cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sex Differences in Attributions to Positive and Negative Sexual Scenarios in Men and Women With and Without Sexual Problems: Reconsidering Stereotypes

People with sexual problems are more likely to attribute negative sexual experiences to themselves, in contrast to sexually functional individuals who attribute negative sexual experiences to external factors such as the circumstance or partner. We investigated attribution patterns in 820 men and 753 women, some of whom reported an orgasmic problem, to assess differences between the sexes and those with and without an orgasmic difficulty. Specifically, using an Internet-based approach, we compared attribution responses to four sexual scenarios, one representing a positive sexual experience and three representing negative sexual experiences. Women were more likely to attribute positive outcomes to their partner than men. Women were also more likely to attribute negative outcomes to themselves than men, but they more readily blamed their partner and circumstances for negative outcomes than men as well. Those with orgasmic problems were less willing to take credit for positive outcomes and more willing to accept blame for negative outcomes. Interaction effects between sex and orgasmic problems further highlighted differences between men’s and women’s attribution patterns. These results are interpreted in the context of traditional notions that men’s attributions tend to be more self-serving and women’s attributions more self-derogatory.
The Warp and Woof of the Field of Journalism

This essay presents a practice theory perspective, and the analogy of journalistic culture as a kind of woven fabric, to explain to describe the current state of journalism. On this view, journalis...
History of regular nonmedical sedative and/or alcohol use differentiates substance-use patterns and consequences among chronic heroin users.

Abstract Background Concurrent use of sedating substances (e.g. alcohol or benzodiazepines) with opioids is associated with increased negative consequences of opioid use; however, few studies have attempted to differentiate effects of using sedating substances on heroin-use outcomes. This study examines differences between heroin users who use alcohol or misuse sedatives regularly and those who do not. Methods Substance-use data were collected from 367 non-treatment seeking, chronic heroin-using, 18-to-55 year-old participants. We created 4 groups based on self-reported lifetime history of regular (at least weekly) substance use: heroin only (n = 95), heroin and sedatives (n = 21), heroin and alcohol (n = 151), and heroin, sedative, and alcohol (n = 100). Chi-square analyses and ANOVAs with Bonferroni post hoc tests were used to explore differences between these groups. Results Heroin users who denied lifetime alcohol or nonmedical sedative use regularly endorsed fewer consequences associated with any substance they had used. Total adverse consequences of heroin use (e.g. health problems) were significantly higher among those who misused sedatives regularly, irrespective of alcohol use history (F(3,361) = 10.21; p Conclusions Although polysubstance use is normative among heroin users, the risks depend on the substances used. Regular sedative use is associated with increased heroin consequences whereas regular alcohol use is not. This study refines the investigation of polysubstance use and highlights subgroup differences depending on types of substances used regularly. This knowledge is critical for understanding substance-use motivations and creating avenues for harm reduction.
Two Dimensional Minimax Theory on Shear Stress and a General Classification Model for Nonlinear Constitutive Relations

A theoretical framework that provides a general representation of two-dimensional nonlinear constitutive relations is proposed. The theory is based upon minimization of maximum shear stress that links functional forms of energy dissipation and constitutive relation. Its application to a polynomial energy dissipation function leads to a power-law relationship between strain rate and stress magnitudes. On the basis of this relationship, a general categorization model for constitutive relations is developed and used to analyze forms commonly encountered in ice studies.
Understanding age-triggered cognitive assessments of late-career physicians

Late-career physicians now represent a significant part of the physician workforce in the United States. The American Medical Association Council on Medical Education tracks physician demographic data and found that in 1975 there were 50,993 practicing physicians 65 years or older, but by 2013, this number had risen to 241,641 physicians, a 374% increase. The AMA Council also concluded that aging was associated with decreased processing speed, increased difficulty inhibiting irrelevant information, reduced hearing and visual acuity, decreased manual dexterity and visuospatial ability. There is mounting concern that the effects of aging can adversely impact the practice of medicine by late-career physicians. Although results are mixed, studies suggest late-career physicians have a higher rate of disciplinary action, fail to acquire new knowledge and have greater variability in test scores and their patients experience higher mortality rates after complex surgical procedures. Hospital administrators in their efforts to assess cognition of their aging medical staff are limited by the absence of validated metrics when it comes to older individuals with above-average years of education. Also, attempts to curtail medical practice based on age are fraught with legal implications arising from the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. We examined the issues hospital administrators face when formulating policies regulating the medical practice of late-career physicians. Our review summarizes the state of the literature of late-career physicians, reviews the legal implications of policies regarding age and the practice of medicine and offers our experience in creating a late-career physician policy for a multi-disciplinary medical staff.
Change in Site of Children’s Primary Care: A Longitudinal Population-Based Analysis

