cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Neuroendocrine Carcinoma of the Breast With Endobronchial Metastases and Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuretic Hormone Secretion.

Abstract We present the case of a woman with neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast (NECB) with syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion (SIADH), endobronchial metastases and bone metastases. In our knowledge, no cases of primary neuroendocrine cancer of the breast with SIADH and documented endobronchial metastases have been reported.
How Do Machine-Learning Paradigms Fare in Language Acquisition?

How can a computer program augment its own lexicon by learning new words and phrases? How is language acquisition related to general machine-learning paradigms? In pursuing these questions, we have constructed a computer model called RINA which learns phrases in context. While in other papers we have described the underlying linguistic theory (Zernik and Dyer, 1987) and the specific learning strategies (Zernik, 1987c), in this paper we explain how current machine-learning paradigms are applied in the linguistic domain.
High energy neutron transmission analysis of dry cask storage

Abstract Since the U.S. currently only approves of storing used nuclear fuel in pools or dry casks, the demand for dry cask storage is on the rise due to the continuous operation of currently existing nuclear plants which are reaching or have reached the capacity of their used fuel pools. With the rising demand comes additional pressure to ensure the integrity of dry cask systems. Visual inspection is costly and man-power intensive, so alternative nondestructive testing techniques are desired to insure the continued safe and effective storage of fuel. One such approach being investigated by the University of Florida is neutron based computed tomography. Simulations in MCNP are preformed where D-T energy neutrons are transmitted through the dry cask and measured on the opposite side. If the transmitted signal is clear enough, the interior of the cask can be reconstructed from the measurement of the alterations of neutron signal intensity using standard mathematical techniques developed for medical imaging. Preliminary efforts show a correlation between energy and number of scatters (which is an indication of retention of position information). Work is ongoing to quantify if the correlation is strong enough that an energy discriminator may be used as a filter in future image reconstruction. The calculated transmission probability suggests that an image could be reconstructed with a week of scanning.
Comparative Oncology Evaluation of Intravenous Recombinant Oncolytic Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Therapy in Spontaneous Canine Cancer

Clinical translation of intravenous therapies to treat disseminated or metastatic cancer is imperative. Comparative oncology, the evaluation of novel cancer therapies in animals with spontaneous cancer, can be utilized to inform and accelerate clinical translation. Preclinical murine studies demonstrate that single-shot systemic therapy with a vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-IFNβ-NIS, a novel recombinant oncolytic VSV, can induce curative remission in tumor-bearing mice. Clinical translation of VSV-IFNβ-NIS therapy is dependent on comprehensive assessment of clinical toxicities, virus shedding, pharmacokinetics, and efficacy in clinically relevant models. Dogs spontaneously develop cancer with comparable etiology, clinical progression, and response to therapy as human malignancies. A comparative oncology study was carried out to investigate feasibility and tolerability of intravenous oncolytic VSV-IFNβ-NIS therapy in pet dogs with spontaneous cancer. Nine dogs with various malignancies were treated with a single intravenous dose of VSV-IFNβ-NIS. Two dogs with high-grade peripheral T-cell lymphoma had rapid but transient remission of disseminated disease and transient hepatotoxicity that resolved spontaneously. There was no shedding of infectious virus. Correlative pharmacokinetic studies revealed elevated levels of VSV RNA in blood in dogs with measurable disease remission. This is the first evaluation of intravenous oncolytic virus therapy for spontaneous canine cancer, demonstrating that VSV-IFNβ-NIS is well-tolerated and safe in dogs with advanced or metastatic disease. This approach has informed clinical translation, including dose and target indication selection, leading to a clinical investigation of intravenous VSV-IFNβ-NIS therapy, and provided preliminary evidence of clinical efficacy and potential biomarkers that correlate with therapeutic response. Mol Cancer Ther; 17(1); 316-26. ©2017 AACR.
Exploring the Challenges and Opportunities of Cloud Stacks in Dynamic Resource Environments

Traditional cloud stacks are designed to tolerate server or rack-level failures, that are unpredictable and uncorrelated. � Such stacks successfully deliver highly-available cloud services at global scale. The increasing criticality of cloud services to the overall world economy is causing concern about the impact of power outages, cyber-attacks, configuration errors, or other causes of datacenter or larger-scale failures on cloud availability. Recent experience shows that these events can trigger cascading failures and global-scale service outages. We study the impact of correlated, datacenter resource failures, exploring distributed protocols (widely-used in Cassandra) across varied configurations and resource availability. Our study reveals that using such protocols to achieve high availability on resources with large-scale, correlated outages are costly in storage and update traffic, requiring replication factors of 10 or more. Further analysis reveals that this limitation arises from from inflexible replication and quorum.
Recycled Sm-Co bonded magnet filaments for 3D printing of magnets

