cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Simulation across the spectrum of submarine training

Simulation provides the U.S. Navy Submarine Force with the opportunity to safely, efficiently, and economically train Sailors at all levels in most aspects of their profession, starting with individual skills as the fundamental building blocks and assembling progressively larger teams. The Navy has invested heavily in providing the correct level of simulation fidelity for each application. This paper introduces the submarine training system in place today with emphasis on the impact of simulation technology and the benefits it provides across the spectrum of submarine training.
Detection of coronary artery disease: comparison of exercise stress radionuclide angiocardiography and thallium stress perfusion scanning.

Exercise thallium scanning and stress radionuclide angiography were compared in 16 normal subjects and 42 patients with more than 75 percent coronary arterial obstruction in studies using upright exercise on a bicycle ergometer. Studies at rest were subsequently obtained. Exercise thallium scans in the control group were normal in 15 and showed a defect in 1; ejection fraction increased in all 16 (from 0.61 ± 0.03 to 0.80 ± 0.03; p Thus, both exercise thallium scanning and radionuclide angiography are useful in detecting coronary artery disease. The latter study may be more sensitive in detecting new disease in patients with prior myocardial infarction. It also offers previously unobtainable data on left ventricular function and anatomic site of disease.
High-spin states in 90Nb

Abstract The high-spin states in 90Nb have been studied by in-beam γ-ray spectroscopy using the 35 MeV 89Y(α, 3nγ)90Nb and 33 MeV 90Zr(3He, p2nγ)90Nb reactions. A new isomeric state with half-life 0.44±0.02 σs and Jπ = 11− has been located in this nucleus. The level scheme derived from these measurements is compared with shell-model calculations.
Chemical Analysis of Prey-Derived Vomeronasal Stimulants

Earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris) are one of the major prey of garter snakes (Thamnophis sp.). Accurate recognition of this prey involves detection of chemical substances specific to earthworms. Garter snakes respond to earthworm preparations by tongue flicking and attack (Wilde, 1938; Burghardt, 1966; Halpern Kubie, 1980), responses is mediated by the vomeronasal system (Burghardt and Pruitt, 1975; Halpern and Frumin, 1979; Kubie and Halpern, 1979). In an attempt to understand the mole-molecular details of the attractive properties of compounds and their function/structure relationships and signal transduction in vomeronasal system of garter snakes, our laboratory has undertaken an extensive effort to isolate, purify, and characterize the chemoattractive agents. We have isolated several proteins from earthworm wash (Wang, Chen, Jiang and Halpern, 1988) and electric shock-induced earthworm secretion (Jiang, Inouchi, Wang and Halpern, 1990) that elicit attach by snakes. A 20 kDa protein from electric shock-induced secretion was characterized and found to bind in a saturable and reversible manner to membranes obtained from the sensory epithelium of the vomeronasal organ (Jiang et al., 1990). When this protein is applied to the vomeronasal epithelium of the garter snake, an increase in the neural firing rate is detected in the accessory olfactory bulb (Jiang et al., 1990). In this paper we present chemical, physical, and biological properties of another snake-attractive protein, a low molecular weight protein (LMW), obtained from earthworm wash (EWW).
Lasers with unstable resonators in the geometrical optics limit

A simple model is described for estimating the intensity distributions inside and emerging from lasers with high-Fresnel-number unstable resonators.
A system for measurement and calibration of nonorthogonal joints and limbs in humans

Human limbs are a multilinked system in which the revolute joints are not orthogonal to the limb segments or to each other. The standard method for movements of multilinked systems is the Denavit-Hartenberg (DH) representation, which is useful for orthogonal systems. When applied to non-orthogonal systems, the DH representation projects the reference frames outside of the limb segments. Computer graphics techniques move arrays of points in bodies that move about arbitrary revolute joints. This computational model has been modified to calculate both position (X, Y, Z) and orientation (yaw, pitch, and roll) of limbs and their individual segments. This method allows a simplified representation for the kinematics of animal limbs.
Prohibition, Alcohol, and Murder: Untangling Countervailing Mechanisms

A common belief expressed in criminology and social problems textbooks is that Prohibition failed to lower alcohol consumption, compounded drinking-related problems, and escalated secondary problems such as murder. However, little or no research is cited in support of these claims. This article reports the results of a multivariate time series analysis of the links among Prohibition, alcohol, and murder. Eckberg's adjusted vital statistics on homicide for the early 20th century are used to test the following three hypotheses: (a) net of any effects of other variables, Prohibition is a significant negative correlate of alcohol consumption; (b) net of the effects of other variables in the analysis, Prohibition is a significant positive correlate of homicide rates; and (c) net of the effects of other variables in the analysis, alcohol consumption is a significant positive correlate of homicide rates. Findings are consistent with all three hypotheses.
Corticosteroids for Recurrent Pericarditis On the Road to Evidence-Based Medicine

