cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Media entrepreneurship as an online course: a case study

This chapter describes the conversion of a traditional classroom course to one taught online. Creating a Media Business has been part of the Business curriculum within a broad, traditional Mass Communications major, and its objective has been to introduce students to the theory and practice of starting an independent media enterprise. The attempt to transform any traditional academic course into a virtual one will invariably entail redefining pedagogical issues such as requirements, assignments, participation, and evaluation. Certain course content and objectives are more amenable to both the opportunities and constraints posed by the Internet. Our course was enhanced by the conversion because of its suitability for transfer from the tangible to the virtual environment. More specifically, for Creating a Media Business, the Internet is not merely a channel of information transmission, but very often an important, if not essential, part of the very business about which the students are learning.
Adverse implications of acid phosphatase levels in the upper range of normal.

AbstractA retrospective review of 102 consecutive patients with surgically staged, clinically localized prostatic carcinoma was performed to determine the relationship between pre-treatment enzymatic acid phosphatase values and histopathological extent of the tumor. Of 96 patients with normal pre-treatment acid phosphatase titers (thymolphthalein monophosphate substrate) 77 (80 per cent) had values in the lower and 19 (20 per cent) had values in the upper half of the normal range. Of the latter 19 patients 16 (84 per cent) had histological evidence of extraprostatic tumor extension. Similarly, 5 of 6 patients (83 per cent) with elevated pre-treatment acid phosphatase titers had extraprostatic extension and 1 had a persistent postoperative acid phosphatase elevation that normalized with megestrol acetate therapy. Thus, 22 of 25 patients (88 per cent) with acid phosphatase values in or above the upper half of the normal range had either histological or clinical evidence of extracapsular tumor extension. By ...
Trends in Hospital Treatment of Empyema in Children in the United States.

Objective To evaluate trends in procedures used to treat children hospitalized in the US with empyema during a period that included the release of guidelines endorsing chest tube placement as an acceptable first-line alternative to video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. Study design We used National Inpatient Samples to describe empyema-related discharges of children ages 0-17 years during 2008-2014. We evaluated trends using inverse variance weighted linear regression and characterized treatment failure using multivariable logistic regression to identify factors associated with having more than 1 procedure. Results Empyema-related discharges declined from 3 in 100 000 children to 2 in 100 000 during 2008-2014 (P = .04, linear trend). There was no significant change in the proportion of discharges having 1 procedure (66.1% to 64.1%) or in the proportion having 2 or more procedures (22.1% to 21.6%). The proportion coded for video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery as the only procedure declined (41.4% to 36.2%; P = .03), and the proportions coded for 1 chest tube (14.6% to 20.9%; P = .04) and 2 chest tube procedures (0.9% to 3.5%; P Conclusions The use of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery to treat children in the US hospitalized with empyema seems to be decreasing without associated increases in length of stay or need for additional drainage procedures.
Supervisor Incivility and Subordinate Outcomes: The Roles of Negative and Positive Affect

The impact of mistreatment in the faculty advisor-advisee relationships was examined in this study of graduate student experiences. The moderating role of affective individual differences as well a...
Secdrug: A Computational Method for Discovering Novel Secondary Drug Combinations Using Large-Scale Pharmacogenomics Databases

Abstract Drug resistance is a major obstacle in achieving complete and sustained therapeutic effect in cancer chemotherapy. Chemo-resistance may also lead to over-dosing and unwanted exposure to ineffective anti-tumor agents thereby increasing the risk of negative side-effects and the cost of drug development. Therefore, our goal is to utilize a large-scale pharmacogenomics database (Genomics of Drug Sensitivity in Cancer or GDSC, the largest public resource of drug-sensitivity data on over 250 drugs in more than 1000 human cancer cell lines of common and rare types of adult and childhood cancers of diverse origin) and develop a prediction method to identify novel secondary drug combination regimens that may effectively reverse drug resistance. We utilized a greedy algorithm-based set-covering computational optimization method followed by a regularization technique to seek all secondary drugs that could kill maximum number of cell lines of the test disease (B-Cell cancers) resistant to the test drug (the Proteasome inhibitor/PI drug Bortezomib/Bz/Velcade) in a sequential manner ordered by the number of cell lines killed. The predicted top secondary drug combinations in PI-resistant B-cell cancers are shown in Figure 1. To validate our prediction results, we treated human multiple myeloma cell lines (HMCLs) highly resistant to the proteasome inhibitors Bortezomib, Carfilzomob, Oprozomib and Ixazomib with the predicted best secondary drugs. Figure 2 depicts In vitro chemo-sensitivity profiles of PI-resistant HMCLs and other B-cell cancer cell lines showing percent survival compared to untreated control at increasing concentrations of secondary drugs, as single agents or in combination. Furthermore, for each drug in the predicted drug combination, we identified differentially expressed (DE) genes by comparing the expression profiles between extraordinary- sensitive and resistant cell lines. These significantly regulated DE genes were used to identify pathways associated with the successful drug combinations. Finally, we developed an R software package secDrug based on this computational pipeline for predicting novel secondary therapies in chemotherapy-resistant cancers. secDrug takes a query of any cancer type and any test drug, and outputs a list of the top secondary drug combinations with confidence score and biological pathway visualization. Thus, secDrug has potential application in clinical decision-making for discovering resistance-reversing cancer chemotherapy regimens. Download : Download high-res image (99KB) Download : Download full-size image Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Exciton Energy Shifts and Tunable Dopant Emission in Manganese-Doped Two-Dimensional CdS/ZnS Core/Shell Nanoplatelets

