cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Severe obesity is associated with 3-fold higher radiation dose rate during ureteroscopy.

Objective To investigate and characterize the association between fluoroscopy radiation dose rate and various patient size metrics during ureteroscopy. Materials and Methods Fluoroscopy data were collected from 100 patients undergoing ureteroscopy for stone disease. Radiation dose rates were determined from fluoroscopy dose and time. Estimated entrance skin dose was calculated from air kerma (AK) by applying correction factors. Effective dose (ED) was estimated with Monte Carlo–based simulation software. Patient size metrics included body mass index (BMI), anterior-posterior (AP) midline distance, AP transrenal thickness, and region of interest (ROI) pixel value magnitude on computed tomography scout. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed to determine the association between AK dose rate and patient size metrics, adjusting for laterality and stone location. Results Obese patients (>30 kg/m2) comprised 46% of the cohort. Mean fluoroscopy time, displayed AK, entrance skin dose, and ED were 4.2 ± 6.0 second, 1.2 ± 2.1 mGy, 1.2 ± 2.2 mGy, and 0.08 ± 0.15 mSv, respectively. Mean AK dose rate and ED dose rates were 0.30 ± 0.23 mGy/second and 0.021 ± 0.016 mSv/second, respectively. Compared with the nonobese category, the highest BMI category (≥35 kg/m2) had over a 3-fold higher mean AK rate (0.50 vs 0.16 mGy/second). On univariate and multivariate analysis, BMI, AP midline distance, AP transrenal thickness, and computed tomography scout region of interest pixel value magnitude were each significantly associated with dose rate. Conclusion Larger patients experience higher radiation dose rates under fluoroscopy. Severely obese patients receive 3-fold higher dose rates compared with nonobese patients. Given the higher incidence of stone disease in obese patients, all attempts should be made to minimize radiation exposure during ureteroscopy.
Matching power Generators to pulsed loads

Power Generators are presently being used to power large (>1MW) radars whose pulsed-load profile can influence the Generator's performance and vice versa. This paper explores the limitations of the Generator in providing power to a pulsed-load, and how the power architecture may be modified to improve the coupling between source and load with the objective of maximizing performance. Simulated examples of a generic radar power system will be demonstrated showing progressive improvement as better coupling is attained, detailing generator limitation thresholds and overall system performance.
The logical form of determiners

L'A. concoit un langage L* , defini comme l'extension d'un langage L de premier ordre, qui traite des proprietes des determinants du langage naturel, tels que les quantificateurs plus que... ou moins que..., comme caracteristiques de leur formes logiques. L'A. montre que ce langage formel rend compte des proprietes telles que l'implication directionnelle ou l'autorisation d'une polarite negative
Indentation of a penny-shaped crack by an oblate spheroidal rigid inclusion in a transversely isotropic medium

The stress distribution produced by the identation of a penny-shaped crack by an oblate smooth spheroidal rigid inclusion in a transversely isotropic medium is investigated using the method of Hankel transforms. This three-part mixed boundary value problem is solved using the techniques of triple integral equations. The normal contact stress between the crack surface and the indenter is written as the product of the associated half-space contact stress and a nondimensional crack-effect correction function. An exact expression for the stress-intensity is obtained as the product of a dimensional quantity and a nondimensional function. The curves for these nondimensional functions are presented and used to determine the values of the normalized stress-intensity factor and the normalized maximum contact stress. The stress-intensity factor is shown to be dependent on the material constants and increasing with increasing indentation. The stress-intensity factor also increases if the radius of curvature of the indenter surface increases.
A protective role for endogenous tumor necrosis factor in Toxoplasma gondii infection.

The involvement of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) in resistance to Toxoplasma gondii infection was examined by means of experiments in which mice were treated with anti-TNF antibodies prior to infection with ME49, a low-virulence Toxoplasma strain. In (BALB/cBy x C57BL/6J)F1 (CB6F1) mice, which are highly resistant to intraperitoneal (i.p.) infection with T. gondii ME49, 10(4) neutralizing units of anti-TNF caused a significant increase in trophozoite numbers in the peritoneal cavities of infected mice and transient signs of illness but no deaths. i.p. infection of anti-TNF-treated C57BL/6J (B6) mice, which are more susceptible to T. gondii and develop a chronic progressive toxoplasmosis, resulted in death for some of the mice. If the mice were infected perorally, however, and treated with anti-TNF, mortality was extensive in B6 mice but not in CB6F1 mice. Although it was not detected in their sera, TNF was found in the peritoneal fluids of i.p.-infected CB6F1 and B6 mice. Endogenously produced TNF thus appears to be an important mediator of resistance to T. gondii.
Time-motion analysis of research nurse activities in a lung transplant home monitoring study.

