cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Slim by Design: Moving from Can't to CAN

Behavioral science research on encouraging healthy behavior has had a frustratingly small impact on “Public Policy” and on the more “small p” policies of institutions such as worksites and schools. This may have to do with the way findings are organized and the way studies have conducted. This chapter has two purposes. The first is to emphasize that policies to encourage healthy behavior are not limited to national policies but include policies, cultures, or rules of thumb that can be implemented at the level of a company, a school, or a household. The second purpose is to show how research can change food choices – and other healthy choices – by using an organizing framework following the acronym CAN making healthy choices more convenient (physically and cognitively), more attractive (comparatively and absolutely), and more normative (actual and perceived), and that it can be done in a way that is actionable, useful, effective, and scalable. Such a framework could help expand both the relevance and reach behavioral science research into both small policies and large Policies.
Hepatitis C virus infection: from margin to center in rhode island and beyond.

Physicians, Research Scientists and Public Health Experts Collaborate to Combat Rhode Island’s Hepatitis C Epidemic
Coagmento 2.0: A System for Capturing Individual and Group Information Seeking Behavior

In this demo, we present Coagmento 2.0, a Web-based, open-source platform that provides support for one working in individual or group projects spanning multiple sessions that involve looking for, collecting, and synthesizing information. The system also provides a highly customizable platform for researchers who want to investigate individual and group information seeking behaviors in a lab or a field setting. The demo not only shows back-end components and front-end interaction elements of the system, but also how one could easily configure Coagmento for user studies involving information seeking/retrieval with digital libraries (including the Web).
Holliday Junction Thermodynamics and Structure: Comparisons of Coarse-Grained Simulations and Experiments

The DNA Holliday junction plays a vital role in genetic recombination and DNA repair. All-atom simulations of DNA junctions have proved challenging, owing to the substantial size and time scales required to examine conformational changes or junction melting. Here, we combine simulations and experiments to evaluate the possibility of using the 3SPN.2 model, a coarse-grained molecular representation designed to mimic B-DNA, to reproduce the properties of a DNA four-way Holliday junction. We find that the model reproduces our experimental measurements of the junction melting temperature dependence on salt concentration to within 3%. The model reproduces the bias between open and stacked conformations, as well as the relative population of stacked isomers at high salt concentration. We further predict the population of the iso-I and iso-II forms is nearly independent of salt concentration. We directly observe proposed tetrahedral intermediate sub-states implicated in conformational transitions, suggesting that these conformations, rather than planar open states, facilitate these transitions. Finally, we compare our results for inter-duplex angle (IDA) with previous fluorescence experiments and all-atom calculations based on the AMBER force field. We find a close correspondence between the average IDA of our all-atom and coarse-grained simulations, but find that the “arms” of the junction in the 3SPN.2 model exhibit larger fluctuations, apparently due to the implicit nature of solvent and ion interactions. Our findings demonstrate that the 3SPN.2 model captures junction properties that are not presently accessible to all-atom studies, opening the possibilities to simulate complex aspects of junction behavior.
Viscoelasticity of brain corpus callosum in biaxial tension

Abstract Computational models of the brain rely on accurate constitutive relationships to model the viscoelastic behavior of brain tissue. Current viscoelastic models have been derived from experiments conducted in a single direction at a time and therefore lack information on the effects of multiaxial loading. It is also unclear if the time-dependent behavior of brain tissue is dependent on either strain magnitude or the direction of loading when subjected to tensile stresses. Therefore, biaxial stress relaxation and cyclic experiments were conducted on corpus callosum tissue isolated from fresh ovine brains. Results demonstrated the relaxation behavior to be independent of strain magnitude, and a quasi-linear viscoelastic (QLV) model was able to accurately fit the experimental data. Also, an isotropic reduced relaxation tensor was sufficient to model the stress-relaxation in both the axonal and transverse directions. The QLV model was fitted to the averaged stress relaxation tests at five strain magnitudes while using the measured strain history from the experiments. The resulting model was able to accurately predict the stresses from cyclic tests at two strain magnitudes. In addition to deriving a constitutive model from the averaged experimental data, each specimen was fitted separately and the resulting distributions of the model parameters were reported and used in a probabilistic analysis to determine the probability distribution of model predictions and the sensitivity of the model to the variance of the parameters. These results can be used to improve the viscoelastic constitutive models used in computational studies of the brain.
Creating OER: One librarian's experience with a homegrown open educational resources project

A description of a library's participation in a project to create locally produced Open Educational Resources (OERs) for use in specific classes is offered. Included is a general description of the...
Intercalation Doped Multilayer-Graphene-Nanoribbons for Next-Generation Interconnects

Copper-based interconnects employed in a wide range of integrated circuit (IC) products are fast approaching a dead-end due to their increasing resistivity and diminishing current carrying capacity with scaling, which severely degrades both performance and reliability. Here we demonstrate chemical vapor deposition-synthesized and intercalation-doped multilayer-graphene-nanoribbons (ML-GNRs) with better performance (more than 20% improvement in estimated delay per unit length), 25%/72% energy efficiency improvement at local/global level, and superior reliability w.r.t. Cu for the first time, for dimensions (down to 20 nm width and thickness of 12 nm) suitable for IC interconnects. This is achieved through a combination of GNR interconnect design optimization, high-quality ML-GNR synthesis with precisely controlled number of layers, and effective FeCl3 intercalation doping. We also demonstrate that our intercalation doping is stable at room temperature and that the doped ML-GNRs exhibit a unique width-depen...
Pi(4,5)P2 Modulates Hysteresis and Pharmacology of KV7 Channels