PURPOSE Evidence that fewer children are being seen at family physician (FP) practices has not been confirmed using population-level data. This study examines the proportion of children seen at FP and pediatrician practices over time and the influence of patient demographics and rurality on this trend. METHODS We conducted a retrospective longitudinal analysis of Vermont all-payer claims (2009-2016) for children aged 0 to 21 years. The sample included 184,794 children with 2 or more claims over 8 years. Generalized estimating equations modeled the outcome of child attribution to a FP practice annually, with covariates for calendar year, child age, sex, insurance, and child Rural Urban Commuting Area (RUCA) category. RESULTS Over time, controlling for other covariates, children were 5% less likely to be attributed to a FP practice (P CONCLUSIONS The declining proportion of children attending FP practices, confirmed in this population-based analysis and more pronounced in rural areas, represents a continuing challenge.
Imaged-guided and muscle sparing laparoscopic anorectoplasty using real-time magnetic resonance imaging.

A challenge when repairing imperforate anus is positioning the neo-rectum into the center of the sphincter muscle complex (SMC) with limited muscle injury and scarring. Unfortunately, the path through the components of the SMC are often non-linear. We have used MRI to delineate the complex and guide the needle through the center using standard MRI-guidance (Raschbaum GR et al. J Pediatr Surg 45:220-223, 2010; Thomas TT et al. J Pediatr Surg 35:927–930, 2000). However, asynchronous scanning requires multiple, time-consuming scans to advance the needle in stepwise fashion. Asynchronous scanning also prevents visualizing the needle as it is advanced. We recently integrated software into the MRI operative suite that allows placement of the needle with real-time MRI. We report the feasibility and utility of real-time MRI-assisted laparoscopic assisted anorectoplasty (RT MRI-LAARP). Needle guidance was performed with Siemens Espree 1.5 T MRI with T1 Flash RT Sequence. After needle placement, laparoscopic mobilization, fistula takedown and pull-through was performed using the needle to guide dilation to create a tract to pull-through the neo-rectum. Charts of patients who underwent RT MRI-LAARP were reviewed. Demographics, anatomy, number of needle passes, OR duration and complications are reported. There were five children that underwent RT MRI-LAARP; one was a redo secondary to a retracted rectovestibular fistula. Operative time ranged from 187–505 min. Average hospital stay was 4.0 ± 1.0 days. There were no intraoperative complications although one patient had temporary urinary retention post-op. Muscle sparring laparoscopic anorectoplasty using real-time MRI is feasible and facilitates needle placement through the SMC.
Cost-Effectiveness of Cannabidiol Adjunct Therapy versus Usual Care for the Treatment of Seizures in Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a novel therapy for the treatment of Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS), a rare, treatment-refractory epileptic encephalopathy. Two pivotal trials found CBD 20 mg/kg/day conferred a reduction from baseline in median drop seizure frequency of 44% and 42%, respectively, compared with 22% and 17%, respectively, in the usual care arms. No economic evaluations have been published to date. This analysis assessed the cost effectiveness of CBD adjunct therapy compared with usual care alone in LGS from the US payer perspective. We developed a lifetime horizon Markov decision analytic model. Efficacy, healthcare costs (2020 US$), and health state utilities were ascertained from published clinical trials, retrospective analyses, and time trade-off interviews conducted in the UK, respectively. Fifteen-year-old patients entering the model transitioned to states representing a percentage reduction in drop seizure frequency from baseline, where they remained until reverting back to baseline drop seizure frequency, or death. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate parameter uncertainty, and scenario analyses investigated the impact of various assumptions. Costs and outcomes were discounted at 3%. Compared with usual care alone, CBD yielded 0.7 additional quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and $314,900 additional healthcare expenditure, resulting in $451,800 per QALY. Uncertainty in health state utilities were the largest contributor to uncertainty in the results. Results from the 5000-simulation probabilistic sensitivity analysis indicated a 0% chance of CBD being cost effective at a $150,000 per QALY willingness-to-pay threshold, with a 95% credible range for the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $325,300–$690,000 per QALY. CBD does not appear to be a cost-effective therapeutic option in LGS patients at a willingness-to-pay threshold of $150,000/QALY.
Institutional review of predictors of in-hospital and 30-day discharge mortality in neurosurgical patients.

Abstract Objective Risk of adverse events from neurosurgical diagnoses is high. It is not well described whether there are any demographic, admission, or discharge factors that are associated with inpatient or post-discharge mortality outcomes in neurosurgical patients. The aim of this study is to identify the differences in predictors of mortality during inpatient stay and within 30 days of discharge. Methods This was a single-institution, retrospective cohort analysis of mortality. Our patient cohort of 11,477 was defined as all adult patients who were discharged (dead or alive) from an inpatient stay between January 1, 2014, and December 31, 2018, and were either admitted to a neurosurgical service or underwent a neurosurgical procedure during that admission. Results Out of 11,477 patients, 224 (1.95 %) and 290 (2.53 %) died inpatient and within 30 days of discharge, respectively. In multivariate analysis, the independent predictors of inpatient mortality were older age, female gender, diagnostic group, high present on admission severity of illness (POA-SOI) and present on admission risk of mortality (POA-ROM), intensive care unit (ICU) care, and palliative care consult (all p Conclusion Older age and palliative care consult were significant predictors of both inpatient and within 30 days of discharge mortality. Admission SOI (>3) and ROM (>3) and ICU care were significant predictors for inpatient mortality while discharge disposition (home health, skilled nursing facility) was important for 30-day mortality.
Population genomics in two cave-obligate invertebrates confirms extremely limited dispersal between caves