The ability to dope transition-metal ions into semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) allows for the introduction and exploitation of new extrinsic properties in the original intrinsic material. Although...
Transport Properties of Oriented Poly(Vinyl Chloride)

In commercial thermoplastic forming operations, poly(vinyl chloride), or PVC, is stretched to several times its original dimensions at fixed rates and temperatures. The stretching operation is usually followed by rapid quenching which freezes in the strain-orientation imparted to the polymer during forming. Since orientation is known to strongly influence physical properties, it was of interest to correlate several critical end-use properties with the range of processing conditions which PVC might experience during a typical forming operation. In addition to mechanical strength, gas and vapor transport are perhaps the most critical properties from the packager’s point of view. This report describes the influence of 1) degree of biaxial orientation, 2) stretching rate, and 3) stretching temperature on the oxygen and water vapor transport parameters of non-impact modified PVC. The diffusion and solubility coefficients, as well as permeability, were determined for oxygen transport, while only equilibrium permeability was measured for water vapor. Structural changes were monitored by measuring both birefringence and density as a function of orientation. Since processing temperature was found to have a pronounced effect on properties, separate annealing studies were carried out, where variations in the transport properties were correlated with structural changes as measured by both x-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry, DSC.
PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS OF MICROWAVE HOLOGRAPHIC IMAGING OF WATER WAVES

A new approach is given to the diagnostics of microwave scattering by water waves. The method is microwave holographic imaging of water waves in a laboratory tank. Both mechanically and wind-generated waves were imaged. Although preliminary the results demonstrate feasibility.
The Determinant from Signed Volume to the Laplace Expansion

AbstractWe present a novel perspective on developing the determinant through the lens of signed volume. Starting with a unique and rigorous development of both the volume and orientation of a paral...
Pulmonary vascular disease and pulmonary hypertension

Abstract Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a devastating condition that ultimately leads to right heart failure and death, if untreated. The morphological correlate for clinically relevant PH is pulmonary vascular disease that may concern all vascular compartments of the lung: pulmonary arteries, capillaries and veins, but also systemic lung vessels, commonly known as bronchial arteries and vasa vasorum. The recent diagnostic PH classification at the PH World Symposium in Nice, France, redefined five PH groups based on pathophysiological, histological and clinical differences. This article reviews the rationale of histology/pathology and, partly, pathobiology that has led to these different categories of PH. Even if aetiology and initial pathophysiology discriminate these groups to some extent, it has become clear that several disease-relevant pathomechanisms are shared between the groups, leading to comparable therapeutic molecular targets, such as phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors for PAH (group 1 in the Nice classification) and soluble guanylate cyclase agonists in CTEPH (group 4 of the Nice classification). When considering PH group 2 (PH due to left heart disease), its histological appearance, with remodelled small pulmonary veins and arteries, and its haemodynamics in some patients suggest an overreacting pre-capillary vasculature in response to left heart failure. Thus the still-used descriptor ‘orphan disease’ might one day no longer be used in relation to PH. Indeed, PH is a condition that represents a global health issue, and hence is worth a closer look and a thorough definition from the perspective of the pathologist.
An Emergency Medicine Milestone-Based Simulation Curriculum: Acute Ischemic Stroke.

Introduction The emergency medicine (EM) resident's ability to make independent decisions in the setting of acute ischemic stroke has been reduced as a result of the involvement of multidisciplinar...
Building Alliances or Rallying the Base: Civil Religious Rhetoric and the Modern Presidency

Civil religious rhetoric has been utilized throughout American history to legitimize political interests by drawing upon broadly shared beliefs regarding the nation’s identity, meaning, and purpose...
Experimental Demonstration of Ultra-broadband Wireless Communications at True Terahertz Frequencies

In this paper, experimental results for wireless Terahertz (THz) communications at 1.02 THz, the first absorption-defined window above 1 THz, are presented. After briefly describing the hardware components of the experimental testbed, the details on the communication and signal processing algorithms, including synchronization, channel estimation and equalization, and modulation and demodulation, are described. The performance in terms of Bit Error Rate for single- and multi-carrier modulations able to support tens of Gigabits-per-second over sub-meter distances is presented and discussed, encouraging the exploration of communication systems at true THz frequencies.
Postablation Atrial Arrhythmias