KV7 channels are critical components of the plasma membrane in many excitable cells. The main function of KV7 channels is to contribute to the maintenance of the resting potential, thus regulating cellular electrical excitability. In Central Nervous System, the activity of the heteromeric KV7.2/KV7.3 channel gives rise to M-currents. These K+-currents are subject to muscarinic modulation as the phosphoinositide PI(4,5)P2, a signaling lipid dephosphorylated during muscarinic activity, is required by KV7.2/KV7.3 channels to be functional. On the other hand, Corbin-Leftwich and colleagues (JGP, 2016) have recently reported that the deactivation rate of KV7.2/KV7.3 channels depends on the duration of activation. This observation revealed that this heteromeric channel displays a remarkable hysteretic behavior. In addition, it was shown that these channels have, at least, two open modes and that these modes differ in stability, as deactivation from one mode is slower than the other, and in pharmacology, as the anticonvulsant Retigabine preferentially acts on the slower-deactivating mode. Since, (1) the hysteretic behavior of KV7.2/KV7.3 depends of activity and, in turn, (2) activity depends on PI(4,5)P2, an clear next step was to determine whether PI(4,5)P2 can modulate the effect of the anticonvulsant Retigabine. In addressing this question, here, it is presented that each of the open modes of KV7.2/KV7.3 channels displays distinct apparent affinities for PI(4,5)P2. Also, it was found that decreasing the PI(4,5)P2 concentration either pharmacologically or enzymatically, reduces the effect of Retigabine on channel activity when applied in low doses. Furthermore, here it is shown that the hysteretic behavior of the KV7.2/KV7.3 channels does not emerge from being heteromeric, as the individual components display hysteretic behavior as well. The work presented here provides evidence the leads to propose that muscarinic modulation of M-current is likely dependent on the hysteretic behavior of KV7.2/KV7.3 channels.
Measurement of the 64Zn,47Ti(n,p) cross sections using a DD neutron generator for medical isotope studies

Cross sections for the 47Ti(n,p)47Sc and 64Zn(n,p)64Cu reactions have been measured for quasi-monoenergetic DD neutrons produced by the UC Berkeley High Flux Neutron Generator (HFNG). The HFNG is a compact neutron generator designed as a “flux-trap” that maximizes the probability that a neutron will interact with a sample loaded into a specific, central location. The study was motivated by interest in the production of 47Sc and 64Cu as emerging medical isotopes. The cross sections were measured in ratio to the 113In(n,n′)113mIn and 115In(n,n′)115mIn inelastic scattering reactions on co-irradiated indium samples. Post-irradiation counting using an HPGe and LEPS detectors allowed for cross section determination to within 5% uncertainty. The 64Zn(n,p)64Cu cross section for 2.76-0.02+0.01 MeV neutrons is reported as 49.3 ± 2.6 mb (relative to 113In) or 46.4 ± 1.7 mb (relative to 115In), and the 47Ti(n,p)47Sc cross section is reported as 26.26 ± 0.82 mb. The measured cross sections are found to be in good agreement with existing measured values but with lower uncertainty (<5%), and also in agreement with theoretical values. This work highlights the utility of compact, flux-trap DD-based neutron sources for nuclear data measurements and potentially the production of radionuclides for medical applications.
Argument molecules: a functional representation of argument structure

Understanding an utterance in an argument crucially requires determining the evidential relations it bears to prior and subsequent propositions in the argument (Birnbaum et al., 1980; Cohen, 1981). The memory representation of an argument should, accordingly, indicate which propositions a given proposition counts as evidence for (a support relation) or against (an attack relation), and which propositions support or attack it in turn. The representation of an argument can thus be viewed as a network of propositions connected by support or attack relations (an argument graph). Although this sort of representation can be motivated simply by the need to represent the content of an argument, it seems natural to ask whether such argument graphs might further possess any useful structural properties, abstracted from the specific propositions they relate.
The Role of Quantum Decoherence in FRET

Resonance energy transfer has become an indispensable experimental tool for single-molecule and single-cell biophysics. Its physical underpinnings, however, are subtle: it involves a discrete jump of excitation from one molecule to another, and so we regard it as a strongly quantum-mechanical process. And yet its kinetics differ from what many of us were taught about two-state quantum systems, quantum superpositions of the states do not seem to arise, and so on. Although J. R. Oppenheimer and T. Forster navigated these subtleties successfully, it remains hard to find an elementary derivation in modern language. The key step involves acknowledging quantum decoherence. Appreciating that aspect can be helpful when we attempt to extend our understanding to situations in which Forster's original analysis is not applicable.
Who Gets Ahead and Who Falls Behind During the Transition to High School? Academic Performance at the Intersection of Race/Ethnicity and Gender

