disorders are heterogeneous in their morphology, cytogenetics, survival time, and ability to transform to AML. Although numerous classification schemes have been developed to provide a reproducible method for estimating patient survival and risk of leukemic evolution, research continues to identify factors that affect prognosis and survival time (e.g., treatment type, WHO FAB subgroups, karyotype, and transfusion status) and refine existing classification schemes. The goal of this analysis was to evaluate the effect of platelet counts on survival and disease progression to AML among thrombocytopenic (platelet count 9 /L) MDS patients (n = 303) using the International MDS Risk Analysis Workshop (IMRAW) database. Methods: The IMRAW dataset includes demographic, clinical and prognostic information for patients treated in the United States, Europe, and Japan who were diagnosed with MDS between 1972 and 1994. Platelet count (× 10 9 /L) was categorized as follows: 0 to Results: Among thrombocytopenic MDS patients (n = 303), one-, two- and three-year survival were 58%, 44%, and 33%, respectively. Median survival was 19.6 months, with the lowest among those with a platelet count 0 to 9 /L (10.9 months) and the highest among those with a platelet count 90 to 9 /L (33.2 months). Patients with platelet counts (x 10 9 /L) 9 /L), the one-, two- and three-year survival were 83.1%, 68.6%, and 59.1%, respectively, and the median survival was 47.3 months. Results of Cox models for thrombocytopenic MDS patients suggested an increased risk of death with platelet counts 9 /L compared to platelet counts 90 to 9 /L and no relationship was shown between strength of the HR and decreasing platelet count when adjusted for gender, age, year of diagnosis and institution (Table 1). Among thrombocytopenic MDS patients who developed AML (n = 73), median time to AML diagnosis from MDS diagnosis was 9.2 months. One-, two- and three-year evolution to AML rates were 21%, 30%, and 38%, respectively. Conclusions: Platelet count in thrombocytopenic MDS patients may be clinically relevant to survival and should be evaluated further. Platelet count does not appear to be associated with risk of evolution to AML. Evaluation of these relationships in a larger sample is warranted. Disclosures: Yong: Amgen Inc: Employment, Equity Ownership. Kuehn: Amgen Inc: Research Funding. Kelsh: Amgen Inc: Research Funding. Wagner: Amgen Inc: Research Funding. Yang: Amgen Inc: Employment, Equity Ownership. Franklin: Amgen Inc: Employment, Equity Ownership.
Still Dynamic: Image and Seriality at the Dawn of Television

This chapter connects experiments with the cinematic interval in 1960s Japanese films to the lexicons of emerging media such as manga and television animation. It examines the significant new use of freeze frames and serialized stills in a wide range of films during this period, positioning these techniques in relation to manga and anime practices that similarly highlighted the oscillation between stillness and movement. In so doing it draws attention to how the reimagining of film language through these newly-developing temporal systems at once bound Japanese cinema to international film style and integrated cinema into the transforming domestic mediascape, highlighting film’s image-ness at the very moment that images were redefining reality.
Impact of diverse waveforms on clutter statistics

This paper addresses the impact of diverse waveforms on clutter statistics in the context of waveform diversity for multi-functional operation from a specific platform as well as for multiple sensing from multiple platforms. A key issue in this context is that of clutter mitigation via the use of diverse waveforms. Classical space-time adaptive processing (STAP) methods for radar target detection can be viewed in the context of a whiten and match filter. To this end, we seek efficient waveforms that lend themselves for such processing. This paper specifically considers a statistical analysis of experimental data collected at low grazing angles to validate the fact that VV polarized data conforms to Rayleigh scatter, while HH data does not. Consequently, VV data is suitable for whiten and match processing adopted in conventional radar STAP.
High-Temperature Corrosion by Carboxylic Acids and Sulfidation under Refinery Conditions—Mechanism, Model, and Simulation

In crude oil refineries, high temperature corrosion in nonaqueous phase, predominantly by carboxylic acids (also known as naphthenic acids in crude oil) and sulfidation, is an old problem and has been studied for almost a century. Despite the large body of laboratory study and field experience, the mechanism of corrosion by naphthenic acids and sulfidation is not fully understood so that models in the public domain are empirical rather than mechanistic. Previously, a protective inner iron oxide scale was found when both naphthenic acids and sulfur compounds were present in our prior corrosion study. In the current study, it is shown that the high-temperature corrosion by naphthenic acids and sulfidation depends on the solid state diffusion of iron through the inner scale. It is postulated that corrosion rates are governed by either chemical kinetics on the surface of the inner scale or self-diffusion of iron through the inner scale. A model was built to simulate this mechanism for corrosion and validated ...
Approaches to maximize sgRNA-barcode coupling in Perturb-seq screens