We have known for decades that acute pericarditis may recur after apparent cure.1 In spite of recent advances, recurrence, after an initial attack of acute pericarditis, remains a challenge for many reasons. For example, the exact rate of recurrence is not known because many, if not most, cases go unreported, especially those that have a benign course and respond quickly and completely to a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory agent (NSAID), such as ibuprofen, indomethacin, or aspirin. The evidence that, in most cases, recurrence is an autoimmune response to the initial pericardial insult is compelling,2 but we still lack an inexpensive, harmless, readily available test that reliably separates autoimmune reoccurrence from recurrence of another cause, notably infection. The distinction is important, because corticosteroid therapy is required for some of the immunogenic cases of recurrent pericarditis but is contraindicated in cases caused by infection. Reports from tertiary referral centers include a high proportion of patients who did not improve after treatment with prednisone, or had serious steroid-induced side effects. Article p 667 Pericardial disease is not rare but is far less common and much less likely to be a threat to survival than are, for example, ischemic heart disease, hypertension, valvular heart disease, and the metabolic syndrome. Also, the drugs used to treat it are generic, making it improbable that investigators can find funds for placebo-controlled large trials in a broad spectrum of patients with recurrent pericarditis. High-dose corticosteroid became the accepted standard treatment for recurrent acute pericarditis long before the concept of evidence-based medicine and guidelines was introduced and therefore was based on the anecdotal experience of medical and surgical cardiologists whose subspecialty was pericardial disease. One of the most influential of these was …
Looking for the future in the past: Long-term change in socioecological systems

Abstract The archaeological record has been described as a key to the long-term consequences of human action that can help guide our decisions today. Yet the sparse and incomplete nature of this record often makes it impossible to inferentially reconstruct past societies in sufficient detail for them to serve as more than very general cautionary tales of coupled socio-ecological systems. However, when formal and computational modeling is used to experimentally simulate human socioecological dynamics, the empirical archaeological record can be used to validate and improve dynamic models of long term change. In this way, knowledge generated by archaeology can play a unique and valuable role in developing the tools to make more informed decisions that will shape our future. The Mediterranean Landscape Dynamics project offers an example of using the past to develop and test computational models of interactions between land-use and landscape evolution that ultimately may help guide decision-making.
Towards a multilevel secure database management system for real-time applications

Database systems for real-time applications must satisfy timing constraints associated with transactions, in addition to maintaining data consistency. In addition to real-time requirements, security is usually required in many applications, because sensitive information must be safeguarded. Multilevel security requirements introduce a new dimension to transaction processing in real-time database systems. The paper addresses issues that must be investigated in order to design and develop a multilevel secure database management system for real-time applications. >
Movement of norepinephrine through the media of rabbit aorta.

The entry and movement of norepinephrine through the media of the isolated rabbit thoracic aorta has been investigated using an isotopic frozen section technique. After 1-minute exposure of the intimal surface of a helical strip to Krebs bicarbonate solution containing tritiated norepinephrine (3H-NE), the 3H material was distributed throughout the thickness of the wall. The highest concentration occurred at the innermost layer of the media and gradually decreased toward the adventitial side. The shape of the tritium distribution curves was not significantly changed by previous treatment of aortic strips with either cocaine, phenoxybenzamine or the MAO and COMT inhibitors, pargyline and tropolone, respectively. Temperature reduction to 27°C had no significant effect on the tritium distribution curves. The apparent diffusion coefficient for 3H-NE calculated for movement into the extracellular (inulin) space of the media was 7.29 x 10-7 cm2/sec. This relatively slow rate of diffusion is probably due to phys...
Research and Practice in International Commercial Arbitration

This first-of-its-kind book provides an insider's guide to the strategies associated with researching international commercial arbitration as well as detailed treatment of its unique sources of law. Chapter 1 is presented here. Substantive chapters discuss: * What constitutes legal authority in international commercial arbitration and where it can be found; * How experienced advocates use and present their research in international commercial arbitration; * How international commercial arbitrators evaluate the weight of competing authority; and * How to research common types of disputes. The book also includes a user-friendly bibliography of sources in international commercial arbitration to help practitioners find the materials they need. The bibliography includes tips on how each type of resource is used and where it can be found in electronic or printed form, thus helping to increase understanding in this complex area of law. Providing practical guidance on a little-discussed topic, Research in International Commercial Arbitration: Sources and Strategies will appeal to practitioners and students new to the field of international commercial arbitration as well as more experienced practitioners looking to improve their knowledge of specialist sources. The author is presenting an audio webcast for ALI-ABA on this subject on April 13, 2009. Written by Dr. S.I. Strong, Associate Professor of Law and Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of Dispute Resolution at the University of Missouri. Dr. Strong, who is an English solicitor as well as an attorney qualified in New York and Illinois, practised as an international disputes specialist with Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP in New York and London before being named Counsel at Baker & McKenzie LLP in Chicago. Dr. Strong holds a Ph.D. in law from the University of Cambridge, a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford and a J.D. from Duke University.
Cryoimmunotherapy in Urologic Oncology