Recycling of rare earth elements, such as Sm and Nd, is one technique towards mitigating long-term supply and cost concerns for materials and devices that depend on these elements. In this work recycled Sm-Co powder recovered from industrial grinding swarfs, or waste material from magnet processing, was investigated for use in preparation of filament for 3D printing of bonded magnets. Recycled Sm-Co powder recovered from swarfs was blended into polylactic acid (PLA). Up to 20 vol.% of the recycled Sm-Co in PLA was extruded at 160°C to produce a filament. It was demonstrated that no degradation of magnetic properties occurred due to the preparation or extrusion of the bonded magnet material. Good uniformity of the magnetic properties is exhibited throughout the filament, with the material first extruded being the exception. The material does exhibit some magnetic anisotropy, allowing for the possibility of the development of anisotropic filaments. This work provides a path forward for producing recycled magnetic filament for 3D printing of permanent magnets.
From sensors to knowledge: the challenge of training the next generation of data analysts

With the advent of commercial-off-the-shelf sensors for use in a variety of applications, integration with analytical software tools, and expansion of available archived datasets, there is a critical need to address the problem of transforming resultant data into comprehensible, actionable information for decision-makers through rigorous analysis. In previous research the participating authors have emphasized that users are often faced with the situation in which they are “drowning in a sea of data” but still “thirsting for knowledge”. The availability of analysis software, tools, and techniques provide opportunities for information collection of ever increasing complexity, but the need for the training of analysts to employ appropriate tools and processes to ensure accurate and applicable results has not been addressed. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the training of effective analysts capable of handling a wide-range of data types in this era of dynamic tools and techniques.
Immunomodulatory effects of etanercept (TNFR:Fc) and its use in a patient with Crohn's disease

Designer drug etanercept (TNFR:Fc) is an inhibitor of TNF-alpha that binds with greater affinity than membrane receptors. Its full immunomodulatory effects are unknown. Approved for rheumatoid arthritis, its therapeutic potential in Crohn's disease has yet to be explored. We describe the course of a steroid-dependent patient with Crohn's disease given etanercept, and its effects on cytokine protein and mRNA expression and transcription factor activity in human leukocytes. Etanercept 25 mg s.c., was given twice weekly for 1 month. Weekly ESR, disease activity index, prednisone requirement, and serum cytokines were determined. In vitro, effects of physiologic concentrations of etanercept on cytokine protein and mRNA, and NFKB and GR transcription factor activity, were determined using MOT and U937 cell lines and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Rapid clinical, biochemical, and immunologic improvement occurred, but obstruction due to stricture developed after 4 weeks. In vitro, constitutive and stimulated production of TNF-beta, IL-1beta, MIP-1beta, and IL-8 by normal mononuclear cells declined with etanercept, detectable TNF-alpha increased. MOT TNF-alpha expression tripled, mRNA for IL-12 p40 doubled, GR activity declined in U937 cells, NFKB was unaffected. Etanercept has complex immunomodulatory effects, and may be useful in Crohn's disease, but acutely decreased inflammation could worsen stricture.
Developmental Counseling and Therapy: A Promising Intervention for Preventing Relapse with Substance-Abusing Clients

Developmental Counseling and Therapy (DCT) increases awareness by helping clients understand their cognitive style preferences and gain insight into factors underlying their substance abuse. This article presents the four DCT cognitive emotional styles, their relationship to relapse, and a format for conducting a DCT assessment-intervention interview and counseling intervention plan with a relapsing substance-abuse client, which is also demonstrated in a case vignette.
Measurement-Based Methods for Model Reduction of Power Systems Using Synchrophasors

Wide-area analysis and control of large-scale electric power systems are highly dependent on the idea of aggregation. For example, one often hears power system operators mentioning how “Northern Washington” oscillates against “Southern California” in response to various disturbance events. The main question here is whether we can analytically construct dynamic electromechanical models for these conceptual, aggregated generators representing Washington and California, which in reality are some hypothetical combinations of hundreds of actual generators. In this chapter we present an overview of several new results on how to construct such simplified interarea models of large power systems by using dynamic measurements available from phasor measurement units (PMUs) installed at limited points on the transmission lines. Our examples of study are motivated by widely encountered power transfer paths in the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), namely a two-area radial system representing the WA-MT flow, a star-connected three-area system resembling the Pacific AC Intertie, and a generic multi-area system with more than one dominant slow mode of oscillation.
4.11 Weathering in the Tropics, and Related Extratropical Processes

Weathering processes are partially responsible for a characteristic geomorphology that occurs in the tropics and subtropics. Resistant landforms such as inselbergs, extreme solution processes such as silica karst, and deep weathering profiles with end stage weathering products such as laterite and kaolin are common features of tropical weathering. Many of these features also occur outside the tropics. In part, climate change and paleotectonics were responsible for tropical conditions in areas not now tropical. But, some processes assumed to require tropic conditions that are not so limited, sufficient moisture, and time sufficing for their development. This chapter reviews the weathering processes and distinctive landforms of the broadly defined tropics, and explores the debates over weathering factors as they pertain to tropic and extratropical environment.
LATE EFFECTS OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS DEPOSITED IN MAN.