Perturb-seq is a platform for single-cell gene expression profiling of pooled CRISPR screens. Like many functional genomics platforms, Perturb-seq relies on lentiviral transduction to introduce perturbation libraries to cells. On this platform, these are barcoded sgRNA libraries. A critical consideration for performing Perturb-seq experiments is uncoupling of barcodes from linked sgRNA expression cassettes, which can occur during lentiviral transduction of co-packaged libraries due to reverse transcriptase-mediated template switching. This problem is common to lentiviral libraries designed with linked variable regions. Here, we demonstrate that recombination between Perturb-seq vectors scrambles linked variable regions separated by 2 kb. This predicts information loss in Perturb-seq screens performed with co-packaged libraries. We also demonstrate ways to address this problem and discuss best practices for single-cell screens with transcriptional readouts.
Computer Aided Ultrasonic Porosity Assessment for Cast Aluminum Alloy

Successful determination of the volume fraction and pore size of porosity in cast aluminum by ultrasonic attenuation spectroscopy has previously been reported [1]. Cast aluminum samples having a dilute distribution of pores ranging from 1% to 5% volume fraction and an average pore radius from 50 µm to 500 µm were considered.
Strategic Social Media Engagement

Interactions between organizations and the community are different in social media. Firms no longer control their message and its permeation. Social media participants, including current and potential customers and collaborators, create and distribute content and manage its dispersion. Some proactive organizations have pioneered effective social media engagement strategy to engage stakeholders and manage their brand. Early adopter organizations in social media can benefit from these strategies of social media engagement. Successful strategies for social media engagement create rich opportunities for collaborative value creation and demand generation. In this paper, we address the research question: “How can organizations strategically engage in social media to manage their brand and collaboratively generate insight with current and potential customers?” This paper presents a theory-guided interpretive case study to identify potential answers and provide directions for researchers and practitioners.
In Situ Dendrite Suppression Study of Nanolayer Encapsulated Li Metal Enabled by Zirconia Atomic Layer Deposition.

Progressing toward the emerging era of high-energy-density batteries, stable and safe employment of lithium (Li) metal anodes is highly desired. The primary concern with Li metal anodes is their uncontrollable dendrites growth and extreme sensitivity to parasitic degradation reactions, raising the alarms for battery safety and shelf life. Nanolayer protection encapsulation, which is conformal and ionically conductive with a high-κ dielectric property, can suppress the degradation and empower stabilization of Li metal. In this work, engineering of a zirconia (ZrO2) encapsulation layer on Li metal enabled by atomic layer deposition (ALD) was employed and investigated for surface-enhanced dendrite suppression properties using in situ optical observations and electrochemical cycling. The ALD process involved a combination of plasma subcycle activation and thermal subcycle activation in increasing the surface functionalization and chemisorption sites for precursors to obtain highly dense and conformal depositi...
E. E. Just's broad, yet hidden, influence on modern cell and developmental biology

This year, 2019, marks the centennial of embryologist E. E. Just's discovery of what is known as the fast block to polyspermy. Just's observation of the subtle changes that occur at the egg's surface during fertilization (and in experimental parthenogenesis) led him to postulate that the egg, and indeed every cell, possesses a property he called independent irritability, which represents the cell's ability to respond in a physiologically-relevant way to a variety of signals or triggers. In this paper, I argue that Just's concept of independent irritability informed his contemporary Johannes Holtfreter as Holtfreter attempted to explain the phenomena of embryonic induction and competence and that Holtfreter, in turn, influenced Marc Kirschner and John Gerhart in their formulation of the theory of facilitated variation. Just's influence is especially evident in Gerhart and Kirschner's presentations of what they call weak linkage-a property of living systems that allows core processes and components to be mixed and matched in different ways to generate novel traits. Unfortunately, the connection between Holtfreter's work and Just's has remained hidden. This paper gives examples of phenomena that exhibit weak linkage, and it lays out the case that Just's concept of independent irritability, through Holtfreter, Gerhart, and Kirschner, has broadly infiltrated modern cell and developmental biology.
The Advocacy Journal Club.