Background—The emergence and subsequent integration of new technologies precipitate changes in roles and work lives of nurses. The nurses' work with home monitoring technologies within a spirometry-based program that transmits pulmonary function data after lung transplantation has characteristics that are distinct from other types of direct patient care. Nurses' changing roles in such programs after transplantation have not been well described.Objective—To describe a time-motion study of 2 research nurses in the context of a home-spirometry study to monitor patients' pulmonary status after lung transplantation.Method—A detailed list of research nurses' 67 routine work-related activities was developed and validated to monitor and record activities of research home monitoring nurses. Two weeks of observations were completed; recordings of a second observer established reliability of observations.Results—In 48.8 hours of observation, 610 tasks related to monitoring of 45 patients were recorded. Task time ran...
Using anisotropic high impedance surfaces for tuning antenna performance

More recently, structures capable of being produced inexpensively and operated in the more commercially viable bands have been proposed. Unfortunately, high impedance (high-Z) surfaces capable of operating at lower frequencies tend to be far more susceptible to fabrication errors because of complex surface patterns. In most cases, standard circuit board manufacturing tolerances are too loose to create such high-Z surfaces to the necessary accuracy. To circumvent these difficulties in fabrication, we propose that adding a small degree of anisotropy to high-Z surfaces can enable compensatory tunability for certain planar antennas located on the surface by simply rotating the antenna. Doing so allows fabrication tolerances to be loosened to those available for large scale, inexpensive fabrication.
Direct medical costs of syncope-related hospitalizations in the United States

Little is known about the costs of syncope-related admissions in the United States. A nationally representative sample of hospital discharges and reported charges was analyzed, and costs were estimated using Medicare cost-to-charge ratios. A conservative estimate of total annual costs for syncope-related hospitalizations was $2.4 billion (95% confidence interval [CI] $2.2 to $2.6 billion), with a mean cost of $5,400 (95% CI $5,100 to $5,600) per hospitalization. Efforts to safely decrease syncope-related admissions may result in substantial costs savings.
Nonlinear Elasticity of DNA Bending

Double stranded (ds) DNA has been used as a “molecular spring” to mechanically control the conformation of proteins, ribozymes and peptides [1]. It is thus interesting to characterize quantitatively the mechanics of DNA springs in the relevant regime of sharp bending (x<<2L<<ld, where x is the end-to-end distance (EED), 2L the contour length of the DNA, ld ∼50 nm the persistence length). This nonlinear elasticity regime is also relevant to several cell biology mechanisms, such as DNA packaging and transcription regulation.We address the problem with the stressed molecules consisting of a bent ds DNA part and a stretched ss part: essentially a system of two coupled nonlinear springs. We measured the elastic energy of these molecules with two different equilibrium methods, based on dimer formation [2, 3] and melting curve analysis [4] respectively. We deduce the bending energy of the ds part as a function of EED x. The finding is that the DNA kinks at a critical bending torque τc ∼30 pN x nm, entering a nonlinear regime where the maximum torque is constant (= τc). We derive an analytic expression for the bending energy valid in the linear and nonlinear regimes [3].The critical torque τc introduces a universal energy scale ∼12 kT in the physics of DNA bending.[1] G. Zocchi, “Controlling proteins through molecular springs”, Ann. Rev. Biophys. 38, 75-88 (2009).[2] H. Qu, C.-Y. Tseng, Y. Wang, A. J. Levine, and G. Zocchi, “The elastic energy of sharply bent nicked DNA”, Europhys. Lett. 90, 18003 (2010).[3] H. Qu and G. Zocchi, “The complete bending energy function for nicked DNA”, Europhys. Lett. 94, 18003 (2011).[4] H. Qu, Y. Wang, C.-Y. Tseng, and G. Zocchi, “Critical torque for kink formation in double stranded DNA”, accepted by Phys. Rev. X (2011).
Early-life exercise may promote lasting brain and metabolic health through gut bacterial metabolites

The 100 trillion microorganisms residing within our intestines contribute roughly 5 million additional genes to our genetic gestalt, thus posing the potential to influence many aspects of our physiology. Microbial colonization of the gut shortly after birth is vital for the proper development of immune, neural and metabolic systems, while sustaining a balanced, diverse gut flora populated with beneficial bacteria is necessary for maintaining optimal function of these systems. Although symbiotic host-microbial interactions are important throughout the lifespan, these interactions can have greater and longer lasting impacts during certain critical developmental periods. A better understanding of these sensitive periods is necessary to improve the impact and effectiveness of health-promoting interventions that target the microbial ecosystem. We have recently reported that exercise initiated in early life increases gut bacterial species involved in promoting psychological and metabolic health. In this review, we emphasize the ability of exercise during this developmentally receptive time to promote optimal brain and metabolic function across the lifespan through microbial signals.
Developmental Markers Expressed in Neocortical Layers Are Differentially Exhibited in Olfactory Cortex