Since 1955 studies have been made of approximately 300 persons who had worked in radium dial factories in Illinois from 1915 to the early 1930s or who had received medical treatment with radium 35 to 45 years ago. These persons have been found to have characteristic defects and destructive changes in skeletal structure.At present the data of these studies provide the only available information applicable to establishing permissible levels of radioactive materials in occupational settings. Also, they indicate the long-term effects of radioactive elements deposited in the body.
Significance of pleural effusion at diagnosis in pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma: a report from Children's Oncology Group protocol AHOD0031.

Pleural effusion at presentation in Hodgkin lymphoma has been associated with inferior outcome but has not been systematically evaluated. To determine whether pleural effusion at presentation in children with Hodgkin lymphoma is a primary indicator of poor prognosis or secondary to associated factors. Children’s Oncology Group (COG) AHOD0031, a randomized, response-based, centrally reviewed protocol, enrolled 1,712 eligible patients <22 years of age with initial presentation of intermediate risk, biopsy-proven Hodgkin lymphoma; 1,423 had available imaging for retrospective review. We coded effusions as fluid-only or with associated pleural nodule or adjacent lung or bone involvement and correlated this with disease stage, tumor response, large mediastinal adenopathy, and mass effect on the superior vena cava (SVC) and left innominate vein. We recorded change in size and character of effusions post-chemotherapy. Pleural effusions were present in 217, with 204 having fluid-only and 13 having associated solid components. Patients with effusions were more likely to have large mediastinal adenopathy (P<0.0001), be slow early responders (P<0.0001) and have higher relapse rate (P<0.0001). Vascular compression was not significantly correlated with pleural effusion. Of 121 patients with adequate [F-18]2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/CT imaging, no FDG PET avidity was seen in any pleural effusion but was present in solid components. The side of the pleural effusion in those with moderate or large effusions was highly associated with the side of large mediastinal adenopathy (P<0.0001). Statistical analysis indicates that pleural effusion is an independent risk factor for poorer response and relapse. Pleural effusion in Hodgkin lymphoma is an important independent poor prognostic indicator for response and relapse.
Nicotine improves probabilistic reward learning in wildtype but not alpha7 nAChR null mutants, yet alpha7 nAChR agonists do not improve probabilistic learning.

Cognitive impairments, e.g., reward learning, are present in various psychiatric disorders and warrant treatment. Improving reward-related learning could synergistically enhance psychosocial treatments and cognition generally. A critical first step is to understand the mechanisms underlying reward learning. The dopamine system has been implicated in such learning, but less known is how indirect activation of this system may affect reward learning. We determined the role of alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) on a probabilistic reversal learning task (PRLT) in mice that includes reward and punishment. Male alpha7 knockout (KO), heterozygous (HT), and wildtype (WT) littermate mice (n = 84) were treated with vehicle, 0.03, or 0.3 mg/kg nicotine. Two cohorts of C57BL/6NJ male mice were treated with various alpha7 nAChR ligands, including the full agonists PNU282877 and AR-R-17779, the positive allosteric modulator CCMI, the partial agonist SSR180711, and the antagonist methyllycaconitine. All mice were then tested in the PRLT. Nicotine (0.3 mg/kg) significantly improved initial reward learning in alpha7 WT and HT mice but did not improve learning in KO mice, suggesting an involvement of the alpha7 nAChR in the pro-learning effects of nicotine. Neither alpha7 nAChR treatments (PNU282987, AR-R-17779, CCMI, SSR180711, nor methyllycaconitine) affected mouse PRLT performance however. Nicotine improved reward learning via a mechanism that may include alpha7 nAChRs. This improvement unlikely relied solely on alpha7 nAChRs however, since no alpha7 nAChR ligand improved reward learning in normal mice. Future assessments of the effects of other nAChR subtypes on reward learning are needed.
STRESS AND GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX DISEASE

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is one of the commonest conditions managed by clinicians. Regurgitation and heartburn are considered the cardinal symptoms of GERD. In recent decades, an increasing association has been noted between stress and GERD and our knowledge about the pathophysiology of this relationship is constantly evolving. Both acute and chronic stress can accentuate GERD related symptoms. Subjects exposed to chronic life stressors are more likely to complaint of GERD symptoms. Current data suggests that acute stress exacerbates GERD symptoms by enhancing the perceptual responses to intra-esophageal acid stimulivia central mechanisms without increasing the amount of acid reflux. This process is likely mediated by an increase in esophageal mucosal permeability. Treatment with proton pump inhibitors attenuates the effect of acute stress on esophageal perception thresholds for pain. However, the effect of anti-reflux therapy in patients experiencing chronic stress remains to be elucidated.
Modeling Urban Neighborhood Violence: The Systemic Model and Variable Effects of Social Structure:

The systemic model of crime illustrates how neighborhood social structure influences social networks needed for the regulation of crime. This study examines whether those structural influences are ...
Pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia generate abundant and functional neoantigen-specific CD8+ T cell responses

Cancer arises from the accumulation of genetic alterations, which can lead to the production of mutant proteins not expressed by normal cells. These mutant proteins can be processed and presented on the cell surface by major histocompatibility complex molecules as neoepitopes, allowing CD8+ T cells to mount responses against them. For solid tumors, only an average 2% of neoepitopes predicted by algorithms have detectable endogenous antitumor T cell responses. This suggests that low mutation burden tumors, which include many pediatric tumors, are poorly immunogenic. Here, we report that pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have tumor-associated neoepitope-specific CD8+ T cells, responding to 86% of tested neoantigens and recognizing 68% of the tested neoepitopes. These responses include a public neoantigen from the ETV6-RUNX1 fusion that is targeted in seven of nine tested patients. We characterized phenotypic and transcriptional profiles of CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) at the single-cell level and found a heterogeneous population that included highly functional effectors. Moreover, we observed immunodominance hierarchies among the CD8+ TILs restricted to one or two putative neoepitopes. Our results indicate that robust antitumor immune responses are induced in pediatric ALL despite their low mutation burdens and emphasize the importance of immunodominance in shaping cellular immune responses. Furthermore, these data suggest that pediatric cancers may be amenable to immunotherapies aimed at enhancing immune recognition of tumor-specific neoantigens.
Development and Validation of a Capacity for Wonder Scale for Use in Educational Settings

Experiences of wonder should be valued, protected, and promoted in academic settings. Identification of learning environments and interventions that cultivate students’ capacity for wonder (CfW) fi...
Screening for Barrett's Esophagus with Probe-Based Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy Videos

Histologic diagnosis of Barrett's esophagus and esophageal malignancy via probe-based confocal laser endomicroscopy (pCLE) allows for real-time examination of epithelial architecture and targeted biopsy sampling. Although pCLE demonstrates high specificity, sensitivity remains low. This study employs deep learning architectures in order to improve the accuracy of pCLE in diagnosing esophageal cancer and its precursors. pCLE videos are curated and annotated as belonging to one of the three classes: squamous, Bar-rett‘s (intestinal metaplasia without dysplasia), or dysplasia. We introduce two novel video architectures, AttentionPooling and Multi-Module AttentionPooling deep networks, that outperform other models and demonstrate a high degree of explainability.
A social robot’s influence on children’s figural creativity during gameplay

Abstract Children’s creativity is influenced by their social interactions with co-present peers during collaborative tasks, which digital pedagogical tools lack. Children are known to emulate social agents’ behaviors. In this work, we explore how a social robot’s co-presence and creativity demonstration influences children’s creative expression during collaborative gameplay. Children played a digital drawing game that afforded figural creativity with a social robot (Jibo) as a peer-like playmate. To understand the effect of the robot’s co-presence on children’s creativity, we compared the creative expression of participants who played the game with Jibo, and a control group of participants who played in the absence of Jibo. No significant gains in creativity were observed. In a second study, we then enhanced the robot’s behavior to express and model figural creativity during gameplay. To understand the effect of the robot’s creativity demonstration, we compared the figural creativity of participants’ drawings who played the game with Jibo while it modeled creative behaviors, with participants who played with a version of Jibo that did not. Children expressed significantly higher levels of figural creativity while interacting with the robot that modeled creative behavior through its drawings. We infer that while embodied co-presence was not a significant stimulant of creative expression, creativity demonstration led to heightened figural creativity. We suggest guidelines for designing robotic interactions to foster creative expression in children, highlighting the role of social emulation in influencing behavior.
Indicators of Gender Inequality and Violence against Women Predict Number of Reported Human Trafficking Legal Cases across Countries

Although efforts to combat human trafficking have increased in recent decades, human trafficking remains a significant global human rights issue, with an estimated 40.3 million victims. Due to the ...
Tubulins from Plants, Fungi, and Protists

Because brain tissue is a readily available source of abundant and easily purified microtubule protein, much of our knowledge of the biochemistry of microtubules and tubulin came first from studies on animal tubulin. Subsequently tubulin was isolated and characterized from extracts of numerous types of vertebrate and invertebrate animal tissues. The aggregate of this work has given us a general model for the biochemistry of tubulin. In recent years investigators have begun to purify and characterize the tubulins from plants, fungi, and protists, and we have summarized the methodologies and results herein with some historical perspective. Apparently the tubulins from these nonanimal sources exhibit the general structural characteristics observed with animal tubulins. However, recent immunological, pharmacological, electrophoretic, peptide mapping, and sequencing data indicate that nonanimal tubulins possess several interesting structural properties that are not fully shared with tubulins from animal sources. These results suggest more divergence of tubulins than was previously thought to exist. Our purpose in this review is to catalogue the recent body of work that has come from studies on tubulins from plants, fungi, and protists and to provide some perspective on the differences and similarities between these nonanimal tubulins and their animal counterparts.
SoFI: Security Property-Driven Vulnerability Assessments of ICs Against Fault-Injection Attacks