Objectives To describe a method of educating pathologists about health policy. Methods The Advocacy Journal Club was a series of six conferences. Topics were of those in the news or affecting local practice. Participants reviewed preparatory readings, completed a six- to 10-question pretest, attended an interactive presentation stressing advocacy groups' efforts, and completed a posttest. All were invited to complete a survey after the sessions. Results Faculty and residents had increased posttest scores following each presentation with a significant difference in four and three sessions, respectively. More than 80% agreed they could discuss the topics with others and understood how regulations affect practice. More than 90% agreed that they gained an understanding of how involvement in organizations' advocacy initiatives affects policy. Conclusions We present a method for educating pathologists about policy and the role of professional societies that could be implemented by nearly all graduate medical education programs.
Scaphoid Waist Nonunion in an 8-Year-Old: A Rare Occurrence.

Case. Historically, the most common pattern of pediatric scaphoid injury described is at the distal pole, which has a high rate of success with nonoperative management. Injury patterns have evolved as children are more commonly presenting with adult-type fracture patterns. We present the case of a scaphoid waist fracture in an 8-year-old male that resulted in nonunion and required surgical fixation. Conclusion. This case highlights the trend of adult pattern scaphoid fractures in the pediatric population and the utility of magnetic resonance imaging in patients who do not have complete carpal bone ossification at the time of initial radiographic evaluation.
State Machine Fault Protection Architecture for Aerospace Vehicle Guidance, Navigation, and Control

Aerospace vehicles are vulnerable to hardware and software faults that lead to mission-critical failures. Advances in onboard fault protection capability are necessary as both terrestrial and space...
Chapter 13 – Rodents

Much of the author’s early career was devoted to the large group of native American mice in the genus Peromyscus. Because of their abundance, modest body size, and relative ease of capture and husbandry, these and other rodents were among the first non-Drosophila creatures to be assayed during the allozyme era, and likewise during the early era of mitochondrial DNA research. As such, these otherwise unassuming creatures have played a disproportionately large role in the historical development of the fields of molecular population genetics, phylogeography, and phylogenetics.
Bayesian Analysis of Heterogeneous Mediation

Mediation analysis is used to study the relationship between stimulus and response in the presence of intermediate, generative variables. The traditional approach to mediation analysis is based on statistical significance of coefficients in aggregate regression models that assume homogeneity of response. We show that the results from this model are neither necessary nor sufficient to claim the presence of mediation. We propose a Bayesian mixture model for mediation analysis that incorporates heterogeneity in mediating behavior. The Bayesian nature of our model allows us to compute the probability that specific respondents follow a mediated versus a direct relationship between stimulus and response, where the mediating relationship reflects conditional statistical independence. We find support for our proposed mixture model in empirical applications and demonstrate additional insights that can enhance the understanding of the mediating mechanism.
Mismatch repair proteins in recurrent prostate cancer.

Abstract Normal cell function requires strict control over the repair of DNA damage, which prevents excessive mutagenesis. An enhanced accumulation of mutations results in the multistep process generally known as carcinogenesis. Defects in repair pathways fuel such mutagenesis by allowing reiterative cycles of mutation, selection, and clonal expansion that drive cancer progression. The repair of mismatches is an important mechanism in the prevention of such genetic instability. In addition, proteins of this pathway have the unique ability to function in DNA damage response by inducing apoptosis when irreparable damage is encountered. Though originally identified primarily in association with a predisposition to hereditary colon cancer, mismatch repair defects have been identified in many other cancer types, including prostate cancer. From the first discovery of microsatellite instability in prostate cancer cell lines and tumor samples, variations in protein levels and a possible association with recurrence and aggression of disease have been described. Current results suggest that the involvement of mismatch repair proteins in prostate cancer may differ from that found in colorectal cancer, in the type of proteins and protein defects involved and the type of causative mutations. Additional work is clearly needed to investigate this involvement and the possibility that such defects may affect treatment response and androgen independence.
Workup of Diarrhea

Diarrhea is a common symptom in both inpatient and outpatient settings. This teaching script will describe how to differentiate acute from chronic diarrhea. If chronic diarrhea is identified, the learner will then be introduced to the appropriate evaluation by considering the presence or absence of concerning symptoms and stool consistency.
Understand the Functions of Scaffold Proteins in Cell Signaling by a Mesoscopic Simulation Method