Atrial arrhythmias, including atrial tachycardia and atrial flutter, are not uncommon after prior ablation. Mechanisms for arrhythmogenesis may vary and include recurrent conduction through sites of ablation, leading to recurrence of prior ablated arrhythmias and creation of new substrate. Incidence of postablation atrial arrhythmias varies across studies and may relate to the approach to ablation, including extent of ablation performed, or to extent of substrate identified at the time of prior ablation and how that relates to the lesion set. In addition, postablation atrial arrhythmias may be more common in certain types of cardiomyopathy, including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
The Science of Transitional States of Consciousness and Euthanasia

The science of transitional states of consciousness is reviewed. Despite intensive study, determining the subjective experience of animals during transitional states of consciousness remains inherently limited. Until better assessment tools become available, behavior-based observations, such as loss of righting reflex/loss of posture, remain among our most useful guides to the onset of unconsciousness in animals. To minimize potential animal suffering and to ensure a truly unconscious state is unambiguously achieved, a state of general anesthesia relying on gamma amino butyric acid type A agonists or N-methyl-d-aspartate antagonist agents continues to be a necessary component of the companion animal euthanasia process.
Immunization and participation in amateur youth sports

Although inadequate immunization is a significant public health problem, as covid-19 is an urgent reminder, it has been largely ignored in amateur youth sports. By comparison, safety issues such as...
Spin-orbit torque field-effect transistor (SOTFET): Proposal for a magnetoelectric memory

Spin-based memories are attractive for their non-volatility and high durability but provide modest resistance changes, whereas semiconductor logic transistors are capable of providing large resistance changes, but lack memory function with high durability. The recent availability of multiferroic materials provides an opportunity to directly couple the change in spin states of a magnetic memory to a charge change in a semiconductor transistor. In this work, we propose and analyze the spin–orbit torque field-effect transistor, a device with the potential to significantly boost the energy efficiency of spin-based memories and to simultaneously offer a palette of functionalities.
Paraspinal Myositis in Patients with COVID-19 Infection.

SUMMARY: Myalgia is a previously reported symptom in patients with COVID-19 infection; however, the presence of paraspinal myositis has not been previously reported. We report MR imaging findings of the spine obtained in a cohort of 9 patients with COVID-19 infection who presented to our hospital between March 3, 2020 and May 6, 2020. We found that 7 of 9 COVID-19 patients (78%) who underwent MR imaging of the spine had MR imaging evidence of paraspinal myositis, characterized by intramuscular edema and/or enhancement. Five of these 7 patients had a prolonged hospital course (greater than 25 days). Our knowledge of the imaging manifestations of COVID-19 infection is expanding. It is important for clinicians>a to be aware of the relatively high frequency of paraspinal myositis in this small cohort of patients with COVID-19 infection.
Thermodynamics of Ionic Hydration

In this section we outline the thermodynamic theory which is employed in extracting coefficients relating to solvation from measured quantities. The points which are emphasized are the role of extrathermodynamic equations for the concentration dependence of thermodynamic functions, the arbitrary nature of standard states, and the additional complication encountered in passing from the study of solvation in solutions of non-electrolytes to solvation in ionic solutions.
The Burden of Caring for and Treating Glaucoma: The Patient Perspective.

Purpose To understand the treatment burden experienced by patients receiving care for primary open-angle glaucoma. Design Semistructured, one-on-one, qualitative interviews. Participants Patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and age ≥40 years who were scheduled for a follow-up glaucoma appointment at the Kellogg Eye Center. Researchers used purposeful sampling to ensure that there was representation of a range of ages, disease stages, total number of medical conditions, distance traveled to clinic, history of glaucoma surgery, employment, and education. Interviews were conducted until thematic saturation was obtained. Methods Participants were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide that addressed aspects of glaucoma care that give them burden, how this burden impacts their lives, and factors that influence the burden and its impact. Researchers analyzed the transcripts using inductive thematic analysis and grounded theory to generate themes that emerged from the interviews and to map these themes into a conceptual model of glaucoma treatment burden. Main Outcome Measures Themes related to glaucoma treatment burden generated by qualitative analysis. Results A total of 22 patients participated in the study. Study participants described 10 categories of glaucoma care activities that cause treatment burden, 8 themes for consequences of glaucoma treatment burden, and 25 themes of factors that influenced the workload created by the various glaucoma care activities and the consequences that they experienced because of these activities. Conclusions Participants expressed that the treatment of glaucoma creates a burden for patients that is distinct from the burden of the disease process itself and that this burden negatively affects their quality of life and can potentially cause vision-threatening issues with medication and appointment adherence. We observed considerable variation in the extent to which participants experienced this burden and its consequences, much of which was explained by the influencing factors the participants described. Understanding glaucoma treatment burden and its influencing factors is important as we work to deliver patient-centered care and prevent vision loss.
Preoperative Dependent Functional Status Is Associated With Poor Outcomes After Carotid Endarterectomy and Carotid Stenting in Both Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Patients.

