cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Assessment of time-temperature superposition of linear viscoelastic behaviour of strongly interacting polymer blends: N-methylated nylon-2,10 and lightly sulfonated polystyrene ionomers

Abstract The applicability of time-temperature superposition of dynamic mechanical data for miscible polymer blends that exhibit strong intermolecular interactions was investigated. Blends of the lithium salt of lightly sulfonated polystyrene ionomers (Li-SPS), 9–12 mol% sulfonation, and N -methylated nylon-2, 10 (mPA) were miscible over the composition range studied, 30–70 wt% ionomer. Time—temperature superposition (TTS) of the storage and loss shear moduli measured at frequencies of 0.01–500 rad s −1 was applicable over the temperature range from 95 to 185°C. The molecular-weight distribution of the ionomer had no effect on the applicability of TTS. The success of TTS was attributed to the complexation of the metal sulfonate and amide groups, which couple the relaxation times of the two polymers in the blend. Na-SPS (9.5 mol%) and mPA were immiscible and TTS failed for these blends. TTS was obeyed for blends of Zn-SPS and mPA, though these blends appeared to be immiscible or partially miscible.
An Image Segmentation Method Based on Adaptive AnisotropicDiffusion Filtering

TOPSAW program has been developed and successfully used in the replication of sawmill cutting to determine the optimal cutting pattern for a log to get the maximum value for lumber in terms of dollars based on National Hardwood Lumber Association grading rules. Currently Live sawing, which is one direction sawing, can be simulated for only one rotational orientation and one depth of opening cut using a single workstation. The optimal rotational orientation and depth of the opening cut significantly affects the value of lumber produced. The optimal rotational orientation and the opening position outperformed the mean of 432 possible combinations by 14.7 percent. However the computational time involved in simulation of all the 24 different log orientations and 18 different ways to choose the opening depth for a log proves costly and is not effective for sawmill industry. In order to cut the simulation time we collaborate the TOPSAW and Grid Computing technology to leverage this sawing optimization. In this paper we propose a problem solving environment which makes TOPSAW Grid- enabled. The applicability of this solution is shown by a case study.
Task modeling with reusable problem-solving methods

Problem-solving methods for knowledge-based systems establish the behavior of such systems by defining the roles in which domain knowledge is used and the ordering of inferences. Developers can compose problem-solving methods that accomplish complex application tasks from primitive, reusable methods. The key steps in this development approach are task analysis, method selection (from a library), and method configuration. Protege-ii is a knowledge-engineering environment that allows developers to select and configure problem-solving methods. In addition, Protege-ii generates domain-specific knowledge-acquisition tools that domain specialists can use to create knowledge bases on which the methods may operate. The board-game method is a problem-solving method that defines control knowledge for a class of tasks that developers can model in a highly specific way. The method adopts a conceptual model of problem solving in which the solution space is construed as a “game board” on which the problem solver moves “playing pieces” according to prespecified rules. This familiar conceptual model simplifies the developer's cognitive demands when configuring the board-game method to support new application tasks. We compare configuration of the board-game method to that of a chronological-backtracking problem-solving method for the same application tasks (for example, towers of Hanoi and the Sisyphus room-assignment problem). We also examine how method designers can specialize problem-solving methods by making ontological commitments to certain classes of tasks. We exemplify this technique by specializing the chronological-backtracking method to the board-game method.
Characterization of autoemission reflection for precise radiometer calibration

Calibration of spaceborne microwave radiometers to precisions required for assessing climate trends requires biases less than 0.05 K to be identified. The use of warm pyramidal blackbody targets closely coupled to the radiometer antenna to establish thermal reference points has become standard for this purpose, although the effects of small standing waves generated by the radiometer itself can be considerable. We show these effects using a 55GHz radiometer and precision scanned pyramidal target, along with coherent processing of the detected power. The study illustrates the importance of the radiometer front-end architecture in minimizing standing wave biases.
Self-motivated visual scanning predicts flexible navigation in a virtual environment

The ability to navigate flexibly (e.g., reorienting oneself based on distal landmarks to reach a learned target from a new position) may rely on visual scanning during both initial experiences with the environment and subsequent test trials. Reliance on visual scanning during navigation harkens back to the concept of vicarious trial and error, a description of the side-to-side head movements made by rats as they explore previously traversed sections of a maze in an attempt to find a reward. In the current study, we examined if visual scanning predicted the extent to which participants would navigate to a learned location in a virtual environment defined by its position relative to distal landmarks. Our results demonstrated a significant positive relationship between the amount of visual scanning and participant accuracy in identifying the trained target location from a new starting position as long as the landmarks within the environment remain consistent with the period of original learning. Our findings indicate that active visual scanning of the environment is a deliberative attentional strategy that supports the formation of spatial representations for flexible navigation.
The Role of Primary Care Providers in Managing Falls