Scaffold proteins are central players in regulating the spatial-temporal organization of many important signaling pathways in cells. They offer physical platforms to downstream signaling proteins so that their transient interactions in a crowded and heterogeneous environment of cytosol can be greatly facilitated. However, most scaffold proteins tend to simultaneously bind more than one signaling molecule, which leads to the spatial assembly of multimeric protein complexes. The kinetics of these protein oligomerizations are difficult to quantify by traditional experimental approaches. To understand the functions of scaffold proteins in cell signaling, we developed a, to our knowledge, new hybrid simulation algorithm in which both spatial organization and binding kinetics of proteins were implemented. We applied this new technique to a simple network system that contains three molecules. One molecule in the network is a scaffold protein, whereas the other two are its binding targets in the downstream signaling pathway. Each of the three molecules in the system contains two binding motifs that can interact with each other and are connected by a flexible linker. By applying the new simulation method to the model, we show that the scaffold proteins will promote not only thermodynamics but also kinetics of cell signaling given the premise that the interaction between the two signaling molecules is transient. Moreover, by changing the flexibility of the linker between two binding motifs, our results suggest that the conformational fluctuations in a scaffold protein play a positive role in recruiting downstream signaling molecules. In summary, this study showcases the capability of computational simulation in understanding the general principles of scaffold protein functions.
Early-hospital readmission after generalized status epilepticus during stroke hospitalization.

Abstract Objective To assess the relationship between generalized convulsive status epilepticus (GCSE) during an index stroke hospitalization and occurrence of 30-day hospital readmission. Methods Retrospective analysis of data within the 2014 National Readmission Database, a national dataset tracking readmissions in the United States. We identified patients with an index discharge diagnosis of stroke using the International Classification of Disease, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (433.X1, 434.X1, and 436 for ischemic stroke and 430, 431, 432.0, 432.1, and 432.9 for hemorrhagic stroke) and a subset of patients with GCSE (345.3). We explored the association between GCSE and 30-day readmission using multivariable logistic regression, while applying recommended survey weights. Results Of 271,148 adults with a primary diagnosis of stroke hospitalizations in the US in 2014, 591 (0.21%) had GCSE. The prevalence of GCSE was 0.14% among ischemic stroke patients and 0.64% among hemorrhagic stroke patients. Readmission rates were 11.9% for all strokes, 11.6% for ischemic strokes, and 14.2% for hemorrhagic strokes. Readmission rates were significantly higher for those with GCSE vs. without GCSE regardless of stroke type. Adjusted odds ratios for the association of GCSE with 30-day readmission were 1.30 (95% CI: 1.02–1.65) for all strokes, 1.19 (95% CI: 0.84–1.71) for ischemic strokes, and 1.39 (95% CI: 0.92–2.10 0.09) for hemorrhagic stroke. Conclusion Approximately one in eight hospitalized stroke patients who experience in-hospital GCSE are re-admitted to a hospital within 30 days with a nominally higher rate of readmissions among those with hemorrhagic stroke.
Indigenous resistance, planetary dystopia, and the politics of environmental justice

This article examines the critical interplay among Indigenous resurgence, settler colonialism, and the politics of environmental justice. Critical questions need to be asked: How are Indigenous pol...
Roads to Racialization: Africans, Asians, and Panethnic and Ethnic Racialization in the United States

In this paper I compare African and Asian racialization in the United States. Drawing on insights from path dependency analysis, I argue that key contextual factors help explain some of the wide differences in the racialization of the two populations. I examine the international context, the constitutional-legal context, and the population and workforce context to show how major differences in each of those factors helped to shape racializing policies, pushing African and Asian racialization along two very different paths. I suggest that we conceptualize African racialization as occurring at a panethnic level—applied to everyone with ancestry in sub-Saharan Africa—while key aspects of Asian racialization operated at an ethnic level—focused on specific nationality (or “ethnic”) groups. These differences were not due to any apparent differences in intensity of prejudice against Africans and Asians, but rather were the consequence of the way the contextual factors constrained racialization in very different ways.
Optical Biosensor Platforms Display Varying Sensitivity for the Direct Detection of Influenza RNA.