Cryoablation is gaining acceptance as a primary treatment of localized as well as a salvage therapy of metastatic urologic malignancies. Anecdotal clinical reports suggest cryoablation can induce a systemic anti-tumor immune response; this phenomenon has been confirmed in animal models. To capitalize on this stimulatory effect of cryotherapy for control of advanced malignancies, it must be further intensified. This article reviews the existing evidence regarding cryoimmunology and discusses the mechanisms for generation of an anti-tumor immune response. Several immunotherapy approaches that can be combined with cryoablation to devise a cryoimmunotherapeutic strategy with potential to affect the progression of metastatic disease are described.
Methods to Compare Dissolution Profiles

The objective of this work was to apply several profile comparison approaches to dissolution data of four different Metoprolol tartrate tablet formulations in order to quantify each method's metric for comparing dissolution profiles. Dissolution was performed using the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) monograph method on four formulations of metoprolol tartrate tablets. Two general approaches to compare dissolution profiles were examined: model-independent approaches and model-dependent approaches. The model-independent methods included ANOVA-based procedures, ratio test procedures, and pair-wise procedures. The model-dependent approaches included zero-order, first-order, Hixson-Crowell, Higuchi, quadratic, Weibull, Gompertz, and logistic models. It is concluded that the ratio test procedures, the pair-wise procedures, and several model-dependent approaches yielded numerical results which can possibly serve as objective and quantitative metrics for comparing entire dissolution profiles of the four metopro...
Acoustic approaches to remote species identification: a review

Noninvasive species identification remains a longterm goal of fishers, researchers, and resource managers who use sound to locate, map, and count aquatic organisms. Since the first biological applications of underwater acoustics, four approaches have been used singly or in combination to survey marine and freshwater environments: passive sonar; prior knowledge and direct sampling; echo statistics from high-frequency measures; and matching models to low-frequency measures. Echo amplitudes or targets measured using any sonar equipment are variable signals. Variability in reflected sound is influenced by physical factors associated with the transmission of sound through a compressible fluid, and by biological factors associated with the location, reflective properties, and behaviour of a target. The current trend in acoustic target identification is to increase the amount of information collected through increases in frequency bandwidth or in the number of acoustic beams. Exclusive use of acoustics to identify aquatic organisms reliably will require a set of statistical metrics that discriminate among a wide range of similar body types at any packing density, and incorporation of these algorithms in routine data processing.
Recombinant adeno-associated virus serotype 2 vectors mediate stable interleukin 10 secretion from salivary glands into the bloodstream.

We have constructed a recombinant adeno-associated virus serotype 2 vector encoding human interleukin 10 (rAAVhIL10). IL-10 is a potent antiinflammatory/immune cytokine, which has received growing ...
Energetic Costs of Begging Behaviour

Energy expenditure during begging by nestling birds is of interest because of its potential role in the social dynamic between provisioning parents and their young. In this chapter we discuss methods of measuring the energy cost of begging and argue that continuous-flow respirometry is the method of choice. Evaluating the impact of begging on nestling energetics and fitness requires an estimate of nestling energy budgets. To date, studies show that the energy cost of begging comprises a very small fraction of the nestling’s total energy budget. With existing estimates of the time budget and energy cost of begging, we calculate that even large increases in begging activity are likely to have little negative impact on nestling fitness. We suggest that additional work on begging energetics should broaden the range of behaviours and social groupings that are examined in order to explore the limits to begging activity in nestling birds.
Methodological Trends in Research on Evaluation

The wide array of methodologies and analysis techniques available to evaluators presents both an opportunity and a challenge. Whereas practicing evaluators have an ever-growing collection of methodologies from which to choose, those seeking to take stock of recent research on the set of evaluation methodologies appropriate for a given situation are faced with a daunting task. Although a number of empirical research on evaluation studies have proposed innovative methodologies, relatively few studies offer comparisons of the relative utility of these methods. Moreover, a systematic review of the empirical research on evaluation methodology has not been published. Using a general inductive approach, this chapter systematically examines 65 peer-reviewed articles published in the American Journal of Evaluation to uncover themes and trends in research on evaluation methodologies and techniques. The present chapter provides a description of the reviewed literature, identifies the methodological themes addressed by the articles in this sample, and addresses the gaps in the current literature.
Placing Terrorism in an Academic and Personal Context: A Case Study of the Oklahoma City Bombing*

Objective This article reviews the academic research context for terrorism studies before and after the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 1995, from the perspective of a long-time specialist in the study of terrorism. Method The article combines a personal narrative and an analysis of the broader academic context. Results This first-hand account details the ways in which research on terrorism emerged in the 1970s in Oklahoma and was shaped by the bombing and its aftermath. Recounting how early research on terrorism was conducted before the widespread use of computers as well as breakthroughs in training tactics provides an understanding of the ways in which the field has evolved.
The legacy of Elinor Ostrom and its relevance to issues of forest conservation