Abstract Background Both Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid artery stenting (CAS) are the most common procedures to treat patients with symptomatic, and asymptomatic high-grade carotid stenosis. Poor preoperative functional status (FS) is increasingly being recognized as predictor for postoperative outcomes. The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of preoperative functional status on the outcomes of patients who undergo CEA or CAS. Methods Data was obtained from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database from the years 2011–2018. All patients in the database who underwent CEA or CAS during this time period were identified. Patients were then further divided into 2 subgroups: FS-Independent and FS-dependent. Bivariate and multivariate analyses was performed for pre, intra and post-operative variables with functional status. Outcomes for treatment of symptomatic carotid disease were compared to those with asymptomatic disease among the cohort of functionally dependent patients. Results A total of 27,163 patients (61.2% Males, 38.8% Females) underwent CEA (n = 26,043) or CAS (n = 1,120) from 2011–2018. Overall, primary outcomes were as follows: mortality 0.77% (n = 210) and stroke 1.87% (n = 507).Risk adjusted multivariate analysis showed that FS-D patients undergoing CEA had higher mortality (AOR 3.06, CI 1.90–4.92, P undergoing CEA had higher LOS as compared to symptomatic patients undergoing CAS, and asymptomatic patients undergoing CEA or CAS. Conclusions FS-D patients, undergoing CEA have higher mortality as compared to FS-I patients undergoing CAS. FS-D patients undergoing CAS have higher incidence of postoperative pneumonia and longer LOS as compared to FS-I patients. For the cohort of FS-D patients undergoing either CEA or CAS, CAS was associated with higher risk of stroke and reduced operative times. Risk benefit ratio for any carotid intervention should be carefully assessed before offering it to FS-D patients. Preoperative Dependent Functional Status Is Associated with Poor Outcomes After Carotid Endarterectomy and Carotid Stenting in Both Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Patients
Editorial Comment: Outcomes of Cryoablation and Microwave Ablation for Pulmonary Sarcoma Metastases are Comparable.

This Editorial Comment discusses the following AJR article: Comparison of Percutaneous Image-Guided Microwave and Cryoablation for Sarcoma Lung Metastases: 10-Year Experience.
The Science of Marketing: How Pharmaceutical Companies Manipulated Medical Discourse on Menopause

This article is a comment on Derry's (2015) article “Evidence-Based Medicine, Postmenopausal Hormone Therapy, and the Women's Health Initiative.” In this article, I argue that the strong influence of the pharmaceutical industry cannot be overlooked in the use of menopausal hormone therapy for peri- and postmenopausal women. Furthermore, the pharmaceutical industry has played an important role in the critique of (and attempt to delegitimize) findings of the Women's Health Initiative trials that led to a decrease in prescriptions for hormone therapy. It is in the industry's economic interest to encourage physicians to prescribe and patients to use hormone therapy, and the industry will use every means at its disposal to urge continuation of that practice.
Abstract P4-06-07: Expression of growth hormone releasing hormone receptor ( GHRH-R ) in primary and metastatic mammary carcinomas

In addition to its nominative function as a neurohormone acting on the pituitary, Growth Hormone Releasing Hormone (GHRH) has been shown to modify the growth behavior of numerous cancers, including breast. GHRH is produced by tumor cells, acts in an autocrine/paracrine manner, and requires the presence of GHRH receptor (GHRH-R) on the tumor cells to exert its effects. As this work has been done predominantly on tumor cell lines and xenografts, we set out to examine the clinical analog. Matched primary and metachronous metastases from 50 breast cancers were included in this study of GHRH-R in breast cancer. Immunohistochemistry for GHRH-R (AbCam) was performed on paraffin sections and the staining results were assessed semi quantitatively from 0 (negative) to 3+ (strongly positive). A section from normal pituitary was used as positive control. Forty-three of the primary breast cancers (86%) that ultimately relapsed or metastasized showed moderate to strong immunohistochemical expression of GHRH-R. Tumors from the metastatic foci also showed strong immunoreactivity in 78%, 71%, and 44% of liver, brain, and bone foci, respectively. The lower intensity of staining in bone samples may be due to the effect of the decalcification process routinely performed before staining. Whenever present, the non-neoplastic glands adjacent to breast tumors showed either negative or 1+ reaction for GHRH-R. We conclude that the great majority of mammary carcinomas at primary and metastatic sites express GHRH-R. This finding could potentially serve as a basis for therapeutic approaches using peptide receptor antagonists. By receptor blockade using GHRH receptor antagonists, with minimal pharmacologic side-effects, we have been able to control the growth in a number of tumor cell lines (HCC1806, MDAMB468, MDAMB435S, MCF7, T47D, HCC1937, BT474, and MX1s). Based on the presence of GHRH receptors in these clinical tumors, we conclude that clinical trials evaluating GHRH receptor antagonists are indicated. Citation Format: Mehrad Nadji, Norman L Block, Andrew V Shally, Jonathan Lara, Rick Michaelson, Suhail M Ali, Kim Leitzel, Syed M Rizvi, Mhd Yaser Al-Marrawi, Allan Lipton. Expression of growth hormone releasing hormone receptor ( GHRH-R ) in primary and metastatic mammary carcinomas [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Seventh Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2014 Dec 9-13; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(9 Suppl):Abstract nr P4-06-07.
Detection of dielectric targets buried in a very lossy Earth