Detection methods that do not require nucleic acid amplification are advantageous for viral diagnostics due to their rapid results. These platforms could provide information for both accurate diagnoses and pandemic surveillance. Influenza virus is prone to pandemic-inducing genetic mutations, so there is a need to apply these detection platforms to influenza diagnostics. Here, we analyzed the Fast Evaluation of Viral Emerging Risks (FEVER) pipeline on ultrasensitive detection platforms, including a waveguide-based optical biosensor and a flow cytometry bead-based assay. The pipeline was also evaluated in silico for sequence coverage in comparison to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) influenza A and B diagnostic assays. The influenza FEVER probe design had a higher tolerance for mismatched bases than the CDC’s probes, and the FEVER probes altogether had a higher detection rate for influenza isolate sequences from GenBank. When formatted for use as molecular beacons, the FEVER probes detected influenza RNA as low as 50 nM on the waveguide-based optical biosensor and 1 nM on the flow cytometer. In addition to molecular beacons, which have an inherently high background signal we also developed an exonuclease selection method that could detect 500 pM of RNA. The combination of high-coverage probes developed using the FEVER pipeline coupled with ultrasensitive optical biosensors is a promising approach for future influenza diagnostic and biosurveillance applications.
Operations and Consequences of the Legal Personality of International Organizations

The article illustrates the fundamental aspects of the international legal personality of international organizations (IOs) under international law. Firstly, the work addresses to the main aspects of operations of the international legal personality of International organizations and discusses the consequences stemming from its operation. To this end, the research studies the international legal personality of both universal and regional organizations in their constituent treaties in regard to operation and consequence’s perspectives.
Role of the National Bureau of Standards in calibration problems associated with air pollution measurements

The National Bureau of Standards (NBS) produces a limited number of Standard Reference Materials (SRM's) for air pollution and related analyses. The effort involved in the preparation and certification of these standards precludes production in large quantities or of great variety. The requirements for accuracy and stability of samples necessitate a considerable research effort prior to production of the actual SRM's. The decision as to what gas mixtures will be prepared as SRM's is based primarily on a demonstrated need modified by anticipated demand and by other obligations of the SRM program. The demand for these SRM's is increasing, and maintaining stocks of current SRM's must compete with the necessary research prior to issuance of new SRM's. Comparisons are presented of independent analyses of a number of SRM's currently in use for measurement of automotive emissions.
Raz on the Right to Autonomy

: In The Morality of Freedom, Joseph Raz argues against a right to autonomy. This argument helps to distinguish his theory from his competitors'. For, many liberal theories ground such a right. Some even defend entirely autonomy-based accounts of rights. This paper suggests that Raz's argument against a right to autonomy raises an important dilemma for his larger theory. Unless his account of rights is limited in some way, Raz's argument applies against almost all (purported) rights, not just a right to autonomy. But, on the traditional way of limiting accounts like his, Raz's account actually supports the conclusion that people have a right to autonomy. So, unless there is another way of limiting his account that does not have this consequence, Raz's argument against a right to autonomy does not go through.
A Sideways Glance at Chemical Reactivity

Ultrafast spectroscopy allows us to see what happens to parts of a molecule not directly involved in a chemical reaction.
The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and Race in America by Robert M. Entman and Andrew Rojecki. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000. 305 pp

(2003). The Black Image in the White Mind: Media and Race in America by Robert M. Entman and Andrew Rojecki. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000. 305 pp. American Journalism: Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 107-108.
Estimators without moments: The case of the reciprocal of a normal mean☆

Abstract The appropriateness of using an estimator which has no moments depends very much on the loss function. This is illustrated by an example. In this paper the properties of various estimates of the reciprocal of a normal mean are analyzed with respect to different kinds of loss functions.
The Female Condom: What We Have Learned Thus Far

High rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including HIV, and unplanned pregnancies persist in the United States. Women are more likely than men to be infected with an STD and to bear the burdens associated with unplanned pregnancies and with STD-associated complications. Condom use is advocated for sexually active individuals. However, for some persons condom use remains infrequent and inconsistent; this is particularly true for women, who may face substantial barriers (e.g., partner aggression) to enacting consistent condom use. The female condom is the only female-controlled barrier method currently available to protect women from STDs and unplanned pregnancies. In this paper, we review and summarize the literature on the female condom with regard to efficacy, use-effectiveness, and acceptability among potential and current users. In addition, we identify gaps in the literature and suggest paths for future research.
Elongate summit calderas as Neogene paleostress indicators in Antarctica