Fault-injection attacks have become a major concern for hardware designs, primarily due to their powerful capability in tampering with critical locations in a device to cause violation of its integrity, confidentiality, and availability. Researchers have proposed a number of physical and architectural countermeasures against fault-injection attacks; however, these techniques usually come with large overhead and design efforts making them difficult to use in practice. In addition, the current electronic design automation (EDA) tools are not fully equipped to support vulnerability assessment against fault-injection attacks at the design-time for secure hardware development. To perform a design-time (i.e., pre-silicon) evaluation of such attacks, a designer should be aware of various security vulnerabilities and must perform a tedious manual design review, which is timeconsuming and hard to ensure effectiveness. Therefore, it is very important to develop an automatic assessment framework to identify the most security-critical locations in a design to fault-injection attacks and place emphasis on protecting those locations. In this paper, we propose an automated framework for fault-injection vulnerability assessment of designs at gate-level, while considering the design-specific security properties using novel models and metrics. The proposed framework identifies the faults that can violate the security properties of the design. As a result, applying local countermeasures will be more effective and the protection overhead will be reduced significantly. Our experimental results on the security properties of AES, RSA, and SHA implementations show that the security threat from fault-injection attacks can be significantly mitigated by protecting the identified critical locations, which are less than 0.6% of the design.
N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor-Negative Autoimmune Encephalitis in a Patient With an Ovarian Teratoma and an Associated Novel Cerebrospinal Fluid Autoantibody

Autoimmune encephalitis is most commonly caused by autoantibodies against N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, and the malignancy most often associated with anti-NMDA receptor autoimmune encephalitis is an ovarian teratoma. Here, we describe a case of autoimmune encephalitis caused by a newly discovered cerebrospinal fluid autoantibody that has not been previously described and is not anti-NMDA receptor-mediated, which has been associated with an ovarian teratoma. It was successfully treated with high-dose corticosteroids and plasmapheresis followed by rituximab and chemotherapy (paclitaxel, ifosfamide, and cisplatin) for her teratoma.
Cognitive impairment in candidates for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) is an increasingly common and curative treatment strategy to improve survival among individuals with malignant and nonmalignant diseases, with over one million HCTs having been performed worldwide. Neurocognitive dysfunction is a common and untoward consequence of HCT for many recipients, although few studies have examined the profile of neurocognitive impairments in HCT or their association with clinical features, such as frailty, or the incidence of pre-HCT neurocognitive impairments across all ages, which may influence post-HCT neurocognitive impairments. We examined the pattern and correlates of pre-transplant neurocognitive dysfunction in a prospective sample of adults undergoing HCT. Neurocognition was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Battery. Frailty was assessed using the Short Physical Performance Battery. Linear regression analysis was used to examine the associations between neurocognitive performance and frailty. Neurocognitive screening profiles were also examined by partitioning MoCA into domain scores, including Executive Function and Memory. We also examined the associations between neurocognition, frailty, and clinical outcomes, including length of transplant hospitalization and survival. One hundred and ten adults were evaluated across a wide age range (range: 19-75; mean age = 54.7 [SD = 14.1]). Neurocognitive performance tended to fall below published normative levels (mean MoCA = 25.5 [SD = 4.1]), with 17% of participants demonstrating impaired performance compared with medical normative data (MoCA ≤ 22) and 34% exhibiting impaired performance relative to healthy samples (MoCA ≤ 25). Mild impairments (MoCA ≤ 25) were common across age ranges, including middle-aged patients (23% for age < 50; 35% for age 50-60, 41% for age ≥ 60), particularly for items assessing Executive Function. Greater levels of frailty associated with lower neurocognitive screening scores (r = -0.29, P < 0.01) and Executive Functioning (r = -0.24, P < 0.01), whereas greater age was associated with poorer Memory performance only (r = -0.33, P < 0.01). Greater levels of frailty prior to transplant associated with longer length of stay (β = 0.10, P = 0.046), but were not associated with survival. Neurocognitive impairments are common among adults undergoing HCT and the pattern of performance varies by age. Pre-transplant frailty is associated with neurocognitive functioning and may portend worse post-transplant early clinical outcomes.
Data space randomization for securing cyber-physical systems