Caves offer selective pressures that are distinct from the surface. Organisms that have evolved to exist under these pressures typically exhibit a suite of convergent characteristics, including a loss or reduction of eyes and pigmentation. As a result, cave-obligate taxa, termed troglobionts, are no longer viable on the surface. This circumstance has led to an understanding of highly constrained dispersal capabilities, and the prediction that, in the absence of subterranean connections, extreme genetic divergence between cave populations. An effective test of this model would involve (1) common troglobionts from (2) nearby caves in a cave-dense region, (3) good sample sizes per cave, (4) multiple taxa, and (5) genome-wide characterization. With these criteria in mind, we used RAD-seq to genotype an average of ten individuals of the troglobiotic spider Nesticus barri and the troglobiotic beetle Ptomaphagus hatchi, each from four closely located caves (ranging from 3 to 13 km apart) in the cave-rich southern Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee, USA. Consistent with the hypothesis of highly restricted dispersal, we find that populations from separate caves are indeed highly genetically isolated. Our results support the idea of caves as natural laboratories for the study of parallel evolutionary processes.
Tactile Vigilance Is Stressful and Demanding

ObjectiveThe primary aims of the study were to replicate the vigilance decrement in the tactile modality, examine whether a decrease in sensitivity is associated with the decrement, and determine w...
Exploring mechanisms of protein influence on calcium oxalate kidney stone formation

Calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) crystals are the primary constituent of most kidney stones, but urine proteins in stone matrix are believed to be critical elements for stone formation from these crystals. Recent data have shown that hundreds of proteins appear in the stone matrix with no explanation for inclusion of so many proteins. We have proposed a stone formation model with protein stimulated COM aggregation based on polyanion–polycation aggregation, which is supported by finding that matrix is highly enriched in strongly anionic and strongly cationic proteins. Many other proteins may be drawn to such aggregates due to their limited solubility in water or charge effects. Finding similar protein enrichment in both polyarginine (pR) induced aggregates of urine proteins and COM stone matrix would support this hypothesis. Purified proteins (PP) were obtained from random urine samples of six healthy adults by ultradiafiltration. Protein aggregation was induced by adding pR to PP solutions at two concentrations; 0.25 and 0.5 µg pR/µg of PP. Samples of each fraction and the original PP mixture were lyophilized and analyzed by tandem mass spectrometry. Aggregates induced by pR addition to PP samples collected a protein mixture that mimicked the protein distribution observed in COM matrix, supporting our hypothesis. The apparently discordant behavior of certain abundant anionic proteins preferentially joining the pR aggregate, when they had demonstrated reduced abundance in COM stone matrix, suggests that this model was overdriven to aggregate. The reversal of aggregate preference of albumin at low pR addition supports this interpretation.
Heterogeneous Hydroxyl-Directed Hydrogenation: Control of Diastereoselectivity through Bimetallic Surface Composition

Directed hydrogenation, in which product selectivity is dictated by the binding of an ancillary directing group on the substrate to the catalyst, is typically catalyzed by homogeneous Rh and Ir com...
Opioids Are Infrequently Required following Ambulatory Otologic Surgery.

Objective To determine the frequency with which postoperative opioid prescriptions are required after ambulatory otologic surgery. Study design Retrospective chart review. Setting Tertiary otology-neurotology practice. Patients Patients (n = 447) given over-the-counter acetaminophen and ibuprofen following ambulatory otologic surgery between July 1, 2018 and June 30, 2020. Intervention Opioid prescription upon request. Main outcome measures Patient, disease, and surgical variables such as age, sex, past medical history, chronic pain condition, surgical procedure, primary versus (vs.) revision surgery, and endoscopic vs. microscopic approach were examined for relationship to ad hoc opioid prescription rate. Results Of 370 adult patients (mean age 49.0 yrs, range 18.0-88.5 yrs), 75 (20.3%) were prescribed opioids for postoperative pain, most commonly oxycodone-acetaminophen 5/325 mg. Of 77 pediatric patients (mean age 8.8 yrs, range 0.7-17.9 yrs), 5 (6.5%) were prescribed postoperative opioid analgesia. In the adult population, chronic pain condition, pain medication use at baseline, canal wall up mastoidectomy, tympanoplasty, tympanomeatal flap, bone removal of the mastoid, postauricular incision, and intraoperative microscopy were independent predictors of opioid pain prescription. When controlling for all significant variables, only chronic pain condition remained significant (odds ratio = 3.94; p = 0.0007). In the pediatric population, atresiaplasty, meatoplasty, and conchal cartilage removal were independently associated with opioid prescription, but none remained significant when analyzed in a multivariate linear model. Conclusions Pain following ambulatory otologic surgery may be adequately managed with over-the-counter pain medications in the majority of cases. Opioids may be necessary in adults with preexisting pain conditions.
Cytokine structural taxonomy and mechanisms of receptor engagement