The orientations and ages of elongate summit calderas on major polygenetic volcanoes were compiled to document Miocene to Pleistocene Sh (minimum horizontal stress) directions on the western and northern flanks of the West Antarctic rift system. Miocene to Pleistocene summit calderas along the western Ross Sea show relatively consistent ENE long axis trends, which are at a high angle to the Transantarctic Mountain Front and parallel to the N77oE Sh direction at Cape Roberts. The elongation directions of many Miocene to Pleistocene summit calderas in Marie Byrd Land parallel the alignment of polygenetic volcanoes in which they occur, except several Pleistocene calderas with consistent NNE to NE trends. The overall pattern of elongate calderas in Marie Byrd Land is probably due to a combination of structurally controlled orientations and regional stress fields in which Sh is oriented NNE to NE at a moderate to high angle to the trace of the West Antarctic rift system.
Impact of a Student Success Course on Undergraduate Academic Outcomes

Both community colleges and four-year institutions offer Student Success Courses (SSCs) to promote student engagement (self-regulated learning, SRL) and performance (grades, retention, and graduation). However, little work has been done to examine the holistic impact of SSC interventions or to determine which aspects of course curriculum most impact students’ learning and achievement. This study sought to fill this gap by (a) comparing grades and retention rates of 98 diverse course takers—predominately female (86%), average age of 24 years (SD = 6 years)—with those of a matched sample of noncourse takers, and (b) exploring course takers’ SRL engagement development during the course. Comparison students were obtained through a three-step matching procedure. Results of quantitative survey and performance data analysis demonstrated significant SRL development during the course, although course takers did not outperform their matched peers with regard to grades and retention. SRL test-taking strategies were ...
California Micro Devices Corp.: A Class Discussion Of Auditors Ethical, Legal, And Professional Responsibilities

This short case is best for an open discussion in an upper-division auditing class. The class discussion questions intensify students learning experience on (1) auditors ethical responsibility to resolve tough ethical issues, (2) auditors legal responsibility to detect fraudulent financial reporting, and (3) auditors professional responsibility to conform to auditing standards. Additional class discussion questions, optional hands-on internet experience, and class discussion guide are provided. The case illustrates how a high-technology company succumbed to the pressure of unrealistic financial goals in an industry that is characterized by rapid technology change, intense competitive pressure, and volatile demand patterns for computer chips. High-level management at the company orchestrated fraudulent financial reporting schemes by creating fictitious sales and shipping bogus inventories. The fraud was uncovered only after the companys Board of Directors appointed a third auditor to investigate the sophisticated fraudulent schemes. However, the action came a little too late as the shareholders began to file class-action securities lawsuits against the company and its former auditor.
Advances in data compression

A rigorous real-variables treatment of general data compression and encoding problems, centered on formulation and proof of relevant existence theorems and a unified formulation of source coding (both noiseless and with a fidelity criterion) in inaccurately or incompletely specified statistical environments. Difficulties in modeling of sources with unknown or imperfectly known statistical descriptions are analyzed and source codes (SC) are classified (variable-rate noiseless SC, fixed-rate noiseless SC) and analyzed, along with types of code sequences (weighted-universal, maximin-universal, strongly or weakly minimax-universal). Universal coding on video data, variable-rate coding with distortion, and distortion-rate functions are discussed. Design strategies for universal coding algorithms are suggested, but the article is not oriented to specific methods of synthesizing data compression systems.
Adaptive ping control for track-holding in multistatic active sonar networks

Distributed multistatic active sonar networks provide an Anti-Submarine Warfare capability against small, quiet, threat submarines in the harsh clutter-saturated littoral and deeper ocean environments. Adaptive ping control techniques provide the potential to significantly increase the multistatic network's performance, by pinging (in an optimum sense) the right source, at the right time, with the right waveform. This paper describes an automatic, adaptive ping control algorithm. It specifically addresses the “trackhold” objective, which is to adapt multistatic sonar operations to maintain and hold one or more target tracks which have been previously initiated (detected). The approach is unique in that it includes both sonar performance modeling and multistatic tracker outputs, in a closed-loop control structure. The paper motivates the approach, describes the algorithm, and shows some validating results. The evaluation utilizes a simple sonar performance model, a ping contact simulator, and a multistatic target tracker. Results are shown for a simple simulated scenario, showing the advantages of this adaptive ping control algorithm compared to using a preplanned, non-adaptive ping transmission schedule.
Clinical decision making: from theory to practice. Principles for making difficult decisions in difficult times.