Academic stratification during educational transitions may be maintained, disrupted, or exacerbated. This study marks the first to use national data to investigate how the transition to high school (re)shapes academic status at the intersection of race/ethnicity and gender. We seek to identify the role of the high school transition in shaping racial/ethnic and gender stratification by contextualizing students' academic declines during the high school transition within the longer window of their educational careers. Using Add Health, we find that white and black boys experience the greatest drops in their grade point averages (GPAs). We also find that the maintenance of high academic grades between the eighth and ninth grades varies across racial/ethnic and gender subgroups; higher-achieving middle school black boys experience the greatest academic declines. Importantly, we find that white and black boys also faced academic declines before the high school transition, whereas their female student peers experienced academic declines only during the transition to high school. We advance current knowledge on educational stratification by identifying the transition to high school as a juncture in which boys' academic disadvantage widens and high-achieving black boys lose their academic status at the high school starting gate. Our study also underscores the importance of adopting an intersectional framework that considers both race/ethnicity and gender. Given the salience of high school grades for students' long-term success, we discuss the implications of this study for racial/ethnic and gender stratification during and beyond high school.
Bromobenzene and p-bromophenol toxicity and covalent binding invivo

Abstract A hepatotoxic dose of bromobenzene (3 mmoles/kg) decreases hepatic glutathione concentration in rats by approximately 80% within 5 hr following ip injection. A major bromobenzene metabolite, p-bromophenol at a similar dose did not significantly alter hepatic glutathione levels compared to controls. Twenty four hr after administration, serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) levels were significantly increased by bromobenzene but not by p-bromophenol. After 14C-bromobenzene administration, a significant amount of covalently bound radiolabel was detected in liver, kidney and small intestine. A small amount of covalently bound radiolabel was also detected in the lung. After a similar dose of 14C-bromophenol, covalently bound radiolabel was found in liver (62% of the amount detected with 14C-bromobenzene) and smaller amounts were detected in kidney, small intestine and lung. These data are consistent with the view that the hepatotoxity and glutathione depleting ability of bromobenzene are mediated mainly by bromobenzene-3, 4-oxide rather than by chemically reactive metabolites of p-bromophenol derived from bromobenzene. Covalently bound radiolabel from 14C-bromobenzene, however, may be derived from both bromobenzene-3, 4-oxide and the nontoxic reactive metabolites of p-bromophenol.
Polymicrobial Diseases: Current and Future Research

According to the developing concept of polymicrobial diseases, some diseases in both animals and humans result from infections by multiple pathogens. In some areas, current research focuses on identifying the spectrum of etiologic agents involved. In animals, new polymicrobial diseases are likely to include poult enteritis mortality syndrome (PEMS) in turkeys, papillomatous digital dermatitis in dairy cattle, postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome in pigs, and acute interstitial pneumonia in cattle. In humans, new polymicrobial diseases may include multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, atherosclerosis, and other chronic diseases. Identification of new etiologic agents involved in polymicrobial diseases will require improved analytic tools. Rapid technological advancements will help us to define more clearly the etiology of currently described polymicrobial diseases and assist us in identifying additional polymicrobial diseases. The authors say that the field of polymicrobial diseases will continue to grow, and significant advances will be made in the future.
Nutrition in Osteogenesis Imperfecta

Specific nutrient needs of individuals with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) are not well researched. In general, standard nutrition guidelines for specific ages and genders will serve as a starting point for recommendations for individuals with OI. Certain conditions common to OI, such as short stature, limited mobility, dentinogenesis imperfecta, delayed oral-motor development in infants, and gastroesophageal reflux (GER), may require tailored nutrition recommendations. Because linear growth is variable from person to person and is dependent on the clinical severity of OI, assessment of growth may be challenging. In both children and adults, anthropometric measures such as weight for height and body mass index (BMI) may not be useful for assessing growth, proportionality, or as a marker of adequate kcaloric intake. This chapter will review general nutrition intake guidelines throughout the life cycle, and will include clinically helpful nutrition recommendations specific to OI.
Fundamental Social Motives Mediate the Associations that Dangerous and Competitive Social Worldviews Have with Ideological Attitudes

The purpose of the present study was to examine the connections that dangerous and competitive social worldviews had with the ideological attitudes of Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO). More specifically, the focus was on the possibility that the associations that these social worldviews had with ideological attitudes may be mediated by the fundamental social motives in a sample of undergraduates (N = 485; 79% female). The results revealed partial support for the hypotheses such that the association that the competitive social worldview had with RWA was mediated by the status seeking motive, the affiliation motive, and the kin care motive, whereas the association that the competitive social worldview had with SDO was mediated only by the status seeking motive. In contrast, the fundamental social motives did not mediate the association that the dangerous social worldview had with RWA. Discussion focuses on the implications of these results for understanding the role that motivation may play in the connections between social worldviews and ideological attitudes.
Sustainability for Organizational Success