Non-control data attacks have become widely popular for circumventing authentication mechanisms in websites, servers, and personal computers. These attacks can be executed against cyber-physical systems (CPSs) in which not only authentication is an issue, but safety is at risk. Furthermore, any unauthorized change to safety-critical variables within the software may cause damage or even catastrophic consequences. Moving target defense techniques such as data space randomization (DSR) have become popular for protecting against memory corruption attacks such as non-control data attacks. However, current DSR implementations rely on source code transformations and do not stop critical variables from being overwritten, only that the new overwritten value will be vastly different than expected by the attacker. As such, these implementations are often ineffective for legacy CPS software in which only a binary is available. The problem addressed in this paper is how do we protect against non-control data attacks in legacy CPS software while ensuring that we can detect instances of variable integrity violations. We solve this problem by combining DSR at the binary level with variable comparison checks to ensure that we can detect and mitigate any attacker attempt to overwrite safety-critical variables. Our security approach is demonstrated utilizing an autonomous emergency braking system case study.
Evaluation of Microwave Techniques to Prepare Solid and Hazardous Waste for Elemental Analysis

The use of microwave energy to facilitate sample decomposition prior to elemental analysis is now receiving considerable attention. Both wet and dry digestions are achievable. When microwave energy is used in combination with acid mixtures in closed vessels, the combined pressure and rapid heating can reduce digestion times to a few minutes from hours or days that may be required for open beaker digestions. This savings in time and labor is significant and has prompted the Office of Solid Waste to evaluate this technology as a preparation tool for solid wastes. Of particular interest are used oils and other fuels slated for incineration, incinerator ash, and particulates from these processes. This study reports on the evaluation of a commercially available microwave oven sample preparation system for this application. The effect of sample preparation conditions, including the acid matrix, heating time, and pressure, were evaluated for fifteen toxic or hazardous elements in particulates, ashes oils, and oil fuels. Analyses were carried out by inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy.
Monitoring health care for children with chronic conditions in a managed care environment.

Objective: Children with chronic health conditions face special issues in their interactions with managed care. These children often require additional and more varied services than do other children. Managed care plans increasingly include these children, especially with the growth of Medicaid managed care. This article examines the special issues facing children with chronic conditions and develops strategies for monitoring their care in managed care settings. Methods: The project staff conducted an extensive review of the research and policy literature related to managed care and the special needs of families with children with chronic conditions. The project also reviewed current and proposed plans of federal, state, and private groups for monitoring and, working with parents and other outside groups, identified key issues to consider in developing monitoring plans. Results: The relative rarity of many childhood conditions and the complex interactions among child, family, and community over time make assessment of their care difficult. We describe these child and family characteristics, outline essential features and domains for monitoring systems, and describe population-based and plan-based monitoring systems to assess managed care for these children and their families. Conclusions: Monitoring for children with chronic conditions in managed care arrangements will require public health agencies and health providers to define populations systematically, assess across a variety of conditions, and monitor several domains central to the health of these families.
Medullary Carcinoma of the Thyroid

Like other neuroendocrine tumors, medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) runs a protracted course. Early detection and surgery provides the only curative approach. Extension of the tumor beyond the thyroid capsule is the most significant prognostic indicator, and when present, the disease cannot be cured by surgery alone. For local and distant metastases of MTC that cannot be treated by surgery or external-beam radiation therapy, chemotherapy is used. Doxorubicin used either alone or in combination is the most widely applied chemotherapeutic agent. Responses are assessed by the degree of or decrease in tumor mass, reduction in symptoms, or decline in levels of calcitonin and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) tumor markers.
A decentralized algorithm for the preferred assignment problem in multi-agent systems

In this paper, we consider a task-allocation problem where N agents are to be assigned N distinct tasks without a central coordinator. The agents communicate over a connected network and we assume that each agent has a preference for a distinct unique task, i.e., without loss of generality, agent i prefers task i and is unhappy with any other task (≠ i). With the assumption that each agent starts by picking an arbitrary random task, we can divide the preferred task-allocation problem into two phases: (i) to reach the set of N! unique assignments from the set of NN total configurations-presented elsewhere; and (ii) to reach the single preferred assignment from the set of N! unique configurations. In this paper, we consider the phase (ii) of this preferred assignment problem, i.e., we assume that the network is already in one of the N! unique configurations. In particular, we assume that each agent has a unique task that may not be preferred and each agent does not know its preference until it sees the task and evaluates its cost. Under mild conditions on the network connectivity, we propose a swap-stick algorithm and show that this algorithm reaches the preferred assignment in finite-time (a.s.) using Markov-chain arguments. The analysis in this paper is further extendable to show the convergence of the phase (i) assignment problem.
Computing the Odds Ratio in Logistic Regression

In this chapter, the E, V, W model is extended to consider other coding schemes for a single exposure variable, including ordinal and interval exposures. The model is further extended to allow for several exposure variables. The formula for the odds ratio is provided for each extension, and examples are used to illustrate the formula.
Survival in systemic sclerosis–pulmonary arterial hypertension by serum autoantibody status in the Pulmonary Hypertension Assessment and Recognition of Outcomes in Scleroderma (PHAROS) Registry