Falls threaten the ability of older adults to live independently in the community. Fortunately, national and state organizations have created tools that allow primary care providers to easily assess fall risk, and small changes in practice patterns can provide patients with the resources necessary to prevent falls, thus helping to reverse a costly, deadly epidemic. Language: en
ATA Thyroid Cancer Treatment Guidelines: Surgical Issues

Abstract The 2014 American Thyroid Association (ATA) guidelines on thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid cancer have several updates regarding the operative management of the disease, includin...
The Governors' Push for Emergency Energy Powers

Most Americans experienced dejai vu while waiting in line at the gas station last summer. Hadn't this all happened before, several years ago? "They" said the Arabs had cut off the oil in 1973, and now "they" blamed Iran for the shortage. "They" had spoken of rationing in 1973, and "they" had rattled that old bugaboo again, but the shortage mysteriously went away when the price got "high enough." The oil companies blamed the government; the government blamed the foreigners; the foreigners blamed the American consumer; the environmentalists blamed the utilities; the utilities blamed the environmentalists; New England blamed Texas; Texas blamed New England. Only the states, and especially their governors, seemed blameless-directing an emergency set-aside of fuel to line-burdened cities, policing the interstate highways in the wake of a truckers' strike and its senseless violence, evacuating the children from the environs of Three Mile Island, signing the emergency appropriations to help the elderly pay rising heating oil costs. It was a replay of 1973. Baloney! In 1973, we had Harper's Ferry, a faint signal of the coming fury. In 1979, we had First Manassas (or Bull Run), the first major encounter in a long struggle, fought with troops called-up for only ninety days. When Saudi Arabia and its OPEC cohorts embargoed U.S. oil shipments in 1973-74, only about one-tenth of U.S. crude oil came from their shores. Americans could manage without the Arabs. Furthermore, America's multinational oil companies could reshuffle world crude supplies to keep a lot of crude oil flowing into the states.' It was still possible for a president to think in terms of complete U.S. energy independence. And, after all, there was Iran, our non-Arab ally who supplied the U.S. and its isolated ally Israel throughout the embargo. The necessity for government allocation of fuel would be temporary, or
Strategy Research into the Rectification and Improvement Campaign to Rid of High-hazards Contents in High-rise Buildings in Neijiang

On the basis of elaborating the peril of high-rise building fire,a status quo of high-rise building fire control and security is put under examination.The findings reveal the problems and causes being the following: the insufficient security consciousness of fire control;improperly maintained anti-fire equipment;poor estate management;the operation of a construction prior to due anti-fire inspection.Suggestions are made as follows: the set-up of a government-dominated comprehensive management system for high-rise building fire control;the reinforcement of anti-fire awareness;stricter legal supervision to step up fire-control capacity;sufficient system guarantee;active exploration of new means of permanent mechanism for fire control in high-rise buildings.
Prenatal ultrasonographic diagnosis of umbilical cord cysts

Objective To analyze the characters of ultrasound images and the clinical data in fetuses with umbilical cord cysts.Methods Ultrasonography and corresponding clinical information of 33 fetuses were analyzed retrospectively.Results There were 11 fetuses of simple umbilical cord cysts,including 2 urachal cysts,and 22 fetuses(22/33,66.67%) with multiple malformations,especially heart defects and brain malformations.Conclusion Fetuses with umbilical cord cysts have better prognosis than those with multiple malformations.Umbilical cord cysts can be accompanied with multiple malformations.Prenatal ultrasound can provide useful information for prenatal diagnosis of umbilical cord cysts.
Industry self-regulation of alcohol marketing: a systematic review of content and exposure research.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS With governments increasingly relying on the alcohol industry's self-regulated marketing codes to restrict alcohol marketing activity, there is a need to summarize the findings of research relevant to alcohol marketing controls. This paper provides a systematic review of studies investigating the content of, and exposure to, alcohol marketing in relation to self-regulated guidelines. METHODS Peer-reviewed articles were identified through four literature search engines: SCOPUS, Web of Science, PubMed, and PsychINFO. Non-peer reviewed reports produced by public health agencies, alcohol research centers, non-governmental organizations, and government research centers were also identified. 96 publications met the inclusion criteria. RESULTS Of the 19 studies evaluating a specific marketing code and 25 content analysis studies reviewed, all detected content that could be considered potentially harmful to children and adolescents, including themes that strongly appeal to young men. Of the 57 studies of alcohol advertising exposure, high levels of youth exposure and high awareness of alcohol advertising were found for television, radio, print, digital, and outdoor ads. Youth exposure to alcohol advertising has increased over time, even as greater compliance with exposure thresholds has been documented. CONCLUSIONS Violations of the content guidelines within self-regulated alcohol marketing codes are highly prevalent in certain media. Exposure to alcohol marketing, particularly among youth, is also prevalent. Taken together, the findings suggest that the current self-regulatory systems that govern alcohol marketing practices are not meeting their intended goal of protecting vulnerable populations.
Mechanisms of amphipath-induced stomatocytosis in human erythrocytes