While the goal of traditional capitalism is with making money, there is growing concern within and without industry about how that money is made. In this chapter, the business and organizational benefits of sustainability will be examined, along with the risks and costs of sustainability in action. Methods and models of sustainable business implementation will be examined, along with examples of companies that have implemented and benefited from sustainable business strategies. Sustainability is presented from a practical business perspective, transcending environmental and political agendas. Rather than adding cost and additional work, sustainability reduces costs, increases profitability, and introduces innovative opportunities for marketplace differentiation.
Open-Source Routines for Building Personalized Left Ventricular Models From Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging Data

Creating patient-specific models of the heart is a promising approach for predicting outcomes in response to congenital malformations, injury, or disease, as well as an important tool for developing and customizing therapies. However, integrating multi-modal imaging data to construct patient-specific models is a non-trivial task. Here, we propose an approach that employs a prolate spheroidal coordinate system to interpolate information from multiple imaging datasets and map those data onto a single geometric model of the left ventricle. We demonstrate the mapping of the location and transmural extent of post-infarction scar segmented from late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) MRI, as well as mechanical activation calculated from displacement encoding with stimulated echoes (DENSE) MRI. As a supplement to this article, we provide MATLAB and Python versions of the routines employed here for download from SimTK (https://simtk.org/projects/lvdatamap).
A Stereocomplementary Approach to β-Lactones: Highly Diastereoselective Synthesis of cis-β-Lactones, a β-Chloro Acid, and a Tetrahydrofuran

In the course of mechanistic studies of the ZnCl2-mediated tandem Mukaiyama aldol−lactonization reaction of aldehydes and thiopyridyl ketene acetals, a stereocomplementary reaction employing SnCl4 was discovered. This method provides a highly diastereoselective entry to cis-1,2-disubstituted β-lactones as well as a β-chloro carboxylic acid and a tetrahydrofuran. The former products were obtained by varying the reaction temperature. The latter product was obtained when the aldehyde substrate bore a pendant silyl ether.
Dynamic properties of aqueous electrolyte solutions from non-polarisable, polarisable, and scaled-charge models

We investigated the dynamic properties of alkali halide solutions (NaCl, NaF, NaBr, NaI, LiCl, and KCl) using molecular dynamics simulations and several non-polarisable, polarisable, and scaled-cha...
Costs of Oral Complications of Cancer Therapies: Estimates and a Blueprint for Future Study

Oral complications of cancer treatment are common; however, their clinical and economic importance is often underappreciated. We reviewed the literature on the economic implications of oral complications, updating a previous report in the predecessor to this issue. We searched the Medline and Scopus databases for papers published as of December 31, 2017 that described the economic consequences of preventing and managing oral complications and reviewed the literature reporting the costs of oral mucositis, xerostomia, and osteonecrosis. Cost estimates were inflated to 2017 US dollars. We identified 16 papers describing the cost of managing mucositis, eight describing the cost of osteoradionecrosis, one describing the cost of bisphosphonate-associate osteonecrosis of the jaw, and four describing the cost of xerostomia. The incremental cost of oral mucositis was approximately $5000-$30 000 among patients receiving radiation therapy and $3700 per cycle among patients receiving chemotherapy. The incremental cost of mucositis-related hospitalization among stem cell transplant recipients exceeded $70 000. Conservative management of osteoradionecrosis (antibiotics, debridement) costs $4000-$35 000, although estimates as high as $74 000 have been reported. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy may add $10 000-$50 000 to the cost of therapy. Sialogogues are required for years for the management of xerostomia at a cost of $40-$200 per month. Serious (hospitalization, hyperbaric oxygen therapy) or long-term (sialogogues) outcomes are the major drivers of cost. Future research should address patients' out-of-pocket costs and the costs of oral complications of new treatments. Multisite studies, particularly those conducted by cooperative groups, should be prioritized.
Volume-Based Protocol Improves Delivery of Enteral Nutrition in Critically Ill Trauma Patients.