Abstract Seven discrete families of cytokines have been identified by sequence and structural analysis. Within this diverse set of protein folds, the hematopoietic growth factors and tumor necrosis factor-like cytokines display a remarkable degree of variation upon their respective topological frameworks. In addition, prototype X-ray structures of ligand-receptor complexes reveal two different strategies of receptor engagement.
Impact of radiatively interactive dust aerosols in the NASA GEOS-5 climate model: Sensitivity to dust particle shape and refractive index

We investigate the radiative effects of dust aerosols in the NASA GEOS-5 atmospheric general circulation model. GEOS-5 is improved with the inclusion of a sectional aerosol and cloud microphysics module, the Community Aerosol and Radiation Model for Atmospheres (CARMA). Into CARMA we introduce treatment of the dust and sea salt aerosol lifecycle, including sources, transport evolution, and sinks. The aerosols are radiatively coupled to GEOS-5, and we perform a series of multi-decade AMIP-style simulations in which dust optical properties (spectral refractive index and particle shape distribution) are varied. Optical properties assuming spherical dust particles are from Mie theory, while those for non-spherical shape distributions are drawn from a recently available database for tri-axial ellipsoids. The climatologies of the various simulations generally compare well to data from the MODIS, MISR, and CALIOP space-based sensors, the ground-based AERONET, and surface measurements of dust deposition and concentration. Focusing on the summertime Saharan dust cycle we show significant variability in our simulations resulting from different choices of dust optical properties. Atmospheric heating due to dust enhances surface winds over important Saharan dust sources, and we find a positive feedback where increased dust absorption leads to increased dust emissions. We further find that increased dust absorption leads to a strengthening of the summertime Hadley cell circulation, increasing dust lofting to higher altitudes and strengthening the African Easterly Jet. This leads to a longer atmospheric residence time, higher altitude, and generally more northward transport of dust in simulations with the most absorbing dust optical properties. We find that particle shape, although important for radiance simulations, is a minor effect compared to choices of refractive index, although total atmospheric forcing is enhanced by greater than 10 percent for simulations incorporating a spheroidal shape distribution versus ellipsoidal or spherical shapes.
A high-speed local feedback unity-gain amplifier

A VLSI high-speed local feedback unity gain amplifier is discussed. The voltage gain depends on device matching only and is independent of temperature and of power supply variations. The DC-voltage gain is 1.04 or+0.45 dB. The input impedance at low frequencies is more than 10 M Omega and the output impedance is about 250 Omega . The -3 dB bandwidth is about 400 MHz at a total load of 3.7 pF, and can be increased to beyond 1 GHz at a 0.5 pF load. Rise and fall times are less than 4 ns at 3 V amplitude. The power dissipation is about 30 mW. The VLSI circuit was fabricated in 1.25 mu m CMOS technology. The chip size is 60 mu m*60 mu m. >
Workflow-based applications

A significant number of companies are reengineering their business to be more effective and productive. Consequently, existing applications must be modified, and new applications must be written. The new applications typically run in a distributed and heterogeneous environment, performing single tasks in parallel, and demanding special transaction functionality for the supporting environments. Workflow-based applications offer this type of capability. In this paper, their principal advantages are derived and set in context to transaction, object, and CASE (computer-assisted software engineering) technology. In particular, a method is proposed to develop these workflow-based applications in a cohesive and consistent way.
Convergent renormalization expansions for lattice gauge theories

In this paper we introduce an inductive description of the complete effective densities including large field domains, and we show that the renormalization transformations preserve the form of the densities. This completes the renormalization group analysis for superrenormalizable models and yields convergent expansions in this case.
Dispatches from Dar.

I'd left the hospital and was running late for the airport. But I wasn't running. I was sitting in traffic in Dar es Salaam—the wide, deep, unmoving kind of traffic where you move through predictable stages of rage, despair and acceptance—only to have the acceptance disrupted by hope when there's a few metres of progress, wiping the slate clean for the return of rage. It had been a difficult period in the hospital where I'd come to work. Tanzania has a per capita annual income of around US$500, an average life expectancy of 51 and an overstressed pyramidal health system that feeds patients up to a small number of referral hospitals. There is no prehospital system and almost no access to emergency care. Ours was the first ED in the country, a new addition to a huge national public facility that was oversubscribed, under-resourced and simply overrun by needs it couldn't meet. The new department had radically raised the bar for early resuscitation and stabilisation, replacing a barely staffed room where patients waited in metal chairs until they died, or someone from an inpatient service came down and tried to take care of them. We were now seeing 100 patients a day, triaging within minutes, stabilising trauma and resuscitating sepsis and training, training, training. Lives were saved in our little world, probably every day, but the interface with the rest of the system was far from smooth. We had two ventilators …
Using Perseverative Interests to Improve Interactions Between Adolescents With Autism and Their Typical Peers in School Settings