We studied stomatocytosis induced in human red blood cells (RBC) by vinblastine and chlorpromazine, monitoring the movements of spin-labeled phosphatidylcholine (PC*) and sphingomyelin (SM*) by electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. This technique allows determination of the fraction of labeled lipids, respectively, on the external leaflet, on the cytosol face, or trapped in endocytic vacuoles. Both vinblastine and chlorpromazine produce a time- and concentration-dependent stomatocytic shape change, which is paralleled by a shift of approximately 10% to 33% of outer leaflet SM* and PC* inward. Of this amount, 8% to 12% was trapped in endocytic vacuoles and 8% to 19% had flipped to the inner leaflet. Vanadate, while inhibiting the stomatocytosis, did not block the flip of either SM* or PC* to the inner leaflet. To explain the inhibiting effect of vanadate, as well as the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) requirement for drug-induced stomatocytosis, we propose the following model: (1) addition of amphipath partially scrambles the bilayer; and (2) the flop of phosphatidylserine (PS) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) to the outer leaflet provides substrate for the aminophospholipid translocase (APLT), which flips back PS and PE inward faster than PC or SM can diffuse outward--thereby producing inner layer expansion or stomatocytosis. This role of APLT accounts for the vanadate inhibition of amphipath stomatocytosis. However, the vanadate effect can be overcome by increasing the amphipath concentration, which at such levels probably passively expands the inner leaflet.
Volume gratings as thin film stacks: explanation of high-diffraction efficiency femtosecond two-beam coupling in photorefractive crystals

We have recently observed pulse length preserving two-beam coupling of 40-fs pulses from a colliding-pulse mode-locked laser.1 At first, it might be thought that because the pulses are only about 5-μm long in the crystal and interfere only in a very narrow (approximately 100-μm-wide) slide of the crystal, the diffraction efficiency could not be very high. But it turns out that the Fresnel reflectivity from each of the grating fringes is high enough to compensate for the fact that the number of grating periods is only twice the number of optical cycles in the interacting pulses.
Photoionization of Ca XV with high energy features

Abstract Photoionization cross sections of (Ca XV + hν → Ca XVI + e), with high energy resonant photo-absorption phenomena, of a large number of bound states, 701 in total with n ≤ 10 and l ≤ 9, are reported. They are obtained using the R-matrix method with a close coupling (CC) wavefunction expansion of 29 states of n = 2,3 complexes of the core ion Ca XVI. Characteristic features found in photoionization of the ion are illustrated with examples. The cross section (σPI) of the ground 2s22p2(3P) state is found to be unaffected by the size of the wavefunction expansion except for weak sparse resonances in high energy region. However, effects on excited states are considerable as the core excitations to n = 3 states are manifested in huge resonant absorption in high energy photoionization. They show existence of prominent high peak resonant features and enhancement in the background that were not studied before for Ca XV. In addition photoionization of the excited states with a single valence electron is dominated by Seaton resonant structures formed by the photo-excitation-of-core in the high energy region. These features will impact other quantities, such as the opacity, electron-ion recombination in high temperature plasmas where the ion exists, and hence will play important role in determination of elemental abundances in the astronomical objects.
Chattering and congestion collapse in an overload switching control

Routing mechanisms for stochastic networks are often designed to produce state space collapse (SSC) in a heavy-traffic limit, i.e., to confine the limiting process to a lower-dimensional subset of its full state space. In a fluid limit, a control producing asymptotic SSC corresponds to an ideal sliding mode control that forces the fluid trajectories to a lower-dimensional sliding manifold. Within deterministic dynamical systems theory, it is well known that sliding-mode controls can cause the system to chatter back and forth along the sliding manifold due to delays in activation of the control. For the prelimit stochastic system, chattering implies fluid-scaled fluctuations that are larger than typical stochastic fluctuations. In this paper we show that chattering can occur in the fluid limit of a controlled stochastic network when inappropriate control parameters are used. The model has two large service pools operating under the fixed-queue-ratio with activation and release thresholds (FQR-ART) overload...
A Novel Anti CD23 Fully Human Monoclonal Antibody Potentially Useful for B-CLL Therapy.