Background Critically ill patients on enteral nutrition (EN) often do not receive goal nutrition support. Factors impeding delivery of EN include interruption for procedures, tube dislodgement, and high gastric residuals. A volume-based feeding protocol (VP) is designed to adjust the infusion rate to compensate for interruptions. We hypothesize that implementation of a VP would increase delivery of EN over the conventional hourly rate method (CM). Methods This study compared patients on CM to those on VP. The primary outcome measured was percentage of goal EN delivered during the entire intensive care unit (ICU) stay. Inclusion criteria for the study consisted of patients aged >18 years, traumatic mechanism of injury and admission to the ICU >72 hours, hemodynamic stability to receive EN per the trauma ICU standard of practice, and EN via nasogastric or post-pyloric feeding tube. Results We evaluated 227 patients over a 20-month period. Seventy-nine patients in the VP group were compared with the control group of 148 patients. Patients on VP received a significantly higher percentage of goal EN than those on CM (73.3% vs 65%, P = .0002). There was no difference in the incidence of diarrhea (CM 4.16% vs VP 5.19%; P = .29) or tube dislodgment (CM 2.04% vs VP 1.61%; P = .51). Conclusion Implementation of a VP significantly increased delivery of EN by 8.3% over that given by the CM in critically ill trauma patients with no difference in feeding-related complications.
Cost-Effectiveness of Multigene Pharmacogenetic Testing in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Abstract Objective To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of multigene testing (CYP2C19, SLCO1B1, CYP2C9, VKORC1) compared with single-gene testing (CYP2C19) and standard of care (no genotyping) in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) from Medicare’s perspective. Methods A hybrid decision tree/Markov model was developed to simulate patients post-PCI for ACS requiring antiplatelet therapy (CYP2C19 to guide antiplatelet selection), statin therapy (SLCO1B1 to guide statin selection), and anticoagulant therapy in those that develop atrial fibrillation (CYP2C9/VKORC1 to guide warfarin dose) over 12 months, 24 months, and lifetime. The primary outcome was cost (2016 US dollar) per quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained. Costs and QALYs were discounted at 3% per year. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA) varied input parameters (event probabilities, prescription costs, event costs, health-state utilities) to estimate changes in the cost per QALY gained. Results Base-case–discounted results indicated that the cost per QALY gained was $59 876, $33 512, and $3780 at 12 months, 24 months, and lifetime, respectively, for multigene testing compared with standard of care. Single-gene testing was dominated by multigene testing at all time horizons. PSA-discounted results indicated that, at the $50 000/QALY gained willingness-to-pay threshold, multigene testing had the highest probability of cost-effectiveness in the majority of simulations at 24 months (61%) and over the lifetime (81%). Conclusions On the basis of projected simulations, multigene testing for Medicare patients post-PCI for ACS has a higher probability of being cost-effective over 24 months and the lifetime compared with single-gene testing and standard of care and could help optimize medication prescribing to improve patient outcomes.
Effect of Comprehensive Care Coordination on Medicaid Expenditures Compared With Usual Care Among Children and Youth With Chronic Disease: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance Medicaid spending on children and young adults with chronic disease could be decreased through care coordination programs by reducing unnecessary hospital and emergency care. Objective To assess whether a comprehensive care coordination program reduces Medicaid expenditures by decreasing hospital and emergency department (ED) utilization. Design, Setting, and Participants This randomized clinical trial included 6259 children and young adults with chronic disease who received public insurance through Illinois Medicaid. In April 2016, eligible youth were randomized to receive comprehensive care coordination through the Coordinated Healthcare for Complex Kids (CHECK) program (n = 3126) or usual care (n = 3119) to measure the effect of the CHECK program on Medicaid expenditures and health care utilization using a difference-in-differences (DID) approach. Data were collected from May 1, 2014, to April 30, 2017, and analyzed in May 2018. Interventions Care coordination, mental health care, education, and social support were provided to CHECK participants and their family members. Services were tailored based on family and participant need. Main Outcomes and Measures Mean annual Medicaid expenditures, mean annual health care utilization by category (ED and inpatient), and chronic disease type and risk level. Results A total of 6259 participants (mean [SD] age, 11.3 [6.4] years; 2918 [46.6%] female; 2594 [41.4%] with medium and high risk) were randomized. Following the exclusion of 14 outliers, 6245 participants were analyzed. The mean (SD) annual Medicaid expenditure before the intervention was $1633 ($4006) for the intervention group and $1703 ($4466) for the usual care group, which decreased to a mean (SD) of $1341 ($3004) and $1413 ($3785), respectively, after the intervention (DID, −$1; 95% CI, −$199 to $196;P = .99). The mean (SD) inpatient utilization before the intervention was 63.0 (344.4) per 1000 person-years (PYs) for the intervention group and 69.3 (370.9) per 1000 PYs for the usual care group, which decreased to 43.5 (297.2) per 1000 PYs and 47.8 (304.9) per 1000 PYs, respectively, after the intervention (DID, 2.0; 95% CI, −17.9 to 21.8;P = .85). Among participants with asthma, those in the intervention group had a greater mean (SD) decrease in ED utilization compared with usual care, but the difference was not significant (−225.9 [65.3] vs −104.5 [80.0] visits per 1000 PY; DID, −121.5; 95% CI, −268.9 to 26.0;P = .11). Similarly, enrolled participants with sickle cell disease had a smaller but not significant mean (SD) increase in ED utilization compared with usual care (583.3 [839.0] vs 3761.9 [4611.2] visits per 1000 PYs; DID, −3178.6; 95% CI, −10 724.3 to 4367.2;P = .41). Conclusions and Relevance Overall Medicaid expenditures and health care utilization (hospital and ED) decreased similarly for both CHECK participants and the usual care group. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier:NCT04057521
Outcome of Peritoneal Catheter Placement in the High-Risk Patient:

Serious early complications of catheter insertion and catheter outcomes are compared in patients with or without a history of major abdominal surgery or peritonitis. Previous major surgery and peri...
Epidemic situation of malaria in Lishui City from 2013 to 2018