Neurons in the cerebral cortex stratify on the basis of their time of origin, axonal terminations and the molecular identities assigned during early development. Olfactory cortices share many feature with the neocortex, including clear lamination and similar cell types. The present study demonstrates that the markers differentially expressed in the projection neurons of the cerebral cortex are also found in olfactory areas. Three of the four regions examined (pars principalis of the anterior olfactory nucleus: AONpP, anterior and posterior piriform cortices: APC, PPC, and the olfactory tubercle) expressed transcription factors found in deep or superficial neurons in the developing neocortex, though large differences were found between areas. For example, while the AONpP, APC and PPC all broadly expressed the deep cortical marker CTIP2, NOR1 (NR4a3) levels were higher in AONpP and DAARP-32 was more prevalent in the APC and PPC. Similar findings were encountered for superficial cortical markers: all three regions broadly expressed CUX1, but CART was only observed in the APC and PPC. Furthermore, regional variations were observed even within single structures (e.g., NOR1 was found primarily in in the dorsal region of AONpP and CART expression was observed in a discrete band in the middle of layer 2 of both the APC and PPC). Experiments using the mitotic marker EDU verified that the olfactory cortices and neocortex share similar patterns of neuronal production: olfactory cells that express markers found in the deep neocortex are produced earlier than those that express superficial makers. Projection neurons were filled by retrograde tracers injected into the olfactory bulb to see if olfactory neurons with deep and superficial markers had different axonal targets. Unlike the cerebral cortex, no specificity was observed: neurons with each of the transcription factors examined were found to be labelled. Together the results indicate that olfactory cortices are complex: they differ from each other and each is formed from a variable mosaic of neurons. The results suggest that the olfactory cortices are not merely a remnant architype of the primordial forebrain but varied and independent regions.
Notes from the Field: Reflections on being white and foreign in Oman

When I imagined my fieldwork, I expected to show up in a place and become part of a community. In retrospect, it was a fantasy of disappearance; one in which my difference from those around me, my American-ness, my background, and my native English language would all dissipate and I would become part of a neighborhood’s collective wallpaper. A foreigner, yes, but one whose otherness was polished away by my extensive time and effort: my years of work to learn Arabic, my commitment to hanging out and making friends, my genuine interest in hearing stories and trying to understand the character of people’s lives and the world they lived in. This was, I assumed, ethnography. But, as it turned out, in Oman things didn’t work that way. My day-to-day experience of life and research in Oman was acutely shaped by my otherness and, specifically, by being white. People would stare at me when I walked on the street; sometimes cars would honk. It seemed like everywhere I went people wanted to shake my hand and call me “sir”. On one occasion I walked into a restaurant frequented by Bangladeshi workers, only to have all the patrons stop talking and stare at me. In a silence the awkwardness of which cannot be overstated, the manager came out, introduced himself and sat with me while I ate my chicken curry. On walks through smaller Omani towns, people standing in the street would sometimes stop and tell me that I couldn’t go any further: this street is “not for tourists” they’d say. Although being white was a position of privilege in Oman—a position very different from that of other foreigners working in the country—I found these experiences and others
Hexanuclear Complex of Platinum(II) with Cleavage Product of Cystamine Dihydrochloride by β-Mercaptoethylamine

Six-nuclear complexes of Platinum(II) with cleavage of a cystamine dihydrochloride by β-mercaptoethylamine with composition [Pt6(H2NCH2CH2S)8]Cl4·5H2O had been syntesized for the first time. Structure of the complex had been installed together with IKS- and XRD analysis. It has been established that each atom of platinum is surrounded by two atoms of sulfur and nitrogen due to bidentate coordination of a ligand. Only two of the six platinum atoms are on the same plane; other four atoms are in the different crossing planes. Four platinum atoms form adurable metal chelate cycles, which collapse over temperature 260℃. The results of IR spectroscopy confirmed with the RS-analysis.
Activation of renal mechanoreceptors increases vasopressin release in rabbits.

Electrical stimulation of afferent renal nerves increases plasma vasopressin (AVP) concentration, but the role of these nerves in the control of AVP release is not known. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of activation of renal mechanoreceptors and chemoreceptors on plasma AVP concentration in anesthetized rabbits. Intrapelvic pressure was increased to activate renal mechanoreceptors, and the renal pelvis was perfused with 1.0 M NaCl, 0.1 M KCl, and 1.0 M mannitol solutions to activate R2 chemoreceptors. With increased pelvic pressure, plasma AVP concentration increased from 12.4 +/- 3.8 to 36.2 +/- 16.1 pg/ml at 5 min and to 37.4 +/- 16.1 pg/ml at 10 min (P less than 0.01). Plasma renin activity increased from 15.7 +/- 4.0 to 22.1 +/- 3.3 ng.ml-1.2 h-1 (P less than 0.05), but blood pressure and heart rate did not change significantly. Similar increases in plasma AVP concentration occurred during perfusion of the renal pelvis with 1.0 M NaCl (17.6 +/- 8.1 to 53.7 +/- 24.0 pg/ml), 0.1 M KCl (9.2 +/- 2.1 to 39.7 +/- 17.3 pg/ml), and 1.0 M mannitol (27.5 +/- 10.9 to 77.5 +/- 30.8 pg/ml) solutions. However, because pelvic pressure increased by 40-50 mmHg during the perfusions, the experiments were repeated with use of a different perfusion method in which pelvic pressure increased by less than 5 mmHg. Under these conditions, plasma AVP concentration did not change significantly during perfusion with any of the solutions. To determine whether the mechanoreceptor-induced increase in AVP release is mediated by the renal nerves, pelvic pressure was increased in another group of rabbits after renal denervation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Sandwiching surfaces