B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) is one of the most common hematological malignancies and is, in most cases, characterized by an increased expression of CD23 on the cell surface. Since cross-linking CD23 induces B-CLL apoptosis, it is an attractive target for B-CLL antibody-based immunotherapy. In this study we show that an anti-CD23 human IgG1 monoclonal antibody, C6F5, may be useful in treating B-CLL. This antibody is derived from the human single chain antibody (scFv) C6F5 that was originally raised against the RPMI-8226 multiple myeloma cell line using the antibody phage display technique. While the C6F5 scFv did not bind to other myeloma cell lines, it was able to bind weakly to normal peripheral blood B lymphocytes and strongly to EBV transformed B cells and B-CLL cells. The antigen recognized by C6F5 was also upregulated on B lymphocytes that had been stimulated by CD40 ligand. Immunoprecipitations by the scFv C6F5 identified a protein of 45 kDa which co-migrated with CD23. Furthermore, this protein was recognized by an anti-CD23 mouse mAb in Western blot analyses. Immunofluorescence staining with the C6F5 scFv was inhibited if cells were preincubated with an anti-CD23 polyclonal antiserum. Taken together, these results verify that C6F5 recognizes CD23. The V H and V L regions of C6F5 antibody were then cloned into a baculovirus transfer vector encoding the human IgG 1 heavy and light chains so that fully human C6F5 IgG 1 antibody could be produced in baculovirus infected SF9 cells. Since C6F5 binding specificity was preserved in the IgG 1 format, this antibody is ready to be tested in in vitro cytotoxic assays against B-CLL cells.
Parental Stress and Children’s Social and Behavioral Outcomes: The Role of Abuse Potential over Time

Parental stress is a well-established risk factor for adverse child outcomes, including the development of aggression, externalizing behavior problems, and anxiety, as well as compromised emotional coping, impaired social cognition, and diminished treatment response. Abuse potential represents a mechanism by which parental stress may impact child social competence and behavior; evidence links parental stress to abuse potential, and abuse potential to a range of negative child social competence and behavioral outcomes. The current study assessed relationships between parental stress, abuse potential, and child social and behavioral outcomes over time. Parents of children ages 2–6 years (N = 610, 44% girls) reported on perceived parental stress and attitudes towards abuse and neglect, as well as child social competence and behavior problems, before and after a caregiver-directed, community-based intervention. Changes in parental stress, abuse potential, and child social and behavioral outcomes were examined using panel analyses, while controlling for intervention effects and demographic variables. Parental stress predicted child social competence, anxiety/withdrawal, and anger/aggression over time; while the links between stress and anxiety/withdrawal, and stress and social competence, were mediated by child abuse potential, the link between stress and anger/aggression was not mediated by child abuse potential. Findings suggest that abuse potential represents a mechanism by which parental stress and child social and behavioral outcomes are linked. Further, screening for child social competence deficits may identify children at risk for abuse, as well as parents in need of services to reduce stress.
Testing Protruding Studs As a Form of Casing Treatment on a Transonic Turbofan: A Computational Study

This paper presents the findings of an ongoing CFD study of using protruding studs as a form of casing treatment on a transonic turbofan stage. Simulations have been performed on the subject turbomachine with and without the casing treatment in order to validate computations with available experimental results and to compute any difference in performance. The results of the simulations with the casing treatment suggest that protruding studs have the potential to extend the stall margin of the turbofan while resulting in a slight reduction in pressure rise and efficiency. From the use of an initial configuration of studs, the computed increase in stall margin based on mass flow rate was 5.46%, and the greatest decrease in pressure ratio and adiabatic efficiency were 0.25% and 1.59%, respectively. Flowfield visualizations of simulations at computed near-stall conditions without casing treatment show regions of low momentum flow near the casing in the rotor blade passage, and low momentum regions near the hub in the stator section. Visualization from simulations with casing treatment at computed near-stall conditions show a large blockage imposed by the studs in the rotor blade passage, and a low momentum region near the casing in the stator section. Computed performance maps obtained from using other configurations of studs suggest that further increase in stall margin is possible at other levels of protrusion of the studs.© 2017 ASME
Estimating the capital gap for small businesses in New York city

Previous research suggests that inefficiencies in the small business market exist surrounding the availability of capital by Small and Microenterprises (SMMEs). Using data from the 1992 Characteristics of Business Owners Survey (CBO), the 2002 Survey of Business Owners (SBO), and the 2003 Survey of Small Business Finance (SSBF) this paper empirically estimates the "capital gap"- that is the unmet capital demand for business by SMMEs. We find that there is in fact a capital gap as the supply of capital available in the SMME market is not large enough to meet market demand. Given the importance of small businesses to economic vitality, growth, and recovery of the United States economy, the research provides critical and timely findings for policymakers and public finance managers seeking economic development and recovery
SRC: tornado: a distributed spatio-textual stream processing system

The widespread use of GPS-enabled smart devices and the increased popularity of their applications, e.g., social networks, has led to the generation of huge amounts of spatio-textual data. This spatio-textual data needs to be processed in real-time. However, existing data management systems are either centralized or general-purpose distributed systems, e.g., Spark [2] and Storm [3]. Centralized systems do not scale and general purpose distributed systems are not optimized for the processing of spatio-textual data. In this paper, we present Tornado [7], a distributed in-memory spatio-textual stream processing system. To efficiently process spatio-textual streams, Tornado extends Storm [3] with a spatio-textual indexing layer that significantly improves the overall system performance. Tornado is adaptive, i.e., it dynamically redistributes the workload across worker processes according to changes in the distribution of spatio-textual data and queries.
Cesarean Delivery and Risk of Infant Leukemia: A Report from the Children's Oncology Group