Objective To analyze the epidemic situation and epidemiological characteristics of malaria in Lishui City from 2013 to 2018, so as to provide the evidence for formulating the malaria control strategy. Methods The data pertaining malaria cases in Lishui City from 2013 to 2018 were captured from National Notifiable Communicable Disease Reporting System and the Information System for Parasitic Diseases Control and Prevention, and the epidemiological features of malaria cases were analyzed. Results A total of 119 malaria cases were reported in Lishui City from 2013 to 2018, including 101 cases with falciparum malaria (84.87%), 6 cases with vivax malaria (5.04%), 8 cases with ovale malaria (6.72%), and 4 cases with mixed infection (3.36%). Among the 119 cases, there were one local case with blood transfusion-induced malaria and 118 cases with over- seas imported malaria. There were 98.32% of the imported malaria cases acquiring infection in African countries, and most cases were reported in Qingtian County (60.50%) and Liandu District (22.69%). In addition, 86.55% of the malaria cases were detected in individuals at ages of 20 to 50 years, and most cases were found in oversea workers (52.94%) and businessmen (38.65%). Conclusion Most of the malaria cases in Lishui City are imported from Africa, and the monitoring and health education pertaining to malaria control knowledge requires to be intensified among high-risk populations. ［摘要］ 目的 分析2013—2018年丽水市疟疾疫情及流行特征, 为疟疾防控提供参考依据。 方法 通过中国疾病预防 控制信息系统传染病报告信息管理系统和寄生虫病防治信息管理系统, 收集、分析2013—2018年丽水市疟疾报告病例 的流行病学资料。 结果 2013—2018 年, 丽水市共报告疟疾病例119 例, 其中恶性疟101 例 (84.87%) 、间日疟6 例 (5.04%) 、卵形疟8例 (6.72%) 、混合感染4例 (3.36%) 。1例为因输血感染的本地病例, 118例为境外感染的输入性病例。输入性病例感染地以非洲国家为主, 占98.32%。报告病例较多的地区为青田县和莲都区, 分别占60.50%和22.69%; 患者多为20～50岁青壮年 (86.55%), 职业主要为赴境外务工和经商人员, 分别占52.94%和38.65%。 结论 丽水市疟疾疫 情仍以非洲输入性病例为主, 应加强赴境外务工等高风险人群监测以及疟疾防控知识健康教育等工作。
Point load testing to more effectively measure bedrock strength

Kristin Chilton describes the use of point load testing in measuring bedrock strength and its application to geomorphology.
Learning Strategic Representations: Exploring the Effects of Taking a Strategy Course

Despite the popularity of strategy courses and the fact that managers make consequential decisions using ideas they learn in such courses, little is known about the effects of taking a course in st...
“The Only Thing Red About Her”: Personal Intertextual Palimpsests in Lucille Ball’s HUAC Testimony

Lucille Ball’s 1953 testimony to the House Un-American Activities Committee is a rhetorical puzzle. How was a woman with documented Communist affiliation able to avoid being blacklisted? The intert...
Effects of multilayer thin film coatings on different thermochromic materials for thermal storage applications

A significantly large amount of thermal energy is lost from or gained in buildings as a result of solar radiation. A comfortable temperature can be maintained by correctly designing and arranging a building’s windows and smart roof coatings. Single layer or multilayer thin film coatings, with spectrally desirable characteristics, are deposited on glass or roof surfaces and can greatly improve a building’s energy efficiency. Thermochromic materials present some advantages due to their reversible color and phase change behavior near ambient temperature. For example, a thermochromic coating on a roof’s surface can change color (black to white) reversibly when heated at around 30 °C, reflecting solar radiation and reducing a building’s cooling needs. In the present study, various thermochromic coatings on glass slides are investigated. In this work, the effect of non-toxic titanium dioxide (TiO2), used as a UV radiation protective coating on thermochromic particles (such as a three-component blue dye synthesized in the lab or a commercially available black dye), is discussed. The composite coatings of the chosen components can reduce a building’s cooling and heating energy needs and provide an environmentally sustainable solution for a green economy. Several physico-chemical characterization techniques were used to understand the surface, interfacial, spectroscopic, and thermal behavior of TiO2 or SiO2 coatings and phase change thermochromic materials for applications in thermal storage and enhanced energy efficiency.
Association Between Neighborhood Disadvantage and Functional Well-being in Community-Living Older Persons

Importance Neighborhood disadvantage is a novel social determinant of health that could adversely affect the functional well-being of older persons. Deficiencies in resource-poor environments can potentially be addressed through social and public health interventions. Objective To evaluate whether estimates of active and disabled life expectancy differ on the basis of neighborhood disadvantage after accounting for individual-level socioeconomic characteristics and other prognostic factors. Design, Setting, and Participants This prospective longitudinal cohort study included 754 nondisabled community-living persons, aged 70 years or older, who were members of the Precipitating Events Project in south central Connecticut from March 1998 to June 2020. Main Outcomes and Measures Disability in 4 essential activities of daily living (bathing, dressing, walking, and transferring) was assessed each month. Scores on the Area Deprivation Index, a census-based socioeconomic measure with 17 education, employment, housing quality, and poverty indicators, were obtained through linkages with the 2000 Neighborhood Atlas. Area Deprivation Index scores were dichotomized at the 80th state percentile to distinguish neighborhoods that were disadvantaged (81-100) from those that were not (1-80). Results Among the 754 participants, the mean (SD) age was 78.4 (5.3) years, and 487 (64.6%) were female. Within 5-year age increments from 70 to 90, active life expectancy was consistently lower in participants from neighborhoods that were disadvantaged vs not disadvantaged, and these differences persisted and remained statistically significant after adjustment for individual-level race and ethnicity, education, income, and other prognostic factors. At age 70 years, adjusted estimates (95% CI) for active life expectancy (in years) were 12.3 (11.5-13.1) in the disadvantaged group and 14.2 (13.5-14.7) in the nondisadvantaged group. At each age, participants from disadvantaged neighborhoods spent a greater percentage of their projected remaining life disabled, relative to those from nondisadvantaged neighborhoods, with adjusted values (SE) ranging from 17.7 (0.8) vs 15.3 (0.5) at age 70 years to 55.0 (1.7) vs 48.1 (1.3) at age 90 years. Conclusions and Relevance In this prospective longitudinal cohort study, living in a disadvantaged neighborhood was associated with lower active life expectancy and a greater percentage of projected remaining life with disability. By addressing deficiencies in resource-poor environments, new or expanded social and public health initiatives have the potential to improve the functional well-being of community-living older persons and, in turn, reduce health disparities in the US.
つづみ形π 錯体の化学 (その2) -とくにその生化学的な意義-