In this paper, we propose an efficient method to reconstruct the dielectric objects buried in the lossy Earth using the Born approximation and the Born iterative method. For the detection of buried targets, the diffraction tomographic (DT) algorithm has been an efficient tool. It is fast and stable, and can be used for on-site detection. However, the exact DT algorithm is only valid in the lossless case. Although it was later generalized to the lossy case, the Earth conductivity still cannot be very high. Also, DT algorithms require high-frequency spectrum. Our study shows that DT algorithms provide high-resolution images if the upper frequency is larger than 50 MHz. When the upper frequency is smaller than 30 MHz, DT algorithms become invalid. In this paper, an efficient inversion method is proposed using the least-square minimization and Tikhonov regularization technique, which is valid for the VETEM system. Based on the fast forward solver for buried dielectric objects we developed (Cui et al. 2002), the inversion algorithms are very fast. For a 8 /spl times/ 8 /spl times/ 8 pixelled reconstruction domain, only 10 seconds are required for the Born-approximation inversion, and 160 seconds for each Born iterative scheme. Reconstruction examples are given to test the efficiency of the inversion algorithm.
Distributed planning over time and people: balancing sampling effort and information accuracy

Coordination of dynamic schedules in complex environments requires the sampling of current status of the system. In many such systems, the information is unavailable or unreliable. Optimal sampling theory focuses on monitoring current situation for changes, with limited consideration of future changes or missing information. Models of sampling for coordination and scheduling must consider resolving missing or ambiguous data points. Human behavior involving this type of sampling balances the need for specific information with the effort required to attain the information. The effort exerted is inversely proportional to the projected uncertainty of the information obtained. Furthermore, informational uncertainty is mitigated through a process of collaborative "grounding and correction." This paper uses the coordination of Operating-Room Suite activities to demonstrate these factors, and discusses communication strategies within the operating room context.
Effects of Some Environmental Factors on Growth Characteristics of Candida utilis on Peat Hydrolysates

Samples of peat from Pine Island and Brookston bogs in Minnesota were hydrolyzed with various concentrations of HCl or H2SO4 solutions, before or after debituminization (an extraction process used to remove waxy materials, bitumens, from peat), to produce peak hydrolysates as growth substrates for Candida utilis. Hydrolysates were neutralized with concentrated NaOH solution to pH 3.5, 4.5, 5.0, 5.5, 6.0, and 7.0. The precipitated humates were removed by filtration. The resulting peat hydrolysates were amended with reagent-grade K2HPO4, K2SO4, and MgSO4, 200, 100, and 50 mg per liter of peat hydrolysate, respectively. The debituminized peat produced more total nitrogen (TN) and reducing substances (RS) than the nondebituminized peat. Peat hydrolysates produced by HCl solutions contained slightly higher RS and TN than those produced by H2SO4 solutions; however, the latter were better growth substrates than the former. The yield coefficients in both H2SO4 and HCl hydrolysates initially decreased at 12 to 24 h and then increased gradually over the remaining incubation period (24 to 96 h). As TN and RS were increased, an increase in cell density, biomass, and productivity was observed. In contrast, a decrease in specific growth rate occurred as the RS and TN were increased. The generation time of C. utilis was affected by the concentrations of RS and TN. A peak substrate yield coefficient was found at pH 5.0 in HCl hydrolysates and at pH 6.0 to 6.5 in H2SO4 hydrolysates. Good linear correlation coefficients were found between RS and biomass of C. utilis. The coefficients of correlation increased as the TN level in hydrolysates was increased.
Location assisted routing for near-far effect mitigation in wireless networks

CDMA technology represents an attractive choice for various wireless ad hoc networks applications, due to its appealing properties, such as resistance to jamming and interference, low probability of intercept, and potential for energy savings. On the other hand, ad hoc CDMA network performance is severely limited by strong interferers, and for peer-to-peer communications the near-far effect problem cannot be mitigated through power control as in cellular systems. In this paper, we propose a location assisted routing solution to alleviate the near-far problem at the network level. The novelty of the solution resides in using a composite cost function for route optimization, which accounts for an estimate of the near-far effect generated by each relaying node. This estimate is determined based on node locations information. The tradeoff performance-complexity is investigated, and we show that a throughput improvement of up to 45% can be obtained using the new proposed near-far effect aware routing metric
Abiogenic, microbial and hybrid authigenic crusts: components of Precambrian stromatolites