In 2009, Elinor Ostrom won the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for her contributions to the governance of commonly owned resources. She was the founder of the International Forestry Resources and Institutions program (IFRI), and the co-founder of the Center for the Study of Institutions, Population, and Environmental Change (CIPEC), and the Vincent and Elinor Ostrom Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis, all of which provided lively arenas in which natural and social scientists from diverse disciplines collaborated. Forests and their transformations as well as ways to conserve them to serve people's needs was one of the urgent research topics Elinor Ostrom investigated. Her contributions were significant for forest management and conservation and informed her work on the commons and institutional diversity. Lessons from these Ostrom-led efforts proved that self-governance was possible but that it depended on multiple factors. In her work with economic experiments, Ostrom was able to replicate important findings that gave support to case studies from IFRI and CIPEC. She showed that panaceas did not exist for resource management challenges. Ostrom's work showed the value of building multinational, multidisciplinary, and comparative research bridging the social and natural sciences and the complexity of governance systems. These multiple layers and complexity are reflected in her Socio-Ecological Systems framework (SES).
Intracellular trafficking of metallocarboxypeptidase D in AtT-20 cells: localization to the trans-Golgi network and recycling from the cell surface

Carboxypeptidase D (CPD) is a recently discovered membrane-bound metallocarboxypeptidase that has been proposed to be involved in the post-translational processing of peptides and proteins that transit the secretory pathway. In the present study, the intracellular distribution of CPD was examined in AtT-20 cells, a mouse anterior pituitary-derived corticotroph. Antisera to CPD stain the same intracellular structures as those labeled with furin and wheat germ agglutinin. This distribution is distinct from carboxypeptidase E, which is localized to the secretory vesicles in the cell processes. The perinuclear distribution of CPD is detected even when the AtT-20 cells are treated with brefeldin A for 1-30 minutes, suggesting that CPD is present in the trans-Golgi network (TGN). Although CPD is predominantly found in the TGN, an antiserum to the full length protein is internalized within 15-30 minutes of incubation at 37 degrees C. In contrast, an antiserum raised against the C-terminal region of CPD does not become internalized, suggesting that this domain is cytosolic. The antiserum to the full length CPD is internalized to a structure that co-stains with furin and wheat germ agglutinin, but is distinct from transferrin recycling endosomes. The internalization of CPD is not substantially affected by treatment of the AtT-20 cells with brefeldin A. These data are consistent with the cycling of CPD to the cell surface and back to the TGN. The TGN localization of CPD raises the possibility of a role for this enzyme in the processing of proteins that transit the secretory pathway.
Losses to the Public in The Insull Collapse: 1932-1946

The purpose of this study is to trace the disposition of stockholder securities and to estimate the losses incurred by investors as a result of the collapse of Samuel Insull's utility complex.
Teaching Professional Skills: A Kaleidoscopic Model

In this article, I focus on curriculum design and the differences between professional leadership skills and technical skills. University of Iowa staff members have experimented with different educational methods and have learned about teaching professional and leadership skills to medical technology students. Some of the results of these efforts are presented here.
Inhibition of adenosine deaminase activity results in cytotoxicity to T lymphoblasts in vivo

We have treated a patient with refractory T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia with 2'-deoxycoformycin, a potent inhibitor of the enzyme adenosine deaminase. Inhibition of adenosine deaminase activity resulted in (1) an abrupt rise in plasma deoxyadenosine, but not adenosine, concentrations; (2) accumulation of deoxyadenosine triphosphate by lymphoblasts; (3) inhibition of the enzyme S-adenoylhomocysteine hydrolase; and (4) rapid lysis of the leukemic cells. The patient died suddenly 3 days after therapy was discontinued, and postmortem examination revealed a complete absence of leukemic cells in all organs. Pharmacologic inhibition of adenosine deaminase activity can result in the lysis of T lymphoblasts in vivo, and this effect appears to be mediated by deoxyadenosine.
HPLC Determination of Sudan Dyes in Chilli Products with Purification by Gel Permeation Chromatography