前報で解説したように遷移金属π錯体の触媒化学における重要性を確立するとともに, 生体内の金属酵素作用における金属の果す役割には, π錯体機構が含まれているであろうと推定して, 複雑な生化学的物質のπ錯体を合成した。この結果, 生体内では安定で生体外では不安定なビタミンA, β-カロチンおよびリコピンのような高度不飽和化合物がπ錯体として生体外でも安定化される事実を見いだした。またチロシナーゼの酵素作用は銅によるπ錯体作用が重要な役割をしていると思われる結果を得た。金属ボルフィリンも同様にその生化学的機作においてπ錯体機構が重要な役割をなすと思われるが, 著者らはその事実を認めて, 酸素担体としてのヘモグロビン中の鉄イオンがその過程において2価イオンで原子価を変えないのは酸素分子と2価鉄イオンとのπ結合によるものと推定している。
Arrhythmias After Surgery

The following is an overview of rhythm disturbances noted throughout the stages of surgical reconstruction for hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). A discussion of arrhythmias associated with HLHS can be divided into those occurring prior to surgical intervention, as well as those associated with each sequential palliation, in that each intervention leads to significant and specific changes in hemodynamics, and introduces new suture lines and incisions into the heart. An alternative approach is to subdivide arrhythmias into those observed in the perioperative period and those that are more chronic in nature. Early arrhythmias are generally those that occur within the first 30 postoperative days, while late arrhythmias are those described thereafter. Factors associated with varying reported rates of arrhythmia occurrence include the specific anatomic variations, timing of diagnosis, degree of illness at the time of diagnosis, surgical technique, and the age at time of surgery.
The herpes simplex virus type I origin binding protein. DNA-dependent nucleoside triphosphatase activity.

Abstract A recombinant baculovirus overexpressing the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) origin binding protein, encoded by the UL9 gene, was constructed. The purified recombinant protein has DNA-dependent nucleoside triphosphatase activity similar to the enzyme isolated from mammalian cells. Optimal nucleoside triphosphatase activity requires low salt (< 50 mM), 2-3 mM Mg2+, alkaline pH (8.3-9.5), high temperature (45 degrees C), and a single-stranded DNA coeffector containing minimal secondary structure. Enzymatic activity is subject to product inhibition, and there appears to be a single nucleotide binding site. The minimal length of single-stranded DNA that elicits enzymatic activity is 14 nucleotides, and activity increases as the length is increased. Saturation for various single-stranded DNA coeffectors is about 10 microM in nucleotide, but the maximum velocity is reduced 2-3-fold for coeffectors containing secondary structure. The HSV-1-encoded single-stranded DNA-binding protein ICP8 specifically stimulates the DNA-dependent nucleoside triphosphatase activity. The kinetics of nucleoside triphosphate hydrolysis exhibit a substantial lag period which can be shortened, but not eliminated, by reduced secondary structure in the DNA coeffector or by increased temperature.
Experimental autoimmune dacryoadenitis. II. Harderian gland disease in the rat.

Experimental autoimmune dacryoadenitis was produced in Lewis rats by immunization with a single intradermal administration of a 3M KCl extract of exorbital lacrimal gland in CFA, when enhanced by simultaneous i.v. injection of killed Bordetella pertussis. No significant lacrimal lesions were observed in control animals immunized with the extracts of Harderian or salivary glands. Gel filtration of the 3M KCl extract on Sephacryl S-300 column yielded three protein fractions. Only fraction III (MW = 10-55K) induced marked dacryoadenitis following a single injection of 2.0 mg protein in CFA plus pertussis. The infiltrates in the exorbital lacrimal lesions were first apparent around the ducts and associated vasculature. From this area, the infiltrates appeared to spread to the acini drained by these ducts, ultimately involving as much as 30-50% of the gland. The affected glands most commonly showed a diffuse nongranulomatous infiltrate of small lymphocytes, macrophages, and plasma cells; this was focal in nature, involving acinar atrophy and breakdown, and replaced the normal architecture in extreme cases. The Harderian and salivary glands were uninvolved in these animals, suggesting a restricted specificity of this response. Lewis rats immunized with exorbital lacrimal gland fractions I or II in CFA plus pertussis showed only minimal lesions, similar to controls receiving CFA and pertussis without antigen. These findings suggest that an autoantigen exists in the lacrimal gland of the rat that is capable of inducing a specific lymphoproliferative dacryoadenitis.
Chemical effects of fission recoils—IV: Temperature distribution in the tracks