Given a composite spline surface, we show how to efficiently construct two matching triangulations that sandwich the surface. Such a two-sided enclosure, (s-, s+), supports collision detection, re-approximation for format conversion, meshing with tolerance, one-sided smoothing and silhouette detection as illustrated in Figure 2.
Dynamics of dihydrogen bonding in aqueous solutions of sodium borohydride.

Dihydrogen bonding occurs between protonic and hydridic hydrogens which are bound to the corresponding electron withdrawing or donating groups. This type of interaction can lead to novel reactivity and dynamic behavior. This paper examines the dynamics experienced by both borohydride and its dihydrogen-bound water solvent using 2D-IR vibrational echo and IR pump–probe spectroscopies, as well as FT-IR linear absorption experiments. Experiments are conducted on the triply degenerate B–H stretching mode and the O–D stretch of dilute HOD in the water solvent. While the B–H stretch absorption is well separated from the broad absorption band of the OD of HOD in the bulk of the water solution, the absorption of the ODs hydrogen bonded to BHs overlaps substantially with the absorption of ODs in the bulk H2O solution. A subtraction technique is used to separate out the anion-associated OD dynamics from that of the bulk solution. It is found that both the water and borohydride undergo similar spectral diffusion dyn...
Mechanical Properties of Ferro-Electric Composite Thin Films

Ferro-electric (BSTO) films of 1 {micro}m nominal thickness were deposited on single crystals of sapphire at substrate temperatures varying from 30 C to 700 C. Optical analysis showed that the thin films were amorphous up to 500 C, while at 700 C they were polycrystalline. The microstructure of the thin films was columnar at all substrate temperatures. The film microhardness increased with increasing substrate temperature. While the cohesion failure load of the films remained fairly constant, the adhesion failure load increased with increasing substrate temperature.
The Use of Online Citizen-Science Projects to Provide Experiential Learning Opportunities for Nonmajor Science Students.

Citizen science is becoming even more accessible to the general public through technological advances in the development of mobile applications, facilitating information dissemination and data collection. With the advent of “big data,” many citizen-science projects designed to help researchers sift through piles of research data now exist entirely online, either in the form of playing a game or via other digital avenues. Recent trends in citizen science have also focused on “crowdsourcing” solutions from the general public to help solve societal issues, often requiring nothing more than brainstorming and a computer to submit ideas. Online citizen science thus provides an excellent platform to expand the accessibility of experiential learning opportunities for a broad range of nonmajor science students at institutions with limited resources (e.g., community colleges). I created an activity for a general microbiology lecture to engage students in hands-on experiences via participation in online citizen-science projects. The objectives of the assignment were for students to: 1) understand that everyone can be a scientist; 2) learn to be creative and innovative in designing solutions to health and science challenges; and 3) further practice science communication skills with a written report. This activity is designed for introductory science courses with nonmajor science students who have limited opportunities to participate in undergraduate research experiences.
Combined Visualization and Heat Transfer Measurements for Steam Flow Condensation in Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Mini-Gaps

Citation: Chen X, Derby MM. Combined Visualization and Heat Transfer Measurements for Steam Flow Condensation in Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Mini-Gaps. ASME. J. Heat Transfer. 2016;138(9):091503-091503-11. doi:10.1115/1.4033496.
Discussion on Integration of Secondary Devices in Smart Substations

With the ever-increasing application of secondary equipment,the integration of secondary devices will be the trend of smart substation.Different schemes for the devices of the process level,bay level and station level are discussed,with emphasis on the integration of the merging unit(MU)and intelligent terminal in the process level.The integration of the protective, measuring and control devices,the concentrated protective devices,the integration of measuring and control devices,the multifunction measuring and control devices,the intelligent components,the integration of the fault recorder and network analyzer are elaborated.The integration supervision and control system at the station level is described.The current application of the different integrated devices in the smart substation is reported,the scheme for the integration of the merging unit and intelligent terminal,the integration of the protective and measuring control devices are recommended for trial application only on the premise that the voltage is 110kV and below.It will be useful to the construction of smart substations.
Facial Expression Recognition Based on Gabor Feature and SRC