Appropriate amount of the chilli product sample was extracted ultrasonically with the mixture of cyclohexane and acetone(3+1).After centrifugation,the supernatants were taken and evaporated to near dryness.The residue was dissolved and made up to 10 mL with the mixture of cyclohexane and ethylacetate(1+1),which is also the mixture in gel permeation chromatography(GPC).Eluates flowed out during the interval of 22-30 min were collected,and evaporated to dryness at 40 ℃ by N2-blowing.The residue was dissolved and made up to 1mL with acetonitrile-water(8+2)solution.Waters Symmetry C18 column was used for separation with mixtures of water and acetonitrile in various proportions used as mobile phase in gradient elution.Detections were made with PDA at 478 nm for Sudan Ⅰ and at 520 nm for Sudan Ⅱ,Ⅲ and Ⅳ.Linearity ranges for the 4dyes were found same between 0.1to 5mg·L-1.Detection limits of the 4dyes found in chilli oil were 0.02mg·kg-1,and in chilli sauce and chilli powder were same as 0.005mg·kg-1.Tests for recovery were made by standard addition method,giving values of recovery in the range of 79.5%-93.8%,with RSD′s(n=6)in the range of 1.9%-8.3%.
Epidemiology and natural history of systemic sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis is an acquired generalized disorder of connective tissue characterized epidemiologically by several distinctive features. From a demographic viewpoint, the disease spares children and its incidence increases steadily with age among adults; is much more frequent in women, especially during the childbearing years; occurs most frequently and severely in young black women, but overall has no prominent racial predilection. If any conclusions can be drawn here, the strongest influences may be age-related hormonal factor and degenerative vascular processes. Family and genetic studies suggest a weak genetic predisposition. There are many environmental agents which may be implicated in pathogenesis. The result of host factors and environmental "triggers" is a multi-system disease which has as prominent features microvascular injury, immunologic dysregulation, and fibroblast activation. The resulting widespread pathologic process leads to vascular insufficiency and fibrosis, which diminishes the reserve function of many organ systems. The result, a significant reduction in lifespan, with a 10-year survival from diagnosis of under 50 per cent. Further epidemiologic studies should take full advantage of established and newly proposed subsets of patients with homogeneous clinical, laboratory, serologic, and natural history features. The environment-host interactions noted above must be fully explored, especially in early untreated disease, where primary rather than secondary mechanisms are most likely to be operative.
Inflammatory Diseases of the Thyroid Gland

The thyroid gland is a butterfly-shaped organ that is located at the base of the neck, anterior to the trachea. Its main product is levothyroxine (often referred to as ‘thyroid hormone’), a hormone with significant biological activity in practically every cell in the human body. There are several inflammatory disorders that involve the thyroid gland. It is the most common target of autoimmunity in the human body. Hashimoto's thyroiditis, leading to hypothyroidism, is the most frequent expression of such autoimmune activity. On the opposite end, Graves disease is an autoimmune disorder that results in hyperthyroidism through an autoantibody-mediated persistent activation of the thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor. Inflammatory thyroid disorders are particularly common during the postpartum period, a time of reactivation of the immune system. Finally, there are other, less frequent inflammatory disorders of the thyroid gland like subacute painful thyroiditis (often described as post-infectious because it commonly follows an infection – commonly an upper airway infection) or Riedel's thyroiditis (a rare disorder that is characterized by extensive and invasive fibrosis of the thyroid parenchyma and the surrounding tissues).
Poverty and inequalities: an obligatory dental health debate

Las reformas al sector salud de las ultimas decadas en Latinoamerica estan fomentando la privatizacion de los servicios siguiendo principios de corte liberal. A diferencia de un sistema de medicina social, en sistemas privados el acceso de las personas a los servicios depende de la capacidad adquisitiva y su enfasis es mas terapeutico que preventivo. El resultado es que personas con mas recursos tienen menos riesgo de enfermar y de que sus enfermedades se agraven. De otro lado, quienes viven en la pobreza no solamente son mas vulnerables a padecer enfermedades, sino que tienen menos acceso a los servicios de salud y, al no recibir tratamientos adecuados y oportunos, sus enfermedades se agravan. Esta situacion es peor aun en temas de salud oral, donde se requiere un debate con la bioetica como interlocutora para proponer sistemas de equidad.
Spur-Free Fractional-N PLL Utilizing Precision Frequency and Phase Selection

An architecture for fractional-N frequency synthesis is presented. The proposed topology does not use the traditional method of obtaining the fractional division via an average of N and N+1 divided clock cycles. Instead, it uses the equally spaced phases provided from a ring oscillator that works as VCO to generate the fractional frequency. Therefore, the proposed architecture does not generate any spurs due to fractional frequency synthesis. As a result it provides better resolution for the fraction and avoids any compensation required for correction of the instantaneous jitter.
The Fourth Amendment in an Age of Surveillance

The Fourth Amendment is facing a crisis. New and emerging surveillance technologies allow government agents to track us wherever we go, to monitor our activities online and offline, and to gather massive amounts of information relating to our financial transactions, communications, and social contacts. In addition, traditional police methods like stop-and-frisk have grown out of control, subjecting hundreds of thousands of innocent citizens to routine searches and seizures. In this work, David Gray uncovers the original meaning of the Fourth Amendment to reveal how its historical guarantees of collective security against threats of 'unreasonable searches and seizures' can provide concrete solutions to the current crisis. This important work should be read by anyone concerned with the ongoing viability of one of the most important constitutional rights in an age of increasing government surveillance.
Confidence Intervals for the Slope in a Linear Errors-in-Variables Regression Model