Background: Studies have reported increased risks of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) among children born by cesarean delivery (CD). However, no previous study has examined the impact of CD on risk of infant leukemia specifically.Methods: In this study, 443 infants diagnosed with acute leukemia, including both ALL and acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), were identified at Children's Oncology Group institutions between January 1996 and December 2006; 324 controls frequency matched by year of birth were identified though random digit dialing and random selection from U.S. birth registries. Using interview data and, for a subset of participants, medical record data, we analyzed CD overall and by indications that likely resulted in pre-labor CD (PLCD) or emergency CD (ECD). Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for risk of ALL and AML were estimated using multivariable unconditional logistic regression models, adjusted for year of birth, birth weight, and maternal race.Results: We observed an increased point estimate for the association between CD and ALL (OR, 1.52 and 95% CI, 1.02-2.25). We did not observe an association between CD and AML (OR, 1.02 and 95% CI, 0.64-1.62). In analyses of indication for CD, we observed elevated effect estimates for the associations of both PLCD and ECD and infant ALL.Conclusions: Our analysis suggests an increased risk of infant ALL following CD, including both PLCD and ECD. Altered microbiota colonization may be involved in development of leukemia in infants, but clear biological mechanisms have yet to be determined.Impact: This study provides the first in-depth examination of CD and infant leukemia. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 27(4); 473-8. ©2018 AACR.
Secular Evolution in Late-Type Spiral Galaxies

Galaxy evolution through internal rather than external processes is known as secular evolution. Evidence for secular evolution comes in various forms, most notably the development of a pseudobulge. Pseudobulges differ from mergerbuilt bulges because they exhibit disk-like features. While the bulges of most spirals are best-fit by a Sersic surface brightness profile with index n = 4 (also known as a de Vaucouleurs r profile), pseudobulges typically have n = 1 − 3, where an n = 1 Sersic profile corresponds to a second exponential profile (in addition to the disk itself). We used the exponential surface brightness profile of pseudobulges to identify these components in our sample of 20 late-type spiral galaxies. Late-type disks are well-suited to study signs of secular evolution because any past interactions and mergers would have developed at least a small bulge and changed their classification. There is evidence that more massive disk galaxies may be more likely to drive mass inwards and produce a pseudobulge. We perform decompositions of the galaxies to find these features. We also study the the concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as a function of mass because they have been shown to trace molecular gas, which is the fuel needed to form the stars that make up a pseudobulge. NGC2805, a lower-mass galaxy, was the only galaxy in our sample that has a pseudobulge. We also found no correlation between the central concentration of PAH emission and the mass. This implies that more massive galaxies are not more efficient at driving gas inwards.
Diagnostic tests for periodontal diseases.

Abstract A high level of interest in the development of diagnostic tests capable of detecting factors associated with progressing ("active") periodontal disease has continued in the past year. Notable advances and refinements have occurred in subtraction radiographic techniques and in the development of computer-linked, controlled-force periodontal probes. Development and evaluation of new diagnostic tests have also proceeded at a rapid pace. Particular emphasis has been placed on rapid tests for putative periodontal pathogens and detection in gingival crevicular fluid of host-derived enzymes. An intense effort must be made to determine the clinical value of diagnostic tests in longitudinal studies that use state-of-the-art assessments of disease progression.
Human T lymphocyte activation.

The T lymphocyte receptor for antigen and histocompatibility molecules is a molecular complex comprised of five polypeptide chains. Both the 49KD alpha and 43KD beta chains are immunoglobulin-like and thus contain variable domains responsible for ligand binding. In contrast, the 20–25KD T3 gamma, delta and epsilon chains are monomorphic structures presumably involved in transmembrane signalling. The alpha and beta subunits are disulfide bonded to each other and held in noncovalent association with the T3 chains. T3-Ti receptor crosslinking leads to conformational modification of a second T lineage specific molecule, termed the 50KD T11 structure and in turn, protein kinase C activation, elevation in intracytoplasmic free calcium and Na+/H+ antiport stimulation.
Efficient decision procedures for heaps using STRAND

The STRAND [10] logic allows expressing structural properties of heaps combined with the data stored in the nodes of the heap. A semantic fragment of Strand as well as a syntactically defined subfragment of it are known to be decidable [10]. The known decision procedure works by combining a decision procedure for MSO on trees (implemented by the tool Mona) and a decision procedure for the quantifier-free fragment of the data-theory (say, integers, and implemented using a solver like Z3). The known algorithm for deciding the syntactically defined decidable fragment (which is the same as the one for the semantically defined decidable fragment) involves solving large MSO formulas over trees, whose solution is the main bottleneck in obtaining efficient algorithms. In this paper, we focus on the syntactically defined decidable fragment of STRAND, and obtain a new and more efficient algorithm. Using a set of experiments obtained from verification conditions of heap-manipulating programs, we show the practical benefits of the new algorithm.
A Modeling Approach of Heat Transfer of Bridges Considering Vehicle-Induced Thermal Effects