We present a facial expression recognition algorithm in this paper, which is based on a combination of the Gabor Feature and the Sprase Representation based Classification(SRC). First, improved Gabor filter is used to extract features. Then we use Principle Component Analysis (PCA) to reduce the dimension of Gabor feature to avoid redundancy. Finally, SRC is used to recognize and classify facial expression. Experiments on facial expression database JAFFE and Cohn-Kanade show that our approach is effective for both dimension reduction and recognition performance. The proposed method achieve 97.68% recognition accuracy on JAFFE.
A life-table analysis of pregnancy yield in fixed low-dose menotropin therapy for patients in whom clomiphene citrate failed to induce ovulation

Forty-nine patients in whom clomiphene citrate failed to induce ovulation were treated for 177 cycles with a fixed low dosage of menotropin. Among these 49 patients, there were 24 pregnancies. Among these pregnancies were two that were multiple and three spontaneous abortions. In only one treatment cycle was there a hyperstimulation syndrome. These patients were divided into three clinical groups: the secondary amenorrheic patient, the oligo-amenorrheic patient, and the patient with poor corpus luteum function. There was no statistically significant difference in the pregnancy rate per month among all groups during the first three treatment cycles (average value, 0.07). However, there was a statistically significant improvement in the pregnancy rate per month in the group with secondary amenorrhea and the group with poor corpus luteum in the last three treatment cycles, as compared with the first three treatment cycles (P = 0.05 average value 0.75). The oliģo-amenorrheic patients, on the other hand, during the last 3 months of treatment, had no statistically significant increase in the pregnancy rate per month. These data suggest that menotropin therapy may have a priming effect. These data do not fit the currently accepted model of a constant pregnancy rate per month for all patients. The data suggest that caution should be exercised before combining patient groups when evaluating the results of menotropin therapy.
Latency-Hiding Work Stealing: Scheduling Interacting Parallel Computations with Work Stealing

With the rise of multicore computers, parallel applications no longer consist solely of computational, batch workloads, but also include applications that may, for example, take input from a user, access secondary storage or the network, or perform remote procedure calls. Such operations can incur substantial latency, requiring the program to wait for a response. In the current state of the art, the theoretical models of parallelism and parallel scheduling algorithms do not account for latency. In this work, we extend the dag (Directed Acyclic Graph) model for parallelism to account for latency and present a work-stealing algorithm that hides latency to improve performance. This algorithm allows user-level threads to suspend without blocking the underlying worker, usually a system thread. When a user-level thread suspends, the algorithm switches to another thread. Using extensions of existing techniques as well as new technical devices, we bound the running time of our scheduler on a parallel computation. We also briefly present a prototype implementation of the algorithm and some preliminary empirical findings.
Reading Comprehension in Boys with ADHD: The Mediating Roles of Working Memory and Orthographic Conversion

Reading comprehension difficulties in children with ADHD are well established; however, limited information exists concerning the cognitive mechanisms that contribute to these difficulties and the extent to which they interact with one another. The current study examines two broad cognitive processes known to be involved in children’s reading comprehension abilities—(a) working memory (i.e., central executive processes [CE], phonological short-term memory [PH STM], and visuospatial short-term memory [VS STM]) and (b) orthographic conversion (i.e., conversion of visually presented text to a phonological code)—to elucidate their unique and interactive contribution to ADHD-related reading comprehension differences. Thirty-one boys with ADHD-combined type and 30 typically developing (TD) boys aged 8 to 12 years (M = 9.64, SD = 1.22) were administered multiple counterbalanced tasks assessing WM and orthographic conversion processes. Relative to TD boys, boys with ADHD exhibited significant deficits in PH STM (d = −0.70), VS STM (d = −0.92), CE (d = −1.58), and orthographic conversion (d = −0.93). Bias-corrected, bootstrapped mediation analyses revealed that CE and orthographic conversion processes modeled separately mediated ADHD-related reading comprehension differences partially, whereas PH STM and VS STM did not. CE and orthographic conversion modeled jointly mediated ADHD-related reading comprehension differences fully wherein orthographic conversion’s large magnitude influence on reading comprehension occurred indirectly through CE’s impact on the orthographic system. The findings suggest that adaptive cognitive interventions designed to improve reading-related outcomes in children with ADHD may benefit by including modules that train CE and orthographic conversion processes independently and interactively.
Information-space partitioning and symbolization of multi-dimensional time-series data using density estimation

This paper proposes a nonparametric density estimation-based information-space partitioning and symbolization technique for capturing and representing the underlying statistical behavior in dynamic data-driven application systems (DDDAS). In contrast with existing tools that address alphabet-size selection and partitioning in two separate steps, the proposed technique jointly determines both the number of symbols (i.e., the alphabet size) and the regions associated with these symbols (i.e., the information-space partition) in a single step. In order to validate the technique, dynamic data-driven models have been developed from time series of vector-valued measurements extracted from a simulation testbed, and are compared with models that rely on Gaussian mixture modeling for information-space partitioning.
Sarcomas of Bone