The literature suggests that adolescents with ASD typically are not socially engaged during unstructured school activities and do not initiate social activities with typically developing peers. This study assessed whether implementing socialization opportunities in the form of lunch clubs based around aspects of the adolescents with ASD's perseverative interests would promote positive direct and generalized social interaction between the target adolescent and their typically developing peers. A repeated measures multiple baseline experimental design (with two reversals) was implemented across participants. During baseline measures, the participants did not show social engagement or initiations. During intervention, results showed large increases in both social engagement and initiations. Generalization measures also showed that the target adolescents improved their social engagements and initiations with typically developing peers throughout unstructured lunchtime activities. These results have implications for understanding variables related to social development in autism.
Apparent overdominance of enzyme specific activity in two marine bivalves

Electrophoretic examination of a natural population sample of 332 mussels (Mytilus trossulus) revealed ten active allozyme alleles for the octopine dehydrogenase (Odh) locus and a statistically significant (P 0.05) deficiency of heterozygous genotypes. In vitro specific activity for leucine aminopeptidase (E.C. 3.4.-.-) was determined for 89 oysters representing 19 different Lap-2 genotypes. Lap-2 heterozygotes had an average specific activity that was 56% greater than that of homozygous genotypes, a significant (P<0.0001) difference. Possible explanations for the apparent overdominance in enzyme specific activity and the deficiency of heterozygotes include null alleles, molecular imprinting and aneuploidy.
Response time distributional evidence for distinct varieties of number attraction

Abstract Speakers are known to make subject–verb agreement errors both when a number-mismatching noun intervenes between the head of the subject phrase and the verb (e.g., ∗The key to the cabinets are on the table) and in configurations in which there is a number-mismatching noun that does not intervene (e.g., ∗The cabinets that the key open are on the second floor). Using a two-choice response time (RT) paradigm, Staub (2009) found that correct agreement decisions were also slowed in both cases. The present article reports a new experiment designed to explore whether these two RT effects are qualitatively similar or different. Fitting of the ex-Gaussian distribution ( Ratcliff, 1979 ) to individual subjects’ RT data, in each condition, demonstrated that the effect of an intervening number attractor on correct RT is due to both a shifting of the distribution to the right and to increased skewing, while the effect of a non-intervening attractor is almost entirely a skewing effect. A non-parametric vincentizing procedure supported these conclusions. These findings are taken to support the view that these two types of number attraction involve distinct processing mechanisms.
Possible design improvements and a high power density fuel design for integral type small modular pressurized water reactors

The study evaluates potential weaknesses and possible improvements for integral type small modular pressurized water reactor designs. By taking International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS) as the reference design and keeping the power output as the same, a new fuel and reactor design were proposed. The proposed design relocates the primary coolant pumps and the pressurizer outside the reactor pressure vessel (RPV). Three recirculation lines and jet pumps/centrifugal pumps are introduced to provide the coolant circulation similar to Boiling Water Reactor designs. The pressurizer component is expected to be similar to the AP600 design. It is located at one of the recirculation lines. The new fuel assembly adopts 264 solid cylindrical fuel pins with 10 mm diameter and 2.3 m height, arranged at a hexagonal tight lattice configuration. Large water rods are introduced to preserve the moderating power and to accommodate finger type control rods. The resulting fuel can operate with 104.5 kW/l power density while having substantially higher margin for boiling crisis compared to typical large PWRs. Full core neutronic analysis shows that 24-month cycle length and 50 MWd/kg burnup is achievable with a two-batch refueling scheme. Furthermore, the fuel behavior study shows that the new fuel with M5 type Zircaloy cladding show fairly acceptable steady state performance. A preliminary Loss of Coolant analysis shows that the new design could be advantageous over IRIS due to its low ratio of the water inventory below the top of the active fuel to total RPV water inventory. The proposed reactor pressure vessel height and the containment volume are 30% lower than the reference IRIS design.
Roughness metrology of gate all around silicon nanowire devices