AbstractThe design and application of bridge deicing systems require an understanding of heat-transfer mechanisms of the bridge. One of these systems is geothermal foundations that support structur...
Leonard B. Radinsky (1937–1985), Radical Biologist

Trained in vertebrate paleontology, Leonard Radinsky (1937–1985) made signal contributions to the study of form and function in paleobiology. Here, I review Radinsky’s contributions and philosophy in the context of developments during the 1960s and 1970s, when a significant number of vertebrate paleontologists departed from their roots in the geological sciences to embrace a new interest in paleobiology and evolution. The study of comparative biomechanics and allometry in extant mammals was brought to the fore, with the express intent of applying the findings to reconstruct the biology of their extinct relatives. Radinsky’s contributions lay especially in the area of jaw mechanics in carnivorans and ungulates, and the evolution of the brain in ungulates, carnivorans, and primates. Alongside his important scientific contributions, Radinsky espoused radical views for his time. He fervently believed that basic science cannot be isolated from its social and political context. At a time when the US was deeply engaged in military conflict in Southeast Asia, Radinsky believed that the results of basic science unjustly were being co-opted by corporate and military interests. He believed that science should be used for the betterment of the great majority of the people.
Inbreeding depression in sperm quality in a critically endangered amphibian

Small, isolated populations often experience increased inbreeding and decreased heterozygosity, which increases the potential risk of inbreeding depression. The relationship between inbreeding and sperm health is well-documented in a variety of taxa, but has yet to be explored in amphibians. The dusky gopher frog, Lithobates sevosus, is a critically endangered species with years of documented inbreeding and low genetic variability as a consequence of isolation and population size reduction. This study investigated the effects of inbreeding on sperm quality in captive L. sevosus using an outbred, sister species (Lithobates pipiens) as a standard for comparison. We found L. sevosus to have severely reduced sperm quality in terms of total motility, forward progressive motility, concentration, and viability. Additionally, we observed a significant, negative relationship between total sperm motility and mean kinship within captive-bred individuals. These data serve to enhance our understanding of the role inbreeding plays in amphibians, and to provide valuable insight into new risk factors declining amphibian populations may face.
Chapter 1 – Embedded Computing

Publisher Summary Many embedded computing systems are high-performance computing systems that must be carefully designed so that they meet stringent requirements. They not only require a lot of computation but also must meet quantifiable goals: real-time performance, not just average performance; power/energy consumption; and cost. The fact that embedded computing systems have quantifiable goals makes designing them a very different experience from designing general-purpose computing systems. The designers of high-performance embedded computing systems are required to master several skills. They must be experts at system specification, not only in the informal sense but also in creating executable models. They must understand the basic architectural techniques for both hardware and software. They must be able to analyze performance and energy consumption for both hardware and software. Additionally, they must be able to make trade-offs between hardware and software at all stages in the design process. Many embedded computing systems are based on standards. The form in which the standard is expressed affects the methodology used to design the embedded system. Embedded systems are vulnerable to new types of security and reliability threats. Embedded computers that perform real-time control pose particular concerns.
Prosecutorial reform from within: district attorney ‘Disruptors’ and other change agents, 2016–2020

Prior to 2016, the push for prosecutorial reform came from many different corners: legislators, nonprofits, and the larger community discontented with the justice system. In many ways, Trump’s camp...
Queer heterotopias in “straight(ish)” spaces: The case of Korean spas:

The cultural shift leading to increased tolerance for diverse sexualities over the past few decades has transformed the landscape of traditionally queer spaces. Given the mainstream trend towards h...
Ruth in Recent Research

From the early treatments focused on historical-critical methods to the interdisciplinary approaches of the social sciences today, Ruth research continues to speak to the current developments withi...
National Airspace System (NAS) Traffic Flow Management (TFM) Collaboration: Building Collaboration into Dashboard Design