Authigenic seafloor carbonate crusts include fenestrate microbialite, thrombolite, and four types here designated Fine-grained Crust, Sparry Crust, Hybrid Sparry Fine-grained Crust, and Sparry Crust plus Coarse Grains. Each of the latter four types includes at least some layered examples that have generally been regarded as stromatolites. Recognition and interpretation of these various deposits assists understanding of stromatolite development. Sparry Crust is common in the Late Archaean-Mesoproterozoic. It includes botryoidal fans and other crystal pseudomorphs, microdigitate stromatolite, dendrite, isopachous laminite, and herringbone calcite. Although differing in primary mineralogy and bedform, these are all characterized by coarse sparry, commonly radial fibrous, fabric and appear light coloured in thin-section. They have commonly been referred to as seafloor cement, although they formed at the open sediment-water interface rather than as void-fills. Two of them in particular, isopachous laminite and microdigitate ‘tufa’, typically form isopachous layers with good vertical inheritance and have been regarded as stromatolites. In contrast to Sparry Crust, Fine-grained Crust has fine-grained (micritic, clotted, peloidal, filamentous) microfabric that appears dark in thin-section, and irregular uneven layering with relatively poor inheritance. Mixed crusts, composed of millimetric alternations of Sparry and Fine-grained crust, are here termed Hybrid Sparry Fine-grained Crust. Sparry Crust with coarse allochthonous grains - here termed Sparry Crust plus Coarse Grains – includes some examples that have been given formal stromatolite names, e.g., Gongylina and Omachtenia.Sparry, Hybrid, and Fine-grained crusts are common components of Precambrian stromatolites. Their relative abundances change through time. Archaean stromatolite fabrics are commonly obscured by recrystallization, but their preserved lamina arrangements suggest that many of them could be composed mainly of Sparry or Hybrid crust. During the Palaeoproterozoic-Mesoproterozoic, Sparry Crust fabrics were common in peritidal stromatolites, whereas Hybrid Crust appears to have dominated large subtidal domes and columns. Fine-grained Crust may not have become generally abundant until the Neoproterozoic, when it commonly formed both stromatolites and thrombolites. Phanerozoic normal marine stromatolites are also typically composed of Fine-grained Crust. Present-day analogues of Sparry Crust fabrics occur in some speleothem, hot spring, and splash-zone marine crusts, and of Fine-grained Crust in lithified microbial mats. Light-dark millimetric alternations of sparry and fine-grained crust that characterize Hybrid Crust have analogues in freshwater stromatolites. Taken together, these comparisons suggest that some Precambrian stromatolites are abiogenic, some microbial, and others are intimate hybrid mixtures of the two, and that - preservation permitting - these varieties can be distinguished using microfabric and lamina criteria.
Coal and the Present Energy Situation

To summarize, we must make greater use of coal, an energy resource that the nation has in great abundance, if we are to approach our former position of self-sufficiency in energy production. The first step is to move immediately to replace the oil and gas used in electric generating plants with coal and to require that coal be used in fossil fuel electric plants planned or under construction in the next few years. The technology to remove sulfur and particulates from the stack gases is at hand, and therefore environmental regulations can be met. Producing and transporting the required increased tonnages of coal are problems that can be met with appropriate incentives to the coal and transportation industries. Improved mining technology would be helpful but is not a requiremlent. Oil and gas from coal should be in significant commercial production in about a decade. Underground, or in situ, gasification of coal, now in field tests, looks promising as a practical process for recovering the energy from coal, especially in deep or thick beds that cannot be mined efficiently. Recoverable methane occurs in coal beds in the United States in an amount approximately equal to the total reserves of natural gas—about 260 trillion cubic feet. This large reserve of natural gas should be exploited as quickly as possible. Only minor investments in exploration and modest advances in technology are required. Finally, as coal production is expanded. adequate planning and the most modern technology should be used to ensure that coal is extracted with maximum recovery and with minimum damage to the environment.
Nutrient loading and coastal plankton blooms: seasonal/interannual successions and effects on secondary production

A 13-year field analysis of the Perdido Bay system (Gulf of Mexico) indicated that orthophosphate and ammonia loading from a pulp mill was associated with a series of plankton blooms. Bloom species (10) followed distinct seasonal and interannual trends that included the replacement of initial diatom blooms by raphidophytes and dinoflagellates. Long-term habitat changes associated with river flow rates (drought/flood cycles) defined varying susceptibility to bloom development. The initiation and proliferation of plankton blooms were also affected by seasonal changes of temperature, phosphorus and nitrogen loading, and associated nutrient concentration gradients. Plankton blooms were associated with deterioration of secondary production through food web interactions. The bivalve Rangia cuneata was an indicator of such effects. Most scientific efforts continue to overlook the world-wide impacts of anthropogenous nutrient loading and associated plankton blooms due to the lack of long-term analyses of species-specific, community-level phytoplankton assemblages and the replacement of ecosystem studies with patch-quilt ecological efforts that depend on disorganized and inadequate data acquisition and uncoordinated multidisciplinary efforts.
Pneumonia Prevention during a Humanitarian Emergency: Cost-effectiveness of Haemophilus Influenzae Type B Conjugate Vaccine and Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine in Somalia.