In this paper we present physical characteristics of Silicon Nano Wires (SiNW) fabrication processes, in line SEM metrology measurements, and a new methodology to calibrate and correct in line roughness measurements, improving measurement accuracy. Silicon Nano Wires (SiNW) with widths of 5 - 25 nm were characterized. Hydrogen annealing was shown as a useful method for the fabrication of smooth suspended SiNW that are used to build gate-all-around MOSFETs [1]. Wires that were annealed in H2 exhibit surface roughness below 1 nm along the full length of the 100 nm long suspended wires. Different smoothing processes yield SiNWs with edge roughness values in the sub nanometer range. Such small differences in roughness values, provide an interesting opportunity to evaluate sensitivity of the SEM metrology algorithms and measurement accuracy. A simulation program modeling SEM images including small features was developed, taking into account the main factors that affect the SEM signal formation. Synthetic (simulated) images of SiNW in a range of 5 - 25 nm and roughness of 0 - 1 nm were produced. Using synthetic images with added Line Edge Roughness (LER), we characterized the performance and sensitivity of LER algorithms and metrics. Fabricated SiNW that received various smoothing and thinning treatments were measured with a CD-SEM. Results were compared to calibrate and validate the experimental CD-SEM results.
The Farm Bill and Duck Production in the Prairie Pothole Region: Increasing the Benefits

The Food Security Act of 1985 contained provisions that affected wildlife conservation nationwide. Two provisions that most benefited waterfowl populations in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) were the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and “Swampbuster” (wetland conservation). Permanent cover established under the CRP provides attractive nesting habitat for upland-nesting ducks that is more secure than other major habitats. Swampbuster has prevented drainage of wetlands vital to breeding duck pairs. In 2007 many CRP contracts will expire. Deliberations will begin in late 2006 regarding the next Farm Bill. The United States Department of Agriculture needs sound biological information and scientific analyses to help establish wildlife priorities in the Farm Bill. We used data from breeding duck population and wetland habitat surveys to develop models for 5 species of upland-nesting ducks and applied these models to >2.6 million wetlands in a digital database for the PPR in North and South Dakota, USA. We used geographic information systems techniques to identify locations in the PPR where CRP cover would be accessible to the greatest number of nesting hens. We then summarized distribution of current CRP contracts relative to distribution of upland-breeding ducks. We also used our models to predict change in the breeding duck population (landscape carrying capacity) that might occur if certain wetlands were exempt from the Swampbuster provision. Our analyses showed that 75% of CRP contracts as of July 2005 were in areas accessible to high or medium numbers of breeding ducks and 25% were in areas of low populations. We suggest a method to prioritize CRP extensions and reenrollment of current contracts or target new contracts to maintain or increase duck production. Additionally, our models suggested that if the Swampbuster provision were removed from future Farm Bills and protected wetland were drained, this area of the PPR could experience a 37% decline in the waterfowl populations we studied.
MULTI GLUON SCATTERING: A STRING BASED CALCULATION

Abstract We suggest the use of open bosonic string theory to compute tree-level multi-gluon scattering amplitudes in QCD, since this considerably simplifies the mechsnics of the calculation, as well as manifest the gauge invariance and symmetry structure of the result. We illustrate the method by computing the gluon five-point function.
Micromanaging Alternative Splicing during Muscle Differentiation

A recent report in Genes & Development by Boutz et al. (2007) demonstrates that muscle specific microRNAs (miRNAs) downregulate the alternative splicing regulator nPTB during skeletal muscle differentiation to control a potential network of splicing transitions. The results illustrate how two modes of posttranscriptional regulation combine to direct skeletal muscle development.
Sensory science at the human–machine interface

The development of valid and relevant instrumental methods in concert with dynamic sensory methods has allowed for a more comprehensive analysis of human perception. Strides have been made with the development of techniques to evaluate changes in food texture, including electromyography and auditory methods. Within flavor and aroma analysis, the development of instrumentation to measure volatile release from the nose and mouth during food consumption has allowed a more realistic measurement of individual perception. This paper will review the recent developments in the field of sensory evaluation and instrumental analysis and further discuss the interface between humans (sensory science) and machines (instrumental analysis).
The clinical and etiological characteristics of influenza-like illness (ILI) in outpatients in Shanghai, China, 2011 to 2013.

Introduction Clinical and etiological characteristics of influenza-like illness (ILI) in outpatients is poorly understood in the southern temperate region of China. We conducted laboratory-based surveillance of viral etiology for ILI outpatients in Shanghai from January 2011 to December 2013.
Optical and electrical properties of crystalline silicon wire arrays

Silicon wire arrays have been synthesized through a two-step metal-assisted electrode-less etching from an n-type silicon wafer with (100) orientation. Field Emission Scanning Electron microscope (FESEM), Ultra violet-Visible-Near infrared (UV-VIS-NIR) spectrophotometer and Resonance-coupled photoconductivity decay (RCPCD) have been used to characterize the morphological, optical, and electrical properties of Si wires at varying etching times. The reflectivity of the wire arrays decreased with increasing etching time because of light scattering from the micro-roughness of the Silicon wire surfaces. The effective carrier lifetime decreased with increasing wire length due to the increased surface area. We also created smoother wire surfaces by thermal oxidation followed by HF dipping. From FESEM cross sectional images and reflectivity results, this treatment removes the micro-roughness, but the effective lifetime is lower than the as-grown wire arrays. A photoluminescence peak observed only in the smoother wires suggests that the lower effective lifetime is due to the diffusion of residual Ag atoms from the wire surfaces into the bulk during the thermal oxidation process.
Staying Vietnamese: Community and Place in Orange County and Boston