The linear errors-in-variables model treated in this paper is the following. Independent observations (x i , y i ), i = 1, 2, ..., N, are obtained, where $$ \begin{gathered} \left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {x_i } \\ {y_i } \\ \end{array} } \right) = \left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {u_i } \\ {a + bu_i } \\ \end{array} } \right) + \left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {e_i } \\ {f_i } \\ \end{array} } \right),i = 1,2, \ldots ,N, \hfill \\ \left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {e_i } \\ {f_i } \\ \end{array} } \right), \ldots ,\left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {e_n } \\ {f_N } \\ \end{array} } \right),conditional\;on\;u_1 , \ldots ,u_N \;are i.i.d. N\left( {\left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} 0 \\ 0 \\ \end{array} } \right),\sum } \right) \hfill \\ \end{gathered} $$ (1.1)
Cortical thickness alterations linked to somatoform and psychological dissociation in functional neurological disorders.

Background Links between dissociation and functional neurological disorder (FND)/conversion disorder are well-established, yet the pathophysiology of dissociation remains poorly understood. This MRI study investigated structural alterations associated with somatoform and psychological dissociation in FND. We hypothesized that multimodal, paralimbic cingulo-insular regions would relate to the severity of somatoform dissociation in patients with FND. Methods FreeSurfer cortical thickness and subcortical volumetric analyses were performed in 26 patients with motor FND and 27 matched healthy controls. Patients with high dissociation as measured by the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire-20 (SDQ) or Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES) were compared to controls in stratified analyses. Within-group analyses were also performed with SDQ and DES scores in patients with FND. All cortical thickness analyses were whole-brain corrected at the cluster-wise level. Results Patients with FND and high somatoform dissociation (SDQ > 35) showed reduced left caudal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) cortical thickness compared to controls. In within-group analyses, SDQ scores inversely correlated with left caudal ACC cortical thickness in patients with FND. Depersonalization/derealization scores positively correlated with right lateral occipital cortical thickness. Both within-group findings remained statistically significant controlling for trait anxiety/depression, borderline personality disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, adverse life events, and motor FND subtypes in post-hoc analyses. Conclusion Using complementary between-group and within-group analyses, an inverse association between somatoform dissociation and left caudal ACC cortical thickness was observed in patients with FND. A positive relationship was also appreciated between depersonalization/derealization severity and cortical thickness in visual association areas. These findings advance our neuropathobiological understanding of dissociation in FND. Hum Brain Mapp, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Retinoic Acid Maintains Function of Neural Crest-Derived Ocular and Craniofacial Structures in Adult Zebrafish.

Purpose Retinoic acid (RA) is required for embryonic formation of the anterior segment of the eye and craniofacial structures. The present study further investigated the role of RA in maintaining the function of these neural crest-derived structures in adult zebrafish. Methods Morphology and histology were analyzed by using live imaging, methylacrylate sections, and TUNEL assay. Functional analysis of vision and aqueous humor outflow were assayed with real-time imaging. Results Both decreased and increased RA signaling altered craniofacial and ocular structures in adult zebrafish. Exogenous treatment with all-trans RA for 5 days resulted in a prognathic jaw, while inhibition of endogenous RA synthesis through treatment with 4-diethylaminobenzaldehyde (DEAB) decreased head height. In adult eyes, RA activity was localized to the retinal pigment epithelium, photoreceptors, outer plexiform layer, inner plexiform layer, iris stroma, and ventral canalicular network. Exogenous RA increased apoptosis in the iris stroma and canalicular network in the ventral iridocorneal angle, resulting in the loss of these structures and decreased aqueous outflow. DEAB, which decreased RA activity throughout the eye, induced widespread apoptosis, resulting in corneal edema, cataracts, retinal atrophy, and loss of iridocorneal angle structures. DEAB-treated fish were blind with no optokinetic response and no aqueous outflow from the anterior chamber. Conclusions Tight control of RA levels is required for normal structure and function of the adult anterior segment. These studies demonstrated that RA plays an important role in maintaining ocular and craniofacial structures in adult zebrafish.
Effective Monitoring Strategies for Demonstrating Water Quality Changes from Nonpoint Source Controls on a Watershed Scale

Demonstrating water quality improvements from nonpoint source (NPS) controls by monitoring both land treatment and water quality in at least a subset of watershed projects is necessary to provide feedback to project coordinators Feedback to regional and national policy makers is also essential to achieve political and economic support for NPS control programs. To meet this objective, two challenges must be met in designing the monitoring network and analyzing the data: (1) Detecting significant (or real) trends in both water quality and land treatment implementation and (2) Associating water quality trends with land treatment trends. Land treatment and water quality monitoring requirements for meeting these challenges are discussed based on lessons learned from the Rural Clean Water Program, a 10-15 year experimental program designed to control agricultural NPS pollution in rural watersheds. At minimum, monitoring of land treatment and water quality should be multi-year before and after best management practice (BMP) implementation. The paired watershed design is the best for documenting BMP effectiveness in the shortest number of years (a minimum of 3-5 years). The water quality and land treatment data bases should be temporally related. All significant sources of variability in the land treatment and water quality data should be taken into account to increase the chances of isolating true water quality changes due to BMPs.
Relativistically Self-Guided Laser-Wakefield Acceleration