Background Pneumonia is a leading cause of death among children less than five years old during humanitarian emergencies. Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and Streptococcus pneumoniae are the leading causes of bacterial pneumonia. Vaccines for both of these pathogens are available to prevent pneumonia. Problem This study describes an economic analysis from a publicly funded health care system perspective performed on a birth cohort in Somalia, a country that has experienced a protracted humanitarian emergency. Methods An impact and cost-effectiveness analysis was performed comparing: no vaccine, Hib vaccine only, pneumococcal conjugate vaccine 10 (PCV10) only, and both together administered through supplemental immunization activities (SIAs). The main summary measure was the incremental cost per disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) averted. One-way sensitivity analysis was conducted for uncertainty in parameter values. Results Each SIA would avert a substantial number of cases and deaths. Compared with no vaccine, the DALYs averted by two SIAs for two doses of Hib vaccine was US $214.42). Variables that influenced the cost-effectiveness for each strategy most substantially were vaccine effectiveness, case fatality rates (CFRs), and disease burden. Conclusions The World Health Organization (WHO) defines a cost-effective intervention as costing one to three times the per capita gross domestic product (GDP; in 2011, for Somalia=US $112). Based on the presented model, Hib vaccine alone, PCV10 alone, or Hib vaccine and PCV10 given together in SIAs are cost-effective interventions in Somalia. The WHO/Strategic Advisory Group of Experts decision-making factors for vaccine deployment appear to have all been met: the disease burden is large, the vaccine-related risk is low, prevention in this setting is more feasible than treatment, the vaccine duration probably is sufficient for the vulnerable period of the child’s life, cost is reasonable, and herd immunity is possible. Gargano LM , Hajjeh R , Cookson ST . Pneumonia Prevention during a Humanitarian Emergency: Cost-effectiveness of Haemophilus Influenzae Type B Conjugate Vaccine and Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine in Somalia. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2015;30(4):1 10.
Emergencies, Executive Power, and the Uncertain Future of US Presidential Democracy

This article reexamines the question of how best to restrain executive power in a political and social context that seems to favor its dramatic expansion. Modern interventionist government amidst a dynamic social environment, where the executive faces a seemingly endless series of “crises” or “emergencies,” provides a heightened scope for executive discretion. At the same time, the US-style separation of powers, in which an independent president faces a potentially obstinate Congress, offers executives many incentives to exploit crises, real or otherwise. The works examined in this article confront, with varying degrees of success, the seemingly inexorable expansion of executive power within the US version of liberal democracy. We can only hope to deal with the many intellectual and political tasks posed by the symbiotic nexus between executive-centered and crisis-oriented government by confronting some tough questions about US constitutional design and the possibility of radical institutional reform. Unfortunately, even those scholars who provide plausible accounts of the US system's fragilities seem hesitant to do so.
Optimal generation of transfer functions for direct volume rendering

Volume rendering implements the visualization of 3D structures without a prior segmentation process. Direct volume rendering is a key imaging technology for visualizing large 3D data sets from scientific or medical applications. Visualization is rendered by transfer functions which assign optical properties such as color, opacity and shading to original values of the data set being visualized. Constructing appropriate transfer functions is a tedious task, generally requiring substantial hand tuning for each new data set and often done by trial and error. This paper introduces a semi-automatic method of transfer function generation which makes volume rendering surfaces more intuitive and less labor intensive. Fundamentally, this method rests on an algorithm that computes the boundary characteristics in a volume and uses this information to guide the user toward opacity function settings which readily display the boundaries.
Early delivery as an alternative management strategy for selected high-risk fetal sacrococcygeal teratomas.

Abstract Background Large, prenatally diagnosed sacrococcygeal teratomas (SCTs) present a formidable challenge because of their unpredictable growth and propensity for complications. In our experience, even with aggressive serial imaging, many fetuses have died under a policy of "watchful waiting." We propose "early delivery" as the best option for selected cases of high-risk fetal SCT. Methods The medical charts of all fetuses with SCT followed up at our institution and delivered before 32 weeks of gestation were reviewed for radiologic findings, fetal interventions, delivery information, perinatal inpatient course, and autopsy or discharge report. Results Between 1996 and 2009, excluding those that underwent fetal surgery, 9 patients with fetal SCT were delivered before 32 weeks of gestation. Four had type I tumors, and 5 had type II tumors. Of the 9 fetuses, 4 survived the neonatal period. The only surviving patient delivered before 28 weeks underwent an ex utero intrapartum therapy procedure. Conclusions A significant number of pregnancies complicated by high-risk SCT will manifest signs of fetal or maternal decompensation, or both, between 27 and 32 weeks of gestation. In the absence of fulminant hydrops, preemptive early delivery can be associated with surprisingly good outcomes in appropriately selected fetuses with high-risk SCT.
Enhancement of numerical computations of the Wigner-Poisson equations for application to the simulation of THz-frequency RTD oscillators

Resonant tunneling diodes (RTDs) are ultra-small semiconductor devices that have potential as very high frequency oscillators. To describe the electron transport within these devices, the Wigner-Poisson Equations are used. These equations incorporate quantum mechanics to describe how the electron distribution changes in time due to kinetic energy, potential energy, and scattering effects. To study the RTD, we apply numerical continuation methods to calculate the steady-state electron distribution as the voltage difference across the RTD varies. To implement the continuation methods, the RTD simulator is interfaced to LOCA (Library of Continuation Algorithm), a software library that is a part of Sandia National Laboratories' parallel solver package, Trilinos. With more sophisticated numerical solvers, we are able to calculate solutions on finer grids that were previously too computationally intensive. This is very important to allow for detailed studies of correlation effects which may dramatically influence oscillatory behavior in RTD-based devices. The more accurate results derived from this work reveal new physical effects that were absent in prior studies. Hence, these physics-based and more refined numerical simulations will provide new insights and greatly facilitate the future optimization of RTD-based oscillator sources and thus has important relevance to THz-frequency-regime based spectroscopic sensing technology.
Marital Status, Gender, and Parents’ Psychological Well‐Being*