IN THE last article I described several issues or "battles" that will be particularly contentious in the coming decade.1They relate to the evidence needed to justify use of a treatment, to the need to balance a treatment's benefits against its costs, and to the autonomy of physicians to answer these questions for themselves. (I will use the word "treatment" very broadly to encompass any type of health intervention.) One way or another, these issues will be resolved in the next few years. Setting aside for a moment the actual solutions that are developed, the process by which these issues are addressed will provide one of the most visible displays of how the medical profession manages itself and responds to an urgent social need. The main battlefield on which these issues will be resolved will be debates over coverage and guidelines for individual treatments. These debates will occur in
The effect of local tobacco sales laws on adolescent smoking initiation.

Abstract Background. More than 700 communities have en acted laws prohibiting the sale of tobacco to minors, but little is known about the impact of such laws on youth smoking behavior. The objective of this study was to determine whether local tobacco sales laws de crease the rate of progression to established smoking among adolescents. Methods. We conducted a prospective cohort study of 592 Massachusetts youths who did not smoke and were ages 12–15 years at the time of a baseline, random-digit-dial, telephone survey in 1993 and who were rein terviewed in 1997. Results. Youths living in towns with a local tobacco sales ordinance at baseline were significantly less likely to progress to established smoking (defined as having smoked at least 100 cigarettes in one's life) than youths living in a town without an ordinance (odds ratio = 0.60; 95% confidence interval 0.37, 0.97). The magnitude of this effect was unchanged after control ling for potential confounding variables. However, there was no relationship between living in a town with an ordinance and youths' perceived access to tobacco. Conclusions. Local tobacco sales laws are associated with reduced rates of adolescent smoking initiation, but in this setting, this effect did not appear to be medi ated through reduced access to cigarettes.
Acute optic neuritis: A virological study in relation to multiple sclerosis

Previous ultrastructural examination of peripheral blood lymphocytes revealed the presence of intranuclear filamentous structures in multiple sclerosis (MS) and in some optic neuritis (ON) patients. The present investigation was undertaken in the attempt to correlate the presence of such structures with the etiology of ON and MS and possibly to demonstrate the viral origin of the filaments. Suitable virological and serological techniques were used to detect and isolate infectious agents from peripheral blood samples and body excretions of 12 monosymptomatic ON patients at their first acute attack. Nevertheless, any efforts to demonstrate the presence of a virus in these patients have been unsuccessful: no evidence of active viral infection was obtained by serological studies of serum and cerebrospinal fluid samples, nor could viral antigens or inclusions be observed by immunofluorescence and cytochemical analysis. Negative results were also obtained from studies performed in parallel on MS patients and various controls. The significance of the failure to isolate infectious agents from either ON and MS patients is discussed.
Market Power and Its Control in the Food System

Invited addresses to a learned society may punctuate one's professional career. Initial invitations generally are extended to the young, the ambitious, the subtle mind to whom the association looks as the source of future scientific contributions of enduring value. Does, then, the invitation to present a fellow's address indicate that, in the eyes of the association, the invitee is near career's end? Perhaps so. But I am not here today to deliver my last will and testament. Rather, I shall exercise the prerogative of the invitee by using the occasion to take stock of what has happened in my corner of the profession. I shall first review some broad organizational changes and then discuss several public policy issues raised by these changes. In his fellows address in 1980, A. C. "Oscar" Hoffman spoke of some matters that I shall address today. In a personal dialogue with Hoffman extending over twenty-five years, my own views have been tempered by his beliefs. But despite much agreement, Hoffman and I continue to disagree sufficiently to incite animated conversation. And, though I concur in much of his vision of modern capitalistic economies, I have somewhat greater faith than he in the strength of market forces and in the effectiveness of instruments of social control that keep desirable competitive rivalry alive, if not entirely well.
Distinguishing genetic from nongenetic medical tests: some implications for antidiscrimination legislation.