Since the concept of laser-plasma acceleration was introduced in 1979,1 laser technology has rapidly progressed to an extent2,3 that these accelerators have been demonstrated in many laboratories throughout the world. There is significant interest in these accelerators because of the incredible accelerating gradients of plasma waves, which have been measured to be four orders of magnitudes greater than conventional technologies (E≥ 200 GV/m).4 One of the many applications these accelerators may have is the ability to create extremely short pulses of x-ray radiation on a small scale, table-top synchrotrons, that are synchronized with the laser. We have created a low-emittance beam of relativistic electrons (e < 1 π mm mrad) with over 1 nC of total charge in a picosecond bunch.5.6 Our most recent work has shown that we can accelerate electrons beyond the previous limit of natural diffraction, and therefore more fully exploit the incredible accelerating fields. In this paper, we will review the current state of our experimental self-modulated laser-plasma accelerator.
Role of IL-12/IL-23 in the Pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis

Publisher Summary Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a T-cell-mediated autoimmune disease of the central nervous system (CNS) with a complex genetic background. It is generally accepted that MS begins with the formation of acute inflammatory lesions that were mediated by autoreactive T cells and B cells because of the breakdown of the blood–brain barrier (BBB). The demyelinating plaques were dominated by activated T cells and macrophages associated with oligodendrocyte destruction. IL-12 and IL-23 are two heterodimeric cytokines belonging to the p40 family, which plays an important role in regulating T-cell responses. They both are heterodimers of two subunits. IL-12 is a heterodimer of p35 and p40, whereas IL-23 is a heterodimer of p19 and p40. They share a common subunit, p40. Both IL-12 and IL-23 were mainly produced by antigen-presenting cells (APCs), including macrophages, dendritic cells, and B cells, and exerted their biologic functions on CD4 T cells. IL-12 receptor and IL-23 receptor are heterodimeric receptors. They share a common receptor subunit, the IL-12 receptor â1 chain. IL-12 receptor consists of the IL-12 receptor â1 chain and IL-12 receptor â2 chain, while the IL-23 receptor consists of the IL-12 receptor â1 chain and a second chain called the IL-23 receptor. IL-12 drives naive CD4? T cells to differentiate into the IFN-a- producing Th-1 lineage, while IL-23 promotes the IL-17-producing Th-17 lineage. Both IL-12-driven Th-1 cells and IL-23-driven Th-17 cells are believed to contribute significantly to the pathogenesis of MS and EAE.
Reply to Tobin and Keegan's "Reply to Idiopathic Central Nervous System Inflammatory Disease in the Setting of HLA-B27 Uveitis".

Dear Sir,We thank Drs Tobin and Keegan for their interest in our case report and appreciate the opportunity to respond to their letter regarding our article. In the case report, we describe a young...
2017 ACC/AHA Blood Pressure Treatment Guideline Recommendations and Cardiovascular Risk

Abstract Background The 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) blood pressure (BP) guideline provides updated recommendations for antihypertensive medication initiation and intensification. Objectives Determine the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) events among adults recommended and not recommended antihypertensive medication initiation or intensification by the 2017 ACC/AHA BP guideline. Methods The authors analyzed data for black and white REGARDS (REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke) study participants (age ≥45 years). Systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) were measured twice at baseline (2003 to 2007) and averaged. Participants not taking (n = 14,039) and taking (n = 15,179) antihypertensive medication were categorized according to their recommendations for antihypertensive medication initiation and intensification by the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline. Overall, 4,094 CVD events (stroke, coronary heart disease, and heart failure) occurred by December 31, 2014. Results Among participants not taking antihypertensive medication, 34.4% were recommended pharmacological antihypertensive treatment initiation. The CVD event rate per 1,000 person-years among participants recommended antihypertensive medication initiation with SBP/DBP ≥140/90 mm Hg was 22.7 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 20.3 to 25.0). Among participants with SBP/DBP 130 to 139/80 to 89 mm Hg, the CVD event rate was 20.5 (95% CI: 18.5 to 22.6) and 3.4 (95% CI: 2.4 to 4.4) for those recommended and not recommended antihypertensive medication initiation, respectively. Among participants taking antihypertensive medication, 62.8% were recommended treatment intensification. The CVD event rate per 1,000 person-years among participants recommended treatment intensification was 33.6 (95% CI: 31.5 to 35.6) and 22.4 (95% CI: 20.8 to 23.9) for those with SBP/DBP ≥140/90 mm Hg and 130 to 139/80 to 89 mm Hg, respectively. Conclusions Implementing the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline would direct antihypertensive medication initiation and intensification to adults with high CVD risk.
Antibody deficiency testing for primary immunodeficiency: A practical review for the clinician