Abstract Sarcomas of bone are a heterogeneous group of rare malignancies with unclear pathogenesis in the majority of cases. Evaluation is optimally performed with plan radiographs and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the primary tumor and chest computed tomography (CT) to evaluate the most common site of metastatic disease, the lungs. Whole-body imaging is used to evaluate for other sites of skeletal involvement or metastasis and both bone scan and positron emission tomography (PET) are utilized depending on tumor type. A well-planned biopsy provides tissue for pathologic review, particularly grading, and molecular genetics. Prognosis is most heavily affected by disease burden: presence of metastatic disease and tumor size. Prognosis is also dependent on grade, response to systemic therapy in the case of osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma, and the ability to resect the primary tumor with negative margins. Staging takes the most critical of these factors into account with the American Joint Committee on Cancer system stratifying by grade, size, and presence and type of metastatic lesions. The Musculoskeletal Tumor Society surgical grading system distinguishes tumors based on grade, intra- or extra-compartmental involvement, and metastatic disease. The primary recommended treatment for nearly all bone sarcomas is wide surgical resection, which can be accomplished with limb-sparing techniques in 70-90% of patients. Reconstruction now involves many tissue and endoprosthetic options which can be tailored to patients’ needs. Radiation therapy can be utilized for local control of Ewing sarcomas, but rarely for other types bone sarcomas. Systemic therapy is vitally important for osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma, but less effective for chondrosarcoma. Future research into the genomic alterations in sarcomas and the development of targeted therapy based on those results show early promise.
The Use of Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Synbiotics in the Critically Ill

Over the past several decades, we have discovered that maintenance of the gut environment is a key factor in determining outcomes for critically ill patients. The exact mechanisms are not clearly documented in humans, but there is evidence to suggest that changes in gastrointestinal microflora associated with acute illness, immunosuppression, gut ischemia, nutrient deprivation, and the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics all contribute. Probiotics have shown benefit in many different kinds of critically ill patients, both prophylactically and for treatment. Specifically, they have been studied in critically ill patients with diarrhea, ventilator-associated pneumonia, severe pancreatitis, abdominal surgery patients, victims of poly-trauma, and critically ill children. Although many studies have shown the benefit of probiotic use in the ICU, there is evidence to indicate that some strains and formulations of probiotics can lead to dangerous infectious complications.
Mechanical Behavior of Hybrid Glass/Steel Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Composites

While conventional fiber-reinforced polymer composites offer high strength and stiffness, they lack ductility and the ability to absorb energy before failure. This work investigates hybrid fiber composites for structural applications comprised of polymer, steel fiber, and glass fibers to address this shortcoming. Varying volume fractions of thin, ductile steel fibers were introduced into glass fiber reinforced epoxy composites. Non-hybrid and hybrid composite specimens were prepared and subjected to monolithic and half-cyclic tensile testing to obtain stress-strain relationships, hysteresis behavior, and insight into failure mechanisms. Open-hole testing was used to assess the vulnerability of the composites to stress concentration. Incorporating steel fibers into glass/epoxy composites offered a significant improvement in energy absorption prior to failure and material re-centering capabilities. It was found that a lower percentage of steel fibers (8.2%) in the hybrid composite outperformed those with higher percentages (15.7% and 22.8%) in terms of energy absorption and re-centering, as the glass reinforcement distributed the plasticity over a larger area. A bilinear hysteresis model was developed to predict cyclic behavior of the hybrid composite.
Influence of limestone size and content on transport properties of self-consolidating concrete

Abstract This study assessed influences of limestone powder’ size and content on compressive strength and transport properties of self-consolidating concrete (SCC). Several SCC mixtures were prepared with uniform water-to-cementitious materials ratio and powder content (cement + fly ash + limestone) of 0.45 and 475 kg/m3, respectively. Class F fly ash substituted 20% by weight of cement and 10, 15 and 20% of total cementitious materials was replaced with limestone powder having average particle size of 3 or 8 μm. Slump flow of 635 ± 25 mm, visual stability index of 0 or 1, and maximum passing ability (difference of slump and J-Ring flow) of 37.5 mm were used for all studied mixtures. The devised experimental program included compressive strength, absorption, rapid chloride penetration (RCPT), rapid chloride migration (RCMT), and water penetration depth. The results of this study revealed that inclusion of limestone powder and reduction in its size were both effective in improving compressive strength and transport properties of SCC. While absorption, volume of permeable voids, water penetration depth, and RCPT improved significantly through use of limestone powder, the improvements were marginal for compressive strength and RCMT. Reduction of limestone powder size had more effect in improving performance of 28-day cured concrete as compared to that of 90 days mixtures.
Design of broadband mm-wave and THz frequency doublers