Abstract Objective To determine the association between serum autoantibodies and survival in patients with incident systemic sclerosis (SSc)–pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) enrolled in the Pulmonary Hypertension Assessment and Recognition of Outcomes in Scleroderma (PHAROS) Registry. Methods Patients with definite PAH diagnosed by right heart catheterization within 6 months of registry enrollment were studied. Serum autoantibodies were assayed at each participating institution’s clinical laboratory. Mortality data were collected from electronic medical records and/or the Social Security Death Index. Kaplan−Meier survival estimates were reported for five autoantibody groups (anticentromere/AC, nucleolar ANA/NUC, anti-topoisomerase/Scl-70, overlapping or non-specific autoantibodies/other, and a combined group with similar survival consisting of RNA polymerase III, U1RNP, and autoantibody-negative patients). Cox proportional hazards models permitted examination of the association between autoantibody groups and overall survival, controlling for age, sex, race, and SSc disease duration. Results In all, 162 subjects had PAH, and serum autoantibody and survival information; 60 (37%) had AC, 39 (24%) NUC, 11 (7%) Scl-70, 28 (17%) had other, 9 (6%) RNA pol, 8 (5%) U1RNP autoantibodies, and 7 (4%) had negative antibodies; 32 (20%) subjects died over a median follow-up time of 2.1 years (range: 0.01–6.8); 1- and 3-year survival estimates were, respectively, 94% and 78% for AC, 94% and 72% for NUC, 89% and 63% for Scl-70, 92% and 79% for the other group, and 100% and 93% for the combined group. Unadjusted and adjusted hazard ratios revealed no statistically significant association between risk of death and autoantibodies. Conclusion Anticentromere and NUC autoantibodies are prevalent in SSc-PAH patients. An association between serum autoantibodies and survival in patients with SSc-PAH was not identified in the PHAROS cohort.
Insights On Technology Transfer From The Bureau Of Mines

The U.S. Bureau of Mines was established in 1910 to reduce the high accident rate in the nation's coal mines. For 85 years, it conducted a wide variety of tasks related to mining before it was abolished in 1995. The BOM had many technology transfer successes in its lifetime, including more than a dozen “R&D100” awards. This essay identifies and discusses five “transfer factors” that can explain the success (or failure) of many Bureau of Mines projects. These five factors are termed “pressure, pitfalls, path, price, and profit.”
Spanish diminutives in mother-child conversations*

The present study examined gender and age patterns of diminutive use in conversations between 32 Spanish-speaking Peruvian mothers and their three- and five-year-old children. Results confirm previous findings concerning both parents' greater use of diminutives with younger children and children's early acquisition of this complex aspect of morphology. However, findings do not support previous studies on gender differences in parental use of diminutives with young children. Results also revealed that mothers' and children's imitations of their interlocutors' diminutized words promoted their interlocutors' overall diminutive use. This finding highlights the acute sensitivity of both speakers to each others' language and the potential role of imitation in older children's language development.
Interest rate volatility in a partial equilibrium model of household money demand

Abstract This paper develops a partial equilibrium model in which the household jointly determines intertemporal paths for its consumption and portfolio allocation of wealth among three financial assets. Two of these assets are earnings assets that differ only by their term to maturity, and whose risk and return characteristics are exogenously determined in their respective markets. The third asset is money, which is held for the transactions services that it provides. The principal results reject the conclusion of Slovin and Sushka (1983) that greater short-term interest rate volatility unambiguously increases the demand for money, and suggest that greater volatility in short-term interest rates versus long-term rates can explain the empirical findings of Heller and Khan (1979) where an increase in the tilt of the yield curve that leaves the mean yield unchanged reduces the demand for money.
Newborn Screening for Hemoglobin Disorders