Orange County, California, is a “postsuburban” region known for its sprawl and its cultural homogeneity. There, Vietnamese Americans have established a large commercial and residential district cle...
Early cystic/necrotic changes after hyperfractionated radiation therapy in children with brain stem gliomas : data from the Childrens Cancer Group

Background. A higher total dose of radiation therapy administered in fractionated lower individual doses twice daily (hyperfractionated radiation therapy) has been reported to improve survival for children with brain stem gliomas. However, this higher dose of radiation therapy may cause more sequelae. Method. Eighty-eight children with brain stem gliomas were treated with 100 cGy twice daily to a total dose of 7200 cGy. Patients were carefully followed up for treatment-related clinical or radiographic worsening. Results. Thirteen (15%) had intralesional cystic/necrotic changes within 8 weeks of completion of treatment. Children with these changes had a variable clinical course, including steady deterioration in one child; initial improvement, followed by progressive deterioration in three; and initial improvement, followed by deterioration, with subsequent improvement or prolonged stabilization of condition without additional antineoplastic treatment in nine. Conclusion. This latter “triphasic” course suggests that “early” worsening after hyperfractionated radiation therapy at 7200 cGy may be a sequelae of therapy, rather than a symptom of progressive tumor growth. This has substantial implications for patient care and evaluation of the efficacy of treatment.
Forecasting Population Trends of an Oak Leaf Tier, Croesia semipurpurana

An egg sampling plan, designed to forecast potential defoliation by Croesia semipurpurana (Kearfott), was developed using egg counts on two 15-in. branch samples per tree on 4 trees per plot. This system correctly forecasts defoliation into 3 categories in 80% of the sample plots in 1967 and 100% of the sample plots in 1968.
Food Web Effects of Prey Size Refugia: Variable Interactions and Alternative Stable Equilibria.

abstract: Predators can have highly variable effects on the abundance and composition of food webs, ranging from strong to weak effects of top predators. Typical food web models assume that individual prey are identical in their susceptibility to predators throughout their lives, but many prey species become less vulnerable to predators through ontogeny. A simple set of models is explored where prey must pass through a vulnerable stage prior to achieving a predator‐invulnerable size refuge. As productivity of the environment increases, the proportional impact of predators decreases because more individuals become and remain in the invulnerable adult stage. The addition of a competitor prey species that can not achieve size refuge results in contrasting outcomes. At low productivity, the small species wins in competition, and the system is strongly consumer controlled. At high productivity, the large species wins due to the presence of predators, and the system becomes less consumer controlled. At intermed...
Connection, Translation, Off-Loading, and Monitoring: A Framework for Characterizing the Pedagogical Functions of Educational Technologies.

Distributed cognition offers powerful tools for conceptualizing the role that technology plays in learning environments, yet it can be challenging to apply. This paper presents an analytical framework that focuses on four pedagogical functions that technology can perform in learning environments: connection, translation, off-loading, and monitoring. The framework is drawn from theories of distributed cognition and, in particular, the idea that learning is increased coordination between two cognitive systems. Each pedagogical function is first explicated individually, along with examples. The framework is then applied to several cases, including three technology development and research cases drawn from the literature. The paper concludes with a summary of the strengths and weaknesses of the framework for use in research and design.
Comparing the performance of continuous phase modulation and constant envelope orthogonal frequency division multiplexing

Continuous Phase Modulation (CPM) waveforms offer some very appealing characteristics such as constant envelope and bandwidth efficiency. Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is a popular technique used for digital data transmission due to its low computational complexity and simple equalization process. One of its main drawbacks is the very large peak power to average power ratio (PAPR) which requires the use of very linear power amplifiers (PA) and a large power back-off into the PA. In recent years a variant of OFDM has been developed known as constant envelope OFDM. This paper will compare the bandwidth efficiency and performance of CPM and constant-envelope OFDM waveforms.
Care Models and Associated Outcomes in Congenital Heart Surgery

OBJECTIVE: Recently, there has been a shift toward care of children undergoing heart surgery in dedicated pediatric cardiac intensive care units (CICU). The impact of this trend on patient outcomes is unclear. We evaluated postoperative outcomes associated with a CICU versus other ICU models.
Anthrax lethal toxin activates the inflammasome in sensitive rat macrophages.