Today's National Airspace System (NAS) Traffic Flow Management (TFM) collaboration tools developed for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are not sufficient to meet the trajectory based operations (TBO) needs of the future, namely, real time data sharing, user collaboration, and improved strategic traffic management planning. To more efficiently and effectively collaborate among NAS stakeholders and across all TFM automation systems, The MITRE Corporation (MITRE)'s Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD) is researching a common dashboard to facilitate more complex TFM collaborative decision-making needs. A common visualization dashboard will be dynamic and data-driven to provide detailed information and meet the identified collaboration requirements so that stakeholders can work together in real-time across multiple facilities to formulate solutions to complex, multi-faceted problems. To that end, we have researched existing methods for improving collaboration and identified the principles and best practices of collaborative dashboard design to apply to NAS TFM scenarios. This research helps inform a future mode of operation that focuses on the collaborative process between FAA and flight operators, instead of simply providing situation awareness via monitoring and alerting. A common web-based platform to support decision making and record actions will enable more effective collaboration among TFM stakeholders. We analyzed the collaboration between the FAA and flight operators for an example scenario, as a first step toward defining the features needed to facilitate those interactions. To support collaborative decision-making, we envision a composable frontend for a NAS TFM problem-specific view or workspace.
Lower, variable intrathecal opioid doses, and the incidence of prolonged fetal heart rate decelerations after combined spinal epidural analgesia for labor: A quality improvement analysis

Background Combined spinal-epidurals with low-dose intrathecal opioids and local anesthetics are commonly used to initiate labor analgesia due to the fast onset of analgesia and good patient satisfaction. Intrathecal fentanyl has been associated with fetal bradycardia, and the rate may be higher at doses of 25 mcg and above. As such, our institution limits intrathecal fentanyl doses to less than 15 mcg for labor. Prompted by a few incidents of prolonged fetal bradycardia at even these low doses, we sought to audit the side effects associated with varying low doses of intrathecal fentanyl. Methods After IRB approval, a retrospective review was performed on 555 labor records from May-December, 2016. All the patients received combined spinal epidurals for labor analgesia. Intrathecal medication consisted of 1 mL of 0.25% bupivacaine, and varying fentanyl doses: 2.5, 5, 10, and 15 mcg. The incidences of prolonged fetal heart rate decelerations, emergent cesarean delivery, magnitude of pain reduction, pruritus requiring treatment, and hypotension were compared. Results Demographic variables were equivalent between the groups. There were no differences in the rates of prolonged fetal decelerations (in order of increasing fentanyl dose: 4.4%, 2.3%, 7.6%, 3.0%, p-value = 0.11), emergent cesarean delivery, magnitude of pain reduction, pruritus, or maternal hypotension. Conclusions In conclusion, the rates of prolonged fetal heart rate decelerations after combined spinal epidural with intrathecal bupivacaine and fentanyl does not differ for fentanyl doses of 15 mcg and below.
P-043 Elevated D-dimer levels predicts mortality in COVID-19 with stroke: analysis of multi-center electronic health record data

Introduction Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been associated with coagulopathy, and D-dimer levels have been implicated as predictors of disease severity. In this study, we examined whether D-dimer remains useful to predict mortality in COVID-19 patients presenting with acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the Optum® de-identified COVID-19 Electronic Health Record (EHR) dataset. Patients were included if they were 18 and older, were hospitalized within 7 days of confirmed COVID-19 from March 1, 2020 - November 30, 2020, and were tested for D-dimer during their hospitalization. ICD-9 and 10 diagnostic codes were used to identify AIS and comorbidities. D-dimer level was evaluated using receiver-operator curve analysis for the optimal threshold to predict in-hospital mortality and Kaplan-Meier survival curves were constructed. Risks of in-hospital mortality were compared between patients with D-dimer levels below and above the cutoff and risk ratios (RRs) were estimated adjusting for baseline characteristics and clinical variables. Results Among 15,250 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 positivity, 285 presented with AIS at admission (2%). Patients with AIS were older (median age 70 [60-79] vs 64 [52-75]) and had higher prevalence of congestive heart failure, hypertension, diabetes, vascular disease and atrial fibrillation. D-dimer levels at admission were greater for patients presenting with AIS (median [IQR], 1.42 [0.76-3.96] µg/ml feu) compared to those without AIS (0.94 [0.55-1.81] µg/ml feu) and peak levels were also greater for patients with AIS (3.86 [1.23-15.58] vs 1.42 [0.76-3.96] µg/ml feu). Peak D-dimer level was a good predictor of in-hospital mortality among all patients (c-statistic 0.774 [95% CI 0.764-0.784]) and among patients with AIS (c-statistic 0.751 [95% CI 0.691-0.810]). The optimum cutoff threshold was identified as 2.07 µg/ml feu with 72% sensitivity and 70% specificity, and elevated peak D-dimer level above this threshold was associated with increased mortality (adjusted RR 3.00 [95% CI 2.75-3.28]) among all patients. Among AIS patients, the optimum cutoff threshold was identified at 5.15 µg/ml feu with 73% sensitivity and 69% specificity. Elevated peak D-dimer level above this cut-off was associated with almost 3 times increased mortality (adjusted RR 2.89 [95% CI 1.87-4.47]). Conclusions Peak D-dimer levels above 5.15 µg/ml feu are associated with increased mortality in COVID-19 patients with AIS. Disclosures Y. Kim: None. S. Khose: None. R. Abdelkhaleq: None. S. Salazar-Marioni: None. S. Sheth: None.
Re-Evaluating Education in Japan and Korea: De-mystifying Stereotypes