The epidemiology of hemoglobinopathies in the United States reflects recent changes in the demographic make-up of the country's population. The incidence of thalassemias, in particular, has risen in parallel with immigration of high-risk populations. With an increase in Asian immigration by 2000% in the past three decades, hemoglobinopathies such as Hb H (β4) and Hb E-β-thalassemia (β-thal) have acquired proportionally greater clinical significance in several states, including California. Newborn screening (NBS) for hemoglobinopathies allows for the identification of affected individuals so that prophylactic treatment and comprehensive care may be provided prior to the development of clinical complications. Although the more common hemoglobin (Hb) variants, such as Hb S or Hb C, are readily identified by NBS programs, other clinically significant Hb disorders often remain unresolved or are not reported by NBS programs. The state of California mandates NBS and follow-up for thalassemic disorders as well as sickle cell disease. A centralized laboratory for diagnostic testing and rapid reporting of NBS results is a necessary component of a comprehensive NBS program. Confirmatory diagnostic testing for the California NBS program is provided by the Hemoglobinopathy Reference Laboratory at Children's Hospital & Research Center Oakland (CHRCO), Oakland, CA, USA. Using electrophoresis, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and DNA-based methods, the laboratory annually performs diagnostic testing for sickle cell disease, β-thal and Hb H disease on more than 1,000 samples. While most screening results are straightforward, 5% of newborns identified with a presumptive hemoglobinopathy by primary screening are modified after confirmatory testing. The availability of rapid and reliable genotyping assays to complement traditional protein chemistry methods for hemoglobinopathy screening has facilitated the diagnosis of thalassemias and sickling disorders in newborns with ambiguous screening results. Together with coordinated follow-up systems in place, the Hemoglobinopathy Reference Laboratory has contributed to the success of the NBS program in the rapid identification and delivery of care to newborns with clinically significant Hb disorders.
Differential effects of phosphotyrosine phosphatase expression on hormone-dependent and independent pp60c-src activity.

pp60 c-src kinase activity can be increased by phosphotyrosine dephosphorylation or growth factor-dependent phosphorylation reactions. Expression of the transmembrane phosphotyrosine phosphatase (PTPase) CD45 has been shown to inhibit growth factor receptor signal transduction (Mooney, RA, Freund, GG, Way, BA and Bordwell, KL (1992) J Biol Chem 267, 23443–23446). Here it is shown that PTPase expression decreased platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-dependant activation of pp60 c-src but failed to increase hormone independent (basal) pp60 c-src activity. PDGF-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation of its receptor was reduced by approximately 60% in cells expressing the PTPase. In contrast, a change in phosphotyrosine content of pp60 c-src was not detected in response to PDGF or in PTPase+cells. PDGF increased the intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity of pp60 c-src in both control and PTPase+cells but the effect was smaller in PTPase+cells. In anin vitro assay, hormone-stimulate pp60 c-src autophosphorylation from PTPase+ cells was decreased 64±22%, and substrate phosphorylation by pp60 c-src was reduced 54±16% compared to controls. Hormone-independent pp60 c-src kinase activity was unchanged by expression of the PTPase. pp60 c-src was, however, anin vitro substrate for CD45, being dephosphorylated at both the regulatory (Tyr527) and kinase domain (Tyr416) residues. In addition,in vitro dephosphorylation by CD45 increased pp60 c-src activity. These findings suggest that the PDGF receptor was anin vivo substrate of CD45 but pp60 c-src was not. The lack of activation of pp60 c-src in the presence of expressed PTPase may demonstrate the importance of compartmentalization and/or accessory proteins to PTPase-substrate interactions.
Intraperitoneal α-Interferon Alternating with Cisplatin in Residual Ovarian Carcinoma: A Phase II Gynecologic Oncology Group Study

Abstract Objective. The aim of this study was to study the combination of intraperitoneal α-interferon and cisplatin administered second-line in an alternating sequence in small volume residual epithelial ovarian cancer after second-look surgery and the activity of this combination based on prior response to first-line platinum compounds. Methods. Sixty-two patients with minimal residual ( Results. Fifty-four patients were clinically evaluable and 18 were surgically reassessed, 5 of whom had a negative reassessment operation (20% complete response and 8% partial response). Of the 54 patients evaluable for toxicity, the most common adverse effects of more than grade 2 were gastrointestinal in 13 (47%), neutropenia in 9 (17%), and leukopenia in 6 (12%). Grade 4 toxicity was seen in 10 instances: 4 gastrointestinal, 2 neutropenia, 2 thrombocytopenia, 1 wound infection, and 1 allergic reaction. Conclusions. α-Interferon and cisplatin are active agents in favorable patients with minimal residual epithelial ovarian cancer at second-look. The combination of the two drugs administered in an alternating sequence appears to be associated with more side effects than when either drug is administered alone. The combination produced response rates similar to those seen when either drug is given alone.
External and internal attentional environments. I. The utilization of cardiac deceleratory and acceleratory response data for evaluating differences in mental workload between machine-paced and self-paced work

Previous evidence has suggested that self-paced (SP) task performance may constitute a higher mental workload than machine-paced (MP) performance. These differences in mental workload were thought to be due to the presence, when working SP, of an internal pacing mechanism serving to maintain the worker's rhythm. In MP tasks, this function would be maintained externally by the machine. The present investigation attempted to directly test this hypothesis. For this purpose, Lacey's psychophysiological model relating changes in heart rate (HR) to attentional demands was employed. Differences in cardiac deceleratory and acceleratory activity between MP and SP performance were evaluated for each of two tasks. In one task, the emphasis was predominantly on visual detection. Based on the suspected direction of attentional demands, this task was characterized as external. The other task required mental solution to arithmetic problems and was categorized accordingly as internal. Psychophysiological findings were co...