Abstract Anthrax lethal toxin (LT) is an important virulence factor for Bacillus anthracis. In mice, LT lyses macrophages from certain inbred strains in less than 2 h by activating the Nlrp1b inflammasome and caspase-1, while macrophages from other strains remain resistant to the toxin’s effects. We analyzed LT effects in toxin-sensitive and resistant rat macrophages to test if a similar pathway was involved in rat macrophage death. LT activates caspase-1 in rat macrophages from strains harboring LT-sensitive macrophages in a manner similar to that in toxin-sensitive murine macrophages. This activation of caspase-1 is dependent on proteasome activity, and sensitive macrophages are protected from LT’s lytic effects by lactacystin. Proteasome inhibition also delayed the death of rats in response to LT, confirming our previous data implicating the rat Nlrp1 inflammasome in animal death. Quinidine, caspase-1 inhibitors, the cathepsin B inhibitor CA-074Me, and heat shock also protected rat macrophages from LT toxicity. These data support the existence of an active functioning LT-responsive Nlrp1 inflammasome in rat macrophages. The activation of the rat Nlrp1 inflammasome is required for LT-mediated rat macrophage lysis and contributes to animal death.
The GSK Clinical Study Results Database: Site Utilization Metrics for a Large Public Database

Background: Establishing additional mechanisms for providing public information on clinical studies being conducted and results from completed clinical trials is a topic of significant public debate. This report provides the experience to date with utilization of the GlaxoSmithKline clinical study results database (GSK CSRD), currently the largest of the single-sponsor, publicly accessible databases with information from 2,635 studies involving 59 products. Methods: Database queries were conducted to evaluate the routes and frequency of database access over a 22-month period following GSK CSRD launch. To evaluate the potential for meaningful clinical data extraction during a site visit, queries were conducted to examine the number of pages accessed and the amount of time spent on the database during an individual visit. Results: The number of user sessions on the database is increasing steadily over time as more products/studies have been added to the GSK CSRD. Over time, the individual number of sessions involving the review of six or more CSRD pages (ie, one study summary) or greater than one minute in duration has increased substantially. Conclusions: Access of the GSK CSRD has increased substantially since launch. Although current data indicate that a distinct majority of sessions are not likely to lead to the extraction of meaningful clinical information, the absolute number of individual sessions where there is likelihood that meaningful data may have been extracted has increased significantly over time. These data serve as a useful benchmark against which to judge the evolution of understanding and processes regarding the optimal use of clinical study results databases.
Abstract PR07: Targeting CD24+ ovarian cancer stem-like cells in a transgenic murine model of ovarian cancer restrics metastasis

The cancer stem cell (CSC) hypothesis proposes that in a heterogeneous tumor only a rare population of stem-like cells has the ability to initiate new tumors. These rare CSC are believed to be the source of resistance to therapy, recurrence, and metastasis. A better understanding of ovarian CSCs could lead to novel therapeutic approaches to specifically target CSCs. Unfortunately, the study of human CSCs is hampered by heterogeneity of patient's tumor samples, long requirements for tumor growth in vivo, and the need for tumor growth in immune-deficient mice. We have therefore characterized CSCs in a transgenic murine model of ovarian cancer. This mouse model with conditional deletion of Apc, Pten and p53 tumor suppressor genes develop advanced ovarian cancer similar to that seen patients. Study of CSC in a murine tumor model will provide a homogeneous, rapid means to systematically study CSCs in a native microenvironment. Using flow cytometry to characterize a cell line derived from this tumor model we identified the expression of several potential CSC surface markers including CD24, CD44, CD90, CD117, CD133 and ALDH. In vitro analysis demonstrates that cells defined by the expression of CD24 and CD133, but not the other CSC markers, have an increased tumor sphere forming capacity; a hallmark of CSC. We next assessed in vivo tumor initiation and growth rates. No preferential tumor initiating or growth capacity was observed for CD44+, CD90+, CD117+, or ALDH+ versus their negative counterparts. CD133+ cells demonstrated a trend for increased tumor initiation. CD24+ cells vs CD24- cells, had significantly greater tumor initiation and tumor growth capacity. As few as 200 CD24+ could initiate tumors. Consistent with a stem cell phenotype we have found that CD24+ cells, compared to CD24- cells, preferentially express stem cell markers Nanog and c-myc. CD24+ cells vs. CD24- cells also demonstrated preferential phosphorylation of STAT3. Suggesting an important role for STAT3 in CD24+ CSC, CD24+ cells were preferentially sensitive to either JAK2 inhibition (which prevents pSTAT3) or direct pSTAT3 inhibition. Finally, we found in vivo therapy with the JAK2 inhibitor TG101209 dramatically reduced tumor metastases, and combined with chemotherapy, prolonged overall survival. These findings indicate that CD24+ cells have a CSC phenotype and play a role in tumor migration and invasion in other organs. Moreover, these findings suggest that combination of chemotherapy and CSCs targeted therapies can potentially improve survival by inhibiting metastasis. This abstract is also presented as Poster B36. Citation Format: Daniela Burgos-Ojeda, Rong Wu, Kathleen Cho, Ronald Buckanovich. Targeting CD24+ ovarian cancer stem-like cells in a transgenic murine model of ovarian cancer restrics metastasis. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Ovarian Cancer Research: From Concept to Clinic; Sep 18-21, 2013; Miami, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2013;19(19 Suppl):Abstract nr PR07.