This study analyzes the associations between marital status, gender, and depressive symptoms among parents. The regression results indicate that married parents report fewer traditional depressive symptoms and lower rates of alcohol abuse than do single parents. Mothers and fathers also appear to be more likely to exhibit different depressive symptoms: Mothers are more likely than fathers to report traditional depressive symptoms and fathers are more likely to report the abuse of alcohol. Finally, we find evidence that indicators of parenting burdens such as economic strain, household labor, childcare, social support, and religious involvement mediate and moderate these relationships.
Intercropped Oat and Fababean in Alaska: Dry Matter Production, Dinitrogen Fixation, Nitrogen Transfer, and Nitrogen Fertilizer Response

There are conflicting reports on the amount of N transferred from legumes to intercropped nonlegumes and on the need for N fertilizer to obtain high total dry matter yields on soil with low N availability. This study evaluates (i) the ability of fababean (Vicia faba L.) to meet its N requirements from biological N 2 fixation : (ii) the amount of N transferred to intercropped oat (Avena sativa L.) ; and (iii) N fertilizer management to maximize dry matter production and N 2 fixation in a cold soil. A randomized complete block experimental design with four replications was used with two rows of fababean alternating with two rows of oat. Urea was applied in bands between fababean or oat rows at 90 kg N ha -1 to get the following treatments : (i) oat with added N (+N), fababean +N, inoculated with Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viceae (+I) ; (ii) oat +N, fababean without added N, inoculated (-N,+I) ; (iii) oat -N, fababean -N,+I ; (iv) oat -N, fababean +N,-I ; and (v) oat -N, fababean -N,+I. A second study compared uptake of 15 N-depleted fertilizer by oat and fababean, where the fertilizer was broadcast over the plot or band-applied between rows of oat and fababean planted in alternate rows. Less than 1% of the uninoculated fababean plants nodulated in either experiment ; thus, they were a good check for estimating N 2 fixation using the difference method. Nitrogen fertilizer increased dry matter production of fababean in some years, but did not increase N uptake. There was little evidence of N transfer from fababean to oat. Oat depended on N fertilizer for maximum dry matter production 3 of the 4 yr. Maximum total dry matter production was achieved by fertilizing the oat and not the fababean in 3 of the 4 yr. The amount of N 2 fixed by fababean averaged 50 kg N ha -1 . Fababean plants obtained >50% of their N from broadcast urea, but <10% when urea was banded between oat and fababean rows. Configuring a commercial drill to band fertilizer between pairs of oat rows alternating with fababean is a practical way to maximize both N 2 fixation and total dry matter production.
Drought and elevation effects on MODIS vegetation indices in northern Arizona ecosystems

Northern Arizona ecosystems are particularly sensitive to plant-available moisture and have experienced a severe drought with considerable impacts on ecosystems from desert shrub and grasslands to pinyon-juniper and conifer forests. Long-term time-series from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer MODIS normalized difference vegetation index NDVI and enhanced vegetation index EVI are used to monitor recent regional vegetation activity and temporal patterns across various ecosystems. Surface air temperature, solar radiation and precipitation are used to represent meteorological anomalies and to investigate associated impacts on vegetation greenness. Vegetation index anomalies in the northern Arizona ecosystem have a decreasing trend with increasing surface air temperature and decreasing precipitation. MODIS NDVI and EVI anomalies are likely sensitive to the amount of rainfall for northern Arizona ecosystem conditions, whereas inter-annual variability of surface air temperature accounts for MODIS NDVI anomaly variation. The higher elevation area shows the slow vegetation recovery through trend analysis from MODIS vegetation indices for 2000–2011 within the study domain and along elevation.
Synthesis of radiolabeled protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) inhibitors as new potential PET agents for imaging of the enzyme PDI in neurological disorders and cancer

Abstract Carbon-11-labeled substituted β-tetrahydrocarbolines were prepared from their corresponding phenolic hydroxyl precursors with [ 11 C]CH 3 OTf through O -[ 11 C]methylation and isolated by simplified SPE in 50–60% decay corrected radiochemical yields at EOB with 185–370 GBq/μmol specific activity at EOS. A fluorine-18-labeled substituted β-tetrahydrocarboline was prepared from its corresponding halo-precursors (X=Cl, Br, I) with K[ 18 F]F/Kryptofix 2.2.2 via the nucleophilic substitution and isolated by HPLC combined with SPE in 25–40% decay corrected radiochemical yield with 37–222 GBq/μmol specific activity at EOB.