Wideband high power generation is an essential and challenging part of many Terahehrtz systems. In this paper we review some of our recent demonstrations of Si/SiGe THz frequency multipliers that generate a wideband high power signal. The proposed design techniques blend the nonlinear modeling of the active device with new circuit topologies and high efficiency microwave structures. In the first prototype, using a 130-nm SiGe HBT process (ƒ max =280GHz), a wideband frequency doubler operating from 430 to 510 GHz is designed. The active doubler generates an unsaturated output power of −8.2 dBm, corresponding to 16.2 dB of conversion loss. The second circuit is a 220–275 GHz travelling wave frequency multiplier, which achieves a 3-dB bandwidth of 7.8% with a saturated output power of −6.6 dBm in a 65 nm bulk CMOS technology. The last circuit is a passive frequency doubler, based on a 65 nm bulk CMOS process. This doubler also achieves a high output power of −6.3 dBm at 478 GHz and a simulated bandwidth of 70 GHz.
Exercise as a Behavioral Health Intervention in Primary Care Settings

Exercise has grown in popularity over the past two decades in the USA as well as around the world. But one can assert that as the exercise industry has grown and the number of exercise facilities have increased in the USA so have rates of depression, anxiety and other mental health diseases. In an effort to provide services to patients suffering from affective conditions such as anxiety and depression, researchers have implemented innovative exercise programs as a treatment modality to treat depression and anxiety. In the following chapter, the authors review the scientific literature examining exercise as an intervention to treat behavioral health disorders. Moreover, the chapter expands the model of exercise as a behavioral health intervention and offers suggestions for integrating exercise into the primary care setting.
Low grade glioma: a journey towards a cure

Data from recent clinical, translational, and basic science research provide us with a powerful propelling energy towards a new design of clinical trials. The updated survival data from the RTOG 9802 (see below) hint at the possibility that among the long-term survivors, there might be some with a cure.
Anodic Cyclization Reactions and the Mechanistic Strategies That Enable Optimization

ConspectusOxidation reactions are powerful tools for synthesis because they allow us to reverse the polarity of electron-rich functional groups, generate highly reactive intermediates, and increase the functionality of molecules. For this reason, oxidation reactions have been and continue to be the subject of intense study. Central to these efforts is the development of mechanism-based strategies that allow us to think about the reactive intermediates that are frequently central to the success of the reactions and the mechanistic pathways that those intermediates trigger. For example, consider oxidative cyclization reactions that are triggered by the removal of an electron from an electron-rich olefin and lead to cyclic products that are functionalized for further elaboration. For these reactions to be successful, the radical cation intermediate must first be generated using conditions that limit its polymerization and then channeled down a productive desired pathway. Following the cyclization, a second o...
Office visits to ophthalmologists and other physicians for eye care among the U.S. population, 1990.

Despite growth in the use of ophthalmologic care in the last decade, little is known about the use of eye care services and patterns of physician contact across population subgroups. As the U.S. population grows older, such information is crucial in planning strategies for treatment and prevention of eye disorders as well as in identifying potential problems in access and use of eye care. Using the 1990 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey data, a descriptive statistical analysis was employed to profile the possible variations in eye care-related office visits to ophthalmologists and other physicians across demographic groups. In 1990, a total of 49.3 million visits that were related primarily to an ocular disorder were made to physicians' offices; 43.8 million (89 percent) of these were visits to ophthalmologists and 5.4 million (11 percent) to other physicians. Use of ambulatory eye care varied across demographic subgroups. Those ages 65 or older had a substantially higher rate of eye care related outpatient visits per 1,000 persons per year compared with the rest of the population (743.6 per 1,000 versus 118.5 per 1,000, P < 0.001). Women had a higher rate than men (216.0 per 1,000 versus 177.0 per 1,000, 0.01; P < 0.05). Blacks had a substantially lower rate than whites (143.2 per 1,000 versus 194.6 per 1,000, 0.001; P < 0.01). Those who visited ophthalmologists' offices also differed from those who visited other physicians' offices in terms of their age, sex, race, health insurance status, and disease characteristics. It is important to devote increased attention to the prevention of vision loss among the population groups that have a higher risk of developing eye diseases and that also may have underused or have less access to care. Results from this analysis, in combination with data on the prevalence of ocular disorders for different population groups, provide useful information to identify these high-risk groups.
Modal Auxiliary Verbs and Related Structures

This chapter focuses on modal auxiliary verbs and related structures. The chapter is divided into two sections: The first section examines modals, both “pure” modals and related structures. The second section focuses on one particular modal with many uses, would, and includes an introduction to the conditional, which we will explore in greater depth in Chap. 9.
Sludge disinfection using electrical thermal treatment: The role of ohmic heating.