1. Introduction 2. Data and Educational Systems 3. Demystifying the stereotype - Do Japanese and Korean schools make talented students mediocre? 4. Demystifying the stereotype - do Japanese and Korean students achieve high test scores at the expense of creativity? 5. Demystifying the stereotype - are high test scores of Japanese and Korean students due to 'shadow education'? 6. Demystifying the stereotype - are Japanese and Korean schools homogenous? 7. Conclusion - the troubling turn
So What If Horses Would Draw Horse Gods

Xenophanes famously noted that if horses could draw, they would draw their gods as horses. This connection between those who depict the gods and how the gods are depicted is posed as part of a critical theological program. What follows is an argumentative reconstruction of how these observations determine the extent and content of Xenophanes’ theological reforms. In light of the strength of the critical epistemic program, it is likely Xenophanes posed ambitious theological reforms.
Morphine stimulates mesangial cell TNF-alpha and nitrite production.

Background: Intravenous opiate abusers are susceptible to develop heroin and HIV-associated nephropathies; however, the role of opiates in the development of these kidney lesions is not clear. Patients with opiate addiction are prone to recurrent infections. Methods: The effect of morphine was studied on the generation of TNF-α with or without LPS (lipopolysaccharide) by cultured mouse mesangial cells. In addition, the effect of morphine was evaluated on mesangial cell nitrite production. To evaluate the role of opiate receptors, we studied the effect of naloxone and naltrexone on mesangial cell TNF-α and nitrite production. To determine the role of TNF-α on mesangial cell nitrite production, we examined the effect of anti-TNF-α antibody on morphine-induced nitrite production. Assay of TNF-α and nitrite production was carried by ELISA and Griess method respectively. Results: Morphine alone did not enhance the generation of TNF-α by mesangial cells, however, an enhanced (P < 0.001) TNF-α production was observed when mesangial cells were first treated with morphine for 18 h and then activated further with LPS. Maximum release of TNF-α was seen at a concentration of 10−12 M of morphine. Opiate receptor antagonists (naloxone and naltrexone) inhibited the effect of morphine. Morphine also amplified (P < 0.0002) the effect of LPS on mesangial cell nitrite production. Anti-TNF-α antibody attenuated morphine induced nitrite generation. Conclusion: We conclude that morphine stimulates the generation of TNF-∝ by LPS-activated mesangial cells. This effect of morphine seems to be opiate receptor mediated and has a downstream effect in the form of mesangial cell nitrite generation. The present in vitro study provides the basis for a hypothesis that morphine may be playing a role in the development of heroin and HIV-associated nephropathies.
Pleading and the Dilemmas of “General Rules”

This article comments on Professor Geoffrey Miller's article about pleading under Tellabs and goes on (1) to use Tellabs, Bell Atlantic Corp. v Twombly, and Iqbal v. Hasty (in which the Court has granted review) to illustrate the limits of, and costs created by, certain foundational assumptions and operating principles that are associated with the Rules Enabling Act's requirement of general rules, and (2) more generally, to illustrate the costs of the complex procedural system that we have created. Thus, for instance, the argument that the standards emerging from Twombly should be confined to antitrust conspiracy cases confronts the foundational assumptions that the Federal Rules are trans-substantive and that they cannot be amended by judicial interpretation. Similarly, in Iqbal, the Government presumably denies that it is calling for the imposition of a heightened fact pleading requirement in cases involving high government officials entitled to an immunity defense because the Court seems to have made it impossible for the judiciary openly to impose such a requirement other than through The Enabling Act Process. The Court may, however, take a different view of the appropriate contextual plausibility judgment than did the lower court in Iqbal. If so, however, the Court would thereby confirm the view that Twombly is an invitation to the lower courts to make ad hoc decisions reflecting buried policy choices. I therefore argue that, if the Court is persuaded that the changes already made to pleading jurisprudence are insufficient to accommodate the needs of the immunity defense, it should forthrightly require fact pleading as a matter of substantive federal common law.
Torque Production Using Handwheels of Different Size During a Simulated Valve Operation Task

Opening and closing valves in industrial facilities often requires operators to use bars and wrenches as levers (cheaters) in order to overcome initial actuation forces. In order to determine more ...
Principles of Microwave Combination Heating

Faster, automated cooking of foods with improved quality can be realistically achieved only by a combination of heating modes such as microwave, infrared, and hot air, which, by themselves, have limitations. Combining heating modes poses many technical challenges. To meet these challenges, comprehensive understanding of microwave combination heating is needed. This article is the synthesis of the most fundamental-based approaches (theoretical and experimental) in an attempt to provide the most succinctly said principles that can be useful to a product or process designer in a very practical sense. To obtain these principles, characteristics of various individual modes of heating are discussed and principles of combining them are deduced based on the behavior of the individual modes.