Abstract Objective To review selected published studies related to the diagnostic evaluation of antibody deficiency. Data Sources Published literature. Study Selections Studies related to the diagnostic evaluation of antibody deficiency and existing recommendations were selected. Results Many primary immunodeficiency diseases include humoral deficiency. Practical tests used in the clinical evaluation of patients for possible antibody deficiency include immunoglobulin measurement, specific antibody titers, and B-cell enumeration and phenotyping. Conclusion Clinically available tests can be used to readily evaluate patients for antibody deficiencies.
A Common Law for the Age of Artificial Intelligence: Incremental Adjudication, Institutions, and Relational Non-Arbitrariness

A major node in the web of relationships and incentives driving the evolution of artificially intelligent systems is the world’s most economically complex and geopolitically powerful common law jurisdiction: the United States. My purpose here is to begin surveying the fertile terrain where the American system of incremental common law adjudication intersects with artificial intelligence (AI). Although administrative agencies, legislatures, and courts interpreting statututes are important players in defining society’s evolving relationship with AI, the common law remains a default backstop in social and economic life in the United States and a number of other major economies. Even beyond the strict doctrinal limits of torts, property, and contracts, common law ideas often set the terms for conversations among elites and the larger public about the way social and economic interactions ordinarily occur, and how public agencies analyze problems ranging from financial regulation to occupational safety. Beyond serving as a default means of structuring interactions and a framework for analyzing social and economic life, the common law also offers an apt metaphor for how law, society, and technological change affect each other over the drawn-out process of applying broad social commitments to specific fact patterns. After defining some terms and setting the stage, I offer three preliminary conclusions. First, our society already regulates AI through a backstop arising from the common law—and rightly so. Second, some degree of explainability that is well-calibrated to foster societal deliberation about consequential decisions is foundational to making any AI involved in human decision-making compatible with tort and other common law doctrines. At least one version of this ideal that merits attention could be termed “relational non-arbitrariness” to foreground the importance of buttressing—through both the common law and public law—society’s capacity to deliberate about, and revise, the process through which it makes the choices that matter most. Finally, tort law offers a compelling example of how the common law can retain doctrinal flexibility to integrate societal considerations involving organizational realities and institutional capacity, and concerns about matters such as the erosion of human knowledge that would be risky to ignore. Despite its unavoidable imperfections, a thoughtfully-applied and adapted common law can continue serving not only as one means of managing such risks, but as a resource in society’s toolkit for contending with different values and rationales for civic action as the world’s use of AI continues to grow.
Changing the Landscape of Computing: A Vision for the Next 25 Years

According to the U.S. Census, the United States of America will become a majority-minority country by 2045. As the U.S. experiences this demographic shift, what will happen to computer science? Will our discipline become more inclusive? What shifts will occur in computer science? Computer science does not have a good record addressing its diversity challenges. A simple Google search for "Silicon Valley's Diversity Problem", really makes this clear. Further exploration into data from the Computing Research Association (CRA), shows how underrepresented minority groups are in computing at the Bachelor, Master, Doctoral, and faculty levels. Can computer science improve its diversity during the demographic shift? Dr. Gilbert believe it is possible to change the demographics in computer science, but it will require a cultural shift in computing along with institutional change, starting with computer science education.
Effect of a Home Pregnancy Test Intervention on Cohort Retention and Pregnancy Detection: A Randomized Trial.

We conducted a parallel, nonblinded randomized trial to assess whether offering home pregnancy tests (HPTs) to preconception cohort study participants influenced cohort retention or pregnancy detection. Pregnancy Study Online participants were female, aged 21-45 years, attempting pregnancy, and not using fertility treatment. At enrollment (2017-2018), 1,493 participants with 6 or fewer cycles of attempt time were randomly assigned with 50% probability to receive 12 Clearblue visual HPTs plus the standard protocol (n = 720) or the standard protocol alone (n = 773). Women completed bimonthly questionnaires for 12 months or until conception, whichever came first. In intent-to-treat analyses, retention (≥1 follow-up) was higher in the HPT arm (n = 598; 83%) than the standard protocol arm (n = 535 (69%); mean difference = 15%, 95% CI: 10, 19). Mean time at first pregnancy testing was identical in both arms (2 days before expected menses), as was mean gestational weeks at first positive pregnancy test (4 weeks). Conception was reported by 78% of women in the HPT arm and 75% in the standard protocol arm. Spontaneous abortion was reported by 21% in the HPT arm (mean gestational weeks = 7) and 21% in the standard protocol arm (mean gestational weeks = 6). Randomization of HPTs was associated with greater cohort retention but had little impact on incidence or timing of pregnancy detection.