Electrical heating has been proposed as a potential method for pathogen inactivation in human waste sludge, especially in decentralized wastewater treatment systems. In this study, we investigated the heat production and E. coli inactivation in wastewater sludge using electrical thermal treatment. Various concentrations of NaCl and NH_4Cl were tested as electrolyte to enhance conductivity in sludge mixtures. At same voltage input (18 V), sludge treated with direct current (DC) exhibited slower ascent of temperature and lower energy efficiencies for heat production comparing to that using alternate current (AC). However, DC power showed better performance in E. coli inactivation due to electrochemical inactivation in addition to thermal inactivation. Greater than 6log_(10) removal of E. coli was demonstrated within 2 h using 0.15 M of NaCl as electrolyte by AC or DC power. The heat production in sludge was modeled using Maxwell–Eucken and effective medium theory based on the effective electrical conductivity in the two-phase (liquid and solid) sludge mixtures. The results showed that the water and heat loss is a critical consideration in modeling of sludge temperature using ohmic heating. The experimental data also suggested that the models are less applicable to DC power because the electrochemical reactions triggered by DC reduce the concentration of NH_4+ and other ions that serve as electrolyte. The results of this study contribute to the development of engineering strategies for human waste sludge management.
Pursuing training in the United States

Adeel Meraj gives tips to international medical graduates on getting a psychiatry residency
Coherent elastic neutrino nucleus scattering as a probe of a Z′ through kinetic and mass mixing effects

We examine the current constraints and future sensitivity of coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering ($\mathrm{CE}\ensuremath{\nu}\mathrm{NS}$) experiments to mixing scenarios involving a ${Z}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ which interacts via portals with the standard model. We contrast the results against those from fixed target, atomic parity violation, and solar neutrino experiments. We demonstrate a significant dependence of the experimental reach on the ${Z}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ coupling nonuniversality and the complementarity of $\mathrm{CE}\ensuremath{\nu}\mathrm{NS}$ to existing searches.
Lingual Pressure During Dingman-Assisted Cleft Palate Repair: An Investigatory Case Series.

BACKGROUND A variety of palatoplasty techniques are used for cleft palate repair, almost all involving a device called the Dingman-Grabb mouth gag ("Dingman") to push the tongue and cheeks out of the way of the operating field. There have been numerous case reports of complications hypothesized to be due to the gag, such as lingual edema and airway obstruction. The purpose of this study is to introduce a technique for monitoring lingual pressure during Dingman-assisted palatoplasty and present preliminary data from a small series. METHODS Patients with a cleft palate who underwent palatoplasty with the assistance of a Dingman-Grabb retractor at the Mount Sinai Hospital were eligible. Patients underwent a palatoplasty while having their lingual pressure monitored using a 23-gauge needle inserted into the tongue and connected to a pressure monitor. RESULTS Three patients were included. Patients 1 and 2 experienced a rapid rise in lingual pressure over the course of the first 45 minutes of the palatoplasty before plateauing until the conclusion of the operation when the Dingman was released. Patient 3 plateaued almost immediately by minute 1 and then had a rise in lingual pressure during the latter half of the operation, reaching a peak pressure immediately before the end of the operation. CONCLUSIONS The present study describes an easy method to monitor lingual pressure that succeeded in measuring such changes throughout 3 palatoplasties and confirming the acute rise in lingual pressure and the potential danger posed to the tongue and the airway through the use of the Dingman.
Sub-regional Assessment of China: Urbanization in Biodiversity Hotspots

China has been urbanizing rapidly since the early 1980s. This is manifested by large rural-urban population migrations and by the expansion of urban areas and the built environment. One consequence of urban expansion has been the loss of fertile agricultural land. Another, less noticed, has been the urban expansion within biodiversity hotspots. Throughout the country, expansion of urban areas have increasingly threatened habitats critical for conservation of biodiversity (McLaren 2011). Especially along the coast, many ecosystems have been destroyed as a result of continuous building and development (Zhao et al. 2006). On the other hand, further inland and especially along major rivers, the economic development and urban growth has increasingly been impacting ecologically sensitive lands (Li 2012).
Localization and MHC Class II Presentation of Antigens Targeted for Macroautophagy

Intracellular antigens can be presented on major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules after degradation via macroautophagy. To enhance MHC class II presentation of potential vaccine antigens, we have developed a method to target antigens for autophagic degradation via fusion to the Atg8/LC3 protein: Atg8/LC3 is specifically incorporated into autophagosomes via coupling to phosphatidylethanolamine, and subsequently degraded in MHC class II loading compartments (MIICs). Antigens fused to the N-terminus of Atg8/LC3 follow the same pathway and get preferentially presented on MHC class II molecules. The localization of Atg8/LC3 fusion antigens in MIICs can be visualized by confocal microscopy, and MHC class II presentation can be quantified in a presentation assay with antigen-specific CD4(+) T-cell clones. These assays are good measures of autophagosome formation and lysosomal degradation of macroautophagy cargo and therefore are useful for studying regulation of the autophagic pathway under various experimental conditions and physiological perturbations.