Genetic discrimination is becoming an increasingly important problem in the United States. Information acquired from genetic tests has been used by insurance companies to reject applications for insurance policies and to refuse payment for the treatment of illnesses. Numerous states and the United States Congress have passed or are considering passage of laws that would forbid such use of genetic information by health insurance companies. Here we argue that much of this legislation is severely flawed because of the difficulty in distinguishing genetic from nongenetic tests. In addition, barring the use by insurance companies of a genetic test but not a nongenetic test (conceivably for the same multifactorial disease) raises issues of fairness in health insurance. These arguments suggest that ultimately the problems arising from genetic discrimination cannot be solved by narrowly focused legislation but only by a modification of the entire health care system.
New surveys of the Chesapeake Bay impact structure suggest melt pockets and target-structure effect

We present high-resolution gravity and magnetic field survey results over the 85-km- diameter Chesapeake Bay impact structure. Whereas a continuous melt sheet is antici- pated at a crater this size, shallow-source magnetic field anomalies of ;100 nT instead suggest that impact melt pooled in kilometer-scaled pockets surrounding the base of a central peak. A central anomaly of ;300 nT may represent additional melt or rock that underwent shock-induced remagnetization. Models predict that the total volume of the melt ranges from ;0.4 to 10 km 3 , a quantity that is several orders of magnitude smaller than expected for an impact structure this size. However, this volume is within predictions given a transient crater of diameter of 20-40 km for a target covered with water and sedimentary deposits such that melt fragments were widely dispersed at the time of impact. Gravity data delineate a gently sloping inner basin and a central peak via a contrast between crystalline and sedimentary rock. Both features are ovoid, oriented parallel to larger preimpact basement structures. Conceptual models suggest how lateral differences in rock strength due to these preimpact structures helped to shape the crater's morphology during transient-crater modification.
Cloverleaf Monolayer Domains

Two-component monolayers of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) (or dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC)) and dihydrocholesterol (DChol) form cloverleaf domains at a surface pressure just above 0 mN/m and for monolayer concentrations of less than 30% mol DChol. A cloverleaf domain consists of DChol-rich lobes attached to a small gas cavity. Upon further expansion of the monolayer, at constant surface pressure, the gas cavity in the center of the cloverleaf domain expands. The stability of a cloverleaf domain is studied using a line tension−dipole repulsions model. In this model, the equilibrium shape of a constant-area monolayer domain arises from a competition between the line tension of the domain boundary and the dipole−dipole repulsions between the molecular dipoles in the monolayer. The energies of the three-leaf, four-leaf, and five-leaf clover domains are compared with the energies of three, four, and five circular domains, respectively. The results show that a cloverleaf domain is stabilized by...
Nuclear Scattering of Plane-Polarized Photons

A beam of plane-polarized monochromatic photons has been produced by the resonance fluorescence of the well-known ${1}^{+}$ state at 15.1 MeV in $^{12}\mathrm{C}$. These have been scattered a second time from natural targets of Cd, Sn, Ta, W, Pt, Au, and Bi. Measurements were made with poor energy resolution of the relative number of photons scattered at 90\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} parallel and perpendicular to the polarization vector in the incident 15.1-MeV beam. The observation of photons scattered along the polarization vector reflects the contribution of incoherent scattering to the dominant coherent-scattering process and results either from permanent nuclear deformation or from the dynamic deformation produced by the coupling of the giant dipole resonance with the quadrupole oscillations of the nuclear surface. The observed intensities of incoherent scattering are of the same order of magnitude for the deformed nuclei and the spherical vibrators and agree roughly with the predictions of the dynamic collective model. No incoherent scattering was observed from the rigid sphere $^{209}\mathrm{Bi}$.
Electrophysiological demonstration of both α2-agonist and antagonist properties of RX 781094☆

Abstract The effects of RX 781094, a new and potent α 2 -adrenoceptor antagonist, on locus coeruleus (LC) unit activity were examined. Low doses of RX 781094 produced suppression of spontaneous LC unit activity which could be reversed with yohimbine. The increase in LC firing produced by WB 4101 could also be reversed with a low dose of RX 781094. Thus, at low doses, RX 781094 has clonidine-like α 2 -agonist activity. At higher doses, RX 781094 reversed the effects of clonidine and markedly shifted the dose of clonidine required to suppress LC unit activity. These data suggest that α 2 -adrenoceptors in the CNS.