Abstract The temperature in the track of a 235U fission recoil is probed by utilizing the difference in the heats of formation of the isopropyl and normal propyl radicals ( 3.6 kcal mol ). End products of the reactions of the isomeric propyl radicals are analyzed in the radiolysis of gaseous propane and a mixture of methane, ammonia and propane with λ rays or fission recoils at the same density. The product distribution is independent of density in the λ radiolysis while it varies in the fission recoil radiolysis in a manner suggesting an increase in temperature with density. Kinetic analysis leads to an “effective” temperature, which is a time average of a localized temperature from the time of particle passage until end product formation. The “effective temperature” varies approximately linearly with density from ambient at 5 g L to 40°C above ambient at 100 g L . This is much lower than the rise calculated by assuming that the track region is heated adiabatically by the entire energy lost by the fission recoil. This is ascribed to diffusive migration of the initially produced species during the physico-chemical stage for a finite relaxation interval. This model suggests a relaxation interval of 2x10−10 sec.
Wealth-loss to Investors from Taxation of Investment Returns

Since most countries impose significant levels of taxes on the returns from investments, it is important to understand the nature of the burden that such taxation imposes upon investors. This paper derives and analyzes expressions for the tax-burden imposed on an investor in terms of the loss of his initial wealth. These previously-unavailable explicit expressions for the loss are intuitive and informationally highly parsimonious. Surprisingly, the loss does not depend on the nature of the investor's risk aversion, or on any aspect of the risky assets (e.g., the number of these assets, or their distribution of returns). I also show that: (i) any given tax on investment returns is identical in its burden on investors to a proportional tax on their initial wealths, (ii) the latter tax rate depends solely on the former tax rate and the riskless return, and hence (iii) the latter tax rate is the same for all investors regardless of their characteristics and the set of risky assets available to them.
Parallel molecular dynamics simulations for short-ranged many-body potentials☆

A new method is described that permits the efficient execution of parallel molecular dynamics simulations for irregular problems with several thousands of atoms on Single-Instruction Multiple-Data computers. The approach is based on a data-parallel atomic decomposition scheme and has overall time-complexity O(N) , where N is the size of the system. The method has been implemented on a MasPar MP-1 computer and was found to obey theoretical timing estimates. The methodology has wide applicability and can be ported to other architectures in a straightforward manner.
Thalidomide in multiple myeloma

Abstract Thalidomide – removed from widespread clinical use by 1962 because of severe teratogenicity – has anti-angiogenic and immunomodulatory effects, including the inhibition of TNF alpha. It has returned to practice as an effective oral agent in the management of various disease states including erythema nodosum leprosum, for which it was FDA-approved in 1998, and more recently certain malignancies, including multiple myeloma. Whilst the mechanism of action of thalidomide remains incompletely understood, considerable insight has been generated by extensive preclinical studies in multiple myeloma. Moreover, clinical trials both as a single agent and in combination have confirmed benefit in relapsed and refractory disease. Thalidomide’s role in treating newly diagnosed patients is currently under study and it is now established as an important therapeutic option in the treatment of multiple myeloma.
Desorption Electrospray Ionization Using a Porous Alumina Surface

Desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) is a technique used for direct sampling of a sample or an analyte deposited on a surface under ambient conditions [1]. In DESI, ionized droplets of a spray are directed towards the sample causing desorption of ions due to exchange of charge and momentum. The resulting ions are carried into an ion trap mass spectrometer and analyzed. DESI was originally demonstrated by Takats et al. [1]. They described the new method and applied the same to analyze various compounds present on a variety of surfaces. Followed by this, several researchers [1–5] have investigated on DESI for a wide range of applications including analysis of pharmaceuticals, explosives detection, natural products discovery and in vivo clinical analysis. Recently, Kauppila et al [5] have introduced porous silicon (pSi) and ultra-thin layer chromatography (UTLC) plates for DESI-MS. Similar or improved sensitivities were obtained with pSi and UTLC surfaces as compared to PMMA and PTFE surfaces. This work presents use of a nanoporous alumina surface [6] for DESI – MS. The DESI – MS performance of nanoporous alumina surface is compared with that of PMMA, which is a popular surface in previous DESI-MS experiments. Optimized operating conditions were determined for the surfaces using BSA tryptic digest as the sample. The results show that the nanoporous alumina surface offers significantly higher ion intensity as compared to the other surfaces.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
A shrinking technique for complex object decomposition

A shrinking technique is described for the segmentation of a 2D complex object, represented by a binary array, into compact subobjects. A novel feature of the technique is that it uses the distance values on the skeleton of the object to estimate the number of shrinking steps needed in order to decompose the object.